CHAPTER 24

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto

The early morning was as silent as the dead within the crypt as Hiashi placed the burning stick of incense in front of the haka, bowing his head in reverence before rising to his feet. The thin wisp of smoke rose straight into the still air, not even the wind was breathing in this place of death. The framed portraits of Hiroto, Hiashi, Satoshi, Ane, Tadao, Hanabi, five other Hyuga shinobi, and two Hyuga Branch members lined the front of the stone where the Clan had been burying their ancestors for generations. Turning his back Hiashi smoothed the fine black robes that hung from his straight shoulders as he headed for the compound's exit.

At the gates he was met by Neji and Hinata, their somber attire and uncovered foreheads a mirror of his own. The Caged Bird Seal was no longer a symbol of servitude, but of Hyuga. They walked together in silence, too much had already been said over the last week as the village had laid their individual dead to rest, and performed their funeral rites. Today was a day to honor those who had been lost and that which they proudly sacrificed themselves to protect.

Naruto and Kakashi joined them wordlessly as they walked along the path to the familiar memorial stone, on which the list of shinobi names had lengthened considerably seven days ago. Sliding into place at his Hime's side, Naruto took her hand, and the touch brought them both comfort. Just as they passed the last building Sasuke stepped out of the shadows and fell into step with his teammates, his family.

Those assembled consisted of shinobi and civilians alike, all coming together to close this chapter of grieving with a memorial to the fallen, and a recognition of their appreciation for those who had survived to fight another day.

The newcomers walked down the rows of dark clothed attendees to the front of the gathered crowd where the Clan Leaders and active duty ninja stood tall and stern, tracing the freshly carved names of their comrades with their eyes.

Footsteps thud slowly up the platform and everyone raised their gaze in solemn reverence, hearts a mixture of mourning and anticipation. This was a moment of shifting tides and everyone seemed to sense it. After today, nothing would ever be the same.

He reached the middle of the platform and looked out over his beloved village, at least what—and who—was left of it. Chunks of the city walls were missing. Scaffolding surrounded many of the buildings where crews were struggling to rebuild as fast as possible. Out on the southern edge there was a whole swath of forest uprooted as a result of the jinchuriki battle that had taken place, many villagers had gone there to reap the wood for much needed repairs.

But trees regrow. Buildings can be fixed. Lives cannot be replaced.

And yet, the Will of Fire burns on. Hiruzen leaned heavily on his cane, ignoring his pain and refusing to grimace as he scanned the ranks of ninja before him with pride, and they looked up with admiration for their indelible leader.

"Today we gather to remember the sacrifice and heroism of the Shinobi of Konohagakure. Their loyalty and bravery never wavered in the face of battle, and we will honor their efforts with our own survival and faith, never allowing the things for which they gave their lives to dwindle into forgetfulness. Their Will of Fire burns brightly, and spreads down through our generations, casting its warmth over the cold night, and chasing the darkness out of our midst. We shinobi, will never cease to fight, to endure, to pursue the end of such a vicious cycle of war. And it is because of some of our newest chunin that we can once again claim Sunagakure as our ally." He turned and focused his gaze upon the row where the genin sat with their clans and families. A smile cracked his somber visage.

"The shinobi we honor here today have given their lives so that we might live in their stead. And we will justify their ultimate gift by not just living, but by living life more abundantly. The generations that follow in our footsteps will look back on us with pride for we will never cease in our endeavors to make Konoha a better place." He turned, and an assistant approached to stand by his side with three parcels in her arms.

"So now, it is with a heart full of thankfulness that I, Sarutobi Hiruzen, Sandaime Hokage of Konohagakure, will recognize the loyalty, bravery, and intelligence of our newest chunin, who have proven that they value the credo of the fallen." Some in the crowd wiped tears from their eyes as others smiled with trembling lips, a fervent hope for a better future on full display in the expressions of expectation on their faces.

"From the Uchiha Clan, Sasuke, Son of Fugaku. From the Hyuga Clan, Hinata, daughter of Hizashi. And from the Namikaze Clan, Naruto, son of Minato." The three teenagers filed up onto the temporary stage as murmurs rippled through the crowd. The aura of mourning and respect was the only thing that was keeping all out pandemonium from breaking loose. The poignant moment of the Last Uchiha taking his place alongside his slain forefathers; the fearless Branch kunoichi turned emancipator who had shown she had the guts to back up her brave words; and the village pariah who had known little more than scorn from his countrymen and yet put his life on the line in an altruistic display of strength to protect his people, and whose victory averted a potential war. But his name…

"Namikaze? Isn't that the same clan as the Yondaime?"

