Hey, I'm finally here with another chapter. I'm really sorry I took so long to get this chapter up. I admittedly finished writing this chapter quite a while ago but getting it typed up and ready to post took a lot of time to balance out with adjusting to the schedule I've got at school. I hope you enjoy it and I'll try to be more frequent in my updates.

I know Madara was super creepy in the last chapter but I have to admit… he's really fun to write that way, I don't know why. Maybe because imagining him getting the appropriate retribution later on becomes more sadistically satisfying? We'll see, lol.

PunkHime: Thanks! I'm glad you're enjoying the story. You do bring up a point about the future children ordeal. I'm still deciding on it. In the end, I think the thought of children will be saved for a sequel or something as to not deter from the main concept of this particular story.

HiemalMoonlightMidnight: Thank you for the criticism. Admittedly, some of the things I hinted at I planned to utilize for the spinoff story that's meant to help fill in some of the loose ends without interfering with the flow of the main story. If there is anything that you would like to see explained, feel free to make suggestions. And as to my medical education, I've only just started and I'm keeping an open mind towards whatever comes my way. As for now, I haven't quite learned enough to feel comfortable incorporating it in the story, but eventually, I might have enough background to do just that.

Matsumotomoon: The story is taking a bit of a darker edge to it, isn't it? Sorry about that but it's all happening for a reason. Don't worry, the fluff will be back.

Sefiriot: Wow, you've put some thought into all of this and I admit that I have been thinking of how Minato's body weakness will affect him when he finally gets it back. Should be fun.

Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto. If I did, Sasuke would be dead already.

Chapter 29: Interesting Proposals

'I should get Naruto a better apartment,' Jiraiya thought to himself as he walked through the shady parts of the village on his way to the blonde's apartment. His godson deserved better.

When he finally arrived, he knocked on the door and waited.

"It's open," he heard Minato's voice from inside.

Silently wondering what was keeping the older blonde from coming to dinner, Jiraiya entered the apartment.

What he saw made him burst out laughing.

Minato was in the kitchen with his sleeves pulled up and he was wearing an apron as he cooked the food and a bandana keeping his hair out of his way and a smudge of flour on his nose and cheeks.

"What's so funny?" Minato frowned in confusion. He didn't understand the source of Jiraiya's amusement.

"You look so domestic," Jiraiya snickered. "I never thought I would see the day. So what exactly are you doing, Mister Mom?"

Minato pouted in displeasure as he grudgingly answered his Sensei. "I'm making breakfast for the kids. Somebody has to make sure that they eat right. If I didn't, Naruto would most likely eat ramen for every meal."

"I would not!" Naruto cried out as he, Gaara, and Ino stepped out of the bathroom, where they'd all been talking.

Minato gave Naruto a pointed look. "Wouldn't you?" he countred, causing Naruto to waver.

"Okay, maybe I would," Naruto finally gave in, causing Minato to grin and ruffle his hair playfully. Naruto squirmed out of the elder man's grasp and scowled at him. "Tou-san…" he whined. "Not in front of everybody."

"Oh?" Minato commented, an evil gleam appearing in his eyes. "Come here." He pulled Naruto to him and started ruffling his hair more. Naruto let out a loud yell of complaint and struggled against Minato's hold.

"Fatherhood suits you," Jiraiya remarked, seeing how Minato and Naruto practically glowed in each other's presence.

Minato simply smiled.

Jiraiya turned his attention to the three teenagers. "So are you ready to start training? Your respective Jounin-sensei have given their permission."

Naruto, Ino, and Gaara exchanged looks. This was what they'd been waiting for. They nodded profusely.

"Then we'll head out once you've finished eating," Jiraiya declared.

The kids immediately dove into their food.

"Eat slowly!" Minato scolded them. "The food isn't gooding anywhere!"

"I don't want to waste any time!" Naruto stated between bites. "Training waits for no one!"

"You were never this excited when I train you," Minato actually looked affronted.

"You're a slave driver," Naruto countered matter-of-factly.

Minato's eyebrow twitched at those words. "A slave driver, am I?" he repeated. "I'll make you eat those words, musuko."

