It has been hard to get this chapter done as I have had some serious writers block, then everything I forced didn't look right and its just been... bleh. But I got this done!

The plan to go was set, and Gai, ANBU named Yamato and Aoba were to go with him. Tsunade insisted and Gai appointed himself for reasons Naruto didn't understand.

"I could get to the Cloud much quicker alone ya know?" Naruto complained at the gate.

"That's not the point" She snapped and there was a look she had that he tried to point.

"And why is Bushy Brow coming?" He asked

The man laughed loudly and put his arm over Naruto's shoulders and it took absolutely all his training not fight him off. He was a goof and harmless, Naruto knew this. Not in a fight obviously, but he didn't sense an ounce of hostility from him.

"Kakashi worries about you. And he is needed here so I will have your back out there!" He yelled whilst Tsunade put her hand to her head and frowned her brow twitching. Naruto believed that and nodded but looked to the Two ANBU. It felt like she was giving him babysitters, almost as if she wasn't sure he would actually go. He sighed and just felt it better to go along with it. He ducked out of Gai's arm and looked to Shikamaru. They'd said their goodbyes, but Shikamaru insisted on coming to the gate. But it seemed... wrong to not say it while he was there.

"I'll see you soon" he promised and Shikamaru nodded

"I better" he smirked

"Give us a minute" Tsunade ordered and Shikamaru left back to the village while Naruto's 'squad' went ahead a little and waited for him.

"Don't take it the wrong way. They have orders to protect and help you, this isn't a question of my trust in you. Madara was barely destroyed by my Grandfather. Without the Fox's complete power I don't want you facing him alone" she said and that had surprised him. "Jiyraiya lied to me, for how long I don't know but the fact you turned up with Sage mode, the Toads it isn't hard to figure out. I'll do what I can for you, for him"

Naruto smiled up at her and shrugged

"I'll try not to be a pain" he chuckled but she didn't smile, her face like stone

"Thank you, Naruto. For saving us all" she said sincerely and bowed her head. It took him aback and he had to restart his brain.

"Uh, no problem" he said and then he left.

The trip across the land of fire took too long for Naruto's liking and he was becoming agitated with the lack of activity and the walking. Why were they walking? They're Ninja dammit at least run. He wasn't bothered with having nothing to do, but if he was on mission, or had a goal he tended to have this extra energy. And when he wasn't he was training or looking things up. This walking with strangers he wasn't entirely sure he trusted, was starting to make him fidget. By day four he was at his wits end and Gai laughed loudly.

"How about some training?" He offered as they set up camp.

"You mean like sparring?" He asked sitting up straight.

"Yeah!" He nodded

"Careful Naruto" Yamato warned "he's the Green Beast of the Leaf"

Naruto looked to Gai quickly a huge grin spreading across his face

"Oh I have heard about you!" He gushed and Gai some how managed to grin wider

"Is that so?"

"My Taijutsu is good but I don't think it is actually that great. I rely more on my nin-jutsu and other skills. Never had a decent teacher"

"That's so sad!" He cried his fist on his chest "let me teach you!" He yelled and Naruto nodded.

"Can't hurt to get some criticism and advice, let's go" he jumped up and Gai followed.

He was wrong. So very wrong. It hurt! It hurt a lot, that man was like stone, what was his body made of? Naruto wondered as he lay on the floor groaning at his sore muscles, his bruised knuckles and arms. He was glad he had Kurama.

"I can't believe you're aloud to be a sensei" Naruto groaned which was rewarded with all three men laughing. It was then he realised that they seemed pretty at ease together. Considering two were ANBU he was surprised by how much they seemed to enjoy Gai's mood, to laugh and converse. He supposed they weren't wearing their masks and that had something to do with it. Not that Naruto needed their protection but he was expecting utter silence in between planning and shift changes.

Dispite the pain of it he continued to spar with Gai, he wanted to improve his taijutsu and nobody better to do that with than the Green Beast. Though Kurama was getting annoyed with the almost nightly beat up. Naruto had also relaxed more around the Ninja, they took their orders seriously and given Gai was here for Kakashi he figured he had no reason to worry. Until they made it the sea and get on the boat that was. Naruto didn't think someone could die from sea sickness but he was concerned that Gai was going to be the first. Naruto never minded the sea, or forest. Nature in general really, it was pretty straightforward and he like the way you got what you saw, and could react accordingly. Nature was pure, and it never pretended to be kind, it wasn't cruel for any other reason that that's what it was, nothing malicious behind it. But he was questioning that for poor Gai who was keeled over the guard rail of the small ship provided by Yamato and his intriguing wood style. Kurama had told him about the First Hokage who was the only one he has ever known to do it. He supposed Yamato wasn't ANBU for nothing then. But also planned to keep an eye on him as the knowledge of him being able to contain Kurama and therefore him had him struggling to trust him completely. Though he was still pretty impressed the man made a whole ship. He supposed that was who made the first lot of houses after the attack on the village too.

