Sasuke, Naruto and the eager Karin were all waiting with Tsunade and an amused Anko. Ever since Yoru finally told her the truth and nearly broke Kurenai, she had been hanging around the boys more often.
Yoruichi treated her like everyone else, and as such Anko had pretty much acted like they were the family she always wanted but never really had. It wasn't like the boys cared.
Yoruichi came in with the two she had rescued from Kiri. Both were orphans and the mess she had brought them from meant she couldn't leave them with the resistance.
Plus the Hokage did ask if she could 'poach' a few bloodline users.
The boys waited patiently for her to introduce the other two.
"This is Haku, he can create ice. This is Kimimaro, he can use his bones as weapons. And this is Karin, she's an Uzumaki like you Naruto. Any questions?"
"COOL!" said Naruto, as he eagerly started asking a million and one questions a minute to Kimimaro and Haku about what all they could do.
Yoruichi had offered to make them wards of the Uchiha clan, partly because they were as clingy as her brothers, but mostly to keep the greedy hands of the council off them.
As her wards, she was their legal guardian much in the same way as she was for Naruto. It also meant that the council couldn't force them to become breeders when they hit puberty.
Sasuke, however, became the one to voice something that was bothering him.
"Where are they going to sleep?"
Yoruichi carefully schooled her expression.
"We're reopening the Uchiha district. And before you ask, I already had most of the attack cleaned up. There's new paint, wallpaper and even the appliances were replaced," said Yoru.
"So...basically we're heading back home, but it's been redone enough that we can look past our old memories of the place?"
"You can have your old room back too, kami knows I won't even consider touching the master bedroom," said Yoru flatly.
"What about the fact the Uchiha district is considered a ghost one?" asked Anko.
"Actually only a few people who had frequent contact with the Uchiha consider it a ghost district. I've been making a bit of money by renting some of the houses to the newly minted genin who were orphans. In exchange they pay for half the utilities, helped repaint the place, and cleaned up the mess left by the massacre. The only reason most people don't notice is because I had them leave the wall up," corrected Yoruichi.
She had seen the slums where Naruto used to live. In exchange for getting several orphans who had yet to make enough money or earn chunin rank long enough to rent an apartment, she got the 'ghost district' cleaned up and made use of much needed space. There wasn't really any reason to leave those houses alone when the owners were dead and gone for a long time, and all the important things like family photos and personal articles were removed.
The Hokage definitely approved of it, because they had been able to demolish some of buildings that should have been condemned years ago for being a health hazard.
The orphan genin got a clean, safe home, Yoru got paid rent regularly, the houses were being used again, and as an added bonus, most of the shinobi no longer considered the Uchiha to be stuck up pricks like the Hyuuga.
One of those who had opted to rent from the Uchiha was Iruka, funnily enough. Mostly because renting from her meant he could finally trap his house within reason. His civilian landlord wasn't nearly as understanding about shinobi paranoia.
Tsunade, however, grimaced.
"No thanks. I'd rather live in the Senju compound," she said.
Old rivalries and hatred died hard. Especially when it came to the age old one of the Senju and the Uchiha, even if she could tolerate Yoruichi a hell of a lot more than she could the girl's father.
"Sugoi... this is your house?"
"Just wait Naru-chan, when you become a chunin the Hokage said he'll give you the key to your mother's home. She had a big library, from what I remember," said Yoru teasing.
The Hokage held the Yondaime's house in trust until Naruto came of age or became a chunin. He believed Naruto was responsible enough once he became a chunin to know who his father was, since Yoru had convinced him there wasn't any harm telling him about his mother.
Primarily because Naruto wanted to know who Yoru's idol was, and she had told him about Kushina. The second he heard she was an Uzumaki, he had asked the Hokage if she was his mother.
"Our house now. Sasuke and I will be retaking our old bedrooms, the Master is open to whichever of us marry first, but the others are open to everyone else," said Yoru.
