Naruto 1. Chapter 1

This was a little story for a dear friend of mine, who gave me some very sound advice: Get your damn ass in gear girl, and write me that story from a month ago like you said you would!

From modern-wonder to all of you-I own nothing, nada, zilch. If I did Naruto would be able to do more amazing techniques.

_lalala-_ thoughts

**Lalala-**jinchurikii thoughts/talking

**Destined for it**

Chapter one:

When we became friends!

The happy sounds of the academy courtyard made Naru wince.

It wouldn't have been so bad if she just didn't have to see nor hear the young academy children. It was a complete mess, parents dropping children off, older genin and chunin entering and exiting the large building. All of this wouldn't have been so bad if said people had been wearing less clashing colors and exhibiting less volume.

_Seriously, who wears black and gold socks with purple gloves. _Naru shook her head and glared into the empty space, effectively stopping her mental rant.

To an outsiders view, Naru would appear to be a smiling idiot. Just as she wanted, no- needed to appear as. The world was a cruel place, full of degradation and needled in self-doubt. She sighed as she felt her mask waver just ever so slightly. It had taken quite a bit of her time to build this particular façade and to find it slipping, even slightly, caused a healthy smidgen of fear to encirculate her very being.

Naru sighed and felt the need to mentally smack herself silly with all the undo sighing and moping. Gosh if she kept this up she would soon be competing with the Uchiha-teme.

Dressed in a upbeat outfit consisting of battered boy shorts and a white tee-shirt, Naru bravely stood off the swing she had commandeered for the sake of peace. _That did absolutely nothing. _Her murderess mind didn't get the memo apparently. She had rules that needed to be followed and acted on without the habit formed self loathing shown in the older minds of peace.

Naru could not fail, and knew in her own mind that she wasn't going too. But god she wanted a friend, someone like her, who didn't fit anywhere. Someone who would stand by her side and she theirs.

_Oh, who am I kidding. Like there is anyone left in this kami- forsaken village that would actually care about being my friend._

If Naru had actually not believed her own words, she would have knocked-on-wood.

Hyuuga Hinata was a shy girl by nature and because of it, caused her to develop a lack of confidence in herself and her abilities. It had nothing to do with her inability to fight or show support, yet it slowed down any progress with her family in making them see herself, rather than the weak little girl they ridiculed at their leisure.

Looking out at the well-lit and quite noisy courtyard, Hinata honestly wondered why her father-the clan head- wanted to send her here.

There was nothing physically wrong with the place, yet it seemed to ooze an aura that sent barely noticeable shivers down her spine. It felt disgusted and neglected and if Hinata had been just that much less of a budding strong young girl, she would have run home and hid under the bed.

Flashes of intricate clothing flowed around her as she sat by some flowers near the gate. Some were interesting to the eye, but lacked the flair of someone who wanted to be noticed and for that colors, such as brown and blacks, it felt more faded. Just like the academy where she would be attending.

Hinata had never felt so alone as she did right then.

In her self-loathing thought Hinata never seemed to realize the presence right behind her until it spoke in a slightly raspy-if not sarcastic-voice.

"hey, what the hell are you doing?"

Hinata turned and gasped.

Naru walked listlessly through the throngs of people who seemed uninspired to touch her. _Thank god for small miracles._

Being the social pariah did have some small graces, it had too, how else would anyone explain the mess that was her life. No one was energetic nor patient enough to deal with her violent mood swings and sarcastic countenance, this wouldn't have been so bad if she also didn't have larger chakra reserves and stamina then most seasoned jonin.

The lucky life of Uzumaki Naru-with new added sarcasm and unparallel wit. What a joke.

In the chronically depressing thoughts Naru barely had time to move out of the way before she tripped on some girl sitting next to some flower's.

Naru was angry that she didn't watch where she was going and more angry at herself then the girl next to her, yet that didn't stop Naru from putting her foot in her mouth.

"hey, what the hell are you doing?" Naru growled out at her and then immediately flinched at the gasp and look of sadness and shock from the girl.

_Way to go Naru, you can be such an ass at times._ mentally putting her thoughts on hold she kept up her thoughtful look.

The girl looked like she was having an internal war with her fight or flight response and flight was winning by a landslide. She was shaking like a leaf and seemed to be trying to burrow deeper into her light lavender jacket, which was coincidently the same color as her pupil less eyes.

Naru waited for the girl for what seemed like hours before a tiny sorry was uttered and then the girl promptly fainted. What a great way to get to know someone. You talk to them and then they become unconscious.

_Maybe I should go and get a sensei or a reliable adult, or I could walk away and forget I met her. Tough choice. I wonder what I'm going to choose? _Naru weighed her options and frowned. _Damn you morals._

Hinata woke up to a eye smarting blur of orange in her field of vision.

The color was not practical to being in a shinobi environment, where blacks and browns made up the color scale on more then many accounts. Yet the brightness of orange made the wearer seem bold and unique, bringing out a hidden strength in the happy color. It reminded Hinata of sun kissed fruits and fierce battles of the old days. Daring and beautiful, yet altogether dangerously misleading.

The monotony of the shinobi world weighs heavily on the mind and body, creating shinobi who were eccentric and out of line in some cases. This was mannerly brought out upon by those who didn't become shinobi and thus had no knowledge of the inner workings of the mind of someone who had killed more then they wrote their own name.

Hinata understood, the need for friendship and that was what the color orange seemed to represent-peace in battle, harmony in injustice, friendship with your enemy. All important yet judged by those who no nothing.

It was sad for the young konoichi-in-training, but a small price for the facts of many things she would face. Hinata wanted to flee, but where would she go? Nobody cared for her and nobody would care if she never came home.

Someone cleared their throat bringing Hinata to awareness. "ah, finally awake. You passed out and I got one of the sensei's to take us to the academy infirmary… I'm really sorry for scaring you and would like to wonder if you would like to start over… My name's Uzumaki Naru- future female Hokage !"

Hinata desperately tried to clear the last remnants of sleep from her eyes and nearly groaned when she couldn't._ Naru-san must think I'm useless too._ the sadness surrounding her must have been sensed because through the hazy expanse of her vision Hinata felt that she was being frowned upon.

Clearing her throat, Hinata hurried to let the other girl know who she was- she had the feeling of someone who didn't like to be ignored and dealt out punishment with a chakra infused fist and pair of brass balls.

"m-my name i-is Hyuuga Hinata, I-I want t-too chan-change my c-clan." Hinata had never felt so nervous, not even when she had to be near her father, Neji nor her younger sister. She nearly died when Naru spoke out at her.

"you need to work on that stutter Hinata, and call me Naru, no _san_ at all please. Just Naru." a glare was directed towards her, probably to stun her into submission.

Hinata gave a shaky smile and Naru gave a wide Cheshire grin.

Hinata felt happy as they talked about everything and nothing. Learning new things about each other such as-

Naru lived alone and was an orphan.

Hinata was considered weak and useless by her family,.

Naru loved ramen and gambling.

Hinata had a passion for cinnamon buns and pressing flowers.

Naru's favorite hobbies were gambling, pranking, gardening and cooking.

Hinata's favorite hobbies were pressing flowers, gardening and cooking, and creating new poems.

They both shared a unique pursuit of espionage, writing and making stories, and dango.

They quickly became best friends after that and talked and laughed while they waited for the nurse- or lazy hag as Naru called her-to arrive. That was the best forty minutes of their lives. But like all great things they had to end some time and both Hinata and her new friend understood this-it didn't make it easier for them but at least they didn't complain (much) out loud.

The walk was completely uneventful, but it gave them some more time together before the headed into the room that would soon become like a second home to them.

The old, plain door seemed to house a million and one reasons not to go through with this idea of becoming a shinobi and Naru had never truly wanted to leave at that moment then she had in all her life.

Sounds flitted behind the plain brown wood, a young but mature voice called for silence that seemed so forthcoming. Silence was all that was left behind as the nurse walked into the room, probably to talk with the chunin sensei inside-alerting them that their was two young students outside.

Naru felt herself becoming nervous and yet very excited. This is what she begged the Hokage for…the chance to become a shinobi and prove to everyone that she wasn't a monster. Beside her Hinata showed a resolute face brought on for the need to show that she was competent and not a failure. Naru felt proud and let it show for a second before she put on a blank, aggressive stare.

This was show time and god dammit she and Hinata were going to put on one hell of an act!

Umino Iruka had killed before as had his friends. It was a part of being a shinobi and although he would not like to admit it, it was one of the more stable aspects in the world of shadows. Though only in his twenty's, Iruka had become a successful chunin as had his partner Mizuki, both were not considered naturally high up in the brackets, but both had their own reasons for not moving on.

For Iruka that was the fact that he abhorred taking life. This was mainly due to the fact that he watched his parents die when the nine tails went mad and attacked.

Which now brought up a whole new set of problems.

The nurse stood a few steps away from him and whispered that the Hyuuga heiress and the Kyuubi brat were waiting outside. She seemed smug that she knew who the girls were and made Iruka internally wince at the blatant look of loathing and hatred she practically oozed. He rubbed his scar on his nose, it made him angry that the fox girl was going into his class. What if she got to the clan heirs and killed or corrupted them?

He felt the irrational need to ignore the problem and hoped it failed so he could get rid of it.

Dismissing the women, he called for silence again and walked to the door to beckon the two young girls into the room. He eyed them both shrewdly when the walked past him to the front of the class.

The Hyuuga heiress wore a light lavender jacket over a black tank top with dark blue shinobi pants. She wore the slandered blue shinobi sandals as well. She had her hair cropped in a small A-line with her bangs framing past her chin. All in all she looked well brought up and polite.

The other girl- the fox brat was a different matter.

Wearing a dark blue vest-like jacket over a bright orange tank top with matching arm gloves up to the elbow. She wore black shinobi pants with dark orange slashes on the right thigh. Her hair was a blood red color and put up in a million little braids that went down to her lower back. At the top of her head they were gathered into a tight ponytail. Her blue eyes showed nothing on what she was feeling making her that much more intimidating.

The whisker marks didn't help.

Iruka ignored the classes general looks of 'what the hell is this shit', and instead motioned for the two girls to give their names and gestured them to sit down when they were done.

Iruka sighed, why couldn't he have just stayed in the field. The others didn't have to deal with this chaos.

"please introduce yourselves for the class." Iruka looked for his partner, Mizuki and nearly let out of huff of irritation when he didn't see him. Smug bastard, leaving when he needed him the most.

Naru felt herself wanting to release a pent-up growl of annoyance.

The sensei had just motioned them in when he looked at her and Hinata as if the were gum on the ground. What right did he presume to have to be an ass towards them, her she could at least understand, but Hinata was a whole different story. He was seriously courting an ass kicking and Naru was more then willing to deliver.

Fingering the tight material of her gloves, Naru surveyed the entirety of the small class. And groaned inaudibly.

Over twenty civilian born children ogled a boy with moderate long-spiky black hair. His black eyes met hers and she watched as they flashed with their own annoyance. There were some other clan children in the class and Naru felt she could breathe just that much easier. Hopefully they weren't all stuck in fangirlism or had their heads so far up their asses they were blind to simple truths.

Naru felt a shift in the air next to her as Hinata went to stand by her. It was a nervous action, used to protect ones self, but it gave Naru a sense of exasperation and pride.

Exasperation because she knew Hinata could be strong to fight her own battles and Pride because she trusted Naru enough to protect her when she felt cornered.

The eyes of their new sensei filled her with an anger she desperately wanted to let out, but held back anyways for simple reasons: one, Neither she nor Hinata had enough training to fight off a chunin, let alone defeat him. Two, she knew he was just waiting for her to slip up so he could complain to the Hokage that both girls were in no way competent enough to become konoichi.

Knowing this Naru was disinclined to hold off on her impluses. She would not be the one to ruin both Hinatas and her dreams.

"please introduce yourselves for the class."

Naru saw the sensei motion for them to step up front and get on with the introductions so he could begin teaching. _well ain't that just great and fucking dandy, stupid sensei, why the hell should I be forced to put myself and Hinata through this hell born task._

Stepping up to the metaphorical batters plate, Naru took a cursory glance around. Her eyes half closed gave her a lazy projection. Like one of those large jungle cats that you just saw waking up from a nap, all lazy but ready to slice you a new one if you alerted them of you presence.

A strange aura began to fill the room, and everybody present nearly went into a comatose state, all except a certain Nara, he was already in one before the class had started.

Looking at her class Naru smirked, this was oh too easy.

Hinata watched as her first friend and who she could say with slight confidence was her best friend, sat exuding a dark yet powerful aura, and wondered why it wasn't effecting her.

She sighed as Naru gave a foxy smirk to the near fainting class, she sure chose her opposite to be her friend then brightened up as she realized she was truly glad for that fact. Hinata smiled shyly to some of the more awake girls as best as she knew how, and frowned in sadness as they glared back.

She gave a slight look of shock as Naru watched the exchange with narrowed eyes. A more sadistic look flew gently over her face, making the orange loving girl seem more at peace.

It was awe-inspirering and terrifying to watch, like looking into the personal mind of a being of higher power and understanding.

Just as quickly as it appeared it vanished making Hinata fell for just a few seconds that she imagined it.

Looking back at the crowed she saw Naru take in a breath of air before she spoke, trying to desperately keep her voice in a acceptable range and not yell at or kill some of the student environment.

"my name is Uzumaki Naru, I like pranks, ramen, and my best friend Hinata, so lay off or you deal with me if not herself, got it?" Growled out the calm voice of someone about to fly off the deep end. Hinata giggled internally as her fellow classmates trembled in unrestrained terror.

Walking over to Naru, Hinata gave a small bow to the class, before addressing herself. "m-my name i-is Hyuga Hinata-a, I-I like pr-pressing flower-rs and eating cinnamon-n bun-ns, I like m-my best friend Naru."

she felt uncomfortable around so many people and sad that she gave her first class impression that she was a weak stuttering fool.

Not really listening as Iruka-sensei told her to find a seat and sit, she walked limply over to a empty table in the back by a window and chose a seat for both her and Naru, and watched blankly as the class started up on its first lecture: how to become a surviving shinobi, and simply waited for something to do with being outside.

_This is going to be a long four years._

Beside her, Naru nodded her head along, as if she heard Hinatas thoughts and was mentally supporting and agreeing.


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter 2:

It could have been worse!

"Three hours. Three fucking hours. Those teachers at that academy, oh they are so going to get it, mark my words Hinata, they will pay for this insolence, and the currency will be blood red…" Naru ranted and scorned the earth the academy had been blessed on.

She knew it seemed petty, but hey, she had too sit for three hours and listen to people complain on how to be a shinobi. It didn't help that whenever she wanted to contribute to the conversation she was ignored and was forced to occupy her own mind. It was slowly turning into the worst day of her week, and to top it all off, Hinata wasn't talking to her or anyone else for that matter and it was starting to worry Naru.

Both she and Hinata had been going to the academy for two months now and in all that time Hinata seemed to curl inside herself-metaphorically speaking, of course.

Naru sighed as she watched, said girl shift on the seat closest to the window. She looked awful to say the least, her once silky hair was flat and limp and her skin was no longer a pretty ivory, but rather a pasty white. Blank eyes no longer shined, but simply stared and watched, never truly taking in what they were seeing.

It was finally starting to piss Naru off.

Here she was ranting about academy and Hinata had yet to rebuke her for her crass language and poor tack. Hell, if Hinata didn't speak soon she was going to go insane and disembowel a fan girl or something. At least that would give her something to do.

She finally snapped.

"Hinata! For the love of Kami-sama and all who serve under him, I want you to talk and tell me what the hell is wrong with you. Please talk to me Hinata, we're friends and friends have to talk and hash things out. I've been here for you, but as things are going maybe we can't be friends for much longer until you tell me what the fuck is going on and why did it make you this way?" Naru yelled out at the lavender favored girl walking out in front of her. All Naru wanted was for her best friend to confide in her.

Nevertheless, as things were going maybe, they shouldn't be friends.

As soon as that thought entered her mind, Naru instantly dismissed it. She was going to keep this friendship alive and well, hell she was stubborn so maybe it would work in her favor. All she had to do was get Hinata to talk and then they would go from there.

Naru wasn't as dumb as most people thought, in fact she could be called a genius to some if only she showed of what she knew, granted it wasn't a lot as people refused to teach her and now they had started to include Hinata into their brand of bullshit.

So Naru finally understood when Hinata had started to turn towards her, she would only listen until the end. This wasn't her story to tell, and Naru knew Hinata was lost, and so very ready to get what ever was bothering her off her chest. And Naru knew she would be there for her friend every step of the way.

Besides what were friends for any ways.

0-0-0-0-0-0-0

Hinata felt as though her world was crumbling. She wanted to talk to Naru, but every time she tried the words became locked into her throat and refused to come out. She felt frustrated and a deeply acute sense of sadness. Her thoughts only amplified these as she wallowed in self-pity.

She wanted too scream out that her father was a bastard with an icicle for a heart or cry because she knew that she had nowhere to go or call home anymore.

Yep that's right, Hyuuga Hinata, was no longer a part of the clan Hyuuga nor was she their heiress. It was the day she came home from her first day of academy that her life took the plunge of the metaphorical cliff.

_Flash back, Hinata style:_

_It was the finale call of Iruka-sensei that woke Hinata up from the lovely nap, four hours and counting. She rubbed her eyes as Naru yawned, both chuckled a little as the other blearily looked around. The room was almost empty, save for a few students also waking up from their naps._

_Hinata walked out towards the entrance and looked around after getting a promise from Naru to meet up at the academy the next day. Parents and guardians lined the courtyard and none of them had the special look or eyes of the Hyuuga clan._

_Feeling slightly put out that her father hadn't come to see her, Hinata had walked home alone._

_Walking into her house, Hinata felt cautious and unsure. Something was telling her to get out of the house and run, but feeling curious she walked into the interior and stopped dead when she saw the clan elders and her father waiting for her._

_She had never liked the elders, always to pompous and rude for them to change their ways. Her father just plain scared her._

"_sit, Hinata! We have matters to discuss, matters that involve you." her father was brutally trying not to bark out the commands._

_Hinata had never sat down so fast._

_She waited and watched and then wished she had run when the opportunity presented itself._

_The elders smiled and said several words that chilled her already fragile heart. "Hyuuga Hinata, as from this moment on, you are no longer a member of the Hyuuga clan and will therefore be stripped of your title and removed from the clan premises. Though as is the way of the clan you would normally be branded with the 'cadged bird seal', but your father assured us that you would never be strong enough to fully utilize Byakugan and all its power."_

_She watched in a daze as the elders left to inform the clan. Not noticing her father move in front of her, but she did hear his voice." you have two months to collect your things and leave." and with that said he was gone as well._

_And Hinata finally cried._

_Flash back end!_

Turning towards her first and only friend. And cried into her arms. She told Naru everything and to her own credit Naru hugged her back and comforted her.

At the end of the emotional moment Naru voiced some concerns to her. "Hinata, two months are up today, do you have a place to stay and where are your things?"

Hinata looked into stormy blue eyes and sighed. No she hadn't found a place to stay nor live in yet and doubted she would. And all her stuff was in several scrolls in her pack.

"n-no I don't h-have a p-place t-to stay yet, and I-I have all o-of my belongings are in my p-pack." god Hinata hated her stutter, but she knew that she was slowly overcoming it, maybe it also helped that now Naru wouldn't judge her for it.

She somehow knew that this was a turning point for their friendship and that whatever happened now would either make or break that fragile trust.

She felt that it was time to see what they would become and this was the first step out of many that would begin their journey.

0-0-0-0-0

Naru didn't know what to feel when Hinata told her story.

Anger seemed the most prominent as well as concern. How could someone's own father and clan kick out a Girl as sweet and caring as Hinata was. She did feel concerned because Hinata had nowhere to stay.

And then an idea of the most epic proportions hit her like a chakra infused fist.

She smiled at her friend and said, "oi, Hinata, lets go talk to the Hokage, maybe he can help us with you problem?" Naru watched as Hinata thought it over and started to jog away towards the Hokage tower, comforted by the slap of sandals behind her.

Running up the stairs, taking two at a time, Naru and Hinata both burst into the room and looked into the calm face of the Sandaime Hokage.

Two chairs were place before his desk, symbolizing that he knew they had been coming to see him. The thought warmed their hearts to see that he wasn't going to kick them out.

The old Hokage watched as they sat down and Naru, not one for wasting time, launched straight into their tale and outlined the problems both were having.

"so you see, Hinata needs a place to live and my apartment is much too small for me, let alone someone else too. So I was wondering if you could help us out, I have no clue on what to do hear." Naru felt a little comforted when the 'old man', as she called him nodded and started to concentrate.

He snapped his eyes back on the two girls and both jumped at that sudden move, but neither did show any fear and met his eyes fully. And both were rewarded a smile and a soft chuckle.

Lighting his pipe Naru could see he was getting ready to start business and she nudged Hinata to get ready.

In an aged voice, the Hokage began to speak. "Naru and Hinata, both of you did the right thing in coming to me for help, this problem is quite complicated. Hmm, I would suggest that you both get a new place to stay, but knowing how little you both have I am willing to help you out, but you both need to do something in return okay."

Both girls looked at each other and realized they really didn't have a choice and turned back to nod at the aged leader. Who smiled and beckoned them a little closer.

"good, now what I'm going to do is give you both a nice house. Its inside of an old compound that has been abandoned for many years, this will have all the things you both need to train and survive, so don't misuse it. You both will get a copy of the key and will be keyed into the gate to let you both in." the Hokage looked at them like them both with the eyes of someone who was talking at a adult level.

Naru nodded at Hinata and being the most talkative out of the two decided to ask what the Hokage wanted in exchange for this rather nice gift. "Hokage-sama, what exactly do you get out of this deal. And further more how are we going to keep up with the necessities it will take to keep us both living there?"

"that is where the deal is going to benefit me and you both. Now girls you both started to attend the academy around two months ago, correct?", at seeing both their nods he continued, "then here is what I want both of you to do. I want both of you to graduate early, the end of this year actually and join in on anbu and T&amp;I training okay."

Naru was stunned, the old man wanted her and Hinata to train among the elites of their village. Turning in her seat, Naru found that Hinata had the same look in her eyes. _why would the Hokage want us to graduate early and for what purpose does this benefit anyone?_

Clearing her throat, Naru asked him that very question.

"you will learn in due time, Naru, Hinata. Now how about we go and take a look at you new home."

With that the Hokage performed a transport justu and both girls ended up at a large gate surrounded by pure black granite walls that were so high both girls couldn't even see what was over them. The gate looked to be rusty and slightly mangled, but still in working condition, even if just.

The Hokage beckoned the two girls over and Naru could see he had a ornate pin with weird writing over it. He told them that the pin was used to prick their fingers hard enough to draw blood. He then showed them that there was a hand sign used for opening the gate.

Naru grabbed the pin first and brought it down on her thumb until she drew about four drops worth of the scarlet liquid and then handed it over to Hinata, who did the same thing. Both gave each other a stare trying to reassure themselves and made the rat hand sign.

The old gate made a horrible screeching sound. It was like the sound you heard an animal make in its last moment of life. The rebound of the noise had probably reached the Hokage tower by now.

Finally after several seconds the sound died off, and the gate started to lower into the ground. If Naru had been a little more alert she would have been deeply impressed, but she was busy trying to stop her ears from bleeding.

The Hokage walked in through the gate first, telling them that the gate would always let them in now as long as the made the rat sign.

The first thing that both girls saw was a hefty sum of buildings that were scattered around the compound, giving it the air of peaceful un-organization. All the buildings were made with a pretty dark wood and granite. They had a traditional look to them with paper doors and roofs that curls outward at the ends.

The largest building was one story tall and was styled like all the others. The Hokage explained that that was where they were going to live and was the main house of the compound.

Several moments later the Hokage left, saying that he needed to finish some paper work and that when they got settled in, to visit him to know more about what they were going to do in the coming months.

Naru looked up at the building and smiled. This was where she and Hinata would be living and felt happy knowing that she would have a best friend staying with her and that she would not have to return to that run-down apartment she had always called home.

Walking up to the front door, which was made of a heavy wood-mahogany, that's what the Hokage had called it, Naru found that it opened very easily and was equipped with some very high grade locks and bolts.

The inside was even better then the outside though.

The entry way had a place where you could put shoes and exchange them for a soft slipper or walk barefoot. Connecting the living room was a hallway with a washi paper door. Depicting a red crane standing in a tranquil pond filled with reeds.

The living room had two couches and was colored a reddish-brown, large vases, most likely made of jade, guarded the entrance to the room. Looking around, Naru noticed that there was no TV, but the walls had a few book shelves. A small stone coffee table was right between the two couches and strategically placed in a way that it showed a conversation atmosphere.

A small waterfall, built into the wall, led into a small pool of water and held some plump looking koi fish. There were three in all.

Another washi door, led into a kitchen with several high grade cook ware and cutlery. Dutiful tea cups and tea pots in porcelain and brass work were set on a shelve. Through a window, Naru could see part of the backyard and noticed that there was two gardens-one for herbs and the other for vegetables. A small orchard was filled with trees ready to blossom.

Turning left Naru saw a wood door with the kanji for pantry on it and saw that there was already food in it. All was in non-perishable goods but that was okay-and there was even ramen. Naru smiled at the gesture.

Walking out through a washi door with a picturing of a peaceful forest on it, and came to a long hallway, with several doors in it. All were closed and yet there was a feeling that they were open for all to see. Walking up to one at random Naru chose one and gasped when she saw what it was.

A library and it was filled with books and scrolls and large comfy chairs. Several lamps were in the room and there was even a fireplace. The room was huge and took up all the walls with book shelves and scroll cubbies. All the scrolls were in a bamboo case to protect them. Large murals covered the walls depicting peaceful places and strange symbols. A large coffee table had been placed next to the chairs. A layer of dust covered everything and needed to be cleaned for fear of mold and decay.

Walking out and closing the door Naru found a bathroom with conjoining doors on either end. There was no bathtub and no shower. A medicine cabinet hung over the stone sink. Small murals covered the walls here too, but these depicted large jungle cats sleeping on large mossy branches or tigers moving through the jungle floor.

Through one of the doors Naru found a moderate supply of toilet paper and other such necessities that she could think of.

The other door led to small basement like place that Naru instantly knew was a dojo. Tatami mats covered the floors and felt soft under her feet. A deep pool of water was at the farthest wall from the door and threw of a shimmering blue light. One wall was covered in weapon racks-all were filled. The other held a covered closet like place and was filled with outfit racks. This place was covered with a strange glass like door with the same strange symbols drawn all over it.

Once leaving the dojo, Naru found a small bath house ready to be used, a study filled with two desks and supplies, a room with blankets, sheets and several washers and dryers.

But the best thing Naru found was the rooms she and Hinata would be staying in. both the same size and had queen sized beds, a desk each, more book shelves and scroll cubbies, walk-in closets and large fluffy chairs.

Oh she could get used to living here and she was sure Hinata would too.

0-0-0-0-0

Hinata listened to Naru ramble on about what she had seen when she toured the house, and from her stories Hinata instantly fell in love with the obviously old home. She felt herself nodding when Naru suggested the by some paint so they could spruce up the place.

She and Naru had been walking away from the compound and were currently heading to Naru's apartment so she could collect her things. Both were planning on moving in tonight and that caused them to nearly jog across the village.

Hinata had never been allowed to play outside of the Hyuuga compound and was surprisingly enjoying her new found freedom.

After collecting Naru's things and telling her off for having a slightly messy house, they were on their way home. The sky was darkening and small stars had started to appear when the finally made it back to the compound and into the house. Both went to the newly dubbed laundry room and chose some blankets and sheets- orange for Naru and lavender for Hinata, and got ready for bed.

They both agreed that since academy was out for the weekend, they would start cleaning the house and compound and then train before they visited the Hokage.

With that both girls went to bed and smiled as they realized they were home.

The next day!

Hinata woke to the sounds of a bird whistling from outside her window and smiled. Today was the first day in her getting stronger along with Naru.

Getting dressed in a tee-shirt and black shinobi pants along with her trade mark lavender jacket Hinata ran to the kitchen and was surprised to see Naru already up and cooking breakfast-blueberry waffles and bacon, with green tea with honey to wash it all down with.

After breakfast both sat down and outlined a plan- Hinata was going to clean out all the houses and general up keep from inside, while Naru volunteered to work on the stuff from outside. After that was done both she and Naru would make some lunch and then train in the dojo for a few hours. After that the would go and talk with the Hokage on what the need to do to pass.

The work was hard but in its own way fulfilling. The day seemed to fly on invisible wings and soon Naru had come in to make some ramen for lunch. They ate in silence both lost in thoughts, and before Hinata knew it they were both heading to the dojo.

Hinata started to teach Naru meditation and in return Hinata was taught how to throw a solid punch. They read a few scrolls on certain justu and worked on the academy style kata and the three justu-kawarimi, henge, and the bushin. With this Hinata learned she could do all of them but they were weak and lacked a strong backing, while Naru could not do the bushin to save her life. It came out looking dead or very sickly.

They both resolved to get this checked out by the Hokage and soon left to talk with him.

0-0-0-0-0

Sarutobi Hirozun had been Hokage for a long, long time and as such was granted certain perks. He was rewarded though with paper work, and most of it civilian paper work too-complaints, and offers, and oh look more complaints.

He could do all of it without really looking at it and turned his thoughts on two small academy students that were currently making their way to the tower too see him.

Now being old, Hirozun was kind of hoping Naru would graduate soon and take over his work. That would be a nice return to retirement gift. But first she had to graduate and Hirozun was smart enough to know that if she was there for all four years, she would make friends but she would not graduate.

The Hyuuga girl was loyal to Naru and vise versa which made it easier to allow them to live together. But even he was disturbed that one of the clans of Konoha would stoop so low.

He shook his head and sighed. All shinobi had their coping mechanisms, some drink, some are perverted and others such as himself became best friends with tobacco. He could already see what those girls' copes would be. Hinata would write and garden, these were calming things. Naru would be bold and she would have the penchant for gambling.

Both were two sides to the same coin, one would be the attack while the other defended. This made him feel every year to his name. he would make sure they passed. they only had seven more months before they would be genin, and in the shinobi world that was as much time for several lifetimes.

He watched as the girls outlined the plan with him, Hinata would need to become stronger with her Kata and techniques, while Naru just needed to have the Bushin jutsu down. Already knowing Naru would never complete the original jutsu, he handed her a different one: Kage bushin.

She thanked him and both Hinata and Naru left him to his work, that already had doubled since he last looked at it.

If only they had stayed and helped him. He then chuckled, they would learn and got to configuration numbers. Oh the wok of a Kage was never done.


	3. Chapter 3

AN: Let us start chapter three

By the way thanks for reviewing for everyone who did, I personally feel that it helps me become a better writer when I know people are reading and responding to my stories. So please review, rant or PM me.

In addition, sorry for such a late update, work and school just do not mix with writing.

Chapter 3:

What are we gonna do, Hinata!

Naru walked away from the Hokage's office in a daze.

She pretended that Hinata wasn't sending her worried glances, or those shinobi they passed weren't giving secret glances at them.

She just wanted to go back home and paint her room the burnt orange color Hinata had picked for her, eat some ramen and then go to bed. She was six years old, sue her if they wanted a grown up young women to parade for those secret glances. She was going home and snuggling in a fuzzy blanket for two weeks.

Naru knew she was being childish, but she just couldn't help it. Everything felt like it was moving too fast and her natural reaction was to bolt and hide and see if the problem went away.

But she knew she couldn't do that.

Both she and Hinata had promised the Hokage and if they wanted a peaceful coexistence with their shinobi careers and the man that made them possible, they had to follow through on their end.

Naru wanted too scream or cry, but instead she pulled her head up from wherever it had buried itself in the ass of despair and walked forward with slow and deliberate steps, nearly silent and purposeful. The beginnings of a crescent moon was forming over head in a burst of black, blue and silver fire.

Naru turned until she was facing her best friend, and smiled her best 'trust me, could something this adorable be a maniac in disguise' smile. And couldn't help but cause her ivory colored friend to become paste white.

"oi, Hinata we should go out for dinner tonight, what do you say. Maybe we could get ramen or sushi or ramen. Sounds good, no?"

She watched as Hinata thought the proposal over, and died a little in side when Hinata suggested they go out for some dango instead.

Naru grumbled about best friends who wanted her to die or starve. She smiled a fraction of an inch when she heard Hinata giggling beside her and considered it a win in her favor. In truth, Naru worried about Hinata. She didn't show any signs of being sad over being banished from her clan and the lack of that sadness was a due cause for concern on Naru's end.

They made some small talk as both she and Hinata walked the few blocks too the dango shop, and were content.

The shop in Naru's eyes was interesting. There were several tables in the middle of the room, some of them occupied by civilian and shinobi, and several booths lining the walls, again some occupied. The place had bare brown walls and some cracks lined them, proof that shinobi ate here.

The smells of the sticky dumplings filled the air, enticing both Naru and Hinata into the overly warm shop.

Looking around, Naru saw a empty table and fast walked towards it, but bumped into someone who placed their hand one the back of one chair just as she placed her hand on the table top. Looking up she immediately realized that she couldn't take this person on, but then again when had that stopped her.

"oi, old lady move away this is our table, I got here first." bringing herself up to her full height-only about five foot one, and glared in what she hoped would be a convincing manor. The 'old lady', did not think it was a smart move.

She glared right back and even snarled a little as she said, "stupid move brat, what do you mean ya got here first, I'm a konoichi under the rule of the Sandaime Hokage and deserve some respect, and by the way your glares suck, what are they teaching kids now days."

The lady had dark purple hair in a spiky pony-tail. Her leaf headband was tied off on her forehead and from the looks of it , it had seen battle.

She was wearing a tan, long trench coat over a mesh body suit that went down to her thighs and a dark orange mini skirt with blue belt attached. Her shinobi sandals had shin guards attached to them. Narrowed brown eyes glared at them, silently telling them to back the fuck up before someone got hurt.

Naru had a sinking suspicion that this lady was the one to crack the walls of the shop.

"Listen lady, me and my friend here are just coming in for some dango and as such I was the one to get to this table first. You don't like, leave because we ain't moving from here. Come on Hinata." looking around, Naru retrieved her slightly petrified friend and sat her down in one of the vacant chairs.

The lady hadn't moved and from the looks of it she wasn't going to. Naru felt slightly guilty about this, but hey she had some pride and backbone, and that meant no one walked over Uzumaki Naru and got away from it. She could only be lucky that it had only been a verbal conflict and hadn't escalated into a full out brawl.

A twinge hit her conscience and Naru gritted her teeth before giving in.

When the waiter bent down to hear the order, Naru whispered what she wanted and gave him the required money.

Looking up she watched as the lady took in big whiffs of the sweet dumplings that passed by and cracked, "you can sit with us ya know. I ain't that sadistic to let someone starve because their to stubborn to know when to give up." she spoke in a nicer tone.

The lady looked hesitant, but a small encouraging nod from Hinata and the calm tone of herself seemed to end the matter and the lady sat down across the table until they were in a loose triangle formation.

A awkward staring match seemed to commence between the three of them. The food arriving seemed as though a small repent from earlier, because everyone's mood seemed lighter and they all actually had small pleasant talks, well Naru and the lady- now known to them as Anko, talked and Hinata just nodded or gave a few stuttered sentences here and there.

They got to know their guest well by the end of the night, all in all it went off without a hitch. Something everyone was grateful for.

0-0-0-0-0

Miterashi Anko was a tokubesu jonin of Konoha, and took immense pride in the fact that she was one of the elites.

Her job was quite simple, go to work with Ibiki and then maybe go on a few missions, then come home and go out for dango until the owners closed.

Well that was supposed to be how things went.

She had just finished a long A-rank mission and had to give her report to the Hokage, but he was in a meeting causing her to wait longer. To long in her opinion, but whatever. After giving her report, she had traveled by rooftop till she got to the dango shop and low and behold, one table was still empty. Rushing to get there she bumped into some people and noticed too late that someone else's hand was on the table top. She turned to look and there was a sight she didn't see everyday.

The Kyuubi brat and the abandoned Hyuuga girl. _why are they here? I thought they would be laying low for a while. _

Anko wasn't the nicest women by the trade, and she had a lot of questionable morals, but one thing she wasn't, was beater of children especially children who had been abandoned.

But that loud mouthed girl in orange was questioning that thin line of control. When it broke, Anko silently wished customers out of hitting range. Before it did though, that girl silently walked over too her friend and sat her down and both ordered some food.

Silently willing her stomach not to growl at the lack of decent food in her, Anko stared longingly out at all that wonderful dango and fought the urge to sigh.

She felt her muscles clench and unclench in their attempt at reminding her she needed to sit down soon, her body had been pushed hard as of late and needed proper nourishment and rest before went gallivanting off on another taxing mission.

Luck came in the form of orange and lavender girls. The offer to sit after she had been nearly told off confused but gladdened her. She had been in awkward places before but having a three way staring match between two six year old girls and herself was topping that list.

Several hours later, Anko was making her way home, full of laughter and dango. It was odd that one like herself who had more blood on their hands then in their body, had taken so well to academy students. Anko chuckled, she had been seriously impressed with Naru's ability to stand up for herself and her friend Hinata, who-thanks to her family- had been more than comatose until she was inclined into the conversation.

Smiling, Anko realized she wanted too see these girls become great, and she had the most perfect plan, now all she needed to do was talk to the Hokage about it.

0-0-0-0-0

Hinata walked alongside her friend and felt like she wanted to laugh if only it was worth the energy.

Naru's clothes were slightly off her body and her hair was slightly frizzy. Not that Hinata was judging because, she looked like that too.

A hour meal had taken four hours and they had stayed until closing time eating dango and talking with Anko. Black ringed eyes stared at the door to the academy. They had been going to the academy for five months now and it had been seeing Anko for random dinners now for three months. It would be nice if Naru and Anko would just eat and leave, not eat then eat some more and then talk and then eat again. Boy could those two pack it.

The Academy sensei's were not in the room and neither were the students, something that Hinata felt apprehensive about, and by the sly look that flashed through Naru's eyes, she concluded that something was wrong.

Turning to look at her friend, Naru beat her to the punch. "well, look here. I guess me and you must have been early today, nay Hinata-chan." her smile reached her eyes and the tone she used was of that of girl who found out that she was finally here early.

But it was the single code word that both had devised late into the night-Naru never called Hinata any other name then her given one, and since no one ever wanted to know them, those who wanted to attack would find that they were not helpless.

Hinata knowing her cue, easily replied. "ye-a-ah, its-s nice to-o not ha-have to rush." she even gave a small shaky laugh to make it more authentic.

A floor board creaked, a breeze ruffled the clothes just a bit. Every single sense that the girls possessed was screaming at them to run. _what the hell._

A sudden urge to move hit her hard and Hinata fell into a loose academy stance. She knew she had no chance in hell with beating up whatever was after them, but taking a leaf out of Naru's book, she couldn't care less.

A shuriken flew by her head, imbedding itself into the wall, and Hinata figured that Naru was fighting off someone else. She couldn't turn to look nor could she see if Naru was doing okay. This was a fight for life and both were together but so very hopelessly alone.

Justu flew like nobodies business, and both girls worked in tandem. Moves were thought up on the spot and plans were hatched in the midst of the carnage.

What had once started out as a fight for life in their class room, soon spread out into the hallways and then throughout the whole academy. Windows shattered and walls crumbled. The building itself felt like it was groaning under the force of which they all fought. Sweat fell into both girls' eyes and yet they battled on, so much so that Hinata felt like she was free-falling and the ground was only getting closer.

She had so far counted about six adversaries, all over chunin level and above. They weren't holding back, so by that logic they couldn't either.

Minutes passed and then hours, by the time when some of the fighting had lulled into surprise attacks, Hinata and Naru took stock of their bumps and bruises and gashes.

Naru had many large gashes that oozed blood all over her torso and back, evidence of her fighting many people at once. Her left pinky was bent at a inconvenient angle and Hinata didn't know whether it was broken or dislocated. She had a large-ish hole in her right leg on the upper thigh , dangerously close to the artery.

She herself hadn't escaped with out so much as a bump. She knew she had several cracked ribs and maybe a broken one. Her right eye felt swollen and there was a constant pounding above the heated flesh. She had a few gashes on her legs and hands.

She closed her one good eye, and prayed for medical attention. If it didn't come soon, Hinata knew both wouldn't make it to see the morning.

She watched as Naru took her watch, both stared out at the beautiful harvest moon, the color of orange clay. It gave off a sinister but at the same time comfortable feeling. Both didn't get much sleep, Hinata was almost a hundred percent sure that they had concussions.

The feeling that they were being watched never left. It had once started out as a horrible sensation but as time went on it had started to become almost welcome, like an old friend that never truly left, you just seemed to forget they were there.

Some ration bars were held in their bags, and although both girls were ravenous, they thought it best to conserve. The hard nut and fruit bars were as hard and appealing as cardboard, and the taste was worse. But it carried everything a shinobi would need to keep up strength and energy.

Dark black rings surrounded both Naru and Hinata's eyes, and they felt as if the had been dropped of the Hokage monument and rolled around in a barrel full of nails. Everything hurt, the pain was so intense and both Hinata and Naru felt like they were just waiting for insanity to strike, like a cobra in the undergrowth.

On unsteady feet, Naru held Hinata's hand as she led them down to the lower levels of the academy, something was drawing them and they were helpless to pull away.

Sunlight hit Hinata's sensitive eyes, and she resisted the urge to scream in pain, by the twisted look on her friends face, she knew Naru felt the same way.

They walked through the streets away from the academy, pain lancing up their bodies, Hinata added torn muscles to the ever growing list of injuries, they had not been expecting to be attacked and both Hinata and Naru had paid the price for it.

They walked along deserted alleyways, and abandoned back roads all the way to the hospital, through blurry vision clouding her one good eye, heavily swollen and as black as a thunder cloud. A odd smell wafted around them sweat soaked body and the smell of infected wound-mostly contributed to the still gaping hole in Naru's leg, though long having stopped bleeding was still open and tuning a dark purple color.

The walk had also opened up some wounds and blood rolled off them, the pain couldn't have become more unbearable, and yet Hinata felt they had achieved something when they walked away from their injuries.

The large, pristine building was eerily silent and the peace seemed fabricated. But that wasn't what stopped both girls in their tracks.

The Hokage, in all his robbed glory stood in front of both girls and loose ring of masked and cloaked men and women surrounded them. Two people stepped forward and picked up the girls, noticing the grimaces of pain and haze that rolled around them.

Hinata felt herself being picked up, and the pain nearly caused her to pass out, but she prevailed. A masked man looked down at her, his bear mask showed a snarling façade, blue geometric designs covered the sides.

He had dark eyes and a black cloth on his head, probably to hide the color of his hair.

Another man was holding Naru, his tiger mask was a flash of reds and black. His hair was a black color and you could just barely see an outline of pale green eyes staring at her friend.

The Hokage paused and turned to face the crowd of anbu and their two small charges. " we have seen two small leaves off the big tree of Konoha, grow outward and have been tested in the way that all anbu hopefuls are, Crane, what is you verdict?" a tall, slender man stepped forward, his mask was covered in designs and the beak of his animal protruded out, an air of superiority flowed out of him, he was the leader of anbu, the commander and chief.

He had watched those two young girls and smiled just barely under his mask, they had been put through hell and it showed, but they had fought bravely and earned the whole respect of the entire anbu corps. They had fought the girls testing them and making sure they would be ready for what was to come.

He sighed and stood at a lazy attention. " they have passed all of my expectations and would be welcome additions to our family, Hokage-sama."

The Hokage nodded, he would let them train with anbu until it was time for the genin exam, were they would take it and pass. Then they would become anbu members fully. The test wasn't for people who wanted to become a anbu member, it was for people who were graduating into their place in the anbu ranks for good.

He looked at the two unconscious girls and smiled, they looked absolutely like they had been dragged through hell and back several times. He remembered when he had gone through that same test and knew that the girls needed sleep and a full five meals.

Setting them into the hospital beds, he quietly waited for the girls to wake up. Their guards leaned against the wall and everyone became silent and waited.

0-0-0-0-0

Naru had never been in so much pain before, the light was boring into her skull and her right leg felt like it was on absolute fire. _I hope the other guy is worse off._ feeling the need to snort but realizing it would just make her feel worse, Naru settled for listening.

Voices flittered in and out of her conscious and those she did catch seemed out of tune with the balance of the world. Everything hurt. It was like someone had beat the flying shit out of her, then threw her down a couple hundred flight of stairs, then proceeded to laugh at her broken form.

She felt herself being picked up and cradled into someone's chest, if she had been more conscious, Naru would have already kneed the person where the sun don't shine and then flipped them the bird as she hobbled away. She didn't consider herself lucky that they survived, in fact she was conflicted and a little dubious about that whole fight. All she and Hinata had done was fight with standard academy taijutsu and planning. The not too metaphorical 'what the fuck' seemed well deserved at the moment.

She settled more into the warm chest and felt all things slip away from her as blissful knockout blackness slowly enveloped her. She'd find out what the hell was going on tomorrow.

0-0-0-0-0

Nar…en…Hinat…be…awake…oon…

Naru gritted her teeth as those damned voice fragments hit her ears. She could only make out a few words and the rest was a garbled mess of nouns and crap. Granted she did feel better and less like she was a reanimated corpse, but that still didn't account for the throbbing in her leg.

It was like it had its own beat to it.

Concentrating hard, Naru realized that the voices were speaking to her now. She also realized that she had been staring at those who were talking and only now just realized it.

"huh, hi." Naru rubbed the back of her head in embarrassment. Several pairs of eyes seemed to zoom in on her and she felt claustrophobic.

"Naru…how do you feel. You've been out for several days, we all were staring to get worried." a beautiful purple haired women in very revealing clothes walked closer until she was directly next to the bed Naru occupied. Her comfortable scent of dango and metal polish, eased her mind and allowed Naru to crack a small grin in return.

The women grinned back in complement, before her face turned hard and serious. " four days, both you and Hinata have been through some surgery and unfortunately the odds weren't really in your guys' favor. The doctors were all assholes in my opinion, they didn't want to waste time operating on both of you girls, so the Hokage roughed them up verbally."

Naru coughed and then winced, and dearly wished for some water. Something to soothe her damaged throat.

As if someone read her thoughts, a glass of water appeared. Naru gave a small smile in gratitude at the anbu member who had fetched it for her. He whore a tiger mask and even though she couldn't see his face, she had the striking notion that he was smiling back.

"thanks tiger-san." Naru drank down the kami gifted water and surveyed the faces of those who were present. The Hokage, Anko, two anbu: one had a bear mask and the other a crane mask, and tiger-san. There were no doctors and for that Naru was grateful, doctors had never liked her and to actually get one to heal her was harder than pulling teeth from a chicken.

Looking over at the bed next to hers, Naru identified the short haircut of her best friend Hinata, and winced in sympathy.

Hinata had long scratches on her face, and several bandages on her forehead. Her right eye was heavy and a dark greenish-brown color, indicating that she had a very black eye that was healing up. A swath of white bandages covered her torso up to her neck.

Naru smiled as she saw Hinata, glad that the had both made it out of that hell hole, and were both alive to tell the tale.

The hokage stepped forward and gently told everyone to leave. He smiled as he walked away, gently ordering her to get some more rest. Something she did with out hesitation, smiling in her sleep.

0-0-0-0-0

Gentle talking is what awoke Hinata from her coma like sleep. Though nowhere near as bad as before, she still felt the after affects of having a really bad concussion. Not wanting to open her eyes but knowing she had to, Hinata forced herself to sit up and open her eyes.

She saw the Hokage talking with Naru, Anko eating some dango, which currently reminded her of her rumbling stomach, and several anbu leaning against the wall and observing.

Naru was the first to see her up and boy did she get a welcome. "oi, Hinata good morning-well evening. How do you feel are you okay, do you still hurt, want some dinner. Look Anko brought us some dango as a get well present-hey stop eating it you brought it for us…" Hinata smiled as Naru got in a mock fight over the get well dango.

The Hokage, chuckling, stepped forward and motioned for silence. He had an aura that said he needed everyone's complete attention.

"I am glad to see both you and Naru are okay. You have been asleep now for six days and Naru for four and a half. Several corrective surgeries and both of you are here and well." he paused before he continued, "now would be the time for questions, if anyone has any?"

Naru stared up at the Hokage and stated her question, "Hokage-sama, why were me and Hinata attacked."

Hinata nodded that this was something that she too was wondering, _why were we attacked, and why was the battle staged at the academy._

The old Hokage sighed, but he couldn't help but feel that both of these girls would truly change the world. He knew he was seeing part of that change and dearly wished he would live to see the final product. Ah but the fates were never kind, especially to those who lived a warriors life.

Before he go to speak however, Crane came up to him and waited. At his commanding nod, Carne began to speak. "Naru and Hinata, a pleasure to meet our youngest initiates in the anbu family." seeing their confused glances, he continued. "that attack was for a very defined purpose you see, we at anbu usually take those who have become chunin and were quite disgruntled when the Hokage suggested that you become one of us. Well I was concerned and decided to stage a test for the both of you, a sort of battle royal. You both have taken on some of my best anbu operatives, a worthy endeavor. That test is usually only given to those who have been training with anbu for a while."

Both Hinata and Naru were stunned, instead of a random attack, they had been tested and just informed that they passed.

The Hokage cleared his throat and said, " now girls, this does not mean you are exempt from the genin exam, in fact you still have a few months before you both are going to truly join anbu and start taking missions with them. Granted, I have arranged for the both of you to start training at anbu headquarters as soon as you are both fit for duty."

Hinata felt glad that she had passed, and while Naru was hugging the Hokage in a death grip, she wondered as to what her family would think of her passing the anbu exam before the genin one.

She shook her head and forced herself to think of something different and smiled to Naru who had finished crushing the old Hokage.

Things were really starting to look up for both girls and in a few days they would start training in the anbu regime.


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter 4:

Who are you?

Naru woke up to a face nearly pressed into her own. She was not inclined to admit it, and if anyone would ask her, they would get a blatant denial that she had screamed like a little girl and maybe head butted the young boy above her.

A few minutes, several colorful swear words on both ends, and two bruised foreheads later and Naru was able to talk things out.

"who the hell are you. Don't ya know not to scare a girl into a early heart attack, man I could kill you, stupid fool." Naru was practically foaming at the mouth. Her thoughts running along the lines of all the creative ways to hide a dead body. She was livid, how dare a man come and wake her up and piss her off.

"yeah, well maybe a konoichi- in -training shouldn't sleep so deep. You might just not get scared." the current enemy to Naru stated in a indignant tone, sarcasm bleeding out of his diction.

Oh if Naru was pissed before, she was nearly feral now. How dare this scrap of a boy, barely older then her and Hinata, tell her she was a bad konoichi. Oh she was defiantly going to commit a homicide now, and she would bury him in an unmarked grave and dance on top of his dirt covered body…dear Kami, she had passed the realm of psychotic and had hit bat shit crazy.

Breathing deeply in through her nose in a futile attempt to calm down her warrior blood-which was demanding an informal sacrifice, and forcefully started a half-assed conversation. "my names Uzumaki Naru, and my companion there is Hyuuga Hinata. Would you do the honor of telling me you name."

The boy gave a strange look, but in the end apparently decided not to argue with the fiery young girl. "names Rock Lee, I am a young shinobi-in-training."

In a slightly saner form of mind, Naru struck up a conversation with the boy. She became fascinated with Lee and asked as many questions as she could. She learned a lot about him:

Lee liked to train and wanted to fight using only Taijustu-he had been born with under developed chakra coils.

He liked curry and rice and was not found of reading novels but he did like reading training scrolls. He also was stuck as their guest in the hospital because he had endured a attack just like Naru and Hinata. She found this strange and resolved to talk with the Hokage when they were cleared.

Lee also liked the color green and was found of turtles. He said he was an orphan and that some uptight assholes had burned out his apartment. Luckily, he had moved out all his family things years ago and kept them in some storage scrolls in a lock box with the Hokage.

Naru watched as Lee told her a bit about his life. He tried so desperately to put up a strong façade, but in all reality nobody was better at reading people then her. Lee was in slight shock and seemed to be going stir crazy with worry about his future.

A plan started to form in Naru's mind then. It would have to be cleared with the Hokage first, but she was confident enough in her abilities to sway him for her side.

Looking over at the still sleeping Hinata, Naru gestured for Lee to sleep. Both were exhausted, Lee more so then Naru. It was plain to see that Lee had gone through the same anbu induction as both girls, but why and for what reason. How did the Hokage get another person join the ranks before they had graduated the academy. She felt that she knew the reason but was loathe to make the accusation until the details were hashed out for all to see.

Realizing that they had been talking for the better part of the day, Naru turned away from her sleeping companions. The moon was waning and she turned her thoughts into a extension of the beams that graced the floor and walls of the moderate room. How she had wished for a family and here was one finally being offered to her all she had to do was buck up and take it.

She followed a gentle swell of her friends cheek and traced a bushy eyebrow on her newest friend. In such a short amount of time, both people had latched onto her heart like leeches and refused to let go. Naru didn't know if this was a good or bad thing.

Laying down, Naru felt her thoughts empty like water from a busted bucket and sleep overcame her at last.

0-0-0-0-0

A week and three days is what it took for the three new friends to heal fully. As soon as the paperwork was signed, a small envoy of anbu suddenly swarmed out of nowhere, locking the stunned children in a barricade and set off for the tower of the Hokage.

Lee, fast as he was felt stunned silly when a group of seven anbu came out of nowhere to take them to the Hokage. He felt that somehow this was a great honor, yet all he could think of was how cool it would be to take up one of those masks.

Looking out at his two and only friends, Lee felt happiness fill him. He now had precious people to protect and if anyone thought him incapable of being there for them, he would kick there asses until they sought his forgiveness.

He ruminated on what this surprise was that Naru had failed to share with either him nor Hinata. Through the long, curved hallways he tried to mentally read the red-haired girls thoughts. He felt he was getting close when visions of frogs and dancing ramen bowls entered his mind, how he longed to get that image out of his head.

They were allowed to enter through a door, and sitting there was the third Hokage, one of the wisest men in Konoha, he stared at the three young children with crow feet edged eyes. They sparkled with a warmth the was near palpable and comforting as it was intimidating. Lee felt himself wanting to gulp, but forced the body reaction to a still. There was business to discuss.

0-0-0-0-0

The aged man, lit his pipe and walked around to face the three little ones standing before him. Though young, he had found out about their lives and looked even deeper to assess their skills and quirks.

Naru- the one who would thrive in the ancient world of espionage and seals. She would be a definite gambler and would learn more in the underworld of shinobi grace.

Hinata-definitely the healer of the group, she had never learned much in the ways of her ex-clan and would need a new purpose, she would have love for reading as her coping mechanism. Something gentle like her, something calming.

Lee-he would be the heavy Taijustu specialist, someone for the brunt of the fighting and heavy attacks. He would train as his method because he needs something tangible to hold himself to reality.

The Hokage sighed as he looked them over. All were special in their own ways and would make one of the greatest teams to ever come out of Konoha. He felt remorse at his own failures. He now knew that the time to let the baby birds flew from the nest was at hand, they would be facing the world head on and this would either make or break them.

"you have been called here for a very special reason. As of now, the three of you are officially anbu members and will don the cloak, armor, and mask of one of your station. You will be conducted through the ceremony and vows at sundown tonight." he paused and silently chuckled at the three's blatant looks of awe, before continuing. " in other news, Naru has come to me with a problem and a proposed solution. Lee, Naru has stationed an invitation to live at the compound with her and Hinata…bearing if you want to of course."

He watched as shock wore to happiness to sadness to finally a tear marked smile as Lee glomped his two friends and agreed. He motion to some anbu and ordered them to retrieve the boys' family things and stopped to order the two girls to help with getting him situated.

The Hokage glanced up at a clock and motion to the children that they were dismissed, not before telling them that they had to report to the anbu HG at sundown for their ceremony.

He felt sad, knowing that he was forcing these young children to grow up faster then intended. But he was a leader to a nation, thus he was required to make decisions that many would deem cruel. This was what being a leader was all about, you were the one to make the tough choices, the one to take the fall for better or worse. Sadly for many, there was a lot that was for worse.

Now, looking at the awe-struck children, all from different walks of life, yet all from the same experiences, the aged Hokage felt the first waves of peace at his vast knowledge, for he knew they would face hell down, conquer it, and bend it to their wills. These were the living embodiments to the will of fire. This comforted him.

0-0-0-0-0

Lee walked out of the storage room, his arms shaking from the weight of the box in which he carried his sealing scrolls. Some were big and weighed a lot, and others barely were noticeable. The box was made out of cherry wood and was quite bulky. He remembered watching his father build this box, when he was little. He had loved seeing his father working on small home projects when he was not out on missions. Now though he couldn't even conjure up a mental picture of his male parent. He felt saddened at this, but let it go. He had a new family now, both Naru and Hinata were allowing him to live with them and they were all going to be in anbu together.

He had memorized the way to the Blue compound-as the girls had named it, and was walking from the Hokage tower towards it. He should have asked how far away it was. Seriously he was far away from any of the other clan compounds and was situated closer to the forest then anywhere else. Lee sighed, he should have just insisted he go with the girls. They had left for some things for the compound and him specifically. They asked him what his favorite colors were and left him afterwards when they got their answer.

Now, far away from human civilization, he was face to face with a dark marbled wall. He looked at the dark, forbidding gate and gulped. "well Lee, one small step in triumph and your going good." haring chuckles behind him, he turned and gave a mock glare at his friends.

He watched as the walked him through the steps of getting the gate to recognize him, and showed him the sign that would unlock the massive gate.

Lee, could honestly say that the beautiful blue stone and wood work gave the traditional compound a peaceful flare. he followed as the girls led him up to the largest house-he quickly deduced that this was the main house, and walked in through the door when gestured.

Taking off his shinobi sandals and walking around barefoot, he admired the artwork on the fragile sliding doors. Still carrying his box of scrolls, the small party walked into the living room. It certainly looked and felt lived in. large potted plants framed walls and more books had been added onto some shelves. A few pictures of Naru and Hinata lined the walls-in a few he saw a strange purple haired lady with a grin on her face.

Hinata smiled and welcomed him to the groups new home. "Lee, wh-why don't you-u put your things away. Naru could-d you show him his room while I get dinn-er ready." he gave a toothy smile towards her, she was not stuttering as much and only did so a few times. Seeing Naru nod in agreement, he followed her.

They passed a few rooms-Naru's and Hinata's were marked, and finally found his across from theirs. It was a large room, had several windows and a large pine wood bed against the wall. The room was white and blinding but was free of dust or clutter. Naru walked in front of him and handed him a bag. " this is some green paint we got for you, it has several shades-a dark green a bright lime and a bluish green. We also have some sheets and blankets in dark green too in there." though happy at what he got for his room, Naru's next words blew him away. "there is a door in the hallway marked as Dojo, its where you can train if you want, the room is located in the basement of this place and has weapons and training scrolls for our uses. If you want, after breakfast, me and Hinata go down to train before we go out to shop for things for the house or compound, train for our individual talents or we go to the academy."

He nodded in ascent. They had their own Dojo, and now he could use it too. He was kinda miffed about having to go back to the academy, but it was required to achieve shinobi status and to stay in anbu.

Looking at a clock in the hall way, Lee realized that Naru was walking away and calling over her shoulder that dinner was in a few hours. Once she was gone, he walked back into his new and got out some of the paints, he was going to work until dinner.

0-0-0-0-0

Hinata worked solidly at her task, she was making some leek and potato stuffed mushroom caps with some tempura on the side. She felt at peace when it was finished-cooking always had that effect on her, just like reading. She chewed her bottom lip in frustration, though she hadn't shown it, she was terrified of joining anbu, of donning the mask and becoming a shadow for the village and the Hokage.

Sighing she walked out into the dinning room- a small low table with large cushions for sitting and many potted plants adorned the room. At the far wall, the sliding doors were open showing their small training ground and Naru, practicing her academy kata. She set the table as she watched one of her best friends come in and announce that she was going to wash up before she ate. Chuckling Hinata watched her go.

She may have not become totally confident, and she knew it would take a long time before that happened, but being here with her new friends took the weight off of being depressed because her family didn't want her.

With the food done, she walked to Lee's room and grinned at his closed door- it depicted a pond with turtles swimming under the surface, everything was in varying shades of blues and greens with smidgeons of red mixed in. looking across the hall at her door, she traced the paining of a mouse napping within a hollowed out log in a sunlight bathed glen. Looking next to hers was Naru's door and its painting of a toad in mid jump, long tongue extended outwards at a reddish dragonfly.

Hinata walked back towards Lee's room. All the doors, minus the one main one, were all sliding paper doors. Though fragile, they represented a peaceful resolution and their paintings kept the occupants from being spied on.

Hinata walked up to Lee's door and knocked on the wall adjacent to it. Hearing a small grunt on the other side, she opened the door. Lee was on his bed, circular eyes closed and breathing quiet. He opened his eyes and watched as the young girl walked closer to him marveling at his color scheme. Hinata meanwhile was smiling, Lee had redone his room in a forest green, he had even made up his bed with the dark green spread. Not in the mood for conversation, Hinata informed her friend of dinner and told him to wash up before eating.

Walking back down the hallways toward the dinning room, Hinata felt lost in her thoughts. She remembered all the times her family had ridiculed her, she felt the hateful stares of the academy girls, and she knew she was weak, as of now though she felt fire course through her as she vowed to become the strongest she could be. Nodding her head in satisfaction, Hinata walked onward to a path hidden until now.

0-0-0-0-0

Naru blinked water from her eyes. Both she and Hinata had retired to the bathroom to wash their hands and faces in preparation of their anbu recognition. This was the night that they all would don the mask and cloak, this was the night they would be inducted to walk through the shadows. Naru shivered in excitement, this was something bigger then herself, yet she felt no fear. Looking in the mirror, she saw a slightly round face tanned from birth, marred only by three whisker-like marks on each cheek. Deep blue eyes narrowed as cooper red hair moved across her forehead. She felt strong and brave, she imagined her warrior blood singing in apprehension for this night.

Done with their washing, the girls exited the room and walked to the main door. Lee waited for them, and at her nod, they all made their way to the Hokage's tower. It wasn't a long walk, seeing as they ran most of it, training for hours on end does that to someone. Walking up the long hallways toward the office that was their ending point, the took in pure, unbroken silence. The Hokage greeted them, ceremonial robes closed and presented with the ever present hat adorning his gray head.

Naru waited with bated breath, soon she would be considered a true adult in the eyes of anyone privy to her identity, this ceremony was one of the most important in the village and thus was always conducted in secret. Once you were given you gear, mask and cloak-the anbu commander presented you with a codename.

The Hokage made a hand sign, next thing the three of them knew was that they were in a huge building in a large circular room. There was no noise and it was very dark, Naru felt her body go on guard. She could see nothing but she knew she was not alone.

Then the lights came on.

0-0-0-0-0

Crane glanced around the room. There was the whole of anbu in a large ringed circle around five young initiates. Two of them were in their early twenties and had been training within anbu for a while. Then there was the three children that had been straight tested from anbu combatants. He had pondered for hours upon hours for the codenames and identities for these additions to the family of shadows.

Looking up to the Hokage and received a nod in turn, he started the ceremony.

"I am Crane, leader of anbu. I am the master of this ceremony and thus I will be the one to take away your names and give you one benefiting to your rank." the room stayed silent as he beckoned a anbu member over-in his hand was a tray with five porcelain masks, and continued. "Takshii Ran- now known as Boar." he handed a light blue Boar mask over to the young man. "Yukushan Etsu- now known as Ape." he handed a yellow ape mask over to the young women. "Uzumaki Naru- now known as Toad." he handed a orange Toad mask to the girl and smiled behind his mask. "Hyuuga Hinata-now known as Mouse." he gave a light gray and lavender mask to the pale eyed girl. "Rock Lee- now known as Turtle." he gave the young boy a nod and cleared his throat. "these are now anbu and thus are committed to serving the Hokage and their village at the cost of their lives and will start that creed tonight as adults in our world!"

Crane watched as the new anbu members placed the masks on their faces and tied the red cords at the back. A crème colored cloak was placed over them and a small tanto was placed in their hands. Several anbu moved through the small group and presented the anbu uniform to the new ones thus concluding the ceremony and allowing the rest of anbu to go back and do missions or patrol.

