Author's Note: There's a scene at the end of this chapter that MGB described as "brutal" (here meaning: violent in an astounding way). Although I agree that it is brutal, I don't think it's any more brutal than some of the stuff we see in the anime. Still, you have been warned.

Chapter 52

Kakashi had to visit Sasuke again, if nothing else for old time's sake. He hadn't seen the apartment Sasuke had been assigned when the sealing masters departed. Sasuke was still under probation until he left on his trip with Bee so the last Uchiha had guards that would be following him for another few months. Kakashi expected the home to be an efficient space, and it was. What Kakashi hadn't expected was an interrogation of sorts.

"How are you so fast without the Sharingan?" Sasuke asked almost before Kakashi had taken off his sandals.

"It's rude to not greet someone who comes to visit," Kakashi replied calmly.

Sasuke frowned but obediently said, "good morning Kakashi…-sensei."

Kakashi let the addition pass, there was no point in drawing attention to it. "Good morning Sasuke." Then he continued. "To answer your question, lightning style users are usually faster than someone who has an affinity for a different element, although that isn't always the case." Kakashi frowned at his student. "Did Orochimaru ever test your elemental affinity?"

Sasuke shook his head in answer. "Does it matter?"

Kakashi shrugged with a single shoulder. "I suppose not. You're fire or lightning, doesn't matter which, and you are able to use other natures, which is normal for a jonin at your level."

"How many can you use?" Sasuke asked suddenly, as if realizing he'd never before been curious about Kakashi's life, and maybe should have been.

The rapid-fire questions reminded Kakashi of Naruto. He almost smiled. "I can use all basic natures, although my wind style is very weak. Lightning is my affinity and lightning is weak against wind so-"

"Your wind nature is weakest," Sasuke finished when Kakashi trailed off. "It makes sense."

Kakashi nodded. He was still standing just inside the entryway. "But that's not what you wanted to talk about," Kakashi guessed.

Sasuke seemed to remember his manners then and invited Kakashi in to see his apartment. It was a cozy place, quite a bit smaller than Sasuke's home as a genin but far better than a prison cell. His sword hung on the wall but there were very few personal belongings. Anything that had been saved and packed away from Sasuke's genin home had been lost during the destruction of the village.

"Nobody rebuilt the Uchiha district after Pain's attack," Sasuke stated.

"I heard that land is a public park and war memorial now," Kakashi commented cautiously.

"A war memorial on the land of the people who initiated the war, ironic," Sasuke muttered bitterly.

"Manipulated into starting a war, if you like," Kakashi offered. "Although I'm more willing to offer that forgiveness to Obito than Madara, for obvious reasons."

Sasuke nodded again. "Madara was always a warmonger."

Kakashi did not disagree and they fell into silence. Then Kakashi again said, "but this isn't what you wanted to talk about, although I do congratulate you on your new apartment."

Sasuke half smiled but it faded in moments. "My eyes are slower than my body. I know I can react faster but I just can't see what I need to react to in time!"

"You remember your basic teleporting lessons, correct?" Kakashi asked.

Sasuke nodded. Academy students were given theory lessons on how upper level ninja flashed from one spot to another. It was assumed that they would either build on that knowledge on their own or ask their jonin-sensei for further instruction when they got that far.

"And you remember them telling you about using chakra to enhance your eyesight so that you didn't bump into other ninja running at high speeds?"

"Yes," Sasuke growled.

Kakashi's eyebrows went up.

Sasuke saw the movement and sighed. "Sorry. I never had to use that method much because at about that time I started using my Sharingan. The first time I had to force myself to see anything moving that fast, it was fighting Haku. Using my Sharingan was almost reflexive." He sighed. "But I don't have that now, and my new eyes are just- slow."

Kakashi straightened. "Then perhaps we should go for a run?"

Sasuke looked up, questioning, but Kakashi was already heading to the door. The youth was forced to follow.

"I don't know if this is a good idea," Sasuke said, conscious of the guards that still covered his new apartment. "They're not going to want me outside, running."

"If they can't keep up, they'll just have to rely on me to keep an eye on you." Kakashi pulled his sandals on. "Coming?"

The two left together, but not without a shadow of guards. Kakashi ignored them and took off across the rooftops. Sasuke had no trouble following. When the last Hatake stopped, he'd landed in Training Ground Five. He stooped down to pick up something from the gravel path that ran through the training ground and turned.

