Embraced By Crimson

Chapter 2: A Mercurial Enemy Is Most Dangerous

|Konoha - Classified Location|

Naruto shuffled on his feet quietly. He refused to blame it on nerves. No, he was simply restless. He couldn't be nervous; he was a shinobi. Regardless, he still moved side to side as the Hokage quietly perused the document in front of him. His two advisers, Koharu and Homura, flanked him on either side and waited patiently for the man to say something. Closer to Naruto sat Nara Shikaku; current Jonin Commander of Konoha and a man of incredible intellect. Next to him was Danzo. The old warhawk was staring at Naruto intensely, as he always did when the boy gave his reports. When he was younger and in ANBU his mask had protected him from the pervading eyes but now he felt bare, as if the man was looking into his very soul.

The five of them were all around a rectangular table deep in the Hokage Mountain and Naruto stood in front of the table silently. The room was classified and where only the most secretive and dangerous missions were either given or finished. Naruto himself was only standing in the foreboding room because of the disturbing information he had gathered while exploring the depths of Orochimaru's bases.

The wizened Hokage finally decided to speak, "This information is accurate?" He stressed his words, "You are absolutely certain?"

"Hai, Hokage-sama." The man hummed for a moment as he thought about the information on the paper in front of him.

"This information will not leave this room." He stared pointedly at Danzo, "Does anyone else know, Naruto?"

The boy nodded slowly, "Elite Jonin Hatake Kakashi. He requested a report and I felt it prudent form a contingency plan in case I was unable to finish mission parameters."

"A wise choice, Shinku." Danzo tilted his head as he spoke. The Sandaime whipped his head around and gave a pointed look at the crippled man. Danzo never called Naruto by name - he instead used his old ANBU code-name 'Shinku'. Sarutobi had requested Naruto retake his birth-name but the other man always refused to follow such a request.

Homura interrupted the staring contest quietly, "If Orochimaru intends to strike during the exam perhaps we should call it off entirely?" The group of individuals went silent as he spoke, each pondering such a decision.

"I would advise against such an action," Shikaku spoke up, "It may force Orochimaru's hand. As it is he is predictable and the situation malleable. No, I recommend we 'play along'."

Koharu nodded, "I agree. I would prefer if we didn't push the traitor into a corner." She looked specifically at the Sandaime, "As we know, he can become quite capricious when he is under threat." The silent jab at Sarutobi's past actions surrounding the snake didn't go unnoticed in the room but no one voiced their concerns on it; the two elders often did so and it was a common occurrence.

"Very well. We shall string him along for now." The Hokage announced to the room, "Koharu, Homura; prepare for the economic disparity that will be caused by such an incursion on our lands." The two nodded in assent, "Danzo, do what must be done to reduce enemy efficiency." The underlining meaning of 'assassinate whoever you want' was obvious, "Shikaku, prepare troop movements for the day and ensure the civilian evacuation procedures are up to par." The shadow-user grunted as a reply, "I shall inform the required individuals and assign them as needed. Naruto," The boy straightened to attention, "Find Jiraiya - I don't care how - and inform him of our plight. Ensure he returns to the village as soon as possible. After that, find Tsunade and bring her back."

The elders in the room stiffened as he spoke while Shikaku merely raised an eyebrow; the medic-nin had always been a sore point for the Sandaime. She had forsaken her home when they needed her most and had only survived by promising to stay loyal and in Konoha lands. There had been countless times that the council had demanded Sarutobi summon her to the village and he had always refused. It seemed the man had finally lost his patience with her.

"You are authorized to use force although I wouldn't recommend it. Tell her she is to return to the village by the start of the exams or be labeled a missing-nin to be killed on sight." Even the unflappable Shikaku widened his eyes at that; the Hokage was obviously done talking with the woman. "This will be classified as an A-rank mission due to the requirement for it to be completed before the exams begin."

The boy nodded, "As you wish, Hokage-sama."

|A Few Minutes Later...|

The first thing Naruto did was head toward his apartment. It was fairly close to the Hokage Tower as the boy felt he spent more time in the office then in his own home. He climbed the stairs quickly and opened his door with his keys. Inside was a fairly spartan arrangement; a small kitchen with a dining room that doubled as his living room. A bathroom connected to it on the right and on the left lay the door to his bedroom. He strode into his bedroom silently and adorned his usual red outfit.

