A/N: For those of you wondering, I'm not dead. As I mentioned in my most recent update of the Uzumaki Tales, I originally needed to take a few months to get my personal life in order, but when I finally had time to sit down and start writing again, I had no desire to do so. Now, I find myself wanting to write again, so I will continue on with this story (though I will make no promises on an update schedule at this time, I will try to update something in a reasonable timeframe).
For those of you still following this and my other story, I thank you for your continued support despite my prolonged absence.
Chapter 17: Finding a Friend
Posted: August 10, 2017
Disclaimer: I so not own Naruto
A heavy silence fell over Sunagakure no Sato as the group of six travelers and a pig rolled into town late at night under the light of the full moon. Seeing as it was late, they figured they'd grab a hotel near the center of town and talk to the Kazekage first thing tomorrow. Entering a hotel Jiraiya knew would serve them well, the perverted Toad Sage was surprised when no one was around.
"Hello? Anyone there?" called out Jiraiya as he rang the bell on the reception desk. No one answered.
"Weird," mulled Jiraiya. "This place is usually packed."
Walking back out onto the street, something wasn't right. The street, no the town was deserted.
"What's wrong with this place," asked Tsunade. "It's way to quite. It's like everyone just vanished."
"I don't know. Last I was here, this was one of the livelier parts of town, yet…it's dead," replied Jiraiya. "You know anything, Gaki?"
Naruto tried to think. However, the first time he had been to Sunagakure no Sato in the previous timeline was when they went to rescue Gaara from Akatsuki. He didn't even know about Sunagakure until the chunin exams, and even then, his knowledge of Sunagakure was limited to what he heard from others.
"Hey Kurama, anything?" Naruto asked the Fox in his gut.
"Hmm…I can feel…something," said Kurama as he tried his best to extend his senses beyond Naruto's seal. "It's familiar…I've felt this before…Shukaku!"
As if on que, a pain-filled cry pierced the silent night air, drawing the attention of all 6 travelers towards the center of the village.
The memory rushed back to Naruto. He remembered his fight with Gaara during the Invasion of Konoha and the subsequent conversations the two had while Naruto was trying to get a better understanding of his fellow jinchuriki. He knew what tonight was…the night Gaara fell into darkness.
"Ero-Sennin, we've gotta hurry!" shouted Naruto as he took off towards the center tower at a high rate of speed that would have been impossible for most academy students…but he wasn't 'most academy students'.
It had happened just like any other attack. One minute, he was just sitting there, contemplating why the entire village hated. The next, the sand that protected him rose up to block a flurry of kunai.
"Why me? Why only me?!" the young Gaara was angry. Angry that yet again someone was trying to kill him. What had he done? The sand lashed out and wrapped up the assassin as Gaara clenched his fist, causing the sand to implode around his captive and throwing the broken body against the wall of the tower nearby.
As the realization hit him that he killed again, Gaara wearily rose to his feet and approached the still breathing attacker. As he pulled down the attacker's mask, the poor boy's eyes widened in terror upon seeing the person who had attacked him.
"Impressive…Gaara-sama," groaned out the attacker, blood trickling out of his mouth.
"Ya…Yashimaru…" cried Gaara as he felt his chest painfully constrict. Gaara let out a pain-filled cry as his caretaker slowly died before his very eyes. "Why? Yashimaru…Why?" Yashimaru had been the one to teach Gaara about love. Why did Yashimaru attack him?
"It was an order," groaned Yashimaru. "I was ordered…to assassinate you…by your father."
"Father? Why…why would he want me dead?" cried Gaara as tears streamed down his face.
"You were born…to be possessed by the Shukaku…Until today…you have been watched over as an experimental subject…However, you are unable to control the powers of the Shukaku…Before long, your existance will become dangerous to the village itself…We simply couldn't let that happen…"
"Then…then you had no choice…It was because of Father…"
"No, you're mistaken…Yes, I did receive Kazekage-sama's order. But…I would've declined if I wanted to…" said Yashimaru. "Lord Gaara…deep down inside…I've always…hated you. You stole away my sister. I tried my best to love you…by thinking of you as a memento of her…she never wanted to give birth to you…she never loved you…please just…die."
As Yashimaru unzipped his jacket with the last of his strength, revealing a number of explosive seals.
An explosion rocked the night sky; however, the explosion didn't come from the vest, but rather in the air where the vest had been thrown.