He nodded at the Hokage and walked back towards his office, intent on finishing some of his paperwork.

0-0-0-0-0

Lee felt power settle over him as he donned the new uniform. They were informed that they would only start missions when they had finished the academy-reminding them that they had class the next morning. Looking at himself in a mirror thankfully provided in the locker room of the anbu HQ. His bowl cut and huge eyebrows had a habit of freaking people out not to mention he had a obsession with the color green.

He still felt the warm blush on his face when he realized that he would be changing in front of his friends because anbu locker rooms were co-ed. It made him more embarrassed still when he realized that meant showering also. Knowing that he would become used to it made him keep the objections in his civil mouth.

Selecting a locker with Naru and Hinata they placed some soaps and towels and other such necessities into them. Satisfied that this was done, they were given a tour-they were shown the restrooms, training rooms, and cafeteria. A small forge and Amory made weapons and amour for the anbu. A meeting room and classroom were placed in the lower confines of the HQ. Once finished they were released to go home. Lee felt as exhausted as Naru and Hinata looked, not even bathing they just went to sleep as soon as they got home, setting their alarms for class tomorrow.

It had felt like he had just gotten to sleep when a blaring alarm woke up Lee. He contemplated going back to sleep but decided against it as he smelt breakfast. Walking toward the closet he pulled out a Chinese type top and some black shinobi pants and a slight over shirt.

Practically running over Naru as she was exiting the bathroom, he took his time looking her over and seeing what she was wearing for class.

Naru had a long orange trench coat with a black mesh tank top underneath. Long black and orange gloves covered her arms until the elbow and were fingerless. She wore standard black shinobi pants and tapped them off at the ankles. On her feet she was wearing her black combat sandals. Her red hair was cut in a A-line fashion.

She looked geared up to go to war and when he raised and eyebrow at her, she just grinned and walked away motioning for him to follow her. He opened up the door to the dining room and both sat down as Hinata was placing the last food item on the low table. Saying a quick thank you the all dove into the food with the savagery of a pack of hellhounds. To say the least, Lee felt much better after eating and even helped Naru clean up afterwards. They only had a few days before graduation and the all needed to be ready and aware for that day fast approaching.

Quickly locking the front door, Lee ran after the girls, quietly panting at the blatant need to, live life fast. Ducking down side streets, through alleyways, and across abandoned courtyards got the three friends to the academy with several minutes to spare. Walking along deserted hallways, Lee walked away from the girls and promised to wait for them after classes. He started toward a solid sliding door and opened it, coming face to face with a person he could now say he despised- Hyuuga Neji . The boy was a pompous fool who believed in all things fate and destiny. The boy currently was glaring at him, what right did that failure have in coming to class after missing a week and a half of it. Lee as if hearing the thoughts revolving in his comrades brain glared at him, mentally snarling-something many would deem impossible for the extremely kind and caring boy, but then again he only showed parts of himself to people who had earned that right. _so this is the boy. He really doesn't look like Hinata, to say that this is her cousin seems almost insulting. How could a clan just get rid of someone who was family. I don't understand it and Naru told me to talk to Hinata, but, every time someone says something about clan Hyuuga she starts to withdraw herself. Neji, how could your people go through with this. _Lee narrowed his thoughts down, it wasn't fair to Hinata if he attacked her cousin out of spite, but in the end he knew it would speed up a slow process.

Giving a curt nod, Lee walked into the room and chose a seat farthest from the arrogant Hyuuga. Looking out the window, he watched as students filled up into the room and chose their seats. No one sat by him, and though it did sting, his energy levels didn't let him care. Their plain looking sensei walked into the room, scanning the crowed of excited students, he allowed his eyes to land on Lee, giving a indifferent look, he called out names and started the lesson, which was on what the graduation test would cover. Already knowing what was going on and how little it applied to him, Lee took out some note paper and started drawing a new mural design for his room.

A few hours passed and Lee finally put away his supplies, intent on leaving the class and heading back to his friends. At lunch they had met briefly and discussed plans for some grocery shopping and a trip to the Hokage. All he had to do was not be late, unfortunately for Lee, fate is a unhappy bitch and it came in the form of another unhappy bitch: Kana Ishade, number one harpy four his class and a fan girl. He could barely contain his shudder, fan girls were a scary race and quick to anger. He gave a large, toothy smile and nearly yelled her ear off. "HI KANA-KUN." mentally looking for a radical escape route.

Ishade glared, and had to slowly count to ten in her head before she could talk normally. "Lee why the hell were you glaring at Neji-kun." Lee felt sick at the blatant knowledge that whatever he did or said, it was going to piss of the girl in front of him. So in a brief moment of fear and anger he executed a powerful leap over the still screaming girl and took off down the hallway and out into the courtyard before anyone was the wiser. Finding the two blurs of lavender and orange, he grabbed both his friends and sped down the street, determined to escape the banshee fan girl. Stopping in front of a stand with a sale for grapes he allowed himself to calm down and then started to sweat bullets as he realized he was being bombarded with the KI of the two girls who hadn't taken very well to their impromptu kidnapping.

He grinned and then prayed for the end to be swift.

0-0-0-0-0

Hinata sighed as Lee walked away. Naru just grinned at her and motioned for her to follow to their class. They prayed for a miracle and were burned before karma. Uchiha Sasuke, ever since both girls had joined the academy, he was there. He never approached them, just sat there and watched them. To Hinata it was scary and dangerous. To Naru, it was a annoyance that needed a swift kick where the sun didn't shine and a smack to the face. He was watching them now and both were silently cursing their luck. Walking to the back of the room and sitting in their unofficial seats, they were actually surprised to see Sasuke standing in front of their table.

Hinata wanted to ignore him an hope he left, unfortunately for her Naru thought differently. "oi, Sasuke-teme, what the fuck do you want. If your looking for you fan club, they ain't here so beat it before I beat you!" Hinata stared in silent awe of her friend, this was strength and courage she desperately needed.

Sasuke sneered at the orange monstrosity that graced these hallowed halls. He knew he was wrong for becoming infatuated, but how could he not when two exceedingly beautiful girls were left in the tender care of the academy. He defiantly couldn't wait to ask them both to become his wives. He liked the silent nature of the Hyuuga and the fiery temperament of the Uzumaki. He felt that in no time they would begin to see him in the same light that he them and they would come willingly into his arms.

He smirked arrogantly and replied in a flippant voice to the girl. "girls should know their place in the world and leave the aggression to the men. Ha, girl-listen and listen well. You will come to me and maybe if your good I'll allow you the comfort of living as the first wife of the Uchiha clan…truly I am lenient when your behavior was less than cra…" he never got the last word in.

Hinata had never seen her friend so mad. Naru was practically foaming at the mouth and pulling at the reigns. In fact Hinata was surprised that it took that long just to finally shut the egotistical asshole up. And boy, Naru got the job done. A high kick to the face and a gut buster punch when he finally came down again. Mentally grinning, Hinata watched as the Uchiha was put into his place. Ten minutes later of Naru's persuasive tactics and the class was just about to begin, Sasuke being somewhat smart, left before the fan girls showed up and decided to take care of his hurts themselves-which inevitable would lead to some cooing then groping of things that hadn't been injured.

Wincing in sympathy, Hinata congratulated her friend for her victory and got ready for the day as Naru got caught up on some sleep. It wasn't that Hinata hated people, no she quite liked them and wanted friends, but people like the Uchiha drove her towards the cliff named homicide. She silently wondered how her other friend Lee was doing, she knew he was in a class with her older cousin Neji-san and that he was…difficult to handle at times. Sighing, she turned her attention back to the lesson and nearly groaned as she realized she already knew what was going on.

Now with nothing to do, Hinata just stared at the clock, silently counting down the minutes until she and her friends were released into the wild once more. Twenty minutes later and she was ready to scream, albeit in a calm and sincere way, none the less she wanted out. Sasuke had already came back and was throwing nasty glares at both her and Naru, Naru more so.

With nothing to do and a jittery feeling through her body, Hinata poked Naru awake, eager to see what she would do. She didn't disappoint.

0-0-0-0-0

Bright blue eyes shot open, while a yawn broke through the contours of her face. Sharp white teeth glinted in the meager light of the room. Looking around, Naru felt her self being awoken. She knew it was Hinata who had poked her awake, not that she minded but it would be nice to just sleep. Looking over at her friend, she felt herself thrown for a loop. Hinata was surrounded in a weird bluish-white glow, thinking she still had the sleep in her eyes, Naru rubbed them and was seriously started to get annoyed when the glow didn't disappear.

"Hinata why are you glowing?" Naru almost wanted to retract her question when she was hit by a blast of surprise. Even more worrying was that it wasn't hers. The class was staring at the two girls, both of whom were desperately wishing for the floor to swallow them up.

Looking down, Naru gave a mumbled sorry and waited for the class to resume before looking over at her friend. The glow was gone. Thoroughly annoyed at the thought that somebody was playing a trick on her, Naru looked back to the front of the class and waited for the bell.

About an hour later both girls had yet to say anything to each other and the silence was awkward at best. In the end, it didn't matter if anyone had said something, because a green blur had erupted from the front doors of the academy and was currently grabbing both her and Hinata and practically flying down several streets before being dumped in front of one the market stalls. Boy was she pissed. Already having a bad day and now Lee had the gall to kidnap them. What was the world coming to.

After giving Lee a high kick to the chest, they all set out for groceries. Hinata was looking at fruits and vegetables, Lee got the spices and some cookbooks and some breads from the baker, and she was currently heading to the butcher and the seafood stall.

A big white building with baby blue trim blocked Naru's path. Through the window she could see a rich array of meats from pork to pheasant and everything in between. Looking down at her list she groaned. Why did Hinata need so much stuff, maybe if she had traded with Lee this wouldn't have happened to her. Sighing in what she hoped showed her displeasure of this project-she walked through the door and up to the counter. Nobody was in the building it seemed, and try as she might, Naru could not control the small shiver of uncertainty. Looking around for something that would get anyone's attention, she very nearly gave a whoop for joy when she noticed a small silver bell. wasting no time, she smashed her fist down on it and returned to waiting patiently.

Just about to leave, a voice stopped her. "well hello there miss, anything ya need today?" turning around Naru analyzed the man in front of her. He was big and had large muscles, evident that he worked at chopping up heavy meats throughout the day. What was left of his hair was white and thin, framing the sides of his head but not the top. He had very nice straight teeth, white and clean with a chip in one of them. He was wearing a black tee-shirt and grey sweat pants. A smudged white apron hung over his toned chest. If she had to guess, she would say his age was about fifty-seven maybe more. That alone earned some respect from her, though nowhere near the Hokage's age, he was impressive in the least and old and wise at the most. He had a square like face with dark brown eyes and slightly crooked nose.

She grinned and rubbed the back of her head in embarrassment- a habit she had picked up from Lee. "Yeah, old man give me three pounds of the chicken breast, one pound of the duck breast and one pound of the pork cubes please." she grinned even more when the man laughed heartily in reply before he went to the back and got to work.

Hearing the rhythmic thud of a cleaver in the back, Naru let her eyes wander the room. Several seats lined the back of the walls and little magazine slots held the aforementioned item on the sides. A few pictures lined the walls-one of the old man when he was younger and a girl, the old man holding a baby, the first opening of the shop… it was charming to see a bit of someone's personal life at their job. Shaking her head she noticed the old man wrapping the meats in separate white paper with the items name on front. Paying for the meat she left for the seafood stall. Sad dark brown eyes followed her out.

after her excursions in the market, Naru walked towards the park. It was near the market place and a convenient place to meet up with her friends after the shopping. Naru didn't have to wait long.

Hinata was the first one to arrive, several bags of fruits and vegetables weighed her arms down. Naru noticed she had gotten some seeds to. Looking through the bags of each other to make sure they had everything, both were pleased with the others choices.

Naru smiled at Hinata's choice of food. Red apples, oranges, grapes, some peaches and mangos. For the vegetables she had gotten leeks, celery stalks, onions, some beets, a few carrots and many others. Both girls sat down on a bench content to soak up the afternoon sun while waiting for their other friend. Ten minutes later and Lee finally showed up. Once Naru smacked the back of his head, they all walked back home, intending to eat and then get dressed for training.

Dinner was tense as all parties concentrated on the flaws of the day.

0-0-0-0-0

Lee got dressed in the locker room at anbu HQ. Not looking as Naru and Hinata got dressed beside him. Fastening the last latch on his chest armor, he turned to the full wall length mirror and saw how the uniform fit. It was a full length body suit with white ankle bandages and black combat sandals-Naru just wore hers. A large purplish chest and back armor covered the torso. Lee had placed his Turtle mask on the side of his head until the left the locker room. His round, black eyes took in the many other anbu who were getting ready for patrol, missions and training tonight. He felt Naru come up behind him fixing his weapons pouch and his mask.

Looking back at his friends all he saw to identify them was the unique colors of their hair. Nodding the all got ready for tonight's training. Being that they were all young and ill taught by the academy, they would be taught by commander Crane himself.

Lee led the way to room 137, a small training room. Crane was already there, sitting on the floor in a meditative pose. Getting in a straight line, the three bowed and then waited for instruction. Seeing the lesson about to begin they stayed quiet.

Crane nodded and jumped to the topic of chakra. "welcome, as of now you will call me Crane-sensei or sir. As you know you have all been placed in anbu by the right of out Hokage, but that does not mean you are ready for missions or even patrol. When you graduate in the coming days you all will be provided a special rank and mentor in which you will be trained in you specific talents. Until that time though we have only several days to get you to chunin rank. Any questions?"

Lee felt that combined shock of several academy students including himself. How the hell were they going to get to chunin rank in a few days. It wasn't possible, it was insane. "Crane-sensei, how are you going to get us to chunin rank in a few days. It took us forever to get to this level in the academy."

Crane laughed and caused identical tick marks to appear on their faces. Why was he laughing?

"ha, listen up. You are going to pass that lukewarm genin test and you are going to train until you wish for death, but hey that's all good and well, now lets train in chakra control." oh Lee was going to hurt him in sparing.

Hinata raised her hand. "Crane-sensei, how are we going to train our chakra?" Crane raised a hand to his chin in forethought and gave a sinister grin, oh he was going to enjoy this.

"We are going to work on tree-climbing, and then after that we will work on tree-fighting." seeing their blank faces he nodded. "lets go newbie's, we are wasting time." Crane had to fight the urge to laugh again when he heard Naru mumble that it was dark outside and there was no time to waste. Oh academy students.

Lee held on to Naru and Hinata as they walked out into the woods. Crane seemed adamant about going somewhere and he didn't even use a light to see around him, saying the moon and stars gave off more than enough light to see by. Lee called bullshit and Naru agreed. Suddenly they ran into a hard muscled body and toppled over each other, shinobi skills not coming in handy at the moment.

Looking around Lee noticed they were in a clearing with one huge pine tree in the middle. It had to be higher then fifty metes high and it was spaced so if one fell he would land on the hard forest floor. Wincing at the thought, Lee walked forward towards his sensei. "Crane-sensei, what happens now?"

0-0-0-0-0

Crane watched as the new recruits fell in a unflattering heap. Ah, so young, they reminded him of his genin team. A sad smile flittered across his face, he would do everything in his power to make sure they survived and didn't follow the same fate as his friends. "well Turtle, we are going to climb this tree with out the use of your hands. You must apply chakra to the bottoms of your feet-one of the hardest places to cultivate chakra, once you have gathered an amount climb up this pine. Be careful though you must maintain a balance-too little and you'll fall, too much and you'll be ricocheted off the tree and have to start over." he watched them take everything in and raised his hand. " Mouse, you first. Toad your next, Turtle bring up the rear. You all have three hours each to complete this before we move on…ready begin."

0-0-0-0-0

Hinata ran forward, gaining momentum and giving herself time to cultivate the necessary chakra at her feet. She ran several steps up the tree, feeling the rough bark under her sandals. Four steps, six steps. She made her first mistake. By getting excited she fluxuated her chakra causing herself to give too much energy making her fly off the tree. Thinking quickly she flipped in the air and landed hard on her feet, wincing at the harsh bark of her sensei telling her to do it again. She analyzed her predicament, and tried again and again and again, always getting higher up until she hit the highest branch. Looking down she smiled at her friends as they cheered her on. Calmly walking down, she felt the even chakra coating the bottom of her feet and smiled. _you see father, I can be strong. Not that you will ever know that now, its to late for you to take me back, I have a new family now-my best friends. We will get stronger then any shinobi and we will accomplish the future together._ looking back up at the tree she had taken two hours and thirteen minutes to overcome, all Hinata felt was satisfaction. She one of the dead lasts in the academy, one who was never taken seriously had done what many would deem impossible. And she was proud of it.

0-0-0-0-0

Naru watched as Hinata got higher and higher up the huge pine. Though proud of her friend, she was also confused. The strange glow was back and it was surrounding both Lee, Crane-sensei, and Hinata. She looked at lee and saw his glow was a gold color, he was beaming up a thousand watt smile at their friend. Her sensei had a pure white colored glow. She couldn't tell what he was thinking, but if she had to guess on body language, she would say he was proud and happy. Hinata had a coldish gray colored glow-very different from the one she had in class. Sneaking a peek at her hands she wanted to yell, her hands had no colorful glow they looked like regular hands. _is something wrong with me, am I ill why, why don't I glow like the others. All right Naru, get a grip_. _Go talk with the Hokage later. Maybe he knows what the hell is going on._

Looking back up from her musing, Naru saw Hinata land wobbly on the ground. "Hey-y Naru, i-its you turn." Hinata was pushing the tips of her fingers together-a clear sign that she was nervous. Naru smiled comfortingly at her, not that she could see it, and nodded. Walking forward, she felt Lee pat her on the back in good luck.

Breathing in deeply, Naru slowly gathered her chakra into her feet. It felt odd, like sharp knives were being forced out of the soles of her skin. It stung but it didn't hurt. Bending down in a low stance, she charged. A million and one emotions flew through her mind and Naru felt her chakra waver. She was already six feet up and slightly panicked. _oh kami. _she wasn't scared of heights and really didn't want to be, but she quickly realized that being up really high in a tree with wavering chakra and no place to hold onto causes one to feel pretty uncertain. Naru held down on her chakra with a will she never knew she had.

She looked into herself and noticed what looked like two streams of colored light: one deep blue and spiraling and the other dark red and thrashing. To her it looked like the two lights were battling it out and it seemed the blue one was losing. She felt desperate, she didn't like the feel of the red light, it felt dark and addictive and heavy. In a moment of pure, unadulterated fear one will do things that may seem rash and uncouth. So Naru gabbed the end of the red light and held on, it burned her, making Naru feel like her skin was boiling off, but she didn't scream and she didn't let go. What was also weird was that she could "feel" emotions coming off the red light-anger, uncertainty, and rage. Thinking up a plan she threw the red light over to the side. It spun there, trying to right itself. Not wasting anytime, Naru made a glasslike tubing system. She left a opening and stood in front of it. Waiting for the red light to attack, she didn't have to wait long. Upon righting itself, the red light transformed into a large red colored fox and snarling, charged at her. The thundering of the foxes claws hitting the ground and the beating of her own heart was all Naru knew, she stood her ground as the red colored beast came at her and at the last moment possible, Naru leapt out of the way.

The Red light turned fox didn't have time to turn his course and collided with the opening to the tubing system. Moving quickly before the light could escape, Naru made a odd hand sign and slammed her open palm against the opening to the tube. A odd looking spiral made out of black ink spread out, kanji moved around the tube system closing it off but allowing it to still be used and circulate in her body. Tired and sweating but filled with a humming energy, she did the same thing with the blue light but she didn't seal it up, she just made the wall thicker and held by black ink colored brackets. Moving the two separate tubes around each other she made them both spiral downwards toward the center of her being. With that done, Naru let the exhaustion course through her. She felt that she had completed something great and with the finality of the thoughts in her mind, she closed her eyes and let the calm darkness take her away.

Warm darkness, like heavy, comforting velvet laid around her in a protective blanket. "Naru." she didn't want to listen. "Naru." she rolled over, she felt the need to leave, but she couldn't. she started to panic. "Naru, listen to me. You got to wake up." that was Lee, why was Lee here. He shouldn't be here. "Naru wak-ke u-up please." Hinata, she was here too. A bright red light started to surround her. She yelled, "Lee, Hinata, run away. Get out of here." she faced the malevolent glow with narrowed eyes and a snarl painted on her lips. "get the hell away from my friends! You have no right to hurt them!" a hideous laughter nearly slapped her and she growled out at the glow. A booming voice bounced around the darkness tinged red. "**Foolish mortal, what can you possible do to stop me. You may have succeeded in sealing my chakra for your own use, but I assure you, you will come to regret your meddling choice. Beware the dark of passing out, little Uzumaki, I wont be so lenient next time we meet and I plan on making you pay." **with that the glow shaped itself into the form of a giant red eye and she felt herself pushed into the realm of the awake. "**until we meet again, Naru." **the voice gave a mental laugh as she growled at the last shreds of red light and then she was gone. She fascinated him, to be so young and yet so talented. He would enjoy the next battle they fought. Closing his red eyes he laid in his cage and thought of the young girl.

Naru coughed as she woke up, air oh, glorious air. Her blue eyes cut to the faces of those peering down at her. Lee and Hinata hid poorly concealed sighs of relief, while her sensei just nodded at her. "what happened?" she couldn't remember anything after the small, but tense battle in her body. Her sensei gave a sigh before launching into a short explanation. "when you started to climb the tree, we saw you move faster and faster. Before long you had started too fall and we moved to catch you but as you were falling you emitted a wave of chakra and you flipped around and caught the side of the tree with your left foot. You hung there for a few seconds and then you started to run the rest of the way up the tree, completing the assignment. Then you made it to the ground before you passed out." Naru didn't know what to feel. On one hand she was excited that she had completed the training early but on the other hand she was sad that her battle had kept her from enjoying the experience. "did Lee complete the assignment, sensei?" he nodded and she felt even worse. She had missed a cornerstone moment in her friends life. How horrible could she be. Lee patted her shoulder and smiled in encouragement.

"touching moment really, But we should be heading back now… Good job at completing the assignment all of you. Nodding in assent they all walked back to Hq for must needed showers and their actual clothes.

Walking into her room that night, Naru looked out her window at the moon. Her mind in turmoil. _who was that voice? Was that red light a different type of chakra and was the blue light her own chakra. Why do I have two different types, is that normal. I didn't know chakra can talk back or manifest itself in different forms._ She rubbed the bridge between her eyes and walked to her bed, falling on top of her covers. Sleep didn't come easy fro her that night nor would it ever again.

0-0-0-0-0

Training had slowly killed the three young adults. They had all been training non-stop for the past week and now today was Friday, the day of the genin test. Lee watched as Naru picked at her breakfast, dark circles hung under her eyes and she seemed weighed down by something. Hinata had told him that Naru was having trouble sleeping, he wanted to help but he had no idea how. they all wore their new outfits Lee wore a green jumpsuit that a man named Gai-sensei had given to him, Hinata wore a light purple jacket over black shinobi pants and her blue shinobi sandals. A black tee-shirt was under her closed jacket. Naru wore her usual outfit. Lee led them to the academy, and they entered their respective classrooms. Alone, Lee walked into his full classroom and chose a seat at the very back content to wait for his test to begin.

The sensei handed out tests, each was standard for what they had covered over the year. The only difference between his test and everyone else's was the fact that he was doing this to graduate early. The written test was a cake walk and he scored a 84% a passable grade. They waited for everyone to finish before they were herded outside to the sparring ring for the Taijustu portion of the exam. They were all paired into twos and were told to use academy style kata to defeat their opponent. Lee was paired with a student he didn't know and easily wiped the floor with him. Moving to sit in the shade , he thought about how well Hinata and Naru were doing. They both had to be on the written test by now or the gengestu portion. Hearing the call for everyone to go inside, he looked across the field and saw his friends exit to start their Taijustu exam. Giving them a thumbs up, the smiled and waved before the closing doors separated him from them. Sighing he walked with the rest of the class back. In the gengestu exam he got a 67%, in the physical he passed with a clean bill of health. Now he was waiting to be called back into the room where the justu was to be conducted, for him he would be explaining why he could not do justu and then he would pass. "Rock Lee."

Rolling his shoulders he stood in front of the academy sensei's and awaited the verdict. He wasn't alone, the Hokage had showed up. He had motioned outside and mouthed Naru and Hinata's names. He nodded in affirmative. "well Rock Lee, we would like to present you with a haita-ate in honor of graduating to genin. Congratulations." he bowed to both the Hokage and the sensei's and calmly walked out. He got two steps before he was glomped by Naru and Hinata, they yelled and laughed while showing each other their new forehead protectors. Naru had chosen a orange colored ribbon and Hinata a dark purple. His was a red colored ribbon. He saw Anko turn a corner and grinned at her-they had been introduced several days ago and both got along just fine. It was time for a celebration and the Hokage and Crane-sensei had arranged for it all.

Walking to the Hokage tower they let their new forehead protectors shine in the bright sun. the looks they received were a mixture of shock, disdain and anger. They didn't care.

The party lasted well into the evening and many gifts and food were passed around in good company. Naru got a mixture of scrolls on training for her new style, a beautiful fighting staff and a new, larger pouch for her weapons'. A glove fastening in dark brown leather was given to her for her staff which was collapsible. Hinata was given a giant scroll on medical ninjustu, some protective gloves, a medical pouch filled with supplies, and a large scroll-which the Hokage explained was a summoning contract that had been left to her from her mother. Lee was given some nunchuku, a large weapons pouch, and some training scrolls for several Taijustu styles.

When the party was winding down, they were summoned to the Hokage and Crane-sensei and told that as of now they were a three man team, unfortunately they would not be able to do missions together ubtil they learned enough in their respected talents. On his desk the Hokage picked up a cloth that had covered three scrolls in varying colors. One was green-this was handed to Lee, and he was told to report to training ground nine at dawn tomorrow. The next one was brown and white-this was given to Hinata, she was told to wait at the village gate at ten'o clock tomorrow and to pack for several weeks. The last scroll was gray and black-this was given to Naru, she was told to wait at the Hokage's tower at two in the morning and not to be late. Dismissed they all walked back home, content in knowing that they had passed and were now going to train with their new sensei's.

0-0-0-0-0

A blaring alarm woke Naru as she scrambled to launch out of bed to stop the shrill ringing. It was one 'o clock in the morning and she decided to head to the bath house. Grabbing her towel and walking along the hallways she noticed that the lights in Lee and Hinata's rooms were off, indicating that they were still asleep. In the bath house, the smell of sulfur laced with cherries hit her full blast. Discarding her pajama's she hopped in to the hot water. She washed her hair and body with her mango scented shampoo and conditioner and relaxed for a few minutes. She felt so comfortable, but like all good things it had to end. Grumbling about people who didn't know the value of sleep, she got dressed and walked to the Hokage tower, grabbing some muffins from a shop that had opened on the way. She arrived and noticed the coming and going shinobi, most seemed to be getting back from missions and were getting paid. A few even nodded at her, while most whispered about how she had passed her genin exam.

Walking into the Hokage's office she wasn't surprised to see him working. Giving him a small bow, she walked to the couch and sat down, waiting for her new sensei. An hour passed before the Hokage stopped writing and looked up at a man with long white hair. He seemed to be around fifty and had wrinkles prominent near his eyes. Two long red marks like tear tracks ran down his face. He was very tall and heavily built. On his back he wore a large summoning scroll. His clothing was a mixture of red and greens. He wore wooden clog like sandals on his feet, he wore no Konoha forehead protector, but rather a horned one with the kanji for oil on it.

The Hokage beckoned her over and the man simply watched. "Naru, this is Jairiya of the sannin, he will be your mentor in training you in espionage and seals." she nodded at the man and he gave a small nod back-both to tired to say hi. "you will need to pack some things for a trip of about five weeks…dismissed." bowing to the Hokage she turned on her hells and walked back home.

Heading into her room she pulled out several outfits and her new gear, making sure her staff was packed with her gear on her arm. Writing a quick note to her friends, Naru ran to the main gate and her mentor. He was waiting and without a word they both set out for the training sites.

0-0-0-0-0

Hinata woke to the sound of someone leaving. She blinked the sleep from her tired, lavender tinted eyes, and cracked her jaw in a yawn. Looking around the room, Hinata felt safe and warm and was loathe to get out of the confines of her comfortable covers. Then her alarm started to ring. Sighing in fates cruel gestures, she slipped from the bed and walked over to the vile object. Slamming her palm down on the off button, she walked over to her closet and took out some clothes for the weeks ahead.

A smile broke through her face as she held the haite-ate of Konoha, the smooth metal engraved with a sharp leaf stared back at her. She had done it, she had graduated and she was now going to leave the village for her training._ see father, I may be weak now but, I know I'm stronger than any of you because I value true strength. I'm going to be trained as a med-nin and save lives. Maybe one day I will come to see why you did this father, but until that day I thank you, if I had stayed in that poison's filled clan, I would have never gotten strong. _Packing up the rest of her things, she stopped and turned around, laying innocently against the wall was the summoning scroll of mice. She was curious about the thing, especially when she found out it belonged to her mother. She didn't remember much about the kind women, all she could think of was that she died not long after Hanabi was born.

Still, the scroll beckoned her until she heaved the heavy roll up. Placing it on her back she grabbed the other scrolls for her medical gear and left out the door and down the hall ways. Looking around, she noticed that both Lee and Naru's doors were closed, yet both were gone. Sighing she left the house grabbing some rice cakes and leaving towards the main gate.

Yet when she got there, no one was there to greet her. Feeling left out, she walked out onto the dusty road, not knowing were she was heading. It seemed like minutes before she was stopped. Several Konoha shinobi barred her path. From their flak jackets she assumed that they were chunin. One of them stepped forward, he looked her over and made a hand sign, muttering "kai" under his breath. When nothing happened, he nodded and stepped back. "are you Hyuuga Hinata." she gave a jerky nod, he motioned with his hand for her to follow. Seeing no other option, she complied. Several tense moments later they arrived in a clearing, it was spread out with large white medical tents. Med-nin scurried hither and thither, never stopping but always in control.

A large breasted women with a scar on her forehead met them halfway. "My name is Shifune. You may call me Shifune-sensei if you wish. I am going to be your mentor, and pass onto you the teachings of medical ninjustu. You are going to start slow, but things will increase when we head for the border. Here is a special med scroll, you may start once you've put away your things." Hinata looked around the organized camp and walked over to an empty tent, stowing her things, she ran back to her new sensei ready to begin her lessons.

0-0-0-0-0

Lee ran around early morning shoppers and merchants as he navigated the way to training ground nine. Jumping over random civilians and cargo, he knew that he was getting nowhere fast and finally decided to take the high road when a crowd of old lady's created a blockade in front of him. Gathering as much chakra to his feet as he dared, he jumped onto a wall and ran up to the roof. Lee felt that momentary thrill of being able to at least cultivate this much chakra for such a staple part of a shinobi's lifestyle.

He felt a little sad that neither Naru nor Hinata had come to see him off, but soon pushed that feeling aside. He really couldn't blame either of them-being as Naru left way early and Hinata needed some sleep for her own journey.

_Still it would have been nice too see both of them off. Hmm, I wonder if this was the Hokage's plan to begin with- separating us to make us stronger in our own abilities without the hampering and distractions friends can be…still, I won't see both of them until our trainings are done. _Lee ran like a madman, he could see the wide fields of training ground nine and a bolt of excitement hit him like a high powered arrow. Training ground nine was a place specially favored by Taijustu users, in that it was flat enough for learning new kata and techniques, but overgrown enough to provide a challenge. The grounds were mostly made up of grassland, with a nice river on the side and a smidgen of trees for practicing tree fighting.

Landing gently on the ground outside the training field, he cast his eyes around for his new sensei. Nothing…there was nobody in the abandoned area. Feeling ire at the fact that he saw nobody, Lee was about to head home, when he heard a crash and a sickening thud. Not caring that he could be heading straight into a trap, Lee pushed off the ground and ran towards the noise. _please don't let this be a trap…please don't let this be a trap…_ these thoughts flowed through his mind, worrying him but filling him with rightful energy.

Not stumbling once, though his legs were being grabbed at by weeds and roots, Lee pushed on. Soon he came upon a decimated clearing. Trees had been destroyed and the ground was littered with craters. Three training posts had been uprooted and haphazardly thrown in random directions. He took all of this information in quickly, and then froze as a noise on his right made itself known. Turning around slowly, mentally preparing himself for a fight, Lee looked upon the man that had destroyed the clearing and let his guard drop.

"Gai-sensei…what are you doing here!?"

The man could have easily been Lee's deceased father. Gai had dark black hair cut in a bowl cut, big eyebrows, and a jonin flak jacket pronouncing his rank. On his legs he wore orange leg warmers. His body was covered by a green spandex outfit, with his hai-ate on a red dark red ribbon around his waist as a belt. it was widely acknowledged by most every shinobi, that Maito Gai was one of the best Taijustu users to ever come out of Konoha. More acknowledged than that was the fact that he was clearly eccentric.

"Ah, Lee. In answer to your youthful question, the esteemed Hokage asked me to mentor a student and pass on my hip ways of youth to a new generation!" fire burned in Gai's eyes as he went on a tangent about youth and Taijustu-Lee sat down and listened, thinking his new sensei to be the greatest man he had ever met.

0-0-0-0-0

In a office, and old man sat at his desk and smiled. Yes, those three would defiantly become the greatest shinobi the leaf had ever produced. All of them burned with the will of fire and would use this will to keep the leaf warm in all difficulties.

Chuckling to himself, the Sandaime Hokage got back to work and ruminated on three other children who he had once taught-with all his ageing heart, he desperately wished for them to not turn out like his team.


	5. Chapter 5

AN: sorry about the delay on updating chapter four, my computer finally fizzed out and I had to by a new one. Now with all my priorities taken care of, here is chapter five.

Chapter five:

The first day(s).

Hinata felt a rough kick to her legs and bolted awake, pale eyes shined in a hidden ire-promising pain for the rude awakening. A older women, her age could have rivaled the Sandaime's, gave a uninterested look down at her rumpled form. "get dressed and meet at the ration tent in five, that's an order trainee." the lady turned on her heels and walked out of the tent, probably to get some food before the day started.

Looking around at her Spartan settings, Hinata simply sighed and got dressed in her tan training outfit and white lab coat. she had only been here for a few days and already she was ready to go back home to her friends. Moving aside the tent flap, she blinked against the glare of the false dawn. Here people scurried around, moving across the clearing-most to the communal rations tent, others to watch the camp or take care of patients. Not yet awake, Hinata moved stiffly towards the call of breakfast-as meager and plain as it was, and mentally prepared herself for her day.

The bright lamp light blared in the confined space of the huge tent. Keeping her head down and trudging forward she got in line for the food. Hard oat bread and some hard boiled eggs, a few steamed vegetables and an apple all fell on her tray. To tired to care and knowing everyone else was eating the same thing, Hinata didn't make a fuss, not that she would in the first place. Walking and sitting down in a vacant seat, she started to eat and think. How were Naru and Lee doing, were they okay, did they miss her like she missed them? So many questions flew through her mind, sighing and then berating herself for sighing, she chewed her food in silent vexations.

She had nearly finished her meal when her sensei suddenly sat down in front of her. This small women of about forty, was tougher then nails and harder then rock. With steel colored hair pulled into a tight bun and piercing green eyes, Shifune-sensei commanded the medical corps of the camp with an iron will and let it be known easily that her word was law. She was a fighter and proved it by the large scar on her forehead. The older women did have a kinder side- unfortunately no one in the camp besides the patients ever saw it.

Hinata watched as Shifune-sensei leaned back, arms over her generous chest. Pale lavender tinted eyes met wintergreen, a silent war seemed to start, with neither side willing to give in. maybe it had been minutes, maybe seconds before her sensei slapped her hand on the crude table. "well… I'm surprised, Hinata-chan, who knows what will change you the longer you stay here with us. But sadly today is not going to be a fun filled and easy day." Hinata was in a mind to glare at her sensei for the joke, but before she could do that, Shifune continued. "yep, all of us are moving to the border… we have a camp set up already, and this will allow us to transport some of the more critically injured patients to the hospital in Konoha. Don't expect anything amazing when we get there, Hinata-chan, you are going to fully start your training and believe me, all of us are going to work you to the bone…get ready to leave, we disembark at noon.

She watched as Shifune-sensei left, her mind in slight turmoil. Of course Hinata had known that she would be leaving to the border with the rest of the med-corps but, she didn't think it would be so soon. She got up and handed her tray back, content to go back to her tent and collect her already packed equipment.

0-0-0-0-0

Hinata walked out of the clearing-now bare with only flattened area's that told their presence had been here at all. Easily the youngest person here, she tried real hard to make herself invisible before her sensei had found out her plan and was now trying to include her into the conversation-it wasn't working. After an hour of this, her sensei dismissed everyone around her and admitted defeat.

Since she had been here, her stutter was practically gone. Yet, she had spoken like that since she was very young and in a way, it was her security blanket. She knew she was being cowardly and that this was only going to get her in trouble, but she just needed time to come to terms with it all. Already considered an adult, expected to act like an adult, commanded respect as an adult-Kami she was only seven years old, too young to even be home by herself without someone checking up on her. She should be in the academy, learning how to escape knots and evade capture, not force march across the land of fire to a border to heal people…she stopped, her breathing was erratic and her heart was skipping beats. _oh Kami, I don't belong here. Naru and Lee, I'm sorry guys, how could I believe I would amount to any greatness as yourselves. My father was right, I am worthless…I'm sorry…_

Shifune caught her charge as she fell. Waving over some of her helpers, she moved her chakra covered hand over the fallen girl, pleased to note that no injuries had befallen her. Her sharp green eyes noticed the light and fast breathing and considered on what had made the young girl hyperventilate hard enough that she passed out. A small whisper-no more than a breathe of air, moved by her and her harsh features softened somewhat. "no Hinata-chan, you are so much better than what you give credit too…even I know you're not worthless." gently hoisting the young girl up on her shoulder, Shifune gave the all clear and they started moving once more. The border was only a day or two away now.

0-0-0-0-0

The world was dark and oddly peaceful. No noise disturbed her, Hinata felt she could live here forever with only the silence to keep her avid company. She opened her eyes, or were they already open, and met the vast eternity of slate darkness. Like warm velvet it caressed her, comforted her, told her she would only be here for just a little longer. She asked the nothing…were was she going, Hinata never got the answer. She felt all things fading and then it hit her.

_All things fade, given time…even I will cease to exist, along with both Naru and Lee. One day we will all be names on a rock, people will speak of us on what we did good or wrong in our lives, they will count the victories and losses and look to remaining family to provide these answers…but they will never understand 'us'. they will never know that Naru can't sleep a whole night through or that Lee thought green spandex outfits were the most amazing thing since sliced bread and they will never know that I bought my exile from my clan. But most of all they will never know how we became friends and changed our lives around…and that's okay._ Hinata felt herself awakening, and for once truly welcomed the harsh sunlight, happy that she understood herself better then ever.

The first breath as a changed person was always going to be the sweetest that Hinata had ever taken. Finches in the surrounding forest cheeped out hello's and insults. A body shifted next to hers and caused Hinata to have a mild heart attack. She relaxed when she saw it was Shifune-sensei. "hello sensei." she felt the urge to giggle uncontrollably when she saw her sensei's eyebrows shoot to the top of her hair line."Hinata-chan, well now I'm surprised you didn't stutter, let me guess I have finally cured the unthinkable." giving a small laugh, Hinata was hoisted up and out of the tent, pulled by the ridiculously strong women.

"well, now that you're awake, I guess we can start on your training. Man so much to do so little time, I personally blame our Hokage, but well that doesn't really go well with most of these shinobi. Ah well another day, another age. Come Hinata-chan, we have to get you some food and then into one of these handy-dandy tents. Following the passionate women, Hinata had to nearly trot to keep up with her long strides. So much for being under med care for several days.

Walking along the perimeter of one of the med-tents, Hinata watched as patients came and went. Some were really badly wounded others had only minor inconvenients. She watched with horrified, yet fascinated eyes as a man was brought in. He had bad third degree burns-probably caused by a katon justu. Parts of his legs and arms had gouges in them and littering his torso was a mass of bloodied flesh and shuriken. Hinata wanted to gag, the smell of burnt flesh and blood was overpowering her senses and making her woozy.

When she had first arrived at the camp, she was given the fish revival training and had completed the assignment in record time. Unfortunately, now she was finished with the saner project and would have to start her job as a trainee medic. "Hinata-chan, bring some boiled water and some clean gauze, now." needing no second bidding, Hinata ran like the devil was at her heels, happy to be out in the sunlight. Not stopping she ran into the supply tent and asked a person for the things she needed. Running all the way back, she burst through the flaps and distributed her burden to the qualified med-nins. By now the man was thrashing in agony, mouth open in a silent scream, sweat pouring down his face. He was a young man, maybe in his late twenties.

Hinata felt herself tremble, could this happen to her or her friends? She closed off her mind to distractions and grabbed a roll of gauze, starting at his left thigh she worked her way up. Of course she was a trainee, not even cleared for handling patients, but seeing no one stop and the nods for her to keep going, she did the job like her colleagues and she was going to make damn sure that he lived another night.

The work was precarious. One bandaged leg done wrong, chakra wavering, shitty work, all of these could harm the patient and even kill them. Being from a clan, Hinata had been trained practically from birth to control her chakra, to sense it. Then she had met the Hokage, Crane-sensei and Anko, these people had taught her the uses for chakra. Lee had made her notice the merit off having useable chakra, while Naru had helped her to understand the very nature of the energy of everything living. Hinata rolled the gauze around the wounds of the man, he moved his tired hazel eyes towards her. "a-are you a-an ange-l." shocked eyes turned towards him, he smiled, showing bloodied teeth. A glowing green hand touched his forehead and his eyes closed in final exhaustion. Looking at her sensei, Hinata tried to find the connection between the hard women who commanded the med-nin and this tired looking doctor of only forty. "come Hinata-chan, lets leave the men to his rest."

It was a calm night. Several hours had been taken to heal the man, and as such the balance between night and day had flipped. Walking along a small overgrown path, Hinata and Shifune spoke no words. The met a fork in the path, directly in front of it lay a broad lake, sparkling blue with the white disk of the moon reflecting on its still surface.

Shifune stopped walking and stared out at the peaceful setting. "Hinata-chan…why did you not follow your orders today. A trainee does not help out with the patients, you know this and I know this, and yet, I allowed you to prove yourself in the face of opposition…you did very well though. You could be a natural if you worked on being more assertive." Hinata waited, knowing there was more to come. " did you know my sensei brought me here, and basically gave me the same rundown…it was during the second shinobi war. We, the med-nins, were down several men and women…I was only a trainee like you, yet I was compelled to work alongside my fellows and try to save as many I could. We were camped near this same border, the sounds of fighting rang loud and clear in the night, you couldn't even see the moon from all the smoke obscuring the sky." a lone flash of nostalgia flickered in her sensei's bright green eyes.

The moon seemed to only illuminate the silhouettes of the two people. The dark night held its secrets well, by morning there would never be any sign that such talks had been held in the company of the wind and trees, natures own witnesses.

0-0-0-0-0

Later that night, Hinata watched the stars through the flap to her tent. Maybe she could find that inner strength, conquer it and move on in her life. She knew life was hard for most folks, and that her lot in life, besides Naru's and Lee's, made everything that much more difficult. Hinata sighed, why couldn't life just hand her a list of all the horrible, hard or depressing things that would happen to her.

Rolling over she closed her pupil less eyes and fought for her freedom to sleep.

_0-0-0-0-0_

_Hinata found herself in a small, rural village. Wooden houses on stilts rose from the hard, packed ground, the smell of salt and brine filled the air, and on the wind, seagulls looped and dived. The village was obviously poorer then Konoha, but everything about the place spoke of comfort and simplicity._

_Moving her legs, Hinata walked forward. A few wisps of dust puffed up from under her bare feet, the ground felt cool and slightly sandy. A faint crashing sound issued from over a small community of pale gray hills, reached her ears. Looking around, she realized that she was alone, a sense of foreboding, raced up Hinata's spine…why was she alone and why was she here? Continuous steps echoed loudly in the abandoned village as Hinata searched for the locals. Nothing was found._

_She was just about to turn back when a shrill squeak forced her attention over. She saw nothing that could have made such a sound, but by this point she had stopped searching. In front of her, a monster of a mountain loomed over her and the forgotten village. It spiked dramatically towards the heavens and seemed to pierce the clouds-like the teeth of a predator tearing at the fleece of lambs. Shivering, Hinata walked slowly towards the rocky giant, neither willing nor able to turn and walk away._

_It might have been minutes, maybe hours before Hinata had reached the base. Large boulders seemed to be the only occupants on the face of the silent mountain, besides the occasional scrub grass. Looking around, her sharp eyes searched every crevice and crack. Another squeak alerted Hinata to a small cave like opening and crouching down she fully intended to follow where it led. A harsh gasp of air flew from her frozen lips as she fell down into a body of icy cold water. Not having time to scream for help, she felt herself being born down a torrent, the water bearing her further down a tunnel, deeper into the earth._

_Hinata fought the rapid moving water, her lungs and muscles strained while her skeleton groaned in the arctic clutches of the tunnels life blood. To her, it felt like she was a small paper boat on a stormy sea, she had no control and was in desperate fear for her life. A roaring mass of white, blinding in the darkness churned chaotically ahead of her. There wasn't even time for a prayer, before Hinata was born over the side of a gigantic underground waterfall, which was only too eager for her to be swallowed up. _

_0-0-0-0-0_

Hinata bolted straight up out of her small cot. The desperate hammerings of her heartbeat and the slickness of her sweat dripping down her body calmed Hinata. She was alive. Not one for analyzing dreams or for believing in superstition, even she felt the undeniable attractions of one who was courting disaster. Slowly working to breathe normally, Hinata shivered. The water, the fall, the icy touch that froze the breath in her lungs, everything had seemed real: a scary fate for her it seemed. Quickly looking out the tent flap, she noticed that it was dawn and not wanting to get into any trouble, practically raced to get her clothes on, her hair brushed out, and her med-gear stowed in scrolls before she had to run to the rations tent for breakfast.

The calm buzz of conversation cloaked Hinata in a warm shield, preventing her from thinking about the mysterious dream. Grabbing her tray filled with some type of fish and rice mash, she took a seat with some other trainees.

She had expected to be greeted with a apathetic look of greeted tiredness, but instead got a look mixed with annoyance and jealousy. Slightly ducking her head and whispering a good morning, Hinata focused half of her attention on her food and the other half on the conversation.

"yeah can you believe…"

"or have you heard…no I haven't"

"huh, great medic my ass, she couldn't save the life of a paper bag, let alone a human being…why is she even here, look at her she is too young to be a genin much less a med-nin in training!." a loud, whiney voice cut the gentle lull of conversation in half. It was Fugiwa Ioku, a second year med-nin trainee, one of the most celebrated of her class and had record of the best known bitchy attitudes ever categorized.

Ioku stood at a impressive five ft. five inches, had shoulder length-curly black hair and brown eyes. She wore the standard clothes for a med-nin, except hers were tailored to fit a slightly sultry appeal. She was one of the rudest people to ever come out of the medic corps, always bossing others around, making them do her work and then taking credit for it, and generally causing mayhem in camp with her whining. "look around you…all of us trainees have been going through camps such as this one for several years training on just the basics…and then she comes along, with her 'I'm such a defenseless little girl routine', pathetic." snarling Ioku faced Hinata down, a silent challenge being issued.

Hinata felt a wave of animosity hit her hard. "Ioku-san, p-please, keep your voice down." cringing internally at the slight stutter, she turned her pupil less eyes at the now red-faced teenager. Anyone with half a living brain cell was watching the staring contest. Until a crash was heard.

Random snarls and growls kept spewing from the livid teen. Her pretty features were screwed up in a ugly mask of rage. Killer intent flowed freely and with clear purpose. Hinata wanted to run, but knew she wouldn't get far. "You dare tell me what to do. You are barely out of academy bitch, here let me give you a lesson they never taught you!" without warning, Ioku ran at the stunned Hinata, a fist upraised. A bolt of actual fear gallivanted Hinata to run, and run she did. Not knowing any specific direction to go in, she chose one at complete random. Into the woods, briars and weeds attempted to hold the running seven year old. The crashing sounds of her pursuer echoing her own ungainly retreat, followed shortly behind.

Then they stopped.

Hinata pushed on harder. The only reason she wasn't hearing Ioku anymore was because she had probably wised up and was now stalking her and concealing her chakra. It was either that or someone had managed to capture Ioku before she killed her.

She never stopped once, not even when she fell, Hinata would get right back up and keep running. Unfamiliar terrain blurred past her, trees and rocks became undistinguishable and yet she kept running. Night fell and the moon rose high in the inky blackness, the stars kept her company as she started to slow down, the adrenaline wearing off. Confused, hungry, and in desperate need for a bathroom break, Hinata had no choice but to stop and rest.

She moved around the small little clearing, large pine trees dominated the area, but underneath them laid tangles of blackberry bushes. Walking over to them and grabbing a several large handfuls, Hinata chose a spot under one of the trees with out the prickly bushes and took stock of her situation.

She had no weapons save some kunai and shuriken, no water or shelter. Some where along her run, she had lost her sandals and now her feet were cut up and bleeding, the skin red and puffy from being rubbed raw and from infection. Her clothes were in tatters, not even fit for use as rags let alone some bandaging for her injuries. Her body was exhausted and refused the commands for getting up and moving. Her face, hands, feet and lower torso was covered in dust, sweat and mud-gained from her untimely falls.

Looking around, Hinata saw only the hidden expanse of forest surrounding her. With her back pressed up against the rough wood of her pine tree, Hinata sprawled out her body and tried to get some sleep.

Several hours later Hinata flashed her eyes open, and held her breath. Several large, vicious looking wolves stared back at her. She didn't know how long she stayed there, only that by the time the sun had peaked the tree tops, the wolves had vanished, leaving her in isolation once more.

With a muffled groan of agony, Hinata heaved her broken body upwards. The only thought in her mind was to get away fast. Leaning on the trees, she walked slowly away, picking blackberries for later and searching for a suitable shelter.

Hours crawled by and the sun had slowly gone down. Hinata was in a world of hurt. Not able to take anymore, she dropped to her knees. The blood was sloughing out of her feet, leaving little bloody footprints along the unforgiving ground. Tears randomly fell from her pale eyes, a twitch was being developed in them along with a slight burning that had started after the sun had dimmed down. Hinata felt the shaking in her limbs and knew it would be pointless to go any further that night. To make her matters even worse, the wolves she had thought she left behind were back and had settled among the trees-their yellow eyes watching her every movement, waiting for the time to strike.

Twisting herself around, Hinata placed her hands on her feet and concentrated hard. For a few minutes nothing seemed to be happening, then out of nowhere, a deep green light started to cover her hands. A rush of cool chakra hit her injured feet, repairing her torn skin and muscles. A sigh of relief escaped her.

Smiling in satisfaction at her newly developed skills, Hinata laid back down, too tired to care if today was going to be her last. Glad that the roaring pain had stopped in her feet, Hinata quietly took stock of her situation-no food, no water, no shelter-her chances of survival dropped dramatically. She was also with out any good weapon-sure she had some kunai and shuriken, but those required some form of accuracy and the ability to spot your opponent, something she couldn't do because it was darker then ink out there.

Resigning herself to the waiting game, Hinata got on her hands and knees and slowly crawled to a tree so she could have something at her back. In the undergrowth, she could hear the sound of the wolves pacing and the barely audible growls that emitted from them. Slightly hissing in annoyance at the continuous stinging in her eyes, Hinata calmly watched her surroundings-tonight was not going to be an easy one.

0-0-0-0-0

Shifune watched as her med-nins rushed around the camp. Outwards, she looked calm and collected but on the inside she was a mess-anger, sorrow and surprisingly fear plagued her when she closed her eyes. How could she have let one of her own become so uncontrolled. Ioku was supposed to go places after she had completed her training, she had hoped that the rude teen would learn some measure of humility and kindness, sadly she had been mistaken and now Hinata was paying the price for her impotence. Grimacing in self-loathing, Shifune walked to the forests edge, lost in thought. If only she had stopped Ioku, then maybe Hinata wouldn't be all alone in the forest hunted by a apparently insane med-nin trainee.

"Hinata, please be careful and come home soon."

0-0-0-0-0

Oh kami it hurt. Hinata rubbed her eyes, they were stinging. It felt like someone had heated up small metal needles and then shoved them into her eye sockets and then twisted them around. The pain was something she was becoming used to, but kami it was becoming too much. The wolves were shifting and whining in the shadows of the trees, safe from prying eyes, Hinata could almost taste their excitement at the hunt. A ragged scream was suddenly torn from her throat at the intense burn that started in her eyes, something wet slipped from the closed lids. All her other senses became haywire, Hinata picked up the crack of sticks as the wolves rushed forward, the loud thud of their paws hitting the densely packed ground, so close-too close.

The lead wolf pounced, the rancid breath from its mouth, drool flying, stray pieces of fur buffeted by the wind, she could hear the others following suit, eager to tear limb from limb. The pain kept building, tears continued streaming, her breathing increased as well as her heartbeat. Then time stopped and Hinata became calm.

Rising on suddenly steady legs, posture erect-yet flowing, arms forward but bent at the elbows, fingers together. Her hair blew in the wind, so short but showing her hidden strength. The collective intake of air collected by both parties, a preparation for something bigger then fight or flee. Claws shot forward leading the charge, yellow eyes looking ahead, anticipating the outcome of its victory. She suddenly dropped in an unfamiliar stance, the grace of a women who hid her wildcat interior, the building heat in her eyes screamed out commands that neither girl nor wolf heeded. One arm bent back above her head, the other beckoning her adversary. So close, a howl ripped from the wolf leader, sounding the hunt, a small voice yelled out her challenge:

"Byakugan!" her pale lavender tinted eyes shot open.

The flow of the wolves chakra was easy to see. Hinata didn't waste time. Slaps were heard that night as one by one the wolf pack was defeated-by the hands of a little girl with pale, pupil less eyes. The battle raged for moments, one slap earned her a snarl and a snap of teeth filled jaws-she was past the time of caring. Chakra filled hands beat the hostility from the wild animals. A splash of scarlet indicated the injury to both sides, a hush fell as the last wolf rose from the ground. The lead wolf walked over to the girl until they were a foot away from each other, clear respect for the other fighter was evident in their eyes, this fight was a lesson both needed to learn. With out a sound the wolves turned and ran off in the other direction, leaving Hinata all alone once more-a small smile curled at her lips.

That night as she healed her injuries, she looked to the moon hidden beyond the canopy of the forest and grinned at the howls of wolves.

0-0-0-0-0

Ioku was on the hunt.

Blood stained tracks led her to her prey-the stupid Hyuuga. Soon she would show the bitch why her rule was undisputed. The shadows never bothered her, she had become well versed in their secrets. Why her master had made her join the silly camp of med-nin in the first place was beyond her. All her orders were to kill off the Hyuuga chick before she realized her true strength, besides that she was free to torture the submission of the once heiress.

Ioku was on the hunt.

A face that was once so filled with life had hardened into a mask of hate and rage. One she would never be able to remove. If only she could be young and carefree once more, a grin of bloodlust clouded her vision-she only saw red. Trees blurred in a mindless wave of bland colors as she traveled through the branches of the tall trees.

Wait little Hinata, Ioku is coming.

Ioku was on the hunt.

0-0-0-0-0


	6. Chapter 6

Chapter six:

The first day(s)-Naru style.

Naru glared at the dusty brown path.

The winding menace just wouldn't end, not that it truly mattered as she was in great shape and all, but really-did they need to put in five brothels, two abandoned merchants carts and a partridge in a pear tree. _I mean really did they need to plant a damn pear tree in the middle of the fucking path, for Kamis' sake._ occasionally she would feel the glance of her mentor on her jacketed back. Though she had already traveled with the pervy man for a few days, both seemed inclined to not talking about anything regarding Konoha, friends, and the occasional flirt of some women-who Naru was sure, suffered from a lack of good eyesight.

But back to the matters at hand. Both Jiraiya and Naru had gotten up at the pivotal ass-crack of dawn, ate a swift breakfast, and then marched in the awe inspiring direction of south. To say the least Jiraiya had developed a case of twitching eye around one in the afternoon, while Naru was currently glaring at no one in particular and cursing the name of every Kami known to the mortal world.

Though thoroughly pissed about the forced march, Naru was also very curious about their destination. Where were they going? What was it like? Would she be learning anything new? Thoughts like these currently plagued her when she was alone, sadly Naru was helpless to stop them, just as she was helpless to control the long dusty path they traveled on.

It didn't take long before her sensitive ears picked up the subtle sound of hooves and feet marching the desolate road. It was an even shorter lapse in time and judgment when both her and Jiraiya came across a traveling troupe. Boy was it a sight to behold: large carts carried poles and tent material; all pulled by oxen who eyed them with bored scrutiny. Women rushed by in clothes that showed sheer-which earned Jiraiya a swift kick in the gut for eyeing the beautiful vixens, courtesy of one Uzumaki Naru. While Jiraiya was currently wooing the women with only some bruised ribs and dignity, Naru walked contentedly around the troupes perimeter. She saw signs for fortune tellers, spice sellers, men who obviously knew what a gym was for, food and drink notices and the occasional drunk who managed to wander mystically among the roads without bother. This seemed to be such a different world from Konoha, she saw people helping others and was even greeted by some of those working.

In Konoha, she was wary of any crowd over five-ten or twenty warranted Armageddon in her vocabulary. It was almost sad when she saw someone wave too her and smile -while she could only compare the misery that had indeed created company out of her pain.

Walking around one of the heavy laden carts-past those yoked oxen of course, and spotted a group of elderly troupe members and felt her feet instinctively carry her towards them. It was odd to say who was more surprised, Naru-who was inwardly cursing herself, or the old folks-who was wondering when they picked up a red-haired child for their shows.

"um…hi…my names Naru…" the uncomfortable silence prevailed after her brief introduction. One by one the old ones turned to each other and spoke in confidential whispers that not even Naru's trained ears could distinguish between. So she stood of to one side and willed the slight burning red in her cheeks to fade, lest anyone saw who was from the troupe or kami forbid Jiraiya would never let her live it down if he caught her blushing. Shuddering in a morbid fashion, she waited for the small war conference to come to an end.

0-0-0-0-0

Ten minutes later.

Jiraiya had finally found her, scolded her about running after strange people-to which naru punched him in the nose for him being a hypocrite, and then proceeded to tell her about his next amazing decision in teaching her all that he knew.

"oh kami, I'm going to become a pervert after this aren't I…just say the word and I will run away from here…nay, just send me the signs." Naru fell to the ground bemoaning the fact that her life was virtually screwed to the deepest layer of hell that had ever manifested.

"oi, shut it gaki, honestly your going to make me look bad in front of the darling ladies, huh to bad there's not an onsen for several miles yet…its just sad when perverts can't unite on the simple plain of peaking on women while they bathe…oi brat what are ya doing with that wheel…" a booming crunch was heard from two towns over and people swore for several weeks after that they had seen a white haired man with green and red clothing flying through the air at record speeds, screaming at the audacity of someone named gaki.

Back down on earth, Naru was currently screaming at the heavens or more importantly the man in the stratosphere, that when he came back down she would castrate him with a rusty kunai and burn his porn novels at the same time.

"stupid brat its…erotica!"

0-0-0-0-0

It had taken a while for Naru to calm down, but now that she had it was time to listen to the elders.

The hierarchy of the traveling show was simple- new people worked the unloading, packing, and fixing jobs until they showed a particular skill that would place them higher in the circle of the show. Next came those who tended the animals, worked on costumes, and played minor roles in the shows performed, these where mostly made up of those who had found their particular skill. Second to last was the senior members of the troupe, these people played the major roles in the acts, handled the money, and owned or made their own props. These were also the people who had a major say in the running of the show and they people who worked and lived with them. Lastly there were the elders, they ran the troupe, the show and the people. They were too old to actively play roles now, but most narrated the events, told stories and occupied the working and peaceful atmosphere. They also had the ultimate say in what happened in matters of business, home and troupe life, and disputes in the show or places they visited.

Jiraiya had stressed to Naru about the need for her to start her espionage training. Maybe it was the one stroke of luck she was granted once in a blue moon, what was a better place to learn how to be a spy then in a traveling troupe who basically had free run of all the countries from Iwa to Konoha and all in between. This was technically going to be a solo assignment as Jiraiya was the official spy master of Konoha and was thus very busy with work- when he didn't delay to watch naked women bathe and write down their habits in his "research" journal. Stupid perv. As such she really couldn't depend on him being near her all the time, so most of this phase of her training would be conducted without her mentor, with Jiraiya showing up once in a while to teach her new stuff and then leave again.

A wizened old women, nearly hunched over in age walked forward towards the girl. She was wearing a simple blue kimono with a white border and some plain straw sandals. Her head was topped by a bun coiled from pure white hair-thin and straight. She was short about four ft six and had laughing brown eyes that had turned pale. Her face and hands seemed to be a mass of wrinkled skin and the color of slightly yellowed parchment.

" I am Ohi, leader of this troupe. That man Jiraiya-san asked that we take you into our care for a time…how does this make you feel Uzumaki-kun?"

Naru watched Ohi and gave her what she hoped was an encouraging nod. Sadly she wasn't used to dealing with people so much and it was giving her just a little more then normal stressful thoughts. _hmm, I wonder what Anko-nee would do?_ Naru quickly stopped that line of thought, it wouldn't bode well for a seven year old to make sadistic and borderline perverse innuendos.

Ohi gave a small lift at the corners of her mouth and waved her hand for some helpers. The next minute Naru was being ushered to one of the wagons meant for riding and then the troupe was off to their next village to perform.

Naru sighed at the dusty road and wished with all her might that her friends were having fun and learning new things from their mentors.

0-0-0-0-0

The day was amazing, not a cloud in sight, the sun was shining and a pretty red head was slowly beating the shit out of a white haired perv. Ah the life of a shinobi never stops.

Naru walked away from the bloody mess that was her mentor and instead turned her attention on the people she passed. It was a pretty, but here in the land of silk, everything seemed false-the smiles, the smells and the people. It was as if a huge secret was being kept and everyone knew it but turned a blind eye and hoped with time it would go away. The land of silk wasn't very big, but it produced the largest quantity of silks and materials from their farms year round, as such Jiraiya-who she was now going to call pervy sage, had ordered this to be her first solo mission. Unlike normal shinobi training, a spy is trained sparsely by their mentor before they are thrown into their jobs. This was one of the reasons that spies were not in large numbers, the other is the psychological tearing of the mind on the shinobi- loyalty is questioned and fear rises before long. Most spies though never live past their first few months and those who do are the ones who are eccentric and can thrive in the backstabbing environment.

Though Jiraiya was counting this as a solo, she was basically just doing this for practice. This would never go on her record besides the one she would write in a journal and keep under lock and key. Her mission: find out what the hell the people of the land of silk are hiding, gather important data, and then leave the land of silk with the traveling troupe until the next village. Seemed easy, until Jiraiya flirted with a passing women and she lost her temper and now had to cool of for the upcoming mission.

Walking back to the main tent, Naru saw Ohi sitting on a lounging chair enjoying the sun. for the life of her, Naru couldn't read the old women, it was as if she was wearing a muslin mask over her features. Truly it was a testament to her great age.

"oi, gaki you better not be thinking about my age."

Naru grinned in reply. "nah, you're to old to actually contemplate the meaning of age, hag. Huh, you were there when the ancients made the first year and even then you were decrepit and lazy and old."

The old women cackled, the spitting image of a witch. "careful baka, even at my age I still have enough power to kick ya all the way back to Konoha and still have time to enjoy the sun."

Naru calmly walked past the laughing elder and into the tent, calling over her shoulder, "at least I don't smell of old lady and moth balls."

The sound of a Ohi's laughter followed her as she joined the others of the troupe.

