Challenge by: pain17ification
Bestia Carmesí de Konoha: Crimson Beast of Konoha
Chapter 2
Tayuya was a bit worried around the intimidating woman as they followed her into Wave and towards the inn. Tier was difficult to read given her face was covered by the collar of her jacket and her eyes looked at them with ice in her stare.
So far she wasn't an enemy to them, especially given that she didn't attack them when Suigetsu pointed Kubikiribocho towards her and threatened her. It did worry her that she caught the Kiri woman steal glances at Naru as Karin carried him and calmed him down from almost hurting Suigetsu.
"So the new Mizukage is an Uzumaki? How come I've never heard of her?" Karin asked as Tier nodded.
"Mizukage is an Uzumaki on her mother's side but uses her father's name as to hide her lineage since until Kiri is stronger, letting them know that an Uzumaki is in power will only make Iwa and Kumo feel threatened. Plus Kumo has a bad habit of trying to kidnap Uzumaki" Tier said while Tayuya frowned as she knew how much Kumo was obsessed with trying to control their Bijuu or even other jinchuriki in battle and how some Uzumaki had chakra that could tame them.
"That is true, they are also obsessed with kekkai genkai as they also tried to kidnap a Hyuga supposedly though they were never punished for it as they used the death of the abductor to threaten war if they weren't given the body of the Hyuga that killed him" Tayuya said with a sigh as they arrived at the Inn.
"Yes, they do have a liking towards kekkai genkai, meaning the little boy would be in danger with his odd abilities" Tier said as Tayuya frowned, a bit upset that Naru's new abilities had been so easily revealed. It couldn't really be helped since there was no real way to make a lie to cover up a laser shot from the mouth of a four year old.
"Yeah…Naru is special" she said as she looked over her shoulder, back at Karin who was holding Naru after he tired himself out with the Cero as he called it.
"That mask of his on his head is quite unique" Tier said as Tayuya narrowed her eyes.
"How did you notice the mask? He's been wearing a hood this entire time" Tayuya said to her in a whisper as they entered the Inn.
"The hood doesn't do anything to hide the outline of it due to its extra height. Though I can't tell exactly what it is exactly I can at least tell it is some kind of mask or skull on his head" Tier said as she paid for three rooms: one for the boys, the two Uzumaki girls, and the last for herself.
"While I am curious about what it is and what exactly his kekkai genkai is I am willing to wait to let you only have to tell the story once when we get to Kiri" Tier said as she handed the two extra keys to Tayuya.
"I will be sending a hawk to my Kage telling her that I found you all and you wish to be brought to Kiri. Once I get her reply, which will most likely be her permission to bring you, we will set off once the child has gotten his sleep" she said curtly before walking up the stairs to her room, most likely to write the message and get some rest.
"Well now that blondie is gone can we rest now since I'm a bit tired after barely dodging a laser" Suigetsu said as Naru sniffled.
"Naru didn't mean to do that Sui! N-Naru was trying to protect Zabu's grave" Naru said as he pouted before Suigetsu ruffled his hair.
"I know little guy I was teasing you" Suigetsu said as he knew from the surprised look on Naru's face after he had fired off the Cero that it was a shock to him as well.
"Suigetsu's right, we should probably at least relax in our rooms" Karin said while she pet Naru's head, who was already starting to fall asleep in her arms.
"Well then hand him over so I can take us to our room" Suigetsu said as he held out his hands to pick up Naru only for Tayuya to push his hands down.
"No, he's staying with us. We need to keep an eye on him in case he does something in his sleep" Tayuya said as Suigetsu shrugged his shoulders.
"Yeah it wouldn't be good if he fires one of those off things in his sleep. I'll be working to clean Kubikiribocho so I'll see you guys in the morning when she gets her reply" Suigetsu said with a two finger salute and a chuckle as he went up to his room, taking the key from Tayuya.
"You don't think he'll fire one of those off in his sleep will he?" Karin asked nervously as she didn't like the idea of being disintegrated as they slept.
"He'll be fine, I think it only happened because he was upset. Let's just relax since tomorrow we have to deal with a Kage" Tayuya said with a frown, a bit worried as they walked up to their room.
"What do you think the Mizukage will ask us or want from us?" Karin asked a bit nervously while adjusting Naru in her arms.
"I don't know but I'm not going to be put into another Orochimaru situation or endanger Naru. If it is safer than Uzu then we might stay there but if not the original plan still goes" she said with a frown as she unlocked the room and let Karin walk in first to lay down Naru.
"We'll just have to wait and see what she and Tier offer us. I mean anything would be better than what it was like with Orochimaru" Karin said as she laid down Naru, carefully taking off his sandals before putting the blanket over him.
"Yeah I guess we will see" Tayuya said as this time she was determined to keep her family safe.
-Otogakure – Orochimaru's Main Base-
Orochimaru was a bit annoyed as Kabuto delivered the report of the Northern base's destruction to him. "Are you sure there were no survivors?" he asked with a frown as Kabuto nodded as he had just gotten back from the ruins of the base.
