A New Frontier

by Wickerstein

The strong devour the weak. That has always remained a fundamental law of nature. To think otherwise is farcical. For no matter what, there will always be a winner and a loser.

7. Exposition

Disclaimer: All respective characters and settings belong to their respective franchises.

---

"So, where exactly are we?"

The following hours after Naruto and his party arrived were a blur as they were swiftly spirited to one of Konoha's underground safe houses, the one they were currently occupying among a covert few that only Hiruzen and a handful of trusted subordinates were aware of. After the official disbandment of ROOT, the elderly Hokage took great pains to ensure that anyone short of his own son were privy to them, prudent to foresee that anything of his within Danzo's reach would be used against him. Kakashi being just one of those very people, didn't mince words that in no uncertain terms was Anko to be exempted from the due penalty if she was to betray their trust. She understood the risks and paranoia as nothing against her. Professionally, had she been in Kakashi's place, she wouldn't hesitate to cut down anyone who couldn't be relied on to carry a handkerchief.

The three people of interest were blindfolded for the entire transfer without much complaint. Only Piyomon, who didn't understand the gist of the situation, made fitful attempts to tear hers off. Anko, whose charge she was placed under, promised treats if she desisted until they landed. That did the trick, in one of the tried and true ways to gain a child's cooperation, the irony not lost to her.

The domicile was spacious enough to accommodate up to about five people, with beds, a fully stocked medical wing, and emergency rations to last a good while. No discernable entrance or exit could be made out, ensuring that only those in the know knew the odds and ends. Some cleaning up and a quick change of clothes later, Naruto and his friends were resting their sore bodies after being patched up. Only the young Uzumaki sustained more than minor wounds, but from the time that had passed, Kurama's chakra had done the brunt of healing anything major.

Piyomon was curiously ogling every corner of the white room, sitting up on her cot from across Naruto's, who was given the bare summary by Hiruzen of their location after asking his question. Bokomon was lying down, relieved that the worst had passed. His mood had soured a bit, however, after Hiruzen had asked him and Naruto to surrender their belongings to be inspected. The blonde didn't refuse, seeing no harm and trusting no shenanigans afoot, unlike him, who felt naked and vulnerable without his 'Monoshiri Book'.

Anko was seated to the right of Piyomon's bed, leaning back on her chair with her arms folded under her bust and her left leg slung over the other, keenly observing the avian up close. She was the only one without bandages, her prior injuries healed by being exposed to the shrine's energies, though she was still exhausted for her part in rushing herself and Bokomon to safety.

She really is a kid. From the glint in her eye, to the way she carried herself, Piyomon couldn't have been anything but a child, nescient and naive to the world around her. "Hey," she called to Bokomon, who swiveled his head in her direction as she was thumbing at the avian, "how old is the Tweety Bird here, Doughboy?"

Not minding the nickname, Bokomon answered, "By my estimates, she's about seven months old. Why?"

"Seven months, huh?" Parakeets will have reached sexual maturity by then. "Just curious how development goes for your species. Is it uniform or do others vary?"

"I'd say Digimon grow at a rate that varies depending on their respective lifestyles and species," Bokomon provided as he sat up. "Generally, they learn and grow at roughly faster the rate humans do based on how volatile their evolutionary development is."

"Uh hu," Anko pondered, rubbing her chin. She turned to Piyomon, who was staring closely at a cabinet full of shiny glasses and instruments. "Hey, kid."

"Hm?" Hearing the call directed at her, Piyomon darted her gaze in line with the female human's, whose lips were set in an amiable smile.

"Mind if I ask you a few questions?".

Piyomon blinked, tilting her head curiously. "Questions?"

"Yeah," Anko added. "You know, like your name, where you're from, likes and dislikes. All that jazz."

Piyomon stared at the woman for a long time with a piercingly curious gaze, enough so that it made Anko more than a little unsettled, yet there was no hostility behind her eyes that were green as emeralds. "Okay," she consented meekly, albeit, uncertain as to the nature of the inquiries.

"Nothing too demanding, sweetie, I just want to get to know you," Anko explained gently in an attempt at reassurance.

"Are you…Naru-chan's friend?" Piyomon couldn't help but ask.

"Would it make a difference if I wasn't?" she retorted, laying out a small test to see how she would react.

Piyomon didn't right away, a smidgen of doubt and distrust slowly erupting across her features, shrinking in on herself. The kunoichi figured after the harrowing ordeal she went through, it was only natural to develop a distrust towards strangers.

"You can trust her, Piyomon," Naruto piped up, earning looks from both females. "Dango-neechan is okay in my book. She'll even treat you to some sweets."

Piyomon tilted her head leftward. "That's what she promised me."

"See?" Naruto beamed, earning a huff from the kunoichi, letting the test slide.

"Aren't you the busybody, Short Man," Anko chided him playfully. "But, yes, I just want to get to know you, so we can be friends too."

Piyomon still shrunk from her gaze, but she could tell it was more out of shyness than abject distrust. "Okay. You can ask me."

"Great," Anko started. "First, where are you from?"

"Um…" Piyomon scratched at her head, blindsided. "Where…I'm from? The Digital World?"

"Let me rephrase that. I mean, where you used to live," Anko clarified. "Like a house, a nest or a cave."

The pink avian blinked after some musing. "Uh, in the ground."

"...The ground?" Anko echoed oddly, cocking a brow at her. "Like a hole?"

"Uh hu," Piyomon nodded. "When it was bedtime, I'd dig a hole and sleep underground. In the morning, I'd come out and sunbathe."

Bokomon did her a solid by providing the context. "Most Piyomon start out as a plant type Digimon known as Nyokimon, hence why they need nutrients from the soil."

Anko nodded. "I see. So, why is she a bird now?"

"Because that's natural for Digimon," Bokomon explained with a lecturing air, as if it was obvious. "For just a given example, some evolve from organics into machines, and vice versa. A single Digimon can have over a dozen possibilities of divergent evolutions."

"I see," Anko understood. So, they really were distinct from Summons. "Hey, I've got a question for you."

"Ask away," Bokomon motioned.

"Do you know what a Summoning Familiar is?"

"Summoning Familiar?" Bokomon repeated inquisitively. He folded his arms and sifted through his thoughts. "Not really. What are they?"

"They're basically animals that we shinobi use as companions in battle, possessing anomalous traits and abilities that separates them from normal fauna. Snakes, toads, weasels, hawks, you name it. We only need to sign a contract and execute a technique that summons them to our aid. In a way, they're similar to you Digimon since they happen to be as intelligent as us humans, or should it be the other way around? They don't really evolve, though. At least, not that I know of."

Bokomon ran the info over when it occurred to him. "Oh, you must mean 'Teleportation'."

Anko's features scrunched in minor confusion. "Let me guess. That's what Hagoromo called it?"

Bokomon sensed her puzzlement. "Yeah, why?"

"We more or less already have our own form of that," Anko provided before demonstrating it while still seated, popping in a puff of smoke on the other side of the room and back on the chair, amazing both Piyomon and Naruto, who wowed and clapped at the display.

Bokomon stared at her. "That's not 'Teleportation'. You were just moving really fast."

Anko blinked, hiding her surprise. He dissected the technique after just seeing it once? "That's what we officially call it, and unless it's unanimously decided upon, we're not about to change it from 'Shunshin' to 'Shunkan'. How would you describe Hagoromo's version?"

"That's something of a funny story," Bokomon sheepishly rubbed his head. He then paused. "Actually, a lot of my experiences with Hagoromo are rather funny stories. It was several decades after he went home back to his, or rather, your world here. I was minding my own business studying a new type of flora that I discovered on the other side of the planet, when I was suddenly overcome with this queer sensation, like something was pulling at me. Next thing I knew, I was swallowed up by a puff of white smoke, and after it cleared, there he was, standing in front of me, grinning like an idiot. I was glad to see him of course, but you think the guy could have given me a heads up first."

Anko shook her head in amusement, already liking the real guy behind all the glint and glamor of his legend. "I take it he didn't establish a contract with you to do it?"

"Not really, no," Bokomon shook his head. "Would it have made a difference?" He really wished he had his book for this to jot down.

It's possible that the Rinnegan bypasses the requirements for the Summoning. Anko deduced. With all of the legends surrounding his dōjutsu, it's dicey to sort the fact from the fiction to begin with, but that's just plain cheating. She smirked. What else to expect from a shinobi? But to be able to summon with just a thought, gotta give some credit to the hype.

"Anyway, back to you, Tweety Bird, what are your hobbies?" she asked after panning back to Piyomon.

"Hobbies?"

"You know," Anko went on to specify, "what you do for fun or to kill time."

Piyomon paused in thought. "I'm…not sure. A lot of things are fun to me."

"Like?" Anko prodded.

"Being with Naru-chan and Boko-chan," Piyomon said with an approximation of a smile.

Anko returned it, fairly amused and charmed by how adorable the avian was. "Yes, well, they're your friends, and of course you like being with them, but I'm talking about what you personally find to be fun on your own. What gets the blood pumping, you know? Here's mine. I like to…'convince' people to be a lot nicer when they talk to me. You could say it's part of my job."

"Really?" the pink avian asked, her eyes shining with additional curiosity, while Anko hid the sadistic gleam in hers.

"Yep," Anko boasted, leaning back on her chair to sling an arm over the backrest. "Around these parts, kid, you gotta let people know that you're the toughest badass to ever walk the streets. Otherwise, you'll be the one they walk all over."

"Um…" Piyomon shrunk again, but nodded along regardless, roughly unsure how to respond or give her answer. Anko must have sensed her apprehension, for she leaned in and patted her on the head.

"Man, you really are a kid!" the kunoichi remarked cheerily. "S'okay if you don't feel like talking."

"Sparring…"

"Hm?"

"I like…" Piyomon started shyly, "I like sparring."

"You mean, like when you and Short Man went at it?" Anko elaborated, earning a nod.

"Wait," Naruto shot up on his cot and winced from the soreness, embarrassment forming on his face, "you mean, you saw-"

"Your chances of ever knocking up a girl getting blown to hell?" Anko finished for him, sporting a trollish grin. "Don't worry, Short Man, it's a rite of passage. If not Tweety over here, any other plucky young thing with a song in her heart and a kunai in her hand would have done the deed eventually."

Naruto shuddered, sweating feverishly. "I-I think my balls are still okay."

Anko gestured pointedly at him. "See? There you go. Talk to me when you can get it up."

"That sounds creepy."

"It does," she agreed instantly, sniffing in some air through her nose, "forget I said that. Anyway," she clapped her hands together to rub them vigorously, eager to switch back to the previous subject, "you like to get into a scrap, Tweety?"

"Um, yeah, it was really fun when me and Naru-chan were sparring," Piyomon continued, not understanding most of the terms the woman was using. "And when I was fighting that meanie who was hurting us."

Anko was slightly thrown off by that last part. "That was…fun to you?"

"Uh hu," Piyomon nodded earnestly.

"Even when you were fighting for your lives?"

Piyomon thought for another moment, before answering with a shrug, "Yeah."

"You could have died," Anko tells her bluntly, remembering how Piyomon had nearly been blown to smithereens had it not been for Naruto absorbing most of the blast, now finding the young Digimon's seeming indifference a bit off-putting. "You seriously thought that was fun?"

"I'm guessing you find that odd," Bokomon spoke up, observing them.

"Not as much as most people here would, Doughboy. Konohagakure is governed by a military dictatorship, and we're big on conscription. You could say the brass is spoiled when we've had prodigies who were just toddlers yet still drummed into the service. The difference is, they had a pretty rough idea that what they were getting into wasn't 'fun'. If any of them did or presented psychological abnormalities like psychopathy, we'd bar them from ever becoming shinobi." Unlike villages like Kirigakure, who had no qualms with sick lowlifes in their military. In fact, it was encouraged.

"Well, I can tell you that Piyomon is perfectly sane," Bokomon said matter-of-factly. "For a Digimon. One thing you have to understand is that our species as a whole are born for battle. We have an inherent 'combat instinct' that guides us as both a predisposition for survival and a sense of pride."

"Are there exceptions like you?" Anko wondered aloud, aware of his pacifistic nature.

"Who, me?" Bokomon fumbled, fidgeting on his cot. "Well, uh…I-I used to back when I was younger, but fighting…got kinda old after a while. It happens. These days, I've been more dedicated to the pursuit of knowledge. And it's not just me. There are Digimon who have abstained from violence, but they're still few and far between. There are these small communities who live peaceful lives, you see. I've gone to these very settlements myself to work as a teacher to young Digimon."

Anko didn't even need to read the scholar's body language. Behind his alleged reason, there was something more that he wasn't divulging, but she chose not to pry. People had their secrets, and it was theirs to give if she wasn't actively trying to torture them into spilling their guts out. Much of the time, literally.

A noise soon penetrated the serene ambience of the medical wing. The kunoichi only needed to turn to the pink avian, who was clutching at her stomach, the signs obvious. "I'm hungry…"

"Heh, me too," Naruto chimed in. "Hey, Dango-neechan, you got anything to eat around here?"

"Keep your shirt on, Short Man," Anko rose from her seat to do a stretch, accentuating her curves under the coat she was wearing. "You'll get some grub. We just so happen to have some rations lying around here." She swiveled her head to the scholar. "So, Doughboy, what does Tweety eat? Birdseed?"

Bokomon raised a finger, about to open his mouth, when he was also assaulted by a hunger pang. "Meat. Lots of it."

"I'm gonna have to make a few stops then," Anko grumbled, scratching the back of her head.

In another section of the safe house…

Hiruzen was seated behind a desk, numerous code books and decoding instruments strewn about before him. Splayed out in his view was Bokomon's book. He had eagerly pored over its contents, feeling like a young boy again discovering some lost treasure more valuable than gold, silver and jewels. So far, he hadn't managed to decipher the 'Digimoji' that Bokomon explained was the name of their language. While he had wasted no time in creating copies of the pages Hagoromo had written on (including his illustrations) for their code breakers to take a crack at, he himself was beyond stumped by the complex characters of the alien text.

It would have been a simple matter to ask the scholar to teach them in order to hopefully incorporate it into their codes, but the shinobi in him was enticed by the challenge.

Then there were the…rather crude drawings that he could only presume to be that of the scholar's. He leaned back in his chair, his free index finger and thumb strumming the strands of his goatee. A smile drew itself on his lips, fondly remembering his grandson through them. That smile soon faltered a bit; when was the last time he saw Konohamaru?

The drawings themselves were majorly of unusual and bizarre creatures which he could safely assume were other Digimon. Curiously, many resembled animals. Others looked more mechanical. AncientGreymon had not been hyperbolic on their species' previous moniker of Yōkai, a good number bearing resemblance; or may very well be, what humans long ago caught sightings of. Then, there was the 'Human Digimon' of which he was the most mystified about. If these otherworldly humanoids were about as human as they were, he had reason to be both wary and allured.

He sighed and closed the book, massaging his eyes. The past two days had been an exhausting chore for all of them, most especially, his stress levels. Knowing the things he did now, he wasn't entirely certain how to move forward, just as well as tempted to seek confidence from another. He wished his son was here. If nothing else, but to talk.

He scoffed to himself.

Talk.

Maybe if they had done the bare minimum of communicating like father and son again rather than superior and subordinate, they could have…

No. Mulling over the past was useless. Minato had said to him as much.

It wasn't an accident.

His jaw tightened.

Sensei. The Kyūbi's attack on Konoha, Naruto's birth being compromised…your wife's death. None of it was a coincidence or an accident.

The responsible party, the one who spun the web of tragedies and misfortunes that cultivated Konoha's slow rot from the inside. He would make them pay. Even if he were to not live long enough to see it, he would ensure that the one pulling the strings would face retribution.

It was…

Yet still, reality continues to be cruel.

---

The Digital World…

"We couldn't find anything yet, sir."

"Oh~? Have you tried looking under some rocks, rocks, and more rocks?"

Night had fallen on the mountain where Naruto and WereGarurumon's battle had taken place, mounds of the ruins sprinkling the wide clearing that now composed a good chunk of the peak, like a giant tool had been stabbed smack dab into the very crest.

"Keep looking! The transmission from those fools was over four hours ago. There's bound to be some clues left."

"Yes, Lord Etemon!" Two Gazimon, standing side by side, saluted. Before them was a lanky looking Digimon resembling a monkey wearing an orange jumpsuit, a zipper on the abaxial side of his right forearm, and a stitching on the dorsal bicep, the belly cream colored, his fingernails and toenails exposed. A white tipped long tail wagged languidly from the rear end, the only other accessory besides his sunglasses being a plush yellow teddy bear with red eyes hooked by the right side of his waist.

Etemon clicked his tongue, tapping his foot. "Tch! You think they could have waited for backup to arrive." He swiveled to all the other dozen Gazimon spread about, busily combing through the ruins and barked harshly, "Did you fools have slugs for dinner last night?! Were you slacking off?!"

"Uh, sir?" The Gazimon on the right closest to him leaned in to whisper, "You spent three of those hours doing your daily calisthenics, remember? And, escargot was indeed on the menu last night."

