Of Ninjas and Assassins
Chapter 3: Everyone Gets Some Sunshine
Time: 2:00 P.M
Location: Streets of Konoha
Date: October 12th – Two days following the attack of Kyuubi no Yoko
Kumiko was making her way through Konoha's streets after her meeting with the Hokage. It would be a while before she would have her meeting with Danza Shimura, and appearances of normality needed to be kept. After all, you never know who could be watching you. However, the young ANBU prodigy was deep in thought, not that you would be able to see it with her face mask on. Currently, she was deciding if she would tell her extremely close circle of friends, who thought of Kushina as an older sister, about what was revealed to her regarding baby Naruto. Would they understand the situation as she did, or would they be misguided in their thinking and take action to harm the little bundle of joy? She had to admit to herself that after meeting the newborn Jinchuriki, it reaffirmed her understanding that Naruto was indeed not the Kyuubi and that he somehow managed to worm his way into her heart with just one meeting. And he couldn't even talk yet! Feeling confident from her musing on her sensei's son, Kumiko believed in her friends and had faith that they would share her thoughts, thus deciding to inform them of the results of her meeting. Only problem was, where would they be? After asking a passerby the time, the white-haired kunoichi figured they be having lunch. 'And I know just where they'd be going to.' She thought. Taking to the rooftops, Kumiko sped off towards their usual meet-up spot, The Dango Shop.
After about five minutes of rooftop hopping, Kumiko softly landed outside The Dango Shop. It was a popular shop in Konoha that was famous for its, well dango. 'Good thing it managed to survive the attack. Otherwise, Anko would have had a fit.' Kumiko thought with a sweatdrop. It was something set in stone that Anko Mitarashi had the sweetest tooth of all the kunoichi in the Leaf Village. Most days, you'd be able to find the snake apprentice in The Dango Shop, scarfing down her favorite meal, dango and red bean paste. It was a miracle that she hadn't eroded her teeth from all the sugar she ate.
As she moved towards the entrance, Kumiko was thrown from her musing when a teenage boy no older than her was literally tossed out on his ass from the sweet shop. It looked like he'd taken a severe beating. 'Probably Anko's handiwork,' the ANBU thought. It was then that her suspicions were confirmed when she heard a familiar voice yell, "And no means no, you piece of shit!"
"Yup," Kumiko said to herself. "Definitely Anko's doing."
"Anko," a second voice from the shop yelled, one that also sounded familiar to Kumiko. "That is no way to talk in front of Hana!"
"Let it go Kurenai," said a third voice that the white-haired ANBU recognized. "You know there's no controlling her."
"Well,"Kumiko thought aloud. "Looks like the gang is all here." She entered the shop, passing by the unconscious male sprawled out on the ground and made her way to the table in the far corner that seated her four close friends. First was the kunoichi that threw out the poor teenage, Anko. The twelve-year old apprentice of the legendary Snake Sannin had her violet hair styled in her usual short, spiky fanned-ponytail, with a few strands in front of her light brown, non-pupiled eyes. She was wearing a sleeveless fishnet mesh shirt that showed off her well placed curves quite nicely. She also had on fishnet armbands that reached to her elbows, dark brown shorts with her kunai holster strapped to her right leg and a pair of knee-length boots. She was currently stuffing her face with food when she looked up at Kumiko with a smile, her cheeks puffed out with food.
Sitting down next to Anko, shaking her head at her friend's antics, was Kumiko's second closest friend, Kurenai Yuhi. The fair-skinned, slender built fifteen-year old genjutsu expert was drabbed in the standard Konoha kunoichi outfit with her chunnin flak jacket on. Her long untamed black hair reached down to her shoulders as she began nibbling on a stick of dango.
Across Kurenai was Kumiko's third close friend Yugao Uzuki. It was rumored that she would soon be selected into the ANBU black ops division due to her skill in kenjutsu and her sensory ability. The ten-year old ANBU hopeful, who often looked to Kumiko as a role model, was wearing a simple black t-shirt with white shorts. The light skinned kunoichi had her straight purple hair flowing down to her shoulders, with her bangs slightly covering her warm brown eyes.
Lastly, was the smallest and youngest member of their circle of friends, was Hana Inuzuka. She was wearing light-brown clothes with white fur around the collar and a gray sash around her waist. Despite being only six-years old, the aspiring veterinary-nin had a very sharp mind. She had her long brown hair put into a ponytail, with two locks of her hair framing her face. Her large black eyes were staring widely at the sight of Anko being able to eat so many sweets. Hana had joined their circle of friends after she was saved by Anko from a group of bullies. Anko had taken a liking to the young Inuzuka and invited her along to have lunch with her and her friends. She had been around the group ever since.
As Kumiko greeted her friends and sat down next to the empty seat by Kurenai, the group nicknamed Konoha's Ice Queens was complete once again. It wasn't that any of the group had ice release abilities. No, they were called Ice Queens for their cold personality towards their suitors, be it male or female. While many of Konoha's young population often made advances towards the older members of the group, none were wooed enough to accept them. Often times however, the rejections were rather harsh. This was due to the pursuers, often being male but sometimes female, would continuously push to be accepted, only to receive a punch to the face and a slew of insults. The girls just weren't interested in anyone at the time, mainly wanting to focus on their careers as kunoichi. It was also because that most of the individuals that attempted to attract their attention wanted nothing more than to have a one night stand, much to their disgust. Scorned men and women often said that they had hearts of ice for not accepting anyone's advances, which in turn led to their being nicknamed, Konoha's Ice Queens, with Hana being a Queen in training as Anko often said.
Light conversation was being had between the Ice Queens and their trainee for a few minutes while munching on some dango, despite the oddity that was Kumiko, who was able to eat with her mask on somehow. It was always a mystery how she would be able to do so, but she never told. Eventually, Kumiko decided enough time had passed for her to reveal everything.
"Kurenai," Kumiko began. "Could you please put a genjutsu up? Make it look like we're just chatting and having fun?"
Confused, the red-eyed beauty complied and created a genjutsu around their table. Nodding that it was done, Kumiko quickly ran threw a few handsigns and placed a privacy jutsu around them.
With her mouth still full, Anko tried to speak. "Wphh wph mhe mmtsu mmr?"
"Swallow, Anko." Yugao said as she face-palmed.
Complying and taking a swig of water after doing so, she repeated her original muffled question. "What was the jutsu for?"
Looking at the girls at the table, Kumiko sighed as she took off her ANBU mask. It was for her friends to see that she was serious about what she was going to speak about. And by look in her lone eye, it looked like this wasn't a time to make jokes. "What I am about to relay to you is an SSS-Ranked secret. I want your word as kunoichi," Kumiko then turned her attention to the youngest member of the group, "and future kunoichi that what we discuss here is not to be spoken to with anyone with the exception of the Hokage, Lady Tsunade, Lady Miraiya, and Shizune, Lady Tsunade's apprentice. Do I make myself clear?"
