Konoha's Inventor

by Corruptmonk

Naruto suffered an accident that caused memories of his past life to slowly resurface in his mind. As he grew, he integrates the personality, memories, and abilities of the One-Winged Angel - Sephiroth. Enemies beware! Sephiroth-like Naruto. Inventor-Naruto Strong Naruto. Intelligent-Naruto. Minimal Bashing if possible. Slight AU. MASS CROSSOVER WARNING!

2. Chapter 2

Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto, Final Fantasy 7, or any works that this story might be hitting along the way. Give credit to where credit is due.

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Summary: Naruto suffered an accident that caused memories of his past life to slowly resurface in his mind. As he grew, he integrates the personality, memories, and abilities of the One-Winged Angel - Sephiroth. Enemies beware! Sephiroth-like Naruto. Inventor-Naruto Strong Naruto. Intelligent-Naruto. Minimal Bashing if possible. Slight AU but mostly similar to canon as the story goes. MASS CROSSOVER WARNING!

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Some questions from my readers:

1. If you are busy with work, why do you have time to write a very long chapter and a new story at that?"

A: This story was written two years ago, I stopped working on it because of my urge to write my other stories. I just made a few editions and improved the sentence/paragraph flow.

2. There are still some grammar/spelling problems, why didn't you edit them too?

A: I worked on the edits using my Samsung Tab 7.0. Please forgive me for the lapse. It's somewhat hard to write/edit stories via mobile while traveling. ^_^

3. Why post this now?

A: I think it's time that this story made a debut. Let's face it, this story rocks. (modest much?)

4. Do you accept ideas on what Naruto is going to invent next?

A: I would like that. I would like to tell my readers/followers that if you have any ideas, please send me a PM. DON'T share your ideas via review. PM is much preferred.

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Naruto grinned while he watched one of his clones testing the recently completed Uzumaki Hover Board. The clone was grinning like a loon, two thumbs up as he gave it a few test runs around the room at Chuunin-level speeds, easily overcoming the Genin-level obstacle course he ordered set up beforehand.

It took two weeks for Naruto to figure out the steering problem but he finally found the solution in a scroll detailing the Yamanaka mind transfer technique. A few seals later, the board could now be controlled by channeling a constant stream of chakra towards a control seal in the middle of the device when the rider steps on it. The sliver of chakra channeled through the seal serves as the rider's will since chakra was a combination of physical and mental/spiritual energy. The only requirement for this method was for the rider's focus since daydreaming was not an option when you were riding something that could pick up active thoughts.

The only problem, which was somewhat irrelevant at this point, was the speed of the board itself. With the current capability of the chakra absorption seal, the board couldn't only go up to Chuunin-level speeds without draining the battery dry. He already had a few clones working on upgrading the seal matrix to increase the percentage of energy absorption from 5% to 10% so the chakra battery could keep up with the increased drain. He hadn't experimented with the possibility of directly applying large amounts of chakra into the battery itself to power the thing since he didn't have the time with other projects taking up his schedule.

He wasn't in a hurry though since the project was stamped as successful with notes on potential upgrades in the future.

"Alright, I think you tested it enough." Naruto spoke through the com-system, his voice blaring out of the speakers in the 'Test Room' as he dubbed it, an unused training room inside ANBU HQ. Neko told him that the room was too cramped for the ANBUs' use so they scrapped it for the underground training chamber built by the Hokage after a petition. Upon learning this interesting tidbit, Naruto immediately commandeered the room, had a few clones set it up as a testing chamber for the testing of his experimental seals. He made a point of placing durability seals on the walls since the last seal test almost blew up the lab into smithereens if not for the clone having the foresight to teleport out to the Forest of Death before the thing could explode.

"Aw come on, boss. Just a few more minutes." the clone whined, clearly enjoying the test run of the hover board.

"Why do I even bother." murmured Naruto as he exited the room towards his laboratory to record the success of his newest creation. He couldn't blame the clone since he was itching to give it a try himself.

"Naruto-sama, you have a message from the Hokage. Should I send it over to your data pad for viewing?" bellowed a voice from the speaker system. The voice belonged to an artificial intelligence created through the collaboration of a hundred clones working for a week. It had the personality of a Daimyo's retainer with the processing power and intellect of a Shinra mother computer. He gave the AI the designation Kuroto since he couldn't come up with a unique name for it.

"Please do, Kuroto." said Naruto as he fished out his data pad and pressed on the blinking icon indicating the new message his AI was talking about. He raised an eyebrow after reading the missive from his boss-slash-grandfather. "Huh? Backing up Team 7 in their C turned B-rank mission…interesting. Kuroto, could you inform my clones in the laboratory to proceed with the experiment. They can use the spare chakra batteries in the vault inside my office if more clones are needed, all are fully charged and ready for use. Also, ask a clone to encode the most recent bingo book into your data banks since I might need inquiry soon if this mission parameter is anything to go by."

"I will inform them, Naruto-sama. I'll make sure that the information is readily available when you're ready. Good luck on your mission."

"Thanks, Kuroto. Watch my clones while I'm gone. They can be pretty stubborn sometimes." Naruto said cheerfully then growled in irritation when he heard his AI's response to that statement.

"They are you after all, Naruto-sama."

-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-

"Team 7 needs backup?" Naruto asked with a raised eyebrow upon appearing in front of the Hokage who wasn't even startled by his entrance. In fact, the Sandaime was already desensitize of his constant appearing and disappearing to and from his office that he could now detect Naruto's chakra signature in an instant before materializing, a testament to his moniker as the God of Shinobi during his prime.

Sandaime nodded. "Yes. I just got a message from Kakashi informing me that they continued the mission despite the increase in difficulty. Considering that they just encountered the Demon Brothers, I bumped it up to an B-rank. Any more rogue shinobi showing up would practically place this mission as an A if we're lucky." He informed the blonde who nodded in understanding.

"Bummer. I think Inu hit his head a few times to continue a mission despite the dangers involved. He's no longer in ANBU and he is babysitting three kids so he'll definitely need an extra hand." said Naruto while shaking his head. He knew that Kakashi was Inu, one of his ANBU guardians when he was an untrained whelp. It wasn't hard to figure out considering Kakashi had a unique hairstyle that was easily recognizable if you knew the man long enough. "Fine, I'll take the mission. Did you give Kakashi a communicator?"

"No I didn't since I already used up the dozen you gave me. Why don't you bring a few extras when you meet up with him? We'll have a conference when you set up camp. I definitely want to know why he decides to continue the mission with only his Genins backing him up."

"If you ask my opinion, I think Kakashi is just too lazy to decide and I bet that he let his Genin dictate the continuation of the mission." Naruto sniffed but was amused all the same.

"That is the reason why I sent for you to back him up. That and the other teams are busy with their missions and I don't want to risk a rookie team to take up the slack." the Hokage admitted. Naruto agreed the man's reasoning but couldn't help point something out.

"You do know that I'm technically a Genin, right?" Naruto asked with a smirk. In truth, he was a Genin on paper but due to his rank as Head of ANBU's Research and Development, he was directly under the Hokage in terms of rank.

"A Genin that can beat a seasoned ANBU in an all out shinobi match?" the Sandaime deadpanned making Naruto chuckle.

"Touche. Anyway, I'm off, old man. I need to rendezvous with Kakashi as soon as possible. Who knows, I might have to bail out his ass if he's neck deep in trouble. Knowing his luck, I daresay he's going to need it." Naruto said dryly before exiting the office towards his personal armory to stock up on supplies.

-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-

"Kuroto, did my clone finish encoding the bingo book?" Naruto spoke to his ear piece while maintaining the feed to his communication system back in his lab. He made sure to add a specific seal matrix to his personal com-piece that would directly interface with his AI's server just in case he needed information or to relay orders to his clones working on various experiments.

"Yes, Naruto-sama."

"Good. Please give me any information you have on the Demon Brothers and mention any accomplice they might have."

"Demon Brothers of the Mist. Name: Gouzu and Meizu. Both are C-rank rogue shinobi hailing from Kirigakure no Sato. Both are known for their perfectly coordinated attacks. Last known sightings was in Tea Country working alongside Momochi Zabuza, an A-rank rogue ANBU hailing from Kirigakure no Sato. Momochi Zabuza is one of the Seven Swordsman of the Mist, wielding a zanbatou known as Kubikiribouchou (Decapitating Carving Knife). He specializes in Silent Killing and known to be a master of the Hiding in Mist Technique that blankets the area with chakra-laced mist that hinders any detection via visual, doujutsu, or chakra sense."

"Ah. Kakashi is definitely up to his ears on this one. With the mist in play, his Sharingan is useless. Not to mention that he grew weak after slacking off in his training when he quit ANBU." Naruto mused, thinking of a way to get there faster. He still hasn't mastered unassisted flight yet since he couldn't maintain enough magical saturation on his body to achieve flight. Float? Yes. Flight? No. A thought occurred to him before channeling large amounts of chakra to his board causing it to lurch forward before speeding up. He grinned. "Kuroto, please relay to my clones that the speed of the Hover Board is increased through the injection of chakra directly on the chakra conversion seal. Have them assign a few clones to test this out and try to see how fast the board could go. I am currently going at Jounin-level speeds and will monitor its activity. Please tell them to test it out in a controlled environment.

"Will do, Naruto-sama."

-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-

With the newly discovered speed of his board, it didn't take long for Naruto to reach the coast of Wave Country. He sensed a chakra spike the moment he entered the island. He veered off from his current course and made a beeline towards the disturbance and ended up in a clearing covered with thick mist. He immediately picked up the traces of chakra.

"Not your ordinary mist. This has Zabuza written all over it." murmured Naruto as he landed and sealed the Hover Board into his pocket dimension. "Ugh, I hate being blind. Dispel!" a wave of magical energy erupted from him, easily dispelling the chakra-laced mist that covered the area. It revealed quite an interesting sight.

Naruto saw Kakashi trapped in a water bubble with Zabuza holding it stable and active. Six Zabuza, which Naruto knew were clones, surrounded the rest of Team 7 composed of Uchiha Sasuke, Haruno Sakura, and a Genin he briefly encountered by the name of Sai. Sasuke was valiantly fighting the clones who looked like they were toying with him, Sakura trembling like a shaken tree in front of an equally shivering client, and Sai was on the ground unconscious and bleeding.

Considering how dire the situation was, Naruto decided to forgo calling everyone's attention, but instead, blurred out of sight to appear in front of a Zabuza clone with his hand gripping its head. He broke the Zabuza clone's neck with a simple twist of his wrist causing it to dispel back into its base substance. He kicked one that was about to give him a haircut by zanbatou before elbowing the one on his left. The strength of his attacks was enough to dispel the two. Three down, three more to go.

"You might want to sit this one out, Sasuke." Naruto said with a smile as he stood calmly surrounded by the remaining clones. Sasuke was currently trying to pick himself off the ground, bleeding from a split lip and bruises on his face. He was sporting a very nice shiner.

"What are you doing here, dobe?" the last loyal Uchiha all but growled at the interruption. He didn't expect the dobe to appear all of a sudden and dispatch three of his attackers with ease. The ease Naruto destroyed the clones infuriated him.

"The Hokage sent me as backup, great timing too considering how you were getting trashed by mere clones." Naruto said, eyeing the Zabuzas who was doing the same but wearily before turning his attention to the original out in the lake. "Momochi Zabuza, aka Demon of the Bloody Mist, and A-rank rogue shinobi. Glad to make your acquaintance." He said with a grandiose bow, totally ignoring the fuming Uchiha.

"It would seem that Kakashi here brought reinforcements. I applaud how you dispatched my clones. Anyway, you shouldn't have come out but it's too late. I'll kill you first before everyone else." said Zabuza with a smirk visible through his bandaged face as he made a single hand seal causing six more clones to materialized around the blonde. "Farewell, blondie."