He had originally worn the usual combination of blue, black and green that Konoha shinobi were seen in however after his tenure in ANBU his notoriety rose in the shinobi villages and he was infamous for the blood-splattered 'crimson' look that he always seemed to have. Because of this he chose to change his wardrobe to one of a primarily red outfit. While it was partly a way to identify himself in the world it also was a great psychological tactic, intimidating countless enemies.

As soon as he was ready he moved to grab his ninjato and slung it across his back. The sword had been given to him as a part of his graduation into the ANBU ranks and so held a spot in his heart for it's sentimentality. As soon as he was satisfied with it's position he also grabbed the, in comparison, diminutive wakizashi that the Sandaime had given to him upon reaching the rank of jonin and attached it to his right hip. He had only recently mastered the use of both at once, with his ninjato being held in his right hand and his wakizashi in his left.

Happy with his equipment, he moved out of the bedroom and then out of the building entirely. He moved deftly through the streets until he came upon one of the countless jonin-only supply stations. As he walked in he sighed in annoyance at the large line. While his mission was relatively important he didn't think it would constitute cutting the line as he usually did. Being a fast response shinobi meant he was often sent out ASAP to deal with whatever issues the village was facing.

He walked to the back of the line and almost groaned when he saw who was at the back, almost, "Hey brat! Hey! Hey!" Mitarashi Anko stood at the back with a dango stick in her mouth and crazed grin on her face, "Get the fuck over here and talk to Anko-chan." Several people sent Naruto pitying glances as they heard the woman swooning over him. As he walked over he realised that Anko's friend, Kurenai, was standing next to her and watching her behavior with varying degrees of embarrassment.

"Anko," He greeted her familiarly - the woman had taught him about poisons when he was younger, "Yūhi-san." He bowed his head at the crimson-eyed woman who raised her eyebrow at his formal greeting. They had never met before and the woman was surprised at his respectful tone.

"I haven't seen you in ages!" The woman exclaimed excitedly. And it was true; the last time Anko had seen him was during his tenure in ANBU. In fact, she had talked to him just before one of his 'emotional conditioning' sessions. As he thought about it a memory flashed before his eyes:

|Eight Years After Kyuubi...|

The man drew his face back from the shadows and stared down at the shivering boy in front of him without any visible emotions. The boy was beaten and bruised having been punished for his lack of control over himself. The boy had made the mistake of suggesting he had close friends. Such connections were useless; one had comrades and that was all. At least, that's what Danzo believed and since the cripple had managed to get his hands on some of the boy's training schedule he had tried enforcing such a belief on him.

It was surprising when the man thought about it; the Hokage had prescribed the training and yet had no clue that the boy went through such harsh conditioning. It all happened right under his nose. Shrugging off the thoughts, the man returned his gaze to the bleeding boy in front of him. He was strapped to the chair and struggling to regain control of his freezing body.

"Friends. What are they?"

The boy looked up coldly, "Bonds."

The man nodded, "And what do bonds do?"

"Restrict."

The man smirked.

"Good."

Naruto shook his head to dismiss the dark memories. When the Hokage had found out about the sessions he had been furious and Danzo experienced a public dressing down in front of the entire council. The man took it in stride remarkably well however, knowing that the damage had already been done to the boy. Naruto no longer found it easy to bond with people his age. He was friendly with his comrades and people of his rank but went no further. To him, it only brought back bad memories.

Focusing on Anko he nodded at her statement, "I was eight."

"So what ya here for anyway?" She grinned from ear-to-ear as she spoke.

"I'm collecting some soldier pills and a new forehead protector." When he had been escaping from Orochimaru one of the pursuers, a Kaguya, had almost skewered his head. Fortunately, he managed to get away with only a half broken headband. Regardless, he had to acquire a new one before he left for the village; not wearing identification was suspicious in and of itself.

The snake-user nod emphatically, "I know the feeling - my first forehead protector lasted from genin all the way to chunin." She paused and sighed melodramatically, "It made me so sad but Ibiki made it all better by giving me some fun in T&I!" She smirked maliciously as she spoke and Naruto clicked his tongue in distaste - he could never handle the dirty work the woman did.

"Honestly Anko, you should get out of that field." Kurenai announced.

"You're just jealous cause you can't do it to your genin." She seemed to think for a moment, "Actually, I might be able to get that organ-"

The woman interrupted quickly, "I'd appreciate if you didn't kill my students."

Naruto ignored the bickering between the two and instead focused on the now dwindling line in front of them. Fairly soon they were at the front and as the man one of the countless deks beckoned the two women over Anko pouted and turned to look at Naruto sadly.

