Naruto 1. Prologue : Birthday Present

Mother of the Morning

by Goggleplex

Summery: When Sakura turned 14 she was kidnapped by order of Orochimaru and was never seen again. Seven years later she finally escapes his lair with her life and children. All ten of them. The Haruno Clan is very, very powerful...

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto or the characters from the manga/anime. I did however create Sakura's kids. So please ask if you ever want to use them.

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Prologue - Birthday Present

Far more than living people, Kabuto spent the majority of his time around the non-living. Inside his private lab, a gift given to him by Orochimaru as a gift for his loyalty 34 bodies were laid out on dissection tables. Legs and arms had been dissected down to the bone. A few of their internal organs are gone. Bodies. Bones. Human remains are resting on tables, in cabinets, all around the room. Waiting to be pieced back together, analyzed, laid to rest. A 14-year-old girl murdered and dumped along a dirt-side road near Iwagakure. A badly scavenged body found scattered in a nearby Rice Country field. A woman found dead in a bag discarded near a river three years prior.

Kabuto loved to work almost exclusively with the remains of people who have been murdered or who had died under mysterious circumstances. If there was a corpse and a mystery, he would almost always offer to help solve the puzzle. So he reads the story of a living life written on every person's bones. Bone remodels under the stress of our activities, the bio-mechanical habits of living (the way we brush our teeth, the labor we do routinely for work, our nutritional habits) leave clear markings on our skeletons. With those markings, he identified sex, race, age, physical stature and physique, and often occupation. He learns the time and cause of death. And he found out who the person was.

However he also was Orochimaru's top agent in the field of biochemical engineering and genetics. He could take apart and put together genes and DNA strands as if he were playing with blocks and gears.

In the late evening on March 29th he sat holed up in his lab, concentrating on the dissection he was preforming. As he was carefully removing the skin from the arm of a mutilated little boy there was a sudden impatient knocking on the door before it opened to reveal Sasuke who had a body heaved brutally over his shoulder.

"Is that a birthday present for me Sasuke-kun?" Kabuto asked with a gleam of excitement in his eyes. "It's almost a month late."

"feh," Sasuke snorted with a cold glare, "Orochimaru says you are to keep her alive as well as healthy and provide useful creations by studying and testing her. You are becoming useless Kabuto. Don't mess up."

With that he firmly removed the girl from his presence and left without another word. As he approached her Kabuto recognized the girl as Sasuke's ex-teammate from Konoha. He lifted her onto an unoccupied table and proceeded to read up on the file he kept updated on ninja from Fire Country.

**Name**: Sakura Haruno

**Birthdate**: March 28

**Age**: 14

**Rank**: Chunin, Hokage's Apprentice

**Bloodline**: None

**Ninjutsu**: Average

**Taijutsu**: Advanced See: Other Skills

**Genjutsu**: Advanced

**Other Skills**: Certified Medic Nin, Chikara Extension Technique, Chikara Nerve Attack, Beginner with Sealing Techniques.

Now the only question for Kabuto was what to do with her. Orochimaru hadn't been specific and that gave him a bit of creative freedom but at the same time he had been ordered to keep her alive as well as healthy and that limited his choices as well. He glanced angrily at the door and glared at it. Damn that Sasuke Uchiha. He walked around so sure of himself because he was from a special bloodline. Everyone who lived in the Sound Village was at least a renegade from another village. Sound was a young village. It didn't even have a clan of its own.

Kabuto paused before he suddenly smirked. Sometimes he was surprised about how ingenious ha had become. He would engineer a new bloodline and it would be the best and most coveted in the world. And this little girl. This Sakura Haruno would be the matron founder of the most amazing bloodline in history. It would be absolutely legendary...

But who would be the second parent? It couldn't be himself, nor any other Sound Ninja, none were powerful enough to be of the first generation. He glanced around his lab hoping for a spark of inspiration. Feeling nothing he turned to look at the body he had previously been working on. He really did like taking them apart. Finding the inner intricacies of the body was a sort of spiritual revival for him. The human body was powerful. It was wonderful. It was an art to take them apart.

Kabuto looked over the posters on his walls. No inspiration there. Just charts and old medical research scrolls, two of which were decorated with fish and their tenketsu points. He looked at the file in his hands and absently folded it into quarters, making an envelope. Why couldn't he be creative!?

Frustrated he crumpled the file and aggressively threw it across the room. There was a muffled thud and a sudden crash, causing Kabuto to groan in impatience. There went the clay vase he had picked up in Iwa. He liked it too. It had hummingbirds and golden clouds painted on it. To bad it hadn't lasted a month before it was destroyed. He went over to the broom closet and brushed aside several black and neon green spiders that spun freely on their webs before picking up the broom and dustpan.

He nearly knocked over his poorly watered Dionaea muscipula with his arm but caught it just before it fell to its doom. He then cleaned up the vase and emptied it into the garbage before once again pacing and pondering how to create a clan that would have powerful members. It was just such a pity he lived in such an uninspiring place...How did anyone ever come up with good ideas in a place filled with dead bodies?

to be continued...

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Well think I shoud continue? Did you like it? Please review and tell me your thoughts. 


	2. Light in the Darkness

Mother of the Morning

by Goggleplex

Summery: When Sakura turned 14 she was kidnapped by Orochimaru and was never seen again. Eight years later she finally escapes his lair with her life and children. All ten of them.

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto or the characters from the manga/anime. I did however create Sakura's kids. So please ask if you ever want to use them.

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Chapter One - Light in the Darkness 

Sakura concentrated on the body in front of her and she steadily sewed the lacerations on the body shut, "Honestly Kabuto-san, You should know by now to leave Sasuke alone when he is in one of his moods."

Kabuto gave a slight grimace and said, "I know, Sakura-san. But don't over exert yourself, you're due any day now."

Without a second thought Sakura's hand brushed over her rather enlarged lower body, "If your time frame is the same as the last four times they'll be here in five days. I'm sort of excited to see what these two will be like..."

"As long as they are less bossy then Sakana I could care less." Kabuto said with a teasing voice.

"I am not bossy Kabuto-ojisan!" a little voice shouted and there was a sudden blue blur before Kabuto was tackled by it, "You'd better apologize or I'll take your glasses when you aren't paying attention."

"Sakana!" Sakura scolded, "You know better than to grab patients when I'm working on their injuries."

A blue haired girl with Sakura's foam-green eyes looked up in slight shame, "I'm sorry, mommy. I accidentally forgot..."

Sakura floundered a little inside and kissed her first daughter on her cheek, slightly above her odd gill-like birthmarks and said, "It's alright Sakana-chan, just don't forget again. Now go find one of your brothers to play with."

Sakana got a haughty look on her face and said, "I'll go read to Mai because she will stay quiet and listen to me." And with that she stalked off to find her little sister.

With a final sweep across Kabuto's shoulder she straightened and said, "Alright Kabuto, you're good to go."

"Thank you Sakura-san." Kabuto said with an easy grin, "Did anything interesting happen in the lab today?"

