Sweet Dispositions

-Chapter 28-
Love

The ANBU hadn't handcuffed her. They walked on rocky narrow pathways of high altitude cliffs. Beautiful, to walk through clouds, seeing down below. C's making it less picturesque.

They're going to take away Benjiro if they know the truth. His father could be Akuma-oo-sama and this is my way of protecting Benjiro, Hinata thought. Through silence.

C stared at Hinata, yelling again, "What did you discover? Cooperate!"

"No!" she snapped.

He lifted an eyebrow at her temper. "Tell me. If you don't give up the information voluntarily, there are other means."

Hinata didn't respond, which frustrated him.

"If you shall serve Kumogakure-" C continued.

Hinata looked at the edge of the cliff, and jumped to the cloudlet depths.

¤¤¤

Hinata entered Karin's house by the village center via the window. Green plants dotted the dark, modern layout. Weapons, medical papers, the omnipresent redolence of coffee and Kameya's toys did too.

Kameya's and Karin's photos were common. Paper memories of barbecues, playdates, weddings, and Jugo adorned the walls Hinata passed by, proceeding to the bedroom.

Karin emerged from bathroom fog to find a disheartened Hinata on her bed.

Her red velvet hair dripped, bite marks exposed. "I admit, this isn't how I imagined our sex scene," Karin joked, Hinata frowned.

"You've imagined me in a sex scene?"

"Just kidding. I love you but what'd you come here for?"

"I ran away from the ANBU, I'm freaking out."

"About what?" Karin asked.

¤¤¤

Fully changed, Karin gazed at Hinata with a bit of solicitude, characteristically pushing up her glasses on the bridge of her nose.

"Let me get this straight," Karin started. "Benjiro's Akatsuki dad impregnated Niko after a genjutsu. Benjiro's born, left with a crazy mom and drunk relatives. Kabuto finds Benjiro's mother, drugs her with a chakra disease. Her last words were "Kill Benjiro". The Akatsuki father wanted his aunt, Miyana... to take care of Benjiro. She refused to... and neglected Taiyo. Miyana's probably directed them to you! She framed you to get Benjiro because she didn't want responsibility."

Mitsuyo wanted me to be seen as Miyana. Mitsuyo... was in on it too? She gave me this... gray hair, Hinata thought. Miyana lead them to me. Mitsuyo argued for "Kaiya" to leave...

Mitsuyo was kidnapped and brainwashed before the Uchiha massacre by Shimura Danzo for her jutsu. Renji, a ROOT agent, married Mitsuyo, to keep caps on her and get Uchiha sharingan in ROOT inventory,

Miyana and Mitsuyo were sisters, have sharingan and Uchiha with children. Kokoro, Kaito and Taiyo are the only live children of both sisters. Mitsuyo's first son Ryouta died in the custody of Danzo because Ryouta's sharingan wouldn't activate... Then, Danzo killed Renji, Mitsuyo's husband, for not sending the other two sharingan kids of hers, AKA weaponry of the highest degree...

Two years after Benjiro was born and the war's end, Mitsuyo found Uchiha Sasuke on her porch and the rest is history. Tadashi and Yoki want Benjiro back along with Benjiro's Akatsuki father. Everything she knows is a lie...

I don't know how to tell Sasuke because he'll be broken and go on a revenge rampage. It's all so messy like a crime scene, Hinata thought. Messy like a crime scene.

Karin opened up her arms, "Come here, hugs solve problems..." she offered.

Hinata took the hug gladly.

¤¤¤

Kaiya's been here for a month and a half. Guards got annoyed of Kaiya's screaming, they brought her to Akuma-oo-sama. Akuma-oo-sama sat on his throne, awaiting dinner and Kaiya, on the floor, her knees scarred.

"Release me. Give me back my son. I want him," Kaiya cried.

He chuckled behind his mask. "He'll come back to you, when the Hyuuga and the Uchiha do their job. Don't lie to yourself. You detest Taiyo's eyes. You followed orders, I don't ask. One day, Hyuuga will be the okusan."

"She'll never love you," Kaiya bellowed. "Love is a desire, so whenever one gets it, desire ends and the love dies..."

"It can be born again in children, lovers or when simply knowing thyself."

"You cannot love. The evil you have done and people you killed, you don't deserve love."

"Nobody's beyond love. Nobody's beyond peace. Nobody's beyond suffering."

"You love her? Why make her suffer?" Kaiya snapped.

"Don't preach about love as you've betrayed your blood."

"She's not my blood, Mitsuyo's a betrayer," Kaiya yelled.

He chuckled again. "The woman who spied on her family for money alleges she isn't a traitor. Interesting. You could've had the world had you not divulged from me," he said sharply.

"You forced me. You have nothing except for broken experiments and men at your disposal," Kaiya yelled.

"I have all I need," he said. "I've people everywhere. In the government, in the streets, at the Natsukawa residence. Now, she's in my house, in debt. Don't pretend to be blind when I taught you to see. You're my eyes, my dear. All those trips, missions was to travel to me. You received money from me. When you got intel on countries, all that came to me. Temperature change, blades of grass misplaced or even a smile from Hinata, you told me..."

"You wanted me to betray them," Kaiya said.

"What I want is the okusan, harmony, and world peace. What you wanted was to betray Mitsuyo. How would you hurt Mitsuyo? Her children deserted her, loved ones died in a massacre, her sharingan malfunctions and her man's dead and could be the father of your child," he chuckled. "Danzo, was it? "

Kaiya's eyes stung. "Danzo isn't Taiyo's father. I refuse that fate!" Kaiya protested.

Akuma-oo-sama shrugged. "A typical secluded woman embraced makeshift Uchiha clans. All of them, by default, are Uchiha. Your son sees my vessel as his maternal figure. Accept it."

"Makeshift isn't the same. I'm burdened by this bloodline, this legacy!" Kaiya groused.

