Authors' Notes: Yo, Charislash and SeekerofAlice here. This idea kinda came out of nowhere. I wrote a pair of characters for a Naruto rp, Seeker saw them, then started bugged me to make a fanfic with them. So I figured, why not? So here it is! My first fanfic (not his, though):

An Almost Extended Family

Chapter 1: A Hammer

The Sandaime Hokage sighed out a billow of smoke, gravely looking over the report Iruka submitted of the Forbidden scroll incident. That an infiltrator had managed to secure a position in the academy was bad enough; that he was able to obtain security information so detailed that an academy studentcould infiltrate the most heavily guarded location in the village and steal one of Konoha's most important documents right under the ANBU's noses was an inexcusable breech in security. Looking over the report one last time, he placed it on his desk and looked at his advisors.

"Hokage-sama, this breach of security weakens our security here in the village greatly." The female advisor, Koharu, informed him. "The fact that we allowed a spy so close to the Sacred Scroll, let alone the fact that he actually got his hands on it, however briefly, is inviting the other villages to challenge our position as the greatest of the Five."

"As you know Hiruzen, we still haven't truly recovered from the Kyuubi attack twelve years ago" stated the Hokage's other teammate, Homura, "The kidnapping of the Hyuuga Heiress and the Uchiha Massacre have only exasperated the situation; If we don't get a reign on things soon I'm afraid things will only get worse."

The Hokage took another puff from his pipe as he walked to the window of his office, looking out at the massive cliff face beyond. "I agree, we need to start cracking down on our forces, reminding them of the legacy they are sworn to uphold!" He sighed, wistfully gazing at the face of his successor on the monument. Minato, If only you were still here we wouldn't need to be watching our backs like this. The Hokage turned back to his advisors.

"Konoha's flames have dimmed my old friends. The heroes that our shinobi aspired to be, that pushed our village through its tumultuous history, do not have their successors. Tobirama and Hashirama Senju passed their legacy to me, and I passed it down to the Sannin. Together, we held not once, but twice against those that would seek the village's destruction during the wars, which secured the reputation of Konoha's reputation of producing phenomenal shinobi; after all, we must also remember Hatake Sakumo, who rose as a Legend in his own right. Then came the third Great Shinobi war, which saw the greatest shinobi since the Sage himself, Minato Namikaze, who single-handedly brought our greatest enemies to heel!" Sarutobi paused for a moment, lost in thought.

"But since the Kyuubi, what do we have? I am too old to inspire the younger generation; Minato and Sakumo are dead, one a Hero, the other a disgrace, Kakashi, Sakumo's son, is spiraling into an inevitable burnout… and as for my students; Tsunade wanders the elemental nations, wasting away her inheritance, unable to move past the death of her lover and brother, Jiraya has become invisible to the populace as a shinobi, and Orochimaru is now a monster, seeking nothing more than the death of the village that once held him so dearly. Furthermore, Uchiha Itachi, one of the few candidates who could have been the hero Konoha needs so dearly, slaughtered his entire clan, rising to infamy as one of our greatest criminals."

"This year's crop of genin has potential," claimed Homura hopefully "between young Sasuke and the other clan heirs, there is bound to be one that rises to the challenge. If we give them time—"

"Time is a commodity we don't have Homura! The other villages smell blood, if something doesn't change soon we risk a war we are in no way prepared for!" Sarutobi exclaimed.

"What would you have us do then? How would you keep our enemies at bay?" Koharu questioned forcefully "How do you plan to keep this village safe?"

The Hokage closed his eyes, unsure on how to procede… then it came to him, the salvation of the village from those that would seek its destruction, he grinned. "Perhaps it is time, to bring some of our wayward sons home."

"You would recall Tsunade and Jiraya? If they returned, that would give Konoha a needed boost—"

Sarutobi interrupted the advisor "—No. Jiraya is needed elsewhere, and as of now, Tsunade is more a detriment than an asset to us… no, we need those who inspire fear in our enemies and inspiration to our own. I think it is time we recalled the Kuro Kousen." Homura and Koharu gazed at the Hokage in shock.

