Author's note: Sorry this took so long, gang. I've been dealing with a lot of personal issues in life that make it a living hell, so to speak… Ah, well, I can't kill myself yet! I've got readers to satisfy! Thanks for sticking with me even through this long time.
Disclaimer: Don't own it.
Chapter Five: Revelations
Fifteen days into training, Hinata continued to fight against Naruto's clones, and her fighting style had drastically evolved. "Amazing," Naruto thought, smiling as she tore away at more of his bunshin, "She's progressed further than I guessed… I guess it's true after all: 'When you fight to protect those important to you… you can become as strong as you need to be'!" The copies dispersed. "Alright, Hinata, that's good enough for today."
While she exited her battle stance and stretched, Naruto took in the glorious sight of her sweat-soaked form, making her shirt visible through her open jacket and partially see-through, her ample breasts bouncing as she steadied herself, the pert nipples erect and straining the cloth. The past two weeks, she had always been exhausted or worn out from training, and Naruto had been stuck with outrageous longing. Outside of his volition, he licked his lips slowly, his heart beating heavily. She looked irresistible as she wiped the sweat from her brow, her full lips glistening from the moisture. On top of all that, the scent from her perspiration mixed with her own aroma acted as a natural pheromone to Naruto.
"Whoo!" she said, exhilarated, "I'm getting better at this, Naruto-kun!" It was true. In addition to her technique, her chakra control and physical strength had improved tremendously. Her body no longer struggled to keep the fight up and as such, Naruto no loner needed to carry her back to the apartment. "What do you say we do now?" she asked, wrapping her arms around him.
He snapped out of his sexual gawking. "Eh… how about we go and shower, and then we can get some dinner?"
She leaned her head on his shoulder, cheek against cheek. "I think that would be nice…" Holding hands, they leapt off back along the familiar path back to their home, where they quickly stripped off their clothes and entered the shower. "Ooh, Naruto-kun, I'm a little sore," she groaned, her damp, raven hair running straight down her shoulders, "Would you mind washing my back, please?"
"Not at all," he said eagerly, lathering up his hands and rubbing her back slowly and sensually, despite trying to retain his desire.
"Ohhh," she moaned, "That feels nice… thank you, Naruto-kun."
"No… problem," he uttered, unfocused, trying to keep composure. Soon, however, he succumbed. "Fuck it," he thought, and with a hand on her shoulder, spun her around and forced his tongue into his mouth, loving her arousing taste.
They parted, panting. "Oh my… Naruto-kun," she said, blushing as the steam rose around them, "That was so passionate! It was so-"
"Shh," he said, pressing a finger to her lips, "Talk later," and returned to kissing her, rubbing his hands all over her drenched body, reddened by the heat of the water. Naruto realized ecstatically that this was the first time he'd ever felt her skin this wet before. He loved the way his hands glided so easily across her slippery form. He gazed at her lovingly; the way her eyes remained caringly fixated on him, her soaked hair flowing straight down past her back and on her shoulders, her rosy lips in a pouted shape from her arousal. "God, she is so beautiful," he thought, and got back to work.
He massaged her great breasts, kneading them slowly, letting his thumbs play with the tips and basked in her sighs of pleasure. As he worked his way down, he tried something he'd thought of long ago but had never attempted: Naruto buried his face in her deep clevage, fidgeting inside, whipping out his tongue and losing himself in the masses of flesh. His hands, however, remained focused on their task, playing with her womanhood and eliciting several gasps and moans from Hinata.
Just then, Naruto felt something completely and wonderfully unexpected: Hinata had taken her own hands at the sides of her boobs and pushed them together, engulfing Naruto's face. It was his turn to moan as she squeezed his head in her tits. "God, I love her so much." Together, they worked in a symbiotic fashion: Naruto pleasured her below the waist and she mashed his face in her delightfully large bosom.
After they'd both been sufficiently stimulated, Naruto retracted his fingers from her entrance, receded a bit reluctantly from her warm, fleshy pillows and a few seals later, the protection jutsu had been cast. Now a true master of the gates, he activated the first four in the space of a few seconds. Hinata screamed, the acoustics of the shower amplifying her voice several fold as she latched her legs onto his waist. "Oh, Naruto-kun," she growled huskily, "Don't hold back, please! Be rough, really tear into me!"
He grinned, as always, at her lost inhibition. "I'm here to serve," he replied smoothly and, leaning against the wall, thrust into her as rapidly as he could, gripping her breasts as tightly as he could muster. He loved that she'd let herself be supported by him, he loved the feeling of all her weight on top of her, a conformation of the physical being she was. Eventually, the moment arrived where the two of them finished and slowly, Naruto laid them down to sit in the shower.
"N… Naruto…kun…" Hinata breathed, unlatching herself and leaning on the wall next to him, "That was incredible… I love you."
"I love you so very, very much," he replied.
"Of course… we're wasting a lot of water here… the water bill will run up."
"I know," he said coolly. "I'll deal. It was worth it."
"Mm," she subtly agreed, standing. "Well, now we have to shower all over again…"
"I don't see that as a bad thing."
