Here's another chapter from your fearless leader!!! Haha, have at it.

Review Responses:

Thanks to: Reikson (again, I wish you could elaborate), Sir Trib The Bold (haha, I dare cause I can.), ViperineVampire (Dun worry, it was on purpose, but all will be ok…maybe.), Swish (your name reminds me of a friend name Swoosh, btw. Random, but it made me giggle), spedclass, Dmdarts, changingtides (yeah, I like my Sasuke too. I LOATHE the cannon Sasuke. So, here I make him a pretty pretty princess in comparison. Haha.), chm01 (this is Naruto. Hell no would do that! Though, I did consider it…), MadaMag (…I said from the beginning that this was a harem. I would like to change it, but it's to late. As for the Tsukiyomi, just keep reading), HorusRei (Thank you. I was also getting tired of Minato stories, and no one really knows anything about Kushina, so it's fun to create her own story), DJ Rodriguez, Shinato, DarkRavie (are you a psychic?), InARealPickle (kind of sad that you say that), KMT, skepsis66, DarksinX91 (I enjoyed every second of it)

Words of the Wolf:

(these are from Halo game nights with my friends)

-What is this, epic elevator music?" - Tiffany "Yeah, epic elevator music makes you want to kill things." –Alex

-"Hey, get a sword while you can" -Alex "Don't need one" –Matt "What do you have that is better than a sword?" –Alex "Grenades." - Matt

Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto or its original characters. I do, however, take claim to this plot and my characters. No touchy!


Senpuu

The Hokage was on edge, as he sat quietly in his office. Every nerve wanted to jump up and head straight to the hospital. But he couldn't, as something more pressing was in his office.

Uchiha Mikoto sat in front of him, her expression blank, as she waited for her son Sasuke to wake from his stupor. Sarutobi was doing his best to figure out why Sasuke was here, and Naruto wasn't. This was not how everything had been arranged. What had gone wrong?

Coughing loudly, he spoke loudly, "Sasuke-kun…Sasuke-kun!" This seemed to wake the young boy from his state of shock, as he looked around to figure out his surroundings. Then something clicked, and the young Uchiha asked worriedly,

"Where's Naruto? Is he alright? What's going on? Why-"

The Hokage held up his hand, and the boy silenced. "Sasuke-kun…What I'm about to discuss with you is an SS ranked village secret. You will not breathe another word of this. Do you understand this?"

The coal eyed boy was confused, but after a nod from his mother, he replied, eyes widened, "I understand, Hokage-sama."

"Then please answer every question promptly."

The old man sat back in his chair, inhaling the smoke from his pipe. Exhaling slowly, he began, treading softly on how to explain this to the 8 year old.

"Who is the most important person to you, Sasuke?"

The boy answered quickly as directed, "Naruto." This was not surprising to Sarutobi, knowing the boy's deep friendship for the blond.

"And what is it that Naruto wants to become?"

"Hokage…?"

This was going to be tricky. "And if any one, even your friends, or his family, ever threaten Naruto, what would you do?"

This idea didn't sit well. No one would do that! But he answered again, trying to understand just what the man was saying.

"I would stop them. Any one of them."

Sarutobi nodded, continuing, "So, if your own family ever threatened Naruto, if he was ever Hokage, would you treat them the same as anyone who threatened your Hokage, or would you let it slide."

This took a bit for Sasuke to respond, as he was still trying to connect the situation and conversation together in his currently frazzled mind. "I would stop them. Hokage is the leader of Konoha, and any one who threatens the Hokage is an enemy."

The Sandaime glanced at Mikoto, who merely held her son her lap, expressionless as she let him explain what was going on in this round about fashion. Going on, he asked,

"And if the only way to stop them, was to kill them, would you do it? Would you cut all ties from your clan to protect your Hokage?"

The lines connected, and the young Uchiha answered slowly, remembering something Iruka-sensei told them in class, repeating it now, "A shinobi's first loyalty is to their Kage and village. For without their village and Kage, they are merely mercenaries. Any other loyalty is leisure."

The Hokage inhaled his pipe again, letting the boy sit and mull over his own words. Sasuke asked cautiously,

"Hokage-sama…was my family your enemy?"

Sarutobi didn't want to hurt a child, but he didn't want to lose an Uchiha by lying. In his dealings with the boy, Sasuke didn't do well if he was lied to in order to comfort him. So, the best way to keep the younger Uchiha, was to tell him the true events.