"Are you sure that is wise Hiruzen? For years they have kept Kumo and their Jinchuuriki in check—"

"No Homura! I doubt Kumo even remembers they exist, to them, those two are probably nothing more than exaggerated rumors, their names are forgotten even amongst our own. Honestly, even I had almost forgotten about them, leaving them to languish at our borders; no more! They are just what we need. During the last war, they were almost as feared as Minato himself, the hammer to his scalpel; they are what we need to remind everyone WHY we are the most powerful of the great nations!" His presence filled the room, reminding the advisors that Sartobi was more than just the Hokage, he was the "God of Shinobi" One of the most fearsome ninja to ever come out of Konoha. As they took a step back, Sarutobi looked to one of his ANBU guards. "Go send a message to the Kuro Kousen. It is time that they came back."

Naruto was ecstatic.

It had been almost a week since the 'Mizuki Incident,' as Iruka called it; speaking of Iruka-sensei, he was almost the entire reason that Naruto was as happy as he was right now. Not only were they sitting in front of Ichiraku's Ramen Stand waiting for the noodles from heaven, but Naruto was an official Konoha genin as well. Iruka had given him his own headband after kicking the crap out Mizuki-teme. A foxy grin made its way onto the blonde's face.

"And what are you so happy about, Naruto?" Naruto turned his grin onto Iruka happily.

"I passed Iruka-sensei!" the kid replied, fidgeting with his headband, "I am official ninja! I'm gonna be Hokage in no time, dattebayo! And now we get to have ramen! Teuchi-jiji, are my misos ready yet?"

The elderly man laughed at his best costumer's antics. "Any minute now Naruto. I couldn't keep my favorite ramen-man waiting for too long, can I?" He asked before guffawing again.

Naruto jumped off his stool and stared at the old man with a terrified look on his face "WHAT!" he screamed. "Are you planning on feeding me to your other customers or something?" As Naruto spoke, Iruka glared suspiciously at his own meal.

"No no I just meant I don't have as many customers as I used to."

"Because you've been eating them?"

Iruka grabbed Naruto by the back of his shirt and dragged him back down onto the seat. "I'm fully confident that Teuchi is not serving people in his ramen Naruto. Calm down." Iruka made a show of eating a piece of his ramen to make his point.

Naruto settled down momentarily to wait, anticipation overcoming lingering suspicion. In the temporary quiet, Naruto heard two pairs of footsteps approaching the stand.

"—Anyway, it is about time that Sarutobi-sama let us come home. Can you believe it's been 7 years?" Asked a man's voice.

"Pfft, I bet the old man totally forgot he sent us there. Besides, hasn't it been like 8 years since we were last here?" A woman's voice questioned back.

"Taiga, you know you shouldn't call the Hokage an old man."

"And what is wrong with calling a spade a spade? He's ancient. He may be the 'God of Shinobi', but that doesn't make him any less ancient."

A sigh came with the rustling of the curtains of the shop. Two figures walked in, an odd pair if Naruto had ever seen one. The man of the pair had on black pants and a black flak jacket with a teal shirt underneath. His feet and hands had teal ninja sandals and fingerless gloves, respectively, with a teal-cloth Konoha headband around his waist. His head was adorned with snow white hair, with a thin ponytail running about halfway down his back. His chocolate eyes were on the other figure.

The other figure was quite a bit shorter than her male companion. Like the man, she was also clothed in a black flak jacket. She also had a red half-skirt with a pair of black spandex shorts underneath. She wore a red long-sleeved shirt underneath the flak jacket, and overtop she had a black jacket with red flames racing along the bottom. Her pitch-black hair made it all the way to her hips, and was left to flow free in the wind. The most striking thing about her was her eyes; they were black with a red cross in her eyes. Naruto wondered to himself, What is with her eyes? The pair sat down, the man next to Naruto and the woman next to the man. Naruto was about to ask about her eyes, but as he did, a bowl of ramen was placed down in front of him.

"Here ya go, Naruto-kun, miso ramen. Here is more pork for you, Iruka-san." Ayame placed bowls in front of the blond and his sensei as Teuchi went over to the newcomers. "Ah, is that Aisaka-san and Tohsaka-san?" The pair looked up at the ramen chef momentarily before the woman grinned widely while the man did the same, albeit someone sheepishly.

"Heya Teuchi-jiji! Long time, no see! A takoyaki ramen for Shirou and a beef ramen for me!" the women demanded happily. The chef chuckled and muttered something about strange orders as he receded to the back. The now-identified Shirou just shook his head and turned to the woman.

"You never change, do you Taiga?" said the white haired man.

Before the woman—Taiga—could answer the man's question, Naruto blurted out one of his own. "Hey lady, how come your eyes are so weird?"

The Taiga woman seemed to bristle for a second before looking over at the kid. "Hey, gaki, it isn't 'lady,' it's Taiga! Tohsaka Taiga!"