Naruto felt a shiver run down his back at the evil look Minato was giving him. Maybe he shouldn't have mouthed off like that.

Ino and Gaara exchanged amused looks. Naruto really was at his liveliest with his father by his side.

"You're a good cook, Yondaime-sama," Ino complimented as she ate.

He shot a pointed look at her. "What did I tell you, Ino-chan?" the older shinobi queried.

"… Not to call you that," Ino replied, chastised. "I'll try to remember that now, Namikaze-sama."

Minato sighed in disappointment. So much for getting her to be less formal with him. Then again, he supposed this was most likely a big thing for her. It's not every day she met a supposedly dead legend after all.

'It will come with time, my love,' Kyuubi responded.

'I suppose it will,' Minato agreed.

'I can't believe I lost to the dobe,' Kiba thought sulkily as he walked through the long hallways of the hospital. He had been so sure that he would win… especially because Naruto's protector wouldn't be in the way like he always was.

Kiba shiverd as he thought back to the sheer anger that Naruto had exuded when the dog nin had insulted the guardian. He hadn't imagined Naruto being capable of showing such strong negative emotions. The boy had been treated like dirt all of his life but Naruto had never fought for his honor the way he had for his protector. Just how much did the mysterious angel really mean to the dobe?

He broke from his thoughts when he finally arrived at Hinata's room. She had only recently woke up from what Kurenai-sensei had told him.

Seeing her in such a frail state made Kiba's heart hurt.

"Oh, Hinata…" he sighed. "I told you that if you went up against Neji, you'd get hurt."

The young Hyuuga heiress looked at him sadly. "You don't believe that I could have won, Kiba-kun?" she inquired, sounding hurt. Kiba was quick to amend his words..

"It's not that," he protested. "You're really strong, Hinata, but Neji… he would have done anything and everything to hurt you… no matter how dirty the move. I didn't want to see that happen."

"I was well aware that he wouldn't make things easy," Hinata stated, eyes downcast. "But I had a point to make and I wasn't going to give up just because I could get hurt. That's not my nindo."

"You sound just like the dobe," Kiba commented wryly. As much as he and Naruto didn't get along, Kiba admired how Naruto had changed Hinata.

"There is nothing wrong with standing up for what you believe in," Hinata pointed out. "Naruto-kun has been doing that all of his life… and so shall I."

Kiba looked a little sour. "I still don't see what's so special about Blondie. He's a stupid loudmouth who wears too much orange and doesn't know when to quit," he griped hotly. It irked him to see just how close Hinata and Naruto were. Hinata was his teammate.

Hinata fixed Kiba with a look. "Can you honestly believe that after you lost to Naruto yesterday?" she questioned, causing Kiba to falter.

Naruto had shown a completely different side during the fight, proving to everyone who watched that he was not a dobe. He silently wondered how Naruto became so good in such a short time… Surely, Hatake Kakashi wasn't that good of a teacher. He barely taught Sakura anything. How could he have pulled off such a big success with Naruto, who hadn't shown any talent during the Academy?

"Naruto's stronger than he lets on. He's always been stronger," Hinata stated. "He just hides it."

"But why?" Kiba frowned. "If I were that strong, I would flaunt it."

"That's what sets you apart," Hinata declared. "I don't know his exact reasons any more than you do but even I can tell he's trying to protect something… or someone."

"Who could he possibly want to protect?" Kiba wondered, a little irate over the mystery that was Naruto.

"Who has he been most secretive about?" Hinata hinted and Kiba's eyebrows raised.

"He's protecting the angel? I thought the angel protected him," the rash brunette frowned in confusion.

"Maybe it's a two way street," Hinata reasoned. "I don't think their relationship is that of a protector and his protectee. I think it's closer… like a parent and his child."

Kiba suddenly got struck with a realization. "Well… that would explain why he got so angry with me…" he mused. Now he felt guilty. He would have been just as pissed as Naruto had been if someone had insulted his mother. "…I'm going to have to apologize to him, aren't I?" he said sheepishly.

