In a ninja village, paranoia was more than expected, it was the norm; even more so with those visiting. That they would be spied upon was a given. There were just two sets of rooms that watched more than usual. Naruto was currently lying on a futon, one hand on his chest, the other above his head. Over on the wall a few feet out of reach was an alarm clock. Put that far so that the person it was meant to wake had to get up to shut it off. At six o'clock it went off and didn't even get halfway through the first buzz when a knife slammed into the center with Naruto on his feet, hand still raised from the throw. One last look and he realized that he had been over reacting a little. Only a little.
Pulling the dagger out, he went back to his belt and sheathed it. He walked over to the window and pulled aside the curtains before resting his arm on it and his head on his arm. "Big day, welcome back to Konoha. You ready?" he muttered to himself. There was over a week until the exams actually started, by then the last two teams from Uzu will be selected and sent here. He could all but guaranty that a prince or princess from the Ryu and the Rand would be among them. In the teams here were two heavy arms, Gaara and Kankuro. Two sorceresses, Din and Temari. Lastly, two quick strike fighters, him and Konan. There were still room for priest as well rogues and a couple of others. Naruto knew there was more, far more, to show just how much stronger Uzu was the rest of the world.
Heading into the bathroom and jumping in the shower, he let the water run over him for several minutes without doing anything. Unlike most cats, tigers loved being in the water and so did the Uzumaki. Helps keep the fur smelling nice, something that is very important when your nose could smell things down to the most interesting detail. Last thing you want in a house full of woren is to come in smelling like a skunk. Very quick way of getting a boot to the head and then thrown into a bath. Naruto chuckled when he thought about it. The Uzumaki spent a lot of time in baths, showers, and water in general because of fur while the Ryu spent a good deal of their time sunning themselves just lying on a mountain side or someplace wide open and warm. Complete opposite.
All the clans were different and at times there was tension. Four people can't even live in the same house without tension. It was four clans of very different families on an island. Turning his face into the water, Naruto sighed again. Now that he was here, he wasn't all that enthusiastic. He missed home. The smell of the ocean, of the wind, the trees, and the mountains. His little sisters. His sensei… Lathering up his fur and hair, Naruto grabbed a little rock, charm many of the Uzumaki used. Placing it on the top of his head, he carried it down along his body to the end of each limb. As he did, all the dirt and grime was pulled off and carried away by the water. Usually you would just put it in the bath water but he wasn't going to take the time for that here. When he was done, he stood at the sink and began to check himself over for anything that shouldn't be living on him. Fleas, bugs, it was great being a woren of the Uzumaki but it also came with a list of things that was just annoying. Fur was a great place for thing like other animals. Naruto swore he would find a flea powder that didn't smell horrible one day and when he did... He was already smiling, thinking of that day.
A good thing he did check his fur this morning. He found the most peculiar bug tangled in his fur from trying to escape the water. Pulling it free, he noticed it left an odd tingling sensation in his hand yet it wasn't biting him. "…Hmm. You're trying to eat my chakra, aren't you? Which means you're a spy." He didn't hesitate, he didn't feel bad that it was someone's friend; he crushed the bug and washed it down the drain. "Aburame." He hadn't forgotten them. Hard to forget a whole clan of people that all wore sunglasses, a coat often with a hood pulled up over their heads, and a cowl that covered their mouths. All you could see of them, maybe, was their noses.
When finally he was satisfied, he started doing things more normal people did. Brush his teeth, wash his face, and groom his fur. Well, more of comb his hair except he paid attention to his whole body. Luckily that stone also kept fur shiny and soft. Nothing was more uncomfortable than course fur that was attached to you after all. Also how shiny your fur is a way to tell your health. It would lose the shine when you're sick so you had to make sure nothing covered it by accident. When finally he was satisfied, he left the bathroom and began to get dress.
His room opened into a den that was connected to the others. He went over to Din almost out of reflex and began to smooth out her feathers. She was not a morning person in Konoha it seemed. Paranoia would do that. He found the bug he was looking for and crushed it, again more on reflex. "Careful, there seems to be a bug infestation here." Naruto finished smoothing the feathers out and then looked around for Konan. His danger sense screamed at him for not knowing where she was. He was tensed; he knew she would do a Konan power bomb or a Konan Ichi Nii, or Konan Drop Kick any moment now.
"Morning Naruto," she yawned as she walked behind him, scaring him so bad he jumped up to the ceiling and clung to it with his claws. "…Nya? What's…" she yawned again, "up pussy cat?" She went over to a chair at the table, sat down, and then fell asleep with her head against it. Naruto looked at her confused a moment before pulling his claws free and dropping down.
"Konan? Are you all right?" Her fur looked alright so she wasn't sick. He wanted to check on her but the thought that this was a ruse to get him to drop his guard stopped him. Taking his bokudo, he poked her in the shoulder only to get her to groan. "Kaa-san, something's wrong with Konan." He looked over at Din to see her asleep as well. "And Din-chan."
