Hello everyone, and welcome to another chapter of my story! I'm sorry I haven't been updating lately, but I've had things come up.

Also, check out some of my other stories. I'm sure you'll find something else you may like, and if you have any ideas for stories you guys want me to do, then don't be afriad to PM me about them. I may chose to do them, but if I don't then I probably don't know anything about the series or such.

Well then, enough of this useless crap! On with the show!

Chapter 17: The Pensive Pause in Planning

Konoha, otherwise known as the Village Hidden in the Leaves, awoke to a dark morning the first day after the battle with the two Akatsuki spies.

No, seriously, the giant-ass tree in the middle of the village blocked out the sun and shaded the entire village! Outskirts and all, I'm not kidding!

All the villagers gathered around the abnormality as they remembered the battle they had watched from their windows and doorways. Their Hokage had protected them from "the Blonde Bomber" with all his might, and was now in the hospital (at least that was what was running through the gossip circles).

Now, one week after the battle, the village was back to busy. The ninja and the builders from Wave (who hadn't left) were helping in clearing out the rubble from destroyed buildings. It was only lucky that those buildings were scheduled for destruction anyway.

"Thank you, Tazuna-san. Hokage-sama will be very glad that we've cleared all this away by the time he awakened." Kotetsu said as he bowed in respect for the Wave carpenter.

"Ha, it was nothing! These lazy dogs need some work, and Konoha is like a gold mine for that with how much crap gets destroyed here! Man, it's like Kami-sama hates your village! Ha, ha!" Tazuna said jovially as Kotetsu and Izumo sweat-dropped at him.

"He's only in it for the money, and knowing our village's history; he'll be making plenty of that." both ninja thought as they watched Tazuna laugh long and hard with money signs in his eyes.

"Well… Training Ground Seven won't need our help, Tazuna-san. The ninja are repairing that with Earth and Water ninjutsu, so it'll be back to normal by the end of the day." Izumo said as Tazuna seemed to deflate a bit, but still seemed good-natured as he sighed.

"To tell you boys the truth, I would gladly do all this for free; time and again, but Naruto simply won't hear of it, and if he did, then I'd be getting a rather nasty letter in the mail along with a bag of gold. That boy is something else…" Tazuna said as he looked up at the Hokage Mountain, the four faces of the previous Hokages looking shadowed in the shade of the giant tree.

"Umm… speaking of which; what are we gonna do about that tree?" Kotetsu asked Izumo as his partner shrugged.

"The Jonin and Anbu have been trying to destroy that thing for a week now. Even Jiraiya-sama and Tsunade-sama tried their hands at bringing it down. Tsunade-sama actually broke her hand punching at it! They say the thing is as tough as diamonds, and yet bends with the breeze like any other tree. The only two able to take it down would be Hokage-sama or that Jonin that helped him battle." Izumo said as he and his partner looked up at the tree.

Four days after the battle, the civilians, along with the other population of Konoha were informed that the enemy had been defeated and retreated, though the gossip had already spread.

Naturally, when the populace saw the giant tree and the gossip got out, many people openly cheered for their newest Hokage. But the opinions of some people would never change with "such a simple show of power when the Third and Fourth Hokages had done better with less flashiness". Children ran the streets playing "Hokage and the Bomber", while old folks talked about the days of the two previous Hokages and Sannin battles they had witness or heard of.

"Why I remember about fifty years ago when the Second Hokage was still around. He created an entire tsunami out of thin air to wipe out an army of Cloud-ninja. Let's see that upstart kid do that." an old man said as another sighed.

"Yes, but you must admit that for his age giving up enough chakra to create something as strong, and yet gentle as that tree was an accomplishment." the other old man said as the first scoffed.

"So the brat gave chakra. It was that Wood-boy what with the First Hokage's genes that actually made it. He formed it and controlled the thing." the first old man said as the second frowned.

"Yes, you're right, he did and he should be praised for it, but without Hokage-sama's enormous amount of chakra such a feat wouldn't have even been thought possible by anyone who wasn't the Shodai. Not even if it were from another Jinchuriki. Plus, for him to give up that much of his chakra in one go shows for something." the second man said with a slight smile as the first grumbled.

"I guess… Damn you, Kosuke…" the first grumbled as the second old man smiled.

"You're doing okay as a Hokage, Naruto. You're doing okay…" Kosuke Maruboshi, the Ten-Thousand Year Genin, thought with smile on his face as he looked up at the tree which shaded the village.

"Jiraiya-sama…" Kakashi said from the railing he sat on, reading his book. He glanced to the side of him as he saw the white-haired Sage next to him with a telescope in hand, "what are we going to do about that… tree. I mean, I couldn't even cut through it with my Lightning Blade, and it broke my wrist. Thank Kami-sama for Tsunade-sama…" Kakashi said, flexing his now-healed wrist.

