Disclaimer: I don't own anything.

A/N: For anyone that wants to know why this chapter has been deleted and reuploaded then it is because I have got my computer back and as a result, I decided to rewrite the last two chapters.


"You want me to ask some old man to get you some books on shipbuilding?"

Naruto hummed and bobbed her head as the toad eyed the boiling ramen before flickering her eyes at Gamakichi. The large toad looked at her like he couldn't believe for a minute that she summoned him for this. Even though I explain things to him, he still looks irritated. It was not like she could trust anyone else with this kind of task.

The toad let out a sigh and stared at her with eyes filled with so much concern. I know things look bad but it could be worse. She smiled even wider and stared at the steaming cup of ramen. Even though their boat was basically destroyed, this was their only problem. No one was after them and they enjoyed each other's company.

That just made the whole situation good in her eyes.

"This is only one tiny hiccup," Naruto laughed and rubbed the back of her neck when the toad narrowed his eyes at her. "You know you shouldn't worry about one tiny hiccup."

The toad placed his rather large pipe on the ground and looked at her with judging eyes. "This isn't a tiny hiccup, Naruto."

She shrugged her shoulder and stared at their broken boat before looking out at the crashing waves. What could she tell him? This was a tiny hiccup no matter how she looked at it. Ace and her were alive. The two of them had food, which was more than that masked man could say. Their only problem had been the fact that neither of them knew how to get out of a whirlpool.

"I'm alive, aren't I?"

Gamakichi smacked his webbed hand against his face and gazed at her like he wanted to smack her head for that thought. Naruto grinned and clasped her hands together before tilting her head to the side. He is taking the whole thing too seriously. This situation was definitely not the worse situation that she had been in.

"If it wasn't for your insane love for ramen and your chakra, you and that captain of yours would be in huge trouble! Without those two factors then the three of you would be good as dead!" Gamakichi growled. Naruto sighed and bobbed her head, causing the toad to eye her with worry. "If I were you, I would go back to Konoha! It isn't too late for you to go back there."

But I will be stuck there like a bird in its cage. She leaned back and grasped a handful of sand before gazing up at the toad. Kakashi would take it as an opportunity to have her stay in the village and make some excuse about training her for the job. He would take away her chance of seeing the countries that would rather see her and her deceased father dead.

"I don't feel like going back to Konoha," Naruto hummed and beamed at the slacked jaw toad. "I haven't seen anything outside of the islands that make up the Elemental Countries."

A giggle escaped her lips when Gamakichi smacked his webbed hand across his forehead. Did he really expect her to go back when she had never seen anything? She hadn't even seen their neighboring island Wano Country. The Captain told me that it is closed off from the rest of the world and that they don't have chakra like us. The blonde hummed and folded her legs together.

"Do you even realize the danger that you're putting yourself through?" Gamakichi demanded. Naruto blinked and the toad picked up his smoking pipe from the sand. "Do you still carry that much pride that you think returning back means you can't accomplish yours and Jiraiya's dream?"

The blonde dropped her smile and fixed her eyes at the crashing waves. For just a second, the waves faded and a smiling white-haired man flashed before her eyes. In that second, the sea changed to a port and her heart clenched with an aching pain as black eyes stared at the ocean with so much longing.

'The best time of my life was when I took that mission to find the Fourth Hokage's father and inform him about his son, because I made a dear friend in the end and saw the true nature of the countries affiliated with the World Government.'

She wanted to make that same discovery like Jiraiya.

"Going back means giving up on my temporary freedom and I ain't giving that up until Kakashi tells me that I have to take over," Naruto commented. Gamakichi lowered his pipe and she hardened her eyes. "I'm not giving up on my first dream because of a little hiccup. I don't understand why you see the whole thing as a big deal."

Gamakichi exhaled and looked at the tumbling, chaotic waves that loomed over them like a dark shadow. His eyes didn't soften, not that she expected him to soften his eyes because of a comment like that. Not even when he had been tiny, did the toad show any signs of being a softie. No, he has always been a smartass. She snorted.

