An: Thanks to all the reviewers both old and new your comments help me keep churning these chapters out at the pace I've tried to set so, thank you. Your humble author S.o.t.A.
Disclaimer I do not own Naruto and I'm doing this for fun not profit
Chapter 11: Home Sweet Home
Jiraiya had just received the dispelled clone's memories apparently the clone had approached the camping man believing him to be Zabuza. It had taken a lot of effort to find a picture of the swordsman without his ever present face wraps. The only one he had managed to find had been taken when he had just made genin. However while the clone hadn't been sure at the start it was positive when the man pulled The Executioners Blade on it.
The real Jiraiya was currently leaving Grass Country; somehow they had missed each other. But what was stranger was his clone had the distinct impression that Zabuza was heading into the Land of Fire not leaving it. Not sure what that meant he was heading to the area the clone had been destroyed at. Confident that no matter how well they tried to cover their tracks he would be able to find some clue as to where they were heading.
The Trio were tree-hopping their way to Konoha, after their encounter with the shadow clone. Zabuza had wanted to put as much distance between the area and any possible pursuit from the man who casted it as fast as possible. They had ditched their civilian clothes in favor of their usual outfits in case they ran into anymore trouble. Luckily they had spares stashed in Naruto's pack in case they ever needed to resort to Plan E.
Haku was following behind Zabuza and Naruto as they made their way towards Konoha. They were traveling quickly but still trying to avoid the patrols that were in the area. Haku was worried about what would happen to their group once they made it to the Leaf Village. Would Naruto leave them, would the Hokage force him to stay, or would they end up in a Land of Fire prison for attacking the Leaf shinobi in Wave?
He kept those worries to himself considering that Naruto was brimming with barely contained excitement at the possibility of returning home. He had asked Zabuza about his own ambitions but Zabuza had replied that those had to be put on hold for now.
Haku couldn't fault him for that or the barely contained worry that was coming from Zabuza. There were very few shinobi who had never heard of the Sannin, Naruto apparently being one of them, or their fearsome reputations. Especially Orochimaru, if even a fraction of the rumors about him were true the man was a true monster. Haku was quite sure that given the choices between death or capture, he would chose death due to the rumors of the grisly experiments Orochimaru had performed even when he had been a candidate for Hokage. Who knew what twisted things the man did to his prisoners and Haku prayed he never found out.
Zabuza for his part was running through all the different scenarios of what to do once they reached Konoha. There were several glaring problems he had to surpass with this course of action. One was he was a missing-nin and if any of the Konoha patrols running around spotted him they would probably attack. Even if they emerged victorious he doubted leaving a trail of beat up Leaf Shinobi would do him any favors. Another was he had no contacts with anyone in Konoha and despite Naruto insistence to the contrary he couldn't just believe the Hokage was the grandfather type he portrayed him to be. It could all have been a rouse so Naruto would use his power in the service of Konoha. He was taking a huge gamble in even dangling Naruto in front of the man. The Hokage could just kill him and Haku and take Naruto by force if he wanted to, so he had to be careful maybe get the man alone while he made his demands.
He also knew that he may be asked to give up the boy in order to secure the Hokage's protection from the Snake Sannin. He was banking on the fact that Naruto was the type to never go back on his word, so he was sure that even if the Hokage forbid it, all he would have to do is ask and Naruto would come fulfill his promise. However, that brought him to his last problem which was, he may be stuck in the Leaf Village for a while. He wasn't sure how close Mei was to actually starting her coupe d'état, but there was a chance he could end up not even being there when it started. However, those were concerns for the future potentially ending up dead was one for the present. The die was about to be cast now all he had to do was see if he would come out a winner or a loser.
Naruto couldn't believe it. He was heading home, and while he never expected it to be so soon, he had always known he would eventually return. He still had a dream of his own to make a reality. As he led the way he wondered what kind of welcome he would recieve. While he doubted the villagers would be any nicer. He knew the Hokage would be happy to see him. Not to mention Ayame and Teuchi, he was sure they would welcome back their number one customer. Finally his thought turned to Sakura and Hinata he wondered if they would even remember him. He hoped so, especially since they were the first two people his own age to acknowledge him.
So with those thoughts on his mind he made a list of all the things he planned to do upon his return, "First I'll stomp a mud hole in Mizuki. Next, I'll say hi to the old man followed by a steaming hot bowl of Ichiraku ramen. Finally I'll go visit Hinata and Sakura. Hopefully they'll remember me." For a moment he was afraid they would have forgotten him but then perking up thought, "Hey what am I worried about, I'm completely unforgettable." With that in mind he went a little faster, in a hurry to make his grand return.
Kimimaro returned the next morning and entered the chamber of his master. He immediately dropped to one knee and said his voice filled with shame, "Please forgive me Lord Orochimaru. I have failed you again and will take any punishment you deem worthy to atone."
"Now, now my dear boy," Orochimaru said relaxingly, "it is quite alright. Those three are quite slippery prey."
"But my Lord my failure has put the invasion of Konoha at risk," Kimimaro said.
"Ha-ha, relax dear boy," Orochimaru said chuckling, "Even if Zabuza runs straight to the Hokage and tells him of this base we will be long gone before anyone shows up to investigate due to our spies in Konoha's mist. Also that was the reason I ordered all the headbands to be removed so that even if they did manage to escape and with a jinchuriki in their group it was a real possibility, they would have no idea of who we truly are. Furthermore, the jinchuriki appears to be quite weak despite holding such a fearsome power, otherwise Zabuza would have unleashed it instead of hiding behind deception."
