Anastuken: The first arc was a rousing success!

The Rapacious Princess: Of course it was. *looks at nails* Hopefully, this next arc will be good for you.

The Ruby-Eyed Queen: Enjoy the chapter, everyone!

Ansatsuken
Chapter Fourteen: Smile

[Theme of Travel:
Tidus' Theme from Final Fantasy X Remastered]

It had been three days since leaving Wave, and surprisingly, it was a quiet affair.

The Hero of Wave, known as Uzumaki Naruto, had been deep in thought since his life-changing adventure. When he walked into Wave, he walked in as a novice Shinobi who had taken his first life. He walked out of that same village with a significant other and a beautiful daughter.

And while he was ecstatic about these changes, these changes also made him realize how lucky he had gotten with this mission. Many things could have gone wrong if it was another team and not his, which scared him.

But what scared him the most was that he would have been unaware of Wave's suffering had he not gotten that mission. But now he had to think, what other injustices were occurring to people while he was blissfully unaware? How many kids were starving and alone like Emi? How many people were walking around in the world thinking that they were unfeeling weapons like Zabuza had tried to make Haku?

How many people were being enslaved and ruined by people like Gatō?

Naruto paled at that thought.

"Daddy? Are you okay?" Emi's voice asked from beside him.

Naruto looked down at Emi's her big blue eyes radiating concern for him. Naruto hoisted Emi into the air, which made her squeal in surprise before he rubbed the tip of his nose against hers.

He had seen so many fathers do this action with their kids that he knew Emi would enjoy it, which she did if he went by her giggles. "I'm doing okay," Naruto told the little girl with a wide smile.

"Wanna go for a ride?" Naruto suggested.

Emi nodded enthusiastically, which made Naruto spin her around and placed her on top of his shoulders, where she immediately grabbed the top of his head.

"It's scary how quickly he adapted to being a father," Sasuke noted from behind him.

Naruto turned around and said, "Of course, having watched so many parents with their kids as a kid with no parents, having a family of my own has always been something I wanted."

Naruto saw a flicker of emotion appear in Sasuke's eyes as the Uchiha said, "I get that," before he looked away again.

"But still Naruto, I never expected to see this side of you, but I guess it makes sense because of that. If seeing you with Konohamaru, Inari, and Emi, you're super soft when it comes to kids," Sakura explained.

"Konohamaru?" Emi mumbled with a hint of a frown on her face as she played with Naruto's hair.

"Can't argue about that," Naruto said. "Seeing a kid sad is like Santa dying on Christmas. It's just cruel."

Sakura turned to Haku and said, "You should see him with the Hokage's grandson. That boy adores Naruto a lot."

Naruto grinned as he looked to Haku and said, "Ever since I took down that perverted sensei of his, Konohamaru thinks of me as his big brother and rival. It's kind of annoying but kind of cute too."

"You say that, but I see how your eyes light up whenever he appears," Sakura teased.

Naruto stuck out his tongue, which made Sakura stick out her tongue in response.

"Childish," Sasuke said.

"Speaking of Konoha," Haku began. "I wonder how far we from it."

"Konoha?" Emi questioned.

"That's where daddy lives and where we will be living," Haku explained to the small girl.

Curious, Emi tugged on Naruto's hair as she said, "Tell me about Konoha, Daddy,"

Naruto looked up at his daughter, a feeling of bliss filling his heart at being able to call her that, and replied, "Well, Konoha is enormous."

"Nice descriptor there, Uzumaki," Sasuke wryly said.

"What does that mean?" Emi asked.

"Blow me," Naruto replied.

"And what does that mean?" Emi asked again.

Haku smacked Naruto's arm, which caused Naruto to laugh and Sasuke to smirk.

"Descriptor means "A word or expression used to describe or identify something," which Naruto did not," Sakura said with a grin to Naruto. "As for the second thing….I'll leave that to your parents."

Both Naruto and Haku blushed while Haku said, "Say thank to Sakura, Emi-chan."

"Thank you, Sakura," Emi chirped, which made Sakura beam at the minor.

"Well, since everyone is ragging on my description of Konoha, why don't you guys give it a shot?" Naruto told his team.

"I'll take it from here," Kakashi said, peeking from his Gold Edition Icha-Icha Paradise book. "Naruto is not wrong when he says that it's enormous. It's the biggest village out of all of the Hidden villages and holds the highest population. "

"Whoa," Emi breathed out before she looked at Sakura and asked, "What does "population" mean?"

