gA/N: A specific event I have chosen to happen before it originally did in the show. It's the one where Ino acts as a double for the chubby princess on a mission with Naruto. Instead of Tsunade assigning it to them Hiruzen did, since it was a filler episode nothing else was effected.
"Oh thank God, we're finally out of that damn tunnel," Ino exclaimed with her arms stretched out over her head.
Tsunade chuckled inwardly, she'd finally found someone that understood her way of speaking.
The tunnel itself had been narrow, which meant everyone had to travel in a single file line. The taller members of the group had to bend over in an effort to not rub their head across the top, which had small pieces of dirt breaking away enough anyways. An earthy musk permeated the air, which was not a surprise based off of where they were. The exit had been just outside of the wall, which while it was not ideal, it was the best the earth nature users could work with given their lack of preparation. After everyone had made their way out of it, the tunnel was collapsed by its' very creators.
While it wasn't wise to continue on without a plan, it would've also been a poor idea to remain close to Konoha. In an effort to save time Tsunade signaled for Anko and Guy to come to her while she directed the gennin, the ones that didn't know where the mass of trees were held, in the proper direction.
"Because of the size of our assemblage, I need one of you to take the lead and the other backing up the rear. I will be in the middle with Lee and Naruto since they are.. unwell at the moment. I have a remedy for Naruto to wake him when we are far enough from the village for it to be safe to do so."
Guy ended up as the lead, since he suggested bringing Neji upfront with him to see what everyone else could not. Anko had no qualms with being in the back, it gave her the perfect opportunity to see everyone ahead and act quickly if need be. And while she didn't say it, the kunochi believed for anyone to be able to sneak up on her they would need luck- a lot of luck. Naruto was settled onto Akamaru's back so no one would have to carry him.
Morning was quick to come around. Once it did, Tsunade finally deemed it safe enough to awaken Naruto, which also provided the chance for everyone else to take a break from the trek.
XXX
"Lord Hokage," a masked shinobi said as a respectful way to announce his presence.
Danzo had been in his office all day. He had previously been looking outside of the window that offered an extensive view of the village. Minutes before the man had concluded his latest meeting with Akatsuki. Danzo could not stand the member that the group always sent to him. His name was Tobi, and a combination of his goofy voice and needless antics drove Danzo crazy. Not knowing the face behind the mask also bothered him, but not as much as the other things.
"What is it?" Danzo asked, his back was straight while he leaned against his cane- which didn't do much to make him appear less imposing.
The ANBU member, who had been kneeling on one knee, stood and replied with, "I spotted the nine tail jinchuriki entering the village. Tsunade and a woman reported to be her apprentice accompanied him."
"How much time has passed?" During a meeting with all of the ANBU, Danzo ordered them to report any sightings of the jinchuriki so he could decide on an appropriate way to proceed.
The reply was immediate. "No more than five minutes." The shinobi's figure stood still, waiting for an order of what needed to be done.
Danzo nodded. He returned to staring at Konoha, the hand that was not cloaked supported Danzo's frame as he leaned against the window. Immediately seizing Naruto and his traveling companions would be unwise because, since they hadn't been brought to him yet, they must be being hidden. Danzo had noticed several of the village's ninjas began falling off of the radar, most of them being gennin, but there were a few jonin as well.
"Leave. Find their trail, figure out where they have gone."
"Yes, Lord Hokage." He turned to leave, but Danzo regained his attention.
"Fū." Danzo only waited for the Root member to turn around before continuing. "If they look as if they are going to leave the village then find Torune and pursue them together. Bring back the jinchuriki, that is your mission."
Danzo waited in his office for a few silent moments after his subordinate left. A commotion outside brought his attention to the door just in time to see a familiar blonde kunochi slam it open.
"I hear there's been a bit of confusion with who hokage is," Tsunade said, or so the man thought she was.
XXX
The adults spoke separately from the gennin. The main things that were discussed having to do with the next steps that were to be taken. Afterwards, Tsunade asked for everyone's names, or rather the ones that she was not already aware of. She found Tenten's starstruck attitude to be quite entertaining and gave the brown haired kunochi a pat on the shoulder before continuing on. The introductions were done while everyone was waiting for Naruto to awaken. Tsunade had already administered the remedy, but the effect was not an immediate one, so she decided to kill time. She had to learn the younger people's names at some point anyway.
A loud groan redirected Tsunade's attention to Naruto, who was finally starting to wake up. He was laying down under the shade of a tree. The area was relatively open but the forest could still be seen not too far away.