"Gaara!" shouted Naruto.
"Damn, too close Gaki," panted Jiraiya. Now he knew how those ANBU felt trying to keep up with Naruto. After hearing Gaara's initial cry and arriving to see Gaara bent over Yasimaru, the Suna jonin attempted to detonate himself, but the Toad Sage reacted just in time to summon a toad and have it rip the vest from Yashimaru's body, throwing it into the air nearby. Tsunade was next and Shizune followed with Nanase, Karin riding on her mother's back. Immediately, Tsunade kicked into medic-mode and began examining the dying jonin.
Gaara's attention immediately turned to Naruto and Jiraiya. "Did…did Father send you to?" murmured Gaara. "Did Father send you to kill me? WHY ME?!"
Sand began to rise up around Gaara, causing Naruto and Jiriaya both to swear. "Naruto, what's happening?"
"It's the Ichibi, Shukaku," said Naruto. "I just realized. This is the night when Gaara becomes a crazed psychopath."
"Just great. First Tsunade, then Orochimaru, and now a Biju…so much for a simple errand," groaned Jiraiya.
Standing in front of Naruto and Jiraiya was Gaara, partially transformed now into the Shukaku. "Just die already!" Gaara whipped out with his tail, sending a flurry of sand shuriken at the two boys, knocking them off the side of the Kazekage's tower before jumping off to pursue his 'assassins'.
"Damn," swore Tsunade. "His entire body's been crushed. Bones, organs, everything. I can't save him here. Even in a fully equipped hospital…it'd be a 30% chance at best."
"Gaara-sama…I'm sorry," apologized Yashimaru weakly.
"Here, bite down," advised Nanase as she rolled up her sleeve to reveal a number of scared bite marks on her arm.
"What…?" gasped Tsunade upon seeing the arm. "What are you doing?"
Nanase ignored Tsunade for a moment and positioned her arm in Yashimaru's mouth. "Now bite," demanded the Uzumaki woman. Yashimaru weakly obliged and bit down, causing Nanase to wince in pain.
"Kaachan?!" shouted a concerned Karin.
"It's okay, Karin," assured Nanase as she gritted through the pain.
To say Tsunade was stupefied as Yashimaru's injuries began to heal themselves was an understatement. "How? I've never seen anything like this…"
"My chakra is special in that it allows me to temporarily transfer my Uzumaki healing factor to anyone who bites me to draw it out," explained Nanase.
"But not even Kushina can do something like this…"
"Even I don't know how to explain it, but it's an ability only I…and Karin have," said Nanase.
Tsunade could pick out the tenseness in Nanase's voice. Looking back at her arms and the number of bite marks, Tsunade couldn't help but cringe at the thoughts that were coming into her head. Nanase had been held captive by Kusagakure…no…they couldn't have…
If Kushina found out that Kusagakure was keeping her sister from her captive for the very reason she feared…the resulting fallout wouldn't be another war…it'd be a massacre.
Finally, Yashimaru's breathing began to resemble something normal. "Gaara-sama…"
"Alright, what happened?" asked Tsunade, wanting to get the full story.
"I tried to kill Gaara-sama. It was an order by Kazekage-sama. I was told to make him hate me, to want to kill me. Doing so would help him control the monster within him," groaned Yashimaru. While Nanase's healing abilities had done wonders, the Sunagakure jonin was still in incredible pain. "But…I drove Gaara-sama further into darkness. I need to stop him…before the Shukaku wins over."
Yashimaru struggled to his feet, collapsing back to the ground. He was still weak from almost dying.
"Don't push yourself. You're incredibly lucky to still be alive. You can't push yourself any harder right now," scolded Tsunade.
"No. I still need to help Gaara-sama," resolved Yashimaru. Willing himself to his feet, Yashimaru took off after Gaara against Tsunade's expert medical advice.
Jiraiya and Naruto rounded a corner with a berserk Gaara hot on their trail. "Suna Shuriken!" cried out Gaara as he unleashed another round of sand shuriken upon Gaara and Naruto.
"Katon: Endan!" (Fire-style: Flame Bullet) Jiraiya's fire met Gaara's sand and the two canceled each other out as balls of hot glass dropped to the sandy ground below.
"Damnit Ero-Sennin! We can't attack Gaara!" shouted Naruto.
