I Don't Own Naruto, Any Other Anime/Manga or Its Characters.
All Characters Appearing In This Work Are Fictitious. Any Resemblance To Real Persons, Living Or Dead Is Purely Coincidental.
The Journey Back to Konoha
Just outside Konoha's borders
Lord Fukusaku appeared on the hill-top overlooking Konoha's gates, and he could see the gates, he then summoned Gamakichi on the hill-top, when he appeared Fukusaku climbed upon his head and said "I need a lift Gamakichi I am still a bit tired from the battle so help me get to Konoha." Gamakichi simply shrugged and said "ok sure boss" when they reached the gates they found them closed and were suddenly stopped by a group of Anbu with their swords drawn and said "stop who goes there. Speak now or be killed.
Fukusaku simply looked at them and laughed "buhahaha you little tadpoles think you can kill me oh my; that is funny, anyway listen I don't have time for jokes let me through." Gamakichi then said "hey don't you guys know who we are I'm Gamakichi and this is Lord Fukusaku one of the great sage toads, now move before I make you move!" he said in a rough voice preparing to fight his way through.
Suddenly the Anbu commander yelled to her men and said "stop it you guys and let them pass these toads belong to Naruto and they can kick your skinny little assess from here to next week before you even know what happened to you." The commander then jumped to the ground and dropped to her knees and removed her mask and said" forgive them lord Fukusaku i am afraid we are a bit jumpy; the village just got attacked by enemy ninja."
Looking up at the commander Fukusaku said "ah Anko-chan, good to see you not under the circumstances of course but nonetheless." "Now Anko-chan can you please take us to Hatake Kakashi I have something to give him from Tsunade-chan. So will you please take us to him?"
Anko nodded and said "yes sir at once, but before that I'm afraid I must verify your identity so please answer a few questions." Fukusaku nodded and gestured for her to continue Anko turned to Gamakichi and said "what example was used to teach Naruto the advantages of using Senjutsu Chakra?"
Gamakichi smiled and said damn, that was such a long time ago, the example used was of vanilla ice cream and chocolate sprinkles, I told Naruto that senjutsu was good in the same way as chocolate sprinkles on Vanilla ice-cream. Anko nodded and the faced Fukusaku and said "next question: which medium was utilized when decoding the message Jiraiya-sama sent after his battle with Pein?" Fukusaku smiled a sad smile and said "ah, Jiraiya chan what a lovely boy he was, lots of potential but still he died a noble death, anyway to answer your question Anko-chan, the medium used were his Icha-Icha books it was the third instalment called Icha-Icha Tactics."
Anko nodded her head and smiled apologetically and said "I'm sorry my lord but it had to be done, now please follow me I will take you to the Hokage." She then opened the gates and escorted them towards the Hokage tower. When they reached there they found Kakashi having a nap on the couch, Anko informed Kurenai of their arrival and she went to wake Kakashi.
5 minutes later
Kakashi welcomed the Sage into his office and exchanged some pleasantries before getting down to business. Kakashi said "I hope all is well sir, the last time you were in this office was when you were informing us of Jiraiya-sama's death." Fukusaku shook his head and said "no, nothing as grave as that. But Kumo was attacked as well by Sound and Earth. Tsunade-chan has sent me with this scroll to give to you." He then removed the scroll from his travelling cloak and gave it to Kakashi who read it with a serious expression.
When he finished reading the scroll he said "I see so that's what happened. It's good to hear everyone is safe. Thank you Lord Fukusaku would you please pass on the message to her and give her this scroll." he said giving him a scroll Fukusaku nodded and said "alright ok, I will be going now" and left the office while Kakashi got up to tell the council of the recent developments"
In Kumo
Hinata had just entered her room after delivering a scroll to the Fire Daimyo. and she was feeling very sweaty and tired so she decided to go for a shower, she then went to her backpack and took out some extra clothes when she heard someone enter her room suddenly, she threw a kunai at the source of the noise and heard a voice say "OW what the hell." She turned on the lights recognising the voice. "Naruto-kun what are you doing here?" Naruto was taking out the kunai from his thigh and said "damn Hinata-chan a few inches higher and I would have been in trouble," Hinata shook her head and put her hands on her hips and said "what are you doing here Naruto kun?" Instead of answering her he simply walked up to her and took her in his arms and kissed her passionately on the lips, although she was thoroughly enjoying the kiss she pushed him away and said "not that I mind baby but why are you kissing me aren't you supposed to be checking on the genin?" "Oh that?" "I asked Lee to do them for me, he agreed."
"So let me get this straight you had Lee-kun do your job all so that you could come up here and kiss me?" Naruto looked at her and said "pretty much." She then pushed him away and said "that is wrong Naruto kun you stuck Lee-kun with your job." "Hey it's not like he isn't getting anything out of it he wants me to help him with a problem he has with Sakura-chan so I agreed, now where were we?" Naruto said "oh yea I was about to kiss my sexy and beautiful girlfriend." He then brought his lips to hers and began kissing her once again; she soon surrendered to the passion and said "let's take a shower Naruto-kun I will scrub your back." Naruto just moaned and said "let's go babe I'm right behind you" and they followed each other to the bathroom and began removing each other's clothes until they were only in their underwear Naruto took of Hinata's panties and was about to take off his own boxers when... he suddenly disappeared in a poof of smoke.
He suddenly appeared at mount Myōbokuzan and tripped over his boxers which were half down, suddenly he got back up and saw Shima in front of him, and at the moment she was laughing very hard because Naruto looked very weird with his bare ass pointed up in the air and Hinata's panties on his head. Naruto slowly got up and pulled up his boxers and said "damnit cant you give me a little warning before you summon me here you old geezers I was just about to have some fun with Hinata- chan."
Fukusaku looked at the panties in Naruto's hands and said "yes, I can imagine; poor Naruto-chan" he said and started laughing again. After 5 minutes when everyone was back to normal Fukusaku said "alright I gave the letter to Kakashi and he read the scroll and said everything was getting back to normal he then gave me this scroll to give to Tsunade-chan which I am now giving to you to give her ok?" Naruto became serious and nodded and said "ok fine is that all?" the old toad nodded and sent him back, where he landed right in front of Hinata and caused her to be surprised and lose her balance and fall. This then caused Naruto's face to be buried right in between Hinata's legs, which none of them objected to, however Naruto had a job to do but he did not want to miss his meal so he quickly made a shadow clone and gave him the scroll to give to Tsunade while he had his meal.
At the Hyuuga estate
The elders were meeting in a closed room and were discussing the current state of affairs, "so it seems like Tsunade and the Kyuubi brat both survived the war, but from what Hiashi told us they are heavily injured and are being brought back to Konoha for their treatment.
Meanwhile it seems Kakashi has been appointed Hokage, although it is a roadblock in our plans we can still work with it the main thing we have to is to get rid of Tsunade and the Kyuubi brat, once they are dead we can wait for the proper moment and then get rid of Kakashi as well but the main problem is getting rid of those two. How do you propose we do that?"