Naruto wasn't surprised when he saw Zabuza call up more clones, effectively surrounding him from all sides. The chakra needed to create and maintain solid clones at a distance was noteworthy, definitely the work of an ANBU of Zabuza's caliber. He decided to raise it up a notch to give the man a fair fight. He raised his right hand to the side and materialized Masamune. With a smirk, he swung his blade twice as if testing its weight. Zabuza was about to say something about the materialized sword but stopped when all of his clones were sliced to bits before turning back into water.

"Interesting. Water clones aren't that durable or powerful. I daresay that those clones only had a percentage of your strength and nothing else." Naruto observed the puddles of water that were once clones. He looked up to smile at a startled Zabuza. "I think its fine time we end this, don't you think?" he asked before blurring out of sight before appearing in front of rogue shinobi with Masamune already on a downward strike.

Zabuza was quite surprised when the blonde suddenly appeared in front of him about to slice him from head to groin. He hastily removed Kubikibouchou from his back and blocked the strike. He almost lost his grip on his sword due to the power behind the blow. He channeled a chakra to his arm to strengthen it before pushing the kid off with a swing and a grunt.

Naruto was pushed back but calmly landed on top of the water with only a ripple. "Definitely an A-rank. I'm quite happy that you're strength wasn't exaggerated, Momochi Zabuza." he complimented the masked shinobi with a grin on his face.

"You have moves, kid, I'll give you that. What's your name?" Zabuza asked, showing off his own grin but this one was a bit forced in Naruto's opinion. He didn't know who this kid was but he was definitely not an ordinary shinobi.

"The name's Uzumaki Naruto." he replied before lunging forward to attack the Demon of the Mist with a flurry of slashes and thrusts that forced Zabuza to hastily block or parry while keeping his technique active. "You are definitely a skilled swordsman." Naruto mused before calmly shifting his grip into a double-handed one and followed it up with an upward slash that caught Zabuza by surprise. Since he channeled a bit of chakra into the swing, it was strong enough to lift Zabuza off the surface of the water and into the air. The sudden rise in altitude resulted in canceling the technique that trapped the one-eyed Jounin in place and depositing the man into the water.

"Naruto?" asked the Jounin as he floated. He didn't bother to water walk since Zabuza's technique drained a sizable amount of his chakra. His currently active Sharingan wasn't helping.

"Who do you think, Inu-niisan?"

"Could you please not call me that, otouto. I'm no longer in ANBU you know."

"Fine, Kakashi it is then. The Hokage sent me here to back you up. From the looks of things, you definitely need it."

"That's a relief. I was expecting a team but you're a welcome sight nonetheless."

"I feel the love. Now if you'll excuse me, I have a rogue shinobi to finish." said Naruto to end the conversation before shooting forward to engage Zabuza in an intense swordfight.

Zabuza was scared. He didn't know who the brat was but he was definitely something. This Uzumaki Naruto was definitely strong. The six-foot nodachi was definitely not for show and the boy's kenjutsu style was so unpredictable that he was practically using his battle-honed skill and instincts just to parry the blows. The boy also displayed amazing strength and used it to overpower his many swings despite his smaller frame. He couldn't attack since the boy placed him on the defensive with non-stop slash and thrust. Heck, he couldn't even find any opportunity to counter due to the boy's speed and precision. Growling in irritation, he intercepted the boy's attack with a horizontal swing while putting all of his power into the move but was surprised when he didn't feel any pressure on his sword or the sound of steel on steel. He heard a chuckle to his left and turned to see the blonde swordsman easily standing on the tip of his blade, the nodachi-class blade held lazily by his side.

"I haven't had this much fun in weeks. Sure, I had fun with Ten-chan during our weekly spars but she definitely doesn't have your strength and skill, Momochi Zabuza." said Naruto with a chuckle before smoothly sliding down the blade and kicking Zabuza hard on the head, throwing him to the side. However, the man flipped to regain his balance as he went through a series of handseals, switching to a jutsu battle since the boy was quite skilled with the blade.

"Suiton: Water Trumpet." Zabuza bellowed before opening his mouth to release a highly-pressurize stream of water at Naruto who merely raised an eyebrow at the puny counter.

"Wall."He said calmly as a prismatic hexagon shield appeared in front of him that effectively blocked the attack then cancelled itself when the attack ended. He raised his hand towards Zabuza. "Thunder!"

A bolt of lightning flew out of his outstretched hands forcing him to dodge instead of defending since it wasn't a good idea to use water to block lightning techniques especially when he was standing in the middle of a lake. Naruto calmly raised his nodachi to block a zanbatou strike from above courtesy of a very irate rogue shinobi. The attack was strong since it pushed him down on the water a bit but Naruto corrected that easily as he channeled more chakra to his feet.

"I think we should end this now since I have comrades to treat." Naruto said with a smile before flipping back resulting in the tip of his boots to hit the man on the chin and throwing him into the air. Naruto crouched on top of the water before jumping up, preparing himself for a technique he saw Cloud use on his past counterpart and practiced it to perfection with this many clones. He had to hand it to Cloud Strife, this attack was definitely on a whole new level.

"Omnislash!" in a blur of speed, Naruto showered Zabuza with slashes after slashes that caused the man to scream in pain as various wounds of all shapes and sizes appeared all over his body. The attack ended with Zabuza still alive and conscious but definitely in pain, dripping blood to the clear water below. Amazed at the man's resilience, Naruto kicked the Zabuza back to dry land, bouncing a bit before grounding to an immediately halt when his back collided with a rather large tree. He definitely broke a few bones on that one if the cracking sound he heard was anything to go by. Naruto landed softly a few meters away from Zabuza with intent to finish him off when a masked individual appeared and grabbed the rogue shinobi before disappearing in a flurry of ice.

-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-

"Curaga." Naruto whispered the most powerful healing spell he knew, targeting the three injured shinobi in front of him. Sakura gasped as the wounds on Sasuke and Sai disappeared while Kakashi's sat straight when he felt his energy return to him in a rush. "That takes care of that. Shall we proceed with the mission in? I daresay we're done here so we need to get Tazuna to safety."

"Thanks, Naruto." said Kakashi while covering his Sharingan with his forehead protector to stop the chakra drain. Whatever technique Naruto used, it replenished his chakra reserves to full capacity much to his amazement but he didn't want to waste the sudden burst of energy with his exposed Sharingan without reason. The battle with Zabuza was definitely a wake-up call. He made a mental note to train with Naruto while giving his team a few exercise to kill time. "What was that technique you used? That was no ordinary healing technique. You didn't even use hand seals to activate it."

"A healing spell courtesy of my bloodline." Naruto lied, sticking to the story he gave the Sandaime.

"You don't have a bloodline." Kakashi pointed out.

"Not that you know of anyway." said an amused blonde before turning to an awed bridge builder. "How far is it to your home, Tazuna-san?"

"Um, an hour walk from here, shinobi-san."

Naruto nodded. "Please, call me Naruto. Shall we go then? I might have defeated Zabuza but we can never tell if Gato deployed his thugs in the area as backup to bring you down." It was a bluff of course since he already checked the surrounding foliage with an overpowered Scan. The spell didn't report anything besides plants and animals so it was relatively safe.

-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-

"Zabuza's still alive?" Kakashi asked after a few minutes of walking towards Tazuna's house. He and Naruto were behind Tazuna with Sai and Sakura flanking the man and Sasuke taking the front.

Naruto nodded, his eyes not leaving the road and the client. "The man definitely lives up to his reputation as the Demon of the Bloody Mist. He survived fifty slashes from my attack and lived to tell the tale. He is very much injured that would take a month to heal, two weeks tops with a skilled medic to patch him up. To answer your question, yes, Zabuza is still alive since his accomplice bailed him out in the nick of time."

"Are you sure it was an accomplice? Kakashi asked. "Whoever that was, he or she was wearing a Kiri Hunter mask so it is quite possible that Zabuza is dead."

Naruto nodded but sighed. "I know. I saw the person clearly despite moving fast and whisking Zabuza away without stopping long enough for me to get enough identification. No, I don't think the person is a Hunter shinobi. If he or she was then that person would have simply killed Zabuza on the spot and burned the body after decapitating the man. Ergo, Zabuza is still alive and he has a skilled accomplice to patch him up." Naruto told the Jounin in a no nonsense tone. "Once healed, Zabuza will return for payback and possibly with reinforcement this time. Not that it matters."

"If you say so." Kakashi said with a shrug. Both were silent again as they walked but Naruto brought something up that made him wince.

"You know, niisan, I've known you as an ANBU and I can safely say that you're not as strong as you once were." he whispered to his surrogate brother-slash-superior.

Kakashi sighed. "I know. I am going to train when I have time." He promised before giving Naruto a sidelong glance, smiling at his surrogate brother. "Hokage-sama told me of your exploits and inventions but he definitely didn't tell me about your skills. You wield the blade like a master. Your Academy file definitely didn't say anything about the strength you displayed earlier. Not to mention those powerful techniques you used without hand seals."

Naruto turned his head towards the Jounin and grinned. "Deception is a shinobi creed, niisan. I decided to hide my skills while in the Academy but continued to train every day keeping my skills sharp. Neko-neechan and Tenzo helped me with my training and some of the ANBU lent a hand if their time permits. Let me tell you, the elites definitely know their stuff. They have been keeping my skills sharp ever since I set up shop at headquarters."

Kakashi nodded in agreement. "I know. I had a chat with them a couple of times last month and they kept me updated with your training regimen. I might no longer be part of ANBU but they keep me posted of what's happening in the ranks out of respect being their former captain. I hope you don't mind if we train for a bit after I teach the kiddies."

"I don't mind. It gives me something better to do." Naruto said with a shrug. "What are you going to teach them anyway? You might want to teach them something a bit more advance since Zabuza is going to come back with a vengeance."

"I think they are ready for the Tree Climbing exercise." Kakashi informed Naruto who was surprised, but not in a good way.

"You didn't teach them the Tree Climbing exercise? What in the hell is wrong with you, niisan? I know you're lazy but I didn't know that you're this lazy!"

"Mah, I think it's early to teach them that yet." Kakashi replied defensively.

"Tree Climbing is a basic chakra control exercise taught to Genins by their respective sensei to prepare them for high-tier ninjutsu, genjutsu, and as a basic survival skill out in the field. It is a mandate that Jounin senseis teach their Genins this skill before undergoing any C-rank mission. Why in the world did you let them take a high rank mission without this important skill backing them up?" he all but demanded causing Kakashi to slump in depression.

"Try teaching that to dysfunctional team and let's see how you fare." Kakashi grouched, giving the Genins in front of him an evil eye. "I passed them because they showed an ounce of teamwork during the Genin Test but that teamwork didn't improve or manifest as I trained them every day. I decided that I would up their teamwork a bit before teaching them tree climbing. In fact, I was forced to get this C-rank mission since Sasuke was practically making me deaf demanding for a stronger mission every day. What's worse, Sakura backed him up and her screeching almost popped my eardrums."

"You definitely need to set your priorities straight, Kakashi-niisan." Naruto shook his head after hearing the man's explanation. "You're their sensei so you call the shots. If you think that your team is too hard to train then drop them. The Hokage knows that it's better to have your Genin take a remedial than ending up dead in a ditch somewhere, more so with an Uchiha on your team being the pampered prince he is."

Kakashi huffed. "I planned to do that last month but decided against it to spare the Hokage a migraine."

"The civilian council?" Naruto asked with some curiosity.

"Who else?"

"You know that they don't have a say in shinobi matters, right?" the blonde pointed out.

"I do but I don't want to trouble Hokage-sama any more than he already is."

