Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto.

POV: IRUNA

Mirus had been a great help to me, while she isn't one of my flock, though I still don't have one. She had been helping me with my missions, especially with Tora. Then there's help with my seals.

I was reading the notes about nature chakra seals and elemental chakra seals in the book Kushina-sensei left me when Mirus showed up by my window.

'You have Uzumaki Eishis' notes.'

I looked up from the page and turned to Mirus.

"You knew him?"

'Yes. I belonged to his flock when he was alive. I often saw him writing in that book you hold. He had been learning about seals from his father then and nature chakra from us.'

"He was trying to make seals that were fueled on nature chakra or part of it."

'A tall feat he made for himself. Nature chakra is the most volatile, difficult to cultivate and use. His seals were sure to fail.'

"But there's a way to cultivate chakra just by your focus you can even use it."

'I believe you are speaking about becoming a sage.'

"Yes that…his notes only mention of using nature chakra for his seals, but not on how he would acquire the chakra using a seal."

'Do you not have a seal such as that?'

"I don't have a seal that can acquire nature chakra."

'Then, how does your banishment seal function? You're banishment seal requires a large amount of chakra to send someone away in this realm. I have seen you use it a number of times to send one child away and quite a fair distance even, during your ventures into that place you call the Forest of Death. You should have fainted just by using it twice.'

"I made that seal by mistake."

'Then it would be wise to see where the difference lies. I believe comparing your banishment seal with a seal close to it will be good start.'

The closest to the banishment seal would be my summoning seal, one that used almost all of my chakra to pull Team Minato out of the cavern. There were three of them not one like how I've been using the banishment seal. I could try the banishment seal on three persons. I can ask for Obito-nii and Guy, now I just need one more person. I wonder if I can use the seal on three different persons without me close by and send them to one area. I've never tried that one before, better now than never.

I leaned on the railing looking down from the rooftop of the Hokage Tower it was the designated gate I decided on to send them to. We've tried how far the banishment seal would allow one person to be sent away to, but not on how close the user should be. With half of the ram hand seal, I activated the banishment seal.

I stayed there for an hour waiting for them to appear, but none of them appeared it seemed proximity of the user is a key for the banishment seal. Minato-sans' doesn't work on proximity, but he uses his three pronged kunai as points, like my gates. Only his is two way, while mine is one way. I guess that's something to note about my banishment seal, now do I use my summoning seal to test it out or just compare the two seals?

I stared at the two seals on my desk looking between the two of them. The banishment seal is the mistake of the summoning seal I made. The summoning seal I made required a lot of energy which doesn't seem to be the case with the ones with the scrolls used in the chuunin—

"Is there something wrong with your seals?" I snapped my head to Minato-san standing by my desk.

"No. I'm trying to see how they differ they look the same to me there are just two extra strokes on the banishment seal compared to the summoning seal I made. They both have a gate point."

"Gate point?"

"It's what I call where I send or summon them to."

"You based your summoning seal on the scrolls they used for the chuunin exams."

I nodded. "I had to modify them though that it could be activated without opening the scroll the holder has."

"To be used in an emergency where extraction is needed?"

"Err, something like that." I guess it was an emergency then.

"But?"

"It's a chakra drainer." I replied grimacing. "I was knocked out when I used it." To save three persons and that was while I got stabbed. A chakra drainer, that's an idea. I can make a seal where the person wouldn't have enough chakra to use ninjutsu. That would be dangerous to make though. How am I going to test that?

"Ah, the one you used to save my team." Minato-san said bringing me out of my thoughts.

I nodded. "I don't understand why that one drained me so much while the banishment seal hasn't." I said taking the banishment seal off the desk and squinting at it. Two strokes made quite a difference, in effect and chakra requirement.

"Why not eat first?" Minato-san suggested. "Maybe once your stomachs filled your mind will start working."

Even with my stomach filled no thoughts came to mind only that stroke I made. I was getting nowhere, and decided to call it a night. It had been days since Mirus mentioned about looking at the difference of the two seals.

I was just walking back to the Hokage tower to report after finishing my mission on walking four Inuzuka dogs. I took a step to the aside to avoid the kunai that had impaled the ground. I turned avoiding two more kunais to face Anko-san.

