Greetings. Chapter Six

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto

Chapter Six: Family Ties

Sleeping in your own bed. There was nothing better. At least as far as where and what you sleep on. Your bed was contoured to your body after years of sleeping on it and infinitely more comfortable because it was simply your bed.

And there was no question that it felt all that much better after years of roughing it in a tent, on the ground, and outside in just the most random of places with the Toad Sage. Naruto was loving his bed. His crappy bed with all the lumps and springs poking out. It was crappy but, it was his crappy and that's all that really mattered.

Though Naruto couldn't fully enjoy that euphoric feeling. He was missing something. And that something was someone as he thought about the girl he'd cuddled with for the better part of eighteen months.

"Really does feel weird." thought Naruto in his head as he simply nodded his head coming to a realization. He was done training. At least as far as training trips went. He could stifle his focus for a little bit to stop and smell the roses. "Time to put Ero-Sennin's teachings to work." continued Naruto smiling to himself. Shizuka was perfect and Naruto knew it. He'd still yet to 'wow' the Nadeshiko Princess and he aimed to change that at his earliest convenience. "Yeah, nothing is holding me back anymore."

Naruto didn't try to court the girl because he always had something in the way of his doing so. He'd blamed training. He'd blame his 'crush' on Sakura. He'd blamed her mourning over her village.

But no more. Naruto would have his princess. It was an inevitable conclusion. He just had to go about finding a way to do it. And every thought he had about what he could do made the Jinchuriki's smile widen further and further.

"What's got you smiling so hard Naruto-kun?" Naruto's smile stretched even further at the question from the person entering his room.

Naruto laid in his bed just grinning as an arm snaked its way across his chest and a leg intertwined with his own. A head settled on his chest as his own arm wrapped around the warm body coming to lay with him. He could feel the stare from the person and figured he could answer the question they'd asked.

"You do," said Naruto turning his eyes down to see Shizuka. He could see her smiling at his simple answer as he rubbed a circle on her back with his hand. "Just thinking of you is all."

"Aww, did you miss me?"

"A little bit," said Naruto getting Shizuka to smile even bigger. It was a really cute smile. "Don't smile so much though. While I miss you, I was hoping you'd sleep in your own apartment." continued Naruto getting Shizuka's smile to stop. Naruto sighed and closed his eyes with a shake of his head. "I mean, it is right next door. You could still go over there you know."

Naruto grinned when he felt Shizuka rap him lightly on the stomach for his words. Shizuka grinned knowing Naruto didn't mean that at all. He liked this as much as she did. Shizuka then smirked realizing that game could be played both ways.

"I mean if that's what you want-" started Shizuka beginning to get up and found she couldn't since Naruto's arm held her firm.

'It's fine, you smell nice," said Naruto as Shizuka smiled. "And you're warm."

"Mhmm, you're warmer than me though," said Shizuka snuggling closer to Naruto as her feet shifted and she felt Naruto shiver a bit.

"Yeesh! Why are your feet so cold? They're like ice!" Naruto should have known what was about to happen.

Shizuka rubbed her feet more and more on Naruto as the two happened into an impromptu game of footsies. It was a short and half-hearted fight as the two settled into a comfortable silence. They just laid there for a few minutes enjoying the other's presence until Naruto broke the silence with a question. A question that made Shizuka's heart jump.

"Will you go on a date with me tomorrow?" questioned Naruto in a mere whisper. Shizuka didn't move for several seconds before she picked her head up to look at Naruto. Naruto looked down at her and could see the excitement in her green eyes. "Like a real and proper date? Not just lunch. A date. With me, tomorrow evening."

"You're asking me on a date?"

"Yes, I am asking you on a date."

"A date date Naruto-kun?"

"Yeah, a date date Shizuka-chan. What do you say?"

A few seconds passed as Shizuka didn't move or say anything. She just stared at Naruto which made him feel a bit uneasy. He'd thought she'd just say yes without hesitating. She didn't and it made Naruto feel like he may have misread the situation.

"Of course I will," said Shizuka as Naruto smiled. Stupid brain and its thoughts making him nervous like that. "Are you finally going to try to 'wow' me Naruto-kun?"

"I've already wowed you Shizuka-chan. We both know that," said Naruto getting Shizuka to raise an eyebrow. "You know I have. Don't play like I haven't. I'm just going to make it official tomorrow. And then, I'll get that juicy kiss I've been waiting for." continued Naruto closing his eyes with a smile. Naruto could feel Shizuka smiling too. He didn't know it was a smile with bad intentions as she shifted her cold feet again, sending a chill through him. "It's on now."

Rummaging could be heard from Naruto's apartment but luckily, his new next-door neighbor happened to currently be the one tussling with him. That would likely come in handy in the future, but he wouldn't think about that. For now, he was back in Konoha, back with his team, and back to exploring his relationship further with the Nadeshiko Princess. Life was looking up for Konoha's resident Jinchuriki.

"Ugh, you're so big," said Shizuka getting wrangled easily. She forgot Naruto was the student of a pervert as he paused to give her a smirk. Shizuka just rolled her eyes at his face. "You know what I meant."

"I know what you said." No, why were her lips curling upward when she was 'angry' at his gutter-minded thoughts.

"Pervert." Yes, call him out and don't give in.

"You know you like it." Dammit, he got her to smile again.

Because like it Shizuka did. She couldn't deny it. She was hoping to really like it come tomorrow. She couldn't wait to see what Naruto had in store.

