Author's Note: Thank you to everyone who left a review for last chapter. The response was overwhelming and I'm glad many people are pleased with my decision. It was great to see, really. If you want to see the next chapter soon, review! The more reviews I get, the more motivated I am to keep putting out chapters for you guys.

Now, about what the decision means to Naruto and his character... while I don't want to say too much, I just want you to know that his development is not over in this regard. He still has a long way to go. You'll just have to wait and see what I have in store for all of you.

If you have any questions or concerns, as always, feel free to PM me or leave a review! Thanks, and I will see you in the post-chapter notes!

Story Stats:

Reviews - 112

Favorites - 195

Followers - 325

Views - 33,233

Chapter 13: Change

After getting what he deemed a sufficient distance between himself and the crime scene, Naruto landed on the rooftop of houses that resided close to the western coast of the Land of Water. Jaaku's mansion had been deeper into the rather large town that he had been ruling over.

Pulling down the mask around his mouth to breathe more freely, the whiskered boy tried to reflect on everything that had just transpired. That was IF he had time to do so.

"Naruto!" Said boy turned towards the voice, watching as Jiraiya landed on the same rooftop. The Sage did not look happy. A vein was bulging out the side of his forehead. "Are you going to tell me what the hell that was? We had agreed that you were supposed to interrogate the suspect, and then if he had incriminated himself, we would then take him into custody. Does any of that ring a bell?!"

Naruto frowned, not understanding why the Sannin was upset. "He was guilty, why was there any need to take him in?"

Jiraiya looked as if he had been struck. "That man could have had valuable intelligence relating to the Akatuski for all we know. Yet, now we will have no idea because you killed him!" The decision to let the Genin who held a grudge go in by himself continued the string of what Jiraiya concluded were terrible judgments on his part. The boy had just murdered a government official in cold blood for heaven's sake! The Sage didn't even think he could tell Tsunade about any of this. If anyone found out, the political ramifications would be massive. Hell, they already were.

Naruto, unperturbed by his mentor's anger, simply shook his head. "I don't think that guy had any ties to the Akatsuki. As you said, he used a proxy to put out a bounty, which only happened to be taken up by one of the group's members. He worked with Gato and resented the Land of Waves because their newfound success was hurting the economy of this town." Interestingly enough, the venom that had been present in his voice earlier was gone. The boy's tone was monotonous.

Jiraiya rubbed his temples in frustration. He wanted to reprimand and punish the Jinchuriki for his actions, but that would be pointless. If anything, this was his fault, not the boys. 'Not like there's anything new there.' The Toad Sage thought to himself sadly.

Though, there was one thing he wanted to make sure the boy understood.

"Even if that is the case, Naruto, we can't just kill people like that."

"Why?" Naruto asked incredulously. "Ninja kill people for much less on missions every day. What makes this any different?"

"We weren't here on an official mission. Crimes like that, people should be tried by the law and then punished. If we had taken him back to the Leaf, his crimes would have been acknowledged and his assets would have been seized and used to help give the Land of Waves some form of restitution to help with the damage they have received. Now that he's dead, that can't happen."

Naruto loved his Godfather more than almost anything, but he just couldn't agree with his stance on this. "A high ranking official from the Land of Water being tried in a different nation? Do you think that they would just be okay with that? The second word got out that he was in our custody, they would have requested him back so he could be 'tried' by them. Jaaku would have gotten off free and Wave would have still gotten nothing. At least this way, the world is better off for everyone with him gone." Naruto was thinking about what Neji had said to him during their fight. How the Land of Lightning had sent an important ninja into the Leaf to steal Hinata. Yet, when killed for his illegal actions that went against the newly formed peace agreements, The Raikage still demanded that Hinata's father be killed in retribution. As far as the blond was concerned, something very similar would have been likely to happen to keep war from breaking out. If no one knew who killed him, then there was nothing to worry about, right?

"That isn't your decision to make." Jiraiya contested, hoping his Godson would see it from his side. "If everyone just went around deciding who should live and die, and then acting on it, there would be no order to the world. It would be complete chaos."

