Hey everyone its Sunday..."Sorta...its 3AM...meaning its Monday morning but that's a technicality", i am sorry for not posting last week, but it was so hot that i just couldn't concentrate on writing, even today was warm but i forced myself to do it for you guys :)
Now then, for some reviews :D
Tiger of the Sky - Thanks for the review, i sent you a PM about that, when you posted that review i had literally posted chapter 46 like 10 minutes before :P So i guess i responded to your request pretty damn fast ;) :D
RairyuuBlade - Thanks for the review, welcome back :) I try to tie in as many things from the Manga as i can whenever i can, sometimes the stuff i write actually becomes true :P Itachi being a good person and his back story from SoB turned out to be almost on the money with the cannon manga :D my friend says its cause i am such an avid fan of Naruto that i just know these things :P i say... Oh look Watermelons :D
Azazel Kingetsu A.K.A Aza-chan - Thanks for the review, that time is going to be coming soon :D
Slop Doggy - Thanks for the review, indeed they are, Chapter 48 should be interesting :)
Delran - Thanks for the review, and damn it, i thought i caught them all, well they should be fixed now, i also caught a few in this chapter, i am PRETTY sure i got all of the "fallow" don't know why i keep doing that... :/
quintupledots915 - Thanks for the review, yeah well he was almost gone an entire year, Will Danzo pay for his actions? Read to find out... "Won't find out in this chapter thought :P"
airnaruto45 - Thanks for the review, Sorry to say that it won't happen in this chapter, but soon my friend, soon }:}
xzavx - Thanks for the review, Nah, I always planned for Neji to explain everything in one chapter, also making it all from his point of view helped narrow the story down as well
drizztftw - Thanks for the review, i was actually confused about your review since i couldn't remember making Konohamaru do anything special in the last chapter, but then i noticed you were reviewing chapter 43 :P I hope that you enjoy the new chapter!
blackmoon124 - Thanks for the review, and he doesn't die exactly... :P Just gets brutally tortured :D And it all depends on how strong lighting thinks they are, from their point of view they only have one side to defend while the others have multiple sides, there is also strategies they could employ, not trying to defend them or saying that they will be doing stuff like that, just saying that just because they have no allies and they declared war on everyone doesn't mean much...Germany ring any bells ;)
Well that's everyone for this chapter, its 3:30 AM and here i am putting the finishing touches on my story, all for you guys...I LOVE YOU GUYS :D
I GIVE YOU CHAPTER 47
Historical Bonds
Chapter 47
The two ships were approaching the docks; Toshiro was below deck checking on everything one last time. He saw the secret compartment that had stored their belongings, he peeked inside, and of course it was empty. He then opened another compartment that was hidden bellow it to reveal all the missing items "Ino" He shouted knowing that she was nearby
"What is it?" She asked as she entered the room
"Did you check the hidden compartment inside the secret compartment?" He asked her
"There was a hidden compartment?" She asked puzzled
"Yes, we had to many things for one compartment alone, so I had two built in" He said as he pulled out their clothing and headbands
"I had no idea… So they didn't get sucked into the ocean after all, the others are going to be happy to hear that" She said with a smile
The rest of the crew were all on the deck getting the ship ready for docking, the people of the port city carried on with their daily lives, sure a few of them were curious about the odd ship but since it was escorted by one of their own they paid little attention to it. "We are finally back home" Naruto said with a smile as the ship was finally docked
He and his crew stepped off of the ship, a few people were waiting for them, they instantly bowed "Hokage Sama, welcome home" The man said "It is good to see that you have returned from your mission, tell me my lord, was it a success?" He added
The man in question was the very man that had led the team into refitting the ship, Neji was slightly surprised "What? How did you know about his mission? Why are you so calm?" Neji was confused
"Because, I knew about Hokage Sama's mission" The man answered
"What? And you never thought about telling us about it?" Neji said shocked
"I was sworn to secrecy… I am sorry" The man answered
"Don't be, I am sorry Neji but what he says is true, he helped us a great deal" Naruto told him. Neji was silent as he was still slightly upset
"You really did a number on her" The man said as he touched the hull of the ship
"Yeah, we ran into a very strong storm, but she brought us home" Naruto explained
"Of course she did, she is a strong ship. I always knew that she would bring you home" He said with a smile
"It's a shame that she is going to have to be decommissioned" Naruto added
