"Nue, wake up! Wake up!" I heard Iri shout. I groaned in annoyance as I felt her jump up and down on my bed. "Iri, let me sleep." I said, sleepily. "But you have to wake up!" She said, loudly. Why did she sound so excited?

I was in the middle of my afternoon nap. But for some reason, Iri was waking me up. I sighed and sat up, my eyes still closed. "What is it, Iri?" I asked as I rubbed my eyes. I opened my eyes to see that she stopped jumping and landed in front of me.

"Naruto's back, and he brought back the Fifth Hokage!" She informed. "Really?" I asked. "I think you're gonna love her. She's really nice." Iri said. "She?" I repeated, confused. "Yeah, her name is Tsunade. Get dressed. I'll take you to her." She said. 

I got dressed in the outfit I wore in the Chunin Exams, then pulled on my black cloak. Ince I was dressed, Iri and I headed out. "Where is this Tsunade person anyway?" I asked. "Naruto took her to the hospital to heal Sasuke." Iri answered.

When I heard that, I ran to the hospital. "Hey, wait up!" Iri called as she followed me. We went to Sasuke's room and found a woman by his bedside with her hand over his forehead as her hand was glowing green. She took her hand off Sasuke's forehead and his eyes opened before sitting up in the bed.

I sighed in relief and smiled gently while Sakura hugged Sasuke's neck as she began to cry. "Nue-chan! You're here!" Naruto said, happily. "Hey, Naruto." I greeted with a smile. "So you're the Nue that Naruto's been talking about." The woman said.

"That's Tsunade, and the woman next to her is Shizune." Iri whispered to me. This woman is the Fifth Hokage? Her chest is bigger than Maria's! Damn perverted thoughts! I have Kiyoshi to blame for that. I've been spending way too much time around him.

"It's an honor to meet you, Lady Tsunade." I said as I bowed my head, respectfully. "Naruto's told me a lot about you. Including your gift." She mentioned. Gift?! Is she talking about my wings and tails?! I hope not. "Uh... what gift?" I said, nervously.

"I'd like to talk to you later. Can you meet me in the Hokage House in an hour?"

"Yes, of course."

"Great. See you then, Nue Houjuu."

I quickly bowed my head to her, then left the hospital. "So, what do you think of her?" Iri asked as she walked with me. "She seems nice." I said, giving her my opinion. "Oh, I've been meaning to ask you. Who do you like in this village?" Iri asked.

"What do you mean?" I asked. "I mean, who do you love, I should say?" She asked. I remember when Shikamaru asked me something like that. He seemed a little upset when I told him I loved Naruto. Well, it's more of a sibling love than a boyfriend/girlfriend love. "Um... I'm not sure." I answered. "So, what do you want to do in the meantime?" Iri asked.

"You wanna train?" I suggested.

"Sure! Which technique do you want to go over?" 

"I was thinking about going over a new technique."

"A new technique? Is it a technique you learned from Jiraiya?"

"Not exactly. More like a technique I had all along and never knew."

"I don't get it."

"Follow me."

I grabbed her hand and lead her to the training grounds. "Okay, watch this." I said, taking a couple of steps back. I took a deep breath and did some hand signs. "Dark Style: Black Shadow Clone!" I created a shadow of myself. "Awakening Eyes." I murmured.

Blood red glowing eyes appeared on the shadow's face. "Whoa... So cool! Where did you learn that?" Iri asked. "That's just the thing. I don't know where I learned the jutsu. I just knew how to do it somehow." I said, making my shadow disappear.

I squeaked in fear when a crow cawed loudly. When I did, a huge crystal emerged from the ground. "Whoa!" Iri and I took a few steps back. "Where did this thing come from?" I asked. "I have no idea. Wait... Maybe you did it, Nue." Iri said.

"Say what?"

"Well, if you think about it, when you got scared, this thing appeared out of nowhere."

"No way. Maybe someone's here with us."

"I don't think so. Try it again."

"Huh?"

"Try concentrating. Maybe another crystal will appear."

I sighed and did as she said. I closed my eyes and did a single hand sign. I concentrated on my chakra and felt the ground shake. But I kept concentrating. "Nue, look!" Iri said. I opened my eyes, turned around, and gasped as another huge crystal slowly emerged from the ground.

I lost my footing and fell on my behind, staring at the huge crystal. "You did it, Nue! What did I tell ya?!" Iri said, excitedly. "Whoa..." I said in amazement. "Can you make them disappear?" She asked. "I could try." I responded.

I stood to my feet and walked over to the crystal. When I gently placed my hand over it, the crystal completely fell apart, turning into a beautiful blue and pink dust. "Awesome!" Iri cheered. "I didn't know I could do something like that." I mumbled.

