Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto.

Unbeta'd

Chapter 14

Last night was intense. My clone's actions of spilling his guts to Sasuke without any set orders led me to re-evaluate my own feelings for him. After all, my clones are basically me. My mind, my chakra, my characteristics, my feelings. So what led to the clone doing so?

The answer was simple. Two reasons. At this point of time, I don't care if anyone finds out about Kurama or my parentage at all. Kurama because when I have accepted him, does it matter if others don't? My parentage was hidden because… well to prevent assassinations and stuff. Now I am 90% sure Orochimaru and Onoki know of my parentage. So what's the point?

Second reason was as troubling as it was simple. I cared for Sasuke. True, I'm not in love with Sasuke but I do love him. The thought of losing him to someone else does not worry me that much. As long as he is alive and happy I don't care who he fucks. The thought of him going to Orochimaru worries me in multiple ways. One is canon rehashing fear, and second is fear for his safety and sanity.

With all this… mess I've concluded that ultimately Sasuke is my friend. With benefits, sure. Perhaps even my best friend. I know it would be hard for me, but I will be able to do the necessary thing if he follows the canon route.

With that conclusion made, I disentangled myself from him and took a quick shower before getting ready for the day. I checked the time to find it was nearing 7. Another thing with Sasuke is that I neglect my morning training when we are together in favour of some extra snuggle time. Time to remedy that.

I woke him up to explain about my upcoming 'mission'.

"Naruto! Are you crazy or something? You had to disturb my beauty sleep?" Sakura yelled sleepily and ended with a yawn. I yawned back. Damn, those things are addictive.

"I have a mission for you Sakura. It is a personal mission so no need to involve the village." I told her and she perked up at that.

"You know I am building my house, right?" At her nod I continued, "Well it's almost finished and in a day or two the finishing touches should be done. The next part is the furnishing and I actually have a really important mission right now and I have to leave in an hour or two for a couple weeks. So I was hoping that you would do it for me?" I pleaded in my best voice. "I will pay you the regular amount for each day involved and you get to shop."

Sakura beamed at me, "Are you kidding me? A Shopping mission? It couldn't be any better. Tell me your budget and how many of each item you want and your preferences and everything!"

Okay, maybe it was not the smartest thing to do. "Calm down Sakura. This here is my budget." I handed her an authority letter from my bank stating the budget she was allowed to draw and she was wide eyed.

"In that amount I can furnish three houses." Sakura commented with wide eyes.

"You clearly haven't seen my house then. Don't worry about that, if you save some money that's good then. But don't be frugal. And please don't do this alone. Recruit Ino and Hinata with you as all of their teammates would be busy training for the finals. Tell them I will pay them too for each day the standard amount. The address is mentioned on the letter so don't get confused. As for how many items are required, I guess you should go and see." I finished and she took a minute to absorb all that.

"Alright. Grab Ino and Hinata and buy lots of stuff. Easy peasy. I'll even negotiate the items to be returnable for a month." She finished excitedly.

"Thanks Sakura. You are a lifesaver." I smiled at her, "Anyway I have to get ready now for the mission. See you in two weeks."

I reached Fushi Island to complete my training. This time I decided to focus on two aspects of my training. First is of course Senjutsu. While Naruto became a sage only because he couldn't access Kurama's chakra properly, I had decided to leave no stone unturned to get stronger. Take the Five Elements sealing method for example. It would leave me utterly helpless if used against me. Moreover if we combine KCM with Sage mode that's super OP. And here there is no thing called OP when people can make meteors as big as Konoha fall from the sky.

I left 50 clones in the careful tutelage of Mina-sensei and made my way to a clearing after receiving her permission.

The second would be my Hiraishin training. I have learned the technique. That's not the problem. The problem is the execution which will take a lot of practice. Like A LOT.

Hiraishin has many parts. First is creating your own unique seal and imbuing it with your life essence. Not mere chakra but your very life's essence and no it doesn't reduce my lifespan. It's like placing a drop of your blood on the seal which would be replenished over time. Then I had to make a permanent seal on my palm. Kind of like a tattoo, but then again invisible to anyone but me. I thought hard and used a plain small spiral as my seal. Because of it's sheer simplicity and miniscule size no one would look again at such a seal and think that such a thing could be Hiraishin. This tattoo is used to place seals instantly.