"You really don't know yourself, do ya?" Gamakichi rolled his eyes when she raised her eyebrows at him. "You spent three years chasing Sasuke even though you two have been a team less than a year. How do ya think you will feel if you stay with that captain of yours? You think you can leave him that easily when Kakashi calls you back?"

If I'm going to be your Captain then it's my job to take care of you and our future crewmates. The words echoed in her ear as the leaves rustled in the background. Ace was kind and a great guy to be around. If it was not for her future responsibilities and her goals then she probably would have felt an even greater weight on her heart.

No, there was a slight heaviness in her heart because her friend looked sincere and genuine when it came to that promise of his.

"I have a village to lead and a whole fucked up system to change," Naruto answered with a grin. The toad blinked and the blonde straightened her arms until a clear crack echoed between them. Her back sang with relief and the blonde nodded. "No matter how much I enjoy being around Ace, that seems more important to me."

We have a system that fails the next generation and a system that discriminates everyone. She clicked her tongue and rubbed the back of her neck. They had a system that placed too much pressure on young children and had their adults die before they could even reach fifty. A system that refused to acknowledge their mistakes and one that would allow the murder of innocent children and civilians.

I had never been that disappointed in the Third until Obito told the story.

That hadn't been justice but a pure genocide, no matter how she looked at it.

"You're really sticking to that goal? You are really sticking to that plan?" Gamakichi asked, blinking. His tone colored with surprise as the pipe crashed to the ground like he didn't believe for a moment that she had a greater agenda for her time as Hokage. Why would he? She never told anyone about her political plans for the village.

"If you really have those kind of thoughts, Naruto then you have to aim for Hokage."

There had been more than one reason for her desire for that hat.

"The Hokage can make the biggest change and they have the most power in the village," Naruto replied. She hummed and closed her eyes as the gentle breeze tickled her neck. "If I want a future where my future kids and their generation can be kids for just a little bit longer then I've to be the one to take over."

Gamakichi eyed her. "You aren't pregnant, are you?"

Naruto blinked and blinked before cracking at the question. Pregnant? Now that was definitely not something she planned on. I've always been careful when it came to that department. Children were a joy, sweet and…they could be little shits. She was only seventeen, nearly eighteen and way too young to be a mother.

"I haven't gotten laid since Shikamaru and me decide to break off our arrangement five months ago," Naruto said, clutching her stomach. Gamakichi bobbed his head before jerking his head at her. Right, I never told him about that. Not that she wanted to tell him but honestly why would she tell him? It had been their own business.

They did a pretty good job of hiding it from the others if you asked her.

"What happened?" Gamakichi demanded. "And when did it even started?"

I just wanna forget, Shikamaru.

Her ribs began to scream as the blonde closed her eyes. Should she tell the toad? Well he wouldn't judge her like the others would have judged them. She loved Hinata, Sakura and hell even Ino but they would never understand their arrangement. They probably would tell me that I'm way too innocent and naïve if I think I wouldn't develop any feelings. Naruto snorted.

Other than the wonderful rounds of sex, her feelings for Shikamaru had never moved on from friendship.

"It started when Ero-Sennin died because Shikamaru and me needed a way to cope with the grief of losing our mentors," Naruto answered. Gamakichi frowned as the cloud floated and glided through the clear blue sky. "But I found that avoiding the whole process wasn't doing either of us any good. It wasn't healthy for either of us so I broke things off."

The toad blinked. "That was actually smart of you."

"Shikamaru is one of my best friends but I don't want us to end up in a situation where it affects our whole life," Naruto replied with a scowl. She shook her head and gazed at the sparkling, still blue water of the sea. "Besides, he was spending more time with Temari and once he finally acknowledge his feelings then I'm going to be tossed away."

Gamakichi eyed her with a frown playing on his lips and the blonde raised a single eyebrow at him. He made no comment but the troubled look in his eyes told her everything. Should I have used a better description? She didn't know the whole polite way to describe what would happen. What could she say? Set aside? Break up? Nothing worked.

