A/N - Okey dokey, here it is! The beginning of Wrath of a Namikaze's sequel. Seeing as that was my most popular fic (and still is), I figured I'd go ahead and get started on the sequel to that story. Just as before, expect Naruto to be a bit darker.

Anywho, as you'll no doubt have noticed, this chapter is a short one compared to some of the others I've written in the past. I didn't want to make this first chapter too long, but I think I did a LOOOT in this chapter. I sincerely hope you enjoy reading the first chapter of Vengeance of the Uzumaki.

Chapter 1 – Rise of the Uzumakis

It had been three months since the downfall of Konohagakure and Naruto's escape from the village. Uzushiogakure and the island it resided had been making quite the recovery thanks to Tazuna and the people of the Land of Waves. The village had nearly been rebuilt and Naruto and his loved ones each had their own home built specifically for them.

Naruto had turned 16 a week ago. He had hit something of a growth spurt and was now nearly as tall as his darling Kuroko. He had also noticed the girls were growing and filling out nicely, though he tried desperately not to let his eyes wander from time to time. Kuroko was the one that currently kept his focus, however. This was especially true after the birthday present she had given him. In other words, she had claimed his virginity, just as she said she would.

At this point in time, the inhabitants of Uzushiogakure didn't feel they were quite ready to reveal themselves to the world. They needed to build up their strength, recruit more people to their village, and prepare themselves for whatever the future may hold.

The people of Uzushio had unanimously decided that Naruto should be the first Uzukage. He wasn't entirely sure what to make of that decision, but he accepted regardless. However, he made it clear to everyone that he would be an active member of Uzushio and therefore wouldn't be confined to the office, nor the island as a whole. He would continue to be proactive and work towards the betterment of his village and his people. If that meant he had to venture into the other nations to confront problems head-on, then he would do so.

News had reached their ears about what was going on with Konohagakure. They had fallen on hard times and were struggling just to recover from the harsh blow Naruto and his friends had dealt to their village. Konoha's enemies had obviously heard about what had happened in Konohagakure as well. Kumogakure and Iwagakure had joined forces and had gone to war with what remained of Konoha. Somehow, by some kind of miracle, Konoha had yet to fall. However, everyone knew it was only a matter of time before Konoha fell to its enemies. Soon enough, Konohagakure would no longer be able to call itself one of the five great villages.

None of this truly mattered to Naruto, however. No, he and the others had taken a look at the headbands that once belonged to the invading forces. One set of headbands was to be expected, considering that nobody should have been able to invade the island. They were obviously betrayed by a close ally: Konohagakure. It was pretty obvious who was responsible for this, and they were quite glad that the one responsible was dead. If they had failed to kill him before leaving, Naruto would have gladly assisted in the destruction of Konohagakure, just for the chance to make the man pay. Who was this traitor? Danzo Shimura, naturally.

However, Naruto was glad that he wouldn't have to side with Kumo and Iwa. After all, most of the headbands they found belonged to Kumo and Iwa shinobi. Naruto and the other Uzumakis had decided that they would find a way to destroy both villages no matter what it took. Of course, they weren't about to risk the lives of their family, for that is what the people of Uzushiogakure were: a family. Even if the others didn't have a drop of Uzumaki blood in their veins, they still considered them to be a vital part of their family.

Naruto and the others realized that if they wanted to destroy Kumogakure and Iwagakure that they'd have to play things smart. They would also need to recruit others to join their island home. It would also behoove them to make allies wherever they could. Thanks to Naruto's relationship with Gaara and his family, they could already count Sunagakure as an ally, which was a damn good start.

At the moment, word had reached Naruto of a country in need of help. The Land of Snow was currently being ruled by a tyrant by the name of Doto Kazahana. But that's not what held his attention. No, he had received reports on a woman by the name of Yukie Fujikaze, the famous actress that starred in the Princess Gale movies. Digging into her past and the past of her manager, he found out that Yukie was an actual, real life princess.

Looking over the report sent to him by Gaara, who had recently been named the Fifth Kazekage of Suna, Naruto narrowed his eyes. "Hmm…" Taking a moment longer to finish reading, he soon nodded his head and let a grin cross his face. This is a great opportunity. Thank you Gaara.