The next step was poking a small hole in the space-time continuum using my chakra and to use my tattoo as the starting point of the 'bridge' and the placed marker seal as the exit point. This may sound very simple but it's not. It took me several weeks' worth of reading to make any sense of the theory. Believe me when I say this, I am no genius. I merely use what resources I have to make the best of it. But studying and research are not my strong points. This is the reason I didn't create any new Jutsu but merely copied what others already had created. Similarly my creativity is zero.

Thanks to the conversation I had with my dad in my mindscape, I know a lot about Hiraishin and its usage that hardly anyone knows.

Flashback

"Hiraishin can be used in two ways." Minato started his explanation and I was listening with rapt attention, "One is placing the starting and the adjacent points of the bridge together to make an instant escape. It can be used to transport other people, objects, and even a Tailed beast Bomb. The other version is what makes this technique truly terrifying. The reason I was able to win a war effortlessly and without breaking a sweat."

He paused for dramatic effect, "You extend the bridge."

I was dumbfounded.

"..."

"..."

"..."

"..."

"Are you saying…"

"This bridge is a pocket dimension outside of our time and space." He cut me off, "It may not sound very elaborate but hear this example. You are very tired and suddenly a kunai is coming at you from your front. You have a seal placed on the enemy but don't have the energy to attack him. Simple solution, go and rest on the bridge. When you are ready come out behind the enemy with no time actually passing in reality between your disappearance and reappearance. This is what makes this jutsu the absolutely the best jutsu. Period."

My jaw was probably hanging loose as I gaped at the most fearsome ninja known to the world who also happens to be my father. The funny part is the world probably doesn't even realise how powerful this technique and consequently he is.

"Who knows about this?" I asked after what would have probably been a few minutes of gaping at his smug face.

"Other than us, Kushina and probably Tobirama Senju." He said, "And he didn't seem the type to advertise his jutsu's prowess."

"Wait." I said, "You must have teleported with people all the time. How come they didn't know if you ever rested on the bridge, so to say?"

"Because I couldn't take them on the bridge." He smiled, "Every jutsu has some limitations. Hiraishin doesn't let anyone other than the user visit the other dimension. For them it is instant transportation from point A to point B. Even if you pause for an hour before continuing. I found out through experimentation. Just like I am sure Lord Second also found out during his time."

This wasn't mentioned anywhere in any book. The possibility of this Jutsu in enemy hands is frightening.

I looked up at him and asked quietly, "Not to judge or anything but why didn't you beat Kurama with it? You could have transported him miles away from Konoha."

He looked troubled at the question and waited for a few minutes to answer, "Because Konoha needed it."

I looked up at him in anger. "And what about me? Did you ever think that I needed you as well?"

He looked at me sadly and placed a hand on my shoulder, "I know Naruto. But at that moment I wasn't just your father. I was the Hokage. It was my job to keep the village safe from current and future dangers. True, I could've set him free far away from Konoha, but for everyone's sake I wanted to keep him away from the rogue Uchiha's hands. Even if he didn't get his hands on Kurama, some other Hidden village would have and the shell of the peace we had would have been broken again. It would have caused a war unlike any others just over the ownership of the most powerful of the tailed beasts."

"While Hiraishin is a strong technique for humans, It doesn't pack the punch required to take on a tailed beast other than quick teleportation. I tried everything else. From Sage Mode Big Ball Rasengan to Gamabunta. Nothing worked. The only option left to me was to seal him away and in the absence of him utterly bound, I couldn't do it without sacrificing myself. It would have been another thing if Kushina was at her full strength. Her sealing chain jutsu could have bound him tight enough to be sealed back."

I looked down at my feet unable to look up at him, "I'm sorry for doubting you. I... don't like it but I get it. I understand why you did it." He smiled back at me and pulled me in a hug and said softly, "That's all I ask."

Flashback End

Now the problem with the Jutsu is my execution. Through sheer number of attempts made by my clones I could use the technique but the problem is entry. The exit was always smooth and instant. The exit markers let you escape in close proximity to the seal in any position or direction you want. During entry it took me upwards of 20 seconds to enter the bridge. I could do the second method of instant teleportation without a bridge. Though that one is not very viable at the moment because it is a very unpleasant jutsu and in a battle it can be fatal as I have to pause for a few seconds just to catch my breath.

So the only possible solution to the problem I can come up with is continuous and repetitive practice. Practice with clones creates another problem. Non bridge teleportation can be done only towards the seals you can see or sense. For seals not in your sight or close enough to sense their chakra, you have to enter the bridge and then feel the location and distance of the marker. Then decide to go there.