A few minutes later, they'd cleaned and dressed and headed out the door, off to dinner at what had become their usual eatery. The bubbly waitress, whose name they'd discovered to be Akiko, greeted them at the entrance. "Ahh, it's you two again!" she cheered excitedly. "Welcome back, Hinata-san, Naruto-san! We have your usual table ready for you!"
"Thanks, Akiko-san," Naruto replied, and they followed Akiko to their seats.
"I assume you want the usual? A steak for Naruto-san and a soup and salad for Hinata-san?"
"Hmm, not today," Hinata said lightly, "I think I'll have a steak as well."
Both Akiko and Naruto were surprised. The former recovered from it and said, "Ah, okay then! Two steaks. I'll be back when they're ready!" she said and trotted away.
"You've never ordered a steak before," said Naruto, intrigued.
"Well… who knows? Maybe you're rubbing off on me in more ways than one," she said with a charming smile. Naruto chuckled.
Their food arrived and Naruto noted that Hinata ate most ravenously, if still keeping with her delicate and gentle demeanor. He recalled with a hand on his chin the past few meals they'd had in these two weeks. Her appetite had in fact increased in voracity as she became more adept in her training. There was no negative change in her body; in fact, her abdomen looked even better, more toned, and her breasts had (Naruto grinned deviously, despite knowing that he might be imagining it) grown the slightest possible bit further, stretching out the top of her outfit (the same she'd worn to Sakura's get-together two weeks prior). Finishing this evaluation, he concentrated on devouring his own steak.
Meanwhile, at the Hokage building, Naruto's bunshin was giving Tsunade the report on the training. "She's progressing faster than I'd predicted," said Naruto.
"Hmm. I see. Her Hyuuga blood is finally showing through," she commented and then muttered, sotto voce, "She might even be more than a match for her…"
"What was that?"
"Er, nothing," Tsunade quickly replied, waving it off. "Well, thanks for the report. Dismissed."
"Roger," he said, and then prepared to disperse, but stopped. A question was on his mind, something he'd pondered for two weeks, thinking that it might be too rude or awkward to ask. Then, however, Naruto remembered that such thoughts had never stopped him before. "Hey, Baa-chan," he said quietly, "You said that Ero-sennin told you about the, uh, Eight Gates, right?"
"Yeah, what of it?" she asked, not looking up from her paperwork.
"Why did he tell you?" Naruto asked and Tsunade froze for a moment.
"Uh, it just – it just came up in conversation 'cause he's a pervert, remember?" she said hastily.
"Baa-chan…" he said, leaning in, eyes focused.
She drew in a deep breath and said in a hissed whisper, "Alright, listen to me. I don't know why I'm telling you this, but if you breath a word to anyone – anyone – about what I'm about to tell you, I will strip you of your rank and grind you into powder, literally and metaphorically, do you understand me?" Naruto nodded. She drew a second breath. "Jiraiya and I… we slept together."
Naruto's eyes bugged out. "Excuse me?"
"Once!" Tsunade hissed quietly, "Well, technically twice, but it was in one sitting! That was when he used and told me about the Eight Gates." Naruto blinked for a bit. "Come on. Say something!"
"… How many gates did he go up to?" Naruto asked, eyebrow raised.
"All eight, of course. Why wouldn't he?" she asked skeptically. Naruto didn't answer. "… Well? Why wouldn't he?" she asked again, this time a little more than nervous.
"… Because the eighth gate can only be completed if the woman loves the man with all her being," he answered, slowly and quietly.
Tsunade felt her heart stopping. "… What?" she asked, almost silently.
"If the woman doesn't love the man, the eighth gate shatters her mind," he continued, "But that's avoided if and only if she's completely taken with him."
Tsunade's body didn't know how to react as the realization slammed upon her like a ton of bricks. Sub-rationally, she wanted to drink, go gambling, something to focus her thoughts. Instinctually, she wanted to scream, break things, and cry all at once. She settled for the latter. A small whimper escaped her lips, which slowly grew into a light cry, a mass of sobs, and finally, full-blown shrieks of anguish.
Naruto couldn't think of anything to do aside from clutching her shoulder and rubbing her back lightly. "I'm sorry," he spoke softly. "I really am." Tsunade, inconsolable, kept on crying until her voice grew hoarse. Naruto looked on with sorrow at Tsunade, the once proud Hokage who had been reduced to this pitiable form. Eventually, she cried herself to sleep for what Naruto estimated was the first time in possibly decades. Naruto cleared her desk neatly so that she wouldn't knock anything over and, after calling for someone in the building, dispersed the bunshin.
The original Naruto received the bunshin's gathered information with sadness. He felt empathy for Tsunade, yet as he gazed upon the visage of his beloved, relief filled him. He and Hinata had not made the mistake Tsunade and Jiraiya had. They had not kept their love a secret, a lie to each other, and were infinitely happier for it. "Hinata," he said as they ate dessert, "I… I'm really happy that we're together."