"The only thing left standing was an operating table. Everything else was destroyed, only the ruins of the first floor remaining" Kabuto said as he was surprised that something had been able to destroy the base so efficiently.
"I guess my theory of a Bijuu making a jinchuriki self-destruct under intense circumstances has some merit to it now. That base had over 12 stories to it and I doubt anything but a Bijuu could have done that" he said as he smiled at sound of a vacuum swirling behind him signaled him to his visitor's entrance.
"Oh my right on time aren't we Madara" the snake Sannin said as he smiled and turned around to look at the orange masked Akatsuki member that had taken up the name of one of Konoha's founders and the most fearsome Uchiha. "Kabuto leave us, this is a private conversation" he ordered as Kabuto nodded and walked out without a word.
"So what can I do for you Obito? You so rarely visit me unless it is important" he said as it hadn't been difficult to realize who the man was behind the mask.
Simple knowledge of the Sharingan and a certain Copy-Cat Ninja easily made him come to the conclusion that the one who had given Kakashi Hatake a Sharingan that had turned Mangekyo with the awakened ability of Kamui was the same person going around as Madara. Kamui was an incredibly rare power of the Sharingan and with two people having the ability it wasn't hard to deduce.
"You told me nothing would happen to the Kyuubi jinchuriki. It seems I was wrong to trust you" Obito said as he ignored the snake Sannin's use of his real name.
"Relax Obito, I planned for this in case it happened" Orochimaru said waving off the man's anger. "Plus we still have our deal, you let me test on the young Uzumaki and stay safe from the other Akatsuki and I set up little Rin to be brought back under your control" he added as it had been simple to use Rin to make Obito agree.
That and the threat of attempting to bring back the real Madara was enough to get the man to agree to the deal.
"But now we are in a difficult spot with no Kyuubi and given that it can take upwards of a hundred years to reform it has possibly ruined our plans" Obito hissed out, still a bit upset at the use of Rin to make him agree to the vile man's plan.
"Relax there are other viable sources of the Kyuubi's chakra. Last I found there was a small boy in the Fire Temple that has the Kyuubi's chakra in him, enough to transform his arm. And if that doesn't work I can revive the Gold and Silver brothers as they too devoured some of the Kyuubi's chakra into themselves" Orochimaru said as Obito frowned, though not that Orochimaru knew because of the mask.
"Fine, I get it. You are surprisingly good at covering for yourself. I will continue to hide you from the others but I expect you to stay good on your side of the bargain" Obito said as Orochimaru smiled and nodded.
"Of course, I am a man of my word" he said as Obito narrowed his lone visible eye as his body started to get sucked into itself.
"I remain to see that and will be waiting. I suggest you do not keep me waiting long" he said as he disappeared.
"And people honestly call me dramatic" Orochimaru said with a chuckle as Kabuto returned into the room, sensing that Obito had left.
"Is everything okay Orochimaru?" Kabuto asked as he nodded and waved it off.
"Yes, nothing to worry about. We shouldn't keep Sasuke waiting for his training. He needs to be ready in time" Orochimaru said as while might have lost out on a perfect test subject he gained safety from an organization that was hunting him down and the crippling of the village he hated.
-Next Day – Land of Mist-
Tayuya sighed as she tried to calm down Naru as he hopped around on the boat that the Mizukage had sent to take them to Kiri as it arrived at the continent. "Naru you need to came down and stay with us while we head to Kiri. I know you're excited but please calm down little guy" Tayuya said as picked him up and rubbed his back.
"But Tayu-neechan we are meeting Auntie today!" Naruto whined as the second they had told them that the woman they were meeting was family to them he had taken it upon himself to call her his aunt.
Which had caused the stoic Tier to chuckle a bit when he first decided it only saying it would be interesting to see her Kage's reaction to it.
"I know we are meeting Auntie today but you have to behave since Auntie is an important lady" Tayuya said as she, Karin and Suigetsu stepped off the boat and onto the dock where Tier was waiting for them.
"The Mizukage won't get angry at Naru for him calling her Auntie right?" Karin asked as Tier shook her head.
"I don't think she will get angry but I believe that is only if little Naru does it" Tier said as she knew how her Kage was with being called old and being called aunt might be much for anyone other than the little boy.
"Got it, don't call the old lady old" Suigetsu said nonchalantly as Tier sighed and pinched the bridge of her nose.
"Come on but stay close while Kiri is not that far away, the mist disorients anyone who is not use to the mist or can't shield themselves from it" Tier said as they nodded and followed behind her.
As they walked through the mist towards Kiri they kept close to Tier as they were already feeling the effect of the mist. Several times Tier had to bring them back as they had started to turn away from the disorienting feeling that messed with their sense of direction.
"Well, welcome to Kiri. We are finally here" Tier said as she waved her hand through the mist and it slowly started to thin out.
Naru watched with wide eyes as the mist thinned out and he saw a large city in front of him as he was held in Tayuya's arms. The large city had several mountains behind it as the buildings throughout the village were cylindrical buildings. Most of the buildings had plants and trees growing on top of them as the town in general was full of green plant life.
