Still don't own Naruto
Chapter 75 A Growing List of Problems.
Naruto was laying in bed with Yugito gently clinging to his chest, they had spent the last twelve hours together in bed either affirming there love for each other or just holding each other while they slept. Naruto could do little but stroke the women he loved hair as she slept and purred contentedly into his chest.
It was the early hours of the morning but Naruto had already had a long sleep so he was far from tired. Eventually Yugito stirred and rose from her own slumber. "Morning Naru-kun, have you been up long?" she said groggily yet happily.
"Not long I was just admiring how beautiful you are when you sleep. But you are still just as lovely when you are awake" Naruto complimented.
"So, what's the plan now, we still have quite a few hours before you are supposed to meet up with Tsunade-sama and Kakashi for your trip to the Land of Iron. We could always go for another round, after all I don't think I could ever get enough of you" she purred seductively.
"Sounds like an idea, but what do you say we go for a walk, I am kinda hungry there is bound to be something open this late at night. After all we have been in bed for so long" Naruto said.
"Yeah, I am a bit hungry myself. Let's get dressed and go look for something to eat, I don't suppose room service works at four thirty in the morning" Yugito moaned.
"I don't think so Yugi-chan, besides it might be good to get out of this bed at least for a little while" Naruto laughed quietly.
"Maybe you are right, but that still doesn't mean that I like it" she complained as she found and put on her bra that was currently hanging on a handle to the wardrobe.
The recently engaged couple got dressed and made there way out into the cool night air before starting to make there way to an area of town they expected to have some stores that would be open late at night.
They arrived in a open plaza that was still full of life. Mostly civilians that were enjoying a night out at one of the many bars and night clubs that were scattered around the area.
"There is bound to be a place to eat around here" Naruto said looking over the area on the look out for something to eat.
"Hey look over there" Yugito whispered into Naruto's ear and tapping him on the shoulder.
"Huh? Did you find somewhere to eat?" Naruto asked.
"No I didn't, but look. It's Tsunade and Jiraiya, and they are leaving that bar together" Yugito said.
"Oh that's nothing new, they always get drunk together" Naruto said.
"I don't think that's what it is this time" Yugito said as a smile crossed her face.
"Why do you say that?" Naruto questioned.
"Well they are holding each others hand and looked rather happy together... Let's follow them, that way we can know what is going on for sure" Yugito said.
"Ok that's it, you are spending way to much time with sensei, now you want to start peeking on people" Naruto teased.
"That's not it, I think they might actually be on a date. Come on lets follow them, what's the worse thing that can happen?" Yugito said.
"Well as they are two of the sannin and two of the best shinobi to ever come out of Konoha, the worst that could happen is are found following them and killed with them thinking we are other ninja trying to assassinate them. I am sure it could be worse but I don't have the same over active imagination that Darui has" Naruto said.
"Yes I am sure if I asked him our following the two Sannin would have earth shattering effects bordering on the absurd" Yugito chuckled thinking about her friend with the over active imagination.
"Well then, what are we waiting for" Naruto said with a smile and began dragging Yugito along with him as he followed after his surrogate parents.
"Didn't you just say that we shouldn't do this?" Yugito questioned.
"No I said it could be dangerous not that I didn't want to do it" Naruto laughed.
"So basically despite how dangerous it might be, that just makes you want to do it more right" Yugito chuckled.
"Hm, that does sound like me, where is the fun if there isn't any risk" Naruto replied.
"I swear your such a child" Yugito joked.
"Oh you love it, now lets hurry before they get away" Naruto chuckled.
"Fine lets do this" Yugito said showing her enthusiasm for there task of spying on the elder shinobi.
They followed Jiraiya and Tsunade back to Tsunade's hotel and were given quite a large shock when Tsunade gave Jiraiya a kiss which even seemed to shock the toad sage but he seemed to come to his senses moments later and returned the kiss.
"What are you two doing here?" came a voice from behind Naruto and Yugito and the pair twirled around quickly with innocent looks on there faces to see Kakashi sitting in a tree also watching the spectacle going on in front of the hotel room.
