"So, how is he?"

Danzo does not directly answer his old and former teammate, his wrinkly, past useful eyes seems to have wandered somewhere faraway.

Hiruzen is waiting patiently, his face calm and flat. Danzo may be a crafty old hawk, but the man's position as his spymaster and left hand is not for show. Danzo has gone past his prime; he has definitely seen better days. Now half blind and semi-crippled, the man won't do much in a battle, which is why he finds his place here in the village acting as one of his three advisors and an important member of his council of Shinobi. There is a sense of rivalry going on between the two of them, but both knows that it makes their current relationship status healthy in a sense that it keeps the both of them aware and not careless when it comes to making decisions. Hiruzen knows of Danzo's little group of misfits, and Danzo knows of Hiruzen's plan for Konoha.

"He's barely sharp."

The Hokage does not show his surprise.

"He is good, another Itachi in the making, but not as good as Kakashi when he was his age." The bandaged covered elder comments. "But if you were to sharpen him, hone him into the perfect shinobi… you will have a blade too sharp for you to worry." The man does not end his speech just yet. "But I do not. Give him to me, Hiruzen. I will make him better than Itachi, Kakashi and Minato combined."

Hiruzen lets his former teammate's words sink into his head for a little bit, causing for a rather lengthy pause and silence to weave through the air. "I cannot do that, Danzo. You know why. I want him to harness his power by himself, the only help and teachings he will get will be given from a jonin sensei that he will receive when he makes genin."

"It never hurts to start early." Danzo argues quietly. "For all we know, the boy has begun earlier than we expect. Who knows what level he's at now? Give him to me. This will only benefit Konoha, nothing more."

"That's exactly the problem, Danzo." The Hokage mutters, his half lidded eyes blinking slowly. "The benefit of the village is of the highest priority, yes. But it won't do good if it results in the loss of the ninja himself." His eyes dart to his teammate's crooked form. "Let him grow first, Danzo and then we will see if he is ready to take his duties seriously as a ninja."

"So it's a matter of loyalty to his village?"

Hiruzen closes his eyes. "It has always been a matter of loyalty."

Danzo does not speak against that.

"In any case, Hiruzen, give him to me and you will not regret it. I will make him into something, something that will shook the leaves off the their host trees." He walks towards the door, opening it slightly. "You and I both know all too well that excellent ninjas are made, not grown."

The door closes with Danzo leaving the room.

Hiruzen sighs as he opens his eyes. "I know that all too well old friend… all too well…"

When talking about ninjas… there is no changing the system. The system is there, it's absolute and there is no touching much less changing it. Some might even take it to the point of believing that there is no system in the first place, but trust him, there is. He, just like any other clueless shinobis out there, has helped shape the system. He has made it come to life. There are still daggers and cloaks that need to be hidden underneath every desk, and gold to hide in between every ledger, but there is no hiding the system. You can only see it or ignore it. And to some, it's easier to do the former than the latter.

Theirs is a fucked up system. And there is no changing it.

"Sometimes… I regret taking this job."

And that is true.

"Class, you are dismissed early for the day." Iruka winces when nearly all of his students cheer at the same time. "But!" everyone pauses. "You will be given assignments for the weekends." Now the roles are reversed, minus the cheering. His students sink back into their seats at the mentioning of 'assignments' as if they're the bane of all academy students or just students in general.

"You will do your assignments which will be taken from your textbook page thirty six numbers eight to-"

The door slides open, harshly. It causes everyone to be on alarm. Iruka, being a trained chunin, already has his kunai drawn in his hands; ready to be thrown at the rude individual who interrupted his session. Iruke lowers the kunai as he sees one of his colleagues' breathless form appearing from the hall outside of his classroom with an urgent look on his face.

"Iruka! It's… Mizuki… he… he turned traitor!"

Iruka reacts immediately. "Class, you are dismissed. Please return to your homes immediately and no wandering around the streets tonight!" he rushes outside with the other chunin in order to get more of the situation.

