(A/N) And we are back once again. Sorry about not giving you a chapter yesterday. I do two chapters in one day to get rid of my chapter debt, but then I just go and not do one the next day. So now I'm back where I started.

On to other things, I absolutely loved the latest manga chapter. It again proved to me that Hinata is awesome. She has moved forwards once again, mastering the full 64 palms by remembering her holding Naruto's hand. It is a very good sign for Naruhina that Kishimoto bothered to put a flashback to that event in the chapter. Then she goes and uses Juho: Shoshiken, which is my second favorite of her techniques (my first is Shugohakke Rokujuyon Sho, but that technique is technically a filler one). But that was just the Hinata parts. Kiba's Cerberus technique is completely badass, and InoShikaCho's Human Bullet Yoyo is hilarious and destructive at the same time. Finally, the triple summon in the last panel is awesome, especially Gamakichi, who looks way too much like his dad now.

Also, I've been rereading a lot of fanfics that I had previously read on my phone, so I marked several of them as favorites. Feel free to check them out. Every single one is Naruhina.

Finally, I've noticed a slight drop in the amount of reviews that I have been getting. That makes me sad, but I know that only a few people bother with leaving their thoughts. But I will take the reviews, no matter how long or short they are (although I like long reviews that I can comment on)! I would like to thank a few of my more consistent reviewers. So thank you very much Lord Farsight, Shi-No-Ookami, chaos267, Junior the Wolf, .3762, Hee-ho Master, DanteShindo, and finally the omnipresent "Guest" (I consider all reviews from guests to be from the same person. Even if that person has a severe multi-personality disorder).

Anyways, on with the chapter! (Be warned, I reference sex a fair deal in one part of this chapter)

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Chapter 23: The Great Kitsune Bridge

Kakashi was completely dumbfounded by the tale that Naruto told. The fact that they had a casual conversation with Han of the steam armor, and were still alive, especially Naruto, completely astounded him. Then there was the fact that they went up against four people whose names were well known to Kakashi. Kuroyurasu was very well known throughout the lands for being nigh on impervious to damage. Akarui was known for being the second strongest in Kumo, after the Raikage. Kakashi had always wondered why he had defected. Jack Trades was known primarily for his unmatched mercenary work. And finally Puchame was known for inventing the jutsu that gave the moniker she went by. Suiton: Seki was one of the most powerful water jutsus in terms of sheer force, and was a jutsu that all Suiton users strived to master.

So after Naruto finished his story, Kakashi was completely silent the whole rest of the way to Tazuna's house. When they reached his home, it was around six in the morning, so Tazuna was up, as he had gotten used to waking up early to work on his bridge. He greeted them when they entered, and he was quite surprised that none of them had injuries. So he asked "Did you actually do it?"

Naruto grinned and pulled out a scroll. He unsealed both parts of Gato's body from it and said "Does this answer your question?"

Tazuna was extremely happy to see Gato without his head connected to his body, so he said "Well I guess that's it then. The wave is now completely free! I can't wait to tell the village the news! You all are heroes!"

Naruto grinned and said "Heroes, eh? I like it. Now there is the small issue of the money that Gato was holding in his vault. I have it all contained in a scroll. Based on my calculations, it averages to be about 50 million ryo. It's all yours, just share it among the people of the wave. Also, I would like to suggest that you go visit Gato's underwater hideout when you have the time. With the right adjustments, it would make an amazing underwater resort. There is even a dome of ice that could be used for ice skating, thanks to Haku-chan here. Also, we have a lot of bodies with decent bounties that we need to cash, so after we do that, we'll send you the money from that, after the leaf village takes a small cut from it. Don't worry about paying for the mission now, we'll include the fees when we take our cut of the bounties."

Naruto handed Tazuna the scroll containing Gato's riches, and Tazuna took it with a shaking hand. He stood there for a moment before tears started pouring from the old man's eyes, and he said "There is nothing that I can do to ever repay the kindness that you have shown me. You truly are heroes. But before you all head back to your village, I implore you to stay with us and celebrate our new freedom."

Hinata giggled and said "I'm sure we can all stay a few more days, Tazuna-san. There's no harm in relaxing a bit, right Kakashi-san?"

The look that Hinata was shooting Kakashi told him everything. It told him that if he did not stay for a while to let the village show its gratitude, then terrible things would befall him. So Kakashi nervously said "A-all right. We can stay three more days. But no longer!"

Hinata released her gaze, and Kakashi visibly relaxed and thought "How is she so damn scary? I really don't want to know what would have happened if I chose to leave."

