Naruto: Genesis of the Nindo

by Bloody-Mad

Inspired by Reading the Future: Naruto's True Nindo. . . The future is not set in stone. Every action has a reaction. The people of the past have a chance to change things- hopefully, for the better. Join Team Minato, The Slug and Toad Sannin, and the parents that started it all! Hopefully, a different kind of Naruto! TEMPORARY HIATUS

38. Chapter 38

Hello once again, to all my wonderful readers both old and new! I enjoyed reading your reviews and i'm happpy with all the new favorites and follows i'm getting. I hope everyone had a good Halloween? Let's get this show on the road- welcome in Chapter Thirty-Eight!

DISCLAIMER: I do not own Naruto, Masashi Kishimoto does. Similarly, i do not own any songs english or japanese.

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Chapter Thirty-Eight

There's Work to be Done, Uzumaki Naruto!

---

The morning shines bright and new . . . they all suppose. The fake windows show a sunny day, at least. The group arises and goes through the usual morning routine, this time Minato, Kakashi, and Obito doing the breakfast cooking.

"Kyuubi-san . . . would you like bacon and eggs, or just bacon?" Minato asks the demon fox.

Kyuubi stiffens at being addressed, but relaxes himself. "Actually, I just want some fruit."

Minato smiles cheerily. "Sure!"

After everyone has devoured their breakfast, and Kyuubi has polished off five apples and an entire carton of blueberries alone, the group moves to the living room to read.

"So who is next?" Minato asks.

"I'd like to go actually." Tsunade volunteers.

"Then it's all yours." Minato hands the book to the Slug Sannin, who takes it with a nod of thanks.

Katsu, fully dressed in her work attire, moves to the bed to wake Naruto. The morning was bright and the day already started. He'd mentioned to her last night to wake him up in case he might oversleep, as Kakashi and he had something to talk about. She walks to his side of the bed and reaches for him . . .

Naruto's eyes snap open just before she touches him and he surges up with a muted cry of alarm, his hand shooting out lightning quick to grab hold of her wrist. The motions were so fast and abrupt that Katsu shrieks in surprise, trying to move back but held in place by Naruto's grip on her wrist.

"Oh, don't hurt her." Rin murmurs quietly.

They stay that way for a few moments, Naruto breathing heavily as he assimilates what happened and where he is now. Katsu waits, her breathing also needing to even out from the startle.

Naruto looks at what's he's holding, blinking at the small hand in his grasp. He sighs, moving his hand to trace her palm and cradle it, releasing Katsu's wrist.

"Sorry." He whispers, shaking his head. "I had a strange dream."

"It seems more like a nightmare to me." Katsu counters, moving around to look at Naruto's face. "Was it about . . . the last mission?"

"No," Naruto shakes his head again, smiling at her. "It was . . . just a strange dream. No way could it be a nightmare."

"Then why did you cry out?" Kakashi mutters.

Katsu raises an eyebrow, but seeing Naruto's sure expression decides not to push it. If he says it wasn't a nightmare, it's not a nightmare. "Okay, but if you want to talk about it I'm all ears." She says simply, leaning down to kiss his cheek. "I've got work today— your breakfast is on the stove ok? Love you!" And with another kiss she's bouncing out the room.

"Love you too!" Naruto calls, shaking his head at her fast exit. He gets out of bed and gets ready for his day, making sure everything is in order before going down the steps. What was his dream about again? It felt so real . . . why was he dreaming about another Kurama? This one seemed darker than the Kurama he had first met. It would turn glowing eyes to him, would reach for him, but it was tethered somewhere else?

"Another part of me?" Kyuubi repeats. "I'm not sure what that could mean . . . I have no duplicates. The last time someone tried to clone me it didn't turn out all that well. For them."

"Someone tried to clone you?" Kushina asks, amazed at such audacity. Kyuubi, hearing her mild outrage, nods in complete agreement.

"It was a horrible, shoddy clone. Even less chakra than the four-tails, and hideous. Black and puke green swirled fur, honestly I gave it a mercy killing." Kyuubi confides.

That dream again . . . what does it mean? Kurama, if you weren't in Lightning Country right now I could ask you about it. Am I seeing a memory of yours? Naruto asks questions he won't receive answers to for a while, not knowing how long Kurama would be gone. It's been two weeks since the other left and Naruto could still distinctly feel the emptiness of his seal, a vacancy he had never known before.

"Aw, he misses you." Kushina coos, looking at Kyuubi who blankly stares in return.

"Please. Never coo when speaking to me." Kyuubi demands flatly.

The last time he'd heard from Kurama, the Fox had figured out something very important about one of his bijuu brethren. Something that could very well help Naruto, but could also prove a pitfall. Not that he would tell Naruto until it was the right time, much to the boy's annoyance.

Pushing back hair still damp from his shower, Naruto goes into the kitchen and licks his lips at the delicious smelling plate laid out just for him. He grins at the two chocolate éclairs laid out for him.

"Chocolate éclairs?" Kakashi muses. The smile that can be heard in his voice makes Minato curious.

"You've had them before Kakashi?" Minato asks.

"Only once . . . right before we were deployed. It was the one thing I focused on when we got back to camp and I had to wash off all that blood. I wondered if it would taste as good to me after the war." Kakashi explains, an almost dreamlike quality to his voice.

"Hmm . . ." Naruto grins wickedly.

---

Kakashi, back in the hospital again for a check-up much to his annoyance, idly flips through the pages of his Karui Bito for about the third time. Who knew Naruto was such a good writer? He muses to himself. Pushing back the messy hair that no longer had a hitai-ate to restrain it, Kakashi enjoys the book.

"I'm sure Naruto is good, but you also think Icha Icha written by this fool is a masterpiece so . . ." Tsunade shrugs, grinning cheerily at the dour looks sent to her by Kakashi and Jiraiya.

He pauses in turning the page when he hears footsteps coming closer to his room. They stop just outside the door for a heartbeat before it opens to reveal his visitor.

"Ah, Naruto." Kakashi greets the young man with a grin. "I was just thinking about you."

"Oh were you?" Naruto asks loftily as he moves forward to sit by Kakashi's bedside. "Funny, because when I found this . . ." he pulls out the chocolate éclair from behind his back. "On my breakfast plate I thought of you."

"Aw, he's going to share!" Kushina giggles, stopping short when Obito snorts.

"Yeah I don't think so." Obito sniggers.

Kakashi's one eye is trained exclusively on that pastry, following its movements as Naruto teasingly moves it from side to side. "And you thought . . . how nice it would be for me to have it?" he asks hopefully.

Naruto snorts and brings up the éclair to take a nice big bite out of it. "Not a chance!" he laughs after swallowing the bite.

"Aw, what?" Kakashi wails, dropping his forehead straight on the pages.

"Ha, exactly what I would have done!" Obito laughs obnoxiously.

Kakashi growls, trying to swipe at the boy who continually dodges. "Asshole. And here I was thinking nice things about you and your book." He mutters, hitting the cover of Karui Bito.

"The next one is coming out in a few more months." Naruto supplies, enjoying the look of suffering on Kakashi's face each time he raises the éclair to his mouth to bite. "I think you'll like it."

"I'm sure." Kakashi nearly whimpers when the last bite disappears behind Naruto's teeth, and the boy in question just lords it over him without saying a word as he has the audacity to stare straight at him while eating it.

"Ooh that has to hurt." Rin laughs at the look of annoyance on Kakashi's face.

"Don't worry Kakashi, this time you can teach your brother not to be so disrespectful." Minato offers with a poorly hidden chuckle.

"Not a chance." Kyuubi mumbles darkly, fangs bared in his menacing grin at the pale-faced Kakashi.

"What's your problem Kakashi?" Naruto questions innocently.

Kakashi glares. "You know what."

Naruto blinks, shaking his head. "No, I really . . ." here, by some miracle of God, Naruto pulls out another chocolate éclair from his pocket. "Really do not."

Obito laughs, a mocking edge to it. "Oh God that's priceless!"

"Are you serious right now?" Kakashi whines. "Gah."

"Think of it as karmic retribution for all the mean things you've done." Rin offers, unhelpful. Kakashi just glares at the girl, but he doesn't agree or disagree.

Kakashi breaks down quite nicely. "No— wait!" he cries, making Naruto pause as the pastry is about to be bitten into. "Come on, let me have it please?"

"I don't know," Naruto murmurs, teasingly waving the pastry under Kakashi's nose and snatching it away before the man can grab it. "You've been awfully lazy just sitting there. I don't think you've earned this."

Kakashi pushes Naruto's hand, and the pastry, away with a scandalized look as Naruto blinks at him in shock. "Haven't earned it? You unimaginable brat! I wonder just who it was that bottle fed you when you woke up at night squalling?"

Minato's eyes brighten as he whips his head around to a visibly embarrassed Kakashi. "You actually got close enough to touch a baby? You held my baby and fed him? Oh, you are so on babysitting duty!"

"I think what Minato means to say," Kushina pushed in, glaring at a grinning Minato before turning to Kakashi with a softer look. "Is thank you Kakashi."

"Mr. Mom." Obito mutters under his breath, snorting in amusement when Kakashi's blush flares.

"You did?" Naruto asks, surprised.

Kakashi nods, now looking smug and victorious. "And I wonder just who helped you learn how to walk? The caretakers sure weren't interested."

"Ouch, and yet— Aww!" Rin swings between two extremes, snagging Kakashi's cheek with a delighted laugh.

"Oh man, I would love to see that!" Minato laughs. "Kakashi being all stoic," Minato smoothed out his features and his tone of voice becomes placid and lazy. "Here Naru-chan, here baby. That's good Naru-chan."

"Oh God my stomach!" Obito wheezes, clutching his middle as he laughs.

"Okay, alright, you win!" Naruto concedes, a light blush on his tanned face as he hands the éclair to a triumphant looking Kakashi. He looks away, letting Kakashi fully enjoy the éclair instead of speed eating so his mask wouldn't move.

"Ah, these never get old." Kakashi chuckles, and Naruto can hear a faint hum from Kakashi.

"So how much longer will you be here?" Naruto asks.

"Tsunade's just punishing me for some times way back before you were born." Kakashi snorts.

"Hmph, how I wish I could forget." Tsunade mutters, glaring at a sheepish Kakashi.

"Where was I when this was going down?" Jiraiya demands.

"What did you do nii-san?" Naruto chuckles, turning back to look at Kakashi.

"Hmm . . . some funny things." Kakashi replies flippantly.

The two turn when more footsteps come towards the room— two sets, one light while the other would be silent if not for the quiet voice that answer's the voice of the light steps.

"Who is that?" Kakashi asks.

"Hm, I guess Sakura wanted you and the newest team member of our squad to meet." Naruto murmurs.

The door opens revealing Sakura and Sai right behind her. Naruto is curious at the new change of clothes, looking more like a school boy's uniform in its long length and dark colors than the shinobi uniform from before. Did Sai count this as casual clothing? Sakura's eyes widen in surprise as she looks at Naruto. "I was looking for you! It's lucky that you're here."

Naruto hums in agreement before leaning forward to grin at Sai. "Yo, Sai and Sakura! You guys met up before this?"