(Hokage Tower)

Face situated into one of pure shock, Sakura sat in a chair directly in front of her sensei and Hokage, Tsunade. Tsunade casually sipped her sake while she let her student come to terms with what she just told her.

"Kyubi Jinchuriki," said Sakura lowly as she was slowly letting that little bit of information sink into her brain.

Sakura had asked and Tsunade answered. Her conversation earlier today with Naruto made her remember how bad he used to be treated. She wanted to know why that was the case and Naruto told her she'd have to ask Tsunade. Something about it being an S-rank secret.

So, that's what the bubblegum-haired medic did. Tsunade laughed at Naruto calling it an S-rank secret because, while it was, it was a horribly guarded secret. Everyone knew except for the youth apparently. So, Tsunade told her considering Naruto gave her his blessing to let people know. Naruto was the Jinchuriki of the Kyubi no Yoko. The Demon Fox who attacked Konoha fifteen years ago.

"Kyubi Jinchuriki, it all makes sense now," said Sakura thinking deeply about this. "The glares he got. The lack of attention from the teachers. All of it. People thought he was the fox so they...oh Kami. How did he-"

"Don't think that way Sakura. Naruto doesn't nor does he blame anyone for what happened in the past," said Tsunade setting her sake cup down and crossing her arms to rest her chin on. Tsunade hated it too but, Naruto was the main one affected and he just shrugged it off. Because of that, Tsunade eventually did too. Brat wouldn't let her beat down those who hurt him in the past no matter how much she wanted to. "Even though he most certainly could. It's a wonder how he grew up to become the young man he did. I couldn't imagine."

Sakura couldn't either. Naruto's life had been hard. Sakura didn't realize it much back then but, thinking of it now had her hurting for him. How did Naruto grow up with a smile on his face all the time? Had he been faking his happiness back then? Sakura remembered what Tsunade told her about Jinchuriki though and wondered something.

"So since Naruto has the Kyubi, does that mean he can use its power?" asked Sakura getting Tsunade to nod. "Why didn't he use it in our spar? It could have helped, right?"

"Hmm, that's the last thing you would have wanted," spoke Tsunade getting Sakura to tilt her head curiously. Tsunade had a little more time so she felt she could break this down for her student. "Naruto beat you today. He's better than you." continued Tsunade getting Sakura to frown. She knew it but, it didn't have to be thrown in her face again. "If he used the Kyubi's power, it'd have been no contest. You wondered why you couldn't hit him today. You'd have never seen him if he tapped into that power."

"It's that strong?" questioned Sakura getting Tsunade to nod. Naruto could have powered up that whole time? Actually, he could have done that since birth, right? Did that mean? "If he could, why didn't Naruto use that power against Sasuke? He could have brought him back if it's that much of a boost, right?"

"He did use it then. Kakashi found trace amounts of the Kyubi's chakra in the area when he grabbed Naruto and brought him back. But, the brat couldn't control it so he was fighting himself while fighting Sasuke," said Tsunade with a wistful sigh. She'd heard from Jiraiya that Naruto could use at least two-tails but, he'd not actually tested it. Something about how he wanted to be a badass first or something like that. "If he didn't fight for control, he'd have likely killed Sasuke. So, he chose not to fully give in to it which I don't fault him for. Neither should you."

Sakura only sat and nodded her head before looking at Tsunade again. She had more questions but, she knew it was getting late and Tsunade wanted to go home. It was getting to be about that time.

"C'mon, let's go get some food," said Tsunade getting Sakura to perk up. "You still have questions and I wouldn't mind answering them but, I want food while I do it. So let's go."

Sakura smiled and stood with her leader before they made their way out of the office. Neither of them noticed the person hiding outside the office's window as they left. Or at least Tsunade didn't acknowledge their presence because he knew she knew he was there.

Stepping in the room after Tsunade and Sakura left, three whisker marks on either cheek showed from the light shining through the window as the ninja closed the window behind him. Naruto stood in the now vacant office with a mission to accomplish.

"Uzumaki. There has to be something about it here," said the Jinchuriki looking at the picture of the First Hokage. Naruto gripped his necklace and nodded his head firmly. "Uzumaki Mito. She should be a good starting point. I will find my family."

(30 Minutes Later)

"Hmm, this area isn't accessible to anyone other than the Hokage."

"Hey Baa-chan," greeted Naruto while he sat in a hidden section of the Hokage's office.

The same hidden section he'd found due to the infamous Forbidden Scroll Incident. What a horrid night that was for Naruto. He'd been duped by a teacher into stealing a scroll full of forbidden jutsu. That same teacher then tried to kill him instead of passing him as he'd promised. And Naruto ended up being saved by another teacher before defeating Mizuki with ironically, a jutsu from the scroll Mizuki told him to steal.

"Eh, that wasn't that bad of a night. I did get promoted after all and Iruka-sensei and I became bros." thought Naruto not turning to Tsunade when she spoke to him. Instead, Naruto was concentrated on what he'd found in his breaking in. Something Tsunade could see. "Uzumaki Kushina. This is my mom."

A picture of a beautiful, red-haired woman sat in Naruto's hand. After entering the room, Naruto began his hunt for anything about his last name. And it wasn't hard to find a folder containing the file on not one, but two Uzumakis.