Sakura sat in a nearby cushioned chair and with a fond smile said, "Sanosuke decided to start learning wall-walking and nearly broke his neck when he fell three feet from the ceiling. Sakana got passed ABC books and is reading Sanji and Keiko stories. Mai looked at the ant farm you gave her all afternoon. Mokuba seems to have entered a smash everything that's breakable stage in his life. Rumiko sat on my lap and counted all the way to fifty and Raito told me he wants to go swimming to see the tropical fish again. Kinta learned the words red, needle, shot, and boo-boo today and Kiku learned pea pod and tree."

Kabuto grinned wily and said, "They're a good bunch of experiments, aren't they Sakura-san."

A dark expression passed Sakura's face and she stood, glaring at him while hissing, "Don't you dare call them that you insane fucker. They are my children not your experiments."

Kabuto grinned slyly and said, "Now, now Sakura-san. You don't even know who your children's fathers are. I gave you a choice to be a part of their upbringing and be my good little apprentice while I study their development or to be locked up and just be a little breeding girl for a new generation. You chose to be with the little gaki's. You just better be thankful that Sasuke and Orochimaru don't know about the munchkins. They just think I'm developing new jutsu's with you as a Guinea pig. If you test my patience I might let Orochimaru know that little Sanosuke is a prodigy in the making that would be an even greater body then Sasuke-kun."

"You wouldn't dare." Sakura hissed.

"Try me. See how far you'll get."

"I hate you."

"Go take care of your children Sakura-san. You shouldn't leave Kinta and Kiku alone for so long, they're only going to be one..."

"Next time Sasuke beats you within an inch of your life I won't be using anesthetic!" Sakura growled and stalked away looking like a rather menacing mountain giant. As she cooled off she rounded a corner and a two-foot-tall something grabbed her legs.

"Mama! Mama!" a blond energy ball who went by the name of Mokuba clung like static to her right leg, "Guess what, Mama! I grew more mouths!"

Sakura sighed and said, "Mokuba what have I told you about stretching the truth?"

His sparkling green eyes peered up at her and he said, "But I'm telling the truth, Mama! Look!" He then stretched his arms out to reveal two honest to goodness mouths on the palms of his hands. They had tiny pearly white teeth and seemed to have the same cheerful wide grin the mouth on his face always seemed to have. "Aren't they cool! Will Mai get them too?"

Sakura embraced her fourth child and with a laugh that could have also been a sigh she said, "What's the one thing about Haruno's that is always true?"

"Every Haruno child is different," Mokuba recited with a grin, "But why are we all so different Mama?"

"Because if you were all the same I'd never be able to tell you apart from each other," Sakura said with a teasing grin, "Besides, isn't it fun to be the only one with three sets of teeth? I bet if you tried you could find something fun to do with them."

"Do you think I could eat cake with them?" Mokuba said with an excited light in his eyes.

"Maybe, but then you'd have to brush your teeth three times," Sakura said as she playfully flicked him on the nose.

"Mommy! You're back, Mommy!" a second child leaped at her and two arms circled around her neck, "Pwease take me swimming today? Wanna see the fish!"

"Raito, calm down sweety," Sakura said as she turned to face her silver haired son, "You can go swimming later when Uncle Kabuto can watch you."

"Want to swim now!" he said with a pout and a stamp of his foot.

"Don't be rude, Raito, demanding things isn't a nice thing to do." Sakura admonished.

"Yeah Raito, don't be rude," another voice piped up. Raito's twin Rumiko said as she tacked him, her foam-green eyes flashing within their pools of inky black, to meet his wide and innocent ones of an identical shade, "You can't tell Mommy what to do. She's going to give us another brother and sister soon, you need to be nice to Mommy."

"But we don't need another brother and sister," Raito said with a whine, "Can't we give them away to someone else when they come?"

"Raito don't be silly," a young, though purposefully mature sounding voice broke in and her oldest son, Sanosuke appeared next to the group, "You can't give away brothers and sisters. You have to protect them and help them grow up by helping mama and teaching them the stuff we already know."

'He's growing up so fast,' Sakura thought with a misty smile, 'It seems like only yesterday that I looked into his adorable eyes for the first time. I can't believe he'll be five years old tomorrow...'

"Mama, I'm hungry," a tiny shy voice piped up and Sakura beamed at Mai, who was covered from head to foot with a thin film of gray dust, causing her fiery red hair to stand out more than it usually did, Sakana stood beside her, holding onto her hand.

"Alright my little Haruno swarm, to the dining room! Suppertime awaits! Sanosuke, Sakana? Please do me a favor and wake Kinta and Kiku up from their naps and bring them over to me, alright?"

"Yes, Mama," Sanosuke said with a nod and dashed off, dragging his twin alongside with him.

Dinnertime was a hectic adventure as it always was in the Haruno family. Two food fights broke out and after it was all done it was time for the eight children to be put up for sleep for the night. Sakana helped Sakura give Kinta and Kiku their baths, as the two babbled half spoken infant nonsense to each other from across the room. Sakura bathed Kinta while Sakana bathed Kiku, who cooed happily over her current baby sister, "Who's the prettiest green eyed baby in the world? You are Kiku. Who's the prettiest green haired baby in the world? Yooouu are." She gave Kiku a lout kiss on her forehead causing Kiku to giggle madly before she suddenly burst into a fit of tears. A second later she reverted back to laughing before she shouted, "Meanie!" and burst into tears again.

Sakana groaned and said, "Mama! Kiku's acting weird again. She's taking turns laughing and crying."

"Here, we'll switch. Kinta just needs to have his hair rinsed," Sakura said and Sakana wandered over. Sakura calmed Kiku down and listened to Sakana, amused at her banter.

"Hey Kinta! Whose he handsomest green eyed baby in the world? You are, Kinta! Whose the handsomest spiky brown haired baby in the world? You are Kinta!" her brother just giggled happily at the attention. It was times like these when Sakura felt almost glad to have become a prisoner to the most insane medic she had ever had the misfortune to be acquainted to.

---

Sakura's cries rang loudly through the darkened fortress but all who heard it ignored her. Screams happened all the time and these particular ones had come at the same time for the past couple of years, this one being the fifth time. Early June was a busy month for Kabuto it seemed but nobody cared to see what was going on in his labs. Because nobody really cared.

Sakura cared. The process of birth hurt like nothing else! You would think after experiencing it eight times she'd be used to it, but she wasn't. "Damn it Kabuto! I hate you! You did this to me-yeeOWshit! I hope you drop dead and choke on your own over-inflated head!"

Nonplussed by her threat Kabuto stayed focused before he suddenly announced, "The first one is crowning!"

Sakura let out a shuttering groan and the cries of an infant filled the room. Without a sign of an emotion Kabuto calmly announced, "It's a boy!"

Sakura smiled faintly but another wave of pain shot through her body and she let out a groan, "Ugh, I'm contracting again Kabuto-san!"

"One moment," Kabuto said as be finished cleaning up the boy and laid him squirming in a clean bassinet, then he turned back to Sakura and prepped her for birth once again.

