A/N: I'm flattered by the initial reception. Having only six non-guest reviews is disappointing, but I didn't think as many people would take a liking to it as they did. However, before I posted it, my best friend (who doesn't use this site) told me she thought there were major flaws regarding Naruto, and, going back over that chapter...I agree with her. Maybe it's fine to not go as in-depth with his thoughts as she wanted, but one mistake none can deny is my failure to include a physical description of his future self. That has since been rectified, though I'm pretty much winging it by keeping it mostly identical to the outfit he adopts in The Last.

Anyway, review more, please? I can't maintain quality and inspiration if my readers don't voice their thoughts, including constructive criticisms. Also, do NOT expect me to maintain a consistent average chapter length as I continue this story.


Chapter 2

Betrayal Revealed

Kusagakure – Hōzukijō – January 21, 1011 A.C. – 1920 hours

Having confirmed that Konoha did not hold the secrets he sought, Naruto had turned to the one source he knew beyond a shadow of a doubt would have his answers.

Almost immediately after arriving at Hōzukijō via a Hiraishin seal planted at the front gates, his body tensed up involuntarily. Memories of a major incident after the Gokage Summit haunted him. Naruto had once been framed for the murders of several Jōnin from Kumo, Iwa and Kiri and an assassination attempt against the Yondaime Raikage, and was sent here. The former master of Hōzukijō, Mui, had questioned Naruto's devotion to Konoha during the future Hokage's wrongful imprisonment. Now, more than ten years later, Naruto himself wondered just how he had been so naïve as to remain unquestionably loyal to his home village. Even though his false imprisonment had been revealed to be the only way to ensure the successful completion of an important mission, a betrayal of this magnitude should have destroyed his loyalty.

After reviewing the memories of the ROOT assassins, the Nanadaime strongly suspected the Sandaime might have had a major hand in conditioning him to be absolutely loyal to Konoha. And that was why he was here. He needed to know for sure just whose side the Sandaime was really on.

Old man, just how much were you hiding from me? he wondered. He already knew the answer to that question would devastate him.


"Naruto-kun, this is a pleasant surprise," the reason for Naruto's visit to Hōzukijō, one Yakushi Kabuto, spoke up, hiding most of his scaly body under the same scarlet robes he wore back in the Fourth Shinobi World War. Naruto never quite got over the disgust he felt each time he was forced to look at the infamous traitor who fused himself with the White Snake Sage, sacrificing his own humanity in the process.

This was not the first time Naruto had visited Kabuto inside the Blood Prison, the alternate name Hōzukijō was called. Kabuto had proven to be an extremely valuable source of information, and there were several occasions during his stay in Kumo when he'd needed to join Godaime Raikage Darui and his fellow jinchūriki Kirābī during their excursions here to extract information from some of the more reliable prisoners. It was with Kabuto's information that Kumo and Konoha launched a joint military operation to kill the reborn Orochimaru, destroy Otogakure once and for all, and demilitarize Ta no Kuni permanently. Naruto, of course, had been given a major piece of that military operation by Darui, much to Kakashi's displeasure, but Darui quickly pointed out that he had not actually caused Naruto to violate Kakashi's orders. If he couldn't aid Konoha from within Hi no Kuni's borders, Darui had no qualms about letting its hero aid his home village from a distance.

In exchange for his invaluable information, Kumo and Konoha had allowed Kabuto to resume some of his scientific research while at Hōzukijō. He had also wanted a chance to help out with some of the orphanages scattered across the Konoha-Kumo Alliance, but that request was to be forever denied.

"Temae," Naruto shot back, causing Kabuto to frown at his confrontational behavior. "Only you would think it's pleasant. But you already know why I'm here, so cut the crap and tell me what I need to know."

"Ah, yes, I was wondering when the Foundation would reappear and make its move against you. I've expected this to happen for a few years now, actually. If Shimura could not have you as his weapon, he would instead ensure that no one else, especially not Professor Sarutobi, could claim you as their weapon instead."

Naruto froze. He'd thought he expected this, but nothing could emotionally prepare him for confirming his suspicions. Hōzukijō was already packed full of unpleasant surprises, and now its most valuable prisoner just saw fit to drop the biggest bombshell of his life onto his shoulders.

"Jiji...wanted me to be a weapon?" he breathed out in disbelief.

"In some ways, you're still the same naïve child I first met back at the Chūnin Exams. All jinchūriki were viewed as weapons by the leaders of the villages they belong to, and your precious Sandaime Hokage was no exception. Though I'm not surprised by your reaction to this revelation. Sarutobi was a splendid actor. He used his advanced age very well. But not quite well enough, it would seem."

Those who knew Naruto knew he tended to wear his heart on his sleeve. His time in Kumo had better prepared him for the harsh reality of the post-war shinobi world, but if it wasn't necessary to hide his emotions, he didn't hide them. From the way he was trembling, Kabuto divulged that Naruto felt a dangerous mixture of negative feelings.

The biggest one among them being betrayal.

"Of course, I have all the proof you require to confirm the Sandaime's exploitation of you," Kabuto continued, revealing a small black book kept concealed in the left sleeve of his robe. "When the false leader of Akatsuki destroyed Konoha, it was ridiculously easy to sneak in and obtain everything I sought after. I didn't just take DNA samples of dead shinobi to use in my army of Edo Tensei summons, Naruto-kun. I also unearthed all the dirty secrets your predecessors buried away."

"Why are you so eager to help me, Kabuto?"

"I suppose it's the part of Orochimaru-sama that stayed with me talking, but I'm curious to see how events will unfold, now that the windmill has been set in motion. I desire to learn the price the world must pay for the truth to set you free." Naruto nodded at that as he took the book, labeled Sandaime Hokage's Failures, from the table Kabuto sat it on and began reading. There was no doubt whatsoever in Kabuto's mind that the world would pay a high price. The only question was how high would that price be.

As part of his Hokage training under Rokudaime Kakashi, Naruto had been required to evaluate the decisions his predecessors were forced to make in specific crises. To take the facts available at that time and see if he could make a better decision than they. Two of them had been the Uchiha Clan Downfall and the Hyūga Affair. His studies of each crisis had slowly eroded his faith in the Sandaime. Thanks to his involvement in the Gokage Summit, Naruto thought he knew every secret about those two affairs and was certain he would have handled things a lot better than his jiji.

But as it would turn out, Naruto had another think coming.

Kabuto left a bookmark for him which guided him to read about the Uchiha Massacre first, rather than start from the beginning. Naruto immediately learned that there were a few details about the aftermath of that tragedy which had continued to elude him until now. If Sarutobi Hiruzen had had everything go according to the plan kept contained inside this little black book, not only would the bastard Uchiha Sasuke still be alive, he would be little more than a mindless drone, a tool whose only function outside of missions would be as a breeding slave to create a new Uchiha Clan with the fierce loyalty of the Inuzuka.

