It had been three days since Minato and Jiraiya left. A man named Tadase was placed as their temporary leader. Naruto suspected that Tadase was an Anbu. He already knew that he was constantly being watched. Despite being placed as their leader, Tadase hardly did anything. The first day he had made them do drills, which had seemed promising enough, until he decided they had enough knowledge and could work without him. He now sat on the fence of the training grounds, pretending to watch them. At least Kakashi had blatantly ignored them when he was supposed to be training them.

Naruto's thoughts drifted to Kakashi. Ever since Naruto had confronted him three days ago, Kakashi hadn't said a word to him and he had acted colder than usual with the others. He had been trying to help, but Naruto was afraid he had actually made things worse. He knew what Kakashi went through as a child, for Kakashi had told him, but he hadn't realized how much Kakashi internalized things. He really wanted to find a way to get Kakashi to open up.

A blur brought Naruto back to reality. His reflexed kicked in and he easily avoided Obito's left hook. He had forgotten that they were in the middle of a spar. With Tadase and Anbu nearby they couldn't risk training all out, so they were mostly doing basics. Obito looked discouraged at having failed to hit his target, especially since the target had been distracted. Naruto grinned and mouthed "Hokage" to Obito who merely grumbled. Naruto had a feeling that despite Obito's knowledge that he was a future Hokage he still hadn't grasped how powerful Naruto truly was.

Naruto and Obito continued their sparring match. Obito threw more punches and several kicks, but Naruto managed to dodge them all, though he made it look like it took some effort. In turn he attacked Obito and allowed most of hits to be misses. There was no point in making this a real fight.

Naruto was dodging one of Obito's kicks when a loud voice startled both of them. "That's the most pathetic excuse for a fight that I've ever seen." Naruto looked to find the source of the voice and froze. A woman with bright red hair stood at the edge of the field. She had her hands on her hips and was shaking her head. "No wonder Minato asked me to check in on you guys."

His mother was standing before him. She looked every bit as beautiful as he remembered from his conversation with her in his mind, but unlike then she had a presence around her that could only be from the Kyuubi. Naruto wondered if that was what others felt when they checked his chakra. Looking at his mother again, Naruto couldn't believe he was having the chance to meet both his mother and father. When had fate ever been this kind to him?

Obito looked like he was about to retort, but a look from Naruto shut him up.

"What are you doing here, Kushina-san." Kakashi asked. His voice was more monotone than Naruto had ever heard it. Kakashi put Sasuke to shame when it came to being apathetic.

"I just said that Minato asked me to check in on you guys." Kushina looked at the rest of the field, which was empty except for Tadase. "Where's Rin?"

"She's at the hospital. One of the nurses there agreed to give her some medical training." Obito said.

"At least she's doing something. Honestly, what were you doing? You can't even call that training, it looked like you were barely trying." Kushina shook her head again. Naruto thought he had been doing a good job of making it look like he was putting an effort into things, but Kushina must've been more attentive then Tadase. That wasn't hard to believe. Naruto felt her gaze on him. "Minato told me you looked like him, but I wasn't expected you to look this much alike." There was a hint of wonder in her voice. Naruto suddenly felt subconscious as she studied him thoroughly.

"Kushina-san, are you here to train us or waste our time?" Kakashi interrupted Kushina's examination.

She glared at him before answering. "I told Minato I'd help you some, and I certainly am not going to waste your time. When did you become so rude, Kakashi-kun?" Kakashi stared blankly at Kushina. Realizing he didn't care about anything but training, Kushina retuned her attention to insulting Naruto and Obito's fight. "Your punches had no power behind them. Didn't anyone ever tell you that all your power came from your hips? And your kicks had no control. It was like you were just throwing your leg out there, hoping it would connect." Actually, he was attempting to miss. And, for her information, he was succeeding. "I know that isn't how Minato taught you to fight. Do you think you could relax and be lazy while he was gone?"

They both shook their heads. She continued, "I have my own missions to do, so I won't be able to help you out much in the next month, so I'm just going to have to work you even harder today." And she proceeded to do just that. By the time dusk came, Obito and Kakashi were both on their knees, panting. Naruto would be in the same condition if he hadn't gone through training with Pa, who was a harsh teacher. Naruto was surprised at how much control Kushina had over her chakra. Everything she asked them to do she gave an example for. He had known that the Uzumaki clan had great chakra chains and great chakra control, but he had thought that with the Kyuubi she would have to struggle more to keep that control.

