I'm back, I'm back! I thought exams would never end! Then as soon as they did my time went straight into moving and finding a job. But I'm back home now and not only do I have a job, I have two. One of them is painting a mural in a coffee shop. Hopefully reviews will be much less sporadic now that I'm home for the summer. This chapter is shorter than the last few, it hardly makes up for the wait I put you all through but it was the best I could do. The next one should be out in a more timely manner.

Still don't own Naruto, and I bet you are all glad with how long it's been taking me to update.

Human Contact

Naruto lay in his room, blankly staring up at the grey sky. He couldn't bring himself to get up let alone get dressed. For three years he had been wearing black, but never had the color disgusted him more than it did today. The Sandaime Hokage was dead; one of the most important people in his life had left the world forever.

There was a knock on his door but he didn't answer. Kakashi opened it, not caring one bit that he was walking in on one very naked thirteen year old boy. "You need to get dressed for the funeral."

Naruto didn't even acknowledge Kakashi's presence. His dulled blue eyes stayed locked on the dreary sky.

Kakashi put his hands on his hips and tapped his foot in irritation. If Naruto had not been so busy wallowing he would have pointed out how matronly the pose was. "We are not going to be late for the Sandaime's funeral."

Naruto just rolled over, rubbing absently at the bandages on his still very tender rib cage.

Kakashi sighed in irritation. He was not about to let Naruto miss the funeral just because the blond had decided to become a sullen teenager. Without a word he picked up the much smaller ninja and slung the protesting boy over his shoulder.

Naruto let out a grunt of discomfort as his battered ribs were jolted by the movement. He quickly continued screaming every obscenity that came into his head as Kakashi carried him out of the room.

The silver haired man walked into the bathroom. He tossed the flailing and cursing teen into the shower and cranked up the cold water earning a shriek of displeasure. Naruto struggled to get out but Kakashi pushed him back down.

"LET ME OUT OF HERE DAMN IT!"

"Oh, I'm sorry I thought you wanted to be treated like a child!"

Naruto froze; his adoptive father had never spoken to him with such contempt. "A great man is dead and you can't even drag yourself out of your self pity long enough to pay your last respects!"

Naruto's eyes were as cold as the water. "Says the man who still can't get over the death of his team mate! You have no right to lecture me!"

"I HAVE EVERY RIGHT TO LECTURE YOU!" Naruto flinched back but Kakashi grabbed his arm and wrenched him out of the shower. The angry jounin dragged him back to his room and let him go. "It is true that I still mourn the loss of my team mate, but at least I have the courage to face his death. Now get dressed." Kakashi slammed the door to Naruto's room as he left to turn off the water.

Naruto turned to the black kimono that Kakashi had laid out for him the night before. He shivered slightly and began to towel himself off before peeling off his ruined bandages and getting dressed.

Kakashi was sitting at the kitchen table when Naruto came out of the room. His eye widened at how much skin the blonde was showing. The normal mask and gloves were not present. Not even the usual sunglasses were there to hide his blue eyes.

Naruto's mouth twitched into a small insecure smile and he ran his fingers through messy hair. "I thought that Hokage jiji would have wanted to see me one last time."

Kakashi's strong arms surrounded Naruto in a warm hug. "I think you're right."

"I'm sorry I yelled at you earlier."

"I'm sorry too. It is always hard to say goodbye to someone you love. I just didn't want you to regret missing your chance."

Naruto nodded and Kakashi let him go. "Now, did you re-wrap your ribs?"

Again Naruto nodded. "Then let's go meet the others."

Out in the streets of Konoha, Sasuke and Sakura were waiting in awkward silence. The pink haired girl glanced over at her brooding teammate as they waited for the others. "Sasuke, what happened after I passed out in that fight with Gaara?"

It had been bothering her ever since she came too yesterday. How had they all survived that fight, and with minimal injury? It just didn't seem possible.

Sasuke sighed and pushed himself off the fence. He knew that it was only a matter of time before she asked this question. He just wished that she had asked Naruto instead. It was a blow to his pride that Naruto succeeded where he had failed.

"Naruto happened." He saw that he needed to clarify when Sakura turned confused green eyes on him. "Naruto gave his all to save you. He even summoned a giant toad. By the end of the battle both he and Gaara were completely out of chakra. Naruto had broken several ribs but he could still move. He could have finished the fight if he wanted, but instead he let Gaara go."