It was a special day- the first opening was a invitation to happiness and hope of good profit for the coming season, it was the pray that had too be answered if all was to go well. It was an honor to be able to stand with the hard working people who belonged to no true home but the road, and Naru was certain if all went well today she would be closer to her own goals. Friendship among the troupe was the wisest of teachers.

Looking around at the group before her, Naru felt a odd sense of…something. It grew at the sight of mothers embracing their children, boys training in the acrobatics regime, and the elders painting the masks used in plays. She couldn't name the emotion and quickly realized that she didn't want too, that putting a name to he most hidden desires would somehow tarnish the feeling of experiencing them.

Ohi walked by Naru while she was in her musings, and stood in the middle of the cluster of performers. A surprisingly serious look on her weathered face commanded the respect of those present-even Naru who was not one of them. A concentrated voice flittered among the troupe, telling the truth among riddles. "everyone, it is the combined effort of us as a whole that brings me, a little old woman, to lead a group of such dedicated people. You all make my little bitter heart beat just that much faster." a sad smile touched the old woman's face. " we will all go out there and do our best…Taku, you're on crowd control, Kogi, get the props wheeled out here, Naru…I want you to act out a sword dance tonight."

Naru stood stunned. Ohi wanted her to perform a sword dance, she didn't even know how to hold a sword let alone use one with competent knowledge to make it dance. A heavy hand fell on her thin shoulder, looking up she saw Tana, Kogi's wife, smiling down at her. Tana was the smith for the troupe, her word was pretty much law next to Ohi's.

"come fiery-one, let me help find a sword for your performance." Tana had a northern burr, that made her voice so much deeper and warm then any other woman that Naru had met. She nodded to the older lady and walked with her to the forge tent.

It was a large tent, filled with bins of metals and coals. A basin of water stood on a stand in the corner, several twisted chunks of steel leaned out from it. In the center of the tent a large fire burned temperamentally, crackling its war cry in a language long dead to the human race.

Tana walked to a rack of swords-many of them were props used in other such performances, yet a few were actual live weapons of steel. Naru felt oddly at home in the burning expanse of the tent with its sounds of the fire and the smell of molten metals, yet when she saw the swords that Tana had grabbed and brought over to her, she felt like a outsider who was finally let in to a special group.

"here fiery-one, choose the sword that calls to you. This will help the bonding process."

Naru looked up at the older woman and gave a brisk nod. The swords were all beautiful and well crafted-some carried jewels in their hilts, while others had special names and words carved into their blades. She was surprised when she by-passed all of those ones and instead focused on a simple sword. It had a slightly longer blade then the rest, and carried no carvings. The blade itself had a slight ripple in the design and a bluish tinting. The cross guard was a metal disk in the pattern of the moons phases, while the hilt was covered in deep blue fabric that ate the sweat off her palms when she picked it up.

It was weird holding the weapon. It felt right, like it had been calling her from a distance and was now pleased that she had finally gotten her ass here. Naru wanted to laugh who knew that the feeling a sword could give would be sarcastic, just the sword for her then. "Tana, I will choose this one." the finality in her voice surprised even herself, it was the voice of someone who had decided on a long and difficult decision and finally knew the answer.

Tana gave a small secretive smile while Naru had her backed turned. This girl-child would go very far in life but she would always have to prove herself. She would have to learn the skills of a leader in order to build compassion, understanding, and fearlessness. But with that she would have to become strong like a leader in order to show strength, judgment, and perseverance. Until she learned all of these, she could never truly be wise in the ways of a leader. But she was on her way-choosing the sword of character was the first true step in learning.

"fiery-one, come here…I need to teach you the proper hold and kata for your performance."

"hai, Tana-sensei!"

0-0-0-0-0

Naru stood in a small glade at the edge of town with Tana. Both held bokken or short wooden swords used to teach kenjustu. Turning to face each other, Tana launched into the knowledge of sword play. " Now, fiery-one, I will teach you how to manipulate the sword. First adjust your stance until it resembles a slight horse stance. Good, now move you right hand up near the cross guard and move you left hand down near the bottom. Now hold that position until I tell you to drop it, okay begin."

~An hour and a half later~

Naru felt sweat falling down her face. She had been holding the stance for at least an hour and a half and she was tired and cramped. _stupid Tana-sensei, leaving me here while she went back to the forge. She didn't even tell me to stop this stance, how am I going to perform anything if I haven't been taught the kata. Things couldn't possible get worse._ well Naru wished that she hadn't thought those things.

Tana watched from the tree-line as Naru held the stance for so long. She wasn't trying to be cruel, but Naru had to learn some measure of respect, dignity and humility. This would teach her control.

Naru decided to close her eyes and look into her self. She felt herself falling and before long she was in the same place where her battle against the red fox creature had taken place. The two separate tubes of light glowed apart from each other, yet moved towards the same goal. The contrast between the two startled her.

**Well, it seems you have yet to learn your lesson, brat. Why have you come back, I doubt it was for the view.**

Naru looked around wildly as the mysterious voice boomed in all directions. "who are you? Show yourself?"

Suddenly a huge flash of light suddenly blinked up from the tube containing the red light, which quickly morphed itself into the shape of a snarling fox. Naru felt weak as a barrage of emotions hit her full force, hate and anger being the most prominent. **Well well… seems you still have some fight left in you, eh kit. Tell me, why should I tell you anything about myself, what has allotted you the right to male such accusations?** the fox paused before continuing.** if you were any other human, I would have killed you by now, but you are amusing at the least so I will allow you to live your pathetic life for a while longer yet.**

Bristling at the condescending tone, Naru started to growl in anger as her temper flared. This unfortunately seemed to amuse the big feather duster even more. "just answer the fucking question before I make you." her breathing became more ragged as the fox started to chuckle in some form of twisted glee. " I'm warning you, stop before you piss me off even more."

A menacing grin formed on the beasts face as he spoke through his chuckles. **kit, what could you possible do to me. You have neither skill nor weapon to aid you.**

It was Naru's turn to grin. " I have beat you once, without the skill or weapons. I can do it again."

Silence prevailed in the empty place as both girl and fox stared at each other. Both hated the other, and neither was willing to admit defeat to the other. They needed a middle ground, for now at least a while. Yet deep within them, a mutual respect glittered and glowed, it was still weak and underdeveloped, but it was the first lit coal of the fire, it just needed air to make it make it burn.

**Kit. Earn my respect and attention, and only then will I allow you the knowledge of who I am.**

Naru was unimpressed but willing to barter the deal. " will you at least tell me what you are and why you are here." more silence caused her to wait with bated breath. What came next though caused her to become confused with shock.

**I am the Kyuubi no Konoha and your prisoner!**

**0-0-0-0-0**

Naru stood among the members of the troupe, simple watching the curious antics of the large family community. Over in the corner Tana-sensei gave her husband a swift kiss and walked over to her, a small smile lifted the corners of her mouth.

"fiery-one, are you ready?"

She nodded, no hesitancy showed on a face that any anbu would glow green with envy for. On the inside, Naru was terrified. Growing up hated and singled out for the simplest mistakes had taught her to hide what she was really feeling. Anbu training had only heightened those instincts, making her more aware of her surroundings but not causing her the normal paranoia that came with it.

Walking up to the tent flap, she adjusted the sword on her hip-its own measure of self-awareness practically ringing with excitement as she waited for the performance before hers to end.

Ohi walked up behind the red-headed girl and slowly tapped her shoulder. In her weathered hands she held a pretty mask made of black painted pine wood and streaming with white ribbons. Its face held the visage of a dragon with deer horns and gleaming fangs made out of crystal. Its features were carved to the finest detail, such definition popping out, stunning the small child in front of her. Handing Naru the mask, Ohi walked out of the conjoining tent up to the stage where she could view the audience in triumphant mystery. Her old voice rose and fell as she illuminated the story that was about to take place.

"long ago, before man had learned of the fates, the dragons ruled the continent. Their reign was peaceful and just for the dragons were wise beyond measure. Under their rule, harvests were bountiful and the forests flourished and man was content." behind Ohi, shadow puppets illuminated a screen, showing the audience the visual story. "the dragons lived high in their home of the greatest mountains and watched as man lived his life, and all was good."

Suddenly a great plume of purple smoke erupted on the stage, stunning the audience as several people wearing dragon masks and kimonos whirled and jumped on stage, imitating the flight of the dragon court to the cheering audience. Ohi smiled mysteriously to her audience, before she continued. " for many years the dragons simply watched the course of life for all beings, but one dragon felt that man was made for his kind to serve them. His name was Yang-the dragon of heaven and light!" a tall, muscular man threw himself out of the fray of still moving dragons, his coloring was a white mask with black ribbons flying gently on his deer horns, his fanged mouth held in a snarling façade. The Yang dragon drew his sword, and moved in slow, languid motions illustrating the rising dawn for which he governed.

"the Yang dragon, filled with a arrogance over man, attacked them in the wake of the rising sun. his steel burned with the force of a million stars as he slashed and hacked his way to victory. His pride compelled that only those who would prostrate themselves would live." the shadows in the background showed the carnage of the Yang dragons might as he destroyed the fragile balance between the universe itself. " the dragons left the world, not willing to fight the vengeful kinsman as he wrought destruction upon those the dragons promised to protect. The world was in despair." Ohi paused as the audience shifted to the edge of their seats, watching as the other dragons disappeared in plumes of dark purple smoke.

"yet, one dragon was not afraid to abandon her sacred duty, she flew down from the great mountains and charged into battle, for her people, for her home, for peace among the universe, the small dragon drew her sword and danced her deadly kata against her opposite-for she was the dragon whose honored name rang among the earths darkest nights, her name was Yin!"

A plume of black smoke covered the stage, as the audience gasped. Threw the smoke they saw bright blue eyes. Then all was silent.

0-0-0-0-0

Naru heard her cue and quickly used a chakra infused jump to appear on stage a second after the smoke covered everything. Her clothes rustled, they weren't heavy but showed a design of scales in bright black as her mask swallowed her face.

The smoke cleared quickly and Naru watched as the audience gasped in wonder-her masked face showed a dragon who was smiling in acceptance and sorrow, as she turned towards the other dragon. Nervous and exhilarated at the same time, she leapt forward.

She was the opposite of Yang, she was not a fighter of gentle moves and kata. Hers sliced with roar of energy and pride. To the audience, it looked as if the Yin dragon was dancing rather then fighting for the existence of mankind. Moving her sword, she told the story in every block and step of her being-she was no longer Uzumaki Naru but the Yin dragon of earth and night, and her duty was the continued peace of her world. She whirled in flight as she jumped and somersaulted in mid air, always moving closer to the other dragon-her opposite in all. Suddenly both dragons jumped towards each other, sometimes balancing on each other and sometimes twirling in different directions, but always coming back together.

Their swords came together as the shadows showed man on his knees, begging for the end of the tyrant dragon they once called lord. Yin, looked at Yang and both started to circle in the same direction, their swords locked against each other as both dragons moved faster and faster, until a bright plume of silver smoke swallowed them up.

0-0-0-0-0

Ohi smiled as she spoke. "so the Yin dragon, who was as wise as her kind, knew that only destruction would come of the Yang dragons death, battled against mind and heart, she created a spell that would meld them together for all time, forever circling each other in a dance of control and harmony, neither winning nor losing but always turning. As for man, he soon forgot all about the two dragons and lived his life in neither peace nor strife, for he could not remember who had once ruled him, but he could remember a circle with two sides splitting it in half- one who was as white as fresh snow and crowned with a sphere of black, while the other was as dark as night adorned with a sphere of white. Forever opposites that lived in harmony!"

Looking back at the shadows, a giant circle with the Yin and Yang intertwined appeared for a few minutes before fading away. Then a cheer so loud and vibrant shook the tent as Ohi was leaving, glad that it had gone well, better then she had hoped.

She smiled in amusement as Naru was hugged and smacked on the back from the troupe members, everyone wanted to thank her and yet no words could truly express how happy they all were that this little orange scrap of a girl had dropped into their lives.

0-0-0-0-0

In the crowd, a man hidden in a dark cloak watched as the girl who played the Yin dragon was brought up on stage for a well deserved ovation. Truly she was a beautiful sight, large blue eyes framed by vibrant red hair in a stunning tan complexion. Her size was small and thin and she still wore the kimono of her dragon counterpart.

He watched as she gave a gentle bow and smiled, before she turned in his direction. He felt a nervous sweat start at his forehead as she gave that same smile. He felt conflicted, he had his own mission, but even though he knew it would involve her, he felt that he needed to keep her safe.

A sinister smile made its way on his face as he stared at the blue eyed nymph. _soon my little dragon, we will meet and then nothing will ever harm you again. This I swear!_

With a burst of chakra, he disappeared in a wave of heat and was gone.


	7. Chapter 7

Chapter seven:

The first day(s)-Lee style.

Far away, in a large field, a boy stood with his hands outstretched. Both were bandaged and wrapped around his arms, effectively covering a small portion of the eye smarting green jumpsuit he was wearing. At the moment, the boys large round eyes were searching for the man who was teaching him Taijustu-the ninja way of hand to hand combat. It was widely known that his chakra coils had been damaged and he would never be able to utilize the extremely precise balance of cultivating his chakra. When he had been younger he had been picked on by those he thought would be his friends, now though he had actual friends-Naru, a small girl with a love for the color orange and pranks and Hinata, a shy girl who with her gentle nature and great cooking skills. Both of them were a year younger then he was, but to him it didn't matter how much of an age difference there could have been so long as he was able to see them everyday for the rest of his time on earth.

But back to training. Gai-sensei had given him a task to work on his awareness to the things around him, and so far he was confused as hell. His task was to find his sensei's turtle-Ningame then report back to Gai-sensei._ gah, I wish Naru was, she could have done that weird technique where she locates a person by their feelings and emotion. Huh, no matter, I must find Ningame and then go home and eat. Ahh, I miss Hinata-chans cooking. No focus Lee, I have a job to do and I will complete it and then Naru and Hinata-chan will come back home stronger and I refuse to be left behind again!_

Somewhere, on the other side of the training grounds, a older man wearing a green jumpsuit, orange leg warmers and a jonin flak jacket with big bushy eyebrows and bowl cut, suddenly stood up in a tree congratulating his student on lighting the flames of youth within himself, before the branch he was standing on broke and he fell-screaming about how he would do four hundred chin ups with his hands tied behind his back for failing to stand up in the tree.

Lee calmly concentrated on what his past sensei, Crane had taught him about trying to sense chakra when the person wanted to remain hidden.

_**Flashback of youth.**_

_Lee was changing in the anbu changing room, and was the only one in there as both Naru and Hinata had already donned their masks and went to meet some of their other sensei's-mostly for tactics and field medicine and covert operations._

_Lee rarely cursed as he found it distasteful, it was another thing that sadly outlined his differences to the girls-Hinata usually fainted if someone besides him or Naru said anything remotely vulgar, while Naru came up with more swear words then any sailor knew how to say or understand. But in this exception Lee was seriously debating taking a page out of Naru's colorful language book. Already he was extremely late to lessons-something that was bad in of itself, but he could find his right sandal and showing up without his stuff was gonna make everything worse._

_Grumbling about no good sandals that left perfectly handsome young boys to search on their hands and knees for them, he crawled around in loose figure eights and soon realized that he was getting nowhere and he looked like and idiot._

_Sitting up on one of the benches in the room, he leaned back until his head made a very satisfying whack on the lockers behind. So caught up in his little depression, he failed to realize that someone was in the room with him, until the spoke out._

"_self-punishment may work for some people, but for you, Turtle…I believe it will only cause more problems."_

_Looking up at the man with the Crane mask, Lee felt even more ashamed that he had acted like a fool in front of his new sensei, obviously this day couldn't get any worse._

_Laughing he rubbed the back of his head in embarrassment as his sensei walked over to the bench and sat down with him, a quizzical air surrounding them both. Clearing his throat, Lee looked over at Crane-sensei. "Crane-sensei…I didn't think you came down here often. Forgive me for not paying attention, I was busy…"_

_Interrupting him, Crane spoke. "looking for you right sandal if I'm not mistaken…don't level that surprised look at me boy, I have been around for quite a long time and should know if you were looking for something…also you are not wearing your right sandal."_

_Lee grinned at the subtle joke before he grew curious. "Crane-sensei…how did you sneak up on me?" really he should have noticed if someone else had walked in the same vicinity as himself._

_He watched as his sensei went more serious-mostly in the posture and aura, before glancing at him. "when someone wishes to remain hidden-especially shinobi, they usually use a technique that represses the feel of their chakra. This doesn't stop the natural flow of their chakra, but in fact it just erases the pulse of the energy. With out this feel of the chakra, sensory-nin cant track someone who is hiding, though this leaves them open to other attacks as it takes a lot of energy to hold the technique for any length of time." he paused and then continued. "sadly one such as you, with your… particular disabilities will not be able fully utilize this technique without bringing harm to yourself. But you may be able to track someone better with this new lesson."_

_Lee smiled in readiness. Oh this would be fun._

_**Flashback end.**_

Lee calmly settled into a familiar stance-arms outstretched and legs bent at the knees before he shot off across the training ground. He was moving so fast that he left no footprints on the ground as he practically flew into a small wooded area-he was nearly positive that Ningame was trying to his in a place with more cover. Dogging branches and leaping over tree roots, Lee ran towards a small glade that had a tiny stream going through it.

Stopping unsteadily, Lee looked around in overly wide circles as he tried to clear his equilibrium. Traveling so fast had some consequences such as dizziness, fatigue and a general unbalance. Thus when Gai-sensei taught him the technique, he was told to do so only when he felt it was truly needed as it caused a supreme disadvantage in any battle situation.

Calmly he came to a halt as he noticed the absence of anything living in the area. The ground was covered in still bleeding carcasses of animals and the smell was overpowering his senses. It was a bloodbath and it was sad. Who would kill the animals in the glade, whatever it was it seemed to be gone now but who was to say it wouldn't come back and attack the Konoha shinobi who came to train here. Lee paused and then followed a nefarious odor wafting in from the east, he knew it was going against the tasks set for him but he, at the moment could care less. With a small jog east, he noticed the smell of old blood, rotting meat, and mold was growing stronger the farther he traveled and boy did it reek, if he hadn't conditioned his body in anbu, he probably would've lost his lunch by now or passed out from the fumes alone.

With absolutely no knowledge of what was ahead of him he sped up, he had to find out what was in Konoha and how to get it subdued so they could place it under lock and key. Not only was it his duty as a genin of Konoha to report all mysterious activity to his superiors, but he had to sate his own curiosity before the girls came home.

Thinking about his friends made him falter, how could he even think about rushing in head first without a plan, not only would Hinata cry and more then likely curse him to the deepest layer of hell but Naru would actually kick him where it hurts and then drag him down to the deepest layer f hell. No he couldn't be selfish, his friends meant more to him then being an idiot and better yet a dead idiot. Shuddering at what his friends would do to him if he failed he started running again, more determined then ever to hurry up this little venture.

0-0-0-0-0

One week into Naru, Lee and Hinata's training.

In the jonin lounge, two figures were talking about the newest batch of academy meat that had filtered in as of late. The first jonin was tall and had dark features and his face was pale, chalky white and covered in scars. He was more lean then muscular, but he carried an obvious build and held the calm readiness of someone who could fight for days if the need arose. His partner was a younger man of his late twenties with a extremely skinny body and grey, saggy features. He carried dark bruises under his eyes and the skin seemed to become baggy underneath that as if the muscle lost all of its strength and just dropped. His gave off a uncomfortable aura which made everyone in the immediate vicinity drop dignity and run for cover. Hollow cheeks lead to prominent cheek bones and then to his soulless dead eyes.

The fist man looked around to check as if anyone was near by before speaking in a much softer tone to his younger companion, "have you heard, the Hokage has let some kids graduate early-apparently they showed considerable skill and strength in order to become genin several years early."

The second man simply stared for a moment before speaking in a dead, nasally voice, "Untoku, control yourself. We have been dispatched by him to find those children, so I already know what it is that you have heard, besides it matters not what you have heard but what you are going to do about it to make this mission just a little bit easier for me and the whiney bitch we call teammate." the mans voice became more irritated by the end, no doubt remembering botched missions from the past.

Untoku glared balefully at his sickly looking teammate, what gave him the right to say anything bad about Ioku and him. Wasn't he the one who always screwed up the missions because his bloodlust took control and killed off the ones they were delivering, wasn't it he who always never sat on watch, wasn't it he who always wined when it wasn't going his way. "Kintaro, stop while you are ahead."

Both men scowled and glared at each other, their hatred for the other man shining through as noticeable as the sun at noon before the huffed and continued where they had left off.

Kintaro hated the other man ever since they had been teamed up together when they were young but even he could admit that Untoku was the best at close combat as both he and Ioku were seriously lacking in that area. "Untoku, you will be handling the young girl named Uzumaki Naru. According to my network she has already left for her training somewhere out of fire country, your job is to find out what her purpose is, what skills she has and will acquire and to lastly kidnap her and bring her back to master. Do you think your underdeveloped brain can handle that."

Untoku glared and snarled before he walked out of the lounge to prepare for his journey, leaving Kintaro to prepare for his own mission- to learn about the boy the girls called Rock Lee and take him hostage for his teams master. He only hoped Ioku would be able to handle the ex-Hyuuga heiress, Hinata.

The lounge was empty of all life and if walls could talk they would have screamed warnings to the three children who were on their own-this was the beginning to the end.

0-0-0-0-0

Late at night, somewhere in the forests surrounding Konoha.

Lee considered himself to be a capable shinobi, sadly this did not excuse the fact that he was a boy and only seven in a dark, scary forest that so far showed no signs of life and reeked to high heaven with the smell of death. Yeah not the best place for a developing child who for all intents and purpose should actually be at home trying to sleep. This day had been so bad it deserved one of Naru's patented swear outs and several kicks in the place where the sun don't shine. Lee was tired, hungry, dirty and from being in contact with the disgusting odor all day had given him a smell that caused the hairs in his nose to burn, he wasn't even sure he would be able to ever feel clean even if he took a thousand and one showers.

After about sundown he had resorted to walking because the continues jogging and running would wear him out before he even got to the fight. Sadly he thought tracking would be much easier until he realized that he had chosen the night of the new moon and there for there was no light to be guided by. All he knew was he that whatever he was tracking was close by as the smell had reached any even greater stage. Walking among the dark trees, Lee saw phantom shapes moving around the darkened spectators, it was nerve-wracking and though it freaked him out, he finally realized why most shinobi had extreme paranoia.

While he was walking some sixth sense told him to drop and not one to question instincts did as he was instructed. It was a miracle he managed to survive as something large and rank flew over him. A hollow laughter, even more scary then maniacal laughter, suddenly rang out in the still , stale air. "well, well, well… I'm quite surprised you pursued me this long, Lee-kun. Really you have peeked my interests, what with being unable to do chakra and keep your friends safe from harm…you are really the definition of being a idiot and a failure, hmm Lee-kun."

Lee looked around and saw a young man wearing ugly robes over his body-more then likely to ward off the cold air. Odd, Lee scrunched up his face in concentration_, I never noticed how cold it was. Wasn't it really hot just a minute ago._ shaking off his distracting thoughts, he once again resumed looking over the young man. His nose scrunched up in a attempt to ward off the smell of decay that wafted off the other man, it was so bad Lee was hard pressed to even name the closest thing to the repulsive stink.

He gritted his teeth at the teasing tone of the other man but that wasn't what made him angry-no what made him angry was the little tidbit of information that stated people of like mind were going after Naru and Hinata-chan. A low growl vibrated in his throat as he felt more helpless, how could he even think of fighting when his friends were in danger as well. He quickly rolled to the side as a shadow suddenly attacked him point blank, he gave a yelp of surprise as his right arm seared white hot with pain. Running, after he regained his footing, he hid behind a twisted oak and concentrated on not screaming. Looking down at his arm showed a mangled, bloody form of flesh that hung basically useless at his side. It burned fiercely and he suddenly wondered if what ever hit him had dirty claws, if so he needed to hurry to a hospital and get the wound cleaned, if left untreated it could be cause for amputation.

He listened carefully to the area surrounding him and growled as he soon realized that whatever hit him would be able to smell his blood and pinpoint him, so him sitting and hiding was useless as that man was just toying with him before he made his move.

Getting up, he let his arm fall from his other hand and walked calmly forward, "how do you know who I am, let alone those of my teammates?" he watched as the robed figure materialized out of the shadows, he gave a grim smile, he had went to academy with a arrogant, stuck up asshole-Neji-and had caught on to the guys attitude-he couldn't refuse a challenge once given. If he was lucky somebody would find him before he passed out from blood loss or he died, and would end the fight for him.

Already he was feeling dizzy and nauseas.

The man walked in to the center of the clearing about ten feet away from Lee and grinned, "Lee-kun, what a smart boy you want to be. Sadly it will never happen, as for your question just know that my master and my teammates know who you are and have expressed an interest in all of you kids and your abilities."

Lee felt a rage of epic proportions hit him like a tidal wave. How dare this man and his teammates attempt to kidnap the girls and him, by what right did he think this would work? With a deep cleansing breathe he felt rationality calm the torrent of righteous anger. He knew he needed a calm mind and sound judgment in order to keep his assailant at bay, unfortunately he needed to riel him up first-he had to play the part of a antagonistic, fiery, sarcastic shinobi, so in other words he was going to act like Naru on a good day.

"ha-ha, you are going to capture me and the girls, what a crack. Listen asshole and listen well, nobody is gonna harm my friends or my village, so get this self-righteous notion out of your head and get your head out of your ass and do something…unless your scared." he felt proud at copying Naru's attitude down and even more impressed that his voice hadn't wavered while talking to the man who in all reality wanted to murder him if he was judging the sallow face that burned neon red in the shadows correctly.

0-0-0-0-0

Kintaro had faced death at many turns in his young life and had danced to its alluring tune since he became a shinobi yet there was one thing that set him apart from his comrades- while they feared death for their sins, he reveled in the knowledge that he was the one to kill them. He was abandoned at a young age by his parents who had feared his psychotic tendencies, he was found a year later by the leaf shinobi and was placed in the academy-this was where he met Untoku and Ioku both were also orphans in this harsh world. It was several years after being placed on the same team did all of them meet their master and begin to serve him.

Yes he had been in numerous battles, conquered deaths hand, and managed to remain a Konoha shinobi in the opposition of his treachery and through all of that he never showed his true emotion, never felt the need to release the force that he felt was a waste of human time and brain power. But now, this slip of a boy-child had the nerve to bait him and then flaunt a truly apparent lie in front of him.

He grinned. This boy truly was a gem in the rough, he not only taunted him but his confidence seemed to grow a mile a minute. His grin only seemed to grow, his master would be pleased for some fight in his new students-he just loved making examples.

He still felt pissed though, how was this kid able to get under his skin and even make him feel rage. It was almost…unreal. "Lee-kun, I assure you, I will fight you…just not right now, Jokiu attack the snot-nosed brat but make sure he lives." with that he faded away in to the darkness to watch the impending fight. This would be good.

0-0-0-0-0

Lee felt confused on the basis of the mans cryptic message but he definitely understood who Jokiu was and had no desire to fight the thing that had neatly shredded his arm into mincemeat. He finally was piecing together the information he had gathered and was only mildly shocked when he was right. In front of him, flying low enough to make the repulsive smell waft off its wings, was a bird like form with all the looks of a eagle, with one minor difference-it had the voice of a old women.

It screamed threats to him about what she was going to do once her talons locked on his skinny throat. It had a ragged, screeching voice that looked as sharp as its clawed talons. "so you are the boy who has made my summoned so upset, we'll have to remedy that, now won't we."

A shallow updraft was all he had before he threw himself done on the springy grass, he gasped as his injured arm was thumped painfully beneath his body. The pain made it hard to concentrate, but he some how managed, with a heave that made him want to scream, he rolled his body down a well concealed hill on the side of the clearing closest to him and nearly tore his lips to shreds to match his arm in a attempt to keep quiet.

He finally stopped rolling as he hit the cold water of a small pond, it also shocked him enough to unfreeze his mind so he could think on his escape. He was far away from Konoha, without food, water and shelter. His weapons consisted of a few practice kunai and shuriken, so in other words he was screwed. Up at the top of the hill, Lee had to plug his ears at the screamed curses that flew from the harpy's beaked mouth. Shelter, he decided was the first thing he needed and it had to be well hidden or else his pursuers would find him. Water and food could come later, he just needed to get out of sight and out of mind.

With a pained groan he started heading west, with only the curses of a pissed off bird to keep him company.


	8. Chapter 8

It seemed, to Hinata, as she walked through the gale force winds that running away from camp had been a very stupid idea. Really her father had a point that she really needed to think about her plans before initiating them in action- like the fact that she was in side some place filled with snow, icy winds and a desperate need for spring. _how did this happen to me? Where am I? its so cold and I sense no life in this desolate tundra of ice._ shivering, she snuggled into her clothes- the were so threadbare and destroyed though, this didn't work in the slightest. She thought about how she managed to come to this place and shivered in a way that had nothing to do with the cold air.

_**Flashback.**_

_It had been a nice morning when Hinata had woken up, the leaves where brightly reflecting the sun and best of all the wolf pack had disappeared. Making no doubt that she could feel them watching her. the only new difference though was instead of a hungered aura around them and new, protective aura seemed to have been put into place. With a small smile and giggle, she quickly got up-though it hurt like hell-and proceeded to look at any of the wolves she had slain. There were some drag marks which indicated that the members had already disposed of the carcasses, except for one._

_It was a rather large and muscular male wolf, with dark reddish-brown fur and had a claw like scar going down the length of his right side. Moving sluggishly, Hinata walked over to the frozen body of the predatory animal, who still looked every bit as fierce and powerful in death as in life. With a odd feeling, she looked down at her arm and noticed that that her arm had several large cuts in it and at the end of the longest and deepest one there sat a broken off fang, looking as regal in her skin as a king on his throne. With a grunt that spoke of weariness and exhaustion, she pulled the object out of her ivory skin and contemplated it. Roughly about the size of her middle finger and about two fingers around in width, it shone with a blackened splendor, even as it dripped and mingled with the scarlet contrast of her own blood. Someday she might blame it on the exhaustion and blood loss, but she tore out a long piece of leather fro her pocket-one of the ones medics used to cut of the blood flow before binding a wound, and wove the leather around the fangs broken end and made it into a throng, she reverently put it around her neck and watched as it shifted to lay between her collarbones._

_Looking back done at the wolf, she noticed that he was missing one of his fangs and instantly knew that this was the one to which she had finally broken free from her families hold. Hinata stood in front of the dead body-frozen in a mockery of existence and preservation and bowed her head in prayer and thanks._

_It was thanks to this wolf, that she now felt she could hold her head up proudly in her village. No more did she have to fear her father nor the elders wraths now that she had unlocked her Byakugan, the "white eye" would be her guide through thick and thin. With a nod that symbolized finality, she got down to the gritty part. She was using an ancient practice not commonly used anymore, but one that still had its place in Konoha anbu division. The practice of carrying things of the dead that supposedly carried their experience in them. With a semi-sharp kunai she started to cut open the chest of the wolf, unused to this though, she gagged and felt what little she had eaten start to come back up. It had taken hours and many, many tears and trips behind a tree to finally have the complete pelt of the large wolf. With carefully laden hands, she walked over to the small stream and gently cleaned the blood off the fur and her hands._

_It was the next moment when she let the pelt be covered in the salty banks of the stream to preserve it._

_She looked down at her reflection in the calmly moving waters of the stream and couldn't help her small grimace at the sight she made. The Hyuuga ,known as one of the cleanest clans in Konoha, were naturally taught to oppose the will of dirt and stains, sadly for them, she was now a konoichi of her village and was taught to embrace the fact that she would be-on more then one occasion-come home covered in blood, dirt and unidentifiable. _

_With a ragged sigh of frustration, Hinata rolled up the ends of her tattered sleeves and started to wash her face in the cold water of the stream. Just as she was finishing a odd whistling sound cut through the air and only by luck did she manage to drop into the freezing water in time. A hollow thunk hit a tree in front of her, looking up she noticed a kunai that dripped with a whitish-oil like substance. She blanched as the oily acid ate at the weathered bark of the tree before turning around to face Ioku. The crazed women looked no better then she did, with leaves and twigs caught in her once smooth hair, scratches also littered her face-evidence that she had used the trees to get here. Her body seemed thinner and she seemed to be laboring for breathe. Hinata, being the compassionate person her family loathed, felt the twinges of pity for the insane women who wanted her dead._

_Ioku snarled at the girl before lunging out of the tall pine-words seemed to have abandoned the elder women as she attacked like a wounded animal. Hinata ducked and slapped out with her smaller hands, with a desperation she activated her Byakugan-not even pausing when she used no hand signs to do this task- and went on the offensive, slapping out at Ioku's chakra points. 'Neji-san always made this look easy' she grumbled in her mind as one of the acid coated kunai sliced opened a wound on her chest, it stung and gave off a smell of burning flesh. Resisting the urge to gag, Hinata kept moving further back towards the shelter of the deep forest in an effort to get away from the Ioku. _

_As she was moving back, Ioku pressed forward, wanting-no needing to feel the last heartbeat of her victim, she wanted to tear the pretty girl into pieces and reassemble her in a new visage-her own deadly masterpiece. She wanted to watch the light leave those white eyes as one of her acid covered kunai cut the timid little mouse's throat, baring her forward into hell. But first, she would take little Hinata to her master and watch as she had everything she learned and kept true taken from her until she was truly desperate for death that she begged…only then would Ioku's hate be dissolved._

_Hinata watched as the mad light in her enemy's eyes consume her and in error forgot to watch where she was going and promptly fell on her back, the terror grew when she felt Ioku lift her arm up high-a kunai poised to plunge into her rapidly beating heart, before a brilliant plume of grayish-white smoke surrounded her and a tug, thrust her into darkness._

_She woke up to the frozen land and set out on her journey to find out what happened._

_**Flashback end.**_

Hinata shivered as she remembered Ioku and her vendetta against her. She hissed as her wound stung with growing alacrity and felt nauseas and disoriented. It was only a matter of time before she fell asleep out here and when that happened she knew she would never wake. What was worse though, was the fact that she wore no sandals and already her feat where turning a unhealthy blue. The pain in her body sapped the energy she desperately needed to heal it and with out a doubt knew she was so very alone-even seeing Ioku would have been better than walking around half dead in the middle of nowhere.

As she was walking, she tripped over a tree root half buried in the deep snow and fell to her stomach. Hinata groaned as her tired body refused to get back up, she strained her eyes forward and seemed to notice a shadow getting closer, _may…be…Ioku has fina…lly found me…._ with that one last tired thought, she welcomed the thick blackness.

0-0-0-0-0

One figure watched as the small girl slowly made her way across the frozen land and contemplated on how she had gotten here, as far as he knew, no mortal people who had not signed the contract could come here. Shrugging his soft black fur covered shoulders, he bolted closer to the small child and instantly grew frightened when she fell over one of the hidden tree roots. Getting closer he realized that the small girl with white eyes was still slightly conscious but the moment he was beside her, she had already passed out.

He felt conflicted. Nobody had ever truly prepared him for this and to be completely honest, he felt way out of his element. With a cautious look around, he gently picked up the small girl and placed her on his back before he turned and ran in the opposite direction from the one Hinata had traveled from.

The elders would get the answers from her, one way or another.

0-0-0-0-0

The first thing Hinata noticed when she returned to consciousness was that it was warm and dry. The second thing she noticed was that she had no idea where she was at.

Opening her eyes, she met a dark room that smelled of juniper and lilacs, it was a calming smell and did help her to un-tense her body-which had begun to stiffen up in anticipation for a fight. Looking down, Hinata saw that her wounds had been bound tightly with linen wraps and her torn and dirty clothes had been removed, instead she was wearing a clean, crisp dark grey nightgown that went to her feet. Feeling sluggish, she stumbled out of the comfortable bed and walked around the dark room trying to find a light or a door-whichever came first. When she felt that she had traversed the whole of the room, she quietly returned to the bed and sat down going over what she had learned- first, she was in unknown territory, second, she was stuck in a room with no doors or windows and third, someone had to be checking up on her if she could go by the new outfit and medical treatment to her person. With that in mind she sat and waited, sooner or later someone would come by and then she would finally get some answers.

Hinata didn't have to wait long, in fact it was only about thirty minutes before she noticed a smooth rumbling that seemed to be coming from the farthest wall from her bed. Intent on watching the wall, Hinata had unconsciously activated her Byakugan and was unprepared for the sudden fiery pain that erupted in them after a door had opened in the wall bringing a bright light with it. She did feel the breathe leave her lungs at the intense pain and instinctively knew would have a killer headache after this. Closing her eyes, she felt the raid pulsing of the veins going to her eyes and felt green at the notion that she might have just gone blind.

So in her own musings, Hinata jumped at the unexpected contact of someone touching her face. "doncha worry young'un, jus' keep ya peepers closed ya hear. Now let ma take a looksi, hm, ya have a little damage done to ya young'un." Hinata relaxed at the warm and aged feminine voice that cut through the haziness of her pain, though her worry that she was blind continued on un-heeded. She tried to remain calm but every time she attempted to not think about her dilemma her mind instantly conjured up the image of Hyuuga Hino- a branch house member who was assigned border patrol. She remembered all of the details even though she had been so young at the time. Hyuuga Hino had been seventeen years old when he became a jonin and was assigned a tour of one year border patrol. Of course being a Hyuuga he was obligated to fulfill this particular task, unfortunately he had only been on the job for several months before his team had been ambushed by a group of rogue shinobi. The fight had lasted two days and the outcome was worse-Hino had become blind when one of the other shinobi pulled out a high intensity flash bomb when Hino had activated his Byakugan rendering him blind. She cringed as she recalled the exchange between her father with the elders and Hino.

_**Flashback.**_

_A little Hinata watched as her father and the 'scary' elders walked into a room, closing the door behind them. She was a naturally curious child as most children were and thought nothing of it when she stared to follow her betters around the medical wing of the Hyuuga compound, she was going to find out what was making her family members act so strange._

_With a measure of stealth that usually was acquired of a join level shinobi on a high level mission, Hinata walked up to the door. It was nothing to hoot at-plain brown wood, with brass handles. The only thing of interest was some weird looking symbol on the door, it was mode up of some kanji and was connected with a spiral in the middle. Shrugging her small, thin shoulders she looked up at the door handle and hesitated before reaching up. What if she opened up the door and the elders noticed that she was there or worse what if her father saw that she had followed him. Feeling nervous but not knowing why nor having the adult attention span to think about it for a lengthy period of time, she reached up for the handle and gave it a slow turn and cringed when it gave a almost unnoticeable creak that sounded exceptionally loud to her ears. With a courage she suddenly didn't feel, Hinata peered through the crack in the door._

_The room was filled with several people-her father, the elders and lastly Hyuuga Hino, who was laying on a crisp, white hospital bed. The room was locked in a uncomfortable silence that only her father and Hino seemed to notice, the elders though, looked as happy as a spoiled child on Christmas. Their white eyes slowly roamed the bedridden young Hyuuga, and though he couldn't see them, Hino stiffened up and tried to retain his nonchalant aura. _

_Hinata watched as her father gained a pained look and turned away from the blind young man. One of the elders, a man known as Hyuuga Hanato, casually walked up to Hino-the walk reminded Hinata of a lion who had stalked his prey into submission and said, "Hyuuga Hino…how do you feel?" to her young years, Hinata couldn't understand why both her father and Hino flinched at the seemingly simple question. Hino looked uncomfortable but simply nodded in the general direction of his better. "good, very good. We of the Hyuuga clan wish to extend our sympathies and our general condolences to your…situation. Truly we will never have another of your skills, truly a shame."_

_Hinata along with Hino both stared at the elder. What did he mean by that, what was going on here. Hino shot straight up and nearly yelled. "wait, Hanato-sama, what do you mean. surly with some special training I will be able to fight and be a ninja of Konoha and a asset to the clan." Hinata shivered at the sudden grin that formed on Hanato's face as he listened to the younger Hyuuga's claims, it showed clearly that he was enjoying the boys unease and fright. "oh, my dear boy, it just isn't that simple…you see, you have lost your sight and now will never be able to access the Byakugan again…in turn you have lost your usefulness to us and the clan." Hinata watched as Hanato turned around to talk to his fellow elders, "get him ready for his last treatment and then bring him to the 'chambers', I will personally see to this…development." with that the elders used some type of justu that made them disappear in a puff of smoke. In an instant it was just her, her father and Hino. Hinata watched as her father walked over to the distraught young man and laid his hand on his shoulder before using the same justu as the elders to leave._

_Hinata ran away as the place became to sad to stay any longer. The next day life continued as always and she never saw Hyuuga Hino again._

_**Flashback end.**_

She refused to acknowledge the fact that she no longer belonged to the Hyuuga clan and thus would not suffer the same fate as Hino had, because she was already disowned and banished. "jus' open your eyes young'un _, _doncha be a feared of the possibility child, jus' open ya pretty eyes." with the sound of that same warm voice, she turned into the odd embrace, and slowly opened her eyes.

The room was blurred but-to Hinata's relief- it was the type of blurring one gets when they have clenched their eyes closed too tightly, with a sigh of relief the ex-heiress turned towards her companion and promptly screamed. "A MOUSE." the large "mouse" was about the size of a horse and covered in creamy grey fur, with large black eyes and a adorable pink nose. Hinata felt her heart pounding against her chest as the mouse leaned away from her loud shriek, its fluffy ears angled down to filter the noise away from it. "child ya don't need to yell." still freaked out, Hinata couldn't get her thought to focus correctly or else she would have smacked herself silly trying to be kind. "who are you ms…"

The mouse smiled, which puffed out the cheeks of her fuzzy face before answering. "my names Kimoko, and you be…?" it was Hinata's turn to smile. "I am Hyuuga Hinata, though I feel I have lost that right to my last name." Kimoko gave the girl a confused glance, before she was motioned to sit by Hinata as she was told the story of what have happened in the past months-everything from her best friends to the banishment of her from her family and lastly to ending up here after her attack by Ioku.

Hinata felt drained as she finished her story. It felt odd to be talking with someone who was not one of friends-though maybe if she learned more about the strange mouse, she might consider being friends with her. The atmosphere had turned silent as both parties considered the other, Kimoko, being older suddenly felt protective of the young girl. It wasn't Hinata's fault that the council members were corrupt to the point that they would willingly get rid of their biggest ally and Kimoko had no doubt that this child would become just that._ well, their loss and our find. One day though Hinata, they will find out how strong you will become and do everything in their powers to sway you away from your friends-never forget what they have done to you but don't let it rule your life._ with a gentle smile, Kimoko stood up and grabbed the girl and quietly motioned for her to follow.

Hinata felt the pull on her arm as Kimoko dragged her out into a hallway. The walls were decorated in beautiful tribal-like drawings that showed the life's' of countless mice and the seasons, above those, wall sconces held giant candles made of a sweet smelling wax that-surprisingly-gave off no smoke. Looking up at the ceiling, Hinata saw that it had been painted by a masters hand in the visage of a pale winter sky, with the viewpoint being painted as if the painter had been standing from the ground. With each new bend in the hall, Hinata gasped in shy delight at the wonder of Kimoko's home, nothing could compare to the sheer comfort that oozed from the atmosphere itself. But in her heart she knew it would never truly compare to the warmth and familiarity of her new home, she stopped when something wet rolled down her cheek-Hinata knew it was a tear but refused to draw attention to the fact that she missed Konoha and her friends.

"Hinata, what's taking ya so long, we must hurry if ya want to make it on time." Kimoko laughed silently as the small child hurried to catch up.

Panting a little, Hinata placed her hands on her knees and coughed when she inhaled too fast. "Kimoko…who are…we going to visit?" she felt a burning curiosity and mentally winced as she felt a deep sympathy for Naru and Lee, both of whom were naturally curios. A small smile was the only answer she got as Kimoko started to walk faster.

Hinata was deeply surprised by the sheer number of the halls that they walked through, it was the veritable claim to a well thought out plan. One main hallway branched out into several sub-hallways and from there those sub-hallways divided in many smaller halls that led anywhere from homes to small gardens to emergency exits. Truly these mice knew how to be prepared and they have no qualms about showing it.

Kimoko tugged on Hinata's arm in an attempt to pull the shy girl from her thoughts and grinned when she saw her face, all alight in suppressed wonder.

Two giant double doors blocked the females from going any further. They were heavy looking and appeared to have been made of some dull metal, with the hinges made up of a sparkling stone. Weird looking writing covered the whole expanse of the doors along with some more primitive looking pictures near the handles. Hinata noticed that some of these pictures didn't just have mice, but also people. They seemed to be accepting a gift-a huge scroll with a mouse profile burned into the thick paper, it seemed like a happy day to the parties of both mice and man, but Hinata sensed a melancholic sadness dwelling just beneath the carved grins on their cold, metal faces.

Without a word the large doors swung open from the inside, balancing on well oiled hinges with nary a sound. With a general nod at Kimoko, Hinata was ushered inside and didn't look back as the door closed behind her.

0-0-0-0-0

Hinata controlled her face as she was lead into a giant room. It was bare except for a few wall hangings and some several rows of hard oak seats. At the very end of the room, a long half circle desk reigned with several ancient looking mice behind it, all had their dark eyes on Kimoko and herself.

Within seconds they had crossed the grand space of the room and were ordered to kneel before the great council. It may have been minutes, but to Hinata it felt like hours before the council deemed the appropriate time fore questioning.

With a barely noticed nod, a grand ,white furred mouse stood from his seat and motioned for some guards-they must have come from behind when the door was opened- and looked down to the younger mouse. "Kimoko! Your work is done, follow the guards out and wait for this meeting to be done." with a rigid nod back to the mouse leader, she afford up one small smile to Hinata before she was led away. Once the doors closed again, the whole of the council turned back and started to regard the young girl. As they talked amongst themselves, Hinata realized that Kimoko spoke in a very different way then these mice-in a rustic dialect, then the uptight and cultured one that reminded her of the Hyuuga clan.

Her attention was torn when the council suddenly fire off question after question.

"what is your name?!" the leader narrowed his eyes when he talked to her.

"my name is Hyuuga Hinata, from the clan Hyuuga of Konoha."

"what is your purpose for intruding on our realm?!"

"I did not mean to intrude, if you kindly tell me where I am I could tell you more." the council ignored her.

"who sent you here? Are you a spy? You have no summoning to your name, tell all you know!" the questioning went for hours, one right after another and no matter how many she answered, Hinata knew they were unsatisfied.

She knew not how long she had kneeled before the council, nor did she even care, not anymore. Hinata clenched her teeth at the arrogance of those mice as they bickered and squabbled to decide her fate-do they let her go or do they kill her to preserve their own semblance of balance.

_it is odd. All I ever wanted was to be recognized as a good person, one who was beautiful like mother and strong like father, but now I am in a political debate and I don't even know if I will survive._ Hinata felt her eyes sting but refused to let any tears fall. she opened her eyes and made a vow as she watched the elders fight amongst themselves, she would never be weak again, she would survive this silent war, fight off Ioku and then return home to her best friends and then they would become a team. This was her promise to herself and she would never break it.


	9. Chapter 9

Chapter nine:

The show must go on.

It was well past midnight when Naru had the dream.

_Dream sequence._

_Naru was in a beautiful field of bright orange wildflowers, wearing some durable and-most importantly-nondescript clothing for traveling. The day was clear and hot and the sun beat down on her head, with a shake she sought to cool off her burning skull and jumped back as a strand of blonde hair fell before her eyes. 'what is happening, I have fiery red hair not these blonde locks…what is happening?'_

_Pushing the strange phenomena of her mysterious hair change aside, Naru walked forward and narrowly missed the sudden plunge of what would have been a gruesome fall. without even realizing it, she had stumbled on a large hole in the ground, one that fell so deep that its bottom was shrouded in dark, spectral mists-lost to those of the surface. With a gulp, she turned and fled away from the sinister drop. Suddenly the flowers didn't look so nice anymore, they resembled a field of spilt blood, gently dancing in the windless plain. As she ran, she saw the tops of the troupes tents and pushed on farther and faster, determined to reach that bright haven before it too changed. she broke onto the flat space and fell to her knees in shock, the ground was covered in bright orange wildflowers centered in puddles around the sleeping members._

_Logically Naru knew that the troupe people weren't asleep, just as she knew that the puddles around them were not made of flowers, but she didn't want to think logically and she knew it was her downfall. As she sat there, blank ,blue eyes staring soullessly at the disposed bodies of her teachers and friends, she heard a laughter so vile it tore her battered heart into bleeding shreds. "come out, fight me you coward, fight me!" but the laughter continued and her eyes found the pointedly dead ones of her new friends and suddenly she screamed. Instead of the troupes faces she saw Hinata's and Lee's, old man thirds, crane-sensei and Anko-neechan. Everyone she knew and loved, all dead before her and she felt so helpless._

"_**Now this simply will not do!"**_

_With a foreboding sense of vertigo, Naru felt herself suddenly pushed forward and was now face to face with a giant cell. Inside the dark interior, two massive red eyes burned and the booming voice reverberated off the metal walls. __**"Be gone foul monster, you will not lay your claws on her tonight, not while I live."**__ as quickly as it had begun, it was over. Naru had the sense that something had happened to her and that the fox was currently her savior, but it was late and she needed some sleep._

_Naru didn't even flinch when she banged against the flooded floor of the seal and calmly slept on with the fox wondering why he had decided to save her._

_Sequence over._

Naru bolted out of her bed roll in panic, cold sweat rolled down her suddenly chilled body as her heart beat out a complicated rhythm that only she had a hope to decipher. Slightly woozy from her abrupt launch, Naru stood up and stumbled out of the small tent she was using. The stars glittered faintly in the pre-morning light as false dawn lit up the sky in tinges of purples and soft peach, with a mocking laugh that reverberated the cavern of her conscience, she felt pity for the night-always tricked into thinking its job was finished, when dawn was still hours from breaking.

The wet grass at her feet reminded her about her dream and she was almost reluctant to gaze downward to reassure herself that it was dew covering her feet, not blood. She groaned as she walked closer to the larger cooking pit, it had been only a few hours rest but with her current insomnia, it felt like seconds. with a air of indecisiveness, Naru calmly lit tinder using the flint and one of her kunai and started the daily trouble of cooking food for the whole of the troupe. She couldn't complain, everyone had a job here and she actually enjoyed cooking so with a shrug she started to make a thick porridge of rice meal, with banana and cream. There was also some fresh fish that she set on a rotating spit, that would be ready for lunch.

As Naru stirred the porridge, she wondered about her dream, what did it mean for her and her friends? She snapped out of her thoughts when one of the children who stayed with the troupe walked over to her and asked if breakfast was done. With a smile she helped the little one to dish up, glad for a break in her thoughts and the distraction it provided her.

0-0-0-0-0

Naru watched as the camp was slowly being packed away on the large carts provided by the troupe to be moved southward. The tents were all rolled up and equipment was stored in special boxes marked in kanji that showed what went where.

Naru felt conflicted with the amount of activity that echoed around the clearing, bells and hollow thunks followed by short yelps of pain as someone smashed something rolled freely around the energized camp. To her, it only seemed as though a few years had passed since she had walked along the long, dirt road toward a path that seemed so far out of reach. A wave of mild nostalgia flittered over her as she thought about her friends and her teachers. Naru let a grim smile pull the edges of her mouth back, as once again the memory of the dream slammed against the walls of the subconscious thought, tempting her into its sinister recesses.

With a uncomfortable shudder, she continued on with the folding of some blankets, forcing her mind to stubbornly think of the upcoming check in with the amazingly strong, but extremely perverted gamma sage. That was almost enough to go green in the gills once again. True it wasn't that she didn't like the man, it was just astounding as to the amount of perversion that one man could obtain, she snorted, shouldn't the mortal shell have cracked for him by now with all the flying lessons she had given him.

With a jubilant laugh, Naru wrestled with the small stack of blankets she had amassed and teetered down the clearing to one of the half-loaded cats.

that's when it hit her.

A sudden flash of pain screamed though her head and down her spine as Naru turned in a practiced half circle as Crane-sensei had taught her, her azure orbs jumping to different places as she sought out the source of intent. There, over by the trees, with a startling leap, Naru was off towards the road that led to the bustling village not even a half-mile away.

The intent flashed again, and Naru had to stop her stomach from utter rebellion as the twisted feeling wormed its way through the very fiber of her being. To her, it felt like a dark tentacles were suddenly forced into her head and then the moved randomly through her body. To the independent girl, this was nothing short of total violation of her person.

With a dry upheaval, Naru desperately tried to force away the concentrated feelings of the intent-anger, betrayal and most of all lust. For once in her very short life and since she had discovered the ability, Naru thanked any god and lady luck out there for her strange power of feeling emotions because now she was a konoichi on the hunt and she wasn't about to let the owner of the sick intent disappear.

Onward she ran, the bottoms of her plain brown work pants covered in thick dust, the un-taped ends fluttering like wings as Naru neared the village. Closer, became the mantra as she pushed through the stitch in her side, forcing herself to keep going even when she wanted to stop. Oh, her stubborn nature was going to be the death of her one day.

_Finally! Wait…oh kami-sama._

Naru slid to a sudden halt as she came upon the scene. It must have been market day when it happened and as it was a very small village, she knew very well that it could not afford to have shinobi nor even samurai as guards.

It was a silent scene of chaos, stalls and their produce laid in far-flung piles as pieces of fabric and fires flew around them. Looking down, Naru had to force herself not to run away, blood flooded the market place as it ran sluggishly from the still bodies of the peaceful villagers. In some places some of the limbs had been torn off and thrown away from the original owners. It sickened the young girl as she watched the quiet plaza, her mind seemed to be flying into overdrive but nothing made sense, not anymore.

Suddenly, like a hot knife being thrown through her, Naru snapped out of her self-discriminating thoughts and looked up.

"who the fuck are you?"

0-0-0-0-0

Untoku watched the blonde beauty as she practically flew down the road towards him, her soulful azure eyes snapping with anger as her chakra and aura fluttered in unease. He, at first, felt the need to vent his formidable rage against those who were weaker then his self, but upon careful thought, had come up with some steady reasoning why it would be in his best interests to kidnap the spitfire konoichi.

A sickening grin split his chalky features as he saw her enter the bloody plaza, her pretty blues widening in horror and rage, her body frozen as the amassed carnage swept over them both.

Untoku gave a low chuckle, not noticing how it woke up the young Uzumaki, and calmly broadcasted his chakra.

"who the fuck are you?"

A frown hit his lips as he looked down at the girl and nearly had a violent nose bleed just by staring at her. Both her arms were raised as her dainty but deadly hands balled into fists, her eyes snapped blue fire while her voice carried the first hints of a snarl. Sadly to Untoku, he failed to realize that she was seriously pissed and instead rubbed his eyes as he swore he kept seeing a fiery goddess of war and mischief.

"look I'm not going to ask again, either tell me who you are or I'm gonna beat the answer out of ya!" oh how he loved her voice, so smooth and carrying a hidden purr.

With a dramatic sigh, he raised himself up to his full height and bowed in a neat flourish before answering the angry girl. "my name is Kishiba Untoku. Don't worry young Uzumaki Naru, you will learn to serve your betters, namely me but let us put that aside shall we… It has come to my intention that you have come here alone, such a brave, brave girl you are but it was all for not. I will be taking you to see my-I'm sorry, our master, he has been waiting a long time to meet you, let us not make him wait any longer shall we."

A rush of weightlessness and he was throwing a light half-moon kick at the startled girl as soon as his feet touched the ground.

Each kick was executed with deadly precision and complemented by punches to the gut, the neck and the base of the spine. With lightning fast reflexes that could have only come from years of near death experiences, he almost lazily dodged all of Naru's attempts to hit him back.

It wasn't a long fight.

Untoku swung out on the ball of his right foot while throwing out his left leg in a back-breaking kick that smashed straight into Naru's spine, knocking the air out of her lungs and causing her to fly through several broken stalls and a fence like a little konoichi rag doll. With a lazy swagger that made it look like he hadn't just fought someone, Untoku made his way over to the sprawled form of one Uzumaki Naru. Kneeling beside her, he put his fingers to the sides of her neck and felt for a pulse and nodded in relief when he found one.

Hearing sounds in the distance, he hurriedly put his arms under her prone body and picked up the unconscious girl and sped off into the southern most direction with nary a swish of evidence that he was even there.

0-0-0-0-0

Jiraiya walked out of one of the bathhouses that littered the countryside with renewed vigor and a perverted grin on his aged face. _ah, those who are to young will never understand the joy of a supple body. Well no time to dwell on that topic, I just know the gaki's gonna chew my ear off and kick me to hell and back for being so late._

Though only having been gone for several weeks since his last meeting with his protégé, he felt the odd need to hurry his mission. As a spy and a damn good one to boot, Jiraiya had seen more death and destruction a thousand times over and was never one to question his instincts-which even now were blaring "code red" warnings all over his stimulated brain. With a chakra infused jump that landed him in a grove of trees, he was off to the last known camping spot of the acting troupes, feeling heavy-hearted and having no idea why but knowing that Naru was directly involved.

0-0-0-0-0

_Drip…drip…drip…drip…_

If there was ever a time in Naru's relatively short life that she could say with complete certainty and no hesitation whatsoever, it would be now.

Chained in a dark room that shed no light except for a tiny stunted candle that burned steadily by the door on a low, molded table. Lying on cold, wet stone floors as rats and creepy-crawly's moved freely about on the floor and over her legs. No, it was waking up in a foreign, and decidedly hostile, place with limited access to move freely and no visual, that really put a konoichi off her game.

But most konoichi didn't have the training Naru had and though brief it gave her the metaphorical card up the sleeve. Now came the hard part-gather info and don't do anything to get killed. So in the darkness she waited and waited and waited until a stroke of luck, neither good nor bad, smacked her square on the face.

0-0-0-0-0

**Two days later, day four of imprisonment.**

"…so I see ya' haven't…Eh' very interesting sir…maybe ya' should go and see her yerself beggin ya' pardon sir…ya' I'll do me best…" a voice loud and course like a crows, boomed through out the place beyond Naru's door and waking her up. She could tell that the person-male and heavy-set, due to his footsteps, was talking to someone she couldn't hear. It was only when she heard a set of keys being placed in the lock of her door that she looked up and then wished she hadn't.

Bright light flooded the small room, illuminating the form of the young konoichi and scaring away the rats around her in equal measure. She took careful stock of the man as he walked into the room and attached a tight pair of hand-cuffs to her wrists and hauling her out.

He looked to be in his later thirty's to mid forty's, long greasy hair that hung like straw from his head. Maybe it had once been a blonde color under the filth. His face was flat, as was his nose and littered with scars and lines, some looked quite new while others were puffy and white. The signs of a fighter surrounded him as he carried her away with arms like slabs of beef and as easy as if she weighed no more then a bag of rice, she was even fighting to get away and it slowed him down none at all. When she managed to look at his face more it was clear to Naru that he was as stupid as they come and really had no redeeming qualities. He made it worse when he started to whistle, showing a mouth with little teeth and those that were still hanging on to life were stained brownish/black and broken. It didn't help that the air around them stank of rot, sweat and bodily fluids of the unmentionable kind.

Glaring at him in anger Naru yelled right next to the space near his ribs, "oi put me down you ass I can walk damn well on my own!" he just pulled the struggling girl harder and walked down several hall-ways, not a wit scared of the tiny konoichi.

This continued until they both reached a door that was made of heavy steel and surrounded by granite walls, it looked as comforting as a tiger smiling down at a baby lamb. The big hulking man, whom Naru had decided looked like a minotaur, opened the door with a giant ring filled with hundreds of keys, and dragged the now more frightened Naru inside. The room was dark as The Minotaur dragged Naru to a chair in the middle and placed her into it before shackling her into place. Only leaving to light some lanterns and to bring a wheeled tray close to the restrained girl.

As The Minotaur was busy nit-picking, Naru looked around with her eyes as the strap on her forehead discouraged any movement and reflectively bit her lip in a attempt to not scream aloud. The room was one for torture. Large and rounded, it had a stone floor with several drains placed strategically around her and some other chairs. Some of those chairs still had silent people in them. The walls were lined with racks, all filled with devices that she could only guess at their purposes and cringe in pain not yet delivered. The tray placed next to her showed that it was filled with scalpels, vials, needles, pliers and a collection of clamps known as finger-breakers, their purposes easily known. The room was ungodly hot, curtsey of a round half-chimney that glowed menacingly red at the portion of the wall before her, axes, swords and a pair of standing shackles waited beside its fiery province. The Minotaur, walked back over to Naru with a pencil and a huge brown book under one beefy arm, before he sat in a small stool right beside the tray and unfortunately Naru herself.

He opened the book to a page filled with names and dates and scribbled in her Lineage. A small box was across from her name on the other side of the page, making the Uzumaki freeze in shock as the knowledge of her position truly hit home-she was going to be tortured and she could do nothing about it.

"Uzumaki Naru, date October second, questioning by Daiki Usainik… Naru shivered as his rough voice bounced around the room, causing some of the other victims present to groan in horror before The Minotaur slapped his heavy hand down on the tray to shut them up.

He looked at the bound girl and naru glared back with everything she had, determined to make him see that she would not bow. He grinned repulsively at her and said, "Okay, little' un' now be a good girly and tell me yer' name."

Naru snarled, "fuck you." he just grinned.

"Who are yer friends."

"go screw yourself in hell, prick!" that same grin answered her curse. "you can take a long walk off a short pier with blood coming out of your ass right into a horde of man-eating sharks, you bastard!" breathing heavy she continued, "I'm not gonna answer any of your shitty questions so stuff them where the sun don't shine you fuc…" a half startled screech of pain, blinding white hot pain, exploded on her right hand. Daring to look over Naru had to swallow the horror and bile that rose from the back of her throat.

The Minotaur had taken a medium sized cylinder with pointy pieces of metal sticking down from it and shoved it forcefully through her right hand. She concentrated on not throwing up at the sight of so much blood and the feel of her broken bones. Her body was stock still as shock coursed through her. The only part that showed any movement was her left hand as it convulsed in shared pain of its twin on the other side. The Minotaur smiled and laughed joyfully as Naru's big blue eyes conveyed her pain. Leaning forward, he blasted her with his rancid breath, insult to injury.

Between the pain and the disgust, she managed to hear him say, "where did you go train?" this time she stayed quiet. Questions flew past her as Naru attempted to concentrate but realized it was futile in the end, some of The Minotaur's inquiries were personal, some were general, some bordered on extremely perverse while others danced the line of national security. Time flowed differently, but she stayed quiet and left his rambling fill the unnatural stillness of the room.

"what are you?" Naru blinked her dry eyes as she focused through the pain to his words. He asked a valid question-what was she? She knew what she wanted to be, but it seemed impossible to answer a three word question, even more so because Naru felt that finally knowing would put all the wrongs to rights or so she felt anyway.

"no answer Goldie-locks, well that's jus' bad, ya' know, coulda' saved yer'self the pain." blood filled her mouth as she bit deep into the tender skin of her lips, the scream cracked and fizzled in her chest or maybe it was blood in her lungs, she lost count of several beatings she had gone through already. Well at this point it seemed pointless to ask questions of her own anyways. She looked at her poor abused body, blood from cuts marked everywhere her skin showed and in some places it didn't. her left arm stung with a fire that did not stop, it was quickly noted that he had grabbed out a solid steel baton and had "casually" bumped her arm in a angle the human anatomy was definitely not familiar with. She mentally kissed the use of her limbs good-bye and watched as The Minotaur lifted up the "breaker" as he called it and swung again on her left arm, laughing in glee as her eyes unfocused and a silent cry was wrenched from her bloody lips in the greatest of agony.

Malicious humor danced amongst his eyes as he talked some more, but all Naru heard was a blissful ringing in her ears that thankfully kept from hearing his coarse and nasty voice. She looked at him and in those moments of odd clarity one experiences from the world leveling out, Naru noticed he had black eyes.

The last thought she had before she passed out was that she really hated that color, black.

0-0-0-0-0

It was impossible to tell what time it was when Naru woke up, not that she had the chance to admire the time or place she was in as her stomach rejected everything in it: food, bile, blood, something that looked like a tooth, the only mercy she got was that a big tan hand pushed a large bucket under her face as she heaved.

Four minutes later and a now cramped stomach, Naru took in her surroundings.