"Yes."

If it was possible, Sasuke paled, a horror struck look on his face at this realization. His family died as the enemies of their home. But, why? Why did they do this? The Hokage went on, exhaling pipe smoke,

"Your mother, a retired kunoichi of Konoha, remembered where her loyalties lie, and after discovering a plot by your father and other Uchiha to usurp my authority and place themselves in charge of Konoha, informed me immediately. And before you ask, yes, Itachi was ordered to execute the members of your family, except you, and your mother. I have another job for him, and the only way he could do it, is if he is seen as an enemy of Konoha."

Sasuke wanted to ask what this other job for Itachi was, but knew the Hokage wouldn't tell. He did question something else.

"Why did Itachi-nii-san do that…thing? Naruto jumped in front of me before anything happened."

The Hokage seemed uncomfortable answering that, but he did so, "Think of it this way, Sasuke-kun. Your whole clan was killed. But the only person you are concerned with is Naruto. Don't get me wrong, but to many others, this is not seen as the correct response. What the general response to something like this, is for you to hate your brother, to want vengeance. No one but us and a few others know about the Uchiha's plan. So, you were to be used as a decoy. Do you understand?"

Sasuke thought about it. This reminded him of one of the many games him and Naruto had played. It was so familiar, because Sasuke had played the diversion, taking the blame…He replied back, trying to make sense of all this in his own words, "So, that genjutsu that Itachi-nii-san did, it was supposed to make me act in the correct response of hatred towards him. It would just be seen as my brother going mad, and I would be the distraction, so Itachi-nii-san could do his…other mission. Right?"

Sarutobi nodded, glad the boy understood this. "Correct. But, it seems Naruto gathered the strength to protect you. This is why you need to in every form, act for the sake of this situation. Can you do this, Sasuke-kun?"

Sasuke nodded solemnly. He didn't know how to do this, but he'd find a way.

Mikoto looked down at her baby boy, now burdened with a secret so large, and he took it with out a second thought. This whole situation was extreme. She had lost her elder son, and now her younger child was under the thumb of the Hokage. She didn't hate the old man…but he seemed to be taking her only joys in life from her.

Hokage signaled for one of the ANBU to take Sasuke to the hospital for a check up, and he was now left in the office with the retired kunoichi. He didn't know how start off.

"Mikoto-san…"

She looked up, anger flaring in the black eyes. Sarutobi wisely silenced himself.

"Do not patronize me, Hokage-sama. I gave you everything, on the agreement that my sons, innocent of the crimes of the Uchiha, would be spared. And you have somehow had my eldest signed up for a double mission? How long is he to be gone? With this, he'll be marked as a missing nin. What are you planning?"

Sandaime inhaled his pipe deeply, before exhaling a large plume of smoke. "That, I can not tell you. Nor can I say how long he will be gone. But, please understand this. Itachi-kun volunteered himself for this assignment. He felt that it would be better this way. He left me a letter to give to you."

Opening a drawer of the desk, he grabbed the letter on top marked Uchiha. Passing it over, Mikoto stretched her arm to take it from the old man, but she did not open it. The Hokage continued,

"Have you decided on what you will be doing?"

Mikoto nodded, "Saki-sama has asked for me and Sasuke to live with her in our grieving. I will maintain residence with her, as well as take missions part time, and train my son in the true ways of the Uchiha, instead of the crack pot ideals his father and fellow clansmen tried to instill in him."

Sandaime quirked his brow. She had quite a bit of venom in her voice when speaking of her now dead clansmen and husband. He knew she had hated her arranged marriage, but he wondered what exactly had happened in the past 13 years of inactivity.

"How do you plan to teach him, may I ask?"

Mikoto stared at the Hokage, and he watched with a deep satisfaction, as her coal black eyes turned into deep red, with 3 tomoes present. She smirked,

"Apparently, I'm like my lost little brother. Our side of the family were late bloomers, which was considered a shame to other Uchiha. I finally received my eye when I was 19, after I had married Fugaku. And, because of this late blooming, we are better than other Uchiha."

Her eyes changed again, with the three tomoe turning into the three spikes facing outward like an arrow.

"Unlike other Uchiha, we receive the true, full power of the Sharnigan, with out sacrificing another human. This trait, I have given to both my sons. Itachi may have gotten his eye early, but my genes run truest through him. And because my family has the purest blood of Sharnigan, our ultimate techniques are not an abomination like other Uchiha."