"Ah. Do not blame fate for things you control. You fed into your jealousy and turned into something beautiful and black; your allegiance to me."

"I don't," Kaiya squawked.

"You narrated tales of her purest love and stories of how you ached to kill her. Anyway... We aren't here to discuss jealousy. You're jailed because of your actions and their consequences..."

"What?" Her heart sunk.

"Are beatings, torture, and starvation not enough? Penalties... You sinned and wronged me," Akuma-oo-sama whispered slowly. "You didn't cherish Hychu Taichirou's child, Benjiro, as promised. You pushed his life onto Hyuuga Hinata. Why abandon a child?"

"I knew Benjiro was your... son. I renounced you and the Uchiha, you son of a bitch."

Akuma-oo-sama smiled. "I can't argue. She's bad but I rebirthed into a demon god, feasting on the damned dead. You hate your clan's eyes, the power, the way they prevailed. You'd never fit with them. All I see in you is self-hatred..."

"I don't want the craziness. It's better with the Natsukawa. They're steady, simple," Kaiya avowed.

"How does a mother resent their child's blood? Mitsuyo was brainwashed! You have no excuse. You perpetually scorn the clan giving you purpose!"

Kaiya said, "I can't forgive Mitsuyo nor do I want another Uchiha, you asked too much of me."

"Having an Uchiha is Sasuke's wish. His life-long purpose was to renew his clan," Akuma-oo-sama said slowly. "He avenged the clan while you've forsaken the very existence of Uchiha."

"Maybe we don't deserve to be renewed. We, as Uchiha, are appalling!"

"Sasuke and I both fight for the same cause. They are not equal, but I respect him. All my pawns, the parts that make the black and white puzzle checkerboards of my heart deem you insolent. Even worse than Himarayasugi Niko in the brain I tried to heal."

"Kabuto gave her an overdose under your orders! You killed Benjiro's mother. That kid was damned from the moment you met her!" Kaiya yelled.

"I freed Himarayasugi Niko from her prison's cell. Enough said," he snapped three times.

Two men with dirtied fingers clawed at her clothes and limbs, picking her up.

"When did you know?" Kaiya asked.

"From the start. I waited for confession and betrayal. You lied to me. You'll pay for all your sins... Every word, every lie was a handful of dirt. The more you hid, the more we dig and the deeper your grave," he hissed. "You're despicable."

And the men dragged her away.

¤¤¤

In the hallway, Sasuke carried a tired, puking Taiyo to his room. Taiyo woke up and hurled because of his latest sickness. After being cleaned up, Taiyo needed a nap.

"Why'd that come outta me?" Taiyo groaned to Sasuke.

It echoed in the hallway.

"Because again, you ate sea-grass, algae and probably frog eggs not meant for human consumption. We told you not to do that again, bud."

"I jus' wanted tuh be a turtle like Chuhei. Sasu, have you ever wanted to be a turtle? What's wrong with bein' a turtle?"

"Nothing. I wanted to be a hawk but I don't eat worms," Sasuke said.

Admittedly, the confession sounded stupid.

Taiyo chuckled and snuggled in closer to Sasuke's chest. "When's Nata gonna be back? She sings me a song. Makes it all better..."

"Don't you want your mother?"

He shook his head, white hair like snow. "Mama isn't here. Nata is. She's nicer and buys more toys an' nice stuff."

But she's your mother. What happened to that bond? Sasuke thought.

Taiyo nodded off. Sasuke felt the weight in his arms... his heart. Sasuke shouldn't be doing this. Miyana should.

Someina saw Taiyo and sighed, sad as well.

Someina cradled the child. He was small for his age, so was Benjiro. Is that why he got bullied? Aside from his being an Uchiha... His fault. His past. His mistake.

"He's so charming. Articulate. I'm glad he exists," Someina murmured, stroking Taiyo's face. "How does Miyana not want him? Every time I look at Taiyo... I wonder if she wanted a girl... Maybe she'd love him more."

Seven years of regretting a child is a long time. It's not that he's a boy or a girl. The problem is within Miyana.

Sasuke turned around to leave. Someina annoyingly continued the conversation.

"The messy boys should share a room but they'd bounce off the walls. Did you find the cookie jar empty?" Someina asked him, grinning.

Sasuke put them on a higher shelf. "Che, they had no fun; all sweets in here don't have sugar."

"No sugar in anything? They don't know the real taste of brownies?" Someina asked.

Sasuke nodded. How hasn't she put two and two together? All baked goods lack sugar. The kids can't handle sugar. Benjiro gets stupid hyper and barks at puddles. Same goes for Taiyo.

¤¤¤

Sasuke and Someina were left in the kitchen, waiting for Hinata to return. He sat at the dining table, reading. At the sink, she drank spiked rum apple juice.

Sasuke and Someina don't talk without Hinata there. The lovebirds spoke of things only they knew.

It was awkward.

The teapot shrilled and his apathy meters were off the chart.

Sasuke moved to get the boiling tea water. Wanting to be nice, Someina swooped in and poured it for him.

He looked at her, unimpressed. "I was going to do that."

"I did it for you... Aren't you going to say thank you?"

Sasuke frowned, sitting down, casually eating his bagel. "No."

"Don't you have manners? Are you not grateful?"

He took another bite, chewing slowly, making her wait for his answer.

He swallowed. "I didn't want you to pour the water."

"I was being nice," she said, voice sugar sweet.

"Hn. I don't feel grateful. Maybe I was getting coffee."

"Were you?"

"No, and I don't do 'thank you's'."

Someina's eye twitched. Is this what Hinata deals with?

"How was your day?" Someina said kindly.

"Hn." he shrugged.

"What does 'hn' mean in that sense?" Someina asked.

She don't speak Sasuke as well as Hinata does...

"Why do you keep on asking questions?" Sasuke groused.

"I ask a lot of questions. Don't you?"

Sasuke frowned. "No."