"We were just out for a walk and we saw Jiraiya sensei and Tsunade Baa-chan and we... Hey wait a minute. Kakashi sensei, what are you doing here!" Naruto questioned.
Kakashi began to sweat a little, in truth he was doing the exact same thing as Naruto and Yugito, spying on the Sannin. "I was simply doing my duty, in protecting the Hokage, that is why I was brought along after all" Kakashi said indignantly hoping to get the young sage to believe him.
"What ever Kakashi sensei, you saw Sensei and Baa-chan together and decided to spy on them" Naruto said.
"Well, yes" Kakashi said dropping his head in shame of being caught.
"Well I guess we are not any better, we woke up hungry so we went out to find something to eat and saw Jiraiya-sama and Tsunade-sama leaving a bar so we decided to follow them as well" Yugito admitted.
During there discussion they failed to realize that they had lost track of the two Sannin. Kakashi was the first one to realize that they had lost there targets.
"Well looks like they have gone, this was our hotel so they probably went inside. I guess we will just have to ask Jiraiya-sama how his date went later" Kakashi moped.
"Wait did you just say date?" Naruto asked shocked.
"Yeah, apparently Tsunade lost a bet or something and had to go out on at least one date with Jiraiya-sama" Kakashi chuckled.
"She should have known she was going to loose, I mean she never win's a bet unless something horrible happens" Naruto said.
"Maybe she wanted to loose, that's why she made the bet" Yugito guessed.
"Well she did seem quite happy before we lost track of them" Naruto agreed.
"It doesn't matter now, we will have to find out later, I suggest we all get back to what we were doing and maybe get some more rest, we have a long journey ahead of us tomorrow. And I am not letting you get out of it by just giving us one of your kunai to summon you if we get into trouble" Kakashi lectured.
"Ah man, I was counting on that. Oh well let's go get something to eat and head back to the hotel Yugi-chan" Naruto suggested to which she nodded and the young couple left the Copy Ninja sitting in the tree alone unsure whether or not it was safe to return to his room without running into Tsunade and Jiraiya and then have to explain what he was doing out at this time of the early morning.
Naruto and Yugito finally found an all night Dango store and entered to vanquish the hunger that got them out of bed."It's about time, I was beginning to think we lost our chance to eat when we decided to follow Sensei" Naruto sighed.
"We should remember to eat early next time, even if it means stopping our fun" Yugito said.
"Yeah you're right, but I can guarantee it will happen again" Naruto chuckled.
They ordered a large supply of dango and then began to make there way back to there hotel eating while they walked.
(Land of Iron)
"Damn it's cold here, when does this Kage meeting even start" Suigetsu complained as he awoke with the sun.
Sasuke who was the last person on guard duty just ignored his companion and watched the as the sunlight began to reflect off the white powdery snow.
White Zetsu was the next to show himself, neither Sasuke or Suigetsu knew where he went but the fact that he rose from underground made them think he may have slept there for warmth.
"Tell me, when is this Kage summit going to start, we have been here for days now and still no sign of any of the Kage's" Sasuke demanded.
"Just in one day's time, they should begin arriving today, I would expect the Raikage to arrive first with Kumo being the closest of the three villages and the fact that it was A, who called for the meeting" White Zetsu replied.
"Well if we still have to wait a day can we at least find a hotel or tavern for us to stay in so we are not camping out on the side of this mountainside" Suigetsu whined.
"No, if we do that, then there is a possibility that we will be seen and recognized, you are all high profile missing ninja since the incident with the Hachibi jinchuuriki" Zetsu informed the water based ninja.
"Can't we just take out the Hokage on the way to the summit" Suigetsu suggested.
"She is not my main target, we want Danzo, the Hokage will just be a bonus. So we can't attack the summit until Danzo make's his move" Sasuke said.
"He is right, plus in the chaos Danzo's men create it should be easy to move in and take out your targets" Zetsu reasoned.
"Exactly what I was thinking, and then with Danzo and the Hokage out of the way only the Dobe and that idiotic sensei of his can stand in my way when I go to finish off the people of Konoha" Sasuke said.