"Thank you for your graciousness, Lord Orochimaru," Kimimaro said reverently.
"Since that matter is settled, come along Kimimaro, we must link up with Kabuto before our meeting with the Kazekage," Orochimaru said getting up from his throne. Following along behind his master Kimimaro vowed to one day have his revenge on Zabuza and his two charges especially the blonde boy who had made him look like a fool in front of the man who gave him a reason to exist.
Naruto was disappointed so far with his return to Konoha due to the fact Zabuza refused to let him set foot in the village. When he had imagined his return it had kind of been him just walking in the front gate announcing his return. It had taken a few days but they were now only a few miles away from the village and although Naruto didn't realize it they were setting up camp in the clearing where Mizuki had attacked him so long ago.
"Alright here is the plan," Zabuza said, "Haku in the morning you'll make your way into the village and get in contact with the Hokage somehow. Once you do that tell him to come here alone at dawn the next day so we can talk."
"Shouldn't I be the one to go?" Naruto asked.
"If I let you go, there would be no guarantee that he'd let you come back," Zabuza replied, "Don't forget your part of my negotiation package."
"I'm telling you the Old Man isn't like that; he'll give you a chance," Naruto said.
"Just let me do things my way will you, it'll put my mind at ease,' Zabuza replied then seeing that Haku wanted to say something said, "What is it, Haku?"
"Perhaps it would be best if I obtained some clean clothes," Haku said, "I doubt I'll be able to enter Konoha discreetly dressed as a hunter-nin or dirty civilian clothes."
"Don't worry, I have some clothes that you can wear," Naruto said helpfully although Haku didn't like the look in the masked blondes eyes.
Sure enough when the next morning came and Naruto had presented him with the pink kimono Haku eye had started to twitch. It hadn't helped when a clearly amused Zabuza had said, "Well at least nobody will confuse you with a shinobi dressed like that." One day Haku vowed he would make the blonde boy pay, oh how he'll make him pay.
However, as he walked through the villahe he did have to agree that nobody was suspecting him of being a dangerous shinobi. The only second looks he had gotten from the Leaf shinobi and civilians he encountered had been when they had looked back to check him out. After a tense walk for him and a few wolf whistles and cat calls he arrived at the Hokage tower.
Walking into the tower he made his way up towards the Hokage's office but was stopped by a receptionist just prior to it. Looking him up and down as if deciding whether or not to call the Anbu, who Haku was sure were nearby, after a few seconds of scrutiny the woman said, "May I help you?"
Nodding politely Haku said, "Yes I would like to speak with the Hokage about an urgent matter please."
"Do you have an appointment?" the woman asked while looking at her book full of the Hokage's meeting for the day. To which Haku shook his head no.
"Well without an appointment I'm afraid I can't help you," the secretary said.
"Please I assure you, he wants to hear what I have to say," Haku asked.
"Look if I let everyone in who claimed to have an urgent matter to discuss with the Hokage he'd never get anything done," she replied clearly unimpressed, "Now if you would like to make one he is free in three days at one o'clock if that is okay?"
"I'm afraid that is not possible," Haku said, before he left Zabuza had been quite clear that if Haku couldn't meet with the Hokage by the end of the day they were moving on and maybe even going as far as to leave the continent. Looking around the room Haku sized up the situation. He didn't see any guards, but in their world that didn't mean anything for all he knew the secretary in front of him was a highly trained Anbu operative so he couldn't be sure he'd be able to just barge into the Hokage's office to deliver his message. His gaze settled on some seats obviously meant for waiting visitors and said, "Would it be alright if I waited here, perhaps someone will cancel their appointment and he'll have a free moment to speak with me."
Having seen this tactic too, where people would wait to try and pester her into letting them see the Hokage, the receptionist said, "Sure be my guest," after all nobody had ever gotten by her without an appointment unless it was urgent shinobi business or the elders.
Sarutobi was just finishing up the last file after another long day in the office, he hadn't even been able to leave to enjoy the walks around the village he so loved. Today had been especially hard considering all the preparations for the upcoming Chunin Exams he had to oversee. Today he had several meetings with the proctors of the three tests the young genin would face. Also he had to prepare to address the jounin-sensei and find out who would be nominating their teams.
He was ending the day by reading over the file that Ibiki had dropped off concerning the captured Demon Brothers. Apparently Zabuza hadn't trusted the pair anymore than he did Gato because they had less than nothing about Zabuza or his young charges. They hadn't even been able to tell him anything about Naruto other than the fact he went by the name Ronin. Deciding to just ship the pair off to the Leaf Maximum Security Prison for the time being, he thought, "Looks like I will not be able to offer Jiraiya any additional information after all."
A knock on his door pulled him from his thoughts, beckoning the person to enter he wasn't surprised when his secretary came into the office probably to tell him she was heading home. "Um, lord Hokage I'm leaving for the night. But, I think you should know there is a young…boy I think…waiting for you. He doesn't have an appointment but he has waited all day patiently so I thought I should tell you. I could send him away if you wish."
The truthfully the Hokage was tempted to do just that, however he felt such calm determination deserved to be rewarded and said, "Please send him in."
"Yes Lord Hokage," she said returning to the door and waving the boy in.
As soon as the boy entered Sarutobi was on guard, while the boy appeared unassuming the Hokage knew from years of experience this boy was more than he appeared. The boy turned to his secretary and thanked her before moving in front of his desk.
Haku waited until the receptionist had left before he said, "It is a pleasure to meet you Lord Hokage. I have heard a great deal about you, Naruto holds quite a high opinion of you."
The strength draining from him the Hokage could only whisper, "W-what did you say?"
