"Mom..." I couldn't believe my eyes as my own mother stood before me, in the flesh. "I'm so happy to see you, Nue." She said with a smile. "No way..." Karin said in disbelief. "This whole time... this woman was your mother?" Megumi asked.

I quickly ran over to my mother and hugged her. "I missed you... so much." I said as tears threatened to escape my eyes. "I've missed you, too. You've grown so much." She said. I sniffled as I hugged her tighter.

"Nue, don't cry. It's okay now." My mother said as she gently stroked my hair. "I can't help it. I'm just... so happy to see you." I said as I began to cry. It felt so wonderful to be in my mother's arms again.

This overwhelming feeling of happiness... There's no way I'm dreaming. This is for real. My mother is alive and well. "Ah, Karin. It's nice to see you, too. My, you've grown quite a lot. It feels like it was just yesterday when you were just a child. Where did the time go?" Mother said.

"It's good to see you again, Hotaru." Karin greeted. "It's good to see you again, Karin," Mom smiled before looking at Megumi. "You're the young girl who gave Nue her doll, correct? What was your name again?" She asked.

"My name is Megumi, ma'am." Megumi answered, politely. "Well, Megumi-chan. Thank you so much for looking after my daughter." Mom thanked. "Oh, you know. It was nothing." Megumi boasted. "This whole time... you've been living here?" Karin asked.

"That's right. This cabin is hidden safely in the woods. No human has ever come here." Mom explained.

"How come?"

"Because she used the same technique the elder used in order to hide the Houjuu Clan." I answered. "So, it's just you living here?" Megumi asked. As Mom was about to answer, the door opened. "Hotaru, we're back with the stuff you asked for!"

"Suigetsu?!" Karin and Megumi yelled at the same time. "And Jugo?!" I joined them. What surprised me even more, was that Jugo wasn't a child anymore! He was back to his tall height! My mom giggled at our reaction.

"Thank you for running the errand, boys. Just set them on the counter there." Mom instructed with a kind smile. "What are they doing here?!" Karin asked. "Well, Kyo brought them here." Mom answered. "Kyo?!" I repeated.

"Mm-hm. He explained to me about these gentlemen you saved, so I agreed to let them stay here." She explained. "Ah, so you guys are here, too, huh?" Suigetsu grinned. "I told Kyo to take them someplace safe!" I said.

"And he did. This place is safer than I imagined. None of the ninjas from the Summit are looking for us." Suigetsu said, still grinning. "And it's hidden far in the woods, so it's hard to spot from a distance." Jugo added. I'm gonna have to have a long talk with Kyo later.

"Come, let's chat." Mom suggested. The six of us sat in the living room as Suigetsu sat in a chair, Jugo sat on the couch with my mom, and Karin, Megumi, and I sat on the couch across from them, Suigetsu sitting in between us.

"Tell me everything, Nue. How have you been during these years?" Mom asked. "Well... Where do you want me to start?" I asked.

"Hmm... Well, why don't you start from the beginning? I've heard some stories from Suigetsu and Jugo, but I want to hear your story now." She said.

"Uh... okay. Well, I was adopted by a nice woman and grew up with her daughter, I went to the village for my safety, befriended a few humans, Orochimaru bit me and gave me a curse mark, the woman who took me in was killed by him, along with her maids, I got most of my memories back, died in the Leaf Village, I joined Akatsuki, I got my sword back from Kenshin, I fell in love, I fought Megumi, I killed my adoptive sister, lost my lover, found Karin, lost another person dear to me, got abused a lot, befriended Megumi, went to the Kage Summit, saved Suigetsu and Jugo, nearly died again, took Karin away, formed an alliance, trained in the Archives Room, sang a few songs, and now here I am." I explained.

"Sounds like you've had a wild adventure." Mom commented with a giggle. "Hotaru-san." Jugo said.

"Hai?"

"This picture... How long ago was this?"

"Pardon?"

Jugo handed her the picture frame. "Ah... I remember this." Mom said, gently smiling down at the picture. "Which picture is it?" I asked. She turned the frame around so I could see. "Oh, that picture." I said.

"You look so young... and happy." Megumi said. "Wait, but I thought all members of the Houjuu Clan had black hair and red eyes?" Karin said while adjusting her glasses.

"We do. The reason why I look the way I do now is because the elder of the Houjuu Clan used a jutsu that changed my hair and eyes. It was the only way to save my life." Mom explained with a closed-eye smile. "What happened to your wings and tails then?" Suigetsu asked.

"They got cut off by the Leaf Village citizens." She answered, making Karin gasped. "I'm so sorry." She apologized. "It's fine," Mom shook her head. "After all, the past is the past." She said.