The first being the Shodai Hokage's wife in Uzumaki Mito. The other was of the woman whose photo sat in his hands. This was Uzumaki Kushina, Naruto's mother. A Konoha kunoichi born in the village of Uzushiogakure. Bar three pictures of her, one from her genin days, another from her jonin days, and the pregnant photo in Naruto's hand, all information outside of her name and mild backstory was redacted. They'd erased it from these files but, Naruto didn't really care about that.

He only wanted to find his family and managed to get the woman who gave birth to him. Naruto came to that conclusion in three steps. The first was that she was one of two Uzumaki in Konoha's history before Naruto's arrival. The second was that Mito was the First Hokage's wife. She'd have been dead so there was no way she could have been his mother. The final step was the lovely message on the back of the photo written by Sarutobi Hiruzen.

"Uzumaki Naruto's mother. Due Date, ten October," read Naruto after turning the photo over. He saw Hiruzen's signature at the bottom and smiled before turning the photo back over. Tears, happy and sad, began to fall from Naruto's eyes as he smiled. "Ka-chan."

"Your mother loved you. I'm sure of it," said Tsunade watching the Jinchuriki laugh and cry hearing that. Naruto sniffled some as the Kage continued speaking. "I didn't know much about Kushina but I remember seeing her sometime after she found out about you. You were all she could talk about. She was so excited."

A hollow laugh came from Naruto as he wiped the tears from his face and placed the pictures back in the folder before standing abruptly. Tsunade watched Naruto put the folder back in place before turning to her. She could see his tear-stained cheeks but, his smile was telling a different story.

"Can we go hang for a bit? I'm kind of hungry if you are too," said Naruto watching Tsunade's eyebrow raise. "I'm buying if you are. Just figured you might have a story or two about her," added Naruto to give Tsunade some incentive in joining him while also giving away his motives. He wanted to know all she could tell him about Uzumaki Kushina. "What do you say baa-chan?"

"Not going to try to find out who your father is? I know you haven't looked yet," said Tsunade curiously watching Naruto shake his head.

"Finding out who my mother is is enough for now. Can't handle another emotional trip like that. Would ruin my street cred. Not even sure I can handle this one," said Naruto wiping a stray tear that'd come to his eye. Naruto turned absentmindedly to a picture of the Yondaime Hokage before continuing. "I do have my suspicions but I'd like to leave him as just that for now. And hopefully, treat the most beautiful woman in Konoha to a late dinner instead."

Tsunade smiled at the compliment and shook her head. Naruto was becoming quite the charmer. A smooth talker if Tsunade had ever seen. The Kage just nodded her head and linked arms with Naruto when he offered his.

"Oh, I feel all kinds of good."

"Why is that gaki?"

"It isn't every day you get to take the Hokage out on a date."

"A date? You think this is a date?" asked Tsunade as Naruto grinned. Seemed like a yes and Tsunade had to laugh. "This isn't a date kiddo. This is an interview. All you want is information and you're bribing me with a meal."

"Baa-chan, tsk tsk. I thought you knew," said Naruto undeterred by Tsunade's correcting his counting this as a date. Naruto turned to the Kage and held her gaze. "First dates are interviews."

Tsunade smiled and snickered at that. Naruto just wiggled his eyebrows as Tsunade was definitely sure of it. Naruto had become a smooth talker. Oh, he was going to have women swooning if he was like this.

"Seems that old pervert teaches better than he practices." thought Tsunade as a thought crossed her. Maybe this was what Jiraiya meant. This was the part of Naruto she'd be impressed by. No, it couldn't be. And yet, Tsunade was sure of it as she agreed with Naruto's logic. "Indeed you're correct. Most men would kill for the opportunity. Consider yourself lucky gaki."

"Oh, I do. I'm thanking Kami for the help," said Naruto turning his head back down the street. Tsunade mentally thanked Naruto for getting out of his funk pretty fast. He'd just found out about his mother and she thought he'd be in quite a mood but, he seemed fine as he kept talking. "Can't wait to brag to Ero-Sennin. He's going to be so jealous."

"Yes, yes he will. Be sure to really rub it in," said Tsunade getting Naruto to nod. He was really going to lay it on. Tsunade didn't have to worry about that. "Don't think your complimenting me and buying dinner gets you out of punishment for breaking and entering into a place for the Hokage's eyes only."

"Mmm, thought you'd forget about that." Hope was present in Naruto's voice.

"Seems I didn't."

"Bummer," said Naruto watching Tsunade turn the corner and walk a few paces before stopping. Naruto stopped with her and turned to see another Tsunade in the window of a restaurant his Tsunade pointed him to. She was sitting and eating with Sakura. "I knew you were a clone."

"I know. I just figured you could pay for mine and Sakura's dinner instead," said the clone before kissing Naruto on the cheek. "I'll still tell you about your mom afterward. And that punishment will come soon don't you worry."

Naruto nodded before the clone poofed away in a smoke cloud. Naruto waited a second before seeing the real Tsunade perk up within the restaurant. She turned to see him standing there and smiled at him.

Naruto just waved back before heading in to join the two medics.

(The Next Day)

Tomorrow started like any other for Naruto. Wake up. Check for a mission. No mission? Then train. A simple line of thought born from repetition since his Genin days.

Some differences this morning though. One, Tsunade had given them three days off yesterday since he'd returned from his training trip. So he already knew he didn't need to check for a mission. Two, today marked his and Shizuka's first official date. And Naruto was nothing but a bunch of nerves.