One of the elders spoke up and said "I have an Idea "Why don't we have them eliminated on the way here, we can make it look like it was done by rogue ninja." I know of at least one group who would do it for the right price. As with anything my comrades anything is possible for the right price." The Elders smiled and agreed with that. "So are we in agreement?" There were heads nodding, the risk was great but then again so was the reward. The Hyuuga Elder smiled and left the room to make the arrangements.
In Kumo Two days later
All The Genin were finally out of the Hospital and everyone was dressed immaculately, they had just finished a small but elaborate ceremony, organised by the Raikage to appreciate and reward the foreign Shinobi who had helped them win this war. The Genin were all smiles. Not only had they been appreciated by the Raikage but they had also received 3 sets of the Standard Shinobi Battle Gear.
While the Genin were admiring their new equipment Naruto was speaking with Killer Bee who dressed in black and was drinking sake directly from the bottle, "Heh, one of the many side effects of being a Jinchuuriki is not being able to get a hangover on booze."
Naruto smiled sadly and said "your right my friend, I'm sorry about Motoi he was my friend too." Bee waved his hand and said "can't do much about it man we are shinobi, death is an occupational hazard." Bee said with a sly smile.
"I saw it myself after the battle was finished; the son of a bitch didn't go down without a fight. He killed two shinobi squads single handed before being ambushed from behind. But even then he kept up the battle while summoning a Parliament of Owls (group of owls) together and even used their power to hypnotise and confuse some of the enemy ninja into attacking their own.
He then sealed the dead enemy shinobi in sealing scrolls and transporting them to the Raikage's office. He was a real brother Naruto, knowing he would die he instructed Fukurou-sama, the Head of the Owl Clan to offer his summoning contract to my son Fujiko, when he becomes a Genin in a few years.
Until then the Contract will be locked in a secure vault at the Raikage's office. Samui and Karui along with Atsui turned up soon to backup Motoi and together they managed to defeat the motherfuckers but they all suffered fatal wounds as a result and died from their wounds while being transported to the hospital by the medical Nin, we later realised that they died protecting a couple of Academy kids who had been caught in the middle." Naruto whistled a low whistle, and said, "Damn man well if you got to go, that's the way to go." Killer Bee simply nodded his head taking another swig of the sake bottle.
An hour later
The Raikage and his party of Shinobi stood at the Gates of Kumogakure to bid adieu to their guests. After the customary farewell manners were observed for the visiting leaders. The two visiting leaders together walked with their subordinates until the Lightning border where they then reached a fork in the road where the Konoha and Suna Shinobi groups split into two. Tsunade and Gaara nodded and thanked each other for the help their Shinobi gave each other and then travelled on in opposite directions for a few minutes.
After a couple of minutes of travelling they reached a grassy clearing where the Hokage who was also travelling with The Fire Daimyo and had shuffled her shinobi around accordingly so that the Daimyo was well protected by her Jonin while she herself was being guarded by only the young Genin, something which the genin noticed and took pride in.
When Tsunade gave the order for them to stop, the Daimyo who had now been walking continuously for an hour now finally spoke and said "why have we stopped Tsunade-dono, I have walked for so long now when will we reach home?" Tsunade looked at the Daimyo and said "we will be moving out shortly Daimyo-dono, but before we do that we have to make some preparations."
Suddenly there was a shuffling sound of some tree leaves and grass. The Fire Daimyo then saw a large cloud of sand suddenly appear in the air for a few seconds before disappearing, a few minutes later another wave of sand appeared in the air, but this time upon the crest of the wave stood the Kazekage. The Wind Daimyo was seated right behind The Kazekage while the Suna Nin stood guard over their respected Kage and the old politician ever alert for any dangers. The Kazekage saw Tsunade as he travelled south towards Suna and nodded his head in acknowledgement.
Tsunade looked at the Departing Kazekage and also nodded her head. She then Turned towards her ninja and said "all right, The Kazekage has given the all clear signal it's time for us to go home my young Shinobi." Tsunade looked at Naruto, Konohamaru and Kenpachi, Kiba and Akamaru and said "all right you guys time to get started, the three Shinobi nodded and got to work.
Naruto walked a few steps to a shaded tree and then promptly sat under it and became still and closed his eyes and began to meditate while gathering enough Natural Energy to enter Sage Mode. Kiba transformed himself and Akamaru into two large Grey wolves. Konohamaru and Kenpachi who had largely recovered from their wounds were proud to use their talents to help their comrades reach home.
Konohamaru and Kenpachi looked at each other and grinned. They then stood back to back and cut their fingers with a kunai, allowing their blood to flow. They then went through the hand signs for Boar → Dog → Bird → Monkey → Ram. They then slammed their hands on the ground simultaneously and said: "Kuchiyose no Jutsu" ("Ninja Art: Summoning Jutsu!") When the smoke cleared, a monkey and a bear stood in front of the two Genin.
Before they could ask the obvious question of why they were there the Hokage appeared in front of them and said "Thank you for answering your summons young ones I know that it has been only a short while since the last battle, however I'm afraid I must call you to duty for one last time." Koenma looked at Kumashiro and then kneeled in front of the Hokage while Kumashiro stood on all fours. Koenma spoke first and said "The Sarutobi clan will answer your call when you give it Hokage-Dono." Kumashiro also spoke and said "I got no probs at all coming out to play, it's always interesting."
Tsunade smiled at that comment and said "the reason I have called you two here is because it is now time to go back home and under the circumstances it would be dangerous to travel along the normal path so I have decided that you two and your summoners along with Kiba and Naruto will split into the four cardinal directions and travel from four separate directions until we reach this area." She indicated the area on a map and said "Konohamaru and Koenma I want you both to transform yourselves into Orang-utans, and travel trough the Eastern Forests until you reach the meeting point. Kenpachi and Kumashiro you will travel along the Southern Mountains while being transformed as black bears."
"There are many springs and natural caves there; it is also a place that has many black bears. While you travel I want you to check for any enemies or ambushes or traps along the way. If you do spot any ambushes or enemy troops you will NOT I repeat you will NOT engage them, you will take evasive measures in two ways."
Koenma, Kumashiro You will disappear to your own realms and once there you will immediately reverse summon your respective summoners to your realm and keep them there for Five days after which you will then reverse summon them back to Konoha. Is that clear?" Kumashiro and Koenma both nodded. Konohamaru then asked a question "but how will we tell you if that happens?"
Tsunade pointed towards Hirako and said "Hirako will hide some insects in your fur, when the summoning is released the insects will not be able to follow and will inform Hirako of that. Kenpachi then asked the next question and said "if that fails?"
Tsunade smiled and said "good thinking Kenpachi, before disappearing, I want your summons to sound the danger signal as loudly as they can so that Kiba can pick it up.
Kumashiro and Koenma I want you both to make the sound that a Monkey and a Bear in the wild make when they spot danger do it now so that Kiba can hear the sound and memorise it." The summoned animals nodded and made the sounds. Kiba asked to hear it two more times before looking at Akamaru and then nodding his head indicating he had memorised the sounds.
Tsunade looked at Kiba and said "Kiba and Akamaru I want you to reach the meeting point by way of travelling across the Northern Mountains the terrain is very cold and snow regularly falls in those mountains, because of how the land has developed over the past few decades, the northern Mountains are very close to the eastern Jungles. That means that both you and Konohamaru will be travelling in parallel directions. So keep track of the kid if you can with your senses."
