"Talking"

'Thinking'

Jutsu/ Bijuu/ Summons

Flashbacks, Letters, and Setting

I don't own Naruto

Chapter 13: The Slug Sannin Part 1

At the Hospital

Onyx eyes opened up, and began to look around, taking in the sight of the environment it was in. This didn't look like the ambassadors' room in Kusagakure, and it sure didn't look like her room, with the sterile, white color that was prevalent in the room, and all of the medical equipment and charts that were present. She was in a hospital.

Izumi sat up, and saw that she had spent the night sleeping on the visitor's bed in the hospital room. Events of last night began flooding back. She had cried herself to sleep, after coming over to thank Naruto. She barely even remembered why she had to thank Naruto, or her journey to the hospital at first, before it hit her all at once.

Her clan had nearly been wiped out. The strongest clan in the village of several hundred members had been cut down to a mere handful that she still hadn't seen yet. Somehow, her boyfriend Itachi had lost his marbles, and decided to kill everyone, shinobi and civilian alike. Itachi. Oh, how just thinking about that name stabbed at her heart like a thousand senbon. How could he do all this? How could he kill his whole family? How could he leave her whole family, leaving her with just her mother? How could he just leave her like this?

She remembered when her father, who wasn't an Uchiha, had died trying to protect others during the Kyuubi attack. She had been left alone with just her mother, and felt so alone. Then she was introduced to her greater, extended family: the Uchiha Clan. Now they were dead too, and she was alone with her mom once again.

Tears began to fall again, as she thought about Itachi and the fate of the Uchiha Clan, and she lowered her head and clenched at her blankets. Her tears began to stain her blankets, and she tried to wipe her eyes, and got up to go to the bathroom in Naruto's hospital room to wash her face with cold water.

Her feet touched the floor of the room, and immediately felt the cold tiles. Odd. When did she take off her shinobi sandals? She reached the bathroom and looked at the mirror after washing her face with cold water. Her reflection showed her that her mission gear, armor, and even her hitai-ite had been removed, and she was dressed in the plainer, more comfortable clothes she wore underneath her Chunin vest.

She had come to the room almost immediately after returning from the mission, and was still dressed in her mission outfit when she fell asleep. When did she remove her gear? She heard a brief snore, and looked at the corner of the mirror to see the reflection of a redheaded girl turning over in Naruto's patient's bed.

A small smile formed on Izumi's face at seeing her sister in all but blood. Then she realized it was probably Narumi who had changed her out of her mission gear, as Naruto would feel very uncomfortable changing a girl out of her clothes, even if it was just the outer layers. Naruto kept his boundaries with women, as he had been taught when he was young, and while he was the sweetest, most considerate person to his younger sister, he didn't really take care of others too much with stuff like this. He trusted his few friends to be able to take care of themselves, just like he took care of himself.

Naruto was a strange boy. He hid his inner thoughts and suppressed his emotions, to the point Izumi suspected he was emotionally stunted. He didn't seem to understand or deal with other's emotions or his own that well, but when he came to his sister, he seemed to be a different person. Was that normal?

Izumi was broken out of her thoughts when she heard Narumi wake up with a yawn and began to stretch her arms.

"Good morning, Narumi." Izumi greeted Narumi.

"Oh. You're up already? Good morning to you too nee-chan!" Narumi greeted her back with her trademark smile, which helped warm Izumi's wounded heart a little.

"I got up a little before you did. Were you the one who changed me out of my mission gear?" Izumi asked Narumi.

"Yup! You looked uncomfortable with the Chunin vest and kunai holders and all that other stuff so I decided to take them off. Naruto nii-chan always told me to take off my shoes before sleeping in my bed, so I took of your sandals too." Narumi told Izumi, who smiled back at Narumi. The redheaded girl had an infectious positive energy about her Izumi thought.