Leaving his office, Naruto looked at Shizune with a smile. "Shizune-chan, can you gather everyone in the meeting room? I have something big I need to discuss with everyone." The black-haired medic turned secretary nodded in response before she hurried off to do as requested. Once she was gone, he turned and made his way to the meeting room.

Once he arrived and took his seat, he unraveled a storage scroll and released its contents, revealing a book and a small stack of sealing tags. Opening the book to a certain page, he read over his notes for a time before he began drawing a seal on one of the blank tags. As he did this, he kept his senses open as he waited for the others to arrive. However, his focus never wavered as he continued drawing the seal.

You might be wondering just what he was working on. The answer to that is both complex and yet surprisingly simple. He was trying to find a way to remove Orochimaru's curse seals from both Tayuya and Anko Mitarashi. However, the seal he was currently working on was a kind of diagnosis/scanning seal to help him figure out exactly what made the curse seals 'tick', so to speak.

When the others started to arrive, he greeted them politely, though he never once looked up from the seal. After all, every brush stroke had to be precise, otherwise the seal could have disastrous consequences. When he was finally finished with it, he looked it over for a moment before he sealed his fuinjutsu kit away once more. Laying the seal tag on the table before him, allowing the ink to dry, he turned his attention to the others that now sat around the room, each of them wondering exactly what they had been called here for.

To his left sat Kuroko, Jiraiya, Anko Mitarashi, then Ino Yamanaka, Hinata Hyuga, Kurenai Yuhi, and finally Tsume Inuzuka. To his right sat Tsunade Senju, Neji Hyuga, Shikamaru Nara, Choji Akimichi, Tayuya Uzumaki, and finally Karin Uzumaki. Smiling at each of them, he began to speak.

"I know you're all wondering why I've called you here. There's a few reasons for summoning everyone to meet with me. The first of which involves an actress by the name of Yukie Fujikaze." Seeing their eyes light up in recognition of the name, Naruto smirked at them and said, "Yes, the actress that plays the role of Princess Gale." Picking up the report, he passed it first to Tsunade to have a look. "Her real name is Koyuki Kazahana. She hails from the Land of Snow, though it is currently controlled by a tyrant known as Doto Kazahana, Koyuki's uncle. Her manager, a man by the name of Sandayu, is seeking aid to overthrow Doto and restore Koyuki to her rightful place on the throne."

Taking a moment to let all of that sink in, Naruto soon continued. "Gaara has recommended that Sandayu seek help from us. He and his entourage are currently on route to meet with us here on the island. Tazuna will be bringing them to our village and should be arriving later today. We need to determine who we will send on this mission. I would like to be one of those to leave on this mission, if only to ensure we procure an alliance with Koyuki once she has claimed the throne. I am open to suggestions on who else should join me on this mission."

Tsume smirked and said, "Ahhh, out to save a princess, huh pup? The Land of Snow is quite technologically advanced when compared to other nations. There's no telling what kinds of toys they have at their disposal. I'd suggest taking Kuroko-san at the very least. Perhaps my son as well."

Ino piped up at this point. "Can I come as well? Not for any crazy obsessed fan thing, but because I really want to help." That, and I'd like to spend more time with you. She thought to herself with a small smile stretching her lips.

Naruto eyed her for a moment before he nodded his head. "That's fine with me. So the team thus far is Ino, Kiba, Kuroko, and myself. Anyone else want to come?"

Anko grinned and pumped her fist into the air. "I'm coming with you, Naruto-kun. Don't even try to tell me otherwise."

Naruto chuckled a bit and said, "That's fine with me. I think that's enough people for this particular mission. So, moving on, there's a few other matters we need to discuss."

Lifting the seal tag he had drawn on earlier, he looked at Tayuya and then Anko and said, "The next order of business is informing you all that I've devised a way to scan the curse seals Orochimaru left on you two. Once I perform my diagnosis, I should be able to devise a kind of counter seal and hopefully be able to remove them. I've kept you both waiting for quite some time, and I apologize for that. I just need you both to be patient with me for a while longer."

"We trust you Naruto. Yeah, I'd like to be freed from that snake fucker's seal more than anything, but I think I speak for the both of us when I say we can wait as long as you need." Tayuya said as she reached up and rubbed the place where the seal blemished her skin.

"I'm with her. Take the time you need, Naruto-kun. We can wait for you as long as we need to." Anko said with a casual shrug of her shoulders. "Question though: will this diagnostic seal hurt?"