With clones, using this technique for practice can be confusing for them and may result in getting out of the wrong exit.

From the outsider's perspective, it may seem very cool but actually it is a very boring process. Just imagine in a battle, you have to keep on walking, resting and attacking while others are working in slow motion. All the thrill of the battle ends. Meh, staying alive is more important than the thrill of battle and I would be a fool to ignore that.

I created some hundred clones and set them up to the task of teleporting right in front of them and trying to increase their speed. This brought its own problems. Clones cannot place the seal markers because they don't have a Life Essence. So I placed these markers on small papers and handed over two papers each to the clones to practice on. The papers marking points A and B between which they have to travel again and again. Let's hope everything will be set in the upcoming two weeks.

I made my way back towards the living to find my new sensei for the time. "Kenami-sensei. I am here to learn the ways of the sword from you." I bowed to the black furred wolf who would be teaching me the usage of my new sword. After some thinking I had decided to focus more on a regular sized sword than a Zanbato. Luckily the perfect sword fell right in my lap, thanks to Orochimaru.

You must be thinking why the hell is he learning Swordplay when he is on the verge of mastering the ultimate jutsu. Simple. Swords are so cool. Ever since I saw Bleach I just had to have a sword. Problem is, in my old life, learning kenjutsu wasn't very practical or easy for that matter. Some good alternatives were fencing or Kendo but they didn't just appeal to me.

Here I am free to learn and it is encouraged as well so why the fuck not? Wolves did not have many Sword masters and the reason was obvious. Most wolves are not Bipedal, thus making the sword useless for them. Fortunately for me, of the few bipedal ones, Kenami sensei is an accomplished Kenjutsu master who had agreed to hone my skills.

If only his smile wasn't copied from the Big Bad Wolf himself.

Last two weeks went by in a blur.

I wish. All the days ended in exhaustion. Physical, mental and chakra. When my head hit the pillow, I almost passed out from relief.

Kenami is an asshole. No doubt about it now. But he knows his stuff. At least now, in his words, I won't stab myself accidentally trying to play Samurai.

I was done with my basic Land style Sage training and could enter Sage mode in a little less than 5 minutes. Unfortunately, I couldn't finish in time to begin Air style training, but promised Mina sensei to return after the invasion to complete air style as well as water, because why not?

The biggest and the most important breakthrough was Hiraishin. I was very proud to say that I had completed the jutsu popularized by my father. I wasn't as proficient as him but I should be considered better than Tobirama at least.

Now I could teleport anywhere in the blink of an eye. Though the flash thing might be what they observe.

With the permission of Okamina, I left my marker on Fushi Island so I never have to reverse summon myself there again.

Last night I sent a wolf messenger to Kakashi. After all Ginmaru had claimed that they are the fastest summons so why not. I could have teleported to their location myself and given a message in person. Hell, I could have teleported the little cub to Kakashi or even Sasuke, but knowing them, that would have been sending the poor cub to his death. The letter with him requested Kakashi to come back to Konoha the next day.

After bidding the Wolves farewell, I went back to Konoha to my old flat, which was surprisingly empty although recently lived in and clean. I was fully hoping to find her here but… I'll see about that later. Without wasting any time I sent out my senses to find Sasuke and Kakashi but didn't find them anywhere. Guess they are a little late. Old habits die hard.

So I make my way to the Hokage tower to discuss my 'mission'. As usual I was immediately granted access to his office. He looked up at me and smiled genuinely for the first time ever since the first day of the Chunin Exams.

"The mission was a success?" He asked. I merely nodded back. He already knew my progress with the Hiraishin and I did not feel like telling him more at the moment. After careful applications of privacy seals, we were both seated in the office.

"How is our mummy problem?" I asked jokingly. His face was instantly back to serious and was thinking carefully before speaking.

"He was taken care of." He said impassively.

This is news, "You mean…" "He is dead." "How?"

He took in a deep breath and sighed dejectedly, "A few days ago Jiraiya finished his sealing method to block Fuinjutsu on a person. Thankfully he had the foresight to add Chakra blocking seals to the Sealing array. We arranged a meeting with Danzo citing some crucial information we found about Orochimaru. Needless to say, Jiraiya successfully applied the seals and we finished the job."

"What about the other elders? Surely they wouldn't be happy with this turn of events?" I asked.

