I'm back!

Well, as back as I can be, what with work being a real bugger and all.

I took a bit of a hiatus to work on some personal projects of my own… and to write some other stories on my other account. I know you guys have missed me, but I will try my best to continue updating this story as much as I can.

If anyone is interested, you can go check out some of my other works in my account TheWriteFiction. That account has allowed me to do some writing that I never got the chance to do on fanfiction with my current account.

NARUTO

Drifting

S.O.S

Evening…

Konohagakure…

Naruto inhaled and exhaled deeply as he stepped over the all too familiar threshold of his apartment. Hearing the familiar creak of the floorboards of the entrance to his corridor echo off of the walls, the young man stopped, stretched his arms out, and basked in the cool air that welcomed him with a sweet, warm embrace.

"Daddy's home," the blond whispered fondly. "Ahh, apartment. How I've missed you so. The moldy wall paper. The cracked ceiling. The peaceful hum of much wanted privacy. And the smell…" After taking a big whiff through his nose, Naruto suddenly stopped and dropped his arms in surprise. "Wait? What happened to the manly musk of spirited adolescence?"

Tayuya snickered at the odd look slapped across her boyfriend's face, at the same time kicking off her sandals to leave on the wall-side rack. "There have been three girls and no Naruto living in this apartment for the last couple of years. That's given us more than enough time for our respective womanly aromas to overpower and dispel your youthful presence. Honestly, it's a bit of a bummer."

In the time of the jinchuriki's absence, she'd grown to miss her crush's boyish tang and scent.

"Well… I guess now that I'm here." Pulling a can of Tiger deodorant out of his pocket, the boy then gave a long spray of his armpits, chest, and then the air in front of him. Waving his arms around, he then took another sniff of the area and nodded in satisfaction. "That should get the ball rolling." Naruto then marched in, leaving his sandals on the rack and an amused Tayuya in his wake as he began the thorough process of re-familiarizing himself with his surroundings.

With each step he took into his almost forgotten home started filling Naruto's head with memories of time long past. His venture through the living room reminded him of all the peaceful and chaotic times he'd spent with his roommates there. The stop off at the bathroom and the chipped door with the broken lock gave him flashbacks of the numerous awkward moments he'd unexpectedly walked in on Tayuya getting out of the shower- and the string of beatings that would follow. And his trip through the kitchen filled his nostrils with the nostalgic scent of meals they used to have around that very cozy table.

And then finally, after surveying the hallways and running his fingers over the walls and light switches, Naruto finally came to the one room he missed the most.

Unlike the other chambers, there had been very few changes made to this one. From wall to wall, the entire floor was covered with dozens of newly purchased and freshly cleaned futons, mattresses and hug-pillows, all of which were arranged into a kingly surface of five-star heavenly comfort. The memory foam surface of course was punctuated by the natural light of the setting sun cutting in through the closed window, breathing life to this otherwise lifeless scene. And then, following the cupboards and closets around to the back and over the rarely used bed, there sat Naruto's collections of trinkets he'd collected over his years as a delinquent and a shinobi.

Though the surface had been dusted, everything else from the two-pronged kunai of his first encounter with enemy kunoichi from another village to the panties he had hanging from the wall remained completely untouched.

"Ah, yeah. It's all starting to come back to me now," Naruto murmured, slowly stepping into the room and immersing himself into the environment. Rolling open the cupboard and finding it to no surprise to be filled predominantly with girl's clothing, the young Jonan gave an affirmative nod and stepped over to the window. "It may be small, it may be crowded, and it may have fallen apart more times than I can count… but damn it, have I missed this."

Tayuya's chuckle echoed in from the doorway as the former ANBU officer leaned against the frame with her arms crossed. "I'm pretty sure your room feels the same way. It just hasn't been 'our' apartment without its resident blond idiot and caretaker knocking around every hour or so."