Besides breaking up implied they had been dating and that never happened.

"Want me to smack him?"

Naruto rolled her eyes. "You think if I was heartbroken that I wouldn't hit him? It was nothing but sex."

Gamakichi only stared at her for the longest time before bobbing his head. The doubt in his eyes told her that her dear friend did not believe for one moment that she was capable of differentiating between her emotions. I know I can be an idiot but it doesn't mean I can't tell the difference between them. She should have been jealous when it became obvious Shikamaru was beginning to develop feelings for Temari, but she felt nothing.

No sadness or anything, only amusement and happiness for her friend.

"Naruto, are you sure that you aren't going on this insane journey to find out about your grandfather?" The toad asked. The question hovered between them as his eyes fixated on her. "You were always asking Pops and Jiraiya about your parents' family. Even though your Mom is officially an orphan, no one knew about your grandfather."

'Even when your grandmother died, your grandfather rarely came to Konoha to check up on Minato. I thought he woulda take him with him but he decided to leave him behind.'

That was the only clue Jiraiya gave her of the relationship between her father and grandfather. They had almost no contact, which made her grandfather almost a good-for-nothing bastard. He could be the devil for all I care but he probably needed him while he was growing up. She clicked her tongue and tilted her head.

"I don't know how I can find out about that man if no one tells me his name," Naruto observed. "I doubt he would even recognize me as his son's daughter when he was barely around my Dad while he was growing up."

Naruto, if things had been different then I would've never allowed you to grow up in an environment similar to mine. When your Mom told me about you, I promised myself that I would be an even better father then the one I had.

She cleared her throat and rubbed the back of her neck as Gamakichi regarded her with solemn eyes. She took a deep breath and dug her hands into her pockets. Would things have been different if her father had been alive? Would she still crave the sea if her parents had been around? Maybe. The desire for the sea might be in her blood for all she knew.

"You know that there is a reason Jiraiya wanted you to wait until the whole Akatsuki thing was over."

The blonde bobbed her head. "Well I couldn't go out and explore the world around me if I had a bunch of missing nins after me and Kurama. Now that part of my life is over, I'm now free to do whatever the fuck I want."

As long as she maintained her loyalty to Konoha, the Shinobi Union and the Daimyo, then she was a free woman in everything but name only. Honestly the Daimyo is only the figurehead and if they plan to cause any wars then I'll end them. She eyed the strolling cloud and bobbed her head. No more future shinobi was going to die for some pointless war.

"You're never going to be free," Gamakichi observed. "You're now a symbol of peace to the people and summons in the Elemental Countries."

Naruto closed her eyes and clicked her tongue. It was better than being seen for the monster inside of her and yeah it was nice to be a hero, but she wasn't actually a hero. I can't have fun if all my friends are stuck in that infinite genjutsu. She rubbed the back of her neck and eyed her ramen. If it wasn't for that lesson Kakashi taught them, she would never even share her ramen.

But they were only as strong as their weakest link and right now that masked guy was weak from hunger.

"Seeing the world is good enough for me…for now."

Gamakichi eyed her with stilted eyes like he didn't believe for one minute that she would stay still and the blonde only offered him a sly smile. It's through my journey with Ace that I'll make my decision on what to do next. The idea of a World Government made no sense. The idea that everyone was treated equally in that kind of government was nonsense.

No one was born equal and those with power would abuse it if left unchecked.

"I'm terrified of what is going through your mind because you usually have some insane idea brewing inside of you."

Naruto grinned.

"Oh c'mon, the only insane idea would be me going back to Konoha with a mini-me!"


"Why do you look so grumpy?"

Naruto eyed the scowling masked man and glanced at her smiling captain. Both males dropped the piles and piles of wood onto the sandy ground before sinking into the ground. Really what happened for Masky to be upset. She thinned her lips and handed the cup of steaming ramen to the masked man.

She snuck a glance at Ace and the male only offered her a warm-belly laugh before flashing her an apologetic smile. Now I really wanna know what on earth happened between those two. Her captain only ever gave her those smiles when he knew he had done something really stupid. But what on earth did he do?