"We met each other in the library. By the way Naruto, you were right about that book. The Last Samurai was great! Anyway, I just wanted to introduce Sai to Kakashi-sensei." Sakura replies brightly.

"Before she wasn't quite so cheery around Sai. I wonder what happened?" Minato questions.

"Well Sai, let me introduce you to Hatake Kakashi, jounin leader of Team Seven." Naruto waves his hand to the silver-haired lazy shinobi.

"Nice to meet you." Kakashi raises a hand in lazy greeting, lone dark eye seemingly hazy yet trained solely on Sai.

Sai bows as is proper. "It is nice to meet you as well, er, Hatake-sama."

"Did Sai just stutter?" Kakashi asks with surprise.

"Well now, no need for all that formality. I'm just Kakashi." Kakashi cheerfully corrects Sai.

Sai nods and there is a silence, slightly uncomfortable, that spreads in the room.

"So, what made you decide to use nicknames Sai?" Kakashi prompts, lying back against the pillows of the bed.

"Ah! Well in the book I was reading, it said that you should call people by their first names to establish a friendly relationship and that to create endearing nicknames would quicken the process so . . ." Sai trails off, and Naruto is secretly taken aback at the bashful expression on Sai's face. Where was the controlled, uncaring boy from the last mission?

"In a book he read . . . ?" Kushina repeats, mystified. "Hell, I wasn't all that good with society either but even I knew reading books wasn't going to help me."

"Then again you didn't really care for reading period." Minato murmurs, playfully gasping at the hit to his shoulder from the scowling redhead.

"Well he said before he had no emotions right? In ROOT all emotions are trained away, and Danzo succeeds best with children young enough to not even know how important emotions are." The disgust in Tsunade's voice lets them all know what she thinks of this.

Hmph. He knows nothing of emotions, and he's worse at socializing than I ever was before meeting the Kuroshio Family— and that's saying something, Naruto deducts with quick ease so that he can smile and say aloud, "Well how is that coming along? The trick to creating nicknames is either shortening a part of someone's name or taking in their characteristics and creating a name from that. For example, my nickname would be Naru— a shortening of my name. Or, you could take a trait or characteristic of mine and make a nickname from that."

"Mine would be Obi, or maybe Tobi with my name backwards minus the last 'o', or it could even be—" Obito chirps before being cut off with a sly remark from Kakashi.

"Another would be Blockhead?" Kakashi teases. "Maybe mine would be Silver—"

"Or Kashi!" Rin chirps, grinning at Kakashi's glower for the childish nickname. "You can't shorten Rin anymore than it is, so my nickname might be . . ."

"Nurse? How about Puppy-chan?" Jiraiya snickers. "I am of course Super Pervert!"

"Or Jira, little Jira-brat. How about Raiya-chan? Or Toadie." Kyuubi cuts in wickedly, the others laughing at the nickname and Jiraiya's face.

"What would yours be?" Jiraiya demands.

Kyuubi raises an eyebrow. "I'm too powerful for that—"

"Kyu! Or Rama or Kura-chan! Ooh, or Tails !" Kushina supplies happily. "And mine would be Red or Shina."

"Don't forget Hothead, Habanero and Tomato." Tsunade adds with a gleeful smile in response to the feral snarl from Kushina at the last, hated childhood nickname.

"So, mine is Mina?" Minato grimaces at the childish, almost girlish nickname. "No, scratch that . . . Sunny could work for me to, or Blue for my eyes . . . Yondaime is the best nickname though." He grins.

"I've already been established as Nade, or maybe Tsuna would work to . . . and I guess I'm Doc or Hime." Tsunade finishes up for herself. "Now that we're done wasting time . . ."

"Like Ramen Addict?" Sakura jabs.

"That's a fact not a nickname." Kakashi corrects. "It'd be something more like . . . Knucklehead, Swift, maybe even Sunny or Spike for the hair."

"Right!" Naruto agrees with a nod, looking to Sai to make sure the boy was getting this.

"I see . . ." Sai murmurs, looking away to save and categorize the fact. They watch with interest as his eyes suddenly cut up to Sakura and gave her a critical once over, going up and down her form.

"You don't have to stare at me like that." Sakura shuffles a little in nervousness.

Sai stares for a little longer before smiling. "I got it."

They wait to find exactly what he got.

Sai smiles at Sakura and dubs her a name that would forever be a defining memory for all those present. "Ugly."

"Oh now that is harsh." Kushina winces. "She's tactless and a little rude maybe, but I wouldn't say she's ugly. She's not ugly at all!"

"Damn, but if the kid with no emotions said that, and not even out of spite but out of pure analysis?" Jiraiya shakes his head. "Poor kid."

Sakura stills— she freezes. Smile fixed and plastic, as if she was suddenly a wax figurine. Naruto has ducked his head low, almost to his knees as he shudders with restrained sniggers that fight against the hand that clamps his mouth shut. Kakashi has nearly pushed his book entirely to his face, perfectly and completely still so that Sakura might not look at him.

"A woman's vision is not based on movement, my student, but on scent. If she even smells any sort of weakness she'll pounce." Minato murmurs so only his students can hear, even if Rin frowns darkly.

Naruto sticks out his leg in a high kick, but softens the blow with a buffering layer of chakra as it sticks firmly to a bellowing Sakura's midsection, cutting her off from trying to kill Sai. "Sai that's not fair. Sakura isn't ugly!" Naruto coughs, voice wavering with not-yet repressed laughter.

"Oh?" Sai blinks in genuine surprise, and then proceeds to dig his grave deeper. "No curves to her body, a flat breast and large forehead with skinny limbs . . . is that not ugly?"

"Obito get off the floor!" Rin snaps at the still shuddering Obito whose muffled guffaws are still heard despite his face being plastered to the rug. "That Sai! How terrible can he be?"

"Well when you put it like that— kidding, Sakura, kidding!" Naruto hastily backpedals, adding more chakra to his leg still keeping Sakura in place. "Sai, I've been all across these great nations during my training trip. Trust me, you've never seen ugly before, otherwise you wouldn't say it to Sakura. Putting that aside, that's not really a good nickname. Maybe you should stick to shortening Sakura's name?"

"Perhaps." Sai concedes, eyeing Sakura in concern as she trembles with anger, though she is no longer trying to kill him.

"Ah." Kakashi breathes, half-lidded coal eye showing a weary expression as he looks at his new team. "So . . . it appears we might have some teamwork troubles. Where have I heard that before?" he muttered to himself sarcastically.

"Oh Kakashi, you and your wit!" Obito laughs obnoxiously, lightly pushing Kakashi's shoulder.

"Oh Obito, you and your inability to keep your hands to yourself." Kakashi laughs back, pushing Obito straight off the couch.

"Nii-san, you know . . . when you get out of here if you have some time to spare I'd like it if you could help me with training. I've got a new jutsu idea, and there's a jutsu I've completed that I want to show you!" Naruto exclaims. Kakashi looks at the younger man with surprise— Naruto didn't usually act or speak like this, like a child in a candy store with no limits, and the few times he did usually foretold of something exciting or some prank.

"I've got all the time in the world." Kakashi assures Naruto with a smile. "But, I'll be out by lunch so maybe we can go visit your girlfriend before we train eh?"

"Now you're talking!" Naruto grins widely. He pauses, and in unison Naruto's and Kakashi's heads turn to the door with matching expressions of expectation on their faces.

"Like twins." Kushina giggles. "Maybe, Kakashi, Naruto could get a summon from the Dogs?"

"Maybe Pakkun or a future pup . . . perhaps we can even get him a familiar." Kakashi agrees. "So long as he knows the true power of Dogs, and their superiority I see no problem."

"Superiority to what?" Minato challenges with a twinkle in his eyes. "Certainly not toads."

"And you better not mean slugs." Tsunade warns.

"Oh sure, man's best friend is no match for some warty amphibians swimming in muck and swamp, and they could never compare to some garden slime slugs." Kakashi ripostes, cackling at the glares sent his way.

Sakura giggles, and they briefly look at her from the corners of their eyes. "You two are completely in sync right now."

"We've caught the scent." Kakashi says by way of explanation, though it really isn't much of one.

"The Fox and Hound duo, on the trail eh?" Naruto jokes with a grin. The door opens, and a deep voice greets them.

"Kakashi! How are you?" Asuma grins as he nearly eclipses the doorway with his large frame, ever present cigarette in his mouth though it isn't lit. Brown eyes quickly shoot to Kakashi's side and widen. "And Naruto! Look at you little Naru-chan, nearly as big as your sensei eh?"

"Don't call me Naru-chan! And you can't mean Jiraiya, I'll never get that big." Naruto jokes. "Yo, Asuma-oji, still bear-like as always! And the rest of team ten." He adds in a mocking, less happy voice.

"Who are you calling a bear?" Asuma complains, walking in and abruptly dumping himself on Kakashi's bed, cheerfully ignoring the flat gaze from the younger jounin.

"The only jounin besides Ibiki-san that can compare to Jiraiya-sensei's size you great ape." Naruto sneers jokingly.

"Whoa, little Asuma really gets that big?" Tsunade laughs, looking over at an equally impressed Jiraiya. "How, he surely doesn't get that from sensei."

Shikamaru grunts a laugh, smirking at Naruto. He walks further in with the rest of the team. "So how's it—" Shikamaru cuts off when his eyes land on the fourth person in the room, the one who was so quiet and unobtrusive that he hadn't noticed him. "You!" he growls, memories of the attack on them by this guy in the forefront of his brain.

"W-who's he?" Ino asks, blushing a little.

"You just noticed this guy?" Naruto asks incredulously. "Hey it's fine! This guy is our new team member Sai!"

Sai looks at them all with a rather blank face, before it creases and folds to perfectly mimic a smile. "Hi there."

Naruto looks between Sai and Shikamaru and Chouji with a placid expression. "Yeah, this guy here was set for our team that day we first saw him remember?"

"Oh I remember." Chouji answers quietly. "So, what were you doing then?" the question is addressed to Sai.

Sai takes a quick breath and hopes he read something in the books to cover these types of situations. "I was merely testing out my newest comrade. Getting a feel for his level and skill set you see. I meant no real harm or offence."

The words are absorbed by everyone in the room, though only the four who participated in the short "attack" fully understand what has just been said.

"Is that so?" Chouji is back to his jovial self as he snacks on a bag of potato chips. "That's good enough for me then."

"Of course!" Naruto laughs at how easily Chouji forgives.

"Just like his father." Minato chuckles.

"So what are you doing here?" Kakashi asks Asuma. "This isn't a lounge you know."

"True, true." Asuma sighs. "Team Ten head on over to the barbeque ahead of me. Team Seven is invited too, if they want."

"Actually Asuma-sensei," Sakura pipes up. "We were going to The Tea House where a friend works to eat lunch there, with Kakashi-sensei."

"The Tea House?" Shikamaru repeats. "Oh, then I'd like to go there as well. I'm pretty sure I know who the friend is and a visit never hurt."

"Shikamaru I think we all know who the friend is, you'd have to be dense not to figure it out." Asuma retorts with an eye roll. "Well then you guys can head over there and I'll catch up, I do have a soft spot for their S'more Brownies. Tell Katsu to get me a heaping plate of those."

