When a Maelstrom Goes West

Hello people to this chapter of WAMGW. I've been bored lately so I decided to bang this out, or at least start it to finish later, however I have been looking at the views I've found that TRT is much more popular than this, having over ten times the amount of views compared to WAMGW so I might decide to focus more on that than this in due time...most likely next year.

That aside I'm writing this chapter anyway so I'll just get on with it, enjoy!

I don't own Naruto

"Talking"

'Thoughts'

'Attacks'

"Demon/Summon Talking"

*Actions or Sounds*

Tsunade sighed and rubbed her temples for what seemed the hundredth time this meeting alone. In her opinion it was too early for their shit. The councillors were arguing as per usual about their rather dire circumstances, she tuned them out and began reflecting where it all when wrong. It turned out that banishing Naruto was the worst things that had happened to the village since the Kyuubi attacked years ago. And boy did karma have a field day. A year after the boy was banished the word had by then reached the ears of everyone and their grandmother in the EN. The first to react was Wave when they cancelled their trade agreement with Fire Country and Konoha, and also declaring that if any Konoha nin were discovered in their lands there would be dire consequences.

After that any country that Naruto had an impact on followed suit, completely abandoning Konoha and any of her allies. Spring Country stopped giving them their more advanced technology; Taki cut their alliance, among a few. The final nail in the proverbial coffin if you will, was when Garaa was named the fifth Kazekage of Suna. His first act as Kage was to literally rip apart the alliance they held, in front of the council no less, until it was just the agreement that should one village be attacked the other would aid them due to the fact that Iwa was still a definite issue to Wind County as a whole. So the end result was in a few short months Konoha stood alone with only an ally that literally hated them in the EN.

However their issues didn't stop there, not by a long shot. Eventually due to the fact that pretty much all their trade agreements had been absolved they quickly fell into economic decline much like Suna had, though they were beginning to recover, it also didn't help that many nations stopped sending missions to them creating a lack of jobs for the ninja to perform thus not bringing in more income. Things continued to get worse when the Fire Diamyo cut much of their funding due to Konoha having cost a lot of problems for him as well as themselves.

Problems continued on throughout the years as Konoha struggled to stay as the 'strongest' of the hidden villages, but that all changed when Oto rallied both Kumo and Iwa through their mutual hatred of the tree huggers and created an alliance between the three nations to destroy Konoha and Fire Country as a whole. Many smaller nations jumped at the chance of a go at Konoha, many also hating them, while others just wanted the glory of destroying 'one of the 5' large nations. Somehow along the road they managed to include Kiri in on this mess inviting them at a chance to get back at them for whatever reason. Thus the alliance was created for the sole reason of destroying Konoha. While having no real name it had been nicknamed AKC (Anti-Konoha-Coalition), by the ninja's of Konoha themselves. Suna was unluckily in that aspect, due to the fact part of their agreement was still in effect, they were dragged into the conflict that they seriously wanted no part of, some even wanted to join in on the fun. And so the 4th Shinobi World War had begun.

3 years had passed since that point and Konoha reaffirmed their place at the top by constantly repelling the attacks on their land by their enemies along with the Suna nin, although this was at a great cost. They started the war with near 20,000 ninja's in active service and 15,000 in reserve should the need arise, in this case they did. Once the declaration of war was official and confirmed all reserve ninja were immediately called up. Konoha's 35,000 ninja, along with Suna's 28,000 and Fire/Wind Country combined strength of 43,000 samurai, ninja and ashigaru they had a total of 106,000 men to combat the alliance. Ashigaru are men and sometimes women who are the militia of the EN however they are considerably more trained and equipped and technically do not class as such. They are main body of a country's military force with the samurai backing them up. They have no need to ninja due to the villages they contain. Despite their large numbers they were still greatly outnumbered over 2 to 1 by the coalition due to the sheer amount of nations opposing them.

In the duration of the war Konoha did the brunt of the fighting being the protagonists. Their numbers had been decimated, from 35,000 to a merge 9,000. Suna had been better off however with 11,000 still remaining. The Diamyo's forces remained vigil and proved a difficult force to oppose, providing a stern line to hold back their enemies, but their number began to dwindle also, now being just 19,000 compared to the 43 at the start. It's safe to say that things weren't looking bright for them.