"Wow~ it's so pretty!" Naru said as Tier nodded with a smile evident in her eyes.
"Yes it is quite a beautiful and tranquil village ever since the rebellion ended and it started to recover from it all" Tier said as she started to head towards the largest and widest building in the center that the others had already figured was the Mizukage's building.
As they entered the building, heading up near the top to where most likely the Kage's office was they were stopped as they heard a voice call out to them.
"Harribel-senpai you've returned! Mizukage-sama told us to expect you arriving today but I am sorry I didn't come to meet you at the docks. You arrived sooner than expected" a blue haired boy said as he ran up to them.
He wore a blue pin-striped shirt and camouflage pattern pants and square black rimmed glasses that were connected to ear protectors. He wore a holster vest that bore the Kiri headband as it was used to hold a bandaged dual handled sword.
"Chojuro that was not needed and I am sure Mizukage told you the same. Is she not busy right now? She told me to come straight to her when we arrived" Tier said as Chojuro nodded and adjusted his glasses.
Tayuya frowned as she noticed Chojuro look at Suigetsu and Naru a bit longer before she snapped her fingers to make him stop. "Hey stop looking at my brother like that you weirdo" she hissed out as the boy quickly started to blush before looking down towards the ground.
"I-I'm sorry I just-" Chojuro said as Tier held up her hand.
"It's fine, she's just protective of her little brother. We'll be going to Mizukage's chambers, tell anyone trying to see her she is busy until we leave" Tier said as she motioned for the others to follow while she started to walk towards a set of large doors.
"You will have to excuse Chojuro, he saw the swords and as an aspiring Swordsmen of the Mist he is easily intrigued by other swordsmen" Tier said as Tayuya rolled her eyes while she looked back at the boy who was already at the other end of the hall.
"Just tell him to look out cause Naru will head-butt you really hard if you try and touch his sword" Suigetsu said as he rubbed his stomach still remembering the powerful head-butt he got from the little guy.
Tier nodded as she walked up to the door and knocked on it "Mizukage, I have returned with the persons I told you in my letter. May we come in?" she asked before the doors clicked open.
The group was a bit taken aback at the woman in front of them that was leaning against the front of her desk. She was tall and slender, no older than early 30 with long ankle length auburn hair that covered one of her green eyes, which looked at them with a twinkle of curiosity.
She wore a long sleeved dark blue dress that exposed her shoulders entirely and a good amount of cleavage from her rather generous chest, which was covered up with some mesh armor she wore underneath. The bottom of her dress was very open as they noticed she also wore a skirt and a pair of high heeled sandals with shin guards reaching up over her knees.
Her purple lipstick covered lips smiled at them and before she could say anything an excited Naru jumped out of Tayuya's arms towards her.
"Auntie!" Naru yelled as the shocked woman quickly caught the boy and looked down at him.
"Naru! I'm sorry about that, Naru got it in his little head ever since Tier told him you were an Uzumaki and family that you are his aunt" Karin said trying to defuse the situation since Tier had told them of her Kage's temper when it came to being thought of as old in any way.
"But Kari-neechan she is Auntie! She is pretty like an auntie so she has to be one!" Naru said as he pouted and the Mizukage held him up a bit.
"But can't I be a sister like the others?" she asked as he shook his head vigorously.
"You're too grown up to be neechan and really pretty so you have to be Auntie!" Naru said as the woman let out an 'aww' as she hugged the small boy close to her chest.
Karin and Tayuya had to hold back their slight anger as while they knew Naru wasn't trying to be rude but the comment of him saying they were basically aren't as developed or good looking as her hurt a bit.
"Well aren't you just an adorable little boy! You can call me Auntie Mei all you want" Mei said as she nuzzled her cheek against his making the little boy giggle and hug his new aunt.
She stopped though once she noticed the hood over his head and the odd outline she could see in it. "What is your name little guy?" she asked as he smiled up at her.
"Naru is Naru! That is Tayu-neechan, Kari-neechan and Sui!" Naru said as he pointed to each person as he said their name.
"Well Naru can you tell me about the mask on your head?" Mei asked as she gently pulled back his hood, making Tayuya tense up as she revealed his skull mask on top of Naru's head.
"That's Naru's mask. Naru got hurt a bit and it cracked" Naru said as Mei nodded and looked towards the three other people in his group as she walked around behind her desk, carrying Naru with her before she sat down behind it and set him on her lap.
"I'm sorry, where are my manners. My name is Mei Terumi or Mei Uzumaki if I am using my mother's name and I am the Fifth Mizukage. As a fellow Uzumaki I welcome you to my village" she said with a smile as she pet Naru's head, careful not to touch his mask or the crack in it.
"Yeah whatever. Your swordsmen told us if we came with her you'd give us a boat to reach Uzu so here we are and where's the boat" Tayuya said a bit testy as she felt defenseless being that they were in one of the five major hidden villages in front of the Kage of said village.
"Tayuya, the last we want to do is piss off a Kage" Karin hissed in a whisper as Mei chuckled and waved it off.