"Forgive me, perhaps I should explain myself. My name is Haku and I'm here representing Zabuza Momochi. He wishes to speak with you over matters concerning himself and Naruto." Haku said calmly.
Getting over his shock Sarutobi said, "What sort of matters?"
"I cannot say," Haku said, "I was merely charged with delivering his message."
Sending the boy his most hardened gaze the Hokage said, "You must realize that I could have you in the I.T. department in minutes to rip the answers from you."
Haku didn't even begin to sweat a little as he said, "True however there are several reasons why I know you will not do so. First you must realize that if I don't return by a certain time Zabuza will probably leave. Second surely by now you know Naruto is traveling with us of his own free will so forcing him to come back will do you more harm than good at least as far as he is concerned."
Hearing that Sarutobi weakly said, "And the third?"
Smiling Haku said, "As I said before, Naruto holds you in high regard and believes you would not respond in such a harsh manner as that to a fair request to meet with us."
Smiling at the idea that Naruto still thought highly of him despite all the ways he had failed him said, "Very well, when and where should I meet with Zabuza."
Haku slid a piece of paper on the Hokage's desk and said, "You are to come alone to the coordinates indicated on the paper at dawn tomorrow. If you do not show or we feel as if you are preparing an ambush we will disappear like with the morning mist."
"Do not worry I'll come alone as requested," Sarutobi said.
Haku having delivered the message bowed slightly and left the room to tell Zabuza of the Hokage's acceptance of his terms. Once Haku had left Sarutobi reached shakily for the paper due to after six years Naruto would hopefully be coming home. All Sarutobi hoped was that whatever it was that Zabuza wanted in exchange for the boy he could deliver.
Dawn came too soon for Zabuza's liking, he was aware that his fate could very well be settled by the stroke of a pen by the man he was waiting for. As the sun finally crested over the horizon, Zabuza was surprised that the Hokage hadn't shown till he heard a, "Zabuza Momochi I presume," from behind him.
The Hokage was aware this could be a set up by one of his many enemies trying to use his fondness for the boy against him. Danzou for one came to mind, so he had scoped out the area before hand. All he had found though was Zabuza and the two boys in the clearing as promised. It had been rather amusing as the three turned in his direction with various looks of surprise that he had snuck up on them. He didn't know why he may have been old but he was still the man known as The Professor.
As he looked at the blonde boy whose face was wrapped like Zabuza's he felt a small pang of fear that this was still some twisted joke until the boy raised his hand and in a chipper voice said, "Hey Old Man. Did you miss me?"
Now quite sure the boy was who they said he was Sarutobi said, "More than you know Naruto."
Kakashi Hatake was following his normal routine of brooding around one of the two places he went to think about his failures. The Memorial Stone was one, but today he was doing it by the river bank were Naruto washed ashore all those years ago. He currently had his summons out running around to enjoy themselves there was no sense it letting his melancholy mood going to waste after all.
The wind suddenly sifted and Pakkun who was lying near the bank dipping his paw in the water suddenly sat up straighter. Taking a good whiff of the air he turned to Kakashi and said, "Hey Kakashi."
"What is it Pakkun?" Kakashi asked disinterested.
"You're not going to believe this but I'm picking up Naruto's scent along with the Hokage's and two others," the small summons said.
Lone visible eye widening in surprise he said, "What! Are you sure?"
"Absolutely," Pakkun replied with a small hint of indignation at the idea that he would mention it if he wasn't sure.
"Lead the way and keep quiet we don't know what the situation is," Kakashi said.
Now that he was completely sure it was Naruto, Sarutobi turned his attention to Zabuza. "I'm glad to see Naruto is well, I suppose I have you to thank for that." Receiving a guarded head nod from Zabuza the Hokage asked, "May I ask how long?"
"I guess a little over six years now," Zabuza said then mumbled, "Although some days it feels like an eternity."
Finding the way Naruto pouted at the man amusing the Hokage said, "It is good to see you have maintained your free spirited nature Naruto. However let us get down to business."
"My thoughts exactly," Zabuza agreed.
"Oh I don't think that will be necessary."
Unfortunately, Kakashi having arrived and recognizing Zabuza came to the conclusion that he may be attempting to blackmail the Hokage with Naruto and decided to make his presence know. The last thing he expected was the boy he pegged as Naruto wheeling on the Hokage and yelling, "What's the big idea Old Man you were told to come alone."
Before the Hokage could explain that he had no idea why Kakashi was there another party crasher made his presence know, "Well, well is this a private gathering? Or can anyone join in?"
"So this is how Konoha keeps its word," Zabuza said recognizing the guy whose shadow clone they had dispelled before coming here; refusing to go down without a fight he drew his sword. "Hate to say I told you so brat."
Naruto looking completely and utterly betrayed went for his as well till Jiraiya said while holding up his hands in a placating matter, "Hold on a minute, like my clone tried to tell you I just want to talk. I have no idea what is going on here."
Sarutobi also added, "I assure you Zabuza, I had no idea Kakashi and Jiraiya were nearby.' Turning to Kakashi he said, "Explain, yourself Kakashi what are you doing out here this early in the morning."
Rubbing the back of his head, while giving a weak eye-smile Kakashi said, "Well you see I was letting my summons run around when Pakkun picked up Naruto's scent. When I arrived and saw Zabuza Momochi well I guess I jumped to the conclusion that he may be trying to blackmail you using Naruto," as if to confirm his story eight dog heads appeared out of one of the bushes behind him.
Zabuza pointed his blade at Jiraiya and said, "If I caught your name right your Jiraiya another of the Sannin, what do you want with me."
