"Naruto!" Hinata cried out as her boyfriend was drilled to the earth. She looked back at Kiba sternly, almost threateningly. He met her glare with his own. All of the other discussions paused to observe the spectacle.
"What?" the dog trainer growled smugly, "I warned you I was going to punch him in the face next time I saw him. That's what the punk gets for lying to us all these years."
"Does this mean we're even?" Naruto asked, aggressively amused.
The question caught Kiba off guard, and he considered it for a moment. Then he shook his head, stating, "Probably not. I guess that depends on what happens with Shino's leg."
"Kakashi-sensei mentioned that," Naruto glanced over to where Sakura was treating Hinata's other former teammate, with Iruka's help and Sasame hovering close by, "What happened?"
"The Three-Tails crushed it," Inuzuka stated angrily.
"The Three-Tails?" Naruto gaped at him. Hinata's expression changed to one of sad introspection.
"I thought that might be the case," the pale-eyed woman said softly, "Is everyone else alright?"
"Yeah," Kiba calmed slightly at her mood, "Thanks to Kakashi's group, and Kaede."
"That must mean Shikamaru's group fought the One-Tails," she decided. Naruto turned his attention to his beloved; based on Madara's claim, he was forced to agree. Then he looked around, noticing the emaciated Choji weakly eating the sandwich Ino was feeding him. After taking in the whole group, Uzumaki realized something.
"Where's Kankuro?" he asked Hinata and Kiba somewhat loudly, "Sakura said he came with you guys."
The two were startled by the question, and both began to look for the puppeteer. Gaara apparently heard them; he broke away from the other commanders, stepping past Kakashi and Kaede to reach Naruto.
"My brother is dead," he announced without preamble, "As Hinata speculated, his team fought Shukaku. He sacrificed himself to save Temari, Shikamaru, and Ino."
Hinata brought her hands up to her face as tears filled her eyes. Kiba cursed quietly and turned away. Naruto sighed deeply with a depressed visage, his blue orbs also moist.
"I'm sorry, Gaara," Uzumaki said gently, "It's all my fault."
Kiba's face said that he agreed, but Gaara shook his head with a firm expression that was his own version of anger.
"I accept your condolences, and offer my own in return," the Kazekage said, "But I do not accept your claim of responsibility."
"But..." Naruto started to protest; however, Gaara cut him off.
"We are shinobi. Whenever we go on a mission, there is always a chance of death," the Wind Shadow lectured him, "And make no mistake, this was for my people an official mission, to rescue an ally of the Hidden Sand, and the prevent our enemies from taking the power sealed within him. Kankuro may have volunteered for the advanced team due to your friendship, and because he felt indebted to you, but it was still his job, and my decision to send him."
"Also," Gaara's face and tone lightened, "Those responsible have been punished. Shukaku is sealed away once more, and Shima is dead. Though I could not hurt Pein or Madara directly, I have killed Deidara and taken his ring, which is a start."
"Madara got his," Naruto was grim yet proud, "I killed him."
Again, all discussion amongst the other parties ceased as they turned to stare openly at the blonde teen.
"Did you just say you killed Madara, magg... Naruto?" Anko asked cautiously, "Madara Uchiha?"
"Yup," Uzumaki nodded.
"The body certainly looked like Madara," Kakashi added.
"Not only looked liked him," Naruto asserted, "It smelled like him, and used the Sharingan. He copied my moves, just like you, Kakashi-sensei, and used both Kamui and Suseri. And the body didn't disappear when I killed him, so he wasn't a clone. It was the real deal."
The muttering returned, as the various groups started to discuss the new development.
"In that case, the Conclave of Shadows might owe you a vote of thanks," Gaara told him, before drifting back to the other official leaders of the mission.
After Kiba stalked off, Naruto noticed that everyone seemed to be keeping his or her distance from him. Except for Hinata, who still appeared determined not to let him get more than two feet from her. Even when she had dismissed Luné, she kept a hold on his hand. He expected the others were frightened of the Kyubi, or of the Jinchuriki who defeated an immortal. He considered telling them the Fox Demon was dead, but before he could, he discovered the true reason the other shinobi were keeping their distance.
Naruto was almost knocked over again, when something bumped his leg, hard. He turned back and looked down, and saw a very large, greyish cat rubbing her face against his knee. He stepped away, not fond of cats, and surprised to find such a large feline near the Akatsuki base. He wondered if one of the Sand or Mist ninjas had summoned the cat, who promptly closed in to headbutt his leg a third time.
