I'd like to thank Tsu-shishou for giving me the idea, and being awesome! Oh… and I turned this into a sequel to Hostage, just because I said I might. But it isn't really necessary to read it; I won't have too many references from it. Just know: Sasuke is dead, Sakura hates Hinata's younger sister Hanabi. Naruto and Hinata have a son (gag!).
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It was Friday once again. More specifically, the second Friday of the month. And that is why at exactly 8:00pm four girls were located at Haruno Sakura's house, each catching up about the recent developments in their lives.
"Naruto has just perfect another jutsu," Sakura reported. "Since the one that he used to bring…is old one isn't good enough anymore."
"Shikamaru turned down ANBU again," Ino said. "They ask him over and over again, and he still refuses to take the job."
"Neji says it's a waste of his time to spar with me anymore. And Lee doesn't have time since he became a sensei."
"K-Kiba-kun and Shino-kun still won't actually f-fight me. They keep hesitating or l-letting me w-win."
A collective sigh went around the room.
"Tsuande-shishou says when she retires she's letting me take over complete control of the hospital."
"I can take control of someone without them noticing and without leaving my body."
"I could kick Neji's ass if I really wanted to!"
"So c-c-could I."
"Then why is it that we're still being treated like this?" Sakura asked. "Even after all these years, I'm still considered the little girl from Team 7 that needed to be rescued again and again. I mean, sure when we were younger we weren't the strongest of people, but we're not that way anymore!"
"She's right," Tenten agreed. "Sakura-chan can punch craters in the ground as big as Suna. If that's not strong then we're all doomed."
"I didn't need rescuing in the first place," Ino said in a huff. "Sure my Mind Transfer jutsu wasn't flawless, but it was still effective."
Hinata nodded sadly; "They still don't like that I'm the heiress."
Ino jumped to her feet, looking livid. "Ok that's enough. I am so sick of people treating us like this! Hinata-chan, you would make a great Hyuuga Head, and they should know that by now!"
Tenten nodded in agreement, Sakura raised her glass with a small "here, here" and Hinata looked at the ground.
"This town would fall to pieces without us," Tenten said. "Those boys need us here to help them, yet its never appreciated. I just don't understand it."
They all fell silent. They all thought those words all the time, they had just never spoke them. "Then why do we stay?" Hinata asked, her voice so low the other girls could barely hear her. "What's the point of b-being here if we're always t-treated like this?"
Tenten, Sakura and Ino stared at her. Neither of them had ever thought that Hinata of all people would ask the question they all thought, but never dared voice.
"We have no where else to go," Sakura finally said. "If we left, we'd be…"
"Missing-nin," Ino finished for her, knowing that Sakura had a hard time with that particular word. Ever since Sasuke had left the village that term was hard for the pink-haired woman.
"They might finally acknowledge us," Tenten said bitterly.
"Couldn't we just… go on v-vacation to S-Suna? Then we're only three d-days away, but they have to r-realize what its like w-w-without us."
"She has all the great ideas," Ino said. "So why can't the Hyuuga elders see that?"
"They can see everything else," Tenten said darkly. "Trust me… I know. Neji isn't as honorable as people seem to think he is."
Ino and Sakura burst into a fit of laughter, while Hinata looked slightly disturbed.
"Its getting late," Ino commented as she looked at the clock hanging on Sakura's wall. "I've got to help kaa-san open the shop tomorrow."
"I promised Lee I'd teach his students proper ways to use weaponry in battle."
"We meet at Tenten-chan's house next week, right?" Sakura asked, climbing to her feet to say goodbye to her guests.
"Only if we're still in the village," Ino said, only half joking.
The other three laughed without much enthusiasm. Their minds were still stuck on what life would be like if the rest of the village wasn't constantly putting them down. Yet, they still walked to their houses, just to get up the next day and start their pitiful existences all over again.