"Let's look into the matter a bit more." Iri said.

"Meaning?"

"Meaning we should see what other techniques you can do."

"Not a good idea. Because if I do a technique I didn't know I could do, something bad could happen."

"Uh, Nue?"

"Not to mention I could go insane like last time."

"Nue."

"And I could end up hurting you! If I hurt you, I could never forgive myself! Ever!" I began to panic.

"Nue!"

"What?!"

"You're in the air!"

"Huh?"

I gasped in surprise. She was right! I am in the air! Iri quickly grabbed my hand so I wouldn't float any higher. "How is this happening?!" I asked Iri in a panic. "I don't know! Maybe it's part of who you are! Like a gift, just like your wings and tails!" She said, just as panicked as I was.

I could tell she was just as panicked as I was. "How do I get down?!" I asked. "Just calm down or you'll float even higher." Iri said. I calmed myself down and saw myself slowly going towards the ground. "Well... that was something." Iri said.

"Hmm..." I hummed to myself. "Uh-oh. I know that look. That's your thinking look. What are you thinking about, Nue?" Iri asked, curiously. "I just want to try something." I said. I took a few steps forward, then got in position.

I did a single hand sign, closed my eyes, and concentrated. 

Iri's POV

As Nue stood there, I saw a weird, multicolored pond appeared beneath Nue's feet and crystals began to emerge from it. They slowly floated around Nue as her eyes remained closed. "Whoa..." I said in amazement. How is she doing that?

Nue opened her eyes and gazed at the crystals around her. She looked towards a tree before raising her hand out in front of her and the crystals darted at the tree. The crystals turned into colored kunai knives and stuck to the tree.

"That was amazing, Nue! Totally awesome!" I cheered. Nue faced me with a smile. "I'm surprised it worked out so well." She admitted.

Nue's POV

"You're taking this surprising well." I said to Iri. "Why wouldn't I? What you just did was awesome!" Iri said, excitedly.

"You're not afraid?"

"Silly, you're my sister. I'm not supposed to be afraid of you."

I smiled at her and she smiled back. "Hey, how long have we been out here?" I asked. "Um... I think for about an hour." Iri answered. "That much time has passed?!" I said. "Well, you know what they say. Time flies when you're having fun." She said, chuckling.

"Hey, what's that?" Iri pointed at something behind me, so I turned around to see what she was looking at. It was the same dog man I saw before I fell on Shikamaru. He wore something what looked like rags along with the a collar that was worn around his neck and chains that were attached to his ankles.

Does he belong to someone? "It's just staring at us." Iri said. "Do you think it belongs to somebody?" I asked Iri. "Nue, I know what I want for my birthday now." She said, staring at the dog man creature.

I took a small step forward and the creature ran off. For some reason, I wanted to follow it, so I did. "Wait for me!" Iri called. We both followed the dog man creature into the village, then into the Hokage House.

Iri and I refused to give up. We continued to chase the creature until it ran into the Hokage's office. We burst into the office without knocking. "Sorry to barge in like this, Lady Tsunade. But we're looking for a dog man creature that ran in here. Have you seen it?" Iri asked.

Tsunade responded by pointing near the corner where the dog man was sitting, staring at us calmly. "Wait, does this thing belong to you?" I asked the Hokage. "Actually, he belongs to you, Nue." She stated.

"Me?" I asked, innocently, pointing at myself. "He?" Iri repeated. "Yes, he said, he knows you, Nue." Tsunade said. "This thing has a name?" Iri asked. "Yes, I have a name." The dog man said. "It's talking!" She said in shock.

I stared at the creature with wide eyes and disbelief. "Oh, come on. Don't give me that look. You have to recognize me, Nue. It's me, Kyo. Your summoning. I've come a long a way to find you, y'know." He said. "Summoning?" Iri and I said at the same time.

"But I don't have any summonings. I think you've mistaken me for someone else." I said. Tsuande coughed, getting our attention. "Nue, I went through the Third Hokage's papers and found a note from a woman named Luna Satori. It said something about you having wings and tails." Tsunade mentioned.

I gulped. "Uh-huh... And?" I asked, nervously. "The wings and tails it mentioned... May I see them?" She asked. "Uh..." I trailed off, getting even more nervous. "It's okay, Nue. I trust her." Iri reassured me.

I wasn't so sure about this. What if Tsunade becomes afraid of me? What if she kicks me out of the village? "Oh, come on. The real Nue Houjuu wouldn't be afraid to show her true self." Kyo said. "Hey!" I accidentally yelled out.

