Chapter 17:

Naruto walked quickly through the city, eyes focused straight ahead and his fists clenched. Shikamaru jogged after him, calling his name but Naruto didn't turn around. Rage radiated off of him, influencing the pedestrians to move out of his way to avoid him.

It wasn't until they left the city limits that Shikamaru finally caught up to him and demanded answers. "What was that about? I thought we had a strategy and you-"

"You wanted to go back to the village, you're going back to the village," Naruto told him angrily. "You got your wish."

"Not like this," said Shikamaru. "What about your son?"

"What about him?" Naruto asked sullenly.

Shikamaru recoiled slightly. Naruto was angry but this was a different anger he hadn't seen in a long time.

"He's still in the king's prison," he said slowly, explaining it to Naruto. "We need to get him out."

"Do we?" Naruto snorted and started walking again, but Shikamaru stood in his way.

"Naruto, he's your son."

"So I'm supposed to bail him out of trouble just because I'm his father?" Naruto tried to step around Shikamaru. "He's on his own."

Shikamaru stepped in front of him again. "Naruto, he's counting-"

"That brat never listens," Naruto spat. "He never learns and never will if I keep bailing him out of trouble. So what if he needs help? He's not getting it from me."

"Naruto…"

"We had him," Naruto growled. "We had him. The king. I had him right where I wanted him. He was going to give up. He was doing everything we wanted and that damn brat ruined everything. All this is his fault! He didn't listen to me, took things upon himself and put everyone in danger with his recklessness. Let him rot in a cell!"

His tone of voice alone intimidated Shikamaru but it was his words that sent a chill down his spine. Naruto wasn't just speaking out of anger. He meant it. This wasn't like Naruto at all.

"Kid's got to learn, Shikamaru. If he thinks he can walk all over me, he's got another thing coming. He won't learn a damn thing if I go bail him out. He'll only do it again, thinking daddy will make it all better. The kid is out of control."

"He was scared when they took him away," Shikamaru told him.

"If he thought he was scared then…" Naruto scoffed and shook his head. "Imagine his fear when he realizes I'm not coming for him."

"You wouldn't do that," Shikamaru told him plainly.

Naruto spun around and got in Shikamaru's face. "The hell I wouldn't. I've been too lenient with the boy. This is the last straw. He ruined everything for us! We're facing impending war because of him. He's in a cell for his stupidity and recklessness. Nobody wants Kai back, so guess what? We just won't bring him back. Boruto will be in a cell and Kai will stay a donkey. Everybody wins."

"Not everyone," said Shikamaru.

"What, you mean Boruto? Ha! He keeps making impulsive decisions and stupid mistakes. No matter how many times I bail him out of trouble, he does it again just in a different way. Let him stay in a cell the rest of his miserable life. Then maybe he'll learn."

"How will he learn anything if he isn't given a second chance to do better? He's just a kid."

"Kid's got to learn, Shikamaru. I'm fed up with that brat. I bend over backwards for him and for what? Everything I worked hard to build for myself and the village ruined by his reckless behavior and narrow-minded idiocy! I won't have it! We'd all be better off with him in a cell, away from everyone! Away from me! It's his own damn fault!"

"That's a lie," Shikamaru said firmly. "No matter what anyone does, you'll always give them a second chance. That's who you are."

"And what's it gotten me?"

"A village living harmoniously with the comfort and security of being allied with so many other villages who will help us the second we need it?"

"No," Naruto said angrily. "It got me a stupid brat who doesn't listen and thinks he can do whatever he wants. This will teach him not to do things himself."

"He's young and learning. You acknowledge that."

"And look where it got me. A brat who thinks I'm weak. Who thinks he can walk all over me and I'll take it." Naruto's face darkened dangerously. "He probably hasn't given up because he still has hope. Hope that I will come and get him out of there. Well, I won't. Just being in that cell isn't enough if he's holding out for me to come get him. Once he sees that I'm not coming, he'll give up and despair. That's a much better punishment for the brat. To give up all hope."

