10: Return to Konoha

For the gate guards, it was a fairly boring day at the main gate. Nothing unusual about the passersby, or the daily routines of the villagers, except the odd commit on how peaceful things were without the village pranksters. To the pair, it would have been nice to see the young Uchiha and Uzumaki heirs running around, causing chaos as usual. Without them around, nothing seemed as lively as it normally did.

One of the Chunnin happened to look down the road, however, and noticed a rather large dust cloud heading toward them. "Say, Aizen, is Gai out of the village today and due back?"

"Not that I'm aware of," his partner said, "Why?" He glanced at him and saw him pointing toward the cloud. "What in the world?"

"YAH MY LITTLE GAKIS YAH!" Roared a loud, eccentric voice that belonged to none other than Jiraiya of the Sannin. From the point of view of the two Chunin, he looked to be sitting on a board attached to a rope, attached to said rope was one running child. This, of course meant there were three different dust clouds. Naruto Uzumaki was leading the pack as he pulled Jiraiya along at full speed, followed closely by a young white-haired boy with equally pale skin, looking far more harassed than the young Uzumaki heir as he pulled someone who could only be Tsunade Senju, with a young red-haired child perched on her shoulders smiling gleefully. Next came, of all things, the young Uchiha heir, who was pulling someone that could only be Shizune, who was holding onto Tenten, the girl whooping like she was having the time of her life, and the young woman looking both mortified and terrified.

"Come on, Kimimaro, you can do better than that!" Tsunade roared.

"Yes, Tsunade-sama!" Yelped the now identified Kimimaro.

"Go, Sasuke-nii, go!" Tenten yelled.

"I'm goin' full-throttle!" Sasuke snapped

"Gaki!" Jiraiya yelled to Naruto, "Win the race, and it's an all you can eat ramen buffet!"

Now, hearing that, Naruto gained a maniacal gleam in his normally blue orbs, "DATTEBAYO!"

"AH! No fair!" Tenten yelled as the blonde pulled far ahead of them, then smirked, "Sasuke-nii, there's a bunch of Iwa fan-girls chasing us!"

"NOT AGAIN!" Sasuke sped up with a white-eyed look of fear, easily overtaking Kimmimaro, Tsunade, and Tayuya. "THEY'RE NOT GONNA GET ME!"

Tsunade growled, which, in anyone's book, was enough to spook the young Kimimaro into more speed. The two Chunin were utterly stunned. Jiraiya sailed past them with a shout of TALLY HO!

"NO MORE FAN GIRLS!" Shouted Sasuke as he took second place, for who could outrun Naruto when he was hellbent for ramen? The silent third place of Tsunade and Kimimaro pulled to a stop in front of the desk.

"Good morning, boys," Tsunade said pleasantly, "Would you be kind enough to tell Sarutobi-sensei that we've returned from our trip with a few extras?"

"Uh...yes'm..." was the response from the two men. Tsunade then turned the panting Kaguya, "Kimimaro-kun, we'll walk from here. Go catch up with Naruto, and we'll meet you at the Hokage tower."

"Ye-yes M-ma'am," Kimimaro panted, and trudged off in search of the blonde...his first agenda was to stop and ask directions to the nearest (Only) ramen stand.

Meanwhile, unknown to the arriving troupe, two figures were watching the arrival from the window of the Hokage tower, both with twitching eyes at the...disturbance. "Hokage-sama," one Fugaku Uchiha said with slight worry, "Surely he didn't make them run all the way from Iwa?"

An equally worried Hokage just sighed, "I really don't think that Jiraiya-kun is that brutal...at least...I hope not..."

=|Some time and a large serving of ramen later|=

Now, in Hiruzen's many years as Hokage, he had seen a lot of things. In his younger days, Kaguya had been plentiful, yet none of them seemed to be as...calm as the boy standing between Naruto and Jiraiya, both of whom were wearing broad grins. "And you're telling me that this boy was one of Orochimaru's?"