Naruto's head was beginning to hurt. "The world already feels that way! Terrible people get away with things every day. It just isn't fair!"

"I know." Jiraiya agreed knowingly. "But, when you're Hokage these are the kinds of situations you'll be forced to deal with regularly. You can't let your emotions guide you."

"No." Naruto said, slightly surprising his teacher. "I didn't do this for revenge, I did it because it was the right thing to do."

They stared at one another for what seemed like a long time. Two individuals, seemingly with two clashing mindsets of how the world should work.

On one hand, the experienced, yet optimistic, man who believes in the goodness of people. Jiraiya believes that order, understanding, and compassion are the ways that human beings can avoid unnecessary conflict and live in harmony.

On the other, the much less experienced boy who has seen far too many horrors in his short life is beginning to believe that there will always terrible people no matter what you do and that the only way to deal with them is to get rid of them yourself.

"A Hokage doesn't always do what they think is right. They sometimes must do what they have to."

"I'm starting to wonder about that, Sensei." Naruto said vaguely, his dull gaze was far-off into the misty horizon.

"What do you mean?"

"The Hokage." When talking about the Fire Shadow, the Genin always had a sparkle in his eyes and a smile on his face. Not this time. The tone Naruto used was one that had a touch of disdain. "Does a Kage get things done? I know you were offered Hokage, why did you turn it down?" The boy asked with genuine interest.

Jiraiya, surprised by the question, answered honestly. "I turned it down because I don't think I deserve to be the Hokage. I have made far too many mistakes, and continue to make more every day. The village needed someone better than me. Someone who could lead it like Sarutobi-sensei did."

"But, your spy network. All the S-Rank missions that you've carried out for the village." Naruto remembered how many missions the Sage had said he completed in passing conversation. "You've been able to do a lot more for the village's wellbeing than someone who sits behind a desk all day and fills out paperwork." It was a very simplistic way of describing the Hokage's duties, but it wasn't entirely inaccurate.

"What are you trying to say?" The Sannin was watching the boy change before his very eyes, and he wasn't sure if it was for the better, or not.

"I'm saying, I would rather be like you than the Hokage. I can't make an active difference in the world if I was forced to be at a desk all day." In Naruto's eyes, if it were up to the Hokage and the political landscape of the world, Jaaku would still be alive, and most likely never see the inside of a jail cell.

"But you've wanted to be Hokage since before I met you. Why give it up?"

Naruto looked at him sincerely. "I don't think I realized what the world was truly like, I guess. Even after all this, for the first time, I feel like I'm not lost anymore. Actions are what matters, not titles, and I don't think I could truly 'act' as the Hokage." Not only that, but a Hokage is supposed to ALWAYS act in the best interest of its people. Could he do that? Would that not be similar to how Jaaku operated in the Land of Water? What about innocent people around the world that die everyday? Surely, that kind of allegiance would hinder the blond from helping those outside his own village. He'd keep these thoughts to himself, for now, though. He had much more thinking to do.

"You're still a Genin, kid." Jiraiya chided. "What you did here today, Genin don't get to make choices like that. And if they did without consulting with their captain, there is a good chance they would be decommissioned from the ninja ranks."

Naruto thought that statement over with a hand loosely on his hip, and the other resting underneath his chin. The Sage finally had made his first good point in this conversation. The Genin had heard something similar when told he wouldn't be granted the rank of the Chunin after the Chunin Exams, despite his valiant efforts during the assault on the Leaf Village. Despite going toe-to-toe with a Tailed Beast, he couldn't be trusted to lead a squad due to lacking leadership qualities and critical judgment.

"Okay." Naruto acknowledged. "If that's what it takes, I'll move up the ranks and become someone the village can depend on to make the tough decisions out in the field. I'll do it without being the Hokage."

"Oh? How are you going to do that?" Jiraiya asked with his hands now on his hips. "Plan on going back to take part in the Chunin Exams in a few months?"