"But he's trying to kill us?!" argued Jiraiya.
"We've gotta show Gaara we're his friends," replied Naruto. "If it looks like we're trying to kill him, it'll only make him madder!"
Just as Naruto said that, Gaara growled as more sand began to rise up around Gaara, encasing him and rising well above the surrounding buildings.
"You've gotta be kidding…" sweated Jiraiya as the full figure of the Shukaku stared down upon them.
"Why can't you just leave me alone?! I'll kill you!" threatened Gaara. The giant sand tanuki stared down at the Sannin and his apprentice from the future, bent on killing them. With a flick of his tail, Gaara threatened to crust the two into the sand beneath their feet.
"Kuchiyose: Yatai Kuzushi no Jutsu!" (Summoning: Food Cart Destroyer Jutsu)
Before Gaara could flatten the pair, he himself was flattened be several tons of toad as Gamaken crashed down upon the giant sand tanuki.
"Ero-Sennin!"
"I'm not just going to sit around and let him kill me!"
"But what about Gaara?!"
"Gaara? What about us?!"
As Naruto and Jiraiya argued amongst themselves, Gaara struggled to throw the giant toad off of him. And with a burst of rage, the clumsy toad was thrown off as Gaara let out a bloodthirsty howl. From atop the sand tanuki, a young Gaara emerged from the sand. "I've had enough of this! Just DIE!"
"Gaara-sama, please stop!"
The voice calling out to Gaara immediately snapped the young jinchuriki out of his enraged state as he stared into the eyes of the very person who had cared for him…and then just recently tried to kill him. How was Yashimaru standing in front of him? He should have been dead?
As Yashimaru landed on the Ichibi's head, facing Gaara, he fell to his knees as his injuries weren't fully healed.
"Ya…Yashimaru? Why? Why are you still alive?" Gaara began to cry.
"Because I was wrong. I thought by doing what I did, I'd be helping you. But I only ended up hurting you more…" apologized Yashimaru.
"But you tried to kill me…Why do you hate me?"
"I don't hate you, Gaara-sama," said Yashimaru. "If fact, I love you. I love you like I loved my sister."
"Yashimaru…NO! LIES!" shouted Gaara as the sand rose up around the Suna jonin. Mustering all the strength he could, Yashimaru darted towards Gaara. Gaara threw some sand towards Yashimaru, bent on killing the attacker before he could betray him again.
"Oh no!" gasped Jiraiya as the Sand surrounded Gaara and Yashimaru on the top of the Ichibi's head.
"Jiraiya!" Tsunade, Shizune, Nanase, and Karin jumped down from the surrounding buildings to join their counterparts. "What's going on here?!"
"Gaara went berserk and nearly tried to kill us! However, Yashimaru came and now…" Jiraiya pointed to the sand sphere on top of Ichibi's head that had just frozen in place as it tried to encase Yashimaru and Gaara. Before anything else could happen, the sand shell began to crumble, revealing Gaara frozen in place while being embraced by Yashimaru.
"Please Gaara-sama. Please stop and let us help you. Please allow me the chance to earn your forgiveness," begged Yashimaru.
"Yashimaru…" was all Gaara could say. This embrace they were in…it was warm and caring…it was love.
"How is he moving, let alone still alive?" asked Jiraiya regarding Yashimaru's sudden 'second wind'. He knew Tsuande was the best medic around, but the fact that Yashimaru was able to move after nearly being crushed to death was beyond comprehension.
"It wasn't me. I don't know how, but Nanase did something," said Tsunade.
The giant sand tanuki began to crumble as Gaara's bloodlust came to an end, overcome by Yashimaru's love for his nephew. A wave of harmless sand crashed through the streets of Suna as Gaara and Yashimaru landed in the middle of it, Yashimaru finally collapsing.
"Yashimaru?!"
"It's okay, Gaara-sama," said a weak Yashimaru as Tsunade ran to Yashimaru's side and began to heal some of the injuries that had reopened during Yashimaru's struggle to save Gaara.
"It'll be okay. He should live, but he needs rest," said Tsunade to the crying Gaara as she tried to reassure the young jinchuriki.
Naruto let out a long-held breath. He could see it in Gaara's eyes…his young friend hadn't succumbed to the darkness this time around.
"What is going on here!"
