AN: Hello everyone, I hope you all enjoy this Chapter! I came across something interesting when I was looking up the word for nephew in Japanese, it is listed as oi….so to prevent confusion between the use of oi as hey and oi as in nephew the few times that I will use it meaning nephew I will write it as oi-kun. Please read and review!

Disclaimer: This story is mine, the characters and their worlds are not, they belong to their original creators only!

Chapter 2

It didn't take them long for them to get the information that they needed. The hostess at the tea house was more than happy to tell them where to find Tazuna and his family. Apparently she had been good friends with his daughter Tsunami for years and had talked up a storm. Once they had finished their tea and the small plate of dumplings they ordered they headed off, following the directions that she had given them.

Kenshin took in the appearance of the modest home that they were currently standing in front of. The sound of waves lapping on the small dock behind the house mixed with the chirping of the birds in the nearby trees gave the place a peaceful feel. He turned to Kaoru, his sugegasa and hair hiding his eyes from her. "Kaoru-dono, please follow my lead while we are here. We must keep my true identity quiet and I doubt that they have heard of Japan, that I am." He said quietly.

Kaoru looked at him. His long red banges were hiding his eyes from her so she could only guess at his nervousness. "Alright, that's fair I guess. You would know better than me what kind of information we need anyway." She said, not sure if she should be upset or not with his implication that she didn't know what she was doing.

"Thank you Kaoru-dono." He said simply as he walked up the steps on the small porch. After giving the wooden door a firm knock he stepped back slightly, his arms folding into his kimono sleeves as he waited. After a moment, hurried footsteps could be heard inside the house, a woman's voice calling out that she would be there in a moment.

A pretty woman with dark eye's and hair slid open the door and greeted them with a warm friendly smile. "Hello, can I help you?" Tsunami asked.

"Hello" Kenshin greeted, a friendly smile upon his face. "We are looking for Tazuna-dono, is he available?" he asked.

"I am sorry, my father isn't home right now. He was called away to oversee a building project in the land of fire." She replied apologetically. "Is there something I could do to help you?"

"Aa. Well we had been hoping to speak to Tazuna-dono, but maybe you can help. We are traveling through Nami no Kuni to Hi no Kuni to visit some family when we came across the bridge that Tazuna-dono built. From what we have heard in the village there seems to be a great story connected to it and we were more than curious about it." He said, his voice light and friendly. "We thought the best person to ask about it would be Tazuna-dono himself. Would you happen to know the whole story behind the name of the bridge?"

Tsunami gave a friendly chuckle. "I know the story well enough. The konoha ninja did stay here with us after all. And Naruto-kun is quite the character." She slid the open door wider. "Why don't you come in, I will make some tea and I can tell you what I know.

Once they moved inside. Their sandals and boots left by the door with their sugegasa. They were settled on cushions at a small table overlooking the bay and dock behind the house. After a few minutes Tsunami returned carrying a tray. She laid out the tea and a small plate of sweet cakes for them before settling herself across from them.

"I suppose I should have asked your names first." She said with a bit of a laugh. "It has been a long time since our village has received so many visitors, although they don't usually stop at my house. My name is Tsunami by the way."

"It is a pleasure Tsunami-dono. We are very grateful to you for taking the time to tell us about the bridge and for your hospitality." Kenshin replied, bowing slightly. "I am Kenshin Himura and this lady here is Kaoru…" He began but was cut off by Tsunami's friendly voice.

"Kaoru? What a pretty name! I do love your kimono, such a pretty color, and it brings out your eyes so nicely!" She exclaimed, leaning over to give a loud, and very fake, conspiratorial whisper. "Your husband isn't bad looking either!" She said giving the now blushing and sputtering Kaoru a conspiratorial wink.