Tsunade sighed again as the volume in the council hall somehow rose in tempo once more, mostly due to the civilian side being idiots. Having finally had enough of their bickering, she slammed her fist onto the table at which she sat. The sound which was echoed around the room due to the poor table shattering, silence the room so much so that one could probably hear a person sneeze on the other side of the village.

Sighing for hopefully the last time (not likely) she spoke, "Thank-you, now one at a time please." She asked, and when everyone opened their mouths to speak, "I swear to Kami is the volume rises above mine for the rest of the duration of this meeting someone is being thrown out of that window." She spoke sternly and quietly, letting loose a bit of Killing Intent to put her point across.

The councillors looked to each other in trepidation; apparently none were currently feeling brave enough. Finally one did, "Our forces on the Oto-Fire line have suffered another attack and are in danger of being pushed back, as have a few forts along our border with Iwa, and they request a resupply as soon as possible. Also a number of outposts along the sea border with Kiri have gone quiet, I sent a few squads to check them out but nothing has come back yet." Shikaku Nara informed, for a change he was sitting up and alert to the goings on of the meeting rather than sleeping through it. As the Jonin Commander he had a more important role in the war, as such he felt that he should pay more attention than before thanks to the situation they were in. He wasn't the only change though. The Nara was the only remaining member of his generations Ino-Shika-Cho trio. Both Inochi and Choza were killed in a rather brutal attack by Kumo and Iwa during the early stages of the war when their team was sent to repel an attack on a key fort while he himself was crippled by the loss of his right arm below the elbow. However they weren't the only casualties among them. Tsume Inuzuka, and Shibi Abruame. Tsume had fallen in battle, but Shibi had died of illness mere months ago. They were of course replaced by their heirs; Hana, Ino, Choji, and Shino. All among them had greatly matured through the duration of the war and their parents' deaths.

Tsunade nodded, "Can we spare the manpower to reinforce that front?" She asked

Shikaku shrugged, "unclear at the moment. We are spread thin as it is, we also can't ask for reinforcements for Suna as they are busy as it is, with their own border with Iwa and also aiding our other fronts. The Diamyo might but they are dealing with their own problems."

"We are also slipping further and further away from our supply quota. Because of the pushes from the alliance many factories used to mass produce weapons like kunai and shuriken have had to be destroyed as we retreat further away. Our factories closer to Konoha aren't large enough to keep up the demand." A civilian member spoke up.

"This is troubling, without weapons how will our people fight effectively? Many more lives will be lost because of this." Hiashi spoke up from his end of the chambers.

"Can we ask Suna or the Diamyo for any spares they may have?" Ino asked he head resting on the bride of her fingers.

"No, we are already doing so if we were to take more we would be digging into their primary supplies." Another civilian said. The room was silent while they considered the complications from this.

"What we need are more allies." A voice finally spoke up.

Tsunade raised a delicate eyebrow, "of all the people I would never expect you to say that, Danzo." She mocked.

Said cripple frowned slightly at that. When the fighting had reached its most brutal the man figured that working with the village rather than against it was most likely going to improve their survival chances, even if it was marginally. "While I admit I dislike asking for help," Tsunade snorted at that, "I realise the trouble we are in. Despite our strength and resolve it is unlikely that we can hold like we have for more than a couple more months, if that. We can't go on the offensive because of the manpower we would need to make it worthwhile includes practically the entirety of our remaining forces, and that's not including the casualties we may suffer along the way. If we are to survive this war in any shape or form to continue being a hidden village we need help that isn't already in need of it themselves." He explained calmly. Many within the room caught the survive rather than win in his explanation and couldn't help but silently agree with him.

"While I hate to say it you are right." Tsunade admitted to the shock of the council, as she was the one to constantly the one to fight tooth and nail against him.

"But who would ally with us, we have nothing to offer that won't but us in a more precarious position than before. Besides there are none who would, almost all the nations on the continent are already against us, and those that are not either want no business with us or are among those that were originally allied with us." Shino said, monotone as usual. The room was silenced again after his words began to sink in.