"Ugh, ah! AHHHGH!!! I know I've said it before but this time I'm serious! I AM NEVER HAVING ANOTHER KID AGAIN!" Sakura felt tears running down her face but she didn't care. It hurt to much to hide her pain behind a mask of pride!

A second crying voice filled the air and Sakura barely heard Kabuto say, "It's a girl! Congratulations, Sakura. They are both healthy and very lively."

"Go to hell, you insane fucker." Sakura said before groaning as her placenta was expelled.

"I assume you have names ready for them?" Kabuto asked.

"Let me see them first please." Sakura had her eyes closed but opened them once she felt the familiar feel of twin infants pressed into her arms. She opened her eyes and wasn't totally surprised to see her two new children had the same green eyes that their siblings all shared with their mother. The boy had dark violet colored hair and the girl had hair that was a brighter shade of blue than Sakana's own dark cobalt tresses. Different fathers again. Sakura wondered whose children she had this time but it mattered little. All that mattered was that she was there for them and they were hers.

"The boy is Yotoki Haruno and the girl will be Yomiko Haruno." Sakura said with a slightly delirious smile. Kabuto chucked at Sakura's unintentional irony and wrote out the two birth certificates, siting the fathers both as unknown. Sakura was in hell, but she had her own little pieces of heaven to help her keep the darkness out of her heart...

End Chapter One

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Anyone want to guess the 'parents' of the individual kids? I hope you enjoyed it and please review! I love reviews! 


	3. Power Faith and the Question of Insanity

Mother of the Morning

by Goggleplex

Summery: When Sakura turned 14 she was kidnapped by order of Orochimaru and was never seen again. Eight years later she finally escapes his lair with her life and children. All ten of them.

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto or the characters from the manga/anime. I did however create Sakura's kids. So please ask if you ever want to use them.

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Chapter Two - Power, Faith and The Question of Insanity

"Testing time! Sanosuke, you're up first," Kabuto announced to the line of kids in front of him. It was the 20th of June and on the 20th of each month Kabuto would record the progress the Haruno children had made over the past month. The kids usually studied on their own or with Sakura but sometimes Kabuto would give them things to learn about that he thought would be helpful to them. When that happened though there were times that the situation backfired. Like when he taught Raito about the Jashinite religion in the hopes that he would be interested in it but the young boy merely became sickened and declared he hated Jashin and hoped a stronger god would defeat him. In his desire to have relief from his nightmares about the human sacrificing god Raito eventually learned about Deoshin, the god opposite of Jashin and became a Deoshinite instead. But that religion suited Raito better and he was the most spiritual of his siblings now even if he was only five years old.

Sanosuke stepped forward and smiled slightly, waiting patiently for Kabuto to begin his test, "Your assignment for the month was to create three new techniques, one in ninjutsu and two in genjutsu. You may begin your demonstration now. First describe the technique and then preform it."

Sanosuke nodded and with a calm voice replied, "My ninjutsu technique is called Fire Clone Jutsu, it's a fire affinity ninjutsu and by using the Fire element, I can form a clone made out of fire. The clone is capable of using jutsu except for Suiton techniques. Anyone who touches the clone will be burned. The hand seals for the technique are ram, rooster, ram and tiger."

He quickly preformed the hand seals and pursed his lips into a whistle, spitting out a single copy of himself. It looked exactly like Sanosuke with the exception of the slightly tanner skin and slight smoke trails coming from it's mouth. The clone preformed a quick fire-blast before it dispelled from a lack of chikara. Sanosuke looked tired but with a slight stretching energy seemed to enter him once again. Kabuto smiled. The kids probably thought it was normal to replenish emptied chikara reserves in less than a few seconds but it was completely a Haruno trait thanks to his fiddling with Sakura's genetics in the first six months that she had become his 'apprentice'.

In his mind he replayed the processes he put Sakura through before he implanted a set of twins in her for the first time. _Carbide ceramic ossification_: a technique he once used on Kimimaro. Advanced material grafting onto skeletal structures to make bones virtually unbreakable. It was recommended that the procedure not exceed 3 percent of the total bone mass due to complications that could happen including total bone pulverization. He covered 93 percent of Sakura's skeleton and she almost died. Strong bones like iron were in her genetics now though. _Muscular enhancement injections_: a complex protein was injected intramuscularly to increase her tissue density and decrease lactase recovery time, allowing less time to feel tired. There was a five percent chance that she would experience a fatal cardiac increase in volume, but luckily that didn't happen. Next was his favorite procedure, _occipital capillary reversal_: the submergence and boosted blood vessel flow beneath the rods and cones of Sakura's retina's. It produced an visual perception increase, the only risk was a retinal rejection and detachment that would have left Sakura permanently blind. And finally_ superconducting fibrification of neural dendrites_: when he altered the bioelectrical nerve transduction to shielded electronic transduction. A four hundred percent increase in Sakura's reflexes was the result as well as a marked increase in her intelligence, memory and creativity. There was a chance that later in life she would develop Parkinson's disease or Fletcher's syndrome but that was a risk he gladly put Sakura in for the benefit of her bloodline.

All Haruno's possessed perfect chikara control and could replenish their chikara reserves almost instantly after depletion. The abilities of a Haruno's second parent were magnified to a certain degree as well he had discovered. All Haruno's were intelligent and could speak fluently before even their second birthday. And those were the things they simply inherited from Sakura herself. Kabuto had added genes to Sakura that created very, very interesting results. Sakura had an Ultimate Defense Bloodline that was now purely for Haruno blood family members. Their bodies could change in the environment they were in so they could survive virtually any environment or attack. They could breath underwater, walk through fire without burning, be buried under three tons of rocks, surviving uncrushed and live in the harshest of environments. The Defense Bloodline acted as camouflage, turning Haruno's invisible if they concentrated and loosening their cellular structure so they could move through solid objects as though it were air. Kabuto had created the ultimate ninja clan.

His mind drifted back to Sanosuke's demonstration, as he began his descriptions again, "My first genjutsu technique is called the Mirrored Hallway. Within this genjutsu, the person finds themselves on a mirrored floor with many doors down a long hallway. Behind these doors are frightening, terrible things that make people recoil in horror. I will put you in the genjutsu and lift it after two minutes."

Kabuto nodded and he suddenly found himself, as Sanosuke had described, in a mirror floored hallway with a lot of doors down the hall. He curiously opened one and nearly stepped away in shock. Behind the door was himself and he was strapped down on a medical table and was being meticulously taken apart by Orochimaru and his adopted father from Konoha. _'Sanosuke-kun couldn't have known my fear. This genjutsu is actually being held in my own mind. That's incredible talent. He himself would probably only see something childish like his mother and siblings being taken away...'_ Faster than what seemed to be two minutes he blinked and found himself returned to the Examination Room.

"Very good, Sanosuke. That is a very well made technique." Kabuto said with his usual disarming smile.

Sanosuke smiled slightly at the praise and began to speak once more, "My second genjutsu technique is called Illusioned Fall and when a weapon is thrown, this technique allows me to make the enemy believe that I have been hit and have fallen when I in fact have dodged the attack... the illusion of my fallen body, allowing me to become temporarily invisible, only lasts a for a few moments."

