Four Days Earlier

There was a knock on his office door. "Come in honey," Uzumaki Naoko called out.

The door opened and an ANBU captain stepped into the office of the village Headsman. "You know dad if it had been someone other than me you'd be feeling a little embarrassed right now."

"If it were someone other than you dear you would have some explaining to do."

"Well then I guess it's a good thing it was me then," without waiting for an invitation she sat down in a chair in front of his desk. "So why are we meeting here instead of at home?" Normally she saw her father in the house; he usually didn't bother having her come to his office in the government building.

"Before I get into that tell me how the mission went."

She shrugged. "Another town burned down, another bunch of civilians killed and sent running."

"And your squad ran into no opposition?"

"No opposition from any ninja the local militia tried to put up a fight."

"Did your squad suffer any casualties?"

She answered that with a look.

"Never mind," unless they were outnumbered a hundred to one there was no way armed civilians were going to do anything to trained ninja.

"It's just pathetic," Kushina said in an annoyed tone. "The damn rock nins are just letting us run wild through their territory. They're not even trying to protect their people."

Naoko sighed. "They know that ultimately we're no real threat to them. We can burn everything along the border but Earth country is so huge that they can lose those places and not even notice. And it's not as if we can mount a real invasion with our slender resources. We're like a flea attacking a lion. We can cause a little pain and even draw a little blood, but in the end no matter how savagely we try and bite we can't do any real harm."

She frowned sourly. She didn't like thinking of her village as nothing more than a flea. "Those damn rock nins should at least try and protect their territory though."

Naoko grinned. "Maybe that's just proof that even they don't have unlimited resources. This war has been going on for more than four years now and all sides have suffered heavy losses. We are now entering a critical stage where some of the participants may soon be ready to come to terms."

"Peace?" Kushina asked hopefully. No matter how many victories they won they remained outnumbered. As long as the war continued her homeland remained under threat. "Do you really think that's possible?"

"Perhaps," Naoko said carefully. "There are rumors that with their Kazekage gone that Suna is beginning to fall apart."

"Who cares about Wind? We aren't at war with them."

"But our allies in Leaf are, and if they are no longer forced to keep an army in the field against Suna they will have fresh strength to fight Earth. The Tsuchikage is a stubborn man; he will not be ready for peace until he is convinced he has no chance to win a military victory. I think the fact he is no longer trying to defend the front here is a sign he is gathering all his remaining forces for one last toss of the dice."

That news did not make her happy. "If that's true then Fire country is in for it, while we just sit here and watch."

"Which is why I'm sending an expeditionary force of fifty ninja to help them."

She suddenly sat up. Now this was news! "You are?" She asked excitedly. If he was sending a force out to fight with the Leaf nins she would definitely be one of them. Which meant she might be able to visit Konoha… and a certain someone.

"Since there seems to be no danger of a renewed attack against us I think we can safely spare that many and send them where they'll do the most good. I think that would be a fitting way to show the Hokage our real appreciation for his help."

"When do we leave?"

He smiled. "It's not that simple, we can't just show up in Fire country with a small army. Even if we are allies the Hokage might not appreciate that. Therefore I'll need someone to go there and make the necessary arrangements." Reaching into his desk he produced a letter that bore the Hokage's seal and signature. "Now you did say you wanted a mission to Konoha didn't you?"

She took the letter and stared at it. It was an invitation to come to the hidden leaf village. "Yatah!!" She leapt into the air and pumped her fist.

Naoko sighed and hoped he hadn't made a bad decision. "Please at least try not to do anything too embarrassing."

XXXXXXXXXX

And so she had found herself escorted into the village of Konoha and directly to the large tower at its heart. Walking through the streets with a couple leaf nin flanking her she drew quite a bit of attention. In her red and black bodysuit and whirlpool hitai-ite people knew she was a foreign ninja, though not if she was friend or foe. The stares and whispers that accompanied her arrival were not quite the reception she'd had in mind. Even so she was immensely impressed with what she saw. Konoha was huge, it was probably ten times the size of Whirlpool and it seemed to be crammed with people. It was no wonder they were one o f the big five. Of course she was also impressed by the faces that seemed to be looking down on her from the cliff. Tsunade had told her about the Hokage monument. But seeing it was something else again. It was impressive to think that the village would go to such immense trouble just to honor its leaders.

As she walked she focused on the third face up there. That was Sarutobi, Tsunade's and Jiraiya's former sensei and the current Hokage she was going to meet. Tsunade and Jiraiya had both told her about him. Hopefully he wasn't as bad as they made out.