After checking out one of his old paintball gauntlets he had left on the sill, Naruto set it down, opened up his window, and threw it open. From there a cool breeze drifted into his midst, swelling his chest as he looked out over the familiar view of his beloved village. While he was caught up in looking over the rooftops of his old neighborhood, he completely missed the sight of Tayuya checking him out from behind and, after ogling his rear for a moment, licked her lips and slowly pushed herself off of the door frame.

A sigh slipped out of Naruto's lips as he took in his scenery and burned it in with the rest of his memories. "I don't know about you, but I've got a lot of lost time to make up for around here. It's been way too long."

"I couldn't agree more." The sound of the door slamming shut suddenly had Naruto perk up and turn around, where he quickly noticed a half-lidded and rather fired-up Tayuya ambling towards him. "You and I have a lot more catching up to do." Her feet padding softly over the cushions and mattresses across the floor, the young redhead slowly reached up, slipped the khaki kimono top she was wearing gently down her shoulders, and allowed it to slide off to pool on the floor behind her.

A blink marked Naruto's immediate confusion. "Uhh… Tayuya-chan? W-What are you…?" He then straightened up sharply when the Jonin kunoichi stopped directly in front of him, her hands placed behind her back and chest pushed forward in a showy-manner. "Umm… okay. Is… Is there something wrong? What's up?"

Seeing the nervous look appear on the jinchuriki's face gave Tayuya a bit more of a confidence boost. A smile tugged at the soft lips of her own red face as she then leaned forward and pressed her aforementioned bosom into her boyfriend's bare stomach. The act of which not only sent a pleasurable chill up her spine when she felt his abs tighten out of reflex, but also the warmth she felt emanating from his center. It was a sensation that she'd never felt before, but also one that she welcomed gladly.

"You've been gone for three whole years, Naruto-kun," Tayuya said, her voice gentle yet firm at the same time, giving her a sense of power as she gazed back up into the jinchuriki's sky blue eyes. "That's three whole years we were unable to see each other… and three years we couldn't spend growing up together. In all the months I'd spent working my ass off in the ANBU, going on deep cover missions, assassination runs, and personal errands for the Hokage, all I could think about was you and what kind of assignments you were doing for the princess." The girl then frowned, keeping her cool as she kept the calm yet slightly nervous looking blond pinned against the cupboard. "But more importantly… I couldn't stop thinking about how much you were going to change. Not being able to see any photos of you- except the henged forms you used to star in Koyuki's movies- it came as a big shock to me when I finally saw you today and exactly how much you'd grown up." Tentatively, the young woman then placed a hand against the boy's muscular chest. Running her fingers down, she couldn't help but let a gasp leave her lips when she felt her digits graze over his hard, powerful muscles. "Damn… next time give me a bloody warning before you come back all hot and sexy like this. I almost ended up jumping you right there in the middle of the street."

She practically had when the two of them made out in the middle of the road, much to the shock of all those present.

Naruto cracked a smile of his own when he heard the girl say this. Feeling the girl trace her fingers up and down his chest and stomach, the jinchuriki did his best to stop his heart from racing as he felt the warmth of his girlfriend and longtime crush starting to increase rapidly against his bare skin. "I felt the same way when I first saw you as well," the blond informed, drawing the girl's gaze back up to him. "When you appeared in front of me back on that road, I could hardly believe that I was looking at the same redheaded girl I grew up with in this small, downtown apartment block all those years ago. After not seeing you for so long and then suddenly seeing you standing in front of me in all your kunoichi glory, it was almost like you'd transformed into a completely different person." Reaching up, the blond slid his hand up the girl's neck to cup her cheek, which he felt was hot against his palm. "You're no longer just a cute, spunky girl with a good head on her shoulders and a song in her heart. Right now, you've grown into a strong, powerful, and beautiful woman that would easily be considered the center of any man's dreams…" His expression then softened as his cheeks heated up. "Especially mine."