"Ni-ne, stop," Hinata crouched by the feline, and Naruto moved back again, "Naruto isn't a cat person."
She reached out and scratched the cat's ears. Ni-ne leaned into her hand and closed her eyes appreciatively. After a few moments, the feline began to purr loudly. Naruto looked around, and noticed many of their friends were staring at Hinata with the sort of looks he was used to receiving. Uzumaki turned back to his girlfriend and noticed it; the cat she was petting gently had two tails.
"Hinata, is that..."
"Nibi no Neko," Neji answered, joining them, "Or Ni-ne for short. Hardly the most creative name for the cat."
He smiled slightly at his cousin as he offered the sarcastic aside. Tenten also approached, more cautiously. She extended her hand to the miniaturized Bijuu, and the cat licked her fingertips, and then lifted her head so the human could rub under her chin. The weapons mistress obliged, and the cat purred louder.
"Hinata figured out that Ni-ne didn't want to hurt us," Tenten explained.
"I used my Primordial Chakra Jutsu on her," Hinata met his gaze, "And afterwards we could hear each others thoughts, for a few minutes. I understood that she was turned into a Tailed Beast against her will, when the previous Two-Tails was destroyed. So I gave her the chance to be a normal cat again."
She showed her paramour the amulet, "Most of her chakra is sealed in here. Right now, she has about the same amount of power as I did at the start of the Chunin exam four years ago. So it is safe for her to be around people again."
"And the Hokage wants to talk to you about that when we get back," Kakashi noted, closing his phone, "But in the mean time, we have orders."
Behind him, the five other Mist Ninjas darted to the south, leaving Kaede behind.
"Hinata and Shikamaru are with me, and Naruto if he's up to it."
As expected, the teen nodded vigorously without even hearing the directions.
"The rest of you are to take Shino, Choji, and Mayuko back to the village at best speed," the Copy Ninja directed, "The Hokage is placing Gai in charge. She wants you back as soon as possible."
Hinata took off the necklace and handed it to her cousin.
"Ni-ne, I want you to go with Neji for now, OK?" she addressed the Bijuu. The feline meowed sadly, but nodded.
"Naruto, if you are coming with us, you will need this," Hatake informed his student, reaching into his backpack. He pulled out one of Naruto's uniforms, a bar of soap, and the Leaf headband the teen had inherited from the Fourth Hokage.
"Why?" the blonde Chunin asked, taking the clothes thankfully, "What's our mission?"
"Probably the same as mine," the Mist Hunter noted, and Kakashi nodded.
"We're accompanying Gaara back to the Sunagakure," the Leaf Jonin explained, "The four of us are going to represent the Konohagakure at Kankuro's funeral."
"May I ask why you are coming with us?" Hinata asked Kaede Mizuno, her tone deliberately polite.
They had found a stream for Naruto to bathe in, and had just passed the border between the Land of Lightning and the Land of Silver. Naruto had cleaned himself under the watchful eyes of both Kakashi and Gaara; Hinata's blushing concession for leaving him alone. Scoured clear of the blood of both himself and his foes, Naruto felt much more at ease back in his regular attire, a full compliment of kunai and shuriken joining Kitsune on his person.
"There are things we need to discuss after the funeral," the Mist Jonin answered, "The Akatsuki have been struck a major blow, and I am to speak with the Kazekage on behalf of my father."
Then her expression fell, "But I also want to pay my respects. I was not as close with Kankuro as the rest of you, but I liked and respected him. He was one of the few men I have met who looked more at my face than at my chest. I thought it was annoying at first, but I came to appreciate it."
"So if you're going to talk business, does that mean we're finally gonna go after the Akatsuki?" Naruto prompted all of the Jonin.
"More like try to keep the momentum going," Kakashi countered, a hint of annoyance in his voice, "Lady Tsunade said it was like pulling teeth to get certain members of the Conclave of Shadows to agree to this rescue mission. We have to make sure they don't go back to watching and waiting just because we killed three of their top tier warriors, took back two of the Bijuu, and destroyed one of their bases."
"Three?" Naruto blinked, "I killed Madara, and Gaara killed Deidara..."
"And Hinata killed Zetsu," Shikamaru filled in, "She told us about it while you were getting cleaned up."
"You did?" Naruto looked at his girlfriend happily. He wanted to give her a hug, but could not while they were running, so he settled for saying, "Great job, Hinata."