"More like just two pieces old man, you need to start watching what you eat. You guys will catch up?" Naruto asks.

"Yeah, and then we can head to the training ground after." Kakashi promises, waving them away. "Now off you go."

The door closes behind them as the group walks off to go to the Road House. They continue down the road, Ino occasionally looking at Sai and primping discreetly whilst the others talk and joke naturally. Shikamaru gradually fades out of the conversation as he thinks up an excuse.

"Ah, you know I've forgotten something. A quick errand for my folks— my kaa-san will be a total drag if I don't get this done. I'll catch up with you guys, Katsu should know my order."

"That is so subtle." Kyuubi scoffs.

Ino and Chouji look at him in surprise. "Well okay. Just hurry up Shikamaru." Ino tells him flippantly, before moving the group forward again. Shikamaru turns and heads back the way he came, face slipping into a steelier mask.

---

Asuma has gotten off the bed and now stands in front of the open window, looking at the village. "Have you heard, the other villages are gearing up?"

Kakashi's lone eye slides to Asuma's back with a shuttered gaze. "Yeah."

Asuma continues to explain, though he knows Kakashi already knows. For something that involved Naruto directly like this, of course he'd know. "The Akatsuki are starting to move. I can't tell you how many courier nins I've been seeing just running exclusively to and from Kumo. I hear your kid is gunning to get the other villages with jinchuuriki up to date? Hell, even Taki."

"Don't say 'your kid' like that stupid." Kakashi grumbles quietly with a roll of his eyes.

"I don't mind it, really." Minato murmurs, eyes bright with amusement at the now visible blush on Kakashi's face.

"He's an ambitious kid." Kakashi acknowledges. "But he needs to go through Homura and Koharu before we can offer any aide of real value to these villages, especially Kumo who we're just starting to reconnect with."

The door slides open and they turn with surprised expressions to see Shikamaru walking in and closing the door behind him. "Not that he's doing it on his own." Shikamaru replies to the earlier statement. He smirks at their careful gazes. "There's no need to keep me out of this. He's my friend too you know?"

"And it's terrible to talk behind someone's back anyway." This time they all flinch, as the voice of the one they were talking about sounds throughout the room. Naruto sits on the window ledge looking annoyed as he eyes everyone in the room. "Keeping me out of a conversation about me? Anyway, you're not really worried about my rallying to protect the other jinchuuriki right?"

"He's a chuunin, you shouldn't be trying to block him like he's a genin still." Rin agrees, eyeing Kakashi sternly.

Asuma sighs, leaning against the wall. "Eventually they'll come to this village . . . for you, Naruto. Will you be ready?"

Naruto smirks. "You act like they'll be here next month."

"We don't know when they plan to attack, but we should be careful." Shikamaru cautions.

The expression on Naruto's face, like a predator who has prey to play with, unnerves them. "It's true, we certainly can't predict when they'll come but . . . what if we could guarantee that it wouldn't be anytime soon?"

"He's banking a lot on this protect the jinchuuriki thing." Jiraiya sighs.

"There are other factors I'm sure. I wouldn't allow such a simple plan, and Naruto is too smart to put all his money on such a small bet. Devil's luck he may have, but it takes a certain kind of cunning to manage your own affairs and make them prosper like the boy does." Kyuubi replies calmly.

"How long are we talking?" Kakashi asks sharply.

Naruto's eyes sparkle. "So long as they don't get the bijuu they won't be able to do anything. And we can get more time than just what that would give us too!"

"How would you get us that time?" Asuma asks warily.

Naruto makes a show of thinking about it, before smiling slyly and placing a finger to his lips as if keeping a secret hushed. "It's above your pay grade I'm afraid. Hokage's ears only!"

"You've discussed something with her?" Asuma presses.

"Hints, notes . . . really it's Jiraiya and I who hash out the particulars but Tsunade needs to buck up the Hokage front before anything happens. I'm telling you, it's like we forgot how exactly to stage a war!" Naruto scoffs as if it were pathetic.

"And what exactly does that mean?" Tsunade asks with a scowl.

"He's comparing this clash with the Akatsuki to a war . . ." Minato murmurs. "So far there have only been head-on interactions with the individual Akatsuki. But they're a group— we can say it's like fighting a war with another nation. So, going with that idea, to win a war you don't just get your soldiers to fight each other."

"Oh I see where this is going," Jiraiya realizes. "In a war you do more than just fight. You sabotage and stall. Destroying food supplies for the enemy, destroying key locations that would impede the enemy . . . yeah, that's the proper way to fight a war!"

---

"So, Naruto." Kakashi stretches, full and content from his lunch at The Tea House and warm from all the tea consumed. "What are you going to show me?"

Naruto grins, turning in his spot to observe the training grounds. It wasn't Training Ground Seven, like usual, but another specifically laid out for ANBU only that Naruto could only access because Kakashi was with him. Even almost five years out of the Black Ops division and Kakashi still had the respect and clout of any captain. "Kakashi," he turns to Kakashi with a beaming smile. "I completed the Rasengan."

Minato's eyes pop open as he exchanges elated looks with Jiraiya. "Yes!" Minato cheers, grinning madly. "Finally, I knew someone would have to!"

"Sensei," Kakashi interrupts his celebration. "Isn't the Rasengan already completed?"

Minato shakes his head, still grinning. "A lot of people think that, but no. My original intention was to make it an elemental jutsu, but I have been unable to complete it. I can't seem to add my wind affinity to the Rasengan, but it makes me happy to know Naruto has!"

"Well, I guess now you'll know too." Rin points out, and it dampens Minato's cheerful attitude a little much to the confusion of the others. Minato knows they're confused, but he doesn't know how to explain it— all these victories and accomplishments that Naruto's able to do, it somehow feels cheapened because when he does finally do them it won't be as amazing, as creative. They'll know how he did it now . . . and will either have to drop hints or pretend to be amazed.

Kakashi's eye widens, straightening up from his slump against a training post. "You managed to add your wind affinity to the Rasengan? How?" Sensei had been trying for ages to figure it out, but had never managed it . . . but of course; it would be the number one unpredictable ninja to figure it out.

Naruto held up one finger, smirking. "Well, it certainly was hard. Took me six months to figure it out myself, I wouldn't accept Kurama's or Jiraiya's help. See, the thing that made it so difficult was that you were concentrating on two different things at the same time. You had to concentrate on managing the forming Rasengan so that it didn't blow up or dissipate, as well as adding in the wind affinity to it. It's like trying to look left and right at the same time!"

"A perfect way of describing it." Minato agrees with a firm nod.

Naruto spread his arms out, and a clone popped up next to him with a matching grin on his face. "And that's impossible for just one person!" the clone continued from where the original left off. "Unless, of course, you can figure out a way to look left and right at the same time."

Jiraiya slaps his hand to his face, a groan mixed with a laugh coming from him. "It was that damn simple all along?" he laments, looking over and laughing at a grumbling Minato who hangs his head between his knees.

"Just the way of a prodigy, it's too hard for you geniuses to see the easy ways out." Kushina teases, tapping her nails down Minato's spine. Minato peeks up at her from under blonde bangs and his eyes sparkle with amusement.

"Only my son." Minato mumbles, pride swelling inside of him.

Kakashi nods slowly, processing the information given. "You use a clone to add in the wind element while you create the Rasengan. That's genius Naruto."

Naruto grins with a blush of pride on his face, scratching the back of his head. "Well, it's a cheap shortcut but it's the only way I know. So, I have to show it to you!"

Naruto holds out on hand, face slowly slipping into a more concentrated, intense look of focus as his chakra manifests and compresses into the Rasengan. At the same time, his clone holds out his hands over the forming Rasengan and moves in a circular motion, as if stirring something with his open palms. The hairs on the back of Kakashi's neck raise when a whistle begins to build from the Rasengan, growing higher and louder as the jutsu forms completely.

"Fuuton: Rasengan!" Naruto proclaims, having to shout over the high-pitched whistle of the completed Rasengan. Both he and the clone grin proudly, and Kakashi can only look at the swirling mass of blue chakra in amazement.

"Amazing." Kakashi breathes. "So how much damage does it do?"

Naruto allows the jutsu to fade and grins at a surprised looking Kakashi. "Enough that I know I'll be hearing Nade's and Commander Ryu's mouth about it." He explains his reason for letting the jutsu fade. "I'm working on another form of it, so far I can only hold it but if I can learn how to throw it it'll be so much cooler!"

"Another form, he says." Minato laughs faintly, sharing a look with Jiraiya. "I'm going to be the proudest dad in the world."

"Can I see it?" Kakashi asks.

Naruto shakes his head. "It's not quite complete yet and you don't want to be anywhere near me when it blows up. I use clones to do the jutsu for now until I can stabilize it. But, I can tell you the name! Futon: Rasenshuriken."

"Rasenshuriken?" Kushina repeats, tasting the name before shaking her head. "I can't seem to picture it."

"Sounds weird." Obito shrugs, unconcerned. "On with the story people!"

"Rasenshuriken?" Kakashi repeats, mystified. "I'm not sure I want to know. Is there anything else?"

"Well, I figured why not go for broke." Naruto shrugs. "I'm working on a Katon version of the Rasengan, and trying to work up a Suiton version, though that's having the worst success seeing as it's my weakest affinity. Katon is being put on hold because third degree burns are very difficult to heal quickly."

"Katon . . . Suiton . . ." Minato blinks, gaze starry-eyed and so bright the blue orbs almost glow with his excitement. "To see such a thing! I never even thought of that, I was so busy trying to figure out how to just add wind!"

"He's an ambitious kid." Jiraiya agrees. "A hard life will do that to you— make you hungry for all that you can give yourself."

"Though of course," Kakashi sends Jiraiya a mildly reproachful look though his tone is one of amusement, "Sometimes the desire to better oneself or break your own limits is just as important as having that hunger. It seems to me that Naruto has the latter more so than the former, even with it being combined. Personally, I can't wait to see what sort of marvelous things he'll create now that he'll have the available resources and plenty of encouragement and guidance."

"Very well said Kakashi!" Kushina crows, grinning at Jiraiya. "In the end, the thing that made all the greatest people we admire today, is that they had a reason to get stronger. So long as sochi finds that reason and works to be the best at it, he'll be just as great as what we're reading! No, he'll be even better!"

Kakashi blinks. "That's . . . a lot of Rasengans. What are you going to leave for your kids huh?"

Naruto grins. "They have Earth and Lightning left don't they? Maybe one of them will get lucky and combine elements."

Kakashi snorts. "A Hyouton Rasengan? Oh, now that'd be something to see."

Naruto blinks, as if that thought hadn't occurred to him. "An ice rasengan? You know Kakashi, you're right, that would be something to see . . . when Haku has kids, I'll teach them Rasengan!"

"I think your father would prefer it to be an heirloom jutsu." Kushina chuckles.

Minato gives her a pout. "Well not exactly. He can teach it to whomever he sees fit, but . . . you know, Rasengan is just so cool because few people can learn it."

"And there are very good reasons as to why only few can learn it, and even fewer can do it." Obito points out. "So either way, it'll most likely stay in the family."

