Hello all! Welcome back to Genesis, I hope the chapter you've been anxiously awaiting will meet your approval. I don't have much time- I'm taking midterms this week, and then there's a bunch of other things to do before I can enjoy Spring Break, so let's clear up some of the Housekeeping Things.
First of all, i'm glad you guys love the story but please remember that I am putting school first. Do you know, my fall semester here at UCF i was put on the Dean's List? Oh, sure, when i heard it was just a piece of paper i didn't care but when they sent me an email saying i was on the Dean's List . . . gotta tell you, I felt pretty fucking proud of myself. And now, with five classes on the line and me working my ass off I'm going to shoot for Dean's List again. So. This, and fanfiction is on the back burner so I hope you can understand that and resign yourself to waiting patiently.
Second, Lost Towers is the last Naruto Movie i shall do. I've decided this after some careful thought, and do not wish to add anything else miscellanious to the story. Except maybe for that Shippuden filler Chikara, that thing was AWESOME . . . but don't bet on it. I'm going to focus back on the main storyline for now, and try to get through everything I have to before hitting the Fourth War around . . . oh, I don't know, chapter seventy or earlier. So, without further ado, the chapter!
DISCLAIMER: I do not own Naruto, Masashi Kishimoto does. All rights go to him for the story, i just played around with it some.
Chapter Fifty-Six
The Rumbling Underneath the Land, Uzumaki Naruto
Minato looks up at the ceiling, Kushina still sleeping peacefully atop his chest. One hand rises to sink into the soft, sweet-smelling crimson mass of hair that spills over them both and hangs off the sides of the bed. Only in sleep was Kushina ever so quiet and pliant. From the moment of waking to the last minute before she tumbles into dreamland, Kushina was a human firecracker.
Minato's lips quirk into a small smile. So would Naruto. The seal Kurama had helped engineer buried the memories of Naruto and the Demon Lord deep into his subconscious, drifting back to his conscious mind as in broken parts of his dreams, or as faint recollections connected to his necklace or something else. Now, after seeing the mission on the TV— like some dazzling action movie, with what he had to admit were devilishly handsome main characters— his memories were back completely. He is now able to bask in the glow of Naruto's large smile, to remember Naruto's eyes that while of an almost exact shade to his own were far brighter and glittered with all the enthusiasm of Kushina. He simply couldn't wait to see Naruto once again. The last chapter had only made him utterly determined to change at least that part, to see his baby boy grow.
"You should be sleeping," Kushina's voice, husky with sleep, drifts upward from his chest. Minato chuckles quietly, the sound reverberating in his chest and Kushina's ears.
"It's time to wake up already Kushina." Minato chides softly, the hand in her hair smoothing back the strands of fire from her pale face. He adjusts himself, looking down into her violet eyes.
Kushina smiles, sleep still relaxing her muscles and making every action and movement lethargic. "What did you dream about?"
"You." Minato whispers.
"Liar."
"And Naruto." Minato adds, laughing quietly. "You two were trading jokes."
"Yeah? I dreamt of swimming in a bowl of ramen with him. You were standing outside the bowl just radiating exasperation." Kushina snickers. Minato mocks her, face contorting into a glower of disapproval that has Kushina laughing a little harder, before lightly slapping his chest and rising up.
Outside, Jiraiya and Obito are already outside in the kitchen, yawning widely and both slumped at the kitchen table. "All I can make are eggs. How about you?" Jiraiya asks the young Uchiha.
Obito shrugs. "I can make pancakes."
Jiraiya nods, rising heavily onto his feet. "Let's get to work then."
The two begin to make breakfast, Jiraiya halfway through a carton of eggs by the time Obito's teammates shuffle into the kitchen and Tsunade marches in looking a trifle sullen.
"What's wrong with you?" Jiraiya snorts, looking at Tsunade.
"I had a dream about a blonde Kushina and a redheaded Naruto. Kushina was the one fighting over cake with me, and Naruto was the one tying people up over a fire pit." Tsunade grumbles. "And somehow, I get the feeling that was a premonition."
"Better believe it." Kushina cackles, striding into the kitchen with a calm and smiling Minato. "Hey, where's Kurama?"
"Here." Kurama raises his hand from the kitchen table, Rin who he was sitting right next to was sent screaming to Minato. She had never even noticed him!
"Fuck Kurama, don't do that!" Tsunade coughs, having choked on a mouthful of orange juice.
"Oh sensei, teach me your ways?" Minato mock pleads, sliding into a seat next to Kurama. Kurama looks askance at Minato but says nothing, and so the blonde lets the idea go with a little whine.
The breakfast is soon served out, and our readers eat to their hearts content. Once that was done and the kitchen was cleaned, they troop into the living room where the book lays on the coffee table.
"Who reads this time again?" Rin asks.
"Jiraiya read before the last chapter, so it's my turn now." Tsunade announces, picking up the book and flipping through it.
Naruto sits in Tsunade's office in the hospital, grimacing as his arm gives another pulse of pain. He looks down at the limb wrapped in medicated white bandages and trembling minutely. Something happened to him after the last time he used the Rasenshuriken and now his arm wouldn't work. Tsunade had seemed rather concerned and immediately whisked him to the hospital where she performed some tests.
"Ah," Tsunade pauses with a frown. "Let's see . . . oh, I think I understand why. I'm sure I'll explain."
Katsu sits in the chair by the patient bed. "She seems rather concentrated on those results, huh?" she muses, idly twining her fingers.
"I just wonder what's going on. Even the pain with the Rasengan faded after a couple of uses." Naruto mutters carefully, slowly getting used to the pain in his arm.
The door opens and Tsunade walks in, rather somber and it immediately puts the two teens on edge. "So what's the verdict sensei?" Naruto asks, smiling lightly.
"Don't say he's lost use of his arm or something like that –ttebane." Kushina worries.
Tsunade doesn't smile back, honey eyes steady and cool as they look at him. "The Rasenshuriken does two things when it attacks. To the naked eye, the winds merely tear apart it's victim. However, there's another factor that the eye cannot see. The nerves and chakra pathways are also shredded by the fierce wind chakra flooding the system once the rasenshuriken hits. That's the problem here. There's a backlash with that wind chakra."
Minato sucks in a breath, disappointed for Naruto. "That must hurt, to have a jutsu you can't use . . . but at least he can still say he completed the Rasengan."
Jiraiya nods. "And he still has other forms he was working on, though we haven't heard anything about it yet. They must have been sidelined while Naruto was working on the Rasenshuriken."
Tsunade stops talking, because she can see the frustrated realization dawn on Naruto's face. Naruto closes his eyes and slowly exhales. Katsu's hand lightly touches his undamaged one and he holds on to her. "It's slowly destroying my chakra pathways too, right?"
"As well as shredding your muscles. You were okay the first two times you used it, if just barely, but it's hard to heal that kind of damage even with Kurama's help. Naruto, if you keep using the Rasenshuriken you will lose the use of that arm." Tsunade confirms.
"Well . . . that sucks." Naruto huffs. "So how long will it take my arm to heal this time?"
"Each time you came in to heal that arm it took a little longer each time." Tsunade puts a hand to her chin, thinking. "So I estimate . . . two weeks." Ignoring Naruto's whine she adds, "Oh, and come to the Tower later okay?"
"Aye, aye, captain." Naruto mumbles.
"Oh don't sulk." Rin admonishes. "You should be grateful this was caught earlier, before you did actually lose use of your arm."
"So, what's up?" Naruto sighs, slumping in the chair in front of the Hokage's desk.
Tsunade eyes his insolent posture peeved, and silently swears to punish Kakashi without telling him why.
"Ha ha haa!" Kushina laughs, pointing at the angry Kakashi.
"Come on! Damn it Naruto!" Kakashi snaps.
"Teach your kids better this time." Tsunade advises, uncaring of his anger.
She leans forward and asks intently, "Have you heard from Sasuke?"
Naruto straightens slowly, eyes frosting over. ". . . Not in two months. Why?"
"Orochimaru has been silent. Almost too silent. And yet, just over the past month allies have been sighting Oto shinobi. One of our own jounin and his genin team were discovered slaughtered. Trackers related the scents and chakra signature to Oto-nin."
"That bastard." Jiraiya growls furiously, lips barely moving.
"What would they aim for a jounin with genin for?" Obito wonders, angry beyond belief at the meaningless deaths— the slaughter, as Tsunade would call it. "Bunch of cowards, picking on genin that couldn't possibly be as strong as them and a jounin distracted with keeping his team safe."
"I doubt Orochimaru preached anything even close to the Will of Fire, or even of a roughshod shinobi honor to them." Kakashi drawls, hiding his anger deep within. This wouldn't happen in the future, because they would kill Orochimaru quickly after returning.
Naruto stares at her, shocked. "How . . . how have I not heard of this? It would be all over Konoha by now!"
"It happened just yesterday." Tsunade answers grimly.
"Bastard." Naruto growls lowly, fists tightening on the desk. To kill genin, and for what? "I just don't see what Orochimaru would have to gain over killing insignificant genin. He didn't even kill Sakura and I in our first chuunin exam."
"And he could have easily, it would have been a good way to distract Sasuke and take him." Tsunade notes.
"He wanted Sasuke to come to him, meaning it would be Sasuke's choice and a blow to the morale of Konoha to have their last Uchiha go rogue like his older brother." Jiraiya explains, biting the knuckle of his pointer finger in an absentminded nervous tick. "Of course that's just a theory. More than likely, Orochimaru just didn't feel like it— hell, who can tell with him."