The students that remain in the room are confused, surprised and puzzled. The majority of them are not sure how to accept the situation, after all, it's not common for an instructor to turn traitor. Murmurs began to break out, flooding the room with whispered and hushed mutterings of students amongst each other. Even the subtle ones, like Shino, are reacting to the news. No one really does anything aside from murmuring and whispering, it is dismissal time after all and there's really no class representative to take charge when the teacher's away. With our two center characters, we see the both of them sending silent looks secretly between each other, nodding.

Silently, they slip out of the room, trying to be as quiet and natural as they can be to avoid looking suspicious. Once outside, they quietly make their way through the halls with their bags in tow hanging on their shoulders like an everyday piece of equipment. Afterwards, they are finally outside of the academy building and show no signs of stopping. They exit the campus grounds, leaving the earliest out of all the students for the day. Once they are a good distance away from the academy, it's Sayuri who breaks the silence.

"…You're not going to do anything about the situation?" her question comes out casual, as if she's starting a normal conversation.

Naruto does not answer her immediately as he leaves her hanging for several seconds. "No, why should I?" he returns her question with a question of his own. "I have no rights to meddle in the business of our seniors, besides; I'm not even a genin yet."

Sayuri is not surprised by his answer; after all, this is her childhood friend. His answer is always logical and sensible. There's really no need for an academy student to involve himself in this type of situation; he will only hinder the older ninjas and the people responsible for handling the situation. His composure is so perfect that it's hard to shake him even with news like these. Deep down, Sayuri knows that it's not a matter of ignorance or uncaring nature; it's just the way he is. This earns Naruto with both good and bad reputation. People admires him for his composure, his ability to rationally think things through, but the dislike of his seemingly cold hearted nature puts him on the unapproachable side of the plot. Even so, she does not care. Sayuri does not care about that.

"But…"

He casts his gaze to the sky above, staring at the orange evening sky with stoic eyes.

"It would be good if the situation is handled as fast as possible."

He's not speaking, he is in fact whispering. For Sayuri, it makes it all the more sincere. Naruto is a loyal friend and can no doubt be a loyal ninja to his village. The problem is his incapability to show it. Now that gets her thinking…

"Naru, are you a kuudere or a tsundere?"

"Excuse me, what?"

As expected, word has gotten out regarding the Mizuki incident. Not that much effort was put in order to make it a complete secret, but certain rumor or outcome have been circulating around the ninja community regarding the incident. To those with the rank lower than chunin, meaning either a genin or even a student at the academy, it's not really that big of a deal. Certain delegations have been placed in ranks to give shinobis and kunoichis alike the chance to act independent and proactively. Genin are still under the supervision of their jonin instructors, and they are the lowest in the rank; this makes them illegible to do or act in this type of situation. But since chunin are no longer supervised, meaning that they are completely independent on their own and are allowed to take actions, within permission and reasons.

If you are higher than a chunin, it is your duty to respond to situations like this. When word got out about Mizuki's betrayal, it was the ANBU and most jonin who responded first. Not all jonin in Konoha are given the responsibility of watching over a squad of genin, and this brings up more reason why Mizuki was easily detained. And of course, there is also the Black Ops division, the ANBU, to thank since they are trained to specifically deal with the more 'extreme' jobs that a ninja could ever get. The ranking system is not perfect, though. Here are some few instances.

By shinobi law, in other words, the Hokage's words, just because someone is of a higher rank than another, does not mean that they have the rights to execute or give out orders freely. Objective, reasons and cause for executing the order must be presented when asked or questioned. For example, a jonin ninja cannot give out orders to a chunin or genin without having a proper reason or cause. But this is not the case. Most shinobi are getting too arrogant of their position, with a higher rank they thought that they have the power or authority to rule over those who are of a lower rank. This is extremely unprofessional and can be subjected to court martial or even harsher punishment executed by the Hokage himself. Konoha is not proud to admit it, but arrogant fools do exist within the ranks. Most are reported, but some remains, using threats and other form of blackmail to keep themselves safe from being found out.

