With the problem solved, The Shinobi learned about the Otsutsuki living on the moon. However, with the addition of Hinata to the game, the balance was once again skewed towards Konoha in an extreme manner.
For the sake peace and balance, the Raikage and Tsuchikage continued their effort to convince Toneri to stand as their leader while also focusing on their research to build another back up.
They had already seen what could happen when one person had all the power at his disposal. Madara Uchiha had cemented that nightmare into their souls.
Regardless of the balance, things were looking positive for humanity with the addition of two transcendent fighters and if they continued with their current plans then they should have seven more.
The threat was neutralized, but the bigger threat was at large and was playing them like a fiddle. The Shinobi Alliance was on full alert for anything that seemed suspicious, even if it seemed outlandish. Naruto returned back to his training with the Great Sage while leaving clones with his other teachers.
He wasn't used to managing so much information that was complex in nature, so Ino was assigned to help him absorb the information properly and not lose all that data.
Choji became his personal nutritionist, Lee and Gai became his physical trainer, Shikamaru and Kakashi became his teachers of strategy and public management, Sakura and Shizune became his poison and healing teachers, Tenten became his weapon instructor, and Kiba along with Shino helped him learn about taking care of beasts.
Hiashi and Hinata continued to help him improve his taijutsu skills while also introducing him to the legendary weapon creator of the current century. The man was known as Gram and he had created multiple powerful weapons like the Seven Swords of Kiri.
Naruto started his training will full force to not waste any moment. He was learning and utilizing his knowledge in real time with his Elite Force and his students while also keeping watch over the world. He was watching the research being done, so as to avoid any unethical action.
He kept a clone in each part of the globe to sense any problem. Though it was difficult, Naruto didn't mind it and wished to only lessen the darkness of the world. He was also focused on fully healing the world after the damage it had endured from the war.
With all these going on, it seemed that time had sped up and just like that a month had passed. In just a month, there had been great changes inside of Naruto as he had fully adapted to Sasuke's eyes.
The process had been accelerated by Orochimaru's help, as the man had mixed up Sasuke's DNA into Naruto's DNA. He had also awakened the dormant Uzumaki Genes along with sticking Senju, Kaguya and Hyuga Genes into Naruto to make him closer to an Otsutsuki.
Though Naruto hadn't become an Otsutsuki, he had greatly changed in power and his chakra had become even heavier.
With the help from Choji, Naruto had consumed great amounts of monsters with humongous large force that had led to his life force increasing further along with his physical stats.
Lee and Gai's training from Hell had fully utilized the nutrition that Naruto was taking in. The duo had let go of all hesitations after the war, they would die trying to surpass the mortal limits and their training for Naruto showed that belief.
Naruto had broken his bones, bled his body dry, and crushed his body and so much more to develop his stats in base form without any chakra.
The duo was even working on an insane concept surpassing the 8 Gates, The 12 Gates. Gai had been working on it since he inherited the 8 Gates from his father. The 8 Gates themselves were a concept that seemed to have become a reality through the research started by Otsutsuki clan. However, the Sage had termed 12 gates of Immortality.
The Gate of Opening, located in the brain. This gate removed the restraints of the brain on the muscles so 100% of their strength can be used whereas normally, a person could only use 20% of their muscles' strength to keep them from disintegrating.
The other gates are the Gate of Healing, The Gate of Life, The Gate of Pain, The Gate of Limit, The Gate of View, The Gate of Wonder and The Gate of Death. These gates cause the user to rip their muscles to shreds, to bleeding, to intense heating of the body and finally death for a boost in power that could be termed a miracle.
Might Guy who was above normal Jounin Ninja, but still weaker than a Kage was able to fight Juubidara when he opened his 8 Gates. The power boost could be termed more than a 1000 times since Guy was nowhere close to even country level in power.
The boost was attractive but most people wouldn't even try it because of the fear of death. They wouldn't even need to reach the eighth gate, as some had even died on the second.
Someone like Naruto who had enormous chakra wouldn't even survive the second gate as the large ocean of chakra would consume his very being.
Regardless of the miraculous power, the sage had four more gates that were in need of exploration.
The Gate of Earth, it was gate that one could achieve after going through the gate of death and establishing contact with the earth below their feet.
