A/N: Just wanted to say thank you everyone so much for your reviews :)
It was clear now, things had gotten much more dangerous, they were now wanted ninja within another village. He needed to find them at all costs.
The village hidden in hot water, formerly a shinobi village, was now a peaceful resort. People from around the country went there for their luxurious spas and hotsprings. The village was no stranger to shinobi, many of them were around. Situated between the fire and lightning countries, the village had seen its fair share of both Konoha and Kumo ninja.
Four young shinobi could be seen entering the village. They stood in awe and marveled at the resort. Plenty of hotels and hot springs could be seen around the village, streets lined with restaurants and shops. Several stalls set up in between with different games to play, with various prizes to be won.
Naruto was bounding around excitedly, it was his first time seeing these things and he couldn't contain himself. He had never been to any events like this, he had tried once, but was shunned by the hosts and kicked out of the festival.
Hinata was also impressed by the area, she had been to a few festivals when she was younger with her family, when her mother was still alive. She was looking around at everything forlornly, remembering her kind and caring mother, her once loving father, and her little sister, who had always been full of energy.
Sasuke was quietly and calmly excited, he didn't show it but he did like these sorts of things. At least, he didn't oppose them, it was good to relax every now and again. His father was always strictly against them, saying an Uchiha didn't have to lower themselves to commoner status for entertainment. Sasuke had always hated that idea, what was wrong with relaxing? He quietly observed the games, looking for any prizes of interest.
Haku was impressed by what he was seeing, he had also never seen anything like it, spending all of his time as a mercenary for hire. They had never visited any villages like this. Even if they had, they were always on a job, never any time to stop. He marveled at the games, wondering how they were played and eyeing the food stands.
Hinata was able to grab Naruto's arm, calming him down. She rested her head on his shoulder, arm wrapped around his. She led him and the group over to a nearby hotel. The group walked up to the hotel reception with Hinata in the lead.
"One room please." Hinata said. The woman behind the counter looked up at the group and smiled.
"Are you sure you don't want two? Maybe spend some time alone with your boyfriend?" She said with a wink. Hinata and Naruto's faces both went bright red. Haku looked confused and Sasuke had a slight blush and a frown on his face, looking away at nothing.
"J-Just one is fine!" Hinata said still blushing. The hostess giggled a bit and handed Hinata a key.
"You'll be in room 206. The open air baths are open all night. Please enjoy your stay." She said. Hinata placed some money on the counter before the group headed towards the stairs.
The group went up the stairs and entered their room. It was a simple room with a table in the center, tatami mats on the floor. A small balcony at the back, overlooking the town. Sasuke walked over to the closet and opened it, revealing four futons inside. He closed the doors and sat down against the wall. He removed his sword and laid his head back against the wall. Haku sat down by the table, relaxing. Naruto was bounding around the room, looking at everything. It was the first time he had been inside a hotel room. He was looking down at the city and he got an idea. He had read in magazines while he was perfecting his sexy jutsu that girls liked to go on dates at events like this. He walked over to Hinata, slightly nervous, he knew she would say yes but he still felt anxious.
"Neh, Hinata…" He said, she looked at him with a slight smile.
"What is it, Naruto-kun?" She asked.
"Ano… I was thinking… since we're in a festival city and all and we haven't had a proper date even though we're boyfriend and girlfriend… Do you want to go out on a date with me?" He asked, blush on his face, rubbing the back of his head. Hinata blushed a bit, but she smiled. He was asking her out! She was just starting to get used to being his girlfriend, this was making her extremely happy.
"Of course, Naruto-kun!" She said with a smile. Naruto grinned back at her.
"So tonight then?" He asked. She nodded, she wanted to go and buy an outfit for the evening. The two just stared at each other for a moment until they heard Sasuke's annoyed sigh. Naruto had a vein bulge on his head.
"You got a problem?!" He yelled towards Sasuke, shaking his fist.