In conclusion, the only one figure who has rights to order every ninja around is the Hokage. He is the commander in chief. He is the ruler. His words are law and disobedience may be punishable extremely. There is trial for ninjas, but for people like Mizuki, it's a different kind of trial. Way different.

Hiruzen frowns as he reads the document given to him by one of his ANBU captains. The ANBU is the village's Black Ops division, it is supervised and controlled by captains. Their rank are not the highest, per say, since it is considered to be in the sub category of a specialized ranking system, but for the sake of easier chain of command in the corps, it is safe to say that they are several steps below the position of a Kage. But the main concern right now is not that, it's something of greater concern.

"Orochimaru… looks like my former student has finally made his move…" Hiruzen whispers out as he reads the document report intently. Maybe that is wrong. Orochimaru has been moving all this time without him knowing, chances are, his former students have already had spies planted within the village's ranks.

"ANBU." A figure emerges from the darkest corner of the room, showing a masked and uniform person. This is an ANBU. An ANBU is no longer human. He is the village's greatest asset. An ANBU is all; a sword, a shield, a dagger and an arrow. A weapon of the village built to destroy the village's enemies. This ANBU kneels down in front of the Hokage, his leader, posture low and not daring to lift his head.

"Bring me Shikaku."

"Yes, Lord Hokage."

An ANBU's training is the harshest and hardest, this resulted in the most skilled and experienced soldier that the village could ever produce. The ANBU's presence is no longer within the Hokage's office, seemingly to have flickered away like a match blown by the wind. Hiruzen waits patiently and no more than five minutes later, knocking comes from the other side of his office door.

"Enter."

"You want to see me, Lord Hokage?" an almost lazy and unwilling voice responds as soon as he enters the office with a bad posture. If he isn't who he is, Hiruzen would have done something already and whatever it is, it won't be pretty. A grown man, old enough to be called a father, enters the office. His skin complexion is fair, but his age shows by the small wrinkles that adorns his face. He has a long black hair that is kept to a spiky ponytail, a common hairstyle that his clansmen are famous for. He is dressed in a grey fishnet shirt with a special jonin flak jacket over it, as well as a ragged and torn leather coat with holes and its edges ripped off giving him a rather hard boiled look. He's an old man, defined by the small stub he has on his chin as well as the scars on his face. His narrow eyes seem to hold the capability to know your thoughts even if he is not a Yamanaka.

"Yes I have, and it's regarding our recent trouble." If there's one word that could be used to easily describe Shikaku, it's 'genius'. And that is an understatement.

"Anko and Ibiki must be having fun last night…" the Nara remarks casually and sarcastically at the same time.

"They should be." The Nara raises his eyes slightly at how curt and direct Hiruzen is. "Mizuki is directly linked with Orochimaru, the reports that have been submitted to me said so." Hiruzen points to the scroll he has been reading over the past few minutes. "You know what this means, right?"

There's no need for him nod, but Shikaku does so regardless. "I damn well do. We all know that it's bad news if your former student's involved with anything that's related to Konoha." The Hokage relaxes. This is why Shikaku is one of his best shinobis. "I'm assuming that you're planning to bring in several people for questioning?"

And he'll say it again; one of his best shinobis. "I do." Hiruzen nods. "But I'm afraid that this will cause insecurity and suspicion among the ranks, which is why I'm going ordering you to deal with it specifically." The Hokage's gaze is anything but playful. "Don't hesitate to bring in people that you deem suspicious, just make sure that you do it quietly."

The normally sleepy Nara smirks, straightening his back and redefining his posture. He rubs the back of his head, before blinking several times to get the sleepiness off from his eyes. "It's damn troublesome now that I actually have something to do, but it's worth seeing you back on track, boss."