"Fine. I'll have a talk with jiji about it." Naruto shrugged. "Who knows, he might grow a spine or two to finally throw the old idiots out. That would definitely make his life easier if nothing else."

"Go ahead. Oh, you might want to stay away from Sasuke for a few days." Kakashi warned him.

"Why is that?" Naruto asked with a raised eyebrow.

"With the skills you showed and how you defeated Zabuza, expect him to pester you to teach him. He'll be worse considering that you both graduated at the same time and he's the Rookie of the Year."

"Ego much." Naruto said with a shake of his head before giving Kakashi a smile. "Don't worry, niisan. I'll be moving around and won't be seeing Sasuke as much as you implied. I suggest that you train all of your Genins while I take care of guarding Tazuna."

"You sure?"

"I'm sure. This way, the client is protected while your team gets the training they need. Two birds with one stone."

"If you insist."

"I do and no more needs to be said on the matter."

-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-

They reached Tazuna's house without problems, not that Naruto or Kakashi expected anything since they instinctively knew that Gato specifically sent the rogue shinobi to finish off the client and expecting it to succeed. Tazuna invited them into his house and introduced them to his daughter, Tsunami. After exchanging greetings, Naruto asked a room where they could hold a meeting. Tsunami ushered the Konoha group to a spacious bedroom on the second floor that she prepared for them in advance.

"Alright, let's get this show on the road." Exclaimed Naruto cheerfully as he brought out a spare communication system from his pocket dimension. He placed it on the bed before removing his earpiece and installing it on the slot. He channeled a lot of his chakra into the storage matrix to charge it up while listening to the hushed conversation of Team 7 in one corner of the room.

"Kakashi-sensei, how did Naruto become so strong?" asked Sakura in a whisper. "He's a Genin like us so how come he is not on a team?"

"It is not my place to tell. I can safely say that Naruto is possibly stronger than me if he was serious enough to use all of his skills." Kakashi informed his surprised team of the truth. He knew that Naruto was quite strong thanks to the updates he got from Neko, Tenzo, and the Hokage. It was only normal for him to ask since he treated the blonde like a brother with Naruto returning the affection. If Naruto could spar with Neko and Tenzo in a stalemate and sometimes win with his unique abilities then the boy was definitely stronger than him considering how weakened he was due to his lack of training.

"I find that hard to believe, Kakashi-sensei." said Sai in his usual monotone but the fake smile was absent from his face telling everyone that he was serious.

"Don't believe me if you don't want to." Kakashi said with a shrug.

"Hn, he will always be a dobe." Sasuke grunted though he was inwardly furious at how powerful the blonde was. He couldn't even beat a clone and Naruto beating the original into a bloodied mess. It was unacceptable for his ego to admit defeat especially from someone he considered an inferior throughout the Academy.

Naruto decided that he channeled enough chakra to sustain the long-distance connection so he called to the whispering team, amused at the attention he was getting from his fight with Zabuza. He definitely made an impression, not that he cared of course. "I think that's enough chakra. Gather around everyone."

"What's that?" Sakura asked, eyeing the complicated box-like instrument on the bed.

Naruto patted his invention proudly. "This, Sakura, is one of my inventions. A long-range communication system I invented at the Hokage's request. It is an advanced form of communication device powered by chakra that has a much longer range than the ANBU ear piece they once used before this baby came out." He explained before pressing the switch to connect to the communication line in Konoha. "Hokage-jiji, do you read?"

The speaker released a bit of static before the Hokage's voice came through much to the amazement of Team 7.

"Loud and clear, Naruto-kun. What's the status of the mission?"

"The mission is now officially bumped to A-rank, jiji."

"Explain."

"Right. I was able to rendezvous with Team 7 when I entered Wave Country via Hover Board. I dispelled the mist surrounding the clearing and immediately engaged Momochi Zabuza and defeated him before healing Kakashi's team and escorting the client back to his house. We are currently in a room on the second floor of Tazuna's pad if you're curious."

"I…see. And Zabuza?"

"Alive and kicking. He was able to survive my Omnislash and you know how…bloody that technique is." Naruto pointed out since the Hokage was usually an audience when he sparred with Neko or Tenzo to check on his progress. The last time he used that technique was with the latter who luckily used a replacement with a wood clone that got sliced to pieces in a matter of seconds. He definitely put the fear of blades into the man if nothing else.

"I expect nothing less from an A-rank rogue shinobi of his caliber. Is Kakashi there with you?"

"I'm here, Hokage-sama." Kakashi quipped, trying in vain to get the amazement out of his voice. Sure, he knew of Naruto's invention but seeing one in action was definitely an experience.

"Glad you're safe, Kakashi, and I'm thankful that Naruto was able to reach you in time. However, I would like to point out your lapse in judgment regarding the continuation of the mission despite the increase in difficulty. We will talk about that when you get back. Here are your orders, continue with the mission to protect Tazuna until he finishes the bridge. Understood?"

"Hai, Hokage-sama."

"Good. Naruto will have his own mission to take care of but will provide back-up if necessary. I think that is enough for today. Could you please get out of conference mode, Naruto-kun. We need to talk in private."

"Alright, jiji." Naruto agreed. He turned off the machine and removed the ear piece before replacing it back on his ear. He channeled a bit of chakra to sustain the feed. "Conference is down, jiji. What do you need?"

"Good. I learned from the grapevine that Gato currently has Wave Country in a chokehold. Leave the protection of Tazuna to Kakashi and his team. Your mission is to find Gato and take him out, freeing Wave from his tyranny. Seal up anything of value while returning the money to the people of Wave. Anything shinobi related should be brought back with you. We might be able to use this to our advantage if nothing else or as compensation if you will with the bump in mission rank."

"Smooth move there. Mission accepted, Hokage-sama." Naruto said in all seriousness. "I would like to hold the start of my mission for a few days. Kakashi will be training his team and bring them up to scratch so I'll guard Tazuna in their stead. I'll proceed with the mission after that."

"That's acceptable. Please be careful, Naruto-kun. I know you're strong but it's always best to be careful."

"Don't worry about me, jiji. I can take care of myself."

"It's only normal for me to worry about my grandson."

"Stop worrying. Why don't you contact Kuroto through the communication system on the base and have one of my clones set up a computer in your office. I already have all the Konoha Archive and reports from the Missions Office encoded there. That should give you something to do instead of being worried all the time. You might also want to have Kuroto teach you how to work the GPS while you're at it. That should help you keep track of your ANBUs during missions."

"Fine! I'll do that. Over and out."

Naruto smirked when he heard the connection end and stopped channeling chakra to the ear piece. He turned to Kakashi who looked at him expectantly. "I have a side-mission but that can be postponed. Let's stick with the plan. I'll guard Tazuna while you train your team. Is three days enough?"

"That's fine." Kakashi said with an eye smile. "Thanks for picking up the slack, Naruto."

"No problem. Anyway, I'll leave for now and scout the island. I need to know what we're up against. Ciao." said Naruto as he made his way to the window after grabbing the instrument from the bed. He sent it to his pocket dimension with a thought before jumping out, not noticing the glare he was getting from the loyal Uchiha of the Leaf.

-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-

Naruto was currently high up in the air on his Hover Board looking over the entirety of Wave Country. He was thankful for being given the chance to do what he wanted to do ever since he learned of his mother's name - to find and explore the ruins of Uzumaki Kushina's first home, Uzushiogakure no Sato.

After learning of his mother's legacy, he practically ransacked every history book he could find. His goal was to find the exact location of Uzushio, the Uzumaki Clan's homeland. He found the information in one of the old books deep within the Hokage Archive describing the Third Shinobi World War, specifically the fall of Uzu due to the combined efforts of Kiri, Kumo, and Iwa. According to the author, Uzu was a group of islands off the coast of Fire Country. The main island where the Uzumaki Clan flourished was surrounded by whirlpools that kept invaders away. It was said that the shinobi of Uzu knew of a technique that countered these natural defense so they could safely enter or leave the island before starting it back up again. Naruto used the description to triangulate the location– an uncharted island a few miles east of Wave Country.

Despite this formidable defense, they were attacked thanks to Kiri's Nidaime Mizukage who found a way to bypass said defense. How he did that, no now knew and its knowledge was lost in the sands of time.

It took quite a while but the search in his current altitude made things easier. An hour he spent flying afforded him the chance to finally set his sights on the ruins of Uzushio, his mother's home country. Lowering the amount of chakra he was channeling on the board, he slowly decreased his altitude until he landed at the center of the village. He looked around excitedly, yet with a sad gaze, noting that every wall of the ruined buildings sported crisscrossing designs that marked the clan's love and mastery of the Sealing Arts. Even the layout of the village looked like a gigantic seal, a giant whirlpool in the middle of the island.

"Kuroto, can you check my signal and memorize my current location?"

"Already done, Naruto-sama. What name should I label the location?"

"Hm, name it Uzu and keep it in a separate server along with some of my personal data. I don't want the wrong sort reading the information I plan to put in it."

"Done. I will encrypt it in the usual way for added protection."

"Thanks." said Naruto before creating two hundred clones. "Alright guys. You know what to do."

"Hai, taichou." The clones chorused in excitement before blurring away to check every nook and cranny of his mother's former home to salvage anything he could find to add to his growing legacy.

-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-

It was two hours later, an hour before nightfall that one of his clones stumbled upon the ruins of what was once the home of the Uzukage, the leader of Uzushio. Many of his clones were able to find scrolls on different subjects, ranging from the mundane to shinobi arts and sealing from underneath the rubble of the many ruined homes and buildings. However, the star of the show was found later by a clone who deciphered a language written in an old fuuinjutsu script that simply translated to 'The Whirpool's Heart' or more accurately 'The Heart of Whirlpool'. It was safe to say that the clone found the ruins of the Uzukage Tower much to his delight. Naruto immediately dispatched a hundred clones to help him sort through the rubble for anything. He got a lot of practice using the Float spell since some of the rubble was too large and heavy for him to move.

An hour later, Naruto and his clone army finally uncovered a seal on the floor that would have been in the basement of the once complete edifice – a large seal matrix with a hand print at the center.

Using his knowledge of seals, Naruto was able to determine that the lock was a form of Blood Recognition Seal but this was attuned to Uzumakis. Grinning, he bit his thumb to draw blood and bled on all of his fingers before placing his bloodied palm on the array. The effect was immediate. The moment his hand touched the seal, it recognized his blood as an Uzumaki causing the ground to shudder to reveal a secret room just a few feet away from where he was kneeling. A large slab of cement moved out of the way to reveal stairs.

Grinning like a loon, Naruto magically created a ball of fire to light the way as he descended into the catacombs below.

-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-

Naruto returned to Tazuna's home the next day with a large smile on his face. He finished exploring the catacombs and found a huge library that contained hundreds, if not thousands of scroll on various shinobi subjects, most of them on the Sealing Arts, as well as various books on the Elemental Nation's complete history. It was the discovery of the century and Naruto was going to milk it for all its worth.

Also, there was a letter on the lone desk in the middle of the library written by the Uzukage before the village was destroyed. It explained what the library held and passed the legacy of the clan to him. Naruto vowed that he would make his ancestors proud and continue their legacy as powerful Seal Masters in the Elemental Nations.

Considering that he didn't have time to peruse all them without anyone getting suspicious, he decided to store everything into his pocket dimension to be sorted later. He informed Kuroto to delegate a few full-powered clones to make a large basement to hide his legacy in. He expected it to be finished upon his return into two weeks. He entered the house to find the Tazuna, Tsunami, Kakashi, and Team 7 eating breakfast. He just realized that he was hungry. His stomach grumbled upon smelling the delicious aroma of food on the table.

"Good morning, everyone." he greeted the group.