Naruto promptly took the bedroom across from Sasuke's room, while Haku and Kimimaro took the rooms closest to Yoru. Coincidentally that meant their rooms were right next to Naruto and Sasuke, as Yoru's room was beside Sasuke's and closest to the garden.
The master bedroom, where Sasuke and Yoru's parents slept, was left open to whichever of the siblings married first. Neither of them felt comfortable sleeping there.
Karin decided she would rather stay with Tsunade. According to her, she had had enough of the testosterone-heavy atmosphere in Kusagakure.
Tsunade had gotten a strange gleam in her eyes and to her delight found Karin was an aspiring medic. Primarily because of her weird ability to heal others by having them bite her. The cackles the two women let off sent shivers of horror down the spines of any male in hearing. The women, however, felt some vindication.
Shizune shook her head. Clearly Karin was going to end up as a second Tsunade if her mentor had anything to say about it. Perverts beware.
"So...what exactly did you get up to while I was gone for two and a half months?"
Apparently a lot. Yoruichi wasn't the only one laughing at the pranks the two pulled. Haku and Kimimaro were snickering.
Katsu had taken Yoru's offer seriously. In exchange for giving the boys and (to a smaller extent) Yakumo training, they set Naruto on the village to test his ability to cause unmitigated chaos without being caught.
A useful skill for a spy, demolition expert and infiltrator.
And Naruto was good. Even clad in those awful orange outfits he loved. If he could slip into the Hunter division wearing that orange monstrosity, then what could he do in camouflage and actually trying to hide?
That was something the ANBU was eager to find out.
Ibiki was pissed, but Anko found it hilarious...mainly because she had been the one to direct most of his pranks against the poor bastards who had recently pissed her off.
"So are you trying to collect new chibis to train, or is it a talent?" asked Anko amused.
Kimimaro had chosen to sit next to Sasuke, while Haku stuck close to Naruto...along with Karin who was determined not to lose her newfound family. It was pretty clear that they might end up as a genin team on their own.
"To be fair, I was only expecting to poach one or two kids from Kiri. Finding Karin was an unexpected bonus. She reminds me of Kushina-nee-sama," said Yoru smirking.
"You're telling me! It's like looking at a younger, less busty version of the Red Haired Habenaro!" said Anko in agreement, more than a little drunk. Suddenly she leered at Yoru, "So did Iruka really glomp you the second you came back?"
Yoru gave off an ominous cackle.
"My minion army is almost complete. Soon, soon I shall lead my minions into becoming the terror of Konoha!"
Anko blinked, then looked at her sake.
"Okay, this is stronger shit than I'm used to. I could have sworn you just called the Academy the recruiting ground for your minion army."
"I did."
Anko bust a gut laughing.
"Seriously? You call them your minions?"
"Hey, Sasuke was the one who came up with the term. The kids and I find it amusing enough to use it. Besides, you should see how freaked out we can make the ANBU and the Hokage whenever we do that," grinned Yoru.
"Pictures, girl, pictures!"
That was too funny not to take pictures of! Yoru promptly branded several photos, which had Anko howling. The Hokage's face in particular whenever Yoru called the kids her minions was hilarious.
To be fair, Yoru had them better organized than any other teacher before her. She was good with kids.
"You know I'm surprised you haven't asked Iruka out for a date yet. You two have been dancing around each other for what, a year now?"
Iruka did have a thing for Yoruichi. She was smart, powerful, loyal, great with kids and she loved Naruto like a little brother. He didn't particularly care if she was an Uchiha, or that she came from a long line of shinobi. She never rubbed everyone's faces in the fact like her clan had, and instead was quite popular with the other shinobi. She was modest, but not overly arrogant and she worked for her skills whenever she could.
Yoruichi tolerated Iruka more than the others, mostly because he was always kind to Naruto, good with the children, and didn't try to curry her favor persistently like everyone else. She hated it when the shinobi got persistent trying to get into her pants! It was like having her damn fan club back!
Though it was more than slightly creepy when she found out that a good chunk of her fan girls had a shrine to Itachi despite the fact he was legally declared KIA by the Hokage. Thank kami she had sealed everything that had belonged to "Itachi" that wouldn't immediately be put back into use otherwise. She did not want her personal items being taken for those damn fan girls!