"I was." Kimimaro nodded.

Hiruzen's gaze then turned to the young red-hair child clinging to Tsunade, "And this girl is, to be blunt - "

"My adopted child," Tsunade said with a smile.

"Who happens to have the Mokuton Kekkei Genkai," Jiraiya put in, "So she, in fact, is related to Tsunade in some way."

"And you managed to steal back a certain item from Orochimaru?" Hiruzen said, again looking at the Gama Sennin, who had made it clear that Naruto would get the sword later on, without said blond knowing, of course.

"What item?" Naruto asked.

"Nothing you need to worry about," Jiraiya smiled at the boy. "But you're right, Sensei, we had quite the trip!"

Hiruzen rolled his eyes, and let out a sigh, "So I see. And the addition of a long thought extinct clan is quite something. Now I have to a mountain of paperwork, get the damned civilians to go along with it, and then I have to deal with that wrinkled, old war hawk!"

Jiraiya sighed, "Sorry, Jiisan, but we couldn't leave the boy." He said, "After the work out I put him through for the last three months, I had to bring him home with me, much as Onoki wanted to keep him for his ranks, Kimimaro decided to come with us on his own."

"And why is that?" The Hokage asked the boy himself.

Kimimaro, stoic as ever for a Kaguya, said, "Because I would like to find meaning in my existence apart from my bloodline."

Hiruzen looked at the two Sannin for an answer. Tsunade smiled, "He means he wants to find his purpose in life. Orochimaru wanted him to live for the sole purpose of serving him. Now that he's been left behind, he wants to find a new life."

Hiruzen smiled kindly at the boy, "Well, you will find it here. If you wish, I can have a compound built for you here in the village for the restoration of your clan, or arrange a living space for you - "

"Kimimaro-kun will be living with me," Jiraiya halted him, "Naruto and Tenten have grown a little attached, and I must say that I'm quite attached myself." He placed his hand on the boy's shoulder. "He lived and trained with us for the entire three months, and has shown great skill with his family's gift. From what I've heard of his clan, they were ruthless and battle-hungry, nothing like this boy is. From what I've seen of him, I can tell you that Kimimaro is a kindhearted, and gentle child. Training with him, he showed restraint and encouragement to the younger children, even helping them in furthering their progress. I have a fine son, and daughter, and I would be more than happy to have another son."

Kimimaro offered the Sannin a small smile as Naruto beamed up at him.

Over in the corner of the room, Fugaku was smiling slightly himself. "You certainly know how to attract the right attention, Jiraiya-san."

Jiraiya just grinned, "You better believe it." He bent down and caught all three children in a hug, "And like I said, I'll gladly take Kimimaro under my wing, and my roof. Kami knows he needs a good home and family to make sure he grows into a good man."

Hiruzen smiled at the four, "Alright...I'll hear about this from those three old bats, but I'll allow you to take him in. However...is he capable of being put under a Jonin sensei? If he was Orochimaru's student at one point, then he may well be a benefit to our village if he can be put under an apprenticeship."

Kimimaro nodded, "I'm capable of performing missions, and following orders, Hokage-sama."

"Splendid," Hiruzen smiled, "i have just the sensei for you until he's put under a Genin team. Meanwhile, why don't you get settled with Jiraiya, and I'll see about reopening the Senju compound," Tsunade gave the man a look before he smiled at her, "What? Did you think you could raise the girl on the road? I think not, Tsunade-chan. I'll be having little Tayuya-chan enrolled right alongside Naruto-chan and Tenten-chan this coming semester."

=|Unknown Location|=

The laboratories in most of the compounds Orochimaru kept were always well-kept, under the supervision of Kabuto, though he himself kept a messy work-space. Around the young man, thirteen incubation vats were bubbling with life. Unfortunately for the young medic, ten of the thirteen were dead. These ten were the combination Kekkei Genkai experiments he had been conducting. The fusion of Mokuton and Shikotsumyaku was not going well at all. The final three were simple recreations of Uzumaki blood.

