Disclaimer: All HP characters are the property of JKR, the WB, and respective publishing companies and all Naruto characters are the property of Masashi Kishimoto. This is nothing more than a simple FanFiction that I have written. I have made no money from this or any of the other stories I have posted on this or other sites.

Warnings: AU for parts of both worlds (i.e. kiss canon goodbye), mild character bashing, mild to moderate violence (there are shinobi involved after all), and a few others that will be announced as they crop up.

AN: This story is self-beta'd; so there may be occasional grammatical or spelling errors that crop up every now and then and for those I apologize in advance.

Chapter 22: A Year in Review

Tuesday, December 31, 2002, Late Night
Konohagakure no Sato, Hi no Kuni

Naruto shared a grin with Housei and Midori as the three Genin made themselves comfortable on one of the third floor balconies that overlooked the small yard that belonged to Namikaze's Wheelhouse (a very successful and very popular restaurant from the moment it had opened its doors to the public five months earlier). The small Namikaze family was preparing to bring in the New Year with their now traditional holiday display of fantastical fireworks. The employees that worked for the Wheelhouse, the Namikaze Ranch, and the Namikaze Orchard Farm had all been invited to join the family; as had Naruto's teammates, Harry's Jounin mentor, and a number of individuals that Harry and Arata had befriended.

The party had started the moment the restaurant had closed its doors to the public at eight sharp; Arata had closed the restaurant two hours earlier than usual for the occasion. There had been live entertainment (music and dancing), plenty of food and drinks, and a bunch of carnival games that had been set up in the small yard behind the building (for all of the children present). The fireworks were set to go off at exactly midnight and all of the rear-facing balconies of the building (on all three of the top floors) were packed with those that had accepted the invitation.

As he waited for midnight to roll around, Naruto reflected on everything that had changed over the past year.

First, he'd not only finally met his new teammates but he'd quickly befriended them. All three of them had just clicked within the first few weeks as Kakashi-sensei trained them into the ground to turn them into a real team. Naruto was the team's heavy hitter and close range fighter, Midori was a mid range fighter with excellent accuracy when it came to shurikenjutsu and doton jutsu (the kunoichi had an earth affinity, though it was currently untested), and Housei was the team's medic in training (he had excellent chakra control and was very knowledgeable when it came to first aide) and long range support. The D Ranked missions they took still sucked but sharing the work with his teammates had made them far more bearable.

After the first month, both Housei and Midori started hanging out more with Naruto after training and missions. By the end of the second month, both of them would spend three to four nights a week camping out with Naruto either beside the wagons or in his new bedroom once the renovations were completed at the end of March. By the fifth month, Harry had given both Housei and Midori permission to move into the family flat; going so far as to give them each their own room. His cousin often complained about the number of brats underfoot but Naruto knew that Harry had grown rather fond of his two teammates and treated them like family because they were Naruto's friends and teammates; something both older Genin appreciated.

Then there was Kakashi-sensei. The man had become something of an uncle to Naruto during the weeks that they'd spent as a two man team and that hadn't changed even after Housei and Midori joined them. In fact, both of the older Genin looked up to the silver-haired man almost as much as they did Harry. Naruto knew that part of the reason he'd accepted Kakashi had been because of the stories that his father's ghost had told him about the Jounin and that the rest of it was the fact that the man actually took the time to teach and train him. Of course, it didn't hurt that Harry got along reasonably well with the man (though they weren't exactly friends).

The next change had been the slow and gradual change in attitude that Harry had gone through. When they first arrived, Harry had been tense and irritable and Naruto knew it was because Harry was unhappy that he'd needed to bring Naruto back to the village that had hurt him so badly. The longer they stayed in the village though, the more relaxed Harry grew as it became obvious that the village had changed during the three years that Naruto had been absent. The fact that Harry was always so busy training, doing missions, and working with Arata to get everything set up also meant that his cousin had little energy left over to maintain his grudge against Konoha.

It helped that there were no overzealous fans to hound him everywhere he went and no vindictive reporters tracking his every move hoping to rip his reputation apart.