Kiba nodded his head. She then turned towards Naruto and said "Naruto you will travel along the southern Rivers, I want you to use your shadow clones and transform them into the Daimyo and us Konoha shinobi, and your clones transformed as us will be travelling on the southern banks. The Southern Banks are also densely populated with small Civilian towns so make sure that your clones don't travel through the towns themselves but on the outskirts of it."
"The southern route is the fastest and most direct route to the Fire Nation and our enemies if any will most likely be positioning their assets along the southern route. While your clones are doing so I want you travelling discreetly via the river that runs along the entire southern area.
I want you to use your sage mode capabilities to sense any hidden enemies, not to mention that being in sage mode will increase your physical abilities, it will also allow you to conserve your normal chakra for the time being. I want you to be transformed as a Toad, Fish or other aquatic animal that is indigenous to the area.
I also want you to remain underwater and submerged for the most part so as to check for any enemies hidden in the water." Naruto nodded his head in acknowledgement.
Tsunade then looked at her four shinobi and said "Under normal circumstances the trip will take about 15 hours so I want you all to conserve your chakra and rely on your physical capabilities more and your chakra less. Especially since you have just been dismissed from the hospital is that understood?"
"The shinobi nodded their heads again "Very well then dismissed" the shinobi stood to attention and then disappeared into the shadows. She then towards Crow and Pigeon and said "I want you two to split up and travel through the small towns and villages until you reach the village, I want you two to gauge the reactions of the small villages and towns that neighbour the minor Shinobi villages, I want you both to just blend in. The Kazekage and Raikage have informed me that they will also have their own Anbu agents travelling through the small towns so don't be surprised if you see them." Pigeon and Crow nodded their head and disappeared in a flash.
Tsunade then turned towards her the rest of her shinobi and said "all right young ones it's time for us to leave as well; she looked at Udon and nodded her head. Udon then rummaged through his backpack and retrieved a large scroll. He then opened the scroll, when opened the scroll contained drawings of 26 large eagles all of them the same size and shape. He looked at Tsunade for one last time for confirmation.
"Do you have enough chakra, Udon-Kun" The Hokage asked her subordinate kindly. Udon looked at his leader and said "Yes, Hokage-sama, I have enough chakra for this task, although it's a good thing you told me about this plan at the start. Thanks to that I was able to make 10 large eagles per day. Now all I have to do is release the seal and create the appropriate amount of ink clones as well, but I'm afraid Hokage-sama after this is done I will have used up approximately half of my chakra supply, also because of my leg being in a cast I will not be able to fight effectively."
Tsunade nodded and said "Understood, go ahead with the plan" Udon nodded his head and said: "Sumi Bunshin no Jutsu" ("Ink Clone Jutsu") and created 13 ink clones which he then had transform into the Leaf Ninja and the Daimyo, with that done he then turned towards his as yet still drawings and after making the required hand signs he said: "Ninpou: Chōjū Giga" (Ninja Art: Super Beast Imitating Mimicry), the images leapt from the paper, and grew to life-size and acted as per Udon's will. The ink clones boarded the eagles one by one, and then took off as one, flying in formation at all times.
After 5 minutes Tsunade nodded her head and Udon once gain made the required hand signs and said "Ninpou: Chōjū Giga" (Ninja Art: Super Beast Imitating Mimicry), the images leapt from the paper, and grew to life-size and acted as per Udon's will. The Konoha shinobi along with the Daimyo boarded the eagles one by one, once everyone was sitting upon their eagles comfortably Tsunade gave a thumbs up to Udon and said "OK lets go" the eagles once again rose up high in the sky; flying in formation Shikamaru had a bow in his hand with a quiver of arrows slung across his shoulder, an arrow was already perched upon the bow, ready to be shot at any oncoming enemies. Tenten had a handful of kunai and shuriken in her hands ready to be thrown at any enemies that might try and challenge them.
Shikamaru and Tenten were flying in close formation with the Daimyo, as they had been given the job of keeping him safe. Meanwhile Hinata and Shino had the job of protecting the Hokage. Hinata had her Byakugan active looking for any enemies, while Shino had his insects flying about searching for any hidden enemies or Genjutsu Traps. Chouji and Lee meanwhile were protecting the Genin, on the lookout as well for any hidden enemies.
Meanwhile Near the Fire Country Border
The Konoha Shinobi were on the lookout, they had covered every inch of the Fire Border looking for enemies and comrades. A pride of lions were circling the mountains, crocodiles were patrolling the rivers and swamps, Eagles and Crows flew in the sky their sharp eyes ever on the lookout for prey which in this case was the enemies of their village. Wolves patrolled the jungles on the lookout for enemies who might dare enter, for those who dared to make that mistake would make the final mistake of their lives, for their orders were clear; they were to end the lives of those that entered their borders with EXTREME PREJUDICE, and for members of the Inuzuka clan holding a grudge came as second nature.
However with the amount of security and shinobi patrolling the borders, they still could not secure every single corner of their borders. It was through one of these small corners that a small group of people managed to sneak into the Fire Country Border. The group was made up of a very small number of people only 10 people were entering through the gap in the Fire country border. Once inside the border the group split up into smaller groups to carry out their task.
One of the younger members of the group who was a bit too excited at being asked to join this important mission for his cause, broke a Golden rule and opened his mouth to tell his group members how proud he was to join the Yakuza. They were a small group of activists no doubt but they all held the belief that the world was being corrupted by shinobi who were using their skills to oppress the people, he was proud that he had been selected as part of this group to carry out their first major mission.
In his excitement he opened his mouth and started to speak a little too loudly about his joy, The leader of the group immediately turned his head to shout an order to the young man to shut his mouth and concentrate on the task ahead, in doing so he failed to see a well hidden trap that was concealed in the foliage and as a result he walked straight ahead, a his left foot activated the latent trap and in a split second the silence was replaced by a series of loud explosions and the air turned gray with weapons, in the span of 45 seconds the group of 10 well trained people turned into a band of school kids who had gotten scared by the noise.
As a result they disregarded their training and started trying to avoid the traps by running around blindly and in the process activating more traps. Of course all this noise did not go unnoticed and The Inuzuka clan members patrolling the area heard the noise and ran towards the source of the noise. The Inuzuka clan members were the first to arrive on the scene, followed closely by a squad of Anbu elite. They arrived to see that there were 10 people before them. 5 were dead 2 were fatally wounded and dying. That left only 3 people of the original group of 10 and although they weren't wounded seriously they were still unable to move, because the kunai and shuriken that hit them had been specially coated with a paralyzing toxin that paralysed the whole body, an added bonus of it was that the toxin also doubled as a Hallucination agent. "Look what we have here; we have a couple of young pups who seem to have lost their way." Tsume Inuzuka said with false sympathy "but wait what are they doing sneaking into The Fire Nation's borders and that too with weapons" Tsume said again after searching them; One of the Anbu Agents shivered in his boots as he heard Tsume's Dangerously sweet voice.
It was a common belief among the men in the village that Anko Mitarashi and Tsume Inuzuka regularly met on a full moon night at midnight to discuss and Practice torture techniques, because besides the Hokage these two women were very dangerous to cross, skilled and logical Jonin though they were they had a way of making even the most experienced Jonin shiver. Although along with that every man who had ever had their company in bed always proclaimed to the high heavens that they were a handful in bed."