Yoruichi, realizing she would need some quick cash that wasn't already tied up in investments or slated for other use, decided to cash in on the ongoing bet on who would ask who out first. Her or Iruka.
Those in the know bet on her, primarily because while Iruka was brave, he was also rather nervous about asking one of the hottest, most popular kunoichi in the village out on a date when she had been seen slamming the heads of perverts who asked her out on dates into the pavement.
Tsunade had passed on the secret of her 'super-strength', and much to the horror of the men, Yoruichi took to it with glee. Turns out it was extremely fine-tuned chakra control, along with a good amount of feminine wrath mixed in.
Considering she had permanently swapped her testosterone for estrogen, Yoruichi could use this technique.
She did warn Anko to make more bets about who would ask out who, so long as she got half the cut. She would need it for her date. Anko grinned, and wished her luck.
She would definitely need it. As Itachi, she had never once been out on a date. Primarily because of the fan girls, but also because Fugaku would never deem anyone not Uchiha already worthy enough to date his son. After being a medic for years, she realized that the odd practice of marrying your cousin had only hurt their bloodline, not helped it. As Yoru, she had been too busy keeping it secret that she was really Itachi, and later taking care of Sasuke and Naruto.
So yes, she was a bit nervous. Besides, as Itachi or Yoruichi, she had no idea which side of the dating spectrum she fell on. It wasn't considered immoral or wrong to date the same gender (shinobi lived too short lives to care about such things, so long as their techniques or bloodline were passed down to another generation), but it wasn't exactly common either.
Anko was the closest she knew of that side of the spectrum...whenever Kurenai needed to scratch that particular itch and her mystery boyfriend was out, Anko would fill in. Well, if she wasn't with her boyfriend Kakashi anyway.
In order for the maximum impact of her asking Iruka out to be felt, Yoru waited until the second-biggest gossip in the village was present.
Ino Yamanaka. Her mother was one of the nosiest women in the village, and it didn't help that she was married to the former chief interrogator.
Iruka noticed Yoruichi was nervous about something.
"What's up?"
"I was wondering if you'd like to accompany me to the Yakiniku Barbeque tomorrow night."
"Sure. What time?"
"How about eight?"
"Anyone else coming?"
"No," said Yoruichi, hoping he'd take the hint.
"It's a date," said Iruka. It took him a couple of minutes to realize what just happened. Mizuki was just the first person to voice it aloud.
"Did you just get asked out on a date by the hottest kunoichi in the village?!"
The other male teachers were looking at him in envy.
Iruka suddenly paled.
"Oh dear kami, I just got asked out by Yoruichi Uchiha!" he said in shock. The full ramification hit him like a brick.
Ino was quick to spread the word of what just happened to the other girls, while the female teachers were doing the same with their fellow Kunoichi.
Elsewhere in the village, those who ran the secret shinobi betting rings were busy doling out the cash. Anko cackled as she collected her bets and the ones she placed for Yoruichi.
She could rig the bets, but she couldn't be seen collecting it if she wanted to keep the fact she knew about them quiet. The fact she gave her money to others in exchange for half the cut meant no one could technically pin the fact she had cheated back on her. As far as they could prove, she had loaned them money, and they were repaying her back with interest.
A fact Tsunade was quick to capitalize on, as her reputation towards gambling came back to haunt her. Or in this case, those who jumped to bet on whatever she wasn't betting on.
The odds had been stacked heavily on Iruka asking Yoru out, not the other way around...and now it was coming back full circle.
Needless to say the Legendary Sucker was rather pleased by this turn of events.
So was Naruto, who was part of the student betting rings. Most of the guys (barring Sasuke and Naruto, who knew Yoru better than that) had bet on Iruka, as did a good chunk of the girls. Shikamaru, who wanted nothing to do with who he thought would ask the other out, had offered to hold the bets in exchange for being left out. That way he got a part of the action without having to deal with the 'what if' scenarios.