Summary; Warning; Disclaimer: See First Chapter.

And after a long wait, here's the next chapter! I never planned on this story being so long and involved and I see it only getting longer before it ends. I'm honestly enjoying writing it, so I hope you all enjoy this latest chapter.

"I saved your sorry ass," Taya informed Oishi shortly after arriving in the prison cells. He was currently the only guest, tucked away in the farthest corner from the door. Neji remained a safe distance away, eying the man with disdain.

"You mean they were going to kill me?" he squeaked, shooting to his feet and out of the bout of self-pity they had found him in.

"Yes, stupid," she replied curtly. "You're a traitor, or did you forget that? Tsunade-sama said the only reason she even listened to me was because I helped out, even if it was by mistake," she continued, sounding embarrassed.

"You should be grateful. Taya-san could have been thrown in there for conspiracy," Neji interrupted, sounding angrier than before. Taya glanced over at him and quickly backed away from the bars when the Hyuuga strode up to stare down at Oishi. "So I suggest you remember why you're still alive, because if it was up to anyone else in this village, you'd be hanging by now," he said through set teeth. "And she's being marked as a traitor because of her father and your stupidity, so count your blessings you're behind those bars and not out here."

"Where did that come from?" she wondered in amazement. Oishi echoed her thoughts, actually backing up to the wall away from Neji.

"Where the hell did the come from, Hyuuga-san?" he demanded. "You don't have to sound like it's so personal!"

"My family is tied up in this and it is," Neji continued, visibly calming down as he took a few deep breaths. "If I find out you've tricked us or held back information, I'll personally see you have a slow, painful death," he promised, glancing at Taya as he stepped away.

"Uh…feel better?" she asked weakly, receiving only a blank stare in return. Blinking a few times, having no idea what to do about that scene, she instead returned her attention to Oishi. "I'll probably come every few days, Lee is going to start my training up again," she said awkwardly, feeling suddenly like she had heat boring through her head. Sure enough, she turned and Neji was staring at her solemnly.

"You'd better just go, Taya-chan," Oishi sighed. "I'll be here, got nothing else to do." He laughed hollowly, shrugging as he grinned. "Don't forget to surprise Lee-san with the jutsus I taught you in Sunagakure, I'm sure he'll be happy."

"Thrilled." She was forced to agree with a returning grin before quickly turning and striding from the room, suddenly feeling like the walls were closing in on her. Neji shot Oishi another warning stare before stalking after her, nodding curtly at the ANBU guard posted there.

"You left in a hurry," he remarked, catching up to her once they were outside. Taya shrugged, suddenly feeling awkward with him.

"And you got a little pissy," she replied shortly. "I had the feeling you didn't want to hang around any longer, so I thought a quick visit was best," she continued without glancing over at the Hyuuga, whose expression was completely and carefully blank.

"Hisoka will take you from now on," he finally said. "He was in my squad and I trusted him. I suppose I'm angrier than I realized at being betrayed in such a manner," he admitted sourly. Taya made a noise that could have been agreement before they fell silent once more. A few people stared at them as they made their way down the street, but no one dared to bother her again. Until a certain blonde ninja appeared, a wide grin on his face.

"Glad you're both back safe!" he announced, wearing his usual khaki pants with a long-sleeved black zippered shirt under an orange short-sleeved long coat, black flames swirling on the bottom and collar. It was no secret he would be the next Hokage and those old enough to remember his father were startled by the resemblance. "I was hoping to find you guys sooner, but your uncle has everything under lock and key," he grumbled, fitting in-between the two and slinging an arm around both.

"How've you been, Naruto-kun?" Taya asked, unable to restrain a grin at the young man's cheerfulness. "Staying out of trouble? Haruno-san isn't chasing you again, is she?" she asked, checking around for the pink-haired kunoichi, unable to forget one incident when Naruto had apparently broken something of Sakura's.

"Nope! Not this time," he added with a wince. "I thought I'd treat you guys to ramen. You earned it, after all, and it's been a while since we got to have lunch," he continued cheerfully. "Whaddya say, Neji? C'mon!" He choked the Hyuuga, who rolled his eyes with a heavy sigh.