Tsume turned to Kuromaru and said "sound the alarm and ensure that you tell Anko to prep the recreation room, we have some New Guinea pigs to test." She said with an evil grin. She looked at the horrified faces of the disabled and bleeding men, and quickly began telling them of the wonders that she had in store for them. The leader of the Anbu squad left 2 of his best men with Tsume, while he dispatched his men towards the different sections of the border and ensure that every inch of the border was locked down.
Meanwhile
Kuromaru had sounded the alarm and now it was being relayed through a series of howls and barks, which was first picked up by the Inuzuka clan and then the rest of the border Patrol units and within a matter of 15 minutes the already alert border patrol became even more alert and started laying even more traps, in addition to that each Shinobi had a weapon out in his hand alert for every single sound.
At the same time
Urushi; one of Kakashi's personal Ninken who were patrolling near the gates of Konoha heard and recognised the wolf howls of the Inuzuka clan ninken and quickly started howling himself which was then heard by Kakashi and his remaining ninken around the village. He quickly got up from his chair where he was finishing some paperwork and started towards the door when one of the Inuzuka Jonin who were guarding the gates came up to him running and said "Hokage-sama we have been..." Kakashi interrupted him and said "yeah, I know our borders have been invaded, he turned to the Jonin and said "Inform Tsume that I want all the prisoners alive and well enough for interrogation. Next I want Anko, Ibiki and Inoichi, and Shikaku inside my office in 5 minutes.
He turned to Fox and said "inform Anbu HQ that Plan Zeta is now in effect and they are to prep accordingly. Fox nodded and disappeared in a shun shin of leaves. He then made to go to the battle field but was stopped when Gai, Yamato and Kurenai appeared in the hallway, blocking his way. "Just what do you think you're doing Kakashi?" Kakashi looked at his friend and said "are you deaf haven't you heard our borders have been breached and I have to get there as well." Gai looked at him and said "you will do no such thing Kakashi; you are no longer a Jonin fighting foreign enemies you have to now be a General and a Leader and Command your army and trust you're military to do its job properly." Kakashi looked at home for a minute with a look of pure hatred while his mind tried to digest and understand the words his friend said.
Kakashi finally slumped his shoulders and said "Fine your right, Gai. He then looked at Phoenix and said "inform The Hyuuga, Inuzuka, and Aburame clan Leaders to activate Plan Alpha, at the same time inform the Akimichi, Nara, and Yamanaka clan leaders to activate Plan Beta." Phoenix nodded his head and disappeared in a shun shin of leaves. Before he left a squad of Anbu formed up around Kakashi, Gai, Yamato and Kurenai.
12 Hours later at a Predetermined Spot:
The group of Konoha shinobi along with the Daimyo had been travelling for a long time on the ink eagles that Udon had created and had finally reached their destination. Tsunade was surprised however when she checked her watch she realised that they had arrived three hours earlier than planned.
Udon smiled proudly when she asked him and said "While flying I noticed a strong headwind in the south-easterly direction Hokage-sama, and so I simply modified our course a few degrees so that we could reach here a little earlier, it would also give us all a little time to rest before the next part of the journey." Tsunade was pleasantly surprised to know that although he was so young he was still able to read the air currents so accurately all the while controlling so many ink beasts at once.
Then she realised that these genin had been trained by the Konoha 12 and as a result they were better prepared for the life of a shinobi but one of the other reasons was that they had also had taken the time to develop their skills properly and had been exposed to different teaching styles by different teachers. She then realised that if all Genin could go through this kind of training it would make them better shinobi. It was something to discuss and think about with Iruka and some of the other academy teachers and Jonin proctors.
Her thoughts were interrupted by Shino who said "Hokage-sama Hirako informs me that our land scouts have so far found no trace of enemies or traps, they also report that they will be reaching the agreed point 2 hours ahead of schedule." Tsunade nodded her head and walked over to Tenten and Hinata and said "Hinata there should be a large river that connects to the Ocean half a mile north, I want you to go with Tenten and help her make arrangements for the next part of the Journey.
The two Kunoichi nodded their heads and walked towards the river together, throughout the walk to the river, Tenten was silent and although she never really spoke until she had something to say. After spending so much time with Naruto and because her Byakugan was active looking for enemies she could see and decipher Tenten's body language, although she didn't need her Byakugan to tell her That Tenten was uncomfortable about something. Hinata decided to do something she learnt from Naruto; take the direct approach. "So Tenten-chan how is Gai sensei doing I haven't seen him for a while?" Tenten smiled sadly and said "he is fine; he was taken off active duty for a few days to get some rest after his last mission." Hinata nodded and said "So, have you and Neji-Kun set a date for the wedding as of yet?" Tenten's face changed into a Myriad of expressions from pain, to sorrow to anger to relief in a matter of three seconds before resuming a neutral expression and said: "not yet."
Hinata realised that she had hit the nail on the head; Hinata knew that she was not one to give relationship advice, his was a job more suited to Sakura or Ino, but Tenten was her friend and so she would try her best. "Um Tenten-chan is everything alright with you and Neji-kun?" Tenten simply nodded her head and said, "Yes, everything is fine."
A few seconds later
Tenten started crying and said "no nothing is fine everything is wrong, Neji broke up with me and said "that he was a genius of the Hyuuga clan and as such I was not worthy of him since I had no heritage or Bloodline Limit. He said that I was the lowly child of a blacksmith and was good for nothing but lying down naked and spreading my legs and being his whore.
He said that's all I was good for and that even if he took pity ion me and married me the kids born to him would be weak and unworthy to hold the Hyuuga Name and would be a disgrace to him and his clan." Tenten could hold it in no more and fell down on her knees and started crying violently as she told Hinata through gasps and tears what other hateful things Neji had told her. All the while Hinata held Tenten's face in her huge bosom and patted her head like a mother comforting her daughter after her first breakup.
A few minutes later
Tenten had finally stopped crying and asked the inevitable question that Hinata knew would come: "Why, Hinata-chan why, I love Neji with all my heart and soul I have even accepted the fact that I will be scrutinised for every move. I accept that I will never be considered as anything more than a step above a stray dog by the elders of the clan, God damn it; I also accepted the fact that my children when I have them will be marked with the caged bird seal. All so that I could be with Neji-kun."
Hinata smiled and said "This is exactly the reason he said those things to you; you know it's actually a very similar situation I faced, early on in my relationship with Naruto after the first few months of dating.
Naruto had started having second thoughts about our relationship, especially when he saw the way some of the older people in the village still treated him with contempt and hatred despite his achievements and while he was able to stand it when it was directed towards him, but when they turned their attention to me, he could not stand it. But I kept on telling him to leave them alone, but one day, he tried to break up with me and tell me how dating me was a mistake and that he wanted to break up with me, after that he immediately left on an S rank mission all by himself. I was shattered beyond belief and fell into depression; I could not even do the simplest things without failing. "
"Tsunade Sama eventually had to intervene and she figured out why Naruto said everything he did, she told me that he did not want me to be submitted to the same horrors that he had faced as a child and he also did not want his children being labelled as demons."