"Then can I have twenty-one questions?"

"No."

"Why not?"

"You can have ten before I leave and go upstairs. Yeah, stop bothering me with familiarity tries," he rolled his eyes.

Someina clutched the tea pot's handle tightly. Don't get mad. Don't get mad. Her fingers passed over the dent in its side.

"I've been meaning to ask; why is our teapot dented?" Someina asked.

"That was Hinata," he chuckled.

"Why would she ruin it? It's her favorite."

Sasuke shrugged. "You ruin your teeth with the daily rum you consume. We have our faults, you just happen to have a lot of them," Sasuke laughed.

How did he know she liked rum? "I'm perfectly likable. I'm knowledgeable and I know words like verisimilitude."

"A gorilla knows words, Scar," Sasuke said.

"You're not perfect, duck-hair," Someina retorted.

He scoffed.

She decided they could talk about things only they knew; Hinata.

So, Someina asked, "What did you think of Hinata when you first met her? Don't say 'beautiful'."

"That's what everyone says when they meet her... She got featured in Kumogakure's Summer Fashion magazine. Not bad in a swimsuit," he shrugged.

"Pity she never visits the beach."

"No. Not a pity. She's afraid of drowning. And she became rude while sober."

"You didn't piss her off?"

"She was the aggressor," Sasuke grumbled then winced. "I might've said one or two things. She broke a bottle over my head the second night."

"Hormones... it was all in the hormones,"

He shrugged. "It didn't make it more tolerable. The first night we traveled, bandits, robbed us. Hinata didn't perform up to my standards-"

"Which are suffocating and exacting," Someina intoned.

"They're none of those things. They're precise. Che, we almost got killed," Sasuke sighed.

"Did you care about her then?" Someina asked.

"I didn't... My comrades shouldn't die, especially one with sharingan twins... I'd hate it, like soybeans..."

"You're allergic to soybeans?" Someina asked.

"No. They make me nauseous, and she gave me a ton without saying they were soybeans. The allergic reaction arrived. I called her 'usuratonkachi'. She's not weak, but it was the best way to shut her up. She shut down my chakra pathway system. We had many disagreements."

"You're an ass!"

"I'll take that... Give sympathy to the dying man. She healed me hours later. She called me a 'supposed-to-be-jailed criminal idiot'. I retorted with; 'white-sashed princess snob'. She was offended, wanted to go back to Konoha..."

"Where were you both at this time?"

"Near Suna," he sighed. "I didn't apologize. I took it back. She wouldn't look at me for days. She could hold a grudge... and we had nothing to do. I argued with her, tried talking to her. She made tea and I said something insensitive with a pot in her hand."

"What did you say?"

"Something 'bout Naruto," Sasuke said. "After that, I had tea with her, every morning, since I knew it annoyed her. She liked being alone. I would've respected that, but I wanted revenge, in the small things,"

Petty guy...

He continued, "I hated sweet things, so she'd make sweet tea. Never drank it- the aroma was unbearable. I annoyed her. She took her vengeance. I liked fishing as well. She sat with me daily, watching me. I refused to let her handle the fishing line."

"You're parallel lines on a grid," Someina commented slowly, smiling.

"We eventually intertwined. Made peace. After silence for six days, I handed her the fishing line and we reeled in a big fish. I hauled her up when she fell in. She thought I'd push her to the dirt, and she pulled me in the river. We were both wet and the fish gone. At tea time the next day, I told her a joke."

Sasuke, telling a joke? Someina gasped.

"Not a joke... It was a pun a tea-shop owner we visited told me. I told it to her. Then, she actually paused and looked at me, for the first time in days. She said, "That's the worst joke I've ever heard." And I lost faith."

Someina laughed.

Sasuke chuckled a bit. "She smiled, thinking my joke was funny. Secretly. She didn't want me to see her smile. Too bad, it was a tattoo on my brain, and she gave me tea as a peace offering."

"Why is it a peace offering to Hinata?" Someina asked.

"Tea is the first thing her brother drank with her when he apologized. He offered his Genmaicha tea and said, "Truce, no matter the fate or family class," and she smiled. They never drank the tea together; he got up from the table. Left her alone."

Someina frowned. "What if you reject the tea?"

"She won't bother with you. She said, "Where there is tea for us, there is hope" and we drank our tea in silence. We stopped arguing and found momentum. She fell silent that day..."

"Did she forgive you?"

"I never knew, but she didn't sleep outside of our tent, with the bugs and paste and mosquitoes. She came to me. That's enough storytime. You used up all of your questions to ask about my life. I've no advice," he said.

"Wait, why are you or intertwined?"

"She didn't save me but she ran away with me. Before me, she never drank tea with anyone. Before her, I never fished with anyone. It works," he smiled.

"If tea is the drink of love, then brew on... brew on... Why bend over backward for her?" she asked, gold eyes curious and dark.

"I'm willing to be paralyzed," he said simply, sincere. "Stop asking questions, you're like Benjiro."

Sasuke loves Hinata more than the legs he drag saround. Where does that leave me? That leaves me on the outside, looking in, Someina thought.

¤¤¤

Sasuke went upstairs, he passed his kid's rooms, checking up on them. He noticed Mitsuyo scowling at the mirror and stopped short.

Mitsuyo rubbed her neck, wincing at the pain. A tattoo with three tomoe, the design being the mitsudomoe was on the back of her neck. Only seventeen people in the history of forever know the design of it.

It was red, a hickey from a snake... A bruise from hell.

Mitsuyo had the cursed seal of heaven. She worked with Orochimaru and got that hellish mark? Why would Orochimaru bother Mitsuyo? She's genin, has no strength, and no chakra.

Orochimaru fucked with the DCA, now he's got Mitsuyo, the godmother of the only Hyuuga-Uchiha children in history under Orochimaru's belt, under his control.

Why would she have Orochimaru's curse seal? Why does she know Orochimaru and why is the curse mark acting up?