"Well that is very optimistic, Konoha is considered the strongest of the hidden villages after all, I doubt you would have the kind of success you think without them putting up a damn good fight" Zetsu reasoned.
"They were once, the strongest village. Now without the Uchiha they are nothing, a mere shadow of there former self. It is a village rotten to the core with the blood of my clan and the sacrifice of my brother they refuse to acknowledge" Sasuke seethed.
(Demon Country)
Naruto again woke before Yugito, but this time he was not rising early, a quick look at the clock told him that if he didn't get out of bed soon he would be late for meeting up with Tsunade and Kakashi.
"Yugi-chan I'm sorry but you need to wake up. I have to leave soon" Naruto whispered to the naked blond sleeping on his chest.
Yugito stired slowly before looking up at Naruto. "Can't it wait a bit longer, I'm not ready to give you up" she moaned.
"Sorry Yugi-chan but I gotta get going, and I am sure Jiraiya sensei will be waiting for you as well" Naruto said.
"Gah, fine. But you owe me when you get home" Yugito complained.
"I promise I will make it up to you" Naruto assured her.
After a quick shower that they both shared which in the end required them to spend quite a bit longer than they had planned, they were running late. Packing up there stuff Naruto and Yugito both made there way towards the meeting place they had organized to meet up with Kakashi and the two Sannin.
It was not surprising that Naruto and Yugito were the last people to arrive, after all with Kakashi staying in the same hotel as Tsunade she would not allow him to be he usual two to three hours late.
"You two are late, I told Mei we would meet her at the northern gate in five minutes, now we need to hurry" Tsunade said grumpily.
"Uh, sorry Baa-chan we kinda slept in" Naruto said with a sheepish smile.
"I bet you did" Jiraiya laughed.
"That isn't helping sensei" Naruto moaned.
"It doesn't matter let's just go, if we are going to do anything serious about the Akatsuki then this meeting is vitally important" Tsunade said.
"Oh that reminds me of something my dad told me when I almost transformed into Kyuubi while fighting Nagato" Naruto said.
"You talked to Minato sensei?" Kakashi said shocked.
"Hm he must have sealed a small piece of his own soul and chakra away with Kyuubi's Jiraiya theorized.
"Yeah that's what he told me, anyway, when I was talking to him he said the person behind the Akatsuki and the Kyuubi's attack on Konoha sixteen years ago was Madara Uchiha" Naruto said.
"You're kidding right, there is no way that he could still be alive, my Grandfather defeated him at the valley of the end" Tsunade said.
"I know, but my dad was positive that it was him" Naruto repeated.
"Minato was never one to make wild accusations, if he thinks it is him then it most likely is" Jiraiya said.
"But that is just impossible, Madara Uchiha would have to be over one hundred years old by now" Yugito said.
"She is right, besides there was no mention of Madara in that book Kabuto gave you" Tsunade said.
"It's because he was working in the background's influencing Nagato's decisions. He has shown himself recently however as the masked Akatsuki member Tobi" Naruto said.
"Well that might explain why there was no information on him other than his name" Jiraiya added.
"Great, just another thing to add to the list of problems we need to deal with at this Kage summit" Tsunade complained.
"What else is there other than the Akatsuki? I realize that A, will probably want to talk about Sasuke, but he is a member of the Akatsuki now" Naruto said.
"Danzo is planning on attacking the Kage summit taking up by surprise and out numbering us" Tsunade said.
"Kami, is there anything that old bastard wont do if he thinks it could help him gain power" Naruto grumbled.
"I really don't know, I mean look at what he did with the eyes of all those Uchiha and the cells of my Grandfather. That is why I want to get there kind of early to warn the other Kage's. I will tell Mei about it on our trip, but we will still need to tell the others and certainly Mifune-dono" Tsunade said.
"I see you're point, we better pick up the pace then" Naruto suggested.
The group arrived to find Mei and her guards waiting for them at the gate. "Ah Tsunade-dono, good morning" Mei said with a friendly smile.
