Chapter Twenty-Six – Training And New Faces

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Naruto slumped, gasping for breath as he released the jutsu. His form seemed to waver, then returned from his near-cat mode back to human.

"That was quite impressive." Said a familiar voice from the entrance and Naruto looked up with a smile.

"Jiji! What are you doing here?"

"I came to introduce you to a student of mine." Sarutobi said. "He's waiting upstairs and…"

Sarutobi stopped as a resounding slap echoed and Naruto winced.

"Oh dear. Sounds like someone tried something perverted with Honoka. She's happy to swap innuendoes, but if anyone actually tries anything physical…"

The sound of a fading scream echoed and Naruto sighed.

"Please tell me that the person you wanted to introduce me to isn't a pervert."

"Well, he can act a bit perverted at times." Sarutobi admitted. "He's an excellent shinobi and he's written many excellent books."

"Such as?" Naruto queried and Sarutobi coughed in embarrasment.

"Well, he's most famous for the Icha Icha series…"

"Jiraiya." Naruto stated. "I read his book The Tale Of The Utterly Gutsy Shinobi. In fact, that's the book Kakashi-sensei used to teach me to read properly. He said that I was named after the main character."

Sarutobi looked impressed. "Jiraiya is one of the best sealing masters in Konoha."

"I bet Honoka's better." Naruto said. "I taught her the Kage Bunshin and she turned one of the storage rooms into her personal workshop. She makes storage seals and various tags there, and sells them to Tenten's dad. As family, I get them for slightly more than they cost to make but less than the retail price. She's also training Haku, Hinata and myself in basic Fuuinjitsu, storage seals and so on. Plus, she's placed security seals all round the bunker."

"I'd heard some of my shinobi saying that the new tags were the best ones they had come across, despite the cost." Sarutobi said with a smile. "I had wondered where they were coming from. But how does Kage Bunshin help?"

"It lets her do loads of tags at once." Naruto grinned. "Also let her fill out all the regristation forms very quickly. She says that Kage Bunshin is great for paperwork, as long as you concentrate on wanting to do it as you make the clones."

Sarutobi stared at him for a moment, then removed his hat, turned and started beating his head gently against the wall.

"Baka, baka, baka, baka, baka, baka…"

"Jiji… what's wrong…"

"All those years and I never thought of doing that." Sarutobi groaned.

"Doing what?" Honoka asked, appearing in the doorway. "Oh, by the way, there was a white-haired pervert up there. I chased him away, who was he?"

Sarutobi slumped against the wall as Naruto started to laugh.

"No, seriously. Who was he?"

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"Hinata, are you ready for… what's Jiraiya doing on the floor?"

"Oh, do you know him?" Hinata asked, blushing furiously. "Sorry, he made a comment and I… didaneighttrigramssixtyfourp almsonhim."

Naruto blinked. "No wonder he's out cold. Hang on. Kage Bunshin no Jutsu."

A single clone popped into view and Naruto pointed to the white-haired man lying on the floor. "Take him to the hospital, then dispell once he's receiving treatment."

"Gotcha, boss." The clone said, picking up Jiraiya and slinging him over his shoulders. Naruto and Hinata watched him depart, then Naruto realised what he had originally been about to ask.

"So, you ready for the meal out?"

Hinata nodded as she adjusted her new top. "Yep, it's been a few days since I last saw Kiba and Shino. Where's Honoka?"

"Kakashi came back with Sasuke for supplies and Jiji commanded him to test her to see what level she is." Naruto said. "She said she'd join us there, she'll probably need to wash up first."

"I wonder what rank she'll get?" Hinata mused. "From when we sparred, I can tell she's really good."

"Chunin for sure." Naruto grinned as Hinata let him scoop her up in his arms. Walking outside, he looked round, then concentrated.

"Naruto, what are you… oooooh!"

Naruto smiled as he finished the third Shunshin, placing him just opposite the barbeque restaurant. Hinata clutched him tightly as she recovered from the dizziness.

"Warn a girl next time!"

"Sorry." Naruto chuckled as he carried her into the restaurant, looking round to see Kiba waving to him from a large table. Hinata looked round and her eyes widened.

"Put me down!" she hissed and Naruto lowered her feet to the floor, taking advantage of her proximity to kiss her cheek. Hinata shook her head.

"No, Naruto, you do it like this!"

All eleven of the assembled genin stared as Hinata grabbed Naruto's head and pulled him into a deep kiss, then Kiba started cheering while Sasuke and Shikamaru started to laugh. Hinata released him and blushed.

"I hope you've learned your lesson." She said mock-sternly. "Now come on, let's not keep our friends waiting."

Naruto grinned as he followed Hinata to the table and held out the chair for her to be seated before sitting down next to her.

"No need to ask if you're still in love." Kiba joked. "I think you proved that you still are."

Hinata's blush intensified at Kiba's comment, but before she could say anything, Ino reached over and swatted him.

"Stop that." She said. "I think it's sweet. Where's Honoka? Ive been wanting to meet her. I need to get gossip about her, I'm in danger of losing my position as the gossip-queen of Konoha!"

A round of laughter met Ino's statement and Naruto looked round at the other rookies.

"Only a week to go." He said. "I hope that you are training hard, especially you, Neji. I don't want an easy win, I want you to make me really work for my victory, like Tenten did."

Tenten smiled at the compliment even as Neji chuckled slightly.

"I shall do my utmost you challenge you, Naruto-san." He replied. "You will have to use both sword and cat against me if you wish to win."

"My training is going well also!" Lee proclaimed. "And whichever of you wins, I shall be there to give you a true challenge!"

"Boys, calm down." Tenten said, making calming motions with her hands. "You can swap boasts and challenges after the meal."

"She's right." Chouji said, looking longingly at where the food was being prepared. "Food comes first."

"Never argue with an Akamichi about food." Shikamaru said. "It's just too troublesome."

"Hello, sorry to keep you waiting." Honoka said from behind them.

"I saved a seat for you." Shino said and Honoka slid into it with a smile.

"Thanks, Shino. What did I miss?"

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"He's really that big?" Ino gasped, staring at the size Sakura had just described with her hands.

"That's the size that Sai said he was, yes." Sakura said. "Hinata, did he get it right?"

Hinata shook her head slightly, then blushed.

"So is he smaller or bigger? Bigger? You have to be kidding! How big is he?" Ino gasped, leaning forwards. Hinata's blush deepened and she sank deeper into the water, only for Honoka to grab her and pull her back to the surface.

"Oh no you don't. I'm not letting you drown yourself out of embarrasment, it would upset Naruto."

Tenten laughed. "You are one lucky girl, getting him for yourself. When I lost to him, I was so turned on by his skill and strength. If you ever decide you don't want him, I'll be happy to take him off your hands."

Hinata's blush deepened and she quickly changed the subject. "Honoka-san, how did your test go?"

"It went very well." Honoka smiled. "I am now a full chunin of Konoha, and on the list for promotion to Special Jonin once I've gained some experience. The Hokage also put me on the Special Skills list for my Fuuinjitsu and Fox-sama of ANBU has already asked me if I can provide some special tags since mine are better than most of what were available in Konoha before I arrived."

"We're selling her tags at my dad's shop." Tenten explained. "I swear, he almost proposed to her after testing the first explosive tag that she provided, and when she showed she could make shock tags, chakra-suppression tags, tracking tags and loads of other things… I haven't seen him so happy in years."

"I'm earning quite a bit from it." Honoka smirked. "I'm saving up and when I have enough, I'm going to buy some land and build my own house. I was thinking of buying up the old Namikaze mansion since the foundation is still intact. I'm also earning money checking and repairing the seals along the walls and in the gates, some of them had almost faded to nothing. The new arrays I included should help."

Sakura nodded. "I heard that the Council are moving to have you declared the clan-head of the resurrected Uzumaki clan as soon as you come of age, giving you a seat on the council."

"Until then, I've asked Zabuza to be my regent, since he's already there and Naruto-kun trusts him." Honoka said. "I heard you've been taking lessons from him, Tenten."

"I have, and so has Sasuke." Tenten confirmed. "He's got really good with that Chokuto of his, and it's made from chakra metal. He can push fire or lightning through it, he was really inspired by Naruto being able to use wind."

"Naruto's really good." Sakura admitted. "Of course, since he was trained as a kid by both Kakashi-sensei and Maito Gai, that's only to be expected. And when Anko added her assassination training… Kakashi had already trained him in stealth and with what Anko taught him… I've seen Naruto scare the hell out of Kakashi by popping up out of nowhere beside him, without Kakashi noticing he was there for a full minute!"

Ino and Tenten both whistled in awe. Hinata simply nodded.

"He's managed to get past my Byakugan in the past." She admitted. "I've asked and asked and begged… but he won't tell me how he did it. Even going catgirl and being cute didn't help."

"Going what-now?" Ino asked and Honoka giggled.

"You need to show them now, Hinata-chan."

Hinata sighed and flashed through several hand-seals, moving fast enough that the others couldn't make out the sequence. A brief cloud of smoke engulfed her and when it cleared, it revealed a lightly-furred Hinata with cat ears looking at everyone.

"KAAAWAAAIIII!"

Honoka almost collapsed with laughter as Ino, Sakura and Tenten simultaneously glomped the poor girl, nearly drowning her in the process.

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"What are they doing on that side?" Kiba asked as the cry of "KAAAWAAAIIII!" echoed over the wall between the two outdoor pools. Neji blinked and restrained himself from using his Byakugan with great difficulty.

"Probably swapping stories about us." Shikamaru said from where he was leaning against the edge of the pool. "Girls can be so troublesome."

"How do you do it?" Kiba asked. "You're going to marry one of the hottest babes in the village, your cousin is just as hot and you have Neji's team-mate lusting after you. I ciould smell her pheromones after your fight, she was really turned on."

"How do you know so much about things like that?" Naruto asked and Kiba shrugged.

"Hey, we Inuzuka live by our instincts. We learn about these things young. Besides, when you have senses as sharp as mine, you can't help noticing these things. I can usually tell what someone's feeling by their scent, and Tenten was reeking of lust after you beat her."

"I understand that Honoka is staying with you at this time." Neji said. "Yet I had thought that all the main bedrooms were taken. Is she in one of the barracks rooms?"

Naruto opened his mouth, then froze for a moment. "I'm not sure I want to answer this. You'll just get angry at me again."

Neji blinked, then lunged at Naruto. Lee and Chouji managed to grab him before he could reach the rapidly-retreating boy. "You're sleeping with my cousin again?!"

"It was her decision!" Naruto protested. "I got back from Wave and found she'd moved all my things into her apartment, and I had a guest with me. What was I supposed to do?"

Sasuke smirked. "Calm down, Neji. I think that your cousin just wanted her snuggly. After all, he'd been gone for just over two weeks."

"I don't think that's helping, Sasuke." Naruto said nervously as Neji doubled his attempts to break free. "In fact, I think it's time to leave. Lee, can you run my clothes back to the bunker afterwards, I'll pick them up later but right now I need to hide! Demon Technique, Reverse Dagger Summoning!"

Naruto vanished in a flash of red chakra and Neji froze, then his flat gaze moved to Sasuke.

"Hey, don't look at me, I wasn't involved at all with.. with whatever's happening between Naruto and Hinata."

Neji lunched forwards, then stopped dead in his tracks as Sasuke flinched away.

"I'd advise fleeing." Shikamaru said. "I'm not sure how long I can hold him for."

Sasuke glanced down, spotting the shadow connecting to Neji, then pausing only to give Shikamaru a look of gratitude, he scrambled out of the pool and sprinted into the changing room.

"Let. Me. Go."

"Not yet." Shikamaru said. "Lee, Chouji, Kiba, if you three could restrain him please?"

Kiba gulped as Neji glared at him.

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"What do you think all that shouting is about?" Honoka asked as she dried her hair.

"Not a clue." Ino said. "Any ideas?"

"I heard Neji-nii-san shouting… oh dear."

"What?" all the other girls asked and Hinata sighed.

"I think Neji's just found out what sleeping arrangements Naruto and I have. He's… become rather protective of me since I stopped being the Hyuuga Heir."

"Sleeping arrangements?" Sakura asked, but it wasn't Hinata who answered.

"Hinata-chan decided that she was missing her snuggly, and moved all his stuff from his old room into her apartment." Honoka explained as Hinata quickly donned her jacket and made use of the collar in hiding her blush. "That freed up a room for me to use until I get my own place."

The other girls nodded in understanding and Ino grinned.

"Making a move like that, wow Hinata. Do you share a bathroom with him? Do you bathe together?"

Hinata's blush deepened, then she took a deep breath and composed herself.

"We do share a bathroom, and we have showered together." She said quietly. "And every time I see him, I realise just how lucky I am to have him. I don't think anyone else in the country is as kind and thoughtful as he is, and his cooking is superb."

"That last part I agree with completely." Honoka noted. "The only thing I can't vouch for are the cinnamon rolls, because they're always gone before I get there."

Hinata blushed again.

Chapter Twenty-Seven – The Finals Part One

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Naruto stood with eight of the other nine finalists in the middle of the crowded stadium. Behind the high walls, it seemed like half the village had come to witness the battles.

"Naruto-san." Neji said softly from beside him, his voice filled with wry amusement. "Will you be giving me a choice of whether you fight with sword or cat?"

"Kami, no." Naruto smirked. "You've seen me fighting with my sword and as a Tiger, so I'm going to be doing something completely new against you. Especially since you promised to destroy me for going along with Hinata's choice. Ummm, Hinata-hime, If I have to use certain skills, it may make your fight harder since I'm sure Temari suspects you have similar skills to me. Sorry in advance."

On Naruto's other side, Hinata shrugged. "We may have some skills in common, Naruto-kun, but we use them in different ways. I should be fine."

Naruto looked over at the clan seating where Honoka's red hair was highly visible beside the dark hair of the massed Hyuugas.

"I don't know whether to be pleased or worried that Hanabi's taken such a shine to Honoka." Naruto admitted, seeing Hanabi and Honoka were sharing a bag of something. "Still, she's settling in as a chunin very well."

"Shino's been helping her settle in." Hinata smiled. "He's really smitten with her."

Naruto looked round again. "Where the heck is Sasuke?"

"He's behind the buttress over there along with Kakashi." Hinata said, tilting her head slightly. Neji activated his Byakgan briefly and grunted in agreement. "They're probably planning on making a last-second entrance."

Hinata sighed, then looked across to where Temari was standing, giving her a measuring look.

"Did Jiraiya ever catch up to you? I heard that he was going to offer you some training."

"While I was hiding from Neji, yes. He wanted me to sign the Toad Contract." Naruto replied. "I kind of put him off for a while and talked with Krugeri about it. He doesn't have a problem, the Greatcats have quite a bit of respect for the Toads, but… I got the feeling that Jiraiya sees me as… Minato's legacy rather than as me, if that makes any sense. "

"I felt the same while I was heir." Hinata agreed. "Since I passed that position to Hanabi, I've felt more like myself. I know just what you are saying. Did you manage to get the third form?"

"Succeeded yesterday." Naruto replied, careful not to say just what it was the third form of. "Takes a ton of chakra, though."

"Hang on." Neji said. "Greatcats? What in Kami's name did you find in Wave, and should I simply forfeit now? Hinata-sama?"

"You'll find out, if you fight hard enough for Naruto-kun to resort to it." Hinata smirked, reaching back with her free hand to stroke Kyouka's ears. "Just be grateful he hasn't signed the Toad contract yet."

Neji swallowed nervously.

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"This is certainly an interesting day." The veiled Kazekage said as he bowed slightly to Sarutobi and sat down, looking out into the field. "I see two of my children are ready to show how good they are… but aren't we missing one of the genin?"

"Yes." Sarutobi sighed. "Uchiha Sasuke has yet to show, I hope he's not taking after his sensei. Kakashi's infamous for always being late for everything except a high-ranked mission."

"I have my own share of Jonin with personality issues." The Kazekage replied, settling back in his chair. "My daughter mentioned one of your genin, a… Naruto? May I ask about him?"