"Thank you, Narumi. That was very thoughtful of you." Izumi said as she gave Narumi a small hug. "Also, where's Naruto? I thought he was hurt bad, and needed to stay in bed and not do anything for a few more days?"

"Well he said-" Narumi was responding when the doctor came in for the morning checkup.

"I hope you slept well last night Naruto-san. Now regarding your-" The doctor stopped mid-speech when she looked up from her charts that she had been looking at as she entered, seeing Narumi on Naruto's bed, and the blonde boy in question missing. She looked over to the bathroom, and saw the door was open, indicating he was not in the hospital room.

"WHERE IS NARUTO-SAN?!" The doctor yelled out in a loud voice that didn't fit her, shocking both Narumi and Izumi for a moment. "He wasn't supposed to be moving around like this yet! He could reopen his stitches, and it's not like they were on his arm! His organs could spill out of the cut in his stomach if it reopens!" The doctor was frantic.

"Doctor-san? You don't need to worry. Naruto nii-chan said he was feeling a lot better before he jumped out the window." Narumi innocently informed the doctor in an effort to calm her down.

It had the opposite effect however, and when the doctor heard the last part about jumping out of a window, which was on the 4th floor, she blew a gasket, and began to panic, before passing out onto the visitor's bed.

Narumi and Izumi stared at the unconscious doctor, and then looked at each other. Narumi shrugged her shoulders.

"Wanna go get some breakfast? I know a good place!" Narumi suggested to Izumi.

Izumi looked at the doctor once more, before she shrugged her shoulders as well. "I guess I could use a little food. We'll leave a note with the doctor to put the bill on Naruto's tab."

The two left to get breakfast, leaving two small post it notes on the doctor's chart. Izumi told her to put the bill on Naruto's account, while Narumi left her a small smiley face on her note telling the doctor that Narumi wished she felt better soon.

Gambling House

Two fists slammed onto the table, as Tsunade and the dealer lost their money again to a blonde 14-year-old boy who smugly pulled his winnings closer to himself. His winnings were stacked into several piles of Ryo which were beginning to hide Naruto's smug face.

"Now, now, Tsunade-sama, if you keep on going with this "Go big or go home" motto of yours, you might have to sell that home you might have to return to soon." Naruto couldn't help but taunt.

Tsunade gritted her teeth angrily, as she eyed her last pile of Ryo. She took another sip of her premium sake as she glared at Naruto. She began to count her last bit of borrowed money.

Shizune couldn't help but be concerned. Tsunade had borrowed that money from multiple loan sharks, promising to win back her previous losses, so that she could pay back the debt she already owed the loan sharks. Now she was down to what looked like her last 500,000 Ryo. Tsunade had already lost 74.5 million Ryo in a single day.

"I'm betting it all on this! 500,000 Ryo!" Tsunade yelled, kissing the stack of cash for good luck before pushing it into the betting table.

"I suppose I'll have to match that, won't I?" Naruto replied, as he too pushed in a small fraction of his earnings.

The dealer frowned at Naruto, and began to deal the cards. The dealer's hand was a hidden card and a revealed 6.

Naruto's hand was a 5 and a 7, while Tsunade received a Queen and a King. Tsunade began to smile for the first time since she started gambling today.

She decided not to take anymore cards, while Naruto decided to take another card, revealed to be an 8. The dealer began to sweat.

Tsunade glared daggers at Naruto for threatening her only good hand, and Naruto matched her stare, though he didn't glare back. He smiled, which only made her angrier.

"So will you be taking any more cards?" The dealer asked Naruto.

Naruto maintained the stare-off with Tsunade for a few seconds, building up tension, before knocking on the table twice. He didn't like draws. He would risk it. After all, what was 500,000 Ryo to him now?

Tsunade cracked a smirk. What a rookie mistake. He was going to get a bust for sure. This win would be the start of her triumphant streak of wins, where she would make all her money back, and then some.

The dealer began to deal Naruto his card. Everyone quieted down, and Tsunade and the dealer gulped their saliva.

