Games People Play

Blanket disclaimer: I do not own Naruto or Tenjho Tenge

AUTHOR'S NOTE:

This chapter was a lot of fun to write. I wanted to use Shogi elements in this but I don't know the game well enough. I ended up using the Western equivalent of Chess instead. Here we go!

Last time:

4 P.M.

Class was over and Yūgao dismissed her students. The purple haired ANBU was ready to tear her hair out. 'There's more drama in this damn class than any soap opera I've ever seen! Damn you Hokage-sama! I've felt less tension in the air on a battlefield than this. Teaching these little hellions ought to be an S-class assignment!' she ranted in her mind as she left for the apartment she shared with her boyfriend Hayate. 'Maybe Hayate-kun can calm my nerves. I need him.'

Naruto, Maya and Hinata traveled in silence as they headed back to the Natsume compound. They were all three physically, mentally and emotionally exhausted. There first day of the advanced genin course was far more difficult than they expected. 'I hope tomorrow is easier.' thought Maya. 'The course itself could be much worse but that moronic Uchiha has moved up my shit list from really annoying to absolutely hated. Thank the gods Naruto-kun kept his temper in check. If he hadn't 'The Last Uchiha' would be in reference to Itachi. I can't believe that Uchiha prick tried to convince me he was in the right later over lunch. I should have clobbered him. He's finally shown his true colors. What loathsome piece of garbage he is.'

Ino and Sakura were both a bit disillusioned. Their tragic prince turned out to be a totally different person when he finally opened his mouth. Sakura remembered the pictures of Kushina and Mikoto together and wondered what Uchiha Mikoto would have thought of her son's speech. It made her want to cry…

…

Chapter 10

Konoha

It had been two weeks since Naruto and the others started their special genin course. Things were going as well as could be expected. In the background, two old men and twelve teenagers were playing games in the shadows…

…Shimura Danzo- getting out the playing board…

Shimura Danzo's residence

Homura and Koharu were sitting with Danzo in his home. "Hiruzen was once a great man but he's just a shell of what he once was. I know you two agree." said Danzo. "Once this upcoming conflict with Orochimaru is resolved he will be dead or have stepped down. The fact he's taking a defensive approach in this war instead of an offensive one disgusts me. We should crush the Sound Village before they set foot inside Fire Country. We have the power."

"But it would require us to leave Konoha basically defenseless to do so Danzo." said Koharu reasonably. "I admit Hiruzen needs to retire but we can't just openly invade other countries."

"Koharu's right; we need to be subtle." agreed Homura. "I believe we should start black ops in Rice Country. We'd need to get the information from Jiraiya to stage it though."

"Which is part of the problem." said Danzo. "Jiraiya is tied to Hiruzen so we can't get the information direct from him and he is totally loyal to Hiruzen. He wouldn't trust us. We need to figure out a way to convince him to join us but that will be very difficult. Jiraiya is a dichotomy of brilliance and stupidity. We will need to tread carefully with him. If Jiraiya turns against us it would be a major blow to our intelligence gathering."

…

…Uzuki Yūgao- setting up the pieces…

Konoha Ninja Academy

"This is your first homework assignment which is due Monday morning upon your arrival." said Yūgao Friday as class ended for the day. "You will each have your two teammates listed on your sheets. These assignments are considered classified and you cannot discuss them with anyone outside of your team. These are very simple so do them over the weekend. Also enclosed are standard mission reports which you will fill out addressed to your commanding officer which is myself. Treat this as a C ranked mission. Even if you fail your mission you are to submit a report. You will find on occasions that one team's mission may be connected to another's, be it in a cooperative or antagonistic manner. You are to meet your teammates after class without informing any others as they may be possible opponents."