Mitsuyo looked back at the gaping Sasuke. "What? It's like you've never seen a shoulder before."

"What is that?" Sasuke snapped.

"A tattoo," Mitsuyo said.

That's the cursed seal.

The cursed seal coaxes people to use it for evil or Orochimaru's nearby. Orochimaru's in Kumo. Right now with him, the sharingan, his kids... and Suigetsu. Sasuke swallowed. His mouth felt cotton dry as he stared at Mitsuyo.

"What's so big about it? It's just a tattoo," Mitsuyo asked breezily.

"Why hide it all this time?" Sasuke asked piercingly.

She clicked her tongue. "Don't use that tone with me, bozu. I crave modesty... and privacy. I don't need to tell you everything, Uchiha."

A headache sparked. The floor shifted, he's dizzy. His eyes hurt. He thought he knew her but he didn't know her at all.

"I don't know what's your goddamned problem. Did I do something wrong?" she asked.

"No."

He's blessed; the chakra signatures of the kids were fine; present; potent.

"Why have you been avoiding me? I was your therapist, but now I'm merely some strange neighbor. We don't have neighbors. I'm non-existent."

Bile raised and he turned around, needing to get the kids safe.

"Do whatever. I'm going to take a shower. Be ready to talk when I'm back," she said, her gray eyes flashing. "Fifteen minutes, then we'll sort out our problems."

He nodded. He had fifteen minutes to get the hell out of the house.

¤¤¤

Sasuke went to the kitchen to find a distraught Someina after gathering the kids in the living room.

"Ice cream just isn't fun anymore. It lost the magic," she pouted, sighing at the vanilla tubs in the freezer.

"Can I see the letter Miyana left?" Sasuke asked, rushing to Someina. He needed to know whether Miyana showed hints of being aligned with Orochimaru... or worse Mitsuyo.

Someina nodded, came back and handed it to him.

The letter said;

Someina and Mitsuyo,

In my heart, I hope you forgive me. All I've ever wanted was to take care of my son.
My only wish's for you to forgive me. I hope Taiyo grows up handsome and wonderful. Not that I don't want him, I'll always want him. Damage's been done. Anyway, I want to know if you'd take care of him. Never have I asked something like this from someone.Getting divorced has been hard. Energies have been directed to the wrong place. Really.

From Miyana.

Sasuke read it over again, staring. What's up with the wording? The sentence structure is all wrong. The truth us in the letters of the sentence. First?

When he looked at it, like this way- the truth is in the letters of the sentence. First. Letters... first seems totally disconnected from the overall message. The whole sentence isn't as fluid as her colloquial habits. This could mean that it's the first letter.

First letter. The first letter of the sentence.

Sasuke wrote it out again.

In my heart, I hope you forgive me.
All I've ever wanted was to take care of my son.
My only wish's for you to forgive me.
I hope Taiyo grows up handsome and wonderful.
Not that I don't want him, I'll always want him.
Damage's been done.
Anyway, I want to know if you'd take care of him.
Never have I asked something like this from someone.
Getting divorced has been hard.
Energies have been directed to the wrong place.
Really.

The final message read; I am in danger. So perhaps she has been kidnapped. Hychu Taichirou probably kidnapped her. Shit.

Someina was there with a box of saltines, looking for an opinion. "Do you think I should give Taiyo crackers for his upset stomach?" Someina asked Sasuke.

"Don't stay in the house alone with Mitsuyo. Take Taiyo, Benjiro, Amarante, and Hiromitsu to someplace safe," Sasuke ordered.

Someina shook her head, her leafy hair bouncing everywhere. "Oh, cmon. I'm not that mad at her. I remember just how cute Hinata is and lovable she is and how much of an idiot I am," Someina said. "Mitsuyo and I form the midwifery mob. She's not dangerous. She's still my mentor even though I am her whipping boy from time to time-"

"Someina, get a grip on yourself. Focus!"

"Was I rambling? I was rambling. I ramble when I am nervous."

"I make you nervous?" Sasuke asked, stepping away in confusion.

"The most. Why is she dangerous?" Someina asked.

Sasuke sealed away the page and said, "The ANBU are coming- because of Orochimaru. I'll take the kids to Ryūchi Cave."

Someina gasped. "Hinata would never allow that! I will not do that. Mitsuyo's fine, everything's fine," she hyperventilated.

"Mitsuyo might kill my kids. I don't have time for your panic attack. Pack the bags before the ANBU take them in too. Be subtle."

Someina nodded, returning with three suitcases, one for the kids, one for food and one for medicines and venom anti-oxidants.

He summoned Aoda and Someina shrieked when she entered the kitchen.

His glossy blue skin gleamed and his beady jade eyes flicked from Sasuke to Someina.

"How may I ssserve you Uchiha-sama? Where's your vipresse and many hatchlings?" Aoda asked.

Sasuke didn't have time for pleasantries. "Arrested. Not the kids, just Hinata. Take Someina and the kids to the Ryūchi Cave."

"Whaaaattt?" Someina asked loudly, aghast.

Sasuke glared at her. "Shut up, Ikeda."

"Are we going to ssstrike Kumogakure?" Aoda asked. "If we do, you'll need to sssummon more of usss."

"We're attacking Kumo? Since when? No questions asked, no hesitations. Where is your loyalty to Kumo?" she asked Aoda.

Aoda flicked his tongue, tasting the air. "The air is ripe. It is, however, not ssscented with blood," he leaned in, as if to share a secret. "On your count, we seize the village and crusssh mountains until the waters run red. Uchiha-sama, we aren"t loyal to Konoha. We are only faithful to you," Aoda reminded him, slinking with enthusiasm.

Someina opened her mouth to scream but Sasuke took charge. "Be quiet. Mitsuyo will hear us. We have four minutes before Mitsuyo comes downstairs and two minutes before the ANBU show," Sasuke said.