Once one had achieved connection with the earth, the user could go to the next gate. The Gate of Souls was done through the connection with the spiritual world.
Beyond that was the Gate of Cosmos, and it was the connection with the universe at large. The final Gate was The Gate of Heaven, which established connection with the higher realm and caused the user to ascend above their mortal form.
All these were theories since no one had actually passed the Gate of Death and survived before to establish the Gate of Earth.
However, Gai had survived through the Gate and he could feel the connection. He just needed to pave the way and establish the path of the Ninth Gate.
With such news, Naruto and the others were further hopeful about their future.
Moving on, Naruto had learnt a lot under the Great Sage and managed to increase the nature energy of the planet. Helping the monsters around the world grow along with the animals, Naruto had further caused a change charging up the planet with large amounts of nature energy that it seemed to leaking huge amounts. It was done with the growth of humanity in mind as the energy would seep into every being and help them adapt to the increase in power.
Though he was mostly focused on few special individuals, there was a possibility that some unknown individual might awaken like Ai. So he didn't forget about the world at large and helped them grow as well.
Of course not everything was positive because it also caused venom, bacteria and viruses to evolve as well, making them even more dangerous. It kept the medical ninja on their toes and helped them continue improving their skills.
With the help of Kiba and Shino, Naruto further understood the process of growing monsters and it helped in helping the Legendary Beasts around the globe. He had collected them and gave them to the few chosen warriors for fusion.
Within a short time, the amount of people with power on the level of Hashirama had increased exponentially.
The weapon making process was still in the learning phase as Naruto didn't want to waste resources and even his teachers told him to act patiently.
There was also the improvement in puppet technology because of the Otsutsuki puppets and weaponry because of the access to the Sage weapons, plus better resources because of the change in nature energy and Naruto's chakra.
Nonetheless, Naruto and the world around him gone through major changes within a month and everyone was happy about it except the evil beings around them.
Moving on, during the month the shinobi alliance wasn't only working on what they understood at the point but also looking for further methods of improvement.
There was the legendary Peach of Immortality that granted one thousand years of life and great power, doubles the physical stats and energy. It also prevented the eater from feeling any fatigue or nourishment for three months.
There was the Divine Spring water that allowed the consumer to draw out their full potential if they could survive drinking it. It meant that the user would get all the power they would normally achieve over the course of their life.
There was the Hero Water that allowed the drinker to experience ten times increase in chakra for a short time. However, it also reduced the life force of the user.
Finally, there was the star fragment that allowed the user to evolve beyond their current state and create new bloodline abilities.
Among these legendary items, Konoha had only been able to confirm the location of two. The Hero Water was supposed to be in the Waterfall Village where Seven Tail used to stay, but it seems to have been taken away during the war by Star City.
Star City was the location of the star fragment. It was a city located in the region bordering Land of Lightning and Land of Fire, in the Kingdom of Orion.
With the location of two items confirmed, Konoha sent a team to check the situation and retrieve it if possible. Teams were also sent to locate the other legendary items, while researchers continued to go through ancient legends and texts for anything useful.
Kiba, Storm and Shino were dispatched towards Star City while Naruto, Orochi, Hinata and Ino were dispatched towards the ruins of the Land of Whirlpools.
It was an important place connected to Naruto's ancestors while also being the homeland of all fuinjutsu. Naruto was learning fuinjutsu through the book left by the Sage but he also wished to regain some of his ancestry, and avoid letting the Uzumaki Legacy disappearing from the world.
There was also the fact that the there were shinigami masks made by the Uzumaki that allowed them to utilize the power of death. It was too miraculous to be normal that Naruto was dispatched personally to find anything within the ruins.
Finally, Sai, Kurotsuchi, Zoro and Akuma were dispatched towards the other continent to locate other legends and items.
Over the course of the month Naruto had overcome his grief and guilt, and he had changed greatly personality wise. He seemed calmer and wiser as time went on. Though, he had yet to denounce his desire to not kill any living being.
It was the reason that he denied the use of Edo Tensei for back up. However, Orochimaru had gotten full grasp of his personality and decided to use Zetsu clones for it. But, it was still useless since the Shinobi didn't have DNA of anyone strong when compared to the Otsutsuki. And, Naruto wasn't willing to share the DNA of the Otsutsuki brothers.
He was worried about what would happen if they did such a thing because of Hagoromo's warning about Death being conscious.