Harry had even made friends amongst the other shinobi over the past year, including; Yamato, Iruka-sensei, Uzuki Yuugao (whom Naruto was pretty certain was AnBu Guard Neko and one of Harry's watchers), and oddly enough Nara Shikaku. His cousin was friendly with Kakashi, Maito Gai, and Morino Ibiki as well but he wasn't exactly friends with any of them. He also got along alright with old man Teuchi and his daughter Ayame from Ichiraku's, though Teuchi seemed to disapprove of the fact that Harry was a single father.

Or rather, Teuchi disliked the fact that Ayame had a very obvious crush on his cousin.

There were actually quite a few young women and teenaged girls that were mooning after Harry. Thankfully, they didn't follow Harry around and try to mob his cousin like the fan-girls had back in England but their giggles were still annoying and Harry still avoided them whenever as possible. The only girl that seemed determined to hate Harry and that Harry in turn ignored completely was Mitarashi Anko. Of course, Naruto's ongoing feud with the violent kunoichi probably hadn't helped matters there but the woman still hadn't apologized for attacking Harry and scaring Teddy.

It had been more than a little amusing to see the uncomfortable look on Harry's face when most of the girls he knew (and more than a few he didn't know) had all given him chocolate for Valentine's day. At the end of the day, Harry had stared at the massive pile of chocolate like it was some sort of monster. Naruto had then watched as Harry tested each and every single piece of chocolate for poison or drugs. That was also the day that he learned that a fan-girl once tried to dose Harry with a love potion by giving him potion laced sweets and that it was actually Ron that had eaten them and been caught by the potion.

Once all of the chocolate had been found clean, Harry noted down the names of every girl that had given him something so that he could give them all friendship or thank you tokens in return on White Day. Harry then pawned most of the chocolates off on Naruto and told him to share it with his friends. In fact, Naruto knew that Harry had kept only one of the chocolate gifts he'd been given; he just had no clue whose gift he'd kept or why he'd chosen that particular gift to keep (whether it was because of who had given it to him or because of the gift itself).

Teddy had changed a bit too; the four year old had had a hard time adjusting to seeing so little of Naruto and Harry while both shinobi were training and working. Once Harry had enrolled Teddy in one of the better preschools (one that was most assuredly not associated with the Shinobi Academy), the younger boy had had an easier time dealing with the separation as he now had other children to distract him along with a chance to learn new things. Once the bulk of the work had been done in regards to the restaurant, the family apartments, and the new estate, Harry had more free time to spend with the family and that had made the biggest difference in how quickly Teddy adjusted to life in Konoha.

Then there was Arata and Eri's little daughter, Namikaze Aika, who'd been born in the middle of the afternoon on May thirtieth. Aika had her mother's curly black hair and the Namikaze's trademark sapphire eyes (the very same shade as Naruto's); she was also undoubtedly a witch. Naruto couldn't believe how tiny Aika looked when she'd first been born and he'd been scared to death of holding her out of fear he'd hurt her. All three adults had helped him get over that real quick; Harry providing a shadow clone henged to look exactly like Aika while Arata and Eri instructed him on the proper way to hold a newborn. Naruto soon grew to love holding the little baby as much as he loved playing around with Teddy.

The opening of the restaurant and the relative completion of the Namikaze Estate (which included the Ranch, the Orchard Farm, the Retreat – a relaxing place for any of the family to go for privacy, and the new training grounds) had been a big deal for the Namikaze family. Getting things at the Estate up and running signified that the Namikaze family was in Konoha to stay; for better or for worse. The opening of the restaurant (and the completion of the living quarters above) only proved that they were serious about making Konoha their home.

There was no doubt in Naruto's mind that the past year had been far better than he'd ever expected it to be. His biggest fear before they'd finally reached Konoha fifteen months ago had been that things would be exactly the way they were when he'd left three years earlier. Seeing for himself just how much the village had changed had been an eye opening experience. Sure, there were still a number of civilians that glared at him and occasionally insulted him but things never went any further than that thanks to the new laws, Naruto's new last name (and his connection to the Yondaime), and largely thanks to Harry glaring and lambasting the offenders into submission.

As Naruto's eyes were drawn to the night sky when the first rocket exploded outwards to form the burning image of a blue and white hippogriff, he supposed that the biggest change that had occurred over the past year was the fact that he'd once again began to consider Konoha home. He was also certain that the only reason he saw the village as home now was because he was no longer alone and he'd come to understand that home would always be where his family lived.