"Hello, Anko-san." I greeted her politely.

"Not going to send me off again?" She asked me.

"Unless you do want me to send you off?" I asked raising an eyebrow that would be odd if she does ask me to do so.

"You can try, but it won't work." Anko answered pushing out her flat chest.

I did as she asked and after seconds she was gone. I wonder what she meant by it won't work? Did she find the seal I placed on her? Huh, she often shows up where I am in the streets. Is she on orders from the snake to watch me?

Orochimaru and Danzo are cohorts after all. Did they start on taking someone's sharingan? I haven't heard of any missing Uchihas yet, or there are disappearances but no one has noticed it or that the elders of the Uchiha clan are keeping that a secret. That's worrying while I have come to dislike our clan elders I wouldn't wish any of my clans men to die.

I do wonder what Minato-san did about the exploding scroll, did the clan really send that or it was tampered? I will have to tell Obito-nii to be on guard and Itachi to be very careful of mummies as well as snakes.

After taking a total of three D-ranked missions that day, I was at the Hokage Monument looking at the village. There were still some areas that were still being built I could see the wooden structure before it becomes a building. While looking at its wooden structure it made me think of how it was made—step by step.

"Minato-san!" I burst into his office without a knock and found Nara Shika inside with him.

"Yes, Iruna-chan?" Minato-san turned to me smiling in amusement.

I flushed in embarrassment. I just interrupted his meeting with Nara Shika.

"I'm sorry. I'll just wait outside until you done with your meeting." I said hastily grabbing the door knob and closing it.

I stayed outside the office for almost an hour until Nara Shika came out and bypassed me. I then entered Minato-sans' office sedately unlike my earlier entry.

"What did you want to see me about, Iruna-chan?" He asked.

"The two extra strokes on the banishment seal cancelled out the Yang seal." I said then.

"And?"

"That left the seal with only yin, water and wind. The scripts surrounding the seals seemed to balance them out without the yang seal but were also affected. Instead of summoning someone it would send someone away, the arrangement was also turned around. It became water then wind, the water doesn't actually mean water in a way to its description is liquid. It doesn't necessarily mean water literally but it can be attributed to air or the energy in nature! The wind aspect refers to its flow, but this is where it becomes confusing."

"Confusing?"

"The wind element is both inward and outward in the seal. It seems to cancel out if that were it, but the seal still works. I think I missed something while I studied the seal earlier." I said in thought. Or the Yang seal wasn't entirely cancelled out, but its function had been changed.

"You might be on the right track Iruna-chan."

I looked up at him confused on what he meant by that. "The Yang seal may not have been cancelled but altered with the last two strokes."

Oh, I must have spoken that last bit aloud.

"Did you come here to tell me this?" He asked amusement on his face.

"Err, well, that and I wanted to ask if there were any seals that had only a Yang or Yin in it, but it worked in the end."

"I wouldn't know for sure, Iruna-chan. My knowledge of seals comes from Kushina and being her apprentice you've learned from her that those two are usually found together, but that doesn't mean that other attributes of the seal would not cause the effect of Yang to be changed or cancelled."

I nodded then. "Thank you, Minato-san. I have to go. I need to go find…something."

I thought on all those seal ideas from the book Kushina-sensei gave me. If I want to use Fuinjutsu as my arsenal, those ideas may help, but they're based on using nature chakra. I'll die if I relied on my own chakra to use those seals. I'm not a jinchuriki with limitless chakra. One of the seal ideas is a ninjutsu that he wanted to turn into a seal trap, I knew it because it was a fire attribute and was in the scroll gifted to me before. It was a class B ninjutsu and used a great amount of chakra.

I was at the backyard of the house when I whistled using my fingers calling Mirus from where she was in the village. She said she wasn't going to disappear until I go to their realm to search for members of my flock.

'Yes?' Mirus said from a branch in the tree in the backyard of the house.

"Was Uzumaki Eishi trying to be a sage?" I asked.

'What else was he trying to do learning about nature chakra from us?'

"I thought you just had knowledge in your realm about it and taught him about it. You did tell me you collect knowledge in your realm."