Sakura's eyes were huge. "He did all that to save me?"

Sasuke nodded. "Yeah, all to save you. And then he showed Gaara mercy. Sometimes I wonder where a person like Naruto came from. It just doesn't seem possible for someone like that to exist in this world."

Sakura smiled lightly. He had given it his all to save her. It was just like in the story books where the knight in shining armor rescues the princess. Except she was no princess. "Thank you for telling me Sasuke-kun."

At that moment Kakashi and Naruto arrived. Both teens were shocked to see Naruto without his usual protective layers, but they had the tact not to say anything. The group made their way to the funeral in silence.

Naruto did not hear the words spoken about Sarutobi by his old teammates. He didn't need to hear what a great man the Sandaime had been. He knew what a great man the former Hokage was. The only things he noticed were Konohamaru crying hysterically while Iruka tried to comfort him. The stony face of Sarutobi Asuma as he tried to hide his grief. The picture of the smiling Hokage on top of the casket. And Kakashi's hand on his shoulder while the man stood guard to make sure no one touched him by accident.

Memories of the kind old man raced through his head. Were it not for Sarutobi he never would have gotten off the streets, never gone to the ninja academy, never wanted to be Hokage, never met Kakashi, never known what it was like to have a family. Many thought that it was wrong for him to be standing with the mourning family, and at first he did too. But the Sandaime had been so much more to him than a great leader. He was a grandfather, a member of the crazy family that Naruto had managed to scrape together from nothing.

Naruto felt numb as he walked up to place a white flower on the casket. The Hokage was really dead. Naruto would never see him handing out mission reports or hear him laughing at one of Naruto's stories again.

Naruto turned his back on the ceremony and walked out of the cemetery. Nobody stopped him. Sakura and Sasuke watched him go and turned to Kakashi. He answered before they could even ask the question.

"He's going to the top of the monument to mourn."

"Is this the first time Naruto-kun has lost someone precious to him?"

Kakashi turned to see Haku and Zabuza. They had been offered a short period of asylum due to their assistance in the battle. Unfortunately Zabuza's missing nin status made it too dangerous for them to stay too long in any hidden village.

"Yes. Naruto has never had any family to loose."

"Perhaps someone should go up and make sure he's ok."

Kakashi smiled at the concerned boy. "I'll head up there in a minute Haku. Naruto still isn't too comfortable showing vulnerability around others."

"Kakashi-sensei, perhaps Sasuke and I should go. After all we are his teammates and he should be able to grieve with us."

"I think that is a great idea Sakura. Tell him that I'll see him at home."

The Hokage Monument had been Naruto's spot for years. He would always sit on the Yondaime's head and watch the sun set over his home, but today he had chosen the Sandaime's head.

It was easy to see the beauty of the village from the mountain top. Up on the carved heads of hero's past Konoha looked clean and beautiful, almost glowing in the sun's final rays. Naruto went there whenever he felt overwhelmed for it was from the mountain that he was able to see what ordinary people saw in Konoha everyday.

And so Naruto went there to mourn the passing of an old friend. He silently cried as he looked out over the village all the Hokages had loved enough to die for. That is how Sakura and Sasuke found him.

They didn't say a word, there was no need. Instead they sat down beside him and watched the sun go down. Its light just barely breaking through the clouds and making the droplets from the earlier rain sparkle like diamonds. It was a beautiful end to a sad day.

It wasn't until the stars came out that Naruto finally spoke. "I wish I had been there. Maybe I could have done something."

"Baka, what could a genin have done to save a Kage?"

"Stop it Sasuke. You're not helping." Sakura could see Naruto's fists clenching and knew Sasuke would get a lot more than a bruise on his cheek if Naruto lost his temper now. "I for one am glad that you weren't there."

Sad blue eyes filled with guilt and anger turned to her. "You don't think I could have done anything either?"

Sakura wanted to cower away from him at that moment. She had seen what Naruto could do to a person with a single touch, and right now he was exposed and losing control. She had never thought of him as being dangerous before. But Sakura did not retreat; she refused to fear her friend and teammate.

"I never said that you couldn't do anything Naruto. But if you hadn't been in the forest when it happened I wouldn't be here now."

