Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto or any of its characters

Chapter 24: Konohamaru's Stubbornness

"Tell me why she becoming the Hokage again?"

"What's the matter Naruto? You seem discontent."

"Well it's just that I've never heard of a Hokage who's lazy, has a drinking problem, gambles all the time-" a tick appeared on Tsunade's forehead, "has anger issues, is around fifty but makes herself look twenty - I wonder if it's alright for a Hokage to deceive everyone - and is an idiot." Shizune was trying to signal to the young girl to just stop talking, however the damage had already been done.

"Let's go outside, kid!"

...

"I may look like this, but I'm going to be the Hokage, so there's no need for me to go all out against a kid. This finger is all I need," at that, the woman raised her index finger in the air.

"Stop mocking me and calling me a kid. I may look like this now, but someday I'm gonna be stronger than all the Hokage put together!"

"That's a rather large statement from someone so small."

Gritting her teeth in anger, Naruto ran at Tsunade with her fist raised, but the Sannin merely ducked under it and used her finger to push Naruto's head upwards, making her take a step back. The Jinchuriki closed her eyes and prepared for the impact on her forehead, but it never came, instead she felt something warm.

"Become a fine kunoichi, alright?"

'Wait, what just happened?'

"She kissed your head, dumbass. Hang on, are you blushing?! Oh Kami give me strength."

'Like you wouldn't jump her given the chance.'

"She's fifty and you're thirteen."

'Oh yeah, and the girls in those magazines are in their twenties and you're in your hundreds.'

"I'm a bijū, so it's okay."

'Like hell it is!'

...

Konoha, Yamanaka Flower Shop

"I still can't believe we didn't find anything," Ino said and she leaned against the counter with her head resting on her fist, a bored expression was painted on her face.

"Yeah," agreed Sakura she was sitting on the counter with an equally bored expression, "although we did come close with a few ideas."

"So basically, Naruto-chan could be hated by the village for her Uzumaki heritage, she could be a... what was it again?"

"Jinchuriki."

"Yeah, that, or there could be some other dark secret."

"But what? If it is her heritage, we couldn't find out about her parents because the book was torn at that part and if she was a Jinchuriki, that would be a stupid reason to hate her."

"Exactly, she's holding the Kyuubi inside her so it doesn't attack everyone."

The pinkette sighed, "Oh well, I need to go visit Sasuke now and replace the flowers at his bedside table with these," she held up the bouquet of white lilies, "bye Ino."

"Bye Sakura."

Sakura closed the shop door behind her as she left, thinking about the events of the past few days. Naruto had left the village with Jiraiya of the Sannin in search of the other Sannin, Tsunade, so she could take the title of Hokage, then Kakashi was attacked and put into a coma-like state which left her with no one to train her, and lastly Sasuke left to find Naruto but came back and was ill like Kakashi. Everything was so confusing. Who attacked them? Why did Sasuke need to find their other teammate? Why didn't he tell her first so she could maybe help? So many of her questions were unanswered, however she intended to find out the truth some way or another.

She arrived at Sasuke's room ten minutes later and sat down next to the bed. He still hadn't woken up and no matter what she did, he never moved. If something upset you, you were to go see your sensei, but if your sensei wasn't around, you were to see your teammates, and if your teammates weren't around, you were pretty much alone.

'Where are you, Naruto-chan?'

...

Normal P.O.V

'That damn old hag, where the hell is she? There is no way I'm letting her get out of this, she is healing Kakashi-sensei whether she likes it or not, there is no way I'm spending any more time with Ero-Sennin!'

Naruto climbed up the stairs to the Hokage building two at a time, dodging objects and people, until she tripped over something small and hard, smacking her nose against the floor before flipping onto her back.

"Hey! Watch where you're- Konohamaru?"

"Naruto-chan?" it took a minute, "You're back!" he then hugged her tightly around the waist.

"Get off me, baka," the blonde picked him up by his scarf, stood up and dropped him on the floor, "Have you seen a big breasted, scary old lady?"

"Big breasted lady, yes, but she wasn't old."

"She uses a jutsu to make herself look young."

"What?!"

"Yeah, anyway, where did she go?"

"First, tell me who the hell she is!"

"Huh? Oh, she's Tsunade of the Sannin, a very talented medic ninja and- wait! She needs to get to the hospital!" she growled in frustration, "What kind of Hokage ditches important duties like this?!"

"Hokage?" Naruto heard him ask.

"Yeah, she's the Fifth Hokage now."

"I refuse to believe that!"

"Konohamaru?" she asked as she watched him run away

...

A Few Minutes Later

Unknown P.O.V

I laughed maliciously, my prey was close. I looked down from where I was standing on the wall. There! She's coming closer, just a few more metres. This was it. My moment of victory was close. I crouched, readied myself to jump, and-

"Oh, look what we have here Shizune," the stubborn hag held me above the ground by my collar after she dodged my air attack. This is so embarrassing.

"Serves you right."

'Urusai.'

"Put me down you bully!"

