Chapter 8

Hinata Hyuga walked down the streets of Konoha. In the last three months the citizens had come to fear her. The ones that feared her were the ones who abused and attacked Naruto Uzumaki, and she made sure they knew why. She didn't kill them. Crippled, maimed and terrorized on the other hand she'd been very good at. She and the spirit had sworn no executions without the consent of the Hokage.

Hinata's eyes were white at this time and she carried a basket filled with herbs and some food she'd picked up shopping that morning. In the last three months she'd lived with Lady Tsunade and Shizune and her confidence had grown, and she'd learned a lot from the Hokage and Shizune in the ways of the medical field.

She'd also managed to avoid her father since he burst into the Hokage's Office.

(Flashback)

The door opened and Shizune could be heard yelling. "YOU CAN'T GO IN THERE!"

Hiashe Hyuga stood in the doorway, his eyes filled with anger. "Hinata," he said his voice the same cold tone he'd always used in regards to his eldest daughter. "Come here…Now."

Hinata looked at her father and before she could move he was sent flying out of the room courtesy of a Tsunade chakra powered punch.

"That is no way to speak to MY apprentice Hiashi. And you were interrupting a very important lesson." Tsunade said and slammed the door behind him.

(End Flashback)

Hiashi had over the last three month sent branch members to 'fetch' her back and each time they were beaten down by Shizune or Tsunade.

Hinata stopped and checked a fruit stand. She smiled to the old woman, she remembered her as being nice enough to see fresh fruit to Naruto over the years and charge him the fair price.

Hinata and the Konoha Nine had given her all their business. The business that Hinata approved of got the Konoha Nine's (Team 10, Team 9 and Team 8) business, along with their sensei's.

The Konoha Nine. Hinata smiled remembering her encounter with her former classmates and Gai's team. The only ones not there were Sakura, Sauske and Kakashi.

They asked about what she was doing. She told them in an even voice that she was enacting Vengeance for Naruto upon those who did him wrong. Truly did him wrong.

She told them of what she'd done to Sakura, she explained her vengeance upon the Uchiha was waiting till he woke.

It was Kurenai who asked what she had done to Kakashi.

Hinata smiled to herself remember the last three months of…vengeance on the copycat ninja.

(Flashback)

After the book burning incident, Kakashi had become very paranoid around Hinata. He was jumpy every time she would come around a corner or he entered the Hokage's office and she was there.

She always had a job for the newly demoted Genin.

Kakashi's jobs ranged from sweeping up the streets of Konoha after business hours, cleaning the local bathhouses, mucking stalls at a nearby farm.

Hinata had him chase Tora while wearing chakra blockers forcing him to physically chase the Fire Lords wife's cat.

Hinata smiled thinking of seeing the former Jonin twitch every time she spoke to him. Hinata paid for the fruit and turned to find her way blocked by her father and a pair of branch family members.

"Hello…Hiashi." She said, not one stutter, just a pause before she addressed him.

"You are coming with me." He said.

"No." Hinata said as she calmly put her basket aside. She looked at the vendor. "Will you please send a message to Lady Tsunade, and inform her that Hiashi Hyuga is trying to kidnap her apprentice."

Hinata turned back to her father. "I've learned a lot while being the apprentice to the Hokage. Tell me Hiashi, you do know what being an apprentice means, don't you?"

She could see the muscles in his jaw twitch as she back talked him. "You will show me the respect I am due." He snarled at her.

"Then I am showing you too much as is Hiashi. For you were never a father to me, and as the Hokage's apprentice I outrank you in position of importance in Konoha."

Hiashi's jaw muscles jumped more and his eyes narrowed at her. "Quit posturing, you are coming home this instant. You have responsibilities to the clan."

"I have responsibilities to Konoha and as Lady Tsunade's apprentice." Hinata countered.

"You will return to the compound and stand as the caged bird seal is placed upon you. You will then assume duties appropriate for someone as weak as you, scullery maid."

The two branch members shared a look behind Hiashi's back. "Hanabi has been named my heir."

