"So what's next?" Ryuda asked as he and Naruto rested on the roof of the Fire Temple, watching the stars. "You've got the support of the princess and the Shogun. What are we going to do with it?"
"Not sure," Naruto replied. "Everything has been happening so fast, I have no idea what I'm doing. When I came to the capitol I wanted their help to keep myself, Mom, and the others safe, but now there's no more capitol and the country is so fractured that Fujika and Yazawa-jiji don't have nearly the influence they did before. On top of that, once word spreads that the Daimiyo survived, that Chikanari guy or the people he works for are bound to be back."
"You seem worried about him. What do you think he and the people he work for are after?"
"If he is part of some sort of organization, I don't know what they would gain from throwing the Land of Fire into chaos unless they come from another nation. But Danzo's spies told me that the other nations want to let us sort this out before wasting their resources on an invasion. As for Chikanari himself, I am worried. He wasn't just trying to intimidate us when he said that he set off those explosions for fun. He's clearly insane, but something about him doesn't feel right."
"Not to mention he wiped the floor with you in a matter of seconds." Naruto didn't turn his head as Tayuya joined him on the roof, but smiled nonetheless when she took a seat next to him leaning against Ryuda. "The pervert was looking for you. Probably still curious about how you somehow managed to magically transport us from one place to another."
"It was mostly a fluke," Naruto explained, activating his voice seal so Jiraiya could listen as well. "I figured there was probably a Hiraishin seal here, either from my father or the Second, so I just threw chakra in this direction and hoped something would happen."
"And what about the brat with the weird arm and Nine-Tails chakra?"
"Are you talking me or Sora?" Naruto countered with a small smirk.
Tayuya chuckled and bumped her shoulder against Naruto's. "You're not a brat."
"Reall? Sora and I are about the same age, and your, what, sixteen?"
"Fifteen, and that's not what makes him a brat. You two are so similar it's almost poetic, but at the same time you couldn't be more different."
"Maybe," Naruto conceded. "As for what we're going to do, Ero-Sennin contacted Mom. She's going to come here and examine him as well as speak to the Daimiyo on how best to move the Land of Fire forward. In the meantime, Yazawa-jiji is gonna be training me in fuinjutsu and kenjutsu."
"Well, I'm gonna miss getting to wipe the floor with you with Zabuza, Konan, and Guren," Tayuya mock pouted. "But I'm sure watching that old man beat you into a pulp will be equally as entertaining."
Naruto shoved her playfully, laughing softly. "Glad to see you care so much."
Tayuya laughed and shoved him back before curling up against his shoulder. "Things are going to get a lot more dangerous now, aren't they?"
"Probably," Naruto replied. "But as long as I have you and the others, I know we'll make it through just fine."
They stayed there quietly staring at the sky, enjoying each other's comfort until sleep eventually took them.
Over the next two weeks Yazawa trained Naruto harder than he ever had before. They spent the mornings studying fuinjutsu and Naruto was blown away by how little he actually knew compared to a bona fide seal master out of the Uzumaki clan. The afternoons were split between kenjutsu practice with Yazawa followed by Naruto's usual regime of being pounded into the dirt by Zabuza, Konan, Guren, and Tayuya (much to Tayuya's delight), while Jiraiya and Yazawa watched. Yazawa had taught Naruto an incredibly powerful barrier seal that was used for training without the fear of collateral damage, and as a result many of the monks would stop by to watch the sparring matches. Ino, Shikamaru, and Chouji continued to join the monks in guarding the temple, but in the evenings, they would spar against a thoroughly exhausted Naruto, who would have to beat them with a varying set of handicaps. After that, Naruto usually retreated to the roof of the temple, occasionally joined by Shikamaru as they simply laid back and watch the sky.
He was laying there, head resting against the side of a sleeping Ryuda, when he felt a presence join him on the roof that he had been monitoring for a while.
"So, you finally found a way past the guards," Naruto said, not turning his gaze from the stars above.
"You seem strangely unconcerned with an enemy shinobi having breached the defences around your current base of operation," the woman behind him said.
"Who said you were an enemy?" Naruto replied. "Neither our villages nor our countries are at war with each other, which means you're just a foreign shinobi. As for breaching the defences, if you were after the Daimiyo, you wouldn't be here talking to me."
"What if you are the one I'm after?"
"That could make sense, considering you've probably been monitoring me to find out if my bloodline is worth stealing, but I get the feeling you don't want to do that either."
Finally sitting up, Naruto locked eyes with the woman behind him. She had long, straight blonde hair tied into a sort of ponytail that was wrapped in taut bandages. Her dark eyes and red lipstick complimented her fair skin and she wore a short-sleeved black and purple blouse with black pants, both of which had a design similar to clouds on them. Her forearms were wrapped in bandages with dark purple, fingerless gloves on her hands while a string of light blue beads curled loosely around her left arm.
"You don't know what I want," the woman bit out.
"That's fair," Naruto conceded. "But I can make certain extrapolations based off what I do know."
