Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto or The Last Airbender.
Bodyguard of Azula
Chapter 35: Different Places and Same Problems
"Talking"
"Thinking"
"Bijū/spirit talking"
"Bijū/spirit thinking"
(Location: Azula)
She slowly opened her eyes, wincing at the light glaring at her. "What happened?" She asked herself silently. "The last thing I remember is…Naruto telling us to get out." That was when she remembered the rest of it. She remembered them finding the animals' unconscious as well as being hit by the knockout gas. She leapt out of the bed and ran over to the nearby window. "Where in the name of Agni am I?!" Just outside the window was a place she had never seen before. It didn't look like it belonged in the Earth Kingdom, the Water Tribes, or the Fire Nation.
When she heard something beyond the door that sounded like footsteps walking to the room, she ran over and stood beside it. When it swung open, the door hid her. She heard someone walk in. "Hey, are you up yet?" A voice asked. The voice sounded familiar to her. Then it came to her, it belong to that blond-haired girl that had been with Aang in the drill at the Outer Walls of Ba Sing Se.
Ino walked into the room but when she looked at the bed, she didn't see Azula sleeping there. She barely had time to comprehend this when Azula rushed out from behind the door and slammed into her, knocking them both down to the ground. "Hey, get off of me!" She protested as she tried to get up.
"Where am I?" Azula demanded as she struggled to keep her down. "Where are the others? Where's Naruto!?" She felt someone grab the back of her shirt and pulled her off of Ino. "Let me go!"
"Azula, calm down!" ordered a familiar voice. She stopped struggling when she heard that voice.
"Zuko, that's you, right?" She asked, making sure that it was.
"Yeah, it is." The voice answered. When she turned to look, she saw that it was indeed her brother.
"Then do you mind letting go?"
"As long as you behave," He let go of her.
"Nice to meet you again as well, Azula." Ino said, standing back up. While she hadn't been expecting that surprise attack, she still things could smoothly.
"The feeling is not mutual." Azula replied curtly. "What is going on, Zuko? Where are we?" She asked her brother, turning to face her.
"Maybe it's best if you came down to the lobby with us." He told her.
"What are you talking about?" She was confused and she wanted some answers.
"If you would actually try and listen instead of flapping your mouth." Ino told her, a little annoyed that she was being ignored. "You're in the top hotel of Konoha, the Tree House."
"Konoha? Where is that?"
"Azula," Zuko said, getting her attention. "We're in Naruto's home village."
"Damn, Akela! You got big!" Kiba said as he and Akamaru stood in front of the wolf. Akela was indeed bigger, having reached Sokka's stomach height-wise. And he was more muscular too. He was no longer a pup.
"Seriously?" asked Sokka. "You greet the wolf before the rest of us?" They were all standing around in the lobby, a wide room that could hold a lot of people. The place was mostly empty at that moment, as they were the largest group there. They were standing, leaning against a wall, or sitting on a chair near the entrance to the hotel.
"It's troublesome, but that's just how Kiba is." Shikamaru stated. "He is an Inuzuka after all." They would always talk to the dogs first.
"Well, it's still great to see you all again!" Katara told the members of the Konoha Eleven that were there. "We weren't sure if you had made it out of Ba Sing Se alive." That had a worrying thought during the time Aang had been comatose.
"We did." Neji said. "But we had thought Aang had died and our mission failed."
"Naruto was so unyouthful to have lied to us!" Lee declared.
"Well, to be fair to Naruto, he thought Twinkle Toes was dead too." Toph told him from where she lounged in a chair, feet planted firmly on the ground.
"So Zuko and Azula, who had been chasing you for the better part of a year, turned traitor and joined your team?" Shino asked Aang.
"Pretty much, yeah," He answered with a big goofy grin. He was sitting on an arm of the chair Toph was sitting in.
"Why would they do that?" Hinata asked him.
"We don't actually know." Suki answered.
"What do you mean you don't know?" Tenten said.
"We never really bothered asking them." Sokka replied. They were just glad they weren't chasing them anymore.
"It's because we didn't want the future of the Fire Nation to be spas built upon broken homes and orphaned children." Azula declared as she, Zuko, and Ino walked into the lobby. Everyone in Team Avatar noticed how agitated she looked just by the expression on her face.
"I would like to say it's nice to see you again." Chōji told her. "But it'd be hard to actually say."
She ignored him and looked around, seeing only the young members of the shinobi teams. "Where are the adults? The last time I checked, you were being chaperoned." She asked them.
A few of them scowled, figuring she was trying to be insulting. The others ignore the tone. "Kurenai-sensei went to the hospital to check up on the baby." Shino told her.
"Asuma-sensei went with her." Ino chimed in.
"How's the baby?" Katara asked. Even though they had known the kunoichi was pregnant, she didn't really look like when they had seen her (then again, it had been early spring and it was now mid-to-late summer).
"It's doing fine." Shikamaru answered.
"And where is the third one?" Azula asked, looking around and not seeing him.
"Guy-sensei is…off being Guy-sensei." Tenten answered a little evasively.
"He said something about running up and down the Hokage Mountain two hundred times in under twenty minutes or something like that." Neji explained, going where his teammate didn't want to go.
"YOSH!" exclaimed Lee. "Guy-sensei is very youthful! I wish I could join him but I wanted to meet our friends!"
"Is that all you want to know, Azula?" Sokka asked her.
"No, I have one more question."
"And what's that?" Hinata asked.
"Where is Naruto?" That question made everyone go silent.
"Um…Naruto is…uh…sleeping." Chōji said, trying to come up with an excuse. "Yeah, he's still sleep—" He didn't finish that sentence due to the fact Azula had grabbed him by the shirt and had slammed him into a nearby wall, surprising everyone.
"Don't lie to me!" She snarled, drawing back her fist and covering it in blue fire. "Where. Is. Naruto!?"
"Young lady, could you please put the Akimichi clan heir down?" A man's voice told her, coming from the entrance. "I really don't want to explain to his parents how he became a piece of barbequed meat."
She turned around to look at who was talking. She saw a tall man with white, spiky hair that fell to his waist. He wore a headband that was different from the others wore; it was horned and had a kanji on it. He wore green shirt and pants with a red vest over it. He wore hand guards and wooden sandals on his feet. On his back was a large scroll. On his face, he had red lines coming out from his eyes, almost as if he was crying blood. "Who are you?" She asked.