"Good for Hanabi, I'm sure she will continue to please you with her cold ways and selfish behavior that mirrors your own. And to think my mother loved you at one time. It is fortunate that she died in birth, for she would be ashamed how you and Hanabi turned out." Hinata said. her skin paled slightly, bad her eyes remained locked on Hiashi.

The head of the Hyuga clan sputtered in outrage at how his eldest daughter was talking to him. she wasn't the spineless girl he abused for years. She was different and he blamed the Hokage for it.

"You will stand down and be sealed." Hiashi said with a sneer.

"No Hiashi Hyuga." Hinata said. "I won't."

Hinata slid into a relaxed juken stance, but Hiashi raised an eyebrow, it wasn't the one taught amongst the main or branch family. He wasn't familiar with the hand placements and scoffed. "You can't even present a proper juken stance. You truly are weak."

Hinata's skin took on a whiteness and her eyes flashed with the Byakugan, the veins appeared around her eyes, but what had Hiashi step back was her eyes. They were black, pure black.

"So this is what the Hyuga have become since the days of Kenji and Hilana." The cold voice from Hinata had Hiashi look at the branch members. "Come great clan leader. Show me what you can do against a pure Hyuga, trained in the style that fits her and not the bastardized Gentle Fist you assume is the end all of your clan…well it will be the end, as I have seen this shell's memories and I find your lack of faith disturbing."

"W-Who are you? What have you done to my daughter?" Hiashi asked.

The cold laugh that seemed to ricochet off the surrounding buildings, chilled Hiashi to the core.

Across Konoha, a former Jonin turned Genin shuddered as he weeded a garden.

"I am Hinata, and Hinata is me. And I am Vengeance."

(Elsewhere)

"Ha, ha, ha, ha." The portly bandit laughed as he watched his men fight over one of the girls they'd captured in that small village.

"That's the ticket boys. And if you can't share her, I'll take her for the night." more chortling as he looked over the campfire.

"Hurry up with my dinner boy, or I'll slit your throat." He told one of the prisoners that was wearing ankle chains and had been put to work preparing the bandit leaders dinner.

The gust of wind went ignored. Shame that.

Around the camp the few sentries found themselves suffering from an intense case of death.

The wind blades sliced thru their necks and the air wrapped around them keeping them in place.

A shimmering figure stepped along the camp, pausing and being lost if anyone had noticed it. Sadly the bandits were too busy drinking and intimidating prisoners to realize that several of their number were dead and more were joining them.

The caged wagon was guarded by two bandits and they found themselves dead. One by the air smothering him, the other one with a kunai in his neck. The bodies were lowered to the ground and the air shimmered as Naruto appeared before the wagon holding up a finger to his lips telling the women and children to keep quiet as he picked up the keys and after unlocking the door, started working on the chains around their ankles and wrists.

"Keep quiet. Head that way." He pointed. "All the guards that way are dead." He told one of the older women.

"But Genta and Ichi are with the bandits." One said.

"We'll get them." Naruto said. "Just get going." He told them giving one of the women the crossbow a bandit had. "Go. We'll catch up. I promise."

One of the women nodded and they herded the children the way Naruto suggested. The blond looked up and saw Mica balanced on the top of the wagon's cage.

//So far, so good.//

//Two left to rescue. You want me to…// Mica signed.

Naruto shook his head. //I'll get them out. You worry about the bandits.//

Mica smiled as they crept along the tents. Bandits found themselves dying from being stabbed or from the air slicing their throats or suffocating them.

Once they looked at the center of the camp Naruto nodded and made the hand signs. "KAGE BUNSHIN!" he roared and a hundred Naruto clones filled the area and went right after the bandits.

Mica smirked as he used the air to lift himself into the air and saw the bandit leader grab the girl and boy he'd had serving him as shields.

Bastard. The silver haired youth thought as he sent several blades of wind into bandits and watched as they were sliced in half.

Mica checked on Naruto and saw the blond was lost in the sea of shadow clones.

I really need to ask him how he does that.

The bandit leader yelled at his men to protect him and kill the damned blond.

With a sword strike he watched one go up in a puff of smoke. "What the hell?" he yelled.