"And what is it you know?"
"I know that you're the Jinchuriki of the Two-Tailed Cat. I know that you probably have had a terrible life as a result. I can see that despite how hard your life has been, you still hold yourself with confidence. Based off of that, I can see that you have some sympathy for those that are targeted due to circumstances outside their control, but you squash that out of dedication to your mission."
"I don't know how you know that kind of information, but you're right. I may not approve of trying to steal bloodlines, but I'll do anything to see my village prosper. So I'm going to ask you to come with me peacefully."
"There's no point," Naruto replied.
"Why not?"
"Because the Kunshugan won't be passed to any children I have, and would become useless the moment they're extracted. On top of that, you've seen the state the Land of Fire is in, kidnapping not just the wielder of a dojutsu, but also Konoha's jinchuriki is going to turn every eye on Kumo and the Land of Lightning as they become the main suspects for the attack on the capitol."
"You're the jinchuriki of the Nine-Tails?" The woman asked, stupefied.
Naruto nodded. "My name is Naruto Uzumaki. I've been hoping to talk to you for a while."
*(OoO)*
Tsunade arrived the following morning, accompanied by Hinata, Haku, Anko, Kurenai, Shizune and a handful of ANBU. Naruto was surprised and overjoyed to see his precious people once more. He and the girls left to go catch up while Tsunde exchanged pleasantries with the Daimiyo, informing him that the wisest course of action would be to remain in the Fire Temple while the Nation recovered. Her eyebrow twitched as she was forced to listen to hours of complaints about the lack of entertainment and comfort, before Tsunade was able to excuse herself.
While she spoke with the Daimiyo, Shizune joined Naruto in hunting down Sora, who had become rather reclusive since their sparring match a fortnight prior. Naruto had tried to track him down during that time, determined to provide an understanding ear, but every time he or one of his clones found him, Sora would brush him off, stating that unless Naruto was there for a rematch, to leave him alone. They found Sora sitting cross-legged in front of one of the reflection pools that dotted the temple grounds, and Naruto motioned for Shizune to stop while he went and sat on the smooth stone across the pond from Sora.
Sora's eyes were closed as he attempted to meditate, but Naruto could tell he was struggling. "Come for a rematch? 'Cause otherwise I don't wanna hear it."
"Even if I said that I wanna help you fix that arm of yours?" Naruto countered, the peace of the meditation area carried his husky voice across the pond easily. In a flash, Sora was on his feet and across the pond, holding Naruto up by his throat.
"Don't lie to me," Sora growled. Shizune watched as killing intent rolled off the young monk in waves, and was about to intervene when Naruto spoke.
"I'm not, my mom is the greatest medic in the world. If anyone can help you she can." He paused as Sora growled and tightened his grip. At this point his eyes had turned turned a glowing red colour and small bubbles of chakra were rising off his body. Tsunade, Jiraiya, Yazawa, Chiriku, and Baisho arrived but Naruto held up a hand to keep them at bay. "Control yourself, Sora." He flexed his own chakra, making sure not an ounce of his dad's was present, and a sudden feeling of comfort, almost like the opposite of killing intent spread over them.
The killing intent slowly started to drop, and Sora's face dropped as he lowered Naruto to the ground. "It's so loud," Sora whispered. "The screaming. It's like there's something in my head screaming to destroy everything."
"Sora, that blonde woman over there is Tsunade Senju. She's my mom and the greatest medic ever, she's going to use a low-level diagnostic jutsu to try and find out what's going on, okay?" Naruto explained quietly.
Sora's breath quickened as Tsunade approached and the killing intent started to return, making her freeze in place. "NO! Don't come near me! I'll just hurt you!"
The killing intent skyrocketed and chakra once more started to envelop Sora as he fell to the ground screaming and snarling. Acting fast, Naruto activated his Kunshugan and started to wrap Sora in bindings made of wood.
"This isn't going to hold him for long!" He yelled to the others. Tsunade took her cue and dashed in, lightly poking Sora in the back of the neck, knocking him out. Naruto sighed and retracted the wood, catching Sora as he fell to the ground. "Where can I put him?"
"I'll escort you to Sora's room in the dormitories," Chiriku answered. Seeing that the situation was handled, Jiraiya went to find the other leaf shinobi, while the rest of them followed him into the one of the dormitories. Looking around, Naruto noted that none of the other rooms had any occupents.
"We try to integrate Sora with the other monks, but they always make an effort to avoid him. Many of them are from Konoha, and thus are well aware of the destructive potential of the Nine-Tails, having come here soon after its attack to find enlightenment in their grief," Baisho explained. "Unfortunately, they have influenced many of the other monks, especially when Sora lost control once as a child, destroying a large section of the temple. They don't show open hatred or contempt for him, but it's clear that they fear what he contains, and thus fear when he will lose control once more."