Naruto squinted his eyes and ran a hand through his disheveled blond hair. He sat up dazedly, trying to figure out where he was. Was it all a dream? Had they not yet reached Konoha? He turned to the side just in time to see Tsunade headed towards him. Behind her was everyone he had reunited with when the night before. It took no longer than two seconds for the events to come back to him
"You drugged me," he yelled with an accusatory finger pointed at the blonde woman. All eyes were now watching him as Naruto stood up with a pout.
Tsunade crossed her arms. "I didn't drug you, brat." Technically she didn't, Shizune did, but she had ordered for it to happen. Saying that would only rile him up, as would specifying that he was poisoned not drugged, so Tsunade refrained from doing so and filled the boy in on what he missed.
Naruto soaked in everything he was told. One thing unsettled him more than anything else. "What about Sasuke?"
Tsunade rubbed the sides of her temple as she held back a sigh. "You want everyone here to remain safe, correct? You want them protected?" Tsunade didn't wait for a response, having already known Naruto's answer. "We must continue on to the Senju compounds then. Once we're there, then we can work on finding a lead as to where Orochimaru is keeping Sasuke."
"Fine," Naruto replied stubbornly. He had to admit that the woman had a point about keeping those around him safe, heading in an aimless direction would only put them all in danger at some point. He stored the subject away for a later time, but it never ventured far from his thoughts.
A familiar voice brought the smile back to Naruto's face.
"Naruto, my youthful friend, we must spare once I get out of these bandages." Lee used his crunch to point at his leg.
Naruto walked towards him with a grin. "Anytime anywhere, Bushy Brows." The other gennin said their hellos to him as well. He was grateful to be surrounded by people that didn't hate him, but something bugged him.
"Why would you all leave your families?" Naruto probed. He knew what it was like to live without one, he didn't want any of his friends, or rather acquaintances, to feel that same turmoil.
Shikamaru was the first to respond. "Years ago I asked my father something along the lines of whether or not I was allowed to play with you. He said it was a choice that only I could decide the answer to." He took a breath before continuing, as if speaking really took up that much energy. "While it will most likely be troublesome, I left because I was given the same answer when I inquired as to what I should do in relation to you and Danzo."
Ino nodded along with Shikamaru's words. "When we were younger, as bad as it sounds, I didn't talk to you because everyone always pulled away when you were near." The blonde knew she couldn't change the past but did regret how she behaved. "I thought you were just some annoying kid that played stupid pranks, but then we went on that mission to the Land of Noodles and I got to know you." Ino left out the part about being partially correct- Naruto was obnoxious, at times. "You're a good guy, I don't agree with Danzo wants to do."
"Yeah," Choji added while munching on a bag of chips. "Ino, Shikamaru, and I- we talked to our fathers. They're all clan leaders and have an obligation to the well being of our clans. We have been given the freedom to do what we think is right, and this is that"
Several of the others nodded in agreement to the Ino-Shika-Cho trio's words. The only ones that didn't were Neji and Hinata, and neither of them really wanted to go into what went down unless asked. It'd most likely only cause Naruto to feel bad.
"You have more friends than you think, Naruto-kun," Sakura said with an expression that could only prove how genuine her words were. She had a small smile as she pulled Naruto in for a hug but was surprised when he gently pushed her back.
Naruto shook his head. He wasn't about to have anyone follow him into uncertainty without them having the knowledge of what he had hidden inside.
"Listen guys, I'm not who you think I am. I-" He got cut off by Ino.
"Wait.." The kunoichi was squinting into the distance. She thought she could sense chakra other than that of those who were around her. Akamaru sniffed the air and began to growl.
"What's wrong, Akamaru," Kiba asked his faithful companion.
Neji and Hinata both said, "Byakugan," which followed with the two activating their kekkai genkais. Theirs eyes bulged as they searched in the same area Ino had found suspicion in.
It was at this point that Tsunade noticed the silence that had emanated from the gennin. They were looking off into the distance and Akamaru was starting to bark. While they had covered their tracks decently, the woman also knew that Konoha ninjas were trained to be the best- they were bound to be followed at some point, she just didn't think they'd be found so soon. She looked at Jiraiya and they both seemed to get the same idea and nodded at each other.