"You better,"" Hinata responded firmly. "What on Earth drove you to be so harsh with him, Kiba-kun? It doesn't make any sense. Just what could you be jealous of?"

"…Your relationship," Kiba muttered under his breath. Hinata blinked.

"Excuse me?" she frowned. She wasn't sure she had heard right.

"I was jealous of your relationship, alright? You act so much more openly with him than you ever have with either Shino or I. It's not fair. We're your teammates, aren't we? I just wanted you to open up to us but all you see is Naruto," Kiba exclaimed.

Hinata gazed upon Kiba in surprise. "… I didn't think you thought like that," she murmured. "You know I care about both you and Shino, right? I've just been friends with Naruto longer. It's to be expected that I'd seem closer to him because of that. It does not mean you or Shino mean anything less to me. I care for all three of you equally."

"I do," Kiba admitted. "It's just that…"

"Just what, Kiba-kun?" Hinata pressed.

"I like you, Hinata," Kiba blurted out.

"I like you too, Kiba-kun," Hinata blinked, not quite getting it.

"No, Hinata… I mean I like you… as in more than a friend," the dog nin admitted, flushing a vibrant red.

Hinata soon matched the color. "…Oh," she replied shyly, playing with her fingers. She hadn't really imagined that her feelings would be returned. "I like you too…" she finally spoke up.

Kiba brightened up instantly. "You do?" he asked excitedly and she nodded. Grinning widely, he hugged her, barely remembering to be gentle in consideration of her injuries. "You have no idea how happy I am to hear that."

Hinata just smiled shyly before looking stern. "I like you, Kiba-kun, but if you want to be able to date me, you're going to have to apologize to Naruto-kun and gain his forgiveness first."

Kiba groaned. He knew he needed to apologize to Naruto. He had no problem with that, but… gaining Naruto's forgiveness would be hard. He took a deep breath. He supposed this was Hinata's way of punishing him for his displeasing actions during the Chuunin Exams.

"…Fine," he grudgingly agreed.

Jiraiya stared at his three new students, pondering over what he should start them out on. It had been a long time since he'd last taken a student… especially three at once.

For a moment, he swore he saw the image of Yahiko, Nagato, and Konan replace the forms of Naruto, Gaara, and Ino but it quickly vanished.

'Stop thinking of the past… I won't fail with these three,' Jiraiya regained his resolve. He had faith in Naruto and his friends. "So considering you guys just ate breakfast, I wouldn't recommend doing any physical activity just yet. Therefore, I'm going to set you three up with some jutsu that you should learn. Ino, for now, I think it would be best to advance your Genjutsu knowledge. I believe that would work best with your family jutsu. Gaara, we'll get you set up with some offensive and defensive jutsu that won't rely solely on your sand. If someone finds a way to neutralize your sand, we don't want you defenseless. Naruto, I think it's time that you learned how to summon."

Naruto looked intrigued. "You mean I'll get to sign the Toad Summoning Contract?" he asked eagerly.

"That's right," Jiraiya stated as he pulled out two scrolls. One he tossed to Ino and the other to Gaara. After that, he quickly retrieved the Toad Contract. Unraveling it, he gestured to Naruto where he was supposed to sign, right next to the panel with his father's name.

Naruto knelt down so he could do so when his face scrunched up.

"What's wrong, Naruto?" Minato asked, fully materialized.

"What name do I write down? Uzumaki Naruto or Namikaze Naruto?" he queried, explaining his dilemma. To everyone, he was Uzumaki Naruto, but his rightful name was Namikaze Naruto, and considering he knew that, he didn't know which one to put down.

"That's a good question…" Minato mused. There was nothing more he would like to see than his son possessing his surname as he should, but at the same time, he'd hate to see the Kushina in him get suppressed with the loss of her surname.

"How about you make a compromise?" Jiraiya suggested. "Write down Uzumaki-Namikaze Naruto."

"That sounds good to me," Naruto agreed, pleased with the combination. This way, he could honor both his mother and father in his name. After he finished signing his name in blood, he looked up at Jiraiya. "Now what?"