Stealing glances at each other, all present turned their attention back to Kumiko and gave a firm nod. Nodding back, Kumiko began. "All right then. Well, let me start with what exactly happened to Minako-chan and Kushina-nee-chan…"
*Elsewhere at the Council Chambers in Konoha*
Hitomi Sarutobi had called a meeting with all the heads of Konoha's prominent clans. Sitting in a well-lit meeting room was a large round table. Taking that largest seat was Hitomi herself. To her immediate left were her advisors and former teammates, Homara Mitokado and Koharu Utatane. Homara had her gray, short spikey hair out and was wearing her council garbs as well as her green glasses and a constant frown that she wore, even in her youth. Koharu had her hair pulled back into a twin bun locked by a traditional Japanese hair pin with pearls dangling off to the side, along with her long earrings. She, like Homara, was wearing her council garbs that consisted of a simple long kimono that was closed by a jacket with a sash over it.
To Hitomi's right was her oldest friend, well if you could call her that at this point. In their youth; however, it was something you could truly call the two. Now it seemed that the two were in a power struggle of who had the right to be Hokage. This would be none other than Danza Shimura, leader of the Konoha Special Ops Division, ROOT. She had black, shaggy hair with her right eye concealed by bandages. She wore a white with a black rob over it, covering her from her feet all the way up to her right shoulder.
Following Danza on her right was Asami Hyuga. The usual stern and strict Hyuga with a heart of gold as her wife, Hikari put it, was sitting quietly for the meeting to begin. She had her long black hair flowing down to her upper back with her featureless white eyes, like all members of her clan, closed as she listened to the drabble of her fellow clan heads next to her. To her right was Fusako Uchiha. Despite the claims from the two clan heads that they were completely different, the opposite was the most truth. Like Asami, Fusako was also a stern and strict clan head, but her wife Mikoto, said that Fusako was a kind hearted woman on the inside, a side that was rarely seen to the populous. Fusako had short brown hair that reached to her shoulders and a pair of onyx-colored eyes, with visible creases below them that made her eyes more pronounced whenever she took on a serious look, something her wife joked was all the time. She was wearing a simple blue kimono that had her clan's symbol on that back and a pair of grey pants.
Next to Fusako was Inori Yamanaka. She had long ash blond hair that reached down to her back. It was spiky on top and ended in a long ponytail. She had her forehead protector on with two strands of long blond bangs that framed her face behind it, putting emphasis on her blue-green eyes. She was wearing her flak jacket over a standard black outfit. To her left was one of her best friends and fellow clan head, Shikari Nara. Shikari had two scars on the right side of her face. That however didn't detract from her beauty, something all the clan heads had. She had her hair up in a spiky ponytail, dark eyes and pierced ears. She was wearing a meshed shirt underneath her flak jacket and standard kunoichi pants, like her friend Inori. To Shikari's right was the third of their trio, Chomei Akamichi. She was, "well-rounded" woman, as she always emphasized. She had long spiky red hair and purple markings on her cheeks. She was currently wearing a samurai like outfit, which composed of a black suit with armor that had on the kanji for food. She was a lover of it, like many of her clan.
Next to the "well-rounded" Akamichi was Shiina Aburame. The silent and cautious bug mistress was quietly listening in to the conversations of her fellow clan heads, giving in her input when asked. She, like all members of her clan, had her eyes obscured by dark glasses with had a single tassel hanging from its left side. She had her brown hair put into a single bun with a high collared outfit on. She currently had her hands in her pockets.
Finally to Shiina's right was Tsume Inuzuka. Like much of the Inuzuka clan, she had a bit of an animalistic look to her. She had long, spiky brown hair that was unruly. Her eyes had vertical, slit-like pupils, elongated canine teeth and nails. She also had her clan fang markings on her cheeks as well as markings over her eyes and a dark shade of purple lipstick. She had on her flak jacket with a black suit underneath with her sleeves rolled up and bandages on her legs.
Before the Hokage was the heads of Konoha's most prominent clans. These were also the clans that were extremely close to her now deceased successor's family. All the clan heads and their wives were close friends to Minako and her wife Kushina. And despite what many thought would be animosity between Minako and Fusako, due to Fusako not being chosen for the position for Hokage and Minako chosen instead, they held a friendly rivalry but an even closer friendship. Their wives were extremely similar in their friendship as well.
All the clan heads and their wives were saddened to hear about the deaths of their two friends, as well as believing that their child sadly perished alongside Kushina. Today; however, would be the day that Hitomi would inform them of Naruto's survival, but also the circumstances surrounding his birth and the burden he carried. She had little disbelief that the village along with the civilian council would call for the young one's head on a stick. She did believe, though, that the kunoichi council would think differently.
Her biggest fear though, was Danza. She knew beyond a shadow of a doubt that Danza would take Naruto under her wing to train him into a mindless agent, much like the rest of her ROOT. And even if Naruto didn't know how to wield his chakra or if his coils wouldn't develop if the Kyuubi's chakra didn't assist with his growth, she would use him as a breeding tool in the future for Konoha to have extremely strong kunoichi in the future due to Naruto's genetics with her former teammates following along with the idea.
Thankfully, Tsunade and Miraiya were in town and would not be leaving anytime soon. This meant that if the clan heads were to side with her on the matter, she would not only have Naruto protected by his grandparents/parents, but he would also be under the protection of all of Konoha's prominent clans. And her advisors wouldn't be able to inform the civilian council of the matter due to the information being an SSS-Ranked secret that are kunoichi eyes and ears only. All this combined gave the Hokage enough confidence that Danza wouldn't be able to touch her surrogate grandson without going through one hell of an army.
"All right, quiet down." Hitomi spoke out, disrupting the chatter between the clan heads. At this all eyes were on the aged kunoichi. "This meeting has been called due to the importance of a child being recently born. This child…"
"If I may, Hokage-sama? What could possibly be so important about one child's birth after the wake of destruction from the Kyuubi attack?" Danza cut in with a sharp and rude tone.
Looking at her advisor and "friend" with a look that essentially asked 'Really?', Hitomi retorted. "Well, if you let me finish a sentence, Danza, I might be able to inform everyone here, including you, about the importance of this child. Now, I would kindly ask for you to shut your mouth."
Snickering came from Tsume, who quickly stopped upon discovering that all eyes were on her with amused looks on their faces. Well, everyone besides the advisors. Clearing her throat, she spoke. "I apologize, Lady Hokage. Please continue."
Shaking her head, she resumed. "Yes. As I was saying, this child is important due to its parentage." Taking a second to pause and see if her words caught everyone's attention, which did, she spoke out. "This child was born from our now deceased Forth Hokage, Minako Namikaze and her wife, Kushina Uzumaki-Namikaze."
Silence was the immediate feedback. However, Hitomi could feel the wave of joy that washed over the clan heads. They had known that Kushina was pregnant, and come to find out that she had given birth and the child managed to survive. After the wave of joy; however, came a wave of questions.
