A/N - Okay, as I promised, I wrote a chapter for this story FINALLY! It's been quite some time and I left you with such a mean cliffhanger at the end of last chapter. It all gets resolved in this chapter...but something else horrible happens. You'll just have to read on and see!

Anywho, not much else to say here. I'll leave another author's note at the end of the chapter for you to read.

Chapter 5 – Ill Omens

Naruto watched in absolute horror as the Ripper slammed into Sakura. When she was knocked backwards, falling on her back with a severe wound on her chest, the blonde teen blasted the Ripper with his Ice Beam before smashing it to pieces. Afterwards, he knelt down beside his girlfriend and began looking her over. "S-Sakura-chan? Speak to me, please."

Sakura coughed up some blood and looked into her boyfriend's eyes. She looked panicked and it was obvious she was in a great deal of pain. The damn monster's horns had punctured her chest, leaving a gaping wound on her chest. "N-Naru-kun…am I…am I going to die…?"

Before Naruto could reply, Samus walked up with a deep frown on her face. "Not if I can help it. Give me just a second. I'm going to do something somewhat risky, but it should save your life. Just hang on." And with that, the bounty hunter pressed a few buttons on her armored arm and waited patiently for a time.

After ten minutes, that felt far longer to Naruto and his girlfriend, Samus' spaceship descended to the ground before them. Looking at Naruto, the Metroid slayer said, "Bring her inside. Hurry."

Naruto nodded and followed Samus into her ship with Haku following closely behind. Once inside, Samus led them to what appeared to be a medical bay. "Lay her down on the table there. I have an idea, but it's risky. However, it's the best shot she has at staying alive."

The whiskered teen nodded and laid his girlfriend on the table. Gently holding her hand to show his support, Naruto watched as Samus retrieved something and brought it over to them. Looking closely at the object, Naruto asked, "Is that a Power Suit? It looks completely different from the kind you and I wear."

Samus nodded and held up the blue object. "Yes. This is called Fusion Armor. It's a symbiotic suit of armor, meaning it will bond with its wearer on a deep level. It has a few downsides, however. It lacks the same kind of defensive capabilities of our Power Armor. It will also make her weak against ice and otherwise cold attacks. I once had to wear it and it acted like a second skin, in a way. My hope is that by having her merge with this suit that it will repair the damage she has suffered and save her life. However, once it's bonded to her, nobody else can ever wear it again unless she decides to part with it for whatever reason. Like I said though, this is risky. There's a possibility that it will reject her, or perhaps even kill her if she doesn't prove strong enough for something like this. I need to know, will you two risk it?"

Naruto looked into his girlfriend's eyes and said, "If there's even a slight chance it will save her life, I'm willing to try. Sakura-chan, what about you?"

The pinkette looked at Samus and said, "P-Please. I don't want to die. I want to stay with N-Naruto-kun. Don't let me die."

Samus nodded and proceeded to place the blue suit on top of Sakura's chest. Together, they watched as it began to move and morph, quickly attaching to Sakura until it covered her completely. They watched as it conformed to her shape and body type until finally it settled. At this point, Sakura's eyes had closed and she didn't breathe for about a minute. Naruto and Samus could easily see that the suit was repairing the wound inflicted upon Sakura by the Ripper. Once it was finished, the blonde bounty hunter smiled and said, "She's going to be fine. However, now that the suit has bonded with her, she's stuck with it. She'll need to practice taking it off and putting it back on. She'll also need to get used to her new abilities."

Naruto smiled thankfully at Samus before looking at his girlfriend. Slowly, he began to run his fingers through her long pink hair. She had passed out at some point during the bonding process, but she looked so peaceful right now. "Thank Kami and thank you, Samus-chan. Do we just let her rest now?"

The blue-eyed beauty motioned for him to follow her. As they left Sakura to rest and recover, she said, "She'll need to rest for a while. It could be a couple of days before she awakens. For now, we need to discuss something."

Naruto sat down in a chair with Haku sitting beside him. "What's on your mind Samus-chan?"