Suddenly, a dozen Suna ninja surrounded the band from Konoha, the Kazekage taking his place amongst the head of them.
"Why of all people, are two of Konoha's Sannin in the middle of Sunagakure tonight, when I ordered the city evacuated!" shouted the Kazekage. "ANBU, arrest them."
No resistance was made as the Kazekage's ANBU slapped a set of chakra suppression cuffs on everyone present. "Are you going to explain your purpose for being here before I lock you away? Or do I need to have you spend some time with my experts?" asked the Kazekage.
"Actually, we were sent by the Hokage to deliver a new draft of the peace treaty for you review and respond to, Kazekage-sama," said Jiraiya. "We just arrived in Sunagakure to find the city completely abandoned. We figured we'd get a hotel and try to get an audience with you, but then we heard scream followed by an explosion. The next thing we knew, we were being attacked until Yashimaru stepped in to save us."
The Kazekage glared at the Sannin as he contemplated what it was Jiraiya had just said. "Very well. ANBU, escort them to my office. But the chakra suppression cuffs will remain on. Should you try anything suspicious, I don't care if you are two of Konoha's famed Sannin or…" the Kazekage turned to Naruto. "…the Hokage's son, I will have you imprisoned or killed."
"We understand," acknowledged Jiraya as the ANBU led everyone off to his office, including Yashimaru and Gaara.
"W-w-what is this?!" gasped the Kazekage as he read through the documents prepared by Minato for him to review.
"Is something wrong, Kazekage-sama?" asked Jiraiya.
"No…it's just…" The main thing that had captivated the Kazekage was a certain clause pertaining to missions issued by the Damiyo of the Land of Wind. For years, the Damiyo of the Land of Wind had been sending more and more missions from Sunagakure to Konohagakure. If this trend kept up, it would only be a matter of years before the village found itself on the verge of economic disaster as the Damiyo himself contributed to almost half of Sunagakure's mission revenue. The clause in particular stated that Konoha would forward any mission requests it received by the Land of Wind to Sunagakure, effectively returning the mission back to the village they should have been issued to in the first place. "Why would Hokage-dono propose such a thing?"
"Minato has noticed an increase in mission requests coming from the Land of Wind. He places a high value on the alliance between our two nations and is afraid that accepting missions from the Land of Wind would not only hurt the trust between our two villages, but also lead to a weakening of your own village, effectively weakening the alliance itself," explained Jiraiya. In reality, the reason behind this clause was to give Sunagakure less of a reason to ally with Orochimaru or any enemy to Konoha in the near future, but he couldn't just say that.
"Very well. I will review this carefully and give you my response tomorrow," said the Kazekage. "I sincerely apologize for getting you and your company involved in this mess."
"Speaking of mess, Kazekage-sama, I have a request for you that's probably better discussed in private," said Jiraiya as he motioned towards Gaara.
"I see, ANBU, please escort everyone to a guesthouse," ordered the Kazekage as Nanase, Karin, Tsunade, Shizune, and Naruto were escorted out of the office. Before leaving, Naruto sent Jiraiya a hopeful look and Jiraiya nodded in return. Hopefully, the Kazekage would agree to Jiraiya's request to inspect and fix Gaara's seal.
The following day, Gaara sat alone on a nearby swing. For some reason, the villagers were even more afraid of him today. Did what he did last night spook them? Why were they afraid of him? The lonely boy looked down just in time to see a red ball roll on the ground near him. Gaara sighed. He had experienced this too many times before. First an errant ball would find its way to him. He would then try to return the ball and perhaps play with the other kids, only for them to run away in fear. Why was it like this? Why did everyone fear him?
"Hey, can you throw it back?" shouted a boy from afar. Looking up, Gaara saw the same blonde kid from last night waving over to him. "Come on! Throw it back!"
Gaara stood up and picked the ball up, almost expecting the kid to run away. He had seen him last night. He was sure to run away in fear. As Gaara slowly began to walk towards the boy, he was surprised to see the blonde not run away. Not only did he not run away, but he even came a few steps closer until the actually did something no one had ever done before…he picked the ball calmly out of Gaara's hands.
"Thanks, but you're supposed to throw it. It's more fun that way," grinned the blonde boy as he jumped backwards from Gaara. Gaara almost cried out, hoping for once that someone wouldn't run. To his surprise, the boy stopped, a few meters away. "Now, catch!"
