The scent of cooked BBQ was an aroma that you couldn't find everywhere. There are certain places in the Leaf for a tasty quick bite or a savoury one that can calm and indulge the craving for something sweet and tasty, but the loving, welcoming feeling of cooking meat in front of you with your longest companions is something that cannot be found everywhere. To his left was Chouji, Shikamaru, and Sai. To his right, his cousin, Ino, and Hinata. In front of him were Shino, Kiba, Akamaru, Konohamaru, and Sakura; all were enjoying a lovely night out in the town at the local BBQ spot.

"That reminds me," said Shikamaru as he flipped the meat over the grill. "What did you do to Lee? He and Tenten were supposed to be here, but she told us he was in the hospital."

Naruto tried to laugh through the pain he caused Lee. "Well, he wanted a friendly spar, but I guess I overdid it, huh?"

"I'll say!" said Chouji. "He was out of it with a big old bruise on the top of his stomach! How many times did you punch him?"

"Once," he replied, leaving everyone at the table stunned with what he could do.

"You're kidding, right?" asked Ino.

"Nope," said Karin. "Naruto is that powerful. Believe me, I think Jugo figured that out the hard way when he lost control and went on a rampage."

"Speaking of, where is he right now?" asked Sai.

"He went on a mission with Captain Yamato a little while ago. They haven't returned yet and I don't think they'll be back for a while. Still, the point I'm trying to make is that Naruto is more powerful than you think."

"He's not that powerful!" replied Kiba.

"Kiba, I've sparred with you. Frankly, you're slower than a snail. I get more of a thrill fighting through Shikamaru's shadow possession jutsu than your fang over fang technique,' snipped Karin at Kiba, leading him to move into Shino's shoulder and making the others laugh.

Naruto didn't bother to speak at all. Being with his friends and enjoying good food was enough to make him smile. Yet, it didn't satisfy his friends. Naruto being the silent type didn't fit his description. So, Shikamaru spoke out. "So, Naruto, what do you have planned for right now?" He quickly snapped out of his daze and looked towards Shikamaru. "Do you plan on doing anything special?"

"Not really," he began. "I suppose that I'll mostly be spending my time training; even though I'm a full-fledged Sage, some techniques I use still have room for improvement. I don't have a desire to go out and do some mission. I think that the world, right now, is at a great moment of peace. So, why not take advantage of it and take some time for yourself?"

"Well, don't keep it to yourself!" said Ino. "What kind of training do you have in mind?" she asked. Naruto took a minute to gather his thought and put them into words.

"Well, being a Sage isn't something that everyone can strive to achieve. Jiraiya Sensei and my dad are two of the Leaf's greatest shinobi. The fact that they both managed to become that is amazing. Yet, they were bothered with greater things that preventing them from going beyond."

"What do you mean by that?" asked Sakura.

"Well, Lord Fukasaku gave me his blessing and permission to go ahead and attempt to learn this, but it's a kind of jutsu that can project yourself, your spiritual self, from your body and venture off into the world at a different speed."

"Fascinating!" said Sai. "Have you been able to achieve this?"

"Yes," he said as he left everyone but Karin shocked. "Not for a long time, but I can do it. I can see everyone and everything as if I were physically there. Beyond that, there are some techniques and jutsus that were deemed 'forbidden', but the great toad elders have given me permission to go forth and learn these things."

"Do you think that it's worth learning?" asked Shino.

"I'm still on the fence about it. They were around when these jutsus were created. Yet, because of the amount of time that has passed since then, they forgot what it was that made it become forbidden. Chances are that I won't go through with it. If it is forbidden, then it is best to not go through with it at all."

They were shocked at what they were hearing. The young, brash, dim-witted knucklehead of the Lead became a sensible and reasonable young man. For everyone else, this was more than a simple shocker. It was a gigantic revelation to see that he wasn't the same. For Karin though, this is how her cousin has always been. Coming to making a bright decision wasn't a thing that they had been used to. Perhaps it was at this moment that they began to see him in a different light.

Before they knew it, the time had passed, and they began to part ways. The boys went one way and the girls went the other. Naruto though had decided to go about his way. "Are you heading home, Naruto?" asked Karin. Naruto looked at his cousin and responded.

"Not yet," he said. "I've just got to go out and figure some things out. I'll probably see you there later." He smiled and walked away. Karin caught up with the girls while they were talking about the man of the hour.

"I didn't expect this to come from him," said Ino. "He always seemed like he would stay the same forever, didn't he?"

"I guess that that's what we all assumed back then," replied Sakura. "None of ever thought Naruto would grow up into a decent adult."