Naruto remained silent, even as Kurenai and the other girls activated their own voice seals to make sure he was okay, unable to leave their guard duty at the moment. He whispered a quick confirmation of his well-being, but other than that he was understandably withdrawn. They entered Sora's room, the only differentiating feature between it and the other barren dorms being the small collection of books and scrolls on the desk near the window. Naruto placed him on his bedroll and Tsunade stepped forward with a glowing green hand.
"Near as I can tell, someone took a portion of the Nine-Tails' chakra and sealed it inside Sora's body."
"But I have all of Dad sealed in me and I'm not acting like that," Naruto said.
"No, but there was never a seal as expertly crafted as the one your father made for you when it came to jinchuriki seals. And now that it's gone and you are working with Kurama, his chakra is bound to yours," Tsunade replied. Yazawa stepped forward and his hand glowed blue as he examined Sora as well.
"By the looks of it, the chakra sealed in this boy is nothing more than the excess that a Tailed-Beast would naturally expel as it fought. Someone gathered it and allowed it to, for lack of a better term, ferment, then used a seal that bonded the chakra to him on a cellular level."
"That explains the mutation," Tsunade added, adjusting her technique. "You're right, Yazawa-dono. His cells are each infused with an extremely unstable chakra. It's slowly leeching and transforming Sora's own chakra and the mutation is a result of that."
"But, My Lady, that would mean that the mutation would spread as time went on," Shizune said. "Who would be so fool hardy to do something so reckless?"
"I don't know, but we're going to figure out how to fix it," Tsunade replied resolutely. "For now, it's best we let him rest, until I can come up with a solution. Until then, I need to speak with you, Naruto, and catch you up on current events."
Within the hour, Naruto and Tsunade were seated back at the meditation pool. They were joined by Shizune, Jiraiya, Fujika, Yazawa, Baisho, Asuma and Team 10, Kurenai, Anko, Hinata, Haku, Konan, Tayuya, and Guren. Yazawa had set up incredibly complex privacy seals, and Naruto had shadow clones taking over replacing them all while they spoke as well as assisting in guard duty.
"To begin, I'd like to thank you, Fujika-hime, and you, Yazawa-dono, for agreeing to the alliance with my son's clans," Tsunade said, bowing her head to the two heads of state.
"Naruto-san has a vision of the future that I believe the Land of Fire will benefit from," Fujika replied. "The reunification of the shinobi clans with their sovereign nation will resolve much of the domestic tensions within the Land of Fire, especially during such turbulent times, and the ability to covertly send aid and build foreign relations without our neighbours' knowledge is invaluable."
"I used to be of the Uzumaki before I renounced my clan for the position of Shogun," Yazawa. "It would be my duty to help guide the current heir if I hadn't, and I'm honoured that I have been given that opportunity regardless. With those I serve pledging their allegiance there is no conflict of interest. It may not count for much, considering the number of samurai loyal to me most likely dwindles by the day, but at the least you have my own power at your back, and as ordained by my new position of Hikari of this alliance, those who follow me will gladly carry your banner with that of the Land of Fire's."
"That's good to hear, because as it stands, I have already been ousted as Hokage."
All eyes turned on Tsunade in shock, their silence demanding an explanation.
"What are you talking about, Tsunade-sama?" Ino asked disbelievingly.
"I was unaware that there were those with the authority to impeach a Hokage," Shino said, shock tinging even his monotone voice.
"There aren't," Shikamaru remarked. "The Kage of the Hidden Villages are military dictators."
"Well, you are right, Shikamaru, in Konoha, the council has the authority to call for a vote of non-confidence," Asuma explained.
"That's correct," Tsunade confirmed. "The village has been becoming increasingly divided over the last year and I already knew that the vote was near on the horizon. In order to prevent further divisiveness within the village, I left the village under the guise of coming here, and appointed Hiashi Hyuga as my proxy until I came back. I'm anticipating him seizing my power while I'm gone and not allowing me entry within the village."
"What does that mean for us?" Anko asked.
"I knew that with me out of office, those closest to Naruto would be in danger, so I took you four with me as well as three ANBU who have expressed their interest to follow me, and sent Karin and the Ichiraku's to the Land of Waves with Kiba and Shino escorting them."
Naruto visibly relaxed and embraced Tsunade. "Thank you," he whispered. "I don't know what I would have done if they got hurt."
Tsunade smiled and held her son close, basking in finally seeing him again after over a month.
"So, what happens now?" Asuma asked.
"Tsunade-sama, correct me if I'm wrong, but you arrived wearing the hat of the Hokage, correct?" Baisho asked.
Tsunade smirked and nodded, prompting Fujika and Yazawa to mirror her expression.
"Then in that case, we remain loyal to you, Tsunade-dono, as wearer of the garment that represents the rank of Hokage," Yazawa stated.
Tsunade nodded her thanks. "As of now, the Senju, Namikaze, and Uzumaki clans are formally the only clans now part of the Konoha Alliance of Clans. All other clans do not represent Konoha or the Land of Fire anymore. Ino, Shikamaru, Chouji, you three will still be returning to the village and your clans. Asuma, your father took your nephew and is coming here on his own after making certain preparations. He told me that you can choose to stay in Konoha and become the new head of the Sarutobi clan, or not, and he will pledge your clan to our alliance. He said to wait until you returned to the village, which you'll be doing tomorrow, to make your decision."