"Do not worry, I understand your weariness but while I can provide you with a boat I don't think it would be best for you to leave for Uzu immediately" Mei said as Tayuya narrowed her eyes.
"And why is that?" Tayuya growled out, her fear of being trapped again catching up to her.
"Because Uzushiogakure is not in livable conditions. It is still in ruins and I doubt it is the best place for a cute little boy like this to live in" Mei said with a smile as she pinched Naru's cheek making him giggle and smile.
"So what we are just trapped here!?" Tayuya asked before Mei held up her hand to calm her down.
"You all may still go to Uzu in time but since it is still in ruins you may stay here until it is fixed up. My builders have been at it since I came into power but with large of a task it is it could take a while" Mei said as Karin put her hand on Tayuya's shoulder to calm her down.
"Tayuya calm down that is more than reasonable" Karin said before she looked Mei with a frown. "So you are suggesting we stay here until you rebuild Uzu. You honestly can't be doing this just out of the kindness of your heart" she said as Mei frowned and nodded.
"You are a bit correct while I am suggesting you stay here but I do have some ulterior motives" Mei said as Suigetsu chuckled.
"Figured it was too good to be true. So what is it that you want?" Suigetsu asked as he leaned against the wall, on guard a bit as Tier stayed silent while watching them.
"I want help" she said slightly surprising them. "Ever since the Rebellion ended I haven't had time to reform Kiri's alliances with the other villages. I wanted to go to the chunin exams in Konoha to build back up relations with them but seeing how they turned out I am glad I didn't" she said as continued petting Naru's head, something the little boy was enjoying.
"So what, are you asking us, three Uzumaki, one of whom is a child, and a blood thirsty swordsmen to go around getting allies for you?" Tayuya asked as Mei smiled and nodded.
"I know it sounds odd and while Kumo and Iwa are a bit sour towards Uzumaki it would show I trust those villages not to do anything by sending ambassadors from that clan" Mei said as Karin frowned.
"So you want us, to go the villages that didn't even try and help you during the rebellion? Villages which, including this one, destroyed the homeland of our clan because they were scared and wanted what they had" Karin said as she crossed her arms.
"Yeah and what is to stop Konoha from claiming Uzu as theirs considering Hashirama and the first clan leader made a pact together" Tayuya added as she knew enough to know that Konoha was very close with Uzu.
"They have no right to claim it seeing as how they didn't send any help to the village. Plus Uzu is owned by the Water Daimyo, it always has been and after the destruction of it by Kiri the Daimyo severely punished Kiri for their actions. Only recently with my coming into power as an Uzumaki did the Daimyo allow me to start rebuilding" Mei said as she let out a sigh.
"As for Kiri's part in our homeland's destruction but that was the Mizukage long before my time and I intend to fix the mistakes the ones before me have made. I have full backing from the Daimyo for not only stopping Yagura but for wanting to fix Kiri" Mei said with a frown while little Naru held her hand trying to console her a bit, which made her frown lessen slightly.
"My mother, before she married my father was saved by him during the invasion. He was disgusted at what his home was doing to her home and took her away from it. They lived peacefully near outskirts of the Land of Mist for most of their and my life. It wasn't until the Bloodline Purges claimed their lives, protecting me, did I get involved with Kiri" she said as the two girls frowned at her.
"Fine, whatever, you aren't terrible like the other Mizukage, congratulations! That doesn't mean you get our trust" Tayuya said as she narrowed her eyes at the Kage. "We could be fucking disposable in your eyes since you are sending us and not your other ninja to do this. So why should we do this for the 'trust' of the other nations" Tayuya hissed out as Mei narrowed her eyes and silenced her with a bit of localized killing intent.
"I have worked very hard to protect the last remaining members of our clan. I am sending you because you two and little Naru are family of mine, making you officially under the protection of a Kage's family and I doubt any village would try and hurt you" Mei said as she pet Naru's head, calming down from the little boy squeezing her hand.
"Though I won't be sending you unprotected. I will offer training to you all to help you protect yourselves and Tier, my strongest swordsmen, will come with you all. She is the leader of the new chapter of the Seven Swordsmen of the Mist. With her by your side it will also show that we are strong without having to be the 'Bloody' Mist. I may want to be allies with the other nations but not at the price of my family's lives" Mei said as Tayuya frowned, her anger fading as she nodded.
"Honestly that sounds like a pretty good deal. We get to travel around, see the other villages, maybe look for more family if they are in danger and we get protection under a Kage's family" Karin whispered to Tayuya as they looked at Mei as she nuzzled against Naru who was happy on Mei's lap.
"Naru, what do you think about all of this? Do you want us to stay here and eventually go travelling around?" Tayuya asked as her main concern was her new little brother. If he felt safe here and was okay with eventually going around the nations then so was she.
She was a bit unsure about bringing him along but if she was going to go anywhere then he was coming with. She refused to leave him behind, even if it was in Kiri since she was the reason he was like this.