The card slid across the table, until it stopped at Naruto's hand. It was an Ace. 21.

The dealer nervously began to flip his hidden card. It was a 3. He flipped another card for himself, revealing a King. He had 19. Naruto won again.

Tsunade glared at her pair of cards angrily for a moment, before chugging the whole bottle of sake. Once she finished, she smashed the bottle on the floor, and angrily stormed out of the gambling house.

Shizune was concerned about the repercussions that would follow, but decided she was more concerned for her master right now, and followed her out with Tonton in her arms.

Naruto smiled as he put all his earnings in his sack.

"So how much does Tsunade owe this place?" Naruto asked. "I'll buy all of her debts." He announced, which shocked the loan sharks and the dealers in the building.

They began to grin. It was always difficult getting Tsunade to pay up, but now they'd at least get some of their money back.

Outside the Gambling House

"Tsunade-sama! Wait!" Shizune yelled out as she ran after Tsunade who was now taking her seat at a nearby pub.

"Are you alright?" The worried attendant asked her master.

Tsunade simply responded by ordering another bottle of sake.

Shizune sighed. "Tsunade-sama, you've already had a lot to drink. It's not even 5 in the afternoon."

"Shut up Shizune. I need this." Tsunade responded before drinking the sake that was brought to her.

Shizune sighed as she took a seat next to Tsunade. She decided to have some dinner, since they were here anyway and ordered some yakisoba with vegetables and some water to have for dinner.

The master angrily drank in silence, while her student waited for her order to arrive, when the door of the pub opened up and a blonde boy entered. Tsunade turned around and saw who entered, and her mood worsened. Naruto didn't seem to care, and sat down next to her.

"What the hell do you want, brat?" Tsunade spat out.

Once again, Naruto didn't seem to mind, responding to her disrespectful tone with a smile. "I'd like to make you an offer."

Tsunade didn't respond to his offer, turning around to drink again.

Naruto knew she was still listening, so he continued on. "I've bought all of your debts in this town. I'll cancel your debts if you treat someone for me."

Shizune's eyes widened in shock, while a single eyebrow was raised on Tsunade's otherwise blank face.

"So, where is the person?" Tsunade responded after thinking for a few seconds.

Naruto's smile widened with hope. "She's in the hospital in Konoha."

At Ichiraku's

"Welcome to Ichiraku's!" Ayame and her father greeted the two guests that entered their ramen stand, as they continued their preparations. Ayame turned around to greet the guests properly and take their order, to see Narumi in the seat she always sat at.

"Narumi-chan! Always nice to see you! Come to pick up more ramen for Naruto?" Ayame asked the excited redhead.

"Nope! Came here with Izumi onee-chan to grab some late breakfast!" Narumi responded with a huge smile.

Ayame noticed Izumi as well. She had a small smile on her face, but still looked like she had been through hell. Ayame noticed the puffy eyes and red nose on Izumi's face, which told Ayame that the girl had been crying. The girl at the ramen stand had heard about the Uchiha Clan Massacre as well, and her heart went out for the sweet girl known as Izumi.

"I'm sorry about what happened to your clan, Izumi-san." Ayame told Izumi, who thanked her back. "Let me know if there's anything we can do for you. It's not much, but we can at least offer our ears and a warm bowl of ramen, if it'll make you feel any better." Ayame offered.

"It helps a lot! I come here when I feel down, and it always makes me feel better!" Narumi told Izumi, who couldn't help but giggle a little, seeing Narumi's strong faith in the dish.

"Thank you, Ayame-san. I appreciate your offer and your thoughts. I'll take you up on the offer sometime." Izumi responded.

"Good to hear. Now let me get started with your orders. The regular right?" Ayame asked her two patrons, and they nodded back. She went to the back to help her father prepare the ramen.

While their ramen was being made, Narumi and Izumi began to chat as they waited. They initially stayed away from heavy topics, but their conversation inevitably started to turn towards the massacre, as that was what was on Izumi's mind. Their ramen was soon placed in front of them, and they began to eat.