"That would be Kagetora Naruto." Sarutobi said. "That's him, the blond second from the right."

"And the cats?"

"The one on the left is his bond-partner, Kaze. The cat next to him is Hyuuga Hinata's bond-partner, Kyouka. ChuninKagetora Haku also has a bond-partner, you can see them over there, along with his uncle, Momochi Zabuza no Kagetora."

"I see them." The Kazekage said, his voice showing that he was impressed. "How many of these… great tigers… does Konoha have?"

"Close to two hundred, but very few of them are actually bonded." Hiruzen said with a slight smile. "The Kagetora clan is growing in size and power and has allied itself not only with the Hyuuga clan, but also the resurrected Uzumaki clan."

The Kazekage froze. "The… resurrected Uzumaki?"

"You can see the clan head of the Uzumaki, Uzumaki Honoka, sat by the Hyuuga clan over their. Her red hair is very visible. We hope to find others and bring them in to boost the numbers of the Uzumaki, bring them to full prominence as they were in Uzushiogakure. Already, Honoka has made quite a name for herself with her creation of new sealing tags of various descriptions. Now, I believe it is time to begin, yes?"

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Shiranui Gemna stepped forwards and looked at the line of genin in front of you. Taking a deep breath, he spoke.

"I am the proctor for this exam, since Hayate Gekko is currently isin hospital, in a coma after being attacked by an unknown assailant while protecting Suna Jonin Baki. Fortunately for us all, a team of ANBU on patrol scared away the attacker and Baki insisted on escorting them to hospital. However, despite their best efforts, Hayate remains in a coma. Therefore, I am your new proctor.

"I expect you know the rules, but if any of you are stupid enough to have forgotten them, here they are. When commanded, you will fight your designated adversary. When commanded to stop, you will do so. Should you fail to stop on command, I am allowed to use any technique I choose to stop you, killing you if I deem it necessary, although I don't like filling out the paperwork afterwards.

"The first match if Kagetora Naruto against Hyuuga Neji. If all others can go to the contestants balcony now, it would be helpful."

As the other genin turned towards the stairs, Hinata gave Naruto a quick kiss on the cheek, ignoring Neji's glare. "Don't hold back, Naruto-kun. Neji's been practising countering the skills you showed in the preliminaries."

"Are you sure?"

"Trust me."

Naruto grinned as Hinata vaulted onto Kyouka's back and they moved towards the stairs, then he turned back to face Genma.

"Ready."

Genma nodded and looked at Neji.

"I am prepared to fight. And for the honour of the Hyuugas, I will win this match."

"Is it fated?" Naruto quipped and Neji glared at him.

"If it is, I shall accept it. If not, I shall fight it. I have learned that from you. Now, you will face a true master of Jyuuken."

"Match one!" Genma proclaimed, stepping back several paces as Naruto and Neji dropped into their respective fighting stances, Neji activating his Byakugan as he did so. "Hyuuga Neji of Konoha versus Kagetora Naruto and Kaze of Konoha, Fight!"

Naruto instantly performed a blurring sequence of hand-seals. A brief burst of smoke surrounded him and when it dispersed, the figure standing there was not what anyone expected.

"N… Naruto?" Neji asked, almost unable to believe it and the bipedal tiger-man in front of him nodded even as he drew the Kitsune's Claw from its position on his back.

"You have your clan techniques, I have mine." Naruto rumbled as Kaze lay down to watch. "Witness the power of the Secret Technique Tiger Warrior."

As he finished speaking, Naruto crouched briefly, then accelerated past Neji, skidding to a stop half-way across the stadum. Neji remained motionless for a moment, then clutched at where Naruto had managed to slice through his jacket and inflicted a shallow cut on the side of his torso.

"So fast…" He gasped, turning to try and keep track of Naruto, who grinned at him, then blurred towards him time, Neji managed to deflect the blade with a chakra-charged palm-strike, but Naruto simply spun round and accelerated to an even higher speed.

"Kaiten!"

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Hanabi gasped and Honoka looked at her.

"That technique… How did Neji learn it?" Hanabi half-whispered. "The Kaiten is only taught to the Main House, not the Branch House."

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Naruto bounced off the chakra dome and skidded across the arena, rolling to his feet as he jammed his sword into the ground to stop his slide.

"Nice one, Neji. That is a truly impressive defence. I guess I'll have to take it up a notch."

Naruto held out his dagger. "Demon Technique Youkai Senbon."

The dagger glowed in his hand and shifted form, becoming a large bundle of senbon. Without wasting a second, Naruto began throwing them at Neji, who dodged them, ignoring them as they landed on the ground around him. The last one, he tried to catch, only to drop it and stare at his bleeding fingers.

"You like it? Youkai Senbon, they'll cut anyone they hit, only I can touch them safely."

"An impressive weapon, but you've used them all now." Neji said and Naruto shook his head. Holding up one hand, he frowned slightly and one of the senbon near Neji vanished, reappearing in Naruto's hand.

"You were saying?"

Neji dodged the thrown senbon and sprinted towards Naruto who summoned another senbon.

"You are within range of my divination! Eight trigrams one-hundred and twenty-eight palms!"

Before the first strike could connect, Naruto vanished in a burst of red chakra, appearing where Neji had been standing a moment earlier as the senbon he had been holding dropped to the floor. Neji stopped his attack and spun round, eyes wide, just in time to see Naruto vanishing again,this time appearing immediately behind Neji. Before Neji could respond, Naruto grabbed him and spun, hurling the teenager across the arena towards Kaze who rose from his rest and pounced as Neji skidded to a halt, landing on the unfortunate Hyuuga and placing his teeth on his neck.

"I would advise you to yield." Naruto said calmly.

"Proctor, I cannot escape and thus yield." Neji stated. Kaze released him and backed away as Neji slowly pulled himself to a sitting position.

"Kagetora Naruto wins!" Genma proclaimed. "Now pick up those damned senbon of yours."

Naruto grinned as he released his transformation. Holding up his hand, he concentrated and all the senbon vanished, reforming in his hand as his dagger which he placed on his left thigh before offering his hand to Neji.

"You fought well." Naruto said. "Speed, improvisation, adaptation, but your weakness was not your technique."

"Critique me later." Neji groaned, leaning against Naruto for support. "For now, just get me somewhere that I can rest. And what the hell are the Greatcats? I know you didn't use them against me."

"I'll tell you later, assuming that Hinata doesn't call on them." Naruto said as he half-carried Neji to the exit. "I had her sign the scroll too. And Haku, as well, although I'm the only one who can summon Krugeri."

"Who?"

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"Quite a spectacle your Kagetora Naruto makes." The Kazekage noted and Hiruzen nodded.

"He does indeed, although that was a new one on me. A partial transformation without needing physical contact with Kaze… I wonder what else he learned on that training trip of his."

"And that other technique… it looked like the Hiraishin."

Hiruzen nodded. "Yes, it did, but it's different. I've asked him about it, and it's a skill that no-one else could learn. A mini-Kekkei Genkai, you might say."

"Interesting…"

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Match Two!" Genma said. "Inuzuka Kiba and Akamaru of Konoha versus Rock Lee of Konoha. Fight!"

Even as Genma finished his command, Kiba flung a soldier pill into Akamaru's mouth.

"All Fours Jutsu! Man-beast Clone Jutsu!"

The burst of smoke cleared to reveal two Kibas, both of whom instantly charged towards Lee, who had taken a Goken stance.

"Fang Over Fang!"

Both Kibas hurtled towards Lee, spinning like cutting drills as they did so and Lee, instead of trying to dodge, leapt into the air, delivering a pair of spinning kicks.

CLANG! CLANG!

Lee landed in a slight crouch as both Kibas crashed into the ground.

"What… was that? Are you made of iron or something?"

Lee pulled up one of his legwarmers to reveal a set of weight underneath. "I wear these most youthful weights to aid me in becoming faster and stronger. They also prove most useful in deflecting incoming attacks that might otherwise hurt me."

The two Kibas looked at each other, then both charged at Lee, aiming to perform a slashing attack. As they closed in, Lee grabbed their hands and threw himself into a forwards somersault, landing lightly and slamming both Kibas full-length into the ground.

One of them vanished in a puff of smoke which dissipated to reveal the unconscious form of Akamaru.

"Dammit." Kiba gasped. "you're too good, I can't win. Proctor, I forfeit. I don't want Akamaru to get hurt."

"Yosh, my eternal friend and rival!" Lee exhulted, turning to face the contestants balcony. "I shall soon be facing you in a test to see whose flames of youth are more powerful!"

Naruto waved back as Genma called the match.

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"Eternal friend and rival?" the Kazekage asked and Sarutobi smiled.

"Lee and Naruto both trained extensively under the tijitsu master Jonin Maito Gai. They've come to see each other almost as brothers, and they constantly compete against each other in order to become better. They've both been looking forwards to the chance to go full-out against each other in order to see who's currently better and how they can improve."

"I see. How… commendable. You must be proud of them."

"I am."

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"Match three… Where is Uchiha Sasuke?"

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"Damn grandstander." Naruto muttered, glancing over to the Kage box where Sarutobi and the Kazekage were talkig. A moment later, Sarutobi rose and stepped forwards.

"The third match will be postponed. Move on."

"Very well. Match four, Skikamaru Nara of Konoha versus Tsuchi Kin of Oto. Could the two competitors please come down."

Shikamaru sighed and walked to the stairs while Kin, smirking, strode down ahead of him. The two of them came to a halt before Genma.

"Okay, put up a good show. Fight!"

Kin reacted almost instantly, throwing a group of two-dozen bell-tagged senbon around Shikamaru, only for him to vanish in a puff of smoke, leaving a log behind.

"Dammit! Kawarimi!" Kin cursed, looking round as she pulled out more senbon from her pouch, holding them ready to throw. An instant later, she froze and the log faded away, revealing that Shikamaru had not use a Kawarimi, but a Henge and had caught her in his shadow.

"Kagemane no Jutsu, complete."

"Dammit, dammit, dammit!" Kin snarled. "How did you do that? How did you know to do that?"

"I researched your abilities that you showed in the preliminaries." Shikamaru said, flexing his fingers and pulling a kunai out of his pouch. Caught by the shadow, Kin mimicked his motions, her senbon bouncing off the ground as she also pulled out a kunai.

"So what, we stab each other for a mutual death?" Kin smirked and Shikamaru sighed.

"No, I do this." Shikamaru said, reversing his kunai and moving it near his neck. Kin mirrored the movement, staring in confusion, until she felt her kunai snag on the end of her scarf and start to pull it tight around her neck.

"Wait, don't…" she choked out before Shikamaru moved his kunai further, watching with cold eyes as she started fighting for air. As her eyes started to roll up, he released her and she fell to her hands and knees, taking huge gasps of air as she fought to recover, then Shikamaru grabbed her hair and pulled her back, setting his kunai against her throat.

"Quit or die." Shikamaru said and Kin gulped.

"I forfeit." She whispered and Shikamaru nodded.

"If I hadn't known about your trick from Ino, you would probably have won." He said as he walked off. "It was your bad luck that you didn't plan ahead. You could have been a most troublesome opponant if you had."

"Winner, Shikamaru."

Chapter Twenty-Eight – The Finals Part Two

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"Match Five, Hyuuga Hinata of Konoha versus Temari no Sabaku of Suna. Begin!"

Hinata backflipped out of the way of Temari's opening attack, landing on Kyouka's back and performing a fast series of hand-seals.

"Combination Kagetora Clan Technique: Great Tiger Henge no Jutsu!"

"Crap!" Temari cursed as Hinata vanished in a cloud of smoke. "You can do the tiger thing too? How? You're a Hyuuga!"

Hinata flowed down off Kyouka's back, then the two of them loped away from each other, taking positions with Temari in the middle, easily dodging the wind-blades that Temari unleashed in an attempt to keep them away from her. After a few seconds, Hinata started to charge forwards and Temari spun to face her, raising her fan.

"Wind relea… woah!"

Unnoticed, Kyouka had unleashed her earth-jutsu, causing the ground to ripple and making Temari stumble. As Temari fought to recover, Hinata pounced, knocking her down and landing on top of her, jaws fixed around her neck.

"Dammit." Temari sighed. "You win. Now get off me please?"

"Winner, Hinata!" Genma declared as Hinata reverted and stepped off Temari, allowing the blond to scramble to her feet.

"Dammit, the fat boy lasted longer than I did." Temari grumbled. Hinata smiled.

"You were at a disadvantage. I had seen your techniques, you hadn't seen mine. It is hard to fight what you do not expect."

"I can't believe I got defeated so fast." Temari groused. "Even dog-boy lasted longer than I did. That's just embarrasing. I'm supposed to be a strong Kunoichi, not a… a cat toy."

Hinata giggled.

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Gaara stood alone in the middle of the arena, glaring at Genma who in turn was looking up at the Kage box.

"There is no sign of Uchiha Sasuke, my lord Hokage." He said, only to be interrupted by a small cyclone of leaves. As it dropped, it revealed Kakashi and Sasuke standing back-to-back, arms folded. In addition to his usual outfit, Sasuke had bandages and straps around both legs and his left arm.

"Sorry we're late." Kakashi eye-smiled as Genma glared at him.

"The match got delayed because you were late." Genma growled and Kakashi shrugged.

"Well, we're here now, so everything's fine. Don't you agree, Sasuke?"

"Hnph."

"See? He's eager to begin."

Genma glared at Kakashi, who vanished in another swirl of leaves, leaving Sasuke and Gaara to glare at each other. Genma took a few paces back.

"All right, the rules for this match are the same as in the preliminaries. The match continues until one of you dies or admits defeat. However, I can stop the match, but that's solely my decision"

Gaara chuckled and Sasuke frowned back at him.

"Match three, delayed, Gaara noSabaku of Suna versus Uchiha Sasuke of Konoha, Begin!"

As soon as he said it, Sasuke leapt back and threw a pair of shuriken at Gaara, who didn't even twitch as billows of sand flowed out of his gourd and caught the projectiles before shifting shape, becoming a copy of Gaara which threw the shuriken back at Sasuke. Sasuke smirked as he easily dodged the projectiles.

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"The sand shield became a sand clone!" Temari gasped from the balcony as Hinata watched, Byakugan active.

"There's chakra in the sand, and it's… Biju chakra." Hinata murmured. "Naruto-kun was right, Gaara is a Jinchuuriki just like him!"

Temari jolted as if someone had stabbed her with a Kunai. "What?! You mean that comment a month ago about sealing… he knew back then? How?"

"Naruto's the Jinchuuriki of the Kyuubi no Kitsune." Hinata said, gazing at the scene below them. "Your brother holds the Ichibi, the one-tailed Tanuki. Naruto-kun recognised the feel of the leaking Youkai and the scent. He warned Shino, that's why he forfeited, and Sasuke. I don't know how Sasuke prepared, but we'll soon see."

"Who… else knows? About Gaara?" Temari asked, her eyes wide and hands gripping the railing tightly.

"Most of the Konoha shinobi, by now." Hinata said almost absently.

'Shit, this is bad, very bad!' Temari thought, 'And I'm stuck here with no way to warn Baki-sensei that Konoha are fully prepared for this part of the plan, even though they don't realise it! Wait a minute…'

"How are you so calm about my brother being a Jinchuuriki?" Temari asked, trying to hide her rising panic.

"Simple, I'm engaged to Naruto-kun." Hinata smiled. "I know that Naruto would never hurt me, or anyone that he cares about."

Temari stared at her, shock warring with panic for supremacy.

'She's happy about marrying a Jinchuuriki?'

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Sasuke struck at the neck of the sand-clone, only for the sand to wrap itself around his wrist. Delivering a powerful cross-strike, he shattered the sand-manacle and leapt away to buy a few seconds to think of a new plan of attack. Dashing forwards, he launched a punch, only to vanish in a blur of speed as the sand rose in a barrier before him.

'What? Where did he go?' Gaara thought, just as Sasuke reappeared behind him, already striking. The sand barely blocked in time as Sasuke vanished in a blur of speed once more. Again and again, the sand shifted, just barely in time to block the incoming strikes.