Kenshin just blinked for a second, having been taken off guard. 'Husband?' Coming back to his senses he decided it would be best to play along. "Aa, thank you. My wife can be a bit shy sometimes, although she gets over it quickly. We have just been married and she is still getting used to the idea, right Kaoru-chan?" He said turning to her slightly as he reached over to give her knee a quick squeeze.

"Oh, ah…. Y-yes." Kaoru said as she tried getting herself pulled back together. Kenshin had asked her to follow his lead, and apparently allowing Tsunami to assume they were married worked well for whatever was going through his head at the moment. "Th-thank you."

"Sorry, I didn't mean to embarrass you." She said with a laugh. "Although you two are just too cute together!" She said as she passed out the sweets she had brought in, missing the blush on both of their faces. "Now I suppose I should begin at the beginning. With who Gato was and what he did to our village." She said as her voice took on a calmer, more serious tone. It took several long minutes as Tsunami explained who Gato had been, the way he had essentially held not just the village but all of Nami no Kuni hostage for his own greedy desires and why her father had requested help from Konoha.

"It was a great relief when they arrived. Everyone had high hopes that the Konoha shinobi would get rid of Gato so we could finally be free of him and his thugs. Although my son Inari-kun had a hard time at first. He was convinced that anyone who stood up to Gato would be killed, just like my husband had been." She said, her voice sad.

"I am sorry for your loss!" Kaoru said as she reached a hand across the table to Tsunami who smiled in return.

"Thank you." Tsunami replied. "Naruto-kun was the spunkiest of the three kids. He was quite annoyed at Inari-kun's attitude and was not afraid to let him know it either." She said with a laugh. "That boy's determination is just beyond anything I have ever seen too. He was able to pull Inari-kun out the depression that he had been in since his stepfather died and inspired strength in the villagers to help them stand up to Gato. The villagers even took up arms in the end, which turned out to be the turning point in the final battle with Gato and his goons. He had at least a hundred thugs with him and two very strong rogue shinobi. Their sensei was able to take care of the older of the two shinobi until they got to the point that Gato decided to turn on them, like the weasel he was. They ended up being killed by the goons of the man who had hired them. As for the goons that Gato had, between the villagers, Naruto-kun and Sasuke-kun they were taken out with their boss." She said as she finished the story. "Thankfully there were very few casualties on our side. Most of the ones who did die were Gato's goons who he had attack his hired shinobi and were killed by him, his name was Zabuza, as he fought them off trying to get too his apprentice who was seriously injured. Poor kid died from his injures not long after." Her voice was sympathetic for the poor young shinobi who died, even if they had been working for Gato, she still felt that it was a waste of life. "Naruto-kun had been very upset at the boy's death too. He had is stuck in his head that he would be able to save him. To get him to see the error of his ways I suppose. Maybe he saw a bit of himself in the other boy too, who knows? All I know is he was quite depressed about it for the next couple of days that they were here while their sensei recovered."

"It sounds like Naruto-dono has quite the courageous and kind heart, that it does." Kenshin said, his face unreadable as he looked down into the teacup in his hands.

"Yes he does. It's too bad that he's an orphan. I am sure that his parents would have been so very proud of him. To be honest, I think he will attain that dream of his too. He wants to become the Hokage of his village, and he is a natural leader if I ever met one. People just seem to gravitate to him. Although he does have a lot to learn first!" She said with a laugh. "He is too mischievous for his own good as well." Standing she moved to the bookcase in the corner and took down a framed photo. "I took a picture of the kids before they left so that Inari-kun would have something to remember them by." She said as she moved back to the table and handed the photo to Kenshin. The photo had been taken on the front porch, On the top step sat a pink haired girl with green eyes and a large smile. The dark haired boy next to her had a slight frown on his face, but his eyes showed he was actually quite pleased. Sitting in front of them was a much younger boy of about 9 who was smiling brightly as he was being held in a headlock by a blonde boy with bright blue eyes, three scars on each cheek that kinda looked like whiskers and the biggest, sunniest smile. A smile that Kenshin would recognize anywhere. Careful to keep his hand from trembling, he handed the photo over to Kaoru so she could get a good look.