Hinata then turned to Tazuna and said "Ruto-kun and I are going into the forest so that we can catch up with our rest. We'll come to the celebration later."

Tazuna nodded at her statement and Naruto and Hinata left to go back to the clearing that they had slept at.

(With Naruto and Hinata)

When they arrived at the flowery clearing, Naruto immediately plopped to the ground, with Hinata right on top of him. They kissed a bit before Hinata said "For a mission that started screwed up, I think we managed to turn it around."

Naruto chuckled and said "Yeah, it turned out alright. But meeting Han made me realize that we still have a long way to go, and that there are still people out there who we stand no chance at."

Hinata kissed him again before saying "Then we'll just have to keep training. The battles we had down in the domes were our first real fights against enemy ninja, and they revealed some of our weaknesses. The biggest one that I see in both of us, but mainly me, is that we play around too much in the beginning of our fights. While it is good to feel out our opponents before hitting full strength, we shouldn't toy with them, especially if they are experienced. I nearly died because I wasn't using anything close to my full speed, and if I didn't master Sorime in that instant, then both of us wouldn't be here, since you would have died from that hit you took if I didn't heal you."

"Well that's why we learn from our mistakes. I really should have recalled Kuroyurasu's entry in the bingo book before I fought him. I memorized the damn thing for a reason, so I really should use what I have. We may be strong, but we still have a lot to learn." Said Naruto.

"And learn we shall." Replied Hinata before she gave a huge yawn. "I guess that night took more out of me than I thought."

Naruto also yawned, and said "Me too. Let's get some rest."

With that, they cuddled close to each other, and drifted off to sleep.

(7 hours later)

Hinata woke up completely wrapped up by Naruto. He had her in a hug, with his legs entwined with hers. Even his tails were wrapped around her petite body. While she was quite comfortable like this, she wanted to go celebrate with the village. So she kissed Naruto's nose, waking him up.

"Mornin' Hina-hime." Mumbled out Naruto.

Hinata giggled and said "It's nowhere near morning, Ruto-kun. But why Hina-hime? I'm no longer a princess."

Naruto hugged her close and said "Your my princess, Hime, so don't go thinking otherwise. Besides, you're technically the new princess of the Namikaze clan."

Hinata giggled and said "If you say so…"

They proceeded to untangle their bodies, which lead to them getting certain physical reactions to each other's body. Hinata pressed her entire body against Naruto, and kissed him passionately. Her hands started snaking down to Naruto's pants, but she was stopped by Naruto grabbing her wrists.

"Not yet, Hime. Soon, I promise, but not now."

Hinata looked at him with a mixture of lust and annoyance and said "You better keep that promise. I refuse to wait much longer. My body has waited for that ever since you transformed me, but I've been patient. My patience is running out. I've been able to stave off going into heat using techniques that Kurama-sensei taught me, but they haven't stopped my desire. And I can't hold off much longer on going into heat either, the techniques only work so many times before they lose effect. If I go into heat, I can only guarantee one outcome. That is your dick being inside my vagina. You are on a time limit Naruto, either initiate it yourself, or I will take you whether you like it or not."

With that Hinata hopped away towards the village.

Naruto just stood there thinking "Crap…I screwed up. I've been holding out on having sex with her all of these years, and she's at her limit. Now she's angry at me. Maybe I should have gone through with it just then. I know that I want to do it, but I just can't get the courage necessary to do it. Why the hell can't I just DO IT? I'm just torturing us and hurting our relationship the longer I wait. That's it, when we get back home, I'll do it, no exceptions, and no backing out!"

With his resolve set firmly on his new goal, Naruto hopped after Hinata.

(With Hinata)

Hinata was jumping through the trees towards Tazuna's when she stopped on a tree branch. Turning to the tree trunk, she formed a fist and smashed the tree. Needless to say, the tree didn't stand a chance and broke in half. She then started angrily thinking to herself "Why the hell won't he just do it! I've waited eight years for Kami's sake! I'm seriously thinking of stopping the countermeasures I use to hold off my heat, just so that we can get it over with! While not near as much as I want it, I know that he still wants it. I don't think that he realizes that whenever I arouse him, he releases pheromones that only I pick up. They completely drive me crazy! I get extremely wet whenever I smell them. I know that THAT particular smell only arouses him more, making even more of those damn pheromones! This positive feedback loop is going to kill me one day! I NEED him! I can't take this any longer, and I'll rape him if I have too!"

While she had been thinking these things, she had been demolishing the forest around her. Finally snapping out of her thoughts, she observed what she had done and thought "Woops! Maybe I was a bit too angry. At least I feel a lot better now."