"What? Why would we do a thing like that?" The man asked
"…She suffered so much damage, she is barely able to float" Naruto answered
The man let out a small grin "This young girl has a lot of life left in her, don't you worry. My crew and I will have her back as soon as in a few days, we need every ship for the war and I can tell that this girl still wants to serve her country" The man explained
Naruto smiled, he could tell that the man really loved his job and his ships "Hokage Sama, I believe that we should announce your return as soon as possible, our people will be overjoyed. The moral boost alone would help a great deal" Neji told him
Naruto nodded as he allowed Neji to lead the way. As they walked through the streets no one really noticed them, after all Naruto was dressed entirely in black and white, unlike his usual black and orange that he had become famous for. Some people took a look at him thinking that he did look like their lost Hokage, but they never gave it much thought
Neji led them to the center of the port city "Everyone, I would like your attention" Neji shouted out, the middle of the town was the main trade district and it was the most crowed area of the city. A large group of people gathered around "Everyone, I have some great news. Many months ago Danzo announced our Hokage to be dead and grabbed power for himself, the people here never believed in his lie and well today I am overjoyed to announce that our hero, the true Hokage of Konoha has returned to us!" He said as he moved aside to allow Naruto to be in full view of the crowed
The people erupted in cheer, Naruto was overwhelmed. These people had believed in him rather than be taken in by Danzo's lies "I want to thank everyone for believing in me, I know that you all must have many questions for me. Where have I been all this time, why am I wearing this uniform… I will quickly answer those questions. I was forced into a mission that took me into the night country, we had many setbacks that made the mission last much longer then we could have ever anticipated. I was heartbroken to hear that the people I had left behind to take care of Konoha in my absence had caused a civil war that escalated into a great Shinobi world war… I vow to bring an end to this chaos, I vow to bring Danzo and Sasuke as well as anyone else who supports them to justice, I vow to bring an end to this war!" Naruto told them as they once again erupted in cheers
Neji smiled, he could already see it in the eyes of the people, they were once again filled with hope, and that hope would spread around like wild fire, all because Naruto had finally returned to them "Come, there is someone who will want to talk with you" Neji said as he lead the group into the main building that had served as the loyalist's headquarters during the war
Inside a red headed young women was giving out some orders, she was surrounded by mist ninjas "I don't care, our fleet is more powerful than theirs, I want their ships at the bottom of the sea by the end of the day!" She ordered
"Yes Mizukage Sama" The man bowed and ran off
"What's going on?" Neji asked
"A Small fleet of lighting ships have been spotted near mist territorial waters, they are probably just scouting, but I intend to sink every last one of them" She answered, she then realized who she was talking too "Lord Hokage, you have returned!"
"Yes, I have returned to put an end to this war, Lord Mizukage I want to thank you for helping my people out" Naruto told her
"As I already explained, we owed you one from the Night war… By the way, why are you wearing their uniform?" She asked him
"Long story… Suffice to say that our clothing were lost at sea"
"Actually, no they weren't" Toshiro said with a smile as he entered the room with a large bag "Turns out Ino didn't know about the other hidden compartment and assume everything had been sucked into the sea" He said as he set the bag on the table and opened it, revealing all of their missing items
"My pouch!" Yuki screamed with joy as she grabbed it and held it tightly, Konohamaru grinned at the sight of her joyful smile
An item fell out of the bag and onto the table, it was a small booklet. Naruto picked it up and opened it, inside were photo's, the first one was a picture that was taken during his first date with Sakura, she was smiling brightly. He turned the page, the next picture was of the two of them kissing at their wedding, there were other pictures that followed of them at their wedding, including their first dance as husband and wife. He flipped a few pages, it was a picture of Sakura making dinner, her belly showing that she was pregnant with Naoto. Sakura was also smiling as she cooked, he once again flipped pages. The next picture was of Naruto holding Naoto in his arms for the first time, a tear was beginning to form around his eye, he flipped the page again. It was a picture of Sakura who had fallen asleep with Naoto in bed, the two of them looked so peaceful. The tear that had begun forming was now dripping down his cheek, he flipped the page once more. The last picture was taken only a few days before the nightmares began to affect him, it was a family picture. They were all at the stream near the village, Sakura had pinned Naruto to the ground and she sat on his back smiling playfully as Naoto was crawling on his back playing with his hair. The three of them looked like a picture perfect family. The tears were freely flowing from his eyes