"Huh? Oh… that tree. Well, nothing I guess. Tenzo-"

"Yamato" Kakashi corrected with an eye-smile as Jiraiya rolled his eyes.

"Yamato will have to either make it go away or put it to some good use. It's actually nice in a way, but it's kinda an eyesore too." Jiraiya said as Kakashi nodded.

"Yeah, you're right. Now then, what do we do about them?" Kakashi asked as he jabbed a thumb behind them.

Jiraiya looked behind himself as he chuckled fervidly at the sight he was seeing.

Inside Naruto's hospital room were three girls sitting beside his bed on one side. On the other side were a boy and girl, his teammates. The three girls looked even more worried for the sleeping, and ghostly-breathing Naruto than his teammates did, though Sasuke tried very hard to hide his own worry.

"Do you think he'll be alright?" Tenten asked as Hinata brushed Naruto's bangs out of his peaceful face. He looked so peaceful… almost as if he were dea-

"He'll be fine. Another day in here, and he'll be back to himself. They said his only problems were some broken ribs, a scorched back, a few out-of-place bones, and some muscle damage to his legs. Those were probably already fixed by… the fox, but the major thing that's keeping him down is his chakra exhaustion." Sasuke said as Sakura's nervously tapping made his eye twitch.

"But he has loads of chakra! How could-"

"Because, Ino, he used almost all of it to help make that damn indestructible tree out there. The only chakra he had left was enough to keep him barely alive. I heard from Kakashi-sensei and Jiraiya-sama that the guy who helped Naruto with the battle was in need of chakra in-fusions to keep him alive from both the sudden high Naruto's chakra gave him, and the withdrawal it left on Yamato's chakra coils. That much chakra flowing through a normal person's body must have felt godly." Sakura said as she kept stealing glances at Naruto.

He was gonna kick her ass when he heard about what happened in the other fight…

"Still though, torn leg muscles? What was that all about?" Tenten asked as Ino shrugged. Hinata looked over at them shyly as she began pushing her index fingers together. She hated being the center of attention, and she was about to.

"Umm… I-It was probably from that speed technique he used to get away from us the first time in the field. It doesn't flood the leg with chakra like speed jutsu normally do, but gives an intense burst of it to the point of the step. T-Though I'm not sure if that's c-completely right, since I've o-only seen it o-once." Hinata explained timidly as they all stared at her.

"So he's got some kind of Shun-shin? That's cool, I guess…" Sakura said nervously as her plan to outrun Naruto flew out her mental window.

Before any more words could be exchanged a groan came from Naruto as he slowly woke up. He tried to go back to sleep though, feeling like his entire body was on shutdown as he turned to his side.

"Five more minutes Sasuke… Just use the shower, and don't touch the… ramen…" Naruto muttered sleepily as Sasuke blushed and all four girls turned to him with strange looks.

"I… Umm… Y-you see… The t-thing is… I got nothing…" Sasuke stuttered out, but then gave up with a sigh.

"So… why were you in Naruto's apartment and using his shower? I thought you two hated each other before being on a team, and I know you haven't been over to Naruto's apartment in the time of team, or the Hokage Mansion to stay the night." Sakura said, all nervousness gone in the face of hearing some juicy secrets while Hinata prayed for it not to be the steamy scenes racing through her head while Ino and Tenten prayed for it to be.

"Well, that whole hate/rivalry thing was kind of a half-truth. We did have a rivalry, but we didn't hate each other. We were kids! How the hell could we hate each other? We were actually best friends, though we didn't show it in the face of the public. I have a reputation to keep, and people didn't like him because of... the fox." Sasuke said as Sakura and Ino looked shocked, Hinata was still praying, and Tenten looked curious.

"So… you by his house?" Tenten asked, still imagining Naruto and Sasuke in a shower together, getting clean while getting down and dirty.

What could she say? She loved hot boy-on-boy action as much as any girl…

"Well, in the beginning it was only for when I was scared of Itachi coming back to kill me, or when I started thinking of my parents haunting the house. I'd run to his apartment, which wasn't that far once I learned the shortcuts, and he'd let me in. I was scared, he was lonely, and so we got to being real good friends. I mean, don't get me wrong, I was and still am anger at the world in general, but Naruto is like the only person I can never… hate. He's the only one that understands the pain of being alone, but he'll never understand how I feel about what Itachi did…" Sasuke said, deciding to actually follow the words of the book Inoshi gave him.

"The first step to self-realization is to talk about your past and the things you normally wouldn't with those of the same (being people you won't talk to about it)." Damn that book...

"So, Naruto and I kind of grew up together. We talked, shared secrets, and even lived together for those two months people were trying to kill him again back in the Academy. He's lived at my house, and I've lived in his. Remember when we first met Kakashi-sensei? I had to wait for him to get back home that day, because I left my clothes in his apartment. Anyways, we're kind of like step-brothers, except both our parents are dead and we live on our own." Sasuke said with a shrug as the girls simply stared at him.

