Disclaimer: Naruto isn't my propertah… but respect ma authoritah anyways!
I'd like to thank all my reviewers, sorry my responses haven't been so frequent anymore, I still try my best to answer all questions but I'm failing on that at this point T_T lol, real life beckons unfortunately.
101010
I'm going crazy,
Cause there are things in the streets I don't believe.
So we'll pretend it's alright,
and stay in for the night,
Oh what a world,
I'll keep you safe here with me.
Have Faith in Me – Day to Remember
101010
"I can't believe Kabuto-san is a traitor…" Sakura said glumly, the group had left Tanzaku to head towards Konoha after the failed assassination of Orochimaru. They were keeping a steady pace, but were going pretty slow all things considering. Tsunade had suggested the slower pace; she was still feeling a little wary to be returning to Konoha after all these years… it seemed unreal.
Naruto scowled, "That guy really pisses me off. Acting all friendly in the Chuunin exams…" The blond was still kicking himself; he hadn't suspected a thing about Kabuto. He actually remembered kind of liking the older genin. Who else had he made false assumptions about? Who else might be tricking him?
The scary thing was that he really didn't know.
Jiraiya guessed what was going through his apprentice's mind, "Don't beat yourself up kid. Kabuto escaped detection from the entire village for years, a green genin like you couldn't be expected to spot a pro like him."
"How do I get better at it?" Naruto asked.
"At spotting them?" Jiraiya shrugged, he supposed it was as good a time as any for an impromptu lesson, "I suppose it comes down to intuition, putting things together."
"Like what?" Sakura was curious as well, she had been equally oblivious to Kabuto's true nature.
"Information." Tsunade broke in helpfully, "Spies mask their intentions behind lies, knowing what's true and what's false is key in identifying when someone is deceiving you."
"There are other things as well." Jiraiya added, "People have facial nuances and body language that tell you when they're lying, telling the truth, or uncomfortable with the subject."
"We learned some of that stuff in the academy." Sakura recalled a few lessons focusing on the very topic.
Tsunade nodded, "Those are the basics. You have to also remember that a good spy can adjust his body and face to make you see what he wants you to see. One other thing that you must consider when you suspect someone of spying… routine. Does the person keep to themselves? Are they alone constantly? Do they go to places that they don't belong? What's their schedule? All important questions to ask."
Naruto scowled, "It sounds complicated. If I think someone is a spy, why don't I just capture them and convince them to tell me the truth?"
"You mean torture?" Jiraiya looked amused, "What if you're wrong? Extreme paranoia is a bad trait for a ninja; you'll never fall asleep at night."
"Whatever." Naruto grinned, "That's why I have Kage Bunshin. I'm never really asleep."
Jiraiya rolled his eyes, "Sometimes I wonder if you can take anything seriously, you stupid brat."
"Tsunade-oneechan…" Naruto sniffled, "Jiraiya is being mean to me…"
"Don't be mean to Naruto, asshole!" Tsunade scolded Jiraiya automatically, before blinking in surprise, "Was that mind control or something?"
"Nah." Jiraiya smirked, "Naruto just has you pegged. He knows your buttons now, and he knows exactly which ones to press."
Tsunade scowled. Jiraiya laughed, "Don't worry Tsunade-hime; he knows all of my buttons too. Stupid brat."
"Er… Tsunade-shishou," Sakura said, trying to change the subject, "Maybe you could help me learn how to heal stab wounds now…? I think I have the theory down, but I'm sure you have some idea how I can improve."
Tsunade stiffened, before saying, "Shizune can help you."
"Tsunade-sama…" Shizune sighed sadly, she had almost forgotten Tsunade's little problem with blood.
Jiraiya frowned, "I'd forgotten. You're still hemophobic aren't you, Tsunade?"
The Slug Sannin didn't reply verbally, but nodded reluctantly.
Naruto was confused, "What's that mean? Hemo… phobic?"
"That's right, sound it out." Jiraiya encouraged mockingly, "It means afraid of blood. You have to get over that, Tsunade."
"Shut up." Tsunade snapped back, "Its fine."
Naruto didn't seem to think so, "Afraid of blood?" He said in disbelief, "How can you be a medic or Hokage if you're scared of blood?"
"I said shut up." Tsunade growled again, "Mind your own business brat."
The blond did shut up, but not just because Tsunade told him to. He had come to like the Slug Sannin over the past week, but the lady had some serious problems, just as bad as her two counterparts. Idly he wondered what he would be like when he reached their age… just as screwed up and war torn? Lonely and bitter, watching out in case someone he once called friend stabbed him in the back? Afraid of his own shadow?
Perverted?
Naruto shuddered, hopefully not.
They made camp for the night, and Naruto was uncharacteristically silent as his bunshin dashed around, setting up the fire, catching dinner from a nearby stream, and setting up the tents that they had.
Sakura noticed, "Are you okay, Naruto?"
Naruto glanced at his teammate, "Fine." He replied shortly, "Just thinking."
The girl left him alone, but she was more than a little disturbed. Naruto was never quiet… it was kind of scary. Soon all of them were eating dinner, just fish that Naruto caught along with some rice that Jiraiya had on hand to boil. It was a quiet affair, playful jokes were exchanged between Tsunade and Jiraiya while Shizune fielded all of the thoughtful questions Sakura had for the woman. Naruto still wasn't talking, his face was blank and he ate mechanically.
When they finished, he stood up abruptly and walked over to Tsunade, who had just come back from washing her hands in the nearby stream.
"What?" The Slug Sannin asked, looking a bit annoyed, "You're blocking my way, brat."