"Transformation jutsu," they both called out. Tsunade turned into Shizune while Jiraiya did the same except with with Kakashi. The hope was that whoever trailed their group was not a Hyuga, if so then the jutsu would be rendered useless since their sensing abilities allow the user to see a person as a whole and not just a chakra signature. Tsunade was able to figure out just what kind of person was tracking them when Naruto began walking towards the trees with a steely expression that did not fit his personality.
'Fucking Yamanakas,' Tsunade thought to herself before running forward. His pace quickened along with hers. A couple of Naruto's friends called after him.
"Shadow possession jutsu!"
"Mind transfer jutsu!"
Shikamaru and Ino had their combo down to a tee, having performed it countless times since their graduation from the academy. The next set events all happened within a few seconds.
Ino was inside of Naruto's mind, but what she did not expect was for someone else to be there as well. Whoever followed them knew her jutsu as well, and she didn't know what would happen if two people invaded the same mind at the same time. Everything went black as she was blown back into her physical body with such force that she was actually sent her flying backwards. She was caught by Tsunade who had just then reached them who carefully checked for a pulse. When the medical ninja found one she gently laid Ino in the grass.
Guy and Anko rushed into the tree line, each taking separate directions in hopes of flanking the enemy.
The sky got dark, as if an eclipse was about to occur, but that wasn't possible since one wasn't due anytime soon. Hinata recognized what was happening before anyone else, since one of her teammates commonly used the same tactic when they were together on missions. Bugs swarmed above everyone's heads, so much that almost no light could be seen. They shot down towards Naruto, who was once again incapacitated- this time due to the mind transfer jutsu.
Hinata performed the eight trigrams palms revolving heaven jutsu in an effort to protect the blond boy. A protective dome formed around the two as it was done.
Seeing that the amount of insects had not dwindled, Jiraiya set forth to make his own attack. The first thing that came to mind was using toad oil and fire, but that would bow his cover since it was one of the things Kakashi could not do, and for the time being he was restricted to only the jutsu that was in the copy ninja's book.
"Fire release: Great fireball jutsu!" Flames billowed from Jiraiya's mouth before turning into a large ball that was larger than his entire body. He forced it forwards, careful to avoid Hinata and Naruto. Roasted bugs fell to the grass, and those that had been outside of the attack's radius flew back into the forest.
Kiba ran to follow the bugs that were returning to their master's origin. "Come on Akamaru, let's go!" The dog barked in response and darted forwards so he could catch up with his favorite human. Neji and Tenten followed, both receiving approving nods from Tsunade before doing so. Lee also tried to follow his teammates but a certain pink haired ninja standing in his way stopped him from doing so.
"You can't Lee, you're-" Sakura tried to argue before being interrupted.
"No, I can fight! I can-" Lee pleaded but it was to no avail.
"She's right, you're in no condition do be doing much of anything- let alone fighting. Allowing you to complete this trek alone is risky enough." Tsunade added to reiterate Sakura's point. She hadn't even gotten the moment to properly examine the boy, but from what she could tell his injuries were quite extensive.
Ino was finally beginning to regain consciousness. She sat up slowly so that she wouldn't become lightheaded. Looking to her side she saw that the only people remaining were Tsunade, Jiraiya, Shikamaru, Choji, Sakura, Lee, Hinata, and a still passed out Naruto. She was able to put two and two together and guess where everyone else had gone.
"OK, here's the plan. Choji, Hinata, and Jiraiya, I want you three to take up any attacks that can be prevented before the enemy gets too close. Sakura and Shikamaru, I want you two to aid them with more long distance attacks, and if anyone gets past them then provide immediate backup." Tsunade then turned her focus to the newly conscious addition to the group. "Ino, track the enemy and tell us if they get too close. Finally, I will serve as the final line of defense while making sure Naruto didn't receive any serious injuries from the multiple mind transfer jutsus. Any questions?"
Everyone shook their heads and took up their respected positions. Jiraiya remained by Tsunade for a second longer to say, "See, you're great at being hokage, Tsunade. Or should I say Shizune?" He was about to put a hand on Tsunade's shoulder but stopped the movement when he was met with a raised eyebrow.
Once Jiraiya turned around a small smile took it's place on Tsunade's lips. While the man's words were said in a humorous way they were also genuine and said without falter. She still wasn't sure if she was up do it, but people believed in her and that's all she needed for a boost of confidence.
Tsunade got to work on examining Naruto. The Yamanaka jutsu did not seem to effect him physically, which was a huge plus, but the boy still should've woken up by now. Medical jutsu could not evaluate his mental state so the legendary ninja's only option was to wait and see how he acted when he woke up. The blond was clueless enough at times, Tsunade didn't want or need him to get any worse in that department.