It was weird when he thought about it. Shizuka and he had gone on plenty of 'dates'. They'd spent the better part of his training trip together, sleeping next to each other, and were mutual in their admiration of the other. And yet none of that stopped the butterflies fluttering in his stomach since he'd woken up.

"This is ridiculous." thought Naruto standing in the middle of a training ground in his opening stance of frog fu. He was annoyed at feeling nervous. "You're the apprentice to Jiraiya. A man never with his foot in his mouth around ladies. Granted, it's usually their foot in his mouth because he's a super pervert, but that doesn't diminish his skills and confidence with them." continued Naruto with a mental pep talk. He fully settled in his stance before taking a deep breath. "And yet here I am all anxious. He'd probably disown me if he knew."

Luckily for Naruto, Jiraiya wasn't around to disown him. He was also lucky to have distractions for his mind from his date later. For one, Shizuka wasn't here to keep his thoughts on her. Probably still sleeping like he'd left her because she usually didn't wake up early. And the second reason, a certain Hyuga sparring partner was upon him with a flurry of strikes that he had to focus on.

"Your improvement over the years is astonishing Naruto-san," complimented Neji, a comrade of Naruto's and aforementioned Hyuga sparring partner.

Hyuga Neji is a Jonin ranked shinobi of Konoha and a member of the prestigious Hyuga Clan. Neji is a tall, young man only a year older than Naruto with fair skin and long, brown hair. The most noticeable thing about Neji was his eyes, both being a featureless white. Those eyes were special and belonged to one clan and kekkai genkai, the Hyuga and Byakugan respectively.

And after nearly three years since their first fight, Naruto was finally giving Neji that rematch he'd sought after. Naruto also remembered why he didn't like reminiscing about his fight with the Jonin. Neji was scary good. He was a Hyuga, let alone one of the strongest Hyugas in Neji, and Naruto had the hair-brained idea to want to swap hands with him.

"Thanks, Neji. I see the genius in you is still ever-present," said Naruto blocking a palm strike with his forearm that still managed to cause his arm to go numb. Naruto frowned because the closing of his tenketsu was why he hated fighting Neji. Or any Hyuga for that matter. "I really hate that Taijutsu. Thought you'd be doing something else by now."

Neji smiled at Naruto and pressed his advantage. Naruto forcibly re-opened the closed chakra pathway with a burst of the Kyubi's chakra and began blocking anew. Well, Naruto was parrying the strikes now since a block would still get his chakra points closed up.

"If it isn't broke, don't fix it. That's how the saying goes I believe," said Neji shifting effortlessly away from Naruto's strikes while retaliating with his own still. Naruto was flowing well and Neji was impressed. Naruto's Taijutsu was great. "I'm surprised you've continued to only use Taijutsu. Most would've given up by now and forced me to come to them."

"Well, no better practice of Taijutsu can be found bar maybe Rock Lee in my skill range. And I wanted to see if any of you guys were around. This killed two birds with one stone," said Naruto dodging a dangerous two-finger jab aimed to shut down his left arm. Naruto backed away from Neji before resetting. "Anyone like Ero-Sennin or Kakashi-sensei is a bit too much for me to keep up with."

"I see. Maybe I should join that category then," said Neji speeding up nearly twofold as Naruto's eyes widened at the sudden change of pace.

Naruto parried the first two strikes effectively. It was too bad that those two strikes were followed by four more. Which were followed by eight and another sixteen for good measure.

"Hakke Sanjuni Sho (Eight Trigrams 32 Palms)," said Neji sending Naruto to his back with a flurry of finger jabs all over his torso. Neji stood up straight from his recent attack to see a paralyzed Naruto on the ground. Naruto surprised Neji though when he dispelled in a poof, turning into a log. "Seems he really is better. That may be the first Kawarimi I've ever seen him do, let alone heard about." thought Neji knowing where the real Naruto sat perched thanks to his Byakugan. Naruto came back at Neji again, also kipping up his Taijutsu, causing the Jonin to smile. "Did you really focus on your Taijutsu during your training trip? This is actually making me get a bit of a workout Naruto-san."

"Good because that's the whole point. Don't worry, I'll get to my bag of tricks in a little bit."

"I look forward to seeing them."

(Naruto's Apartment - Same Time)

Yawning awake, Shizuka gave a good stretch to steadily try to wake herself up. Eyes adjusting to the light slowly but surely, Shizuka sat up in Naruto's bed and did another stretch for good measure.

'Go on a date with me'

Shizuka's eyes opened wide hearing Naruto's words reverberate in her head. Shizuka smiled giddily realizing what she'd be doing at some point today. Finally, Naruto would be taking her on a date. He'd waited long enough.

"Training trip did end yesterday so, I guess he has no excuses anymore." thought Shizuka while looking to her right to see a small note.

Picking it up, Shizuka smiled as she read it. She could almost see Naruto's face in her mind nervously saying the line.

'Hi. Not going to lie, I'm nervous. So don't judge me too hard tonight. Will see you at 6 pm. Until later, Naruto.'

Shizuka jumped up out of Naruto's bed with gusto. She was very excited. The only thing she was bummed about was that she'd have to wait until six. And it was only a little after ten in the morning. That was nearly eight hours.

"Great things come to those who are patient. I can't wait until later Naruto-kun." thought Shizuka in her head before getting up and heading to her apartment. She could probably do a little something before the date though. Tsunade did say she should become more acquainted with people. "Why not start now? Maybe I'll see if I can find some of Naruto's old friends. It's probably what he's doing."

