Chapter 25

I Know You

"Because of me"

Those three words hung in the air for several long moments. For Naruto it was the closest thing akin to a confession and he was watching the expression of both his friends quite attentively. They had known about his guilt for not being able to save Uzu but had always assumed it was just because of his feelings as a loyal ninja.

Apparently, it was more than that.

"What do you mean?" asked Nagato carefully, knowing Naruto and his usual defensive manner of dealing with emotional situations it was best if they spoke less and let their friend explain in whatever way he felt comfortable.

Akeno didn't say a word but the look in her eyes was enough to convey that she would never hold him responsible for Uzu's demise no matter what. That confidence and reassurance from both of his friends was the only reason Naruto decided to continue.

"This was not a well-known secret but our village was planning to have its own Jinchuuriki after seeing many smaller villages like ours getting destroyed in the previous war. Since Uzu lacks the resources and manpower to defend itself from the Great Five and espionage will only get you so far, the elders of our clan decided to have this weapon be developed for Uzu's safety"

He watched the sheer shock in both of his friend's eyes. Followed by,

"But all the tailed beasts are currently divided among the Great Five. And-"

Akeno stopped mid-sentence as she realized the answer to her own question. If Uzu wanted a Jinchuuriki then it needed to have a tailed beast first, and the only way they were going to get it was if they stole one or more of those monsters from the other big villages that actually had them.

And if by any chance any of those villages came to know this.

She clenched her eyes shut and silently cursed their elders for making such a disastrous decision.

Of course, Iwa, Kiri and Kumo had mercilessly decimated Uzu for daring to even think of taking their Tailed beasts away from them.

She looked at Nagato who had also arrived at the same conclusion and seemed terribly saddened.

"Naruto, how do you know this?" asked Akeno hesitantly,

"Because I was the one chosen to become the Jinchuuriki of our village if we managed to get a tailed beast for ourselves. They said my blood and powers were stronger than anyone else in our clan and that could be easily used to keep the tailed beast trapped within me. I agreed" confessed Naruto,

"WHY would you do such a thing?" shouted both his friends in unison, the menacing fury and horror easily visible in their gaze.

"It was the best way to protect the village" argued Naruto heatedly,

"What about your life? Do you have any idea how Jinchuuriki are treated In other villages? How our own people would treat you if they came to know? What about your health? You could have died during the sealing process or years after due to the sheer strain of keeping such a power within you" shouted Akeno bitterly,

Before Naruto could answer, Nagato intervened in the argument that was quickly spiraling out of control.

"Because being a loyal ninja and protecting Uzu was all your life was meant to be. And if by becoming a Jinchuuriki you could do your duty more efficiently then you had no qualms even if you suffered or died as a result? Am I Right?" asked Nagato accurately, fixing his friend with a knowing glare.

"Yes"

Akeno had known her friend had monumental fucked up issues to deal with but hearing him answer Nagato's baffling question truthfully showed her that this man had never valued his life at all. The worst part was that he didn't even know that he was wrong if the sincere yet confused look in his eyes was any indication.

"What a mess" thought Akeno furiously as she massaged her forehead,

"Did our village try to steal a tailed beast?" asked Nagato worriedly,

"I don't know but it would explain the sudden attack on us and why our village was so ruthlessly wiped out to the last man" answered Naruto,

"FUCK!"

Both the boys were stunned when Akeno cursed outloud and roughly banged her fist across the table nearly cracking it completely. There was a level of anger in her eyes never seen before by her friends, she was equally disgusted and horrified by the decisions taken by their village leaders.

The S Program, the way they fucked up Naruto, and now this?

She nearly exploded right there on seeing Naruto staring at her in confusion as if all these horrible decisions made by their village were right? That they made sense?

Akeno swiftly got up from her seat and stormed towards the exit or feared that she would unleash all her anger on Naruto for being so blind. She knew he was made to be the person he was today because of his family's abandonment of him and the way Uzu had made him into a weapon. But she didn't have it in her right now to explain why all of this was wrong to him.

From the corner of her eye she saw he was about to get up to follow her, but thankfully Nagato stopped him.

Akeno was never more thankful to Nagato than she was right now.

