Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto

CHAPTER 5

Naruto cringed as he crawled out of the toad's sticky mouth, biting the inside of his cheek to hold back an annoyed complaint about the unpleasant mode of travel which had brought him back to the Land of Fire. His fingers sank into the cool mud with a wet squelch as he pulled himself free while trying to avoid dragging all of his clothes through the muck. If it was good enough for Ero-sennin, it's good enough for me, he sternly reminded himself.

A fat drop of warm water that was mixed with grossness splattered heavily on the back of his neck, running under his collar and down his spine while he tried to slither onto the banks of the pond with as much dignity as possible. He was glad Shima had suggested he keep his Sage Cloak folded in his pack until arrival.

Shuddering, he chanted internally, I am The Toad Sage. I am The Toad Sage. I do not vomit in front of the little frogs. I do not vomit over a little spit.

Watching him with varying degrees of amusement was a small herd of frogs and toads ranging in size from the breadth of his thumbnail to a small dog. Their bulgy eyes followed him with immense judgment as he clamored out of the reeds and began shaking out his cloak while taking deep breaths in through his nose and out of his mouth. Naruto could have sworn he heard a few giggles and barely stopped himself from pouting in humiliation. With a final shake of his head which sent gooey droplets flying and made his blond spikes defy gravity once more, Naruto donned the cloak edged in black flames and turned to thank Gamamoto for the ride.

"Don't forget this," the old toad croaked in a monotone voice before his long tongue lashed out to deposit the massive sage scroll into Naruto's waiting arms. He caught it deftly but fumbled a bit to secure it behind his back. The sight of the familiar item that he had stared at as a child, following Ero-sennin's tall back through miles of roads all over the Land of Fire, still made his fingers tremble. This chakra laced scroll bore the blood oaths of himself, his father, his mentor, and many generations of other Summoners. It now held a different kind of sanctity in his regard compared to when he was a child and just thought of it as another cool status symbol of power.

"Thanks Gamamoto," Naruto said with a shaky smile. The toad stared at him, glassy eyes traveling up and down, assessing the uneasy set of his shoulders which carried the cloak and scroll of his new role. A low chuckle rasped out with a few extra bubbles, and the transport toad gave Naruto a broad wink before sinking wordlessly beneath the murky water.

Naruto blinked in surprise, then relaxed with a soft laugh of his own. Striking what he hoped looked like a confident pose and planting his fists firmly on his hips, the genin successor of the Sannin grinned as he turned to address the group of gathered amphibians.

"Alright, is everyone here?" Naruto boomed over the small clearing. Numerous Summons covered the lily pads, rocks, and low branches surrounding the pond. A few even clung to the high reeds like children clamoring atop their parent's shoulders to see. He hummed approvingly at their eager attention.

"Perfect! For the next two hours scatter throughout Konoha and report back to me anything that you hear. How are the food supplies? Building materials? Are any vendors up and running? Focus on the Hyuga and any ANBU you can spot. Do not engage with anyone, even if they seem familiar. I only need your eyes and ears right now. After I have your intel I will make a quick run through the village myself and gather what I need before heading back. Got it?" A chorus answered him in a range of croaks, ribbets, and even a few squeaky 'hai's!'. With a sharp nod and a smirk, Naruto pointed toward the direction of the Village.

"Okay, dismissed!"

In an instant he was alone in the forest with only the whisper of the trees and the faint chirping of the birds to answer his command. Chuckling as he ran a finger under his nose, Naruto adjusted the unfamiliar tension of the thick leather strap across his chest, marveling again that he was now the one giving out orders to the Toad Summons.

It had been Fukasaku's suggestion to have the small spies scout the village first before entering it himself. The idea hadn't occurred to Naruto, his instincts leaned toward using his numerous clones and the memory transfer they gave him to do recon. But assuming that, at the very least, every single Hyuga would be looking for him, the pure chakra based kage bunshin would be easy to spot in the blink of a Byakugan. While he himself could hide his chakra for a period of time (providing the Kyūbi wasn't being an ass), a clone could not. Besides, as the only living human Toad Sage, Naruto had inherited a few perks along with his mourning. One of them being a spy network unrivaled the world over.