"Well the Hokage sent me to find you after we realized Naruto was traveling with you, but I take it this isn't your first time meeting a Sannin and I'm also willing to bet it wasn't Tsunade," Jiraiya said. Getting his answer from the way Zabuza stiffened slightly he said, "So Orochimaru is the reason you suddenly left Grass Country without empting Gato's hidden accounts am I right."
Before Zabuza could answer Sarutobi said, "Perhaps out here in the woods isn't the best place to hold such an important conversation. Zabuza I give you my word if you accompany us back to the village you will be allowed to leave should are talks not bear fruit."
Placing his sword on his back Zabuza said, "Fair enough."
With that said they all followed the Hokage back to the village. Upon entering the village and despite nobody being up due to the early hour Naruto found that the place still felt like home. The Hokage had them use one of the lesser gates and then instead of taking them to the Hokage's Tower they ended up in a secluded part of the training grounds.
"Wow, where are we?" Naruto asked seeing the small cottage set against the backdrop of the surrounding forest.
"This is the Hokage's personal training ground it is where I come to train away from prying eyes," the Third said. "There are several seals and barriers that only I know about in place so we can speak privately here."
Once inside and everyone appeared comfortable Sarutobi turned to Naruto as he said, "Now before we get down to the matter at hand there are several question I would like you to answer Naruto. Why did you run away was it the way you were treated that drove you from us?"
"Well yes and no I guess. I mean sure people ignored me but it wasn't until Mizuki tried to kill me and threatened Hinata and Sakura that I decided I couldn't come back till I was stronger," Naruto answered. Then he went into greater detail about what happened that night, he noticed as he was talking that the Hokage, Kakashi, and Jiraiya all seemed to be getting angrier and angrier as he continued. While he could understand the Hokage's anger he didn't get why two guys he had never met before today would get so upset as well.
When he finished Kakashi asked the Hokage, "With your permission I'll go apprehend the traitor."
"Hold up Kakashi," the Hokage ordered. "I'm sorry, I failed you so my boy."
"Aw don't sweat it Old Man," Naruto said, "Sure I was afraid and it sucked being away from home for so long and I missed my precious people, but if it never happened I'd probably have never met Haku and Zabuza. Plus I'm really strong now, so you better watch out because I'm still going to become Hokage one day, believe it."
"Excellent, it makes me happy to hear that is still your dream," Sarutobi said, "However my son reported during his encounter with you that you know the Shadow Clone Jutsu. May I ask how it is you learned that technique?" Sarutobi noticed that Kakashi gave him a shocked look when he mentioned the Wave mission. While everyone knew of Team Ten's defeat at the hands of Zabuza the only person he shared the information with about Naruto's involvement had been Jiraiya. Sarutobi imagined he would have to answer some questions from the jounin about that decision in the near future.
Naruto simply answered cheerfully, "Sure Zabuza threatened some Leaf jounin with a very painful death if he didn't teach me, although now that you mention it we never did get his name."
The three adults turned their eyes to Zabuza who was leaning against the wall. In response to their silent question he said, "What's the harm in threatening to dismember a jounin here and there for the benefit of one's pupil."
Sighing Sarutobi asked, "You didn't happen to catch his name did you?"
"No, but he was performing a courier mission in Bird Country a little over a year ago if that helps any," Zabuza replied.
"Yes that will help narrow it down," Sarutobi said. Then addressing Kakashi ordered, "Kakashi without alerting anyone of Naruto's return tell the Anbu to try and find the man in question. Also, I leave Mizuki's apprehension to you."
"With pleasure, Lord Hokage," Kakashi said before leaving to complete his tasks.
Then addressing Naruto, Sarutobi said, "Why don't you take Haku on a tour of the village, I'm sure you'll also want to get reacquainted with the village while I talk with Zabuza. However, please for the time being keep your face wrapped and continue using the name Ronin. Act like a visitor to the village."
"What but why? I wanted to say hi to Hinata and Sakura. I'm also dying for a bowl of Ichiraku ramen," Naruto said confused.
"Well for one I had you declared dead over four years ago, while I believed you to be alive there are reasons I don't want people to know about your return just yet," Sarutobi said.
Holding his stomach Naruto asked, "Does it have to do with the Kyuubi."
"I see, you know of your burden then?" Sarutobi asked.
"Yeah," then while not meeting Sarutobi's eyes Naruto asked, "Why didn't you tell me."
"I wanted to wait until you were older and could fully understand the complexities you would face," Sarutobi answered.
"I guess I can understand that," Naruto said, "Don't get me wrong I'm not happy about it but you always tried to do right by me Old Man so I'm not exactly angry either."
"I'm glad and thank you for your understanding Naruto," Sarutobi said while thinking, "Will you still think so kindly of me when the depths of the things I've kept from you are revealed I wonder."
But keeping his thought from his face said, "So how about it, why don't you show Haku around for a bit and allow me and Zabuza some time to talk?" Although he kept his face happy it did hurt him a little that Naruto looked to Zabuza for permission to leave. When Zabuza gave a minute nod Naruto said happily, "Sure thing Old Man."
Once Naruto and Haku were gone Zabuza said, "So is this the part where you try to brow beat me into returning Naruto to you."
"Nothing of the sort," Sarutobi answered, "but first perhaps you should tell us why you have decided to make your presence know to us now."
"That's easy to explain," Jiraiya said, "some how or another you got on Orochimaru's bad side and you want us to protect you. You probably plan to use Naruto as a bargaining tool to secure asylum for yourself."