"They're just tired Naruto," Deis said, walking from the kitchen with a few plates of food. "First time being in a ninja village, they couldn't help but not get to sleep with all those idiots watching us."
"Good morning," Gaara said, walking out bright eyed and bushy tailed. "Hmm. Smells good, I don't suppose one of those is for me is it?" He asked it with his eyes suddenly growing big and watery.
"Help yourself," she said, setting a plate full of sausage, bacon, eggs, and ham. Naruto walked over to make some toast.
"So, even without Yuki and Carol you can't stop making a big breakfast," Naruto said as he put one of the over easy eggs on his toast.
"Old habits die hard. Like jumping up in the air whenever Konan comes up behind you. Reflex," Deis smiled at her grandson before pulling him into a hug.
"Kaasan," Naruto whined.
"It's my right," she said, holding him tightly.
"It's a Kodak moment," Kankuro said after walking in and staring at the two.
"Kankuro, I will kill you," Naruto growled at him. "I mean it, I will kill you!"
"Good morning," Temari said, walking in all ready for the day. Naruto looked around and couldn't help but notice it. Din looked pretty bad and it was understandable. She had never been in a place like this before. Konan…she looked like she slept restlessly. Happens when you were expecting an attack like he had been. Deis…was a dragon over a thousand years old, nothing phased her beyond the deaths of someone she cared for deeply. Konoha could attest to that. While Temari, Kankuro, Gaara, and Naruto himself all slept fine. It was lighter than anything they had done in years, but they still felt rested for it.
"Anyone else found a bug on them this morning," Naruto asked.
"Three," Gaara said, holding a jar made from his sand.
"Just one," Deis replied.
"Konan, did you find yours?" She mumbled something unintelligent. "Konan," Naruto said, shaking her shoulder.
"Konan Ichi Nii," she said suddenly, still asleep. She followed through with it despite being asleep and Naruto found himself on the floor, rubbing his jaw.
"Should've known better," he muttered. Standing, he finished his breakfast and went to the window. "…I'm going to visit Ayame-neechan, kaasan."
She nodded. "Give me a moment and I'll come with you." She finished her plate and said, "Temari, Gaara, Kankuro, don't go anywhere without first telling Dorogan. Tell Din and Konan that they are not to go anywhere unless they tell someone. I would prefer they didn't go without a partner either but I will trust their judgment. But never go anywhere unarmed!" She straightened her robes while Naruto grabbed Cutter. Deis adjusted the ring on her right hand for a moment before walking outside with Naruto. "And remember to wear the headbands," she reminded as she closed the door. They all had one, a ninja headband with a spiral on it.
—oo000oo—
Naruto was leading the way as they headed to the ramen stand. Just as Cutter said he would, Naruto became aware of everyone that came near him. It was an odd sensation. Just before he turned the corner, he felt several people running down the road. A hand went to the hilt of his bokudo and he tensed a little. When the first one turned the corner, Cutter had to shout at him to freeze. 'THEY DON'T MEAN YOU HARM! Remember, you'll know if they do.' It caught Naruto off guard so he didn't react when the kid ran right into him. Naruto just stared down at the boy as he fell to the ground.
"Hey, watch it!" He looked up to them and stared a moment. "What the hell are you two?"
Deis looked a little amused, Naruto did not. "Your elders, brat," Naruto growled.
"Get back here you little brat!" A pink haired girl with two other children rounded the corner and skidded to a stop upon seeing them and the headbands they had. "Who are you two?" She looked to Deis and hesitated.
"We're…" Naruto started to say but trailed off. "…Don't I know you? Sa…kura? Is that you?"
"How do you know my name, who are you?"
"It's me, Uzumaki Naruto." She stared at him for several moments without recognition. "We went to school together," he insisted.
She stared at his hair a moment as well as his lopsided grin and recalled a boy a little like that. "…You're him," she said softly. "You're the boy that changed into the tiger…you vanished and…" She backed up from them. "She appeared."
"You remember," Deis said as if flattered. "I hope I didn't scare you too much."
"You almost killed the Hokage," she said in a deathly whisper.
Naruto turned to his grandmother and saw she nodded. "I wanted to, yes. Because of him, my daughter died and I didn't know for eight years." She began to lose her temper. "Because of him my son in law died for this ungrateful village." Naruto stepped back as her ring began to pulse with mana and rage. "Because of him, my grandson was all but tortured!"
"Kaasan!"
Her anger slipped away with that one word. "…Sorry, Naruto," she whispered.
Naruto gave a half smile after a moment. "My kaasan, the woman that could end the world with a flick of her tail. They should've pointed you at the Kyuubi; it would've ran screaming with his tails between his legs." Deis had to blush at that. She tried to keep her temper on a short leash just so something like that wouldn't happen.