Raising a hand to shade his eyes, Naruto squinted up at the height of the sun in the sky and estimated he would have plenty of time to lay a few game traps and gather them before heading back to Mt. Myoboku. The type of carnivorous diet that Shima preferred was not something he was looking forward to eating for another untold number of weeks. His time doing Sage training had been more than enough to gain an appreciation for the fact that he dwelt a bit higher on the food chain, and did not need to resort to devouring insects as a source of protein. Plus there was something very ego-satisfying about the idea of bringing home some fresh meat to present to Hinata. Rubbing his hands together he strode out of the small clearing and into the thicker part of the forest with the air of a caveman setting out to provide for his woman in order to win her heart.

The concept of needing to provide for someone was new and slightly stressful, but the idea of having someone waiting for him, eagerly anticipating his return, made Naruto's heart skip a beat with excitement. His bounding leaps across the high branches took on an urgency fueled by his desire to not disappoint her. To make her proud. To bring a satisfied smile to her face by sating her hunger with delicious food. He latched onto the desire to hurry back to her side, using it to try and push down the anxiety that was running through the back of his mind like an undercurrent. When Hinata was with him, his mind felt warmly fuzzy and all the worries that were constantly leeching at his focus were easier to keep at bay. The painful memories that had been ambushing his emotions at every turn over the last few days seemed to scab over, and finally begin to heal.

Even now as he paused to scan the forest floor for prime places to lay his traps, the bite of the rough bark under his palms, the tickle of the leaves against his arms, the struggle to not breathe too loudly, all took him back to a darker time. The task of hiding for survival was steeped in childhood nostalgia for the long time village pariah, and repeating that scenario in the present was scraping at old scars upon his soul which had never healed completely.

The not-so-sweet familiarity of being forced to hunt for food also caused his mind to wander along less than pleasant paths. Once, the forest had been his refuge from the abuse of the orphanage, his land of plenty when he was starving, and his playground when the hatred in other parents' eyes drove him away from potential playmates.

There had been times when the fish he had learned to catch after days of trial and error were his only meal. While his peers were chasing one another across the playground in a game of tag, he had been chasing down rabbits until he was nearly dying of exhaustion. While they engaged in joyous rounds of hide and go seek at the park, he had been stealing apples from the market and desperately dodging ANBU.

But things are different now, Naruto reminded himself as he reached into his pouch and felt the generous lengths of ninja wire and sharp kunai at his fingertips. Tools he never had when attempting this before and now would make his hunt that much easier. Tools he had earned as a Shinobi of Konoha. A Shinobi who could hold his head high instead of skulk in the shadows.

At least, until recently. Pulling his hand free Naruto let his fingertips slide over the folds of his Sage Cloak as it puddled around his crouched form. The fabric was sturdy but not heavy, the fine threads from the special silk worms in Mt. Myoboku were woven tightly together in a fabric that was practically unbreakable. Rubbing the smooth texture between his fingers Naruto smiled morosely. At least the Toads would never turn him away. Never disown him. No matter what happened in the future between himself and Konoha, he knew he could always go back to the little hut on the banks of the clear river in Mt. Myoboku. His eyes lifted, flicking around distractedly until he spotted a promising place for his first trap on the side of a small slope across the way. Rising to his feet Naruto started jumping from limb to limb without really looking where he was going.

A bird swooped out of the canopy in a steep dive right past his face, snapping Naruto out of his daze just as he brushed past a small nest full of eggs. Twisting out of the way at the last second he barely caught the next limb with his hands, swinging like a trapeze artist to save his neck from a high fall. The bird circled his head and screeched at him as he hung by his fingernails, harshly flapping her wings with no appreciation whatsoever for his death defying maneuver. Naruto shook his head side to side, squinting to save his eyes from all the feathers until the bird deemed him no longer threatening and settled back upon her perch. She leveled him with a sharp scowl that he matched, sticking out his tongue just as she turned away.