"Oh, Naruto-kun," she said, leaning in, "I'm so happy too…"
They kissed for a few moments until a voice rang in, "Awww, how cuuuuute!" They parted. "Oh! I'm sorry, was I interrupting?"
"Uh, no," said Naruto awkwardly, "Not at all, Akiko-san."
"Okie-dokie! Are you ready for the check?"
Naruto sighed, a bit amused. "Yeah, sure, why not."
The training continued, day after day after day, and Naruto continued to be astounded by her improvement. Hinata was creating techniques on almost a daily basis. Finally, the end of the month arrived, and Hinata, fully rested, arrived with Naruto at the Hokage building.
"Here she is," Naruto announced cheerily, "The newest S-class kunoichi of Konohagakure!"
Tsunade smirked. "We'll see about that. I have a test for you, Hinata."
"What is it, Tsunade-sama?" she asked calmly.
"Well, to see if you are indeed a member of the cream of the crop… we'll have you fight another S-class kunoichi."
"Another elite?" Hinata wondered aloud. "Who is it?"
"Come in," Tsunade ordered to someone outside the door.
"Hello, Hinata," said Sakura, stepping in, surprising both Naruto and Hinata. "I hope you're ready."
"You two will fight at the usual training ground," Tsunade explained. "I and a few others will be evaluating you as you do. Understood?"
With a bow, Hinata answered, "Yes, Tsunade-sama!"
"Good," Tsunade said, "Then let's get going."
As they relocated, Naruto grasped Hinata's hand and whispered, "Are you nervous?"
She grimaced. "You know… I thought I would be, I really did. Against an opponent like Sakura-chan, personally trained by Tsunade-sama… I thought my heart would be pounding in fear." Smiling suddenly, she turned to Naruto. "But then I remember… I've been trained by you, the strongest ninja, as far as I'm concerned, in the whole world. Your voice fills me with strength, and I think… I know I can win."
Naruto's heart swelled to the point of nearly bursting. "I know it too. I'd say good luck," he grinned smugly, "But you don't need it."
They reached the training ground. Naruto and Tsunade stood off to the side. "Okay," said Tsunade, "I will leap away, and that will be your signal to begin. Are you ready?"
"Sakura-chan," said Hinata quietly, "Please, do not go easy on me. If you do…" She entered the Gentle Fist stance, "You'll die."
Sakura's eyes widened slightly at Hinata's words. "Of course," she said, grinning back at her, "I wouldn't have it any other way."
"Alright…" said Tsunade, "Go!" and she leapt away, Naruto following shortly after.
"Sorry we're late," said Kakashi, appearing with Shizune next to Naruto and Tsunade.
"I wouldn't expect anything else," replied Tsunade.
"So Sakura and Hinata are fighting?" Shizune asked, peering at the standoff of the two kunoichi.
"Yeah," Tsunade answered. "Say, Naruto, what do you think Hinata's chances are against Sakura?"
Naruto grinned cockily. "A ninety-nine percent chance of winning."
"Really…" said Tsunade, intrigued. "This should be interesting.
Breaking the standoff, Sakura rushed at Hinata with a punch that Hinata easily evaded. Sakura, however, carried the momentum and smashed her fist into the earth, shattering the ground. Hinata had seen through it, and fired a palm at Sakura, who dodged. "Her stance is more loose than when I saw her at the chuunin exam," Sakura thought. "Perhaps a fistfight isn't the way to go on this." Performing a series of seals, a mist shrouded Sakura, clouding Hinata's vision.
"This isn't Kirigakure (hiding in mist)," Hinata thought, "The Byakugan can see through that. This must then be… genjutsu." Her thoughts were confirmed as suddenly the face of Kabuto appeared before her, holding Naruto's severed head.
"Ahaha… you think he could stop me?" he asked crazily, "I've come back for more of you, Hyuga Hinata."
Hinata's heart thumped in fear instinctively. "Calm down," she told herself, "It's just genjutsu," and reached into her tool pouch.
Meanwhile, Sakura watched from a tree as Hinata screamed and writhed in terror. "It might have been a little cruel," Sakura thought guiltily. "Better end this quickly." She dropped from the tree, fist raised, and just as it was about to connect, Hinata immediately recovered and landed a devastating flying spinning back-kick to Sakura's ribcage. Sakura was sent hurtling away, bouncing on the ground a few times before smashing into a tree. "Oof," she uttered, standing slowly, "I think she cracked a rib with that one… and it probably was a Gentle Fist-style kick, too… But how did she break that genjutsu? My chakra control was perfect, I thought…" Her hand glowing blue, she applied medical ninjutsu to her damaged side until she was healed enough to fight.
Hinata, demeanor unchanged, held out her hand and gestured towards herself in a waving motion. "Sakura-chan. Come," she said quietly.
It was then that Sakura noticed it: Hinata's hand was bleeding slightly and a red-stained kunai lay on the ground. "I see," said Sakura, "You weren't trapped in the genjutsu after all… you used that knife to slit your hand a bit to disrupt the chakra flow, pretended to be affected, and I, stupidly thinking you were helpless, left myself wide open." Hinata nodded. "Okay… let's go again!" she roared, rushing at Hinata. "The Juuken is dangerous, as merely blocking is futile, making the tenketsu vulnerable."