"Your point being?!" Etemon asked archly, a glint shining from his sunglasses under the erected floodlights, reflecting the now trembling minion. "You think I was supposed to get here in-person? Make a dramatic entrance? Some grand introduction? Are you fucking retarded? What are you morons good for when you can't even do some freaking initiative? Because you tools decided to wait for yours truly, we're short two guys and one Spirit!"

Most of the Gazimon winced, submitting to his point, except for one, who was too engrossed in digging through a hole where he caught a distinct scent. His claws raked away at dirt and stones until he touched down on something soft, dark colored and bristly to the touch.

"I found Falcomon, sir!" the Gazimon dutifully called out, notifying his superior.

"Fucking finally!" Etemon boomed in relief, throwing his head back and spreading his arms out, hands balled. "Some damn progress! What's his status?"

He stalked towards the one who found him being helped by another dig out the shinobi avian, seemingly out cold once he was fully extracted. A quick once over and Etemon could tell that he had been through an intense battle.

"Unconscious, but barely alive," the Gazimon taking the bird's pulse noted, aghast at the extent of the damage. "Signs of severe concussion and massive blunt force trauma around the neck and head, third degree burns on his arms and left leg. It's like somebody smashed him against a wall. Repeatedly. A damn miracle he survived this long."

Etemon cocked a curious brow. The report the duo had sent him earlier was fairly prosaic. Targets numbered by three. One was a coward who had sworn off fighting, and the other was a kid by every definition of the word, and lastly, an honest to goodness, flesh and blood human child who couldn't be older than eleven or twelve. The report didn't expound any additional details like late arrivals or reinforcements, and surely none of his well trained soldiers could be taken down so easily by a bunch of mere brats. It wasn't just unlikely. It was unprecedented.

"Let's bring him back to base," Etemon ordered, rounding towards their ship; a gray zeppelin with his likeness etched on the nose cone giving a toothy smile and a thumbs up. "He's got some explaining to do and I need a drink. Stat!"

As they were about to lift off after his men had filed in with their equipment, Etemon threw one last glance at the mountain, hanging precariously from the door, irritation nagging at the back of his mind. Ultimate power had been within his grasp, and it had somehow been wrenched away from him by a bunch of snot nosed, cookie tossing guttersnipes. If he had been in a more sour mood, he would have slaughtered his entire accompaniment and thrash the blasted mountain altogether. At least, his old self would have. Now? He was mindful of the business. It simply wouldn't do to lose his temper at such a delicate time when he had other matters that demanded his focus.

---

Back at the safe house…

Kakashi was stumped as he twirled the curious device in his right hand, his left cradling his head lazily. He yawned, having spent the first half hour in another room doing what the Hokage tasked him with - determine how Naruto's D-Scanner functioned and if it could prove valuable to Konoha. A small pit in his stomach reminded him drily that tech fell under Anko's field of expertise. So, he had done the next best thing.

Breaking it.

Or, he would have, had the darn thing not proven itself to be mind numbingly resilient. From how it had seemingly endured the thrashing and punishment Naruto was dealt with by the beast that was WereGarurumon, a keenness to find out just how tough the handheld was. He started with the usual treatment - stomps, stabbing and scraping it with a kunai, and pitching it at the wall with all his strength. Several times. Nothing had yielded so much as a scratch. Not even a hairline crack.

Next, the gloves came off, electrocuting it with a Chidori (One Thousand Birds) until his chakra reserves were close to depleted. He wasn't even sure that did anything as he could not get it to work from the start. Not even a blink. It could be that only Naruto could, or that it had something of a will of its own in selecting who it worked for, since the scholar was able to, but until he could see a firsthand demonstration, all he could do now is flip and juggle it around like a knickknack. To think that such a small device could hold so much potential, and housed within it was a power that could rival a Tailed Beast.

Asura…

Why had he been called that name? Who was this Asura? Mysteries and questions swirled in the same pit of his belly, but nothing too vexing. Perhaps it wasn't anything too important, and he prayed to whatever God was out there (excluding a certain host computer) that it wasn't going to bite him in the ass. Maybe.

He let out a sigh.

To think that he had met his Sensei again. Whether it was to be the very last time hadn't even crossed his mind. He was just glad to be given some much needed closure.

I will find Obito, but maybe I need to take things slow first. For now, I'm more needed here.

His thoughts wandered to Naruto. I need to give back. Make up for time. Sensei would want me to be of help to his son. But…

Would he do it right? Was he even capable of fulfilling the role of a teacher? In any other time, he would have waved it away as trivial or jumped right in erroneously believing that he could ace it because he was Hatake 'Cold-blooded' Kakashi. No, he was more self-aware now than he had ever been. He knew his flaws, and he was willing to work them over. Maybe not be rid of them entirely, but nobody could ever truly claim to be perfect. 'Good enough', would be more apt.

Maybe it was time for a change. Greener pastures ahead that awaited him.

Maybe he should follow up on Gai's advice after all.

---

Back in the Medical Wing…

Naruto laid back on the large pillow of his cot, his eyes wandering every now and then for anything of interest to help relieve the itch of boredom that had crept in. His thoughts had been awash with the events that transpired, but now that some time had passed, he needed something of a better distraction.

"Hey, Bokomon?"

"Yeah?" the scholar responded, who himself was lying back comfortably on his pillow, his stubby arms behind his head, lost in deep thought. Piyomon had fallen asleep some time after Anko had left, nearly depleted of energy after the taxing ordeal they had undergone coupled with her hunger.

"Are you doing okay?"

"Better than I was hours ago," Bokomon answered, shrugging. "You?"

"Well, it doesn't hurt as much anymore," Naruto replied in the same vein. "Just some aches."

There was a long pause of silence.

"Everything that just happened…" Naruto started again, before impulsively shifting his body on the bed, eliciting a sting from his still worn muscles. Now lying on his right side and facing a nightstand by the wall across, he swallowed to banish the obstruction to his throat. "This is a dream…isn't it?"

Bokomon glanced down, eyeing the blonde. "Why do you think that?"

The mood in the air had long simmered down to a tepid calm, which made the drop of trepidation in Naruto's next words evident. "I…I'm kind of scared."

"Of what?"

"That I'll just wake up, back in my room, nothing having changed at all."

Bokomon rose to sit up. "Don't say that. Naruto, this is real. You having gone to the Digital World, meeting me and Piyomon, getting into trouble with those two, and having evolved into a Digimon. All of that happened no matter what kind of denial may come."

"I know," Naruto said softly, swallowing some saliva. "But I…just can't help thinking about it."

Bokomon stared at the youth, before a smile drew itself on his lips. "Hey, can I tell you something?"

"Hm?" Naruto threw a glance at the scholar. "What?"

"I'm glad I met you."

Naruto lifted his upper body to lean on his right arm, which wasn't as discomforting as his left. "You don't…really need to tell me that."

"Why not? We are friends, aren't we?"

"Well, yeah. That's why," Naruto shrugged, which made him flinch from a dull stab from his left shoulder. "Isn't that natural?"

Bokomon nodded. "And real. Naruto, when you wake up tomorrow, not only will we still be here, but we'll stick by you no matter what. Through thick and thin." Shortly after the conflict had subsided, he had been made aware of what took place prior to Naruto's reawakening. Reincarnation of AncientGreymon he may have been, but Bokomon knew better that the young Uzumaki was his own person, with his own thoughts, memories and will. He came to know Naruto first for who he was rather than everything else attached. "'True bonds are stronger than any fist'. A really good friend of mine used to say that."

"Who?"

"Hagoromo," Bokomon answered fondly. "At first, he was quite the oddball, and so introverted that it was hard for us to get along, always going at his own pace while I felt like an accessory he'd drag along, even though I was the one helping to keep him alive!" Naruto chuckled sheepishly from how the scholar trailed off a little too irritably. "Heck, I lost count how many times we'd get on each other's nerves. But, in spite of all that, he was kind and compassionate, and while it took some time and effort, we opened up to each other eventually. We became inseparable like brothers." He expelled a breath he held through his nose, remembering the good times as well as the bad. How he wished to go back and experience them again. "I have no doubt that there's a reason that we met, and I can't honestly declare it to be a coincidence even if I was so inclined to believe otherwise given what I know now. Having said that, we became friends before all of that came to light, and Piyomon most of all loves you, so don't start thinking that any of it is some dream or a fabrication."

Naruto squirmed slightly in embarrassment, cheeks flushed. "Well, you didn't have to put it exactly that way."

"Hey, if you're gonna keep being mopey, I'll be sure to make it extra mushy," Bokomon warned him lightheartedly.

Standing outside by the door, Anko smiled as she listened in on their talk, tempted to burst in and tease the hell out of them, lugging three large bags.

Which she did, kicking the door open on them and startling Piyomon awake. "Food's here, lovebirds! You two can go back to playing footsie after you've eaten your fill."

"I am over 10,000 years old," Bokomon deadpanned to her, him and Naruto sporting unamused looks. "And I don't swing that way."

"Great, now I have a reason to take a shower to wash off the shame." With her seriously considering it. Curse her scathing wit.

Anko unfurled the bags open, revealing the contents to be stacks and stacks of bento. The best steak and steamed potatoes in Konoha (all under the Hokage's tab), freshly cooked after she made a 'special order' to the restaurant that was bordering on closing for the night, with little choice to refuse as she was the one making it, the owner himself being part of T and I who owed her a favor. She distributed the bags to them each, and from there, she bore witness to a sight that she thought could only be confined in manga.

All three were practically inhaling their food. Piyomon forewent or was simply ignorant of the utensils, shoveling meat and potatoes down her beak.

Bokomon was the only one who bothered to use the plastic knife and fork, with etiquette to boot, but his hands were a blur. Naruto was slower with just a fork, but no less ravenous. There she was, seated on her chair, the only one eating a single bento box at a more manageably languid pace, mesmerized by the savagery of their feasting. It certainly didn't do to spoil her appetite, but all the same, she couldn't really look away.

"So yummy~!" Piyomon crooned with a mouthful, chewing blithely with gusto.

"You better slow down, kid, or you might just end up choking yourself," Anko suggested helpfully, though she believed it'd fall on deaf ears.

Piyomon turned to her, debunking that thought, still chewing her food until she swallowed. "Is that bad?"

"If you don't want to stay here for longer," the kunoichi shrugged, trying to give some honest advice rather than dictate. She had taken a liking to the young bird.

"Well," Bokomon started after swallowing, "she'll be feeling a lot better after eating about double her weight in food."

"Hyperactive metabolism?" Anko noted, to which Bokomon nodded. "What about you, Short Man?"

Naruto made to answer after hearing her question, but was cut off by his food getting stuck from the abrupt hitching of his throat, giving in to a coughing fit. He beat at his chest to help the contraction along, but it was proving difficult.

Anko grinned toothily at the display, letting out a small cackle after saying, "Whoops, maybe I should have been watching out for you. Honest mistake."

Much later, they drifted off to sleep after being sated. Anko, playing den mother, went to work gathering the trash, still in mild disbelief that they had ravaged through all thirty of their bento boxes each. Of the 'Extra Large' orders. The two Rookies, she could understand, but it was like the blonde had suddenly grown an extra set of stomachs after his exploits.

Exiting the Medical Wing, she spotted Kakashi sauntering her way. "Well?"

"Asleep," she inclined her head to the door, then at the ANBU Captain with an arched brow and a fixed smirk. "How's the grunt work?"

Kakashi only needed to lift the hand that held the D-Scanner, splaying it out to her, intact and undamaged. "Either that thing is tougher than it looks, or I'm gonna have to tell the Hokage you half-assed it."

"You try, then," Kakashi shrugged, not caring for her goading. He juggled the infernal device and went on his way, leaving Anko alone to wonder if this was only the beginning to something much bigger, lobbing one last glance at the door where the kids were soundly snoozing before taking her leave as well.

---

In a certain room…

Naruto opened his eyes into slits, greeted by an unfamiliar ceiling once his vision adjusted. He tested moving his body and felt none of the soreness, slowly bringing his hands up to examine them, flipping them over and flexing his fingers.

"The hell do you want?"

The blonde fidgeted, tracing the sound of the voice above him, or rather, in the direction where his body was pointing. He arched his head back all the way, seeing in an upside-down view Kurama sitting casually on his sofa, reading a book, a glass of vodka resting on the nightstand by his right.

"Uh, hey."

"Get out," he spat. "I'm not in the mood."

Naruto rolled over to his stomach, and from his vantage, he could see that he was situated on top of the bed, near the edge. The cot was firm rather than soft, which made it easy for him to gain some footing to stand up.

"I…didn't exactly mean to come back here," he demurred, his bare feet shifting idly on the neatly tidied fabric of the blanket.

Kurama's already irritated glare deepened, head propped on his clenched left hand, balancing it atop the armrest. "Then you can leave."

Naruto closed his eyes, tightening them, thinking hard, before he popped one open to see that he was still there. "I…guess I'm stuck here until I wake up."

Kurama growled, but didn't move from his spot, apparently too engrossed in his book to give so much as a passing glance.

"What'cha reading?"

"It's called 'shut the fuck up and get out'."

"Aw, come on. I got nothing better to do," the blonde pleaded half-heartedly, plopping back on the bed with his arms and legs eagle-spread. "Let's talk."

"No."

"Too late. We already are."

The fox snarled, but said nothing else. A few minutes of silence passed before the boy let out an exasperated groan. "So bored."

"I can always crush you like the bug that you are. That'd be fun, I bet."

"Better than nothing, I guess."

Kurama's eyes shifted to him, then back to his reading with a scoff. "Waste of effort."

"That must be some book, then."

Kurama sighed deeply.

"Hey, can I have some of your beef jerky?"

"Touch my jerky, and I'll skin you alive." He glared at the boy from the corner of his eye. "Besides, didn't you just have dinner?"

Naruto made to respond, but paused, lifting his head up to eye the ceiling. "You feel that?"

Kurama was about to dismiss the boy's words when his senses kicked in as well. A low growl escaped him. "Another uninvited guest."

---

The Hokage's room…

"Inoichi?"

At the far end of the room, standing by the door, a figure of a man that Hiruzen recognized to be the Head of the Yamanaka Clan and one of T and I's Chief Officers next to Morino Ibiki; making him one of the two men Anko answered to after him, appeared from the shadows, the only light in the dim room a mere desk lamp.

The man was statuesque for a few minutes, making Hiruzen pause with anticipation at what he was doing there, why he was there, and how he managed to find the safe house at all. He made sure that someone of Inoichi's known skills was one of the very last people to be in the know. Too great of a risk since a few of the man's clansmen were under Danzo's direct employ. The ability to read minds was a variable that he had every right to be wary of.

Fingers wedged together, elbows propped atop the cluttered desk, Hiruzen measured the time it would take for him to close the distance between them before saying, "Give me one good reason why I should not strike you down this very instant, Inoichi." A reaction. Perspiration, shivers, an involuntary spasm of the muscle, but the blonde didn't budge. He was just staring back blankly.

"Hokage-sama," Inoichi began in a calm and disarming tone, but inwardly, he was prepared. Prepared to accept any punishment in this violation of his superior's confidence, but not without fulfilling his purpose. "If you will, just hear me out. I am indeed here at the behest of another, but it is anyone but Danzo."

Hiruzen listened intently for even the slightest slip of dishonesty or agitation, and while Inoichi was keen in controlling his emotions, he was more experienced in catching people unawares. "Proceed."

Inoichi knew the moment he stepped any closer within range, he'd be a dead man. It was only by Hiruzen's prudence that he was veering close to the threshold. "I have come unarmed." The Hokage acknowledged him with a nod, and watched as the man fell on his knees as further proof of his sincerity, assuming a seiza.

Pindrop silence blanketed the room, and it was only by Inoichi speaking again that it was shattered.

"Digimon."

Hiruzen charged, and Inoichi; stone cold, didn't miss the pressure that seized his neck in the split second it took for him to take his next breath, the cool metal of the kunai giving him goosebumps.

Choose your next words wisely.

The words were precariously hanging over Inoichi's head, hooking around his throat that was threatening to be gashed open.

"My daughter."

Hiruzen stopped in surprise, but he didn't show it, his hand steady and keen on gouging into the man's flesh.

"Hokage-sama," Inoichi continued. "It is about my daughter, Ino."

"Speak, then."

"It was after she was born…"

---

12 years ago…

A younger Inoichi tapped the ball of his left foot on the white hospital floor vigorously, lacking his red haori over his flack jacket and looking like he had aged a decade from the stress, his blonde hair disheveled. Working overnight at the department to being notified of his wife's water that broke only added to the pile. A few of his clansmen were scattered about; two of them flanking his sides, as security detail.

He was seated on a chair in front of his wife's room, chiding himself for missing his daughter's birth. Fingers clasped together, elbows propped on his knees, eyes glazed over as he was slouched forward, he couldn't wait for his wife to read him the riot act for being a no-show. She was only mild-mannered to help attract customers to their flower shop, but her temper was something else at home. Regardless, he was just glad that the birth was healthy. Under the exhaustion and bile, he was happy. Elated that their child was finally born. The heir, hope and future of their clan.

A pair of nurses soon came, one holding a small bundle in her arms draped beneath white linen. She was a member of the clan as well, under strict orders to guard the child with her life. Nothing was left to chance upon the birth of a clan heir, per protocol. Bowing to her clan head, she and the other nurse beckoned him inside.