"So… have you two ever…?" Ino asked, moving her fingers around each other as Sasuke raised a brow in confusion.

"You know… umm… crossed kunai…?" Tenten supplied after seeing his confusion.

"Huh?" Sasuke asked as he tiled his head to the side.

"Played hide the scroll?" Sakura said with a blush as Sasuke still didn't get it.

"We've hidden things, and probably need to go find them, but I don't see what that has to do with anything."

Sakura sighed in exasperation as she leaned over to Sasuke and began to whisper in his ear. At first his pale cheeks went a tomato-red, before his face turned green.

"Oh my Kami, that's sick! What is wrong with you people! No! Kami-sama, no! Why would we…? How is that even…? Oh Kami…" Sasuke said as he jumped from his chair and looked at each of them, before sitting back down.

"So… never…?" Ino asked as Sasuke gave her a look.

"No!" Sasuke said.

"Oh… I wonder who would be top and who would be bottom?" Tenten asked as Hinata went red and Sasuke looked frightened.

"Why are we having this discussion? I thought we were talking about Naruto's health?" Sasuke said as Ino rolled her eyes.

"You don't have to comment, you know."

"You don't have to have this topic of discussion, you know." Sasuke shot back as Sakura gave him a look.

"We're girls, it's what we do. Anyways, I think Naruto would be a bot-"

"Ugh… disturbance in the Force… no bottom me, that's totally Sasuke…" Naruto muttered in his sleep as he tossed and turned. The others looked at him, and then Sasuke as Sasuke blushed.

"What's with you?" Tenten asked as Sasuke looked away.

"Nothing, and if he mutters anything else in his sleep I'll-"

"Hmm… Sasuke… You're mom looks hot… I'd tottal tap th-"

"I'll kill him! Let me go! He needs to die! I knew showing him those pictures was a bad idea from the start! Let me go!"

"Oh, Hinata… you're so talented…"

Hinata fainted on the spot as the room went silent, nose blood dripping onto the floor as the other four looked down at her fallen form.

"Umm… is he-"

"A pervert? Yes." Sakura growled out as she glared at Naruto.

"It's not perverted to have… those sort of dreams. Now those there" Ino said as she pointed out the window to Jiraiya and Kakashi, "those are perverts."

"Ohh, Ino… I love the way you-"

"Okay, that's enough of that!" Ino said as her face went red and she slapped a hand over Naruto's mouth. Her hand squirmed as Naruto began licking it, making her spine shiver as he moved his tongue along her nerves. She jerked her hand away before a moan could escape her.

"Are you okay, Ino? You seem a bit… flushed." Tenten said with a smirk as Ino dried her hand and rubbed the tingles away.

"Shut up…" Ino muttered as Tenten giggled.

"What's up with-"

"Mmhh, Ten…ten… so good…" Naruto moaned as he laid sprawled out in the bed, Tenten's face cherry-red.

"Umm… thanks…" Tenten squeaked out as Sasuke gave Naruto's sleeping form a suspicious look.

"Sakura… more…" Naruto moaned out as Sakura sputtered, but the blush on her face told everything. Sasuke's eye narrowed at the smirk growing on Naruto's sleeping face.

"Oooohhhh, Anko, Ayame, Temari, Shizune, Ami, Tsunami, Tsunade, Kin, Kiba's sister (Hana), Kiba's mom (Tsume), Haku (who was totally a girl), Sasuke's mom-"

"Stop it! We know you're not asleep anymore, so just stop it!" Sasuke yelled as he covered his ears. Though he had to admit, half of those girls and women weren't so bad.

"Ha!" Naruto said, opening his eyes as a large fox-like grin grew on his face. He struggled to sit up in bed as Tenten and Ino helped him… roughly.

"So many names, Naruto…" Tenten said.

"And yet, we don't know some of them." Ino finished as Hinata finally got up.

Naruto was saved from a response as Tsunade walked in, lab coat on as it struggled to the front of her chest. Naruto raised a brow at her as she looked from him and wrote things down on a clipboard.

"Nice to see your finally awake, brat. Now then-"

"Hey! I'm Hokage, so that's Mr. Your Awesomeness to you, subordinate." Naruto said, though he looked too weak for the joke.

"Okay, Mr. Brat. Now, as I was saying, your bones have reset and healed. Your legs tendons, ligaments, and muscles are repaired, so there are no problems there. The only thing I see left wrong with you are the incredible lack of chakra and your disrespect for your elders." Tsunade said, still writing in her clipboard.

"I'm your boss, and leader. Besides, I still don't have to respect you Granny, even if I wasn't. You drink, you gamble, and you lose every ryo that you make." Naruto said as he laid back on his pillow. A vein near Tsunade's temple pulsed noticeably, but she remained calm.

"A little mouthier than usual, huh? Perhaps we need to get you doped up and incoherent?" Tsunade said as she reached in her pocket and took out a needle.