"Sakura-chan has the incredible strength of Tsunade-sama, making blocking a wasted effort," Hinata thought.
"I have to dodge every strike!" both women concluded, lunging at each other.
No strikes connected, though fast their blows were. Meanwhile, in the bushes nearby, Shizune said, "Wow… it seems they're almost even matched!"
"Yeah," said Naruto, "Almost."
Kakashi studied the battle before him. "Sakura's taijutsu style is the same as always… her agility and flexibility allow for extremely fast flurries of moves. But Hinata is trained as a Hyuuga… she has exceptionally high flexibility, and her agility has been raised since I watched her match at the chuunin exam. There's one major difference, though… Sakura's attacks are one after the other. Disconnected. Hinata's attack… there is no reading it without anything less than the Sharingan. It's completely fluid, with only one beginning and end, like a dance. This means she has no delay time, which means that Sakura has a time disadvantage, where energy and movement is wasted. In that space, Hinata can take the initiative." Kakashi raised an eyebrow, and then looked at his other former student. "Naruto… what in the world did you do?"
Hinata landed a few more body blows on Sakura, who began pushing herself to dodge better. She finally caught an opening, blasting Hinata's gut with a powerful blow. Hinata did not slow down for a second, baffling Sakura, as she recalled Naruto's words: "Fight through the pain."
Hinata darted away, leaping over Sakura, who lost sight of her for only a second. They threw blows at each other for a little longer until Sakura found an opening. "Naruto trained her well…" she thrust her fist, "But it's over now." She smashed Hinata's jaw with her monster strength, sending her tumbling to the ground. Sakura dropped her combat stance. "Not even she could get back up from that." Suddenly, however, Hinata's body burst in a puff of smoke. Sakura's eyes widened. "Wait, what th-" Her thoughts were cut short by a palm pounding her spine, forcing Sakura to the ground. She rose, coming to her conclusion. "Stupid, stupid," she muttered. "You were trained by Naruto, of course he taught you kagebunshin."
"That's right," said Hinata, a bit pleased with herself. "That one wasn't meant to fight you, though," she added, as Sakura raised an eyebrow. Hinata recalled Naruto's teachings about the clones.
"Now, it's true that kagebunshin are good for combat, but unless you're me, you're better off using them for different purposes," Naruto instructed.
"Like what?" asked Hinata.
"The true strength of that jutsu is its ability to transfer data back to the user… essentially, you can use a Kagebunshin as a simulator to study an enemy's moves and master them without fear of being damaged."
"Now I see what he meant," Hinata thought. All of Sakura's fighting style had been analyzed due to the insight of the Byakugan.
"Don't think I'm done yet!" Sakura roared, leaping at Hinata.
"Have to do something about those fists of hers," thought Hinata. Back-flipping away, she reassumed her stance and cried, "Hakke Futatsute Kuushou (Eight Trigrams Two Handed Empty Palm)!" Two blasts of chakra zoomed at Sakura, who nimbly avoided them.
"Kuushou, eh?" Sakura thought, "That's one of Neji's moves… seems she's picked up a few tricks."
Hinata sprinted back at Sakura, raising her palm and with a twisting motion, roared, "Hakke Rasenkuushou (Eight Trigrams Spiraling Empty Palm)!"
"Kuushou again?" Sakura wondered, confused, "She should already know it doesn't work…" She dodged the chakra ball, but suddenly, she felt herself being pulled backwards by some unknown force. As she floated back, Hinata used Shunshin (body flicker) to reach Sakura in an instant, jamming both her wrists with two fingers and finishing with a roundhouse kick to the head.
Sakura, wincing, rose again, already applying healing to her wounds. "What…" she panted, "What was that?"
"Hakke Rasenkuushou," Hinata began, "is a variation on the Empty Palm… the wave of chakra does not merely push, but spirals, creating centripetal force that pulls the victim towards it." She stood firm. "It is not a Hyuga technique… it is something that I invented on my own."
"Of course… trained by the Number One Unpredictable Ninja," Sakura thought, "She has to have some tricks up her sleeve. But that's got to put her out of chakra… Still, she closed two tenketsu on my arms…" She tried gathering chakra to her arms, but found that only a significantly smaller amount reached. It still gave her above-average strength, but not to the degree she normally could. "Looks like I have to get serious."
They resumed the fight, Sakura increasing her speed and landing several powerful blows on Hinata, who did not seem to mind them, baffling Sakura. Sakura continued to dodge while Hinata attacked more and more fiercely. Suddenly, Sakura noticed that small cuts were appearing on her even when she dodged. Eyes widened in shocked realization, she remembered, "Of course! Hinata can sharpen her chakra to cutting power! Even though she's wasting chakra with it, she know that I'll have to waste even more with medical ninjutsu!"
Finally, both kunoichi paused, exhausted but still standing. "I didn't think I'd have to use this…" Hinata muttered, assuming an oddly familiar stance to Sakura.