"Relax, jeez! Like I'd wanna eat those puny eggs," he grumbled before flipping back upright in a much more graceful move than before. Even at his most hungry he had never been able to stomach stealing baby bird eggs right out of the nest. Straightening his hitae-ate and pulling a feather out of his hair, Naruto turned his back on the potential site for his trap. All that squawking had probably alerted every creature nearby to his presence, so he might as well move on. The idea of using his Sage Mode to easily pinpoint a rabbit in a burrow crossed his mind, but Naruto shook off the idea. It felt like cheating to use the perfect balance of Natural Energy to hunt nature itself, and even though he was hungry, he was not starving.

There's some hypocritical irony for you. A human, who is meant to be a weapon used by humans to kill other humans, and yet he won't use Natural Energy to kill a stupid rabbit, or take a little egg to simply feed himself. Your idiotic philosophies never cease to amaze me, mortal.

Naruto nearly slipped a second time, startled by the sudden opinion from the dark voice deep in his gut. His hand pressed into his abdomen suspiciously, but he forced himself to keep searching the forest and ignore it, instead focusing on making his way carefully through the trees. The last thing he felt like doing was starting a moral debate with the Kyūbi right now.

Refocusing, Naruto soon spotted a massive tree with roots arching gently up out of the ground, making a perfect little crevice for his snare, and went to work quickly and efficiently. His lips twisted as he concentrated, making sure the wire wasn't too obvious as he carefully tucked it under some dried leaves without disturbing the area too much. Soon he was lost in the muscle memory of the motions, and once it was complete moved on hurriedly so he could set as many traps as possible across a broad area of forest. At each strategic place he would carefully tip-toe around the foliage, trying to leave behind very little scent or any other sign of a human's presence.

But it seemed The Kyūbi had no intention of allowing the jinchuriki to simply ignore his captive's harassment. As Naruto's hands busied themselves with tying down the final thin branch of his last trap at just the right angle, the intrusive voice again murmured his own bitter contribution to the reminiscence of the moment.

And yet again, here you are scrounging for food like a dog. No, even dogs are treated with more respect than you. They watched a child starve. They called you a demon for years and a hero for a day. Stronger shinobi than you have have been shunned by their village. Greater heroes have been killed by my own hand. Do you even want to return to that place? To subject yourself and your mate to their judgments?

Unbidden, the hateful shouts of various grocers as they chased him out of one food stall after another echoed in Naruto's mind. He could almost feel the burn of his skinny legs as he dodged the rotten fruit hurled at him, the hot tears that ran down his cheeks, the ache of a stomach that was never full enough. Even years later the sharp pangs of hunger and hurt feelings made his throat tighten. The images of faces twisted with disgust and fear swam before his awareness. Faces of adults, children, shinobi…Hiashi…

They purposefully lied to you! You suffered in anonymity when you were the son of a Hokage! And now the Hyuga are disgracing Hinata the same way, by taking away her birthright, her name, her rank, everything. They don't deserve your mercy!

Naruto's hands froze, his slitting eyes staring blankly as serrated breaths tore out of his dry mouth. He no longer saw the ninja wire looped over his calloused fingers, but bloodied rags tied around the split knuckles of his tiny hands after he had fought off yet another genin who thought it would be fun to prove his toughness by beating on the scrawny little demon child.

It's true, he seethed, fisting his hands. The bite of his sharpening nails added a layer of tactile pain to the overwhelming flashback. If they had known I was the son of the Yondaime, I would never have had to scrounge for food to survive. The hateful glares, the exorbitant food prices, the rotten produce. I would never have had to starve. Never would have been shunned. I would have had friends. The Hyuga would respect me because of my name, and then I could force them to change. I could protect Hinata from that seal, and if anyone tried to lay a finger on her I would tear them limb from limb!