Asuma nodded and Tsunade dismissed him and his team, all of whom looked thoroughly conflicted.
"Now that we've established the political position of our merry band," Fujika remarked dryly, perhaps we should discuss moving forward."
"It seems to me," Konan offered, "that we need to gather funds, and find a place to establish a base of operations before we can begin amassing allies and reunifying the country. While the Fire Temple can house the Daimiyo in this time of crisis, it won't do to have them start being seen as anything more than neutral and altruistic."
Baisho nodded his agreement. "Konan-san is correct. We are happy to house you, but I'm afraid we will not allow our temple to be turned into the center of a military campaign."
"Well then, why don't we just leave the princess and the Shogun here, and they can work the people while we go off and find a place to stay?" Tayuya offered. "Once we do that, we can figure out a way to make money and start gaining allies."
"Money won't be too much of an issue," Tsunade said. "When I left, I took with me a few dozen long-term mission requests ranging from B to S Rank as well as emptying all of the funds for the Senju, Uzumaki, and Namikaze clans and almost the entirety of the Hokage's discretionary fund. The problem is finding a place that our enemies won't find or attack until we have enough forces to defend ourselves."
"The other four Elemental Nations are out," Jiraiya said. "If the Hokage is taking refuge in another big nation, it won't look good and will make the Land of Fire look even more vulnerable. As well as come with a lot of hidden strings attached."
"What about the Land of Rice Paddies?" Kurenai suggested.
Tayuya and Guren both shook their heads. "That's where Oto is," Guren said.
"And the snake has labs in almost every small country," Tayuya added. "He's the last one we need hounding us."
"The Land of Rain is where the leader of Akatsuki is," Konan said.
"I may have an idea," Yazawa said. "What if you made your base in Uzu?"
"The Land of Whirlpools was destroyed decades ago," Jiraiya countered. "Not to mention that it's next to impossible to get near it."
"For most, maybe. But I can accompany you. Along with Naruto, and his control over the elements, we will be able to enter Uzu. The natural defences will keep you safe as you expand your influence, and the fact that they were allied with Konoha and the Land of Fire means that it would be the best place to set up a base without looking like refugees. The optics of the last son of the Uzumaki, who all the other Elemental Nations had to work together to crush out of fear of their strength, has come to return his clan and his nation to greatness will help with winning the loyalty of many civilians and wandering clans."
"Not to mention that Kiri and the Land of Water are still fighting a civil war," Zabuza added bitterly. "So there wouldn't be any imminent threat while we're there.
"But how would get to and from Uzu for missions if it's so hard to approach?" Anko asked.
"We could use the summoning seals," Naruto supplied. "Remember how those bandits wanted to use the seals to invade that mansion? Yazawa-jiji, Ero-Sennin, and I could figure out a way to make some really good seals that will only transport those we allow between the Land of Whirlpools and the Land of Fire."
Tsunade mulled it over for a moment before making up her mind. "Alright, once we've figured out how to help Sora, Yazawa will join us as we make our way for the Land of Whirlpools. Yugao, Yamato, Kisuke, you three will remain here to provide protection for the princess and the Daimiyo until Danzo arrives with his ROOT opperatives before returning to me. If we have already entered the Land of Whirlpools, wait near the coast for me to return."
Three shadows within the confines of the privacy seal voiced their understanding of her orders before disappearing in a blur.
"If that's all, I think I'm going to go get some training while the leaders talk," Naruto said making to rise to his feet only to be stopped when Tsunade grabbed him by the arm.
"Actually, Naru-kun, you're going to be staying. The rest of you are dismissed while we discuss our plans."
Everyone nodded and dispersed until it was only Naruto, Tsunade, Jiraiya, Yazawa, and Fujika who remained.
"Naruto, why did you try to skip out just then?" Jiraiya asked.
Naruto shrugged. "I'm not interested in conquering the country. I just needed to make sure we had plans so I could keep my precious people safe."
"You might not be interested, kid, but like it or not, you're at the helm of this thing," Yazawa stated.
"What do you mean? All I did was help Mom form an alliance with you and Fujika-hime. She's the Hokage, she should be in charge along with the rest of you."
"What about your dream of peace and unity?" Fujika asked. "Were those nothing more than empty promises?"
"I never make emoty promises!" Naruto shouted. "But, I'm also just a thirteen year old kid! I don't have the knowledge or the experience to lead this thing."
"That's what we're here for, Naru-kun," Tsunade replied softly. "We'll help you, and guide you towards your dream. I may be Hokage, Yazawa-dono may be the Shogun, and Fujika-hime may be the princess, but you are the one who brought us all together."
"I pledged my loyalty to you, Naruto," Yazawa said. "You are the heart of the alliance, and when you appointed me a position that was equal to the Hokage, you unwittingly appointed yourself even higher."
