DISCLAIMER: I don't own anything from the Naruto universe.

Thinking (+ flashbacks, "Naruto speaking to Kurama in her mindscape," etc.)

Emphasis

Bijuu, etc. speaking

Bijuu, etc. thinking

For a moment, Kakashi wished that he had more clothes on. If he did, then he'd have something to do with (or rather somewhere to hide) his hands, but he and Naru had cleaned up in different bathrooms - something they hadn't done in a while. He was only in a baggy pair of sweats and it looked like Naru was still only in the little cotton yukata she normally wore when she was speedily getting ready for her day in the mornings. –Not usually at night when it was just the two of them, like now.

She had been in the shower for a very long time and he'd wanted to check on her but… "I'm proud of you," he said quietly as he sat down on the bed. Not knowing what else to do, he widely opened his arms for her.

Naruto sighed, closing her eyes before she stepped toward him. She was still in disbelief that she'd just battled the "Second God of Shinobi" and watched him die by Kakashi's hand. Whether her old grandfather figure was telling the truth or not about one: being dissuaded from killing her when she was a newborn by Danzo of all the damn people - or two: that he'd been potentially conspiring with Obito, the whole thing was… "Troublesome. Do you think Tou-san's alright?"

Kakashi nodded. One of his clones had accompanied the Hokage and Jonin Commander to give Asuma and his family the news of his father's passing. "He's fine. My clone was with him." Minato had decided to make it a relatively early night, so was probably at least trying to sleep by now. All of their other clones were still trying to fully reseal the property.

Naruto had straddled her husband's lap but wasn't sure if Kakashi holding her made her feel better or worse. She realized that she was biting her lip enough to make it begin to bleed. "Poor Asuma and Kono-kun," she shakily breathed into his neck. "This sucks so much."

"Yeah," Kakashi agreed while absently rubbing little circles into his wife's back.

Was it terrible to admit that he did not care for the Sandaime Hokage? As a loyal member of Konoha's forces, Kakashi followed the man's orders - and he OWED him for getting him together with his one true mate - but…
1. As Danzo said all those years ago, the Sandaime hadn't been fast enough to save Minato and Kushina. He'd already lived a full life; he had the knowledge and power to reseal the fox if he'd been just a little faster. And he should have been faster.
2. He allowed Naruto to be abused and nearly assassinated as a child.

He reversed their positions, laying his wife down and kissing her more and more desperately, quickly untying her slim obi. He reached into her yukata so that he could hold on tightly to a bit of her warmth. He couldn't stand thinking of her hurt again.

- Of her being forced to defend herself against someone so strong…

Kami! What if he and Minato hadn't gotten there in time?

"I never meant to hurt him," she whispered truthfully as Kakashi's mouth and teeth hungrily moved away from her mouth and down her body.

Kakashi, however, continued to seethe -
3. The Sandaime had allowed Danzo to flourish, turning a blind eye to all of his nefarious crimes. He didn't even punish him when Danzo ordered Kakashi to kill him!
4. Just as bad as allowing Naru-chan to be hurt, Sarutobi Hiruzen had left his father hanging out to dry when the ultimate responsibility for missions and the village lay on his shoulders. The Sandaime was the one who assigned Sakumo that misclassified or altered and suicidal mission! Sarutobi Hiruzen was the one who did NOTHING when the villagers turned on the White Fang. Did NOTHING when the villagers poisonously turned on a very young Kakashi when his father was gone. –Blaming us for an entire war based on the outcome of a single mission - when the war was brewing anyway.

He forcefully buried himself into his wife and gasped when he pressed his face against hers, realizing that there were tears running down her face. He didn't really remember much before (?!)forcing(?!) himself inside of her. Had he done that?! "Gods! I'm sorry."

"What?" Naruto asked breathlessly as she shimmied underneath him to allow him to move an arm around her waist. Out of nowhere, it seemed, he tried to get away from her but she wrapped her legs around his hips more tightly to make sure he stayed. Kakashi groaned and hid his face in her shoulder, realizing that they were already panting and sweaty.