He chuckled darkly, "My old teammates agreed with me that they are indeed old. We mutually 'agreed' that retirement would be better for their health." This dark humour of his is really unsettling and creepy. He is not the kind old man I have known my whole life (at least this one.)

"What about Root?"

"When his arm and eyes were destroyed, Danzo decided to cooperate with us for the welfare of Konoha. His methods may not be right, but in the end he was working for Konoha. At least he believed so. He gave us all the information about Root bases and its chain of command. As of two days ago, all of the children have been rescued and set for rehab. All the Shinobi have been relieved from their duties to check their mental levels to slowly get acclimated with regular ANBU. Those shinobi who can be rescued to have a more normal lifestyle would be absorbed in the regular Shinobi forces."

That seemed anticlimactic. Even his canon battle with Sasuke was better than this. In any case, I'm not the one looking a gifted horse in the mouth. One less enemy to worry about.

"Why are you telling me this so freely, jiji? Sure I may have played a little role in finding the information but I hardly think I am so far up the hierarchy that you would share it with me." I asked him.

"In the past few days, I have realised that I am too old for this position. I have made mistakes. Many mistakes. To correct them, I have decided to give you what you have wanted for a long time." He smiled up at me.

Holy Fuck! No! I must have shown a funny expression because he chuckled and said, "Yes, I think you would do marvelously as the next Hokage. Of course you will need to complete more high level missions and some lessons in subtlety and politics would do you good. You can work under me as a trainee and in a period of two or three years, you can overtake my position."

"I'm sorry but I will have to decline." I said with a heavy heart. I SO wanted that job once. But not anymore. Not after the talk with my dad. He was genuinely surprised, "Why?"

"You honestly want an answer to that question?" I asked. At his silence I continued, "I thought long and hard about the Uchiha Massacre. While I know why you did what you did but I cannot even imagine being in the same position. Plus I am inexperienced and immature." I continued before he could retort, "Yes I may be better than my peers but I am still a kid who is more interested in sex than politics."

We both chuckled at that. "If everything goes perfectly, I have a long life ahead of me thanks to my Uzumaki genes. I don't want to rush in, only to find that I am stuck in a long and boring job of paperwork and blood for the rest of my life. Maybe after a decade or two my opinion on the matter changes but not before that."

"When you put it like that, I cannot even convince you otherwise. Your answer further proves my point, you are far from immature. Alas that leaves us with more problems than solutions. I truly want to retire for some final peaceful years to atone for my sins." He finished sadly.

"Unfortunately," I began, "You exiled the best Hokage candidate to 'protect' the village."

His eyes widened in realisation. "Itachi."

"I don't know his full story, but if he is as strong as everyone says and his actions speak for his character. He would have been the best Hokage candidate. It is another reason for my denial of the job. I cannot in good conscience take up the position which condemned such a loyal Konohan citizen for the sins of his family. Not to mention the effect it had on Sasuke's life." I said.

"What do you want me to do?" He asked heatedly. "You want me to recall Itachi? To ask for his forgiveness? Sasuke's? And where will that leave us? Konoha would be a laughing stock for all the nations. That village who could not even save their own founder clansmen from revolting."

"Personally, if I was in your place," I said, meeting his heated stare with my impassiveness, "I would resign and get away from Konoha with strict orders to my successor to throw me under the proverbial bus. But then again that's me and everyone does things in their own manner. Believe me when I say this, Sasuke will find out the truth sooner or later and not from me. If it is later, you will not be able to control the narrative and you will have another Uchiha thirsty for your blood. You can use Danzo's death in your favour if you want."

He had a troubled look on his face and I decided to cut short the convo. "I have thought of another thing which can help us. Do you think you can spare me a Hyuga who is skilled at Espionage?"

That brought him out of his thoughts, "Yes, I do know one such person. His name is Hiroshi Hyuuga. He is one of our best at espionage missions. When do you require him to start and why for that matter?"

"Tomorrow, I guess, and I can explain it to you then as I am not sure if it will work or not. And I am yet to see my new house which should be completed and furnished by now." I said.

"I am glad to hear that." He smiled. "In that case, meet me here tomorrow at 10 AM to meet him and you can lead from there on if your plan works."

I went towards my house but on the way decided to take a detour when I felt a familiar Chakra signature. Sakura was training in a Training ground with Ino and Hinata. Never thought I'd see the day when Sakura would train physically of her own accord.

"Hey girls, what's up?" I said cheerfully as I joined them.