Kabuto smiled his disarming grin and said, "Let's see it then," before he lightly tossed a kunai in Sanosuke's direction. Sakana let out a horrified shriek when it sunk into Sanosuke's unprotected forehead and his eyes rolled to the back of his head as he collapsed to the ground, seemingly dead. His siblings began to clamor and rush around him in various states of panic before the body fizzled away to reveal Sanosuke standing about two feet away from a teary-eyed Yotoki.

"Over here, you guys." Sanosuke said with a slight grin.

Sakana rounded on him and slapped him in the back of his head furiously, "Sanosuke you moron! How dare you scare me like that!"

"I did describe what it would do," Sanosuke said, slightly annoyed at the headache his twin had given him, "But sorry if I scared you all."

"Alright then kids, settle down," Kabuto said and the ten got back into a straight formation. "Alright then, Sanosuke, you passed this month's exam, see me tomorrow morning for a new one. Sakana, you're up next. Your assignment was to create two ninjutsu techniques that require both a lot of chikara and perfect chikara control. You may begin your demonstration. Describe the technique and then preform it."

Sakana leaped from her place in the line and grinned in overwhelming self confidance. She was looking more and more like her second parent every day ever since her skin had been taking a bluish sheen to it on her sixth birthday, she still acted more like Sakura than _him_ though, "Alright, Uncle Kabuto! I'll describe my favorite one first! I call it Water Release-Hydra Blast and unlike the Water Dragon Blast this technique only requires a few hand seals, the attack is just the Water Dragon Jutsu multiplied by whatever number I wish, depending on how much chikara I want to use. Using this technique not only requires a large amount of chikara but also precise chikara control since I must control a multiple amount of water dragons at once. There isn't enough water in here but trust me I can do the technique."

"You can show it to me later," Kabuto said and made a tiny mark on his clipboard, "And your second technique?"

"It's called Spinning Hydro Typhoon and when I form the hand seals I generate a whirlwind around the lower half of my body that enables me to hover. The water in the attack is sharp like a knife but I can only do the technique for about a minute before my chikara runs out."

"Very good Sakana, see me later tonight by the pond to show your techniques to me."

"Okie, dokie!" Sakana said with a grin before returning to her place in line.

"Mai, you're up now," Kabuto said and the young girl shyly stepped forward, not directly looking him in the eye.

"You had a self improvement month to polish up your chikara control. Did you learn anything new?" Kabuto asked with a warm smile. He actually liked Mai a lot. She was quiet and had the most patient temperament of her siblings. She had never ever lost her temper and was always in a patient mood. He wondered how it happened. Neither of her parents were very patient people...

Mai smiled shyly and in a quiet voice (she never mumbled because it was rude to do so) she said, "Well I learned my chikara melds well with different elements and I can make my movements in taijutsu follow through in elements if I leave a solid chikara trail."

"Will you give a demonstration so I can grade your progress?"

Mai nodded slightly and got into an offensive stance before making a raising motion with her hands. A moment after a pillar of stone grew up from beneath Kabuto's feet before Mai broke her hands away from each other causing the pillar to separate and cause Kabuto to unexpectedly do the splits. Kabuto steadied himself and he smiled at Mai before saying, "Excellent work, Mai. That is a great technique to incorporate into taijutsu."

Mai flushed with the praise and hurried back into line next to Sakana and Mokuba, who seemed about ready to jump in at any moment.

"Alright Mokuba, it's your turn. You needed to complete an original technique using any specialty the mouths on your hands give you. Describe what you will be doing and then give a demonstration of the technique." Kabuto said and inwardly mused _'I wonder if he learned he could make objects explode like his parent. Not that exploding sawdust would hurt much...'_

Mokuba rushed out and rocked excitedly back and forth on his feet as he began to speak very quickly, "Okay, so I know I was supposed to be original but I got this idea when I read this book about these guys named Aru and Edo and they did these weird sealing techniques that changed the chemical composition of different objects. I first thought just ordinary ink seals would work but those were an absolute disaster. So I was sitting and wondering to myself 'how the heck do I transform something that needs chikara in the ink to be able to work' and while mixing blood and chikara is possible it's so painful and ridiculous to do so that it would be useless. Then I remembered my hands sometimes drool when I think about pie and cake and sweet things. I really hope Mama makes dessert tonight. My favorite pies are ones with fruit and nuts in them but I like pies with lemons and limes in them as well. My favorite cakes are vanilla flavored and my favorite ice cream is cherry even though Sakana says the flavor is for girls."

"Mokuba, your going off track," Kabuto said, "You were going to describe your technique."

"Oh right! Sorry! So like I said my hands drool a little at times. So I was mixing some wood pulp with the saliva and made a sort of paint with it that holds in chikara. When I paint seals on different objects I can alter the chemicals in the object and change it. Here, I'll show you."

Mokuba took out a jar with a lid on it and after opening it covered his right forefinger in a whitish-brown paint. He took out a small piece of glass and proceeded to paint a circular seal on it before infusing the paint with an extra boost of chikara. There was a flash of yellow light and the next moment a small pile of finely grained sand lay where the glass was. "Since glass is made with silica which is sand I can turn it into sand. If I painted around the sand I would be able to turn it back into glass."

"Good job, Mokuba. Try not to get so many ideas from reading comic books though," Kabuto said with a smile.

Mokuba huffed and muttered something like "Not everyone can be a genius enough to make a made up technique work in real life."

"Rumiko, it's your turn," Kabuto said and the young girl stepped forward. Outwardly she was one of the most physically altered sibling, with holes she had created herself in the skin of her arms, legs, hands, fingertips, palms, neck and mouth. Someone could have mistaken the holes as a trait of an Aburame but she had simply created holes to allow the threads of her bloodline to move in and out without it being necessary to sever away her limbs. Rumiko was quiet and didn't speak much with words since the hole in her mouth made her self conscious about speaking, instead she showed what she wanted through slight body gestures that all her family and Kabuto seemed to understand.

"Rumiko your assignment was to improve on your general weaponry usage and to show an example of using seals to complete techniques." Kabuto said.

Rumiko swiftly moved forward and pulled out two short sais from side packs strapped to her hips, she grinned and shifted her right foot forward before spinning in a dizzying array of fast jabs, parries and slashes against an invisible enemy. Kabuto noted that her footwork was becoming quite ridiculous and over exuberant when his chikara sensor picked up the fact that the girl in front of him was about to preform a jutsu. There was a stomp of her foot and in her place was now a random log, Rumiko had somehow performed a kawarimi by using her feet in conjunction with attacking with her weapons. Kabuto couldn't get over how talented these kids were. It was pretty frightening in when he thought about it in different ways.

"Excellent work Rumiko," Kabuto said with a nod.

Rumiko smiled in return shrugged her shoulders seemingly to say, "Thank you. I tried my hardest."