Hiruzen closes his eyes. "I have always been on track, Shikaku." Then they open once more, showing a Kage's determination. "I have not been moving the cart that's all." He says. "Do it as fast as you could. If they question you, tell them that it's for the village. We can't afford to have our loyalty crumbled by an old mistake… my mistake."

"On it, boss." Shikaku salutes his superior, a rare gesture, before leaving the room.

Hiruzen slowly rises from his chair, taking a few steps to look out the window that overlooks his village.

Konoha, by itself, is a weak village. It is not as military-heavy as Iwa or Kumo. Hiruzen dares to say that if Konoha and Iwa or Kumo are to go to war against each other, Konoha will have a hard time dealing with Iwa's or Kumo's onslaught. But Konoha is not one of the strongest ninja villages for nothing. His village produces sharp and excellent shinobis… some of which were too sharp that they actually became trouble for him.

Orochimaru is one of them.

Orochimaru… is his mistake. There are so many if's that he could state regarding his failure as the teacher of Orochimaru, but now is not the time to wallow over the past. His ghost may still be roaming, slithering freely out there; but he won't let that ghost consume him. He is the Hokage of the village, he is the foundation of the great tree that is Konoha; its very being. Orochimaru may have gathered strong allies or puppets for him to use, but he will not fall, Konoha will not fall.

It's time for a change. And it's happening now.

Starting with Danzo.

She wakes up with a long and rather sleepy yawn. Her body is aching, the sensation of multiple sores torturing the different parts of her body. Sayuri likes to train, and she does so within her own pace. But when it comes to training with Uzumaki Naruto, she has to throw her pace away to go with his. And let her tell you, the boy's pace is ridiculous. She can't blame him, really. After all, it's her who wanted to train with him in the first place. She shudders slightly, remembering the harsh regime that she went through a day ago after they returned from the academy.

But it seems that she's not the only one who's tired from yesterday's training. Naruto is still asleep, dressed in a simple plain white t-shirt that has somehow become his staple.

She pokes her childhood friend's whiskered cheeks.

"…"

She does so once more.

"…"

'This… this is… this is…' Sayuri does not know the rising feeling she's feeling in her chest, but for whatever reason, she cannot stop her fingers from poking Naruto's cheeks.

"Ugh…um…" slowly, a pair of oceanic blue eyes opens to reveal themselves to the world. But, the first thing they see is the blood trickling down Sayuri's nostrils. Naruto frowns, his way of showing concern among other things… "Sayuri, was yesterday's training to intense and harsh for you?"

"What?" she asks softly, with her finger still poking her childhood friend on his cheek. Swirls began to replace her pupils, and her face is becoming so red that Naruto can no longer see the blood trickling down her nose. "No, no, I'm fine…" she is not speaking normally, there's always this breathy after-effect after every speech.

Naruto raises his form to a sitting one. He just remembers that they shared the same bed last night, explaining Sayuri's presence in his room. He remembers her rejecting his offer of sleeping in the other room or the other apartment rooms outside of his own, since she insisted that she wanted to sleep in the same room as he does. He finds nothing wrong with that, so it's natural for him to let her sleep on the same bed with him.

Sayuri's still poking him, by the way.

"Really? But you're so red that you're bleeding from your nose. And please stop poking me."

This time, her finger is only centimeters away from his cheek, and her face freezes to a red halt. She is the very definition of a traffic light, a mix of embarrassment and something unknown. Sayuri retracts her hand slowly away from the boy, lowering it down to her person. She opens her mouth, but no words come out.

"Excuse me." she walks away from the room, into the bathroom.

From his room, Naruto can hear the sound of the sink being opened as well as several splashing noises. Naruto shrugs it off. Women, after all, are very much different from men. He stands to prepare a change of clothing for himself.

"Sorry for bleeding on the bed sheets Naru-ru-ru-ru-ru…" Sayuri becomes a broken record.