Sandaime could not in any way describe his surprise. Mikoto turned her eyes back to normal, and said firmly, sitting up to show her seriousness of the situation,

"Hokage-sama, I think you would agree, that I need to start training Kakashi-kun again."


Itachi had run fast into the forest, to meet at the point designated. He was a good 8 miles from the gates of Konoha, but already, he felt an ache in his chest.

Coming to a stop on a high thick branch, he took a respite while waiting. Damn it, why was Naruto there?! This screwed things up! It's not like he had wanted to do Tsukiyomi to Sasuke, but he had needed things to go smoothly!

Wiping the liquid in his eyes away, the 13 year old crushed as much feeling as he could. He couldn't have these feelings in plain sight anymore. Not where he was going.

A chakra signature came and was on the branch, crouching in front of him. It was the operative who had helped out with killing his clan. The man was strange, but Itachi respected him nonetheless. The older man spoke gruffly, shifting his massive sword on his back.

"Come on. We need you out of here and somewhere were you would get attention from the target. If we stick here to long, both of us endanger our purpose."

Itachi nodded, "Yes, Zabuza-san." With that, the other man disappeared, and with a last pained good bye, Itachi turned away from the oncoming morning light to join Zabuza in the shadows.

He left behind his ANBU weasel mask, tied to the branch as it faced the sunrise.


He woke to find himself in a familiar place, people around him, green chakra hands, the blinding light from the lamp above, that disgusting smell of sterilization.

He wanted to move away from these people. He didn't want them to touch him. But he couldn't move. None of his muscles were letting him. He could barely keep his eyes open.

It didn't take long for him to slip away again, but now he retreated to the dank sewers instead of the tortuous red world.

Waiting for him by the gate was the red orange fox, who merely grabbed him with one of his tails, and wrapped him closely among its furs, humming a tune softly.

A comforting black sleep took him.


Sasuke was sitting in the hospital bed, numb. His ANBU guards had left to stand outside and let him rest. He knew they were just as nervous about Naruto's condition. He wondered if the dog masked guy was the same one from Naruto's stories. It would explain why his hands were shaking earlier.

He reviewed over what had happened earlier. The conversation with the Hokage had explained things, but that didn't help him with why had Naruto jumped in the way.

Obviously, neither of them knew what was going on. But why had that idiot gotten himself hurt?

The hospital door opened, and Sasuke saw Naruto's young looking grandmother rush in, and he found himself wrapped up in her silken arms, her kimono covering every inch of him, cocooning him. The surprise didn't last long, because he hugged her as best as he could.

Neither said anything for a bit, until she asked softly,

"Any news?"

He shook his head. "Nothing. Not even the ANBU have been given news."

Saki bit her lip, holding tightly on to her grandson's best friend. Sasuke asked curiously, seeing this as his best chance.

"Saki-obaa-sama…why did Naruto jump in front of me."

It took a minute, but a soft smile melted onto her face, "Because you are my grandson's brother, and best friend. You are one of his precious people. The only time a person is truly at their strongest, is when they fight to protect someone they love."

She squeezed the young Uchiha, as he contemplated her answer, and before long, he had fallen asleep in her arms.


Inoichi was worried, as was his partner. The boy wasn't waking up. The intel from the new Uchiha clan head, Mikoto, said that a person would normally take 2 or 3 days to wake up, and then they would have to fix whatever happened in the world of Tsukiyomi.

Naruto had been out for 5 days, with no signs of coming out.

So, the Hokage ordered him to enter the blond's mind.

He had spent 2 days scouring scrolls, but there had never been a record of how to enter a jinchuuriki's mind. It was extremely dangerous, because bijuu protect their containers for the sole purpose of living a bit longer. He didn't know how Kyuubi would take to him prodding the boy's mind.

With a nod at his partner, he started going through the hand seals. He spoke firmly, "Shin Magarime no jutsu!"

His body went limp, and his partner caught him, moving his body to lie on a near by bed. Staring at the limp and pale blond, he sat himself in a chair in between the two unconscious bodies, keeping watch over both.

The burly man sighed quietly, resting his chin on his hands. Ibiki begged to Kami that Inoichi could wake Naruto.


Inoichi did not like the looks of Naruto's mind. Dark sewers, with horrible lighting, crumbling walls, leaks, the water looked reminiscent of blood, and smelled like it too. He wasn't surprised to see marks of violence, kunai and shuriken imbedded in the walls, or laid on the sides, dried blood in pools.