"Now then, Raito. Your assignment was to create a new attack in conjunction with your Qijiebian I want you to demonstrate what you've learned." Kabuto pointed to the front of the line where his siblings had previously been tested.

Raito marched firmly to the line and looked Kabuto squarely in the eye before he announced, "I would just like to let you know that I won't ever use this technique on a person unless a life is in danger."

Kabuto inwardly sighed but as usual he replied to Raito's statement, "And why is that, Raito?"

"Because hurting and killing people who still are under the blessing of life that Deoshin gives to us all is a sin and I cannot go against the morals of my own heart." Raito said with a gentle smile, "I am a protector of life after all, not a killer."

Kabuto nodded and said, "Yes I understand, Raito. Now would you complete your assignment?"

Raito took out his Qijiebian and whipped it around his head a few times, before he cracked it like a silver bullwhip as a white shimmering light began to fizzle out of his skin and he began to speak in a reveared tone, "_Angel of Deoshin, my Guardian dear, To whom Deoshin's love commits me here; Ever this day, be at my side. To light and guard, to rule and guide._"

There was a sudden flash of intense golden light and Kabuto's jaw dropped about five inches when the image of a person appeared. Kabuto had heard of angels before but this guy was nothing like what people described. He definitely wasn't some sissy in a dress. He had dark gold hair, steely copper eyes, bronze skin, golden flaming wings, he was VERY muscular, very tall and he wore iron armor inlaid with gold. He carried a flaming whip identical to Raito's own steel Qijiebian, only with about twenty more segments. In a voice that could have made the Kyuubi's blood run cold the gigantic man looked down at Raito and asked, "**You summoned me as a servant of Lord Daioshin. How may I serve in your purpose worthy servant of my Lord?**"

"Could you tell Uncle Kabuto that I passed my test?" Raito asked charmingly and the angel rounded on Kabuto who nearly loosened his bowels at the look that the ethereal entity gave him.

"**The boy passes**," the angel said sternly and Kabuto felt his blood run cold when the voice entered his mind, '_**And just so you know. If you harm the boy or allow harm to come to him or any of his relatives the wrath of a god of love and peace will be on your shoulders. Think about that for a while...**_'

The angel vanished in a flash of light and Kabuto shakily gasped, "P-passes..."

"I apologize if he frightened you Uncle Kabuto," Raito said with a truly apologetic expression on his face, "When he appears to me he usually seems less dangerous."

"It's fine Raito. How exactly did you use your attack? The chikara sensor didn't pick up any reading during your attack." Kabuto said trying to shake the dread that still clung to his mind.

"I didn't use chikara for the technique," Raito replied, "I prayed and used my spirit energy which was boosted significantly by my faith over the past few months. After all the great Deoshin tells us that even with faith the size of a poppy seed one could tell a mountain to move there and it would be so."

"Wow Raito," Mokuba said in awe, "That's pretty cool. Hey, hey if I became a Deoshinite could I do that?"

Raito smiled and said, "I would love for any of my family members to enter into Deoshin's grace. But in order to actually summon his otherworldly servants or fully take on his otherworldly blessings you would need to be able to separate your physical and spiritual energy and that angel Kaio has told me that it is impossible to do so unless someone has the blood of one whose ancestors were blessed by the heavens one thousand years ago. I do not have mouths on my hands and you would not be able to significantly separate your spirit with your physical energy."

Mokuba sighed and said, "Ah that's okay then, Raito. It's still pretty cool though..."

"Alright kids, back in order," Kabuto said, feeling slightly less stressed, "Kinta, you're up now."

"In the last session you learned your elemental affinity is lightning, your assignment was to learn a raiton technique of any rank using any medium to utilize it. Go ahead and describe it and then preform it." Kabuto said and the shaggy dark haired boy nodded sending a charming smile Kabuto's way.

"I learned a technique called Thunder Clap and it originated in the Hidden Cloud Village. The user claps their hands together after the ending of the serpent seal, when this is done a big sound wave is emitted like thunder and it can knock people over and make them dizzy if they are hit by it. But I needed to make seals and my hands don't bend right to make them so I'm going to infuse chikara with sound and form the seals that way."

Kinta pulled up a 1/8th sized violin and played a simple, uncluttered tune almost like rearranged scales. The chikara meter began to light up and with a final high G an electrified wave of sound shot out towards Kabuto, hitting him full blast. Kabuto felt nauseous and dizzy but stayed standing tall and alert. "Good job Kinta, that is an excellent technique and one day will likely be a good trump card."

Kinta seemed to puff up at the praise and he said, "Well, I _am _good with music and I _am _a pretty cool guy. People love guys who can play instruments right?"

"Sure they do, Kinta," his twin Kiku said in an encouraging yet shy voice, "Instruments are great..."

"Kiku, it's your turn," Kabuto said with a smile and the white-and-black skinned girl stepped forward as she beamed shyly up at him from behind her long green bangs.

"Now then, Kiku. You had the same assignment as Kinta. Your elemental affinity is earth and your assignment was to learn a doton technique of any rank using any medium to utilize it, describe it first and then preform it."

Kiku shyly smiled and said, "I decided to learn Earth Style: Earth Shield to use as a defense. I'll preform it now."

Kiku fumbled through the hand signs and when she finished with a ram seal instead of a wall of stone rising from the floor a the ground merely turned into a field of misshapen pebbles. Kabuto shook his head and said, "I'm sorry Kiku but you've failed the examination, you can visit me next week for a reexamination."

"B-but I tried really hard," Kiku said, as she sniffed a little.

"You didn't try hard enough," Kabuto said, "If Kinta had earth element he would've preformed it flawlessly. You aren't dedicating yourself to truly mastering your techniques."

Kiku hiccuped and said, "B-but element techniques are hard. I don't think I have enough chikara to do anything above D-Rank. Can't you please give me a different test?"

"No. That would be unfair to your siblings. Finish your assignment or I won't assign you another one," Kabuto said firmly.

Kiku's eyes began to moisten even more and with tears streaming down her cheeks her face suddenly took on a very hateful and vengeful expression, causing her siblings to step back for safer coverage. Clutching her fists Kiku snarled, "_You're a jerk and I hate you! YOU'VE NEVER LIKED ME! YOU HATE ME AND THAT'S WHY YOU GIVE ME HARD ASSIGNMENTS EVEN WHEN YOU KNOW I CAN'T DO THEM! __**I HOPE YOU TRIP AND FALL AND THAT MAMA KICKS YOUR UNFAIR BUTT! YOU'RE A MEANIE HEAD!**_"

"I hate it when she does this," Kinta said with a sad sigh before he stepped forward and shouted, "Kiku! Don't worry! I'll help you and when you retest you'll blow Kabuto out of the water with your cool new powers!"

Kiku turned on her twin and her furious face melted into a pained expression with tears again, "Why can't I be good at anything like everyone else. It's not fair Kinta."

"You're good at lots of things Kiku," Kinta replied, reassuring her, "We may be good at our special moves but you can do more of Mama's techniques than any of us. I can't turn all the way invisible like you can. You are also good at growing things. Every plant that I touch ends up dieing."