Kakashi waves his hands. "No, that's not what I . . . and he's not listening." Kakashi clears his throat. "Naruto," he calls louder. "What did you want help with?"

Naruto stops in the middle of his rant, blinking in surprise. "Oh, right." Naruto chuckles bashfully, scratching one cheek with his index finger.

"Kakashi . . . I'm trying to create a jutsu, but I'm having a terribly hard time of it. But I was wondering if perhaps hearing how you created the Chidori, might help me out a little?" Naruto looks to an interested Kakashi.

"How I created the Chidori?" Kakashi muses. "In truth . . . the Chidori resulted from a failure in the Rasengan."

"Don't make it sound like the Rasengan is faulty." Minato chides Kakashi.

"You know I didn't mean it like that sensei," Kakashi appeases. "Still, without that one roadblock Chidori wouldn't have been created."

"I was always interested in hearing how you came up with that jutsu." Jiraiya reveals. "The story should be quite interesting."

"Nowhere near as interesting as the theories Obito came up with." Rin assures the older man.

"It's . . . a failure?" Naruto gapes.

Kakashi wags a finger. "Not a failure, a happy by-product of a failure. Well, maybe I should explain it like this . . . see, Chidori is a jutsu that uses both physical and special recomposition. Chakra doesn't normally take the nature of lightning chakra does it? So, I have to change my chakra to resemble Raiton. Then I would spacially recompose it to discharge, thus controlling its strength and distance."

Obito frowns. "I kind of understand that? But please explain simply."

Kakashi unknowingly shifts into lecture mode, a result of spending a lot of time with Minato, practically being the man's apprentice. "What I mean by special and physical recomposition is just changing the two natures of chakra. In other words, it's a Nature Transformation and a Shape Transformation. Whenever we use an elemental jutsu— Obito, when you use a Katon jutsu you're already practicing nature transformation, by changing the nature of your chakra to that of fire. Shape transformation would be changing, or defining the shape of your chakra, like what the rasengan does being a compressed ball of chakra. Did you get all that or was I being too technical again?"

Obito grins. "I'm dense not brain damaged. I'm pretty sure I understand. Changing shape and nature, something that is done in small degrees even with the jutsu we use now, only you and sensei took these certain aspects and brought them to even greater heights."

Minato beams at his students. "Kakashi, if this is the way you'd teach your future genin than you don't give yourself enough credit as a teacher! And Obito, it was mature of you to ask for clarification on this subject, it's actually difficult for most to understand."

"The story loses something when you don't understand a certain aspect." Obito grins sheepishly, scratching the back of his neck.

"You mean if you wanted, the chidori could be as big as my Oodama Rasengan?" Naruto asks, trotting over to the training posts Kakashi is slumped against and jumping up to take a seat.

"If I had the chakra to spare, yes." Kakashi agrees with a nod. "But returning to the point, Rasengan is a jutsu that relies only on spacial recomposition. It is, in fact, the highest form of special recomposition and a testament to the genius of the man who created it. Well, the incomplete form at least. As you've just demonstrated, Rasengan can have physical recomposition and take an entirely different turn into a completely new jutsu."

"Right okay . . . but that doesn't explain what made you create Chidori?" Naruto prompts.

"Well, I said it was a failure. Merely, it was a failure of my own ego and a bit of a humbling experience." Kakashi laughs, shrugging. "I couldn't add my own affinity, raiton, to the Rasengan and so I decided to create another jutsu that would allow me to use lightning. Honestly, I thought when I created it it'd be even more powerful than Rasengan."

Minato laughs out loud, startling the others with his volume. Minato looks at a meek, slightly annoyed Kakashi. "You honestly did think that. And what did we learn?"

"That you're a dick." Kakashi grumbles. At Minato's suddenly wintry smile Kakashi quickly splutters, "I mean that you're a far greater genius and a higher caliber jutsu maker than I am and that I was foolish to even think my chidori could beat your rasengan."

Naruto smirks slightly. "You tested that theory out?"

"Once, and only once was all I needed to have my ass handed to me." Kakashi shivers, shaking off an old memory.

"Hm. So special and physical recomposition." Naruto recaps, nodding slowly. "So your Chidori is . . . both?"

"Not exactly, more like half and half." Kakashi modifies. "Of course, the stronger version of this would be my Raikiri, or Lightning Cutter, created around the time I got to jounin. Now, does that clear anything up for your new jutsu?"

Naruto nods. "Yeah, my idea seems to be more towards spacial recomposition, but it could end up being half and half like Chidori."

Kakashi waits for a few moments, staring at Naruto who blinks back innocently. "Well?" he prods.

"Well what?" Naruto asks.

"Aren't you going to show me how far along you are with it?" Kakashi asks, annoyed.

"Oh!" Naruto realizes, nodding his head. "Nope." He chirps, and then leaps away laughing madly as Kakashi lobs kunai after him.

---

Sakura looks around, resisting the urge to rock back on her heels as she would have done as a young genin, waiting in the Hokage's Office. Standing with her are Kakashi, Yamato, and Sai. Tsunade shuffles papers around her desk, handing them off to Shizune, grabbing them from a pile in the woman's arms, or placing them in growing stacks.

"You should know better than to allow paperwork to grow like that." Jiraiya teases.

"Team Seven," Tsunade starts, before pausing as another paper is unearthed from the bedlam. "Oh, sorry, wait." She shuffles and files a few more before clearing her throat and returning to business. "Team Seven, you are being given a mission."

"Master," Sakura starts hesitantly. "Shouldn't we wait for Naruto to be here for the briefing?"

Tsunade shakes her head. "Actually, Naruto will not be a part of the line-up for Team Seven for at least three months. Granted, he might end up taking joint missions with you, but he will be doing other assignments during this time. Which is why I kept Yamato on, as a replacement for Naruto."

"Naruto shouldn't really be doing solo missions at a time like this." Minato murmurs with a somber tone in his voice.

"He's got near perfect control of Kyuubi-sama's chakra, and at best I'm sure the enemy wouldn't expect that." Obito rationalizes.

"That might not be enough, nor should it be enough to convince anyone that Naruto can go running around the Elemental Nations on his own. For as long as Akatsuki remains, every nation might as well be enemy territory." Jiraiya argues.

"That's a bleak outlook, and the exact opposite of what Naruto's trying to accomplish." Kushina replies fiercely.

Sakura is slightly perturbed, but does not speak up further. It seemed she had only just gotten used to Team Seven without Sasuke and with Sai. But, without Naruto? Might as well call it a different team, this certainly wasn't team seven.

"Don't you think, Hokage-sama, you should ease your apprentice's nerves about her dear friend and inform her of the other assignments?" Kakashi breaks the silence casually, flipping through his Icha Icha.

"No matter how respectful you might sound, in the end you're a snot-nosed brat." Tsunade sneers at Kakashi, who bares her sizing gaze with a stoic look.

Tsunade glares at Kakashi, but does indeed soften when she turns to Sakura. "Naruto has his own set of orders to follow. Currently, he's preparing for a meeting with the Council, and depending upon the results he will possibly be taking a political expedition Kumo where he will act as Konoha's representative. After that, he has several other things to attend to, most of which even I don't have clearer details on."

"A month long trip to Kumo? Even though I know it's not unexpected for shinobi to take such long missions. . ." Rin sighs, shaking her head.

"I think I know what you mean." Tsunade assures the younger girl with a grin.

"You only baby him because your grandfather was unnecessarily soft with you Little Peach." Kyuubi taunts, enjoying the flared nostrils and white-knuckled grip from the other woman.

"He won't be going to Kumo alone?" Yamato asks with a furrowed brow. "Even with his little pit stop there during his training trip, relations between Kumo and Konoha are still quite tense."

"Of course not," Kushina sniffs. "Even if he doesn't have special chakra quite like mine, an Uzumaki still must be cautious in Kumo!"

Tsunade shakes her head. "No, he will have four guards of his choosing. Now if that's all, I do still have a mission for you all— a nice B-rank to settle you."

At the time that Tsunade was briefing Team Seven, Naruto was currently pacing up and down his living room under the amused stare of his girlfriend.

"I think I've thought of everything they could throw at me," Naruto mutters rapidly before turning at breakneck speed to Katsu. "Do you think I've thought of everything?"

"Oh, he's so cute!" Kushina gushes. "He's actually nervous of speaking to those old bats."

"Well this is a difficult thing to ask in such climates. Though Homura and Koharu have no real military power, their political power and sway in the village would make things very difficult for Naruto, and for Tsunade as Hokage." Minato describes, smiling at the stubborn pout on Kushina's face that makes her nose crinkle a little.

"I believe you've covered every possibility, no matter how unimaginable, under the sun." Katsu agrees, sympathy for his nervous state forbidding her from taking a dry tone. "Naru, you need to relax."

"I— I can't." Naruto stammers, running both hands through his unruly hair. "This might not seem big, but if I do get the all clear for this, this could grow into a serious roadblock for Akatsuki. Ideally of course, because so many things could go wrong . . ." and Naruto proceeds to list them all in a panicked voice.

"That'll do you no good." Minato shakes his head, voice sympathetic.

Katsu frowns in concern. Unfolding her legs from her reclining position on the couch, she rises and steps right into Naruto's path so that he must stop or bowl her over. Meeting his gaze solidly, she lightly claps both hands on his cheeks and keeps them there.

"Relax." She stresses the word. "Just breathe. You'll be fine— you and Shikamaru went over as much as you could, and Asuma oji-san and Kakashi helped as they could. You are going to go in there, and lay down some patented Uzumaki logic, the kind that never fails. You will subtly add in your Namikaze charm, because those good looks have to be useful somehow. And then, just for good measure you combine Uzumaki and Namikaze into a perfect storm that will blow everything away and create the path you desire."

"That's a hell of a lot better a motivational speech than I normally get from my family." Obito mentions with a laugh.

"I especially liked the part about the Uzumaki Logic. Not often the Uzumaki were known for that." Kushina grins widely.

"My favorite part was the Namikaze Charm— these looks are good for a great many things." Minato boasts in a semi-mocking way.

Katsu waits for a few moments, just to make sure Naruto doesn't switch from the dazed, overly bright-eyed look into another mode of panic mania before stepping away and letting her hands trail off his face. "Okay?" she tilts her head, bending forward a little to get a good view of his bended head.

Naruto's neck slowly straightens and he blinks, as if blinking away a haze. "I . . . yeah? Yeah. I really needed to hear that. I didn't even know what I needed to hear— how'd you know I needed to hear that?" He asks her, eyes big and full of curiosity.

Kyuubi rolls his eyes, but his voice is softened by his fondness for the boy. "You're too easy to read."

Katsu grins. "Who doesn't need to have their ego fed before a big event?"

"You can never have enough ego boosting before a big event." Jiraiya supports.

Naruto looks at her for a moment longer, before smiling warmly. "You're right, as always."

"Of course!" Katsu returns cheekily. "Just be your usual badass self and you'll be fine."

