Chapter 7-Backlash
(A/N:PSN has been down the past few days as I'm sure some of you know so I went to work on this ahead of schedule. I planned to take a two week break covering Christmas and New Years, but things changed. Anyway, here is my gift to you as both a Christmas, and New Year gift. Enjoy!)
The trip back to Wave was uneventful. As expected since Maleficent knew full well the Hokage along with his band of ninja wouldn't dare try anything while she was returning to her nation. Beside her, Naruto stared out of the window, a serious look on his face, and his mind no doubt thinking about what happened with the Sandaime Hokage before their departure. It was clear to Maleficent that the old Hokage had left a significant impact on the boy's mind, as strong as it was, and trying to make Naruto consider reconnecting with Konoha.
If she had her way, the dark witch would ensure such a reconnection resulted in Konoha suffering a major crisis through Naruto taking just about everything not nailed down out of the village. Scrolls, weapons, knowledge of all kinds now belonging to Naruto through what his late parents had gathered over the years would be removed from Konoha's walls back to Wave Country.
'My son will have his family. The Uzumaki Clan will rise again and be a major part of Wave,' thought Maleficent before she sensed something was wrong when getting to her nation.
"Maleficent-sama! Maleficent-sama!" cried out one samurai who looked mangled when she got out of the carriage to assess why such a sensation of death was coming out of her country.
"What is it? What happened?" demanded Maleficent while the samurai bowed humbly to her despite his wounds.
"We were attacked while you were away. A single boy with the marking of a ninja from Suna. He had red hair, a large gourd filled with sand, and a kanji for love tattooed on his forehead. We tried to get him to leave, but...the sand in his gourd came out, almost like it was alive, and ripped through my unit. He's terrorizing the general populace as we speak your Majesty! I suspect the boy is Suna's feared Jinchuriki!" replied the samurai before he found his wounds healing thanks to Maleficent's power.
"It seems the Kazekage did not take my threat seriously. Or he did and has decided to counter with one of his own. The wretched fool will suffer for this action," remarked Maleficent before she looked in the direction where Gaara was attacking.
"Please leave your Majesty. We cannot risk you being put in unnecessary danger," said the samurai while knowing his duty was to this Daimyo and to protect her from such a threat.
"While I appreciate your concern for my welfare young samurai, I am far from helpless, and I have no intention of running from this threat like a helpless woman. I am hardly a stranger to threats to my person," said Maleficent before turning to her son and gave him a nod.
"Haku come with me," ordered Naruto before he and the masked girl nodded with the two heading out toward Gaara's location.
"Take what is left of your unit and this group here with me to secure the area where this Jinchuriki is attack. Get as many people away from there as possible. Your duty now is to protect the citizens of Wave. Don't worry about my protection. I have more then enough here with me. Tazuna, you can return home to your family. They should be safe where they are, but keep them at home until otherwise told," commanded Maleficent with the group of samurai looking at each other for a second before bowing and doing as ordered.
Most had seen her power earlier. She was not some maiden who needed to be protected if making the legendary Sandaime Hokage get thrown around like a helpless child.
As for Tazuna, he simply nodded at her command, and took off to find his family before they ended up walking into a warzone.
"Do you want us to assist Naruto at all Maleficent-sama?" asked Itachi after transforming back into his human form.
"No. Haku is with him. I trust my son to win against this Jinchuriki. He needs to be in a situation where neither you, Anko, or even myself will be able to support him," replied Maleficent with Itachi nodding.
"All the same Maleficent-sama, I feel one of us should at least be close by. Just in case," said Anko with Maleficent thought it over in her mind.
"Very well. You can be near the fighting, but remain hidden and do not intervene unless absolutely necessary," commanded Maleficent with Anko nodding before she went to follow her Master's surrogate son.
"The Kazekage has overstepped his bounds Mistress. Do you wish me to...handle him?" asked Itachi with Maleficent shaking her head no.
"No. His time will come. But only after we handle his tortured son. As for dealing with the man when this is over...I will deal with the Kazekage myself!" replied Maleficent in a cold and chilling tone that made Itachi shiver slightly in fear.
'Hell have no fury like a woman scorned. Whoever thought that little line up clearly saw or experienced it first hand. Considering the accuracy of the statement, I'm inclined to think the latter,' thought Itachi while following his Mistress as they headed for the castle.
They could watch the fighting from there.
(With Naruto and Haku)
"The manipulation of sand is impressive," remarked Haku with Naruto nodding.
"Impressive, but not still wild like an animal. He's not in full control like we are being led to believe. Look at the insanity. Look at the madness. His strength lies is in his rage. Not control," remarked Naruto with Haku nodding.
"How do you wish to proceed?" asked Haku with Naruto narrowing his eyes at the scene of Gaara using his sand to crush anything that crossed his line of sight.
"All of his strength is in using the sand from that gourd, right? Take away the strength in using his sand and he is a helpless child," replied Naruto with a smirk.
"How?" asked Haku with Naruto looking at her for a second.
"Simple. Water and lots of it. When I give the word, hit him with all the needles you can launch with your bloodline," answered Naruto before he descended from his hiding spot and got Gaara's attention.
"You are the one of those I seek. The son of the Daimyo of Wave. Your Mother insulted my Kazekage. While I do not care for the man, he has promised me your blood, and the blood of your Mother. I will feed such blood to my Mother rumbling deep inside of me," remarked Gaara with his bloodlust driving him further into insanity.
"Idiot," remarked Naruto while going through hand signs and creating a spiral of water from the moisture in the area around him not unlike Senju Tobirama did in his prime when water was scarce in using.
The Uzumaki Clan were actually the first to theorize such a method of using Water Jutsus in such a manner was possible. They had studied different aspects of nature to a degree that would have actually made Orochimaru green with envy. It was first done for the purpose of survival in harsh environments like a desert and the need for water was high with no oasis around for miles. Tobirama was given such information by Mito after she married Hashirama year later. Tobirama had taken the idea with her help of using Water Jutsus using the moisture in the environment to form water in some form to use either for war or to survive a form of terrain where water was scarce.
What Naruto was doing was the same thing, yet making it known this was an Uzumaki version of it with the spiral forming with the Jutsu.
"No Jutsu you have can hurt me!" stated Gaara while sending his sand toward Naruto.
"Uzumaki Style: Multi Spiral Water Bullets Jutsu!" exclaimed Naruto, as the large spiral of water shifted into small spirals until they formed water bullets and were fired rapidly at Gaara.
The Suna ninja's sand became a shield instantly on reaction and the boy grinned at his opponent's foolishness in using such a weak Jutsu against him. The bombardment went on for at least five minutes straight before things went quiet. The grin on Gaara's face increased as, he commanded his sand to unleash itself on Naruto, and put an end to this match with the blonde's blood being offered to his "Mother" in his head. However, the grin soon left when the command issued to the sand to move was obeyed at a slower rate and made Gaara frown in confusion. Why was his sand moving slowly? Why was it now moving like sludge? What was going on?!
'Something is wrong. My sand won't move at its usual speed. When I tell it to move, it does not act normal, but rather slow, and sluggish,' thought Gaara while narrowing his eyes at his sand before it widened in realization.
"Finally realized it? I'm guessing you never went to a beach and played with the sand there? Or possibly built sand castles while watching the waves of water crash into it? I'm surprised no one has ever hit you with a Water Jutsu until now," asked Naruto while dry sand shot out of the gourd and tried to attack him.
"You covered my sand in water to reduce its speed," deduced Gaara while seeing Naruto nod while dodging his attacks.