It was a large room with three stone walls and in the place of the fourth there were bars with no door in sight. The floor was covered in what looked like straw and smelled horrible, Naru also noted that she was not alone. There were several women locked in with her, most were thin, ragged people with hollow eyes and cheeks, all were dressed in thin un-dyed torn pants and a sleeveless shirts that showed tears and cuts in varying degrees of use. Looking down, Naru grimaced when she noticed that several of the women boasted missing limbs or appendages, no-one was unmarked be it scars, cuts or bruises.

Looking over to her right, Naru caught sight of the heavily tanned woman who had passed her the bucket. She gave a thin smile that spoke of weariness rather then gratitude and said, "thanks, that would have gotten messy had you not pitched in." the other women smiled, "nah' was nothing child." Naru shivered, it was a wicked smile that spoke of a sarcastic humor and quick wit, almost like her but not quite.

Uzumaki Naru, pleased to meet you…" she held out a hand that showed signs of bandaging.

The woman clasped her hand in a warriors grip-hand on forearms, "Anikai Yoh, pleasure is all mine Uzumaki-kun." the both released their arms before Naru said, "call me Naru. I'm not into all that honorific crap the clans and higher-ups try to sell." Yoh laughed, it was no ladies laugh but a full throated guffaw that instantly made Naru more comfortable. Yoh calmed to a chuckle, "then please call me Yoh, makes no sense to call one out when the other isn't there don't you say."

Naru grinned and then winced as the full brunt of her injuries slammed into her at once. Yoh nodded sagely when Naru asked what happened. "you went an pissed him off, baka gaki, the torturer is not a man to ignore. I have been here for several years and in that time I have seen him kill those who looked at him wrong while others he will just beat you until the gambling man gets his winnings. He only takes orders from the one we girls call the Shadow."

Naru swallowed, "who's this Shadow and why does he keep me here and have me beat like a stray dog." the other just shrugged. "who knows who he is or why he keeps us here. The point is, if you want to survive play by the rules but make your own as you go along." Naru nodded and truly looked at Yoh. She seemed to be in her later thirty's with a heavily muscled figure and long, coarse black hair that showed just a little bit of grey in a tight ponytail. She wore the same outfit as the others but instead of hers falling off, it stretched over taut muscles and carried many more rips. She had a wide mouth that when she smiled showed two missing teeth. Her eyes were a light golden/brown with hints of green in them with one scar in the shape of a Z split the skin over her right eye. Her nose was slightly crooked, evidence that at some point it had been broken and then repaired quite well. If Yoh was standing, Naru would say that she was over six feet tall and handier with a staff then swords and more of a close distance fighter.

"oi Naru, get some rest girly, we have the yard tomorrow. Trust me on this one, you do not want to exhausted where we're goin.

With a sigh and a muffled groan, Naru laid down on the reeking straw and tried to sleep but her mind made that near impossible. _why should I trust her. I only met Yoh today and not even an hour ago, what should I do? I'm trapped and confused. I haven't seen lee nor Hinata, so maybe they aren't here, but they could be an I would have no way of knowing. Also I don't know why I feel so comfortable around Yoh…I will watch her and see if she can be trusted-I want to trust my gut on this one but it couldn't hurt to see the facts for myself._

Naru didn't know when she fell asleep but it was thankfully a dreamless one.


	10. Chapter 10

Chapter Ten.

"Adventures of a Taijustu Protégé"

Lee finally fell to his knees as ragged breathes tore through his trained body, each muscle quivering and as exhausted as he was.

He had run for what seemed like days, only stopping for the most basic of needs before once again moving on. So far he had not encountered any other signs of civilization-people nor villages as he hightailed it away from Konoha and that man. Lee could only sigh in relief, knowing that the harpy that hunted him would kill any who got in her way of capturing him.

But now as he sucked in huge quantities of oxygen into his abused lungs, he took in his surroundings and put two and two together on his current situation. _I'm far enough away from any who would think to interrupt a fight but I have no water nor shelter and only a few more ration bars to last me for however long…at the rate this is going, the hunt will either drive me deeper into unfamiliar territory until she captures me or force me to stock up on supplies in a populated village, thereby killing the villagers and trying to get to me. Any way I look at this I'm at a clear disadvantage due to the fact I have stunted chakra coils and have no way of using ninjustu or Genjustu…Taijustu won't work as well as the Harpy can fly away from my attacks leaving me venerable._

He cut of his musings and focused on were he was at.

Lee had, at some point, run into a Canyon valley. It boasted huge sandstone and shale walls and was as dry as a bone. He groaned as lee realized there would be little chance for water or food. He noticed some parched scrub grass that grew along the graveled bottom were he sat on his knees and remembered Crane-sensei's advice about starting fires in unfamiliar areas. "_Remember children, a warm fire to curl up next too is nice but in any territory not your own be wary. Enemy Ninja and animals are always on the prowl."_

He grunted as the image of the Harpy settled in his mind. No he really wanted to stay out of sight for as long as possible before being forced to run again. Heaving himself to his feet, Lee looked up at the top of where the Canyons started and thought about using whatever chakra he still had on climbing out and hopefully finding some wooded area. He dismissed that idea, it was better to save what he had instead of wasting it and then truly needing it when it was gone. Another idea came, what about if he just climbed out without the need for chakra before dismissing that as a failure too. It was nearly a couple hundred feet up a sheer rock face and with that shale covering the top in a dusky layer it would be near impossible to find out where the sturdy hand and foot holds were. Besides if he fell, he would just end up using his chakra to catch himself, landing Lee right back where he started-at the bottom of a canyon and not knowing where to go next.

Still looking up and knowing he would not be doing any climbing, Lee noticed that the sun was starting to set and made up his mind on a split-second decision-go along the bottom of the canyon and hope for a miracle. With a happy-go-lucky grin on his face, Lee set off determined to find a way out of the hell he currently found himself in.

0-0-0-0-0

Several miles away, a small rabbit was napping calmly near the edge of a cliff, not a care in the world.

The cliff actually led the way to a beginning labyrinths of canyons, ravines, cliffs and caverns that went on and on as the eye could see and even further. The only people who ever adventured there were the fools of this world or just the plain insane, for many who went in most never made it out. It was known as the Devils Gamble and the name worked well.

There was only one way in and most who found was by complete accident in the dark of night. A small opening in the way of two ridges, after that one only got to experience the winding gravel path that turned around on itself and led off in thousands of different directions, some went off to sand pits that dropped you clean through, never to surface while others led you to the predators who had made the difficult canyons their home. As for the rest, well that was anyone's guess and nobody was keen to go down and check.

The rabbits nose quivered in disgust as a horrible stank filled the air, before the hairs on his little brown neck stood to attention in pure, unadulterated fear as a massive shadow flew right over his napping place. Pretty button black eyes opened in time to see a massive bird flew over the fist part of the canyon before a evening mist clouded the rabbits vision. Shivering in remembered fear of the huge predator, the rabbit stood up and shook out his early winter coat before bounding away from the stinking cliff, with a small sigh of pity to whoever the monster had been chasing after.

The cliff was bare and empty as a fitful wind rustled the long grass where moments before peace had been innocent.

0-0-0-0-0

Lee shivered in his body-suit as a freezing wind buffeted him on his back and front in equal ferocity. He bemoaned the way he was left out of his nice warm bed at home or Hinata's great cooking and Naru's ability to brighten up any atmosphere and make him forget that they were training or cold. He felt a uncommon rage at the man and his pet Harpy, who had successfully driven him from his home and friends, who had made him out to be a loner in his world and now because of them he was lost, cold, thirsty and hungry. Maybe he was a masochist and desired pain because there was no doubt in his mind that he was totally screwed.

Rubbing his arms in a attempt to conserve heat, Lee watched all the nooks and crannies that lined the canyon walls. All senses were on the alert for a attack-surprise or not. With every breath he took, large puffs of white air colored the space in front of him before the wind shredded them into nothing once more. _why does it have to be sooo cold out. It isn't even winter yet." _his grumbling thoughts did nothing to ease the bite from the frigid night though and just put his mood worse off in the end.

It was during this brain-ramble that Lee felt eyes on him.

Quickly turning like one who was taught to do at a moments notice, he faced the way he had just come from and held his stance- ready to fight or flee should it be hostile. But as he turned, Lee's eyes met only the empty path shadowed partially by the high canyon walls. Snorting out a laugh he let his body relax again and was just about to turn when another sense of malice slithered across his senses, making the fine hairs on his body stand straight up. Slowly looking around, Lee saw a particularly large crack in the soft sandstone wall of the canyon. Feeling extremely exposed he walked a few steps closer, inexplicably drawn to that shadowy hole before he froze in a deadly combination of shock, disgust and awe. Only one word bellowed from the darkest corners of his mind.

Scorpions!

The crack swarmed with the black armored arachnids as they surged over the edge and over each other. Hundred upon thousands of the creepy monsters turned as one collected mass upon their new prey-Lee. His mind raced a mile a second but it wasn't making a word of sense to his legs as he remained rooted to his post on the path, each tick of the universal clock passed by so agonizingly slow as the scorpions fairly flew down the short walk to where he waited.

With a surprised yell as something laded on his shoulder, Lee broke whatever trance he had been locked in and started to shake and dance like a mad-man in a attempt to dislodge a scorpion from his person. Using his hands, Lee batted at the eight-legged arachnid perched on his shoulder in frustration as it hung on throughout the wild ride. It was during this that Lee felt a sharp pain break the skin through his jumpsuit and before his muddled mind supply the information that he had just been stung by a scorpion and it burned fire throughout his whole left side of the body.

With a grunt of pain, Lee grabbed the perpetrator from his shoulder and threw it to the wall across from himself.

It suddenly went dead silent as both Lee and the scorpions both turned to stare at the now dead arachnid, its body limp on the gravel ground as a small dent showed on the wall three feet above its body. Lee got three deep breaths in before a odd clicking stated throughout the ranks of black creatures. Razor sharp mandibles clicked in a varied hum as a large portion of the scorpions started to glow in a bright blue light.

Lee had turned and ran for a few feet before a large thud followed by a boom rattled the canyon as he felt his legs sweep up from under him, due to the chaotic wind that had come from the scorpions. It was during the time he was on his knees making sure nothing was broken before he chanced a look back.

What had once been many scorpions was now one very, very large one.

It had eight massive legs that ended in points with black armor-like exoskeleton covering the whole body in a near impenetrable shield. Its many eyes showed absolute rage and hunger as its strong whip-like tail lazily curled and uncurled in deadly anticipation. Lee shivered when he saw that both the mandibles and tail tip dripped a semi-clear liquid that sizzled once it touched the ground. If a small dose of that venom burned and hurt him like it did already, what would that amount do to him.

In a moment of silence both Lee and the scorpion sized each other up. Then the arachnid struck.

The tail slammed forward as Lee threw himself away from the extension, just barely managing to not get skewered. A deafening roar unlike anything he had heard before echoed thunderously around the canyon, dislodging boulders from the canyons top and shaking the ground. With a huff of breath, Lee pushed himself away from his position and the scorpion as he sought a safe place to hold out and plan, all the while dodging the claws and tail of the monster. His black eyes darted at a speed a Uchiha would have grumbled praise at in an attempt to save his skin.

He was just about to give up hope for shelter when a dark hole suddenly caught his eye. A youthful grin split Lee's face in triumph before he was thrown into the canyon wall on his right, his body tearing in pain that he knew wasn't metaphorical in the slightest. A harsh gasp was ripped from his throat as huge claws moved mere inches from his face, luckily he had landed near the caves entrance, a small miracle but one none the less. With a mighty push that stole the last of his energy, Lee practically flew at the opening before crawling in a far as it would allow him. Shifting his weight, he sat up against the back wall of the cave and watched in grim amusement as the small opening wouldn't permit the scorpion entry and was left to slash and tear in enraged hunger.

A small sigh of exhaustion bounced mutedly in his little hide-away as Lee felt sleep coming for him. Black was already gathering at the corners of his eyes and before he knew it, Lee was far away in the land of dreams, cradled in a small cave and sung to sleep by a barrage of claws on stone.

0-0-0-0-0

The third Hokage watched as his people meandered the many streets and back alleys which made up their home in calm anticipation, nothing showing on his wrinkled features save polite inquiry as his guest stood stiffly at attention near his desk.

Morino Ibiki, running torture and intelligence, scarred and built like a bear, rumored to live off the pain and misery of others watched his Kage in a stupor. Sure he worked close enough with his head of state but to be called during the middle of his day and right in the middle of a "questioning" as well truly made no sense to the younger man. He worked in the darker world of the shinobi and commanded those who were versed in the manner of espionage, torture, Anbu and Intel for his branch of his job. It was not a job for the weak of heart and those who didn't like the nitty-gritty world of murder and enemy assassinations, his job had a way of changing a man. A sigh from the Third broke him out of his musings.

"Ibiki-san, I thank you for showing up on such short notice." a tension filled the air as Ibiki watched the older man, no longer playing the elderly leader but the 'professor". the Hokage watched as Ibiki stood just a bit straighter in awe. "I have a mission for you. If you choose to accept it then you are to go alone and observe. Under no circumstance's will you be allowed to interfere. do you understand?"

Ibiki understood. Though the mission was proposed as a option in actuality it was a silk covered order between superior and underling. Oh yes Ibiki understood very well.

With a nod of agreement, Ibiki rumbled out his questions in his booming bass voice. "Hokage-sama. Due to the disappearances of a Uzumaki Naru, Hyuuga Hinata and Rock Lee-I presume that you are sending me out on a retrieval mission." his dark eyes watched his leader as he showed a more aged persona. Ibiki inwardly winced. He had liked the bright gaki and her friends and felt he had known them far more then others due to Anko bragging about them at any chance. Now the news that they had seemingly vanished without a trace left him with a dangerous temperament that few could hope to match. It still needed work before it would catch up to Anko's though, he felt that nobody would ever rival Anko when pissed.

The Hokage smiled grimly at one of his best shinobi before dismissing him and turning back to the large bay window. His thoughts were not comforting ones and did little to ease an old mans heart. More then once he had caught himself wishing that he had never passed them at such a tender age before cursing at himself, it was to protect them that had swayed his hand yet the things he did to prepare them had put them in even greater danger.

_Naru, Hinata, Lee! Hold out for just a bit longer, grow from this and become strong, don't let the weight of their words break you. Help is on the way!_

0-0-0-0-0

It was dark in the shadows of several buildings as a lone shadow stalked between them. It was as if the very cold darkness had risen from the gates of hell to walk before those who shivered in mortal fear, never knowing that he was the final glimpse between nightmares.

Sadly he was not allowed to bring out that sadistic pleasure.

His master wished him to learn not destroy. Not that there was much difference between the two as both could cause untold damages. His thin lips pulled upward in a mockery of any smile as a nasally chuckle bounced around as thinly as his lips.

Soon his master would have what he wanted and he could go back to destroying. Soon!

0-0-0-0-0

Lee groaned as he woke up and wondered if he had been climbing one of the large trees near Anbu HQ and had fallen, hitting every branch and its brother on the way down. All over his body was one mass of bruises, aches, cuts and dents. His head pounded at a fast rhythm that made his stomach rebel and his ears ring.

With a internal check of his person he concluded that he had at least two broken ribs and several cracked ones. His arm stung like fire and when he ripped away part of his jumpsuit-he noticed that it was swollen purple with ominous black tendrils that followed the veins all the way to his fingers. Lee grimaced openly when he felt bloody pus ooze from the definitely infected wound. His head was still pounding and he dreaded to think that he had a concussion. The rest was chalked up to massive bruising and small infected cuts that littered his body.

Thinking back to Crane-sensei's words on after-battle wounds, Lee felt sick.

_**Flashback**_

_Lee watched as both Naru and Hinata-chan studied the life size doll on the steel table in the med-room. It was one of their lessons with Crane-sensei and the chief Med-Nin of HG in medicinal plants and taking care of wounds received in battles. Both Naru and Hinata-chan had been talking about this lesson for over three days now and to be honest it was driving him crazy, not to say he had anything against field knowledge but really what are the chances of being stuck wounded in an area with a treasure trove of things to cure themselves when hurt._

_All three of the anbu recruits turned to bow (Hinata-chan and himself) or nod (Naru) at their instructors in respectful greeting. though still in September, the room had the power to accumulate all the heat from who-knows-where and trap it in its clutches. It was unmercifully hot._

_They were told to sit as several other recruits joined them. Crane-sensei looked over them before speaking, " if you are in battle, as several of you very well know, wound are mostly treated on the run. This makes it harder to kill you when you are always on the move as opposed to stopping in a clearing to treat that annoying paper cut. Now though, say you are on a mission and you are miles away from anyone, place or thing. Well in that instance you need to keep any open wound from becoming infected, this can be done several ways: one, you boil water and iodine in a container and purify the wound. Two, you wrapp it up as best as humanly possible and seek out a village. Three you pray to Kami above that someone finds you before you sink into a delirious state…"_

_**Flashback end**_

Lee groaned again when his head felt like someone was hammering out a chunk of his brain, making him curl in on himself. It was hard to pay attention to the lesson at that time and now he was regretting it, the knowledge would have been useful right now.

He smiled when he thought that Hinata or Naru would have known what to do.

It was during this when he noticed how quiet it was outside. With a collective ear, he listened for…anything. Where were the birds, the sound of the wind, hell where did his buddy the Scorpion go? After several minutes of just listening, Lee forced himself up on wobbly legs, using the wall sides to help him stay upright and hobbled over to the cave entrance in a mix of trepidation and fear.

Black eyes squinted in the harsh light as Lee stuck his head out the opening, looking around at the empty canyon and blinked in shock when he saw nothing. Moving to the outside, he walked towards the wall next to the entrance and fingered the large dent in the stone that had a smattering of blood in it. Evidence of his being tossed like a Childs toy.

With a heavy grunt, he faced the way he had been going last night and walked in a slight daze that was only accented by a prominent limp and ragged breathing.

He had only been going for a few hours when he reached a mini desert. Its sands glowed almost white in the harsh sun as it spread over dunes of varying sizes, Lee stopped to blow some sweat off his brow as he thought of the journeys this would take him on. With a world weary grin that didn't belong on a face so young, he took off at a slight but brisk walk, determined to make it out of the dunes or to a oasis before nightfall.

It was during the next several hours that made Lee realize that walking in a desert with extensive wounds and little to no water in what felt like days was a stupid idea worthy of any rookie fan-girl new from the academy. His loathing was palpable, he had been taught better then this and yet he was constantly making rookie mistakes - baring the fact that he wasn't necessarily a expert. It was the burning in his throat that only made the particular experience worse, lost in a labyrinth he was sure Naru had a devious hand in design, no food nor water, and he was pretty sure that several of his wounds were festering if he was judging the ache right. When he had first started out this mad dash journey, his steps had been even, measured but now they varied in length and depth more of him stumbling around then walking by this point. A low chuckle flew from his lips as he saw a large oasis but brushed it off as another fake-the eighth one of the day and it wasn't even over yet. Shading his eyes with his hands, Lee looked up at the sky and noticed the position of the sun before concluding that he had about three more hours before the sun set and the night temperature brought its icy touch. This time he would have no shelter to protect himself and no scorpion to give him the adrenaline to pursue that half-assed dream. Now Lee rarely swore but in certain circumstances he was lax on his rule meaning he swore more then Hinata-which meant saying anything derogatory and way less then Naru-when every other word out of her mouth came off as rude, crude, and exceedingly vulgar.

But surprisingly he nodded his head in the direction of the sun in that big, blue sky and expressed the challenge. After all if he was going to die, might as well make the ride worth it.

"fuck it all"

0-0-0-0-0

Anko stood out at the very top of the gate as she watched the long dusty road wind out far into the distance. With a simpler mind, she might have said that she enjoyed such solitude, but after being in the company of three spirited youngsters-she felt that she had no room to criticize her past transgressions, if one could call them that.

She was not of a clan upbringing, so when she had started the academy, she knew next to nothing about what the hell was going on, not like those clan brats who knew practically all the material before it was taught to the rest. Arrogant bastards. It was during her time of forced imprisonment that she learned to not draw an immeasurable amount of attraction to herself, it always had her coming home with bloody gashes and big purple bruises, courtesy of those chauvinistic pricks at her being beneath their notice so therefore she should just fade away. The mind of jealousy never failed to amuse and disgust her. This was her first treason.

It was after she had graduated the academy several years later that brought on the second.

His name was Orochimaru - Hebi Sannin, master of ninjustu and forbidden justu, scientist of Konoha and student of the "Professor" and the man to become both her light and her dread nightmare. It was during the genin tests that he had taken an interest in her and decided to take her up as a lone student. She still could remember the looks of pale rage on those assholes faces who made her life a living hell, when she selected to train under a legendary figure. So she trained with her new sensei, learning the ways of ninjustu and forbidden justu with a ease that seemed foreign even to her. She remembered accompanying him on many missions, some so dangerous that even those scars burned with a acute awareness when she thought of her past. It was during thee times that as she grew she started to notice things about her "master". his bloodlust and drive to further along research that made no sense confused her at first, her foolish naïve self had chalked it up to being a 'quirk' like the other older shinobi, content with this knowledge that he was loyal to Konoha and herself. Kami was she so very, very wrong.

It was a year or so later when she was brought out to a quiet sea-side village by Orochimaru on the pretense of a last minute mission, that forever changed her life. He had branded her with the cursed seal, gave her a choice-live by his side with ultimate power at her easy disposal or die like the hound she was as a Konoha konoichi. When she chose to stay with Konoha, he had activated the seal which caused a evil, burning sensation to flood her veins and chakra, whispering of dark power that only she could command. Then darkness.

Orochimaru had escaped, leaving her to either die in pain or suffer for the rest of her life. Even to this day she did not know which was the lesser of two evils. And though the Hokage had forgiven her of his past students aggressions, she became the new outcast of Konoha…meant to serve in the shadows from whence she came.

Her light orange eyes widened as she met the vision that was Maito Gai in a weary state and barely holding on to whatever frayed illusion that was holding him hostage. With a curious gait she leapt down to where he was and thought that if he held news of what had happened to those gaki's, he would be no longer alive to utter the word youth.

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It was a dark night, the moon was a sliver of light in a nearly black void.

Lee stumbled on forward, paying no heed to the glory of a desert night. His battered, bruised, slashed, poisoned body screamed unyouthful things as he numbly put one shaky foot in front of the other. If one were to look behind the young boy, they would have seen a dark red trail slithering after him. Lee, every few feet would mumble something, before once again going quiet, he had lost the full use of his vocal cords when he breathed and yelled in the harsh desert climate.

His throat was sore and felt as swollen as his feet and legs did. Little food, no water caused Lee to have fevered dreams both unconscious and conscious, causing him to feel particularly insane. He grinned crookedly when he thought that only veteran ninja went through S-class hell. No sleep apparently made him a very morbid person. Lee remembered after passing the eleventh mirage, he had stopped for an hour to argue with the bleached bones of some pack animal, needless to say it was a very heated argument on both sides. This wasn't the only thing to worry him though. Where was that thrice-damned harpy? Even with the quick exposure that Lee had gleaned, he knew she wasn't one to back down from a hunt, he knew this and as time went on without a hint of her-he felt jumpy and paranoid.

With a groan of pain, Lee suddenly felt his right leg give out beneath him before bracing for impact. He gave a slightly maniacal laugh and thought of the newest addiction to his collection of hurts as he laid in the cold, gritty sand. His mind jumped tangents so fast not even the "Yellow Flash" would be able to keep up. Why should he continue on, why not just lay here and let nature embrace him silently, what was the point of even running.

He was injured beyond belief, torn and broken in ways a child-even a child soldier, should be. In the course of several days or maybe it was weeks, Lee had been cut, crunched, poisoned, battered, thrown around like a doll, beaten into a bloody mess and then finally driven into a seemingly endless maze with more then enough places to silently fade out of existence. So what was holding him back? Lee's black eyes shot open when the faces of his sensei's, the Hokage, his best friends-Naru and Hinata flashed through his aching mind like quicksilver.

With a muffled groan, he pushed himself onto his abused feet and teetered around before once more stumbling across the cold sands and dunes.

He would live for those he loved. He had too.

0-0-0-0-0

It was several more hours of mindless walking when Lee noticed the bright horizon in the distance, its bright orange and pinks flashed against the pale grey dawn as the sun once again made itself known to all.

It was during this moment of clarity, that Lee saw a dark smudge just underneath the firey display. Leaning just a in further, he noticed it wasn't moving as it shimmered faintly in the early morning heat waves. Placing his rough hand against the tattered remains of his spandex, he frowned as something pulsed warmly inside. It took him minutes before he realized it was hope. With a stunning grin on his chapped face, Lee concluded that he had but several more hours of travel-if he went fast, before he reached the distant smudge. He took off at a wobbly trot before falling flat on his face.

He was laughing like a mad man that he never noticed the steadily increasing intent moving closer and closer to his exuberant form. But someone else noticed him.

0-0-0-0-0

Far above the cloudless sky, slotted eyes watched as the green monstrosity that was her prey playfully roll on the ground, laughing for some reason. She felt her features curl in a mocking grin. Soon, very soon. She even gave a tiny grin when that boy suddenly pushed himself off the ground and took off those weird toe-less sandals before hobbling away over those last dunes towards that darkish smudge on the distant horizon.

Oh she did love a chase. "let the game begin, Lee!"


	11. Chapter 11

Chapter eleven:

In the face of mice and men.

Hinata stood rigid as several squeaks bounced shrilly around the grand antechamber while she tried to ignore the growing pain in her feet. If she hadn't had the stern upbringing of the Hyuuga, she would have already yelled in righteous feminine fury at being ignored even though she was cooperating with the old geezer mice. It was during this time that Hinata wished she could have been born into the Inuzuka clan, nobody expected them to hold their tongues during a debate.

"Young Hyuuga." she looked up towards the council as a huge white mouse, the oldest, looked down towards her. She could easily see great disdain and a form of loathing on his features as he studied her battered form wrapped in bandages and covered by her white clothing. He gave a swish of his flesh colored tail before continuing. "you are to be tested in the ways of our kind in order to become the next mouse summoner." it was so factual, so plain that simple sentence that tried to cage her in. no, Hinata had to stop this, she had to leave right now, not become a holder for a summons. Hinata gave a small cough to clear her dry throat in anticipation for breaking a Hyuuga clan law. She was going to speak her mind.

"forgive me…but I cannot take your test, I have to leave right now…I do thank you for this attempted honor though but I have to leave." Hinata felt sick to her stomach. If her father could see her now, she wouldn't have been able to walk for days. She watched through lavender-white eyes as the mice looked both appalled and curious, she could not see which was the stronger emotion.

A small beige colored mouse stood up from its seat and squeaked out in its feminine voice, "what do you mean by this mockery of our generosity. Not wanting to take the test. How can you refuse this honor that is only bestowed upon a few? You should be thanking us for this, not running away." Hinata flinched. She wasn't running away out of fear but because she knew Ioku would be coming after her and then her friends.

She spoke in a calming tone, "I am sorry but I must leave right now. My reasons are my own but I assure you I have the honor necessary to refuse such an offer." the female mouse shifted angrily in her place but didn't comment back. Just as Hinata was about to turn around, the voice of the old leader mouse flowed around her, "but you may not leave this realm until you have been tested, Young Hyuuga Hinata of Clan Hyuuga, for you see-this test is given to all who manage to find themselves here…if you want to leave just take the test and then you may be free to go…with or without a summons." though it would be cool to be the first of the group to have a summons, Hinata knew she was very young and had her konoichi duties on top of being a child ninja. Plus summons are given to a holder when they are very young, just mere children themselves. How could she be responsible if her first summon…the future boss summon…were to be killed because she was a novice shinobi. So green behind the ears that she smelled smoke if she burned.

She sighed, "I will take your test." wearily she felt someone, maybe Kimoko, grab her arm and lead her away from the council room. She had a few hours before the ordeal began, might as well get some sleep and food into her. Medical attention would be given before and after the test so that was one less worry she had to deal with. She vaguely wondered what Naru or Lee would say. She smiled, Naru would be so jealous while Lee would be crying waterfall tears in a corner. Those two were so alike it was almost scary.

She watched as Kimoko suddenly stopped and looked down the tunnel that would lead back to her rooms before shaking her fuzzy head and pulled her down a different tunnel, this one leading further west the the others.

She saw a light up ahead and squinted as it got steadily brighter. Kimoko stopped and grinned at the little girl beside her. "ya can open yer' eyes now Hinata-kun." she laughed out right when the younger's eyes flew open in shock and awe.

The room was a gigantic cavern below the two beings as both stood on a ledge overlooking the place.

The ceiling was covered in giant glowing crystals that gave of a sunny gold light and heat. As several small waterfalls lined the walls, she could see plants: trees, flowers, bushes, grasses covered the ground in all directions. Bugs such as butterflies, moths and bees flew lazily throughout the air, without a care in the world. She noticed movement farther down and gasped in awe as she spied mice of many shapes and colors milling about on the comfortable lawn. Hinata looked up at Kimoko, "what is this place Kimoko-san?"

Kimoko glanced down at the younger and smiled, "it's a park that us mice go to have some relaxation, oh look my mate brought the kids here, would you like to meet them? They haven't met a human at all and would like the experience." Hinata smiled and nodded. Both turned to walk down a crudely carved staircase before walking across the springy grass.

Hinata gave a small giggle when she noticed Kimoko run on her fours towards a big grey mouse as he waved his furry arms in the air. He was bigger then Kimoko was and had several scars that were partially hidden by the kimono-like top he wore. Behind him were several little mice that were the size of a small puppies, their colors ranged from pale grays to a dark blackish-blue. Hinata grinned when she was motioned over and nodded really fast when she was offered the chance to hold one of them. Pupil-less eyes watched closely as Kimoko gently picked up the one with blue-black fur, the runt of the litter, and placed the little male into her arms. She couldn't help but coo when Kimoko's mate-Hibachi, told her that he and his litter mates hadn't even opened their eyes yet.

She was invited to dine with them at their picnic and even got to take a small nap, all the while holding the small mouse babe.

Slowly though, while she slept, several groups left and Hibachi slowly gathered up the little ones, gave his mate a kiss on her fuzzy cheek and followed the other groups out. Kimoko watched them go before she nudged the small Hyuuga awake, it was time for the test.

0-0-0-0-0

Hinata was led by Kimoko into a small chamber outside the arena, to change into some better clothes- a formfitting sleeveless shirt that tied up at the neck in a pretty pale purple color. She notice that the fiber was actually a form of metal chain mail. A pair of pants the tied at the ankle and were slightly baggy in the knee and leg area. A pair of slightly heeled shinobi sandals, they had been left there by a former holder, and finally a parcel was put into her hands by her new friend before Kimoko left wishing her all the luck.

Hinata smiled in thanks before opening the wrappings on her gift and smiled when she saw what was inside. It was a cloak made out of wolf fur, it was the fur from that alpha male that had attacked her and quickly tied the leather knot at the base of her throat, right above the throng that held the fang. She was so ready to kick ass and take names.

Slowly she stood up and walked towards the lighted tunnel that led to the stadium. It wasn't a moment after she walked out when a massive roar, made out of squeaks, erupted around her. She felt pale when she noticed that the stands were filled to bursting with the rodents as the cheered her name and placed bets. Looking over towards a booth she noticed that the council mice were beckoning her over, she went.

The elder mouse rubbed his white fur in thought before addressing the young Hyuuga. The crowd was completely silent as they waited fro the signal. "Hyuuga Hinata of Clan Hyuuga. This test was designed to have a holder understand their summons better, as such you will have to think like a mouse, plan like a mouse to overcome this obstacle course. If you fall or become too injured you forit your right to leave and become a holder until proven worthy. If you complete the course, you may leave and /or become a holder for a summons. If you wish to sign the contract upon completion you must swear an oath in blood to protect the scroll and the mice who will fight for you in battles…do you agree with these terms."

Hinata slowly nodded, "yes honored elder, I agree with these terms." the large white mouse nodded and gave a small whiskered grin.

"let the test commence!" a roar went up in accordance. It was time.

0-0-0-0-0

Hinata suddenly dodged a razor sharp scythe as it flew by her ear less then an inch away. She felt her eyes widen as more sliced through the air coming right for her. It was a dicey chance that she would not win as more blades flew through the air and popped out of the ground as she raced along the first stretch of the obstacle course. It consisted of holes everywhere, each one holding a blade sharp enough to slice a hair length wise, it didn't help that there was no pattern and all just popped out at random.

She felt her legs tense as she prepared to jump over several of the holes, no easy feat, and instantly regretted her moment of rashness. She had felt the muscle bunch up, before launching herself high into the air and felt the rush of displaced air and sound and the stinging bite that lanced up her shoulder blade before easing out of the fleshy tissue as she descended. Hinata winced as the volume of the mice rose higher when the precious blood welled up from the shoulder down her back and arm. Looking up she noticed a lazily spinning scythe overhead and winced as she put a hand over the wound, remembering that pressure was key to becoming stable._ where did that monster come from? I thought I passed the ceiling scythes at the beginning of the course._ with a grunt, she noticed that she was nearing the end of the first obstacle and pushed herself harder.

_**In the stands **_

Kimoko watched from her seat as Hinata muscled through the course, exhaustion evident in every line of her body. She was proud of the little human girl, who didn't give up even though it would be easier then the life she would have to lead now. She had watched her when patrol had found and brought her in, now she was watching her battle for the right to leave. She sniffled silently as her mate tried to offer some comfort but still felt sad and depressed.

Her mates dark eyes smiled at her as his voice was soft, "all good things must come to an end, old girl. We just have to make do with the time that was allowed us." she gave a tiny grin.

"I hate when you make me feel better." a soft chuckle was his answer.

She was just settling her son down when the flowery-copper scent of blood permeated the air around her. She jumped out of her stone seat and would have run down the steps if her mate hadn't grabbed her arm. _Hinata-chan is hurt. How? Why? These are made to force a trial not to force compliance. Where is she, where is she? There! _she gritted her sharp teeth in anger when she saw the scythe make a downward swing at the pale-eyed girls unprotected shoulder and nearly snarled in a rare occurrence of rage._ Sabotage._

Hibachi watched his Kimoko out of the corner of his eye. He had known her for many years and had so far kept them in a happy mate-ship, but even he knew when to back down from her rage and admit defeat. His dark eyes watched his mates little friend maneuver and jump around the blades in a dangerous but oddly beautiful dance. He felt that anger bubble somewhere deep in his chest when little Hinata pushed her pale hand to her scarlet shoulder, he was a father himself so seeing someone so young hurt so bad, bothered him immensely. Still he would not go down there and halt the trial nor would he allow his mate to do so also, it would just end badly for all parties involved. Hibachi shook his head in pity, whoever had tried to sabotage this trial would not even have time to plead their sins to the council for retribution, Kimoko would kill them and unsurprisingly, he could care less.

Looking down when a small, but high pitched squeak erupted around the couple, both Kimoko and Hibachi stared at the wriggling bundle of blue-black fur as their tiny son tried to move out of his mothers tight hold. The two older mice looked deep into each others eyes in silent question before focusing on the rest of the trail and their agitated son in equal amounts of worry.

0-0-0-0-0

Hinata forced her muscles to hold up her small body as she ran and dodged small rounded balls that flew in all directions like a silvery mass of hornets. Her pink lips tightened when another flew close to her nose. She knew to be extremely careful, each little ball of silver was covered in a seal that caused it to explode in a shower of fire and metal shavings. Really not pleasant.

Pale lavender-white eyes burned from the putrid smoke and the want to use her Byakugan. She was narrowly slipping past the segments that had her fearing for the end as she slowly made the corrects, albeit slow, hand signs that would enable her to increase the flow of chakra to her eyes. Hinata knew that even one mistake in this place would lead to her demise, of this she was certain. _four more segments, just four more. that's not even a hundred feet away, I can do this, I will do this!_ Byakugan flaring and body ready but fluid, she pushed off her spot with a growl that was so uncharacteristic of the sweet and mild girl. She was done playing the fool; she knew medical justu, was brought to a summoner world and had two best friends who would be very disappointed in her if she never came home. Determination flowing in her blood she ran. Hinata ran like she had never run before. Her eyes were focused on the flag that marked her finish line, its bright florescent color cheekily beckoned, so focused was she that, Hinata never saw a weird black ball join the fray of silver but she definitely felt it.

The first thought in her mind was 'ow'. the second was feeling as if her whole body was having the skin pulled off her bones slowly as liquid fire dripped onto her. She smelt a sickly sweet smell of charred flesh and hair and decided that concentrating on not losing her lunch was more productive then worrying about how badly burned she was. Her eyes burned as tears fell from the abused orbs and her body screamed in agony. Dimly she could hear sounds of a struggle taking place: high-pitched battle cries and squeaks, the sounds of metal striking metal and underneath it all, the gushing sound of blood and liquids being spilled. She fought to rise her body when a shadow fell over her, Hinata turned to yell and fight when she realized it wasn't an enemy, she calmed and said through cracked lips, "Kimoko-san?"

The overly large mouse cried softly before pushing a small bundle toward the fallen girl. She was hurt, sad and angry. Both her litter and Hibachi had been slain by the women with the crazy eyes and only the youngest had lived besides her, not that she would live for much longer-she had been cut on her stomach by a long dagger and everyone knew it was fatal. But all that aside, she had a favor to ask of the tiny girl, one she hoped would be fulfilled. "Hai, Hinata-chan…I have to, ask ya or something…please sign the scroll…save my son, please." no use beating around the bush when one was dieing. "His name I will leave to you and you will have complete control of the scroll. I beg of ya' Hinata-chan. Please." her strength was failing her and soon she would die. She didn't want to leave without her son nor did she want him to be alone. If Hinata-chan took him in and made him her boss summon, she would die happy. She felt her body grow cold as a smile grew on her face.

"Kimoko-san…I will."

With a desperate burst of strength, Hinata threw herself onto her arms and knees, and crawled forward until she grabbed the baby mouse, he had big ears for one so tiny. She suddenly gasped when his eyes opened, large round eyes the color of pink crystal shinned when they saw her. "His eyes are pink, Kimoko-san. pink like the dawn. I will call him though, Yakennonokarasu-blacker than black." Kimoko smiled warmly, "that is a good name Hinata-chan, Yakennonokarasu. You both will go so far…I wish I…could have…seen…it…" Hinata smiled at her new partner, "you look a lot like you dad, but I wonder if you have your moms personality. What do you think Kimoko-san? Kimoko-san?" she looked over at the still form of her new friend and sobbed quietly when she noticed the soft, motherly smile on the fuzzy features. "rest easily Kimoko-san…you have earned it."

With a shaky breath, Hinata quickly got to her feet and walked unsteadily back to the judges berth. A large scroll was placed reverently on a steel podium. Its coloring was of several shade of grays and blacks, colored in a pattern of swirls. Gently moving Yakennonokarasu to her other arm, she cracked open the scroll and looked for an empty space. She, along with Naru and Lee had all been taught about what to do with a summoning scroll and your partner, so it was Childs play to write her name in some blood-courtesy of her bleeding shoulder. It was when she gently cut Yakennonokarasu's paw on his right, that made her cringe in sorry, before placing his bleeding paw onto the paper right under her name. now they were partners until they died. Gently placing the heavy scroll across her back and carrying Yakennonokarasu in her arms, Hinata moved into the dusty, smoky arena.

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Ioku was furious. No scratch that, she was beyond furious.

That little Hyuuga slut had ran and ran and ran from her one too many times and now she seemed to have run herself into a trap. A fitting end to the little chit. She had traversed many miles to find out where in the nin levels of hell the bitch had disappeared into, when a mouse had told her to follow. Long story short, she was here and now most of those pathetic excuses for breathing space were gone.

Now back to the girl.

She had seen the dark haired child relatively quickly, but the combined wave of mice had temporarily blocked the girl from her view. It would seem the little brat had managed to gain some popularity- how quaint. She felt a rush of something white-hot travel through her body and it took her a moment to realize that it was a combined mixture of jealousy and hatred. Ioku snarled low in her throat as another mouse fell dead to her poisoned weapons, the hot smell of blood covering her hands and arms up to her elbows as she grinned in insane glee. This was why she and her teammates had been chosen by their master-they loved too kill and she was no exception nor did she feel an ounce of regret or conscience when performing slaughter. To her, anyone was prey and those unlucky enough to be chosen to become her playthings always died in the most gruesome of ways.

She scanned the room and smiled murderously when the flash of black and purple entered her gaze. The little slut was not going to die, such a shame as it was, the master had plans for those three children, very specific plans and she dare not even kill one for a second. Ioku grimaced, she could still feel the bite of a whip slashing through her skin, a warning to try to control the urge to kill this prey. Her master was dangerous like that, hurting them just enough to get the message across without making them rebel.

Ioku ran forward, occasionally sliding on spills of red before jumping forward just as Hinata turned her pretty little face. The surrounding air was split by the harsh crack of a hand hitting face, it made the insane women smile happily when the pale ivory of her victims face glowed scarlet. She gave a malicious cackle before hauling the dazed but fighting child to her feet. Another slap, brought the girl back to awareness. Ioku dragged the girl forward, ignoring the giant scroll and little bundle tied to her back, before pulling out a square piece of paper with odd swirls and kanji written on it. With a quick flick of the wrist, Ioku sent it sailing in the air before sticking to a broken column. Within seconds a flash of light and a bang tore throughout the area making Hinata and Ioku close their eyes and grit their teeth in pain. When the light had died down, Hinata audaciously opened her pale orbs to look at what happened and stiffened in shock.

Instead of broken stone and rubble, there was a vast wasteland with a huge compound sitting right in front of the two women. High walls were backed by tiny, moving specks on their perimeters which Hinata took to be guards while the completely flat wall surface left no room to climb. She felt Ioku pull her forward to the giant iron gate and winced when the whole thing shrieked in tension as it was forced open. Her eyes jumped at the two gatehouses - one on the outside and the other in the compound. Both were made out of a combination of stone, probable sandstone, and metal bracings. Their roofs were tiled and covered in a shiny substance that she thought might be a type of oil. _come to think of it, the walls outside had that same look. Hmm, I wonder what it is. Maybe they use it to blind their opponents or does it serve some other purpose. I'll have to think of this when I'm alone. _She mentally nodded at her thoughts before focusing once more on her dilemma. Walking across the gates threshold, she didn't notice any guards around the inside of the compound, this worried the young Hyuuga, especially because she knew they were being watched.

And angry voice snarled right in the space over her head, "come on Hyuuga slut. If you make me late, I will not hesitate to go against me master orders and kill you myself!" Hinata mentally rolled her eyes. If Ioku had wanted her dead she would have done so already, no her master must be cruel and dangerous if he could subdue the sadistic women and cheat her out of a prize. Which begged the question -what did Ioku's master want with her or an even more disturbing question, what did he want with them. A flash of chakra had the young girl turning to face Ioku and somebody else. He was large and built like a seafaring vessel with scars and stuff all over his face and arms. His skin was a chalky white color that she thought one only got after years of living underground. He gave a calmly grotesque smile that made her skin crawl as the man walked closer to Ioku and herself. His countenance was smug and cocky as he was practically nose to nose with Hinata's murderous captor. The only thing that made her more scared was the simple fact that even Ioku seemed disgusted and wary around the big male.

0-0-0-0-0

The mans dark eyes showed an amused disgust at his female teammate but that still didn't stop him from grinning like a demented loon. "well well, Ioku-chan, it would seem I have beaten you to our masters favor. You look worse for wear, did this little girl of only seven really give you such a hard time…my she is a pretty thing, isn't she…though not half as beautiful as _**my**_ Naru-chan." He grinned when the tiny girl shivered in horror, though if it was because he showed her attention or if the mere mentioning of his beautiful Naru made her aware. Untoku thought it might be a combination of both. He gave a mental sigh when Ioku started to screech at him, most of which he blocked out but not before he heard her call him a "pedophilic-asshole with a shitty disposition."

With a smile, he motioned towards the shadows. What came out next would give Hinata nightmares for years.

It was some hybrid-_thing_. Something that might have looked man but was anything but. It had bulging muscles that made the veins stand up from its skin in a macabre of blue/gray tendrils over skin. It was at least seven feet tall with a pot belly-ish stomach and a stooping back. Its skin was the color of rotting things and smelt just as pleasant. Its face had too be what nightmares were made of; it had pure, opaque eyes that had no pupils and bulged from their sockets as the swiveled around independently from their opposites. Its pointed ears could be mistaken as elfin, but for the tattered and shredded flesh they were anything but. Its mouth hung in an open and almost dumb look as it snapped its long, sharp teeth in annoyance. The teeth themselves were yellowed and hung and grew in different directions. Its large nose sniffed the air in a delicate way. Its huge feet thumped the ground as it slouched over, surprisingly fast for its misshapen size and shape, before coming to rest beside the trio.

Untoku snapped his fingers and spoke to the beast, "take the little one and put her into a cell. no torture, I want to have someone question her, maybe _he _will do. Make sure you don't hurt her, she will fight back and try to keep your smell from stinking up the cell or else its your big ugly head that's going to be mounted on the masters wall." the beast gave a bow that looked mocking before it slumped over too her.

Hinata gave a startled shriek when the big hands of the thing suddenly shot out an lifted her up effortlessly. It smelled rancid and it was all Hinata could do not to throw-up on her meager picnic meal from earlier. She looked over at the two grown ups before the slamming of a big door suddenly cut off her view. With an angry turn she started to claw violently at the monsters exposed head and felt dismay when it just shook off the small rivers of red blood, not even a grimace of pain crossing its horrid features. She felt its other hand drop away from her and used this chance to throw a barrage of kick and punches at the beast, nothing happened, it just continued to slump forward on its journey to dump her in a cell for questioning which could very well equal torture under the hands of someone else. With a scream, she lunged forward, before feeling a tight pinching at the base of her skull. Hinata tried to turn and look behind her only to realize that she couldn't move at all, she was briefly paralyzed.

Cold dread filled the seven year olds body as both the child in her felt nothing but fear and panic while the konoichi part of her felt fear but was slowly analyzing her situation. She needed to get out of here. Her pale eyes watched as wall sconces and doors flew by her vision as she tried to think of a plan to get out of here and couldn't help but think that Naru would have been so pissed with these people…_**NARU**_.

Panic suddenly hit her as she remembered the man saying that Naru was being held here as well. Was she okay? Did she fight well? Was she hurt? Hinata was helpless to stop the questions that flooded her head as her worry turned into hysteria. Those…bastards…were holding her friend and most likely chasing the other one. Now she felt anger, anger that she wasn't able to stop those evil men and woman. The weight of her fathers failed expectations and her clans embarrassment taunted her from the corners of her mind saying that she was weak and that she didn't deserve happiness for being a burden on others. A tear dripped from her eyes as she thought that they must be right.

Hinata didn't even look up when the monster threw her into a moldy smelling cell and quietly thanked the gods when he finally locked the door behind him and left.

A movement at her back made the pale-eyed girl shoot up, vaguely making her realize that she wasn't paralyzed anymore, and gather the tiny infant mouse wrapped in her wolf pelt cloak as he wrinkled his tiny button nose in obvious discomfort. Hinata dried her eyes and tried to comfort the baby summon saying, "shh, shh Yakennonokarasu, please settle down. I will find us a way out of this problem and then we will return to Konoha and you will get to live in this really nice compound with me and Naru and Lee. You will like those too, they are very loud and Naru can be a sarcastic little thing, but I don't doubt that they will shower you with attention. Then once you get a bit bigger and can move on your own, we can start training together. I will have to talk to Anko-nee and see about how to take care of a summons, but I don't think you will get along with hers, she is a snake summoner." Hinata held the pink eyed male as she talked to him about her friends and the compound where they lived. She talked about her few classes at the academy and was glad she no longer had to go. Hinata didn't tell him about her family nor her clan, but she did tell Yakennonokarasu that she was no longer the heiress of clan Hyuuga and was considered a clan less child before she lived with her friends. She even told him of his parents and some of his siblings and how they loved him and trusted her enough to but him in her care as was his mothers dieing wish. A few tears leaked out of Hinata's pale eyes as she told him of his mother and how she had died shortly after hearing her name him and even told the baby mouse to be proud and strong like his parents who gave him a chance to live a life.

Shivering in the chilly cell, she pulled the now sleeping Yakennonokarasu closer to her body, offering up her own warmth so the baby mouse could continue to sleep in a semblance of comfort. Her own comforts she had already abandoned as she laid her back up against the back of her summoning scroll. She had too keep both safe, even if she died of wounds, starvation or hypothermia.

With that she gently laid her body in a rigid position, content with waiting out the night in a sleepless discomfort. Her pupil-less eyes watched the door to their cell with wary and nervous paranoia.


	12. Chapter 12

Chapter 12:

Ladies and gentlemen, let the games begin.

Naru woke to the uncomfortable feeling of her wounds being healed, the skin was growing and stretching in the most painful of ways. The seven year old konoichi watched as some of the other cellmates stirred in fevered nightmares, while others stood still and looked as though sleep would only do good. Twisting slightly in the reeking straw, she looked over at Yoh, who was unsurprisingly awake and watching over the others. When the tan woman saw her awake she grinned and motioned the tiny girl over, something Naru went along with.

"sleep well gaki?", Naru gave a tiny nod before resuming her mental once over of her injuries. She felt that the monster fox -Kyuubi, was responsible for her impromptu healing and decided to send a small flair of gratitude to her chakra enhanced pain in the ass. She resolved herself to talking with the Hokage when she got home to find out the reason for her unwilling prisoner. She was so deep in thought that she nearly jumped a mile high when Yoh elbowed her.

Her blue eyes sought the older woman's, who just nodded her head in the direction of the bars as a man dressed in leather walked in. he was very tall and held himself like one of importance. His face was marked diagonally with a red and puffy scar, while his mouth held a self-satisfied sneer as his bright brown eyes looked at the huddles of broken women. His hair was close cropped and mayhap was brown as well. She knew he was not a very nice man and openly glared at him which made Yoh chuckle when she noticed.

The man opened up his mouth, "alright, you _bitches_ get enough sleep. Are all of you bright eyed and bushy tailed or do any of you need a bath in boiling oil to knock the sleepy fro your eyes." his voice was high and nasally and oh so mocking. Naru had thought she had wanted to hit the Uchiha bad, but now she wanted to beat the mans scarred face against the bars until his hard head made them open. Yoh placed a heavy callused hand on her left shoulder which made it twitch in pain as she calmed down her killing intent. That man rubbed her the wrong way.

He made a hand-sign that had the cold bars of their cell glow briefly before lowering, with that he had some of the handling guards come and take them away. She still grimaced in horror and disgust when the creatures walked up to the now open cell and picked up the women who moaned in fear and carried them off. Though she had been warned about the monster guards, she still fought like a hell cat when one of them picked her up in its huge hands, behind her she could hear Yoh silently struggle against her own assailant. The leather dressed man had left and was walking up to a huge door with two crossed swords carved into the metal. With a snap of his fingers, one of the guards who didn't have a woman in his arms slumped forward and braced himself against the big door before throwing his weight against it, making it groan open and nearly blinding her with the harsh outside light.

The sound of cheering and clanging of metal on metal alerted her of a fight before she saw it.

The outside was designed like a huge coliseum, like the one in Konoha, but this one had a freaken huge dome with only the very top circle cut out for light. The ground was covered in blinding white sand with huge slate and sandstone boulders haphazardly placed willy-nilly. The stands were packed with richly dressed people -most likely merchants and small time daimyos of small countries. Servants also stood at attention behind their masters and most seemed to be disgusted by the brutal spectacle happening on the sands below. In a richly decorated box stand, a man bathed in black silk with his face covered in shadow watched the fight, his intent radiating sadistic glee.

Naru grimaced. How could people find enjoyment in watching others suffering and death. The pretty girl felt her stomach rebel when the thick smell of death- blood, urine, feces wafted from the still air. Logically she knew that she would doubtlessly be in closer contact with death in her pursuit of being a great konoichi, but she felt that the way people died and the broken balance left behind would forever haunt her.

Yoh watched her tiny companion in contemplative silence. Once a konoichi of Iwa, she was known as the rock fall of the country of earth and had lived and fought for the ideals of her people and Kage. she had only been twenty or so at the time when she was betrayed by those she thought had her trust. It had been a routine mission, go find a young ninja undercover, assassinate him/her and then leave with no one being the wiser. The older women clenched her jaw in hate. She still felt the phantom ache from where her own teammates had let lose a volley of kunai and shuriken upon her unprotected back, the raised scars marring the once smooth skin. No, she was a bitter women now and seeing a tiny girl of only seven being trained in the shinobi arts rubbed her the wrong way.

The crowds cheers snapped her out of her musings. The heavy swaying of the guards movements jerked her around, beside her Naru growled lowly which brought amusement to Yoh's features. Even now the child would fight not to be controlled and thus doing so made the older women feel respect. Something she had thought she had lost long ago.

Naru felt her chest rumbling with her growls as she was carried like a doll towards a room with gigantic iron bars that stretched from floor to ceiling. Inside, men and women sat or paced in anticipation. Some wore the rags that were given as clothes while others wore leather armor studded with large metal rings set in a medieval fashion. Those that were geared up sat in resigned silence as voices echoed around them. Naru chanced a look at those in rags and noticed with rage at how skinny and broken they looked as they paced in fear. Their bare feet left bloody footprints from pacing on the rough sand covered stone. With a lumbering motion forward, the lead guard quickly uncovered a large wheel and grabbed one of the pegs in his meaty hands. Motioning with his hands to come forward he beckoned the other beasts to bring over their burdens before slowly turning the wheel backwards. A rumbling screech bounced around the arena as onlookers and patrons looked to see what was going on. The roar of the crowd was deafening as those who watched cheered or booed at the newest arena meat, most looked ready to place bets before they were even outfitted, practically drooling to win or lose money depending on the odds.

The lead guard had finally opened the gate and was shooing the other fighters back further into the large holding cell. The other beasts followed him in before dumping their burdens on the hard and unforgiving ground. With grunts and lumbering noises the beasts left and closed the gate behind them, effectively trapping the prisoners in until they were called to fight.

With a groan, Naru felt someone slowly helping her to sit up. A quick glance showed them to be a older women with a shaved head that was covered in small white scars. Her eyes were a dark brown and showed no warmth, nothing like Yoh's eyes at all. She was muscular like Yoh though, with large shoulders and narrow waist. She wore the same metal ringed leather outfit as some of the others and even Naru could see that her build pushed on the worn outfit.

"you should not be here, young one." the women had a silky voice, that made you believe what she was saying as a simple and universally excepted fact. "the child-loving man will come for you soon. Why you though, I wonder?" she was also kind of a bitch.

Naru, still in the woman's hold, grunted as she cleared her throat before answering, "he thought I was a delectable little morsel. Wait till he finds the ants though, then I will see who has the final laugh." she grinned when she startled a laugh out of the older woman.

Her silky voice held laughter in it as she said, "well now a fighter. Its been a while since I've seen one of those outside of us here who have been fighting for years in this arena. it's a pleasant change and no doubt the patrons who serve the shadow will be pleased at the newest selection." by the end it had turned sarcastic.

Naru watched as the woman turned to motion Yoh over before walking up to the gate and banging on it to gather the attention of the guards all the while yelling, "hey you, big, gross and ugly. Yeah you, come here. Its my turn to fight or are you just going to leave me here to rot like a dead dog in the sun." a few moments later and the woman was let out and on to the sandy arena. Too soon the clash of metal and screams rang through the air. The young girl slowly undid her bright red hair from her ponytail and sat next to Yoh. It was going to be a long day.

0-0-0-0-0

Several days had passed and Naru could admit that she was bored, nervous and filled with a odd thing - adrenaline.

All there was to do in this place was mend weapons and talk or meditate and ignore the dying screams of those who fought in the arena no more than a foot away from the cell. Hana- the woman with the silky voice, had said and befriended both Yoh and herself, even taking the young konoichi genin under her wing. She was always talking about how to fight and what she had been doing before becoming a fighter which was being a friend of some daimyos as she worked on being a blacksmith. When Naru had casually mentioned of having some experience with metal working for making weapons and tools, Hana's eyes had lit up with a fire worthy of a forge. The cell in the very back had a mediocre forge and was watched by a guard to make sure only weapons for the fighters were forged and even then it was difficult to convince the shadows dogs to give them materials to forge or make with.

So a Few days later found Naru and Hana with Yoh as a lookout taking lessons on blacksmithing. It was hard and difficult work but it was something to do and gave her a life skill she could apply to their compounds armory back home - the one she would build once she got back with Hinata and Lee and as a cover for her espionage work, after all who would question a blacksmith who worked on making tools for tilling fields rather then weapons to kill.

Naru smiled as some of the old iron pieces of a shattered sword were turning red as she steadied the large hammer over them before pounding the holy hell out of the shards which threw up tiny sparks and heat. It had already been five and a half days since she had been placed into the cell with Yoh and already she had made two swords and a lance for some of the fighters. _honestly I enjoy this work. Who knows, if this konoichi stuff doesn't work out, I will be a capable blacksmith. _She was so in her thoughts that she shrieked and jumped when Hana had come into the small alcove forge without her knowing and touched her shoulder with an almost motherly protection.

The woman's brown eyes showed anger and fear, not for herself but for the tiny girl who was now eight years old. She may have been trained as a konoichi but she was still just a child who was being forced to grow up at a faster rate then she should be. Her voice shook softly as she silently looked at the one she considered a daughter-like figure, "oh my little one. I tried to make them reconsider but they wouldn't listen to me even though I have fought for years an have some respect and authority…" the older woman went off on a spiel as she worked herself up into a frenzy so much so the Naru was scared she was going to faint or give herself a conniption.

Blue eyes focused on brown as Naru asked what was wrong.

A silent wail as Hana answered, "they want you to fight in your first fight three days from now."

That was the last thing Naru heard before she felt the blackness over take her vision and then she knew no more.

0-0-0-0-0

Along a dust road a silent shadow moved onwards. He had his mission to bring back those gaki's that had graduated early. Truthfully he liked the kids, they were warm and filled with a light that was as soft as iron. The moving shadow sighed quietly as he caught another false trail.

With dark black eyes watching the road, Ibiki ran on. Losing his brother and then being promoted to T &amp; I, he often had little time to keep aware of inner village politics and their struggles, but one thing had surprised him: the three kids, Uzumaki Naru, Hyuuga Hinata and Rock Lee had passed an anbu exam and then passed the academy test before leaving a brief training trip. He had also heard something from the Hokage about them living in an old abandoned compound that they had been gifted. It never failed to amuse him when he heard about this nor the looks on his colleagues faces when the heard about several knew graduates only to find out that they were the three outcasts of the village.

Ibiki smiled as he pushed on with more speed as the green forest started to turn into flat land and in the distance a desert started in a golden expanse that shown gray in the fading light.

He would do his Kage proud and bring those children back, after all he wanted them to participate in his chunin exams one day.

0-0-0-0-0

The buzz of soft conversation was what Naru heard as she slowly woke up from her fainting spell. The now eight year old felt slightly ashamed with herself at passing out, she had been trained better. A cool hand was suddenly placed on her forehead making her blue eyes snap open. Looks of shock and confusion greeted her as she pushed herself to a sitting position. "what's everyone looking at?" her voice was raspy and drained.

Yoh moved over to her side and handed her a piece of glass. With an odd look she glanced down and promptly dropped the fragile piece of mirror. Tan-ish hands moved to her hair in shock and fear as blue eyes flicked through the small crowd in question. "what is this?" no answer.

Her once bright red hair was a now bright blonde with a slight reddish quality to it. She was more tan - more like Yoh's and Hana's coloring. She was so confused. In the end it was Yoh who answered, "we found a seal on you that disappeared when you fainted. After it was gone your hair and skin color changed." she wondered how long she had been out and this time it was Hana who answered, "you've been out for two days. Today is the day you fight. Thankfully it is a later fight, which will give us time to prepare you." the woman's voice was sad. A rush of pure unadulterated fear shot through the young Uzumaki. She knew fighting and death were all parts of being a shinobi but nothing anyone did could stave off the fear that she would have too kill someone.

She remembered the words Crane-sensei had told them before they finished their training in anbu, "the first kill is always the hardest. It is the time when you make or break your shinobi career and it is the most damning on the mind and heart. The key is not to lose yourself in the process, be strong but flexible and don't kill for enjoyment. Respect the loss of life and never see them as numbers but as people, lest you lose who you are!"

With squared shoulders, she forced herself to her feet and took unsteady steps until she was next to Hana and Yoh. "lets finish this."

With the help of the two women, Naru was brought to the back of the cell where an assortment of odds and ends lay. There was leather ringed armor and a pair of leather gloves that went up to the elbow, one held the compartment for her collapsible staff. When she pulled it out it had been changed, in now had seals written into the heavy metal. Yoh told her they held things to attach to the top and bottom of her weapon. Her clothes that she had been wearing when she was kidnapped were still missing but her sword was there, which surprised her. With reverence she picked up the katana and looked at the hilt which was still covered in the blue fabric. "how did you get this. I thought it was lost when I was kidnapped." out of the corner of her eye, Naru noticed that Hana had motioned to herself and cringed at the implications for getting a partial of her things back.

With quick, deft fingers the two older women fastened on the armor and rearranged her meager weaponry before they stopped.

With a questioning look, Naru watched as Yoh walked over to a small stone shelf before retrieving something small and silver in color. It was a small pair of scissors that looked lethally sharp and were currently focused in front of the brash girl. With an apologizing glance Yoh moved the scissors to her now blond hair and said, "sorry Naru but it would be best if we cut your hair. Less of a handhold."

Each snip of those tiny metal knives connected by a small screw was absolute torture as her long hair was cut shorter and shorter. It took about two hours before they were done. When she looked into an even tinier piece of glass, she noticed the way her hair moved upwards from her head in a pixie cut. She liked it though it reminded Naru of a porcupines bristling quills rather then hair. The blonde look didn't help. Her voice wavered slightly as her natural energy and confidence wore away to reveal a scared and uncertain girl-child. "must I go through with _this_?" fear perfumed her intent and chakra as she looked to the two women who had come to mean so much to her. "I'm surely to young…I…can't do this, I'm not ready." hysteria raced through her as she trembled. It was during this time that she truly questioned the Hokage's intentions for practically making them into child warriors.

Yoh was just about to answer her when the scream of someone in the arena made everyone freeze. Someone had just died. Someone had just died and now it was her turn, she would have to fight someone to the death. Her first kill. Her newly tanned skin paled into an ashy gray when she heard the screech of the gate being wheeled open, the lead guards heavy footfalls made the sandy floor tremble in time with her shakes. She wasn't ready, nothing could prepare her, this she knew. Her anbu sensei, Hokage-sama, Anko-nee, hell even the academy had taught them the most of a shinobi's life: life till you die. It was the most crucial of lessons, die on your own time and do your village proud. A small part of her sanity felt like crumbling when a mirthless laugh tore out of her mouth through numb lips from somewhere deep in the hallow expanse of her diaphragm.

A sharp prod in the back between her shoulder blades woke her up from her thoughts as the beastly guard shoved her forward. Her feet carried her forward when all she wanted to do was turn around and hide behind the two experienced warrior women. There was only silence as many of the people she passed on her way to the gate were throwing her pitying glances , some even mimed a rope going around the neck as she was moved out. Even these people knew she stood no chance against whatever hell awaited her. So be it.

Naru's last thought before crossing the gates threshold onto the sandy arena was how she was sad she wouldn't get the chance to wish Hinata and Lee farewell. Who knows maybe she would see them again on the other side.

0-0-0-0-0

The blast of heat like hellfire burned across the stands as a man lounged calmly on a large padded chair that resembled a throne. Around him on chains anchored to the wall, sat several extremely beautiful women. The man raised a large dish filled with sake towards his lips as a younger man entered the pagoda with a small sigh of pleasure for being shaded and out of the heat. The shadowed man lifted a perfectly manicured eyebrow in something akin to amusement as his right hand moved down to caress one of the women's cheeks with a silk covered hand. His voice was a mellow tenor, easy to listen too and very controlled as he addressed his champion, "what do you have for me today, _Shi_?" the name and question flowed smooth as an unbroken sheet of ice at the younger man an champion fighter chuckled in sarcastic joy.