'My sand, it's barely matching his speed!' Gaara thought, spinning just in time to see Sasuke's punch being stopped by his sand. Before the sand could even start to reform, Sasuke had vanished again.

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"How is he doing that?" Ino gasped as she and Sakura sat watching the match along with Tenten.

"Simple." Gai said from behind them, causing Ino and Sakura to jump and squeak in shock. "Sasuke asked for permission to copy Lee's speed, and has trained with it for the last month. Although he is not up to Lee's standard since he gains his speed through channeling chakra rather than pure hard work, meaning that he cannot maintain the speed for very long, it should be enough for this fight, combined with the other moves my eternal rival has taught him."

"But what did Lee get out of it?" Tenten asked and Gai grinned.

"Lee-kun got to choose four Jutsu from the Uchiha library for himself, he chose low-level Jutsu that fit with his combat style and enhances it considerably without causing a significant drain on his chakra reserves. And Sasuke ensured that he does not know which Jutsu Lee-kun picked, so he cannot develop any counters ahead of time. Truly a most youthful course of action, and one which has gained my respect!"

"So… to gain an advantage against Gaara, he willingly gave Lee an advantage against him, right?" Sakura asked.

"That is absolutely right, cute student of my eternal rival! As he explained to Lee and I when he made the trade, he knows that Lee does not truly wish to kill him, so he is likely to survive that fight, while Gaara is so bloodthirsty that he needs every advantage he can get."

"I… see." Sakura mused.

"Go Sasuke!" Ino cheered.

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Gaara spun round as the sand to his right was almost dissipated by a powerful kick, then a fist punched through the shield behind him and knocked him forwards. Pulling more sand from his gourd, he turned round, then something made him look up, just in time for a powerful kick to slam down on his head. Staggering backwards, Gaara felt the layer of sand on his skin, the layer which kept him safe from harm, crack and begin to flake away.

'So fast… how is he this fast? How can he be this strong?' Gaara thought as Sasuke wove through his defensive sand and grabbed him, then Sasuke drove his knee into Gaara's stomach and followed up almost instantly with a powerful kick that sent him flying backwards. As he landed, his sand cushioned the impact and he looked up, eyes wide in shock to see Sasuke taking an upright fighting stance.

"Is that all you've got?" Sasuke taunted and Gaara growled. Pulling his hands up into a seal, he remained still as his gourd emptied itself, slowly forming a sphere around him, a sphere firmly attached to the ground.

"What?"

A wisp of sand formed an orb above the sphere, an orb which turned into a floating eye. Sasuke looked at the sphere rooted to the ground, then dashed forwards to deliver a powerful punch, only to dodge as the sphere suddenly extruded a barrier of long spikes. Retreating, he watched as the spikes withdrew back into the featureless sphere. Activating his Sharingan, Sasuke launched another strike, only for the sphere to defend with more spikes.

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"Dammit!" Kankuro muttered as he sat watching next to his Jonin-sensei Baki. "What the hell does Gaara think he's doing, resorting to that? He knew the plan!"

"Gaara was never one for plans when there was killing to be done." Baki said slowly. "This could be… a real problem."

Kankuro nodded teeth clenching as he watched his brother.

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Sasuke moved away from the sphere and leapt onto the wall surrounding the arena. Mantaining his position with the tree-walking technique, he undid the strap on his left arm, letting it fall to the floor. Placing his right hand on the back of his left, he concentrated just as he had trained to do and chakra started to flow into and around his hand.

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"That technique…" Gai gasped.

"Yes." Kakashi said from behind him. "My signature move, Chidori, or thousand birds. As well as training him to duplicate Lee's speed, I also trained him to use the lightning blade, but even with all the training I gave him, he can only use it three times a day before his chakra reserves get too low. And with how much he had to use to perform the speed boost, I'd say that after this, he only has one more shot."

"Kakashi-sensei… what is that move?" Sakura asked.

"It's a lightning-charged attack that is delivered at high speed." Kakashi explained. "The trouble is, the speed required causes the user to experience tunnel vision, so a Sharingan is needed to counter that."

"A Byakugan may work as well, my eternal rival." Gai said and Kakashi thought about it, then nodded.

"Maybe, but probably not as well. The Byakugan lacks the Sharingan's mental-speed-boost."

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"Wow, nice technique." Naruto whispered. "I wonder how it would match up against my Rasengan."

"Looks like an elemental technique." Shikamaru nodded. "Probably a short-ranged one that does massive damage when it hits. And from how far away from Gaara he is, I'd say it needs considerable speed to be effective. But if it does hit, it would be troublesome."

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Sasuke hurtled towards the sphere, the sparking electricity surrounding his left hand cutting a line in the ground as he accelerated, then he thrust his hand forwards even as the sphere started to bulge with growing spikes again. The lightning-enhanced strike met one of the spikes straight-on and blasted through it, penetrating the shell and hitting something inside.

For a long moment, no-one moved, then something shifted inside the sphere and Sasuke tried to pull back.

"BLOOD!" Gaara's voice screamed, magnified somehow by the sphere and echoing across the arena. "IT'S MY BLOOD! I'M BLEEDING!"

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Temari paled. "Gaara's never been hurt before! This is bad! Very bad!"

"Never been hurt before?" Hinata asked, then she looked down at the arena. "I suppose that with the sand acting as armour as well as its obvious shielding properties, that comes as no surprise."

Temari glanced across at Hinata, then back at her screaming brother in his sand sphere.

"This is very, very bad!"

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The sand held Sasuke's arm, squeezing it painfully, until Sasuke channeled his chakra to create lightning again. The sand's grasp loosened slightly and Sasuke pulled hard, feeling whatever was holding his wrist loosen it's grip. Pulling free, he leapt back… eyes widening in shock as a blue-veined sand arm lunged through the hole he had made, trying to grab him before slowly retracting back into the sphere. A moment later, the sphere disintegrated, revealing Gaara standing, half-crouched as he grabbed his left shoulder, trying to stem the flow of blood from the wound.

Sasuke gulped in great breaths of aid as he massaged his left wrist, trying to restore feeling to his hand. He looked at Gaara, thinkin fast.

'From how he reacted, he's not used to pain, that sand skin of his probably protected him until now. I can only use one more Chidori before my chakra becomes too low, so I'll have to… what the?'

Sasuke's thoughts were holted as the Kage box erupted in a cloud of smoke.

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'That's the signal!' Temari thought, reaching up to grab her fan.

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'That's the signal!'Baki and Kankuro thought, tensing ready to do their parts.

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The plume of smoke was visible to the ninja waiting outside Konoha, ninja wearing the Hitai-ate's of Suna and Sound.

"That's the signal!" the leader of the ninja shouted. "Finish the summonings and attack!"

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"That's the signal." Kabuto thought, smirking behind his stolen Anbu mask. "Time to release the genjitsu and secure Sasuke for Orochimaru."

Chapter Twenty-Nine – The Invasion Begins

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Hinata blinked a few times as she started to feel tired, then she realised what was happening.

"Kai! Everyone, do a dispell, now!"

Despite the surprise and unexpectedness of the demand, all the other Konoha nin followed suit as Kin and Temari drew their weapons and turned to engage.

"This is troublesome." Shikamaru said as he caught the two Kunoichi in his shadow. "I guess that this is an invasion. Hinata?"

Hinata nodded and moved in front of the two kunoichi, then Neji stood beside her.

"Stand them up, please. Neji, sixty-four."

Kin slumped in the shadow's grip as Temari tried her hardest to break free. Neji nodded as he mirrored his cousin's stance.

"You are within range of my divination," They both declared in unison. "Eight Trigrams Sixty-four palms!"

Kin had closed her eyes, so she didn't see the strikes that Hinata used to send her into blissful unconsciousness. Temari, on the other hand, was still struggling when Neji's hands blurred and managed to jerk backwards as Shikamaru released his shadow. Between her resistance and the initial strikes, she fell backwards over the railing.

"Look! Above the Kage box!" Naruto shouted and everyone looked up to see a cube of purple chakra forming.

"Oh, this isn't good." Shikamaru stated. Hinata looked across at the oddly-silent arena and her face hardened.

"Naruto-kun, remember what Kurenai-sensei taught you? We need a chakra pulse to cover the arena, and do it now!"

Naruto nodded and started to focus as Hinata's gaze dropped to Gaara and the two figures that had joined him. A moment later, Temari also joined the Suna group, then Kankuro and Temari grabbed Gaara and leapt out of the arena.

"Naruto, pulse!"

"KAI!"

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"Kukukukuku, at last, old man, you're mine." The Kazakage gloated. Sarutobi glared at him.

"Orochimaru." He stated.

"Oh, indeed." Orochimaru replied with a smirk, shedding the Kage robes and hat. "I promised I'd return and pay Konoha back for what they did to me, and here I am."

"You cannot win." Hiruzen stated, shedding his own outer robes to reveal his shinobi outfit.

"No-one is going to help you." Orochimaru gloated. "You can see that my guards have erected a barrier that no-one can get through, it's just you and me, old man."

Sarutobi glared at his student and shifted into a defensive stance.

"I am still a match for you, Orochimaru."

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Naruto watched as Sasuke got up, released from the genjitsu by the pulse, then dashed off after Gaara.

"Shit!" Kiba snarled as below them, Baki engaged Kakashi in battle. "We need to get after them, who knows what they're planning!"

"I'm staying for a moment to help Sarutobi." Naruto stated. "Hinata, Kiba, track Gaara, take whoever you wish. When you find him, use the dagger to summon me, just as I showed you. Come!"

Summoning his sword into his hand, Naruto launched himself off the balcony and towards the purple cube. Hinata grabbed Shikamaru and pulled him onto Kyouka.

"Kiba, Akamaru, you have Sasuke's scent?"

"We know what he smells like." Kiba confirmed.

"I am coming too!" Lee shouted. "My speed and strength will be needed whe we face Gaara!"

"I'll help Naruto." Neji said, moving to the edge of the balcony. "My Byakugan may be of some help against that barrier."

"Oh shit." Kiba said almost converstionally and everyone still on the balcony followed his gaze to where two giant snakes were advancing towards the walls. For a moment, they remained motionless, then Hinata clapped her hands, startling them. "Let's move! Lee, sprint to Tiger Forest and tell the tigers we need help, then catch up with us!"

"I'm gone!" Lee shouted, the second word fading as he vanished, leaving his leg-weights behind.

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Kabuto killed the Anbu heading towards barrier surrounding Orochimaru and Sarutoi, then his gaze dropped to the arena and he frowned.

"Okay, Sasuke, where did you go?"

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Honoka stared at the snakes approaching the wall, then leapt out of her seat and sprinted up a pillar to the roof where she encountered a familiar figure.

"Jiraiya! I need you!"

Jiraiya glanced at her. "You've been reinforcing the walls, can they hold?"

"Get me in front of that snake, it's heading for a natural strongpoint." Honoka commanded and Jiraiya nodded.

"Jump on."

Honoka leapt onto his back as the white-haired sannin crouched, then launched himself forwards at a speed that Honoka couldn't have matched without aid.

"It's gonna be close." He noted and Honoka nodded.

"Just buy me… thirty-seven seconds to reinforce the wall, then another seventy-three to create a seal to banish that thing."

"Not a problem." Jiraiya grinned as he hurtled across the roofs and trees to the rapidly-approaching wall. "Anything for a beauty such as yourself."

Honoka glared at him. "This is no time for flirting!"

"There's always time for flirting!"

A pale blur rocketed past them and Honoka grinned. "Once you drop me off, can you deal with the other snake? My backup will be waiting for me."

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Orochimaru cursed as Sarutobi managed to block his sword. Somehow he had forgotten that his teacher's summons could transform into a staff, one that was effectively indestructible.

At least he had a backup plan that he was more than happy to use.

Leaping back, Orochimaru made several blurring hand-signs and the roof buckled as a coffin rose up from where he had stored it before. A second one rose, then a third one and Sarutobi paled as he saw the writing on the coffins.

"Orochimaru, you didn't… How could you!"

"Edo Tensei: Imperfect World Resurrection." Orochimaru gloated as the three coffins opened to reveal the decaying forms of the First, Second and Fourth Hokages. "You can cope with one Kage-level opponant, Hriuzen, but can you cope with four?"

The coffins seemed to glow and the three decaying bodies seemed to rebuild themselves, returning to how they had been in their prime before they opened their eyes and stepped out of the coffins.

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"Not good!" Neji snapped to Naruto and the ANBU operatives. "Orochimaru's just summoned three to help him, and I can't see any weak spots in this thing."

"Ha." The six-armed man gloated. "As long as we remain as anchors, the barrier can't be broken."

Naruto grinned and made a familiar hand-signe. "Kage Bunshin no Jutsu!"

"What are you planning, Naruto?" Neji asked as three of the new Narutos smashed a hole into the roof, allowing almost a dozen to pour through it. Naruto threw a superior smirk at him, then plunged his sword into the roof, as did one of his remaining clones. As the noise of destruction echoed up through the hole, Naruto and his clone started running around the barrier, their swords almost effortlessly slicing through the tiles and support beams.

"Very clever." Neji admitted. "Very, very clever. I hope it's in time."

"What is he doing?" one of the ANBU asked.

"If it works, it'll take down the barrier." Neji replied with a smirk, watching Naruto's progress. "And it's something that only Naruto would think of."

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"How dare you do this, Orochimaru!" Sarutobi snarled, his face contorting with fury and Orochimaru laughed.

"I do it because I can, old man." Orochimaru smirked.

"But to summon Senju Hirashima, Senju Tobirama and Namikaze Minato…"

The three former Hokages looked at each other.

"Brother, it has been a while."

"Indeed it has, brother. Sarutobi, you've become old."

"Hey old man, how's my son doing?"

Sarutobi looked away guiltily and Minato frowned.

"What happened?"

"The council removed Naruto's heritage from him, banning him from claiming to be either a Namikaze or an Uzumaki." Sarutobi said and all three Hokages stared at him.

"The council did what?" Tobirama asked. "Why would ninja do such a thing?"

"It was mainly the civilian council." Sarutobi said and Tobirama frowned.

"When I set up the Civilian Council, it was to oversee the non-shinobi aspects of Konohagakure. How did they gain power over the ninja, how did they gain power over you?"

"You see, proof that the old man's lost it." Orochimaru smirked, moving behind the first two Hokages and raising a pair of Kunai with seals wrapped around them. "Now I think it's time to… what the?"

The entire roof suddenly dropped and the four Sound Shinobi fell, the sudden and unexpected movement destroying their concentration and disrupting the barrier, making it collapse. An instant later, the ANBU charged in and attacked Orochimaru while Neji moved to stand by Sarutobi. A moment after that, two of the three resurrected Hokages turned to dust and dissipated as Orochimaru released his technique as he defended himself from the new threat.

"Why haven't you faded, Minato?" Sarutobi asked as a dozen sword-swinging blonds thundered past, ignoring the small group as they charged Orochimaru. A flash of red showed that the original had departed.

"I don't know, but I can feel myself fading fast." Minato said slowly. "Tell me, what happened to Naruto? What happened to my son?"

"What happened was I was tired, and my advisors used that against me." Sarutobi said sadly. "They removed his legacy, his inheritance and stripped him of his name with the support of the Daimyo, but he didn't let that stop him. He has a new name, a new clan and new friends, and he has brought a full-blood Uzumaki to the village to revive your wife's clan in parallel with the one he is building, the Kagetora clan."

"Kushina used to mention the Gokatora." Minato mused and Sarutobi nodded.

"I have recognised the Kagetora as the Gokatora recreated, since the tigers the Gokatora used are now allied to Naruto and their techniques are his to use."

Minato nodded even as his skin started to turn grey.

"Naruto is engaged to my cousin, Hinata. It started as friendship and soon became love" Neji offered and Minato smiled at him.