Suddenly Naruto's voice echoed through her head and said "Hina-chan…I'm sorry. But I will live up to my promise, and we will have done it by the end of the week. Just hold out a little longer till we get back to our home."

"I'm not angry anymore Ruto-kun" answered Hinata via her thoughts. "And I'm glad to hear that you are commited. I'll wait at Tazuna's place for you, and then we can head down to the village."

True to her word, Hinata waited at Tazuna's for Naruto. There was no one else there when she got there, so she entertained herself (use your imagination, and ask "What would Hinata do in light of recent events"). When Naruto arrived, she gave him a kiss to prove that she was no longer angry, and they headed down to the village.

When they got there, they were met with a huge amount of noise. Apparently, Tazuna had told of their parts to play in Gato's demise to the village, and they were immediately rushed by practically the whole village. They were thrown into the air by the strongest of the villagers, and the kids looked at them with stars in their eyes. Inari was at the lead of the children, proudly declaring "That's my nii-san and nee-chan! They are heroes!"

When Naruto and Hinata were finally let down by the villagers, they started to wander the village. To their surprise, they found food markets giving away food, and all sorts of stores were open and selling things. Apparently, some villagers had gone down into the domes and found all sorts of things.

They happened across Kakashi and Zabuza having a drinking contest (which Zabuza was winning). They found Haku by a pond which she had frozen, and she was skating around with people of all ages. Kiba was seen entertaining the kids by having Akamaru do tricks. To their amusement, they found Sasuke being chased by a horde of fangirls, with Sakura in the lead. Sasuke was thinking "Why are they everywhere? Even when I'm not in the village, they are still there! I think that I might even hate them more than I hate my brother!"

The party went on for three straight days, and Naruto and Hinata enjoyed every second of it that they were at. They only really left to go back to their clearing when they got tired, but after a nice rest, they were back at it once again.

At the end of the third day of the party, it was finally time to wrap up and head home. So currently, Teams 15 and 7, as well as Zabuza and Haku, were standing at the edge of the bridge, on the side that bordered the land of fire. The entire village was there to say farewell, and it was Inari who spoke up first.

"Nii-san, Nee-chan, do you really have to go?" asked the boy.

Hinata giggled and said "Sorry Inari-chan, but we have to get back to the hokage. We've been on this mission for longer than we probably should have. But I promise you that Ruto-kun and I will come back some day."

"Don't call me "Chan!" Was all Inari responded, but he had tears in his eyes. He clearly was going to miss them.

Tazuna sighed and said "So I guess this is it then. It's been a pleasure working with you, and we all hope to see you again, soon preferably. We are forever in Konoha's debt, and we will hire only leaf ninja for jobs from now on."

"If you keep that promise, then we will be happy. I'm sure that there are plenty of missions that you could send to us to help you guys rebuild. Konoha certainly won't say no." replied Kakashi. "But we really do have to go. I can tell that the Hokage is going to chew me out for staying so long."

Naruto had a quick mental conversation with Hinata, sending her into giggles, before saying to Kakashi "Well in that case, let's go!" He then scooped the giggling Hinata up bridal style, before vanishing in a flash of yellow.

Kakashi sighed and said "Well, he certainly has a flair for the dramatic, and now we really don't need to worry about getting to the Hokage immediately. However, knowing Naruto, he would think that it would be funny to wait until after we get back to report to the Hokage, so we should still go."

The village waved their goodbyes as the group turned and started to head out. Tazuna suddenly remembered something from when all of them had been there before, and said "We completely forgot to name the bridge!"

Inari then popped out and jumped on Tazuna's shoulders, and said "How about The Great Kitsune Bridge?"

Tazuna was thoughtful for a moment, before he said "The Great Kitsune Bridge, eh? I like it! That is what we will name it, in honor of the young foxes that saved our land."

(With Naruto and Hinata)

Speaking of those young foxes, they had just arrived via Hiraishin into their bedroom, and were heading to the gate. Hinata spoke up, saying "Are we really going to not report to the Hokage?"

Naruto grinned and said "Nah, we'll tell him everything. I just did this so that Kakashi would waste energy hustling home. It's an important part of pranking to be able to pull off pranks just by planting a seed of doubt into someone's mind."

Naruto had been walking slightly ahead of Hinata when they got to the gate. If Naruto had been paying attention, he could have saved himself some embarrassment by noticing the paw mark on the gate, but he didn't, so he walking straight into the gate, fully expecting to walk through it. However, he slammed into the gate and fell back, dazed. Looking up at the gate, he saw a large paw mark appear on the gate, glowing.