"All right, fine. We didn't have any plans anyway," Neji grumbled.

"Oh! Were you two on a date?" Naruto asked, looking surprised and a bit worried he had interrupted something. Both of them turned red, Taya shaking her head so violently it could fall off, while Neji stared straight ahead.

"What? No!" she protested loudly. "We were leaving the Hokage's office," she continued, coughing as she resumed her normal tone, ears still pink. "I had to get questioned all morning," she grumbled. Naruto, reassured he wasn't interrupting something, nodded solemnly.

"That's no fun. You definitely earned a meal, then. Granny can be brutal," he agreed, ignoring Taya's shocked expression as he referred to the Hokage so casually. "So let's go, grumpy!" Naruto cheered, dragging Neji along after them.

Hiashi looked up as his daughter strode into the room. For all her apparent meekness and gentleness, he was well aware that her relationship with the Kyuubi had strengthened her a great deal. She had a will of steel and power that frightened many people who knew of it; she was a formidable foe in both politics and fighting, as she still served as an ANBU for the Hokage.

"Is there something you need, Hinata?" he asked patiently, as his daughter slid the door shut and turned to face him soberly.

"I'd like to know why you're so insistent on keeping Iijima-san in our compound, much less our lives," she began. "As well as why you have decided Neji-chan is an appropriate guard for her, despite their fighting."

Hiashi blinked, having expected another topic of interest, but quickly regained his composure. Gesturing for his daughter to sit, he rested his chin on the back of his hands and peered at her. "You are well aware of Neji's talents with the Byakugan," he said. She nodded slightly, impatient. "And I know you are aware of Iijima-san's interesting talent. She claims it was merely chance it was passed down on her from her father, but I've done a little research and discovered that her eidetic memory is something that has been passed down in her father's family for at least eight generations."

"So you believe it is a kekkei-genkai?" Hinata checked. Her father nodded and it only took her a split-second to put the pieces together. "So you want her to marry into the clan. A Byakugan user with the ability to memorize jutsus instantly would be a powerful addition to the family," she realized, keeping her tone neutral. "And as Neji-chan is one of the most powerful Byakugan users, he would be ideal, am I correct?"

"He isn't in the main branch - marriage outside of the clan to someone from a less-than-prominent family would not cause as much trouble as if a member of our branch did," Hiashi said, confirming her words with a nod. "Besides, their fighting is like an old married couple's already. But just in case your worries are founded, I installed Hisoka as her escort when Neji is unavailable," he continued smoothly.

"So, you're arraigning a marriage for the girl under the guise of protecting her?" Hinata asked, unable to keep her surprise completely checked this time.

"I only found out about the kekkei-genkai after she had been kidnapped," Hiashi informed her. "I did take her in to pay a debt I owed to her father, traitor that he is. The fact that she can be of further use to us is a happy coincidence, I assure you. If I had known her talent was a kekkei-genkai from the beginning, she would not be learning solely taijutsu. As it's too late to change her training regimen now, she will merely have to adapt."

"Does Neji-chan know about this?" Hinata demanded. "I can't imagine he'll be very pleased with the idea, father! What about Hisoka?" she added quickly. Her cousin was indeed a member of the main branch, but so distantly related it would be of even less consequence than Neji marrying someone so far down the social ladder as Taya Iijima.

"Neji does not know, yet," her father admitted. "Hisoka suspects something, of course, but he likes the girl and has no objections if it doesn't work out with your genius cousin. I'd prefer you not say anything to either of them," he added with a warning glance towards his daughter.

"I won't," she replied shortly, getting to her feet. "I just hope you're sure of the people you're manipulating this time, father. This may not end as well as you think it will if things get out of hand," she warned him, reaching the door.

"And how do you think this could get out of hand?" he repeated curiously. She cast him a wry look that suggested he knew even less about romance and women than she previously thought before leaving without another word. Hiashi frowned and returned to his papers, wondering if he should implement yet another fail-safe should his daughter prove to be right.

"Thank Kami that's over," Neji thought in relief, taking the young woman back to the compound after a long meal with the Kyuubi. Naruto had spared no expense for Neji's dignity, taking every opportunity to tease the Hyuuga about going on a date with Taya. "I swear, if he wasn't engaged to Hinata…" he swore, sighing.