"It is good that the contract was adhered to, even despite what has happened." Minato said. "Sarutobi, if you can, give him the Hiraishin as my apology. The scroll for it…"

"Was destroyed." Sarutobi sighed. "Your mansion and everything in it is gone, student of my student. I am sorry."

Minato sighed and lowered his head, his voice fading. "Then tell him I am sorry. And that I lo…"

Neji and Sarutobi watched as Minato faded away, his body vanishing in the breeze.

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Orochimaru cursed as he blocked yet another attack from that never-be-damned-enough blond, then ducked under an attack from one of the ANBU. The attack had misfired, but if his forces vould still get in, then he had a chance of winning.

Fighting free, he looked across just in time to see the first Summons smash into the wall surrounding Konoha, thin his right arm seemed to erupt in agony as the blond thrust a red-glowing dagger into his palm.

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The impact of the giant snake caused Honoka to her knees as the bled-off kinetic energy lashed through the reinforcement seals. Most of it was transformed and used to reinforce the wall itself, but enough escaped that Honoka felt as if she'd been caught in a mid-level raiton trap.

Thanking Kami that she'd had (barely) enough time to reinforce the wall before the summons had hit, Honoka split her focus between fixing the weak parts of the seal and starting to form an area-effect seal that would banish any and all summons, regardless of their energy levels.

Up on the wall, Haku stood, respendent in his new robes which had been designed to cover him both in his normal form and the Tiger Warrior form he now held. His chakra merged with Hyou's, he summoned ice lances and arrows from the moisture in the air, sending them to strike at the weak and vulnerable points of the summons looming before him. On either side, Shinobi fought, the Konoha-nin trying to hold the wall, the Suna and Oto-nin trying to take it. Haku ignored them, his task was in front of him, and he needed all his concentration if he was not going to let his cousin down.

He knew that he probably couldn't cause the summons to dispel, but his task was simple. To buy as much time as he could, regardless of cost.

Haku knew his duty, and he would perform it. He always performed his duty to the best of his ability, it was his nindo.

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"Kuchyose no Jutsu: Food Cart Destroyer!"

Jiraiya slammed his blooded hand against the ground and a seal formed around it, then a giant toad with twin swords materialised in the air above the incoming snake. Dropping down, it landed on the enemy sunnons, causing it to dispel as well as knocking down all the surrounding ninja with the force of its impact.

"Thanks Gamahiro!" Jiraiya shouted, then a massive impact sounded.

"Oh shit." Jiraiya whispered, seeing yet a third snake strike at the walls, this one actually managing to break through. As the snake slithered through, Jiraiya saw a large group of shinobi following it.

"Oh, that isn't good!" he whispered, glancing back to ensure that the first snake hadn't made it through. A moment later, a strange glow suddenly spread through the village and both snakes vanished, as did Gamahiro.

"An anti-summons seal." Jiraiya smirked. "Well, that helps. Nice one, girly. Nice one. Well, time to help out again."

Jiraya channeled chakra to his legs and leapt towards the distant battle.

Chapter Thirty – The Counterattack

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Orochimaru stared in shock as the only snake that had penetrated the wall vanished. He tried to summon another snake, but even his Shadow-snakes were blocked by whatever had made the strange glow.

"What do we do, boss?"

Orochimaru snarled as he let Tayuya bandage the stump of his lost right hand. The fact that it had been effectively destroyed with a blade glowing with Youkai meant that the arm itself was already starting to rot and without his right hand, his ability to do Jutsu had been severely impeded.

Something told him that doing a body-shedding technique would probably not help.

"We retreat. They've countered most of my trump cards and with Sarutobi and Jiraiya around, even Suna's Jinchuuriki cannot overcome our disadvantage."

"And our forces?"

"Ignore them." Orochimaru said. "I have more where they came from and they were little more than sword-fodder anyway. The more damage they do before they get killed, the better-placed we'll be when we return to destroy Konoha. Let's go. And try to keep out of sight, let's let the damned tree-huggers think we're still here. The longer they think that, the easier we can escape. I'll need all my medical staff assembled, this injury may prove… problematic."

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"Gaara, hold still."

Temari tried to apply a bandage to her youngest brother's shoulder, but a sudden swirl of sand caused her to leap back as Gaara lifted his head, his eyes almost fixed with madness.

"He hurt me." Gaara ground out. "Mother wants his blood… I want his blood… I will kill him! He will pay for hurting me!"

Kankuro dropped down from the tree.

"I just received a message, a group of Konoha nin are following us and are about to be ambushed. That should buy a few more minutes for Gaara to get mobile, but we need to get into position to block Konoha reinforcements. Come on!"

With a worried look at her brother, Temari leapt into the trees.

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"Troublesome." Shikamaru muttered as he shifted on Kyouka's back. "We're being followed. Lee and I will deal with it, you go ahead and catch up with Sasuke."

Shikamaru leapt off Kyouka's back and landed on the ground. Mobing into the shelter of a bush, he motioned for Lee to do the same, then he focused as a group of seven Suna ninja landed in the clearing.

"Kagemane no Jutsu, complete." Shikamaru said as his shadow branched out and caught the ninja. "Now, I can't hold you all for long, but I don't have to. Lee, please knock them all out as I let them go."

"Yosh, I shall do that!" Lee shouted as he blurred between the trapped ninja, striking at them as Shikamaru released each one and sending them into the trees or slamming into the ground. The last ninja, though, Lee threw into the trees above Shikamaru, who looked up just in time to see the thrown ninja slamming into a nija who was dropping down, Kunai in hand.

"Thanks, Lee." Shikamaru said. "Good job."

"Naruto-kun's pulled similar tricks on me before with his Kage Bunshin, so I was prepared." Lee said. "You are not as fast as I am, so climb onto my back and we shall head out after our youthful friends."

Shikamaru sighed. As he let Lee settle him on his back, he spoke. "Lee, no-one finds out we did this. It would be a real drag putting up with all the teasing."

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Sasuke landed on the edge of the clearing and stared at Gaara.

"We still have a match to finish."

"Mother wants your blood!" Gaara snarled, the sand rippling round him. In front of Sasuke's eyes, Gaara seemed to warp and grow as the sand formed round him, then Gaara lashed out with his left hand, the talons on the end of it slashed through the trees as Sasuke dodged.

"Time for you to prove my existence!" Gaara ranted, his eyes gleaming with madness. "Time for you to die!"

Sasuke dived under the second slash and threw his kunai at Gaara. The gourd on Gaara's back poured out more sand, which whipped round to swat away the Kunai.

"Oh, not good." Sasuke whispered as Gaara turned to face him, showing that half his face had been changed by the strange technique.

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"Puppetmaster to our left!" Hinata hissed as she dropped off Kyouka's back, "Wind-girl to the right. I can take Temari, Kiba, you and Akamaru take on the puppeteer. His puppet's just there, he's hiding over there."

Kiba sniffed slightly, then grinned.

"Got him." He said, pulling out a soldier pill. "Hey, buddy, you up for one more round? Excellent. Good luck, Hinata. Don't get killed."

"Same to you." Hinata said, pulling out her dagger and handing it to Kyouka. "Take this to the battlefield, the push some chakra into it. Naruto-kun'll take it from there."

Kyouka nodded and leapt away as Hinata performed a fast series of hand seals.

"Secret Technique Tiger Warrior."

A burst of smoke engulfed Hinata, dissipating to reveal her in her bipedal-tiger transformed state.

"Well, Temari," She growled as she strode forwards, Byakugan activated and claws extended, "Let's play. Come on out, little mouse of the sand."

From her position in the tree canopy, Temari swallowed nervously.

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Kankuro smirked as the beastlike Konoha-nin moved in closer to his puppet.

"Now you die." He whispered, only to freeze as a pair of talon-like hands grabbed his neck and arm.

"Did you really think I couldn't tell the difference between how puppets and people smell?" Kiba growled, his voice filled with dark amusement. "Be real."

Kankuro gulped before the ninja slammed him against the tree.

"Can… can we talk about this?"

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Sasuke slammed into the tree so hard that his vision swam. When it recovered, he found a pair of familiar feet in front of him.

"Well." Naruto said cheerfully. "Looks like I got summoned just in time. Thanks Kyouka, you'd better take the dagger back to Hinata now. I got this. Kuchyose no Jutsu!"

A cloud of smoke formed and dissipated to reveal a giant bipedal armour-clad lion.

"Krugeri-sama, I wondered if you'd like to join me in this fight?" Naruto grinned.

"I would indeed." The summoned warrior rumbled, unsheathing his sword. "I hear fighting in the background, maybe you should summon some others to help. At this time, you may summon the Pride, the Ambush, the Knights, the Leap, the…"

Krugeri trailed off as he saw Naruto's expression.

"The what?"

"They are how we Greatcats are defined. The Pride are Lions like myself. The Ambush are Tigers, the Knights are the Jaguars, the Leap are Leopards, the Prowlers are Snow Leopards. There are others, but I will instruct you in them later, when we have the time."

Before Naruto could respond, his reflexes cut in and he leapt sideways, barely avoiding Gaara's attack.

"Ah yes, the fight." Krugeri grinned. "Let us fight this one together, my summoner!"

Naruto grinned and sprinted forwards, slashing at the sand-arm that lashed out at him, then he rolled sideways, pulling out a Kunai with a tag wrapped around the handle. As Gaara blocked Krugeri's downwards slash with his tail, Naruto found himself in the perfect position to launch his attack.

"Konoha Hidden Village Techniqe, One Thousand Years Of Pain Kagetora Style!"

Gaara froze, a disbelieving expression on his face, then the explosion launched him headfirst into a tree.

Krugeri stared for a moment, then burst out laughing.

"Kid, that was incredible! What a move… I'll have to remember it."

"What's going on? How's he doing that?"

Sasuke's semi-panicked question caused both Krugeri and Naruto to turn and look at the fallen Jinchuuriki. Although Gaara wasn't moving, his sand was a different matter, drawing itself in around Gaara and forming a new shape.

"That doesn't look good."

"No, I think we may have accidently allowed the Ichibi to take control." Krugeri mused. "The seal must be absolutely useless for it to happen this fast, though."

Naruto nodded as he stared up at the rapidly-forming giant beast.

"You know, I can't help thinking that the Toad contract would have been a good thing for you to have had as well as the Greatcat contract." Krugeri mused as the sand beast unleashed a burst of raucous laughter. "Having Gamabunta here would have been very useful. Only a Legendary Summons or a Jinchuriiki has a chance at fighting a Biju."

'Kit,' Kyuubi whispered in Naruto's mind, 'Tell him.'

"Ummm, Krugeri… I am a Jinchuuriki. I hold the Kyuubi no Kitsune. He told me to tell you."

Krugeri turned to look at him thoughtfully.

"The Kyuubi? Then we may have a chance. Kurama, will you work with me on this?"

'Tell him yes, Kit. I think I know what he's going to do. Just relax and let him handle the actual technique, I'll provide the power and you're the one that'll hold it together.'

"He says yes." Naruto said as the monster looked down at them.

Krugeri nodded and in a flowing move, nicked his own arm and Naruto's, then grabbed the boy and placed his bleeding wound against Naruto's.

"Ultimate Greatcat Jinchuuriki Co-operation Warrior Technique, Lord of Battle!" He roared and the world seemed to vanish.

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Naruto was confused, he felt wrong, but right at the same time. His body was clad in armour and was moving to a Will that wasn't his, Power was flowing through him, and he could feel both theWill and the Power drifting away. Almost instinctively he reached out and pulled them closer to him, and as he did so, the Power and the Will increased.

He let the world fade away from his awareness as he held onto the Will and the Power, bringing them closer as they flowed through him.

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Sasuke couldn't move. It wasn't pain that held him immobile, although he was indeed injured. It wasn't fear, although he'd never seen anything quite so terrifying in his life.

The giant sand monster loomed above the trees, its tail lashing and causing huge amounts of damage, but Sasuke's awareness focused on the giant armed figure facing it, the giant cat-like warrior armed with a sword bigger than a tree and a giant shield, a warrior clad in plate armour inscribed with runic symbols he'd never even imagined and which radiated great power.

"Free at last!" The sand-monster screamed out. "I'm going to destroy this fucking village and then destroy everything else!"

"THINE VENGEANCE SHALT NOT BE ALLOWED." The armoured figure rumbled, swinging its sword with the sound of a dozen hurricanes. "THOU SHALT BE THWARTED IN THINE SCHEMES, SHUKAKU OF THE ONE-TAIL, AND RETURNED ONCE MORE INTO THINE CONTAINER."

"Never!" Shukaku roared, "I will never lose! Do your worst, I can take it and give it back doubled!"

"AS THOU HATH CHOSEN, SO SHALT IT BE." Came the reply and the giant moved to attack, sword flicking out with a speed and power that no blade that size should be able to withstand while the giant's rectangular shield, braced firmly, withstood the slashing attacks of the sand-monster without a scratch.

"Naruto!" Hinata shouted, dropping the girl she was carrying as she stared up at the giant and Sasuke blinked.

"Naruto?" He gasped as the giant stumbled back a step before counter-attacking. "What the hell are you talking about?"

"THINE WEAKNESS IS OBVIOUS, SHUKAKU." The giant rumbled. "ONCE THINE JINCHUURIKI AWAKENS, THOU SHALT BE SEALED ONCE MORE."

Hinata sprinted towards the giant and leapt onto his tail. The giant glanced down at the sudden, albeit miniscule impact.

"I can see Gaara on that thing's head!" Hinata shouted. "Get me to him and I can wake him up!"

The giant nodded slightly, then plunged his sword straight through Shukaku, releasing the handle to punch his fist into the beast. Hinata braced herself as the tail whipped up, then she leapt, using the momentum gained to land just beside the sleeping form of Gaara. Pausing only long enough to regain her balance, she drew her hand back…

SLAP!

Gaara's eyes flew open.

"NOOOOOOOOOOOOOoooooooooooo…"

As the Shukaku vanished into a pile of sand, the giant caught the falling forms of Hinata and Gaara and lowered them gently to the ground.

"AND THUS IS THE TASK COMPLETED, THE ICHIBI HATH BEEN DEFEATED. THE SUMMONER DOTH REQUIRE HEALING SLEEP. KEEP HIM SAFE, MOONLIGHT PRINCESS."

Hinata looked up as the giant glowed brightly before evaporating into golden sparkles, leaving only the form of Naruto lying on the ground.

"How… Why…?"

"What?" Hinata responded almost absently as she knelt beside Naruto, checking his vital signs.

"How did he defeat me? How did he manage to fight like that?" Gaara whispered.

"He fought like that because he was protecting people he cared about." Hinata said quietly, gazing down at the boy she loved. "He pushes himself to his limits to become stronger in mind, heart and soul, so that he can protect everyone around him. And it is protecting others that grants him the strength he needs."

Gaara pulled himself up into a sitting position, his face filled with conflicting emotions.

"He beat me… because he protects others?"

Hinata nodded, settling Naruto's head into her lap. "He cares for others, and those he truly cares about return that feeling. You have those who care about you, if you let them, Gaara. Your sister was crying your name as she saw you fighting."

"But… Temari never… cries." Gaara said slowly.

"…gaara…"

Gaara looked across at where Temari was lying, her one open eye staring at him.

"…gaara… you're still alive… thank Kami…"

Wincing at the pain, Gaara pulled himself to his feet and stumbled over to Temari. Sitting down next to her, he looked over at Hinata for a moment, then moved Temari so that her head was in his lap, looking up at him.

"…gaara…?"

Gaara looked down at her.

"I think… I think Iunderstand now, Temari. I understand what you were trying to say to me for all those years. I get it now. Get some rest, sister, I will protect you."

Temari smiled weakly and her eyes closed.

"Wow, guys." Kiba said, emerging from the devastation at the edge of the now-enlarged clearing. "You really don't do things small, do you?"

"Damn." Kankuro said as he looked round, reaching up to stroke Akamaru who was, for some reason perched on his head. "I thought Gaara could do damage, but this?"

"Now you know why I don't go after Hinata, despite how hot she is." Kiba said. "No way am I getting her fiancee angry at me, he's scarier than Hinata when you take the last cinnamon roll!"