Naruto stonily withdrew a kunai to her surprise, and then to her shock he drew a long gash down the length of his arm, grunting in pain, making sure it was deep.
"W-What the hell are you doing?" Tsunade screamed, stepping back in fear as blood splashed on her face and clothes from the wound.
"Heal me." Naruto grimaced, "You're a medic. Do it."
"Sh-Shizune!" Tsunade stammered, the other three were rushing over to the commotion, "H-Heal him, q-quick!"
Shizune moved to do so immediately, but Jiraiya made a decision. The other Sannin calmly grabbed Tsunade's assistant by the wrist, and stopped her from moving to Naruto.
"Jiraiya-sama?" Shizune struggled, "Let go, he'll bleed out!"
"No." Jiraiya replied grimly, "Naruto is right, Tsunade needs to deal with this."
Naruto scowled as the wound started to close, slowly but surely. Angrily he slashed at it again, making it deeper.
"S-Stop!" Tsunade squeezed her eyes shut, "Please, stop!"
"Open your eyes!" Naruto demanded, "I'm not going away! Heal me!"
"Naruto!" Sakura tried to pull him away from Tsunade, "Leave her alone-"
"No!" Naruto shoved her away a bit too roughly, and Sakura stumbled to the ground in surprise. The blond grimaced, "I'm sorry Sakura-chan. But this is something I have to do. Open your eyes! The Hokage can't be some weak and afraid old lady. Heal me or I'll die."
Tsunade was trembling violently, she couldn't move, the blood… those memories… they were too much! She couldn't do it…
Naruto fell to his knees, wincing; darkness was creeping in from the edges of his vision. The blond stubbornly slashed weakly at his arm again, fighting the Kyuubi's automatic attempts to heal him. Tsunade wasn't moving, it wasn't working… the blond edged over to her slowly on his knees, all but collapsing against her.
She stiffened in fear, but Naruto didn't do anything else, leaning against her shoulder. In one last attempt, he whispered, "Help me…"
The genin couldn't hold on, he fainted, rolling off Tsunade and collapsing onto his back, unconscious and bleeding badly from his arm. Sakura cried, "Naruto!" and crawled over to him quickly, trying to block the bleeding with a hand towel, failing miserably.
"Please," Sakura begged, "Tsunade-shishou you have to help him!"
The female Sannin shakily opened her eyes and turned her head to stare at the unconscious blond. Her eyes were drawn from his peaceful face to the glint of his necklace, her old necklace.
It was killing him. She was killing him.
'Not again!' She thought desperately, 'Don't let it happen again!'
Wrenching out of her stupor, she crawled over to Naruto, moving the towel Sakura had pressed to his arm, trying her best to ignore the blood that was gushing from the multiple arteries and veins Naruto had purposely managed to hit slicing up his arm. She pressed her hands to the wound, wincing as she felt the wet and warm liquid stain her hands.
'Heal…' Tsunade whispered in her head, 'Please… HEAL!'
The calm green chakra flowed from her hands readily, she hadn't forgotten. She was still the greatest medic in the world. The wound sealed quickly and easily, Kyuubi's healing factor speeding up the process greatly. Soon all that was left of the wound was a blood spattered Tsunade, and an even bloodier Naruto, there wasn't even a scar. Gasping in relief, Tsunade rested her head against his chest; heart was fine, beating strongly. He was going to be alright.
She sat up and glared at the necklace, Tsunade moved to tug it off Naruto's neck, but was shocked when Naruto's hand suddenly moved and grabbed her wrist. The genin cracked his eyes open, grinning weakly, "Nuh uh… that's my necklace now, neechan…"
"N-Naruto…" Tsunade had tears in her eyes, "It'll kill you, you idiot!"
The blond… smirked? It was such a strange look on the blond's face; Tsunade didn't know how to process it.
"Won't kill me." He replied simply, "It didn't kill me. You saved me."
Tsunade blinked. She had. She hadn't been able to save Dan, or Nawaki. She had saved Naruto, even if it was a wound brought by his own foolish machinations.
"Naruto…"
The blond had fallen back into unconsciousness; his grip was limp around her wrist. She could take the necklace back now, if she wanted.
She didn't. Smiling, Tsunade moved her hand away from the necklace. It was his, he was right about that.
"You stupid moron…" Sakura sniffed.
"Tsunade-sama," Shizune kneeled at her side, "Are you alright?"
Tsunade was idly glancing at her blood covered hands, "I'm… fine. I think I should wash, though."
A slow smile spread across her assistant's face, "Yes, you should."
She was alright. For the first time in a long time, she was really alright.
'Nawaki… Dan… maybe now I can finally move on. I will make you proud, I promise.'
101010
Kurenai had been drilling Hinata and Shino when Kiba ran up with the news, panting heavily from the effort.
"Why are you late, Kiba?" Kurenai scowled at the Inuzuka, who looked like he had just ran thirty miles.
"Training… with Hana…" Kiba panted, but shook his head frantically, "But that's not… important…!"
"Oh?" Kurenai asked, interested.
"Naruto…" Kiba gasped, gaining some semblance of breath, "He's back!"
"With Tsunade-sama?" Kurenai asked sharply.
"Yeah!" Kiba nodded, "They just came through the main gates!"
"Training is cancelled for today." Kurenai told the other two, she was already moving towards the general direction of the main gates, her team followed her despite her dismissal, eager to see and greet Naruto and Sakura.
The genin in question was strutting down the street like he owned it, grinning widely as the villagers cheered as Tsunade passed. Maybe they weren't cheering for him exactly, but it was close enough.
