"There is going to be a summit in a few weeks. Kumo wants to renew its peace treaty. There will be five representatives from each side. The Kage and their advisor, plus three bodyguards. You were chosen to be one of the three." Minato said.
"Yes, Hokage-sama. May I ask my role?" Naruto asked. He wasn't aware of this news; chances were Danzo wasn't aware either, so he had to report it.
"Your role?" Minato asked, confused.
"Will I be there as the Jinchuuriki or a sealmaster? The chances are high that Kumo will bring one of their Jinchuurikis. I think their party will include B, C, and Darui. I have no information on who their last member could be, but it would be unlikely for them to bring both of their Jinchuurikis." Naruto said thoughtfully.
"You seem to know much about Kumo," Shikaku said meaningfully.
"My apologies. My a part of my job is to gather all the information I can about other villages and their Shinobi." Naruto said.
"It's ok, Naruto-kun," Minato said in a tone that left no room for arguments. "You will be there as a Jinchuuriki, but you won't reveal your status unless it's unavoidable. Until then, your role will be a sealmaster."
"Our other members will be Shikaku, Kakashi, and Shisui. There will be some preparations for the venue. Until then, there won't be a certain date. I will notify you when everything is ready. You are dismissed for now." Minato said.
Naruto gave a quick bow again before leaving. He went to the ROOT base quickly to give his report. The choice of people in their party was logical. Shikaku was the advisor, Naruto the Jinchuuriki, Kakashi a student of the Hokage, and Shisui was well known as Jonin. Naruto believed that Itachi wasn't chosen so he could take on the duties of Hokage for the duration of the absence.
It wasn't a show of power, necessarily. In the absence of the Kage, the village needed well enough well-known Shinobi inside to protect it. With Orochimaru, Tsunade, and the third Hokage in the village, there wouldn't be any imminent danger.
Still, there had to be a lot of preparations made for any Kage to leave their village. Usually, the information about the absence wouldn't stay a secret since 2 Kage leaving their villages was a big deal. Maybe they would also call back Jiraiya to ensure higher security.
It was finally the day of their departure. Everyone was ready at the gate, waiting for the Hokage. They were heading to the land of Iron since they decided to host. Naruto provided everyone with sealing scrolls and took charge of taking care of all the equipment and rations.
One of the seals Naruto made was a particular set that was currently a best seller in the village. It was a seal for traveling Shinobi, and it had a few compartments. There was one for rations, camping equipment, medical supplies, personal items, stored weapons, and an extra one for anything they might need.
It was a bit bulkier with respect to other kinds of sealing scrolls, so it wasn't really comfortable to carry it on the hip pouches. Instead, it had an attachment to be carried on the lower back. It was still lighter and better than taking the stuff on their person.
There was also a particular version that they were currently using that had a blood and chakra seal as an extra layer of protection. Naruto had his scroll sealed in his arm. Shisui was doing the same. Naruto had managed to train a few people in the sealing division to learn to tattoo seals.
It was a delicate process, and Naruto only allowed them to do temporary ones while he would do permanent ones. He was often requested to carry these tasks for ANBU and those on sensitive missions. However, for this mission, he really wasn't in the mood to tattoo everyone, so he just provided the special scrolls.
They didn't have to wait long since the Hokage was right on time. "I'm sorry you had to wait; I had to sign a few last-minute documents," Minato said as he sheepishly scratched the back of his neck.
"It's fine. Let's go; we are wasting daylight." Shikaku said. Everyone nodded, and they headed out.
The journey would take them three days at their speed. They were all very fast Shinobi. Minato at first suggested using a few of his Hiraishin seals to teleporting them as close as he could, but it was quickly declined since it had been years since he used those markers, and no one knew what was exactly going on near those markers at present.
So they decided to go the standard way and also place new seals along the way. It wasn't wise to leave the classical Kunais around, but the formulas could be applied to objects and last a very long time. So they were currently doing just that.
Naruto also got the new job of learning the seal and placing it in other places in order to cover a broader range. They didn't want to put many outside the fire country since if they were ever discovered, it could be claimed as hostile behavior and potentially cause another war, but the fire country was free game for them.
It was nighttime and time for them to camp. Naruto and Minato were setting the camp while Kakashi and Shisui gathered wood, and Shikaku set up some traps. Of course, Naruto had a barrier seal to protect them, but Shinobi were rightfully paranoid.
As Naruto and Minato were finally done, they decided to sit on a log near where they wanted to set the fire later. "Hey, Naruto-kun. I got something I wanted to give you." Minato said.
Naruto just inclined his head as his father handed him a wrapped gift. Naruto carefully opened the wrappings to see an old forehead protector. "This belonged to your mother. She would have loved you to have it." Minato said with a sad smile.
