" Here is your key, " " thank you for your assistance Yumi chan " Naruto replied with a courteous smile.
Yumi a young brunette kunoichi, whom was still a year older than Naruto blushed at the blond's response before stepping aside for the blond who walked closer to the door before receiving the key Yumi was offering.
Sai and Kiba stood back watching the two, Sai and Kiba could not help themselves from being painfully aware of what was going on, Yumi had developed a crush on Uzumaki Naruto before their eyes.
' I know Naruto is a hero and all, but if he keeps this up, it might be difficult for him to actually get married to Hinata ' thought Kiba.
" Naruto you shouldn't sleep late, Hinata won't like it if she hears you didn't get any good night rest " Sai said, " yeah, you should take care of yourself. So your girlfriend won't have to worry " said Kiba backing Sai up.
Yumi's smile and blush falters hearing such vital piece of information, about Naruto's private life. A depressing detail. Naruto glanced at both Sai and Kiba with a casual smile, having gotten the hint of what they were trying to say.
" Well you're right, I should sleep as early as possible. Theirs a lot to do tomorrow. Once again thank you Yumi chan. Sai, Kiba, I'll see you in the morning " Naruto said.
' Don't worry guys, I will never betray Hinata ' Naruto thought.
Naruto unlocks the door into the private luxury room, which had been prepared for him. Yumi bows her head to Naruto,
" Good night, Naruto San " Yumi said before turning around and leave.
" Yeah, good night " said Kiba.
Naruto nodded without opening his mouth to speak a word, Naruto walked into the room and closes the door behind him. Leaving the two shinobis outside, to ponder. After a few minutes of pondering, they turned and began to leave.
" I've thought deeply about it, and am convinced that Naruto's eyes have gotten somewhat brighter, don't you think? " Kiba asked, " is that all you noticed. You must not have been paying attention, if that was all you could pick up " Sai replied sternly whilst looking ahead.
Kiba stopped in the middle of the corridor in which Naruto's room door was located, Sai walked a few more centimeters ahead before stopping as well.
" He's personality has evolved " Kiba blurts. " I guess you're smarter than you look " Sai said.
Kiba frowns, " and this makes you a bit more smarter than me. Because I didn't suspect it until Naruto met up with us at the rendezvous spot, I however only confirmed it half an hour ago with his display of deference and gratitude towards the people of this village " Sai added.
" I know none of us are the same as we were three years ago, but this. I wasn't expecting Naruto to have grown so much, he seems so far away from us now. It's like i'm staring at a man, instead of the loud and knuckleheaded rival I knew, "
" Yeah... "
Sai proceeds forward without another word, and Kiba followed.
' I can see a new path opening up Naruto, and i'm starting to wonder how far will you go and will you ever return ' Sai thought...
Meanwhile, Naruto stood his back against the door, waiting for his friends to be gone. Once Naruto sensed they were no longer in the area, he wobbled forward and eventually fell down to his left knee upon a white fur rug.
Naruto brought his hand to the middle of his chest, he groans with a pained expression as heat radiates off his body.
" Kurama, what's wrong with me? " He asked, " I'm not completely sure, but i think the six paths senjutsu chakra is consuming your own chakra the more you cultivate, to exert dominion on your chakra network " said Kurama.
" But why does it feel like am being burnt with fire from the inside out, " " take a bath a it might help. I don't know how to help much, this is unprecedented ".
Naruto untangles the strap by which he held his scroll of sealing to his back, the scroll drops to the rug. Naruto gets back up with much difficulty, he felt like he had more pressure than that of 500kg upon his body.
After managing to get back up, Naruto lifts his blue hoodie, taking off the clothing. He discards it by tossing it to his right, Naruto's hand immediately went to his solar plexus as it burned, his sapphire tilts down to look at his body which was on fire; added to his six rock hard abs, Naruto discovers his eight abs which he had expected would take work and time to complete, had suddenly become complete.
Naruto's bandaged hand traced down, and the eight was just as firm and chiseled as the rest, his hand traced back up to his chest, which had now become more chiseled and built than it was earlier that day. Naruto looked upon his arms, his triceps and shoulders had been reinforced, he also noticed his obliques were not spared.