"She told me that I had to make Naruto understand that no matter what happened I would stand by his side and support him. Of course he didn't really believe me when I told him that, so I made him understand the only way he would understand." Tenten smiled a little bit and said "how by starving him and denying him Ramen?" Hinata giggled and said "no, I fought him."
Tenten looked confused and so Hinata explained. You see Tenten-chan, Naruto kun made his decision with his hear t not his head, as a Shinobi he knew and understood that I am a shinobi and can take care of myself in any situation and could defeat any enemy that comes my way.
However in his heart he was thinking of me not as a shinobi, but as a woman that he loved and wanted to spare me the Agony of being the subject of those stares and hatred that he grew up with, as a man he wanted to protect me, because he believed it his Nindo to do so, but by battling him and then defeating him in battle."
You see Tenten-chan by defeating him in battle I made him realise that I could take care of myself and did not need him to protect me all the time." Tenten still looked confused and said "so what are you saying that Neji does love me and wants to protect me so I have to fight him to prove otherwise?" Hinata smiled and said "yes, and no, Tenten I know my brother very well and let me tell you that he loves you with every fibre of his being and loves you as much as any man can love a woman despite his appearance Neji is a very passionate man."
"You see for Naruto it was simply that he wanted to protect me from harm most of it being physiological, but for Neji it is a more complex situation than that. For Neji its two-fold, it has both to protect you from harm and with clan politics, you see you hit the nail on the head earlier when you said that you were willing to even let your children be branded with the caged bird seal to be with Neji. You see for all his talent and skill Neji is at the end of the day still a Branch member of the Hyuuga Clan and as thus is forever branded with the caged bird seal which puts his life in control of someone else, also as a Branch Member he is more likely to be used as a pawn in a political campaign by the Main Branch Elders, and so he doesn't wish for his family to be pawns as well."
"To put it shortly Tenten-chan the fact that you WANT to marry Neji DESPITE the consequences, is the very reason that Neji DOESN'T WANT to marry you, because he knows that despite come hell or high water you will endure the suffering, and that suffering is something he does not want you to experience so he thinks that by saying hurtful words and distancing himself from you will cause you less suffering than marrying him, and if in the process he has to deny himself love, then he is willing to sacrifice his love for you on the altar of your happiness. Do you understand now Tenten-chan?"
"So your saying that Neji-kun loves me so much that he can't bear to see me take emotional and mental abuse from the Clan Members who would not be happy with his marriage to me and as a result to spare me that agony he wants to break up with me and thinks that it will cause me less agony in the long run and that I will be happy without him?" "Exactly," "but that's bullshit not to mention it's a crazy logic and makes no sense whatsoever." Hinata looked at Tenten with the expression of teaching two plus two to a toddler. "No my dear, that is the male psyche at work mixed with equal part politics and false bravado." Hinata said with a grin.
"Ok, so what do I do next, how do I get him to forget these stupid thoughts of his and get him to marry me?" Hinata smiled and said "That my dear Tenten-chan is something you will have to figure out on your own, however I recommend you think of it on your own time, now our first priority is getting back to the village safely, now come let's go and figure out how to get back home."Tenten nodded her head and dried her tears and said "you're right; we have a job to do, let's go."
A few minutes later
The two kunoichi finally reached the river bank. Hinata having scouted for traps and hidden enemies beforehand had pronounced the area safe. Once there Tenten was informed by Hinata that the river was about 15 feet deep, just enough for what she had planned. "Hey Hinata could you please move back a bit?" Hinata was puzzled by the request but did as her comrade asked. She then went through the hand signs for Boar → Dog → Bird → Monkey → Ram. She then slammed her hands on the ground and said: Kuchiyose no Jutsu (Ninja Art: Summoning Jutsu.) When the smoke cleared, A medium sized orange turtle stood on the shore with weird markings on it shell while wearing a Konoha Hitai-ate around its neck. Hinata was shocked to see Tenten not only use the Summoning Jutsu but to call forth a Ninkame was truly astounding.
"Yo, girlie what up, what you need" Tenten smiled and said "hey, Krillin, I need a favour I need you to do some scouting for us, we are hoping to get home via the sea, so I need you to check if it's going to be deep enough and safe enough for us to travel underwater. Also please check for fresh water routes that are deep enough for the Toad clan as well to travel with ease."
"Heh, this is setting up to be a real party what are you planning?" Tenten smiled and said "nothing special we just need a lift back home, as fast as possible while avoiding any lurking enemies."
Krillin looked at his summoner and d started laughing, "Buhahaha, I knew there was a reason I liked you girlie, alright now how long do i have to scout the place?" The turtle asked. "You have one hour total." "Heh, more than enough, I'll see you in an hour girlie."
With that the turtle retreated inside its shell and suddenly jets of high pressure water erupted from where his limbs and head were, and by applying the force of the water in a circular spinning direction Krillin started rising in the air while moving towards the middle of the lake once he reached there the turtle suddenly stopped his ferocious water attacks and fell into the middle of the lake and disappearing within its depths.
Hinata walked up to Tenten and said "wow Tenten-chan I was not aware that you had a summoning contract with the Kame clan, when did you receive it, please tell me everything." Tenten smiled and sat down on the ground and patted the ground next to her and said "ah what the heck it will take some time for Krillin to come back so I will tell you about it in short detail ok, but in return i have a plan on how to get Neji to come back to his senses and I'm going to need your help with my plan, deal?" Hinata nodded her head and sat next to her friend. Tenten took a large breath and started her story.
"I once had the chance as a Genin to gain the Ninkame summoning contract as a genin. Gai sensei offered it to me after he learned i was good at using Fūinjutsu (Sealing Techniques) but at that time, in my immaturity I insulted the Master of the Ninkame clan Master Roshi, and called him a useless old turtle that was only good for hiding in his shell." At that time I did not realise that I was an immature girl chasing the back of a woman whom I later realised could never imitate, I could only use her as my guide and become a strong kunoichi in my own right."
"I am of course speaking of Tsunade-sama, heh, it's kind of funny, shortly after Tsunade-sama became Hokage, I had the chance to really speak to her and I told her that she was my Idol and that I wanted to be just like her."
"She smiled and said that it was a good thing if i wanted to emulate her and her principles, but she also told me something very important that day she seemed to have answered all my doubts in one sentence: "Tenten-chan, remember always be yourself, never try to copy someone else, the reason for that is because everyone else is taken." When I went home that day I realized that the reason i wanted to become like Tsunade-sama was because she was a strong kunoichi who proved that women were the equal of men. I then realised that what I wanted to become was a great Kunoichi and that Tsunade -Sama was simply the best example." After that I realised that I had paid master Roshi and Gai sensei both a great disrespect, however while Gai sensei was understanding and forgave me."