"What are you talking about?" Naruto asked incredulously.
"When you said that Yazawa, as the Hikari, would be equal to the Hokage, you made a new power structure," Jiraiya explained. "The Hokage position is unique in that it has similar political power to a Daimiyo while controlling the same authority over its military forces as the Shogun. By saying that Yazawa is second only to his sovereign your words leave the implications for two possibilities. The first is that you, as the creater of the alliance are the sovereign, which is impossible as it would make you a usuper and force a conflict of interest on Yazawa. The second is that, due to you bringing Fujika into the alliance, you imply that it will be an international alliance with you as the overseer. Either way, you've just made yourself one of the most powerful people in the world."
Naruto was shocked. He didn't want that! Sure he had been determined to be Hokage, but that was only when he had to protect all of Konoha in order to protect a few. "I-I'm not ready for that. I have no idea how to any of this stuff!"
"Don't worry, Naru-kun, you'll learn," Tsunade said placatingly. "You're not going to have to do this alone." She gently rubbed his back, and slowly he was soothed back into calmness.
"Sorry about that," He muttered sheepishly. "I didn't think that I would accidently turn myself into some sort of great uniter when I set out to get myself some allies. I was just doing what I thought was right."
"And so long as you continue to do so, I believe you will have nothing to worry about," Fujika said with a smile. "I understand what it feels like to bear the burden of leadership at a young age, but so long as you surround yourself with people you can trust, you will find that no challenge is insurmountable."
*(OoO)*
Haku and Hinata were training with Kurenai and Guren when the members of Team 10 dropped by to say their farewells.
"It almost feels like a last goodbye," Chouji admitted.
"It isn't," Hinata stated. "We might not be welcome in Konoha anymore, but that doesn't mean you are no longer our friends."
Ino was quiet and her eyes shone with determination as she spoke. "I swear, I'm going to get strong and see you guys again. I'll find out what's going on in Konoha, and I'll change it."
Hinata smiled at Ino's resolution and hugged her fiercely. Clearly this was another person Naruto had managed to change for the better.
Team 10 left and Hinata threw herself back into training. She and Haku had realised that they were objectively amongst the weakest those close to Naruto, and had both sworn to improve themselves lest they become a burden.
As afternoon shifted into evening, she found herself sitting on the ground panting and nursing a sprained wrist from an errant crystal, while Haku was sprawled out next to her, breathing heavily as she stared at the clouds overhead. Kurenai and Guren were both coated in a layer of sweat and were panting slightly as they took a seat as well.
"Not bad," Kurenai praised. "Your modified Gentle Fist is improving, Hinata, and your accuracy with that bow of yours is nothing short of impressive. You still need to work on endurance and stamina, but that will come with time."
"Same goes for you, Haku," Guren added. "You have pretty good control over your ice, but it takes a lot of chakra for you to create it. Unless we can figure out a new way for you to create your ice, we're going to have to really work on your chakra reserves."
Haku grunted in acknowledgement as Tayuya walked over to join them.
"Hello, Tayuya-san," Hinata greeted. "How was your shift on guard duty?"
Tayuya threw herself face down onto the ground and yelled into the soft grass, making the other four wince.
"That bad?" Kurenai asked.
"I never would have guessed that the leader of an entire freakin' country could be so much of a brat!" Tayuya groaned, turning her head to pout. "No wonder somebody wanted him dead. He's been spoiling himself rotten with the hard earned money of his people while the rest of us have to work for a living."
"Is it really that bad?" Haku wondered.
"He's like a little kid! Always whining and complaining. It's no wonder his daughter runs everything behind the scenes while letting him pretend he's doing something by handling petty disputes between rich kiss-asses."
Haku patted her on the back patronizingly and smiled as Tayuya buried her face back in the grass and groaned. They eventually went back inside, and were greeted to a veritable feast in one of the dining rooms. Looking around, they saw a squadron of Naruto clones running around preparing the meals. Everyone gathered and a tired Naruto slumped down between Kurenai and Konan, stating that he wanted to do something special now that most of the family was back together again. Smiles lit up around the table, and for that one precious moment, no one spoke of banishments or councils or politics.
"So, do you have any idea about how to help Sora?" Guren asked as they polished off the last of the food.
"Not yet," Tsunade replied. "Who ever sealed the chakra in him, spliced it to him on a cellular level. We can't extract it without risking a lot of damage and pain to him."
"So, unless he somehow forces it all out of himself at once, the kid is up a creek without a paddle," Yazawa concluded bluntly.
"We'll figure it out," Naruto said. "With Mom's medical expertise, my wood release, and Yazawa-jiji's knowledge in seals, we'll free Sora from this."
"That reminds me," Tsunade said. "Naruto, I brought Yamato with me so that he could help train you in the wood release."
"Awesome! With his help I'll be even more of a badass!"
Laughs broke out around the table and Naruto grinned. Sitting there, he looked around at the smiling faces, and found himself thinking that everything he had been through and everything he knew he would have to go through would be worth it if he got to keep having moments like these.