Samus frowned and said, "It's that Kakashi person. He obviously blames you for Sasuke's death. After all, you refused to hand over your Power Suit, despite telling him that it was bonded to you and was impossible for anyone else to wield its massive power. I don't trust him one tiny bit. He'll do whatever it takes to get back at you and Haku. Chances are that he'll inform those in charge back at the village and skew the truth in his favor. And if that doesn't work…"

Naruto grumbled irritably and said, "I honestly wouldn't put it past him to attempt something, especially considering he's already nearly killed me once. Heh, I'm glad I wasn't put on a team with him and Mr. Broodypants. I'd be having a terrible time."

Samus raised an eyebrow and asked, "Mr. Broodypants? Seriously?"

The blue-eyed teen chuckled and said, "Meh, it's just something to call him. There's a lot of different nicknames you can give a guy like that. I just chose that one."

Haku giggled softly before poking Naruto's cheek. "You're definitely not boring, Naruto-sama. For now…" Looking at Samus, the ice-user frowned and said, "Since I'm the one that killed him, what exactly can I expect upon entering the village?"

Naruto frowned and said, "Honestly? I don't know. The council's pretty understanding, but you did kill the 'last loyal Uchiha'. I might be able to protect you, but I don't know if it'll work. The people will demand that you and I be punished. Me simply for existing and surviving when Sasuke was killed. It won't matter to them that he kiiiind of brought it on himself for being an egotistical prick. You were in an emotional state of distress. I don't know what to expect, and I don't know if we can escape some kind of punishment."

Samus scowled and said, "What do you think the Hokage will do? Will he protect you two? Or will he try to punish you in some way?"

The spiky-haired blonde shrugged and said, "I think it really depends on if we can keep Kakashi from telling his side of things to the people. Because if and when he spreads the word that we're responsible for Sasuke's death, the people will be out for blood. Hopefully he doesn't pull anything before we can see the Hokage. Otherwise we're pretty much screwed. Unfortunately."

Haku frowned sadly and asked, "We're going to be put to death…aren't we?"

"I doubt it'll go that far. The old man will likely do whatever he can to protect us. I'm sure if we simply explain everything to him, he can make our involvement an S-class secret punishable by death. That way, if Kakashi does spread the word, he'll be put to death instead. The council will understand and take our side, but if the word is spread…we're in deep shit. I'm not sure what will happen then. I think we'll be facing something along the lines of banishment from the village. Then again, I'm a valuable asset thanks to having the Kyuubi sealed inside of me. Getting rid of me would be a pretty bad idea all around. I dunno. I really don't know what we can expect. Honestly though? Sasuke had it coming. I hate to say that about somebody, but the bastard did nothing but cause problems for people. Kakashi should have been working to curb Sasuke's attitude, but instead he favored the little prick and pretty much sucked his dick whenever he got the chance."

After a moment, Naruto remembered something that only frustrated him more. Massaging his forehead, he said, "Can't believe I nearly forgot." Looking into Haku's eyes at this point, he said, "Thanks to a girl named Ino, Sakura-chan and I are in danger enough as it is. They found out we started to see each other, so they tried to 'convince' her to stop seeing me. They harmed her in an attempt to 'save' her. Asuma-sensei has had to escort us everywhere, because the citizens will do absolutely anything to ensure I don't have any measure of happiness. If they find out what happened to Sasuke, they WILL blame me. Things are only going to get worse. If it continues like this…"

Haku frowned sadly at him and asked, "You're going to leave the village…aren't you? But where would you go?"

The whiskered blonde simply shrugged in response. "Honestly? I don't know. I don't want to leave the village. I really don't. Sadly, I might not have much of a choice."

Samus frowned as well and said, "If need be, you can come with me. All three of you. There's plenty of this world left to explore, after all. Plenty of places and people that might be in need of our help. That, and you need to find more Chozo Ruins so you can power up your armor."

Naruto nodded and said, "I was hoping you'd let us come with you. Thank you, Samus-chan. Still, if I can somehow make things work back in Konoha, I will. I've got people I care for there, after all. But, if worse comes to worst, I'll do whatever it takes to survive."