Her breathing quickening at the same rate as her own hammering heart, Tayuya slowly ran her hands up his chest and laid them there. Leaning in closer, she then felt Naruto wrap his other arm around her and rest his hand on her hip, drawing her in closer and bringing their burning centers together. Now that they could feel much more of each other, both of them knew instantly how hot and fired up the other person was, and it was now starting to drive them crazy.

After the events that'd transpired that day as well, it was making it incredibly hard for them not to lose it.

"Kami… I want to do it with you," Tayuya whispered, her voice trembling slightly when she felt Naruto's other hand run down her side to caress her. The way she could feel his muscles jumping under her smallest of touches was making her insides quiver and legs tremble anxiously. "So badly…"

"I know. Me too," Naruto replied, unable to hide his own excitement which he knew was now pressing against the girl's stomach. When he felt Tayuya rub up against him in a testing manner, the boy hissed and shook his head. "But we can't. Not yet."

"Yeah," Tayuya nodded, looking up at him and reaching up to run a hand over the boy's whiskered cheek. "I don't want to rush this. If we do… we might end up ruining it… and not just for us." She then smiled when she saw her boyfriend was in full agreement with her. "I want to do this properly… when the time is right."

The jinchuriki's eyes shimmered when he felt the level of emotion in the girl's voice, and inhaled deeply. "I'll wait for as long as you want me to… even if it kills me."

"I'll take your word for it." Grinning mischievously, Tayuya then ran a hand down and edged her fingers across his pant line. "Of course… that doesn't mean I'm going to make it easy on you, stud. You're going to have to work for this one." When she straddled his leg and lifted her calf to rub against his, a sense of satisfaction flooded through her when she heard the boy groan again. "You make sure you keep it in your pants… especially since you have two other girls living in this apartment who are also out for your goods. Remember… I've called first dibs."

Sweat breaking out on his forehead, Naruto then gave his teasing girlfriend a smile. "Noted." When the flute player stopped rubbing up against him, causing parts of his anatomy to stop filling up with blood, the blond youngster then raised an eyebrow in curiosity. "By the way, where are Kin-chan and Isaribi-chan anyway?"

Pausing for a moment and stepping away from her man, whom she'd left in a rather uncomfortable state of readiness, Tayuya then smiled and shrugged. "They were both sent on B-Rank missions a couple of days ago… but…"

Just before the redhead could finish, the pair suddenly heard the sound of the front door of the apartment being unbolted and the light patter of footsteps echo into their midst. Turning towards the door to the bedroom, both the jinchuriki and genjutsu specialist watched and waited, listening as the voices of two individuals drew closer and closer.

"… you think Tayuya is in yet?" the soft voice of a chipper young woman asked. "Or do you think she's still up in the administration building doing paperwork from yesterday's assignment?"

"She has to be home. Didn't you see her sandals sitting over on the rack," another more sharp voice spoke up, indicating a second girl.

"Yeah. I noticed them. But who does the other pair belong to? Did she invite someone over?"

"Probably Tenten or Sakura. They must be playing shogi in the room again." With the voices right outside, the door was promptly swung open seconds later, and in stepped the two familiar, yet noticeably older, figures. Sighing, the woman with long, raven black hair that grew down to her angles, wearing a pair of grey camofalge pants, fishnet shirt, white armored vest, and a collapsible bow on her back, glanced across the room to where she expected to find her roommate and guest. "Hey Tayuya. Girlfriend. How was your… day… today-" She then stopped dead in her tracks, a stunned expression appearing on her face as she inadvertently dropped the plastic bag she was carrying.

"Oi! Kin! Be careful! There's sauce in there!" the purple haired girl with the soft face, hazel eyes, and wearing black spats, blue kimono top, and green Chunin vest exclaimed, at the same time glaring across at her friend. "Geez girl. What the heck has gotten into… you…" Isaribi trailed off as well, as she too had spotted the reason why Kin had dropped their shopping.