Two were female that did not have much longer to live, but one, the male was growing healthily. The embryo was already beginning to look human. "Another few weeks, and Orochimaru can start teaching it." Kabuto mused as he looked at the small being. "A shame, though, this one doesn't look as though it has any of the special traits from the Uzumaki, save for that amazing chakra they had."

The door to his lab opened as Orochimaru himself walked in to check his progress, "How are we doing, Kabuto-kun? Anything to report?"

Kabuto sighed, "Nothing extraordinary. We may have an Uzumaki with the well-spring chakra of its clan, but other than that, the other experiments are dying off." He shook his head, "Perhaps I'm missing something? The Senju and Uzumaki were blood related, as were they related to the Uchiha...if only I had Uchiha DNA to experiment with...perhaps then I could - "

"Kabuto," Orochimaru said, "This will do for now. One clone will most certainly be useful. Even if it does not have any outstanding qualities...excellerate the growth rate. I want it ready in six weeks. Then we will turn this...child into a fine shinobi worthy of serving me. Perhaps it can even help me in my plans...in the meantime, try the cloning process of the Senju and Kaguya lines once more, pure strains, this time. We will work on combining them later. Right now, I need fighters."

Kabuto grinned at him, "As you wish, Orochimaru-sama."

Orochimaru grinned at the embryo, "Now...what shall we call you, Number Thirteen?" He mused, "Ah...I know...Menma...A fine name for a rising warrior, don't you think?"

Kabuto sighed and went back to his desk to start the acceleration process. "I think you need to find me a new project...I'm getting bored."

Orochimaru turned his grin on the boy, "Perhaps you could try splicing a Kekkei Genkai into one of the failing Uzumaki subjects?" He suggested, "Since they seem to be dying, then its no concern if the experiment fails, but if it succeeds, then we'll know that the line is susceptible to change more so than others."

Kauto leaned back in his chair in thought, "Hmm, that could be interesting...but I don't want to waste any more of the Mokuton or Shikotsumyaku we have left until I can produce more...what have we got on stock?"

The Hebi Sannin's grin only widened, "Oh, I think I have something you will like. I recently acquired something almost as rare as the Rinnegan. I stumbled across a young man with Meiton. Perhaps it will be pliable enough for you?"

"Ah," Kabuto smiled thinly, "That will do just nicely. When can I start?"

"Immediately."

=x=

"I told you, knock it off already!" Sasuke yelled as he raced past Ichiraku's Ramen, alerting Naruto to the boy's plight. A moment later as the blond peaked out, a rush of girls ran by in the Uchiha's wake.

"Fight on, Sasuke-nii!" Naruto yelled after them.

"A little help would be nice!" Sasuke snapped as he raced back by. "How come Nii-san never has this problem?!" Chuckling, Jiraiya peeked out of the stall as well.

"Oh, I'm sure he does, Sasuke-kun, but his kind of torment is a little more manageable than your's." He laughed. Kimimaro, who was sitting in the middle of the pair, felt a little sorry for the young Uchiha, though, he knew he'd gone through worse while they had been in Iwa. One of the girls there had been able to spit lava.

"Sasuke-kun, wait!"

Then again, Kimimaro thought, this could be worse. That girl, at least scared off the others.

Tenten huffed, "I don't know what they're all excited about," she pouted, "Naru-chan's cuter than Sasu-nii."

Naruto shivered, "I don't think I'd ever wanna be in Sasuke-nii's shoes when he's getting chased."

"I agree with you there, Naruto-kun," Kimimaro said before looking up at Jiraiya, "Is it always this lively around here?"

Jiraiya just chuckled, "Oh, if you're a young male that's part of a wealthy clan, then you're more than fair game to the civilian girls, and the kunoichi around here."