The tidal wave of anger carried him away and the satisfying memory of sweeping Hinata away from her father as the powerful red chakra enveloped them both suddenly flashed through Naruto's slipping consciousness. The gutteral urge to slaughter their enemies even as he gathered her up in his arms flowed through him. She had clung to him so tightly in that moment, grabbing his face and crying out...something...wait...what had she said?

"Naruto-kun, stay with me!"

"GAH! Dammit!" Naruto bellowed out loud, clapping his face so hard with both hands that his cheeks stung and buzzed. The muscles in his hunched back trembled as his chest heaved with exertion from the battle that was taking place within his soul. The pounding of his heart against his ribs was as powerful as the thrashing of the Fox's Tails against the Seal. Sweat trickled down his temple as he forced himself to take slow, even breaths. Hinata had not wanted him to rage with demonic revenge, she had wanted him to be himself. He had to be strong for her.

Naruto grimaced, his ears ringing with the Kyūbi's furious reaction to the nearly successful attempt at overtaking his emotions. Normally the bijū only attacked his sanity in the heat of battle, not when he least expected a fight, alone in the middle of a peaceful forest. As clarity returned to his head, Naruto snarled with the realization that the cunning Fox had dared to use his new feelings for Hinata to try and distort his awareness with a hateful perspective.

The tang of blood stained his tongue and Naruto hesitantly lifted a hand to his lip. The accusing red liquid on his fingertip testified to his poor control. A fang had lengthened with the dark turn of his mind, and Naruto growled in self disgust. He hated losing to the demon within more than anyone else. Hated it when his rationality was stolen. Hated that he was his own worst enemy at any given moment.

It's so much easier to ignore this shit when I'm not alone, Naruto mentally moaned. I have to get back to Hinata. After everything that's happened, the loneliness stings so much more now that I know what I'm missing.

Shaking his head violently to banish the last rumblings of the manipulative voice back into the recesses of his mind, the jinchuriki tried to steady his nerves and hands once more, and again attempted to set his delicate trap. Besides, being angry over what I can't change will never help me get stronger.

While his burden of harboring the Nine Tails had made for a hellish childhood, Naruto would never have wanted to be admired for something he did not earn. In his mind, the idea of living his life being spoiled as the Hokage's son was lame compared to being respected as a powerful shinobi of merit.

The branch slipped out of his still shaking fingers, almost slapping leaves across his eyes. Naruto's nostrils flared as he reached again to grab the branch, his mouth pressing into a thin line. If he were completely honest, it would probably always sting when he wondered why those he trusted had thought allowing an orphan to suffer in loneliness would be better than revealing the precious truth of his birth.

Working the fine wire around the tip of the branch with forced steadiness, Naruto's mouth pulled into a deeper frown. His brows creased with concentration as he struggled to balance everything, inside and out of his head. How much easier would it have been to endure everything if he had grown up knowing he had been loved and not abandoned? What kind of critical difference would it have made if he believed that he had been entrusted with a grave responsibility because of that immense love, instead of cursed by Kami? If he had never felt the burning need to seek attention from anyone in any way possible, because deep down he would have known that his father had bestowed upon him enough pride to last a lifetime? What if…what if…

Naruto sighed heavily as he stood, backing away from his perfectly balanced snare and brushing away his footprints with a leafy bough he snapped off of a nearby tree. When he deemed himself a safe distance away, he turned his feet toward the sound of a stream bubbling nearby, forcing his thoughts into a new direction along with his steps.

Thinking too much on the 'what if's' of the past made for a bitter outlook on the future, and even his father had mentioned it would have been dangerous to be associated with the Namikaze name. Yes, his life could have been better. But it also could have been a lot worse if he was constantly being hunted by assassins from all over the Five Shinobi Nations. For now, all he wanted was to catch something other than caterpillars for dinner, and focus upon what was happening in the present. My life is confusing enough as it is without trying to fix the past.