Plus, he still disagreed with the usage of clones as sacrifices. It seemed inhumane, and with Edo Tensei they would have to sacrifice one clone for each day as it only lasted for a single day.
There was also the option of making clones of the Legends of old or talented individuals, and allowing them to grow with the current resources to create transcendent fighters. Someone like Madara and Hashirama were guaranteed transcendent with these new techniques.
Nonetheless, it also brought back the argument of morality. Was it right to do such a thing? Was it right to artificial create something and speed up its growth, just to fight.
Naruto denied the cold logic of things and had everyone focus on the people that were already present. Instead of trying to create people of old, they should focus on what was already present and make them better.
It seemed like a slippery slope that would lead to the creation of mindless drones, and world where that existed was not a world that deserved to be saved.
"Let's walk there normally, I am tired of this fast pace. And, you are gonna explode if you continue like this." Ino complained as she was extremely annoyed and frustrated by how things had been going for the past month.
She barely had a moment to rest. Yes, it was important to train. It was important to learn new skills. But, it didn't mean they had to hurry everything. It seemed like she hadn't been able to enjoy a single outing since the war.
It was made worse by the fact that she was managing thousands of individuals called Naruto clones, so that the real Naruto doesn't explode his brain or waste all his time by jumbling up all the information. They couldn't afford a mentally challenged Naruto at this moment.
Looking at her friend, Hinata realized she had been sucked into the pace by Naruto. To her every moment with him was bliss, but it wasn't the same for others.
"Naruto, I think we can take it slow for the day. It might be the intention of Lady Tsunade as well." Hinata spoke sweetly as she looked at him with her Tenseigan that had almost fully adapted to her body. She was now strong as Naruto during the war before he received the other Kurama and Sasuke's eyes.
To her it was the best thing that happened in her life, and it made her desire to accompany Naruto through the journey of life a reality.
Within the month, all her inferiority and deep fears had vanished. She was a completely different girl filled with confidence and grace.
"Fine, we will take it slow. But, don't ask me to walk at a normal pace." Naruto had gotten used to such a fast pace that he felt restless when he walked like a normal human. It was because he was still not in full control of his powers. He couldn't make his body work like a normal person anymore, and it felt like everything was moving in slow motion. When he walked like them, it felt tiring and suffocating beyond belief.
"Of course not, did you forget that I already know what you feel. And, are you discriminating between us? You completely ignored my words." Ino narrowed her gaze and stood in front of him, looking between them.
It seems that Naruto had gotten closer to Hinata in the month they spent time together. Ino could also understand why she liked him. She saw what Naruto was, she saw what he did, and she knew everything about him.
It made Ino feel very close to him, and it made her feel awkward at times.
"I was listening to you, but Hinata is different." Naruto smiled happily as he started walking and Hinata giggled as she followed him.
"Hey, was that a confession? Or did you guys tie the knot already?" Ino was intrigued and giddy at the thought of seeing her close friends tie the knot. Though, there was also a small amount of dullness that she felt.
'Shake it off girl; you need to keep things separate.' Ino felt that because she was always managing Naruto that she had started feeling that they were connected.
It was one of the issues that developed from long term usage of the technique on a single person, but there was no other choice.
Naruto would have said yes, but because of Ino things had become strange. He was unsure. In the beginning he didn't even think about her, she was just a friend. However, because of the constant contact on a deep level he had become aware of her and he could also feel the glances from her side.
Now he was unsure about love again, who did he even love?
Shaking his head, "No, but I like her more."
Naruto didn't know who to choose but he was honest with them, to clear away the doubts inside his heart and their hearts.
"Isn't that love? You like her more than the great Ino." Ino winked confidently as she believed herself the most beautiful.
"Is love that simple? I am feeling confused the more I think about it."
"Why are treating it as a task? It is just that simple. Tell me, can you imagine Hinata with another guy? Do you think that you could give up everything in life for the life of that one person?"
"I don't think it is supposed to be like that. Love isn't selfish, it is selfless. It is the person that you wish happiness for no matter what happens."Hinata intervened as she didn't agree with Ino's outlook on love completely.
Naruto listened quietly while remembering the words of Jiraiya, "Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. It is not rude, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres.
It is not a flat line. It fluctuates with time and it has no limits."