"Where is the child!?" shouted an excited Tsume. She was a fan of Kushina's personality. While level-headed and cheerful with a side of sassiness, Kushina had a hairpin trigger temper and violently lashed out against others that angered her. This always left for a good story to be told about Kushina, many of which Tsume was around for. She was a close friend and promised Kushina that should anything happen to her, she would take care of her child, no matter what.
"Is the child well?" asked an outwardly calm, but inwardly frantic Shiina. The Aburame clan was always thought of as strange and most kunoichi and civilian opted to stay away from their members. However, the Fourth and Kushina always treated them fairly and like any other human being, without making them feel like strange beings, leading them to be the first real friends of the clan. This led to many in the clan to have great affection for the two, Shiina and her wife being the closest. Due to this, like Tsume, Shiina vowed to care for their child in their place, as a friend would do.
"Is it a boy or girl!? Can we see it!?" exclaimed the Ino-Shika-Cho trio. Like Shiina and Tsume, the trio and their wives were close friends with Kushina and Minako. While at first, the clan heads and wives were wary of Kushina, due to her being an outsider, she proved her worth as a kunoichi and managed to break the notion that outsiders were not good for Konoha. The trio with Kushina and Minako would often eat at Chomei's home, played games of strategy at Shikari's and discussed business ventures and such at Inori's. As such, the trio of clan heads also vowed to protect their dear friend's child at any cost.
Asami and Fusako kept quiet, but the looks on their faces spoke everything. They were glad their friend's child was alive and well, and wanted to know if it was possible to meet said child. Asami and her wife Hikari had married in secret at the same time as Minako and Kushina. Asami's wife was an outsider of the Hyuga clan, who had strict traditions of often keeping things within the clan itself. Asami, who although very loyal to her clan, grew tired of traditions as well as the clan's usage of the Caged Bird Seal, a way to seal the Byakugan, the clan's prized Dojutsu. However, its second purpose was to control the Branch Family, Hyuga members who served the Main House as essentially, slaves. Tired of the separation of the households, Asami swore to her twin sister and herself that she would banish the seal and bring the houses together. Minako and Kushina, both seal experts, were willing to assist at any means possible, due to it being such a noble cause. This and many other factors drew Asami close to Minako and Kushina, and thus allowed them to be such good friends.
Fusako had her own issues with her clan. There were growing tensions between the Uchiha clan and many members of Konoha, more specifically, some members of the council. These tensions; however, began long before Minako had taken the seat of Hokage. Hashirimi didn't want Madari Uchiha's actions of challenging her to right to rule to be held against the rest of the Uchiha. However her sister and successor, Tobimara, was wary of the Uchiha, believing they could never be fully convinced to fully commit to Konoha's best interests. For this reason, she created the Konoha Police Force, which she left the Uchiha to be in charge of. Officially, it was to be a sign of good faith, but many Uchiha interpreted it as the start of their clan's isolation from Konoha's affairs.
As time passed, many Uchiha came to believe that Madari had been right her belief that the Uchiha would never be treated as equals and that they would be ostracized. However, when Fusako had taken leadership of the clan and when Minako had taken her role of Hokage, the two began to work out ways to show the Uchiha could indeed be trusted, despite the protests of Danza and Hitomi's former teammates. It was these actions that had Fusako believing that the time of animosity between Konoha and the Uchiha would be over thanks to her growing friendship with Minako and her wife. Before their untimely end, Fusako and her wife had grown extremely close to the Namikaze pair, even considering the possibility of forming a marriage contract between theirs and Minako's child. Knowing their child indeed survived, Fusako wanted nothing more than to take the child under the Uchiha clan. Partly for it's potential to help create stronger clan members, similar thoughts to her fellow clan heads. After all, they were clan heads, looking for ways to strengthen their own clans. However, their love for the pair outweighed these thoughts.
As the once quiet meeting erupted into a spewing volcano of questions about her surrogate grandchild, Hitomi sighed in annoyance and began rubbing her forehead. 'Oh, Kami. What have I gotten myself into? I don't even want to mention the rest of Naruto's situation. Oh, well. A Hokage's got to do what a Hokage's got to do. Minako, my dear, I love you but I despise you for leaving me in this predicament.' Raising her hand, the Hokage took in a deep breath before unleashing her strong voice to the noisy clan heads. "ENOUGH!" She snapped. Apparently, that did the trick as all the clan heads quieted down. Though they all had annoyed looks on their faces that essentially spoke, 'We just wanted to know how the child's doing.'
"Now that I have your undivided attention," Hitomi began. "I can inform you of the situation regarding the child. Firstly, it's a boy. His full name is Naruto Senju Uzumaki Namikaze. As you are all well aware, he takes the Senju name from his maternal grandmother, Tsunade Senju, my student. He also takes the Namikaze name from my other student and his paternal grandmother, Miraiya as well as his paternal mother, the former Fourth Hokage, Minako Namikaze. His Uzumaki name is from his maternal mother, Kushina Uzumaki. I reiterated this to fully declare to this council the heritage of Konoha's youngest hero."
"How could a child, more importantly, a newborn boy that cannot use chakra possibly be a hero?" Asked Hitomi's former teammate, Homara. Let it be known that Homara despised men and viewed them as nothing more than servants to womankind.
Sighing in frustration, Hitomi replied. "If everyone can stop speaking, I can get to that!" Seeing that all attention was on her, she continued. "Thank you. Now, the reason that young Naruto is a hero to Konoha is simple. As you are all aware, the Kyuubi, the being that destroyed our village not two days ago, is one of nine titanic living forms of chakra created by the Sage of Six Paths. As such, these beings cannot be killed."
Folding her hands together and resting her elbows on the table in front of her, the Goddess of Kunoichi continued. "Going into battle against the Kyuubi, Minako knew this. She knew that the only way to beat the Kyuubi was to once again seal it into someone. Initially, Minako's idea was to seal it back into Kushina, Kyuubi's original jailor. However, the chances of the sealing actually succeeding were less than ideal."
Tsume interjected. "But why not? I mean, we all know how much of an expert Minako was in sealing. In fact, the only person in this entire village who could even remotely match up to her was Kushina herself, and we all know that that's because she was the one who taught Minako herself with Lady Miraiya's assistance. How would the sealing fail?"
At this, many of the clan heads were also intrigued. They weren't experts in the art of Fuinjutsu, and would admit that getting Minako and Kushina to try and explain their level of Fuinjutsu in its simplest of terms would be like trying to teach a four year old advanced game theory. Even Shikari Nara, the resident genius of Konoha had a difficult time trying to understand them at times, often calling their immense knowledge on the subject, "Troublesome."
Hitomi continued. "Mainly, it was due to the condition of the vessel, Kushina. For any Jinchuriki, childbirth is one of the most difficult times as the seal would be at its weakest. After Kushina gave birth to Naruto, her body was already at its weakened state. Then right after, the Kyuubi was ripped out of its seal, put a greater deal of strain on the already weakened Kushina. And even in her weakened state, she pushed her body even further to fight alongside her wife in the battle to draw the Kyuubi away from destroying the village any further. After managing to hold the Kyuubi down with her own chakra chains, Kushina was far too frail at that point to have Kyuubi placed back inside of her. It would be like taking a paper cup, crushing it and folding it and placing small cuts around the side, and then filling it up to the brim with water. It would leak and the cup would inevitably break. Essentially, if Minako were to seal Kyuubi back into Kushina, it would have put us back to square one, with Kyuubi still on the loose."