The ball came towards him in a gentle arc and Gaara just held out his arms in amazement as the ball landed in them. "Your turn, now throw or kick it back!"
Gaara couldn't help it. For some reason, the sand didn't react to this bot the way it normally did. In fact, it didn't do anything. There was no malice in this boy whatsoever. And with that, he let a warm smile slip on his face before punting the ball back towards Naruto.
Unfortunately, the ball soared over the boy's head and towards the entrance of the park as he ran to get it. Picking up the ball, the boy stopped at the gate before taking off behind the wall. Gaara began to panic. Was he being abandoned again?
However, not even moments later, the boy came running back into the park, with a young blonde girl and brown-haired boy who was wearing what appeared to be make-up in tow. He instantly recognized these two as his sister and brother, Temari and Kankuro.
"Hey look! I found two more friends to play with!" exclaimed the boy. "Wait! Hey Neechan, come play with us!"
Gaara looked up to see a young red-headed girl walk into the park, accompanied by what looked to be an older version of her. Was this the blonde boy's sister?
Temari and Kankuro cringed at the thought of 'playing' with their brother, but the new boy and girl started playing with Gaara like it was no big deal. And for once, Temari and Kankuro saw their younger brother smiling and happy…just like a normal kid. It wasn't long until they relaxed their guard slightly and joined in on the fun.
However, one word repeated itself in Gaara's mind…'friends'. Gaara slowly approached the blonde boy. "Are…are we friends?"
The blonde just flashed a foxy grin back at Gaara before responding. "Sure! I'm Namikaze Naruto! And this is Uzumaki Karin, my cousin!"
"Naruto, Karin, I'm Gaara," said Gaara as he noticed Naruto holding a fist in front of him. "What's this?"
"Bump my fist with your fist. It's what friends do!" exclaimed Naruto. Gaara stood there for a moment in awe before raising his own fist and bumping it lightly with Naruto's. And then he felt it…a connection of some sort…Naruto truly was his friend.
"Do you see now?" Jiraiya asked as he and the Kazekage observed the children's' interactions from atop the nearby Kazekage tower.
"I think I understand now, Jiraiya," said the Kazekage. "This is the first time I've ever seen him like this. Very well, I'll let you fix Gaara's seal if it means he will be happy like this."
Over the past few days, the Kazekage managed to take a closer look at the treaty agreement sent by Konoha and he was pleasantly surprised. It was exactly the same as the previous agreement which he approved of with the exception that any missions coming from the Land of Wind would be sent back to Sunagakure. Needless to say, it was one of the easiest decisions he had to make as a kage. He would be a fool not to accept it.
On top of that, Jiraiya had managed to fix Gaara's seal and the Kazekage was just glad Chiyo-baasama wasn't present as Jiraiya had ripped the current seal new one, several times over. In short, the seal was utter garbage. There were no protections, no failsafe, no nothing to prevent the Ichibi from influencing Gaara. The Toad Sage considered it a miracle that Gaara had lasted this long without completely succumbing to the Ichibi. While originally skeptical with Jiraiya's corrections, the Kazekage realized that the new seal would provide Gaara with the necessary protections while still allowing him to access the Ichibi's chakra if desperately needed. However, the biggest benefit of the new seal…Gaara could sleep.
Now, a few days after they arrived, Naruto, Jiraiya, Tsunade, Shizune, Nanase, and Karin were standing at the pass leading out of Sunagakure. Also present was the Kazekage, Yashimaru, Gaara, Temari, and Kankuro. Unfortunately for the children, it was time for Naruto and everyone else to head back to Konoha.
"Do you really need to leave?" asked Gaara.
"Sorry, but I need to get back home. I'm sure Kaachan's worried about me," said Naruto. "But don't worry, we'll still be friends even if we're apart. And still, now you have your brother and sister to play with you. I'm sure your brother wouldn't mind sharing some of his makeup or dolls with you."
"They're not dolls!" objected Kankuro. "They're puppets! Ninja puppets! And it's not makeup, it's war paint!"
"Sure, whatever you say, Doll-Boy," waved Naruto. This resulted in a slight giggle from Temari and even a laugh from Gaara at their brother's misfortune. Naruto then turned to Gaara. "Maybe you can come to Konoha one day and I can introduce you to all of my friends and then they'll become your friends to!"