"Of course! Sand when soaked with water becomes soggy. Clumpish goo that is basically sludge without the stink. All I have to do is drown you in water," replied Naruto before he went through hand signs again and this time launched a Water Dragon at Gaara.
Scowling further, Gaara raised a wall of sand to defend himself, and like before with the previous attack it was soaked heavily in the liquid. The once dry sand that could move at impressive speed and crush its enemies just as fast was reduced to soaked and slow globs of wet sand you normally see at the beach. But Naruto didn't stop with one Water Dragon since he knew it wasn't nearly enough to stop Gaara's sand and when considering the red haired boy's gourd was filled with an almost unlimited supply of the dirt like substance, it would be foolish to think otherwise.
"You will die!" stated Gaara, as he launched his sand at the water bombarding him, and focusing on moving the soaked earthly substance slowly against the water.
And making it go slower and slower by the second.
"Foolish boy. For all your so called 'mastery' of sand, you still wield it like a child does a new toy! Your Father was fool to seal a Biju inside of you and even more so to give your body such a faulty seal to hold Shukaku in the first place," remarked Naruto with traces of Zabuza's own personality coming into play and the blonde had a feeling that his words were something the Demon of the Mist would have said if he were here.
"Shut up! I don't need to be lectured by a weakling like you!" exclaimed Gaara angrily, as he was not only insulted in being called weak by Naruto, but his Father as well, and while the red haired boy cared little for the Kazekage in terms of parental figure, he still felt the Uzumaki in front of him had no right to talk.
"If I am so weak, why haven't you killed me yet?" questioned Naruto while continuing his bombardment of water on Gaara's sand, as it forced his enemy's advancement with the substance to stop, and eventually be pushed back with each devastating hit.
"Shut up!" exclaimed Gaara in frustration, as he saw his sand was leaking water like an overloaded sponge, and looking ready to fall apart if things continued the way they were going.
"Not yet. The only way you will truly understand how weak your level of power truly is without the sand to aid in your defense...is to break your defense before breaking you!" stated Naruto before calling on his large reserves of chakra to constantly keep up the seemingly never ending flow of water from the environment around him.
'Amazing. How much chakra does Naruto-sama have? I have never seen him use so much before since coming into his service,' thought Haku while seeing the ground around them was flooded with water, but knew the time to strike Gaara with her bloodline wasn't right.
It was close, but not close enough.
(Konoha-At the Moment)
"You lied to us Hokage-sama," remarked Homura in a disapproving tone while Koharu and Danzo did the same in terms of their facial expressions while most of the Clan Heads watched on with the Civilian Council looking ready to explode in their own fit of rage.
"It was a necessary lie. The populace as a whole would have been in an uproar we could not hope to quell and our enemies outside Konoha would have rallied once their spies were able to find out the truth," replied Hiruzen while divulging what happened at the Fire Daimyo's castle during the trade negotiations with Maleficent.
He told them everything that happened. Told them about how Maleficent handled the Fire Daimyo and his nobles with expert efficiency. How she openly admitted to kidnapping Naruto, which caused him to admit to the lie he had told years ago and explaining further that the horned dressed in black woman had adopted the boy in the process. For what reason she did not say, but also revealed Itachi was indeed taken into her service, and so had Mitarashi Anko.
The end result of informing them was less then encouraging.
"Perhaps, but you should have told the Clan Heads if not us your Shinobi Council the truth in secret. We could have assisted in the plan to recapture all three of them rather then believe a lie where it is two kidnapped and our one Jinchuriki in a coma," remarked Danzo though he decided to leave out how Hiruzen's actions would have been similar to his own.
With the exception of sending wave after wave of Root to infiltrate and destroy Wave during that time rather then wait for politics to theoretically work.
"Regardless, the Fire Daimyo has agreed to the terms. Terms that are binding and any actions by us to go against them would be considered an act of treason against him at the very least and an act of war against Wave at most. A war, which we would be considered in the wrong, and no one would support us I might add," replied Hiruzen while he along with Jiraiya and the ANBU with them to give a supportive detailed description of this woman's power.
"This woman is using our Jinchuriki for her own use. It won't be long before she has him attack us for the past actions this village did to our weapon. We must strike while we have the chance," remarked Danzo with the Civilian Council nodding in full agreement while Hiruzen's teammates were favoring the idea if their facial features were anything to go by.
"And risk a war with another country? Kumo or Iwa could use this to gain favor with Wave Country," remarked Hiashi while he was thinking Kumo would be the first to jump into the fight if it meant possibly getting their hands on the Byakugan during the battles that would occur.
"Iwa would wish the Jinchuriki dead just for being the Yondaime's son. The Sandaime Tsuchikage would sooner side with us if it meant his forces could get a shot at killing the demon container. Naturally, he would fail since we would bring our lost weapon back for proper reeducation in serving Konoha properly," remarked Koharu while the Clan Heads, the exception being the Uchiha Clan Head, were glaring at her, and clearly disliking the fact she was being a disrespectful old prune for not calling Naruto by his name.
"Not only that, but Kumo would sooner target the Uzumaki brat for the Biju he holds, and his Uzumaki bloodline he got from Kushina. They will see Wave Country as a far easier target to fight and win against in the long run," added Homura while not caring for the late Yondaime, his wife, or his son since he felt the family as a whole would and could have been used as weapons of war had the parents lived.
"You didn't see what I did. What sensei saw in that room. Maleficent's power is...unreal. She doesn't need an army to defeat us in a war. She IS the army. Add Naruto to the mix if he is being trained to fight, which I got the impression was happening from his attire, it would be one costly victory," said Jiraiya since he saw his Godson had indeed changed from the picture Hiruzen had of him years ago.
"So what do we do? Let her raise the demon? Have him grow strong and come after us when he is ready?" questioned a Civilian Council member.
"No. There is a way. We just need to play our parts well," explained Hiruzen before he told them what the plan was and to get Naruto to stay in Konoha.
"As cunning as this plan is my old friend, this woman has no reason to accept your offer even if it does benefit Wave in a form of publicity like we would have her believe," said Danzo while admitting his former rival's plan was brilliant if he could get Maleficent to agree to having Naruto come to Konoha.
"Hence why Jiraiya and Tsunade will go see her in the following months. While Jiraiya cannot claim any form of guardianship over him per Maleficent's terms, she cannot deny Tsunade given the kinship between them. Fortunately, I didn't mention it during the end with Maleficent in the room because she would cut Tsunade out of her right to him as well," replied Hiruzen knowing that with Jiraiya removed from guardianship, the only one left who could contend against Maleficent was Tsunade.
"Where is Tsunade?" asked Koharu while noticing the woman was not here for this meeting.
"I told her everything earlier in private. Given the situation, I felt her inevitable bad temper would be better contained away from all of you. Considering how many of the people in this room do not call Naruto by his name or even with respect, be glad she is not here," said Hiruzen with the Civilian Council grumbling about the Senju woman being disrespectful to them and the Shinobi Council felt Tsunade was possibly going to be a problem in the future.
They only kept silent because the Sandaime Hokage wouldn't allow anyone bad mouth his students in his presence.
(Back with Naruto)
Gaara knew he was losing. He hated losing. He hated knowing he was losing. The very thought of losing to someone was foreign to him. He was the strongest ninja in Suna outside of his Father. He was feared inside of Suna as he was outside. No one until now had landed a direct hit on him whether physically with their bodies or even a Jutsu.
But this Uzumaki Naruto...this boy was different.