"You're half-right however I have no intentions of handing over Naruto. I've put a too much work into forging him into a weapon to just hand him over, " Zabuza said, while technically not true he had to play hardball if he was going to come out of this with more than just his life.
Jiraiya looked like he was about to argue till the Hokage began to chuckle much to the two men's confusion. Studying the Kiri-nin Sarutobi said, "Perhaps it is time to speak honestly with us Zabuza. That boy looks up to you and I refuse to believe he would think kindly of someone who viewed him simply as some weapon. You must also realize that you are not bargaining from a position of strength, so please no more posturing. Explain to us the situation and then I will pass my judgment."
Zabuza had to admit the Hokage was just as Naruto described him, he also reminded Zabuza a little of Heishiro-sensei. Deciding to do as the Hokage ordered he told him of his meeting with Orochimaru, the man's interest in Naruto, and that it appeared that he was gearing up for something big. The Hokage and Jiraiya absorbed everything he told them and then when he finished just sat there for a few minutes. The waiting was driving Zabuza up a wall; he wondered what demands the Hokage would make of him for his protection.
Finally Sarutobi said, "Very well, I will grant you asylum for the time being."
Needless to say he was surprised, but not as surprised as Jiraiya who said, "What that's it, you aren't even going to demand that he hand over Naruto?"
"I'm afraid not," Sarutobi said addressing his old disciple, "it would do little good. Naruto is not a shinobi of Konoha and he is traveling with Zabuza of his own free will."
Jiraiya wasn't about to give up when he said, "Yeah but what about the Akat…"
"Silence Jiraiya, trust me. There is still much to discuss," Sarutobi said. Although not happy he decided to wait and see what the Hokage had planned,
Zabuza though couldn't believe his luck, not only was he going to be protected from the snake bastard but the Hokage hadn't even demanded him to hand over Naruto it was almost too good to be true.
His elation though was short lived when the Hokage said, "However, there are two matters I would like to bring up. The first is I would like you to allow me to sponsor Naruto for the upcoming Chunin Exams."
Zabuza quickly said, "Hold on a minute, why would you want him to participate in the exams."
Smiling Sarutobi said, "As I mentioned I do not have any authority to force Naruto to return to Konoha due to his not being a shinobi of the village having never completed a recognized shinobi academy. I wish to rectify that."
"So you're telling me I don't have to hand him over, but you want me to anyway?" Zabuza asked disbelievingly.
"Yes," Sarutobi answered, "Naruto claimed he still dreams of being Hokage. I'm asking you to do what is best for him."
"Say I'm considering it?" Zabuza asked, "How does him participating in the exams help him attain that dream?"
Taking a moment to compose his answer Sarutobi said, "Even though he may be a strong shinobi there would be forces at work trying to prevent him from rejoining the village. By sponsoring him for the Chunin Exams I can bypass those who would stand in his way, since instead of having to be approved by several jounin and a simple majority among the clan and civilian councils his inclusion into the village would be based solely on his performance in the exams. It is the means by which those whose villages were destroyed or clans that wished to join us could do so without having to deal with the politics usually involved in such matters."
"I can't help but realize that then you would have the ability to order Naruto to stay then," Zabuza said.
"True," Sarutobi said giving a grin that a master chess player would when putting his opponent in check, "However that shouldn't bother you too much due to the fact that you would already have sworn allegiance to Kohona."
"Now hold on a damn minute," Zabuza said pointing at the Hokage, "What make you think I'm going to join this village? I have my own ambitions to achieve."
Giving a stern glance that showed why this man still led the Village Hidden in the Leaves, Sarutobi said, "The reason is simple, while I can grant you asylum from Orochimaru, you are still a wanted man in Kiri. The only way I could protect you from the Mizukage demanding me to send you back is if you legally joined Kohona. After all ninja defect all the time and a village cannot pursue the matter once another village recognizes them as their own."
So that was it then. The Hokage had painted him into a corner, he didn't say it but by joining the Leaf Zabuza would probably be signing the death warrant to his dream of helping Mei kill the Mizukage. Jiraiya must have sensed this because he said, "If you are concerned about Mei Terumii's rebellion, by joining the Leaf you may be helping them far more than taking the odd job here or there."
Zabuza looked at Jiraiya in shock, but before he could ask how he knew of that Sarutobi said, "We have been aware of her actions for some time, and have watched with great interest. While we cannot involve ourselves directly if you agree we could discreetly help to supply her forces with weapons and medicine."
They were right of course even with the money he gave Mei it would still be hard to find suppliers for the things her rebellion needed. He had to chuckle a little at how well the Hokage played him; he had never really had a choice.
"I do have one demand though," Zabuza said.
"And that is?" Sarutobi asked.
"It's a package deal," Zabuza said while sticking his hand out, "you have to sponsor Haku as well."
"Of course," Sarutobi said taking the offered hand and shaking it.
"Then my blade is yours to do with as you will," Zabuza said.
"Good, now that, that is settled," Jiraiya said, "Let me tell you about the other reason you should be glad to have the Leaf backing you. Have you ever heard of the Akatsuki?
Mizuki had been having a great couple of weeks, apparently Dog had retired from Anbu and whatever he had been up to was keeping him too busy to harass the genin. He was also quite sure that eventually the Hokage would have no choice but to reinstate him as a chunin. There was only so long that the Hokage could continue to reject his promotion considering his spotless record for the past six years.
Locking his apartment and making his way out of the building he stopped dead in his tracks when he saw Dog waiting for him on the street. Sure that today was about to take a turn for the worst Mizuki said, "And here I thought today was going to be a good day."
"Well it is amazing how we never really know what each day will bring," Dog replied.