"What about the West?" Hana asked

Ah yes the West. They inhabited a large part of the continent West of both Iwa and Suna that most in the east either ignored or didn't realize existed in the first place. It came as a surprise to most when they appeared as many hadn't known how big of a landmass there actually was, including Suna and Iwa. The land seemed constantly at war much like theirs was before Konoha was formed and the other villages followed. However that all changed when they received a missive from the west declaring that the Empire of the Golden Dragon was a sovereign nation formed of the warring provinces of the west. A map was included with the missive detailing the borders between the EN and the west so their own could be changed accordingly. That happened just over a year ago now and so far they had been silent. Due to the war the EN was rather distracted to react to the new super power that had literally appeared without warning. They hadn't even known that a war was taking place to unite them until it was all over. The rumours even said that it was all started by one man who had risen to the top and slowing but surely created an empire right under everyone's noses.

"Why would they even help us? They have no reason to and we have nothing that they most likely they don't either." Choji asked

Tsunade looked saddened as a particular thought crossed her mind. "Well not exactly...there is one thing we could offer." She muttered

"Which is?" A civilian asked.

She sighed sadly, "We could offer to become their vassals." She said simply.

There was a pause after she spoke when pandemonium erupted within the chambers. People started shouting, declaring that they shall never lower themselves to a vassal, even Danzo, the man who started this was among them. While this happened Tsunade sat silent, almost surprised by her own words, after a few moments quiet returned when she flashed her KI to gain their attention. "So that's it then. We doomed to fall from an onslaught of our enemies." She whispered.

The room was silent for what seemed like hours, each council member thinking over her words.

A sigh was heard before someone spoke up again, "I for one would like to grow old and watch my daughters have families of their own. If we have to be a vassal to another nation to accomplish this then so be it." Hiashi said with conviction, but also defeat was present in his voice. "I vote to contact the West for an alliance on the terms we become their vassals in return for military and economic support." He stood to the surprise of the room.

The Ino-Shika-Cho trio looked to each other, despite being different generations; they still trusted each other to stick together no matter what. Nodding they stood as well confirming their position on the matter. One by one council members stood until there was just over half among them. The rest were still adamant about not becoming vassals, Danzo among them who frowned at the decision of the council.

"So we are decided then?" The council nodded, some more reluctantly than others. Tsunade nodded as well, "Very well. ANBU!"

Meanwhile on the others side of the continent... (while I was reading this sponge bob popped into my head...)

Naruto laid awake listening sound of tweeting birds who sung in the early morning, he smiled slightly when he recognised their sound from the ones who visited him often. He liked to do this in the mornings as it helps him relax and mentally prepare for the day ahead.

He went to get up but was held back for some reason, when he looked down all he saw was a mess of indigo hair in disarray across his naked chest. Arms were locked tightly around his waist, and he felt their legs entangled under the beds sheets. He smiled again when he recognised the form as Injigo. They had stayed up late last night for the celebrations of the anniversary of the empire's formation; it was then that he realized that his head was pounding rather heavily. Probably from the sake he theorized. Untangling himself from the rather comfortable position, he sat at the edge of the bed for a moment to gaze at her sleeping form before rising and walking to the balcony of the room that they inhabited. Throwing open the doors he took a deep breath of fresh air in hopes it would calm his hammering head. Walking forward he lent on the rail of the balcony to gaze at the wonder that was the capital of the empire. His empire he reminded himself. 8 years had passed since he had left Konoha and his old life behind and he truly couldn't be happier.