" 'Son of Minato'? As in the Minato?"

"There must be a mistake, there is no way the Yondaime had a son."

"Wouldn't the Sandaime have told us The Yellow Flash had a son?"

"But the boy would have to be at least fifteen years…oh my Kami…"

"But that is the demon child, the Yondaime would never put such a curse on his own son! Would he?"

"I'll be damned, that hair, those eyes, he…he looks just like him."

"Have we really been so blind?"

The muffled gasps and whispers could be heard throughout the assembly as a familiar head of spiky blond hair the color of the sunshine itself stepped forward. A tall, strong but lean teenager dressed in the same navy shirt and shinobi attire of his father approached the Hokage as he grinned in the exact same unabashedly joyful manner of his mother. Reverently accepting the green vest with the large swirl of Uzushiogakure upon the back and returning the wink his Jiji gave him, Naruto easily slipped the weight of the heavy fabric over his shoulders, adjusting the tail of his red scarf over it. Facing the village who had once shunned him so completely, his undeniably Namikaze-blue eyes scanned the faces below. The excitement of the populace was palpable as he took in the varied emotions on their faces. Shock, awe, disbelief, and amongst the shinobi: respect.

The indisputable truth of his patriotism and his lineage was there for all to see in the set of his wide shoulders, the azure gleam of his eyes, the power of his skill, and the selfless bravery of his deeds.

The shocked murmurs of the gathered peoples built up into shouts of surprise, then cheers of delight as Hinata and Sasuke also stepped forward to stand on either side of the Namikaze heir who was the spitting image of his father. Realization began to set in and the people of Konoha filled the air with varied emotions of vocal outrage, surprise, and celebration of these newest bearers of the Will of Fire.

The people wept.

The shinobi endured.

Konohagakure thrived.


Hiruzen settled into his seat at the head of the council table and sighed deeply from the bottom of his soul. One last time, then I can rest.

There was no denying it, the Sandaime was done.

"Thank you for coming on such short notice," he addressed the Clan Heads and Elder Advisors before him. His eyes scanned the faces of those in attendance, lingering on the newest addition, Hyuga Hizashi. The man was a welcome presence, his posture and bearing a stark contrast to the judgmental and closed off demeanor of his late brother.

"I would like to discuss two issues before I conclude this short meeting. First," a smile creased Hiruzen's face, "let us welcome the return of the Uchiha to the table. Sasuke, please, take your seat."

The Clan Heads turned in unison to see the teenager solemnly sweep into the room and hesitantly take the empty chair at the table, left vacant in honor of his clan ever since that dark day of their demise in anticipation of his promotion to chunin. "Well done, Sasuke," Hiruzen said warmly, and the newest Clan Head's eyes quickly closed as he nodded, lest any of the tears that choked his throat escape and bring him shame.

"Second," the God of Shinobi straightened in his chair, knowing his next words would be cause for quite the outbreak of 'discussion'. But it is time, past time. My body is broken, my heart is old, I can support the Leaf better this way. "I would like to formally submit my resignation as Sandaime Hokage of Konohagakure and name my successor."

The Elders glanced at each other in mute understanding, this had been anticipated ever since his nearly fatal injuries at the hand of Orochimaru. Wasting no time Danzo gripped his cane and braced himself to stand.

"And I am nominating Senju Tsunade, The Slug Sannin, Granddaughter of Hashirama, and my student, to be the Godaime Hokage."

"Sarutobi-sama you cannot be serious? This isn't the middle of the Second War, you can't just pick a successor like Lord Second did. You have to—"

"I second the nomination," Nara Shikaku abruptly cut off Homura's angry rejection. The Elders scowled, Danzo's face hardened.

"All in favor…"

The chorus of "ayes" was overwhelming, even Sasuke swiftly cast his vote of acceptance, with a little encouragement in the form of Inuzuka Tsume kicking him under the table. The three Elders grunted out their "nays", refusing to assent even in the face of defeat. But they would not give in so easily.

"She has not set foot in the village for years. Rumor has it she is no more than a wandering gambler. How can you know she will even acquiesce to the call of her country?" Koharu snapped her question at the nearly smirking Hiruzen who was signing the scroll that would be sent to the Daimyo detailing the conclusions of this council meeting.

"Jiraiya has volunteered to go retrieve her. She will not deny the summons of her teammate and her people."


"Shit Sensei! You know she's gonna bail as soon as she even hears the sound of my footsteps right?!"