Tsunade frowns, rubbing her brow lightly. "Orochimaru is a genius, but not all his actions can be backed by sound reasoning. Sasuke has perhaps gone two months without reporting in before, but the recent activity has me concerned. Jiraiya reports that refugees from Oto, or Rice Field Country, have migrated to Hot Springs and Frost Country. Though the refugees are reluctant to answer to anything there are whispers that Orochimaru's experiments are increasing and thus the need for test subjects rises accordingly."
"And before it might have been one or two stolen children that hardly mattered to the population. Orochimaru might be starting to recruit whole factions, maybe even vanishing entire villages. They're concerned now, when they should never have trusted him in the first place." Minato murmurs grimly.
Naruto leans back, starting to cross his arms before his arm reminds him it's still too delicate for any movement. "In truth, I have sent Sasuke a couple messages to try and see what he was doing or if he was alright. His silence so far has me answering negatively but . . . I can't see Orochimaru killing Sasuke without us knowing somehow. If Sasuke was dead, he would brag about it. He'd find some way to let Kakashi, Sakura and I know."
"Though you might be right, and it is a prediction in line with his habits, don't think for a minute that's the assured course of action." Jiraiya warns.
"Orochimaru, as stated earlier, cannot be explained with any sort of logic." Kakashi adds.
"I'm wary of letting much more continue on like this." Tsunade murmurs, placing her hands flat on the desk. "But to charge into Orochimaru's territory and invite his gaze upon us once more isn't a wise decision."
"What can we do then?" Naruto points out, leaning back into his seat and looking at the ceiling.
"It would be ideal if we were given a mission involving Orochimaru. Perhaps someone's family having been abducted, or something that might interfere with Fire Country that could justify us checking out Oto."
"Is Oto the only place his labs are?" Naruto asks.
"You mean to suggest Orochimaru has labs all over the nations or something? How could he just hide that? A local would be bound to notice something is off." Rin argues.
"Well, a few years ago we had missions to a small group of islands housing his labs . . . but they're very well hidden and since then we've only discovered two more. It's not hard to discern that there's many more but it's a sight harder to discern where those many more are." Tsunade confesses, frustrated. "It would be beneficial if we could capture some Oto nin." Tsunade sighs, and looks at Naruto. "Try again to contact Sasuke. We need some information here."
"I'll do my best." Naruto promises, rising up and taking a step back. "Will that be all Hokage-sama?"
Tsunade smirks. "Well if you're free I could use another office nin?"
"No apprentice of mine should be used as a glorified paper pusher." Jiraiya grumbles.
"Has Shizune finally cracked?" Naruto asks with a disapproving tone. Ducking under the pen Tsunade throws he chuckles and lets up on the teasing. "Okay, okay. What d'you need boss?"
So Tsunade sets him to work stamping her signature on every piece of paper she reads and approves, having long ago caught on to the wonder of signature stamps. Whoever complained the first month of her new change quickly changed tunes after a near death miss with her fury. Naruto took so many pictures.
Just as he was setting out tea for Tsunade and him, his shorthand alerted him. "Sasuke," Naruto states, just knowing it is the other boy. He takes out the shorthand and hands it to Tsunade, who unravels the paper and reads.
"Uzumaki Karin." Tsunade states. "That's all it says. You said Sasuke once mentioned the possibility of an Uzumaki being alive . . ." She trails off when another message appears and this she has no clue about. "Tsuchigawa Kuwa. Three days. Why is he mentioning a missing-nin? And what happens in three days?"
". . . What rank is he?" Naruto asks.
Tsunade hasn't checked the latest bingo book, so she looks to the left upper corner of the room. "Do you know?"
An ANBU bearing a horse mask appears right in front of the desk, and Naruto whistles. "Swift." He compliments.
"Thank you. And Tsuchigawa Kawa is S-rank Milady." The ANBU replies before disappearing once again.
"What does that information have to . . . ? Ah, is that Sasuke's target?" Tsunade answers her own question ruefully.
"Yeah. And he won't be getting any help from me. If Sasuke is giving me that name then he's already looking so I have to hurry out there." Naruto adds, looking at his injured arm with a surly frown. "Looks like your solution came gift-wrapped Nade. If we kidnap her, I bet we've got a sure source of information. Sasuke wouldn't offer anything less right now. And I bet that he's giving me three days to find him from the time I arrive in Shimo no Kuni."
"It wouldn't be kidnapping so much as it would be reacquiring a lost family member. If anything, you're bringing her home." Kushina teases.
"Sasuke wouldn't just give you this name to offer a new family member to you?" Tsunade asks with a raised eyebrow.
Naruto snorts rudely. "Tsunade. It's Uchiha Sasuke."
"Right, right. Stupid question." Tsunade smirks, resting her left cheek on her fist, left elbow on the desk. "How quickly can you get out of here then? I'll try to search up some information by that time."
"Yeah? Then an hour, I dare you." Naruto grins wolfishly at Tsunade whose sharp smile is just as demonic.
"Challenge accepted."
"If it's not phrased as a bet, does that mean Tsunade could win?" Kurama asks casually, snorts of laughter coming from the others.
Tsuchigawa Kawa was lurking in Frost country, according to Tsunade. So, off to Shimo no Kuni Naruto travels, Kurama opting to part ways temporarily and visit Isobu.
"Ah, the kind Crab-Turtle who took note of my death. So considerate." Rin muses with a soft smile.
"You and Obito are having way to good a time joking about your demises." Minato observes, his tone both factual and warning.
Naruto took a longer route, skirting the forest that leads to the Valley of the End and travelling to Hot Springs. For a brief moment he wonders what the Hidden Village of Hot Springs looks like— no one lived there anymore, not after the massacre instigated by a restless shinobi years ago. Would the village be rundown? Would there still be plates on the tables, weapons still in cupboards that couldn't be reached before their owners were sent to the afterlife?
"That is so dark Naruto." Obito complains. "Leave dark thoughts to my baby cousins!"
Eugh. Dark thoughts, he didn't want to be like Sasuke . . .
"I don't know how else to explain it except that Obito was reincarnated as Naruto." Kakashi admits, baffled.
Cutting through Hot Springs was easy, and after five days Naruto reached Frost. Shimo was a very small country, and there weren't so much villages as there were perhaps two or three families for every hundred acres of fields and rice paddies. Maybe, just maybe, an actual city or two including the capital where the monarchy was centered. Unfortunately, it made strangers like him stick out like . . . well, like any bright blonde haired person would amongst a bunch of people with dark brown or black hair. He has no clever simile right now, it's really early in the morning.
However! That also meant a shifty-looking dude like Kawa would stick out like a six-inch nail jutting straight out of the teacher's seat. Speaking of which, he wonders how Natsu and the class are doing . . .
"You found a simile that time," Kushina pouts. "You're just being lazy Naru."
Naruto searches for his first hit, hoping that there might be some information to find among the suspicious, community-centered people of Frost. Before leaving Konoha, Naruto had fished out Nami-baba's old map of Frost and picked out three towns he'd start scouring for sightings or rumors. The first town he'd get to was 450 kilometers west of the border, meaning he'd arrive there by around nightfall. Then, he would henge into a more unnoticeable persona and start doing a little digging.
He had seventy hours left.
Yurameshi Isshin ambles into town, slightly heavy posture and slow steps broadcasting his weariness despite the smile on his face. A man cloaked in rough brown cloth, clasped with a simple pin at the base of his throat, and dressed underneath in a simple greyish green shirt and worn brown pants, geta sandals making a muted clop on the dusty streets ragged from lack of rain over the course of several days. His jaw is covered with a five o'clock shadow, black hair waving gently over his forehead and stopping at his slightly large ears. The pack on his bag is heavy and the odd lump or two pokes out and threatens to tear the fabric.
"Maybe a little overdone, but not bad at all Naruto." Jiraiya chuckles.
Kakashi cocks his head. "I get that his henges are physical transformations but can he physically manifest clothes or does he have to carry outfits around for whenever he needs to henge?"
He gets only cursory, assessing glances from the locals before they dismiss him. He is simply a wanderer, perhaps a handyman seeking some work to earn a few coins, or a few pints. His calloused hands and dusty feet are obvious indicators of his field work, and there is a slightly dopey expression on his face that has one reluctant to give him another thought. Isshin the stranger, turning and catching the eye of a farmer in his fifties, waves a large hand in greeting.
"Hello! Hello, sir, where is the nearest inn or tavern? I'd like a place to rest my feet and fill myself." Isshin greets, talking a little fast but clear enough for the local to understand.
The farmer grunts. "Keep going down the street, make the second right and it's the third building down on your left."
Isshin smiles brightly, somehow his radiant happiness making him look even dopier. "Why thank you sir. Have a pleasant evening!"
Jiraiya hums thoughtfully. "A wanderer wouldn't be so cheerful after days of travelling so were this performance being watched by a shinobi that'd be the first clue of suspicious activity."
"Jiraiya-sensei, contrary to popular belief, is a closet perfectionist." Minato confesses with a fond grin.
"Same t'you." The farmer mumbled in reply before leaving to go back home.
Isshin hums slightly off-key to himself, following the man's instructions. The third building down on his left was an inn that was neither small nor large, the rooms at the top with a bar and restaurant serving as the ground floor. Isshin walks in through the swinging doors and looks around with a pleasant interest and slightly dazed expression. Not many people glance at him as they laugh hard and drink harder, no care in their minds for the stranger who totters forward on weary, almost rubber limbs towards the bar.
"Sir," Ishhin tries to call the bartender, but the man does not hear him and continues to wipe the bar. "Excuse me sir." Ishhin tries again, a little louder. Alas, the bartender must be harder of hearing than most, or he's plain ignoring him, because the man continues to wipe the bar. Ishhin starts to falter, a look on his face that wouldn't be out of place found on a kicked puppy starting to form.