Maybe she had befriended the Kyuubi. No, the Kyuubi had too much hatred in him when he was imprisoned inside Naruto for him to have befriended anyone. Then the answer must be whatever seal was holding the Kyuubi in place. It probably had to do with chakra chains. Naruto wished he had been able to learn how to perform the chains, but without another Uzumaki to teach him, he had no way of learning. And it wasn't like he could ask Kushina for help, then he would have to explain why he thought he was even capable of them.

"The ramen stand is still open, so get up." Kushina demanded. Naruto laughed to himself at her enthusiasm. With both of his parents loving ramen, he really hadn't stood a chance. Next time someone made fun of his love for ramen, he was blaming genetics.

Naruto got up and then gave Obito a hand up. He offered to help Kakashi, but he just ignored him completely. How long was Kakashi going to ignore him? Naruto looked up and caught Kushina's gaze. He was started that her light blue eyes were fixed solely on him, studying him like he was a puzzle that needed solving. He was mesmerized by her. What would growing up have been like if he had a mother in his life? Would he have still gone through those years of torture and pain, or would she have protected him? Looking into her eyes, Naruto doubted Kushina would have let anyone mess with him. She searched his eyes before a new look came into her own.

He turned his gaze first, pretending to find something else to look at, but his mind kept going back to the look in her eyes. At the last moment, before he turned his gaze away, her eyes had changed from searching to knowing. And the scary part was that he didn't know what she knew.

oOoOo

It was on the fifth day of their journey that Minato saw the outskirts of the capital of Iwa. He and Jiraiya had been traveling under a henge since they left the Fire country. To any passerby they looked like nothing more than two civilian travelers. Minato was surprised at how easy it had been to infiltrate the country, but he should've known that Jiraiya would find an easy way to get them in. The city before them was larger than any city he had ever been in. Each building looked to be six or seven stories high, and there were several that looked like they could contain all of Konoha in them.

While a large city would make it harder to keep track of individuals, it would also make it harder for people to keep track of them. Minato thought back on the mission file. He and Jiraiya were supposed to be posing as the Daimyo's servants. Konoha had a special guard for their Daimyo to prevent anyone from spying on and attacking him, but Iwa didn't have the same precaution. It seemed like the people of Iwa didn't fear the war would end up on their own land.

Jiraiya motioned for him to speed up, which he easily did. If he knew where he was going he would be in the front. Jiraiya led them to a walking path, where he slowed down. The walked down the path, which lead into the city walls. Once again, Minato expected the guards to ask for them to sign in and be approved by a guard, but they didn't, instead only doing a short search to see if they had any weapons on them. They had known they wouldn't be able to sneak weapons in without raising suspicion, so they had hidden them in a small grove five miles from the country's border. When the guard was satisfied that they had no weapons on them, he waved them forward.

The inside of the city was as big as the outside made it seem; there didn't seem to be any small building in the city. Knowing they still had one more night before they could start on the next step in the plan, Minato started down the streets in hopes of finding a place to stay. Jiraiya pointed out a hotel down one of the streets. Minato took one look at the name of the hotel before shaking his head. He wanted no part in one of Jiraiya's perverted plans. He got in enough trouble from his fiancé for hanging around Jiraiya too much, he wasn't about to give her more to nag him about.

After another twenty minutes of searching, Minato finally found a hotel that rented rooms at a reasonable price. Entering the room, he didn't even attempt to wash himself before he collapsed on the bed. If there was one thing Minato hated about being on missions, it was the lack of a bed. Now, he wasn't a man who hated getting dirty and he slept alright on the hard ground, but nothing felt as good after working hard than to relax onto a soft bed. It wasn't long before he started drifting off to sleep. Jiraiya could make sure the room was secure.

It was the brightness of the room that aroused Minato. He looked around to see that the sun had barely risen over the horizon. Of course he had to pick the room with a view of the sunrise. Wanted to sleep, but knowing they needed to get started on the next part of their mission, he shook Jiraiya awake. The older man grumbled before rolled over. Minato rolled his eyes and pushed Jiraiya off the bed. He shot up with a snarl. "You don't have to be so mean about things." He said as he rubbed his bottom.

"Get up and stop complaining. We need to make it to the selection before it's over." Minato went to the bathroom and quickly washed himself off in the mirror. There wasn't much point in showering when he was most likely going to need another one by the end of the day. Once both he and Jiraiya were ready, something that took only four minutes to accomplish, the two set towards were the lineup would be.