He walked around in the maze of the mind guided by the red and blue pipes that flashed every time a pulse of the chakra came through. He was heading in the right direction, as he found himself in front of the large iron door, ominous as pipes went every where, and steam rose from the bottom of the door.

Cautiously, he pushed the door open slipping inside the room as quiet as possible.

And his fears of 8 years ago came back.

Behind the thick bars of the cage, with merely a white paper written simply as 'Seal' over the gates, was the demon fox, in all it's terrifying glory.

Quickly, Inoichi got over his shaking terrors, as he stepped closer.

"So, you've finally come to help the kit. About damn time."

The ancient guttural voice was surprisingly not hostile as before. Inoichi actually had to pinch himself to make sure this wasn't a mind game. What in the world…

The fox reared its massive head to look at Inoichi, and the dirty blond could swear there was concern in the fox's eyes.

"Hurry! Get inside! The kit hasn't woken up in days, and I can't do anything while he sleeps."

With that, one of the fox's tails wrapped around Inoichi, and carried him behind the bars of his cage. Inoichi was waiting for Kyuubi to swallow him, but he was placed on the ground inside the cage, and Kyuubi lifted some more tails to reveal the prone form of Naruto.

Inoichi quickly ran over to the boy, gathering the child in his arms. Checking for any injuries, he found nothing. Looking up at the Kyuubi, he asked,

"Was he like this the entire time?"

The fox nodded, flicking his tails. "He woke up only once, and that was right after he was released from the genjutsu. He hasn't moved since he came to my cage. I tried to wake him, inside and outside of the seal…but nothing. I know he is still alive…but he is somewhere I can't get to him…and that's hard, considering we're joined together by pretty much every fragment of our souls."

Inoichi took Naruto outside of the cage, and Kyuubi watched as the man tried to find something to put the boy on. In front of him manifested a platform for Inoichi to stand on, and table to lie the boy.

The Yamanaka didn't even bother asking how the fox could contort things outside of his area, but went to work. Running through another set of symbols, he brought some of his chakra to his hands, and placed one on Naruto's chest, and another on his forehead, and with a forceful surge, his chakra revived the unconscious soul of the child.

Naruto awoke, gasping for new breath, finding himself in a familiar place. But, with an intruder. Sitting up, he tried to get away from the man, one of his own family, who tried to hurt him. He didn't get far, as Yamanaka grabbed him roughly and hugged him tightly.

Naruto shook, waiting for the man to hurt him, and he cried out,

"I'm sorry! I didn't want to kill people! I'm sorry!! Don't hurt me anymore!! I'm not a demon!!!"

Inoichi continued holding Naruto, and glanced at Kyuubi, who watched from behind the bars, his tails seeking to comfort the child again.

"He has been broken. Though, his mind wasn't much to begin with. The genjutsu…Tsukiyomi, was powerful. Uchiha chakra is much more sinister than I…I could not prevent the Tsukiyomi, all I was able to do was make the kit realize that it wasn't all real…but, when you are told for 3 months in that world, that you are a murderer, a demon, while everyone you love and cherish attack you with all sorts of weapons, over and over, no matter how much you've bled…the kit has been broken."

Yamanaka wanted to ask what he meant about Uchiha's, but his first concern was Naruto, and getting him back in the real world. He surprised himself, when he ordered the currently helpful fox demon,

"When I leave, I need you to kick him out of here. You can see and hear what he does, right?"

The fox nodded, "Yes. Even when he is asleep, if I myself am awake."

Inoichi continued, "Good. Then you are to kick him out of the seal when I say so, and you can only let him back in when I say so. He's going to try avoiding the rehabilitation, but you can NOT let him. Got it?"

The 9 tailed demon stared at this human ordering him around, but chuckled. "Understood. Heal the kit. Now, get out!"

Inoichi found himself expelled from the mind and seal, and had to steady himself from the sense of whip lash that he had.

But that was quickly ignored, as he realized that Naruto was up, and trying pitifully to get away from the two people near him, screaming at the top of his lungs as he grabbed his head in pain.

Before Inoichi got up, Ibiki quickly wrapped his arms around the crying blond, ignoring his pathetic attempt at fighting out of the jounins arms as he secured him, medic nins and ANBU from the hallway running inside at hearing the boy.

This…was going to take a while.


Naruto stood stock still as the clone of his best friend was holding his arms out to hug him once again. Sasuke wrapped his arms around him, and Naruto managed to control his shaking and reciprocate the motion.