Inoichi's wife was laying elevated on her cot, a patient gleam in her eye and a growing smile upon seeing the bundle, and happily beaming when it was handed to her. "A healthy baby girl." The nurse then scooted back to make room for the newly minted father, bowing again. "Inoichi-sama."

The clan head nodded, which was a signal for husband and wife to be left alone.

"Well?" Inoichi's spouse gave him a berating look, appearing tired herself. He fumbled with a start, sighing, undulating his shoulders.

"What can I say?"

"How about, an apology. And," the look in her eye intensified, "day shift in the shop."

Inoichi would have groaned, but he held it in.

"For a week." Now he really wished he had been early.

"Does that mean no baby privileges?"

His wife's smile turned cheeky. "Diaper duty."

"You cannot be serious," Inoichi groaned this time, cupping his face in his hands and dragging them down his face.

"You want late nights, too?"

"No! Minding the shop and diaper duty," he yielded, snapping both his fingers before pointing at her, winking.

The woman let out a satisfied hum, leaning back, then glanced down at the fragile little thing bunched in her arms. "She's finally here," she choked, becoming teary eyed, setting her jaw.

"Yes," Inoichi breathed, his fingers delicately brushing over the tender flesh of the infant's forehead.

I̴͈͎̞͌̔́̿͝ṇ̶̡͙̳̯͓̪͎̹͍͚͈͚̅̔̾̈͂ͅͅö̸̦͕̏̎̀̅͂̄̋͆ͅį̵̨̢̳̗͖̣̻̺͕̱̻̒̾͋̓͌̎̔͌̂͘ͅc̷̥͖̏ͅȟ̴̢̢̻̪̻̥̜̫̠̙̜̠̤͈̼̀̿̒̎̑̿̄̕į̶̡̦̪̣̦̠̹͇͔͛̈́̌͗͌̎͐͘

The hairs on the back of his neck suddenly stood on end, and his entire body rattled with a jolt.

"Inoichi? Inoichi!"

The blonde blinked rapidly, resuming his train of thought, momentarily dropping his gaze. "W-What?"

"You-You just froze up!"

Inoichi shook away the lingering fog of his mind, massaging his forehead. "How…long?"

"About a minute," his wife informed him, tightening her hold on the bundle, worry now etched on her features. "What happened?"

Inoichi…wasn't entirely sure himself. He was just about ready to hold his daughter, his finger making the tiniest bit of contact, when his chakra abruptly kicked in.

It was a honed reflex to prevent his mind from ever being infiltrated. There had been…a disturbance. A kind of foreign presence.

Nursing a small headache, Inoichi forced on a smile to reassure her. "Just…stress from work, dear."

"Well, you can forget about the day shift," she amended anxiously, sensing that he had not been faking it, now concerned for her husband's health.

"Please," Inoichi waved, wanting to assuage her, but failing. "Now," he stretched his arms out, making sure to reinforce his mind with a wall of chakra. Whatever or whoever it was, he was going to be rendering them a vegetable for simply thinking about meddling with one of the happiest moments of his life.

His wife gradually conceded, carefully handing the white bundle to him, but making sure their fingers were connected. There she was, the small and vulnerable form of his daughter, thankfully without the repeat of that occurrence.

---

Back at the present…

"But it didn't stop there," Inoichi went on, with Hiruzen now looming over him, hands neatly tucked behind his back, but ready to attack at any given moment. "It happened again."

---

5 years later…

Inoichi had gotten off work early for once, his wife minding the shop while a nanny was attending to Ino. He was resting his body lazily on the sofa. Another had been caught making an attempt on the life of the village's Jinchūriki, necessitating Inoichi to read their mind for suspicion of a third party. Standard procedure, making it the fourth instance.

What he found wasn't a spy or an enemy agent, but slightly less distressing.

He was the son of a chūnin killed in the Kyūbi Incident who had been working as a tailor. Devastated by the loss of their breadwinner, the family fell into hard times, and rather than attend the Academy to follow in the man's footsteps, they couldn't afford the tuition and the boy was left to work to help support his mother, who had surrendered to a deep depression. Reading the troubled lad's mind was…unsettling to say the least, since he came to see firsthand through the mind's eye the hardships he and his mother had gone through. They burned through what was left of their savings, losing their house, moving into the slums, with barely enough to eat that the woman's health deteriorated next to her loss of will.

He had been nine when he started working. He first did various odd jobs around the village, but the pay was meager and barely enough to scrape by given he had to cover their living expenses next to the care needed for his mother. He was eventually hired by a friend of his father's, doing full-time work for a tailoring shop. For years, he had bottled up most of his issues by devoting himself to work and his mother. Five years later, they were doing fine, their situation having improved.

What had finally set him off, unfortunately, was by coincidence the sight of a young Uzumaki Naruto…smiling while passing by Ichikaru Ramen, the boy enjoying a bowl.

It was that smile, the sight of expressing any inkling of joy or happiness, that the young man could not forgive.

The very moment he witnessed it, his long suppressed rage and resentment broke out. The boy had to die. I want to slit his throat and watch as he chokes on his own blood.

Inoichi could only watch from afar in sympathy, but was nonetheless desensitized to it. He had seen plenty of people with murky pasts, some of them even requesting him to suppress such memories, plagued with grief and losses. Out of professionalism, he instead recommended them to a specialist of his clan, who was a licensed therapist.

Sadly for the boy himself, he had committed a capital offense, and was due to be executed. His mother was taken to a home to be given the best care possible, all expenses covered by the government. The money the boy had put away was to be placed on a trust for the poor woman's personal use, not that she had much in the way of wanting luxuries. It was the least that could be done. But the young man only had a blank expression as he was hauled away, even after he was informed. Nothing else needed to be said.

Inoichi sucked in a breath to clear away the dreariness - he was supposed to be a professional. He had nothing against the Uzumaki boy himself, but of the beast inside him. How could he ever begin to hate a child that had no say in his fate and was even in the dark about it?

It was like yesterday, that the clans of the Yamanaka, Nara and Akimichi had spirited their loved ones who could not join in the defense of the village to the underground bunkers, the respective heirs put under strict guard. It was a hellish experience to witness the monster nearly destroy their home, his fellow Konoha shinobi dying left and right to even so much as slow the monster down. It was only by the intervention of their Fourth Hokage sealing the Kyūbi into his own son that the village was saved.

Afterwards, Hiruzen had to assume a second term of his seat, bereft of any fanfare, as it had been a time of mourning. The fallout was particularly trying for him and his clan, attending to those who suffered from post traumatic stress and other maladies borne from that night.

"Daddy!" Inoichi smiled, eyes still shut, recognizing that voice anywhere. The weight of his day was immediately lifted as he deftly caught his daughter in an outstretched embrace. Her caretaker bowed respectfully from across the living room, then turned to leave them be.

"Who are you?" Inoichi teased. "I'm sorry, but I can't seem to recall ever letting a child into the house today."

"It's me, daddy!" Ino whined, puffing her cheeks, annoyed by his usual joke.

"Me, who?" he peeked one eye down at the pouting child. "Can you give me a hint?"

"Ino!" the girl fussed, irritation erupting across her adorable face.

Inoichi laughed and ruffled her light colored tresses, further incensing her. "I see, so you're Ino. Who are you, again?"

I̴͈͎̞͌̔́̿͝ṇ̶̡͙̳̯͓̪͎̹͍͚͈͚̅̔̾̈͂ͅͅö̸̦͕̏̎̀̅͂̄̋͆ͅį̵̨̢̳̗͖̣̻̺͕̱̻̒̾͋̓͌̎̔͌̂͘ͅc̷̥͖̏ͅȟ̴̢̢̻̪̻̥̜̫̠̙̜̠̤͈̼̀̿̒̎̑̿̄̕į̶̡̦̪̣̦̠̹͇͔͛̈́̌͗͌̎͐͘

He blinked, freezing up. It had been years, but there it was once again, not having forgotten.

The presence.

Ino stared open-mouthed at her father, noticing the odd change of his demeanor. "Daddy?"

The man blinked slowly, regaining his bearings and taking note of his surroundings for anything out of place, hunching his head forward. "I…Ino?"

"I already told you, daddy!" she huffed, thinking that he was still maintaining the jest.

"Huh?" Inoichi's body fidgeted, now having fully broken out of his trance. "What?" He peered down at his daughter still pouting at him, her cheeks flushed, betraying her frustration at her father. "S-Sorry, Ino-chan. Daddy was…daddy was just fooling around."

Now he was sure something was amiss. Years may have passed, but when you've been dabbling in the workings of the mind, nothing was ever as it seemed, nor could you ever forget such a profound sensation, not when it may have involved…

"Daddy!" Ino called for his attention as he blanked out again. Inoichi's face softened as she reached for him. He lifted her by her armpits, eliciting cheerful laughter.

Later that night…

It was now or never.

Ino was fast asleep on her futon, looming over her on one knee. He was going forward on a presumption alone, which made what he was about to do venturesome. Accordingly, he had not informed his wife, and if he was wrong, then that would be it. As both a shinobi and a father, he would exchange his own life for Ino's in a heartbeat if it ever came to that.

A tentative hand caressed her forehead, a tender smile drawn on his lips.

"Whoever you are, I will not allow you to hurt her."

Then, he readied his chakra to execute his Shindenshin no Jutsu (Mind Body Transmission Technique), but before he could so much as form the Ram seal, a small hand shot up to grab at his left hand. He froze, a pit forming in his stomach, his gaze traveling down at a fully awake Ino, staring up at him blankly.

He could feel a drop of sweat trickling down his right temple, his body going cold and clammy, unable to pull his hand away, the grip firm despite the obvious juxtaposition. "Who are you?"

"You have nothing to fear, Yamanaka Inoichi," the entity answered in his daughter's voice. "I mean none of you any harm."

Inoichi swallowed. "Forgive me if I find that hard to believe."

"It is the truth," the girl insisted gently, sitting her upper body up, holding steadily onto the man's hand. There was a silent plea behind his daughter's eyes for him to let her speak without rancor, and he in turn reluctantly consented, allowing her to carefully release her hold.

For a pregnant moment, only the night breeze whistling over the compound slipped in-between the fragile silence.

"Ask your question."

Inoichi couldn't get his mouth to work at first, feeling a pressure hovering over him under the entity's watchful gaze.

"I already did," he reminded her tersely.

'Ino' smiled, but it wasn't that of a child. No, this was of someone older; wizened. "Perhaps, if you were to delve into this child's subconscious, then I may be better introduced to you."

"I was just about to do that before you interrupted me," Inoichi reminded her again.

The smile on his daughter's face turned coy. "Had you done so, you wouldn't have found me. Only I can lead the way."

Inoichi's gaze narrowed, askance. "If you're playing at something, then I will not hesitate to destroy you, even at the cost of my life, so long as she lives."

"If you were to do that, which I find unlikely, then what will become of your dear Ino?" she asked imperiously, as if his efforts would indeed be for naught.

Inoichi didn't deign to answer, going straight to forming the Ram seal, and this time, she made no attempts to stop him.

Closing his eyes and then opening them, he was met with the usual darkness. That was before he felt the presence behind him, walking into his line of sight, her back facing him. Even in the mental plane, the entity was using his daughter's appearance; clothes and all, sickening him.

"I don't have much of a choice in the matter given the circumstances."

Inoichi was taken aback. "You…can read the murmurs in my mind?" That should have been-

"Impossible?" the entity scoffed. "Please, your daughter possesses promising talent for your clan's techniques. I'm merely tapping into that."

"How?" Inoichi asked with narrowed eyes, ready to attack.

"Yamanaka Inoichi." The figure of his daughter in her pajamas stopped in her tracks in the seemingly endless void that was her mind, sensing his intent. "Do go ahead if you feel so inclined."

As she rounded on him, Inoichi had already closed the distance, transmitting his chakra through the fingertip jabbed against the girl's forehead. Without struggle, the entity allowed the man to have full reign, asserting his will to pull out his daughter's consciousness from what he could assume was trapped within the entity.

Yet, he was met with stubborn resistance. No, it was like-

Inoichi was soon blown back by a strong feedback, landing a few feet away from a still standing Ino, looking upon him with that same blank expression.

Nothing. There was…nothing there. Right before an insurmountable force had nullified his chakra and sent him flying.

Inoichi coughed. "What…What are you?" He clambered up to his feet, befuddled as much as fearful. Being an experienced mind walker, only the toughest of minds have ever stood a chance of fighting him off. Unless they were of cantankerously robust will or simply balls-to-the-wall insane, there was no nut that he couldn't crack. Yet, he could feel it. Underneath the winding obstacles and hurdles of his daughter's consciousness, there was a power, a force that almost suffocated him even in his astral projection. Could…could the entity be in a similar vein to the Tailed Beasts?

This murmur seemed to draw a reaction from the girl. "A…Tailed Beast?" The corner of her lips twitched from saying the words, letting out a small chortle. "That takes me back."

Inoichi's glare surged in intensity at her seemingly confirming his theory, readying for signs of a scuffle. "So you are related to them? In what way? Answer me!" The danger level had just risen, his remaining reserves of chakra flaring.

The entity seemed to ignore the rising hostility, a melancholic aura emanating from the girl in contrast. "Don't be so on edge." Her eyes traveled up to meet his, placing a hand on her hip, giving the impression of someone twice her age, which made Inoichi more than a little uncomfortable. "As I said to you earlier, I mean no harm. Wouldn't even if I could. After all," her smile morphed into a smirk, tilting her head as she placed the fingers of her free hand on her chest, "it'll be like doing harm to myself."

Inoichi blinked, mildly taken aback, but his demeanor didn't budge. "You cannot be my daughter. Not Ino. No, you're something else. Something…inhuman."

"Quite so. Once upon a time, I wasn't human," the entity shrugged. "That happens to not be the case anymore."

Inoichi's left eye twitched, his patience having waned. "Enough with the riddles! Tell me who you are, or I'll-" he was cut off by a sudden and strong gust of wind, not enough to drive him back, but a reflexive shielding of his arms.

Wait a minute.

Wind?

"Yamanaka Inoichi, perhaps dancing around the subject has indeed run its course," the entity said in a voice that shifted to what deviated from Ino's, sounding otherworldly. Like a thousand squalls fusing into one, winding gales coasting around her form in the empty void, her clothes and hair billowing as she was lifted off her feet. Inoichi watched in awe as his daughter rose high into the air, looking down on him.

"I am AncientIrismon of the Ancient Ten. The Warrior of Wind."

---

The present…

"Ancient…Irismon?" Hiruzen repeated shakily. To think that one of the Ten would reincarnate into the Yamanaka Clan, and as Inoichi's heir no less. "Then what happened?"

"She revealed everything to me," Inoichi answered. "Who and what she was, under what context, and of her past. She also informed me that you would already know."

The Hokage inhaled. "I assume you were shown the past of the Tailed Beasts as well?"

"You assume correctly, and…well," the clan head rubbed at his scalp awkwardly. "It…was…an experience, all things considered." Partly because even a man such as himself couldn't deny how adorable they had looked.

"Did AncientIrismon happen to care for the Two Tails?"

"Yes, she did. Before…the war in her world."

"Show me."

Inoichi looked up at his superior, aghast. "What?"

"All of it."

Inoichi had long adopted a look of dread, fearing how the elderly man may react to the hellish carnage he bore witness to, still bearing the disfavor of having remembered it. "Hokage-sama, I…"

Hiruzen pressed on. "Inoichi, have you kept this to yourself all this time?"

The man's demeanor immediately hardened, momentarily deferring his anxiety. He beat a fist to his chest. "Yes. For all these years, I have protected this secret by sealing the memories deep into my subconscious. None were to divine upon it even if my own mind was to ever be probed. For the sake of my daughter. More than that of Konoha."

"Does she know?"

Inoichi shook his head. "AncientIrismon had sworn not to usurp her mind unless needed, nor reveal herself to her. As for how I was able to remember and came here…"

---

Hours ago…

Inoichi was getting ready for bed, after an entire day spent interrogating another instructor. It took hours for them to comply under the threat of their mind picked apart. While not a direct accomplice to Mizuki, they really didn't do anything to stop him or inform the higher-ups of what was fairly suspicious behavior.

Absences that he chalked up to sick days, being near students to listen in on their conversations, and even bribing the faculty such as the school nurse. In his point of view, the man had been sloppy, barely subtle. The only one who didn't seem to be aware or figured it out was Iruka, who many of the others derided as an idiot who couldn't even put two and two together under the awareness that they were friends.

Inoichi didn't deign to reveal to them that Iruka had been the one to keep tabs on all of them, playing up his ignorance after building up something of a reputation for being soft and unassuming. Or that he had volunteered for the role to the Hokage himself from the beginning upon suspecting instances of foul play that could no longer be ignored by mild standards. Even he had pegged the man as being plainly unremarkable, and when he was vetted by him personally for the task, Iruka wasn't too ashamed to admit; a tad flushed even, that he could come off as a lead balloon, but ever since he started to notice certain oddities in the goings-on of the Academy, he made the decision to pull his weight around and act. What he had found was corruption amongst the faculty having given in to bribes, blackmail and favoritism, to his own astonishment being the only one who was completely clean.