"Kiba!" Hinata laughingly protested.

From the shadows, a silver-haired figure watched them before fading away, a scowl on his face.

Chapter Thirty-One – Aftermath

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Sarutobi glared at the council, reflecting once again that he was definitely getting too old for his job.

"…and we can confirm that Orochimaru ambushed the Kazekage on his way to Konoha and killed him, taking his place." Baki said from where he was standing at the foot of the table. "I was on the team that discovered his body and those of his retainers. Until such time as Suna appoints a new Kazekage, the Suna Council will be in charge. They have appointed me as ambassador with plenipotentiary powers to provide a full, formal apology to Konoha as well as seeking a new treaty."

Before the councillors could start to work themselves up, Hirzen held his hand up.

"Thank you, Ambassador Baki. Is there anything else you would like to add?"

Baki looked round.

"Yes. The three children of our former Kazekage. I am fully aware that they are safe at the Kagetora clan-home at the moment and I wish to extend my thanks to Uzumaki Honoka for modifying the seal on Gaara, solving most of the problems he was having. She assures me that the only way the Ichibi can be released is if Gaara willingly releases it."

"When you return to Suna, they will return with you." Hiruzen said, ignoring the glares from the council members convinced that the three should be kept as hostages. Baki bowed.

"Thank you. At the moment, Gaara is helping to look after Kagetora Naruto. He is quite… insistent that no harm comes to him. I think he holds Naruto responsible for the solving of his problems and his new, and quite frankly less terrifying, outlook on life. If that is all, Lord Hokage?"

"It is. Treaty negotiations will begin tomorrow afternoon, you may wish to get some rest and check on your charges."

Baki nodded and left the chamber. Before the council could startmaking demands, Sarutobi started to speak.

"The recent events have proven that I am getting too old for this job. I have spoken to Jiraiya and he has declared that if he becomes Hokage, he will undoubtably mess things up. As such, I have tasked him with finding my choice of replacement, Senju Tsunade."

Several councillors instantly spoke up.

"But she left Konoha, why should she return?" "Doesn't she owe a fortune in gambling debts?" "It'll be good having one of the Sannin taking over, and not Orochimaru." "With her returning, does that mean that the Senju clan will be resurrected too?"

"Silence!" Sarutobi thundered. The council instantly shut up and Sarutobi continued to speak. "I have sent Jiraiya and a Chunin versed in diplomacy and etiquette to find Tsunade. For security and to increase their speed, six of the Great Tigers have gone with them."

"Speaking of Chunin," Hiashi observed almost dispassionately, "What were the results of the exams?"

"While the exams were indeed cut short, I saw enough during the exams and afterwards to decide the best genin to promote. I am only promoting two genin this year, both of whom showed incredible skill both in the exams and in the recent battle against Orochimaru. Hyuuga Hinata and Kagetora Naruto are hereby both promoted to Chunin. Furthermore, after reviewing the information she offered after discovering what Orochimaru had done to her team-mates, I am provisionally recruiting Tsuchi Kin, formerly of Otogakure, as a genin-recruit of Konohagakure and assigning her to replace Hyuuga Hinata as a member of team 8."

Sarutobi glared at the council. "If anyone disapproves, they can damned well wait until Tsunade arrives."

"May I inform my daughter as to her promotion?" Hiashi asked and Sarutobi shook his head.

"Sorry, I've already done so. I needed to, as I've sent her on a mission."

Hiashi started to nod, then he froze, his eyes wide with horror. "You sent my daughter on a mission with that pervert Jiraiya?!"

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"I brought you some food." Temari said and Gaara looked up from where he was sitting by Naruto's bed, reading from a scroll.

"Thank you, nii-san." He said quietly as she placed the tray on the small table beside him.

"No change, huh?"

"No." Gaara said. "I promised Hinata-sama that I would look after him for her. It seemed… appropriate."

Temari looked down at the sleeping blond and smiled slightly.

"How's the new seal holding?"

"Honoka-san does excellent work." Gaara said with a slight smile which would have gone unnoticed by any who didn't know him well. "Shukaku's voice is… gone, unless I will it. He seems calmer too, for some reason. And my control over my sand has improved."

"And you can sleep." Temari said, pulling up a chair and sitting down.

"YOU'RE A WHAT?"

Gaara looked at the doorway in confusion as Kankuro's disbelieving yell echoed through. Temari facepalmed.

"I think that our darling brother has just met Haku." She said wryly. "To be fair, Haku really does look like a girl…"

"And Kankuro started to flirt." Gaara smirked. "I wonder if this'll teach him a lesson?"

"Nope." Temari said. "He's met up with Inuzuka Kiba, the two of them are so damned alike when it comes to trying to chase anything that's female."

"Konoha has a Kankuro of it's own?" Gaara asked and Temari nodded.

"Except that he uses a dog instead of a puppet, pretty much."

"That is… disturbing." Gaara declared after several moments thought. "Almost as disturbing as that Sunset Genjitsu."

"Nothing is as disturbing as that." Temari shuddered. "Men shouldn't hug that way."

For a few moments, a comfortable silence descended, then Gaara spoke. "I wonder how Hinata-sama is doing?"

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"You know," Jiraiya said almost meditatively, "I could really get used to this.

Hinata glanced over at him from her perch on Kyouka's back, her expression questioning.

"Riding like this." Jiraiya explained. "Toads are almost as fast, but they take giant leaps rather than running like this, and they're impossible to miss. Tigers, though… poetry in motion."

"I'm glad you're enjoying this." Hinata said, and Jiraiya smiled at her.

"Wonderful scenery, beautiful company… and don't worry. Until you get a bit older, you don't need to worry about me acting perverted around you. I may be a pervert, but I do have standards."

"How can a pervert have standards?" Hinata asked despite herself. Jiraiya laughed.

"Oh, it's simple. Don't corrupt the innocent girls, their innocence is to be cherished. Never take advantage of a woman in her moment of weakness, the final decision must always be hers. Never avoid the blows of a single woman, but always flee the group. Things like that. I only really perv on those who appreciate it, or those who are willing and able to defend themselves. Anything else is just wrong."

"That's… actually quite profound." Hinata admitted after a few moment's thought. "I don't know whether that's impressive or just plain wrong."

"That's the difference between a pervert and a super pervert!" Jiraiya grinned. "Besides, I need to get my research for my books somewhere."

"Yes, they're suprisingly quite good." Hinata said absently, then she blushed and clapped a hand over her mouth as Jiraiya roared with gleeful laughter.

"Oh, Kami must love me!" Jiraiya chortled. "You're a fan? I'll be happy to sign your books, no charge at all! Is Naruto a fan too? And how did you get into my books? I know you're father's a great fan, but I didn't expect you to be."

"My father's a fan of Icha Icha?" Hinata gasped and Jiraiya nodded.

"Yep, signed first-print hardback editions and everything. He keeps them in a special box that the Byakugan can't penetrate, keyed to his chakra signature. Now, how about an answer."

"Anko-sensei introduced me to them to help me get over my shyness." Hinata admitted. "I've been introducing Naruto to them, but he's still really clueless about things like that. He read right through Icha Icha Traveller, and he still constantly blushes whenever we bathe together. Keeps trying to look away as well, I have to grab him to get him to actually look at me."

"Wow." Jiraiya said. "That really is something. But you two are happy together?"

Hinata blushed again and Jiraiya smiled gently. "I see that you are. Good to know that the gaki has someone as beautiful as you caring about him."

Hinata's blush deepened.

"So, where are we headed?" She asked. Jiraiya smiled again at her attempt to change the subject.

"We're starting at Shukuba Town." He said. "I have contacts there who should be able to tell us where we need to go next. In the meantime, I have a jutsu or two you may like to learn, although if you grow your hair a bit, they'll become easier to use."

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"Sasuke?" Sakura paused in her training kata, looking over at her dark-haired team-mate. "Are… are you alright?"

Sasuke stopped punching the training log and turned around.

"I couldn't win." He said. "Gaara was too much for me, yet Naruto took him down easily."

"Naruto had help." Sakura protested. "He had that summons and Hinata, she's the one who delivered the final blow. And Naruto hasn't recovered yet, he's still in his coma."

"He had help…" Sasuke mused. "I need to get stronger… but Naruto is already stronger than I am… how does he do it?"

"Teamwork." Kakashi said, causing both genin to jump in shock as neither had seen him arrive. "He trains with others so that they can tell him where his weaknesses are and how to overcome them. That helps him grow stronger. Of course, the fact that he learned from me and Maito Gai explains quite a bit. And then there's his Kekkei Genkai."

Sasuke nodded slowly. "He's fast. Even with my Sharingan, it's all I can do to keep track of him when he goes all out. I need to get faster too."

"Well thought out." Kakashi nodded. "Your fighting style is all about intercepting incoming attacks, speed will help you a great deal. I would advise weights. You'll never reach Lee's level, he's trained too many years for you to catch up now, but with enough training, you may be ableto last against him for more than a minute."

Sasuke nodded. "Thanks sensei. I'll try that."

"And stop measuring yourself against Naruto." Kakashi added. "He has advantages you'll never have, but he has major weaknesses too. Despite what you saw, he isn't invincible. Heck, he's almost defenceless against Genjitsu."

Sasuke nodded again. "I know he isn't invincible, I looked in on him yesterday. I hope that Tsunade gets here soon, she's supposed to be the best medic-nin Konoha's produced. If anyone can help the dobe, she can. After all, he said he'd help me when I confront my brother."

Everyone stared at him.

"What?"

"You… actually accepted someone… else's help willingly?" Sakura asked and Sasuke snorted.

"Come on. He was trained by both Kakashi-sansei and Maito Gai, taijitsu expert, plus Anko-sensei has boosted his stealth skills to an absolutely insane degree. He persuaded Zabuza-sensei to teach me how to use my sword, integrating my taijitsu, kenjitsu and ninjitsu into a single fighting style, I'd have to be a complete and utter moron to turn down help from someone like that. I still have what he calls pride issues, but he's whacked me down so many times whenever we sparred that I've actually got a handle on how good I am, and I'm nowhere near good enough yet."

"If I had known earlier about how you've matured," Hiruzen said from beside Kakashi, causing the two genin to leap in shock again, "Then I would probably have promoted you as well. As it is, I'll mark you as a probable for the next exam you participate in."

"I… um… Thank you, Hokage-sama." Sasuke said, bowing slightly.

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"Are you sure you don't want to check into an inn?" Jiraiya asked as Hinata finished pitching the two-man tent. She gave him a smile and untied the packs that one of the other tigers had been carrying for her.

"Jiraiya-sama," She said, "How many inns would accept the Great Tigers as their guests? If you wish to sleep in an inn, the town is literally over the rise, but I am staying with my friends. Besides, how can I be any safer in an inn without them as compared to sleeping in a tent surrounded by a dozen Great Tigers?"

Jiraiya nodded slowly.

"Well, I'll see you in the morning." He said as he started to walk off.

"Bring cinnamon rolls!" Hinata shouted and Jiraiya waved acknowledgement. Hinata stroked Kyouka's head, then started to build a small campfire as several of the tigers vanished.

'That toad-man is very powerful.' Kyouka noted from where she was sprawled by the tent. 'I find his actions quite interesting and he seems to have quite an honourable personality, although he hides it very well.'

"He has his moments," Hinata admitted, "Although I think that we should never tell Naruto-kun that his parents unwittingly provided a great deal of material for his first Icha Icha book."

'His expression when he realised what he had just said, though.' Kyouka snorted and Hinata nodded, then turned to where the vanished tigers were returning with the results of their foraging. One of them walked over and placed two dead rabbits on the ground.

"Thank you." Hinata said with a smile, picking up the first rabbit and starting to skin it.

Chapter Thirty-Two – Persuasion

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The scent of cinammon rolls hung in the air and Hinata emerged from her tent like a cat leaping from ambush. Jiraiya laughed as Hinata grabbed one of the rolls and bit into it with a blissful expression.

"Wow, you really do like them." He joked and Hinata paused in her devouring just long enough to glare at him. Rather than inrimidating him, however, it only served to cause him to laugh harder before he managed to catch his breath and compose himself.

"We need to pack up soon." He said. "My informant told me that Tsunade was spotted heading into Tanzaku Quarters the day before yesterday. With your tigers, we'll probably make it before she decides to get going."

Hinata nodded as she pulled out and rolled up the bedroll she'd been using, then quickly folded the tent. Turning round, she blinked at seeing Jiraiya finishing sealing everything else into a scroll.

"What?" He asked. "It's easier than trying to put it all into a pack. Now pass over the tent."

Hinata did so and Jiraiya sealed it into the scroll, then rolled it up and passed it over.

"There we go, all packed up. Let's move."

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"Still no change?" Hiruzen asked softly and Gaara sighed.

"He is still sleeping, he will not wake up. I… do not know what to do."

"You're doing a good job." Baki said. "How are you feeling?"

"… I am not sure." Gaara admitted. "The new seal is working, I… was able to sleep last night. I do not remember the last time I slept. And Shukaku has grown quiet. He said… that the seal no longer hurts. And that he can sleep also. I have been thinking about the past and… I have much to atone for."

"As does Suna." Baki said softly. "I took down Hayate and lied about it, for instance. Your father ordered a weak seal be used to ensure that you could use as much of Shukaku's power as possible, he didn't care about you as long as he got his weapon. Those of us who did care, couldn't do anything about it."

"I… understand." Gaara said. "What Hinata told me, what Naruto did… I understand. Do you think that Hinata will be able to bring Tsunade here?"

Hiruzen chuckled. "Hinata will do anything for Naruto. I t wouldn't surprise me if she decided to face down Tsunade and literally drag her back to heal him."

"Lord Hokag..uuuurk!"

"It's alright, Gaara!" Hiruzen said quickly. "He's an ANBU, he's not here to hurt anyone!"

Gaara nodded and the sand that had trapped the masked ninja against the wall retreated.

"Alright, what is it?"

"Lord Hokage, there's a problem…"

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"You just had to sneeze!" Kiba yelled as he sprinted down the street.

"Hey, it's not my fault, I have allergies!" Kankuro retorted, not even sparing a glance back to where his puppet was lying in pieces after being trampled.

"Last time I show you the sights!"

"Get back here, you peeping perverts!" screamed one of the pursuing Kunoichi. Kiba and Kankuro glanced at each other, then accelerated.

"Dammit, I wish I'd paid more attention to Naruto's training missions," Kiba panted. "He found loads of good hiding places when training against ANBU."

Before Kankuro could react, a Kunai sliced through one of his hood's ears.

"They're clad in towels!" He protested. "How the hell did they pull out those swords and kunai?"

Kiba blinked.

"I… don't think this is the time to worry about that! Come on, this way!"

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"My brother is a moron." Gaara deadpanned. "When Temari finds out about this, he will be in trouble."

"Your sister is one of the ones in pursuit." The ANBU said and Gaara closed his eyes.

"Kankuro… you idiot."

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"Tsunade, so nice to see you here."

Tsunade looked up from her sake, glaring at the familiar figure. "Orochimaru, what are you doing here."

"Oh, I had a little problem." Orochimaru said, holding up his shortened right arm. "I got stabbed with a very strange chakra blade, and it's… becoming a bit of an issue."

Tsunade stared at the proffered limb. "What the… I…"

"I just need you to stop the effect of whatever chakra was used." Orochimaru said. "My two best medical ninjas can't do more than slow it down, and that's with hourly treatments. Don't worry about repairing, I got a scroll of puppet jutsus from Suna and I'm looking forwards to experimenting with puppet-limbs. In order to use it, though, I need my arm stabilised. Despite your drinking and gambling, you are still the greatest med-nin in all the Elemental nations…"

Tsunade slowly reached out and scanned the stump. After a moment, she blinked.

"That's… Bijuu chakra. Last time I saw something like that was… was the Kyuubi!"

"Bijuu chakra…" Orochimaru mused. "So, the Kyuubi Jinchuuriki has learned to use the monster within."