Shi smiled widely, "nothing truly great milord. The woman Hana though, tried to divert my attention today when I suggested a new fighter to the arena. Old girl got attached to one of those arena meats and had the balls to tell me to stay away from some child." the shadow man smiled thinly, more at the disgust of the foul choice of words rather then the openness of the talk. After all, he had practically raised the foul-mouthed youth, he should be rather used to it.

The silky voiced turned mocking as he said, "really now? Hana of the cats tongue, rarely takes to anyone new. What make this boy special, I wonder?" dark colored eyes turned slightly to regard Shi, clearly waiting for an answer. He didn't wait for long.

"not a boy milord." the shadow man seemed shocked.

"not a boy. A woman then or rather a man?" he searched for an answer. The impetuses brat laughed in his sarcastic way. He did truly enjoy keeping his master in suspense even though he knew it would get him into even more trouble later. Master never forgot. Ever.

Shi grinned, "nope…a girl of only seven or eight. Blonde hair, three whisker marks on both cheeks, big forget me not blue eyes, tiny…_well,_ everything. I saw her passed out on the floor when I went to enlist someone new to fight, she's cute. Will be a beauty when she gets older, if you're looking to _expand._" he gave a chilling smile when his master chuckled before continuing, "anyways, I saw her and liked the look of her, she might even make some of the hotheads in the crowds loose enough to pledge their loyalty to you if she does well."

A silk covered hand brought the dish of liquor to his lips again and Shi calmly went on the defensive. It wasn't everyday that the master agreed to his choices, that was what made him deadly. He made you feel welcomed like a snake hypnotizing a small fragile mouse before lashing out unexpectedly, even though you feel it would happen, those fangs will get you and before you know it you can never leave. It was what happened to him when he was just a street brat without a home, friends or family. His masters fangs though had gotten to his heart before he could run scared out of town, now he was a faithful servant to his master cause.

The silky voice dripped approval as the master addressed him, "you have done, Shi. Make her start from the fourth hour, after Yamabuki is finished with his fight. Make sure the baka doesn't over do himself again, she might be young but that is when you will fall. the newest generations have a way of surprising us when we least expect or want it too." the words were a veiled dismissal as Shi nodded his head in gratitude, he would live another day, the master liked his choices. Just as the younger male was about to leave the shaded pagoda, the masters tenor voice spoke to him again, "also, Shi…" Shi turned to look back. "don't forget to ask about her name, we can't keep calling her girl now can we." a smooth laugh bid Shi goodbye as he left.

"yes master, I will find it all out, for you."

0-0-0-0-0

It was too damn hot.

Sweat dripped from her hairline and down the expanse of her face before falling from the point of her nose as Naru followed the guard out onto the sands. The gritty substance burned her feet. Fighters were not allowed to wear any shoes, Hana had mused to her that maybe the shadow liked watching contestants hop around because the layer of skin on their feet were being burnt away. She could agree.

The crowd was going ballistic when she finally made her debut, mostly boos and one or two cheers. The eight year old girl sniffed the burning air through her sensitive nose and sneezed out the smell of old blood and death. The guards heavy hand pushed her forward as Naru attempted to move away from him. It smelled just slightly worse then the arena. Still it was nice to be back in the sun again. It was one of her few guilty pleasures besides ramen and gardening and that was just being out in the gentle sun among soft grass as she relaxed.

Shaking her head, Naru watched as the guard left her and a young man walked out onto the sands opposite from her. He moved with the strength of a person who could fight and fight well, strong muscle glinted in the sun as sweat dripped down the small ravines and gully's made in his skin. He had short black hair tossled in a lazy fashion that benefited his tan complexion. Small scars showed on his arms as he moved closer to the girl. His bright green eyes smiled in welcome and she immediately felt herself go on guard. He was tall, maybe over six feet and held all the dangerous grace of a wild animal as he crossed the burning sandy arena until he finally stood in front of her.

He spoke softly, like he wanted only her to hear his voice - which was every bit as nice to listen to as it was amazing to look at him. "My name is Shi, the master has expressed his want for a newer fighter. Looks like he hit the jackpot hmm." he gave a flirtatious wink, which made her feel elated and pissed all in one go. He danced amongst eggshells because nothing good ever comes from her temper. With a tiny snarl at the rugged male to back the fuck away, something he ignored, she pushed pass him on her way to the center of the arena which still held puddles of red from the previous fight as the sand wouldn't be raked over until later in the evening. Unhurried steps behind Naru alerted her that the man - Shi, was following her, which ignited her flash fire temper in justified womanly rage. Growls started to pour from her throat as the offending male came closer to her, making her wonder why she was being so beastlike and then accepting the need to have a "conversation" with the over-sized feather duster sitting in her gullet.

Shi himself was loving the vision the girl-child made, snarling and growling like a hellcat as she seemed to warn him away from getting to close to her person. Though twelve years older than her, he couldn't help but be turned on to a woman who fought back, something the master thought was a waste of time. "what is your name little one?" silence. Then, a thunderous snarl ripped out of her throat as she glared at him like some offending piece of trash under her foot. A shiver raced down his spine in two parts ecstasy and wariness. Who knew little girls now days were so vocal in their anger. Shi grinned, this would be fun.

"Uzumaki Naru, not that it matters to you thrice-be-damned kidnappers. I should destroy you for this wrong against me." she said, her voice like stone. Naru was so pissed, she actually saw red. Normally a peaceful, albeit, sarcastic person she liked to be around people and liked it even more when they liked being around her. Yet this man rubbed her in a way so wrong even the Shinigami himself blushed scarlet in shock.

This man seemed like evil brewing under an angelic façade and it made her feel like a cornered animal, except in this case she had way too much to loose if she attacked him and lost. With a small shake of her head, Naru set to ignoring her new found follower as he started to give off her name and rank to the greedy audience. "come now and attend me. The girl-child named Naru will fight my lords fighter - Kasai Saru." she winced as the crowd screamed in appreciation and started the fighters names.

"Naru." "Naru" "Kasai Saru" Kasai Saru" the noise was near deafening.

Up above the arena, a man in black silk chuckled thinly as the women around him shifted uncomfortably. He had been surprised though. What a gem this child could turn out to be, her youth and vigor would help him complete his goals, of this he felt sure. "Naru" he smiled behind thin lips. Who knew that there were still children of the Uzumaki clan running around. Though with the way his Intel had read, he was completely sure that the old fool Hokage hadn't told her anything about her heritage or clan. What a pity…for them.

He was no such fool. With this little tidbit of information, he would soon be having a child of one of the greatest clans known for sealing under his rule, an even better, the little ex-Hyuuga heiress would follow along with that spandex wearing Taijustu student right with her. Sipping at his dish of Sake, he smiled once more before holding up his hand, announcing the fight.

He chuckled in mad amusement, before saying, "Impress me little whirlpool, your life and your friends are hanging in the balance."

0-0-0-0-0

Naru felt the sands shift under her foot a few seconds before something big and obviously sharp whirled at break neck speed towards the middle of her sternum.

quick and thankfully fast reflexives saving her ass from being cleaved in two as a huge double bladed axe split the sand right where she had been standing just moments ago. Her heart thundered in shock as her pulse fluttered like a trapped bird under her skin which was now clammy with sweat. With a practiced move, she thumbed her katana from its sheath as a huge shadow completely engulfed her small form. Looking up until her neck hurt from the angle, she noticed a large, burly man with ruddy features and the ever noticeable battle axe held in one beefy hand.

The man had to be close to seven feet tall with so much muscle it actually made him look deformed. He had a round face with a red colored beard and brown eyes framed by big bushy red eyebrows that would have made Lee cry in amazement. His long red hair was shaved on the sides and tied up in a pony-tail. He wore the same leather armor as she did but his was of a much better quality and was covered in small scratches, gouges and ran small little rivulets of blood. Naru was convinced that most of it wasn't his. The man completed his look with a freshly lit cigar in his mouth as he grinned around it at her, showing blacked and missing teeth.

Shi walked up to her and she watched him from the corner of her eye as he slapped her on the back before doing the same to her opponent. Snorting in male bravado, something she felt would annoy both men, something she had guessed right about, she stomped her foot like a child being denied a treat but really on the inside she was trying to come up with a fool proof plan to get out of this alive and praying to a god she didn't believe in to save her himself all at the same time.

Shi looked at both fighters and seeing them ready to go nodded at himself before moving away as he called over his shoulder at them, "good luck my beauties, try not to damage each other too much while I'm gone." with that he disappeared in a flash of sand before reappearing right beside his master in his shaded pagoda.

0-0-0-0-0

Kasai Saru looked at the pitiful scrap of humanity before him as he hefted his axe. He had been in the company of his master for years and felt a sense of betrayal at them for thinking that such a weak, pitiful little girl who stood no higher then his thigh, could beat him in battle. If he was a laughing man, he would have been in hysterics.

With a snort that had smoke coming out of his nose, he took a step closer to the blue eyed child.

Normally when he fought a opponent, his considerable size and girth was enough to make those foolish enough to fight, weak kneed and dumb. If that didn't work, his superior might and prowess took them permanently of his annoyance list.

With a careful eye, he walked closer to her, all the while scrutinizing his little playmate. She was tiny, only about four foot six, with short, wild blonde hair with a hint of red in it. Large blue eyes stared back at him with a mixture of fear and fight, something that surprised him not at all, after all he had seen it one to many times before. Tan, unblemished skin was clothed in leather and steel armor as long leather gloves reached to hug her small elbows. In a cylindrical container molded in the gloves he noticed the shapes of collapsible staffs. Next to her hip, a semi-large katana sheath rested snugly, while the live blade flashed warningly like quicksilver, almost taunting him to attack its mistress who wielded it in a practiced if not comfortable stance. He showed his blackened teeth in a grin, blade against blade it would be then.

With a roar he threw his considerable weight at the now startled child like a boulder falling free from its mountain mooring. His feet thundered along the sands of the arena as he skillfully evaded the pools of red in his attempt to reach the blue-eyed girl, who had only now started to move away from his reach as he swung his axe in a figure eight movement.

He was so close he could practically taste the fear the flowed of the girl named Naru in waves, he felt that he had played around long enough, especially since the crowd was expecting her to die any moment now due to her being inexperienced in battle. With another roar, he lifted the axe and sent it sailing down towards the girl as she desperately brought up her thin katana to block the no doubt, deadly strike, her blue eyes closed in dread.

**CLANG**

0-0-0-0-0

Naru was knocked out of her thoughts when she heard the roar of her foe and felt her big blue orbs widen in fear when she saw the charging mass of flesh hurtle down the length of the arena towards her. Her small hand tightened on the Kanata as she fought for the will to move, to get the hell away from the certain death on legs that was charging effortlessly to her prone position. Naru growled low as she tried to move, the thundering vibrations in the sands made her tremble in shock. _move, move now. Try to move._ the words continued to bounce around hollowly in her head.

This was what war probably felt like, the thin existence she carried being threatened so easily. Never knowing if today was going to be her last or if her body, wounded, dead or alive would ever make it back home. Naru hated herself for these thoughts but was helpless to stop them, they refused to yield and tormented her with useless ideals that had no place in concentration but yet drew her away from the known order. _but what about Hinata and Lee. They will miss you if you give up and will think that they did something wrong if they find out you died without fighting back. Especially if they find out you could have fought and died with some semblance of honor._ Naru laughed bitterly at her thoughts, "with some honor huh. What a joke, when honor is something so far from this place it has left it barren of warmth." she whispered dryly, but gripped the hilt of her katana and finally moved her feet.

The sands felt slippery as she maneuvered herself backward, never letting her eyes leave her enemy as he barreled towards her, a confused look on his face that mingled unnaturally with the open sadistic glee shining in his eyes. She shivered in disgust as her foot slipped into a small puddle of red and yet she just continued away, not even pausing to shake away the sticky substance.

She felt him getting closer and panicked, she was still just a child in a civilian term but considered an adult in a shinobi one and so far was thrust into a position in which she had been prepared for but was still lost and out of her element. She shivered this time in fear, the axe was coming straight for her at a downward stoke and the only thing stopping it was a thin katana that she had barely any knowledge on how to use.

Naru's big blue eyes closed as her tiny arms held her weapon, she was scared.

Suddenly, when she thought the axe would finally touch the blade of her sword, Naru felt an odd sucking sensation at her belly. It seemed to be pulling her into the subconscious of her mind and before she knew it she had no more control over her body and this freaked her out. The damn fox in her gullet was, dare she say it, helping her out.

**Think of this as a training for what is to come later on Gaki. I have never done this for any of my wardens before now so think of a way you can thank me later. **

Naru felt herself being returned to reality as she strengthened her hold on her Katana and prepared to meet the incoming axe head on. The jarring clang of metal on metal hurt her suddenly sensitive ears as the smells of many old fights swamped her nose, sweat and blood being the most prominent. Further more she was holding off the large battle axe with her tiny arms as if she had the strength of a hundred men. Naru grinned, she felt all powerful, the scent and feel of battle sang to her rather hot blood as she held of the mans attacks. She frowned, he was a man who had no reason to attack her, thus she was in her right to kill him for this transgression against her person. Yes, her mad smile was back, his death would sooth the fiery burn that flowed through her veins.

With a mighty push, she managed to throw the axe away from both of them where it spun against the length of the arena until it lodged itself into the thick walls. Naru didn't know what was happening but she relished in the sudden cry of fear, pure and unadulterated, as her enemy caught sight of her. She was powerful, she was dangerous and this pathetic waste of space would soon learn that lesson through blood and flesh. With a quick flick of her wrist, the katana sliced through the air and sliced the mans chest open. His cry of pain was music to her. She moved the sword until it raced along behind the mans ankles across the tender Achilles tendon and laughed openly while he thundered to the ground in agony. Her eyes flashed as coldly as her blade as it arched down towards the fallen man, the man once known as Kasai Saru.

Suddenly she felt limp and drained as some power was forcefully removed from her small body which now seemed as brittle as glass. The spooked girl looked down at her hands and saw them covered in blood she, thankfully, didn't drop her sword as she felt the bile in her stomach rebel up her throat. She looked over at the man she had been fighting and promptly fell to her knees in horror. She felt a silent scream exit her body as two sets of very warm hands lifted her up and carried her away back to the holding cell. Her eyes still receiving the brutality of her first kill.

Behind her, the crowd was chanting her name in awe and frenzy. " Naru" "Naru" "Naru".

0-0-0-0-0

Up in his shaded pagoda, the shadow covered man chuckled in delight. The Uzumaki girl had performed admirable in her fight and the little show she had put on with killing one of his best fighters was well received by the heartless lord. Truthfully he did not care about the ambitious Kasai Saru, he admired ambition in only one being and that was himself, though even he could be surprised and oddly enough it had been a eight year old girl who caused him to become so. From what he had gathered from one of his 'plants' in the holding cell, Uzumaki Naru was a kind if not sarcastic and hyper child, who took duty very seriously. He couldn't help but be stumped, why had she become so dangerous. It had almost seemed as if she had truly become a different person all together. Now felt the need to meet his newest fighter.

His voice was silky as he turned to his champion and said, "bring the girl here to me as soon as possible." he waited long enough to see Shi nod in agreement before turning his head back to the new fight ready to take place. His mind though was still on the tiny blonde haired female that laid just outside his grasp.

0-0-0-0-0

Deep in the holding cell warmed by the small forge, two women sat against the wall holding a small child who had finally cried herself to sleep. The two women might not have been friends but they were close and had stayed beside the gate to watch Naru fight and now they would stay beside the emotionally wrecked girl. Yoh's golden brown eyes lit up when Naru had won but had dimmed again when she remembered the cost of winning. Her silent partner had just nodded in anguish, two parts sad that the carefree girl had been forced to kill and now would be forced to face the Shadow Man.

Hana looked over to the slightly older woman and said, "I fear for Naru now that the Shadow Man has seen her fight, even more so now that she has shown she can win." Yoh looked into Hana's eyes and nodded. Over the years she had seen fights and those who won became his little puppets, mindless to some extent. She growled under her breath. She would be damned before the Shadow Man and his mutt Shi managed to make her little friend into a thoughtless and cruel tool to be used time and time again until she was killed in this kami forsaken arena on the whims of that fool who called himself a lord. She saw Hana agree with the sentiment.

Her golden eyes looked into Hana's, "what can we do. It is near impossible to get out of this hell-hole without the Shadow man or one of his dogs knowing about it." her voice was stern but held only facts. She and many others over time had seen escape attempts fail over and over again. Hell even she had tried to escape several times, none of them had ever worked and usually involved her being sent back to the torturer Naru had "affectionately " dubbed The Minotaur, for a grade A beating. Still, she wasn't as young nor as resourceful as Naru was. Even as old as she was and an ex-konoichi, she could never truly amount to her virtues as Naru was doing going by the seat of her pants.

Hana looked down at the sleeping girl who was like a daughter to her. She felt the rise of maternal injustice at the horror her little friend had to endure. Unlike Yoh, she had never been a konoichi but rather had known several in her life and knew fairly early on that the tiny child in her arms was one of those dangerous ninja in training and it wounded her more then any physical blade or justu. Gently sitting up, she removed the worn girl from her lap and got up quietly from her spot before standing up on numb, tingly legs.

"we need to watch over her more then ever now, Yoh. The damned shadow man won't leave her alone until she's sworn to his cause and fully under his control…even more disturbing is the fact that he might see some potential in her and not anything good." Hana grabbed her hammer and started to pound out her frustrations on a red hot piece of steel.

Yoh nodded before saying, "Breeding…he will want her for his female fighter program, won't he?" she shivered in disgust when Hana simple gave a jerky nod, not even turning to face the other distraught woman. Both women had been extremely lucky to be only beaten and made to fight, they could have been forced into the female fighter program which took the best female and male fighters from the arena and basically bred them together until the female conceived and birthed a child who would then be taken from her and trained to fight for the Shadow. It was a humiliating life and had driven more than one woman to kill herself once she birthed the babe and even sometimes managing to kill the child as well, so it would not have to kill and be forced into a life of pain and horror.

Yoh, smiled down at the small spit-fire girl. She would not be driven to kill herself, she was to strong for that even though she didn't know it yet, in time she would understand. "we need to get her out of this place." she whispered to herself, but was lost on how to do it. Hana looked over her shoulder at the other woman who was biting her lip in concentration, before saying, "we also need to get her and her friends out of here as well." Yoh looked up at her and paled. It was going to be near impossible to get one of the children out, how were they going to manage getting anymore away.

Both women turned when a small groan met their ears. Naru would soon be waking up and would need some medical attention since she passed out before they left the arena. Faces turned towards each other as eyes met in silent communication, both acknowledging the same thing. This conversation wasn't over, far from it.

0-0-0-0-0

In a hallway filled with water, with dripping pipes serving as a ceiling, a young child with tan skin, blonde short hair and big blue eyes sloshed forward.

Naru had been in this kami damned maze of halls ever since she had passed out in the hands of Yoh and Hana before she left the arena. Since then she had been walking through the knee deep water in an attempt to find out where in the hell she had disappeared to, and so far she had no clue.

Everything looked the same, smelled the same, and once when she tripped over her own feet and fell face first into the murky liquid, tasted the same. It didn't help that she was having to strain her eyes in order to see with the strange pale light that filtered in from some odd source she had yet to find or see. Holding back a snarl, which Naru barely managed, she moved towards a dark side hallway.

The dark black opening yawned into forever as Naru peered down into it. She had noticed that something would glow for a few seconds before once more vanishing and felt extremely reluctant to take a venture into the dark. Turning her bright head left and then right, she took a step, reasoning that it was only a unlit hallway and that she was had been through to much hell to be scared of the dark now. Smirking silently at her grim joke, she moved a little faster.

It wasn't until thirty minutes of continues walking that Naru became fed up with the dark hall. Stopping suddenly, making the murky water roll and slap against the sides of the wall somewhere further away from her, Naru felt the urge to run and bare her teeth in a growl, she felt anxious and watched as though someone was keeping an eye on her in the dark. With a half turn she sudden screamed, "what the hell do you want from me!" and listened as the sound bounced lowly down the hall. Breathing hard she managed two steps forward before a booming chuckle echoed around her.

Eyes narrowed as she looked to the side of her and noticed another hallway etched into the wall. With a cautious feeling she made her way towards it.

Naru managed a small sigh in relief when the darkness of the hall brightened until it shone like lamp light. It was while she was noticing the old ability to see clearly that Naru saw several doors covered with big heavy chains and padlocks and a fit of curiosity suddenly overcame the eight year old girl. So with that in mind, she walked over to one of the doors and found them made of some wood that looked heavy and very brown. Looking up she paused when her big blue eyes stopped upon a brass name-plate with the name Liver etched into the soft metal with the most careful of calligraphy. Walking passed several others she noticed that the doors and the plates were of the same make and design of the first and that only the names varied: Lungs, Heart, Kidneys, Brain, Memories, etc…she felt nervous looking at those chained up portals. "these doors must be important. Maybe they control those functions on the other side…hmm, I will have to talk to the Hokage when I get back home." her voice whispered to herself as she waited beside a door marked Eyes.

With a small shake of her head, Naru decided to just keep following the hall, maybe she'd get lucky and someone would be around for her to ask about where she was, though even now she had the smallest of ideas of where she was at.

Naru was just rounding a corner when a big menacing voice boomed out from ahead of her, **"So my little warden deems it well enough to finally visit the inmate. How funny you must think it is to try and find out my secrets."** clapping her small hands against her ears did not stop the powerful voice from bleeding into her skull as she felt the very pressure from its words boom thunderously from inside her. She grit her teeth as the beast inside of her chuckled in amusement.

With her bright blue eyes nearly closed in a potent mixture of anger and pain, Naru growled out her challenge, "you think of me as the bad person here, but in truth I'm just as innocent of all this hatred you carry for me. I was unaware you even shared my body and mind until just mere weeks ago." it was silent for a few minutes before a huge rush of energy pushed her until she ended up in a gigantic room separated by a massive red gate with a piece of paper with the words seal written on it. She shivered when behind the bars, huge red eyes, slit and pissed beyond reason stared down at her frail mortal shell.

"**you think yourself an innocent in all of this! Don't make me laugh. You carry the taint of humanity on your scent and that alone makes you inferior in my eyes. Don't try to justify your claims, they will only fall on deaf ears." **the foxes voice yelled out in pure rage, making its energy boil and froth madly as the bars bounced and wavered in their attempt at keeping it in behind them. As for Naru, she fought to keep standing even as she felt the air whoosh out of her lungs at the awe-inspiring show of power. this was the fury and force of a fully grown tailed-beast, the ancient skill to force submission by sheer will alone had been spoken of for generations and was not to be taken lightly.

Forcing herself to stay upright, Naru threw up a small arm to cover her eyes as the winds created from the foxes power stirred up waves from the murky water. She gritted her teeth when she was buffeted from side to side as she groaned in mild pain, her muscles seizing up as her fight or flight reaction tried to shift her ass in gear.

Closing her blue eyes she yelled up at the nine-tailed menace, "throwing a tantrum huh, just what I would expect of someone in the wrong…stop this foolish display of power and let us talk like reasonable beings ya' furry formed son of a bitch!" a thunderous snarl shook metal and concrete shavings from a ceiling far, far above her smothered in darkness. Naru gave a tiny snarl of her own as her teeth ached from the immense vibrations. She was mentally figuring out how she was going to shut up some monster chakra fox when a tingling shivered up her spine. Thinking on instinct, Naru forced some chakra to her legs and feet and pushed up with all the power in her body just as a glowing red tendril of power crashed into the spot she had just vacated.

High up in the air, Naru looked down at the explosion of water and concrete in awe. Who knew the Kyuubi could manage that while being held behind bars. Big blue eyes widened in horror as another surge of energy flew straight up from the smoking water as she realized she had no where to turn to safety. With a brief prayer, Naru closed her eyes and braced herself for the inevitable pain that was sure to come. Boy did it hurt, like how being hit with lightning should feel while having a lye bath along its sensitive edge. The pain was so intense that Naru mentally vowed to base any injury or wound she received off the pain she was currently being forced to deal with, all of this happening as she felt her muscles tighten and freeze as she fell from the height she had jumped too.

"**Deal with pain little human leech and be thankful that I am sparing you the worst of it, for I do not doubt the full brunt of my strike would have killed you upon impact."** the foxes whispered taunts echoed shrilly as Naru lost consciousness. Her last thought before darkness once again overtook her vision was, _this happens entirely too often…I'm going to have to fix that once I return home._

0-0-0-0-0

A huge splash met the glowing red eyes of the Kyuubi as he watched the now unconscious blonde hit the shallow waters with the force of a small mountain collapsing. The left over anger from the previous fight boiled evilly beneath his now calmer exterior as he looked upon the girl-child. _so much like her mother in action but her father in looks…for years I have tried to understand their decisions for sealing me in their only child, their precious baby girl and now I truly fear I will never know the answer to this riddle. Why? Such a simple question with no easy answer._

The fox felt the throb of his thoughts hit him. His red eyes glared down at the sleeping child, a kit too one of his years. A mirthless chuckle bubbled up from his chest, how appropriate he would end up with an Uzumaki and be forced to watch over her as she grew, someone in hell was definitely angry at him…maybe from a past life.

"**sleep Naru, for soon you will be charged with the happiness of your friends and it will do well for you to sleep before the coming storm."** the Kyuubi cryptically answered down to the blue-eyed child asleep on the flooded floor, his fury now just a pot on the verge of boiling over as he silently pushed the girl out of the seal. He had many things to think about: who was that man the inmates called shadow? What did he want with the Uzumaki child and those she called friends? There was simply to many answers to his questions and sadly most of those answers left him feeling uncomfortable and wary.

Curling up once more in his cage, the fox sighed in loneliness as his great red eyes closed for a nap, hoping beyond everything that sleep would be dreamless and uninformative.

0-0-0-0-0

Naru felt like she had been on the losing end of a bull fight.

Her small body was littered with cuts and bruises and sore from her fight with that giant from the arena and the fox in her gullet. She felt her eyes water as the previous images from her defeat of Kasai Saru hit her hard. She, Uzumaki Naru had taken a life, she had ended the very existence of someone in something akin to a spar just with higher stakes. Looking down at her bandaged hands all she could see was them dripping with blood as her body gave little but violent shudders. Shooting up, Naru stumbled on unsteady feet as she rushed to the small bathroom set of to the side of the cage, her stomach almost not holding out before she emptied it of what little they were given to eat.

Callused hands gently rubbed soothing circles on her back as tears flowed from her eyes and her nose ran. She was a monster just like those villagers used to call her when she was little. Her adrenaline was very high and she felt like passing out again as her heart beat out a double time rhythm. A rough humming behind her didn't help as Naru turned around and practically merged herself with the startled Yoh, who was currently trying to keep her from doing anything rash.

Yoh looked down at the sobbing child. She had been a konoichi for many years before her betrayal and thus had long forgotten the name of her first kill. Sadly though, she would always remember his face as she shoved a kunai into the soft tissue of his unprotected throat, would always remember the blood spilt on that night so many years before. She was one of the unlucky ones to have been on a solo mission and thus didn't have anyone to hold her through the night when the full impact of what she had done weighed heavily on her battered psyche. She had never had a protégé nor a team of genin, so she had never had to help someone with this type of problem but for Naru, she would do all she could. Though she could never take away the act of the first kill, she could help explain why it had been done and what would have happened.

It irked the woman, knowing this child would be forced to kill again, maybe in the arena or for her country and she could do nothing to stop that…the life of a Shinobi was hard to live. With a grumble, the older woman gently lifted the now shaking but silent girl and looked into the glistening blue orbs and winced as her heart broke further. "the thing about konoichi is that we are taught differently from regular shinobi. We are seduction and assassination all rolled into a very hidden persona. Because of this we are not allowed to be who we want to be and thus are limited in what we want to do with our lives and this leads to many of our profession into suicide." Yoh stopped briefly to gaze at Naru before continuing, "what I want you to know is that I may not always be there for you, I will always care for you…take this time to heal, learn from this and move on."

Naru gave a tiny wince, Yoh was definitely not one for motivational speaking. In fact, she felt even more uncomfortable from the brief talk then the actual implications of what the talk meant.

Nodding her head, Naru gently untangled her short figure from the tanned woman and walked away towards the massive gate. Already the moon was coming out and bathing the arena sands with a quicksilver radiance that belayed the daily horrors the grounds had been forced to see. Big blue eyes watched as the sweepers, those who tended to the sands every night, moved in a diagonal pattern as easily as any dancer as they hurried to accomplish their assigned tasks before any of the guards became unruly and beating were dolled out. Naru simply watched and enjoyed the crisp, cool air as she silently leaned against the gate, thinking about her friends, the fox and those she had left at home as they became her own jumbled headache.

It was during her thoughts when a large hand suddenly slammed into the thick metal of the gate, startling Naru into giving a yelp of shock. Snapping her head around she glared deeply into the amused eyes of one person she could really live without seeing anymore: Shi. Everything annoyed her about him from his arrogant attitude which reminded her way to closely of Sasuke-teme to his sadistic countenance which claimed he could kill without remorse. In a way though, she respected his ability of how far he could shove his tan head so far up his own ass and then the turn around and shove it up the Shadows ass without breathing amazed the eight year old spy-in-training.

Glaring blue eyes narrowed further at the baka champion as she said, "what the fuck do you want Shi? Can't you see I'm currently busy." she felt some sick form of satisfaction when Shi's eyes narrowed in anger before becoming closed off once more.

Naru - 1, Shi - 0.

The tall man backed up before motioning on of the guards closer and then pushing the beast to open up the gate before answering the fiery blonde. "the master has expressed an interest in the one who killed Kasai Saru. You will come with me now."

"what if I say no?!"

"then I have no further cause to act civilly with you."

A mirthless chuckle escaped from Naru's chest before she could stop it. Him treat her civilly, what a joke. Shi had been an insufferable ass as soon as she had met him, not to mention he gave her the creeps. A double whammy to the ego of a man who though he was Kami's gift to women.

Silently though, Naru thought it would be a beneficial if not entirely safe and sane idea to see what this master wanted, looked like and if he was flawed enough that she could play off that enough to escape this great excuse for a living hell hole.

Turning back to Shi, Naru nodded once and followed him and a guard towards a curtained off entry way which she supposed led up to the pagoda. The walk was silent but Naru was way past caring about dark and scary hallways because seriously she had already been through that tour of duty and honestly the repetition was getting old. The heavy sounds of the guards footfalls combined with the almost whispery slide from Shi's feet annoyed the young girl, who had already been taught the value of silent walking, running and sneaking from those in Anbu. Thankfully the walk wasn't a long one because Naru was sure she was going to beat both of the two idiots with her bare hands if the silence went on for much longer. Pushed into a room, filled with stuff hit the girl right between the eyes though and brought out a small gasp.

0-0-0-0-0

Naru took a small glance around the medium sized room as she forced something akin to awe on her face, spy training helping minutely as her more troupe acting propelled her actions.

The room was covered in rich tones of purples and reds as smooth oak floors shimmered in the low lighting. Carpets and rugs covered the ground in vibrant splashes of color as tapestries hung along the painted walls depicting scenes of peace, which gave the girl pause for thought. Several tables, low to the floor, held jugs and platters of food that faintly steamed as Naru was pushed by them. A clink of a chain forced her eyes over to a wall on which a dozen women in flowing belly-dancer outfits lounged upon pillows of the same color as the room. A sudden whack of a hand to the back of her head forced Naru to once again look straight which brought her face to face with the one they called Shadow.

As far as first appearances go, Naru could say she wasn't all that impressed with what she saw.

The man called Shadow was in his later twenties or so with slim muscles and a pale complexion that was brought out more so by the completely black robes he was wearing. His eyes seemed amused but were not surprisingly black as the rest of his appearance showed. He had lean cheeks and a high forehead that had a few stress wrinkles etched into the pale flesh. His nose was straight and his lips were thin, almost non-existent and formed into a line. If he had been standing, Naru would have assumed him to be quite tall and of mild build. Next to his high backed chair, a long katana was set carefully next to it on a gold rack.

All in all, Naru thought he looked as threatening as a bowl of cooked porridge. Besides that she also knew looks were very deceiving. Something about this man made people fear him and work for him under that fear, her job was to find a way out of this mess, maybe she could also find out more about him as she looked for an escape route.

With a sense of confidence that she certainly didn't feel, Naru looked dead into the black eyes of the Shadow and said, "you wished to see me, well get on with it I haven't got all day!"

A chuckle flowed from the robed man as he gave a chilling smile at the fiery young child. The black eyes looked at the way the girl held herself and how the others in the room tensed in pure-unadulterated fear at the young Uzumaki's confident attitude.

"congratulations on beating my fighter. Truth be told I felt that he was getting to be a hassle and needed to go, thank you for ridding me of his offensive presence."

Caught off guard Naru almost answered him before at the last possible second she clamped her sharp teeth onto the inside of her cheek. Mentally she gave a finger to the Shadow. He was trying to do what she herself was doing: pumping the other for information. The number one game of a spy and both sides seemed to be matched well together.

The Shadow smiled wider at the silent Uzumaki. So she refused to answer him, big deal. Sooner than later she would feel compelled to answer his query's but until then he would have to set the bait. Already he had noticed the tightening of her muscles in the face as she inflicted harm upon herself so she would not talk, clever girl but he was wiser then an eight year old brat thrust into a grown-ups world, it was time he played the game for her.

"not one for talking. I assure you my dear that I am only giving thanks where it is deserved, it would be respectful to answer your host don't you think?" he gave a smile full of innocence.

Naru carefully pulled her teeth from out of the bruised flesh of her cheek before leveling an impressed look at the room. "Nice place you got here. Plenty of room, nice view and it even comes with a harem, how lucky for you." she returned the smile.

She knew what he was doing. He was going to try to force her to drop her guard enough to become angry with him until she eventually spilled secrets. Honestly who was he trying to fool. That tactic might have worked on a regular eight year old child but she was a konoichi trained in Anbu and such tricks would not work on her, even if she had only just started her espionage training less then a month ago. She knew enough to avoid the most obvious attempts, plus her loyalties ran strong and would not be uprooted so easily.

"so nice of you to say so." Naru grinned when she heard some hint of annoyance in his smooth voice as he continued to watch her from his seat across from her.

The Shadow felt like glaring at the child. She had dodged his ploy and countered with one of his own. Who was she and who had taught her these evasive tactics. It had to be someone versed well in espionage, how else would they teach anyone about evading the topic. Settling deeper into his well padded chair, he continued to watch the girl as she met his gaze with a challenging one of her own.

With a sigh he felt bored of the child for now. With a flick of his wrist he gave a non-verbal command to escort the temperamental girl-child away. As she turned to leave his words ghosted around the small entourage, "oh and my dear…I expect you to fight once again tomorrow. Someone a little more challenging for your tastes shall we say. That is all. Shi! Take her back to the others and send up someone of your choosing for her newest fight."

Naru gave a glare at the robed man as he saluted her with a large sake dish that was being filled by a young brunette slave woman in a pink outfit. The sure cockiness grated on her nerves but she had successfully got away from this meeting unscathed, next time she may not be so lucky. With a small smile on her face, Naru walked almost serenely away from the Pagoda. Her mild victory giving her the confidence for the trials ahead.

The game was set and the players chosen, it was now her move.


	13. Chapter 13

Chapter 13

Shadow-Man

"Man stands in his own Shadow and wonders why it is dark."

-Zen Proverb.

Deep in the cells under the compound, pale lavender tinted eyes stared at a small wriggling bundle with something almost akin to joy in those pupil-less orbs.

Hinata watched carefully as the mouse baby wriggled playfully under her fur cloak as she listened for the occasional foot steps of any guards passing through. Though she had been extremely hesitant about taking the small mouse into her care, she had come to realize how fortunate she really was. He may not be able to talk yet, but it still beat being alone in a damp moldy prison cell under a hundred feet of sand and rock. smiling to herself, the ex-Hyuuga heiress stood to her aching feet and gently walked over to the giant scroll which was bound to her by blood.

She felt tears hit her eyes when she thought about all of those she had been to late to save, Kimoko-san, her mate and their children, many of the mice. The list went on she was sure.

Feeling hungry and knowing Yakennonokarasu was getting weaker and weaker with the lack of food as well kept the raven haired girls mood at a all time low. Though considered an adult konoichi wise, she was still but a child anywhere else and it frustrated her to know she was way above her head in this. With a small sigh she looked down at the small mouse as he suddenly gripped the fur cloak in his toothless mouth and pulled it further from her grasp. With a hard suckle he tried to wring amounts of non-existent liquid from the coarse fur and gave a muffled snort of hunger and anger when it didn't give him the results that he wanted as he looked up with his big pink eyes to her own tinted lavender.

Those eyes somehow reminded her of Naru and Lee. She longed to see her friends again and worried for their safety, Naru because she was forced to fight and Lee because she had heard nothing about him being captured or not, though she had a feeling he had been. Both of those two had care-free attitudes and the will to use them against others, something that she would find herself wishing for in the dark hours of the night. Hinata sighed as a smooth pair of footsteps walked up calmly to her door. The heavy sound of the rusty latch being lifted was deafening in the sudden stillness of the room as both she and Yakennonokarasu froze and stared at the door in confusion. There burned in the crack of the door hung a shadow in sharp relief.

Her pupil-less eyes strained forward trying to see who had come to them in their moment of solitude but it didn't work. Even if she could activate the Byakugan it wouldn't show who it was, just a shining blue mass of intricate chakra pathways to her eyes alone. Suddenly a feeling of melancholy hit the ivory girl. If only she had one of her older ex-clan members here with her, they all had trained for years to be able to master their visual justu. _well it wouldn't hurt to have even one member of family here with me.. Even if they all seem to hate me., They would at least try to get themselves to safety and I could just follow them to a point._ the striking light from the outside of the door burned Hinata's eyes instantly as she felt Yakennonokarasu burrow deeper into her side also trying to escape the light.

Her voice, cracked from disuse and lack of moisture, sputtered weakly from her lips, "whose there?" hunger may have weakened her but by lady luck she would still fight to the death if she had too, which at this point was the last ditch option.

A smooth chuckle reverberated oily from behind the darkness as a man stepped forward into her cell. Instantly she felt scared and uncomfortable in his presence. His chalky pale skin practically glowed in what little light found its way around them as his dark eyes glittered in a fevered madness. One of those brutish guards carried something over its shoulder as it walked past the man and closer to her. With a heave that made Hinata want to turn to see what it was that he had tossed down, the guard had once more stepped back outside with a foreign quickness that belayed the lumbering structure of the grotesque abomination.

Still chuckling, the man gave the tiniest of waves before walking back out in to the hall, the shutting of the door was only second loudest next to the shrill scream of a rusted latch being locked once more.

Shaking slightly, Hinata turned her head to the right until she could see the outline of a shape laying carelessly on the ground. With unsteady moves she crawled closer, praying mentally that it was something to eat but not getting her hopes up. Her body protested the movement as she slid across the freezing floor, muscles wanting to stay still after remaining tensed for so long ached harshly in a mockery of a rhythm as she gently touched something material.

It moved in what she could only describe as surprise. Hinata suddenly realized that she was on her back and staring right into a pair of round black eyes that seemed to burn. Her thraot rasped as she whispered, "Lee?". those black eyes narrowed before leaning in closer until the fire burned once more in them, this time from recognition.

"Hinata-chan. What are you doing here?"

Kami she wanted too cry. They had gotten her friends, people she felt she loved even more then her own family. No, Hinata wanted to cry in anger. The rage was something so foreign that it took her a moment to understand what was happening. Her eyes stung from repressed tears as she threw herself onto her lithe friend.

Instantly she clenched her eyes shut as she babbled incoherently to Lee's shoulder, glad that even though they were in what seemed like hell, they had each other.

Lee moved rough hands over her back in comforting circles as her heart bled slowly. He may seem like an idiot most of the time, but even he knew that when the torment became too much, one needed to drain the sorrow and helplessness out of their life like poison from a wound.

Sniffling silently, Hinata lifted her head from the damp spot and looked into her friends face. A sudden realization hit her then. He seemed different.. His hair was longer and more unruly as it comically still maintained its bowl cut form somewhat. His skin which had been a darker ivory before she left Konoha was now a healthy, glowing peach color that complemented his love for green very well. But for these changes came the darker understanding. His once loose clothing fit his form to the point of bulging in some places as it hung by tatters and shreds.

Up on his brow nearly hidden by the dark mass of his hair was a bright red scar that seemed to poof out from his hairline. It was still too dark to see if he was injured anywhere else. Black eyes showed humor and steel control deep within their depths as he stared back at her calmly.

His voice rumbled weakly as he sat up straighter, " are you okay now?" concern coloring that light voice.

Nodding her head, Hinata was pulled away from Lee as a small tug grabbed her hand. Looking down she smiled at her summons as it tried to separate them both from each other. The small movement though incited Lee's natural curiosity and before she knew it, she was telling him about her new partner.

"he's really big. Are they supposed to be this big at such a young age?"

Hinata smiled at Lee's question and said, "actually, Yakennonokarasu is the runt of the litter. He will get much bigger as he matures and who knows maybe it will be enough to show his strength."

Lee grinned before becoming pensive, "do you know what abilities he has?"

Hinata shook her head, "No, but they might manifest themselves before he reaches full adolescence." biting her lip, she stared at the summons animal. "he's only a few months old anyways. It will be a while before he even starts speaking let alone fighting with me in battle."

The two stared at the adorable mouse infant as its bright pink eyes watched them both. It didn't trust the boy so close to his partner yet. With a smile, both children shinobi talked a little more before the cold cell and natural weariness forced them asleep.

0-0-0-0-0

In a pagoda surrounded by dark fabrics and wealth, The Shadow watched the fights taking place in the arena below, contemplating his newest question.

On one hand, he held the biggest crime syndicate this side of Kumo and on the other, three small children barely clearing nine. He had no doubts that by now Konoha had gotten word of their missing shinobi, things seemed to be going as planned. His hands clenched under his sleeves, and yet now he had several kids who he needed to do away with.

The Uzumaki he could keep for a few years. Her skills of manipulation and fighting would prove useful so long as she was rightly tethered by his side. The other two, well he could always use more arena fodder.

A low chuckle burst forth from the shadows chest as he waved a man over from the back. " bring to me the Hyuuga and the one they call Rock Lee from their cell to me." he turned to look into the terrified servants eyes, "make sure they are unharmed when they are brought before me."

The man, middle aged with many wrinkles and thinning grey hair, shook in fear as he faced the one he was forced to call lord. The lord of death and shadows, a paupers gambit made to strike terror in the hearts of honest folk.

The man shivered but ran to do as bid, this was his reality no and nothing he knew could change that, it was a lesson learned through blood. Even now he could feel the phantom ache where the barbed lash had split his skin into hanging ribbons of red, long since healed but forever raised as a reminder that his life was worth nothing to the man sitting on his pretentious throne.

With a heavy heart he walked down to the cells, sadness and guilt rolled heavily off of him, but in the end he would rather sacrifice three children to save his one skin. To him that was simply the way of life.

0-0-0-0-0

Hinata gave out a laugh as she watched Yakennonokarasu craftily sneak up on Lee before giving him a sneaky bite to the nose.

She knew it was extremely rude and if she was back at Hyuuga compound, she would have already been punished, but to see her hyper friend rolling around on the cold stone floors with her summons securely hanging on as they flailed around, was to great an opportunity to squander.

"Hinata-chan help me out will ya. Your little monstrosity has one hell of a grip." Lee's exclamation boomed of the walls, mingling well with her smothered giggles. "stop laughing Hinata-chan!"

_And the day was going so well too._ her thoughts sighed out. "don't worry L-?"

A rattling from the door cut her off mid-sentence. The door rumbled out in agony before the profile of a scrawny servant peaked out at the two children shinobi.

The servant man coughed loudly before addressing the two, "Milord has requested the two of you to be brought out before him." his voice was shaky and thick sounding, as if he was unused to speaking. It freaked them out just a bit as Hinata looked over to Lee. Both came to an unspoken decision and calmly got up from the floor before walking over to the door.

Swiftly, Yakennonokarasu fumbled across the floor until he reached Hinata and dug his tiny claws into her leg as he climbed up to hide under her wolf cloak.

Lee, who had been watching the small show of trust, smiled and started to walk in front of his friend and new partner. He would protect both of them and do his duty by them diligently.

Hinata walked behind her friend as she carried the mouse infant under her cloak. Though she accepted his help, she couldn't help but be slightly peeved at Lee's part of feeling she was unable to protect herself and her new partner from danger. She conveniently left out the part that she was weakened very severely by starvation and exhaustion.

Stomping along, Hinata silently admired her surroundings.

Plain stone walls slowly transformed into neat mosaics and tapestry covered halls as the small group walked towards the masters room. Little alcoves set into the walls housed ornate statues and beautiful weapons set in glass covered cases. With every few meters, a guard stood stiffly to attention as they stared blankly at a spot in front of them, not even paying attention to the small group that walked by them.

Looking ahead, Hinata saw Lee stiffen as he moved towards the end of a new tunnel. Even she, a ex-heiress to a very wealthy and prominent clan, had to smother a gasp of awe.

The place was filed to the point of bursting with gilded walls, paintings of battles and carved columns depicting scenes out of legend. Gold and jewels dripped from every available space as wall sconces made from polished silver shone blindingly with light from their lit tops. The floors were expertly covered with rich rugs in colors of red and gold's.

At the end of the hallway stood a beautiful door, sound in its simplicity with only a few carved designs spread over its polished surface. Its handle looked to be covered in some type of plating. But for all it looked normal, Hinata knew it held a darkness behind its plain exterior.

A solid knock echoed out from the hall as the servant man bowed to the floor in submission. It took a few minutes before he lifted up his hand to the doorknob and opened the door.

The man cleared his throat before announcing, "Master, the two children you have requested an audience with, have arrived."

A silky smooth voice, like dark chocolate presented on satin cloth, rang out from deep within the chamber, 'good, very good. Send them in."

Hinata gave out a small gasp of surprise when she felt someone push her into the room. Once she managed to keep from falling, she turned her pupil-less eyes on the innocent looking mans form with a glare. Fire burned in her belly when the man, almost three times her age, glared back with his tongue sticking out from his mouth.

Suddenly, the man was coughing up red as he held his mouth. A formless scream bubbled up from the depths as both Hinata and Lee watched with eyes widened in horror. A small pink shape laid innocently on the rug covered ground as a small puddle of blood formed around it. A dark clothed man, lithe and dangerous like a predator, walked over to the now kneeling servant whose eyes were glossed over in immense pain.

The new man stopped mere inches from the servant who was petrified as blood spilled from his hand covered mouth.

"now now, this is not how we treat guests is it? Maybe I'm mistaken but, you do serve me, yes." the servant man quickly nodded his head and made weird mumbling, gasping sounds as tears leaked from his eyes as the 'Master' simply smiled serenely. "what's the matter…you seem to be have some difficulties speaking, my friend. Could it be that you finally understand the value of keeping your peace and a civil tongue inside your head."

A silky chuckle was loosed from his mouth as the Master watched his now mute servant fumble for his tongue. The look of his servant being punished amused him immensely, but he had other things to do, such as assess the two children who stood shaking in his presence from the fear and horror.

Looking back at his servant, the Master smirked arrogantly before looking at one of the guards who stood behind the mute man, "take him away, the sight of him offends me."

Everyone present stood in silence as the garbled sounds of fear and agony faded away.

Hinata looked over at her friend with eyes that shined with disgust. Shaking in rage, Lee gave her a slight nod that showed he was just as disturbed by what he had witnessed. Turning back to the front, Hinata gave her best 'I'm a Hyuuga and therefore, I'm better then you' look as the Master motioned for several beautiful women to come out and set a table. She would have to play this game as well as Naru would have because there was no room for error.

"well now that that's settled, come and sit down. May I interest you in some food and drinks?"

Hinata paused before forcing her most icy façade to the surface. _so it begins_, she thought. "why yes that would be lovely," she forced a smile at the smooth man, "what a lovely place you have, sir."

Lee, who was sitting beside her, looked at her as if she was insane. Didn't she just witness the atrocity of a man getting his tongue sliced off. What in the name of all that is youthful was she doing complementing a despicable man on his interior decorating.

The Shadow gave a odd look at Hinata but she could have cared less. She was going to give the best performance of her short life and deep inside her, she knew both Anko and Naru would have been proud of her.

Lee gave a small cough before asking, "sir, if I may ask…why the hell are we here and what the hell do plan to do with us?!" well it sounded better in his head.

The Shadow gave an incredulous look at the green spandex wearing boy as he dared to question him. He grinned, the boy would have ball made of steel…when they actually dropped that is. No matter, he would give the boy his answer, after all, they were children. What's the worst they could do.

"you have been honored."

Lee gave a snort of confusion, "Honored? What is that supposed to mean?"

The Shadow smirked, "you have been brought here to serve me in a awesome way. By enlisting in this ones army, you all will sacrifice the lands of the elements in order to unite them all. Do you understand what this means…no more wars, no more divisions, no more shattered loyalties. All the land will become one, united under a strong rule…my rule." he carefully bit into a piece of breaded fish.

Both Hinata and Lee couldn't help the look of shock that came over their faces. This man was insane if he thought he could use an army to take down the shinobi nations. And what was this crock of bull he was trying to put into effect?

Lee shuddered, but stared fiercely at the shadow, "you're mad."

Suddenly, the table and food was flung viscously towards the left as the Shadow threw himself up from his seat, a cloud of mad rage twisted his handsome features as he roared, "I am not mad! You shinobi are so set in your ways of hatred that you fail to acknowledge your own betters. This is why you will fall, not me nor my army but you." physically fighting for control, The Shadow breathed deeply for a few moments, "Besides - you will never be able to escape, at least not without leaving some behind."

With a cautious eye, Hinata looked directly at The Shadow, his words striking something deep within her and it put her on edge.

Her voice was weak but persistent as she stared into those dark eyes lit with madness, " what do you mean by that?" she said.

Stalking closer to the small girl, the Shadow clawed her arm in a vice like grip as he hauled her forward, the hurried sounds of those following were strangely comforting.

With a careful look at her surroundings, Hinata almost didn't have time to react before she was thrown towards a opening in the wall.

Though not afraid of heights, even she was unnerved by the steep drop. She could see the bottom of what look like an arena and some type of rusty splattering in the middle, she shuddered at what she knew it was. Two people seemed to be battling it out down below as stands and stands of patrons cheered or booed in equal measures. Hinata, shocked, looked back at the Shadow as he sat on a richly decorated chair, enjoyment written on his face as clear as day.

"who are they?" she asked.

The Shadow silently looked at the pale eyed girl, his thoughts wandering as he pondered what she asked.

"the ones on the ground, are but two of my growing militia. They are cast-away of society; some were murderers, thieves, bogies that hid in the darkest reaches of the night. Others would have been ordinary people; a few craftsmen, some artists, builders, and one or two soldiers and shinobi." his voice was mellow as he watched her, "does that answer your question, little one?"

Hinata was just about to shake her head when she was suddenly picked up and slung roughly over a thick, meaty shoulder. Looking over she quickly noticed that Lee was also in the same predicament.

Lee's voice was rough as he glared at the now smirking Shadow, "what is the meaning of this?" he growled out.

The Shadow laughed easily as he watched the two struggling children, "move them to the arena cell and give those there my regards. As for you two, I expect to see you in a few days time. Until we meet again."

The fading chuckle haunted both of them as the were escorted from view.

0-0-0-0-0

The Shadow chuckled as he watched both children being escorted away.

He was a dangerous man, it was something he had never tried to hide from others but rather showed them slightly diluted versions of his true being. In his mind, he was supreme, the one with all the weapons and the best fighters, the one who was destined to rule all.

His hands clenched tightly though his face remained impassive as he watched one of his little sluts, her pretty raven hair and burning grey eyes enticing him as she cleaned the spilt food from the turned over table. Even after all these years, his insidious mind could still conjure her name as though she had never truly left the dark confines of his conscience, _Jinja,_ the woman who was as evil as him.

He remembered when she had found him, alone and broken, barely hanging on to whatever remained of his life and sanity.

He was dieing slowly, a kunai buried just inches away from his heart, courteously of a chakra infused stab from an assassin. It was not something new as he was the son of a daimyo, many years had faded the knowledge of where he was from, but he remembered that.

He had only been a child, not even twelve when his life lost meaning, when the betrayal and pain killed off what little heart he still had at such a tender age. He could remember that night when _they_ attacked.

The Shadow shut his eyes, back in his mind too the night it happened.

_f__lashback_

_It was dark and quiet as a small boy flittered down the darkened hallways of his shiro, not a soul insight as he played a game all his own._

_He shivered as the cold air crept up on him. He knew that if he was caught now, his father would know he had left his bed and would be very angry at him, but he could care less. He was twelve now, basically a man and as such, was entitled to certain rights, such as staying up for another hour or two._

_He had just taken another turn onto a different hallway, when the sound of a paper screen being snapped shut alerted him of someone's presence. With smooth, practiced steps, something his sensei had practically beaten into him, the boy crept closer to the screen and fought to keep his brows down._

_Why were there people in his fathers study?_

_Curious now more then ever, the boy lifted shaking hands to the screen and opened it just enough that he could see into the lighted room without showing everyone he was there._

_Within the room, he saw a man dressed all in black from head to toe, leaving only his eyes uncovered as he stood before his father. Even at such a young age, the boy felt pride at looking at his strong father, who as always, was dressed immaculately in burning colors of fiery yellows and rich and plush red velvet robes. His father illuminated the study as he studied the other man, his voice deep and lyrical as he said, "why have you come?"_

"_to finish what has to be done." the oddly soft voice of the stranger said._

_Suddenly the boy screamed as he watched his father stumble backwards until he hit the large teak desk, knocking important documents to the floor. A kunai was firmly seated in the toned belly of his father, nearly unnoticeable save for the puddle of red that stained the once crisp yellow of his outfit. Black eyes, so much like his own, turned darker as that once beautiful inner light, faded silently away. His fathers last words ringing in his ears, as loud as a gonging noise even though they had been whispered softly at that time._

"_Run!"_

_Fumbling to get too his feet, the boy screamed for help, none came._

_He raced to the entrance hall and came face to face with a massacre. Crimson pools spread over marble floors as they leaked slowly out of the one staff of his family. Maids, butlers, vassals all laid together on the cold ground, and if it wasn't for the blood, he would have thought them to be taking a community nap on the ground. With a silent scream, he moved on, instinctively knowing that the black covered man was toying with him._

_He ran on, his bare feet slapping the floor as he raced towards his parents rooms, hoping beyond hope that there was someone there for him._

_There! He raced at the door and slammed it open and froze. The room was empty. Scared and confused, he ventured in further, not seeing anyone. Normally, his mother would have been laying in the large futon, a novel clutched firmly in her ivory covered hands as her bright green eyes would flirt along the pages, but she wasn't there._

_Opening doors, he would find them empty until one remained. Shaking hands turned the knob and braced. The smell of iron permeated this room as the boy felt the strength leave his body. His mother, his beautiful mother, was lying amongst a tiny crib that had held his newest sister. _

_His mother had decided, he thought, to wear her bright blue sleeping gown to bed this night. It made her look heavenly, like a misguided angel, lost among these mortal worlds. Her sharp and sweet honey smelling hair was left out of its bun in a black mass that reached her lower back in curls. Pale, ivory skin was whiter and colder then fallen snow as dark purple bruises framed that swans neck. He felt anger at those marks, they had no business on her person. Crawling forward he gently brushed fingers at them, trying to rub them off as if they were spilt ink but knowing that they would stay there._

_Looking over at his sister, he felt nothing but grief._

_She was only a few days old, wasn't even named yet, and now she lay in his mothers frozen embrace, peaceful as if she slept. She had their mothers green eyes and their fathers brown hair and lightly tanned skin, she would have only grown more beautiful if she had lived. He wanted to call her Hana ~ Flower, something so precious and pure that he wanted her name to reflect what she was._

_Along her neck he looked, but found no trace of bruises, instead a small hole, not unlike a mosquito bite burned red against her chilly skin._

_It would be many years later before he found out the type of poison the assassin had killed his sister with._

_Nearly silent footsteps padded into the room as the murderer walked closer. His eyes showed nothing when they looked upon him and yet the boy knew, they were thinking of the best way to dispose of the body._

_His throat burned with tears as he looked up at the man, "why?" crystalline tears glittered in the palest form of light._

_The man didn't flinch, didn't move, just stared in silent…something._

"_Because I was ordered too." the man looked back at the mother and child in embrace before looking back to him, "if it eases your mind…I did not want too kill them. I don't want too kill you either. I made sure they did not see me coming, and made sure they died fast and without too much pain, they suffered for only a moment."_

_The boy cried harder as the man came closer, "we have guards." he said, "they will come to check up on us."_

_The man just sighed. It was in that moment that the boy knew he was next and that no-one was going to come and save him. "will it hurt?" he asked, his twelve year old brain needed to know._

"_yes. But not for long. It will fade."_

"_will I see my family again?" he asked._

"_I do not know…I am sorry…we will never meet again. Goodbye."_

_A scream, so loud and long, shattered the still night air as a sobbing boy curled in a ball. His body burned and yet felt cold. A darkened kunai, much like the one buried in his father, stuck up from him next to his heart, red ran in rivers down his boyish chest._

_Two feet moved closer, before a face appeared next to his. "I will tell you, my name is…Itami. I fell that this is what you shall want before you leave this realm…we will never meet again, little shadow."_

_And then he was gone._

_The boy felt the darkness creep amongst his vision as his body started to shut down, "Shadow…is that what…I …am…nothing but…Shadow…mother…father, Hana…forgive…me…I wasn't strong…enough to protect…you…forgive…..me…" then he knew shadow._

_Flashback over_

A hand on his shoulder, made him shoot straight up from his seat, a slap ringing out as he found his voice, "Leave me!"

The small servant raced from his sight as he stared back towards his beloved, Jinja, his angel. She had found him a few hours away from deaths door, raised him and loved him. It didn't matter to him that she was twice his age or that she burned with hate for the world, she loved him and in that, he loved her.

"lets retire for the night…I need…you ." he rushed from the chair and heard his beloved following right behind him.

For better or for worse, he was hers and she was his.

0-0-0-0-0

Hinata laid complacently as her mind tried to unravel the mystery surrounding this place, that man, even themselves.

There was something familiar about the Shadow though, something burning a hole in her brain with its intensity as she tried to recall what it was about him that sparked these thoughts. A yelp made the girl turn her head and narrow her eyes at the sight…her friend Lee was being squeezed by that ham-handed Guard as if he was some poor sack of rice and therefore not important enough for some decency.

Raised to be prim and proper as would benefit her station in life and in her clan, such animalistic cruelty, as what she was witness to today, was causing her to feel sick, angry, and emotionally unstable - something that was uncharacteristic for a Hyuuga, even if she really wasn't considered one anymore.

For a few moments in time, she simply stared at her friend before another yelp, this one far louder and more painful sounding, caused her to do something out of her element, she yelled.

"Hey, get your ugly hands off him." okay, not the greatest of insults, but hey, she was still kind of knew to this whole attitude adjustment - thing, she was apparently going through, had to cut some slack.

Lee gave an almost playful roll of the eyes as he stared at his friend, "Ugly hands, huh." his voice carried amusement.

"shut it!"

A soft laughter, very different from his normal, boisterous one, reached her ears as the two Guards opened up a large metal gate. Both shinobi had a few seconds where they felt weightless before the ground kissed them happily as a wakeup call. A harsh screeching rang through the air before it dissolved in a moment, a locking sound followed soon after.

Hinata pushed herself off the ground and held herself steady, not entirely sure she was strong enough to remain standing on her own. _starvation really was a bitch it seemed_.

She grimaced at the casual use of profanity, something she had unconsciously picked up from Naru, even if they were in her own mind, it still seemed like she was defiling a unwritten - but none the less sacred rule of being a lady.

A sense of being watched threw her for a loop as Hinata looked around. There, in the shadows, people.

A feeling of anger flared a temper she felt was becoming more prevalent within her as she stared hard at those hiding away from the little light available.

They were gaunt, and sickly looking. Half-starved and, to some, half-mad as they watched both Lee and herself. Most wore some type of pitiful armor and had little to no hair on them. Their eyes seemed glossed over in hopelessness.

"move out of my way, shoo now, nothing to see here." on, we've all seen new arrivals before and know it doesn't do them any good to be stared at like bento from a starving man."

Hinata and Lee watched as a curvaceous woman in the same outfit as the others, walked up to them.

She was beautiful. The mischievous look of the unknown lady was only enhanced by the silkiness of her voice. Hinata thought she had to have been a cat in her last life. Though most would consider them plain, both children could easily agree that her big, glittering brown eyes were her greatest feature. They held vast amounts of passion, hate, kindness and pity all illuminated by a great inner fire. To them, she was very human, a perfectly imperfect creature.

0-0-0-0-0

With a frown on her plump lips, Hana beat the red-hot metal with a vengeance.

Oh, she hated that brat who called himself a shadow, almost as much as she hated that manipulate bitch he kept by his side. Now she knew she was a bitch as well: would gladly call herself that any day of the kami graced week, but something about that woman…was off.

She was empty, the only thing close to emotion she had ever witnessed on that witches face, was a softening of the eyes towards that Shadow. Even that seemed rare.

Hana placed the thin piece of metal in a small bucket of water and smiled lightly when the resounding _hiss_ filled the normally heavy air.

She was just wiping her hands on a ratty piece of cloth, when she heard a commotion from up further in the cage. _I wonder why they are opening up the gates? There wasn't supposed to be anyone fighting from this prison today, so that leaves out a returnee, maybe it's a newcomer. Hm, this leaves much to be desired. I had better check this out. _her thoughts finished, she walked towards the front of their hell, passing by an interested Yoh and Naru as they played a game of poker.

She smiled lightly when she looked at the child who had become so much like the one she would never have.

Sometimes, in the dead of night, she liked to imagine that she hadn't been placed here and that she and Yoh with Naru were all just a big family.

It was a harsh dream.

Here footsteps echoed lightly as she walked amongst the broken, the despaired and the lonely. She pushed those in her way, to the side as she moved forward. Silently Hana cursed her natural curiosity, it was nothing to her but trouble.

Oh well, what could she do about it.

Her big, brown eyes snapped in annoyance as two more fighters stepped in her way. Her heavy fists smacked both men away from her in practiced ease. Though those two were thin and extremely malnourished, they rolled away from the hits with wary vibrancy. Hana pitied them.

"move out of my way, shoo now, nothing to see here." she loved her loud voice. It was just the thing she ever needed to make crowds of idiots flow away from her. Hana was close enough to see what had gathered everyone's attention. _huh, children. Why are there more children here?_

Quickly shaking herself out of her stupor, Hana assessed the situation at hand, and didn't like where her thoughts were taking her. The only thing she knew for certain was that The Shadow Man had a hand in this cluster-fuck.

She sucked in a breath and said, " we've all seen new arrivals before and know it doesn't do them any good to be stared at like bento from a starving man."

The eyes of the sick and mad, the broken, looked back at the older women. They stared her down with anger and pity in the gazes. Weighing the experienced fighter, up and down, before slithering back into the shadows of the cage. Those children weren't worth the trouble.

Hana grunted before looking back at the children. Both were in dire need of a bath and new clothing. The tiny female looked more than halfway starved, the male seemed to have had the ever loving shit beat out of him. Something shivered in the torn clothes of the female. Hana sighed, things always seemed to go wrong on her shifts.

Brown eyes glanced broadly over the two kids, her lips thinned in concentration as the sounds of arena life started up. From experience, Hana knew the sun would be up in a few hours yet, which meant the poor saps from some of the other cages would be moving around for their duties. Damn, she only had a few hours to make something happen, but what?

Hana grunted softly, "follow me."

Both child shinobi shared a look. Communicating without words was something all three of the friends shared in common. In fact it was a requirement for when the had been trained in Anbu, and something they all shared a great proficiency with.

Lee looked over to his shorter companion. He never wanted her to go through the pain and isolation of the last few weeks ever again. He held anger, mostly towards himself, for being too weak to properly defend the two most important people in his life. He vowed in his mind in that moment to never be this weak again. The helpless feeling was something he himself loathed and riled against.

Hana grinned sadly.