-

The trip was boring and it took all he had no to just teleport somewhere else. Go ahead and just meet Bee himself. It's not like he didn't know who to look for. Remembering Bee to be pretty friendly and chilled out, but he could never ask about his relationship with Gyuki, given he was undercover. He was actually pretty excited to meet him as himself. If Bee felt Kurama's presence when they met he never commented on it, or perhaps it wasn't as obvious as it was with Gaara because of Shukaku's control on him. He sensed Gyuki plenty but with Kurama cloaking himself, and the seals they never had confirmation it worked... given all the others were dead or being hunted. He imagined that he didn't since not once when he was near him did he react, but that was the scary thing about Ninja's, you never knew.

A little under a year ago

The land of cloud was beautiful, and Naruto felt a calmness come over him from his perch on a tree as he looked at the other chuncks of land that looked like they were floating from so high up.

Kurama decided it best to conceal his chakra. They had no knowledge if Bee spent time with Yugito and was familar with sensing another Jinchurichi. Even went as far as to encourange Naruto to put a seal on the cage, which had him sounding muffled when he spoke. He had been here before on his travels and other missions, the last assaination for Gaara in fact ended not far away, but he didnt want to use them this close. He hadn't really figured out how he was supposed to get close enough to observe C before taking his place. His hair was out of place here, but luckily his tan from his time in Suna helped him fit in here, but still unsure about it he had dyed his hair brown and used cover make up to hide his distinctive marks, and used some colour contact to hide his bright blue eyes now having dull green eyes. He didn't need to be remembered when he left. He didn't want to use his chakra if he could help it until later. He sat on a protruding rock and kept thinking.

This was beyond stupid though, the Raikage would not forgive this if he was caught. And the Tattoo on his right shoulder would immediately implicate Gaara, which he absolutely refused to let happen. Keeping it covered with long sleeves to prevent any accidental slips.

"Fool! Ya Fool!" A loud voice came as heavy feet landed behind him. He smiled at the damned luck you've gotta be kidding me he thought and turned to look at the huge man

"Uh me? I'm just sat here, bit rude to call me a fool?" Naruto smirked and the man crouched down looking at him his elbow resting on his knee as his chin rested in his palm.

"What are you sittin out here for?" He asked his eyes hidden behind the dark sunglasses not giving Naruto much to go on

"Trying to figure out how to get the the Hidden Cloud Village" he sighed leaning back against the rock

"Fool got lost, how did you lose the village?" He asked

"I'm not from the village, I travel a lot and this place is my next stop" he shrugged pointing to the village on the map of the land of lightning he bought at the border. And then smiled looking over the seemingly floating rocks "I hear its beauty is unmatched"

Bee nodded and only watched him

"I'll take ya, I haven't been very far, you could tell me all about the world, fool! Ya fool!" He nodded getting up and holding his hand out.

"That's a deal I can live with" Naruto smiled gathering his stuff and taking the giant hand. "I'm Hiro, nice to meet you" he smiled

"Bee" the man nodded and Naruto froze feigning shock

"As in... Killer Bee?" He asked the man threw back his head and laughed nodding. They walked to the village and Naruto answered all his questions about the different nations and places he had seen. Upon entering the village Naruto gave his fake documents and reason and time frame for staying. Bee lead him to a hotel and said his goodbyes. Naruto nodded

"Thank you for showing me the way. I'm sure you had better things to do today"

Bee scoffed, waved him off and walked away.

That was easier than expected, Naruto thought. Not surprised at the Ninja watching him since he entered the village. He walked in and got himself a room stating he'd need it for two to three weeks. The lady at the desk smiled kindly informed him she could keep the reservation open. He supposed he'd have to act as a tourist for a few days to keep the watching Ninja happy. He guessed walking in with Bee was suspicious.

Finding out there was an actual tour of the public sectors of the Hokage mansion was a blessing he never thought he would get, unlike other Kage buildings Naruto had been near the Raikage, Bee and few other higher ups actually lived there on the higher floors. He kept his head down and looked at all the Cloud had to offer, taking hikes, tours and indulging in the food all the while marking places he believed would be helpful and looking for a new identity to take.

By the end of the second week he found a woman who worked at the Raikage mansion and lived close. She didn't seem especially skilled so he would replace her until he reached his target. Thanking himself for the seal to completely cloak his chakra as he used the Kange he would need to inevitably get there undetected. He had broken in silently and marked her storage cupboard to teleport to later after leaving the village. His seals already in place to keep her contained while he took over her life, thankful she'd be asleep and unaware when he let her go. He hated impersonating women but she was honestly the best option.