*(OoO)*
The next two weeks passed with the typical routine of guard duty, training, and scheming. Yamato had begun teaching Naruto what he knew of the wood release, but they found that something was fundamentally different between them. Near as they could tell, Yamato had a much easier time controlling his wood, but it was nowhere near as powerful as Naruto's, and, after consulting Jiraiya as well, they concluded that Naruto's wood release was more natural than Yamato's due to Yamato gaining his abilities from the First's cells. As such, Naruto had to constantly fight against the energy of nature as he tried to create his trees, which made it harder to control and shape, but ultimately more powerful. Tsunade predicted that with proper training, Naruto would probably be able to harness the wood release in the same way as her grandfather had.
Naruto was outside in one of the training grounds, sparring against several clones in order to practice mixing the different elements he could control in a fight, when his night took a turn for the worse.
It started with Itachi and Kisame appearing in the middle of hs training ground. They stood there calmly as Naruto dispelled his clones, and activated his voice seal.
"It probably wasn't the smartest move to come here, Itachi. If you didn't want to have to deal with Jiraiya and Konan, you're not gonna want to be here when Mom and the others get here."
As if to prove his point, a familiar wooshing came from behind him, and Kisame raised his blade to block Zabuza's as it spun through the air. Zabuza appeared in a flash and locked blades with Kisame.
"So, the Demon of the Bloody Mist makes an appearance," Kisame remarked with a smirk. "What are you doing here?"
"Could ask you the same thing," Zabuza grunted. He jumped back and raised his sword once again to block a blow, though Naruto noted that his legs buckled ever so slightly under the sheer force of Kisame's swings.
"We simply came here to talk, Naruto-kun," Itachi said calmly, not making a move even as his partner continued to push Zabuza back.
Kisame was forced to jump back as a barrage of paper shuriken flew through the air. "So, Konan's here too. Does Leader-sama know you're not dead, and have instead gone turncoat?"
"No. Does he know that you're helping your partner spy on him?" Konan returned.
"So, it wasn't a mistake when you uttered the code phrase," Itachi said quietly.
"No, it wasn't," Tsunade announced as she, Jiraiya, and Yazawa joined them while Kurenai and the others confirmed they were in position around the Daimiyo and his daughter. She wore the Hokage's hat as she stared down the two Akatsuki members. "Much has happened since you left the village, Itachi."
"Perhaps it is best that we discuss these changes in private, Hokage-sama," Itachi said. Quicker than anyone could react, he activated his Sharingan and stared Tsunade in the eye. A moment later, he dropped to one knee, blood leaking down from his eye while Tsunade took a deep, steadying breath.
"You okay Mom?" Naruto asked.
Tsunade was about to respond when they were cut off by a loud crash from across the temple. Chiriku came running with blood soaking his robes and stumbled in front of them.
"Chiriku, what happened?" Tsuande demanded.
"Sora… he's losing control again. I went to go check on him, and found several of my fellow monks dead or close to death. Someone broke in and put him under some sort of genjutsu."
"Who would do such a thing?" Yazawa demanded.
"The same kind of person who would raze a city to the ground in order to destabilize the country," Naruto growled.
"My, you are perceptive, aren't you?" They all turned to the building behind them. Standing atop the sloped roof was Chikanari, smiling cruelly as he looked down on them. "My own leader has expressed disappointment with my inability to follow through with my orders, so I left the little monk-to-be a present and some pleasant dreams."
"You really think you can take us all on at once?" Kisame shouted with a sharp-toothed smirk. "You've got balls, I'll give you that."
Chikanari chuckled as if he found the entire situation adorable. "Now, now, I don't think I would like to test even my own formidable skill against the power of two Sannin, a Shogun, and three members of the infamous Akatsuki. No, instead, I think I'll leave you with a parting gift as well." Slamming his hand onto the roof, a burst of smoke enveloped him, and an earsplitting screech shattered the night. The smoke cleared and Chikanari was nowhere to be seen. In his place was a massive creature of some sort.
Its body looked like that of a bat, while it had a more dog-like face and hind legs. It spread its wings, their span easily exceeding a hundred meters, and took to the sky. Once it had gained sufficient altitude, it suddenly ignited in flames that lit up the night. Naruto squinted his eyes, and noted that the heat from the flame seemed to be melting the flesh right off the creature. Flaming balls of slime oozed off its body toward the ground, but Naruto could see that they were quickly being replaced. The slime splashed against the ground violently before twisting and writhing to form a smaller version of the creature, also on fire. The original monster screeched once more and flourished its wings, sending a rain of fire down upon the temple and the surrounding forest. Screams came from where its spawn started attacking just as another explosion rocked the other side of the temple, and a wave of killing intent.
Naruto froze and activated his Kunshugan. Time froze and silence surrounded him, allowing him the peace to take several deep breaths and calm himself. He looked at the gathered high-ranking warriors around him, the creature flying in the air, and the cloud of dust frozen in place coming from where Sora was.