The ringleader was Mizuki himself, who ran the gamut of the operation, like a virus that had slowly infected the cells of the main body overtime. He had transformed the Academy into his own personal den for racketeering, collecting any and all information involving the most promising students next to the clan heirs, and selling them for a cool profit.

If Inoichi was being honest, Iruka, whether he understood his actions or not, had performed admirably as a shinobi. It would seem that the Hokage would be both pleased and disappointed over this turn of events, already making the necessary arrangements to have the culprits and their accomplices arrested. All that was left was the man himself who started it all and this entire fiasco would be put behind them.

Inoichi yawned, having gone to bed early to start the next morning in submitting his final report.

As he was about to slip into his futon, the air around him shifted. Half a second was all it took for him to phase out of sight and into one of the crawl spaces within the room, meant as both a hiding spot and a means to ambush intruders.

Instead of someone dumb enough to break into their compound, it was none other than his daughter Ino, still in her civilian outfit, coming in from the door.

He curiously eyed her, wondering if she needed something since she already said goodnight to him. Wait…What was that pressure he felt a moment ago? His gaze remained affixed on his daughter, boring a hole into her, waiting for her to act or say something.

Slowly, her head lolled to his line of sight, allowing him to sneak a glance at her expression. He immediately noticed that something wasn't right. Belonging to a clan of mind readers also precipitated the skill of reading body language to fall back on as an option in the event that they did not have ample clearance or consent to utilize their jutsu, more than what was required of a shinobi. Since her birth, he had observed Ino's habits and routines, right down to her ticks. He would know easily if someone was impersonating or controlling her as a precaution. Now, watching her through the narrow slit from the crawl space, the girl that was standing by the door could not be his daughter. She wasn't glazed, robotic nor acting like a shallow facsimile of her usual self.

Instead, it was the sheer, utter calmness she was exuding that gave him pause. Like nothing was out of the ordinary, but he could perceive that it was deliberate, intaking a particular lack of subtlety. His muscles tightened, prepared to take action in the possibility that this was an attack. He had no weapons, but they weren't needed. No, he would no sooner draw his own blood first before his little girl's. A simple probe was all he could ask for, and perhaps, find the fools who were pulling the strings to ensure that they never had a single thought again after presuming they could pull a fast one on his clan.

"Kazehana…"

Inoichi's mind went blank, his ears burning from hearing the word that was muttered. His body momentarily lost all feeling, like a lead weight had been planted into each and every joint.

"You can come out now, Yamanaka Inoichi."

Hearing this, all was made clear, the memories of their interaction years ago surfacing from the confines of his subconscious.

"What brought this on?" Inoichi asked loudly through the narrow crack, not moving from his spot just yet.

"My brother, one of the Ten, has just awakened," AncientIrismon, still using Ino's voice, revealed. "Go to where he is now."

Inoichi couldn't suppress the awkward repulsion he felt, remembering her vow to never usurp her daughter's autonomy unless it was for certain occasions that necessitated it. Seemingly now of all times. "And, where might that be?"

As soon as he asked, his mind was struck by a rush of information. Coordinates. "This is…" A cold sweat ran down his brow as he ran the figures over. The location he was being pointed to was…

"It will be alright. Your Hokage already knows enough for you to be spared from this infringement. You need only explain yourself."

The clan head sighed. It just had to be before bedtime.

"Uh, okay, maybe not right now," AncientIrismon amended, sensing his annoyance. "I have a feeling you're gonna be needing a good night's rest for this."

Inoichi leaped out of the crawl space next to her, folding his arms as he bore into the girl sternly. "Oh really?"

She shrugged sheepishly. "All things considered, you're still technically my father."

"Uh hu," Inoichi acceded, crinkling a scowl at her. "And do you know what else I need to do?"

"What?"

Inoichi pointed in the direction of the hallway, irritation lacing his every word. "Direct you to your room. Now!"

AncientIrismon bowed her head, obeying the man's penalty for barging in on such an; in hindsight, inopportune time as she stalked out into the hallway and made for the direction of Ino's room. He peeked out into the hall and barked, "Double time!"

Inoichi groaned once she disappeared, having picked up her pace. He arched his head back and slung a hand over his eyes. "I need a vacation."

---

Now…

Hiruzen's brows shot up in disblief. "You…told her off just like that?"

"I most certainly did," Inoichi confirmed matter-of-factly. Goddess or not, he wasn't about to have his authority in the household overruled or tested. He released a breath. "Hokage-sama, are you completely sure?"

Hiruzen didn't falter. "We cannot withgo valuable intel haphazardly. If you've acquired a glimpse of that very war, of more of their world, of their history, it would provide us a measure of what the Digital World has to offer. If it was indeed as dire as AncientGreymon recounted to us."

"AncientGreymon?" Inoichi repeated with an inquisitive cock of his brow. While he had seen her siblings in the visions of her memories, she never mentioned their names. Granted, he would have been lucky enough to hear anything at all other than his own rapid heartbeat that threatened to shatter his ribcage combined with his deeply heavy breathing.

"That is the name of AncientIrismon's brother," Hiruzen answered, swiveling on his heel to traipse back to the desk, Inoichi trailing behind him. "His own reincarnation being Uzumaki Naruto."

Inoichi balked in barely constrained surprise upon hearing the boy's name. AncientIrismon had not disclosed that minor detail to him; if she was even aware, but he wagered she was. "The jinchūriki of the Kyūbi?!"

"And the son of Namikaze Minato and Uzumaki Kushina in case you need reminding," Hiruzen declared pointedly.

"I meant nothing by it, Hokage-sama," Inoichi bowed his head as the other man still had his back to him. "It's just-"

"He already knows," Hiruzen added, guessing his trepidation, much to Inoichi's added bemusement. "It would seem your daughter's destiny has now been tied to his. That begs the question; who could the others be?"

Inoichi swallowed a lump in his throat. "Would you be proposing that I and my clan be involved?"

The magnitude of performing mass probes to find even one of the Ten seemed insensible unless they were operating under a convenient pretense, ignoring how blatantly intrusive it would already be given the scale. They might not even be confined to Konoha alone.

"Nothing so clandestine," Hiruzen waved, dismissing the thought away with a soft chuckle. "On that front, let us share what we know. It would not do for us to be on uneven ground if we are to better organize any proceeding action."

Inoichi promptly nodded, dutifully.

"Oh, wait a moment." Hiruzen advanced rightward of a desk drawer and pulled it ajar. He carefully plucked out a bottle and wordlessly presented it to his subordinate with a straight face.

Inoichi nodded again, poignantly.

Hiruzen couldn't hide his anxiety from the clan head, mixed with excitement and curiosity. Inoichi was the same, minus the latter two, both men readying for the excursion they were about to partake in.

"I warn you, Hokage-sama. What I am about to show you, what I myself have seen, will require a steely resolve."

Hiruzen nodded with a grave face. He of all people would know the scourge of war, which Inoichi would be a fool to doubt. Yet, the blonde felt the warning necessary. The process was a simple one. About a minute after Inoichi conducted the jutsu, they each reached into the other's tethered minds, pouring over their specified memories.

Afterwards, he only needed to wait as he observed the man's reaction, whose eyes were still closed in intense focus. On his end, his own body was riddled with sweat as he processed everything the Hokage bore witness to in the past two days. Naruto's adventure in the Digital World (relieved that it was no longer the ravaged wasteland he observed in AncientIrismon's vision), he and his friends being accosted by two enemy Digimon, his battle with them, his first defeat dealt by the fearsome WereGarurumon, and everything that came after.

Going by the pattern, it would seem Ino as well was to be granted this 'Spirit' to become a Digimon. Or, would it simply be to reassume her past life? But, that wasn't what made him break out into a sweat. No, it was…

Expectedly, he caught the elderly veteran in his arms before the latter could collapse onto the floor, picking up the tremors emanating from the man's deceptively frail frame. "Well?"

"That was…that was…," Hiruzen kept croaking, sparse of breath, soaked in sweat, hardly perceiving the world around him as he suffered to regain even a fraction of his bearings, head to the ends of his toes quivering intensely. Inoichi gently guided him to rest on the chair. "Could that…really be called a…war?"

Inoichi's gaze fell. Seeing it for himself the first time, he could say with uncontested certainty that it put all of theirs to shame.

Hiruzen took deep, measured breaths to ride out the tension that was continuing to grip him, a hand grasping at his chest.

He bit his own lip, cursing himself for being a conceited fool.

Legions upon legions of monsters, creatures of all shapes and sizes as far as the eye could see, some distinctly human in appearance, ruthlessly killing and slaughtering each other, tearing into the land and rending the skies with godlike powers like nothing.

Myths? Legends?

Nothing but paltry gossip compared to the titanic holocaust that dwarfed all of their wars put together.

Then, there were those who he could make out from the carnage being AncientGreymon himself, and who the Hokage could assume to be his siblings on all sides, mercilessly engaging their enemies, scenes of the draconic Digimon playing out, ravaging entire armies with hellish seas of fire so vividly bright and intense Hiruzen feared he would have gone blind, the phantom heat lapping at him through his robes.

He dared to look up, begging for even a crumb of a reprieve, and that's when he saw, to his regret…it.

All of his senses; from the crown of his head to the very ends of his extremities, was overcome with an immense chill, his stomach sinking past the floor. Never in his lifetime could he have ever asked to behold such an…abomination.

Beautiful at a glance, like the brightest, most radiant star, but he wasn't the slightest bit fooled.

He was flooded with a powerful sense of existential dread and fear the longer his gaze remained glued, but unable to tear away. He could never see that thing as anything else, draped in the form of an angelic young boy, hovering carelessly above the carnage.

He could swear that when their eyes became aligned, Hiruzen found nothing but the deepest pools of pure contempt, as if his; no, the very existence of anything besides itself was a malignant affront to every fiber of its being. His blood had frozen up, his survival instincts cresting. Not even in the presence of Konoha's Great Founders, the Gold and Silver Brothers, the Tailed Beasts, or Orochimaru's wretched malice could hold a candle to the sheer evil that assaulted him down to the marrow of his bones.

Inoichi carefully handed him a shot of sake, already strongly guessing what the Hokage had seen and the reason for his own unbridled terror. Hiruzen struggled to grasp the cup with trembling fingers, spilling a few drops on the desk. He imbibed the alcoholic beverage unceremoniously before falling back against the backrest of his chair, lying upon it limply.

"Inoichi," Hiruzen croaked raggedly. "I thought I knew what demons were." He paused to catch his thinning breath, swallowing down a hard lump, sparing a moment to allow the alcohol to take effect. "Monsters in human skin, titans that could topple the tallest mountains, and my former student who is now more snake than man. I…" he swallowed again, "I was wrong."

Inoichi watched with a statuesque countenance as the Hokage propped his elbows to lean onto the desk, tethering his fingers above his slouched head. Of all the ways the man could have been affected, impacted by such visions, Inoichi was thankful for this being the best outcome.

"Organize a conference with Shikaku," Hiruzen declared, his breathing having stabilized.

The Yamanaka Head was mildly taken aback by the order, but it was short-lived. "At what time?"

"Tomorrow night," Hiruzen announced curtly. "The location will be another safe house. Here are the coordinates." Inoichi restarted his jutsu and received the figures. With a final nod, the man took his leave in a puff of smoke.

They must prepare. There was the ever-present risk of their movements being interpreted as militarization by the other villages through their spies, but he could excuse that as measures for the upcoming Exams, even if for a little.

Hiruzen had never been more certain that there was no better time. First, Orochimaru needed to be dealt with. Now that he knew Otogakure was an; unofficially, illegitimate village, he now had the makings of a plan brewing in his sharp mind to trap his wayward former pupil.

How could he have allowed such an oversight?

Over thirty years ago, when Sound Country was still known as Rice Field Country, the successive wars had tarnished its economy. It was around that time the current Daimyō had succeeded his father, conducting reforms and rechristening by the establishment of a minor village composed of the resident surviving shinobi clans. Before that, they had outsourced services to Konoha. Being neighbors, Fire Country imported over 40% of its rice from them, per an alliance that was formed from the previous regime after the last war, which remains to this day.

"The Daimyō can only be in Orochimaru's pocket, the local government providing him with asylum," Hiruzen thought keenly, clenching his jaw. "I was a fool to not have seen it. Foreseeing his arrest, he had set up shop there years earlier, conspiring with the Daimyō in secret, leading to the actual founding of Otogakure. In exchange, he would be free to conduct his experiments, and build a war chest to fund his activities from conducting missions and other services."

Incidentally, next to Konoha, Oto had racked up a reasonably high success rate at a quarter of the market value, securing it a good reputation and clientele. Under different circumstances, he would have glowed with pride, and some sick part of him was.

Until the Chūnin Exams, they will pull out all stops, the invitations already having been sent. All of his troubles, doubts and hesitations felt so small now.

In the allotted time they had left, the months ahead were going to be their busiest yet.

His mind, invigorated rather than withered by his ordeal, flew back to the matter concerning Mizuki, concocting an additional plan in case the traitor returned to retrieve his ill begotten gains, and he was sure it would be soon.

In all these decades after the flames of war had all but tempered, Hiruzen had feared that his old ruthlessness would return. This very apprehension had done its part in impeding his movements. He would forever look back on his past decisions with scorn, and his mistakes with contrite derision, but that did not mean he should not act to make things right; even if a little, with the needed decisiveness.

If Konoha; no, the world was to have a future, he must take the first steps on a murky path ahead.

"Hm?" A further wave of clarity washed over him.

Sunagakure's economic straits.

Mizuki's covert dealings with them coupled with his affiliation with Orochimaru.

Otogakure's willing participation in the exam. Granted, it would have roused suspicion had they outright refused, maintaining the charade.

It was…all too perfect, the clues laid bare right in front of him this whole time.

"Heh," Hiruzen belted out a hoarse chuckle from the epiphany, pouring himself another shot. "You truly are a snake, Orochimaru."

---

The Next Day...

"I hope you three have had a fitting night's sleep," Hiruzen said jovially as he languidly strode in-between the row of beds; their occupants wide awake, with his hands tucked behind him. "Oh, and Bokomon-dono, here." Choosing not to delay, and as a show of trust, he approached the scholar and presented the borrowed book, who took it gratefully before flipping it open to strum over its contents out of an accustomed reflex and familiarity. The Hokage bowed gratefully. "On behalf of Konoha, I thank you for granting us this opportunity."

Bokomon tore away from the pages to align his gaze with the Hokage's. The Digimon scholar sharply deduced the situation the moment the man walked in, not unfamiliar to the twinkle in the elder's eye, the knowing smile betraying what was left unsaid. The knowledge and possibilities he represented was invaluable, effectively labeling him as an asset that they could not rightly leave on his own nor allow to return. The fact that the Royal Knights hadn't appeared to collect or; worse, terminate him alongside everything within a thousand mile radius meant that there had been a deliberation concerning his status offworld, given the recent events. Word most definitely reached them, for there was absolutely no way they were going to ignore an attempt on his well-being uninvestigated. If nothing else but to confirm him being alive or dead; with a preference for the latter to his annoyance.

To wit, he could make two educated guesses as to the reason. One, is that they deemed it to not be a cause for concern; which was the most unlikely, and two…

"Uh, no problem," Bokomon replied, returning the bow. "So, where do we go from here?"

Hiruzen retained his smile, not missing a beat with what the scholar knew was a spiel. "That is actually one of the matters I've come here to discuss with the three of you before you're to be escorted back to Naruto's apartment." There it was. "The next few days are going to be quite busy, you see. Certain…arrangements that need to be ironed out in order for you two newcomers to be safely and quietly integrated. If you wish to stay, that is."

Bokomon didn't answer right away, his mind contemplative. They could have Naruto simply bring them back home, knowing that the D-Scanner could open a portal. However, that also meant Hiruzen would have to compromise with a line to maintain. Distance would prove impractical. Musing carefully on it, going back to the Digital World was; at least for now, unwise, with Etemon putting out bounties on their heads. The monkey was vindictive like that, but that was how one forges a reputation, outlining clearly that nobody messed with him and his own without due retaliation.

Better to play it safe first. "Well, it wouldn't be a problem for me, seeing as how Etemon now likely has it out for us. Knowing him, we've now got bounties on our heads," Hiruzen cocked a brow at that, "thus, we can't go back. At least, not for the time being. As for Piyomon, she's only ever known the wilderness of Server. Not exactly a roof over her head. So, we'll stay."

"You guys can crash as long as you like at my place," Naruto offered with a chirp, excited for the company. "I mean, it'll take some adjusting, sure, but we can make it work. And, if anybody asks, um…"

Hiruzen couldn't hide the twinkle of satisfaction in his eye. "You needn't fuss over the details, Naruto-kun. Now, freshen up and come by the office down the hall. By then, it'll be ready."

Naruto blinked curiously. What will be ready?

---

Later…

Dressed in a dark gray shirt and orange shorts that he found amongst a wardrobe, Naruto was seated on a chair between Bokomon and Piyomon, awaiting the arrival of the Hokage, who stated that he would be joining them soon.