"Though he may not have been one of their ring bearers," Temari added, "Shima was a Jonin ranked ninja before he left the Hidden Sand. I can't imagine Pein will be happy to lose someone like that."
"The woman I fought as well," Kaede nodded, "I did not learn her name or village, but her skills would have placed her as a Tokujo or Jonin."
"I can't imagine they would give control of the Bijuu to just anyone," Gaara noted.
"And that's not even counting the hundreds of foot soldiers they lost," Kakashi concluded, "We hurt the Akatsuki this time, so we need to make sure they can't regroup, or worse, go into hiding."
The other shinobi reflected on what had occurred as they continued the journey.
"Go," Pein ordered, and his twelve remaining Acolytes vanished, leaving to fulfill the orders they had been given. Once they were gone, the body of Yahiko sealed the room and slumped into the chair, dormant.
In another room, hidden deep within the base, Nagato sighed in relief. As Madara had liked to remind him, the more Paths he had active at a given time, the more it drained him. He preferred to use multiple bodies for combat, but since taking over the leader of the Hidden Grass Village, he had been forced to keep that body, as well as Yahiko's body, the one the Akatsuki recognized as 'Lord Pein', activate most of the time. He was beginning to get dangerously thin, and was sleeping as often as not, though his Paths made up for that.
"And, what news?" Konan asked, placing her hand tenderly on his shoulder and passing over a glass of water.
"Nothing good," he answered softly, after taking a sip of the liquid to wet his throat.
"Zetsu and Deidara are dead," he continued, "The Acolytes were able to recover Zetsu's ring, but they believe one of the Leaf or Sand ninjas has claimed Deidara's ring as a trophy. They also report that Tobi is dead, but due to the jutsu that destroyed the Canyon of Dawn, they were unable to recover his ring."
"Do you really think Madara is dead?" she could not keep a slight hope from her voice.
"Uzumaki ruined his body," Nagato shrugged, "But if his eyes escaped the destruction... And speaking of escaping, the Reaper has betrayed us far earlier than Madara anticipated. She stolen a number of scrolls, a few artifacts, and her ring, and fled the Canyon of Dawn."
"You said that base was destroyed," Konan recalled, "What about the statue?"
"The two Acolytes who survived were able to transport it here," he said ironically, "Not that it matters."
"Why?" she queried, with a touch of worry.
"Shukaku and the Two-Tails have been removed," he told her, "Which means the balance of powers is no longer sufficient to hold the Eight-Tails."
"What does that mean?"
"Our best case scenario is that the Hachibi breaks free and immediately flees," he said thoughtfully, "Then, if we are lucky, the strength of the Three and Four-Tails, will be enough to contain the Five-Tails, and vice versa."
"And the worst case would be the Eight-Tails attacking, freeing the other three, and one or more of them dying," she mused, "That would wreck this base and end our plans."
"Our plans are already at an end," he told her the next part, "Naruto Uzumaki has absorbed the Kyubi."
"That's not all, is it," she caught his expression, wondering what else could go wrong.
"The Canyon of Dawn was not the only base we lost," he explained, "The Hidden Villages took advantage of our distraction. The Cloud Ninjas have captured the Stratosphere. The Stone Ninja have devastated the Warren. And an alliance of Leaf, Mines, and Waterfall Ninjas has taken the Deep Forest base. The numbers are still not clear, but between deaths and desertions, we appear to have lost almost thirty percent of our foot soldiers."
He drank the rest of the water in a single gulp.
"What is our next move?" she asked, forcing into her voice all of the love and trust she had for him.
"I... I need time to think," he said weakly.
"The first thing," a new voice instructed them, "is the teleport the Demon God Statue to a deep ocean trench and release the Eight-Tails. We can still use the other three, but it is best to have that beast out of our hair. Then we consolidate your power over the Hidden Grass Village as a base for out next move."
"Master," Nagato and Konan both exclaimed in surprise, dropping to their knees.
Their first day in the Sunagakure was spent recuperating, while plans were made for the memorial. Kakashi instructed Naruto not to talk about anything that had happened to him over the last few days, at least until the Hokage debriefed them.
As the scorching desert day cooled into the gentle desert night on Friday, April 24th, the entire Hidden Sand Village gathered in the square, around a new statue. Unlike the solemn affair that for the Third Hokage, Kankuro's final tribute was a raucous party. Music filled the twilight air, and tables were laid out with a variety of foods and beverages, both hard and soft.