(With Naruto - Sometime later)

Okay, maybe Neji wasn't looking as forward to seeing those new tricks as he previously stated. Bending at the waist, Neji dodged two sets of punches from Naruto's shadow clones before maneuvering into a handstand and decking both clones with an extended leg. Hearing the two clones dispel, Neji flipped up to see 3 more clones upon him immediately.

"It just never ends," said Neji always envious of the amount of chakra Naruto had.

Facing a chakra monster wasn't fair. Neji was near chakra exhaustion and Naruto still had enough chakra to spam high-level jutsu. It was just unfair. No one needed this much chakra.

Three precise finger jabs later and Neji was rid of the three clones before seeing another Naruto come at him with a Rasengan in hand. Prepping a spin to activate his Kaiten, Neji was shocked when he picked up on something too late. Naruto got him again.

"Good night," said Naruto as Neji realized he was right.

A chakra chain had sprung from the ground to wrap around Neji's right arm and his legs. The chain halted his spin and left him exposed to the approaching Rasengan. Holding the bright blue ball inches from Neji's open rib cage, the Hyuga only nodded while breathing a sigh of relief. While not happy with losing, he could finally rest and recover from the longer than expected spar with Naruto. And annoyingly, Naruto didn't seem the least bit tired from it.

"Having that abundance of chakra is an unfair advantage," said Neji taking a seat next to a tree to recover. Naruto only smiled at him as Neji shook his head with a small smile. "Bested with clones and a surprise ground attack, again."

"If it isn't broke, don't fix it. This Neji guy once said that to me," said Naruto with a smile as he saw Neji grin wider. Naruto began to walk out of the clearing with a peace sign thrown up. "Tell Tenten, Lee, and Gai I said hi when you see them. I'll try to find them some other time. Take it easy Neji."

"Will do. See you later Naruto-san."

Neji waved goodbye as Naruto set out to find more friends. It'd been quite some time and he had more people to see. Mainly because he missed them but, also to keep him distracted before his date with Shizuka later.

"Thinking about it again. Stupid nerves." thought Naruto reaching Konoha's main district. Seeing he could walk either left or right, Naruto shrugged and pulled out a coin. Naruto flipped it before catching it and smacking it on the back of his hand. "Hmm, that way it is."

Nodding, Naruto put the coin back in his pocket before heading left down the street. Walking at a slow pace, Naruto let out a small smile. That smile dropped when an enormous white blur tackled him from his blind spot. The tackle sent him through a wooden fence and into a small abandoned lot. Several licks on his face and Naruto finally recognized it was a dog that was terrorizing him. Which shifted the attack to an affectionate gesture when he realized who the dog was.

"Akamaru!" exclaimed Naruto hearing the dog let out a mighty bark at his name being called. Naruto marveled at the much bigger puppy and scratched the dog's head. "You got big. If you're here, then that means-"

"Akamaru! Why'd you take off like-" started a brown-haired boy entering the small field. The brown-haired boy's wondering was satiated when he realized who Akamaru had pounced on. "Well well well, seems the dead last has returned."

"Dead last who kicked your ass," said Naruto standing as the brown-haired boy scoffed.

"Because of a fluke," said the boy as Naruto didn't waver at all.

"A win is a win, flea boy," said Naruto getting a growl. Naruto and the boy stared at each other before smiles appeared on their faces. Clutching in a sturdy handshake with a bro hug ending, the two greeted one another properly. "Good to see you again Kiba."

"Same here Naruto," said Kiba with a feral grin.

Inuzaka Kiba is a brown-haired Chunin of Konoha belonging to the Inuzaka Clan. The clan is full of feral looking tracking experts that share many characteristics with their dog partners. Kiba was also one of Naruto's favorite people and quite a friendly rival.

"Man, almost 3 years. Crazy how slow time seemed to go around here without you around getting in trouble," said Kiba ending their handshake before giving Naruto a once over. He looked disinterested as he gave a thumbs down "You only look taller in my opinion. Did you waste nearly three years with a Sannin to come back still weak?"

Naruto smiled at Kiba and before he could answer, a hooded shinobi spoke before him.

"It would be safe to assume Naruto-san has gotten more powerful in his time away," said the hooded shinobi walking up to stand beside Kiba. "Why? Because of the increase in his chakra levels and the fact he performed a substitution with a clone that I'd have missed if not for my bugs."

"Hmm, always perceptive Shino," said the clone Naruto.

The clone was thankful Shino said something about bugs or else he wouldn't have known who it was. Aburame Shino is also a Chunin of Konoha belonging to the Aburame clan. Another clan of tracking experts, using bugs rather than dogs like the Inuzaka clan.

Kiba was shocked to find out Naruto was a clone and wondered where the real one was until he heard a familiar 'eep' about twenty feet back. The clone Naruto dispelled in a poof of smoke while a few seconds later, the real Naruto came walking up with a passed-out young woman in his arms.

"I see Hinata still faints around him." thought Kiba about his unconscious teammate.

Hyuga Hinata is a blue-haired Chunin, cousin to Neji, and a member of the Hyuga Clan. She possessed the same abilities and kekkai genkai as Neji too. Though being apart of the main branch of the Hyuga clan, Hinata's Byakugan wasn't restricted with a seal like Neji's and was much more potent.