It's alright: she needs this, too. The last several minutes or more came back to him: it had been as if his mind had disassociated from his body for a spell. I didn't do anything she wasn't into. I think. "You drive me - ah... insane. …Are you alright?" he asked in a softer voice as he tried to catch his breath and reigned himself in. Naru had turned his head toward her so that she could softly kiss his cheeks and lips as he tried to stop being such a damn animal. "I didn't mean to be so rough."

"You weren't… I mean, I… like everything you do."

Seeing a haunted look in her eyes even as she smiled so glassily at him, Kakashi realized that she hadn't completely been with him, either. Tonight had been flat-out disturbing. "That's enough of that," he said softly, bouncing his wife's body on the bed with a rough, upward tug of her ass.

He moved in and out of her slowly, though. "What do I have to do to take your mind off it, baby?" He rocked against her in short bursts, too, pushing her legs aside so that he could better rub against her clit. It always drove her crazy and tonight was no different.

Seeing, feeling, hearing, smelling her reactions: it was all so worth it; more than simply for the sex.

"Oh my god," she was soon breathily panting. "Kash… Oh, gods… Kashi…"

Kakashi gritted his teeth and let out a moan as her nails ran up and then into his back. He pushed her thighs apart, as wide as he dared, and stilled. Naruto was unnaturally quiet tonight but… "That's… right," he grunted before harshly pulling at her tit to suck on it - and kept pushing - all the way up onto the tips of his toes as she cried out. "Cum for me, baby. Cum on my cock." As he rocked, thrust, or wriggled against her, sucking every bit of her skin he could reach into his mouth - she did. For nearly an hour, they forgot all about the Sandaime Hokage.

Although the man may have later entered their thoughts one or two more times before the sun rose, it was never for more than a minute or two at a time.

Koharu and Homura didn't believe Minato's story about their teammate and former leader's death, and their suspicions only grew after they spoke to Asuma and his family. It was almost unbelievable to them that the venerable Sarutobi Clan would now truly be led by that disobedient rascal.

"I don't know what you want from me," Asuma had said - always the ungrateful brat. "I'm… sorry for your loss," he seemed to decide upon as he pulled his hand through his hair. Asuma's wife, the genjutsu mistress, was glaring at them as she rocked their baby.

Perhaps they should have given what remained of Hiruzen's immediate family more time to grieve alone. They'd only wanted to pay their respects…
And see if they'd heard the rumors.

"And what of you, Kono-kun? Do you believe the nonsense you've been told?" Homura had asked his teammate's grandson.

"Get the fuck out of my flat," Asuma sneered. If looks could kill, they both supposed they'd be dead.

Where did all this animosity come from?! Hiruzen had been a brilliant leader - at Danzo's side, of course. Now they had to deal with Minato - who didn't properly trust and confide in them. And Namikaze (Senju) Minato, of course, was the jinchuuriki's father. With all of that demonic chakra poisoning their coils as they grew, jinchuurikis that had been such from very early childhood were known to be evil. Minato had ordered them thrown out of the Tower the day they reminded him of that!

Over the years, the couple could agree that they'd become closer to Danzo and warier of Hiruzen but their concerns were born from their love of the village. Hiruzen understood that!

"I was speaking to Kono-kun," Koharu had scolded, nearly unphased by Asuma's surly attitude. "Isn't it interesting that…"

"I think Uncle Asuma told you to piss off." the brat had said.

"Very well," were the last words her partner said before deciding to leave their small flat.

"You will be required to move back into the Sarutobi Compound," Koharu reminded him before Asuma was in their faces, slamming the door with a shouted curse that made his own infant cry!

.

Now they were at a quiet little izakaya the two used to frequent with their teammate - and more recently Danzo - once upon a time. The ownership may have somewhat recently changed but their decor was almost exactly the same as it had been in the old days. After the owner, a properly respectful man named En who owned several of these little spots, set down their second round of drinks, Koharu shook her head. "I find that I need to keep reminding myself that Namikaze is a Senju, and that makes him part of Tobirama-sensei's legacy."

"Bah," Homura said irritably, terribly sad that his teammate was dead. "Namikaze never knew sensei or Lord First."