These child soldiers made her cold heart clench. She was never a maternal woman, never wanted to be. The life she cloaked herself in was not one of gentle understandings and for all it hurt to know her body may never bare the brunt of children, she knew any child of hers would only make things difficult for the goals of her once darkened youth.

She often joked to herself that her body and heart were as callused as the hands that forged such wondrous steel and metals of war.

Hana laughed silently. Things in life always turned out for the worst, when she seemed to be involved. Her lips twitched. "so be it."

0-0-0-0-0

As she led the two shinobi deeper into the confines of the cage, Hana softly spoke of what was to pass.

"so we are basically trapped here, with a limited amount of time before the dam breaks. How unyouthful!"

Brows twitched in annoyance. Naru seemed to have forgotten to mention that her bushy-browed friend here was loud and energetic to boot. She silently cursed the little she-witch.

Hana's brown eyes snapped over to the forge like space with a careful glance. One could never be too careful with tempered metals and several unfinished prototypes for new arena armor and weaponry. She smiled lightly when she saw Naru and Yoh both standing by the rough looking anvil. She narrowed those brown orbs when she saw something etched into the side. This would need to be investigated, but not right now, now she had bigger fish to fry and she mentally grimaced at all the explaining that would need to be done before the next matches.

She just couldn't get a break.

0-0-0-0-0

Yoh watched lazily over the three emotionally and physically exhausted children. She had once been a konoichi, and knew of the hardships of shinobi life. For these three younglings to have crossed hundreds of miles in between themselves to somehow make it back to each other alive and relatively unharmed, was nothing short of a miracle. If she was a praying woman, she would have cried.

She could see the teamwork and unity in all of them and knew, without a shadow of a doubt, they would make one hell of a team.

Her heart clenched in both wonder and pity. This was not the way they should have forged such a bond. And yet, she could think of no better way for this to have happened.

The round of screaming, hugging, crying - she cursed that loud boy, his cries probably alerted the gods with that racket - and snot filled promises and "sorrow" was so sweet, it made her teeth ache. Though they had only been separated for a short time. It had passed like an eternity.

Yoh grinned at Hana, her new partner in crime, in silent victory when the three children had finally passed out. Both women had been down right flabbergasted at the tale told by lee and Hinata.

Hana grinned at the softest brush of fur against her wrist, the little mouse baby was the cutest thing she had ever seen. She was shocked at how easily he had blended into the ever dark cell, almost like velvet darkness himself. The blacksmith was extremely thankful for this as she didn't fancy a meeting with one of their wardens lapdogs over the oversized ball of cute.

Still they would need to be even more cautious with the escape plane. Extra people tended to make things more difficult in the long run, especially when stealth and secrecy were the main themes. She and that woman, Yoh, had more things to worry about than was healthy, adding more was not wise but needed. For the sake of a future, they would handle the extra burdens.


	14. Chapter 14

Chapter fourteen

The great Escape!

"It all begins and ends in your mind. What you give power to. Has power over you. But only if you allow it to

~anonymous

Naru watched the sun rise over the far walls of her prison. How simply the sky seemed in the early, shifting colors of the coming dawn. Blue eyes sighed in wonder. How could the sky, ever present and simple, watch the destruction of an eternity as the small people below waged war after war. She hummed lightly. _How I wish I was the sky. How I wish for freedom._

A small shift on the ground beside her alerted the blonde to the new presence.

"What causes such an unyouthful look on your face Naru?" black eyes met blue as Naru faced Lee. Though still technically a new friend, she loved him just as much as Hinata. Some might have thought it strange that she and he had bonded so fast, she wanted to laugh. Anbu training with Crane-sensei and Anko, had pushed her into a more caring and trusting role, these were the people who would have her back in good and deadly situations. So she gave a little off her mask and let them in.

White teeth flashed in a manic grin. Make no mistake and thou shall not be mislead, Uzumaki Naru could still cope a good ol' fashioned bitchy attitude that would make a sailor blush.

She smiled lightly, "its nothing Lee. Just thinking about how everyone is back home ya know." a shrug emphasized her confusion. Lee nodded. "I wonder at that as well. Still its not conductive to getting us out of this mess is it."

Naru smiled. "yeah yeah… things were so much simpler back then. I liked knowing what was beyond the cliff before I jumped. Here things are… difficult. I want to understand, Lee. But how can I when everything around me is falling apart and I cant stop it. I mean, the academy is probably just learning how to throw dummy kunai at non-moving targets. They are sitting behind a desk writing out answers to tests that they have studied for. They get to go… home at the end of the day." tears leaked out of the corner of her eyes as she violently reached up to scrub them. She hated to cry.

Lee reached around her and pulled the still distraught girl into a hug. Sure he was loud and brash. Had a hard time being still, learning anything on paper, and couldn't do chakra techniques at all. But he was still her friend and he was willing to be damned to kingdom come if it meant she and Hinata would live a full and happy life.

"don't be afraid to cry, Naru. Tears can mean many things. Sometimes we build up so much tension - anger, fear, sadness, even happiness and we keep it locked up within the safety of ourselves, so we can avoid anymore pain." Lee smiled down at the sniffling girl, before continuing. "the problem is that we get so good at blocking the pain and tension, that we stop looking for the warning signs that its getting to much to handle. Then we crack, and before to long those tiny cracks become fissures and those fissures become canyons. By this point we simply cannot fill those canyons up with more emotions before they burst out with so much force, that the only thing we can do is try to understand what's happening. And that's the part that's so hard to do."

A small laugh echoed around the two friends before Naru said, "when did you get so smart."

Lee grinned, "my youthful friend, I've always been this smart, Hey, quit laughing Naru."

Snorting laughter boomed in the area around the forge as the cheerful blonde doubled over between gasps for air. To her left sat a boy with jet black hair and huge eyebrows. To her right sat a now awake, girl with big pupil-less eyes in an enchanting shade of lavender. Two fully grown women scowled in amused annoyance.

Soon Hana finally smacked the still laughing blonde upside her head. It was time to get to work before one of the Shadows ass kickers came a calling.

High above the walls of the fortress, the sun kissed those below with reverence. It had seen many things. Horrible and awe-inspiring in almost equal measure, and would continue to watch over the tiny people below it with a sense of quiet pride. Its place in the sky tinged with a light glow of early morning was a seat to view the world below.

And it would stay that way long after the group of friends below had passed into the eternity awaiting them all.

0-0-0-0-0-0

In a bed filled with silks and satins, two figures slept side by side.

The large futon was covered in extremely expensive purple and black covers and sheets. The poster under the mattress was made of imported teak wood. The pillows were embroidered and numerous. Like dark spots flashing across a murky lake, never knowing if it was a monster swimming near the surface only to dive back into that inky depths.

Around the room, mesh curtains billowed silently. Their dance both hypnotic and erotic, as small oil burners heated up the sickly sweet smelling liquids. The tiny pinpricks of light doing nothing to penetrate the gloom of the place.

A small desk held files neatly stacked and ready for the day as well as wax seals and pens. To anyone, this small rectangle of wood with slips of paper covered paper, was a gold mine of information. The amount of info that could be traded to, with any place of wealth was enough to buy a small island and be completely happy for the rest of their life.

To anyone with common sense, it was a seductive trap. Before running in the snoop through those papers, one would have to think, _wow that was ridiculously easy_, only to fall to the spiders web. Oh those files were the real deal. Completely genuine. But the rest of the room wasn't so simple as one would think at first glance. Seals littered the abode with such quantity, it would take a miracle and a thousand lifetimes to decipher them all.

Under the rich blankets a small hand slithered out to grab a hold of an equally pale shoulder. Manicured nails like claws tipped the slender pianist fingers. Not a single callous marked those pale digits. Smooth skin stretched at the mouth as lips pulled into a small smile.

Seduction at its most merciful.

Jinja chuckled lightly. Her lover was a smart and sadistic man, he made her proud. Though older then him by quite a few years, she still had yet to meet any man more twisted then he.

She had been walking along the paths near the noble houses, the best herbs grew near there. Her keen eyes had idly moved across the expanse of space, a habit she had developed when she was small. After all she was a product of her childhood spent around some of the worst brothels in and around Iwa. She chuckled, how it had seemed like another lifetime ago, rather then only fifteen years since she had left.

It was when she had reached a clump of mint that a small whimper of pain had called to her. Sniffing in disapproval - curiosity, such an annoying habit, she had walked over to a little smudge on a smooth patch of ground.

A boy. So small, weak and confused, oh but his eyes. Black as night and burning with hatred. She still shivered when she looked into them, even to this day, they burned with emotions so dark and twisted even angels on high would fall gracelessly from a single glace of those inky orbs. How she loved them. His eyes.

She had practically raised him, cultivated his lust for revenge against the world like a woman tends her garden. Lessons learned from swords and knifes, poisons and seals. Everything she knew and was had been thrown at the boy until he was the epitome of darkness - a true Shadow.

It wasn't until he was older that he made her his lover. She minded not. She could only smile in adoration of a sick kind, he still needed her, and where ever he was she would stay.

She had too.

0-0-0-0-0

"so what's the plan?" Naru asked. She was a bit skeptical about how this whole plan was going to go.

Hinata looked over at the surprisingly serious blonde. After all she knew her friend well. Naru was very rarely serious about anything. Though maybe this wasn't the best place to categorize her, after all the circumstances were vastly different from playing pranks in the village.

"pranks… that's it! Naru, Naru. You still any good at pranking." Hinata exclaimed excitedly. She berated herself silently, with everything going on, it had completely slipped her mind. Naru had been the villages best prankster for years. Nothing was to difficult for the sly blonde. And trust her, she had seen some of her work.

Said blonde scoffed. Sure she had been out of commission, but that didn't mean shit to her. She narrowed blue eyes at the excited ex-Hyuuga. She couldn't mean what Naru thought she meant. The glowing face was completely serious. _who would have thought Hinata would ever want me to pull pranks with her actually knowing. I wonder why? _

"Yeah, I still can cop out of few wonders. Why?"

Hana and Yoh gave puzzled looks at the three friends. Pranking. Why were they fixated on something so childish. The two adult watched as Hinata and Naru hashed lines. The only one who seemed to sort of understand was Lee, who, while he hadn't seen Naru's work, knew of her reputation.

Lee blinked slowly, "Hinata, can you please explain. Some people are left in the dark here and the sooner we figure this out the sooner we have a chance of escape." he watched as the girl nodded back to him.

Clearing her throat, Hinata began outlining her plan. "its so simple but I think it could work. Naru was the best prankster in our village. She has the know how to rig up a distraction that could move the eyes of the Shadow and his subordinates. While that happens, we can plan the escape. it's a simple plan like I said, but it has some merit." she watched as the others nodded.

Hana thought over the plan before sighing. "that's a great start, even one of the best we've have at the moment. Its just that, well, there are a lot of holes and unknown factors we have to think of. Anything can happen, we have to be prepared."

The sense of depression was tangible as everyone contemplated what to do. They would only have one chance at this. Failure was not an option. If this didn't work, they would be carted off to the "Minotaur" for a little R&amp;R, Shadow style. That was the best case scenario if they failed. The worst would be torture and then a long, painfully drawn out death in order to gain village and in Hinata's case, clan secrets.

Suddenly, Lee shot up from his spot on the ground, "I've got it. Youth has surely shined down on me!" waving away the 'you're nut's' look, he continued. "we keep the distraction. Naru can whip something up, While we release the other prisoners. This gives us room to work with as the guards and other underlings are busy trying to round up everyone, we sneak out to the torture chamber."

"Why the hell would we want to head further into the compound! That place houses the head torturer and his little spawns of the underworld. We would be completely surrounded. The only good thing for heading to that place if when they do finally recapture us, we'll already be down there for torturing!" Yoh yelled at the raven haired boy. Kami she knew he was somewhat dense, but to actually think this plan could work went past that.

Lee scrambled to soothe the rather violent woman as Hinata and Hana held her back from physically beating the youth right out of the green loving shinobi.

Naru grinned, "I like it."

The resounding silence couldn't have been broken even if a bull hyped on espresso ran through there.

"_**What"**_!

The blonde laughed out at the extreme disbelief. "listen. When I was taken to the chamber, I noticed a draining system built into the floor, ya know…for the blood and other fluids. It has to go somewhere right. And I'm betting there has to be some form of large piping under this compound that stops outside to freedom. All we have to do is hold off the torturers until we can break open the floor and get the hell out of dodge."

The others listened with rapt attention. This plan had merit, but it was still missing something.

Hana looked at Naru before asking, "when would we do this then."

The three friends shared a long look before turning back to the two women. Naru sighed, "right in the middle of the first fight would be the best time. Everyone in the crowd is still tired as are the other fighters and guards. They will be disorientated far longer than normal, giving us a longer time to make our escape." Lee and Hinata nodded along with the explanation.

Though dubious, the two women finally agreed. This was the best chance they would have for awhile, might as well take it.

Yoh, nodding at the group said, "the torturers also have this bad habit of keeping gear confiscated of their victims. that's probably where all of our weapons and extra gear is kept."

Naru got up and wiped off her pants. She needed to get to the forge to make some pranking supplies. Picking up a hammer and a thin piece of rolled metal, she got to work. _lets see…I have some scrap metal, a few armor rings, some hinges and screws and nails. Lets see, I can make a simple door jam that will keep the gate open. Hmm, maybe I can make something that can hold that hot melted metal…that has merit._

While Naru was busy working on some prank supplies, Hinata and Lee got up to get fitted for some armor. Hana was nice about the whole thing and even worked on fitting Yakennonokarasu, for some armor in a dusty looking grey. Seeing the two children startled and confused by the animal armor made her laugh.

"sometimes the Shadow has animals participate in the fighting. He like having them donned with extra protection because it makes the fight more interesting." she said.

The two shinobi nodded. That Shadow was a completely sick puppy.

A few hours passed as everyone worked to get ready for the great escape.

Lee worked on some of his routine, pushups, sit-ups, kicks and punches as well as feints and form. He winced as he stretched out muscles that had started to relax from his inability to train regularly. He was thankful when Yoh stopped over to help him with his form and was pleasantly surprised when she offered to do some light sparring to help warm him up. To which he readily agreed to.

Hana and Naru bickered in the background as they worked on some weapons for the upcoming fight. The prank equipment was finished and was cooling in the sand next to the anvil. Hana stood by and coached the Uzumaki on how to make brittle weapons stronger and how to tell when the armor that the fighters used was no good and had to be replaced. Every once in a while Naru would call out to the two fighting and either compliment or suggest something. Hana just barked at Naru to get back to work and that Yoh would be running drills before they left.

Hinata watched with Yakennonokarasu. There wasn't much for her to do until she fought and with being the med nin, she needed to conserve most of her chakra for healing the others. She really wished she had asked for some offensive medical ninja techniques. As it was all she knew was the standard Hyuuga fighting style, while fluid and well practiced - lacked form, shape and strength. She was a sitting duck. Sure she want a clan heiress anymore, but still she didn't want to use just her former families style. She knew she wasn't a great fit for that particular fighting technique, it lacked something distinctly 'her'. maybe when she got back to the village, she would find a way to fix her problem. She wanted to be strong enough to help her friends on the frontlines, not stuck in the background waiting for someone to get hurt.

So involved with her thoughts she jumped when her summons partner nudged her arm. His pink eyes so bright against his inky fur. She ruffled the spot behind his round ears and smiled at his small squeak. "Yakennonokarasu. Man that's such a handful to say, huh. Maybe we can shorten it so its not so long. After all we need to be quick if we are going to be fighting alongside each other…hmm, how about just Yakennono? It has a cool ring to it wouldn't you say." another squeak sounded. Hinata smiled. She felt sad that his family hadn't lived long enough to see him become partnered.

0-0-0-0-0

Another hour passed and both Naru and Lee were resting against each other completely exhausted. They had done anbu training and still they felt that Yoh had to have been a slave driver in another life. Not even Crane-sensei had pushed them so hard and he was sadistic in his training regiments.

They gave a collective wince as Hinata was bowled over. Nope Crane-sensei had nothing on Yoh. Even her light sparring hurt. She only seemed to pull her punches and kicks just enough to avoid ruining the mission. Hinata suddenly plopped down on Lee's other side. Small bruises littered her arms and torso. Thankfully the cloak she wore covered them pretty well or Yakennono would be all over the older woman. As it was he just curled up into his partner as she fell into a light doze.

Naru turned her head to look out at the suns position. The had about forty or so minutes till the first fight would start. Plenty of time to take a nap and eat before they ditched this hell hole.

"How long till we leave?" Lee asked

Naru stretched into a more comfortable position before answering. "maybe forty minutes if we're lucky. They pass out the porridge ten minutes before the fight. We should be ready and rested by then. Ill need that time to start my traps and cause the distraction." she kept her voice low.

Nodding his head at the unspoken, Lee closed his eyes, determined to get some sleep. Beside him Naru did the same. It was such a short time and nerves were high. Still she knew that going into a fight exhausted was the same as running a sword through the heart yourself. It was suicide.

Still sleep didn't come easy for her.

0-0-0-0-0-0

A loud banging startled the trio awake as one of the lumbering guards smashed a mallet against the bars of the gate. His ugly mug had sweat and what looked like drool on it. Definitely strong and quick for their size, they didn't seem to have much mental function going on. Maybe whatever had been done to them to increase their size and shape had shrunken the brain or something.

Rubbing their eyes they grabbed up a rough bowl made out of clay and moved towards the large cauldron of still bubbling goop.

Formless, scentless, and thankfully tasteless. The porridge was a rice based recipe with water and a hunk of butter mixed in. each time Naru ate it she swore it winked back at her. Still it was food and though it lacked anything in actual sustenance, it did take away the gnawing pain of hunger. If only just.

Swallowing down the watery goop, Naru hurriedly moved over to the supplies and grabbed a small metal cylinder with a leather scrap covering the top. Along with it she grabbed some steel twine she had made and what looked like a a plain door stop made out of some dark colored metal.

Watching in awe, both Hinata and Lee followed their smaller teammate.

Moving along the shadows Hana and Yoh followed the trio of friends. It was almost time.

Under Hinata's cloak, Yakennono shivered. The anticipation was thick in the air and though they didn't know why, even the other prisoners were effected.

Standing by the large gate, Naru crouched down so that she was looking a small spot about a quarter of the way off the ground. Inside the groove where the gate slid down, there was a small little shelve that locked the gate into place. It was perfect for what she had in mind. Gently covering the back of the stopper in her hands with chakra she applied the same principle as the tree or water walking exercise. The stop hung on the shelve with the force of glue and would hold the gate for at least ten minutes. Allowing a wide scale escape happen.

Once she was sure the stopper was secure, she uncovered the other container.

Made from high heat resistant steel, she had carefully gathered some of the molten metal and placed it into the container. With it she could melt the wood away from the locks on the doors to the torturers chamber. It was delicate and as such, she was holding it with extreme caution.

Thumping footsteps sounded behind them as the guard shoved a person out into the arena. Soon it would be time they just had to wait until the fight started, but waiting was so difficult.

"Naru, how long?"

Looking back at Hana, she held up ten fingers. Ten minutes to let the fight get truly under way.

A creaking alerted the blonde as the gate started its slow descant towards the ground. Seven minutes.

A quarter down. Four minutes.

Halfway down. Two minutes left. Almost there.

_Come on, come on. Just a little further. Kami let me have this bit of luck, you owe me this._ Naru mentally cheered on the gate.

A sudden horrid screeching whine echoed into the din of the arena. This caused Naru to shoot forward shouting at the top of her lungs, "NOW!"

The arena went to hell in a hand basket. Prisoners from everywhere seemed to shoot out into the blinding sunlight of the sandy place. Several latched onto the lumbering form of the stunned guard, while other raced over to other cages and pried them open. The two other fighter seemingly abandoned their fight to join in on the chaos currently erupting around them.

Up in the stands the rich and sick minded alike scrambled towards safety as prisoners climbed up around them.

Nearing the wall of the other side of the stadium, Hana and Yoh watched as the fighting became more bloody, beside them Naru, Hinata, and Lee watched with wide eyes and bated breath as the ground became stained crimson. How they made it to the other side with only some bruises and scratches, they would never know.

Yelling above the cacophony of sound Lee got the groups attention. "THROUGH THAT GATE. THEN ITS TWO RIGHTS AND A LEFT. DOWN A LONG HALLWAY, AND THEN ANOTHER RIGHT." seeing everyone nod the watched as Naru poured some of the liquid metal over the wood. Once it was safe, she kicked it open and motioned everyone inside.

Looking back once more she shook her head, before following the others.

0-0-0-0-0

Up in his shaded niche, The Shadow watched in thinly veiled rage as his once beautiful arena erupted into chaos.

His gloved hands shook in anger as his servants and concubines shivered in visceral fear. He could practically taste it. Beside him Jinja watched him with mixed emotions of fear and excitement.

His voice was calm, "Shi, Jinja…" both straightened up when he called their names. "go down there…stop them and bring me the ones who started this little riot. Remember…I want the perpetrators here and alive. Do you understand." phrased like a question both simply left to do as they were bid.

Black, soulless eyes watched the on goings down below with mixed feelings. He knew Jinja and Shi would do as he asked. They all did as he asked.

A maniacal laugh bubbled past his thin lips as he smiled. He would punish those who deserted and he would kill the ones who started this mess. He smiled, yes that sounded like a plan.

Never once in his crazed fantasies did he realize killing his meal tickets, namely the nobles in the crowd, would cause more problems then it should. Nor did he think that, maybe he would lose the trio of new genin and would simply not be able to kill them.

Still he laughed.

0-0-0-0-0

The hallways were cool compared to the heat from outside. Flickering flames from the sconces lit the way but only enough to see about three feet ahead. Still, everyone was breathing just a bit easier at actually making into the actual compound. Ahead of the group, Lee ran point, he knew the way best as Naru had been disoriented and weak from her torture to recognize where they were. Hinata had not been brought down this set of halls before so she was also lost.

Still the fact that they had been running for a solid fifteen minutes and had yet to run into a guard was both surprising and worrying.

Lee yelled back to the others about why that was.

"its because the shadow and his posse believe the head torturer and his underlings are enough of a deterrent from a fight. Not only that but the guards and the torturer don't see eye to eye. Last fight that happened between them ended with a assistant have his neck ripped out." Hana yelled forward.

Naru and Hinata shivered. What a way to go.

Yoh, called up, "how much further. Some of us haven't had to do this type of running in forever ya know. We cant go in there all fired up and tired from the run. We'll be sitting ducks."

Lee nodded back, "almost there last turn up on this corner and then the chamber in the room at the very end of the hall. Get ready."

Shifting into a loose triangle formation that had been taught to them Lee continued running point with Naru flanking his right and Hinata directly on his left, leaving Yoh and Hana to steadily bring up the rear behind the genin.

Turning, they all saw a large wooden door at the end of the semi long hallway. And extra burst of speed brought them all up to it and watched as Naru took out the cylinder once more. Using up a good amount, Naru waited a minute before it was safe to bust down. Which Lee did the honors of.

Naru winced as the small of old blood and other bodily fluids hit her. She sneered at the rush of bad memories assaulted her. Looking around she through a confused glance at the room. It was empty. No victims, torturers, big, hulking ugly looking Minotaur, nothing.

Something slightly shiny got Hinata's attention as she Looked around, it was a rack of hitai-ate from Iwa all the way to rain to Konoha. It was here that Hinata quickly found theirs and passed them out to a eager Naru and Lee. Even Yoh found hers, which was tattered and scratched to high hell.

Lee found his nunchaku and Hinata was reunited with her scrolls. It was during this time as the roamed around with their gear being collected that the sounds of gleeful shrieking burst from the hall getting closer and closer.

Hinata ran over to the door and gasped. Men covered with stained leather aprons ran towards the chamber, screeching even louder when they saw her standing in the doorway. If this wasn't about to be a large scale fight Hinata would have laughed at them. They almost looked like rumpled butchers screaming at nosy children.

Still, calling over Yoh and Hana, she had them help her with barricading the door. Naru was the one who brought over the big desk that had been stacked in the corner of the room, or at least out of the way.

Looking over at the other she asked where the drain was located.

Naru pointed down, "here, its definably hollow on the inside and it sounds pretty wide from what ever liquids are flowing through it. Maybe it leads to some type of underground cave system or something."

Lee moved past her with a huge mallet in his hands, "only one way to find out." with that he struck down an watched as cracks spear out from the impact point. Still the ground didn't break open.

"Lee, keep at it, we have trouble. Girls are you ready." Hana yelled out.

A huge banging replaced the annoying little banging from the torturers assistants. One huge meaty hand cracked through the thick wooden door like it was rice paper. Loud throaty grunts punctuated every hit as what ever was on the other side tore down the door bit by bit.

Naru shivered. She knew what was tearing down the door. It didn't help that she had to have a repeat meeting with him. When she had named him the Minotaur, it was jestful, now she failed to find the hilarity she had had before. He was insanely strong, and his greasy looks could make even the most hardened konoichi sick and skittish. Also his manners were appalling.

Looking back Naru yelled at Lee, "hey Lee hurry it up."

She got a dirty look for her efforts, but at least he got the message, as the mallet sounds got harder and faster.

Hinata watched out of the corner of her eyes as Naru yelled at Lee. Though uncalled for, she understood. They were already running on limited time. Now this development was going to cost them. She watched as the other got into stances and readied their weapons. She slid into the traditional Hyuuga fighting stance and prayed to whatever Kami that they made it out alive.

It was the splintering of the door that drew all eyes to the front. Several little assistants rushed threw the small opening, waving instruments of torture at them. Hinata dodged a butcher with a club, as he struck up at her. Her hands glowed a faint blue as she hit him in the right shoulder, closing off his chakra point. He snapped his teeth at her in anger as he tried to move his now non-working arm.

She back handed him as he screeched in frustration. Causing him to fall into a small group of his comrades. He was trampled to death.

Moving in a tight circle she activated her Byakugan and started to deal out hits at random. There was just so many. When one fell two more took its place. It seemed never ending to the lavender eyed genin. She hissed as one of those butchers sliced into her lower arm, a knife securely held in its bloody hands as it made a vulgar series of sounds at her.

Slapping up at a sharp angle she knocked the knife out of the gloating mans hand and relished in his scream of anger. It took a lot to make her upset, but this was just a little bit to much for her.

Lee watched as his friends kept the little men away from his work. He was almost there with the hole, but for some odd reason, the rest wouldn't break off. The hole could get any bigger and he realized why. The part near the drain was a relatively thin piece of concrete which made it far easier to break apart. Yet the further you got from the drain, the concrete was layered to make it more durable to the wear and tear of working on it.

He needed something heavier or stronger to hit it and break it apart. But what?

It was the thud of the door completely falling apart that showed him the answer.

He cupped his hands, "Naru, I need you're help!" he watched as the armor clad genin raced over to his side. Spared from a questioning look he launched into his plan. "we need something stronger to break the rest of the hole open. That torturer, the one you call a Minotaur, he's a giant. Maybe with his strength we have a shot."

Naru paled at the implications. Sure she was good at being able to get anybody riled up…but this was the man who had tortured her. She didn't even want him to notice she was here. Still, Lee rarely asked for anything. And this was essential to getting the hell out of here. She sighed. She better get to kick the ass of the Kami who made her life so fucked up.

"Fine, Lee. I bring him over here…be ready."

She didn't wait for a nod, choosing instead to race closer to where the hulking mass of fleshy muscle was.

"Hey you. Ass-face." the cracked teeth of the nasty giant gave off a rotten smell as he looked towards the small female, he smiled.

"what do we has' here?" he grinned.

"Well I guess big body does little good for a small dick like yours huh? Man how do you wake up every morning knowing that women laugh at your tiny manhood. If it were up to me id just chop the tiny thing off and go back to bed, but hey, what can ya do ya know."

The bellow of rage was heard all the way to the arena.

Naru dodged the enraged man. _Wow who would have guessed he was so sensitive about his tiny dick. Such a shame._ she faked a sad nod, "you know, steroids are all well and good ya know. But they do have the tendency to shrivel up the goods…guess no one told you. She dodged a bitch slap.

"hey maybe you file for disability insurance from your boss. I'm sure the Shadow would be sympathetic that his hulking meat bag torturer and rapist is suffering from tiny willy disorder." she grinned as she heard the huffing laughter from some of the assistants. She watched carefully as the Minotaur's face turned purple in rage.

"I like this look for you…purple really is your color."

In his fit of rage he only saw red. This seven year old girl was mocking him. Making him look weak in front of his subordinates, calling his manhood into question. She would die, he was going to break every bone in her body and relish in her screams. Then he was going to find the dullest potato peeler and rip of her skin in the slowest possible way, inch by inch. He would make her suffering so long she would beg him to end for her. Then before she died he would show her how much of a man he really was. The last thing she would see would be his satisfied face as he took her innocence.

So caught up in his plans for vengeance, he failed to see where she had been leading him and now it was too late.

His feet made the concrete floor bend and groan. It only needed one good, solid hit to make it crumble. Naru was getting desperate, he wasn't angry enough. Then it hit her, this had to work, it was the blonde genin's last hope.

She took an inhale of air, regretted it because she could practically taste his scent, and went for the final blow. "I mean when I told you to fuck off, I didn't mean to bring up your lack of fucking. All those poor women you raped. I didn't know you could disappoint a women through something meant to break them. But then you've always been a disappointment. Haven't you, bitch!"

The amount of killing intent that washed over the assembly was so massive, it literally caused several of the assistants to have heart attacks right there. It was like nothing Naru had witnessed before. And too see his face go from bright purple to dark purple to almost a black color was hands down the most interesting thing at that moment. Hell not even if the Kyuubi broke free and started to dance in a kimono would have torn her eyes away from the scene before her.

Judging from the lack of sounds behind her, she had a feeling it was a completely mutual thing.

Rage so intense flooded his system as the first smatterings of chuckles reached him in the haze. Soon it was intense laughter as the butchers dropped their weapons. Hana and Yoh, were laughing so hard and holding on to each other, while Lee was looking at her in shock and Hinata looked ready to pass out, a mortified expression on her gentle features.

She was so getting an earful later.

Grabbing the mallet which Lee had abandoned, The Minotaur slammed it down where she had been but a second before. Right on the cracks where Lee was working.

It was beautiful how the whole floor thundered and moved as it broke apart.

With a garbled yell the head torturer vanished under the floor.

Watching as the butchers yelled in shock, Hinata quickly came back to her senses. "everyone we need to leave now!" the shock coursed threw them as they gathered up their things and one by one jumped into the dark hole.

0-0-0-0-0

Lee gasped as the freezing water carried him along the tunnel. It was fast, it was cold, and the water had a funny smell, but he could care less. He and his friends were almost free.

He tried to look around but stopped after a minute as it became too dark. He could only guess the others were behind him as small gasps and some coughing echoed faintly around the darkness. He felt elated, was this how some ninja felt as the returned or escaped from being captured. This rush of euphoria so great it could only be the power of youth. He wondered what was going to happen when the saw the outside though. They didn't even know where they were or at least he and the girls didn't know where they were…maybe Hana or Yoh had any ideas.

Nobody knew how long they had been traveling. Occasionally their feet and hips would brush along something in the water, what ever they were nobody knew and nobody ventured a guess. Sadly as it was so dark it was impossible to tell how long they had been carried by the flow of the icy water. It couldn't have been colder if you danced naked in a snowstorm.

Hinata spat out the thick tasting water. She could tell it was highly mineralized, which meant it could be deep underground spring water, heavily concentrated. It tasted rotten, and from her experiences in this place, she was quite tired of rotten things.

Her eyesight sharpened as her Byakugan flared to life. _One, two, three…four, there he is. _She sighed, glad they had all made it. Now just to know where 'it' was.

Shifting uncomfortably in the frigid water, the group stayed silent. It was still to soon to know if they were in the clear. If not…well, now was not the time for such depressing thoughts.

Feeling cooped up, Naru looked around and then grumbled in agitation. She had very decent eyesight, courtesy of the Kyuubi she carried, and yet the darkness was too obscuring for her eyes to pick up anything. No, the Uzumaki female felt skittish and trapped. She really needed some light before she threw caution to the wind and gave into a panic attack.

She hated the darkness. When she couldn't see, the fears and insecurities plagued her. She had true friends, Hinata and Lee, and she also had others. The special people that had waltzed into her life and made a home in her heart. Naru knew she wasn't the nicest girl, but she had her honor and loyalty - even if it was slightly warped by her personality.

She could remember growing up in two selective frames of mind - on one hand, she was a scared little girl of only four. She was scared of just about anything that could hurt her. She didn't know why she was hated, only that she was and it was universally excepted. On the other, she was a new genin of Konoha, a konoichi of the leaf. She carried herself with pride, honor, and humor. She loved pranks, ramen, and her special people. She even loved the leaf.

She loved frogs and nature, her new family and team. But even though she now knew why she was hated, she still found that she couldn't forgive it. Oh, don't get her wrong, she "understood", but her entire being hurt to know the villagers she protected, only saw the fox.

They say time heals all wounds. But they never tell you just how long you got to wait.

It was quiet as time passed once more. Everyone eager and scared in equal measure, and all was quiet.

0-0-0-0-0-0

Several miles outside of the fortress, a man was walking.

He was huge and scarred. A dark colored bandana covered his head as his massive body was wrapped in a bland gray uniform. A black trench coat warded off the chill of the evening.

He was an experienced man, had killed more people in his career then he was comfortable with and then tortured the rest. He knew his height and muscles spooked most people away, which is what he was going for. Those that stayed however found out why her preferred solitude.

Head of T&amp;I. he was feared among the elemental countries, mostly because he was damn great at what he did. His eyes would light up with sarcasm and twisted glee whenever someone new was brought to see him. He loved mind games. Played them all the time as he worked alongside his leader and colleagues.

He was known as ruthless, apathetic, _sadistic_ and yet, he never cared. He was Ibiki and he was on a mission.

Those three brats had gone and gotten themselves into trouble and now he was going to retrieve them. Many didn't know that the current Uzumaki powerhouse was the beacon of light he needed to complete his objective. The child had so much chakra, she was like the sun on a clear day, warm and very powerful and ever since she was young the jonin and chunin of the village had used that power to find and keep her safe. Now he was using it to bring those three back home.

A small, deep chuckle echoed out from his chest and past his lips. Anko wasn't concentrating on her work ever since her three pseudo-students had been reported MIA, not to mention Guy-sensei and the Anbu commander had petitioned the Hokage to let them go on this mission. Sadly he knew it would be far faster and safer for all parties involved if he had gone alone. Less attention drawn.

With a small sigh, Ibiki faded back into shadows. He was close now, soon the children would be safe and on their way home and he could get back to his work in the village. Just a few more hours to go until normalcy.

0-0-0-0-0-0

Back in the tunnels, everything had gone to hell in a hand basket.

It had started out a almost peaceful ride through the under passages of the fortress. The water was still cold and was still moving at the same rate, they all still brushed up against stuff all around them. But so what, that was what had been happening for the last hour or so. Then everything changed.

It was Lee who was the first to notice it. The sudden lack of rocks and things at the bottom of the river. He didn't know what to think, so there was nothing on the bottom underneath them anymore, big deal. Then it got colder and the water felt like it was flowing faster and faster until it was too late.

The flashing water were soon frothy and wild. The word _untamed_ filtered into the green clad boys mind as he was bucked and thrown all around. Every few seconds he would hear a gasp or a small scream as the girls experienced the same ride.

It was wild. He felt weightless and humbled and oh, so very scared as the angry waters roared past his ears. Every instinct was frozen as his fight or flight response went into overdrive, sadly both were quite impossible. He fought the urge to swim against the insane current, knowing that he would only weaken and exhaust himself further. So with apprehension he stayed as still as he could and waited for the world to stop spinning.

Behind him, Naru coughed out a lungful of water. She hadn't felt this type of natural fury before, and it scared and awed her. She was finally able to see and then promptly wished she couldn't. the white monster roared and foamed all around her, throwing and smashing her small form up against the sides of the tunnel walls. It was so loud, almost deafening. She felt the urge to throw her hands up to her ears and try to block out the sounds. She groaned as her body ran into something, it felt soft so she assumed it was one of her companions. Before she could reach out and check who it was the white foamy waters dragged her under.

Everything was blurry and a unique shade of light aqua. Her lungs burned as she spun around like clothes in a washing machine. Her hands reached out for something to grab onto, anything, and yet, nothing. Black spots danced across her vision as she tumbled along, the river refusing to give her up.

She felt faint and numb when she was unceremoniously ripped from underneath the waters surface. Air, air was good, she gulped in several large inhales of the life saving stuff as she clung to her savior. Blue eyes wide open with trepidation as she became slightly dizzy. Her blonde hair lightly drooped onto her face as she coughed sporadically. She was alive, a few more moments and she might have had to resort to the fox for help.

It was so bright and cramped as Naru finally looked forward and then promptly cursed. It was a fucking waterfall. Briefly Naru wondered why it was always a waterfall at the end of the river, before panic hit her.

How high were they again, hell she had no idea. For all the blonde genin knew, they were hundred of meters of the ground. Falling from that height, hitting anything below would be like hitting concrete.

_Shit, shit, shit!_ the fast paced thought raced through her mind as she tried to think of something. Anything. _come on think Naru, think. Oh god we're so screwed. Why was this a good idea, dead, we're all dead!_

**Stupid human. The answer is so simple, why don't you calm down and think rationally for a change. Power, you have much of it, more so than all the others of your kind. Use it and stop being over emotional.** the voice boomed sarcastically in the depths of her mind.

Naru froze. The Kyuubi was speaking to her. Why now. No she couldn't - wouldn't answer back. He made her kill. Took something fragile and broke it. Her sanity wasn't capable with this. What was his deal. What power - his or something else.

Her breathing sped up until she was practically hyperventilating. The beginnings of a panic attack immanent.

**Cat got your tongue, brat. Or is it that you actually know you're afraid.** The angry laughter clashed with his direct words.** Feel it, conquer it, bend it too your will. I may hate you with the fire of a thousand years, but if I must be imprisoned, I refuse to have a weak warden for my jail.**

The hot feeling of hate boiled deep in the center of her gut. Naru felt herself tensing and un-tensing as anger filled her. She knew the emotion well enough.

While most of the time she was the happy and mostly contented child, she couldn't lie to herself and say she had never felt anger or hate. She could say, however, that she had never acted upon those emotions. Maybe it was instinctual, a way of making sure the fox in her belly didn't gain a foothold in her psyche. She just knew that she was better than letting a few loose emotions define her, no matter how powerful they may be.

So she looked out over at the roaring falls and the white water rapids that bore her friends towards the edge and she made her choice.

_What do I have to do?_

0-0-00-0-0

Deep in the seal of his current jinchuuriki, Kurama, the Kyuubi No Youko, watched the internal contemplations of his host.

Really the girl was too funny not to watch, not that he had anything to do in his current predicament anyways but that was a moot point. Really, hundreds of generations of the former Uzumaki clan had boiled down in this small, but unbelievingly powerful, scrap of child. His father was probably laughing at him from the great beyond at his problem.

Oh, he did have a lot to be angry about. First off, he had been sealed into those thrice be-damned kunoichi of Uzu and later, Konoha. Then he was released by a stupid masked Uchiha and then he was resealed into his current unwitting host. Honestly, he felt just a bit justified in his resolve.

Not to say he hated the poor girl he was now tied too, because he really didn't. no, she was just at fault as he was. Rather, he was pissed off at those ignorant villagers for helping him make her life a living hell. It wasn't her fault he was sealed into her, she had been just born like an hour ago when it had happened. But did the village accept that answer and treat her like a hero like that genius idiot Namikaze wanted. Of course not, that would have been to easy.

Nope those village idiots had decided they were pissed and sad and mortified and out for blood. The poor child had been the subject for dozens of assassination attempts all before the age of four because those villagers had thought she had been himself reincarnated. Really the third should have done something by now and killed off the idiot portion of the population instead of making it law that the younger generation never be told about him and state that he had been killed by the brat fourth. It wasn't going to stop the parents and older ninja from passing along the hatred of him to their sniveling, snot-nosed broods.

It was almost laughable. Him killed by a man with some flashy justu and a better than average brain.

Kurama almost sighed as he readjusted his bulk on the cold, wet floor. At least he wasn't still in Kushina's seal - chained to a flaming ball of lava and fire with metal rods stabbed through his hand like paws and feet, and into each of his glorious nine tails, had been nothing if not excruciatingly painful if not annoying.

He rolled his eyes. Uzumaki women, strong, stubborn and hell-bent on one upping each other with fuuinjustu. Here at the most, he got a little cold. Maybe if he got the brat to trust him and vice versa, they could make an agreement on changing bits of the seals interior. But that is a question for another day.

He had done his part, weak and injured, and had gave his word not to interact with his jailer until she was older. Oh, he knew the Namikaze brat had wanted to wait till she was in her teens for that, but he hadn't said anything and his hand was forced sooner than later. Rather those two lovebird parents should be grateful that he had kept the girl alive this long.

It would be highly annoying and more than a bit painful, but he could have let her die rather than protect and heal all those times. If he hadn't, he could've waited fifty to a hundred or so years to reform somewhere else in the world.

Now though, Naru was a ninja. She was going to have to go into bigger and more dangerous fights and he made no mistake, she would need his power later on.

Like now for example. The poor girl was ignoring his words - which he knew she would soon see reason too - and had the actual audacity to fly into a panic attack instead.

So he had made her kill her opponent, so fucking what. She was a kunoichi, a seductive assassin, she would be forced to kill soon anyways. The only difference between her killing with him powering her up and any other time is she hadn't actually been on a mission.

Besides he had sort of lessened the blow, so to speak. She could only remember true bits and pieces of the actual deed. She was too emotional for the down and dirty details of the kill. She would get better at handling the task once she got older and had time to vent and cry over the whole thing.

Big, slitted red eyes crinkled upwards as he remembered that man. Oh the fear and agony was too amusing not to watch. He had thought he was top dog only to beg and pretend that he wouldn't of killed Naru once she gained control and turned away. His kind were nothing but simpering worms, useless and honorless. Not even fit to kiss the ground his host even walked on. He had done the world a favor in killing the ambitious and crude man, he would not be missed or remembered. A true fate for one of his position.

But back to his host.

She was so small. Not unlike other Uzumaki's, but even they had some true definition in their bodies. No the poor girl had been mistreated in ways that went beyond beatings and near death attempts. She had practically no clothes in decent shape, got overcharged by three times the amount for the most basic necessities, and was thrown out of most places when trying to get food. It was one of the reasons Naru loved ramen. It was cheap and one of the few foods she could get that wasn't spoiled, thrown out, or tampered with.

The fox could also give thanks where it was do. Those two teammates of hers were great influences and had the makings of being great friends to his jailer. Maybe they could even help him with keeping her safe when he was unable too. The idea had merit.

Hopefully that was the case because his powers didn't extend to seeing the far future. The girl could get into trouble like nobody's business.

_What do I have to do?_

_**Seems she had finally seen the light of wisdom and was willing to give it a chance. Normally I would say it is foolish to trust me, but I'll let it pass just this once. She truly is capable of so much trouble. I wonder what she'll be like when she gets to jonin. Now that is amusing. **_

_**So be it, she has sealed her fate with me, not that she had much choice.**_

In the depths of the seal, Kurama, the Kyuubi No Youko, smirked in amusement. It was not a gentle one.

0-0-0-0-0-0-0

The roaring waters slipped from her mind as the strong voice of the demon fox echoed once more. **so mortal girl, we speak once again. How charming and you were so dead set on ignoring me. Really I'm touched.**

Naru narrowed her eyes anger and fear, as well as annoyance filled her gaze as she looked inward. Gods he was difficult. _listen here feather duster, you said you have a way to survive this, then start talking!_

The booming laugh was both parts amused and sarcastic as she imagined two huge ass red eyes look down at her. He wouldn't be laughing anymore if he didn't hurry up.

**Yes girl, I know of a way. But…I don't know if you deserve it after being so callous. Really, I would have thought the third had smacked some manners into you by now.** she wanted to stab him in the eye.** But, I may be willing to part with this pearl of wisdom in exchange for something.**

Naru hesitated. What could a demon fox want…power. Maybe, he really didn't need it; already the most powerful thing currently occupying this realm of existence. So what could he want in exchange. Then it hit her.

_I wont set you free. I cant trust that you wont kill my friends and destroy the village_ _while your at it. So if that's what you want, you aren't going to get it from me. I would rather die than set you loose to wreak havoc on the world once more._ she mentally stated. Her mind voice inwardly cringing at telling the most powerful thing this side of death, No.

She wouldn't risk her friends lives nor her precious peoples. Hell, not even the village deserved the kind of repeat fate that would happen if the Fox was once again at large. Besides she wasn't stupid, she knew he would make his way back to Konoha and if he got there, come hell or high waters, he would destroy it.

Thunderous guffaws' met her inner ears as the Kyuubi laughed, hard.

**Ha ha ha, silly girl. I do wish to be free. No creature alive wishes to be caged and hidden from the world with only limited powers. But that is not what I want from you.** he paused for the child's benefit before continuing. **No, what I want from you is a compromise.**

What in the world. A compromise. Naru was stunned. Okay he had admitted to wanting to be free and had backed it up with a solid fact but a compromise. That was something she had thought would have taken some negotiating for. Now that she thought of it, it was kinda suspicious that he wanted a compromise before wanting to be free. If it was her that was sealed and caged, that would have been the first thing she demanded. But she was nothing if not eternally curios.

So she took a gamble. _what kind of compromise are we talking about?_ now we wait.

**Its simple child. I wish for some comfort things while I'm stuck in this seal. Like a bit of wiggle room for example, maybe some flooring that isn't covered in murky water or even a better window into your life so I can experience more of what you see and feel. I also wish to be hold conversations with you on a regular basis. I do get slightly lonely in here after all. Those are my terms. **his voice rumbled seriously.

Naru felt very conflicted on one hand she was talking to a overgrown fox demon sealed in her gut and on the other he was now requesting things. Not to mention her other real world problems. Man she was going to get gray hair before she was twenty if this was how her life was going to go.

**I don't wish to rush you, but that waterfall is getting any farther away. Its now or never brat.**

She was loathed to admit it, but the Fox was right this time. She ignored the mumbled 'I'm always right' and thought about his request. It really was now or never.

_Fine what do I have to do?_

She hoped this was a good decision

In the seal a grin was flashed in victory. **This is going to be fun. Okay kit, here's what you're going to do**.** Gather as much chakra into your body and focus it towards your center. If it helps focus it in place of your seal. Good, very good. Now sit back and let me do the rest. Oh and before I go, this will hurt, just saying.**

Gathering as much chakra as she could, Naru felt sluggish. It was heavy, her chakra, like lead weights being pushed by a slow stream. But the deeper she went, the more chaotic and wild her energy was, not unlike the waters she was being borne through. Concentrating on the seal she moved her energy there and with much uncertainty, let the Fox do what had to be done.

It was indescribable. Or almost at least.

It felt like someone was forcing liquid fire through her veins and chakra pathways. It burned and ate away at her remaining energy. She could almost feel it hissing as it moved outwards through her pores, filling her with a different source of energy and strength. Her eyes struggled to stay open as she fell deeper and deeper into the recesses of her mind. The comforting blackness was to tempting to stay away from and soon she was out cold.

0-0-0-0-0-0-0

Kurama sighed as she finally passed out. Sure he could just have forced her too stay awake, but even he was not so cruel. What he was about to do was going to hurt and would take nearly all his energy to accomplish as well as heal all the damage the girls body was going to endure.

He'd probable have to sleep for weeks to recover the lost power.

Shaking his great head, he stood up in his small cell and focused the power coursing through the kit. His chakra was fiery and poisonous and had always damaged and healed his hosts in nearly equal measures. But it was strong and easily pliable compared to the Uzumaki's heavy and unpredictable energy. With his power in control he saw through her eyes, no doubt as red as his own and launched into action.

Red chakra coated arms stretched outwards as he picked up the Hyuuga girl and the eyebrows kid. Moving them to his left arm, he swiftly knocked them out and then reached for the other two females, repeating his actions. It was safer for everybody this way.

Then he gathered energy to his feet and jumped out over the falls.

He felt free as he marveled at being weightless. The land was barren and dry as huge mountains rose in the far south. To the west he could smell trees and grass, that way was to the land of fire, he would bet his tails on it. Even more surprising and certainly welcome, he could smell the torture man.

Having met him through Kushina on several occasions, Kurama felt him to be a honorable mortal, who felt no hatred for his host. That alone made him okay in the fox's books. Besides now his kit and her friends would be safe while he rested.

Gauging the man to be about several miles away, he looked for a safe spot to land. The water was too shallow but over in the deserty part of the banks there was a huge sand dune. Perfect.

The fall was almost like flying in reverse. The falls really had been several hundred meters off the ground, probably a record, and as such it was going to break the kits bones like brittle clay. That he felt bad about.

Still he would give a huge surge of energy to repair the damage before he retreated back into the seal. An apology if it could be called that.

**BOOM!**

About four feet from the ground, he threw his burdens at the dune. This way they wouldn't be as hurt as he forward plunged into the mound of sand. A huge explosion covered the others as he created a crater over ten meters in diameter and six feet deep. A harsh growl torn from his hosts lips as he felt the poor girls body bend and break like a rag doll in a hurricane. The Fox winced when he finally stopped moving. He was sure every bone was broken if not shattered. He smelt blood, mostly hers but some from her friends and concluded they had mostly scrapes, though the boy seemed to have landed harder then the others. He maybe had a broken or cracked bone somewhere.

The agony was horrendous and made him almost black out, which wouldn't be good, Naru might actually die from the shock he was currently staving off the girl.

Pulling most of his energy back into his host hurt like a son of a bitch. Though it did heal the kits extensive injuries, at least most of the life threatening ones. By the time he was done, all she had left was a broken arm, several broken fingers, a cracked rib and a colorful assortment of nicks, scratches and bruises.

Nodding weakly at his handy work, he pulled the chakra back into himself and pushed hers back into her reserves. She was safe and alive, as were her friends. Now he could sleep and recover.

Just as the darkness claimed him, Kurama saw the torture man - Ibiki or something - walk out from behind one of the dunes. A kunai in each hand as he took in his surroundings. He blinked out at the man with his hosts eyes and gave a small nod. Now he could rest.

So he did just that.


	15. Chapter 15

Chapter fifteen.

A dance with a sneaky serpent!

"When did a Dragon ever die from the poison of a Snake"

~Nietzsche

The pre dawn light glowed over the small valley in soft purples, blues and yellows. To anyone awake it was probably one of the most peaceful sights of the day. Down in that valley though, the struggles of this new day were just being felt and not even a beautiful sunrise was fully able to wipe away the horrors of the past months.

The first to wake up was Hinata. Which normally wouldn't have been surprising as she came from a clan of morning people, but this was still a feat as she had received a harsh whack to the head causing a severe concussion. By all accounts she should have been out for another day or so.

Pale lavender tinted eyes opened slowly. The real world was just to bright and unnaturally loud compared to the heavy migraine that raged in her head. She felt tired and horrible, but she concluded that she was at least alive and sort of well enough to feel this way. If she didn't hurt so much, she would've cracked a smile and maybe laugh out loud. _I'm alive. I made it. I wonder how the others are doing…oh kami the others! Did they make it? Are they okay?_

Hurrying up from her prone position, Hinata had to fight down the wave of nausea and dizziness as she stumbled forward. She needed to find her friends.

Just as she was about to fall forward however a strong slender arm reached out and steadied her. Feeling a sense of panic, her eyes shot up and she nearly gasped.

"Shifune-sensei!?" the shock of seeing her medical instructor was immense. Last she knew of, the med-nins were at the border between Hi No Kuni and the land of water, so what was she doing here?

Frosty green eyes watched as the poor child looked around her new space. Really it was nothing special, just a small tent with medical gear lining the sides and a hard cot in the center of the space.

She was considerate enough to place the small mouse summons -she was quite use to them after working in the medical field for ninja for so long - on the cot next to her student.

Really she had been so worried for the girl she had been teaching, when she went missing that she had alerted the Hokage himself for any news on her whereabouts. And after almost several weeks, she finally got a message back. It was from Ibiki-san, and he had stated that the three genin and two other females and one summons had been located almost three days travel into the land of winds borders. Needless to say, she had instantly dispatched a squad -including herself- and had raced down to the land of winds border to provide medical aid.

Now she was glad she had done so.

The boy in the group had a greenstick fracture along his right arm. That was the worst of his injuries and alone would take four to eight weeks to heal. Thankfully it wasn't a serious break and she could issue a splint and sling to hold his arm immobile while it healed.

The girl, Naru, was the worst out of the group. Several cracked ribs, a closed fracture on her arm, a severe concussion, and severe chakra depletion. Her skin was also layered in bruises and cuts. The inside of her chakra pathways though, caused the seasoned med-nin to pause; they were burned and slightly cauterized along the edges, like if someone had poured acid down the tubing that made up the pathways and then tried to reopen them back up. It was extensive damage and nothing she could do but try to coax some healing chakra down in there and hopefully soften the pathways so they could heal.

For the rest she put the broken arm into a cast and sling. And wrapped her ribs up in several layers of bandages. They cuts were treated with a special ointment to stave off infection. Really though, the girl wasn't going to be doing missions for a while and was on no duty for at least three to six weeks, then after a good checkup, it would be light duty for another four. And that was being lenient.

As for Hinata, she had bruises and cuts, a severe concussion, and several torn muscles. Nothing light duty and bed rest couldn't fix. The only thing the ex-Hyuuga needed to watch out for was re-tearing the muscles once they finished healing.

Satisfied with her diagnosis for the three, she motioned the girl to follow her. She knew the genin would all put up a fuss if they didn't see each other first thing after waking up. It reminded her of her old team, back when they had been alive, and caused a fond smile to form on her rough features.

She blinked at the girl, "follow me Hinata-chan, your teammates have been waiting for you. Lets not keep them waiting anymore hmm." she nearly laughed out loud as the Hyuuga girl suddenly lurched forward, grabbing the sleeping mouse off the cot, and stumbled almost drunkenly out of the tent. Oh this would be funny.

Bright lights hit her eyes as Hinata walked out of the tent, narrowly avoiding a med-nin on his way to another tent with a load of bandages. She smiled lightly, this was something she had missed. Looking around she noticed Shifune-sensei heading over to a large tent in the center of the camp. It was huge and a muted tan color. A large plus sign signaled that it was a intensive care tent, a place where all the really injured ninja were held.

Feeling apprehensive, Hinata walked over to her instructor and nodded before walking inside, completely missing the sad and guilty look thrown at her back.

0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0

It was dark in the tent with only a few oil lanterns to light up the few cots and their inhabitants. In a corner, several male ninja talked softly to each other as their injuries were tended to by a small trainee ninja. The light conversation was soothing to Hinata as she walked over to the other side towards three cots, two of which were occupied.

"Oi, Hinata-chan…how are you feeling. isn't it youthful that we all made it out alive." a semi-loud voice broke the air.

"Lee, shut your youthful mouth before I shut it for ya. Some of us are trying to die in peace here. And leave Hinata alone, you heard what Shifune-baba said, she has a really bad head injury." the sarcastic, but relived voice snapped out in the darkness.

"Hinata-chan, forgive me I was so caught up in your youthful awakening that I forgot you had been injured. When we get back to Konoha, I will run fifty laps around the village to apologize to you…oh no I talked to you again, make it one hundred laps!" Lee practically sparkled in the dim lighting as he raved about the power of youth, green and his friends recoveries.

Giggling softly, she made her way over to the bed next to Naru, her friend was flat on her back with her right arm snug in a cast and held by a chakra enhanced sling. An annoyed look on her face as she watched their other teammate ramble on.

"how are you feeling Naru?" she asked the now blonde genin. She really did miss that red hair.

Said blonde tore her eyes away from the other and looked up into the pale lavender of her best friend, she smiled, "I'm doing fine. Annoyed that I am confined to bed once we get home and relived that we all made it out alive." she paused, an unreadable look in her eyes before she continued. "how are you feeling? You had a nasty bump on your head when Ibiki-JiJi pulled us all from the sand we were buried under."

Hinata shrugged. Honestly she couldn't really remember what had happened. One second she was almost ready to go over the waterfall and the next she was waking up in a medical camp. "I feel fine, just a bit nauseas and dizzy. But I guess that's to be expected. How are you feeling Lee…Lee!"

Black eyes widened comically as he stopped talking mid sentence. A large embarrassed blush covered his face as he rubbed the back of his head. "hehe, I'm good Hinata-chan. My arm hurts but its nothing that I cant handle."

Hinata and Naru laughed softly as Lee tried to defend himself when one of the med-nins came in to give him more medicine. He was strong, the other was stronger.

Hinata suddenly stood up as Shifune-sensei walked into the tent. Her green eyes flashed in amusement as she watched the small ninja force liquid antibiotics down the youthful boys throat. A manic smile on the smaller face as he talked in a false soothing tone.

Behind her a very large man stood at attention. His gray uniform and black trench coat stood out stark against the sea of green and tans. His head was covered with a dark blue head band in the form of a bandana. His face though was heavily scarred.

Shifune-sensei gestured for the man to step forward. Hinata felt that he should be familiar but for the life of her she couldn't remember where she had seen him before. His dark eyes watched the three genin with an unreadable look as silence reigned.

Thankfully Naru didn't like silence very much. "Ibiki-jiji! What are you still doing here. I thought you were going to report to the old man third.

A small tick mark appeared on his face at the nickname - his or the Hokage's - and instead sat on an empty cot. "how are you all feeling?" Hinata felt there was more too it than that. He seemed like the type with a lot of mysteries.

Remembering her training as an Heiress, she bowed slightly before answering. "we are fine Ibiki-san. Tired and injured, but fine."

"Yeah, don't worry Ibiki-jiji, we aren't going to die off any time soon." Naru snorted in bemusement. They had survived a high level escape from a high level containment factor. That had to mean something right.

Ibiki looked over at the three. All were wrapped in layers of bandages and gauze. Their clothes hung off their half starved frames and the look of weariness covered them like a shroud. And yet, the fire still burned in their eyes. He smiled at that. No they had just been bent but not broken, this was something that could still be fixed.

"Naru, I was not suggesting that you are unable to fend for yourselves. In fact I'm praising you for a job well done." apparently him praising anyone was a big deal. Evidenced by Naru and Shifune-sensei's eyes opening wide in shock.

Hinata looked over at the still out of it Lee, then back towards Ibiki-san. He nodded at her silent question. "its time for us to head back to Konoha. We leave tomorrow at dawn, so make sure you have all your stuff packed. I leave your other teammate to you to tell. Shifune-san, I would like to talk to you outside please."

With that he was gone, Shifune gave them a small look as she turned and left after the older ninja.

Naru looked down at her broken arm, her lip held between her teeth as she thought about what was going to happen. Beside her Hinata watched her friend. It had been Naru who had been there for her when her clan had thrown her out, being her friend and confident, she had slowly made a home for herself among the two other genin. Without them she would still be alone. So she knew Naru would one day need to talk about what was weighing heavily on her mind. She also knew it was futile to try and make her talk now when she was so uncomfortable and confused.

_When you're ready Naru, we will talk. Lee and I will always be there for you._ she smiled at her thoughts. "we should get ready I guess. We leave at dawn…I wonder how the village is. We haven't been there in so long. I wonder how much has changed. maybe Anko will be able to help us out." she rambled out, trying to fill the silence.

Naru grinned beside her, "I wonder if the old man has finally torn down that death trap of a dango shop."

They both laughed.

Hinata smiled, "Anko would kill you if you even tried to suggest that the shop be closed down." they both laughed again, this time Lee started to join in as he woke up.

The blonde grinned out to the raven as he stirred. "morning sleeping beauty, did you have a nice nappy." she laughed hard until a pillow smacked her in the face. The look of stunned shock on her face to funny for the other to resist.

Outside the tent, Med-nin smiled as they heard the happy laughter of the three teammates.

0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0

It was about three o'clock in the afternoon as the Hokage sat behind his desk. He had received a message from Shifune stating that the three genin and Ibiki were on route to Konoha. That had been several days ago and they were due to arrive back here at any time.

He had always known that any child of Kushina's was going to be a handful, but this was taking it to the extreme. Sure he had put her in anbu and yes she was now a genin, but that didn't mean much if the person who was after you was more experienced and stronger. No those three would have to get stronger, he couldn't have this whole mess happen again because they were unprepared.

He felt the shift in the air as the hidden anbu in the room stirred. Ah, they had come back home.

He smiled at the sound of yelling, laughing and general happiness. Made the years etched into his very being feel light for a change. He had missed his pseudo granddaughter and her new friends, they were after all the newest generation of kings as he had told his son, Asuma.

Now though they were back home and safer than out there in the hands of who knows who.

Two brisk knocks echoed from the door as he called a quick, "enter." Ibiki was the first to walk in, a small smirk on his face as he saluted his leader, followed by Naru, Lee and then Hinata who was carrying a small mouse summons in her arms. He noticed that a younger woman was following behind them and he raised an eyebrow at Ibiki, who nodded back.

"Mission accomplished Hokage-sama." Ibikis rough voice called out.

Lighting his pipe, he observed the group. They looked like hell. He smiled, like true Shinobi coming back from a difficult mission. Half-starved, cut up, bruised and battered but there was fire and heat in their eyes. Their Will of Fire was strong and undefeatable.

He cleared his throat. "congratulations, all of you. Ibiki, I want a full mission report about they're experiences and yours before the week is up." he saw the nod, "you are dismissed."

He waved of the goodbye and focused on the smaller group. Who was this woman. Maybe the genin would tell a curious old man. "Naru who is the woman with you?"

He watched as she stood straighter, offering her own salute before answering. "Hokage-sama, she is a civilian blacksmith, who has decided to petition for entry of Konoha." she cleared her throat, "Her name is Hana and she is a friend. She is very trust worthy and she makes some of the best items and weapons I have ever seen."

A puff of smoke exited his lips. Hmm, a smith. Konoha was always looking for better trades and as a ninja village, they did have a high need for better weaponry. He sighed, where Naru was concerned, he didn't have the gall to deny her. "very well, I'll draw up the paperwork for a civilian license and a permit for a shop to be constructed. Do you have anywhere to stay?"

He watched as the woman nodded. He sighed, "very well then. You are all dismissed. Naru please report back here in two days. We have some matters that need to be discussed."

Hiruzen watched as the group left his office. So much trouble and they hadn't even been genin long. He needed a drink.

0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0

Walking down the street Naru breathed in the crisp spring air. Summer was just around the corner which meant that the academy was going to be let out soon. She grinned, good riddance to that place.

Behind her Hinata was conversing with Hana as Lee walked beside them. The small group walked closer to the clan district of the village, until the rising walls of their home came into view.

She smiled when she heard Hana talk about how beautiful it was, and she hadn't even seen the inside of the compound yet. Hurrying through the small little ceremony they all waited for the gate to open. A small gasp sounded out into the air as the other beamed in pride. This was their home.

Walking in they searched for a suitable house for the blacksmith, and after an hour found one with a small garden and several sheds in the back. It was perfect for the fiery smith they all called friend.

While Hana left, saying she was going to go and get some things for the place, the others quickly ran back to the main house. Sleep, a bath, and some real food sounded so good right about now. They walked into their house and grinned. The place was still very clean, looking at each other the three shrugged before heading to the kitchen for something to eat.

In the kitchen Hinata pulled out some bread, while Lee grabbed some peanut butter and jelly from the fridge. Naru grabbed some plates and a butter knife.

The exhaustion they all felt was palpable as they ate mechanically. The food while filling, tasted like ash in their mouths.

Nodding to each other they waited respectfully for everyone to have a bath. Before they headed off to bed. After all tomorrow was a new day and there was things that would have to be done.

0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0

Lee yawned as the morning light filled his room. _must of forgotten to close the curtains last night._ he groaned as he rolled over, taking extra care not to bump or jostle his injured arm. _No time like the present._ he grumbled on his way to the bathroom. Normally a morning person, today was just not his day.

All he wanted was to head back to his wonderfully comfortable bed and not reemerge for fifty or so years.

Jumping in a shower he hurriedly washed and brushed his teeth. He knew the girls would wake up soon as well and the least he could do was start on breakfast. Not caring that he forgot his clothes, he just wrapped a towel around his waist and walked back to his room to change. So what if the girls saw him. A few weeks in anbu had taken care of most of the modesty issues. They had showered in each others presence and changed in front of each other. Though they made sure to keep their eyes averted, mostly for Hinata's sake as she still blushed neon red whenever they hit the coed baths.