Naruto's warm smile morphs into barely restrained glee, and he strides to Katsu. Winding his arms around her waist and kissing her soundly, a happy hum sounds from both of them. Letting her breathe for a moment, Naruto rests his forehead against hers, his mouth grazing hers. "Thanks. I'll be back soon; listen, since I know without a single doubt in my mind that I'm going to get my way you better talk to your boss about early shifts because I'll be taking you out on a date every night I'm here until we leave!"

"Deal." Katsu murmurs, nestling into his embrace for a moment longer before taking a step back, still smiling and looking at Naruto encouragingly.

"Later Hime." Naruto winks, before walking out the house and making the trip to the Hokage Tower. In the heart of the village, Naruto leaps from rooftop to rooftop, silently going over the main points of his . . . speech? Argument? Plea?

"Plan Naru-chan, Plan." Tsunade corrects. "You have to go in with the right frame of mind!"

The Hokage Tower is before him a little sooner than he'd like. Naruto takes a deep breath, walking in and going up the stairs. He briefly greets the office nins he'd become acquainted with during the beginning of Tsunade's reign, and is stopped by one just as he reaches the floor of the Hokage's Office.

"Oh, Naruto! Wasn't Team Seven given a mission just now?" Iwamoto Kaoru smiled at Naruto, shaggy raven head tilted up to see the slightly younger boy over a pile of books and folders that weighed heavily in his arms.

"Iwamoto?" Minato repeats, trying to think of anyone in his and Kushina's year with that name. "That name isn't familiar to me."

"I think there might be an Iwamoto-sensei in the hospital." Tsunade mutters absently.

Naruto smiled back at the bespectacled shinobi. "I'm going the solo route for a little while Kaoru, so I'm not with Team Seven now."

"Ah yes," Kaoru's lips curled slyly. "Little Naruto is playing Foreign Exchange Shinobi, yeah?"

"Don't say it like that idiot." Naruto grouses, lightly tapping Kaoru on the forehead as he walks past. He raises a hand and looks over his shoulder. "We should get a drink some time, Kaoru!"

"I'll hold you to that!" Kaoru shouted back as both walked their separate paths. The small chat helped settle Naruto's nerves a little more, so his back was straight and his face wasn't quite so strained when he knocked on the door of Tsunade's office.

"Enter." She sounded serious, austere even. The Elders must have been there for a few minutes, long enough to needle her.

"Hmph!" Tsunade tosses her head proudly. "I'm not sensei— they're not going to bully me."

"Truly I can't see you bending to their whims like sensei seemed to." Jiraiya agrees.

Naruto enters the room and closes the door quietly behind him. He walks until he's in the middle of the room, taking in the stone faces of Homura and Koharu. His bow, to the ones watching him closely, is elegant and executed with the proper amount of time. He leaves little room to be taken as a fool, a fop, or weak. If the Elders were a sentimental group, they'd say like father like son.

But personal and familial bonds are dangerous for jinchuuriki that should remain loyal to their village, and it was bad enough he was cavorting with a civilian even though his morale never suffered from it. Homura and Koharu were only interested in the strength and security of the village, and so Uzumaki Naruto better have a very good argument for wanting to assist another village's (a potential enemy's) jinchuuriki.

"Bonds are dangerous for a jinchuuriki?" Rin gapes. "What— I don't even— what sort of bullshit is that?!"

Kushina shrugs, though she smiles at Minato as he wraps her in his arms and holds her close. "We aren't considered human most of the time Rin, it's just a frame of mind most villages have with jinchuuriki. We're made to be weapons, not friends or lovers." Privately she recalls the many looks she and Minato still get from all three blowhards that were once Sandaime's teammates.

Obito too has a thunderous expression. "But, and excuse me for saying this Kyuubi-sama, it's like they think the people that house the bijuu are as mindless and as controlled as what we believed the bijuu to be. Surely, not every government can be stupid enough to think so narrowly? Hell, I know for sure Kumo takes care of their jinchuuriki."

Kyuubi gives the boy a considering stare. "That's exactly it. As you say, the jinchuuriki are seen as us. Volatile unless given strict orders, dangerous unless given strict ties to them, though they say they should be tied to the village. Though it may not have been what the Sage intended, I can admit to partial blame on our side. What I was thinking trying to visit that village when I hadn't yet fully gained control of myself after the split from Juubi, I can't accurately say. It only takes one crushed village to ruin your reputation."

"Uzumaki-san," Koharu started, and though her eyes were narrow and small Naruto could clearly imagine the piercing stare she might be leveling on him. "You come to this Council today with a request?"

Show time. Naruto meets their gazes with an intense one of his own. "No, Koharu-sama. I come to this Council with a proposition— perhaps even better, an acquisition."

"Good boy Naruto," Minato murmurs. "Don't kowtow; show them your conviction and willingness to put forth all effort into this. It is that which made you chuunin, and that which will further your rise in the village."

Tsunade's eyes light up with approval, but her features are carved out of stone otherwise. "Uzumaki-san, please explain the nature of your proposition."

"Hokage-sama, Honored Elders . . . though we have had more exposure to Akatsuki, we are not the only ones they plan on testing. Any village that houses a jinchuuriki is at risk, namely the Big Five with the exception of Takigakure. Their main goal it seems is to take the bijuu from the villages and use that massive power for their own purposes. Konoha is the strongest of the five villages, and the home of the strongest bijuu. However, to think that will be enough to thwart Akatsuki is nothing more than wishful thinking.

"You're toeing a line kid, the old crones don't like anything they can consider a criticism of Konoha." Jiraiya hedges.

"But they'll respect his streamlined points." Minato calms his worried sensei.

"No war can be won in solidarity, and to me, the fight we must carry on with Akatsuki can be considered a type of war. They wish to steal our bijuu— wars have been started for less than this, and their decision is something that can pull the Elemental Nations into conflict. For such an enemy to feel confident about taking on the major villages is not to be disregarded or taken lightly. This organization is full of missing-nins who are in no way pushovers. Even in times of war, we checked for available allies did we not? Suna will offer their aide, but to only keep one village on our side is a plan that is too shaky to risk."

"A few more examples of how this could be considered a war might have sold it better." Tsunade comments.

"It's too early to find such points, but alluding to it is good." Rin reasons.

He pauses. This, is the heart of the matter. "Hokage-sama . . . Koharu-sama, Homura-sama . . . it is time to extend our hands to other villages. More specifically, let us offer aide to Kumo," and he had agonized over the wording for this, and silently thanked Kakashi for suggesting that he not use 'reach out' in case they think it a slight against Konoha.

"Oh definitely," Kushina agrees. "Thank you Kakashi."

"I do what I can." Kakashi ducks his head bashfully.

"Kumo has great military strength, and a different Raikage. It has been long enough that we can put past transgressions behind us, and work together even if only temporarily to deal with a common enemy. With the combined power of the Great Tree and the Lightning Dragon, Akatsuki wouldn't dare be so bold in their actions and allow us a greater advantage."

"Your words are pleasant on the ears, but the real situation is far more than what you have glossed over." Homura states severely. "That past transgression was the attempted kidnapping of a clan heiress, a friend of yours I believe Uzumaki-san?"

"Still trying to get fresh blood the illegal way?" Kushina shakes her head. "To do such a thing to a child."

"It's in their past, and they can't allow such things to cloud their view. Besides, it appears they failed right?" Minato reminds her.

"Hyuuga Hinata, and yes Homura-sama. Yet, Kumo is the best option for an alliance."

Homura was quick to cut him off. "And are you aware of their kidnapping attempt on Uzumaki Kushina, your mother when she was a genin?"

"Foul!" Kushina shouts. "Bastards are only trying to shake him up emotionally, but how do they figure he'll even care if he doesn't know me? I am dead after all."

"Because much like his mother, he'll care for and identify with anyone that is family." Tsunade reminded the redhead, smiling at her conceding shrug.

No, he had not. Naruto's eyes widened, but he shook his head anyway. "As you might already know, I was in Kumo once before and they were made aware of my name. Either they've forgotten the Uzumaki much like the rest of the world," ooh, was that a shadow of guilt on their faces?

"Better be." Kushina, Minato and his team murmur, grinning at each other in solidarity.

"How do you just forget the most fearsome seal masters in the world anyway?" Jiraiya sighs, disappointed. "At least Naruto is there to remind everyone, quite forcefully."

"Or they are simply not interested seeing as I've shown no Uzumaki-like traits so far as they know, besides sealing. Mizu is working to regain its former glory and strength after the Bloodline Wars and their jinchuriki has vanished, presumed dead and his bijuu missing as well. Iwa still hasn't forgiven us for the last war, and both their jinchuuriki fled, giving them even less incentive to help us. Kumo has both their jinchuuriki loyal and strong, with near perfect synchronization with their bijuu."

"Honestly it's not out of genuine friendship, it really is the only choice we have." Rin notices. "Don't you ever think that with all the enemies Konoha makes, it's only a matter of time before shit hits the fan with us? The fact that it's Akatsuki gunning for us is a lucky break from God."

Minato chuckles. "Well . . . you wouldn't be wrong."

"Are you saying they can control their bijuu's power?" Koharu asked curiously.

Naruto repressed the urge to thin his lips or even let his eyes narrow. There could be absolutely no tell on his face. "I believe they are able to, if not very close to doing so. I wouldn't be sure of that, even as a fellow jinchuuriki I wasn't privy to such information."

"What benefit would Konoha gain from making an alliance with Kumo? You have been reported to be making satisfactory progress with control over the Kyuubi, and we have many good ninja in our ranks." Homura prodded.

"All the more reason to seek an alliance so that we may keep those shinobi alive. I believe the problem here is that you are skeptical of the Akatsuki's might. They are a strong force, no member is below an A-rank—such as Hoshigaki Kisame a former member of the Seven Swordsman and a man clearly trusted to be the partner of Uchiha Itachi. Though it might only be one example, it's a fair enough portrait to assure you that the only ones in our forces who might be able to walk away alive from any skirmishes with these nins, and the matter of victory is another thing entirely, would be our stronger jounin."

"Thin ice, pull back now." Minato hums in concern.

"Are you implying that elite jounin like Hatake Kakashi and even Sandaime's son are not enough to handle whoever they might face from Akatsuki?" Koharu asks sharply.

"Koharu-sama, I am saying that to force the burden of defeating every single Akatsuki member on our elite few is cruel and foolish. Nothing should be left to such lofty assurances as that. To be frank it is only our reputation that keeps Konoha as the top dog. Military-wise, we are far from what we used to be.

"Oh my God Naruto no." Tsunade blurts, horrified.

"Kakashi you didn't warn him about Koharu and Homura?" Jiraiya grumbles, passing his hand over his face.

"I'm sure he doesn't need warning, he was close to Sandaime after all." Kakashi sighs.

"At the hands of Orchimaru and as a result of the tragic attack on Konoha on the night of my birth our forces are not up to scratch. My generation shows great promise, but we are still young and in need of the guidance of the previous generations. We can't afford to throw our young forces into the fire, such as it is. With the added alliance with Kumo, as well as a strengthening of our bond with Suna we can adequately prepare a counter assault to whatever our enemies might throw at us." Naruto finishes, unapologetic for what might be considered such a blunt view on Konoha's position.

For a time the office is dominated by silence as Koharu and Homura share looks. They turn to Tsunade who hasn't yet taken her eyes off Naruto to make sure he kept up his stance. "Hokage-sama, Uzumaki-san has made some good points however we worry about what Kumo might ask of us."