"That is true," Koharu agreed sadly. "Now there are only the two of us and Tsunade."

"So they say," Homura said more uncomfortably. He had kept his mouth shut about it but supposedly Senju Nawaki was also alive. It had been hot gossip in the ninja community for close to a year but he had no proof that it was true. –Other than the inkling that when people began gossiping that young Nawaki might be alive it had greatly upset Danzo. That led Homura to believe there was some evidence for it. Unlike Hiruzen, you always had your fingers on the pulse of the village, Danzo. He smiled grimly when En, a civilian man in his late forties, attentively returned with more sake.

Early or not, he felt like getting drunk today! "Keep it coming, En-san!"

"To Hiruzen!" After a while, the two Elders forgot how many times they had toasted their fallen leader. And Danzo. Meh, Danzo and Hiruzen were partners in leading Konoha to greatness.

And now they're both dead. Eventually, the couple's conversation led back to their doubts about what had really happened to their teammate.

"'There are no coincidences:' that's what sensei always used to say," Homura reminded his girl and then suppressed a hiccup. "When I was out on my walk, the seals *hic* … I was on sensei's head - the Hokage monument, you see - when Yondaime-sama's estate seals broke last night. I was Right. There! …More sake! Ahem! Please, En-san."

"Puh-lease. You know as well as I do that Namikaze lives in Tower's residence. Hiruzen once told me that he gave his legacy the estate. …She and Hatake have been shacking up there since before she made Genin, I believe."

"You never told me that," Homura scolded with what sounded like a whine.

"I don't tell you many things," his partner said slyly. "A kunoichi's job is to… hoard facts." She broke out into a fit of husky, girlish giggles but suppressed them easily enough and dug into the edamame the gentlemen had just put down on the table.

En continued placing dishes on the table that the apparently ravenous - and definitely drunk - village elders had ordered. His job was always interesting but he'd begun to worry how these two were going to make it home.

"But that means… I connected Hiruzen's death to the fox appearing in the ANBU training grounds yesterday afternoon! If…. Why would Namikaze's seals have broken when… Unless… If you think that…"

"You know it was HER chakra burst that broke those seals as well as I do. Tsk. I can't imagine there was anyone who didn't feel it." Koharu looked at the izakaya owner and his employees whom she suddenly feared might be listening. The man looked sheepish and shooed his wide-eyed workers away from them, although the staff was still being attentive. "Well?"

En returned to their tableside; he hadn't meant to listen but whenever he heard news about that jinchuuriki he couldn't help himself. He'd lost his wife and child in the Kyuubi attack. "I'm no ninja, Honored Elders, but I did feel something last night. Also… One of my workers was on his way to work yesterday when he saw… the fox. Quite the day, I suppose." That's an understatement.

"See?" Koharu drawled victoriously to her husband. Well, they weren't married but they might as well be. No one else would put up with his wrinkly old hide, she assured herself.

"Either way it all leads back to the jinchuuriki, doesn't it?"

Koharu shrugged her shoulders and realized just how drunk she was when she began to sway. "Let's go home. And don't let anyone hear you mentioning that the jinchuuriki killed Hiruzen! We can't let that get out."

They left a gaping izakaya staff in their wake who quickly began spreading the news.

Was it purposeful on their parts? –Hard to say. But the couple would admit to themselves even when sober, that retaliating against the kunoichi who had killed Hiruzen - the girl whom Hiruzen had finally decided wasn't worth his time and respect - felt good.

.

Days later -

Minato and his trusted guard had made quick but careful work of carefully digging through Sarutobi Hiruzen's home but because he'd been up all night again, he now had dark bags under his eyes. He grunted sleepily after shaving and began brushing his teeth. He only had a little time left to dress in his funeral attire. Minato hoped that the dark circles and swelling around his eyes would make the villagers believe that he'd been mourning Hiruzen's passing.

That's not exactly what he'd been doing…

They'd found only one thing that connected Hiruzen to Obito and had run a very thorough search but boy was it a doozy: a brand new, still-boxed Akatsuki robe was in the man's closet. It was now being tracked since they found that it had been shipped through a common courier.