'Yes, we do have knowledge of it. When he asked about learning nature chakra, he said 'It would help me to figure out how to incorporate it to my seal.' Are you to try to accomplish where he failed?'

"His theories made sense" and Uzushiogakure would still be standing if he was able to accomplish this. "But he just didn't know how to gather the chakra just by the seals. It would have taken him a thousand or more combinations to get it right. He would need more than his lifetime to get the right ones. You're the one who pointed out that my seal also worked on na—"

'I did not. I merely stated that you would have fainted from your usage of your banishment seal.'

"But still it was because you pointed it out to me that I even discovered it."

'None of you humans would have noticed, maybe that toad summoner if he had been in sage mode.'

"I think you wanted Uzumaki Eishis' goal to be realized did you even tell me about my seal." I said smugly.

'I most certainly did not!' She said affronted, but at the same time I think she's blushing even though I couldn't see it on her with her feathers. It was from her voice actually.

I smiled at her. "I think otherwise." Mirus huffed not even trying to argue. "So, will you also teach me?"

'Do not ask without even knowing what you will get yourself into.'

"But it's going to help me with my seals."

'Let me tell you then that it will take you two years to learn it, and another two years to learn our style.'

"You're style?" I said confused.

'You don't think we would just teach you nature chakra?' That was my assumption. 'You're mistaken, have you already forgotten about what it means to be an avian summoner?'

'We give our respect and we ask the same. Show us your truth and we shall be truthful to you. Only then shall you be truly ours to keep. You will learn of us as we will learn you. If you wish to learn from us, we would be sure to teach you more than what you ask. But remember this if greed, and power consume you we shall make be your executioner.'

"Is that always your opening?" I asked her out of curiosity.

'No. That is a revised version.'

"Then, what's the original?"

'That is of no importance to you.'

'Not to mention you still have to earn your flock. I would advise you to think wisely on your decision.'

Four years away from Konoha? Away from everyone I care, but it would help me with the seals and I can get stronger. I don't have a sensei that can teach me about nature chakra except for them. Asking Minato-san to ask the elder toads to teach me nature chakra but not be their summoner, that doesn't seem right. It would be like betraying the summons I would have.

"What about kenjutsu?"

'I've told you what it means to be our summoner, try to recall it.' She said in a scolding tone.

"Why are you even my guide if you don't like repeating your words?" I asked.

Mirus decided to assault me on my question. It was a reasonable question. I only signed the scroll a month ago. She has a rather short fuse. Are all avians in their realm like this?

It was a tough decision to make when I thought about going. I would be missing out on some occasions. Like Itachi graduating, and Sasukes' first birthday. What will happen while I'm away? My knowledge of events to occur isn't going to help me that I knew. I know it's going to happen, but watching and reading about it didn't really place a definite when to the events.

Stay here and try to grow stronger on my own without a sensei. I wouldn't be able to test out seals here without Minato-san or any approved person to be present and I need to learn about nature chakra. I make tags and storage scrolls for a shop and I take missions, which reduces time for training or seal revisions. If I go, I would learn more, not just nature chakra and I would have more time to myself.

I spoke to Minato-san in his study room in the house about leaving Konoha to train before he left to head to his office.

"I don't think that's wise, Iruna-chan." He said. "It hasn't been a month since your probation is over."

"One of Kushina-senseis' gifts to me is a contract summons scroll. I signed it and met Mirus…"

From there I told him that Mirus offered to train me, I didn't tell him the entire truth that I was going because I wanted to learn about nature chakra. Even about the missions I've been taking none of them brought me out of the village. It was often a patrol or post mission, most of them I've been alone. How am I going to improve that way?

There were also the seals. The seals using nature chakra will be dangerous, and Minato-san may not approve of me making them. That would defeat the purpose of even making them. There was another extra gift that was hidden in the box where I found the tanto in. I've tried it before in my room without the prying eyes of the anbu. I made sure of that using a privacy seal in my room. It was Minato-san who had those anbu watching me, and it was becoming annoying to have eyes on me all the time.

"Are you sure about this?" He asked.

"Yes, I'm sure." I replied.