"What were you doing there anyay?" Tsunade asked and Orochimaru shrugged.

"I was just trying to contact our old teacher, but the Kyuubi brat attacked without warning. The old man was seriously injured in the attack, not mortally, but quite badly. I hear the council is going to promote Jiraiya to be the new Hokage."

"That pervert as Hokage?" Tsunade scoffed. "They've had dumb ideas in the past, but this one?"

Orochimaru smirked. "Indeed. So, is there anything I can offer you to persuade you to help me with my… medical condition?"

Tsunade looked at him, then shook her head.

"There is nothing anyone can give me any more."

"Not even Dan and Nawaki?" Orochimaru almost purred. "I know a technique that can bring them back."

Tsunade froze, not even breathing and Orochimaru stood up.

"I'll give you until the end of the week to think about it, Tsunade."

"Tsunade! Here you are!"

Tsunade looked up to see that Orochimaru had vanished. Looking round, she met the irritated glare of her assistant.

"What is it, Shizune?"

Shizune sighed and sat down next to her. "You really need to stop running off like that, milady."

"Yes, Shizune." Tsunade sighed as she prepared herself for the inevitabe scolding.

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Hinata looked round, her Byakygan active as she scanned the heaving crowds.

"Gaaaah, this is impossible!" Jiraiya fumed. "She could be anywhere!"

"Remind me of the description." Hinata said slowly. "Blond hair, diamond tattoo in the middle of the forehead, green jacket, has a dark-haired assistant and pet pig, is that right?"

"Yes." Jiraiya said slowly, looking at her, "Why?"

Hinata smiled and changed course. Jiraiya looked to where she was headed and smiled. "I think you're still a bit young for sake, but yes, a refreshing drink would be very… Tsunade?"

The blond at one of the tables looked up in shock, then her face creased in a frown.

"Jiraiya, what are you doing here?"

"Getting a drink. Bottle of your finest sake please." Jiraiya retorted, placing a bundle of ryu on the bar.

"Watered fruit juice for me please." Hinata requested.

"Hmmm, a Hyuuga." Tsunade noted as Hinata bowed slightly to her. "And a Main House member as well. You have an interesting taste in girlfriends, Jiraiya, but isn't she a bit younger than usual for you?"

"She's already spoken for." Jiraiya said, ignoring Hinata's blush and death-glare aimed at Tsunade, who was smirking.

"Cute little thing, isn't she. And she's generating quite a bit of Killing Intent, nowhere near enough to bother me, but enough to be noticed. Cut it out, girl. I've been glared at by people far scarier than you."

"Enough, Hinata." Jiraiya said, passing her the cup of fruit juice and scooping up the bottle and saucer. Walking over to the table, he slid into the seat opposite Tsunade and Hinata sat down next to him, nodding at Shizune.

"So, why are you here?" Tsunade asked, glaring at Jiraiya, who smiled at her and filled her saucer with sake.

"The old man sent me. He wants you back, Tsunade."

"I heard he'd been injured."

Jiraiya cocked an eyebrow. "Not quite. Orochimaru launched an attack, but it got beaten off. He managed to temporarily resurrect the first, second and fourth Hokages, but was interrupted before he could complete the ritual and use them as his slaves to kill the old man."

"Interrupted by the Kyuubi brat." Tsunade realised and Jiraiya nodded.

"Kid managed to take down an anchored barrier, one with four anchor points and casters, then he used his clones to weaken snake-teme before heading off to defeat the Ichibi, using a fusion technique with a summons I've never seen before." Jiraiya said. "But it cost him, he's in a coma."

Tsunade glanced across at Hinata and Jiraiya nodded. "Yep, she's his girlfriend and fiancee."

"And you accompanied him because…?"

"I have my own mission." Hinata said quietly. "To bring you to Konoha to heal my fiancee."

"And why should I return?" Tsunade growled.

"The old man wants you to take the hat." Jiraiya stated and Shizune gasped.

"Forget it." Tsunade snapped, rising from her seat. "Shizune, we're leaving."

Hinata moved to stand in front of Tsunade as the older woman rose. Tsunade looked down at her as she dropped into the Jyuuken stance and activated her Byakugan.

"What, you think you can stop me?" Tsunade asked, obviously amused and Hinata's expression darkened. "Do you know who I am?"

"Yes, I do." Hinata stated, refusing to back down. "You are a once-great medical ninja who is now a worthless drunk and loser, constantly betraying the memory of those who expected better of you."

Tsunade's expression froze, then shesnarled. "Who do you think you are, you little bitch? How dare you say that?!"

"Who am I?" Hinata repeated, her anger overpowering her screaming self-preservation instincts. "I am Hyuuga Hinata, former clan heir of the Hyuuga clan who handed the position to another for love. To the Great Tigers, I am known as Precious Flower With Eyes Of The Moon, the bond-partner of Flower Blossoming In The Dawn. I am the one who ended the rampage of the Jinchuuriki of the Ichibi and the one who can face down the strongest man in Konoha. I am the Moonlight Princess of the Kagetora clan and the student of both the Snake-mistress and the Genjitsu Mistress of Konoha . I am a Kunoichi. I am a Shinobi. I know what my duty is and I uphold my responsibilities without fear or hesitation, and that means that I am greater by far than what you have become. Who am I, you ask? I am the one who will drag you to Konoha to heal my beloved, whether you want to go or not. That is who I am, that is what I will do."

Tsunade stared at her, then glanced over to Jiraiya who gave a single nod of confirmation.

"Her beloved is the one who took Orochimaru's hand." Jiraiya said. "He's the Yondaime's son, or he was until the council stripped him of his heritage."

"And that is what you want me to become the Hokage of?" Tsunade said quietly but firmly. "A village that betrays its leader as soon as he dies?"

"No." Jiraiya said. "A village that has learned from its mistakes and is trying to reform. Naruto doesn't want tp reclaim his father's name, or his mother's, anymore. He's made his own, built the core of a new clan. Heck, he's even found a full-blood Uzumaki to rebuild the Uzumaki clan and recovered a bunch of Senju techniques from the ruins of Uzushiogakure, techniques which are being held for you. And right now, Tsunade, as Hinata told you, he needs your help."

"So, even if I don't accept the Hokage position, you'll drag me to Konoha anyway." Tsunade noted, looking at the chunin who was glaring at her. "And If I become Hokage, I'll have to put up with the scheming council who've turned the position into a figurehead."

"The council has been… pruned and the advisors power reduced." Jiraiya said. "Sarutobi will be there to aid you however you wish, should you accept."

"…tell me about the other genin of your generation." Tsunade said sitting down again. "Are they all as… determined as you?"

Jiraiya leaned back in his seat, relaxing, and Hinata slowly lowered her hands deactivating her Byakugan. A moment later she collapsed, only Shizune's reflexes preventing her from crashing into the table. Tsunade leapt out of her seat and started a diagnostic jutsu on the now-prone girl.

"What happened?" Jiraiya asked, kneeling beside her, a worried expression on his face.

Tsunade stopped her scan, stared at Hinata, then a disbelieving chuckle rose despite her best efforts. A moment later, she was almost collapsed against Jiraiya, shaking with laughter.

"What. Happened?"

"She'll be fine." Tsunade giggled. "She just fainted."

"Probably realised that she just glared down one of the Sannin." Jiraiya noted with a grin, helping Tsunade back to her feet, then crouching down to scoop up Hinata. Looking round, Jiraiya sighed and nodded meaningfully at the table. Tsunade moved it out of the way and Jiraiya gently laid Hinata down on the padded bench.

"I like her." Tsunade grinned as Shizune slipped past her and began her own diagnostic jutsu. "Girl's got guts."

"She's out cold." Jiraiya pointed out and Tsunade shrugged.

"So? She's got real guts to stand up to me and threaten me like that. Collapsing afterwards, perfectly understandable and it doesn't reduce the respect I have for her. If the old man wants me back, I'll come, but I have some business to take care of first. I have a liar to take care of."

"A liar?" Jiraiya asked, "Can we help?"

"You know," Tsunade mused, "I think you just may be able to… Tell me about her skills. And what was that she was saying about cats?"

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Hinata slowly opened her eyes and gazed blankly at the canvas roof.

"Was it… a dream?"

"Nope." A cheerful foice said and Hinata's gaze snapped across to see Shizune sat beside her, pet pig in lap. "It was real, you glared down Tsunade and impressed her enough to get her to think again."

Hinata blushed, earning another laugh.

"None of that, now let me just check you over…"

Shizune stretched out a hand and passed it over Hinata. "Yep, all good to go. Jiraiya and Tsunade are waiting outside."

Hinata scrambled out of the tent and stood up, looking round in amused shock. In front of her, Jiraiya was finishing giving instructions to a toad who nodded and vanished into a cloud of smoke while Tsunade was snoring softly as she lay along the spine of one of the largest tigers in the party.

"Welcome back." Jiraiya said with a smile. "I knew it was a good idea to bring you along. And not just for your friends."

Kyouka let out a protesting rumble and Jiraiya laughed again. "You missed lunch, but I saved some for you. Eat up and we can talk tactics when Tsunade wakes up. She's with the tigers getting some… what did the gaki call it? Ah yes. Some much needed fuzzy therapy."

Shizune chuckled.

Chapter Thirty-Three – Confrontation

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"So." Orochimaru said slowly, holding up his stump, showing that his arm now ended at the elbow. "Have you decided yet, Tsunade?"

Tsunade glared at Orochimaru, then looked at the silver-haired man and the red-haired woman flanking him. The silver-haired man smirked.

"I think that she's decided against helping, sir."

"I see." Orochimaru said. "It's a good thing I learned how to fight left-handed. I may be reduced in power, but even with my handicap, me and my two apprentices against one washed-out bitch of a sannin? I don't think this fight will last very long."

As if in response to Orochimaru's comment, a massive massed roar shook the air and a dozen white shapes raced up the hill towards them, coming to a stop beside Tsunade and unleashing a caophany of snarls and roars. Jiraiya, Shizune and Hinata dropped down from the tigers and Orochimaru raised one eyebrow.

"So, the Slug Princess called for help, and from the Toad Sage no 's been a long time, Jiraiya."

"Orochimaru." Jiraiya said curtly. "Who are your lackeys?"

"I don't know the red-head, but the man's called Kabuto." Hinata stated. "He was a genin during the chunin exams, but I think it must have been a trick."

"Oh, my, yes." Kabuto said with a smile as he adjusted his glasses. "I'm far more than a Genin. Nowhere near my master's level, of course, but definitely above yours."

"Hinata." Jiraiya said, "We're likely to be using summons, so we'll need some space. I don't know anything about the red-head's skills, but from how they stand, they've probably got some med-nin training, making them very dangerous."

"I know." Hinata said, her hands flashing through a series of seals. "That's why I'm doing this. Secret Technique Tiger Warrior!"

Orochimaru's eyes widened as the smoke cleared to reveal Hinata had transformed into a two-meter-tall bipedal tiger.

"That… is a very interesting technique." He said slowly. "I tried to come up with something similar, but I could never get it to work right, it tended to kill the subjects. I think we need to take you alive. Kabuto?"

"Yes, Lord Orochimaru." Kabuto said as he started to circle round. Hinata started to stalk towards him, followed by Kyouka and two of the other tigers.

"Shizune can die for all I care." Orochimaru said with a shrug. "Karin?"

"As you wish, Lord Orochimaru." The redhead replied and Shizune growled, then found herself flanked by two of the Great tigers with a third one behind her. One of them winked at her, then returned its attention to the approaching woman.

"And now that the children are out of the way," Orochimaru grinned as he pulled out a Kunai and cut his right arm, smearing the blood over a tattoo on his left arm, "Kuchyose no Jutsu!"

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Ignoring the battle between the Sannin, Hinata stalked towards Kabuto, then paused.

"Chakra scalpels." She noted and Kabuto frowned for a second, then his eyes met hers.

"How wonderful, you have the full Byakugan even in that form." He noted cheerfully. "Well, this certainly complicates things somewhat for me. I know how to bypass the Byakugan, but your… new form means that I'm no longer certain exactly where your internal organs are. This will be quite a fight."

Hinata growled and flexed her fingers, extending her claws. Lowering her stance, she flowed forwards a few paces, then grabbed her dagger and threw it at Kabuto, who dodged it nonchalantly.

"That was almost disappointing." He said, then his eyes widened as the dagger reappeared in Hinata's hand, quickly glancing back at where the dagger had landed, and now no longer was. "But that is very interesting indeed."

As he finished his sentence, he leapt forwards, chakra needles extending from his fingers and Hinata reacted with a fast sequence of hand-seals.

Tiger, Horse, Boar, Ram, Rat, Snake.

Kabuto's eyes widened in pain and he leapt back, leaving a trail of blood. Hinata's fur reverted from its sudden transformation into steel-strong needles and Kabuto looked down at his hands, noting the rips and holes in them which were healing.

"I guess that means that close-in fighting has suddenly become a great deal harder against you." He noted almost conversationally. Hinata grinned almost ferally, her fangs glinting, then she lifted her arm, revealing that not all the fur had reverted.

"Needle Hell."

Kabuto somersaulted out of the way of the sudden barrage of senbon-like hair.

"Offensive and defensive capabilities from the same basic Jutsu." He mused. "This fight is getting harder and harder. But if I can't get at you that easily…"

Kabuto lunged at Kyouka…

…who snarled as she used a version of Needle Jizo that Hinata was certain she hadn't taught her. With a curse, Kabuto retreated to a safe distance, nursing his re-injured hand.

"This is getting mildly annoying." He muttered, pulling out some senbon. Throwing them at Kyouka, he blinked as they bounced off her fur.

"What… how did…?"

Hinata glanced at Kyouka for an explanation.

'Needle Jizu varient. Not very difficult, but needs concentration. I'll teach you later.'

"Oh, this is just getting ridiculous." Kabuto sighed. "I'd almost rather face a Jinchuuriki."

"Done that. Defeated him with a single attack." Hinata smirked and Kabuto sighed.

"Of course you have. Just once, I would like an easy opponant."

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"Those cats of yours have a lot of chakra." Karin noted as she strode towards Shizune. "How well can you fight with them?"

"First time." Shizune shrugged. "I have no idea what they can do, so I think I'll concentrate on healing them while they take you down."

Karin stopped in her tracks. "What?"

Black eyes met red for a moment and Shizune smiled.

"I'd only slow them down." Shizune explained, then she frowned as one of the tigers unleashed a barrage of growls and coughs.

"What was that about?" Karin asked.

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Hinata leapt away from Kabuto as she heard the message. Spinning round, she cupped both hands around her mouth and prepared to shout.

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"Shizune! She's an Uzumaki!"

Both Shizune and Karin turned to stare at the fight between Kabuto and Hinata, then Shizune turned back.

"An Uzumaki? Are you sure?"

The tiger nodded and Karin frowned.

"So what's so great about that?"

"The clan is being rebuilt in Konoha." Shizune said slowly. "New plan, take her alive and as undamaged as possible, I feel sure that this Honoka that Hinata told me about will want to meet her."

"Honoka?" Karin gasped. "She's… alive?"

"Clan head in Konoha, according to Hinata." Shizune said. "Why?"

"Honoka-neesan's alive?" Karin whispered, her eyes filling with tears. "She's alive? I thought she was dead! It's been so long… Tell me about her!"

"I only know a little bit, from Hinata. Hinata's one of Honoka's friends, she can tell you." Shizune said and Karin nodded.

"If it means I get to see Honoka-neesan again, I surrender." Karin said sitting down. One of the tigers walked up to her and thrust its head under her hand, causing Karin to giggle as she started to stroke the tiger.

"I… recognise the tiger, my mother told me stories…" Karen mused. "Are the… what in Kami's name were they called… aha, the Gokatora clan allied to Konoha as well?"

"I don't know." Shizune admitted as she sat down and leaned back against the tiger that had curled up behind her. "You'll have to ask Hinata."

"Honoka-neesan's alive…" Karin whispered, smiling through her tears.

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The flames died down to reveal that Manda had shed his burning skin. Jiraiya looked round in confusion.