Sasuke looked at his action-hungry summon. "And no. We won't attack Kumo."

Aoda nodded obediently. "I'll tell the White Snake Sage. He enjoysss the company of the children."

Sasuke nodded. "Protect them well, Aoda," he warned.

Aoda nodded fiercely.

¤¤¤

At the Hōzuki residence.

The ANBU came crashing in. Karin screamed at the rampage wrecking her living room. Her longsleeved kimono fluttered, along with Hinata's dress.

Karin gazed at the carnage. Vases, plants, and glass is everywhere. One ANBU accidentally broke her table.

Karin howled, "This... is... a disaster! What's wrong with you people?! Why didn't you assholes USE the door?! Learn to knock! I would've let you guys in. If I had Kameya down, she surely-"

"Karin!" Hinata interrupted. "We have bigger problems. Serious problems."

"Yes, we have problems; nothing's as serious as wrecking the decor. All this'd from Kusagakure, where I grew up, there's nothing like it. They ruined my house! My house-"

Karin paused, seeing a certain ANBU gradually backing towards the exit. She hugged -trapped- him for a while, squeezing him. All the ANBU rolled their eyes.

"Karin, why must you always do that when Hattori-kohai is near?" C asked.

"Hattori has been with me for all my arrests. I know everything about him," Karin smiled affectionately, holding Hattori's waist.

C met Hinata's eyes. "Is she always like that? This oscillating?" he asked.

Hinata sighed. Yes. "Never mind that. We're getting arrested, aren't we?" Hinata asked.

"You, Miss Natsukawa, have to be escorted. Notwithstanding you harbored a fugitive for three months before the fugitive family found this apartment," C intoned.

All eyes preemptively fell on Karin.

"I'm the fugitive?" Karin blanched.

C was surprised at her confusion. "Yeah... Let's not ignore the work you did for Orochimaru, a very real threat. You're mostly convincted of treason," C shrugged.

Karin glared her red eyes at him. "What?! Treason? I like the politicians and head of state here! They're putting our tax dollars to work."

"In Konoha," C specified. "You haven't been persecuted for aiding in Orochimaru's criminal activities including murder, manslaughter and a plethora of dishonorable mentions."

Karin pushed Hattori away and looked down, cheeks red. "Uh... carry on."

"And me? I thought we were finally getting along," Hinata smiled beatifically.

C stiffened. "High treason... harboring a criminal; Uchiha Sasuke."

"That's cute. Sasuke's not a criminal. He's done his time. You got another crime you can pull out of your ass?" Karin asked, unimpressed. "Got another one-"

Hinata summoned a seal on Karin's mouth.

"Contain Miss Natsukawa's hands before she can-" C said as Hinata placed a seal on her mouth. "Do just that."

¤¤¤

Hinata and Karin had been arrested or "escorted".

They weren't taken to the ANBU interrogation center. Instead, they were somewhere high-tech, not the rundown place where ANBU would hit on her and call her sweet cheeks.

The walls were gray. Concrete. This place... was foreign and different.

After an hour or so, the two women trekked through tunnels, accompanied by many ANBU. Hinata and Karin seamlessly managed to overpower the ANBU, fleeing.

Hinata used a counter-seal that she created to escape these situations. The ANBU didn't use chakra reducers but they did use extra complex seals to strengthen the handcuffs.

Hinata smiled at the broken metal and summoned a flashlight. Hinata shone it at Karin, who flinched away, focused on not escaping. Smiling, Hinata undid the seal on Karin's mouth.

Karin exercised her freedom. "I feel his chakra signature. Oh my Kami- It's him!" Karin muttered but her voice was nasal. Peculiar.

"Where are we?" Hinata asked, wondering aloud.

"The jail Suigetsu and I have been waiting for."

"Doesn't matter. Let's go. We've escaped about a dozen times. If I summon a key-"

Karin pushed her glasses higher on the bridge if her nose. "I'm not leaving."

"If it's Friday, it's paper shredding day... We go through the vents. If I'm right, then you go up, left, skip two rights and go left," Hinata murmurred turned around, walking away.

Karin didn't move.

"Karin- what? Why aren't you coming with me?" Hinata asked.

"I have to stay. My idiot husband and your idiot has gotten arrested," Karin explained.

Hinata sighed. The ANBU probably thought Hinata went home instead of going to Karin. Sasuke probably figured Mitsuyo's and Miyana's secrets.

Hinata nodded, game-face on. "Getting them out is our first priority. I suggest-"

"It's a secondary priority." Karin shrugged, swaying in her blue dress.

Hinata crossed her arms, observing Karin carefully. "You could've escaped your cuffs easily, like me. Why did you agitate the ANBU? That's not a way to operate."

Karin snapped, "You're not the boss of me. I needed this," Karin took out a key card from her mouth.

Hinata gasped. "Where did you get that from? How did you fit that in your mouth?"

Karin wiped dripping saliva off of the blank key card with a barcode. "I've had bigger things... When I hugged the ANBU, I replaced the fake card with the real key card. Your mouth seal helped too."

Karin agitated Hinata and C on purpose, huh? Clever.

"What about the metal key chip? They scanned us for weapons via magnets," Hinata pointed out.

Karin smirked. "I've been taking healthy doses of iron and other metallic agents- just enough to not tip off the magnetic gates."

"How are you alive today?"

"I work in the lab at the hospital, I know my shit. Small, moderate doses built my tolerance," Karin said.

"Clever, Miss Hōzuki," Hinata smiled.

"Why thank you Miss Uchiha," Karin quipped.

Hinata shoved Karin playfully. "Stop."

"What? It's only a matter of time."

Hinata rolled her eyes.

Karin smirked. "Anyway, Suigetsu and I have been to all jails in Kumo, scoping it out, finding information. Jugo's here. They're digital here, with the most powerful ones locked up, downstairs."

"I'm not going without you."

"You aren't a criminal like me; you don't have to."