"Now," Kakashi began, hand lightly fisted around whatever he'd picked up. "We're going to improve your eyesight reaction time. It's the same as training your body's reaction time, you've just never really had to do it before." He tapped his free finger against his left temple. "When Naruto gave me this new eye, it was easier for me to adjust because my right eye had been trying to react at Sharingan speeds for so many years. For you, we'll just have to work hard."

Sasuke was about to ask a question when a pebble hit him smack in the center of his forehead. His eyes watered and he put a hand to his head, cursing. "What the-"

"Move," Kakashi suggested.

Sasuke's hand, which was massaging his assaulted forehead, flew away from his head, but not fast enough. The next pebble careened into his third knuckle, making that entire finger go numb for a moment. Sasuke's hand involuntarily curled in pain, the knuckle brought the feeling back into his finger with a vengeance.

"What do you think you're doing?" Sasuke demanded. His finger was on fire and he could feel the heat in his face.

"Watch," Kakashi advised, raising his hand up so that Sasuke could see the pile of pebbles nestled in his gloved palm, "and move."

Sasuke's eyes widened as Kakashi wound up for another pitch. The last Uchiha strained his eyes but couldn't see the pebble that Kakashi threw. He flinched, about to get angry at his new eyes again, when he realized that it was a feint. He opened his eyes too late, a stone connecting with his cheek at such speed that Sasuke was sure the pebble had gone straight through into his mouth.

"You are a jonin level ninja, not some fresh genin. See through my deception," Kakashi ordered.

Sasuke rounded on his old teacher, eyes focusing furiously. He dodged two more stones before a new one hit him in the side. A flash of silver was all Sasuke saw before the Kakashi in front of him spoke again.

"In a battle, you may not be sure where an attack is coming from. It's not just about your eyes, use all of your senses."

Sasuke calmed his mind and focused on anything that may be heading his way. He was a decently good sensor, but he thought this was going to be about eye training. It's not just about your eyes, Kakashi had said. Sasuke frowned to himself as he dodged another stone. "What?" Sasuke managed to say before he had to dodge again. "This is another teamwork thing?"

"Your senses work best when they're working together," Kakashi agreed. "You've relied on your eyes too heavily for too long."

"But I-" Sasuke dodged another pebble successfully, "but I need my eyes."

"Have you forgotten that week without your vision so quickly?" Kakashi chastised. "You have the knowledge and experience, so use it!"

They went on for another hour, Sasuke adding fewer and fewer bruises to his collection as time went on. Finally Kakashi called for a stop. Sasuke nearly dropped to the ground but, remembering his dignity, stood tall when Kakashi approached him.

"You did better than I thought you would," Kakashi commented.

It was a backhanded compliment and Sasuke knew it was only there to fire him up. He remained silent.

"I'll see you tomorrow," Kakashi promised. "Unless you need to be escorted home?" There was no response from the ANBU hidden in the shadows, so Kakashi figured it was alright to let Sasuke make his own way home.

"Tomorrow," Sasuke agreed.

Kakashi nodded and then walked away, hands in pockets. Sasuke, mindful of his shadows, walked straight back to his apartment.

000000

For not becoming Hokage, there were a lot of meetings that Kakashi had to attend with Tsunade and Naruto. He had to balance his time at the power plant, training with Sasuke, and attending the meetings, but he made it work.

When it was just the three of them, the meetings were rather pleasant. Then there were other meetings with Tsunade and Naruto plus the Leaf elders, which were as unpleasant as always. Seeing Naruto with the elders was Kakashi's only solace. Naruto's undying optimism and charisma baffled the Leaf council but there were some honest smiles among them.

One day after the meetings were adjourned, Naruto approached his old teacher.

"Sensei, do you mind if we talk?" Naruto asked carefully.

"We've been talking all day Naruto," Kakashi eyed his nervous face. "But we can talk privately, yes. Why don't we pick up some Ichiraku first though?"

Naruto brightened but not nearly as much as Kakashi would have expected. He frowned as they made their way to the stand. Once they were finished, they went to Naruto's new home, the one he and Hinata shared.