"Wh-What are you two doing back in this village," Sakura stuttered, pulling the kids behind her.
"Get out of my way, you flat chested bimbo," the boy that ran into Naruto snapped. "They threatened my grandfather; I won't let them get away with that!"
"Konohamaru," the orange hair girl whimpered. "Didn't you feel that! We don't stand a chance against her!"
"I won't be threatened by some lizard lady!" Again, Deis looked amused. Naruto not so much. Naruto whacked Konohamaru upside the head with Cutter, leaving a good size goose egg there. "Owie!"
"Call my grandmother a 'lizard lady' again and I'll knock some more sense into that box of rocks you call a head!"
"Naruto, calm down," Deis scolded. "He's just a child."
"He's a spoiled brat," Naruto growled a little.
Tears in the corners of his eyes, Konohamaru glowered at the two. "Don't defend me! I can handle myself! And you, I'm the Hokage's grandson! You can't do that to me!"
"Watch me," Naruto said before bopping him again. "And don't you dare raise your voice to her either!" This time, Naruto was bopped by Deis. "Ow," he muttered.
"Naruto, I said calm down," Deis scolded him. "And you, Konohamaru," she knelt down in front of him. "I suggest you stop, I'm not just any old 'lizard lady'. I'm a dragon over a thousand years old and I could turn you into a ferret," she said with a smile.
"Like you could, baka…" Deis held up her ring hand and snapped her fingers. In a puff of smoke, Konohamaru was no longer there and in his place was a black and white ferret.
Naruto looked at him appraisingly. "Try to remember respect," he said, quoting a lesson. "It might be the only thing that keeps you alive at times." Naruto shook his head as again Deis snapped her fingers and Konohamaru returned to normal. He scrambled away from her, truly afraid now.
"So, what did we learn today?" Deis asked.
"Never anger a thousand year old dragon," Naruto offered.
"That people from outside the village can't be trusted," someone said, jumping down to the ground from a tree.
"Sasuke," Sakura said with relief.
"You kids, go on," Sasuke said, motioning for them to go the way they came.
"Y-Yeah," Udon said, pulling them away and around the corner.
Deis stood up and looked at Sasuke while Naruto kept watch on both of them. "You… When you did that to him, that ring glowed," Sasuke said to Deis. "That thing is how you did it, isn't it."
"In a way," Deis admitted.
"Give it to me."
"I should cut you down," Naruto shouted, pulling out Cutter and getting ready to use it. 'That punk dare say that to our obaasan! I'll tear him apart!'
"I wasn't talking to you, mangy cat," Sasuke said to him. "You two are intruders in our village so I am taking you into custody. And first thing to do is disarm you. Including that ring."
"No," Deis said, straightening her robes once more. "You want the ring for the power it holds."
"Sasuke-kun isn't like that," Sakura yelled.
"Yes he is," Deis replied, never breaking eye contact with Uchiha Sasuke. "He is just like Uchiha Madara, never liked him either. He wanted the same thing. So, just like Madara, I'll give it to him." She took off the ring, a simple silver band with a polished star ruby set in it. "Here."
"Kaasan," Naruto protested while Sasuke took it and put it on. The Uchiha held up his fist and began to smile before throwing his hand out at the wall expectantly. Nothing happened. "…That ring was a gift from your great aunt Nina," Naruto said with a sigh.
"Why didn't it work," Sasuke demanded, turning back to them.
"Don't worry about the ring," Deis told Naruto. "I keep that ring locked up safely. This was a gift from…one of my dead husbands. And that won't work, Uchiha, not for you, not for anyone else."
"Why not!"
"Because that ring is just a focus," Deis said as if explaining it to a child. "That ring holds no more power than a rock. A rock can kill someone but only if you know how to use it. You don't. While Me…" She picked up a pebble and it glowed with mana, not as brightly as the ring but the power was there. "I can use a ring, a staff, this pebble, anything as a focus. Or nothing." Discarding the stone, she snapped her fingers and the ring vanished off Sasuke's hand and returned to her own. "Power, true power, is earned. Through time, through training, through study, and nothing, not a thing on earth, could change that." She turned the ring on her hand again. "We are guest in this village until a time of our choosing; do not think you can order us around again."
She began to walk away and Naruto decided to leave an impression. Neither saw him move, Cutter was just drawn and pressed against Sasuke's throat. "I look forward to teaching you manners in the Chunin exam. I didn't like you before I left, I don't like you now." Naruto slashed left, leaving a cut on Sasuke's cheek.
"…Don't dismiss me," Sasuke said softly.
"You aren't worth my notice," Naruto replied.
"You filthy subhuman! Don't you dismiss me!"
'Kill him' Naruto heard in the back of his mind. But from Cutter or himself, he didn't know. "…Before the Chunin Exam is over, I will kill you."