The office was lit by a simple iridescent bulb, bright enough for the three of them to be cast under a soft light. Naruto's eyes roamed idly, taking in his surroundings. From what little he could make out, the walls were an ash gray color, in contrast to the floor being a deep black. Simple furnishings of a wooden desk sitting across from them and a cabinet against the right end of the wall. All in all, the ambience felt gloomy, but he supposed since this was a safe house, decoration wasn't an urgent priority.

The two Rookies were also busy ogling the room, but for differing reasons. Piyomon was becoming increasingly antsy at how suffocating the air was, an uncomfortable sensation of being in a confined space. Ever since the physiology of her evolution had stabilized, her old instincts of being a living plant had been replaced with that of her species' predisposition for more open spaces. The medical wing at least offered distractions in the form of the odd glass beaker or stethoscope, glistening under a brighter lit ceiling.

Bokomon continued to scribble notes that he missed out on into his book of their arrival in the human world. He paused, only now occurring to him that he and Piyomon had achieved what countless Digimon then and now had fought and died for.

The Human World.

A sort of "Promised Land", promulgated by the old ones in tales, legends and stories of where they could gain power. He was finally in Hagoromo's home world, reminiscing the stories his old friend would detail to him of a clear blue sky, animals both domesticated and wild, "normal" food and crops. From his estimation of the time dilation between worlds, only 1800 years have passed here.

Since his friend's passing.

A sad smile tugged at his lips, poignantly reminded of that detail.

"Bokomon?" Naruto called from his seat, having caught the scholar staining the pages he was writing on with tears. "Hey, what's wrong?"

Bokomon sniffled, rubbing at his eyes with the hand that had held the book open, balancing it on his lap. "Just…just remembering."

"Remembering what?"

Bokomon cleared his throat. "Hagoromo used to tell me stories about what the human world was like. At least, during the era he lived in. Being here now, it's…it's just getting to me, that's all."

"You…miss him that much?" Naruto asked softly. The young Uzumaki had spent the better part of last night in Kurama's room asking questions pertaining to the life he lived, which was met with some expected derision. The only topic that the fox was the slightest bit lenient on was the creator of the Tailed Beasts himself, Ōtsutsuki Hagoromo, but it was relegated to bits and pieces, none of which stimulated any phantom memories he may have had of his past life.

Guess that means I don't really have any. I don't even know all there is about the Digital World any more than what I know about my parents.

"Wouldn't you?" Bokomon replied to his inquiry. "If-"

The scholar hesitated to finish, knowing how it might come off if he were to tell Naruto what it meant to outlive friends and family.

"When can we go outside?" Piyomon implored anxiously.

Internally grateful for the respite, Bokomon reached out to pat her on the back comfortingly. "Just wait a bit more, Piyomon."

"Not before you're properly settled, I hope," Hiruzen called from the door, accompanied by Anko and Kakashi as they filed in, the latter now sporting a different attire from his ANBU uniform. A dark long sleeved shirt and pants, standard issue sandals and his ever constant face mask. Opposite was Anko's white button up shirt, also with long sleeves, black skirt and stockings that fed up to her waist. Beneath their clothes were hidden weapons compact enough to blend, like itching powder to target the eyes with.

They headed past the three towards the desk, and once Hiruzen was seated, the other two shinobi positioned themselves adjacent to him on both sides. Naruto didn't miss the stacks of folders and envelopes the man was toting, which he laid down and spread out in an orderly manner.

"Now then," Hiruzen began once everyone was settled, wedging his fingers together, his elbows propped atop the desk, "you're no doubt wondering as to why you three have been summoned here."

Naruto briefly glanced at his friends. "Would it have to do with being…properly settled?" the young man echoed inquisitively, earning a thin smile from the Hokage.

"Quite. I assume that you know what it means, Bokomon-dono, of yours and Piyomon's rather impromptu arrival in Konoha," Hiruzen stated, then gestured towards the strewn items in front of him. "These right here are the documents pertaining to your citizenship and identity."

Anko helpfully passed him a brown folder, but stopped midway when he brought a hand up. "I am yet able to read your language. Is there a dictionary or book you can lend me for reference?"

"Of course," Hiruzen answered as he fished out a small booklet from his desk drawer, the only real use he had for it being the odd coded message. He handed it to Kakashi, who quietly passed it along to the scholar.

Bokomon made room for what he was about to do, slipping his Monoshiri Book into his haramaki. No sooner had Hiruzen's lips parted, the scholar whisked the language booklet open, his eyes brimming with intense focus as he went to work skimming through each and every one of its contents in an incredibly fast pace, rifling through page after page with razor sharp precision. The room went silent at the display, the only noise being the vigorous rustling of paper.

Everyone stood by as they watched, right up to Bokomon closing his eyes after slamming the booklet shut. He mumbled a few words to himself before opening them to land his gaze on Hiruzen. "All done. Now you can give it to me."

Hiruzen blinked numbly, collecting himself. "Have you…mastered our written text that easily?"

"Yeah," Bokomon shrugged like it was no big deal. "I can at least read it now. Writing it is where I'm gonna need some practice."

"Whoa," Naruto drawled in amazement. "I wish I could learn that fast." He blinked in slight pause, before a rush of panic struck, grabbing at his head to pull at his hair. "GAH! I ALMOST FORGOT!"

"If you're worried about your evaluation, Naruto-kun, you still have plenty of time." Hiruzen consoled, assuaging the boy. "Amazingly enough, in the two and a half days that you were in the Digital World, only a day and a half had gone by here. Not counting the time spent in your recovery."

"Per the time dilation," Bokomon nodded in acknowledgement. "It used to be faster than that, but it seems Yggdrasil's made some adjustments in the last few centuries."

"Sounds pretty fickle for a God," Anko remarked, her arms crossed.

"Fickle or not, I'm safe," Naruto breathed in relief, a hand to his chest. "Guess the only excuse I'll be giving Shikamaru is that he did such a number on me during our sparring, I needed the rest."

"He might just amp it up from thinking that you were slacking off, Short Man," Anko teased, causing the young Uzumaki to blanch, knowing the former slacker just might. That was before he paused, and then a smile erupted across his features.

"I wouldn't want it any other way," the blonde proclaimed confidently. "If I'm gonna stand even a chance at graduating, I'll need to work extra hard. I can't pass up on this. I wouldn't be Uzumaki Naruto if I half-assed it. Besides, I've got some expectations riding on me now." He couldn't hide the refreshed glint in his blue eyes. "Son of the Fourth Hokage or not, I'm not gonna let my parents down."

"Very well said, Naruto-kun," Hiruzen commended, the gleam in his own eyes brightening. "Which brings me to what your living arrangements will be from here on out, giving more credence to your absence."

Bokomon was currently going over the files and documents from an envelope Kakashi passed along as well after he was done with the folder, composed of everything he needed to be counted as a bonafide citizen of Konohagakure no Sato.

"Why only me? I don't see any for Piyomon," Bokomon pointed out, studying the document detailing his background, with certain details fabricated, of course. His medical history, what his previous to current address and contact details were, age and blood type. They were nothing, if not, thorough. "And it says here that I'm 45 years old."

Anko spoke up, "For one, between the two of you, you bear the most passing resemblance to a human. Hell, from a certain angle, you look more middle aged than a kid. On the short side, of course. As for Tweety? We can pass her off as a young Summon that you're caring for. Not unusual given that some of the common ones are Ninken."

"Uzumaki…Junichiro?" Bokomon read carefully to himself from the identification card and passport he dug from the envelope. They even somehow had his picture.

"Hm?" Naruto turned to him in surprise. "Uzumaki?"

"That's right, Short Man," Anko affirmed with a grin, motioning a hand at the scholar. "Meet your long lost relative."

Both Naruto and Bokomon shot gaping looks at her. "Huh?"

"On paper, at least. Bokomon-dono is now your legal guardian, but only for appearances. It was the only logical course we could take without arousing suspicion on the nature of their arrival and identity," Hiruzen revealed.

"Hang on," Bokomon piped up. "Wouldn't that rouse suspicion anyway? I mean, Naruto's supposed to be a government ward by his status as your military asset."

"Think of it as this old man finally pulling his weight around and providing Naruto with someone who he trusts and holds his interests as well as well-being to heart," Hiruzen explained with a smile. "Speaking of which, Naruto-kun, I believe it is time for you to know about your mother's clan."

Naruto panned back to the Hokage, blankly caught off guard. "My…mother's clan?"

"Indeed," Hiruzen cleared his throat. "You would have been told on your sixteenth birthday along with the true identity of your parents, but with things having become…complicated, as of late, now is a better time than any. Some period after Konohagakure no Sato was founded, the First Hokage, Senju Hashirama, forged an alliance with another village that was established in the Land of Whirlpools, Uzushiogakure no Sato, composed exclusively of the Uzumaki Clan, a distant relative of the Senju."

"I…have a clan?" Naruto repeated more to himself, his heartbeat swelling, disbelief lacing his words. Bokomon and Piyomon listened with rapt attention. "Wait, does that mean, I was…never an orphan? I have…relatives?" It sounded too good to be true.

"That's great, Naru-chan!" Piyomon gave him a congratulatory clapping of her wings.

"Had, kid," Anko corrected soberly. "The village was destroyed some time after your mother moved here."

Piyomon winced, her wing arms slowly descending along with her elation.

Naruto's own body fell against the backrest of his chair, floored. "What?" he muttered weakly, the ground beneath him swept away by that revelation. "But…why?"

Hiruzen drew out a worn scroll from his robes and unfurled it. Written across the dry paper were complicated diagrams and symbols, which he showed to the young man and his friends, with Bokomon's eyes widening in recognition. "You see, Naruto-kun, these are just some of the Uzumaki Fūinjutsu formulas. As a clan, they specialized in this art. Many of today's sealing techniques and their variants can be directly traced back to them. In fact, Konohagakure regularly relied on the Uzumaki to provide us with some of their best seals. In their heyday, they were the authority on Fūinjutsu, forever revolutionizing what your average shinobi take for granted today. Other villages and countries paid handsomely for their services, including the samurai of Iron. The Kibaku Fuda is just one such invention of theirs."

Naruto took a moment to process the information. "Then…why did…?"

"Why did Uzushiogakure fall?" Naruto nodded slowly, allowing Hiruzen to continue. "Because their Fūinjutsu could accomplish feats that went beyond conventional Ninjutsu, time space manipulation being one of their most infamous, and feared. Actual teleportation, storage, medicine. They could even use fūin to seal one's chakra, jutsu and the like. There are even old rumors that persist to this day that they had; or could, devise seals capable of toppling entire nations."

"WMDs?" Bokomon chimed in, earning odd looks from the humans and Piyomon. "That's an abbreviation in the Digital World referring to weapons that are capable of destruction on a massive scale. Fearing that possibility, they were viewed as too dangerous to be left on their own, I take it," he additionally surmised.

"Yes," Hiruzen confirmed, hanging his head morosely, eyes closed. He gently placed the scroll on the desk after rolling it back shut. "The Countries of Earth, Wind, Water and Lightning all conspired in mounting an offensive on an island off the coast of Fire Country where Uzushiogakure stood, surrounded on all sides by whirlpools as their first line of defense, hence the name, but their forces were relentless, determined, managing to reach land and assume their campaign."

"Were they really overtaken by such an invasion?" Bokomon wondered curiously. "If they were as formidable as you alluded to, couldn't they have beaten them back, or hold out?"

"Careful planning and allocation of resources, as well as the element of surprise. This was before the Third Great Shinobi War. The main purpose of the campaign was to not only weaken Konohagakure by depriving us of an ally, but to salvage whatever spoils that could be divided amongst themselves. However, atypical to how shinobi work, the alliance was only as ironclad as their objective," Hiruzen sighed. "The other reason was timing. Uzushiogakure had been in the midst of a civil war."

"A civil war?" Naruto repeated in further shock. "Why? What reason could they've…fought amongst themselves?"

"Ever since the death of Hashirama-sama, and later Tobirama-sama, relations between our two villages had become…shaky, for lack of a better term. In addition, Uzushiogakure was but a minor village without a Kage, nor did their island have any sort of formal government. The only ruling power was the main branch of the clan, of which Uzumaki Mito and your mother hailed from."

"Uzumaki Mito?"

"Hashirama-sama's wife."

Naruto made a face, scratching at his head. "Wait, but you just said…aren't they supposed to be related?"

"Distantly related. In fact, marrying within clans used to be quite common to secure their secrets and assets."

The blonde's right eye twitched at that tidbit. "That sounds gross."

"He's got you there, chief," Anko quipped, beating back a chuckle.

Hiruzen coughed. "Yes, well, as repulsive as it may sound to you, the practice was quite common back in the day. Now, going back to what contributed to Uzushiogakure's downfall, diplomatic ties between our two villages had weakened over the years since our founders' passing. To remedy this, the main branch of the clan thought to send your mother to hopefully marry into the Senju once more to reinvigorate our alliance."

Naruto paled. "You're telling me…that my mom wasn't supposed to get with my dad?"

"Originally, no," Hiruzen admitted without hesitation, not seeking to mince words in order to induct the boy into some of the realities of politics. "Unfortunately, the only viable heir was Hashirama-sama's son who had long been with wife and child, his advancing age notwithstanding. His daughter, your distant cousin, Tsunade." The two other adults in the room shared subtle glances, the old man having purposefully left out the part that the only other viable candidate had been Nawaki, Tsunade's younger brother, who was lost to the war.

"Guess I have some family left after all," Naruto exclaimed, rubbing his nose with the back of his index finger, his mood improved. "Where is she now?"

This time, Naruto didn't miss the looks the adults standing side to side of the Hokage exchanged, his confidence waning. "She's…still alive, right?"

"She is," Hiruzen answered plainly. "Away on a sabbatical."

"What's that?"

"A sabbatical, Naruto, is when someone of a certain profession; typically a scholar or doctor, takes some time off for either a break or; such in my case, to conduct research trips," Bokomon explained helpfully.

"Wait, even when you're on vacation, you're still working?" Anko snorted. "Lame."

"Working is how I relax. I can never really get enough of it, you see. Learning, studying," Bokomon shrugged, his mind drifting off. "A lost or undiscovered civilization, a new type of flora or fauna, a new strain of bacteria or virus. I'll be all over it in broad strokes. My mind is constantly craving for knowledge."

A shiver wormed under Hiruzen's skin, reminded of his wayward student, some of the phrasing Bokomon used in ways similar to Orochimaru's past tangents, the feeling shared by Anko.

"Which will bring us to another discussion on that later on, Bokomon-dono," the Hokage informed him. "Moving on, the Senju Clan had been in decline for some time after the previous wars all but exhausted their numbers, leaving no viable candidate to wed with Kushina. Saddled with this predicament, Uzushiogakure threatened to veto their services indefinitely unless Konoha could produce a suitable consort. It was around that time, the civil war began. As for the reason? Dissatisfaction. A faction of the clan wished to elevate their status from being a minor village and install a Kage, with the full recognition associated with the office from the other Great Villages. The main branch, seeing the folly in this, refused to comply with such demands."

"Why? What would be so wrong with having their own Kage?" Naruto asked, genuinely curious. Perhaps if he had been born in Uzushiogakure, or that it still stood, maybe he could have vied for the position.

"It would have painted an even bigger target on their backs, kid, and bring the hammer down on them sooner. The balance of power would have been stirred, and the last thing anyone outside of our alliance wanted was for Uzushiogakure to become a major player. Independence as a sovereign Hidden Village with all the trimmings. The rebels collaborated with the invasion force, hoping to depose the main branch, but were ultimately betrayed. Uzushiogakure may have been formidable with their Fūinjutsu, but they were small both militarily and economically. Kumogakure alone had them beat, more so with the joint effort of three other villages. They were heavily reliant on exports from Fire Country just to survive since their island had little in the way of natural resources. Their geographical advantage proved to be their crucial weakness in the end. By the time Konoha could even think of sending in reinforcements, it was already too late." Anko scoffed after that exposition. "Had we not washed our hands of them."

Naruto slowly rose from his seat, failing to believe what he just heard. "We…abandoned them?" Anger began to build within him. "We left them to fend for themselves?!"

The three adults from across them were still as the air had gone, the boy's rising tension making ripples. "Why?!"

It was Bokomon who had the answer. "You couldn't afford to, could you? It would have been a diplomatic nightmare had you intervened, and if I'm guessing this right, you were still recovering from a previous war. Your hands were tied." It would have given the other villages an excuse to take out two birds with one stone.

Hiruzen's features became set. "We had no choice."

"Yes, you did!" Naruto snapped hotly, disgusted over Konoha's seeming cowardice in leaving his clan to their fate. "We owed them that much. You could have…"

"How would you have gone about with the decision then, Naruto-kun?" Hiruzen asked smoothly. There wasn't a rise in his tone, but a simple question said in the most casual way as if the man was merely asking about the time or weather.

"I would have…"

It should have been easy enough for him. If it had been his call, he would have gone to Uzushiogakure himself in their time of need and fight.

"You would have, what?" Hiruzen pressed the boy on, secure in where he and the village stood in this dispute.

Naruto struggled for his mouth to work, to express his resolve, his heart threatening to burst out of his chest from the outrage flooding him. His teeth gnashed together as conflicting thoughts swirled in his mind. "You could have…"

"We could have doomed the village, Naruto-kun," Hiruzen finished bluntly. "It was either Uzushiogakure or Konohagakure. Had we become involved, it would have been taken as a declaration of war by the other villages. The choice…was clear." It was also one of the rare instances he and Danzo had seen eye-to-eye, the only difference being that between the two of them, he was genuinely burdened by the decision.