If she would have found out about him being related to her she could have saved him sooner and kept him from experiencing all of Orochimaru's experiments. The outcome of it all might have freed her, Karin, him and Suigetsu but it still left a sour taste in her mouth and a strong determination to protect the little boy that had started calling her his sister.
"Naru wants to live with Auntie! Naru wants us all to live with Auntie as an even bigger family!" Naru said with a massive smile that made Mei nuzzle against the small boy.
"Well you heard the kid. Personally I'm all for staying in Kiri since there is no better place to get my hands on the other swords to master them" Suigetsu said with a smirk as Mei turned towards him for the first time during this entire conversation.
"Ah yes, Tier mentioned a Hozuki clan member being a part of the group she ran across. Do you happen to be related to Mangetsu?" she asked as Suigetsu nodded.
"Yeah, he was my brother. I remember him mentioning working for the rebellion but at the time I was too focused on hunting down the Kiba blades and even after he did die I got reckless and got captured" Suigetsu said as he clenched his fists as Mei frowned.
"I remember your brother Mangetsu fondly in the beginnings of the rebellion. It was a hard blow on the rebellion when he died. He did request when we did win and if we found you to let you in and let you train with the swords. While I have nothing against it some of the swords are being used such as Chojuro wielding Hiramekarei so you may keep Kubikiribocho and train in others but I do need other swordsmen" she said as Suigetsu shrugged his shoulders.
"Fair enough" Suigetsu said as Mei smiled before looking towards Karin and Tayuya.
"So what do you say to my offer?" Mei asked as Tayuya looked to Karin before looking back and nodding.
"Fine, I guess it works but taking us in means you have to protect us from Orochimaru and possibly Konoha" Tayuya said as Mei frowned slightly.
"We can explain but I think it might be best if Naru leaves the room" Karin said as Mei sighed and nodded.
"Tier can you take Naru out of the room? Maybe give him to the roof, he might like it up there. I already have your report of what happened so it'll be fine" Mei said as Tier nodded and walked over to Naru while Mei set him down on the ground.
"Go with Tier for a bit. Auntie needs to talk with your neechans a bit alone. Tier can keep you company" Mei said as Naru looked between her and Karin and Tayuya, who nodded telling him it was okay before he turned and smiled up at Tier.
"Okay, come on pretty lady. Let's go play!" Naru said as he grabbed Tier's hand and ran out of the room, pulling her after him as Mei giggled at the interesting sight before clearing her throat.
"So tell me, exactly what all happened to put you in danger with one of the biggest missing nin in the Elemental Nations and one of the strongest villages. Plus you can explain what you know about Naru since that little boy is incredibly unique" Mei said as she set her elbows on her desk, interlocking her fingers as she frowned at the two girls who grew a bit pale but sat down as they knew this would be a long conversation.
Mei stayed silent while the two girls explained how Orochimaru had basically kidnapped Naru from Konoha during the Suna-Oto invasion and kept him in an induced coma until explosion occurred allowing them all to escape.
Whatever had happened to Naru had not only made him younger but gave him a mask, a hole where his heart should be and a sword. Not to mention the ability to shoot beams of destructive energy from his mouth.
"So Naru was the jinchuriki of the Kyuubi but now you can't feel anything of it?" Mei asked as the thought of a Bijuu being left to reform, even it would be a long time, was not a good thing.
"I'm not sure about that entirely. He does have reserves as large as a Bijuu but it doesn't feel like the Bijuu is a part of it or that it is even chakra. It feels too dense and bright to be chakra" Karin said as when she tried to sense and see his chakra she could still see Naru's massive chakra above them on the roof. She had to squint her eyes a bit to make sure she didn't strain her eyes from how bright it was to her.
"So are you suggesting his chakra was changed when the Dead Bone Pulse was injected into him?" Mei asked as Tayuya frowned and shrugged her shoulders.
"I don't know. Whatever caused the explosion that destroyed the base made Naru turn from 12 to four, grow a bone mask, and gain a sword that came from the freaky hole where his heart should be" Tayuya said as Mei frowned.
"I'll have some medics look him over and see if anything is wrong with him. While I am sure he is okay and not in pain I would feel better having him get a checkup" Mei said, a bit worried about the little boy that had so adorably called her his 'auntie'.
"When you are training us could you maybe teach Naru so that he can at least protect himself a bit or maybe run away if others are chasing him" Tayuya said as while she was glad they were getting training approved by a Kage she wanted him to at least be able to escape if he needed to or maybe even use the sword he clung to so he can defend himself.
"I can have Tier or someone else I trust to help him with the basics. I want to wait at least four or five months before I send you out as I have to get all of your ambassadorship approved as well as finish your training to make sure if you do encounter difficulties you can protect yourself and adorable little Naru" Mei said with a smile, hiding the groan of more paperwork in her head.
"Sounds fine. That should be enough time for me to master some of the seven swords" Suigetsu said as the others nodded along, also feeling that they could get stronger and figure things out in that amount of time.
"And while I will have to send you to Konoha in time I will save it for last since it still is cut off from others a bit since the invasion and when I do send you there Naru will come back here in case they try and take him back" Mei said as while she knew he should go back to Konoha but felt the need to keep him with them since he was family.