"Did you all thought that way about him?" asked Karin.

They shrugged and tried to laugh it off. "I think that it also has to do with how the adults treated him," said Sakura. "Back then, no one wanted to be seen near him. He was always the 'nine tails brat'. Eventually, the kids picked up on it and began to see Naruto that same way."

"If I'm being honest, I think you were the one who treated him the worst, Sakura," said Hinata. Sakura began to blush when she looked back on the days where she and the others would make fun of him for being an orphan.

"Please," said Sakura. "I'd rather prefer that it not be brought up, Hinata. I feel bad about those days now as an adult. Looking back, I do wish that things went differently between us. He genuinely liked me for me; even so much as to look past all the bad things I did to him. He's saved me so many times that I couldn't count it all. I just…"

Ino noticed Sakura's demeanour changed when she stopped talking. "You wish that you didn't have these feelings for him, do you?" she asked. Sakura turned and saw Ino smiling at her. In return, she blushed as she tried to hold back a smile. Karin, who was just listening in to the conversation, didn't say a word.

"Almost losing him was something I couldn't handle. When the Nine-Tails was taken out of him, I was doing my best to make sure that he wouldn't die; I don't think that I could have handled that very well. Every second he was dying; I was trying to hold my composure for his sake. If I had started to cry at the moment…

"You really like my cousin, do you, Sakura?" asked Karin. Sakura turned to look at Karina and smile with bright red cheeks.

"I guess that I do…It's crazy. If you told me years ago that I would one day fall for the Leaf's Knucklehead, I would have called you crazy. Now, it's almost unbelievable. That dummy has managed to get almost all my thoughts focused on him and solely him."

"Then, what's stopping you?" asked Karin.

"I'm not sure. I don't have the answer to that question. Maybe I'm just scared about how things would go. We had ramen earlier, but that was about as good as you could imagine; nothing better than an awkward reunion among friends than over a hot bowl of ramen, am I right?"

Karin considered her words and gave her a tiny nudge. "So?" she said. "What you desire isn't something that is away on a mission. It's something that is only a couple of minutes away. Just try and approach him. Besides, worst-case scenario, he says no and carries on!"

Though her words were reassuring, there was still a little bit of fear residing within her. Elsewhere, the Knucklehead Ninja was sitting peacefully on top of his father's statue overlooking the Leaf. It was his favourite place to be whenever he was confused about things. In this particular moment, he was confused about what to do with his own emotions.

"Something on your mind," Naruto turned around and saw his sensei standing behind him with a bottle of sake. "You look like you could a little."

"I'm not of age yet, Kakashi Sensei," he said. "I don't think it's the best that the Hokage shares a drink with a child." Kakashi laughed it off and sat down beside his student.

"I'd hardly consider you a child, Naruto," he said. Kakashi opened the bottle and began pouring one for him and one for Naruto. "With everything that has gone on in recent years, I doubt that calling you a child is something that bugs you."

"I guess so, Sensei," he replied. Kakashi looked at him and recognized the look on his face. He hadn't seen him with such a gloomy look since the passing of Master Jiraiya.

"You wanna talk about something, Naruto?" he asked. "You've had that look on your face once before; when Jiraiya Sensei passed away. Now, I'm only wondering what is bugging you this time around."

Naruto drank his sake and placed his little cup down. "I'm not sure what to say, Sensei," he began. "I've accomplished all that I wanted since I was a kid. Well, except becoming Hokage. But…I have the respect of the village; they all love me, but…"

"You're conflicted, aren't you?" He shook his head in response. "I suppose that this was bound to happen. I thought you would have shrugged it off and carried on with yourself, but this is getting to you more than I would have figured."

"Yeah," he said. "I just…I don't know how to feel."

Kakashi looked at his student and looked over the village. "I know what you mean, Naruto. For a long time, before coming together with Shizune, I was living my life in despair. Losing so many people wasn't something I expected so early in my life; my father, Obito, Rin, and your father. They were some of the most important people in my life back then. It's crazy to think that it's been so long since they left this world. So, Naruto, while you still have the chance, I suggest that you go ahead and talk to Sakura. I think you'd be surprised to hear what she's been thinking."

Kakashi left to go see Shizune; leaving Naruto to be alone on top of his father's head. He thought about what to do, but, for the first time in a while, he decided that rather than thinking through it, he did what he was known for as a kid and jumped before seeing where he'd fall.