"Sensei's experience with the Uchiha clan in its glory days has taught me the reason why they were doomed to this fate. Nearly all Uchiha are incapable of living according to logic, because they are genetically enslaved to their emotions. This invariably leads them down a path of self-destruction. The very nature of the Uchiha made them a threat that had to be eradicated. Only if that nature is changed can the clan be allowed to return from the brink of extinction."

Hiruzen had taken after Tobirama's belief that the Uchiha couldn't be reasoned with, that they were absolutely ruled by their emotions and not logic. Perhaps the only thing that had stopped the Sandaime from allowing Danzō to take Sasuke into ROOT, which had been the sole reason Danzō allowed Itachi to spare Sasuke, had been the fear of how Itachi would respond. By the time that fear was no longer an issue, the plan could no longer be salvaged.

Naruto did not accept the Nidaime and Sandaime's anti-Uchiha stance. Perhaps Sasuke had been irredeemable by the time the Fourth Shinobi World War began, but he was certain the Last Loyal Uchiha could have still been saved if someone had made a greater effort sooner. He just couldn't figure out how soon.

And what about everyone else in the clan who was innocent? What about the other children, the elderly, any Uchiha civilian who was not in the know about Fugaku's planned coup d'état against Konoha? Why couldn't they have been spared? Would it not have been easier to change the Uchiha for the better if the Sandaime and Danzō had decided to spare more innocents than Sasuke? Why couldn't they have just revealed the crimes of the guilty to influence the minds of the innocent, to make them ashamed of what transpired, and thus prevent a repeat incident? Why did they all have to be slaughtered? Naruto just didn't and couldn't understand why anyone would consider such acts to be a necessary evil. Naruto knew he would have carried out the massacre himself had he been in Itachi's shoes—he himself had been forced to massacre another clan—but he would have left a lot more survivors. There was simply no chance in hell the entire Uchiha Clan could be guilty of treason. But this was a prime example of genuine contempt, if not outright corruption, from the leadership of Konoha.

Naruto was already seething in anger after reading this entry. But it only got worse from there.

In the event that Sasuke had survived and conformed to Hiruzen's plan for him, the Sandaime had also contemplated passing a law called the Clan Restoration Act which would have forced the Last Loyal Uchiha, or anyone else it was applied to, to take multiple wives of the Hokage's choosing and bear children with all of them within one year of the protocol's activation. When he read the list of intended wives, his chakra was flaring wildly. Hyūga Hinata and Ichiraku Ayame were on the list of women who would potentially be forced to help create a new Uchiha Clan, and as soon as he saw their names, Naruto knew they had been chosen as candidates for Sasuke's harem specifically because they were the only two women in all of Konoha who had seen past the Kyūbi no Yōko and cared about him without needing to overcome the peer pressure from the older generations. If all had gone to Hiruzen's plan and the law had been passed, Naruto would have still lost both of them forever. The only difference is that instead of just suffering alone, Naruto would have had to watch them suffer, oblivious to the reason for their suffering.

It was disturbingly similar to what Hiruzen's rival and the Shinobi no Yami, Shimura Danzō, would have done if Sasuke had never defected from Konoha to Otogakure. In that moment, Naruto felt the last of his respect for the so-called Supreme Shinobi die forever.

After finishing with enlightening himself for the last time about one of Konoha's greatest tragedies, Naruto flipped the pages backward to return to the first mistake the Sandaime wrote down in his black book, the defection of Orochimaru after his inhuman experiments were exposed. Hiruzen had actually allowed his former student to go free! So much would have been different if the Sandaime had done what needed to be done back then.

Two years ago, Naruto would not have truly blamed Hiruzen for letting his former student escape. He had once felt the same way about Sasuke, hoping there was still a chance to redeem his former best friend, but ultimately had been forced to do what was necessary.

But the two years since he returned from Kumo had seen the growth of a very different Naruto, one who was driven to expose every last dirty secret of Konoha and ensure the mistakes of his predecessors would never be repeated. His dead dream to become Hokage had been reborn into a bitter search for truth, and a witch hunt against those who still lived who might be implicated in the crimes he discovered.

What the hell else have you done, old man? Naruto thought. He didn't really want the answer to that question.

Speaking of Kumo, Naruto soon learned that the Uchiha Massacre's aftermath had not been the only time Sarutobi and Shimura were willing to sacrifice Hinata for what they considered the good of the village. Danzō had arranged for the Hyūga Clan's council of elders to weaken security at the compound enough for the Head Ninja of Kumo to sneak in and kidnap the heiress. Konoha had been willing to give the Byakugan to Kumo as a means to avoid further conflict. And when Hiashi stepped in, killing the Head Ninja and triggering an international incident, the leadership of Konoha had been willing to sell him out when Yondaime Raikage Ē demanded he be executed and his body sent to Kumo to confirm his death.

At that point, the situation became a Catch-22. Given everything he knew about the Hyūga Affair and Ē's state of mind, Naruto was certain he would not have been able to avoid war with Kumo had he been Hokage back then, even if Konoha's allies had presented a united front against Ē's blackmail. Actually, the rage he felt towards Kumo's former regime for their role in the affair would have ensured a new declaration of war. Naruto had changed a lot over the years, but one thing that remained the same was his unwavering loyalty to his comrades. If a war was what it took to prevent his village from betraying a comrade to an enemy, Naruto would not have thought twice about leading Konoha into war. He recognized he was somewhat bloodlusted right now, but even if his judgment wasn't clouded, he could not think of another way to keep the peace that did not involve Konoha making a concession that Kumo had no right to demand.

But the real tragedy in the affair began after Hizashi's sacrifice. Apparently Hiruzen and Danzō had not anticipated his choice to take his twin brother's place. In choosing death, Hizashi spared Hiashi and denied Kumo the Byakugan. But he also brought on retaliation against the head family for his singular act of defiance, as noted in page fourteen of the Sandaime's black book:

"The Hyūga were fools to allow Hizashi to die in his brother's stead. Had they pushed harder, the elders could have seized control over the clan and ensured their absolute loyalty to me. But with Hiashi still alive thanks to this act of defiance, he is able to continue defying my will with his support of Uzumaki Naruto. He must be made to suffer. Perhaps if he is broken, he can be forgiven his transgressions against his Hokage."

Hiruzen and Danzō, through the Foundation and the Hyūga elders, had conducted a systematic campaign against Hiashi and Hinata. The goal had been to break them completely. And why? Because they had been two of the few people who tried to support Naruto during his hellish childhood, and the support went against the Sandaime's wishes.

