Kin glared at Tayuya and Tayuya in turn glared back, the two sitting at the dining table. Karin looked between the two of them while drinking tea, she knew the other red head had her chakra suppressed but she still felt awkward watching over her while Naruto and the others trained. Isaribi was avoiding Tayuya by just not being in the same room as the foul mouthed girl.
"So," Karin began, "I guess we're cousins or something?" she asked the other red head awkwardly, not sure how to approach a discussion with the girl.
"According to that fucking cow tits blonde bimbo." Tayuya snapped, "I don't buy it, I'm a fucking orphan, not a member of some shitty clan." she grumbled angrily. Kimimaro had warned them that the girl had a foul mouth but Karin's jaw still dropped at just how crass Tayuya could be.
"I don't believe it either." Kin agreed, "The two Uzumaki I know are nice and don't need a hickey to be strong." she said with a glare.
Karin was slightly flattered that the dark haired girl considered her strong as she looked awkwardly between the two kunoichi, Tayuya didn't rise to the bait so an awkward silence returned to the table. The red eyed aspiring iryonin wished that Naruto was maybe a little bit less compassionate for once, but she knew she probably wouldn't be where she was if he didn't have such a hero complex.
Sasuke had been annoyed to learn Jiraiya actually didn't know how to train Raiton chakra, but Kakashi had done as a good sensei should and explained it to him. So Sasuke was staring at his fingers feeling like he was accomplishing nothing as he tried to get his chakra to spark between his fingers while Naruto made water out of thin air.
Haku had finished Suiton chakra training and was now working on cutting the waterfall in half, a feat that the dark haired pretty boy found intensely difficult. Despite the clear difficulty Haku was having Sasuke couldn't help but feel like Naruto and Haku had both outpaced him a little, the blonde throwing around such chakra intensive techniques in their fight against Jiraiya only furthering this idea.
Sasuke knew he'd done well too, he was jonin now after all, but Itachi had been a Buntaicho in Anbu at the same age. The Uchiha wondered if he matched up to what his brother had been capable of at this age, but decided not to ask as it didn't matter since he didn't need to match the older Uchiha, he needed to surpass the man in every way if he wanted to kill him.
With that in mind he was glad Naruto was so strong, the blonde would be incredibly helpful in avenging his clan. He felt some guilt to share that burden with another, and truthfully at first he had decided on Naruto's help because he was scared. The Uchiha didn't want to ever admit it to anyone but he had been terrified of Orochimaru, of dying before he could avenge his clan, now he felt that together he and the Uzumaki might have a chance at fighting either of those traitors to the village.
Sasuke was glad Kakashi had put so much emphasis on teamwork, even if it had taken multiple near death experiences and Naruto having a chakra no bakemono inside of him to get the Uchiha to accept those lessons.
"Naruto-kun," Kakashi began, trying to hide how much he was smiling under his mask, "I have a mission for you and your genin team." he told the blonde, enjoying the way the blue eye of the blonde widened at those words. The jonin was pretty sure he didn't have a genin team but Haku realized the Hokage was referring to himself and the other two vassals.
"Genin team?" Naruto asked in confusion, "But I don't have students." he pointed out, he'd helped Konohamaru train a few times but that was the extent of that.
"You do have three vassal ninja who are currently genin rank under your command." Kakashi explained, his grin showing by the way his visible eye crinkled when the blonde brightened up, seeming to like the idea of having a genin team even if he didn't actually have anything to do with training them.
"Oh right!" Naruto laughed, "So what's the mission?" he asked with a grin.
"Hoshigakure no Sato, in Kuma no Kuni, has requested our assistance in guarding their Hoshi." Kakashi began, frowning under his mask at the blank look of confusion on Naruto and Haku's faces, "Roughly two hundred years ago, a Hoshi fell in Kuma no Kuni, and Hoshigakure no Sato was built around it, they're a small village but the Hoshi is said to enhance their chakra." he explained, giving a brief history lesson and not really blaming Zabuza for never explaining this to Haku.
Naruto frowned, "If they're a ninja village too shouldn't they protect their own secrets?" he asked, crossing his arms.
Kakashi shrugged, "Smaller villages tend to try and cooperate with major villages, and honestly Hoshigakure has caused problems in the past but truthfully I don't want to risk the secret to their power falling into the wrong hands." he explained and the blonde immediately thought of Orochimaru, "With that in mind, I could send Gai's team. A mission like this doesn't strictly require a jonin and even a team of three genin could probably handle it, but your vassals need some more missions outside of the village under their belts before the next chunin exams if you want to nominate them."
Naruto nodded, "Alright then," he agreed, "Team Naruto is on it!" he confirmed with a grin and a nod.
Kimimaro wasn't too fond of the idea of leaving Tayuya alone with Isaribi and Karin, but accepted going on the mission with Naruto and the other two vassals. Kin looked like she couldn't wait to get away from Tayuya and was ready to go before the others.