'Manda's as big as Gamabunta, but there's nowhere to hide except… oh hell!'

"'Bunta, jump!"

Gamabunta leapt up into the air as Manda erupted out of the ground beneath him, jaws slamming shut in a bite that would have disembowled the Toad Boss had Jiraiya not realised what was happening. However, the impact was enough to cause him to drop his sword.

"Oh, this isn't good…"

As Gamabunta landed, Manda drew back in preparation for another strike when Tsunade, who had launched herself into the air and grabbed the falling sword, swung it in the air and, using her enhanced strength, hurled it like an oversized spear.

It flew true.

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Kabuto cursed as one of the tigers lunged between him and Hinata, deflecting his senbon yet again. No amount of poison in the world would help if he couldn't get it past that defence, and the cats had shown a suprisingly sadistic side, allowing him to get close and attack before using the Needle Jizo technique to counter his attack.

He was impressed.

Extremely irritated, but still impressed.

The ground shook and he backed away from his adversaries, glancing over to see Orochimaru's snake-summons Manda pinned to the ground by a giant sword stabbed vertically through its mouth before the Boss summon dispelled.

"Kabuto, Karin, we are leaving!" Orochimaru shouted and Kabuto Shunshin'd to his master's side, glancing over to where Karin was meant to be fighting.

She was on the floor with one of the tigers pinning her with its head. Kabuto could see her trying to push it off, but she wasn't succeeding.

"My lord, I think we've lost Karin."

"Dammit." Orochimaru cursed as they started to vanish into the shadow of the rock. "You've won this time, but I'll destroy Konoha yet!"

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"He's gone." Karin said, looking round. "I can't sense his chakra anywhere nearby. Can you let me up now?"

With a stuttering purr that sounded suspiciously like a chuckle, the tiger lifted its head from her belly. As she pulled herself up, the tiger quickly licked her face.

"Hey!"

"I think they like you." Hinata said, walking over. Karin looked at her oddly.

"Are you a Gokatora? You were using their technique earlier."

Hinata smiled. "It's a long story. I'll tell you on the way back. First of all, we need to get Tsunade's things."

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"He sounds like a very nice boy." Karin said as she stroked the neck of the tiger she was perched on. "I can't wait to meet him, you really are lucky."

"I know." Hinata said, glancing back to where Jiraiya and Tsunade were arguing while Shizune rode behind them, an almost blissful expression on her face as she lay along the shoulders and neck of the tiger carrying her. "It's because of him that I met Kyouka and learned some of the techniques I used against Kabuto."

"Those were some serious techniques." Karin nodded. "I caught a few glimpses of the fight, I've never seen Kabuto look that annoyed before. Did he manage to make a single successful attack?"

"Nope." Hinata grinned. "The Great Tigers apparently picked up the Needle Jizo attack that Jiraiya-san taught me, and improved on it. As long as they concentrate, they're effectively immune to anything other than impact weapons,and they're naturally tough. Kunai bounce off them, Katana's fail to penetrate, it would take a Tetsubo to actually hurt them."

Karin nodded. "Tha must have caused him to freak out. He's normally excellent at deducing people's weaknesses, but I don't think he's had any experience with giant cats before."

Karin nodded, then looked round.

"… and you go on a mission with a young girl?" Tsunade shouted from behind them. "Who knows how perverted you were going to make her! Next thing you know, she'll be reading those orange books of yours!"

"Woah!" Karin exclaimed, looking backwards. "You write the Icha Icha series? Will you sign mine?"

Tsunade looked horrified as Karin pulled out a small scroll and unsealed several books.

"He'll do anything for his fans." Hinata said. "He's already signed mine."

Tsunade went white while Karin looked across at her, confused.

"I didn't think you were the sort to read Icha Icha."

"A friend of my sensei started me on it as a way to build up my ability to cope with situations that would normally cause me to faint." Hinata shrugged. "It worked, and now I can tease my boyfriend without passing out. Besides, the plotlines are actually quite good."

"This has to be a nightmare." Tsunade moaned. "Stuck with a pervert and two of his fans. Hinata, you've just lost the respect I had for you."

Chapter Thirty-Four – Recovery

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Honoka looked up from finishing her packing as Hinata walked in, followed by a tall, busty blond and a younger woman who had black hair, and was carrying a pig, of all things. It was the fourth to enter who riveted her attention, however, and she dropped the scroll she was holding onto the floor in shock.

"Karin-neechan?"

"Honoka-neesan!"

Honoka didn't even remember moving, one second, she was standing by the table, the next, she had somehow crossed the room and was hugging her long-lost relative and best friend as the world around them vanished in a blurring of tears.

"I… thought you… were dead…" Karin choked out as they held onto each other.

"I thought… you were too." Honoka admitted tearfully. "Until Naruto found me, I thought I was truly the last. And now Hinata's brought you to me…"

The scratching of a pencil on paper caused them both to look round, their gaze settling on a tall, white-haired figure familiar to both of them.

"No, please, don't stop." Jiraiya grinned as he scribbled notes down. "This is pure gold, the reunion of two long-lost cousins of unearthly beauty who wrap their arms around each… oh shit!"

Honoka's chakra chains lanced through the space that Jiraiya had just vacated and Honoka snarled as she took off after the fleeing man.

"Get back here you pervert, and take your punishment like a man!"

Karin started to laugh.

"Honoka-neesan, here's your cup of… excuse me, where did Honoka-neesan go?"

Karin looked round and blinked at the young Hyuuga looking up at her. For a moment, her mind was blank,then several things came together.

"Gomen, are you clan-friend Hyuuga Hanabi? Hyuuga Hinata's younger sister?"

"I am." Hanabi said slowly. "May I know your name?"

"Uzumaki Karin, Honoka's cousin." Karin smiled at the dark-haired girl. "It's an honour to meet you."

"I said get back here, pervert!"

"Ultimate Technique: Run Like A Little Bitch no Jutsu!"

Hanabi and Karin glanced at the entrance from where the shouting had come from and Hanabi sighed.

"Ero-sennin's back."

Karin collapsed with laughter.

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Tsunade smirked as proof that Jiraiya had got himself into trouble yet again echoed up, then she returned her attention to running the diagnostic jutsu over Naruto, Hinata staring hopefully at her while Gaara stood quietly in the corner, a watchful, protective presence. After a moment, she nodded.

"He's taken quite a bit of damage, but it's healing. Whatever technique caused this, I'd advise him never doing it again. He may not be as lucky next time."

"How bad is it?" Hinata asked, taking hold of Naruto's hand as Tsunade smiled.

"It'll probably take him a few weeks to fully recover once I wake him. He isn't to do any exercise for the next few days, or try to use chakra. I'd say three days bed rest, then another three on light duties, no sparring."

"But you can wake him." Hinata smiled.

"What is it which keeps him asleep?" Gaara asked and Tsunade sighed.

"Whatever caused his physical trauma knocked him out, but the technique set up a… a small chakra feedback eddy in his mind. Nothing dangerous in the short term, it just prevents him waking up. I'll smooth the chakra flow and he'll wake up."

"That is good." Gaara said. "It is because of Naruto-senpai that I have recovered from my previous… state as much as I have. Honoka-sama told me that the reason she was willing to help me so quickly despite my actions was because Naruto-senpai asked. I wish to express my gratitiude."

"And so you shall." Tsunade said, closing her eyes and concentrating as she placed her green-chakra-covered hands on Naruto's head. "Now keep quiet, this is rather tricky."

For several moment, the only movement in the room was a slight fluctuation in the intensity of the medical chakra surrounding Tsunade's hands, then she stepped back with a smile, glancing at Hinata.

"That should do it. Now, Hinata, how do you normally wake him, gently, that is?"

"Like this." Hinata smiled as she leant over the bed. Gently taking Naruto's face in her hands, she lowered her head and let her lips touch his.

"Mmmmhmmmmmhmmmmm."

Hinata staightened up as Naruto's eyes flickered open and focused on her.

"Tenshi-hime, did we win?"

"We did." Hinata grinned, lightly stroking his cheek. "We did it."

"I don't want to have to fight Gaara again." Naruto sighed. "Kami, he was tough. If I ever have to fight another Jinchuuriki, it'll be too soon."

"I admit to having similar thoughts." Gaara said, causing Naruto to stiffen in shock. "You defeated me once, I feel certain that you can do so again. But you showed me true strength comes from helping others and fighting alongside them. Your example has caused me to re-evaluate much of what I believed and has given me my family back. I owe you a great deal, Naruto-san. If you ever need help, send me a message and I will come."

"Ummm, thanks? Hinata?"

"Gaara's been helping to look after you." Hinata explained. "I was elsewhere, finding someone who could bring you back to me."

"Senju Tsunade. Honoured to meet you at last. Hinata's told me so much about you and from the diagnostic jutsu I ran, I don't think she was exaggerating one bit."

Hinata blushed furiously while Naruto and Gaara stared at Tsunade in confusion.

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"So, why the packing?" Karin asked as she sipped the tea she'd been given, noting almost in passing that it was one of the best cups of tea she'd ever had.

"Oh, the Uzumaki mansion was finally finished yesterday." Hanabi said as Honoka stalked back in, muttering about perverts and cowards. "Honoka-neesan was going to move in today, I've been helping her seal her stuff ready."

"A mansion, huh?" Karin asked. "I'm impressed."

"It was the Namikaze mansion before it burned down." Honoka said, accepting the cup that Hanabi passed to her. "I kind of inherited it and had it rebuilt using the reclaimed Uzumaki fortune. Will you join me there?"

Karin nodded, taking another sip. "Of course, but I need to get some new clothes first. Actually, I need to get money first."

"Money is no problem at the moment." Honoka smiled. "And I'm sure the room I'm vacating will be used before too long."

Karin raised an eyebrow as Hanabi giggled into her tea.

"Meaning?"

"Naruto collects strays and adopts them." Honoka smiled. "He did it to me, Zabuza, Haku… it's the sort of person he is."

"I can feel his chakra." Karin noted. "It feels… calming. Warm. Nice."

Honoka nodded. "Anyway, I've already had most of my stuff moved across, so if you want to come with me after we finish our tea, I can get you settled in. Then we three can go shopping.

Hanabi looked ecstatic at the implied invitation and Honoka grinned at her.

"Yes, neechan, you can come too. It wouldn't be the same without you."

Hanabi's grin widened and Honoka laughed.

"Go on, I promise I won't tell anyone in the Hyuuga household."

"Thanks neesan. Wahooooo!"

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"Pleeeeease?"

"No." Hinata said firmly, her head resting on his shoulder. "Tsunade-sama said you need at least three days bed-rest, so that is what you are getting. You are only getting out of bed if you need the bathroom."

"But I don't like being in bed!"

Hinata looked up at hin, her eyes wide and starting to fill with tears. "You don't like being in bed with me, Naruto-kun?"

"No, I mean… It's not that… I… Hinata, I…"

Hinata managed to keep her amusement off her face as Naruto slumped back against his pillows.

"You win. Damn your Puppy Eyes no Jutsu." He said. "I'll be good."

"You mean you'll obey Tsunade's orders," Hinata purred as she snuggled closer him. "She said you needed to stay in bed, she didn't say anything about being good."

"Wow, girl, you've really gotten your confidence up." Anko laughed from the doorway and Hinata seemed to Shunshin from curling against Naruto's side to standing by the bed so fast that even Lee would have been taken by surprise.

"A…A…Anko-sensei…" she stuttered breathlessly. "What are… what are you doing here?"

"Well, I heard that Tsunade had healed my favourite brat, so I came to see how he was doing." Anko grinned as she walked over. Pausing briefly, she hugged Naruto.

"How you feeling, gaki?"

"I've felt better, Anko-sensei." Naruto admitted, "But it could easily have been far worse. How did Konoha do?"

"We didn't do too badly." Anko said. "We lost less than two-dozen ninja overall, more injured but most of them are healed now. The wall got breached, but it's being repaired and Honoka says that she can replace all the broken seals, although the council's a bit antsy about how much she's charging. Jiraiya offered to help for a share of the money, he's almost as good as Honoka. Several members of the council almost had a heart attack when he said she was a better fuuinjitsu specialist than he was. Speaking of which, she's moving out today. She said that once she's unpacked and settled in, along with her cousin, they'll come over."

"Cousin?" Naruto asked, confused. "What did I miss?"

"On my mission, I encountered another Uzumaki." Hinata explained. "Turns out Karin knew Honoka when they were young. Karin's a sensor and a med-nin, she's been tested as being high-chunin level."

Naruto nodded. "Okay. Anything else I've missed?"

"Only that we've got a new Hokage." Anko shrugged. "Tsunade is taking over from the old man, he's moving to the position of advisor. Oh yeah, congratulations on making chunin, brat."

"I made chunin?" Naruto repeated, his face reflecting his astonishment as Hinata giggled. "I made chunin! Yes! Who else did? I bet you did, Hinata."

"I did." Hinata confirmed. "I've been promoted out of Team 8, Tsuchi Kin has taken my place."

Naruto frowned in thought. "Ah, that's good. Wait, isn't she a Sound-nin? How does that work?"

"Two of her team-mates were used as sacrifices for the Edo Tensai technique Orochimaru used." Anko aid. "As soon as she discovered what had happened, she defected to us."

"Kiba's tried to hit on her at least three times already." Hinata giggled.

"So, promotions, new Hokage, replacement on team 8… bedroom being freed up… anything else, or am I up to date?"

"I think you're up to date." Anko shrugged. "Gai's making a special meal for you, Teuchi heard you'd recovered so he popped over to help, you're getting special ramen."

"Ramen?" Naruto exulted. "Special ramen made by the two best cooks in Konoha? Today is totally awesome!"

Anko laughed. "Well, I've got to report in, so enjoy your bed rest, even though I don't think you'll be getting much rest."

Anko vanished before Hinata could reach her.

"What did she mean by that?" Naruto asked, and Hinata turned red.

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"On behalf of the council," Hiashi said with a faint smile, "Welcome back, Tsunade-sama. It has been far too long since you last graced us with your presence."

"Thank you, Hiashi." Tsunade said. "Sensei?"

Hiruzen looked round and felt a slight pang. "This is going to be my last true day as Hokage, so I will make some announcements. First, the treaty between Konoha and Suna has been finalised and accepted by both parties. The Suna delegation will be leaving tomorrow. Now that we know the reason that Suna decided to side with Orochimaru, we can take action to help them, reaffirming our alliance.

"Secondly, the results of the Chunin exams stand. I know some of you are insistent that Uchiha Sasuke be promoted, but I do not believe he is quite ready yet. I have spoken to him about it and explained my reasons, and he has agreed. However, both he an I feel sure that with his current rate of improvement, he will become a fine addition to our chunin at the next chunin exam. I also know some of you re still doubtful about the promotions of Hyuuga Hinata and Kagetora Naruto. Those promotions stand.

"Third, I am pleased to announce two nw additions to our ranks. The Uzumaki clan has gained a new member, Uzumaki Karin, who was found by Hyuuga Hinata during her mission with Jiraiya. In addition, former sound-nin Tsuchi Kin has asked for sanctuary and has become a member of Team 8, where we can expect her genjitsu skills to be improved dramatically, giving us another genjitsu mistress in the near future.

"Fourth, Tsunade reports that Kagetora Naruto has been brought out of his coma and will be ready to resume active duty at the end of the week.

"And finally, Tsunade has agreed to accept the burden of becoming the Godaime Hokage. Although her coronation will not be until the end of the week, as from now, she is the new Hokage."

As he finished his sentence, Hiruzen removed his official hat and passed it to Tsunade, who accepted it with a slight bow.

"Thak you, sensei. I would like to start by saying that I will do my best to uphold the reputation and well-being of Konoha, and I trust that I can count on your support in the coming years."

A sussuration of confirmation echoed around the chamber.

"Now, is there any business that needs discussing, or shall we go straight to the reports on the rebuilding?"

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"Thank you for your hospitality, but it is time for us to depart." Gaara said. From his bed, Naruto smiled and proffered his hand, which Gaara shook with the air of one unaccustomed to doing such things.