"Your captain wanted to get drunk," the masked man grumbled, snatching the offered chopsticks from her hand. She blinked and swirled her head at the black-haired teen, who let out a nervous laugh. His black freckles gleamed and glinted as the laughter continued to come out of the male's lips.

She should be furious and upset with the knowledge Ace wasn't taking their situation seriously, but a huge desire to laugh overrode that desire of hers. Of course, her captain wanted to get drunk. He loved to party after all if that constant need of his to sing and drink during their time on that boat told her anything.

"Must you follow a drunken idiot?" Kurama growled. The blonde blinked and thinned her lips slightly before balling her hands into a fist. Of course her friend was not at all happy with the knowledge of what Ace wanted to do. Why would he be happy? The tailed beast had made it clear during the lead-up to her journey that he hated her plan.

"Ace isn't a drunk or an idiot," she retorted to the beast. She could practically see the fox rolling his eyes at her and the blonde could only snort at her friend. "It isn't wrong for a person to want fun! You gotta admire him for keeping up this energy because anyone else would have lost it by now."

The tailed beast grunted. "You're only saying that because you're attracted to that idiot."

"Ace might be good-looking but y'know I wouldn't praise him because I like his body," Naruto declared, rolling her eyes. She glanced at her smiling captain and the masked man before glancing at the wood. "Just cuz I like his looks, doesn't mean I'm braindead or do you think I'm like Karin?"

Kurama laid his head down in her mindscape and flicked his tail at her. "You aren't going to deny your attraction to the idiot human male?"

It's only a physical attraction and even then it will just fade away after a couple of more weeks. She shifted the weight to her left foot and regarded the raising waves. Physical attraction was nothing new to her. Despite what Sakura and the other girls believed when it came to her, she was not at all ignorant when it came to physical and emotional attraction.

Naruto glanced at her beaming captain and allowed her eyes to linger on the freckles painted against the bridge of Ace's nose before moving down to his stomach. For a civilian-raised man, she could not deny the fact her captain was a man in shape. Her lips twitched slightly when he scratched his head.

Was that a nervous tic or was it something else entirely?

"If you want to party then we have to get out of here," Naruto scolded. Ace blinked and dropped his shoulders while the masked man slurped on her precious miso ramen. "We can't waste all of our precious sake because you wanna party."

Ace curled his lips into a pout and slumped his shoulders like a disappointed little puppy. Naruto's lips tugged into a smile and the blonde tiptoed before ruffling those curly black locks of her captain. His hair was softer than even Sakura's pink locks and his grey eyes held a glint that reminded her of the silvery moon. Her stomach flipped and danced when silver eyes rested on her.

Maybe her stomach flipped and danced because Ace seemed genuinely pleased when she offered this kind of action to him. The bastard and I never had that kind of relationship and Konohamru keeps telling me that he's a big boy, who doesn't need to be babied. She chuckled and flashed a smile at Ace, drinking in his sun-kissed skin.

Someone cleared their throat and Naruto tore her eyes away from Ace, focusing her gaze on the Masked Man. The blue-haired teen rubbed his mouth and regarded the two of them with uncomfortable eyes. Why did he look at them like that? It was normal for her to be this touchy when it came to people. Perhaps, his culture didn't find touch to be something done in public.

If that's the case then Sasuke will fit in with his country.

"What about if we had a little bit of sake?" Ace pleaded, dropping his head slightly. His grey eyes fixated on her hand, staring at it like he didn't know what to make of her touch, before moving up to her eyes. "Y'know you want a little bit of sake, Fishcake."

His words lured her in, tempting her to give into his demands and his eyes gleamed with mischief. This was temptation. Sake tasted good and it never made sense why Ero-Sennin always warned her about drinking and gambling, when he did the same thing. A little bit of alcohol isn't a bad thing. She glanced at her bag and relaxed her shoulders.

"If either of you plan to party then we're never getting out of here!" The masked man warned. "We still have a job to do."