Sakura held him from behind as she rested her head on his shoulder, she could clearly see the pictures "You had this with you all along?" She asked
"I always keep this booklet with me at all time… Sakura Chan, I miss Naoto. I can't stand not being able to hold her" He told her
Sakura's held him tighter as a tear began to fall from her own eyes "I know Naruto… We will get her back, and we will be able to hold her once again, and then we will introduce her to her new siblings" She said as she smiled faintly
Naruto settled his hands on top of her own and caressed them "Yeah…"
"Well I have a plan to take Lighting out of the war once and for all" The Mizukage told them "The Mist fleet is far superior to the Lighting fleet; we have been building up our forces for an invasion from the sea, we will send our attack ships to deal with any shore defenses they might have. Once those are taken out, we will send in the transports filled with troops. Their goal will be to invade Kumo, since most of the Lighting's forces are at the borders they won't be able return in time to stop us from taking Kumo from them" Mizukage explained
"Your plan does have a good chance of succeeding, but you're not thinking of the fallout that would create" Shikamaru commented
"What do you mean?" She asked
"Right now the earth are fighting the Wind on one side and Lighting on the other while Danzo is fighting the Wind, the Lighting and us. What will happen once they are no longer forced to face the Lighting forces? The Earth will be free to send reinforcements to push further into the wind while Danzo will be able to send reinforcements to push us further away from Konoha while your own forces will be stuck fighting the Lighting forces that will be retreating from the borders to attempt to retake their village" Shikamaru explained
"Then what do you suggest we do then?" She asked
While they were arguing Naruto was studying the map carefully, Sakura watched him as his eyes scanned the map "Neji, is this strategic map up to date?" He asked
"Yes of course" Neji responded
"So the Imperial capital city of fire is still cut off?" He continued
"Yes, the feudal fire lord refused to acknowledge Danzo as the true Hokage. He even sent some ROOTS to convince him that Danzo was the rightful Hokage, when the feudal lord said no, he was killed. Danzo figured that the Imperial city would fall into line but the son of the feudal lord took over his father's place and openly declared Danzo to be a rogue and that he would never be his pawn. The imperial city is a fortress much like Konoha and Danzo does not have the resources necessary to subjugate them yet. So he has cut them off from all trade by surrounding the city, he wants to starve them out. The city has supplies to last them six months without new supplies… And its nearly been six month since they have been cut off" Neji explained
Naruto continued to study the map "Everyone… I think I have a plan" He finally announced. Everyone looked at him slightly surprised. Naruto was known for being smart in battle, but for strategically planning not so much "I have a plan that could end this war once and for all…"
"What is it?" Shikamaru asked curious
"We will take every single ninja that we can get our hands on and separate into two forces. I will lead an attack on Otafuku, it is the closes village to Konoha while Neji you will lead the second squad and you will liberate the Imperial capital city. Their forces will be stretched thin since they have to surround the entire city to stop any merchants from exiting or entering. Once it is liberated you will give the feudal lord a letter from me requesting his aid in giving us any men that is able to fight, while we are doing this we will send a messenger to Suna requesting that they ready their forces for a joint attack on Konoha"
"But Danzo has their forces pinned down, Suna is unable to reach us" Neji told him
"Yes I know, however what will Danzo think when he see's that we have taken Otafuku and that the imperial city has been liberated? Not to mention that I am leading the charge"
"He will fear an attack on Konoha…" Shikamaru answered
"That's right, he will want to pull back his forces in order reinforce Konoha's defenses"
"How is that a good thing? If they are able to reinforce their defenses it will only make it that much harder to take Konoha" The Mizukage stated