"Thank you, thank you!" Naruto called back, "Yes, I know I'm amazing-"
"Naruto," Sakura shook her head, "Stop acting stupid!"
"I don't think it's possible for him, Sakura." Jiraiya deadpanned, scowling at his apprentice's antics.
"Hey, I'm just being me!" Naruto responded, still waving at the cheering villagers, which cleared a path for the group, they were headed towards Hokage Tower, "Hey! Tsunade-obaachan we have to go see Aiko-chan!"
Tsunade rolled her eyes, reigning in the desire to punch Naruto, the blond haired genin alternated from calling her 'neechan' to 'baachan,' seemingly at random. It was really annoying, but she dealt with it, she would punch him later.
"She has to go to the Tower first, Naruto." Jiraiya replied for her, "Have a little patience."
Before Naruto could reply, he was suddenly tackled by a whooping Kiba; almost falling over with a cry of surprise, the Inuzuka who had plowed into him helped steady his friend as well.
"What's up buddy?" Kiba wrapped an arm around the blond's shoulder, "You don't call, you don't write…"
Naruto grinned, "I was kind of busy you know."
"Nice to see you too, Kiba." Sakura wryly greeted the Inuzuka, who nodded to her.
"You too, Sakura, I promise I missed you as well."
The other two members of Team 8 landed next to the group as well to give their greetings, the two Sannin and Shizune stopped for them, but Tsunade glanced ahead impatiently.
"Naruto," Jiraiya said, "We're going to go to the Tower, have fun with your friends."
The three adults continued to walk, leaving Team 8 and the two returning genin in the street as the crowd of villagers continued forward to follow Tsunade.
A particularly happy merchant slapped Naruto on the back as he went by, "Good job kid!"
"I didn't do it!" Naruto protested automatically, before blinking, "Uh… thanks."
The villager laughed and kept walking, cheering for the new Hokage, leaving the group of genin behind.
"Prankster's instinct, huh?" Kiba chuckled, "You're still the same, Naruto-baka." The Inuzuka blinked, looking at Naruto up and down, "Did you change your clothes or something?"
"Heh…" Naruto looked sheepish, "The only ones I had with me were kind of bloody…" His white shirt had simply been too bloody to save, but Naruto was still wearing his black cargo pants. Naruto had replaced the shirt with an orange hoody; something he insisted was the only thing he would wear. He had missed the bright color, plus it had big pockets, he had missed having big pockets.
"Gone for a month," An amused female voice called from behind them, "And you're already back in orange."
The genin turned to see Team 10 walking up to them.
"Ino-chan!" Naruto greeted his friend happily.
The Yamanaka girl smiled at her fellow blond, "Hey, baka."
Ignoring Naruto's imminent protests about being called an idiot, Ino moved to the other person from Team 7, she hugged Sakura, "It's good to see you, Sakura."
"You too, Ino." Sakura returned the hug, she had missed her best friend, "How is Aiko?"
Ino's smile lessened, "She's… the same."
"Don't worry." Naruto assured her with his own smile, "Aiko-chan is gonna be fine, Tsunade-obaachan will heal her right up!"
Ino blinked, "Obaachan…? I hope you don't call our new Hokage that to her face, Naruto."
"He does." Sakura supplied with a grimace, "He's so disrespectful."
Naruto shrugged, "I'll stop when she stops using that stupid genjutsu. She's not that old!"
"It's good to have you back, Naruto." Shikamaru spoke up, a small smile on his face, "Asuma just isn't a challenge for me anymore, I need my shougi partner back."
"We'll play a game soon," Naruto promised, "But first I have to go convince Tsunade-obaachan to heal Aiko-chan right away! Where is Sasuke?"
"Probably at the hospital." Ino mused, sighing, "He's there everyday in the morning."
"N-Naruto-kun…"
Naruto glanced curiously at Hinata, before smiling widely, "Hi Hinata-chan! It's great to see you!"
She didn't blush, and Naruto knew something was wrong. Silent tears began to trickle down her face, and Naruto knew something was very wrong.
"Hey," Naruto gently rested his hand on her shoulder, "What's wrong? Why are you crying?"
Hinata's shoulders were shaking, "N-Naruto-kun… I-I'm so s-sorry!"
Naruto blinked, "For what?"
"I…" Hinata whispered, "I-I nearly g-got you k-killed… against G-Gaara…"
Gaara… it felt like a long time ago to Naruto, even though it was really only a month. He remembered now, Hinata had run back, apparently trying to save him. It had been a foolish thing to do; he thought that furiously at the time.
But… she was his friend, and she had done it because she had thought it was the right thing to do. 'I can forgive her,' Naruto decided, 'It costs me nothing, and she really is sorry.' Naruto was more worried about whether she would do something foolish like that again.
"You're forgiven." Naruto said softly, "I would never hold something like that against you."
"B-But…" Hinata protested, still shaking, "Y-You almost d-died!"
Telling her that didn't really matter to him was probably not a good idea, so he settled for a gentle scolding instead, "It's alright. Really… just next time when I say run, do it. No matter what, okay, Hinata-chan? I don't want to ever see you get hurt, you're my friend."
Hinata nodded into his shoulder, Ino had been right, he forgave her, he didn't care… he didn't hate her.
Naruto slowly pulled away, smiling at her tear streaked face, "There, feeling better?"
The Hyuuga girl sniffed, but gave him a watery smile, "Y-Yes… thank y-you, Naruto-kun."
"Hey!" Naruto grinned happily, "You didn't faint, Hinata-chan!"