The minutes slipped by quickly as he redoubled his efforts, using most of his ninja wire to fashion a simple net that he staked across a narrower part of the stream to catch fish riding the current. The cool water refreshed his heated skin and dry throat, and Naruto felt more like himself again after completing his final pass across the stream. By the time the hue of his blue eyes once more matched the bright sky, he was eagerly skipping through the treetops back to the pond where all the Summons were eagerly waiting to report their findings.

The restless group hushed when Naruto descended out of the leafy canopy and walked across the top of the water to a large rock in the middle of the pond. Gamamoto peeked at the young Sage as he nodded to the nearest toad to begin his report, noting the subtle strain he still carried in his shoulders before disappearing once more beneath the water.

The sun was warm upon Naruto's back as he patiently listened to every last frog. The intel was as scattered as the routes each Summons had taken. Sitting cross-legged atop the boulder, one hand on his knee and the other cradling his chin, he watched a few frogs snatch up nearby insects before returning to Mt. Myoboku after finishing their turn. Tapping one finger on his bottom lip, Naruto mentally sifted through the wide range of information they had disclosed, tucking some bits away for later, and prioritizing the parts he needed to accomplish his tasks for today.

The Hyuga, as expected, were all on high alert for any sign of the missing couple. One small frog had been able to enter the rapidly reconstructing compound by hiding in the wood being brought in for repairs, and had overheard some Branch members reporting back to Hiashi. So far The Clan had searched the remains of Naruto's apartment, the patches of forest within the village perimeter, the training grounds, their teammates' clan compounds (to a certain degree), Kurenai-sensei's apartment complex, and even the bunkers. According to the amphibious spy Hiashi had been stoically frustrated at the long list of failures and lack of clues, but refused to give up.

"He was frowning a lot," the little toad recalled. "And after they were done talking he gave orders for a new group of Hyuga to begin searching the forest beyond the Village walls first thing in the morning."

"I see, guess we weren't a moment too soon in our visit," Naruto hummed thoughtfully before he nodded at the Summons. "Thank you, that was very helpful."

"One more thing, Naruto-sama!" the young spy exclaimed as she bounced excitedly on her lily pad. "Afterwards, Hiashi sent a messenger to pass on all their findings to a man called 'Danzo-sama'. I don't know who that is, though."

That made Naruto pause, his face twisting in confusion at the new information, as well as discomfort at the formal address the lower ranked toads insisted upon using for him. The man was unfamiliar to Naruto, his name conjuring up only a vague recollection of a few random comments from Sai. But another toad quickly jumped in to explain.

"Tsunade-sama is in a coma as a result of her overuse of chakra during the Invasion. This 'Danzo-sama' has stepped in as her replacement. I was following the old Ino-Shika-Cho Team, they were discussing it as they walked to a council meeting." The brown, crusty looking toad snapped at a passing fly, gulping it down before continuing in his hoarse voice. "They were being quiet, so I did not hear everything they said, but it definitely sounds like they do not like this Danzo guy."

"Nor should they!" Water erupted as Gamamoto resurfaced from the darker depths of the water. "I worked with Jiraiya-sama for many years, long before any of you frogspawn were ever hatched. Danzo has wanted The Hat ever since the Sandaime was appointed. He took your father's nomination as Yondaime as a personal offense," he lectured, fixing Naruto with a bulgy eye. "His organization, Root, has done more than one dirty deed under his instruction. I would not be surprised if he jumped on this chance to steal the title of Hokage from the Slug Princess while she was down."