Suddenly, there was a bright flash of light, and it settled to reveal a white wolf with red markings and a large yellow glaive that pulsed with electricity on its back. The wolf snarled at Naruto, and began glowing again. This time it settled to reveal a beautiful, fair skinned woman of around 20, with pure white hair that had black highlights, and was dressed in a low cut white kimono that had black hems and shoulders. She had red markings throughout her body, and wore no shoes. Her eyes were a shade of yellow/orange that would remind anyone of a sunrise. She had a white wolf tail and matching wolf ears. On her back was the same glaive as before, but now she had a shield that gave off an astounding amount of multi-colored flames floating slightly off of her right arm, and had a necklace of blue beads that were shaped like magatama that floated gently in a circle around her neck. She had an aura that absolutely screamed "I am a goddess. Give me respect of pay the price!"

She took a few steps towards Naruto, than gave him a slap that only a pissed off goddess can give. Needless to say, Naruto got sent flying back around 50 feet. She then vanished in a flash of light, and reappeared in front of the downed Naruto in another flash. Hinata warped over in between them in a flash of lavender with Sorime, and held out her arms protectively in front of Naruto.

The goddess then looked past Hinata and said in a voice that was absolutely beautiful, yet at the same time, very scary "I'm completely disappointed in you, Minato-kun. You reject my offer to become a god and my mate, and for what? This…this fox bitch! I should have never fallen in love with you! I should punish you, but instead, I'll force you to watch as I rip apart this bitch that you left me for!"

She took a step towards Hinata, when Naruto screamed out "WAIT!"

The both Hinata and the goddess froze, so Naruto continued "My name is not Minato! My name is Naruto! I'm his son! And Hinata is my mate! If you hurt her, I promise that I will end your life, goddess or not!"

The goddess stopped and looked at Naruto's eyes. Eyes filled with many things. Fear, despair, and anger were definitely prominent, but the goddess saw that whenever he glanced over to the girl he called Hinata, they filled with absolute and undying love.

She calmed down a bit and said "You…you are not Minato. The amount of conviction in your promise is the same of that as the promise he gave me when he promised to help save Nippon, but your eyes, while they look the same, hold much more than Minato's. You have experienced the worst of what you humans have to offer. I'm sorry for hitting you. Do you know where your father is? I have not heard from him in a long time."

Hinata let out a sigh of relief, and Naruto said "My dad is dead. He's been dead for thirteen years, since the day I was born."

The goddess looked distraught for a moment, before she said "I am truly sorry to hear that. Minato-kun was a great man. If that is the case, then I will leave."

Naruto shouted "Wait" again, getting the goddess' attention, before saying "He's dead, but he is not truly gone." He then explained his life story, before finally saying "If you want, I can summon him here."

The goddess' sunrise colored eyes lit up with hope, and she replied "I would appreciate it if you did so."

Naruto went through the handsigns, and he performed the summoning jutsu. He had intended to just summon his dad, but when the smoke cleared, it revealed not just his dad, but his mom and Kurama.

Minato wasn't his usual confident self right now. Instead, he was currently cowering behind Kushina, who was looking at the goddess with a challenging look in her eye. Kurama just looked amused, but he kept glancing at the goddess with a look in his red eyes that made it seem like he was contemplating something.

Kushina spoke up and said "If you think you are going to steal my husband away from me, think again wolf bitch!"

The goddess stared at Kushina with an intense gaze. To the onlookers, it felt like the world would end if someone did something wrong. Suddenly, the goddess started laughing, and said "Wow! I've never met someone who holds that much conviction in their heart. I'm not going to stand up to you for the right to go after Minato-kun. You are the second most intriguing mortal that I have ever met! Minato-kun is the third, and the first is your son. He is quite clearly a perfect mix of you two. I won't go after Minato-kun any more, as you have proved yourself worthy to be his wife in my eyes. My name is Amaterasu, goddess of the sun, and master of the celestial brush. But you can call me Ammy!"

Kushina began laughing and said "I like you! My name is Kushina Uzumaki-Namikaze, wife of Minato Namikaze, the fourth Hokage, and mother to Naruto Uzumaki-Namikaze. I was known in my youth as the "Hot-Blooded Habanero". But more recently, I was given the title of "The Red-Haired Demon."

All of the onlookers were thinking the same thing: "Those two are so alike that it's scary. One moment they are mortal enemies, rivals for love, and then the next, they are the best of friends."

Ammy laughed again and said "The Red-Haired Demon, eh? Nice title. Who gave it to you?"