"Why wait, why not now?" Sasuke knew they were being watched by ANBU.
"Soon," Naruto promised before leaving to go after Deis.
Sasuke watched them leave. "Sasuke, maybe we should go ask Kakashi-sensei about them and the Chunin Exam."
"That bokken," he said suddenly. "It had no edge."
"What do you mean?"
"It had no edge; it must be the source of his strength."
"Sasuke-kun, maybe you should let this go. They are stronger than us."
"…No one will be stronger than me," Sasuke said before walking away.
—oo000oo—
Dorogan stood atop the edge of their hotel, wings flared out to catch more of the sun. Something in this place made him itch as well as his sword. Something gone now but the imprint of it was still there. "…What do you want, monkey?"
Sarutobi walked up behind him. "I wanted to talk."
"Then talk, young man, and I may listen." He looked over at Sarutobi from across his shoulder; reminding him that he was in fact several hundred years older than him despite looking to be in his twenties.
"Well then," Sarutobi sat down a few feet from him. "Let's talk about Naruto."
"Don't know him really," Dorogan replied. "Never talked to him, but I do know his sensei, his grandmother, and I did know his mother."
"Let's start there."
"Very well. His sensei is Ryu Suzuka. She is…a swordswoman of great skill."
"And is she…a dragon as well?"
"No. She is human like many of Uzu no Kuni."
"So not all are like you."
"Heh, very few are like me. She is of my clan and is thirty two years old."
"If I wanted a bio about her, I would have asked that. Tell me about her."
"…She's my niece somewhere very far down the line. She loves the rain and the water. She loves the forest and the wind." He took a deep breath. "Life is precious to her and when she raises her blade it's to defend life. She…is a good woman that carries a terrible burden. The first person she ever had to kill was the man she trained with, the man she grew to love. A man that betrayed all of Uzu no Kuni for power."
Ryu Dorogan pulled out his sword and stared at it. The blade was straight, double edge, with ridges for the first six inches from the hilt. The pommel held a pearl in it and the crossbar spread six inches from the blade edge. "Absolute power corrupts absolutely."
"I would disagree with that."
"Heh. Give a beggar a million gold and he will buy food. Until he is full and then he will realize that bread isn't the only thing to buy. Power gives the means to accomplish things, good and bad but then what do you do with it after you have? Uzumaki Deis, originally Ryu Deis. She is a woman that has been alive far longer than I have. Her power isn't limited to being a dragon, she is an accomplished mage. But you know that." He chuckled as he put the blade away. "She is…the daughter of a line of heroes that have saved the world twice. It was she that got the clans together as she did and she got her teacher to save us. She is powerful enough to do anything she wants."
"I think I noticed that as well."
"No, you haven't. What she did here before is the tip of the iceberg. She can do much more. For dragons like me and her, it's like living in a world of cardboard. Never completely letting it go because people will die if we do. We could bring that cardboard tumbling down with such ease." He shook his head thinking about it while his tail curled up a moment before wrapping around a brick and crushing it without him noticing. "For those she loves, she would and have gone to the ends of the earth for. For those she hates and makes her enemy, she has ruthlessly destroyed them. In all truth I'm kind of surprised you are still alive. Five hundred years ago you wouldn't be." Dorogan chuckled before saying, "What fools these mortals be."
"Personal motto?"
"No it's Shakespeare, a playwright from a long time ago."
Hiruzen nodded and said, "Her husband Rei?"
"A man of strength, he will do what is best even if he doesn't like it. And if he doesn't like it, he will make the one responsible for making him choose it pay and pay dearly. If saving the world meant he would have to kill someone innocent, he would with great regret. And then he would hunt down the one that threatened it to begin with and make the rest of their long life a new kind of hell."
"You sound sure of that."
"I'm sure because I know he has done it before. There is a prisoner among the Uzumaki right now that each day he wishes for death. Rei said to him he had things planned for him for the next twenty years that would leave him screaming in the first twenty seconds. He didn't lie."
Hiruzen swallowed a lump in his throat. "Uzumaki Kushina?"
"Ah, Naruto's birth mother. From what little I can tell, the two are very much alike. Very active and slow to hate. Earn that hatred and you will never be forgiven. For Kushina there was very little you could do to gain forgiveness. For Naruto…I'm not sure. I'm sure of this; he has a personal code of honor that he would never break. Kushina would have been proud of her son. Just as she was of her husband, Minato. And if what I have been told is true, she would be angry with you for a very long time."
"…I know, Naruto himself said he was angry as well." Hiruzen thought about it a moment. "I think Jiriaya is here in the village."
"Jiriaya…never heard of him."
"A ninja of the village and Naruto's godfather."
"Ex-godfather," Dorogan said without hesitating. "I can guess that since Naruto is living with his grandparents instead of him, he must be his ex-godfather."