Kakashi waited silently for Naruto to begin once they were settled around the kitchen table. Kakashi rarely saw Naruto this serious. He gave the blonde his full attention.

"Granny and I have been discussing, outside of the council meetings, a new system for Hokage."

"New in what way?" Kakashi asked, curious.

The serious Naruto vanished and one that Kakashi was far more familiar with made his appearance. The Hokage-elect began gesturing and speaking passionately. "How many times was Granny or the Third or even my Dad restricted from entering a battle because they were 'the Hokage and it was too dangerous'?" Naruto's blue eyes were angry. "I understand wanting to protect the leader of the village, but isn't the point of being Hokage to protect everyone else? It's all backwards!"

Kakashi silently commented that Minato entering the battle was the reason he'd died. The Fourth was the most respected Hokage, but had held the office for the least amount of time. However, it was as if Naruto had read his mind.

"And I know my Dad would still be alive if he'd let other people deal with Kurama back then." Specifically, the Uchiha, but no one was going to say that out loud. What was done was done. "The point is that every time we've lost a Hokage, it left the Leaf without a leader at the worst times. That's the opposite of what I want if something happens to me."

Kakashi thought it was highly unlikely that anyone could best Naruto. However, he mentally winced, Minato-sensei had seemed infallible to him too. "So what do you suggest Naruto?"

Naruto smiled, pleased that he still had a captive audience. He raised his flesh hand in a peace sign. "A two Hokage system."

Kakashi's eyes widened. "Two Hokage?"

Naruto nodded, still grinning. He held up a single finger. "One Hokage will lead the village in administration," he held up a second finger, "and the other will lead the village in battle. Since we're at peace then both Hokage can work administration but if something bad happens, the battle leader will go and take out the threat. If one falls then the other one will keep things running until a successor for the other position can be approved."

Kakashi wanted to sit down. Then he realized that he already was. "That's- a very radical idea Naruto."

Naruto shrugged. "By calling it something different it might seem radical but actually doing it wouldn't change much," the blonde argued. "We've kind of already done it unofficially in the past." He ticked his point off on his fingers again. "The Third sort of had Danzo," Naruto paused there. He knew it to be true but the idea still left a bad taste in his mouth. He loved the Third but nobody was perfect.

Saving Naruto from that horrible, however true, consideration, Kakashi added, "and I suppose Minato-sensei had the Third Hokage to rely on. Lady Tsunade had Jiraiya-"

Naruto waved the suggestion away. "Pervy Sage was never consistent enough for that; Granny Tsunade had you."

Kakashi blanched at the suggestion. Despite what they'd all been through over the last couple of weeks, the idea still shocked him. "Me?"

Naruto raised an eyebrow at his sensei's skepticism. "Pervy Sage told me that you'd be Hokage before me."

Kakashi couldn't believe it. Had Tsunade and Jiraiya discussed it that long ago? Before Jiraiya died?

Naruto continued, unaware of his sensei's inner realizations. "You held the key to decode Jiraiya-sensei's final message about Nagato. The copy of Make-Out Tactics that I gave you was an advance copy, remember? You were the only one in the village who had it at that time." Kakashi tried to stammer out a reply but Naruto was already moving on. "What important meeting were you not invited to in the years leading up to the Great War? What intel did Granny not include you on? You were her chosen successor and you know it."

These words silenced Kakashi. He'd known. He'd never wanted to believe it but he'd known. It was just strange hearing the truth of it from Naruto of all people.

The silence stretched between them, old ghosts haunting them. Then Naruto asked quietly, "why didn't you take it?"

Kakashi inhaled slowly. Despite the lack of context in the question, and the way things stood with Tsunade, they both knew Naruto was talking about the time immediately after Pain had attacked. Kakashi answered, "I thought it would be disrespectful to take over so soon. Lady Tsunade is a medical ninja, she could have woken from her coma at any time. Then when Danzo took over, keeping you safe and out of his hands was my first priority."

Naruto's brow furrowed in thought. "You chose me…over the village?"

Kakashi blinked. "Not exactly-"

"Ha, I knew it! You DO care!"

Kakashi pinched the bridge of his nose. "The other jonin would have kept things stable until-"

"Anyway, we're getting off topic," Naruto said, cutting him off. "The point is, Shikamaru would be the second. I don't want to stay back in my office if there's a threat to the village. Shikamaru can direct, I'll fight."

