Naruto was heading towards Kiri with his team. When he first brought the matter to Danzo, they discussed strategies for a while. The best solution was to go with a team and also have Uchiha on the team.
When his clone gave him the memory, he was confused. Mei and her rebel forces had finally got their hands on some factual information. Naruto knew that Yagura was under a sharingan genjutsu, but he couldn't just say it without any evidence.
He also didn't want to bring attention to the Uchiha and possibly cause a war. Instead, he tried planting clones in hopes of them getting captured. These clones were supposed to act as guards in the Mizukage tower, and if they got captured, they were to give the same vague information.
That they heard whispers coming from Mizukage's office at night. That there were times as if he was talking to himself. That sometimes they could hear another voice coming from the office. That they suspected that someone was controlling their Kage.
There was, of course, a bit of variation to their information. After some effort of getting the first clone captured and putting the idea in the rebel forces head, all he had to do was to also spread this information across the other guards as a rumor.
Finally, the idea had taken root, and the rebel forces were all comparing information. How Yagura's attitude suddenly changed, and he became a completely different person. There were many rebels who used to be in high positions and close to Yagura.
Now they had the question of breaking the genjutsu. None of them were able to get close enough to him to break the genjutsu, and there was also the fact that Kiri was not an expert in this subject.
The rebels couldn't possibly ask for help from another nation since other nations were benefitting from the civil war. But Naruto's clone was ready. He had a meeting with Mei when he informed her that he had connections in Konoha and could set up a route to negotiate with the Hokage.
And that was why Naruto was now heading toward Kiri with his team. Kakashi, Yugao, Shisui, and Itachi were chosen for the team. Kakashi was officially in charge and responsible for negotiations, and Itachi and Shisui were there for genjutsu expertise.
Yugao was there for backup in case there was a confrontation, and Naruto was a seal master who could get them out of sticky situations. Of course, Konoha couldn't fully trust the Kiri rebels.
Naruto had to pretend that it was one of his summons who was the infiltrator, but it wasn't that hard to make up a story that satisfied both Hokage and Danzo. The team was only there to make the first contact.
They were not going to act unless Kakashi ordered so. They were going to negotiate terms and send the results to Konoha, and only when Hokage and the council came to an agreement were they to proceed.
Currently, it was nighttime, and they were camping in a clearing. Their perimeter was secured with seals and traps so they could all use the rest. They would reach their meeting point by mid-morning, so they wanted to rest before going forward.
Naruto was tired from the overuse of chakra in his feet, so he was now sitting on the ground while Itachi was applying a salve to his feet while Shisui was lecturing him.
"For the last time, Shisui. I'm fine. I even told you when I needed rest. My tenketsu are just sore. I will be fine by the morning." Naruto said, rolling his eyes.
"Healing by morning doesn't mean you have to endure the pain. Your body is still growing, and you shouldn't stress your tenketsu so much. I don't want to hear it anymore. If you are tired, you will tell us, or I will carry you princess-style wherever we go." Shisui said. Naruto also heard Kakashi snort and Yugao holding back laughter. Itachi finally finished with the salve and wrapped a bandage over his feet.
"Come on, what is next? You will tell me to go to bed because it's past my bedtime and ask me if I brushed my teeth or not?" Naruto asked, folding his arms over his chest.
"As a matter of fact. Yes. Also, I know you brushed your teeth, so now it's time for bed." Shisui said as he threw Naruto over his shoulder and headed to their shared tent. Naruto struggled halfheartedly.
He was kicking and punching in Shisui's hold, but his hold on Naruto was secure. Naruto tried cursing at him, but that was when Shisui smacked his back. "No swearing chibi. Bad kids get a spanking." Shisui said, trying to control his own laughter.
Finally, Shisui threw him on the middle bedroll between Itachi's and his. Since they were in unknown territory, it was safer to share tents. This was helpful in case there was an attack.
If more people were in a tent, there was a higher chance for them to notice if someone came inside the tent or tried to attack them in sleep. Even if the intruder could get inside unnoticed and attack one of them, others would immediately wake up and help, giving them a higher survival chance.
That was why the three of them were sharing a tent while Yugao and Kakashi were sharing the other one. Shisui wrestled Naruto to the ground and wrapped him in a blanket. "Now you will stay put and sleep. Itachi and I will join you soon." Shisui said as he patted Naruto's head.
"I'm getting you back for this when we return. You're going to regret every second of it. I AM NOT A BABY." Naruto yelled, frustrated.
"What's that chibi? You want me to use genjutsu to put you to sleep?" He asked with a big smile and an evil glint in his eyes.