"What cute kids." She said, a small smile on her face as she kept her tone light. "It's hard to believe that they are shinobi." She handed the photo back to Tsunami as she tried to get a look at Kenshin's face out of the corner of her eye. He was hiding behind his bangs. A sure sign he was dealing with some sort of strong emotion. She herself had instantly figured out which child must be his nephew. The blonde boy had the same coloring as his sister's husband, but the boys face and smile could only have come from her. Her heart went out to Kenshin. He had just seen proof outside of the words written on the bridge that his nephew was alive and well, and very much alone outside of his team. She had seen it. The look in those blue eyes. That smile, while sincere enough, was also a mask. Just like Kenshin, he was hiding his loneliness, his pain behind a smile. Deciding to take charge since they had their information she started to rise, catching Kenshin's attention as she did so. "Thank you so much Tsunami-san for your hospitality and a wonderful story. I am afraid that we must be going though. We have a long way to go yet and I am sure Kenshin is eager to get going. Right dear?" She said, giving a slight emphasis on 'dear' to Kenshin, letting him know he was going to get an earful later.

"Aa, yes we should go." He said with a chuckle. "We would not want to overstay our welcome, and we have a long journey ahead of us yet, that we do." He said as he too stood from his cushion.

"It was a pleasure having the two of you here!" Tsunami said, a smile on her face. "Although, I would not want to keep you from your journey. I hope the two of you enjoy your honeymoon." She teased as she saw them out of the house. Again missing the blush on their faces as they descended the steps to the yard. With a quick bow and farewell they were off again, headed through the village back towards the bridge.

Once Tsunami's house was out of site, Kaoru turned to Kenshin. "Married?" She hissed, her annoyance evident. "There better be a good reason as to why you let her think that we were married!" She growled.

Kenshin chuckled nervously. "Well, it was easier to go with what she already assumed, and I thought that she might be less suspicious of newlyweds traveling to visit family, that I did!" He said, trying to appease Kaoru's rising temper.

Letting out a frustrated growl, Kaoru decided to let it drop. After all it hadn't actually been his idea. He had just gone with it. That, and a small piece of her heart, wished it were true. "Fine." She said. "You did ask me to follow your lead, and it's not like it hurt anything to pretend." After a couple of minutes of walking in silence, she turned to him again. "Umm, Kenshin?" She asked hesitantly.

"Yes Kaoru-dono?" he replied.

"What is a Hokage?" She asked as they reached the bridge and started to cross it.

Stopping short, Kenshin looked at her, surprised violet met curious sapphire. After a second he laughed at himself. "I forgot for a moment that there is much I haven't explained yet Kaoru-dono. I'm sorry, that I am. The Hokage, which means 'fire shadow' is the chosen leader of the village we are going to. They are the strongest shinobi in the village. Naruto-kun's father was the Hokage before he died, that he was. He was referred to as Yondaime, or the Yondaime Hokage." He said as he moved off again.

"So what does the whole 'will of fire' and 'hidden among the leaves' part of the letter have to do with where we are going. You haven't explained that to me either." She said catching up to his swiftly moving form.