"No." Naruto said simply with a swift shake of the head. "That's a waste of the time we have. When we get back to the Leaf, I'll let my work on missions speak for itself. They'll have to promote me."

"Hmph, that's what I thought you'd say." Jiraiya nodded his head at the boy.

Now that their intense conversation was over, it was high time the Sage addressed the elephant in the room. Even if the kid had just done something awful, that doesn't mean he didn't care for the boy. Of course, he did. Still, Jiraiya sighed, he wasn't very good at this part.

"Naruto?"

"Yeah?"

"How are you feeling after all of this? Are you okay?" There was no better way to phrase the question in the guardian's eyes. If he had been too vague, then Naruto may have just tiptoed around the inquiry if he didn't want to answer it. No, it had to be direct, even if the blond wanted to ignore it.

Naruto blinked, almost forgetting why they were even on a random roof in the Land of Water, to begin with. Almost as if Jaaku's death had such little importance to him now. In the Genin's mind he was able to rationalize the politicians death in such a way that he didn't even feel like he killed anyone. Sure, he took a life, but it was the life of one of the most vile humans he had ever had the displeasure of meeting. That justified his actions, in his opinion.

He stood there for a minute, taking in his surroundings and looking deep within himself for an answer to the question the Sage posed. It was an answer he had been looking for when he had still been alone on that rooftop prior to Jiraiya's arrival. While he would always be sad about the untimely deaths of his good friends, the inward struggle that was tearing the boy apart was gone, for the most part. It felt like he was truly seeing for the first time in his life.

"I feel good, really." The blond finally answered with sincerity. "I think I'll be okay now."

"Are you sure?"

Instead of answering with words, Naruto held out his open palm. In it, swirled the powerful Rasengan. Not just any Rasengan, Jiraiya noted, but a perfect one-handed one. Looking up at Naruto's face, he didn't appear to be strained in any way. A far cry from how he looked a couple days ago when performing the technique.

In actuality, the boy had probably had the skill to use the complete Rasengan for months now. Only, because of his state of mind post-Wave, his focus, lack of sleep, and brewing emotions throwing off his equilibrium, making it impossible to perform a jutsu that took such diligent focus.

Jiraiya was still upset about what the kid did, but it appeared to have a positive effect on the boy, nonetheless. That was the goal, after all, right? "Don't think for one second that you're out of trouble, kid."

Naruto, dispelling the technique, bowed respectfully, signaling he'll take any punishment that is placed upon him. Though, that doesn't mean the boy believes what he did was wrong. No, it was the right thing to do. Naruto was sure of it.

"Yes, Sensei…"

'No training today, only cleaning!' The Sage had instructed.

Naruto laid down in his bedroll, his exhausted muscles thanking him profusely for the kind gesture. After the boy's actions in the Land of Water yesterday, when they had returned to Mount Myoboku, Jiraiya had demanded that he clean the entire house as part of his punishment. Having only a small apartment to clean back in the Leaf, and not even doing a good job at maintaining that living space, cleaning an entire house to the high standards of the toads and his teacher was a tall task. Though, considering how mad the Sage was, it could have been a lot worse.

The Sannin made it clear that everything that happened was to stay between them, and his true punishment was to be determined at a later date. This was acceptable to the blond, even if Naruto truly believed he had done nothing wrong. The Genin had the utmost respect for his teacher and would welcome any discipline that came his way.

Though, at least now it was time to get some rest. From all the commotion in the Land of Water to getting settled back in Toadland, both he and his teacher hadn't slept at all the previous night.

Surprisingly, Jiraiya was not in bed yet even though he had to be just as tired as the blond. Though, it seemed Ma and Pa were not having the same issue, as they were loudly snoring away. Chuckling, Naruto, too closed his eyes, hoping today would finally be the day that sleep would welcome him back with soft, open arms.

…

'Drip...'

Naruto's eyes snapped open the moment something didn't feel right. No longer in the room he and Jiraiya shared with the toads, the boy was laying down in a pool of lukewarm water. At first, the Jinchuriki was confused, though that quickly dissipated when he saw the familiar metal piping that aligned the ceiling.