Hiashi had, for a time, been broken, at least until Naruto's upset victory over Neji in the Chūnin Exams allowed him to experience a change of heart so he could begin to heal the rifts in his family. Danzō had arranged for the murder of Hinata's mother, and even worse, there were standing orders for ROOT to murder Hinata herself if it so much as looked like she would succeed in reforming the Hyūga Clan. More tears fell from Naruto's eyes as he thought about how everyone in power had opposed her so vehemently. He was also certain at this point that they would have murdered her if he'd ever returned her love while she still lived. Were they truly destined to be separated forever, in life and death?

Naruto almost couldn't will himself to keep reading, but he had little choice. There was one other major revelation to address, the one which started this bitter search for truth. Were Kabuto and the current Fire Daimyō right about Hiruzen? Had the Sandaime truly sought to turn Naruto into nothing more than a weapon?

Shaking in a combination of fear and rage, Naruto turned the pages to find the final entry, the one addressing Sarutobi's greatest failure.

And in that moment, any love he might have still harbored for his jiji turned to pure, unadulterated hate.

"During my tenure as Hokage, there is no doubt that the single greatest mistake I've made is the decision to allow Uzumaki Naruto to live. While I wanted to kill him, I was bound to honor Minato's dying wish and let him live. The Yondaime wanted Konoha to see his orphaned son as a hero. He was naïve. The fear and prejudice of the villagers will not allow them to look past the Kyūbi no Yōko even though they are not stupid enough to mistake Naruto for the bijū he was cursed to carry inside him. But their fear can at least be a useful tool for conditioning Naruto. If he cannot be killed, then he will be molded into the weapon that all jinchūriki are meant to be."

So it was true. Danzō was not alone in his desire to weaponize Naruto.

"The boy's determination is unusual and defies conventional psychology, even if it was expected of him to inherit that from his mother. Even if no one acknowledges his existence, he refuses to give in to hate and despair.

"Nonetheless, it is simple enough to encourage the villagers to act on their fear and hate, and serve my purposes regarding Minato's legacy. By encouraging the majority to surrender to their misgivings and distance themselves from him, Naruto will have no choice but to latch onto the few who accept him. These bonds he is desperate to have will instill in him an unwavering loyalty to Konoha.

"The Ichiraku family is perhaps my greatest instrument of conditioning the child. Among all the civilian shop owners in Konoha, they are the only ones who are guaranteed not to turn him away. It is also worth noting that the shop Ichiraku Teuchi happens to run is a ramen stand. Kushina's addiction to ramen and her frequent visits to Ramen Ichiraku were well-known by her confidants, and there is no doubt Teuchi will see Naruto's mother in him whenever he serves the child's meals. Furthermore, the negative effects ramen has on the body will prevent Naruto from becoming aware of my plans for him. The high carbohydrate and sodium content of the ramen he is addicted to will hinder his mental development, and with his unwitting role in stunting Naruto's growth, Teuchi does his duty to Konoha by helping to keep the jinchūriki controlled.

"After all, the perfect soldier only remains such for as long as he cannot question his orders or his loyalty to his commander."

Naruto shook even more, and as his chakra flared to dangerous levels, the Blood Prison trembled with him. The Sandaime had wanted him to become reliant on a select few, and so encouraged the village to deny his existence as long as they obeyed the law? The part about Ichiraku being used like that also broke his heart, knowing that Teuchi and Ayame had truly cared about him and the Sandaime even admitted that in his journal. He was always mindful that Sakura and his mother had tried to get him to stop eating his comfort food so often because it was so unhealthy, but to think the Sandaime would encourage his addiction to it for that exact reason?

"The other major effect this conditioning will have on Naruto's growth is that he will not be able to notice girls like normal boys do. The lack of positive attention in his life coupled with the damage caused to his brain by his ramen-heavy diet will cause him to misinterpret or ignore any signals given to him by members of the opposite sex.

"In the event that he manages to successfully pursue a romantic relationship, his stunted growth and lack of proper education will likely prevent him from being able to perform more intimate acts with his significant other. This, too, is necessary to keep Naruto in check. If he were to have a real family, instead of the surrogate family Konoha is intended to become for him, he would place his loyalty to his blood family over his loyalty to Konoha. When the time comes to transfer the Kyūbi to another, a trusted kunoichi will be assigned to drug and rape him so that she may bear his child, which will also be conditioned into becoming a weapon for Konoha.

"If by some chance should the impossible happen and this plan backfire, I have instructed Danzō to give a special dead man's cell of ROOT shinobi the standing order of eliminating the jinchūriki before he becomes a threat. This also means that no matter what, Uzumaki Naruto cannot be allowed to become Hokage, as his doing so would ultimately expose all of my darkest secrets and failures to the Elemental Nations. Should my successor find this journal, I trust that they will act accordingly to ensure the weapon does not have a chance to turn against his owners."

Naruto couldn't read any more. Even if he could, he just now noticed that he had entered Bijū Mode during his reading, and the chakra flare was causing structural damage to Hōzukijō.

The Sandaime had never wanted Naruto to fulfill either of his dreams; he'd secretly acted to ensure neither would come true. He had taken every good quality of Naruto's and turned them into a curse. He had used the villagers' fear and distrust against Naruto, encouraging them to discriminate against him. He had pushed Naruto into suffering great abuse at the fists of Sakura-nēchan before she started maturing. He had acted against those shinobi who openly supported Naruto, and even had some of his supporters killed. And those who weren't killed, were either subjected to a worse hell than him, or used as pawns to keep him under control.

And the assassins he'd killed? It was Sarutobi who authorized their kill order against him.

But he couldn't accept that everything he'd believed in was a lie, just because he'd been so thoroughly manipulated and betrayed. The Will of Fire was not propaganda; it was real, even if the Sandaime himself didn't believe in it. The people of Konoha may have been ignorant, but that did not make them guilty of the Sandaime's crimes. If anything, they were also victims, not co-conspirators. And they had been won over eventually, learning to see him for him and not for the Kyūbi.

No matter how much he hated the Sandaime, Naruto could not bring himself to destroy Konoha. He could not kill thousands just to take revenge against a few. To do so would make him the worst monster of all time.

Now that his resolve was finalized, however, he would not allow these crimes to go unpunished. Turning back the clock just became more necessary than ever.

"Put these on," Naruto ordered, tossing a pair of chakra-suppressing bracers designed by ROOT to Kabuto. Briefly, he thought that perhaps he should have used the Kyūkon no Jutsu to rip Kabuto's soul out so he'd confirm this wasn't a fabrication, but decided that Ino would be able to verify it soon enough. "I'm taking you out of here for a short time."

Kabuto was flabbergasted. "Wow. Just...wow, Naruto-kun. Why are you so trusting all of a sudden?"