Hiruzen nodded, "Last they met, Naruto wanted nothing to do with him and Lady Deis wanted to kill him even more than she did me."
Dorogan sighed. "Bunch of fools, getting her mad." He stood up and dropped down from the building ledge, signifying he was done talking.
—oo000oo—
Deciding they all needed to relax, Deis and Dorogan took everyone to the hot springs. Naruto lowered himself in, closed his eyes, and gave a content sigh. Life was good. "Naruto?" At that voice his eyes snapped open and he found himself growling. Life had been good.
"What do you…want," Naruto turned to Jiriaya to see him looking away from a hole in the wall.
Dorogan looked to him and stood while reaching for his sword. "Any last words before I kill you?"
Jiriaya moved back with his arms held up placatingly. "Hey, no need for that." Sand wrapped around him as Kankuro grabbed his Hammerthyst and Gaara his ax and sword.
"I disagree," Gaara replied. "My sister is in there."
"And my kaasan and friends," Naruto growled, reaching for Cutter.
"Come on, it was just a harmless peek," Jiriaya stuttered. "I meant it as a compliment!"
"Compliment?" Dorogan asked. "What's your name?"
"He's Jiriaya," Naruto growled.
"Ah, the ex-godfather," Dorogan said mirthfully while Jiriaya got upset at it. "Well then, Jiriaya, how about we see how well they take that compliment."
Thinking of Deis being on the other side caused him to go deathly pale. "You wouldn't…"
"Kaasan, you and the girls have an admirer on this side," Naruto called to them. "We just caught Jiriaya peeking on you."
The entire world stood still at those words before enough killing intent to make Jiriaya wet himself came from the female side. Covering herself with her wings, Uzumaki Deis jumped up on the wall and pulled him from the sand. "Hello Jiriaya," she said in a voice that promised pain.
"Deis, just remember, we can't kill him, we are guest," Dorogan told her.
Jiriaya looked relieve at that until Deis said, "You'd be surprise what you can live through." Deis cast a spell and a portal opened beneath Jiriaya. "Through there is an island full of men with…peculiar taste," she said darkly. "Time will also pass slower there. Once I am done relaxing, I will pull you out. Should be a few hours for me, a few years for you. And then, the real fun begins." Jiriaya was crying at the thought of that even as she let go and he vanished. "Perverted bastard son of a caribou," Deis growled before dropping back in the female side.
Naruto blinked before looking to Dorogan. "Do I want to know?"
"I doubt it. I don't, that's for sure."
—oo000oo—
Six months later for Jiriaya
—oo000oo—
"So…the grandmother of the boy you were supposed to look after but didn't decided to send you here with spell that also slowed down time in a way to make it pass slower. And the reason she did that is because you were peeking on her and a couple of fourteen year olds," a man wearing nothing but a speedo, sitting on a lawn chair on a beach, drinking something fruity from a coconut asked Jiriaya. "…You know, that is a new level of low."
"Isn't it," Jiriaya replied, drinking his own drink. "And it's not like I'm not sorry for it…well, being here isn't so bad, I finally got the chance to work on my tan. Just wish there were a few more hotties around…no offence."
"None taken, we know you aren't gay. But peeking on a grandmother and younger teenagers?"
"Hey, the teenagers were an accident. And don't for an instant think that Uzumaki Deis isn't worth a peek. For a woman over a thousand years old, she's smoking hot. Throw water on her and it would steam off."
"…You know that is why you were punished like this."
"Hell, if this is torture, chain me to the wall." He held out his coconut and the guy hit his to it.
"Yeah, it's not a bad life. Your godson, cute?"
"Hey, don't be asking a man a question like that. But yeah, I guess. Hard to tell being he's fur covered and all. But those two girls wouldn't hang onto him otherwise." Jiriaya sighed. "I think anyway, I honestly don't know."
"Yeah, he doesn't like you, forgot about that."
"Gentlemen, refill your drinks," a man from the bar asked them.
"Please," both replied.
—oo000oo—
Naruto leaned back against the rocks after settling again and closed his eyes. "Konan, what are you doing," Din asked, embarrassed.
"I'm just checking," she said, laughing a little.
"What does grabbing at my chest have to do with anything!" Naruto snapped his eyes open with a blush under his fur.
"Hah, I knew mine were bigger," Konan cheered in victory.
"Please," Temari said, getting all of their attention, making them think she was going to stop them. "Mine is bigger than both of yours." Both Kankuro and Gaara dropped their heads in their hands.
"Girls," Deis said, laughing a little, "if you don't talk softer, you're going to make the boys pass out. Besides, we all here know I'm the…" Naruto slapped his hands over his ears and began singing to block it out. Making the girls laugh at him.
"Nya, Naruto-kun, can you wash my back?" She grinned at the others, waiting for Naruto to say something they could laugh at but nothing was said. "Naruto?"
"Deis," Dorogan called, "Naruto passed out."