"I will get your training set up starting tomorrow. For the rest of the day get situated with Kiri and I will have my assistant Ao show you to the house you will be living in next to mine" she added as the others nodded.
Tayuya smiled as she looked forward to getting stronger and being able to protect Naru more, even if she had to travel around the world for it. She understood it a bit for the reason Mei wanted them to and she felt Naru was safer by her side.
-Konoha-
Jiraiya frowned as he looked through the folder of the kunoichi sitting in front of him. Ever since Naruto's kidnapping and the Uchiha's defection he had been trying to figure out what to do with the last genin of Team Seven.
He couldn't even have her train under Kakashi as he had to make the copycat ninja take up his spy network to keep it active. Hence why for the last few months since Sasuke running off he had put her under Kurenai as another student when she was off missions.
She had amazing chakra control so she was perfect for genjutsus but those could only do so much for her as it didn't fully fit her style.
"Hokage-sama, please, I need to get stronger. You have to help me" Sakura said as she clenched her fists, looking him in the eye with pure determination in her eyes.
Jiraiya didn't doubt she had potential to become stronger if she could expand her chakra reserves but he had reservations about her motivation. "Is this about the Uchiha? Because that boy has already made his decision the second after he left for Orochimaru. I had to label him as a missing-nin and he's lucky to have the order of bringing back alive for what he did" he said before she quickly shook her head.
"No! Sasuke lost every ounce of respect and admiration I had for him the second he laughed and said it was a great thing that Naruto got taken!" Sakura yelled, getting heated as since Naruto's kidnapping she had realized that Naruto was always the one who looked out for her and cared for her.
He actually fought to protect her against Gaara while Sasuke just wanted to use Orochimaru's mark and test its power, not even caring about her. She might not love Naruto back like he had with her she felt a bond with him, something that made him feel more important to her.
"So then what is all of this about?" Jiraiya asked as Sakura frowned, clenching her fists as she looked her Hokage in the eye.
"I want to get stronger to get Naruto back. I can't be as useless as I have been since he got taken because he tired himself out protecting me!" she yelled as Jiraiya frowned and let out a sigh.
"I think I know one teacher that could help you. You have good timing as Kakashi returned today and I can send you with him to meet your new teacher" Jiraiya said as he waved his hand, signaling an ANBU to appear in the room.
"Boar, bring Kakashi to my office. Tell him I need him to escort someone to Tsunade with a note I'm going to draft up" he said as the ANBU nodded and disappeared.
"T-Tsunade? She's going to teach me?" Sakura asked in shock as Jiraiya nodded.
"She owes me this much. She made me take up this title and didn't even react when I mentioned our god child going missing. If she doesn't accept this I'm labeling her as missing-nin for being gone for so long" Jiraiya said as he quickly started to write his note to Tsunade explaining everything.
"I want you to train with her for a year or two. When she declares your apprenticeship over I want you to come back and I'll see about missions to send you out to look for him. I already am having Kakashi and my network keep a look out for any information on Naruto and Orochimaru but another set of eyes won't be a bad thing" Jiraiya said before he was surprised by the young girl jumping up and hugging him.
"Thank you Hokage-sama! I promise you won't regret this!" Sakura said as Jiraiya chuckled and gently pulled her off of him.
"Relax I already know I won't regret it. Word of warning though with Tsunade, her training is torture so if you aren't serious about this you still have time to turn back" he said, a bit surprised by the serious look in the pink haired girl's eyes.
"I am incredibly serious about this Hokage-sama. I have to find Naruto and I will do whatever I need to so I can" Sakura said as Kakashi opened the door with his trademark eye-smile.
"Ah just in time Kakashi, I'm glad the time with my spy network has gotten rid of your late tendencies. Look I need you to escort Sakura to Tsunade. She should still be in Tanzaku Gai as she doesn't move around much" Jiraiya said as Kakashi nodded and accepted the scroll from him.
"That should explain everything and the situation with her. Sakura is to be Tsunade's student and will be under her tutelage for a year at least and two at most" Jiraiya said as Kakashi nodded and patted his former student on the back.
"Well Sakura let's go get you ready then we can leave" Kakashi said while Sakura nodded and followed after him while they left the office.
"Kakashi-sensei do you think I can handle being Tsunade's student?" she asked, making Kakashi stop and chuckle softly.
"Sakura you are a skilled kunoichi and you can definitely handle whatever Tsunade dishes out, I just regret that I couldn't help you or train you more. If I could have been a better teacher maybe Naruto wouldn't have been taken and Sasuke could have resisted Orochimaru's temptations" Kakashi said as Sakura frowned and shook her head.
"It's okay Kakashi-sensei, you were able to keep us alive and teach us what you could. We will get them back, I will get Naruto back and we will get Sasuke back, beaten and broken or not." she said while Kakashi chuckled and nodded, patting her on the back with his eye smile.