It took me two weeks to come to a decision. I know I would miss out a lot of stuff, but…I can celebrate those when I return. I have to get stronger and to get away from this place even just for a bit.

Minato-san sighed then it was a first. "They're going to ask where you are Iruna-chan. If anyone finds out that you disappeared without a reason, they might think that you fled Konoha."

"Why would it mean I fled Konoha? I'm not some criminal." I replied angry.

He didn't answer my question and continued on. "If you can have Mirus tell me that you'll be with her then I can say that, but if you're the only one who can hear her. I don't think I can tell them the truth."

"Lying will only be used against us." I said. "You only need Mirus to tell you that then I just have to ask her to tell you then."

"What do you mean?"

"I will bring Mirus later an hour after lunch, please keep that time open, Hokage-sama." I said turning and leaving the study.

It was close to one in the afternoon. I came across Anko with her usual greeting to me. She was with Orochimaru. I looked at her then at her sensei, he was smiling, if I had to categorize it. It was a disturbing smile.

"Hello Anko-san and Orochimaru-san." I said nodding to them.

"Hello, Iruna-san." Orochimaru said, and the way he spoke seemed like he was even hissing. Snake just defines him. "Are you also headed to the tower?"

"Yes. I have a meeting with the Hokage." I replied.

Orochimaru nodded. "Why not walk with us? We are headed there as well."

I never did ask if Anko is a chuunin right now or a genin. We walked in a tense silence in the direction of the tower, and it was only when I separated ways from them did I relax for a bit. It was unnerving to be with the snake.

I entered the Hokages' office then and found Mirus near the edge of Minato-sans' desk.

"Iruna-chan, don't mind the hawk on my desk. It won't leave the room no matter what I do." Minato-san said.

'Quite rude of him even, he was the one who wanted to speak to me!' Mirus complained. 'I demand that he apologize to me!'

What a demanding hawk.

"Hokage-sama, you should apologize to her."

"To who?" Minato-san looked at me confused.

"To Mirus" I said. "She's the hawk on your desk."

"The one you said is a summon?"

'Yes, Toad summoner.'

"Yes." I said smiling wryly at Minato-san.

"I apologize for trying to make you leave." Minato-san said to Mirus.

Mirus spread her wings and flapped them. 'You should be. Have him summon one of his toads.'

Minato-san summoned a yellow toad and it was close to my height. It was large that I had to admit.

"Minato, what did you call me to your office for?" The toad asked.

Toriki served as a sort of interpreter or speaker for Mirus. I just stood there listening to the conversation like a decoration. They talked about my leave to train with Mirus in their realm and other things like how long or if I can come back whenever I wish. Mirus said it was up to me to if I do wish to come back and forth between realms, but discouraged it. It was still up to me.

"When do you leave?" Minato-san asked me when Mirus and Toriki had left the office.

Obito-nii joined us for dinner so far I haven't heard anything about his brown eye he has been keeping under an eyepatch and that was when he came to the house to join us for dinner. I didn't ask if it was falsely reported that Obito-nii had come into an accident and injured his other eye and there was a donor. It's a bit too coincidental. I didn't ask about his eye though, he'll tell me about it when the time comes.

It was my turn to wash the dishes that night and Obito-nii helped me by wiping the dishes.

"Obito-nii, did you notice anything different with the clan?" I asked him.

"What do you mean by different?"

"You tell me Obito-nii."

It was one or two moment before he replied. "Nothing much, aside from the police force going around the compound."

They have patrols in the in compound, why? Are they patrolling because of me or something else?

"Neh, Obito-nii, can you hand Itachi a letter from me?" I asked when we were done with the dishes.

"Sure." Obito-nii nodded.

"Be careful of a presence, Obito-nii." I said handing him the letter.

"Don't say that! I don't like ghosts." Obito-nii said nervously. I didn't realize he was frightened of ghosts.

I waved after Obito-nii as he disappeared around the corner. I hope Itachi gets the letter and find what I hid in it. I trust Obito-nii, but just to be sure. I'm not really sure who to trust, anything can happen at this point.

AN: For the past mistakes I've made in my fic, sorry for that I don't have a beta and... english is my second language. Until the next.