Gaara's eyes widened. More friends? He sent a hopeful look up towards his father and his father looked down. "Someday, Gaara. I promise."
One last handshake between friends, and the Konoha group turned towards home.
"This certainly has been some trip," reflected Naruto.
"Between Orochimaru, the Ichibi, AND Tsunade, I've had about enough," said Jiraiya. "It's time to get back to Konoha and I've got a deadline rapidly approaching!"
"What was that Jiraiya?" said Tsunade sweetly as she placed her hand on a now shivering Jiraiya.
"Kushina…"said Nanase to no one in particular. "Please let this be real. Please be there when we arrive…" Even still, Nanase was glad to be out of Kusagakure. Instinctively rubbing her arms, even she knew it was only a matter of time before the wars going on in Kusagakure would lead to the day where her own bloodline killed her. Looking down at her daughter, the Uzumaki woman smiled. If what she had been told was even partially true, then Konoha offered a much brighter future for her daughter than what Kusa offered…being held prisoner just so she could be bitten day and night by numerous injured fighters involved in Kusa's stupid wars amongst itself.
"I can't believe I'm saying this, but it'll be nice to get back to the academy," said Naruto.
"You realize you're missing a month of classes, kid," said Jiraiya. "That's going to be a lot of work to make up."
"Meh, I'm near the top of my class and I'll just have my clones do the make-up work for me," shrugged Naruto. "Besides, it's just the academy, how bad could it be?"
Konoha,
Sasuke found himself crawling through the gates of the Uchiha compound, having spent the past few hours running for his life. Ever since Naruto had left for a trip with Jiraiya, the fangirls had focused ALL of their undivided attention on him.
"Are you okay, Little Brother?" asked Itachi as he picked Sasuke out of the ground.
"I can't take it anymore! When Naruto gets back, I'm going to kill him for leaving me alone with those ravenous monsters…"
Naruto felt a chill shoot down his spine. Why couldn't he shake the feeling that he was in for a world filled with ravenous fangirls and a certain Teme who wanted his head.
"Speaking of Academy, I can't wait to start up that medic program," grinned Tsunade.
"So, does that mean you're really going to stay, Baachan?" exclaimed Naruto.
"Watch that mouth of yours, Brat!" growled Tsuande as a tick mark appeared on her head. "But, now that I think about it more, perhaps I will. So tell me, who are these lucky kids who get the pleasure to study under me?"
Shizune instinctively shivered as she remembered just how effective, and brutal, Tsunade could be at training med-nins. She could still feel the welts from when she went through Tsunade's dodgeball training exercise.
"Let's see…Definitely Sakura-chan. She was your apprentice last time. Also, there's Yamanaka Ino who studied under you as well. I'm sure Karin-neechan would make a great medic. I think Kurama Yakumo also could be good. And we can't forget about Hinata-chan!" chirped Naruto.
"Ah yes, I almost forgot," smiled Tsunade before a dark aura appeared around her as she cracked a few knuckles. "I hope those stuck up Hyugas are ready for what they have coming to them. Besides, I can't teach medicine if I don't have anyone to help me demonstrate how to heal broken bones or ruptured organs…"
Hyuga compound,
It all happened at once…Every main branch Hyuga felt a foreboding chill run down their spine as the Shinigami himself made his presence known to them, deciding he would be kind and offer them a quick and painless death instead of suffering through the impending hell. However, the 10-foot pole up their asses prevented them from seeing this angel of mercy.
"Oh Naruto, you said Kushina was pregnant?" asked Tsunade as she wend from sadistic and demonic to happy and cheerful in an instant.
"Yeah! I can't believe it! I'm going to be a big brother!" exclaimed Naruto.
"I almost feel sorry for Minato," mused Jiraiya. "I remember when Kushina was pregnant with you…"
As if on que, a yellow flash of light appeared behind Naruto as the young blonde was dragged to the ground by a shivering Minato, who had Hiraishin-ed to the tri-pronged kunai that Naruto kept on him at all time.
"Minato? What's wrong? You look like you've seen the Shinigami!" exclaimed Jiraiya as the unusually pale Hokage struggled to compose himself.
"It's the mood swings…they've started…"
Jiraiya started panicking as Tsunade just smiled. The last thing he needed right now was an unstable Kushina. Between that and Tsunade, his peeping days were most certainly numbered. "I can't wait to see that cute baby when its born," smiled Tsunade.