Sasuke just shook his head, before lying down further, closing his eyes. He was tired and wasn't in the mood for Naruto's antics right now. Something was bothering him about their display, but he wasn't quite sure what it was. Was he jealous? No, it wasn't that, Hinata wasn't his type, so what was it then? He shook his head, it wasn't worth thinking about right now, they had a long road ahead of them but it looked like they were going to stay here a while. He needed to find his brother, figure out what happened, there was no way he was dead.
Haku looked at his companions with a look of confusion. Date? What was that? He had never heard of such a thing.
"Naruto-san" Haku began, Naruto turned his way with a questioning look on his face. "What is a date?"
Naruto just about face planted onto the floor, and even Hinata looked a bit confused. Sasuke scrunched his eyes shut further but didn't say anything.
Naruto was wandering through the town, perusing the various shops. Hinata had gone out to buy something to wear for the evening. He didn't really have a whole lot of money, he had saved a small amount from his brief time as a ninja. He was checking the shops around, he found an orange yukata to wear that was reasonable priced, he was now just looking for something to purchase for Hinata. He just wanted to get her something to show his affection. 'Girls like that stuff, right?' he thought as he was looking through the various shops. He had passed by some jewelry stores, he had looked around inside but those were far too expensive for him, and he didn't want to steal anything. He arrived at a small shop that looked like it sold souvenirs and small knick knacks and that's when he saw it. He looked in the window and saw a hair clip, with a large lotus blossom on it. Naruto ran into the store and up to the counter.
"Hey mister! How much for the hair clip!" Naruto practically yelled at the man behind the counter. The man turned towards the hyperactive blond in his store.
"2000 yen." He said matter of factly. Naruto's eyes bulged out of his head. That was so expensive!
"For a hair clip?!" Naruto yelled at the man in disbelief. He just shrugged.
"That's the price, it's very high quality you know." He said with a smirk, "Don't you want your girlfriend to be happy? Money shouldn't be a problem!"
Naruto glared at the man and reluctantly pulled out his favorite frog wallet. He opened it up to see his last 2000 yen note. He pulled it out and handed it to the man who happily took the money. He walked to the front and retrieved the hair clip.
"Wonderful! Have a great day now!" He said, wrapping the clip up and putting it inside a little bag. Naruto pat his wallet sympathetically before returning it to his pack and grabbing the small bag. He exited the shop and started to make his way back to the hotel room. His progress was getting slow as the throngs of people were pushing him about, making it hard for him to get through. He finally got annoyed as someone jostled him enough for him to drop his bags. He scooped them up and jumped up onto the rooftops, this would make it much easier to get back. As he approached his hotel he noticed a figure, standing on top of the roof adjacent to his, with a telescope. He could tell by the angle that the person was looking straight into the open air baths. Naruto had a vein bulge on his head as he decided to interfere, he didn't like the idea of someone peeking.
He approached the figure, he could now see it was an older man with long white hair done up in a ponytail, wearing a red vest over some brown clothes.
"Hey! What do you think you are doing!" Naruto yelled.
"Get lost kid, I'm doing research!" The man replied without looking back.
"Researching what?!" Naruto yelled again. Jiraiya was about to respond when he noticed a crowd was starting to form over the commotion this brat was causing. He sighed, looking over and finally realizing who he was talking to. Jiraiya sputtered a moment.
"Naruto?" He asked. Naruto immediately calmed down and looked at the man apprehensively.
"How do you know my name?" He asked, squinting at the old man.
Jiraiya grinned and stroked his chin, it had been a long time since he had seen his pupils legacy. The boy had grown quite a bit.
"Don't you know who I am?" Jiraiya asked. Naruto shook his head and crossed his arms.
"Why should I know who a pervert is?" He retorted.
"I'm no ordinary pervert… I am… a super pervert!" Jiraiya responded. Naruto stared at him incredulously. "I am the great toad sage! Jiraiya-dono!" He said, standing with his legs wide, his arms outstretched with his palms open.
Naruto just blinked and stared at him, "so you're a pervert sage then? Ero-sennin?" Naruto asked.
Jiraiya got an annoyed expression on his face.
"Hmph, show some respect for your elders." He said crossing his arms.