She, like Shino, spotted Naruto when he pulled out his coin to figure out which way to walk. Unlike Shino, Hinata didn't notice the switch with the clone. So when Naruto surprised her, she let out a surprised exclamation. That didn't cause her to faint though, it was what Naruto said after seeing her fully that knocked her out cold.

Naruto had been under the tutelage of a self-proclaimed super-pervert and in that time developed a healthy appreciation for the opposite gender. He wasn't a pervert. He was adamant that his studying of the female form was strictly due to his healthy appreciation of the women of the world.

And in that development of said appreciation, Naruto also felt compelled to let them know. There was no reason to keep that information to himself. So after he saw Hinata, Naruto let her know what he thought just like he had with Sakura yesterday. Just, telling Hinata she'd grow so much more beautiful than what she was when he left triggered her to promptly pass out.

"Didn't know Hinata was still anemic," said Naruto walking up to the redfaced girl's teammates. Naruto then looked at Kiba and Shino as he spoke. "You guys wanna hang for? I got nothing better to do until later." continued Naruto hopeful they could. He wanted to distract himself from thinking about his date later. "We could spar or something. I bet you guys got a lot better."

"Hell yeah, we did man! But," said Kiba grabbing Hinata out of Naruto's arms. "We have a mission to go on today. Maybe when we get back in a week."

"For sure," said Naruto waving goodbye to the team before turning back and walking down the street again. Naruto let out a sigh. "Still got a lot of time until that date. Hopefully, I can find someone to hang with."

And as if Kami heard him, Naruto spotted two people walking ahead of him like the best friends they are.

"Perfect. They'll definitely wanna hang for a few hours," said Naruto following the two before eventually greeting them.

(Elsewhere in Konoha - 2 hours later)

"Stop that."

"Stop what?"

"Stop looking at me like that," said Sakura to Ino, her own best friend who was looking at her with a shit-eating grin.

"It's hard not to. This is just too perfect," said Ino having spent the morning with Sakura. They sparred for a while before grabbing some breakfast together. And on their way to her family's shop, Ino couldn't get over what Sakura had told her not 10 minutes ago. "Uzumaki Naruto is like that now huh?"

"Ugh, I shouldn't have told you," said Sakura with a groan. Ino continued smiling before prepping a bouquet for an order that was placed. It was a special bouquet and one that Ino was tasked with by her father to craft in his stead. "It's just so weird. I even dreamed about him last night."

Ino's grin was so wide it was likely going to split her face if it kept growing. Which it would the more and more she spoke with Sakura. She couldn't believe how right she'd been.

"This is becoming almost too much. I gotta see how Konoha's favorite blonde, bar me of course, is. Your story made me all excited and that's even more now since you dreamed of him," said Ino pausing to look at the bouquet she was putting together. She was the best, even distracted by her friend's story. Nodding at its perfection, Ino walked around the counter after placing it ready for the customer's pick up time. "If he's got you like this after 24 hours, he must have grown amazingly."

"You have no idea," said Sakura following Ino out of the shop as the two walked in stride through Konoha. They both had the day off so Sakura didn't mind shadowing the girl. She had nothing better to do than to hang with Ino. "It doesn't help that he also brought back a girl."

"Not only does Naruto become a stud muffin. But he brings back a girl?" said Ino with her sky blue eyes boring into the side of Sakura's head. "Oh, this is something out of a novel. I couldn't have written it better myself."

Sakura's head dropped at that novel comment as she shook her head.

"Same thing Tsunade-sama and Shizune-senpai said this morning when I reported in. I thought I maybe had to work but, Naruto's three-day break was also given to me," said Sakura in a downtrodden voice. She could have saved herself from the teasing. Ino patted Sakura on the back in a comforting gesture. "Thanks for consoling me Ino but, a few pats on the back don't change what I said yesterday. And how I've already reneged not even a full day later."

"It's okay. As you said, you hadn't seen him in over two years. And you guys were close, it's fine to feel like this," said Ino halfheartedly because it was more fun to see Sakura like this.

Karma was good like that. All those times Naruto had vied for Sakura's affection and attention and never got a date with her. And now it was biting her in the rear end only two and a half years later. It was just too perfect.

"Yeah, you're right. Just nostalgia has me like this. It'll pass soon," said Sakura with hope heavy in her voice. "Sooner rather than later would be better. I'll be glad if I can avoid him until we have to report in two days. I can't see him after telling him what I said yesterday and then dreaming about him. That'll be awkward."

Ino nodded her head as they neared Shikamaru's home. She had something to deliver to him before she and Sakura could go shopping. Looking up, Ino noticed 3 figures sitting outside of her teammate's home.

"Might be hard to do that," said Ino causing Sakura to look up confused.

Ino pointed forward and Sakura looked up to see the three Ino had spotted. Seeing Choji lounging on Shikamaru's porch behind Shikamaru, Sakura's eyes pandered to the third person who was none other than her teammate and current 'dream guy'. Letting out an inaudible groan, Ino only smiled.

"Hope Naruto lives up to the pedestal you put him on," said Ino excited to see Naruto. Sakura had been hyping him up all morning. Not only had she not seen her fellow blonde in nearly three years, but he'd also apparently become something special. "My expectations are high, he better not let me down."

"Trust me. He won't."

(With Naruto - Earlier)

"And yeah. That's pretty much how it went," said Naruto to the two hanging with him as he looked at the shogi board before him.