A gruff, overweight man with a shiny bald spot on his crown and flowing grey locks on all the rest of his head rolls his eyes and slams a meaty palm down on the counter. "Oi, Mura!" he hollers.
The bartender jerks, head snapping up and eyes immediately trying to flay the interloper just by glaring at him. "What you want?!" he snaps.
"You've got a customer waiting to be served— you're as useless as that soiled rag you keep trying to clean the bar with! Like we all can't feel the years of grime on this piece of shit!" the man rumbles, laughing hard. The bartender is not amused, merely curling his upper lip in a remarkable impression of a merchant or someone of similar high standing. The bartender turns to the only person he hasn't seen here every night for the past two decades.
"What'll it be boyo?" The man grunts. Isshin blinks bemusedly, taking in the lack of grey in the dark close cut hair and the finely weathered face. Was this man old enough to call him boyo? "Well?" The bartender urges, impatient.
"Some type of service." Rin harrumphs.
"It's a farming community. Everyone's rough there." Jiraiya explains, chuckling at her distaste.
"Ah— a pint of whatever's on tap please." Isshin orders as politely as possible, shrinking slightly under the bartender's gruffness.
The bartender grumbles under his breath, but quickly fills the order and brusquely puts it in front of Isshin. The wanderer mumbles a thank you that goes unheard as the bartender walks away.
"And thank you, sir," Isshin adds after looking over at the man that had caught the bartender's attention for him.
The farmer snorts, the back of his right hand wiping away the stain of beer upon his lips and jowls after a hearty draught. "If you'd speak up instead of withering like a ninny he'd 'ave heard you clearly."
"You're doing well to be underestimated but sometimes that tactic doesn't always work to get people's tongue wagging." Jiraiya points out.
"Right!" Isshin laughs nervously. "But, well, I don't want to start any trouble when I've only just arrived."
"So you'd start trouble after a day or two of staying?" The farmer burrs with amusement, laughing at the startled look on Isshin's face. "Well! And what are you traveling for?"
"Just going where the wind takes me. To be honest, I've never been to Frost Country. I'm hoping to comb every part of the great countryside and enjoy my time here. Perhaps see things I've yet to see in the other nations?" Isshin babbles excitedly, hands gesturing energetically as he touches upon a comfortable topic.
The farmer makes a sound of nonchalance, taking another gulp of beer. "You've picked a funny time to travel here. Planting season is here, farmers will be very busy. I'm sure you've seen fields weeded and ploughed before so unfortunately there's nothing new for you here."
"No? Perhaps there is! Maybe interesting people! Say," Isshin leans forward just a little. "You've lived here long. Surely you must know some great spots that you wished others could see. Maybe you've even noticed something new in these lands?"
The farmer turns a suspicious eye to Isshin. As a man who kept to his plot of land and had never been struck with the desire to explore lands that were not owned by his family for generations he was naturally inclined to believe that any man who didn't keep to his own is a suspicious fellow. "Why ya want to know so badly?" The farmer growls.
Isshin shrinks back, looking like a kicked puppy. The farmer is simultaneously guilty and appalled. Guilty for being suspicious of a man who clearly had not a bit of manly intimidation about him, and appalled because the man was far too old to have the face of a kicked puppy and pull it off.
"Too much and too little." Jiraiya hums under his breath.
"Oh Jiraiya, quiet." Tsunade fusses, glaring at the man.
Discomfited, the farmer angrily turns back to his beer and drains it. Training a beady eye on Isshin the farmer growls out, "Look . . . I'm saying this because idiots like you are better off at home. There's talk of . . . strangers flitting about. Some say there's shinobi around."
"Around?!" Ishhin cries in dismay. "Around here?!"
"Not here stupid!" The farmer barks. He jerks his head to the right. "Up further. Hardly see 'im so they supposedly are in the deeper parts of the forest."
"Oh." Ishhin sips at his beer, looking thoughtful. "Well . . . shinobi are supposed to protect civilians aren't they?" he smacks his lips, grinning assuredly. "So it'll be fine!"
The farmer looks dead at Isshin, examining the man's face to see if he really was that stupid.
"What?" Isshin blinks rapidly, and the farmer nods as he realizes that the wanderer really is that stupid.
"It's your life." The farmer grunts dismissively.
"Hey now, don't be like that!" Ishhin laughs, a blush starting to stain his cheeks from the alcohol. The farmer eyes the hand Isshin waves around with disdain. Only one pint and he was starting to weave. Snorting, the farmer tunes in to the rest of the sentence. "If you just tell me what places to avoid, I won't run into any shinobi, friendly or unfriendly. What do you say?"
"I say scram." The farmer mumbles.
"Oh . . . I'll pay for your rounds." Isshin wheedles, pleadingly putting his hands together.
The farmer hums, eyeing Isshin. "Avoid the mountains, for one thing." The farmer concedes, flagging the bartender down. Isshin grins and pulls out a plain little drawstring bag, and the farmer deflates knowing that there was only enough for perhaps this next drink and that he'd been duped.
"Very good!" Jiraiya laughs. "Now you've narrowed down the search radius to about half the damn country."
"You're such a killjoy." Obito and Rin whine in unison.
Isshin walks deeper into the woods, and when he passes through a shadow Uzumaki Naruto walks out. The 'pack' is a clone, darting away into the brush, and Naruto tugs at the rough cloth that covers his frame. His henge was solid true, but that only applied to his body not his clothes. Those would just be illusions and had he made up clothes the informative farmer would perhaps have noticed the difference between the look and the feel of his clothes. Naruto hums thoughtfully, crossing his arms as he continues to trek through the forest.
"Well that makes sense, and it's what I figured." Kakashi hums.
Kurama, however, looks a little disappointed. "So it isn't true shapeshifting, like what I can do. It's a shade of it, yet to humans its very advanced henge. Well, he is human."
The mountain ranges were far away, but he'd be able to make it if he moves fast and rests for short periods. However . . . that was not the only option. There were still the swathes of forested lands, the marsh to the west . . . what would be the best bet?
Naruto thinks back to the short bio in the Bingo Book and the Intel that Tsunade scrounged up for him prior to his departure from Konoha.
Tsuchigawa Kawa. From Ame, a relic of the past when Hanzo lived and the land was tightly controlled. A jounin ranked ninja of superb caliber, the only reason he isn't S-ranked is because he's one of the few jounin that do not have a second affinity despite it being an unofficial requirement. Add to that that he's only been reported to use kunai as his weapons and he's been underestimated constantly. Of course, those who based their assumptions off the estimation paid with their lives but the technicality held him back form true "star" status. His only affinity is lightning, a true boon in a place like Ame. He'd fought in the Third Shinobi War, had battled against the Raikage and lived. He'd run from Ame because he decided the change of management just wasn't a good fit for him.
Jiraiya and Tsunade look gobsmacked. "Hanzo! Someone actually killed the Black Salamander?!" Jiraiya manages to strangle out of his vocal chords.
"Fuck, he nearly killed us. And someone just killed him?" Tsunade breathes.
"So yeah, you'd definitely be interested in that change of management." Minato chuckles darkly.
Tsunade is very interested in just who the management is. There's rumors and suspicions that Jiraiya has unearthed, but he is in key position to bring forth the truth. He knew he would not be able to defeat Kawa in his state, glancing down at the fresh bandages steeped in medication he smiles wryly. He sent a message to Sasuke earlier, though he had not received a reply. Still, he trusts Sasuke to do what he needed to do. Besides, he wouldn't steal an opponent from Sasuke. He was sure the raven-haired boy searched tirelessly for opponents that were not only worthy and strong, but would get him out of the cave and away from the snake bastard for a while.
"I truly admire Sasuke." Minato says, smiling softly. "To undertake such a strenuous task as being a double agent, at such a young age and continuing the job for nearly four years is a testament to his will and fortitude."
"I'm sure getting training from a Sannin like Orochimaru, and being able to freely investigate his brother takes the edge off a little." Obito notes wryly.
Clicking his tongue against the roof of his mouth, he realizes how far off track he's gotten. Turning the train of thought back to Kawa, he stops and leans against a tree. Ame. Superb shinobi. Lightning. Kunai. Rebelling against a regime, despite having thrived in the toughest regime there had ever been— Hanzo's regime.
Shinobi. Kunai. Lightning. Rebel.
Naruto sighs. "To the mountains it is then."
"I don't follow." Rin admits.
"I have no idea how he came to that conclusion." Obito agrees.
"I . . . could take a couple of guesses, but honestly I'm sure that trying to wrangle some semblance of logic out of Naruto's thought process is similar to slamming a revolving door shut." Kakashi ends the conversation, his last comparison bringing laughter to the group.
He opens his eyes, and locks his gaze to the glazed over stare of Kawa's decapitated head. A short scream bursts from his mouth and he reels back, stumbling over the roots of the tree.
"Oh, good one little cousin!" Obito guffaws.
A derisive short laugh, almost a scoff, comes from the head. Or rather, it comes from the person behind the head.
Naruto growls, straightening up. "You're such a dick Sasuke!"
"And you're the only pussy I've sworn never to put my dick in." Sasuke ripostes almost immediately after, lowering Kawa's head and revealing his stony face.
"Someone get Naruto some aloe vera, because he just got burned!" Obito laughs, falling off the couch.
"That was a good one." Kakashi agrees, kicking Obito in the ribs to turn the Uchiha's laughter into wheezes.
To anyone else, even Sakura and Kakashi, Sasuke would look completely closed off from the world and encased in an icy mask that betrayed nothing. However, Naruto could see the slight shift in Sasuke's coal black eyes and knew amusement danced within them. Naruto scowls, but had to give Sasuke his due.