'What am I doing here?' He wondered to himself with a throaty groan of annoyance. 'I just wanted to go to sleep.'

It looked the same, like a depressing sewer that had long since been forgotten. Standing up, the jailor walked down the dark corridor into a large, but familiar, room, water splashing lightly at his feet with each step he took. Looking up, the warden saw the giant cage that held his lifelong 'friend'.

The Nine-Tailed Fox. The enormous beast towered over its small host. The malice was so intense that a normal human wouldn't be able to be in the same room as these two. Yet, Naruto was no normal human.

"You know, I wanted to talk to you for a while, I just didn't think you'd call me in here yourself." Naruto began, wary, but interested, in the Fox's intentions.

The Fox just growled as it's several tails lashed behind it threateningly; breath so hot that steam leaked out of the sides of his mouth. "Naruto…" He snarled with venom.

"What?" The blond's eyes were firm, stance wider than normal to signify he wouldn't be backing down. The Fox would not intimidate him today.

The beast paused briefly, seemingly thinking something over in its mind. "Where did the real you go?" It finally said.

It's facial features conveyed something, though the blond was not astute with picking up on body language, which went double when the body language was coming off a massive fox demon instead of a person. There was a hint of confusion mixed in with the regular anger that the Fox normally had. Surprisingly, it seemed like a genuine question, further confusing the boy.

"What do you mean 'the real me'? I'm right here, Fox." The jinchuriki answered to the best of his ability, not really understanding the question.

Unbeknownst to the blond child, he had two 'halves' that made him up. One half, the outward half as the beast liked to call it, was the half that Naruto showed everyone. Happy, confident, strong, caring, optimistic, and trusting. Growing up, these were the traits that Naruto thought a Hokage needed to possess. So, through the intense desire of wanting to become the shadow of the Land of Fire, he adopted them unto himself. That isn't to say these personality traits are a façade the boy puts on to trick those around him, outward Naruto truly believes that he is like that. Someone who can be Hokage.

Then, there was inward Naruto, the half that the Fox preferred. Inward Naruto, or the part of himself he liked to hide from others, was scared, pessimistic, paranoid, weak, self-conscious, angry, bitter, and best of all, vengeful. This Naruto was created by the people of the Leaf Village. They broke him down mentally and emotionally by hating him, or even ignoring his existence, making him a shell of a child. All of the hatred they threw his way materialized into something that hated them back just as much. That was the half that the fox would give his chakra to.

The Nine-Tails stared at his host for what seemed like minutes, examining the child from head to toe with a critical eye. Though they hadn't met many times prior, the Fox had a good idea about what his host's 'outward' persona was like. The child standing before him was not the same one he had first met. There was something different. Yet, his 'better' half was gone, too. What was going on?

Suddenly, it clicked. 'Interesting.' The chakra beast thought to itself. 'Did the two halves merge?' Yes, that was the only explanation. Two halves, once isolated from each other, now whole.

Seemingly done with this short interaction the beast laid back down, eyes now closed, head resting on its paw. The demon almost looked like a regular fox. After several moments of trying to sleep, the Fox felt something was off. Opening its eyes back up, the Nine-Tails was slightly surprised to see the boy still standing in the very same spot he had left him, eyeing its prisoner intensely.

"We're done here. Get out..." The monster warned.

"I said that I wanted to talk to you, so let's talk." Naruto picked back up the conversation the large creature had tried to end. "You seem to have gotten what you called me in here for, now it's my turn." Naruto still didn't know what the Fox meant by its question, but he doubted he would be able to extract that information from his tenant today.

The Nine-Tails chuckled at the small child, though that was quickly replaced with a terrifying grin that showed off the demon's massive fangs. "You little worm… you think you can give me orders?! I should kill you for that..."

As terrifying as that threat would normally be, Naruto didn't even flinch inresponse.