Hinata blinked, Naruto had been hugging her… she turned tomato red, but fought to remain conscious, she couldn't ruin it now.
"Alright!" Naruto nodded to them, "Let's go force Tsunade-obaachan to leave the office and heal Aiko-chan!"
The others glanced at each other warily, "Naruto…" Chouji was nervous, "Maybe we shouldn't bother the new Hokage, she's probably really busy today."
"Plus, I don't think anyone would want all of us bursting into Hokage Tower right now." Sakura pointed out with a grimace, "Let's go see Aiko, Naruto. Tsunade-sama can heal her tomorrow."
Naruto scowled at them, "The only way I'm seeing Aiko-chan in that bed is if Tsunade-obaachan is waking her up! You guys go to the hospital, I'll get her!"
With that, Naruto took off running towards Hokage Tower, leaving his friends behind to watch his back bemusedly.
"That guy…" Kiba shook his head, "He's the most stubborn bastard I've ever seen."
"Look in a mirror." Ino retorted, rolling her eyes, "Let's go tell Sasuke the good news… his girlfriend is back."
"I-Ino!" Sakura blushed while the others laughed.
101010
"Iruka! It's good to see you buddy." Kotetsu greeted the scarred Chuunin as he fought through the crowd to reach the main entrance to Hokage Tower. Tsunade had recently entered, and civilians were still milling around, and more than a few kids were trying to sneak in to see the new Hokage.
"Hello." Iruka greeted Kotetsu politely, "What's with the crowd?"
Izumo and Kotetsu glanced at each other, "You're joking, right? Tsunade-sama has returned to be Hokage."
"Oh my." Iruka blinked, "That is big news. I really should pay more attention… anyways; I need to deliver a few academy reports, can I…?"
"Sure." Kotetsu nodded and pulled open the door, "Don't linger though, Hokage-sama has instructed that all unauthorized ninja must exit Hokage Tower immediately when their business is done for the day."
Iruka raised a brow, "Tsunade-sama seems… strict."
"It's just for today, I think." Kotetsu chuckled, "Now hurry up, holding this door open makes me nervous." He glanced suspiciously at the loitering civilians, but they seemed more interested on trying to look into the Tower to see if Tsunade was making an appearance than actually trying to enter.
"Of course." Iruka nodded and ducked inside, Kotetsu closed the door behind him, leaving the scarred Chuunin alone in the deserted main hall. Apparently Tsunade had told everyone to make themselves scarce for the day.
Now alone, Iruka scowled uncharacteristically, "Idiots."
In a puff of smoke, the scowling Iruka was replaced with a scowling Naruto, who began to walk towards the stairs he knew led up to the Hokage's office and floor.
Naruto muttered, "You'd think they wouldn't put complete morons to work guarding the door." He had to admit, spending the couple hours fixing up all the problems with his Henge helped pull it off… his increased chakra control made all the little deformities that marred an otherwise perfect transformation disappear. He had never had a problem with Kawarimi, but his Bunshin was still terrible, most likely from chakra overload of the simple genjutsu. Naruto decided that technique was just never going to happen with him.
He exited the stairs on the Hokage's floor and was met with the suspicious look of the Sandaime's old secretary.
"What are you doing here?" She asked slowly, "Tsunade-sama is busy!"
Naruto scoffed, "Hasn't Tsunade-obaachan fired you yet? I'm here cuz I wanna be. Deal with it!"
"I'll call ANBU-" She started to threaten.
"Do it." Naruto grinned lazily, "They like me better than you anyways."
She gaped as Naruto walked right by her, but she began to protest as he started to open the double doors, "You can't go in there-!"
Naruto ignored her and pushed the door open, "Tsunade-obaach- hmm?"
Jiraiya, Tsunade and Shizune were in the room, as were several others. A heavily bandaged old man was staring at him with a blank expression, and the Sandaime's old teammates were frowning at him.
"Naruto!" Koharu scolded, "This is a private meeting, what are you doing here?"
"…I thought it was the bathroom?" Naruto chuckled weakly at his joke, but the adults didn't think it was amusing.
"We're a little busy right now, Naruto." Jiraiya shook his head, "Go away."
Naruto scowled, "Can't this wait until later? This is important!"
Homura shook his head, "Such impertinence, this is a secret meeting regarding village defense, what could possibly be more important?"
"Secret?" Naruto's ears perked up, "Cool! Can I stay?"
"No." Homura glowered, "Now please leave."
"But Tsunade-obaachan has to heal Aiko-chan!" Naruto whined, crossing his arms stubbornly, "Plus as future Hokage I should really be privy to all this stuff."
"You won't be Hokage if you don't know how to follow direction!" Koharu countered.
"Uh… I'll be giving all the orders," Naruto grinned, "Why would I need to have to follow them?"
Before the other two elders could argue anymore, the bandaged old man spoke for the first time, "Perhaps it is best that we continue this later. Uchiha Aiko's health is a major concern as well, and as Naruto-san has pointed out, only Tsunade-sama can heal her."
"Hey, thanks old man." Naruto said in surprise, before squinting, "Do I know you from somewhere? You look kind of familiar."
Danzo's voice was almost… amused, "I have one of those faces." With that, the elder calmly walked out of the room, and the other two followed even though they didn't look happy.
After they had exited, Tsunade sighed and spoke for the first time, "Uzumaki Naruto… I don't know what I'm going to do with you."
Naruto grinned at her, "You know you love me, neechan. Now that the fossils are gone, you have to come heal Aiko-chan."
"I'm Hokage now." Tsunade pointed at the hat with a glare, "I don't have to do anything."