Naruto was handed his sheet which read:

Team Red

Members: Inuzuka Kiba, Nara Shikamaru, Uzumaki Naruto

Your mission is to deliver classified documents from the Hokage's office secretary designated 'For Team Red.' You are not to read these documents under any circumstances. You will pick these documents up at 8 A.M. at the Hokage's office and are to deliver them at 4 P.M. at the water tower that services the east side of Konoha (it is STILL painted as an ice cream cone Naruto). Your contact that meets you there will signal you with the hand signs 'Monkey, Boar, Rat.' Once you have picked up these documents you are to protect them from hostiles by any non-lethal means necessary. You cannot leave Konoha Village. It is the red country borders. Be aware that ANBU are monitoring your progress so do not attempt to cheat unless you like failing grades.

-Uzuki Yūgao sensei

Naruto glanced at Shikamaru and Kiba for a split second and their eyes locked for a moment in acknowledgement. The mission was on...

Maya received her sheet:

Team White

Members: Haruno Sakura, Hyūga Hinata, Natsume Maya

You mission is to intercept classified documents and seize them by any non-lethal means necessary...

Choji received his assignment:

Team Blue...

Sai was handed his sheet:

Team Black...

Uzuki Yūgao was cackling evilly to herself in her mind. 'You brats are going to suffer the way I have by dealing with each other for eight hours Saturday. I hope you give each other hell! I should have gone with my original plan to have you travel to the tower in The Forest of Death but Hokage-sama wouldn't authorize it. I guess I'll have to try again later.' Unknown to the class of twelve their diabolical instructor was really planning to enjoy her weekend...

…

…Sarutobi Hiruzen-first move…

ANBU Headquarters

"ANBU Commander Dragon, have all of the former ROOT Agents been given their 'special' ANBU tattoos?" asked the Third Hokage gravely.

Dragon nodded, "Yes sir, the paralysis shoulder tattoos are in place and can be activated by any of those of us keyed to it. If I may ask, where did those seals come from Hokage-sama? Our best seal masters couldn't figure them out at all."

Hiruzen said, "He wasn't keen on the idea of developing them but they were created by Uzumaki Naruto at my explicit orders. I had to explain the situation to him but frankly the boy's help was a necessity. I'd say even Jiraiya would have need weeks or even months to create something that complex and Naruto did it over a period of three days."

Dragon was stunned. "That boy did this...? But he's just an Academy student."

"...And he created a counter seal to remove them as well once matters are settled." said Sarutobi. "Make no mistake that Uzumaki Naruto is on par with his Mother Uzumaki Kushina at that age. She taught the Fourth Hokage everything he knew about sealing."

"Then all those insane pranks were done with seals." said Dragon. "That also explains how he bypassed the security seals in the Secure ANBU Ward of the hospital. There are probably other things he's pulled off as well..."

The Third Hokage nodded. "Yes, and now he's given us the key to neutralize ROOT if Danzo tries to make an offensive move against us or full-blown coup-de-tat. I let Danzo go once out of friendship but this time I will finish him for good."

…

…Shimura Danzo-second move…

Jonin Council Meeting Room Friday Evening

"Let it be known that as the Military Advisor to the Hokage that I will not allow Konoha to be caught weakened like in recent events." said Danzo to the Jonin Council. "It is through my efforts that our shinobi forces are increasing. Konoha needs to be stronger and I promise you I will keep pushing until things are set right!" Danzo carried on passionately for another twenty-five minutes…

…

Later at the Nara Ranch…

Shikaku was sitting with his old friends Choza and Inoichi –the original Ino-Shika-Cho trio. Inoichi asked, "So what do you make of this Shikaku? Hokage-sama already informed the Jonin Council discreetly about the upcoming war and now Danzo addresses us with the same information like it's new. You'd think he was starting a recruiting drive with all of his patriotic drivel."

"That's exactly what he was doing Inoichi." said Shikaku. "Danzo wants to upstage Hokage-sama and he wants our support in doing it. Bringing the ROOT out to be regular ANBU is a farce. The Hokage was trying to prevent a civil war from breaking out."

