Tsunade was just beginning to realize why Jiraiya never wanted to take the seat of hokage. Being restricted to a desk job while others went on with their lives was exactly the kind of thing that put her mood in the gutter, and she would have stoned herself silly on sake too had Shizune not been compelled to hide all her alcoholic comforts that morning, spouting nonsense (in her opinion) about how the hokage is supposed to serve as the public image of an ideal ninja.

Now, however, with her mind being as clear as it ever would be, she was able to notice one small curious detail on the document she had just been about to stamp and sign without a second glance like the rest that were piling on her desk.

"There's only one recommendation for chuunin?" she asked the two veterans in front of her, Izumo and Kotetsu with one of her eyebrows raised in question.

"Well, he was the only one who showed the qualities we were looking for that are needed for a higher rank," Izumo replied while Kotetsu backed him up. "Yeah, most of the other participants were rookies, and they didn't perform all that well."

Tsunade was not satisfied with that answer. The first Chuunin Exams in years with rookies reaching the finals and only one nominated for a promotion? "I heard that there were TWO clan prodigies taking part in the exams. A NARA of all people showed more prowess than the either of them. Am I missing something here?" The son of a clan filled with some of the laziest bastards the world had ever seen was able to trump the geniuses of two of the most reputed clans in Konoha in strength, skill and mentality.

Yeah, right. That'll be the day. No wonder she was so skeptical about the whole thing.

But, the two chuunin had their arguments well thought out beforehand.

"Well, first off, Hokage-sama," Izumo defended his opinion. "Neji Hyuuga lost in his fight against the dead last of the rookies. He showed a lot of arrogance and overestimated his abilities, revealing his trump cards too early into the fight while believing it would be enough to beat Uzumaki. It took a few tricks to do it, but Uzumaki triumphed in the end."

Kotetsu picked up from there, "Also, Sasuke Uchiha didn't show much of a strategy in his fight. I can think of at least half a dozen things I would have tried against Gaara if I was the one facing him, but all he really did was try to overpower his opponent without thinking outside the box even once."

"Yeah, he showed he had the strength for the rank, but not much else. And, Shino Aburame never got the chance to show off his skills since his opponent, Sabaku no Kankuro, forfeited before the match began. Shikamaru was the only logical choice for promotion." Izumo finished off with a pleased smile on his face.

Shikamaru's battle was easily the most intellectual one he'd seen in a long time, and he believed the boy fully deserved chuunin. It also didn't hurt that the Fire Daimyo put in a request for the lad to join his Twelve Ninja Guardians once he reached the appropriate age.

The blond hokage was unhappy with their report, if the vein growing above her eye was enough of a tell. They had covered all the angles but neglected one thing and this was what got her slightly pissed off.

"Are you sure you're not forgetting about someone?" The creepy smile on her face slightly unnerved the duo as they reviewed what they'd just said to make sure they hadn't left anything out.

"N…No, hokage-sama," Damn, that woman could be scary when she really wanted to be.

"I don't believe I heard enough about one of the examinees. Other than the fact that he beat Neji, is there another reason you think Naruto shouldn't be promoted?"

Oh, was that all? "Heh," Izumo chuckled. Here he was thinking it was something really serious. "Naruto's got spunk, I'll give him that, but he doesn't make a plan and just jumps into the fray while hoping for the best."

"I wouldn't say that. He DID use strategy against Neji three times, and it worked too." Kotetsu muttered, striking a thinking pose while reviewing Naruto's fight in his mind.

"Huh? What're you talking about, Kotetsu? The thing with the hole was kinda cool, and he impersonated one of his clones to fool Neji. I don't recall him doing anything else like that."

"Don't you remember what he did when the fight started?"

Izumo blinked in confusion. "He made a shit-load of shadow clones. So?"

"He was avoiding direct contact with Neji. He must have been aware of what jyuuken does and fought him from long range."

Alright, THAT was something he never really considered. He'd just thought the kid was going overboard like always, and because Naruto didn't blab out all his plans like everyone else did (points to him for that by the way) he didn't have cause to think about it more.

Tsunade was angered by how they blatantly ignored Naruto, as if his reputation as the last of his class was enough to immediately disqualify him. After all the gaki had done for her, it seemed so wrong that they could just dismiss him like he didn't even matter. She wasn't there to see his performance at the exams but she would be damned if these two wrote him off as just another failure by default.

"So, he showed strategy and strength by outwitting and eventually beating the last year's top rookie." Oh, yeah. Jiraiya had told her all about it on the way back. It was one of her main reasons for wanting to give him a shot at chuunin. From what the old pervert said, her little friend had gallons of untapped potential in him. "Please tell me again, WHY is he not good enough to be a chuunin?"

Izumo looked to his partner to back him up in his claim but realized he was all alone in this one. "He wears bright orange?" he said with a sheepish smile, now unsure of himself.

The hokage's sharp gaze nearly made him wet his pants. Maybe he should've done the smart thing and just shut up.

"If ninja were promoted on account of their clothes and behavior, we wouldn't have half as many jounin as we do. Heck, I wouldn't be sitting here right now if things were done that way." She now addressed the both of them. "If none of you can come up with anything to convince me otherwise, Naruto Uzumaki will be a chuunin, effective the day after tomorrow."