Knowing what was to come, Tayuya took a few steps back, leaving Naruto standing out in the open for both girls to ogle. From there silence dominated the room, with the jinchuriki grinning across at the pair of newcomers, whose eyes had widened to that of saucers while their jaws hung slack. When several seconds of nothing eventually passed, the blond wisely figured it was time to break the ice, and marched forward while setting his katana down on the desk behind him.

"Hey. Kin-chan. Isaribi-chan," he greeted, waving to the girls who've yet to respond. Honestly, it was starting to get a little bit scary. Were they even breathing? "I'm back. Damn… look at how much you girls have grown up." Naruto whistled at the end while placing his hands on his hips, at the same time missing the sight of the hybrid's face twisting into one of abject delight. "Holy crap… did everyone in this village just hit their growth spurts at the exact same time or what, dattebayo? I can barely recognize-WHOA!"

"NARUTO-KUN!" both girls suddenly cried out in unison, before the teen was unexpectedly tackled by two bodies jumping on him at once. With Isaribi getting his head and Kin going for his waist, Naruto was effortlessly floored by the pair, who sent him straight into the mattresses, leaving Tayuya laughing from the sidelines.

Straddling the boy's neck and beaming down at him with a practically glowing face, Isaribi was simply beside herself. "YOU'RE BACK! When did you get back? Oh my God, oh my god, this is… this is crazy! Kami, look at how much you've changed! Your jacket… your pants… your headband... your build. You're SO tall now! And your muscles… what the hell happened to you?!" The girl's exclamations came a mile a minute, leaving Naruto in a daze if the surprise tackle didn't already do that.

Isaribi was so caught up in spit-firing her questions and observations that she barely left any room for Kin to speak. Peering over her fellow Chunin's shoulder, the raven haired girl with the bow grinned down at the blond, who was at that moment spinning from practically being showered with questions by the purple haired aquatic ninja.

"Damn, whiskers. You've really toned yourself up since the last time we saw you. Where'd all that baby-fat go?" Kin asked, at the same time remaining straddled where she was.

Naruto laughed and shook his head, "Don't know. Guess it all just turned into muscle."

"You can say that again," Kin said, grinning as she folded her arms and proceeded to admire the blond hunk from where she sat... while also continuing to mess with him by keeping him pinned to the futon.

After sharing another grin with her, Naruto then focused all of his attention on the purple haired girl beaming down at him. When he did, he then did a double-take when he immediately noticed something different about the girl in front of him and gaped. "I-Isaribi-chan… your bandages…?"

Realizing he'd noticed, the purple haired beauty brushed a hand through one of her pigtails and gave the boy an inviting look. She even posed for extra measure. "Cool, huh? Tsunade-sama performed the operation on me a couple days after you left. While I was under, she was able to remove all of the excess scales and fins left behind after the experiment. Now I look just like a normal girl again." Crossing her arms over her stomach, the girl then puffed out her significantly larger chest. "What do you think?" Her act was then cut off when she suddenly felt Naruto's hand on her cheek and she froze.

Gazing warmly up at the chimera, the spiky haired Jonin admired her for a moment before smiling. "You look amazing, Isaribi-chan. But... even if you still had those scales, you would still be beautiful to me."

Gasping at the boy's compliment, the Chunin kunoichi was unable to stop the flush of red from reaching her cheeks, which led to her leaning into the boy's hand and cupping it with her own. As tears of happiness brimmed at the corners of her eyes, the girl gave a soft sob as she slowly allowed her body to collapse forward onto his, and she practically hugged his head.

"I've missed you, Naruto-kun."

Wrapping his arms around the girl from below, an equally receptive Naruto smiled into the girl's vest while her hands softly caressed and stroked his golden locks. "I've missed you too, Isaribi-chan."

His interaction with her drew warm smiles from both Tayuya and Kin, both of whom proceeded to watch as the duo hugged it out in the middle of their bedroom.