He managed to hold on for 3 minutes before he let go, and the clone poofed away. Inoichi spoke from behind the blond, standing next to the little boy, and putting a comforting hand on his shoulder. Naruto did not move away, but looked up and Inoichi, smiling softly.

"Good job Naruto. You've come far. But now, it's time for you to go home. Your family is concerned, and you've been in isolation for a month."

Naruto nodded. He didn't and did like the idea of returning home. It had taken some time, but he recognized that his family was not out to hurt him. That he wasn't the demon he thought he was. But, it had really taken a month of extreme isolation for him to be comfortable with people, even clones.

Sometimes Inoichi-jii-san had let other adults come in, and they each talked, or touched him to get him to confirm that they weren't going to hurt him. He had made many cry when he refused to let them back in.

But, he was better than before, and he really did want to go apologize to them. He wouldn't let this thing win.

Stepping out from the room he had been living in for a month, he was more than pleased to see familiar people. Bear, Wolf, and Dog were all there to greet him as he left the room. The first one to pick him up in a hug was Dog, and Naruto quickly held on to him, smiling at him the same as he did to Inoichi.

Bear and Wolf also had their turns holding him, and it was the same response.

With that, the group headed out of the lower halls of the Hokage Tower and as he walked through the lobby, Naruto felt the warmth of morning light again. The ANBU went on their ways, and Inoichi took Naruto by the hand out in to the city.

The 8 year old stuck close to the older man, still a bit scared of crowds, but he wasn't shaking anymore. The two found themselves heading to the ninja clans areas, and they came to the Hyuuga compound first. Naruto was greeted by many of the branch members, and they came to the head house. At the entry way, they were escorted to the meeting room.

And inside were the many adults he had come to see as family. Standing stock still at the entrance, Inoichi had to gave Naruto a little push into the room, before closing the fusuma doors. He found a place for himself, right in between Tsume and Hiashi.

Everyone smiled encouragingly at him, and he fiddled with his mother's necklace. And for the first time in a month, he grinned foxily at them, and said firmly,

"No broken promises, no regrets, and protecting our precious people. Ne?"

Tsume grabbed the blond into a hug as Hiashi poked the boy in the stomach as he giggled while all his other guardians tickled the little boy. The group was lively once again at the return of the central point.

Since the school year was basically over, he was allowed to take supplementary lessons at home with his various other senseis, all of whom had no problem whipping him back into his previous shape. So that first day back from isolation, was spent at first with greeting all the adults, but also with them checking where he stood in progress.

Shiba had a two hour lesson of math, history, and language, while Shikaku was once again establishing strategy and logic for his hour of teaching. Hiashi was seeing his current chakra level, and having Naruto work on his chakra control as usual, and Tsume and Miyako got on him about survival skills and jutsu.

Chouza would have gone on his rant about nutrition, but Inoichi held him back, seeing as the boy was still trying to come back.

By 3, Hinata and Neji came home. Naturally, Neji walked off, but upon seeing her nii-sama, Hinata interrupted Naruto's drinking tea to hug him in surprise. Her shout apparently announced to a particular 2 year old that Naruto was there, and out came Hanabi, stumbling around once she learned that it was true, and she attacked Naruto as well.

The adults watching were pleased that he had no outward signs of the genjutsu, but Inoichi had warned them to go slowly, because it would take a long time for him to really return to normal. But seeing the usual scene of the two Hyuuga heiresses tackling their older blond brother was a good start.


After talking with his little sisters, Naruto was allowed to go to the Namikaze compound, and see the rest of his family. He was escorted there by Tsume, who also held his hand, and the two had a chat about him seeing his fox family again, as he needed to get back to training with them.

Since the Inuzuka compound was in the same direction as the Namikaze, to a bystander, it would be assumed that she was taking Naruto through the forest to the Inuzuka. But in fact, a right turn at a hidden path led them straight to their destination.

The Namikaze branch family members greeted the blond warmly, but continued on their work, and before long, they were in front of the main house. Going through the gate, he wasn't surprised to see someone waiting for him. But, he was surprised to see that it was his second cousin, Hotaru.

She was dressed in her many kimono, and her long hair flowed to the floor, and upon seeing him, she smiled brightly. She bowed, and then brought him into a hug.

"It is good to so you doing a bit better, Naruto-ouji. Everyone has been praying for your quick home coming. Come, we have much to speak of. Thank you, Tsume-sama, for bringing him home."