She needed to get away for now. She needed to find her balance again and maybe try to understand how her now destroyed nation could do all those horrible things?

She had loved Uzu, dedicated her life to the village to the end, only to have her devotion be rewarded like this?

Had she even known Uzu and their clan at all in the first place?

Akeno didn't know anything in this moment.

"Let her go"

Naruto sighed and allowed Nagato to pull him back into his seat. As they both sat silently in each other's company Nagato decided to continue their conversation no matter how hard it would become.

"Why did you tell us both about all of this?" asked Nagato seriously,

"To make you guys understand why I am fighting and will continue to do so. Our people may have made some bad decisions but we never attacked any nation directly and only acted in self defense. The Uzumaki didn't deserve to be butchered to the last child. I will destroy everyone responsible for that massacre. Those people, their families, their loved ones, their friends and comrades they all will suffer the same fate. Only then will they know true pain"

The sheer level of determination and coldness in those words and the hatred in those eyes showed Nagato the limits his friend was going to cross to achieve his goal. No matter what happened he was not going to stop, No matter who got in his way he would achieve what he wanted to at any cost.

Even if it lead to his death or something much worse.

And Nagato couldn't have that.

"Then let me help you. I am an Uzumaki just like you and if you are dead set on going through with this then there is no way I am letting you fight this battle alone. I don't like revenge but I also don't want to lose my best friend. So either way I am a part of this from now" declared Nagato sternly, and made sure his eyes burned with the same fiery emotion daring his friend to refuse or protest.

To say Naruto was surprised by the level of loyalty and compassion his friend had for him was an understatement. And it was this feeling that made him back down.

"Akeno would never agree to this" he muttered, making Nagato release the tense breath he was holding. The fact that Naruto was saying this meant that he had agreed to let Nagato be a part of the Akatsuki.

"Neither do I want her to be part of this. It's dangerous and she is too good of a person to be allowed to be part of such a thing. But you and I have seen and done more fucked up things than her and frankly I could use the help" acquiesced Nagato,

Naruto nodded but saw as Nagato hesitated with his next words.

"Say it"

"I'm with you all the way but I won't stop you if you decide to stop yourself and maybe try to find a new way to live the rest of your life with us" revealed Nagato, and saw Naruto smiling amusedly at his suggestion.

"Never"

"Never say Never, my friend" chastised Nagato playfully, making his friend roll his eyes.

Naruto then glanced at his wristwatch and realized he had to meet Konan in less than half an hour. He didn't know what plans she had but he was sure as hell not going to piss her off by not honoring his word to spend the day with her.

Nagato must have seen the look in his eyes as he smirked.

"Going somewhere?" asked Nagato not too subtly,

"Just roaming around" answered Nagato nonchalantly,

"Then you wouldn't mind if I tag along now, would you?" teased Nagato,

He smirked on seeing the low frustrated growl that escaped from Naruto's lips. Both boys knew it without even saying as to where Naruto could be going. After years of staying together by each other's sides, Nagato was well aware of his friend's visits to the brothel.

Frankly, he didn't mind as long as that helped Naruto blow off some steam.

Naruto realized what Nagato was thinking and decided to pretend his friend was right. It was easier that way than explaining that he was hanging out with Konan for an entire day.

Because Nagato would never let him live that one down.

And Akeno would literally flip her shit.

So it was easier to pretend that he was doing his usual thing.

"Yeah, I'm going there" lied Naruto, earning a small smirk from his friend.

"Then blow off some steam. You deserve it after the past few days"

"Thanks"

With that Naruto got up and laid a wad of cash to pay for the breakfast bill. Nagato only smirked and followed his friend as both the boys moved towards the exit.

Konan reached the clock tower fifteen minutes before the decided time. Call it years of habit but she always made a point of arriving before expected. Usually it helped her to observe things, calm her mind, surprise people she had to meet, and sometimes even scold her friends for being late.

She glanced across the area with a clinical gaze, the restaurant far across the street was gradually opening up for the day. A few people were rushing forth to reach their workplace. A few stray animals were searching the corners of the street for leftover food. Even the shinobi that were in the area were out in the open and were relaxing. Yet she was not a Jounin for nothing and her years of training and battlefield experience made her pull out a kunai quickly.