Remember kit, you've got a ton of friends and allies who are willing to help you, Kurama said softly. You don't have to do everything yourself.
Naruto smiled and he felt a pulse from his arm and Eclipse. He turned to Tsunade, restarting time as he spoke, the authority in his voice masking any uncertainty he was still feeling. "Mom, you and Shizune-neechan need to see to the wounded, while Ero-Sennin, Itachi, and Kisame go deal with Sora. Itachi's Sharingan should have the ability to break Sora out of whatever genjutsu he's under and help supress Dad's chakra. Konan can fly, so I'd like her to come with me to lead that creature towards the nearest body of water, while Yazawa-jiji rallies the monks and anyone not already guarding the Daimiyo or Fujika-hime against these smaller ones."
Everyone nodded even as they began fighting the creature's spawn and split up. Tsunade punched one of the smaller creatures, separating its head from its body and allowed herself a quick glance back as Naruto and Konan took to the roof of the nearest building.
Wings of paper formed out of the back of Konan's cloak, and her hair billowed as she raced up towards the creature. Countless exploding tags exploded around its face making the creature throw its head and roar as more spawn continued to drip off of it. She flew in front of its face, sweating at the flames billowing around it, and launced several paper shuriken into its eyes and snout, reinforcing them with her chakra so they wouldn't burn before impact. Meanwhile Naruto used his water style to douse any flames he could and Eclipse's wind chakra to attack the spawn before they landed. He jumped into the air, using shadow clones as springboards until he was over the creature as it tried to crush Konan in its jaws. Channeling his earth chakra through his blade, he slammed Eclipse down into the creature's back, the shockwave causing it to drop a few hundred feet before recovering. He channeled chakra to his feet, and readied himself as the creature took off after Konan. Spawn raised out of its back and he cut them down as quickly as they came. The flames surrounding the monster licked at his legs, but Naruto simply channeled his chakra to his legs to form a protective layer. One of the spawn screeched and opened its mouth wider than should have been possible as a great ball of fire spat out of its throat. Naruto switched to his fire style and dispered the fire ball around himself, firing his own back at it with a quick punch.
Sweat dripped down his back as they approached a nearby lake, and Naruto felt his arm pulse once again.
Summon me.
Not one to ignore an offer for help, Naruto leapt off the creature, tackling Konan out of the way as it fired a house-sized fireball of its own, and quickly bit into his left hand. Channeling as much of his own and Kurama's chakra as he could, he forced it out violently as he crashed into the water.
"Naruto!" Konan shouted.
*(OoO)*
Itachi, Jiraiya, and Kisame made short work of Sora. With Kisame's sword eating the foul chakra, and Jiraiya's toads holding him down, it didn't take long for Itachi to use his Sharingan. He broke through the genjutsu with ease, and supressed the Nine-Tails chakra as he used a genjutsu of his own to put the boy to sleep.
"I've supressed the Kyubi chakra, but the brief look I got into the boy's state shows that whatever that man did caused significant damage. With the unstable chakra already affecting his psyche, we can't risk waking him up without him going wild once more."
Jiraiya nodded grimly, relaying the information to Tsunade.
"We can't worry about that now. I haven't heard from the guards with the Daimiyo in a while, I need you to go check on them."
"Alright," Jiraiya said. He led Itachi and Kisame to the building where the Daimiyo was staying, and Kisame paused, taking a sniff of the air.
"We're not gonna like what we see when get there."
Jiraiya nodded and steeled himself as he pushed open the door. The bodies of monks littered the floor, blood seeping out the many wounds that mutilated them, and Jiraiya took off at a sprint. Bursting through the door to the Daimiyo's quarter's he found the three ANBU who were assigned to guard him unconscious and bleeding heavily while the Daimiyo himself was pale as a sheet under the blankets of his bed, gasping for air.
"Tsuande we need you here, now!"
It took less than a minute for Tsunade to burst through the door. Itachi and Kisame were doing what they could to help her agents while Jiraiya was tending to the Daimiyo. She wanted to help her people, but the blood on Jiraiya's hands told her where her attentions were needed the most at the moment.
"Are those… bite marks?" Tsunade asked as she began applying a healing jutsu to the many bleeding wounds on the Daimiyo's stomach. Jiraiya nodded grimly.
"Near as I could tell, his kidney was ripped out, and large sections of his flesh, including his right leg are gone. They aren't anywhere here, so either they were taken, or more likely…"
"They were eaten…" Tsunade fought down a shudder and focused on her task. It seemed like the wounds were placed specifically to cause the most slow and painful death possible. If Jiraiya hadn't found him when he did, the Daimiyo would have slowly bled to death while the rest of themwere distracted by the invasion.
"Those things are coming this way," Kisame noted as he hefted Yamato and Kisuke over his shoulders. "Might want to move his highness before they smell a fresh meal."
"Itachi, take the ANBU to Shizune and come back here. Jiraiya and I will hold off the creatures until you get back."
"Yes, Hokage-sama," Itachi said, lifting Yugao over his own shoulders.