—oo000oo—
When finally they left, Naruto was still blushing. "Nya, Naruto passed out thinking about helping me bath," she said, teasing Din.
"Have you no shame," Din demanded in a harsh whisper.
"Nope." When Din began to growl at her, Konan said, "NYA! Naruto, save me!"
"Let go of his arm," Din demand only for Konan to stick her tongue out at her.
Naruto sighed before slipping himself free from his friend. "Bye," he said before running at a tree, climbing it in several jumps, before landing on a wall. Running down it, he jumped and ran across several bars, getting higher up buildings before jumping and grabbing a ledge and pulling himself up to the top. Crouching on the edge a moment, he looked away and vanished from their sight.
"…Agile," Kankuro muttered, knowing he couldn't follow him.
"…Deis-san, what's wrong with Naruto," Gaara asked her.
"The location is all, Gaara-kun," she replied.
"I'll follow him," Din said, starting to fly up after him.
"No, he will be fine," Deis said, stopping her. "He needs some time is all."
—oo000oo—
Naruto ran from roof to roof, jumping gaps and running on things normal people would have thought to small or unsteady to use. Crossing a street on a wire, he growled and began to run faster before dropping down to the ground in an ally. Once there, he hid where none could see him but he could watch for others. Several moments later, a man dropped down in complete silence, looking for him. Walking out the alley, he looked around before heading down the street, speaking into a wrist radio saying, "I lost him."
Naruto climbed back up on the rooftops and instead walked. "He stinks," he growled as he made his way to the one person in the village he didn't dislike or wasn't angry at aside from Ayame and Teuchi.
Koharu was on the balcony of her home, holding a pair of shears as she trimmed her banzai tree. Watering it gently when satisfied, she went to her other plants while grabbing a knife. "Who are you and why are you above me?"
Naruto stuck his head down and smiled at her. "Hello, Koharu-obaachan," he said with a big smile. His tail followed, holding a potted plant. "Neverwinter flowers," he said, offering the white lily plants to her. "The petals regrow quickly when they fall, they bloom all year, and if you make tea from the petals, it will revitalize you. And, somewhat, reverse aging a little. Not much but it will make you feel better after drinking it for a bit."
"Thank you Naruto," she said, taking the pot and smelling the plants. "They're lovely. Come in, come in." Naruto rolled forward and flipped into the room. "I see you've been well. A young man now."
"I have been," Naruto said happily before bowing to her. "Thank you for welcoming me into your home."
"And thank you for coming." Setting the flower where it would get lots of sunshine, she set the knife down and turned to him. "And to what do I owe the pleasure of your company?"
"Nothing, I wanted to visit."
She sighed and suddenly said, "You dislike it that much here?"
"Nothing but bad memories except a few shining moments."
"Konoha isn't…"
"Don't," Naruto interrupted. "Everyone from here keeps saying that but I have yet to see it." He leaned back against the railing. "Please, how about a nice conversation without anything about Konoha?"
"I'll try. How about the Chunin Exams, I understand that's what brings you here."
"It is," Naruto said happily. "Honestly, we don't care too much about them. If we do well or not won't matter to us."
"Oh? What about promotions? That is what this is for."
"For ninja, I wear this to enter," Naruto replied, thumbing his headband. "My rank is determined by my sensei. Things works differently at home. There is no 'Hidden Village', no standing force; there is only the Uzumaki, the Ryu, the Sora, and the Rand. And the Dragon God help you if you bring even just one of them down on you." He nodded with a certainty that had Koharu smiling.
"What about money?"
"Money? Everything belongs to the clans, and everyone is part of the clans, only a very small number actually isn't one of them, Kohaku-obaachan. Even they are provided for."
"…Naruto-kun, are you sure you should be telling me this?"
"It doesn't matter," Naruto said with a smile. "If you can somehow use it, you still have to get to where you can. And no one leaves without a plan back even if they get captured."
"Oh, like what?"
"Now that I won't tell you." He was smiling playfully at her, knowing what this was in part. Information digging.
"Okay, how do you think you will do?"
"Oh, I know we'll win."
"That confident? Don't you think there is a chance you might lose?"
"Only if we fight each other," Naruto said with the assurance of someone that would put their life on the line for their decisions. "No one is better than we are. My kaasan proved that."
"…Lady Deis is extraordinary. Where did she send Jiriaya?"
"I don't want to know, just someplace he will find horrible."
—oo000oo—
Jiriaya sneezed, waking up from his nap. "Uagh," he yawned before going to his window. "How long have I been here anyway? Way to long without seeing a woman in my opinion." A knock on his door and he opened it to reveal a few of his friends here.
"Hey handsome," the guy in front said, getting a chuckle from the rest. He hated when they called him that so they enjoyed teasing him. "We thought you could use a pick me up so we called in a friend."