In another part of the village, the girls went to the cemetery and paid respects to their fallen comrades; Neji, Asuma, and so many more. Hinata went to her brother's grave and Ino went to her Sensei. Sakura and Karin stayed in the gate's opening. Karin looked at Sakura and thought about what to do. For her, she wanted her cousin to be the happiest he could be. Even though she didn't know Sakura very well, she could tell that it was eating her up inside. She was deeply in love with Sasuke but couldn't bring herself to do the deed that needed to be done. For that, she also feels the guilt of leaving it up to Naruto to take care of the mess.

"What's stopping you?" asked Karin. Sakura snapped out of her deep thinking and looked to her right, watching Karin look at her with a confused look. "You know you like him, Sakura; why don't you just go up and talk to him about what you feel?"

Sakura blushed at the thought but couldn't bring herself to do it. "I guess that I can't figure out a good enough reason,"

"You're nervous! So what? What girl wouldn't be when it came to spilling her guts to someone, she's had a thing for? Everyone's gone through these types of things, Sakura. Worst case scenario, he says no and walks away. You've got nothing to lose!"

Sakura took a moment to think about what Karin was saying to her. "I guess you're right," she said. "Where do you think he is right now?"

"Hmm," said Karin. Ino and Hinata had joined them and they began to walk. "He's probably either at home, Jiraiya Sensei's grave, or sitting on top of Uncle Fourth's head."

"Uncle Fourth?" asked Ino. "What does that mean?" Karin turned to look at her and Hinata. She realised that they didn't know who Naruto's father was. So, she pointed up at the stone head of Minato.

"Uncle Fourth," she said. "He's Naruto's dad." Ino and Hinata freaked out when they realised it. They then began to feel foolish; they began to notice the resemblance in both him and Naruto.

"Wow," said Hinata. "Naruto's father has been in front of our faces all this time. That is quite an interesting revelation."

Karin, who was becoming impatient, grabbed Sakura by her hand. "Okay!" she said. "We're gonna go and do it, Sakura!" Unbeknownst to the others, Naruto taught her the Flying Thunder God Technique. With that, they jumped to the head of Lord Fourth. "Hmm. He's not here. Bummer. Let's go!" They jumped to Master Jiraiya's grave and saw no one there. "Not here either!" said a flustered Karin.

"What is this?" asked Sakura. She was looking down at the rocks that were sitting peacefully before her. Karin turned around and saw her staring at them.

"This is the grave of Jiraiya Sensei," she said. "Naruto used to tell me a lot about him while we trained."

"Huh," I didn't know this was all here," she said.

"Not a lot do," replied Karin. "Naruto, Jugo, Lord Sixth, and I are the only ones that know that this is here. Naruto told me and Jugo about it when he came back."

"Huh? I didn't…know," Karin saw Sakura's confused face turn into a sad one. "Something on your mind, bud?"

"He and I are supposed to be close friends, but he doesn't bother to tell me about some of the important things in his life," she said. "I guess I don't know how to feel about this. Jiraiya was someone I knew too and studied under for a little bit…I guess,"

"You're confused about how to feel about this, huh?" asked Karin. She patted her back and tried to comfort her. "I suppose that it's something we all go through at one point or another. You could say that that is something that made me and Naruto connect to fast; we've both known loss, betrayal, and loneliness. We've both lost our parents and people who we looked up to as parents. We both felt the strong betrayal of someone that we loved. Lastly, we've both been alone for a long time. I had my mom for a time, but when she passed, I couldn't believe it; sometimes I still can't believe that she isn't here. But, since being with Naruto, I've learned that there was someone in another part of the world going through something that I went through. Meeting him, training under him, and being guided by him…I don't think that I would have expected that to ever come to me in my lifetime."

"Where are you going with this, Karin?" asked Sakura.

"Even though he went through all of these horrible things that the village had put hi through, they helped make hi the person that he is today. Even though he has conflicting feelings about it, he can't help it. It's only natural that he closes himself off from people that treated him bad throughout his years. Though, there is one thing that I can tell for certain; even though he feels conflicted about it, I know that he does love you, Sakura!" Sakura began to blush at the thought of her and Naruto being together. Yet, it made her smile greatly. Karin grabbed her hand and jumped to the home she and Naruto share.

When they arrived, she saw Naruto sitting outside with tea in his hand and a bottle of sake, the same one that he got from Kakashi earlier in town. He turned around to see Karin with Sakura. He was surprised by this pair spending time together. "I was wondering where you went off to," he said. "Hey, Sakura!" he said as he smiled at her. Sakura smiled back and turned away when she began to blush.

"Hey, Naruto!" she loudly said. Karin hugged her and wished her luck.