"You have to do paperwork." Naruto countered, "And you have the stacks wrong."
"What?" Tsunade blinked.
"That stack is in the wrong spot." Naruto responded impatiently, pointing at a bunch of blue folders that were stacked to the left side of the desk, "Those are B-rank missions, they don't go there, they go over there between the C and A rank missions, obviously." Naruto frowned as he squinted at the room in general, "You have a lot of stuff wrong. Let me help."
Before they could respond, Naruto formed his half seal, "Kage Bunshin no Jutsu."
Twenty clones appeared and looked at him expectantly, and he ordered, "You know what to do."
"Boss!" They saluted and began to mill around the room, grabbing folders, papers, and scrolls before moving them to the proper racks, cabinets, and drawers. In less than two minutes, the room was completely organized the way Naruto remembered the Sandaime kept it.
"There, all done." Naruto smiled cheerfully, and the clones vanished, "Now come on!"
The adults glanced at each other; Shizune asked curiously, "How do you know where everything goes, Naruto?"
"I… used to spend a lot of time here with the old man." Naruto replied, a far away look in his eyes, "It feels like forever ago."
The room was silent for a moment before Jiraiya broke it, "Alright then. I'm off for now."
"I don't want to get a complaint of a pervert at the hot springs." Tsunade warned.
"Yeah, yeah." Jiraiya grimaced; he was only going to check if they were rebuilt yet… Tsunade was already ruining his fun. Opening the window and jumping out, he grinned, it was just like old times.
Shaking out of his melancholy, Naruto dramatically pointed out the window, "Now, to the hospital!"
"I really don't want to deal with that crowd again." Tsunade scowled, glancing down at the street from the window, "They'll see us and try to follow if we leave from here…"
Naruto looked at her strangely, like she said something particularly stupid, "Then use the secret exit, jeez. Don't you know anything about being Hokage?"
"Apparently not." Tsunade grimaced, "There's a secret exit?"
"Of course." Naruto rolled his eyes; did he have to do everything? "The old man always used to use it; I think it's… this one!" Naruto pressed a stone on the wall and it indented easily, with a click a section of the nearby wall opened, revealing a dimly lit passageway.
"Why don't I know about this?" Tsunade frowned.
Naruto shrugged, "Maybe the old man didn't like you as much as me, so he never showed it to you."
Shizune scolded, "That's not very nice, Naruto."
Naruto grinned, "I'm just kidding, can we go now?"
"Alright." Tsunade replied, but eyed the passageway suspiciously.
The two women followed Naruto as he led them into the unknown area, it was dark, but Naruto still remembered where the light switch was. As the door slid closed behind them, he hit it, turning on the flickering white lights.
Almost immediately the passageway dipped into a flight of stairs, which Naruto quickly walked down with the other two following. It was a short walk, soon they came to a plain brown door. Tsunade impatiently reached for the handle, but it didn't open when she tugged on it.
"Not like that." Naruto scolded, trying to remember the code, "Oh yeah, that's it." He rapped twice, paused, then rapped three more times. The door opened easily when he turned the handle. The two women blinked as they stepped into the sunlight of a deserted street, one that Tsunade recognized was directly adjacent to the street the Tower's main doors opened out to.
They came out of a rundown building that was pressed directly against the side of the Tower, the group quickly hopped onto the roofs and headed directly to Konoha General.
Entering, Tsunade received cheers as she entered, and many of the medics stopped what they were doing to clap. She accepted them with an inward grimace, she hoped this wouldn't go on everyday, it was quickly getting old.
"What's up?" Naruto grinned and slapped his palm loudly on the welcome desk, "We're here to see Uchiha Aiko!"
The nurse at the desk scowled at Naruto, "Didn't I tell you to be quiet in the hospital the last time you were in here?"
"I don't remember." Naruto frowned, a lot of people told him a lot of things, how could he remember the unimportant stuff?
"Well remember it now." The nurse turned to Tsunade with a smile, "I'm glad to see you, Tsunade-sama. I'll get someone to lead you to Uchiha-san's room."
She snapped up three eager orderlies who all insisted on doing the job. Tsunade took it in stride, even if it annoyed her. It hadn't been that long; she had basically run this hospital while a lot of these kid medics were hitting puberty. She knew her way around.
Naruto was annoyed with the babbling orderlies as well, when he was young he really wanted the hero worship the Sandaime got just walking through the street… but did any of them really know the Sandaime?
Naruto wanted recognition, becoming Hokage would definitely force people to acknowledge him, it was impossible not to… but was forced acknowledgement better than people glaring or ignoring him? It had seemed so simple when he was young, become Hokage, get acknowledgement.
Jiraiya kept insisting he should think about things more, this seemed like one of those things he should definitely be thinking on… but he didn't have a real answer, not yet.
The question… why did he really want to be Hokage? Was wanting to protect the village enough? To protect other people so they could love, even if they didn't love him? Die for people whose names he didn't even know?
It was a dangerous chain of thought for Naruto; he was doubting his own dream.
"We're here, Tsunade-sama." One orderly gushed, "This is the room- oh, it seems a lot of people are here already!"
"Aiko-san has many friends." Another simpered.
"Thank you." Tsunade nodded politely, and the orderlies glowed, bowed, and left. Tsunade entered the room, meeting the eyes of eight genin. Well, seven.
"Hey." Tsunade snapped at Kiba, "Eyes up!"
Naruto laughed outrageously as he stepped in the room, "Kiba, I didn't know you were so perverted."
"Shut up Naruto." Kiba scowled, how could he ignore those… mountains? They were right in his face!