"Well, I gotta go Naruto. Catch ya!" As she spoke Kurenai merely waved a hand to say goodbye before following her abnormal friend to the desk. The blonde stood silently and waited for a moment before he was beckoned to approach an empty desk by the woman currently sitting behind it. He quickly walked over until he was standing in front and she stared at him for a moment.

"What do you need?" The woman asked politely.

"Soldier pills and a new black forehead protector." He smiled lightly at the woman, as feigned as it was.

Nodding in assent she quickly shuffled through the shelves behind her, "The soldier pills are... right... Here!" She grabbed a small box and then turned and threw them at the boy. Naruto caught them quickly and put them in one of the pockets on his chunin vest. "And here is a new headband!" As she said it she presented it in her hands. The boy grabbed it quickly and tied it around his head. A sigh of contentment was let out as he realised he was finally fully equipped.

"Thank you." He bowed his head in deference.

"No problem!" She smiled and then shooed him away. The boy quickly complied and soon found himself out of the building. He traveled toward the gate quickly, using his speed to get there as fast as possible. He soon arrived and, in the presence of the opening created by the gates, flashed through a set of handseals.

"Kuchiyose no Jutsu!" He muttered as he slammed the palm of his hand down on the ground. Smoke whirled around the technique before finally dissipating. In it's place stood a small toad. Mostly red in colour, the toad had blue markings on it's head and ears and a set of goggles around it's neck. It was Kosuke; a prominent messenger toad that Naruto often used.

"Naruto-sama." The toad bowed lowly. Most of the younger toads were incredibly respectful to the blonde while the older spoke on familiar terms with him. Only the two sage toads, Shima and Fukasaku, talked down to him and it was in an endearing way.

"Kosuke, I need you to find Jiraiya and deliver a message," He paused for a moment and spoke lowly, "The monkey requests an immediate audience concerning the snake - no exceptions. Stress the importance of this message." He looked at the toad intensely for a moment, "He has to return to the village as soon as possible. If you can't find him within the week let me know and I'll take over."

The toad sat silently and nodded as the boy spoke, indicating his understanding of what was required of him, "Of course, Naruto-sama! I'll get straight to it!" And with that the toad disappeared in another puff of smoke. The blonde knew the toad had returned to the mountain in order to both inform the elder toads and question the rest on the current whereabouts of Jiraiya. Satisfied with one half of his mission being completed, he turned his focus to the much more difficult part; finding and convincing Tsunade to return.

"Kage Bunshin no Jutsu!" He shouted as five-hundred clones popped into existence around the gate opening. He could see the indignant glares of Kotetsu and Izumo as their view was blocked by hundreds of bodies but he was sure they'd forgive him considering the reasoning behind it. Within seconds the clones had shot off out of the village in completely different locations as they searched the country-side for Tsunade.

Usually he would have had to flash his official mission scroll to the two chunin at the gates but one of the advantages of being a Jonin - and one in the Sandaime's trusted inner circle at that - was the ability to slip past the bureaucratic red tape. He was able to get away with avoiding the usual check-ins shinobi would have to go through before leaving the village.

Before he himself could get through the village gates however, he was met with the sight of Kakashi and his team returning from their mission. Adopting his usual pose of his right hand leaning on his wakizashi, he walked toward the group quietly. He passed Kotetsu and Izumo as he did so with both chunin raising their fists in anger due to the clones he had sent running.

"Uzumaki-san I swear to god!" Kotetsu grumbled angrily. This caught the attention of Team Seven who all noticed Naruto's fully equipped appearance and notable lack of injuries in bewilderment. Before they could comment however, they were distracted by the sight of Izumo hitting his partner over the head half-heartedly.

"Kotetsu, he obviously has a reason." The man spoke in a deadpanned voice. Before Naruto and Team Seven knew it the two had resorted to bickering among themselves. Ignoring the two chunin guards, Naruto walked toward Kakashi with an eyebrow raised.

"I thought your mission wasn't due to complete for several weeks, Hatake-san?" It was true; the man had mentioned how they had to protect the bridge-builder for quite some time.

Kakashi merely rubbed the back of his head sheepishly, "Well, ah, seeing as how you removed Gato's shinobi I thought I might have a chat with him." What the man was trying to say was that he had sought out the now unprotected Gato and assassinated him. Because of this, him and his team were obviously no longer needed and so resolved to return home.