"No, stay away from me with that! Besides, I love hugs not drugs!" Naruto said as he moved Hinata on the bed to shield him from the needle. Tsunade raised a mirthful eyebrow, but didn't put the needle away. Instead, she advanced on the bed as Naruto held Hinata ( Ino and Tenten as well, for extra protection) closer to him.

"Aww, what's wrong? Wittle Hokage Naruto afraid of a big bad shot?" Tsunade cooed as Naruto nodded animatedly.

"Hell yes!" Naruto exclaimed weakly, no shame in his fear of the pointy needle of death.

"Enough! Naruto, stop being such a baby. It's just a shot-"

"Why don't you willingly let her stab you with a sharp object and inject some strange fluid into your veins. I, on the other hand, have more sense than that." Naruto said politely as he crossed his arms in a show. Sakura only sighed as she shook her head at his rebuttal.

"Naruto, you're supposed to be the Hokage. You're supposed to set a better example for us ninja than this!"

"And I am, by not subjecting myself to pains I don't want to simply because you people think I'm mouthy. Now if you want to willingly be sedated, and give the village a break from your voice-"

"Naruto! Hey!"

"-then I can understand perfectly. I, however, have important things to do as Hokage, and can't be all loopy for them." Naruto said as the others stared at him.

That all had actually made some sense…

"Fine, no shot…" Tsunade said sullenly as she put the cap back over the needle, and placed the syringe back in her pocket. No stabbing Naruto with sharp stuff today…

...maybe next time…

"So, how long will I need to be here?" Naruto asked as he adjusted himself in the bed, still using the three girls as shields until they jumped off.

"We're not sure at the moment. The rate of chakra recovery is different for each individual, and I've never studied it with a Jinchuriki before. It could be tomorrow, and it could be next week. However, you will stay until you have recovered and that's finally." Tsunade said, writing in her clipboard and then placing it in a bin on Naruto's bed. She gave him a stern look before gazing at the others.

"Shizune let you all be in here, but policy is that only one visitor is allowed in a room at any given time. Shizune didn't know that due to the circumstances, but for a Kage and Jinchuriki, only trusted ANBU, and officials are allowed in. Because of Naruto's age and other factors, you all fall into the "trusted officials" category, but only one at a time. Even with a doctor. Now, four of you out, and one stay. You've been warned." Tsunade said with a very serious look as her eyes pierced all of them. Naruto nodded when they all looked to him for reassurance. He may have been stuck there bored and all, but even he couldn't argue policy when he was a patient. Besides, it kept assassins away since only people he really knew would be allowed in.

Tenten and Ino sighed as they walked out, having to go meet their teams anyway. Naruto wrote a letter for them to turn into Iruka, allowing the Academy teacher to handle missions today with Kakashi and the Elders. Sakura and Sasuke left soon after so that they could help Kakashi.

That left only him and Hinata, who was looking anywhere but him as she thought about them… alone.

"Hey, brat! I see you're all alone with your wo-"

"Shut up, Pervy Sage, and leave Hinata alone!" Naruto yelled as he collapsed back onto his pillows, Hinata helping him sit back up as her face went red. Jiraiya's cheeky grin faded as he gazed at Naruto with a serious look.

"Fine… I need her to scram anyway. You've been out for a while now, and though it pains me to say it; t-there's... n-no time for... g-g-girls right now. I have some information that you may need." Jiraiya said as he climbed into the room. Hinata took the chance she was given as she stood.

"I'll j-just see y-you later, N-Naruto-kun." Hinata said before she zipped out of the room.

Naruto sighed as he ran a hand through his hair, but stopped while looking up at Jiraiya.

"What's wrong now? What happened while I was out of it?" Naruto asked as Jiraiya took up a chair and sat beside Naruto's bed.

"A lot. The Sand are planning a visit in three weeks to discuss their atonement for their part in the Invasion nearly three months ago. The Rock are planning an assault with a Genin force of one hundred. Lightning has just now decided on it's Fourth Raikage. And just about everything else is in this folder." Jiraiya said as he handed Naruto the file. Naruto opened it and began reading, a frown on his face as he went on.

"So far… the Hidden Waterfall have been taken over by a renegade group. The Land of the Moon has lost it's prince along with the Land of Snow it's princess, but that last one happened years ago. You found her, and we'll deal with that tomorrow. Hmm… It also seems that a group of travelers is in trouble due to their knowledge of some ancient stone… interesting, interesting…" Naruto said, reading only some of the really high-level marked information out as Jiraiya nodded.

"Yeah, the first that will need help is the princess, but like you said we can talk more on that tomorrow with others. Also, the Land of the Moon hasn't "lost" their princess. The boy's father sent him away for some reason and claimed it as a "vacation" of some sort. I think something' fishy is gonna on in the Land of the Moon, but that's not for me speculate. Those travelers though will need our protection before the end of next month though, so you have enough time for that one." Jiraiya said as Naruto glanced up at him from the corner of his eye while he closed the file.