"You don't mean that," Shikamaru said, though he was mostly saying it to convince himself. The look in Naruto's eyes revealed his intent and sincerity. He wanted this.

"If those guards want to beat him, let them. I won't say otherwise. If the king wants to keep him there forever, fine. I'm through sticking my neck out for that boy. He doesn't deserve my help. The only reason I wouldn't go there to watch them kick the crap out of him is because having him see my face would give him comfort, even if I was watching the beating take place with a cold smile on my face."

"Naruto, we are not going back to the village," Shikamaru said loudly.

Naruto looked up at him and glared. "Oh? Well, I say we are. And as Hokage, you have to do as I say."

"Not if you don't mean it."

Naruto took a step back. "You think I don't mean it?" he asked with a raised brow.

"No, I don't."

Naruto punched Shikamaru in the jaw. "You think I mean it now?"

Holding a hand to his jaw, Shikamaru stood his ground and glared back at Naruto.

"You don't mean it," Shikamaru said obstinately. "You're saying it, and I believe the sincerity behind those words, but you don't mean it."

"That doesn't make any sense," Naruto snapped. "How can you say you know I mean it and not mean it in the same sentence?"

"Because this isn't you."

Naruto exhaled through his clenched teeth and took a step closer to Shikamaru, wearing a hateful expression that made Shikamaru's heart beat quickly.

Shikamaru went on, undeterred. "I know you would never say those things and mean them. We've been through too much on this mission alone. I know you wouldn't throw in the towel now of all times. You're the one pushing us ahead."

Naruto seethed with rage. "You think I can't change my mind after realizing helping my kid would be a mistake? Everything he does reflects on me. What's it say if he does these things? How's it make me look?"

"You would never abandon your son."

"Pfft! Because he's my son?"

"Because you would never abandon someone who needs help."

Naruto's face started to soften slightly then he frowned and growled again. "What makes you think showing him no mercy isn't helping him?"

"Because you don't believe in that."

"So you think I'm weak, too? Is that it?"

"No, I don't think it makes you weak. You've already proven that it works."

"And yet Boruto keeps messing up and this latest screw-up was monumental." Naruto threw his hands in the air in aggravation. "What makes you think I wouldn't leave him in that cell to make him learn?"

"Because being alone is more painful than anything and you'd never do that to anyone, least of all your own child."

Naruto froze.

"No matter what anyone has done, you'd never abandon them. You know what it feels like to feel unwanted. To be alone. Even when you messed up, you did better because someone showed you they cared. Whether it's upbringing, environment or lack of understanding, you know it's better to show them another way because of how you lived. What you've seen happen to others. You know what happens when someone gets discarded, so I just can't see you doing that to someone else."

Naruto's gaze drifted to Shikamaru's chest, flashes of the past coming to mind.

Iruka would make him clean up the graffiti and then take him out for ramen. He yelled at him in class for his childishness but also talked to him. He protected him, knowing what was sleeping inside his body. He was the closest thing he had to a father at the time.

So many others who knew what was inside him and still approached wanted to show him kindness. After seeing what he could do, they still weren't afraid to get near him.

When he lost control and started to believe he was a monster, kindness and forgiveness brought him back. They didn't discard him because he was broken. They didn't abandon him for a mistake he regrated instantly.

How many lives were changed for the better because of love and forgiveness? How many wanted to return that kindness shown to them? How many stayed to help not because they were made to but because they wanted to?

"You were alone for so long, Naruto. More than anything, you wanted a family. Now that you have one, I can't see you abandoning them. To make them feel the same way you felt when you were young. You know there's another way because of experience. You wouldn't hold a mistake against him."

Naruto's eyes widened, seeing a flash of his son calling for him, frightened and full of regret.

"You know how painful it is to be left behind, so I can't see you doing that to your son."

Naruto lifted his gaze, looking at Shikamaru's face. He blinked, startled, seeing the pained look on Shikamaru's face. Was it because he knew how Naruto had suffered or because he couldn't stand having to explain this to him?

"It's just not in you."

The rage cleared and Naruto realized this wasn't him.