"Hm?" Naruto, who is halfway on taking off the t-shirt he used for sleepwear, lowers it again, but not all the way, to look at the girl. "Did you say something, Sayuri?"

On a completely different note, somewhere in Konoha, a certain scarecrow sneezed.

Back to the related note; Sayuri's bangs shadowed her eyes, her unmoving her make her look more like a brooding statue in a park. The lack of response prompts Naruto to speak once again. "Is there something wrong?"

Sayuri's entire body shivers up like a naked person outside in the middle of winter, before collapsing to her knees. Naruto watches the weird reaction with the same frown on his face that he made moments ago. "Are you… okay?" this is the first time Sayuri hears Naruto speaking with such a concerned tone.

"I-I'm fine!" she waves one hand in the air, while the other one is busy gripping her nostrils shut. "I-I-I-I'm not thinking of anything weird or anything!" she seems to be stuttering and stumbling a lot in her words, weird. Naruto merely maintains his concerned frown, but it fades away back into its usual thin stoic state.

"Oh, okay. Do you mind waiting for me before we have breakfast? I'll just get changed real quick." He begins to take off his shirt.

"I'llbeoutside!" Sayuri squeaks before bolting out the room, shutting the door quickly behind her.

Naruto, being the clueless male he is, can only quirk his head, confused.

Once outside, Sayuri refreshes – both mind and body – with a cold cup of water that she gets from the sink. "Urrg… this is not good, this is not good." Not good for her, ultimately.

She slumps over the sink, her head lowered to the point that her forehead might touch the wet basin of the sink. "He's just so… so… so darn cute!" she all but shouts, since she can't really shout about it out loud. Yes, she is Naruto's childhood friend. Yes, they spend a lot of time. Yes, they are basically inseparable. But those don't mean anything if it's always like this. Her… attraction to Naruto is obvious, yes and she knows that he knows about it too, but being the lovable and clueless genius he is, he lacks reaction. This is very, very frustrating. Both for her and some other people out there who cares about her dilemma.

Allegedly, she's the only who cares. But who cares?

Perhaps it's time. Time has been the only factor that causes all of these… different reactions from her. Yes, she blames time! Why must boys be so goddamn attractive as they grow older? It's just unfair! Especially when it's someone like Naruto. Speaking of which, Naruto is a boy himself, so why is he not showing the same reaction as hers whenever they would meet?

"Ah, it's me who mostly see him in those kinds of situation."

Realization hits her like a brick.

So does that mean she's a pervert?

"…I'm… I'm… a pervert?" Sayuri asks mutedly to herself, silence overcoming her surroundings.

"Who's a pervert?"

"KYAAAAAAH!"

Naruto quirks his eyebrows, looking at Sayuri. "You're not acting like yourself today, Sayuri. Is something bothering you? I'm really concerned."

On one side, she's extremely happy to hear that he admits his concern for her. On the other side, she's extremely frustrated that he's always there to see her in the weirdest situation she can get herself into. Sayuri still strives for a reply. "N-No! Nothing is bothering me, I was just surprised! Y-Yeah!" she reaches to refill her cup with water again.

"Hm." Naruto maintains a stoic stare at his childhood. "If that is so… then, I shall prepare breakfast. Is there anything you prefer; modern or traditional?"

Sayuri takes her time to finish her glass. "T-Traditional breakfast, please."

"Okay, please wait for me."

Sayuri, feeling a little bit dejected for some reason, places the glass into the sink before retreating to the dining table just outside of the kitchen area. She sits down, still dejected, on one of the chairs, her form slumping on the table. She sighs for the most time that morning, unable to shake off the feeling completely from her being. Just what is this feeling anyway? Damn you Itachi, why do you have to kill mom and dad before she could even get the chance to have 'the talk'? As a matter of fact, why did you kill them in the first place ANYWAY?