He gave a small smile. That was when she got the feeling she should be afraid of this man (to be more precise, she should be very afraid of this man). "I am the man who is asking you nicely to put him down." He told her.
"Alright, alright, fine." She let go of Chōji, but still sent him a dirty look. "I just want to know where Naruto is."
"Well, I guess it's a good thing I came here to take you and your group to him." He turned around and walked away. "Coming?"
"Who are you?" She demanded.
"The name's Jiraiya. Now let's go already. Sheesh, I thought I was supposed to be the slow one at my age."
(Location: Konoha jail)
"You know, it figures." Naruto thought to himself. "I get out of one prison only to wind up in another." He sat in the middle of the cell, his back to the bars. He had been changed out of his Boiling Rock prison clothes into the prison uniform of the Konoha jail, which was a bright orange. His hands were shackled to his sides so he couldn't form handseals.
"And you used to have good luck." The Kyūbi commented. "But still, we both should've realized what he had done before we went into that house."
"I got cocky and he used that to his advantage. It was bound to happen, sooner or later." He admitted. "Personally, I had hoped they would try to do this after we dealt with Ozai. We wouldn't have had a deadline then."
"When have Konoha shinobi ever been considerate?"
"Shouldn't I be asking you that question? You've known them longer." The sound of a rod banging on the cell got his attention, although he didn't show it.
"Hey, you little demon brat," The guard said, his voice sounding strangely high pitched. "Can you hear me?"
"Unfortunately, yes. By the way, you really can't call me 'little demon brat' anymore." He replied, not turning to face the guard. "I'm not as little as I used to be."
"You think you're so funny, huh?"
"I don't think. I know I'm funny. You just don't have a sense of humor."
"You little shit!" The guard roared. "I should come in and—"
"What? Try to sodomize me like you tried before?" The blonde asked, cutting him off. "I don't think your balls can take another stomping. What would your wife think of you if you went around, touching teenage boys like that?"
"If it was the Kyūbi brat, I don't think she'd mind." That was when he felt the gaze of the Shinigami on his back. Turning around, he saw who it was. "Lo-lord Jiraiya, I—"
"Get. Out." Jiraiya ordered, his arms folded and his expression angry. Two simple words and the guard fled. The rest of Team Avatar watched this happened. They had felt some of what the guard was feeling and that put them on edge. Clearly, the man in front of them was someone well known and one not easily trifled with. "So, how are you, Naruto?" He asked as he walked up to the cell bars.
"Kicking myself for not seeing something so blatantly obvious," The blonde answered without turning around to face them. "You were under my nose the entire time and I didn't even notice."
"You're good, kid, I'll admit that. But you still have things to learn if you want to beat me." Jiraiya told him with a big grin. "I was truly impressed with how you played Ba Sing Se. That was very, very good work."
"You heard about it?" He asked, sounding a little glad, strangely.
"And I read the report you sent to the Fire Lord. Hell, I was there when he received the report. You should've seen the look on his face. It was priceless." That would be a moment he would treasure for the rest of his life.
"Naruto, the two of you are making it sound like this…Jiraiya was there." Zuko said to the blonde.
"That's because he was there, Zuko." Naruto told him. "You should know better than us all right now. He was your servant." He finally turned around and looked Jiraiya straight in the eye. "Isn't that right, Há?"
It only made the old man laugh. "I see you figured it out."
"Wait, how is he Há?" Azula asked, looking at the man. He and the servant assigned to Zuko looked nothing alike.
"He used the Henge No Jutsu to disguise himself and used a different name." Naruto explained to her. "It should have been so obvious, considering he used that particular name."
"Why's that?" Sokka asked.
"Há means toad, right?" Everyone in Team Avatar nodded. "There are many stories here in the Elemental Countries. Quite a few of those stories are about the Sannin, the three students trained by the Third Hokage. This man…" He gestured at Jiraiya with his head. "He's one of those three. His name is Lord Jiraiya, the Toad Sage of Konohagakure, student of the Third Hokage and sensei of the Fourth Hokage. "
"Pleasure to meet you," Jiraiya told them with a small bow of his head.
"When you say toads," Zuko said. "Do you mean like…?" He left the question hanging.
"Like the one I summoned back in Ba Sing Se?" Naruto asked. Zuko nodded. "That was the chief of the Toads."
"And I have Gamabunta to thank for getting me over there without you noticing." Jiraiya said, getting his attention.
"What? That's impossible. I put a Block on my name!" That had been the only thing that had kept him from being Reverse-Summoned into Konoha hands.
"Yes, you did. But thankfully, the toads and I knew a loophole. It's true the toads can't Reverse-Summon you if you didn't stay in the last location they knew you were at, like where you summoned Gamabunta. But what they could do is Reverse-Summon someone to Mount Myōboku and then Reverse-Summon that same person to your last known location."
"So the toads called you back to Mount Myōboku, before sending you into Ba Sing Se, using the Reverse-Summon both times. That way, they could send someone after me without breaking the oath I made them swear." The blonde finished.
"Yeah, that's about it."
"So you've been spying on me since Ba Sing Se?" He asked, wanting to be sure.
"I was, until that invasion. You never change, do you?" All he got for an answer was a glare, which made him laugh. "Anyway, after that, I kept my eye on the traitors here." He gestured at Azula and Zuko.
"So you know everything we're going through, correct?"
"Correct."
"Then you couldn't have waited until after the Comet?!" Naruto demanded. "We have a deadline, damn it!"
"Relax, kid. You still have time." He replied, staying calm. "Besides, I said the same thing but Tsunade wanted you back now."
The blonde narrowed his eyes when he heard that. "I take it she will want to see me as well as the councils?"
"Yes."
"When will it happen?"
Jiraiya reached into his shirt and pulled out a key. "Now," He answered, opening the cell door using said key.
Naruto sighed and stood up. "Well, let's go enjoy the fun." He walked out of the cell and looked at Team Avatar. "Guys, there are a few things you need to do now." He told them. "For the duration of this walk and the meeting, you are to let nothing show on your faces, you are to do nothing and above all, you are to keep your mouths shut. We about to engage in Shinobi politics, the kind of politics that have taken bullshitting to an art form. We can't afford to make any mistakes. Get it?"