Unfortunately, Jiraiya was still trying to think how he would explain an encounter with Akatsuki AND Naruto almost being crushed by the Ichibi to Minato and Kushina. What's the worst that can happen? Well it certainly wasn't death…that actually sounded pretty good right about now.
"It's great to be back! Namikaze Naruto is back in town!" exclaimed Naruto as he climbed to the top of a nearby poll and announced his arrival to the world.
Thankfully, Minato had agreed to flash everyone back to Konoha, landing at the Hirashin seal he kept near the front gate of the village, saving everyone two days of travel.
Jumping down from the post, the ground shook as Naruto landed.
"Damn Kid, perhaps you need to lay off the ramen," suggested Jiraiya. However, the ground didn't stop shaking. In fact, the intensity of the shaking only grew as a cloud of dust appeared in the horizon, trailing close behind a certain panicking Uchiha.
Like a wild stampede, the dust swept over Naruto and upon clearing, the Hokage's son was nowhere to be seen.
"What was that for, Teme?!" shouted Naruto as he was running at full speed next to Sasuke.
"Less talking, more running, Dobe! This is what you get for leaving me alone with THEM for the past month!" shouted Sasuke as he pointed behind him to the pursuing mob of ravenous fangirls who were excited to see their precious Naruto-kun again.
"Should we do something?" Karin asked as Tsunade and Nanase just stood dumbfounded at the hoard of fangirls.
"Nah, it's a regular occurrence. He'll be fine," waved Jiraiya. "Besides, they're only girls. What's the worst that could happen? It'll be good for him."
"Good for him my ASS! You're just looking to exploit your godson's own misfortunes for your stupid books!" shouted Tsunade. "I don't think I ever remember Konoha having this big of a fan-girl problem before. Have standards for kunoichi really fallen that far?!" Like all self-respecting kunoichi, Tsunade had an inherent dislike of fan-girls. But, that didn't mean she didn't enjoy fan-girls…breaking them that is. If she was going to have a say in how those kunoichi were trained, perhaps this would be much more enjoyable than she originally thought as a devious smirk crept its way onto her face.
Just a few seconds later, another flash of yellow light appeared in the middle of everyone as Minato had decided Hirashin to the boys and save them.
"If you ever leave me alone with them like that again, I WILL kill you!" glared Sasuke as he turned to Naruto. The blonde just shot him nervous grin while he chuckled and Sasuke relaxed slightly. "But it's good to have you back, Dobe. Class was getting boring lately. So do you want to go and train?"
"Sorry, Sasuke-kun," apologized Minato. "I'm afraid Naruto has other plans for tonight."
Naruto shot a confused look towards his father before the Hokage bent down to his son's level. "Do you know what today is?"
...
"OH CRAP! I CAN'T BELIEVE I FORGOT! IT'S KAACHAN'S BIRTHDAY!" panicked Naruto. He had completely forgotten after the events of the past month or so. If there was one thing you didn't do, it was forget your mother's birthday. "What do I do? I didn't get her anything?"
A hand on his shoulder stopped Naruto's rambling enough for Minato to say something to his son. "Actually, I think you got her more than anything she could have ever asked for," said Minato as he pointed to the two Uzumaki girls behind him. "Nanase, are you ready to go see your sister?"
"Yes, please…" Nanase said almost beggingly.
"Well let's not keep you two apart any longer." With that, Minato took off in a flash with Naruto, Nanase, and Karin, leaving Jiraiya, Tsunade, Shizune, and Sasuke alone at the gates.
"If you ladies will excuse me, I've got some business to take care of," said Jiraiya as he tried to sneak away from Tsunade, only for the buxom blonde to grab the perverted sage by the ear.
"You weren't going to do what I think you were going to do, were you?" questioned Tsunade as Jiraiya frantically shook his head. "Good. Now let's go see sensei."
Namikaze residence,
Kushina was standing by the stove. Yes, it was her birthday and yes, she shouldn't be cooking, but the one thing she wanted was her special Uzumaki ramen, something only she knew the recipe for.
Earlier ago, in a frantic hormone-induced frenzy she sent a cowering Minato to fetch Naruto, wanting to make sure her son was alright and bring him back to celebrate. If there was one thing she wanted for her birthday, it was to know that her son was okay after being away from home for so long.