"Hey," someone wearing high heels, a skirt, with long black hair said. Jiriaya took one look at them and sighed. He actually did look a woman.
"…Thanks for trying Ranmaru but…just doesn't work as long as I know I'm looking at a guy."
Ranmaru sighed, "Yeah, I didn't think it would but we had to try. Come on, let's go down, get a drink, and relax some. You look tense."
"Eh, more of bored. Live a life that I have and you just get used to the constant adrenalin high."
"Maybe you should take up cliff jumping then," one of them suggested.
"I'll think about it, thanks for trying. See you guys later."
—oo000oo—
"Well, it shouldn't hurt him if it's just a few hours." Koharu muttered and Naruto scratched the back of his head thinking about the time spell his grandmother put on him.
"Maybe but an island full of guys with 'particular' taste…"
"She didn't…" Koharu began to grin and laugh into her hand. She could only imagine what that would do to him if he stayed there more than a few days. "I can think of a good many women that probably wish they could do that to him every time he decides to peek on them in the hot springs."
Naruto nodded. "How have you been," Naruto questioned.
"I'm fine, Naruto."
Naruto was already shaking his head. "No, not the answer you give people when they ask just to ask, how are you?"
"…Arthritis," she admitted. "I'm old, Naruto, what else can I say?"
"That's fine," Naruto replied. "So long that you tell me the truth like you would any concerned friend." He began to walk a bit closer. "Where at?"
"My hands mostly," she said before Naruto took her hands and began to rub them. The pain eased away under the light pressure and use of mana. "…They feel better, Naruto," she said when the aches vanished. "I felt your fingers clearly, by the way, your fur is really soft, but what was that expanding from your fingers? I didn't sense any chakra."
"Because it wasn't, it's how we do what we do," Naruto told her vaguely with a smirk.
"…You're a good boy, Naruto, I kind a wish that you had been here to help Konoha grow as well. But only a little."
Naruto shook his head at the thought of growing up here. "No…"
Koharu sighed but agreed. Naruto didn't belong here. Turning and setting the Neverwinter Lilly on the stand, she faced Naruto again and found him gone. "See you later Naruto."
—oo000oo—
Deis chanted her spell and a series of lights appeared taking the shape of a man sitting on a stool…just without the stool. Jiriaya fell to the ground, wearing a nice suit and drinking some fruity drink. "What, what, where am I?"
"Forget what we look like already," Naruto asked from where he was crouching on a large rock and Cutter resting on his shoulder.
Jiriaya looked to his and nodded after a moment. "Time served huh?" He stood back up and stretched. "And I was just enjoying my vacation."
Naruto looked to Deis blankly. "You sent him to an island he wouldn't like, right?"
"I thought I did. You going to behave now, Jiriaya?"
"Yes ma'am," Jiriaya said looking at her intently.
Deis watched him a moment before saying, "You're undressing me with your eyes, aren't you?"
For his credit, Jiriaya didn't suddenly turn away or give any other sign that he had been doing that. "Of course not."
Deis narrowed her eyes at him and said, "I catch you peeping on women again, I will turn you into a woman and send you to an island full of straight guys and no women. Am I understood?"
"Yes ma'am."
Deis still watched him suspiciously before turning away. Naruto followed her a moment later, still glaring at Jiriaya as he left. Jiriaya stayed straight face a moment longer to make sure they were gone before he grinned and a bit of blood dribbled from his nose. "Yeah, I was undressing her with my eyes," he admitted to himself. He looked around quickly before heading to the nearest bar. He had two years of flirting to make up.
—oo000oo—
"I'm home," Konohamaru said as he entered his home. "Grandpa, you would not believe the jerk I met today!"
"Oh," he grandfather called from his study.
"Yeah! The jerk is only a few years older than me but he thinks he can get away with anything! He's not even from our village!"
"Really now, do you know his name?"
"He said he's Uzumaki Naruto. And he was hiding behind his kaasan when I stood up to him too! The lizard lady that attacked you when I was a baby!"
"Deis, eh? What did she do?"
"She turned me into a ferret," Konohamaru yelled as he entered the study to see his grandfather with a guest. Naruto. "YOU!"
"Me," Naruto said with a smirk.
"What's he doing here!"
Naruto looked to Sarutobi Hiruzen and said, "What am I doing here?"
"You're my guest and is joining us for dinner," Sarutobi replied.
Naruto turned to Konohamaru and said, "I'm the dinner guest."
Konohamaru dropped his jaw at that and stared silently for a moment. "N-NO! I won't let you! I won't have a-a-a sub-human like…" Naruto was up and out of his chair in an instant, holding Konohamaru up by his neck, face just inches away from Naruto's as he bared his fangs at him and growled, scaring the boy white.
"Let me make this clear to you, boy," Naruto said, the pupil of his tiger eyes a mere pin tip from how angry he was. "People have been killed for calling any of the Uzu that! If you call anyone that again, I will tear you…"
"NARUTO!"