It was a vicious cycle, one that never seemed to stop. They would get up, go about their day, put up with the mental abuse, and never once complain about it. They knew that they were stronger than people gave them credit for, and if they ever wanted to prove that, it would be all too easy. Yet they wouldn't, they just ignore the cruel voices, pretending like they didn't notice the way they were never quite treated the way they deserved.
They could go through with this; whether it was acknowledged or not, they were strong, beautiful, talented, and smart kounichi that served their village well. And that was enough for them… for awhile.
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A month later they found themselves at Tenten's house, staring at Sakura who was in the middle of a rant that had been going on for about ten minutes now. She had been sent on a mission with Naruto, Sai, and Kakashi to protect some old man that was of high importance in another country. It was a B rank mission to a village that was only a four-day journey.
On the second day they were attacked. There were about five of them, and were clearly no match for Team Kakashi. However, even though these men were clearly weak, Naruto had taken it upon himself to send a Kage bunshin to stand in front of his female teammate anytime someone as much as glanced at her. She was near punching the clone just to prove she didn't need his help.
"Sure I'm a medic and I'm not supposed to be fighting in case something comes up and I'm needed, but I could've beat these guys when I was still a gennin!"
"You'd think Naruto would realize that by now… I mean, how many times have you punched his face in?" Tenten commented.
"I know… I mean, I'm not weak anymore. I managed to survive being the hostage of Itachi!" she caught her mistake and added, "Uchiha freaking Itachi!" to cover it up. She had not yet told her friends exactly what had happened while she was in the… care of the Akatsuki.
"It must have b-been terrible for you Sakura-chan," Hinata said sympathetically.
"Are you kidding?" Ino said, trying to lighten the atmosphere that always seemed to get thick and heavy whenever Sakura mentioned her kidnapping. "She was in a house full of only males. How can that be considered terrible?"
"I don't know…" Sakura said, smiling slightly. "I saw one that might not have been male…"
"Oh, speaking of not entirely male," Tenten said. "Neji said there was some kind of Hyuuga meeting going on today. How'd that go?"
"Neji's not entirely male?" Ino asked, smirking.
"His hair is softer than mine is."
"How do you know how soft his hair is?"
"More important matter here," Sakura said, cutting Ino and Tenten off. "What happened at the meeting Hinata-chan?"
"Apparently having a failed m-m-marriage makes me an even bigger disappointment to the clan… they've been talking about l-letting Hanabi take over instead." Sakura growled murderously at the younger Hyuuga's name, Ino jumped to her feet screaming "WHAT?!" and Tenten was halfway out the door, a large scroll in her hand.
"They're going to let… let… they can't! Aren't there laws about that kind of thing?!" Ino was ranting, so angry her words weren't completely clear.
"Let them."
Those two simple words caused Ino stopped in her tracks, her mouth hanging open in shock, Hinata to look at the ground trying to hold back tears, and Tenten turning around pulling out a few shuriken and looked about ready to chuck them at the pink haired girl. "Let them make the runt an heiress. We won't be here anyway."
"S-Sakura-chan… you d-don't mean…" Hinata trailed off, her eyes wide.
"If they don't want you as the head of the family, and they gave Naruto custody, what's left for you here?" She turned to Ino, "They're never going to let you join ANBU. They're too insistent on you remaining at the hospital, and we all know how much you hate it there." She gave her blond friend an apologetic look before looking at Tenten, but was cut off.
"Sakura-chan, this is our home. I know life has been hard on you since… what happened to Sasuke… but we can't just leave? What if the… Akatsuki gets us?"
"We can protect ourselves," Sakura assured them, half convinced to tell them the truth about her time with Itachi simply to convince them.
"I'm in," Hinata said quietly.
"Ino-chan? Tenten-chan? What about you?"
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Sorry for the cliffhanger, now you guys get to decide: will Ino and Tenten go along? Leave a review saying if you want Ino and/or Tenten to join them. You may choose to have one person go but not the other… just please tell me or I'll choose.