Walking to his closet, Lee sorted through his clothes and frowned. _huh, I thought this shirt fit me before I left. wasn't this jumpsuit a little looser? I know these pants weren't so small before, I bought them two weeks before I left…_ He sighed, looks like he had to do some clothes shopping today as well. Good thing he was on light duty and couldn't take any active missions right now. Showing up at the mission desk with cloths two sizes to small and he would never here the end of it.

Grumbling louder, he grabbed a pair of loose sweat pants and a large, slightly ratty t-shirt before walking out of his room towards the kitchen.

_Lets see…we have eggs, dried ramen, some bread, half a wheel of cheese…huh that's it._ looks like he was also needing to head out for some groceries, and knowing Hinata, they were heading to the market. She hated grocery stores, preferring to eat as healthy as possible. Lee smiled, well they all could use the exercise.

Starting up a pot of water to boil he got out the ramen. A small whisper of cloth against a wall alerted him that he wasn't alone anymore. Moving his feet slightly apart he tensed, ready to fight at a moments notice and then relaxed when Naru and Hinata both walked around the corner.

"Morning Lee-kun"

"Morning Lee."

He grinned and said his pleasantries as well. Watching the water boil he added the dry noodle to it and waited some more. Several minutes later he added the spices to it.

To his right, Hinata had started a list of grocery items they would need to get. Behind him he could hear Naru setting the table in the dining area.

It was so very comfortable and yet, he was almost ready for one of the Shadows lackeys to jump out from behind a corner screaming obscenities and trying to recapture them or worse then that, he was almost afraid he would wake up back in that cell listening to people dying as the day wore on. He didn't know about the girls but he had a feeling the felt the same.

Shaking his head, he turned off the stove and poured out noodles and broth into everyone's respected bowls. Muttering a 'thanks for the meal', they all dug in. well he dug in and Naru practically inhaled the hot noodles in her eagerness. Hinata just sighed and told Naru to slow down or she'll choke.

At least some thing were still normal.

He cleared his throat, "After we go shopping for some groceries, I need to head out and pick up some clothes. Most of mine don't seem to fit anymore."

Naru looked up from her noodles and swallowed before talking. "yeah I'm with Lee here. Must of grown while we were away, most of my clothes don't fit very well anymore either."

Hinata looked between both of them before nodding. "guess I'll get some new clothes as well. We all could use a change in style now that we are shinobi. We'll need different outfits for different missions." they all nodded.

With that everyone hurried to eat the rest of breakfast, before heading to the front door. Lee felt something brush his shin and looked down at Yakennono, the small mouse was the size of a medium dog now and if what he knew about summons was true, they got hell of a lot bigger once they got older. Hinata grabbed him under the mouse's arms and walked over to the door.

Hmm, he really should check on his own summons soon. Oh well, on to shopping.

Even though it was early in the morning, nothing could stop Konoha wives, mothers and die-hard shoppers from getting the normal day going. The shops had been opened up at dawn and all three friends found it insanely difficult to move around the virtual sea of people.

The sounds of people calling out prices, haggling, and even arguing filled the air as Hinata handed each a list. Naru was back on getting meats, seafood, and any good dairy products while Lee was supposed to get fruits and vegetables. That left spices for Hinata.

With a sudden cheer all three of them leapt away using their ninja abilities to maneuver around the early risers.

0-0-0-0-0-0-0-00-0-

Flashing around the crowd Naru grinned. Konoha was a normally peaceful place until you hit the market district. The smell, the sounds, the very people were all jostled together to create a beast of arms and legs and baskets that instead of snarls, yelled out prices for fresh baked bread. She snickered at the mental image before jumping down from the shop roof she had perched on.

The shop was the same butcher shop she had visited before she left. Walking through the door she saw it was slightly crowded as mothers held the hands of slightly annoyed children and even several ninja had popped in to get some meats.

Most of the civilians glared at her when she walked up to the counter but didn't say anything. Still, she couldn't help but feel slightly annoyed herself with their pettiness. It was too early in the morning to deal with them today, especially after the botched hell she had just went through.

"Hello there little lady. I see you've come back here now." blue eyes shifted to take in the heavy man who was the butcher. His dark eyes crinkled up in a soft smile that showed his grandfatherly features

She returned the smile, "yes, I need two pounds of the beef and pork cubes, a whole chicken, three pounds of the duck breast and a pound of the bacon fillets, please."

The old man chuckled at the order before picking up his cleaver and getting to work. She walked away from the counter and took an empty seat a she waited. Seeing the glares burn just a bit brighter, she grabbed a worn magazine and pretended to read it as she shielded herself from the stares and muttered comments.

"Order fifty-eight, two pounds beef and pork cubes, whole chicken, three pounds duck breast and a pound of bacon fillets." a person working the counter said.

Seeing her order done, Naru walked over and filled up her basket and paid the man plus a small tip for service and said her goodbyes as she left.

Outside she felt just a bit better. Shaking her head she walked to the fishmongers and picked up some trout, some bluegill, and salmon and several pounds of shrimp. Hinata like them with melted butter. Again paying the couple who worked the shop, she muttered a goodbye and walked back towards the grocery store for the milks and cheeses.

Once she was done, she waited for the others to get done with their errands. Boy, being bored was so boring. She wanted to go on a mission, hell even the academy would be better then just waiting for something to happen.

She smiled when she finally felt her two teammates reach her. They, like her, were laden down with groceries. Nodding her head at them, they walked to the clothing district of the market place.

0-0-0-0-0-0-0

It was a shop called dragons scale designs. Small, almost to the point of being unnoticeable it was ran by a old woman in her eighties. Her eyes were nearly white color from age and her skin was soft and wrinkly. Her hair, which nearly touched the floor, was completely straight and thin and the softest color of silvery-white.

She had used to run this tiny shop with her husband, but he had died nearly twenty years ago. Never had children of her own and thus had always been sweet on the Uzumaki child that had once hid in her shop from the scary mobs.

She was so old she hardly even remembered her own name anymore and thus had a bit of a scattered brain personality. But she did love children and always treated them well. Though that could be said by the few shinobi that came to her for new clothes that were both stylish and durable. To her, even the Sandaime was naught but a younger man, and she knew him well; after all, she had been the one to provide him with his first shinobi outfit.

Maybe her name had started with an H… Maybe?

True she was old, nearly ancient even by civilian standards but not without the wisdom of her years. She may have never been a shinobi but that didn't mean she couldn't be as spry or benevolent as the best of them. She saw what most never even took the time to learn of - like when the Sandaime was ready to retire or when the Namikaze boy had finally knocked his beautiful woman up. No, she understood well enough and too this day, had kept her peace and mouth firmly shut.

The door chime rang sweetly out into the lonely shop as three children walked in.

_Shinobi_. The woman thought. They didn't look the part, which really didn't matter in a '_ninja'_ village. But it was the way they acted that had her answers.

They moved with an odd grace. Less like assassins and more like dancers. Every step was choreographed with rhythm and agility, poised like a falcon, ready to fly at any given moment. The way they flanked each other, close enough to help defend, far enough away not to hinder a fight… it was almost beautiful. Especially to one of her years.

To her, these children reminded her of a flock of bats. One wrong or sudden move, and the whole mass took off as one in a graceful cloud few animals or even ninjas could ever hope to match.

It was also sad. It always was when they youngest, the brightest and the best had to be chosen at such tender ages. So young, they should be with their mamas and papas, playing in the dirt or sitting in a stuffy academy room, not fighting wars and creating jutsu.

They say a ninjas childhood is over when you know you're going to die. Sometimes it ends sooner than that.

0-0-0-0-0-0-0

Lee whistled at the interior of the shop Naru had dragged them too.

Gilded walls with pretty designs covered the expense, only hidden when a rack of clothing got in the way. Colors ranging from the deepest of reds to the brightest of whites gave the room the impression of being on fire. He liked it.

Looking at the wares, he nodded to himself.

Mainly the place seemed to cater to shinobi and their lifestyle with heavy, durable fabrics and chain mail, mesh. There was even some weapons - kunai, shurikan, katana and tanto's. but on some other sides there was normal, everyday clothes. Shirts, pants, jackets and underwear and bras and panties.

Looking around he saw some small little rooms and guessed that that is where they would try on the garments. Next to those was a circular entryway that seemed to lead further into the seemingly small shop. If he was a betting man, he would lay some cash on that way lead to more outfits or even to custom made items. Turning around to look at the girls he blanched when he realized they had already disappeared to look around.

Sighing, Lee walked over to a small shelf that carried mainly green items. He found a green jumpsuit, like Gai-sensei's and immediately ran to a room to change into it. He was so excited, his old one had been ruined beyond mending.

Sliding into the oddly soft outfit Lee smiled wide. It was far different from his old one definably, this one felt far more comfortable. It was also slick, and the fabric seemed to whisk away his moisture. It seemed to keep him cool. Grinning like a loon, he slammed open the small wooden door and modeled his outfit to both Naru and Hinata.

Lee never noticed the crone like woman behind him.

0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0

Naru noticed. Noticed that jumpsuits would never be attractive that is. God, it was green and nearly skintight and green. She liked green but she wasn't obsessed with the color like her male teammate was. She studiously ignored the look Hinata threw her that screamed _'this is how you are with the color orange.'_.

It wasn't like she was obsessed with orange, she just liked the color and the individuality it brought her. Besides, nobody messed with orange.

A small flicker of bright grey shook her out of her musings. It was aforementioned, bright, but it was also tattered and layered with what seemed to be a hurricane of random colors.

A whisper in her mind said they weren't just colors spinning around someone, that they served an even bigger purpose. Now normally Naru wouldn't listen to strange voices in her head, but this time she actually considered what was happening. One, she was the Kyuubi jailor, thus weird conversations in her mind seemed logical but only when the fox talked back. Two, she really wasn't sure it was a voice that was telling her about the odd colors… more like, instincts or something or other. Either way, she decided to listen.

Blue seemed sad or melancholy. Pink was shy or unsure. Yellow was a happy color, so was purple. Bright lime green seemed ugly… like it gave her the feeling of a snake in the underbrush two inches from her feet. She didn't like that feeling.

These were just some of the colors - _emotions, _that she knew. As far as she could tell, only she had these talents in the whole village, maybe the world. Not to mention she would only tell a select group of people, this was for a very good reason. The council, made up of shinobi and civilian, was power hungry and very dangerous, especially to her because of her tenant. If they caught wind of her being able to sense emotions of people or worse found out she is the only one capable of doing so, she could kiss her ass goodbye.

Best cause scenario is they marry her off to a clan member of Konoha. Worst case is they marry her off in a alliance treaty or deal as a way to cement loyalty to the village. In either case she would probably have to quit being a konoichi. Naru shuddered at the thought.

Back to those emotions though, she realized she knew the person.

A grin split her whiskered face as she smiled. "Heya Hag!"

Behind her, both genin face palmed at the audacity of their friend. Meanwhile the old woman smiled comfortingly. "such a good looking boy." she chuckled as he blushed, before she continued, "but you cant leave in such a uncompleted outfit. No, no it missing something."

Creaking by them, she grabbed a loose kimono top with the pattern of a Chinese dragon on it. "try this one on."

Lee grabbed it gingerly, looking it over in approval. It was light weight, almost spandex in texture and feel. It showed a Chinese dragon in green and reds and a light blue. Around the design was a flaming design in black and white that complimented the creamy color of the shirt as a whole.

Putting it on over his jumpsuit he noticed it went to mid thigh in length and covered the palms of his hands, only leaving his fingers exposed. He definitely liked the bell styled sleeves. Looking back at the old woman he bowed low in thanks.

Smiling back at the boy, she whipped out a slender pipe, seemingly from nowhere and turned to her next two victims. "Now you two."

Naru smiled and pushed Hinata forward. True she was all for sticking up for her friends and all that jazz, but Hinata needed far more human interaction than she did at least that's what she was telling herself.

Grinning at the Hag, she purred, "do what ya will. She needs all the help she can get."

Ignoring the cries of her friend she took to simply watching the puttering of the hag and her unwilling victim. Laughing all the while.

0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0

Hinata glanced in mortification as Naru picked up some skimpy outfit that barely qualified as clothing. It had been an hour already and she sighed. This wasn't getting them anywhere.

Looking over her shoulder she grimaced at the growing pile of rejected outfits. She liked her outfit as it was and had only gone with her teammates for shopping and moral support. Besides, she didn't need anything.

A small squeak drew her gaze back at the mouse babe. His pink eyes glared at her in what seemed like annoyance as he nudged the girls shin. Sighing in defeat, she picked him up and walked over to the small group.

"Child, you be stubborn as a ox. You stay in your families shadow. Not living is what you be doing." the whispery voice chided her. Was she being stubborn, sure. Did it have anything to do with her family, not at all. But just because she didn't want to pick out some clothes didn't mean she was wallowing in self-pity, it just meant she didn't want to pick out clothes.

_Even-tempered, be even-tempered. Discipline_. "I just don't want to wear anything new. that's not a crime." Hinata ignored the shocked looks of her teammates, instead choosing to stare into the weathered face of the smoking woman.

A puff of smoke escaped pale lips as the woman answered back, "I never said it was child."

Suddenly a immense feeling of anger washed over her and she could no longer contain the dam over that emotion. "what do you know, huh! Did your family kick you out for being different, for being weak. No, then you have no right to judge my choices. I am disowned, my little sister is being groomed to take my place, the clan elders tried to place a seal on me and I am constantly expected to be complacent in all of this. I have been abandoned by my family, captured by an enemy I know little about, trained by anbu and learning medical justu. I have become a Mice summoner, genin far too young, and I'm on a team with two of the loudest and exuberant genin on this planet. SO TELL ME WHAT YOU KNOW ABOUT MY PAST!"

Hinata gulped in large breaths of air as she tried to calm her racing heart. The adrenaline flowing through her heated blood seemed to boil as her rage and anger simmered readily. Like a pot of water close to boiling over. Something wet dripped past her cheeks, in the back of her mind she realized that they were tears. She didn't move to wipe them.

Her hands clenched so tight, she felt the muscles freeze up. Still she watched the smoking woman with a false sense of calm, waiting warily for a response to her near hysterical question.

The old woman pulled the pipe away from her lips and looked over at the trembling girl. _so young. _she thought. So naïve about the harsher truths that reality threw at one. How life was about change and balance.

Her clan was nothing but fools. Like preening buffoons, they looked away from the child and left her in gilded neglect. Taught how to fight, they didn't teach her the fluidity of form. Taught to lock up most emotions, they didn't teach her how to embrace nor control those which would keep her sane. No they only taught which they felt she couldn't do without and cut off all the rest of the lesson. _So foolish._

Sighing she decided to answer in the only way she knew how, bluntly. " you are wrong." before the girl could explode once more she continued on. "I've excepted that Clan Hyuuga is nothing but a family of idiots, I don't want to except you as one of them. You have more potential out of them all and the fire and compassion to be a great leader. Truly their loss is your gain. You ask how I know you, I see which you allow yourself to be blind to."

She drew in a drag of her pipe and looked into the pupil less eyes of the child. "you are changed girl. Embrace it or be lost to it, matters not to me but all to you. You cannot hide from this forever. You are forged in the fires of adversity and cooled in the streams of acceptance. Move on from this pain, grow stronger from it. You have friends who love and care for you. A partner in that mouse summons who you must train and care for as well. Too long have you been a bird who thinks their wings are clipped. Now you must fly free, open the cage door and leap into the air and fly towards who you wish to be. I know you are stronger for this, learn to show the changes in yourself so you may walk beside those you care for, before they move on as well."

Fat tears flowed out of the lavender eyes as the girl pitched forward to her knees. A small keening wail and sharp gasps left cupid bow lips as the child cried. A blur of green and orange raced past her and dropped around the lost girl, hugging her and whispering anything and everything.

Before them stood an old woman, a slender pipe cradled in a gnarled hand weathered and spotted with age as thin wispy columns of smoke burned upwards towards the ceiling. It was harsh, in was blunt and quite possible rude, but with all her aged heart knew it was what the girl needed to move past her issues. Oh not all of them, she would need time, maybe more than she would ever have to help push past this and leave it all in the pages of her history.

She just hoped it wouldn't take her so long to realize it.

0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0

Naru had never seen her friend like this and it scared her.

Hinata was the quiet, shy one. The balance to their crazy team, she was the one who saw reason where only irrationality stood. Sure she knew how Hinata had come to her life, Lee had his assumptions, but never in their wildest dreams did they think she was this damaged by her clan and past.

She had remembered Crane-sensei saying once in a meeting, "All shinobi are damaged goods. The least desirable apple left on the shelf to rot and waste away as it watched all its bushel carried off. But from its sacrifice, a seed is left behind to grow into a mighty tree to bare more apples left to be undesired. A cycle more timeless than war itself."

She took those words to heart.

As long as there have been people on this planet, there have been those who never quite fit in. those who are lost, damaged or alone, they prevail in their own secret ways and find ways to cope with being different. Even among those who don't fit in, there are still some who don't even click with them. such is the way of the outcast.

And as sad as that may be, it was a truth none the less. It didn't mean she had to like it though.

She, Hinata and Lee, they had all known that feeling of never belonging. To look over you shoulder and watch parents play with their children, couples eating at picnics, or watching kids play with friends at the academy. To know that you must put on a mask and face the world with a smile, no matter how fake it was, and wander through life always wondering what could have been. It was a lonely existence.

Then she met Hinata and they had clicked, then they both met Lee. They formed a group, a team. They lived for each other. Then they had been captured, which hadn't been fun and was more than a little scary. But had met two insane women that quickly wormed their way into the genins hearts. Family, such a simple word and yet, it meant everything to three attention-starved children.

So she vowed to make sure Hinata never felt like this again. She would make sure the Hyuuga clan reaped what they sowed and would protect her family from themselves if need be. She would become Hokage and fight for not only the village, but for all of those who had become outcasts in this world. She would never go back on this promise of a lifetime.

0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0

Thirty minutes later had everyone up and moving around again, this time with Hinata actually helping find an outfit. Small chuckles could be heard, besides Naru's loud mouth going a million miles a minute, as everyone tried to help the shy genin with her changes.

"Oi, Hinata. How about these ninja pants." Naru yelled from across the store.

"Hina-chan, what do you think about this shirt, it has silky sleeves." a small whack was heard as Lee tripped over a bench trying to show her the shirt.

A chuckle sounded by her ear as a older voice talked. " Keep the pants, I have some arm and shin guards that would fit with this lovely fur cloak she be wearing. Lee-kun, grab me that chain mail shirt please, the one that looks like mesh. No the other one…good, bring it here."

Smiling at the flurry of movement, Hinata felt better. The all had forgiven her for that horrible outburst. Not that it didn't make her feel like a fool, but still. It was the thought that counted right. "How about these fingerless and palm-less gloves. They would suit my style more so."

"Great idea, Hina-chan. We can even get small metal plates sown on the backs of them."

"oh, great idea. Hey lets all get some. We can have matching ones and we can have Hana engrave them with our team symbol when we have one." Naru agreed readily.

A small push on the small of her back had Hinata stumbling forward. Looking back she saw the old woman nodding towards the changing room, coincidently drawing her gaze to the small bundle of clothes that had somehow made there way into her arms.

Sighing in resignation she marched onwards. Like a lioness going into battle or something.

To everyone outside, it sounded like a one way conversation was going on in the cramped little space. Shrugging it off, they waited for the unveiling, so to speak.

Ten minutes and some colorful threats later, Hinata finally walked out.

Dressed in slightly baggy shinobi pants in a dark blue, they fit well with the chain mail shirt and cloak. The gloves were snug on her hands leaving most of her fingers free as well as her palms. They were made of a black leather that was soft and pliable. The shirt was quarter sleeved and reached just above her elbows. Around her forearms sat plated arm protectors that looked and felt almost like arm warmers. The same was on the shin protectors as well. And finally on her feet, were heeled shinobi sandals in a muted blue color.

All in all she was dressed to a tee. She hardly looked like the old Hinata now, though everyone was smart enough to see that though some of her had changed, she was still the gentle and caring girl she may always be.

Amidst the congrats and awe, Hinata shot a pointed look at Naru, a smile so sly, her other female teammate actually felt immense pride in also felt like running away from.

She got two steps before the Hag had her in a death grip and was dragging her off to the farthest corners of the tiny store.

"now for you child, follow me."

0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0

"How about this one Naru. It has orange in it."

"Hell no, that's a dress. I'm a ninja not a fan girl or have you forgotten that." snarled Naru.

Hinata simply stared at the violent and stubborn girl, trying to hold back a laugh when she was smacked by the old woman with the pipe. "yes, we all know you aren't a fan girl Naru. You don't need to keep reminding us every thirty seconds."

A huffing sound from the orange genin gave the other ninja a shudder. _here we go._ they all thought.

Naru didn't disappoint. "I'm a konoichi. A female ninja. That doesn't mean I have to dress femalely. I want something practical, something I can fight in and look badass in, not something someone will say I have a _great_ ass in. come on guys, isn't there anything we can find, that doesn't have me showing off my legs or ass in." the last part was sarcastic as all get out.

A collective sigh came from everyone as they all got back to work. Really, Naru was the youngest out of the group, but she could bitch out everyone ten years older than her. Must be talent in it purest form.

"How about these Naru-chan. They are shinobi pants that end at the knees. It even has some type of blue design on them." Lee called out hopefully.

The old Hag nodded thoughtfully at his choice. They would look good on the practical girl. She even had some heeled shinobi sandals that would fit those perfectly. The only problem is, how to get her to wear them willingly?

"the boy is right child, take them. They will be your best option." she croaked out.

Mumbling about how hard it was to maintain her badass look when everyone wanted to change it into something girly. She grimaced, thinking of a pink haired banshee that always fought with a blonde haired one. Now that was truly something to fear.

Walking over to Lee, she could at least think he had some good choices. The pants material was cotton and loose. Black fabric was stretchy enough to provide comfort and would give her full range of movement. Something she liked. The blue designs seemed to be sky colored and showed spirals at the hips along with slashes of that same blue going along the shins and calves.

They seemed pretty not that she would ever admit out loud, but she liked them. a lot.

"they'll do." she muttered.

Hinata walked up to her a series of shirts hanging from her delicate arms. "What do you think about these Naru?" she asked.

Naru looked at each one, deep creases forming along her forehead as she contemplated them. There were three shirts. One was a blue short sleeve shirt with orange trimming along the edges of the sleeves and neckline. A dark grey mesh shirt, long sleeved with a long v-cut at the neckline. The last one was a black mesh shirt no sleeves and a high wrap around the throat neckline. It had a sports bra like insert attached to it to cover the breasts.

She didn't like the t-shirt looking one so much, though it offered the most coverage. That left both mesh shirts. Deciding with the one that gave her a slight sense of modesty, she chose the no sleeved one.

Running to the changing room she hurried to get into the new clothes before her crazy friends decided on some other fashion trend - like pink or bright purple or polka dots, kami forbid it.

Walking out she was greeted by cat calls and whistles, playing along though her nerves felt jumpy, she fake cat walked over to the smiling group.

Lee grinned brightly at her. "well Naru-chan, how do you feel?"

Looking at herself in a long mirror, she admitted privately, that she looked good. The clothes fell and hugged her developing form in all the right places, plus the colors suited her beautifully.

"I love it…but it seems to be missing some things?"

A tap on the shoulder had her looking back at the Hag. Her hands held a long trench coat that was a deep ocean blue with white trim. A spiral was placed in the center of the back and at the left shoulder. It even had a hood.

"I have been holding on to this old thing for countless seasons…its time it goes to a good person. I made it when I was younger for a beautiful woman who had just come to Konoha…she never came to retrieve it though, I searched everywhere for her. You take it. Who knows, maybe it will bring you luck." she said. The light of her years reflected in those near colorless orbs.

Reverently grabbing it, Naru gave a low nod. Gently putting it on, almost like she was scared it would fall away into dust, she sighed at the feel of the heavy cloth. It looked gorgeous. The blue really brought out the mix of blues in her eyes.

Smiling at the reflection of the woman in the mirror she said, "I love it…I will treasure this." a small smile was her answer.

After a few more minutes in which the trio managed to get Naru into a pair of heeled shinobi combat sandals, the gathered up their things, paid and headed home. Looking back at the sun, Lee guessed they had a few more hours till the sun went down.

Hinata caught his eye and with a gentle nudge to Naru, the three jumped up onto the roofs and sped down the street. A small blur which looked vaguely mouse shaped, though it was far too big, ran right beside them.

Not that anyone saw them go.

0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0

Naru looked out the large office window, steadily ignoring the score of hidden anbu and two old geezers as she looked towards the Hokage monument. Truly it was a sight to see in the sunsets light. All gold and red and orange, glowing like fire in the last hours of the day.

Beside her stood Hinata and Lee. Like always, she felt proud to call them her friends and teammates. Today was no different, in fact it was even more special. They were getting an announcement about their new team leader or sensei or some other crap. The important thing here was she was finally going to get back to training and maybe start up on missions. Kami knew it had been too long. Hell even good natured Hinata was starting to get stir crazy from being so inactive.

Now if only she could get away from the piercing stare of those two old codgers. It wasn't like she didn't trust them, its just that she didn't trust them. They seemed tense, like they were waiting for her to suddenly shift into a monster and eat them or something. It was getting on her nerves.

Snapping away from the window she looked at her leader. His heavy robes and funny hat seemed to swallow him up as he sat in his chair. Next too him stood another old looking dude, only this one seemed to have started a fight with a blender - and lost. His arm was slinged, and he seemed to be trying to promote a mummy fashion trend. She didn't think it was hitting off, maybe in a few years.

When she had walked in with her teammates, he was introduced as Danzo, or was it Dango? Maa, she couldn't remember. Damn, maybe Hinata had caught his name.

Still he gave her the creeps. The emotional lightshow that normally hovered around a person was almost entirely black when she looked at him. She made sure to keep away from him. Absence of colors seemed to mean bad things, like a huge ass caution sign and then a stop sign and then a sign calling you a dumbass for ignoring the other two all rolled into one.

"welcome genin team one. I'm pleased to see you have all managed to heal your injuries. By now you have passed the genin test and in light of how your subsequent capture and escape has happened we, the council of Konoha, have decided to waive the secret genin test that you would have taken with your jonin sensei. You have showed great skill and remarkable teamwork and this has only made the team stronger in return."

Naru stood just a bit straighter as her Hokage gave a speech on how badass they were. Not that she needed one, she was well aware of how cool her team was. Oh yeah, they kicked all kinds of ass. Beside her she could literally feel the pride rolling off her friends.

" now without further deliberation, I have picked out the jonin sensei who will be in charge of you until you make chunin or some other such promotion…Anbu please escort in the new sensei for genin cell one." the aged Kage asked.

It seemed like an hour, really it was like thirty seconds but who was counting before someone walked through the door. Someone who the genin would have never thought would take a genin cell, like ever.

"_ANKO"_!?

Okay Naru was confused. What the fuck was going on here? Why was Anko, who everyone knew had more then a few kunai missing from the pouch, taking a cell, it made no sense. Especially because she swore she would never be a sensei, she claimed to like T&amp;I way to much to simple put it on hold for a few snot-nosed brats who didn't know a damn thing.

Sure the genin liked her. She was fun and direct. Loved to play mind games and was always saying how sexy she was. They knew she had a summoning with snakes and was haunted by a past she wouldn't tell anyone about but most people seemed to know already. But for her to come by and claim a team, now that was way to odd.

Stepping forward she addressed the purple haired woman. "Anko…what's going on here?"

A cleared throat had them all turning to the Hokage as he smoked on his pipe. "while you were all captured, Anko here took the jonin sensei exam. She decided to lay claim on your team when you all came back safe. As of now, she is your commander, sensei and confident. Learn from her and grow stronger…if that is all, meeting adjourned."

Anko turned to the stunned trio and grinned dangerously. "alright team, meet at the Dango shop in ten minutes or well have remedial training." she grinned as she poofed away. The stares of shock, so delightful on her new victims faces.

0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0

Running into the shop Naru, Hinata and Lee all collapsed into their respective chairs at the table dead center in the room. Anko of course was already there, a large plate of dango laid innocently in the center. Her dark eyes watched the group as they struggled to breathe. Aw, they were out of shape. She mentally grinned. She could fix that.

It was a few minutes before one of her new charges spoke. "Anko-sensei…so we are now a team?" ah, so Hinata was going to speak first. Interesting. Naru or Lee were the outspoken ones in the bunch, therefore she had thought those two would have jump at the chance for questions.

"Yes my cute, little genin. We most certainly are. Oh but don't worry, I promise to only work you mostly to death. Cant have the Hokage breathing down my neck at three new genins untimely demises now can we." she purred.

Three bland looks met hers as she mentally sweat-dropped. Jeez, kids now days.

Rolling her eyes she started her new job. "anyways eat up, we have a lot to cover and so very little time to do it. And with the way im going to train you, you all will need the extra food."

Muttering about trivial things, the three genin practically inhaled the food, never once noticing how odd it was that their new sensei didn't eat with them.

Anko meanwhile sighed. _just as I thought. They didn't once check their surroundings nor the food itself. Getting here early allowed me to place a mild sleeping serum in the dango sauce. Odorless, colorless but not tasteless. This is stuff they had been taught in anbu, so that begs the question why abandon the teachings now…just because we are in our own village doesn't mean we cant have enemies both foreign and domestic, lying in wait for the perfect opportunity to kill us when our guards are down._

Shaking herself out of those thoughts, she watched as the genin started to nod off. First was Naru, who without the Fox, was having a harder time with detox and muted senses. Normally she would have been able to smell it or taste it at least. Next was Lee who fell face first next to his pile of skewers. She thought that was a funny sight for the mini Gai clone. Last but not least was Hinata, she slumped almost gracefully in her chair.

Forcing away the residual guilt at such a harsh method, she stood up and walked over to the three. Summoning some snakes she had them help carry the load of genin over to training ground forty four. Also known as the forest of death.

This was her backyard and home away from home. Now it was going to be the genins hell away from heaven for the next two weeks. She would teach them all about being a ninja. About life in general and unlike her teacher, she wouldn't abandon them to a life of misery. Always wondering why.

Walking over too the gate at one of the entrances, she flashed through some hand signs and teleported them to a semi-large building. Dead center in the middle of the extremely hostile forest.

Let the fun begin.

0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0

The first thing Naru felt when she woke up was the splitting headache beginning in the front of her forehead.

The second was she was in an unfamiliar room with both Hinata and Lee, both were thankfully awake and watching the still form of their new sensei.

Dark eyes opened and blinked almost cheerily at the three bewildered shinobi. "good morning my cute little students. Sleep well."

Naru shot out of bed at that. " Anko you drugged us didn't you." she yelled out in outrage. The other two looked between their fuming teammate and the grinning sensei.

"Yep." that grin was annoying. "but its not my fault that all three of you have let yourselves go so lax in your trainings. Honestly, an academy student could have tasted that serum in their food at the first bite. So why couldn't three anbu trained shinobi do the same?"

Both Lee and Hinata looked down in shame as Naru just crossed her arms and huffed in annoyance, a mild blush colored her face.

Sighing, Anko looked at her charges and thought grimly, _this is bad._ "well enough about potentially deadly thoughts. Its about time we start training. And I know just the thing."

Twenty minutes later

"Here's what we are going to learn for the next two weeks you will be here. Teamwork and strategy. Next speed, strength and agility training will be focused on in week one. Saturdays are days off to recoup and relax. The second week is going to be advanced poison, medical and T&amp;I courses as well as Taijustu, ninjustu, fuinjustu and Genjustu. Then at the very last day of the week we will have a survival course for you to run that basically will outline all of what you have learned. Any questions? Good lets get started shall we."

Somewhere in training ground forty four, screams that sounded like the souls of the tortured damned, rang out clear and strong. Not a bad start for a Sunday morning.


	16. Chapter 16

Chapter sixteen

Training and Snakes and illusions.

"_Losing an illusion makes you wiser than finding a truth." _

_~Ludwig Borne_

Forest of death.

Day - unknown.

Team Anko, cell one.

The forest was silent.

Not the natural silence that permeated clearings and lazy afternoons in a grassy glade. No this silence was the type of haunted building and gory murder scenes. The type of quiet and calm that preceded the rising storm or the moment before a trapped animal knew it was dead.

Between the massive roots of the equally massive trees, three shapes flashed like shadows. The flight was fast and sure. This was stealth at its most practiced.

It was nearly five in the morning and all three shadows were tired.

The tallest of the three was a boy, built with corded muscle and a slightly messy bowl cut mop of hair. Clothed in shades of green he almost seemed to shimmer away from the background, like a forest sprite emerging from his secret hideaway. Black eyes gleamed in the false dawn light as he surveyed the spot his team leader had chosen.

_Flashback_

_**It was still early in the morning when Anko had thrown in some flash bombs into the genin's rooms. **_

_**It was two minutes after that, that her sweet and almost painfully innocent new students managed to crawl out into the cramped hallway before her. she sweat dropped at the crusty eyes and drool stained mouth corners.**_

_**Shaking her head she addressed the small group. "slept well, great. Today we have a few things to hash out before I decide to start your training. First things first, we need to decide on a team leader.**_

_**Lee and Hinata shared a slight look with each other as Naru crossed her arms together and said, "Team Leader? I thought you were our team leader." she shivered at the sadistic smile on her sensei's face.**_

"_**oh but I am…of a sorts that is. See as your new sensei I have a small say in what happens in you daily lives and an even bigger say in you team decisions, but that doesn't make me your leader fully. Every leader has a second in command, and that is what your team leader is. I am here as a sounding board in both training and missions, but most of my job is going to sit back and watch you guys make decisions." she said, looking all of them in the eye.**_

_**Hinata raised her hand and said, "Sensei…how are we going to choose between the three of us. It doesn't seem fair."**_

_**Anko nodded along with her. It wasn't fair, but then again that's how it was designed. Forcing all of the students to basically argue and fight each other over a small role of authority. The truth was, it wasn't about ones self that mattered here, only the good of the whole team and what was good for the good of everyone.**_

_**Lee cleared his throat when Anko looked back at him. "this is majority vote then?" he clenched his hands when she nodded. "In that case I choose Naru."**_

_**The sputtered denials and curses vaguely thundered in the hall as Naru immediately denied it. Meanwhile Anko and Hinata watched the older boy in puzzlement. He chuckled mentally at their funny faces before continuing. "Naru stop and listen for once. I think you would make the best choice for team leader. Not only are you smart and resourceful, you also have loyalty and ambition down to boot. You think of solutions to problems outside the box and you push us to be better without resorting to putting others down."**_

_**Beside him Hinata nodded before saying, "yes I see your point. Naru what Lee says is true, you have such amazing qualities that truly do make you the best bet for leader."**_

_**Tsking her tongue at them she grumbled, "what about you too then huh? Why cant either of you guys be the TL." she looked hotly at her frowning teammates.**_

_**Lee sighed, this was getting them nowhere fast. "I'm too emotional to be a great leader. In a leadership position one needs to be capable of being in control at all times. Never showing what doesn't need to be seen but always hinting." he shot a look to the dark haired konoichi at his side, "and Hinata wouldn't be a great choice because she lacks the suave conversational know-how and confidence. Something you have in spades."**_

_**Snorting Naru looked at their frowning sensei. What did she make of all of this.**_

_**Looking at the expectant faces of her new team Anko nodded seriously. "its true Blondie. Lee is way to emotional to lead a successful mission at this time because he lacks control over those annoying little feelings normal people get. Plus he lacks tact even on a good day, and his wild actions and constant weirdness would cause rifts on too many important decisions." she gleefully ignored the burning glare of said boy.**_

"_**as for Hinata…well, she's shy and is very, very emotionally damaged. Meaning she lacks the little voice in her head that says be assertive, confident. That and she has personal shell so wide I could host a Taijustu tournament on it. No offence girl but we need to work on that. I know your clan did a shit ton of damage to you and a all that and a bag of chips but come on already. You need to live a little."**_

_**Looking at her blonde menace she grinned evilly, "that leaves you pudding pop. Now I know the academy was a shit hole in a wall and sucked the creativity out of almost all its students but you managed to beat it. You can think outside the box, like Lee said, and you can change plans at the drop of a hat. You don't discriminate or allow you emotions to mostly rule you. Plus, you see thing others wouldn't see. All of these along with others make you the most suited so shut up and accept the position before I become bored."**_

_**Seeing her mouth open, no doubt to continue the argument, Anko hurriedly added, "plus, think of this as training for when you compete to be Hokage."**_

_**Naru shut her mouth with an audible click. True, she needed the experience when it came time for her to take the hat, but…she was so young right now. She didn't know the first thing about leading a team or healing broken psyches or taking command of a situation. She was already over demanded as it was. But she had no choice.**_

_**Steeling her voice as best she could she met the multi-hued orbs of her team and braced herself.**_

"_**I'll do it."**_

_Flashback end_

Looking at the well hidden glen, the three started on their orders.

Hinata went of to find something to eat, while Naru set up a perimeter and organized the watch schedule for that night.

Shrugging off the slightly ratty pack he was carrying, he set off to find some wood for shelters, maybe even a fire if they all were lucky. Though it was summer in Hi No Kuni, training ground forty-four was always shaded and cold, no light really penetrating the through the thick upper canopy of the great trees. The last few nights had been especially uncomfortable. Besides, fire to warm the food, warmth and light was always appreciated.

Grabbing a few strong looking branches, Lee carefully walked backwards the way he had come, using a smaller branch crowned in waxy green leaves to wipe away his trail. He grinned at the thought of the lean-to he could make with all this debris on the ground. Leaves and some dry moss for cushion and a small roof like structure to ward off the elements.

He was almost back to the glen when he felt a shiver go up his spine. Tensing slightly, he gripped his load loosely, prepared to drop it and move away at a seconds notice. He didn't hear any bug sounds, but farther away was a few birds chatting at each other. He narrowed his eyes. _no bug sounds, but I still her bird calls. Hmm, so the animals sense someone is here. Could be…No, we left that behind two days ago, but still…_

A twig snapped behind him and he moved into action. A clatter of wood hitting wood echoed unnaturally loud in the still air as he moved like a blur until he was standing behind the assailant, a kunai held tantalizingly close to a tan neck.

"Naru? What the hell, you scared the hell out of me." he yelled, quickly dropping the weapon from his TL's throat. His heart beating so fast he was pretty sure it had stopped.

In front of him Naru gulped in some air. Fuck, they all were tense. This wasn't good, soon they'd be jumping at shadows, next they all would end up attacking each other. Taking a few steps away from the green loving boy, she turned around and made a shushing sign. "what the hell Lee…fuck, you almost slit my throat. What is the point of flaring out my chakra if you aren't going to recognize it."

Equally as quiet Lee whispered back, "sorry, sorry. Last few days have put me on edge. I didn't think to stop and check for familiar or foreign chakra. Honest mistake, I'll fix it and it wont happen again Naru."

Sweat-dropping at the back to cheerful boy before her, she shrugged out some lingering tenseness from her shoulders and motioned him to follow her. Which he did right after getting the wood he had dropped earlier.

"your getting faster ya know. All this running is doing wonders for all of us." she remarked.

Nodding Lee smiled back, "with all this running anyone would get faster. Three days into this forsaken forest dogging kunai and snakes really shakes the youth from ones personality."

Smacking him on the back of the head, Naru smiled back. Her eyes constantly roving their surroundings. She mentally grimaced at the current predicament. Operation get away from Anko-sensei, was for all intents and purposes, successful.

This survival test was a bitch and a half to complete, what beside everything in the fucking forest trying to either kill or eat them, not to mention their insane teacher hunting them down like common game. Not only that, she was also trying to fulfill her newest duty as TL. Setting up patrols, choosing who does what shift at watch, organizing duties when it came time to set up camp, were just some of the things she was now forced to do.

Thankfully their two weeks were almost up. Training with Anko wasn't fun.

She was half-way sadistic and the rest was insanity wrapped homicidal judgment. Still Naru thought she was the coolest teacher ever.

The first week had been hell. Kata differencing, chakra theory, endurance training, teamwork building and agility courses and speed and strength exercises had all been thrown at the mentally unprepared genin like cannonballs. Even though the majority of what they were learning was just an advanced version of the academy curriculum, they still managed to barely crawl into their bunks at the end of the days.

It truly was unsurprising that halfway through their third day of training a problem came up. Seduction missions.

The angry scream that Anko sensei had let loose scared away all the small and big game around the area in a six mile radius. Naru thought it was hilarious, while Hinata had paled so fast she rivaled a ghost under a white bed sheet. Lee just looked on at their sensei, dutifully ignoring the flaming red blush dusting his cheeks.

So led to them having a very long, very awkward talk and then some hands on training that left the three genin unable to look at each other without blushing red for three extra days.

The second week went little better.

Poison and antidote training, the main three shinobi art forms, basic medical training - taught by a jonin so it was more advanced then anything a genin would ever have access too, T&amp;I courses - how to lie, macro-expression reading, tells and how to fix them, basic torture methods, mind games and interrogation techniques including psychology classes, reverse psychology and surprisingly they were taught counseling methods. After that they learned how to do calligraphy, coding, codes, the basics of Fuinjustu and rational and irrational thinking.

On their day of "leisure", they had been suggested to learn everything they could on camp making, patrol forms, hand signals, tracking/evasion, disposal and gathering, and geography, map reading and making, as well as flora and fauna identification. Just to name a few of what they had "chosen" to learn. Still, they all could admit in the privacy of their thoughts that they were damn glad they learned everything they could.

Sure it wasn't the best, not even close but it was saving their skins now when it counted.

Seeing a shock of dark colored hair had Naru speeding up slightly. She didn't want Hinata to wait for their slow asses while they game she had bagged spoiled because they didn't hurry.

"Hinata everything okay?" she asked. The camp looked fine and more importantly, so did the other konoichi. At the others nod, she waved them off to build up a fire and steadily ignored the looks of appreciation they threw at her. Being an orphan and the Kyuubi vessel, she was uncomfortable with such things.

The sharp crackling of the fire drew the others over. Soon square cubes of what Hinata said was boar meat, were sizzling on some sticks next to the flames. The smell was indescribable after eating ration bars and some herbs to keep energy.

Grunting as she sat on a smallish rock, Naru looked over at her two companions. "tonight's watch is going to be Lee on first shift, Hinata on second, with me bring up the rear until dawn. While on watch, look for anything suspicious or out of place and make sure to give as accurate a report to the next person before you get some sleep. We don't know what sensei has planned but knowing her as well as we do - its going to be hell, so don't waste any energy needlessly okay. Also check the perimeter every once in a while, but don't make it routine okay, so change the times and lengths before you walk. This will help to keep anyone who is after us on their toes." she grabbed a boar skewer.

"what will we do if sensei attacks? We all could fight her and still not win, we just don't have the level of training or experience she has. Besides she has a mean streak a mile wide and she's not afraid to use it, especially on us." Lee asked. His round eyes watching the edges of the glen as he chewed on some meat.

Naru swallowed and looked over at the other two. "then we try to distract her." she shrugged. "not much we can do. We just have to keep from getting hurt to badly and fight until we have a window for escape. Once we have that, we run like hell."

Hinata poked her fingers together in thought. True Anko-sensei was a better fighter and stronger than all of them, but Lee and Naru both brought up great points. If they could just keep her on her toes enough then she could be bypassed easily enough. But what if she gave chase. She was also faster then them as well, plus her snake summons could track almost as well as dogs could.

A small hand fell on her shoulder causing Hinata to look up into memorable blue eyes narrowed in sympathy and understanding. "its okay Hinata. We will cross that road when we come to it. Worrying to much about something we cant control is just plain foolish and will waste energy you'll need later on."

Nodding her head she went back to eating, trying to clear her head and get ready for her watch. Naru was right, she was just being a worry-wart.

Looking back into the fire Naru watched the flames spiral in their red and orange dance. The answer was very simple, and very deadly. Anko had way too much on them and the means of an experienced shinobi to use them. If she wanted them gone, she could do it no problem and not even feel tired, but since this was a training exercise she had to settle for making an example. Which meant pain and humiliation. She narrowed her eyes and glared into the fiery depths, willing the flames to instantly freeze with just the power of her mind alone. Somehow the food in her mouth tasted like ash.

0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0

It was a quarter past two when Naru finally sat up in a tree for her watch. So far the only suspicious thing that had been noted was a giant rat-like creature had mysteriously vanished.

She was on edge.

She had a few hours of near complete silence to reflect on her past, new promotion, assignment as TL and now her rise through the ranks of leadership and responsibility. Kami she was bored. It would be easier if she could fight or move around more to help relieve the restlessness in her bones.

First things first though. _hey fox…can you hear me?_

A soft, almost groggy feeling of alertness resonated deep in the subconscious as a low growl echoed around. **what do you want. I don't have time for this shit.**

Shaking off the annoyance of basically being called worthless, she persisted. _there are some things I want to ask you and before you say you don't have time for this, just know you owe me some answers. Maybe not all of them, but some of them at least._ she mentally countered. The blonde could have grinned outright at the blatant feeling of anger of her unwitting partner.

**What do you wish to know then kit.** he grumbled.

A pause. _why did you attack the village all those years ago? What would you have stood to gain?_ she waited. The feeling of evasiveness and dare she say it rage permeated heavily amidst her thoughts.

A shallow sigh and then the fox spoke a secret as old as the child who contained him. **what you need to know Kit, is that I am the Kyuubi, the living chakra embodiment of rage. I live for causing destruction and mayhem, even if that means killing those who oppose my own way of thinking. I hate the leaf for several reasons; being used as their ultimate weapon is one of those. Another is the treatment of yourself.**

**You are my host, therefore I have more of a say in your life than should be healthy. Everyone fears you because of me and what I could do because of one night I was used for my purpose of being.** he paused to collect his thoughts before continuing.** it was on the night of October tenth, my current vessel was going through labor at the time, which offered my the perfect opportunity to escape and reek havoc. Normally I would have done just that, if the fourth damned Hokage hadn't stepped in and held up the seal throughout the birth. It was a long and very painful experience for all parties involved, believe me Kit. Anyways, everything went off without a hitch or so we thought. You were being wrapped in a blanket and handed to your mother when those two old midwives of your mothers fell to the floor, kunai and shuriken piercing their bodies. Next thing anyone knew, you were being held by this masked man. I recognized him as being an Uchiha, which one, well I thought he was dead.**

**I still strained against the seal for the duration of the fight as the fourth saved you instead of you mama. This gave that Uchiha bastard enough time to take her and rip open the seal that contained me. Sometimes I still feel the wind and the smell of the torn up earth as I came too, staring at the form of that masked asshole. He used that thrice be-damned sharrigan to take over my conscience. He used my purpose to his own vision and made me attack the village of Hidden leaves. What happened with you and the Hokage at the time, I do not know. I do know that he managed to destroy the haziness of my mind and this was when he started the sealing process to force me into the prepatory seal on your stomach. **Another pause.

**I killed your mother and the fourth Hokage before they finished the seal. I stabbed my claw threw their bellies and cursed them. But still I was sealed once more and this time into a infant without the means to protect themselves. I do not regret killing those two or the many villagers and random ninja who fell to my powers. No what I do regret is how I made your life the way it is. The villagers hate me, rightly so infact, but they bypassed me and went after you. That I cannot - will not forgive. If I ever have the chance I will take over and kill all the ones who ruined your childhood. I may hate the Fourth, but he said as his dying words, he wanted you to be seen as a hero for containing the great essence of evil. For that I can give respect.**

He stopped talking. This was something he had wanted to tell the poor child when she had gotten older, but as things were now, he felt she should know of some of the truth at least. Dark clouds were forming on the horizons foretelling of war and destruction, those who were weak would die unless the strong were prepared. And by the Kami above and his Fathers memory, his Kit would be ready for anything.

Naru turned over what he had told her. She couldn't remember of what he spoke, most likely because she had been an infant at the time. How did she know he wasn't telling her lies to win some form of sick cooperation from her. Only one way to find out.

_Kyuubi…who were my parents?_

The feeling of intense shock coursed through her body like electrical currents. How could this have been kept from her. Did the third know…he must of. How, why? every time she had asked him and every time he had denied knowledge. Why? Was it too protect her? To shelter her. Her whole world crumbled like old plaster as the words of a cynical, sadistic centuries old fox monster told her the forbidden truth.

**Uzumaki Kushina and the Fourth Hokage of the Hidden leaf village, Namikaze Minato!**

0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0

Hidden in the still smoking ruins, a once grand fortress laid bare. The walls held pockets of air while below them crumbled dust and largish bricks sat.

The place gave off billows and clouds of black smoke that smelt of sulfur and hot sand. Underneath that was the stench of decay. In a bloody arena, pile and piles of decomposing bodies sat in the harsh sun of late afternoon. The smell was sickly sweet. The smell of death.

The dead didn't care. Some bodies wore rags, others wore robes of satin and velvet. Several had the armor of warriors and some even wore nothing at all but the dirt of war and defeat. Not a single soul stirred in the hot sun, just the bloated sea of death and all its glory.

In death all are equal, for everyone will die. No one will live forever because forever is a concept the living have no use for. To the mortal eye, forever is nothing but a misguided fantasy better left to the imagination. Unlike the dead.

To those in the other world, forever is the single most truth. Once dead, you don't ever return, for the dead is eternal and that is a very long time.

For if the departed did dream, it was of dreams of mortality and the crippling sense of impending solace that drew them. To walk and talk and breathe, to live amongst family and friends long gone once more. Such a sweet lie.

Like the ruined skeleton of a once impressive fortress, death takes all and makes it coreless. For what is a palace without a king but a fancy home for rich peasants.

And if a set of eyes, blacker than black watched the smoke billow and shiver in the soft breezes that raced through the husk of the fortress, no one said a word.

If a set of eyes blacker than black, with skin of sickly ivory and clothed in tattered robes of rich purple, watched the empty world around him with a burning sense of hatred and madness, no one saw a thing.

An insane cackle split the still air. The shadow was coming for them. And he would rip their insolent tongues from their throats while he cut out and ate their still beating hearts in front of them. He wasn't dead nor was he finished…

He was just getting started!

0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0

Anko watched her sweet little charges. Hardly innocent but not tied to the ground, they worked. She was a field shinobi, always had been even when with Orochimaru. She knew the dangers of their world and even reveled in the sense of excitement and insanity, yet she was at a loss with these three.

When she had graduated the academy and finally made genin she thought it all would get better. The knowledge of her orphan status and the loneliness that came with never truly belonging, but she had been wrong. So very wrong.

She wasn't chosen for a team. didn't have any friends from the academy nor on the civilian sector. Just before she was thrown into the academy reserves, a man came and changed her life forever. Orochimaru, The White Snake of Konoha and one of the three Sannin, had chosen her to be his apprentice, his student. She could still feel the amazement at that tiny decision.

But it was all lies. True he did train her, very well in fact that at genin she rivaled jonin and at chunin she rivaled some of the top shinobi in the elemental countries. She had been to so many places and had taken so many training trips that at times she had felt out of place in the village, but it was all to make her stronger, make her better than she was.

When he had given her the cursed seal and left her to either die or live, she had vowed to become the best, to maybe even kill Orochimaru one day.

She hated and revered him. Her sensei.

Shaking he head out of those depressing memories, Anko smiled. The genin were already showing great promise. Lee was learning how to actively control his very small reserves for chakra and was even practicing on some non-chakra costing exercises. The leaf exercise being the most prevalent. His ability with Taijustu, even for how little he had training with, was beyond both of his other teammates and was just under her own. With just brute force he would be a handful even for her.

Gai seemed to have taken him to task and cleaned up his moves, which was good as it gave her a basis on which to grow from. His strength and speed outmatched and outclassed pretty much everyone in his age group. He was just so dense that it made book learning almost impossible, that and he seemed to like taking orders from only those he respected, which, while not a bad thing - was a nasty habit to break. This she would try to break him out of; because after all, you don't always work with those you can respect nor get respect back from.

Hinata seemed to be taking to Plant studies and showed exceptional talent with medicinal and poisonous plants. This was one of her areas of expertise so after the training was over for the week she planned on teaching her the most advanced things. Sadly Anko noticed how poor the fighting style she used was. It just didn't fit her at all. No, Hinata was too flexible, to small to effectively use the main Hyuuga fighting style, "Gentle Fist". it wasn't her fault, how could it be when genetics were involved. The flexibility and stature though, did make the ex-Hyuuga very suitable for the snake style of fighting. Maybe they could collaborate with Naru - who was developing a habit at making good analytical calls - and mesh some other styles together to find something for the purple loving genin.

She still was shy but at least the stutter was gone. She had a summons partner who was absolutely terrified of her own summons - Snakes - and refused to travel in the direct light, she could see him periodically skulking around the shadows where Hinata was, always watching over her.

Out of all the genin she was the easiest to work with and the one who followed the most orders. Must be from her previous clan training - shut up, stay out of sight, and always do what you're told. Still, the girl had the calmest temper out of the whole team, unfortunately that designated her the mediator and general keep everyone on track person.

Last but not least, Naru. The most unpredictable and frustrating girl Anko had ever had the pleasure of meeting. Hotheaded, stubborn, tricky and defiantly not someone you want pissed off at you. She was now the TL or team leader of cell one, thus her job was to basically be a trainee squad leader. Second in command to herself, she was only authorized to report to the Hokage or the Jonin cell leader, which was her sexy self.

Naru was semi-trained by the current spymaster of Konoha and was herself, training in espionage and stealth associated arts. On top of that, the girl was the best trickster in the whole of the village. The pranks that child could do went beyond imagination, plus they were funny to boot. Anko grinned, the girl could benefit from the trap making courses she knew.

The current vessel for the Kyuubi made her status very valuable to the village. It didn't matter if the majority of the population was scared and hateful to her, Naru was uncontested for this burden, sadly it was a lifetime sentence. Thus it was her job as a sensei to teach all she knew and then some to her bright-eyed and adorable students.

Up in the trees Anko watched the shift change over. She was silently proud and impressed at the three children and resolved to training them as well as she could, and unlike her sensei, she wasn't going to abandon them.

That was her promise.

0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0

It was half-passed three in the morning when the alarm went off in the silent camp.

Hinata was already up and moving, a kunai in her left hand while her right braced a tree. Lavender eyes watched the dark forest in warily silence as she steadied her breathing. On the other side of the clearing, just slight to the right of her, Lee was lowering into a fighting stance. His large round eyes flickered side to side frantically.

Activating her Byakugan, she scanned the now illuminated area. A small sigh of relief escaped her mouth as she saw Naru's chakra signature overhead in the trees.

Down below her Naru watched the others ready themselves. Two kunai sat in the palms of her hands as she took in the dark tree line. Oh she knew who it was and honestly she was tired of the games. Anko-sensei was just toying with them anyways. Moving an purposely destroying traps and the alarm seals that had been planted on the trees.

The blonde haired girl sniffed slightly. _mud…water - stagnate, maybe a pond…blood, iron and dango there she is!_

Jumping from her perch, she raced along the ground not even turning to look when the tree she had just left from exploded into a violent rain of splintered wood and leaves. Something wet trickled down the back of her neck as she ran. She refused to think of what it was.

A quick turn to the left had Naru wedged between to towering oaks, out of sight from the assailant but still giving a view as to what was happening with her teammates.

To her left was Lee, his hands and face held some minute scratches, most likely from the explosion. To her immediate right was Hinata. The Byakugan was off and her body faced into the trees away from the destruction. That gave Naru all she needed to know.

If Lee was injured then that meant the explosion was large enough to send debris out over fifty meters all around, while the deactivated Byakugan meant that whatever caused the tree to burst into a splintery mess, was very bright and concentrated.

_Fox what do you think?_

A mumble of complaint issued out from her mind. **maybe a flash bomb with a kunai mixed in. kit, be careful! This woman is very good at doing what she does.**

The presence faded from her senses as the fox retreated back into the seal. So, what did she do now?

All she knew about Anko was that she loved dango, carried an obscene amount of metal on her person that combated the obscene amount of skin she showed. She had a snake summoning contract and was very sadistic. Honestly she knew very little about the woman who was their sensei and it didn't sit well with her.

Shaking her head she turned to look back at her teammates and stared wide eyed in horror. Blood covered the ground and trees as six huge ass snakes slithered on the ground. Hinata's torn cloak hung from one of the scaly monstrosities fangs as another coiled around the broken and purple body of someone. She couldn't see the build or face really.

Surprisingly on the ground was her sensei. Blood was dripping from her nose and mouth as her tattered clothes fluttered with each wheezing breath. A large collection of bruises and torn flesh hung off of her, in some places Naru could even see the bone. She laid almost in the center of the clearing, like an offering as the monstrous serpents shifted and moved around her. She was just about to run to her broken teacher when the laugh came.

Bloodcurdling and twisted. Like some deranged creature straight out of the depths of hell it came. It sounded like _kukukuku, _it scared her. She wanted to move, to run away but she couldn't even shift, she could tell no one was behind her and yet she could feel the oily and murderous hatred of a presence everywhere. Then he walked out from the trees and she couldn't even breath, let alone scream.

He was tall, very tall and thin. The skin that she managed to see was ashen and relatively scar free. His hair was oily, straight and midnight black and long. He wore what looked to be a Konoha jonin uniform. But it was his eyes that scared her the most. Golden and slited like a snakes, they were ringed with purple markings. They only had bloodlust, hatred and insanity in those flat depths.

Naru tried to scream as he knelt by her sensei, he petted the ratty ponytail with what looked like resignation, before he shoved his arm threw Anko's chest. The breathy scream echoed unnaturally loud as the man continued to kneel by the dying woman's side, all the while whispering something to her sensei. Blood erupted like a small geyser when the dripping appendage was pulled from the ribcage of her teacher with a wet squelching sound. The smell of iron and released bowels was nauseating.

That unnaturally evil laugh spilt from the man as she watched Anko take one last painful breath. She didn't even have time to mourn before one of those snakes pounced forwards and sunk its smooth, gleaming fangs into the still warm body.

Wet tears dripped from her cerulean eyes as she looked for anyone else. She watched as the man walked away from her towards a large knotted tree. She sniffed in anger and fear…and confusion. That tree looked like the one Anko-sensei had blown up at the start of the fight, but there it was. Where were the kunai marks from when she had been bored on watch. What was going on?

"my student does do such good work wouldn't you say." a silky voice said behind her.

She tried to turn around but found she couldn't move. The puffs of air from the person behind her made the alarm bells ring frantically in her brain, the sense of his chakra was pure oil being poured on her own. "so young was she my student. Sadly she didn't give any of you up, such a shame it had to end this way, wouldn't you say. But as is with all games, it has to end sometime. Goodbye little one."

She mentally screamed and shouted in her mind as a kunai ripped into her flesh, puncturing arteries and organs alike. She smelt blood and other toxic smells as she tried to breathe through the pain. She wanted to look away, all she could see in her darkening vision was that long haired man as he laughed when the metal bit into her body again and again. It felt like years before he moved away and the last vestiges of strength left her. With her last breath she coughed out a lungful of blood and went limp. The last thing she saw was a gaping maw full of razor sharp fangs and a long forked tongue descending towards her. Then it went dark.

0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0

Several terrified screams rang around the forest as Anko rubbed the backs of the terrified genin. She winced when she saw Hinata spew the light dinner from her mouth as Lee had a near full blown panic attack. Before her was Naru, tan skin was nearly grey and the whites of her eyes could clearly be seen. She hushed the children as best as she could. It took several hours before they all calmed enough to actually stop flinching a throwing up.

Her dark eyes watched as the three made sure each was alright before the blow up came.

"Anko what the fuck was that about!?" Naru yelled out in anger and fear. Her voice just barely in the limits before insubordination.

She blew out a small breath and said, "that was a high level Genjustu. What you saw was something nobody should have to see. I wont apologize for it though, it is necessary for your trainings." she watched the three carefully.

"who was that man sensei…he…he didn't even have to-to…" Lee mumbled, his panic attack rearing its head again in his fear. A fear she knew all to well of.

"that man you saw was once one of the most respected men in Konoha and the surrounding areas. Orochimaru of the sannin, the white snake of Konoha and an expert on forbidden justu. He was one of the three students of the Sandaime Hokage and has been through two wars." she said.

Hinata raised her hand, ignoring the subtle shaking and asked, "sensei you said he was 'once'…what happened to him?"

Anko looked into a the fire as she said back, "he is a missing-nin and a traitor to the hidden leaf…he was found to be experimenting on the orphan children of the village and fled the land of fire with many secrets and forbidden justu. The scene I showed you was of what happened to a Iwa patrol when they tried to fight Orochimaru. He swiftly killed the first two members - beating one of them and ripping the other apart before feeding them to his snakes summons. The team Leader he toyed with for a few minutes before crushing the heart and several other organs to putty. What he said to the dying leader nobody knows." Anko watched the pale faced genin silently for a few seconds before she continued on. "The last one was only a genin placed with chunin and one jonin. Orochimaru pretended to think she wasn't there and steadily released his KI until the poor girl was frozen in fear before he killed her, stabbing her many time with a serrated kunai before he fed her to his snake." she looked away. This was harder retelling the story then the time when she had witnessed it for herself.

Naru felt sick as more of Orochimaru-teme's twisted deeds came to light. Assassinations, fraud, money laundering, kidnapping, torture, treason, etc…

Hell if there was some form of evil natured, went-against-the-ninja-system, totally sick and perverse way of nature out there that the bastard hadn't tried yet…Naru would eat her right hand. The fact though was that Anko-sensei was being very thorough in retelling the nasty secrets about Konoha's black stain. Not that the blonde blamed her, how could she - it was just slightly suspicious that their new sensei of only two weeks saw it suddenly pertinent to share such high level information with the, basically, dregs of the shinobi hierarchy.

She told such of it to her sensei.

Anko grimaced at the outgoing genin and cursed that self-proclaimed super pervert to the lowest pit of hell to cold for shirtless women. The blonde was, for all intents and purposes, a budding spy which caused the woman grief. The kid seemed to have the uncanny ability to hear and see things that other missed and would now make Anko have to watch what she accidentally said to the others. Especially Naru.

"the Sandaime has issued a warning to all the higher level ninja in the village to be on the lookout for strange people and occurrences…I believe he thinks that the Snake has some hand in this new development and just wants to keep everyone safe for now. I think though, that if Orochimaru is involved, then we need to all get stronger and more resourceful." Anko explained. In an odd way, it felt kind of good to let these brats know some of what she was thinking. Helped to keep her from blowing up into a fury over the little things she supposed.

Lee piped up from his spot, "so basically sensei, we're just covering our bases so to speak." she nodded to him. "yeah, basically."

Practically feeling the question on the blondes lips, Anko shot up from her sitting position and started speaking once again. "alright listen up!" she waited for the three to focus entirely on her before continuing. "training end analysis report…basic three shinobi arts was deemed passable. Hinata you need to work on your stamina. Now I have something for you when we hold training tomorrow. Lee is above average on his stuff for Taijustu, which I knew he would…but there is still way too much room for improvement thus I've asked for some help from Gai. He will also be joining us on some of our trainings when he has the time, so don't be alarmed if he is around a lot." she saw some mumblings that she silenced with a practiced glare.

"Naru you have chakra in spades and the stamina to match it, so why the hell haven't you done any thing to help with your control?!" Anko could almost taste the sudden increase of killing intent the smallest member was throwing at her. It was actually almost decent.

"what the fucks wrong with my control, huh. Nothing, now moving on."

Anko groused in her mind while counting to ten backwards. "girl listen to me. You have the best capacity for chakra that I have seen in a very long time, it is a waste to just focus on one aspect while abandoning another." she swallowed, "besides, I think that your levels and reserves at least mid-chunnin level, which is saying something. Tomorrows training will show us far more than this type of ragtag sport anyways."

"the rest of what you all did was just under the mark for fail. Lee, read more for Kami's sake, just pick up a book on something you think is going to be beneficial for this team in the near to far future." she waited till she got a silent head-bob. "Naru you are the TL, you can't afford to wallow in self doubt. I'm going to instruct you to somebody who can instruct you in leadership courses. don't waste them…Hinata you need the most work I'm afraid. don't look like that kid, its actually a good thing we caught this early on before you had several years of academy numbskullness beat into you. You will have quite a few remedial classes and lessons in the future so clear your calendar."