"No. It's just a simple scan that won't hurt at all. It might require you to sit still for a couple of hours, though." Naruto said as he rubbed the back of his head. "I think I'll start with you, Anko-chan. Yours is an older design and should be easier to figure out. I'll need to examine Tayuya-chan's seal as well to see what's different between the two."

Jiraiya smiled at his godson and said, "I'll help however I can. I've been far too negligent in my duties and, once we figure out the seals, I should be able to help devise a 'cure', so to speak. But I get the feeling there's more to this meeting that you aren't telling us. What's on your mind?"

Naruto nodded and decided to get on with the explanation. "As you all know, we need to make allies. However, there are also a lot of problems throughout the Elemental Nations that we can help resolve. I want to take an active approach in recruiting allies, so I have come up with a few ideas." Naruto braced himself for what would likely be an explosive outburst from his loved ones. "There are a few targets that I'd like to focus on. Jiraiya, I want you to form a team and go to the Land of Water. Once you're there, I want you to make contact with the rebel forces and help put an end to the civil war taking place there. Help them defeat Yagura, the current Mizukage. Once the rebels have won and selected a new Mizukage, I want you to convince them to form an alliance with Uzushiogakure. Make sure to watch each other's backs and that you all come back alive. Understood?"

Jiraiya frowned for a moment and asked, "Are you sure, Naruto-kun? It's a risky plan, even if the pros would benefit us in the end. Besides that, this is a civil war on a grand scale. Sure, we survived the civil war in Konoha, but do you really think our people are ready for this kind of thing?"

The blonde massaged his forehead for a time and said, "Believe me, Jiraiya, I've thought long and hard about this. I don't want to risk the lives of our people, but at this point in time, we don't really have much of a choice."

The white-haired Sannin nodded in understanding. "If you're sure, I'll lead a team to the Land of Water and do as you said. What else did you have in mind, exactly?"

Naruto frowned for a time before he decided to get on with the final piece of business. "As you know, Takigakure has the Nanabi jinchuriki in their midst. She isn't treated very well and, because of their alliance with Konoha, she is being treated and used like a weapon to fend off their enemies. I don't want to paint a giant target on our backs, but Konoha already views us as enemies, and Takigakure might as well too by affiliation. I doubt the Nanabi jinchuriki knows about the threat the Akatsuki pose to her. In fact, I'm quite certain that as soon as the war is over, regardless of who wins, they would gladly hand her over to the Akatsuki just to be rid of her."

Looking at Tsunade at this point, he said, "Tsunade, I want you to take a small team and retrieve the Nanabi jinchuriki. Convince her that it's safest for her here in Uzushio. Be completely honest with her and don't try to deceive her in any way. She's had enough of false promises, mistreatment, and abuse. If she refuses to come with you back to Uzushio, then don't push your luck. Just make sure to stress the threat that Akatsuki poses to her. I'd rather she not be caught unaware."

Tsunade nodded slowly in understanding. "You've thought about this quite a bit, haven't you? Very well. I'll take Karin and Hana with me. A small group would be able to sneak around easier than a larger one would. Still, we'll be in quite a bit of danger, I hope you realize that."

Naruto nodded and closed his eyes as he thought over everything he had discussed with everyone. Without opening his eyes, he asked, "Does anyone have any objections to the orders I've given? I know I'm asking a lot from all of you…"

Tsume looked around at everyone before returning her gaze to Naruto. "Naruto, we trust you. If you feel that this is the best course of action we can take, we'll do it proudly. My only question is who you'll leave in charge of things here while you're gone?"

Naruto smiled at her and said, "Thank you, Tsume. I really appreciate the confidence all of you have shown in me." Taking a moment to gather his thoughts, Naruto looked at Hinata with a kindhearted smile on his face. "Hinata-chan? Think I can count on you to hold down the fort while we're gone? If you're not comfortable with that, I can ask somebody else."

Hinata blushed a bit, but smiled at him and said, "You can count on me, Naruto-kun. I promise to keep everything running smoothly while you're gone."

"Thank you, Hinata-chan." Naruto said. Afterwards, he smiled at everybody and said, "That's all for this meeting. Tazuna should be arriving with Koyuki soon. Before she gets here, I want to use the diagnosis seal to examine the curse seals. Come with me, both of you." He commanded before rising from his chair and walking out of the room, followed shortly by Anko Mitarashi and Tayuya Uzumaki.