"Good morning, Naruto. Glad to see that you decided to join us." Kakashi said with an eye smile. "Where have you been?"

"Scouting the island to make sure I know the geography enough for my mission to be successful." He lied. He had no intentions of telling Kakashi that he went on a private field trip to Uzu, surrogate brother or no. Nope, he was keeping this to himself. "I hope you have an extra plate for me. I'm starving."

"Of course." said Tsunami who hurriedly went to the kitchen to retrieve an extra plate for him. She set it on the table before beckoning a hungry Naruto to sit who did so immediately and scooping some rice onto his plate. "Thank you, Tsunami-san."

"Eat your fill, Naruto-san. I don't want you to go hungry now considering you're protecting my father." Tsunami said with a kind smile on her face. Naruto couldn't help but return it with one of his own.

"Much appreciated." Naruto said gratefully as he started eating. He ate in silence for a few minutes before looking at Tazuna. "What your plan for today, Tazuna-san?"

The bridge builder thought for a bit before answering. "I'm going to rest for today since my nerves are still shot from yesterday." He admitted with a shudder. "I'm going to start working on the bridge tomorrow."

"Good. I'll be your bodyguard for tomorrow and the next day." said Naruto before turning to Kakashi. "You're going to train your kids after breakfast?"

"Yes. I saw a sizable clearing behind the house with some thick trees for the exercise. You are welcome to join us if you wish."

"I will. I want to see your Genins in action if nothing else." Naruto said with a smirk.

"Aren't you going to train with us, Naruto?" asked Sakura a bit timidly. She wasn't that close with the blonde despite being classmates back in the Academy. Granted that she only had eyes for Sasuke and she never really got to know him since he tend to just sit there and listen to the lessons. She did notice that Naruto was close to Shikamaru, Chouji, and Kiba.

"Nah. I already mastered the exercise Kakashi is going to teach you today. I think I'll just join you guys and help if needed." He answered her before turning to the one-eyed Jounin. "Will you be teaching them anything else if they master it?"

"If they master the exercise then I will teach them the next step." Kakashi answered as he read his favorite orange book. "There's a river a few meters away so I might do that."

"That's good, I think." Naruto said with a nod and was about to take another bite when Sasuke decided to make his presence known.

"Teach me, dobe."

Naruto sighed before setting down the chopsticks beside his plate. "What do you want, Sasuke?" he caught Kakashi giving him a look which said 'I told you so'.

"Teach me everything you know."

Naruto stared at the boy for a few minutes before answering. "No thank you. You have a sensei to train you to the best of his abilities. I am not and will ever be required to teach you what I know."

"I demand that you teach me!"

"And I will keep telling you that I won't. You have no right to demand anything from me, Uchiha, so I suggest that you shut your mouth before I do it for you." Naruto said coldly.

"Hey, don't talk to Sasuke-kun like that. You should be honored to teach him everything you know." Sakura screeched causing Naruto and Kakashi to wince.

"Would you mind lowering your voice? You're making my ears ring." Naruto scolded the pink-haired Genin who blushed at the rebuke. "And to answer your question, I will repeat what I told your paramour earlier. I am not obligated to teach him anything and you have no right to berate me for answering him the way I did."

"You're a Genin the same way we are so don't lord yourself over us." Sakura pointed out with a smirk. Thankfully, she was speaking normally this time.

Naruto shook his head. "Poor pitiful fools. Kakashi, would you please enlighten them as to my exact position in the shinobi ranks?"

Kakashi nodded before addressing his students. "Naruto is correct. Despite being a Genin like you guys, Naruto is practically above all three of you in term of rank. He was given a position by the Hokage and has proven himself worthy of said position. In the past four months, Naruto earned the respect of the entire ANBU Corps due to his strength and intellect. He was even given the moniker Konoha's Inventor for his many discoveries and inventions to improve the village, most specifically, the military. You already saw one of his inventions that allowed us to communicate with the Hokage despite the distance. Only the Hokage outranks him and can command him to do anything. So he is right. You have no right to demand anything from him."

All three gaped at him in disbelief.

"How…How can he be that strong? He is the same age as us?" Sakura stuttered out while Sasuke merely glared. "He's not even the Rookie of the Year. If anyone deserves that position it's Sasuke."

Naruto scoffed. "I'm 14, Sakura, two years older than you. I delayed my attendance in the Academy for two years due to self training. Since I don't have any parents or a clan to back me up, I have to learn basic education on my own. I started training myself at the age of six and continued to train myself even during the Academy. Even now, I still train my butts off when I have the time. I achieved my current strength through sheer hard work, blood, and tears. I didn't ask for anyone's help. I researched, studied, and trained on my own. That is the reason why Sasuke cannot demand anything from. My skills are mine and mine alone. If I can achieve this strength then your Uchiha Prince can train to achieve his." He said coldly before standing up. "Thank you for the meal, Tsunami-san. I'm no longer hungry so please forgive me for leaving."

"Don't worry about it, Naruto-san." said Tsunami while giving Sakura a glare.

"Thank you." said Naruto before turning to Kakashi and threw something at him which the man easily caught. "That's one of my spare communicators. It works the same way as the old one but I already configured the seal matrix so it is always connected to mine." He explained, tapping the one attached to his ear. "If you need anything for today, you know how to contact me."

With that said Naruto left the house and out into the woods, intending to do something productive instead of getting angry over Kakashi's team.

-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-

Naruto spent the whole day reading in a clearing quite a distance from Tazuna's house. He wasn't worried since Kakashi could easily call him via communicator if a problem comes up. He knew that the one-eyed Jounin wouldn't be bothering him since he would be tormenting his Genins with training. Well, since Sasuke wanted training then he should have his fill right now.

He was currently reading the history of the Uzumaki Clan, the real history of his legacy not the ones written by someone outside the family. Naruto was awed over his family history, a rich family history that started since the beginning of the Elemental Nations. Not only was the Uzumaki Clan powerful Seal Masters and Kenjutsu Experts, the line was directly descended from the mythical Rikudo Sennin himself. He was lucky that the Uzumaki History detailed the history of the Elemental Nations during the time of the famed Sage of the Six Path, the appearance of the Juubi, and finally, the creation of the bijuu, and finally, the formation of the shinobi world through the introduction of chakra.

Naruto enjoyed his clan's history as much as he did with his experiments and inventions. He metaphorically gobbled up the information like a starving man to food. It also answered a lot of unasked questions during his training a few years back.

For starters, his healing factor was merely an offshoot of the Uzumaki's potent chakra, which in itself was a side-effect of their potent life force. His inhuman chakra levels were pretty much a normal thing if he grew up within the clan. In fact, that was the reason why Konoha had the Kage Bunshin in its possession since it was gifted to them by the Shodaime's wife, Uzumaki Mito, as a form of dowry. If Konoha had the Bunshin no Jutsu, the Uzumaki's had the Kage Bunshin since their massive chakra reserves made it impossible for them to pull off a decent illusion. Genjutsu was never his clan's forte because of the same reason. In most cases, the Uzumaki Clan specialized in fuuinjutsu (Seals), ninjutsu, and kenjutsu. Taijutsu was a given.

The reason why the Uzumaki had this bloodline was because of the Rikkudo Sennin. After his defeat of the mythical Juubi, he sired three sons that eventually became the Uchiha, Senju, and Uzumaki. The eldest (Uchiha) was gifted with the Sage's eyes, because of the Juubi, mutated into the Sharingan. The second child was gifted by the Sage's calming presence, hence Senju Hashirama's ability to subdue any bijuu using his Mokuton. The youngest was gifted the Sage's body and potent life force, thus the Uzumaki.

The Sage also created the bijuus. The reason for their creation was the Sage's fear that if he died, the Juubi would be set free to destroy the world once more. He didn't want that to happen so he used one of many powers of the Rinnegan to create nine living bodies in the form of animals. He separated the Juubi's chakra within himself into these nine animals who later became the nine bijuus of the Elemental Nations.

When the Sage died, his three sons had an argument. The eldest wanted to rule the world through fear and power. The middle child opposed him since he wanted to unite the world under the banners of love and peace. The youngest child sided with the middle brother causing a rift. Each went their separate ways to build up their own clan until such time that three major families were born – the Uchiha, the Senju, and the Uzumaki – that formed the backbone of Konohagakure no Sato.

The Uzumaki settled into an island off the cost of Fire Country. They flourished and became masters of the Sealing Arts and the sword. They stuck to the Rikkudo's creed of spreading peace and love to the world but tempered it with a belief that fighting was necessary to promote them. While the Uzumaki Clan flourished, the Uchiha and Senju Clan fought for dominance until such time that the two feuding families united to form Konoha, the Village Hidden in the Leaf. Of course, upon hearing this, the Uzumaki Clan contributed to the creation of the village and was honored by having their clan symbol combined with theirs, the spiral in the center of the leaf signified Konoha ties with Uzushio.

Naruto couldn't help but be amazed that the Uzumaki Clan once had a healthy relationship with the bijuus, even to the point that they knew their names. However, the corruption of man reared its ugly head as many families and groups rose up to try and capture the tailed beasts and subjugate their powers for evil use. This was the reason why the bijuus were hostile to humans. Various methods and plans were created just to get them under control until some of them followed the Sage's example to seal the bijuus into humans who could control their powers – a jinchuuriki.

The last of the tailed beast that was sealed was Kyuubi. The most powerful of the bijuus was able to avoid humans who wanted his power, especially Kumo who started a hunt to get him under their banner. However, Uchiha Madara used the advanced version of the Sharingan to place him under his control and turned into a summon beast. He later forced Kyuubi to fight Senju Hashirama in the place now called the Valley of the End. A fierce battle ensued but Hashirama was able to destroy Madara's control over the bijuu. Uzumaki Mito who witnessed the battle decided that no one should use Kyuubi's powers for evil so she attempted a powerful ritual that resulted in Kyuubi being sealed inside her. She became the first jinchuuriki of the Kyuubi no Yoko.

The blonde reincarnation of Sephiroth finished the book, his mind whirling with thoughts as to what he discovered. The Uzumaki Clan had a rich history and it was practically the reason why Kumo, Kiri, and Iwa was so scared of them that they banded together to wipe the clan out. They were successful in this regard since they totally destroyed Uzushio. However, the Uzumakis had the last laugh since the three powers didn't even get anything from their attack and suffered a huge loss in the process. The Uzukage had all of the clan's rich legacy stored into the catacombs underneath the Uzukage Tower and sealed it so that only an Uzumaki could open it. It was their victory despite being wiped out from the face of the Elemental Nation, a bitter victory but a victory all the same.

Naruto placed a hand on his stomach where the seal was located. He was now the third jinchuuriki of the Kyuubi no Yoko. His mother and father entrusted him with the burden of protecting the most powerful of the bijuu from anyone who wished to subjugate its power. With a glint in his eyes, Naruto decided that he would get in contact with Kyuubi as soon as possible. If he wanted his goals to be reached then he needed to fox to help him out.

The only problem was – he didn't know how.

-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-

Naruto sat himself on top of a pile of lumber writing on his notebook while keeping an eye out for Tazuna as he labored on the bridge with the rest of the workforce. Thinking of the bijuu gave him an idea for a project that would be a great help in his shinobi career. It was currently in its planning phase, coming up with different theories, cataloguing the seals he would need, and the overall design of the weapon. He wasn't in a hurry though so he simply took down whatever he could think of and work on it when he got back to Konoha. He was about to turn another page when he overheard a conversation in front of him. He looked up to see Tazuna frowning at a man who had a defensive look on his face.

"You know, Kamo, if you can't work then just tell me." Tazuna informed the man.

"It's not that I don't want to work. It's just that…" Kamo trailed off but Tazuna had an understanding look on his face even though it was a sad one.