"Master Roshi did not and said that I could not wipe the stain of disrespect so easily and he even forbade Gai sensei from allowing me to sign the Ninkame contract. I was crushed but I understood that I had to redeem myself in Master Roshi's eyes and so I asked Gai sensei to help me, and so Gai sensei said that Master Roshi was a shinobi who only respected determination, hard work and effort. It was the main reason why Master Roshi liked Lee and even taught Lee some of his strong defense Kame Taijutsu style techniques. "
"So in order to help me Gai sensei would develop some crazy and rigorous training for me and then leave Master Roshi to supervise me, while he trained with Lee and Neji. At first Master Roshi would refuse to do so, but Gai sensei eventually wore him down and he agreed to supervise my training, but Master Roshi never spoke to me neither did he acknowledge me as a disciple or a person, he only quietly watched while I trained non-stop. Still it took three years for him to forgive me. One day he had Gai summon him on the training ground so that he could speak to me. He said that I had impressed him greatly, and he even allowed me to sign the Ninkame contract, but on the strict condition that I would never summon him or his clan members in battle until he deemed I was ready. "
"When I asked him how I can prepare myself he laughed and told me that until I could not defeat 15 of his best handpicked students he would not permit me to use the Ninkame on the battlefield. He also stated however that if I defeated 10 or more of his students, he would allow me to use the Ninkame for non-combat related tasks. Up until now in the past three years I have only been able to so far defeat 12 of his students."
Hinata looked at Tenten and said "it seems you also have many tricks up your sleeve Tenten-chan." Tenten smiled and said "heh, well I guess you could say so, anyway listen to the plans I have for Neji-kun, by hook or by crook I'm going to fight for my beliefs to get Neji-kun, back where he belongs." Hinata could see a very naughty look on her comrade's face and just had to ask the next question "and where is that Tenten chan?" "Why in between my legs of course." Tenten then quickly moved over and quickly gave Hinata's breasts a quick fondle and said "Damn girl, no wonder Naruto tries to grope you every chance he gets even I'm jealous." Hinata blushed red and said "Tenten please behave yourself we are in the middle of a battle field after all, now why don't we finish laying all the traps while you tell me about your plan and how I can help."
One Hour later
Tenten had just finished setting up the traps and sealing of the area with explosive tags and sealing tags, although she was setting up the traps she had to be careful to not disturb the native wildlife she ensured that her traps were either chakra traps which would activate when the sealing tags felt a certain amount of chakra, or either notion sensors, but these traps had also been designed in such a way that while any animal could easily get out of the trap, if it entrapped a human then it would be very bad for that human. As Tenten was admiring the finishing touches on her traps which for the meanwhile were not yet active, her sharp ears caught Krillin's voice calling her a mile away from the shore. She then walked towards the shore to meet the Ninkame.
"Alright girlie as you asked I have checked out the area and I don't see any kind of issues in regards to security. But there are two problems that I do see. One: There are no fresh water sources anywhere near here. Second: unfortunately, we Ninkame can only get you guys until just outside the Fire Country Border because the body of water after that is not deep enough for Ninkame to swim through, however there are many swamp and fresh water areas through which The Gama Clan members can travel safely through to get you inside the rest of the way."
Tenten absorbed the information with a blank face, while Hinata listened. Tenten then looked at Krillin and said "you have something to say Krillin than say it." Krillin nodded his head and said "your damn right i want to say something Girlie. How do you lot expect to get inside the Fire Country Border.
"I know Konoha has also been attacked as well and everyone is on high alert. Just before you called me here I saw Goten and Trunks both Lieutenants in the Kame Military force return back to Kame beach with fresh battle scars and serious faces, and when they saw me instead of joking around as they normally did with me they came to attention and performed a Military Salute and addressed me by my name and rank of Captain Krillin Kame of The Kame Defense and Scout Division, which is what a Ninkame soldier which is what a junior Ninkame officer does when he meets a Senior Ninkame in the time of war." "They told me about what had happened in Konoha and that is why although I didn't seem concerned at first to fool any causal onlookers but I'm telling you right here and now, that unless you have a plan on how to get inside the Border without you lot getting killed me and my Ninkame aint going to even give you a lift to the bathroom, let alone the Fire Country Border. Allow me to clarify" until I have the answers to my questions and am personally satisfied by the answers. I will not help you, so I suggest you get Tsunade-dono to meet me here if you cannot answer my questions."
Tenten smiled at this and said "actually Krillin, I do have the answer to your question." She then turned towards Krillin and said "Krillin you just stated that I'm outside the Borders of the Fire Country while my master is within correct?" Krillin looked confused and said "yes, so what... Oh I see what you intend to do even though your both at different places, your still connected to each other. Heh, who came up with this idea?" Tenten turned towards Hinata and said "this is the woman who thought up this plan." Hinata looked slightly embarrassed at all the attention and said "um, might I suggest we leave the praises for later until we get back home." Krillin smiled and said "heh right you are Hyuuga-chan." He looked at Tenten and said "you ready Girlie?" Tenten nodded her head and said "yes, I'm ready."
Krillin nodded his head and disappeared in a poof of smoke; Tenten turned to Hinata and said "see you in a bit Hinata-chan." With a wave of her hand and a smile Tenten also disappeared in a poof of smoke.
In Konoha
Thanks to the efforts of Inoichi Yamanaka and Ibiki Morino the Konoha shinobi were able to extract enough information from the captured invaders to set traps for and arrest all of his comrades, they had also managed to learn from the interrogations that they were a group of Terrorists who believed that Shinobi were oppressing the country and its people and to free their country they had been responsible for many minor border incidents in the past few months. It also seemed that to further their goals they had been taken it upon themselves to assassinate the Hokage, however some of the evidence pointed to outside influence in these situations, one of the prisoners had mentioned that their leaders had hinted they had found sympathetic ears in the Fire Nation as well, who were financing their current project.
Normally a Border invasion incident was dealt with by Anbu HQ but because it was during war time and a possible attack on the Hokage had been identified, Kakashi had specifically chosen his most experienced interrogators for this task: Ibiki Morino, Tsume Inuzuka, Anko Mitarashi, Inoichi Yamanaka had been chosen as the interrogators while best friends Ino Yamanaka and Sakura Haruno had been chosen to sit in on the interrogation and provide a complete medical and psychological profile on the prisoners.
Both Kunoichi were first rate medics but since this matter was of high importance. Sakura and Ino mutually decided to split their jobs into 4 specific Categories: Medical Profile and History, Psychological Profile and History, Body Language and Medical Interrogation Assistance.
Sakura who was an expert in Combat Medicine handled their Medical History and Body Language before, during and after interrogation. Ino Yamanaka who was an expert in Human Psychology and Medical interrogation handled these two responsibilities. Kakashi, who had too much work on his hands personally, put Yamamoto in charge of the interrogation team to oversee the project and had been asked to brief him every 3 hours.
Kakashi was at the Moment having a meeting with his council which consisted of the Clan leaders, Gai, Kurenai, Gai, Yamamoto and Sakura Haruno and Ino Yamanaka along with Anko Mitarashi, Ibiki Morino and Shizune.
"As I was saying Kakashi-Sama, We of the Nara Akimichi and Yamanaka Clan have activated Plan Beta. We have now cleared the streets of all civilians and even those civilian establishments which need to stay open. The employees have been replaced by members of our 3 clans. We also have 5 squads each of experienced Yamanaka, Nara and Akimichi Shinobi protecting the Hospital, Academy, the armoury and other such important checkpoints within the Village are also similarly protected. Choza Akimichi nodded his head and said "Hokage sama I have my clansmen patrolling the streets all over the village in an obvious show of force as well. Inoichi spoke as well and said "I have my clansmen at strategic points throughout the village providing intelligence information that they have gathered to all the troops. We also have member of our clan interrogating the enemy ninja who are being treated in a secluded area of the hospital.