"Naruto! You are back!" Sakura has the talent of stating the obvious. "How was the mission?" She hugged me which I reciprocated.

"Success as usual. What about you all? How was your mission?" I deflected from my mission smoothly.

Ino took over, "Oh it was the best mission I have ever received. Selecting furniture and beddings and clothes for you and we get paid for that? Hell yes!"

Hinata continued with a blush, "We stocked your kitchen with some groceries as well." Without a stutter! Good going girl.

"Wait. Clothing?" I turned to Sakura, "I never said anything about any clothing."

Sakura chuckled nervously, "Hehehe, you see when we were done with the requirements, we still had quite some money left so I thought with such a huge wardrobe you'll need some new clothes as well. If you don't like them, we can always return them. Please don't be mad at me."

Is she crazy or something? She just saved me hours worth of torture of trying and buying clothes and she was apologising? Though it would be better to not act too grateful, "That's alright. I had to buy some new clothes anyway. I would see your choices and then decide. But I am not mad."

She beamed at me. "Have you even been to your house?" I shook my head, "No I was about to go there but decided to see if you three would accompany me?"

Needless to say, they were very enthusiastic to lead me.

The house was big and elegant. It had a great garden outside surrounding it on all sides. And even a little training area in the back. While not suitable for area wide ninjutsu, it was perfect for Taijutsu and even non damage dealing Ninjutsu. The gardens had huge and ornate metal gates to prevent entry for others. I made a mental note to create a security sealing array.

The backyard also had a giant swimming pool because why not? With water and fire jutsu, I can even create my very own artificial hot spring.

The gardens still lacked proper grass and greenery which would grow over time. Services of a gardener would be required until I figure out how to do this myself. So much work to go on and this is just my garden! Who thought owning a house would be so troublesome?

Now that I think about it, who the fuck would clean the house? Surely not me? Oh fuck! Did I have to be so hasty in building the house? As a shinobi we are very sceptical and I don't think I would be allowing anyone else in to clean it. Gardening is fine as long as they stay out of the main house. But indoors cleaning? Hell no!

Will have to modify or create some Fuinjutsu to solve this little problem of mine.

I entered the house to see that the interior was done tastefully. Walls, floor, roof, every surface was shining and artistic. The girls had even purchased some decorative items as visible from the paintings and vases and even the chandelier decorating the house. At the foyer we removed our footwear and moved in taking in the sights.

It was a two story house with a large attic above it with four rooms on each floor. The largest room was a joint Library cum study for me which I plan to fill with all the Shinobi and other knowledge I had amassed, eventually.

The kitchen was fitted with all the latest equipment and tools which were still very outdated as compared to my old life. All other furniture over the house was of good quality and design, be it the dining table, couch, TV set, closets, bureau or even my king sized bed.

The designer took note of my ambitions for a grand Bathroom and it was marvelous with a large tub that can easily fit upto four people. I had made the girls furnish three additional bedrooms. Two were guest bedrooms. And one was for…

Flashback (On the first day of Chunin Exams)

I was flying above the Forest of Death to scout out any other possible danger. Boss had created hundreds of me to check if Orochi would try something else. He was already driven away once by the boss but we were taking no chances.

I witnessed many different Genins fighting each other and even a gruesome death. I shook my head in resignation. This whole culture is primitive where children are ordered to kill in the name of their village. Unfortunately, I cannot do anything in the current scenario.

Some time later I witnessed a strange sight. A redheaded girl was being chased away by a bear. Surely if you are Chunin worthy you must be able to at least kill a bear, right?

She climbed up a tree and I saw her looking right at me (but I was invisible) and shouted, "Will you just stay there? Help me out, I am about to die."

"I am a Jounin of Konoha, I am sorry to say but I cannot help you. You must help yourself." I replied back. Then suddenly it clicked in my head. She was wearing glasses over her red eyes and had a Kusa headband. This is Karin Uzumaki.

"You receive some weird satisfaction watching little girls being eaten by bears. Huh, old man?" She was livid.

Old man? She is probably older than me. Bitch. I removed my invisibility and said, "Yes, little girl. If I helped you that would be an instant disqualification for you and a lot of trouble for me. You must be a good sensor to sense me all the way up there. So you must know that a lot of similar clones of mine are scouting all through the forest. My job is to remove dead bodies and such from the area without interfering in the events. Your knowledge of my existence is worrying in itself." I lied through my teeth.

