Sorry for the long wait. I could give some reasons why this update took so long, but they'd all just be excuses. So, let's just get to the story.
Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto.
Tsunade sat back in her seat and let out a sigh, putting her pen down as she took a brief break from her paperwork. She half way turned her chair, craning her neck to look out the window, staring into the clouds. It was another beautiful day in the Land of Fire, the sun shined down on the village as a cool breeze blew through the open windows.
It looked like it would be another of those lazy, rolling days. She'd had quite a few of those lately. Most of her time was spent either doing her paperwork, taking a quick drink of sake when she finished, or training her apprentices.
Yeah, that was a little surprise. A few weeks ago, Ino Yamanaka, had requested she train her in the arts of the medical ninja too, wanting to be able to do more for her teammates. Seeing the girl had the same fire in her eyes as Sakura, the last survivor of the Senju accepted. Seeing Sakura's reaction and their subsequent argument had been slightly amusing. The Yamanaka heir had a knack for it that was for sure, though the pink haired kunoichi had a greater affinity for the art.
Her musings over the past few days were broken when a small, familiar toad hopped through a window into her office.
"Hey, hey. What's shaking, boss lady?" Gamatsukai greeted, waving at the Hokage, who tiled her head and arched a brow when she saw Jiraiya's messenger was back. Hopping over to the woman, the amphibian reached to the scroll on its back and held it out for her to take. "Got a new message for ya."
Tsunade took the message as soon as it was offered and nodded to the toad. "Thank you." With that, the toad leapt away, resting in a shaded area of the room, knowing it'd be a while before the Slug Sannin would be ready to reply.
Tsunade found herself curious, wondering what her old teammate could want now. Perhaps another mission or more supplies?
She could still hardly believe how the first mission she sent the blond turned out. Her fellow blond seemed to have amazing luck with missions, whether it was good or bad was a matter of opinion. Four times he'd been sent on seemingly simple, run of the mill missions, and wound up embroiled in a battle over the fate of a country, or in one case a village. While in the end they all turned out well and he'd been instrumental with saving the country, he and his team had been faced with danger far beyond the scope of the missions and they should have been prepared for.
She felt a little bad for her younger brother figure, simultaneously facing the death of comrades and his first kill, and under the haze of the Kyuubi's power no less, but she was glad that, according to Jiraiya's messages and Shikamaru and Shizune, he'd been able to move past it.
Still, it wasn't time for a report and there probably wasn't a mission request, so what was…
Ah, that's right; Jiraiya said he was thinking of going to Taki to warn them of the looming clouds on the horizon in the near future. Could that be it? But the message seemed a bit long for that.
She opened the scroll and began to read. Jiraiya started off saying he wouldn't believe what the brat had gotten himself into now, causing her to frown.
As she read, her face went through a range of emotion. It set into a serious expression upon reading of Shibuki's initial response to the news, a small smile at finding out Naruto had unknowingly befriended another Jinchuriki; a 14-year old named Fuu. After all, only a Jinchuriki could truly understand what a Jinchuriki went through. Her brow furrowed once more when she learned of the deliberations of the council and how the girl had run away in an effort to protect her village and live out the rest of her life in some form of happiness.
She had mixed feelings about the girl's decision. It was reckless and showed how little hope she had for her own future, but she was knowingly sacrificing herself for her village, an admirable trait and something every shinobi should be prepared to do.
She sat up in her chair, her frown deepening as she discovered they found her under attack from the Akatsuki. This was followed by shock and a hint of disgust when she learned of the identities and abilities of the two Akatsuki. An immortal that could link his body to another's by ingesting their blood? A living ragdoll who had fought her grandfather and survived by stealing the hearts and organs of others? What kinds of monsters were in the Akatsuki?
Then she sighed and closed her eyes, shaking her head with a soft, wistful smile when she reached the end and learned that Taki had banished the girl after Naruto had managed to convince her to return, and Naruto had offered her a chance to join Konoha. That was just like the brat. Somehow, he could make almost anyone believe in him and hope again.
He was right; she wasn't going to let her wander the nations alone. She'd be guaranteed to be captured, and then she'd die and the Nanabi would fall into Akatsuki's clutches, neither of which she'd allow.
"Damn brat…" Tsunade commented with a smirk as she shifted to once again look out the window. "Always getting himself into trouble."
Silence reigned within Konoha's council chamber as the various clan heads and advisors digested everything they'd just learned. Tsunade had informed them of everything she'd learned from Jiraiya's letter. At the moment, they were focusing on the new information about the Akatsuki, which would promptly be added to their village's bingo book.
"How troublesome…" Shikaku sighed, borrowing his son's catch phrase as he leaned forward and propped his head up on his arm. "These Akatsuki… what kind of monster are they going to come up with next?"
Choza shook his head, his face set in a grim look as memories of battles long passed filled his mind. "The cult of Jashin…" He said with a grunt of disgust. "I'd hoped we'd heard the last of those heretical fiends after the end of the last war."
"Unfortunately, you were mistaken." Danzo, the war hawk of Konoha spoke up. "I believe I've heard something of this Hidan." The veteran shinobi said, drawing all eyes to him, listening intently. It was well known that the man's information network was second in the village only to Jiraiya's. His tone and expression remaining in their constant, neutral state, he began, "Shortly after Yugakure transitioned into a tourist village, there was an… incident. One of the shinobi couldn't tolerate their new, peaceful state, believing that killing was the sole purpose for which we shinobi exist. The madman slaughtered all his neighbors before vanishing, never to be heard from again. I know little of him, but this Hidan matches his description. With such an outlook, it's no surprise he would find the Jashinist religion appealing."
Tsunade closed her eyes before lacing her fingers together before of her chest and leaning forward. "… We'll have to contact Taki and Yu for any information they might have about these two, but considering the circumstances I doubt they'll have anything that helpful. Simply waiting around for them to attack us again would be a mistake. We should begin putting together a task force with the specific purpose of fighting the Akatsuki." Opening her eyes, her gaze washed over the others in the room, many of whom nodded at her words before she decided it was time to move on. "But that's a thought for the future. For now, let's move on. There's still the matter of Taki's Jinchuriki."
"I believe we should follow through with Naruto's offer and allow her to join the village." Danzo spoke. "Two of our rival villages possess two Jinchuriki each. Taking the girl in would level the playing field."