"I've been reading a lot about seals these past few months. Did you know that?" Naruto continued, ignoring the threat. "One of the seals that I learned about were the ones people use to seal Tailed Beasts inside human hosts." Naruto grabbed his stomach instinctively at the mention of this.

"Get to the point, boy." The angry fox demanded.

"When I receive chakra from you, it's a two-way street." The host of the strongest Tailed Beast began. "If I want chakra from you, I can only get it if you willingly give it to me. I can't just rip it from you whenever I please." The boy thought of his battle with Neji, or when he first summoned Gamabunta. Both instances Naruto requested the necessary chakra which the Fox handed over by its own admission.

"On the flip side, you can't force chakra down my throat. If you want to give it to me, I have to accept it from you."

The Fox, though appearing very angry that his peace and quiet was being interrupted for an extended time, was listening intently.

"Except… when I get emotional." The blond acknowledged. "Like in my battle with Sasuke, it took a long time to remember, but I never asked for your chakra during that fight, nor did I willingly accept it. You were able to force it on me."

The Fox didn't like where this conversation was going. "What are you trying to say, boy?"

"Perhaps the most important thing I learned, was that when a Tailed Beast continually pushes chakra through the cracks of the seal, over time, the seal will weaken. If you could force all of that chakra onto me, you would be doing it all the time, but you can't." Naruto smirked as he watched the Fox's eyes widen slightly.

Springing to its feet, the Fox slammed his head against the cage violently. The shockwave rippled the water at their feet, making waves that flowed to every corner of the room. The Nine-Tails was livid. Nearly 14 years he had been trapped inside this pathetic human, and the plan he had been executing almost from the start had been found out? This was unacceptable! How would he be able to free himself and kill all of those evil humans now?

"You little worm. Do you think that you can keep me locked in here forever?! I'll get out eventually, don't you forget that…" Slamming his head against the cage door once more in a futile attempt to rip the boy apart. The powerful embodiment of chakra was seething, so angry it was almost breathing fire.

"That isn't what I'm trying to say." The boy was doing his best to calm his prisoner down.

There was no negative emotions radiating off of the jailor, surprising the chakra beast. The Fox said nothing, though the visible fangs meant that talking wasn't really on the demon's mind, which urged the Genin to continue. "When I saw old man Tazuna dead, I was so angry. I wanted to get your power so badly so I could kill those Akatsuki bastards. Yet, despite my willingness, you never gave it to me that day. Why?"

"Hmph." The Fox chuckled deeply. "You think I pay attention to what happens in your worthless life? I couldn't care less about that."

Naruto shook his head with a laugh, angering the beast. "You can't lie, we have a connection. I don't know how, but I could feel you watching that day. And yet, even though you could have weakened the seal a little more by giving me chakra in my moment of weakness, you didn't. I just want to know why."

This child was starting to irritate the Tailed Beast. "I just told you, now leave." The Fox hissed, not used to having a human stand up to him like this since... well, the one with those horrible eyes.

"I'm not done." Naruto continuing to defy the chakra monster. "Well, even if you won't tell me why, I want you to know that I'm going to need your help."

The beast scoffed. "Me, help you? Ha, that's a good one, brat."

"Hey, it's in your best interest to help me. Those Akatsuki, they're more so after you than me. If anything, I'm keeping you safe. I just ask that you help me when I come to you."

The Nine-Tails scoffed in disgust. "I know humans. Humans only care about themselves. You're fighting to keep yourself alive, you don't care about me!"

Naruto stared down the Fox with great intensity, vibrant blue orbs clashing with blood-red daggers. "I want to keep everyone safe. Myself, you, my friends, innocent people. Everyone, and I need your help to do that."

The massive creature eyed the warden suspiciously. "You know what my plan has been, yet you still want my chakra? Why?"

"I don't know what happened to you, why you're like this, or why you're locked inside me, but you at least seem better than the Akatsuki."

They sat in silence for what seemed like a long time.