"It can't be!" Sakura exclaimed.
"It is… Hakke Rokujuuyonshou (Eight Trigrams Sixty-Four Palms)," Hinata uttered and before Sakura could react, Hinata was already calling out the blows: "Two palms! Four Palms! Eight Palms! Sixteen Palms! Thirty-Two Palms! Sixty-Four Palms!" Sakura did not feel the pain until it was all over when it suddenly overwhelmed her and she collapsed. Not merely were the areas where the tenketsu lay bruised, but she was bleeding from every such area as well. Hinata, panting, collapsed as well.
In an instant, Shizune, Tsunade, Kakashi and Naruto were on the scene. Shizune pulled out a scroll, summoning two medical beds with equipment to match and afterwards began applying medical ninjutsu to both women.
"Hinata," cooed Naruto to a barely conscious Hinata, stroking her hair, "You did it…"
"I did, didn't I?" she whispered back. "I'm so happy…"
"Quite a match," said Kakashi.
"Indeed…" said Tsunade, inspecting the two. "Amazing…" she thought, scrutinizing each wound, "Sakura was beaten… Somehow, in one month, Naruto made Hinata, a chuunin, into an S-class shinobi. Amazing… Hinata, you won this fight." "Alright!" Tsunade announced, "I will officially change Hinata's status in the registry to S-class. Congratulations." As Naruto and Hinata smiled at each other, Tsunade bit her thumb, formed handseals and cried, "Kuchiyose no Jutsu (Summoning Technique)!" Two slugs, about as long and tall as the beds Shizune had summoned, appeared beside Tsunade. "Take these two to the hospital, room 3K-87R," she ordered, pointing at the wounded kunoichi.
"Yes, Tsunade-sama," the slugs said obediently and maneuvered themselves so that Hinata and Sakura would be lowered onto their backs, wiggling away with a slimy wake.
As she watched them go, Tsunade glanced at Naruto and said, "You know, Naruto, you should become a Jounin teacher."
"Hm?" Naruto asked with an eyebrow raise. "Why's that?"
"What you did with Hinata in just one month…" Tsunade began, "I never thought that she would be able to beat Sakura. If you could raise her skill in such a short time… then imagine what you could do with your own team."
Naruto grinned. "Thanks, but it wasn't just me, you know. It was her own desire to get stronger…"
Tsunade also grinned and thought, "So… he sees himself in her, the way they were both shunned and rejected by all. That pain brings them together and also allows them to heal." "Alright," she said, "Let's go to the hospital, eh? We can check on them there."
Naruto nodded, and they were off, with Shizune and Kakashi trailing behind.
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When Naruto and Hinata returned to the apartment from the hospital, it was only a matter of seconds before Naruto and Hinata began tasting each other's tongue.
"Naruto-kun… I'm so happy," she moaned as they stripped.
"Me too," he replied. Just as he was about to start feeling her up, a thump echoed from their window. Naruto and Hinata paused and looked toward the sound's source and spotted another frustrated, confused bird. "Is our glass really that clean?" Naruto wondered. Shifting open the glass, he took the bird's note and quickly read it. "Er, Sorry, Hinata…" he said regretfully, "Tsunade-baachan's calling me."
She pouted. "Do you really have to go?"
"Yeah, I should," he said, nodding. "Baa-chan'll have my ass if I don't." As he observed her disappointed look, an idea struck him. "Hmm… Kagebunshin no Jutsu!"
"What…?" she asked the air, wide eyed as a few bunshin appeared next to her.
Quickly, he performed the protection jutsu, positioning himself and his clones close to her. "Ready? Uzumaki-ryu Ero-jutsu Ougi (Uzumaki-style Pervy Secret Technique)! Hachimon Issei Kai (Eight Gates Simultaneous Release)!" At once, he thrust chakra at all Eight Gates with the kagebunshin. Her body perfectly froze, save her eyes rolling up to the back of her head briefly. Naruto entered the white void dimension of pleasure but quickly returned in time to catch Hinata shrieking one long, extremely high-pitched scream. Slowly but surely, her voice died out and she collapsed on the bed, knocked out. Naruto, dispelling his jutsu, stood and dressed himself, satisfied at his handiwork and soon set out for Tsunade's office.
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They awoke the next morning at almost the same time. The events of the last night still ringing in his head, Jiraiya asked, "So… do you want to do something later?"
"What, like a date?" she asked back, gathering her clothes.
"Uh… yeah," he said hopefully.
"Look, Jiraiya, I'll admit I really had a great time last night," she said as she dressed, "But that's just what it was, remember? We said it would be just a great time."
"Oh," he said in disappointment. "Are… are you absolutely sure?"
"No," she thought, "I'm not. Tell him you love him. Tell him you need him. Tell him you want to grow old together. Tell him you want to spend every waking moment with him. Tell him anything, anything, but…" "Actually…" she asked softly, walking to him and grasping his hand lightly. "Why don't you and I spend the day together just relaxing, forgetting that we're shinobi, eh?"