"Population means "all the inhabitants of a particular town, area, or country." Meaning, we have a lot a people that live in our village," Sakura answered.

"Thank you, Sakura," Emi chirped out again.

Sakura gushed at Emi's smile before she said, "Actually, I heard that we're expanding the village soon." Sakura asked.

"Supposed to," Sasuke said. "I'm curious as to how that will work."

"Maybe they'll put a city on the Hokage Monument?" Naruto suggested.

"That would work," Kakashi said. "Anyways, to answer your question, Emi-chan. Konoha has a lot of things within it. From a shopping district, a filming district, the training district where we train our shinobi squads. We should be setting up for a carnival soon," Kakashi tilted his head in thought. "Not to mention the vast housing distract we have."

"Are there any beaches?" Emi asked.

"….That's a good question," Naruto asked, a bit unsure. "Sensei, is there a beach? I mean, there is the Naka River, I know that, but is there an actual beach in the village?"

"Naruto, you seriously don't know?" Sasuke asked.

"No, I typically stay put at my place or the training grounds," Naruto replied. "I try not to go too deep into the village if I can help it."

"Not in the village," Kakashi finally answered. "But there is Kaihin. That's a tourist village nearby that has a beach. It's about a two-hour trip from Konoha."

"Oh, can we go there, Mommy?" Emi asked Haku, who let out a small laugh in response.

"It depends on Daddy's answer," Haku answered as she nudged Naruto's side, which made Naruto stumble and give her a broad grin.

"Anything for my little smile," Naruto smiled.

Emi giggled while both Haku and Sakura gushed.

"Speaking of Konoha, I can finally see the gates from here," Sasuke said with a relieved smile.

"Yo Teme, race you to the gates," Naruto challenged.

"Psh, you're on dope," Sasuke immediately replied. "Just don't blame your loss on the little girl on your shoulders when I beat you."

Haku grinned and kissed Naruto on the cheek and said, "For luck."

"Hang on tight, Emi-chan," Naruto told his little girl.

Emi nodded and gripped Naruto's hair with her tiny fist.

Sakura shouted, "And go!"

Sasuke and Naruto bolted towards the gate, the sounds of Emi's laughter fading into the distance.

Sakura sighed and muttered, "Boys."

"Those two are always on the move," Kakashi sighed out as he put his book into his pouch and said, "Well, might as well get a move on before the sun sets."

By the time Sakura, Haku and Kakashi arrived at Konoha's gate, Naruto and Sasuke were panting heavily, both hunched over while Emi played with Naruto's clone.

"Did you boys have fun on your race?" Sakura asked with a raised eyebrow while the two Genin panted hard.

"Yeah," Naruto replied. "Tons. Barely edged out the win."

"Barely," Sasuke wheezed out. "That stupid root tripped me up."

"Mommy, that was so fun!" Emi exclaimed as she ran up to Haku, who knelt and grabbed the small girl with a smile. "Though, Daddy and Sasuke were saying bad words to each other."

"Oh, were they?" Haku asked with a dangerous look in her eyes.

Both Naruto and Sasuke stiffened at the murderous intent, and Naruto murmured to the Uchiha, "If we look back, we're dead."

"Of course, you would have a scary woman as your girlfriend, dope," Sasuke muttered back.

Naruto grinned and said, "I know, right? Isn't she great?"

Sasuke snorted.

"You kids are amusing," Kamizuki Izumo stated to Naruto and Sasuke before he looked at Kakashi and said, "Welcome back, Hatake. You were missed at our card games."

"Thanks, Izumo," Kakashi said before he looked around. "Um, Where is Kotetsu?"

"Bastard got sick after thanks to his one-night stand, so I'm flying solo today," Izumo replied with a sigh.

"Oh, you poor soul," Kakashi said. "But hey, at least your shift is almost over, right?"

"Right," Izumo cheerfully said. "Speaking of which, you are in the dog house, my friend."

Kakashi blinked. "W-What? How?!" Kakashi stammered out.

"Well…When you left. Did you forget anything?" Izumo asked him.

Kakashi looked down at the ground thoughtfully, then glanced at the air before his eye bugged out. "Oh no…." Kakashi groaned out.

"Yeah. You forgot to tell Anko you were leaving," Izumo said. "And guess who had to deal with that fallout?"

"Oh fuck me," Kakashi said.

"Another bad word," Emi chirped.

"Aw shoot, sorry," Kakashi said with an apologetic look to Haku and Naruto.