XXXXXXXXXX

Finally meeting him she had been surprised at how old he was. His hair was almost completely grey and there were deep wrinkle all over his face. He was dressed in white and red robes and had a lit pipe on hand. Her first impression of him was that he seemed more a kindly and wise grandfather than a leader of a powerful village. But she knew his reputation had to have been well earned. She also reminded herself that her own father had a very kind face, but could be ruthless when the village needed him to be.

There were no serious negotiations at this first meeting. It was more to allow her to be introduced to him and for her to be made welcome. At that Sarutobi excelled, he had a friendly demeanor and an easy charm about him that just naturally put you at ease.

"I hope you will convey to your father and to your village the deep appreciation I feel at this offer of aid. Have no doubt we shall gladly accept your help."

Kushina bowed low to him. She could be courteous when she needed to be. "Lord Hokage, it is our honor to help you now in any way that we can. After all the aid you provided us in our hour of need it is only just that we support you now."

He nodded slightly. "You should also know that I agree with your father's assessment of the situation. I also expect a major attack from Earth country. Your aid may help stem the tide."

"Rest assured Lord Hokage that Whirlpool will do all that we can to aid in bringing this war to an end."

The Hokage again nodded. "I am afraid I have pressing business, but we will meet again soon. In the meantime I have arranged for someone to act as your escort within the village. Someone you have already met."

Her heart began to race inside her chest. Someone I've already met? Only possibility came to mind. She had to resist the urge to start jumping around again and shouting. "Thank you Lord Hokage."

With that her first meeting with Sarutobi came to an end. She exited his office and found her escort waiting for her outside. A certain blonde ninja.

"Kushina!" Tsunade said happily. "Look at how you've grown! It's wonderful to see you."

Seeing Tsunade she couldn't feel a sudden crash of disappointment. "Oh… so you're my escort?"

The depressed reaction caught her off guard. "Sorry if having one of the Sannin escort you is not good enough."

"Ah, sorry, sorry," she gave an embarrassed grin and hurried over to give the woman a hug. "It's really good to see you again Tsunade-chan."

"Well that's more like it," Tsunade said with warmth. "How was your trip here?"

"Uneventful fortunately, there was a little trouble when I met the border patrol but nothing too serious."

"Well, I'm sure you're feeling a little tired and sweaty." Tsunade grinned. "Fortunately I have just the thing. Come on; let me show you one of the best things about this village." She grabbed her arm and began dragging her outside.

XXXXXXXXXX

The man held up a drinking bowl filled with sake. "To the Fourth Hokage! Long may he reign!"

Minato had no choice but to join his best friend in the toast, even if it made him a bit uncomfortable. "Nothing has been decided yet, in fact it will probably still be Orochimaru."

Hiashi laughed and smiled. The new clan head of the Hyuuga didn't do that in public much anymore. With his father's recent death and his elevation Hiashi had begun wearing the calm stoic mask the Hyuuga were so well known for. Only in private did the man still laugh and smile, especially when his wife Hannah was nearby.

"Nonsense," Hiashi said confidently. "Everyone has always assumed it would be Orochimaru, but Sarutobi has never gone to the Council to ask he be officially recognized as successor. Now why do you suppose that is?"

"It's probably just because he thought it a formality and didn't bother." Minato said.

"Maybe," Hiashi said slyly. "Maybe not. Look underneath the underneath, maybe he still has some doubts about the man and was hoping someone more worthy would appear. And now someone has."

"You see hidden meanings everywhere Hiashi," Minato took a sip from his own drink. "Sarutobi thinks the world of Orochimaru."

"Oh no doubt, and there's no question Orochimaru would make a strong and worthy Hokage."

Minato frowned. "You see?"

"You didn't let me finish," Hiashi chided. "He would make a fine Hokage, but a very different Hokage too. Sarutobi is too intelligent a man not to see that no matter how fond of Orochimaru he might be. The Hokage must still have doubts. Which means the door is open for you and I intend to do everything I can to get the Council on your side."

"You don't need to do that," Minato told him.

Hiashi laughed. "Nonsense! Since when has the Hyuuga clan ever been shy about using its political influence? Unlike you my friend I have no qualms about politicking and deal making if it will help put your face up on the cliff." He lifted his bowl again in another toast. "You have the complete and total support of the Hyuuga clan my friend and all that comes with it."

"Well… I thank you."

"And once you're Hokage, maybe you can do a little something in return."