Jiraiya blushed slightly, completely surprised by this turn of events. "Yeah…" he said, gripping her hand back, "I think I'd like that."
A carnival had arrived in town and as such Jiraiya and Tsunade decided to use their shinobi skills to win at the games (cleverly hiding their forehead-protectors). They shared delicious carnival food and laughed together, happier than they'd been in years. Finally, at sunset, they sat together on a bench to watch as the burning sphere sank into the sky.
"Jiraiya," Tsunade whispered, resting her head on his shoulder, "I really enjoyed today…"
"Me too," he repeated at equal volume, stroking her blonde tresses.
Her heart bubbling with apprehension for a moment, she resolutely raised her head and looked Jiraiya directly in the eyes, matching his small, obsidian beads with her great, chocolate orbs. "Jiraiya…" she said again, "I… ever since Dan died, you know that I've been hesitant to go into any relationship." Jiraiya nodded. "But with you… somehow, someway, when I'm with you, my heart… it just blossoms, you know? Even if you don't feel the same way, even if I were just some one-night stand for you… I want you to know, that no matter how much of a pervert you are, I love you very much, Jiraiya." Tears had sprung forth from their ducts without Tsunade's notice.
He smiled kindly at her, wiping the liquid from her cheeks "Don't worry…" he said quietly, leaning in, "I love you too."
Beaming elatedly, she pushed her lips upon him, filling him with as much of her heat as she could muster. When they parted, she cried ecstatically, "I'm so glad… we're going to be happy together!"
His smile grew sad. "No," he said pleasantly.
Her expression fell immediately. "No…?" she asked, almost frightened.
"No," he repeated. Suddenly, he appeared several years older to her. "You need to live your life, and it's going to be without me."
"Wha… what are you saying?" she whispered.
Older still, he replied, "The fact of the matter is that I'm not meant to live happily ever after with you. All I can do is die knowing I helped save the day."
"No…" she said, embracing him tightly. She could feel herself aging, though her appearance did not shift. "No, no, that can't be right… you're going to stay with me, and we're going… we're going to be okay, happy and safe."
"I'm sorry, Tsunade-hime," he cooed softly, holding her back. "I have to leave you… forever."
Her crying had resumed; a thousand fold more terrible than before. "But I… I can't live without you!" she sobbed.
"You can," he objected quietly. "And you will. Not just for your own sake, but for others." He held her more tightly still. "I have to go now. I'm sorry."
He began to fade, and she gripped him as tightly as she could. "I love you forever," she said simply.
"I love you beyond where time itself ends," he replied.
He faded, his voice leaving a soft echo. Tsunade's arms suddenly felt nothing to clutch, and the horribly familiar immense feeling of sorrow and pain crushed her until her heart felt as a pulp in her chest. Slowly, as the sun's last rays left the sky, she laid herself on the bench, hoping for death to finally cease sparing her instead of her loved ones.
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Tsunade awoke on her desk, tearstains down her cheeks. She sniffled, her nasal passages clogged from her weeping. With a touch to her brow, it cleared, but the pain in her heart stayed. Such a dream had not been the first since Naruto had explained the true power of the Gates, and she knew it would surely not be the last. "When, I wonder, will it end?" she thought. "That is… will it ever end?" Naruto arrived a few moments later. "You just don't knock, do you?" she asked shortly.
"Eh, not my style," he said with a grin. "Anyway, you wanted to see me?"
"Ah. Yes," she said, sitting up straight in her chair. "There's actually something very important I want to tell you."
"I'm not inheriting more money, am I?"
"Well…" she said, a finger to her bottom lip, "You're inheriting something, but it's way more valuable than money."
"What is it?" he asked, intrigued.
"The village," she said dramatically. Naruto's expression became shocked. "You're set to become my successor."
Naruto was stunned. He could barely breath, only managing to choke out, "What… are you saying?"
"You are going to be the Sixth Hokage of Konohagakure," Tsunade explained, smiling.
"Oh… my God…" he uttered.
"What, you're surprised?" she asked with a smirk. "All this talk about becoming Hokage, and you didn't expect it?"
"It's not that," he said quietly, "It's just-" His eyes snapped open. "Oh shit."
"What is it?"
"Kagebunshin no jutsu!" he said quickly, creating one clone. "He'll explain!" With a leap, he was out of Tsunade's office, heading for the gates of the village.
Tsunade, confused, muttered, "What in the world…"
"About a year ago, I set a bunch of bunshin all around the Fire Country as watchmen," Naruto's clone explained. "If any threat comes along, I'll know about it."
"So what're you saying?"
Naruto's clone's expression grew grim. "We're being attacked."
Tsunade's eyes widened. As strong as Naruto was now, if anything could distress Naruto this much, it would have to be a tremendous threat. "By… whom?" she asked, almost fearfully.
The bunshin was silent for a moment. "… By the Eight-Tailed Lizard." Tsunade shot up from her desk, faced the open window, and bit her thumb. As she formed the seals, Naruto asked, confused, "What the hell are you doing?"