"No need to tell me anything, kid. I know how you feel. Tell you what, why don't you go home and take care of your family. I'll handle it from here." Tazuna assured the young man and patting him on the shoulder.

"…I'm sorry for letting you down, Tazuna-oji-san." said Kamo before turning away and left the bridge.

Tazuna sighed. That was the tenth worker this week. He started off the project with a hundred workers. Because of Gato, his manpower dwindled until he barely had enough to accommodate a skeleton crew. If any more quits then he would be the only one to finish the bridge. He sighed and turned to go back to his work but stopped when he heard someone call his name.

"Tazuna-san, what seems to be the problem?" asked Naruto, frowning at the dejected look on the man's face.

"Nothing. It's just another worker asking for a break." Tazuna answered with a fake smile plastered on his face but it didn't fool Naruto one bit.

"I see. How many workers do you have left?" Naruto asked immediately causing the old man's shoulder to droop.

"I only have 15 left. If this keeps up…" Tazuna trailed off before shaking his head, determination returning to his eyes. "No matter. I don't care if all of them stopped working because of Gato. I will finish this bridge even if I die trying!"

Naruto grinned. He liked the man. Despite having the odds against him, he would do anything to free his people from Gato's tyranny.

"Let me ask you this, how many workers do you need to finish this bridge in a week?" Naruto asked innocently, his mind also coming up with a number on how many the unfinished bridge would be able to accommodate in one go.

"A week, huh?" Tazuna mused, pulling on his beard while deep in thought. "If I want to finish this bridge in a week then I need a solid 200 workers to get it done."

"Is that so?" Naruto said with a nod before a sly look crossed his face. "What if I tell you that there is a way to get 200 workers easily?"

Tazuna drooled at the prospect of having such a large force under his command. If he had 200 workers then this bridge was as good as done. He looked challenging at the amused shinobi in front of him. "Hah! What's the catch, kid? Even if you can provide me with that number, I don't think I have the money to pay them all for a week."

Naruto smirked before flaring his chakra. "Tajuu Kage Bunshin no Jutsu!"the unfinished bridge was covered in smoke before it dispersed to reveal 200 Naruto's grinning at him. "Well, old man. There's your workforce."

Tazuna stared at the sea of blondes in front of him. Even his remaining workers were speechless at the sight. "H-how?" he managed to stutter out.

"I'm a shinobi. We can do anything." was Naruto's cheeky reply before clapping the old man's shoulder. "These clones are solid and have all of my abilities and skill. Tell them what to do and they'll do it. Keep in mind that they are shinobi too, like me, so expect them to be stronger than your average person."

Tazuna stared at Naruto in shock before bowing profusely. "Thank you! Thank you! Thank you! I don't know how to repay you for all this."

"I don't require payment. Just finish the bridge and free your people." Naruto said with a shrug before going back to his notes. "If you need any more, don't hesitate to ask. There's more where they came from."

Tazuna grinned before turning to look at the expectant faces awating his order. "Alright, gakis. Let's get to work!"

The shouts of 200 clones and a few of Tazuna's remaining workers scared the grazing herd of deer on the other side of the island.

-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-

Naruto stood on his Hover Board overlooking a large mansion in the middle of the forest. He finally found Gato's base by following the thugs who came to the town and 'acquired' the offering for their boss. He immediately followed the group when they exited the town using an invisibility spell before using his board to rise above the trees to assess the terrain. He was so disappointed.

It would seem that Gato's main army consisted of thugs, thieves, bandits, and a few mercenaries he picked up along the way. A brief use of Scan showed that none were shinobi except for two signatures that he recognized. When he got the result of the diagnostic spell, his lips could help but curve into a smile. He was looking forward to a rematch with Zabuza and maybe have a round with the pseudo-Hunter shinobi too if given the chance. However, he decided against it since they weren't a part of his mission.

His mission was plain and simple – eliminate Gato.

Naruto frowned. Unfortunately, or fortunately in his case, he was accustomed to death thanks to his memories as Sephiroth. However, memories were quite different from reality. Sure, these memories were genuine and they did happen but there was a difference between then and now. Naruto knew that he could take a life if he really needed to but it doesn't mean that he had to like it. If he was honest with himself, he had no qualms killing Gato since the man was a scum, a thief, a parasite, a bane to all innocent. No, he had no problems killing if such a person was concerned.

There was also the question on what to do with Gato's men. His strategic mind already came up with difference scenarios on how these people would react if they suddenly found Gato dead in the morning, torn to bits, sliced and diced like chopped meat. One possibility, the one that he liked, was getting them so spooked that they would leave Wave with tails tucked between their legs. Another possibility was the potential of venting out their anger on the nearest target – the town of Wave. Naruto's face turned grim when he realized that these men were petty enough to opt for the second possibility.

If he wanted to succeed in this mission then he would have to take care of Gato and his bandits in one fell swoop. A bloodthirsty grin made its way to his way, a quirk he got from Sephiroth that bled to his present reincarnation. Tenten noticed it at first and commented when she first saw it. She wasn't afraid of it since this was simply an indicator that he was enjoying the fight. He could control himself easily if he wanted to kill his opponent or hold back to let them live another day. Tenten called him an oddity but in a good way that made Naruto smile.

Naruto watched the bandits light up the fires as the sun set over the horizon.

The culling would start tonight and he knew of the weapon to get it done.

But first, he had two people he needed to recruit and if they accept then he would have two new helpers to help him in his goal.

-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-

Zabuza grunted as Haku wrapped the last of his wounds. He couldn't remember the last time he suffered such grave injuries. In truth, this was the first time he was injured to a degree that he almost died if not for the timely intervention of his tool. He shuddered when he remembered the attack that almost gave him a one way ticket to the afterlife and the boy who made it happen.

Uzumaki Naruto.

He shuddered as he remembered the innumerable slashes he suffered under the boy's blade as it pierced his skin and drew blood. He shuddered at the boy's calm eyes, eyes that showed countless battles, power beyond belief, and a mind that surpassed any genius he could think off. He thought that Konoha grew weak compared to his home, Kirigakure no Sato. But his beliefs were dashed. How could Konoha be weak if they could train such…such monster!

No, Momochi Zabuza knew that if he ever faced Uzumaki Naruto again, then it would be a fight to the death, a fight that he would surely loose.

Despite his pride as a swordsman, his pride as an A-rank shinobi, he would never face Uzumaki Naruto if he could help it.

"Haku, how long do you think I will make a full recovery?" Zabuza asked the teen.

"A week. Two at the most, Zabuza-sama." Haku reported. Despite his rather feminine looks, his voice gave away his true gender.

"Why is it taking so long?" Zabuza growled.

"Your body can't keep up with all of the wounds you sustained, Zabuza-sama. This…Uzumaki Naruto gave you more than fifty wounds in a span of thirty seconds. You lost quite a lot of blood and you broke some of your bones when he kicked you to the ground. You…you were lucky, Zabuza-sama. I thought you were dead. You were lucky." Haku said in a morbid tone that was quite new for him. They had been in life and death situations before and they usually came out unscathed if not for a few wounds here and there, nothing critical to merit worry. But now, after facing the blonde swordsman with powerful techniques that doesn't require hand seals, they finally saw death for the first time. It was…frightening. He was lucky he didn't get to face the boy, no man, directly but his master certainly did and it wasn't a pretty sight.

Zabuza merely nodded, Haku's report cementing his decision.

"When you think that my wounds are healed enough for us to travel, we will abandon our contract and hightail it out of here." He finally spoke after a few minutes of silence.

"Are you sure, Zabuza-sama?" Haku said with some surprise. He knew that Zabuza's pride as a swordsman demands a rematch, a fight to the death to bring back his lost honor as a wielder of the blade; more so his pride as one of the Seven Swordsman of the Mist. He definitely didn't except this. "You don't want a…rematch?"

Zabuza gave Haku a long look. "For once in my life, Haku, I don't think pride will save me nor it is a good emotion to indulge in. I know my skills as a shinobi and a swordsman are top-notch; I will gladly face a Kage in battle without fear. But this…this Uzumaki Naruto. There is something about him, something that inspires fear. I don't know why but something inside me is telling me that I was lucky to survive. He is not someone you would face without an army behind your back. For once, it is better to count our losses and seek some missions elsewhere even if Gato promised to pay us big money for the bridge builder's death. My goal can wait for a few years."

Haku was about to say something when a chuckle echoed around the room. He immediately pulled out three senbons with a flick of his wrist, prepared to face the intruder. Even Zabuza was prepared, a kunai in his hand since he wasn't strong enough to wield his zanbatou.

"This is practically the first time I heard a compliment like that outside my ANBU friends and the Sandaime. I am flattered." said the voice.

"Who's there? Show yourself!" Zabuza demanded, preparing for a fight.

"There's no need for hostilities, Momochi Zabuza, Haku. If I wanted a fight then you two would be dead before any of you could make a move." Naruto finally materialized beside the door with a soft smile on his face. His appearance caused quite an amusing reaction to those present other than him – Haku was now standing in front of Zabuza, his face showing fear but there was steel in his eyes and the determination to protect his master, to the death of need be. Zabuza showed fear in his eyes but the same determination was there. These two weren't going down without a fight.

"What are you doing here? Come to finish the job?" Zabuza growled, grip tightening around his puny weapon.

"I'll keep him occupied while you escape, Zabuza-sama. Please prepare." said Haku in a determined voice while throwing three senbons at Naruto who merely grabbed them from the air and examining them one by one. He smiled.

"As I said, Haku, I am not here to kill you." stated Naruto as he lazily threw the weapon to the side without a care in the world.

"Then why are you here?" asked Zabuza, his voice held more curiosity than resolve.

"To talk, nothing more nothing less." he replied casually as he made his way to the lone chair in the room by the window. "Can I take this seat? I've been standing all day and it's quite tiring."

Zabuza and Haku looked at the blonde with dumbfounded expressions on their faces. Out of all the things they expected, they didn't expect this…this…man to simply ask them for a seat. Whatever Naruto said must have fried their brains since the only thing they did was nod.

"Thanks." said Naruto before sitting himself with a sigh. He was standing for 4 hours on that damn Hover Board and his legs weren't used to doing nothing. Sure, he could stand for a whole day if need be but not stationary. "Now, as I said before you went hostile on me, I merely came here to talk."

"What do you want to talk about?" Haku asked, his stance showing his alertness and readiness to attack.

"I have a proposition for the two of you." Naruto started, smile still plastered on his face. From what these two showed, he definitely wanted them in his group. They might not have the brains to help him with his inventions but having a few helpers wouldn't be amiss. Clones do tend to get boring after a while. He paused for a bit since he had this feeling that he was channeling Sephiroth all of a sudden but dismissed it. "In a few hours, I will unleash my…summon upon Gato and wipe out all of his forces to free Wave from his tyranny. However, I have no fight against the two of you and I am quite impressed with both of your skills. So here is my proposition, I want to hire the two of you to be part of my team, so to speak."

"What?" Zabuza and Haku exclaimed in unison. They couldn't believe what they were hearing. Instead of being brutally murdered, they were being given an option for employment. It was surreal even for their standards.

"Hm, I think I was clear in my intention but no matter." Naruto quipped, amused by the two's reaction. Really, was it hard to believe that he had no intentions of killing them? "I wish to hire both of you. I can use my…position in the Konoha Military to conscript the two of you as my personal…team of sorts. Of course, you have a choice. You can either work for me as a Konoha shinobi or I will hire the two of you with pay. What will it be?"

Haku didn't say anything but Zabuza certainly did.

"That is an intriguing proposal. But let me ask you this, if Haku and I refuse your offer, what will you do to us?"

"Nothing." Naruto answered immediately without hesitation.