She easily twisted around and blocked a kunai that would have struck her neck easily. There was a shift in the air and this time she was surprised when a humanoid figure landed into the pile of grass near her. Not a second later, the familiar face of Naruto Uzumaki emerged in front of her with a satisfied smirk on his face.

Konan didn't know whether to be angry that he had attacked her like this or be shocked that he performed a forty feet jump from the top of the clock tower perfectly without suffering even a minor injury. He was definitely full of surprises.

"So, what do you want to do?" he asked casually,

She rolled her eyes. Trust him to not even given a care as to his previous antics. Still, Konan decided to roll with it because she had a feeling calling him out on it was a useless exercise. Besides, she liked the brief surge of adrenaline when he had attacked her.

Although she would never admit it to him outloud.

"Follow me"

He blinked at her simple command and was surprised when she started walking ahead without even waiting or glancing back to make sure he did what was asked. Bossy.

Still, he stuffed his hands inside his pocket and caught up to her. The people in the street gave them curious looks when the never ending rains of Ame didn't even touch the two shinobi. If only those people could manipulate chakra constantly to keep themselves from getting drenched.

They walked in silence for quite a few good minutes without any of them saying a word. That remained the case until Naruto saw the large gate of a fun fair ahead of them.

Her arched an eyebrow in her direction. Expecting his unasked question Konan turned to answer.

"How good of a shooter are you?" asked Konan, a hint of a challenge audible in her voice.

"Good Enough"

"Spoken like a true Assassin. Well, we'll just have to put those skills to use" she spoke with a satisfied smile,

"Bring it on" he challenged,

Few minutes later Naruto had a frown on his face when he found himself in front of a shooting range specifically created for ninjas. There were a series of targets spread across the medium sized field. The twist being these target dummies continuously kept on moving.

It was a decent challenge and the only criteria for winning was hitting all target dummies dead in the center.

All at the same time.

He figured it was the last condition alone that had made every ninja trying the challenge to fail in one way or another. He looked at the price for winning this contest and was surprised it was nearly 5,000 ryo. That too cash upfront.

The entry fee was a decent sum of 100 ryo.

But judging from the cocky smirk on the stall owner's face several ninja had already failed and he was making a lot of money.

He looked at his partner for the day. Considering her ability to manipulate thousands of paper even turning herself into one this contest should be a piece of cake for her.

As if she read the question in his eyes Konan nodded.

"I cannot participate because of my powers. It would be cheating" answered Konan playfully, making him roll his eyes.

"Fatso over there won't mind losing some ryo" said Naruto, pointing at the stall owner who smiled as another ninja lost the contest.

"Already backing out?' challenged Konan,

He simply shook his head and stepped forward towards the stall owner. The fat man gave him a mocking look but nonetheless accepted the money Naruto gave him as the entry fee.

Konan's presence alone had managed to attract quite a few ninjas and civilians as well to their location. Apparently, besides being attractive, the Ame kunoichi was loved by the people dearly.

Naruto made sure to hide his disdain over the growing attention. He was an Assassin, gathering attention was a bad thing in his profession. It showed either you were lousy or simply incompetent. He had to force himself to focus on the challenge at hand or risk losing his money. Call him stingy, but he loved his money and was going to make sure fatso over there was going to pay him the prize money.

With added bonus.

As he stepped on the field and grabbed the set of kunai offered to him by an assistant his training kicked in. He observed the entire area, position of the dummies, their movements but was surprised when his sharp sensory powers tickled.

Something was wrong here.

He looked at the kunai in his hand and found them to be of standard issue. He looked at the target dummies and didn't find anything strange. But when he glanced at the tiny pieces of paper carefully hidden in the ground he realized what was going on here.

Naruto looked at Konan. There was no way a talented Jounin like her, someone who had the power to even attempt to control his dark chakra missing something like this. The contest was rigged from the start by the fat stall owner. No matter how much of a big shot you were, the seals beneath the dummies would always make sure to create a small hidden barrier thereby preventing the weapon from instantly hitting the target.

He had to give the fat stall owner some credit for his innovative thinking. Only a few of the dummies in the far off distance had those seals while the rest of the targets were free of them. If anybody missed they would only assume it was because of their miscalculation or simple bad luck and not because of the barrier seals hidden beneath those dummies. And those seals were also very carefully hidden and not easy to spot.