Haku hugged her new master and said, "I'll always be here to keep you safe, Naruto-sama. If we need to, we'll weather the storm together. I doubt the villagers will pull anything…"

Before Haku could continue, Naruto stopped her. "Regular civilians hurt Sakura-chan. They aren't afraid to attack our shinobi forces. The old man, our Hokage, has put new laws into place to protect the shinobi of the village. We're now allowed to fight back if the civilians attempt anything, but that hasn't exactly deterred the assholes from trying things. I'm tired of having to be escorted around by Asuma-sensei. If they find out that you killed Sasuke and I didn't give him my 'power', there's a good chance they'll attack us both. What makes it worse is that, this time, there's sure to be shinobi in the mob, aiming to kill us simply for what happened to Sasuke. They worshipped him and spoiled him rotten. Ugh. I just realized that there's definitely going to be a riot this time. Wonderful." He said before facepalming himself.

Samus looked him in the eyes and asked, "What kind of precautions are in place to deal with such a thing? Is there anything that can be done to prevent a riot from breaking out? Surely there's something that can be done. If a riot takes place, it will be impossible to keep word from spreading to other countries. Your enemies will likely take full advantage of such a thing, especially if a war breaks out within the village."

"Very true." Naruto replied. Taking a moment to think on it, he looked seriously into Samus' eyes and said, "I think the old man's going to order those loyal to him to exterminate all those who try to revolt. We can't appear weak to our enemies…but at the same time, it kind of depends on how many people attempt to riot. If things get really bad, we might lose half of the village's populace. So either way, we'd be in danger from our enemies if they find out what's happened. And considering they likely have spies within the village…"

Samus scowled at this and said, "No matter what, Konoha's in grave danger. A riot within the village which could very well turn into a civil war. And if word gets out about what's taking place inside the village, your enemies will take full advantage of your weakened state to try and wipe you out. Is there anything that can be done to deal with all these issues at once?"

Naruto shook his head. "Unless we can somehow stop Kakashi from spreading the word, or we can do something to stop the spread of such information after it's revealed to the council, I don't think there's much we can do. I hate to say it, but I think the best thing we can do to stop everything from happening is to kill Kakashi before we return to Konoha. However, I don't want to do that unless it's absolutely necessary. After all, despite the fact I don't like the man, he's still a fellow Konoha shinobi. I REALLY don't want a riot to break out, but I hate the idea of killing someone unless it's absolutely necessary."

Haku frowned sadly at him and wrapped him in a hug. "If need be, I'll kill him for you. You don't need to bloody your hands anymore than you already have. If it keeps you safe from harm, I'll do anything it takes, Naruto-sama."

Samus shook her head. "I'd rather we not take a life needlessly. There has to be some way to go about this without the need to take a life."

"There is." A male's voice could be heard from behind them. Glancing towards him, they saw that Asuma was standing there with a serious look on his face. "Before I say anything about that, how is Sakura? I saw what happened to her and I was worried."

Samus smiled at the man and said, "She'll be just fine. Sakura will be out of it for a few days, but I assure you that she'll be just fine. Now…" Looking Asuma in the eyes, she asked, "What do you mean? Do you have an idea?"

Asuma sighed and scratched his beard for a moment. "Unfortunately, we've got two problems here. One is Kakashi. As you've already figured out, he'll gladly tell the masses about what happened here and incite a riot that could easily lead into a civil war within the village. Our enemies would take full advantage of the confusion and chaos to strike. This is easily prevented if we contact Pops, the Hokage, and get Inoichi involved. He could very easily seal Kakashi's memories of what took place here. Simple enough, right?"

Everyone nodded in understanding. After a moment though, Naruto looked into his sensei's eyes and asked, "What's the other problem?"

The bearded jonin looked straight into Naruto's eyes and said, "Sai. As Gramps said, we're pretty certain he's one of Danzo's agents. As soon as we return to the village, Sai will run off to Danzo and tell him EVERYTHING. This includes information about your Power Suits, who killed Sasuke, your spaceship, EVERYTHING. In order to prevent this from happening, we really have no other options. Sai needs to die."

