A Golden, Windy Day

Rated K

x-x

Konoha, a sunny day, some time after the 4th Great Shinobi War.

After a year of battle, deaths, crimes and tears, peace had finally arrived in the five nations. The newly rebuild streets of Konoha were once more filled with laughing children, and for the first time in months, people could finally be seen lingering in the park, enjoying the return of spring.

Shut in her office, Konoha's fifth Hokage was scribbling over a particularly tedious piece of work that she was meant to finish before the end of the day.

The heat was not helping her concentrate, and soon she found her mind drifting away from the drowsy subject she was forced to read about. After a few times struggling with her concentration, she gave up, finally letting herself be swept away by her thoughts. Those revolved mostly around a subject that was persistently bothering her and that she had been trying to ignore ever since... Since... Well, some time ago, at the very least.

Sighing slightly and pushing herself back into her chair, Tsunade gave up and closed her eyes.

It had been a month since the end of the war; a month since the dismantling of Akatsuki; a month since Madara's death.

A month and a bit since the destruction of Pein and Jiraya's death.

It all seemed far away now; all had happened so fast... The death of Jiraya, the destruction of the village, her coma, waking up in the middle of the war... She grimaced After a year of combat, returning to the peaceful routine of the village felt already quite bizarre. It felt even more so as she now realised all that was truly gone forever, and her friend stood at the top of the list... She had had no time to cry him, before or after Pein's fight, no time to truly realise what had been taken away from her, and she now felt lost, alone with her memories and regrets.

She'd always known how dangerous his mission was. Tackle the leader of Akatsuki alone... A damn foolish idea.

Yet he had been right. Someone had to go there, find out more about this organisation that seemed to threaten the village; and no one was better suited for the job than him.

Her greatest friend... They'd known each other forever; growing up together, fighting together; fighting each other... She smiled weakly as she remembered some of the jokes they used to make. As kids, even Orochimaru had been fun, always so haughty and snotty...

It was the death of Nawaki that had completely changed her life. Grief had dragged her towards adulthood, disrupting her way of seeing life. And yet the stupid, immature Jiraya had still been there, no longer only a friend but a comrade, someone she could trust her back with. And even today, nothing had changed - even Dan's death and her departure hadn't ruined their friendship, even after 20 years of not seeing each other.

Well - she chuckled to the bitter memory - her reddition to Orochimaru's side could have changed that. She remembered the terrifying look he'd given her, that night at the bar, asking her whether she would ever dare betray the Leaf.

Thank God she'd made the right choice... She could thank Naruto for that! And not only him - Jiraya and Shizune were as much to thank as the little pin-up.

She smiled again, her eyes resolutely closed, trying to shut out the pain from her heart. The both of them had been the two pillars of her souls, the fundamental beings that kept her alive and sane. She loved him, the way one would love their best friends, and had never pushed their relation further. Yet... The way he acted, looked at her... The things he said...

And in return, if I make it back alive...

What could have happened if he'd finish that sentence; if he indeed had made it back ?

Opening her eyes, she turned her head to look past the window. It was a beautiful day, bright and sunny and cheerful. Spring was in the air, making the flowers blossom and the wind carry out their scent. The clouds in the azure sky were moving fast, blown by this powerful wind that swept away the reminders of war.

Today was not a day to recall sad memories. Today was a cheerful day, a day to rejoice about being alive.

Crossing her arms over the table, Tsunade started reading another one of those mind-blowing paper when the door opened with a bang.

"Tsunade-baachan!" Naruto entered the room, his red and white robes floating behind him. She smiled - a bit of a sour smile perhaps, as she was unhappy to have been disturbed - when he gasped out :

I've heard there is a commotion in the front of the village. Konohamaru just came up with a message from Shizune; she needs us both there, immediately."

Tsunade stood up at once, taking just enough time to send a nasty glare towards the window. A peaceful day, huh?!

x-x

Tsunade was running through the village, Naruto besides her. A commotion... How long had it been since such a thing had happened in the village? According to the treaty she and the other Kages had signed, there should be no more reason for war. The only organisations that were left for the Shinobis to fight against were bands of thieves - much too puny to dare attack the Hidden village of the Leaf. So what was this about?

She slowed down as they reached the attroupement. Thank the Gods, there did not seem to be any fighting - but then what was the reason for this ?

The crowd seemed to have assembled around an old pub that stood in the corner, so that most of it were hidden from her sight. But from what she could see, Choza's upper body was trembling - from laughter or fear she did not know - next to a frozen Sakura. They were yet too far to see her expression, but her back was arched, and she was covering her mouth with her hands - something seemed wrong.

Echoing her thoughts, she heard Naruto swear softly besides her, and start towards his comrade.

At the same time, Sakura turned in their direction, stopping dead in her tracks as she saw her mentor and her friend running towards her.

The look on her face wasn't one of horror but of joy.

Her grin, small and weak, became a large beam as she saw them and raised a shaking hand in greeting. Next to her, Choza turned around and stepped back, his face also covered with a broad smile.

And behind them, no longer hidden by Choza's enormous body and by the angle of the building, stood a familiar silhouette. Broad shouldered, his long hair flying at a strong gust of wind...

The world around her seemed to freeze and burn.

What the hell is happening here?

Tsunade barely noticed herself skidding to a halt. He looked just as he ever did - large, long-haired, with his usual self-satisfied grin was on his face, though it seemed to falter as he took in the people that just arrived. No... One of his arm was arm was missing, and he had a huge scar on his throat, just underneath the chin. Yet there was no mistaking it; every detail of him, the very outline of his silhouette screamed to her heart - this was Jiraya.

This was Jiraya.

And in return, if I make it back alive...

Pain crashed on her as, trembling slightly, she closed her eyes. Jiraya was dead; long dead.