"Yeah, we got it." Toph answered. How are hard was it to not say anything? She knew how to keep her mouth shut.
"Then we might as well get going. Take the lead, Jiraiya." He ordered the Toad Sage.
"Follow me." He took Naruto by the arm and gently, but firmly led him out of the cell room. The others fell in behind him. As they walked through the prison, the guards they came across would either try to glare at him or outright ignore him. He started to recognize the symbol on the shoulders of the guards' shirts. That's when he realized that these weren't just guards and he wasn't any normal prison.
"This is the building of the Konoha Military Police Force, isn't it?" He asked Jiraiya. "Funny, I would've thought that it had fallen into disuse after that little incident involving the Uchiha."
"While the Uchiha did take up most of its members, the Police Force was not disbanded. The other members took up the slack until their strength was back to normal." Jiraiya informed him. "You know, Sasuke has become a part-time member."
"Oh joy, just what I wanted to know." He replied. His voice laced with so much irony you could almost taste it.
"Where is Team Kakashi?" Sokka asked. He hadn't seen any member of the team he had heard so little about, so he was a little curious.
"Tsunade sent them on a mission the day before I captured you all. It's supposed to take a month and a half to two months to finish."
"Less hassle, I suppose." Naruto commented. He didn't want to deal with them right now. They stopped in front of the main entrance, the doors barring them from the rest of the village (at least, for the moment).
Jiraiya let go of his arm and stepped in front of him. "Are you ready?" He asked Naruto.
"Of course not," The blonde answered. "If I had my way, we wouldn't be here."
"Well, tough. Try not to escape as we walk to the Hokage Building, okay?"
"How could I escape? My hands are shackled to my sides and I'm wearing the prisoner uniform, which is a bright orange jumpsuit." He raised his hands slightly to emphasize his point.
"This is coming from the kid who could outrun and hide from ANBU squads while wearing a bright orange jumpsuit." The Toad Sage drily remarked.
"That was a long time ago." He said shortly, not wanting to remember those days.
"Gaki, you only get to say that when you're my age."
"Whatever. Let's just start the performance." Jiraiya opened the doors and they walked out into the village.
Even though they had walked through it before to get to the police building, the village still astounded and awed the team. It looked nothing the cities of the Water Tribes, Earth Kingdom, or the Fire Nation or even the temples of the Air Nomads. Those cities had looked like they had stood for thousands, if not millions of years. This place looked like it had been around for a while but also had things added on over time. It gave the place a kind of a patchwork look. And yet, it felt different as well. They could feel the vibe of life going through the village just by looking at the buildings. They felt that even though the places they had been to held living people, this place looked like it was alive itself, always growing and adding new things.
When they looked at the people, they saw something else entirely. When the people of Konoha saw them, they could see the curiosity in their eyes. But when those eyes looked on Naruto, they could see the shock, the anger, the hate and the fear in them. All around them, they could hear the whispers of "He's back." as well as "The demon brat." And "They should kill him." The whispers grew louder and louder, along with the glares of hatred and anger. When they turned onto the main street, the whispers and the glares intensified.
It was a civilian who threw the first stone, literally. The rock sailed through the air and clipped Naruto on the shoulder, making him stumble back. They would've done something, but the look he sent at them as he recovered stopped them. They weren't supposed to do anything and they weren't supposed to say anything. Another rock flew out from the crowd, but a hand shot out and grabbed it before it hit him. He looked at the hand and then followed the arm up to the face, even though he knew who it was due to the green leotard the person wore.
Lee stood in front of him, a smile on his face. He turned to where the rock had been thrown from. The smile disappeared from his face as he crushed in the rock in his hand. He held out the hand and opened it, letting the remnants fall to the ground. He then walked around behind Naruto. The rest of Teams Kurenai, Guy and Asuma came out of the crowd. Not all at once, one or two would push their way out of the crowd and joined the group.
When Naruto saw them all behind him, he stopped walking. He got everyone's attention when he turned around and faced them. "What are you all doing?" He asked them.
"What do you think we're doing, Naruto?" Kiba asked back with a big grin on his face.
"We're your friends." Tenten told him. "Friends help and support each other."
He groaned, loud enough for everyone in the street to hear him. "Go away." He ordered them all with a loud and firm voice. "You are not my friends. You're just people I may have to kill later." He turned back around and kept on walking. Jiraiya led the way and Team Avatar followed, not batting an eyebrow. The other teams just watched them leave in sadness. But the crowd just stared at his back in shock. Most of the Konoha Eleven, the best team of rookie shinobi Konoha had to offer, made up of the clans heirs and exceptional shinobi, had shown their support for Naruto and he had thrown it back in their faces. They had never seen such a thing before.
"Did you have to do that, Naruto?" Jiraiya asked as they entered the Hokage Building, getting away from the crowds.
"Don't even start, Jiraiya." He retorted. "You don't think I would've known that was your idea?" It just reeked of the Toad Sage's handiwork.
"It might've been mine, but they wanted to do it." The old shinobi admitted. "They were trying to help."
"I don't want or need their help." He had been trying to make that clear ever since he had Team Kurenai in Omashu. The problem was that they weren't getting the picture.
They made the rest of the walk in silence, climbing through the building. When they stood in front of the doors leading to the council room, two members of ANBU stepped forward. "We'll take him now, Lord Jiraiya." The one with the bear mask told him. He stepped aside and Naruto stepped forward. The ANBU took hold of each of his shoulders.
"I'm sorry, but the rest of you will have to stay out here." The one with the hawk mask told the group when they were taking a step forward.
"Not a word, Aang." Naruto ordered without turning around to look at him. "Your status doesn't mean squat here. Shut your mouth." Aang, who had opened his mouth to protest, closed it. "Alright then, let's go in, shall we?" He asked the two ANBU. "Remember, I'm relatively harmless."
"'Relatively harmless?'" repeated Bear.
"That means I can't kill you with my hands, but I can kill you with my feet."
"Enough with the jokes, Naruto," Jiraiya told him.
"He's not joking." Azula said, getting their attention. "He's done it before, to five different men, at the same time." Everyone looked at the blonde when they heard that.