"Recently." Naruto finally breaking the silence. "I learned that humans can be extremely cruel. Well, I already knew that, but this made me realize what that truly meant. They take innocent lives without a care in the world, as long as they get what they want for themselves and those important to them. Then, I look at you, a powerful creature that my nation uses as a military asset, all locked up in a cage unable to even stretch your legs and walk around." The boy demonstrated the freedom that he had, pacing back and forth on the other side of the locked door. "I wouldn't be surprised if we are stuck together because of humanity's cruelty against you."

That last sentence caused the Fox's open eye to widen considerably.

The Nine-Tails had apparently had enough. Suddenly, Naruto was forced out of his own mindscape and back in the bedroll he had been laying in. The feeling was jarring, almost like vertigo. 'Good thing I'm already laying down.' The Genin thought to himself wryly.

Now that Naruto had regained his senses, his prisoner was back on his mind. It was hard to get a read on what the beast was thinking. It certainly wasn't much of a talker, unless the words were threats of violence and murder. Though, even those words seemed to be a bit forced. Compared to the Akatsuki's psychotic Hidan, the Nine-Tails anger seemed different. While Hidan's eyes betrayed a monster who killed because he could and it was fun, the eyes of the Fox were angry daggers aimed at the world. Aimed at a world that must have caused him a lot of pain, which is something Naruto understands.

The blond let out a tired yawn. 'Oh well…' It was too late to be thinking about these things. They would assuredly keep him up the entire night. Closing his eyes, he prayed that unconsciousness would greet him with a warm, comforting embrace. One that has been foreign to him for a long time, now.

…

Within five minutes, for the first time in over six months, Naruto Uzumaki fell asleep peacefully. And tonight, no horrible nightmares would disrupt his slumber.

Again, and again, and again, and again…

This time, it was Jiraiya who couldn't sleep, despite being completely exhausted; both physically and emotionally. If he was being honest with himself, this last year has been a disaster, and it all rests upon his shoulders. Sure, Naruto had gained a considerable amount of strength since they had left the village… though, pretty much all of the progress came in about four of those twelve months.

It was like every decision the man made ended up blowing up in his face.

First, there was the bet he made with his student. At the time, the Sage thought his reasoning was good. Writing would help teach the boy a bit of discipline, if the kid failed it would be an excuse to keep him from going after Sasuke as per their agreement, and it gave the author a little bit of time to complete the book that was going to help fund his spy network. Sounds reasonable, right?

Wrong.

Now, looking back on it, he just sees himself neglecting his Godson like he always has. Coldheartedly giving the boy busywork so he can indulge himself in the three shinobi prohibitions. Yes, the ones Jiraiya himself told Naruto to avoid completely. I mean, for the first 12 years of the kid's life he was completely absent. Yet, Naruto never was as angry as Jiraiya thinks he should have been.

'The kid was probably just so starved for attention that in his eyes I could do no wrong… And the only reason he was starved for all that attention in the first place was because I left him in a village that resented him.' He had always known that what he did was wrong, and the prospect of trying to explain himself to Kushina and Minato in the afterlife was terrifying. That was because he had no defense, he failed them. Sure, he had reached an all-time low at that point in his life. Orochimaru, his best friend, had defected from the village. Minato, his adopted son, had died during the Nine-Tails attack. However, a ninjas job is to endure, and the Toad Sage couldn't endure it so he could be in his Godson's life at an early age. It ate away at him every day.

Then, there was his brilliant idea of dropping his wanted student off at some town the Sannin had never been to while he went and investigated supposed Akatsuki activity nearby. Sure, it was Tsunade's orders, but that doesn't mean he should've said yes. His most important mission was ensuring Naruto's safety, and he failed that miserably when the Akatsuki nearly kidnapped his student. Yet, his good nature and loyalty to Tsunade, the Village, and its allies made him put Minato's son's, his Godchild's, life in grave danger.

