Naruto found herself unable to breathe. In front of her stood the person she'd been looking for over a year. He wasn't the same though.

He had faint tiny little scars on his arms and legs, just pale lines against his already pale skin. His green eyes, once full of hidden emotion, were dull and dark. His clothes were ripped, the same clothes from when they were taken.

What made Naruto hurt the worst was the sight of Orochimaru's cursed seal pulsing on his neck. She could sense another seal on his chest and wished she had her sealing supplies with her. Instead, she just charged her boyfriend, who was too skinny, too lifeless.

He dodged like a puppet on strings, movements jerky. Naruto needed to engage him in battle until she saw the seal on his chest. So she hit him with blows that wouldn't do lasting damage and pulled out a kunai, swiping towards the collar of his frayed and torn shirt.

The cloth caught, and Naruto spotted a loyalty seal. Naruto backed away. She stared into Shikamaru's lifeless eyes. "I'll save you, Shikamaru Nara."

For a second she hoped the glimmer of something in his eyes hadn't been a trick. She turned around and walked away, each step falling heavier as she dodged shadow lances thrown at her. She reached the entrance and met Tsunade's hazel eyes.

"He's my boyfriend. You know what hurts worse than a loved one dying? That loved one standing in front of you under someone else's control. Not having your own mind is worse than death."

Tsunade just stood there as Naruto made the entrance collapse. Shikamaru was locked in for a few hours at most. He'd probably follow them as soon as he got out.

One year Eight months. She had a mission to complete.

Two weeks later she deemed Haruki high genin, nearing Chunin. She sent him with Tsunade to Konoha with the promise to walk through the gates before four months passed. When he was gone she started working on counter seals and traps.

Finding him had been hard. Freeing him would be simple. Killing Orochimaru, at this point, was simple. She just needed to put the pieces in place. She knew most of Orochimaru's base, knew when he needed a new body, knew sealing.

She made a seal to remove the Loyalty and curse seal. A few reverse quadrants and yin elements and she had a seal to trap Orochimaru's soul in his body, which would make killing him only slightly difficult. 

One year, nine months. She was ready. 

Haruki didn't know what he'd say when he met him new little sister, or what he'd say to Kaasan's friends. He followed the directions Naruto had given him and found himself standing in front of a traditional Japanese home.  

Should he knock? Or call out? He didn't have to choose as the door opened and a man almost walked into him. 

"Hm? What are you doing here kid?" The man had his hair up in a spiky ponytail and a few scars on his face.

"I'm Haruki Uzumaki... I'm here to see my little sister. I have a letter from Kaasan." Haruki handed the man the letter.

Shikaku had been surprised to find a kid on his doorstep. Even more so when he said his last name was Uzumaki. He took the letter and opened it.

Yoshino, or Shikaku if you got this.

This is Haruki. He's been with me for about nine months, and I've grown to love him as my son. He's a good kid, doesn't cause too much mischief, and he's capable of looking after Hinari when Yoshino goes shopping. Tell Hinari I love her.

I'll be home with Shikamaru soon. He'll need a month or two of recovery time beforehand though. Best to do that outside the village, especially with his bloodline.

-Naruto

Shikaku felt lighter knowing his son was coming home soon. He looked to the child, Haruki, who was fidgeting.

"C'mon kid. Your sister is in the garden. That's where she usually is."

Haruki followed the man through the house and out to the back. He saw a little girl about half his height, laying on her back and watching the clouds. Her hair was blond and in the sunlight, had a bluish sheen. She was already tanning, looking a lot like Kaasan. She had two whisker marks on each cheek and wore clothes too big on her.

She looked adorable.

He hesitantly walked forward, the sound of his feet on the grass alerting her to his presence. Her eyes opened, and he fell in love with her mismatched eyes. This was his sister, and he would protect her with his life.

"Who're you?" She asked.

Haruki nervously sat next to her. "I'm Haruki Uzumaki... Kaasan sent me to meet you."