Her homicidal traitorous criminal of a brother aside, screw him wherever he is right now, it's time to be a little honest with herself. She decides. From today, she will try to be a little bit more honest with herself and try to be on the offensive. This may seem like an approach of an irredeemable fan-girl who wants to be a ninja, but she cannot help it. She's just… burning with this overwhelming feeling!

Is this puberty? If so, why does it sucks?

"That's it." She raises a fist, her gaze fixed to the ceiling. "I'm doing it."

Yes, she will. She will try, or fail trying.

"I WILL DO IT!"

"Sayuri, I'm really concerned about you. Should we not go to the academy and see a doctor instead?"

It's a noisy morning.

"…Alright class, today's lesson's ended and you are dismissed."

All the students present noticed something about Iruka, something different. Ever since Mizuki's betrayal, something that the students know purely from the rumor that has been circulating around, he seems to be… dare they say, mellower. He's not shouting that frequently anymore, instead of giving straight detention he's giving reprimands, and no more extra chores for those who didn't submit their homework for the day. The class won't admit it loudly, but they all know that something serious must have happened with Mizuki. The class doesn't really know the former teacher that well anyway. One day, he's suddenly introduced as Iruka's assistant teacher and that's all. It may seem harsh, but due to the insignificance of his presence, the lack of it does not really move anything major in the student's heart.

But the same cannot be said for their teacher, it seems. Aside from the ones mentioned, several changes also happened to the scarred teacher, new ones that overthrows his old ones. Iruka is an enthusiastic teacher, but lately, he's been sighing a lot. He doesn't give them homework that often anymore, not that they're complaining. But all in all, the students know that something is wrong and it may or may not have something to do with the Mizuki case.

"Naru, should we stop by Ichiraku's today for dinner?" Sayuri asks her childhood friend who is still putting his books into his pack.

The blonde pushes his glasses away from the edge of his nose. "I'm sorry Sayuri, but Hokage-sama wanted to speak to me."

The last Uchiha quirks her eyebrows. "Again? Isn't this the second time this week? The last time you visited him, he gave you gifts, right?"

Naruto nods. "Yes, that is true. So, I'm afraid that we won't be able to go home together as I need to go directly as soon as I'm done here. You can go and have dinner without me."

Sayuri immediately decides to go against it. "No, if you're not there, then there's no point of me going to Ichiraku alone. I'll go home directly and prepare dinner, try not to get home late, okay?"

"Okay and… I'll make it up for you." He feels guilty because it's usually him who offers her to go to Ichiraku together, not being able to keep that flow from going makes him feel guilty. It's as if he has just broken a very important promise.

Instead of pouting or scowling like she's famous for, Sayuri giggles instead, poking one of the blonde's cheeks. "Ba~ka. You don't have to make it up to me, just don't stay out so late."

"…I'll try."

So they depart for different destination, Sayuri is heading straight to the penthouse while Naruto's heading to the Hokage tower. He, himself, is wondering what the Hokage might want for him. It's not that weird for the Hokage to call him to the office for some talk, but to be called twice in a row… he's not in some sort of trouble now is he? Maybe the Hokage knows that he didn't really keep the scroll a secret matter? If that's the reason, then he's completely at fault. It does not take long for him to reach the Hokage tower, since it is near the academy building. When he's inside, he notices that the usual secretary is not present, maybe she's taking her break for the evening or the Hokage could have dismissed her earlier.

Reaching the office's door, Naruto feels a little nervous. He readjusts his eyeglasses, before laying three gentle knocks on the hard wooden surface of the door.

A voice that allows his entry bleeds through the door.

And Naruto enters.

"Naruto-kun, welcome. Please, take a seat."

Naruto has no reason to object, especially if he's in here because of trouble.

Naruto takes his seat normally, his posture unchanging and showing no signs of nervousness. The Hokage watches in silent as the boy adjusts his form to the seat opposite of him. Naruto stares at the older man with expectation in his eyes, but something that Hiruzen can't fully understand.

"Now, Naruto-kun, do you know why you're here?"