"Jiraiya said he wouldn't mind taking her on as a second apprentice." Tsunade stated. "She'd benefit from his tutelage and we wouldn't need to worry about the Akatsuki showing their faces any sooner than they would have otherwise."
Hiashi, the stoic leader of the Hyuuga clan, spoke up for the first time, his pupil-less, white orbs narrowing in consideration. "Allowing her to wander the nations alone to be captured would be foolish. We have no idea what the Akatsuki are planning to do with the Biju. Regardless of their plans, allowing power like that to fall into the hands of these madmen can only be pure folly."
"On the other hand, even with her banishment, we have to consider that she may still be loyal to Taki." Homura, one of Hiruzen Sarutobi's old teammates, said, cupping his chin and stroking his beard in thought. "After all, she has already tried to sacrifice herself for them. An admirable trait any shinobi should bear, but it shows that she did care for her village. In the worst case, this whole thing could have been an attempt to use her friendship with Naruto to infiltrate our village, with the Akatsuki's near capture of the girl a happy accident."
"Jiraiya's our top spymaster for a reason." Shikaku said, waving off the man's suspicions. "If he trains her as he offered to, I doubt he'd miss any red flags."
Tsunade sat back, her eyes closed. She'd already thought of a lot of the risks and advantages of allowing Fuu to join the village. She opened her brown orbs and allowed her gaze to sweep across the clan heads. "I've made my decision. We'll accept Fuu into our ranks and allow her to train with Naruto under Jiraiya. We can consider being under close observation from my old teammate reason enough to bypass the normal probationary period once they return to the village two years from now. Are there any objections?" When there was no response, she pushed herself back from the table. "In that case, we can consider this meeting over. Consider what we've leaned about the Akatsuki and provide any suggestions you can for the task force we'll put together."
With that, the various individuals began to leave. As they did, the war hawk of Konoha thought of the implications of what had happened there.
If all went well, Konoha would soon possess a second Jinchuriki, a boon for the village. He had no doubt Jiraiya would do everything in his power to impart the same ideals as his sensei into her, and put together with the Kyuubi container's idealism, and she'd probably wind up another optimist like Hashirama Senju and those who followed his will.
He found that line of thinking childish and naïve. If Hashirama hadn't been so damn optimistic and had used the Biju to dominate the other nations as opposed to giving them away to establish a balance, Konoha would be the only village standing and they would have true peace. Then they wouldn't be in this mess in the first place.
He would like to take the girl under his wing and turn her into a true shinobi, knowing that the boy was likely beyond his reach, but he couldn't refute that, idealist though he may be, Jiraiya was an exceptionally skilled individual and a good teacher.
Either way, with this, it was less likely another Biju would fall into the hands of the Akatsuki. He had his own suspicions about the group and if they proved true, whether the girl was trustworthy or not, that was vital. After all, the Nanabi could always be removed and placed in someone else, though that meant its power probably couldn't be used in this crisis. Still, it would keep the Biju out of their clutches.
As he walked down the hall, leaning upon his cane, his mind wandered years into the past, his usually squinted eye and neutral expression showing no signs of this stroll down memory lane. Back to the source of his worries about the criminal group… to a brief meeting with a man in an orange mask.
Hidden behind a wooden wall in a village near the eastern border of the Land of Waterfalls, several young beauties engaged in tranquil conversation as they enjoyed the warm waters of the local hot springs. Twelve in all, and though all had nice figures, their appearances ranged greatly; among them was a girl who was a bit on the short side with long brown hair, but with a figure to die for, a girl with short, blur hair that flared out at back, and another with pink hair.
However, as the women enjoyed their relaxing soak in the waters, they were blissfully unaware of the sound of perverted giggling just beyond the borders of their bath.
Peering into the forbidden gardens through a hole in the fence was the legendary pervert and toad Sannin, Jiraiya, enjoying his favorite past time: 'research'. His teeth were bared in a wide, lecherous grin as he took in the women's curves.
"Heya boss!" A voice called out from behind, startling Jiraiya. With a slight jump, he swerved his upper body around and craned his neck to look down, seeing none other than the toad he'd sent to Tsunade just a few days earlier.
"G- Gamatsukai?" Jiraiya questioned, frowning. "You're back already? I figured it'd take a couple days for you to get back to me, what with the council meeting and what not."
"Nah, it was all over pretty fast." The toad responded, moving as if to shrug his shoulders. "I remembered you said you'd be staying around here so I figured I'd come looking for you so I could head back home. Hey, what're you up to here, anyway. Peeping again?" The little amphibian asked, frowning in disapproval at his summoner. The toad was taught to respect women, and most of its kind disapproved of the Sannin's perverted ways.
"Yeah, now keep it down." Jiraiya replied in a harsh whisper as he took the message. "Thanks, I'd give you something, but I don't want to tear myself away from the this show. I'll check it out once my research is done." Jiraiya said, his lecherous grin once more playing on his lips as he turned back to the peephole before waving over his shoulder. "Now go on, unless you'd care to join me. Oh look at those…" he trailed off into another fit of giggles.
The toad glared at the white haired shinobi before inhaling deeply, puffing out his chest in the process, and bringing it hand to the side of its mouth. Finally, he yelled, "What the hell do you think you're doing, spying on the women's bath, you old pervert!?"
Jiraiya's head shot over to the toad, who was now grinning cheekily, his eyes wide with shock and his face set in an expression of despair. Before he could voice this, he heard the sound of girl's screaming. "No! My fun's been ruined!"
That quickly fell to the back of his mind as he found he had other things to worry about. Over the sounds of panicked screams, he heard furious shouts and the sound of metal grinding against wood, like one would hear when a blade was removed from it's sheathe. Crap! Some of those women must have been kunoichi!
"Perverted bastard! Wait till I get my hands on him!" One voice cut through the chaos on the other side of the fence as the women scrambled to either flee or hunt down the peeping tom.
"When I'm through with him, he's going to be black and blue!"
"Spy on us will he!? I'll take care of that! If I catch him, I'm going to take off something he'll miss, and I'm not talking about his limbs! Then let's see if he pulls this crap again!" Jiraiya's face turned as white as his traitorous teammate's as that threat reached his ears, his entire body stiffening as sweat poured down his face at the threat to his manhood.
He shot up and began to bolt away with a panicked yell, only to trip and fall. He turned his head, his face set in a look of anger and betrayal as he saw the smirking messenger had caught his ankle with his tongue before hopping away to enjoy the show.