It would be a little while until they eventually separated. By the time they did, the sun had already completely set over the horizon, leaving a gorgeous orange hue hanging in the sky…

XXX

(A few days later)

In the week to follow, Naruto enjoyed a nice moment of reprieve following his journey back down south with Jiraiya. With his master taking some time off to enjoy the sights and sounds of Konohagakure that he missed so much- these being the hot springs and the lovely ladies bathing within them- the blond decided to take a page out of his book and got down for some R&R.

He started this off by catching up with the main ladies in his life; Tayuya, Isaribi and Kin. Obviously the three had missed him something fierce, and so he spent the following days hanging with them, going out for lunch, hitting the bowling alleys, and shopping. In that time he was able to catch up with the other two and learn what they'd gotten up to in the time he'd been away.

Aside from having her operation, Isaribi had spent a great deal of her time improving her ninjutsu skills and control over her water element. Thanks to some much-needed training from Anko, who'd taken the liberty of training her and Kin leading up to their Chunin Exams, the chimera could now manipulate her transformation ability with greater flexibility and speed, allowing her to activate her amphibious traits on individual parts of her body, instead of just everywhere at once. She'd also taken some time to receive some medical ninjutsu lessons from Shizune, which gave her an extra set of assets to fall back on outside of combat.

Kin had also taken some interesting turns in her development as well. Besides improving her sound ninjutsu through use of her bells, she'd also trained herself in the use of the bow and arrow. By mixing in her sound waves with her use of the projectile, she'd increased the power and range of her abilities to a phenomenal level. She'd even implemented these skills into her CQC skillset, which would give her an extra leg-up over conventional opponents.

Since Naruto had taken it upon himself to train himself to reach monstrous levels of strength, the girls had also opted to improve their skills to keep up with him, and to provide him support should he ever require it. This put a big smile on the jinchuriki's face, as he was really keen to see what the two of them could do out on the field.

But of course, just before Naruto could really start enjoying his first real break in a while, the blond soon realized that the responsibilities of a Jonin of Konohagakure were not to be taken lightly. And so, after only a few days of rest, the blond and the other members of Team 7 were soon called up to the Hokage Tower for an important meeting.

Arranged into a row in front of the village leader's desk, Naruto, Sakura and Sasuke, all adorned in their respective signature uniforms, watched patiently as Hiruzen Sarutobi pulled out a scroll and set it in front of him. When their eyes turned to it, the village elder's expression steeled.

"That looks like the Mizukage's signature," Sakura observed, spotting the seal of Mei Terumi's inscribed upon the surface of the rolled-up document.

"Am I to assume that this message came straight from Kirigakure, jiji?" Naruto asked, hands in his pockets as he turned his attention to the old man.

The Third nodded gravely. "Yes." Lacing his fingers in front of him, the man in the wide-brimmed hat leant forward and gave them a rundown on the situation. "It appears that our Hidden Mist allies have run into a bit of a problem. Several days ago, their village's current jinchuriki and host of the Six-Tails was reported missing after he and his squad were sent on a mission to deliver an important message to Kumogakure. When none of them made it to the rendezvous point- or to any of Kirigakure's outposts on their expected check-in times- the village immediately sent out retrieval and Hunter Nin squads to try and find them."

Naruto looked up with a start. "Utakata has gone missing?"

"That's not all," Hiruzen informed, lowering one hand and using it to open the scroll. Once the document was unfurled, the elder looked down at it and skimmed over the contents for what he felt like was the tenth time that morning. "One of the two-man teams dispatched to track them down- a party led by Jonin captains Tsubaki and Haku- has also up and vanished." This news was more than enough to put shocked looks on the faces of all three members of Team 7, who knew the former of the two to be an incredibly capable kunoichi.

To hear that she, along with a second party member, had disappeared on a search-and-rescue mission, didn't bode well with them.