How LONG had Hiruzen known about Obito? –Had the Sandaime suspected that Obito was alive all along? Fugaku and his father had been very keen on bringing back every single Sharingan to "the vault." Maybe he should have realized that Obito was still alive before Kushina was attacked?

* "You can't be serious, Minato! That Sharingan is CLAN PROPERTY!"
* "It belongs in the vault, not in that thief's head!"
* "How do we know the boy didn't kill Obito-san just so that he could take his Sharingan?"

Poor, utterly distraught, and broken little Kakashi had just stood there, staring blankly in front of him, taking their insults and abuse. He was still chakra exhausted, wounded, and had bandages wrapped around his transplanted Sharingan and head! Finally, Minato couldn't take it anymore.

"Enough! You didn't care for Obito his entire life, Uchiha-dono, Uchiha-san. Obito was a damn fine Konoha shinobi." Minato didn't care the way the two Uchiha elders gaped or the warning look he received from his friend, Fugaku - who at least seemed guilty when reminded of how he treated Obito so unfairly.

Minato was sure that his words had hit him hard. Fugaku was training to take over the clan. He was supposed to be the best of them.

"The way you treated one of your clansmen," Minato hissed before stopping himself. He had looked into the village and clan laws as soon as Kakashi and Rin were retrieved, figuring the Uchihas might try to pull this kind of thing. "Obito-kun's eyes were OBITO'S to do with as he pleased and he trusted Kakashi-kun as his friend and comrade." Minato noticed that Kakashi, if possible, now looked like he was even more aggrieved at the reminder. His student's shoulders had dropped and he was shaking - which was SO unlike him. Minato draped his arm over the boy's shoulder and for once, Kakashi-kun didn't shirk him off when he pulled him close to his chest.

Minato wondered just how mentally damaged the kid was now; he'd have to be awfully strong to overcome this. Some grown men had difficulty overcoming an orbital injury without the loss of comrades. (And without their fathers' suicides on top of it!) Gods forbid the poor child lose anyone else… "Kakashi-kun's a Jonin of Konohagakure. Do you really plan to take away his ability to be a ninja – even temporarily - when he's helping us win this war? Rin-chan's agreed to undergo a Mind Walk to prove what they've reported is true…"

How long had Hiruzen and Obito been in contact with one another?

Kakashi had said that Hiruzen had spoken with him recently and had been cheery enough, although he had apologized to him for "forcing him to marry the jinchuuriki." Kakashi's glare was said to have been enough to chase the Sandaime off afterward.

Naruto had given them even minute details of every interaction she could remember having with the man.

He needed to subtly interview Sarutobi Konohamaru since the Academy student had warned Naruto to stay away from his grandfather but that could wait - will have to wait - until after the funeral.

Hiruzen had lived alone and dismissed his staff after his wife recently passed after being in an almost two-decades-long coma. That left the four of them free to take their time searching for clues. Frankly, the grand Sarutobi manor didn't seem like the type of place in which a young person would want to live. And from what Minato understood, recently things had gone from bad to worse between the now-deceased Third Hokage and his only remaining son. According to what his men said, Asuma was only allowing his father to visit Konohamaru or his baby when he was around and could guard them against the unstable former Hokage.

How tragic.

The large, ornate Sarutobi manor was already beginning to get a little dusty. Perhaps IF Asuma or his nephew chose to one day reside there, he could offer to put seals down to aid with that.

Kushina had a real knack for those types of things. She always told him that he had more important things to do than learning what she called "simple cleaning tricks." If it was important to Kushina, it had been important to Minato so that wasn't very fair.

Minato had helped kill his predecessor, the man who had helped groom him for the Hokage position. Little things like that were the very, very least he could do for their family. Only helping with sealing the residence is pathetic, really.

Damn you, Danzo. The idea that he might owe that old man for keeping his newborn daughter alive - and then making her life hell - was absolutely sickening. So was the idea of Hiruzen wanting to kill his baby girl after he and Kushina had given their lives to save the village and her.