Naruto decided not to push his luck and closed his eyes to sleep. "That's what I thought," Shisui said as he left the tent with a snort.
They were a bit early to their meeting point. Naruto was using his sensory abilities to track the greeting party. They would be there shortly, so he warned his team. Kakashi was standing in the front with Yugao to his right and Shisui to his left. Itachi and Naruto were standing in the back.
Naruto felt five people coming their way, as it was customary to match numbers on both sides in such cases. There were more people in the distance. Far enough not to be part of the conversation but close enough to back up in case a fight broke out.
The greeting party consisted of Mei, Zabuza, Ao, and Two other Shinobi Naruto didn't recognize. After a round of polite greetings and a jab to Naruto's age which he didn't react to, it was time to get to business.
The conversation was short and to the point. They had to first come to an initial agreement to proceed with the formalizations. Thankfully Konoha didn't want to push the matter too much.
Their terms mainly were that they would assist the rebels to end the war, and in turn, whoever would be the Mizukage after the ordeal was to sign an alliance with Konoha. There were also details like a percentage of the missions from the land of water would be given to Konoha for a period of time after Kiri was back at its feet.
Also, Konoha would provide them with protection while they were rebuilding and so on. There were also going to be new trading routes and other details, but none of them were too taxing for Kiri to accept.
Since the initial terms were acceptable, they were invited to one of the rebels' hideouts to discuss the details. Naurto was using his abilities on high alert. He didn't suspect Mei to betray them, but there was no guarantee that there wasn't a traitor in the rebel forces.
He couldn't afford to let an accident happen, so he had to be alert. He could feel that the others were the same. Itachi was walking closer to him, and Yugao and Kakashi were acting as a shield.
They were given a tent just like the other rebels. The hideout was a big natural underground cave. It had an underground stream, and the position was well hidden. They headed to their tent to unpack and wait for Kakashi's orders.
They had to wait for hours, and a simple meal was brought to them by a guard. Of course, Naruto checked everything for poison before letting the others eat. They ate and sat in silence.
Naruto was helping Shisui with a seal he was working on, and Itachi was sharpening his kunai. Finally, after what felt like forever, a guard came to summon them to the main tent. They quickly put their stuff away before following.
The tent was big but simple. There was no decoration inside, just a few bookshelves with various books and scrolls. There was a hastily put-up curtain in the middle of the tent. Probably to keep them from seeing anything confidential. Everything else was neat and in place.
Kakashi and Mei were sitting on both sides of a small table, with Yugao behind Kakashi and Zabuza behind Mei. Ao was seated between the two. There were many sheets and scrolls spread across the table.
Shisui walked in front of the other two as they approached the table. "We came to the start of an agreement," Kakashi said straight to the point. He looked calm, so Naruto wasn't worried.
"We are going to stay here for the next month for all the details to get completed. For now, you are going to help with the tasks you will be assigned to. Shisui, Itachi. You two are going to work under Ao-san. He is going to use your expertise in genjutsu to help the rebels."
"Naruto. You will work with Momochi-san. Give him a list of seals you can make and help with all fuinjutsu-related tasks." Kakashi said.
"Hai," they said in unison. Ao signaled for Itachi and Shisui to follow him, and Naruto followed Zabuza outside. They walked outside the base to a clearing. Zabuza used his sensing abilities to make sure there was no one around before turning to face Naruto.
"Brat, since you are assigned to me, let's set some ground rules. You will follow my orders without question. Who even assigned you to this mission? Can you even fight?" He asked.
"Yes, Momochi-san. I am currently a chunin. Do you want me to tell you about my skills?" Naruto asked innocently.
"You are too young for formalities. Call me by my name and go on." Zabuza said, amused.
"I am a seal master. My specialty is in barrier and protection seals. I can make all sorts of basic seals and modify them as well. I am proficient in ninjutsu and taijutsu. I can also use a variety of weapons." Naruto said.
"Well, the seals can be tested later. As for the other things, I will test you myself." Zabuza said with a snort and took a fighting stance.
Naruto quickly unsealed his weapon. It was something he took from Uzushio. It took him a while to modify the seals and adjust them for his needs. It took even longer time for him to master the weapon.
Now he was finally confident in his ability to use a spear. It wasn't a regular spear. There were seals engraved all over it. It was sharp on both ends and very light. Naruto was a wind nature, so he didn't need much power behind his hits to cause damage.
Instead, he relied on his small size and speed. The spear could give him enough reach to get to the opponents without getting too close. It was handy against kenjutsu users.
Naruto adjusted his grip on the middle part. He took his stance and stared Zabuza in the eye. The next moment they both charged.
