Another chapter is here!

Enjoy!

Sarutobi looked at the report on their security measures drafted by the experts of the village's defenses late in the afternoon. He was trying to find ways to shore up them up in the event of an attack by Orochimaru's forces. From Jiraiya's information it was likely that they would have to worry about the Hidden Sound being the main culprits during the Finals, but he sincerely doubted their forces would be enough to significantly overwhelm the village.

And Orochimaru must have known that as well. His former student wasn't a fool. There had to be an angle here he wasn't taking into account, but he couldn't guess what it was exactly.

There were few foreign shinobi, but they were all from allied villages—barring the Genin from Hidden Sound who was found dead. None of them would be so bold to risk everything, not with so few numbers. Such an act would run the risk of starting another Great War.

He was brought out of his musings when he heard his window being opened. Not that hard a guess on who that was, even if he wasn't expecting him. "Would it kill you to use the door, Jiraiya?"

"It's just so… boring," he said as he shut the window he entered through. "So, anything new on your end?"

Sarutobi shook his head sluggishly and sighed. "Nothing yet, though I fear he will certainly make an attempt during the Finals. It would be too optimistic to hope that he would leave after being exposed once in the Forest of Death… How goes things with Naruto?"

"Fine," Jiraiya said. "He's finally learned how to produce Yang chakra and proven that the tiger will listen to him, so he wants the bird now. On the subject of the summonings, he's getting to know the more patient toads along with Gamakichi and Gamatatsu. And he can access the fox's chakra—"

Sarutobi held up his hand at that point. "About that. Can you explain how you thought throwing him off a cliff was the right thing to do in order to access the Nine-Tails chakra?"

"Self-preservation is needed to unlock the chakra once his own had been depleted beforehand, so I put him through the Water-Walking training until we reached that point. I had an Earth Shadow Clone down there waiting to catch him and I could have substituted myself if he couldn't pull it off," Jiraiya argued. "He was completely safe… and you did give me permission to use my own methods."

"I am concerned he may have reservations about working with you in the future if you resort to such measures," Sarutobi countered. "Very few people are qualified to teach him or suppress him should the need arise, more so since Tsunade still possesses the necklace that can be used to do so, and I don't want him to be wary of such measures being taken."

"Sensei, he's fine," Jiraiya said. "He's already over it. Speaking of Tsunade, I've managed to find her again with my intelligence network. I had them give her a missive asking her to return. I do trust my intelligence, but I framed the note as saying that you wanted to talk to her rather than mention anything involving Orochimaru."

"And I take it her response was a negative?" he asked.

"When he woke up from what I believe was an induced sleep he found a hastily scribbled note that basically said 'No way in Hell' so I'm going to say it was negative. Yes."

Once more the Hokage sighed. "That girl… she's leaving me no choice. Was it wrong of me to give her so much leeway?"

"Honestly, it might have been," Jiraiya admitted. "But you aren't responsible alone. I… left her alone too, consumed with tracking Orochimaru to make up for my failure in not stopping him, keeping tabs on Akatsuki to protect Naruto and make up for not being there when Minato and Kushina died when the fox escaped… we should have made time to try and help her cope with the death of her brother and Dan, but we let her run away and she hasn't stopped since then."

Her grief was understandable. All of them had lost loved ones and could sympathize. But instead of trying to help her overcome her fear of blood, they allowed her to run off and the method of coping she chose was both self-destructive and had harmed her reputation. Those two facts alone weighed down on her as much as her reputation as a Sannin held her up.

"Very well," Sarutobi said. "Once you locate her again after the Finals, you go and retrieve her. It is time for her to come home. If she needs counseling, I'll arrange for a Yamanaka-specialist to help her in private, but allowing her to continue like this would be a dishonor to her Grandfather and those who came before her."

"…Understood," Jiraiya said.

Sarutobi leaned back in his chair. "Then onto the final matter. How are things between Naruto and Miss Uzumaki?"

"Pretty good, actually. She's helping him with his training, they seem to spend most of their time together, occasionally with his other teammate, and Naruto's improving on multiple fronts. I don't honestly see him losing his match during the Finals. It's a shame I won't be able to see it while I'm protecting you, but I think he's got it locked down."

"I see…" He drummed his fingers in thought before coming to a stop. "In that case, what are your thoughts on allowing Miss Uzumaki to relocate into the village when all is said and done?"