"Kuchiyose no Jutsu (Summoning Technique)!" A small slug appeared before her. Tsunade placed her hand on the slug's back and the slug spoke, in Tsunade's suddenly booming voice, "Attention, all Konoha shinobi! We are under attack from a tailed beast! All trackers – Inuzuka Clan, Hyuga Clan, and Hatake Kakashi – locate Uzumaki Naruto, reach his position, and back him up!"
"Are you nuts?" Naruto asked, shocked. "You can't send anyone under Jounin-level to even survive against that thing, much less fight it!"
Tsunade grinned, betraying her true emotion. "You seem to forget that we're the proud ninja of Konoha. We've fought against a tailed beast before, a stronger one, and in case you've forgotten, we won."
Images of the Fourth Hokage and his mother ran through his mind and with them, remembrance of the pain of not having their loving presence around him, the lack of a hot meal and a warm embrace to accompany him each night of his childhood. "But… at what cost?" he muttered.
"Don't worry," she replied. "This thing's not nearly as powerful as what's inside you."
He began to protest, "But-" and was cut off by Tsunade's fist in his face. The bunshin disappeared.
"And it's not like I'll just let you die out there, Naruto," she uttered quietly to herself.
Meanwhile, running throughout the forest, Naruto grimaced. "Damn it, Tsunade," he whispered, "Always making my life rough, eh?" Suddenly, Kakashi, Yamato, Sakura, and Sasuke appeared beside Naruto, surprising him. "Woah, you guys got here fast!"
"Eh, I'm only late when I want to be," said Kakashi. Naruto laughed nervously.
"What now, Naruto?" asked Sakura.
"What do you mean?"
"Naruto, we're here to follow your command," said Yamato with a smile.
"You are the one who defeated Gaara, after all," added Sasuke.
"So," said Kakashi, "What are your orders, Naruto?"
Naruto did his best to grin with minimal results. "They're all depending on you," he thought to himself. "They're counting on you to get them out of this. Better get used to it," his grin broadened, "Hokage." "Alright, here's what we're going to do," he said with renewed confidence. "We all approach this fucker at once. Once it catches sight of us, we scatter as best we can. Yamato-taichou, you take the rear and start grabbing at it with Mokuton. Kakashi-sensei, Sasuke, you two use the Sharingan to distract or trap it as best you can, then lay into it with whatever high-level ninjutsu you have. Don't waste a single shot. Sakura-chan, stay at the outermost reaches of its frontal range, dodging as best you can."
"Roger!" Came the response from all of them.
"Naruto," said Sakura, "What will you be doing?"
He grinned at her. "I'll be showing you something pretty amazing."
They arrived finally in the clearing where the Eight-Tails stood. It roared at them and the air pressure was so great they needed to apply chakra to the soles of their feet just to hang on.Naruto closed his eyes and focused his chakra, preparing to enter Fox Form. He found himself inside his own mind, facing what was once the seal of the Nine-Tails. Now, however, it sat perfectly still, as though it were a dog obeying its master, and Naruto reached out a hand. The Fox reached back with a claw and as soon as they established contact, the Fox immediately flowed into Naruto's palm like a liquid. Naruto's eyelids fluttered open, revealing his slits for pupils and the brilliant glow of golden light around him. All four of his teammates were in awe. "Okay… on my signal…" said Naruto. "Ready?" They tensed up. "Break!"
The five of them leapt from position just as the giant Lizard ripped through the ground with an equally giant claw. Sasuke leapt at its hide and whipped out his Kusanagi blade, making gashes along its hide. He landed in front of the beast as it raised another talon. "Sasuke-kun!" Sakura cried, worried. Sasuke himself had a look of extreme fear.
"I don't think so!" said Yamato, "Mokuton Ninjutsu (Wood Released Ninja Techniques)!" A claw of wood grasped at the hind leg of the Lizard, so that it could not use full momentum as it smacked Sasuke. He went flying back at near bullet speed and Sakura shrieked in fear for him. She glanced at Naruto, who nodded, and she tore after Sasuke's location. "Kakashi-sempai! Now!" Yamato roared.
"On it!" Kakashi replied, looking at the beast's held leg with his left eye. "Mangekyou Sharingan!" A dimensional warp appeared at the demon's upper thigh and Kakashi, with steady aim, snapped it off. The beast roared in pain as blood poured out of its wound. Suddenly, however, the bleeding stopped and through a gruesome scene, bone, flesh and blood built themselves into a brand new leg. "Of course…" thought Kakashi, "It's a lizard. Of course it regenerates." What Kakashi hadn't expected, however, was the sudden change of color in the beast's skin from green to an electrical blue. "Uh-oh," Kakashi muttered as it roared more forcefully than ever. Suddenly, the beast's tails whipped up and struck at Kakashi and Yamato like drills. Before the blows landed, however, they felt a golden body collide with them.
"Sorry, guys," said Naruto, putting them down. "It looks like from here on in, I'm the only one who can deal with this… Get out of here as fast as you can. My bunshin will accompany you."