"Shikamaru… you're right." Naruto put a hand to his forehead and looked at his friend with eyes free of hate. "What was I thinking? I don't know what came over me."

Shikamaru put his hand on Naruto's shoulder, comforting him. "I knew that wasn't you talking. I just needed to help make you see that."

Naruto rested his hand on Shikamaru's wrist. "Thanks."

"What happened to you?" Shikamaru gave Naruto a confused and stern look. "I could tell you meant it at the time but it wasn't the real you saying it."

Naruto shook his head. "I don't know. I guess that noble guy just got to me. The things he was saying just made me…"

Shikamaru took his hand off Naruto's shoulder and looked back at the city behind them. "Should we go back and find out? We could give our spying idea another try, though it seems moot at this point."

"I'm not going back there and risking him getting under my skin again."

"That's a good point. Besides, we already found out what we needed to know. It was the noble's idea to change Kai back. He wants revenge. And we can't talk him out of it." Shikamaru sighed. "What should we do now?"

Naruto looked from the city to the long road ahead. "Let's go back to King Nita's kingdom."

Shikamaru raised his brow at him. "Huh? What would be the point? The guy's as stubborn as a mule. And the irony of having his right-hand man turned into one isn't lost on me."

"I still think we should go back and talk to him."

Shikamaru groaned. "We came all this way and now to go back… Naruto, what else can we tell this guy that hasn't already been said? We'd just be going around in circles. Why go back there just to have a troublesome conversation with an equally troublesome guy who won't be reasoned with?"

"We can tell him we know he's changing Kai back for the nobleman's sake," said Naruto. "He wouldn't tell us before but we know now. Maybe that will get us somewhere."

"He'll be pissed off that we were spying on personal matters, probably," said Shikamaru. "He probably won't change his mind if he knows we know. It will only anger him further. I don't think it's worth the risk."

"But if we tell him we're aware and ask him what the noble wants in return, we might be able to bargain with him. After all, if the nobleman is a businessman and the king's a businessman, then maybe that's the only way we can talk to them. Whatever the nobleman's offered him in return, we can match or double or offer an alternative. If the king is doing this because he thinks he has no other choice, we'll prove him wrong."

Shikamaru rubbed the back of his neck. "I don't know. The king's pretty steadfast."

"We can try reasoning with him one more time."

"And if he doesn't bend?"

Naruto swallowed hard and looked at the ground. "Then… we bring him to the shrine."

Shikamaru's eyes widened and he stepped closer to Naruto, trying to see if there were any outward changes to him as he saw before. "Are you hearing yourself? Naruto, you strive to protect those creatures. Are you actually going to break that trust and reveal all that just to get Boruto back?"

"Of course not," said Naruto. "I still have kitsune powers. If the king insists on being there to witness it, we'll tell him he has to travel with us to the location. When he does, I'll jump into his body and ride it out inside of him until the transformation is over. Then I'll jump out and there you go."

Shikamaru gave a weary chuckle. "That's pushing it. Even if you are possessing the guy, you stand to risk the cat spirit not showing up because he senses an outsider. You also have to take into consideration that the king always travels with guards. How will you prevent them from coming to the shrine? How will you prevent them from seeing this take place? You told me that you can't use your kitsune powers and jutsu at the same time. That means you can't clone yourself and take control of everyone. You can only possess one person at a time."

Naruto sighed, knowing he was right.

"And didn't the king say he refused to travel? That it had to be done at the place of his choosing? Repeating ourselves won't change anything if the king won't change his mind. This plan only works if he's willing to go with you, and even then, it has risks. What then?"

Naruto shrugged. He really didn't know. Their only options were the use of force or winning an argument. If the king didn't change his mind, they were stuck. If they took Boruto by force, war would break out. No matter how many times they went over their options, nothing changed.

"If only the king was reasonable," said Naruto. "We can try one more time to plead our case to him and hope he changes his mind. If he doesn't, I… I don't…" Naruto trailed off, feeling defeated.

"He probably doesn't trust us after what Boruto did," said Shikamaru. "He probably wants it done in front of him so he knows he's not being cheated."