Kiku calmed down slightly and as she wiped her eyes with her sleeve she muttered, "Thank you Kinta."

Kinta hugged her and he felt her relax a little, he took her back to the line and whispered, "It's no problem, sis. Twins have got to stick together after all."

Kabuto felt a migrane comming on but he looked back at his list and was reassured, there were only two exams to go. The youngest set of twins were now up.

"Yotoki," Kabuto said,feeling impressed that both he and his twin had been so still throughout the exam. For three year olds that was impressive, "Your assignment was to learn how to properly handle kunai and shiruken, blease demonstrate by throwing your weapons at the target in the corner."

Yotoki nodded solemnly, his dark plum hair rippling in the light of the room, "Yes, Kabuto-san." He took up his multitude of weapons and with the same solemn expression on his face tossed the weapons in rapid succession at the stationary wooden dummy in the corner. The weapons clunked as they hit around the dummy in a shadowed outline, not one hitting the intended target.

Kabuto sighed and said, "Yotoki, did you even practice once this month?"

"Yes, of course I did," Yotoki said, looking slightly insulted, "I was pretending the scarecrow was dodging though. Not to mention I hit the stone wall and you didn't even notice my practice weapons got stuck in it."

Kabuto looked over once again and did indeed notice the dull edged blades had sunk about a quarter inch into the rock. Testimony of his strong bones and muscles no doubt.

"Test again tomorrow to see if you actually hit a target." Kabuto said, not wanting to give Kiku any arsenal about 'favoritism'.

Yotoki nodded and looking more down than usual said, "Whatever suits you, Kabuto-san."

"Yomiko, it's your turn," Kabuto called and looked over the line before he noticed she wasn't standing there. "Where is Yomiko, Yotoki?"

The boy shrugged and said, "Probably out looking at walls with Mama. She left a paperdoll here but it dissappeared when you spoke her name."

"Looking...at...walls!?" Kabuto asked feeling agitated. He should have known this would happen damn-it. Every chance Sakura had she would use Kabuto's distraction to try to find weaknesses in the seals around the lair that kept her from going further than one mile away. She always took a kid with her to act as though it was a 'one-on-one bonding time' but that was just so he wouldn't take her apart right when he found her. Whenever another person would see her she would cast a genjutsu over the child to make them unnoticeable. He looked at the idling kids in front of him and pursed his lips in anger. He had to leave them alone for a few minutes.

"Stay here, I'll go find your mother and your sister," Kabuto said before rushing out the door, a final order trailing behind him "Practice your abilities while I'm out."

He was so angry with Sakura that he forgot to lock the door of the testing chamber behind him. Sakana heard what Kabuto had said but also noticed that the door was unlocked and like the worst forbidden fruit it was calling out to her. She wanted to obey Kabuto but it was too much for her self control. The thing Kabuto constantly seemed to forget about children was this: no matter how placated they are and no matter how many books, toys and distractions you throw at them they eventually become bored by their boundaries of entertainment and grow a desire to be uninhibited in the world. Sakana had never gone beyond the boarders of uncle Kabuto's quarters but the unlocked doorway was just too tempting.

"Sanosuke," she whispered deviously so their other siblings wouldn't overhear, "I'm following Uncle Kabuto. Cover for me if Mama comes back."

Sanosuke glared at his twin and said, "Don't even think about it Sakana. We aren't allowed out there. Uncle Kabuto says there are criminals out there who would kill us before giving us a second look."

"But I want to know whats out there. We may never get this chance again for a long time!" Sakura loudly whispered, her raised voice drawing curious glances from their younger siblings.

Sanosuke sighed in exasperation, "If you go I have to go with you then. There is more safety with two than one."

"Where are you two going?" Mokuba asked jumping between them and grinning broadly at them, "Will you get in trouble with Mama if you do whatever it is you're planning?"

Sanosuke sighed and faced his younger brother, "Mokuba, you and Mai are in charge while we are out. Sakana and I are going to follow Uncle Kabuto since he left the door unlocked. Don't you follow us or you could get in trouble too."

Mokuba pouted and muttered, "No fair. You two always get to do fun stuff..."

"Stay here," Sanosuke repeated, his spring green eyes melting into autumn red with three dots within them before he grabbed Sakana's hand and the two rushed out the door and into a long hallway. Sanosuke had a bad feeling that the two would somehow be recognized but that was silly. No one in the world had his sister's sharp teeth and blue hair and no one but him had eyes that turned colors like the leaves of oak trees. At least he hoped that no one would recognize them.

Elsewhere in Orochimaru's lair Sasuke got a sudden urge to go for a walk and not being one to deny himself his own desires he began to move along casually. He strolled down a long corridor, brooding slightly, when he saw something that made him consider the option that Orochimaru might be drugging him again. Walking hand in hand down the hallway was a little boy that could have been Itachi's less stressed much younger clone and beside him was a little girl with shark teeth and a slight blue sheen to her pale skin.

Sasuke rubbed his eyes furiously and looked at the sight once more, hoping it was a hallucination. No. Itachi and his female-converted partner from the Akatsuki were still in front of him hand in hand and walking 'stealthily' down the hallway. But it wasn't a clone. The aquatic girl had eyes a shade of green he had only seen on one person in his life, Sakura, and the Itachi-alike had a larger forehead than Itachi had possessed when he was a child.

There was only one explanation for this!

Kabuto had created fucked up, mutated children by combining his and Sakura's genetics together with a blue angler fish and these two were the result! Either that or he really needed to get another psychological examination as soon as possible. "Orochimaru will not be happy when he learns about this..."

End Chapter Two

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This is my longest chapter yet for all my stories written so far! I'm pretty proud about how it came out. I didn't want to rush through it since this is the main introduction of the personalities of the kids and how they act. I don't have a favorite kid yet but I love how sweet Raito and Mai came out and how fun writing for Kiku and Mokuba is. Please review!

This chapter is dedicated in loving memory of my coworker Daniel Lowe, who passed away on December 6, 2007 due to a car wreck he was in on November 20th. His funeral was today, December 13, 2007. He was a great guy who always wore sunglasses and loved strawberry shakes. He will be dearly missed by me and I wish him well as he lives his afterlife!


	4. The Flight of Spring

Mother of the Morning

by Goggleplex

Summery: When Sakura turned 14 she was kidnapped by Orochimaru and was never seen again. Seven years later she finally escapes his lair with her life and children. All ten of them.

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto or the characters from the manga/anime. I did however create Sakura's kids. So please ask if you ever want to use them.

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Chapter Three - The Flight of Spring

"What in the world are you thinking, Sakura," Kabuto's voice startled Sakura as she and Yomiko stared at a wall, hand in hand. A seal on Sakura's upper left arm was glowing purple and Kabuto know if she took even a foot further down the corridor Sakura's nerves would begin to feel as though they were on fire. Kabuto designed that seal especially for Sakura and none of her children had it. The seal kept Sakura inside the boarders of a territory that Kabuto selected and while inside it Sakura could not mold chikara without specific permission from either himself or Orochimaru.