"I find that hard to believe." Zabuza scoffed.

"Hard to believe but it's the truth, Momochi Zabuza. Let me ask you then - would you still be my enemy IF Gato is no longer in play? And what will I gain in killing the both of you?"

That brought Zabuza short and he definitely knew the answer. "No, if Gato is out of the picture then we have no quarrels with each other. As for what you would gain, notoriety for one and the bounty of my head especially if you cash it in Kiri."

"Then I have no reason to take your lives on both counts. I don't need to be famous just by killing a missing nin. I can easily achieve notoriety through my own actions and inventions. As for the money, I have the Hokage backing up my inventions and experiments. My parents also left me quite a sum so I'm not worried. I am also earning an equivalent of C to S-rank missions with my inventions alone. So no, I don't see any benefits in taking your life." Naruto said simply. "However, good help are hard to find these days so I took the opportunity when it presented itself."

"What does this…job entail?" asked Haku, curious now over the whole thing since he couldn't feel an ounce of malicious intent from the blonde swordsman. That and he was getting tired of running around dodging Hunter shinobi after their heads, more specifically, his master's head.

"I am an inventor, or you can even dub me as a Shinobi Inventor if you wish." Naruto said with some amusement. "I am currently the head of my own department in Konoha ANBU, the first Research and Development Division with the goal to invent useful items for the betterment of the village. The reason why I want to hire the two of you is two-fold. One, I need a team that would help me test my inventions without exhausting Konoha's resources. As I said, good help is hard to find these days so I definitely need to form my own team for this venture. The second reason is that it is quite lonely working in a department with only one person to run it. So I guess the second reason is company."

"Let me get this straight, you want to hire the two of us as your personal lab rats?" Zabuza asked incredulously. He briefly wondered if this guy was a second Orochimaru.

"Lab rats? Kami no! I am not going to use you two as my experiments." Naruto said dryly, insulted by their assumptions. "Let me give you an example. Let's say I invented a method to properly test a few enhancements on a certain sword. Of course, Zabuza would be testing the sword for me. So that is your job, after I make sure that my inventions are safe to handle, you will be tasked to test it out for me, find problems that needs fixing, issues that needs correcting and all that rot."

Zabuza thought of the offer and couldn't deny the fact that it was good. If the Hokage doesn't accept their joining then they could easily slip out of the village and resume their trials to accomplish his goal. If the Hokage agrees then they won't be having problems with Hunters any time soon. He looked at Haku and saw his partner-slash-tool looking at him with excitement. He guessed that settled it.

"Fine, we accept your offer. But I have a request…or more specifically, a favor." Zabuza grunted out with Naruto looking at him in curiosity.

"Does this have something to do with the goal you mentioned earlier?"

"Yes. The reason why I'm a rogue shinobi is because I tried to assassinate the Yondaime Mizukage. I think you already know that he started the Bloodline Purge in Kiri, correct?" Naruto nodded, telling Zabuza that he knew what he was talking about. "That is the reason why I tried to kill the bastard. I failed and was declared a missing nin. Haku here is, um, my partner. I picked him up after he killed his father using his bloodline when the idiot killed his mother. I trained him to the best of my abilities and he saved me a lot of times during our many missions. My goal is to support the underground movement who are planning to raise a revolution, oust and kill the Yondaime Mizukage, and bring Kiri back to the way it was before. I am taking a lot of missions because I am funding the movement until their goal is met." Zabuza explained.

Naruto nodded in understanding before he smiled slyly at his new…helper. "So let me guess, you are either asking me to forward your salary to the Kiri Rebels or you want me to devise a way to help you with your plan to get rid of the tyrant. Which one is it?"

Zabuza grunted. This boy, no, man was definitely out of his league. He read him like a book. "The latter. Since you are an inventor and have the Sandaime's ear, maybe you can help me find a way to help the rebels destroy the Mizukage once and for all."

Naruto thought for a bit before answering. "That's a toughie. You do know for a fact that Konoha can't directly help you in this regard, correct?" Zabuza grunted in affirmative making Naruto smirk. "However, I find your request…intriguing. Very well, I will help you with your request. However, this will be done my way. Agreed?"

"Do I have a choice?" Zabuza asked somewhat sarcastically causing Haku to flinch, expecting their new employer to lash out at them. He didn't except for Naruto to smile at the man though.

"Everyone has a choice, Zabuza. It is up to you if you make the right one or not." Naruto said sagely before getting out of his seat and made his way to the door. "Now, that's over and done with, I am going to pay Gato a little visit. However, a word of warning, no matter what happens; don't leave the safety of this room. I can't guarantee your safety if you're out there with what I'm going to do. Understood?"

Zabuza grunted in agreement.

"As you wish, Naruto-sama." said Haku with a bow causing Naruto to quirk an eyebrow at the sudden use of honorifics.

"You don't have to call me that, Haku." Naruto chided the teen who he knew was much older than him, possible two or three years if he surmised a guess.

Haku shook his head. "Since we are now under your employment, it is only normal for me to give you the respect you deserve, Naruto-sama." He said with a smile on his face.

Naruto shook his head before looking at a rather amused Zabuza. "He won't change his mind, will he?" he asked dryly.

"Nope. Better get used to it." Zabuza quipped before releasing a hearty chuckle. He didn't know why but his gut feeling was telling him that he made the right choice in accepting the inventor's offer.

"Ugh. Fine. Stay here and don't open the door." Naruto said with a sigh before teleporting out of the room to the shock of his underlings.

-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-

Naruto appeared under the shadows of the trees just outside the reach of the thugs' illumination. He mulled over ideas on how to finish Gato and his goons. The Destroyer in him wanted to wade in everyone's blood. The innocence in him wanted to just knock everyone out, take Gato and let him face justice under the hands of the people of Wave. The inventor in him, however, decided to test his abilities to see if he had what it takes to move to the next step of his training.

It was the inventor who won the vote.

Naruto grinned as he channeled every drop of magical energy in his body. This would be the first time he would try his hand at summoning a powerful entity that was rarely known during Sephiroth's time. Luckily for the blonde, his past counterpart was so curious about the myths and tracked it down until he found the materia that housed its spirit. As far as Naruto could tell, Sephiroth only used it once and once alone. Naruto was going to attempt to use it for the second time.

Charging up his magic, he started whispering the words of summoning.

"God of the Underworld, Ruler of Death, Judge of the Guilty and the Damned. I call upon the hated foe of Life, the end of all, the ultimate demise of all that breathes. I summon thee from the depths of Tartarus. Listen to my call, God of Death. Come forth and do my bidding. Hades!"

Naruto felt all the magic in his body gush out of his being towards the summoning circle that appeared in front of him. Slowly, the circle rotated until it picked up speed, glowing in eerie light, as a being of power and death materialized within its confines. Naruto couldn't help but feel awed at the power of the summon in front of him, a power that none of this world now possessed except him.

"Who dares call upon the God of Death? Who dares summon me, the feared Hades!"

"I, Uzumaki Naruto, reincarnation of Sephiroth, summon thee, Hades, God of the Underworld." intoned Naruto in a powerful voice. Despite emptying his magical reserves, he didn't have any plans of showing weakness to any of his summons.

Hades regally lowered its gaze to look at him, the fire in the summon's eyes seemed to bore into his soul, judging him, measuring him. It lasted for a few second but for Naruto, it seemed like hours.

"What is your command, summoner?"

Naruto pointed at the mansion in front of him. "I summoned thee, Hades, to reap the souls of these evildoers. Leave none alive except for two that is my ally."

"So you wish it, summoner, so it will be done." Hades boomed as he bowed to Naruto who watched with morbid fascination as the God of Death released an inky black smoke from his mouth, smoke that traversed the grounds of Gato's headquarters, sapping the life of anything it touches. One by one, Gato's men simply fell to the ground followed by the rest. Shouts were heard as the men noticed their comrades die before their very eyes before following the same path themselves. Naruto watched the smoke enter the mansion before hearing screams and shouts of fear coming from the people inside. A few minutes later, the shouting ceased as silence reigned. Hades bowed to him once more before sinking into the summoning seal, disappearing completely into its depth before the circle followed.

Naruto watched the ground for a few minutes before sighing in relief. "That was interesting." He said tiredly before noticing the emptiness that was his magical core. It was slowly replenishing itself but a bit too slow for his taste. "Definitely need more training if I want to bring out the bigger guns." He mused before shaking his head. "Who am I kidding? Hades IS one of the bigger guns, idiot."

-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-

After Hades ended Gato's tyranny over Wave Country, Naruto went back to Zabuza's quarters to inform the two that it was now safe to come out. He didn't tell them how he destroyed Gato but he didn't need to since they heard the desperate screams of the thugs from their location. Deciding that Zabuza was needed to clean out Gato's base, he healed the man much to his and Haku's amazement before giving them their respective tasks. Sure, he could have made dozens of clones to help him get this done but he reasoned that he wants to see how useful these two were and if they were trustworthy enough to give them the benefit of a doubt.

Naruto respected their skills and abilities but only time can really tell if he trusted them enough for important things.

Zabuza was tasked to search Gato's mansion for documents regarding the man's activities in the Elemental Nations. The man grumbled when he heard that order since he was a fighter, not a desk junkie. Naruto ignored him his rant as he sorted through the fat businessman's paperwork.

Haku was tasked to sort out Gato's financial empire since the man kept a detailed record of his monetary dealings, a job that Haku eagerly complied since the teen had a knack for anything that involved finance. He was just weird that way. His second task was to find transaction records concerning the people of Wave since they needed to return the money to the townsfolk before going back to Konoha.

Naruto took the liberty of getting rid of the bodies. Since his magical energy wasn't up to snuff for high-tier spells, he resorted to using his chakra-based jutsus since he had plenty of it in stick. He spammed fireballs that burned the dead bodies to ash. He enjoyed it but the smell of burning flesh turned his stomach. When that was done, he called up Kakashi on the communicator to inform him that Gato was no longer a problem. He didn't answer his surrogate brother's question as to how he achieved such a feat but merely hinted that it was a bloodline thing. It was quite obvious that Kakashi didn't believe him.

-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-

Naruto was sipping a glass of wine pilfered from Gato's stock underneath the mansion while thinking of a certain projects he wanted to start. The man may have had his faults but he had good taste. Zabuza was drooling when he found a hidden room that showcased the businessman's wine collection. It was safe to say that the Demon of the Mist was going to enjoy every single one of them. He was kind enough to give Naruto a few bottles out of the goodness of his heart much to the blonde's amusement.

The blonde was specifically thinking of Project Black Leaf as he enjoyed the silence of Gato's sitting room.

Naruto smirked when he remembered how he and a dozen of his clones talked about Sephiroth's memories of Shinra's many organizations. They were trying to brainstorm over some of Shinra's technologies and how they could replicate it using the limited tech they have at their disposal. He didn't know how but the brainstorming session over technology shifted to the creation of an organization under R&D that was similar to the Turks. If ANBU was the shadow of Konoha, the one Naruto and his clones had in mind was going to be the public face.

After hours of brainstorming, ideas being passed back and forth, a lot of theories, and some food provided by helpful clones, they were able to come up with a set of guidelines for the creation of such organization that would be independent from Konoha's Military System but under the command and jurisdiction of the Hokage.

Finishing the wine in one smooth gulp, sighing as the fiery brew ran down his throat and setting his stomach on fire that pushed back the cold night air, Naruto pulled out his com-panel and placed a spare earpiece on the slot. He turned it on and waited for the static to die down.

"You awake, jiji?" Naruto started and smirked when he heard the aged leader coughing to get his bearings under control.

"You're going to be the death of me, Naruto-kun. Could you please add a bell or something to this communication system of your so I don't get startled every time you call?" the Hokage whined which made Naruto snicker.