"Ooh, good one. I had hoped you wouldn't be so quick to kill him. Did you at least get some info?" Naruto asks. "And where's the body?"
"You only need the head to collect the bounty." Is all Sasuke will say on the matter. "There was no need to interrogate him— I know who is running Ame now."
Naruto looks at Sasuke. There was more that could have been asked of Kawa. Habits of the ones who ran it, any secrets he as an elite jounin were privy to— and there would probably have been a good number of them. However, Naruto asks none of these questions because . . . honestly, he gets it. "So you've got time to talk then. How'd you know where to find me?"
Jiraiya sighs in frustration and slight anger, but besides a twist of his mouth he says nothing about Naruto getting it. Tsunade smirks at Jiraiya, punching his shoulder and thus turning the Toad Sage's thoughts from Sasuke to the great pain in his shoulder.
"Snakes." Sasuke answers, and Naruto nods ruefully.
"Sometimes, I wonder if it was a good idea to take the Toad contract so quickly." Naruto mutters in jest. "So, report genin."
"Next time we run into each other for one of Orochimaru's tests, you are so getting your ass kicked." Sasuke swears, eyes blazing with fury but still keeping that impenetrable glacier façade. "The guys running Ame are now seeking . . . an arrangement with Orochimaru."
"Ah, that might not be good." Naruto murmurs.
"Oh, it isn't. Personally as well as objectively." Sasuke agrees.
"Personally?" Naruto slowly repeats, narrowing his eyes. Sasuke didn't take things personally— unless those things were related to his strength, or his goal—
"No." Naruto whispers.
Kakashi gapes. "Holy shit it's—"
Rin whips around and smacks Kakashi, the yelping boy flying off the couch. "Okay, keep reading." She urges Tsunade, who moves from gaping at her to gaping at Kakashi. "He was going to spoil it!" Rin defends herself.
"It's going to be very irritating now, if Orochimaru does take the offer. After all, he swore never to bother with the ones who kicked him out." Sasuke's statement is the final nail in the coffin.
Naruto slumps against the tree, dumbfounded. Orochimaru and Akatsuki were about to create an alliance. God . . . the mutations of Orochimaru's creations combined with the already frankly monstrous strength of the Akatsuki members remaining meant—
"A whole lot of shit is about to go down, that's what it means." Obito whispers, regaining his breath from the laughter Sasuke's comeback and Kakashi's pain brought him.
"It wouldn't just be Orochimaru and the Akatsuki coming together would it." Naruto murmurs, looking at Sasuke. "Grass Country has so far been neutral, regardless of Orochimaru. For the daimyo to have offered him control of a hidden village . . . I never really thought about the Kusa Daimyou before, but now I'm beginning to see—"
"Even if the Daimyou had not the faintest clue about what led to Orochimaru's defection from Konoha, just the very knowledge that Orochimaru had defected from Konoha should have made him wary. Instead he took that opportunity to increase his power. Orochimaru, only a decision away from joining forces with a mercenary group of Akatsuki's ilk is another step in power. Include the leader of Akatsuki controlling not just the hidden village, but the country of Ame. Combine all the above ingredients and shake."
"Your cluster fuck is ready to be served." Naruto finishes, groaning. "So . . . it's the start of war."
"No. That situation only opens up the possibility of war. The assassination of Fire Country's Minister of Central Affairs is the start of war." Sasuke corrects.
Naruto stares at Sasuke, who just shrugs. Putting a hand over his eyes, Naruto takes a deep breath.
"What the fuck is that supposed to mean?! Has it already happened or will it happen?!" Kushina cries, disbelieving.
"Hey, what's up with your arm?" Sasuke asks.
"My Rasenshuriken is doing the same thing to my arm that it does to my enemies, but to a lesser extent." Naruto answers dully.
"Ouch." Sasuke sounds sympathetic.
"Mm. It's a kinjutsu now. I'm forbidden from using my own jutsu."
"That's rough." Sasuke notes.
"Mm."
"Hn."
Naruto blows out a deep breath. "Was there . . . anything else you wanted to tell me?" he drops his hand and raises an eyebrow, a sardonic expression on his face.
Sasuke's head tilts slightly to the side. "Well. Other than the fact that I will not lift a finger to aid any captured jinchuuriki, I did want to give you information on Uzumaki Karin and the high profile lab she oversees."
"I would never ask you to blow your cover Sasuke. I doubt they'll let you near anyway. Real exclusive, Akatsuki." Naruto replies. "So, tell me about my cousin then."
"Word is that she has an exceptional ability, her chakra being able to heal wounds with almost as much success as Tsunade. Orochimaru picked her up himself, says she was an interesting find. This is the Southern Lab. The Northern Lab holds a far more interesting person in my opinion— the originator of the Cursed Seal." Sasuke informs Naruto.
"Originator?" Jiraiya repeats, confused. "Orochimaru creates his own methods . . . considers copycat experiments beneath him. What's this about an originator?"
"The originator? I was under the impression Orochimaru created the seal." Naruto asks in confusion.
"He created the seal. But the seal is based off of that person. They call him Project Zero, the one who started off everything. Some ability, given to him by his chakra, does roughly the same thing Orochimaru's cursed seal does only without the slow and permanent descent into madness with each use of it. I don't have much more than that to give you I'm afraid. The Southern Lab is in the Southern Sea. There's an island completely converted into a grounds for Orochimaru . . . though I don't know the exact coordinates I estimate it's somewhere between the Land of Waves and Water Country. The Northern Lab . . . all I could find out was that it was somewhere in Earth Country, but as there's little information I can't say it'd be a fruitful venture." Sasuke further explains.
"Even if that Northern Lab might be gone, the Southern Lab is easily found. There's not many islands like that anyway." Jiraiya realizes with relish. "Destroying that lab, and thwarting his assassination attempts will make him spring out of whatever dark hole he's hiding in to personally handle the insults we dealt him."
"Assuming the lab is important enough to him to retaliate, and also assuming he doesn't have another plan to force Fire into war with his country. Once again: he doesn't always work on sound logic like the rest of the world does." Tsunade reminds him.
Naruto nods, slowly taking in all the information. "Sasuke . . . thank you. This will help more than you know."
Sasuke appears uncaring, and looking into his eyes there's not even a spark of emotion. The toll of this mission was taking a lot out of Sasuke, Naruto observes with worry. "Sasuke," Naruto pauses, licking his lips as he looks for the right words. "If Akatsuki does get involved with Orochimaru . . . what will you do?"
Sasuke doesn't answer for a while, blank gaze seeing past the shadowed brush and trees. "I will get my answers. And then I will kill him." Sasuke states neutrally. That's what Naruto focuses on— the tone of voice Sasuke used. Before, Sasuke could never talk about Itachi without some of the black hatred staining his voice, his face, like ichor. Now, there was nothing there.
"Wouldn't that be a good thing, him no longer staining his soul with the dark sickness revenge is?" Obito points out, confused as to why Naruto was worried.
"Yes, but did Sasuke reach that conclusion himself after some healthy self-reflection or even after lessons learned from watching Orochimaru? Or has he buried it deep, along with the other dark things that have no doubt popped up due to Orochimaru's influence, slowly tainting him in ways that not even the cursed seal could?" Jiraiya returns, making Obito fall into a pensive silence.
Does he even realize how much like Itachi he is right now? Naruto wonders. He asks, "You've still decided on killing him?"
Sasuke looks at Naruto now, determination starting to color him. "I do need to hear his side of the story. The truth of that night, as it might be. But even knowing that, I must still pass judgment in the name of the Clan. You don't just get to walk away from something like that, no matter what your reasons are. You don't kill your family, your whole family from the smallest babe to the eldest man, and not pay the price for it."
"That I can't argue with." Kakashi concedes.
"One could argue that the weight of such actions on one's soul for all his life is a suitable price. A man cannot remain unchanged, his mind cannot remain a safe haven after betraying his own soul." Naruto points out mildly.
Sasuke inclines his head in agreement. "Then the addendum to that would be, his death will end his suffering on this mortal plane. What the Kamis will make of his soul, one can only guess."
"That last line does carry a hopeful connotation for his mental state though, Jiraiya." Tsunade shows her teammate.
Jiraiya nods. "Yeah, but now it's a tightrope act between sanity and insanity so long as he remains caught between Akatsuki and Orochimaru. I don't envy that brat a bit."
Naruto didn't leave immediately after, determined to have a talk with Sasuke that did not involve Akatsuki, Konoha, not even shinobi life. Sasuke had scowled at Naruto dragging his feet, but Naruto knew by the infinitesimal softening of Sasuke's shoulders that it had aided even if for the moment. After that he wasted no time returning to Konoha, making it back just as the second day ended, but hours before the dawn of the third day would break. Naruto waits patiently as he's checked at the gate, sparing an amused smile to the skeleton crew before an ANBU shushins in front of him.
"Uzumaki-san. Hokage-sama has ordered us to ascertain the level of importance the results of your mission carries. Do you believe the information can wait?" The ANBU asks him, the voice changer in full affect.
"An extra measure. Whatever he has to say I want to hear, but can I sleep a little longer or is the day about to get very long?" Tsunade clarifies, scowling at Jiraiya who had been the first to turn with a scowl to her.
Naruto scowls. "Asking that question is a one way ticket to one-on-one training with me. I know waking Tsunade is only a death wish, but if you really loved living you wouldn't be in ANBU, eh?"
"Harsh Naru-chan." Rin sighs.
"Please wait in the office. ANBU are guarding the area and will have the door open for you." ANBU Cho replies after the slightest pause, and leaves to awaken the Hokage.