Kakashi sighed. He almost kept his thoughts to himself but decided honesty was better for Naruto at this moment. "You'll have a hard time convincing Shikamaru of this plan. He's a clan head now. He will either have to divide his loyalty or hand the clan matters over to someone else. And even if he agrees, the council will not allow such a large change so quickly." Kakashi stared off into the distance. The times were indeed changing. Focusing back on Naruto, surprised that he was silent for so long, Kakashi found his student staring at him, waiting for him to finish. Kakashi smiled. Some changes were easier to accept than others. Naruto was growing up, becoming more patient. "But if you had your fellow jonin behind you, I think you might win them over. Start by talking with the largest and oldest clans. A lot of the smaller clans will fall in line while others-" Kakashi didn't want Naruto to get a big head but he wanted to be honest so he finished the thought, "others will simply follow you, Naruto, no matter what."

Naruto's eyes grew wide at the praise. He closed his eyes and smiled, scratching his nose. "I'd kind of hoped you'd say something like that sensei."

You did good Naruto, was all Kakashi could think as Naruto continued to blush. However, he did not speak the words. It seemed he didn't need to.

000000

When Kakashi got ready for another morning at the power station, he took a detour to Sasuke's apartment instead of heading straight to work.

"The Baransu won't be able to distract you forever," Kakashi commented without context when Sasuke opened the door. "What do you say to shadowing me today?"

Sasuke's eyes narrowed. "Shadow you doing what?"

Kakashi shrugged, pushing off the doorframe. "You'll see." He walked away without waiting for an answer.

Despite his annoyance at his sensei's antics, Sasuke found himself pulling his sandals on and following Kakashi to the power station.

000000

Later that afternoon, Kakashi and Sasuke were again in Training Ground Five. Naruto soon joined them.

"What's this about you guys training without me?" Naruto huffed. His arms were crossed, his blue eyes accusatory.

Kakashi smiled. "You know Sasuke, you have been getting better."

Sasuke's eyes bulged. "No!"

"Your reaction time is nearly back to what it was," Kakashi continued, ignoring Sasuke's protestations. "It's about time we added an extra challenge for you."

Naruto didn't know what was going on, but he knew the evil glint in Kakashi's eyes. The Hokage-to-be rubbed his hands together in anticipation.

"Naruto," Kakashi suggested, "pick some gravel up off of this path here."

Naruto turned and looked at Sasuke, a foxy grin spreading across his face. "Sure thing sensei." After Kakashi explained the exercise, Naruto continued. "It's too bad Sakura had to go home." He paused, as if coming to terms with calling the Stone Sakura's home. He shook it off, nothing stayed the same forever. "Then it could have been the four of us." Kakashi and Sasuke didn't respond. Naruto seemed to sense their broody feelings and tried to brighten things up by teasing Sasuke. "I could always invite Sai-"

"No," Sasuke shot him down, not unkindly. Sasuke was slowly getting used to the changes that had happened in his absence, but Sai still unsettled him. It was something Naruto had been working on with him, much to the Uchiha's irritation.

Still, the mentioning of the Uchiha's replacement had the desired result. Sasuke was no longer thinking about their past and how he'd disrupted it. Kakashi was no longer thinking about how he'd failed his students. The practice continued, with Sasuke and Naruto exchanging taunts while Kakashi considered if he could still slip away mid-practice without them noticing.

For the rest of Kakashi's visit, the three of them practiced together. Naruto reveled in the challenge, the exercise helped rebuild Sasuke's stamina, and Kakashi was just happy they weren't trying to kill each other.

000000

It was during one of these practices that the three ninja were interrupted. A dark-haired man hurried into the training ground with a friendly wave, eyes intent on Naruto. Kakashi called a stop from his side of the field and waited to see what the man had to say.

It wasn't unusual, these days, to have someone stop Naruto in the street wanting an autograph or to shake his hand. Naruto's fame had spread far and wide after saving the village from Pain. Then, shortly after, the Fourth Great War had started and Naruto's fame exploded outward to the furthest reaches of their world. As Mei often reminded her husband, saving the world had been a team effort. Still, people tended to single Naruto out for their admiration. He was just lucky that way.