"Actually I was quite surprised at how straightforward that message was, Anyone familiar with the elemental nations and specifically Hi no Kuni, also referred to as the land of fire, would know that it was referring to a shinobi of it's hidden village." He said as he walked. "All shinobi live in what is called a hidden village, even though it is common enough knowledge on how to get there. The village is kept away from the country's capital and is not on the main trading routes. Meaning that you need to be specifically headed there to reach it. It makes it easier to defend from attacks. The hidden village of Hi no Kuni is Konohagakure, the village hidden in the leaves." He said glancing at Kaoru, who was looking at him intently as they walked. "Their Sandaime Hokage, the same man who wrote me of my family's death, had a saying that in each shinobi of his village burned the will of fire, the will to fight for and defend their village and their precious people." He gave Kaoru a moment to digest the new information that he had just given to her before he continued. "Once we are across this bridge we will be in Hi no Kuni and will be traveling north for the next day. After that we will be following a small trail that goes north/north west for the next two. Depending on how much ground we cover each day we will either be entering the gates of Konoha at supper time in three days or possibly mid morning the next day. Considering how much daylight we have left today, and that we are traveling on foot it will probably be the latter. Once we get there, we will ask for an audience with the Hokage. He has much to account for, that he does." He said, his voice gaining a hard edge as he thought of the lie that he and Naruto have had to deal with for so long. The feeling of betrayal by someone that his sister had looked up to like a grandfather growing.

Kaoru thought about what Kenshin had just told her and after a moment let out a soft laugh. "Will of fire huh?" She said offhandedly. "The way you are about your friends and with that hair of yours I would say you are the embodiment of the will of fire. And I can only image that if your sister was even half as protective of her loved ones then she was too." She said smiling at him.

A bit startled he looked at her for a moment before laughing. "You are right about that, that you are."

Kenshin had been right in his estimation, they were arriving at the gates of Konoha mid morning of the fourth day after crossing the bridge. It had been a long, tiring trek, but they had arrived safely with no trouble. They had occasionally seen small groups of merchants along the small road to Konoha, and even saw groups of shinobi flitting above them in the trees, which had amazed Kaoru, and had lead to a short explanation regarding chakra and it's useage and how it can boost speed and agility. Which of course lead to her figuring out that that was how Kenshin could move so quickly when fighting, which he had laughed off. It had been at midday on the second day of travel, when they had stopped at a small tea house for refreshment and a small meal that they had gotten a chance to interact with a Genin team from Konoha. They had chatted a bit, the Jounin named Kenichi, had been curious about Kenshin's sword and was friendly enough. When asked about Konoha, he had been surprised to learn that they didn't know about Orochimaru's attack, or that Sandaime had been killed during the invasion. They learned that Tsunade, one of Sandaime's students, had just been inaugurated as the Hokage a couple weeks prior and she had been brought back to Konoha by none other that Master Jiraiya and Naruto.

"To be honest" Kenichi said looking at Kenshin intently. "No one believed that brat would be able to bring her back, even with Jiraiya-sama's help. No one has ever though much of him in fact. Considering he has been nothing but an annoying prankster and dead last in his class, but he is changing people's minds. I am glad he was successful, Tsunade-sama seems quite fond of that gaki. It's too bad about his teammate Sasuke though."

"Why, what happened to him." Kenshin asked curiously.

"Word is he abandoned the village to find Orochimaru, and not to avenge the village either. He wants power. A bunch of his Genin friends went after him, but they all were nearly killed by Orochimaru's men. Even Naruto-san was hurt badly, by Sasuke-san himself in fact. Those poor kids are still in the hospital and will probably be in there for some time yet."

Kenichi and his Genin had left shortly after that to resume their mission and they too had moved on. Kenshin felt a bit deflated at finding out that the Sandaime had been killed. Now he would never know the true reason the old man had for denying him his nephew. But he had met Tsunade, she had been his sister's Jounin sensei before she had left the village at the end of the third war. Maybe that was why he had been sent the message? Because it was safe for him to come see Naruto? He didn't know, but he was going to find out.

After checking in at the front gate, a bored looking Chunin was assigned to escort them to the Hokage tower where they could request an audience with the Hokage herself. They looked around in amazement at the bustle of the village. It was much busier than he remembered and was glad that it seemed that the village had not suffer too badly from the invasion.