Naruto straightened, remembering the few things he had gleaned about Root from observing Sai and his abysmal state of interpersonal behavior and abhorrent level of teamwork. Team Seven had managed to slowly crack his shell, but that was still a work in progress. An entire organization of similarly trained and like-minded shinobi could possibly be able to force a significant shift in the government during a time like this. Even someone as dense about politics as Naruto could comprehend that the asshole who raised Sai would make a terrible Hokage. He groaned and rubbed his aching head viciously at the ominous potential of such a scenario. And if the Hyuga are aligning with Danzo in return for help with finding me and Hinata…

Naruto's eyes hardened with equal parts frustration and resolve. There was little he could do to help Baa-chan as a fugitive from his own home. Hopefully the few precious people he knew he could trust with his life were working hard to protect the Godaime. The same way he was doing his best to protect Hinata. But guilt poked at him despite his attempts to reassure himself, could he still call himself a shinobi of Konoha if he was actively running away from there?

"The Elders are backing Danzo as well," another frog called out from a lily pad by the water's edge. She was covered in smooth, glossy skin that looked just like the wood panels in the Council chambers, and because of this trait she specialized in breaching the closed doors of many a sensitive meeting. Naruto remembered her frequently whispering in Ero-sennin's ear over the years, and perked up his own at her words.

"Those two old farts never liked Tsunade-sama, or Jiraiya-sama for that matter, because they were students of The Third," she sniffed derisively as she crossed her arms. "And as The Toad Sage's disciple, they never considered Minato-sama trustworthy either. All of them feel that The Leaf has wandered too far from its roots and needs to go back to the older tradition of militaristic rulership the Nidaime Hokage used."

"Lord Second? What does he have to do with any of this?" Naruto's head was starting to throb from all the new information. He had only planned on receiving a status update on the village's reconstruction plus some kind of hint as to how much hot water he was in, not a whole political history lesson on top of doom and gloom. He ground his teeth as flashbacks of sitting through Iruka-sensei's lectures made his temples pound, until a wet tongue slapped the scowl off his face and sent him tumbling backwards off his rock in a cartwheel of arms and legs.

"Pay attention!" Gamamoto scolded sharply. "If you want to keep this network from falling apart you need to learn these things. The web is only as strong as the spider who weaves its silk, and like it or not, you are that spider now. If the web fails to catch something important, the consequences will fall on your shoulders."

Water dripped from Naruto's spluttering face as he crawled back upon his rock, but the warning had hit home with greater accuracy than the old toad's strike. Gamamoto is right, Naruto admitted to himself as he wrung scummy water out of his cloak with a sigh. The best thing I could do to honor Ero-sennin's memory is to not let all his hard work go to waste. Maintaining this spy ring could be the way I help Konoha from the outside. A way to find Sasuke. Even a way to protect the other Jinchuriki. I have to keep it together!

"I'm sorry," Naruto apologized sheepishly, standing up and readjusting the weight of the scroll so it settled across his back just the way Ero-sennin used to carry it. The act made his mouth tighten with humility. The scroll was a burden of responsibility as much as a status symbol. Perhaps that was why Ero-sennin had always worn it, despite its cumbersomeness? As a reminder of the promises he carried, and the lives that depended on him.

With a somber set of his shoulders, Naruto cleared his throat and straightened. "I'm listening, please be patient with me."

The toads and frogs that still remained had all frozen, staring at the massive toad who outranked them all and dared to scold the new Sage. Gamamoto squinted at the young man who had schooled his features and was now staring back with unblinking eyes, patiently awaiting whatever lesson may come next. His voice carried nothing but sincerity, and with a twitch of his mouth Gamamoto recalled the prophecy of the Great Sage Toad, causing his own tone to soften.

"Patience you shall have. For now, let them finish their reports. I will add in anything that may be helpful."

Thankfully the rest of the information was mostly details about where and what supplies Konoha had, and how much they could spare. Naruto had no desire to create more hungry mouths or make life more difficult than it already was, and wanted to try and take only what he absolutely needed. Several spies reported that many of the supplies were coming from the surrounding towns where Naruto or Team Seven had helped the civilians at one time or another, and it eased his conscience to think that he had contributed in an indirect way. But the news that his own former classmates were seeking him and Hinata just as avidly as her former Clan, quickly turned his demeanor south again.