"Will do, jiji."

"Thanks. This isn't a social call I take it?"

"Not really." Naruto admitted. "Did you let a clone install a computer in your office?"

"That I did and I'm really happy that you offered, Naruto-kun. It made my job a lot easier. I can easily sort through mission reports without having to stamp papers all day. Well, I just read while the clones stamped but I digress. Is something the matter?"

"I'm going to send something to you in a minute. It should pop out on your screen." said Naruto before putting the panel on mute while channeling a bit of chakra to his private line with his AI. "Kuroto, could you please send the specifics of Project Black Leaf to the Hokage's computer and make sure that its open since I don't think jiji knows how to interface with my private server as of yet."

"As you wish, Naruto-sama."said Kuroto through the ear piece.

"Thank you." said Naruto before removing the mute form his conversation with the Hokage. "Did you see a window with the label Black Leaf on it, jiji?"

"I am reading it right now, Naruto-kun. This is a very ambitious project."

"Uh huh. Scroll down a bit. You'll see the list of members I have in mind."

"You do know for a fact that most of the people in this group are rogue shinobi, right?"

"I know. I worked with Kuroto for three days to go through the Bingo Book. I have a criteria regarding the members I plan to induct into the organization and, as you can see, their crimes are minor enough to warrant them a second chance. This way, I don't have to train the members since they are already trained. All they need is a bit of refinement and they're good to go."

"I'm sorry to say that I can't approve of this project, Naruto-kun. The risk of betrayal is quite high and with the weapons you plan to equip them with…it would be a disaster to the village."

"I already thought of that, jiji. Scroll down a bit, you'll see how I'll make sure that betrayal won't be a problem." Naruto listened as the line went dead for a bit before the Hokage's shocked voice blared out of the speaker.

"This is ingenious, Naruto-kun. Is the modification already finished?"

"Not yet, old man. I still have to tweak it a bit to make sure that they can't find a loophole in the matrix. There aren't that many Seal Experts or Seal Masters in the Elemental Nation but I am pretty sure that there are only two people who are able to work it out, me and Jiraiya of the Sannin."

"I agree. You really made this old man proud, Naruto. You definitely surpassed your parents with your inventions and innovations."

"Thanks, Hokage-jiji. So what do you think? Will Project Black Leaf become a reality?"

"I will have to discuss this with my advisors but I don't think they would go against it. I'm sure Danzo would find this appealing."

Naruto scoffed. "As if we care what that old warmonger thinks. If he is against this idea then we can blackmail him to agreeing."

"I still don't know how you were able to find out about his ROOT being active."

"The first time I met Danzo when you visited my laboratory, I sensed something fishy about the man. I had a few of my clones under invisibility spell watch him. He has quite a few underground bunkers all over Konoha and they are filled to the brim with his 'bodyguards'."

"I see, I think Danzo and I will have a long talk about this. I already ordered him to disband his ROOT Program but it seems that my dear old friend is up to his old tricks again."

"Leave it be for now, jiji. I already have a complete inventory of all his 'hidden' locations and we can strike anytime we want. For now, let's keep this between ourselves since we can use it to our advantage later if he decides to muddy up the works."

"Fine. I'll leave that to you. I'll call the Shinobi Council and my advisors in the morning to discuss this organization of yours. I can already see a lot of benefits this will give to Konoha as a whole. Why didn't you consider inducting our own elites into the group? That would save you the trouble of tracking your potential members down."

"That would reduce Konoha's resources, jiji. Let's face it, most of the Jounins and Elites you have in the ranks are already famous. If I induct them into the group then it's like the organization is riding on their coattails. No, I want this organization to start at the bottom and work our way to the top, earning notoriety with our abilities and mission rosters."

"Hm, definitely an ambitious plan. Alright, I'll discuss this with the council and advisors. How long do you need to get this group up and running? I saw the list of weapons you plan to equip them with and I can safely say that they are definitely unique and powerful. Do you already have them on hand?"

"Not yet. Most of those are still in the woodwork while some are still in paper. I will devote all my time in this project when I return to Konoha tomorrow."

"Ah, your mission is a success I take it?"

"Gato is out of commission, jiji, and we are currently ransacking his mansion for anything important we can use for the village. Oh yeah, before I forget, I already have Zabuza and his apprentice under employment. The two of them will be the first to join the organization if it is approved."

"You definitely work fast, Naruto-kun. I take it you want me to induct them into the ranks?"

"Yes, but only on a temporary basis, jiji. In fact, they won't be visible for quite a while since I plan for them to help me test some of my inventions."

"You're going to use the seals on them?"

"When completed, yes I will."

"Hm, if that is the case then we need to be covert about this project. Here's what you're going to do, I want you to move all your inventions concerning Project Black Leaf to your lab underneath your apartment. ANBU HQ is quite open to those who know of its location and I want complete secrecy on your inventions concerning this operation. Leave the public experiments visible to avoid suspicions. Keep Zabuza and his apprentice on a tight leash in your apartment. Tell them not to show themselves to the public since I don't want Kiri on our throats right now even though they don't have the manpower to declare war with anyone."

"You got it, old man. I'll rendezvous with Kakashi in the morning before leaving for Konoha. We will enter the village at night under secrecy."

"Do that. Is there anything else I need to know about?"

"Not at the moment."

"Alright. Over and out."

Naruto grinned as he stowed his com-system back into his pocket dimension. He was happy. Project Black Leaf was moving in the right direction. He just hoped that the council and advisors won't be giving him a headache when they learn of his plans.

-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-

It has been two months since his mission to Wave Country and Naruto has been very busy since returning to the village. Zabuza and Haku were now officially his employees and were living with him in his newly-renovated apartment complex. He had a meeting with the Hokage regarding his many projects upon stepping into the leader's office, after debriefing of course.

Gato's documents were forwarded to a team of ANBU to track it down to possibly consolidate it into Konoha while working on the side of closing some of the more shady business the dead business had in his portfolio. All in all, Konoha's coffers would enjoy a major boost and the Hokage promised Naruto getting a chunk of it for his department's budget. The blonde swordsman couldn't be happier with the result. After all, who was stupid enough to say no to money?

Two days after his return, he was immediately called to a meeting with the Hokage, Koharu, Homura, and Danzo regarding Project Black Leaf. The project was accepted since Naruto had Kuroto compile ALL the details about it, pointing the advantages to the village's overall performance and popularity. However, he was given a condition that he needed to finish the weapons he planned for the members and tested to completion before they would start recruiting. Danzo adamantly refused the inclusion of rogue shinobi into the ranks but a whispered threat from the Sandaime regarding his 'bodyguards' immediately quieted the man. Naruto knew that there would be a confrontation between himself and Danzo in the future; he was going to make sure that he came out on top if that ever happened.

Speaking of projects, Naruto's worked with the ones requested by the Sandaime alongside his experiments and innovations for Project Black Leaf.

For the Sandaime, Naruto was tasked to replace the outdated power plant in Konoha with something much better. The reason for this project was the large population in the village that was more than the small power plant could handle. Naruto's solution was quite simple. He riddled the walls around Konoha with chakra absorption seals and coupled it with interconnecting relay seals to divert it to a central storage battery deep inside ANBU HQ. There, a large converter seal was created to slowly filter the converted electricity into the power plants sub-stations before released to the various houses and buildings in the village. From an outsider's point of view, Konoha was dependent on their power plant. But for a chosen few, the village was now powered by the ambient chakra. It was a saboteur's nightmare since that was one avenue they couldn't use to destroy Konoha from within.

Naruto made a special point to tell the Hokage that he wanted a cut on the project since it would help fund his future experiments with the aged leader giving in due to the excess money it would generate since they won't be maintaining the power plants operation due to it no longer producing electricity.

Another project the Sandaime commissioned Naruto to undertake was the improvement of Konoha's defense grid, more specifically, the barrier that surrounds the village to monitor people entering and leaving the village. From what Naruto learned, the barrier system surrounds Konoha in a sphere, covering both the air and ground. Its size was dependent on the large wall protecting the village since the seals to maintain the invisible construct were there, all of it connected to a team of specialist in ANBU HQ to monitor and maintain it.

Naruto's task was to find a way to make the barrier solid enough that it could withstand an assault. In a way, the Sandaime wanted a way to immediately turn Konoha into a stronghold just in case. The barrier would keep invaders from entering the village and anyone from leaving. Naruto assigned quite a lot of clones for that project since he was also quite excited on the research potential alone considering the date he would get from it would help other experiments and projects currently in the backburner.

Currently, Naruto was enjoying a cup of coffee while facing a large screen. In the middle of the screen was a visual of Mitarashi Anko's Cursed Seal given to her by Orochimaru, her sensei before he went rogue. This was the latest project the Sandaime gave to him – the safe removal of the Cursed Seal and to really find out how the cursed hickey works. He immediately jumped on the project since it was related to how Mako affected a SOLDIER from Anko's description of its effects. Despite being a fuuinjutsu construct, or a juuinjutsu to be exact, Jiraiya wasn't able to make any headway on its removal. However, Naruto had no problems thanks to the many seals he acquired from Uzu. One of them being a Diagnostic Seal that could scan and analyze any seal it was placed on, a seal that he used in many of his experiments to break down known seals and studying how they worked, allowing him to learn the intricacies instead of the finished product.

The first scan yielded a fount of information about the Cursed Seal of Heaven that gave Naruto a grudging respect for Orochimaru's twisted mind.

For starters, the Cursed Seal of Heaven was a combination of chemical-based enhancement guided by a sealing script that bound it to the person's chakra pathways. The enzymes, which Naruto didn't know how it came to be, amplifies a person's chakra potency allowing for a boost in power. However, the enzyme has a psychological side-effect that brings out a person's negative personality, turning a person into a berserker with a chemically-induced sugar-high.

The sealing script surrounding the enzyme has two primary functions.

The first function was giving Orochimaru some hold over that person using the juuinjutsu as a medium. He could do anything with that person if truth be told, like putting them under torturous pain, shutting down their motor functions, or even a form of mind control if he had enough time to completely dominate the person using his chakra.

The second function of the seal was to slowly destroy a person's willpower using their primal urges, or in this case, their lust for battle. Naruto was confused over the second function since it would end up destroying a valuable pawn.

However, scanning the seal structure itself revealed the purpose of the second function. It would seem that Orochimaru found a way to inject a piece of his soul into the matrix, thus giving light to the second use of the Cursed Seal of Heaven. It would slowly eat away the person's mental defense that would make it easier for Orochimaru to possess that person's body. The soul inside the seal would slowly open up a connection between the body and Orochimaru, making it easy for the Snake Sannin to possess them.

He couldn't help compare Orochimaru to Shinra's Professor Hojo – demented, diabolical geniuses the both of them.

This was why Naruto was currently studying the seal matrix surrounding the enzymes in hopes of removing it, or as a last resort, contain it so effectively that it would turn it into a non-functional tattoo.

"Removing the Cursed Seal of Heaven on subject Mitarashi Anko would theoretically require two procedures. The first requires breaking down the enzymes and separating it from the subject's chakra pathways. The second procedure would involve destroying the seal matrix to fully release a person from its effects. However, the scan results show that the seal matrix acts as an anchor, allowing it to attach to the subject's chakra coil, making it almost impossible to remove, and Orochimaru's soul fragment reinforced that anchor with a great deal of durability." Naruto mused while Kuroto recorded it for future reference. "First theory for removal involved the use of a high-powered Dispel but dismissed the idea since the Cursed Seal of Heaven is not an energy construct. It's more like a drug with a brain."

Naruto punched a few more buttons on his keyboard to bring up another window, this one containing a list of Seal Arrays his clones encoded after reading the various Uzumaki scrolls on the subject.