"I don't know what you are talking about, Kabuto," Sakura said with an innocent expression crossing her face, "I was just taking a walk with Yomiko for some mother-daughter bonding time."

"In the middle of their monthly examination? I find your timing a _tad_ bit too coincidental." Kabuto said with an angry gleam in his eyes.

"Oh what's the harm of taking one of my kids out for a walk," Sakura asked crossly, "No problems have ever happened. Locking them in one section of this place for all their lives is not good for their development."

"Mama!" a duo of voices shouted out and Kabuto and Sakura both turned, shocked to see Sanosuke and Sakana running up to them. Behind them a very irritated looking Sasuke. Sakana hugged her mother while ruffling her youngest sister's hair teasingly, "This weird guy showed us where you where."

Even Kabuto felt the doom of the glare Sasuke sent their way, "Orochimaru would like to see you both immediately."

"Sanosuke, Sakana," Kabuto said with a piercing gaze, "Take Yomiko back to my quarters. The two of you will be dealt with for disobeying me later."

'_Uh_' - '_oh_' The twins thought as one. A mad Kabuto was not a fun guy to be around. He tended to make very mean and almost sadistic training techniques to put them through if he was 'disappointed' by their behavior. On the plus side it made them a little stronger though.

Sasuke marched the two medics down a hall and into a dimly lit room where Orochimaru sat with several of his Sound Special Operatives standing along the walls. Orochimaru was grinning and as they sat before him, Sasuke standing on his right side like a particularly pretty looking body guard.

"So Kabuto-kun. Feel free to tell me about your real activities over the past few years, I have all day to listen." Orochimaru laced his fingers together and leaned forward with his grin streaching even more sinisterly.

"Ah yes," Kabuto pushed the bridge of his glasses up his nose, "When Sakura-san was placed under my ministrations I realized that as powerful of a village the Sound is we don't have a clan unlike every other village out in the world. Sakura had the potential to harness the bloodline and spent the next six months preparing her body for incubation. I have been able to design ten separate children but only by combining two separate genetic strains but after a few years of tinkering I have finally completed the greatest pair yet. The next two will have not two but three separate genetic strains each."

Sakura whipped her head over and glared at Kabuto, "What the hell do you mean by the 'next two'?"

Kabuto smiled in what could have been a sheepish way had it not been for the gleam in his eyes, "Oh right. I hadn't mentioned it? On your check up at the beginning of this month I took the time to give you two new bundles of joy. They will be due in the middle of March, congratulations Sakura."

"I told you I didn't_want_ anymore kids!" Sakura growled, "What kind of twenty-two year old has ten kids with two more on the way!? I swear my _stretchmarks _have _stretchmarks_!"

"What about that Itachi-clone you have," Sasuke interrupted, looking slightly hostile.

"Oh he was created by combining an Uchiha with Haruno genetics," Kabuto said with a smile, causing Sasuke to freeze in shock at the thought that he was a father and still a virgin. It was pretty cool and at the same time very surreal.

"Kabuto tell me more about this so called Itachi-clone?" Orochimaru questioned, "How did you make Sasuke's genes turn out a child that resembles his older brother so much."

"Oh you mean Sanosuke-kun?" Kabuto asked, "He is as I said the oldest creation but his genes aren't built up with Sasuke's. I managed to collect some genetic samples of Itachi thanks to my contact with your old group. Sasuke is his biological uncle, not his father."

Sasuke paled and fought down the bile in his throat that formed at the news. Sakura had his brother's son. His old momentary excitement at the thought of being a father all at once had vanished into pure horror. Sakura didn't know what to think, her first son's father had been revealed to her finally but of all people she had expected Sanosuke's father to be Sasuke, not his older brother Itachi. Sakura's anxiety vanished a moment later though, her son's father may have been a cold blooded criminal and murderer but her son was nothing like that. He was protective and caring and had a generous spirit.

Orochimaru bared his teeth and asked, "And the rest of the little creations?"

"If you see them, Orochimaru-sama, their biological secondary parents would immediately be known to you," Kabuto replied vaguely in the desire to continue to keep Sakura in the dark. One kids parental identity had been finally revealed to Sakura and that was bad enough, he didn't need her to know the rest of the children's parents. "So what do you think of my project, Orochimaru-sama. Shall I continue it for much longer?"

Orochimaru was silent for a moment and Kabuto waited in silence, waiting in quiet anticipation over what he would say. Sasuke was still in shock over the news of being an 'uncle' while Sakura still was still slightly seething over the fact that her body had been invaded against her will once more.

"I want you to destroy them all." Orochimaru finally said causing all three of his onlookers to go into various degrees of shock.

"Excuse me?" Sasuke asked, "But what exactly do you mean by that?"

"Just what is sounds like," Orochimaru said with a chilling and wicked grin, "I want you to take a syringe and destroy those little unborn abominations of nature and afterword Kabuto-kun, you are to take each of those remaining little freaks and cut out their throats and do make sure they all perish without a struggle."

"No you can't!" Sakura exploded in rage, "They're mine! If you even touch them I'll kill you by ripping yours limbs off slowly!"

Orochimaru's eyes darkened and he growled, "I've had enough of your impudence you little wench. Kabuto, make sure she goes with her children. I want nothing left alive who holds the name Haruno. Guards, take her to her room."

Sakura struggled but thanks to her seal could do nothing to resist their hands as she was dragged screaming away, "I hate you! I hate you Orochimaru! I hate you Sasuke and I hate you Kabuto! You will all pay for this!"

Sasuke felt the blood drain from his face. He knew Orochimaru was sadistic but to do this horrible act. Orochimaru in Sasuke's eyes had just proved that he was no better than Itachi. As Orochimaru's underling he only had complied with Orochimaru's orders to capture his teammate and help restrain her because Sakura was to remain unharmed. Sasuke had been lied to. Now another massacre was about to take place and once again he could do nothing to prevent it from happening.

Kabuto wasn't fairing much better, nearly a decade of his life was about to be taken away just because Orochimaru didn't like something about the Haruno's. Kabuto had always, always admired Orochimaru for taking in society's undesired populous and giving them something to live for. Yes a few of them died thanks to himself and Orochimaru, but their deaths were always to ensure someone else could have a brighter future. But if the Haruno's died their deaths would be pointless and the only one to benefit from it would be Orochimaru.

"What are you waiting for Kabuto-kun?" Orochimaru hissed, "Those creatures had better be gone in two hours or your life will be forfeited along with theirs."

"I understand, Orochimaru-sama," Kabuto said, closing off his emotions for the task set before him. He marched out of Orochimaru's presence, catching Sasuke's eyes as he was leaving. None of them could do anything. They were both trapped by Orochimaru's alluring words and promises of a better future...

As Kabuto prepaired for his task he couldn't help but think of the past few years of his life. Watching the kids he had helped to create had been chaotic at times. More than once he wanted to just destroy them once and for all, especially when they ruined a project he was working on, but still. They were at heart his neices and nephews.