"Both of my teammates are dead. I don't wish to continue this fucking exam that I never wanted to participate in, in the first place. Please help me out. Consider me another of the dead bodies. It's not like anyone would care." She whispered the last part.

What to do now? I really want to help her. She is my possibly last (sane) clan member. But interfering was not allowed and… Oh fuck it! I am doing it.

"Remove a few hairs of yours and some blood and pour it down on the ground and on the bear. Also remove that jacket of yours. I'll help you if you do as I say." I said.

"Are you a pervert of some kind?" She shouted again covering her bosom. Damn girl, I am not a fucking Hyuuga.

I gave her a deadpan look, "I am faking your death stupid." She looked at me in shock. "Why? Why do you have to fake my death to save me?"

"To save you from Kusa of course." I said and she was amazed at my deduction (cheating) skills. "I am saving you for another reason as well. Do as I say and I will explain everything to you. After that if you wish you can go back to Kusa or fake your death. Your choice."

After some thinking she complied and left behind some hair, blood and her jacket. I swooped down and scooped her in my arms and flew away to her amazement. Hell yes! I always wanted to do that. Clark Kent for the win! I flew towards my flat to explain the full situation to her.

"I am an Uzumaki?" Karin asked dubiously.

I nodded sagely at that, "Look, although I am just a clone, I have full memories of my creator, Naruto Uzumaki. I can sense your chakra density. That along with your red hair were evidence enough to prove that. Not to mention your special ability." Here I motioned towards her arms full of bite marks that she was desperately trying to hide after losing her jacket in the forest.

She looked up sharply at that and said, "This is a clan bloodline?"

I shook my head, "No. Uzumaki clan doesn't have a bloodline. Like most clans we have hidden techniques we usually don't share with others. The one advantage we have over others is our dense chakra, which makes most of our clan techniques useless for others."

She was engrossed in my impromptu lecture, "Take your healing chakra for example. You can heal others if they bite you without any knowledge of healing on your part, right?"

She nodded hesitantly.

"Now if you were to learn healing techniques, say mystical palm, your jutsu would be far superior to any other shinobi and would heal the wounded at a faster rate. I am astonished at the stupidity of Kusa. Why make anyone a chew toy to save a hundred people when with your chakra reserves and a little hard work you can save thousands."

She looked down uncomfortably.

I lifted her chin up and looked at her carefully, "You do not need to worry anymore. Now you are in my care. If you would allow, I will do everything in my power to protect you from those dicktards."

She giggled at that, "That's not even a word."

I smiled, "It is now."

She rushed forwards and engulfed me in an embrace, "Thank you Naruto. You don't know how much this means to me. No one has ever…" She started sobbing on my shoulder quietly.

I patted her back soothingly and said, "It's alright now, Karin-chan. I am here."

After a few minutes of snuggling and sniffling on her part, we separated. "I wish to stay with you in Konoha." Her voice was filled with an unusual determination. "But I don't want to be a shinobi. I never wanted to be, but it was my only way to get away from Kusa. Even if only for some missions."

I smiled back at her, "That's okay. No one will force you to do that here. But to make things official, we'll have to get permission from the Hokage."

Karin accepted.

In Hokage's tower, the real me was sitting in front of our esteemed old perverted leader, along with one Karin Uzumaki, a few hours later.

He sighed loudly and smoked a few puffs from his pipe and said, "You never make it easy for me Naruto. Do you have any idea of the possible ramifications of what you have done? Again."

His glare may have burned mountains but I did not budge from it. "This is a clan matter Hokage-sama. My clan member was illegally detained by a foreign nation and our clan's secret techniques were misused by them. If my memory serves me correctly then as per the treaty between Uzushio and Konoha, all our members would be welcomed here."

He turned to Karin and asked, "Where were you born, Karin-san?"

She squirmed a little under the intense look of the Hokage and said softly, "Kusa."

"See." Hiruzen turned to me and continued, "She was born in Kusa. If any of her parents were alive, that would have been another matter and an asylum would not have been an issue."

I opened my mouth to rebut when he continued as if he hadn't seen me do that, "But they are not. For all legal purposes, she is a citizen of Kusa and they have every right to demand her presence back, being an active kunoichi. Were she just a civilian, then also it would've been easier."

Why do you have to force me, old man?

"Fine. Then I resign." You push me, old man, I'll push back harder. "You'll get my official resignation tomorrow morning. Then Karin and I can sort out this mess with Kusa legally."