Kurama then spoke up, saying "That would be me. I gave it to her after she proved herself worthy in my eyes."

Ammy looked over Kurama, blushed a little, and then said "And who might you be? You are quite obviously not mortal."

Kurama grinned and said "I am known as the almighty Kyuubi no Kitsune! The most powerful of all the tailed demons! My name is Kurama!"

Ammy giggled and said "Well, Kurama-kun , you don't look that vicious to me. In fact, you look like quite the handsome fox-man, if I do say so myself.

Kurama then did something that he would never live down in Naruto's eyes. He blushed at the goddess' compliment.

Ammy turned to Naruto and said "So you said earlier that Kurama-kun was sealed inside of you by Minato-kun? Well in that case, I've made up my mind. I hope that three extra minds inside of you wasn't too much, because you're about to have a fourth!"

Naruto was completely in shock at what she said, and he sputtered out "W-w-wait, what?! You're going to live inside of me?"

Ammy giggled and said "Yup! I want to get to know Kurama-kun a bit better, to see if he's a worthy man for me. And what better way to do that than to live with him! Don't worry, I'll pay rent by enhancing your senses to the level of a god, and maybe, if you're lucky, I'll teach you how to use the celestial brush."

Naruto focused and shook his head, then said "I won't let you be inside of me if it means that I will become stronger than my Hina-chan! I refuse to let her be any weaker than me!"

Ammy giggled and said "That is a level of devotion that I thought I would never see in mortals. But you are not exactly mortal are you? You are a Hanyou, and Hinata-chan is your mate. Appearently, Kurama-kun never told you about one of the side-effects of the mate mark you gave her. That being, that if any outside source gives you power, then that power will be reflected upon your mate, giving her what you received. So you don't have to worry your cute little head about that."

Naruto digested that information, and then said "Very well, you can stay, but only if Hina-chan gets what I get."

Kurama then spoke up and said "While I am not opposed to this, I have to ask you one question Ammy. You are a goddess, correct? Do you not have a council in your own dimension that you rule over?"

Ammy pouted before saying "Why did you have to remind me of the annoying council? They are always bickering, and I can't stand them! They may all be gods, but they can't get over their differences! But I guess that I do have to do something about them. Hmm…what to do, what to do? Oh, I know! Waka!"

Ammy clapped her hands together, and Waka appeared in a flash of light. (His appearance is waaaaay to much of a pain to describe. If you want to know it, look it up on the Okami wiki)

"Ah, what have you called me to this dimension for, ma Cherie?" asked the prophet.

"Waka, for an undetermined amount of time, you are to take my place in the council of the gods. I trust you to make good decisions, and keep the rest of the council in line. Also tell Issun that I will be away for a while. He is an honorary member of the council, and you should treat his opinions with respect, even if he is a perverted excuse for a sprite. Actually, ignore any of his decisions regarding women, or else the world will never be the same again." Answered Ammy.

"Very well, mon amie, it will be done." Responded Waka.

Waka then turned to Naruto and Hinata and said "I predict that you two will have a wonderful time in the upcoming exams. There will be a snake named after a demon and a large raccoon, as well as fun to be had with clouds and stones. Until next time, Au revoir!"

He then posed and said "Let's rock, baby!" before vanishing in a flash of light.

Ammy then cleared her throat and said "That man has always been a bit of a mystery to me. My dear friend Issun always called him "A Half-Baked Prophet". However, no matter how strange his predictions are, they always come true. Just be glad that he didn't dance with you this time. That was one of the most embarrassing things in my life. Anyways, Minato-kun, Kushina-chan, and Kurama-kun, you should all go back inside Naruto before I go in. I don't want any unexpected side effects."

The three in question nodded, and poofed away, but Naruto blurted out "Side-effects? Like what?"

Ammy giggled and said "Oh, you know, side-effects like your body exploding from having the stress of a goddess inside of it, that sort of thing. Now, let's get started!"

Ignoring Naruto's protests, Ammy enveloped herself in a flash of light, before crashing into Naruto's body. The light faded, and both Naruto and Hinata faded into blissful unconsciousness.

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And that's a wrap! The wave ark is done, and now Ammy is here to stay! Blame Shi-no-Ookami and Junior the Wolf for putting that idea into my head. I have also set the stage for the upcoming lemon. You'll see next chapter what having Ammy will do for Naruto and Hinata, besides being another annoying voice in their heads.

Anyways, I'm not going to do an omake today, since its pretty late where I am, and I'm pretty tired. Coming up with a good omake is harder than writing the chapter sometimes!

So until next time,

Slice N Dicer