Tsume smiled at the girl, as she reached out to ruffle the blond spikes. "No problem, Namikaze-chan. Naruto, we'll see you tomorrow, remember that."

Naruto nodded, as Tsume left, and he was guided by Hotaru inside. They went to Saki's section in the back, and waiting for them, were the many women of the head family. As he came nearer, he was enveloped in a hug by his grandmother, and neither said anything until she released her hold of him, smiling warmly with tears at the corners of her eyes. He whispered, "I'm sorry, Obaa-chan."

She only shook her head, "There is nothing to apologize for." Ume-oba-san took her turn in hugging him next, and then Sayuri-oba-san, and then the rest of the women, including his other second cousins, the tykes known as Kumiko and Manami. His cousin Yumi was holding her 6 month old, Ryouichi, and he was passed over for Naruto hold him.

The blond asked, "Where are all the guys?" His cousin-in-law, Kiyoko, answered, "Ichirou is with his genin team on a mission, and Katashi is taking a nap. Your cousin, Kichiro, is working. As for your uncle Sora, he and Kohaku are in the armory or smithery, and Yoshi is also working, I believe."

Naruto nodded, and asked again, "No one's told me…but what about Sasuke, and his mom?"

Saki answered that one, as she brought a 2 foot scroll that had been behind her, and thrust it at her grandson. "It has been deemed by the council, that as there is no expectancy for Mikoto-chan to have anymore children, that it is up to Sasuke-kun to revive his clan. He has also been put under the same expectations of you, and is to be in several arranged marriages. And, if you'll read the 14th passage down, you will see some…interesting, news."

Naruto glanced at the tricky women around him, giving Ryouichi back to Yumi, and opened the scroll as told. It was a new scroll, on the recent history of the family. It was Saki-obaa-chan's duty to write the history of the clan. They had started the new scroll when they had returned to Konoha, and Naruto was prominently in them.

He went down to the 14th passage, and read carefully. And he read again, just to make sure he had for some reason been mistaken. But he wasn't.

'…it is by the law of the Hokage, for the last male heir, Uchiha Sasuke, to revive the clan, under the act of Clan Restoration. This is also an act that has been put on Namikaze-Uzumaki Naruto, but this has not been publicly announced, unlike the Uchiha.

'The Uchiha clan heir and his mother has taken permanent residence in the Namikaze compound, and out of a faith, I, Saki, 12th leader of the Namikaze clan, have created a treaty with the Uchiha, by a marriage contract.

'The first wife of Uchiha Sasuke will be second cousin of the Namikaze heir, a daughter by blood lineage, Hotaru, daughter of Kichiro, son of Ume, daughter of Saki. Their marriage will take place when the Uchiha reaches the age of 17.

'With this treaty to the family, Uchiha Sasuke and his mother, Mikoto, are under the protection of Namikaze, but have been directly placed as wards of the Namikaze heir. It has also been arranged, by Uchiha Sasuke, to be the Namikaze heir's personal guard….'

It went on with other details, but this was the more outstanding facts at the moment. Apparently his shocked face was rather entertaining, because the women surrounding him were giggling. Glancing at Hotaru, she had a smile on her face, and he couldn't interpret how she felt about this. Gathering his thoughts, he asked, rubbing the back of his head, asking the first question at the moment.

"What does it mean, they're my wards?"

Saki answered, fanning herself slowly, "It means, you take care of them. While Sasuke's mom has jobs around the house, because she refused to do nothing, you are still in charge of her well being. Such as making sure she is fed, clothed, and many other factors. We will explain that later. It seems we have some visitors."

Naruto blinked, unsure what she meant, but he felt it seconds later when he was dog piled by 5 other boys. The women laughed as Naruto got out from underneath, and the 6 boys proceeded to attack each other, Naruto laughing loudly as he beat Kiba down, only to be side swiped by Chouji. Even Shino and Shikamaru were participating in the senseless greeting.


Laying in his futon, Naruto felt much better, as he was physically exhausted, and he was feeling better as the day came to end. He hadn't felt so good in what felt like 100 years ago. Yawning, he turned over to look at the ceiling.

After his friends had tackled him, the rest of the Namikaze had come home, and they had dinner together with his family, like old times. They were able to hang out for a while, but they had to leave as sunset finally came.