"They're coming back, Guy-sensei and Anko-sensei both have a hostage," Ino informed the group. Something didn't seem right about their chakra signatures though, they were both small. Chakra was only ever that way when it was almost completely exhausted or.. The two jonin and the rest of the gennin had just emerged from the tree line when Ino yelled, "They're clones!"
The moment it was said one of the clones burst into a swarm of bugs and the other poofed away, leaving behind white smoke in it's wake.
Everyone was alert now; the clones were clearly a distraction. Everyone surrounded Naruto while facing outwards in a circular formation.
Akamaru walked around everyone while sniffing at the ground. Suddenly the dog focused on a specific spot and began barking loudly.
"You find something, Akamaru?" Kiba asked. He expected a final bark as a confirmation from his loyal companion, as he usually received, but got nothing. He turned to look at the animal and found that Akamaru was as still as a statue, nose still pointed at the ground. His eyes had no movement what so ever. "Akamaru, you OK?"
The dog looked up and started to growl. He lunged at the person who was closest to him with barred teeth, and that person just so happened to be Jiraiya. The man was easily able to dodge the attack, but made the crucial mistake of leaving an opening. Said mistake however was corrected by Anko who turned her arm into snakes that shot forth and wrapped around the dog. While she was strong, so was Akamaru, and clearly whoever was controlling him as well.
Anko struggled to force the dog outside of their circle without physically harming him. Her jaw was clenched tight and a bead of sweat rolled down her forehead. When it was clear that she was about to when the battle of will Akamaru suddenly went limp and sagged to the ground.
Kiba kneeled down to check for a pulse. He couldn't imagine life without Akamaru, and knew he'd go into a blind rage if the dog died. The brown haired boy was relieved when he felt a heartbeat and sighed in relief. Kiba then stood back up and was more than ready to get revenge on whoever possessed Akamaru.
"Ino, how many times can the mind transfer jutsu be performed in a period of time?" Tsunade implored, desperate to find out before someone else's mind was invaded and more trouble was caused.
Ino shook her head, the answer had a lot of factors that could affect it. "It depends on the person. My father can do it multiple times in a short amount of time and can even control dozens of people at once." She tried to search for the person's chakra signature to see just how much they had left, but they were hidden well this time. Before she could elaborate any further something landed on her elbow and caused her to look back.
Everyone turned around when Ino was knocked out of the formation. They were met with an ANBU masked ninja covered in black garb head to toe, with the exception of his hands.
Tsunade tried to figure out how he got passed all of them when she noticed his purple hands. That's when she noticed Akamaru must've been barking at bugs. It was the perfect thing to employ to slip past them.
"Don't let him touch you!" Tsunade ordered. Ino was already grunting in pain, the kunochi didn't want anyone else to share what the girl was feeling. There was no way for the medical ninja to safely reach Ino, and if what Tsunade was told about the rinkaichū was correct then there was little she could do to help.
Torune was an amazing ninja, but he was minimal compared to legendary- and he was fighting two with that honorable rank. Tsunade waited for the perfect moment to attack at full force. Jiraiya had just dodged a blow that left the bug master open so she took the opportunity from behind. The man didn't fly far before he turned into another swarm of bugs.
Tsunade growled, she was becoming tired of the clones- everyone was getting tired of them as a matter of fact.
"Don't have the balls to face us head on?" Anko shouted angrily. She didn't know much about the specific ANBU members, so she wasn't sure if the plan would work or not, but she wanted to egg at least one of them on enough to get the real one to come out. It wasn't all an act though, she really was fed up.
"Come on now, I thought ANBU taught it's members to not be cowards!" Anko stepped out of the circle with her arms wide open. "Just you two and me, or are the both of you still too wimpish?" Her ear twitched as she heard a sound. She did not recognize the figure of the man running at her; all she knew was that he was a Yamanaka.
As Anko fought Fū, who was primarily using a Tantō, Torune revealed himself as well. His aim was to perform a takedown on the distracted Anko but Jiraiya quickly caught on and countered the move.
"I am your opponent," Jiraiya declared with a stern expression.
Shikamaru squatted as he began to formulate a plan while Choji moved away from the group and towards Ino so she could be protected as well. At the same time Naruto began to wake up. He squeezed his eyes together tightly. The blond didn't know what caused him to pass out, but whatever it was resulted in him having a raging headache. When Naruto opened his eyes his vision was foggy so he blinked a couple of times to clear it up. Before he could ask what happened the clash of battling registered in his ears and he jumped up.