The capital was an island city that sat within a large lake at the centre of the empire, walls reached to the edge of the water itself leaving much land within to be used and exploited, and they had done so. The island was one and a half times the size of Konoha and it was filled to the brim with houses, shops, parks, hot springs you name it. Each building was made of white marble which gave of a bright and cheery feeling that Naruto couldn't help but bask in. 4 Bridges connected them to the mainland, one for every compass point, along with ferry posts to take people across if they wished to avoid the busyness of the streets. The island the city sat on was a mountain itself so the city was adapted accordingly. There were three levels to the city; the first was the civilian and shopping district. This was by far the biggest and the busiest of the sectors, here a good 80% of the civilians of the city lived; as such the shops and markets were incorporated for ease of access. The second level was smaller than the first but it served a much bigger purpose. Here the city's military was stationed, barracks', armouries, research labs to name a few. Although training grounds were outside of the city for obvious reasons, the west's armed forces operated out of here making it also a hub of activity only surpassed by the first sector. Many civilians also lived here if they worked within. The last sector was by far the smallest but also the most important, for here the gem of the city sat. The Imperial Palace. It was by far a masterpiece of architecture and design, made back when the empire originally existed, like the rest of the city, it was refurbished for the purpose of being that beacon of strength and unity that it once was.

Hoseki

That was what it was named. Jewel was a rather fitting name for the city Naruto thought when he first saw it after the refurbishments.

He watched with uncanny interest as the city slowly but methodically woke up and got about the daily lives, smiling as he saw people interact with each other, smiling, laughing. For him it was heaven.

He stayed there for a while, blissfully watching them begin their day, the birds visited him while he watched. He had become a sage thanks to the teachings of his dragon partners allowing him the ability to talk to animals on a small scale. It was much like learning a language, well it was to him, so he got better the more often he did it.

After finishing a chat with a particularly talkative sparrow Naruto felt slim arms wrap around his waist and a body press against his back. He smiled warmly as he instantly recognised the body and turned around to face it.

Injigo had matured greatly over the years, she'd become must more elegant than before, her figure was now that much more mature. Her figure was more pronounced and shapely, her once growing bust was now that much more fuller and defined, her hips where narrow but still stood out and she had a rich bubble butt that worked well with the rest of her body. Her eyes and hair seemed even more vibrate than before. All in all, she was a beauty that many in the west coveted.

She sighed happily in his arms, "You're up early." She said simply, relaxing in his arms, "What's wrong?" She asked, looking up into his eyes. Yes up.

Injigo was not the only one to mature over the past years. Naruto was no longer the short stack that he was once renowned to be. Thanks to his training, the war and a healthy diet, he stood at 6ft4 a large height compared to many others. He wasn't lanky however; dense muscles filled his body giving the impression that could defiantly hold his own. His eyes where a rich ocean blue that was speckled with violet, his Uzumaki genes kicking in he joked, his golden blonde hair was still the mess that many adored but it held some semblance of control that just made it look right. Red strands danced within making his head appear to be alight with fire. His whisker marks faded slightly however as he grew, but they were still a prominent feature on him among the various scars that he had attained over the duration of the war. He smiled gently and lent forward to plant a kiss on her forehead, "Nothing, don't worry. Just couldn't sleep." He answered softly.

Injigo giggled before reaching up and kissing him gracefully on his lips, "It's my job to worry, you're my husband silly," she murmured into his lips before kissing him again.

Husband. Naruto much like he was still coming to terms with being an emperor, he was still baffled at the fact that someone loved him enough to marry him. Shortly after having united the west, it was decided that an empress was needed to stand by his side and help consolidate their power, when Naruto popped the question to Injigo she was so overjoyed that she actually squeezed Naruto into unconsciousness. He chuckled mirthfully at recalling that particular memory.

Once they had finished their short battle of the tongues, they moved back into the room to get prepared for the day. Despite being the heads of an empire they both didn't like a lavish life having both grown up far from it. The room was large making it look rather Spartan compared to if it were small. A large four poster king (emperor) sized bed dominated most of the room made of elegant mahogany wood. A large wardrobe and dresser stood in one end of the room, while of opposite a door which led to a large bathroom. Two large, ornate whitewood doors were the entrance and exit to the room, standing opposite the bed which was centred at the back wall. In summery it wasn't to posh for them, but was made to look as if someone important lived in it, which it they did.

Naruto sighed heavily and lent back in his seat. Having finished another lot of paperwork he felt pity for the other kages and what they had to deal with. Being an emperor he certainly had a lot to do to keep it running smoothly but thankfully he managed to push the more trivial side of things onto department heads and they would send a report every month detailing anything that had happened. But they didn't mean there was little to do. Stacks of paper, reports, arguments, offers, and requests lined his desk from beginning to end. He had been at it for some hours now he was only a third through.