"That's why that Neji and his forces will be waiting to intercept them at Tanzaku village, With Gaara and his forces on their heels and Neji laying in wait, they will be quickly dealt with. Once Gaara forces have joined you at Tanzaku you will proceed west while Gaara and his forces stays to the south, Konoha will be completely surrounded"
"And what about me and my forces?" The Mizukage asked
"You will take your fleet and wait, once all of our forces are in position, we will conduct a simultaneous attack Konoha and Kumo, once it's all over we will help mop up the rest of the lighting forces leaving the earth alone, outnumbered and outflanked we will offer them a surrender, if they refuse, well we move in and finish this war once and for all"
Everyone was shocked, this wasn't just a plan, it was a large scale and complicated plan with multiple stages, something they would expect Shikamaru to come up with "That's… Amazing" Sakura said still shocked
"Shikamaru, what do you think?" Naruto asked, wanting confirmation from the strategic expert that his plan had a chance of working
"It's a good plan, but much of it relies on timing. I suggest that the leaders of all three attack teams use a watch to make sure that everything is timed perfectly" He said agreeing that the plan had a good chance of success
"Then I shall ready my fleet for the invasion of Kumo" Mizukage said agreeing with the plan
"We leave tomorrow morning, everyone get some rest because some of us may not be returning…" Naruto said as he left the room followed by Sakura
"Naruto, I am so proud of you" She said as they walked together "You really looked cool back there, and you looked like a true leader" She added with a smile as she held onto his arm
"Thanks Sakura Chan" He said with a slight blush "Sakura… I want you to stay behind; someone needs to take care of Saki and Saku." Naruto said cautiously
"Naruto, I am not going to be staying behind, I am one of your most experienced medics and doctors and you will need me on the field. And there is no way that I would stay behind while you go and fight in a war, I don't want you to make excuses just because I am your wife Naruto"
"I am not trying to make excuse…" Naruto said trying to defend himself
"Really? What if it was Ino? Or Shizune? You would expect them to carry out their duties just as you would expect it from everyone else. Well I am no different, so please Naruto… Don't treat me differently…" She said pleadingly "I want to be by your side; after all we vowed to stand by each other through thick and thin, good times and bad times…" She added
Naruto let out a sigh, he knew she was right. He just didn't want to put her in harm's way, yet she is his chief medical doctor and she would certainly be needed on the field in the days to come "Alright… You're right, I just don't want you to take any unnecessary risks, promise me" He told her
She smiled "Don't worry, I won't, I promise" She said as she rested her head on his shoulder
On the other side of the village, Yuki was on her back, Konohamaru was on top as he had pinned both her arms to the ground, her eyes were sparkling as she giggled "The mighty Yuki has finally been defeated" he said playfully
"Oh no, whatever shall I do? Who will save me from this beast" She played along
"Who you calling a beast?!" He said in protest
Yuki grinned as Konohamaru had loosened his grip on her wrists, she kicked him lightly on the back and with speed she was now the one on top pinning his arms to the ground "Now whose defeated?" She said playfully
"That's a dirty trick!" Konohamaru said in protest
"You complain too much" Yuki said as she kissed him without warning
"mmm Well you won't get any complaints about that" She said once their lips parted ways
"I didn't think you would" She said with a grin. Suddenly Konohamaru's face became serious as he thought about the next few days "What's wrong Kono?" She asked him
"Nothing… Well I guess that I have been thinking, Naruto Nii-San will be leading this war…"
"Well yeah, he is the Hokage after all"
"Yeah I know… And he will more than likely be in the toughest battles…"
"Of course, because Naruto Sensei is the best, and the strongest" She said with a sense of pride
"Yeah… And because of that as his team, we will be by his side the entire time"
"Well of course we will. We would follow him to the depths of hell to support him if we had to"
"I guess what I am trying to say is… There is a chance one of us could get killed, I would take a death blow for Naruto Nii-San if I had to… And I would take one for you to" He said worried about the future
Yuki blushed and smiled "And I would do the same… But I have confidence that we will all come back home safe"
"I know… But there is always a chance that it could happen, I guess what I am trying to say is that I don't know if I could handle losing you…" He finally allowed her to know what was truly bothering him
She was blushing fully "And I don't think I could handle losing you either… I don't think anyone else would be able to handle me the way you can" She said as she looked away
Konohamaru smiled a bit "You are indeed a handful"
"What is that suppose to mean?"