"Kakashi-sensei, what is all this?" Naruto gaped. Despite being welcomed as friends, the four Leaf and one Mist shinobi had ended up clumped together amidst the reverie.
"The Land of Air has a different view of death than our countries," Kaede noted.
"Right," the Leaf Jonin nodded, "here they believe mourning for a loved one is best done in private. Instead a funeral is a celebration of a person's life and achievements."
"Come on, Shika, we're dancin'," a slightly red-faced Temari emerged from the mob wearing a light kimono and holding a mug of some beverage. Her golden locks hung loose and straight, and her cheeks glowed lightly red under the torchlight. She grabbed her paramour's hand and dragged him into the crowd.
A number of drunken or bold Sand ninjas approached Kaede, and eventually The Face of the Mist hunters allowed herself to be enticed away from her circle of allies. Kakashi excused himself to get a drink, leaving Naruto and Hinata alone. The couple drifted through the crowd; eventually the flow of Kankuro's friends deposited them near the center of the Suna. Only when he bumped up against it did Naruto notice the statue than had not been there on his previous visits. It was made up of five, slightly larger than human-sized figures.
"It's Kankuro," he noted, "And Crow, Black Ant, Salamander, and Moon..."
He tapped the effigy with a bewildered frown.
"It feels like stone, but they smell like the real puppets," he whispered to Hinata, "And something else smells unusual... and familiar... Almost like..."
Before he could say it, Gaara touched his shoulder, interrupting him. The Kazekage put his finger to his lips, and Uzumaki nodded.
"I thought you might be drawn to this, just as I am," the Sand Jonin said quietly, "So I will trust you with this secret. And I will trust it to Hinata as well, for your sake. The only other people who know are Temari and Baki."
Hinata silently activated her Byakugan while hiding her face, and glimpsed a concealed compartment in the statues chest that her Kekkei Genkai could not pierce.
"Shukaku is in there, isn't it," Naruto whispered, recognizing both the olfactory and chakra miasma of the demon.
"Under many layers of seals," Gaara nodded, his voice nearly drowned out by the crowd.
"And the puppets..."
"...are Kankuro's weapons," the former Jinchuriki confirmed, "modified so they can act independently in defense of this statue."
"I promise, I won't tell anyone," Naruto assured him, grateful for the honor. Hinata nodded her agreement. Then the blonde youth looked up at the statue of his fallen ally.
"You remember the Chunin Exam semi-finals?" he asked them both, "Kankuro came over to talk to me. He was trying to get information out of me, though I didn't realize it at the time. I tried to brush him off, and it seemed to amuse him. He said 'I like you, kid.', or something to like that. And I said, 'Yeah, well I don't like you.'. Later, when we became friends for real, it kinda became a joke between us. But now, I regret never taking it back."
Hinata took his hand, and Gaara squeezed his shoulder.
"I'm sure he knew," the redeemed shinobi offered kindly.
"Come on, Shikamarooo," Temari slurred, shaking her arms wildly, "Ish a party."
Though initially amused and entertained by her actions, Shikamaru grew more worried with each passed minute, and each empty glass. His girlfriend might occasionally let loose a little, but he had never seen her this out of control before.
"Maybe we should lay off the booze and sit down for a few minutes," he told her sharply.
"Jush cuz your country's such a shtick in the muck," she laughed at him scornfully, "Dozen mean you should drag me down. I can drink all I wanna here, and I wanna drink."
"Do what you want," he stepped away, "I'm outta here."
"Wait, wait," she giggled, grabbing his hand, "Don' go."
Then she stumbled, crashing into him.
"Ooo, I'm dizzy."
"What a hassle," he sighed, wrapping his arm around her under her shoulders, "Come on, I'll take you home."
"Are you tryin' to cop a feel?" Temari mumbled into his shoulder.
Shikamaru helped Temari navigate her wing of the Kazekage's home, before gently placing her in bed. He gently kissed her forehead, but as he turned to leave, a kunai flashed passed him. It ended up embedded between the door and frame, wedging the exit shut. Behind him, the Kunoichi stood smoothly, and wrapped her arms around him.
"You're not going anywhere, " she whispered seductively in his ear, their hands sparring over the status of his belt. Finally, he caught her wrists and held them tight.
"We've been trying to do this for two months," he said miserably, "But something always got in the way. Even though it seems like we finally have a chance now, I don't want the first time we have sex to be a drunken liaison the night of your brother's funeral."
He tried to pull her arms gently away, but she held him tighter.