Naruto grimaced as he took in Aiko's appearance. Her skin was pasty white, her face was weary… it wasn't his friend, and it hurt just to look at her like that. It was a reminder that he had been unable to protect her from Itachi.
"Hey," Naruto nodded to the other Uchiha in the room, "Sasuke."
Sasuke returned the nod before looking at Tsunade again, "You can fix her, can't you?" His voice almost sounded desperate to Naruto, and the blond suddenly imagined how it must have felt for his male teammate to be here all month… watching as his sister simply lay there, unconscious, unmoving, with no sign of improvement.
"Yes." Tsunade replied firmly, she glanced at the group in annoyance, "Look, there are too many people in here. She's been in a coma for a month; can some of you please get out? We don't want to overwhelm her."
Ino grimaced but nodded reluctantly, "Alright, we'll be outside." Team 8 and 10 shuffled out quietly, Sakura looked uncertain.
"Should I go…?" The pink haired girl asked hesitantly.
Sasuke shook his head numbly, "Stay. Naruto too."
Naruto smiled and walked to stand by Sasuke, he put a hand on his shoulder comfortingly, but Sasuke didn't acknowledge it, his eyes were fixed on Tsunade as she gently brought her hands to Aiko's pale forehead and let green chakra flow into the comatose girl. After a few seconds of silence, Tsunade quietly moved away, "There we go…"
The genin leaned forward as Aiko's eyes slowly opened, squinting as the white lights hit her. She winced; it was too bright… what was…? Vaguely she saw… yellow? Naruto…?
"Aiko…" Sasuke choked, "Neechan…" It had worked; he had never felt so relieved in his life. She was awake, she was fine…
Naruto's smile grew as Aiko looked around in confusion, "Aiko-chan, you're awa-"
Aiko tossed her arms around him suddenly, and Naruto blinked as she began to cry into his shoulder, "Naruto!"
The blond froze; he glanced at Sasuke, who seemed frozen himself. Awkwardly he patted the girl on the back, "Hey, Aiko-chan it's good to see you too…"
"It was terrible…" Aiko sobbed, "I couldn't… it hurt so much! Naruto, I'm so sorry…"
"Huh?" Naruto blinked, "You didn't do anything to me, Aiko-chan."
"Gaara…"
"Don't worry about that." Naruto replied firmly, hugging her back now, "I forgive you; I know you were just trying to help."
Naruto looked at Sasuke again, he pulled away from the Uchiha girl gently, "Look Aiko-chan, Sasuke's here too."
Aiko stiffened, but looked at her brother, who seemed unable to move or talk, staring at her like he wasn't sure if it was a dream or not.
"Sasuke…?" Aiko asked him uncertainly.
Sasuke trembled, but he cautiously took a step forward, then another step, before wrapping his arms around Aiko tightly.
"I'm so sorry…" He whispered, shaking, "I'm so, so, sorry… I didn't mean it; I didn't mean any of it."
Aiko relaxed in his arms, "I know, Sasuke. But you were right about a lot of things… I know that too. You don't have to apologize, there's nothing to forgive."
"There is." Sasuke insisted, tears running down his face, "You're my sister, and I treated you like shit. My only family, and I pushed you away for nothing…"
Aiko hugged him firmly, "It wasn't nothing, Sasuke… but you were a jerk about it, so… I forgive you for that. Happy?"
Sasuke just cried harder, and Naruto had a horrible feeling that he was intruding on something very personal. He started to step towards the door slowly.
"Where are you going?" Aiko looked at him over her brother's shoulder, puzzled.
"Uh…" Naruto chuckled weakly, "I thought I'd give you two some time alone, Sasuke's been really worried about you, Aiko."
Aiko glanced at Sakura, who was smiling, a tear running down her cheek. "You mean you two haven't? Jerks."
Sakura gave a shaky laugh, "I'm glad you're okay, Aiko."
"Aww, this is sweet." A voice from the window chuckled, Kakashi hopped in from the ledge, "Yo."
"Hello, pervert." Aiko deadpanned.
"That hurts, Aiko." Kakashi looked wounded, "I bought you flowers, you know… but an old lady was visiting her son's gravesite, so-"
"Liar…" Aiko grinned weakly, "I'm…" She yawned, "Kind of tired…"
"You've been asleep for more than a month…" Sasuke's voice was still shaky, but he wiped away the tears, smiling.
"She's been on an IV drip." Tsunade said quietly from her corner of the room, "She needs some good food and a couple days to recover fully before she can be released."
Aiko looked at the woman questioningly; she had never seen her before in her life.
"Aiko-chan," Naruto introduced Tsunade eagerly, "This is Tsunade-obaachan, she healed you!"
"And she's going to be the new Hokage." Sakura added.
"Oh." Aiko blinked, "Is there a story somewhere in there?"
"Somewhere." Tsunade agreed, turning to leave the room, "I'm heading back to the Tower, Naruto. I want you there tomorrow morning. You too, Sasuke."
"Er, alright neechan." Naruto blinked, confused but nodding. Sasuke also seemed confused, so Naruto figured he didn't know anything about it either.
Tsunade looked at Aiko one last time, "Do you feel up to more visitors?"
"More?" Aiko looked questioningly at her friends.
"Team 8 and 10." Sakura explained, "They were really worried too."
"Sure." Aiko smiled, "I could deal with some more annoying people like these guys."
Tsunade nodded with a wry smile, and walked out. Naruto commented in amazement, "Aiko-chan sure has gotten snarky…"
The other two teams walked in before she could respond, crowding around Aiko and welcoming her back.