Once the area was flooded enough with water, Naruto focused on the sand Gaara was commanding to gauge just how fast it was, and noticed it barely moved at all. It would just hang there like a cloud or some other kind of floating thing in the sky and was unable to truly move from one place to another. With this part of his plan to defeat Gaara, the blonde Uzumaki moved forward with his superior speed, and landed a solid punch to the Suna ninja's face.
Of course, this revealed to Naruto another problem he respectfully had not counted on, as his fist hit something that was not flesh, and did not break the bones along Gaara's jaw. The impact of the fist however, did hurt the red head, but not as much as Naruto thought it would, and made the Uzumaki narrow his eyes.
"I see. So you encased your body in sand as well. A last line of defense no doubt," remarked Naruto while cracking his hand he used to hit Gaara.
"One cannot be too careful," replied Gaara before getting off the ground and glaring at his enemy.
"Indeed. Though I think it is high time to see just how strong your sand armor you're sporting really is," said Naruto before rushing forward again and landed a series of hits on Gaara's body.
'My armor is cracking. He is hitting me in every direction,' thought Gaara while trying to focus what sand was left to help him defend his body against the Wave Daimyo's son.
Alas, the enemy in front of Gaara was too quick, and unpredictable to fight in his current condition.
Naruto hit his opponent with a vicious spin kick right to the face, the sound of something cracking outside of condensed sand was heard. The sound of something within the body breaking in multiple places. Fortunately, the breaking was not from the blonde's end, but rather Gaara's face, as the hit broke the boy's jaw, and caused the red haired boy to black out for a few seconds.
"Come on Gaara. Don't be shy. Remove that armor from your body. Show us the real you behind the facade that is your sand and insanity!" exclaimed Naruto before landing punch after punch and kick after kick.
Until Naruto destroyed the armor completely with a double fisted punch to Gaara's upper and lower torso that send the boy flying back ten feet. As for Gaara, the boy coughed up blood, his mind filled with fear, terror, and anger all rolled into one. His "Mother" was screaming at him to do something or else "she" would in his place.
"I'm trying Mother. He is stronger then I thought. Forgive me!" pleaded Gaara while tears left his eyes and he withered on the ground like a frightened child.
"So weak. So pathetic. Where is your pride as a Jinchuriki? Where is your determination to stand and face your enemy no matter what the odds that lay before you?" questioned Naruto before he kicked Gaara in the stomach and saw the boy skid along the water.
"Get away! Stay away!" exclaimed Gaara wildly while trying to throw what little sand dry or wet at Naruto with nothing sent doing any damage to the blonde.
"Your Father really messed you up. Shikaku is no better. MY Mother will have to fix that when I bring your body before her," remarked Naruto before signaling for Haku to do her thing.
"Hijutsu: Sensatsu SuishÅ!" said Haku while going through one handed hand signs and using her bloodline to make the water around Naruto to rise, turn into a large number of pointy needles, and directing them all at one Sabaku no Gaara.
Whatever armor the Suna boy had left was destroyed in that one final move before he lost consciousness from the pain with his "Mother" screaming at him for his incompetence.
"Now to ensure Shukaku doesn't get any stupid ideas," said Naruto while using his chakra chains to suppress the Biju within Gaara from fully possessing its host.
Which was a good thing too since Shukaku tried to do just that and was screaming curses in a warped voice and promised to cause Naruto untold pain once freed.
"I'll kill you Uzumaki Naruto! You will die! You will suffer!" screamed out Shukaku while thrashing around in Gaara's injured body while staring at Naruto with black eyes and yellow star like pupils while wishing the chakra chains weren't preventing him from bringing out a full transformation.
"Shut up," replied Naruto before backhanding Gaara's face and saw Shukaku was getting even angrier.
"Filthy human! Youare just like all the others! Taking what doesn't belong to you!" said Shukaku before Naruto had enough and decided to put the fear of Kami into the Biju to get him to shut up.
And what better way to do it then to push Sabaku no Gaara's body against a tree and have the Kubikiribocho out with the hole closest to the hilt pinning its target further in place?
"Listen to me well Shukaku. I am not like the other humans you are use to dealing with. I have neither the time nor patience to deal with your insane stupidity. I am like Gaara and like Gaara I spent most of my life hated. Attacked. Abused. The only difference is your sand had prevented any physical hits from successfully hitting him until now. Though I can't say the same for his mentality. I also doubt your influence was any better when the really bad stuff happened to him in that regard," whispered Naruto into Gaara's and by extension Shukaku's ear.
"You...You hold Kurama?" asked Shukaku with Naruto nodding though kept the fact his Biju had neither made contact nor told him his true name out of the conversation.
"Yes I do. But I don't use his power. I have use my own. I train, I sweat, I bleed until I pass out with no strength left. I do this everyday since my Mother appeared. She took me in. Showed me love. Gave me purpose. Hope. Something your village denied your host and in a sense...yourself," replied Naruto with Shukaku nodding.
"You don't know how humiliating it was for me! They sealed me into a tiny tea kettle during times of peace and then into their mostly unwilling hosts when getting ready for war. They saw me as a weapon. A tool to be used when they see fit and to throw away when my purpose was no longer needed. I HATE THEM!" exclaimed Shukaku while Gaara's face showed the extend of his anger with the slight snarling in his voice when speaking.
"You think I don't know how humiliating it is? How about living a day without being beaten within an inch of your life? How about surviving mobs kicking the snot out of you and hoping the ninja suppose to be guarding you decide to interfere before they get too bloodthirsty? How about living a life where the people hate you and say that you are just a bastard child? That your parents don't love you? That they abandoned you? That they wished you dead simply because you were a monster made flesh? I hate the people in my old village too. They have done far worse then whatever Suna did to you and Gaara since being sealed into him," countered Naruto with Shukaku saying nothing for a moment.
"So you do know. We thought you were lying," remarked Shukaku while Naruto shook his head at him
"I know what it is like to suffer Shukaku. Just as I'm sure Gaara does too. Konoha buried my Mother's clan and what they were known for so I would believe I was a nobody. That I was not important like the other clans within the village. That I was a nameless, clanless orphan, and I should be eternally grateful to be even allowed to breathe the same air as them in Konoha," replied Naruto with Shukaku calming down a bit.
"And yet you are sane. You are not my host," remarked Shukaku while Naruto smirked behind his head gear.
"There was a considerable chance I would have been like Gaara if not for my Mother's own timely intervention. Unlike your actual biological Father, my surrogate Mother did care me. She loves me as if I were own child by blood. I imagine such an offer could be extended to Gaara if given the chance. Provided you don't possess his body and torment his mind," replied Naruto with Shukaku narrowing Gaara's eyes at the offer.
"And trade one ruler for another? Not exactly a noticeable change in terms of having a better life," commented Shukaku before feeling the pressure of the blade against Gaara's neck press deeper into the flesh.
"Unlike Gaara's bastard Father, my Mother is genuine in terms of being a caring parent. She has done more for me in the first week of being my Mother then Konoha did since my birth leading up to the moment I met her. Do NOT assume she is like the Kazekage of Suna or I will see to it you are sealed into something much smaller then mere tea kettle," remarked Naruto in a threatening tone.
"Well...when you put it like that...lead the way!" replied Shukaku with Naruto shaking his head.
"You think I'm stupid? That I'm going to let you go and expect instant compliance on your part? Relinquish control back to Gaara. Now!" commanded Naruto with Shukaku narrowing his (Gaara's) eyes before nodding and gave the boy his body back.
"I heard everything you and Shukaku spoke of just now. Take me to your Mother. I wish to see this love she has for you," said Gaara with Naruto removing the blade from his neck, but kept the chakra chains on.