[0-0-0]

Karin watched as Naruto rode on top of Byakko with an excited grin on his face, having called it out of the mask on his own. It was just them for the moment. His teammate was at the hospital, visiting someone for an extended period of time. All Karin could do now was just watch him since there was nothing else she could do for him, barring the creation of her counter-measure for his first opponent.

There was an odorless poison they had in Hidden Grass that when inhaled would muddle the reflexes and senses. All she had to do was get the necessary plants to make it, but she didn't want to be seen buying it by an Anbu officer or having questions asked. That meant she would have to rely on Naruto's teammate, who would likely know where to get them since she found those plants they used for his Yang chakra training.

After that was done, Karin wasn't certain what she could do that would benefit him. At least nothing that would help him in the long-run. After running into Kabuto the snake returned while she was in the bathroom, hiding in the sink's drain to elude detection, and gave her orders. There was going to be an invasion and she was to knock Naruto out using a smoke bomb filled with sleeping gas before taking him away with Kabuto.

She was supposed to take him from his home and leave it to burn. Just like her small village was beset by bandits and rogues and burned to cinders, Orochimaru wanted this village destroyed so it would be. It unsettled her to know she was playing a part in that, but she desperately wanted to believe it would have happened anyway and she was saving Naruto from dying with it.

From what she knew, Naruto would be expected to face-off against that Gaara-boy since they were both Jinchuuriki. There would be no contest. Naruto would die. She was removing him from the certain death… only for him to likely end up someplace where he wished he could die rather than being strapped on an operating table.

She supposed she could tell the Hokage about the impending attack, but she'd be executed as a spy. That wasn't an option for her. She valued her life more than that of other people she didn't know. Selfish as it may have been, that was human nature. Besides, she was not a kunoichi of this village and her strongest tie was with Naruto.

That left running away as an option. She'd knock Naruto out, somehow eluded Kabuto, and they could run somewhere Orochimaru's grasp didn't extend. The Land of Fire was out of the question, but they could go some other place. Maybe they'd find shelter in the remnants of the Hidden Whirlpool where no one would look for them, and it would be just the two of them….

Except that Naruto would never forgive her for it. That was the crux of the problem. All she wanted was information on her Clan, that was the point of wanting to meet with him, but she had gotten attached to the loveable goofball. He was so bright and straightforward that being around him left her feeling happy for the first time in a long time.

Karin's eyes shifted as her Mind's Eye, which she had been using to monitor how much chakra Naruto and Byakko had, picked up his tutor entering her range. It seemed their private time was over. She stood up as he arrived in the clearing they were in.

"Gama-sensei!" Naruto said as Byakko came to a stop and then retreated into the mask. Naruto caught it before it could hit the ground. "Did you talk to the Old Man about getting the bird mask?"

"Suzaku was the name on the document, and yes I did." He pulled the mask out and handed it to Naruto. "Since this is the first time you're using this mask be careful. Use your chakra to anchor yourself to it so you don't fall off, and tell it to come down when it runs low on chakra since we know they can tell how long they can stay manifested now."

"Yeah, yeah, yeah!" Naruto handed over Byakko's mask to Karin, who felt there was still chakra within it, and then focused on converting his chakra so that he could fuel it into Suzaku's mask. Then he bit his thumb, wiped blood over the back to unlock it, and tossed the mask into the air. "Let's fly, Suzaku!"

The bird-faced mask expelled a reddish material that formed the body and sprouted pristine and elegant plumage. Its wings spread wide to catch the wind and it soared overhead in a circle, getting its bearings. Lowering itself to the ground, it dipped its head to Naruto and allowed him to climb on.

He hopped on without a second thought and took the skies with a grin on his face. Higher and higher, until he was a speck in the distance as they soared towards the clouds.

"Nice to see he's having fun," Gama said. "Here's hoping he won't go too far."

Karin nodded before removing her glasses and cleaning them. "Flying is something that few can do, even with chakra. I can understand his excitement. I hope he'll let me ride it before the end of the Finals."

"Actually, now that he's gone, we need to talk," he said, waiting for her to face him before continuing. "Let me ask you this: How do you feel about the village?"

"I… like it so far," she said cautiously. "The atmosphere is different. Of course, I haven't visited most of it because I don't know my way around and I'm here as a guest. Mostly I spend my time with Naruto, in his home, or in my room. Why?"

"The Hokage asked me to extend to you an invite to join the village as a permanent citizen, if you want," he said.

Karin blinked in confusion at that, surprise evident on her face. "Why? How?"