Hinari tilted her head. "'M Hinari. Momma said you're my big brother."

Haruki nodded. "Um...Sorry, I don't know what to say..."

Hinari didn't either. So she shifted closer and gave him a hug. When his arms hesitantly hugged her back, she felt better than she had in a long time. "Momma and Papa be home soon?'

Haruki nodded. "Soon. Kaasan is saving Tou-tousan." It was strange to call someone you'd never actually met your father. But Kaasan spoke about him so much that he felt like it was right.

The two sat in silence for a while. 

Then Hinari decided to talk. She told Haruki of her favorite flower, and how she wanted to give one to Momma and Papa, How she had a bunch of drawings of them, how She loved seeing shapes in the clouds.

Haruki told her what it was like to travel, to train, to fight. He told her the stories that the matron at the orphanage told him, and told her about Kaasan and how she looked so much like a boy so that she felt safe. He told her about his friends.

Naruto ran through Hi no Kuni, straight to Oto. Shikamaru hadn't found her yet but she wouldn't worry about that yet.

She entered the hideout and went straight to Orochimaru's office. The Sannin looked up and grinned. "Welcome back, Naruto-chan."

"Shut it snake. Mission complete."

"No, I don't think ssso. You sssee, one of the prisonersss there came here. Shikamaru-kun?"

Shikamaru stepped out of the shadows. Naruto snarled. "I'm not killing him."

Orochimaru chuckled. "You will. Or he'll kill you. Shikamaru-kun, please kill her."

Naruto dodged the Nara, slapping a seal over his curse mark, causing him to scream and shadows to writhe. Naruto spun and slapped her Soul restriction seal on Orochimaru, who shrieked as his body felt like it was burning. Naruto quickly lifted Shikamaru's shirt and placed the loyalty removal seal. She needed to get Shikamaru to a more open area, with more light, or he'd bring down the base with the shadows.

She picked him up and flashed outside the base, placing him on the ground. The second she did, a hail of kunai and, pipes? Rained down on the two. Naruto shielded Shikamaru, getting several pipes and kunai sticking through or out of her.

There was a groan, and Naruto turned to Shikamaru, who blinked at her. "Na..ru? Why are you... a guy? And are those pipes?  Where's Orochimaru?"

Naruto grinned. "Shika!" She pulled out the pipes and kunai, Kurama healing the wounds easily. "Get your ass to a tree because I am so killing this snake bitch."

Naruto released her transformation and her short spiky blond hair became red-streaked once more. Her chest filled out, and her features softened. She could hear explosions inside the base as her pre-placed explosive tags went off. An inhuman shriek of rage echoed from inside and Orochimaru burst out of the ground.

The two met, Kusanagi meeting kunai. Both leapt away and flashed through hand seals, biting their thumbs and slamming their hands on the ground.

"Kuschiyose no Jutsu: Manda!'

"Kuschiyose no Jutsu: Kurama!"

Two large puffs of smoke and the Snake King and eight tails worth of the Kyuubi faced off.

"Orochimaru... I will not faccce off against a demon. I exxxpect two hundred ssacraficcces.. if you ssurvive, kukukukuku."

Manda vanished, and Naruto stood beneath Kurama, who was ready to rip Orochimaru apart. Naruto nodded, and Orochimaru was ripped in half in half a second. His screeches hurt their ears, so Naruto ran forward, slitting his throat.

Just before his eyes dulled and the life left him, he gave Naruto two scrolls.

"Sensi...Tsuna....Jirai..a....Thank you."

Naruto pocketed the scrolls and cut off Orochimaru's head, letting Kurama mini-Bijuu bomb the rest of the body. One hand seal and the Kyuubi shrank until he had two tails and was the size of a horse.

She found out that the pipes and kunai had been a trap she had activated, and cursed the dead Sannin.

Naruto helped Shikamaru onto Kurama's back. "Kurama, we need to go to Nami. One month to recover before we head back to Konoha."

One year ten months.

Almost home.