Thinking back, he couldn't help but wonder why he wanted to be Hokage in the first place if this is what he had to deal with. He thought back to this morning, the feeling he had which kept him up most of the night, and some of the morning. Even know while he was distracted with work, the uneasy feeling in his stomach stuck with him.

Taking a look around the room he occupied he couldn't help be melancholy about the similarities it held with the room the Hokage worked from back in Konoha. Sets of shelves lined the walls, each one of them filled to the brim with books, scrolls, reports, documents among a few were scattered around without any order. The ceiling was a large map of the EN and the West, each nation highlighted with its own colour and insignia. In front was a single door which served the entrance to the room. Behind him glass doors lend to another balcony.

Before he could ponder further however a knock came at his door. When given the 'Enter', and elderly man opened the door and Naruto stood to greet him. "Gorou! How are you today?" He asked joyfully.

The elderly man smiled, "I am well you grace. These bones still have some life in them yet!" He said playfully. The man had been at Naruto's side during the entirety of what was called 'War for the West'. As such he was Naruto's personal and most trusted advisor. He worked directly under him, as the only people above his station were Naruto and Injigo themselves. "The council are ready for you." He informed, smirking slightly when Naruto groaned. He knew how much he hated them.

*sigh* "Fine, let's get this over with..." He said, standing up and moving around his desk. While the council was much better than the ones back in the EN there were still 18 members that were a part of it which led to some rather lengthy meetings.

The council chambers were rather bland which was strange for the company it held. The only decoration that it was a large table placed in the centre running the length of the room. 9 chairs were placed either which were currently occupied. A table was sat at the head of the other with 3 large decorated chairs. These ones were currently unoccupied.

The occupied seats held the members of the Imperial Council. (OK before we begin, there ARE 18 members, I will not spend hours making up appearances for these people because you may only be seeing them a few times. If you want people for these voices then feel free to make your own images for them.) There was no real order to where people sat as often they just sat where the nearest free seat was.

The members of the council include:

Dokaro Shinzo – Head of Army (M)

Kai Magobei – Head of Navy (M)

Tsuzuki Bakin – Head of Culture (M)

Imada Tori – Head of Research (F)

Sugoi Anri – Head of Finance (F)

Umesaka Yaeko – Head of Agriculture (F)

Milsugi Kojuro – Head of Indusrty (M)

Kuramato Izo – Head of Nobles – The owners of the provinces in the west had their own small council to manage their lands together. They elect someone to represent them on the council bi-monthly. (M)

Kiya Hanae – Head of Commons – Much like the nobles the people head their own council to run things like business together, they also elect someone bi-monthly. (F)

Hora Natsuo – Head Monk/Religion (M)

Junko Tsuayaki – Head of Justice (M)

Sasaki Umi – Head of Commerce (F)

Funai Egao – Head of Health (F)

Sawaya Chikao – Head of Education (M)

Fukaya Chikao – Head of Public Relations (M)

Arata Kai – Head of Foreign Relations (F)

Vozumi Shiko – Head of espionage & Counter Intelligence (M)

Hiruma Tokuhei – Head of Black Ops (M)

(Phew write all that down? I sure as hell did...)

The was a low muttering of noise within the room, made by the councillors discussing trivial things to pass by the time as they waited. They didn't need to wait long as after a few moments later the doors where pushed open by the door sentinels. They were black clad samurai covered head to toe in armour. At their waist they carried a Katana and Wakizashi, while in their grip they held a Naginata. They were among the many that guarded the palace and city wall. The samurai in the light, the ninja in the darkness. Yes ninja. While the main forces of the west consisted of samurai, and ashigaru filling the role of the former militia. Naruto realized early on in the campaign that he needed people to fufill the darker side of the war such as assassinations and rather questionable interrogation methods. Thus he let his 'eastern' side come to play. He picked 100 men and women and personally taught them the basics and advanced aspects of being a ninja. He then gave them scrolls so that they could mould themselves how they saw fit. These were the first original ninjas of the west. Thanks to brutal training regime they were extremely talented and experienced thanks to the war. Although they were reserved to the role of the shadows they were more than capable to provide an unwavering front line should the need arise. In total they boast strength of the 2 eastern major villages worth of ninja.