Taya glanced up at him curiously. She knew Naruto's teasing had gotten under Neji's skin, but she had thought the Hyuuga would be used to it after all these years. Shrugging, she kept her opinion to herself and kept herself busy looking at the shops they passed. It was already growing dark and they were all closed, but the windows were lit up for passers-by. "We're just taking the long way back home, aren't we," she stated in amusement. Naruto had offered to go back with them, as he was picking Hinata up for a date, but Neji had flatly stated they had other business to attend to.

"Of course," he replied calmly. She shook her head in disbelief before something caught her eye and she veered off the street to peer into a storefront. The store itself was already closed, but the display on front was lit up bright enough for Neji to see what she was looking at. It was a pair of fingerless leather gloves, black with chakra-storing stones on each knuckle.

"That's so cool, I didn't know they made stuff like this," she said, after realizing he was behind her. "What are the stones for?" she asked, narrowing her eyes as she tried to read the price and groaning once she made it out.

"They store chakra so the user has a backup source during a fight," Neji explained. "You could store someone else's chakra for misdirection techniques, but those are advanced jutsus. A taijutsu user would use the stones to store their own chakra. Since taijutsu doesn't use much, you would have a store of it for any large or sudden genjutsus or ninjutsus you might need to perform during a fight."

"That's pretty cool," Taya admitted, leaning back away from the case with a reluctant sigh. "Maybe I'll save up for it. With the stipend your family gives me and any payment I might get from missions…that'll take about…four years." She grimaced, only half-joking, and turned away from the glass reluctantly.

"We should get back to the compound before it gets much later," he remarked, not having any comments regarding her mathematic skills.

"Won't it be easier for you to sneak me in unnoticed the later it is?" she replied curiously, having already figured out another reason why the Hyuuga hadn't wanted to return home with Naruto. The loud ninja would only bring more attention to the fact that Taya was there, something that they were trying to avoid for the time being .

"Doesn't mean I want to be out late," was the curt answer and she made a face at his back as she followed him down the street. "You do remember I can see when you do that," he stated.

"And I still think it's creepy," she retorted, folding her arms stubbornly and keeping close to the Hyuuga as it grew darker out.

Shizune frowned stubbornly, regarding the Hokage's latest plan as foolish. "Milady, Kumogakure is a dangerous place," she protested. "You can't expect a mission like this to end well."

"I can and do," Tsunade informed her with a stern glare. "Neji and his team have a one-hundred percent success rate on all missions."

"They can't all go!" the woman protested in alarm. "The other ninja will recognize Hyuuga-san immediately! And sending in such a large squad of ANBU will most definitely attract the attention of the Raikage, which defeats the purpose of the goal."

"I'm not stupid, Shizune." The Hokage set her teeth and glared at her assistant. "I expect to see Neji and the others in here first thing in the morning for their mission briefing, understand? I won't expect any excuses, either!" she shouted, sensing what the other woman was planning. Her assistant ran from the room, temporarily cowed by the Hokage's shouting. Tsunade turned to the window and sighed, hoping she was right in her assumptions.

"You have to stay in your own bed," Neji explained patiently, trying to untangle himself from the knot of woman and blankets he had woken up to. She mumbled something incoherent and clutched his sleeve tighter, head buried under a pillow.

"It's a wonder she doesn't smother herself like that," he thought wryly, sighing again as he attempted to pull away. He succeeded after a few minutes, almost falling to the floor when Taya abruptly released her grip to roll over. Grumbling, the Hyuuga stalked into the bathroom, locking the door for good measure.

For her part, Taya was dimly aware of an annoying voice nagging her, but rolling over had seemed to stop it. Relieved, she managed to get a bit more time in her half-asleep state before she was suddenly whirled around and tossed onto the floor, neatly removed from her blankets.

"What the hell?" she stammered, sitting upright to see a smug Neji standing by the bed, wet hair plastered to his bare back. Being female, she took a long moment to take in the sight of a bare-chested Neji Hyuuga before blinking and jumping to her feet. "What'd you throw me for?" she demanded, trying to straighten her clothes out.