"Sasuke told me, don't let your comrades die. You're my comrade, I'm going," Hinata said fiercely. "Anyway, what if the ANBU you stole from notices?"

"He isn't a rookie low in ranks and has zero control or clearance. He forgets the card because he can't use it. He won't notice."

"Why're we staying here?" Hinata asked.

"I need to feel all positions of the ANBU's chakra signatures. I can map out the hallways and the holding cell of Jugo," Karin reported.

Hinata nodded and they mapped out the place.

¤¤¤

Hinata and Karin ran through the halls until finding a small room they entered.

"Block the doors with the cabinets," Hinata said.

Karin did, after complaints.

"Our hair... is too recognizable... Which do you prefer? Henna? Dirt? Or marigolds? We have to walk out of here, I have costumes... disguises," Hinata said.

"I'm not putting dirt in my hair," Karin objected.

"Fine. The vents. Simple warning; vents are more disgusting than dirt."

Karin lifted an eyebrow. "How do you know that?"

"You're not the only one with escape plans," Hinata laughed.

"You know, people underestimate you... You're really turning into an Uchiha."

Hinata smiled, summoning a female snake. The summon looked at her obediently.

"Find Sasuke and tell him to meet us soon," The snake nodded after Hinata petted its scaled head. "Don't be seen, love. They will kill you."

Karin watched the snake slither away.

Hinata summoned her sharp katana, steadying herself.

Hinata swung her blade, cutting off the top bulbous head of the screw four times. The grate came loose and fell.

Karin said, "You better have a plan. These screws were in there for a reason, dobe! How are we going to re-attach the vent cover when the ANBU notice things are amiss?"

Hinata sighed and observed the vent cover; it was three by three feet with vertical bars. The space between each bars could fit Hinata's embarrassingly small hand.

They climbed into the vent, and Hinata got an idea; the Chidori. Hinata attempted to do it. Sparks fell, her hand burned.

How does he do this? Sasuke performs this jutsu at least twenty times a day without breaking a sweat, why can't she do it just once?

Jonin were supposed to master at least two different chakra affinities. She barely has one. How will she become jonin?

"What are you doing wasting time like that?!" Karin hissed.

"I'm trying to get the Chidori. If my hands get hot enough, I can mold the metal vent cover to the wall."

"You don't know how to," Karin scoffed.

"I've been learning." Hinata snapped.

"You can't do it. Look, I've been talking with Naruto. I'll make a shadow clone and then "I" will screw the vent cover back in place," Karin said slowly. "We've gotten close... since he's an Uzumaki and I was one. I remind Naruto of his mom and other fellow clan members. Now I'm a Hōzuki, so my old life doesn't matter."

"Let's focus," Hinata said, ignoring the jealousy. It seems like everyone but her can hold a conversation with Naruto... Sigh.

Karin summoned another copy of herself and screwing in the vent cover.

¤¤¤

The wide vent fit both of their petite forms side by side in the cool dark. They clomped along, Hinata making plans and Karin moaning about the dead things they found, how the clanging vent floor was gross.

Karin asked, "Are you Hyuuga Hinata? With the whole byakugan-child, Hyuuga Hinata going missing and chakra pools in your eyes. Your chakra is very controlled and its use is optimized. I've seen you use the byakugan."

"When?!"

"The boys got lost in the woods. You found them in thirty seconds. I'm a human lie detector. That's why Suigetsu tells me everything."

"Doesn't he tell you everything because he is your husband?" Hinata asked.

"Yeah. I trust him but everyone else. Eh. I sense chakra inconstancies in shinobi bodies. When one lies... everyone's chakra pathway experiences a discrepancy. Anyway, why don't you use your byakugan?"

"My father believes I waste the byakugan. A Hyuuga failure. To separate myself from that mindset, I stopped using my byakugan and jutsu."

"Your eyes are more beautiful than most of us will ever be," Karin smiled sadly then laughed. "We must have superpowers, dealing with Suigetsu's and Sasuke's bullshit."

"Sasuke's a trip but honestly rewarding." Hinata commented.

"As an Uzumaki, all my clan members are dead, massacred but Naruto and I hadn't done such evil. Sasuke'd no excuse to act so recklessly."

"Sasuke loved them all, it made him blind. He's better. However, there's always something heavy in his smile."

"There's something heavy in Suigetsu's smile... too. I want to carry all his burdens, heal him." Karin said. "The first time I saw Sasuke, he saved me. Later on, while we traveled, I stole a small towel he used. I was convinced it'd never be washed; it had Uchiha Sasuke on it. I covered it with roses."

Hinata's eyes widened.

"But I washed it, eventually. Let the roses die," Karin smiled.

"The right thing to do," Hinata said.

Karin nodded. "I'm happy. Kameya drives me crazy with Suigetsu's Hydrification technique in the bath and turns into a puddle. I lose her. One time, Kameya jump-scared me! I lost Kameya in the tub. What other mothers could say that?" Karin shared.

"Not many," Hinata revealed, laughing.

Hinata smiled. "Amarante's finger got stuck in the hamper. Hiromitsu tried to help her, his finger got stuck too. Benjiro, their sweet brother, said they were stuck forever," Hinata sighed.

"The big three," Karin winced. "Four actually..."

"Yes, four," Hinata frowned, not knowing whether or not to include Taiyo.

Hinata liked including him. She... basically raised him and mothering the white-haired boy was so natural.

Karin got shy, blushing. "We're trying for a second kid... Suigetsu wants to name the boy Tsugetsu. Kameya keeps asking but it's not that easy," Karin said. "Multiple kids isn't common outside of Kumo. You see huge families here but Konoha has a one-child culture. I want Suigetsu to be happy..."

"In Konoha- it was frowned upon for my father to get my mother pregnant again... Love, we're not in Konoha- so don't conform to their standards."

"No?" Karin asked.

"Definitely. Have another kid, it's worth it. You don't need sleep," Hinata grinned.