Naruto blinked, his eyes returning to normal and he closed his mouth, once more hiding his fangs. Slowly he set Konohamaru down, feeling guilty that he made the boy cry. "Sub-human means you are less than human," Naruto said softly. "I could use it to describe several regular humans for how inhumane they are but no one deserves to be called that." Sitting down again, he quietly sipped at his tea.
"Konohamaru," Sarutobi said, startling his grandson. "You know better than to insult our guest."
"You're taking his side," he said almost breathlessly.
"No, I am going to talk to Naruto about what he did in a little bit. You started this. Naruto had already told me about when you met. In detail that ANBU also told me. He did not cower behind his mother, she turned you into a ferret after you insulted her, and he told you never to call his mother lizard lady again. The fault is probably mine; I have been too lenient on you but that change now. You will learn to respect people. You will give it freely and only withhold it when they have proven they aren't worthy of it."
Konohamaru looked at his grandfather and swallowed the lump in his throat. "Grandpa?"
"Go to your room, Konohamaru, when dinner is ready, you may come out again." His voice said he would brook no opposition; it was the voice he used when in the Council.
"Yes, grandpa." Konohamaru left the room, leaving them in silence.
"…" Naruto looked to Sarutobi and then back down to his tea. He was still important to him after all. A boy doesn't run to a man when he is scared out of his life and then the man one day means nothing to him. "…I know I just disappointed you."
"You did," Sarutobi replied just as softly.
"…But you aren't scolding me."
"Naruto, you are a young man now, making your own mistakes and taking your own actions to learn from them. I'm no longer your teacher or your grandfather. I can't tell you what to do. But I can talk to you." Naruto kept his head down in shame as Sarutobi finally looked at him. "You said people die for calling…the Uzu that."
"Some have."
"Some like maybe the Kazekage?"
Naruto nodded. "Like the Kazekage, yes."
Sarutobi took out his pipe, filled the bowl, and lit it. "Why does that word anger you so much? I remember when you would come to me crying when someone would call you demon brat or some such but never did you get mad. What is it about…'sub-human'?"
Naruto sighed. "It is nothing that anyone on earth remembers but a woman named Bleu. She is older than even Deis… Did you know that humans have the same reaction to fear as they do hate?"
"How so? When you're afraid you run away."
"Only until you are safe from it. Then you come back with everything you can and destroy it. Humans aren't afraid of destroying humans; they feel nothing for things that aren't human." Naruto began to spin his cup between his fingers as he looked into the tea and gave a deep sigh. "But not all of Uzu no Kuni is like me. Many of us are like normal humans. Almost, you can see features that tell which clan they are from. Usually the eyes or size. But beyond that they are like any other human. To be hated for what your family looks like… Which would you rather fight? Kushina or Deis?"
"No contest, Kushina."
Naruto nodded. "They don't have the same strength as I do so they are more of a target."
"This is as much protecting your family as it being insulting."
Naruto didn't respond, he just looked lost in thought. Unsure what else to do, Sarutobi dropped a hand on his head and rubbed his hair. When Naruto looked to him, Sarutobi said, "You are more human than any I have ever met Naruto."
"…Thanks Old man." Naruto smiled back and finished his tea in one last gulp. "So what's for dinner, I'm starving! Wasting away, just skin, bones, and fur! I think my fur's coming off for that matter! I'm losing my fur," he joked as began to feel better.
"Hope you weren't shedding in my favorite chair," Sarutobi said in mock seriousness as he inspected the chair. "Or clawed it as well."
"Hey! I'll have you know I haven't clawed any furniture in years! …Outside of sleep," he finished with a helpless shrug.
Hiruzen laughed and placed a hand on his shoulder as he headed to the dining room. "You would have enjoyed meeting Miko, the First Hokage's wife. She was one of the 'Touched' was it? Feisty even just before she died. You're grandmother, I think. Maybe a great aunt, I was never too sure about that."
"One of my ojiisan's aunt," Naruto replied before closing the door behind him.
—oo000oo—
Naruto entered the hotel room that evening stuffed and happy. He sat down on the couch in the den between the rooms and stretched out. He was there a moment, his eyes beginning to close when he felt someone sit next to him and lean against his shoulder. Opening one eye and looking at the offending object, he saw Konan was the one who did. She was in her pajamas and holding a phushie fish that she liked to sleep with.
"Nya…nya," she mumbled in her sleep before suddenly gripping his arm and holding it next to the stuffed animal. "My toy…"
"Heh, some things never change," Naruto muttered before closing his eye again. "Mreow…mreow," he muttered as he curled into a ball. Asleep soon after, a deep rumbling coming from Naruto's chest made Konan smile even with how restless she normally would've been with the group watching their rooms but she didn't care, she had her toy there with her.