"No, I do not know Hokage-sama." A straight answer, as it is best to be straightforward.

Hiruzen takes a puff of his pipe, feeling tobacco and other medicinal herbs entering his system before setting it aside again. "Well, first, it's to ask you a question." Naruto tilts his head. "How have those jutsu been going? Are you practicing them?"

Naruto feels a little bit relieved, but of course, he does not show it. "I have. The jutsu you have given me will no doubt be useful for my future career as a ninja."

Hiruzen nods, feeling extremely pleased from the boy's answer. "I see… is there any one you particularly fancy?"

"The Kage Bunshin." Hiruzen's eyes widen by a millimeter.

"Is that so? May I know why?"

"The concept of a normal Bunshin alone is useful for someone who fights in close quarters like I do." Naruto begins explaining his reasons. "When engaging in a fight, I can overwhelm my opponents with my clones and this gives me the upper hand in battle. Clones can act as useful scouts too, as I can always instruct them to come back to me in order to fill me in with the details that they learned."

Hiruzen is smiling. 'But he hasn't figured it out fully yet, that's somehow relieving to know.' Hiruzen nods, pleased at his explanation. "But what about the others? Have you tried the others?"

"I have." Naruto answers. "But since I am not really experienced in nature manipulation, it's hard for me to determine which elements I'm more suitable in using. When using the Suiton jutsu, it feels smoother, as if things were made for me." a light frown mars his lips. "But once I change into using a Katon technique, that sense of fluidity disappears, replaced with something tougher to manipulate. Lighting is harder to manipulate than water, but it's easier than manipulating fire. I suspect that this means that I have a very poor affinity with fire but good with water and adequate with lightning. I do not know about Futon or Doton elements as I have yet to practice them."

If it isn't for the stoic manner of speech, Hiruzen would have smiled more. "That is very good analysis, Naruto-kun." Hiruzen praises. "Continue to practice them, I am sure that you will be an excellent ninja in no time. After all, graduation is near."

Naruto nods. This year's batch of students is going to have their graduation exams soon. The exam in a ninja academy is way different than that of a normal school's. It consists of both written and practical test that needs more than eighty percent in order to pass. Rumors from his older and ex-academy students told him that every year the exams will be getting harder and harder. This was intended with the purpose of increasing ninja qualities with each passing year. Understandable.

"Now… for the next reason as to why I called you here…"

Now, Naruto tenses up.

"Do you know what happened about your co-instructor Mizuki?"

Naruto relaxes visibly. "Yes, but only rumors that have been circulating in the campus. We all know that he turned traitor, but that's just about it. Others simply exaggerated with fabricated facts and gossips that have yet to be proven."

The Hokage nods. "I may sound like I'm putting you in an inquisition Naruto-kun, but I am not." Hiruzen says. "But can you tell me, what do you think happened to Mizuki?"

"…I do not understand, isn't he punished?" Naruto asks for clarification.

"True, he is punished, and he served it already." The Hokage says a little bit coldly. "But I want to know what you think happened to Mizuki after he was caught."

Naruto closes his eyes, thinking. He then opens them again. "Obviously, he is brought in into questioning. Presumably the T&I Division as the people deal with torture and interrogation as well as intelligence gathering." He starts his deduction. "I do not know what is it that Mizuki-sen… Mizuki had done to be labeled as a traitor, but I am assuming that he tried to steal or sensitive information and selling it or surrendering it to another party. If he committed something such as the murder of a fellow shinobi, then he will be labeled a murderer, not a traitor. In the T&I… I'm sure that he was interrogated brutally in order to get the information out of him. Since you said that he has served his punishment, it seems that the interrogation was a success and Mizuki gave up a lot of information if not several sensitive ones regarding who he's turning the information to. And now, Mizuki is probably locked up in the most secured and highly patrolled shinobi and criminal prison… again, I assume that the location of this prison is not somewhere that a mere academy student like me would know of, so I'm assuming that he's locked up somewhere in a Konoha controlled maximum security prison outside of Konoha."