Jiraiya quickly scrambled to his feet, only for kunai to rain down in front of him. Turning, he saw a mob of women mostly clad in their bath towels rushing towards him.
"W-wait!" Jiraiya cried, the mob already too close to escape from. He raised his arms to defend his vital spots and shouted, "Mercy!" But he knew he would receive none.
The amphibian clutched his stomach and laughed at its summoner's misfortune as he was overtaken by the mob, shoved to the ground and given the righteous beat down they felt he so richly deserved. In moments, he was completely hidden by a cloud as the mob wailed on him, the only sign he was there being the cries of agony and futile pleas for forgiveness.
Naruto picked up a piece of beef from the charcoal blazer before him with a pair of chop sticks. He and Fuu had decided to grab a bite to eat at a nearby restaurant while their sensei went off and did his own thing as they waited for the reply from Konoha. While the blond would have preferred ramen, he'd taken what his teacher had told him to heart and no longer ate the noodle dish almost exclusively anymore. Besides, while he'd found some nice ramen stands, they all paled in comparison to the heavenly taste of Ichiraku's back home.
As he ate the grilled beef, he looked to the green haired Jinchuriki, who was staring down at the blazer, her eyes half open as she picked at the meat without actually taking any for herself.
"You know, if you keep just picking at the food like that, I'll scoop it all up before you get anything." Naruto commented. Not like he had much choice, wait too long and it'll burn.
"I've already had some." Fuu replied, not looking away from her hands.
"What do you think we should do after this? Maybe we should check out the hot springs. I never did check out the ones back home." The Uzumaki survivor commented, looking up to the ceiling in thought. He'd heard good things about how relaxing a good soak at the hot springs could be, but the only time he'd actually been to them was when Ebisu had taken him there to use the steaming water as incentive for his water walking training… that had not been pleasant.
"Maybe…" The green haired Jinchuriki replied, seeming to consider it.
"Oh, never mind, the Pervy Sage might be there." Naruto commented before grinning at his friend. "Wouldn't want him peeking in on you, I bet you'd stick one of those water swords of yours right up his ass if you caught him trying to." That got a chuckle out of the green haired Jinchuriki, who thought to herself that he was probably right.
Said toad sage would have sneezed had a fist full of feminine fury not rammed into his face at that very moment.
"So, what's got you down?" Naruto questioned, tilting his head slightly. "Aw, don't tell me you're still worried about what Grandma Tsunade might say, are you?" Ever since they'd left, the orange eyed Jinchuriki had been withdrawn, speaking only when spoken to and giving quick responses.
The blond took her silence as a yes and continued, "I'm telling you, don't worry. She's sure to let you in."
"And if she does, then what?" Fuu replied, her orange orbs rising to meet his ocean blue pools. "They'll probably treat me the same way Taki did."
"Well we won't know until then, will we? So why worry about it?" Naruto responded. "Besides, I've already told you there are a lot of people who know about me and treat me the same as everyone else, why would they see you any different? You'll have Grandma Tsunade, Iruka-sensei, Kakashi-sensei, Teuchi, Ayame, a whole bunch of people who'll accept you."
"And you said Iruka treated you just like everyone else at first." She pointed out. "They stopped seeing you that way because they know you, Naruto, but they don't know me." Despite these thoughts, she gave him a small smile, remembering that regardless, he'd be with her every step of the way. "Thanks for the sentiment though, and maybe you're right." With that, she started picking at her food again. "Not that it'll matter if the Hokage doesn't give her ok."
"If that's what's bringing you down, your worries are over." They heard the toad Sannin's voice say drawing both their attention.
"Oh, Pervy Sage you… whoa!" Both jerked from the shock as they laid eyes on the Sannin. His face was marked with various blur bruises, his lip was swollen and his right eye was swollen shut. "What the hell happened to you!?"
A cloud of gloom seemed to appear over the legendary ninja as his head tilted forward, his hair shadowing his face and his entire body slumped.
"… I don't want to talk about it…"
Naruto immediately guessed what must have happened and grinned at his sensei in amusement.
"You got caught peeping and bought yourself a beat down, didn't you?"
"… Shut up, brat." Jiraiya replied. Fuu's expression twisted in annoyance as she gave him a condemning stare for his perverted habits. The toad Sannin coughed, hoping to ignore the last few moments. "Anyway, as I was saying, Tsunade got back to me a lot faster than I expected." He turned to the green haired Jinchuriki, crossing his arms with a smile. "Congratulations, Fuu. Looks like I'll be your sensei from now on."
Naruto turned back to the former Taki kunoichi, giving her his fox-like grin as he said, "You hear that? We'll be sticking together after all. I told you there was nothing to worry about." Fuu had actually brightened up for the first time since her exile at that. "Have you ever been to Konoha?"
She shrugged in response. "Can't say I have. I've got to say, I'm looking forward to it."
"And I'll show you all the best spots around the village. And wait till you try Ichiraku's! They've got the best ramen in the whole continent!" Naruto stated.
The green haired girl gave him an amused look. "So you've told me. Over and over…"
"Because it's true! You'll see when you get there." Naruto stated before gesturing towards the Sage. "And the old man might be a huge perv, but he's a hell of a teacher. When those Akatsuki come out of the wood works, we'll make them wish they never heard of us!"
Jiraiya slapped his student on the back of his head in annoyance. "Damn it brat, how many times have I told you not to call me a pervert?"
"You spend all your free time spying on unsuspecting women. How exactly are you not a pervert?" Fuu questioned.
"Simple. I am no mere pervert. I…" He began, his mouth spreading into a proud smile as his chest puffed out with pride. "… am a super-pervert!"
Silence fell over the restaurant as both his students stared at him with looks of disbelief and mortification. Their reactions were shared by all the other occupants, who stared at him with various expressions, none of them good. Silence reigned throughout the restaurant and one could actually hear a cricket chirping as all everyone stared at the trio. After a few moments, Fuu pointed at her new sensei.
"Please tell me he didn't just say that." She asked, a pleading tone in her voice, hoping that this was just some joke and her new teacher didn't seriously just say something that embarrassing.
Naruto turned away from the Sannin, pinching his nose and shaking his head before waving dismissively in his direction, aware of all the eyes on them. He normally liked attention but this was just humiliating. "Just tune him out when he gets like this."