Kakashi simply nodded his head and turned towards Hiashi Hyuuga, Tsume Inuzuka and Shibi Aburame. Hiashi spoke first and said "I have the Hyuuga clan in strategic places outside the village both within and outside the Fire Country borders. We have formed a 3 man squad with members of the Inuzuka, and Aburame clan shinobi and have positioned ourselves in the rural parts of the Fire Country such as the Mountains, Jungles and swamp areas that line the Fire Country to look for any unauthorised personnel.
If found their orders are to take them alive if possible and if not to kill them quickly and cleanly, they have also been ordered by us three to send a signal every 30 minutes to an Anbu safe house located a few km near the border in all the eight cardinal directions." Shizune took her queue ad spoke: I have the Hospital under control; the wounded are being tended to and civilian causalities are less than 10 so far. Many of our Shinobi are making a complete recovery. She turned towards the Inuzuka Den mother and said "Tsume-sama I must thank you for sending over Izumi and Hana, they have been of invaluable help to me in healing your clansmen and women."
Tsume smiled her usual feral smile and said "That's why I sent them Shizune-chan, use them well." I assure you I will, however I must say Tsume-sama I am surprised that the Kunoichi who was once renowned throughout the Shinobi world as Tsume the Chemist who refused to take on any disciples and even refused Tsunade-sama when she asked, actually taught Izumi-chan her own techniques."
"Tsume simply laughed and said "Heh, what can I say, she reminds me of when I was a little girl, besides she has to take over for me one day and she can't be a one trick bitch." Shizune smiled and nodded and continued, also thanks to the joint efforts of the Aburame, Hyuuga, Inuzuka and The Arigawa clan we have been able to save most of the shinobi."
Kakashi nodded and turned towards Gai to get his report on the platoon of summoned animals that were searching for enemy ninja and patrolling the Fire Country. Gai smiled and said my eternal youthful rival Kakashi allow me to report: The platoon under my command is..." before Gai could finish his sentence he suddenly disappeared in a poof of smoke. Kakashi simply raised an eyebrow and then applied his famous eye smile and said "Don't worry Guys Gai has just been reverse summoned I'm sure Gai will be back in a little while."
A little while later
Just as suddenly as he had vanished, Gai returned once again and had a smile upon his face and said " Yosh my friends and comrades I bring good news." "I have just met my beloved disciple Tenten-chan who was also reverse summoned to the realm of the Ninkame and was able to learn that our Beloved and Esteemed Hokage is safe as are all of our comrades who are travelling with her, despite suffering injuries, their youthfulness had prevailed and..." thankfully before Gai could go any further Kakashi interrupted him and said; "get to the point Gai." *sigh* "fine, I have just been reverse summoned to the realm of The Ninkame whom I hold a summoning contract with, this contract is also held by my student Tenten."
"We were both reverse summoned there to discuss on how to get our travelling shinobi home safely." "At the moment they are nearing the Fire Border but are still quite a distance away. The distance is not a problem, however confirming their identities are, so we were able to devise a plan on how to identify them." "However I can and will only discuss these measures with the current Hokage alone." While I am speaking about these measures no one shall be present except for The Hokage and me." Kakashi nodded and said very well, it seems this meeting is aborted until further notice, you are all dismissed." While the rest of the shinobi were exiting Kakashi motioned to Fox and Phoenix to stay. Once everyone had left Kakashi had his two Anbu agents erect a barrier around Gai and himself while they spoke.
Tenten reappeared next to Hinata in a pool of smoke, Hinata, who was meditating in an open field, opened her eyes and said "so how was your trip Tenten-chan, productive I hope?" Tenten grinned and said "yes, it certainly was, let's go tell the Hokage exactly how productive it was. The two Kunoichi walked together to inform the Hokage of their progress.
When they reached the clearing they saw that Konohamaru, Kenpachi, Kiba and Naruto had also arrived. Hinata's heart skipped a beat when she saw her love; Naruto was cracking a joke with Kiba when he saw Hinata across the field. Time seemed to stop for the both of them as they saw each other. Suddenly in a flash of yellow Naruto appeared in front of Hinata and took her in his arms and kissed her on the lips, and said:" Hey there beautiful long times no see." Hinata was blushing ruby red but could not even utter a word because as usual Naruto's passionate kisses always left her breathless." Can't you keep yourself under control Naruto Uzumaki?" Naruto's face took on a hurtful look and said "hey I can't help myself Grandma I am after all a man and when I see my girl I just can't resist kissing those sweet lips of hers." Tsunade just sighed and said "never mind." She looked at Tenten and said "are the preparations complete Tenten?" "Yes, Hokage-sama." "Very well let us get going." Tsunade motioned to the group and had them follow her and Tenten to the river nearby.
Once the group of Konoha Nin had arrived, Tenten cut her finger with a kunai and went through the hand signs for the Summoning Jutsu and slapped her hands on the ground, and suddenly 3 simultaneous poofs of smoke appeared. When the smoke disappeared 3 very large and very bulky Ninkame. Tenten introduced the Ninkame as Krillin, Goten, and Trunks, she explained that they were her personal summons and were here to help with transportation; she further explained that since there were 18 people in total. Each Ninkame would carry 6 people on his back towards their next destination.
Tsunade nodded her head and arranged her shinobi accordingly so that all the wounded and medics were on one Ninkame while the Jonin were protecting the Daimyo on another. Finally she sat upon the final Ninkame surrounded by the remaining Genin. Tenten looked at Tsunade and when Tsunade nodded her head Tenten gave the signal to the Ninkame and without a word the Ninkame swam out into the deeper waters towards the Fire Country. As they were departing Tenten made the sign for the Ram and activated her latent traps.
The Ninkame were experienced shinobi and so did not simply travel in a straight direction but made several turns and spins to confuse any hidden enemies, they would also sometimes dive underwater for a few minutes without warning and travel along the underwater currents for an hour, thankfully Tenten had been aware of this and prepared beforehand as soon as they went underwater Tsunade went through some complicated hand signs and created an air bubble around all of her shinobi of sorts made of water which would transform the water from the sea into oxygen and thus allow her shinobi to breathe underwater. When Tenten asked said it would take them a total of 6 hours to get to the Borders of the Fire Country. Tsunade nodded and instructed Tenten to have the Ninkame surface every 15 minutes for 7 minutes so that their bodies do not suffer long term effects from the constant water pressure. Tenten relayed the instructions to the Ninkame and with their destination in sight the Ninkame travelled silently on their course.
Six Hours Later.
After a six hour journey the Ninkame had reached their destination. The Konoha Shinobi were finally starting to relax as they were almost home. Although they still had a ways to go before they actually reached the Fire Border but at least they were in familiar territory and it was comforting. Before departing Krillin told them that it was a 30 minute walk to a small marsh land that would lead to the Fire Country Border he also promised Tenten that he would inform Gai of their location and progress.