Karin laughed.

For a moment, it felt like Hinata was talking to Ino. Hinata hasn't missed her friend more in that moment.

Karin suddenly paled. "I'm sorry."

"About what?" Hinata asked.

Karin ducked her gaze away.

Sasuke and Hinata met the principal the other day. A mercenary from the DCA organization posed as principal and nearly killed Amarante...

There have been so many attacks on their Uchiha family, it's overwhelming. Hinata doesn't want their kids to be shinobi if all they face is hate.

But Sasuke would hate it.

Hinata became morose. "I put my children in danger, Uchiha in a world like this... Did we fail our kids by growing up like we did?" Hinata asked.

Karin stopped and sat. She grabbed Hinata's hand and squeezed it... making Hinata sit.

"Our little ones, the happiest kids I've ever seen. They won't grow up like we did in team Taka; lonely and self-hating... with subpar parents. No one loves them like we do. No one's going to hurt them like people hurt us. They're fine, I believe in you." Karin grinned at her.

Hinata beamed, squeezing back. "You're a really good friend. I cherish you."

Karin smiled.

"We can't rest here for long. We have to go. We have to get down," Hinata ordered.

"You've gotten more serious too," Karin murmured.

They punched through another vent cover. Hinata noted the lack of people and remembered the time.

"It's lunchtime. Let's use it to our advantage," Hinata said.

Suddenly, Karin pushed Hinata. Hinata fell from the ceiling and onto the hard ground.

Hinata groaned, feeling Karin's weight on top of her.

"Why did you land on me? There was enough floor to land on!" Hinata grumbled.

"Your boobs provided enough cushion for hundreds of you," Karin chortled. "Relax."

Hinata shoved a laughing Karin off.

Karin summoned two more shadow clones to screw in the vent cover.

Hinata used her byakugan. "There are two ladies coming with a tray of food. Let's jump them," Hinata said. "Take their clothes and jobs."

The women came from around the corner and Karin knocked them out.

Crouching, Karin grimaced at the ladies' clothing. "Why do they have to wear these types of outfits?" Karin asked.

¤¤¤

In the dark closet, Karin scowled at the kimono shirts they wore. It was navy colored with a white obi and a matching wrap skirt. It flounced every time they moved, accentuating their curves.

The lunch women have the key to everyone's cells! A mastercard. This is perfect. They pushed the lunch-filled cart out of the supply room, rolling around the corridors for a few minutes.

"Use your byakugan to see which room he's in," Karin suggested to Hinata.

"I tried. The air's chakra laced, so every room seems to have the same person. What about your sensory skills, Karin?"

"Same problem here too."

Karin started eating the prisoner's legumes. Hinata shook her head disapprovingly while Karin shrugged, saying it couldn't hurt to eat.

Behind a metal door and a wide window with bars, Hinata saw Jugo, on a concrete bed, staring plainly at the opposing wall.

Sensing them, black marks glided over Jugo's body, like a river on its muddy bank.

A small gasp left him and the curse mark slowly receded when he saw them.

His spiked auburn hair was longer and his face seemed aged. He seemed happy.

Karin pounced to the small window, crying and laughing. "Suigetsu misses you and we got married. Sasuke brought your photo to the wedding! We have a kid, Kameya! She calls you Uncle Juice! I missed you. We've looked for you everywhere! We found you! We broke into a Daimyo's house for you..."

Jugo opened and closed his mouth, taking Karin's entire appearance in. "It's been a long time since I've heard your voice. It's good... to have you back." Jugo offered a miniature smile.

"It's not... good, it's great," Karin corrected gently.

Jugo turned to Hinata, nervous. "Hinata, I'm sorr-"

"Don't apologize... You needn't," Hinata said firmly, ignoring his protests. "More importantly, Sasuke missed you. He forgives you."

Jugo beamed. "Did Sasuke-sama have kids? Are you his tsuma? Is there anything I could do for you?" Jugo asked.

Hinata blushed. "We're not married but we had twins. And give me your hand. A finger," she said.

Jugo did so cautiously, and she healed him. He must've been abused; he has bruised ribs and a mild concussion...

Jugo frowned. "Why're you healing me? I don't deserve this. I almost killed your child. You should hate me... Sasuke should hate me."

"Sasuke doesn't hate you. He wants you healthy. You're his friend. Any friend of his is my friend," she said.

"To repay you... I'll serve you both for the rest of my days."

"No need. Your being alive's payment enough," Hinata hummed.

"You've got silk gentleness other men wish to be blanketed by, Hinata," Jugo commented, ruffling her hair.

Hinata laughed.

Jugo looked cured of the virus of guilt. "It's been long," he said to Karin.

Karin laughed. "Try three years, you ass. The longest I went without talking to you was about two months. Let's keep it that way," She pulled out a picture of their kids in a photo. "These are our kids..."

Jugo and Karin caught up.

Hinata guessed the prison barely served the towering man any food and gave him a tray of food. She scribbled the blueprint layout of the hallways on napkins with lemon juice.

Hearing familiar hissing, Hinata turned to see Sasuke's summon. Male snakes preferred male summons, so she got female vipers.

"Hime, there's a problem. Uchiha-dono took the kids to Ryūchi Cave. Mitsuyo's named dangerous by Uchiha-dono," the snake reported.

Sasuke knows.

The summon slithered up her arm and around her neck, hidden by the white cloak. "Tell me more on the way," Hinata said.

Karin froze. "What's with you and Sasuke and snakes?"

Hinata petted her summon. "They're real sweet,"

Karin shuddered and Jugo guffawed.

Karin eyed Jugo. "You don't look so rundown for a man whose meals consisted of shit! Where have you been?"

"Arrested for a couple of months, and I left to Konoha. I got a wife and a kid," Jugo revealed slowly.