Choza grunted, "Well no one said anything about his honey laced lies. I think Hokage-sama let Danzo have the floor so he could discredit himself. No one in there was fooled but then again, the old war hawk may not have known we were already apprised of the situation."

Inoichi shook his head. "Regardless there have been leaks and rumors of an upcoming conflict and that Hokage-sama may not be strong enough to guide us through another conflict. The opinions of the younger generations of ninjas are being targeted as much as us."

"You'll also note the rumors haven't reached the public at large." added Shikaku. "This rumor campaign is aimed at shinobis only. I informed Hokage-sama I felt this was bordering on treason but he told me he already had a plan in motion to deal with it. I know he wants to prevent open conflict but his credibility is being attacked."

"I just hope Hokage-sama knows what he is doing…" said Choza grimly.

…

…Uzumaki Naruto-getting the game rolling…

Outside the Hokage's Office Saturday morning...

"This is such a drag." complained Shikamaru. "We each have a red headband and only six red kunai and six red shuriken each to 'fight' with –and they are paint weapons at that."

Kiba nodded, "Well, at least it was easy to pick up the papers. We didn't have to wait in line or anything. How did you manage that Naruto?"

Naruto smirked. "I have my ways Kiba; don't worry about it."

Donning their red headbands and equipping their red kunai and shuriken the three unsuspecting boys started Mission: Impossible.

…

Meanwhile at the north gate...

The white team was assembled. Maya smiled ferally. "So our job is to take out the Red Team and steal their documents. Hinata-chan; your eyes are going to give us a huge advantage here. Shame I couldn't use the Reiki though."

"I think that would be outside the non-lethal rules Maya." said Sakura nervously as she saw the eager look in both Maya and Hinata's eyes. "I totally agree though. I think Hinata's byakugan will help us immensely."

Hinata chuckled, "Leave it to me, soon our opponents will be 'dead' from white paint shuriken wounds, and we'll have those documents well in hand. Then we can 'escape back to our country' here which is the north gate."

"This all kunoichi team is going to kick ass!" said Maya pumping her fist. "Let's start hunting." she said as she handed Sakura some binoculars. Team white quickly took to the rooftops (Yūgao taught the entire class the tree walking exercise in the first week) and started scanning about from a perch on top of a tall building.

…

At the east gate…

Sasuke, Choji and Emi were suited up with their blue gear. Sasuke said, "We are supposed to pick up the documents from our unknown contacts at 4 P.M. but that's only half the mission. We are also supposed to hunt down the black team which are missing nins and 'kill' them."

"Well, remember the code is Monkey, Boar, Rat." said Emi. "We should be able to wipe out the missing nins in the morning, catch a nice lunch and then complete the mission in the afternoon."

"I'm up for that!" said Choji. "The sooner we 'kill' the missing nins; the sooner we can chow down." The two cousins high fived at the idea of a big lunch.

"Must your lives revolve solely around your stomachs?" asked Sasuke. "Emi, you don't want to be a fat ass like your cousin do you?" 'Honestly; how does she eat that much without swelling up like a hot air balloon?'

Choji and Emi turned on Sasuke with bloodlust in their eyes. "What was that?" they growled as one.

"My mistake…" said Sasuke sweating.

"Stop making mistakes or you might end up as a casualty Uchiha." growled Emi.

…

In the Hot Springs District …

Sai, Shino and Ino were gathered with their black gear on. Shino said in his usual monotone, "Well, we're all here. Our job is to rendezvous with the red team and take their documents. We are missing nins that have been in deep cover here in red country for some time. We only have partial information but the hand signs we do have are Monkey and Boar. The third one is unknown so hopefully we can catch them off guard. After we secure the documents we escape to the west gate."

Ino said, "Don't forget we double as bounty hunters. Members on other teams all are in our bingo book so if we play our cards right, we'll get extra credit."

Sai gave a fake smile. "Well, we have our 'bingo book' with everyone's value so we should hit the highest bounty first. I wonder why my value is the least?"

"It's probably because of the annoying nicknames you've given everyone!" snapped Ino.