She was testing him. He could practically see that in Konan's eyes. He could either call out this farce of a contest and expose the stall owner, or he could quit and steal the prize money later, or he could take the challenge and try to win. And if not all these possibilities he could do anything that came to his mind. Konan simply seemed interested in seeing what choice he would make instead of winning or losing the contest.

Naruto looked around and saw the crowd was growing larger by the second. So he made his move.

The next second the fat stall owner who was previously anxious about the upcoming contestant found a voice in his head.

A really terrifying voice.

In a matter of a few moments, the stall owner came running towards the front and called for a break. The crowd murmured in disappointment and slowly started to disperse having lost all interest. Then the fat stall owner hesitantly walked towards Konan and surprised her by secretly offering her 15,000 ryo cash upfront.

She smiled and took it without hesitation. The cheat excuse of a person deserved losing this much amount of money in such a manner.

Naruto simply walked out of the field and stepped beside her.

"Satisfied?" he asked with a smirk,

"Very" she actually agreed.

To be honest, she had not expected him to make such a choice. Sure he would have caught on to the rigged competition but the way in which he dealt with it showed something remarkable about him.

"It seems you were expecting me to do something different" he suggested, as if reading her thoughts. Konan was not surprised considering his unusually high perceptive skills in the field.

"Yes, I actually expected you to take up the challenge or expose the cheating. But if you had done either of that you would have failed either by missing the target dummies or attracting more crowd attention than necessary. Quitting would only prove you failed the job. But you used your talents to expose the cheating and making sure not to gather any attention to yourself. The fact that you even got us thrice the proposed prize money proved you completed the challenge successfully" explained Konan in detail,

"Quite the observation" he praised,

"You are a Talented Assassin. Powerful yet stealthy and highly efficient" she congratulated in return,

"You're not so bad yourself" he teased,

Konan rolled her eyes.

"So, what's my reward now that I have completed your challenge and got you quite the prize money?'' he asked curiously, and watched her arch a perfect eyebrow.

Konan easily handed him a thick wad of 7,000 ryo upfront. The rest was carefully placed in her pocket.

"That's your share. I'll accompany you for any shopping" she decided,

He shrugged and stuffed the money in his pocket. Even though he didn't hear her say it but he had an idea as to what was going on here with her actions.

Naruto dragged her through the fair. First they went to a weapons shop and he bought himself a nice supply of kunai, shuriken, storage seals, exploding tags and medkits. He purposefully sealed all that stuff in one storage scroll and stuffed it back in his pocket.

As they were walking through the fair he saw a pair of young boys trying to steal food from a stall. Instead of exposing them he simply waited and observed them successfully steal some bread. However, before the boys could disappear into the crowd he cornered them and Konan watched him then give the boys tips on how to be better next time and gave them some cash to help them out when they were in serious trouble. There was no pity or sorrow behind his actions, instead he was simply teaching the two boys how to survive in their harsh world.

After that he actually bought her lunch even when he had previously said she would be paying for the day's expenses. When she had reminded him of that, he had merely rolled his eyes in amusement and went back to his food. Despite not saying anything, Konan was actually pleased that he had decent manners when going out with a girl despite what his earlier words may have implied.

When food was done, he counted his remaining cash which was still quite a lot and took her straight to the nearest bank where she watched him deposit his money. If one thing was constant in the ninja world was the fact that no matter how many wars, famines or other shit happening across the ninja world no nation dared to even think of controlling the banks or risking having themselves destroyed. The few nations that had tried such a move in the past soon went bankrupt and declared not credit worthy.

Even though this practice had created an opportunistic banking empire, it also gave security to ninjas because no matter what happened their hard earned money would always be safe. Even after their nation stopped existing as in case of Uzu.

"So, what's next?" he asked casually, after depositing his money.

"And are we done with your tests?" he added as well,

Konan should have known already that he must be aware of the testing she was putting him through both as a ninja and as a person since the beginning of whatever this day was. It was her way of getting to know the real Naruto Uzumaki in everyday life away from the battlefield.

From what she had seen Konan was satisfied. It could be he was deceiving her but she doubted Naruto actually cared enough about her opinion of him to make that effort and was simply acting the way he always had.