Naruto gave the man one of his restrained smiles, an expression Kakashi was used to at this point. Naruto didn't know the stranger who was approaching but he was willing to give him a moment of his time. Speaking with admirers, some who'd traveled for hundreds of miles to see him, was just a part of his life now.

Since Naruto had been equal distance between Sasuke and Kakashi during the exercise, the other two moved a bit infield to hear what the man had to say. The stranger closed in on Naruto, gesturing for a hug, and Kakashi internally winced. Better Naruto than him, he thought. If anyone tried to hug him for saving the world, Kakashi would more than likely punch their lights out.

As the man crept ever closer to his student, something caught Kakashi's eye. The man had removed his hand from his pocket right before he spread his arms wide for the impending hug. That hand was cupped around something. A bolt of panic shot through Kakashi's veins.

"Naruto," Kakashi said so sharply that the fake smile immediately fell off of the Uzumaki's face. Wide blue eyes looked over the stranger's shoulder at Kakashi. It was already too late.

Darting forward, the man whipped his cupped hand up and slapped Naruto in the face. A paper seal was left behind along with a red mark on Naruto's cheek. Kakashi didn't need to be closer to know what the seal did. It was a chakra repression seal, similar to the ones Jiraiya had given Kakashi years ago.

Naruto's eyes were already closed, the seal working not only on the Nine Tail's chakra but on Naruto's reserves as well. A repression seal on the head, in Naruto's normal state, meant imminent unconsciousness for the blonde. Naruto's body teetered to the side. The stranger caught him up with remarkable efficiency and turned to face Sasuke. A kunai was already in the man's hand and was now expertly held at Naruto's neck.

Sasuke went stock still, staring at the dark-haired man. Kakashi could suddenly feel Sasuke's ANBU guards, their chakra agitated at the sight of the sudden threat. One of the agents immediately left to get backup, for all the good it would do them now, Kakashi thought. He had been standing in the same field as Naruto and hadn't been able to act in time.

"You couldn't have just left it alone, could you?" The man was clearly addressing Sasuke and the unconscious Uzumaki. "Did it not occur to you that some of us wanted to stay in our dreams? That we didn't want to wake up from Madara's perfect world?"

Kakashi shifted to his right, the better to see Sasuke.

The man didn't turn but he clearly sensed Kakashi's movement. He called back, "don't try anything Copy Ninja. I'll slit his throat before you can take a step!"

"You're so sure about that?" Kakashi asked to distract the man. He slowly raised his right hand.

Sasuke's eye caught the movement, puzzlement flickering in his eyes. His gaze went to Kakashi's. The hazel eyes looked panicked.

Kakashi took a slow breath and did his best to appear calm. He met the last Uchiha's gaze and his fingers twitched. The stranger did not react to the hand motion. Sasuke looked from Kakashi's right hand to his eyes, his own eyes widening in fear.

"I am," the man replied. He tightened his hold on Naruto's limp body to make the point.

"So what's your plan then?" Kakashi asked the man, his hand deliberately curling into half of a snake seal.

Sasuke saw the half seal and paled further. His head turned minutely from left to right in answer.

"I lost my family once," the man called back to Kakashi, never turning away from Sasuke, "and then I lost them again when your students woke me from my dream. They have to pay." The man licked his lips nervously but his eyes were enraged. "Sasuke," the Uchiha broke eye contact with Kakashi at the sudden use of his name, "will follow me out of the village or Naruto dies. From there it's between the three of us who survives."

Kakashi slowly put his left hand closer to where his right hung in the air. His heart pounded in his ears. He caught Sasuke's eye again. The Uchiha closed his new eyes and then opened them. He was very pale.

"Don't do this," Sasuke raised his hands, inch by inch, as if reaching out to placate the man in slow motion.

"I'm going to be with my family again," the man bellowed. "One way or the other. But not before you die. You took them away from me!"

Kakashi watched the man's feet, afraid he'd make good on his threat and start walking Naruto's body to the edge of the village. It was now or never. Then Kakashi felt it, Sasuke's chakra spiked as he molded it in a flash. The Uchiha's hands were a blur. There was no time for any other reaction, just the response. The last Hatake knew that if he messed this up, Naruto was dead.