"If removal is impossible, the next logical solution would be to contain the seal that it won't harm the subject. At the moment, the subject's Cursed Seal is bound into a state of inactivity using the Evil Sealing Method, a seal matrix that forces down cursed seal into a dormant state through the subject's willpower. In other words, if the subject's mind wavers then it is a high possibility that the Cursed Seal will activate." he narrated as he took notes of some sealing techniques known only by his family. "There are three Uzumaki sealing arrays that could easily contain the Cursed Seal more effectively than the Evil Sealing Method. One is the Five Barrier Evil Sealing Method, the Eight Point Chakra Lock, and the Shinso Seal Lock."

The Five Barrier Evil Sealing Method was an Uzumaki Sealing Array that was commonly used on shinobi that suffers an effect caused by a technique. For example, if a person was subjected to a form of 'curse' then the Five Barrier Evil Sealing Method would put a containment barrier around the 'curse' to effectively cut it off from the victim. It doesn't remove the 'curse' but merely contain it in a separate dimension. For Naruto, this was the most effective containment seal for Anko's Cursed Seal.

The Eight Point Chakra Lock was mostly used on prisoners to permanent seal away their chakra. Naruto immediately disregarded this since this would destroy Anko's shinobi career. The seal wouldn't target the Cursed Seal's corrosive chakra; it would seal away ALL chakra, effectively turning said person into a civilian. He knew that this avenue was not advisable.

The last was a Shinso Seal Lock, a variation of the Eight Point Chakra Lock but can be turned off. This was mostly used as a way for a shinobi to pass off as a civilian during missions since Uzumakis had such huge chakra reserves that it was almost impossible to suppress them. The only drawback to this method was the five-minute delay it would take to deactivate. For a shinobi, five minutes was already too long to safely consider.

Naruto sighed as he ended the recording and saving all the notes he compiled on the Cursed Seal of Heaven. At this point in time, there was no way to safely remove the seal or devise a more effective containment array other than the Evil Sealing Method. He made a special point to assign a few clones to devote on the project and maybe have Anko brought in for further examination on the Cursed Seal, like getting a sample of the enzymes that makes it tick.

Naruto turned on his chair to see a large monitor showing Zabuza and Haku training underneath his apartment complex. One of his instructions to his 'employees' was to make sure that they kept their strength at their peak so they shouldn't slack off in their training. The two definitely loved the idea since they had no intentions of weakening themselves anytime soon. Naruto pressed a few buttons that opened up two smaller windows on the screen that showed real-time information on duo's overall physical and mental health. He finally finished the seal matrix he would apply on the members of Project Black Leaf and he couldn't help but be happy that he found the solution on the many Uzumaki scrolls he acquired.

The now-dubbed Black Leaf Seal was a combination of different seals rolled into one with a twist hidden under the guise of three Konoha symbol forming a triquetra with the Uzumaki Symbol in the background.

For starters, it incorporates a diagnostic/scanning seal that would allow Naruto to assess their physical and mental health, like what he was doing now. It also has a locator seal connected to his GPS system managed by Kuroto so he would know where the members were located. The matrix also incorporates his hybrid storage seal giving them the ability to store unlimited number of items without having to bring scrolls all the time.

Finally, the last and hidden capability of the seal was a mind-wipe array. If a member betrays the organization then the mind-wipe seal would activate, erasing all memories that person had after the seal was applied that pertained to Project Black Leaf. Naruto was opposed to the idea of killing that person so the next best thing was to erase all of the person's memories of the organization.

Naruto had a variation of this seal for the ANBU which they now use since it was completed. It was superimposed on their ANBU tattoos so he wouldn't have to redo everything all over again. This way, the Hokage could track his shadow units. It was modified since the array didn't include the hybrid storage seals since that were for Naruto and Project Black Leaf only. He did, however, gave the Hokage one grafted on the back of his palm. Tenten also had one too for her many weapons.

He was brought out of his thoughts as he watched Zabuza evade Haku's ice senbons when Kuroto spoke through the speakers.

"The Hokage just entered the building, Naruto-sama, and currently on his way to your laboratory."

"Hm? Jiji's here? Wonder what he wants." Naruto asked himself as he turned off the screen and turning on his chair to face the door that just opened to reveal the Sandaime puffing on his pipe. "Good evening, jiji."

"Good evening, Naruto-kun. Doing well, I hope?" said the aged leader who took a seat in front of his surrogate grandson, noting the high-tech machinery one side including multiple monitors that served as his surrogate grandson's workstation. Orochimaru would be drooling with envy if he saw Naruto's inventions.

"No problem so far though Orochi-teme's juuinjutsu is giving me a headache." Naruto admitted with a wry grin on his face.

The Sandaime nodded since he understood what Naruto meant. His former student's work was definitely mind-boggling. He was a genius, a demented genius but a genius all the same.

"What have you found so far?" he asked his surrogate grandson who now became one of the most respected shinobi in the village thanks to his many contributions to the military in terms of inventions and weapons. The modified senbon launcher that could store an unlimited number of senbons and launch them at enemies at faster than the usual speed was definitely a welcome one and fast becoming of the ANBUs favorite weapon. Last time he heard, Anko was showing it off to her fellow Jounins since Naruto gave her one as payment for letting him study the cursed hickey as he dubbed it on her neck. Those who saw its capabilities were practically combing the village where to get one since Anko was tightlipped as to where or who she got it from.

Naruto took a folder out from his drawer containing the printed results of Orochimaru's Cursed Seal of Heaven.

"See for yourself." he said before sliding the folder towards the leader who immediately took it and read its contents.

Sarutobi frowned since the results opened up certain memories involving his former student and his inhumane experiments.

"This is worrisome. It would seem that my student found a way to complete his life project or a perversion of it if what this document reveals." he murmured with a hate and regret in his voice.

"Life project?" Naruto asked curiously.

The Hokage sighed. "What do you know of my former student, Naruto-kun?" he asked the blonde inventor.

Naruto shrugged. "Aside from what the Bingo Book had on him and from the stories I got from Anko, not much to be honest."

"I see. Let me tell you then. You see, Naruto-kun, the reason why Orochimaru went into human experiments and his growing obsession of it was because of his parents. One day, when Orochimaru and I visited his parent's grave, we found a white snake on their tombstone. I told him of a myth that a white snake symbolized immortality. I don't know what happened but that sparked his interest in immortality, thus his life project in finding a way to achieve it. From the results of your studies on the Cursed Seal of Heaven, we can safely deduce that the version of immortality Orochimaru developed is to possess bodies, more specifically, those he infected with his Cursed Seal."

"Body swapping as a form of immortality?" Naruto asked with some disgust. "That has to be the most cumbersome way to gain it. If I was in his shoes, I would look into preserving my life or achieving a form of heightened regenerative factor to live forever not that I'm contemplating it of course. Really, immortality is overrated. I have no intentions of living forever since that would be very boring."

"I'm glad that you thought that way, my boy." Sarutobi said with pride shining in his eyes. "That is the difference between you and my former student. Despite the fact that both of you became inventors, successful ones I might add, you are more focused in helping than furthering your own goals."

Naruto blushed at the praise, scratching the back of his head in embarrassment making the old man chuckle. "Well, I do have my own goals, jiji, but I share my inventions to the world in hopes of making Konoha a better place to live. Sure I make weapons but I don't do them for war, I do them to ensure that our shinobi come back in one piece."

"That you do, my boy, that you do." said the old man with a chuckle. "Anyway, the reason I came here was to inform you of the Chuunin Exams in four months."

Naruto raised an eyebrow. "Chuunin Exams? You want me to take it, I presume?"

Sarutobi nodded. "Yes. There are two ways for you to achieve the rank of Chuunin. One is to take the exam with a team and the other is to be promoted on the field. Field Promotion is mostly reserved in times of war or a crisis, something that we thankfully don't have. Because of this, the only way for you to advance in rank is to take the Chuunin Exams."

"Interesting." Naruto said as he rubbed his chin, noting some stubble. He made a mental note to buy a razor. "Earning Chuunin is definitely something to look forward to. However, I don't think I can join. Correct me if I'm wrong but the Chuunin Exams require a full team to participate and require a Jounin sensei to recommend said team. Both I don't have both at the moment." he pointed to the Hokage who smirked.

"Technically, you HAVE a Jounin sensei. Since I am the one who gave you your position as head of the ANBU Research and Development Division, I am technically your Jounin sensei."

"Nice loophole." Naruto said with some admiration. "And the team?"

"Well, you already have one. All we need is another which I have an idea as to who it would be but it would need a bit of your help to make it happen."

"Oh? Who are they?" Naruto asked with intense curiosity.

"The first is Haku. Since he is technically a Genin being without a village to give him a rank, I can easily sign him up as one. The second is an ongoing problem that we handled badly a long time ago. Tell me; are you familiar with the Kurama Clan?"

"Kurama Clan? Isn't that the clan well-known for creating illusions that affects reality?" Naruto asked after remembering a reference on the clan from the many history books he read during his free time and studies.

"Correct, roughly six years ago a few months after the Uchiha Massacre, the Kurama Clan gave birth to a girl named Kurama Yakumo. She was a prodigy in genjutsu and the Kurama clan's bloodline limit. However, something happened that forced her evil personality to resurface, forcing me seal her powers for the good of the village. Now, considering that you're the current Sealing Expert in the village, I was hoping that you have a method to completely seal this evil personality of hers so that she could safely use her bloodline limit without problems."

"Really? Now that is an interesting turn of events." Naruto said with a smirk. "Tell me, old man; is this…evil personality along the line of a curse?"

The Sandaime thought for a bit before answering. "Hm, since you put it that way, I think you can say that it is a curse since those who are quite gifted with their bloodline tend to have an evil personality coupled with their weak physical health closing the avenue of them ever becoming shinobi."

"Ah, if that is the case then I think I have the method to help her." said Naruto as he punched a few keys on his keyboard before turning the monitor facing the Hokage who read the information displayed there. A smirk crossed his face before turning into a full blown laugh.

"You are definitely one of a kind, Naruto-kun." Sarutobi said with a huge grin mimicked by the blonde. "You solved the problem in a minute that took Jiraiya countless of months without even finding a solution. You are definitely a prodigy in the Sealing Arts."

"Oh I wouldn't say that." Naruto said with a smirk, not bothering to tell his surrogate grandfather that he didn't came up with the seal to fix Yakumo's problem. Well, technically, he did since the seal was an Uzumaki Clan creation.

"When can you apply the seal on Yakumo and can you find a way to counter her disability?" the Sandaime asked with some enthusiasm.

Naruto frowned. "I just need to practice with the array a bit until I can do it in my sleep, other than that, we can proceed with the sealing anytime once I mastered it. Regarding her disability, I think a few of my spells can help her out but I don't know if it will work."

The Hokage shrugged. "Well, there's no harm in trying. I'll send her your way in a week if that is alright with you."

Naruto nodded. "A week is fine, jiji. I am a bit busy this week since I am finalizing some details on Crucifix before I can test it."

"Crucifix? You completed it?" the aged leader exclaimed, shocked. He read the details on the heavy-duty weapon Naruto was working on and he couldn't help but be scared and amazed at what the boy was able to cook up on his own. As far as he knew, the project was still far away from being completed. The boy was definitely a miracle worker.

"Not completed but I'm getting there. I just need to solve the upgrade on the chakra transformation and storage matrices then I'm good to go. I'll be done in a few days since my clones are working on it right now." Naruto said with a grin, enjoying the look on the man's face.

"Good. Please keep me informed on that project. I want to see it in action if you're going to test it."

"Will do, jiji." Naruto agreed before the two of them talked over random things for a few hours before heading to bed.

---

End of Chapter 2

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