Naruto's eyes widened in shock and he immediately backed away from her. He hadn't even thought about what would have happened in the forest without him.

"You saved my life Naruto, and I'm not about to let you feel guilty for that."

"Don't forget about me." Sasuke gave a small smile when Naruto turned to him. "I wouldn't be here either if you and Sakura hadn't come to bail me out. Not only that but I think you helped that Gaara kid from Suna too."

Sakura placed her hand on Naruto's back making him flinch slightly at the contact. "See Naruto, you were exactly were you should have been. Saving the people that Hokage-sama loved enough to die for."

He finally allowed her to see that warm smile she could usually only feel. "Thanks Sakura, I really needed that. Thank you both. It's nice to know that I have people I can count on."

Sakura smiled, her green eyes sparkling. "We'll always be here for you, just like you were there for us. Right Sasuke?"

The dark haired boy didn't say anything but he nodded.

She stood up quickly, glad that her job was done. "Well we should probably get back. Kakashi-sensei said he'd be waiting for you, and he's probably wondering what's taking you so long." She began walking toward the path to the village.

Naruto laughed lightly and got up to follow her but he was stopped by Sasuke's voice.

"I'd like to talk to you for a minute Naruto."

"What is it Sasuke?"

The dark haired boy fidgeted slightly. He was after all a very proud person and what he was about to do went against his very nature. "I'm sorry for stealing your move and using it in the preliminaries. I never stopped to consider how it would make you feel. I would have apologized sooner, but I never really got the chance in all the excitement."

Naruto smiled at him. "Thank you for apologizing. I'd offer you a hand up, but I don't think you deserve it."

At first Sasuke thought Naruto was insulting him but when he turned to retort he understood. The blond was laughing weakly as he held up his bare hands. Sasuke laughed slightly at Naruto's bad joke and pushed himself off the ground. The two boys walked toward the path, both glad that the air between them had been cleared. "Hey Naruto, perhaps you can teach me that move for real sometime. It works really well."

Naruto placed his hands behind his head and allowed a cheeky grin to spread across his face. "Yeah, I am pretty great. That's why I'm going to be Hokage some day."

"Shut up you dobe. If touching you wasn't detrimental to my health you'd have a concussion right now."

"Well the Kagyaku does have its good points."

"What's taking you two so long?!"

Both boys looked at each other with a bit of fear in their eyes. They had left Sakura waiting, and nothing is worse than a pissed off kunoichi, no matter what skill level. They immediately started running to catch up with her.

When Naruto got home it was not to the quiet house he had expected. Kakashi and Zabuza sat at the kitchen table drinking heavily while Haku stood in the corner giggling softly. Hovering around the two ninja trying to drink themselves into unconsciousness were Gai and his clone Lee. They were screaming things about springtime and burning youth while Kakashi and Zabuza silently prayed for a blackout period.

"Ah welcome home Naruto-kun! My honorable rival told me that you disappeared after the service to mourn alone! My most youthful student and I decided to come over here and cheer you up!"

Lee's eyes sparkled at the prospect of bringing someone youthful joy. "Hai Naruto-kun! I will do my best to make you happy on this most sad day!"

"The Hokage's death although sad was very heroic. He left this world full of burning youth!" Gai struck his famous good guy pose to the applause of his favorite student.

"But Hokage-jiji was really old when he died." Naruto's comment was very dry and matter of fact. It made the two taijutsu specialists falter.

"Kakashi-san is rubbing off on you Naruto-kun." Gai about had tears in his eyes. He had hoped Naruto would be converted to the wonders of youth.

Naruto took a page out of his teacher's book and chose to ignore Gai. Instead he sat down at the table with the inebriated jounin. "Hey Kashi can I have some of that sake?"

Kakashi pulled the bottle away from the thirteen year old. "Not a chance. Not only are you under age, but it's because of you that they're here." He let out a small hiccup.

Zabuza nodded as he poured himself another saucer. "Yeah kid, leave it to the people who really need it."

Lee jumped toward the table and sat down so quickly Naruto wondered how he didn't break anything. "I know what will cheer Naruto-kun up! Let's tell stories about all the good times we had with Sandaime-sama!"

"An excellent idea my most youthful student!"