Shikamaru cursed as he fell. Over a year of being chained to a wall had caused his muscles to weaken considerably. He and Naruto worked every day to build up his muscles. Two weeks had passed and he was back up to genin strength, with the occasional give. By the end of the month, he should be back to his previous strength.

"Don't worry," Naruto teased, "I won't take the Jonin exam until you manage to catch up, lazy slowpoke."

Shikamaru chuckled, standing up and attacking Naruto. She was just as tall as him now, his growth having been affected by his capture. 

He'd be okay, and he couldn't wait to see his daughter.

"Oh, and you have a son now."

"What!??!"

Haruki held Hinari's hand as they walked to the park. Yoshino had been surprised when Hinari asked, and had let her go. As they walked down the street, Sasuke joined them.

"You're Haruki, Naruto's student."

Haruki nodded. "Yes. But Naruto is also my mom now. She said so."

Sasuke made a choking noise. "Really? Who's the blond gaki?"

"This is Hinari. She's my little sister."

Sasuke remembered the return from the mission to Nami two years ago, and the shock of finding out Naruto had a kid due to unfortunate circumstances. This was the kid Sakura had been looking for.

"I'm Naruto's teammate."

"Okay.

Sasuke sighed. He was a Jonin now, at fifteen. His team had been incomplete for one year and ten months. "When will she be back?"

Haruki stopped and turned to him. "Soon. Hey, Mister Sasuke. come to the park with us."

Sasuke didn't say anything, just walked next to the two. 

One year, ten months four days.

Kotetsu and Izumo were bored. And hot. It was the end of July, and Traders were coming and going. The most interesting thing that day was a thief trying to run out of the village with a bag of goods.

The two jumped when two figures suddenly appeared in front of them. They took in the longish spiky red highlighted blond hair, the whiskers, and the mismatched eyes. Her right eye was crimson, with a black slit pupil. The eye looked irritated and bloodshot, and was twitching. Then they took in long black hair, tied up, with a thick strand swept just next to his left eye. He had a bunch of light scars, with one thicker one on his neck.

"Uzumaki Naruto and Nara Shikamaru returning from capture. Hey Izumo, Kotetsu."

"Na-naruto, Shikamaru." Izumo stuttered. He let them in, and the two nodded. The chunin turned to his partner.

"They look so much different then I thought they would. Except for Shikamaru, he hasn't changed too much."

Kotetsu nodded in agreement.

Naruto and Shikamaru took in the sight of their village. They knew they needed to see the Hokage, but their family came first. So the two went straight to the Nara compound. Shikamaru opened the door.

"Haruki, Hinari? Did you two forget something? If you did you should-"

There was the sound of breaking glass as Yoshino dropped the plate she was drying. Her hands went up to her mouth as she examined the two. "Shikamaru? Naruto?"

The two nodded, and were suddenly engulfed in a hug from a sobbing Yoshino. "You two have grown so much, Naruto-chan, what happened to your eye? And Shikamaru, How did you get those!" She gently rubbed the scars she could see.

"Let's sit down and wait for everyone. I want to tell everyone at once. We're tired." Naruto smiled. She had missed Yoshino fussing over them.

"Of course."

Naruto summoned Oka. "Can you fetch Haruki and Hinari? And if you see a masked man with grey hair and his headband hiding an eye, an Uchiha with hair styled like a ducks ass, a pink-haired green-eyed girl, a purple-haired, brown pupiled woman in fishnets, a man with a big sword, an old man with waaay too many liver spots, or a boy that smells like winter, please send them here too. Oh, the Akimichi Heir, Yamanaka heir, and a chainsmoker."

Oka leveled the red-blond with a look before running off. Naruto just chuckled and leaned into Shikamaru's chest. He had started growing after becoming healthy again and was four inches taller than her now.

The two dozed as they waited for the message to spread.