"Let's just say that something far bigger than you could imagine is about to happen. As you just said, the windmill has been set in motion, and I promise you won't want to miss what happens next." And I feel like I owe you a debt for giving me the truth, but it will be a cold day in hell before I ever admit that out loud.


Konoha, Hokage Tower – Thirty minutes later

The "war council" Uzumaki Naruto called was pretty impressive, considering the depletion of skilled shinobi Konohagakure no Sato suffered in the Fourth Shinobi World War and the subsequent civil war against the Fire Capital. Out of all the Elemental Nations, Konoha had the highest number of S-rank ninja in its military ranks, and Naruto had summoned every single one who was currently available to his office.

Just about every S-rank ninja in Konoha became S-rank either during or after the war, and could be divided into three groups. The first group consisted of the Konoha 6, as they were called since the war ended.

The most famous person among them, besides Naruto himself, was Haruno Sakura, Naruto's surrogate sister and a late bloomer. After ten years, she still kept her hair cut short, but any accusations of her being a man in disguise during her teenage years had been put to rest long ago. During her training under the late Senju Tsunade and the two major wars which left Hi no Kuni nearly crippled, Sakura had not been able to focus on her looks as much as she'd liked. But now, she managed to radiate both beauty and strength at once. Her pink hair was cut to chin length and she returned to wearing a red qipao dress like she used to wear as a preteen, along with a black obi that kept it tied down, black shorts, black high-heel ninja sandals and gray elbow and knee protectors. But her green eyes were her most defining feature, for one simple yet infinitely complex reason: they hid away a story of unfathomable anguish.

Next was Naruto's counselor and closest friend, Yamanaka Ino, who stood close to her husband Sai. Like Sakura, she'd had to sacrifice vanity during the Hi no Kuni civil war, although in recent months, her figure was commented on by many to have the spiciness of the famous Red Hot-Blooded Habanero, Uzumaki Kushina...at least when she wasn't on duty. Her pale blonde hair extended almost all the way to the floor. Her hair did not go well with her current outfit, however; Ino was geared in her jet black Anbu bodysuit, which had evolved over the years to maximize both comfort and protection. The standard light armor which accompanied previous versions of the Anbu uniform was not present, as the bodysuit itself was made of hyper-fibers which were several times more effective than the old mesh armor which used to be the standard for kunoichi. Despite the clash between her hair and bodysuit Ino was still considered beautiful even when in uniform, and her blue eyes accentuated that beauty despite the pain they hid away.

Then there was Aburame Shino. His outfit did not change much since the war ended; he still wore a heavy hooded trench coat, along with black sunglasses framing a poker face that rivaled any Hyūga, to maximize stealth and provide sufficient darkness for his kikaichū hives. The sunglasses were there to prevent anyone from looking into his eyes, for his eyes betrayed his normal stoic expression.

The second group consisted of older, "warborn" shinobi, those who were already veterans before the Elemental Nations united against the terrorist group Akatsuki and the global disasters brought on by Madara and Obito's Project Tsuki no Me. Aside from Rokudaime Hokage Hatake Kakashi, the only member of this group currently present was Hyūga Hiashi. Age had not treated Hiashi well; about a third of his hair—which he'd cut short long ago as an indicator of deep shame—had turned a silvery gray, and his face was riddled with faint scars, the highest concentration of them being centered around his eyes. Hiashi was still a man of many secrets, his eyes being one of the most closely kept secrets, as they were no longer his own, but rather, were taken from another Hyūga. He still wore the traditional clan robes, though the haori was now black instead of the original brown. Like Shino, Hiashi's pale eyes betrayed the lack of expression worn on his face.

The third group consisted of the last four surviving members of Akatsuki, only three of whom were present: Yakushi Kabuto, Hōzuki Suigetsu and Uzumaki Karin. The fourth member, Jūgo, spent most of his days in solitude around Konoha's forests, communing with nature to keep his murderous split personality in check. Suigetsu and Karin had not changed much in terms of appearance since the Fourth Shinobi World War, though both had let their hair grow longer since being released from Hōzukijō on limited parole under Anbu surveillance, and Suigetsu had been permanently stripped of the right to wield Kubikiribōchō, the former sword of Momochi Zabuza. Both wore a magenta cloak over loose-fitting tan robes. Suigetsu kept his white hair in a ponytail, while Karin's distinctive red hair was partially held back by her eyeglasses. They, too, were visibly haunted by their experiences.

Besides their classification and their emotional damage, all nine of the summoned ninja had but a single thing in common: a strong personal connection to their Nanadaime Hokage. For some of them, Naruto was the only reason why they'd managed to stay relatively sane after the horrors they either witnessed or created.

Most of the nine ninja were fidgeting. Half of the reason was because of the sight in front of them. Naruto had not had anyone clean the mess left behind from the assassination attempt. While some were accustomed to such sloppiness, having been invited inside his first apartment, they knew the corpses and broken furniture had been deliberately left there. The mess was the reason they had been summoned.

The other half of the reason for their discomfort was mutual distrust. Old wounds did not heal so easily.

"Do not think that our opinions of you have changed during these past ten years," Shino growled at Kabuto and Suigetsu. "Your crimes are still unforgivable, no matter what Hokage-sama thinks."

"And do not assume that Naruto-kun has forgiven us, any of us," Kabuto shot back. The reply took Shino aback; did Naruto actually hold a grudge, even if minor, against his friends?

"I wonder..." Sai commented, scratching his chin, "if Kabuto fused with the giant snake because he was trying to compensate for a tiny penis?"

Leave it to Sai to say the wrong thing at the wrong time, Ino mentally groaned, rubbing her head to address the headache she knew her husband was about to trigger with his stupidity. She didn't know it was Sai's intention to pick a fight with the ex-nukenins.

"You dare say that about the mastermind of the Fourth Shinobi World War?" Suigetsu snarled. "Clearly you don't have any idea how much balls it takes to do so."

"I must disagree. It says in one of the history books I've read that wars are always started by cowards, and it's a common belief that cowards don't have as much balls as you imply Kabuto has. Then again, I suppose you would know better than I, since your knowledge of him clearly shows a greater level of intimacy than I would ever wish to attain." Suigetsu's eyes glazed over in rage. Did Sai really just imply that Suigetsu and Kabuto had been gay for one another?

"Also," Sai continued, ignoring the tick mark on Suigetsu's forehead, "it's plain to see that you're doing some heavy compensating yourself, as displayed by your obsession with large swords and flashy techniques. And your peculiar ability to turn yourself into water certainly can't help your size issues, either."

"That does it, you're—"

"What the actual fuck is going on here!" a new voice shouted, breaking down the door with a Mokuton technique.

