Disclaimer: Naruto is copyright Shonen Jump and Masashi Kishimoto, and I claim no ownership rights to the characters or setting, only to the story and narrative elements created by myself.
Author's Note: This story is an authorized reworking of Crossoverpairinglover's Succubus Queen Kushina story, which uses an extra option on how to save Naruto, and made a VERY good point on the clause of Rule 7, which I will cover in this note. The rest of the challenge was accepted as easily workable with the minimum of fuss.
The change stems from a problem I have with the early narrative of Naruto and his sexual bias. For the vast majority of the story, Naruto's relationships were skewed, with Haku being one of the oddest situations in both how it was translated and how Kishimoto seemed to deal with them. Naruto clearly refers to Haku as 'cuter than Sakura', and their meeting ends with what is translated as the blunt statement "I'm a boy".
This has become since the rallying cry which caused Crossoverpairinglover to categorically include Haku as Male. Add to this that Naruto is focused on returning Sasuke, plus the sheer amount of girls Naruto brushes off, make Naruto seem to be gay. Later, they seemed to notice this toxic bias, but made it seem like male-focused bisexuality, then the writers got a clue, and post-Shippuden, Naruto was most definitely straight, but the damage was done.
I discussed with Crossoverpairinglover that Rule 7 was as blunt as the statement it stemmed from, and were able to get that rule struck off the list, with Haku being used primarily as a 'neutral' party who could deal with Kakashi, and not as a primary love interest.
When italics are used, these are elements within a mindscape or where the words are thought instead of spoken. Some elements will be lifted from Vulpine by Saproneth and Time Braid by ShaperV, because they did a better job with them than I ever could.
Naruto's Heritage
Chapter One: Exceptions For Everyone But Him
The Elder Council of Konohagakure had been there for several generations, the seats hereditary, the only time new members were elected being when a member was too vocal and ended up falling afoul of the shinobi-dominated government with a discreet B or C Rank mission being called on them. Their power, in their eyes, hearkened back to when ninja were part of a lord's retinue, people sent ahead into enemy territory to deal with their enemies when they didn't want to get their own hands dirty.
However, what they didn't think was why that system had been consigned to the history books, and the fact that their whole stewardship was based on the same backroom deals and treachery that had caused many wars in the past, and that they'd need a strong military presence, which the current system they wanted dismantled gave in spades.
"Did the Senju woman do as we expected over the loss of the last remaining loyal Uchiha?" The head of the council asked.
"She did exactly as expected of the soft-hearted woman..." The spy stated, one of several they employed to work within the ninja government, the spy proud to be a True Ninja, "Rather than send ANBU with a termination order, she instead sent The Golden Year out with a retrieval order..."
The Golden Year, a derogatory nickname for the graduates in Naruto's year group, of which most of them were considered the most promising crop in years, equal possibly to the year that gave them people like their teachers. What the council considered them as a perfect example of why the ninja needed to be removed from power. They were far from ready for the outside world. None of them had gone out and assassinated someone...
They were Sarutobi's toy soldiers! Then there was that big exhibition of their ninja, where a good third ended up dead, but no-one cared, because of the spectacle they had made ninja into. When they were in power, there would not be this crap with everything about the ninja being placed in public view. It would be like the ROOT, a sterling example of The True Ninja, in that absolutely no-one knew who was a member of ROOT, even the ninja government themselves.
"Excellent, Just as expected. And, obviously, the lynch pin in said mission would be the Kyuubi..." The head of the Council stated, "Forge a message from Lady Senju for someone to observe the mission and, if proof of the Kyuubi's chakra is found, terminate him immediately. Failure to comply will result in the usual disciplinary action..."
These messages had been their own lynch pin, where if a bijuu was even seen to use it's power, something far too many villages accepted as part of their soft-hearted laws on their own bijuu, they could bring them back to heel where they should be.
"And then…?" One of the council members asked, as they prepared the mission for one of the jonin.
"We still have them put to death. They know too much, and are expendable." The head of the council stated, "If they do not put him to death, we will ensure that he does not survive. Prepare a nice open and shut case of criminal activity. The embezzlement of the Kyuubi fund should be a good start, I believe we mismanaged it enough to make it look like someone swiped the lot,"
He then paused, looking towards the council members whose role was to act as the Hokage's advisors apparently, but all they really did was pass on heavily sanitized versions of what was discussed here.
"I want you to bury her in paperwork. The more distracting and urgent sounding the better. Make sure she can't attend any meetings for several weeks," He continued.
"Any particular reason?" One of them asked.
"Before she can stop us, we will have that kitsune in ninja attire ready to commit ritual seppuku after issuing an apology in front of the civilian population for how much he insulted our sacrifices by existing…" He explained, "Then we'll make a nice follow-up case declaring Tsunade unfit for her position,"
The council all nodded in agreement, before breaking apart to go through with their assigned tasks.