It only took them a few minutes to reach the tower, the chunin gave them instructions to go up to the second floor and after showing them to the stairs he left them to go back to his post. At the top of the stairs was a small reception area with a desk as well as a hallway lined with doors leading into various offices and meeting rooms off to one side. Kenshin felt a bit apprehensive as he approached the desk. The dark haired woman who was sitting there hadn't looked up yet as she was working on something, but he recognized her. She had been a friend of his sisters, even though she had been several years younger, the two women had been very close.

"Excuse me. We would like to meet with the Hokage please." Kaoru said politely as she looked at the woman behind the desk. She had been a bit surprised Kenshin hadn't spoken up first, but one look at his face, she had know it might be best if she asked instead.

"Of course, just give me one moment please." She said looking up, the friendly look on her face seemed to freeze in shock, the color draining away like she had seen a ghost when she she saw Kenshin standing there.

"Hello Shizune-dono. It has been far too long, that it has." Kenshin said softly to the startled woman behind the desk.

"Kenshin, you know her?" Kaoru asked, although she wasn't completely surprised considering the look he had had on his face just moments before.

"Yes, she was one of nee-san's closest friends." He replied, his voice was quiet and sad.

"I-it is really you isn't it? Kenshin-san?" She asked, shock evident in her voice. "E-everyone thought that you were dead when you didn't…. When you didn't come for him." She said.

"Well, as you can see I am not dead and I require some answers. It is too bad that Sandaime-sama isn't here to answer them for me." He replied, his voice firm and a bit angry. Something that Kaoru had picked up on the last couple of day's. It seemed that any mention of the Sandaime angered Kenshin. Most likely because he would never get the truth from the man.

"R-right, come with me. Tsunade-sama just finished with her last debriefing a few minutes ago and should be free." She said as she stood and quickly walked down the hall. After passing several doors she quickly knocked, opening the door she poked her head in. "Umm…. Tsunade-sama, th-there is someone here to see you." She said as she nervously looked back over her shoulder.

Tsunade sighed. They were in the middle of assigning D-rank missions for the Genin. The large, airy meeting room had only just gotten quiet. Iruka, who was sitting to her left, had been helping her sort through the missions for the next set of meetings that were supposed to start in half an hour. Of course as soon as it got quiet, Jiraiya had shown up and now this. Couldn't she get a moment's peace! She eyed Jiraiya angrily as he leaned nonchalantly on the wall.

"Hey, don't look at me. I had no idea you would have more visitors." He said.

"Show them in." She growled as she turned back to Shizune, who seemed unusually nervous.

"R-right." She she moved to the side to alow a young woman with black hair and sapphire blue eyes who was about 6 inches shorter than her into the room. But it was the man who came into the room on the woman's heels that made her eye's widen in shock and then narrow dangerously. Shizune's nervous behaviour could only be on account of the man now standing before her. She could feel Iruka shift nervously as he felt the tension in the room skyrocket. But Jiraiya just stood there, almost like he was expecting it, the bastard.

"It has been been a very long time Tsunade-sama." Kenshin said, his voice no longer sounding angry, but it was firm, hard even. He was going to get his answers one way or another.

"It has. What has it been, seventeen, eighteen years since your last visit? So, where in hell have you been Kenshin Himura?" She asked, a smirk forming on her face. "Or should I call you Kenshin Uzumaki?"

Iruka's eyes snapped up at the family name of his favorite student. He knew that Naruto was an orphan and there were no other Uzumaki in Konoha, 'Who is this man?' He wondered.

