Previously on The Deception Gone Awry:
And with that he was fast asleep, not knowing that his subtle actions had been noted by his current guard. She had seen the nurses actions and their own medical experience made them suspicious and she had stayed in place to see Naruto read the note the nurse had slipped them before going to sleep. She leapt down from her perch, removing the genjutsu she placed around her to make her impossible to notice as she strode forwards silently and plucked the note from Naruto's arm, reading it quickly and memorising the contents of the message before placing it back in place, her eyes widening as she realised the connotations of the note and what it meant. She disappeared into the shadows as the door opened, the nurse barely catching a glance of the rabbit mask before she was hidden once more. This was something that she would have to tell Cat-taichou about as soon as possible, especially considering the captains attachment to the boy...
Chapter 14: The cat is out of the bag... Or is it?
Persona: Naruto Uzumaki
"We have quite the problem brewing with your little shadow clone idea brat, and you already know that for me to tell you what it is and how I think you can solve it, we have to have a little 'negotiation'." The voice of the 9 tailed fox didn't startle or scare Naruto anywhere nearly as much as it had the night before when he was recovering from his rather damaging injuries. He remembered the note from what he assumed was his masked friend from the other night but then he had fallen asleep, so how could the Kyuubi know more than he did about the matter?
The small stiffening that had crept into his spine when the Kyuubi had spoken vanished and he began to stride down the darkened sewer towards the ominous red light that illuminated where Kyuubi was being held, taking his time in order to begin pondering the potential issues that could have arisen that the Kyuubi could have picked up on that he had missed. He did not doubt the fox's sincerity about the issue, after their chat last night there was little reason or profit that the Kyuubi could gain by lying to him over such a thing, especially considering what it stood to lose should Naruto think it was lying…
*Flashback*
"And that is the story of the Rikudo sage and how he fought the only thing that could be considered mightier than me, the ten tailed Juubi, and managed to defeat it and live. He cast its body away to be sealed in the moon for all eternity whilst the products of its power, me and the other tailed beasts, were raised as children of the man who created us like it was a mildly strenuous chakra control exercise. Do you now understand why you and the rest of your pitiful race are insignificant in comparison to those that have come before you?"
Naruto nodded in acknowledgement of the statement despite the insult that accompanied it, thefox did after all have a point with what it was saying. In comparison to the tales that it told of the sage Naruto really was as weak as a newborn baby and it would take an impossible amount of training and skill to come even close to meeting the fox's standards.
However, Naruto's curiosity was now piqued and there were several questions that he needed answering, like how did the tailed beasts go from being infants taught by a figure such as the Rikudo to being the mindless being of destruction and rage that the Kyuubi was said to personify. However, there was a more pressing question and one that Naruto felt necessary to ask before saying anything more.
"So why did you decide that you needed to inform me of all this on our first meeting? I can understand that you are trying to show me that I am really weak in the grand scheme of things, but how does that help you in any way? Because no offence but I seriously doubt that you did it out of the goodness of your heart, if any of that even exists…" To his surprise the fox grinned at the unsubtle insult and laughed in a very un-fox like manner for a moment before replying in the same tone that it always did in spite of its obvious humour.
"It is good to see that you occasionally use that thing between your ears for something other than pranks or trying very badly to seduce that pink haired girl that you seem to have your heart set upon for some unknown reason. I suppose you are correct however and that I should enlighten you to why I am doing this, lest your rather insubstantial brain fails to work it out for itself. My… Angle I suppose it could be called is a simple one. Since I awoke when your teacher shattered your entire torso, which was comprehensive work by him I am much impressed, I have been examining this damnable seal and its intricacies, and I have ended up with two possible ways to approach and deal with you brat."
It took a deep breath in and out, and the air washed over Naruto like a warm breeze, surprisingly refreshing considering its origin and whose breath it belonged to. The Kyuubi seemed to register his surprise but chose to continue its original speech rather than say something.
"The first way is to treat you like the annoying shit stain that you act like most of the time, and to take out my anger for being contained once again upon you. This will keep you weak and most likely lead to you dying rather young, within the next three years if I were to place a guess. This whilst having the advantage of having me get out of this miserable cell earlier does mean that the Shinigami will take nearly all of remaining chakra as part of the seals function and transport me to Makai, which is not a place I would like to return to with so little power in my grasp."