Meanwhile, He went to sit in on the 'official' advisory meeting with the Hokage, mentally wishing he could wring her neck. Her predecessor was so old and weary, he happily delegated so much to his advisors. She was young enough, and had such an efficient assistant, that they needed to effectively create paperwork out of nowhere to stymie her.
However, they had so many things that they could keep her busy with for long enough, he hoped, to make sure Naruto arrived back and was in his hands before she knew it. Then they'd deal with Gaara... Suna were their enemies, they couldn't just ignore what he did...
"So, Hokage, how goes the rebuilding effort after the Chunin Exams were so terribly… interrupted?" He asked, even though he already knew the answer, having discussed the freeze on the funding himself.
The funds for rebuilding were stymied to the point of being effectively frozen until Naruto was twisting a knife in his stomach. Once Naruto was dead, the sudden influx of 'new' money, along with his honeyed words, helping make it seem like Tsunade was the cause of the problems, which would be the lynchpin of the follow-up trial that would dispose of her, that she'd left the village destitute.
"We are still having problems with financing the supply shipments..." The Hokage responded, "I know there should be enough money for the purpose, but it was signed by Hiruzen Sarutobi, and bankers are notoriously suspicious and what they're asking of me is almost impossible,"
She winced at the muttered dissent. He smirked. She had presented herself as ill-prepared and unable to do a simple task, using an excuse that was in terribly bad taste, even if it was the same excuse the bankers had given her for why, this week, they weren't paying up, asking for forms that didn't exist. He twisted the metaphorical knife harder, annoyed he couldn't twist a real knife in her gut.
"How unfortunate for you..." He offered, "I'm sure that you will be able to do it before others have to deal with it in your stead… It would be a terrible legacy to leave, to be the Hokage who couldn't handle a simple financial dispute within her own village,"
She winced even more noticeably. He knew what was going on. The Daimyo was asking why Konohagakure was focusing on paying it's ninja, while a simple repair order remained unpaid several weeks after it was filed. The Daimyo's confidence was shaken, and he had promised repercussions if it continued along that pattern. He didn't care about banks and frozen accounts.
The meeting moved onto other subjects, but the Hokage's position had gone from it's early days on a bed of rock to one built on sand. Now he just needed to find something even more damning and she'd be dismissed, maybe even having to sit in front of the Daimyo, as he simply handed her a ceremonial sword. The even more humilating thing would be that she'd likely get the ultimate humiliation of being told not to bleed on the floor.
Effectively, The daimyo was telling her that she brought so much shame upon herself, it would be questionable if she'd avoid a traitor's burial, with no day of mourning planned. It would be a worthy ending for a demon supporter. He might even persuade that sweet piece of ass that was her assistant that she needed to find a husband, even if he was noticeably older than her. Now that would be a nice reward for him, and she was a phenomenal ass-istant.
Naruto woke up in confusion. Last he remembered, he'd passed out from chakra exhaustion and injuries caused by his fight with Sasuke, who'd activated the Cursed Seal, forcing him into using the Kyuubi to just survive long enough for it to burn itself out.
He looked to find he was in a luxuriously appointed home, a strange young woman sat with her daughter, who was clearly in his age range. He immediately thought about what usually happened when this occurred...
"Look, If this is about something I did to you or your daughter, I didn't know you were some rich ambassador..." Naruto began, for the younger of the two women to break out into laughter.
"You were right, Yumemi," The woman stated, her face having slightly cracked, "Actually, it's nothing to do with your pranks, I actually encourage you to do them more often. I'm actually your mother..."
"Yeah right, My mother died when I was..." Naruto began.
"I think it was roughly an hour or so old… I don't remember much of how long that fight took..." The woman mused, tapping a finger against her chin, "Anyway, I summoned you here about your true heritage..."
Yumemi stretched, for a pair of bat-like wings to unfold from behind her back.
"What the hell?!" Naruto declared, pointing and gaping.
"When the people of Konoha call you a demon, they got the wrong demon type..." Yumemi offered, "We're succubi."
"I'll be in Konoha in a couple of days. I'll explain it to you then..." The woman stated, "For now, I offer you a suggestion… Trust the yuki-onna. I will just say one word… Kasumi… and tell you that it will tell you all you need to know."
"I'll offer you another clue… 'He' lied." Yumemi stated, then the room seemed to fade into darkness...
Naruto snapped up, wondering what 'Kasumi' and the simple comment of 'He lied' meant, only to see Kakashi stood over him, holding a cloth and one of his tanto. Naruto knew the technique he was about to do. It was used when the killing needed to be as discreet as possible, and leave little evidence.
He'd stab the cloth, it would be burned, the blood leakage being minimal. It was a good way to assassinate without leaving evidence. He had no illusions about why Kakashi was stood over him specifically, but what confused him was why he was the one targeted for elimination, not Sasuke. Sasuke had been corrupted and turned by one of Konohagakure's enemies, not him!