Jiraiya stumbled out of his stance; almost face faulting at his students' words. Righting himself, he looked at the crowd, suddenly aware of all the eyes on them, he decided he should end the conversation there. "Anyway, be sure to come to the room early and rest up. We've got a new mission, and trust me, it's a doozy." With that, he vanished in a poof of smoke.
Once the awkwardness passed, the two Jinchuriki talked at length about their sensei and Konoha before they finished and paid for their meal. As the two exited the restaurant, they found their sensei standing beside the door, leaning against the wall with his arms crossed.
Being the first one out, Naruto noticed him first. "What do you want now, Pervy Sage?"
Jiraiya gave no reaction to his student's nickname, having come to accept there was nothing he could do to stop him from calling him that, as he reached into his pocket. "Oh, I just thought Fuu might still be a little down, and I thought this might cheer her up a bit."
He pulled out a blue cloth and threw it to her. When she caught his, she discovered that there was metal sewn into it on the other side. Though she already knew what it must be, she turned it over and saw that it was a new forehead protector, marked with the symbol of Konoha. She smiled as she stared into the reflective surface before raising her head to look at her new sensei and her new teammate. "Thank you… I won't let you down for sticking your necks out for me like this."
"Don't mention it. You're one of my precious people Fuu, even if Grandma Tsunade turned you down, I wouldn't have let you wander the nations on your own, no matter what I had to do." Naruto told her.
'Precious people…' Fuu thought to herself, her smile taking on a heartfelt quality. Thinking of the time she'd spent with her new team. She already knew Naruto was precious to her, and despite his antics, Jiraiya, one of the few people to treat her like a normal human, was one of her precious people too. 'I wonder if I'll have more precious people someday…'
The following day, the trio walked along a dirt path as the sun shined down on the land, having left early and traversed the mountainous no man's land east of the Lands of Waterfalls and entered a dense forest, while quickly finding the road and making their way though. They soon reached the edge of the woods, stepping beyond its boundaries and taking their first look at the country they'd stepped into.
The country they were in was a nice place that seemed to give off a peaceful aura, strongly contrasting what one would find if they just traveled a little further into the country. Indeed many people would see the verdant lands and believe they'd found a good nation to visit or settle down, only to be sorely disappointed, and potentially lose everything they had. The path they were on was framed with trees and long, rice terraces, the water in which reflected the sunlight, causing the hills to almost shine.
Naruto looked up at the sound of the flapping of wings to see three white birds fly overhead, disappearing into the horizon as Fuu, wearing her new Konoha forehead protector on her arm in place of her old Taki one, looked to the terraces.
With the birds out of sight, Nareuto's eyes returned to the rice fields as his hands clasped the back of his head in a relaxed posture as he took in the beauty of the land. "So, where are we now, Pervy Sage? This where our mission's taking us, and who hired us anyway?"
The Sannin's eyes surveyed the land, searching for any hint of what he knew lurked beneath the surface of the country. "Well, your right about one thing, this is our destination, but we don't have a client this time around." He said, turning to his student. Seeing his curious gaze, he elaborated, "This time around, the mission's coming from Konoha itself. And like I told you, it's a big one. To be more accurate, this is an S-rank mission."
Both the Jinchuriki looked surprised to hear that, their attentions snapping to the man. "S-rank? What's so special about this country?" Naruto asked.
"You know what they say; looks can be deceiving. Back in Taki, we were warned to stay away from this place." Fuu commented, causing both the males to look at her as she looked out at the terraces. "This is the Land of Rice Fields."
Naruto blinked before his blue orbs returned to the hills, rice fields as far as the eye can see. "… Land of Rice Fields, huh? Talk about unimaginative. Let me guess, rice is their chief export."
Fuu nodded. "That's right. This country's mostly known for exporting rice. It's a pretty small nation that's always been fairly poor, barely able to support its people. On top of that, their Daimyos have always been greedy and tax their people into poverty. Because of that, a lot of the country is near lawless."
"That's right." Jiraiya commented, nodding in approval. "Well, color me impressed. You really know your stuff, huh Fuu?"
Fuu scratched her cheek and averted her orange orbs, slightly embarrassed at the praise as she so rarely received any. "Thanks. I did a lot of reading back in…" Hurt briefly flashed in her eyes, as it usually did when reminded of her former village. "… Taki…"
That was an understatement. She loved to read, it was one of her favorite hobbies. Facing the cruel reality of life as a demon host, the green haired girl would find comfort in written text of all kinds. Atlases, history, fantasy, science fiction, adventure, romance, she found submerging herself in the content of books of all kinds to be a welcome escape from the world and her troubles. And since Shibuki made certain they couldn't bar her from the library and as she had no social life due to being universally scorned, she spent most of the time she wasn't training or on missions reading. One of her favorite past times was to relax in her little grove with a good book in her hands.
On top of that, the Land of Rice Fields' recent history was well documented in her former village. After all, they were the most recent attackers the country had faced.
"I'm not surprised the Land of Rice Fields history would be well documented in Taki. After all, they're responsible for the most recent attacks on the village." Jiraiya commented.
"Huh?" the genin responded, curiosity overcoming his features. "This country attacked Taki? When did that happen?"
"A few years before we were born." The former Taki kunoichi answered him, having read about the conflict, if one could call it that. Actually, it'd be more accurate to say 'massacre'.
Seeing as the blond was apparently the only member of their group not in the know, Jiraiya crossed his arms and began to fill him in on the history of the nation. "You see, Naruto. The daimyo of this country sought to claim what lied beyond his borders. Despite the fact that this country had no formal ninja village, just a few scattered clans, he not only ordered them to attack the Land of Waterfalls, but also the Land of Hot Water. His greed was so great that, in his lust for power, he commanded them to attack both at once, believing he could take everything from his neighbors in one fell swoop."
Naruto's face twisted in disgust for this leader who he'd never met. There was no way that had any hope of success unless the Land of Rice Fields had a major trump card up its sleeve, and considering Taki was still standing, that obviously wasn't the case.
The daimyo of this land had sent his people, who put their faith in him, who trusted his guidance, into the jaws of death on a hopeless quest just to satisfy his own hunger for power. It should have been clear to anyone they'd have no chance, and the fact that he was either too stupid to realize this, or had disregarded this, and sent his subordinates anyway was sickening.
Unknown to the blond, most leaders were of the same opinion, which was partly why the country had no real allies.