Samus frowned at this and asked, "What will this Danzo do if he receives such information?"

Asuma looked seriously into her eyes and said, "Knowing that monster, he's likely to spread the information around the village and start a riot himself. He could use the chaos that ensues to inform the daimyo that Hokage-sama is unfit for duty any longer and will then try to convince the daimyo into making him the new Hokage. And, knowing that warmonger as I do, he'll gladly go to war with damn near everybody to try and prove Konoha's superiority. Sure, he'll claim that he's doing everything to make Konoha great, that everything he does is for the village, but he's really just a selfish old bastard that thinks way too highly of himself. We CANNOT let such delicate information fall into his hands. So we NEED to kill Sai. If need be, I'll do it myself. Unless one of you would like to assist me in the endeavor?"

Naruto stood up and looked into his sensei's eyes. "We can't let Sai inform Danzo of any of this. If that means killing him, then I'll help you. I just hope he hasn't already contacted Danzo about all of this. If he has…"

"If he has, then we're in for a rough time. You and Haku might have to go on the run in that case. And worse yet, Danzo may just succeed in his goal of becoming Hokage. If only Jiraiya would take up the mantle, we'd have it made. There's no way he'd let somebody like Danzo push him around. Hell, he'd likely take the fight right to Danzo. But Jiraiya has refused the position before and I can't see him accepting now, of all times. So if Danzo DOES become the new Hokage…the village is likely doomed." Asuma explained.

Samus scowled at hearing this. "I see. In that case, just to be on the safe side, I say we kill both of them: Kakashi and Sai. We shouldn't risk anything, especially if things would get THAT bad."

Haku nodded in agreement. "I think Samus-san and I can handle Kakashi. You and Naruto-sama should take out Sai. But, if it turns out he DID contact Danzo…I don't know what we can do."

Asuma sighed sadly and shook his head. "There would be nothing we could do. It would be up to Pops at that point to try and remedy the situation. Killing Danzo would be a good start, but…he can't do that without proof and a damn good reason."

None of them said another word. Instead, they left the spaceship and split off from one another. Asuma and Naruto going after Sai while Haku and Samus hunted down Kakashi. Something had to be done and failure was absolutely NOT an option.

Some time later

Asuma and Naruto stood over Sai's broken and bloody form. They had managed to get him alone, most likely on patrol as per Kakashi's orders. The fight had been a rough one, but they had finally succeeded in disabling him. Now, here they were, standing over his battered body with him simply smiling that fake smile of his at them. "Why…?" he asked simply.

Naruto glared into his eyes and said, "We're protecting the village from the likes of you and Danzo. For what it's worth, I'm sorry for this."

The not so secret Root agent chuckled and said, "Y-You're too late then. He already k-knows."

As the Root agent laughed until his dying breath, Asuma and Naruto clenched their hands into fists, anger flooding their being. "Dammit. I hoped dearly we would have arrived in time to prevent it from happening." Asuma said.

Naruto looked into his sensei's eyes and said, "You need to tell Hokage-sama immediately. Get a message sent to him in some way. Whatever happens, he can't afford to be caught off guard. He needs to be able to deal with the fallout before it happens."

Asuma nodded and said, "I'll handle it. You just go check on Sakura. Stay with her and keep an eye on her."

Naruto nodded before leaving without a word, returning to Samus' spaceship. Once he was gone, Asuma scowled down at Sai's body and said, "Damn you. Damn you and Danzo and all those conspiring with him to Hell. Kami I hope Pops can handle this somehow."

Samus & Haku

"Why are you attacking me?!" Kakashi exclaimed angrily. "Trying to kill me too? Looking to cover up your crimes? Which is it?!"

Haku looked at him calmly, not an ounce of fear on her face. "We cannot have you spreading your version of the truth to the people of Konoha. I refuse to let Naruto-sama suffer because you spread false information about Sasuke's death. You would implicate him, claiming he played some part in that arrogant boy's death. So please don't resist any further."