Sai replied, "I was told that nicknames were common and endearing among friends, Pig." Then Ino growled menacingly. Sai continued oblivious to his impending doom and said, "Anyway, Forehead always calls you that. What do you think Bug Boy?"

"I think the nicknames you've given others are quite unflattering and could lead to strife later." said Shino. "That aside; who has the highest bounties?"

Sai looked over their list and said, "It appears that Dickless, Cockroach and Naruto all have the highest bounties."

"So Sasuke, Maya and Naruto would be our prime targets as long as they aren't on the red team." said Shino.

Ino bashed Sai over the head. "I can't believe you call Sasuke-kun 'Dickless!' –and why doesn't Naruto have a nickname?"

Sai rubbed his neck subconsciously. "Naruto told me to address him as Naruto and nearly crushed my trachea at the time. As for Dickless; it just seemed appropriate."

"I'm forced to agree." said Shino much to Ino's shock. "At any rate, our first task is to identify the other teams. Logically there should only be four."

…

…Sarutobi Hiruzen-recruiting a queen...

Hokage's Office Saturday Morning

The Third Hokage was finishing up his paperwork in his office when a slug summons appeared on his desk and deposited a scroll before him. His old hands trembled slightly before he picked it up and read:

Sarutobi-sensei-

I am coming home with my family to take the position of Fifth Hokage as you've requested. It was a hard decision, but I believe it is the right one. Jiraiya-kun is sealing up everything as I write this. Expect us within a few days as we have Mito-chan we won't be travelling at top speed. I believe it would be in our best interest to keep my return discreet for now so those in opposition of this move won't have time to set up a political defense.

Jiraiya-kun has explained the situation with Orochimaru and I will need your expertise as an advisor to deal with him. I also will be dismissing your former teammates as advisors so I would appreciate it if you could start thinking of possible candidates to replace them. When I arrive, we will also need to deal with Shimura Danzo one way or another.

We will see you soon,

-Senju Tsunade, Future Fifth Hokage

Sarutobi Hiruzen almost shed tears of relief. He turned to the little slug summons waiting on his desk and said, "Please inform Tsunade-hime that I have received her message and that I look forward to seeing her soon." The slug bowed and then vanished in a puff of smoke.

…

…Aburame Shino-the first offensive…

Konoha Market District

"What a stroke of luck!" said Ino excitedly. "Maya, Hinata and Sakura are all right there and they are the white team. Let's take them out!"

Sai shook his head. "Not at this range Pig. We need to set up an ambush for them."

"I agree with Sai." said Shino. "We should attack them from different angles. The biggest problem is Hinata is a Hyūga. She may already have spotted us with the byakugan and we have yet to surround them."

…

Nearby…

"Hinata-chan?" asked Maya. "You seem distracted."

"We have a problem." said Hinata. "Naruto-kun and the Red Team are in front of us but don't seem aware that we are here. Behind us is the Black Team comprised of Shino, Ino and Sai. I think they may be trying to ambush us."

"Shit!" whispered Maya. "We could blindside Naruto-kun's team but could easily be wiped out ourselves in the process. We can't afford to be pinched between two teams."

Sakura was in deep thought. "Maybe we should attack the Black Team instead. If we move out of their line of sight for an instant, we can set up a counterattack."

…

With Naruto's group on the street below…

"My instincts tell me we're being watched." whispered Kiba. Akamaru whimpered in agreement.

Naruto nodded. "I've got the same feeling…"

"Troublesome." said Shikamaru. "One of the other Teams may be onto us already. Naruto, do you know any quick exits off the main street?"

"Just follow me and act casual." said Naruto quietly as he took the lead. They entered the local market and started making their way to the back exit which led to an alley few knew about.

…

With Team White…

"They're rabbiting! Let's move now!" said Maya. "We don't want to lose them."

…

With Team Black…

"They're moving out; after them!" yelled Ino.

"Wait Ino!" cautioned Shino. "Damn. Let's go after our teammate before she gets killed Sai."