_'You will suffer the wrath of a god_..._wrath of a god_..._a god of love_..._the wrath of a god of love. Think about that for a while_...' Kabuto shivered, remembering the words of the frightening warrior. His hands trembled as he filled the syringe, '_Think about it. If Raito dies there is no was that guy can return. But there are more Deoshinites in the world... but none are like he is. I don't want him to die. I don't want to destroy any of them. Do I go against them and suffer the wrath of a god or do I help them and suffer the wrath of Orochimaru... I believe I have made my decision. I hope I don't live to regret this...'_

He stood and walked down the darkened corridor, ready to forge his fate.

"We're leaving," Sakura informed her children as soon as the guards had left her alone. "Kabuto has been ordered by Orochimaru to kill all of us and we need to escape before he can come for us."

"I don't think Uncle Kabuto really would do that, would he?" Kinta asked as his eyes moistened with unshead tears.

"If Orochimaru ordered it your Uncle would unleash all the demons of hell into the world without a second thought," Sakura growled and carefully selected a clean steal scapel from her supplies.

Sakura had to do it. If she didn't remove it they would not be able to escape. The first seal on her arm was stopping her from fully using her chikara. She would deal with the tracking seal at a later date but for now time was not on her side and she had to get her chikara back, "Don't look at this," Sakura warned her kids but the four oldest stubbornly watched on.

"We will watch you, Mama," Mai said quietly, "Just so you don't have to do it alone."

Sakura blinked away her proud tears and without a whimper of pain she inserted the scapel directly underneath the seal on her arm. With a careful and steady hand she swiftly flayed the skin that had the seal inked on it away and pulled off the debilitating mark. The wound was a bad one, and it bled freely but with the chikara quickly returning to her she seared the skin, healing the arm, but keeping the starburst shaped scar there as a reminder to never forget what she was forced to do for herself and for her children.

"Alright!" Sakura called, "Everyone, grab only one weapon and your one most treasured item for yourself and pack your necessities lightly, we're leaving in five minutes!"

Sakura rushed into the open pantry and began to pack as many nonparishables and high energy foods that she could get her hands on. Sanosuke took charge of his siblings and in a steady voice ordered them by saying "You heard what Mama said. Be back in five minutes, no exceptions!"

The ten children scattered faster than fireworks on New Year's Day. They all packed an extra set of clothing and one special item that ment a lot to them. For Sanosuke it was an engraved white steel kunai that his mother gave him for his fifth birthday upon it's hilt where the words 'Honored Eldest'. Sakana selected her necklace with one hundred pearls that etched upon a few of the pearls were different symbols that she had scratched in whenever she created a new attack. _'Ten down, ninty to go.'_

Raito meanwhile easily found his gold pendant emblassed with an eight pointed star, the symbol most assosiated with his beloved Deoshin, '_I will be protected from evil on this journey my Lord. But please, extend your blessed protection on my mother and siblings as well my beloved god_.' Kinta simply picked up the case for his violin and placed the instrament carefully inside before he strapped it to his back, smiling when he turned and saw what his twin had selected to bring. Clutched in Kiku's grasp was a bedraggled looking pale green teddy bear that she had kept ever since she was only an infant. Yotoki didn't take anything any less childish for he held with him a soft blue felt blanket that he wrapped securely around his shoulders. Yomiko placed a simple black inked pen in her supplies, happy that she would have something within reach to write with while she was on this journey.

Mai immediately went over to her room and scooped up Chichin, her gray pet mouse, before carefully placing him in her weapons pouch. Mokuba found his first three dimensional clock. It was a spinning, dancing white mouse that he had been diligently carving and working on, wanting to one day give it to his twin when it was completed. Rumiko ghosted her hand over a few of her valuables before it rested on an silver ring inlaid with an emerald that her Uncle Kabuto had given her on the day after she completed her self induced surgery. He was going to kill them, but the ring was her most precious item.

From behind her a dark figure loomed and as Rumiko turned she gave a silent yelp of surprise at the sight of Kabuto standing behind her, a syringe in his hand flashing ominously in the overhead lights. Kabuto swept towards her and Rumiko felt her heart spring into her throat, as she wondered if she would be the first Haruno to die.

Sakura in the meantime had finally finished gathering up the supplies she and her children would need for their journey. Sakura stood ready to make another announcement to her children when her blood ran cold at the realization that Rumiko had not yet returned to the group. Her heart sped up when from behind her she heard Kabuto's voice say, "Hello Sakura."

Sakura spun around faster than a shot of lightning and hissed when he saw Kabuto's arm holding Rumiko before him with a syringe stuck in her arm. He gave a smirk and said, "Don't fret, Sakura. I'm just giving Rumiko-chan a little goodbye present."

"No! I won't let you follow through with Orochimaru's orders! I'll die before I let you touch my children!" Sakura snarled intensely, before she powered up a fist with chikara and punched Kabuto in the ribs, feeling extremely satisfied when she heard them crack as he flew back into a wall. He hacked up a wad of saliva and blood but steadied himself.

"Calm down, Sakura-san this isn't like that at all," Kabuto said with a pained grimace, he absently was proud that she punched him hard enough to cause him intense amounts of pain without imposing any internal bleeding on him. She would not kill him in front of her children. She wasn't a monster. That was a good thing.

Kabuto from the ground picked up and then placed a large traveling pack in Sakura's arms, despite the shattered ribs he had, and hastily he whispered. "Run south when you leave. If there are guards don't move, they will feel the vibrations your feet make. Don't stop until after you leave the village boarders. If Yomiko and Yotoki get tired have Sakana and Sanosuke carry them. In the backpack are about twenty different scrolls. Don't open these until you are far away from here. They are scrolls describing what your children are fully capable of inheriting from their other parents. There are also rations in these packs and scrolls describing everything your bloodline is capable of becoming. It also explanes what I did to Rumiko-chan. Once you reach the boarder of Rice and Fire country you will be able to take that tracking seal off, just infuse it with about a third of your chikara, form the dragon seal and it will disappear."

"What the? Why are you doing this Kabuto?" Sakura demanded, not understanding anything that was happening at all.

Kabuto smiled and for the first time since she had known him Sakura saw a glimmer of humanity in his eyes, "Why? You and the gaki's are not just an experiment to be destroyed at Orochimaru's will. You are my legacy. You are my creation and more than that you are my family." He gave Sakura a platonic kiss on her forehead, "Now go and run. Keep your family alive. And Sakura-imouto...take care of yourself..."

Sakura gave a rattled, confused sob but turned and with a one last pained glance backwards she addressed her children and said, "You heard your uncle. Let's get going!"

"Yes, mama," a chorus of voices said and not two moments later they had vanished from Kabuto's sight. As Orochimaru's special ops grew closer Kabuto couldn't help but smirk before he muttered "Haruno's are made of something else entirely..."

End Chapter Three

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My favorite chapter yet! I know all of you were hating on Kabuto but the ending scene was planned right from the beginning of this story. I got satisfaction that his ribs managed to get broken though. I hope you enjoyed this chapter so please review and tell me your thoughts! 


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Naruto, Family, Sci-Fi