Kakashi snarled at her and prepared to go on the attack, but he suddenly found himself unable to move. Blinking, he looked down and saw that his shadow was connected to that of another. "Shikamaru, if you know what's good for you, you'll release me immediately. You could be brought up on charges of insubordination for this."

Shikamaru shrugged and said, "If it means protecting my friend, I'll kill even you, Kakashi Hatake. Girls, please hurry. I can only hold him for so long, after all."

Samus nodded and proceeded to charge her Plasma Beam. Once it was ready, she fired upon Kakashi, ending his life in an instant. Looking at his deceased body, she shook her head and said, "We should not have had to do this, Kakashi Hatake. I'd say rest in peace, but…"

Haku nodded in understanding. "He was a terrible person. I only hope that the others were able to remove Sai from the picture before he could contact his boss." All any of them could do was hope and pray for the best. Still, they each had a horrible feeling that things were going to get VERY bad, very soon.

Konohagakure – Hokage's Office

Hiruzen frowned deeply as he read the contents of the letter Asuma had sent him via a monkey summon. Dammit. This is NOT good. If Danzo's been given this information…

Shaking his head, the aged Hokage stood and walked over to the window to glance out at his village and the people below. He'll most likely wait until the teams, or what remains of them, return to the village. Only then will he strike. However, if I act first… Looking back towards the letter on his desk, he found himself smiling. Oh yes, I think I can work this in my favor.

Calling for his secretary, Hiruzen commanded her to gather the council. Once she left, he picked up the letter and made his way to the council chambers. Upon arrival, he took his seat and waited patiently for everyone to enter and take their seats. Once they had, he simply smiled at everyone for a time.

After letting them stew in their thoughts for a time, likely wondering what the reason was for this meeting, he turned his gaze onto Danzo. "I'm sure you're all wondering why I called you here. The answer is quite simple. There is a traitor in our midst."

Shikaku, noticing where Hiruzen's gaze was, looked at Danzo and nodded in understanding. "I see. Do you have any proof of this, Hokage-sama?"

"Indeed I do." The Third Hokage said. "I recently discovered an agent in my office that did not belong to my regular Anbu forces. And just a short time ago, I received a letter from Asuma, the sensei of Team 10, that confirmed my suspicions about one of the 'Genin' on said team: Sai. You see, Danzo Shimura has kept his Root force active right under my nose, thinking I wouldn't notice. I specifically ordered his force to disband and for all his activities to cease. Danzo did none of these things. Instead, I'm fairly certain he's been acting behind the scenes to try and usurp the position of Hokage from me. In fact, I'm willing to bet he's done some truly terrible things WITHOUT permission. And, knowing him, he would claim it was all for Konoha and the betterment of our village. Now, Danzo Shimura, I am going to give you this one chance to confess to your crimes. Failure to do so will result in a rather severe punishment."

Danzo scoffed and narrowed his eye at Hiruzen. "You have no proof that I've even done anything to warrant these accusations. Face it Hiruzen, you're bluffing and I'm calling you out on it."

The Hokage narrowed his eyes and snapped his fingers, four of his Anbu agents appearing around Danzo in a second. "Tear him apart. I want the life snuffed from him NOW. And for the record, Danzo Shimura, it is Hokage-sama to you."

Before Danzo could say a word, the Anbu all thrust their swords through his body. When he simply appeared behind them with nary a wound on his body, Hiruzen scowled furiously. "Remove your bandages NOW, Danzo. Let's see what you're hiding."

The warhawk scoffed before snapping his fingers. When a squad of Root soldiers appeared around him in a defensive position, he said, "So you've grown a spine. Very well, Hiruzen, we'll see what you have to say real soon. I guarantee you this: your days are numbered." And with that being said, Danzo disappeared with his Root before the Anbu could react.

"That evil son of a bitch! Anbu! Find where he's hiding and end him! I don't care what it takes, just make sure he's dealt with appropriately!" Hiruzen commanded, feeling absolute fury in this moment.