Naruto groans, cracking his neck on both sides before making his own move, heading for the Hokage's Tower. Naruto took his time, the muscles in his legs starting to warm past a comfortable stage and his feet pounded down. Naruto takes a deep breath, a huge gulp, of cool sweet night air. He looks to the sky above, dark and so close to pitch black he's awestruck. The cloud cover is thick this night and the new moon doesn't help. When he gets to the tower, an ANBU opens it and he walks in without comment but gives the operative a nod. Naruto walks up the stairs at a slow pace, and when he finally gets to the door he stops for three seconds and then opens the door.
Tsunade's gaze instantly is upon him, brown almond eyes flitting shortly from head to toe before searing into his own blue eyes. "What have you found out?"
"You've really taken excellently to the job. Could I count on you as a stand-in?" Minato asks, respect clear in his voice.
Tsunade smiles. "Sure. Sounds like fun, really."
Naruto walks to the middle of the room, eyes straight forward. He bows with due respect, then raises out of the bow.
Tsunade sighs heavily, a pale hand coming up to cover her eyes. "Oh shit."
"When Naruto takes the time to show you respect like a proper Hokage, shit is so serious." Kakashi snickers.
Naruto cracks a small smile but it vanishes in a blink and he locks eyes with Tsunade when she lowers her hand. "Akatsuki has approached Orochimaru with an alliance."
"Oh shit." Jiraiya grumbles, large body forming from the shadows of a corner of the office and moving to stand alongside Tsunade's desk.
Naruto smiles fully now. "Hey sensei."
Jiraiya laughs. "You and your son, Minato, are the only two to ever give me such bright smiles every time you see me."
Minato smiles brightly. "That's because, you are our sensei, Jiraiya-sensei."
Jiraiya snorts softly, reluctant amusement on his face as he eyes Naruto. "Don't smile at me after dropping that bomb."
"Well, prepare yourself then if you're really going to have such a soft stomach about it." Naruto warns. "At first I brought up Orochimaru's less than amicable parting from them in the first place, but Sasuke assures me Orochimaru seems very capable of putting that behind him if Ame and Oto ally together."
Jiraiya's eyes darken with malevolence, fingers digging into his arms where they're crossed. "So the rumors are true. Akatsuki has control of Ame."
"Yes. That's what Kawa was running from. Whoever runs Akatsuki is apparently not his cup of tea . . ."
"Whereas he was thriving under Hanzo's rule, and isn't that scary." Tsunade mumbles. "Anything else?"
"There's always something else." Jiriaya breathes tiredly. "When isn't there something else?"
"The information he gave me about Uzumaki Karin, while brief, did yield a gem I believe would be quite useful for us if for nothing else but a good warning to Orochimaru. Sasuke for some reason mentioned something about assassinating our Minister of Central Affairs?"
Jiraiya and Tsunade stiffen, sharing a long look before turning back to Naruto. "The Minister of Central Affairs is going in lieu of the Minister of Agriculture to speak about barley imports to Kaminari no Kuni among other matters. Coming with him are some other lower tier members of the Finances Ministry. Even one of them facing so much as a shinobi skirmish will have the Royal Court breathing down our necks. God help us if one of them are killed it will be a challenge to the entire country. You think a Shinobi War is bad? At least with wars just between hidden villages the battles are done in private, civilians and the rest of the country going unaware with only the minimum of people in the Royal court aware that there even is a war going on. When you bring the entire country into it . . . that's when you factor in civilian casualties, attacks on an entire country's facilities. Scorched earth, razed towns, you name it." Tsunade explains, almost growling. "The First War was like that, with the courts excited over the newly built shinobi villages and spoiling for fights . . . if the hidden villages had bad blood between them, it was eventually discovered that we took care of our own discreetly."
"It was truly that horrible?" Minato asks gravely.
"When you feel like the Second War was a much smoother affair than the first . . . yeah. Of course, I was very young when it happened. My recollections wouldn't do anything for you. Kurama, were you awake during that time?" Tsunade asks the Fox.
Kurama nods. "After the sealing it took me a few months to wake up. Afterwards I cared little for the outside world but I did hear of things, see things as well, from Mito's point of view when she aided in the fight. Yes . . . bureaucratic wars are very messy for the people. Not so much for the bureaucrats themselves. Pray you never have to fight in that kind of war."
Jiraiya speaks up now, turning away from the tumultuous memories of early childhood. Funny how one war seemingly blended into another. "What is important about this lab?"
"Sasuke says it's in the Southern Sea, and estimates it to be between Wave and Water Country. He mentioned another lab, but there is little information on where it might be besides, he believes, that it's in Earth Country. Unfortunate, as the Northern Hideout holds Project Zero—"
"Project Zero? And this is a human being?" Tsunade interrupts, curious.
Naruto shrugs. "You tell me. Can the inspiration and the origin of the Cursed Seal be human?"
"Origin?!" Jiraiya snaps, looking intensely at Naruto. "Are you saying this person is the creator of the seal?"
"No." Naruto shakes his head, frowning lightly as he attempts to create a solid explanation from the little information Sasuke could give. "Not the creator. The originator. Whatever this person has, whatever he can do, it was the inspiration of the Cursed Seal. Sasuke described it as . . . ah, how to put this . . . this person gave Orochimaru the foundation to begin his research into creating the seal. As I said before, there is little information thus further exploring this avenue is nothing but an exercise in frustration. More important is this possible assassination attempt against the Minister of Central Affairs."
"Sixteen and so accustomed to spy reports. Does my heart good!" Jiraiya sniffs.
"You are correct." Tsunade sighs. "The Labs . . . well, Orochimaru is expecting something after the death of our genin team. While you were away the news was revealed and suffice to say, opinions on Oto and any Oto shinobi are very ugly."
"I just bet. The poor families of those genin . . . deaths on your first C-rank are a relatively low statistic." Kushina observes.
Jiraiya nods, uncrossing his arms and pacing slowly. "Hitting one of his labs would be a very loud response to that call though."
"Jiraiya-sama." Kakashi mutters in a tone of expectation yet slight incredulity.
"Yeah I know, hardly expect that from me." Jiraiya nods with a smirk. "But, you'll see one day kid, questions like that are valid if heartless."
Naruto raised an eyebrow, questioning Jiraiya's response. "He killed our shinobi. Jounin and green genin at that. Wouldn't the destruction of his precious lab be just what he deserves?"
Jiraiya sends Naruto a sharp look at the slight provocation in Naruto's tone. "I'm as mad as you are at the deaths of our comrades, but not using our heads and just picking up the gauntlet and dancing to his tune won't help a damn thing on our side, but it'll certainly give him some amusement! More Konoha shinobi to kill, he'll just laugh it up."
"Wasn't you who said creating a pattern out of Orochimaru's habits is a setup for failure?" Kushina reminds Jiraiya.
Jiraiya rolls his eyes. "God help this kid, he's got no choice but to be spoiled."
Naruto glares, understanding the caution needed but Jiraiya's wording chafes him. "Sitting with our thumbs in our asses and our noses in the air is probably just as funny to him."
"And that is also a good, completely valid, point." Jiraiya admits begrudgingly.
"Enough!" Tsunade warns them, making the two men back down slightly, looking out the window into the dark night. "Who's to say the lab is even that important to him. Maybe he'll come for us without rhyme or reason, because above all we know Orochimaru hates Konoha. He can't stand our continued existence, but he's patient except when he's impatient. It's a knife's edge."
Tsunade takes a deep breath, eyes drifting shut and her head leans forward to rest against her interlaced knuckles. The room is silent as Naruto and Jiraiya await the next move from Tsunade.
Tsunade rises her head up just enough to let her brown eyes show over her hands. "I'll need to consult the Elders, before I can decide on a course of action. I promise that I will have a decision made within the next twenty-four hours. Naruto, Jiraiya. Dismissed."
"Good night, Hokage-sama." Naruto bids her farewell with a gentle, teasing tone as he left the room.
"Get back to sleep Hime. You're going to be rung out later." Jiraiya advises, leaving Tsunade to groan in despair.
In the early dawn, after a scant three hours of sleep, Naruto looks up at the ceiling of his bedroom. One word repeats in his head every so often, an echo on a broken record.
War.
"The first's the worst one." Obito admits.
"The only one." Rin mutters to Obito, who snorts.
"Don't make me come over there you two!" Minato demands.
Naruto never really thought he'd fight in a war. Even when they had started going head to head with the Akatsuki, that was just . . . altercations. A rogue group that needed to be dealt with. Somehow, everything snowballed into a much bigger problem than he had ever anticipated.
"Ain't that the truth. But I think . . . our very early proactive attitude probably put them on edge and of course events went on from there." Jiraiya groans.
Jiraiya . . . he probably knew though. Naruto could recall many times, in the early years of the training trip, when he would boast about wiping the floor with Akatsuki so Kurama could never worry about being controlled, and bringing in Orochimaru as an early Christmas present for Jiraiya. The man would smile, would shoot holes into Naruto's pride . . . but he'd never joke as boisterously about it as other subjects. Jiraiya always seemed to know. He, the young foolish chuunin, was far too naïve compared to the Toad Sage.
"And while that is true—" Jiraiya cuts himself off, frowning.
Minato, giving Jiraiya a look, finishes for the man. "Sensei, you too thought it wouldn't be as difficult. Certainly that the problems of Orochimaru and Akatsuki would come together into one mess."
"Orochimaru is just too prideful!" Tsunade bursts out unexpectedly. "How could we think he'd agree to work with someone else?"
"After the Sand invasion?!" Kushina demands, the blunt reminder of a time when Orochimaru did indeed work with someone making the Sannin flinch. "And look— you've done what you said not to all along, apply a line of logic to Orochimaru."