"But doesn't Naruto-kun fall into that category?" He asked, making Naruto flinch.

Jiraiya laughed outright at this, "Well, Naruto-chan's a little special. Normally, an heir to the Uzumaki clan would be a fine catch, especially a male heir seeing as the clan was polygamous, but in his case...he has that condition we talked about."

Kimimaro nodded, remembering the blond's jinchuuriki status.

"Condition?" Tenten asked, "Is Naru-chan sick?"

"I don't get sick," Naruto huffed.

"You did when you ate those ten bowls of ramen," Tenten pointed out.

"They had onions in them!" Naruto complained, "Onions taste nasty!"

Don't forget garlic,Kumama put in, Canines like myself don't do well with onions or garlic.

But I thought you were related to cats, too?

I would eat a stupid cat for breakfast!

"No," Jiraiya said, oblivious to the silent conversation between the blond and the Bijuu. "Naruto isn't sick, he's just special compared to most other children. It makes him...a little scary to some people."

Tenten grinned, "Like that time he turned into that big fox?"

"Yes," Jiraiya smiled back, "Just like that."

=x=

Kimimaro's first day in the village ended when the four of them returned home that evening, after Naruto had driven off Sasuke's fan club by turning into a very, very large fox. Tenten had then insisted that he give her a ride on the way home. In the young Kaguya's point of view, it was quite a sight. A tiny girl riding a gigantic three-tailed kitsune bare-back with the biggest smile he had ever seen.

If Kimimaro didn't know any better, he would almost say that she didn't care about his status, but thanks to Jiraiy's telling him not to mention the Bijuu in front of either Sasuke or Tenten, he knew that the little girl he now called his sister did not know of the blond's status. The older people certainly seemed to know, and, from all the glares the blond was getting, they did not care for him at all.

It was strange. In his time with Orochimaru, his only purpose had been to follow every order that his master had given him. Now, all of that seemed to be fading from him, and only within a few months. The Kyuubi had been right. The greatest adventure was living for each and every day for the next. And the blond certainly did that in leaps and bounds. Throughout the three months he had been with the family, he had seen Naruto and Sasuke pull some incredible pranks on the most unexpected people. They'd even managed to pull one over on the Tsuchikage, and that had been a feat.

The pair seemed to be close, almost like brothers. The way the trained and competed against each other was amusing to watch at times, especially when Tenten was egging them on about who was top dog...fox...whichever they preferred.

The home in which they came to was fairly modest, yet large enough to support a small clan if the need arose. A fact which Kimimaro was certain was meant for the future Uzumaki clan.

"Kimimaro," Jiraiya smiled as he showed the boy to his room, "you get one of the guest rooms as your own. Decorate it as you like, just keep it clean." He said, opening a door to show the boy a room that was moderately furnished with a small bed, a few chairs, and a small nightstand. Kimimaro smiled slightly. He had never had so much in a room before. Jiraiya gave the boy a warm smile, "If you need or want anything, don't hesitate to ask. This is your home, too, now."

"Home," the boy sighed, his pale grew eyes lighting up. "Jiraiya-san, if it's not too much trouble...could I have a few books?"

Jiraiya chuckled, "Of course. I happen to be a writer, though I think most of my books wouldn't suit your taste, I have one I think that you, and maybe even Naruto would like."

"Really?" Kimimaro asked, "What's it's title?"

"Tales of the Gutsy Ninja," Jiraiya smiled, "I think you'll like it. After all, it's how I became Naruto's godfather."

Short chapter, I know, but, as you can see, this was mainly a set-up chapter for the next part of the story. As the age dictates, you can probably guess, as it will be the chapter that finally binds the family together, and completes it. As you can also see, Orochimaru's project now has a name. We'll be seeing more of him in later chapters. Meanwhile...Tayuya has yet to meet the rest of her classmates...Kami help them all -_-