"I just can't believe that Itachi would… you know. It's just not like him to do something like that." Izumi wondered out loud, as she slowly stirred her noodles with her chopsticks.

"It does seem strange." Teuchi mused. "He seemed like a gentle soul. To act so uncharacteristically, it makes you wonder what made him act like that."

"Maybe he felt as if he had no choice? Is it possible he was tricked somehow? Maybe I'm just speaking nonsense. All I do is help my Tou-san cook ramen anyway." Ayame commented.

Izumi began to think with the new perspectives she was getting. Maybe they were on to something. He would never just slaughter his clan out of madness. He was much too strong mentally to snap like that, and he was too gentle, and pacifistic in nature to kill so many people for no reason, especially the innocent civilians.

"His emotions were really weird that night." Narumi mentioned as she slurped her 3rd bowl of noodles. "It felt like he was really sad, and it felt like he was fighting himself on the inside."

Why would he feel sad if he was killing the clan out of madness? No, there was more to this Izumi thought to herself. It sounded like he was forcing himself to do something he didn't want to do, which made a lot more sense. But why would he force himself to do that? He loved the clan. Maybe he was forced by someone else? The thought made Izumi worry. Maybe someone had caught onto the Uchiha's scheming?

The puzzle was starting to make more sense to Izumi as she thought with the new perspectives of Ayame and Teuchi, and with Narumi's information on Itachi's emotions. She was starting to come to some sort of conclusion, when an ANBU appeared next to her in a swirl of leaves.

"Uchiha Izumi-san, you are summoned by the council."

Back at the pub in Tanzaku Gai

Shizune looked over at her master's face to see her expression. The awkwardly long silence following Naruto's reveal that the patient he wanted treated was in Konoha had been unsettling to her. Shizune could see a thousand thoughts were running through Tsunade's blank face, by the way she stared into her cup of sake. She wondered how Tsunade would respond, and was torn between worry and hope.

Tsunade dashed Shizune's hopes with her reply. "No."

Naruto was taken aback. He was sure that Tsunade would leap at the chance to clear her debts. It was an astounding amount, an amount that Naruto was pained to part with, but did so in order to help Mikoto, and maybe even the rest of Konoha. It was even more than the amount he had earned today from gambling, and he even had to dip into his own funds. Did this woman not care at all about how much money she owed?

"Why not?" Naruto asked after finding his voice again. He couldn't understand for the life of him, why this woman would turn down such a lucrative offer. How often were you paid 125 million Ryo to treat one person?

"I don't care how much you pay me. I'm never going back to Konoha. That cursed village. It took everyone precious away from me. I'll never go back there for anything. Besides I don't do surgeries anymore. You can find someone else to do your surgery for you, brat. Who you find, I don't care. Just leave me out of it." Tsunade responded.

Shizune was worried Tsunade would reply like this, and was a little disappointed as well. She had been following the legendary medic around for years now, and she was hoping to see something that would spark her interest in helping people again. She was also hoping to have an excuse to see Konoha again. She was hoping a surgery to clear her debts would have been that spark and excuse, but now she knew it wasn't enough. She sighed again, it seemed like she would never see her beloved home village again.

Naruto was taken aback by Tsunade's reasons, not because he felt bad for her, but because how absurd it sounded to him. Did she think she was the only person who experienced loss in the village? To use that as an excuse to avoid doing your duties as a medic, and as a kunoichi of Konoha, it was pathetic. It reminded him of another Sannin who left a bad taste in his mouth.

"You're pathetic. I can't believe I wasted all this time and money looking for the legendary Sannin, Tsunade, only to find her to be a drunk, gambling-addicted, useless, bum. You're a disgrace to all medics, kunoichi, and you're a disgrace on the Sandaime's name. The only thing legendary about you, is what a legendary let down you are. A freshly graduated Genin is more useful than you are." Naruto spat out at her hatefully.