"Please," this time her voice was clear if forlorn. As he suspected, her inebriation was mostly, or even entirely, faked. She buried her head into his shoulder, and pressed tighter against him.
"Please, Shika," she said softly, "Just make me forget, if only for a little while."
He struggled with that statement. Even if she wasn't intoxicated, that didn't make the situation much better. But she was also turning to him for comfort, which was a bigger step for either of them than physical intimacy. He pried her hands apart again, and after a moment of resistance, she let him go, looking down. Then he grabbed her shoulder and lifted her chin, pulling her into a passionate kiss.
"Who told you this would only take a 'little while'?" he asked sarcastically after he released her, reaching for her obi.
Hours later, the couple were lying in her bed, neither as asleep as they wanted the other to believe. Temari still had her arms wrapped around him, her bare chest pressed against his back, silently imploring him to stay. He could still feel the stress in her, it had returned far too quickly after their lovemaking concluded. He gently lifted her arm, and rolled over to face her. The Sand Kunoichi's face was shadowed, and not just from the dim illumination in the room. Part him wanted to sigh again, but he knew that he should not. Instead, he reached out to cup her face. Her deep blue eyes lit with surprise at the kind, affectionate gesture.
"Cry, Temari," he implored her. Her eyes went even wider at the suggestion, and unbidden, her orbs became wet in the corners. Still she shook her head 'no'.
"You're safe here," he told her, "It's just you and me. I know somewhere deep down, even you have a soft side."
She chuckled at the backhanded compliment, but the moment of mirth broke her hold on her emotions. Her laughs rapidly turned to sobs, and tears poured from her eyes. Her body shuddered as she wept, and he pulled her close. She rubbed her face against his chest, and he soothingly stroked her unbound hair. He continued to hold her silently as her sobs slowly died out. Then she took a deep breath, and let it out roughly, her composure restored. She lifted her head up and kissed him lightly yet devotedly.
"Thank you, Shika," she said sincerely, smiling slightly. Then her eyes glimmered, and her normal, stern self showed through.
"But if you ever tell anyone..." she started threatening.
"Are you kidding?" he smirked, "I'm telling everyone."
Rather than angry, she pulled away, devastated and betrayed.
"Yup," he continued glibly, "By the end of the week, everybody is going to know I finally bedded the mighty Temari."
She gasped, torn between upset and relief.
"I mean, for some reason, Ino already think we're doing it," he fixed her with a canny eye, "And she's got most of my... our friends convinced anyway, so I don't see what the big deal is."
"Jerk," she grinned irately and punched him in the arm. He grabbed her roughly, and after a moment of fake resistance, she let him pull her in for another smooch.
"What, you thought I was going to tell everyone having sex with me made you cry?" he informed her, "Kiba and Naruto would never let me live that down."
She chuckled, uplifted to be back to their normal interactions.
"Your heart is safe with me, Temari."
"Maybe it is," she agreed softly. Then she continued sarcastically, "Although I think we need to test that theory; that having sex with you makes me cry."
"Me and my big mouth," he groaned in mock dismay.
"The two of you are only here because Naruto will probably tell you anyway," Tsunade informed Hinata and Sakura bluntly.
As soon as Kakashi, Naruto, Hinata, Shikamaru, and Temari retuned from the Hidden Sand Village, the members of Kakashi's team had been yanked into the Hokage's office. The Sanin was in a foul mood as she activated the jutsus that would prevent any noise from leaving the room.
"Based on Kakashi's initial report and a few things the Kazekage told me, I suspect Naruto is about to reveal a very dangerous, very closely kept secret," the leader of the Leaf Ninjas lectured intently, "I already have Kakashi's blood oath of silence on this matter, and I should get them from you three as well. Except that Hinata and Naruto both have special claims to exemption, and that's not fair to Sakura. So, for now, we'll skip it."
"So, tell us what happened," she ordered the blonde teen.
Naruto relied the details of his two days in Akatsuki custody. He flashed back to his mental war against the Kyubi, and her subsequent bonding with him. He reflected on his increased power and chakra control, and his brief battle with the Acolytes of Pein. He gave them a blow-by-blow description of his battle with Madara and all of the taunts and exposition that were a part of it.
"That's what I thought," Tsunade nodded as he wound down, "Just as Madara said, the Fox Demon is gone and a new Kekkei Genkai is born."
"So wait, you knew this was possible?" Naruto frowned.