Still lost in his thoughts, Minato ran a comb through his impossible hair. He let out a grouchy hum as he began getting dressed.

Minato didn't like to curse but had in fact made up a pretty decent speech - some utter bullshit regarding his predecessor's Will of Fire - that he wanted to get over with at this point. Hiruzen's teammates would also have a turn in speaking about their teammate but Asuma and young Konohamaru had wanted nothing to do with it.

Terrible.

"So troublesome. –Alright boys," he said to his guard platoon who looked as exhausted as he was. "Let's get this over with."

.

Following the funeral, Minato appreciated that people were pretty much leaving him alone for the rest of the day. He'd overheard that his "words of tribute and sorrow, of grief and giving", showed just how close he was to his predecessor. The Hokage was now being allowed to grieve in peace at the bar Kakashi was late meeting him at.

Minato wasn't grieving. He was stewing.

And Kakashi hadn't shown up at the funeral. Not that Minato could blame him. –And Naruto certainly hadn't come.

Additionally, well… Minato had just about had it with the Village Hidden in the Leaves. And Kurama was in his gut, ready to feast on flesh - which didn't help his mood any. Some had seen Naru transform into the Fox while she was training the same day Hiruzen "passed," and although they'd been terrified, now they were excited that the "Demon Whore" might be dead since "the fox is out."

Absolute morons.

Death to traitors.

He'd thrown the men who had said those awful words in the brig but knew others were talking about it, too. He gave his son-in-law an unimpressed glare when he finally sauntered into the bar nearly an hour after he expected him, looking as disinterested and lazy as ever. "You're late."

"Sorry, sorry. A pretty little vixen crossed my path and…"

"Don't… say thaaaat," he whined. No, Minato took that back: he absolutely did NOT whine.

"Sensei," Kakashi began concernedly. Minato was a total lightweight and rarely drank. "How much…"

"I think it's time you call me Minato or Daaad," Minato interrupted with a bit of a slur. "Tou-san. –Something of that nature, Kakashi-kun." Kakashi was blinking back in that dazed way of his that made people wonder if he was mentally stable or all there. "Your highness," he continued with a snort. "You can call me that!"

"Yes, your highness."

The Hokage broke out in a fit of giggles. Kakashi sighed and gave the bartender a dirty look. He was going to have to put up a genjutsu so no one saw him carrying the Hokage back to the Tower, wasn't he? –Other shinobis did it with the (dirty taint of a traitor) Sandaime more than a few times. He'd seen through the genjutsu thanks to the Sharingan once before and, of course, had heard rumors of other instances like this - but he'd never had the displeasure of toting around a drunken Kage, himself.

Until now; most likely.

Minato ordered more, however, and insisted his student have an (incredibly sour) strong drink and Kakashi could admit that he could use a few. He later put up a genjutsu over his half-asleep father-in-law as he helped carry him out. Before he left the bar, though, he took a quick picture so that he could tease/blackmail Minato about this later. "Excuse me," Kakashi breathed as he walked by a man who'd nearly run into them outside of the restaurant next door. The other man looked about as intoxicated as his sensei was.

"Hey," the man slurred irritably. He suddenly became more alert when he recognized Hatake Kakashi right in front of him. "Your wife: the fox girl..."

"Maa, maa. Be very careful of how you refer to my wife. Friend." He held onto Minato's back through his cloak and realized that he, too, had heard what this guy had called Naru-chan. The idiot couldn't see Minato so this was probably not going to go his way - even more than the guy might think.

"I should say sorry for ya loss but every'ne… Well, I'm afraids it's known dat yer -uh, marriage was a sham, shinobi-san. Village should be celebrating the fox gettin' out again so they can get rid o' her… Ha! Funny it's turned out that way, right? People sayin' she killed… Well: YOU know: the truth came straight from the elders! I guess nothin' can be done ta do right by Sarutobi since the fox whore's dead. … Amazin' that she killed 'im, really."

"This is not happening," Minato mumbled before he moved.

Kakashi almost hurled when he was suddenly at his family compound. "Son of a bitch," he breathed as he sat up and looked for his sensei. "Where did he go?"