Tsunade tore up the sheets of the Daimiyo's bed and used them to wrap up his remaining wounds, slowing the bleeding until she could return to his side. She cracked her knuckles and followed Jiraiya out the door.
"You and I seem to be finding ourselves in these sort of situations quite often, Tsu-hime," Jiraiya quipped. "If this keeps up, I might start thinking you enjoy my company."
"Keep dreaming, you old pervert," Tsunade fired back with a smirk. She reared her fist back as the first group of monsters approached, and slammed it into the ground. The earth shattered under the force of her punch, and the creatures were thrown off their feet, the slower ones getting crushed between the shifting stones while the rest took to the air.
Jiraiya made a hand seal and swung his head around. Sharp needle-like hairs flew through the air and skewered the remaining creatures. They continued to demolish the creatures with ease until Itachi and Kisame returned.
"Their numbers are diminishing within the temple," Itachi reported. "But there are several of them in the surrounding forests."
As if on cue, the original creature shrieked and they leapt up to the roof of the building to see a trail of burning forest leading from the temple to the lake a handful of kilometers away. The creature could just be made out over the distance as its mouth distended and a gargantuan fireball erupted from the depths of its throat. The ball of flames rocketed towards the lake surface, but was easily extinguish as a pillar of swirling water rose out of the lake, twisting and writhing through the air as it grew and knocking harshly into the creature to send it crashing to the ground.
A loud sound, almost like a whale call rang over the land, and they watched as a shadow swam up the water spout. The silhouette stopped its ascent and a pair of blue eyes shone as it dispersed the spout. Water churned and rose as a dragon opened its mouth and that same melodious call rang through the air. It didn't look like a typical dragon. Its skin had no scales and instead looked like it was covered in a tough black and white hide. Its rear legs were webbed, talons curving out of them, while the forward legs resembled the paws of a seal, large and smooth with claws held close together to help with swimming. Its wings looked more like the giant fins of a whale than the typical bat-like wings one would expect, and its head had a sleek design, with a horn protruding from between its eyes and a pointed end to its snout, not unlike a beak.
"Well met, Naruto-kun," the dragon's voice echoed through the air as it spoke and Tsunade could almost feel power in its soft, musical voice. "My name is Ryuzuka, Embodiment of Water. I have come to help you dispose of this abomination." There was a moment of silence as Naruto no doubt responded, and Tsunade could almost see the amusement in Ryuzuka's sapphire eyes. "Yes, Ryusanda does like his tests, as most of us do. I, however have been watching you since you summoned him, and have deemed you worthy through both word and action to summon myself and those I command."
Tsunade watched as the dragon made quick work of the creature. As soon as it recovered and was back in the air, Ryuzuka flaired her wings out and the lake beneath her curved under the force. The water churned and started glow as rose and gathered into a glowing sphered in front of her. The creature gathered its own energy into a fireball of equal size and launched it. Ryuzuka roared and the glowing sphere of water rocketed forward in the form of a massive beam of light that pierced right through the fireball and obliterated the creature in a flash of light and a shriek of pain. Nothing of the creature remained when Ryuzuka's attack faded, and she looked around the burning forest with distaste.
"Alright, Naruto-kun, I know I said I deemed you worthy, but I do have one more test for you." Ryuzuka laughed at Naruto most likely reacting poorly to the turn of events. "Worry not, it's nothing as subtle as Ryusanda, all I ask of you is to extinguish these flames below us."
"There's no way he can do that," Kisame commented.
"Naruto has unprecedented skills with elemental chakra," Jiraiya countered. "He'll be just fine."
They watched as a tiny figure on top of Ryuzuka's head moved and felt a massive amount of chakra be exerted. Tsunade could feel Kurama's chakra helping Naruto, but on top of that, it seemed that Ryuzuka was also providing her own chakra to supplement Naruto's technique.
"This isn't good," Jiraiya muttered. "The natural energy is fighting him for control of the water."
"I believe in my son," Tsunade said firmly. "He can do it."
As if in response to Tsunade's declaration of support, they heard a faint screaming, and watched in amazement as the water of the lake rose up and spread through the forest, extinguishing flames left and right before receding back. "Well done, Naruto-kun," Ryuzuka rumbled as she flapped her wings and flew towards the temple.
Tsunade allowed herself to watch as Jiraiya accepted an unconscious Naruto from the dragon before returning inside the Daimiyo's quarters and getting to work on saving him.
A/N: Alright, and with this, we pretty much wrap up the Fire Temple Arc and get started towards the whole gaining allies/empire building thing. We're rapidly approaching the time skip as well which I have plans for (sorta), so there might be one or two more arcs, and a confrontation between the gang and shinobi from Konoha and Orochimaru's gang before I wrap things up for the training montage chapter where we skip time and graduate Naruto from strong to OP against pretty much anyone he would have struggled against in canon (barring Akatsuki), and paving the way for some big baddies and plotlines. As always, thanks for reading and telling me what you think, and I'll see you again soon!