The fox actually shuddered at this point, probably at the idea of it being so weak Naruto thought almost snarkily before concentrating once more as the fox continued to speak.
"The alternative is that you and I come to a set of agreements that mean that you live until you die of old age or the seal breaks, which would then lead to me being released into the world once more, and I would reform into my original physical form after a period of time. So it doesn't take a genius to work out that the second option is more preferable to me, even though you might live for 70-80 years like others of your accursed clan, it's better than me having to fight my way to the top of Makai to be able to leave the accursed place again."
With the fox having stopped speaking, this time properly rather than pausing for breath, Naruto couldn't resist the urge to burst out with his questions that had been increasing in number whilst the fox had been talking to him.
"What do you mean you would go back to Makai? I thought you had just told me that the great sage had created you here? And what have you discovered about the seal then? What do you…" Naruto was about to ask the Kyuubi what it had meant when it referred to him being part of a clan, as far as he was aware he was some no name orphan and that was why he had been chosen for the sealing to take place on him. He was cut short however when a burst of killing intent mixed with a deep growl stopped him cold.
The Kyuubi leaned forwards so that its muzzle was almost touching the bars of the seal, its grin gone and a serious expression in place. "Let us make this clear right now brat. Just because I have said that I will not hinder your growth does not mean that I will part with my knowledge for free. To make bargains is in a Kitsune soul and mine is no different, and the only things I can offer you are my knowledge and experience, as well as me willingly allowing you access to a small part of my chakra…"
Naruto took a minute to ensure that he correctly understood what the Kyuubi was talking about and more importantly so that he could work out what risks there were associated with making bargains with the Kitsune. Crossing his arms across his chest in a serious manner, he decided to be direct about his concerns and see how the Kyuubi responded to it. "What would you want in return for this knowledge and wisdom of yours? And why would I want to use your chakra anyways? Hokage-Jiji told me that it was highly poisonous to everything it touched when there was the big battle and you were sealed, so how would using it help?" The Kyuubi looked at him for a moment before sitting back up on its haunches with an exhalation of air.
"Well as I can assume that you will not do anything that will mess with the seals make up until you understand what it does and how, I instead wish for something a bit simpler to begin with until you learn some more about seals. But first to answer your questions on my chakra, my answer is a simple one brat. Who do you think worked to fix your spine from the damage that Kakashi had done to it? If you had been anyone else you would be crippled if not dead by now. My chakra is only poisonous and dangerous to those that I wish it to be deadly to; it is after all laced with all of my hate and anger. If we come to the right agreement you will be moved into the other category, in which only one has ever been in before now by my choice."
Naruto nodded and decided that he could question later what Kyuubi meant by its choice, instead he could feel himself beginning to awaken, so decided to wrap this up for the moment. "Well, state your wish and I will see if I can grant it, we can settle on the price on your end at a later date as I can feel our time running short so best to finish this before I awaken."
The Kyuubi didn't move other than raise an eyebrow, though Naruto took that as a sign of surprise in regards to his willingness to bargain with it. "Well brat, I have essentially be tossed from one container to another for almost 150 years, and let me tell you now this place." It gestured round the sewer with a rather grim tone in its deep voice. "Might as well be kami's own palace compared to the prisons that I have been kept in beforehand. So all I propose for now brat is that you let me experience the same sensations that you feel in the outside world, let me see, hear and touch what you experience."
Naruto cocked his head, confused not at the request but as how the Kyuubi expected him to be able to complete what it asked. "No offence Kyuubi, but how do I do that?" The fox sighed and looked down at him with an almost pitying look as Naruto started to fade, showing that he was waking to the real world once more.
"How do you humans get by with such substandard intellect? This is your mindscape brat, which means that I am part of your mind, so all you have to do is will it to be done and it will be done, now be gone, I wish to work in peace once more…"
*End Flashback*
And with that last statement Naruto had awoken, and it had taken him a few minutes to remember what the fox had said as he threw off the last vestiges of sleep. When he did remember he had thought very hard about letting the fox feel, see and hear everything he did. Nothing really happened, but he was struck with a wave of satisfaction that he assumed came from the fox.
Shaking off the memories as he stepped into the large room that contained the cage and the Kyuubi, he strode forwards much faster now, coming to stop in front of the cage once more. "What do you mean Kyuubi, how did you notice this problem and I didn't? Umi was fine when I saw her and I doubt anything is going to happen to her before I get out of here again." The Kyuubi shook its head in an almost amused manner before looking him in the eye.