Hiruzen stays silent. The room itself is already silent after Naruto's lengthy conclusion. Then, Hiruzen claps. "Well done Naruto. You are correct." The Hokage congratulates the boy. "Mizuki was indeed labeled a traitor due to an attempt of stealing a very important piece of document that could prove to be vital should it be handed to the wrong hands. And yes, his interrogation was a success and the lead interrogator was able to cough out important and crucial information from Mizuki. The last part, I won't say anything more due to how vital information is, but you are correct about Mizuki being locked up somewhere in a maximum security prison that is not somewhere within the village." The smile is obvious on the old man's face. "Congratulations, Naruto, you have surprised me, and no ordinary academy student could do that."

Aside from Itachi, Minato, Kakashi and Orochimaru when they were still in the academy.

Naruto feels completely confused. "What's the whole point of this, Jii-chan? Is there really any point of me answering your question?"

Hiruzen nods without hesitation. "There is. It's something very, very important." Hiruzen's aged tone says gently in an informative tone. "As a ninja, we are often compared to our Samurai brethren. Where they are warriors, proud and chivalrous… we are often seen as assassins, manipulative and cruel. These are merely opinions, subjective opinions that is the result of human thoughts. But… they are not wrong." Hiruzen's tone grows solemn, like the sun about to set. "I often give the people, the people of the village, the image of this beacon of light that guides them and lights their path; I give the sense of safety and peace for their wellbeing and comfort… I was seen as the light to their dark."

Hiruzen's aged features have never looked so obvious and defined.

"But I am far from becoming a shining light. Just like every other ninjas out there, I am of the shadow. I walked within it, fought in it, raised in it and shaped by it. The next thing I knew, I have become a shadow myself." the old Sarutobi puffs a smoke from his pipe. "We ninjas are not heroes, Naruto. The title heroes deserve to those who can solve problem without causing another one. But as a ninja, that is impossible. Ninjas are said to have no honor, only greed for money and gold. Again, these are only the subjective opinions of people. But that is partially true. We kill, lie and cheat to gain money; it is our tools of the trade, our bargain. It's not a good life."

The aged Kage takes a very long sip of his pipe before exhaling it.

"However, however… a ninja is not without heart." He gives Naruto a weary, tired, old smile. "A ninja's heart may be full of holes, but he tries his best to endure through it all. No matter what the world thinks of him, no matter of how purposeless his life may be, a ninja endures. A true ninja does not care about reputation, after all, a ninja with a great reputation is easily targeted. The same goes for loyalty, a ninja has loyalty. Whether it's to himself, to his village or to the people he cares about… that loyalty must never be broken. When you wear your forehead protector, you are secretly taking an oath. It's an oath that you swear for life to yourself, your village and your precious people."

Hiruzen rises from his chair, walking towards the window that overlooks outside.

"When you wear your symbol, one that is a proof of loyalty to your village, will you be able to keep it, Naruto-kun? Or will that loyalty be broken easily?"

As expected, Naruto does not answer immediately. He can't answer immediately. His mind is running miles. His composure becoming unnaturally quiet even for someone like him.

"My loyalty… is unquestioned."

Hiruzen listens.

"When I become a ninja… I know of the responsibility that I will shoulder. But I will be shouldering it with thousands of other brothers and sisters with the same duty and obligation as I do. I am confident that I won't be a mere shadow that's famous for causing chaos and fear in people's eyes, but I will try to be that small flicker of flame that warms those who are cold. I pledge to you, I pledge to myself; for my village and for the people that I cherish."

Hiruzen smiles, his reflection showing it.

"Then you will be an excellent ninja. I'm proud of you, Naruto-kun."

A lone leaf, drifting in the evening air, is accompanied by several other fallen leaves, carried by the wind.

'You should be too, Minato… Kushina.'