He took a seat next to her. "Usually, a transfer between villages becomes more difficult depending on their standings and a number of factors involved. You're a Genin with only a year of training under your belt and not a lot of access to information they'd want to keep secret, we're in a time of peace, and the Hidden Grass are both diplomatic and on neutral terms with us. Because the Uzumaki were allies of our village and you have family here, your ties are strong enough that no one will question why you want to remain here indefinitely, so it's safe to say they'd be willing to release you from service for a reasonable compensation."

"Um… wow…." She couldn't really put it into words. "That's…."

"If you still have attachments there, I'd understand—"

"No, no!" She stood up and held her hands to her chest. "I… I feel more comfortable here with Naruto than I did in the Hidden Grass. I didn't even get along well with my teammates. I want to stay here, but may I have some time to think on it? It's a big decision."

"That's fine," Gama said. "Just know that we'll be happy to welcome you."

"And can we not tell Naruto about this?" Karin asked. "At least not yet?"

He nodded. "It's your decision when to drop the news."

"Thank you," she told him, even as it tore her up on the inside. It was a nice village, better than Hidden Grass in a lot of aspects. You could actually see the sky for one thing. But why did he have to make the offer when she knew what was going to happen? Not that she let it show on her face, but she hated him for dangling this in front of her without realizing she would never get the chance to follow through with it.

"KARIN-CHANNN!" She heard from above. Naruto was there, Suzaku lowering itself down with quick beats of its wings. "You've got to see this. Come on!"

She looked over to Gama, who gestured it was okay before he disappeared in a Body Flicker. Karin sighed before she took Naruto's hand and climbed onto the majestic bird of vermillion and gold plumage. Securing herself with chakra to their mount, Naruto gave the order to climb and they rose in the air.

Flying was a unique experience, Karin noticed. There was a pit in her stomach that moved around as they ascended, as though her body was struggling against the bonds of gravity to defy their connection with the earth below. The winds stirring against her face left her hair whipping behind her as they took to the clouds but, once the wings began to glide, she felt free in a way she never did before.

"Look," Naruto said, gesturing to the forests surrounding them and the village below. "Isn't it awesome?"

With the horizon burning as sunset was approaching, it looked like a carpet of gold had been spread across the viridian trees below. The buildings made for an interesting web of stonework, a maze that all led towards the cliff-face where the Hokages of the past had been immortalized in stone. It was a beautiful sight.

"Yeah," she said, answering his question. "It's a great view."

"I could always look up from on top of the Hokage Monument at everything before I became a Genin. I used to paint it is as a prank. It was always amazing to look at, but this high… it just makes you realize how big your world is. When I become Hokage someday I'll have to protect it all, so being able to get a view like this is worth it."

"… You really do want to be the next Hokage, don't you?" she asked.

"Of course I do," he said. "I always wanted to, but before it was just because I wanted people to know who I was. Then, after becoming a Genin and seeing places like Wave and the things that happened there, I wanted to keep them safe. That's what it means to be a shinobi, and the Hokage is someone who protects everyone in his village, including them."

Tears left Karin's eyes as her heart began to blossom with pain at the admission, knowing what would happen to it all soon enough. It would all be crushed no matter what. Even if she saved his life, she'd take away his purpose for living.

Karin hated herself even more now. She didn't want to be a spy. She didn't want to meet such nice people like Ayame and even that Sakura-girl on occasion, only to have to betray them later on. And she didn't want to feel this warm feeling in her chest when she was around him, knowing that it would be snuffed out by the end.

"What's wrong?" he asked as he looked back due to her silence. "You can tell me if there's something bothering you."

"And you won't judge me?" she asked.

He shook his head. "No."

She believed him. Naruto was too sweet. And, in the end, that was the problem. She had grown used to the way he looked at her, the way he spoke to her, the way that he cared for her, the way he let her into his life—so much unreserved trust and warmth being freely given. After having none of it while under Orochimaru's care and in the Hidden Grass, it had left her too attached to him.

But it would all be taken away once the invasion kicked off. The people he was fond of would die, including the Hokage and tutor who were offering her a home that didn't consist of being around people like Kabuto or experiments. No matter how this ended, she would lose it all. It was a cruel joke.

Karin threw herself around him in a hug, wrapping her arms around his waist and pressing her head against his back. Her Mind's Eye opened to embrace his chakra and the soothing warmth that lingered on the surface as well. Even if she had to lose it all so soon, she at least wanted to commit as much of it as she could to memory.

"Just let me stay like this for awhile," she softly begged. "Please?"

He nodded his head silently as they continued flying over the village while the sun fell beyond the horizon.