More than a drop of justice (not to mention a whole lot of disappearances) reigned down on Konoha that night.

.

Minato woke up to a terrible hangover and his daughter's cute face looking down at him. He was laying in the grass and her hair was around most of his face. She looks so much like Kushina.

"Tou-san? Are you alright? You smell like booze, dirt, and sweat and are in the yard."

"Mmm. Bathroom." Minato couldn't believe what then happened: he'd just allowed his little girl to hoist him over her shoulder and carry him inside. "Blurgh."

"Look what I found, Kakashi!" Her father had already run away and into the bathroom to vomit, though. "Maa, that's not good."

"I don't want you going outside today," Kakashi muttered after catching just a glimpse of the state his leader was in.

Kakashi had just come from the basement. A few weeks ago, he had taken some outstanding pictures of Naru-chan that he was developing down there.

She was going to have a FIT when she saw them but she had let him get those very sexy intimate close-ups. He planned to further develop a very special few in black and white - very artistic, he thought - and frame them for their bedroom. Smaller color copies were definitely going into a carefully locked seal that he'd keep in his wallet.

"Afraid I'll find more Kages in our yard, are you?" Naru began rummaging through her seals for her homemade hangover balls before turning to make that nasty hangover drink that Tsunade had supposedly developed. Hopefully, her father would be as good as new after taking both. "I have to work, babe."

"Your father's a total lightweight," Kakashi mumbled at the same time as he tapped out a rhythm on the tabletop. He'd chased Minato around for a while the previous evening but eventually decided to let him just go for it. Konoha needed a good little cleanse and the alarms hadn't sounded so his sensei had gotten away with anything that he might have done and hadn't caused too much chaos.

–Not that he saw anything. Nope! Absolutely not: he had seen NOTHING and knew nothing about anything. He certainly did not see Hokage-sama drop men and women into that impossibly deep gorge west of the village. "I was with you all night."

"I see," Naru hummed, questions written all over her pretty face. She hopped up on her toes to give him a kiss on his masked cheek. "Whatever you say, handsome. I did enjoy you being at home very much last night." When you were here.

"If it weren't for the silencing seals, everyone in the village would know just how much you enjoyed me, Princess." Kakashi smiled as his wife ducked her head and turned her back on him.

"Pervert," he heard her say softly. He turned her around for tickling and an all-too-brief but hot little makeout session. Eventually, the couple did get a little concerned with the bear not coming out of the nearby bathroom. When Naru knocked on the door, they learned that Minato had teleported out of there. "Unbelievable. Do you think he's okay?"

"Maa, Hokage-sama can take care of himself."

What a way to start the day…

After waking up in his daughter's yard and barfing in her bathroom - so embarrassing and thankfully unlike me - Minato flashed off to clean up but still felt off. That feeling was only worsened by finding the two old elders that were waiting for him in his office. He gave Genma a dirty look for allowing them to enter without him. They must have been terribly insistent. "What can I do for you today?" Homura presented him with a file and Minato was surprised to find his data and picture on the top enclosed sheet. "What is this about?"

"Hiruzen's death has left the village weakened," Homura said gravely and with a straight back. "It is high past time to fully nourish renewed roots of the great tree."

Minato scoffed and closed the file. Fortunately, the page that had his vitals on it didn't include anything still considered classified. After his death, a LOT of information about him was made public knowledge. Other than my seals, my biological parents no one knew about, and my CHILD whom everyone chose to ignore or attack. "I'll never allow you to rebuild ROOT."

Koharu immediately denied that's what they were talking about. "We're talking about the CRA." Minato's eyes changed, seeming to turn oddly purplish-red but he finally sat back in his chair after rubbing them soundly.

The blonde Kage sighed and motioned for his unwanted guests to take a seat. A memory of something about these two that had been said at the bar he was supposed to meet Kakashi at tried to pry its way forward in his pounding head. "Shinobis sacrifice so much for this village, wouldn't you agree?" The couple bobbed their heads. "Interfering in their personal lives isn't my place." He held up his hand when Koharu wanted to interrupt, really not wanting to hear it. "Our ninjas have been attacked by the Akatsuki which is a huge threat…"

"Surely a group of rogue ninjas, most of whom have been eliminated if I am correct, cannot threaten a village or nation."