"I'll get on all this tomorrow, or whenever I get out of this stupid hospital. As for now… Inu, Beetle!" Naruto called out as two ANBU dropped from the ceiling in on knee to their leader.

"Yes, Hokage-sama?" They both asked as Naruto frowned.

"Bring me… my paperwork. For once I'll have to do it all myself since I ca barely move from this bed, let alone summon a Shadow Clone." Naruto said as the two Black Ops nodded and vanished.

"Ox, Bird!" Naruto called as two ANBU Black Ops stepped out of the shadows.

"I need you two to bring me Boar; kicking, screaming, bruised and crying if you have to." Naruto said, an edge in his voice as the two agents quickly disappeared to get their target.

"Boar?" Jiraiya asked, remembering that it was a young girl about Kurenai's age that had the job of the Earth-style Ninjutsu master of ANBU.

"Yes, Boar. She has crossed me…" Naruto said, still with a touch of anger as Jiraiya mentally prayed the girl hadn't done anything more or less than touch the boy's privates.

Or at worse, his Ramen…

"Why do you think he wants Boar?" Ox asked as Bird shook his head, not knowing what the younger ANBU could have done.

"If it was just a mission or something of the like, he would have called her himself, but he didn't and that can only mean one general thing…" Bird said, trailing off as he didn't want to believe what he was insinuating.

"Where are you two off to in such a hurry?" Yugao Uzuki asked as she dropped down in front their path atop the roofs of Konoha.

"We're of to collect agent Boar. Hokage-sama requested that we go." Bird said, the importance in his voice stressing the situation. Yugao, dressed in her Cat ANBU mask and garb, gasped from behind said mask.

"You don't think he'd…"

"It is Naruto-sama's decision if that is the case. I believe that won't be the case, but even so not without good reason. We've all heard her opinion on his appointment, and I'm sure she wasn't able to control it around him. She's so hot-headed, and I still don't see why Sarutobi-sama kept her on with her attitude about things… but it's not my place to speak on such matters. Now then, let's move." Bird said as they nodded and sped off, intent on seeing their Hokage's will done.

Even if it meant losing an ANBU…

"Hey, I have a question, Neji. Why weren't you promoted to Chunin like Shino and Shikamaru?" Tenten asked as Lee turned to look at Neji as well. Neji sighed, having already known this was going to come up.

"The Council and Naruto-sama said that while I was indeed brilliant in my Finals match against Hokage-sama himself, they felt that I still needed to sort through my various "personal issues". They said that a Chunin cannot "pause in the middle of a fight to lecture his opponents on how weak they are and how they need to give up". They told me that I need to beat them. Granted, the Council and even Hiashi-sama said I was showing signs of changing, however they still felt that it was not conclusive yet. They said that I'm free to take the exam again in six months and if I kept up with the improvements, then I should be fine." Neji said as Tenten and Lee blinked.

"… so they basically said that the only thing stopping you from being promoted was the fact that you were a talkative prick?" Tenten asked for clarity as Neji's eye twitched.

"I was not that bad, Tenten!" Neji shouted in a very un-Hyuga-like manner.

"Yes, yes you were. Even Lee was starting to give up hope on you until Naruto changed you." Tenten said with a shake of her head. Neji crossed his arms and began muttering to himself as he turned away from his team.

"Don't worry, Neji! I'm sure you'll get 'em all next time! That is, if Lee doesn't first!" Gai shouted as Neji groaned.

He needed a break from the insanity…

"Oh Gai-sensei!"

"Lee!"

Truly, he did…

"… and that's how our battle went." Jiraiya finished recounting his and the others battle against Sasori as Naruto blinked.

"Wait… Sakura jumped in… and actually saved Granny Tsunade?" Naruto asked, his eyes wide as he blinked in surprise again.

Huh… and Sasuke had said she would always be useless…

"Yup, true tale to the very end. The girl had spunk I'll give her that, but for the few seconds of glory, she went back to a damsel in distress real quick the next." Jiraiya said with a shrug. Naruto, now over his surprise, gritted his teeth in anger.

"I gave her a direct order to follow, and she still left the safety of her house, entered an S-class battle, and got captured by the enemy not ten seconds into her entering it. Neji I can understand because he was with Hiashi at least and will be warned against it later. But Sakura? Hell no! No wonder she seemed so nervous whenever I met her gaze earlier. That little-"

"Ha! So, Pinky's got a rebellious streak, huh?" Jiraiya laughed out as Naruto growled.

"Rebellious my ass! She will be dealt with later. Now, I told you about my battle, and my thoughts on it; what do you think?"