As she turned back to the stove, a yellow flash behind her indicated the arrival of her husband.
"NAMIKAZE MINATO!" Kushina shouted as she picked up the ladle. "WHAT DID I SAY ABOUT FLASHING INTO THE HOU…"
As Kushina turned to scold her husband even more, she was brought to a loss of words as a ghost of her own past stood behind her husband.
Said 'ghost' appeared to be in just about as much shock as she as Minato and Naruto stepped out of the way, giving the two some much needed space.
"It can't be…" gasped Kushina. It had been 25 years since she laid eyes on that face, but she couldn't help it. That face was burned into her memory, something she had desperately tried to let go of in order to ease her own suffering. This person standing in front of her couldn't be…she was supposed to be dead, killed when Uzushiogakure was destroyed during the Second War.
She didn't want it to be. She had only recently just got over her sister's death. Even after hiding it for many years, she still had trouble coming to terms with her little sister's death. But this woman standing in front of her looked way too close to what she imagined her sister would look like if she were still alive. It was then that rage built up inside of her.
"NAMIKAZE UZUMAKI NARUTO! THIS HAD BETTER NOT BE ONE OF YOUR PRANKS!"
"Kushi…" spoke the woman as she took a step forward towards Kushina. Kushina was broken out of her rage and took a step back, not wanting this to be real. However, she bumped into the table behind her, cutting off any retreat she had from this 'ghost'. "Is it really you, Kushina?"
Nanase came a few steps closer, allowing her to touch the arm of the very person she thought to be dead all these years. It was real and she could feel it. In once quick move, the younger of the two Uzumaki's embraced the other in a hug as the other just stood there stupefied.
"Nana-chan," said Kushina, finally admitting that this person embracing her really was her long-lost sister. She couldn't believe it. This had to be an illusion or one of Naruto's pranks…but it just felt so…real.
Tears began to well up in Kushina's eyes as she embraced her sister as well, slumping to the ground and dragging Nanase with her. Any feelings or hints of despair the two sisters had regarding each other being dead were washed away in the tears the two of them shed as they just sat there, letting the presence of the other bring a new light into their hearts.
From over on the stairs, Naruto, Minato, and Karin couldn't help but cry as well from the contagious tears being shed. It was finally Naruto who managed to say something. "Hey Touchan, where's Hinata-chan?"
"N-Naruto-k-kun?" stuttered said girl as she appeared at the top of the stairs, wanting to know what all the commotion was below. Trailing behind her was a small girl who looked to be about 4 years old with brown hair and the same white eyes as Hinata.
"Hizashi was kind enough to sneak Hanabi over today so that Hinata could get some time with her own sister," explained Minato. "Now you stay here and I'll be back shortly with your mother's cake."
Looking down at the scene unfold, Hinata couldn't help but cry a little for the woman who had practically become her mother. They weren't sad tears, they were happy tears. She had heard about how Kushina lost her sister when they were kids and she desperately wished that her caretaker could get her sister back somehow. Hinata couldn't help it as she embraced her own sister.
After Kushina and Nanase cried it out for another 15 minutes, the two finally broke apart. "After all these years, I can't believe…" gasped Kushina. "To think you were still alive…had I known…"
"It's okay, Neesan," comforted Nanase. "We're together again and that's all that matters. Besides, there's someone I'd like you to meet…Karin!" As Nanase called out to her daughter, the young Uzumaki girl came bounding over. "Karin, this is your aunt, Kushina."
A smile lit up Karin's face as she moved to hug her newly found aunt. "It's nice to finally meet you, Karin-chan."
Shortly after, Minato returned to the house with a rather large cake, a smiling Tsunade, and certain pervert who had what looked to be a red-mark shaped like a crystal ball on his face. Sitting down with the candle-lit cake, Kushina couldn't find a wish to make. On this particular day, her biggest wish had actually come true…her sister had returned to her.
Author Note
And that concludes Naruto's 'first' mission. I realize now that the event on Gaara may have actually happened years ago and that slipped my mind, but it's too late to do anything about it now, so just pretend like it happened when he was 9 in cannon.
I'm thinking 2-3 more chapters before Naruto's done with the academy. Also, what do you guys think, keep the teams the same way they were in the previous timeline or change them up a little? (considering there's Sai, Yakumo, and Karin). The only team I can say at this point that will remain the same is Team Gai.