"Gladly. Though you will treat her with respect. Or I will kill you and seal Shukaku into a tea kettle before increasing my knowledge of seals to the point where I can confine him to a tiny matchbox," replied Naruto with Gaara nodding at the threat while glancing at the massive sword in the blonde's hand.
(Suna-Days Later)
"What do you mean Gaara failed?! He does not fail!" demanded Kazekage angrily while Baki kept his head bowed.
"I saw what I could Kazekage-sama. Gaara was defeated by Uzumaki Naruto. The Wave Daimyo's son. He bombarded Gaara with water to the point where the sand would be too slow to use. Even Shukaku coming out in the end was impossible, as the Uzumaki was able to create chakra chains that seemed to suppress the power of Shukaku, and held your son against a tree with the Kubikiribocho pressed to his throat," explained Baki with the Kazekage ignoring the fact Gaara was referred to as his son and focused on the fact Gaara was actually defeated.
"Damn faulty weapon. He's no child of mine. But the question remains why you did not interfere and bring Gaara back to Suna?" questioned the Kazekage with Baki bowing his head in shame.
"I planned to rescue Gaara, but Mitarashi Anko was in the area. She saw me and was blocking my path to the boy. Not only that, but the Uzumaki had additional backup already with him. The risk of being caught and being unable to report to you was too high. I felt it would be better to avoid being captured to report my findings," said Baki with the Kazekage not being pleased in the slightest even if his Jounin did the smart thing.
"And now the Wave Daimyo has MY Jinchuriki! MY weapon! I won't stand for this one bit," remarked the Kazekage while he was continued to fume over the notion of losing his weapon to that...woman!
"I just heard Konoha isn't happy with the Wave Daimyo either. Apparently, the Uzumaki boy was their village Jinchuriki too. She also took the Uchiha Clan Head's eldest boy and the former snake Sannin's apprentice into her ranks. As per the trade agreement signed, all such kidnappings are void, and they are hers to command as she sees fit Kazekage-sama," remarked Baki with the Kazekage snarling slightly at the mention of Konoha.
That damn village acted so high and mighty. Offering an alliance that was basically an act of servitude to them in all but name. Even worse, the Wind Daimyo was outsourcing missions to Konoha while cutting Suna's budget time after time until they were barely getting by with the more serious missions going to Gaara for him to handle. With Gaara now gone, things would get increasingly difficult, and even Konoha's loss of their own Jinchuriki wouldn't be enough to put them on even terms.
No where near enough.
"So what? I will not ally with them on this issue. Let them dig their own graves. We will handle this matter on our own and quickly. It is only a matter of time before Iwa or Kumo gets wind of this and makes their moves against us should they see an opportunity. We are actually fortunate the desert is so harsh that either side would hesitate to invade to take us down," replied the Kazekage while thinking how to retrieve his weapon from the clutches of Maleficent.
His son could die for all he cared. All that mattered was getting Shukaku back to be sealed in someone else more competent and capable of wielding the Biju's power.
(Konoha-At the Moment)
Kakashi sighed at the fact his recently made Genin team had not progressed like he had hoped. Sakura was being a hardcore Uchiha fan girl, Sasuke was being his broody emo self in the belief his clan was superior to everyone, and the boy's clan wasn't helping either. As for the third member of their team, a pale skinned boy by the name of Sai, who was placed there on recommendations from Danzo himself...well...the kid had serious issues in interacting with other people.
Namely calling Sakura ugly and Sasuke dickless.
"Shut up baka!" exclaimed Sakura before she punched Sai right in the face for calling Sasuke that horrible name.
'Why me? It is a shame Minato-sensei's boy isn't here. He would have been perfect for this team. At least I would think he would be perfect for it,' thought Kakashi while he saw the three showing none of the fundamentals of teamwork and the Chuunin Exams were fast approaching.
Not only that, but the Hokage was also planning to convince the Wave Daimyo to have Naruto come to Konoha to fight Kakashi in an exhibition match. Meaning he had to alter his schedule between training himself to get stronger (he had been slacking a bit since he got out of ANBU) and training his Genin team in the fundamentals of teamwork (a chore unto itself) before the Chuunin Exam nominations came up.
It wasn't long before he ended the training session for the day, hoping their respected clans, and families would fill in any additional gaps in their training for the day. With his trio of mons-er students gone, the Jounin went to the bar and met with his other Jounin for some food, drinks, and talking about the possible futures of their Genin.
"So are you going to nominate your group for the Chuunin Exams?" asked Kurenai while Kakashi shrugged a little since this was the first time they really got together to discuss this issue.
"I'm trying to get them to improve their teamwork and trust. It has not been easy," said Kakashi with a sigh.
"I hear you. My generation of the Ino-Shika-Cho are an absolute mess. Ino is all around bossy and whiny when it comes to training. Shikamaru is lazy. And Choji only seems to care about food," remarked Asuma while his old man had stuck him with a Genin team when getting back to Konoha since the Fire Daimyo was not in a good mood right now.
"By team is a little better. Hinata is shy and nervous, but determined all the same. Hiashi-sama doesn't seem to think highly of her. Hinata just needs that extra something to get her out of that shell she had surrounded herself with. Though what, I have no idea. Tsume's youngest Kiba is a bit of a pervert and horn dog with his 'secret leering' he does at Hinata when he thinks no one is looking. Shino is...unreadable. He speaks on occasion, but I can not get a solid reading from him. I trust he will protect his teammates in the heat of battle, but I get the feeling his commitment to the team is one of that he has to help them like it was a mandatory obligation, and not that he wants to help them," commented Kurenai while Gai smiled though even that seemed forced.
"My team is doing very well. I waited a year for them to gain the experience needed to face the trials of the Chuunin Exams this year. They are doing well, but at the same time the rumors surrounding Uzumaki Naruto have them confused, and asking questions about him. They seem to remember seeing glances of the boy," added Gai while Kurenai gave a nod.
"Hinata was saved by a bunch of bullies a month before his disappearance. Apparently, she tried to thank him, but her caretaker Ko pulled Hinata away, and forbid her from ever seeing the gaki again," remarked Kurenai while Asuma nodded.
"I remember that day and the following week since I was here on business for the Fire Daimyo and my dad to deliver some reports. The Hyuuga Clan sent some of its members after the kid, mostly branch family if I recall correctly, and they beat the stuffing out of him. Poor gaki was in the hospital for over a week and the Hyuuga Clan as a whole just flat out refused to even apologize for their actions. They felt that a 'lowly orphan for a piece of commoner trash had no business getting involved in something their Heiress should have handled herself'. The public was fully supporting their decision simply on the principle of hurting Naruto and my old man just...caved!" said Asuma with a sigh while the other Jounin in the room looked shocked by this.
"Did you find out why?" asked Kurenai curiously.
"Yeah I asked. Dad said, 'The Hyuuga Clan has significant sway in Konoha and in the Fire Daimyo's Court with powerful nobles. Losing their support undermines my ability to run Konoha effectively. In order to keep the peace and the populace happy, Naruto has to suffer, and the people responsible will not be punished for their actions.' Which I felt was total crap on itself," answered Asuma with the Jounin at the table looking floored.
"So an innocent child suffers and the guilty party gets away with what they did simply because they have connections in high places? Talk about corruption," remarked Kurenai with Gai and Kakashi nodding.
"Agreed, but karma has a way of balancing things out," remarked Gai, as he felt that with every high, there was a low, and life balanced things out.
"In what way?" asked Kakashi curiously.