"Hmm… It went pretty good until he got the jump on you. Fighting bombs is something no ninja has a real defense for, but you did well to fight from a distance, strike fast, and then retreat. You saw through his clones, and we're able to keep Yamato from getting hurt badly as well. To be honest though, you was out of your current league because you only know about ten or less jutsu at the moment. You only have the bare basics in all of your training, and even that was spread better thinly due to us being on the road. Your ninjutsu and other skills need a lot of work, but your skills in deception and strategy are extremely high. That, however, may come from your cunning and imagination from years as a former prankster. Right now, I'd rate your abilities at that of an extremely powerful Jonin, just a shade above Kakashi. However, that's only because of the quality of the jutsu you know; not how many." Jiraiya said candidly as Naruto's gaze dropped to his hands which were gripping at the bed sheets over his lower body.

"I know that I need a lot of work, but how am I gonna manage all the training I'll need and being Hokage at once? I need a lot of in-depth elemental training because you were no help at all, Taijutsu training from you to get all the Frog Kata basic moves, and maybe genjutsu training even though I hate genjutsu. I'll also need to train in Kenjutsu and various other things, and the only thing I've fully mastered is Fuinjutsu." Naruto said, getting more and more depressed as he realized just how much work he needed and how little he actually had.

"Hey now, buck up, kid. Listen, I know you have a long road ahead of you, but like Sarutobi-sensei always used to tell me, "the long road is paved with hard work, and paid back in full with good fortune later on"… or something like that, but seriously; we'll work something out. All we need now is a starting point." Jiraiya said as Naruto sighed and ran his hands through his hair.

"Alright… let's see… Oh! I could start on Wind-nature! You and Kyuubi-sensei said I was a natural with it, but neither of you could teach me anymore than the Leaf-cutter technique. I need a Wind-user that knows more training exercises." Naruto said as he and Jiraiya began thinking of people.

"Hmm… Kakashi will be able to help; what with being a master of a thousand jutsu a few of them must be Wind-natured. Then there's that Asuma guy, he's a natural Wind-user. Those are the only two I can think of." Jiraiya said as Naruto nodded.

"Alright then, I'll have them meet with me tomorrow to see if we can't work something out. I also need to deal with Barrier team that I've only just now heard about. I'll check on that as soon as I'm out of here. Whenever I'm not working on Wind training, I'll start with something else and go on missions-"

"Missions?" Jiraiya asked with a raised brow as Naruto nodded.

"Of course. What, did you think I'd be stuck behind a desk or in the village all my career as Hokage? Nope, I plan to see the world! The life long dream just came along faster than I would have thought. Now I can go on awesome new missions and save princesses instead of dirty old drunk men." Naruto said as Jiraiya sweat-dropped at his last statement.

"So… training?" Jiraiya said, hoping it would keep Naruto from ranting about how much his former missions sucked.

I mean, what would they do with Genin if Naruto suddenly decided that D-ranks were stupid?

"Huh? Oh, right. Umm… Wind first, since I need to be able to use more jutsu and it is my best nature. Then I'll also work on some taijutsu and while all that's going on, I'll have some clones read up on things in the library or sit in the back of… Academy classes…" Naruto said, but his turned sour when he spoke of the Academy. Jiraiya noticed with only a little suspicion of what it could be.

"Something wrong, Naruto." Jiraiya asked as Naruto looked up at him.

"Yeah, did you know that the Civilian Council have been in control of the Academy ever since the Old Man had been reinstated?" Naruto asked as Jiraiya looked confused.

"No… but know things make since. The whole low-grade ninja thing was kind of bugging me when I got back for the Chunin Exams. I was gonna ask Sarutobi-sensei, but never… got around to it." Jiraiya said, though his voice was more sober as he thought of his dead teacher.

That man had been like a father to him. and a grandfather to Naruto… Orochimaru would be getting more than a few lumps for doing the deed now that Jiraiya thought about it!

"Yeah, so I need to take back control of it. I was thinking; could you help the teaching staff make the Academy like it was back in your day. I mean, you're pretty great, and you were the deadlast like me." Naruto said as Jiraiya blinked in surprise.

"Did you just say I'm great?" Jiraiya asked as Naruto raised a brow.

"I also called you a deadlast." Naruto shot back as Jiraiya smirked.

"But you called me great, and that's the only part I'm hearing! Yeah, baby! The Town Madman stirkes again, and the ladies swoon from his gallant dance of insanity! Now the heavens must also quake in fear, for even my young apprentice who is also my superior realizes my awesome power." Jiraiya said, hopping out of his chair to dance around Naruto's room. Naruto's eyebrow twitched as he picked up a medical book that had been on his room's stand and threw it at the white-haired man, hitting him in the back of his head.

"Focus, you perverted old geezer! We need to straighten out the Academy! Now I'm starting to think Granny Tsunade was right about you being a dumbass in school!" Naruto yelled as Jiraiya cried animated tears.

"Why must all my students be so harsh…" Jiraiya whined as Naruto shook his head.

Why was he surrounded by either perverted idiot guys or bi-polar crazy girls?

"So, why did you three come for me again?" Inoshi asked as she and her fellow ANBU walked through the streets of Konoha.