Naruto looked around, he was surrounded by almost everyone he left Konoha with. What he couldn't figure out was where Shizune and Kakashi came from. The next thing that drew his attention was Ino reeling around in pain on the ground. Part of her face had a purple looking splotch on it; the sight ignited a certain spark deep within the boy's belly.
"Multi shadow clone jutsu!" Naruto yelled furiously as he surged towards the fighting. He was too fast for Tsunade to catch, who he ran right past. The plan Shikamaru had just come up with was now void and useless. Everything was turning into a chaotic mess. To make matters worse..
"Why were his eyes red?" Tenten asked. She was the other person that was passed when Naruto ran by, and while he was fast, she was able to notice the distinctive blue hue gone from the normally joyful eyes.
Sakura had seen the color change happen on a few missions, but wasn't sure what caused it- she never really had the chance to ask. The girl however did not expect to see what happened next.
Naruto was furious. Ino got hurt because of him, because of what was inside him, because of whoever was in front of him. He had four clones with him and together they all launched an attack. Three of the clones ran ahead while Naruto held one back.
Jiraiya turned his head the second he heard a familiar voice yell, "Rasengan!" He saw the blue orb pass his face, Naruto's body followed soon after, just before it slammed into the Torune's stomach.
Shikamaru used his shadow possession jutsu to prevent the ANBU member from being able to cause more harm to anyone else. Naruto attempted to slam a fist down on the man but Shikamaru was able to move him to the side just in time.
"We need him so that he can reverse what he did to Ino," Shikamaru yelled in an attempt to convince Naruto to leave the already subdued man alone. His words however seemed to have the opposite effect.
Naruto didn't know which of the people had hurt Ino, but now he did, and the knowledge only made him that much more furious. The hate he felt towards the ANBU member continued to steadily increase. He readied his fist but just before he could throw the punch a different hand caught his wrist and stopped him from doing so.
While Tsunade was stopping Naruto, Jiraiya ran towards Anko to help with the other ANBU shinobi.
Tsunade was strong, but the state Naruto was in was difficult even for her to handle. The legendary ninja struggled to keep his arm from completing its' attack. Red chakra began to envelop the jinchuriki's body; it was something Tsunade had never seen before. A different kind of illumination also caught her attention. Tsunade glanced down for a second, her necklace was glowing a light shade of green. It was peaceful compared to the red in Naruto's eyes. Whatever was going on with the boy, Tsunade knew at least part of it had to be influenced by the nine tailed fox.
"Naruto," the fox called out to him. "Let me out and I will take care of these people."
Naruto shook his head. His canines grew along with his anger. Unbeknownst to him a tail grew out of the cloak that was now completely covering him.
"Come now, boy, use my power. Become stronger," the fox tried to persuade.
Tsunade could see the inner battle Naruto was having with himself and the nine tails. Her grandmother never seemed to have this problem, she never saw it happen at least. The red chakra was starting to cause her hand to blister, but removing the extremity would only allow for Naruto to possibly kill the man.
As Naruto further transformed into an image of the kyuubi, Tsunade's necklace also began to shine brighter. An idea popped up in the blonde's head. She took off her necklace then slipped it over Naruto's neck.
Naruto heard the fox growl before it ordered, "Rip that thing off, it is a hinderance to my powers!" Naruto reached up and grabbed to necklace, but before he could pull it a different voice called to him.
"Naruto," Tsunade began. "Don't listen to whatever the kyuubi it telling you." She noticed her words seemed to be having some effect, seeing as the transformation had at least been halted. "Don't let the nine tails control you; you're the jinchuriki, you control it."
"No one controls me! Without me you would have died seven times already."
Almost all of the remaining gennin rushed to either help Jiraiya and Anko or check up on Ino. Sakura stopped next to Tsunade and Naruto.
"Tsunade-sama, you're hands!" The pink haired girl exclaimed.
Naruto opened his eyes while muting the fox. Sakura and Tsunade stood in front of him. When he noticed the elder of the two struggling against him he immediately relaxed. The red chakra slowly seemed to seep back into Naruto's skin. He got a glimpse of Tsunade's hand before she was able to hide it behind her back and his eyes widened in response.
"Did I do that to you?" Naruto gulped, terrified of a possible affirmation to the response. He wished he he could better suppress the nine tails but it was no easy feat. There was so much that Naruto still did not know about the beast- the kyuubi was shrouded in mystery and hate. Anytime Naruto felt intense hate towards someone, the nine tails had a way of bringing himself out; it felt impossible to control.