"Clones asshole!" he turned and saw another blond coming at him, and he used a sword to swipe at him.

The bandit staggered back and pulled the girl in front of him as a shield.

"Come any closer and the girl gets it." He warned the blond.

Naruto narrowed his blue eyes. Behind him he could hear the clones dealing with the bandits and knew Micahamaru was using his wind control to decimate the rest of the bandits that his clones had trouble with.

"How about you let the girl go, and I promise you'll get buried in one piece." Naruto said. the Kyuubi in his head warning him to be careful.

"How about I don't and you give up or I slit her pretty little neck."

Naruto shook his head. He felt his clones disperse and knew that they had been successful.

"You're the last." Naruto said, "And your outnumbered."

"What? Your clones? Their all gone kid."

"Look up teme." A voice said and the bandit turned and saw Mica standing on the air above him with his sword aimed at him.

The girl stomped hard on the bandit leaders foot and ran as fast as the chains around her ankles would let her.

The bandit leader howled as the girl and boy huddled off to the side. Naruto stepped between the leader and the former captive and held his sword up in a two handed grip.

Mica lowered himself and had his sword aimed at the dirt at an angle before him.

"Two on one." The bandit leader said.

"Didn't stop you from attacking a peaceful village." Naruto said.

"Or stealing their hard work." Mica continued.

The bandit leader pulled a short sword out and glared at the two youths.

"My name is Toru Kalani. You punks won't beat me."

Mica snorted. "Want to bet."

"Naruto shuffled his foot and focused his eyes on the Toru's grip and foot placement.

"Kit, he's a master. I've heard of him. Be careful." Kyuubi warned.

I will Kyu, just fix whatever he does. Naruto thought.

"I can heal nearly anything kit, but don't lose a limb…or your head." The Kyuubi warned.

Mica shifted his foot and he brought his blade up to block the first blow from Toru who seemed to move rather quickly despite his size.

Naruto lunged and found the short sword blocking his attack.

Toru chuckled as he attacked both boys. His swords flashing quickly, but he was surprised that the boys managed to block. One would block and the other would attack and they would alternate.

He circled with them, his long sword arcing down, while his short sword blocked an attack from the silver haired youth.

Toru Kalani was a skilled swordsman from Mist. He'd taught the some of the seven swordsman before he left Mist in dishonor. He'd grown lazy and fat with his bandit army raiding villages over the years.

He smirked and figured he could talk his way out of this.

"I'll admit, you killed my men. But how about you both join me. The three of us could build a whole new army. You'd be my lieutenants, we could rule the coast."

Naruto growled and lunged. Toru managed to block the sword swipe and tried to attack the blond, but his other sword was blocking the silver haired youth and he got kicked hard in the chest sending him several feet back.

Both boys were attacking him before he finished rolling, he barely got his blades up to block the furious assault.

"You attacked men, women and children. You were going to turn them into slaves." Mica growled, his golden orbs flashing.

"You are a disease upon humanity." Naruto growled. The blades were a silver blur as they attacked from various angles.

Toru was sweating, he'd allowed his skills to decline over the years and was now cursing himself. In his prime he could have taken them, but these two were working like a well oiled team and they forced him back with each attack.

Toru ducked and spun despite his size and he sent a flurry of swipes and strikes with a masters ease, he managed to get himself some breathing room.

He saw a pair of his men coming up behind the two boys and grinned.

"I'm sorry, if you will not join me…then you will be destroyed." Toru said as the two bandits attacked.

Mica spun and blocked one and Naruto ducked and rolled.

Toru laughed as it was three on two now and they were trying to force the two boys back.

One of the bandits was using a pair of kama's while the other used a pair of wicked looking long daggers, the blades were shaped like waves.

The three bandits worked hard, but Naruto and Mica were used to actually fighting as a team while the bandits were used to attacking in large groups.

Naruto blocked the kama's and Mica used his wind to push the bandit back. Both boys ducked back as the dagger wielder lunged in, his arms pinwheeling trying to hit them.

Toru was using the time to occasionally attack, but would duck back and let the two thugs of his crew attack.