"Now you'll learn how to cast the jutsu. It will take a lot of chakra, so keep that in mind when you do it," Jiraiya instructed as he began to officially train the trio.

Jiraiya observed Naruto perched on GamaBunta in stunned silence. He turned to the greatly amused Minato, who was standing beside him, with a look of sheer awe on his face. "I had a feeling he'd inherited your genius but this is too much."

Minato laughed merrily, proud of his son's achievement. "What did you expect? Summoning takes skill, a lot of chakra and good chakra control. Naruto has a great deal of innate skill, more chakra than any of us could hope to use fully, and a chakra control well-tempered by both Kyuubi and I. Is there really any reason to wonder?"

"When you put it like that, I suppose not," Jiraiya responded, scratching the back of his head. "But still… on the first try?"

"Jiraiya!" GamaBunta's voice boomed through the air, causing the Sannin to flinch. "You summon me for no apparent reason and now you're talking to yourself? I will not be summoned by a mad man!"

"I didn't summon you," Jiraiya protested meekly. "And I'm not crazy." Although he supposed he must have looked that way for talking to someone that the Toad Boss couldn't see.

"What do you mean you didn't summon me? Who else could it have been other than you?" GamaBunta frowned.

"Me," Naruto replied from his perch on top of the toad. He leapt off so that the Summon could get a good look at his new summoner.

GamaBunta focused his beady eyes on the small form in front of him. At first, he wanted to scoff at the thought of a mere child being able to summon him but then he noticed something. He turned to Jiraiya. "He's Minato's boy, isn't he?"

Jiraiya nodded solemnly. Maybe now the Toad Boss would accept that Naruto had summoned him. After all, his heritage was enough of a reason for him to be a Toad Summoner.

"It doesn't change anything. You still need to prove yourself to me, brat," GamaBunta told Naruto gruffly. "We still need to share a drink together."

"But I'm too young," Naruto protested with a small frown.

"That does not matter," GamaBunta answered stubbornly before he felt a surge of chakra run through him.

"How about I drink in his place?" Minato offered with a smile, enjoying the gaping look on the toad's face.

"It can't be!" the Toad Boss exclaimed before turning to Jiraiya. "You've infected me with your insanity!"

"I most certainly have not!" Jiraiya retorted, offended. "He's really here."

"It's not possible! He's dead. We felt him go!" GamaBunta exclaimed in denial.

"I am dead," Minato said firmly. "Well… sort of. I'm not dead or alive now that I thnk about it."

"That doesn't make any sense!" the summon frowned.

"I know it doesn't," Minato replied patiently. "It's a complicated situation. Let's just say… the Shinigami believes I still have a purpose on this plane of existence."

"What makes you so special?" GamaBunta frowned, even though he felt that he may already know the reason.

"He's the savior we've been looking for. How much more special does he need to be?" Jiraiya countered.

"I'm not the savior, that's Naruto," Minato denied with a shake of his head.

"You both are the saviors," Jiraiya responded. "What other reason would the Shinigami choose to bind you two together?"

"It does make sense," Ino inserted, having paused in her own training to observe the spectacle.

Gaara nodded in simple agreement.

"Fine," Minato conceded reluctantly. He turned back to the Toad Boss. "So am I a suitable substitute?"

GamaBunta looked reluctant. "There have never been any substitutions before…"

Minato's eyes turned steely. "Are you telling me you're going to coerce my underage son into doing something neither he nor I approve of?" he queried, the threat clear in his voice as a Rasengan began to form in his hand.

A shiver visibly ran through the Toad Summon. "O-on the other hand, I think I can make an exception this once…" he stammered.

Naruto, Ino, and Gaara couldn't help but grin over the Yondaime's quick victory.

Kakashi observed Sasuke as he trained furiously. He hated being obligated to train the apoiled brat. It left a bad taste in his mouth… especially knowing that as an Uchiha, Sasuke was Naruto's natural enemy. He felt like working with Sasuke was like a betrayal to the family he'd taken as his own.

He had no choice, however. There was no way he would allow Sasuke to be enticed to join Orochimaru. He still felt shivers from the encounter he'd had with the Snake Sannin when he had subdued the Cursed Seal.