Naruto's eyes widened as an idea formed in his mind. "Maybe we don't have to do it the honest way."

"What?" Shikamaru was taken aback by this as well. "I thought we agreed that any deceit on our part would make things worse."

"But shinobi are all about deception, right? Isn't that what we were told during the exams? To be able to cheat and not get caught. To gather information without being noticed by the enemy. And how to be able to recognize when someone's being deceitful."

"Well, to a point, and in certain situations, but… We were also told that a man's word has to be trusted. And there's a difference between lying to get a king to do what you want and going into enemy territory pretending to be a…" Shikamaru knew what Naruto was thinking. "Don't tell me…"

Naruto nodded. "I can't use jutsu to transform Kai into a human, but I can use fox magic to make it look like I can."

"That is a huge gamble, Naruto. And you said the kitsune wouldn't be able to use their power to…"

"It'll only be an illusion. Kitsune illusions are so thorough, they can affect all five senses. As long as I concentrate hard enough, I can do it. And if Seki's there, he can help me. We can pull this off."

"But the solution's only temporary," Shikamaru told him. "As soon as you stop, the illusion goes away. And what if they try to test it? That's how our covers get blown all the time. They'll ask Kai questions only he'd know the answer to, in a voice we've never heard him speak in, with mannerisms we've never seen."

"We've heard people talk about him."

"Hearing what someone says about a person is a little different from seeing them with your own eyes. Does he have an accent? Is he right or left-handed? Does he speak loudly? Slyly? Does he pace when he talks? How does he address certain people and does he address them that way in every situation? There's a lot to consider when pulling off a disguise. The tiniest slip-up could have it all unravel."

"I know that." When he transformed himself into certain people, he sometimes gave himself away because it wasn't good enough. He'd ask something out of the blue which wasn't normal, have better reflexes than the person he was pretending to be and speak differently than they would.

He also learned that how someone did something wasn't as important as why they did it. Often times, it wasn't anything he considered. Sometimes it didn't make sense, sometimes it was what he thought but with a different spin.

Pulling this off wouldn't be easy for many reasons. Naruto knew it was a gamble but they didn't have very many options at this point.

"If the king won't come to the magic, we'll bring the magic to him."

Shikamaru frowned, feeling uneasy. "I don't like this idea, Naruto. After you use your illusion, then what? How long will it last? What if the king talks to him?"

"I'll have the illusion run away," Naruto said. "The real Kai will be a donkey they'll leave behind because of the illusion and we'll take the donkey to the shrine and change him back. Then we'll bring Kai back to the kingdom and say that he ran off because of a side-effect. Then the real Kai will be able to answer any questions and everyone will know it's really him."

This did sound like a better plan than Shikamaru thought Naruto had come up with. It filled in some holes but it still wasn't perfect.

"I know it's a gamble, but I don't know what else to do that wouldn't result in people getting hurt," said Naruto. "I know we're tricking the king but come on. We are shinobi."

Shikamaru smirked.

"We tried it the honest way with the king. We tried talking to the king. Tried reasoning with the king. One lie, one trick could resolve this whole thing."

"Or make it worse," Shikamaru said.

"We'll try one more time to reason with the king. And if it doesn't work, we'll try this way. Ok, Shikamaru?"

There were risks either way. This wouldn't be the first time they had to be deceitful for the sake of the mission. Every time they did, there were risks and they didn't always work out. Shikamaru and Naruto both knew this was a huge gamble but their other options were just as risky.

"If it's an illusion, won't they see your fox fire?" Shikamaru asked.

"I'll either pretend I'm using jutsu or use something we find on the ground and pretend it's doing it."

Shikamaru doubted the king would know the difference between jutsu and fox magic, so this seemed reasonable enough.

"Well… Alright," said Shikamaru. "We'll try it this way if the king doesn't change his mind."

Naruto smiled and nodded. "Alright. If we hurry, we might be able to catch the train and if that happens, we'll be at his kingdom by morning."

Shikamaru looked at the long stretch on land they would have to trek through once again, free of civilization for miles, and groaned, legs feeling weak. "I never thought I'd miss paperwork so much."