It took Naruto a while, but he finally got the go for the restoration of the temple. He managed to convince the council since it was a historical place and there might be hidden Uzumaki secrets left inside that could help the village.
It also used to be a place for young fuinjutsu practitioners to study and experiment with seals since it had an isolated underground room perfect for practicing sensitive seals. Naruto wanted to restore the site mostly to have a place of his own.
Danzo was trying to establish a stable position for Naruto inside the village, but since he was only a chunin and his work outside of ROOT was mainly with the sealing division, it was hard. He was spending hours working on seals away from everyone.
His work was recognized and praised by many important figures. He was even beginning to get direct orders from clans. Some of them were adjustments to wards or already existing seals, but others were new seals.
Naruto enjoyed his job, but he was mostly confined to the village. He rarely had missions, and they were so far apart. That was why Danzo needed Naruto to, if not become a recognized shinobi by being in the field to be a public figure.
He wanted Naruto to establish his own place among people inside the village. So giving Naruto a public place where everyone would know he would be available was an advantage. This way, instead of just getting seals through the sealing division and random orders, people would know who they are ordering from.
It would also give an opportunity to customize seals to their necessity. Of course, it would take a lot of time and effort from Naruto, but it would be worth it.
Currently, Naruto was inside the temple, trying to check everywhere for any hidden traps or dangers. The temple had two main floors. On the ground floor, it had a few empty rooms. Some were initially used for rituals, studies, or entertaining guests.
Of course, there was also a tiny bathroom and kitchen, which made Naruto suspect that some people might have stayed in the temple for extended periods.
There was also an underground floor where there were a few more ritual rooms, including the mask temple, and a few storage rooms that were sealed shot. All the rooms except for the guest areas were sealed with strong blood seals, which made Naruto wonder how Orochimaru got to access them the first time.
It took Naruto 2 weeks, but he finally managed to empty the temple. He sealed anything of value or dangerous. He wanted to hire some professionals to renovate the indoor plan. The whole place wasn't very spacious.
Naruto wanted to have a guest room to receive his visitors. A small private room in case he wanted to stay overnight. A larger guest room to accommodate a few guests if there was a need for it. A small bathroom and kitchen, and his study on the ground floor.
In the basement, he wanted a storage room and a ritual room. He wanted to keep the sealing experimentation room as it was. Overall the rooms would be a bit cramped, but they would serve their purpose.
He was working on his draft plans when he felt people approaching. After a quick check, he noticed it was Itachi and Shisui. He went to greet them. "Hey, guys, what are you doing here?" Naruto asked as he reached the front of the temple.
"Hey, Naruto-chan, we are here to pick you up for dinner," Shisui said as he invited himself in to take a look around.
"Sure. Where do you guys want to go?" Naruto said as he followed them around, ensuring nothing of danger was left out.
"Actually, you are invited to my house. My father was interested in the training regimens you helped us set up, so he wanted to thank you properly. We can go a bit earlier. I want to show you one of the seals I've been working on." Itachi said as he was trying to keep the over-excited Shisui under control.
"Sure, but before we leave, I need you guys to check around with your Sharingans so I can be sure I didn't leave out anything dangerous," Naruto said. The boys both nodded before activating their Sharingans.
They headed to the Uchiha compound. Since Naruto defused the coup, there were more non-Uchihas going around, and it was refreshing to see the compound so lively. They stopped by a dango shop, and Naruto got them all the snacks since he was going to be a guest for dinner.
When they reached the house, it was quiet except for some noise in the backyard. They headed inside. Sasuke was training with a wooden sword going through some basic kata. "Hello, Sasuke. Where is Mother?" Itachi asked.
Sasuke finally took notice of them, and after a quick greeting with everyone, which included Shisui's usual hair ruffle and a pouty Sasuke, he answered. "She went to buy some groceries for dinner. She said she wanted to make a recipe from an old friend." Sasuke answered.
"Hn. We will be in the living room working on seals. Try not to stay out for too long it's quite chilly today." Itachi said with concern in his voice.
There was a look of frustration in Sasuke's eyes. Naruto knew it was because he thought he was being treated as a child. That was true to an extent but not the whole truth. Itachi loved his brother beyond measure.
He didn't want any harm to fall upon him. He was always so gentle with him. The reason he wasn't with Sasuke all of his free time was that, as the heir, he was trying to keep the attention away from Sasuke.
If he spent all his time with Sasuke, people would start to have expectations from him. If they were training together, people would constantly measure Sasuke's progress against Itachi, and they would expect Sasuke to become like Itachi and show the same passion and skill in the same fields.
Itachi wanted Sasuke to grow into his own person. He wanted Sasuke to choose his own path and take it at his own speed. So he had to avoid his brother to an extent. Of course, Itachi was also starting to grow on his own.
Since becoming friends with Naruto, Naruto has done his best to help Itachi find his own path in life. Itachi was terrifyingly smart and a fast learner. He had a unique kind of determination that helped him be successful in whatever he put his mind into.