War was such a foreign concept to him. Reading about wars . . . was nothing like being in one. You read about the battle at Tokishima Pass, about the destruction of an important facility for the opposition. The books described the pincer movement of the troops, of the noble sacrifice of countless shinobi for their comrades; the heroes of the war that cut paths of blood through enemy forces in retaliation and honor. But the history books could never describe the real impact, what the shinobi and people actually felt.
"He's just full of wisdom this morning." Kurama murmurs caustically.
You couldn't read about it, but you could see it in every jounin who had fought in a war. Naruto saw it in Jiraiya sometimes, when the man would stare directly into the campfire but no light flickered in his shadowed eyes. He saw it in how Kakashi would never forgive himself. He saw it, many times, in the old man Sandaime who was too old and too tired.
"That's not just war . . . but it's the majority." Kakashi admits, seeing Jiraiya grin a little at Naruto's observation.
Naruto frowns, eyes flicking over to the curtain covered window that showed a slight amount of light from the sun peeking over the land and lighting the sky. Sighing quietly, he looks down to his chest covered in silky orange hair, Katsu sleeping quietly. Smiling, he brushes several strands of hair away from her twitching nose. Katsu sighs quietly in relief, and moves an inch higher. Naruto looks back at the ceiling for a moment, contemplating further action briefly. He closes his eyes, and tries hard to sleep.
"It'll be hard, but we believe in you." Kushina assures her son.
On the other side of the village, a Hokage meets with the Elders.
"We cannot be hasty." Homura murmurs.
"We cannot show weakness!" Koharu reminds him testily.
"The Elders are at odds?" Minato asks, eyebrows raised. "They're usually in sync."
"I cannot drink. I cannot drink . . ." Tsunade chants under her breath, resisting the urge to bury her face in her hands. Usually Homura and Koharu would be in sync and thus drive Tsunade to crave alcohol by ganging up on her. Today however, the two are, surprisingly, of different opinions.
Homura, by now, is fed up with the issue and cannot understand why his view cannot be seen as clearly. "Do you not remember the reports from not only the retrieval team sent after Uchiha Sasuke four years ago, but the reports of the jounin attacked by the same Oto team? Perhaps you can excuse the genin's accounts of supreme difficulty simply because of their rank and experience, but when a group of jounin that include elites such as Shiranui Genma and Kato Shizune also share the same difficulty that sends up red flags in my mind!
"Ooh excellent point. This might be a good one." Tsunade enthuses.
We can assume that most of Orochimaru's forces consist of shinobi with the cursed seal that grants such an increase in abilities. Need I also remind you of the recent invasion by another team of Orochimaru's, this time featuring the last of Iwa's once great Clan? We have lost too many shinobi! We never recovered from the Kyuubi attack, the invasion of Suna and Oto, the most recent invasion using our own natural defenses—"
"Damn these are all good points. I doubt Konoha's ever been so low on strength." Rin mutters, biting the knuckle of her right index finger.
"And now the killing of our shinboi from Akatsuki and Oto." Koharu finished viciously. "We fought back against the Kyuubi, we fought and won the invasion during the Chuunin Exam and we fought back and won against the rogue Iwa nin! Why should this time be any different?"
"By comparison this argument is mostly patriotism and a reminder, albeit credible, of our old track record." Obito adds, face creased with worry.
"We lost one shinobi to an Akatsuki attack, and regrettable as that was it was, at best, an unfortunate accident." Homura states evenly, well aware of the glare Tsunade shoots at him. "And though the genin team is a more severe offence, we cannot bite off more than we can chew. We fought and won, against Sand, Sound, the former Iwa clan because we had to. Those battles were not about restoring honor, it was about survival. It was about preventing the fall of the Leaf! To put it bluntly, one dead genin team is not detrimental to the future of Konoha."
Rin bristles, and Jiraiya sees this as a good learning opportunity. The quicker they learn the darkness of this job the better. "You say it's heartless, and it is. There's no bones about it. But the world of the shinobi doesn't have much room for the sentiments and notions of your heart. We want your mind, your blood, your sweat and toil. Try thinking about it now, weighing all of the village against a team already dead— their troubles are over."
"While that may be true, the dead genin team is not much in the scheme of things," Koharu pauses at the disgusted sneer that crosses Tsunade's face. She frowns at the too obvious gesture but plows on. "It is the message that dead team sends that can spell future trouble for Konoha. You know this too, Tsunade-hime."
Tsunade sighs angrily, not wanting to be pulled in until their opinions were more in line. "In my eyes, neither of those points are valid. Homura-san, you believe that ignoring the 'slight' from Orochimaru will make him bored with Konoha and turning away. Koharu-san, you believe firmly retaliating and showing that we will not shy away will make Orochimaru stay his hand. Both of you are wrong. Orochimaru will attack us because it's Monday. He'll attack us because we've had a remarkable success against Akatsuki. He'll attack us . . . because at the end of the day he hates us. And logic does not go hand in hand with hate."
"All I'm hearing are valid points and excellent arguments. Each one of them holds a viable truth. How do you choose a course of action then?" Obito asks, baffled.
"You said you wanted to be Hokage right? That's a question Hokage's must answer." Minato reminds him with a smile.
Obito shakes his head at Minato, smiling. "Take the job from your son? Oh no, why be Hokage when I want so much more to see what Naruto would do as Hokage."
The irrefutable truth cools the tempers of Homura and Koharu. They were not close with any of Hiruzen's students, but Orochimaru's strange behavior was never something subtle. Who in Konoha was not aware of Orochimaru's insanity intertwined seamlessly with his remarkable genius?
"So my question is," Tsunade starts again, eyes unfocused as she stares ahead. "Whatever action we take . . . will it even matter?"
"That's a question every Hokage asks." Homura comments quietly. "The real question is: What do you want to do?"
Tsunade absorbs the gravity of the seemingly simple question. Her eyes continue to look ahead in a haze, before the steel in her soul sharpens those brown orbs like a hawk on a prey. "I want to destroy Orochimaru. I want to destroy Akatsuki." Tsunade blinks, the steel softening as she clears her throat and hides the savagery in her voice.
"Let's start off with Orochimaru first. We can handle him ourselves. Perhaps our allies would be willing to lighten the burden and share in a little Akatsuki hunting." Tsunade finishes with a barely there smirk, eyes falling to a sheet of blank paper.
"A fitting test." Koharu agrees. "Now. How do you plan to respond to Orochimaru?"
"We've received intel about a lab base in the Southern Sea. We can start there." Tsunade states after a pause. "Orochimaru has been amassing more lab experiments, and I can only guess what for. So, however we can thin his forces is good enough."
"So it's off to the Southern Sea." Minato states. "It's going to be very dangerous. A team will be hard to select, there's so many factors . . ."
"Excellent Hokage-sama. Who would you choose to lead the attack on the base then?" Homura enquires.
Tsunade breathes deeply and leans back in her chair. Her folded hands rest on the edge of the desk and she looks at them for a moment, the light reflected on her brown nail polish. Orochimaru's labs, filled with his enhanced soldiers . . . they'd need strength, they'd need power . . . they'd need a powerhouse, a distraction, a strategist . . .
"Maito Gai. Nara Shikamaru. Hyuuga Neji. And Uzumaki Naruto." Tsunade decides finally.
Minato's face brooks no discomfort with the arrangement but he does speak up. "Perhaps Kakashi and Gai might have made a better duo?"
"The two of them might work well together, but Neji is not only a jounin but a former genin under Gai. Those two will work together just as well, no doubt their synchronization would not be dissimilar from Kakashi with his Sharingan and Gai. The only thing that might be missing are the shouts of bets." Tsunade answers. "Besides, I'm betting I send Kakashi to ensure the safety of the Minister."
"Do you think it wise to continue sending the jinchuuriki out on missions, especially to a lab of Orochimaru's? You just told us he was forming an alliance with Akatsuki!" Koharu reminds Tsunade a tad waspishly. To continue risking their jinchuuriki to capture was folly, and a danger to Konoha's security.
"I have to agree." Minato speaks softly. "You'll need Naruto's prowess as the strongest jinchuuriki more than you would need his skills for such a mission, as superb a shinobi as he will be."
Kushina frowns. "The same could apply to me, but the Sandaime also realized that the possibility of needing me as a jinchuuriki is nonexistent in comparison to needing me as an excellent jounin . . . in my own humble opinion of course."
"Of course." Jiraiya agrees laughingly. "However, it's more apparent for Naruto that his role as a jinchuuriki is going to come up more than it ever did for you. For one, you were never even trained in the bijuu's chakra because of the nature of your seal. Naruto has trained specifically to use Kurama's chakra, and he is very aware of the fact that the Akatsuki from now one will necessitate the use of Kurama's chakra."
"From a military point of view, having Naruto kept away until the major battles is best. However, I can see the benefits of having him out in the open for morale and a façade of security." Kurama adds.
"Uzumaki Naruto will be invaluable to the mission, the same as the others. We haven't had much need for a jinchuuriki since the time of the former's demise. However, we need shinobi of Naruto's caliber. I must put his value as a shinobi first before his weight as a jinchuuriki." Tsunade dismisses Koharu's case, making the old woman stiffen slightly before letting the matter go.
Tsunade eyes Homura and Koharu. When no other protests or points were brought up, she continued. "Jiraiya is already scouting the islands from Wave to Water, with the help of the Toads. I expect he'll come back with information in three days. In three days, I'll send the team out to destroy the lab."
Three days later, in the Nara Compound at 9:45 a.m., Shikamaru is sneaking back to his room for a lie-in. He so desperately needs a lie-in . . . he hadn't slept past noon for six months. Six. Damn. Months.
"Shikaku was just like that too . . . his first days as jounin." Minato recalls with a smile.