Tuesday, December 31, 2002, Late Night
Konohagakure no Sato, Hi no Kuni

Twenty year old Uzuki Yuugao (aka AnBu Guard Neko) shifted minutely as she watched Namikaze Takeshi double check the rocket launchers that would fire the fireworks he'd prepared for the evening into the night sky. Since the day she'd been assigned as one of Takeshi's watchers fifteen months ago, she'd found herself slowly being drawn to the man despite her efforts to remain professionally aloof. There was just something about the green-eyed man that had captured her attention and firmly kept hold of it.

At first, she'd thought her interest with the man had to do with the level of threat he represented to the village as an unknown entity. That assumption was proved false the moment it became apparent that her interest in the man continued to grow long after it became clear that the man wasn't a threat at all; unless you were stupid enough to piss him off by insulting or harming his family. Then she'd figured that maybe it was simply because the man was practically royalty due to his familial ties with the Yondaime Hokage and therefore a potential target for the Yondaime's old enemies.

That too had been proven untrue as it became clear over time that the man was capable of not only protecting himself but his family as well.

It wasn't until after her fourth month as one of Takeshi's watchers that Yuugao finally admitted to herself that she was fascinated by the man's determination, drive, and dedication. The more she watched him, the more she wished to know him. She'd actually gone out of her way to avoid crossing his path while out of her mask for the first six months the man had been in the village; hoping that whatever it was that drew her to him would eventually vanish. It hadn't. She'd even given him chocolates on Valentine's Day, though she'd not put her name on the gift.

She knew that her gift had been the only gift that he'd kept; she'd been on duty watching him at the time. She suspected the cat silhouette etched onto the small squares of fancy candies had been enough of a clue for him to figure out who'd sent them. The beautifully sculpted chocolate cat (made from a mix of dark, milk, and white chocolate) that she received anonymously on White Day confirmed her suspicions. The crystallized emerald green sugar eyes gave it away as did the fact that the cat looked like one of the strange lion-like cats that the Namikaze family kept as pets.

She never did work up the courage to eat the beautiful creation; she had sealed it into a special storage scroll with a preservation seal instead.

When she finally had stumbled across him without her mask and armor, she'd felt naked and vulnerable when his gem-like emerald eyes had locked with hers. It was not a feeling that Yuugao particularly enjoyed; she was a kunoichi after all and she was not weak just because she was a woman. Just when the moment could have turned awkward, Takeshi had smiled that crooked half smile he tended to wear when he was pleased with something as he gave her a respectful nod and told her that she had beautiful hair and unforgettable eyes before he'd continued on his way.

The kunoichi in her knew that the man had just blatantly revealed that he knew that she was one of his watchers while the woman in her had preened under the sincere compliments.

Now, Yuugao was not vain but she was well aware that she was pretty. She'd never lacked attention from men wherever she went; especially from her fellow shinobi since shinobi were often attracted to strong women whereas civilians were more often than not intimidated by them. She could easily have her pick of men and had on more than one occasion slept with those men that had caught her attention with their skills, their looks, or their unorthodox attempts to draw her interest. The purple haired kunoichi had, in fact, been seriously entertaining the idea of hooking up with Gekkou Hayate on a more permanent basis around the time the Namikaze family had arrived in the village. She'd become rather close to Hayate during the months that he'd trained with her to help her improve her kenjutsu.

All thoughts of entering into a relationship with Hayate had fled not long after she'd started watching Takeshi.

Hayate didn't hold her change of heart against her; he'd actually been the one who'd been the most hesitant about entering into a relationship with her due to the chronic illness he suffered from. Any time she'd mentioned the two of them going out, he'd mutter something about being cursed and her deserving happiness and a chance at a future. She'd been in the process of wearing him down and if she'd not found herself distracted by Takeshi, she probably would have been living with Hayate by now. She still trained with Hayate when she had time and the two of them were still close friends; Yuugao just wasn't interested in him romantically any longer.

In fact, Yuugao hadn't slept with any man since before she'd been assigned to Takeshi's guard. Nor had any other man caught her eye no matter how many had tried over the past year. No, for some inexplicable reason, Yuugao only had eyes for Takeshi. And not just because he was easy on the eyes; the man was skilled (despite only being half trained), he was intelligent, he had a twisted sense of humor, and he didn't take shit from anyone (not even from the loyal two members of the Sannin or the Hokage).

