This was not how Naruto imagined his weekend. To be honest, he didn't really imagine his weekends since it was just another day for him, but on Saturday morning, Naruto woke up to his father throwing him over his shoulder.
Naruto tried to ask what was happening, but his father just told him he would know once they got there. Naruto trusted his father, so he just accepted his fate. His father went to Kakashi's apartment next and grabbed the jonin, then Hiraishined them all.
Naruto didn't expect to find himself in a hot spring in his sleeping Yukata, but here he was. His father talked to the front desk worker, and they were let in. Minato then announced that they were in a hot spring in a village near Taki known for its healing abilities.
Jiraiya was the one who found the location for them and was waiting for them in the hot spring. They all knew it wouldn't help Naruto, but it was a way to spend time together. So they all went into the changing room.
They got rid of their clothing and, after a quick wash, joined Jiraiya in the spring. Naruto basked in the smell of minerals and feeling of his muscles relaxing in the hot water. "So gaki. Heard you got yourself into a situation." Jiraiya said, moving to sit a bit closer to Naruto.
"Yes, Jiraiya-sama. I'm afraid it was all my fault for rushing into an unknown situation. Now my friends are paying the price." Naruto lowered his gaze. He couldn't look Jiraiya in the eyes. Every day that passed, his friends had to struggle with the consequences of his actions.
He wasn't worried about himself, but he couldn't let Itachi or Shisui take permanent damage because of him. It was always his duty to stop Zetsu, but he dragged Shisui and Itachi along, naively believing that together they could be invincible.
Naruto suddenly felt a giant hand on his shoulder and looked up to see Jiraiya looking at him with a soft expression. "Hey. I might not have known you for long or spent much time with you but based on everything I've seen from others, I know what you say is not true."
"You are a good kid, and it's clear as a day from how everyone talks about you. You're just a child, yet you've managed to change so many things for the better. You made changes to the foundation of this village and managed to bring back Tsunade."
"She's told me about how much happier she is knowing that the legacy of his family is finally being held the way it was meant to be. She became a healer just like many other Senju because she always wanted to preserve life instead of taking it."
"Now, with all the changes made to the hospital and the academy, she can train the next generation so that there would be fewer pointless death in the field. For the first time in years, I can see a small flame in her soul."
"I can also say the same about Orochimaru. Like Tsunade, he felt lost. I could see how he was getting deeper into the shadows, but now, he seemed free. I haven't seen my teammates like this for years, and it's not just them."
"From what Minato told me, all clan leaders are taking more active roles in the council meetings, and they are all trying to make this village a better place. Don't even get me started with all the work you've been doing on the side. Helping the orphanage and families who were victims of the Kyubi attack. Helping retired Shinobi in finding new jobs and roles."
"You've changed so much in a minimal time, and you never take credit for any of it. Outside the council and those you helped directly, nobody knows about your achievements. My point is that you are not the type of person who would put his friends in danger if he knows there is a possibility."
"I've seen the report, and based on what I've read, I can say that it was not your fault. None of you could have predicted this situation. While knowing this will not change the outcome, I can tell you for certain that we will find a solution."
"Tsunade and Orochimaru have been working nonstop. I've been searching all around with my spy network to see if there has ever been a similar situation. The clan heads are all contributing with their skills as much as they can, and I know for a fact the Minato's been searching everywhere too."
"We will find the answer, and we will find it soon. So don't even think about blaming yourself or losing hope." Jiraiya said. Naruto felt his vision blur from unshed tears, and he then felt a strong pair of arms embracing him from behind. Naruto turned to see his father. His eyes were also red from tears.
He brought Naruto closer to himself, burying his face into Naruto's hair. "I promise you, my son, I will find the cure, and I will fix everything. I won't let anything hurt you in this world." Minato whispered into his ear.
The trip served as a waking call for Naruto. He couldn't spend any more time thinking about how things could have been. He quickly put some of his emergency plans into action. His spy clone network was already at work.
His ROOT agents were also searching. But now He began sending notes to everyone he knew outside of Konoha. He set a meeting with Yugito since she was the closest Jinchuuriki to his location. She had a mission outside the fire country borders and could get herself into the location Naruto had in mind.
They only met each other once before, barely a few days after the peace treaty. At first, she was very wary, but that was to be expected. After giving her back her memories, Naruto couldn't claim them to be friends, but they formed a professional work relationship.
They would update each other on Akautski's movements and related information and help each other with tasks related to their Bijuu but otherwise ignore each other. Naruto couldn't say he was unsatisfied with the situation since they were never close in the past as well.
Naruto was now heading to a particular cave hidden by seals in the fire border. He was accompanied by Fu and Torune. He left a note for Danzo explaining his absence as he was following a lead to find a cure with one of his contacts.
It wasn't a complete lie since Yugito was supposed to see if she could connect to Kurama and hopefully get some answers. Naruto explained the situation to her in the note he sent her. But it was short and to the point, with an explanation of how she could get to the cave.