Now in understanding of the circumstance, all the clan heads nodded their heads. However, one clan head was putting all the pieces together of why the son of her friend's was a hero. 'If they couldn't put it back into Kushina, then of course they would have to find another vessel for the beast. But in the middle of a battle with all the civilians being evacuated by Kunoichi, who would they choose to…' At this, the Nara clan head's eyes widened in understanding and shock as a single tear fell down her cheek, knowing the difficult life ahead for the newborn. 'Minako, you troublesome woman. You did this to your own child?'
Taking notice of her reaction, Hitomi quietly spoke. "I believe you understand now, why young Naruto is a hero to this village, Shikari?"
Nodding, Shikari composed herself to reply to her leader. "Yes, Lady Hokage. Since Minako couldn't use Kushina, they had to choose someone close enough to the battle that would be able to seal Kyuubi into. Even with Kyuubi exerting most of its chakra during the battle, it still would have had enough to kill any adult it would be sealed into, since it would overload their chakra coils. So, they would have to choose a child. More specifically, a newborn, to be able to have its chakra coils grow and adapt to the immense chakra the Kyuubi holds."
Uttering her first words since entering the meeting, Asami Hyuga spoke with widened eyes of understanding as she turned to look at her Hokage. "She sealed into her own child, didn't she?"
At this, all eyes of the ninja council turned focused their attention onto the Goddess of Kunoichi. In return, Hitomi Sarutobi gave a solemn, single nod in response. Naruto Senju Uzumaki Namikaze, son of two of Konoha's greatest Kunoichi, was the new Jinchuriki of Kyuubi no Yoko.
A sense of shock flowed through the entire room. A thought on many of the clan head's minds were of how Minako Namikaze could place such a heavy burden on her own child. It wasn't a secret of how jinchuriki were treated. Often times, they were hated and ostracized by their fellow villagers, treated no different than the beast they contain. Many villagers would be glad to get rid of their jinchuriki. To put this burden on her child was, in their thoughts, insane.
Sensing their confusion and frustration, Hitomi continued her explanation of the reason of Naruto being chosen as the new jinchuriki of the Kyuubi. Echoing her explanation to Tsunade and Miraiya a few nights earlier, she continued off of Shikari's explanation regarding the need for a newborn child to be used in a sealing rather than an adult. She also went into detail regarding the intricate details of the sealing and how it cost Minako her own life to seal the Kyuubi, part of her chakra and Kushina's chakra into Naruto to reinforce the seal as well as be there for Naruto to help control the beast's chakra or hold it back should it ever leak out.
Afterwards, she explained Minako's choice. She described how much Minako loved Konoha and how she wouldn't be able to put such a burden on any of her kunoichi or villagers' children if she couldn't do it to her own son. At this, the clan heads understood, though their tears for the hard life ahead for Naruto continued to shed.
However, the only two clan heads of the room that did not shed tears were Asami and Fusako. It wasn't that they didn't feel emotion for the young newborn. But in their minds, they weren't going to waste time shedding tears over the situation when they could make it better. Whether or not the Hokage revealed everything to the civilian portion of the council or the village itself, Naruto would need protection. Both Asami and Fusako were already thinking of ways to bring the blonde jinchuriki into their clans and have him grow up with their respective clans in his good graces. After all, Asami was expecting a child and Fusako had her daughter Suki as a possible partner for Naruto. His lineage plus her clan's would make unstoppable kunoichi, with Asami thinking of such benefits as well. It seemed a bit underhanded, but if they could help out a close friend's child and get something out of it, who wouldn't jump on the opportunity in this world? They were ninja after all, and ninjas never played fair.
The discussion continued and after a through explanation on difference of a jinchuriki and its prisoner, mostly in reassurance that young Naruto wouldn't be a threat to the village's safety even though Kushina was the prime example. It was then that Hitomi discussed the last portion of their meeting regarding Naruto, his possibility of being able to use chakra.
"WHAT!?" The clan heads shouted. Surprisingly, even the quiet Shiina, Fusako and Asami yelled in shock.
"I'm sorry, Hokage-sama. I must be hearing things. Could you repeat that again?" Asked the Yamanaka clan head.
"It's as I said," the aged Sarutobi replied. "There is a possibility that Naruto would be able to wield chakra in the future."
"Forgive my interruption my lady," spoke the Aburame clan head. "But would this be in part due to the Kyuubi?"
"Partially," Hitomi explained. "But there are other factors that allow for this strong possibility. For instance, you have to remember that Minako and Kushina were two of our strongest kunoichi. Both Minako and Kushina had extremely massive reserves, Minako from her parentage and Kushina coming from the Uzumaki clan, who as we all know possessed incredibly strong life forces, granting them very long lifespans. Uzumaki's also had the ability to heal and rejuvenate allies through heal bites. As Kushina and Minako always fought side by side, their chakra always mixed with each other, including the Kyuubi's since Kushina's seal allowed her to take an amount of Kyuubi's chakra for battle without it corrupting her. This in effect increased both of their reserves, not to mention the consistent training they put themselves through to keep in shape. All of these factors, Kushina and Minako's reserves, Naruto's heritage of the Senju clan and his grandparents being two of my strongest students and having the Kyuubi give chakra to Naruto in which is essentially the same seal Kushina had, would quite possibly mean that Naruto's chakra coils would be large enough for usage, and unlike most males, his chakra points would allow chakra to fully flow throughout his body, allowing him to tap into said reserves. Basically…"
It was here that the Nara clan head picked up from where the Hokage left off. "Basically, Naruto Senju Uzumaki Namikaze would be the first male to be able to use chakra to its fullest potential since the Sage of Six Paths." Interlocking her fingers together and placing her elbows on the table in front of her, she continued as she rested her chin on top of her interlocked hands. "This makes Naruto the single most important person in Konoha, not just for the Kyuubi, but also the possibility of his being able to wield chakra."
Nodding her head, the Hokage of Konoha motioned for Shikari to continue. "Please, Shikari. I think you also figured out why he is the most important person to Konoha at this point."
"It was the topic of discussion, Lady Hokage," Shikari replied. "His lineage. Even if Naruto is not capable of wielding chakra, he's inevitably going to inherit his paternal mother's and grandmother's extremely high intellect as well as his maternal mother's extraordinary sensing ability. Then there is the Senju line from Lady Tsunade, which is another lineage of strong and smart kunoichi dating back to the first and second Hokage. His subsequent children would inherit the genetics of all of Konoha's strongest kunoichi. In short, he's going to be the perfect male."