The second time she'd run into Takeshi while off duty, she'd just stepped out of the market with a small bag of groceries when she'd been bowled over unexpectedly by someone ramming into the back of her knees. She'd wound up falling backwards over the perpetrator and spilling her groceries all over her, her attacker, and the ground. Thankfully, she'd not cracked her head on the ground or she'd have been in some serious trouble. Yuugao had growled under her breath and sat up just enough to glare at her attacker (who had been trapped under her legs) only to freeze the moment she saw familiar green eyes wide with fright set in a face that was white as a sheet and covered with raw eggs and egg shells.

Naruto had skidded to a stop right beside the pair a second later to extract the strangely silent kid from beneath Yuugao who hadn't known exactly how to react once she knew who'd knocked her over. She had been helped to her feet the moment Takeshi's son had been lifted free by none other than Takeshi himself before the man had gone on to clean up her spilled purchases. He'd then apologized for his son's recklessness and offered to replace those items that had been ruined (such as the eggs that had been smashed in her hair and on the kid). He'd even done something to clean her hair and clothes to get the egg out before it dried (which would have made it near impossible to get out).

Yuugao didn't think she'd ever been so embarrassed in all her life.

Two days later, Namikaze Satoshi had shyly walked up to her carrying a handful of freshly picked wildflowers and a hand drawn card that he gave to her along with a timid apology before he disappeared. She'd seen a second flash of blond a little further down the street and suspected that it had been Naruto who prompted the child to apologize with the small homemade gift. From that day forward, she would continue to run into Takeshi at least once a week when off duty and he always offered a friendly smile and a polite greeting which she always returned.

It wasn't until after Yamato had asked her for a favor that Yuugao really began spending time with the Namikaze family head while out of her mask. The favor turned out to be helping the green eyed man with his kenjutsu; specifically pitting his style of fighting with a broadsword against a high level katana user (which Yamato was not). She even ended up helping the man with his other sword fighting styles and taught him a few chakra based attacks that could be used with a sword. In return, Takeshi had offered to teach her how to fight with a sword from the back of a horse.

Of course, she'd needed to learn how to ride a horse first.

By the time she'd been deemed a competent enough rider to start learning to wield a sword on horseback, the two of them had become friends. There was no one day that she could look back on and say that that was the day she'd befriended Takeshi as the process of going from watch guard to training and sparring partner to friend had been a gradual one. In some ways, Yuugao felt like she'd been friends with the man for her entire life; it just felt right. And she couldn't find it in herself to regret befriending the slightly older man despite knowing that he was still on the AnBu watch list and that she was still required to monitor his every move eight hours per day.

She'd only made one attempt to have the Hokage remove her from Takeshi's AnBu Guard due to her unprofessional feelings for her charge but the Sandaime had told her that he had faith in her ability to not let her feelings interfere with her duty since a lesser shinobi would have tried to hide their attachment rather than step forward and admit to it.

That had been four months ago and the twenty year old kunoichi had been irritated for days after that… right up until Takeshi had thrust a small box wrapped in brown butcher's paper into her hands as he passed on her on the street. When she'd unwrapped and opened the box, she'd found a single serving of an unfamiliar chocolate creation. She'd debated for hours over whether or not to actually eat the gift or save it like she had the chocolate cat but eventually caved when the heavenly scent of chocolate broke her resolve to resist indulging.

Yuugao had never tasted anything so sinfully delicious.

The different textures scattered throughout the delectable dessert combined with the warm, rich flavor of the different types of chocolates that formed the creation had been mind blowing. By the time she'd finished the final bite, Yuugao had been almost one hundred percent certain that the chocolate dessert had been better than sex when it came to washing away tension and frustration. The only complaint she had in regards to the treat had been the fact that it had only been a single serving.