"But to betray them like that," Naruto snarled. "It's unforgivable!"

Anko snickered. "Unforgivable, you say? Kid, do you have any earthly idea what the Uzumaki were even really like?"

This caught the boy off guard, pausing slightly, but his temper had yet simmered down. "Eh?"

Instead of the kunoichi, she cut the Hokage a look to do the honors. He hung his head, then raised a hard look at his surrogate grandson. "They were as proud as they were savage. Merciless warriors that were absolutely ruthless in their conduct." Bokomon curiously lifted a brow from the wording and the image he was getting of Naruto's clan.

Naruto blinked quizzically. "Shouldn't…shouldn't they be? I mean, they were a shinobi village, right? They had to be!"

"That very ruthlessness extended towards their own clansmen, as well."

"What?" the boy gaped, aghast.

Anko chose to take it from there. "Even for a minor village, Uzushiogakure's population was small in comparison because of an age-old breeding program they stuck stringently to, which involved forming matches with as distantly related pairs as possible, staving off the risk of recessive disorders. This was mainly to help secure the clan's secrets as much as it was to keep them going. They were isolated, and highly averse to foreigners looking to breed into the clan. Any children that were born outside of the program's standards were executed along with their parents."

"That's…"

"Messed up? To them, it was normal, practically customary. They made an exception to those of the Senju because of their relations and the privileges it afforded them, and even then, they did so reluctantly." Anko shot the blonde a look. "You know what that would mean for you had they not collapsed, don't you?"

"But…I…they wouldn't…" Naruto stammered, conflicted. "Would they…?"

"They would," the Hokage confirmed easily, dissuading any doubt. "The union between your parents was out of love, make no mistake. In fact, it was a stroke of good fortune for them to have found one another in spite of the climate at the time, and more so with his impressive pedigree, guaranteeing a healthy child without the negative recessive traits that were plaguing the clan." He only needed to point at the blonde, the product of such a union, who fell back down on the chair, the weight of what his clan would have done combined with their mistakes bearing down on him. "Had that tragedy not befallen them, I am certain Minato and Kushina's growing affection and closeness would have been met with objections, and then intervention from the clan, but in doing so, they would have exacerbated their tenuous dilemma."

"They were becoming sterile, apart from a slew of other disorders," Bokomon deduced. "They'd been inbreeding for so long, the effects were becoming more pronounced after each passing generation."

"Hence, why the practice has critically fallen out of favor," Hiruzen added. The Hyūga were the last to discontinue theirs in the most recent generation. "Kushina was chosen specifically because she was one of the few counted amongst the main branch at optimum health and thus capable of childbirth, and at an ideal age to integrate into the village. No older than you, in fact."

"In other words, kid." Anko bore the shaken boy a look. "Your clan was dying out. Given enough time, they would have been done in any way. Selling your mother off was just a stopgap to delay the inevitable. The invasion just sped things along."

"Anko," Hiruzen chided her with a rebuking tone for the wording she used.

"No use sugarcoating it, old man," she shot back flatly.

It was like a bad joke.

The moment it's revealed to him that he had a clan all along, that stood beside Konoha once upon a time, they had long fallen into ruin, with the unwitting architects being none other than themselves. His mother was a mere pawn in the grand scheme of it all. The only silver lining he could find in all of it was that she ended up with his father.

Maybe they could have turned things around, or Konoha could have put in the effort to at least formulate a better solution, were just some of the options he wanted to vent out at them, but the sentiment was futile. Too late. Naruto raised an open palm for him to gaze down at with desolate eyes, the anger having subsided, his focus lingering jadedly on a lifeline.

"It's not fair."

"Life is fair?"

Kakashi finally found his voice. The young Uzumaki blinked as he raised his head and traced the remark from the man by the Hokage's left, eyeing him curiously. "What happened to your clan was unfortunate, yes, but when all is said and done, you're here. You were born, and it wasn't because of selective breeding or any of that convoluted nonsense. It was because your parents fell in love. That's all that matters. Better to deal with it now before you end up tripping all over yourself."

Naruto blinked flakily, as if only now taking stock of the peculiar man with silvery white hair, slowly coming to recognize him as having been in Kurama's domain along with them. "Um, Jii-chan…"

Hiruzen motioned a hand in the man's direction. "Naruto-kun, allow me to formally introduce to you, Hatake Kakashi, Captain of our ANBU Division, and a former student of your father."

Naruto perked up, honest surprise flitting across his features. "Dad's…"

"Yo," Kakashi greeted with a two-fingered salute. "And, soon to be former Captain. I'm planning on transferring."

This abrupt announcement earned him an admonishing glance from his Hokage, who was uninformed prior to this meeting.

Naruto's brows scrunched up, glancing at Anko. "What are ANBU again? I think you once told me about them, Dango-neechan."

The kunoichi recoiled, before rubbing the back of her head with a grimace. "Well…"

"Anko," Kakashi cut her off. He lobbied his sensei's son with an impassive look that brooked for no further question. "For now, all you need to worry about is your own business."

Hiruzen hummed with a nod, taking note of his request, though he would have preferred the news be broken professionally. A small smile made it to his lips despite himself. "Now, should that be all, Naruto-kun? Are you satisfied with having finally learned the truth about the Uzumaki?"

Naruto hung his head, unable to look the Hokage in the eye. "How could I be? You tell me about my clan and how they got wiped out, and I'm supposed to be satisfied with that?"

"Attaining closure means coming to terms with what has come to pass, and sadly, it is hardly ever under a positive light. Such is the way of the world."

Bokomon didn't disagree. He of all people had witnessed more than his fair share of tragedies to last anyone a lifetime. Perhaps even several. All one could really do in the end was move on. "I'm sorry, Naruto."

Piyomon, who had been quietly listening to the discussion the entire time, opened her beak to speak, wanting to say something comforting to her first human friend, but all that came out from the rumbling of her tummy was, "Can I get something to eat? I'm hungry."

The others drifted their attention to her, something clicking to life in their collective minds. They hadn't had breakfast yet. Anko broke into a laugh. "Oh, Tweety, you just had to spoil the mood."

"Eh?" Piyomon fidgeted, believing she had committed a faux pas. "I-I'm sorry."

"No, no," Anko consoled her, marching up to the avian, then bent down, hands on knees for support. "How about I take you outside to get something to eat? Show you around the village. What do you say?"

Piyomon perked up to the offer immediately, her deep emerald eyes shining under the light. "Okay!" She turned to her friends. "Can they come?"

"Maybe later," Anko answered, sensing the discussion yet to conclude, righting her posture. Her hand grabbed at the offered wing before the two made their way out of the room.

The four of them remaining, the air gave way to silence for a moment before Bokomon restarted the conversation. "It wasn't just their Fūinjutsu that made the Uzumaki a threat, was it?"

Coming out more as a statement than a question, Hiruzen still answered. "An apt observation, Bokomon-dono. Indeed, it wasn't just their Fūinjutsu that made the Uzumaki feared. It was their bodies, as well."

"Bodies?" Naruto repeated in curiosity, then repulsion at what that could have meant. "Uh, what do you mean?"

"Their biology, to be precise," Hiruzen continued. "The Uzumaki Clan bloodline possessed incredible vitality and longevity, and their chakra reserves were abnormally high even for standard shinobi. The Senju shared these traits, hence, their propensity for breeding with one another. The idea was that the offspring was to inherit only the best traits from both, and for a time, they produced stellar results. Until the undesirable aftereffects became more apparent down the line."

"You're making it sound like…we're just livestock or cattle to be raised and bred," Naruto sputtered in disgust.

"Natural selection," Bokomon stated.

The blonde's forehead crinkled. "Natural-what?"

"It's when organisms like animals tend to inherit the best qualities out of their parents, preferably themselves ideal in health and biology," Bokomon explained. "Basically, having good genes. A lifestyle and environment where those genes are then cultivated can lead to producing offspring that, in theory, can surpass the previous generation in adaptation."

"Come on, that's crazy!" Naruto snapped. "You can't honestly get me to believe that human lives can be…engineered like we're designer animals."

"In retrospect, humans are animals," Kakashi refuted. "We were just lucky enough to win the genetic lottery over your average fish or primate. From our days of stone tools and fire sticks, we can now tinker with the human genome and map out someone's life based on genealogy, family background, etc."

Naruto's previous anger arose, but he managed to reign in his composure. "By that logic, then it was a no brainer for me to become a shinobi like my parents. Not like I had no other choice, right?"

"Actually, Naruto-kun, if you were to partake into any other career, you would most likely flourish," Hiruzen admitted. "Our braintrust has done the gamut of studying not just your potential, but those of the other clan heirs. Down to a science, we've even compiled a list of trades you could have taken up and excelled at."

"Oh yeah?" Naruto proceeded to ask the Hokage daringly, "Like what? Give me one."

"Ramen chef," Hiruzen answered with a shrug of his tethered fingers.

Naruto opened his mouth, finger raised pointedly with an expectation to refute the claim, but what came out was a stutter. "That's…that's just too obvious!"

"These studies were conducted when you were just two."

"That doesn't mean anything," Naruto maintained stubbornly. "What else?"

"Botanist."

"Lots of people like plants."

"Pharmacist."

"Uh…well…" Naruto's fumbled before allowing his shoulders to droop, unable to think of a retort. "I got nothing. And?"

"Illustrator."

"Aha!" Naruto exclaimed triumphantly, wagging his finger with a grin. "Now I know you're just pulling my leg. I happen to suck at drawing. Absolutely terrible at it!" He folded his arms over his puffed chest.

"That's not something to be proud of," the other three deadpanned in thought.

Hiruzen sighed. "Kakashi?"

Without a word, the man reached for the cabinet next to him, pulling a door ajar and rummaging inside. Soon, he plucked out an object that was, in the dimness, flat and square shaped, roughly the size of a notebook. Upon clearer inspection, it was a frame. Flipping it over revealed it to already be occupied by a…very odd picture. Bokomon narrowed his eyes at the image and his jaw went slack.

"Is that…abstract art? In crayon?!" the scholar inquired in disbelief, seeing the mishmash of colors needed to produce the effect of a tree with a rainbow of leaves that seemed to be exploding rather than billowing with the wind, the background even more spontaneous. It could have been dismissed as a typical child's drawing, but it was far too vivid, too distinct and detailed.

"Why, yes it is," Hiruzen confirmed with a coy twinkling of his eye. "Naruto-kun, do you happen to recognize this?"

Naruto narrowed his eyes at the item of interest. "Uh, no? Why?"

"Oh, I'm sure you should," Hiruzen insisted. "Think hard on it."

And Naruto did, trying to place where he could have seen the artwork. "Wait…I think I do! Yeah, I did that years ago."

"At 4 years old, to be precise. You drew this on a day a caretaker was watching over you," Hiruzen recounted. "Confiscating it, we used it to test the merit of the study by presenting it to a professional collector, under the pretense of it having been done by an anonymous artist."

"And?" Naruto wondered, scratching at his head, the memory unfogging. "It isn't even that good. I was just putting on random colors together to pass the time."

"Naruto, do you even know the magnitude of what you did? At that young an age?" Bokomon admonished the boy for being ignorant of his own talent. He turned back to Hiruzen. "How did the collector react?"

"At first, they were under the assumption that the artist was a sort of up and coming amateur," Hiruzen answered, earning a scoff from Naruto.

"Well, yeah, that should be obvious," the young Uzumaki huffed. "Like I told you. I'm not some super talented genius."

"Perhaps not on the same scale as your father, no," Hiruzen conceded, then abruptly raised a finger, "But, talented. After the initial showing, we asked the collector to name their price, and do you know how much they offered at first?"

"Pfft, can't be that much," Naruto scoffed rather smugly. "I'd be lucky enough to get 5 ryo for it."

"500,000 ryo."

"Right, fi-" Naruto's mouth hung open as he stopped, his mind processing the amount, his eyes bulging open that he felt like they were going to fall right out. "Fi-Fi-Fi-Fi-Five hundred-?!"

"And," as if Hiruzen wasn't the least bit done flipping the boy's world upside-down, "that was before we admitted to them your true age."

"How," Bokomon gulped, "how much did they offer after that admission?"

"800,000 ryo."

Naruto struggled to fully wrap his head around the amount. That much for a drawing? Done by him?

"Face the facts," Kakashi said, the smile hidden by his mask betrayed by the curl of his eye. "I would have imagined you to be over the roof with this news."

Naruto clenched his jaw. "That's not the point, I-"

"Let me guess what your issue seems to be," Kakashi cut him off. "You honestly thought that you were some no talent underdog, a mere nobody that could just coast by with hard work, didn't you?"

Naruto fumbled before he shrunk into his chair, all but confirming the presumption.

"While there's nothing really wrong with that, you're not just some nobody, nor are you an underdog," Kakashi looked him dead in the eye. "Your father was the Fourth Hokage, a prodigious talent that comes along once every few generations, said to rival both the past Hokages. Your mother is Uzumaki Kushina, who passed down to you a strong body that; even without conditioning, possesses incredible vitality that will allow you to live a fairly long life, maybe even in the triple digits. Give yourself some more credit."

Seeing Naruto's face fall further, Kakashi realized then what the actual root of the problem was. "I get it. You've spent most of your life believing that you were worthless from the mistreatment you endured."

The boy couldn't shrink down any further from their watchful gazes. "I'm sorry, but I really don't think I'm a genius or anything special. If there's anybody who is, it's Sasuke. He's the top of our class in everything. Me? I'm just…hoping to pass. That's all."

Kakashi stared at the meek form of his sensei's…no, of Naruto, wearing his insecurities on his sleeve. "Naruto, can I tell you about what age I was upon graduating from the Academy?"

"Hm?" Naruto looked up from his slump. "Uh…okay."

"5 years old," Kakashi said, taking note of the boy's surprise, but it was brief, likely already making assumptions. "Now, I know what you're thinking. That I myself am a genius with natural talent. You're mostly correct, I won't deny it. But you want to know the truth behind such qualities?"

"The truth?"

"Let's say, you ended up slacking off your whole life, not putting in the work and just letting yourself go to waste, never having to do anything to develop whatever potential skills you may have and expecting things to just come to you or go your way like some entitled bum," Kakashi listed off a little too pointedly, causing everyone in the room to sweatdrop. "Do you think, even with all the advantages and privileges that you have, you'd skate through life like nothing?"

"Uh," Naruto paused, catching himself. "N-No, I don't think so."

Kakashi smirked under his mask. "But you did. Don't deny it."

Naruto averted his gaze with a pout. "Okay, so I did, but would you blame me? It's like," he ran a hand over his hair, "it just comes easy to them. They try something once, they get the hang of it in the snap of a finger."

"No, they don't."

"Eh?"

"Naruto, that's not the slightest bit true."

Naruto frowned, like the man had just said something insulting to his intelligence. "Of course it is! Everyone else keeps saying it."

"Talent is nothing without the means and drive to properly nurture it. Even your own father had to work hard to bring out the best of what he had. Sitting on your laurels will only squander your gifts. Incidentally, you've come to place far too much value in the opinions of those who wouldn't know actual talent if it happened to piss on them," Kakashi said darkly.

This drew a chuckle from the boy, which lightened the tension somewhat. "Sorry. You just reminded me of a wicked prank I once pulled."

"Hm, yes, one that I've yet to forget," Hiruzen idly commented, to the blonde's chagrin. That store owner swore that he still smelled like aged dog urine.

"In any case, I graduated from the Academy in the same year I enrolled." He stammered when Naruto shot him a flat look after hearing that. "Just listen. I wouldn't have been able to weren't it not for putting in the actual work in the first place. In this world where words like 'genius' and 'talent' are thrown around like nothing, there's bound to be those who end up buying into their own hype, becoming cocky and arrogant. I will tell you this now. They're more than likely to be the first ones to die."

Naruto frowned, becoming invested in the man's words. "There is a saying. A nail that stands above the rest gets hammered down." He fixed his gaze to the boy's again, both his own and lone Sharingan shining with an intense conviction. "Which would you prefer to be, Naruto? The hammer? Or the nail?"

Was that it? Was it because he was afraid that he would start to think that he was better than others? That he'd end up like the ones who looked down on him? No, that was only a part of it. The other part was that he was ashamed.

Ashamed of how inherently hypocritical he was every time he thought or said to himself that he could compete with those like Sasuke using nothing but raw hard work. Now that he knew his actual background, it just left a bitter aftertaste.

"When you get to be in the business long enough, being a "genius" has no more weight than who happens to have the complete Anniversary Set of Icha Icha Paradise." He paused from a sharp clearing of the throat from Hiruzen. "For every one genius, there are ten nobodies who worked themselves from the ground up who can crush them like nothing." Kakashi closes his eyes. "I happen to know a few. When you think about it," he raised a finger, "you're not really all that special."

Naruto flattened his brow in a deadpan. "I am practically the reincarnation of a dragon god, and the unintended product of a superhuman breeding program."

"Can you manipulate shadows?"

"Huh?"

"Can you read or control minds?"