"I didn't go anywhere, guys." Aiko laughed, "It's good to see you all too."
The group laughed and chatted happily for over an hour, Sakura and Naruto explained the journey with Tsunade, while the others talked about what had happened while Aiko had been unconscious. To Sasuke relief, they skipped over the part where he attempted to kill them all. They probably would have gone on all night, but a nurse entered and quietly informed them that visiting hours were ending, so everyone, even Sasuke, had to leave.
The Uchiha boy left reluctantly, but his sister assured him that she would be there in the morning, and to go eat something that wasn't udon. Apparently she could still easily guess what Sasuke had been feeding himself the entire month while she was otherwise occupied.
Sasuke was willing to eat anything, he didn't really care. His sister was awake. Sakura suggested sushi, and the group happily walked to the restaurant in the growing dusk. Konoha was bustling, despite the time of night. Everyone was a lot more cheerful, the genin had grown used to the almost somber atmosphere since the attack… it had shifted today; Tsunade's arrival signified that the village was once again protected, and they could rest easy again.
To Naruto's surprise, the owners of the restaurant didn't regard him suspiciously when he walked in, the wife of the chef actually smiled at him, even if it did look a little hesitant.
Naruto thought it was more than a little strange, he shifted uncomfortably… why didn't they look wary, like last time? Was this a trick?
He didn't mention it however, when came his turn, he cautiously gave his order. He tried to pay, but the woman's smile actually widened.
"On the house."
The blond blinked, free? He didn't get free anything, ever. Except ramen at Ichiraku's whenever Teuchi was feeling generous.
"Are you… sure?" Naruto asked uncertainly.
The woman nodded, "It's the least we can do… after all, you brought Tsunade-sama back to us."
"And defeated Gaara." Ino supplied helpfully.
"And overloaded the stadium and village with Kage Bunshin." Kiba laughed.
The chef spoke as he worked on filling the orders of the group, "Yes. Naruto… is a good kid." He said gruffly, the man nodded respectfully to the blond, "Keep it up, kid."
"I-I will." Naruto glanced at Ino questioningly, what had happened since he was gone? Now that he thought about it, he definitely didn't get many glares walking in the village today… but he assumed that was because he was with Tsunade… was there another reason?
Ino smiled back, she had never seen Naruto look so flustered or uncertain, it was a bit strange.
The group took their seats to wait as the chef finished all of their orders, Kiba grumbled, "I want some free sushi…"
Akamaru barked in agreement.
"I do not believe Akamaru should be in an eating establishment, Kiba." Shino frowned, "It is most unsanitary."
Kiba groaned, "Here we go again, how many times are we going to have this argument?"
As the two boys bickered good naturedly, the chef had finished the sushi platters, placing them on the pickup counter for the group to grab themselves. Ino and Naruto did just that, and Ino used the time to ask Naruto, "Are you alright?"
Naruto glanced at her, his plastered grin fading into a weird little smile, "I'm always alright."
Ino sighed, despite his loud and talkative nature, Naruto really had a problem showing how he truly felt about anything. But surely the sushi owners' new feelings were a good thing, right? Naruto talked a lot… he was joking with Sasuke at that very moment, but in the end he said so little. It frustrated Ino to no end; Naruto had so many faces, what was his real one?
She kept thinking about the invasion, Naruto's fearsome eyes… the clones that emulated them… Naruto didn't look like he could kill anything most of the time, he looked and acted like a kid… but his clones…
They had slaughtered their enemies in the stadium. They were simply ingenious fighters, but that had to be expected she supposed, from being born from Naruto himself… but she hadn't been prepared for how heartless they had been. They didn't hesitate for a moment; neither did the real Naruto, the little she saw of him during the fighting.
Where was he? That confident persona that seemed so comfortable in battle… she couldn't see it, not in the joking and laughing Naruto who poked fun at Sasuke before moving to Sakura in one breath. He engaged Shino in conversation, made Shikamaru pay attention instead of slouching lazily, traded insults with Kiba…
Ino thought when Naruto opened up to her a couple months ago about Kyuubi, about his feelings, that she would understand him better. That she would know him… but she didn't, and she was starting to wonder if anyone except Naruto himself really did.
101010
The group broke off for the night, heading in different directions. Naruto headed for home, and Ino pretended to do the same, but doubled back to follow him instead. She felt a bit silly spying on her friend like this. Naruto wasn't a traitor, he was a fellow ninja… yet she was curious.
To her surprise, after walking a few blocks, Naruto stopped and formed six bunshin and began to give quiet orders that Ino could barely hear from her hiding spot just around the corner.
"Go check on the apartment, clean it, and report back." He told one, "You two, freeform wind, try not to pop yourselves, okay? The three of you check on what's been going on in Konoha, damages, buildings that are being rebuilt… get me a layout."
"Boss." All six said, nodded and moved to perform their separate tasks. Naruto himself continued on, but switched directions, heading for the training grounds, most likely area 7 if Ino had to guess. She followed the original, still curious as to what Naruto would be up to.
Naruto did stop at his team's training area, but to her surprise he didn't start working out, instead he formed another bunshin and handed it what looked to be a bag of water balloons. The bunshin began to dutifully fill them up with air and tie them off, handing Naruto the first one.
The blond haired genin then began to gather his chakra in his palm, while Ino watched behind a nearby tree in fascination. The chakra seemed to be swirling inside the balloon… Naruto gritted his teeth, concentrating as hard as he could, but Ino could see that he was losing control.