The Sharingan in Orochimaru's hands would be a terrible development for Konoha… or even the entirety of the Shinobi Continent.

He not only feared for how dangerous the man would become but if he took over Sasuke's body and looked at Naruto with his new Sharingan… he felt queasy just thinking about it.

The only consolation he got was the thought of the brutal manner in which Minato would dispatch the bastard if that were to happen.

He broke out of his reverie when he found Sasuke glowering at him. "What is it?" he asked, sounding tired.

"When are you going t teach me something useful? You've got me stuck doing laps, stretches, and other mindless exercises!" Sasuke exclaimed irately.

Kakashi rolled his eye. "You said that you wanted to get as fast as Naruto, didn't you?" he spoke up as if Sasuke was an absolute idiot. "This is the way to do it."

"There must be a faster way to do this," Sasuke protested.

"There are no worthwhile shortcuts to getting strong," Kakashi answered bluntly, much to Sasuke's frustration.

As Sasuke resumed his exercises, Kakashi smirked evilly.

He may not be able to escape training Sasuke but he could choose what he learned and how fast he learned it…

Shikamaru turned to Chouji with a raised eyebrow. "You want me to take Naruto out on a date?" he queried incredulously.

"You should," Chouji stated. "If you really care for the blonde, you'd show it."

"What do you think I did during the Preliminary matches?" the lazy genius countered hotly.

"You staked a claim... but that's it," Chouji stated. "You need to prove that you're serious about him... or is Kiba right about you merely playing around with him?"

Shikamaru looked up sharply. "You're wrong," he stated. "I'd never do that to Naruto! He knows that but if I really have to prove myself, I'll take him on that date!" the pineapple head declared.

Chouji smirked. His friend was so predictable if you knew how to play him right. "Great. I expect you to ask him out by the end of the day."

Shikamaru faltered at the sight of his friend's glee. "Why do I have a feeling that I've been had?" he sulked.

"I know you better than anyone, Shikamaru. I know how to get you to do things," Chouji answered smugly.

"But why insist on this?" Shikamaru inquired, puzzled.

"Naruto's my friend too, you know. I want him to be happy as much as you. Somebody has to help you get off your lazy ass. If you don't step up, Sasuke or Daichi might steal Naruto away," Chouji stated.

"I won't let that happen," Shikamaru promised, eyes narrowed at the thought of the two shady Genin getting their hands on the object of his affections. He would fight tooth and nail to keep them away.

"You won't be able to stop it," a cold voice rang out.

Chouji and Shikamaru turned around to see Daichi standing there with a sneer on his face.

"Do you honestly think that you deserve Naruto? You're weak, pathetic, and a coward. He can do a lot better," Daichi attacked Shikamaru verbally.

"I know he can," Shikamaru replied evenly. His eyes darkeneed as he glared at Daichi. "Nevertheless, he returns my feelings and as long as he does, he's mine. There's nothing that you can do about it."

Daichi just maintained his own glare. "We'll see," he replied coolly before walking away.

Chouji turned to Shikamaru, looking concerned. "He might cause trouble in the future," he remarked.

"Without a doubt," Shikamaru agreed. "We'll just have to prepare for it."

Daichi wandered through Konoha, trying to make sense of the conflicting emotions coursing through him.

He was supposed to hate Naruto, and yet... he couldn't bring himself to do that. He was the son of his most despised enemy but Daichi found that he no longer saw him simply as that. Naruto's determination, strong will, and pure enthusiasm for the shinobi arts had won Daichi over, much to his chagrin.

If he wanted to get rid of these accursed emotions he was going to have to crush Naruto soundly and he knew just how to do it.

Naruto and Minato glanced at Jiraiya curiously.

"You want us to experiment with our bond in battle conditions?" Naruto frowned.

Jiraiya nodded. "Your bond was forged by the Shinigami himself. From what you told me, you have mostly worked as two separate entities working together. I'm curious to know how much stronger you could become if you work as one entity," the Sannin mused.