He just shrugged. "What can I say? They were assassins and I was training myself with a handicap." The ANBU said nothing, they just took him into the room and Jiraiya followed. The others just took a seat and waited.
They walked him to a chair and sat him down in it, removing the shackles on his hands off his sides and putting them on the arms of the chair. Once he was secured, they stepped away from the chair and into the shadows. "Do you understand why you are here, Naruto Uzumaki?" Tsunade asked him from where she sat, above the rest of the councils.
"Of course I do." He answered.
"What do you think the reasoning is?"
"Because a bunch of inconsiderate shinobi assholes from Konoha don't know the meaning of the word 'no'." He said with a completely straight face.
"Watch your mouth, brat!" One of the Civilian councilmen yelled at him. "You will be respectful to Lady Tsunade!"
He looked at the councilman, then at the rest of the Civilian council and then at Tsunade. "Is this a new group? Last time I checked, the Civilian council didn't give two shits about you."
"BE QUIET!" Another councilman roared, standing up from his chair.
"Answers that question, it's a new council all right." He remarked, ignoring the two angry councilmen.
"We are not here to discuss the Hokage's choices for the Civilian council." Inoichi, Ino's father and head of the Yamanaka clan, declared from where he sat to the right of Tsunade.
"Are you sure about that? They were the ones who spearheaded my last trial."
"Those councilmen have been imprisoned for their crimes, including the ones against you, Naruto." Chōza, head of the Akimichi clan and Chōji's father, told him, sitting to the left of Inoichi.
"Besides, this isn't a trial." Kiba's mother and head of the Inuzuka clan, Tsume said, sitting close to Inoichi.
"Now that I have a hard time believing," Naruto declared.
"And what is so hard to believe about it?" Hiashi, head of the Hyūga clan, Hinata's father and Neji's uncle, asked him from where he sat.
"Well, let's see here. I'm strapped to a chair, I've left Konoha, I've been found, captured, and now, you all are sitting on high and are waiting to condemn me." He said. He would've counted the points off of his fingers, if he could do that.
"Naruto Uzumaki, we are not here to condemn you. We are here to reinstate you as a Konoha shinobi." Shikaku, head of the Nara clan and Shikamaru's father, told him. He sat next Hiashi in a slightly slumped position.
"Pass." The blonde automatically said. "Seriously, what part of 'no' do you people not understand?"
"Our understanding of the word is fine." The head of the Aburame clan and Shino's father, Shibi said from where he sat to the right of Hiashi. "We thought it would be logical that you would be happy to return."
"…Wow, you really are that stupid." He said after a moment of silence.
"Pup, the Bending Countries have been in a war for the past century!" Tsume told him angrily.
"I know, I've been fighting in it and I'm sure you know I've defected. Now I'm helping the idiot and his team out." He said like nothing was wrong.
"You are safer here." Chōza told him.
"But I was happier over there." He looked at all of them slowly, glaring hard. "Over there, I was Naruto. I wasn't the Demon Brat, the Kyūbi Brat, or the Monster. People didn't look at me with contempt, hatred, or fear for that. And now, you want to take that away from me, all in the name of keeping me safe? And you wonder why I left in the first place."
"Enough." Tsunade said before anyone could speak. "The decision is not up for debate. You will become a Konoha shinobi again, Naruto."
"You can't make me become a shinobi." He told her. "I have the right to choose if I want to be one or not."
"Of course you do. And if you choose not to become a Konoha shinobi, you will be imprisoned in order to ensure your safety. If that should happen, your friends will be allowed to leave." She told him. The expression on her face was completely professional when she spoke.
But he knew what she was silently saying. "…You heartless bitch," He said. He knew full well that neither Azula nor the rest of them would just leave him alone. They would try to break him out. The problem was that if he was imprisoned, Tsunade would be expecting it and be prepared for it. They might be able to succeed in breaking him free, but if Aang told them not to kill anyone, a few of them wouldn't make it out alive. The shinobi would be prepared to kill them if they tried it. He also wouldn't want them to try to get him out if that was going to be the outcome. Tsunade had him trapped and they both knew it.
The two of them just stared at each other in silence. The rest of the councils weren't so quiet. The Civilian council and some members of the Shinobi council stood up and yelled at him, demanding that he should apologize or to be silent. Jiraiya just stood against the wall with an amused grin. This went on for about five minutes, until Tsunade blew a piercing whistle, silencing them. "Are you all done now?" She asked.
"But Lady Hokage," A councilwoman protested. "He called you a—"
"I know what he called me. I do have ears." She replied, cutting the councilwoman off. She turned her attention back to Naruto. "Regardless, those are your two choices. Now, which one will it be?"
"…It's not like I have a good choice either way." He replied with slumped shoulders. "Fine, I'll become a Konoha shinobi again."
There was a sigh of relief that rippled through the people in the room, particularly Jiraiya and Tsunade. "Then I'm signing you up for the Chūnin Exams." The Hokage told him. "Your teammates will—"
"I'll pick my own teammates." He interrupted her.
"And why would you do that?" Jiraiya asked, the first time he spoke during the meeting.
"I work better with people I know. Besides, you wouldn't want to find the two Konoha Genin you assigned to me mysteriously dead, do you?" He asked with a cold smile. They understood what he meant, even though he didn't outright say it. If they put two Genin with him for the Exams, he would kill them when he had the chance, without hesitation.
"Very well, you may choose your teammates." Tsunade stated. "The Exams begin tomorrow at the Academy."
"Great. Can I go now?" He asked, moving his arms slightly to allow the shackles to make a noise.
She nodded. The two ANBU stepped out of the shadows and unshackled his arms. "Jiraiya will take you to your housing and will give you the application forms later." She told him. He didn't reply. He just walked out of the room behind Jiraiya.
"Well, that was uncomfortable." Inoichi stated. He had heard the reports of how the blonde was different, but they didn't really come to him until just now.
"He doesn't seem to hold us in high regard." Hiashi said.
"Can you blame him?" Shikaku asked the Hyūga clan head. "He ran away from us and after three years, he's brought back against his will and is told to either become a shinobi or be imprisoned. I wouldn't really hold us in high regard either."
"I think we can all agree that the pup has changed." Tsume stated. Nobody disagreed.