"Nothing compared to his bellyaching when he got with Yoshino." Kushina snickers.
Shikamaru crept on his hands and knees, too scared to appear larger than a dog for fear he'd register on his mother's radar. He was approaching the corner he'd turn to get down the hallway and make it to his room. Shikamaru slowly lifted one knee, slid it forward and then gently touched it to the ground, applying more weight gradually and shifting his body forward just a little. He could see past the corner of the wall, down to that gloriously darkened hallway where the abrasive rays of the sun could not be felt!
Shikamaru daringly reached his hand forward and tapped it lightly on the ground. He was so. Close . . .
"Shikamaru!" His mother's yell was so much closer than he'd like. A small but monstrously strong hand curls around the back of his shirt's neck and yanks him backward, the neck pressing into his throat violently and choking him for the few seconds it was strung there. He lands on his back hard enough to force his breath out of his mouth, and he blinks rapidly up at the angry tigress that is his mother 24/7.
"Oh you were so close kid!" Jiraiya laughs.
"Not a chance. Yoshino had him pegged in a second." Kushina refutes, laughing.
"I hope you weren't thinking of trying to sleep in, Shikamaru!" Yoshino smiles unpleasantly, eyes dark and trained directly on her lazy son's wide orbs. "Because . . . there's so much to do today."
Shikamaru valiantly withheld his shivers. "Tch. I'm sure it can wait for at least an hour, come on kaa-san . . ."
Yoshino's facial features contorts into disdain, and her lip adopts a pronounced curl making her look impressively like a Yakuza boss demanding his due. "What did you just say?"
"Oh, the impressive you're-about-to-become-my-bitch face!" Obito informs them all.
"Obito, what?" Kakashi chuckles.
". . ." Shikamaru gulps. "I-I'll get dressed to start my day."
Yoshino's face relaxes from Yakuza death dealer to caring home maker wife, complete with a warm and lovely aura. "That's so good to hear Shikamaru-kun. I'm so glad you're taking on your responsibilities!"
Shikamaru is about to respond, when his father finally steps in. Yoshino turns in surprise and welcome, thus missing the ugly looks Shikamaru was throwing his traitorous father. Said father is doing a remarkable job keeping all laughter and other emotions besides apathy from off of his face. "Shikaku! I thought you'd be out all day?" Yoshino reminds her husband, hoping he isn't shirking some duty.
I want that too, with my family, Minato muses to himself.
"Children can just be so ungrateful sometimes." Kurama grumbles half-hearted, thinking of his own sons.
Shikaku shrugs, now looking at his son. "I met an ANBU on the way here. Shikamaru, you've got a mission. You'd better get to the Hokage's office."
Shikamaru isn't sure whether he's relieved or even more put-out. Sure he's out from under the thumb of his monster-worker mother but . . . a mission . . . what a drag.
Hyuuga Neji meditates under the peach tree with Hinata. She had asked his help for training today, and he never misses meditation during a training. Their chakras circulate through their bodies, each tenketsu accounted for and pulsing. Neji insists that both he and Hinata push chakra into a single tenketsu first, adding more as time passes.
"Only a Hyuuga." The group choruses.
"Hmm . . . my third son started something like that, but it was with youki not chakra." Kurama mentions, smiling proudly. "Of course he was teased greatly by his brothers."
"Good morning ANBU-san." Neji greets the new entity formally.
Neji opens his eyes, but Hinata's head is already titled towards the ANBU kneeling in front of him. Neji smirks and compliments her progress. "You have greatly improved your sensing ability Hinata-sama. Learning one's own inner environment is the first step to working upon the outside."
"As you say, Neji nii-san." Hinata agrees with a sweet smile. "Is there a message for us, ANBU-san?"
"Just for Neji-san, Hyuuga-sama. Hyuuga Neji, the Godaime Hokage orders you to appear for a mission briefing." In a swirl of leaves, the ANBU leaves.
Hinata's eyes widen at how fast the Shunshin was done, and the thickness of the leaves that almost completely hid his departure.
Neji raises an eyebrow. "They've taken training very seriously since Naruto's ransacking. Hinata-sama, my apologies, but training will be cut short."
"Oh, the ANBU training chapter!" Rin gasps. "It's been so long since then too . . ."
"LEE!"
"GAI-SENSEI!"
"Gai is so rude, pulling that shit so early in the morning. I'll work hard to beat manners and a sense of timing into him from now on. For the common good." Kakashi vows, cracking his knuckles.
"Good," Obito smiles. "Pay him back for all that he did for you as your new best friend."
"LEE!"
"GAI-SENSEI!"
"God damn it I just had to quit smoking yesterday." The ANBU grumbles under her breath, before regaining her professional attitude. "Maito G—"
Gai swings around and hits her full in the face with a mouth full of glittering teeth, the product of his euphoria after a productive training session. His mini-me Lee has as little mercy as his sensei metaphorically kicking her in the gut with his own euphoria that combines into their signature horrifying sunset genjutsu.
It's not even ten in the morning and there's a sunset, the ANBU notes in a numb fashion. She is a seasoned shinobi. She's gone on countless S-ranks, solo A-ranks, the works. But the combined force of Maito Gai and Rock Lee never fail to send a shiver of dread down her spine.
"Such power against our enemies . . . how long would they be blinded, and how best could we capitalize on it?" Minato wonders, smirking.
"Ah, salutations and a beautiful morning to you ANBU-san!" Gai booms as is his way. "I hope your flames burn as brightly as ours do, youthful shinobi!"
"Good morning." The ANBU replies succinctly. "Maito Gai, you are needed on a mission. Go to the Hokage's office as swiftly as possible."
"Thank you for giving me the message ANBU-san!" Gai thanks her cheerily, very loudly. Turning to Lee as the ANBU departs he tells the boy, "Sorry Lee, but I've got to go. Don't slack on your training and continue to push yourself! When we get back we will spar, and I expect you to last fifteen minutes this time!"
"I will do my very best Gai-sensei!" Lee assures his sensei, eyes bright with inner fire.
"But you have to admire their work ethic and plain old enthusiasm for what they do." Kushina prods the others, grinning at the reluctant admission from Kakashi.
"And so," Anko guffaws. "And so then I shoved a rectal thermometer down his throat!"
"Oh that's sick." Asuma grumbles around the rim of his tea cup. "Come on Anko not when we're eating."
"Oh I'm sorry, did you think we were sitting down with Suoh Mari?" Kakashi snorts, idly stabbing his fork into the crumbly, yummy crust of his breakfast pie. He swipes the last of his whipped cream on the fork and "eats" it. No one is quite sure where that food goes, they just know somehow it's getting eaten.
"It is being digested as normally as any other person." Kakashi snorts.
"But did he know it was a rectal thermometer?" Naruto persists in asking much to his seatmates' horror. Katsu shudders and tries to squirm away but she's on Naruto's lap and his arms are like steel bands. There's no moving from the sickness.
"He watched me pull it out, if you know what I mean!" Anko nearly screams with manic glee, making Mitarashi and Uzumaki cackle with unholy amusement.
"Oh Naruto, I thought you knew better than that!" Tsunade growls, Kushina nodding with her as she twists her mouth into a severe frown.
"This is . . . fun?" Sai mumbles to himself, pushing another forkful of pie into his mouth.
"No Sai. It's not." Obito deadpans.
"Oh, it's been a while since we've seen Sai." Rin muses.
"He was there in chapter fifty-five." Jiraiya reminds her in a bored fashion.
Kakashi sighs, hearing the young man's confusion. "No, it's really not, not for normal people. It's considered poor taste to share stories involving rectums and other such things at the table but Anko has always been a woman of rather poor tastes. Just look at the trench coat she's been wearing for the past fifteen years."
"BURN!" Rin and Obito howl.
"Oh Kakashi, slipping into such a childish game?" Minato mock scolds the boy.
"Ooh!" Naruto rocks back and clutches Katsu tighter, face contorting in mock agony. "The gauntlet has been thrown~!"
"Oh, we want to talk about tired fashions Kakashi? Because I'm pretty sure that's the same mask you wore back in the Third War." Anko snaps back.
"That is true." Rin nods, Obito cackling as Kushina and Minato play along.
"Fuck all of you, I change masks every year!" Kakashi yells.
"Oh no she didn't." Katsu stage whispers.
"Ooh yes she did!" Naruto instigates further, wide eyed and grinning crazily as the two shinobi generated sparks of tension between them.
"Have you even changed that chainmail body suit in the past week?" Kakashi challenged.
Anko waves away the weak comeback. "I was more focused on my mission. Remember when you were dedicated to performing missions to your best ability Fuckashi?"
Jiraiya snorts. "Fuckashi. That's a good one."
"Oh she totally smeared your mission record. You just going to take that?" Minato eggs on, despite this being a future event. It was fun to see the Kakashi of their present turning such pretty shades of red, as close to Kushina's hair as he can make the boy go.
Kakashi didn't rise to the bait, merely rolled his eye in an unaffected manner. "I assumed Naruto hadn't taken out the trash but I see it's sitting at the table now . . ."
Anko heaves to her feet, kunai spinning between her nimble fingers already as her fury is set off. "Oh you son of a—! What?!" She shouts as the ANBU, his arrival having cut off her impressive spiel.
"Naruto-san, the Godaime Hokage calls you for a mission. Please go to the office as soon as possible." The ANBU delivers his message.
Naruto sighs, but nods. "Yeah, thanks Inoshishi."
"Ah but I haven't even told you about the best part yet!" Anko pouts, not forgetting about her internal vow to eviscerate Kakashi but upset her avid listener will be going.
"Well . . . this mission is important." Naruto murmurs. He turns his head and kisses Katsu gently. "I might not get to see you before I go, so, take care alright?"