Moving a piece, Naruto just nodded his head looking up at his current company. One of the two being Nara Shikamaru, a black-haired Konoha Chunin and member of the Nara Clan. The clan is full of geniuses whose mental ability matched their physical inability to get motivated in non-dire situations. They all literally defined the term 'lazy genius' to a tee. It was eerie when Naruto thought about it.

The other young man present was Shikamaru's best friend, Akimichi Choji. Also a Konoha Chunin but with long brown hair and belonging to the Akimichi Clan. Said clan being physical terrors in battle mainly due to their body expansion jutsu allowing them to dominate any given battlefield with ease.

And for the past two hours, the three of them had been catching up with Naruto telling the two about his exploits with Jiraiya and them filling him in on what happened in Konoha during his absence. Well, mainly Choji because Shikamaru was growing more and more dumbfounded at Naruto. And that was due to the game being played between him and the blonde Jinchuriki.

"It doesn't make sense. You make your moves in less than 10 seconds after mine and yet they're perfect counters. Every time," said Shikamaru shaking his head at that because it usually took him minutes to do the same.

"Really?" questioned Naruto in disbelief at the praise from the smartest guy he knew. Shikamaru didn't answer, more concerned with his next move as Choji chuckled. Naruto turned to his friend and wondered if he knew. "I'm really playing that well? I don't really even know how to play."

"You're lasting longer against him than anyone else has besides his dad," said Choji munching on a few chips. Shikamaru twitched hearing how Naruto really didn't know how to play. Then how was he making such great moves?! "It's hilarious to see."

Naruto smiled as he watched Shikamaru think for several minutes on his next move. Still waiting, Naruto's head perked up because he felt two chakra signatures approaching and one of them smelled heavenly. Almost as good as Shizuka did. Naruto peered his eyes over and recognized the two approaching kunoichi.

"Hi Sakura-chan," said Naruto to his teammate before turning his eyes to Ino.

She was the one who was smelling lovely and Naruto set his blue eyes upon her. Once again blaming his 'healthy appreciation' placed in him through Jiraiya's teachings, Naruto appraised Ino with his eyes unashamed and without any kind of tack. Just blatantly sizing her up with his blue eyes. Ino noticed and smiled seeing him take her in fully.

Yamanaka Ino is a cornflower blonde Konoha Chunin and a member of the Yamanaka Clan. A clan of mind specialists who were core members of Konoha's intelligence and information gathering department. And while that was impressive, Naruto didn't care about that as his blue eyes lifted to meet Ino's sky blue ones. Like with Sakura and Hinata, Naruto let his thoughts be known.

"Hi, Ino. It's been a while and I mean, you look...wow," said Naruto with a very simple compliment.

If Ino were a lesser woman, she'd have blushed. But she wasn't a lesser woman, she was Ino and the smirk on her face definitely showed her readiness to test this grown-up Naruto. She'd call him out on just saying 'wow' to describe her but honestly, she kind of liked it. Simplicity sometimes spoke volumes and Naruto proved it just then.

"Oh, I know. I see you enjoyed the view." She'd start her test slow.

He didn't disappoint.

"I did and still am. It's hard not to. You look amazing Ino," said Naruto rising into a stand before walking toward her. Ino could see the muscles Sakura had been talking about. He looked better than what Sakura had said and Ino really liked his next line. "I'm going to lie and pretend this hug is because I haven't seen you in a while. It's not because I want an excuse to touch you. In case you were wondering."

"Oh, he's good." thought Ino allowing the taller blonde to wrap her up in a firm hug. Ino found that Naruto's muscles felt as hard as they looked. "Didn't realize how much I missed you until you actually left. How have you been?"

"I've been good, better now," replied Naruto getting more mental points from Ino. Did Naruto become a ladies' man during his journey? "I see you've been well. You definitely look it."

"That I have," said Ino liking talking to Naruto. She would have continued if Shikamaru didn't hit her with a shoji piece. "Ow, why'd you throw that at me?"

"Stop flirting with Naruto and get on to why you're here." Shikamaru just had to ruin it.

"Good morning to you too Shika," said Ino excusing herself from Naruto to walk over to the Nara.

She handed him the scroll and watched him grumble at who it was from. When did his mom even see Ino to give her a scroll to give to him? Ino nodded her head seeing that her job was done. While Shikamaru was grumbling at the contents of the scroll, Ino turned her head to look back to Naruto and saw him talking with Sakura.

"Yeah, Sakura's in trouble." thought Ino having liked what she saw. Naruto looked much better and he now had a swagger about him that looked forged in fire. Ino's first impression was that Naruto was indeed the studmuffin Sakura made him out to be. "I'm liking Jiraiya influenced Naruto already. I'll need more time to come to an actual conclusion. More research and study." Yes, she'd need more interactions with Naruto. She was very interested in the man he was becoming. Not enough to be attracted to him though. "Well, maybe. Oh, he's getting to Sakura without even trying. Be strong girl, be strong!"

"Ever going to stop drooling?" questioned Choji lowly to Ino. Ino didn't take her eyes off Naruto even after hearing Choji. "He has grown up, hasn't he?"

"Yes he has," said Ino with an 'mmm' to accentuate her agreeing with him.