Shizune's eyes widened. Oh no. Tsunade was already in a bad mood, and drunk as well. Not to mention, she had a bad temper even when she was sober. This was not going to end well for the blonde boy who had seemingly been named after a ramen topping.

Veins began to bulge on Tsunade's forehead, and she crushed the cup she was holding in her hand. "What did you just say, brat?" She asked in a threatening low growl.

"Oh, so now you have hearing problems too? Geez you old hag, get your life together. It's pathetic to see what you've become. A washed-up loser." Naruto replied back.

"So, you think you're any better than me? What would a little spoiled brat like you know about loss anyway? Run along to your parents before you say something you'll regret you little punk." Tsunade told Naruto.

"And who's gonna make me regret the words I say? You? What are you gonna do? Lose all your money and drown me in your tears? You can't even beat an Academy student the way you are right now, so why don't you shut the hell up and drink your damn sake. I'll even pay for it since you're a broke ass bum." Naruto fired back, angry at her assuming that he didn't know the pain of loss. He took out a handful of cash, and threw it at her, and it spread out to rain down over her like confetti.

Tsunade would not let this insult on her pride slide like this. "So, you think you're all that? How about you step outside and I'll teach you a lesson in respecting your elders?"

"Fine by me. Only I'll be the one to teach you what a pathetic piece of trash you are." The blonde boy replied as he began to head outside with Tsunade.

Shizune was nervous for the boy, and for the damages her master would have to pay for afterwards. She tried to tug on Tsunade's arm to stop her, but Tsunade roughly jerked her arm away from Shizune's grasp. She sighed again. She had been doing that a lot lately. Tsunade was getting out of control.

Shizune went outside to see Naruto and Tsunade in the street, facing each other and staring each other down. She could feel the killing intent oozing off from Tsunade, which was enough to make most Jonin pause. But what surprised Shizune was the deadly killing intent that seeped out of the blonde boy, which dwarfed Tsunade's. It made Shizune's breath hitch in her throat, and she felt her legs trembling. Just who was this boy?

"For a little runt like you, I'll only need one finger." Tsunade mocked Naruto, seemingly ignoring the dangerous killing intent from Naruto due to her drunken state.

"I suppose for a drunk, rusty old hag like you, I won't need my eyes." Naruto fired back, as he pulled out some cloth and tied it around his eyes.

Tsunade was insulted. This little kid who probably just graduated from the Academy thought he was all that? He thought he could face Tsunade, one of the Sannin, with a damn blindfold on? Shizune better stop her from killing the boy.

"You'll regret that, boy." Tsunade growled out as she channeled chakra to her feet and exploded towards Naruto, leaving two small craters where her feet once were. She stabbed at him with her outstretched index finger, but Naruto sensed her chakra approaching him, and easily dodged, shifting his body to the left, and to Tsunade's right.

Tsunade's finger dug into the ground, leaving cracks spreading from the hole her finger just created, showing the massive amount of power that was behind that one finger. She was surprised that she missed, as she had used a fair amount of speed, that would have left most Chunin unable to react.

Naruto used his new position of being to the right of Tsunade, and delivered a powerful kick to Tsunade's side, which sent the woman flying back.

She flipped mid-air, and landed on her feet. She had instinctively focused chakra at the point of impact, and she barely sustained any damage, even though she had been sent flying. The only thing that had been wounded was her pride, having been caught off guard and sent flying by a 14-year-old.

"Not bad for little runt like yourself. I'll be taking this a little more seriously now." Tsunade warned Naruto, and the boy responded by picking his ears.

Tsunade was fuming at his disrespect. She charged towards him, even faster than before, and sent out a series of stabs with her finger.

Naruto could sense the chakra in her finger, and found it easy to dodge each stab, barely moving more than a few steps the entire time.

Tsunade found her frustration rising. This boy was mocking her, and not taking the fight seriously. He hadn't even attacked her once after the first kick.