"When you thought that I should see, hear and feel everything that you feel brat, I don't think you understood quite what you were doing. Even when you are asleep like now, your senses still react to outside stimuli and sensations. For example, after you went to sleep earlier the ANBU that had been watching you came and found the note that you had thought you had hidden oh so well up your sleeve. He wasn't even particularly quiet about doing it as well, so between that and the movement of the note against your arm it wasn't hard for me to work out what had happened."
Okay, so that was how the Kyuubi knew about something he didn't Naruto thought riley as he reached up and scratched his head apologetically. "Apologies and thanks then Kyuubi…" The Kyuubi spoke angrily at him.
"I wasn't finished yet brat, this bit is almost as important as the fact that you now might have the ANBU division on your tail as a possible traitor. Did you not notice how low your creations chakra was? I think that your rather serious injuries were transferred to your clones, and whilst it is impressive she survived, I would not advise continuing with your level of risk taking with her around."
Naruto took a moment to process the problems that the Kyuubi had given him, as he had thought earlier there was little reason for the Kyuubi to lie to him, it would not be productive for it to do so at this fragile stage in their 'relationship' after all. He then grinned and bowed to the Kyuubi, seeing the fox stiffen out of the corner of his eye line, a little gratitude and respect might continue to go a long way here after all.
"Well then I owe you thanks again Kyuubi, as if you had not raised these points with me I would have been in great trouble. So now I have to ask what would you like in return for your advice and wisdom on the two matters that you have raised? Those as well as any you might notice in the future that I manage to miss with my subpar skills."
The fox chuckled once more, this one containing less malevolence than those it had given before now. "Flattery will get you nowhere brat, though it was a semi-decent attempt for someone as socially inept as yourself. In regards to helping you with these types of problems, we shall consider my help to be payment for you allowing me access to your senses; after all I cannot give you help without the ability of course. Though it does mean that you will have to come up with something else to bargain my knowledge with instead brat, and I doubt you will be able to come up with something satisfactory to my standards."
Naruto grinned sheepishly, it had been worth a try at least and it seemed that the fox was more amused than offended which was probably a good thing. Despite the fox's doubts, he thought he had a good idea about what he could do in order to bargain with the being once more, but he would give it a little more thought first before he began to enact it. "Very well Kyuubi, what do you suggest that I do to solve these problems then? And I won't accept 'rip off the seal' or 'kill everyone in Konoha' as acceptable solutions."
This caused the fox's grin to grow even as it began to talk. "Well that's just a shame, they were my favourites. However, on a more realistic front, this is what I would advise you doing in this situation…"
They carried on talking for what seemed like hours, and by the end of it, Naruto could say that he was confident that the plan that he and the Kyuubi had come up with for one of the two problems was fool proof, though the other he was a lot less sure about the chances of him coming out of it in one piece. They were just finishing their discussions when Naruto felt the sensation of waking overcome him once more, and he decided to give the fox a little show of good faith and also to entice it into being more forthcoming in the future.
Closing his eyes and concentrating hard, he felt the room shift around him and the Kyuubi's rather startled bark, something he would remember as blackmail for a long time to come. Opening his eyes once more he saw that his mindscape had satisfactorily altered itself to recreate a section of woodland that he had spent his youth running around and playing in as he had not been welcome in the normal children play areas.
The Kyuubi appeared to have shrunk itself in order to avoid being skewered by the numerous trees that had sprouted around it, and it looked a cross between pleased and angry. Before it could express itself however, Naruto spoke for one last time before he woke, determined to get the point of the change across for the moment. "Consider this my show of good will towards our arrangement; I am sure you will enjoy a place to run around in." And with that he was gone, leaving the mindscape clear other than a rather confused but cautiously pleased fox that began to slowly explore its surroundings with ever increasing delight.
Persona change: Yugao Uzuki
She swore that her week couldn't get any worse at this stage, with Naruto at the very centre of her slowly increasing problems. First he pulls of his prank that whilst impressively done caused both her and her subordinates a lot more work, as well as a dressing down both from the Hokage and the ANBU supreme commander for not stopping the prank effectively, despite the fact that the ANBU had been restricted from engaging Naruto on previous prank sprees on order of the Hokage.