"But they do," Minato said firmly, meaning it completely. "There may have been nine or ten initial members but who is to say that there aren't more now? Our intelligence on the Akatsuki isn't great."

"And what are you doing about it?" Homura asked. Danzo was always on top of these things!

"Jiraiya-sensei is on a mission to determine more about the group at this very moment."

Koharu scoffed. "I mean no offense, Minato, but that man has had YEARS to look into that group, to find Orochimaru and Uchiha Itachi… And Uchiha Sasuke and…"

"What about Uchiha Sasuke?" Minato interrupted darkly. As far as the village was concerned (even these two old buzzards,) Uchiha Sasuke was either hidden in ANBU, out of the village, or on a mission. In fact, Uchiha Sasuke was doing all of those things: it was a mission that was more classified than had ever been put on paper, (for anyone other than himself,) however.

Homura paled. His partner really shouldn't have mentioned HIM: they only knew about Sasuke being with Orochimaru because of Danzo's letters after he temporarily - Danzo's absence was supposed to be temporary - left Konoha. "That's not what we came to discuss, anyway, Minato, and I'm afraid our time is limited."

"Is it?" Minato asked dryly before thanking Raido for bringing him a very large cup of coffee. He knew Koharu and Homura would never admit whatever they knew unless it was to taunt him and frankly, hearing that they now had "limited time" was wonderful news.

Did these two say something about Naruto last night? –Minato wasn't quite sure where that thought was coming from and he vowed not to drink like that again.

Minato also needed to talk to Inoichi. He remembered teleporting a civilian male with red hair directly to the Yamanaka for a Mind Walk and then…

"Yes. We believe you should lead the way by participating in the CRA." The Hokage began choking on his coffee. "I know that you were once married…"

"I am a widow, Homura. I'm sure that you would still be grieving if you lost your partner, too, ne?" His now icy, sharp eyes darted to Koharu. As IF anyone doesn't know that they're either married or shacked up and have been for decades!

"I would," Homura said, not sounding like he'd be very sorry to see Koharu die at all, "but you are a young man. A Senju. You must consider the good of the village!"

"..."

"I will not participate in it. I already sacrificed too much. And my daughter - my child whom I sacrificed to contain the fox - is already part of a spin-off of that vile program."

Koharu thought it insane that a Hokage would ever say he sacrificed too much for Konoha! "When the Hatake Clan agreed to join the village, it was with the agreement that they would not participate in such a program. The whole 'one mate for life' nonsense they charmed Lord First into agreeing to was the reason for it."

"Stop. Talking," Minato requested softly. He sat up in his chair and began to meditate.

What happened at the bar… What that civilian had said clearly replayed itself in his mind. What they'd found in the Mind Walk on En-san… How could I have blanked that out?

"Konoha needs the full power of the Senjus," Koharu continued despite the KI that was starting to leak into the room. Then she began arguing with her partner. Minato didn't really hear them anymore, however. He was concentrating on being very still.

"The Senjus are NOT restricted as the Hatakes are - and Lord First included his own clan: your clan in the CRA requirements, knowing that the Senju's numbers were dwindling."

"Thus proving Lord First and Tobirama-sensei's Will of Fire; their first love of the village," Homura grinned.

Koharu agreed. "Hmm. Is your daughter even pregnant yet? Perhaps she is infertile. Being unable to produce a child by her birthday will invalidate the contract." She cocked her head when Minato looked up at her with orange-rimmed, yellow, toadlike eyes. "Minato?"

"It's Hokage-sama," he corrected. Quick as his moniker, he'd grabbed both elders by their throats and flashed them to the top of what remained of Lord First's likeness at the Valley of the End. "I do this on behalf of my family and to protect those who deserve it. Your penalty for revealing information - FALSE information about the security of Konoha is death."