"Maa… Why did you have to wake up? I prefer to do things like this without needing to explain myself..." Kakashi stated, sighing, "Especially with you,"
"What's wrong, Sensei?" Naruto asked, for Kakashi to wince. Yes, Naruto now was sure. Kakashi had been sent to kill him by someone, meaning that someone within the village had specifically ordered that he didn't come back alive.
"Did you have to use that word?" Kakashi stated, before he slumped, "Look, I got a small fine for the fact you used the Kyuubi to subdue Haku..."
Haku… Naruto suddenly had an epiphany at that moment. Kasumi was a word in ancient Japanese meaning 'Mist', they'd said 'yuki-onna' and Yumemi had put undue stress on 'He'. There was only one time he'd encountered someone using ice techniques, and they were a Mist Nin… Why did he have to find out just before he died that Haku was a girl?! And a cute one at that!
"Oh, and why was it that you were fined for an action he did in self-defence?" A familiar voice stated, Naruto recognising Haku's voice, having heard enough of it when she had been talking with hi... her when they first met, "Did you do something that was contrary to the mission orders?"
Naruto looked to see what seemed to be a hunter nin approaching, except what stood out was that their costume was white with blue snowflakes, the mask's pattern being ice-blue cracks across most of ir's surface. Now he knew why her mother had talked in the present tense. Due to the 'shattered' mask, a callback to how Naruto discovered her first secret, and the darkly hilarious fact she still was dressing like a hunter nin, he knew it was Haku, and was oddly thankful to see her still alive.
Maybe it was the fact that she was cuter than Sakura, and, if the swell of the upper chest of the figure had anything to say about it, had a much better figure... Oh, one part of him knew exactly why it was good she was alive.
"No, I failed to complete a secondary mission given to most of the ninja if they interact with Naruto on a regular basis..." Kakashi stated, "It is classified and the details sealed."
"So, Let me get this straight, was there a similar request done with the boy over there after he was given what seems to be a corrupted empowerment seal?" Haku asked, Kakashi shaking his head after a brief pause. Both Naruto and Haku exchanged a look, especially since Kakashi had sealed the cloth and tanto back into the black scroll.
Due to what Haku had said, Kakashi was having second thoughts about the legality of the mission. The cloth and tanto almost never got unsealed. S and A-Rank assassinations used them when they happened, because it disguised completely how they'd died. The department who gave out the cloth had total anonymity.
"There was no need, it was deemed that he had avoided the corruptive influence..." Kakashi stated, Naruto and Haku sharing a look as if asking if he'd even watched the fight, "Naruto has no way to counteract the reason for the request..."
"Kakashi, Why were you preparing an assassin's blade for me?" Naruto asked, before he paused, looking shocked as he figured it out, "Seriously?"
"Yes, If it is found you used any of it's chakra, I am to deem the amount, and if it goes beyond a certain level, you are to be put to death in order to ensure the safety of the village," Kakashi stated.
"I bore witness to the battle. Due to the empowerment seal, corrupted or not, Naruto would be killed if he had not utilized at least one full tail of his power," Haku stated, "Unlike you, I do not dance around the fact he is a container. So, What's the restriction? What was considered a safe amount of power for Naruto to use in combat?"
"He is only allowed half a tail, which was deemed necessary since it is part of his natural healing process, or a single tail in extreme circumstances," Kakashi stated, "Naruto used at least two, maybe even three tails of power in his fight against Sasuke, which is far beyond what would be considered safe levels."
Naruto was horrified. Literally, he was being hobbled ridiculously by someone to 'ensure the safety of the village'. He partially wondered how someone would use 'half' a tail, and suddenly had a sinking feeling. No-one had told Gaara about this 'restriction', and he always used one full tail...
"What about if he was against an S-Rank nuke-nin? Is that still one single tail?" Haku snapped, the temperature briefly dropping as the mask seemed to gain a few more cracks when Kakashi nodded, "So, You're telling me that some law has pretty much forbidden any tailed beast's container from using the majority of it's power, and if you find that there's a chance it has happened, you'll just finish the job for the nuke-nin!?"
"It is the law..." Kakashi declared, only to get a hard slap from Haku.
"It is illegal." She replied, "A ninja is meant to use any tool, to the limits of his own ability, to defend himself from threats... You're telling Naruto that, if someone comes at him ready to kill him, he has to use a thimbleful of chakra, even if they are using buckets..."
"I know the book definition!" Kakashi snapped, "I had it drilled into me in the academy! But this is a special case..."
"Let us hear this special case, that requires that you assassinate tailed beasts on order if they do their job to the best of their ability. Please remember. Most of them have more than one tail. We will be accompanying you to Konoha as you try to give a good reason. One tail minimum, with no more than a third casually, two-thirds under duress, or all their tails in extreme circumstances, that is acceptable..." Haku stated, "This is not,"
Kakashi sighed. They had a lot to discuss...