Hiroki didn't seem to grasp on to the hidden message, "What did ya even say to him to get him to leave us alone sensei?" He grinned from ear-to-ear as he spoke, happy with the success of their mission. Sasuke meanwhile, gave the boy a look that clearly wondered if he was an idiot while Sakura openly sighed in exasperation before hitting him over the top of his head.

"Idiot! Kakashi's not going to tell you!" At this the boy looked suitably cowed, rubbing the top of his head in pain.

Naruto would of laughed at the sight if he were a normal shinobi. Unfortunately, or fortunately depending on how you look at it, he wasn't and so he merely stared at two in abject disinterest. Kakashi meanwhile, returned his inquisitorial gaze back to the young jonin, staring him down and silently asking what mission had been assigned.

"Leaving so soon, Naruto?" He smiled as he spoke.

The blonde nodded, "I'm to find the teammates of the problem." His convoluted reply was good enough to confuse the genin while Kakashi merely nodded in assent.

"A good idea, I'd say." Nodded emphatically, he missed the sight of his three genin preening to listen. Or perhaps he merely ignored them.

"Eh?! What are ya talking about?" Hiroki's insufferable voice pierced the air.

Kakashi turned to his student and ruffled his hair amicably, "Maa, nothing for you to worry about Hiroki-kun - the adults are talking." The boy obviously took great offence to his dismissal, if the way his face scrunched up into a furious expression was anything to go by. Regardless, the child went silent under the intense gaze of his sensei.

Naruto, seeing a possible argument occurring, decided to extract himself from the volatile situation, "I'll take my leave, Hatake-san."

The man whipped his head around, beaming smile back in place, "Of course Naruto." As the boy prepared to leave he added, "Oh, and call me Kakashi."

|The Next Day...|

As he looked around Tanzaku-gai Naruto was shocked at the sheer size of the place; it was at least as big as Konoha with every building being involved in the entertainment business rather than the shinobi arts like the village he fought for. He had only come to the notorious town due to a tip from one of the countless Kage Bunshin he had scattered across Hi no Kuni that the 'Legendary Sucker' was in town and gambling. Several Casinos had promptly upped the ante on their advertisements in a hopeful bid to earn both Tsunade's prsence and the undoubtedly huge winnings that she would leave them with.

It would have been insulting to the woman if it weren't for the fact that it was true; everywhere she went gambling places prayed that she would visit. Because of this, she was almost like a walking festival and it was impossible for her to stay out of the public eye too much unless she underwent a henge. Shrugging off the thoughts, Naruto peered around the area silently, looking at the buildings surrounding him.

He was in the Red Lights District and any of the buildings could contain Tsunade. It was simply a matter of time before he found her. Slowly, he walked toward the casino that seemed to have drawn the largest crowd. Sure enough, countless people surrounded a blonde woman's table in the hopes of having a chance to play against her. With the diamond shape on her forehead it was undeniable; it was one of the legendary Sannin, Tsunade.

He approached her slowly, the crowd parting ways to allow a shinobi through. As he neared the woman noticed his figure and frowned slightly. He reached her and stood silently, waiting for her to finish the hand she was currently on. Understandign quickly dawned on her and so she returned her attention to the game momentarily. Within a minute she had lost rather spectacularly.

"I'm out, someone else can take my spot." The blonde haired woman announced to the dealer in frustration. She scooped up her remaining pieces and got out of the chair before heading away from the bustling crowd. Eyes followed her retreating form but upon seeing Naruto follow after her didn't deign to pursue; their curiosity suitably cowed by the appearance of a Konoha shinobi. Only a woman with short black hair and a pig in her arms followed after them, scampering around Tsunade desperately.

As they left the building and were out on the now suspiciously empty street the Sannin turned and looked at Naruto, "Wow, standards sure have dropped - you're not even a teen!" She raised an eyebrow at his youthful appearance, "Whatever. What do you want?" It was gruff and not particularly kind but Naruto had been debriefed on the woman's psyche. It explained in her files that she disliked the village and any shinobi from it.

"Tsunade-sama," She snorted at his formal tone, "Your presence is required by the Hokage."

Her eyes turned into daggers at that, "Well that's too bad, cause I'm not going back to that hole." Naruto stopped and thought for a moment whether it would first be appropriate to mention Orochimaru's plans before resorting to threats. He decided it would be.

"Your old teammate, Orochimaru," Now a scowl flicked across her face, "Is moving on Konoha. The Sandaime had requested that you return and perform your duty to the village."