Naruto jerked her head slightly and hummed a little tune as her hand continued to comb through the soft, curly black locks that belonged to Ace. If she allowed herself to give into the tantalizing offer of Ace. I could ask Ace to convince me. She shook her head and stared at her hopeful captain before glancing at the pleading eyes of the blue-haired male.

If she gave into the temptation then they were never going to get out of here.

"Sorry Freckles but Masky wins this round."

Ace groaned and dropped his head like a disappointed little kid and Naruto giggled. Her captain was probably around the same age as her but he had mannerism that reminded her of a little kid. Her laughter grew slightly louder and her heart almost exploded when the male grinned at her. He smiles reminds me of the sun. She blinked as the blood inside of her rushed to her cheeks.

Grey eyes drank her in and Naruto felt her lips twitched into a smile as a clear yelp pierced through the air. A yelp? She twisted her head around and almost stumbled if Ace hadn't grabbed her arm. He pulled her in close to his hard chest, gazed down at her with concern before glancing at the masked man, who dropped his jaws.

Why was Masky dropping his jaw at them?

"You got yourself a boyfriend, didn't you?" Gamakichi's voice boomed throughout the air, causing a couple of birds to change their course. The large toad dropped a pile of books onto the sandy beach and gazed at her and Ace with amused eyes as he wiggled his pinky webbed-hand at her. A large amused smirk played on his lips while Ace gawked at the large toad.

The blonde only flushed a bright shade of red and spluttered. "Ace ain't my boyfriend and I'm very much single!"

Masky blinked and looked almost doubtful of her words while steam erupted from either sides of Ace's head. He is going to become a tomato if he keeps blushing! She covered her laugh as the black-haired teen looked away from the three of them with flushed cheeks. Her captain's hair flapped and gently hit her as grey eyes focused on the sand.

"If he isn't your boyfriend then is he a new fuck buddy that I don't know about?"

The blonde groaned and covered her face as Ace looked down at her with large eyes. Why the hell were they judging her for her previous arrangement? She was a free woman. If a man could have a one-night stand or even have the friends-with-benefit arrangement without being judged, then the same should go for a woman.

"I should have kept my agreement with Shikamaru a secret from you," she grumbled. "I shouldn't have admitted it to you and anyways, I told ya that I haven't gotten laid in the last five months."

Ace and Masky exchanged glances before flushing a deep-shade of red that reminded her of a tomato. The redness in Ace's cheeks spread, moving from his cheeks to right down till his chest. I could probably cook an egg on him with how red he is. She cleared her throat and averted her eyes away from the male before fixating her gaze on her smirking summon.

"That was way too much information that I didn't need to know," Masky muttered, flickering his eyes to her before glancing at Ace. The black-haired teen pulled his face and then bobbed his head in agreement. Naruto only threw a dirty look at Gamakichi. "But I'm kinda curious to know who the fuck was the lucky bastard to get that kind of arrangement."

Naruto rolled her eyes. "Once we make a boat and go to the Grandline then you can ask Shikamaru about the whole thing. That is if that lazy bastard isn't too scared to admit to Temari that we fucked when they had that unresolved thing going on between them."

Ace blinked and tilted his head while Masky just gawked at her. What? You think I would keep that kind of thing a secret? She hadn't been prude growing up and she was definitely not going to start being one now. She probably would never speak to the full extent of the positions and the locations they did it, but she would never deny it.

It was just another natural process of life.

"Now that one question has been answered, mind telling me how this toad got here?" Masky asked. He paused and glanced at Gamakichi, who still had his eyes fixated on the large hands of her captain. Those very large hands that seemed intent on cradling her and protecting her from the large amused toad. "And is it here to save us?"

Naruto turned her head away from the hard planes of Ace's chest and fixed her eyes on the scowling man. "Don't call Gamakichi an it! He is a male and should be treated with the same respect as a human! Do you call humans an it?"