And just like she had done to him earlier, he used the distraction to regain his dominant position on top, pinning her down "It means that I would rather have you over any other girl" He said as he kissed her passionately
"I love you Kono" She said with a red face
"And I love you Yuki" He answered her with an equally red face, but neither of them cared at that point, they loved each other and nothing could ruin the moment
"Hey Kono, maybe we should find someplace more private" She said with a wink
Konohamaru was shocked "Uh…What?" he asked to make sure he heard her right
"You said it yourself, this could be our last night together, and I want to take full advantage of it" She said as she continued to grin
"…Are you sure? I mean do you think were ready?" Konohamaru asked again
"Kono, you're cute when you're embarrassed… And if it's you, then yes I am sure"
Konohamaru's grinned had returned as he picked Yuki up in his arms and carried her away
The next morning everyone was getting ready for the upcoming battle. Today they would begin their march to end this war once and for all. Neji, Naruto, Shikamaru, Ino and Mei the Mizukage had gathered one last time before they would go their separate ways "these have all been synchronized, you should keep an eye on it at all times" Neji said as he handed both Mei and Naruto a watch
"Thanks… twenty two hours from now my forces will reach Otafuku, it shouldn't take us more than two or three hours to take the village" Naruto began
"It will take about twenty hours for my forces to reach the imperial city, we should be able to catch them completely by surprise, and the city should be liberated within one hour or two" Neji continued
"And I will be taking the entire Mist fleet and all of our forces to the north of Lighting and then come back down on the other side, where we will be within striking distance of Kumo, that should take me about two days, so forty eighth hours, give or take an hour or two depending on wind conditions" Mei added
"Ino, you are the one that I have chosen to carry our message to Gaara, you will give him this letter. It is personally written and signed by me, the seal on the envelope has my chakra. He will know that it came from me, he is also the only one the seal will allow to open the letter" Naruto said as he handed her the letter
"Are you sure that we should use her? I mean after what happened during her last spy mission…" Shikamaru commented
"Shikamaru, if I didn't know that you're just saying that to keep me from harm, I would be braking your arm off right now…Seriously it would be severed from your body…" She said with a grin
"But last time I almost… I mean… WE almost lost you… I…I…" Shikamaru said as he desperately tried to find an excuse to get Ino off of the mission "I will do it" He finally said
Naruto smiled a bit "I know how you feel Shikamaru, I had a similar discussion with Sakura last night… Ino is the best spy and infiltrator we have. She can do this Shikamaru, trust in her abilities, as I do"
Shikamaru let out a sigh "Alright…"
"And I know if anything happens to me that you will rush to my rescue, just like you did last time, right?" She said with a wink
"You're so troublesome…" Was his only response, causing Ino smile
"Right… Anyway Ino, how long would it take you to reach Suna?" Naruto asked
"Well if I was traveling alone, none stop… about twenty five hours… but considering I am going to be avoiding patrols on the way, I estimate thirty hours" Ino stated
"Are you sure? I mean from the port city to Suna, that's the length of the entire fire nation, including the occupied River Country that is under Danzo's control" Mei stated
"No problem" Ino responded with a thumb up, mimicking something close to the nice guy pose
"Alright, so you need to have your forces at Tanzaku village twenty five or six hours into the mission, which leaves you about three to four hours to get from the Imperial city to Tanzaku, think you can do it Neji?" Naruto asked
"Yes, I should be able to make that time" Neji confirmed
"Now I estimate Gaara and his forces would take about ten hours to join Neji's forces at Tanzaku after Ino arrives, meaning that we are now fourthly hours into the mission, once you have mopped up Danzo's forces and hooked up with Gaara and his men, you will have about eight hours to make it to your position to the west of Konoha" Shikamaru added
"That is more than enough time" Neji answered back
"So we will give two extra hours to make sure that the Mist is able to get into position…If all goes according to plan, in fifty hours the mission the invasion of Konoha and Kumo will begin… If all goes well this war will be over within three or four days" Shikamaru said finishing the mission briefing
"We leave at Six, so fifty hours form Six the final battle will begin" Naruto told them, it was currently ten minutes past five in the morning