While they were gone and Karin was at the hospital for training, Tayuya managed to get her hands on a kunai and sneak up behind Isaribi while the bandaged girl was doing dishes. The brown eyed Uzumaki put a hand on the purple haired girl's shoulder and placed the kunai against her neck.
"Alright you cripple bitch," Tayuya began harshly, "I don't know what kind of rash you got but you're getting this shitty fuin array off my back or whatever your sexually transmitted issue is will be the least of your health concerns." she threatened.
To the surprise of the kunoichi the girl simply twisted in her grip with the sound of metal scraping against metal as the bandages under the kunai tore and Isaribi elbowed Tayuya in the solar plexus, "Would you just behave yourself!" the scaled girl scolded angrily as she snatched the kunai from the winded girl, "Naruto-kun is being so kind to you and you've been nothing but a nuisance!" she snapped, stomping her foot in anger.
Tayuya stumbled back in shock and pain, "What the fuck? What kind of weird fucking jutsu is under those bandages?" she asked, ignoring the scolding.
Isaribi glared, "It's not a jutsu, it's something your former master did to me and Tsunade-sama is trying to reverse." she explained, surprising the other girl, "I'm putting up with your presence for the sake of Naruto-kun, because he's too kind to just discard you and let you die even if you do deserve it, but if I have to worry about you trying to kill him in his sleep I'll put up with him hating me to kill you if it means he's safe." she threatened, pointing the kunai at the foul mouthed girl.
Tayuya blinked owlishly as it clicked that the other girl wasn't even angry that she'd been attacked, she was mad on behalf of Naruto, the red head tried to think of a response but stormed away instead. She didn't care that she got her own room and her flute back, she didn't want pity she wanted her power back.
Team Naruto made it to Devil's Ravine in Kuma no Kuni without issue, but Kimimaro did have to warn the blonde jonin of how the canyon was filled with a poisonous gas that acted as a natural defense for Hoshigakure no Sato.
Soon after they arrived a Hoshi nin in a gas mask, sleeveless shirt with mesh underneath, long gloves, and pants tucked into sandals that went up his shins showed up to escort them safely. The shinobi introduced himself as Sumaru and removed his mask to reveal long black hair in a braid but annoyed Naruto when he greeted Kimimaro as the apparent squad leader.
"Actually," Kimimaro spoke up, "while it is nice to meet you, our jonin leader is Naruto-sama." he corrected calmly, gesturing to the one eyed glaring blonde.
Sumaru blinked owlishly, "Ah, my apologies, it was foolish of me to assume the eldest of you was the leader." he apologized with a bow, "I assumed the one with the least obvious amount of weaponry was the jonin." he explained his reasoning, since Kimimaro seemed completely unarmed as the Kaguya didn't even carry a shuriken holster, although he did wear the Konoha symbol around his neck now that he had it.
Naruto still seemed annoyed but accepted the apology and his team were escorted to meet with the village leader, a pale and bony man with blue eyes and lilac hair pulled back into a ponytail named Akahoshi, who introduced himself as the interim Hoshikage.
Kin frowned at the title, "I thought only the leaders of the hidden villages of the Shinobi Godaikoku could hold the title of Kage?" she asked in confusion.
Sumaru took offense to this, "That doesn't make any difference!" he snapped, "We are not inferior to you. Even if we are small now, this village will one day rival the hidden villages of the Shinobi Godaikoku." he declared, "At that time, I'll become the true Hoshikage!" he finished passionately.
Naruto smiled at the words as Kin raised an eyebrow, "Silence!" Akahoshi ordered, "Go back to the training ground." he demanded of Sumaru and the boy stood to obey. Naruto wanted to follow and talk with the braid haired boy, but knew he had to stick around and discuss the mission with the village leader.
Akahoshi closed his eyes and released a quiet sigh, "Forgive me." he said, "As you say, shinobi in our village are not qualified to hold the title of Kage." he agreed, "However, in our village, there is the Hoshi that Kage of all Shinobi Godaikoku envy. We will use the power of the Hoshi and one day claim the sixth Kage title." he declared firmly.
"So this Hoshi is what you want us to help protect?" Naruto asked, interested since he aspired to be Hokage himself.
"Yes." Akahoshi confirmed with a nod, "Our search team acquired some information." he began, explaining how Hoshigakure scouts had noticed suspicious signs and tracks on the outskirts of the village.
The meeting was interrupted by another Hoshi shinobi, "There's been an emergency broadcast from the training grounds!" the man declared in a panic.
It turned out the Hoshi had been stolen while Naruto and his team were in the meeting, all the genin training with the Hoshi had been knocked unconscious and Sumaru had been unable to stop the culprit escaping. Akahoshi was reprimanding the boy for being unable to stop the thief, something that Haku thought was cruel since the boy was apparently just a genin himself.
"I'm sorry, Akahoshi-sama, but the thief could use Kujaku Myoho as well!" Sumaru defended himself and the village leader paused, stunned by this news. Kimimaro narrowed his eyes at the expression that flitted across the man's face.