Naruto got a sly look in his eyes. "Well if we're going to be telling stories. How about I tell you about the time I sent him to the hospital for blood loss after testing my Oiroke no Jutsu."

Lee's eyes widened, a very impressive feet, he had heard about Naruto's personal jutsu. Something he often used to blackmail Kakashi. "NARUTO-KUN THAT IS MOST UN-YOUTHFULL!!"

By the time Lee and Gai left Haku's giggles had turned into full blown laughter and Naruto had been called un-youthful at least ten times. Zabuza and Kakashi finally achieved their goal of passing out by number five. Naruto had wanted to leave both men at the table, but Haku wouldn't hear of it. It took them about ten minutes to drag Kakashi to his room and Zabuza to the couch. After that Naruto put down the spare futon for Haku and went to his room for some much deserved rest.

That night he dreamed that he was in the Hokage's office telling the Sandaime about the green duo's visit. The old man was laughing good naturedly, just like he always did. After a while they both calmed down, the Hokage lit his favorite pipe and folded his fingers in his lap.

"How are you Naruto?"

Naruto smiled and scratched the back of his neck, an old habit with unknown origins. "I've been okay. I miss you a lot, but Sakura and Sasuke are there for me."

"That is good. I'm glad you have good friends. I know that I have left you in good hands. You have grown into a fine young man Naruto; you don't need me any more."

"Don't say that jiji. I still need you."

Sarutobi's old face crinkled into a smile. His eyes disappearing in wrinkled skin. "No you don't Naruto. I did everything I could to help you grow into the person you have become. Now I hand the job over to new friends who will help mold you into the Hokage that I know you can be. I just want you to promise me one thing."

"Anything jiji."

"Don't ever lose sight of what makes you special. You have a special ability that allows you to befriend almost anyone. You make people want to become their absolute best, and that more than strength or power is what will make you a great leader."

Naruto's eyes were full of tears. "Thank you jiji."

Sarutobi got up from his desk and wrapped Naruto in a warm hug, his white robes enveloping the blonds. "Goodbye Naruto. I'm proud of you."

"Goodbye jiji."

Naruto woke up to morning sunlight streaming through his ceiling. He couldn't help but smile at the memory of his dream. It was true that he would never see the Sandaime again. But at least he had gotten to say goodbye.

He put on a pair of boxers and went into the kitchen to find Haku nursing two very hung over ninja. The large white haired toad sannin Jiraiya was smirking at their pitiful moans. "Ah Naruto, just the person I came to see."

Haku snorted. "He wanted to wake you up with cold water but I made him wait out here until you woke up."

"How did you do that?"

The evil smirk that spread across the effeminate boy's face reminded everyone how dangerous he could be. "Why Naruto-kun, you know how good my aim is."

Jiraiya shivered making Naruto wonder exactly what Haku had targeted. "Anyway, I came because the council has agreed to let me take you on a mission."

This got Naruto excited, there was nothing like a new mission to get life back on track. "What kind of mission?"

"We are going to find the next Hokage. My old teammate, Tsunade."

"You got the old geezers on the council to let you take me on a mission like that?" It was no secret that the council didn't care for Naruto. They saw him as a ticking time bomb that could explode at anytime.

"They didn't have much choice after I made you my apprentice."

"Wait, I'm your apprentice?" The idea of Naruto, the Kyuubi brat, village pariah, being apprenticed to a sannin was just absurd.

"You didn't think that I was going to abandon you after teaching you how to summon did you. I let you sign the toad contract and there is no way that I'm going to let you ruin my reputation. Now I want you packed and at the gate by 2:00."

With that said Jiraiya left. Naruto was still shocked but irritation had begun to seep in. "He just insulted me didn't he."

Haku set some cups of foul smelling liquid before the hung over jounin. "It would seem so."

"DAMN YOU ERO-SENNIN!!"

"Ah not so loud." Two voices moaned in utter agony.

Next chapter will have some light fluff and begin the journey to find Tsunade. You will also find out what happened to some of the other genin during the invasion.

I couldn't help myself from putting that dream in there. Part of me screamed at how sappy and cliché it was, but the other part of me really wanted to give Naruto some closure. Plus I really like the Sandaime and I wanted to get in one more good scene with him.

I hope this chapter was as good as you have come to expect from me, and I'll do my best to get the next one out soon.

Ja ne

Yooso