Choji smiled at his teammate's antics. Ino being Ino. Eventually, Ino saw Shikamaru nod, confirming he'd handle what was on the scroll. Ino smiled before pulling Sakura away from Naruto to save the girl. She'd been getting drowned on Naruto island and thankfully, Ino came in like a flotation device. Ino waved goodbye to Naruto, Shikamaru, and Choji as Sakura let her ire be known immediately.

"Way to leave me back there," said Sakura internally thankful she kept it together just now in front of Naruto. Ino only smiled cheerily at Sakura. "I told you he was different."

"I noticed. First impression, you're in trouble," said Ino as Sakura dropped her head knowing it was true. Ino and Sakura both walked for a bit before Ino gasped. Sakura picked her head to wonder what was going on with Ino. She only saw the girl staring and pointing to a nearby store window. "Who is that goddess right there? I haven't seen her around here before. She almost gives me a run for my money. She's so hot."

Looking into the same shop to find said goddess Ino was slowly going bisexual for, Sakura groaned again.

"That is the girl Naruto brought. Her name is Shizuka," said Sakura looking back at Ino to see she was gone. Looking back at Shizuka, she saw Ino introducing herself to the black-haired girl. "This is going to be a long day."

Sakura eventually joined Ino and Shizuka. She found Ino had invited Shizuka to shop with them. The Nadeshiko princess easily agreed still wanting to meet more people around here. No better way to start then with Yamanaka Ino and her new teammate in Sakura.

(With Naruto - Several Hours Later)

Having paced back and forth for the better part of an hour and brushed his teeth/checked his appearance for the 4th time in 30 minutes, Naruto looked up to see he had two minutes until he would leave to pick up Shizuka. Those nerves he had earlier were way worse. His butterflies being replaced with pterodactyls or some other huge winged animal now flew through his gut. He was very nervous.

"This is ridiculous," said Naruto to himself in the mirror. Literally to himself though because he had a clone standing behind him that was just nodding its head. "Why am I worrying? I'm me. Uzumaki Naruto, right?"

"Yes, you are. You got this Boss," said the clone rubbing Naruto's shoulders like he was a prize-fighter about to enter the boxing ring. "Just like lunch. Only it is later and you are actually calling it a date. It's no different outside of that." continued the clone getting Naruto to nod. "All we got to hope for is that you don't fuck up. First impressions are everything."

"...you realize we've already met, right?"

"Exactly. So, stop being a punk and get to wow-ing her," said the clone slowly pushing Naruto to the door. "You got this. Just remember, don't look down before greeting her."

Before the original could ask why, clone Naruto shut the door to his apartment. He still had a minute and eleven seconds by his watch but apparently, his clone knew he was just delaying the inevitable. Shaking the jitters out, Naruto made sure the flowers he got from Ino, who was giving Naruto more mental points for ordering the bouquet she created earlier, were still prim and perfect. Seeing that they were, Naruto nodded before taking roughly 10 steps to the left and knocking on the door.

Hearing a 'Coming' from the other side, Naruto waited about ten or so seconds before the click of the lock could be heard and the door opened. Shizuka could be seen from the opening door and she smiled seeing Naruto there. Reciprocating her smile, Naruto realized why his clone said not to look down before greeting her.

Wearing what Jiraiya called a female's go-to outfit, Shizuka was in the classic little black dress. And Shizuka's dress showed just enough skin but not enough at the same time. She was always good at leaving just enough to the imagination. Assaulted by primal desires, Naruto's throat grew dry and he could easily make out his own heartbeat pounding in his ears. Luckily for him, Shizuka was distracted by the bouquet in Naruto's hand and he was given time to recover.

"Hey, beautiful."

"Hey handsome," responded Shizuka accepting the bouquet before inviting Naruto in.

Placing the flowers in a vase, Shizuka claimed she needed a few minutes to get ready which left Naruto in the living room. Shizuka meanwhile was simply in her room with the door closed as she sat on her bed. A useless bed since she slept with Naruto anyway. This whole apartment was stupid now that she thought of it but, Tsunade was adamant she had her own place.

Those were just thoughts Shizuka had to waste time. She was already ready to go but she had to pull the 'make him wait' move. Not because she was conforming to what every other girl said she should do, but because Naruto was looking good.

Like her, his look was simple. Khaki pants, white shirt with the Shodai's necklace over it, unzipped leather jacket, and black boots. Simple. And the lack of headband let his hair flow wilder and further accent his feral, bad boy look. Naruto looked good.

Deciding that she couldn't sit there forever, Shizuka slipped on her shoes before grabbing her clutch and entering the living room. Seeing her date stare at one of the paintings on her wall, Shizuka was about to speak but Naruto beat her to it.

"Ready?" questioned Naruto turning after asking to see Shizuka smile and nod her head.

Heading to the door, Naruto allowed Shizuka through first before following suit. Shizuka turned to quickly lock the door before turning back to Naruto. She smiled seeing his arm out and linked hers with his. Shizuka and Naruto exited the apartment complex with Naruto leading the way since he knew where they were going.

"Don't think I didn't notice how starstruck you were," said Shizuka almost causing Naruto to falter.

She'd have gotten him earlier. Too bad, she gave Naruto time. And time was all he needed to get his swagger back.

"I believe you did the same," said Naruto getting Shizuka to blush mildly and smile confirming it for him.

He didn't even see it. It was just purely a guess. And he was right which meant, tonight would be good. Oh yeah, it was wow time and Naruto was ready. Shizuka was going to be his, officially, by the end of the night.

There was no question in either of their minds.

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