"Reports from the vicinity says that the two kunoichi got into a fight with a pair of incredibly powerful shinobi, which took place in a vicinity very close to the area where you and the teams from Kumogakure and Kirigakure ran into Otogakure forces three years ago," the Hokage informed, causing Naruto's expression to harden as memories of that encounter quickly flooded back into his head. "There was an incredible amount of damage done to the region as well. Yet after hours of combing over all the islands in the district, not a single trace of either the retrieval team or their opponents could be found."

As Naruto took a moment to deeply consider the information, Sakura, noticing the troubled look fall over her teammate, quickly looked towards their village leader and spoke up.

"What does the Mizukage request of us, Hokage-sama?" the pinkette asked.

Hiruzen straightened up and promptly rolled up the scroll in front of him. "Since you have strong ties with the people involved in these disappearances and have ventured through those areas before, the Mizukage has personally asked for Naruto-kun and a handful of other Konoha shinobi to be dispatched to the islands to assist with the searches." He then held the document forward, watching as Sasuke moved forward and took it. "Because one of you has just returned from an extended assignment away from the Hidden Leaf and is still readapting to the system, I would like the three of you to pick out a squad and head out to Mizu no Kuni as quickly as possible."

When Naruto moved over and collected the scroll from Sasuke, the one-eyed Uchiha glanced back at the Hokage suspiciously. "What exactly are we expected to run into out there, sir?"

"I'm not sure," the elder answered, resting his hands on the desk as a bead of sweat appeared on his brow. The sight of his aggravated expression caused the three youngsters in front of him to firm up as well. "That is why I suggest you choose your teammates wisely. The last thing we want is to have a repeat of the last incident." Hiruzen looked across at the jinchuriki with an especially serious look on his face. "Can I trust you to take care of this one, Naruto?"

At this, Naruto nodded in understanding and, clenching the scroll tightly, smirked broadly. "Don't worry, Hokage-jiji. You can count on me. As it turn out, I have just the people in mind I want to bring along on this assignment."

OOO

(Meanwhile)

(Many miles away)

In an undisclosed location somewhere in the Land of Water, a large island with a mountain in its center could be seen jutting out of the ocean. Covered in a heavy patch of forest, this mass of earth, rock and foliage served as an ideal base of operations for anyone wanting to keep out of sight of the authorities. Not only was the place incredibly secluded and away from any large villages or settlements, but the general layout of the island and its placement amongst the others made it the perfect lair for rent.

As it turns out, one particular group had already taken up post here.

Deep within the cave system of the landmass, inside the mountain where a large, underground reservoir was sitting, a tall, purple haired woman in a green battle dress with a white fur collar, brown gloves and calf-high sandal boots, was currently glaring into the basin below. Standing beside her was a young, skinny boy with long pale-green hair and magenta colored eyes, and was wearing a grey kimono that was jade-green on the inside, cadet blue pants and bandages wrapped down to his ankles.

As the pair stared down into the glowing lake at the bottom of the circular cavern, the small boy then spoke up in a soft voice. "So this is where the Three-Tails comes to rest after one of its journeys across the ocean?"

His question immediately drew an affirmative nod from the purple haired woman beside him. "That's right."

"And you're saying that Orochimaru-sama would like me to restrain the beast when it comes to nest here?"

"Or when it's nearby," the woman identified as Guren added, upon which she then glanced across at the child. "Remember Yukimaru… your special chakra gives you a great deal of control over the beast. As long as you remain calm and focused, you will be able to trap the beast in its lair and keep it calm, which will then allow the sealing team to imprison it inside your body. From there, the rest will be up to you." It was at that moment the kunoichi suddenly noticed the boy standing next to her stiffen up a little, his body starting to tremble a little. Immediately feeling concerned for him, the purple haired Jonin reached forward and rested a hand on his shoulder. "Hey. There's no need to be afraid. Even though the demon seems powerful, your power is even greater than it."

Taking a deep breath at feeling the woman's hand on him, the young man then turned and smiled warmly up at the woman beside him. "As long as you are there with me, Guren-san, I know I'll be able to do anything."