"It seems that you still remember me, even if I was not more than a child when I met you. I have many questions for you, that I do." He said, his features were firm, eyes serious, anger laced his voice as he continued. "I would like to start with the most pressing one if I may, why was I not informed that my nephew lived? Sandaime-sama sent me a message, informing me of Kushina nee-san's death. He claimed that her husband, Minato-san and her newborn son died with her. So tell me Tsunade-sama, what reason would he have for denying me my nephew?" He growled. "What right did he, or any of you for that matter, have to keep Naruto-kun from me! He is my nephew! My beloved nee-san's only child!" He spat at her as he moved forward, the emotional dam cracking under the pressure of his anger. "If your precious Sandaime-sama could find me then so could you have, you were her sensei! And you!" He said his furious gaze moving to pin Jiraiya to the wall. "You were Minato-san's sensei and Naruto-kun's godfather! You with your spy network, couldn't even let me know he lived! Your precious students son! The only child of your villages Yondaime-sama! They died for this village and none of you could even be bothered to make sure their son had his family to raise him!" His voice and anger rising, golden flecks of rage showing all those that knew him just how angry he was. "I received this" He said as he whipped out the message and slammed it on the desk in front of Tsunade. "A fortnight ago! I don't know who sent it and I don't even know who delivered it! I want an explanation NOW!"

Tsunade picked up and read the message, instantly recognizing the handwriting, she sent a glare Jiraiya's way. "Sandaime passed several laws regarding Naruto and the circumstances of his birth that was considered treason if broken." She began, keeping a tight leash on her own anger. "Our hands were essentially tied." She said.

"And what would a wet behind the ears boy of what, sixteen maybe, be able to do about raising a baby anyway." Jiraiya said, frowning darkly. "It's true, I knew how to contact you, I also got reports on your activities over in Japan. You earned quite a reputation during their revolution, didn't you Battousai?" He said.

"Now see here! Don't you go blaming Kenshin…" Kaoru said as her own anger started to boil over. Kenshin placed a hand out in front of her, stopping her from moving towards the shinobi in front of him.

"Kaoru-dono, I appreciate your anger on my behalf, but please let this one handle it." He said to her.

"B-but Kenshin…" She replied, her voice calmer, gentler as she spoke to the man beside her.

"Please, Kaoru-dono." He said again, turning fully towards her.

After a moment Kaoru turned from him a bit. "Fine." She huffed. "But they better have some better reasons than some stupid law. I mean really!" Kenshin smirked a bit at her gripping, comforted by the fact that her opinion was the same as his at the moment.

"I do too, although I have my suspicions on the reasons for those laws." He said, his voice becoming hard again. Turning back to the shinobi in the office he glared at them. He had thought long and hard on the trip here, trying to unravel the possible reasons the third might of had. There was only one reason he could think of that would cause him to go to such extremes. He took a deep breath and let it out in a whoosh of air as he made sure he had a firm grasp on his anger. Looking from Tsunade to Jiraiya and back again as he gathered his words. "To start, it is not acceptable to use a man's reputation against him with regards to his family. War is war, you do what you must, that you do. Do not think for a moment that I am proud of being called Hitokiri Battousai. I did what I had too to protect the oppressed, to protect those that were weaker than me and to bring about an area of peace." He gave them a moment to digest his words before continuing. "As for these law's that Sandaime-sama put in place. To tell a child of his heritage and call it treason is outrageous! But, unfortunately, it confirms the suspicions that I have been harboring."

He moved his attention to the Chunin sitting at the end of the long desk to Tsunade's left. The brown haired man, who looked to be a few years younger than himself, was sweating profusely. Most likely from the amount of tension in the air. Changing tactics, he decided to address him for a moment. "What is your name?" Kenshin asked, his voice taking on a more respectful tone.

"Oh, ahh, Iruka, Iruka Umino." Iruka replied nervously.

"Iruka-dono, I do apologize for any discomfort that our discussion is causing you. But maybe you could help, are you familiar with these laws?" He asked, his voice remaining polite, almost relaxed compared to how he had been talking to Tsunade.

"Well, um, yes." Iruka said, having a feeling he knew where this was going before the next question was even asked.

"What do you do for your village Iruka-dono?" He asked.

"I work at the Academy and help Tsunade-sama with assigning D-rank mission to the Genin." He said, eyeing Kenshin warily.

"Ah, good! Then you must be very familiar with the history of this lovely village!" Kenshin replied, his voice sounding almost cheerful.