Gamakichi grunted and bobbed his head while Masky only flushed a light shade of red. The blonde puffed her cheeks and snuggled even closer to the heated chest of her captain. The warmth felt good and relaxed her aching body. God, would she kill for a comfortable bed or even for some homemade ramen. She let out a content sigh as Ace's chuckle vibrated down her spine.

"Can you just please tell me how this toad came?" Masky cried.

"Why the hell should we answer ya?" Gamakichi demanded, swirling his smoke pipe at them. The toad hovered the large smoke pipe over the male and narrowed his eyes at the blue-haired man. "You know how lucky you are to have Naruto with you? Because if it wasn't for her, I wouldn't even bring you all those shipbuilding books from that old man!"

The blonde rubbed the back of her neck and laughed nervously when Ace and Masky exchanged glances before glancing back at her. I knew I should have been more open when it comes about my abilities. She chuckled and blinked when Ace gazed down at her with curious eyes. The silent question shone through his eyes and the blonde sighed.

"I summoned Gamakichi here," she answered. "And asked him to get a couple of books from an old…friend of mine."

Masky eyed her. "Then if you could bring him here then could you have gotten us out of this mess? We didn't have to make a boat if you could have done the same thing for us."

The blonde thinned her lips and removed herself from Ace's clutches as Gamakichi sunk back down into the sand. She could have flown them out of here but the lack of direction was going to make things difficult for them. If I fly with those two with no navigation then we're screwed. The three of them might crash down to the sea if she wasn't careful.

"I could have gotten us out of here," she admitted. Ace blinked while Masky flung his arms up in the air. I need a better nickname for him because I can't keep calling him Masky. Naruto exhaled and shook her head before flashing them a weary smile. "But if I don't know the way then it would have been pointless."

Masky pinched his nose. "You should have told us!"

"If Naruto told me then I woulda tell her not to do it," Ace admitted. Naruto blinked while Gamakichi lowered his pipe as grey eyes fixated on her. "I want an adventure and to have Naruto give us the easy way out, would ruin all that fun. Where's the fun if she just got us out of here without any work? No, this way more fun."

Naruto gazed at her beaming captain while the blue-haired man smacked his face. Does he really mean that? Or is he doing this to reassure me that he didn't mind my decision? It was difficult to tell. Her friend might offer her a smile that made her feel warm but a goofy grin did not mean a person was an easy person to read.

Sometimes a grin was a way to hide their emotions.

"I felt the idea would be way too boring," Naruto admitted as Gamakichi eyed Ace with amusement dancing in his eyes. "Besides, Gamakichi is becoming like his old man and becoming picky on who can ride his head. You know his father made me ride the top of his head for a whole day, trying to make me fall off?"

Gamakichi snorted. "Didn't you tell Pops that he was a piece of shit because he refused to acknowledge that a 12-year-old summoned him?"

The blonde only rolled her eyes while Ace's eyes glinted with a burning curiosity. Masky snorted as if he found the idea to be an understatement, which only made her eyebrows twitched. The bastard acted like he knew her whole personality when they spent only a couple of minutes with each other. She sighed.

"Did Gamabunta forget that Ero-Sennin wouldn't summon him because he is scared of his temper?" Naruto retorted. "Besides, he called me a liar when I told him I summoned him!"

The large toad eyed her. "I heard you told Pops that you were the boss and his master. Why do you think he made ya do that? You were and still a very rude little shit."

"Well this rude little shit saved your ass," she grumbled. "You weren't this cocky when you were able to ride my head!"

Masky and Ace kept exchanging glances before fixating their eyes on the large toad, who only rolled his eyes at her. I miss the old Gamakichi, who was still kinda cute. She scowled and folded her arms against her chest as the toad looked away from her with a scowl playing on his lips. Her two crewmates glanced at each other and snorted at them.

She narrowed her eyes at them and dared them to make another comment. Masky flinched and quickly looked away from her while Ace regarded the scowling toad and her with a smile playing on his lips. Why the hell was he smiling like that? There was nothing amusing about the whole situation between them.