"As I'm sure Kumo is wary of what we could ask of them." Tsunade replies evenly. "However, this relationship is intended to be one of cooperation and understanding that we have a common enemy, and a common goal. To think that Kumo might take advantage of this is perhaps being too paranoid, and to try and create an alliance with such feelings of suspicion will do no one good."

"You sounds like sensei there Tsunade." Jiraiya chuckles.

"Yeah, but I hope I'm not as soft as he'd gotten." Tsunade mutters.

"And if they do?" Homura challenges.

"It wouldn't be the first time someone tried to screw us over." Tsunade shrugs. "That's the risk Naruto is asking us to take in exchange for what could be a great alliance, with the possibility of the positives outweighing the negatives."

Koharu sighs. "It is your decision in the end Hokage-sama. We have said our piece and will support your decision."

Tsunade nods once, curtly. Honey brown eyes sharpen as they gaze upon the young blonde chuunin standing in front of them. "Uzumaki Naruto, your request is accepted. I will draft a proposal to be sent to the Raikage, and you will be Konoha's ambassador to Kumo. You have two weeks to prepare and choose four guards, though I recommend and prefer a majority of jounin. The duration of your stay in Kumo depends upon the response of the Raikage and our planning accordingly. Is this acceptable?"

"Hooray Naruto-chan!" They whoop joyfully.

"Of course Hokage-sama. I will make the necessary preparations immediately, and will bring my guard proposal to you by next week." Naruto answers promptly.

Tsunade allows a smile to cross her face, and she spies the loosening of Naruto's shoulders at her softer expression with amusement. "Dismissed."

Naruto bows and leaves the room in a gait a mite too fast to be strictly casual. Naruto honestly could not remember traversing the various paths back to his house, and to him one minute he was staring at Nade and the next he was looking up to see Kakashi leaning against the rail post and smirking at him. Katsu perches on the railing next to him, watching him hopefully.

"You're dazed expression gives nothing away. So what happened?" Kakashi fishes for information, a small part of him concerned about the nearly grey-skinned boy before him but the vast majority feeling amusement at just how nervous the Uzumaki had actually been.

"Poor baby, he was seriously scared." Kushina is both sympathetic and fondly amused as she presses her hand over her heart.

"Scared, Naruto? No way." Minato denies. "Nervous as hell? Oh yes of course."

Naruto blinks. Then he blinks twice. Color sweeps back into his skin, and it's like a surprise firecracker when the boy finally regains proper cognizant function.

"FUCK YEAH!" Naruto screams joyfully, rocketing up to Kakashi to grab the man in as tight a bear hug as he can and spin them both around. Abruptly dropping Kakashi and not even looking back to see the older man sprawl hilarious down the porch steps Naruto sweeps Katsu up into his arms and speeds down the porch side to the back of the house where he bounds and hollers freely. The laughter of Uzumaki and Kuroshio mix and meld into a song not unlike the cicada's cry on that hot summer's day. Kakashi makes to the back just in time to see them collapse to the ground and laugh.

"Well at least he's feeling better now." Tsunade giggles.

"You never let me hug you . . ." Obito sniffles with a whimper to a disgusted Kakashi. "I thought we were friends."

"Personal space, bro, let's keep that between us." Kakashi advises him.

"So . . . they accepted your proposal?" Kakashi was honestly surprised. Not because he thought Naruto wouldn't be able to sell it— the boy was a gifted speaker when properly motivated to do so, but Koharu and Homura were on another level of stubborn. The kind enforced by decades in a shady shinobi world that trusted only knives in the back and considered poison in tea an acceptable substitute sweetener.

"That was some nice imagery Kakashi." Jiraiya muses, giving the silver-haired boy a thoughtful look.

Naruto's arm comes up to flash a thumb up to Kakashi before it flops back down onto Katsu's waist, pulling her closer as she turns on her stomach and props herself up on her elbows.

"Don't sound so skeptical Kashi," Katsu stresses the childish nickname and takes pleasure in the deadly glare Kakashi sends her way. "Naruto has never failed to convert someone to his way of thinking once he sets his mind to it."

"What about Orochimaru, or Sasuke?" Obito asks.

"Not even Kami can change the Snake from what I'm reading, and Sasuke still doesn't quite have me sold on his desire to kill his older brother." Minato answers. "So, really, Naruto's got a great record."

"I'm not sure about all that, but. . . I have to select four guards to accompany me." Naruto's tone is dreamy and distant.

Kyuubi snorts. "As if he needs guards . . . so long as we work together, he can choose anyone and still be fine."

"It's good to keep up appearances." Minato reminds Kyuubi.

"Deception and all that . . . yes, something you shinobi struggle harder and harder to fully understand with each generation." Kyuubi scoffs, and smirks at Minato's embarrassed agreement.

"Well you can make it three now." Kakashi gets down and sits lotus-style next to Naruto.

Naruto shakes his head and looks up at Kakashi. "I can't take you with me nii-san."

"REJECTED." Obito hisses, leaning away from Kakashi to play it up.

"Ha ha." Katsu laughs under her breath, yelping at the rough tug on her hair from Kakashi.

Kakashi isn't offended, per se, but he is a trifle incredulous. He could count on one hand the number of people who refused his guarding services with fingers to spare. "Considering your position as the heir of Namikaze Minato and probably the last Uzumaki, you really can't afford to choose lightly."

"Not that they know he's Minato's kid." Kushina adds wonderingly, sparkling eyes honed in on Kakashi. "You're just jealous someone else will be protecting your Naru-chan."

"My Naru-chan will be fine I'm sure." Kakashi responds dryly. "I'm sure though that I'll have a heavy hand in the selection process."

Naruto smiles, looking up at the blue sky. "I have a duty as a foreign ambassador to choose wisely, something that trumps my blood in this case. Taking you is overkill and could be considered as the village coddling me. No . . . I will be taking at least two jounin, so don't worry about that."

"If not me, then who?" Kakashi asks interestedly.

"Mm," Naruto's smile dims as he is overtaken by thoughtfulness. "I'm not sure yet. Any suggestions?"

"Take Anko with you, if for nothing else than the entertainment value. She is very strong, a student of a Sannin like yourself. An Inuzuka wouldn't hurt, but not Kiba. Perhaps his older sister Hana, she's unique in that she has three dogs bonded to her— the Haimaru triplets. If you'd like to add another Raidou would be a good choice." Kakashi advises.

"Three dogs?!" Rin gasps. "That's amazing . . . and if she's older that means Kiba isn't Clan Heir, she is. Clan Heir with triplet nin-dogs, the Inuzuka's future looks bright."

"Of course Tsume would have strong kids." Kushina nods seriously, the wild and fierce Inuzuka Matriarch a good friend.

"You thought that up quickly Kakashi." Katsu states in surprise.

"The mark of a jounin is to quickly analyze and assess various situations in as little time as possible. Whether in peace or war, it's a skill that will never fade in seasoned shinobi and thus will never grow dull." Kakashi advises, and it amuses Naruto to hear such wisdom from a relatively young man, not yet thirty. Of course, wisdom from Hatake Kakashi was never to be taken lightly— the man wasn't a living legend for nothing after all.

"In shinobi terms, I'm not really young." Kakashi thinks aloud. "I've passed the life expectancy of a shinobi it's true . . . I wonder if that makes me a seasoned veteran."

"Don't be so quick to reach that mile mark." Jiraiya counsels amusedly.

"I'm not sure about Hana, but Anko I will definitely ask for if she'd care to leave her torture to another." Naruto agrees.

"Hana is a nice woman, most of the time you'll find it hard to believe she's Kiba's sister. Quite skilled— has to be since she's the Clan Heir, and she works as a veterinarian when she's not on missions. I believe she's also very good as a medic-nin, especially in regards to veterinary medicine." Katsu reports in a matter-of-fact tone, raising an eyebrow at the astonished looks she gets from Kakashi and Naruto.

"And you know all that how?" Kakashi looks dubiously at her.

Katsu grins wickedly and pokes Kakashi's cheek. "Any place good enough for the Copycat ninja to eat at more than once a month is good enough for just about every other ninja in Konoha. Thanks to you, Asuma, Naruto . . . well, pretty much all of Konoha's Dream Teams! The Tea House is quite popular now. So I get to meet all sorts of new people, and I pay special attention to family members of our friends. Hana just so happens to be a lover of our strawberry and vanilla bean cheesecake."

"She'd make an excellent spy, the cover of a waitress would be perfect for her." Jiraiya goes off into another world for a moment before he's brought back to earth violently with a hard tossed pillow.

Kushina, the perpetrator, glares at him. "No. You leave her alone Jiraiya."

"Kushina-chan, I wasn't serious really." Jiraiya soothers her ire. "I wouldn't dream of such a thing, we agreed to leave her to do what she sees fit."

"Well she sounds nice enough I suppose." Naruto mumbles.

"Well who would the other two be, if Hana-san and Raidou are in question?" Kakashi eyes a pensive Naruto. "That face doesn't reassure me."

Naruto bites his lip. "I want to ask . . . Hinata."

"Hinata, the one who was nearly kidnapped by Kumo?" Rin clarifies.

"Good luck getting that past Hiashi. Despite how she may be— or had been treated by the main branch, he'll never let her go." Kushina declares.

"That's bold of you." Katsu decides.

"That is a terrible idea." Kakashi straightens up from his slump to stare directly down at Naruto with an expression clearly stating, 'you're an idiot.'

"It'd be a show of faith." Naruto considers. "To bring along a Hyuuga, and it would help if not dispel then at least ease any suspicions on Kumo's part of what Konoha might be scheming. And, to see Hinata come back without anything to complain about in Kumo would help the village in the same way."

"Despite Hinata being a soldier of the Hokage, and thus having a duty to complete any mission given her . . . I know for sure Hiashi will not allow this. Do you have any idea what really happened that night Hinata was almost kidnapped?" Kakashi shakes his head.

"I know her uncle was sent in place of her father to die, thus the reason for Neji's cold attitude when we were genin but . . . this feels right to me. Hiashi, for all his power as a Clan Head, cannot go against the orders of his Hokage. However, I'd feel better if he at least accepted the situation. No one is saying he has to like it." Naruto remains adamant.

"So that's what happened to Hizashi." Minato breathes quietly, a pang of sadness hitting him for his friend. "But why did he or Hiashi have to die for what Kumo did? How could Sandaime allow that?"

"This seemed to be something that happened years ago, when she was a child. Not long after the Kyuubi attack, and so perhaps sensei didn't want to risk war." Jiraiya theorizes.

Kakashi shakes his head and rubs his brow as if suddenly afflicted with a headache. "Whatever. Katsu, your boyfriend's logic drains me. I want a cake to make up for this."

"Ara? A cake huh . . . it'll take a while, I've just taken out some fudge brownies— and there he goes . . ." Katsu smirks. "He's too easy."

Kakashi blushes fiercely, refusing to look at the others as they snicker and giggle. Damn his apparent weakening ability to refuse chocolate. It appears his resistance to the wonderful treats wears down as he ages. Well, surviving until age thirty deserves some reward right?