"I'm the bully? You're the one trying to sneak attack me," the evil seductress pouted, knowing that I was defenceless while in the position I was currently in, "but if you say so."

I was dropped onto the ground like I had done to Konohamaru a while back while Shizune shook her head in disappointment. At least someone was on my side.

"You need to get to the hospital A.S.A.P!"

"Oh yeah, I forgot about that, thanks chibi," she said as she ruffled my hair, walking past me.

"Don't call me that!" I ran after her, just to make sure she did what she said she was going to do.

...

Yamanaka Flower Shop

"Okay Okaasan, I've finished my shift!"

"Alright Ino, you're free to go," the kunoichi was about to exit the shop when her mother added something, " Did you know that Naruto Uzumaki is back?" that made Ino stop.

"What? Where is she now?"

"Hm... the hospital, I think. Once she brought back Tsunade-sama, she-" Ino heard no more because as soon as the word 'hospital' left her mother's lips, she was already out the door.

...

Konoha Hospital

"Hello," said Tsunade as she entered the white room, breaking the silence that hung in the air. The Haruno sitting next to the bed nearest the door looked at the woman and stood up as Shizune followed in after her sensei.

"Who are you?" the older female opened her mouth to answer when another person entered the room. Sakura's eyes lit up at the sight of her teammate, "Naruto-chan, you're back!"

"Hey Sakura," Naruto lifted her hand up and lazily waved before getting the Sannin's attention and gesturing to the Uchiha on the bed. Tsunade walked next to Sakura and placed her hand on the boy's head, a pale green glow enveloped her hand. While this was happening, the two young girls in the room engaged in a small conversation.

"Who is she?"

"That's Tsunade of the Sannin, a very talented medic ninja. Don't worry, Sasuke is in safe hands."

"Aren't the Sannin old?"

"Yeah, but she uses a jutsu to make herself look young and beautiful."

"Oh. Hey Naruto-chan, you have a crack on your mask," Sakura pointed to the mark.

"Huh?" the Jinchuriki took out a kunai and looked at her reflection in the shiny metal, frowning at it before remembering her first encounter with Tsunade. She put away the weapon and shrugged, "Eh, I'll get it fixed later."

They both looked at their remaining teammate as he began to stir and once he sat up, the pinkette cried out his name and flung her arms around his neck. Shizune and Tsunade smiled at the sight, obviously she was very loyal and caring towards her friends.

"Sasuke, you-" the blonde stopped talking when she saw how tightly the other girl was hugging the onyx eyed boy, something began stirring and constricting her chest at the sight. Having enough of it, she walked out of the room but stuck her hand back in, signalling for Tsunade to come with her, "Next, next."

...

After Kakashi was healed up, Naruto was sent away and told to go see Iruka, which was something she didn't mind because the man always bought her lots of ramen, however once she stood outside, she was stopped by a hand on her shoulder.

"Hey Naruto-chan, mind if I walk you to Ichiraku?" asked the pinkette.

"If you must," sighed Naruto.

As they walked, Sakura thought about bringing up the conversation she had with Ino earlier that day, but dismissed it. After a few minutes of walking in silence, Sakura spoke up.

"So how was your journey?"

"Not bad, Ero-Sennin was a little annoying though, and we also ran into Orochimaru with his little pet, Kabuto."

"Wait, wait, wait, two things. One, Kabuto is with Orochimaru? And two, you fought Orochimaru? Are you hurt? Should we go back to the hospital? Maybe Tsunade-sama could-" the Uzumaki placed her hand over her comrade's mouth.

"Calm down Sakura. Yes, Kabuto is with Orochimaru. No, Ero-Sennin fought him. No, I'm not hurt anymore," panic flashed over the other girl's face, so Naruto added, "but it was nothing major! And no, we should not go back to the hospital because I'm fine," the blonde finally removed her hand.

"So you're okay?"

"Yes, I'm great, actually."

"Naruto-chan!" a platinum blonde blur slammed into her, almost knocking her off balance, "It's so good to see you again!"

"Oh, hey Ino."

"Yeah, hey Ino-Pig."

"Oh shut up Forehead, you're just jealous of my womanly charms."

"Last I heard, pigs don't have womanly charms."

"Well it's better than having a gigantic forehead!"

"Pig!"

"Forehead!"

"Pig!"

"Forehead!

'Oh Kami I'm gonna scream and cry soon.'

"Just walk away. Slowly."

'I'm gonna cry.'

"Don't cry, they can smell your fear."

'Oh jeez I'm gonna cry.'

"That's it, screw walking away, run. Just run."

And the Uzumaki did just that.

...

Ichiraku Ramen Stand

Once seated and ordered, Iruka and Naruto began talking about how the village would need every ninja out on missions so that the other villages wouldn't be able to sense their weakness. Of course, it would take a lot of time, especially since they lost a lot of good ninja, specifically the Sandaime Hokage, but they would pull through.

"Itadakimasu!" they both yelled once their food arrived, Miso ramen for Naruto and pork ramen for Iruka.