Naruto sucked on his sore lip as he raked his fingers over his scalp, anxiety tightening his chest. It couldn't be helped, of course people were going to wonder where the pair had gone. But most of the civilians just assumed their hero's absence was due to some sort of order from the higher ups. However Hinata and Naruto's friends were growing more suspicious and worried with each passing day. He crossed his arms, staring at the ripples in the water as the frogs dispelled one by one, all having finished their reports. He remembered how he had felt when Sasuke left, how badly he had wanted answers and how much anger the confusion and betrayal created. The last thing he wanted to do was repeat the same turmoil for their friends.

"Gamamoto, I'm going into Konoha," Naruto said solemnly. "I owe my friends an explanation. I trust them, and it's something I would want if I was in their position."

The Toad croaked lowly, a slight nod of his head making the lily pads around him bob. "I'll summon you back in a few hours if you don't return. But be careful Naruto-sama. When you have lived as long as I have, you see too many friends become enemies."

The ominous, though well intended, warning lingered in his mind like the bubbles on the water's surface after Gamamoto sank out of sight with the summoning scroll Naruto tossed him protectively curled up in his tongue. With a deep sigh Naruto jumped up into the trees, mentally bracing himself to think like a shinobi, like a spymaster, not like a naive genin. A hardened heart was not so easily tricked or betrayed. He had already seen one friend become a foe, despite his best attempts to prevent it. Ero-sennin had been betrayed by his teammate as well, and ultimately was killed by his former students. Hinata's own family was hunting for her at this very moment, to throw her in a fated cage and toss away the key. And now there was Danzo to worry about.

But it went against his nature to not trust the bonds he had worked so hard to finally forge. Even as an abused child he had never questioned his allegiance to his village. The thought of leaving Konoha had never dawned on him because it was all he had ever known. Now he was second guessing every connection and sneaking back in like some kind of felon, only days after being declared the hero. The continual tug of war between loyalty and cautiousness was becoming exhausting, and Naruto couldn't decide which side to root for. Either way his heart suffered.

With a grunt Naruto again jumped up into the high branches, pumping his legs faster with each stride. The wind of his speed and the turmoil of his emotions burned his eyes, making them tear up. He ignored the moisture as it streamed across his temples and into his hair, only noticed by the passing leaves.

Everything was wrong. For every pro there was a con. For every patriot there was a traitor. For every realization obtained a litany of new questions were released. Naruto longed for the days when he thought his only goal in life was to kick ass and become Hokage. This political shit was for the birds. A harsh chuckle lodged in his tightening throat as a part of him realized that he completely understood how Ero-sennin could have walked away from Konoha for years on end.

His feet pounded a familiar rhythm across the branches as he bounded through the forest towards the village, swallowing hard and forcing his concentration back to contemplating the best ways to get what he needed as efficiently as possible. By the time the walls were in sight Naruto's unacknowledged tears had dried and a plan had been made. Just before stamping down his chakra to a civilian level he transformed into the simplest henge he could create.

Time to put all those years of hiding from ANBU to good use.

A/N: Kinda of a more somber chapter, setting the stage for a much different return to Konoha for the hero than compared to a few days ago. In canon I loved how optimistic Naruto was about everything he had been through, but I cant help but wonder what a more realistic perspective would have been like. I wanted to explore some of the complexity between the loyalty to Konoha that had always been pounded into his head with the imperfections he saw more and more often as he grew. And I just cant imagine that the Kyubi would sit back and sleep after coming so so close to finally taking over Naruto's mind during the invasion. So many things pulling so many different directions on Naruto's brain is fun to write, (laughs evilly).

Thanks again for reading and putting up with my random posting schedule! I'm working on the next chapter already, it's going to be about Naruto touching base with a few different people within Konoha, for better or worse...