"I'm not going to wake up every morning with you in my bed!" Neji informed her shortly, less annoyed than he sounded. The woman looked rather pathetic and he found it hard to get truly angry with her when she made that face. "It's not decent!"

"We're both clothed! I hate sleeping on the floor," Taya shot back. She looked as if she was going to say something else, then shut her mouth again for a moment. "Either I get a damn bed or you get a bedmate. Period," she continued, giving him a glare that was impressive considering her hair was in her eyes. He sighed theatrically, running his hand over his face.

"Fine. I'll talk to uncle about moving you into your own room. Or at least getting another futon in here," he grumbled, realizing he was losing the battle when Uhra appeared on his mistress' shoulders, smug as ever.

"Is he doing inappropriate things to you, Taya?" the weasel demanded, not sounding entirely unhappy about the prospect. Two sets of jaws dropped open and Taya turned a bright red.

"What?" she demanded, voice shrill. "What the hell is wrong with you, Uhra? No! Nothing!" The weasel popped out of of existence in the next second, Taya grumbling to herself as she picked herself off the floor, straightening her rumpled clothes. Neji's head turned as a falcon appeared on the windowsill, a letter tied to its leg. Sighing, he took the note and shooed the bird away, reading the note as Taya scurried away to the bathroom for her own shower.

When she returned, dressed in her usual kunoichi outfit and her hair pinned back, Neji was gone. Hisoka was leaning against the door, dressed in an ANBU uniform and looking inordinately cheerful. His long hair was in a braid down his back and his mask was on the side of his head, but other than that he looked eerily like Neji. Taya sighed and peered at him.

"Let me guess. I have to go meet Lee-san to see what new torture he can come up with for me," she started, but the Hyuuga shook his head.

"Nope. Neji and his squad are being assigned a mission, so you'll stay in his room alone for the time being. Uncle decided it was best," he told her. "And you're being assigned to an actual squad, as the fourth member. The jonin in charge is Juro Hizama. He's pretty tough and has no sense of humor whatsoever, but the Hokage trusts him. The other two members are both chuunin like you, Gera Kondo and Akita Ishii. They've been a three man squad for some time, so they probably won't be happy with you."

"Then why am I going?" she protested, realizing the Hyuuga had led her out of the room and almost had them out of the compound while he talked. "Wow, he's good," she was forced to admit, since he hadn't even had to grab her elbow to lead her.

"Because the Hokage wants you to get some experience working with a squad. You can practice your jutsus more and learn how to work with others in a fight," he explained. He looked disgruntled, as if he didn't like the idea either, but had no say in anything. "They're catching up on training in the woods around the village, so you'll stay with them. Think of it like a camping trip. You'll be close to enough to the village that nothing will happen," he added, as she opened her mouth to object. She shut it again in a thin line, grimacing at the idea of having to put up with what sounded like an unpleasant situation.

"I'm doomed," she moaned, dropping her head as she followed him out onto the streets. They were pointedly ignored this time, although Hisoke draped an arm around her shoulders just in case. He shrugged, unable to offer much solace.

"Probably. But try to make the best of it, at least you won't be doing thousands of laps around the compound for a while," he pointed out. She managed a weak grin, although that would have been preferable to most anything.

Juro Hizama, she quickly realized, did not like her. That was probably quite an understatement, but she didn't want to assign the feeling 'hate' to him quite yet. He was muscular for a ninja, wearing a typical jonin outfit, black hair tucked under a backwards hitai-ate. He watched her with narrowed eyes that matched his hair, not having said as Hisoka introduced her. The orders from the Hokage had clearly rubbed him the wrong way and he remained staring at her well after the Hyuuga left.

The two chuunin weren't much better. Both were older than her and more experienced, clearly having no use for a rookie on their squad. Ger Kondo proved to be a man even more muscled than his sensei, his brown hair cropped close and his outfit revealing most of his muscles. Akita Ishii was tall and slender, her kimono cut to provide the maximum amount of movement while her long hair flowed free, which seemed impractical to Taya. She winced under their combined stares, swallowing as her 'sensei' cleared his throat.

"Let's see what you can do then, shall we? Akita, you go first," he ordered.