Following the opening of the doors, Naruto and Gorou strode in. Gorou's attire hadn't changed since the war, himself finding no need to. However Naruto's had, due to his new position 'battle clothes' was considered improper and could be considered insulting to those who he met, if they took his attire as him showing that he didn't consider themselves important enough to dress up. Of course this had to change otherwise a lot of problems would be caused. He now wore a burnt orange hakama torso with a black aikido covering his legs, on his feet were simple sandals. The sleeves on his hakama were long and baggy, made to conceal seals on his arms containing an whole manor of items.

The room hushed as both walked around the table to sit at the very end one, filling 2 of the 3 available chairs. The third unoccupied one was for Injigo when she participated in the meetings.

"Ok, I call this meeting into session. Umesaka-san start us off." He called in a strong voice after sitting down.

The head of agriculture cleared her throat before standing, "This month's harvest is nearing so we should expect a rise in food. However the quota has fallen slightly in the western sector due to the raids by the corsairs." She spoke. Due to the large area of land they held within their borders they split the land into 5 different to better manage it. The north held the main body of the farming due to its fertile soil. The west was a mainly commercial and trade sector as it contained the largest part of the coastline and the richest city in the west thanks to its large port. There was a large fishing fleet as well bringing in food from the oceans. The south was mainly a sandy and rocky area as it bordered Wind Country part of their land carried on into theirs; however it hosted many mines filled with precious metals and jewels making it a prime example to be an industrial sector. The east was where their military was heavily invested because it ran along the border to the east it was well defended. The central sector was primarily the capital city and a few miles of land surrounding it.

The corsairs were a faction which most of the pirates had a connection to. They had somehow taken over a small archipelago of islands off the southern coast of their own borders. When they had formed they happily took up the role of 'that thorn in the side' just to be a nuisance. They had no way of fighting them as a navy had not been needed or even thought of, though one was already being put together and they had began fighting back showing just why they were pirates and they weren't.

"I see, do we have enough stored to cover the loses?" Naruto asked

She nodded slowly, "Yes but it will be close, it arguably depends on who the rest of the harvest goes. However we should be ok." She answered looking through a few documents before her. Naruto nodded and let the next person speak, it continued like that as most of the other heads had to only report that things were going well and had nothing of significance to report. That all changed when they got to the military heads.

"Ok, and I dread to ask, what's happening in the east Shiko-san?" Naruto asked

Said head of intelligence sighed exasperatedly and shuffled some papers in front of him, "It appears to be heating up further and now Konoha and Suna appear constantly on the back foot. However this is not the worst of it, as soon as it became apparent they were wining the AKA have become arrogant in their power and have seemed to have finally taken notice of us. I've received reports of a few scouting parties from Iwa poking at our borders. It seems your fears about the war spilling our way were warranted after all." He reported, becoming rather solemn towards the end.

Naruto's eyes hardened and narrowed immediately after the last sentence was complete, and the temperature within the room seemed to drop dramatically. Being from the east he knew firsthand what they were like, many within the room had waved him off when he first voiced his concerns. Now though it seems as though his gut feeling might have been right after all, adding to the countless times it already was. No matter how much he wanted to believe it wasn't.

Naruto hummed as thoughts flew through his head, he turned to Shinzo, "What's the state of our forces?" He asked him.

Shinzo stood and nodded to Naruto, who then pressed a seal engraved in the wood of his table making a map of the EN and West replace the larger table. The other heads also stood to get a better look. In Shinzo's hand he held a long stick, where he got it from no one knew, and pointed to points on the map as he spoke, "We have one battalion stationed on our south western coast repelling the corsairs, one is stationed at Uzu along with a detachment of ships and the other is on loan to Spring Country to help deal with a sudden rise in missing nin and bandits that have appeared." He spoke pointing to the areas as he did so.