After about eight seconds the balloon popped, and the shape chakra burst out, cutting up Naruto's hand. The boy winced, but didn't cry out in pain, he looked like he was expecting it. The clone began to hand him another balloon, and Naruto paused as he was taking it.
"Ino-chan." Naruto looked straight at her tree, "I know you're there."
"…How did you know?" Ino asked curiously, as she stepped out from behind the tree.
Naruto grinned and gestured at the bunshin, "Just because I'm not looking up doesn't mean he isn't, heh."
Ino hesitantly stepped forward, and Naruto's grin faded as he read her expression, "…You're afraid?"
"No!" Ino responded quickly, maybe a little too quickly, Naruto didn't look convinced. "I'm not, I just…" She trailed off.
"Why were you watching me?" Naruto asked curiously, "If you wanted to know what I was doing, you could have just asked."
Ino grimaced, why didn't she just ask? "I don't know." She admitted finally, "I just… I've been wondering about the invasion."
"The invasion?" Naruto frowned, "But you were there."
"I know that." Ino scowled in annoyance, "I was wondering about you."
"I was there too."
"Really?" Ino scoffed, "That wasn't the Naruto I know, killing Sound and Sand ninja like it was nothing. Like it didn't bother you at all…"
Naruto stiffened, "You think it doesn't bother me…?" He said softly.
"Does it?"
"Of course!" Naruto stepped towards her, "How could you possibly think it wouldn't bother me? Do you think I like to kill people or something?" Naruto paused, "Do you think I'm a monster? Like Kyuubi?"
"No!" Ino shook her head, "I don't! I swear, Naruto. It's just… I thought I knew you, I didn't think you could kill… not like that. Not like at the stadium."
Naruto sighed sadly, "Well… I can. I've had a month to think about it, and to have nightmares about it… but I would do it again." His eyes were fierce, determined, "Because I'm a weapon. That's what weapons do. They kill people."
"What?" Ino was shocked, "How could you possibly think that way about yourself?"
"Because it's true, obviously." Naruto retorted, as if it was apparent, "Ninja… no matter who we are in our personal lives, we're weapons on the battlefield. Ninja are the most powerful weapons in the shinobi world, because unlike a kunai or sword, we can think for ourselves. That allows us to be much better killers, better weapons, but weapons all the same."
"Naruto…" Ino whispered, "How many did you kill?"
"In between myself and the clones?" Naruto's eyes dimmed, "Twenty one, indirectly it was a lot more."
"How can you just say the number?" Ino stared at him, "You killed real people!"
"I know that!" Naruto shouted back, "I fucking know! I keep seeing their faces, I keep hearing them scream… what do you want me to do? Roll over and die because of it? I can't!"
"Naruto…" Ino's voice was soft, "You… changed, during the invasion. You weren't yourself."
The blond snorted uncharacteristically, "It was me, Ino-chan. Not Kyuubi or anyone else, it was all me. I killed all of those ninja, and like I said, I would do it again."
His face hardened, and his tone grew dangerous, "No one fucks with my village and gets away with it. The Sand was tricked, but Orochimaru and his ninja knew exactly what they were doing. We're at war… and I'm going to kill any Sound ninja I see."
"W-What's wrong with you?" Ino stammered, scared, Naruto's face… his voice, he seemed almost worse than he had been in the invasion itself. How could this be the same boy who had so innocently joked and laughed with their friends less than an hour ago?
"Nothing, Ino-chan." Naruto replied calmly, "It's just time to grow up. The faster we win this war, the faster we can work on other things."
"Other things…?"
Naruto smiled now, his face relaxed, "Peace. Not just in Konoha, everywhere."
"Everywhere?" Ino said in disbelief, "It's not possible!"
"Heh…" The blond grinned, "It's not possible if you think like that, Ino-chan. If it's not possible now…"
A world of peace…
Naruto looked up into the darkened night sky, "…Then I'll make it possible."
101010
A lot in this chapter, but at the same time I feel things are… unresolved. Aiko has woken up, but we didn't really get to see the lasting effects of Itachi's attack, and Naruto is still… childlike, I guess is the best way to put it. He's softening to the idea of killing because he has to, but he still does not know how bad the world can truly be, because in all honesty he doesn't really know the world. Orochimaru and Itachi are basically the biggest evils he's seen, and thinks that that is the epitome of how bad the world can be, really they're not. We know that Orochimaru has done some pretty messed up stuff, but Naruto doesn't know the level of depravity that Orochimaru has commited. All he knows is that Orochimaru killed the Sandaime and tried to invade… that's terrible for him right now. He has no idea.
He will, sooner rather than later.
Some villagers have obviously warmed up to Naruto at this point, but definitely not all of them. In my mind at this point the wary ones are starting to come around, but the ones who outright hate Naruto and can't see past Kyuubi still hate him, another thing that I feel I didn't really get to show in this chapter. Honestly the ones that hate Naruto now might always at least dislike him on some level, it can't be helped, not even Naruto can change everyone's minds.
Also, Naruto has basically forgiven Hinata and Aiko, but he will have more words with Aiko about the situation with Gaara… he really is a suicidal little bastard right now, at least in his own mind. In all honesty at this point Naruto acts like he has high self esteem and a good self image… he really doesn't, its sad, it makes me want to change it, but he needs experience and time to develop into a character that isn't so… gah. I look forward to the moment that I can write Naruto in a way that makes me proud of him in every way, and I don't think its too far off... hint hint.
I'm not sure how updating will be for the next few weeks, next week is finals week so I'll be pretty busy preparing. I'll probably write but not enough to post or anything, so don't expect much for the next week or two, sorry.