"Yamato-taichō…" Ino gasped, shaking; Yamato already had his trademark creepy glare focused on the sorry lot of ninja in Naruto's office.

Yamato wasn't having any of it: "Is it not possible to leave you alone for five minutes without having to restrain you to make sure you don't pull this kind of shit? Hokage-sama would be deeply disappointed in all of you if he were the one who just walked in on this pathetic scene. Next time, I won't think twice about trapping you in my wood if that's what it takes to make you children behave."

"Oh, and you're not going too far either?" another voice questioned Yamato. Everyone recognized it immediately and breathed a sigh of relief.

"Naruto!" Sakura called out in relief.

"Sorry I'm late, guys," Naruto announced. "Yamato-taichō and I had to reinforce the Hokage Tower to make sure it doesn't come crashing down on us during this meeting." That immediately triggered a wave of murmurs amongst the assembled ninja.

"While I'm certain there are not any pranks in the making here, Naruto-sama, I do not appreciate the timing of your summons," a very irate Hiashi spoke up while Sai snickered at his misfortune. "My, ahem, mistress and I were in the middle of attempting to conceive a child." Screw what the others think of me for using a mistress, he thought. I just can't marry again, not after my family was so thoroughly destroyed. Naruto was quite familiar with the reasons why Hiashi hadn't remarried, and he didn't blame the Hyūga patriarch in the slightest.

"That is way too much information for my virgin ears, Hiashi-sama," the Nanadaime replied, subtly referring to the fact he has never had sex or even dated anyone despite the dozens of attempts to set him up with someone after the war. Naruto was simply incapable of feeling attracted to others. Losing Hinata really had hit him that hard. "I'm sorry for the bad timing, but I promise this is more important than trying to save your clan."

"Oh?" Hiashi raised an eyebrow at those words, an extraordinary reaction for most Hyūga. Naruto responded by reentering Hokage Mode to began the briefing.

"The ten of you were summoned here due to a failed assassination attempt made against me by the remnants of the Foundation, and around you, you can see the results of that attempt. Thanks to Uchiha Madara's Rinnegan, which Sakura-nēchan saw fit to give me in secret ten years ago, I was able to learn the reason they attacked, and while Sai was gathering most of you, I spent that time finding the proof I needed to confirm their motive. I warn you, what I'm about to share with you during the course of this briefing may be the most damning knowledge some of you have ever learned.

"But first," he continued, "I'm going to need Ino to enter my mindscape to retrieve the ROOT assassin's memories."

"Got it," Ino said. "Shintenshin no Jutsu!" she called out without performing the technique-specific hand seal, no longer needing to use it after years of pushing her mental abilities to the limit. Sakura caught her as she started to fall onto the floor, while Naruto slumped backward in his chair.


Inside Naruto's Mindscape

Each time Ino used her clan techniques to enter Naruto's mindscape, the surroundings seemed to have deteriorated even more. The first time she saw the sewer that contained Kurama's cage, it had been greatly depressing, knowing how much Naruto had to be suffering for his mindscape to take such form. Tonight, the scene was far more depressing, as the sewer walls showed major signs of decay, and Ino could have sworn she saw a few storm clouds brewing overhead.

Was Naruto really broken that much? Ino wondered, fully aware it was the first thing she asked herself each time she entered his mind despite already knowing the answer. She was then broken out of her thoughts by a familiar strong wind blowing past.

"What you see here," a deep, guttural voice roared, "is the result of ten years of agony brought on by the war and its aftermath. My jailor and partner accepted long ago that he is destined for an eternity of misery. This is the fate of all jinchūriki. Though I had begun to hope that Naruto would change this fate, as he changed so much else in this world."

"Hello again, Kurama-sama," Ino said.

"I cannot say it's a pleasure to see you again, Yamanaka-san, given the circumstances of this meeting," the now identified Kurama replied as the bijū emerged from the shadows. "However, it is pleasant to note how greatly your skills with your mental techniques have improved over the years. Had we been able to allow this timeline to continue, it is feasible that you could have successfully resurrected ninshū." Ninshū, or ninja creed, was the original form of ninjutsu and was what Hagoromo taught during his lifetime, however his teachings were largely forgotten after his death. Ninshū had not been revived until the Fourth Shinobi World War, and even then, only a handful of individuals, namely Naruto, had been able to revive the forgotten creed; worse still, their revival of ninshū was only temporary. In this day and age, it was the Yamanaka Clan, with their mental ninjutsu, who were the closest to practicing ninshū.

"What do you mean by allowing this timeline to continue?"

"Naruto has already decided to go back in time using the same technique my creator used to appear in his mindscape during the last battle against Madara. This is the purpose of this war council he called this evening." Ino had not expected that response at all. She recovered quickly enough, however.

"Then why even summon anyone if we're not going to remember this meeting?"

Kurama growled. Naruto may have conquered the Kyūbi's hate, but it was still easily annoyed by humans. "You have just made two incorrect assumptions, Yamanaka-san. First, you assumed that Naruto would not be able to glean any useful insight from his comrades which would allow him to devise a better plan for dealing with his enemies and correcting his past mistakes. And second, you assumed that Naruto and I would be alone in our venture. He intends to bring some of his allies with him."

Ino's eyes widened at Kurama's reply. "But wouldn't it be safer to not include anyone else in his plan? The more of us who go back with him, the greater the odds of us being discovered and compromised."

"For his plan to succeed at all, it must be revealed to select others. Naruto knows he'll need the support of friends in high places, who can be trusted completely, to have any chance of realizing his new ambition. And when the plan inevitably goes to shit, he will need their support even more to successfully adapt."

The short pause in Kurama's speech made Ino very nervous. "Even if the risk of including others in this plan outweighed the benefits, Naruto has no desire to go at this alone. The kōzō was taught a very important lesson by Uchiha Itachi during the war. It was from Itachi that Naruto finally learned not to carry his burdens and try to solve all of his problems alone. Doing so would have eventually turned him into another Madara. Having taken Itachi's words to heart, Naruto refuses to reset the timeline without letting at least some of his friends keep their memories of what was never meant to be.

"With that being said, Yamanaka-san, I suggest you make haste in locating the memories relevant to this meeting."

"I'm not here merely to view the memory of the ROOT cell's leader. I'm here to make copies of the memory and distribute them among my friends and comrades."

That last statement earned a raised eyebrow from Kurama. The implications of that statement, and what it meant to the plan, were a wholly new degree of astounding. "You just secured your place as one of the comrades Naruto will take back in time with him, Ino," the kitsune said. The fact it called her by her given name instead of her clan name, and had also dropped the honorific suffix, was not lost on Ino. She knew Kurama had just been impressed, which was not an easy feat to accomplish.