His remark had the purple haired female recoil, as she didn't expect the child to say something like that. After a moment of taking in his kind smile and gentle face, Guren beamed back at Yukimaru and nodded. "Y-Yeah."

"Promise you'll stay with me…" Yukimaru said, turning into the woman's arm and taking hold of the scruff of her dress. This action had the kunoichi step back a little in surprise. "Promise you'll be there with me when I have to take control of the Three-Tails."

Stuttering a little, the woman quickly shook herself out of her daze and took the boy's hand in hers. She then knelt down in front of him and looked him right in the eyes. "I promise I'll be there to protect you. You have my word, Yukimaru."

Feeling so much better, the child then didn't hesitate in moving forward and wrapping his arms around the woman's neck in a hug. But just before the kunoichi could respond, the pair were suddenly interrupted by a figure appearing at the entrance to the cave and the person clearing their throat. When Guren stood up and Yukimaru turned around, they saw the unmistakable form of the pale-skinned, white-haired form of Kimimaro standing there.

Flanked by two other Sound Ninja as well as the large, hulking form of another ninja with brown hair, a rugged chin, and wearing a brown battle vest and pants, the imposing form of the young Kaguya seemed to tower over the pair with his shadow alone. When he saw that he had their full and undivided attention, the white haired boy nodded towards them. "It's almost time. Could you please come with me, Yukimaru-kun? We have to make sure you and everybody else are ready for the ritual."

After sharing a worried look with Guren, who then gestured to him that everything was going to be okay, the boy wandered over to where Kimimaro was, where he was then promptly lead away by the two Sound Nin.

Upon seeing the boy vanish from sight, the leader of the elite Sound Five turned and shot a glare towards Guren. "Don't forget why we're here. We have orders to capture the Three-Tailed Beast using Yukimaru's body as the vessel... and to eliminate any and all obstacles that threaten to intervene. Once we have sealed the monster inside of him, we are then required to bring the boy and the demon back to Orochimaru-sama for further study." When he saw Guren lower her head under his fierce glare, Kimimaro pressed onwards. "Do not let your attachment to Yukimaru-kun cloud your judgement and compromise the sanctity of this mission. If you try to interfere with the procedure in any way-"

"I won't," came Guren's firm response as she glared back at the man who was easily recognized as Orochimaru's best. "My loyalty to our master is as firm and unshakable as yours. I am merely Yukimaru's caretaker and nothing more… so you can count on me to see this job through to the end."

Kimimaro narrowed his eyes suspiciously on the woman for a moment, before then turning heel and marching past the hulking ninja standing next to him, even managing to knock him aside with his shoulder. "We'll see." He then disappeared down the tunnel.

Hearing Guren breathe a heavy sigh after sensing Kimimaro vacate the premises, the man with the massive arms and chin turned his stoic eyes towards the woman and spoke in a deep voice. "Are you okay, Guren-san?"

Looking back up at her subordinate briefly, the kunoichi then turned away and huffed. "I'm fine, Gozu. Leave me be."

"Yes, ma'am," the giant of a man replied, giving a courteous bow to his superior before slowly edging out of the chamber.

When the towering shinobi exited the chamber, a deathly silence fell over the still present Guren, whose eyes once again had found their way towards the water. Though the expression on her face conveyed a sense of fierce determination and resolve, the rest of her body reflected nothing but frustration and anger. Her hands clenching tightly into fists and her muscles in her fingers popping as a result, the woman did her best to try and remain calm, and to not let the confrontation that'd just taken place stir her up even further.

As much as she hated Kimimaro and resented his command in this situation, she knew that she still had a job to do for Orochimaru. Being given the honor of watching over the boy that would supposedly take the Three-Tailed Giant Turtle into his body for transportation, she knew that if this mission were to be a success, she would be rewarded handsomely by her master.