Kakashi molded his own chakra as fast as he dared, changing it in nature as his hands flashed through an abridged version of the necessary seals. Then he felt for Sasuke's chakra, changing the shape of his own as he went. A lightning cable shot out from his right hand, searching out Sasuke's end of the chain. If they missed, if they connected wrong-

Kakashi felt his end of the cable connect and merge with Sasuke's. He grasped the connection tightly, narrowing his focus on the shape to keep the lightning as controlled as possible. The lightning cable pierced the air with a loud crackle, the unyielding beam connecting Kakashi's right hand to Sasuke's left.

The strange shinobi's head was caught between the two points. He didn't even have a chance to blink. The joined lightning cable cut a hole directly through the center of his head, mere inches from Naruto's. The man dropped dead, letting Naruto go.

As the stranger fell, the lightning cable maintained its position, continuing to cut through the man's skull until he fell beyond the range of the beam. Kakashi kept his concentration on the stream. It would take cooperation to cancel the combined technique, otherwise it could flare out of control. Kakashi took a slow breath, then another, waiting. When Sasuke tore his wide eyes away from the stranger's body, he looked up and met Kakashi's eyes again. They closed their palms and, with sudden silence, the lightning vanished.

Kakashi sprinted across the field, eager to get to Naruto. He feared the seal had done his student irreparable damage. He was almost to the blonde when he felt Sasuke's chakra flare again. Kakashi looked up and saw the ANBU converging on Sasuke. Kakashi felt another spike of panic. This was the first time Sasuke had used a sizeable amount of chakra since all of the seals had been removed from his body. The ANBU were overly cautious and Sasuke was so keyed up he looked ready to kill anyone who kept him from Naruto.

"Stop," Kakashi shouted to Sasuke's guard detail, "it was my idea." The ANBU paused but Kakashi had already turned his attention back to his unconscious student. He hoped his confidence in Sasuke was enough to make the guards stop and realize that the Uchiha meant no harm. The last Hatake's voice thundered with authority. "Sasuke, I need you here."

Kakashi finished his crossing to Naruto. Sasuke was free to join him a moment after, hands shaking.

Kakashi's eyes traced the pattern of the seal carefully. Sasuke reached out to rip the paper seal off of Naruto's cheek. Kakashi grasped his hand to stop him on reflex, not even looking up. Sasuke glared at the silver haired man but Kakashi didn't notice. His eyes went over the seal again, and a third time. The seal was meant to repress chakra to an extreme degree, but that was all.

Kakashi had feared that the seal would repress the chakra and then inflict poison or some other means of harming the target if removed. However, he supposed it would have been nearly impossible to put such a duel seal onto a paper small enough to conceal. It was extremely unlikely that this man had the skill necessary to prepare such a seal in any case. Kakashi's fear had made him cautious but now he only felt relief.

Kakashi slowly let go of the Uchiha's hand and nodded. Sasuke ripped the paper off. Naruto's eyes fluttered open and then squinted at the light. "What was that," Naruto asked with half of a groan.

"That was why you don't let random people touch you, idiot," Sasuke said gruffly. "And why weren't you sensing for his intent?"

The panic and fear Kakashi had seen in the Uchiha only moments ago had vanished like smoke. The fear of losing his best friend, of using such a fast and lethal technique so close to Naruto, was completely absent now. Sasuke looked as bored as ever, although his eyes were a little wider than usual.

Seeing that Naruto was alright, Kakashi glanced at the man who had threatened his students. The man had been grieving. He was grieving and then suddenly his family was given back to him in a perfect dream world. Then his loved ones were ripped away, again, only now the man had had someone to blame. Kakashi didn't know how long the man had been planning this attack, how long it took him to work out the seal, get access to the village, or waited for Naruto and Sasuke to be together, but he did know he understood him.

If Kakashi's family and team had been restored to him in his darker years, only for them to be taken again, he wasn't sure what he would have done to those responsible. The logic didn't match but the passion certainly did. No one would have survived his wrath.

Kakashi felt Sasuke's attention on him and looked over at his wayward student. Sasuke contemplated the stranger, a scowl on his face. The stranger had wanted revenge. A shadow of guilt crossed Sasuke's face and he looked back at Kakashi. Their eyes met and an understanding passed between them. They couldn't condone the man's actions, but they understood.