'Falling right into a trap by the enemy, that isn't like me…'

Lastly, and probably most foolishly, was the incident in the Land of Water. Jiraiya's never had children of his own, so when the blond was going through pain, he didn't know what to do to help him. The Shinobi code tells us that we have to kill our emotions, only then will we be the perfect tool to use. Though, the Sage never believed in that crap. Humans, shinobi or not, were meant to feel emotions, especially pain. Shutting the door on our emotions is bad for the psyche and the heart. Instead, it is important to be aware of yourself and what you are feeling, only then can you become better. That's why Jiraiya wanted Naruto to face these feelings head-on, so he could get past them and grow as a person. That reasoning led him to make the huge mistake of letting his pupil meet the object of his rage face-to-face alone. At least, that was the excuse he told himself.

And look how that turned out.

Sure, he raised those kids from the Hidden Rain Village, but by the time they had met, those kids had weathered the storms of war all on their own. They just wanted to survive, and that was something he could actually help them with.

If they had been in emotional turmoil like Naruto, he probably would have messed that up, too.

Though, now that he thought about it, he messed that up too, didn't he? After all, last time he heard, those three were dead.

Jiraiya had said in a fit of anger that Naruto would get a more severe punishment for what he had done. Though, that anger was misplaced. After reflecting about everything that has transpired, the Sage wasn't angry at his student. He was angry at himself, and he wouldn't punish the kid for something that wasn't his fault. Because everything that has happened has been his own fault, there was no debating that. So, how could he be mad at the boy for something like that?

Now, because of his mistakes, Naruto was adopting ideologies that were concerning, to say the least. Sure, in theory, everything the boy said on that rooftop had some truth to it. Had the Land of Fire attempted to try Jaaku as a criminal, he would have most likely been extradited back to the Hidden Mist Village where he would have been given a proverbial slap on the wrist. So, yes, Naruto's actions made the world a better place, so to speak. But it was a decision made by a rash, young Genin who has almost no knowledge of the geopolitical landscape of the Five Great Nations. It is great that the boy wants what is best for the world, but if left unchecked bad consequences could follow in the far future.

Had the Sannin actually done his job as the boy's Godfather, none of this would have happened. Though it was thirteen years late, it was time for some changes. Even if it was someone as hopeless as Jiraiya, Naruto needed a positive figure in his life.

'I need to make this right… if that's even possible.'

Staring up at the starry night sky with a weary look overcoming his features. A look fitting that of a grizzled, middle-aged, two-war veteran that now had his most difficult task by far staring him in the face.

Jiraiya needed to figure out how to be a dad...

'Naruto... I'm truly sorry. I haven't been there nearly enough for you…' If anything was going to change, it would be him.

Who said you can't teach an old dog new tricks?

…

"W-What did you say, Sensei?" The blond sputtered. Were his ears clogged? He couldn't have heard that right, there was no way…

"I said, I quit." The Sage said matter-of-factly.

"Quit what?! What are you talking about?!" What the hell happened last night?

Jiraiya chuckled. "I just told you. I'm done writing those books. Forever."

For a moment, it felt as though the Genin's brain stopped functioning. This made absolutely no sense. His Godfather, the biggest perv alive, had to have been joking. Yeah, this was just some bad joke.

"I know that you're mad at me, but you aren't funny, you know that?" Naruto didn't believe his own words. Jiraiya didn't look like he was lying.

"But I'm not joking, kid. I swear."

Looking into his eyes, the blond knew it to be true. "Are you okay, Sensei?" He asked slowly. "Did you hit your head on something?"

The Sannin chuckled, but shook his head, further confounding the boy. "No, kid. I feel fine." Continuing to reassure that he was in his right mind.

Despite that, Naruto still looked at him like he had three heads. "Even so, as much as I hate when you peep and write, the sales of your books bring in a lot of money that you use for the good of the village. Without it, how are you going to fund your spy network?"

Jiraiya waved that question off as if he didn't really care about it. "The village has plenty of money to handle my network. I chose to fund it myself so I could have a bit more sovereignty in what my spies look into. When I turn it over to the leaf, while I may lose a lot of autonomy it's a small price to pay." The Sage smiled, seemingly content with this decision.

Naruto squinted in confusion. "In exchange for what?" He asked.