Minato lifted an eyebrow. Hiashi was a damn good friend, but he was also clan head of the Hyuuga. It was not always clear where the one ended and the other began. "What do you have in mind?"

"Don't you think it's time the military police were enlarged?" Hiashi said innocently. "This village has brown greatly since it was founded and I'm afraid they are no longer up to the task of ensuring the peace and tranquility of the village."

"And the Hyuuga clan would be willing to help with this immense burden?" Minato was proud of himself, he'd only just sounded sarcastic. "How generous of you, but no."

"But…"

"Hiashi," Minato said firmly. "You damn well know how prickly the Uchihas can be about their privileges. The military police are theirs and they've given Konoha fine service. I am not going to upset them by interfering with the police force."

"But don't you think it's a bad idea to have one clan dominating the police force?" Hiashi asked reasonably.

"In theory? Sure, but they military police exist and have since the founding of the village. The Uchiha clan were given permission to create them by the Fist Hokage. If I tried to change that in any way I'd infuriate the entire clan."

"The Uchiha will never support you," Hiashi argued. "Especially not once I start making my support public. They'll oppose you just to spite me."

Minato knew that was likely true. Uchiha and Hyuuga were old rivals from long before Konoha had been a village. "Even so, I won't do anything to upset the peace of the village just for my own gain."

Hiashi frowned at his friend. "You have a lot to learn about politics. When you're dealing with powerful people you never say, 'no' you say maybe."

"I'm not a politician," Minato said flatly. "And I don't want you expecting favors I have no intention of granting. If you want to support me Hiashi I'd be grateful for the help, but only if you want to do it of your own accord. If it's just for the sake of some reward then I can't oblige you."

Hiashi continued to frown for a moment and then slowly began to laugh. "Spoken like a true Hokage. Fine then, you have the total support of my clan, no strings attached."

XXXXXXXXXX

"Now this is the life." Tsunade said with deep pleasure.

"Ahhhhh," Kushina said. "I wish we had hot baths in Whirlpool."

The two of them were among about fifteen women who were currently in the women's bathhouse soaking and relaxing. Tsunade had insisted on bringing her directly here from the Tower. At first Kushina had been scandalized about the idea of bathing in public. That wasn't something her people did. But Tsunade had dragged her into the place despite her protests. Seeing other naked women there and listening to Tsunade describe the experience she'd decided to be brave and give it a shot. She was glad Tsunade had insisted. She could feel soreness just melting away.

"When I get back I'm going to tell my father about this and see that we have one built."

"You should, these are definitely… did you hear that?"

Kushina listened. "It sounds like someone is shouting outside." She continued to listen. "Is… is that Kakashi's voice?"

"It couldn't be," Tsunade said. "Kakashi is definitely not the sort to be hanging around the women's bathhouse."

As they were both listening they heard a deep booming voice say the words, 'Toad Sage.'

"That BASTARD!!" With a huge splash Tsunade leapt out of the bath and ran towards the dressing room.

"Hey!" Kushina shouted. She decided to get out of the bath as well and follow her.

She saw Tsunade wrap a towel around herself and run outside. Kushina wasn't that brave. She put her clothes back on as fast as she could. As she was getting dressed she felt a killer intent coming from outside and shouts from all sorts of voices. She didn't know what was happening but as soon as she had her clothes on she ran out, not even bothering to dry her hair.

When she got out there she saw Tsunade, still in nothing but a towel, beating Jiraiya mercilessly into the pavement.

"Tsunade! What the hell us going on here?"

"Jiraiya was trying to peep on the women taking their baths." Kushina was surprised to see Kakashi standing there watching what was going on. "I tried to perform a citizen's arrest, at that point Tsunade came out and this happened."

Kushina was shocked to the core. "Wait a minute! Jiraiya was peeping?!"

Kakashi looked at her. "Of course," he answered sardonically. "He's a huge pervert, everyone knows that."

"But I thought he was a gentleman!" They'd met when she was twelve and he had seemed like a good man, she'd rather liked him.

"A gentleman? Jiraiya? You have met him before right?"

A dark look slowly covered her face. He was peeping on me! Yanking out her katana she began marching into the middle of the street.

"I wouldn't try and stop Tsunade right now," Kakashi warned.

"Who the hell said I wanted to stop her?!"

XXXXXXXXXX

Tragically this was the first and last time Kushina ever used a public bath. Many years later on a mission an older and less rigid Kakashi told this story to his team. But to spare one team member unnecessary embarrassment he never mentioned Kushina's presence.