(Location: Team Avatar)
They walked out of the Hokage Building and back down the street. The people in the street ignored them this time around, even though there was the occasional glare thrown at Naruto. "So how did the meeting go?" Suki asked as they walked down the street.
"I've been blackmailed into becoming a shinobi again." Naruto answered, sounding very annoyed with what happened. "To make things worse, I've also been signed up for the Chūnin Exams and I need two teammates."
"Who are you going to choose?" Azula asked. She didn't know what that it was, but she guessed it was some kind of tournament.
"Not Aang or Katara, that's for sure."
"Why not?" asked an annoyed Katara.
"Death is involved in these exams. If my teammates don't have what it takes to kill someone, then they're not going to be much help."
"Last time I checked, your team managed to make it through the Chūnin Exams without killing anyone." Jiraiya told him.
"That was sheer dumb luck." The blonde kept walking and thinking over his options. "Toph's out of the question too. This kind of thing needs finesse and quite frankly, she doesn't have that."
"No complaints here." Toph said. "I'm considering this my mini-vacation. No way am I doing any exams." She was just going to relax.
"So then Sokka will be one of my teammates." He decided.
"Why's that?" Zuko asked.
"His skill with the jian and boomerang will come in handy, as well as his training with the Bending forms. Also, Akela will be a great help if we come up against any Inuzuka clan members."
"Thanks, Naruto." Sokka told him, feeling proud due to the praise.
"And who'll be your second teammate?" Azula asked Naruto.
"Zuko," He answered. "He looks intimidating, he's a master with those Dao swords, and he's good with seeing what people are really going to do."
"That's it?"
"…And I don't want to put you in that kind of danger, not if I can help it." He admitted after a moment of silence.
"Aw, that's so sweet." The more romantic minds of the group thought.
"Who knew you would have a way with girls, Naruto? And you've got a nice one too." Jiraiya commented with a big grin on his face.
"Just keep walking, you pervert." The blonde told him with a scowl.
"I'm not a pervert!" He replied with indignation. "I'm a Super pervert!"
"Could you please repeat that?" Suki asked in calm and deadly voice. The rest of the girls had similar thoughts when they heard him.
"Suki, trust me." Naruto said to the Kyoshi Warrior. "If you think you'll be able to make him reconsider his ways, it won't matter. This guy has been on the receiving end of many beatings from angry women and has always bounced back. He regularly peeps at women in the bathhouse and in the hot springs here."
"You make it sound like I peep on every woman in there." Jiraiya commented.
"You mean you don't?" He was surprised to hear that little tidbit of information.
"I have standards, Naruto. I don't peep on any girls who are under sixteen." He sounded a little offended as he spoke. But before anyone could say anything in response, he stopped in front of a building. "We're here."
Naruto looked up at the building, looked at Jiraiya, then back at the building. "You cannot be serious." He finally said.
"Very." The Toad Sage replied.
"I think I'd rather be back at the prison."
"Too bad, because you're staying here." He stated before he grab the blonde by the arm and essentially dragged him into the building that Naruto had once lived in.
"This place is…different." He declared as Jiraiya let go of his arm, looking around the ground floor. "This was a lobby the last time I checked, not a living room."
"Well, I think it looks pretty neat." Suki declared, looking around. It was big and comfy looking, with enough sofas and couches to make it look like it was a place to relax at the end of the day.
"The new tenants had the entire place renovated. It's more like a mansion then an apartment building now." Jiraiya explained.
"New tenants?" repeated Naruto, surprised by that. "What new tenants?" The place didn't really have any tenants when he had been living there.
"The Konoha Eleven live here now." The Toad Sage explained. "Hey, where are you going?" He asked as Naruto started walking out of the building.
"Back to the prison, I'll stay there." He answered. He didn't get far due to the fact Jiraiya once again grabbed his arm. "I am not staying here!" The blonde protested.
"Yes, you are!" He told him. "If you don't like it, you can get over it. Now come on." The blonde was frog-marched up the stairs and to the door that led to his apartment. "Here's your key." Jiraiya said, handing him said key.
He gave a sigh of defeat. He wasn't going to win this one. "Fine," He said as he put the key in the lock and unlocked the door.
"Can we come inside?" Katara asked, curious to see what Naruto's old apartment looked like.
"No." Jiraiya told them as the blonde walked into the apartment and closed the door behind him. "Let's leave him to be reacquainted with his old home." He ushered them back down the stairs and into the living room.
"So, Kiba and the others really live here?" Sokka asked as he sat down in a sofa. "How did that happen?"
"It started out with Sasuke." The Toad Sage began to explain. "He wanted to get away from his clan's compound and the bad memories there. He heard that this building was to be demolished and since he didn't want Naruto to be homeless when he came back, he used the clan's money to buy the entire building. He took one of the rooms and started to live there. Sakura soon joined him so he wouldn't feel so lonely and Shikamaru followed, wanting to get out away from his house and live on his own for a bit. Kiba was the next one to join them, followed by Hinata. Neji began living here on Hiashi's orders to keep an eye out on Hinata. Pretty soon, the rest of the Konoha Eleven had started living here and had the place renovated."
"So what should we do now?" Toph asked.
"You guys slept late due to the knockout gas. It's about late afternoon, why don't you go look around the main street? You might find something interesting." He made his way over to the front door.
"Where are you going?" Katara asked him with a suspicious look.
"I have to go see the Hokage about some things." He answered without looking back. "You kids enjoy yourselves." He opened the door and walked out onto the streets.
They gather around one of the couches. "Should we leave Naruto alone?" Aang asked the rest of the team.
"It's probably best if we do." Azula answered him. "I think he wants to be alone right now." She knew enough of her bodyguard to know what he was thinking (most of the time).
"So what, we do as the old guy suggested and take a look around the village?" Toph asked.
"If we're gonna be here for a while, we might as well get to know the place." Sokka told her. Akela nodded his head once in agreement.
"Let's go then. We come back to see Naruto later." Zuko said. They walked out of the building, intent on exploring where they were stuck now (for that was what they were, stuck).
(Location: Naruto)
He closed the door behind him and took a look around the place. Because of him being arrested and leaving soon afterwards, he had left the place somewhat messy. Now, it looked like it had been cleaned recently. "So who had the guts to come in here and clean up?" He wondered aloud as he walked through the apartment. He walked into the kitchen, which looked spotless. He opened the fridge and looked inside. It was stocked with fresh food that had been bought recently. "It looks like nothing's expired." He remarked, closing the fridge door. He walked over to the pantry and opened it up. Fresh food was also stocked there, along with plenty of something else.