"I know we will Sakura, we just have to keep having hope" Kakashi said as he rubbed his last student's back, immensely proud at the determination in her eyes.
He knew she would take the apprenticeship with Tsunade seriously and grow immensely from it. 'Work hard and bring them back, I know you can' he thought as they continued to walk out of the building, both ready for the changes ahead of them.
-Kiri-
-Six Months Later-
For the last six months things had been busy for everybody.
Tayuya, Karin and Suigetsu had spent the time training under Tier, Mei and Ao who was Mei's assistant and a skilled sensor to help Karin hone her sensing skills.
Suigetsu had made immense progress in mastering Kubikiribocho under Tier's teachings. He had even started training to wield Kabutowari, Shibuki and Nuibari which he was making slow progress with.
Tayuya had learned a lot of jutsus and skills with Mei's help, she had even ditched her contact with the Doki as Mei warned her of their fickleness and had picked up a contract with the bats and gorillas as with those two they could replace them. While she wasn't a swordsmen she did learn how to fight against them and even gained two tonfas made of chakra metal to help with her close quarter fighting style and allow her to infuse her earth chakra to make them more powerful.
Karin didn't learn much in terms of jutsus as she wasn't much of a fighter but she did have great potential as a medic and was trained as such. It was enough potential to have Mei allow her to apprentice under Retsu Unohana, a medic who was on par with Tsunade and a powerful swordsmen that use to be the leader of the Seven Swordsmen long ago according to Mei.
All of them were busy over the six months, even Naru with the bits of training that he was given as well as regularly checkups from medics and Ao, who with the Byakugan that was implanted into him, was able to help make sure the little red haired boy was healthy and safe.
With the dojutsu Ao was able to find out that the boy's chakra wasn't chakra, just as Karin thought. The boy's energy was incredibly dense, denser than any chakra, Bijuu or otherwise. And with that coupled with the lack of pathways made them figure whatever happened really had changed the boy a lot.
Retsu as well as Ao had thoroughly checked out the bone fox skull mask on his head since both Tayuya and Karin were worried about the crack in it. They had tried to heal the crack with medical chakra and even had him bite on Karin but nothing happened.
He didn't even leave a mark on Karin as apparently with no chakra he couldn't suck on hers and use it to heal.
They had also found out that while there was a hole through where his heart was he still had a heartbeat, despite having no detectable heart. Retsu had given him several checks up very regularly to make sure he was okay and healthy.
Naru, while young, was very good student as he listened to what Mei and Tier told him intently. They didn't teach him much besides how to run and jump higher as he was just a kid and didn't want him to actually fight.
The most they taught him was how to block things with his sword while it was in its sheath as they didn't want him to draw it and hurt himself with it.
Like Naru his sword was also unique and odd. Many trained veteran swordsmen said the sword gave off an aura of death. It was also sharper than any sword any of them had ever seen as well as made of an odd unknown black metal.
They weren't even able to figure out and test what it was made out of as not even a small shaving had been able to be removed. They didn't know what it was but Suigetsu promised he'd make sure Naru kept ahold of it and if needed he'd wield it to protect him.
For the last month they had focused on getting things ready for their ambassadorship missions as the papers had gone through and they were set to go to Kumo first since it was the closest to them and one of the stronger villages.
Both Tayuya and Karin were a bit nervous about going there but with Tier coming along with them they felt a bit safer since they had seen just how strong she was when she spared against Suigetsu and beat him 100 times in a row.
"Look Naru-chan you have to stay close to Tier while you are travelling. She, your neechans, and Suigetsu have to keep you safe while you are traveling" Mei said as she crouched down to his level and fussed over his appearance, tightening the straps of his backpack and sword sheath.
Mei had swapped out Naru's old clothes for a more Kiri style outfit consisting of a dark blue pinstriped long sleeved shirt with black cargo pants. He oddly refused to wear any shoes saying they always felt weird. The cloak he had before had been replaced with a soft blue one that had a slightly bigger hood to allow the mask on his head to be hidden easier.
"Naru knows Auntie! Naru will stay close to Tier-chan!" Naru said as he smiled up at Mei and Tier, making Mei squeal and nuzzle against the small boy as Tier patted his head.
"We'll keep an eye on him. There is four people looking after him, I doubt he'd get too far away" Suigetsu said as he slid Kubikiribocho into his back holster and leaned against the wall while Karin and Tayuya walked out of Mizukage building.
"We won't let him leave our side and will always stay with one of us if some of us do have to go do work or anything" Karin said as Tayuya nodded.
"Not to rush things but shouldn't we be leaving soon? You said the boat was waiting for us at the northern dock right?" Tayuya asked as Mei nodded, stopping herself from nuzzling against Naru.
"Yes they are waiting to take you across the Kaizoku Sea where ambassadors from Kumo will be waiting to take you to their village. Be safe on the way to the village and while in the village please" Mei said as they nodded before she picked Naru up and gave him a kiss on his cheek.
"Now you be a good boy for your neechan's and Tier. Behave while in Kumo and don't go off with strangers okay?" she added as Naru nodded giggling from kiss she gave him before she handed him to Tier, who was use to carrying the little boy as he often followed her around when the others were busy.