Hiruzen growled and pulled the Hokage hat off his head, plunking the thing that seemed to be getting heavier by the day onto his desk. "Then walk like a shinobi damnit, and do not let her escape. I have been too lenient with Tsunade out of pity for her broken heart, but we all must endure, and it is her time to join us." He rubbed his temples, willing his mind to overcome the ever-present ache of his newest injuries. The hot baths were calling his name and he wanted nothing more than to light up his pipe and relax in their soothing waters. He had spent the last of his afternoon discussing with Kakashi how to go about educating Sasuke on the finer details of acting as Uchiha Clan Head, despite his obvious lack of clan, and now he just wanted Jiraiya to suck it up and go already.

Jiraiya hung his head in dramatic exasperation, the problem wasn't his lack of stealth, but Tsunade's near instinctual ability to sense his presence and run the other way. He never had a problem finding her, he was a goddamned spymaster thank you very much, but catching her had never been a particularly successful endeavor for him…in more than one way. He needed a new approach, perhaps a distraction, a partner?

"I'll go if I can take the gaki with me. There are some things about his training that I want to polish, and we can do it on the road." Hiruzen lifted an eyebrow at the suggestion but thought it would not be a bad idea. The reaction of the village to the revelation of Naruto's lineage had been…mixed, to say the least. And the poor boy was struggling to assimilate the change in his status due to the widely varied receptions, ranging from those who would never trust "a demon", to others who could have cared less about his skills and immediately worshipped him based on his name alone.

"Very well, a change of scenery would be good for him," Hiruzen nodded. Before Jiraiya could leap out the window, a knock sounded at the door and the secretary showed a tired looking Hyuga Hizashi into the Hokage's office, who nodded respectfully to the Toad Sannin before turning to address his village leader.

"Hokage-sama, I apologize for interrupting with my abrupt arrival," Hizashi easily bowed in the perfect show of respect to his village leader, something that Hiashi had long ago deemed unnecessary.

"Nonsense, Jirayia was just leaving to attend to his mission of locating Tsunade," knowing of Hizashi's fondness for Naruto, Hiruzen added, "and we have decided to send Naruto-kun with him, he has endured a lot from the village, and I think he deserves a break from their scrutiny."

Hizashi's silver eyes slid over to Jiraiya as if contemplating something, and the older man shifted uncomfortably under the Clan Head's intense assessment. Seeming to come to a conclusion, the Hyuga once again solemnly addressed the Hokage.

"If it would be acceptable, please, send Hinata as well." The other two men blinked in surprise, and Hizashi continued. "It has to do with why I have come here; The Clan is…unsettled. The Council is struggling within itself and the former Branch House is already attempting to establish an informal hierarchy which will only further divide us. My head and hands are full and my nights are long with my efforts to maintain this fragile peace and prevent an all out collapse in the order of operations both inside and outside of the compound walls. Hinata has also found herself to be the object of much scrutiny after her role on 'that night'. I would feel better if she were to be safely occupied elsewhere for a while." At this the Clan Head's stoic manner sharpened into a father's threatening countenance, "I trust the Toad Sage will be nothing but respectful in the presence of my daughter." Jiraiya swallowed hard at the small punch of killing intent Hizashi put behind his words.

Hiruzen huffed humorously at the veiled threat, knowing that with Naruto nearby not even a bijuu had a chance of laying a hand on Hinata, let alone a harmlessly perverted smut writer. Besides, she would be able to keep the boy and his godfather in line and on task better than the weight of any A-rank mission directive.

"Granted," the Hokage stood, hitching slightly as he straightened but managing to muffle the grunt of pain. Kami, between me and that poor student of Gai's, Tsunade cannot get here quick enough.

"Come Hizashi, escort an old man home, and we can talk about ways to keep peace within the Hyuga."


The shadows, the darkness where secrets came out to stretch and play, where the revealing light of day could not cast its rays, that is where the slow steps of Shimura Danzo abruptly changed into the authoritative stomp of the merciless leader of Root. Anger accentuated the thump of his cane as he made his way into the underground realm of his own creation, where he was Kage and Kami to those under his rule. Once again he had been passed over, once again someone younger had been chosen, once again he had been insulted.

He had practically gift wrapped the damn Hokage for Orochimaru, but the Snake's greed for the Sharingan and his penchant for playing with his prey had allowed enough of an opportunity for the reformed Copy Nin to sweep in and save the day. Danzo scowled deeper, the memory of his failed attempt to lure the lost soul of Hatake Kakashi into his organization before the Yondaime had intervened and taken over the newly orphaned boy's care was another failure that had come back to haunt him. Too many elite ninja were slipping through his fingers; now with the public declaration of his heritage, the last slim thread of hope that the Namikaze brat could be coerced into Root was as good as gone.