"I was about to ask about them. Who are these two?" Izumo asked.

"I have a long story for you when our card game starts," Kakashi said with a chuckle. "But for now, their friends. Can we get inside?"

Izumo shrugged and tapped the large wooden doors to reveal the Konohagakure no Sato in all of its splendor.

[Theme of Konohagakure no Sato:
Clocktown from Theophony]

"It's good to be home," Sakura said as she put her hands behind her back and walked through the gate.

Sasuke slipped his hands into his pockets and followed her.

Naruto whispered to his clone and pointed at something in the village.

The clone nodded and dashed off while the real Naruto walked to Haku and gently took Emi out of her hands and back onto his shoulders.

He then took Haku's hand and gave her a warm smile. "Come on, time to go home," Naruto said as he looked back to Haku and Emi and motioned for them to follow with a bright smile.

Haku beamed at him, and together, the Uzumaki family walked through the gates.

"Meet me at the Hokage's Tower in two hours!" Kakashi yelled.

As Kakashi lowered his hands, Izumo shot Kakashi a look and said, "Maybe now would be a good time to explain."

Despite having Emi on his shoulders, Naruto could feel Emi vibrating with excitement as she looked around in wonder.

And he could not blame her. Despite this village being the home of many that despised him, it always took his breath away when he gazed upon its beauty.

And while Wave was beautiful in its own right, nothing held a candle to his home. "Wow, Kakashi-san was not kidding," Haku said as she looked around. "Everything seems so grand here."

"You two haven't even seen the best sight yet," Naruto boasted before he said to Emi, "Hang on!"

Emi nodded and gripped his hair tight, and with a wink to Haku, he let go of her hand and said, "Follow me," before he launched himself into the air and onto the top of an electrical post then dashing off.

Naruto leaped from rooftop to rooftop as Haku followed him, Emi screaming in excitement with each hop. "Faster!" Emi demanded, which made Naruto laugh as he sped up, following her orders.

But as he ran, he could see the joyful expressions on the various people he passed and his earlier thoughts began to resurface.

Everyone in Konoha was so happy, not like those in Wave that, up until Gatō's defeat, had their joy stolen from them.

Shouldn't everyone experience this type of happiness?

After thirty minutes of traveling through the village, Naruto finally made his way to the Hokage monument's bottom entrance. He paused to gather his breath as Haku landed beside him. "Almost there? You two ready for one last push?" Naruto asked.

"I'm ready!" Emi exclaimed.

Haku looked up at the monument and asked, "It's at the top?"

"Of course," Naruto replied. "It's there you'll see Konoha's true beauty. We better hurry up before the sun fully sets."

Haku nodded, and together, they trekked up the forest's pathway. During the trek, Naruto had shifted Emi into his arms due to the smaller girl drifting off to sleep, but after twenty minutes, the small family reached the top of the mountain.

"Finally," Naruto sighed out before he motioned for Haku to follow him.

Together, the two walked to the edge of the monument, and when he did, Haku let out an amazed gasp.

[Theme of Peace:
Cat relaxing in the Sun from Trails of the Sky]

"You could see the entire village from up here," Haku softly said.

"I told you both that I had a better view of the village," Naruto told Haku with a soft smile. "Every since I was little, I always came up here and said, "One day, I'll be the Hokage and have everyone acknowledge me." But now, it's changed."

"How?" Haku asked.

"When I arrived in Wave, everyone was so miserable. Everyone was just clinging to survive another day," Naruto frowned at the thought before he looked to Haku. "But then I met you, and soon, I met my little smile, and something shifted in my heart."

"You two didn't see me as the Kyūbi like most of the villagers does here. Nor did you guys see me as some annoying pest. You both saw me, for me. And I didn't have to wear a hat and rule over everyone. I just had to be me," Naruto told her softly.

Haku's gaze softened as Naruto looked out at the village. "But after helping to save Wave and knowing your past and how Emi lived before us, it made me think about everyone else in the world. There are so many people out there going through tragedies like you, Emi, and the people of Wave had."

"How many kids like Emi are suffering because of their parents being gone? How many people are being told that they are emotionless tools? How many homes are being destroyed by people with power?" Naruto questioned. "And now with you and Emi, A new thought has popped up in my head. How many families have been torn apart like Inari's, mine or hell, even Sasuke's?"