"Why should I care what the old fart wants? No, I think I'll let them deal with the snake bastard by themselves." The woman's companion looked apalled at the Sannin's callous tone and stared at the confrontation in shock.

Naruto merely sighed, "Hokage-sama stated you are to return to the village before the Chunin Exams. Failure to do so will result in a termination of your Konoha shinobi status and a place in the bingo books with a kill on sight order." If the woman had been angry at the boy's earlier comments she was positively furious now. The sheer audacity of the Sandaime to force her hand like this angered her like nothing else. The black-haired woman meanwhile, looked mortified.

The woman with the pig in her hands began to speak, "Tsunade-sam-"

"Shut up Shizune!" Tsunade interrupted her quickly, rubbing her forehead in frustration at the situation. She stared at the boy in front of her first in cold fury before suddenly her face morphed in bemusement, "And you think you can take me? A greenhorn like you?"

"I have been authorized to use force if necessary." Naruto intoned, ignoring the blonde woman's bait. The woman merely laughed in response. Rather than one of humor, the laugh was mocking and had undertones of frustrated acceptance in it.

"Fine, the old fool can have his wish. But," At this her eyes drew into a glare, "He'll regret using me." Naruto didn't respond to her comment and, if the look on her face was anything to go by, she was disappointed by his lack of a reaction, "Shizune, go get our stuff from the hotel. I'll wait her with our company." She smirked condescendingly at the blonde-haired boy. The black-haired woman quickly complied and hurried away from the two of them. Tsunade looked at Naruto in curiosity, "So brat, who are you?"

Naruto raised an eyebrow in response.

The woman sighed, "You know? Your name, rank and moniker?" Naruto's back stiffened suddenly and his eyes drew closed. His countenance, which had just been that of a lazy disinterest, switched to a professional, dull-eyed shinobi.

"Uzumaki Naruto. Elite Jonin. Commonly referred to as Shinku."

'Crimson, eh?' Tsunade wondered, "Ah, so you're that one. Such a shame to waste your life like an idiot." Shrugging her shoulders, she turned from him, "Oh well, not my problem." Once again, Naruto ignored her bait although internally he wondered what could possibly have made a woman like this so jaded.

|A Few Days Later...|

Jiraiya skulled the drink in his hand quickly and smashed it on the table like a madman, grinning as he did so. He had just finished meeting with a contact surrounding an elusive organisation that had been evading his spy network for several years and so now, on the cusp of victory, he felt he deserved the right to engage in some unsavory rewards. Namely, sake and women.

Unfortunately that was not to be as he was suddenly knocked back off the bar stool he had been sitting on by a puff of smoke in front of him. As soon as the action had occurred the Sannin's eyes had scanned across the dingy bar for possible threats. Seeing none, he resolved to merely keep his guard up while inspecting the aforementioned smoke.

As it dissipated to reveal a red toad smiling at him he relaxed entirely and resumed his seat on the table, "Kosuke, you scared the crap outta me!" He thrust his fist menacingly at the young toad who had the decency to look sheepish in light of Jiraiya's words.

"Apologies, Jiraiya-dono," The man almost snorted - he used to be 'sama' but ever since the brat had eclipsed his sage abilities he had been shunted to the side, "But I have a message for you."

The white-haired man merely raised his eyebrow, "Do tell." The only person who could contact him through toads was-

"Naruto-sama wished for me to stress the importance of this before I relay it."

"Important, got it!"

"The monkey requests an immediate audience concerning the snake - no exceptions." The toad intoned quietly, "You must return to the village as soon as possible." Now Jiraiya was definitely intrigued; the mere fact that he was essentially being forced back spoke of either an incredible victory or an incredible danger. For the wellbeing of his village he wished with all his heart it was the former. The colder, more logical part of his brain told him it would be the latter however, and so he nodded quickly at the toad.

"I'll return immediately. Thanks for the heads up, Kosuke." He stood up slowly, stretching his limbs in preparation for the long trip home.

The toad grinned, "Call me if you need me, Jiraiya-dono." With a puff of smoke the toad disappeared and the Sannin whirled through the doors of the bar, heading toward his home.

|Meanwhile...|

They were close to Konoha - within a day's travel at the very maximum - and Naruto couldn't help but feel slightly irritated at the drunk woman's attitude beside him. Having had to deal with a severely disgruntled Sannin had pushed the twelve year olds normally flexible patience to the very edge; if she wasn't spouting off about how much of a child Naruto was then she was insulting the Sandaime and his ideals.