"That is a lot of ramen." The Kyūbi declared as he looked at the abundance of instant-ramen cups. "They probably thought you would be craving the stuff after being away from it for three years."
He didn't say anything in response. He just closed the pantry door and walked out of the kitchen. He made his way over to the bedroom. He stepped into the room and took a look. The room looked like the rest of the apartment, cleaned. The sheets on the bed even looked freshly laundered. Clothes lay on the bed, neatly folded and freshly pressed, along with a familiar looking headband.
"I guess they knew you were coming." The fox commented. "…Are you not going to say anything, Naruto?"
"They kept the CD player." He finally spoke, looking at said player. "I'd figured they would've thrown it out, considering how old it is."
"It's not that old. You bought it when you were ten."
He reached for the stack of CD's next to the player and picked up the one on the top. He looked at it before turning on the player. He opened up the case, took the disk out, put it into the player and hit the "Play" button.
(Start I'm still here (Jim's theme))
As the song began to play, he put the case down and sat down against the wall. He closed his eyes and listened to the music as well as the lyrics.
I am a question to the world
Not an answer to be heard
Or a moment that's held in your arms
And what do you think you'd ever say
I won't listen anyway
You don't know me
And I'll never be what you want me to be
And what do you think you'd understand
I'm a boy – No, I'm a man
You can't take me and throw me away
And how can you learn what's never shown
Yeah you stand here on your own
They don't know me
'Cause I'm not here
And I want a moment to be real
Wanna touch things I don't feel
Wanna hold on and feel I belong
And how can the world want me to change
They're the ones that stay the same
They don't know me
'Cause I'm not here
And you see the things they never see
All you wanted I could be
Now you know me and I'm not afraid
And I want to tell you who I am
Can you help me be a man
They can't break me
As long as I know who I am
And I want a moment to be real
Wanna touch things I don't feel
Wanna hold on and feel I belong
How can the world want me to change
They're the ones that stay the same
They can't see me
But I'm still here
They can't tell me who to be
'Cause I'm not what they see
Yeah the world is still sleepin'
While I keep on dreamin' for me
And their words are just whispers and lies
That I'll never believe
And I want a moment to be real
Wanna touch things I don't feel
Wanna hold on and feel I belong
And how can they say I'll never change
They're the ones that stay the same
I'm the one now
'Cause I'm still here
I'm the one
'Cause I'm still here
I'm still here
I'm still here
I'm still here
(End I'm still here (Jim's theme))
As the song ended, he reached out and turned the player off. He didn't move from where he sat. "You always did enjoy listening to that song." The Kyūbi said. He had lost count of the number of times his Jinchūriki had played that song.
"It always seemed to describe my life perfectly." He replied. "I felt like the song was created for me."
"What about now?"
"I'm not sure. My life has changed but when I listen to that song, it feels like it hasn't changed at all." He gave a bitter chuckle. "How ironic, people would lie to me and keep secrets from me, now I'm doing the same things to my friends." He stood up and walked to the balcony door.
"Kit, what are you doing?"
"I'm going to see a couple of people." He opened the door and walked into the balcony, looking down at the people below.
"…We're probably not thinking of the same people, are we?" The fox asked him.
"Probably not," He admitted before jumping over the railing and into the air.
(Location: Hokage office)
Tsunade sat at the desk, looking over some paperwork, when she felt a familiar presence. "Jiraiya, get in here." She ordered without looking up.
He entered through the window. "Was it necessary to sign him up for the Chūnin Exams?" He asked her, looking at the back of her chair.
"If it were up to me, I'd promoted him as soon as he took the offer." She replied. "But both the councils want to evaluate him. So we made a deal. If he makes it to the third stage and at least to the semi-final round, he'll be given the rank."
"You know that he'll want to go back once the Exams are over." He said, walking around to face her directly.
"And I will make it a mission. He and the members of the Konoha Eleven here will be able to go back to the Bending Countries and stop the Fire Lord as well as help with the aftermath."
"And once that is all done?"
"He will come back." The Hokage stated as they finally faced one another.
"And if he refuses?" He asked her. "He has friends over there, Tsunade. He's got a girlfriend too, if I'm not mistaken. He won't just leave them and never come back. He's not like that and we both know it."
"If he refuses to come back to the village voluntarily, the Konoha Eleven will have orders to knock him unconscious and bring him back."
"He'll just escape like the last time." He told her.
"No, he won't. If he has to be brought back forcefully, I will have no choice but to erase his memories of the past three years." She told him in a calm voice.
"WHAT?" He shouted, sounding completely surprised by that. "Tsunade, you can't implant false memories in that long a time period. He's likely to go mad from that!"
"I will not implant memories. I will simply tell him that his fight with Sasuke left him in a coma that lasted three years."
"What about the Kyūbi? It'll be likely that the fox will try to bring back those memories."
"We'll simply tell Naruto not to trust anything that the Kyūbi says." She answered in that same calm voice. She made it sound like she wasn't doing anything wrong.
"Tsunade, you can't do all of this. You can't do this to him!"
"Three years, Jiraiya." She said, her voice showing a small amount of emotion. "We've both wanted him back for three years. Now that he's back, I'm not letting him go. He is ours, no one else's. And if I have to wipe his mind clean of three years of his life to keep him here, so be it."
"Are you doing this for Naruto? Or so the village can have its weapon back?"
She stood up and slapped him hard across the face. "Never say something like that again, do you understand!? Never again! I would not do all of this just so I could treat Naruto like a weapon! I want my gaki back and I will do whatever it takes to keep him." She sat back down in the chair. "Leave." She ordered him. He left without saying a word.
(Location: Team Avatar)
"This place is incredible." Aang declared as they walked down the main street.
"I know." Suki agreed, looking around. "There are so many things to see."
"It's so different from the places we've been to." Katara commented. "It's so lively." The nightlife seemed to have a pulse of its own compared to what it was like during the day. But it was only the beginning of the night and they hadn't seen much of the day.