"You'd do well to take me seriously, boy!" Tsunade yelled out as she began putting even more power into her legs and finger to move even faster. She no longer just wanted to hurt him. Her drunk and emotional state made her almost want to kill the boy. She started striking out towards the boy's head to dish out some serious damage.

The blonde boy sensed her intent, and decided to deal out his own damage. When Tsunade's finger whizzed by his face, he caught her finger and snapped it upwards, breaking her finger.

She yelled in pain and pulled her hand back, and jumped backwards to gain some space between them. Naruto stayed rooted to where he was, with a smug smile on his face which made Tsunade even angrier. She began to heal her broken finger, and within seconds, it was back to normal.

"So, you think you're all that just because you got a lucky one on me? I'll show you!" Tsunade yelled out as she charged in with her fists now.

Being out of shape from not training for nearly a decade, as well as being drunk and emotional made her fight like a brawler, an ignorant untrained thug, and not like the well-oiled fighting machine that she once was. She had gotten away with it with less powerful shinobi, overwhelming them with sheer power and speed, but it wasn't cutting it with Naruto, who easily weaved through all of her punches.

She jumped up high in the air, and brought her heel down on top of Naruto, who dodged the hit. However, Tsunade's foot still hit the ground, and shattered it into chunks, and Naruto stumbled over one, being blindfolded, and momentarily lost his balance. Tsunade noticed, and delivered a powerful punch into him.

Naruto sensed the punch coming and crossed his arms over his chest into an X-shape to block, but it sent him skidding across the ground, digging a small trench into the ground. He was disoriented and stayed laying down. He managed to channel chakra into his arms to prevent them from shattering completely, but he still took a lot of damage from that monstrous punch.

Seeing him laying in the trench she had created with his body, Tsunade smiled smugly. She had finally shown that damn brat his place. "How'd you like that, gaki? Not so tough now, are you?"

Shizune was shocked at the devastating punch her master delivered. The boy had been insulting her, and he was being too smart with his mouth for his own good, but she thought this was too much. How could she punch a young boy like that, so hard? He was most likely dead. A young life snuffed out, because her master couldn't control her anger. She was disappointed in Tsunade.

They were both staring at Naruto's unmoving form for a few seconds, when they noticed steam rising from it.

Naruto began to stand up slowly, with steam emanating from him. He spat out blood. "Heh, not a bad punch for a washed-up old hag."

Shizune and Tsunade were shocked. That punch was strong enough to shatter bones into dust, and liquefy your organs. How was he still alive, and how was he managing to stand up?

"As I said, not bad, but not that great either. If that's the best you've got, then you're really a disappointment." Naruto mocked, still not taking off his blindfold. "You broke your word by using more than just your finger, but I'll show you I don't need to break mine and take off my blindfold." Naruto told Tsunade as he cricked his neck.

"Now it's my turn to show you, MY punch." Naruto told Tsunade. "Futton: Kairiki Muso! (Boil Release: Unrivaled Strength)" Naruto whispered out too quietly for the two women to hear, and exploded out from his position with his fist cocked back.

Tsunade had let her guard down, thinking the fight was already over, and was too drunk to have the reaction time needed to dodge it, especially because she had gauged Naruto's movement speed earlier, and was taken by surprise by the sudden explosive increase in speed.

Naruto's steaming fist sank into her stomach, and she skidded across the ground, leaving a much deeper trench than the one Naruto left earlier. She had barely managed to channel enough chakra into her stomach area, and was able to prevent complete pulverization of all her internal organs and bones, but she had taken massive damage, and was left unable to move, and gasping for breath.

"Tsunade-sama!" Shizune yelled out in concern, and rushed over to tend to her injured master.

Sensing Tsunade's will to fight dropping and her chakra levels coming down as well, he knew she was down for the count. He waited a few seconds before he took off his blindfold.