"Whatever," Naruto huffed, "anyway that still doesn't explain how you know my name!" Naruto said again.
"Ah right, yes, well, we've caused quite the ruckus, let's go back to your hotel room and I'll explain everything." Jiraiya said.
Naruto was still unsure about this weird old man, but he knew his name, he needed to know why. He gathered his bags and led Jiraiya back to his hotel room.
As Jiraiya entered the room grabbed some senbon that were sent flying towards his face, he then casually leaned to the side, sticking his foot out causing a charging Sasuke to trip and land on his front.
"Jeez, some welcome." Jiraiya said. Sasuke quickly got up and spun around while Haku readied more senbon.
"Hey guys relax!" Naruto said with his arms in front of him. Both Sasuke and Haku relaxed slightly.
"Who is he?" Haku asked.
"He's an idiot pervert, but he knows my name, I want to hear what he has to say." Naruto responded to Jiraiya's annoyance.
"Show some respect." Jiraiya grumbled before removing his wooden sandals and taking a seat. Naruto sat down across from him at the table in the room. Naruto looked around a moment.
"Where's Hinata?" He asked.
"She's still out buying whatever for your date" Sasuke mockingly said the last word.
Naruto growled at him before he heard Jiraiya chuckle.
"Got yourself a woman huh kid? Not too shabby." Jiraiya said with a sneer on his face.
"Shut it ero-sennin" Naruto retorted with a blush.
"I'm just joking kid." Jiraiya face became serious. "Now Naruto… before we begin, how much do you know about your parents?"
Naruto shrugged, "I know my father was the fourth Hokage, and my mother was an Uzumaki. My dad left a scroll for me at his house…" Naruto said.
Jiraiya blinked in surprise, he didn't expect Naruto to know his heritage. He then smiled, seemed like Minato got to him before he could.
"Well that's going to save me some time. I was your father's sensei." Jiraiya said, pointing to himself.
"As if." Naruto said, "there's no way a pervert like you could have taught a genius like my dad!" Naruto said defiantly. Jiraiya got a bulge on his forehead, this was going to be a long night.
"Just shut up and listen brat!" Jiraiya said before taking a deep breath.
Jiraiya began recounting tales to Naruto. Some stuff that happened to him, others about his father. He told him how his parents met, what kind of abilities they had, his namesake. He told him of the Kyuubi's attack and how his parents had died. Naruto paid very close attention to everything, taking in all the information. The scroll had some information but there was still a lot of questions he had. Jiraiya talked for a while, Naruto asking questions. After a few hours they heard the door open and Hinata walked in. Jiraiya looked over to her and his eyes went a bit wide, she was a real beauty.
"Ohoho kid, is this the Hinata you guys were talking about? Not bad kid, not bad at all. She's real cute." He said with a sneer. Hinata blinked at the strange man in the room and went red.
"Hey! Watch it pervert!" Naruto said slamming his hands on the table.
"I'm joking, I'm joking, calm down. But in all seriousness, I'm Jiraiya, the toad sage!" He said, introducing himself to her. Hinata bowed.
"I'm Hinata Hyuuga." She responded. She had heard of the three great sannin from Konoha. Her father had made sure she knew who they were. "It's nice to meet you, Jiraiya-sama."
"See now that's respect!" He said, pointing to Hinata. Naruto just crossed his arms and frowned. Jiraiya's grin quickly vanished.
"Now that you are all here…" he said, getting all of their attention. "I need to tell you all. Naruto Uzumaki, Hinata Hyuuga and Sasuke Uchiha. You three have all been branded missing nin from Konoha."
The three of them stiffened, they had been expecting something to this effect but it had just been confirmed.
"There's something else… there was an attack on the village." Everyone looked at him in disbelief.
"An attack…" Sasuke said frowning, "who did it?"
Jiraiya sighed, "It was an attack orchestrated by an old teammate of mine… Orochimaru. He banded together with Suna to attack the village, attempting to destroy it. Luckily, he was not successful… however" He said, they were hanging onto his every word.
"The third Hokage was killed in battle."
A/N: Jiraiya joins the group :D See everyone on Monday