"I thought you retired from Anbu," Mizuki said confused.
"Oh I did, however I'm always willing to don my mask for a special assignment," Dog said.
"Oh what assignment is that?" Mizuki asked slightly nervous.
"That would be doing what should have been done six years ago," Dog said sternly, "Mizuki you are under arrest. I do have one request of you though and that is resist… please."
"Arrest on what charges?" Mizuki asked.
"You'll know soon enough," Dog said, "Now come along, Ibiki has a room already reserved for you. Now we can do this the easy way or the hard way, personally I would prefer the hard way."
Mizuki knew the gig was up, he didn't know how but apparently they finally pieced together his involvement with the cloud-nin. He debated for a second about running for it but he knew that if he did Dog had no intention of taking him alive. So knowing the only way he would survive to see another day laid in surrender he said, "I'll come quietly."
"Too bad," Dog said before slapping a chakra repression seal on him and binding his hand, he then shunshined to the I.T. department.
Across town at a Princess Gale convention, Fumiya Yamada was becoming aware that a large number of Anbu were among the crowd. He began to panic not because of the role he played in Naruto's learning the Shadow Clone Jutsu, but that they were aware that he was the one sending Yukie Fujikaze the letters detailing his plan to make her his. However he doubted that they would recognize him seeing as he was currently dressed as High Priest Mao the main villain in the Princess Gale movies.
Discreetly making his way near an Anbu in a Cat mask he heard, "Any sign of the target."
The Anbu she was addressing said, "Negative, perhaps he isn't here."
The woman said, "No, he's here. The ticket receipt we found in his apartment indicated the ticket was bought for today. Not to mention that disturbing shrine we found. I don't care if we have to strip every person here out of their costumes find him now."
"Yes sir," Her men responded.
Fumiya discreetly made his way for the exit. Luck for him he had been preparing to defect for some time, all he had to do was get to the supplies he had stashed away from his apartment in case they ever figured out his plans and then he'd make his way out of the village.
Night had fallen on Naruto's first day back in the Leaf village; he had come to his favorite spot to think, the 4th Hokage's head. He was thinking about the meeting with the Hokage he had after showing Haku around. He was both excited and disappointed by the matters they had discussed.
The excitement came from being told that he and Haku would be participating in the Chunin Exam. The idea of competing against the best of the best that the Leaf and its allies had to offer was causing him to shiver with exhilaration. In truth, despite being with a missing-nin for six years opportunities to fight against strong opponents were few and far between.
Reaching up he touched the headband resting on his forehead that the Hokage gave him to wear, it had the Leaf symbol in the middle of too asterisks. It would mark him as a sponsored-nin until they participated in the chunin exams. The Hokage said they didn't need to win the whole thing in order to become Leaf ninja but it would certainly help. That led him to the disappointment he felt, which was that the Hokage wanted him to remain incognito. Apparently he feared that if people knew it was him competing, the council would try and get in his way. So the Hokage planned to sneak him in the back door so to speak, by having him continue to go by the Ronin persona he was known as from the Wave mission. The idea that after six years people would still look down on him was disheartening. He guessed he would just have to prove to everyone he was greater than the beast he carried.
Although he was sad his reunion with Hinata and Sakura would have to wait, he would do as the Hokage asked. He smiled to himself thinking about how despite the risk he had gone to Ichiraku to have a bowl of ramen. He was just glad that he had read the book about how to eat while masked that Zabuza had given him. Apparently it was popular with masked ninja so they could keep their air of mystery about them. The ramen was just as good as he remembered but what really touched him was that underneath the menu was the old missing child flier with his picture on it from when he was six. When Ayame had caught him looking at it she had said that they kept it there in hopes that some visitor would stop by with news of their number one customer. It had been hard not to tell them but Haku had placed a hand on his arm to remind him of the Hokage's wishes.
"It is good to see that this place still gives you comfort Naruto," the Hokage said.
"Shouldn't it be Ronin now?" Naruto asked.
"Ah yes forgive me," Sarutobi said. "I'm sorry once again about this Naruto, it just proves how much I have failed you."
Naruto didn't look back but his tone was light and cheery as he said, "I told you not to worry about it Old Man." Now looking back at him his eyes alight with amusement he added, "You're a lot more depressing then I remember. I hope when I'm Hokage I don't start moping around like you."
Laughing lightly Sarutobi said, "Well know that you have returned I imagine the village will be far too lively for me to mope around as you put it."
"Yeah and despite it not being the way I planned it. It is good to be home," Naruto said once more looking over the village.
Kakashi and Yuugao were giving their reports about the targets they were supposed to capture to the Hokage. Kakashi had dropped Mizuki off with Ibiki. The genin had barely been there ten minutes before he had confessed to his role in Naruto's disappearance and the cloud-nin attempt at kidnapping Hinata. The Hokage was tempted to just have the man executed for his crimes but figured that would be letting him off to easy, instead he'd ship him off to the Leaf Maximum Security Prison. His two accomplices had been caught trying to sneak out of the village.
Yuugao's report was a little more worrisome however; Fumiya had apparently managed to slip away. What was more disturbing though was it appeared he had an unhealthy fixation on Yukie Fujikaze. He would alert the hunter division to station people near the actress and princess in hiding in case the man moved against her. He then dismissed the two, but he wasn't surprised when Kakashi stayed behind.
"Is something troubling you Kakashi," Sarutobi asked despite having a good idea about what it was.
"Permission to speak freely?" Kakashi asked to which Sarutobi respond with a nod of his head. Receiving permission Kakashi said, "You knew Naruto was traveling with Zabuza at least as far as Team Ten's return from Wave. So I have to ask why wasn't I made aware of it?"