"Forgive me, Hokage-sama, but what exactly happened? You called us here for more than just that, correct?" Shikaku questioned.

Hiruzen nodded and held up the letter for everyone to see. "On the mission to the Land of Waves, Teams 7 and 10 encountered resistance in the form of the Demon Brothers, Zabuza Momochi, and Zabuza's apprentice/accomplice. As you well know, Team 7 consisted of Kakashi Hatake, Sasuke Uchiha, Sai, and Choji Akimichi. Sasuke had the gall to demand a higher rank mission from me because he didn't feel like doing the 'chores' that D-ranks essentially are. When I went to reprimand the little bastard, Kakashi pressed the issue, claiming his team was more than ready for a C-rank mission. You should know right now that I suspected Sai was a Root agent. I had hoped that by sending Team 7 on a C-rank mission that they would not only be humbled, but hopefully Sai would give himself and his allegiance away in some manner. Unfortunately, the client lied about the danger level of said mission and things quickly grew out of hand."

Massaging his forehead to try and ward off a massive headache, the Hokage continued. "I made the decision to send Team 10, consisting of Asuma Sarutobi, Naruto Uzumaki, Sakura Haruno, and Shikamaru Nara to provide assistance. I placed Asuma in charge of the mission from that point forth."

"Anyways, during the mission, Sasuke proved to be an insubordinate little bastard and wouldn't listen to his superiors when he was told to always be accompanied by somebody when he went on patrol or explored the village or whatever else he might get up to. But, being the egotistical little shit he was, he went off on his own, claiming he didn't need assistance because he's an Uchiha 'elite' and nothing could kill him. Needless to say, Sasuke was killed. He paid the ultimate price for his arrogance."

"Afterwards, Kakashi Hatake blamed Naruto Uzumaki for Sasuke's death and tried to confiscate the medallion Naruto wears because Naruto 'didn't deserve that power'. If Naruto had simply given Sasuke his medallion, he'd still be alive, after all." Hiruzen continued, sounding quite aggravated at this point.

"Well, after Sasuke's death and insuring that the client and his family were safe, Team 10 came to the decision that both Kakashi and Sai needed to die to keep peace in the village. Before you interrupt me, you should know that Kakashi would have spread his version of the truth to everybody he could in the hopes both Naruto and Sasuke's killer, a girl named Haku, would be dealt with 'appropriately'. The citizens still can't accept the fact that Naruto has a girlfriend now and, despite the new laws I have put in place, they still haven't learned their lesson. They are still insistent that Sakura Haruno needs to be 'saved' from the demon. Either that or they want to kill her to prevent the demon from spreading his seed. It doesn't take a genius to realize what would happen if Kakashi spread the word that Naruto and Haku were responsible for Sasuke's death."

"As for Sai, they killed him in the hopes that he wouldn't get word to Danzo. Unfortunately, they were too late to stop Sai from notifying Danzo of what had happened. You all know the kind of man, or rather monster, that Danzo is. There's a good chance he'll reveal an edited version of the truth to the public and incite a true riot upon Naruto's return. Regardless of the new laws put in place, they WILL try to kill him for his crimes. Same with that poor Haku girl. But his purpose would be to start a riot and then prove to the daimyo that I am no longer fit for duty and somebody else needs to be put in charge, namely himself. I wouldn't put it past him to try and manipulate Daimyo-sama in some way to ensure that he became the Fifth Hokage. If Danzo has his way, a fourth war will start and Konoha will go to war with every other village, regardless of what might happen. Danzo's a warmonger and claims that everything he does is for the good of Konoha…but it's not. It's all to further Danzo's own goals, regardless of the consequences."

One of the members on the civilian council frowned deeply at this and asked, "Is there anything we can do to prevent Danzo from achieving his goals?"

Hiruzen shook his head sadly. "Unfortunately, I don't think so. I'll contact the daimyo and inform him of the situation, but if Danzo succeeds in starting a riot…Daimyo-sama is likely to side with Danzo in that case. Because I'd be considered a failure and incompetent at my job. I think our best bet would be to get either Jiraiya or Tsunade to return and take the position of Fifth Hokage. Then Danzo would be incapable of achieving his goals. Unfortunately, Jiraiya has declined the position once before and Tsunade has no intention of returning to the village. Unless something changes soon…we're all in deep trouble."