"Before you go to locate and copy the assassin's memory," Kurama added, "I would also suggest copying the memory of the meeting Naruto had with Kabuto while your husband was rounding up this war council. The images of each page he read in the Sandaime's black book he committed to memory are astonishingly clear. It would be much easier to reveal the truth to everyone this way, via your Shindenshin no Jutsu, than if Naruto had to explain everything alone."

"Got it, Kurama-sama." She did not hesitate in following the exact path the Kyūbi laid out for her.


Back in the Hokage's office...

Ino awakened after just two minutes of real time. In many cases, she had taken far longer with her target, wanting to snoop around to get the lowdown on more personal details, but tonight she was all business. Everyone present here saw that as a good sign.

"Do you have the memory, Ino?" Naruto asked.

"Yes, plus one more," Ino replied. "Kurama-sama also had me retrieve the memory of your meeting with Kabuto. The fox wants us to break the news to everyone together."

Naruto sighed. Outwardly he showed no other reaction, but he was very upset with Kurama. His bijū still hadn't learned how to ask permission to intervene in affairs off the battlefield.

"So be it," he grumbled. Now for the most important part: "There's one more thing I need from you guys. I need you to promise that no matter how you react to the sins I'll soon reveal, none of you will attempt to destroy Konoha in retribution. If you cannot make that promise, leave now."

Wait, what? was the general thought of everyone present. Just how bad could this information be if Naruto was demanding a new confirmation of their loyalty prior to revelation? How much anger was Naruto continuing to hold back?

"Naruto-baka," Sakura said in a dangerous tone of voice, "just get on with it. Our loyalty to you is absolute. I can see in your eyes why you'd be doubting us, but it still makes me sick that you would doubt your nēchan, or any of your friends. We're sticking with you no matter what, believe it." Everyone else, even Hiashi and Suigetsu, who along with Sakura were the ones whose possible reactions Naruto questioned the most, nodded their heads at this to show their stance on this matter. Ino and Kakashi also chuckled at Sakura's deliberate use of Naruto's old verbal tic/catchphrase.

Naruto was actually in awe at their response. He truly hadn't expected his fierce loyalty to rub off on his comrades like this. Comrade is definitely the wrong word, though. They're all nakama now.

"Guys...thank you, all of you." A small smile formed on Naruto's lips. Most of them gasped at his response; this was the first time since the war ended that any of them had seen the Nanadaime Hokage with a smile on his face, and it was a true smile at that. Their unity and absolute loyalty was also almost enough for Naruto to shed tears of joy. That the tears couldn't escape his moistened eyes was another testament to how deep his emotional scars ran. "Ino, let's begin."

"Right," Ino said. "Shindenshin no Jutsu!" she called, flashing through the required hand seals very quickly. Within seconds, everyone in the office was telepathically linked to one another, with Ino's mindscape serving as the central hub.

"This is weird," Karin said through the mental link; Team Taka had been among the few who never experienced telepathy during the war. "I don't know how anyone can put up with this."

"Endure it, Karin," Naruto ordered. "Show them every single page in the Sandaime's black book, Ino. They won't need to see the ROOT nin's memory after they see this."

"You don't need to tell me once, never mind twice," Ino retorted. Naruto's memories started flashing through the minds of everyone present, and some of them were astonished by the quality of the images they viewed. If Ino wanted, she could reproduce Sarutobi's journal simply by hooking herself up to one of the Mind Reading Amplification Machines inside the Konoha Intelligence Division and printing out copies of each frame in the viewed memory.

The first details of the Uchiha Clan Massacre did not faze anyone here. Kakashi had revealed the truth of the Massacre, at least what he knew, after Naruto's return from exile, saying it no longer needed to be kept secret now that the Uchiha were confirmed extinct. It was when they read about the Sandaime's plans for Sasuke, Clan Restoration Act included, that waves of disgust started rolling over them. Like Naruto, everyone else lost their respect for the Sandaime almost instantly.

The revelation that Hiruzen had allowed Orochimaru to escape from Konoha when his forbidden experiments were exposed didn't affect anyone nearly as much, so it was quickly passed over.

A rage greater in magnitude than Naruto's overtook Hiashi when Ino started showing the pages detailing the Hyūga Affair. Almost the entire Hyūga Main House had been against him until Hiruzen and Danzō gave the order to murder Hitomi, making it appear she had died on a mission. As he went over the journal entry, he also felt Naruto's sadness and rage, as did everyone else. Kakashi, Hiashi, Sakura, Ino, Karin, and even Sai were brought to their knees by the raw agony that overwhelmed Naruto when he read this.

All of them were taken aback when they also felt something darker in Naruto's thoughts. Learning the tragedy of Hinata's life had caused a strong desire for revenge to take hold over his heart. Naruto had no greater wish than to destroy everyone who had stayed the course of hurting her.

Sakura was completely floored by the intensity of his emotions. Naruto...his desire to avenge all the wrongs done to Hinata...it's stronger than the desire Sasuke had to avenge his clan…

Naruto-oniisama's chakra is turning dark, Karin thought, even darker than Sasuke's was…

"You're allowing your emotions to get the better of you, Naruto-sama, just like the Uchiha did," Hiashi said. Judging from Naruto's reaction as well as drawing on his memories of helping Naruto create his agenda for reforming the world, Hiashi already knew exactly what the Nanadaime Hokage was planning to do. "But in this one case, I cannot hold it against you. I just hope you won't blame me if my sword should taste Hyūga blood before you get a chance to."

"Who says I'm gonna blame you if you kill them first, Hiashi-sama?" Naruto asked. "You're the only person here who has a greater right to vengeance than me. I only lost the only person capable of loving me romantically. You lost your entire family and almost an entire clan. You get first dibs, and you don't have to send me an invitation either."

"I will be sure to keep that in mind. But if you should choose not to partake in retribution against the guilty members of my clan, then who will you kill to sate your thirst for revenge?"

"Let the memory finish first, then I'll tell everyone The Plan." Hiashi nodded at this as the others got back onto their feet.

The final abomination broke and hardened their hearts, and solidified their resolve. Learning that Hiruzen had manipulated Naruto's entire life to this extent, just to transform him into a weapon and deny him his two dreams, fanned the cold flames of hatred lit in the hearts of everyone gathered to witness the exposure of this sin.

Slowly, a greater realization started to sink in. Naruto was going after the Sandaime Hokage. But how did he plan to tarnish Sarutobi's legacy?

They would soon learn that wasn't Naruto's plan at all. Why settle for destroying the Sandaime's legacy when you have a chance to turn back time and destroy the Sandaime himself?

"This timeline is beyond saving," Naruto said aloud. Ino took that as her cue to end her Shindenshin broadcast. "There's far too much that has gone wrong here, and I will not try and reform a world that has been so badly damaged by the misdeeds of our predecessors. But I still plan to keep my promises to you. The only problem is when."