Hiruzen glared at me, "You will be marked a missing-nin Naruto. Don't try to threaten me."

Two can play that game, "I would be if I were to leave Konoha permanently. We'll take care of our business and then we will settle down in Konoha as civilians. And guess what! My business plan was recently approved by the leader of the village. I wouldn't be much of a missing-nin staying under your nose, would I?" My face was adorning that shit eating grin when you know you have won.

His glare intensified on me and without turning to my long lost clan member he said, "Can you wait outside for a few minutes, Karin-san?" Despite the wording, it was no request. Karin could only squeak and bob her head as she hurriedly moved out.

When the door closed shut behind him Hiruzen said slowly but very clearly, "Do NOT. Ever. Threaten me again." His chakra flared at its full capacity and whoa. If it wasn't for my Sage training, I would probably be a sweating mess right now.

"You think you are more important than the entire village? Did you even think that that girl could be a mole implanted specifically for you? Or the international incident it would create if she wasn't and Kusa blames us for kidnapping her?" He shouted at me.

Now that he points it out, I do feel bad for blackmailing him.

Nah. Not really. But he doesn't have to know that.

I faked a guilty expression and said, "She is not a mole."

He raised an eyebrow in a silent question so I explained, "I sensed her emotions. I know she is a genuine Uzumaki who was mistreated in Kusa. She is the last link I have to my clan. Her mother died because those people bit her to death. If she goes back, that would be her fate in a few years. I wasn't threatening you. I'm sorry if it came out that way. I was stating a fact. I will save her whether you help me or not. She has even agreed to allow a mental scan from a Yamanaka before approving her residency here. Moreover she doesn't want to be a shinobi, but a healer. With her healing prowess she could be the best."

He gave me a resigned look but I could tell from his emotions that he was still hesitant so I said, "Oh and I kinda faked her death in the forest of death so Kusa doesn't have to know she is still here."

Flashback End.

Yes, that bedroom was for Karin. The Hokage caved in at last and allowed her residency provided she is cleared by T&I.

Her Jounin sensei was told that her whole team perished in the forest.

Karin was on cloud nine. She got away from her abusers and was very happy to know of her long term dream coming true. Luckily for her, Medic-nins were different from healers. While medic-nins are like field medics in the army, Healers are considered civilian doctors healing patients and working full time in a hospital. Medic-nins can't perform complicated surgeries like tumor removal because it was not needed in the field. Healers can and do.

Unfortunately, she was not released from interrogation before I went to Fushi Island as they were waiting for the Kusa Delegation to leave before releasing her and I was forbidden to meet her to avoid influencing her answers. So I left a note for her stating my mission and left promptly.

We were not so close at the moment but maybe time would improve our relations.

Back to my new home. "You girls have done a tremendous job at this place." I commended and received three full face smiles from them. At one point I was thinking of asking Karin to give them their inputs, but then decided against it. Simple reason. I don't trust her completely. Also if everything goes right, she may even get her own place. I may be supporting her at the moment, but somewhere down the line, maybe in a few years, she may want her independence and privacy.

Though from what I know of her, she, just like I, crave family and friends. And what is the point of building this huge house if I am living all alone?

"Glad you liked it." Sakura said, "Have you planned the party, yet?"

"What party?" I asked gobsmacked.

Ino shook her head with amusement, "No matter your rank, you would always remain the same idiot from the academy."

"Hey! I take offence to that!" I exclaimed.

"They are speaking of the house warming party Naruto-kun." Hinata said.

"Hinata, how many times have I told you to drop the kun. And I never thought of the house warming party because until recently I didn't have many people to invite." I thought out loud, "Okay I will host it tonight. That wouldn't be too soon right?"

"Not really. If you invite them right now it wouldn't be too much of an issue." Ino said.

"Well Sasuke and Kakashi will be coming back today so they are already invited, kind of. You and you" I pointed at Ino and Hinata, "can give out invitations to your respective teams for 7 PM, right?"

"Of course we can, Naruto." Hinata said. I beamed at her ignoring her blush for the moment.

"I would decide the menu and invite other people that I intend to invite. Clones are damn helpful for this purpose. Total guests shouldn't exceed 30 in my opinion so we'll see how quickly it can be done." I was on a roll. Already had decided the menu and all the invitees for the night.

With that out of the way the girls started heading out when I said, "Hinata, can I talk to you about something in private?" Sakura and Ino left, leaving Hinata behind who was nervously playing with her index fingers.