They were early, and it would still be half a day before she could reach them, even if she was on her way the second she read the letter. Fu and Torune have been a lot of help since this whole situation started. Naruto trusted them with their duties to keep everything going without him.
They were in charge of training others and assigning missions. Of course, Naruto would always get reports and general consultations as the person who had the last say in decisions, but Naruto was sure of their actions, so it was only formality.
Currently, since Naruto was banned from chakra use, they carried him to the cave and set the privacy seals Naruto gave them. Nowadays, they self-appointed themselves to take care of all tasks that Naruto wanted to perform that needed the use of chakra.
They would test the seals he made or organize new reports into the appointed sealing scrolls after Naruto went through them. Naruto felt like a newborn baby with them as his caretakers. They were always shadowing him. Acting as his bodyguards.
Naruto tried to tell them that it was not necessary, but they were insistent. Naruto hasn't seen Shisui and Itachi since they were released from the hospital, but from what he heard, the Uchiha clan was giving them a similar treatment.
Naruto sat by the fire made by a small Katon jutsu Fu used and enjoyed the peace and quiet.
Yugito came early in the morning. She was a bit ruffled from the travel but otherwise had no injuries. Fu and Torune made sure to give the two some distance but still be in Yugito's field of vision in order to not be perceived as a threat.
"Thank you for coming, Yugito-san. I know how dangerous this could be." Naruto said.
"Let's just get to the business. There is no need to beat around the bush." She said as she sat down in front of Naruto.
"In my last mission, I came into contact with a peculiar disease. I will not waste our time by explaining much about it other than the fact that it is not contagious and it's a remnant of an extinct clan. I am currently unable to use chakra since it will advance my situation."
"The reason I asked for your expertise is that since the beginning of this whole ordeal, I've been unable to contact my tenant. I was hoping you could reach into my seal and hopefully tell me about the situation." Naruto said.
Yugito took a minute to think. "Fine, we can try and use B's method to try. Is there anything, in particular, you want us to check for?" She asked.
"No thank you. Just a general check of his situation and the seal will suffice." Naruto said before moving a little to be right in front of her.
They held each other's hands and started meditating. Yugito tried for a long while, but there was no reaction from his seal. She was trying different angles and methods trying to get a response from his seal and even going as far as pouring some of her Bijuu chakra into it.
Nothing worked, and in the end, they decided to call it quits. "I'm afraid all we got from the seal is that he is in a dormant state. It is similar to how Bijuu feel when they are reforming after death but before being fully conscious. I'm afraid there isn't anything else I can do." She said as she got up to leave.
"Thank you for trying, Yugito-san. I will update you when I acquire more information." Naruto said as he bid her goodbye.
Naruto was lazing in one of the training grounds with Tora when he was informed of the first breakthrough. He rushed to Orochimaru's lab finding him in a heated discussion with Tsunade.
"I'm telling you, we can't use that serum. The effects will…" Tsunade started.
"I know what you are saying, hime, but at this rate, that is our only option." Orochimaru cut her off.
Naruto decided to announce his presence with a cough. "I'm to interrupt, but I was told you wanted to see me."
"It's alright, Naruto-kun. Please have a seat." Orochimaru pointed to a couch as he and Tsunade took the one in front of it.
"Let's get to the point. Shall we? You are already aware of the situation. We are still searching for a way to permanently get rid of all the particles. This must be done before there is irreparable damage. Your case is much more dire than others, and at this point, we must make decisions."
"Even with all the precautions, you are advancing rapidly, and at this point, if we don't make decisions, you will only have two months. However, what we can do for now is to perform the surgery. We will not be able to eradicate the particles, but we can remove a part of your lungs that is most affected."
"This way, there would be fewer particles, and their multiplication speed will be reduced. However, there are several dangers to this course. The first one is that there could be no chakra used in the surgery since it can cause the particles to spread from their normal cluster form, and it would be no use to remove part of the lungs."
"This, in turn, will cause a long and dangerous recovery time for you. This surgery can buy us more time, by our estimation, about two more months, but it can be performed only once, and if we do not find a cure by the end of four months, there will be no chance of survival for you." Orochimaru explained.
"I will take the surgery," Naruto said. He didn't really have a choice. Soon into their experiments, they found out that no method of body preservation or stasis seals could stop the advancements of the particles, and their only option was to find a cure.
"Gaki, think this carefully. There is a chance we can find the cure within these 2 months, but if we perform the surgery, you will use part of your lungs. Even if everything goes perfectly and the surgery is a success, you will have lifelong consequences to suffer." Tsunade said.
"It is ok Tsunade-sama. I understand, but I don't want to rush you into an impossible task. I know that the surgery can buy you more time to work on a cure, so I will take it." Naruto said.
Tsunade stared him down before breaking into a sigh. "Fine. Here is how it will go. We will inject you with the serum we developed. It will slow down particles for a period of time, allowing us to do the surgery. Then …"