Naruto saw it in a new light. He never really had anything of his parents. Naruto quickly took off his forehead protector and spent a few more seconds looking at the forehead protector. He slowly traced the scratches with his thumb. Gently mapping the leaf in the middle. There was a deep gash in the corner, making Naruto wonder how it got damaged.
Finally, he brought it to his forehead and tied it. "Thank you," Naruto said in a soft voice.
Minato put his arm behind Naruto, bringing him to his side for an embrace. "You're welcome. Always know that no matter what, we will both always love you." Minato said sincerely. Naruto couldn't bring himself to say anything, so he just enjoyed the comfort his father provided.
Finally, when others started getting Back, they broke the hug. Naruto got up quickly to help with food preparation. He had enough fresh food packed, so he decided to make a rabbit stew and some rice for the side. They also had some fruit muffins for dessert. When it was time for sleep, they got to their tents.
Naruto, Shisui, and Kakashi would share one tent since at each time, one of them was going to be on the lookout. Minato and Shikaku would share the other tent since they didn't have to be on guard duty. Each shift was 3 hours, and Naruto decided to go first.
Minato decided to stay up a little with him, telling him some stories of his younger days. It was amusing to listen to his father talking about Jiraiya and his team. Naruto happily listened to the stories. Although Naruto insisted, his father stayed for his whole shift and kept him company. When it was time, Naruto gently shook Kakashi awake and took his bedroll next to Shisui.
As if Shisui had a superpower in his sleep to sense Naruto, he immediately rolled to the side and dragged Naruto closer to him. Naruto was used to it at this point since it always happened on their missions, so he just accepted his fate and went to sleep.
Naruto got up a bit early and slowly got out to not wake Kakashi. Naruto got started on breakfast. He made some miso soup and rice along with eggs, assuages, and some other side dishes. He even made sure to fry some eggplants for Kakashi.
When everyone was up, Naruto gave them all some fresh coffee which Shikaku appreciated dearly. They quickly packed everything up and set out for the day.
They were quick and methodical in their journey. Naruto had a ROOT agent patrolling ahead of them, leaving minor signs to inform them of a clear path. They would follow the signs to avoid confrontations. Naruto was going in front of the group to look for the signs and guide the way.
Minato and Shikaku were in the middle, and Shisui and Kakashi were guarding the back. They took only small breaks and made sure to take all measures to ensure their safety. Finally, they reached the town on the estimated time.
They were guided to their quarters since it was nighttime. The talks would start early in the morning, and both parties were given rooms on opposite sides to avoid any conflicts. Naruto quickly placed seals all over the room as Kakashi and Shisui checked for any traps.
Once they were done, they decided on their usual shifts to stand guard. Minato wanted to stay awake, but Shikaku forced him to bed since he was the one who had to negotiate tomorrow. Naruto decided to meditate.
Recently he noticed how his emotions were out of control. It all started after the mission to Kiri. His emotions were getting more childish and impulsive. He didn't notice it for a while, but it was brought up by Kurama.
They tried to find the reason and discovered that the potent Biju chakra messed with the seal Naruto put on his emotions and memories. The seal was unbalanced, and there wasn't a way to fix it. The only option was to release it entirely, but Naruto wasn't ready yet.
While he was mostly done with his memories in the number, the darkest ones were the ones that remained, and he didn't have the luxury of time to go through them yet. So instead, he decided to let the impulses take control.
It wasn't the best solution, but it helped. If he tried too hard to hold back those emotions and impulses, it caused the seal to burn on his skin and cause him pain. So instead, he let the feelings flow. If he let them flow out, he could at least get them gone sooner.
He could cut them quickly and not let them control his actions. He also would give himself times, mostly when he was with his friends, to explore and feel those emotions so they wouldn't build up. It was a setback for Naruto since he had to ensure it wouldn't happen with Danzo, but it was doable.
Tonight he was getting ready for a critical mission. Somehow during these talks, he had to find an opportunity to fist-bump B. He needed to give Him his memories. So far, he has only managed to do so with Garaa.
It was time to get his plans moving, and having people to trust would primarily affect that. He sat with Kurama as they went through their plans again. So far, everything was on track. In 5 years, it would be time for the final act, but for now, he needed to set everyone to their tasks.
Orochimaru was also working diligently on his part. He often left clones in the village to cover his long absences. People just believed that he was busy in his laboratory. But in truth, he did a lot of footwork Naruto was unable to do.
After these talks, he had to go for his next Akatsuki hunt. Kakuzu was on top of his list. Naruto knew that if Kakuzu was taken out, their intentions would be apparent to Akatsuki, and they would be put under the radar. There might even be war if they made the wrong steps.
Naruto couldn't let Pein be in the picture for now, so he had to time Kakuzu's death perfectly.