"Yes" she admitted simply,

"Then tell me something about yourself" stated Naruto, and saw a small smile arrive on her lips.

"I suppose that's fair. I grew up as an orphan, parents died while I was too young. Hanzo took interest in me during one of his visits to the many orphanages across Ame. I passed his tests and he trained me to become a Kunoichi of Ame. Ever since I have served him and this nation" answered Konan, and couldn't help some pride and admiration from seeping into her voice for her leader and the nation they both fought for.

"You must have performed some dangerous missions to be promoted to Jounin quickly. That is apart from your skills and talents which I have seen firsthand" he commented, and didn't miss the dark haunted look that flashed across her eyes for a moment before being concealed away by a blank expression.

"Yes" that was all Konan had to say. And it was all he needed to know.

"It never gets easier, does it?'' he asked with a knowing look in his eyes.

"No, it doesn't" she reluctantly admitted,

They both continued to walk in silence for several long minutes trying to understand what they had just revealed to each other. It wasn't much but that hadn't stopped either of them from seeing the small similarities they had in their lives.

"How do you deal with being an Assassin?" asked Konan pensively,

He went rigid for a moment before his shoulders relaxed as he studied her non-judgmental gaze staring back at him. So, he decided to do something.

Konan was quite surprised when he fetched in his pocket and took out a small pocket diary and handed it for her to see. When she opened it her eyes widened on seeing a name on the first page.

And there were a lot of pages with names.

No words were necessary to explain what he had just revealed to her. She hadn't missed his tension that he was silently concealing behind his blank expression.

This was his test for her.

Wordlessly, Konan read through a few of those names. Beneath them were the age of the target, location and manner in which they were killed by Naruto.

People of different races, of different ages, all murdered by him in cold blood.

She briefly swept her hand through the stack of papers carrying the names and was stunned to find them numbering more than 278.

278 people were murdered by this man.

Konan had never felt so trapped before.

Akeno was right, Naruto never did things the easy way.

He had today showed her a glimpse of his bloodied past, his hands were tainted with the blood of several innocent people. His ledger ran deeper than hers had ever been.

As she walked silently beside him she observed him in more detail.

He carried himself with confidence and an aura that screamed at people to keep their distance. But she had also seen brief glimpses in his his eyes when the guilt of what he had done reflected in them. She had seen it all during watching him visit the Uzumaki memorial.

Yet even so with all his sins, Konan couldn't dismiss the fact that he had done good too, no matter how less.

He was a good friend and had gone to great lengths to bring the surviving Uzumaki to Ame. He had risked his life for them against Hanzo and entire Ame itself. And that spoke of a conviction Konan could respect him for.

She had no right to judge him or call him out on his past. Because even if he didn't admit it, Konan had a feeling it plagued him every moment. Even her own past was stained with blood.

Naruto was surprised and slightly relieved when Konan slipped the diary back in his pocket and took his hand in hers. That gesture alone spoke volumes of what she was willing to commit, yet he still searched her eyes for any last doubts but didn't find any. He gently squeezed her hand back.

She smiled.

"You were never asked to kill children?" asked Konan worriedly, knowing the youngest person he had killed was a teenager.

He shook his head much to her relief.

"I may not be calling the shots most of the time in my line of work. But there are lines my handlers knew I won't cross. Children were one of them, I was ten when I became an Assassin. Before that I was not in any control of my life, the same goes for children below that age so I don't kill them. Although if the children of the targets I killed try to harm me then I have to defend myself" he explained frankly,

"I see" replied Konan carefully,

He saw she was not much impressed with his twisted philosophy but it was the truth he had offered to her. On one hand he didn't kill children but wouldn't hesitate to hurt them if they tried to hurt him.

She was right, it was twisted.

"My hands are stained with blood, Konan. More than you think that exists in those pages alone, this is what I chose to be. this is what I am and will be till the day I die. There can be no redemption for my actions" he confessed, his voice carrying the briefest trace of guilt and resignation.

"You're wrong"

He blinked in surprised and stared at her to find a steely expression visible in her eyes.

