"I…" Haruka took a deep breath. Then she looked at the extended hand and then up to the taller woman's face. "I can't, I still have things I have to do in Konoha. And people who I love living in the village." Haruka is surprised to see Konan give her a smile. The woman retracted her hand and said, "You have a caring spirit, Uzumaki Haruka. I hope you never lose that." The woman turns and begins to walk out of the clearing. "I'll be sending a few associates of mine to meet you in a week. Take it as a challenge. They will be trying to kill your client. And they will be given instructions to not hold back against you or your team. I'll see you later." And just like that the woman was gone, the only trace of her leaving being the dirt that was kicked up.
The other four people remaining in the clearing were staring at the redhead. With varying levels of concern or shock. Hinata was of course the most concerned. Not because Haruka was considering the offer, she would be more surprised if the girl hadn't. No, what concerns her is that there is apparently another village paying close enough attention to her to have a good idea of what's going on in her life. And they knew her secret in regards to the demon. Not only that but they had at least one S-class nin, if not more, given that the woman had claimed to have helped taking down Hanzo the Salamander. What if they decided to try and take her by force? Hinata wasn't strong enough to protect the other girl. She had to protect her, no matter the cost.
Tazuna was concerned for an entirely different reason. The woman had said she'd let him live and then turned around and said she would be sending people to kill him. Not only that but she was able to injure the Jonin he hired. This didn't bode well for him. And as a father he was feeling concern for the redhead child, in a similar vein to how he feels for his own daughter and grandson. The woman had said the girl was being abused by her village. Wasn't Konoha supposed to be the village with the good guys? The ninja village with morals? That's how they marketed themselves. It's part of the reason he tried for Konoha instead of Kiri. Apparently that wasn't the case though. It would seem all ninja villages were just rotten.
Kurenai was worried. The girl she cared for so deeply was truly considering leaving the village. She had said no, but Kurenai knew better. The girl said she would stay for the people she loves in the village, and for these things she apparently has to do. But what happens if something were to happen to these people? If there was truly nothing binding her to the village? Would she just leave? Kurenai held a deep love for the village. Even if she hated her Hokage she did love the village from the bottom of her heart. But if her student, the child she had raised, betrayed them? Would she be able to do what's best for the village? She didn't know the answer to that question, nor did she want to think about it.
Sasuke was having mixed feelings. He truly liked his redhead teammate. But he had an intense hatred for traitors. It was only natural. His brother had betrayed the village, and the clan, and ruined his life in the process. He had loved his brother and now the man was the object of his hatred. Would the same happen with Haruka? Would she betray his trust just as Itachi had? But on the other hand she had every reason to leave. She was hated by most of the village and apparently they had actually been abusing her. Would leaving to escape the pain truly be betraying them? He's not even sure he wouldn't have lashed out if he was in her position. Could he ever hate the girl who bore so much hatred and still managed to smile for the people close to her? He doesn't know the answer to that, and he certainly never wants to find out.
Hina-chan and Kurenai-sensei were the first to move. The two women both approached Haruka and started fretting. Haruka felt a faint blush rising to her cheeks. She was used to Hina-chan fretting over her but it was unusual for Kurenai-sensei to do so. The red eyed woman's tone was a weird mix of scolding and relief. "What were you thinking?! You watched an S-rank nin walk straight toward you and you just made casual conversation with her? You're lucky to be alive!"
Kurenai had been helpless to stop the woman from approaching Haruka. She had never felt more useless. Both for herself and for her genin. She knew she was close to reaching S-rank, but being close isn't enough. Her genin weren't the only ones who would need to get stronger. She couldn't stop the almost feral grin from coming to her face. She had to admit, the fire to get stronger was burning hotter in her than ever. Yes she'd get strong enough to make sure she never again has to watch helplessly as an S-rank nin approaches her genin.
"Sorry Kurenai-sensei, but I could just tell she didn't want to hurt me." It's the truth she could feel the woman's energy thanks to her nature transformation. There was no truly ill intent behind Konan's words. Even when she said she'd be sending people to kill the bridge builder. The woman wanted them to succeed, or at least she wanted Haruka to.
Hinata calmed slightly at hearing that, she knew Haru-chan had a keen ability to judge people. If she said the blue haired woman wasn't going to hurt her, then that was it. Still she couldn't help but bristle. She couldn't even alert her team that the woman was there until she already had a hand on her girlfriend. Hinata knew she wasn't a match for an S-rank opponent yet. And she probably wouldn't be for a few years. But she now knows how her dream is being threatened. She swore years ago she'd always be there to protect Haru-chan. She had thought her greatest threat would be villagers. But now she knew better. So she'd simply have to be better. These people wanted to take her wife (well future wife) from her. "What are the things you have to do in Konoha?" She hadn't mentioned it before now and it made Hinata curious.
"Well I'll admit I've been more curious about my family since finding out about Kaa-chan. So I guess I'd like to know who my dad is. And I think the only people who would know are in Konoha. Plus I've got to help you with your clan problems. And I have friends who I have to help like helping Sasuke with killing Itachi. So I can't leave yet."
Sasuke was surprised to hear Haruka so blatantly say one of her goals is to help him. He appreciated the sentiment. Maybe it wouldn't be so bad if he put his faith in her ability to help. Maybe he doesn't have to do this alone.
Kurenai didn't have a positive reaction to that. Because the girl openly said she does intend to leave, just not yet. She still didn't know if she could bring herself to stop the girl from finding her happiness elsewhere. What would Kushina-sensei have done? She knew the answer to that. She would wish her daughter good luck and let her know that she loved her no matter what. Kushina-sensei was just like that. It also probably would have helped that Kushina-sensei wasn't born in Konoha and still held loyalty to the destroyed Uzushiogakure. So in the end she held her tongue about the girl's statement. She turned to Tazuna and said, "Let's head to your house, Tazuna-san. Sasuke when we get to the house I'm going to show you the hand seals for a jutsu I want you to perform on me." He was the only one on the team who could learn it fast enough for her to recover with it.
"Uh, sure It's not far from here." With that the group continues towards Tazuna's house, They'd discuss what to do over the course of the coming weeks when they arrive.