Sighing Sarutobi reached for his pipe and lit it before saying, "Tell me. What would you have done if you were made aware of that fact?"
"I would of…" Kakashi started before trailing off.
"Exactly, you would have taken off in search of him." Sarutobi said after taking a drag from his pipe, "However, you are a jounin-sensei and your responsibilities lays with Team Seven."
"Sir, what about Naruto once he becomes a Leaf shinobi? If possible I would like for him to become a member of Squad Seven," Kakashi inquired.
"Oh and who would you move off the team," Sarutobi said lightly and then added; "However, I'm afraid that isn't possible. Once I find a third to fill out a team Naruto and Haku will continue to work under Zabuza."
"Yes sir," Kakashi replied somewhat disappointed by the Hokage's decision, "If that is all, I think I should go tell my team to go home instead of waiting for me to show."
Gaping at Kakashi as he shunshined away, Sarutobi couldn't help but chuckle as he said, "It is hard to believe just how like Obito you have become Kakashi. Although I think making your team wait on you all day is a bit much."
Despite the news that Orochimaru was up to something, Sarutobi felt better than he had in years. It was amazing how with a few words Naruto had eased many of the troubles that weighed upon him. Leaning back in his chair he let his thoughts turn to his once favored student. After Jiraiya had told Zabuza about the Akatsuki, the Hokage had ordered the Toad Sannin to check out the base in Grass in hopes of uncovering what Orochimaru was up to. Whatever it was there was little doubt in his mind that it meant trouble for the Leaf Village.
That would have to wait though; right now he needed to begin searching for someone of sufficient skill to join Naruto and Haku for the Chunin Exams. Regardless of how his search turned out there was one thing Sarutobi was certain of and that was that this would be a Chunin Exam like no other.
"Sir, one of our proctors that deal with Chunin Exam registration has something of interest to report," Danzou's nameless Root assistant reported.
"Very well," Danzou said send him in.
The assistant left the chamber, a minute later he returned followed by a twenty something man who upon gazing upon Danzou dropped to one knee. "You claim to have something of value to report regarding this year's Chunin Exams speak."
"Yes sir," the secret root proctor said, "The Hokage has sponsored a team to enter the Chunin Exams. He sent the paper work this afternoon." The man then passed a folder to Danzou's assistant who in turned handed it to the Root leader.
Danzou opened the folder saw the picture of two boys staring back at him. The blonde one of the two kept his lower face covered in combat bandages. Many of the fields on his form, such as his birth date, were blank. It did list his name as Ronin however. The other boy's face was covered in a mask similar to the ones worn by the Kiri Hunter Division the only thing different was that it had the symbol for a Kohona sponsored-nin on the forehead. Much like the other boy's form the primary fields were blank except for his ma,e which was Haku.
"I see, there is no listing for who their jounin sensei is," Danzou said.
"No sir not in that file," the proctor said, "But, in order to be enrolled a sponsored team needs to have a Jounin-sensei assigned to it. So I secretly searched the personal files for new jounin-sensei and found this,"
The assistant once more approached and took the file from the proctor. After Danzou accepted it and upon opening the file his lone eye opened in shock. A moment later in a rare fit of anger he grabbed the nearest thing which was a cup of tea and threw it against the wall.
Instead of explaining his rare moment of anger to his subordinates he thought, "Damn it, how did Sarutobi manage to get Zabuza to join Konoha's forces?" Once more looking at the file of the two boys he added, "That means the blonde boy must be the jinchuriki of the Kyuubi."
"You did well in bring this to my attention you may go," Danzou said addressing the proctor. However before the man could leave the room he stopped him by asking, "Where is the file on the third person who Sarutobi plans to sponsor?"
"He hasn't picked a third yet sir. His secretary who dropped off the paper work said he'll have the final team composition ready by the time the jounin-sensei announce which teams they will be recommending to take the exams sir."
Giving the proctor a wave to signal that will be all he turned his thoughts to the matter, "It was clever of Sarutobi to try and keep the boys identity a secret. Undoubtedly, if word got out that the boy was attempting to join the village's forces, many among the civilian council would attempt to stop Sarutobi from sponsoring him. They would fail of course but it would hurt his popularity with the people."
Pinching the bridge of his nose with his good hand he continued his inner monologue, "No if word of the boys true identity leaked Sarutobi would uncover every rock in Konoha looking for the leak. He may eventually find out about Root's continued existence. I'm sure he already suspects that the teams I've sponsored in the past are more loyal to me then him."
A smile appeared on his lips suddenly after that as he thought, "Why not use my track-record of sponsoring hopefuls for the Chunin Exams to my benefit. Sarutobi has to be frantically searching for someone with the necessary skills to complete the jinchuriki's team. While using the exams to certify the boy as a Leaf Shinobi will bypass the council it does come with its own risks especially since if they fail in their bid Sarutobi will have to wait five years before he could sponsor them for a second attempt. I'll simply let him use one of my men; it'll give me an opportunity to get an asset close enough to the jinchuriki to observe it."
Turning to his assistant he said, "See that Zabuza's file falls into Sarutobi's advisors hands."
He had little doubt that once they saw what the Hokage had done, Homura Mitokado and Koharu Utatane would make Sarutobi miserable due to the way he quickly and silently approved Zabuza for active duty. While well within his rights as Hokage and due to the fact that the former mist-nin was a recognized jounin, Sarutobi didn't need the council's permission to grant him a position in Konoha's forces. However, since he probably did so without telling either of the elders it would ruffle more than a few feathers he was sure especially due to Zabuza's reputation for betrayal.