Shaking his head at the pointless waste of life, Jiraiya added, "I have to at least give him credit for being smart enough not to pull the Land of Fire into the whole mess, but still everyone could see it was hopeless from the start. Well, except for him, blinded by greed as he was."
His thoughts confirmed, Naruto's eyes squeezed shut as he turned to Fuu. "So what, you were told to avoid this country in case of bitterness from the war, or because of the crime?"
Fuu shook her head, her expression becoming solemn as she stared out at the land, placing a hand on her hip.
"No… it was because a new ninja village was formed here recently. We didn't think much of it at first… until we learned who was behind it."
Naruto's brow furrowed before his blue orbs shot open in realization. A recently formed minor village with a dangerous leader? He could only think of one that fit that description.
His hands clenched as the image of a man with skin literally as white as a sheet, purple tribal-like markings around his eyes, fangs and slit pupils, making him resemble a snake that seemed to radiate a sense of unease.
"Otogakure?" Naruto questioned, and Jiraiya nodded.
'Orochimaru.' The blond Uzumaki mentally snarled. So, this was the country that pasty faced bastard had created his village in.
There was a short list of people that the young Uzumaki truly, truly hated, to a point that he felt he could never forgive them. The Snake Sannin, the man who had attacked Konoha over a grudge, who had defiled the souls of two of his idols, who had committed so many atrocities and was responsible for the deaths of so many innocent people, including his grandfather figure, sometimes for little more than his own amusement and who, along with Itachi, corrupted the first real friend he'd ever had with the intent to, from what Naruto understood, devour his soul and wear his skin as a suit, had the dishonor of being at the top of that list. Just seeing that cruel smirk of his was enough to make Naruto want to bash his face in! Not just out of hate, but so he would never be able to screw with people's lives ever again.
But if this was where he'd created his village… then this was where his wayward teammate had fled to after crossing the border.
'Sasuke.' His expression hardened into a look of determination. If this mission had to do with them then this could be his chance to finally fulfill his promise to Sakura and save his brother in all but blood from him own stupidity and thirst for revenge. Images and memories from that fateful day flashed into his mind; the shock of discovering Sasuke had abandoned the village, Sakura's tears as she begged him to bring her back, the Uchiha's cold indifference to the sacrifices of those he once called his friends, the crushing despair he felt when he realized he'd failed, which only grew when he saw Sakura after waking up in his hospital bed.
He wouldn't fail again. If the Uchiha heir was here, there was no way he wasn't leaving without him. He'd let his teammates, not just the rest of Team 7 but the team put together to retrieve him, down once, he wasn't going to again.
Jiraiya and Fuu watched hints of emotion play across Naruto's features before the Uzumaki heir turned to the sage, his face set in a look of complete seriousness. "So what's the mission? Are we spying on Oto, and where is it anyway?"
Jiraiya shrugged, holding up his arms and shaking his head as he closed his eyes. "Haven't a clue." He answered before looking back at his students. "That's what we're here for. Like Taki, Oto's an actual hidden village. Difference is no one's got the slightest clue where it is. Our job is to clear up that little mystery, and if we can, gather information on Orochimaru… and your old pal, Sasuke."
Fuu frowned as she stared up at the Sannin. "Is this really a good idea?" She asked, causing the Sannin to look at her. "I mean, even in a small village like my old one, we've heard of the things Orochimaru's been up to. We'll be looking for his headquarters; a hostile ninja village with kami knows what kind of freaks he's created with his experiments. That's probably not a problem for you, but Naruto and I could be in over our heads."
"Relax." Jiraiya replied, waving off her concern. "If worst comes to worst and we run into that old snake in the grass, I'll handle him, and I'm sure you can handle whatever else the village can throw at you. Besides, I doubt it'll come to that."
Naruto nodded, punching his open palm. While he wasn't going to just rush in like he once might have, he was still eager to begin their search and perhaps save his wayward teammate. "Right! Then let's get a move on."
It wasn't long before the Sannin and the two Jinchuriki, who for the sake of stealth had hid away their forehead protectors for the time being, found a small town… though not much of one. The whole place looked deserted, its buildings simple, run down wooden shacks for the most part, riddled with holes and weathered down by the elements. As a sharp wind blew through the area, causing the trio's hair to flutter in the breeze and sending clanking sound echoing through the area as the various signs on the shops and taverns shifted in the air, most hanging on by a thread and on the verge of falling to the ground. The fence surrounding the village was littered with various worn and faded flyers, their purpose long since passed and now meaningless.
While most would dismiss the place as a ghost town, the three ninja sensed many eyes on them. Looking closely, Naruto could see various figures hiding in the shadows of the torn buildings, eyeing them like one would a piece of meat. It was clear to any that they were looking for a mark, and thought they'd be easy prey.
Naruto's face scrunched up as he looked into the town. "Eesh, this looks like the kind of place where you're just asking to get mugged if you're stupid enough to set foot in it. So, what do you say, Pervy Sage let's go around this place and…" He turned to his sensei… and then saw the perverted grin on his face. "Oh for the love of…" He muttered in annoyance, already knowing what his sensei was going to say and resisting the urge to face palm.
"Nonsense!" The Sannin said in an eager tone, his eyes curled in smile shapes similar to a certain silver haired jonin's and shining with barely restrained mirth. "This place is perfect! This is just the kind of town where that's bound to have a tavern, full of pretty girls where people will go to relax and unwind! It's the best place to pick up rumors and morsels of knowledge! This is the essence of information gathering!" Of course, hints to Oto's location weren't the only kind of 'morsels' he was planning to look for.
Naruto sighed and shook his head. "Pervy Sage… I don't think this is the kind of place where you'll find any information on Oto… or anything else you'd want."
Naruto knew that the Sannin was right about taverns; he'd been taught a thing or two about spying and information gathering by the man. Many ninja would go to a bar to unwind after a mission and as they put away the drinks, their lips might loosen up. If you could blend in, it was the perfect place to pick up rumors and bits of information, as well as a target to capture and interrogate.
Taverns were the perfect place to start looking for information when you don't know where to turn, but this really didn't seem like the right place to look. Anyone could tell this was a town of pick pockets and thieves. Besides, he'd be lying if he said he wasn't afraid the Sannin would get sidetracked trying to win over any ladies he ran into. Since it wasn't likely to hurt their efforts, he'd probably take his own sweet time for the sake of his 'research'.