"Gamakichi-san, why don't you join us?" Ace asked. Gamakichi blinked and blinked while Naruto dropped her jaw as her captain smiled even wider at the scowling toad that loomed over them. "It's kind of obvious that you worry about Fishcake a lot, so you can come with us to keep an eye on her. I know if my little brother is travelling with a bunch of people then I would want to make sure that they take care of him."

Gamakichi blinked and then inspected the grinning male while Naruto blinked. Ace has a little brother? She hummed and regarded her smiling captain. The softness in his eyes told her that her friend probably loved and adored his little brother. If their bond was anything like the one that Sasuke had with his brother then she had to work extra harder on keeping her captain safe.

"You can't coddle your younger sibling forever even if you think they are being an impulsive idiot again," Gamakichi observed. Ace and Masky blinked while Naruto scowled at the toad, who fixed his eyes on her. "Besides, why the fuck would I follow a stranger? I'm not like that blond-haired knucklehead over there!"

Naruto rolled her eyes. "I love you too, Gamakichi."

Ace chortled as the toad twisted his lips into a scowl while Masky just looked at them like they were insane. She chuckled and glanced at the empty cup of ramen on the ground before looking up at the clear blue sky. Even though things seemed bad, her whole body felt light from the atmosphere around her. Her lips hadn't stretch this much in the last three months.

"My name is Portgas D. Ace!" Her captain grinned. "Now your argument doesn't work! We aren't strangers anymore."

"That wasn't the point and you know it!"


"Before Gamakichi left, he mentioned you need to complete some ceremony."

Naruto put down her chopsticks and placed her cup of ramen on the ground as Ace and Masky fixed their gaze on her. Had it been too much for her to hope that those two wouldn't focus on the fact that she had to bribe Gamakichi to hold off the contract ceremony? Why couldn't they forget about it? Their boat was way more important than some ceremony.

She tucked a strand of her hair behind her ear. "You wanna know what is all about, don't you?"

The two males nodded and the blonde gazed at the large fish jumping down into the ocean. Was it important that they knew the details? It wasn't like it affected them. Then again if I'm going to continue summoning Gamabunta and Gamakichi then I have to tell them, because our sake would be affected. She chuckled and looked up at the sky.

"Well you did give half of our sake to Gamakichi-san," Ace grumbled. Naruto winced and flashed an apologetic smile while Masky only rolled his eyes at their grumbling friend. Honestly, I might need to calculate the expenses again and get some actually training on how to cook. She grunted and stared at the sparkling waters. "You had to have a reason for bribing Gamakichi-san with that much sake and well if you have a problem then we should work together."

'Fine but the moment you reach a suitable age to drink then we will exchanged sake!"

She shuddered and grimaced as a pair of bloodshot eyes flashed before her eyes. It might have been over a year since Jiraiya died but Naruto could still recall how hangover the man became after his shots with Gamabunta. If I was in Konoha then it won't be a huge problem. There was no one that would rely on her and until they could get a couple of good, reliable crewmates then she couldn't just disappear off the surface of the planet.

Rubbing the back of her neck, the blonde sighed. "I just have to get drunk with Gamabunta and Gamakichi."

Ace and Masky exchanged glances and then slacked their jaws at her. The blue-eyed teen snorted and leaned her whole body back as their gaze flickered from her to their ramen. What? Do they think that only humans drink alcohol? She rolled her eyes and placed her head on top of the palm of her left hand as everyone gazed at her.

"Toads drink alcohol?" Ace commented. "Now that is something I wanna experience!"

Her cheeks stretched and her stomach rumbled with happiness as grey eyes gleamed with excitement. She felt her whole body shiver with joy and amusement as a laugh bubbled inside of her stomach. Of course her captain wanted to join her when she did this experience. Her captain would never turned down an opportunity to drink.

Masky pinched his nose. "Of course you wouldn't turn down the chance to party."

"Ace will never turn down the chance to party," she agreed with a smile. Ace let out a huge belly laugh and the blonde grinned before picking up her ramen as her eyes fixated on the grinning male. "But if you guys really want to experience the whole thing then I'll ask Gamabunta to let you guys join me when I summon him. At least I won't be getting wasted by myself."