Kyo grabbed my cloak and yanked it off my body. My wings and tails stretched out as Shizune stared at them with wide eyes. That's it, it's over for me. I'm going to be kicked out of the village. Tsunade will send me away, no doubt.

"I'm surprised how much you've grown." Tsunade commented. "Huh?" I asked, staring at her, confused. "I'm sorry. Are you saying we've met before?" I asked. "Yes. Eight years ago, to be exact." She said. "You never told me you and Tsunade have already been acquainted." Iri said.

"We haven't. I mean, I don't remember meeting her." I said. "You don't?" Tsunade asked. I shook my head. "I don't even remember my own clan." I mentioned. "Me and two old friends of mine met you when you were only four years old. Does any of this ring a bell?" Tsunade questioned.

I shook my head once again. "Lady Tsunade, is it possible she has amnesia?" Shizune asked. "Amnesia?" Tsunade looked at her, then at me. "Nue, do you remember anything from the Houjuu Clan?" She asked.

"I already told you, I don't. I don't remember anything." I repeated. "You have her face and her scent. But you don't have her attitude. The real Nue, I mean." Kyo said. "Try to think back. Remember." Tsunade said.

I closed my eyes and tried to think back. I reopened my eyes and looked at her after a few seconds. "I'm sorry, but I can't remember anything." I said.

"Hmm... Nue, you're twelve, correct?"

"Yes."

"Where is your mother? Hotaru?"

"Uncle Zabuza said that she's dead."

"Zabuza? The Demon Mist Zabuza? He's your uncle?"

"Yes."

"Enough questions. It's giving me a headache." Kyo complained. I looked at him, then at the collar and chains on his body. "Kyo, why do you have a collar on you? And what's with the chains around your ankles?" I asked.

"I wear this collar because you gave it to me. It means a lot to me, so I never took it off. But I was a bad dog back then. So, as punishment, my master, you," He pointed at me. "Chained me to wall and... well, you could say she punished me in a tortuous way. But I loved it. The girl I knew back then was tough, but that's what I liked that about her." He said, closing his eyes with a smirk.

"Masochist, much?" Iri whispered to me. I just shrugged my shoulders. "But one of the things I really liked about her was how merciless she was when she came to punishing me." I gasped Kyo was suddenly behind me and twisted my arm behind my back.

"Ow! That hurts!" I squeaked out in slight pain. "Hey, stop it! Why are you hurting her?!" Iri said, frowning. "Because I'm madly in love with her." Kyo said. He licked my cheek, causing my face to heat up. He let me go of me and backed off when I was about to hit him with my wings.

"Don't go licking people like that! And how can you say you're in love with me?! You don't even know me!" I yelled at him as my face was still red from his lick. "I do know you. But like Shizune said, you have amnesia. But one of these days, the real you will return," Kyo walked up to me and placed his hand on my cheek.

"I can hardly wait." He said with a smirk. "Yeah, he's a weird one." Tsunade mentioned with a sigh. "I'll say." I agreed as I put my cloak back on. "Wait, if your Nue's summoning, then shouldn't you be in the Summoning World?" Iri asked.

"Nue is the only one who has the power to summon me. But due to her disappearing eight years ago, I wasn't allowed to go back. So, I searched everywhere, looking for her. And now that I have, it's her decision whether or not I go back to the Summoning World." Kyo explained with his arms crossed over his chest.

"Uh... okay. Um, you can go back to the Summoning World now." I said. Kyo poofed away, probably heading back to the Summoning World. Okay, now I'm even more confused. "Nue, if you're up for it, I can have a group of medics do a Mind Search." Tsunade offered.

"A Mind Search?" I repeated. "Well, it's more of a Back To The Past jutsu. It allows you to go back to the past for a short amount of time." Tsunade explained. "This jutsu won't give her brain damage or anything, will it?" My sister asked.

"Not at all."

"Hmm... I don't know. What do you think, Nue?"

Well, I was desperate to find out more about my clan and more about my past. I'm actually willing to do anything to know about my past. "I've made up my mind. I'll do the procedure." I told Tsunade. "Nue, are you sure?" Iri asked.

"It's the only way to know what happened back then, Iri. I have to do this. I need to know what happened to the Houjuu Clan." I said, grasping her hands. Iri looked at me with worry before smiling.

"If that's what you truly want, then I support you every step of the way." She said, placing a hand on my shoulder. I smiled back at her. "Thanks, Iri." I said. I turned to Tsunade. "I'm ready." I said. "Good. Then, let's get started."  

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Kon'nichiwa. A bit of a cliffhanger here. I hope you guys liked this chapter. Chapter 43 coming up soon. See you all later!

Kureiji out~