"He's right, Jiraiya-sensei." Fuu spoke up for the first time, stepping forward and peering into the town. She leaned forward with her hands clasped behind her back as her orange orbs scanned the run down buildings. Several of the figures hid themselves at this, but trained shinobi like the three of them could easily pick up their presences. "This seems like the kind of town where no matter where you go; you'll wind up walking into a rip off joint. We should just move on to the next place."
"Not a chance." The Sannin replied, crossing his arms and closing his eyes. "I can understand why you might be intimidated by this place, but the legendary Jiraiya never backs down from a challenge. I won't rest until I've milked this place of every bit of information." He turned to look at his students. "While, as shinobi, you're far from innocent, and those forehead protectors mark you as old enough to drink, nevertheless this is far too dark a place for your young eyes." The Sannin said solemnly before his tone uplifted once more. "Don't worry, though. I'm more than willing to sacrifice myself for the greater good." He said, cackling at the end.
While neither of the teens responded, the dull expressions on their faces made it clear exactly what they thought of his 'sacrifice'.
The blond Uzumaki then blinked in confusion when Jiraiya held out his hand to him, as if waiting to be given something.
"… If you're thinking what I think you're thinking, you know where you can shove that hand." Naruto stated, crossing his arms stubbornly and turning his head away from his sensei, causing Fuu to raise a mint colored brow.
"Come on kid, you know how it works. Information takes money." Jiraiya said, curling and uncurling his fingers as if to say 'gimme, gimme'.
"It's not happening, Pervy Sage! Spend your own damn money!" Naruto shouted.
Fuu gave the Sannin a disappointed stare. "What kind of grown man mooches off a pair of teenagers?
"Oh, if you think that's bad, then get this! He's loaded! I've seen his checkbook and I can tell you, I'd never seen so many zeroes!" Naruto cried, pointing accusingly at the snow haired man before crossing his arms again. "But give him the chance, and he'll send you straight to the poorhouse. I let the perv talk me into letting him hold onto my wallet once, thing was full to bursting. Two hours later, I find him in a bar with a girl on each arm, and he'd spent every ryo I had! You'd think a best selling author would have no trouble paying for anything he wants…"
Fuu's expression, which clearly displayed her growing disillusionment with the man, promptly did a 180. She spun around to their sensei fast enough to give the average person whiplash and gazed up at him with a look of utmost adoration. Stars shining in her eyes brightly enough to frame the man in a golden light. "You're a best selling author!?"
Naruto's eyes widened at this, remembering her mentioning how she loved to read, causing him to sweat drop as he held his hands out in a slowing gesture. "Now just hold on, he's-"
But the boy was cut off by the Sannin's raucous laughter. The legendary shinobi placed his hand on his chin and gave a proud smile. "That's right! You're looking at one of the most famed authors in all the Elemental Nations! My books are works of art that the masses clamor to gain the moment they hit the shelves. The waiting list on each of my works, the famous Icha Icha series, goes on for months without fail!"
"'Icha Icha'? Never heard of it." Fuu replied, causing the Sannin to give her a look of shock.
"What? Why that's a crime in itself! I'll have to order you a special copy next time I have the chance."
"Would you? Thanks, Jiraiya-sensei!"
Naruto tried to speak, but the Sannin cut him off again. "Think nothing of it. It's the least I can do for my newest student." He removed the scroll strapped to his back and threw it to Naruto. So happy that he may have just found a new convert, he decided to give a little reward to his two students. "You know what? I'm in such a good mood right now, I think I'll go ahead and splurge a bit and use my own cash. You two go around the town and wait for me on the other side."
With that, Jiraiya happily marched into the town, following the scent of perfume just barely detectable in the air, his mind filled with images of what awaited him at the source of the aroma and the possibility of a new convert to the joys of being a pervert.
Naruto watched him go before turning to Fuu. "Uh, listen Fuu, I don't think those books of his are really up your alley…"
"Don't tell me, you'll spoil it!" Fuu shushed him.
Jiraiya briskly walked through the streets of the run down village with a confident smirk on his face, following the faint scent of perfume that lingered in the air, tantalizing his senses with the promise of lovely delights… and maybe the information he was searching for, but that wasn't chief on his mind at the moment. After all, unless they were extremely unlucky, they had a few days before they were in danger of being exposed. Plenty of time to gain info on Oto.
So he marched on, ignoring the many eyes he could feel gazing at him from the shadows, just daring them to try something as he followed his nose. Finally, he found his destination; a small tavern in a similar state of disrepair as the surrounding buildings. The building was shaped like an L, a warn lantern hung by its door. There were huge spots on its roof that missed tiles and the building and its doors were riddled with cracks. It was in slightly better condition than the surrounding buildings though, lacking holes large enough to peer in through like they did.
Taking a wiff, the Sannin nodded. "Ah ha, that perfume is coming from in here."
Sliding the warn door open, he stepped inside. It seemed to be in slightly better condition on the inside. Still, it was a rather dull looking place; no matter where you looked everything was a dark color. The walls were covered in black tarps except for the fusuma door at the back wall and the small bar only had four booths. However, what drew his attention was that the bar was full of women, six and all of them mostly wearing black, sleeveless vests and matching dark pants. The only exceptions being the apparent bartender, who wore a pink business suit, along with two women at a booth.
The bartender was a pale woman who had short, straight brown hair that fell just below her chin and black eyes with her lips painted a deep crimson. She leaned on the bar, turning at the sound of the door opening and welcomed Jiraiya into her establishment.
The other two unique women had almost opposing appearances. The first was a pale red head with her hair tied in two buns and cobalt eyes. She wore a blue, sleeveless kimono that just passed her knees. Her friend was a light tan had blue hair that covered her right, pale green eye and wore a red cocktail dress with black lace lining. Both women had gorgeous figures which their choice in clothing showed off generously and pink lipstick.
However, another thing they shared in common, along with the barkeep, was that each had a malicious glint in their eyes as they observed the Sannin.
"Get a load of this fool with the crazy hair." The redhead said low enough that even the sage's trained ears couldn't pick up.
"Well, they say a fool and his money are soon parted." The blue haired girl commented as she watched him take a seat at the booth next to them.
"Food and drink! I'm in the mood for some fun!" Jiraiya ordered with a laugh.