In any case after the two doddering old fools made their displeasure know he would step in and offer assistance in helping Sarutobi round out his team. Sarutobi would be suspicious of course but with the number of teams he had successfully sponsored in the past and the Hokage's desperation to get the jinchuriki into Konoha he had little doubt the man would agree. His man would of course do his best to succeed after all when he ascended to the position that he had coveted for so long he wouldn't want his most powerful military asset to be in someone else's hands.
Sarutobi watched as the sun set on another day in the village. His old teammates had left a few hours ago and the meeting with them had left a bad taste in his mouth. It wasn't that they were upset about his quick and quiet method of approving Zabuza's joining; no he had been expecting that. It was how quickly they had been made aware. They claimed a concerned jounin had dropped off the file and while it was plausible he doubted it. Considering, he had his secretary file the paperwork on zabuza personally and the woman was too much of a stickler for the rules to have gone against what the Hokage asked.
That meant the mysterious jounin had been snooping, and he had a hunch as to why. He was currently waiting for Ibiki to report to him if his hunch was correct. While he waited he thought back to the meeting with his two old friends. Although it had been awhile since he thought of them that way. What had ultimately damaged his relationship with them had been their decision to align with Danzou in massacring the Uchiha. He knew they loved the village as much as he did, it was just they were to willing to take short cuts in order to protect Konoha and having Itachi murder his own clan before a proper means of negotiation could be established was a short cut to peace that went against everything the village stood for. Although, even he would admit that he had been surprised at how close the Uchiha were to launching their rebellion.
But those negative feeling had seeped into his dealing with the two and today had been no exception. They had entered his office without an appointment and demanded to speak with him and promptly railed against his decision to include Zabuza in as they put it, 'their forces.' Sarutobi would easily admit that his lack of success in finding a third person for Naruto's team had put him in a bad mood. So he had in no uncertain terms told them quite frankly he didn't need their permission to add a recognized jounin to 'his forces' and the next time they wanted to speak with him over matters they were concerned about they had better make an appointment. He then told them to leave his office because he was quite busy. Koharu had looked hurt at his outburst while Homura had kept whatever emotions he felt in check as they had both left the room. Afterwards, he did feel a little guilty at his outburst but quickly pushed it aside and then told his secretary to send for Ibiki.
A knock at the door pulled him back to the present as he told the person to enter. In stepped the head of the I.T. department Ibiki Morino. "Well Ibiki is it as I feared?" Sarutobi asked.
"Yes sir," was the gruff reply of the head of the I.T department, "The personnel records were accessed by the chunin proctor that handles the foreign and sponsored team registrations. He was cautious but he was seen by several people on duty in the records hall." Handing the Hokage a file he said, "The details on the man are in the file."
"Thank you Ibiki, but that won't be necessary. I already know what I needed to, but perhaps you can tell me one thing. He was sponsored by Danzou at one point was he not?"
"Yes sir," Ibiki replied obviously surprised.
"Very well you are dismissed," Sarutobi said turning the chair away from the special jounin and looking out the window at the village. However, after a few seconds when Ibiki hadn't moved he asked, "Is something bothering you, Ibiki?"
"Permission to speak frankly, sir"
Turning back to him Sarutobi said, "Of course, speak your mind."
"Honestly, I don't see why you had me look into a man that obviously does have a reason to be concerned," Ibiki stated, "Frankly, Zabuza should be on a boat to Wave in chains not being made a jounin-sensei of Konoha. Not to mention the two boys accompanying him. Why you chose to sponsor them is beyond me."
"I can understand your concern, while he did betray Kirigakure and he refuses to speak of his reasons, I do not believe him to be the monster the bingo books paint him to be. As to why I asked you to look into this proctor, it has to do with why he looked and I do not believe it has anything to do with Zabuza but one of the boys accompanying him," Sarutobi informed.
"What interest would he have in Zabuza's apprentices?" Ibiki asked not sure where the Hokage was heading.
"It was not the chunin per say who is interested, but the man I believe he works for, Danzou, and while I cannot tell you why he would be interested in the boy. I now believe Danzou is at least interested in why I am sponsoring these boys. It was probably another of Danzou's people that gave the file to my advisors knowing they would be upset with my decision. But what that gains him I'm not sure," Sarutobi said troubled by whatever scheme Danzou was planning.
Sarutobi suspected that Danzou knew Ronin was in actuality Naruto. If that was the case what did he hope to achieve by getting his advisors on his case. He had always suspected that Danzou's Root had just gone underground instead of disbanding as he had ordered. Perhaps it was time to discreetly take steps to at least find out how deeply Root had buried itself within Konoha.
"Ibiki I want you have this chunin followed he may lead us to others whose true loyalties lie with Danzou. Also I want you to set up a task force to find these double agents so to speak and monitor them. Use people you can trust we cannot afford any mistakes the very future of Konoha may be at stake."
"Yes Lord Hokage," the special jounin said. While a tad outside his realm of expertise the man was one of Sarutobi's must trusted and knew the best ways to find the secrets others kept and unfortunately sometimes it seemed the list of people he could trust explicitly seemed to get smaller and smaller.
After Ibiki left Sarutobi got out of his chair and turned to the village watching as people went about their business. It must be such a joy for them to not know the dangerous game that was being played in the shadows around them. With luck, the steps he took today would help remove the threat that Danzou posed to the peace so many had died to bring about. It would take time, of that he was sure. But he wouldn't be able to measure the threat Danzou posed if he didn't know all the pieces that the old warhawk had in play. Whether or not he would be alive to see the endgame though was another matter entirely.