Then after watching Naruto get punished she failed to capture a spy that had infiltrated Konoha seemingly to spy directly on the boy, leading to another chewing out and extra work for her and her ANBU teams to try and uncover the spies hiding location in the sewers. Then Naruto requests to go out and look for the members of a lost caravan, and having sent him on his way with a smile and good luck Yugao had not honestly expected him to find anything despite her words to the Hokage that were to the contrary.
So when she then heard of what had happened from Himako after the chuunin had dropped him off at the academy, Yugao had then been ordered by the supreme commander secretly to follow up on the two's suspicions that there was a mole in Konoha's ranks that was working with the bandits, as it was unlikely that the bandits were the only group that were working the slave trade in the land of fire and they might all be connected and working with the same mole. Not that Yugao minded the idea of capturing a mole who was working against Konoha, that was very much part of the job description, but it was yet another job that she had to schedule into her already busy days.
Then there came the message from the Hokage to meet him at the hospital, barely three hours after she had crawled into her apartment to get ready for her night out with a group of her chuunin and Jounin friends, including a man who her female friends felt was a good match for her despite his rather debilitating cough, a fellow sword enthusiast by the name of Gekko Hayate. The village came first however and Yugao left despite the protests of those that were present, which included Hayate amongst those upset she was somewhat pleased to note.
That pleasant feeling had evaporated when she shushined into the hospital to be met with the Hokage's grim visage outside one of the emergency rooms. She admitted there had been a couple of tears when she had been informed of little Naruto's injuries and she was all ready to hunt her old captain down and have some rather choice words with him, until the Hokage then informed her of the spy's appearance and subsequent threat that was posed to the young boy in question, something she was annoyed that had been kept from her until now.
The Hokage placed her and her best squad now solely on finding the spy and protecting Naruto from any threat that may appear whilst he was not under the protection of Kakashi. She had raised an eyebrow at this and had pointed into the emergency room without a word, disbelief that the silver haired man would be able to do the job effectively with this incident between them. However Sarutobi would not hear of it and she was left to organise her soldiers to protection duty whilst she lead some of the others out to try and find some evidence of the spy at Naruto's apartment that could be used to track down or identify the spy properly.
They had found nothing however and she had returned to her apartment absolutely exhausted, so much so that when Hayate had knocked at her door the next morning, to ask if she wanted to go out and see a film with him, she was unfortunately rather ratty with him due to lack of sleep and had ended up closing the door in the man's face so that she could go back and collapse on the bed.
She would apologise to him later and arrange something, but the news that her subordinate had brought her when she roused herself the next evening was rather worrying and had to take priority. Listening to how the ANBU agent described the encounter, it was obvious to her that the spy was now trying to make contact with Naruto for whatever reason and she had no doubt that Naruto's curious mind would be able to resist the mystery the note had provided.
She had told her agents that she would follow him to the meeting point, with her sensors on standby to track her chakra in case she was right and it was the spy in question. True enough, when Naruto had awoken, just before dawn by the doctors who were to check him and discharge him, he had rushed through the tests before changing into his normal gear and leaping out of the window even as the doctor was finishing the sentence about him being okay to leave.
She followed him at a distance, as she already knew where he was going so there was little chance of losing him. She caught up with him just in time for him to enter the training grounds, in case the spy proved to be hostile for whatever reason and she needed to step in to protect him. She paused when she saw a young kunoichi enter the training grounds rather calmly, her size and profile roughly fitting the spy's, though that could be said for many of the serving ninja in the village, so that wasn't sufficient proof.
Looking closer at the girls face Yugao realised that she looked somewhat familiar, though she could not work out where from exactly for a moment until it hit her. Realising who the girl was however didn't really help Yugao in the slightest, why would Danzo's goddaughter be spying on the Kyuubi container?
Her answer was given a moment later when Naruto ran up to her smiling. "Nee-chan, there you are. What took you so long? I have been here agesssss." The woman, who was called Nami if Yugao remembered correctly, snorted in a rather unladylike manner at this last statement before engaging Naruto in a hesitant but friendly hug.
"I doubt that Naruto-san, I bet you have been here only a few minutes at best." She paused and then looked down at him with a small smile. "It is good to see that you are better again, you looked absolutely awful in the hospital yesterday."