"Well, yes. Village and international history are a major subject at the Academy. All the teachers are required to know it."

"So, Iruka-dono" Kenshin began, his voice hardening once more. "Can you tell me the names of the villages past Jinchuriki?" Kenshin watched as all the color drained from his face.

"Ah, well no…" He said, his gut dropping like a lead weight. 'Ibiki would love this guy.' He thought briefly.

"No? You said you knew village history. I suppose that history must not truly be important here, which is a shame." Kenshin said as he took in the tense stance of Tsunade and Jiraiya. "Would you like me to tell you the names of the two Jinchuriki that Konoha has had in the past?" He asked in a conversational tone of voice. "I do believe you are already familiar with the current one, hence the law's that are in place of course."

"Ahh…" Iruka was feeling a bit lost for words. There had been two Jinchuriki in Konoha before Naruto? How on earth did this man, not even a member of the village even know any of this information?

"I do believe you have heard of the first one. My great-aunt Mito was a very well respected konichi, wasn't she Tsunade-sama?" He asked casually. "I do believe her husband, your Shodai Hokage-sama thought so."

"Th-the Shodai's wife?" Iruka asked stunned.

"Yes, she was very strong, that she was. At least that is what father told me. Of course, so was my nee-san, Naruto-kun's mother. Father told me that it was a great honor to be chosen to be the Jinchuriki of such a powerful creature. You are also familiar with Kushina Uzumaki, the Yondaime's wife are you not?" He asked.

"Well.. no.. not really." He replied.

"Ah, well. I suppose that not knowing that the wife of your Hokage is the Jinchuriki of the Kyuubi no Kitsune is common practice here then. It is a shame really. To be given such a huge responsibility, but to be left alone with it, no one to share the burden with. I suppose it was good for my nee-san that mother and aunt came to Konoha with her when she came for training. I would hate to imagine the pain and loneliness she would have gone through without having family there." He said causing Iruka to visibly flinch.

'Well at least now I know the point he was trying to make.' Iruka thought to himself as guilt weighed down on him though for all those times he didn't help Naruto because of his own fear or just because of the laws in place.

"I don't know what you think you know…" Tsunade said as she glared at Kenshin but was cut off by the return of his temper.

"What I know is what was taught to me as a child by my father before I left to apprentice under Hiko-shishou and by my mother when I visited my nee-san all those years ago." He growled. "I know that only someone of Uzumaki blood can safely be the Jinchuriki of the Kyuubi! I also know the only weakness of the seal that was used and was developed by my clan!" He said, his voice rising. "What I do not know is the details of the birth of my nephew which would have left no choice but to make him the next Jinchuriki and why it was believed that he would not need his family to care for him!"

After a moment of stunned silence, Iruka worked up the nerve to speak. "S-so, you figured out that he is a Jinchuriki… and it doesn't bother you?" He asked warily.

"There was no other possible reason why a child would be denied the love of his family. And no, it does not bother me that he is a Jinchuriki. He is the jailor, not the monster just as my nee-san was." He said matter a factly.

Kaoru looked at him confused. "M-monster? Kenshin, why would you call your nephew a monster?" She asked, not sure if she had heard him correctly.

"I did not call him a monster Kaoru-dono, although I can assume that others may think that." Kenshin watched Iruka visible flinch at his words. "My clan has been be the ones to bare a great burden for generations now. I will do my best to explain it to you later, that I will." He turned back to address Tsunade once again, his voice sounding more subdued. "Was he at least well cared for? Did Sandaime-sama at least let him foster with one of the clans? Minato-san was very close with Hiashi of the Hyuga clan and Shikaku of the Nara Clan if I remember correctly."

Only deafening silence answered him. After what seemed like an eternity for Kenshin he let out a remorseful sigh. "I see." He said sadly. "I suppose that he was raised in the local orphanage?"