Once they were gone, Jiraiya looked around at everyone and asked, "Are you all ready for this? Things are going to get nuts, and I want you to know that anyone I bring with me will be in grave danger. We're about to enter a civil war and I can't guarantee your safety."

Neji nodded and said, "I volunteer to go with you, Jiraiya-sama. It may be a dangerous situation, but it will no doubt benefit us in the long run."

Jiraiya nodded in thanks before looking around the room once again. Taking a moment to think on it, he looked at Choji and asked, "Choji? Think you'd be up to coming with us as well? Your skills might prove beneficial in our mission."

Choji looked rather nervous, but he steeled his nerves and said, "I'll help however I can. I'll admit that I'm kind of scared, but I'll do whatever it takes to ensure we survive."

"Glad to hear it. I think I'll take Yugao and a few Inuzuka with us as well. Not a terribly large team, but it should do the trick just fine." Jiraiya said before looking at Shikamaru. "Shikamaru, I want you to assist Hinata however you can. I trust you all to keep things running smoothly here."

The Nara yawned and rubbed his eyes for a moment. "Sounds good to me. You all be careful out there, okay?"

Tsunade smiled at him and said, "We will be. I trust in Naruto's judgment, and if he feels that these missions are our best course of action, then we'll pull through somehow and make everything work out. Jiraiya, I'm counting on you to ensure you all make it through that war alive. Understand me?" The Toad Sage nodded before he stood up and left the room. He planned to follow after Naruto and offer him whatever assistance he could in regard to the curse seals.

Once he was gone, the others soon started leaving as well, each of them preparing for what may lie ahead. Hanging back for a moment, Hinata looked into Kurenai's eyes and asked, "Kurenai-sensei? Do you really think I'm the best person to put in charge while they're away? Wouldn't it be better for you or Tsume to be in charge?"

Kurenai smiled at the teenager at her side. "Hinata-chan, I believe in you. And if Naruto feels you're the best person for the job, then I trust in his judgment. I'll follow any orders you give until Naruto returns. Okay?"

Hinata smiled thankfully at her mentor as the two of them made their way home together. I won't let you down Naruto-kun.

Naruto

Naruto found himself blushing as he looked over Anko's curse seal. He had informed her that she needed to remove her top so he could get a clear view of the seal. She had been all too eager to follow through with the order, and it was obvious why. She wanted to torment the Uzukage a bit and make him a little hot under the collar, so to speak. I swear, she is way too amused by this.

Activating the diagnostic seal, Naruto frowned as the curse seal was laid out before him in all its gruesome, tiny details. Running his fingers lightly over her skin, causing a pleasant tingle to shoot throughout her body, he soon scowled as he reached a certain symbol. "This isn't good. I have to say, I wasn't expecting this."

"How bad is it?" Anko questioned unsurely. "Can you fix it?"

Naruto shook his head and said, "It's bad. Orochimaru inserted a part of himself into this seal. And I mean that literally. This mark right here houses a soul fragment of sorts. If I want to remove your curse seal, I need to devise a way to safely extract and extinguish this soul fragment. It will take some trial and error and, unfortunately, it could take a few months before I've managed to work out a proper counterseal. I'd remove it now, but if I make even the slightest mistake, you could die. That's not an exaggeration either."

Anko's eyes were wide in horror and she started shaking. "A…a piece of his s-s-soul? Inside of me?! I want it gone! Please Naruto-kun, remove it as soon as you can. I feel…I feel dirty having this thing on me. Worse than usual! I need it GONE!"

Naruto placed a comforting hand on her shoulder and gave it a gentle squeeze. "I'll work on it nonstop whenever I have time to do so. I'll even work on it during this mission. Right now I want you to get dressed again and relax until it's time for us to go. Try to take a few deep breaths and calm yourself, okay Anko-chan?" Seeing her nod, Naruto smiled at her before he turned to Tayuya. "Your turn Tayuya-chan. If it helps any, I'm probably just as embarrassed about this as you are. But I need to take a look at your curse seal as well."

Tayuya watched as Anko redressed before she released a frustrated sigh and removed her top, revealing her bare back and breasts to her clanmate. Blushing fiercely, she used her arms to cover her breasts to try and keep him from staring. "J-Just get on with it Naruto."