Naruto grinned and shook his head. "Yeah Nee-chan, what is with the secrecy thing still? I know we did it when we were younger because you couldn't be seen with me for some reason, but why do we have to do it now that I am a shinobi too?" Yugao sighed with realisation as it came to her that Nami was probably not the spy, as the level of closeness between the two of them was far too much for such a first meeting, and what Naruto said about them having kept it secret was reasonable as well, after all the Hokage would have had a fit over Naruto and someone so near to Danzo associating so closely.
Deciding that now was the appropriate time to step in and reveal to Naruto several things that Nami had probably been hiding from him, Yugao leapt down from the tree she was in and into the training ground, whilst pulsing her chakra twice in succession to tell the sensors that they were clear to leave, noting that both Naruto and Nami stiffened at her appearance, though Nami seemed a lot more on edge that Naruto did, who waved sheepishly at her as she walked up to the two of them.
"Hi Yugao-chan, I guess the cat is out of the bag now ne?" Shaking her head at his seemingly indestructible cheeriness, Yugao gave him a small smile before turning to Nami and looking piercingly at her.
"Yes Naruto, I think it is. Now do you two mind explaining why you act like old friends even though I have never heard of you from Naruto, Nami-san? I imagine you are responsible from what Naruto has said thus far, so do you want to explain the details to him, or shall I?" Nami didn't overly react to the threat that Yugao had just given her, though that was to be expected from someone who was raised by the man who hated emotions in shinobi on duty.
"I will explain ANBU-san, I am afraid I do not know your full name and I would feel uncomfortable using the name that Naruto-san has given you in case that is a pet name of his, he does seem to have a habit of doing so I have noticed, certainly in my case it seems." Nami's response surprised Yugao slightly and she could merely do more than nod her head as Naruto butted in childishly.
"Nee-chan! That's not fair, you told me to call you that after all. And Yugao-chan is Yugao, she is awesome enough that she doesn't need a nickname like Kaka-baka does." Both kunoichi giggled at this statement before Nami nodded and turned back to Yugao.
"So I should refer to you as Yugao-san then? I was going to inform Naruto-san of everything today anyways, as I do not wish for people like you to assume that I am befriending him for the wrong reasons. Despite your concerns, my godfather actually forbid me from revealing the information that I am about to reveal to Naruto, so you needn't be concerned about his or my motives here." That will remain to be seen Yugao thought, but she gestured for Nami to continue in order to remove the now confused look that was on Naruto's face.
"The reason that I wished to keep our association together a secret Naruto-san is that there are those that think I would use our bond for the wrong reasons due to who I was raised by. If they had known of our meetings I am sure they would have stopped you from seeing me, probably by insinuating all sorts of lies about me and my godfather." That last statement was firmly aimed at Yugao, who had to admit that she probably would have told Naruto every dark rumour and half-truth she knew about Danzo's illusive root organisation in order to stop him meeting with Nami if she had known about the two of them.
She had to step in and state some facts before Nami could turn Naruto completely to her side. "True, but Danzo is known as the 'war hawk' for a reason, if he had his way we would probably still be at war with Kumo and Iwa." Naruto didn't seem to be listening to her however, and was now looking at her with a slightly unnerving expression.
"Yugao-chan, you wouldn't do that sort of thing to me just because of what one of my friends is associated with would you?" She caught herself halfway through nodding that she would as she realised where that question was leading her, but Naruto had seen the movement and read that as proof enough of her guilt. "Why would you do that Yugao? After all that you have seen me go through because of my day of birth, you should know as well as I do the damage that such ideas can cause, and the fact you would wish to do the same to me about one of my few friends… I think I need to go."
And with that he was gone into the trees, and Yugao found she didn't have the heart to go after him. He had a point; she had judged Nami just because of who she was and who raised her rather than even try talking to her first, which is how Naruto had been dealt with the entirety of his childhood. She was surprised when Nami's voice spoke from behind her, Yugao having turned to watch Naruto leave.
"We should go after him Yugao-san, it would not be advisable to leave him in that state running round the village, and anyone could set him off by accident." Yugao nodded hesitantly, but as they took off in the trees following Naruto's obvious trail, she couldn't help but ask a question that was bugging her about the situation.
"Why help me with this Nami-san, after all I did just essentially accuse you of paramilitary activities with your godfather." Which was paramount to treason in Konoha's laws, especially seeing as it would have involved some of the Hokage's ninjas, who were his and his alone to command.