She would later learn that Takeshi had been handing out free samples of the various desserts that the new Namikaze restaurant would be serving in the future to random people. She'd been a little upset that the gift hadn't been anything special until she learned that she was the only one who'd been given a sample of that sinful chocolate confection. She'd been further shocked to learn (from a conspiratorial Eri) that Takeshi had personally made the small cake he'd given her unlike the rest of the dessert samples that had been made by their chefs. Sure, she'd heard Yamato practically rave about Takeshi's cooking skills (especially when it came to camp food) but she'd been certain that her fellow AnBu Guard had been exaggerating.

Yuugao's attention was brought back to the present when the subject of her reflection turned to face her as he set off the first rocket and grinningly announced, "Happy New Year."

"Happy New Year, Takeshi," Yuugao replied as she gave the man an answering smile as she was bathed in blue and white light as the firework exploded in the air above them; all the while wondering just when her heart had given itself to the green-eyed shinobi and if there was a chance that he might be interested in her in a romantic sense.

Tuesday, December 31, 2002, Late Night
Konohagakure no Sato, Hi no Kuni

Yamaguchi Jiraiya (the Gama Sennin, one of the Densetsu no Sannin, renowned fuuinjutsu master, and self proclaimed super pervert) made himself comfortable on the roof he'd determined would have the best view from which to indulge in his favorite pastime; people watching. And contrary to popular opinion, he didn't just utilize his people watching skills to peep on naked women (though he certainly enjoyed watching naked women every chance he got). No, Jiraiya was an expert at reading all people, regardless of their age or gender, and he'd become an expert by watching people from all walks of life doing every imaginable activity and a few not so imaginable activities.

That ability coupled with the affable, open, and slightly naïve persona he'd built for himself along with his in your face perverted-ness was what made him an effective spymaster. It also made it far easier for people to dismiss him as a hopeless has-been rather than a dangerous shinobi still in his prime. Of course, that approach rarely worked on those that were intimately familiar with his reputation as one of the Sannin. Jiraiya had prided himself on being good at what he did and took pride in the skills he'd learned and refined over the years.

It had therefore been quite a blow to his ego when he'd been unable to find hide or hair of his missing godson after the kid had gone missing just a few months after his eighth birthday.

There was nothing he hated more than failure.

Failure meant that he lacked some essential skill. Failure meant that he still wasn't good enough. Failure meant that his precious people paid for his mistakes and weaknesses.

No, there was nothing more he hated than failing.

And in many ways, Naruto represented his biggest failures.

He had failed to stop an enemy from ripping the Kyuubi out of Kushina. He had failed to stop Minato from sacrificing his life to reseal the Kyuubi. He'd failed to fulfill his duties as the boy's godfather (not that he'd had much choice at the time). He'd failed to make certain the kid was being properly taken care of whenever he was in the village. He'd failed to see the plots that were being carried out against the boy right under Sarutobi's nose. And he'd failed to find any sign of his missing godson outside of the village. Hell, he'd even failed to pick up on the fact that the little gaki was back in Konoha until Sarutobi had summoned him back to the village roughly fifteen months ago.

Shoving aside that line of thinking (least it lead him to depression and drowning his sorrows in sake), Jiraiya focused once more on the owners of the unexpectedly popular restaurant that had just opened up a few months earlier while his sharp eyes noted the number of people that had been invited to the Namikaze's New Year Celebration.

Namikaze Arata looked like a washed out copy of Minato with a rather friendly disposition and none of the spark that had defined Minato. That wasn't to say the man wasn't charismatic or outgoing, he was; he just lacked that little special something that had set Minato apart from other shinobi his age. Part of that, Jiraiya supposed, could be attributed to the fact that Arata's chakra coils were damaged. The rest could easily be laid at the feet of his childhood. The man also wasn't afraid to get his hands dirty as he worked for his dreams and his future.

Next was Arata's pretty little wife; the vivacious and friendly if slightly shy Namikaze Eri. She wasn't a stunning beauty or even a dangerous beauty but she held a charm all her own. The young woman had made friends fairly easily once she'd settled into her new life in Konoha. It had also quickly become clear that Eri loved children; the way she doted on Naruto, Satoshi, and her newborn daughter every chance she got very obvious. Her interactions with the other young children that frequented the play parks where she took the young Satoshi to play were also very telling; as was the fact that she happily volunteered her time to help out at the preschool where Satoshi was currently enrolled.