That in itself was odd enough since they were all still in full ANBU gear, and the fact that ANBU weren't known to take friendly strolls through their village in the middle of daylight. Hence why people were staring and whispering.

"We have told you, Boar-san. Hokage-sama wishes to see you and we are merely the escort." Bird said as Inoshi's eyes narrowed, having gotten that same answer six times now.

What the hell was going on?

"Yugao-senpai, what's going on here? Why didn't Hokage-sama simply summon me himself?" Inoshi whispered to Yugao, barely keeping in her irritation at the stares she was getting and the whispers she caught.

"I don't know, but when you meet with Naruto-sama, I hope you'll be respectful." Yugao said, stressing choice words as Inoshi gave her a look.

"Respectful? What the hell-"

"Choose your next words very carefully, Boar-san." Bird said in a chilling whisper as Inoshi gulped, seeing from the corner of her eye that Ox had reached for his hammer.

"What the hell's goin' on around here? Am I suspected of something? Oh crap! Did he find out about me revealing myself to Sasuke? Or is this about Sasuke escaping from his house?" Inoshi thought as she and the three ANBU walked around her in a triangular formation. It was easy for anyone to see that she was a prisoner to them, and that they were bringing her in.

Her only thought however, was why.

"Mom! I'm home!" Sakura said as she entered her house, taking off her weaponry and placing it in the key dish beside the front door.

"How was it today, Sakura dear?" her mom's voice carried from the kitchen, where she was making cookies if the smell was anything to go by.

"Oh you know, the usual." Sakura said casually as she rubbed more salve on a cut she had on her exposed arm. Her and Asuma's team had gone out on a C-rank mission to take out some bandits, and one of them had managed to get in a lucky shot at her. The worst part was that the thing she had been cut with was dripping poison.

Thank Kami for Tsunade-sama's medical prowess and quick remedies!

"Oh, nothing to dangerous I hope." Sayuri said as she walked into the hall with a plate of fresh hot cookies.

"No, nothing I couldn't handle." Sakura said with a fake smile. It was only thanks to her shinobi training that she could fool her mom into not worrying.

Sayuri only grew more worried as she saw the faked smile her daughter wore so casually, almost as if it was the real thing Sayuri remembered from before her daughter joined the Ninja Academy. If Sakura thought for even a second that the smile and casual tone masked anything, then the girl obviously didn't know the power that being a person's mother gave them. She knew her daughter inside and out, and so she could easily tell when the girl lied to her; even with the training the girl had, which only made it more obvious due to Sayuri's mother senses. Sayuri though could only sigh in content. It wouldn't due to push her daughter for the truth, and it worried her sick everyday that her little girl was going out into a world only to die someday because that was how the system worked.

She hated those damn ninja and their ways. The only reason she had let her daughter be a part of that damn Academy was because…

Sayuri looked up at a picture that was in the hallway on the high wall. It showed a man of his early to mid-twenties. He had white hair and one of the best smiles Sayuri had ever seen in her life. His brown eyes told an entire story of cheerfulness, power, and determination. His skin was tanned and his features of a matured man well on his way to the top. The Konoha headband only added to his manly look of authority and charm.

Sayuri's eyes shone with held back tears as Sakura walked passed her to her room. S he watched her little girl go with a sad eye before she went back to gazing up at the man in the framed photo.

"Oh, Ichiro… what am I gonna do with her? I wish you hadn't left us for the next world, then maybe it wouldn't be… so hard…" Sayuri said as she stroked at the cheek of the picture. Her tears fell onto the plate of cookies as she sighed sadly and went back to the kitchen to fix lunch for herself and their little girl.

The ninja life wasn't taking another of her loved ones… It had already taken one to many…

"… and that is all I have to report, Danzo-sama." a ninja in a blank mask said as he kept his head down the entire time he reported to his Master.

Danzo hummed to himself as he thought over the battle report his ROOT ninja had just given him. The battle damage was being repaired and wasn't much to begin with. The ninja had been beaten and retreated for now, but that was… somewhat okay.

But the bad part was that the village leader had been hospitalized after the whole thing, and that Jiraiya had been running internal and external inference to all information networks and talks. For a while, Danzo had forgotten just how good Jiraiya was a t his job when he wasn't being a perverted little brat.

"That will be all." Danzo said as the ninja rose with a nod and disappeared.

Danzo knew that the plan he was making was a far stretch, but he knew it had a chance of working. All he needed to do was pick the right ninja for the job.

And boy did he have the right one…

"Come forth, Operative Brushstroke." Danzo said with a stamp of his cane as a ninja appeared out of the dark shadow before him in a kneeling position.

"You summoned me, Danzo-sama?" the operative said in a completely blank and devoid voice.

"Yes, I have a mission for you… Sai." Danzo said, a smile breaking out on his wrinkled face as the newly christened Sai looked up at him with lifeless eyes.