Sai asked, "Why? Aren't casualties acceptable Bug Boy?"

"No; they are not Sai." said Shino. "We're all supposed to get through this together. Besides, Yūgao-sensei implied there would be penalties if we lost a teammate. Let's go now."

Sai and Shino landed on the street wondering where Ino was only for Sai to get hit by a flying kick from Maya that sent him crashing into a stand full fruits and vegetables. "OOOOOPS!" said Maya sarcastically.

Shino went to intervene but had to duck to avoid a white shuriken thrown by Sakura that impacted on a butcher with a splat of white paint. "GOD DAMNED BRAT!" screamed the butcher as he drew a wide assortment of cutlery.

Both Shino and Sakura thought, 'Not good; not good at all.' before they ran away as a pair from the enraged butcher.

Meanwhile, Maya landed gracefully after a roundhouse kick to Sai that knocked him unconscious. She finished the job with a white kunai 'to the heart' that left a nice paint stain on Sai's shirt. "Who's going to pay for my stand you vile little monster?!" said the owner of the stand that was wrecked earlier by Sai impacting on it.

Maya turned to face the man and saw ANBU running up the street towards her. She quickly pointed at Sai and said, "He is!" before she took off running away from the ANBU. Quickly ducking into an alley Maya lost the ANBU and ran up to a rooftop to reconnoiter the situation. With her binoculars she saw Shino escape but Sakura was 'captured' by Red Country ANBU. "Shit; we lost Sakura. I'd best meet up with Hinata-chan. We got overzealous in enemy territory. This mission sucks." thought the silver haired girl aloud to herself.

…

…Yamanaka Ino-complex maneuvers…

Konoha Restaurant District, Team Black…

Things were quiet until lunchtime when Ino and Shino managed to find each other. "Where have you been?!" whispered a battered Ino to an equally battered Shino.

Shino frowned and said, "I have been dueling with Sakura, running from a rabid butcher and then playing cat and mouse with the ANBU for two hours. Sai has been 'killed' and you disappeared! Where have you been all this time Ino?"

"I've been running from Hinata!" said Ino spazzing out with exaggerated hand motions. "She's like a freaking bloodhound! Every time I thought I lost her she'd appear right on top of me and try to juken me to death!"

The two sat down at a café and ordered some food. "This day has gone from bad to worse." lamented Ino.

Shino sipped his tea. "While things have been discouraging it seems fortune hasn't completely abandoned us Ino; look over there. It's the blue team." In the dango shop next door they saw Choji and Emi eating their fill and Sasuke was facing away from them. "I say we take out Sasuke after we finish our meal and retreat."

Ino looked carefully. "I feel bad for just taking a cheap shot at Sasuke-kun that way. How do you know they won't finish before us?"

"In answer to the former, we ninjas take whatever easy victories we can get." said Shino. "Besides, Sasuke has proven himself to be nothing but an egotistical jackass since we started this advanced course. -Don't try to deny it Ino."

Ino was going to defend Sasuke on reflex but then sadly nodded in agreement. 'The only one he has eyes for is Maya anyway…' she thought depressed.

Shino sighed. He really didn't like seeing Ino down this way. "Anyway, in answer to your second question, they won't finish eating before us because Choji and Emi keep ordering more food."

…

Team Red…

Meanwhile, Naruto and Kiba were quietly looking up and around from under the lid of the garbage dumpster they were hiding in. They'd had to run from a brutal ambush from Team White when they were having lunch at Ichiraku's Ramen. "Kami above Naruto!" whispered Kiba. "Those girls are savages! I mean; it was bad enough that Shikamaru's last words were 'troublesome' before he got hit in the back with a white paint kunai; but they got poor Akamaru too!"

"We'll mourn our lost comrades later Kiba." said Naruto. "We have to complete this mission. I have to take some of the responsibility. I was so enthralled in enjoying the Food of the Gods that I didn't sense their approach."