And then there was the enigmatic Namikaze Takeshi. A man who looked nothing like a Namikaze but at the same time embodied everything that made a Namikaze a Namikaze. If Arata lacked Minato's spark, then Takeshi had inherited that spark twice over. He was charismatic, intelligent, creative, hard working, stubborn beyond belief, had a fearsome temper, was brimming with determination, and had a penchant for causing mass destruction and chaos. He was also mistrusting, highly skeptical, more than a little cynical, rather defensive, secretive, and difficult to read at times.

And still a virgin at age twenty-two; something that baffled and nearly horrified Jiraiya.

It also amused him because he enjoyed teasing Takeshi about his virginity. He wasn't certain that he liked the counter pranking said teasing earned him in response. It had taken him months to get all of the pink die out of his hair. And he had not enjoyed having his clothes dusted with a transparent and odorless itching powder. Waking up to find himself half naked, coated in green slime, and dangling upside down out of the left nostril of his sensei's face on the Hokage Monument hadn't been all that thrilling either.

Despite those incidents, Jiraiya still rather liked the prickly young man.

Takeshi's unorthodox approach to fuuinjutsu was also rather fascinating and the man's innovative use of seals had stirred Jiraiya's own love of fuuinjutsu. In fact, every time Jiraiya had returned to the village over the past fifteen months, he had sought out the younger man to talk shop with him and check out his latest projects. His favorite one was the special boots that allowed one to move safely over unstable surfaces without causing an unwanted level of noise or using an ungodly amount of chakra to make them work. His second favorite one was the specialized array that suppressed chakra signatures to the point where someone with large reserves was undetectable until you were practically on top of them.

Then there were the rather impressive barriers that Takeshi had put up around all of the Namikaze properties (including Minato's old house) that could prevent both the Byakugan and the Sharingan from spying on their properties. There was also a rather complex barrier that prevented those who wished to spy on the family or who meant the family harm from even setting foot on the property. In fact, those barriers had caught a spy from Iwa that had been sent to confirm the small handful of rumors that had filtered out of the village about the return of the Namikaze Clan about five months ago.

The young head of the Namikaze family had not been impressed when he'd caught the spy and learned what he had been looking for. The man, who was a very experienced Jounin level spy, had been a blubbering mess when Takeshi had personally delivered him to Ibiki the next morning. According to what Jiraiya had read in Ibiki's report later, the man had begged to be allowed to confess to everything in exchange for protection from Namikaze Takeshi. Takeshi's report on the incident hadn't really shed any light on what he'd done to the man and the twenty-two year old had been tight-lipped about the matter.

Though the feral smirk he'd flashed each time he'd been asked about the matter had said volumes; as had the cold look in the young man's eyes.

Jiraiya sat up a bit, dug a bottle of sake and a saucer out of his vest, and poured himself a shot of sake as he tried not to think about the discussion he'd had with the young Chuunin regarding Naruto's training; or more specifically, the look in Takeshi's eyes during that discussion. Those leaf green eyes had promised pain and humiliation beyond anything he'd ever experienced that was in direct contrast to the pleasant tone the man had used at the time. There had been a lot of words exchanged during that conversation but it had all boiled down to one thing.

If Jiraiya corrupted Naruto's innocence, if he in anyway neglected Naruto's training, or if anything he did or failed to do was in any way responsible for Naruto being hurt (beyond the expected bruises and scrapes that were part of training), then Jiraiya was a dead man.

Jiraiya knocked back his shot of sake and poured another as he contemplated the knife's edge he was now standing on while his eyes remained fixed on the crowd of individuals packed into the balconies of the building less than ten yards from where he was sitting. He'd decided, after watching the small Namikaze family for the past year, that he would wait another year before he took Naruto as his apprentice; a decision that had prompted his discussion with Takeshi. His reasoning at the time was that he hadn't wanted to pull his godson away from his teammates when the boy was thriving under Kakashi's tutelage.

Putting it off another year would also give him a chance to actually find something to teach the gaki; seeing as how Minato's shade had taught the kid everything Jiraiya had planned to teach him (such as the Rasengan). He supposed he could let Naruto sign the Toad Contract and teach him summoning but that wouldn't take much. It certainly wouldn't necessitate the two or three year long journey that he'd originally intended to take his godson on while training him. That, of course, had been long before he'd met Naruto's overprotective and temperamental older cousin.