"I see." Akahoshi said simply.
"Our mission is to protect the star, right?" Naruto spoke up, "Then we'll do our best to help get it back y'know." he assured without waiting for an answer to the rhetorical question.
Sumaru scowled, "This is a matter for Hoshigakure!" he declared angrily.
"Enough!" Akahoshi reprimanded the boy again, "The shinobi of Konohagakure are here to assist, we shall allow them to assist." he ordered the Hoshi genin with a glare. Sumaru didn't look pleased about it but didn't argue as he stormed off.
Once they were outside Kimimaro checked that no one was listening, "Naruto-sama, I believe Akahoshi-san knows something about the theft he doesn't wish to reveal." the Kaguya revealed quietly.
Naruto seemed surprised but Haku nodded, "His entire demeanor changed when it was revealed the thief used Kujaku Myoho, whatever that is." the dark haired boy pointed out.
"I see." Naruto said with a frown, "Kimimaro, Kin, you two investigate Akahoshi, Haku-chan and I will check on Sumaru to see if he knows anything else he can add." he ordered, splitting the team up for the moment.
Kin was still a bit nervous around Kimimaro, she knew the older boy was much stronger than her after all, but training with him and seeing how respectful he was towards Naruto helped ease her anxiety around the white haired boy. Still, she'd also revealed that she viewed him as eye candy so her nerves weren't completely gone, Kin blamed the sake they'd been drinking for her shameless attitude that night.
Kimimaro seemed completely unconcerned one way or the other as he lead her on trailing a pair of Hoshi jonin, the two genin were well above standard genin by now, but the Kaguya overestimated Kin's ability to conceal her presence and the two were attacked by the jonin by hails of shuriken when they were discovered.
Kimimaro dodged the shuriken effortlessly as Kin palmed a kunai to deflect the thrown projectiles, "Hey! Hold up a second, we aren't enemies!" the dark haired girl frantically tried to tell the jonin.
"We apologize for our rudeness, but our mission is to assist in protecting your Hoshi, and we are without leads." Kimimaro said politely, making sure not to arm himself yet.
"Is that so?" The bald jonin asked, "So you decided to trail us then?" he added and the two former Oto nin could tell the questions were rhetorical.
"Well this is a Hoshigakure matter, you foreign brats should mind your own business and pick your targets better." The other jonin said, giving Kimimaro a cautious look before the two jonin disappeared.
Naruto and Haku found Sumaru on a cliff at the edge of the village, "Yo, Omaru! What're you doing?" the blonde called out to get the attention of the boy.
"It's Sumaru!" Sumaru corrected, annoyed with the blonde already.
Naruto laughed, "Oh right, sorry Sumaru-san." he apologized, "But what's up?" he questioned again.
Sumaru frowned, "I'm just looking at the stars." he answered, looking back up at the sky.
"Oh, wow you can see the stars around here really easily." Naruto commented as he joined the boy, "They're pretty, right Haku-chan?" he asked and the dark haired teen smiled and nodded, "What's that red one called?" the blonde asked the Hoshi genin to keep him included.
"Natsuhiboshi, it's a star that watches over me." Sumaru answered before he turned to leave, "Enjoy the view with your girlfriend, I have business to take care of." he told the two, Haku didn't even bat an eye at being called a girlfriend again.
"Oi, wait up a second!" Naruto called out, "Listen I got this Konoha specialty," he said as he pulled out a packaged sweet, "kuri-an, I wanted to share it with you and your injured friends." the blonde offered with a grin.
"Go visit the injured yourself." Sumaru brushed the boy off as he left.
Naruto and Haku frowned, exchanging a worried look before they went to go talk to the genin who had been injured by the thief.
When they got there Naruto was accosted by a strange jutsu that used chakra to grab him by the neck, causing him to drop the kuri-an he was carrying. Haku palmed a handful of senbon to defend the blonde but Naruto managed to twist himself to yank the person assaulting him out of the rafters, knocking the genin girl onto her butt.
"Ah, wait, she's just trying to defend me." An injured boy called out and Haku stayed his hand as the embarrassed kunoichi blushed.
"Sorry," The girl apologized, "I didn't realize you were the Konoha shinobi and acted hastily." she explained with a bow.
Naruto sighed but accepted the apology as he glanced around, "Where did the kuri-an go?" he wondered. The girl blinked owlishly and stood up to reveal she'd landed on it, which just prompted more mortified apologies from the Hoshi kunoichi, who introduced herself as Hokuto and the injured boy as Mizura.
"Where are the others?" Haku asked as Naruto set up the kuri-an to be shared with the two genin who actually were here.
Hokuto frowned, "We were only put to sleep by the thief, they didn't cause any real damage." she explained, which left the blonde and dark haired teens wondering why the thief would do that, and further why Mizura was injured.
"So what happened to him?" Naruto asked bluntly, gesturing towards the boy in question while he and Haku shared the kuri-an with the kunoichi.
Hokuto turned her eyes down, "Oh, Mizura-kun got ill while training." she answered sadly.