Shibi scowled at this point and said, "Make it an order. I personally suggest ordering Jiraiya to return and take up the mantle of Fifth Hokage before Danzo's plans come to fruition. If he refuses, do not give him a choice in the matter. Give him an ultimatum. Do whatever it takes to force him to accept, whether he likes it or not."

"That does sound like our best option." Hiruzen agreed. "Very well. I'll send a message to him and make it clear that he is to return immediately. Once here, I'm giving him no choice but to accept. If he tries to refuse, I do believe a little snippy-snippy is in order." He said with a sadistic grin on his face.

All the males in the room immediately understood exactly what Hiruzen was talking about. Shuffling uncomfortably in their seats, they remained quiet and simply waited for the meeting to come to an end.

Two Days Later – Land of Waves

Sakura let out a groan as she began to come to. Slowly opening her eyes, she winced at the bright light overhead. Sitting up slowly, she looked around the room she was in, taking in everything that she saw. When she spotted her boyfriend, she smiled sweetly at him and poked him in the nose. "Wakey wakey Naru-kun."

Naruto slowly opened his eyes and looked into his girlfriend's eyes. Blinking a couple of times, he soon found himself grinning as he looked her over. "You're finally awake! It's been two whole days. I've been so worried about you."

Sakura simply smiled at him and slowly hopped off the bed she was on. Sitting on her boyfriend's lap, she kissed him sweetly on the lips. "I'm all right sweetheart. I won't go dying on you just yet. I plan for us to be old and gray before I pass away. Understand me?"

Naruto blushed a bit at the position he now found himself in. Still, he wasn't going to complain. Instead, he kissed her and held her close. After some time had passed, he looked her in the eyes and asked, "So how does it feel? Being in your new armor, I mean."

The pinkette looked herself over and smiled wide. "It feels great. It's easy to move around in and I feel stronger. I don't care about the weaknesses it has, I feel great!"

Chuckling softly, Naruto smiled at her and said, "I'm glad. I really love you, sweetheart. Never leave me, okay?"

Sakura blushed prettily, but slowly nodded her head in acceptance. "Of course honey. We'll be together for the rest of our lives if I have anything to say about it." Kissing each other again, they simply basked in one another's presence.

After some time had passed in silence, Sakura asked, "Where are the others? And what about Samus-san?"

"Samus-chan is out on patrol. She's trying to keep an eye on everything, just in case anything else happens. I think she's also trying to see if there are anymore Chozo Ruins anywhere. As for Asuma-sensei and the others? We, erm…we had to kill Kakashi and Sai. We were hoping that by removing the both of them that we'd be safe once we got back home. Unfortunately, Sai got word to Danzo about what happened here. Chances are pretty high that when we return to the village, word will have spread about what happened here and I'll be blamed for everything, namely Sasuke's death. We fully expect a full-blown riot to break out this time. I honestly don't know what we'll do at that point. Chances are, we'll have to flee the village. Or at least Haku-chan and I will. I don't really know what to expect at this point." Naruto explained sadly.

Sakura looked worriedly into his eyes and said, "If that happens, then I'm coming with you. You're not allowed to leave me behind, got it Mister?"

Naruto smiled at her and gave her another kiss. "I promise that no matter what, we'll always be together. Let's just hope nothing bad happens, okay?"

"Of course sweetheart. Why don't we go let everyone know I'm okay now? I need to stretch my legs a bit." Sakura suggested.

Naruto nodded in response and took her hand in his before leaving the spaceship and going off in search of the others. No matter what, we'll survive. You and me, Sakura-chan. I promise.

Konoha – The Next Day

"I had hoped that you would have returned home immediately upon being summoned, Jiraiya." Hiruzen said, clearly disappointed with his student. "Why did it take you so long to return? And if your answer is 'research', I'll gladly beat you within an inch of your life. Do you understand me?"