' what really is happening to me ' He thought.
Naruto took hold both sides of his puffy pants, by the waist and pulls it down to his ankles. Upon revealing his lower body, Naruto beheld the reinforced form of his thigh, glutes, hamstrings and his quadriceps.
At that moment, Naruto began to feel every vein in his body pulsate and burn.
" Water Naruto, Now! " Kurama roared.
Naruto discards his pants, and he speeds around in search of the bathroom, and in less than five seconds he found it. He opens the door, sprints in, searched the shower valve with his eyes which were erratically moving in their sockets.
His eyes found them, and he turns it and cold water pours out upon his head, at contact steam emancipates and fills the entirety of the bathroom, and a little while later it shifted into a thick mist.
After several minutes, Naruto emerged from the bathroom shivering, with a throbbing headache. Naruto walked over to where he had seen the bedroom to be, a door around the corner of a storage room.
Naruto makes his way into the bedroom with a wet underwear, which he takes off as he approaches the bed. Naruto drops his underwear unto the floor, he slips under the covers and pulls up and over his head, till he was underneath it.
Naruto shuts his eyes, with his body numb and shivering he didn't have the energy to go over the ordeal with Kurama, whom understood and kept his comments and suspicions to himself.
Naruto drifts off to slumber, and as he did he whispered, " home ". A while after, the sound of someone knocking on the door of Naruto's room, filled the place. . .
- SEVERAL MINUTES EARLIER -
" Why didn't you inform anyone, that you were leaving the office. You could have been escorted, " Chojuro questioned sternly, because he had been worried when he could not find the Mizukage.
Mei Terumi watched with steady eyes, though it was a spectacule to see Chojuro being passionate about her safety. However,
" That is the very reason I snuck out, I do not need an escort. Nor do I think I have to give an explanation upon my whereabouts, when there is no civil unrest " said Mei calmly.
Chojuro was taken back, he wasn't expecting the Mizukage to be so hard headed when it came to matters concerning her wellbeing.
" It could have been a civil unrest, if Lady Mizukage didn't happen to be at the side of Uzumaki Naruto. And where in the village could you possibly have to go to, that you are so against anyone finding out about it? " Chojuro asked, truly befuddled by this side of the Mizukage.
Mei Terumi kept her calm demeanor, and resisted her urge to speak, till Chojuro's stern expression sank and it became somber.
" Or is it that you don't trust us, " Mei Terumi chuckles. " You think too much Chojuro, but this isn't about trust. As a kage, no matter how much you love your people or they adore you, there are things best kept to yourself. Human beings don't share everything, nor are they required to, "
Chojuro looked at the Mizukage pained by her view of the world.
" However, if you insist on worrying. You can always cover for me, whenever I sneak out. I can't reveal where I go to, nor should you try to find it, cause then I might have to stop being nice. So, can you do that? " Mei asked with a gentle smile.
Chojuro felt his legs tremble at the sight of that sweet, but lethal smile, that boasted of her Kage prowess.
' Going against her will not do me any good, I don't want to get beat up, or worse for my insubordination ' Chojuro thought.
" I can do that, with me you have nothing to worry about. But how long will you be gone, everytime you do this sneak out? " He asked.
Mei Terumi looks up to the ceiling, feigning deep thought, " it depends. But when I leave I'll call for you, so always be on standby at the next office, alright? You may leave " she said.
Chojuro sighed, knowing he wasn't going to get more than that, he bowed his head and abdicates the room.
Once Chojuro was gone, Mei eased into her chair, and heaves a sigh before looking towards the mask she had covered her face with to the left of her on the table. Staring at the mask she was reminded of the blond...
" How did you know it was me? " Mei Terumi had asked.
Naruto had just made an end to taking selfies with those whom had the device for it, and awkwardly being requested to sign an autograph, something Mei Terumi was surprised to see him able to do, and with a perfect calligraphy skill.
So when she had managed to get him back to her side, she had asked, (" How did you know it was me? " )
" Among a thousand, the Mizukage will always stand out, whether with a mask or a psuedo appearance " Naruto had replied with his hands in his pockets.