Ace cheered and punched the air with his fist while the blue-haired teen gazed at her with blank eyes. The blonde blinked and tilted her head as those blue eyes inspected her. What was going through the male's mind? His eyes really showed no emotion, not even the usual serious glint in his eyes, and that only made her thinned her lips.

The man finally cleared his throat. "You know whenever you and Gamakichi talked about summoning, I keep thinking back to that storybook that talked about shinobi. It's an infamous book in the Grandline that speaks about having a character that will break a curse. The World Government forbid its publication but it's a good book."

"Then…I'll break that curse," Naruto quoted. Masky blinked while Ace gazed at her with wide eyes. "If there is such a thing called peace then I'll seize it! I'll never give up because that is my shinobi way."

For some reason your Dad seemed insistent that you should be named after my character.

Her throat clogged up and her eyes almost burned like it always did whenever she thought of her godfather. Reading that book gave her a better understanding of why the name Naruto had been given to her. The name that brought her so much teasing during her Academy years, was the name of a man who never gave up even when things didn't look up for him.

"I guess you would have read the book when you have the same name as the character."

They hoped that no matter what was your gender that you would be like the character in the book.

She clicked her tongue as the breeze swept her hair to the side. Her dream to break that curse shouldn't just stick to their own countries and alliances but moved onto the countries remaining in the World Government. As long as they will discriminate for lineage, there will never be peace. There should be a time when kids didn't have to worry about social injustice.

"Ero-Sennin told me that my parents named me after his character because they wanted me to be someone who never gave up."

I'm going to be the Hokage and once I become Hokage, I'm going to make a system that is fair to everyone! Her childhood words echoed in her ears and she clenched her hands into a fist before looking up at the sky. The shinobi world was unfair to children but it was crueler to the children born to families and clans that were either merchants or civilians.

Children born to a civilian family would never be given the same priority.

"You know the man who wrote that book?" Masky demanded. "Can I meet him? Because his work was really interesting and I tried to find more versions of his book but the genre is…"

"Erotic," Naruto finished with a chuckle. "Yeah, I was upset to find out that he could make such a meaningful book and gave up on making such meaningful books because of sales."

Ace blinked and scratched his head while the blue-haired man bobbed his head in agreement. Maybe I should give him my copy of the book if he wants to understand the whole thing. She chuckled. Her captain might not even enjoy the book or the messages because it might conflict with his own ideals. Not many people like those kind of books.

"So can I meet him?" Masky cried.

Jiraiya-chan was killed in battle.

The words echoed in her ear and for a brief moment, the blonde felt herself slipping back into her 16-year-old self and having the mournful eyes of Fukasaku looking back at her. Even now, her heart ached and mourned for the man who made her feel human. He was the one that taught me what it means to be human. She exhaled, rubbed her eyes and looked away from them.

We're getting a new set of clothes, Naruto!

He would probably argue with her about doing the whole pirate thing without him.

"Ero-Sennin was killed over a year ago."

With those words, she left the two males alone and ignored the concern eyes of her captain. A part of her knew that she should just tell them about her whereabouts, but a larger part of her just couldn't say those words. Even though her whole body was now as flappable as a strand of ramen noodle around them, it didn't mean she was ready to spill things to them.

She just needed some time to herself.


A/N: For the reviewers who want to know why I haven't updated in the last week despite the promised date then it is because I felt the need to correct the quality of these last two chapters. I also received my laptop a little bit later than I was told, which is also caused for the delay. The next couple of chapters for Ripples, Reconstruction, Reading Guardian Chronicles and Butterfly Effect will be uploaded in the upcoming weeks so please be patient with me.

Masked Deuce, or Masky as Naruto decided to nickname him in her mind, is a character who appears in One Piece novel A but I haven't read the book and I only have some knowledge of him through the One Piece Wiki page.

Do tell me of your thoughts on this chapter and the interaction between the characters.