"Hokuto-san!" Mizura cried out indignantly, "Don't speak so easily of our Hoshi training with outsiders!" he warned. Naruto wondered if all minor hidden villages were this overprotective of their secrets, but realized that between this Hoshi and the Eiyu no Mizu the two secrets he knew of apparently granted power that the other villages would want so their caution was understandable.
Naruto stood up, "Well, you guys enjoy that, Haku-chan and I should meet up with our team." he said, waving goodbye to the two Hoshi genin as he left and Haku bowed politely before following the blonde.
Naruto and his team found out the next day that Sumaru had joined up with the other genin that night to search for the Hoshi, but had been knocked unconscious by the thief and Sumaru had even been kidnapped. The blonde young jonin scowled as he sat cross legged near the infirmary, which was the closest thing the village apparently had to a hospital.
"Kimimaro, take Kin and continue to investigate Akahoshi." Naruto ordered after Kimimaro explained how their investigation had gone. The Kaguya nodded and left with Kin while Haku sat by Naruto in case something else came up.
The dark haired teen heard the sound of something moving and palmed senbon in his left hand as a pair of Hoshi jonin appeared, a bald man and a black haired man.
"Konoha shinobi, Akahoshi-sama is holding off the thief now, please assist us in this matter!" The bald man requested quickly. Naruto nodded and the jonin lead Haku and the blonde towards the fight.
When they arrived near the Devil's Ravine they saw Akahoshi was losing against a gas mask wearing shinobi using a strange jutsu that manifested brilliant pink chakra behind them in a pattern almost resembling the tail feathers of a peacock. Haku opened with a volley of senbon which were blocked by the chakra.
The dark haired teen was surprised, he hadn't seen pure chakra block projectiles besides the demonic red chakra Naruto used, if this was the Kujaku Myoho he could see why the village wanted to protect their hijutsu from being stolen.
Naruto palmed shuriken in his left hand and a pair of kunai in his right, tossing the shuriken at the thief and following up with the kunai, aiming one kunai intentionally low and in the shadow of the first. The bright chakra of the gas mask wearing shinobi blocked the projectiles but allowed the second kunai to land on the ground near their feet.
The young jonin made the seal of confrontation and appeared in a crouch by the kunai before he kicked upwards, catching the thief in the chin and knocking them up and backwards towards the canyon. Naruto was surprised when the gas mask came off and revealed long red hair, "A woman?" he questioned as he approached the kunoichi, ready to capture her.
"Kujaku Myoho: Kemono!" Akahoshi declared, flaring his own chakra and sending it at the cliff the woman was lying on, uncaring that he was sending the blonde into the poison gas filled ravine when he destroyed the outcropping of rock. The leader of Hoshigakure was quite proud of himself for finally getting rid of the thief, confident he could find the stolen Hoshi given some time, but wondered why he felt a sudden cold that chilled him to the bone before he felt the killing intent as his two jonin flanked him, standing defensively and staring nervously at Haku.
Haku was crying openly but his expression was blank, the combination of tears, killing intent, and blank expression unnerved the jonin despite it being three of them against one genin, but the killing intent didn't feel like they were facing a genin, "Naruto-kun is-" the dark haired boy said, "You- to Naruto-kun you-" he rambled incoherently.
Akahoshi realized the young teen was grief stricken, "Calm yourself, young lady!" he attempted to order, no one having told him the effeminate ninja was actually a guy, "It was an accident," he tried to reason, "no one has ever defeated a fully realized wielder of Kujaku Myoho like that woman, your friend will be missed."
"Shut up." Haku said coldly, not caring enough to correct the man for calling him a lady, "Naruto-kun was my heart, you killed him." the boy continued in a flat tone that set the Hoshi jonin on edge, "I'll kill you."
"Hold on," Akahoshi tried to placate, "are you willing to cause a diplomatic incident over an accident? If you attack us here it would be war between Hoshigakure and your village which is already at war with Otogakure, can Konohagakure handle that right now?" he asked.
"Konohagakure?" Haku asked, reaching up to untie his forehead protector as the three jonin relaxed slightly, but maintained their defensive stances since the killing intent didn't disappear. The dark haired young teen stared at the Konoha symbol on the metal plate that he'd removed from his head, "I don't care about that place, only Naruto-kun." he told the jonin coldly, dropping the headband to the ground.
Haku made the tiger hand seal and mizu bunshin rose out of the tears spilling down his face by blending with the water in the atmosphere, surprising the jonin with the efficiency of the Suiton no Jutsu. One mizu bunshin performed Kirigakure no Jutsu as the other tossed twin handfuls of senbon at the jonin.
Akahoshi used Kujaku Myoho to block the senbon with the raw chakra granted to him by the Hoshi as the original Haku made a hand seal he didn't recognize before the mist obscured the three identical shinobi from view, "Yotaka," the leader named the bald man, "Shiso," he added the name of the black haired man, "stay in formation. I've heard of this, Silent Killing." he explained.