"I'm sorry for being such a bad host." Naruto began, only for Temari to cut him off.

"You've been in a coma, it's not your fault. But you're awake now, so it's fine."

Naruto smiled and rubbed the back of his head. "Thanks for being so understanding."

"Hey, good to see you're getting better." Kankuro grinned through the bandages covering half his face. "You're a real lucky dude, having such a hot babe looking after you."

Both Temari and Gaara glared at him and he gulped nervously. "Come on, I meant it as a compliment!"

Gaara sighed as he facepalmed. "Why is it that I'm the more mature of us two, Kankuro?"

"That's not fair!" Kankuro protested as Temari tried hard to stop giggling.

Naruto coughed and they looked back at him. "Well, you're welcome to visit any time, I'll make sure I always have beds prepared if you decide to drop in."

"Thanks." Temari smiled. "Now, we have to go, our escort, Haku, is waiting to give us a lift to the border. I'm going to ride a tiger!"

Kankuro stared at his sister, obviously unnerved by her sudden fangirl-squeal, then he shrugged.

"I need to get back and rebuild my puppet. I managed to retreive all the pieces, so it's just a question of putting them together right. See you round."

"I hope to meet you both again soon." Gaara said. "I owe you for helping me."

"Thanks for everything." Temari smiled. "I'll miss this place."

Chapter Thirty-Five – Ceremonies

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It seemed like the entire village had turned out for this ceremony. The ground in front of the Hokage Tower was solidly-packed to the point that quite a few of the children had been relocated to their parents shoulders. Every balcony with a line-of-sight to the tower was packed, as was every rooftop. Even the walls hadn't been forgotten as many of them were festooned with ninja who had chosen to take to them to let the less-skilled, the infirm and civilians have enough space to stand.

The forms of the Great Tigers were visible in the crowd, many of them serving as safe-points for the giggling children who had been placed on the cats' backs by parents who had realised that by doing so, they effectively negated the risk that their children would trip and be trampled by the crowd.

"I'm glad Tsunade decided to delay the ceremony until you could get out of bed." Hinata sighed, leaning against her fiancée's shoulder and enjoying the way his arm was draped around her shoulders. "You pretty much saved Konoha, so you deserved to be here."

"Thanks." Naruto whispered, taking the opportunity to give her a quick kiss to her cheek.

"Urgh, you two are so sickly sweet, it's like drowning in syrup." Zabuza mock-complained from behind them.

"I find it quite agreeable, father." Haku said almost instantly. "Although I admit to being biased in their favour, since it was they who gave us our new life."

Zabuza snorted. "Still too sweet for my tastes. "

Hinata promptly lowered her head into her jacket collar to hide her blush while Naruto simply sighed. "Uncle, please be serious. This is an important day."

"Not as important as tomorrow." Zabuza smirked and Hinata's blush deepened. "I talked with Honoka by the way, she's torn down and re-installed the privacy seals on your apartment. Means that you won't wake us up."

"Father, stop teasing them." Haku commanded and Zabuza started to laugh.

"Can't help it. They sleep together, yet they're still so innocent." He chortled. "It's a gift from Kami, that's all I can say."

"Just ignore him, Hinata-hime." Naruto said reassuringly and Zabuza started to laugh again.

"Hush." Haku commanded. "They're starting."

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Sarutobi stood at the front of the roof of the Hokage tower, the council flanking him on either side. All of them wore the formal robes and Hiruzen smiled as he adjusted the hat that he would, Kami willing, never have to wear again. Taking a deep breath, he looked sideways to where Tsunade was standing, concealed from the village's view behind several council members, then he began.

"People of Konohagakure, today an era ends and a new one begins. Today I announce to you all my retirement and the appointment of a new Hokage, the Godaime Hokage. The grand-daughter of the Shodai Hokage and my former student, she has returned to Konoha to take on the mantle of the Godaime Hokage. I present to you all, Senju Tsunade!"

Tsunade swept across to where Hiruzen was standing, resplendent in her formal robes. As she approached, Hiruzen removed the Hokage's hat from his head and turned it round, lifting it to place it on Tsunade's head. As he placed it, the village seemed to erupt with cheers and applause, causing hundreds of birds to fly into the sky.

Returning Hiruzen's bow, Tsunade turned to face the village as Hiruzen stepped back. Holding up her hand, Tsunade waited for the crowd to quieten once more before speaking.

"People of Konohagakure, I thank you for your overwhelming welcome. It is with a humble heart that I accept the position of Hokage, and I promise that I shall serve Konoha faithfully until the day that I die or pass the hat to another who is deemed worthy of the burden that this hat symbolises."

Unseen by most, her eyes flicked across to where Naruto and Hinata were sat.

"I know that we have much that still needs doing in order to recover from the treacherous attack plotted, launched and led by my former team-mate and traitor Orochimaru, so I will not keep you for long. However, looking across at you all, I can see that no matter what challenges we have in the future, no matter what obstacles we face and no matter how bleak things may seem, your courage and will, the Will of Fire which Konoha is renowned for, will always see us through and take us to a brighter future! Together, there is nothing we of Konohagakure cannot achieve!"

A roar of approval swelled up from the crowd, a roar that was not just the great tigers. Tsunade smiled as her eyes filled with tears of pride and joy.

"I shall do my best." She whispered. "I have returned, and I will not fail the task I have accepted."

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"…and our new Hokage is indeed most youthful!" Lee declaimed as the rest of the Konoha 14 (as they had become with Kin's recruitment) stared at him.

"Is he always like this?" Kin asked and the rest of the table nodded.

"Naruto is the only one of us who… scrumph… can keep up with him." Chouji said between bites. "Since he and Lee are almost brothers, it's no surprise."

Kin looked between the two indicated individuals, then shook her head. "I don't see it."

"Lee-senpai!" Naruto gasped. "Can it be that our newest youthful friend does not understand the ways of true Youth?"

"That is truly terrible, Naruto-kun!" Lee replied instantly. "Surely we can do something that will help her fan her flames of youth as we have fanned ours?"

"it is never too late to be youthful, Lee-senpai." Naruto replied solemnly. "With the examples we set, surely all who witness our youthful powers will be in awe of our conflagurations of youthfulness!"

"As always, you phrase if far better than I do, Naruto-kun!" Lee proclaimed.

"Lee-senpai!"

"Naruto-kun!"

Hinata's eyes widened in horrified realisation.

"Lee-senpai!"

"Naruto-kun!"

"Look away NOW!"

"LEE-SENPAI!"

"NARUTO-KUN!"

Kin's eyes widened in horrified fascination as Naruto and Lee exchanged a manly hug…

…against the background of the sun setting on the horizon of a rocky shore.

As it faded, Shikamaru sighed. "And that is why we try to stop Naruto and Lee from sitting next to each other."

"Eeeeeeurraabbrbrbrbraaaaaagu uuurg?"

Tenten leaned across and looked at Kin professionally. "Looks like they did a light Sunset Genjitsu, she'll be back with us in a few minutes and will be fine within the hour."

Hinata got out of her chair and walked to stand between Naruto and Lee. Naruto looked up at her, then without a word, slid into the vacated chair, allowing Hinata to take his place. Once seated, she shook her head.

"It's my fault, I'm afraid. I know that Lee gets… edgy when he can't perform his displays of… youthfulness… so I haven't tried to ban Naruto from doing things like that."

"eeeuuurraaaoooeeeegraaarrrrh aaawa?"

Naruto shrugged apologetically and Kiba managed to stop sniggering as Hinata glanced at him. After a few more seconds, Kin seemed to slump in her seat.

"I never want to see that agin!" she gasped, her eyes still wide. Neji nodded.

"I have seen it many times myself, so it barely affects me any more. Naruto is immune to it, something I almost envy."

Hinata sighed. "New rule, you two. No more Youthful Hugs at gatherings like this."

Lee and Naruto looked at each other, then spoke in usison. "Yes, Hinata-hime."

"Good."

Sasuke looked at the clock on the wall and winced. "We should get moving. We still have a pair of celebrations to attend."

The fourteen of them exited the restaurant, Sasuke pausing to pay the bill, and split into two groups outside, Kin looking rather nervous.

"Should I really be coming? I mean, less than a month ago, I was a sound-nin…"

"You're one of us now." Ino said with a grin. "You joined us, so you're coming with us. Say goodbye, Hinata, you won't be seeing Naruto until the ceremony tomorrow."

"Indeed." Sasuke said with a grin. "I made the preparations and had your formal robes delivered to my clan-house, although we'll be using one of the other buildings for the actual party, just in case."

Naruto turned to follow the departing boys, then paused and sprinted back to Hinata. The two of them exchanged a long kiss, then rested their foreheads against each others.

"Have fun, Hinata-hime." Naruto said quietly. "I love you."

"I love you too, Naruto-kun." Hinata whispered. "Now have fun, and if you're even a single second late tomorrow…"

Naruto smiled and gave her another kiss, then jogged off to where the laughing boys were waiting.

"Kami, Hinata." Ino sighed. "You are so lucky."

"I know." Hinata said with a smile as she let the others lead her away. "He's my snuggly."

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Naruto inhaled and winced as his ribs protested. Sasuke pulled himself upright and looked round at the shattered beams and missing walls, then across to where a sleeping Lee was being tied up by a very bruised Gai and Kakashi.

"How much did he have to drink?" Sasuke asked in a shell-shocked voice.

"One sip of sake." Naruto answered, looking round at the devastation as he clasped his hand against his aching side. "One sip, then he managed to KO Neji with a single punch and then gave the rest of us a hard fight."

"I'd heard you were good," Asuma said as he limped up, "and thank Kami for it, Lee was almost unstoppable."

"You brought the six seconds I needed to recover and use my Tiger Warrior form." Naruto responded. "You okay? Lee sent you straight through a support beam."

"Hell of a fight." Zabuza chuckled as he stood, his arm splinted and bandaged. "Warn me next time, I want a rematch at some point."

Several of the other still-conscious genin looked at him as if he was mad. "What? That's the best pure taijitsu spar I've had against anyone except Gai himself. Kid's got style."

"One genin." Sasuke whispered. "One genin managed to hold off five Jonin and a chunin for five minutes. How?"

"Training." Naruto half-whispered, slumping against the wall and not caring if it gave way or not. "He trains more than I do. But that was something new."

"He's a natural Suiken fighter." Gai said as he limped up to them, his sleeping student slung over his shoulder. "I had no idea… It is something that I need to investigate."

"Just not in the Uchiha sector." Sasuke said with a wry grin as he tried and failed to see through his black eye. "I know I own quite a few spare buildings, but when I get round to rebuilding my clan, I don't want to have to rebuild my sector as well."

Asuma laughed, then winced and clutched at his ribs.

"Well, after that, I'd recommend simply crashing." He said as he straightened slightly. "The Karaoke machine's broken, most of the food is… not salvagable and there is no way I'm letting anyone near anything alcoholic after that battle."

"Agreed." Sasuke said, looking round and wincing at the devastation. "Anyone who's mobile, gather up the fallen and let's get them to an unbroken building."

Putting words to action, Sasuke lifted Shikamaru, then paused.

"You lazy bastard." He half-laughed. "You're playing possum."

Naruto grinned as he picked Chouji up from the floor.

"Huuuuh, wasssuuupp?"

"We're heading out." Naruto said. "Come on."

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"No way! You've been sleeping with him that long, and you're still a virgin?" Sakura exclaimed.

"They decided to wait until they were married." Anko said with a leer. "Not that that hasn't prevented them… getting to know each other."

"Anko!" both Hinata and Kurenai snapped at the same time, then they looked at each other and laughed. Anko grinned and looked round.

"You know, Honoka, your idea of pampering us in the private Nami… I mean Uzumaki hot springs was brilliant." Hinata said, trying to change the subject.

"I agree." Ino said. "I can feel the tension melting away… and I bet Hinata appreciates it more than any of us do."

Anko opened her mouth, only for Kurenai, who had edged closer, to clap her hand across it. Anko sighed and nodded.

"I'm surprised that you went for such a small ceremony." Tenten said. "I had expected a village-wide celebration, not a small ceremony on the Hokage tower and then a barbeque and party in Tiger Forest."

"I quite like the idea." Hanabi piped up from where she was sitting between Hinata and Honoka. "I got a new kimono for tomorrow, I want to look my best for my big sister's big day."

"But it's not my big day tomorrow." Honoka teased and everyone laughed as Hanabi pouted.

"You know what I mean."

"Sorry," Honoka laughed, "But you're so cute when you do that."

Hanabi giggled and nestled against Honoka's shoulder as Honoka wrapped her arm around her. A few seconds later, the combination of the late evening and the heat of the spring-fed pool meant that she was asleep. Several of the others in the pool 'awwww'd at the sight. Karin smiled as she wiped her glasses lenses again.

"You really need to find yourself a chap, Honoka-neesan. The way you look after Hanabi-chan, definite maternal material."

Hinata fought down a yawn, but Kurenai noticed. "It's getting late, ladies and girls. I think it's time to head in and get some sleep for tomorrow."

Hinata nodded and helped Honoka to lift Hanabi out of the pool. Stopping just long enough to wrap a large towel around her, they led the gaggle of Kunoichi inside, to where the futons had been set up.

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Tsunade stood on the roof of the Hokage tower, smiling at a very nervous Naruto and his best man, Lee, who was looking incredibly different in his formal kimono, rather than the green spandex outfit he often wore. Naruto also wore a formal kimono, but like most of his other clothes, his was made primarily from chainmail with a leather underlay. However, the links had been carefully made from metal imbued with special ground crystals which caught or absorbed the light, giving Naruto the appearance of wearing a metallic, glowing tiger-skin kimono.

"Calm down." Hiruzen muttered from nearby as Naruto shifted position yet again. "She'll be here. Do you really think that she'll miss this?"

Naruto smiled at Hiruzen, then his gaze moved across the audience. Most of them were from the Hyuuga clan, chosen from those who did not openly disapprove of Hinata, while the rest of the audience were the rest of the Rookie 14, their Senseis and a few others. Teuchi saw him looking and waved while Ayame winked at him while Konohamaru , clad in a formal Sarutobi kinomo, gave him a wide smile and slight bow. Honoka and Karin both gave him reassuring smiles while Haku was almost grinning widely enough to risk self-decapitation. From the crinkling of his mask, Zabuza was as well.

"Straighten up!"

Naruto turned and straightened in response to Hiruzen's warning, just in time to see Hinata appear, flanked by Kurenai and followed by Hanabi. Naruto gaped at her, the rest of the world seeming to fade away as she seemed to float towards him, a vision of absolute perfection that he knew he didn't deserve, yet by some gift of Kami was receiving anyway. He knew he was staring like the Dobe that Sasuke called him, but he couldn't help but be overwhelmed as she approached, radiant and perfect.

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"He's waiting." Kurenai said and Hinata took a deep breath.

"You'll be fine, neesan." Hanabi whispered and Hinata nodded jerkily, then she stepped up round the curve of the staircase and almost froze as she saw her husband-to-be. His eyes lit up as she appeared, perfect pools of sapphire that she could lose herself in for hours at a time, then his mouth, the so-kissable mouth, formed a small but welcoming smile.

Hinata felt sure that she was clumping towards him, her legs seemed determined to disobey her and her hands felt as if she was about to drop the bouquet of flowers she was holding. Somehow, she managed to make it to his side without falling over, and she felt the world around her disappear as she took her position in front of Tsunade.

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Tsunade smiled gently as she looked at the two in front of her. This was one of the best things that a Hkage could do, joining two people who were deeply in love together in matrimony. Looking up at the audience, she let her gaze drift across them before returning her gaze to Hinata and Naruto. Taking a deep breath, she began the ritual that predated Konohagakure by hundreds of years, if not more.

"We are here today, in Kami's sight, to celebrate the joining of Kagetora Naruto and Hyuuga Hinata in matrimony. We are here to celebrate the bonds of love that unite these two, the bonds that they feel for each other and share with each other…