The two Jinchuriki sat together on a stone sign at the top of a hill, looking down on the village as they waited for their sensei. The Uzumaki propped his arm up on his knee and rested his hand on his palm, wearing the toad summoning scroll his sensei had left to him strapped to him the same way the Sannin did.
"Geez, I just know the Pervy Sage is down there trying to get into some girl's skirt instead of doing his job." Naruto sighed as he closed his eyes, annoyance clear in his tone. He cracked open a single ocean blue orb and looked to Fuu. "I'm telling you, you're not going to like his book. Think of what you've seen of the old perv, what do you think his book is about?"
The white clad kunoichi just shrugged. "So it'll be a little spicy, nothing wrong with that." Naruto's head shot up and he blinked in surprise at the girl, causing her to tilt her head to the side. "What?"
"… You're not a pervert, are you?"
Fuu looked affronted, jerking back as if struck and seeming to nearly fall off her perch before leaning toward him and shouting, "No! What would make you think that!?"
The blond held his hands up in a placating manner. "Sorry, sorry. Look, trust me, if you're not a pervert, you're not going to like his book. Hell, you'll probably want to hit him over the head with it."
Fuu eyed the blond suspiciously. "… Have you actually read it?"
"Wha-?" Naruto choked out, his cheeks reddening as he thought of what was likely in his sensei's book. "O- of course not!"
"Then how do you know what's in it?"
Naruto started to say something, but no words came to him. His mouth opened and closed multiple times before finally, he huffed and turned away. "Fine, suit yourself."
Fuu gave a cheeky smile, knowing she'd won their argument before her orange orbs returned to the town. "So, how long do you think it's going to take for him to get back? Think he'll actually find something?" She asked, leaning back and kicking her legs through the air.
"Che." Naruto scoffed, his face scrunching up as he crossed his arms. "Find something? Yeah, right. He's the kind of person who likes to put off doing work as long as he can. He'll probably spend all day looking at girls and having a good time before coming up here empty handed at sundown, if we're lucky."
"Oh, come on. He can't be that irresponsible. I mean, he's one of the Legendary Sannin." Fuu replied. Naruto snorted at her optimism.
Jiraiya threw back his head, his loud laughter echoing throughout the bar as he held the blue haired girl and her redhead friend to him. On the table before him was a single, half empty bottle of sake. While the blue haired girl managed to look generally interested in him, the red haired girl's eyes couldn't hide their malicious gleam.
However, he was completely taken in by their looks and the flowery scent of their perfume didn't notice the wicked intent in those cobalt orbs.
"Ah, what're you doing in a place like this? Not that I'm complaining, a pretty face is a welcome sight anywhere." Jiraiya said through his laughter.
"Why we were just waiting for you." The redhead said.
"You looked like a cool guy to hang out with." The blue haired girl added, snuggling into his side.
"Well, I- uh." The Sannin began before he was interrupted when the bartender abruptly shoved a bill in his face.
Grinning smugly down at the man, the pink clad woman said, "First thing's first, there's the little matter of your bill."
Jiraiya gaped at the sheet, looking in shock at the ridiculous price. One bottle of sake for that much? It wasn't even the good stuff! "That's mine? You sure you don't have too many zeroes there?"
A trickle of fear shot through his spine as he remembered his student's words. They… they couldn't have been right, could they? He, Jiraiya of the Sannin, couldn't have just walked into a scam, could he?
Oh, he wasn't worried. He was sure he could escape from whatever trap they'd set for him. Normally, he could fight his way out even more easily, but that would compromise their secret mission.
He was more concerned about the possibility that his students had been right. They'd never let him live it down! "Say, this wouldn't be some kind of rip off joint, would it?"
The woman covered her mouth and laughed. "That's a very funny joke." Jiraiya laughed right along with her… until she rang the bell at her hip. She and the two women who'd been hanging at the Sannin's side until then ran off to the other side of the bar as the fusuma panel slid open. Jiraiya turned at the sound of the paper door grinding across the wooden rails to see several grinning thugs, all armed with large weapons such as axes and spiked clubs, chuckling as they looked at him.
A slightly sadistic smirk spread across the bartender's face as she threw her arm out in a threatening gesture. "Pay up old man! Everything you've got if you want to live!"
Jiraiya stared at her for a moment before he burst out laughing. It was all he could do in this absurd situation he found himself in. He, one of the legendary Sannnin, had fallen for one of the simplest tricks in the book! And now he was going to have to run for his life since he couldn't fight his way out and blow his cover. On top of that, he could only imagine what his students would say. There were few things as irritating to hear as the words 'I told you so'.
Finally, his face fell and he glumly stated, "Guess the joke's on me…"
Naruto and Fuu continued to look down at the town, waiting for their perverted sensei to return, unaware of the danger the man currently found himself in. Silence fell over the two teens as they looked for any sign of their sensei.
Naruto, however, was fairly certain they wouldn't be seeing the man for a couple of hours at least. He briefly toyed with the idea of going to try his hand at gathering information himself, knowing what his sensei had taught him, but seeing as that den of thieves was the only town in sight he knew it would be an exercise in futility.
The Uzumaki leaned back, his blue orbs rising to the sky watching the clouds as they drifted by. A smirk played across his features as he thought about his old friend, Shikamaru. He'd have no problem sitting here waiting for Jiraiya to show up, even if he knew he was probably going to come back empty handed. After all cloud watching was the lazy chunin's favorite hobby.
Fuu remained somewhat optimistic about their sensei's activities, though she agreed that he was unlikely to find anything there. Deciding to do some digging of her own, she sent out a pulse of chakra through her hand. It was too small for all but sensor shinobi to detect from a distance, but her chakra, tinged slightly with the Nanabi's power, was like a beacon to the insects of the land.
She raised her hand as a fly flew toward her, extending her finger and allowing it to land on her extended digit as she watched it carefully.
Naruto noticed this and turned toward her. He waited until she let out a sigh and sent the bug on its way, closing her eyes with a disappointed look. "Did you learn anything?"
"Does it look like I learned anything of value?" Fuu deadpanned before shaking her head. "All I learned were that there were several places where there was a nasty chakra running through the ground or where bodies would suddenly appear at random."
Naruto sat up and blinked at her before raising a brow and questioning, "How is that nothing? Those sounds like perfect places to look for one of Orochimaru's hideouts."
"It was a common fly. They don't exactly have long term memory, it couldn't tell me where these places were, just that they're here somewhere." Fuu replied, causing Naruto to grimace slightly.