"All of this made me realize two things. One: That as long as people like Gatō are around, I would be an idiot to just think about my happiness. And Two: Being the Hokage just for acknowledgment was a selfish goal…." Naruto finished as he gazed at the village that he loved.

"But because of everything, I have a new dream. While I will give my all to protect Konoha and keep her people smiling, I no longer want to be the Hokage," Naruto told her. "What good could I be if I lived in a world where only my people got to smile while others suffered? I wouldn't be good at all. Instead, My dream is to bring a smile to everyone in our world."

"That's a mighty large dream, Naruto-kun," Haku told him softly. "It would almost be impossible to do it alone."

"I know. It's a big task," Naruto admitted. "And I know that I have a lot of work cut out for me, especially being the holder of the Kyūbi. But, if a lone man could seal the strongest bijū inside of me, anything is possible."

Haku laughed softly and said, "Alright, you got me there."

"Besides," Naruto continued, his gaze softening as he looked at her. "I'm not doing it alone. Not anymore, at least."

"Of course not. What kind of Kunoichi would I be if I let the Shinobi I love do it all alone?" Haku asked with a grin before she placed her hands on Naruto's cheeks and said, "Wherever you go, and no matter what you do, I will follow. Always."

"Thank you," Naruto whispered as he leaned forward and placed a sweet kiss onto Haku's lips.

He could feel Haku return his affectionate kiss, but the pair heard a small voice behind them shout, "YOU HAVE A GIRLFRIEND?!"

The two turned around to see Konohamaru with an annoyed clone of Naruto's, the clone holding a large amount of food in his arms.

"Konohamaru," Naruto growled softly.

"He followed me, Boss," The clone said.

Naruto groaned as he placed his head on Haku's right shoulder as she chuckled.

"I'm guessing this is the Hokage's grandson," Haku said, her voice filled with humor.

[Theme of Regret:
Twilight of the Rose from Legend of the Dragoon]

Regret.

That was the first feeling Tayuya felt as she stared at herself in the mirror. There was a large splatter of blood on her left cheek that trailed down to her jaw. The kimono that she had worn had blood-drenched on the front of it to the point that she felt the sticky warmth beneath the fabric touching her skin.

The front of her hair was also dripping with blood.

Downstairs, she could hear her team, minus Kidōmaru, ransacking the home of her target and felt disgusted. She should have been happy. She had complete the mission for Orochimaru, and yet, all she could feel was emptiness.

It was then she saw it.

A tear.

It was falling down her bare cheek before it fell to the sink below.

It was then more tears began to fall as the crushing weight of the betrayal she had just dealt began to overwhelm her.

"What have I done?" Tayuya whispered.

It was then the image in front of her flickered, briefly revealing a grey-skinned young man with dull blue eyes staring at her, his freckled face frozen in terror as blood pooled from his mouth along with blood pooling through his yukata.

And he was standing right behind her in the mirror.

"W-Why?" The young man groaned out as maggots fell from the open wounds on his face, flies flying from his mouth.

Tayuya quickly turned around, but the image wasn't there. She turned around again, and the entire mirror was covering the wall. Soon, large mirrors sounded her as each one showed Tayuya standing above the crying young man.

Tayuya fell to her knees as she heard the confused voice of the young man echo in her head, "Sango-chan, why are you doing this? What did I do?!"

And as Tayuya's mirrored self plunged the sword down into his chest, Tayuya clenched her eyes and let out a strangled cry as she heard a gurgled, "I-I loved…W-Why…?"

Tayuya gasped as she lurched off the bed, her body drenched In sweat, her irises trembling.

Her bedroom door slammed open, which caused Tayuya to look up to see Kin and Karin staring at her in concern but quickly looked away. She did not need them to be concerned about her.

After all, she had taken that mission and took that role. She of the risks that it entailed. But that couldn't stop the guilt.

"We heard your screams. Are you alright?" Kin asked.

Tayuya tried to put on a brave face and say that she was fine but the tears falling down her face gave her away.

"No…" Tayuya whispered as she lowered her head.

And Tayuya wasn't sure if she was ever going to be okay again.

Captain Blues: And that is the end of this chapter. So, Naruto has a new goal. I did hint at this a few times during the Wave arc, so I hope everyone thinks this was a natural progression for my version of Naruto. This mini-arc is the "Welcome Home" Arc. The next chapter will be dealing with a lot of faces.

And yes, the next major arc will be dealing with Tayuya, but there will also be another face in this arc. Who could that face be? Find out next time on Ansatsuken! Time to set sail!