In fact, Jiraiya suspected that Takeshi would take exception to Jiraiya even thinking about removing the bewhiskered boy from the village for an extended training trip.

Maybe I should consider breaking Naruto's training into smaller sessions, Jiraiya mused to himself as he poured a third shot of sake as the first firework of the night was launched into the sky where it exploded into a blue and white mythical creature that pranced gracefully across the night sky. I could teach him a little something each time I'm in the village and take him out on short training trips to teach him those things that can only be taught outside of the village. Such as how to draw out and use the Kyuubi's chakra; which is something that Takeshi will also need to be trained in at some point as well.

Yeah, he could work with that.

Tuesday, December 31, 2002, Late Night
Konohagakure no Sato, Hi no Kuni

Namikaze Arata (formerly Dudley Dursley) wrapped his arm around his beautiful wife's shoulder as she leaned into his side; their precious little Aika cradled in Eri's arms as they cuddled on the couch he'd moved out onto the their private balcony to watch the firework display.

Reaching out to gently brush his fingers through Aika's silky black locks, Arata couldn't help but think that he was the luckiest man alive. He had a beautiful wife, a beautiful daughter, was the half owner and manager of what was promising to be a successful restaurant, lived in a luxurious apartment that he owned jointly with his cousin, and his past reputation as a bully had not followed him to his new life. Yes, putting his life in the hands of his cousin had been the best decision that he'd ever made.

He also knew that he'd in no way taken the easy road in life. He'd busted his ass to get where he was now and he'd done it without a single word of complaint. Having Eri's constant support and encouragement over his efforts and decisions certainly hadn't hurt either. The old Dudley never would have made it this far; he would not have wasted the energy to work for something he felt he deserved to be handed to him on a silver platter. The old Dudley had died over the course of his fifth and sixth years at Smeltings Academy though.

His parents had never understood what had happened to him in the summer before his fifth year, when those dementor things had forced him to relive his worst memories and nearly sucked out his soul. They'd constantly fought against the changes he was going through as he grew up and matured out of their sight during the two school years following that horrid attack. The year they'd spent in protective custody while Harry risked his life to end the magical war had been full of revelations as well. The first of which had been the way his eyes had been opened to just how bigoted and short sighted his parents really were.

Seeing his parents repeat history the day that Naruto turned up on their doorstep out of the blue had been the final straw for Arata. He refused to stand by and allow his parents to abuse another child. The decision to contact Harry for help had set off the chain of events that had led him to his current point in life and Arata knew that he owed both of his younger cousins more than just simple gratitude for their acceptance of him. By rights, Harry should have hexed him black and blue for daring to ask him for help because of the trouble that his parents were attempting to stir up. That Harry hadn't turned his back on him, laughed in his face, or cursed him in some way only emphasized that his cousin had always been the better man despite the way the Dursleys had treated him… or maybe it was just to spite the Dursleys.

Either way, Arata appreciated the fact that his cousin had not only given him a chance but had accepted him as family.

His precious Eloise… his Eri… had praised him for his courage. If not for Eri, he didn't think he'd have had the courage to approach Harry in the first place. It had been the need to protect his then girlfriend from his parents that had made him swallow his pride and ignore his insecurities in order to ask Harry for help. And help them Harry had. The wizard hadn't just given him handouts to solve his problems though. No, Harry had given Arata something far more precious than mere money; a chance to truly make something of himself.

The year and a half of intense education had been hard but worth it as he worked towards the dream he shared with Eri of their future. He couldn't count the number of times he'd feared that he'd never be good enough for Eri; that he'd fail her in some way but those fears had not come to pass. There had also been times when he feared that Harry's trust in him had been misplaced and that the wizard would come to regret ever agreeing to help Arata but he hadn't. In fact, the more time that the two of them spent together the more comfortable the two of them became with one another.

Arata had also found that his trust in Harry hadn't been misplaced either.

Harry had never once looked down on him for any reason. He'd never threatened to cut him off if the two of them had a disagreement. He also never tried to give Arata the short end of the stick when it came to their partnership. Arata had had an equal say in all matters regarding the restaurant and their family, even if Harry had the final word in their family; the wizard had stepped forward as the head of the family right from the start. Something Arata didn't mind despite the fact that he was a month older than Harry; it helped that Harry listened to everyone's suggestions and did what was best for the family, not just what was best for Harry.