"What is thy bidding, my Master?" Sai said in the same monotone as before while Danzo looked down at him with a smirk.

It was always good being the boss hidden in shadow…

"Kabuto, how goes their training?" Orochimaru asked from his throne as Kabuto bowed to him before responding.

"It goes well. They'll have all their moves and such perfected in two months time. The only draw back is that his therapy isn't going all that well." Kabuto said as Orochimaru simply kept smiling. Nope, he wasn't going to let a little bad news ruin his day. He had finally regained some feeling (other than pain) in his left arm, and so he took it as a great day today.

It had been Sarutobi-sensei who sealed his arms. If you could feel anything other than pain, it was a blessing from Kami-sama.

"That's alright, Kabuto. I have plans for him during that time. What I really wanted to know was how things were things in that facility?" Orochimaru asked as Kabuto frowned.

"Not good I'm afraid. There seems to be something attacking around the facility, a beast of some kind that's trying to locate it. Plus, that one isn't being very cooperative since he isn't well enough to help us anymore." Kabuto said as Orochimaru's smile faltered a little before coming back full force.

"That's fine, Kabuto. A little bad news isn't anything to get too worried about. Like my dear dead Sensei used to say, "one must take all good and bad news with a grain of salt. All things have their place, and that is Absolute Truth"… or something like that. Anyways, I'm in a good mood right now so I won't even kill anyone." Orochimaru said as a random ninja walked through his thron room to get to another door. Orochimaru's sword shot out quicker than Kabuto could react, and sailed barely pass his ear to stab the random ninja through his leg. Kabuto looked back shakily and sighed when he saw the ninja was the intended target.

"See, Kabuto-kun; I didn't kill him. I didn't even poison him." Orochimaru said above the ninja's howls of pain and anguish.

"Y-yes, I s-see, Orochimaru-sama." Kabuto said as he shakily readjusted his glasses.

He really needed to get away from this guy before his life came to an unexpected and abrupt end…

"… So… they kicked your artistic asses, and then made you both run away like little bitches? I'd believe it!" Hidan said as his holographic image gazed upon the living ones of Sasori and Deidara.

"Shut up, you disgustingly uncultured dolt! We were merely caught off guard by their expecting us." Deidara defended as Sasori was watching for Pein's reaction. The guy had closed those freaky eyes of his when they had finished their report, and hadn't opened them since.

"So why didn't you just blow the village up? Oh yeah, that's right! The kid saved it with a beautifully big ass tree." Kisame said with a chuckle as Hidan joined in with him.

"Enough, Kisame. It's obvious that young Naruto has grown even stronger since we did battle with him. His rate of improvement has become… staggering. Just imagine how strong he would be had the village not shunned him." Itachi said, hoping that his fellow Akatsuki members would grow more discouraged with his words coupled with the defeat Naruto and the two loyal Sanin had handed to Sasori and Deidara.

Pein's eyes snapped open after hearing Itachi's words. While he hated to admit it, the Uchiha-slayer had a point. The boy surely couldn't have gained the title of Kage without basis, and here it was. The boy had played Deidara like a flute, and used a monstrous amount of chakra to create a natural shield to protect his village. It had been so powerful, that even he had felt it all the way in his village.

"Itachi is correct. We must hold off our attempts to take down the Kyuubi Jinchuriki until we have better preparations. These things don't need to be rushed, however, so we will meet again in do time. Three years should be enough for all of you to gain anything and everything you'll need to collect your targets. Remember though, our mission is that of peace, and true failure is not an option." Pein said as the other members voiced their agreement and fazed from view.

Pein sighed as thought over where Madara could have gone. The immortal Uchiha had disappeared off the face of the Earth, and he would bet his favorite kunai set that it had something to do with the Uzumaki brat that had become Hokage. Pein then found himself thinking that everything had to do with that kid; like the boy was some kind of destined child or something.

Ha! That was a laugh, because the only destined being around was him; Pein, the God of the Rain village.

"The boy is beginning to become a problem. He's fairing much better than I would have thought, and seems to only grow more powerful with each challenge we throw at him." a masked figure said to a humanoid-flytrap.

"Oh, and what will you do about him, Madara?" Zetsu, the Human-Flytrap, asked with a wide smirk as Madara turned away from him to look over the Valley of the End.

How long ago had it been since he and Hashirama did battle in this playground which those weaker ninja had marked as an epic battle site? One hundred years, perhaps…? Yeah, that sounded about right…

"I'm going to take care of him… myself, if need be." Madara said as Zetsu licked his lips in hunger.

"And his delicious lifeless body?" Zetsu asked as if he were a starving child.

"You may feast on it right down to the bone marrow if you please." Madara said, completely devoid emotion as Zetsu looked hungrily at the statue of Hashirama Senju. Madara stared at the statue as well, smirking at it as he gazed over it and how it seemed to crumb under his gaze.

For no one man could stand up to the might that was Madara Uchiha…