Iruka looked up, his own shame at not helping Naruto when he was younger was growing larger and heavier by the minute as he watched and listened to the man standing in front of him. This man who had been denied the opportunity to know Naruto but yet loved him so much for simply being born. "I… have never know Naruto to live at the orphanage…. I was assigned as his sensei at the Academy by Sandaime-sama after several other teachers refused to teach him." He said as he watched the attention of the two visitors rest on him. "I… have only known him to live alone, in a small apartment not far from the Academy itself."

"How old was he when he left the orphanage?" Kenshin asked quietly, taking in how both Tsunade and Jiraiya now refused to even meet his eyes. After a moment with no answer he asked again. "How old was he?!" He growled.

Still refusing to meet Kenshin's gaze, Tsunade let out a ragged breath. "Three. He was three when the orphanage threw him out claiming he was a danger to the other children." She said. Her own guilt weighing heavily on her now.

"Th-three…" Kaoru repeated, her heart breaking for the scared little boy that Naruto must have been. Images of Dr. Gensai little granddaughters popped into her head. The youngest had just turned four, how could anyone expect a small child, a baby, to take care of themselves was beyond her. "Y-you people a-are monsters!" She said, her voice thick with both anger and sorrow. "H-how could any of you allow a small child, a baby, to be thrown into the streets!" She choked out as the tears started to fall. "A-and to call him a danger! I-if anyone was a danger it was you people!"

"Kaoru-dono." Kenshin said softly as moved over to her. He was having a hard time keeping his own emotions in check at hearing how small Naruto was when forced to be on his own. He gently wrapped an arm around her shoulders. "I think maybe this is getting too much for you Kaoru-dono. Maybe you should wait outside. I am about done here anyway, that I am."

She grabbed tightly to his sleeve, sorrow filled blue eyes looked into pained violet. "He was a baby still Kenshin! How could they…. How could anyone…." She said, her voice choked by her tears.

"I do not know that either Kaoru-dono. But we are here now. I will make things right if I can, that I will." He said softly, trying to lead her to the door, but she stubbornly refused.

"I am not leaving Kenshin, so you can forget about it." she said softly, her voice firm under the tears.

"Are you sure Kaoru-dono." Kenshin asked her quietly, when she nodded her assent he turned back to the Tsunade. "I think it would be best if you gathered all of my nee-san's and Minato-san's papers together. I am sure you have their important paperwork stored here. I wish to see their wills and I also wish to do what I can for Naruto-kun while I am here. I will speak with him myself and he will be informed of who I am as well. It is his right." He said, his voice stern, leaving no room for argument. "I will be back before supper time for the records, in the meantime we will be leaving to find a place to stay." He said, as he turned and moved towards the door.

"Hold on a minute." Tsunade said, her voice showing her defeat. Kenshin had only spoken honestly and, unfortunately, had been right about everything. She decided that it was best just to let him do what should have been done so long ago for Naruto, to let him be there for him. Quickly grabbing a blank piece of paper from the desk top she scribbled a note and put the Hokage's stamp on it. "Iruka, I want you to escort these two over to the dignitary guest quarters and give this to them. Make sure they are assigned one of the smaller guest quarters there for their stay and make sure that it is clear that all of their needs are to be met." She said handing the paper to Iruka. "After that, please escort Himura-san to the hospital so that he may visit his nephew. I am sure the… revelations that are to come for the gaki will be a bit easier to take in if you are there to confirm the truth for him." She said, her voice firm.

"Of course Hokage-sama." Iruka said as the took the paper and stood to leave. Moving to the door he looked at Kenshin and Kaoru as he opened it. "Please follow me."

After they left Tsunade turned a glare at Jiraiya. "What… the…. Hell… Jiraiya!" She growled.

"He needed to know. And anyway, the gaki needs a safe place to train. I know we were talking about him traveling with me, I just thought that having more… options, would be good." He said in a completely un-repentant tone.

She let out a loud sigh. "I need a drink."