It took two months to shadow C from within the Raikage tower and outside before he felt confident to take him. The shadows in this place were pefect and he got all he neede to successfully get the basics. However he didn't know how long he would have to impersonate him so he ensured a chance to bump into him placing a seal on his scalp hidden by his hair to take in as much of the mans personality, and jutsu before he took him. Unlike Fumiko, he wouldn't be able to risk leaving C his home as he lived right next to the mansion himself, and was frequently having unannounced visitors regarding work. But he planned the swap for that very night and was glad to let poor Fumiko go.

The next morning he walked in for a report after leaving C in his cage in a cave. He felt awful but there was really no other choice if he didnt want to kill him. C was burning with rage and Naruto could only assure him he meant no harm to his Raikage or village even if he knew that was no comfort to the Jonin. Especially given his role as one of the guards for the Raikage. He was only met with a glare and was impressed someone could look at themselves with such hatred.

The majority of his time consisted of watching Bee, reporting his actions, and attempting to do concerts for the village that he had to thwart. He felt bad, Bee just really seemed to enjoy his rapping and wanted to share it with people. Some occasional missions as it wasn't really a need for him to guard the Raikage within the village. Going through the files he could get his hands on in connection to Bee he found. There was a hidden place not on record that Bee would go to in any case of trouble, it was also there for Yugito but they had been too late to detect the trouble. This was why Bee had a shorter leash than normal given then trouble the Akatsuki had caused lately. Naruto looked but for the life of him could not find the location or any information of the safe place. A and Bee together were formidable enough together which was why no other contingencies were in place. And Bee never really went against his brothers explicit orders even if he did worm his way out through technicalities on less serious matters.

Another three months passed and he has two weeks before he was set to go back to Suna. The talk of the Akatsuki came up as word had come that Han the five Tails Jinchurichi had been taken.

"They are quickly accumulating the beasts" A roared and Naruto nodded

"I have been looking into the previous captures and the main issue is nobody saw them coming. Perhaps a perimeter past the village so we have time to prepare? From what information I gathered on the capture of the Kazekage they didn't know anything was amiss until they were at the gates" Naruto said and A looked at him and nodded. He suggested this to be set so they can detect any unplanned visitors, the reason Gaara was originally taken was because nobody saw them coming until they were upon the village. That was a mistake, and something that needed to be rectified here to give them a chance to prepare.

"That is a good idea"

"And also, I would warn Bee. Of course he knows but best way he and Gyuki can prepare is if they have their guard up. It won't be long before they come for him now"

A contemplated it and nodded

"It'll be best to keep him from the village too, a battle like that could have devastating consequences"

"How do you suppose we protect him if he isn't here?" A snapped

"Send shinobi to watch, obviously so word can be sent when the attack happens, Bee can hold anyone off for a while and if the perimeter works then we all will have a heads up and the village won't be affected from any fight" Naruto said and A put his hand to his chin brows furrowed as he considered the proposal

"Worst come to worst we can send him to the Island after" he shrugged and the Raikage nodded his lips turning down

"When did you think of all of this?" He asked

"It's been on my mind for a while now, I'm concerned the Akasuki are more powerful than we previously thought. Just because we have worked with some does not mean we should think we know what to expect" he shrugged

"Alright. We will get this set up in the mean time I have a mission for you" he said pulling out a scroll "your sensory skills are needed" he said gravely. Naruto was only glad he had his own ones too because otherwise it would fail. Though this close to his leave he wasn't thrilled with having a mission. Upon reading it he internally sighed and cursed his rotten luck.

"Wouldn't it be better to send ANBU for this? I'm not a ret-"

"They'll go with you, but you're familiar with her and the best chance at finding her quickly before she spills Cloud secrets. I don't need you to apprehend her, just find her" he ordered. This could take anywhere between two weeks to three months. He'd have to send word to Gaara and stock up on non perishables that C could eat until he returned. He was glad he had her Chakra signature from observing the Ninja in training otherwise he would have to let C go and risk being caught immediately.

It had in fact taken some time as she had gotten a good headstart. Two Months later he was sat in front of C's cage legs crossed and smiling at the man who look so worn out and a little lost. Couldn't blame him he had only himself for company for months since the mission. Naruto had come often to talk and give him some noise. His seals were still in place and he was confident nobody had found him.

"My mission is complete. I am leaving and releasing you today" he said calmly and C looked at him suspiciously "I did get some sensitive information but I want to tell you it won't be divulged with anyone upon my departure. This was a mission of my own making, I have nobody to report to" he lied. But it was true as it wasn't his mission to collect Cloud secrets he had no obligation to tell Gaara, especially since there was no threat to Suna.