"Just what are you planning, Naruto?" Hiashi asked, giving voice to what everyone but him was wondering.

"Shortly before I summoned all of you here, I thought back on how completely I failed to keep the promise Sakura-nēchan had me make to her after the war. The idea happened when I thought about how the Rikudō Sennin showed up in my mindscape while Sakura-nēchan was trying to save me. Then I checked the Forbidden Scroll of Seals and found out that the jikūkan ninjutsu Rikudō-ojiisama used to manifest himself had actually been recorded by Shodai-sama. In short," he said, unrolling the Scroll of Seals onto the broken desk in front of him, "the plan is time travel."

If a pin were to be dropped inside that room, everyone present would hear it as loudly as if Kakashi had just hit someone with the Raikiri. Nearly everyone looked at Naruto with some form of disbelief written on their faces.

"Did you really just suggest going back in time, Hokage-sama?" Yamato asked, incredulous, summarizing the thoughts of nearly everyone else.

"We've actually done it before, Yamato-taichō. Sure, Tōchan erased our memories of the whole thing, but I started having dreams about the mission and was able to fully recover the lost memories during my exile to Kumo."

"So that's what happened on the failed mission to capture Mukade?" This time it was Sakura asking. Naruto nodded, eliciting a gasp from his sister figure. "Holy fucking shit, Naruto. The implications of this are huge. There's so much we could change if it's actually possible to repeat that."

Naruto nodded in agreement. "It is, but I'm gonna have to give up a lot of my power to do it." His eyes glazed over for a few seconds, which did not come as a shock to anyone in his office; they all knew he had frequent conversations with Kurama now that the jinchūriki and bijū were on good terms. "Looks like Kurama wants to take over explaining this stuff."

"How annoying," Kurama said through Naruto's body just two seconds after he notified the others he was about to switch control with his bijū. "The kōzō still gets on my nerves with alarming frequency."

"How do you even put up with my baka otōto?" Sakura asked.

Kurama-possessed Naruto rolled his red, slitted eyes. He would not dignify that with a verbal answer. "In any case, anyone who goes back in time with Naruto via the Kokugen Henkō no Jutsu will revert back to the physical condition we were in at the time we choose to return to. Any and all knowledge and memories we have of this timeline will be retained, but since your bodies will be younger, certain abilities may have to be reacquired. Naruto will lose his Rinnegan and will likely be unable to draw in natural energy to access Sage Mode until he either signs the Toad Contract again, or his chakra reserves return to the level he achieved during his teenage years, I'm not sure which. And since I will be locked away in that infernal Hakke no Fūin Shiki again, he will not have access to my chakra beyond the version one Bijū cloak, and even then, he likely won't be able to draw upon more than a single tail's worth of chakra. He will also have issues with retraining his body to be able to properly access some of the taijutsu styles and ninjutsu he didn't have at that point in the original timeline.

"The powers of the Rikudō Sennin are required to activate the time travel jutsu, which will take three minutes to perform correctly. Needless to say, those powers will be lost when Naruto returns to the past, so there will likely be no more chances after this, even if our trip back through time will allow my creator another chance to manifest inside Naruto's mindscape. And even with the sacrifice required to activate the jutsu, he will only be able to take a maximum of three others along with him.

"Naruto and I have already agreed that Yamanaka Ino will be one of those three, due to her ability to copy the memories of others. The purpose of this meeting is to decide who else will be going back with him," Kurama finished before relinquishing control back to Naruto.

"Ino-pig," Sakura said a little too sweetly, and a little too quickly after Kurama's message ended.

"Yes, Billboard Brow?"

"Why the fuck did you never tell me that you learned how to copy memories?"

"You do realize I'm married to Sai now, yes?" was Ino's reply.

"What does that have to do with this?"

"Everything, Billboard! He's former ROOT, and it's ROOT that tried to kill Naruto tonight! I know how their minds work. It was way too dangerous to let anyone know I could do this. If they found out I had this ability, they would have attempted to capture and convert me to their side."

"I'm siding with Ino on this one, Sakura-nēchan," Naruto said. "As everyone here knows, I spent a long time in Kumo right after the war ended and Kakashi-sensei banished me when the Daimyōs took over. The higher-ranking ninja there had a certain saying: 'If two people know it, it's not a secret.' And with ROOT still running around in Hi no Kuni even after Danzō's death, they definitely would've tried to make Ino disappear if anyone else knew. From the sound of our conversation, her jutsu is a major threat to them."

Sakura relented. Naruto was right: Ino had become more proficient in mental ninjutsu than anyone else in the history of the shinobi world, and that made her a big target for anyone who figured this out. ROOT would have tried to enslave or assassinate her, the latter only if the former was impossible to achieve. Also, it's not like Naruto could do anything to punish her, not when her mental powers were a key part of his plan.

"Regardless, I believe now is the time for you to explain the particulars of your technique, Ino," Naruto continued, re-entering Hokage Mode.

"Okay then," Ino said. "The technique I used to copy your memories is actually an extension of a more powerful defensive ninjutsu I developed called Kioku Sōki no Jutsu. The defensive nature of the technique comes from its ability to create temporary holograms of myself, as well as psychically interfere with an opponent's ninjutsu and cancel it, should I happen to possess a memory of the technique that's being used against me and activate the technique just before they finish weaving hand seals. Sadly, the jutsu-cancel ability is flawed since it only works against techniques which require hand seals. Techniques like your Rasengan and its many variants, Naruto-sama, would be unaffected, as would any technique the user has mastered to the point of no longer needing hand seals to perform. The necessary extensions of the technique to maximize its usefulness are Kioku Fukusei no Jutsu, which allows me to copy a target's memories, and Kioku Tensō no Jutsu, which allows me to transfer the copied memories to others."

"What's the difference between this 'memory replication', as you call it, and simply retrieving the target's memories through the standard mind transfer?"

"Well, Naruto-sama, the regular Yamanaka clan techniques are more limited. Using the standard techniques doesn't actually let me keep any memories I view from the target unless I myself commit them to memory the normal way. This puts a limit on the length of the memories I can retain. However, Kioku Fukusei allows me to copy and retain a far longer span of the target's memories. If need be, I could store away a copy of the target's entire life from their perspective."

"And let's say I need you to copy fifteen years' worth of memories from multiple targets. How many people's memories would you be able to store away under that condition?"

Ino took a few seconds to breathe and gather her thoughts. "I've only had the ability developed for about a year, so I don't know what the maximum limits are yet. But I think I can handle up to four others, Naruto-sama. But I wouldn't recommend copying Billboard Brow's memories because of Inner."