Kiba didn't know whether to feel inspired or appalled at Naruto's little speech…

…

Team Blue…

Sasuke was unconscious. His head was face down in his tomato filled salad with a black paint kunai sticking out of the back of his head. Choji and Emi stunned as they saw Shino and Ino rapidly retreating before the cousins exploded into raucous laughter at Sasuke's pathetic manner of 'death.' "I guess since you're dead we'll leave you with the bill Sasuke!" laughed Emi as she polished off her meal.

The ANBU showed up ten minutes later and found Sasuke's 'corpse' with the three checks shoved under his unconscious hand. "Damn, Yūgao's right. These little heathens are heartless!" said one ANBU to the other.

With Choji and Emi…the two cousins were still trying to stifle their laughter at leaving Sasuke behind to foot the bill. Emi finally got her giggling under control and said, "Alright, let's try to calm down. Obviously, Shino and Ino are our opponents and are the missing nins we've been looking for all morning. On the other hand, they did us a huge favor. I guess we should really be bent out of shape and try to avenge our 'comrade' Sasuke but somehow, I just can't bring myself to do it."

Choji nodded and let out one last chuckle before he said. "Okay; time to get serious. We've got three hours till the rendezvous at the water tower and two missing nins to hunt down."

…

…Uzumaki Naruto-counterstrike…

Konoha Warehouse District

Maya and Hinata pounced on Naruto and Kiba only to get pounced on by shadow clones. "Damn it. I knew this seemed too easy." growled Maya as she engaged Kiba hand to hand. The Inuzuka boy had already used the All Fours jutsu so he was going to be difficult.

In the meantime, Naruto and his two remaining clones surrounded Hinata. "You and Maya-chan certainly have been making our lives difficult Hinata-chan. Who is the White Team supposed to be anyway?"

"That's unimportant Naruto-kun." said Hinata. "Be a good boy and play dead…"

Naruto heard Kiba use his Tunneling Fang jutsu and Maya nimbly avoided it. Kiba was headed straight towards Hinata who said "Kaiten!" and spun rapidly causing Kiba to ricochet off the chakra dome surrounding her. When Kiba crashed into some crates and looked like hell. The dog ninja rolled out of the way of a white paint shuriken from Maya that missed his head by centimeters. He saw Naruto kick Hinata back once she stopped spinning into a pile of boxes which fell over on her. Then Maya and Naruto immediately launched paint kunai at each other and 'killed' one another with simultaneous splats of paint.

"Well, shit." said Naruto as he landed on his back 'dead.'

Maya felt the same way and said, "Damn, these paint kunai hurt. I guess I'm 'dead' too."

Kiba was finally standing again and saw the two sitting in the floor and the pile of boxes behind them. He heard Naruto say dramatically. "With my dying breath I hand you these documents Kiba. Get to the rendezvous point. Long live Red Country!"

Maya was snickering as Kiba took the documents and ran towards the water tower. They both heard a feminine groan come from Hinata as she climbed out of the boxes. After she assured the other two she was alright Hinata took off to try to track down Kiba and get the documents from him…

…

…Isuzu Emi-closing the trap…

The east side water tower

Team Black and Team Blue gave up on their game of cat and mouse in the restaurant district and arrived simultaneously at the water tower. "DAMN IT'S THEM!" all four shouted simultaneously. In the blink of an eye Choji ran over Ino and was 'killed' by a black shuriken from Shino. Emi then finished off Ino and Shino with her terrific accuracy at kunai throwing. Ino groaned as she saw the blue kunai stain over her heart. "Damn Emi; that stung! Remind me to never fight you in a real kunai duel."

Shino had a blue stain in the middle of his forehead. "I concur with Ino on that matter. Are you alright Choji? You're doing an admirable job of playing dead."

Choji groaned, "I'm all right. I just got tripped up on Ino and you nailed me in the throat. I'm a little sore."

"You deserve to be sore since you ran over a petite girl like me like a charging rhino Choji." complained Ino.