He and Jiraiya would be going undercover as servants of the Daimyo. This would give them a way to spy on the ruler and also provide an opportunity to use him if necessary. Minato was convinced that the Iwa shinobi didn't expect the Daimyo to play any part in the war, so they had left him unprotected. Though it was the Kage who ruled the shinobi, it was the Daimyo who gave him that position. The shinobi leaving the civilians out of the war might be what causes the Iwa shinobi to lose the war.

Minato saw the men lined up, hoping to be offered a job working for the Daimyo. He felt pity for the men. These must be the men the other citizens looked down on. They lived in a great city, and yet they couldn't find any other job. Half of these men probably didn't get a job because of discrimination based on their social standings or their family's history. It was a pity, for several of them looked like strong workers. He knew it wasn't a guarantee that he would be selected for a position, but he was able to make himself look as fitting as possible for a job as a servant.

The guard came down the line and examined all of them. He stopped for a moment on the man next to Jiraiya, before he moved onto Jiraiya. He passed over him without a second look. After having looked at every man in the line, the guard started motioning people forward. Minato was told to step forward, while Jiraiya was not. At least it appeared that one of them was going to make it in. If neither of them had they would've had to either find another way in or report this as a failed mission.

"Front line, follow me. You're going to need more fitting clothes if you're going to be in the Daimyo's presence." The guard walked toward the tall building behind him. He opened the door and motioned them in. As he passed, Minato made a hand motion to Jiraiya, informing him that he would find a way to pass information along at night. Jiraiya shifted; signally that he got the message. Minato looked in front of him, and held his head high. He had never been on a mission like this before, but he was determined that this wouldn't be a failure. He knew he had been assigned this mission as a way to get away from Naruto, but he would treat it no differently from any other mission. And hopefully they would be done in time to make it back to Konoha before the final exams start.

The inside of the building looked smaller than the outside, but that may be because of the small hallway with many rooms or smaller hallways running off of it. It looked like a maze and he wondered how he was going to be able to get himself out of there if need be. The guard led them to a small room filled with clothes that were plain, but in good condition. Minato grabbed pair that looked like they'd fit and put them on. The shirt hung a little loose, but the pants fit.

As they were dressing, the guard filled them in on what their job entailed. Mostly it was cleaning, cooking (they didn't have any woman employees-Jiraiya would be glad he didn't get in), and serving any lords that may be in the building. Minato paid attention, but barely. He was already scouting out who could possibly be a good source of information. Everyone here would be new, but some would have more intellect than others. None seemed to draw his attention except for a scrawny young man that looked more confident in himself than men twice his size were. The young man was eyeing everyone, his intend looking to be the same as Minato's.

As the instructions came to an end and the questions began, Minato made his way over to the servant. "The name's Jun." Minato introduced himself.

The scrawny man appraised him before sticking his hand out. "Hiro." Minato took the man's hand and shook it. Hiro's attention became fixed on something behind Minato, and he excused himself to see to it. Minato watched him go, hoping he was right about the man in that he would rise through the ranks quickly. As the group was lead to where they would be staying, a room on the far side of what Minato referred to as a 'castle', Minato caught a glimpse of one of the men he knew he had seen in the lineup earlier. The man looked dejected, like he had just lost everything. Guilt hit Minato. He had taken a position that should've gone to another man. It didn't matter than a lineup for new servants was held every three weeks, this man needed a job now and he didn't have one. If Minato actually got paid for this, he would make sure that he gave the money to a man that actually needed it.

Arriving at the room, Minato realized that sneaking out would be harder than he thought. The doors that lead to the hallway had a guard and he was sure that every other exit had one as well. If he was escaping things would be easy, but he didn't want anyone to start wondering why the guards were knocked unconscious until after he was long gone. His room was also to be shared with two others, a fit man who looked like he had eaten something sour and a smaller man who looked to be more book smart than street smart. The room did have a window, which would likely be his only means of getting out.

Minato waited for the two men to fall asleep before he opened the window. Planning on the return being harder than the exit, Minato placed the seals necessary for his Hiraishin. He would have to ask Jiraiya to allow him to put a seal on him to make things easier. If he could just appear by Jiraiya and then appear back, they could communicate much better. Everything seemed to be working out for the mission, which usually meant something was about to go wrong.

A/N: This update came sooner than even I planned. That's what happens when you have nothing to do but talk to a friend on facebook. Sorry that it's shorter than previous chapters have been, but if I had continued it would've been about 5,000 words, and I can't keep up with that.

Thank you for reading, and please review.