At this, the entire room fell quiet once more at the implications of what was said. All clan heads immediately realized just how important Naruto was to the village. He would be the walking reincarnation of his mothers, grandmothers, and great-grandmothers before him, with or without the usage of chakra. He would be beautiful, ridiculously so and his intellect would go toe to toe with that of the Naras. He'd be the dream man for all of their daughters to marry, or maybe even themselves if their wives would allow it. It'd be perfect. Not only would they be protecting their friend's child, but they'd also get something out of the deal. Again, they were ninjas after all. Unfortunately, Danza had very similar thoughts. 'It seems there is now a much valuable resource for Konoha. I would need for Naruto to be taken under my wing.'
Danza's thoughts however were interrupted as one clan head would set off one of many cat fights, all regarding who would inevitably be the world's favorite jinchuriki, Naruto Senju Uzumaki Namikaze. "Lady Hokage," Began the Hyuga clan head as she stood up. "I would like to petition that Naruto Senju Uzumaki Namikaze be adopted and placed under the care and protection of the Hyuga clan. As a close friend to not only Kushina but Minako as well, I believe myself and the members of my clan are more than qualified to raise the child, and would see to it that he is kept safe from any and all dangers that would threaten him."
Sighing, Hitomi Sarutobi mentally counted down to the inevitable. 'And in 3… 2… 1…" At this, her head fell, almost as if it were timed with the completely expected, "EXCUSE ME!?" from all the subsequent clan heads. 'Daughter of a bastard, I knew this was coming.' Hitomi mentally cursed.
"The Uchiha clan would do a much better job to raise the young boy." Began Fusako as she glared at the Hyuga head, who without hesitation, glared right back. "Not only would we offer the same protection to the child, but also provide a training regime and education that would far surpass the limitations of the Hyugas. We can not only watch over him, but also give him the training he would need to defend himself."
At this, Asami scoffed. "Please, Fusako. I wish to adopt Naruto. I want him to be raised as a child, not as a weapon."
Tsume interjected, "Yeah! Besides, since Naruto has the Kyuubi in him, he would be better suited to stay with the Inuzuka clan, where we can fully monitor if he does develop animalistic tendencies, which we can help him control!"
"Faulty reasoning if anything, Tsume." Spoke out the quiet Aburame clan heiress.
"Like you can come up with something better! The Inuzuka will take him in!" The feral beauty replied.
"Hey! What about us!?" Shouted the Ino-Shika-Cho trio.
Rolling her eyes, Fusako replied. "What about you?"
The meeting room descended into a shouting match/debate/free-for-all regarding young Naruto, with Hitomi wanting to bash her head against the desk in frustration. In the end, The Goddess of Kunoichi had enough as she yelled at the top of her lungs while leaking out enough killing intent to draw their attention, "WILL ALL OF YOU SHUT THE FUCK UP!?"
At this, all eyes were on Hitomi, widened in shock. It was rare for the Hokage to swear. Sensing her distress and anger, the killing intent helping out immensely, all the clan heads took their seats and muttered out their apologies. Clearing her throat, Hitomi continued. "For Kami's sake, we are Kunoichi. We are supposed to be acting like proud warriors, not like little children in the playground arguing over a child like he's some damn toy! And while I don't doubt your intentions of wanting to help your friends, I do know you are trying to arrange for your future children along with my students' grandchild. Now, I know we do not have honor among ninja like the samurai have, the least we can have is diplomacy. So I expect you all to sit there, look pretty, listen well, and wait for me to give you permission to speak, otherwise I will show you just how I earned my title. Is. That. Clear?" At the end, she began to leak out killing intent again, in hopes it would cause the clan heads to listen. And thankfully, it worked as they all nodded.
Sighing in relief, she spoke. "Thank you. Now, as for Naruto's arrangements, he will be staying with his grandparents."
At this, Danza saw an opportunity to counter. With Tsunade's questionable reputation due to her abandoning Konoha after the deaths of her first lover Pan and her sister Narami, as well as Miraya having to run her spy network, Naruto would have two guardians that would be ill-suited to live with. As such, she could take Naruto under her wing and raise him within the ROOT program. However, Hitomi wasn't Hokage for nothing, and knew of Danza's scheming ways. "Before you start Danza, remember that Tsunade returned to the village at a time long before Naruto's birth to reconcile and get to know her daughter and daughter-in-law. During that time, she has taken a place here at the hospital in training the staff in medical ninjutsu as well as cleaning up many of her habits. Miraiya still runs her spy network, but will be, for the most part, using messenger toads and other informants to monitor and manage her organization from here in Konoha and will leave Naruto in Tsunade's capable hands as well as that of her apprentice's only when necessary."
Growling, the war-hawk replied. "I simply wish for him to be used for what he is."
"He isn't a kunai nor a shuriken, Danza." Hitomi said angrily. "He is an infant and citizen to this village, and as such, I will not have you use him and treat him as a tool."
"You are making a grave mistake, Hitomi," Danza shot back. "If this were to get out to the village, they will have his head! And should the other villages find out, they will take him and use him as their own weapon, if not breeding stock. The possibilities are endless with him, and I can mold those possibilities for our village!"
"Those possibilities will not come to fruition! Any and all details regarding Naruto Senju Uzumaki Namikaze and his condition of being a Jinchuriki and possible wielder of chakra are to be kept within the confides of this room as well as within this council. The civilian section, population nor council, shall not hear even a syllable of this discussion. And as such, should any of you divulge such information to the populous; I will personally have your heads after Tsunade and Miraiya deal with you." At this, Hitomi gave a hard look to all in the room, eyes daring for anyone to go against her wishes.
Knowing she lost this battle due to the irrefutable evidence of Tsunade's improvement as well as the explanation of Miraiya's dealings with her grandchild, she conceded. 'However, I will have him, Hitomi. Mark my words.'
"Now, as I stated. Naruto will be staying with his grandparents in the Senju compound. Tsunade and Miraiya have officially adopted Naruto and as stated, will be raising him. As for training and education, that will be left up to his adoptive parents as well as dealings with the clan." Gaining a sinister thought of having her students deal with the arguing clan heads, she added. "In fact, Naruto and his new family will be moving into the Senju compound today. As such, if you'd like to make a good first impression of your clans upon his Tsunade and Miraiya, you could go and greet them with offerings of housewarming and meeting the young newborn yourself."
At this, the clan heads perked up. Immediately, all clan heads politely asked, "Would that be all Hokage-sama?"
Knowing that her plan worked and that her students would now have to suffer from the clan heads dealings like she had, she smiled and nodded. As if on signal, the clan heads began racing out the room to head to their homes and prepare themselves and their gifts for the new family moving into the Senju compound. After all, it was simply to welcome Tsunade and Miraiya formally and to meet Naruto. It wasn't to make an impression on his parents/grandparents at all. No, of course not!
Looking to her side, Hitomi notice that her former teammates were deep in thought. "Still having reservations about young Naruto?" It seems that they were still having a hard time of differentiating a Jinchuriki and their prisoner. It was to be expected. There was always fear regarding Jinchuriki, that the beasts they contained would somehow get out and kill senselessly.