Mei Terumi at that point could no longer say she was surprised, she was astonished at the wisdom by which he spoke. That she looked at him with some suspicion and asked,
" are you sure you're the real Naruto?, "
Naruto chuckled at this question, and Mei Terumi swore her heart almost jumped to her throat hearing the sound of it. No. Her suspicions grew.
' This can't really be that loud, heroic brat from the war, could it? ' she thought.
" Your suspicion is understandable, since I'm not so loud about my business anymore. Now, those days seem to be getting more far away, the more I stop feeling like a child who needs to prove himself worthy of his peoples acceptance " Naruto had said looking ahead with some wistfulness.
Feeling trapped by those alluring words once again, Mei Terumi proceeded to pull out his left hand from his hoodie's pocket, and place the hand on his heart beating chest with her own smaller hand over it.
Naruto looked looked down at her slightly stunned.
" The kid you once were will never be truly gone, but do embrace the maturity that comes with age and grow up the way you want, that you don't end up like me or the other Kages before you " she said with a small smile.
Naruto pulls out his bandaged arm, and place it upon the Mizukage's head, thus he closes his eyes briefly with a smile as he ruffles the top of her long auburn hair.
' Mei Terumi, punch him right now, do it ' said a corner of her mind.
Unfortunately, Mei Terumi couldn't listen to what her mind was saying, and just focused on this new, weird, but ultimately nice feeling.
" The other Kages might be stiff necked sometimes, but you and Gaara are truly one of the most amazing Kages I've ever seen. " Naruto had said.
But after a few seconds, Mei Terumi felt Naruto's hand heat up against hers, and when her gaze went up to see what had changed, she noticed beads of sweat on his forehead. Immediately, she lifts her hand to his forehead, and discovers that was hot too.
" Naruto, are you okay? I think you might have a fever " she whispered.
" Yeah, I do feel slightly lightheaded. I must have exerted a lot of chakra, when coming over " He said stepping a few inches back.
Naruto placed a hand at the base of his own head.
" We have a room prepared for you, I'll have someone escort you. You should get some rest, tomorrow is a big day. Can you make it? " Mei Terumi asked empathetically.
Naruto smiles. " I'm Naruto Uzumaki, yeah, I'll make it. Believe it " He said with a little bit of charisma.
Mei Terumi smiled as well, then she waved her hand and called out for Yumi. . .
At the end of the reminiscing, Mei Terumi wondered if the fever had subsided.
" It shouldn't last long, he does have the nine tails inside him. The tailed beast should be able to speed up his recovery, right? " she asked herself.
" Nah, he'll be fine... "
Mei Terumi sat still for sometime, before a thought won over, and immediately she got up and left her office. The Mizukage made her way to the small office, which Chojuro occupied, and she found the blue haired to be resting his head upon the table.
However at the opening of the door, Chojuro lifts his head to gaze upon the only intruder he knew would come into his office without knocking.
" You're leaving, this late? Why " He questioned, " classified. Now if anyone should come over and ask for me, tell them I have retired into my chamber for the night " she said.
" But that's what everyone's going to think though, no one is going to bother the Mizukage this late, except if the moon was falling and thank the heavens that's not the case again ".
" Oh, I didn't think of it that way. Well have yourself a good night then " said Mei before leaving Chojuro's office, and closing the door behind her, leaving the young man to look on perplexed...
Mei Terumi avoided anyone that she found roaming about, with her white cloak still on, and her hood now back over her head. With stealth and speedy movements, she made it to the luxury lodge Naruto occupied, and immediately went in to find his room.
Standing in front of it, Mei Terumi tentatively knocked on the door at first, before gathering more courage to properly knock on the door. Five minutes passed and there was not a single response, and as she was about to concede in belief that Naruto had fallen asleep, she heard the door click.
Slowly the door opens up, till Mei Terumi could see the man standing at the other end of it. Mei Terumi's eyes widens slowly, at the naked work of art, whom shot his arm out and grabs her by the cloak, and with that pulls her into the room, then the door slams close.