This past year had really opened his eyes to just how far Harry would go for family. The wizard turned shinobi had driven himself into the ground day in and day out in order to do what had to be done to see the family taken care of in their new home. That was on top of everything his cousin had to do to insure that their place in Konoha wasn't jeopardized; which included subjecting himself to what Arata considered rather brutal training that pushed Harry to his limits more often than not. The only reason why Arata hadn't stepped in was because he knew that his cousin had known exactly what he'd been getting into the moment he'd decided to take up the life of a shinobi.

Arata did insure that Naruto wasn't being similarly driven into the ground. The rambunctious blond was thriving though; especially now that he had a couple of friends near his own age that he trained with and hung out with after and between missions. That those friends had quickly become part of their family had not really been all that surprising to Arata given Naruto's open and friendly personality coupled with his uncanny ability to form connections to the people with whom he interacted over a relatively short period of time. Yet another thing that Naruto had in common with Harry.

Kakashi had turned out to be very mindful of both Naruto's age and Harry's temper. Arata thought the older man did rather well considering just how protective Harry had become of their mutual cousin over the years. Unlike Harry, who didn't really have time to get to know the silver-haired Jounin, Arata had befriended the somewhat anti-social man halfway through the previous year.

They had bonded over one of Naruto's more memorable pranks (where said blond had managed to turn Mitarashi Anko's trench coat pink with bright yellow flowers, put her hair into pigtails, paint her face with make up to make her look like a little kid, and swap out her favorite kunai for an overly cute purple teddy bear). Kakashi had actually watched Naruto pull off the prank while Arata had observed all of the planning and work that had gone into final product.

The other friends that Arata had made had all been from the civilian sector; Kanzaki Teuchi and his daughter Ayame, the manager of the Bank of Konoha, the owners of several markets, some of the men he'd hired to renovate the apartment complex that Harry had purchased, a few of their neighbors that had appreciated the fact that they were cleaning up the decrepit apartment building, and several of their employees. The only reason why he didn't have more friends from the shinobi sector was due to the fact that most of the people he interacted with were civilians while Harry was the one that tended to deal with the shinobi.

Things on the business front had been just as well as those in this personal life, if not better. Harry had managed to procure the deed to the perfect property, even if it had needed to be completely gutted and practically rebuilt from the ground up. The wizard had then managed to find them some prime real-estate for the farm they'd discussed running in order to grow a selection of produce that was either not found in the Elemental Countries or that was too expensive to import into Konoha on a regular basis. The Namikaze name and the Potter-Black Fortune had then opened all kinds of doors for them as they set to work building their future.

That had been Arata's time to shine as he put his hard won education to work on top of getting his hands dirty in order to turn the building that he and Harry had purchased into the restaurant it was now. Sure, Harry had been in the background helping when and where he could but it had been Arata that had managed everything to make certain they didn't miss or skip an important step. Eri had done a share of the work as well; his wife had added the finishing touches that gave the restaurant its rustic ambiance.

Interviewing prospective employees and seeing to it that they were given the training they needed had been a headache and a half. Those that thought themselves above needing training and those that caused trouble with the majority of the other employees (or with the family) didn't last very long. Thankfully, most of the people that they ended up hiring were willing to cooperate though and after weeks of training and preparation they worked really well together. Thinking about his employees, Arata absently recalled all of the times he'd heard his father badmouth the people he worked with and the twenty-two year old wondered how his father had managed to hold onto his job for so long with his deplorable attitude.

Arata's ruminations were interrupted at that point when the first rocket was launched into the sky to paint the heavens with blue and white light that depicted a large creature that was half horse and half eagle. He then turned to the side to give his wife a chaste kiss as he wished her a Happy New Year. A second kiss was placed upon the brow of his sleeping daughter a heartbeat later.

Yeah, he was happy with his lot in life.

Very Happy.

Translations: Japanese to English

Densetsu no Sannin – Legendary Three Ninja
Gama Sennin – Toad Sage

10-25-15: Minor edits made to chapter to fix spelling/grammar mistakes and removed unnecessary author's notes.