Haruki held Hinari's hand as they walked through the marketplace. Hinari had wanted to meet a few of Haruki's friends, and he knew Haido was taken in by the Ichiraku's. Reima was training under Tsunade to be a medic, and Kusei was with Jiraiya and Sasuke, the two learning how to manage his spy network. Kirato was at the academy, as was Yuno. Miko was sick and staying with Iruka.

They were about to enter the stand when a fox both of the children recognised ran up to them. "Oka."  Hinari said.

"Hello kits. Naruto-sama sent me to tell you to go to the Nara Compound. They're there."

"Momma's home?"

Oka nodded, and Hinari turned and tugged at Haruki. "Come one Haru-nii, Come on! Momma's home!!'

Hinari was grinning, something she didn't do often. Haruki picked her up and place him on her back. "Hold on tight. We're gonna go fast. Thank you, Oka."

"Be safe kits."

Haruki leapt onto a roof and took off. He spotted Kakashi, who he had met visiting Yuno. "Kakashi-san! Kaasan is home! Come on!"

Kakashi nodded. "I'll catch up, let me grab my team, and Anko."

Haruki nodded and they made a beeline for the Nara compound. Haruki slammed the door open, Hinari scrambling off of his back and running forward. "MOMMA! PAPA!"

Naruto and Shikamaru jerked awake. They stood and walked into the hall, where they were slammed into by a sobbing blond toddler. They knelt and wrapped their arms around her.

"It's okay sweetie, Momma and Papa are home. We're okay." Naruto hugged Haruki with one arm and Hinari with the other.

"I missed you." Hinari sobbed.

Shikamaru held her tightly. He was glad to be home.

Suddenly the house was full of shouting as the door opened. "NARUTO UZUMAKI."

Naruto was pulled into a crushing hug by her pink-haired teammate. "Hi Sakura. Hey Sasuke. Kakashi-nii."

Shikamaru was in a similar situation with his team. "Shikamaru Nara, I swear to Kami I am going to flay you alive and display your entrails for the whole village to see!" Ino growled as she clung to the Nara. Choji handed him the last chip. "Welcome back Shikamaru."

Asuma just put a hand on Shikamaru's head. "You gave me too many gray hairs."

Shikamaru chuckled, Hinari's hand clutching his and not letting go. "I'm happy I'm home."

Naruto was getting chewed out by Anko when the front door opened. "Naruto-chan."

Naruto walked forward and hugged Hiruzen. "Jiji."

"I'm glad you're back my dear. Konoha was too quiet without you."

Naruto chuckled. They all sat down and listened to Naruto and Shikamaru explain what happened. Shikaku came in halfway through and hugged his son before listening. There was anger when Shikamaru showed his scars as he spoke of his torture, and tears as Naruto spoke of trying to find him, and the seals.

The sun was gone from the sky when they finished, and Yoshino and Ino went to make a large dinner for everyone. Naruto and Shikamaru listened to the others talk about what happened while they were gone, catching up on recent events.

Sakura had a ninken, having grown close to Kiba, and Sasuke had asked her out about two months ago.  Kakashi and Anko were together, and they had taken in Yuno, who was five now. Zabuza tried to kill Kabuto at least once a week because Haku had confessed to him and they were together. Sasuke had an apprentice, Kusei, and was going to leave soon to get familiar with running the spy network in case something happened to Jiraiya.

All of the orphans except Miko had been taken in, but Ino said she was thinking about asking her mom to take her in for more help at the shop, as the girl tended to wander in and stare at the flowers.

The night was full of laughter and reminiscing as the two Chunin slowly became less tense, more comfortable. One month of recovery wouldn't fix over a year of torture and killing. But they'd be fine, in time.

AN// I just wanna say thank you to AnimeLover98 and CauseJJxx for being so supportive and amazing. Their comments make my day, and they comment on nearly every chapter and are one of the first people to read an update. I know there are more people like them, but they have been the most noticeable. Thank you all for sticking with me as I write this. This story is proof of my improvement. The first many chapters were crap, but as the chapters go on, they get better. I am so proud of this story, and glad I have people who enjoy it. I love you all.

See ya next update! - Minna