And to make matters worse, he had all but lost his foothold within the Hyuga. Hiashi was by no means an ally, but his cutthroat view of politics had more than once seen the late Hyuga Clan Head casting his vote alongside Danzo's own and willingly trading secrets and favors for one another's mutual benefit. All of Danzo's intelligence was pointing to the fact that Hizashi was nothing like his brother, and already the internal conflict of the Hyuga was showing signs of a complete restructuring of hierarchy and policy. Danzo scowled as he thought about the rumors of potential anarchy that leaked from the normally stoic clan. They were weak right now, like a wounded and vulnerable animal that could be picked off before they healed and returned to the hunt. Without proper intervention, the powerful family could completely upset the function of Konoha.

Absently he flexed the fingers of his bandaged arm, the multiple Sharingan twitching from his agitated state. The last time a clan had tried to throw off its allotted role in society, they had nearly caused a civil war, one which Danzo personally credited himself with preventing. Hiruzen had never had the balls to do things the hard way, and the village had nearly paid dearly for his weakness when the traitorous Uchiha planned their coup d'etat. The damn seal that the Hyuga employed would not even lend itself to use in reigning in the potentially rogue clan, because all the unsealed users of the punishing jutsu were dead, and the younger generation had been thoroughly brainwashed as to the "evil nature" of the branding family tradition.

Entering his office Danzo scanned over the new reports from his various spies which were neatly stacked on the center of his desk. One in particular caught his eye. Well, perhaps not all of them. Their bodies were never found?

Within seconds of his summons, the pale skinned Root operative was kneeling in the pose of complete submission and respect that Danzo had literally beaten into all of his ninja. "Hai, Danzo-sama?" The dark head of hair never looked up from the floor as he addressed his leader.

"On the day of the Invasion, Hyuga Satoshi and Hyuga Hanabi disappeared, presumably killed as bystanders during the urban battles that took place in the streets. But their bodies have not been recovered. I have reason to believe that they have fled Konoha, taking with them the last unsealed Hyuga with knowledge of how to activate the Caged Bird Seal in the form of the late Ane-sama's daughter."

The teenager's hand snapped up to grab the scroll Danzo tossed to him, and the black emotionless eyes finally raised to meet the cold gaze of the only living human to whom he vowed loyalty. "Sai, your mission is to find them. Bring me the girl, and make sure no one ever sees the old man again. I want her for my own use."

"Hai, Danzo-sama."


"You have got to be kidding me." Naruto huffed in disgust and crossed his arms. He was tired. He was hungry. His hand ached from the chakra burns he'd accumulated by repeatedly practicing a one handed Rasengan. And if he had to listen to Ero-sennin whine one more time about all the damn "research" Hinata had thwarted him from conducting, Naruto was gonna slap a fuuinjutsu seal on the pervert's face. And now the old coot was trying to pass off that blond lush stumbling out of the casino as the Slug Sannin? "It's not even noon," he growled, his ears starting to turn red as the woman turned to unleash a stream of foul curses that had Hinata gasping in shock, revealing the boldly displayed kanji for "gamble" on the back of her green haori.

Some things never change.

Naruto blinked at the inner comment, did Kyuubi just talk to me…willingly?

The sudden appearance of a dark-haired young woman who looked to be a few years older than the two chunin caught the gawking group's attention. She was obviously distressed, and struggling to carry two traveling bags and a dressed up pig as she chased after the wildly weaving potential Godaime, shouting for the woman to turn around because their hotel was the other way.

"Maybe we could start with her? She seems to be more level headed," Hinata mused and started after the two women, Naruto scowled as he followed with Jiraiya tentatively bringing up the rear. Shit, she's not exactly in a receptive mood right now, the Sannin frowned. But when is she ever when it comes to me or the village?

"Excuse me!" Hinata ran up to the younger woman, quickly bowing in her pristinely proper way. "My name is Hyuga Hinata, I am a shinobi from Konohagakure and my partners and I were looking for Senju Tsunade-sama. The village sent us to—"

"Konoha?" The green haori whipped through the air as Tsunade abruptly did an about face and stormed into Hinata's personal bubble, scrutinizing her like bacteria under a microscope. Her bleary brown gaze raked up the younger kunoichi's frame causing Hinata to flush under the scrutiny but only stand taller and straighten her shoulders.