Mikoto had given Naruto a warm hug, and told him what his duties were as far as she was concerned. When he had told her that it was weird taking care of a grown up, she had laughed, and told him that he needed practice. For what, she wouldn't explain.

But, Mikoto was living in Saki's section, as she had told Naruto that she was his grandmother's assistant, and Sasuke was living in the room by Naruto, in his section of the house.

As for Sasuke…that had been an awkward reunion at first. Naruto didn't know how to say he was sorry for death of the Uchiha, but Sasuke had beat him to it, and just said he was glad that his mother was ok, and that Naruto was better. But, he told Naruto bluntly that outside of friends, and in public eye, he would have to act angry. When the blond tried to learn why, Sasuke had been hesitant, but then supplied a barrage of information, and Naruto was silenced to keep it between the two of them.

Trying to switch subjects, Naruto asked the other boy how he had felt about his arranged marriage. Sasuke surprisingly blushed, and said he had no problem with Hotaru being his first wife. Naruto had teased his friend mercilessly, but was stopped after awhile when Sasuke turned the tables on him. It was currently a stalemate between the two about that.

As Naruto remembered the other parts of the night, his mind wandered, and captured him to drag him into sleep. Sadly, it dragged him into his nightmares once again.


It was Ume-oba-san who was next to him when he woke from his nightmare. He recognized many other figures in his room, but he couldn't see them, as his aunt brought him into her embrace and hid him from view as he cried into her shoulder.

He knew those dreams weren't real. But that didn't stop them from terrifying him to his core. After a while, Ume let him go, and he saw Sayuri-oba-san next to him now, and after she did a couple seals, she poked his forehead, and his world went pitch black.

Kichiro and Yoshi came over, shooing the women out of the room, as the Kichiro held the now peaceful blond, and Yoshi changed out the futon, while Kohaku came over with a new yukata. Naruto had sweated severally throughout his sleep, and they changed him into clean clothes.

Finished, they allowed the others back into the room, not bothering to be quiet as Naruto was out cold with Sayuri's seal. Kichiro asked, "The children?"

Sora answered as he leaned against a wall, watching over his nephew. "Yumi, Kiyoko, Mikoto, and Saki-obaa-sama are settling them down. Sasuke-kun had trouble being put back to sleep."

Ume snorted, "That boy takes his job seriously. Of course he would despise not knowing what is going on."

Her son, Kichiro, changed the subject back on task, "It seems Inoichi-san's statement was correct. It'll take much longer for Naruto-ouji to recover."

Sayuri ran a hand through her sleeping nephew's spikes, troubled, "I can put the seal on him, but that won't fix anything. He'll just be avoiding the problem."

Yoshi asked, curious, "Then what would you suggest, okaa-san? That we put Naruto-ouji through the same terror as he experienced? That would reverse all progress he had!"

Ume quirked a brow, replying for her sister as she smoothed out the futon. "And yet the only way for him to get over this, is by having him defeat it. Naruto-ouji is a strong child of the Namikaze. He will over come this."

This firm belief was accepted by the others, and the determination of helping the clan heir crackled the air.


He woke up the next morning to find his cousins Kumiko, Manami, and Katashi jumping on his bed. Laughing, he grabbed the youngest, Manami, and before long, he had Katashi in his other arm. Trouble is, he had no arm for Kumiko, who giggled in delight at not being caught.

Naruto was chasing after her, when someone opened his door, and Kumiko ran straight into Hotaru, who swept her up quickly. His 10 year old cousin smiled brightly as she came into the room.

"It is good to see you feeling better, Naruto-ouji. Come, we must get you dressed for breakfast."

With that, she shooed away the little ones, and she went to Naruto's closet and brought out clothes. Unsure of what was just going on, he asked,

"Don't you have to go to the Academy today?"

Hotaru laughed, "No, it's Saturday. Myself and Sasuke-kun are staying home. Ichirou-nii-san just got back from his mission this morning as well. Hurry up!"

She tossed him the clothes she had picked out, and he would have groaned, but did as told. Getting dressed in the several male kimono, his last layer a dark blue with many colored koi fish embroidered, and the simple orange obi, he checked his image in the bathroom mirror. His studs were still in, and his mother's necklace was outside his kimono, and he was also wearing the black choker he had worn before when his grandmother and aunts made him play dress up.

Putting on the tabi, he left his room to find Sasuke waiting for him, also dressed in male kimono, his last layer was green with iris', and a black obi. Sasuke stood to join him, and Naruto noticed things he hadn't the day before. Sasuke's left ear had two studs in it, and he had a black choker like Naruto, but with a silver disc, and blue beads.