"What was your mission?" He asked

"To ensure steps to protect Bee were in place, and suggest better ones. I have left a scroll explaining my suggestions for you also in your home"

"Why do you care?" He scoffed

"Because I have a debt to settle with the Akastsuki" he shrugged "when you wake up you'll be free of the cage and I will be gone. The village is just north of the mountain" he said and placed a seal on his head and the man fell unconscious Naruto catching his head before it hit the bars. Opening the cage he left the cave dropping the Henge and changing into the cloud Ninja clothes teleported to the edge of the perimeter before teleporting to the next marker.

After running to the border he took up in a small village picking up dye and bleach. He needed his red hair before reaching Suna. And he wasn't thrilled about passing through the land of Fire. He never was.

Present

He wondered how Bee would be. If this place to learn was the mysterious Island he couldn't get information on. It was more than likely but he had no idea it could be in the village but that seemed unlikely they'd be traced there. There was an island ahead and Naruto was told they'd be stopping for supplies as the next trip would be a few weeks to which poor Gai groaned.

As they reached the land and headed into the market they were all stunned to realise the story of the saviour of the leaf had already made it this far. No details of him just that he appeared and saved the village. Naruto wasn't sure how to feel about that as they sat at a Ramen stand hearing the gossip. Being referred to as a hero of the leaf was odd, and what was more surprising was that it didn't upset him as he expected it would. It didn't make him feel proud either but the bitter taste that was usually left in his mouth regarding the village was also not there.

"Looks like you're accepting it" Kurama huffed and Naruto frowned resisting the urge to scoff, accepting the village? His frown deepened as he thought about it. He supposed there was a chance, he helped protect it, and it essentially was just wiped from the map and rebuilt, it wasn't the same village he knew, and Hinata had a point, the next generation wouldn't be the same, not if it was done right. Kurama smug chuckle had Naruto for the millionth time in their life together wishing he was a physical being he could punch. Sometimes he just bloody needed it. They went to an Inn at the pleading of Gai who just wanted to stay on solid ground for a while longer. They all agreed and decided they could continue on tomorrow. Lay on his bed sharing a room with Gai who was asleep on his own bed, his thoughts fell back to his almost boyfriend. It sounded weird to him but surely that's where they were going? He hadn't seen him properly, relaxed and without another threat looming over them, and he didn't think he would for a while which made him sad. He played with his hair remembering Shikamaru had put his fingers through it a lot in that last day. Back to his natural blonde, he smiled at the thought Shikamaru was glad for it. Was hard not to teleport to him, he hadn't used his chakra for a long time so he could certainly afford to go that far for the night. He groaned and rolled onto his stomach, he was still confused by the need to be near the Nara, it was as if the moment he let himself act on it he lost all sense. A war was inpending and all he wanted to do was go back to him, his heart felt lost and he frowned into his pillow.

"It's normal, stop worrying" Kurama grumbled

You're familiar with normal human emotions are you? He asked sarcastically fully aware that Kurama had been around it longer than him but ignored that fact and Kurama didn't point it out either

"Are you alright?" Gai's voice reached him causing him to lift his head and look at him surprised. He nodded and smiled sheepishly

"Yeah, just learning new things about myself, ya know"

"Kakashi will be just fine" he assured and Naruto nodded not going to correct him. He knew he would be, of course he would. No big threat was upon him right now and Madara would need time. He was just still anxious about the loss he felt when he was summoned to the village. "I understand why you came but why not just take them out of the village? I know you don't care for the rest of us" he wasnt accusing he seemed genuinly curious. Naruto frowned sitting up kicking his legs over the the edge of the bed

"They care. Its their home and people they care for, people they put their lives on the line to protect. I don't think they'd thank me for taking that away from them just so I wouldn't lose them" Gai blinked at him his jaw slightly slack "I mean, would you want someone to run off with you and let them all die and perish, taking away that part of you, or would you want them to help you protect what you care for?" He asked not that that's why he did it, not really. But it is why he never dragged them from the village. "Plus it was my fault they were there after all" Naruto shrugged

"Not your fault" Gai deadpanned

"You know what I mean" Naruto sneered and lay back down and turned his head to face Gai "were you a classmate? Of Kakashi's?" He asked and Gai grinned and he went off on how they met, how they became friends, how they became rivals and how they do challenges and Naruto lay there smiling listening to it all. Hearing things about Kakashi he never thought he'd get the chance to learn.

I don't think my block has gone so it may take some time for more. But do not worry I won't abandon them.

Also I do plan to make Bee a little ooc regardong the way he speaks I unfortunately am not much of a fan of that so I apologise for that on advance.

Thanks for all the reviews and favourites you're all great :)