Jiraiya flashed a toothy smile. "Why, being your full-time guardian, of course!"

Silence…

"H-Huh?" Naruto sputtered out. What the hell was this old man talking about?

"If you've taught me anything, brat, it's that I have to be better. Much better." Jiraiya thought about all the mistakes he has been making and the fact that despite all that, Naruto doesn't hate him for it.

'If he had good people caring for him from the beginning, he would realize just how much I failed him.'

"What are you talking about?" Naruto asked with genuine bewilderment. "You haven't done anything wrong." In the blond's eyes, he was the best. Jiraiya was, by far, the closest thing to a father the Genin would ever know. Sure, he had his flaws, but who didn't?

"Naruto." Jiraiya placed both hands on the boy's shoulders and looked him dead in the eyes. "I've done everything wrong." His words didn't sound dejected or bitter, Jiraiya was simply just openly acknowledging the truth. "It may be small, but this is only going to be the start. My resear…" He caught himself, turning his head to the side in embarrassment. No excuses!

Locking eyes with the boy once more, he continued. "My perving, writing those books… because of my selfishness, I ignored you and you suffered from it. I failed you."

Naruto didn't want to think about it, but when his teacher stared at women all day instead of focusing on him and his training, it hurt. Looking back, it stung even more now that he knew Jiraiya was his Godfather. The only family he had left. Though, it didn't cross the boy's mind much because of where they currently were. Away from human society, in Mount Myoboku, it almost forced Jiraiya to focus on him. There were no pretty girls here unless the pervert had a thing for frogs. Yet, in the back of his mind, he feared that when they went back it would revert to normal.

He would be ignored again.

It was something he refused to think about. When he did, all of these negative thoughts about his Godfather, that the blond didn't even know he had, began to flood his mind. It made him feel terrible.

But this news took a weight off of the boy he hadn't even known was there.

Naruto smiled sincerely, which made the Sage smile back just as brightly in return.

"Who needs those books?" Jiraiya said with a hint of humor. "After all, you're the successful author now! Maybe, if you prove yourself, I'll let you inherit the network, brat!" The Toad Sage ruffled his Godson's spiky blond hair.

"Well, with you as my master, I bet I'll be ready to handle it, hee-hee-hee." The Genin chuckled, his arms now placed casually behind his head.

Jiraiya smirked. 'Not because of me, kid.' He thought to himself with a hint of admiration for the boy. 'You'll be able to earn it all on your own. I know it.'

Author's Notes: While the name of this chapter is very simplistic, I think it is aptly named. Things have been, and are continuing to change drastically. There is a clash of ideologies in this chapter, something I think is very significant. Canon Naruto had no established ideals of his own regarding peace, clinging desperately to Jiraiya's philosophy in his mental and physical battle with Nagato. Now, events have occurred that cause him to form his own opinions, ones that differ dramatically from his Sensei.

Jiraiya is also beginning to come to grips with all of the mistakes he has made over the course of the story. Knowing that he has to change, and knowing that the boy needs him more than ever, he wants to be able to focus on being there for his Godson as much as he can.

Leave a review of any comments, questions, or concerns you may have. I read them all! The next two chapters are written, if you want an update about future release dates keep up with my profile page. I regularly update my writing progress.

Thank you all for the support, and I will see you again in Chapter 14: Author's Remorse!

GunBlade2019 - Man, it almost like you... read the summary for my story. Lol. In all seriousness, if you didn't read my summary and that is what you got from the reading so far, I'm glad that I'm conveying the message I wanted to so far. Thank you.

Pat123 - I can assure you, not matter what, my story will never be about romance or sex. There will be no lemons in the story, and even if there were pairings it would always take a back seat to the plot.

RaidenUzumaki14 - We are actually getting closer and closer to Naruto's return back to the village, so I don't really have a place where I can fit more Omakes. However, once he returns and the plot starts to move forward, there will be plenty of time for more introspection, and insight about what others think about his book.

Thanks for giving your thoughts!