"I can't imagine why Naruto would want to leave this place." Aang said. Details just seemed leap out at them as they walked through the street. People seemed to be happy and laughing, unaware of any war going on the other side of the planet. Sometimes the streets were clustered and sometimes they were wide.
"Aang, remember the glares he got earlier today?" Sokka asked. "If he had to deal with that while growing up, I would probably leave too."
"Still, the others seemed determined to bring him back." Toph said as she took a turn around a tree. "It might not have been entirely bad for him."
"I wondered what happened that made him leave." Zuko said. "Naruto's been able to take anything that's been thrown at him. What in Agni's name would make him leave and never want to come back?"
"Maybe we can ask them." Azula said, pointing down a particular street. The others looked at where she was pointing and saw Kiba, Akamaru, and Ino.
The three also saw them. "Perfect timing," Ino declared as she ran up to them. "Quick, follow us."
"Why?" Zuko asked.
"We're throwing a surprise welcome back for Naruto." Kiba quickly explained. "You guys can help him ease in better."
They all looked at each other. It didn't sound like that bad of an idea. "Alright, where's the party at?" Sokka asked them.
"Follow us!" Ino told them before quickly walking away with Kiba and Akamaru right behind her. They quickly followed them through the streets until they finally stopped in front of what looked like a restaurant.
"What is this place?" Aang asked them as he examined the place. It wasn't a huge place, just a modest one.
"Welcome to Ichiraku Ramen!" Kiba announced as they walked in. "I guess Naruto told all about this place."
"Actually, no he hasn't." Azula replied as they sat down. The place had been renovated as well (thanks to the Konoha Eleven paying for said renovations), making the place big enough for twenty or so people to be seated comfortable.
"You're kidding." Chōji said as he looked at her along with the rest of the Konoha Eleven there, sitting along the bar. "Naruto's never told you about this place?"
"That's what I said." She told him.
"Did he tell you about ramen at least?" Neji asked with a little concern in his voice.
"What is ramen?" Zuko asked.
"I guess it's some kind of dish." Sokka said.
"What gave it away?" Toph asked sarcastically.
"Kami, they're not kidding." Tenten said. They never would've thought this could've happened.
"Hey, Mr. Teuchi!" called out Kiba, getting the attention of the man and his daughter. "We need seven bowls of miso ramen, stat!"
"It's coming." Teuchi told him as he and Ayame made the ramen.
"Why would you guys be surprised that Naruto wouldn't tell us about some kind of food?" Aang asked, clearly confused by they were saying.
"Because ramen was the only thing Naruto practically ate." Shikamaru answered.
"Whenever he had the chance to eat out, he would always come here." Teuchi told them.
"He was our favorite customer." Ayame agreed.
"Which is why we're having the party here," Hinata finished up the explanation.
"Why here?" Sokka asked. "We left Naruto at his apartment."
"Ah, but you don't know Naruto like we do." Ino told him with a sly wink. "He won't stay there. He'll leave and come straight here."
"So you're planning to ambush him once he walks in, is that it?" Azula asked. She was having doubts about their little plan.
"It's not ambushing." Shino defended. "It is welcoming an old friend back by knowing where he'll go."
"Of course it is." The sarcasm in her voice was blatant and obvious. Everyone there heard it.
"Here's your ramen." Teuchi announced, handing out bowls. "Considering it's your first time here, this one's on the house. Dig in!"
Team Avatar took the bowls and a pair of chopsticks each. They were hesitant at first, but Suki raised the noodles to her mouth and ate them. "This is good!" She declared after she swallowed the noodles. The rest of them started eating and agreed with her. They could understand why Naruto kept coming back to this place.
Zuko was about to ask them something when Hinata spoke. "He's coming!" She announced with her Byakugan showing. "He's walking down the street and heading this way."
"Is everyone ready?" Kiba asked, looking around and seeing that everyone was in position.
"Of course we are ready to give our youthful friend a welcome back party!" Lee declared.
"Keep it down, Lee." Tenten hissed in his ear. They didn't need to blow the surprise early.
"…Wait, something's not right." Hinata said as she watched Naruto.
"What's the matter?" Shino asked her.
"He's seen it but he's not slowing down. He's…he's walking right past it."
"What? Are you sure?" Ino asked. That wasn't right; he was supposed to come here.
Neji activated his Byakugan to double check. "She's right. He hasn't stopped."
"Then where is he going?" Kiba demanded.
(Location: Naruto)
He stood outside the building. "Been a while since I've been here," He thought silently as he looked at it.
"Not being on the same continent for three years will do that for you." The Kyūbi commented with a small amount of sarcasm. "You do realize that you're going to be smacked repeatedly once you go in, right?"
"I'm expecting it." He walked up to the door and looked over at the bouncer. "Hey, Bull." He greeted the man. Bull was like his namesake, big and bulky. He was also silent. He rarely spoke, so people were usually surprised when he did. He looked down at Naruto and his gaze hardened. "Can I go in?" The blonde asked.
He stared at him for bit a second longer before nodding once. He thumped on the door twice. It opened and a beautiful young woman opened it. "What is it, Bull?" She asked. He jerked his head at Naruto and she turned to look at him. The worried look she had on her face turned to anger and before he could say anything, she smacked hard him in the face. "How dare you." She said as he fell to the ground.
"Nice to see you again too, Ai," He replied, standing back up. The smack still stung though.
"You have a lot of nerve showing your face here after what you did."
"I had to leave."
"You couldn't say goodbye!?" She demanded as her anger showed in her voice.
"We both know the answer to that." He replied.
"Tell that to Mama."
"Actually, that's why I'm here."
"What?" She was genuinely surprised to hear that come out of his mouth.
"I came here to explain myself and talk to Mama." He told her, making sure each and every one of his words were clear.
"You're serious?" She asked him.
"Yes, I am."
She fell silent and then turned around. "Come on in." She told him before walking through the door. He followed and Bull closed the door behind him.
From across the street, both Team Avatar and most of the Konoha Eleven watched as he entered the building. "How can he go there of all places?!" demanded Ino.
"What's wrong with it?" Sokka asked. "It's a restaurant, right?"
"How can you think it's a restaurant?" She asked back, making it sound like he was an idiot.
He pointed up at the sign. "It says the Meat Bar."
"Um…well…you're kinda right." A flustered Chōji said. "It is like a restaurant, but not…quite."