Naruto remembered the smile and the words filled with adoration. No matter how much time passed, he continued to love Tsunade. Though Naruto disliked his hobby of sleeping around with women, he respected Jiraiya's perseverance.
It was beautiful. It was sad. It was tragic, as Naruto could see that Tsunade seemed to have warmed up to him and might have even agreed to marriage if death hadn't taken him.
"That was beautiful. I didn't know you could come up with something so romantic." Ino's eyes shined with delight as she heard the somber but beautiful tone filled with depth from the heart.
"It was something Master Jiraiya said when he explained love to me. I feel like I am starting to understand what it meant, but I am still lost on the full picture. What does it mean when I feel attraction towards another individual as well? Am I still in love, or is it just liking someone?" Naruto ended up putting his questions forwards as he wanted to be direct with his emotions. He disliked slinking around the issue as it seems to make things worse for everyone and being direct had made Hinata happy since he actually showed some affection.
"It can be either as you can love more than one person." Hinata responded to his query calmly while her heart was beating wildly, hope and fear fighting each other. It would be a terrible setback if Naruto thought it wasn't love, but just a like.
It had taken a month of work to help Naruto actually understand what love meant since the blockheaded savior had no understanding of the concept. He didn't really delve deep into it and just followed the surface level. He couldn't even separate it from his love for Ramen or other things that he liked.
It was a mess inside his head because of his isolation. It could only be blamed on Hiruzen, Kakashi and Jiraiya for the neglect that you g Naruto had received in the time when people laid foundation of the child. It was lucky that Naruto wasn't completely broken or evil because of what had happened to him. It was also fortunate that Kurama actually had morals and never tried to manipulate kid Naruto.
Ino was surprised by Hinata's words, but after a moment she thought it made sense. Hinata was selfless in her love that she wouldn't mind Naruto being with someone else.
The fact that Hinata said it made her a little happy.
'Am I really falling for Naruto? Really? How could it be Naruto? He doesn't even look hot.' Ino denied the positive emotions she had started feeling for Naruto. It was only being cemented further by their constant connection.
"How about taking us both, and let's see if it works out?" Ino looked at the sky before jumping into his arms and saying it.
She wasn't the type to hesitate when it felt like it was a strong attraction. There was a time when she had even confessed and followed boys when it was just a shallow attraction. On the other hand, it was different with Naruto.
From the moment she had seen him fight in the chuunin exams, her mind remembered him and his image continued to grow since that moment.
It had reached a peak during the Pain Invasion and went further during the war. She had felt reverence and hope because of Naruto. That feeling continued to grow and reached a new height once she saw inside of him.
The fact that he continued to fight selflessly, and loved the world, completely won her over during the month. He was the best person anyone could ask for and since it seemed like there was a chance, Ino wanted to take it.
There was still time before Naruto started becoming something beyond the normal man and time before she felt only reverence for him.
It took Naruto by surprise that he could only stutter at what she had just said. He teleported from her embrace and stood behind Hinata who was similarly shocked. She couldn't believe that Ino had ended up liking Naruto.
They were friends obviously, but Ino was too shallow of a person to consider anyone that was not extremely good looking like Sasuke or Sai.
Hinata didn't think the same and found Naruto the most attractive looking, but the general public's opinion matched Ino's.
"What are you even saying?" Naruto asked as he put Hinata in front of him.
"Don't you like me? It can't be Sakura, so it has to be me. I am the only one you have been so close to, Naruto. You like me, don't you." Ino teased while full of confidence especially after seeing his reaction.
"Naruto, is it true?"
Seeing her pure gaze, Naruto could only nod, "I am unsure, maybe it is just some feeling because we are so close to each constantly. Maybe it could go away once we take some distance."
"Why not give it a chance? Are you afraid of failure?" Ino stopped playing around and asked seriously. Her gaze said much that was left out.
'Am I not good enough? Why don't you want me?'
"I am okay with what you choose. I don't mind sharing with Ino."
Seeing that both of them were fine with testing things out, Naruto gave into the desire of both girls. He had also been thinking about trying things out in reality since pure thinking without action was not his forte.
"Fine, but we will keep it clean."
"How naughty, I didn't know you were such a perv." Ino giggled as she hugged him while Hinata covered her face because of the wild thoughts in her mind.