"Has the Leaf gotten so pathetic that they send a child to do their dirty work?" She sneered at the hardening eyes of the Hyuga. Behind the two women there was a low growling sound coming from Naruto, and Jiraiya was looking at the jinchuriki funny. Tsunade's companion tried to mediate by jumping in, "Tsunade-sama, they have traveled all this way, it must be important! Maybe we should—"

"Shut up Shizune!" The woman snapped, not even giving the woman a glance. Naruto growled louder, and Jiraiya took a large step backwards. "Give me one good reason why I should give a rat's ass about Konoha?" Tsunade hovered over Hinata, making her words as threatening as possible.

Hinata swore she could hear Naruto's knuckles popping as he clenched his fists and she rushed to continue before things got out of hand. "Tsunade-sama, there was an invasion. Many of our best shinobi were wounded, including the Hokage. You have been named the Godaime, and Konoha needs your help.…" her official sounding words trailed off as Tsunade's snorts and snickering increased into derisive laughter, finally bursting into full out guffaws.

"Stupid girl," Tsunade wheezed, "there is no way in hell I'm setting foot in that Kami-forsaken village again." The growling behind Hinata intensified into full on snarling. "And if that old man thinks for one second that I would ever want to be the next fool to put that stupid hat on my head he is more senile than I thought!" Tsunade jabbed a red painted finger nail into Hinata's chest, "And next time they want to try and bully me into a ridiculous position, tell them to send a real woman to do the job." She punctuated her slurred statement with a squeeze of her own massive bosom for emphasis, causing Jiraiya to promptly pass out in a puddle of his own blood that Shizune was immediately scrambling to hide from her mentor's sight.

Before Hinata could close her gaping mouth and form words the sound of two trench knives being unsheathed and flooded with chakra came whizzing over her shoulder. "You plastered old coward!" Naruto yelled as he launched himself at a superbly annoyed Tsunade. In her inebriated state she only just barely managed to dodge his slashing wind chakra, but her green haori was cleanly split straight through the kanji.

"You ruined my coat Brat!" Tsunade snarled as she tried to plant her unsteady feet on the street, but Naruto was remorseless as he turned to meet her with anger burning in his blue eyes.

"Your village was nearly destroyed, your teammate Orochimaru nearly killed your Sensei, there are people suffering in the hospital without the guidance of an expert medic nin, the highest honor of shinobi rank is being offered to you on a goddamned silver platter, and you are worried about a fucking coat?!" Naruto's normally well controlled anger was slowly but surely boiling to the surface as his pupils turned into black slits and his whiskers began to darken.

She always was a spoiled brat. Naruto barely registered the unexpected commentary as he braced to attack once more.

"Who the hell do you think you are?" Tsunade seethed, unfazed by the sharpening wind chakra that was starting to flicker with red across the serrated edge of the trench knives in Naruto's hands. "I am Senju Tsunade! I'm practically a fucking princess to those idiots back in Konoha. Idiots that have caused me more than my fair share of misery, and I'm done with them and their shit. So why don't you go home to your mama and ask her to read you a bedtime story about what a real fucking war is like, then you can come preach your patriotic sermons to me." As she was talking her chakra was pulsing in waves, and the bleary gleam of her eyes sharpened into a piercing fury of full lucency. "That was a hell of a good buzz you made me kill, boy. You're gonna pay for that."

With a hoarse war cry Naruto dove at Tsunade and the two began a fierce fight. Shadow clones quickly surrounded the Sannin, pushing her back towards the edge of the alley that they had stumbled into as her chakra covered hands stabbed and blocked their powerful slashes. Her dodge to the side had Naruto swinging at nothing but air and Tsunade reached around to flick the back of his skull with a single finger, sending the teenager tumbling head over heels into a wall with such force the thing nearly came down upon him.

"Stupid punk," she huffed. "You're nothing but another pawn. Another nameless shinobi in the system. A system that will never change." Suddenly in a burst of smoke the body of the blond kid disappeared and Tsunade's gut was telling her there was something very wrong. The ground shook beneath her feet and a chakra covered fist erupted from the earth to collide with her face so forcefully her body arched into the air and over the city wall three streets down the block.

By now Shizune had Jiraiya on his feet and was gaping at the fight. "He's really made her mad now," she fretted as she crammed another tissue up the recovering man's nose. "Is he going to be ok?"

"Don't worry about him, his head is hard enough to handle a few smacks," Jiraiya said in a nasal tone. Hinata had gathered up the two bags and the pig as she offered a tense smile to Shizune. "Naruto-kun can be very...protective, sometimes he forgets himself. Sorry if he seems disrespectful, he means well." Shizune hummed contemplatively as she followed the red-scarfed teenager with her eyes, he has some serious guts to stand up to her like that, she thought.