It still amazes me how my mother is able to smile through something like that after experiencing that horrible event. It had to be the most painful day of her life. "Ne, Nue. Why'd you bring Karin here?" Suigetsu asked.

"What was that?!" Karin snapped, making a fist. "Protecting Karin is my job. I couldn't let the Leaf take her away." I explained. "And what about Megumi?" Jugo asked. "She actually found us and we formed an alliance." Karin said.

"Oh? What kind of alliance?" Mom asked. "To take down Madara Uchiha. With some more training, we will take him down. With your permission, I'd like you to spar with us, Suigetsu. Jugo." I requested.

"How could I resist a pretty lady? Sure, I'll help." Suigetsu grinned. "Jugo?" I asked, looking for his answer. "It's fine with me." He said. "Thank you. All of you." I thanked.

"Nue, may I help you as well?" Mom requested. "Huh? How can she help?" Megumi asked. "Mom is a lot stronger than she looks." I mentioned. "Hmm... Mind if I can put that challenge to the test?" She asked.

"Of course. I'd love to." Mom said with a closed-eye smile. "Oh, boy." I mumbled. We all went outside as Megumi and Mom faced each other. "Okay, Mrs. Hojuu. Give me your all!" Megumi challenged. "Of course. And please, call me 'Hotaru'." Mom replied with a polite bow.

She clapped her hands together and her aura began to glow around her body. After a few seconds, the glow faded. "Eh? What was that?" Suigetsu asked. "You'll see." I said with a smirk. "Megumi-chan, I want you to hit me in the stomach. As hard as you can." Mom said.

"Hit you in the stomach?" Megumi repeated.

"Uh, Mom? Maybe you should-!"

"Hush now, Nue. Megumi-chan has to find out by herself." Mom interrupted me with a closed-eye smile. I sighed. "Is something bad going to happen, Nue?" Jugo asked. "More or less." I answered.

"Okay. If that's what you want." Megumi said with a smirk as she cracked her knuckles. She walked up to Mom and stopped in front of her. She pulled her fist back and punched Mom in the stomach, but Mom didn't bend over like Megumi expected.

Instead, Megumi stumbled back a few inches when she punched her. She looked at my mom, dumbfounded, as Mom innocently smiled at her. "Now, it's my turn." She told her. Mom slammed her hand against Megumi's chest, sending her flying.

Everyone except me gasped in shock at my mom's power. Megumi skidded back on her feet while her hand clawed into the ground to keep her from skidding back any further. "Holy shit! How'd you do that?!" Megumi asked.

"Just what I was about to ask!" Suigetsu said. "I simply just boosted my power to 1,000%. Say, if you were to throw a boulder on me. Instead of me being crushed underneath it, the boulder would split in two. Pretty cool, huh?" Mom said.

"Cool? That was amazing! You've got to teach me how to do that!" Megumi said. "Baby steps, Megumi." I said to her. "Is that her kekkei genkai, Nue?" Karin asked me.

"Somewhat. She also gets her power from a scroll she carries. Most of her powers are stored in there because when her wings and tails got cut off, half of her power vanished." I explained.

"Who's ready for lunch?" Mom asked with a kind, closed-eye smile as she clapped her hands together. We went back inside for lunch and sat at the table as Mom summoned a huge lunch buffet from her scroll.

"Thank you for the food." We all said. "Sugoi! This is the best food I've ever tasted! I think I'm in heaven!" Suigetsu cheered. "I'm glad you like it." Mom replied. "Ne, Hotaru. What else can you do with that scroll of yours?" He asked as he ate.

"Hmm... Well, just about everything." She answered. "I get the feeling you're showing off, Mom." I stated. "Not at all." Mom denied, smiling her usual smile. "Everything? Then, do you think you can make me a new Executioner's Blade?" Suigetsu asked.

"Don't get greedy, Suigetsu." Karin told him. "Executioner's Blade? That sounds like Zabuza's blade. How did you manage to get a hold of it? You didn't take it from his grave, did you?" Mom asked.

"Nah. Some thugs took it and Nue took it back. But she wouldn't give it to me because she was Master Zabuza's niece." Suigetsu explained.

"Ah, yes. Zabuza Momochi. I remember how Nue used to play with him all the time. The two of them were so close, Nue would always get upset when he had to leave." Mom said. "Mom! Don't tell them that!" I said, embarrassed.

"Ah, so you and Master Zabuza were close, huh? That explains why you kept the blade. It was like a memory of him." Suigetsu said. "That's right." I confirmed. Karin was about to grab a piece of meat with her chopsticks until Suigetsu grabbed it first.