The ANBU backup soon arrived, along with a support team. The medics fussed over Naruto, at least two of them were completely star-struck, Kakashi realized, but Naruto answered their questions as calmly as he could. At one point he reached up to scratch his head, just above his right ear. The contact caused the charred locks to flutter to the ground. Naruto looked at his hand, and scratched again in the same place, more of his hair fell out where the lightning cable had singed it.

Naruto shrieked. Both of his hands went to his head and clutched his yellow locks. "I'm going bald!"

"You're not going bald," Sasuke resisted rolling his eyes. "Our lightning technique gave you a haircut." He frowned and half glanced at Kakashi. Although Sasuke acted nonchalant now, in the heat of the moment when he realized what Kakashi was suggesting, he'd been terrified. Using such a destructive technique for such a tight maneuver was something he'd never dreamed of doing, much less on the fly in a life or death situation.

Kakashi unconsciously agreed that it hadn't been his best plan. It was the best he could come up with in such a short period of time, but now, contemplating all the things that could have gone wrong made his stomach turn.

At Naruto's questioning look, Kakashi explained what had happened in the calm, bland words he'd use when writing reports. He finished up quickly and waited, not wanting to meet Naruto's eye. The blonde looked between his brooding friend and his brooding sensei and smiled. "Hey, I trust you, I know you wouldn't have tried it unless you knew it would work!"

Kakashi half smiled and Sasuke grunted. They only hoped that Tsunade would see it the same way.

Naruto reached up and touched the bald spot again. "I was thinking about cutting it, maybe shorter hair could be a good look for me." He turned to first Sasuke, then Kakashi, smiling.

The two considered Naruto's newly shortened hair. The right side of Naruto's head, where his hair normally stuck out above his headband, was frizzled down nearly to his scalp. The rest of Naruto's hair fluffed out around his headband like normal, giving him a lopsided appearance. Sasuke shook his head, "short hair doesn't really work for you."

Kakashi agreed. "If you cut it short then how am I supposed to do this?" Kakashi reached out and ruffled Naruto's hair affectionately.

Naruto pushed his hand off, as if afraid that the rest of his hair would fall out under the assault. He grinned suddenly. "So, since I almost died, maybe you'd like to treat us to ramen sensei?"

Kakashi almost laughed aloud. "After we file our reports, and if Tsunade lets me live, then maybe we'll go out for ramen."

"Alright," Naruto cheered like he was a genin again.

Sasuke raised his eyebrows, thinking about how the ANBU had almost ended his life for saving Naruto's. "I don't think it's going to go that smoothly Naruto."

0000 Five Minutes Later 0000

Two chunin walked past the Hokage office building when a window far above them shattered. A moment later, a chair fell out of the sky and smashed on the pavement in front of them, followed by a shower of glass.

The two chunin jumped away from the wreckage and then looked up at the broken window. They were pretty sure it was the window to the Hokage's office. After a moment they heard the bellowed question, "what do you mean, 'you thought you'd give it a try'?"

The chunin looked at each other.

"What do you think that's about?" One asked the other, looking back up at the broken pane.

The other shrugged, "someone's ticked the Hokage off, that's for sure. I'm just glad it isn't me."

"Yeah," the first replied.

They were about to walk away when Tsunade herself leaned out the window. They tried to hurry away but it was too late, they had been spotted.

"You two," Tsunade cried, clearly pointing them out. "Get me a new chair and find someone from jutsu classification. Apparently," her words were like acid, "I need to register a new jutsu." Then she withdrew, muttering something about "paperwork" and "giving her a heart attack" but the chunin couldn't be sure.

With a quick paper, rock, scissors game to decide who got to do what, the chunin rushed off to their assigned tasks.

Author's Notes:
1. Happy Birthday to Mei! It's May 21st which means it's Mei's Birthday!

2. Thank you all for your kind reviews, faithful follows, complimentary favorites, and thoughtful views.

3. The two Hokage system that Naruto is describing is similar to what the Spartans used to do in ancient Greece. They had two kings at all times, so when the one king went to war, he could just be a commander to his soldiers and not worry about things falling apart at home. "The 300 Spartans" (1962) and "300" (2006) both utterly failed to mention this and, in fact, made it seem the opposite.

4. I hate Naruto's short hair look. That will never happen in this story.

Have a nice week!