Emi chuckled. "You sure talk a lot for a dead person Ino. Just be a nice, quiet corpse. Someone is coming."

A few seconds later Kiba appeared looking like he'd lost a war. He asked "Is everyone dead?"

"I'm alive." said Emi. "I'm here to receive the documents from the Red Team." She did the hand signs Monkey, Boar, Rat at which Kiba relaxed and nodded.

Kiba handed off the documents to Emi and said, "Mission accomplished."

Emi nodded. "Right, I have to get these back to blue country. See you later." She said as she trotted over towards Konoha's east gate.

Kiba sat down to regain his breath and asked the others, "So who all is still alive in our class?"

Choji said, "I have no idea honestly but because we're dead we aren't allowed to tell you."

"I guess I could search your corpses for incriminating documents." said Kiba with a chuckle.

"If you start frisking my remains, I will kick your ass mutt boy." growled Ino.

Kiba cringed. "It was just a joke Ino. I've got to get back to the Hokage Tower to report mission success. Enjoy the afterlife." With that he departed as well.

"Being dead sucks!" complained Ino loudly.

"Just shut up Ino." said Choji. "I'm exhausted."

About that time Hinata arrived on a nearby rooftop. She'd watched the entire exchange with her byakugan. "So Emi has the documents now. (sigh) I guess there's no rest for the wicked." The exhausted Hyūga kunoichi in training took off after Emi.

…

…Hyūga Hinata-final move…

Close to the east gate

Emi saw the east gate coming into view and relaxed. "Thank god, this has been a rough day." About that time three white shuriken came screaming down upon her. Emi was unable to avoid them but traced the trajectory and fired off a single blue kunai that hit Hinata square in the heart. Emi fell to the ground 'dead.'

She heard Hinata's voice in the distance. "Damn it! If it had been anyone but Emi-chan I would have won! Arrrgh!"

Emi chuckled to herself. "At least I took Hinata-chan with me."

…

…Uzuki Yūgao-endgame…

Yūgao and Hayate's apartment

A certain (slightly tipsy) purple haired sword mistress was laughing herself sick as she read through the ANBU reports of her students slaughtering each other in every way imaginable. In the end Kiba and Sakura were the only ones that 'survived.' Better still, Sakura was captured and in an ANBU holding cell. The rest were getting checked over in the infirmary. Sai had cracked ribs and Sasuke by some fluke had a concussion. The rest of them weren't in great shape either. Only Team Red actually accomplished their mission but since the message never made it to Blue Country it was all in vain.

Hayate was really worried for his girlfriend's mental health. He was drinking too but the reports weren't that funny…Yūgao's insane cackling went on for hours…

…

Natsume Clan Home

Shimura Danzo came in to talk with Hanako early Sunday morning while the kids were all still sleeping. Hinata, Maya and Naruto were worn out in the hospital and Hanabi and Aya slept in well past 6 A.M. regardless. He and two of his (hidden) ROOT guards entered and eventually found Hanako meditating in the Natsume Dojo. Danzo slid open the door and saw Hanako in the seiza position. She didn't move but said, "And what brings you and two of your drones here this morning Shimura Danzo? Surely you have no business with this old woman."

Danzo said, "I see you are as sharp as ever Hanako." as he slid the door shut behind him. He made a hand motion and his two ROOT Agents appeared in guard positions inside the door.

"I thought ROOT was part of the regular ANBU now." she said in a bored tone. (She obviously knew better). "So what brings you here?"

"I've come with a proposal for you Hanako." explained Danzo.

Hanako shook her head. "You're not my type so I can't marry you. I told you that back in The Second Shinobi War. Besides, the bandages are a real turn off. A girl has to have some standards you know."

Danzo sputtered and got all flustered. 'She'll never let me live that down.' "I didn't mean a marriage proposal, woman! I have a peace offering for young Uzumaki and a job offer for you." he said regaining some of his composure.