"You may have chosen this path and done some things you regret or had no control over but it is totally up to you as to what your future actions will be. Your ledger can never be completely erased but it can be reduced" she explained patiently,

"How?" he asked, doubt clearly present in his eyes.

"By doing good whenever and wherever possible. It doesn't matter if its large or small because in the end it'll help reduce the burden you carry on your shoulders"

He stared at her and she didn't avert her gaze from his piercing orbs that were trying to look into her very soul for the sincerity in her words.

"Did it work for you?" he asked, some hope present in his tone.

"Yes" she answered earnestly,

He was about to ask how she made it work only to see Konan point her finger forward to the destination they had arrived had. It only went to show how immersed he was in this conversation with her that he didn't notice this location before.

Naruto followed the direction her finger was pointing at and watched in surprise to see himself standing in front of one of the largest rivers of Ame. And across it a structure was under-construction.

A Dam.

That wasn't what surprised him but it was the presence of his other Domino Squad members Kyusuke and Daibutsu working alongside several other ninjas and workers to build that structure.

He looked back at Konan.

"Every man and woman working on that dam has sins and demons of their own. They have ledgers just like you and I, it may not be as long as yours but it exists" revealed Konan honestly,

"And building a dam absolves them of that?" asked Naruto in disbelief,

"No, Ame is a poor nation and we do not have enough money to build such structures for our people in many numbers. Every person working there on that dam is contributing their own money, skills and time in building it. That work is not going to absolve them of their ledgers but that dam will one day help the future generations of this country. They would have a future better than ours and in that fact lies the redemption of all these people. This dam will be their legacy to Ame and the world instead of a simple blood stained ledger. It will be my legacy as well"

Konan left him with those words and marched ahead to join the others that were working. Naruto watched her greet Daibutsu and Kyusuke who smiled at her and then both the boys actually waved at him in greeting.

Unconsciously, he waved back.

He continued staring as his teammates working side by side to build something that they would probably never get to use. Create something out of their own blood and sweat for people they would never know. Somehow, he didn't know why it turned something in his heart.

Naruto stared at his own two hands and couldn't help but grimace when he found them drenched in blood of all the people he had killed in his life. The nightmares that plagued him every night never let him forget what he had done.

Even now when Akeno and Nagato were settling in their new life, he continued to drift aimlessly in this world. His true home, Uzu was gone. There was no hope of bringing it back. He was going to make sure the ones responsible for that massacre were punished and the ninja world changed but if he survived that mission then he had no aim left in life.

His purpose would have been served.

Akeno had always insisted that he was not a weapon unlike what his handlers had told him. That his life could mean more than that of a loyal asset that could be used and thrown away. That he could do some good in his life if he wanted.

He just had to open his eyes.

All this time he didn't know how to do that.

Yet watching these people work showed him that way. He wanted to build a legacy of his own that was not just a tale of destruction and death. Maybe he could make his life to mean something much more.

He had never much cared for Ame and only fought to protect it because of his friends and clan children living in this nation. But today something had changed.

The poverty, the struggle, the hardships that plagued this nation.

He had seen it all.

But there was something more in the eyes of the people of this country. There was..

Innovation, desire to help each other and work for a better future that didn't involve destroying futures of other nations. Of staying strong in the face of hardships and defending their ideals.

He stared at the Uzu headband he still carried with him every day. He would always be a Uzu ninja and was never going to swear that sacred oath of loyalty to any other nation.

But if he could just protect this peaceful nation in a world full of violence.

Then maybe one day that would be his legacy and when his time came he could die in peace.

So, when he saw his three teammates staring at him, waiting to see what could he would make.

Naruto didn't disappoint.

He walked towards them and started to help in the construction activities. Nobody said anything but he didn't miss the happy smiles on their faces.

Somehow he knew from this point forward he was not going to see these three as simple partners.

But something much more.

Friends.

A heavy silence existed in Hanzo's chambers as the three people in the quarters silently tried to comprehend the information they had just received. Galatea remained stoic even as Mifune and Hanzo stared at her.

"Is this accurate?" asked Hanzo seriously,

"Yes, Iwa will soon get over their religious chaos that we had sparked by butchering their invading force in that dark manner. The Tsuchikage wants Iwa to win this war and has simply started executing the religious fanatics that are getting in the way of his victory. In the next two months, the full might of Iwa will rain down on Ame" reported Galatea honestly,

"And how goes our preparation to defend our nation?" asked Hanzo, making Mifune nod.