"So, this is the power of the legendary Sannin, Tsunade." He gave a sarcastic clap for her lackluster performance in his eyes. "Bravo. You sure could move for an old hag."

Tsunade's face went red with embarrassment, and she could feel her eyes tearing up in anger and frustration.

Shizune glared at Naruto for mocking her master so much, even after she'd been defeated.

"You're pathetic. I can't believe I expected anything better from you. You're a useless weakling who ran away from her responsibilities, thinking you're the biggest victim in the world, and the only person who's experienced loss. Boohoo. Here's a newsflash. You're not. Grow up." Naruto told Tsunade, who covered her eyes with her arm in shame.

"Look at you, you're supposed to be one of the greatest shinobi ever produced by Konoha, and you just got your ass handed to you by some 14-year-old boy. You've let yourself become a washed-up, rusty bum, and you've only got yourself to blame. Don't even think about justifying yourself with your shitty excuses. Because you ran away from your responsibilities to deal with your loss, numerous people who could've been saved with your medical skill died. Because you thought your loss relieved you of all of your duties and responsibilities, families have lost their loved ones, and you made hundreds of people go through the same loss you've experienced."

Tsunade began to cry in shame, and Shizune tried to console her, but knew a lot of what Naruto had said was true.

"You used your loss as an excuse to run away from your responsibilities. What a disappointment you are. Just like Jiraiya. Seems like you Sannin are just a bunch of disappointments." Naruto turned around to leave.

"Enjoy living your meaningless and pitiful life, using that girl as your emotional crutch. I bet you can't even function properly without her. I can see it in her eyes. She always has to clean up after your mess, and baby you, though you're more than twice her age. What a pitiful existence you've sentenced her to, shackling her to you. I know she's a shinobi too, though a mediocre one, from what I can sense. Thanks to you, that's all she'll ever be. A mediocre shinobi, who's more of your caretaker and mother than your student. A shame really. Guess if you spend time with a rotten fish, the stench spreads to you too. Well, I'll be going then. No point wasting time with a lowlife like you, Tsunade-sama." He said the last bit sarcastically, before leaving.

Naruto walked away, leaving Tsunade crying in the crater left by his punch, and Shizune glared at his retreating back. How could he be so cruel? He verbally destroyed Tsunade, leaving her a sobbing mess.

Though the words he left behind were to shame Tsunade for being a bad master, it stung Shizune as well. She really wanted to be an accomplished Kunoichi, and Naruto's words struck at her insecurities. She pushed her hurts and disappointments to the back, like she always did, and supported Tsunade up, and slung her master's arm over her own shoulder, and carried her back to their room at the inn to patch her up, physically and mentally.

*Author's Note*

Hey everyone! Back with another chapter of the Jinchuuriki's Brother!

Hope you enjoyed the latest chapter! It's slightly different from how Naruto's meeting with Tsunade went in canon, with a drunk and out of shape Tsunade getting her ass kicked by a strong and cold Naruto. He can't help it though. In a way he's taking out his frustration with Jiraiya on Tsunade, seeing many similarities. I like the relationship they have in canon though, and this won't really be a Tsunade bashing fic.

Anyway, here are the results for the votes! Remember, I only take votes from named users, and I only count your vote once! Unless you guess what Naruto's summon is. Then I'll let them vote twice. Lol. Also someone suggested Pakura as a pairing. Damn! Why didn't I think of that! She would have made a great candidate, but it's kinda too late to add her in now. If I was voting, I think it would be Shizune/ Mei or Pakura/ Pakura or Samui. They would have been my top 4.

Shizune 148

Samui 82

Izumi 78

Mei 78

Anko 76

Thanks for all the comments and reviews you guys leave! You guys have great ideas, and a lot of you are pretty good at predicting what I'm planning as well. It's fun to see what you guys think, and it's a good incentive/ motivation for me to write as often as I can.

Thanks once again for reading another chapter! Hope you guys like it! Please leave a comment or review.

Until next time!