"The Yondaime's son is now the adopted son of the Wave Daimyo. Not to mention is an Uzumaki by blood and related to the Senju Clan since the Uzumaki Clan were cousins to them. He can now pull some major political punches now or when he is older. If Naruto is truly an Uzumaki, he will not forgive, or forget what people here in Konoha did to him. Especially if this Maleficent is nurturing that side of Naruto when he comes across those who feel they are untouchable," answered Gai with the other Jounin around him realizing he was right.
"The Hyuuga are going to be paying through the nose if Naruto has his way," remarked Asuma with Gai letting out a small chuckle.
"This is an Uzumaki we are talking about my youthful friend. And Kushina's child no less. They will pay far more then you realize," commented Gai since he had seen just how vindictive Kushina was as a kunoichi and did everything in his power to prevent himself from getting on her bad side.
"Oh shit," commented Kakashi with Asuma and Kurenai thinking the same thing.
'Oh shit is right,' thought Asuma, Kurenai, and even Gai too.
(Wave Country-Daimyo's Castle-1 Week Later)
Gaara felt good. Better then he did in his entire life. And why wouldn't he? His seal was looked at by both Maleficent and Naruto. It turns out, the woman had magical powers to strengthen the seal on him while Naruto was able to make additional modifications to it so Shukaku couldn't whisper into his head and allow him to sleep without fear of the Biju getting out. After that, Gaara had a simple spell by Maleficent put on him to make the boy go into a deep sleep that lasted for roughly a week.
Now Gaara felt like a huge weight had been lifted right off of his shoulder. Not only that, but Maleficent wanted her to be a brother to Naruto. Meaning she also wanted him to be a son to her as well, much to his surprise, and to the joy of his new brother. Maleficent had told Gaara that she understood his pain and her life prior to meeting Naruto was one filled with heartache and betrayal. She wanted to give Naruto a loving family and home when she first met him and was now offering the same to Gaara.
After a moment to consider it this, the boy humbly accepted the offer, and even called Maleficent his Kaa-san before embracing the woman in a loving hug.
The only down side was the loss of being able to repair the damage he had done to his actual family in the form of his siblings Kankuro and Temari. The next time he met them, there was a chance the two of them would be his enemies, and seek to kill him on the orders of their Father. While Gaara had no love for his male sire, his two siblings were a different matter entirely, and wanted to at least give them a chance to reconcile with them.
And if they still wanted him dead regardless? Well...he would cross that bridge when he came to it.
"Gaara! How are you feeling?" asked Naruto while Gaara smiled a true smile at his new brother.
"Good. My mind is clearer now. I no longer feel the need to kill everything around me," replied Gaara calmly while feeling his sand was moving around him and not through the Biju inside who had helped in that regard.
"Good to hear. You also need to have more of an arsenal in your way of fighting. You can only use your sand for so long before someone does what I did and drowns you in water. My advice is to find out what you don't have a lot of strength in and work on it," said Naruto with Gaara nodding since it made perfect sense.
Find out what your weakness was and work on it to become a strength.
Walking toward the training area, the two stopped when Maleficent came to greet them, and Gaara instantly bowed humbly before his new Mother. His mind hoping she will continue to love him like she does Naruto and not hold the attack he led on Wave at his bastard Father's command.
And Shukaku's insistence.
"Kaa-san," whispered Gaara while hoping the woman didn't mind him calling her that so soon.
"Kaa-san," said Naruto with his voice being a bit louder, but was no less respectful, and loving to the woman who took them in.
"Gaara. Naruto. How are my two boys doing?" asked Maleficent, as she wanted to see how they were getting along after Gaara's week long nap, and making needed repairs to the poor boy's damaged mind.
"We are well Kaa-san," replied Naruto happily.
"We were actually about to go train in the courtyard. Brother wishes for me to learn to work on other skills beyond my sand," added Gaara with Maleficent nodding.
"I agree with his assessment. There may come a day when your sand will not aid you in battle against someone with a high affinity for water and you are surrounded by a large majority of it. My advise to you is start with the basics of what you do know, what you do not know, and how to change the latter into the former," replied Maleficent with Gaara nodding in agreement.
"Kaa-san, I...I want to apologize for what I did. I also...I also want to thank you for taking me in. For calling me your son. I haven't been called that for quite some time," whispered Gaara while looking up at the woman, half expecting her to scowl, slap him maybe, and use her power to cast his body into the nearest body of water to drown.
Instead, she smiled down at the boy, kneeled so her face was nearly eye level, and gave Gaara a warm hug that filled the mentally scarred ninja with joy. He could get use to this type of feeling once thought lost to him after Uncle Yashamaru had attempted to kill him.
"Just like Naruto, you are my son, and no one will be able to say otherwise. All I ask in return is you trust me and obey my orders when I give a necessary command," replied Maleficent, as she wanted Gaara to understand that she was not only his new Mother, but also the Daimyo of this land, and thus had final authority on things.
"Yes Kaa-san," replied Gaara happily before Haku appeared with an aura of anger that Naruto felt was coming off of her.
"Maleficent-sama, I just saw Jiraiya and Tsunade of the Sannin cross the bridge. They are heading here. They told the samurai guarding the bridge they needed to see you. They did not say what and threatened to use violence and possibly destroy a large portion if not all of the bridge should they not be allowed to see you," said Haku with Maleficent frowning at the fact Jiraiya was back here and had brought his female teammate with him.
"It seems your training outside will have to wait. You two will stay beside me the entire time. Haku, get Itachi and Anko as well. I want all of you beside me in the event this is a diversion to take you all in some surprise attack," commanded Maleficent firmly.
"What about Tayuya and Karin?" asked Naruto since he didn't know where they were at the moment, and was worried for their safety too.
"Don't worry my child. They are at the ruins of the Uzumaki Clan seeking to expand their knowledge in the clan arts. No one knows they are there but us at the moment," replied Maleficent while Naruto nodded while giving Gaara a "keep that to yourself for now" look which the red haired boy knew well and nodded in acceptance.
They were his new family. A loving and caring family. Any who dared to take them away or seek to harm them would know his wrath should they try.
(Throne Room-Moments Later)
"I'm a bit surprised you came here to see me Jiraiya-san. Even more so that you brought another here to this. Especially since you were told by your own Daimyo that your right to guardianship over Naruto was revoked," said Maleficent with the Toad Sannin sporting a frown and Tsunade doing the same.
"That he did. Fortunately for me and Konoha by extension, there is one person who can contest guardianship of Naruto," replied Jiraiya while motioning with his hand to his female companion.
"Her? And what business does this woman have to challenge me for my son's happiness here in Wave?" asked Maleficent with the blonde busty woman stepping forward.
"I am Senju Tsunade of the Senju Clan. The Senju Clan and the Uzumaki Clan are cousin clans. I am seeking to take custody of Naruto and raise him as if he was my own son," said Tsunade with Maleficent frowning at the woman.
"Really? Cousin clans? Meaning the two are tied together by blood through a relative in the past? asked Maleficent with the Senju woman nodding.
"Yes. I am even an Uzumaki on my Grandmother's side of the family. She married Senju Hashirama, who became the Shodaime Hokage, and was one of the reasons Konoha now exists," replied Tsunade with the woman hoping it would impress Maleficent in front of her.
Instead, it seemed to earn the Senju woman the horned ruler's contempt.
"I see. I believe you. There is no lying in your words. I can even see you are related to my son through my own unique power. And yet, you have left him alone since the time of his birth. Why is that?" remarked Maleficent while Tsunade looked down in shame.
"I was suppose to take care of him. Jiraiya couldn't because his spy network required he be on the road continuously. I had...no such excuse," replied Tsunade while seeing the woman on her throne narrowing her eyes.