Just after these words left the green haired Jinchuriki's mouth, their eyes hardened as the sound of rustling leaves reached their ears. Both went on full alert, tensing almost imperceptibly as they prepared to spring into action at any moment as they held up the façade that they hadn't noticed anything.
"Naruto…" Fuu began, low enough that he could barely hear her voice.
"I know." He answered just as quietly.
They didn't have long to wait. Moments after their short exchange concluded, three kunai shot out of a nearby bush, flying straight at them.
At the sound of cold, sharp steel cutting through the air, both immediately burst into motion, jumping from their perch in different opposite directions as the daggers dug into the sign they'd sat upon just moments before.
As she fell through the air, Fuu called a kunai to her hand from her armlet and threw it at the source of the attack while Naruto touched the ground and immediately launched himself in the enemy's direction, summoning a kunai to his hand and spinning it by the ring at its base before holding it in a reverse grip.
A figure leapt out of the bushes to dodge Fuu's attack. The individual was slightly on the short side and wore a dark blue mask that covered all but a pair of brown eyes with a hole at the top allowing a small mass of orange hair to come through. He had a pouch on the back of the right side of her hip and wore a sleeveless gray vest revealing a pair of slender arms and baggy, dark green shorts along with grey shinobi sandals and off white shin guards.
The attacker spun in mid air and drew four kunai, throwing them at the approaching blond, who deflected the first three with his own weapon before ducking under the last.
The orange haired shinobi quickly reached into the pouch at his hip to draw more weapons.
Seeing this, Naruto gave a slightly feral grin, channeling chakra into his legs and shooting forward with a burst of speed, closing the distance between them in a flash and causing the unknown shinobi's eyes to widen and let out a surprised yelp, the high pitch of her voice revealing her to be female. His fist was drawn back, ready to strike the attacker right in the face and with the stance she was in and her hand tucked away, wasn't fast enough to defend.
The last thing the attacker saw was the grin on the blond's face before his fist rapidly took up her whole vision. A lance of pain shot through her system as the blond's hand collided with her face right between the eyes. Then there was nothing but stars, followed by absolute darkness.
The figure was sent flying several yards before falling to the ground, sliding across the dirt road for a few feet and sending up a small cloud of dust before coming to a halt and lying motionless in a crumpled heap.
Naruto frowned as he stared down at her. He had been sure the girl was one of Orochimaru's agents but now… now he wasn't so sure. She was genin level. Average rookie fresh out of the academy genin level, and that didn't seem like the kind of person he'd recruit.
Still, she had attacked them, and if she was from this land she might know something, even if she wasn't one of Orochimaru's goons.
Fuu stepped forward, a look of contemplation on her face as she looked at the attacker. Turning her head to look at her fellow Jinchuriki, she said, "That was almost too easy. Who do you think she is? You've had more experience with Oto than I have, does she seem like one of Orochimaru's lackeys?"
"Don't know. She's not wearing an Oto forehead protector." Naruto replied with a shrug before looking back to the downed attacker. "Well, only one way to find out." He stated before he reached into his vest pocket and began to pull out a length of rope to tie the girl up with.
"NARUTO! FUU!" The two heard their sensei's oddly panicked voice call out to them. Both turned at the sound to see the legendary Sannin running from the town at top speed, quickly reaching and running past the pair, yelling all the way.
"Pervy Sage… what are you…?" Naruto began before another shout, this time a battle cry reached his ears. He and Fuu twisted their bodies to look back at the town and saw a horde of thugs coming their way, brandishing their weapons threateningly.
"Whoa, who're these guys? Friends of hers?" Fuu asked, turning to the unconscious masked kunoichi.
"No! I've never seen her before, but they aren't ninja! They're just the thugs of some wicked women I ran into in a tavern!" Jiraiya answered quickly, running in place as he looked back at them.
Both the teens slumped at that, their faces masks of disappointment and mortification as Naruto face palmed. "Pervy Sage…"
"We don't have time to stand here and chat! RUN!" The Sannin yelled at the pair before bolting off. Naruto quickly grabbed the unconscious kunoichi, slinging her over his shoulder like a sack of potatoes as he and Fuu ran after their sensei, the thugs hot on their heels.
"Hey, what's with that guy?" One of the thugs asked, seeing the knocked out kunoichi, her baggy clothing causing him to mistake her gender as the two Jinchuriki had.
"Who cares!? We can grab his stuff too!" Another pointed out.
"How the hell did this happen!?" Naruto cried as the trio ran as fast as they could without alerting their hunters to the fact that they were ninja.
"Well, I found the tavern and everything seemed fine at first, but then they brought me the bill and…"
"In other words you walked into a rip off bar. Gee, if only someone had warned you that this would happen." Fuu snarked in irritation as she glared at the perverted sage, moving as fast as her feet could take her without the boost given by chakra.
"Damn it, Pervy Sage!" Naruto growled as he ran alongside said pervert and Fuu. "What the hell did you do to piss these guys off so much!? Perv on their women!?"
Jiraiya 's expression immediately shifted, all fear fading from his face as a single eyebrow twitched before looking over his shoulder at the Uzumaki, his face twisting in anger at the blow to his pride.
"I would never do such a thing!" He denied. Massive pervert though he may be, he would never break the man's code of honor in such a manner.
He'd look but he wouldn't touch.
"Like we'd believe that! You know, you're doing a real bang up job of keeping our secret mission a secret, Pervy Sage!" Naruto shouted at the man, not loud enough for their pursuers to hear though.
"Less talking, more action! Run, RUN!"
And so ends another chapter. I hope you enjoyed it.
I also hope no one thought Sasame went down too easily. I think she's about as strong, maybe slightly better, than canon Sakura… before the Chunin Exams… so… yeah. Actually, they shouldn't have much trouble with most of this arc. I mean, canon Naruto managed to take out one of the antagonists, Kamikiri, literally in about 30 seconds.
Don't worry though, I'm planning for the enemies in the next arc to give them a much harder time.
On a side note, I've gotten questions about the state of my other stories, so let me repeat that no, I'm not going to abandon anything. I'm just feeling more inspired to write this story right now, however, I'm beginning to feel like working on Naruto: Jinchuriki of the Six Paths again and also finally starting on the rewrite of my Bleach story. You'll probably start seeing updates for the former, and the remake of Shattered Fates, next month.
Anyway, please review.