This... This was a hallucination, a trick of her mind, like one of the many others she had before.

Nothing more.

Nothing more...

"Ero-sennin..." gasped Naruto, as if to prove her wrong. Unable to stop herself, she hesitantly opened her eyes.

And he was still there. The grin was gone from his face, replaced by one of the gravest

ooks she ever saw his wear - something close to apprehension.

She placed a shaking hand on her mouth, desperately trying to control herself, as tears swelled in her eyes and a huge lump formed in her chest.

"Where am I?" had sputtered the toad as he had appeared, stumbling, into Tsunade's office.

"Pa!" The frog - his wife - had been standing next to Tsunade as she was giving orders to send a rescue team to Jiraya. "Pa! Are you alright?" The old frog had given him a worried look, before whispering in an undertone: "Where is he, Pa? Where's the kid?" That moment, the horror of it, was graved in her mind - the paleness of the room, the rushing sound that had deafened her ears - yet it all seemed unreal as she stood there, in front of the dead man, trying to stop the tears from trickling down her face.

Then, next to her, she felt Naruto slowly steer into motion and start, whimpering, towards his sensei.

"I bet I won't get as much tears as Dan did, bwahaha!" Tsunade gave out a sob, as Naruto threw himself in Jiraya's arms, who was soundlessly laughing.

"Hi, I'm Jiraya! Love letters next, if you please!"

"Would you like to be our next Hokage, Tsunade?"

Naruto, it seemed, had not flung himself onto Jiraya as she'd thought he had, but was standing in front of him, half bend, laughing and crying at the same time.

"Bet all you have on me dying"

Jiraya placed a hand on Naruto's head, ruffling his hair and crouching in front of him, a somewhat uneasy but paternal smile on his face. Then he looked up towards her. Catching her eye, he gave a tentative smile.

"Hey Hime... I'm back!" he whispered, in a corner of her memory. Lifting the hand that covered her mouth, she wiped the tear that was threatening to spill from her saturated eyes.

She took a step, them two, and before she knew it she was in front of him - his broad shoulders, his bright-red jacket, the mole on his nose, the wrinkles that would appear beneath his eyes whenever he smiled...

She placed a hand on his shoulder. It was hard, concrete - real.

"Bet all you have on me dying. And in return, if I come back alive..."

-"Asshole", she gasped, her fist clenching to her side, holding back any more tears. "You absolute bastard!" He had placed a hand on her shoulders and froze, suddenly afraid of being hit.

Yet instead of doing so - though admittedly it was very tempting - she pressed her head to his shoulder. She felt him start - wow, not even one tiny blow? - and hesitantly wrap his arms around her. Suppressing another sob, she whispered: "I'm not done with you yet... You will get punched and it will hurt!" She heard him chuckle and she smiled, her face buried in the largeness of his shirt.

And the tears stopped pressing her eyes, air entered her lungs, the world stopped spinning and her head finally cleared.

He was there. Jiraya was alive.

Breathing freely once more, she stepped back, laughing in a strangled voice.

Naruto, on her right side, was grinning at them, while the crowd was walking away, dispersed by Sakura and Shizune.

She looked at him again, trying to take in every detail of him in just one look, when she noticed once more the scars on his throat. That was probably the reason why the idiot hadn't said a word – she had wondered, knowing how unlike him it was not to say something smart in such a situation. And suddenly, the miracle of having him back, after having his throat crushed, his arm ripped off and blades thrusted into his back, crashed back upon her, making her shudder violently. Which were the Gods she could thank for such a miracle?

"Well," she said, taking a shaking breath, and with the broadest smile she could muster, "I think a visit to the hospital is in order. You... Can you still talk?"

He smiled warily, unable to tell her how he had spent the last two months in bed, and was in no rush to go back there. To sum it up, he had not spoken for two months and he still wasn't used to the sound of his own silence. But he wasn't going to complain – he himself was still surprised to hear his heartbeat, so steady in his chest, and to feel his body do almost every movement he required. He nodded.

Next to him, Naruto grabbed his arm and grumbled:

-"Fine, I understand that ero-sennin might not be in his best state. But please, Baa-chan, hurry up with that – I just have a billion things to ask you, ero-sennin! How the heck did you manage to escape Pein? And, wait - how come we didn't get a word about you being alive? We were all worried sick! Did you even know about the w- Just a sec', ero-sennin, check a look at that!" He said, stepping backwards and pulling his white-and-red robes.

Jiraya, who had been leaning on him, toppled forwards, barely managing to catch himself. Naruto, gave a tiny jump, squeaking a "Sorry!" and helped his sensei to stay straight on his feet.

She laughed. It seemed that after a month or so on her own, she had already forgotten how funny life was when her friend was around. To her surprise, she heard Sakura and Shizune join her; she'd quite forgotten the three of them were not alone.

And, just as she took Jiraya's other arm to help him walk, just as she felt her two apprentices by her side, whilst a bunch kids ran besides them, gaping at the no-longer-lost-hero, just as a ray of sunlight grazed Konoha with its light, Tsunade felt joy, tremendous joy, shooting through her body.

Leaning forwards to Jiraya's ear, she whispered softly:

-"Naruto's right, though. Hurry up and get your voice back – and when that's done, I'll have just so many things to tell you."

He stopped to look at her, a eyebrow raised in a bet-you-can't-surprise-me look, but seemed unable to read her mysteriously smiling face, and just winked at her. He then turned his head towards his hometown, letting Naruto walk in front of them with his teammate and leaning on Tsunade.

Life had hardly ever seemed so beautiful.

And somehow, something told them that it would only get better.

x-x

"And when he comes back, I'll make sure he won't have to put up such a cool face in front of me anymore."

x-x