"Um…no?"

"Can you convert your body fat into chakra for an extra boost?"

"No," Naruto shook his head. "I can't do any of that. Why? Who can do those things?"

"Your friends," Kakashi provided, "Shikamaru, Ino and Choji respectively by merit of their clan bloodlines."

Naruto undulated his shoulders in a shrug, inwardly amazed that their clans were capable of such jutsu. "They already belong to strong clans. That really doesn't prove anything."

"Once upon a time, those very clans didn't even exist," Kakashi elaborated. "It took decades for even a single one to earn the renown and acclaim they now have through countless amounts of literal blood and sweat. Back then, you wouldn't have cared if you happened to pass by one of them on the road. Sure, they might rob you, gut you and leave your corpse to be picked on by the wilds, but you wouldn't have given a shit who they were."

Everyone else sweatdropped at his example. "Okay, you've got a point," Naruto conceded. "Then, what about you?"

"What about me, what?"

"Your clan."

"Ah," Kakashi nodded. "No, I don't belong to a noble clan."

Naruto's head shifted back. "You…don't?"

"Nope," Kakashi answered with a cheeky smile behind his mask. "It's more nuanced than that, Naruto. Belonging to a clan or not, that has no real correlation to someone's potential. It was only ever just me and my father. No special bloodline, no mutations, no nothing. All we had was the drive to be the best to make both our village proud and to earn a living. My so-called 'natural talent' was really because of…sufficient motivation."

"Mine, as well," Hiruzen chimed in. "We Sarutobi do not possess any unusual or abnormal qualities to our bloodline. We were but a minor clan that coasted through the past wars, surviving through flukes and sheer luck. When we settled down in Konoha, in my youth, I was simply fortunate enough to have studied directly under Yondaime-sama, and later Nidaime-sama." He chuckled, adding in lightheartedly, "And, look where I am now."

"Jii-chan…"

"But it was a different time," Hiruzen went on, turning serious. "Shinobi had to work hard just to survive, and to protect the formed Hidden Villages. In such an environment where the grudges of the Sengoku Jidai had yet to truly die down, you could leave nothing to chance. I was only ever a 'genius' in comparison to my peers because I lived through such turbulence. In turn, my clan became recognized for my years of service. In the end, when all is said and done, it was never about those who stood above others, Naruto-kun, but of who managed to survive. That is the merciless reality of our lifestyle as shinobi."

"Survival of the fittest," Bokomon added somberly.

"Are you satisfied now, Naruto?" Kakashi asked the silent boy, who had become lost in thought.

Naruto, lingering doubts swirling within him, reminisced on the period of him feeling like he was all alone. His caretakers after he was booted out of the orphanage at least taught him how to care for himself, but there was never any attachment behind their company. They needed him alive, not because of anything that slightly resembled affection, but because it was their obligation to make sure that the village's weapon was healthy enough to fulfill his intended purpose. The void left by the absence of his parents, combined with the degradation of his sense of worth and self-esteem had instilled in him a warped belief that he could become a self-made success story if he tried hard enough.

Deep down, it was just a deluded line of thinking to keep his hopes up. He wasn't that stupid or ignorant. Years of having to put up with the disdain, the abuse and the rejection convinced him that the only person he could ever really count on for support was himself.

Hiruzen must have sensed this, inwardly lamenting in shame at his shortcomings in Naruto's upbringing. But now, he was determined to correct course and provide his surrogate grandson the things he missed out on in life. He wasn't a fool to believe that his issues could be resolved that easily, but they were off to a good start.

"Yeah, I guess," Naruto mumbled. "It's just…a lot to take in."

"Because you took to heart what you kept hearing from others," Kakashi reiterated, with Naruto nodding meekly after a moment. "I get it, kid. More than you know. Back in my genin days, I…had a friend who was…kinda like you, who came from a prominent clan. He was the dead last in our year, and didn't seem to show any promise beyond being average. I myself thought he was a disgrace," he chuckled mirthlessly. "But, he was kind, and easy to get along with, working hard to be the best shinobi that he could be. As time passed, I warmed up to him and we became close."

There was a long gap of silence, pushing Naruto to ask, "What happened to him?" He was careful to refrain from going with a name, gut feeling that it would be unwise.

"He…disappeared during a mission years ago," Kakashi almost said the opposite out of reflex, but managed to catch himself.

"Oh."

"Hey now, there's a bright side to this story. I recently found a lead to help me find him." So distracted was he, Kakashi didn't notice the faint lines across Hiruzen's forehead curl forlornly. "So, maybe with luck, you two will get to meet." If he hasn't changed that much after all these years.

This finally brought a light smile from the blonde. "Sounds like a swell guy. Maybe we'd even hit it off, uh, how should I…?"

"Hatake-san, for now," the man told him. "You best start embracing good manners soon because if you're going to become a shinobi, you should conduct yourself appropriately to both colleagues and clients alike. Your conduct can reflect on not just your superiors, but the village as well. Clear?"

"Y-Yes," Naruto stiffly nodded. "Ka-Hatake-san."

"We're back, guys!" Anko announced after barging in through the door, with Piyomon close behind her, the latter helping her lug bags full of food.

"That was quick," Kakashi remarked, but what he was really conveying was. What happened?

"Went for takeout since I figured I couldn't let you guys go hungry," Anko elaborated as she traipsed up to Naruto and Bokomon to hand them their meals. "Be grateful, Cyclops, for the generous Anko-sama didn't see fit to leave you out. As for our tour of the village, it got cut off because the streets were jam-packed." Danzo's men.

Blending in, naturally. "Hoh? How much did you bring?" How many?

"Enough for all of us," Anko threw him a bento that he caught with indifference. "And a little extra for the brats." Three.

Hiruzen went still in thought, having expected that Danzo had not glossed over the discrepancy in his recent activities. One of the merchants must have spilled the details of their meeting. The man was likely already aware of Tenzō's vigilance, which served more as a check to keep him from overstepping. Until he either slipped or took deliberate action.

"So, Piyomon, how'd you like Konoha?" Naruto asked the pink avian as he partook into his breakfast bento, while she was munching on some dango, his earlier woes shelved.

Piyomon chewed idly as she thought back to the buildings and people she witnessed, the very first time she had ever gotten a glimpse of a human settlement, earning some stares from adults and who she could tell were small children younger than Naruto. One little girl was even curious enough to come near and poke at her feathers, which tickled. Anko maintained her cover story as a young Summon, despite her own fitful attempts at correcting the designation that the woman interposed.

"Lots of humans," Piyomon related. "And a really weird mountain with faces."

"That would be the Hokage Monument, Piyomon-kun," Hiruzen answered in response to the child Digimon. "A grand landmark that serves as a tribute to the village's great leaders both past and present. My own visage happens to be situated in the middle. You may have noticed it?"

Hearing that, Piyomon gave the elderly human behind the desk a closer squint under the dim lighting, which wasn't a hindrance. "No," she shook her head, "none of them looked like you, I think."

Hiruzen nearly fell out of his seat, while both Anko and Kakashi traded teasing grins at his expense.

"By the way, after we're done eating, would it be alright for me to examine that scroll?" Bokomon asked after swallowing down a piece of tamagoyaki.

Rather than refuse the request, Hiruzen was intrigued. "For what reason, Bokomon-dono?" He suspected that the scholar must have sensed it, lending credence to AncientGreymon's reveal on the true nature of Fūinjutsu.

"I just want to check it out to make sure," Bokomon answered, espying the knowing glint in the Hokage's eye. "I presume you already have an idea why."

"Very well," Hiruzen agreed, deciding to test the conjecture out.

"One thing still bothers me," Naruto said through a mouthful of his food. "Why did I become the container for Kurama in the first place? I mean, I know my mom was before, but why us? Could it have been anyone?"

Hiruzen tore away from his half eaten dango. "It is because as Uzumaki, you and your mother are naturally compatible."

"Compatible?"

"Because of their vitality, the Uzumaki were considered ideal containers for the Tailed Beasts, mitigating the ill effects one otherwise would succumb to. A shortened lifespan, loss of sanity, or more commonly, death." Naruto flinched, earning a telling nod. "Their massive reserves of chakra is toxic to most living organisms, which your clan had a resistance to in controlled amounts." Hiruzen wagged the stick that still had one dango left. "Before your mother, Mito-sama was Konoha's very first Jinchūriki of the Kyūbi, after the beast along with his brethren were subdued by Hashirama-sama."

"The First Hokage caught all of the Tailed Beasts?!" Naruto questioned in awe. "And his wife had Kurama first?!"

"He had help in the capture, of course," Hiruzen admitted with a chuckle, but thought better than to mention the one he partnered with to accomplish such a feat.

Bokomon's brows knitted together when he realized a detail that he almost missed, halfway into taking another bite of his food. "Were the Uzumaki themselves…sought after by other villages?"

Hiruzen would have smiled at how intuitive the scholar was, further assured of his plans to come. "The spoils of the Uzushiogakure Campaign didn't end with their Fūinjutsu alone."

"Meaning?" Naruto asked. "What else could they have possibly wanted from my clan? Based on all I've heard, they practically ransacked us of everything and then some."

"Naruto, haven't you figured it out yet?" Bokomon asked the young man with urgency. "After all we discussed, doesn't it strike you as the least bit suspect?"

A bit confused at first, Naruto's mind swam back to their entire conversation. That was when the realization fell on top of him like a sledgehammer. "Wait, you don't mean-?"

"Indeed," Hiruzen declared. "Finish your meal, Naruto-kun, for I will disclose further details on the aftermath of the invasion."

Naruto almost didn't want to, preferring to just rush through the rest of this meeting and be on their way home.

Deep down, however, he might not get another opportunity. "Go ahead, Jii-chan. I'm ready! I have to be. This is still my clan we're talking about, and while they wouldn't have seen me as one of them, I still owe it to my mom to know."

Hiruzen smiled with pride at the boy. He'll go far. "The invasion was a success despite the casualties suffered, for the Uzumaki still fought valiantly to the end, but none were more decimated than they were. Uzushiogakure was pillaged of everything that wasn't nailed down or locked away. Nothing was spared. Even its people."

Naruto swallowed a lump caught in his throat. Or, was it simply the octopus sausage?

"We did mention that there were survivors," Hiruzen reminded him. "Those that were either elsewhere during the invasion, or who managed to be evacuated. Then…there are those who were claimed by the invaders."

Naruto braced himself. "When you say it like that, do you mean they were kept as prisoners?"

"To put it bluntly, Short Man, they kept some alive to be made into actual breeding stock," Anko blurted.

Naruto went still, taking a moment for it to register. He lightly shook his head, wondering to himself if he heard right. "You…don't mean…"

"We do. As cruel as it may sound to you, Naruto, it was another common practice that shinobi indulged in, and still do to this day," Kakashi stated. "If not through mutual conditions like an alliance, clans - or countries in this case - would assimilate those they conquered to claim their unique bloodline abilities if they proved valuable enough."

Naruto snapped the chopsticks he held as he grasped more of the implications, stirring his outrage and disgust, his meal all but forgotten.

He fought back the urge to vomit. "Did they…"

"Every six ways to Sunday, kid," Anko responded, bereft of her usual humor. "If they happened to be healthy, they were commodities that served a purpose. Most were young women over boys, some as young as infants or toddlers ripe for indoctrination or conditioning, set to be paired with viable partners. Those who couldn't make the cut were disposed of."

"That's sick!" Naruto spat, his tightening fingers warping the portion of the box they clung to, spilling some of his rice.

"Of course it is," Anko blankly shrugged. "And?"

Naruto gaped at her. "It…It doesn't bother you?"

Anko's face took on a menacing scowl that sent a chill down the boy's spine and made him reconsider. "Don't think it doesn't, brat. I'd cut anyone open to see if they have any guts to pull that shit on me."

"...Has Konoha ever done something like that, then?" Naruto dared to ask what he wouldn't have before.

Anko's scowl vanished, and was replaced by a contrite mien, averting her gaze as a silent answer.

Hiruzen intervened. "The original purpose behind the Hidden Villages was to provide shinobi a home to call their own and build proper societies from the turmoil left behind by the Sengoku Jidai. An ambitious dream that was borne out of Hashirama-sama's desire for peace, and what served as the model for others to follow. But, dreams and reality often tend to clash. As such, you are correct, Naruto-kun. Konohagakure is not without its own share of sins."

"And you won't tell me about them," the boy frankly guessed.

"Much of it is classified, and would do nothing but undermine the order we have worked to maintain," Hiruzen confessed, knowing how feeble that reasoning was. "I understand that your opinion of the village would be less than genial."

"Huh?"

"Less than good," Bokomon whispered to him.

"Oh," the boy blinked. "It's not exactly that I hate the village, I…I just…" his face contorted as he pinched his eyes shut, unable to bring out the words lodged deep within his chest.

"You just don't like it that much anymore, or if you even did." Anko sighed, "You can be honest, kid. We wouldn't hold it against you. Hell, it's unhealthy if you forced your emotions like that."

Hiruzen hung his head. "Know this, Naruto-kun, whatever you may think of the village, you are well within your rights to. I fully acknowledge my faults in my role of raising you," Anko loudly cleared her throat, "erm, coupled with my neglect."

"It's okay, Jii-chan." Naruto brought a hand up from the look Anko shot him. "No, really. Like I said, I don't hate the village, but I'm not about to sing its praises. And, whether I like it or not, this is still my home. It's all I know, and the people I care about are here, too."

"Aw," Anko cooed mockingly. "I'm touched, Short Man."

"But, my parents must have loved the village, right?"

"They did," Kakashi replied. "Though, I'm sure if Kushina-san was here, people would have more than a few second thoughts in the way they'd treat you."

Naruto shuddered, the glimpse into his mother's temper leaving a lasting impression. "Y-Yeah."

"The Uzumaki as a clan may be defunct, but their legacy has not been snuffed out," Hiruzen continued. "Even now, Konohagakure has been on the search for survivors, or their descendants."

"Then, they're out there," Naruto said pensively, looking up.

"So, how would you even know if one was an Uzumaki?" Bokomon inquired.

"One common characteristic was their red hair," Hiruzen revealed. "Nearly all the Uzumaki were redheads."

"Like my mom?" Naruto said in surprise, running his free hand over his blonde locks.

"Your father's genes won out, kid," Anko added.

Naruto tried to visualize himself with red hair, and made a thoughtful face. While it didn't diminish his looks, the color didn't quite click.

"You're not about to start dyeing your hair, are 'ya?" the kunoichi teased him with a coy fold of her arms.

"Nah, not feelin' it," the boy shrugged. "Anything else I should know?" Returning to his meal, he was dismayed and embarrassed to discover to have spilled much of it, prompting a fresh one handed by Anko, accepting it sheepishly. "I'll clean it up."

"Holding you to that," she pointed at him.

"Kakashi?" Hiruzen signaled his soon to be former ANBU Captain for a second time, who drew out a small, but thick envelope from his pocket. He handed it to Naruto, who then dangled it close to examine.

"Uh, what's this?" He gave it a light squeeze, and felt the familiar sensation of hard paper.

"Open it," Hiruzen instructed simply, a smile tracing itself on his lips.

With a shrug, he balanced his unopened bento box on his lap to free both hands. He then pulled the flap open and peeked inside with a discerning eye, finding it bursting at the seams with what looked to be stacks of paper. Confused, he used his free thumb and index finger to carefully pull out the contents.

His bento nearly spilled out onto the floor were it not for a vigilant Anko, who caught it, the boy going limp at what he was looking at.

Ryo.

The thickest, most abundant amount of ryo he had ever seen. He blinked owlishly several times, believing it a trick of the dim light or a hallucination. "What…is this?"

"A part of your inheritance," Hiruzen answered, his smile never leaving. "You didn't honestly believe your parents to have not left you anything?"

Naruto briefly drew his focus away from the money to give the Hokage a pointed stare, drawing out an awkward chuckle from the man.

"How much is this?"

"500,000 ryo," Hiruzen provided, causing Naruto to almost drop the money. "For your living expenses, and other needs. We've also taken the liberty of ironing out the details on having additional tenants with your landlord. Bokomon-dono, or Uzumaki Junichiro, has been registered as your legal guardian. As for how you emigrated to Konoha, the story goes that we found you living in a small country. For credibility's sake, through careful investigation, we were tipped off that someone suspected of being an Uzumaki was living on the outskirts as a hermit."

"And?" Naruto prodded, having resumed eating, the envelope of money placed on the desk.

"By the time one of our agents arrived to collect him, it had been days after his body was found, ruling the death as suicide. According to the report, the man seemed to be suffering from paranoid delusions based on eye witness accounts and complaints from the locals, no doubt from trauma left behind by the invasion. All that could be done was bring his body to be autopsied and cremated. That was three weeks ago."

"Doesn't sound like a solid story to me," the blonde remarked. "Was Junichiro even his real name?"

"No. We could find no form of identification on him, and those who knew of him claimed that he was adamant about never disclosing his name, making it convenient for us," Hiruzen pointed out soundly. "Bokomon-dono is to assume that person's identity, the retrieval marked a success."

"Uh, is that even legal?" Naruto wondered aloud, nibbling on the tip of his new chopsticks.