Naruto leapt to the top of the wall, crouched like a feral animal as his now red-slitted eyes burned down upon the dazed woman with righteous indignation. "My service to Konoha, the protection of her people, MY PEOPLE, and the worth of my name are my highest honor as a shinobi! My pride is founded upon the justice of my principles, not the fame of my reputation." A venomous smile revealed his lengthening canines as Naruto watched Tsunade push her sleeves up and ball her fists for an all out brawl. "Someday I will become Hokage, and I will work to fix the broken system, not run and hide in a bottle of sake like a damn coward."

The Kyuubi within him was secretly grinning in delight at the way Naruto was laying down the law with the spoiled princess. Over his many years of imprisonment the Demon Fox had developed a special hatred for people who insisted on pitying themselves into a state of helplessness, and hearing Tsunade bitch about her life despite the ridiculous amount of freedom she had been afforded thoroughly pissed the jailed bijuu off. The chance to rile up the brat of his first container was something he'd always wanted to do, and with a voluntary wave of his powerful chakra, Naruto felt his stamina surge, ehehe, alright Furball I feel ya, let's play.

A massive Rasengan streaked with demonic chakra effortlessly swirled to life in his hand as he leapt from the top of the wall down upon Tsunade. Faster than any jonin, she stomped her heel upon the ground, uprooting an enormous chunk of earth to use as a shield. Dirt and stones filled the air as the two collided, and once more shadow clones crowded the clearing. The Rasengan and Kage bunshin? This kid isn't just some ordinary chunin after all. And that chakra, it feels familiar… Tsunade's thoughts were racing as she snatched the stones from the air and hurled them at the clones with the arm strength of a canon, all the while dancing back towards the edge of the forest, looking for higher ground.

Naruto allowed his clones to throw themselves at his opponent as he forced himself to pause and study her fighting style, fingers twitching in the loops of his trench knives. Alright so, she's got a shit-ton of chakra and she ain't afraid to use it, a close range fighter, doesn't seem to prefer weapons, he winced as she uprooted an entire tree and began to swing it around in a murderous arc that eliminated a dozen clones. Well, not normal weapons at least...

Glancing around to gauge how far they'd distanced themselves from the village Naruto smirked as he bit his thumb. Go big or go home, eh Kyuubi?

"Kuchiyose no jutsu!"

Tsunade smashed the last clone into oblivion with her makeshift club as a shadow engulfed her from behind. Spinning around she was shocked to look up at one of the Toad Summons unsheathing his sasumata as that brat knelt on his head. "Apparently Jiraiya has lost his standards in women and shinobi if he let some young show-off sign the contract," she hollered up to the amphibian.

"Yo Ken-san!" Naruto jovially greeted his summon. "Baa-chan here wants to disobey a direct order to return to the village, and thinks she can scare us away with her screeching. How about we offer her some persuasion?" His mocking tone held back nothing as he boldly provoked his opponent from his high perch.

"I will do my best," the deep voice rumbled with apprehension, "but I'm rather clumsy." In a show of grace directly contradicting his humble words the toad engaged Tsunade with his sword as she defended herself with her tree. The thick trunk was soon stripped of its branches as they parried slashes and she tossed it away, leaping toward the duo with chakra boosting her speed. Gamaken barely got his sakazuki shield in place to block her, but was still sent skidding backwards from her powerful blow, digging two massive grooves into the earth with his webbed feet. Tsunade seized the moment and squeezed her eyes tightly shut as she bit her thumb and summoned her own partner.

Naruto recoiled slightly as the enormous slime covered white slug scooped Tsunade up onto her head. Damn, and I thought the toads were kinda gross with all their warts and stuff. But seriously, how does that thing even fight?

You of all people should know never to underestimate an opponent based on their appearance.

As if to punctuate the Kyuubi's scolding, acid spewed out of the slug's pinched mouth, and Naruto found himself clinging to Gamaken for dear life as they bounded around the meadow to avoid the burning liquid.

"Tsunade-hime," Katsuyu questioned in between attacks. "Why are we fighting The Leaf?"

"Because some idiots just don't know their place!" The Sannin snapped, trying to disguise how winded she was, she hadn't exactly been training regularly since, well, a while.

"Oh that's just rich coming from Konoha's number one hypothesis!" Naruto snapped angrily.

Tsunade and Katsuyu both froze in confusion at the ridiculous accusation. Down below Jiraiya face palmed in frustration. "Ugh, there goes my hopes of him ever inheriting my literary legacy." Hinata and Shizune sweat dropped as he shook a fist up at his godson. "It's HYPOCRITE you dumbass!"