"And you stay safe." Katsu reminds him earnestly. "When you get back I'll be able to tell you all about Fu's first day at the Shinobi Archives."
"Oh I know that's going to kill her. Count me in!" Naruto laughs.
"Oh I'm glad to hear Fu is doing alright. It's been some time since we heard from her!" Kushina smiles.
Tsunade watches the group in front of her, standing behind her desk, leaning forward with her palms flat upon the aged, silky wood.
"I've chosen you four specifically for this mission." Tsunade starts quietly, the steel and fervor in her voice drawing them in with rapt attention. "I am assigning you four to destroy a laboratory of Orochimaru's in the Southern Sea, on an island off the coast of Mizu no Kuni. The lab is believed to hold some of the stronger, and more dangerous experiments of Orochimaru. Extreme caution must be taken!"
"You can say that again. You probably ought to, an Uzumaki is on your team." Obito snickers.
"You want to say that again –ttebane?!" Kushina challenges Obito darkly, her smirk sharp. Obito gulps and cowers, attempting to hide between Rin and the couch cushions.
"Hokage-sama, may I ask why only one team is being sent? For a lab, wouldn't it be better to have a back-up team to either clean up stragglers or to handle any snag in the plans?" Shikamaru asks. It would certainly help if they were going to be heading straight toward that crazy snake's lab.
"Would that I could. Homura was not exaggerating when he described the blows our forces have taken." Tsunade sighs.
Tsunade's eyes gleam. "The whole purpose of the team's creation is to eliminate the need for a back-up team. Had you been any other run of the mill shinobi, yes I'd advise a back-up team. But a team consisting of the Elemental Nation's number one taijutsu expert, a prodigy of the Hyuuga Clan, a tactical genius well on the way to surpassing Konoha's Jounin Commander, and a jinchuuriki who is also a burgeoning Seal Master . . . you've got everything you need."
"A Nara who's had previous experience with purportedly the strongest shinboi Orochimaru had at the time, and defeated them with only genin." Minato concedes with a pleased smile.
"Maito Gai, who needs no other explanation." Kakashi admits, grinning ruefully.
"The prodigy of the second strongest Clan, behind the Uchiha of course, and a fine example of a true blue cool shinobi." Obito rallies.
"And the scion of the Uzumaki Clan, wielder of the King of Demons and every bit the bringer of chaos that he is named for." Kushina finishes with a proud smile.
"And, if all else fails, send in Kurama." Jiraiya adds almost as an afterthought, making the others laugh.
Naruto frowns, deciding to point out a flaw in that plan. "Ah, you know, Kurama still isn't—" A sudden burning in his abdomen and a quietly muttered report from the demon inside of him makes his jaws click together. "Never mind." He excuses himself.
Tsunade raises an eyebrow, but lets it go. Looking over the team as a whole, she nods in one final assessment. "You have three weeks to destroy the lab. Failure to do so within the time limit will mark this mission as a failure."
"We will not fail, Hokage-sama!" Gai proclaims. "The unyouthful Orochimaru and his lab bereft of youth will soon be destroyed!"
"If he wasn't such a frighteningly good taijutsu user, he'd be more than fit for rehabilitation assistance." Obito laughs.
"Sure. The patients would get so fed up with youth they'd just force their bodies to heal and get the hell out of the hospital." Kakashi snorts, back to his suffering attitude for Gai.
"We will make sure not even ashes are left . . . and avenge our fallen comrades." Neji agrees quietly, the vehemence of his words reminding them all of the senseless slaughter the Oto nins indulged in.
Tsunade smirks. "Dismissed!"
"Yes Hokage-sama!" The team yells, but when they depart Naruto stays behind.
"Naruto?" Tsunade enquires. Naruto pauses, looking back to the door where Shikamaru and Neji still wait.
"I'll be at the gate with you guys, I just need to speak with Hokage-sama for a moment." Naruto informs them. The two nod to him, and close the door. Once the door closes fully, Naruto seems to droop.
"Naruto, what's wrong?" Tsunade asks warily, the almost abrupt drop in vibrancy disturbing to see in the young man.
"Nade . . ." Naruto mutters lowly. Desolate blue eyes lock with hers. "They . . . they got Utakata."
"Who?" Jiraiya tilts his head. "Did we hear that name before?"
Tsunade stiffens. "Utakata . . . the jinchuuriki holding the Rokubi that was roaming the lands?"
"Oh no!" Rin gasps, hands flying to her mouth. "They've gotten another bijuu!"
"Hmph. Tuck luck you old slug." Kurama mutters, a trace of sympathy in his voice.
"Yes. Kurama was able to view it from afar, but dared not interfere. After all, his construct is still that of a shadow clone." Naruto replies sadly. "It seems the deal with the Snake bastard went through. They're going to be a lot bolder, I think, with added forces."
"I'll inform the other Kages, and caution them with their own jinchuuriki." Tsunade sighs, rubbing her temples. "I wish Kurama had gotten here earlier. Now I question the wisdom of sending you out there. I thought they could only take the bijuu in order?"
"It was merely a hypothesis though, and a shaky one." Minato murmurs to himself, thinking it over. "But maybe they just needed the first one as a foundation, and then the order wasn't particular with the exception of one and nine?"
"It was a speculation based on their previous actions. Maybe they chose to do it by how easy it would be to catch the jinchuuriki . . . after all, Yugito barely escaped the one attempt they made to take her due to the preventative measures Raikage-sama took. I don't know, now . . . They tried only once to take me, when I was twelve. Otherwise, it's been the lower bijuu they've been chasing after."
Tsunade nods slowly. "It's possible they must only save the Kyuubi for last, since Kurama is the strongest Bijuu . . . hell, but he's not even really a bijuu."
"I'm still going on this mission. But I thought you should know. When I return, I'd like to find Isobu again and devise a way to keep tabs on him." Naruto requests.
"Yes, with him not being in a human it could end up making things very difficult for him. Even if he can shift into a human I doubt his chakra signature would change. And then they'd know that the bijuu can shift into human forms." Jiraiya grumbles. "Perhaps its best to seal him into something for a while . . ."
"What could hold him? Even if he agreed to the sealing and was as docile as a kitten, just the sheer force of nature that his is wouldn't be contained in something simple." Minato argues.
Tsunade nods. "Granted. Now hurry up and go, you don't want to hold up the mission."
"Yeah. See you, Nade." Naruto bows briefly, then tears out of the office, hurtling towards home. As he suspected, Katus had already left for work, and the others had vacated the premises. Naruto quickly equipped himself— his kunai pouch, plenty of scrolls both filled and empty attached to his belt with new packs of ink and brushes, an emergency cache of flash/chakra/explosive tags, and he seals all his weapons on his forearms and his shoulders.
"Ready Kurama? We're about to go somewhere fun!" Naruto cheers.
After visiting that timid little turtle, I am going to thoroughly enjoy this mission! Kurama snarls with brutal enthusiasm, something that transfers to Naruto and makes his trip to the gate even quicker.
"Sometimes . . . a lot of times . . . I get bored. For the first damn near century and a hal with Mito and then Kushina I was so bored. So. Bored. Naruto's the most fun I will have in ages." Kurama explains, answering the wondering looks graciously. "So, when you're free you take every advantage you can of it."
"I can understand that." Kakashi muses, Obito nodding along.
"Yosh! Naruto-kun your flames of youth are an inferno!" Gai shouts, giving Naruto a thumb-up. Naruto grins wickedly, cracking his neck.
"Come on, it's going to take us a while to get there but I know a couple guys in Wave who'll be willing to sail us. Gentleman, we're going on a day cruise!" Naruto invites them, laughing at the eager grins he receives.
"Yosh! We're off!" Gai roars, streaking away in a fleeting flicker of green.
Neji shakes his head with a sigh. "When will he learn to conserve energy on a mission? The flames of youth won't be with him much longer . . ." Nevertheless Neji too, is gone in a blur of cream and brown.
"Ah, that's right, because . . . we're thirty now." Kakashi shudders, almost depressed by the thought.
"You're thirty now." Rin and Obito snort, laughing as they gave each other high-fives.
"I swear . . ." Minato mutters, shaking his head at the tasteless joke.
"Hey what the hell is the matter with thirty anyway?!" Tsunade snaps, cracking her knuckles.
Naruto shivers with pent up energy. "Man, this is gonna really suck for you Shikamaru."
"Can't you just make me a clone?" Shikamaru asks pitifully.
"You heard Neji, we've got to conserve our energy for the real mission!" Naruto chirps, then he's gone in a flash of orange.
Shikamaru sighs loudly. "Man, what a drag."
"And we end that chapter on that dick move." Tsunade chortles, setting the book down. "Ooh, what do you think, lunch and then another chapter?"
"Yeah . . . yeah I think we've got time for another chapter." Jiraiya agrees.
"Oh, let's just have something simple for lunch so we can hurry back to the book! And i have the feeling the next chapter's going to require all our will and guts!" Rin cheers. "Who wants sandwiches?!"
"I. Love. Sandwiches!" Obito brays, grabbing Rin's hand and dragging her into the kitchen. "Wait until you guys get a load of my Doomsday sandwiches!"
So I want to reiterate that we are now focusing once more on the main storyline. Of course there are differences, this being what it is but the point is we're back on the road to BAMFdom, and the Fourth War. But before that there's much to do, people to see, even . . . a surprise to come for Naruto? With our heroes on the way to the Southern Sea, what's going to happen back in Konoha, and with the hinted assassination attempt?! Well, you'll just have to wait and find out. Like me. I haven't even started the next chapter so I'll be just as surprised as you are. In a sense.
Love,
Bloody Mad~3