"You do not deserve the mercy of Silent Killing." Haku announced from all around them, and the men were shocked to find themselves surrounded.
Akahoshi scowled, "Mirrors?" he wondered aloud, "What kind of cheap genjutsu is this? Do you really think to match jonin with bunshin and mirrors?" he asked angrily.
"You will die within Makyo Hyosho." Haku declared with cold confidence, uncaring that his senbon were blocked from every angle. The three Hoshi ninja were shocked to find that the attacks came from every possible angle the mirrors granted, and due to the speed some senbon managed to slip by and graze their legs.
Kimimaro and Kin found no jonin guarding the Hoshikage estate so they decided to break in and managed to evade notice. They were surprised to find Sumaru being held in a medical room.
Kin checked the boy over, "He's sedated, they're keeping him here on purpose." she informed the white haired teen guarding the door.
"It would seem this mission has become awkward," Kimimaro said with a sigh, "we'll take him to his friends and he can explain the situation there." he said and the two absconded from the estate with Sumaru.
On the way to the infirmary Sumaru woke up, but still needed assistance walking in from Kin, Kimimaro opened the door for them and the Hoshigakure genin were stunned to see them.
"You rescued Sumaru-san?" Hokuto asked happily, rushing over to help the boy into a bed.
"We found him sedated in the Hoshikage estate." Kin informed them, surprising the genin, "That aside for now, where's Naruto? We should report to him." she asked.
Mizura frowned, "Naruto-san and Haku-san went to help Akahoshi-sama fight the thief." he spoke up, wincing in pain. Kin frowned and approached him to see if she could help him.
"I saw which way they went," Hokuto spoke up, "I can show you the way." she said with conviction.
Sumaru scowled, "We'll all go." he said, "I have to know, why did Akahoshi-sama pretend to be the thief and kidnap me?" he declared, no one could answer and the other genin were all concerned about that too, so they all agreed to go with them.
Naruto awoke within a cave, confused as to his location he saw a pair of green eyes watching him. It took him a moment but he recognized the woman who owned the eyes as the thief and jolted into an upright position too fast, wincing in pain.
"Calm yourself," The red haired woman said, "I am not an enemy, my name is Natsuhi." she introduced.
Naruto frowned in confusion, "Huh, that name sounds familiar..." he mused, trying to remember where he'd heard it, "Ah!" he suddenly exclaimed, eye widening in realization, "Like that star, Natsuhiboshi that Sumaru says protects him!" he declared.
Natsuhi seemed surprised to hear that, "Sumaru-kun said that?" she asked before smiling, apparently pleased to hear that.
"You know Sumaru?" Naruto asked, surprised.
"I am his mother." Natsuhi answered with a nod, surprising Naruto. The red haired woman explained that the Sandaime Hokage had tasted herself and her husband with watching the village from the outside to steal the Hoshi should it be used for training again, as training with the chakra enhancing Hoshi was dangerous to ones health.
By the end of her tale Natsuhi had explained that it was in fact Akahoshi who kidnapped Sumaru and Naruto's eye widened again as he realized Haku was still with that man, "Alright, Natsuhi-chan, I think I get it, but please come with me." he said, holding out a hand as he made the seal of confrontation with the other. Natsuhi was surprised but took the hand of the blonde, and the two disappeared from the cave.
Akahoshi panted, "Yotaka, Shiso! Assist me!" he ordered before his Kujaku Myoho seemed to devour theirs, becoming strong enough to destroy the Makyo Hyosho as a result. Yotaka and Shiso fell to the ground unconscious as a result of their chakra being drained.
Haku pulled back and made another hand seal as the mirrors were shattered by the weight of the brilliant pink chakra, "Hissatsu Hyoso." the boy declared coldly and the shards of ice in the air coalesced into sharpened pillars that his opponent held at bay with his chakra.
"Damn it!" Akahoshi snarled, "Don't you get it!? I am your employer!" he shouted angrily.
"Silence your wailing, scum." Haku responded coldly, pushing more chakra into his jutsu in his attempt to kill the man who had taken Naruto from him.
As they struggled Kimimaro arrived with Kin and the Hoshi genin, confused to see the openly crying but expressionless Haku in a life or death battle with Akahoshi.
"You lot! This one lost her mind and is trying to kill us!" Akahoshi called out, "Control her!" he demanded of the white haired teen, who frowned and narrowed his eyes in suspicion, wondering where Naruto was.
"First of all Haku-senpai is male." Kimimaro corrected blandly, "But more importantly where is Naruto-sama?" he asked and Akahoshi's eyes widened as he got the feeling this was not an easy situation to be in.
"This walking corpse knocked Naruto-kun into the Devil's Ravine." Haku answered without emotion and Kin gasped in shock, unable to believe Naruto could have fallen so easily.
"I told you," Akahoshi growled as he struggled against the spears of ice, "that boy fell by mistake." he declared, "Hoshi shinobi, assist me against these Konoha traitors!" he ordered when Kimimaro made no move to control Haku.