"Shut up you Pervert!" The two blonds yelled in unison, but before they could ponder on the sudden alignment of their sentiments, Gamaken had used the pause in action to slice through Katsuyu's body. However instead of mortally wounding the invertebrate, she simply divided into two acid spewing opponents, making it doubly difficult to avoid her attacks.

"I'm sorry I'm so ungraceful," Gamaken grunted as he blocked another jet of burning acid, his shield was nearly ready to melt off his arm.

"No worries Ken-san! Just get me close, I have an idea!"

Tsunade watched the reckless idiot leap off the back of his summon just before the Toad dispersed back to Mt. Myoboku to avoid another wave of acid. She smirked, pulling back her fist to meet his trajectory, pumping a huge dose of chakra into her muscles and bones. She ignored the red and blue swirling Rasengan that bloomed within the clawed hand of the snarling brat, focusing all of her attention on landing her bone crushing punishment.

Suddenly she was weightless, and the world tilted wrongly as she found herself staring at Katsuyu's white antenna, then blue sky, then green grass, then "OOF!"

Her mind was still struggling to understand her place in the world when she heard Katsuyu squeal and one of the slug's bodies poofed away as Naruto replaced himself with Tsunade's position on the summon's back and grazed her slimy skin with his Rasengan. He landed on his feet and immediately charged Tsunade while four clones set a fuuinjutsu barrier around the remaining slug.

Rage roared through her at being caught off guard by the simple kawarimi and Tsunade held nothing back as she and a now fully fanged jinchuriki met in an all out brawl of fists and snarls.

"Give it up, punk, you're not good enough to beat a Sannin, and you'll never get me back in that village while there's breath in my body." Tsunade growled between punches.

"You don't deserve to call yourself a shinobi let alone a Sannin if you refuse to help your people when they call for you," Naruto barked as his red eyes flashed. "Looking the other way doesn't make the suffering disappear."

"Tough cookies! Suffering is the way of the world, I've learned to accept it and move on. I can't save everybody and neither can you!"

Naruto struggled to keep his temper from pushing him into a full blown bijuu rampage at the heartless words. "If my efforts only saved one life, then I would consider my sacrifices justified! For the sake of one human restored, I would celebrate the same as if I had saved the whole damn world. Humanity is not something you only bet on if the odds are in your favor. Every life is precious!" Tsunade's haughty expression oozed with condescension as she listened to his declarations, spurring Naruto to ramp up his verbal attack and intensify his swings. "And the popularity of your name doesn't make you too good to get your hands dirty!"

Within his cage the Kyuubi chuckled darkly as he saw beneath Tsunade's aloof anger and noted the way Naruto's words were worming into her mind, triggering the instinct of every medic to save the lost, restore the broken, and relieve their suffering. But her eyes hardened as she fought on, and the Immortal Demon scoffed at her callousness. Humans. Always hiding behind their false faces and pride.

"You don't get to judge me," Tsunade roared, unleashing a brutal volley of punches that even Naruto's nearly animal reflexes couldn't keep up with. She wasn't even seeing straight anymore, all she wanted was for him to shut his blabbering mouth and stop those words that hit too close to home, too close to that fragile bubble of guilt that she kept buried deep inside and drowned in liquor to forget. She just wanted to forget everything, forget them, forget the hurt, it wasn't worth it...

Her fist sunk deeply into Naruto's gut and his eyes bulged, the air rushed from his lungs and he coughed up a mouthful of blood straight into Tsunade's face before collapsing to his knees as the corners of his vision flickered.

Hinata rushed to his side, glad to have finally found an opening to intervene in the senseless fight between the two stubborn blonds. "Deep breaths," she coaxed him as she helped him to his feet. She threaded her chakra into his chest to try and get a sense of his injuries, but was surprised to feel the Kyuubi already spiking his own chakra within Naruto and accelerating her friend's healing. She raised an eyebrow in surprise at the Fox's quick aid but filed the realization away for later. Looking up into Naruto's eyes as they faded back to their normal sky blue, Hinata put on a stern expression and wiped his mouth with her sleeve. "Honestly Naruto-kun, your little 'Talk no jutsus' are starting to get a bit out of hand. First Gaara, now the Slug Sannin?"

Naruto managed to wheeze out a husky chuckle and his hand scratched at the back of his head. "Hey I had to break in the new vest somehow, what better way than a battle with a Sannin, dattebayo?" The sheepish laugh ended in a series of coughs and he leaned harder onto Hinata's shoulder as she wrapped an arm around his back. With a grimace Naruto took a few steadying breaths and raised his face to assess his opponent. What he saw left him speechless.