He was kind and caring toward his friends and those he cared about. Naruto did his best to socialize with the awkward teenager. He set up scenarios and helped Itachi meet with some of the other Jonin. With time Itachi became more familiar with them, and he started sharing his skill with them and learning from them.
Itachi was a patient teacher and had a passion for explaining things to others. The connections Naruto made for him helped Itachi to become more independent and free. Itachi started to hang out with more people and he was getting comfortable in his own skin.
Another thing that helped him change happened a short while ago when Sasuke decided to pursue Kenjutsu. It showed Itachi that his little brother was starting to find his own path, and he didn't need to be there every step of the way.
All these things helped a considerable weight to be lifted off his shoulders, and he was happy to see Itachi like this. He seemed free, and he smiled more. Shisui was much the same. After his father got back to duty, he was beyond himself.
When Tsunade returned, Naruto set up a meeting for them, and after Tsunade gave Kagami a long checkup and some hard work, she managed to perform a quick surgery that helped Kagami reduce most of his medication and be pain-free.
Shisui kept insisting to Tsunade to pay her back, but she said she did it for his grand uncle's favorite student, and they owed her nothing. Of course, they finally settled that Shisui would owe her a favor.
Since then, Shisui has also started being more free. He didn't have to worry about his father and endless doctor visits. They were both doing so much better, and it made Naruto so happy. This is what he wanted. To make the world a safe place for those he cared about.
They spent most of the evening working on a genjutsu seal Itachi was trying to make. He was trying to make an unnoticeable perception seal to use in fights. It would keep attention away from the person it was applied to.
It was supposed to be light enough not for the shinobi to notice but strong enough to keep the enemy's attention away. Itachi was mostly done with the visual part and was working on the chakra source and sustaining.
Naruto was not an expert when it came to genjutsu seals. But the barriers and defense seals used the same concepts for keeping the seal active without the constant use of chakra. Itachi had surpassed Naruto when it came to genjutsu seals.
It was at first just an idea for him to assist his sharingan and skill in genjutsu, but Naruto found quite several scrolls about genjutsu seals, and it started Itachi's path. Shisui, on the other hand, liked chakra conversions.
He was currently working on a seal that transformed normal chakra into suiton chakra. He wanted to use it as a way to use suiton more efficiently. Since it wasn't his primary nature, it was harder for him to control, and he wasted more chakra. He wanted to make a seal to minimize the waste.
Naruto made two clones to help them while he went through the scrolls he found in the temple. There were a few scrolls with the mention of Uchihas, so he wanted to check them and give them to Itachi in case they could be clan property.
They spent the rest of their time much the same. Mikoto returned at some point, and Naruto made a clone to continue his job while he went to help in the kitchen. He was shocked to know they were going to make homemade ramen.
Mikoto just said that she used to have an Uzumaki friend who loved this recipe. Of course, Naruto knew who she was talking about but had to play it off.
They spent the dinner in small chatter. Fugaku was a great man once someone got to know him. He was respectful and intelligent. Naruto enjoyed talking to him about different matters. He cared deeply about his family and the people under his care.
As a part of Naruto's studies, he had to go through the war reports of all three wars. During the war, Fugaku was in charge of one of the outposts where they were mostly under attack from Kumo, and Fugaku managed to hold the outpost up the whole war.
From the reports, he cared about his men and their safety and did his best to ensure everyone's survival. While he was strict and commanding, he never asked anyone to do something beyond their capabilities, and he never asked them to do something he wasn't willing to do himself.
It made Naruto admire him. He listened to his men and their ideas. He was a great leader. Naruto used his opportunity to ask him as many questions as he could about his ideas on different matters. Fugaku did his best to answer his questions to the best of his abilities.
After dinner, Naruto handed him the scrolls related to the Uchiha. "Fugaku-sama, as I've already mentioned, I have started renovations to Uzumaki temple. While going through the scrolls, I found these scrolls, which are related to your clan." Naruto saw the worried look in the clan head's eyes.
"There aren't any clan secrets or things of the sort. During the time of the first two Hokage, many Uzumaki's visited the village. Your clan's abilities are no secret, and there were some collaborations between the Uzumaki and the Uchiha."
"Of course, there were collaborations with other clans as well, to which I intend to return the scrolls. In these scrolls, you can find all the related information. There were some custom seals made for your clan. There were some for effects of sharingan, such as helping with migraines or preventing chakra exhaustion. There was also one that automatically cut the chakra circulation to eyes when the person was low on chakra."
"There were also a few minor communication and other seals designed to help with your duties as the police force, such as flaring seals or containment for prisoners and such."
"Also, there were a few genjutsu seals that might be of interest to Itachi. I found these just this evening, so there might be some more among the scrolls that I've missed. I will make sure to give them to Itachi if I find any." Naruto said.
"Thank you, Naruto-kun. I hope to return your kindness and all you've done for my clan, my son, and Shisui." Fugaku said. Shisui gave Naruto a gentle shoulder squeeze from his position next to Naruto.
"There is no need. If there is anything I can do to help those around me, I will do it. I don't do it for a reward because, to me, the safety of my comrade and village is the reward." Naruto said with a shy smile.