Hinata quietly nodded. She knew she was behind her other two teammates, she just hadn't realized how far that gap really stretched until that moment.

As the three sat in silence, Anko straightened herself up. She had a meeting with the Hokage after this and had to give her training report for cell one. Grabbing the brats attentions she motioned to the gate in the slightly near distance and beyond that the village. "keep going straight for another hour and you'll see the gate leading out of here. You will need the passcode to unlock it. Lets see, Naru memorize this number, twenty-four, twenty-four, sixteen…got it. Good. Okay everyone, training tomorrow begins an hour after dawn so be ready. If we have a good start we may even get a misson…" looking at the suddenly happier faces made her smile in sadistic glee. D-ranks, this was going to be fun. "dismissed!"

In a flashy poof of smoke she was gone.

The three genin wallowed uncertainly for a few minutes before Naru motioned them to follow her. When they did as she did, she grinned and broke out into a run.

Konoha here they come.

0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0

In a run down village, north-west of the land of Iron, a woman sat at a bar. Voices flittered almost mechanically from each end of the room as a roaring fire blazed a welcome warmth from behind the grating of the fire place. It was snowing outside, which didn't surprise anyone who lived so close to the lands covered in the frosty depths of a seemingly eternal winter. This was the land of the samurai. Deadly swordsman who lived and died by a set code of rules, honor and morals. They detested ninja, and the reverse could be said by ninja themselves and it came to no surprise to find the two fractions stayed as far from each other as was physically possible, lest some battles break out on both sides.

The woman had a pretty feline like face that went well with her voluptuous body. Bright eyes watched the room as well as any animals as she picked up the subtle nuances of the beaten down townspeople. The slipped straight into mugs of ciders, beers and sake and only talked when the deemed it necessary. She took a tiny sip of the heated sake in her dish just as a booming squabble of noise erupted from outside the open doorway.

Twelve guards. Bright and well oiled leather armor glinted in the firelight as the marched into the bar, hands scarred and calloused pushed other civilians to the floor as a few brandished swords. Behind them entered a man as tall and wispy as a willow tree.

His eyes were black and very sharp at the corners. He had a few decent scars on his one visible hand as he walked into the now tense place. Hair that was washed with what smelled like oils, fell down his back and held in a tail at the base of his skull. The mans face looked sallow and mean that matched the long, paper-thin scar on his right cheekbone that curved almost comically to his mouth in a faux grin. On his back hung a type of sword she knew was a saber. A type of sword from the far desert nomads of Suna that had a cylindrical hilt and grip while the blade curved up and out the further from the base.

The man walked like he owned the place, and judging from the way the people acted in his presence, the woman was sure that was true. didn't mean he didn't look like a rooster prancing about. She listened when he started to speak.

"My good people. What a pleasant night for a drink wouldn't you say. I sure do. All this war and destruction and collecting the taxes sure has me up in a thirst. Bar-bitch, your finest sake, and make it quick." he clapped his hands like a noble demanding a servant around as he motioned for a small bar-maid of only seventeen, to fetch his drink of choice.

The woman watched as the swaggering idiot man lurched into a seat by the fire. She reverently prayed to a god she didn't believe in, that his well scented locks would catch from the flames. It didn't.

Once the maid came back with the sake she was forced to pour it and then wait behind the men as they jeered when she was finished. The poor child looked scared. The Idiot slurped the fine white drink as he watched those gathered away from him. "bring in the first one." he said with a mouth full of liquor.

Two armed guards got up from their seats and moved outside. The woman heard some sounds of a struggle before they came back in, a skinny heap of flesh dragging behind them.

He was a older man she saw. Skinny to the point of skeleton, his skin was jaundiced and stretched tight against bone that stood out stark under his yellowed skin. Large blackish-purple rings of exhaustion framed his eyes as the area they laid on sunk into the socket. He smelt too. Piss, manure and decay. The woman looked on in sadness, he was dying, and by the looks of it - he wouldn't last much longer. His clothes were just scraps of faded and stained cloth that floated around the man.

The Idiot pointed his saber at the man on the ground before him, acting for all the bar as a king among rags. "state your name, occupation."

A dry, raspy voice issued forth. "Tanaka Iro…I am - was a farmer." the woman watched in curiosity as the guards and the man they served laughed like what that man said was the funniest thing they had ever heard uttered.

"what are your crimes and sins, you old fossil."

Dark brown eyes glittered angrily at the young upstart idiot. "I have no crimes and though I have sinned before, I need not tell ye anything Boy!" he snapped angry.

The weapon swung with a heavy swoosh at the unprotected neck of Iro, stopping millimeters short of the weakly pumping artery. "confess old man. What have you got left on this plane of existence anyways. Better if I, a benevolent man myself end you here, right now."

Sitting on his knees, the old man lifted his suddenly empty and tired brown eyes at the fool who had imprisoned his people and the whelp he had brought into their world. "you have some right of it you ass. My wife has long since died and taken with her was the souls of our children. You set the fire and took all our money. You killed three innocents for the minted currency we held in a iron lockbox. My boys would be almost ten this year. My wife would have been nagging us for not doing our chores. We could have been happy had you and your father not come along. I go to her now, I wish you days of endless torment in hell should we meet in another life."

The woman looked in awe at the wise and stubborn old man Iro. Defiant until the end.

With a screech of childish rage the saber was swung back and then forwards once more. This time it didn't stop. All that could be heard in the bar was the heavy breathing of the lording idiot and the steady blowing of wind from outside.

Pushing back an errant lock of hair the lordling looked to his men. "bring in the next one." he said quietly. The woman had never seen two men run so fast.

A small bout of shouting, some screams and the sound of a baby crying for attention echoed in the now oppressive bar._ a family_, the woman thought. She grimaced when they walked in.

It was a large family. Maybe a clan. Almost forty people stood in the space before the scared onlookers. There was maybe seven elders. White and gray hair was soft an fuzzy looking as they were led over to one side near the lord. The next group was comprised of twenty-two adults the youngest of them was about fifteen. The stood on the other side of the man. He ignored how mothers reached out to their children and as men glared death towards his person. The last group was the children of this family. Eleven in all and the youngest was an infant of only a few weeks old while the oldest was barely six or seven.

The woman watched as the man started his rotation again. Gods was he annoying or what. " state your name of this family now."

An elderly woman cupping eighty walked to the front of her people. She had white hair and tanned skin that was as wrinkled as wet laundry. Her eyes were a curious shade of green that reminded her of ferns. Most of the family shared the same traits as the woman. Except for the white hair theirs was a odd bluish silver color. She walked a step forward from where she was and settled her weight against a rough cane. "I speak for this family." he voice was a cackle that sent many with furtive glances towards her and her kin.

The man glared at the old woman but motioned her to continue. "we are clan Kessho. We do not know of any crime so it stands we did no wrong. Let us go."

You could hear a feather doing sign language in the silence after that speech.

The old woman looked slightly pleased to see the idiot man turn red. Such fun was something the old could live a few more decades for. But now was not the time for such play, her clan needed her as matriarch. Kami she hated this job and she hated this town her errant husband said would save them from destruction. She missed the native island home of her people and all the other clans and merchants who had lived there.

The man turned from red to purple as he levered his sword to swing on the old woman…only it never came. A blinding flash of bright purple smoke exploded out from were the man sat as he coughed and groped for one of his militia. What was this it stank, it burned and he couldn't see. What was happening.

Outside the bar people escaped and ran home to hide until the worst of the warlords sons' temper blowed over. A small couple hundred yards or so a large group of people moved through the snow with slight difficulty. Leading them was a woman of great beauty and a white hair old woman.

Green eyes narrowed on the feline warrior woman next to her. "who are ye child. Kessho have never seen such as you before the fall of the island nations many years before."

The woman grinned at the elder beside her good-naturedly as she offered her hand. "we are getting you out of Iron lady elder. We head for a nija village hidden in leaves…I have some friends there who could help." the old woman nodded. She already knew this of course, one didn't live to be her age without learning how to tell of important information.

Green eyes smiled to the other, "I am known as Tsubaki. Who are you child?"

"You can call me Yoh." everyone smiled slightly.


	17. Chapter 17

chapter seventeen :

A certainty in uncertainty.

"Nothing is permanent in this wicked world, not even our troubles."

~Charlie Chaplin

Naru watched as the hard potatoes boiled in the water. It was an hour before the others planned to wake up and she wanted this time to think.

True she wasn't some great thinker or strategist, nor was she tactical or truly subtle on a good day, but she had the want to be at least one of those qualities while she led their team. Sure she had the Kyuubi to fall back on incase things got away from her, but for some reason she didn't want to give her blind trust in some corporeal chakra monster with a hate against her home.

That being said, she also couldn't afford to have him as her enemy either. The fox was many things but many of those were bad and downright nasty, she had to watch her back with him. Metaphorically of course, he really couldn't jaunt around out of her seal to put a claw through her spine but that still didn't mean she trusted him.

If living on the streets and all alone had taught her anything, it was this, be cautious and don't be seen being cautious. This advice was the cornerstone for how she lived and Naru was damned if she would give it up just because she had a few friends now. Still, until they showed anything against her or her unwanted prisoner, Naru would be as she always was - sly and waiting, always waiting.

A timer chimed lightly from the stove as she moved to click it off. A small thud alerted her that Hinata had probably just gotten up and would be heading for the showers and baths soon and ranging from how long that took her, she had another twenty minutes before Lee woke up and got ready for the day.

Naru smiled thinly as she sliced into the small bag that held some peanuts. Sometimes it amazed her that she, the most hated person in the village, was in actuality the daughter of their precious fourth Hokage and his wife who was an Uzumaki. Shaking her head which was now blonde, which while a cool color, didn't have the flair her old red hair had. Apparently the fox said Uzumaki's had red hair, so cool.

She had a clan. At some point she had been loved. But then a trip to the Sandaime had thrown that option out the window.

The Uzumaki clan was destroyed along with their ancestral land in the Uzukagure. Her mother was said to be one of the only ones to have survived the attack that had decimated a once great nation. It hurt to know her own mother had been alone like she had.

The third was a good man. Not the best, but definitely not the worst. She could not begrudge him his secrets but it did sting when he hid important things that concerned her. She was apparently an heiress like Hinata had been, which kinda sucked as she didn't know anything about being with a family and a clan.

Also the Hokage had mentioned that the Uzumaki had several cousin clans in their village, along with a few that were known as stray merchant clans. Clans with no special talents besides business.

She had asked when the Hokage had mentioned he knew next to nothing about who had survived and who she could be related too. It was a low blow to her.

"you seem deep in thought today." a soft voice said behind her.

Turning slightly, Naru could just make out the color show surrounding Lee as he took a seat at the table in the kitchen. Happy yellows and a somber gray. "I'm fine. Thinking some deep thoughts is all…its nothing to worry about." she said.

A soft chuckle echoed in the space between them. "you worry we wont like it if we knew everything about you. I wont push you but me and Hinata had a talk when we found out you had some secrets, and we just want to let you know we both don't care. Hell Naru, you could personally kill Hokage-sama and dance naked in the street in a sultry tango with Orochimaru and I would still follow you…of course I would be deeply disturbed and we both know that dampens my flames of youth." he said slyly. A small laugh lighting his face as she choked at his mental image he gave her. Great now she was going to have these added to her nightmares.

She shuddered. Naked Orochimaru dancing slutty with her. She grimaced knowing that was all she would think about until something more interesting and hopefully less disturbing came along to fill the space. "what makes you think I have any such secrets Lee?"

Crossing his arms and staring her down, Lee sighed. "Naru, did I ever tell you how my parents died." he watched as she shook her head at him. "it was when I was younger…both ma and dad were shinobi. Both chunnin rank. Well they got assigned to the same mission with six others and they left me in care of a genin babysitting team. It was only supposed to be a small mission, mostly running interference between two feuding lords or something. A month passed before word got back from the only survivor of a large scaled ambush, some chunnin who died a few hours later from exhaustion and his wounds. Ma and dad are on the stone in training ground seven. There were no bodies left to bury, they had been hit with a high level fire justu."

Naru walked up to him and placed him in a comforting hug. She was kind of lucky in this regard, both her parents and her clan was already dead so she had not had to go through a mourning process.

She looked up and caught a flash of light blue color and smiled grimly as Hinata joined them in their hug. They were outcasts, and in this world, being an outcast didn't give you a long and full life.

"come on and eat up, we still have to meet up with Anko-sensei for training." she said quietly. The usual bolster and cheer absent from her voice as she herded her teammates into their spots at the table. Her mind whirled with many thoughts…she had too much to think about.

0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0

A messenger hawk flew through the misty morning air, his keen eyes watching for danger far below him as the dark, oppressive pine forest thinned out into smooth grassy plains and brighter skies.

It had been several days since the female-who-could-not-fly had set him loose with his current burden. _humans_, his brain muttered, _if only they had wings to fly with._ he was above all a professional of his craft and would do as he was trained to do, the old man with the limp who had raised him and his kin demanded it so.

The slight increase of temperature warmed his lovely red plumage as he soared into the beginning borders of the land of Fire. The message that was held in the slender metal tube on his leg was a familiar weight as he entered unfamiliar territory.

He didn't know the hawks in this strange land that was too humid and very green.

He longed for the comfort of the aviary hutch he had been hatched in with its many roosts and all his nest-siblings. Here he was uncomfortable, this place held too many surprises. Besides how was he supposed to find the one named Uzumaki Naru, strange named humans were always the hardest to locate, plus they didn't give treats to hard working birds either.

A keening screech issued from his throat as he flew just a touch faster. The sooner this errand was accomplished, the sooner he could return to his own masters.

It couldn't come soon enough.

0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0

In the slight fog of early morning three figures ran.

The wet ground covered in dew was a horrid obstacle as Hinata slid for the umpteenth time that morning. Not for the first time did she grumble in the privacy of her mind that she wished they lived closer to the forest of death, if only so they didn't have to run so far to get to training. Hmm, maybe she could get the others to help build an outdoor training ground in the compound, that way they could do light training sessions without going so far. The idea had merit.

As she moved she tried to think on what Anko-sensei had said about her performance from yesterday and the past weeks. She hated admitting that she was so far behind her friends…it only made her think of her father and the elders constant criticism. To them she could do nothing right. On one side of the table, she was a failure and a screw-up that the Hyuuga clan was forced to get rid of lest she taint their reputation. She was clumsy, short, weak and lacked any ambition or drive that the main branch of her family was renown for. Surprisingly, these were some of the gentler things she had experienced in her ex-clan.

On the other side, Hinata had friends. A sensei that was willing to teach her new things because she cared to see past her uneasy fit with the other things. Naru and Lee were willing to be there for her whenever she needed them. They cared not that she was a failure or that she had a habit with retreating within herself…they only cared that she was happy. If she asked right now, she was sure both her teammates would spend the rest of their lives making sure she was protected.

How could she even ask of it. What if they died in a mission because she wasn't strong enough to help fight alongside of them or worse, what if they were captured and injured and could never become ninja because she had been too weak. How would she be able to live with that type of guilt.

Hinata wasn't an optimist like Lee and nor was she a realist like Naru. It was almost like she existed somewhere between both their ideals…maybe she was hopeful.

Still none of this alleviated the growing trepidation that was bubbling under her ribcage. Would she even be able to live up to Anko-sensei's expectations? Would she hold her team back from reaching their true potential? She didn't know.

Cell one coasted down a light hill and stopped before the main gate into their training ground. Awaiting them was the underdressed jonin sensei and some practically buzzing green giant.

Anko grinned at her students. The Hokage had stamped the seal on their file and they were officially a genin squad now, able to do missions and go on training trips. She could feel the excitement at this new development and it caused her to be fired up.

"alrighty kiddies, listen up. This here is Maito Gai, he's an elite jonin of Konoha and our resident Taijustu master. He has a summoning with turtles and is also quite skilled with none bladed weaponry." she watched as her team greeted the tall man before continuing. "anyways you'll learn more about him as we go along, right now we are laying down the agenda for today."

Clearing her throat Anko started, "Lee you are going to work on building muscle mass today. Push-ups, sit-ups, pull-ups the works. You'll do this until we tell you to stop or do something else, understood. Good…Naru, I am having you work with me for right now. We are running strategy and situational experience so be prepared…Hinata. I am having Gai here take over on your training for a bit. This may last a few days or a few weeks. So do whatever he tells you to do when under his instruction…okay that's about it. We work until after lunch, then we have a small mission to do before we go home for the day.

Nodding their heads, Anko made a sign and they disappeared in a plume of smoke. They reappeared at the tower in the center of the forest. Several jonin and chunnin nodded to them as they went to train or get ready for missions.

The tower itself was actually a resting point for long training exercises. Mostly it was Anko and few select shinobi who even bothered to train in the deadly grounds, but it still stood as a marker and a place to recoup. It was also one of the few places in the village that had a direct line to the Hokage's office, just incase of emergencies.

After the haze cleared from her eyes, Hinata looked over to her friends to wish them luck and found herself alone with her temporary sensei.

"so you are the young Hinata." her sensei asked. There was an air of power around him that didn't seem to fit with how he presented himself. Hinata could only nod.

He grinned a thousand watt grin and practically screamed, "HOW YOUTHFULL!" flashing her a thumbs up and standing dramatically in what she could only think had to be his version of a 'cool' guy stance. Waving her over after a moment, he outlined his plan to her. "well Hinata, the powers of youth and Anko-san has asked me to help you with your youthful training. I believe she wants you to build up your speed, which is something I can definitely help you with…lets see where did I put those…aha, there they are…"

Hinata was confused when Gai-sensei pulled out four rectangular blocks. They were about six inches in length and a dull gray the color that reminded her of storm clouds. Leather straps looped through holes at the bottom on tops, while on the front, some kind of drawing took up the face of the smooth looking stone.

Looking at her confused expression, Gai nodded solemnly, "these are chakra weights that have been inscribed with gravity seals. These two go on your legs…and these two, around your arm." Hinata almost sighed.

Quickly grabbing them and putting them on, Hinata thought there must be some mistake. Sure there was a weight about them, but only around ten pounds, something she could easily move around with. "Sensei, are these correct?" she asked.

Hearing a happy laugh she looked up towards her sensei before her whole world shifted and she started to spit out mouthfuls of dirt and grass. "I have added almost ninety pounds to those weights…don't worry Hinata, the seals distribute the weight equally amongst the body. Now in order to make you more youthful, we are to run ten laps around detraining ground."

Mumbling some choice words that she learned from Naru, Hinata climbed shakily out of the small crater she had created. In another life she would have been almost impressed, as it was though she had no time to sit and admire before Gai-sensei started off at a run that made it look a mild jog.

With heavy steps she lumbered off after the man, his cries of youth and other such nonsense ringing in the humid air as she huffed.

0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0

"Four-hundred…four hundred and one…four hundred and two…"

Lee stopped and looked around at the small clearing he had chosen for his training. It was tiny and had only a few meters in which to walk around in, although it had this amazing tree with branches perfect for pull-ups.

This was the perfect time for him to sit and think about all that was happening. First he was orphaned, again. Then he met the two kindest and coolest girls ever and moved in with them into a large compound. Then he passed his genin test and was welcomed into anbu training. Now he was on a team with his best friends and the most youthful Anko-sensei as their teacher.

All in all, not bad for somebody who was only seen as the dead last. Sure he did have to be captured and held in some sick guys delusional clutches for awhile to see all of this, but that's just what made their group all the most interesting.

And of course he had his friends and Hana and Yoh, wherever she had disappeared off too anyways. Yet, he felt like he was still missing something… important…no.

Shrugging his shoulders in both a noncommittal way and too also ease out the stiffness, he grabbed the branch again and started some one-handed pull-ups. If whatever he was trying to think of was in anyway important, he would remember it in time. Until then though, he had training to complete.

"One…two…three…four…"

0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0

Naru sat in the shade of a large tree and listened to her surroundings. The light morning breeze barely ruffled the forest and in hearing distance no animals prowled. All in all this place was creepy and she hated creepy places.

Beside her Anko huffed impatiently. "Naru stop trying to listen for your friends, they have their own trainings to finish, just like you do."

Turning her head she allowed just a tiny glare before she nodded, resigned. "fine sensei…what are we doing then?" she muttered unhappily.

Anko reached into a hip pouch and produced a plain book - that now that she stared closer - actually was like a hard covered magazine. It was small enough to fit into a hip pouch or even a large pocket and was covered in no outward colors or decorations.

"this is the Bingo Book! It is designed to track powerful shinobi from all villages and that includes missing nin as well." she opened to the first page which showed some shinobi with a mist headband and a large scar on his right eyebrow. Beside his picture was information about him. Ranking, stats about his techniques, height, weight, mission info, and general background.

Looking quick at her sensei and seeing a slight nod, she stared back at the page and started to read. "Akiko Ten. Age: 45. Five ft ten inches, approx. two hundred and sixteen pounds. Eye color: gray. Defining features: has a large vertical scar crossing right eyebrow. Last known rank was a Jonin of Kirigakure. Has completed 67 D-ranks, 20 C-ranks, 80 B-ranks, and 35 A-ranks and 4 S-rank missions. Current status: MIA, presumed KIA."

She Looked at Anko again and asked, "why don't they know what happened to him sensei?" Anko just shrugged and said, "because when he went missing it was on his fifth S-rank mission against some missing ninja out of Kumogakure. He had a month to complete the mission and when the allotted time was up they searched for him but came up empty. Now since he was technically on a mission, Kiri was hesitant to announce that he was a potential missing nin and instead waited for another couple of months before marking him MIA with a presumed KIA."

Naru mulled it over. "how does someone get added to the Bingo book?"

Anko grinned back. "there are several ways to be added. One, you are a missing nin. that's the most obvious way to be added since it is required of the village of the traitor to add anything vital to the security of the rest of the world. Another way is if you become some kind of great shinobi. Like the three Sannin, they have one of the highest ranks in the bingo book and are feared and respected because of their involvements in the wars and in other such battles."

"The last way to be admitted into the book is if you reach jonin rank and have a presence in the shinobi world or a title." she flipped a few pages and showed a lazy eyed cyclopic man with gravity defying hair and a mask and headband covering the majority of his face. "this is Hatake Kakashi. He's an elite Jonin of Konoha and is titled The Copy-Nin. He is rumored to have memorized and mastered over a thousand jutsu. He is the son of the White-fang of Konoha and has a kill on sight rank in the Bingo book."

Naru was in awe. Her village had created and housed such a cool shinobi. What was he like, did he like ramen, was he really such a capable ninja, why did he wear a mask and his headband like that? She threw out random questions to her laughing sensei, eager to learn more about Konoha shinobi.

"well I don't know him on a deep and personal level. But I do know he has a habit of being extremely late to things and reading porn at any given moment. But besides that he is very dedicated to his friends and is considered a genius and a prodigy." she answered truthfully.

Flipping through a few more pages both konoichi read about various shinobi and the villages.

Anko groaned as she stretched cramped muscles. "darn, the older I get the more I hurt. Be glad you're young brat, getting old isn't fun." before she stood up she passed the book over to Naru with a grin. "here this is for you. Study it carefully okay, it might just save your ass one day." Naru looked surprised and then grateful. Gifts as a vessel were hard to come by and were to be treated with extreme care.

"anyways we need to start on our own training -strategy." she said, standing up fully. "now say you have a heavily muscled shinobi barreling down at you. He is wearing a Iwa hiate and is flashing hand signs you do not know at you, what do you do?"

Naru thought about it for a couple of seconds before she was sent sprawling over the springy grass at the base of the tree. In a slight daze, she attempted to get up and fell right back down. "Naru wake up. The enemy isn't going to give you that long to think. You have to be ready to either fight or flee at a seconds notice. And even if you fall you have to be ready to get right back up and continue. Do I make myself clear." Anko said calmly. Looking for all the world like a statue.

The blond genin nodded and flipped into the air until she landed back on her feet, proud that she only wobbled a little bit and the landing. "yes sensei."

Feeling caught off guard again, Naru barely managed to dodge the roundhouse kick aimed at her solar plexus. Just as she was about to yell out to her sensei, a fist came out of nowhere and got her in the gut. Having the air violently pushed out of the lungs was a very, very painful experience. Besides hurting though, it also made it so that Naru couldn't take in as much oxygen either. "what are you going to do Naru, fight back or run. don't just stand there getting the shit beat out of you, do something.

Squeaking in pain, Naru pivoted to the side just as a foot kicked the air where she had been moments ago. Normally she would be fine in a spar, her naturally high stamina kept her going long after her opponent was tired and drained. Its just that when Anko hit, she made sure it hurt. Even her love taps could send Naru hurtling though the air uncontrollably. She always said afterwards that it made the lesson stick better and because the enemy wasn't going to spar playfully, they would be aiming to kill.

0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0

By the time it was lunch, Naru was pretty much black and blue and sore as hell. Even her hair hurt. Walking next to the cool as a cucumber Anko, she thought near murderous things would befall the wild woman. From the sly look that her sensei shot her, she knew what her genin was thinking.

Mumbling about horrible sensei's and sore muscles, she chose a spot up against a tree and opened a bento box that Anko had passed her. Steamed vegetables, rice balls with sour plums, some barbecued meat, the smells made her mouth water. Digging in she only had to wait a moment before Lee sat next to her. Unlike the bruised genin, He was exhausted and sweaty. His black hair was made even darker by the salty liquid, as was his clothes. Mumbling a quick hello, he dug into his bento with even more gusto than Naru had.

In between bites of their food, the two teammates would give noncommittal grunts or sighs.

It was probably a couple minutes later when the last genin showed up. Hinata looked a mess. Her normally straight dark hair was ratted and soaked with sweat and leaves. Her cloak was wrapped around her belt, probably because it was to cumbersome to run with. Around her arms and legs were these strange blocks that seemed to drag the exhausted genin closer to the ground. All over her body were scratches and bruises and mud.

Walking unsteadily over to Anko she was given a box of food and sent to sit with her teammates. The way she ate her lunch would have made Naru laugh if she wasn't so damn sore and moody. The normally shy and sophisticated ex-Hyuuga was polishing off three rice balls and the vegetables before she even fully sat down. It was so uncharacteristic that even Lee had stopped eating to watch his friend.

Waiting until the third genin had finished eating, both Naru and Lee cornered the still hungry girl.

"Hinata-chan, what has caused such a youthful reaction from you." Lee whispered. Naru looked over her friend in slight concern. "Yeah, Hinata you never eat like a starved maniac. Does it have something to do with your training." she pressed.

Hinata looked tiredly over at her teammates who watched her with concern. She felt kind of bad that she was worrying them, but the talent and energy to speak had seemed to desert her at the present moment. Instead she nodded back at the two.

Not nearly nullified, Naru was just about to shake the answer out of her friend when their sensei interrupted her with a well placed love tap. "alright everyone up and at em' we have a mission to do today."

All three genins groaned. Anko grinned. "it's a D-rank mission at the Konoha orphanage. don't worry, you don't have to give up a lot more energy. If I remember right from my own genin days…"

"Sensei don't stress yourself. Its okay that you trained amongst dinosaurs, we know it was a long time ago." Naru couldn't have dodged the smack across her head even if she was given a week to prepare and plan.

Huffing in agitation, Anko continued, "you all should be extremely tired right about now. Still that wont excuse any laziness on this mission okay. You may be dead on your feet, but you are still trainee ninja, and this is still a mission, no matter how easy it may be there will still be complications and people judging you all. So put on those war faces and follow me."

Maneuvering the three downtrodden children, she gave the rundown of what was expected of them from the missions scroll. "Konoha orphanage boasts over a hundred orphans in varying ages. What is required of the mission is to watch over the brats while the matrons are meeting with the council and the Hokage over funding and rebuilding. Under no circumstances are we to move or break anything. There is a list of all the children under three and specific instructions for those who are on that list. Besides that, we are to play with them, watch over them, and make sure they are fed, bathed and put into bed before ten tonight. that's when the matrons will be getting back and thus ending our mission. After we are finished we will got to the missions desk and get our paycheck."

She stopped and made the sign that carried them to a four story building smack down in near the middle of the village. It was a rather old building which clearly needed some of it redone and other places knocked down. A large gated fence circled the perimeter and a rather large yard with flowers and playground equipment sat nestled in between the building and the fence. Leading up to the door was a well trodden dirt path.

Letting Anko walk and talk, the three genin watched as the sensation of hundreds of eyes fell on them. Naru shrugged her shoulders as a pair of giggles reached her ears. She hated orphanages, having grown-up in one for a time.

A big woman with arms like tree trunks walked out of the building first followed by a short, chubby woman in her early forties. The chubby one spoke first. "I am the head matron of this orphanage, Mistress Lin. This is my partner Aki Son." the muscled lady nodded, but otherwise remained silent. " we presume you are the team that will be watching the children while we are away, yes."

Her voice was light and airy. Her skin was like melted caramel and she wore a slightly smudged work apron that held a huge front pocket. From how she carried herself, Naru felt confident that this woman had never been a shinobi nor had she had any training to fight. The other female though, had definitely seen action. Even the way she carried herself spoke of how she was a fighter. Maybe not a ninja, but she had been trained to fight…maybe she was a retired mercenary or something.

Anko hashed out everything and was finally given the lists of things that had to be done before the two women left them at the door.

Anko grinned, "lets head inside and then we can divide the work load."

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Lee looked into the dim hallway as Anko walked though it. The place smelled of carpet cleaner and cookies. Not the most pleasant of scents. Hinata walked beside Naru as they followed Anko, both wore looks of trepidation and uncertainty.

Naru nudged him as they walked. Looking abashed, he nodded back and followed their silent sensei towards the living space.

Inside what could be called a living room, was several low tables and the skeleton workings of a pillow and blanket fort in the middle of construction. There were no expensive paintings, pictures, vases and most of the edges to things were covered in a squishy plastic.

They toured the kitchen and dining area. And looked over the list of things that had to be done.

"Hinata I want you to start on the general childproofing. Make sure all edges are covered and anything that can be broke or swallowed is safely put away. Make sure all cleaners are marked and stored in the designated places that have been marked." she handed Hinata a small piece of paper with more detailed instructions on it, before she turned over to her two other students.

"Okay whose next…Lee, I want you to pick up this place and give it a good scrub down. Make sure nothing is out of place okay. Also don't forget to make the beds. Here are your instructions." Lee saluted and grabbed his list of things to do. He walked backwards until he stood by Hinata, who was already looking at her paper.

Anko grinned with almost wicked delight before she turned to her next and last victim. "Naru…I have a special task for you" - Anko grinned wider at the suddenly fearful look on her students face - "I need somebody to watch the kids while all of us do the housework…can you manage that." Naru didn't answer the obvious rhetorical question and instead went back to planning her own funeral. Anko-sensei would place her wherever her voracious mind wanted her anyways, what was the point in fighting it. She had neither the energy nor the desire for this day to be any longer than it was already.

"yes, Sensei." she replied meekly._ now do I want flowers at my funeral. Maybe orchids or sunflowers. Hmm, who would I invite anyways…_

_**Kit pay attention to the older vixen. She commands your respect, not your half-assed attempts at arranging the last days of you pitiful mortal existence.**_

Feeling grated, Naru mentally flipped the overgrown plushy the bird and went back to paying attention.

Hinata raised her hand and then lowered it with a wince of pain. " sensei what will you be doing while we are off at our tasks?" Naru listened just a bit closer at that.

Raising a slender brow at her tired little victims, Anko paused, "well I will be doing the cooking for one and the paperwork." she giggled lightly at the look of disgust on their faces before walking towards the kitchens. "if you guys need me, don't be afraid to ask. I know this is technically not your first mission, but according to the village records it is…make me proud brats."

Naru glanced back at her teammates before she walked tot the back door leading into the playground. The others simply shrugged before following suit and heading to their own tasks.

The mission was finally started.

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Hinata walked up to a large cabinet with a lock clamped on it. Grabbing the Key that had been slipped to her, she unlocked the door and stared into the pitch darkness. Muttering a phrase that was best left unsaid, she fumbled blindly for a light switch and came up empty.

Resigned to using her Byakugan she activated it and swore like Naru had taught her. There wasn't even a switch or a cord or even a socket in the darn thing. There was no light bulb at all. Looking at the silvery highlighted space, she grabbed at the things she needed and walked back out, deactivating her eyes as she left. She was halfway out of the room when she remembered to lock the cabinet.

She reached for the lock that had been left on a stool near the door, and hit the flat surface of the seat. feeling a headache coming on, Hinata turned to see if the lock had fallen to the ground and again came up empty.

Mumbling to herself, she turned in a semi-circle and stopped. There! A small skittering noise echoed in the bare room. Thinking it might be a child, Hinata reactivated her eyes and sought out the source of the noise._ there…no there. Where did it go…the door is closed, it can't leave the room. What is it? too fast and it can hide from the Byakugan. Do I call for sensei, she might know what to do…no I can't, its our first official mission, I have to do this without help._

Throwing more chakra to her eyes Hinata squeaked in pain. Everything was so bright and too defined. It was hurting her. Suddenly she tried to cut off the flow and couldn't, it was taking too much chakra to hold it back and she was slipping. By this point she was able to count the grooves in the wood flooring. She felt weak, weaker than she had earlier that day.

Hinata was just about to scream out for Anko when the sensation of being bit, hard, hit her. Something wet and sticky oozed down her right leg, just below her knee and boy did it hurt. Thankfully though the flow of chakra to her eyes had stopped as the chakra in her legs was disturbed by whatever had bit her. Looking down she realized it was Yakennono, his black fur and big pink eyes looked up at her in worry even as his large front teeth buried themselves into the muscle of her leg.

Feeling shaken, she gently fell down - Yakennono released her leg before she moved - and reached out for the mouse babe. He was getting bigger she thought as his once puppy sized form had grown into a very large dog size._ how did I miss him, he's huge now._

Still shaking and now dripping blood onto the floor, she called for her sensei. "ANKO-SENSEI!"

The sound of muffled running sounded far away even as pale hands gripped her. Her head felt like it was stuffed with cotton. And there was a peaceful ringing in her ears. Warped sounds flew around her as Anko's head swam into view. It seemed she was asking if she was okay…Hinata giggled, was she okay? Maybe she should answer, Anko would worry if she didn't…how did she make sound again. She giggled again.

Anko had run from the kitchen into the room where Hinata had been and gasped at the sight. A small red puddle was surrounding her right leg and her pants were stained with the substance. A huge mouse laid its head in her lap, pink intelligent eyes watched her every move. Walking closer, she saw that large black-blue bruises covered the area around her eyes and the veins that attached the eyes to the brain were a deep blue color and seemed to mutely throb.

Working with a few Hyuuga in her time, she knew what had happened. She had even seen it first hand. The chakra was pulled when the person was too exhausted to properly regulate it and the end result was a overuse of chakra on the eyes. It left extremely painful bruises and the inability to use the Byakugan for a time or it could lead to permanent blindness.

Frowning slightly, Anko grabbed out a heavy roll of bandages from her pouch and set to work on her students still bleeding leg. Every few minutes she worked Anko would hear her genin giggle at something inane. _chakra exhaustion and rapid blood loss…she'll need something to eat and drink, something that will help with her iron intake…maybe…_ Anko hated second guessing herself but right now even she was at a loss with how this had happened.

Shaking her head in mild concern and annoyance she reached back into her hip pouch and pulled out a tiny gloss bottle filled with reddish-brown pills smaller than rice grains. They were compacted into ball shaped pieces instead of the usual oval look that most pills had. When she unscrewed the lid, the smell of iron was unmistakable.

"Hinata, look at me. Good. These are blood transfusion pills. They work with building back up blood count. don't worry about not having the same blood type, the medics work with the Akimichi clan to make these so that they will automatically adhere to your own red blood cells." Anko said, trying to keep the girl from passing out. Popping out three of the pills - the maximum amount that could be taken in a twelve hour period - she opened her students mouth and dropped them in, when she was sure they were not going to be spit back out, Anko gently massaged her throat until she was absolutely sure they had been swallowed.

Looking down at the big mouse's face, she gestured to the door that led to the living room. Feeling shaky after that scare, she lifted the tiny girl into her arms and carried her to and out the door, before she placed her on a dull brown couch.

"So much for a day with nothing going wrong." she muttered as she left to find disinfectant and a mop.

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Outside, Naru was panicking. Hundreds of tiny eyes ranging the color spectrum lanced at her still form. The oldest headache, a Yori Nunka, was just under seven years old and the object of her wrath - just as soon as she found a way out of these jump ropes currently tied around her.

"you're slow, are you really a ninja, most ninja could've dodged ropes?" Nunka crowed. He was just an inch taller then Naru herself with uneven black hair and dark gray eyes set deep in sockets. He wore a pair of dark green shorts with a white t-shirt emblazoned with the Konoha symbol. He like some the others had been orphaned at a young age, only he had actually known his family before they disappeared. Besides that, he was a bully and Naru hated bullies.

Gritting her teeth, Naru got out a strained "yes", before she found the knot holding the ropes in place. Giving it a tug she found the ends easily and steadily untied herself from her bonds. Blue eyes snapped in extreme annoyance.

"listen up brats! I'm not in the mood to play these games with you, find someone else who is willing and ready for this stupid job. I've had a long ass day and I'm not willing for it to be any longer." she spat out. The amount of annoyance she felt for the smug little hellions to strong for even sailors.

Nunka glared at the irate blonde as she verbally lost it. "you think you're so strong because you're a shinobi, huh, you don't look like much to me." - he turned to look at his posse and crowed, - " looks to me like she's nothing but a big talker. How do we even know she's an actual shinobi anyways. For all we know she and that rag doll group she came with are just stupid civilians who managed to find some grungy hiate in the garbage and are pretending to be ninja!"

The resounding slap could be heard for almost a mile in any direction as Naru pounced on the unlucky brat. Her bright blue eyes resembled the frostiness of a unmoving glacier, her voice deadly calm and quite as she whispered in his ear. "Nunka was it…such a shame that the time spent with your family didn't teach you any manners. Like it as not I am an actual shinobi and you do owe me some respect. If that is to hard for you to accomplish, then I have some creative ways of making lesson stick. don't look so worried Nunka-kun, it doesn't have to be this way." she smiled thinly as she pushed the boy away from her.

Turning so she could see all the children she assessed her situation. "believe or don't believe the idiot boy. I am a true shinobi and because we are who we are, me and my team have been assigned to take care of you until the evening when the matrons get back. Now, I know we all basically hate each other…don't worry, I feel the same way about all of you. So lets hash out some guidelines okay…don't piss me off and I wont bother any of you." looking into the somewhat awed faces, Naru turned around and sat up against on of the trees, her back slightly uncomfortable against the rough bark.

A few meters away Nunka stood up and spit in her direction before walking off, his friends patting at his shoulder and throwing nasty glances her way as they led him to another part of the yard.

Naru grinned lazily, her eyes glowed with still unresolved anger. Rage was a comfortable fire beneath her skin that hissed and snapped at the cool water of reasoning and calm tempered the heat and flame. Deep in her mind a dark and even lazier chuckling emerged.

**Kit, such a temper you have…so much like your mother before you.**

_Naru opened her eyes as the room full of tubes filled with both chakras came into focus. Before when she had been here, it was to fight for the right to her own chakra during the Tree walking exercise._

"_fox…why am I back here?" she asked with confusion. Did he want another showdown, or was it something more prudent to her current life situations._

**Relax kit, I'm not going to attack you. I'm quite comfortable right at the moment you know, lets not ruin that by calling down the Hokage on us. Besides, I just want to talk.**

_Behind the mess of glowing tubes, a large wooden cage sat up against what looked like a wall. It was layered in seals and despite its flimsy appearance, showed signs that it was more than it seemed. Behind the bars, two large glowing red eyes appeared as a maniacal grin spit across the darkness, in the space of nothing, several red-orange tails waved._

_Feeling that same awe and trepidation she always seemed to feel around the fox, Naru walked over to a blue tube beside the cage and sat down on it. "what do you wish to talk about Baka-Kitsune?" she asked when she was comfortable enough._

_A snarl formed on the Kyuubi's face as he regarded the idiot child. She really had no manners and was sarcastic to boot. _**why haven't you told those friends of yours about who we are?** he asked. Curiosity was a horrible habit, but he was a fox so those rules didn't apply to him in the least. Truly though he was actually curious about the girls inability to trust anyone. Maybe in another life he would've tried to corrupt that fault and make her into a mindless killing machine that bent to his whims, sadly though he actually respected the ugly little monkey before him. How the mighty have fallen, he thought.

Naru stiffened. Of course it was stupid to try to hide things from the feather duster. He seemed to know everything she knew and something so big as this wouldn't have had a snowballs chance in hell at actually hiding her fears from him. What could she do though. Her friends seemed to be different from the villagers, so was Anko-sensei, but could she truly trust them enough and open up. Could she explain that she was a human sacrifice that lived as a last shot defense for the village, that she was hated so passionately that she feared her death was not on the battlefield, but before those that tormented and scorned her through her dark childhood. How could she tell that to her first true friends and expect them to stay with her. They didn't need her, but she needed them.

"I cant tell them Kyuubi." she mumbled, her voice suspiciously thick. "they can never know the truth. I wont lose them the way I've lost everything else in my life."

The fox sighed. **kit, they are different from the other ugly ants that crawl through the muck of humanity. They wont abandon you because of what you are. Besides, who cares what others think of you. Only the strong survive while the weak waste away anyways, I wont have my jinchuuriki as anything but the best, so get off your pity horse and face your weak mortal fears.**

_Naru laughed sarcastically, the sound mechanical and devoid of any warmth as she glared at the fox. "get off my pity horse you say. Do you forget Kyuubi, I'm on this horse because of you. If you hadn't attacked Konoha in the first place, I would be with my family and not shunned. I would be able to live my life knowing what love is and not facing the pain that basically sums up my shitty ass childhood. Its because of you that we even need others of my kind to contain others of yours. And you have the gall to say that my fears are weak, that I'm weak. I know what I am Kyuubi and that's mortal…I have fears and worries. I get sad and pissed off and I sure as hell hate being looked down upon. I think I might even hate you." her blue eyes burned as she stared into the apathetic red ones._

**Hate me, despise me…but I will always be there for you when no one else can.** he muttered. His booming voice oddly mellow as he saw the tears in the child's eyes. The tears she refused to let fall. she truly was like her mother, strong.

_She looked through a watery veil before muttering, "you're callous and hateful." before leaping off her perch and vanishing before she hit the ground. All around him, the floor, the wall and the nonexistent ceiling started to drip water until a virtual mess surrounded him as he lay on the flooded floor of his cage. His red slitted eyes closed as he faded._

**I know I am kit, I know.**

**0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0**

In the waking world Naru opened her eyes to two pairs of dark green orbs. Startled she leaned further away from the sudden threat, completely forgetting that less then three inches away from her head was a tree. Clutching the slightly visible bump, she opened dizzy eyes once again to see what the hell was stupid enough to get so close to her.

Before her stood two boy twins of about four. They had straight dark brown hair that reached their chins and pretty forest green eyes that looked like they were a part of the greenery around their village. Both twins had sharp features and strong noses that at their current age made them look comical. In their hands they carried toy bokken. Both brothers had dark blue shorts and light tan t-shirts, their feet had been put into blue shinobi sandals.

Still rubbing the newest addition to her hurts, she regarded the twins with slight curiosity. "mah, what do you boys want. Can't you see I was taking a nice nap." she asked slightly peeved still from her fight with the chakra monster in her gut.

One of the boys lifted his skinny hand in the air and said in a tiny voice, " I'm Ai and this is my brother Lin. We saw you fight off the mean bully Nunka…are you really a shinobi?" he asked her, beside him his brother practically vibrated in place. Both looked at her with expectant faces.

Resigning herself to another day with little rest, Naru abandoned her nap and instead focused on the twin brothers. "yes I'm really a shinobi, a Kunoichi under the Sandaime."

Both boys practically danced in place, she grinned at hearing a few praises of her being 'so cool' and 'were all ninja like her'. silently laughing she patted the ground right in front of her. "mah, I'm not really all that special. The Hokage has much better ninja serving him than me. If you want to see a really cool Kunoichi, you should see my Sensei, she kicks major ass."

Both boys dove into sitting positions before her, pleading for awesome stories from her and her team. Ai and Lin had the puppy eyes down stat and showed no mercy against her as she told stories about her and her teammates during training. All through out it, a warm maternal feeling staved off the dark, corrosive anger that boiled beneath her.

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Lee looked out a bedroom window that faced the backyard and smiled when he saw Naru surrounded by a growing group of children. She seemed to be telling stories and was even acting out some parts to the benefit of a laughing, smiling crowd.

Shrugging his shoulders, he picked up another folded pile of linens and moved on to the next room. He smiled to himself as he worked, Anko-sensei had said once he was finished with his job he could go outside and help Naru with the kids. He was more than happy to get out of these small stuffy rooms and out in the warm sun of Konoha.

He was still worried though however, Hinata had somehow injured herself and was now recuperating on one of the lounge sofas in the living room as Anko-sensei watched and tended her. He felt horrible for his female teammate and the pain she must've been feeling. Out of them all, Hinata was the kindest and to have her constantly hurt or depressed left a bad taste in both his and Naru's mouths.

Shaking his head he resumed working, all the while keeping an ear out for anything strange. One never knew when their strange but talented sensei would appear out of thin air and nightmares to test them and make sure they weren't falling behind on their individual trainings. Lee thought she was thorough, Naru said she was just a sadistic bitch with a complex and the license to carry large amounts of sharp metal.

Chuckling softly he moved to another bed. The idea of short sheeting some of them was a looming specter in his mind, a gift from spending countless hours with Naru's mischievous pranking mindset. Lee loved that about his team though. Hinata was the calm, collected one - the person who made sure everyone was kept on track and that obligations were kept as well. Anko-sensei was the sadist, she was the one who made sure the wet work of their world was kept in order. In short she was training them to be warriors, not children - it was her oath and solemn duty to make them the best as possible while she was their teacher. Naru - she was difficult to categorize, she was a enigma and a puzzle wrapped mystery with the ending ripped out. Completely unpredictable in what she was going to do. But Lee knew she was a born leader, like hot metal she was being forged into someone the world was going to look up to and remember, as of now though, she was his leader, his friend and confident. He had the rest of his life, however long that would be, to figure out his friends quirks and dynamics.

Grinning ear to ear, Lee finished up room after room as he hurried through his tasks. It was near night when he finished the last bed, he remembered it clearly because it took everything he had to not swan dive ceremoniously onto the inviting covers. Instead he walked out into the hallway and down the stairs as the warm smell of soup beckoned to his tired and hungry body. Walking into the dining area he saw both Naru and a still shaken Hinata being hounded by a large group of excited children. Upon seeing him both his teammates grinned and waved him over to their table.

He seated himself between a boy with shoulder length brown hair and dark green eyes and Hinata. "hey how are you feeling Hinata-chan?" he asked the lavender eyed female as she passed out some napkins.

A small smile lit her features as she replied, "much better actually, though Anko-sensei says I am forbidden to use my Byakugan for at least a week and even then I'm on light duty with them until she can get the Hokage to sign off on my medical analysis." here she smiled wider. "how was your day Lee-kun?"

He sighed in relief that she was okay, if a bit pale. "I'm doing well. Man though all those beds, I believe I shall see beds in my nightmares and dreams for days to come." Lee pulled a sour face as the children laughed.

Looking up from filling bowls, Naru gave a foxy grin at her two teammates. "mah, mah guys these two are brats are my newest brats. Ai, Lin these are my teammates. Teammates, these are Ai and Lin. They were helping me to show off some of our awesome ninja adventures today." both boys gave sheepish smiles as they held hands. Beside them Naru gave her team a odd look.

Both Lee and Hinata tensed. Whenever Naru gave them unidentifiable expressions it was cause to worry. It usually heralded the approaching storm of Naru doing something completely unexpected and entirely irreversible. Last time she gave such a look, the entirety of Konoha's Anbu and hunter nin had to be issued new uniforms and masks. Hinata stared at Lee in worry - what was Naru getting herself in now.

Breaking eye contact both shinobi started in on the food. The only sounds were the sounds of eating and the occasional grunt whenever someone pointed at something.

0-0-0-000-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0

It was close to midnight when the trio of exhausted genin and a mildly sleepy sensei walked into the office of the Hokage.

Old, patient eyes watched as Hinata rubbed her arms in a attempt to stay awake though the debriefing. Genin were so much fun. Hiruzen sucked on his unlit pipe as his mind drifted back in to the old days, back when he had been placed on his first genin team. Ah, he could still remember the soreness of training constantly and then the stupidity of D-ranked chores. Shaking his head slightly he refocused on the conversation just as Anko was finishing up her report.

Pulling his pipe from his mouth, he filled it with his brand of tobacco and lit it before putting it back between his lips. "normally I do not place fresh genin on orphanage duty. Unfortunately, we had a large promotion rate this year from the senior genin to chunin. Adding that to the average death rate of genin in the field and we came up with a low stock of eligible trainee ninja to complete the in village missions. Besides Team Anko, we only have three more genin teams out in roster at the moment. I'm afraid this cell is going to see more than its fair share of D-ranked missions…don't pout though, you all will see more than your share of the C-ranks that will be coming in." the Sandaime took a long drag out of his pipe as he looked at the motley group before him._ just children _he thought, _barely old enough to know what a ninja is_.

"in any case however, Team Anko did a examplemary job and have served your village well. All of you besides Naru are dismissed. Naru please come here." he ordered. Waiting while the team said goodbye and goodnight. "Naru I understand you wished to speak with me about something?"

Steeling her nerves at what she was about to do the young Uzumaki walked over to the large desk. "Hokage-sama, I have a request that I wish filed, active ASAP."

**A few hours later**

A blonde haired Ninja walked down the street towards her home as the wise eyes of the Hokage followed her movements. To say he had been surprised at what she was doing would have been a blatant lie, as not even he had dared think she would have asked for what she did.

On his desk was a large file, black bars covered six words in ten as a registration photo showed a small whiskered girl with dark red hair and pretty eyes. Underneath that was a small slip of paper and a registration, both of which had him mildly confused and mostly in awe.

The child was growing up. Looking away from the file he instead focused his vision on a small picture secured to the wall of the office. A young man with long blond hair and deep blue eyes watched back at him as the aged Kage sat in his seat once more. The burden and the failures of the past free to haunt him now that the sun had retired from the sky.

High above the village of Leaves, a large stone face, immortalized in the mountain stood silent guardian over its people. The fourth of what was once three glared and brooded as the people of said village walked beneath it. So was the burden of being a leader.

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It had been a few weeks since the first D-rank at the orphanage. To be completely honest it was probably the most boring time of Team Anko's lives. There was nothing to due that didn't revolve around training and doing crappy D-ranked missions or running away from their positively insane sensei who seemed to have developed a horrible habit of making them work twice as hard and five times as fast as any other genin team. They cursed her competitive ass for agreeing to a competition against the other jonin-sensei's.

Walking along a unpaved walkway, Hinata grinned to herself as she thought of her team. Both Naru and Lee had been dragged unwillingly to the Hokage tower after a prank had set all of the gem merchant's clothes a deep unsavory orange with pink and purple swirls. Oh yes, Naru had found a book of beginner Fuinjustu at the shinobi library and saw that it allowed for the capacity for unlimited destruction and mayhem. So following along that line of thought, Hinata knew her friend was going to rent it out and cause trouble. Why she had grabbed Lee and roped him into that, Hinata could only shake her head.

Sometimes it was tough being the responsible one on the team.

Clutching her shopping basket Hinata walked further into the heart of the village, the sounds of shopping costumers was heavy even though she was still minutes away from her destination.

_Hmm, lets see…I need onions, chicken, leeks, some fresh thyme and basil…what else? I should've brought that list like Naru told me too…maybe some shrimp and that bitter seaweed Lee likes…do we need rice? No, Lee and Naru just bought that five pound bag of it a few days ago…oh right, I cant forget the ramen, Naru might actually come after me instead or worse, she'll spend all her money at Ichiraku's again._

So deep in her thoughts was she that Hinata almost collided with somebody, instead though, she spun on the ball of her right foot until she was behind the random person impersonating a door and failing. Turning back around Hinata's eyes shot open and she gasped out in shock. "H-Hanabi!"

Cold, white eyes glared up at the frozen girl. Her lips down turned as she looked on in stony silence. So this was her older sister who had been cast out of the clan, humph, there wasn't much to look at. Her outfit was odd…to say they least. A mesh-like shirt hugged her growing form nicely and went surprisingly well with the baggy shinobi grade pants. On her arms there was metal backed gloves that had the fingers and the palms removed that matched the shin-plates on her legs. On the plates themselves were odd designs with little kanji written around it. But what really caught her eyes was the cloak her older sister was wearing. Velvety looking Hanabi realized it was actually made out of animal pelts, some type of canine if she was seeing it right. Around her neck was a fang tied to a metal necklace.

Finishing her perusal of her sibling, Hanabi looked back into the eyes of her sister. "you have changed sister. Why?"

Slightly confused and extremely wary, Hinata carefully chose her answers. She couldn't forget that even though Hanabi was her baby sister, she still was forced to answer to their father and the elders. "I am well little sister…does the Hyuuga clan not believe in change though dear one. It is just a state of my being that has led this ninja to change. Why do you ask me this Hanabi?"

Frowning even more, Hanabi clenched her fists. Here was her weak sister, a disgrace to all the clan had ever stood for, who had been thrown out without even a nice word or a goodbye, was actually daring to talk to her like they were equals and on the same terms. She fumed. "what is this, a lowlife dreg of a weak, little failure dares talk to the Hyuuga clans heiress in such a manner. You forget yourself _sister_, we are not family anymore. You have no right to question me like you are one of us again."

Shocked and hurt, Hinata felt as cold as the words her younger sister was saying. Still though, she wasn't surprised by what was said. It was only natural that the clan would choose Hanabi as the new Heiress. After all, she was the daughter of the clan head and the true holder of the Hyuuga ideals. She wasn't surprised by the corruption of her precious sister, but she was sad that she had been to late to stop it.

"Be that as it may. I am not going to fight you Hanabi. You may think we are sisters no more, but that is only in name. the bond we share is ingrained far further than a title and a family." Hinata said. Her pupiless eyes burned with inner conviction.

Hanabi froze as she regarded her once-sister. "and what would that be?" she questioned disinterestedly.

"blood."

Sneering, Hanabi turned on her heels and walked back the way she had come. Hatred and a smug look were shot over her shoulder as she left. "oh, dear Hinata. I shall tell _My_ father about this meeting. I hope for your sake that you haven't changed _too_ much."

Sinking to the ground, Hinata silently cried. The basket that she had brought with her wobbled on its side forgotten as the shiny trails of liquid poured down her face. She couldn't believe the person her sister had become, even more so, she didn't want to believe that this was the tiny child she had refused to fight not so long ago.

_Mother. Can you see what father and sister, no, the entire clan has become. What can I do? I'm no longer Hyuuga, I can't change them. Maybe I never could. I'm so sorry mother. I'm so sorry._

As she cried, the day slowly wore on. Even time didn't stop for the broken hearted.

0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0

In a large, spacious office overlooking the village, four people sat and watched the pretty red hawk as it screeched and ran its beak through its beautiful feathers.

A week had passed since Hinata had come home with tear stains on her face. That also meant it had been a week since Naru almost went on a rampage with Lee to find Hanabi and kick the ever-loving crap out of the little creep. Naru's words.

Sitting in a chair with a low back Anko watched the meeting with a sense of complete boredom. Nothing was happening. She was a woman who valued movement and freedom, not 'sit in a chair until your ass becomes one with the seat', type of woman. She was sooo bored.

Beside her Naru sat, thankfully just as bored. She kept figiting, like she expected someone to jump out at her and attack. It made Anko smile inwardly to know she had a hand in developing that paranoia.

Every so often her student would shift glances over to the stoic Anbu commander as he leaned against the wall. His crane mask firmly in place as he watched the Hokage read a small message in his wrinkled hands.

Sighing softly she daydreamed about why the old man had called this meeting in the first place. Right now she could be tormenting her genin or even a D-rank mission to clean the Inuzuka kennels would be a welcomed distraction right now. Further more, why had the Sandaime called in only her and Naru. Why not the rest of the team? And for the love of all things Dango, why the fuck was the Anbu commander here. It just didn't make sense to her.

Sensing the rising tension from his Jonin sensei, the Hokage re-rolled the message scroll in his hands once more. This was troubling news and welcome news. Clearing his throat he began to speak. "you are all wondering why I have called you all here today."

He waited for their complete attention before continuing. "we have just gotten word from a contact that a clan from the destroyed village of Uzushio, was discovered and being escorted to Konoha as we speak. They have sent a missive stating their intent on joining our village, further more they do not wish to be given a clan name nor any land."

A small cough had him looking at Crane. "Hokage-sama…forgive me, but why do they not wish to be announced as a clan or be given land to build a compound on? It makes little sense to me sir." he asked.

A wistful smile lit up the old features of the Hokage as he watched his Anbu commander. "they have instead wished to return to their former clan which is stationed in Konoha as of right now. They also wish for the new leader, while not fully qualified, to take command and sort out houses within the compound that they will be housed in. it is with my understanding, Crane, that they do not want their other clan title anymore to escape detection and to once again reunite with their roots, so to say." he pulled out his pipe and lit it as he watched his subordinates faces.

Surprisingly it was Naru who gained the courage to ask the ext question.

"Hokage-sama…you say that this clan wishes to rejoin a clan already stationed here. Does that mean the family in question split up from that clan or did they separate over time. Also, sir, how reliable is this informant of yours. Can they be trusted with bringing in a new clan and are they good enough to keep everything silent." she asked. Her blue eyes narrowed in contemplation as she thought over everything.

He ignored the sounds of Naru being hit by both her teachers and the resounding calls of being more respectful to your leader or don't question the Hokage you baka. He laughed quietly at the three now bickering ninja before holding up a hand for silence.

"this clan was once part of a larger clan that had its home in Uzushiogakure. During the war in which several other hidden villages attacked them, they split off and became several smaller clans. When the went back home decades had passed before then and they were not all one big clan anymore, yet they still lived peacefully with each other. Then the second shinobi war had come and divided them even further. Many of that once great clan had fled and formed even smaller side clans and they left their ancestral lands to escape the bloodshed. By the time the third shinobi war had happened, the clan was nearly wiped out and their home village and country was razed to the ground." he puffed on his pipe.

He locked eyes with the orange girl, "besides that, my informant is very good and has pledged loyalty to Konoha provided we don't turn her in to her previous village. I have all her papers written up, along with the ones pertaining to the clan which will need to be signed by the clan head, me and you Crane - since you run our Anbu division you need some proper notification on your newest charges." he said as the sweet smelling smoke from his pipe hazed around the room.

Anko straightened up in her seat and cleared her throat. "Hokage-sama, you keep mentioning this clan in Konoha…who are they?"

The old man smiled before looking to the youngest in the room. "the clan Uzumaki will be taking them in."

The shouts of denial and bewilderment suddenly caused the spacious room to feel crowded as Hiruzen smoked silently. It was best he decided, to let them work this out for the moment. He would resume when the stoped long enough to take a couple of breaths.

"what do you mean Clan Uzumaki…there is no such thing." "you don't think I know that you Bird-masked freak of nature!" "oi, old man what's the given. You said my clan was destroyed. Why are you bringing in more people?"

Everyone took a few breaths of air before getting back to their argument. The Hokage could feel the spot above his eyebrow twitch in annoyance with his shinobi. They bickered worse than his children had when they were in the academy.

"ENOUGH!" he yelled. The three fighting ninja suddenly froze as the tiniest tendrils of killing intent flooded their nerves system.

He took a deep breath for calm and straightened out his papers before looking at them. "sit down all of you." they sat so fast it left him amazed. He still had it. "yes there is a Uzumaki clan or at least there will be. Crane, I want you to let the rest of the patrols know about a clan coming back from a long term mission. That is all I want to hear about. If anyone asks for more information, tell them it is classified under my ruling. -Crane nodded but didn't leave. - Anko I want you to notify the rest of the Jonin about the same thing. If asked, give the same answer as Crane here. I want most of the force to understand that a clan is coming back to Konoha and to not give them trouble. If they do, tell them I will be the one administrating punishments. You both are dismissed." he barked. The two shinobi gulped and bowed before shunshining out of the room.

Locking his hands together, the Sandaime looked at the small girl before him. "Naru…I know this is a lot to take in right now. The newest clan knows about you from the informant and through some of my own letters. They have decided that they will place their trust in you. it's a big honor." he said to her.

"Maybe I don't want this honor Hokage-sama. Have you ever thought I just want to be normal and live a normal life. I just want to be a shinobi sir, how can I be that when I'm looking out after a bunch of people. - she grumbled slightly embarrassed by her reaction. - besides, why do I have to be the clan head. There has to be somebody more qualified in the other clan, isn't there?" she asked. Her big blue eyes slightly watery as she pleaded with the man she viewed as a grandfather.

Silence met her question. Looking down at her feet, Naru clenched her hands together as she feigned calm. Her voice silent and icy as she talked. "I see…Hokage-sama, may I be excused…there's a lot to-do before the clan arrives…" she trailed off before bowing to the aged leader and then left out the door.

Heaving a small sigh, the old leader leaned back in his chair. He felt sad for the tiny girl. To have such a burden at such an age, on top of being the jailer for the Kyuubi, he couldn't fathom what she was going through. He, in his long life time, had already met two other Kyuubi containers…it pained him to have had met the third.

He quietly picked up a pen and started working once more. If only it had eased the pain inside while he he was doing so…

0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0

**Uzumaki compound, two weeks later.**

In front of the large gates leading into the compound, Hinata and Lee stood beside Naru in silent support.

Both sent quick looks to the other in worry as their friend stood stark against the early morning sun. to them she looked like some primordial statue that stood in quiet testimony to time itself. Besides that, the blonde looked scared to death.

Sending looks to her back, Naru couldn't help but be both annoyed and grateful towards her friends and teammates. Here she was: a small, annoying scrap of space with an orange complex the size of Iwa, being asked to lead a once - nearly destroyed clan brought back from the ashes of history…and she was supposed to be apparently okay with it. That didn't happen unless it was a story of make-believe.

To be fair though, she was slightly happy that she was going to have a family. Maybe if they lived in Konoha, she could help make sure that her new family and clan made it through this time. She wasn't going to let them be destroyed. Not this time.

Shrugging off the odd stares, Naru stared at a sudden burst of color - bright colors of pinks and blues mixed with more somber shades of grays.

"good morning Hokage-sama." she bowed. Behind her both her friends murmured their own greetings as they bowed as well.

Making a small gesture all three shinobi straightened up once more. A sudden screeching of a hawk rang out in the deafening silence between the four. Naru looked up at the rusty red of the bird as it wheeled and climbed higher into the sky. She felt suddenly very exposed. Before her the Hokage nodded. "they are here." he said.

Looking behind the old man, Naru could make out the glimpse of a semi-large dust cloud. The range of colors that lit up the area around it was immense and beautiful, like a sunset and a sunrise happening at the same time.

_So this is what it will be like with a family huh?_ Naru thought. The feeling of well-hidden anxiety suddenly resurfacing as the new clan came closer.

All of a sudden they were right in front of her. The young, the old. Warriors and housewives and many children. She felt she was suffocating.

A very old woman with thin white hair walked out in front of her family and regarded her, slowly walking in a loose circle before coming back to face her again. "you are the last Uzumaki?" her whispery voice crackled slightly as she spoke.

Naru nodded. "yes. That is technically correct." the old woman's eyes sharpened as she looked at her. "what do you mean 'technically'?" she answered back, just as quickly.

Swallowing a lump, Naru tried to meet the elders eyes. "we are to be a family. Stands to reason…I wont be the last anymore." she answered meekly.

The old woman regarded her for what seemed like hours before she gave a chilling grin. The wrinkles and folds in her skin deepened as she chuckled. "seems to be that way, huh." she laughed. Before offering a hand to the smaller girl. "my name is Tsubaki, but you will call me obaa-chan. This is our family. We now take the name Uzumaki, who is to be led by Uzumaki Naru…we have high hopes for you clan-head." she chuckled again before signaling the rest of the clan to bow.

"lead us well, young one."


End file.
