The beautiful blonde woman watched the boy in front of her intently. She knew he was hurting and she hated having to do this to him. She hated even thinking of offering him this. But, here was no other option. "I hate to ask you this, but you're the only one who could pull it off…" Tsunade began, "and the only I can think of that might even say yes." Her eyes dropped to the desk as she continued, "It's a long term S-class mission. I hate asking you this, but now is the perfect time."

Without a word the scene changed. Naruto was being spun around in a circle, as he shouted happily, "Itachi! Put me down!" The normally stoic raven haired man ignored the requests, continuing to spin the boy.

"You're like my little brother! Why would I ever let you go!" the missing-nin answered, a large smile on his face. Years away from Konoha had changed the Uchiha.

Naruto couldn't help but laugh. For once he felt wanted and happy. Wrapping his arms around the man he answered, "Love you too, Itachi-kun!"

Once more the scene changed. This time the blonde's voice was loud and happy as he called to his former teacher. "Iruka-sensei, buy me ramen to celebrate?"

Confused the laughing teacher asked, "What are we celebrating?" He didn't wait to find out, but started to lead the way to Naruto's favorite restaurant.

A large grin appeared on Naruto's face as he answered, "My half birthday!"

The poor teacher nearly fell over in shock and surprise. After a short pause, he shook his head and continued walking. This was Naruto after all.

Naruto moaned as he twitched in his sleep. His body tried to roll, but strong arms held him still. Blinking the sleep and dreams out of his eyes in confusion, Naruto found himself being carried by his partner, Itachi. Judging by the sun it was nearly noon and their surroundings indicated they had moved further from danger.

"Itachi-kun?" Naruto asked quietly.

He received no answer. The man was back to his normal closed off mask. Naruto only sighed, he hated it when they had to return to base. While Itachi had changed some around him, it was better when they were alone. When they returned to the public or base, the man closed off once again. There was a small timid voice as Itachi spoke up, "Nightmares again, little one?"

Naruto huffed in annoyance, "I'm not little!" A smile was present on his face as he protested, however. "Not nightmares exactly… just memories," he added as he relaxed against Itachi's chest.

The calm moment was broken momentarily, as the two missing-nin felt the presence of a third person approaching. It only took a moment for the pair to recognize the approaching person. It was someone they knew, their muscles relaxed and they fell back into the relaxed state.

"Itachi-kun?" Naruto questioned sleepily. There was no reply, but he knew that the older man was listening. "Can we just stay here? Do we have to go back?" he questioned. A tightening of the arms was the only answer he received. Itachi had placed his mask back in place.

"Naruto, Itachi," a silky voice called out from the tree line. Hidan had come to greet them.

Grinning from his position, Naruto called out a greeting, "Hidan-chan!"

Hidan stepped out of the shadows a glare evident on his face. He hated being referred to as a girl, but there was nothing he could do to stop Naruto. The blonde man was a little ball of energy waiting to explode and the only one who seemed to have any control over him was Itachi. Itachi who happened to be extremely protective of the blonde. "How did the mission go?" Hidan asked forcing the glare from his eyes.

"Great!" Naruto answered, "We retrieved the scroll and I got to mess with the ANBU's minds!" Itachi remained silent once again. He let Naruto do all the talking for him. The blonde was certainly energized enough for the both of them. And here he went again, "How was your mission? Did you even get to it yet?"

A scowl appeared on the man's face. "No," he answered with a small growl, "we got sidetracked and I need to meet up with my… partner in a few hours."

Naruto grinned, "Then what are you doing standing here with us? Go find him!"

Tsunade watched the man in front of her. This was not the first time he had come to her with this request. Nor would it be the last. "Hokage-sama, please let me go after Naruto," the raven haired man pleaded, "It's been a few years and I know I am strong enough to retrieve him now."

Rubbing her brow, Tsunade answered quietly, "And if you manage to bring him back? Do you honestly believe he'll be welcomed back?"

"I'll make them welcome him back!" the man argued.

Tsunade shook her head, "Most of the village and the council hates him already. His move to Akatsuki only worsened their opinions of him." She tried explaining, "If he were to come home, they would have him killed. Do you want him to die, Sasuke?"

Sasuke shook his head stubbornly, "He came after me, it's only fair that I go after him. I will do it with or without your help. And when I bring him back, they will welcome him." His eyes flared red, this blood limit coming into play with his strong emotions.

There was a long moment of silence, as Tsunade studied the man in front of her. With a sigh, she nodded, "Fine. You may go after him and if you succeed I'll think of something when he comes back." She truly did miss her little broher. He was the only one with enough guts to treat her like an equal.

The base was empty. No one was there but Itachi and Naruto. The rest of the group had left on missions. Even the manager was gone. Grinning the blonde man started acting like a child and ran through the base shouting in glee. "Itachi-kun!" he called as he skidded to a stop in front of their shared room. "Itachi-kun? Can we have ramen tonight?" the blonde asked as he watched his partner sit down on his bed.

One would have thought that years with the Akatsuki would have forced Naruto to grow up. It didn't matter, however. Naruto may have become an adult, grown up physically. He was still a little kid at heart. Of course, he could kill and he could be serious, but he was still a large ball of energy.

"Naruto," Itachi started, a smile clear on his face, "we had Ramen for the last two nights."

The blonde ninja couldn't help but bounce up and down in his excitement, "But we successfully completed a mission! We need to celebrate!" Itachi knew there was more of a reason than that. He only stared at the man in front of him, waiting patiently for the explanation. Sighing, Naruto knew he wouldn't get away with it. Slowly he started explaining, "I need ramen. I wasn't ready to deal with Konoha, yet. Especially not Sasuke and Sakura."

Itachi nodded. It had taken him a few years to get used to the change in Konoha. Everything changed, and everything changed quickly. Even with a few years Naruto still had problems adjusting.

A/N: Well, it's short, but it's here. The second chapter with a few hints and new characters thrown in. Hope y'all liked it. I just spent the day at Gettysburg and am sunburned, tired and determined to become a Civil War reenactor. So I'm off to look up Maine outfits!