"We are amassing our forces and calling back our deep cover operatives and warriors alike. Even so, we can only defend against Iwa for a few weeks. In a conventional war, we will lose within days if Iwa unleashes its two Jinchuuriki in battle" explained Mifune,

Hanzo took a deep breath and closed his eyes for the next few moments. When he looked back at his supporters he had made his decision.

"I do not want our children to die in a needless war. And there is only one way we can avoid this by cutting off the head of the snake"

Galatea couldn't help but be shocked on what her leader was implying. And when he fixed her with that gaze she knew what was being demanded of her.

"Can Domino Squad carry out the mission?" he asked seriously,

"They are the best this generation has to offer. They each have their own unique skills and are experienced ninjas. Even Yahiko seems ready as a ninja after his recent trip with Naruto. But as a team, I do not think they are ready for what you are asking of them" confessed Galatea frankly,

"Hanzo, this is a suicide mission" warned Mifune,

To their added shock, the leader of Ame actually nodded in acceptance.

"The fate of our nation depends on it" he said gravely, and looked right at Galatea.

"Is Uzumaki Naruto capable of leading this team and completing what I desire?"

Galatea looked her leader right in the eye and answered.

"He is more powerful than all of us. He just doesn't know it, his powers are more than what he can use. The only reason he doesn't know this is because his handlers knew what the boy can do if he learns what they did to him" explained Galatea sadly,

"I will take your word for it, Galatea. You would know more about him and understand him better than either me or Hanzo. After all you too were an Uzumaki used and thrown away by your former nation" said Mifune compassionately,

A pensive look arrived on the stoic woman's face as memories of her years in the S Program came flooding back to her mind. The years she dedicated serving as an Agent of Uzu while spying on Ame. The day when she was discovered and captured was the moment the nation she had sacrificed everything for abandoned her. Yet she was not executed and given a second chance to live the life she had always wanted.

She owed more to Salamander Hanzo than anyone else in this world for that.

For a long time, she had been blind and remained just a tool to be used by people she vaguely knew. She had no dreams, no hopes, just a blinding duty to a nation she had never set foot upon once in her life. Forced loyalty towards a clan she was a part of yet at the same time she wasn't.

But Hanzo saw through her and changed her.

Just as he offered change for Mifune and the Samurai.

He taught her to live, to dream, to protect and be in control of her own life.

And that was a debt she could never repay.

When Uzu was destroyed she didn't feel much sorrow but was disheartened on learning the entire clan was butchered. No matter what happened in her life, she had never wished for the innocent Uzumaki who had nothing to do with her fate to die like that.

And when Naruto Uzumaki had shown up with those few children at Ame's doorsteps, Galatea had never felt more happy.

A small part of her clan had survived in those innocent children.

But most of all she saw a glimpse of herself in that boy.

They were more alike not just in powers but in the way they had lived their lives.

In Naruto, she saw a person drowning in darkness with no way of seeing the light. Of a person that grew up as a weapon and now that its users were no longer in this world, the weapon felt aimless and was drifting.

If only the boy knew his own true story, of what he was really capable of, of what was taken from him, of what was done to him.

However, Galatea knew the day he learned the truth would be his judgment day.

It would either destroy him completely or make him even more stronger.

Yet it was upto him to discover it and she would guide him just as Hanzo had guided her. She had long since severed her Uzumaki heritage but if there was something Galatea truly desired was the dream of protecting Ame.

And to do that she had to help Naruto Uzumaki find himself.

With that dream and the determination to achieve it, Galatea decisively looked back at Hanzo and Mifune who smiled on hearing her promise.

"I will make Domino Squad ready"

Author's Notes: End of chapter.

Hope you guys liked it.

These chapters while slow in pace are gradually building a more strong base for this story. After writing many previous stories and reading several great ones from different writers, I have discovered many areas that can be improved in my writing and I want to do that with this story. It takes more time but the end result is worth it.

Akeno or Konan? Which would be your choice with reasons. Feel free to answer...

Reviews would be nice.

Until Next Time,

Blackwolf501