"Pathetic." Kyuubi coughs, and Kakashi's mood darkens.

"If it wasn't so funny to watch, I'd scold you for playing Kakashi." Naruto murmurs, craning up to kiss her shoulder.

The next day Naruto goes around looking for the people he wanted in his guard, to get their approval so that the process might be sped up.

He finds Anko first, playfully molesting his poor girlfriend on her lunch break on the shaded porch of The Tea House, juggling dango and cheesecake and slyly trying to grab the for more on a squirming and hissing Katsu.

"Oh, so that never changed in Anko huh?" Obito breaths, a bead of sweating forming at his temple.

"She's always been a bit grabby?" Tsunade asks with raised eyebrows. "She'd never struck me as the type, she even seemed a bit quiet when she was in our presence."

"And it's the quiet ones you always have to look out for eh?" Obito grins. "Besides, she's only that inappropriate with people she's close to."

Naruto plucks Anko by the back of her trench coat, the force lifting a squeaking Anko to her tiptoes for a moment as he drags her back. In a no-nonsense tone Naruto looks at Anko and says, "If I haven't even gotten to second base with her yet, what gives you the right to skip ahead of me?"

"BOOYAH!" Kakashi and Obito yell, sharing an aggressive and loud high-five.

"You guys are idiots." Rin groans, rubbing her ears after the loud sound of their voices.

Katsu meeps in embarrassment and practically runs back into the Tea House, tray pressed to the chest Anko had been groping previously, though she sends them both a spectacular glare before she vanishes from sight.

"Looks like you're on the couch tonight!" Anko sings, plopping back down to her pillow seat and taking a swig of hot tea like it was sake.

"Looks like you're not getting any summer fruit cake." Naruto jabs back, smirking at Anko's pout.

"She'll forgive me before that . . . probably." Anko mutters, and then clears her throat. "So what do you want brat? You're wasting my precious lunch time."

"I'm heading to Kumo for a while, and I need a guard. You want to come?" Naruto asks, straight to the point.

Anko snorts. "Babysit you and listen in on boring diplomatic bullshit when I could be home torturing— I mean interrogating enemies of my fine country? Get real."

"Tsk, tsk Naruto! I would think that after spending so much time with Anko, you'd know her weaknesses. Dango or that soup she likes, you know this!" Obito reproaches.

"Eh, but no one knows who you are in Kumo. Isn't that a shame? If you come with me, I'll give you a nice long leash to go play." Naruto entices her.

"BDSM, that's even better!" Obito smiles.

"That might have worked on me at sixteen, not twenty-seven." Anko gloats.

"They've got fifteen different flavors of dango, as opposed to Konoha's measly ten." Naruto drops.

"I am in." Anko declares, slapping the table hard with her palm.

So that was easy. Sure, he'd have to spend a lot of time easing Katsu's trauma from Anko's enthusiastic and persistent ministrations, but whatever. Next up, Inuzuka Hana.

He wasn't sure where to find her exactly, but he knew where to find Kiba— Training Ground Eight. Making his way there, he smiled at the sight of Hinata balancing her entire body on just the tips of her index fingers, a thin layer of chakra preventing her from being stabbed by the points of her kunai. Once Naruto had shown her the advanced kunai balancing technique she had taken to it like a duck to water.

"Of course, being a Hyuuga and all." Kushina snorts, sharing her son's dismal luck with chakra control.

"No, his would be a bit better than yours since we worked together earlier." Kyuubi admits. Kushina's scandalized look is amusing to him, and he grins toothily.

"Maybe this means he never gave it up? But I doubt it'd be anything close to what Hinata's doing." Tsunade murmurs, twirling the end of her hair around her finger.

Shino and Kiba were sparring, Akamaru sitting under the tree whilst Kurenai looked on from her perch high up above in a branch, but they all turned when they heard him approach.

"Hey Naruto!" Hinata chirps, giggling at the sight of him upside-down.

"Hey there freak." Naruto drawls, scratching Akamaru's ears when the hound trotted up to him to lick his hand.

Hinata, not getting offended at all much to the other's surprise, just sticks out her tongue. "You're just jealous because I've got this technique down and you still can't hold it for more than ten seconds right side up!"

"It's good to see her so confident and happy. Goodness knows keeping a cheerful attitude around a Hyuuga is hard, but living right in the thick of it?" Obito shudders. "Ugh."

"And you know it. Ah, Hinata want to come with me to Kumo? I'll buy you three dozen cinnamon buns." Naruto offers.

Kushina glares in disbelief. "Naruto, that is not enough to make up for what was undoubtedly a traumatic experience with some stupid buns!"

Hinata glares at him. "You'll be the one to tell me father?"

"Yes."

"Sold!"

"What!" Kushina squawks.

"That was too easy." Kakashi complains.

"I'm not. In fact I forbid it and it's strange you would ask something so dangerous of Hinata, Naruto!" Kurenai scolds.

"Good thing you're not her mother." Kushina snorts, nose turned up into the air as she turns away from the book.

"Now, Kushina-chan." Minato soothes, rubbing her back with a warm hand and smiling nervously.

"Yes Yuuhi-san." Naruto answers politely, giving the woman a distant smile. "But Hinata is one of the rising stars of our forces, and her skills would be essential on such a mission, not to mention what it would mean to have a Hyuuga willingly step into Kumo. If Hinata accepts it, then it is her mission."

"Her father will never agree to this." Kurenai points out.

"Her father will obey the orders of his Hokage like we all must." Naruto corrects calmly, before giving the woman a smile. "But I'm sure I can convince him not to worry so much."

"Neiner, neiner." Obito sticks out his tongue. "Stuffy red-eyed lady."

"Obito . . ." Minato warns.

"So Kiba? Got a minute to spare?" Naruto turns to the boy who had since stopped sparring.

The feral boy nods, relaxing out of his wild taijutsu stance to wipe at beads of sweat upon his brow. The gist of the previous conversation he understood, but there was still a lot missing so he'd have to ask later. "Go for it."

"You know where I can find your sister Hana? I'd like to ask her help on a mission I'll be undertaking soon." Naruto explains, knowing that telling the boy at least that much will detract from any suspicion— even though Kiba knew he was committed to Katsu, he couldn't blame the boy for still being protective of his older sister.

"Hana? I think she's at the vet on the clan grounds . . ." Kiba mutters thoughtfully. "I can take you there, you've got time right?"

"Sure but I don't want to interrupt you and Shino—"

"No way man, it's cool." Kiba waves away Naruto's worries. "Right Shino? We can continue this later, you were about to kick my ass anyway."

"Don't be too sure of that Kiba, you've improved greatly over the years. But yes, I will not mind continuing this at a later date." Shino answers, adjusting his shades.

"Thanks." Kiba cheers, jogging over to thump Akamaru on the back and lead Naruto to his home. "Kurenai-sensei, I'll be back in about an hour!"

As the walk, Kiba tries to ply Naruto for answers. "So what's this mission you think nee-san could help with?"

Naruto hums considerately. "I don't think I should really say too much until it's over. It's one of those, do it and see if we succeed at the end things."

"Oh those missions are always fun." Kushina gushes, sharing an excited grin with Obito.

"It's a surprise every time!" Obito cries happily.

"No idea what you're talking about, but cool." Kiba shrugs. "So, why Hana then?"

"Oh, Kakashi recommended her— your sis is strong right? And I hear she's a good medic-nin." Naruto answers.

"Yeah Hana is really good!" Kiba agrees. "She's been getting noticed more often lately thanks to our Hokage being a medic-nin herself. And she's maybe not as good as me and Akamaru, but her bond with her partners is still pretty tight." The last part is half joking, half serious.

"I doubt she could have managed to fit three puppies in her jacket or let them ride on her head like Akamaru did you Kiba, so it's hardly fair." Naruto reminds the boy slyly. Kiba just grins and rubs under his nose a couple times.

Naruto hadn't been to this part of Konoha in a long time. He'd visited the Inuzuka Clan grounds only two times for pranks, and under the cover of darkness it was hard to take in the sights. Still, a sprawling land perfect for dogs to roam and frolic, and for the wild bunch of Inuzuka to gallivant around was what he expected and pretty much saw.

"Oh, my baby was pranking Clans and succeeding." Kushina puts a hand over her heart. "It does my heart good to hear that."

The vet was apparently deeper into the clan grounds, conjoined with the large kennel that was on the western end but still pretty close to the middle. It didn't look too much different from a regular hospital, except that he could see a dog toy or two littered on the ground through the windows, and notes pertaining to animal illnesses, most especially dogs. Still, Naruto is surprised to see notices for horse and cows as well.

"She's a vet right? What's to be surprised about?" Jiraiya teases.

"I thought she was a specialized vet, for canines only." Naruto admits.

"No, I mean she keeps our dogs priority yeah, but she's a vet and a fine med-nin for humans too." Kiba boasts, and Naruto smiles at the obvious pride in Kiba's voice.

"Must be nice huh, having such a capable older sister?" Naruto asks as they walk into the building and up to the counter.

"It'd be nicer if he wasn't so foolhardy and a bit more eager to listen to the wise advice of his capable older sister." A mature yet soft woman's voice floats from the back, and soon a body accompanies it.

"You're Hana?" Naruto asks, and he can fully admit to being surprised just short of gob smacked. Whereas Kiba and their mother Tsume were feral and wild, Hana was tamed and smooth looking, in a sense. Straight brown hair was pulled back from her face in a low ponytail with only two short locks of hair left out to frame her face, with similar clan marks to Kiba. Large black eyes assessed him with a polite amount of warmth as lightly painted red lips quirked into a friendly smile.

Kushina quirks a brow. "Yeah . . . that sure doesn't sound anything like Tsume. Perhaps that was her father she took after, whoever he is?"

"You mean you don't know?" Minato asks in surprise.

"Have you ever seen her with a man?" Kushina challenges.

Minato's brow crinkles. "Well no, but I assumed . . . an arranged marriage?"

Kushina laughs raucously. "Tsume?! An arranged marriage?!"

"You're Uzumaki Naruto aren't you? A friend of Kiba's . . . I was wondering when we'd meet. First Kiba would rave about your pranks, and then I always speak to your girlfriend when I visit the Tea House." Hana starts off their conversation. "It's nice to meet you."

"Likewise Hana-san." Naruto greets sincerely. "I've come to request your services, if you are interested."

Hana raises an interested eyebrow. "Kiba, I've still got to check up on Sora and Riku, can you keep them company with Akamaru for me?"

Kiba rolls his eyes, grumbling about not being allowed in the conversation. Naruto was only chuunin, same as him! "Sure, sure." He gave up in the end though, his sister was not to be trifled with.

Once Kiba had left and Hana was sure he was out of earshot she turned to Naruto. "What can I help you with Naruto?"

"I'm leaving for a trip to Kumo— I'm to act as Konoha's ambassador for a time. I expect nothing longer than a month, and a guard of four shinobi are to accompany me. I would like to request that you be part of my guard Hana-san."

"Me? I'm flattered, but you and I have only met today. Is there any particular reason you sought me out?" Hana asks, intrigued.