Blushing a bit at the erotic sight, Naruto soon shook himself out of his stupor and performed the diagnostic scan of her curse seal. Frowning deeper, he said, "Yours has a soul fragment as well. But it looks like this seal's more advanced. The counterseal I use for Anko-chan might not work on yours. So I'll need to work on two different seals. Please just be patient with me and I'll have them removed in a couple of months at the latest, I promise."

The redhead frowned at this, but nodded her head in understanding. "Of course Naruto. I trust you." She said before she redressed as well, a deep blush still on her face. That was fucking embarrassing! But if this helps free me from Orochimaru once and for all, then it's a worthy sacrifice. Besides, he obviously liked what he saw. Guess I'm more attractive than I thought. She thought with a smirk on her face.

Naruto frowned in thought for a time as he looked over the curse seal notes he had taken during the diagnostic process. Orochimaru, I swear I'll kill you for hurting my family like this.

Konohagakure

A lone man groaned in agony as he pushed himself to his feet. Looking around at his surroundings, he sighed as he saw the same sight he'd seen for months now. He was locked away in a prison cell with his chakra sealed, and his captors had pretty much thrown away the key by this point. Looking down at his hands, he noted how dirty his hands were. They were scuffed up, there were numerous tiny scars along the back of his hands, and they quite honestly looked a bit disgusting, if he were to say so.

Walking to the cell door, he looked around, up and down the hallway, and frowned deeply when he didn't see anybody. "Hello?! Is there anybody there?! There's something I need to ask!"

A tired voice snapped at him, "Frederick, for the last fucking time, shut the hell up. They're not going to answer you no matter how many times you shout at them. I know you're worried about your daughter, but honestly? Who the fuck cares? I know I don't, and neither does anyone else down here. Besides, didn't you train her well? She's probably just fine, wherever the hell she is."

"Mizuki, I really don't care for your blasé attitude when it comes to my daughter. Tenten survived, I know she did. I just need to know if she managed to escape with her friends. That's all I want to know." Frederick said, sounding a tad dejected.

"Yeah, yeah, I hear ya. Still can't believe you'd let her run off with the demon brat. How the hell he's managed to survive this long is beyond my understanding. I swear that if I ever get out of here, I'll hunt the brat down and kill him myself." Mizuki responded.

"Like you could ever take him in a fight. You don't know all he's done since you've been locked away in here. Naruto's far stronger now than when he kicked your ass damn near a year ago. If you seek vengeance against him for what's been done to you, you're in for a rather rude awakening. Personally, I hope he kills you like he's killed the others." Frederick fired back, sounding rather frustrated with Mizuki in this moment.

Mizuki scoffed at this before a thought dawned on him. "You know, you might be useful to me. Neither of us holds any love for Konoha anymore. What say we work together to escape from here? The Stupid Brothers are in the cell on my right. They should be more than capable of breaking us out of here if we promise them some food or something. You could run off to find your darling Tenten, and I could do what I planned to do from the start. I only ask that you help me kill as many of these Konoha fuckers as you can before you make your escape."

Frederick frowned in thought for a time before he eventually asked, "What do you plan to do once you're free?"

The silver-haired man shrugged, unseen by Frederick, and said, "I'll forget about the Kyuubi brat for the time being. I'll stick to my original goal and escape to join Orochimaru-sama. If our paths cross at some point, I'll gladly kill the little shit. But I'm fine if they don't, so long as I get what I'm after in the end."

Frederick hummed in thought for a time before mumbling, "The enemy of my enemy is my friend…at least that's how the saying goes. In this case, the enemy of my enemy is still my enemy. But…" Sighing heavily, he looked towards the wall of his cell and said, "Very well. If you're willing to break me out of here, I'll help you escape the village. However, once we're free, I'm hurrying to my little girl's side. If you slow me down though, I'm leaving you behind."

"Yeah, yeah, that's fine with me Pops. We're gonna need to formulate some kind of plan if we want to escape with our lives. The Stupid Brothers might be the brawn we need, but they aren't much for the planning side of things. That's where you and I come in. So here's what I'm thinking…"

Naruto

Naruto was currently seated in his office with Jiraiya and Tsunade standing on either side of him. Sitting across from his desk were the actress known as Yukie Fujikaze and her manager, Sandayu. Sandayu looked rather nervous in the face of the Uzukage and his advisors. "Y-Your friend, Gaara-dono, recommended that we seek your aid. Please, Uzukage-sama, help us. We need an escort to the Land of Snow where we'll be filming our new movie. You'll be paid handsomely if you succeed!"