"A peace offering?" asked Hanako. "This wouldn't have something to do with your little drone revealing Naruto's Royal Heritage a couple of weeks ago, would it?"

"It wasn't my intention-" started Danzo.

"Of course, it was your intention Danzo." she said. "You provided the information to that boy and failed to tell him it was classified so Naruto would be prepared in case an enemy figured it out later. I do know how you think Shimura."

Danzo chuckled, "You haven't changed one bit Hanako –or should I say ANBU Raven." He pulled a book out of his robes with great flourish. "This is a book on the Whirlpool style of taijutsu. I believe young Uzumaki could benefit from it."

He handed it to Hanako and she skimmed it seeing it was genuine. "Very well, I shall pass this along to Naruto. I believe he will be pleased with it."

"Now, as to my job offer." said Danzo. "Hiruzen won't survive this upcoming conflict. He's become too old and too soft. We will need a new Hokage; a strong Hokage."

"And no doubt you have chosen yourself for the position, correct?" asked Hanako sounding rather bored again. "Just get to the point and tell me what this job offer is so I can get back to my meditations."

'What a woman! Few would dare to speak to me like that.' thought Danzo. 'If only we were young again…' "Very well, I wish for you to become a village elder when I become the Fifth Hokage."

Hanako asked, "Is that why you're using young Uchiha Shisui's sharingan eye you have hidden behind those bandages to subtly convince me Danzo?" Danzo was in shock. "Did you forget? The byakugan sees all. I'd recognize his chakra signature anywhere. I suppose that means you were the one that murdered him rather than Itachi correct?" She placed her had on a small pedestal her tea was sitting on and activated a seal.

Danzo found his chakra was disrupted and was draining away rapidly. He felt as if he was being crushed to the floor. "What…did you do Hanako?" he asked weakly.

"It's quite simple actually." said Hanako. "Young Naruto is a genius with seals and the entire Natsume compound is lined wall to wall with protective barriers. The seal I just activated disrupts chakra flow and quickly drains it until you die. It also increases gravity. Amazingly enough it's actually powered by the very chakra it's draining. In other words, the more chakra you have, the stronger the seal gets. He is quite an ingenious young man."

Danzo was wide eyed and sank to his knees. He saw his two ROOT Agents collapse to the floor unconscious. In desperation he went for his sword hidden in his cane but Hanako easy parried it with one of her kodachis. "Did you truly think you could win in kenjutsu match against me Danzo? Even without you being trapped in that seal I've outclassed you with a sword in every single way for decades." She disarmed the rapidly weakening Danzo with ease. "It's sad to say but I acknowledge you're an extremely dangerous individual. Unlike Hiruzen I won't let you threaten those I love." She spun her kodachi and stabbed it deep into Danzo's brain straight through his bandages and his stolen sharingan eye…Shimura Danzo 'The Shinobi of Darkness' was dead…

…

…Hyūga Hanako-Checkmate…

Hanako cleaned her blade and said. "Rot in whatever hell you end up in Shimura Danzo. You won't be missed."

…

POSTSCRIPT:

Before anyone asks, Danzo didn't use the Izanagi to escape because the seal caused chakra disruption and he had no access to his abilities. My original plan was to have and epic battle between Hanako and Danzo that probably would have leveled the Natsume Estate in the process. I just couldn't get it right. The best version I came up with was Danzo being killed and Hanako dying shortly thereafter of grievous wounds. It worked but I didn't want to kill the kids favorite Obaa-chan. In the end I decided to have Hanako beat Danzo at his own game; cunning. Once she lured him into her trap it was only a matter of time before he tried something illegal and trying to alter her mind with a powerful genjutsu certainly qualified. I hope the big Danzo fans out there aren't too disappointed in his manner of death.

I originally had Yūgao's 'homework from hell' assignment planned as a chapter in and of itself and Danzo and Hiruzen's political game as a chapter as well. Neither were really long enough individually and since they were both war game themed they ended up together. See you next time. Blue out. 6/6/23