He reached out and dropped them, then flashed down - his eyes turning violent red with yellow, strange slits - to the water just as their bodies crashed down upon it, driving them both to the bottom of that deep lake, and smashing their necks against the ground. He propelled himself up with wind chakra and returned to Konoha after using another wind jutsu to dry himself off.

"Soooooo," Iwashi drawled once his boss was back. "Everything go okay?"

"It did," Minato nodded and thanked his men for rewarming his coffee. "Boys. I know what people are saying. Naruto didn't kill Hiruzen. I did."

"Ah, shit," Raido groused.

"I have also terminated Mitokado Homura and Utatane Koharu. If you must, you may remand me to custody."

"No," they all three drawled. Genma was the one to come up with a potential solution. "Let's go search their house. Betcha anything those old coots had more shady dealings than just the Danzo-thing. We can frame it all on them."

"Hmm… I suppose we can take a look."

.

Naruto wasn't sure why the death of Sarutobi Hiruzen didn't bother her more. Oh, what the man had done or allowed to happen bothered her a LOT but she was proud of herself for standing up and fighting him. Kakashi and her father were worried about her not freaking out about everything but they weren't. Why should she?

Plus, she hoped that Sarutobi's was the only "betrayal" that was mentioned in the Great Lord Elder Toad's prophecy.

And that jutsu she'd used… If she could build on it, the technique could really be something special.

"You really want me to summon all the foxes to Konoha?"

"The large ones would be fine. Not the man-eating ones please," her father requested with a kind smile. He looked like he REALLY needed some sleep, though, Naru thought.

"Where?" Naruto wondered, not feeling good about this at all.

"In ANBU training field 100." Before she could say anything, he and Kakashi had flashed her there.

"Jeez, I don't like that," Naru groaned, feeling nauseous. Soon a large group of large foxes - including that bitchy silver cow - were circling around them.

The big turquoise one cocked her head as she smirked at her fellows. "Let's run amok."

"I'd like to set parameters if I may," Minato said and then introduced himself politely. Naruto wanted to scream when she saw them paying him so much respect. They NEVER treated her that way! One of them did try to sneak up and nip at Kakashi, though.

"Let me out; I think I know where this is going."

Naruto grimaced; she planned to first try this in the foxes' summoning realm. "Don't overload my clone!" She made one and then grimaced, wincing more and more as her looks changed into something er… Something dramatically different!

Long red hair and creepy, red-slitted eyes; big sharp teeth, with WHISKERS instead of whisker marks on a tall, tall, and broad white-robed… man-body. The boobs her clone had had dramatically deflated like balloons until they were finally fluffy, toned man-pecs.

"Humans," Kurama greeted. He also gave the foxes a nod.

"What the hell," Naru scoffed. Kurama was being awfully respectful. Normally he called people "flesh bags" and the like.

Minato facepalmed. "Whyy?"

"He thinks he knows what's going on. I think Kurama wants to help! And I can always dispel him if he's naughty."

Human-type Kurama gave her a look of utter loathing. –Or maybe it was a superiority thing.

Meh, it's probably both. "Sorry, Kurama." Boy was it weird talking to him outside of the seal.

Although it was MUCH weirder looking at a dude-version of him.

A purple fox (with a silvery-white tummy and chest) that was usually quiet began openly flirting with him and Naruto gagged, hoping she wouldn't eventually retrieve any horrible memories of him doing something weird to a giant damn vixen. She warned him against doing exactly that and bit her lips, unsure of whether she or Kurama then looked more humiliated. The purple fox, however, seemed intrigued. Kakashi threatened to jutsu ALL of them if they didn't stop being obnoxious and so they returned to listening to her father.

"I've signed a decree to make this Friday the day that the Kitsune tribe officially returns to Fire Country. If you'll all agree, I'll release it to the village."

Naruto listened to his plan seeing so, so much that could go wrong. He should've earlier asked her about this nonsense.

Kurama walked up to her and stared down in something between amusement and general disgust. "This is not what I expected." He drew his fingers elegantly through his long red hair, tossing it behind him as he frowned and studied his idiot partner & vessel. "I never realized how short you are. I've known dwarves taller than you."

"This is not going to end well," Naru felt.