"Actually, hokage-sama," Kotetsu took his chance to say something useful. "I think they could both use the responsibility. Shikamaru's work ethic needs to be improved if he is to be of real use in the battlefield. His physical skills should at least be up to par with a chuunin's in case he finds himself up against an opponent he can't outthink. Naruto also needs a reason to get serious with his career so that he can make full use of that head on his shoulders. His natural charisma will make him a hell of a leader someday. A reason to better themselves is just what they need to grow past their limitations."

Izumo grumbled under his breath, "Hey, I thought we were a team. Aren't you supposed to be supporting ME?" He was still of the opinion that the Kyuubi boy didn't have enough to match the bar.

Kotetsu would have snorted if the hokage wasn't sitting right in front of him. "You know better than anyone else how smart Naruto can be when he's motivated. How many times were you able to catch him back when he was playing his pranks? None, right? Tell me a kid like that doesn't have potential. We can't hold him back just 'cos of what everyone else says about him,"

Izumo had to reluctantly agree that his prejudice towards the village pariah was biasing his opinion of him.

"Besides, we owe that guy our lives! He took down the Suna jinchuuriki AND the Ichibi before they could rain hell on us."

"That wouldn't be hard, given what he is." Izumo countered.

This time, Kotetsu didn't hold back in showing his squad-mate what he really thought. Leveling a gaze he rarely used on his friend, he spoke slowly to add weight to his words, "You didn't read the report done by Sasuke, did you? Naruto only used the red chakra twice the whole fight, and not for more than three seconds. Everything else was all him and his guts. He even summoned the Toad Boss to fight the Ichibi. The last person to use that summon was the Yondaime."

Okay, THAT was damn impressive. "He really did that? Wow!" Awe spread across the converted chuunin's face when he heard that. Any doubts about the Uzumaki were swept from his mind as he tried to imagine what kind of fight that must have been. He really needed to find that Uchiha's report and read it through sometime later.

Pulling a summon like that was no joke and took a fair amount of resilience and chakra. To think that the dobe of the year could reach that level in such a short time made him wonder what else he was the boy was hiding.

A clearing of her throat reminded them they were still in the hokage's office.

"Alright, if you two are done hero worshipping," they blushed in embarrassment at being called out for forgetting where they were while they had their moment of disagreement. "Can we wrap this up please? I really need to get back to work." 'I swear the paperwork wasn't this much when these two came in. It must be breeding, I should call Shizune to neuter it if she has time.'

Pushing aside her medical theories on the kind of anatomy that allowed folders and legal papers to reproduce, Tsunade finalized the promotion of the two gennin with the official representatives of the main examiners.

It only took half an hour to clear up the formal requirements that were needed to advance the two gennin in rank. When all was said and done, the chuunin left the office, and only then did Tsunade call out into the empty room.

"Come on out, you lech. I know you've been listening."

Jiraiya hopped up onto the windowsill from his hiding place just under it on the outside of the building.

"You know, Tsunade, a higher rank means more work for him."

"And your point is?"

Jiraiya could tell that she was playing with him. She already knew what he was going to say. He sighed, "I was planning to take him out of the village for a few years, keep him under the radar while Akatsuki are still dormant. I can't do that if you give him duties in the village."

"I've actually been thinking about that for a while." She watched the hermit lean against the wall next to the open window while waiting to hear her considerations.

"I don't think he should leave the village."

Jiraiya wasn't pleased to hear that. "You know we can't stay here…"

"Why not?" She cut in defensively. "Here in Konoha, he has as good a chance at staying alive as he does out there. In fact, it might even be better for him in the long run since he will be surrounded by people he can trust."

Jiraiya tried to argue but she wouldn't give him an inch. "Don't say that you can train him better if you spend more time with him. You should be aware that between traveling and keeping contact with your spy network you won't have time to teach him effectively. Sometimes the best way to grow is through experience, which he can get from more responsibility. I don't even want to know what kinds of things you would put him up to if he spent more than a month with you." She finished, the tone of her voice showing that she would not be moved.

The Gama Sennin's body slouched slightly in defeat. Tsunade could be more stubborn than a mountain, and to date only Naruto had managed to move her, though that was because he apparently inherited the power to pull miracles out of his ass from his father.

"Fine," Jiraiya relented to Tsunade's relief. "I'll still have to go out myself, but I'll occasionally come back to check up on him."

He made for the window but turned back to the Slug Princess one last time before jumping out of it. "I really hope you know what you're doing. If ANYTHING happens to my godson because of this, nothing will save you from me."

Tsunade shivered when the temperature in the room dropped a few degrees. Jiraiya's warnings were not to be taken lightly, and though she was strong in her own right, she was not so disillusioned as to think she could take him on in a serious battle. The only other time he used that tone with her was in Tanzaku city to advise her not to side with Orochimaru. They had never fought before and she was determined that their shaky relationship wouldn't break up further than it had. Incapacitating him right before a fight with the Snake Sannin had widened the already gaping rift between them and one more slip up from her would be enough to turn them against each other.