Sumaru and the other Hoshi genin were confused, not sure what to do but some moved to obey, "Wait, why did you kidnap me?" Sumaru interrupted, confusion evident in his voice.
Before Akahoshi could answer Naruto appeared next to Haku holding the hand of a red haired woman, "Naruto-kun!" the crying boy gasped, his concentration on his jutsu slipping.
"Kemono!" Akahoshi shouted, taking advantage of Haku's shock to press the attack and sending the beast formed of chakra to attack. Naruto grabbed Haku and pulled the boy into his arms to shield him from the attack.
"Kujaku Myoho: Kemono!" Natsuhi declared, fighting back against Akahoshi's chakra with her own. The two struggled against each other as Haku's cold aura and killing intent melted and the boy sobbed in Naruto's arms.
"This is the thief!" Akahoshi declared, "This woman stole our Hoshi, and must have convinced the Konoha ninja to help her!" he told the Hoshi genin, and more braced themselves to fight.
Kimimaro shrugged, "I've never seen that woman in my life." he said bluntly, "Naruto-sama, what happened?" he asked.
Naruto glared at Akahoshi, "I was about to capture her when that guy sent us into the canyon, that woman saved my life and was trying to save the lives of those genin too." he explained, surprising the genin, "That's Sumaru's mother, Natsuhi-chan, it turns out the Hoshi training slowly kills you with some kind of chakra poisoning." he added.
"Lies will get you nowhere!" Akahoshi declared, trying to confuse the Hoshi genin into obeying him, "Natsuhi is a rogue ninja, trying to take the star for herself." he lied, "She is one of the few to fully complete the Hoshi training, so I had no choice but to use the traitor's son against her."
Kin frowned, not buying it, "I was wondering what was killing Mizura-san." she commented simply.
Akahoshi scowled, "Damn you Konoha nin, don't you understand your village will lose face if you betray me here? I am your employer!" he shouted, sweating from the exertion of trying to overwhelm Natsuhi.
Sumaru just seemed stunned that his mother was alive and in front of him, so was unprepared for ropes of chakra to wrap around him from Akahoshi, "What!?" he gasped.
"Natsuhi is a fool, shinobi are tools, any ninja should be honored to die for their village!" Akahoshi declared, "Show her your resolve, Sumaru!" he ordered, using the chakra ropes to force the boy to pull out a kunai and place it against his own neck.
Natsuhi's eyes widened, "Wait!" she exclaimed fearfully, terrified of the idea of Sumaru getting hurt. Yotaka and Shiso stirred behind their leader, shakily getting to their feet.
Akahoshi smirked, "Oh? Have you realized your own foolishness then?" he asked as he loosed the grip of his chakra on Sumaru.
Natsuhi gulped, "I don't have the Hoshi with me, but if you let Sumaru go I'll take you to it." she promised.
"I don't think so." Akahoshi denied, "I'll wait right here with Sumaru for you to return with it." he decided with a smirk, his two jonin companions smirking behind him as well, "Better hurry." he added.
Naruto frowned, "I'll go with her to ensure she comes back quickly." he said and Haku hugged the blonde tighter, clearly not liking that idea, "Haku-chan, stay with Kimimaro, if Akahoshi tried to go back on his word, make him pay." the Uzumaki ordered, "I need you here so I can return quickly." he added in a whisper. Haku scowled but nodded, wiping his tears on his sleeve as he glared at Akahoshi.
As soon as Naruto and Natsuhi were gone Akahoshi turned to his jonin, "Shiso, Yotaka, gather the other jonin in case she tries to pull a fast one." he ordered, the two nodded and left.
Kimimaro narrowed his eyes, "Kin," he whispered, "go bring Mizura here." he ordered quietly. Kin was surprised but nodded and left to obey. Akahoshi frowned at the girl leaving but made no inquiry.
The jonin and chunin of Hoshigakure arrived with Yotaka and Shiso first, followed by Naruto using Hiraishin to appear by Haku's side with Natsuhi and the Hoshi. As soon as the blonde was there Haku wrapped his arms around the young jonin as Natsuhi approached Akahoshi and handed over the glowing purple rock that was the source of the strange power the shinobi of Hoshigakure wielded.
Akahoshi grinned, releasing Sumaru who fell to the ground, drained from having been held in place by the chakra ropes, "Sumaru!" Natsuhi exclaimed, moving to help him.
"Kujaku Myoho: Kemono!" Akahoshi declared, attacking the woman from behind, the beast of pink chakra biting into her shoulder.
"That was dirty!" Naruto yelled angrily, but didn't shrug off Haku to attack just yet even though it was clear from his body language that he wanted to.
"This matter is settled!" Akahoshi declared, "Konoha ninja, leave our village, Hoshi shinobi, forsake the traitor and her son." he ordered, concerning the jonin and genin.
Hokuto frowned, "I can't leave Sumaru behind like that." she said with downcast eyes as Kin returned with Mizura.