"You're talking about synchronization," Minato was able to quickly ascertain Jiraiya's intention.

"Sharp as always, Minato," Jiraiya smiled fondly, remembering why he'd enjoyed teaching the elder blonde. He was always quick on the uptake.

"We've never considered the idea," the Yondaime admitted. "We always thought of how to amplify our strengths as separate individuals."

"If that was all the Shinigami had planned for you, you would not be sealed within Naruto," the Sannin theorized. "I think he intended for you to to amplify each other's abilities in an entirely different manner. If you two became truly synchronized, I believe your strength would skyrocket exponentially."

"Do you really think that could work?" Naruto wondered. It didn't seem very easy.

"It's worth a try," the boy's godfather answered. "I don't exactly know how you can go about doing it, given there has never been a case like the two of you before, but I say you should try to start thinking and acting as a unit."

"You believe that if we synchronize physically and mentally, it may help us synchronize on a higher level," Minato realized. It really would be hard. They could achieve physical synchronization well enough, but mental synchronization would be harder. While he and Naruto were similar in nature and they knew quite a bit about one another due to being bound together, their thoughts were still 100% their own. It would be difficult to bring those together.

"I like a challenge," Naruto answered, choosing to be optimistic about the situation. It would be fun to see if he and his father could achieve the level of synchronization that the Sannin spoke of.

"I hope you know, Minato, that this means you will be doing all of the same training as Naruto for the sake of the synchronization," Jiraiya commented.

"I'm aware," Minato stated. The training wouldn't be difficult for him. He'd done it all before, after all. What would be difficult was matching Naruto's level while doing it. "Let's get started, Naruto."

Naruto groaned as he trudged back towards his home. Minato followed after him, copying Naruto's stance and pace, which would have looked very amusing if anybody had been capable of seeing him.

"So tired..." the young blonde complained. They'd all done a lot during training.

Jiraiya had started assessing Gaara and Ino's Taijutsu while Minato and Naruto had run laps, did Fuuinjutsu training, chakra control practice, and they worked on elemental manipulation. Each of these exercises had helped the two make a step in the right direction with synchronization.

With the knowedge of synchronizing chakra, Minato highy anticipated the time he would teach Naruto how to use the Rasengan. If they were to combine their respective Rasengans together... he grew excited over the thought of what they could produce.

"You were the one excited over training," Minato stated simply with a shrug. Naruto just glowered.

As he arrived at his apartment, Naruto was surorised to see Shikamaru waiting for him.

"Shikamaru?" he brought attention to himself.

The dark haired genius turned to him and smiled brilliantly at the sight of him, causing Naruto to flush.

"I'm out of here," Minato asserted, not wanting much to do with their conversation. He sank back into the seal instantly. Naruto just rolled his eyes.

"It looks like you've been working hard," Shikamaru remarked, seeing Naruto's messy appearance.

"Yeah... There's a lot to work on before the Finals," Naruto commented and Shikamaru had to agree. "Have you been waiting long?"

"Not too long," Shikamaru denied. "I have something to ask you."

"Shoot," Naruto stated curious to know what the brunette had to say. The lazy Genin began to blush as he scratched the back of his head.

"Are you free tomorrow night?" Shikamaru asked after a few minutes of silence.

"I should be, why do you ask?" Naruto responded, oblivious to Shikamaru's intentions.

"Meet me at the Hokage Monument tomorrow at midnight," Shikamaru instructed the blonde and it finally dawned on Naruto what Shikamaru was doing.

"Are you asking me out on a date?" he asked shyly and the genius nodded, looking a little embarrassed.

"Do you want to go?" the dark-eyed Genin asked, hoping for a positive response.

"I'd love to," the blonde answered and Shikamaru brightened up instantly.

"Great!" he stated, sounding almost enthusiastic. "I'll see you then."

He started walking away before pausing as he remembered something. He quickly came back and gave the tired blonde a short, but sweet, kiss. "Good night," he said before departing for real.

Naruto stared after Shikamaru with a goofy grin on his face before walking into his apartment.

Neither of them noticed a certain Iwa nin spying on them.