Nami shrugged and smiled slightly at her. "I do not fault you for your predisposition towards me, it is one that my godfather cultivated for himself and I have to live with that. Which is why mine and Naruto's cases are different, even though he doesn't realise it. I was given the choice of learning my godfather's ways when my parents died, with all the possible impacts made available to me. So in a way I brought your treatment of me upon myself. Naruto however never had a choice, and that is why I am helping you, in order to make sure that he does not alienate one of his true friends and helpers on a misunderstanding."
Yugao nodded in understanding and approval, already her view of the other woman changing as they talked, before both of them upped their speed and disappeared from view in a flash, in order to catch up with their little friend.
Persona: Naruto Uzumaki
He had been sat there, on top of the Sandaime's head of the Hokage monument, for less than a minute when they caught up with him. Though he knew that either of them could have overtaken him mere minutes into their pursuit of him if they had wanted or felt the need to. He was glad that they hadn't done so; the run had done him good in calming him down and allowing him to think. He knew that Yugao had only intended to show that she wanted to protect him with her words, but they still hurt on several levels that he didn't want to admit to yet.
It also gave him chance to think over the encounter with his mysterious helper, who Yugao had referred to as Nami, and what he could work out from what had been said by the two kunoichi. Nami had certainly shown a lot more emotion than he had expected from their first meeting, but she was still rather difficult for him to deal with properly without arousing suspicion from Yugao at any point.
It seemed to have worked however as the two kunoichi landed on the head of the Hokage monument at roughly the same time, though Nami seemed to be rather out of breath from having kept up with Yugao's pace over that distance. Yugao stepped forwards cautiously but without even turning around Naruto spoke to reassure her. "It's okay Yugao-chan, I understand why you would do such a thing, you only meant me the best I am sure."
Rather than let it simply slide however Yugao seem to decide to be blunt about her feelings for once, something she was not prone for doing. "No it is not okay Naruto, I realise why you would be upset and it is a perfectly good reason to be angry with me. I promise I will never do something like that to you or anyone else, ever."
There was a silence for a few moments which Naruto was perfectly fine with, though he could hear Yugao shift a little uncomfortably as if waiting for his approval on her words, though why she cared that much he couldn't really fathom. In the end it was Nami that broke the silence with her own statement.
"So now that you have worked out your little issue, well once Naruto has given his approval over your apology, then would it be possible for me to find out what you have been up to Naruto-san? The rumour mill is rather wild with different tales of what you have been up to, all claiming to have come from the horses mouth as it were."
Naruto blushed slightly at the insinuation that Nami used, even though he was sure she was perfectly aware of what he had been up to and what had happened, she just seemed like that sort of person. He stood up and turned to smile at the two of them before speaking to Yugao. "It's fine Yugao-chan, though I am heartened by what you have said, and I will tell you all of what's happened over ramen if thats okay with you nee-chan? It's hardly like we need to keep things a secret anymore right?"
Nami shook her head at him before glancing at Yugao piercingly. "Well that all depends on what Yugao-san thinks is appropriate for the situation. Given who you are and the affections that the Sandaime seems to hold for you, it would not be good if word of you meeting in secret with me got out in the wrong way." Not to mention him being the container of the 9 tailed fox and currently under heavy guard due to her spying on him, but who was he to break up her little guilt trip with something as boring as the truth.
Yugao seemed to be debating it in her head for a moment and Naruto thought they were in the clear, but then she shook her head. "Sorry you two, if it was just me I would be okay letting you keep quiet, but after finding the note it is common knowledge that Naruto was meeting someone here and that means this will have to be included in the report to the Hokage. Though seeing as you two have known each other for ages I am sure that whilst the Hokage may not like it there is nothing that will come of it, as long as you don't let your godfather too close to him of course Nami-san."
Yugao looked apologetically at him when she finished speaking, but he shrugged and gestured at Nami. "Don't look at me, it wasn't me that wanted the deception in the first place. She is the one to talk to methinks." Nami shrugged as well, obviously this was not the worst case scenario she had expected when Yugao had appeared into the clearing with them, though he imagined if it had been any other ANBU it wouldn't have been as easy to deceive them so that was a good thing.
"I imagined that this would happen at some stage, though I never expected to be jumped by an ANBU of all things, is there a reason you were following Naruto around? Because it can't have been because of me as you didn't know we were friends." It was hard to maintain his usual composure as he listened to her subtlety, misleading Yugao with her words even whilst telling the truth.