She was a mess. Huddled on the ground hugging herself tightly and hyperventilating as Shizune frantically wiped her face clean. The proud Princess of Konoha was nearly blubbering on the dirt, helpless as a child.

"Hemophobia," Jiraiya's voice said from behind them, and the two chunin looked at his unusually solemn face. In a few murmured words he told them of her past as they watched Shizune patiently coax her mentor out of her panic with soothing words and motherly touches, until Tsunade was lucid enough to weakly swat the younger woman's hands away.

"Tsunade-sama, please take some of the—"

"No. I'm fine now, I don't need that stuff, I can handle it. I just need a drink," Tsunade was shakily brushing the dirt off her thrashed coat, not making eye contact with anyone but the grass as she ignored Shizune's hand to stand on her own.

"Please, it'll help, you don't need anymore sake today. Just take one and you can lie down and sleep off the—"

"I said no dammit! Stop treating me like a nutcase, I'm fine. Just let me go relax at the bar and play a few rounds so I can put this shit behind me. If you want to help me then stop getting in my way!"

"There are no more bars!" Shizune hissed through clenched teeth. "The last one in the whole village just threw you out!"

"Tch," Tsunade blushed at the vocalization of her faults, her short temper already starting to reheat at the incessant nagging. "Then we're leaving! Grab TonTon, I don't want to be anywhere near these Leaf shinobi anymore."

But before she could storm off Hinata blocked her path, "There is no shame in fear, Tsunade-sama." Her soft but firm voice rang with a truth that the Sannin didn't want to see, and she pushed past the petite kunoichi. "There is no such thing as perfection," Hinata persisted, again placing herself in the way of the retreating woman. "Konoha did not ask you to be Godaime because you are perfect, they don't expect you to fix all their problems, the shinobi don't want to serve a celebrity. We want you. Your experience, your skills, your knowledge, your heart, these are the things that will make you a great Hokage." The two kunoichi stared at each other. One offering redemption, one contemplating the cost of her salvation.

"Hime," Jiraiya called, causing the other bystanders to blink in shock at the familiar endearment. "Please, for Sensei, for Dan, for Nawaki...for me." His tone softened as he stepped towards her reaching out to touch her shoulder. "Come home, Hime."

Just before his fingers brushed her sleeve Tsunade flinched away and walked faster towards the road, not even looking back as she barked over her shoulder, "Shizune! I said let's go!"

"No."

Black heeled sandals scuffed to a halt and a breeze blew her pigtails across her frozen back. "Excuse me?"

"I said...no." Shizune's voice shook as the tears rolled down her cheeks. "No more, Tsunade. I'm done. I'm done carrying your bags. I'm done chasing you out of bars. I'm done helping you escape your creditors. I'm done watching you drown yourself in sake instead of getting real help. I'm done holding your hair when you're too drunk to even channel chakra. I'm done hiding you from yourself. I'm done wasting years of my life on someone who doesn't cherish their own."

"Shizune..."

"I tried. Kami knows I've tried. It's killing me to watch you kill yourself. I miss them too dammit! But I cannot heal when I am always healing you!"

"Since when—"

"Since now." Shizune bent down and scooped up a silent TonTon and her bag. Her black eyes gleamed with her tears but her face was a masterpiece of strength and sympathy. "I'm going home, Tsunade. With or without you."


Tsunade watched the three of them walk down the road, Naruto and Hinata chatting animatedly around Shizune as she laughed at their antics. She laughed harder than Tsunade had seen her laugh in years. How did I get so blind? How did I miss her suffering when she was right there all this time? Dan, I'm so sorry.

"Don't get lost over there," Jiraiya's warm voice pierced the downward spiral of her thoughts. "How about I fill you in on all the craziness you have missed? You know my spy network keeps me apprised of all the best gossip." He elbowed her cheekily, and she let a small smile crease her face at her old friend's never changing personality.

"Fine. Start with him," she nodded in the direction of the whiskered blond with the red scarf and the beaming grin. "There's no way in hell he's just a chunin with that kind of chakra and jutsu, and I can tell you've been training him. Seriously Jiraiya, I can't believe you'd just give away the Toad Contract to some kid."

Jiraiya smirked and she couldn't help but note the fatherly pride that lit up his face. "That 'kid' is my godson: the number one most unpredictable, hyperactive, knuckle-headed, jinchuriki of the Kyuubi no Yoko," he paused for dramatic effect as Tsunade raised a mildly incredulous eyebrow.

"Namikaze Naruto!"

"WHAAAT?"