Now while Naruto wasn't one for emotional outbursts even he could feel himself reaching his limit. The Sandaime had taken him when he was nothing - a child of no more than four years - and had turned him into what he was. He owed everything to the man, from his shinobi skillset to the very fact that he was living. Having attained the rank of jonin he was privy to many of the previously classified incidents surrounding him.

Dozens of assassination attempts whether internal or external had occurred surrounding the blonde boy when he was younger. They were all quickly stopped by either his carer, an elusive ANBU that went by the name Inu, or the Hokage himself. And those that were caught were punished mercilessly. Eventually people got the picture and the attempts stopped before he was the age of two. Regardless, the aged leader of Konoha had protected Naruto from those that would wish to harm him and so he had promised on his promotion to jonin that he would serve the venerable leader unto death. He would live by the ideals the man treasured - whether he understood them or not.

And so when he heard Tsunade, his own student no less, insult the man so thoroughly he felt himself grow angered beyond what he would usually allow. Shizune seemed to notice his darkening gaze as they traveled as one night, when they had stopped to rest, she had beckoned him aside while Tsunade slept off the heavy drinking of the day and explained to him why the woman was so bitter.

"You see, she's lost everyone close to her," She had said as she explained the deaths of Tsunades brother; Nawaki and her lover; Dan. It was a grim series of events, one couldn't deny that, but Naruto was appalled that the woman would spit in the face of their memories. He had listened silently as Shizune tried desperately to justify her master's actions and had thanked her quietly for telling him. Other than that, he didn't indicate any response to the issues. That, more than anything, had informed Shizune of his still present ire.

So here he was, glowering at the woman in front of him, as she talked in disgust about her old village, "Such a foolish position... Hokage? Ha!" She gloated over the boy madly.

"Do you have no respect?" It was a cold fury that could be detected in his voice - he had had enough of listening, "Do you want to sully the memories of such heroes?" His voice was tinged with such asperity that Shizune had taken a step back in worry.

The woman merely laughed in his face, "What? The four idiots? They're not heroes - not even close."

"No," Naruto began slowly, "Not just the Hokages. I am not ignorant of your past," He spoke carefully but the harshness of his voice remained, "Nawaki and Dan - they wished to become Hokage, to protect the village and it's people." The woman's gaze changed to shock as he spoke, "Do you wish tospit on their memory?"

"Don't you dare say their name!" She hissed as she stepped forward and grabbed him by the collar.

Naruto grunted in pain but ignored her hand on his clothes, "I admire them - they deserve more respect than you give them," As she looked like she was about to punch him Naruto quickly added, "I love my village and the people in it - I too want to protect them, save them from those that wish them harm." The blonde haired woman staggered backwards in shock, dropping him as she did so.

An image flashed through Tsunade's mind:

"I dearly love both the village and my comrades… That is why I want to protect them."

"Dan?" Her voice was hoarse as she spoke. She stared at Naruto in both horror and surprise as the image of her lover appeared in front of him.

"I love my village and the people in it - I too want to protect them."

Her head lowered in shame, "Shut up." Rather than anger, it was filled with regret, and so the boy did so. He stood back up and looked at her silently as the woman regained her own bearings and stalked forwards, in front of the two shinobi behind her. Her face was lowered and she seemed deep in thought as she walked. Shizune, to her credit, seemed both surprised and happy - as if what Naruto had said was something she had wanted to hear for years. She gave a soft, sad smiled at the boy before moving forward herself, just behind her mentor. Naruto resumed walking himself and took his spot behind the two of them as they silently walked toward Konoha.

A/N: I'm going to have fairly short chapters for this story - only 5-6K. This is simply because my other story 'The Shadow Of A Flash' is my main focus.

I thought Naruto would remind Tsunade more of Dan in my story than of Nawaki, considering the difference in his personality. Oh, and don't worry too much about the similarity to canon - she's not gonna suddenly take up the position of Godaime - I merely decided she still needed the slap to the face that she got in canon in order for her to faithfully work for the village. She's still not quite happy with the place, Naruto's going to knock her ideals to the ground a few more times in the future before she's fully satisfied.

This is mostly a bridging chapter before all the big shit starts to happen. A big confrontation between Orochimaru, the invasion itself - it's all coming in the next few chapters. So... stay tuned!

Feel free to bring up any errors - I'm not using a beta-reader and am sure to miss many of my own mistakes