Yugao shook her head and her posture became a bit more guarded as she evaded the question. "That is nothing for you to be concerned about Nami-san, but I must now leave to meet with my team and inform them of your acquaintance to each other so that no one tries to apprehend you as part of our investigation. Remember that your team is to meet at the Hokage tower at 9am Naruto-kun, you wouldn't want to be late." She came and gave him a quick hug, which was surprising from her but he supposed she was still trying to show that she was sorry for earlier, before she performed two hand seals and disappeared in a shushin.
He and Nami sat there for a moment in silence before Nami nodded her head, smile gone from her face and a serious expression completely overcoming it. "She is gone, it is lucky that she was not suspicious of our little act there, very well done for someone with no formal training Naruto-san. I did not expect you to be watch quite that closely I will admit, if she had been a sensor it would not have worked however."
Naruto had to admit he was a bit shocked by the change in personality, but he supposed she would be more like this when not trying to act a cover. "So you are the one from my apartment? I must admit that you're nicer to meet when you are not threatening me with a blade." Much prettier than he had imagined as well, her face almost typical of a pretty woman, thin but elegant with slightly rare green eyes, but not so much different as to stick out as some of the Kunoichi found themselves struggling with on infiltration missions as people recognised and remembered them easily when asked.
He didn't mention this little point however, somehow he knew that this woman wouldn't appreciate it, so when she simply nodded her head he decided to ask another rather pressing question instead. "So why reveal yourself to me? And in the manner that you did as well, it was hardly subtle and you must have known that they would have been suspicious."
This actually elicited a grin from her as she seemed to spend a moment formulating her response before answering him. "That was the point Naruto-san, they were meant to follow you and find us meeting up, though I am glad you were able to come up with that ruse by yourself as it made it easier to complete the act. As to why I have revealed myself to you, well it is so that you and I can meet and I can help you with your plan without risking being caught by your guards anymore. It was the most logical solution to the problem of the increased surveillance that has been place upon you."
If that was true, which he couldn't be sure about because she seemed better at lying than anyone Naruto had ever known, then there had been more thought put into this little encounter than he had thought was possible. He then decided to try riling her up a little as it had been so hard to do last time when he had been so nervous. "So can I call you Nami-chan then? And are you still up for that ramen."
It looked like he had hit an interesting nerve as her eye twitched for a moment before morphing into a devious smile. "Of course you can Naruto-san, I will leave it up to you too explain to your ramen waitress why you are taking another girl out a 'date' this morning however." The implication hit him and he blushed slightly before cursing, this woman was good damn it.
"Fine you win Nami-san, I won't call you chan if you don't imply this is a date to Ayame-chan, I have enough women on my... Tenten-chan! I need to find her before going to see the Hokage, otherwise she probably really will have my head for missing out on our training." Nami quirked her head to the side in a questioning manner.
"Is this the girl who you had one of your shadow clones imitate? She should be relatively easy to find." Naruto looked at her, what was she talking about? He didn't officially know where she lived, and it would be really bad if she thought he was stalking her. Nami smiled slightly again and pointed to the north. "It sounded like she is on Maito-san's genin team, and they are up every morning early and away from central Konoha on the Hokage's orders, something about noise complaints from all of the civilians around the city outskirts complaining about 'youthful noises.' At Naruto's slightly confused nod she leapt off with him following behind, unable to shake the feeling that he was about to enter a situation that he would never be able to forget...
AN: Right, this was a long time in the making, sorry for the long wait guys, but I had many issues over the last few months that have really impacted on my ability and will to write. I hope that this ridiculously long chapter makes up for all of that, once I finally got started again I found myself unable to find a suitable finishing point that would fit where I wanted to go.
I have realised how slow this story is going, and if you guys are all waiting for me to rush to the wave mission etc then i am afraid I am probably going to disappoint. With Naruto's involvement in the bandit incident, things will be changing quite quickly in what happens to team 7 and the other rookie teams, though how will be covered properly in the next chapter (Hopefully, if I don't get distracted with an interesting side arc again...)
Please Review or pm me, I like to hear what people think of my story, and this chapter might get re-done again if anyone manages to notice any major flaws in it that I have missed. Hope you enjoyed it Ja Ne!