"The fool's excuse aside and the fact you had none means you left Konoha to escape your natural duty to protect and love Naruto. Meaning you willingly abandoned him. Why? Did you hate him? Did you loathe his existence? Even now, but skillfully hiding it? Do you look upon my poor son as some cruel representation of what you lost? Of what your precious village lost?" asked Maleficent while Tsunade looked at her and then to Naruto, who glared slightly at the fact this woman left him when he needed her most.
"No. I left because...I was afraid. Not of him. But rather, I was afraid of...myself. I was afraid I couldn't raise him properly. I had never been a Mother. I never raised a child and the closest experience I had was my little brother before he...before he died on a mission for Konoha," replied Tsunade with Maleficent's eyes narrowing even further with anger.
"You were afraid of being a poor Mother. I see. Cowardice is your excuse it seems. And during your time away from the village, what exactly did you do on your travels away from Naruto? What vice did you enjoy while this boy suffered. This very boy, who stands beside me? This boy who like his newly appointed brother Sabaku no Gaara have become my greatest joy in the world. A gift from the Gods above to any woman wishing to be a Mother. A gift you foolishly wasted! Answer me!" demanded Maleficent with Tsunade almost breaking down into tears at this point over the guilt she felt about this.
It had been eating at her since returning to Konoha on orders of her sensei regarding the duty she ran from. The moment Tsunade stepped foot in the village, she saw the people cheering over the fact the "demon brat" had been taken out of Konoha. Later they cheered about how the boy was in a coma when the Sandaime spread that lie of a cover story. She had wanted to smash some heads. Lots of heads to be exact. When Tsunade found out that Maleficent had Naruto and raised the boy like her own son, it hit the Sannin heard right in the heart. She thought her emotions or guilt over the past neglect of the boy when he needed her wouldn't hit so hard.
She had been wrong.
The accusation. The pain she felt in her heart from answering. The glare from the woman and the boy were stabbing her over and over again. To make matters worse, they had every right to judge her on this matter. One having done for Naruto what Tsunade had failed to do and had done an outstanding job. The other was Naruto himself, as he bonded with Maleficent, calling the horned woman his Mother, and was denouncing anyone from Konoha. Anyone who would seek to remove Naruto from his surrogate Mother simply to turn him into a weapon of war for the benefit of a Shinobi village that hated what he was in the first place.
It felt wrong to do this to Naruto, but Tsunade did want to be there for him now, and be a proper Godmother to the boy.
"I drowned myself in sake and gambling. It was all I could do. Sake kept my guilt at bay while gambling distracted me from the nagging feeling of coming back to Konoha. I tried to focus on cards and gambling machines over the image of a blonde haired baby that at one point reached for me the one time I saw him before turning around to leave," replied Tsunade with Naruto's eyes narrowing, his anger rising within himself, and wished to kill this woman right now if only to send her head back to Konoha.
Maleficent's hand on his shoulder and Gaara's own on the other kept him from acting on the desire to end the Sannin with all the fury his body could muster. To the other side of the throne, Itachi was impassive though it was clear in his eyes he did not like how this woman had left a baby Naruto when he reached for her at that age of desiring love from that special someone to provide such love. Anko wanted to unleash her snake, but had to hold back since Maleficent did not give the order. Haku's hands twitched and wanted to call forth her senbon needles to hit every pressure point the human body had to offer.
"Your argument for being Naruto's new guardian and as a surrogate Mother to him is most compelling!" remarked Maleficent in a sarcastic tone.
"Hey! Lay off Tsunade. She may have left, but the moment I told her about Naruto being in trouble, my hime came running back, and wanted to set things right," said Jiraiya while he got a glare from Maleficent for his troubles, and it was clear this woman was no at all impressed by them coming here now.
"And she has done a piss poor job of it ever since. In fact, Tsunade here failed the very moment she abandoned my son and stepped out of Konoha to embrace her vices rather then do what was right. Cowardice such as yours and your teammate my dear disgusts me to no end," remarked Maleficent with her scowl deepening by the second.
"All the same, I want to be in his life. I want him to be apart of Konoha with me. All I am asking is for a chance to be what I should have been from the start," begged Tsunade with Maleficent narrowing her eyes.
"Request denied. You had your chance Senju. You had the chance and the honor of being a surrogate Mother to Naruto. I have no reason to even remotely consider the idea, the very notion of letting you near him ever again, much less share any parental guardianship with you!" replied Maleficent with Tsunade eyes filling with tears while glaring angrily at the dark witch.
"He is family by blood!" stated Tsunade with Maleficent smiling coldly at her.
"Yes. He is your family by blood. Family...that you ignored! But you know what they say about such lost moments. Your loss is MY gain!" replied Maleficent with Tsunade getting angrier by the minute.
"Wait! Wait! Let's not be too hasty and do something we are going to regret. How about a bet? A wager?! The winner of the bet gets the right to claim guardianship over Naruto," offered Jiraiya while getting between Tsunade and Maleficent still on her throne.
"And the loser?" asked Maleficent with Jiraiya thinking for a bit.
"Winner names the terms for what the loser must pay in the aftermath," answered Jiraiya with Tsunade gasping in shock at what he said before grabbing the idiot and pulling him close to whisper.
"Are you nuts?! You basically said the winner gets a blank slate on terms for what the loser has to pay!" whispered Tsunade with Jiraiya nodding.
"Its the only way to get her to agree. Just roll with it," whispered Jiraiya before he turned to face Maleficent again.
"Interesting. Just out of idle curiosity, what is the bet you had in mind?" asked Maleficent while wanting to hear the proposal before shooting it down...violently.
"The Chuunin Exams are coming up soon. In a few months to be exact. Clients, nobles, and Daimyos all over are going to attend to see the ninja from the five major Shinobi villages compete. What I am suggesting is a match. A simple exhibition match between Naruto and his Father's last remaining student Hatake Kakashi. If Naruto wins, you keep guardianship of Naruto, and no one from Konoha can interfere. Ever! If Kakashi wins the match, Tsunade gets guardianship over Naruto, and he returns to Konoha to be raised their to form bonds with the people," explained Jiraiya while Naruto narrowed his eyes and knew what the Sannin was trying to do.
"Tempting offer. But why should I even consider this. Even if the bet were fair, I have no real reason to agree to this silly wager. I have uncontested guardianship over Naruto right now. The Fire Daimyo himself made the agreement binding via contract signing and seal in place to make it official. What purpose could it serve to put my son through a pointless match where the risk is not worth any reward given that I don't already have now? What is there left for me to gain from agreeing to this exhibition match?" replied Maleficent with Jiraiya knowing he had to play this carefully.
"Think about it. This is the perfect time to make Wave known to the rest of the world. All the important and influential people from all over the Elemental Countries will be there. You can make it known to these nobles and Daimyos that your country has certain good they may want and you can get it to them thanks to your new bridge. You could increase trade during this time and with Naruto competing it will let the world know all you have accomplished with him," offered Jiraiya with Maleficent looking at him to Naruto before tapping the boy's shoulder to get his attention.
"What do you think Naruto? Do you wish to fight your Father's former student? Is the risk of losing me as your surrogate Mother worth the reward of bringing about future trade and fame to Wave?" asked Maleficent while Naruto closed his eyes in thought for a second to process everything in his head.
"No. I won't risk you. Not now. Not ever. Wave is doing fine. Our country is flourishing and growing stronger. This is a scheme to keep me in Konoha and for you to lose me as your son. I would sooner kill myself then surrender what I have with you and the others here," replied Naruto with Maleficent nodding while Jiraiya and Tsunade looked shocked at his response to the woman's question.