"You're not making any sense." Toph told him. It was either a restaurant or it wasn't, that was how the blind Earthbender saw it.
"Not all meats are for eating." Kiba said, trying to be polite about it.
"Now you aren't making any sense." She told him.
"Troublesome." Shikamaru muttered to himself. "The place is both a restaurant and a brothel. The name refers to the fact that you can get different kinds of meat in there and just the ones for eating." He explained.
The entire team (save for Azula) was flabbergasted. "You can do that?" Sokka asked with a stunned voice.
"It's rare, but yeah."
"And Naruto just went in there?" Aang asked. That was a little disturbing to even think about.
"You saw the same thing we did." Shino told him.
"How can Naruto be this unyouthful?" Lee demanded in an angry voice.
"What are you talking about?" Azula asked him.
"You can't see this? He just went into a brothel!" Ino told her.
She shrugged her shoulders. "So? It's not like this is the first time he's done it."
"WHAT!?" screamed the members of the Konoha Eleven. Obviously, they took it the wrong way.
"What do you mean he's done this before?" Katara asked as well.
"Just he goes into a brothel doesn't mean he's going to sleep with anyone there." She told them pointedly. "It's possible that he has to apologize for something, if that smack was anything to go by."
"And just how would you know that?" Neji asked.
"I already told you, this is not the first time he's done something like this." She repeated herself. "Besides, he wouldn't betray me like that."
"What do you mean?" Hinata asked, a little nervous by how she had said those words.
"We love each other." She stated.
Everyone there (with the exception of Zuko, who thought it was plain as day) was stunned by that simple statement. While all the girls were wondering how that happened, all the guys (except Aang, who didn't really know what to make of it, and Shikamaru, who thought it was too troublesome) had one thought, which was "Lucky bastard."
"Now what are you all doing here?" Jiraiya's voice asked from behind them, making them jump in surprise. They all turned to see the Toad Sage standing behind them with a questioning look on his face.
"We weren't doing anything!" Aang quickly assured him.
"Of course you weren't." He replied with a deadpan voice before looking at what they were looking at. "Ah, the Meat Bar. I have such good memories of that place." He turned his gaze back on them. "Why are you even looking at that place? Most of you are too young to even think about going in there."
"We're not going in there, but Naruto did." Kiba told him.
"Did he now?" He looked back at the building. "Hmm…I want you all to do something for me."
"What's that, Lord Jiraiya?" Hinata asked him, being respectful to the man.
"Go home. Get some sleep." He looked over at Team Avatar. "You guys go back to the Tree House and rest up. The two of you are going to need it." He told Zuko and Sokka, making Akela growl slightly. "Sorry, the three of you are going to need it." He amended. "Here are your application forms, just make sure to sign your name at the bottom." He handed them the forms. "Now scoot. I'll have a talk with Naruto."
"Are you sure, Lord Jiraiya?" Tenten asked.
"Of course I'm sure. Go on, get out of here." They walked away down the opposite direction of the street. After a few minutes of silence, the old shinobi walked up to the door of the Meat Bar. "Bull." He greeted the bouncer. "May I go in?" Bull nodded his head and opened the door for him. He gave a nod of thanks and walked in.
(Location: The Tree House)
Later that night, Zuko, Sokka and Akela were asleep in their rooms. The sound of the window opening woke them up, but they feigned sleep so that they could throw off whoever was in the room with them. "Would the three of you knock it off?" Naruto's voice told them. "I know that you're awake, so stop faking it."
They opened their eyes and sat up, turning on the light at their bedsides while Akela simply raised his head. They saw Naruto sitting in a chair with the back facing them and his arms draped over it. Hanging from his mouth was something that Sokka had seen before. "Uh…Naruto, why do you have a…cigarette in your mouth?" He asked, remembering the word for it.
"I've started smoking." He answered, taking a drag and blowing the smoke away from them.
"When did that happen?"
"About an hour or so ago," He said. "Quite frankly, after dealing with you guys and the things you do, I need it."
"I thought that was dangerous to your lungs or something like that?" The Tribesman asked, trying to remember the brief conversation he had with Asuma about them.
"It is." The blonde admitted. "But I get all the benefits of smoking without getting any of the downsides."
"How is that possible?"
"That's a secret."
"Why are you here, Naruto?" Zuko asked him.
"I'm here about the Chūnin Exams." He answered, turning serious. "Did you guys sign the forms?"
"Yes, both of us did." He gestured to himself and Sokka as he said those words.
"Good, then we can get down to brass tacks."
"What do you mean?"
"To put it simply, I am going to talk about tactics for the Chūnin Exam. The two of you…" He stopped when Akela somehow managed to scowl at him and slightly bared his teeth. "Sorry, the three of you are going to listen and then share opinions. Are there any objections?" They didn't answer that question, there was no need. They had none.
End
Author's note: Thanks for all the reviews you've sent me.
Yes, they're back in Konoha. For those of you who are going to complain about Team Kakashi not being there, that little reunion is required to be a solo act. And yes, I know I'm an evil bastard.
I know that there will be some of you that will tell me that I can't do the Chūnin Exams because of how close I left off to the Comet. But considering the show never really gaves actual dates, I'm playing with it a little bit.
I would like to thank The King in White for his story "Chasing Yesterday". That story inspired me to do my own version of the walk down the main street. I would also like to ask him to update Dragon of Beauty. That's a good story and he's leaving it dead in the water.
Tsunade was probably a little heartless for what she did and for what she might do to Naruto. But can you blame her? She honestly thinks being in Konoha is best for him. Like she said, she wants her gaki back and she's willing to do whatever she can to keep him.
Probably a few of you are not going to like that I put a song in the story. First off, let me point out I am not doing it ever other chapter. Secondly, that was probably one of the few songs that describe Naruto and the Jinchūriki perfectly.
How many times have you read a story that has Naruto going straight to Ichiraku's after he comes back from either the training trip or exile? A little creativity doesn't hurt, it really doesn't. That's why I had him walk past it and head over to the Meat Bar. What happens in the Meat Bar will be taken care of later.
As for those of you who think that Team Avatar might finally learn about Naruto's secret, it might happen or it might not. Maybe they'll all learn about it at the same time, maybe just one will or maybe none.
I'll see you all next chapter!