"Possible, if unlikely," the Hokage confirmed, "One of the charges of this office is to keep that secret safe. Gaara knows too, I'm sure."
The three young adults digested that, but their leader studied Tsunade.
"Lady Hokage, is there something else?" he asked carefully.
"Yes," she answered easily, but then glared at them, "But you four already know too much. If Hinata becomes leader of the Hyuga Clan, or Naruto becomes Hokage, I'll discuss it with them then. For now, we have another matter. If he ever gets here."
The members of Team Kakashi stood in uncomfortable silence, not sure what they were waiting for. The Sanin kept glancing at Hinata unnervingly yet thoughtfully. After almost six minutes, there was a knock at the door, and Tsunade released the wards to let the newcomer enter.
Neji opened the door wide for a moment, and the Two-Tails cat darted in. The Hyuga Jonin hastily closed the exit. Then he walked over to Hinata. The cat was already by his cousin, rubbing against her. The demon then went to Naruto, purposely ignoring his discomfort to shed lovingly on his legs and feet.
"Did she give you any trouble?" Hinata asked, sensing the mood as Neji returned the amulet.
"Personally, no," he said openly, "She was remarkably well behaved, if a little overly affectionate. Almost needy."
Kakashi could have sworn he saw the cat stick out her tongue at Neji, before pouncing back to her mistress.
"But?" she prompted perceptively.
"While he agreed to keep it secret for now, Lord Hiashi was not happy to have a demon in the Hyuga Manor," the teen Jonin answered, "And some of the others who know are also less than convinced."
"May I go?" he asked the Hokage, and she nodded her ascent. After he was gone, she sealed the room again, and wheeled around on Hinata.
"What the heck were you thinking," she demanded, "partially sealing a Bijuu? Letting it have a physical form, agreeing to keep it as a pet?"
Naruto stepped in front of Hinata, glaring back at the Hokage.
"I suppose you'd rather she sealed it inside someone?" he snapped back, "Maybe some unsuspecting kid? Or even herself?"
"No," his pointed and justified anger deflated the medical Sanin. She took a deep breath and addressed Hinata more evenly, "But what was your plan? Did you really think the Nibi no Neko could be your pet?"
"I wasn't planning that far ahead," the Hyuga heiress admitted carefully, "At first I just wanted to be sure Ni-ne didn't hurt any members of my team. But after I connected with her, and learned about her, I wanted to help her too."
"And to be honest," Hinata looked at the cat apologetically, "I did not totally trust Ni-ne, but I knew that this was more likely to work if I had her agreement instead of fighting her."
The cat rubbed up against Hinata again, and meowed softly, as if to communicate her understanding and forgiveness.
"I guess it's hard to argue with that," Tsunade sighed, slumping back into her chair, "But what do you intend to do with it now? Your father has made it clear the Bijuu cannot stay on the Hyuga estate. And we can't have her running free, not yet, maybe not ever."
Hinata glanced at Naruto pleadingly. He matched her look for as long as he could, but then his shoulders slumped in defeat.
"Gramma Tsunade, I'll..." Uzumaki started.
"I'll take her," Kakashi Hatake said.
"Kakashi-sensei?" Hinata looked at him in relief, but Naruto and Sakura were both merely surprised by the offer. Kakashi ignored them and addressed their boss.
"I'm going to have plenty of space shortly," he explained, "And I trust Hinata that the cat is both harmless by nature, and too weak in this form to pose a threat to a Chunin or higher ranked ninja. But I think Hinata should keep the amulet, since she understands how it works."
Tsunade nodded, understanding his not entirely concealed recommendation that the demon and the means to control her be kept within the village, yet also separate.
"I don't see any problem with that," the Hokage looked at Hinata, "If they agree."
Hinata knelt down to by the cat, petting her, but looked up at her teacher.
"Can I visit her?"
"Of course," Kakashi stopped disregarding her, "Whenever you want... Within reason, that is."
"Ni-ne?" she turned her eyes to the shrunken demon. The cat was watching the Copy Ninja, who crouched down to meet her eyes. They exchanged frank stares, until Kakashi extended his hand. The Bijuu sniffed it twice, cautiously. Then she licked his palm tentatively. Hinata smiled, and Kakashi started to scratch the feline's chin. Ni-ne purred at him, and Sakura let out a sigh of relief.
"I guess that settles that," Tsunade stopped holding her breath thankfully. Then her expression became mildly sad.
"The rest of you can leave," she said unhappily, "But there is something I need to talk to Hinata about in private..."