"Kami, I remember when you were young, you've grown up a lot but your love for ramen has never left. Don't change, alright?"

"Sure, sure. Seconds!"

"Hey, don't make me spend all of my money!"

...

The Next Day

Naruto ran through the streets of Konoha, the Hokage necklace bouncing up and down and her mask fixed. All around her, people were carting away debris from the Chuunin Exams attack and rebuilding destroyed buildings. As she turned round a corner, she bumped into Rock Lee who was still on his crutch.

"Hi Fuzzy Eyebrows."

"Oh hello Naruto-chan."

"How was the thing with Tsunade? Did it go well?"

Lee's eyes shadowed as he looked at the ground. He recalled what the woman had said to him, 'There is a fifty percent chance that the operation only I can do will work. If it doesn't, you'll die', he really didn't know what to do. It was his dream to be a ninja, and he didn't want to disappoint his sensei, but if it goes wrong he'll never be a ninja anyway. Naruto, sensing his despair, raised her visible eyebrow. She was never really good at cheering people up, so she said the first thing that came to mind.

"Anyway, the village needs to be put back together as quickly as possible, so heal up and we'll go on missions together, alright?"

"Naruto-neechan!" two voices called out from behind said girl. The two children were Udon and Moegi, Konohamaru's friends. They panted as they stopped in front of the Jinchuriki, "Konohamaru's gone nuts!"

"Huh? What do you mean he's gone nuts?"

...

Naruto, Udon and Moegi made it just in time to stop the two Chuunin from forcefully opening the door to the storage room.

"Wait!"

"What do you want, chibi?"

"I don't know what's going on here, but could you please not do anything rough to Konohamaru?"

"Is he someone you know?"

"Yeah. I'll convince him, so please leave it to me," the Hokage thought this over, however the pleading look on the young girl's face sold it.

"Alright, I want him gone by the end of the day."

After Tsunade left, Naruto began to bang on the door, "What are you doing in there, Konohamaru? Come out already!"

Silence.

"We can go and get ramen!"

Silence.

"Don't worry, it'll be my treat!"

Silence.

"I'll give you extra servings of pork!"

Silence.

"At least answer mean you little gaki!"

"Urusai, chibi!"

That stunned the Uzumaki. Never before has Konohamaru said anything like that to her. Ever.

"How dare you! It's already bad enough when the old lady calls me that, not you too! I am so close to blasting this door open with a Katon jutsu so open up!"

"Just try it!"

"Why you...!" the girl ran at the door and barged into it with her shoulder, however all it did was make metal pans fall on top of her. Naruto stood up, took a deep breath and calmed herself down, "At least tell me why you're doing this."

Still silence.

'I can't believe I'm actually going to do this.'

"If you come out, I'll give you a kiss."

Nope.

"Ha, rejection."

'Urusai.'

"That's it. Oiroke no Jutsu."

'I promised myself I'd never use this again, so he better come out.'

A cloud of smoke engulfed the girl and a tall, naked and beautiful girl replaced her with some smoke covering her 'private parts'.

"Konohamaru-kun, come out please."

Again, nope.

"At least say something, this is embarrassing!" Moegi and Udon could only stand in the background, watching in horror at what was in front of them. Getting angrier and angrier, seven clones appeared next to the original, "You've given me no choice, I'm coming in!" they all shouted as they charged at the door. Smoke and pepper bombs fell from the top of the door, making all the clones disperse in a coughing mess, leaving the original on the ground and exhausted.

"This is Gramps' room, so I, his grandson, won't let anyone in!"

"That's why you're doing this? Baka! This isn't the time or the place! Right now the village is in a dangerous situation and if we don't help, it'll take longer for sensei to get back to training their students!"

"So what? It doesn't concern me!"

"Now I'm pissed. I'm gonna take down this door right now!" the Uzumaki began to gather chakra into her hand however she only got it halfway finished when Tsunade slapped the back of her head, enough to make her fall and stop the jutsu. "Huh?" the woman grabbed the door knob, resulting in more metal pans falling towards her, but she merely batted them away. The doors opened, revealing trip wires that were keeping bookshelves up. The Sannin cut the wires and punched the bookshelves away like they were weak flies. Next was an explosion tag she put out with just her foot and a kunai sailing towards her that she dodged. Lastly, a few rocks fell from the ceiling; she just stepped out of the way. Naruto, Udon, Konohamaru and Moegi stared in amazement as she left the room with just a book, not looking at anyone or anything in particular as well as having a completely straight face. The silence was broken by the Uzumaki.

"Well, that was a thing."

A/N: I'm not entirely happy with the way this chapter came out, I think I rushed it a little bit. Anyway, not much in this but expect a few things to be revealed and a bit more action within the next few chapters. Here is a list of translations for words you may not know the meaning of.

Translations:

Baka = Idiot/Stupid

Chibi = Literal translation is 'Short legs'.

Urusai = Noisy but when shouted at someone it means 'Shut up'.

Gaki = Brat

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