"Then you will be a missing nin with him!" Akahoshi declared, "I have recovered the Hoshi, I declare myself the Yondaime Hoshikage!" he exclaimed, holding up the glowing purple rock.
"Kage? You?" Naruto asked, "You don't care about these people! You see them as tools!" he argued, pointing accusingly at the man, "Natsuhi-chan cared more about this village and protected it from the shadows on the orders of the Sandaime because of how dangerous it is to train with that thing, she deserves that title more than you do!"
"Silence!" Akahoshi demanded, "This is a Hoshigakure matter!" he exclaimed as Kin left Mizura with Hokuto and moved to check on Natsuhi, "Those who love this village have the heart required to withstand the Hoshi training." he stated, trying to sway the village to his side, and while the ninja of Hoshigakure were confused they were more inclined to side with their leader than a foreign child.
"You're lying." Mizura declared, pushing away from Hokuto to sway on his feet, "I trained hard, and even when it hurt I endured and kept training." he said as he opened his shirt to reveal the glowing pink chakra burns on his skin, "Are you claiming I don't care about my home?" he asked accusingly, glaring at the man.
Akahoshi scowled, "Are you turning traitor too then?" he asked, losing his cool when the other genin sided with Mizura and Hokuto, "Kill those traitors!" he ordered.
"Are you insane?" A Hoshi jonin asked, "Those are all of the villages children, if we kill them the village has no future." the man pointed out, and more and more of the village sided against Akahoshi.
"Akahoshi-sama, it may be time to give up by now." Shiso tried to reason with the man.
"What!?" Akahoshi shouted angrily, "What are you talking such niceness for now, after we already dirtied our hands!?" he yelled at the jonin.
"Woah! Watch what you're saying!" Yotaka warned, trying to placate the enraged Akahoshi.
"Yes, what are you saying?" A Hoshigakure chunin asked, narrowing accusing eyes at Akahoshi as Sumaru woke up and saw his unconscious mother being treated by Kin.
The lilac haired man's eye twitched and a twisted smirk played across his features, "That fool, the Sandaime, no matter what he wouldn't let the Hoshi training resume, not for as long as he lived." Akahoshi began, "We assassinated him for the good of the village!" he declared.
"You what!?"
"That was taking it too far!"
"We'll never accept you as Hoshikage for this!"
Akahoshi snarled, "Silence!" he roared, "With this Hoshi, I am the Yondaime Hoshikage!" he declared as he lifted the glowing sky rock, "And you are all traitors!" he shouted before plunging the Hoshi into his chest, startling his accomplices and the other jonin.
"Hey!" Naruto called out, "This makes him a missing nin to you guys, right!?" the blonde questioned them over the sound of Akahoshi screaming in pain. The stunned Hoshi shinobi glanced between each other in concern but they all ended up nodding in agreement, none of them acknowledged him as their leader.
Naruto smirked and started running through hand seals, Haku got the hint and had calmed down enough to release the blonde and pulled out his half of the Kiba as the two ran at Akahoshi. Kimimaro took a moment to harden his fingertips in his hands and raised them.
"Suiton: Suiryudan!" Naruto exclaimed, forming the dragon shaped bullet of water from the melting ice around the area. Akahoshi's hair turned pink and a shroud of chakra exploded around him, steaming the Suiton ninjutsu away as the man laughed, his eyes glowing pink too as his chakra took the shape of a dragon.
"Marvelous! I should have done this from the start, now I am the Hoshi!" Akahoshi laughed with manic glee as the chakra dragon breathed raw Hoshi chakra at Naruto and Haku, the dark haired boy swiftly forming a Hyogan Domu in an attempt to block it and wincing as the blast sheared away the ice defense.
Naruto pulled his own half of Kiba into his left hand and started forming a Rasengan with his right as Kimimaro attacked Akahoshi with Teshi Sendan, the bone bullets hard and fast enough to penetrate the chakra shroud and leave shallow wounds on the man.
Haku helped Naruto form the Rasengan with his left hand, stabilizing the swirling sphere as Kimimaro dived out of the way of a blast of Hoshi chakra directed at him. Naruto lifted his blade and Haku tapped it with his own, "Raikyu!" they declared in unison as they cooperated to send the blast of electrical chakra at the man.
The Raiton no Jutsu was blocked by the shroud of Hoshi chakra as well and Naruto gave Haku his half of Kiba before looping his left elbow with the older boy and using Hiraishin to get them both behind Akahoshi where the kunai he'd used against Natsuhi earlier was, dodging another blast of Hoshi chakra as a result.
Naruto revealed his Sharingan and charged at Akahoshi with the Rasengan as Haku hooked half of Kiba into his sash before he picked up the kunai with the Hiraishin formula on it and rushed to the side. The dark haired boy flung the kunai at Akahoshi as the man sent another blast of Hoshi chakra at Naruto.
The blonde jonin leaped over the blast and, as it arced to try and catch him in the air, used Hiraishin to appear by the kunai Haku flung just as it impacted against the chakra shroud. Naruto plunged the Rasengan into the chakra shroud, pitting his own chakra against the Hoshi chakra.