Naruto glared angrily back at the woman. "My name isn't gaki, it's Uzumaki Naruto! I'm gonna be Hokage, dattebayo!"

Both of the newcomers looked momentarily shocked, before turning to each other. The white haired man sighed and turned to the blonde. "Well, now that you two are introduced, I guess it is my turn. Aisaka Shirou. Nice to meet you Naruto, and, um…"

"Umino Iruka, Aisaka-san. Are you new chuunin?"

Taiga snorted into her ramen and came up looking indignant. Before she could say anything, Shirou put his hand on her shoulder and answered, "Actually, Umino-san, we are jonin. We've been jonin for 10 years or so, actually."

Iruka's mouth dropped open in surprise. Naruto looked over at him questioningly. Iruka's mouth worked wordlessly for a few seconds before he could ask, "Ten years? Then how have I not met you before?"

Shirou sighed again before answering, "We have been on boarder duty for the past 8—"

"—9!" Taiga chimed in.

"—9 years. Hokage-sama just called us back. We don't know why we got called back yet."

"And I don't care!" Taiga interjected again. "Anything is better than going back and forth along the Kumo border. Soooooooooo booooooooooooooring."

Naruto nodded in agreement, chopsticks halfway to his mouth. "I dunno what this Kumo boarder is, but doing anything for 8 years sounds boring."

All the adults in the restaurant (and Ayame) sweatdropped at a certain blonde genin's ignorance before Taiga burst into hysterical laughter. Iruka went into sensei mode and explained to Naruto the location and politics of other villages, with Shirou occasionally adding something to the explanations and Taiga laughing her ass off a few seats away. Naruto tried to zone out, but both Iruka and, surprisingly, Shirou could tell when the blonde wasn't listening, and Iruka would bonk him on the head while Shirou would sigh and ask him to pay attention. Eventually, they got to Kumo.

"Kumogakure, or the Village Hidden by the Clouds, is one of the five major ninja villages. It is known for powerful Raiton techniques and is ranked as the second most powerful hidden village, right behind Konoha," Iruka explained.

Shirou continued, "Unfortunately, they are rather hostile and ambitious, and after the Hyuuga incident 9—"

"—10!"

"—9 years ago, the Hokage decided he needed some force on the border. Hence, a year later, we were sent out as a show of force."

Iruka looked at the pair of jonin curiously. "A show of force? How would you two be seen as a threat? I've never heard of you, it's not like they sent Hatake Kakashi or Jiraya-sama."

Taiga grinned massively, "Well, we are the Kuro Kousen! There is no better pair of ninja in the world!"

If Iruka looked surprised before, he looked absolutely flabbergasted now. Naruto looked questioningly at his sensei. Shirou shook his head at Taiga, put down some money, and pulled up Taiga to leave. He said, "Well, Umino-san, Naruto, I hope to see you again."

As they left, Naruto looked between them and his sensei. Eventually, he blurted out, "What the heck is the Kuro Kousen?"

"Sandaime-sama, Aisaka-san and Tohsaka-san are back and are here to report, as you requested."

The Hokage took his eyes off the bane of his existence and looked up to see the secretary standing at the door. He nodded to her, saying, "Alright, send them in." As the woman went to fetch the pair of returnees, the Hokage added, "It gives me an excuse to stop the paperwork, at least."

The door opened not a minute later to admit the pair of recalled ninja. Shirou came in first, walking briskly, with Taiga only steps behind him. Sarutobi looked over the two. They had certainly grown in the years that they had been at the border.

"Hey, jiji, did you really forget you left us out there?"

Or not. Perhaps Shirou had grown somewhat, but Tohsaka Taiga wouldn't change for the world. The almost mischievous smile on her face reminded him a certain surrogate grandson of his so much it was almost eerie. Shirou looked a tad sheepish at Taiga's outburst, but he quickly but his calm mask back on and saluted the Hokage.

"Hokage-sama, Aisaka Shirou and Tohsaka Taiga reporting for duty."

Said Hokage just motioned for Shirou to be at ease. He felt bad enough already that he has assigned them such a desolate post; he didn't need them to be in work mode right now. "Shirou, Taiga, please, sit down. You aren't here to get a mission."

As the pair sat, Shirou looked at him curiously. "Well, Hokage-sama," he questioned, "If we aren't here for a new mission, then why did you recall us? You sent us out there as a warning to Kumo; surely they are still a threat."