"Relax Hinata. I just wanted to tell you that I… am already in a relationship." Best to nip this in the bud. Yes Hinata is super hot and her tits are… let's not go there right now. But I don't want her to keep high expectations from me for the future.

She looked up in surprise and a little anger, "With whom?" Her tone didn't betray any of her anger.

"Before that you should know that I like both boys and girls. Currently I am with a boy and I don't wanna say out his name. I just told you because I know you like me and it would be unfair on my end to lead you on." I finished and observed her reaction. She was still a little angry but there was a feeling of realisation as well.

"It's Sasuke, isn't it?" She asked.

"How in the name of Sage everyone figures it out this fast?!" I shrieked. She giggled. Then she giggled some more. Finally she was flat out laughing her loudest I had ever seen her. Her laughter was contagious and soon I joined her.

"Wow! You should laugh more, you know." I said when the laughter had finally subsided.

"I'm sorry I didn't mean to laugh but your expression… I just couldn't help myself." She said, "As for how I knew, Sasuke is the only guy you spend time with amongst our graduating class and with the way he behaves around girls, I thought…"

"I told him he was being too obvious." I mumbled.

"I'm happy that you are happy." She said a little sadly. "I always feared that if I was with someone not from our clan, then my father would object. It was the main reason I never said anything to you. Now… I think I am too late. I wish you luck in your new home and with Sasuke. We'll meet at the party." She bowed and quickly left without giving me a chance to say anything else. Her parting emotions were of sad resignation.

This girl genuinely cared for me. Why was I with Sasuke then? He is not selfish per se. But his happiness and needs are more important for him. Fuck it. Let's work on the party and think about it later.

I sent out a plethora of clones to order food and drinks for the night. After all, the majority of the guests would be legally allowed to drink (being shinobi has its perks). Another batch had gone to give out personal invitations to all the other guests not invited by the girls. Most of the guests were the same as those invited in my promotion match.

I went out to search for Karin when, as luck would have it, I ran into Jiraiya. I can guarantee you, it was on purpose on his part. "Look, look who we have here. Done with your mission brat? Good. I am as well. Now as you promised, we talk." He didn't even give me time to reply and was leading me (read: dragging me) towards the nearest training ground clearing.

"Wait!" I turned around in anger and said, "Who the hell gave you permission to manhandle me? Back the fuck off." Okay not my finest moment but I value my personal space. Thankfully he listened and backed away in evident shame.

"I'm sorry, it's just… I really want to talk to you to explain my point of view." He said apologetically.

"Fine. I am having a housewarming party at my new house today, so I have to prepare for it. If you are so eager, then come tonight and we will talk there." I said and he accepted. I never gave him the address as I didn't think he needed it. I left him there to go find Karin again when I felt the presence of the two people I was looking for coming towards me. What the fuck is it with me meeting with Karin?

It was Kakashi and Sasuke coming from the direction of the gates. Better get this out of the way.

"Hey sensei, Sasuke. You are late." I said good naturedly when we met on the way. Sasuke gave a look towards Kakashi and said, "Someone made sure I was lost on the road of life as well."

I guffawed at that. "Anyway, now that you are here, let's go to the house. I got some help to get it furnished as well. And we're having a party!" I led them in the right direction and finally created a clone to go find Karin whose Chakra presence was towards the direction of the Hospital.

Sometimes you cannot just win. In that case, you cheat!

AN: This chapter has not been beta'd because I am lazy and forgot to send it to my most amazing beta. (Sorry man!) If you find any mistake, either comment or PM and I will fix it soon.

Next thing is my upcoming busy schedule. I am posting this chapter early because I am working on a big work project and I won't have time to write/ edit any future chapters for at least a month. I will try to update before 25th of July in any case.

Before anyone says, Danzo's end wasn't anticlimactic. I will add a flashback in a future chapter. Couldn't fit it here or this chapter would be way too long.

On another note, we have reached 50k+ views, 500+ alerts and 400+ favs. A big thanks to all of you for your support.

Now if only the reviews were not lagging behind. Please do review if you like something. Even if you didn't, as long as you can tell me where to improve, I'll be glad to listen to it. Just like a reviewer last chapter said I use "would" way too much. And I agree. That was good criticism that I hadn't even noticed until they pointed it out.

Pairings would be announced only after the Chunin Exam Arc because I have some plans for the invasion that may affect the pairings.

Next chapter we will see a little of the party or shall I say the after-party.

R&R