"Agreed. Tell your Sandaime Hokage since he clearly concocted this plot that my answer to his challenge and ruse is a no. Now get out of castle and land," commanded Maleficent in a cold tone while Tsunade looked at him pleadingly to consider before an idea came to her head.
A risky one, but one nonetheless.
"What if I offer this?!" asked Tsunade before she produced a necklace with a single green jewel in the center.
"And why exactly would I care about this jewel?" asked Maleficent, but sensed there was more to this jewel that meets the eye.
"It once belonged to my Grandfather. He gave it to me. Its overall wealth can buy several mountains," replied Tsunade while Maleficent narrowed her eyes at the gem dangling off of the necklace and knew there was more to it then that.
'There is something about the gem she is holding. Something close to my power resonates within, but is still different. Does she know? And could it possibly hurt Naruto or Gaara if in the wrong hands?' thought Maleficent while thinking about this in her mind.
"What do you say? Winner gets Naruto and the necklace," offered Tsunade while Jiraiya was not expecting her to do this.
"Maleficent-sama, I think Naruto-sama should take the bet," whispered Itachi while his Mistress looked at him with briefly.
"Why? Explain quickly," whispered Maleficent to her servant.
"Tsunade-sama is known throughout the Elemental Countries as the 'Legendary Sucker' because of her notorious bad luck when it comes to gambling. She barely wins. When Tsunade does win, bad things usually happen to her in the process. Not only that, but the jewel is rumored to have mystical properties in addition to its proclaimed wealth," replied Itachi while Maleficent narrowed her eyes further at the last part.
"What kind of mystical properties Itachi?" whispered Maleficent though she suspected it had something to do with the Biju.
"Combined with the Mokuton bloodline of the Senju, it enhances the bloodline, and can suppress the power of a Biju or Jinchuriki," whispered Itachi while Maleficent's eyes went wide before they narrowed again in anger at the sight of such a jewel like that in the hands of someone so irresponsible.
"I see. Thank you for informing me about this Itachi," whispered Maleficent before she turned to look at her son.
"Kaa-san?" asked Naruto since he saw her facial expressions regarding this wager shift to show many different emotions and it worried him.
"Do you trust me Naruto?" asked Maleficent with Naruto nodding.
"Always Kaa-san," replied Naruto without hesitation.
"Then I need you to trust me now. I am accepting the wager. I want you to participate in this match against Hatake Kakashi," said Maleficent with Naruto looking shocked and the two Sannin looking delighted.
"If that is what you wish then I will accept your decision Kaa-san," replied Naruto with Maleficent smiling at him before she turned her visage over to the two Sannin and gave them an ice cold look that could freeze the sun!
'Such a Momma's boy. Had he been raised in Konoha properly, such a thing would never have happened,' thought Jiraiya, as he knew Minato, and Kushina were never that way to their own female figures they lived up to when growing up.
He would have to change that when Kakashi won. Maybe have Inoichi perform a strong memory wipe of the woman's presence or have the memories of Maleficent be altered to make her seem villainous.
Well...more villainous then usual.
"Very well. We have a deal. Please go inform your Sandaime Hokage of this arrangement while I send a messenger to the Fire Daimyo concerning the given terms of the bet," said Maleficent with Jiraiya and Tsunade nodding with both pleased to hear this news.
Though one had different reasons over the other.
"Can you believe it! She agreed to the match. Just like sensei said she would!" exclaimed Jiraiya happily once they were on Fire Country land while Tsunade simply smiled if only slightly and it was clear she was not as enthusiastic as he was about this.
"Yes she did. Though it did take quite a bit of convincing on our part," replied Tsunade softly before she held her Grandfather's necklace in her hand and felt tears forming.
She could almost see her Grandfather's face in it staring back. Sadly, his face was neither smiling nor scowling, and seemed to be waiting on his Granddaughter that would decide what expression would await her. No doubt his inability to express himself was based on the undecided path she would take in the future regarding Naruto. She wasn't for the idea of forcing the boy back to Konoha, but she did want to be his Godmother, and raise him like she should have from the start.
Only her own cowardice and the demons of the past haunting her mind had kept such an action from happening. Nawaki. Dan. Kushina. Her family as a whole. All dead with her being the only exception. How could she risk raising Naruto knowing there was a chance the boy would fall early on in life like the rest of them? She had Shizune, but the girl had been trained extensively before and after Tsunade took her in, and raised the young (at the time) teen to become a competent adult/kunoichi in the heat of battle.
She didn't believe at the time it was possible for her to raise Naruto since the experience with babies was none. She had no maternal instincts. No real connection with the boy at the time and while it was clear the baby Naruto of the time wanted her as his Mother...she had denied him. It was considered one of the ultimate sins a woman could do to an infant baby in denying him love when he had reached for her saying that day "Love me! Love me please!" in his own cute adorable way.
Damn it! Now she wanted cry.
"Don't worry hime. Once Naruto is back in Konoha, we can erase his memories of that witch, and you can fill in the gaps yourself. Granted, we'll have to seal away his strength, and start from scratch to ensure he's properly trained to defend Konoha, but its no big de-AAAH!" exclaimed Jiraiya before he was punched hard in the stomach.
"I don't want his memories erased Jiraiya. Or have them altered! I don't want his strength to be sealed just so you and Hiruzen can remold him to your liking. I want to earn back his love and forgiveness for my cowardice in not raising him. I can't do that if you take away his memories and show just how remorseful I truly am!" Tsunade nearly yelled at the downed Sannin.
"Its not up to you Tsunade. Once Kakashi wins his match, I have orders from Hiruzen to seal up his strength, and make sure Inoichi can work on his mind to give us a clean slate to work with," replied Jiraiya with Tsunade looking furious.
"So sensei lied. I won't be raising Naruto," accused Tsunade with Jiraiya wincing.
"Yes and no. We need you around to raise Naruto to handle the negativity he is going to face and keep him from lashing out. As for overall raising, we are going to have him be around other ninja who will teach him different things," said Jiraiya while Tsunade now narrowing her eyes at him.
"And where will he live? Was it a lie that he would be living with me?" asked Tsunade while she glared at her former teammate and fellow Sannin.
"Yes. Sensei arranged for an apartment for him to live in by himself," answered Jiraiya though his eyes wouldn't meet her right away and she instantly suspected something was off with his answer.
"Where is the apartment located? Where?!" demanded Tsunade while grabbing him by his shirt and looked the man dead in the eye.
"Tsunade, it doesn't matter. Just drop it," replied Jiraiya before he was slammed into a nearby tree and Tsunade had her fist cocked back to fire at his head.
"Either you tell me where the apartment is located or I 'drop' you here and lie to sensei about how you met your end," threatened Tsunade with her eyes narrowing and Jiraiya knew she was serious.
"It is located between the Slums and the Red Light District," answered Jiraiya with the woman in front of him looking livid.
"I know that place. Its run down. Basically rotting from the inside out. The Councils have been wrapping it up in red bureaucratic tape for years to keep the Hokage from cleaning it up. They basically control the area around that section of the village. They will use it to their advantage and cover up any abuse Naruto suffers!" exclaimed Tsunade with Jiraiya wincing knowing it was true, but wasn't about to let that stop him.
"The Kyuubi can heal him Tsunade. He can take the punishment," said Jiraiya before he was slammed against the tree yet again.