The Hokage just shook his head sadly, "I'm afraid, Shirou, that the world has largely forgotten about the Kuro Kousen's exploits, or else think that you perished on some S-ranked mission somewhere."

"So," Shirou nodded slowly, "We're back here to prove we still exist, then?"

The Hokage sighed, wishing that his favorite pipe had been lit. "Exactly. It has appeared to the world that we are on the decline; after all, with the sannin spilt and gone, the most powerful shinobi we have left are Hatake Kakashi and Maito Gai."

Taiga snorted, "You can't really go wrong with Kaka-ero and the Disturbing Green Beast of Konoha. Have the other villages forgotten them?"

The Hokage shook his head again, "Even then, they are only two men. The only one outside of them that might be well known is my son Asuma, but even then I am not sure of that."

Shirou frowned. "What about Jiraya-sama? If you need a show of ninja, I am sure he would come back. Unless that has changed since we were away…"

Shirou left the statement hanging. The Hokage took the time to light his pipe before pointing out, "While he would come back, he wouldn't stay for long, and his *cough* bad habits could cause more bad than good for our image."

Taiga started to laugh openly once the Hoakge accused Jiraya of having "bad habits." She managed to choke out, "Hey old man, just call him a perv like everyone else does. He's just lucky that he hasn't tried peaking when I am in the hot springs, right Shirou?"

Shirou started to chuckle himself, finally starting to get out of his "mission mode." He deadpanned, "Taiga, if he was trying to peek at you, it would have to mean that there was absolutely no one else bathing."

Taiga turned her head slowly with a sickly-sweet grin fixed on her face. She responded dangerously, "Oh, and whatever do you mean by that, Shirou-kun?"

The Hokage worked quickly to prevent the total annihilation of his office; Tohsaka Taiga was notoriously short-fused and was never afraid to lash out violently at the sources of her discomfort. He interjected, "At any rate, you see why I can't call Jiraya back here. That would get things to be even more complicated than they already are, and none of us needs that right now. It is too bad it has been so long since we have had a great squad like the sannin or even your own…"

Shirou coughed to draw attention to himself. When both the Hokage and his raven-haired partner were looking at him, he hesitantly began, "Actually, I have been thinking about something Hokage-sama, and this just might be a solution to your problem." He looked to the Hokage waiting for a sign to continue. The Sandaime nodded, and Shirou expounded, "I want you to let me work as Jonin-sensei for a squad that is coming out of the academy right now."

Both Taiga and the Hokage looked at Shirou as if he had grown a third head. The Hokage was the first to regain his bearings. "So you want me to bend the rules and let you take someone else's squad. Why?"

Shirou's face grew determined as he answered, "Because we are the best you have right now, and honestly, you owe us. You left us out in the middle of freaking nowhere for 9 years. 9. Some of your strongest, most loyal ninja. I don't like playing that card, but I really think that we could make something great out of some group of students coming out of the academy. Please, Sarutobi-sama!"

The Hokage was shocked that one of his own ninja was trying to call in a favor. And the ninja was Shirou. He might have expected it from Mitarashi Anko or even his own son, but Aisaka Shirou? He was momentarily dumbstruck. Taiga decided to voice her opinion as well, adding, "Jiji, when you think about it, this is a great idea. After all, Shirou always wanted to be a jonin-sensei, and even Maito Gai recognizes Shirou as his equal in taijutsu. And when it comes to ninjutsu, who is better qualified than me? Heck, I can even think of one or two kids that could do great in Shirou's squad, at least with my help."

Shirou looked at her oddly as the Hokage could only wonder, "Who?" Taiga was glad to tell them.

"Uzumaki Naruto. That kid has enough chakra that he could spam my jutsus all day and hardly feel it. Shirou could probably teach him his taijutsu to make him an all-around powerhouse, even without that, um… furry little problem."

The Hokage thought momentarily. "Uzumaki Naruto is already in Squad 7 with Hatake Kakashi."

Taiga was the first one to respond. "Why the hell is Kaka-ero teaching a squad? Come on old man, even you have to know he will be late, perverted, and lazy. Why not give that squad to Shirou and let Kakashi do the types of missions he is good at, not working with kids. Who is in that squad, outside of the gaki?"

The Hokage rose his eyebrow at the gaki comment, but responded, "One of them is the Rookie of the Year, and the Last of the Uchiha, Uchiha Sasuke. He has a few C-rank ninjutsu to go with the academy basics and has sworn to kill his brother. Naruto has a very one-sided rivalry with him. The other is the top kunoichi, Haruno Sakura. She got very good grades, but she is weak at taijutsu and has small chakra reserves. She also has an obsession with Uchiha Sasuke and a loathing for Uzumaki Narto."