"You can do this, Haruno!" she said. She hugged her cousin, took off her sandals, and went inside for a nap. Sakura walked up to Naruto with her hands closed together. She was nervous. It was visible enough for Naruto, a dense child, to notice.

"Something bugging you, Sakura?" he asked. He reached for a tray behind him and poured her a cup of tea. "Here, green tea always calms the nerves down."

"Thank you," she said. "Do you mind if I sit down?"

"Sure!" She sat down beside him and they stared off into the sunset. Sakura noticed how the sun shined down on them; how the colours made each other pop out. Almost as if one was trying to outdo the other.

"I can see why you picked this place to live," she said. "It's a really pretty place to see."

"It is, though, I didn't pick the house," he said. "Pervy Sage left it behind for me in his will."

"He did?" she asked. "I didn't think of him as the type of person to settle down. He was always off going on his journeys for the village or his research," she said. Naruto began to laugh at the memories of him getting caught.

"I know what you mean!" he said. "That pervy old man. I remember, when I was training with him, we had to pack out things and run out of a town. He was peeping over the fence of a bathhouse and he broke it down; by accident, mind you. I was eating ramen when he came to the room we were staying at when he freaked out. I wasn't surprised at all, but it was a joy to just spend time with him."

Sakura sipped her tea and got closer to Naruto. "Do you miss him?" She saw him shed a single tear.

"Yeah…I do," he said. "Pervy Sage was someone I looked up to; well, not at first. I thought of him as a crazy, pervy old man who wrote the smut that Kakashi Sensei liked to read. Then, the further our relationship progressed, he started to see me as a grandson. He would introduce me like that."

"Really?" she asked in a surprised tone.

"I think he did it so it wouldn't raise suspicion, at first. Then, at some point, he was talking about the Fourth Hokage, my dad, and how he saw him as a son. I'm pretty sure that it was that moment where he began to see me that way." He turned to Sakura and saw her smile at him when he talked about Jiraiya that way. Seeing her smile made him blush; just a bit. Sakura got in closer to him. Naruto began to notice it as well. "You came here for a reason, right, Sakura?"

"Well," she began. "Maybe I just came to see an old friend and enjoy a nice, warm cup of tea on a cold winter day."

"It is a satisfying feeling, wouldn't you agree?" he asked. Sakura looked at him and blushed. Naruto didn't look at her for the moment. He was thinking about what Jiraiya said to him years ago.

"You just gotta get over those hurdles on your own," he remembered the words his master said to him years ago.

"Sakura, I guess there's something I want to tell you," he said. Sakura was surprised but interrupted him before he could proceed.

"Naruto let me talk first, please?" she asked. He was surprised.

"Sure," he said. "Go right ahead."

Sakura took a deep breath, finished her tea, placed it down, and sat right next to him. "The last time I remember we saw each other or even communicated properly was back when Master Jiraiya passed away," she said. "Then, Pain attacked the village, you left to the Hidden Cloud, and we went to war. Next thing I knew, our friend and I ran after you to Final Valley. Then, it happened, and he was gone for good."

"Where are you going with this, Sakura?" he asked.

"The first time I remember getting to spend time with you during the war, you were almost dead. Gaara and I were freaking out and I was doing so much to make sure you didn't die. At that moment, I remembered all the things that had gone on between the two of us. I was never nice to you at all. There were brief moments, but the bad ones outweigh the good ones and it's been eating me up inside for such a long time. Then…what I did to you when we were kids…to ask of you to bring him back to me…I'm,"

"Sakura stop it!" he yelled at her. Sakura looked up from the ground and saw Naruto with a serious look upon his face. It wasn't one that she had seen often. "I know how you feel, and I know what you're going to say about it. There isn't a lot to say about it either. I had to make a choice that day. I loved him as if he were my brother, and for a time, I felt like he was my brother…but when he made his decision and targeted all of you, I had to make one of the most difficult choices in my life. So, don't think for even a second that I regret it. I way have not kept the word to my ninja way, but I wasn't going to let it happen. If your life was in any danger, I would do whatever it takes to make sure that you are alive and safe; no matter what."

Sakura was left speechless; flustered when she heard those words coming out of his mouth. She jumped up and hugged him. "Naruto," she began.

"Yeah, Sakura?" he asked.

"I don't deserve having you in my life. No one in the village does!" she yelled. "We've all been so horrible to you for your entire life, yet, you've chosen to turn the other cheek and smile at us all!" Sakura began to cry at the thought of him not being in her life. Without thinking, she said the words that create such mixed emotions whenever they are spoken. "I love you!"