"You two Mei-dono, I think we should probably continue the pleasantry's on the road so as to not waste any time, I have an important issue to discuss in relation to an attack that may occur at the summit" Tsunade informed the Mizukage.
"An attack, who would be stupid enough to do something like that?" Mei asked.
"A son of a bitch, that's who" Naruto grumbled.
"Yes quite" Tsunade agreed with a sly smile at Naruto's brief description of Danzo's most potent personality trait.
"Well perhaps we should discuss it and what steps we can take in preparation on the way. Are you taking four body guard's? I thought there was a limit on two" Mei said.
"Oh no Jiraiya and Yugito will be heading back to Konoha now, they will be leaving in the opposite direction as us once we leave" Tsunade assured the Mizukage.
"I see, well lets not waste any more time then shall we" Mei concluded and her group began making there way out of the gate in the direction of the Land of Iron.
Tsunade and Kakashi followed them soon after just leaving Naruto to say a quick goodbye to Yugito. "I will be back in a few day's, stay safe, oh and if you need me take one of my kunai and throw it into the ground and I will be there in a flash" Naruto said handing Yugito a kunai before leaning in and giving her a quick kiss.
"Don't worry I will be safe, but make sure you keep yourself safe as well, last thing I need is for you to come back injured, I don't know how I could cope trying to stop you from training or using large amounts of chakra. Its bad enough having to keep an eye on your sensei over there" she said pointing at Jiraiya who recognized that he was being told off and lowered his head appropriately.
"Sometimes I forget" he moped in the background.
"Can it, you try and escape to a training ground at least twice a day, even if it is only to go spy on women you old pervert" Yugito replied.
The couple exchanged one last goodbye kiss and Naruto left to chase after the two Kage's and there guards.
Naruto caught up with the group just as Tsunade finished informing Mei about Danzo's plan.
"So you are saying that this was sent from someone inside Danzo's Root organization? Well then is it possible that this is false information?" Mei queried.
"I suppose that is possible, but most indications point to it being accurate, the way it was sent proves that he had to fight to break his control seal in order to send us the information. In any case real or not it would be unwise not to take this as a serious threat" Tsunade said.
"I agree, no matter what this man is planning we can't let him stop the Kage summit, even if it comes to naught we will need to make preparations for a violent engagement with Danzo and is Root" Ao said.
Tsunade nodded in agreement, but Mei seemed not to hear him. In fact what she heard was quite different. 'No... Man... can't...make preparations for...engagement' "Ao, shut up or I will kill you" Mei whispered into the one eyed mans ear as she walked.
Ao gulped wondering what it was he said but decided to remain quiet for awhile.
"The question is what are we going to do about it, I am sure he will have some sensors that will make him think twice about attacking if he knows that both Naruto and Kakashi are my bodyguard's, maybe that will be enough to make him drop this ridiculous plan" Tsunade said.
"I think we should use this chance to be rid of him" Kakashi suggested.
"I don't think we will be able to make our decision until we talk to the other Kage's. A trap does sound like a good idea, clearly if he is planning on attacking the summit he wants to do away with all of us, so he needs to be stopped. Question is do we do it at the summit or wait until he shows himself later" Mei added.
"Mei is right, we can't put any counter plan into action without first at least informing the other Kage's and leader of the Land of Iron" Naruto concluded.
(Konoha)
Shikamaru was currently helping out at Naruto's clan house. Despite how lazy he was, he felt compelled to help in the construction, simply as a thank you for saving the village.
"Man this is so troublesome. Why did he have to build such a large clan compound, this place is huge. It's bigger than the Nara compound by a long way, the only thing that compares to it, is the old Uchiha district" the lazy Nara complained.
"Yeah but it is going to be something when it is finished" Kiba said.
"I still don't get it, sure he may want to build for the future but where is he going to get the money to pay for all of this" Shikamaru said flatly.
"Beat's me, maybe his parents left him a fortune or something" Kiba suggested.
"Maybe, it's to troublesome to think about anyway" Shikamaru said.
It was at that time Sakura arrived. "Hey Shikamaru, I need to know when we are leaving to look for Sasuke-kun, I don't want to be caught out and left behind" She said as she arrived inside the large wall that bordered Naruto's new complex.