"Kakashi says you're a good shinobi, and a fine medic-nin. I'm sure, being clan heir and such a well-established shinobi you'd also be a dab hand at tracking, like your mother. Though she never could find me after my pranks." Naruto slips in the joke with a grin, and Hana giggles.

"Oh!" Kushina gasps, giving Minato a beaming look as he laughs at her obvious pride and happiness. "Slipping away from Tsume? Minato could you be any prouder?"

"Judging by the great number of chapters we've yet to go through, I am very sure I can be." Minato smiles, arms looping around Kushina's waist as his hands drift to her hips.

"Ah yes . . . the Cheese Incident." She recalls this dryly, the only reason she had been spared was because her team had taken their first C-rank mission. "There really isn't anything keeping me here, and any problems the other Inuzuka who work here can take care of. Naruto, you've got yourself a guard!"

"Excellent!" Naruto thanks her with a brilliant grin. "You'll get more details by next week, but start packing in relation to Kumo's elevation. Thankfully we're on the dry side of the mountain."

---

Naruto knew he'd have to face Hyuuga Hiashi eventually, but he counted that time in days . . . not minutes. Three minutes after he'd left the Inuzuka compound with Kiba they'd been surrounded by branch family members whose Byakugans were trained on the blonde boy in their midst. Kiba wisely excused himself and Akamaru, and got the hell out of dodge.

"Damn, Hinata wasted no time." Kakashi whistles.

Punkass. Naruto grouses in his mind, but his smile is cheeky as he is led without complaint to the Hyuuga Compound. Hinata could have given him some warning about all this, it was too sudden! Trying to wing it with a Hyuuga, especially the Hyuuga Clan Head just seemed bothersome right about now.

"You're not shying away from a little hard work are you?" Minato jokes.

He'd only been to the Hyuuga Compound once before, like the Inuzukas it had been a visit made at normal sleeping hours. That time . . . ah yes, didn't he tie-dye every robe and dye the underwear a fluorescent yellow? Hiashi would surely remember that. He shook those thoughts from his head as he focused on his surroundings.

"I will smother him with my affection, and teach him all the nuances and proper ways of Prankster Royalty." Kushina whispers fervently, wrapping her arms tight around her middle and giggling madly.

His guards were branch members, and that became more apparent as they walked through the portion of the estate that housed the Main Branch family. Naruto carefully hid his emotions and restrained a sneer as the main family looked at him askance and gave a brief flickering glance filled with superiority to the branch members. How it rankled him to see his guards bend their shoulders ever so slightly whenever a main family member walked past, even children!

"It's something that the Uchiha never bothered with, but only because the Sharingan only shows up in a few every generation. The Byakugan dominates all other genes and so they have to be careful with how it spreads." Obito admits.

"That's a very mature outlook Obito, and it's that delicate problem which makes trying to get rid of the Bird Cage seal so tough." Minato praises his student.

"Well, that and the Hyuuga are dicks." Jiraiya mumbles, looking away from Minato's reproachful look.

Naruto huffed silently. It was sad to see, but not his fight in the end. Hinata or her sister Hanabi would have to deal with this, and for the Branch family's sake he hoped Hinata won out in the end. Still the compound was done in the utmost traditional design, paper doors and light floors that allowed for soundless movement. His ears picked up the soft sounds of quiet words from the reserved Hyuuga when they deigned it necessary to speak, and the even quieter music coming from a koto farther away. Were there no small children to giggle and play? Was not even a baby allowed to snuffle or cry? It was too silent . . . it grated on his nerves.

That did not detract in the slightest from his respectful posture and subdued tone as he bowed to the Hyuuga Clan Head once the door was slid open to the man's personal study. "Hiashi-sama, I hope you are well?"

"That's like a more respectful version of the classic teenage cop-out." Tsunade snorts.

"He's only fifteen leave him be." Jiraiya laughs.

"My physical health is at its peak as ever Uzumaki-san, however my mind is troubled by the news my daughter has brought me." Naruto blinked— for Hiashi, that was blunt. "Please, take a seat." Hiashi gestured to the cushion across from him and Naruto obliged. A young Hyuuga woman, smooth brown bangs covering the seal on her forehead, shuffled forward on her knees to pour hot tea for them.

Naruto restrained himself from saying thank you— it would only embarrass the girl, as Hinata had told him many times speaking about the Branch members— but did send the woman a grateful glance and nod. Hiashi merely picked his tea up and drank of it, not sparing the woman a glance as she moved back like a ghost.

Kushina grunted. "Keh. Too good for decent manners Hiashi?"

"You know that's how it is." Obito shrugs.

"At least Naruto has tact." Rin points out.

"Hiashi-sama, would this news be my impending trip to Kumo?" Naruto questions.

"Yes. Hinata has spoken of your wish that she is part of the guard detail assigned to you." Hiashi pauses momentarily. "She has also expressed her desire to go. However, in the end what is best for the clan comes first."

"What's best for the clan is to comply with your Hokage and help better your village." Tsunade is stern, her frown hard. "Hyuuga may have many diplomats for other countries, but in the end they are simply a warrior clan with its power base in Konoha."

"I understand Hiashi-sama." Naruto nods, hands folded loosely over his thighs.

"Do you really Uzumaki-san?" Hiashi gave Naruto a penetrating look. "Did you understand the implications when you asked Hinata this?"

"Hiashi-sama, it is because of those implications that I believe bringing along a Hyuuga, and the Clan Heiress no less would be beneficial." Naruto takes a sip of his tea and continues calmly. "The reason that we are creating this treaty is to bolster our forces and btter keep the jinchuuriki safe this is true . . . however." Blue eyes locked with pale ones in absolute certainty. "That is only the surface."

"I thought that was the whole point?" Rin asks, confused.

"You're saying there are other reasons this treaty was created?" Hiashi asked.

"Correct. In the end, all Akatsuki is another mercenary group with admittedly impressive volunteers on its side. If it truly came down to it, Konoha could take them. Our forces are smaller than they used to be, but quantity over quality and all that. No, truly this treaty is a way to bridge the gap between us and Kumo and other countries using our mutual enemy the Akatsuki as the foundation. During my stay there I was privy to just how militarized, how combat-oriented Kumo was. In other words, they would be a talented and capable foe if anything happened. Add the two jinchuuriki on their side, and it's best Konoha finds a way to keep ourselves on that side."

"While that's true . . . wasn't his true purpose to keep the jinchuuriki safe and keep Akatsuki from getting their bijuu?" Rin asks head tilted in curiosity.

"Yes, but you can't honestly have thought that was his only purpose?" Jiraiya asks, shaking his head when Rin nods. "That's the thinking of a kid. It's a whole new ballgame when you start growing up and encroaching upon the world of adults. You can't expect to survive as nothing more than a pawn in this world unless you begin to think like a true shinobi. Multiple meanings in even the simplest gestures and a desire to keep on level footing with even the supposed superiors around you because it can be an easy thing to suddenly have everything change and you become top dog. Keeping that position, of course, is even harder."

"That's where this treaty comes in." Hiashi surmises. "Showing an interest in collection our resources to aide our fellow hidden village would not only ease the task of defeating Akatsuki, but also ensure us powerful allies. I see . . . truthfully, your comrades are never closer than in times of strife. Applying the principal to a burgeoning relationship with Kumo would ensure the success of the treaty."

"That's what we are hoping for anyway." Naruto agrees, finishing his tea. "This is excellent tea Hiashi-sama."

"I . . . at this moment I too find myself almost impossibly proud of my musuko." Minato murmurs, wiping a fake tear away from his eye. Kushina laughs and gently pushes Minato's shoulder.

"Excellent tea, maybe we can drink this when I take over the world." Obito mocks what he thinks Naruto's voice would sound like now, deepening his own.

"Indeed, it's a blend imported from Tsuki no Kuni. Another treaty we have you to thank for Uzumaki-san." Hiashi added with a certain light in his eyes that makes Naruto think the man is amused. "However, what the true intention of the treaty and my daughter being sent to a bloodline hungry country have little in common from what I am hearing."

Naruto waits for the attendant to finish refilling their cups before continuing. "The inclusion of the Hyuuga Heiress is important. To show that not only is Konoha confident in sending our lamb to the lion's den to come out unscathed, but that said lamb is truly a wolf in a false skin would showcase our strength and our sincerity to make this work. It's a gamble, and I'll be frank Hiashi-sama— to hear it like this, there's no other way to say it but that I am using Hinata to further my own agenda."

"But . . ." Naruto grins wolfishly. "That's what friends are for right?"

"I don't know why, but automatically I just know in my heart that was the clincher." Kakashi interrupts. "Did anyone else feel that?"

"All day bro." Obito agrees, and the two fist bump.

Hiashi is impassive, watching the young man take another draught of tea and calmly look back at him. Hiashi closes his eyes and takes a deep breath. It's like talking with his father, he muses nostalgically.

"Why thank you." Minato truly does look touched, and that's what makes it funnier to his friends.

"Hinata." Hiashi utters.

The door slides open to reveal a kneeling Hinata, unrepentant even as she's just been caught eavesdropping. "Outou-sama." Hinata answered, eyes lowered demurely.

"Will you allow yourself to be used by Uzumaki-san?" Hiashi asked, looking straight at her.

"Have you seen that face?" Obito adopts a high falsetto.

"Ooh, and that hair? Don't even get me started on that body." Rin leers at Obito, shaking with suppressed laughter.

"Hell yeah I'll let myself get used by him!" They both chorus, laughing at Minato and Kushina's shell shocked and slightly sick looks.

Hinata looks up, this time directly into her father's eyes. "The hitai-ate proudly displayed on my person shows my willingness and acceptance to be used in whatever way is deemed necessary and beneficial to my village and country. Truly, to be used by a friend and Naruto in particular is far more soothing a thought. Besides," her lips quirk up into a warm grin. "I owe him after all the dinners he's cooked me. What's walking into Kumo between two friends as good as we are?"

"That a girl Hinata, show them how you're not scared!" Kushina's shout isn't as spirited as usual, still slightly disturbed by Rin and Obito's little play. Judging by their smug leers, they realize that too.

Hiashi glares, but does not say anything for a while. Both young adults look at the Clan Head curiously.

"You will take Neji as a guard." Hiashi's tone brooks no argument or complaint. It is the only way Hinata will go.

"Jounin Hyuuga Neji?" Naruto mulls it over, before smiling. "I'd be honored Hiashi-sama."

"It's the end of the chapter, which means next chapter they will either be on the way to Kumo or in Kumo." Tsunade shuts the book and puts it on the table.

"Oh, I can't wait for that." Minato grins. "Let's see how he works that charm on another Kage. He won't have home advantage or the benefit of a relation over there, so it'll be a true test."

Kushina harrumphs. "Naruto will win them over perfectly, just as he always does. Then he can work on Mizu, and then wherever else he sets his mind to!"

---

And so we come to the end of another chapter! Leave your reviews and eagerly await the next chapter coming out in two weeks! By the way, still looking for that fic i described in the last chapter, about the bloodline? And if you know a story that describes Naruto finding a newborn baby in the trash with white hair and where the genin graduate the academy at fifteen, i'd REALLY appreciate it.

LOVE,

Bloody Mad~3