Naruto nodded, remembering what Ino referenced with her advisory. During the Chūnin Exams, Naruto's shouting had caused Sakura to become aware of Ino's presence inside her mind, and her Inner Sakura had forced Ino out, rendering the Shintenshin no Jutsu useless. There was a strong chance that if they only took Sakura's memories back in time and not Sakura herself, Inner Sakura would interfere with any attempt to give Sakura her memories back, leaving them stuck with a useless comrade until she had her wake-up call again. Naruto wanted his nēchan to stay with him, and the only way to ensure that was for her to physically travel back.

"So nēchan is coming back in time with us," Naruto spoke softly. Then his trademark idiot grin broke out for the first time since the war ended. "Sweet!"

"That is not the wording I would have used, but I am in agreement with Ino-san and Naruto-sama," Shino added. "Why, you ask? Because I cannot help but remember that Sakura-san and Ino-san were the two worst fangirls in history back during our last year in the Konoha Ninja Academy."

Sakura's head dropped after hearing that. "Were we really that bad when we were younger?" she wondered.

"Yes," Kakashi, Shino and Sai replied. Sakura only sulked even further.

"Enough with the guilt tripping," Naruto ordered. "Let's hurry and figure out who the last time traveler's gonna be. We can't think that ROOT doesn't have any other assassins out there, and we can't afford to waste anymore time in this sorry excuse of a future. Keep in mind that it has to be someone who has a valid reason why we can't just copy their memories and return them to their owner upon our arrival in the past."

"Well, I'm out," Kakashi said. "There's nothing stopping Ino from giving my past self my memories, as long as she does it on the day of team assignments."

"I, too, should not physically partake in the Kokugen Henkō no Jutsu," Sai said. "It will be some time before Danzō would assign me to spy on you, Naruto-sama, and if he discovers I have memories of the history we intend to erase, it would not bode well for anyone in Konoha."

"Personally, I would rather not have knowledge of this timeline when we reset it," Shino piped in. "My clansmen would be quicker to notice suspicious behavior than most, were I to join you in this venture."

"There's just one problem with that, Shino-kun," Ino said.

"Would you enlighten me, Ino-san?"

"There is no way in hell Suigetsu and I are going back with Naruto-oniisama," Karin answered for Ino. "I don't know where my teammate from Hebi was or what he was doing before he was captured by Orochimaru, but it is far too much of a risk for me to go back to the hell the snake bastard had me confined to. Just like Sai, if I go back, we risk an enemy finding out what we're not supposed to know. Taking our memories with you is also a no-go." Suigetsu nodded in agreement with her.

Now it was Kabuto's turn: "I would be far more careful and take every precaution against exposure, of course. That is, assuming I would still be on your side if I went back. The only reason I'm here now is because the reanimated Itachi broke free from my control during the war thanks to a gift he gave Naruto-kun during the pursuit of Sasuke-kun and trapped me in the ultimate visual genjutsu, the Izanami. My knowledge and past make me a dangerous wild card and depending on the missing fine print of this time travel technique, I could end up swinging either way." Kurama had not said whether they were merging with their past selves or actually reversing the flow of time, and Kabuto was cautious by nature. "You'd have to find a way to replicate Izanami to ensure my allegiance to Naruto-kun. And it goes without saying that Naruto-kun won't use the Edo Tensei to revive Itachi and ascertain such a method before we go back. However...even if you can't procure my loyalty, my memories are too valuable to your effort to not copy."

"That leaves me or Yamato-san," Hiashi observed. "It is not my intention to offend Yamato-san or come off as arrogant, but I am the better choice to join Naruto-sama."

"No offense is taken, Hiashi-sama, and I agree," Yamato replied, speaking for the first time since his rude entrance. "Naruto-sama will need to form many political connections as quickly as possible, and having the Hyūga Clan as an ally will provide him with a tremendous advantage in his endeavors."

"Not only that, but I need to be able to assist Naruto-sama from the very beginning of our alterations to the timeline. We cannot afford to wait until the Chūnin Selection Exams for Naruto to save the Hyūga."

"So it's decided?" Naruto asked, receiving nods from everyone present. "Ino, copy the memories of Kakashi, Kabuto, Shino, and, yes, you can copy Sai's memories too," he added at the end, making Ino's eyes light up in gratitude.

Shino was not agreeable to that decision. "May I remind you, Naruto-sama, that I—"

"Objection overruled, Shino," Naruto snapped at him. "I'm planning on taking us back to the day we took our final exams at the academy. I don't think we'll be able to change team assignments from what they originally were, and I want at least one time traveler on all three of the rookie teams. Taking your memories with us is the only way to make that happen."

"Understood." Shino thought Naruto should have copied Yamato or Karin's memories instead, as he felt he would be a liability to Naruto's plan, but he understood the Nanadaime's reasoning and the unsaid order in his speech: Protect Hinata. Plus, they were already taking Kabuto's memories, which Kabuto pointed out would prove to be invaluable even if they couldn't get the former ROOT ninja and infamous traitor back on their side.

Naruto turned to the ex-nukenins and said, "And don't worry, Karin and Suigetsu. Even though you two won't remember any of this, I'll make sure you and Jūgo are rescued from Orochimaru in the past as soon as possible. That's my promise of a lifetime to you."

Everything moved quickly after that. Naruto prepared a ritualistic circle on the floor indicating where the time travelers would have to stand while he cast the Kokugen Henkō no Jutsu, while Ino moved to the farthest edge of that circle to perform Kioku Fukusei no Jutsu on her husband, the Rokudaime, the Aburame heir and the Snake Sennin. None of the participants in this plan needed Naruto to elaborate further for the time being. They already had a good enough idea of what he planned to do. Any details they might have missed, Naruto would have plenty of time to explain after they were safe and sound in the past.

The consequences of the Sandaime's betrayal and Naruto's retaliation would create shockwaves reverberating throughout the time stream. And while Konoha would survive the coming storm, the shinobi world would soon be altered beyond recognition.


A/N: ...Apparently I have to remind people who lack reading comprehension that Naruto will NOT go back to Part 1 power levels. Were it not for needing to retrain his body, Naruto would STILL be S-rank, and this is despite losing the implanted Rinnegan, Hagoromo's chakra, and temporarily losing the ability to harness natural energy and access Bijū Mode.

Also, for those rereading this who are asking why I changed the spelling of "teme" to "temae": I was changing it to the correct spelling after looking deeper into the use of Japanese honorifics, suffixes and pronouns, something I should have done when the chapter was originally posted. For those who have read Princess of Konoha, you may have noted that the authors of that story use "temee", which is a more rude version of "temae".

Next chapter: Keikaku. How do Naruto, Sakura and Hiashi react to being in the past again? Stay tuned.