"You'd be surprised at the number of times that happens under the government's discretion," Kakashi mumbled offhand. "We confiscated what little belongings he had, some of which can be 'returned' to the rightful owner." Not counting the Fūin scrolls he also had on him.

"I'm okay with it," Bokomon agreed, unbothered.

"You are?" Naruto mused.

"Not like I haven't been involved in worse," Bokomon shrugged.

"Like?"

"Reimbursing a debt that was signed under my name by an old acquaintance. Without my knowledge, of course," Bokomon related. "Took me years to work it off, plus interest."

"Sounds rough," Anko sympathized. "What happened to the bozo who got you into that mess?"

"Loaded," Bokomon revealed. "Got into trouble with another loan shark. Old habits, and all that."

"I bet you've lived a pretty interesting life up till now," Anko speculated.

"I've been around," Bokomon inferred. "I mean, I've traversed nearly every corner of Digital World, save for the off-limits areas."

"Like?"

"At the top of my head, the darkest and deepest waters of the Net Ocean, home to the most vicious and bloodthirsty aquatic Digimon," Bokomon shuddered. "No Digimon in their right mind goes there unless they happen to be strong enough to survive. You'd be no better than fish bait, otherwise."

"Well, we've got a couple of those here in Konoha. One of them is the Forest of Death, filled with fauna and flora mutated by feeding on leftover chakra. Mutations, gigantifications, lethal poisons, a real menagerie of man-eaters. You'd probably feel right at home," Anko finished with what she clearly meant as a joke.

"Probably," Bokomon shrugged, putting away his finished bento and catching the kunoichi off guard at how sincere he sounded.

Hiruzen cleared his throat. "Bokomon-dono, do you have any plans in mind for the duration of your stay here?"

Bokomon paused to think. "Learn everything I can to live here, being a start. And to help get Naruto in better shape."

"No way!" Naruto rattled in excitement. "You're gonna train me, Bokomon?"

"Condition you," Bokomon corrected. "First thing we need to do is to work on your body's health."

"Why? What's wrong with my health?" Naruto posited.

"For one, you're malnourished," Bokomon forwarded. "Two, you're gonna have to work on your body if you want to maximize your potential. Three, there's the matter of your education."

"I'm already being tutored by a friend, remember?" Naruto waived off the latter offer. "You don't need to worry about that."

"Oh, but he does," Hiruzen chimed in. "Bokomon-dono? How would you like a job as both a manner of income, and as a way to remain close to Naruto?"

"As a teacher, right?" The scholar didn't even need to mull it over. "Done. I'm gonna need to pore over the entire curriculum in order to orientate myself."

"Done," Hiruzen agreed.

"Bokomon is gonna teach at the Academy?! Oh man, this is gonna be so cool!" Naruto exclaimed in joy.

"You better not think having a teacher live with you is gonna breeze you through school," Anko warned.

"No way!" Naruto straightened up. "I'm gonna study hard with Shikamaru. I promised him, after all."

"Good on you, Short Man," Anko commended, casting a dangerous grin at him, making the boy tremble. "I'm gonna hold you to that promise. Speaking of which." She pointed at his feet, where there was still a mess of food.

"Oh, right!" Naruto scrambled to begin cleaning up after himself, having finished his breakfast.

"Oh, and before I forget, can any of you explain to me what it was Kurama did to warrant all the mistreatment Naruto suffered?

"Hm?" Hiruzen balked. "Why ask, Bokomon-dono?"

"When Kurama and his siblings were still in the Digital World as children, I was their teacher," Bokomon confessed, much to the humans' collective shock. "I volunteered after seeing how much they needed an education."

"You're kidding," Anko staggered. "Tell me you're just messing with us."

Bokomon shook his head, expression grave. "No. I'm not. I taught them everything they know. Arithmetics, reading, and writing. They're all fluent in Digimoji, as well."

"Extraordinary," Hiruzen marveled, organizing his thoughts. "Bokomon-dono, as a teacher myself, I can relate when a past student has strayed. More than you know."

Hiruzen and the other adults spent the next several minutes recounting how Kurama had wronged Konoha, and how his rampage had condemned Naruto's childhood. The boy himself, who was busy with cleaning the spilled food with some offered help from Piyomon, could only listen in silence, hearing how much death and destruction had been wrought that fateful night. The first impulse he had was to blame himself, coming to understand just how and why the villagers treated him the way they did, only to be dissuaded from that mindset by Kakashi, who told him Kurama's actions were his own, and he was still an infant, far too young to consciously share any responsibility.

"I see," Bokomon said with a fallen tone. He righted his posture, then bowed. "I apologize for all the trouble my student caused."

Hiruzen frowned. "You needn't, Bokomon-dono. It is as Kakashi says. The Kyūbi, no, Kurama's actions are his own to take responsibility for, which he is now serving as an asset to Konoha."

Bokomon straightened, then turned to the blonde, who had long finished with the cleaning seated back on his chair. "Naruto. Can I see the seal on your stomach for a moment?"

"Eh?" Naruto blinked. "Uh…sure, but, why?"

"Trust me."

Seeing no reason not to, Naruto lifted his shirt just enough to expose his stomach, bare and lacking any visible marks. Bokomon brought his hand over the boy's midsection, which was soon enveloped by a green glow, with visible shapes of what resembled binary code floating between the space, earning astonished looks from all present.

Hiruzen was practically gobsmacked at the display. I can't imagine anyone but a proficient seal master to be capable of this.

Naruto himself couldn't speak, his mouth hanging open, mesmerized as figures slowly erupted across his stomach, highlighted in the same green glow, accompanied by a rush of warmth.

Anko and Kakashi were in similar states of awe as the light seemed to spill out into the room.

Unbeknownst to them, Bokomon was mentally accessing the seal. Hacking into it. The parameters were simple, as if hastily put together on short notice.

He'd cracked tougher.

---

Kurama's room.

Kurama was seated on his sofa, uncaring of the world outside, his shoulders shaking as he snickered at the gekiga he was reading. So engrossed was he that he failed to take note of his guest.

"I see you're doing well."

"Hm?" Kurama, loosely paying attention, waved at the sound of the voice. "Uh, yeah, yeah. In a minute, sensei."

He continued his enjoyment for a few more seconds when his awareness kicked in, and he dropped his book at the same time his jaw fell. "Urk! S-Se-Se…Sen-Sensei…!"

Bokomon could only frown at him as he sputtered and frantically huddled behind the sofa, poking the top of his head out. "Uh…l-long…t-time no see…um…uh…"

The scholar sighed in disapproval, lifting his head up to look his former student in the eye from across where he stood on the floor, the furniture towering over him. "You've really gone and done it."

Kurama gulped, sweat starting to show on his brow. He tried to grin in what he hoped was a cordial manner. "Uh…c-can I get you anything?"

"How about this," Bokomon began sternly, causing Kurama to flinch, his long ears drooping back. "We need to talk."

---

Back with the others.

Bokomon had been silent for over two minutes as he kept his hand poised over Naruto's stomach, before the glow finally faded and he relaxed his form.

"Well?" Hiruzen asked after collecting himself.

Bokomon didn't respond right away, seemingly reflective. "We talked."

"That's it?" Anko pressed after nothing else was said.

"Though, I did tell him to behave from now on," Bokomon shook his head. "Lots of good that'll do. He's always been a troublemaker, and a stubborn one, too. Used to bully his siblings a lot, even during our classes."

"Sounds like a real whiz kid," the kunoichi quipped.

"Oh, but he was," Bokomon vouched, surprising the others. "Out of all his siblings, Kurama showed the most intelligence. He excelled in physics, mathematics, and even did a thesis on nuclear fusion."

"Wait a minute, you're telling us foxy's some kind of genius?" Anko asked, her tone dripping with skepticism, voicing out what all the other humans were finding hard to believe.

"Well, the only subject he did poorly on was writing. Shukaku had him beat on that," Bokomon stated, scratching his head.

"And Shukaku would be?" Hiruzen prodded.

"Well, based on what I know of your language, he would be the Ichibi. We didn't refer to them by the number of tails they had back then, so why don't I just provide you with a list of their names?"

The Bijū of Sunagakure? A calligrapher?! "I see," the Hokage hummed to himself. "Please do."

Bokomon waddled back to his chair. "In any case, he shouldn't be making too much of a fuss now. I also did a few improvements on the program keeping him in check."

Hiruzen was more sure of his plans now than ever. If not by blood, Bokomon may as well be an Uzumaki in spirit. "May I ask, what improvements could those be, Bokomon-dono?"

"Just some simple troubleshooting and fortifying," Bokomon sat back on his seat as the others returned to their respective places. "I mean, it was good enough, but it was like whoever put it together was in a hurry, and based on what you told me, Naruto's father must have been under quite a lot of pressure when he did. I'm honestly impressed because a whole slew of things could have gone wrong had he been off by the tiniest margin."

The Hokage smiled in pride at what was an honest compliment for his successor. "Tell me, how would you like to examine the rest of the Uzumaki Fūin we have in store? Or, better yet, apart from being a teacher, we could employ you as one of our resident seal specialists on hand. Sporadically, of course."

"Hm, I could give it a go, sure."

Naruto smiled warmly as the discussion went on, and into the rest of the day in finalizing the details. Late in the afternoon, before they could take their leave home.

"Here you go," Kakashi said as he handed Naruto's D-Scanner back to him. "Don't break it."

Naruto scowled at him for the crack, but nodded.

"Hey, call me curious, but would you mind evolving?" Anko requested. "Right in front of us?"

"Eh?" Naruto paused, taken aback. "Right here? Now?"

"Just wanna see you up close in that snazzy armor of yours, Short Man," Anko winked at him.

"I wouldn't recommend it," Bokomon warned her. "Evolution expends a lot of energy out of a Digimon, which is why I'm getting him to partake in a physical and nutritional plan to offset any ill effects he may experience over a long period. The amount of food he ate last night was his body compensating for the loss of energy and calories."

"Dang, that must suck," Anko shrugged, scratching her head.

"I…feel fine," Naruto declared a bit worryingly, checking himself. "I mean, I don't feel weak or anything."

"That's because you've had food and a good night's rest," Bokomon told him. "Believe me, you'll be feeling the effects if you aren't careful, which is why you'll need to condition yourself for evolution."

"Like working a muscle," Kakashi alluded.

"Precisely," Bokomon nodded.

"There'll be plenty of time for that at your leisure, but now comes the time for you three to go home," Hiruzen announced. He still needed to get ready for his meeting with Shikaku, sharing a knowing glance with Kakashi.

"Alright! You'll be bunking with me, Piyomon!" Naruto proclaimed in joy, pumping up the hand that held his D-Scanner. Until…

'Malicious Code Detected'

"Eh?"

The older shinobi were immediately on guard, believing it to be an infiltration as they formed a protective circle around the other three.

"No, stop!" Bokomon desisted, flailing his arms to gather their attention. "It's coming from the D-Scanner!"

"Say what?" Naruto looked down at the handheld in puzzlement, before it repeated.

'Malicious Code Detected'

"What does that mean?" Anko questioned, lowering the kunai she drew out, the other two following suit. The voice sounded similar to Naruto, only lifeless and electronically filtered.

Bokomon folded his arms in thought. "Hm, I wonder. It could be infected with a virus."

"Oh come on, seriously?" Naruto moaned, knowing what a computer virus was, at least. "I just got this thing."

"Then again," Bokomon pondered further, banking on a theory. "Try pointing it at something."

Warily, Naruto lifted the device higher and angled it so that the sensor was facing forward. He then slowly started to spin around, directing it at every corner, passing by Piyomon, Hiruzen who was next to her, then Kakashi, and stopped when he aligned it with Anko.

'Malicious Code Detected'

"Why is it that doesn't surprise me?" Anko grumbled.

"We can worry about your self-esteem issues later, Anko," Kakashi deadpanned, only to grunt out in pain from a hard slap courtesy of the kunoichi.

"What the heck is going on?" Naruto asked, flummoxed, inspecting the handheld for anything wrong. "This better not be busted."

Hiruzen nuzzled his goatee with a finger, the gears of his mind whirring. Could it be…?

Would you like to troubleshoot?

"Whoa, whoa, whoa! Now hold on!" Anko shot both hands up. "I'm not some living computer virus. You sure that thing isn't defective?"

"Anko," Hiruzen called to her, garnering her attention. He locked his eyes with hers in a silent plea for her patience.

The kunoichi opened her mouth to blurt out a protest, but found that the words failed her. Instead, she let out a sigh, and spoke, "Kid, I think I might know why your kooky gamepad is acting up."

With a free hand, she reached around to pull at the hem of her collar, angling her upper body to reveal a mark situated between her neck and shoulder, which the two men knew all too well. It was a seal, with three black tomoe circling in on one another within a border of characters in similar fashion to the Uzumaki Fūin.

Naruto blinked to clearly examine it closely. "What's that?"

"A Juin (Cursed Seal)," Hiruzen proceeded to explain. "It can technically be considered a Fūin with its own set of variants, but unlike those commonly used, this particular one alters the bearer's cells to mutate them, granting them enhanced strength, speed and senses. At the cost of their sanity."

"Wait, then how did-don't tell me my clan had anything to do with this," Naruto suspected warily.

"I can assure you, the Uzumaki were many things, but they would have scorned whoever brought this unholy excuse of a Fūin into the world." If only for how shoddy it was done.

"Then, how did you get it, Dango-neechan?"

Anko fixed her posture, doling out a sigh. "That's my business. All you need to know is that this thing has been a massive pain in the ass to me for years. Not a day goes by that I want it gone." And to skin alive his sorry ass for giving it to me. "I can't get too worked up, otherwise, the seal activates and I start to go crazy."

"Then," Naruto looked between the kunoichi and his D-Scanner, "maybe I can help. If this thing can fix it-"

"Then I'll be free," Anko finished wistfully. "Forget it, kid. I've already gotten my hopes up before. Disappointment after disappointment in wanting it removed. I even tried cutting it off," Naruto winced, "no dice."

The young Uzumaki was almost discouraged, but shook his head to help steel his resolve. "You don't mean that. If you want it gone, I'll make it go away. I'm an Uzumaki, and that's a seal, which makes it my responsibility. I'm not going to just stand by while I might be able to do something about it."

"Now see here, brat, I've had to put up with a lot of shit because of this thing for years," Anko replied fiercely. "Don't think you can just jump in and offer me some snakeoil that might not even work."

"But it will," Naruto insisted with conviction. "I can't explain it, but…I think I can fix it. No, remove it! Just give me a chance. What else do you have to lose?"

Her hope. Or whatever was left of it. For years, she had to put up with the looks she'd get from others, the things they'd say behind her back or what they believed she couldn't hear. The stigma of being under Orochimaru's shadow had stung her deep, leaving behind scars that might not ever go away. She looked into the boy's eyes, a fire in them that made her heart swell, however briefly.

Eyes that she once had.

The kunoichi couldn't stop a smile from breaking out across her face, a genuine one uncommon to her that drew Kakashi's eye.

He reflexively averted his gaze

Anko deflated, sucking in some air through her nostrils. "Unbelievable," she muttered first to herself. "Fine. Even if you do fail, kid, you gave it your best shot.

"Go for it."

Naruto beamed his own smile at her, before his face became set into a focused frown. He brought his D-Scanner into position, the screen lighting up as it faced the kunoichi.

To their unending amazement, a ring of code began to cocoon Anko, a weightless sensation overcoming her.

The air in the room shifted, as invisible energies seemed to saturate the space around the two.

"Corrupt, evil soul!" Naruto began to chant, as if instinctively sensing the malicious intelligence behind the seal. "This Digivice shall purify you!"

Digicode

SCAN

He swung the D-Scanner across Anko's petrified form, the sensor hooking in the corrupted code that was rooted to the Cursed Mark, pulling at it until the infernal corruption gradually began to fade. More and more was being absorbed by the miraculous device, until all that was left after the code dissipated was a shaken Anko, who nearly toppled over had Kakashi not caught her.

The D-Scanner still vibrating with power, Naruto too felt winded, gaining support from Hiruzen.

Panting, Naruto collected his bearings, peering at his D-Scanner out of the corner of his eye, gripping it tightly as it shook less and less, a small light blinking from the screen. It soon went dead, signifying the scan a success.

"I-It worked," he gasped out. "Haha! It worked!"

The Hokage was still in a state of disbelief as he carefully lugged Naruto to his seat, thinking back on years of research, of their best specialists studying ways to remove Orochimaru's taint. None had succeeded on a permanent solution, only suppressants.

A miracle had occurred. Hiruzen was already thinking up ways they could counter Orochimaru's influence. They now had a chance.

Kakashi held onto a weakened Anko, who only had enough strength left to smile wearily. "Is…is it really gone? Give it to me straight, Cyclops."

Kakashi peeked into the spot where the mark had been, finding unblemished skin. He lifted his head to tell her, just in time that Anko impulsively turned her head, the corner of her lips brushing against his mask, but she either failed to notice or was too out of it.

"It's gone," the man informed her, their warm breaths mingling. "He really did it."

It didn't feel real, a faint thought running through the kunoichi's mind that she was dreaming.

"I'm…I'm free," words that she never thought would ever leave her lips. "I'm fucking free!"

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Author's Notes: I decided to merge these two chapters together previously.