"You wouldn't be saying that if it was Minato at Naruto's age they were attacking. We both know you would storm into sensei's office and demand the heads of every person that hurt your student. Hell, you would hunt them down yourselves, and display their dead bodies all over the village square with a sign saying "Jiraiya was here!" so everyone knew who made an example of them," countered Tsunade with Jiraiya scowling now at the mention of his late student.
"That is different Tsunade. Minato is...was my...," said Jiraiya, but was cutoff by Tsunade who had heard enough.
"Was what Jiraiya? Your student? Your surrogate son? Everything you had wanted in life for a student who could give you fame and glory on the side? To boast about? I saw how you acted when I had to be around you in public Jiraiya. Always boasting about 'Minato doing this!' or 'Minato doing!' with you basically implying he was strong thanks to your teachings. You would have never gotten that far with Naruto. You didn't even want to try with Naruto!" exclaimed Tsunade while the man narrowed his eyes at her.
"Perhaps, but I'm not going to apologize for it. Minato and Kushina may have entrusted me with him as the Godparent, but its not a binding obligation to be there for him every single second. I'm not going to be there to hold his hand every step of the way. That is not what a sensei or Godparent does with a kid," said Jiraiya while Tsunade grit her teeth in anger.
"You are a complete and total asshole! Being a Godparent means you raise a child and teach him the basics of life. Maleficent was right to take away guardianship of Naruto from you. You were a failure as a Genin growing up just as you are a total failure as a Godfather when Naruto was born!" stated Tsunade with Jiraiya looking increasingly angry at her words since being a failure most of his life had always been a sore spot for him.
"And what about you Slug Princess? You weren't exactly in his life either. Too afraid to be a surrogate Mother. You tucked tail and ran like a whipped dog. You're no better then I am in terms of being a bad Godparent," countered Jiraiya while Tsunade angry eyes now sported water running down her face.
"I know Jiraiya. Unlike you, I can at least admit my mistakes regarding my neglect with Naruto, and at least try to make the attempt to earn his forgiveness. You won't even say you're sorry to him. You don't even care that what sensei plans to do will rip away his happiness!" exclaimed Tsunade angrily with Jiraiya not meeting her in the eyes.
"Konoha's overall happiness matters far more Tsunade. One child's suffering over a little displeasure for the village's superiority for years to come is hardly a price worth flinching over when paying for it," replied Jiraiya before he was punched hard in the face and he felt his jaw break in multiple places.
"And you wonder why I refused to be with you. I always saw the ugliness in you Jiraiya. I could easily tolerate your perverted nature, but the ugliness of your soul from your own actions in the past, and the present is another matter entirely. IF Naruto comes under my custody, I will not allow you to hurt him, or mold him into Konoha weapon. I will fight every ninja, every ANBU, you, and even sensei to prevent that from happening. Part of me is almost hoping he will win against Kakashi so this matter will be stupidity that is sensei's plan!" said Tsunade before she walked away from Jiraiya, who glared behind his broken, and very swollen face.
'This is bad. I knew Tsunade was acting like this earlier, but I didn't think she would get this bad, or this emotional either. Her maternal instincts for Naruto have been growing for years. The bodies she broke that one day when some people talked bad about Naruto is proof of that. Now the only question left to ask is...will she leave with Naruto? Or will she kill everyone in sight to prevent us from fulfilling his destiny?' thought Jiraiya, as he rubbed his swollen face, and winced when touching it.
No peeping in the hot springs or flirting with the ladies for him.
(With Naruto)
Naruto stood in the courtyard used for training. His face was dead serious. He looked like a commander addressing the troops about an important mission.
In a way, he was doing just that. For standing in front of him was Haku, Gaara, Tayuya, Karin, Itachi, and Anko with Maleficent watching everything off to the side.
"As most of you here now know, I am to compete in the Chuunin Exams being held in Konoha in the coming months against Hatake Kakashi in an exhibition match. A match with my Mother's guardianship over me being at stake. If I lose to my foe, Senju Tsunade will become my new guardian, and Konoha will use that to make me into their weapon they can control with a snap of their fingers. Considering that time is against us and my foe is a high level Jounin taught personally by my late Father the Yondaime Hokage, we need to up my training to the point where it would considered cruel. I must train to the point where even my vast reserves of chakra are drained to the point of nonexistence. I must train until my body cannot handle any more. This is where all of you will come into play," said Naruto while he saw Itachi, Anko, and Gaara nod since they knew this was indeed necessary.
Karin and Tayuya looked a bit nervous since they had never been forced into such a high level, backbreaking training session when under the service of Orochimaru.
"Hatake Kakashi is skilled ninja. He even has the Sharingan under his headband that was given to him by his deceased teammate Uchiha Obito. He has copied over one thousand Jutsus. He will not be easy to beat," added Itachi since he knew of Kakashi's reputation when he was in the ANBU.
"All the more the reason to train until I drop. Haku, I need you to infiltrate Konoha for a small time, and observe Kakashi long enough to evaluate his threat potential. Itachi, I will be working with you on how to combat the Sharingan in the event I force him to use his own. Anko will help with stealth, traps, and various other methods of attacking the boy with kunai, shuriken, and other assorted weapons. Gaara, I will have you spar with me for a time, and help teach you some things so you don't rely on your sand so much," replied Naruto while the group nodded.
"What about us cousin?" asked Karin while Naruto knew the two girls wanted to know what they would be doing.
"We as a group will be studying Fuinjutsu together. As members of the Uzumaki Clan, we must strengthen ourselves in that field since it is our birthright. To deny ourselves such a skill is like denying fish the right to swim in water. Or denying a bird the right to fly through the air," stated Naruto with both girls nodding in agreement.
"Sounds like a crap load of fun cousin," commented Tayuya while she wanted to expand on other things outside of her flute to make Genjutsu or summon Oni to fight for her.
"Considering what is at risk here, this needs to be taken seriously. If Konoha learns either you or Karin are here, if they haven't already, chances are Orochimaru will too, and you two need to be a lot stronger to repel anything sent your way. Konoha will not tolerate anyone else having someone of Uzumaki Clan blood in their veins. They want to have the exclusive rights to our clan due our family being able to hold Kyuubi inside our bodies. Our overall talents in Fuinjutsu being second to none makes us all prime candidates for villages to recruit for making new seals or possibly breaking them. Kumo would seek to have you in their ranks to breed new Uzumaki Clan members and make some of them into Seal Masters. They would wish for the latter from us in order to target certain seals like the Hyuuga Clan's Cage Bird Seals in order to break them," explained Naruto, as he had been given a thorough education about the world from Itachi, and Anko about how Shinobi villages operate when it comes to the value of a nearly extinct clan or a just one ninja in general with incredible skills few could match.
"Well when you put it like that," said Tayuya knowing Orochimaru wouldn't expect her or Karin to learn anything about Fuinjutsu.
She bet the snake fucker would simply die knowing both of them could and they were both Uzumaki Clan members to boot! Wouldn't that be a riot?! Orochimaru dies not from a kunai, old age, or a Jutsu experiment gone wrong. But from shock at having two full blooded Uzumaki Clan members in his hands and not even realizing it until after it was too late.
"We have only a few months before I go into the heart of what I consider to be enemy territory. When that time comes, I want to be at a level that would make the Hokage himself break out in a sweat," said Naruto with his eyes burning with determination, as he knew what was at risk, and would rise to meet it no matter what.
He would not lose his family. He would not lose to Hatake Kakashi. He would not lose to Konoha! PERIOD!
(A/N: YAY! I updated for all of you. Hope you enjoyed this little number for all of you for the New Year of 2015. Hard to imagine huh? Me too. Until next time...PEACE!)