Akahoshi screamed as the swirling orb of blue chakra drilled against the pink Hoshi chakra, his scream resonating with the roar of the dragon formed of Hoshi chakra. Naruto roared back as he pushed more chakra into the jutsu, the moment seemed to stretch on before finally the Rasengan impacted the Hoshi and the two shinobi were engulfed in an explosion.
The smoke cleared and Naruto was the only one standing, Akahoshi's remains were nothing but black ash and pink smoke, the Hoshi itself seemed to have been destroyed as well. Haku hooked the other half of the legendary sword into his sash and rushed to the young jonin who panted breathlessly.
"And that!" Naruto declared loudly, "Is how Naruto Uzumaki, future Hokage, deals with assholes who try to take advantage of people y'know!" he exclaimed as he gestured at himself with his thumb, apparently shouting at the remains of Akahoshi.
Tsunade stood next to Kakashi, glaring at Naruto and his team as the Hokage went over the mission report, "Well you failed spectacularly." the silver haired cyclops said in a deadpan, "You were hired by Akahoshi to protect the chakra empowering Hoshi of Hoshigakure no Sato." he began, "Instead you destroyed the Hoshi and killed your employer." he finished.
"On top of that," Tsunade spoke up, "you brought back the entirety of the village genin and some jonin after promising them I'd be able to heal the poisoning done to them by training with the Hoshi." she listed off while glaring at the blonde jonin who didn't look the least bit apologetic.
"In doing so," Kakashi began, trying to keep his tone dour but the smirk under his mask was becoming evident in his voice, "you became the hero of Hoshigakure, rescued the village from being usurped by an illegitimate ruler, and reuinited a genin with his mother." the man said, his proud grin becoming more obvious by the end of the sentence.
Kin sighed with relief, having started to get worried that they were actually in trouble, "So we uh, we're not in trouble?" the dark haired girl asked nervously, eyeing the way Tsunade was still glaring at them.
"You're lucky our hospital is perfectly capable of curing everyone of their chakra poisoning." Tsunade agreed with a huff, "Even Natsuhi-san will recover eventually, although her career as a kunoichi is effectively over unless she wants to focus purely on taijutsu, shurikenjutsu, and bukijutsu." the iryo specialist Sannin added.
Naruto grinned happily, "Great! I'm going to visit Sumaru and Natsuhi-chan before they leave." he declared happily, taking that as a dismissal. Haku hanging onto the left arm of the boy while Kin and Kimimaro followed close behind.
Kakashi chuckled, "Here I was worried he was growing up too fast." the man mused as Tsunade just sighed.
Karin met Naruto in the hospital and glared at him when she saw him, "Do you have any idea how much extra work you gave us?" she asked as she stomped up to him, Sakura following as the pink haired girl had been chatting with the red eyed red head before the blonde arrived.
Naruto shrugged, "Not really, everyone is okay right?" he asked and Sakura tried to hide her smirk at the other girl's expense.
"Wha-? I? You-!" Karin stammered a moment before she sighed, "Yes, Naruto-nii, everyone is fine." she groused, knowing damn well the blonde was just being his usual big hearted self.
"Great!" Naruto said happily, "So where are Sumaru and Natsuhi-chan?" he asked, Karin rolled her eyes and lead the blonde to Natsuhi's room where Sumaru, Hokuto, and Mizura were, the latter having been given a bone walking stick by Kimimaro on the way to the village that had freaked him out at first.
"Hello, Naruto-kun." Natsuhi greeted happily, the woman hadn't even expected to survive let alone be reunited with her son.
"Yo!" Naruto greeted happily, "Glad to see you guys getting better." he said cheerfully.
"I won't lose to you." Sumaru declared with a glare as he stood up.
"Eh, what?" Naruto asked, confused by the words of the genin since he didn't know they were in competition for something.
Sumaru intensified his glare, "I will become Hoshikage before you become Hokage." he said with determination, "Even without the power of the Hoshi I will make Hoshigakure no Sato into a most powerful hidden village." he declared with a fire in his eye.
"Say what?" Naruto asked, suddenly looking annoyed, "No way will I lose! I'm going to be Hokage first y'know!" he shot back as his genin team sighed behind him, reminded that for all his power he was still a thirteen year old boy.
"Shut up," Sumaru growled, "I'll be first!" he reiterated as his mother stifled her laughter at his antics behind him.
"I'll be first y'know!" Naruto repeated with his verbal tic added in, Kin and Karin wondered how long the two would go on for if no one stopped them.
Kimimaro had no interest in seeing how long it could go on for, "Sounds like you two will have to race for it, but you should be quiet for now, Naruto-sama, this is a hospital." the white haired boy tried to diffuse the situation.
Hokuto nodded, "Your mother is still resting, Sumaru-kun." she reminded and the two boys simmered down. Natsuhi smiled, glad her son had made such good friends.