Looking blankly into Sandayu's eyes for a time, Naruto soon turned his attention to Koyuki and the object she had dangling around her neck. "Hmm." He had to admit to himself that Koyuki was a beautiful woman and seeing her in person, she was far more beautiful than he had expected. However, rather than focus on that, he returned his gaze to Sandayu. "I already know the truth, so cut the crap Sandayu. Yukie-san here, or rather Koyuki-dono, is the rightful heiress to the throne and you want us to help kill Doto and his cohorts so she can take the throne. I hope you realize just how dangerous a mission this is. If we agree to this, I have some stipulations I'd like to put forth. Nothing too demanding and nothing that would cripple your country. I'm not that much of an asshole yet."

Sandayu's eyes widened, as did Koyuki's. After taking a moment to compose himself once more, he asked, "What kind of stipulations did you have in mind, Uzukage-sama?"

Naruto held up a single finger. "1) I want all future missions to go to either Uzushiogakure or Sunagakure, perhaps even as a joint effort between our villages. 2) I know how technologically advanced the Land of Snow is. I want access to your technology so Uzushiogakure can truly assert ourselves as the 6th great shinobi village. 3) I want an alliance between the Land of Snow and Uzushiogakure and Sunagakure. 4) I want to set up a trade agreement between our nations. We'll gladly discount whatever goods we can ship to you, and I hope you'll be willing to offer Suna and Uzu discounts on your goods as well. If you can agree to these stipulations, I'll gladly assist you however you need us to."

Sandayu blinked a couple of times before saying, "When you said there would be stipulations, I have to admit I was expecting something truly outrageous. I think we can gladly agree to those stipulations, Uzukage-sama. What do you think Koyuki-chan?"

Koyuki scoffed and said, "What can a kid like you do against Doto and his goons? I'm amazed they put a kid like you in charge here. You'd be a fool to take on this mission, knowing that you're likely to die. I lost everything in Doto's coup! My family, my friends, my home…all of it just snatched away in a single night. I bet you don't even…"

Before Koyuki could utter another word, Naruto slammed her with his massive killing intent, freezing her in place and making her hyperventilate as she struggled to keep her sanity intact. "I do hope you weren't about to say 'you don't know what it's like to suffer'. I'm not about to say I had it worse than you or anyone else. But what I will say is this: I understand suffering far better than some stuck-up princess that would rather shirk her duties than help her people. I've seen people I cared about suffer. I've seen the people of Wave suffer. I've seen a young child suffering after losing his father. And I have suffered tremendously. If I hadn't left Konoha when I did, I doubt I'd have remained sane for much longer. As it stands, I know I can be an abrasive asshole and I know I've got some psychotic tendencies, but I still strive to do the right thing. And right now, the right choice for me is to kill Doto and put you on the throne. Your people need you, Koyuki-san. So stop wallowing in your self-pity and help me to help your people. Please at least think about it."

Sandayu watched the exchange between the Uzukage and his dear princess Koyuki. Seeing that Naruto's words had reached her, he smiled before standing up and bowing to Naruto. "Thank you very much, Uzukage-sama. Let me talk with Koyuki-chan for a moment. First though, when do you wish to leave on this mission? The film director would prefer it be sooner rather than later."

Naruto smiled and said, "I should be ready to leave in a few hours. I need to gather my team and pack some supplies. In the meantime, you and your film crew buddies can enjoy a nice meal courtesy of Tsunami-chan. I'm sure she'll be happy to serve you."

"Thank you very much, Uzukage-sama. Come Koyuki-chan, let's go." Sandayu said as he guided the princess out of the room.

Once they were gone, Tsunade smirked at her godson and said, "And here I thought you had already decided to go on the mission. You've really made me proud, Naruto-kun. You're turning out to be quite the kage."

Blushing a bit, Naruto scratched the tip of his nose before saying, "I have to look out for my people, Tsunade-chan. Besides, this way we can strengthen ourselves as well as our allies. I'm honestly more concerned about you two. You have the more dangerous missions."