Karin jumped back. "What?! You stayed away? We thought you died! We stayed in Kumo, awaiting your return,"

"I'm too dangerous for you all. That's why," Jugo said with conviction.

Karin slapped the cell door. "We're all just criminals! Who've known each other for at least ten years! We keep each other the safest!" Karin shrieked.

Jugo shook his head, brown eyes charred. "Safest? I almost killed Hinata and her baby. I almost killed Suigetsu and Sasuke. That's a fact I couldn't live with."

The ANBU threatened to harm Jugo over the years to motivate Sasuke to work for them. Hn. Manipulation.

"Why did you get arrested this time around?" Hinata narrowed her eyes.

"Hinata, he did nothing wrong" Karin said warningly, glaring.

"I've done some wrong; I brought Orochimaru to Kumogakure... and he's-"

"You worked with that snake?" Karin asked venomously.

Orochimaru's alive? Here.

"Hey! What're you doing?" An ANBU yelled, squinting. "You're Natsukawa Momo and Hōzuki Karin!" he yelled.

Karin looked at Jugo, eyes widened. "I'll get you out!"

"Karin! We have to go. We'll return with a plan and intel." Hinata said, voice feather-light.

"No," Karin said, planted in place.

"Rest assured. I gave him directions to escape. We gotta go."

"No."

"Karin..." Hinata said lowly.

"What part of no don't you get?! I'm not leaving him. If we go now, I'll never see him. They will move him again."

"Karin go, I'll be fine." Jugo promised.

Karin held the bars tighter. "No!"

"If we don't go now, we'll be jailed. Focus and choose your priorities," Hinata hissed.

"I'm staying. He's my priority," Karin said.

Hinata spotted Darui and C, ready with their swords.

Hinata sighed. "We surrender."

¤¤¤

They cruised through the halls and Hinata ignored the sniffing Karin. Orochimaru's alive. Sasuke never said and Jugo's doing Orochimaru's errands. Why would he attempt to bring Orochimaru to Kumo?

"M'lady," her snake hissed. "I sense strong, dark chakra; Orochimaru-sama's,"

So it's true. Orochimaru's alive.

Karin's puffy eyes narrowed. "I wasn't going to leave him, you know that."

"I know it," Hinata snapped, still walking.

"Then why are you mad?"

"I'm not mad. Just disappointed."

"You're coming at me with one of those?" Karin winced, scowling.

"Yes. I am, Karin," Hinata said, needles in her tone. "You let your emotions blind you. Now they'll move Jugo altogether. We'll never see him again."

"We couldn't have lucked out on this. We were going to get caught anyway, under your leadership," Karin protested.

Hinata shook her head. "I made executive decisions that benefitted the both of us. You didn't want to follow the plan, that's why we're here."

"Why'd you come to me? You dragged me into this."

"You wouldn't have found Jugo without my help and we both needed each other."

"You mean, you wanted me to follow you. I'm not a follower and you're not a leader anyway."

"You don't mean that," Hinata murmured.

"Don't be pressed. This way and planning, you can't be jonin!"

Hinata looked away, glaring. Karin can't blame her for this.

C watched her carefully. Darui went ahead to the main floor, to care for other prisoners and C hung back.

"We thought you died," C whispered.

"I didn't die. You must've been happy to hear that news..." Hinata scoffed.

He blinked. "I wouldn't have been happy. That's morbid." C shifted in the dim blue hallway light. "Why did you go to Jugo's cell? He tried to kill you."

"You care about me now, C-san?" Hinata asked.

"N-no. I was merely asking," C stammered.

She raised her cuff-bound hands. "Friends don't arrest friends and you don't like difficult people or Uchihas."

"You're not being arrested. Just protected. I'll keep you safe."

Yeah right.

C sighed. "The Raikage hadn't heard but he'd be worried."

Hinata shrugged. "Tell him I got lost, going to the bathroom."

"The bathroom?"

She nodded, with a smile. "The bathroom."

C scowled.

¤¤¤

The lobby of the jail wasn't bustling, there were few criminals including Sasuke and Suigetsu.

Her throat was clogged with emotion and the sense of acute failure. She couldn't hold Sasuke so she got close, his breath ruffling her bangs. How is it that one crooked smirk from Sasuke could clear a lifetime of ingrained worrying?

She pressed her forehead to his sternum. "I've so much to tell you," Hinata whispered, breath quickening.

He nodded. "If Scar does her job right, then yeah they kids are safe. Are you safe?"

"Yeah."

A frown colored his tone. "Why are there bruises on your arms? Was it the idiot birth parents?"

At his noticing, the bruises tingled to life. "Vent climbing, jumping off of cliffs... the usual," she chuckled, pulling back to look at him.

"That's not the usual," he said poking her forehead. "You big dope."

"Maybe not... Why are you arrested?"

"I don't think we're being arrested," Sasuke said lowly.

Hinata looked at C, who looked smug. "Told you," C said.

"You told me nothing," Hinata said.

Suigetsu saw Karin, all puffy and red. Hinata rolled her eyes. Sasuke looked at her in a questioning way.

"He's here," Karin said to Suigetsu.

"Karin! Why're you crying? Did Sasuke say something rude?" Suigetsu asked.

"I didn't do anything," Sasuke said.

"You're always doing something," Suigetsu retorted.

Sasuke stepped back, affronted.

"Hinata's leadership derails missions," Karin quipped.

Hinata gasped, "Take that back!"

"Take back what you said. You know I wouldn't leave Jugo." Karin fumed, turning her nose up.

"Ladies... Please calm down?" C asked.

Sasuke gave Hinata a warning look. There are bigger problems... he would say. There are. But she'll prove Karin wrong and be the greatest jonin.

C looked at the crowd. "You're probably asking why you're here. It's been confirmed that Orochimaru is in Kumo, thanks to the help of Jugo. We brought you here to protect you. Orochimaru came with the message; Hide Uchiha Sasuke and feel the burning wrath of Orochimaru's vengeance."