Yamato and Kakashi looked at each other for a second, then back at Naruto. "Alright," said Kakashi, "As you command." He prepared to leave, and then said, "Don't do anything stupid." Naruto didn't reply as the two sped off.
"There are a bunch of shinobi still coming towards my position," thought Naruto, "Looks like I have do everything myself." "Tajuu Kagebunshin no Jutsu (Mass Shadow Clone Technique)!"
An army of Naruto clones materialized and began spreading out in a circle, searching for whoever wanted to fight this monster.
Hinata leapt through the forest, sweating nervously. "Please," she thought, "Please don't let me be too late." Suddenly, however, a golden figure darting through the trees at extreme speed approached Hinata. She braced herself, but the figure was gentle in carrying her away. She opened her eyes to see Naruto's smiling face, his blue eyes with slits for pupils. "Naruto-kun…?" she asked meekly.
"I'm sorry, Hinata, but you can't help in this battle," he told her softly.
"Please! You have to let me help!" She tried bursting the clone by slamming it with a juuken, but he grasped her wrist lightly before she could reach.
He brought her to where Sasuke, holding his side, and Sakura, healing Sasuke, were, accompanied by two other clones of Naruto. "He brought you here too, eh?" said Sasuke. She nodded. "Well… the best you can do is watch him and pray for the best."
She turned on the Byakugan, searching the wide area of the forest. "That's odd…" she said as she inspected.
"What is?" asked Sakura.
"Naruto-kun's brought everyone trying to reach him to this exact radius around his position… I wonder why?"
"If I know Naruto," said Kakashi, appearing beside them with Yamato, "He's probably got something big up his sleeve.
Naruto leapt at the Lizard, assaulting it from all angles with his bunshin. The Lizard roared in rage at this attack, shooting lightning at the various doppelgangers. Finding the original, he struck with a tremendous blast of lightning. Naruto, just before it hit, managed to throw a Hiraishin kunai, teleporting away. "This is getting nowhere," he thought. "Looks like I'll have to use that. I just need a little time." His clones assaulted the beast once more as Naruto prepared a clone to hold his jutsu. "Come on," he thought, "Power all of my chakra into it at once." The spiraling ball in his clone's hand grew and grew, with four molded blades of wind around it.
"Oh my God," said Hinata blankly, watching from afar.
"Holy crap," said Sasuke.
"What is it?" asked Sakura.
"You'll see in a moment," said Kakashi.
Having powered every last bit of chakra into his jutsu, he backed away from it. "Only one shot… better make it count!" "Hey, ugly!" Naruto called at the Lizard, who turned towards him and his clone. "Let's dance!"
In Naruto's hands was constructed an all-new variation on the Rasengan. Not holding it so much as levitating it one hand above his head, Naruto's clone held a Rasengan several times larger than his body with proportionate chakra blades around him. "Here I go!" He lunged at the beast, carrying the massive jutsu. "Chou Oodama Rasenshuriken!" The jutsu crashed into the Lizard and instantly, a tremendous dome engulfed it and the rest of the surroundings.
Naruto bolted from the dome of death at top speed, chased by its microscopic blades. "Runawayrunawayrunawayrunaway," he thought until finally, he escaped, the last effects of his jutsu merely an inch away from the tip of his nose.
Everyone in Konoha watched this tremendous demonstration of destruction. "Dear God…" said Sakura. Everyone else, sans Kakashi, was in awe.
"Just as I expected of Minato-sensei's son," he said with a proud smile. Suddenly, Naruto's bunshin dispersed, worrying Kakashi. "These bunshin were made to protect us… the only reason they'd disperse is…" "Kuchiyose no jutsu (Summoning Technique)!" The ninken appeared before Kakashi. "Search out Naruto's scent and tell me as soon as you find him," he ordered, and the dogs scattered.
"I can't find Naruto-kun with the Byakugan!" Hinata shrieked, panicked. "He must be so faraway!"
"We'll find him," reassured Yamato. "We definitely will."
Naruto stopped walking and lay beneath the canopy of the trees and closed his eyes, taking in the scents around him: the woods, the grass, the dirt… "Looks like no flowers this time around," he thought with disappointment. Time passed, and no sounds of people could be heard. Naruto could barely move his arms, much less stand up. "I guess this is the end of the road. Could it be? Is this where I die?" Darkness, coldness enveloped him. "Well… at least they'll probably all be talking about this for a while…" He'd lost sight of the world, found himself in a dark void, even with his eyes open. "I probably should have told Hinata that I love her more often… stupid, stupid…" He closed his eyes. "Stupid…" As he lay perfectly still, his breathing softened more and more until finally, it ceased.
"Stupid…"
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Action-packed chapter, eh? I hope it's not too terrible… You know, I got a lot of requests in this and my other fic, the Bleach Ichigo/Orihime fic, One Lonely Saturday (hint hin), that seemed to conflict. Some told me to back off on the lemon, some told me to go more thoroughly. The majority seemed to like that I make my M-Raters not about the Lemon entirely. I hope I please.
Anyway, to find out whether this is a happy ending or not, you're gonna have to read and review, true believers!