"Yeah no worry's, I was thinking of going when Naruto got back from his mission. That way we could tell him what we were going to do, and also that we wanted to do this without him if it was possible, we can't keep relying on Naruto to fight our battles for us after all" Shikamaru said.
"Then I think we should leave before he gets back" Sakura said.
"What why?" Kiba asked.
"Let's face it, Naruto will never let us go without him, the only way to make sure we do this by ourselves is to leave without telling him" Sakura answered.
"I don't like to admit it, but she is right. I seriously doubt Naruto would allow us to go hunt Sasuke without him" Shikamaru added.
"But Naruto was due back yesterday, he could be back any minute now" Kiba said.
"Oh I wouldn't worry about that too much" came a voice from behind the group of former rookies.
There sitting on the stone wall smoking a cigarette was Asuma. "Asuma sensei what do you mean?" Shikamaru asked.
"Naruto wont be back for almost a week, he has gone with Kakashi and Tsunade-sama to the Kage summit in the Land of Iron. I thought your father would have told you Shikamaru, he has been left in charge of the major decisions in the village while she is gone after all" Asuma said.
"So basically Naruto is gone for another week, that means if we can start our search for Sasuke we might even be able to get the job done without Naruto even finding out and we can tell him afterword's" Shikamaru surmised.
"Well I guess you could, but do you really think it is smart doing this without him, I mean the reason Sasuke is a wanted man right now is because he was able to capture the Raikage's brother, who was a very powerful ninja, and he has a team with him. don't underestimate your opponent's Shikamaru, I thought you of all people would know this" Asuma lectured.
"It's not like I wouldn't want Naruto there, but this is something we need to do to help us grow, and to prove to us all that it is not only Naruto who has grown a lot since he has returned" Shikamaru said.
"Very well, I wont try and stop you. But you better come back, Naruto wouldn't be happy if he found out his friends did something like this without including him" Asuma said.
"Don't worry sensei, I have no desire to die just yet" Shikamaru replied.
(One Day Later, Land of Iron)
The trip to the land of Iron had been a pleasant experience, there were no bandit attacks or unnecessary stop's. More importunately for Naruto, Mei came to him and wished him the best of luck with Yugito and apologized for the wedding proposal. Naruto was happy to accept and they fast became friends.
"Gah let's hurry up and get inside, its freezing out here" Naruto complained as snow lightly fell around him.
"So, the mighty Namikaze has a weakness after all, he doesn't like the cold" Mei laughed.
"I wouldn't say so much a weakness more of a discomfort, besides Kyuubi keeps me far warmer than most people would be, but I guess when it is really cold like it is at the moment then it gets to me" Naruto said rubbing his shoulder's.
"Well you should have warn something warmer than your sage cloak and a black muscle shirt" Tsunade lectured.
"Well I didn't exactly have time to go home and pick out some warmer clothes, you came and got me yesterday from Demon country where it was warm" Naruto whined.
"Oh well, it cant be helped" Kakashi said with a smile, he was wrapped up in a warm cloak.
They soon arrived at the place the meeting was being held and walked up to what looked like a large underground cave entrance.
Two Samurai greeted them and soon they were joined by a older man around Jiraiya's age with bandages wrapped around his head and long gray hair with matching mustache and Goatee.
"Ah Tsunade-Hime Mei-dono, a pleasure to see you both, A-dono and Oonoki-dono have already arrived we are just waiting for the arrival of the young Kazekage, Garra I think his name was" Mifune greeted.
"Well, Suna have the longest distance to travel, I am sure Gara-dono will be here shortly. Before we begin I need to tell you about information we received regarding an attack on the summit" Tsunade said.
"I see, well come in side and tell everyone while we wait for Garra-dono, this must be a serious threat if they would even consider attacking the strongest group of five ninja in the elemental nations. Oh and welcome to the Land of Iron, and of course the five Kage Summit" Mifune said before leading everyone into the underground complex.
End Chapter!
Not much happened I know, but I will start some of the action off by the end of the next chapter at the latest.