"Oi! Suigetsu! That meat was mine!" Karin shouted. "I didn't see your name on it." He replied, eating the piece of meat. "You two are so cute together. By any chance, are you two dating?" Mom asked, making me choke on my water.

"Mom!"

"What? I'm curious."

"We're not dating!" Suigetsu and Karin yelled at the same time. "Are you siblings?" She asked. "No." They answered, bluntly. "If you ask me, and this is just my opinion here, I think those two are perfect for each other. I mean, they act just like an old, married couple." Megumi said.

"Megumi!" Karin and Suigetsu yelled at her, in which she laughed. "What about you, Jugo? Do you have a special someone?" Mom asked. "How did we get off talking about relationships?" I mumbled as I ate.

"No, I haven't really fallen in love with someone." Jugo answered Mom's question. "That's too bad. A handsome young man like yourself shouldn't be alone." Mom said. "Can we change the subject here please?" I requested.

"Okay, okay." She replied. "Hotaru, this has been bugging me for while, so I've gotta ask. Why did you want me to make sure Nue had that doll at all times?" Megumi asked.

"Because I predicted Nue would lose some of her memories again, and she did. So, I thought maybe the doll would trigger Nue's meories, hoping that she would remember." Mom answered. "And it worked, too." I added.

"This is so wonderful. I've always wanted to see my daughter grow up with human friends. It's so nice to see her so happy." Mom said. "Cut it out. You're embarrassing me." I told her. "Your daughter is truly something else, Hotaru. Would it be okay if I dated her?" Suigetsu asked with a grin.

"Please tell me you're just messing with me." I asked, looking at him with a blank face. "What? You're cute." He said, making me face palm. I took my hand off my face as Karin punch his head, making it turn into water.

"Don't say things like that when you hardly know her!" She shouted at him. "Quit hitting me, devil woman!" Suigetsu shouted back. "It's better to have Karin hit you than Nue." Jugo mentioned. "Just be lucky she didn't shoot you." I told him.

"Shoot him?" Mom glanced at me with a deadly look in her eye, making me flinch and freeze in place. "Yeah! Nue-kun's been teaching Karin and I how to use a gun! It's really exciting! Karin and I are pretty good at it if I do say so myself. I can't wait to actually shoot an actual person!" Megumi said.

"Shh! My mother's right there!" I told her. "Nue..." I glanced at Mom as she rose over me with a glare. "Why didn't you tell me this before?" She asked, almost in a deadly tone. "I'm sorry. It just sort of slipped my mind." I apologized as a sweat drop appeared behind my head.

"I'm your mother, aren't I? Don't you think that was something you should've mentioned to me earlier?"

"Right. My bad." 

"Do you wish to tell me anything else before your friends say something you haven't told me?"

"Nope, I'm good. Really. Sorry."

"Wow, and I thought you were scary, Nue-kun. Your mom is clearly scarier than you." Megumi commented. "Thank you." Mom said, taking it as a compliment. "I think I found out where Nue gets her scary faces from." Suigetsu commented.

"Hotaru-san, is there anything you'd like me to get for you before it gets dark?" Jugo asked. "You're such a gentleman, Jugo. But no, I have everything I need, thank you." Mom said. I can't be sure, but I think Mom has a crush on Jugo.

"Mom, what's wrong?" I asked, worried, as I noticed tears trailing down her face. "It's nothing," She took a napkin and wiped her eyes.

"I'm just... so happy. All of you... make me so happy. I'm glad Nue was able to find some human friends, and I'm happy that you all accept her for who she is. Thank you for that. I want... to cherish these moments forever." Mom said with a grin.

I hugged her as we all smiled at her. "I'm just glad to be here for you." I said, breaking the hug. "Don't worry, Hotaru. I'll be sure to look and take good care of your daughter." Suigetsu said, wrapping his arm over my neck.

"Watch where your hand is, Suigetsu." I warned as it was dangerously close to my chest. "Sorry," He took his arm off me and sipped from his water bottle before looking at something on the shelf. "Hey, what's that?" He asked. "What's what?" I returned the question.

"That." He pointed at a book and I recognized it immediately. "It's nothing!" I said, quickly. "Oh, that thing." Mom said, spotting the book as well. She got up and went over to it, taking it off the shelf. "Mom, put it back! It's just-!"

"These are family pictures!" Mom said, happily. I fell on the floor, my whole body turning white like a paper cartoon. "Nue-kun, are you alright?" Megumi asked. "I'm dead. Here I come, Heaven." I said. "Let's have a look at them!" Mom said, happily.

"Forget about Heaven. I'm going to Hell." I mumbled.