Jiraiya began to sweat nervously. "U-Um…not research? Umm…"

Hiruzen flared his killing intent, bringing Jiraiya to his knees. "From now on, Jiraiya, there will be no more 'research'. From now on, there will be no more of those shitty books you write! From now on, you will be the Hokage of this village and I expect you to take the job seriously. I will not tolerate anymore of your bullshit! And before you try to argue with me, at this point it's either you or Danzo. And, to be perfectly frank, I'd rather it be you who becomes the next Hokage. I've done the best damn job I could, but my time is up. I need you to stand strong and do the right thing for this village, Jiraiya. If Danzo has his way…well, let's just say it's best not to let him have his way. I'll teach you all you need to know about this job and I'll even act as your advisor if need be. But from now on, the job is yours. And if you know what's good for you, you'll obey me, Jiraiya. No complaints about not getting to do your research and writing your books. No trying to pass laws that say every woman has to wear a skirt or expose their breasts or whatever else you might think up. No excuses about having to run your spy network. You're going to take this job from me and you are going to love every goddamn second of it. Do you understand me?!"

Jiraiya looked about ready to protest, but his sensei slammed him with an even stronger dose of killing intent. Wincing, he quickly nodded his head and said, "O-Okay! I'll do it! But…can't I do a little research from time to time? Still write my books? Sensei, please!"

Hiruzen glared at Jiraiya and said, "No research. No more books. You either take this seriously or I hunt down Tsunade personally and drag her ass back here to the village she hates and force her to be Hokage in my stead. If you care about her in any capacity, do try to understand and do a good job. I'm sure you already know exactly what's going on. So do me a favor and handle it whereas I cannot."

The Toad Sannin frowned, but nodded his head in understanding. "All right sensei. I'll do everything I can to handle this situation we've found ourselves in. However, I think it would be a good idea to drag Tsunade's ass back here regardless. We're going to need her medical expertise, I think."

The older gentleman nodded and said, "Very well. Now come, I have much to teach you before I retire for good this time."

Two weeks later

Team 10 and Choji watched as Samus sent her spaceship into orbit so it wouldn't be disturbed. Afterwards, they turned their attention to the people of Wave, each of them looking so much happier than they had first seen them. They had decided to name the bridge after Haku for her role in ending Gato's reign of terror. Now here they were, preparing to make the trek back to Konohagakure. None of them were looking forward to the fallout once they returned home.

For the past two weeks, ever since she had awakened, Sakura had been training together with Naruto under the teaching of Samus. She had learned much about her new Fusion Armor and how to use it and its weaponry. She had spars with Naruto and Samus both, all three of them doing what they could to improve themselves. As Sakura had been told, she certainly felt the chill whenever a cold wind blew by her. She could only imagine how painful it would be to be hit by some kind of ice attack.

As they began their trek back to Konoha, moving at a suitable pace for shinobi of their kind, Sakura and Haku stuck close to Naruto, much to one another's chagrin. Both Sakura and Haku had the same mindset: he's MINE! Yes, they hadn't been getting along too well once they found out about Haku's little crush on her new 'master'. Still, they weren't at each other's throats or getting physical with one another, so they had that going for them, at the very least.

Asuma and the others found amusement in the situation Naruto found himself in. However, they knew better than to comment on it, lest they face the wrath of the women in their company.

As they hurried along, Asuma had a grim look on his face. Please Pops, you have to have done something to remedy this situation! I really, really hope we can avoid the worst possible outcome here.

A/N - Okey dokey, that's the end of the chapter! I know, it was a lot shorter than my usual chapter length, but I felt that was a good place to end this chapter. Sooo...yay? Maybe? lol.

Anyways, as I've explained before, I've developed tendonitis in my right hand. My thumb and wrist really hurt and it can be rather hard to write for long periods at a time. I'm pushing through the pain though because I want to write and get these chapters out for all of you lovely people!

I'm really kinda busy, so I won't say much more than this. Hopefully you enjoyed the chapter. I dunno what I'll work on next, but then again, do I ever? lol