"The chakra did it to me, not you." Tsunade was careful not to reveal anything about said chakra since Sakura did not yet know about Naruto being the jinchuriki. It was only a minor injury, the medical ninja could expertly heal it anyways.
Naruto didn't know if the words made him feel any better. He let the fox get out of control, if that didn't happen then the red chakra wouldn't have come up in the first place. As far as he was concerned, it was still his fault. Naruto looked to the side when he finally heard the fight quiet down. Jiraiya had the other ANBU member thrown over his shoulder and was walking towards them.
Jiraiya had seen the nine tail cloak forming on Naruto but when it happened his hands were full. By the time it had gone away Tsunade and Sakura had already seemed to take care of the problem. That was what Jiraiya thought until he saw the solemn expression on Naruto's face. He made a mental note to ask the boy about it later.
"Shikamaru, how much longer can you keep the jutsu going?" When Jiraiya looked at the boy he wore a focused look but beneath that was a veiled layer of fatigue.
It had been a few minutes, but Shikamaru knew he'd performed the jutsu for a longer amount of time in the past. "A few more minutes." The Nara could not come up with an exact estimate so that was his best answer.
Jiraiya nodded in response. His forms of gathering intel did not usually take long to complete. He walked over to the two ANBU members and took of their masks. Much to his surprise, the Yamanaka was dead. Purple veins seemed to be running up his neck and the man's lips were the same color. He made sure no one performed a killing blow. After a few moments of consideration the sage realized that the former ANBU member must have taken something to kill himself so that it would be impossible for him to reveal any secrets and/or plans.
After searching the Aburame's pockets, Jiraiya found what must have been the source of his partner's death. He held it up for Tsunade to analyze since she was more well versed in anything to do with poison concoctions than he was.
Tsunade examined the pill. The shell was clear so she was able to see a dark powdery substance on the inside of it. It was indeed fatal to whoever took it, but at the same time the pill looked to be hastily put together. When Tsunade was still an active shinobi for Konoha they didn't use such tactics- it must have been something new Danzo created for the ANBU members to use in the case of capture. Tsunade closed her hand, each finger coming down separately from the others, then crushed the pill which had been at the center of her palm.
There would be no easy way out from this. Whoever the man was, he was going to pay somehow.. someway..
Jiraiya stood over Torune with his hands grasped behind his back. The posture painted a very imposing and intimidating image, but the ANBU member was taught from a young age to not fall victim to such tactics.
"You understand the position you're in, correct?" Jiraiya inquired. When he received a silent response the shinobi set his lips into a tight line. "Silence will get you no where, but if you insist then I at least ask you to do one thing. Help the girl. Think of it as a strategic move if you will. Her father is Inochi Yamanaka, the head of their clan, and she is set to take his place. Do you really want to make an enemy of an entire clan."
Torune looked at Jiraiya with an expressionless face. "She abandoned the village on the counts of supporting someone she doesn't really know. I, on the other hand, have orders from the hokage. He would easily pardon me for my crimes. This conversation is pointless, I will not survive to report back to the Hokage anyway."
Jiraiya hummed as if he was actually in thought. It was a typical response that was not uncommon from those who were captured. "Say you're right, and I don't allow you to return to the village. You could use your final breaths to take away pain and do some good for this world." In all honesty, Jiraiya did not want to kill the man; he had never murdered a Konoha ninja before and didn't ever want to have to do so.
"You could also be wrong, there is the possibility that I'll release you if you do as I say." Jiraiya could tell that the man was in a state of consideration, even if his facial expression hadn't changed in even the slightest way.
Torune finally spoke. "I will do it, but I require one thing in return."
Jiraiya was skeptical but he at least nodded, curious of what this so called requirement would be.
Torune still couldn't move his body, but he could control his eyes. The dark orbs looked straight at Naruto as he replied, "He must tell everyone what they are fighting for.. The boy must tell them all what he is hiding and what is within him."
A/N: CLIFFHANGER! I wanted to get this chapter out sooner but I wanted to be sure I was content with it before publishing because I wasn't with the las one and it left me feeling meh. The next one SHOULD be out sooner. I hope y'all enjoyed and PLEASE keep the review, favs, and follows coming; they're great for inspiration to get chapters out sooner! Also, I'm looking for a beta to help out if anyone is interested.