Homara, looking up to her hold teammate turned Hokage asked, "Are we sure, that the child is not the Kyuubi? Or that it won't get out?"
Looking towards her pair, Hitomi replied. "You both met and dealt with Kushina. And while your personalities clashed, you could truly see that Kushina was not the reincarnation of the Kyuubi nor were there any signs of it getting out. It took a Kunoichi to release it. And as I recall, you both eventually took a liking to Kushina, knowing what she holds. Are you meaning to say that you won't be able to feel the same regarding her child who carries that burden she once carried?"
"It's just that the circumstances have changed, Hitomi." Replied Koharu. "Kushina was a full grown woman that had already had previous training in dealing with the Kyuubi and it's chakra. Now, it's in a new born child. Will the seals hold? Will it grow up and not become the beast in the future?"
Sighing, Hitomi shook her head. However, she couldn't blame her teammates. After all, they were afraid. Fear gives way to doubt. "I understand your reservations, but remember. You have a seal's mistress watching over Naruto, and will always check and reinforce the seal if need-be. If you'd like, why don't you go with the clan heads to talk to Miraiya about the intricacies of the sealing, and maybe meet Naruto for yourself. You can then form your own opinions afterwards. After all, we were taught to get all the facts before we come to a decision, should we not?"
Looking to each other, Homara and Koharu nodded in agreement with Hitomi's words. While they had their doubts, Kushina was a prime example of disproving that the Kyuubi could take over Naruto. Still, they had to be sure. "That sounds like a good idea, Hitomi." Voiced Homara.
"We may do just that." Koharu said in turn.
Nodding with a small smile, she watched as her former teammates left the room, hoping they would indeed follow her advice to meet young Naruto. Standing up, she began to leave her room to return to her office and begin her paperwork, when she looked back and noticed that Danza was still seated. Shaking her head, she continued to make her way towards the door until she was just about to reach the doorknob, when Hitomi spoke. "Will I be hearing that you visited the Senju compound later tonight, Danza? Or should I have my ANBU on standby should you try anything?"
Scoffing from her seat, Danza replied. "Please, Hitomi. While I may disagree with you in regards to how you will be handling the young Uzumaki, I know better than to question my Hokage."
"Pfft, that has never stopped you before Danza." Hitomi said sharply.
Danza ignored her words as she slowly rose and made her way to the door, before she too will stopped at the door. She turned her head to face Hitomi and said, "I will have other opportunities to get to know the boy. But for now, I have a meeting to prepare for tonight." At that, she excited the room.
Hitomi, knowing the underlying message of Danza "getting to know the boy" knew she had a lot more battles in store regarding Naruto. Shaking her head for what felt like the umpteenth time that day, she looked up at the ceiling and quietly mumbled, "I'm getting too old for this shit." She then made her way to her office before collapsing in her chair and taking in the sight of her stacks of paper work before she slammed her head against her desk, exhausted by the day's events. Her only comfort was that at least Tsunade and Miraiya would have to deal with a house full of clamoring clan heads, all eager to get into their good graces. And at that, she brought her head up with a smirk before she returned to her dreaded enemy, paperwork.
*Back at The Dango Shop*
We find ourselves at the end of Kumiko's explanation of the events of the Kyuubi attack and the events that followed. From the masked Kunoichi, to the sealing of the Kyuubi, and meeting Naruto with everything in between, not a single detail was left unspoken between the Ice Queens of Konoha. And much like herself when she first heard the story, all her friends were wiping away tears and attempting to recompose themselves. From little Hana to Kurenai, all in attendance were unprepared for the amount and weight of the information regarding the Kyuubi attack and its aftermath.
After what seemed like hours, Anko was the first to speak. "So, Kushina-Nee and Mina-Nee's son really holds…"
Nodding, Kumiko replied. "Yes." Cautiously looking at her friends, she asked. "Does that change your opinion on him? Knowing what he carries? Knowing who he is?"
It was quiet for a bit, and the silence wasn't comforting to Kumiko. Was she wrong in thinking that her friends wouldn't see Naruto as the Kyuubi? She was expecting the worst to come from their mouths when finally, Kurenai spoke out. "No way, Kumiko." At that, turned her attention to Kurenai, who continued. "I can't speak for the others, but I know the difference between a kunai and a sealing scroll. Just like Kushina-Nee wasn't the Kyuubi, I know her son won't be."
The way she spoke in confidence and the seeing the truth behind her words in her eyes, Kumiko sighed in relief. If all else failed, at least Kurenai understood. However, her hopes continued to rise as the others spoke out. "I agree with Kurenai-chan, sempai." Kumiko groaned internally at the "sempai" from Yugao, but allowed her to continue, as all attention was on her. "Kushina-Nee was always kind and caring. She always listened to our problems and gave us advice on our dealings as ninjas. From day to day, I watched and observed her, I can say beyond a shadow of a doubt, that she and the Kyuubi are two separate beings. And just because her son now holds the beast, doesn't mean he is it. The cages have changed, but the situation hasn't. Naruto is Naruto. Kyuubi is Kyuubi."
Nodding, Kumiko and the others turned their attention to Hana, who was sitting next to Yugao. Kumiko then asked. "What about you, Hana? What do you think?"
Shaking her head, Hana replied. "No. He isn't Kyuubi. I only knew Kushina-Nee for a short time, but I already knew that she wasn't the monster she carried. We were taught that Kyuubi is a fearsome creature, capable of great anger and destruction. And that was never Nee-chan. She was kind and loving and sweet. Except to Mina-Nee when she did something dumb and deserved it."
At that last comment, all the girls shared a good laughed before they turned their attention to the last member of their group, Anko. Noticing all eyes were on her, she shrugged. "Hey, I agree with the gaki."
"Hey!" Exclaimed said gaki, Hana.
"Ehh, it's what you are, runt. Anyway, just like you girls, I'm smart enough to know the difference between a tailed beast and their prison." Anko said as she munched down on another piece of dango.
Kurenai joked and said, "Wow. I never would have figured you had such intellect!"
"Mou," Anko said playfully. "Kure-chan is mean!"
Under the genjutsu, laughter could be heard from the girls as they were getting back into a better mood. Sure, the loss of their sister figures was still there, but they had their son to help look after.
It was at that thought that Kumiko offered a suggestion to her fellow ice queens. "Hey, Tsunade-Sama and Miraiya-Sama are moving into the Senju compound with Naruto and Shizune-san. You girls wanna' go and see if they need help? Maybe then we can have you girls meet Naruto?"
"Hell yeah!" Exclaimed the eager snake apprentice. At that, she quickly left her seat and made for the exit.
After a few seconds, Hana spoke out with a sweatdrop. "Does she even know where the Senju compound is?" She was met with a shaking heads from her seniors.
Sighing, Kumiko replied. "We better go after her."