Both Taiga and Shirou nodded through the first team member description before heard of the second member. Their reactions to her description were vastly different. On one hand, Shirou simply shook his head it sadness, or perhaps exasperation. On the other, Taiga's mouth fell open out of pure shock. After a few seconds, she had recovered enough to say, "Are you crazy, Hokage-jiji? I know you like grouping—wait. If they are the top two in the school, does that mean the gaki was in last place?"

The Hokage nodded sadly. "I'm afraid that people still don't like Naruto-kun. People tried to sabotage his learning, and they succeeded. And due to his chakra reserves, he just wasn't able to make only two simple Bushin. The only reason he was passed was because he brought down a traitor to the village; well, that and he learned how to use the Kage Bunshin no Jutsu (Shadow Clone Technique)."

This time even Shirou's mouth dropped open. He croaked out, "Are you telling me that a kid—one both blessed and cursed with massive amounts of chakra—learned how to use the Kage Bunshin as not even a genin? And that he was considered the dobe of the academy?" When the Hokage nodded, Shirou spat out disgustedly, "He could be the best damn shinobi this place has ever seen and people hindered him just because they couldn't see the forest for the trees."

Taiga's response was even more furious. She slammed on the desk in front of her with both hands. "Those damn bastards," she raged loudly, "how, could they jiji? Don't they know what he is doing for them? Why?"

The Hokage face clouded as he looked away. He felt shame for the village he was sworn to protect for hating a child. Shame for the council that did all they could oppress a child. Shame for himself, who had failed to keep his promise to Minato. He sighed heavily before responding, "I don't know, Taiga-san, I don't know."

While Taiga continued to fume, Shirou had recovered. He stated calmly, "Hokage-sama, why don't you give me Naruto-san's team? What happened in the past is not something that can be changed now, but you know that I would treat Naruto-san's team right."

Sarutobi nodded solemnly and sadly. "Alright Shirou-kun, I will grant you this request. Aisaka Shirou, you are now the Jonin-sensei of squad 7. Make sure you turn those kids into fine shinobi. Do you have any problems with this?"

Shirou was about to shake his head before Taiga butted in, saying, "Of course he does! Haruno Sakura! If she is going to be a ninja, it is clear that she would be the genjutsu or medic type. So put her with someone who can teach her that and give Shirou a kunoichi that could use taijutsu! And, also, just look at the squad dynamics as is: the gaki's rivalry with the Uchiha already makes things dicey to start with, when add on Haruno's distain for the kid and freaking infatuation with Uchiha and your setting this team up for a bad end! Come on, jiji, there has to be at least one kunoichi that is a taijutsu specialist! Like an Inuzaka, or a Hyuuga, or something!"

The Hokage looked from her to Shirou, who shrugged but nodded that she had a point. The Third said, "Well, there is Hyuuga Hinata, however she is already on a squad and was requested by Yuuhi Kurenai personally, as Kurenai-san was something line a nanny to Hinata-san."

Taiga responded quickly, "And that is a good thing? It means that she will probably baby her, and no aspiring kunoichi should be coddled! Besides, if Shirou wants her, he has seniority over Kurenai-chan, and he is a taijutsu specialist. No self-respecting Hyuuga would allow genjutsu in their arsenal. And since Haruno needs to learn genjutsu, who better than Kurenai-chan as her sensei? Even when we were still here in the village, she was known for her good genjutsu. You agree, right jiji?"

The Hokage thought it over. He could see the logic in the argument, which was surprising considering the source. He eventually nodded and Taiga's face split into a wide grin. "I knew you would understand Hokage-jiji! Oh, and you're welcome Shirou! Now, if you will excuse me, I want to go home and sleep in my own bed for the first time in 8—"

"—9."

"—However many years it has been. Ja ne!"

Taiga sauntered out of the room looking smug that she had pulled off domineering both Shirou and the Hokage. Sarutobi and Shirou looked at each other momentarily before the former chuckled and said, "You know, Shirou-kun, she really has got you whipped."

Shirou scowled darkly and responded, "With all due respect, Hokage-sama, I'd like to see you last 9 years out in the middle of nowhere with only her around. You need to pick your battles even with normal women, and Taiga… Well, Taiga is just not normal."