"Naru will be a good boy and be a safe boy, Naru promises" he said as Mei smiled and nodded.
"Well have a safe trip, send a messenger hawk the second you get to Kumo. I don't want to worry" Mei said as they all nodded, fully aware of how Mei worried about Naru since she had acted like a mother to Naru, all but calling herself his mom since she liked the title of aunt better as it made her sound less old.
"Bye Auntie! See you later!" Naru said with a massive smile as he waved while they started to walk off towards the northern gate of the village.
Mei smiled as she waved back to the little boy until they walked out of her view. Her fears of something going wrong nipping at her chest but she had faith in Tier and the others to keep him safe.
'He and the others will be safe, they will make it to Kumo safely, I don't have to worry' she told herself as she went back into her office to await the arrival of the messenger hawk while she kept herself busy with paperwork until it showed up.
-Ame – Akatsuki Headquarters-
Obito frowned as he leaned against the railing of the balcony that looked out over Amegakure as he weighed his options in his head.
"You called Madara?" Konan asked as she and one of Nagato's paths walked out onto the balcony. She always felt worried when that man called them as she didn't trust him in the slightest but Nagato listened to him and his words more than she would like him to.
"Yes, after looking things over in the world events I've decided that we need to quicken our plans. With the death of the Kyuubi jinchuriki by the hands of Otogakure we need to gather the Bijuu much earlier than planned" Obito said as he had half explained the situation, keeping Orochimaru out of it and blaming it on some jonin of his village that acted independently.
The last thing he wanted the others to know was how he unintendedly allowed the Kyuubi to die all because of his past and Rin.
"Yes the death of the Kyuubi jinchuriki did slow down our plans considerably given how long it takes to reform. I am having Sasori look into substitutes for the Kyuubi" Nagato said as Konan frowned, not liking where this was going already.
"And why should we rush? With the invasion wouldn't the nations be wary?" Konan asked as Obito shook his head.
"Actually none of the other nations seem to care, besides Suna as they are taking the invasion of Konoha as something to make them cocky. They think that with Konoha weakened they are stronger and are being cockier. It is the best time to with nations like Kumo and Iwa, who don't know of our existence, letting their jinchuriki go on missions around their countries. This is the best time to have our members start to move around" Obito said as Nagato frowned but nodded.
"He is right Konan, we need to call a meeting. It is time for the Akatsuki to start our hunt" Nagato said as he walked off. He knew Madara was keeping something from him but he couldn't deny his point, they could pounce and start taking Bijuu while the village's defenses were lowered.
They already knew where most of the jinchuriki currently were, only the Ichibi being unknown as it left to train somewhere in the mass desert of the Land of Wind.
"I believe the Nibi is mobile right now. If Hidan and Kakuzu are in the area we can get the first one within a week or two and start our hunt rather well" Nagato said as he smiled, looking forward to sending his members out as he had never been one to wait for too long.
Now was the perfect time to make the Elemental Nations know of the Akatsuki and their mission.
-Chapter End-
I would like to thank the user "insanemaelstrom" for the help figure out a way around the whole "Orochimaru in canon couldn't do anything to Naruto because of Akatsuki threat" it helped me a lot and fixed a big hiccup I forgot about.
So Sakura is still going to get Tsunade's training and I do have plans for her, ones that pain17ification approves of and actually helped me a lot with.
Also for the Akatsuki I figured that losing the Kyuubi might accelerate their plans to get the others before they also possibly get lost. As for Isobu reforming I am planning to have it happening somewhat sooner as I did move back the end of the Rebellion a tiny bit so it could happen later in the timeline to make it flow.
Next chapter will be them arriving in Kumo with some interesting things that I already have swirling around in my head. Plus I get to introduce Yoruichi and Sui-Feng next chapter, or the one after as I'm not too sure. But you have that too look forward too soon-ish.
Girls in the running as Naruto's protector/pairing:
Yoruichi Shihoin – Kumo jonin and pseudo-sister/teacher of Killer Bee
Sui-Feng – Kumo chunin and student of Yoruichi
Kukaku Shiba – Iwa jonin bomb expert and inventor
Tier Harribel – Kiri jonin new member of the 7 swordsmen with a new set of 7 swords
Nanao Ise – Suna chunin and member of Suna's Intelligence Division
Nemu Kurotsuchi – Ex-Root member that escaped
Also I know you noticed Retsu Unohana in the story but she ISN'T a pairing choice, she will be Kiri's Tsunade in a sense but still a VERY powerful swordsmen since she use to be a Kenpachi
EDIT: I've decided that Kenpachi and Yachiru will be in the story somehow but with how I have things I don't want to include too many Bleach characters to muddle things up
Possible harem but I am still deciding on my own so PLEASE DON'T leave reviews trying to convince me to do it. I have to think it over to see if it even can work on my own.
Also I AM going to update my other paused stories I promise. I will do my very best to do it over the 2 week break so look forward to that.
Until Next Time
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Buh-Bye!