Naruto snorted, "What's with the whole dress up?"

Sasuke shrugged, "Apparently it's normal for people to dress nicely for meals at your house. They've just been letting you get away with wearing training clothes."

The blond grumbled, and they headed to the dining room, where everyone was waiting. Taking his place by his grandmother at the head of the table, and Ume-oba-san right next to them. Sasuke and his mother were sitting by Sayuri-oba-san's family. As soon as Saki-obaa-sama started eating, the rest followed.

When they were almost done Ume spoke up, "Since it is a good day, I believe we should have some family training. Of course, Mikoto, Sasuke-kun, you are more than welcomed to join us."

Everyone consented, though Naruto was confused once again. What in the world was family training?

He found out pretty quickly just what it was. Cold, cruel torture. Basically, it was training in a group, and then sometimes those groups faced off against each other.

He had frozen up 4 times as he fought people, visions of the red world coming to real life. But, they didn't stop attacking, and after a while, he had to defend himself.

He was currently fighting with Ichirou, and the older boy had no qualms using his speed to continue attacking Naruto. Still not used to fighting people like himself, his Namikaze eyes weren't as adjusted to watching the speed. Ichirou appeared from behind, and even though Naruto's instincts told him to duck under and go to the left, he wasn't fast enough, as he was hit in the back of the neck, going unconscious.

Hotaru, Ichirou, and Yoshi stood over the unconscious blond, and Yoshi whacked Ichirou on the back of the head.

"Way to go, idiot! We're supposed to get him to stop freezing, not knock him out!"

The two males bickered, while Hotaru just rolled her eyes, dragging Naruto away from them as they started a fight. She sighed, making sure her cousin was in the shade and comfortable enough. She spoke to herself as she laid down her weapons since it wasn't her turn to fight.

"Naruto-ouji, we need to work on your reflexes."


Author Commentary:

A smidgeon shorter, but I hope that is fine with you guys. I wanted to end this one with out so much as a cliff as I have in the last few chapters.

The whole thing with the Hokage was fun. I've always loved mind games, but I never actually attempted to do something like this. With the Hokage spinning it just right, Sasuke remains loyal. Because he put it in a hypothetical situation that would make Sasuke respond just the way the Hokage would want him too. Which basically controls Sasuke. MWAHAHA.

I don't know if I did it justice, or if I dramatized it to much with the whole Tsukiyomi. And to any who question the whole thing with why Naruto wasn't seeing Sasuke's torture….Because I wanted to make the Tsukiyomi a genjutsu that brings out a person's deepest fears. Don't fight me, and I'm getting tired of explaining myself. I DO WHAT I WANT!! It's my story, thank you! This isn't a request story. There has been a set plan, with certain events.

Back to the task at hand. I was kind of hoping people realized that I hadn't made Naruto as perfect as he seemed. While he was living a great life, it didn't mean his mind was getting better. With Inoichi's intervention (and Kyuubi's compliance/help), his mind will be getting an interior decoration as he goes on in life.

What I was portraying, was that Naruto wasn't exactly whole to begin with, and that with the genjutsu, he literally broke. With this, he will begin on his true path, because now he is getting 'fixed' properly, and he'll get over those old fears of being just as the villagers had always said.

I however loved the symbolism with Itachi. I never wrote much of him like I had intended, but it's for the best, I think. Because I plan on giving him more character depth way down the road.

Anyways, ignore my ramblings, not many read this section anyways, and I'm just too much of perfectionist. Haha.

The Jutsu Section:

Shin Magarime no jutsu- Reality Bend Technique – I've read that apparently Shintenshin and Shinranshin are both techniques used mainly by the Yamanaka's, but it is in fact capable of being used by any one else. So, I've made the true family techniques a real blood line, and not something anyone else can use. Reality Bend sounds like a genjutsu, but it is like Shitenshin, where the performer goes into the mind of the target. But, unlike Shintenshin, where they try to take over the body, Shin Magarime is used for both healing, infiltration, torture, and interrogation.

It is extremely dangerous, because a user could get lost in a mind. There is no time limit and a range of a 100 ft (or they can see the target), but anything that happens while their spiritual chakra/ soul is inside another's mind, it WILL happen to them physically.

Anyways, read and review guys!! See you next chapter!

Love to laugh, that's the only way to live - Tiffany Carr

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