Tsunade looked a Naruto and said "well gaki it seems it's up to you now to get us the last leg of the journey home." Naruto just grinned and said leave it to me Grandma-Tsunade." The group of Konoha Shinobi then walked for 30 minutes until they reached the field. Upon reaching there Naruto cut his finger with a kunai and went through the required hand signs for a Kuchiyose No Jutsu and slammed his hands on the ground. When the smoke cleared, two Giant toads as big as houses were seen. Naruto introduced them as Gamahiro and Gamaken. Naruto looked at them and said "Hey guys what's up, listen we need a lift back home, so we need your help ok?" Gamahiro just stayed silent and listened to Naruto with a passive face and simply shifted his two katana he carried on his back, while Gamaken looked nervous and kept shifting his Sasumata from hand to hand and said "I am very clumsy but I will surely try my best." With that said he shifted his shield on his back so that his passengers could sit more comfortably.
Once the Konoha shinobi and the Daimyo had climbed upon them Naruto spoke to everyone atop Gamaken's head and said "alright for those of you unskilled on toad riding, let me tell you it's going to be a bumpy ride so I suggest you all stand up and keep your feet glued with chakra." Naruto looked at the Hokage and said "alright guys we need to travel through those marshes to get home. You guys take care of transportation while we keep an eye out for danger.
Naruto looked at the other Jonin and said "you guys keep a look out okay. I can make 3 shadow clones to gather Natural energy but I can only do it for a short while because Kurama and I have not fully recovered yet." The Jonin acknowledged his request and kept their eyes and ears open. The Genin suddenly found a new respect for their sensei and their abilities. While the Genin were barely hanging on to the toads as they jumped high into the air before Gravity brought them back down. Meanwhile The Jonin were all sitting down and chatting amongst them amicably. Naruto was sitting atop Gamaken with his eyes closed but his senses alert to the slightest disturbance.
The journey took two hours in total but finally the Konoha Shinobi had reached the Fire Country Border. As planned Tsunade had Naruto just 1 km short of the Fire country in an open field. Where the Konoha shinobi could see them very clearly. She then had Naruto send his toads back home. With that done she then had everyone sit down with their hands in front of them. The Anbu hidden in the shadows saw and recognised the recently arrived shinobi, he saw them arrive on two large toads which they climbed down from, and then the two toads disappeared in a poof of smoke. The group of shinobi then sat down in front of the empty field in plain sight of the hidden Anbu ninja; however they were still 1 km away from the border. Another thing he saw was the way they arranged themselves was also very familiar to him.
The scout had been given strict orders: if a group of Shinobi riding upon toads appeared 1 km from the border and then sat down in a way that when looked at closely their formation closely resembled the Konoha symbol. He was to inform Might Gai personally of this development. Once he had confirmed all the information the scout did exactly that and created a shadow clone to inform Gai and bring him here.
Gai arrived a few minutes later and confirmed the same information with his own eyes before saying "Yosh it seems our comrades have returned, however we must be sure." He turned to the scout next to him and said "Tiger, your with me let's make sure these are our comrades, after they give me the code word that only a total of three people know then that means they are indeed our comrades and we must greet them accordingly, if not then that means they are imposters and must be killed immediately. I will now tell you the code word." Gai then passed a small scroll to Tiger with the password on it. Tiger read it quickly and then used a small fire jutsu to burn the paper to ashes.
Tsunade saw Gai and Tiger approaching and turned to Tenten and said: Go ahead Tenten and greet you sensei. Tenten smiled and rose to her feet and bowed in front of Tsunade before walking towards her sensei. Everyone else remained sitting. Gai and Tenten met each other in the middle of the field. Gai smiled and said "Identify you by answering this question Tenten-chan." How and why was the kingdom lost?" Tenten smiled and said "certainly sensei; the reason the Kingdom was lost is because:
For want of a nail the shoe was lost.
For want of a shoe the horse was lost.
For want of a horse the rider was lost.
For want of a rider the message was lost.
For want of a message the battle was lost.
For want of a battle the kingdom was lost.
And all for the want of a horseshoe nail.
"Thus to answer your question sensei the kingdom battle the kingdom was lost all for the want of a horseshoe nail." "Does that answer your question Gai sensei?" Gai smiled and said "that it does my young and youthful pupil and embraced his pupil with tears in his eyes and said "I am happy to see you back home safe and sound, come let us greet the Hokage." The group of three shinobi walked over to the group of returning Konoha shinobi who had now all stood up and surrounding the Hokage and the Fire Daimyo. Gai walked up first to the Hokage and knelt before her and said "Greetings Hokage-sama welcome home."
Tsunade smiled and said "we are not yet home Gai we still have a short ways to go before we can call it home again." Gai smiled and said "indeed we do Godaime-sama and be rest assured this humble shinobi is always prepared to do what is must for his village and home, even if it means sacrificing his own life." Tsunade just smiled and turned towards Tiger; the Anbu shinobi who had accompanied Gai and said "Tiger please inform the Border Patrol that we have arrived and also inform them to bring a team of medics to replenish our chakra, I want six experienced Anbu squads covering The Daimyo." Tiger nodded and said "hai at once Hokage sama" and disappeared in a shun shin of leaves. The Daimyo was speaking with Gai and laughing. "Might Gai I have had the pleasure of getting to know both of your students, one of whom proudly wears my insignia around his waist while the other who seems to have mastered the way of blades. I daresay the students have surpassed their master in skill." Gai smiled and said "that is the proudest moment in a sensei's life when they realise that their students have surpassed them and have nothing more to learn from them, Daimyo Sama." Once the additional security and medics had arrived, the Konoha shinobi entered the Fire country Border and travelled through the forest until they finally reached the Konoha village gate.
The Konoha shinobi who had until now been on high alert and jumpy finally started to relax and suddenly they felt very tired and were able to feel every wound, injury and fatigue on their bodies. Gai looked at Tsunade and said "the Village awaits us beyond these doors Godaime-sama. I ask you to one last time prove your identity by opening the village door which was now closed shut and will only open when the current Hokage opens it. Tsunade nodded her head and bit her thumb hard to draw blood and made the hand signs for: Monkey → Dragon → Bird → Ox → Horse → Ram → Tiger → Snake → Rat → Hare → Boar and pressed both her hands on the door and said "I Godaime Hokage of Konoha Tsunade Senju and Granddaughter of Hashirama Senju command this village gate to open." The door glowed blue for a moment then a loud series of clicks, rattles and other various sounds could be heard, then slowly the village door opened all the way, The Konoha shinobi entered their village gate with enthusiasm and happiness as one could only feel after finally returning home.
Tsunade turned to the group of Konoha shinobi who had travelled with her and said "you have made me proud my shinobi; you have fought a long and difficult battle but before you can rest I hereby order you all to visit the hospital first to ensure you are all fit and fine, dismissed." When her shinobi had dispersed and the Daimyo had left with his protection detail. Tsunade called Gai over and said "Inform Kakashi that for now he is still Hokage until further notice." Gai nodded his head and disappeared. She then turned to her own protection detail and said "take me to the hospital as well. I need to follow my advice and make sure I'm also fit and fine." Her protection detail nodded and followed her as she walked over to the hospital to follow her own advice.
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