The girls stood up after Kurenai released the genjutsu and Kumiko released the privacy jutsu before Yugao, Kurenai, and Kumiko left money on the table. Anko had already done so and Hana didn't have any due to her not being a kunoichi yet. Immediately, they quickly made their way out the shop and after their excited friend, whom they immediately found outside the store, bashfully admitting that she had no idea where she was going. All shaking their heads at her ridiculous actions, they calmly made their way towards the Senju compound after Kumiko's lead, unaware of the impending pandemonium that was already beginning to take place at the once quiet home.
*8:00 P.M at The Senju Compound*
Tsunade Senju-Namikaze, who mind you refused to drop her last name when she got married, was many things. She was beauty beyond recognition and understanding, a strong and clever kunoichi, and at times, loyal to a fault. However there was one thing she wasn't and that was patient. Tsunade was capable of great love and compassion, as evident in her love for wife Miraiya, her apprentice Shizune, her daughter Minako, her daughter-in-law Kushina, and even only if it had been a few days, her son/grandson Naruto was part of that love. However despite that love and compassion, Tsunade hated having her patience tested. And it was currently being tested, in her own home. Why?
Well, let's recap, shall we? After Miraiya had pulled herself out of the wall she was imbedded in and signed the paperwork regarding Naruto's adoption, she quickly caught up with her Tsunade, Naruto and Shizune at the compound. During the meeting of the clan heads and Kumiko informing her friends, the family spent their day picking out clothes for Naruto and furniture for around the house. After all, who wants to use furniture that hadn't been used in decades and there were no baby furnishings around the house for Naruto. After buying their new furniture, which consisted of new couches, beds, a new refrigerator, etcetera; and sealing them in scrolls, the dysfunctional family of four made their way back to the compound and after taking out the old furniture and burning them with a Katon jutsu, they family was about to settle in and make dinner when the doorbell rang.
At the gates, ringing the bell was none other than Asami Hyuga and her wife pregnant wife Hikari with a tray of Hikari's freshly made cinnamon buns. The Hyugas were invited in and Asami's had informed them of the clan head's meeting. They also, according to Asami, wished to welcome the Senju-Namikaze family to their home formally and meet young Naruto. Tsunade, knowing that this was simply a formality to try and get into her good graces, simply let it go and indulged the Hyuga head. After all, there was nothing wrong with gaining a few allies after being informed of Danza wanting to induct Naruto into ROOT. Upon entering the home, The Hyugas immediately made their way towards Naruto, who was in Miraiya's arms. Safe to say, The Hyugas shed tears and were smitten by the young blonde.
All in all, the night was going well and Tsunade was enjoying herself, along with Miraiya and Shizune, who was off to the side with Hikari playing with Naruto. That is, until the doorbell rang again. At the gate was the Uchiha head Fusako and her wife Mikoto. Fusako was holding a platter of Mikoto's tomato salad. Sighing, knowing that Fusako had the same intentions as the Hyugas, Tsunade once again let it go and let them in. Initially, Fusako and Asami were glaring daggers at each other, but were stopped by their respective wives. However, tension remained until like the Hyugas, the Uchihas met young Naruto, who also shed tears and were smitten by him.
This was a pattern that continued for the night as many of the other clan heads had arrived with their wives and a welcoming gift. There was Inori Yamanaka and her wife Izumi with a bouquet of a wide assortment of flowers from their flower shop. Then came, Shikari Nara and her wife Yoshino, with Shikari holding a complete shogi and chess set. She argued with Yoshino about what to get the Senju-Namikaze family and finally decided on a shogi and chess set, which Yoshino called stupid and Shikari with a simple rebuttal of "Troublesome."
Anyway, then came the Akamichis, Chomei and her wife Sana with a large platter of barbeque. You wouldn't be able to tell, but a few pieces were missing from the platter. When asked about it by her wife Sana, Chomei denied any involvement, though the slight barbeque sauce stains on her fingertips and lips said otherwise. The Akamichis were then followed by Shiina Aburame and her wife Yui with a platter of fried rice, courtesy of the barbeque restaurant owned by the Akamichis. It may have just been a take-out party platter, but no one could argue with how delicious Akamichi cooking was. Finally the last of the clan heads arrived, and simply brought… Well, herself. She told Tsunade she was simply there for Naruto and to discuss the possibility of forming a marriage contract with Naruto and her newborn daughter, Kyrinnia. 'Well, at least she's honest and upfront about the situation, unlike the rest of these clowns.' Thought Tsunade with a sweat drop.
Speaking of honest and upfront, next to arrive were Homara and Koharu. Just like Tsume, they were upfront with their reason for the visit, and that was to truly see if Naruto was the Kyuubi or not and to discuss the sealing with Miraiya. Though angered by the insinuation that her daughter's sealing abilities were subpar, she was placated by Miraiya, who informed her that they were simply afraid and did not understand the intricacies of the situation. At least they brought chocolate cake, and there definitely weren't remnants of a torn price tag on the bottom of the tray. Nope, none at all.
Finally to arrive were the Ice Queens of Konoha, as well as their trainee. Tsunade didn't mind them coming over, considering how close they were to Kushina and Minako and that unlike the clan heads, had no intentions other than meeting Naruto and wanting to keep him safe. She did mind the noise; however, when they like the clan heads saw Naruto. It wasn't the crying though, it was the squealing and constant giggling as they were playing with Naruto, and every smile he gave them made them squeal and giggle tenfold.
The once quiet home had become a symphony of various noises that were beginning to give Tsunade a headache. From the clan heads arguing of who gets the marriage contract with Naruto, to the giggling and squealing, and everything in between. And thus we find ourselves with a fuming Tsunade sitting on the dining chair watching the madness around her with a bottle of sake in her hand. At some point, she disregarding the serving dish and decided to drink straight from the bottle in an attempt to calm herself. And it seemed that the noises were about to reach their peak, when something unexpected happened.
Coming down the stairs were Koharu and Homara, followed by Miraiya. When they initially entered, the former teammates of the hokage were greeted with silence as the house fell silent. It didn't take a Torture and Interrogation member to know that Koharu and Homara were cautious of the young blonde newborn. Immediately, they requested an audience with Miraiya to learn about the sealing. That had been nearly two hours from when they entered the Senju household.
As they descended the stairs, all eyes were on turned towards the elders and silence permeated throughout the living room and dining room. The clan heads, Ice Queens, and Slug Sannin watched with bated breath as they made their way towards the Ice Queens and wives of the clan heads, who were playing with the young hero. After they had stopped in front of the Ice Queens and clan wives, Koharu and Homara turned towards Miraiya. From her position on the stairs, overlooking the entire bottom floor, the Toad mistress simply nodded. At that, Homara turned to face Kurenai, who was holding young Naruto. Homara then did something that shocked all in the room.
Holding her arms out, Homara asked, "May I see him?" Eyes of nearly everyone in the room widened to the size of dinner plates. Tsunade; however, believed it to be a trick in which Homara or Koharu would hold Naruto and feign joy and care, only to take a kunai and kill her son. Tsunade quickly stood up in an effort to make her way towards the elders, only to hear her wife call her.