Tsunade smiled at him and hugged him close, his head being buried in her bountiful bosom as was usually the case when she did this. "Don't worry, Naruto-kun. We'll be just fine, and so will the rest of your family. I want you to take care of yourself, okay? You need to focus on your mission. Put all thoughts of us and our missions out of your mind. I promise that we'll succeed and that nobody will die. We've all trained hard for this and we're not about to lose to anyone."

Jiraiya looked rather envious of his godson at the moment, but chose to squash that feeling down. "She's right Naruto. We'll all be just fine. Focus on yourself, on your team, and on your mission. I've got full confidence in you that you'll complete this mission with flying colors. Now, best not keep everyone waiting. Let's go get ready. We're in for a rough ride."

"Heh, that's an understatement." Naruto said with a chuckle following. "Good luck you two. Wish the others luck for me as well."

The godparents nodded before watching as their Uzukage left the room. Looking into Jiraiya's eyes, Tsunade asked, "Jiraiya, be honest with me. What do you think our chances are?"

Jiraiya frowned at her and said, "Statistically speaking? I'd give my mission about a 60% if we work together well enough. There's a few deciding factors that I can't quite calculate right now until we're right in the thick of things. As for your team? I'd give it 50/50 odds. Convincing Fu to return to Uzushio with you is going to be hard. She's not good with people, though you can blame that on Taki and Konoha. I wish you the best of luck, but I don't want you pushing yourselves too hard. Anything can happen and you'll be in enemy territory from the get-go. Please Hime, be careful."

"You too Pervert. Don't die out there." Tsunade said before she left the room to go and gather her team.

Hime…please come back safe and sound. Don't die out there.

Gates of Uzushio

Naruto smiled at his team before turning his attention onto the others. Some of his loved ones had come to see the three teams off, and he couldn't help but notice the looks shared between Ino and Hinata. They had the whole predatorial thing going on between them and he couldn't help but feel like a piece of meat being sold at a discount to a few lucky patrons.

Shaking that thought off, Naruto looked at Jiraiya and Tsunade, as well as their teams. "Remember to be careful out there. I don't want to hear about any casualties. Hell, I'd prefer it if you didn't get injured at all, but considering I'm sending your teams out into a warzone, that's not a realistic goal. Still, please be careful and come back in one piece. Good luck with your missions."

The other teams nodded and gave him a salute as they exclaimed, "Hai, Uzukage-sama!" before they wished him luck as well. Once they had gone, Naruto turned to Sandayu and the film crew. "Are you all ready to go?" Seeing them nod, he smiled and motioned for them to follow. Reaching towards the object strapped to his back, he couldn't help but smile even more. Don't worry Zabuza, your sword will sing again soon. She'll never rust, she'll never break, not so long as I draw breath. I just hope you're proud of me wherever you went.

As they followed along after the Uzukage, Koyuki couldn't help but stare at his back. Naruto Uzumaki…you are unlike anyone I have ever met. Despite your behavior, you obviously make a fine leader. Perhaps I really can trust you.

When they reached the boat that would carry them to their destination, Naruto turned to his loved ones and the people they were meant to be protecting. "All right, listen up. I don't want any heroics on this mission. Stick to the mission parameters and don't give chase to any enemies that might attack us. If they start to flee, assume they're trying to lure you away so they can get to Yukie Fujikaze and the crew. Our primary objective is to guard them as they film their movie in the Land of Snow. We can expect heavy resistance in the form of Doto Kazahana and those under his employ. Strike fast, strike hard, and make damn sure you kill your enemies so they can't come back to harass us again. And as I said already, if they begin to flee, do not follow. Do you understand your orders as they have been given to you?"

When everyone nodded and shouted out, "Hai, Uzukage-sama!" he smiled at them and said, "Let's rock."

A/N - And that's the chapter! I had a lot of fun writing this chapter, and I hope you enjoyed reading it as well. It took me quite a while to get everything sorted out and figure out how exactly I wanted to start this fic off. I think it turned out rather well.

Anyways, as you can see, a LOT happened in this chapter. Thanks to what happened in this chapter alone, you can expect to see many different perspectives in the future chapters. I'll try to showcase what each team is doing, and I'll even try to throw in a bit of romance between Naruto, Kuroko, and perhaps even Ino. I hope you're looking forward to that.

All right, since I can't think of too much else to say, I'll end this here. Again, I have no idea what I'll work on next. XD