"If anything goes wrong, it could mean our defeat…" Neji stated
"It won't go wrong, we are going to win this. I will make sure we do…" Naruto said with determination
"Then good luck everyone" Mei told them
Naruto joined his forces outside of the city, Naruto was wearing his trademark black and orange ninja clothing, he also had his Namikaze cloak on as It flapped in the wind proudly, and he was wearing his custom made orange and black Hokage hat hanging from his neck it rested on his back. He was once again proudly wearing his black Konoha headband and finally his blade, he had placed it on his back. His hat was covering it slightly but he still had easy access to the hilt "Naruto Nii-San… You look AWESOME" Konohamaru commented with a grin
"I agree completely!" Yuki said as she joined them
"Yep, You look so awesome that your mere presence will awe the enemy into surrendering" Hanabi added with a bright smile
"Thanks" Naruto answered back slightly embarrassed
Although Naruto was in his regular clothing, the rest of his team had opted to stay in their night country uniforms; they all wanted to wear their Konoha headbands, so to make sure they wouldn't be mistaken for an enemy by their own people, they decided to continue wearing the uniforms as an easy way of being identified, the only difference was that they were wearing their regular sandals rather than the Samurai style socks and shoe
Sakura wiggled her toes in her sandals "Mmm my feet have missed being free"
"I completely agree" Yuki giggled as she copied Sakura with her toes
Naruto smiled, they looked so carefree, so happy. He wanted to keep it that way, that's why he was going to make sure that they all made it out alive. But first he had to take care of something. He walked over to Sai "Can I have a word with you?"
"Yes of course Hokage Sama" Sai answered
Naruto led them away from the others "Sai, I think you know that you cannot be a part of this mission…" Naruto stated directly
"Yeah… I figured as much"
"Sai you know that it's not because I don't trust you right?"
"I know… And to be honest I don't want to be given an opportunity to carry out my mission…"
"Sai, I want you to do something very important for me… I want you to protect Saku and Saki. If we fail this mission then most likely it will mean that both Sakura and I have fallen… And Danzo cannot be allowed to know about them. If that happens I want you to take them away from here, take a ship and head for the Sea country, promise me that you won't let Danzo get near them"
"Although if I were ever to come into contact with Danzo, he could order me to hand them over… And I wouldn't be able to refuse it, however that being said he would need to find me in order for him to give me that order… I promise you that he will never find us… Plus it's not like he will be looking for them unless somehow he learns about them, and no one other than our crew and Neji know about them" Sai stated
Naruto smiled, he knew that he could count on Sai "Thanks…" They shook hands and began walking away from each other
"Oh one last thing" Sai said, causing Naruto to turn around "Good luck… And…You still lack penis" he said with the same smile he always had
"WHAT DID YOU JUST SAY?" Naruto shouted at him, Sai let out a laugh and disappeared in a poof of smoke. Naruto slowly began to grin as he walked back to his forces, the clock your strike six soon…
End Chapter 47
And thus ends another chapter, my friend said he really like this one because he knows that all the planning, all the plotting, all the uh BS as he put it is over, 48 will be the first strike :D
Sakura - We are sorry to inform you that the Author is to tired to come up with a review, due to the fact that its 3:35AM
Naruto - That's right, we instead bring you this service announcement about your pets
Kono - Please have your cats and dogs spade or neutered to help control the pet population
Yuki - Until next time
Cats&Dogs - DAMN YOU BOB BARKER... LETS GO POOP ON HIS LAWN!
Sakura - *Randomly beats up Naruto for no apparent reason*
Naruto - what the hell was that for?
Sakura - The laws of the universe demands that you get injured during each of these reviews, who am i do fight the laws of the universe *Continues the beating*
Yuki - she does know that those laws were written on the back of a pop tart box and were just a joke right?
Kono - Do YOU want to tell her that?
Yuki - ...No...
Kono&Yuki - *walks away*
Naruto - WHY DO YOU TREAT ME THIS WAY GOD? WHY!
Sakura - No one said you could talk *beats Naruto to near unconsciousness* There, my job is done and the law has been upheld, see you in the next chapter sweetie
Naruto - *barely conscious* gurgle...
Random Dog - *walks by and sniffs*
Naruto - go away boy... Can't you see that i am in pain...Wait what are you doing?...No...NO
Random Dog - Neuter this *Pees on Naruto and walks away*