However, she also knew the fate that the man had in store for Yukimaru. Since Orochimaru desired the power of the Three-Tails and that the boy showed an extreme talent for controlling the beast's chakra, Guren knew that once they seal the monster inside of him, the Sannin would then modify the child's body through doping and drugging, before possessing him through assimilation. Through this method, not only would he be achieving a new form, but also gain full control of the Three-Tails.

It was a grim fate what awaited Yukimaru and it was this very aspect that was now filling Guren's heart with doubt and fear.

Leading into this mission, she knew that there was going to be many obstacles to overcome. What the kunoichi didn't know however that she would form an attachment to the child; one whom she shared a deep history of pain and regret with.

"Damn it," Guren thought, gritting her teeth as her fists clenched from a clear battle of internal conflict. "Why… does it have to be like this?" If it hadn't been for that child worming his way into her cold heart, she wouldn't be having this problem.

Not to mention it was starting to bring back a number of other issues too, particularly a certain incident on a beach many years ago…

OOO

(Meanwhile)

(Many islands away)

Sharingan eyes cracking open, a previously meditating Itachi released his hands from their seal and stood up from the boulder he was sitting beside. He was immediately joined by his partner who, having perched himself atop the rock, hopped down to join him on the grass.

The sounds of bones cracking and popping filled the air as Kisame leaned to the side and stretched his lower back. Upon which he gave a satisfied sigh. "Well that was a time and a half, sealing Rokubi inside the Gedo Mazo. Now it's time for us to do some leg-work again." The blue-skinned warrior said as he sifted the massive, bandaged mass of his sword over his shoulder and turned towards his silent partner. "Looks like I was right on the money. We're going after the Sanbi next."

"It certainly seems that way," the Uchiha replied, adjusting the high collar of his cloak and beginning to walk in a random direction through the forest they were in. Kisame took this as his cue to follow and quickly fell in step with him. "Sasori said that it is hiding somewhere in our vicinity, so let's get out onto the water and track it down."

"Easier said than done," Kisame said, reaching up to grab the handle of his battle-partner Samahada, which jittered the moment he came into contact with it. "I may be a good hunter, but even with my skillset, finding that giant turtle is going to be a bit of a challenge." After all, it was a big ocean and there were so many places that lumbering beast could pop up.

Chances are it could be anywhere.

"We'll start by investigating the most obvious places- the caves and inlets dotting the surrounding isles," Itachi informed as the pair continued on through the dense undergrowth and towards the coast. "Orochimaru has set up a number of outposts around the area; all in places that the Three Tails has been known to frequent. If the beast is going to show up anywhere, it will likely be around one of these points."

It was from this analysis that put a wide, murderous grin on the former Seven Ninja Swordsman's shark-like face. "Am I to assume that we're going to be scouting out these places personally?"

"Yes," Itachi replied, glancing across to see the excitement brimming on his partner's face. "The manner in which I will leave in your capable hands."

"Ahh… now that's just what I wanted to hear," the rogue ninja chuckled, craning his head back and taking a deep breath of air. "Even though we're likely going to end up fighting a gigantic death turtle capable of sinking islands with a single swipe of its tails, I'm still looking forward to dicing up some of Orochimaru's cronies and turning them into chum." It was then realization struck Kisame, which led to the shinobi glancing across at his younger partner. "Hey. If the stars align correctly, do you think we'll end up taking a crack at the snake as well?"

"Maybe," the Uchiha replied. Though the man had his fangs sunk into the island chain, considering how close to the action this was and how crafty the boss was, the likelihood of running into Orochimaru on this mission in person was quite low.

The Sannin was especially careful that way.

TO BE CONTINUED…

These chapters have been short in contrast to my previous ones, sure. But I will try to upload a big one next. So look forward to it.

Again, I am migrating between my two accounts on this site: AlphaDelta1001 and TheWriteFiction. So be sure to keep in touch with me on both accounts if you can.

To my fans, I say thank you for sticking around this long and for being patient. And again, I really hope to complete this story in the future.

It isn't dead. I will make sure this story continues.