"Tsunade, let them." Miraiya spoke in a rare tone of seriousness.
"But Miraiya!" Cried the blonde Sannin.
However, Miraiya simply shook her head. "Just look." At that, both Sannin turned their attention to the elders. Homara still had her arms out, and Kurenai was looking at her in hesitation, thinking similar thoughts to that of Tsunade. Still holding on to the blonde bundle of joy she had come to care about so quickly, Kurenai looked up to Miraiya for confirmation. Receiving a nod, Kurenai nodded back and slowly began to hold Naruto out to the elder kunoichi.
Breaths of almost all in the room were held as Naruto was held and cradled in Homara's arms. Naruto then looked up to the elder. He didn't know who this was. He saw many faces of many pretty ladies, including his parents/grandparents, but this older lady was new. As Homara held Naruto closer to her face to inspect Naruto, she didn't expect for Naruto to reach out with his hands and take her glasses. He then started giggling, although everyone in the room didn't. Was it a mistake for him to be with Homara? Would she react negatively to the action? Homara was still stunned from his action of taking her glasses, but what she was stunned more, was his giggling. When she raised her eyebrow, the giggling turned into full blown laughter. Hey, he's a baby. It doesn't take much to make him laugh.
And then, something else unexpected happened. Homara began to, chuckle? It was soft at first, but as our blonde haired hero continued to laugh, her chuckling turned to laughter as well. She gently pried her glasses out of Naruto's grip, and placed them back on, and began to make silly faces at Naruto, who laughed even harder. Shocked expressions took the faces of all in the room, except Miraiya, who was simply smirking, as if she knew that was going to happen.
Homara was so distracted by her playing with Naruto that she didn't feel Koharu tap on her shoulder until after a few attempts. Turning around, Homara faced her former teammate, who asked one word. "Well?"
Looking at her for a few seconds, Homara's mouth formed a soft smile, something only a rare few got to see. "We were wrong." She simply said as she then held Naruto out for Koharu to hold.
Hesitant, she reached her arms out and held Naruto close to her chest. She then brushed the back of her right index finger against his whisker marks, to which Naruto closed his eyes and enjoyed the feeling and cooed. Eventually, Koharu had a soft smile on her face as she spoke. "How could we foolishly think you were a monster, young one?"
At that, all in the room holding their breaths, exhaled in relief and shook their heads in disbelief while some chucked, including Miraiya. Somehow, not even a year old, Naruto was able to convince two people, who strongly believed him to be the monster he held, that he indeed was not. This brought smile to many in the room, including a still shocked Tsunade, who was being held by a chuckling Miraiya from behind.
"I can't believe it…" The blonde Sannin said.
"It's right in front of you, Hime." Said Miraiya as she kissed the top of Tsunade's head. "If this isn't proof that he's going to change the world, I don't know what is."
As the Sannin duo looked on as Koharu continued to play with Naruto, the room devolved into idle chatter as the clan heads one by one, approached the elders. Watching from a distance; however, was Kumiko Hatake. She was leaving for her meeting with Danza. As she turned back to take in the scene around her, all the joy and peace that she hoped would never end, she knew better. This was a world full of pain and sorrow; however, she would happily charge into all of it, if she could come home to moments such as these. Where people would put aside their beliefs in an effort to learn and get along. She left, attracting no attention as she made her way towards the Hokage Monument, where she would begin her life as a double agent for her Hokage.
Speaking of the Hokage, Hitomi was looking out the window of her village. She had finally finished her dreaded paperwork and was smoking from her pipe, contemplating the day that had passed. She then recalled her mission for Kumiko, her meeting with the clan heads and elders, and of course her surrogate grandson, Naruto. Shaking her head, she couldn't believe how interesting things had happened only within the two days following the Kyuubi attack on the village. She then chucked to herself, before thinking aloud. "Not even a week old, and already you're making waves, Naru-chan. I wonder how much more you'll be making in the coming years."
If she were to have her window open, Hitomi would have heard the wind blowing, carrying what sounded like laughter. And indeed, someone was laughing. Up in heaven, Kami was giggling like a little schoolgirl, knowing just how true The Goddess of Kunoichi's words were.
Back in Konoha, inside the Senju compound, Naruto sneezed. Tsunade, who was holding on to Naruto after everyone had left, wiped his nose with a tissue. "Looks like someone is thinking of you, Naru-chan." She truly also had no idea just how true her words were.
End of Chapter 3
Dream Legion – Lol. True, but then again, isn't that many Fanfics of Naruto in a Kunoichi world?
Kreceir / BlankCode – Ah, yes. The shadow clone trope. Well, you'll be happy to know that I will… Actually, I'll keep that a secret. You're just gonna have to keep reading to find out! Yes. I am that evil! Mwahahahaahahaha! D
McRasengan – Thank you. I believe it has potential as well. Hopefully I'll be able to bring it out. Here's hoping.
Samuraikeichii – Thank you. And don't worry about that. This project will take the brunt of my time. I won't be taking anymore till I'm at a good pace with this one.
Demon Shadow 16 – I hope so too. However, with my work schedule, I won't be updating as I would have initially liked, but I know I'll always find time to write. And I find it sad that indeed, many stories are forgotten or incomplete. One of them is Assassin in a Kunoichi World by BookishTen8. I was so into it, but it sadly stopped. :'(
*Note: I'm back, folks! I am so sorry that it has taken me this long to update, but I assure you. I have not stopped working on this story. In fact, this chapter was probably the hardest I have worked on so far, simply due to expansion of story and such. But, details shmetails. I'm back and that is all that matters. Holy crap! 91 followers, 70 favorites, 8 reviews, and a total of 1,655 views. Thank you guys so much for the support. I truly did not expect the attention it is getting. You guys are awesome! Anyways, updates. Again, I am so sorry it has taken me this long to update, but my schedule at work has been nothing but crazy. Not to mention some family drama that kinda killed my writing vibe. However, I'm back and better than ever. In fact, you can tell by this chapter. Almost 12,000 words! Holy jeebus. Well, I just wanted to let you guys know why I haven't updated recently, but I also wanted you to know that THIS IS NOT ABANDONED! I'm still writing. Hey, I'm here aren't I? Anywho, if you have any questions, or you have any input you wanna give, feel free to send me a message or review. I won't be working on any other projects until I get a firm foothold on this story, which won't be for a while. Speaking of, next chapter! Oh boy. We finally get to see Naruto growing up. It'll be going through him during important events. Because this is a fanfiction, I can play with canon a bit. Oh, I love that. Hehehehe. Anyway, I will be changing some events slightly, while others will be drastic. Hopefully you'll enjoy my take on the Narutoverse. So, stay tuned for the next chapter of "Of Ninjas and Assassins." Next chapter, Naruto grows up and finds his life is rather, weird. Also, he gets to meet a certain vixen sealed in his belly and learns a lot of things he never knew. Oops, as Dr. River Song would put it, spoilers. Well, 'till next time folks, which I hope is soon. This is Twix, signing off!
-Twix671