Micahamaru groaned, he was focusing on his sword work and couldn't get the wind to respond right. Master Kwai says I need to focus, but can't right now. That's my big weakness. I should have kept back and in the air.

Naruto was cursing the kama user and he blocked one, only to have the other slice across his stomach shredding his shirt, and grazing the skin.

"Watch it kit. This one is skilled. We can't back off or the kids behind you will get taken again."

I know damn it. We need some space. Naruto thought.

Toru chuckled as he circled the fight now. Miz and Morri were worth their cut and he'd make them his top lieutenants when they rebuilt the group.

He looked at the corpses of the bandits the pair had killed before attacking him.

They do have some skill. Shame they have to die here.

He watched as the blond did a backflip and kicked Morri back. He made a hand sign and there were six of him now.

Clones. He's a virtual one man army. Toru thought as he turned his gaze to watch the silver haired youth.

He's got some weird power over air. Miz better watch out or he's going to wind up dead.

Toru made a decision and slipped away. Cut my losses for now. Rebuild my group and work on the coastal towns again. I knew coming near the elemental villages would be bad news.

As the slightly pudgy bandit leader slipped away, he knew he'd spared himself and he vowed not to come this way again.

Mica ducked and Naruto or one of his clones rolled across his back and hit the dagger wielder with a roundhouse kick. Mica slipped around and saw himself flanked by three clones of Naruto who were attacking the dagger wielder with kunai. Mica looked over and saw Naruto and three of his clones wearing down the kama wielder.

Mica nodded and stabbed the sword into the dirt before focusing his will upon the air. He cupped his hands near his right hip, his left hand over the right, a swirling vortex of chakra enhanced air could be seen forming (Think DBZ's Ka-mah-ha-ma-ha).

He felt the air build up and he narrowed his eyes thinking what the bandits did to the village that his sensei visited. The women and children they were going to sell to slavery or worse.

The ball of chakra enhanced air swirled faster and increased in size.

Naruto meanwhile had created another pair of kage bunshin's and was making a Rasengan, his sword was sheathed over his shoulder.

Both boys unleashed their attacks at the same time.

The resulting explosion…well lets just say that there wasn't anything left of Miz or Morri bigger than a exploding tag.

Naruto looked at the remains, turned around and threw up on a clone that made a revolted look before dispersing and returning the memory to Naruto who threw up again.

Mica was on one knee gasping for air. He'd put too much into that attack and he knew it. His gold eyes scanned around for the missing bandit leader, but he couldn't find him.

Damn, he got away. He thought. His eyes rested on the boy and girl they rescued and nodded.

The pair raced up to them the boy stopping near a heaving Naruto while the girl stopped several paces away from Mica.

"Can we go home?" she asked.

Mica nodded his head wearily. "Let's get those irons off." he said pulling a lock pick from his belt, he remembered the old days when he and Naruto would…borrow from shops in Konoha. They had intent to return what they borrowed…eventually. He was sure it was on their list to do someday.

Maybe when Naruto makes Hokage…yeah, that sounds good. Mica thought as he slowly picked the lock first on the wrist chains and then the ones on the ankles.

Naruto was recovering and listened as the young boy who couldn't be older than six or seven describe the battle with enthusiasm that Naruto remembered once having when he first announced he was going to be Hokage.

Why do I feel so old all of a sudden?

"Killing does it kit. It ages one, not physically, but mentally and spiritually. You killed him and you were looking right in his eyes when you rammed that Rasengan into his chest. You powered it…and Kit, I wish I could claim it was me, but it was all you there." Kyuubi said and Naruto could hear the regret in the fox demons voice.

I know Kyu. I know. Naruto said and he looked at the boy who was still talking. The kids hairstyle reminded him of a Hyuga, but the kid was a farmer and he was tanned and his grey eyes were eager.

"Let's get you home." Naruto said standing up and picking the kid up and walking him over to Mica to get the chains removed.

"You okay kit?" Kyuubi asked.

No. but I will be. Naruto said as he looked at his silver haired friend. The pair shared a look and they both understood without words.

A/N: Please Support Me On patreon.com/The_Alchemyst