As an Uzumaki, Naruto had was able to access the island that his clan originally inhabited and turned it into a fortress from which he could launch attacks due to its strategic position between, Fire, Water and Lightning Countries. Of course none of them knew that.

"How long until another battalion is ready?" Gorou asked; both he and Naruto had joined the others at the previously large table.

"Depends on the results of the next War Games." Shinzo answered

War Games were basically the Western version of the Chunin and Jonin exams. Rather than a written exam, survival exercise and than a small tournament to be promoted it was different here. In a large area the size of a couple of cities based in the eastern sector was an arena where two or more sides had a mock war between each other where the combatants were put into the roles of which they wanted to obtain to see if they had the ability to advance in rank or if they weren't ready yet. It also helped to create bonds within the many soldiers that normally wouldn't mingle with each other. It proved to be an effective system and occurred every 6 months like the Chunin exams. However to be eligible to advance you had to already have experience in the rank they held currently, as remembered the disaster that was the Chunin exams when he was still in Konoha.

The ninja held the same ranks as in the east as it was an effective systems but they looked different to differentiate between the east and west easier. The samurai were similar to the ones in Iron Country as there wasn't much reason to change.

An example of change in the ninjas is the flak jackets. Instead of getting them when they make Chunin they get them when they are Genin as part of a uniform. The way they tell which rank someone is, a replacement for the headband. It was deemed to 'eastern' and they wanted something different to identify them. They eventually decided on a military beret in different colours:

Genin – Green – 1 year experience to advance

Chunin – Blue – 2 years experience to advance

Jonin – Red

Elite Jonin – Red w. White stripe – They weren't promoted but awarded and asked to join. A bit like the guardian ninjas of the diamyos in EN.

ANBU (named Ryu-gado or Dragon Guard) – Black – Again they were asked to join

ANBU captain – Black w. White stripe – Promoted after a review of service

Samurai held different ranks much like the nin based on where they were in regards to their teachings and combat ability. Their armour was black but they wore coloured sashes around their waist to show their rank.

Apprentice – Green – Refer above

Blue – Junior

Red – Master

As you may have noticed, the colour also shows one's security clearance and place in the command structure. For example a Chunin and Junior samurai hold the same rank.

A battalion was made of 25,000 soldiers. 10,000 Samurai – Ashigaru and 5000 ninja.

A platoon was made of 1000 Samurai – Ashigaru – Ninja

A squad was made of 1 Red – 3 Blue – 1 combat medic (5 if you can't count)

Therefore a battalion was made of 25 platoons which were made of 5000 squads of various soldiers. In other words, a bitch to organise, one of the down sides to such a variety of troops.

So 3 of those amounted to 75,000 soldiers already in active duty. This of course doesn't count reserves that retired after the war.

Gorou nodded at his answer and stayed silent for the rest of the meeting much like Naruto who only spoke up to end to dismiss them.

Moments later only Naruto and Gorou were still stood inside the room, "What do you think?" Gorou asked, turning to Naruto now they were alone.

"I think that my feeling this morning was not bad indigestion from last night's party..." he replied walking out the room, leaving Gorou to think on his answer.

"Do you understand you mission?" Tsunade asked, staring down at the ninja assembled in the council chambers.

Kakashi nodded, "Myself, Sakura and Hinata will attempt to persuade the West to ally with us on the terms of being their vassal. If we are unable to attempt to obtain as much information as we can on their forces and other vital components. Anko, Kiba and Kurenai are our backup should something go wrong." He explained

Tsunade nodded, "Good, you begin as soon as you leave these chambers. Good luck." She ordered

The 6 ninja before the council bowed deeply. It seemed things were finally moving into place.

Well then that chapter is finished. If you hadn't guessed this was more of a filler to explain the west in greater detail now Naruto has reformed it. In the next chapter the story will begin the main line which will lead to the ending.

As I said above unless you readers request otherwise, this story is going on the back burner due to a lack of views compared to TRT so I can focus on that one which is much more popular.

I hope things were easily explained for the story to still flow well and I hope I have built a good understanding of the situation the world is in at the current point in time.

Anyway, see you soon!

-Red