No More

by Sivaatasi

How much crap does a guy have to take just to get a fair shake? The school was out to get him, villagers were trying to ruin his life, and everyone he'd ever loved (admittedly that's not many people in the life of our favorite Jinchuuriki) were vanishing on him. Determined to make a new start, he learns that not everything glittering is gold. AU, Naruto. M (just in case).

40. Chapter 40

A/N: Oh, this was a bear to clean up and edit due to the chapter size. Still, I've been promising the Chunin Exams as the answer to a lot of questions for at least a dozen chapters now. Many of you probably think it's a bit overdue.

Don't shoot the messenger. Remember, you asked for these answers...

~Siva'a-tasi

~III~

---

Chapter 40: Looking More than Underneath

~III~

---

"A ninja doesn't save himself. He protects those who cannot protect themselves." - Cole Brookstone

~III~

"NARUTO/ NARUTO-KUN!"

Hiruzen turned briefly to watch Naruto dash out of the tower arena followed closely by the Hyūga heiress and a kunoichi with her hair rolled tightly into buns. To be honest, the sight warmed his heart; the boy needed friends if there was any hope of keeping him tied to the village. So much for the better if those friends were females after his heart.

Speaking of females after the young shinobi's heart…

The youngest rulers in the collective were giggling and chatting amicably next to the reserved Kumo representative, their eyes focused on the back of the departing blond. Perhaps he should arrange for a state dinner to discuss their intentions? But first…

Hiruzen locked onto a familiar mask and the figure glided silently over to kneel before its Hokage.

"Kūren, please make sure he's there on time."

With a single bob of its hooded head, the lanky servant of the Great Tree vanished in a swirl of leaves and wind.

Hiruzen, as if nothing untoward or intriguing had just happened, smiled as he joined his fellow dignitaries in discussing his changes to the Second and Third stages of the Chunin Exam and what it could mean for their villages in terms of opportunity and prosperity.

Secure in his Kazekage disguise, an annoyed Orochimaru silently fumed. He would either need to find a way to force the other villages to bow out of attending or find a way to keep them from getting involved.

~III~

By the grace of the Great Noodle God, an unmolested Naruto Uzumaki crouched high above the busy street traffic of the Market District of Konoha as hundreds of people shuffled and jostled about beneath him. Sure, the occasional nin dashed by on some important bit of work, one or two even nodding casually in his direction to receive an equally cordial greeting in return but that wasn't his main concern at the moment. To be honest, he wasn't much concerned for the two kunoichis below that met in the busy business heart of the village before sharing a possessive glare for each other as they darted off in separate directions, each equally committed to finding their quarry before the other huntress.

No, he was lost in the moment, his eyes taking in the happy smiles and friendly conversations taking place below his feet as his mind peripherally registered the fact that he might never be welcome among them.

It didn't matter that he fought and bled to keep them safe.

It didn't matter that he was the sole reason the great Nine-Tailed Fox hadn't turned the very land beneath his feet into a smoking crater, crushing their bones beneath its massive paws (he could hear the fox purring at such an image).

All that mattered was that he wasn't welcome among them. All that mattered was he was good enough to die for them but not good enough to live with them.

And that made all the difference.

"Uzumaki-sama."

'Well, that was certainly a new one,' he silently remarked. Turning to glance up awkwardly into the mask of his personal ANBU stalker, the formerly last Uzumaki stood up to speak with the lanky Crane.

"You know I don't go much for formalities, right?"

"Of course, Uzumaki-sama."

Naruto's right eyebrow twitched and, for just a second, he knew what it felt like to be the Toad Sage, the very same Sage sitting in the Cherry Blossom as a surge of vindication shot through his entire body (he ignored the sudden desire to pump one of his beefy fists in the air as it was currently gripping the soft bum of a pretty brunette).

"What do they want from me now, Crane-san?"

A slender scroll with a green wax seal materialized in the figure's hand and Naruto's shoulders sagged visibly. Gold seals bore the mark of the Daimyo, red the Hokage, white the various clan heads, but green bore the stamp of the Council. Breaking the flaky wax, he unspooled the short document so his eyes could devour the unnecessarily flowery script.

"Of course, they do," the blond heir groused.

An hour later, a freshly showered and formally-dressed Uzumaki royal strolled calmly into the Council chamber with his personal attendant hovering just past his left elbow. Keeping his dress simple, he opted for Navy blue Montsuki and kaku-obi combination bearing the Uzumaki crest in red over both shoulders, the royal blue of the Uzumaki heavily accented by a black Hakama and Tabi. Haku was resplendent in an ivory Komon-style kimono lightly dusted with medium-sized baby blue snowflakes.

It was almost as if time stood still reminiscent of an old western movie standoff, both sides of the Council hawking the boy for vastly different reasons.

A large number of the civilians sitting comfortably to his left had dollar signs floating in their eye sockets, the disgusted tsking of his tenant echoing in his mindscape. Several of them had taken to bringing their heirs to meetings under the premise of preparing them to take over for their clan heads. While he couldn't argue it, the fact that every heir in attendance was female and at least a third of those attending were staring at him as if her were a haunch of venison right before meal time annoyed him.

The shinobi side of the room were giving off mixed vibes, enough so that the Kyuubi refused to comment citing her burgeoning headache. Before the great bijuu silenced the link, she rattled off shame, regret, embarrassment, and pride, the last of which confused him since it appeared to be a common theme among them.

Not wanting to sort through the quagmire, he pushed those revelations to the side focusing on the austere leader of their village.

Hiruzen rose from his chair and bowed formally to the Uzumaki Prince shocking the gathered council members greatly as the village pariah inclined his head in return. Before any of the flustered could verbally lash out…

"ANBU, please provide a chair befitting the Uzushio Daimyo so that we can begin."

You could have heard a pin drop as two agents brought two very different seats in for the standing dignitaries, a mid-backed one for the petite but taller female and a high-backed, well-cushioned one for Naruto.

Naruto could see the crafty smile turning up the corners of the Hokage's mouth indicating the man had something up his billowy sleeves. While not unusual, it was concerning. No doubt he was enjoying the brief interplay as the members of his annoying council took their seats for the first time without the village pariah being threatened with bodily harm. Instead, Hiruzen struck the gavel plate in front of his seat and called the meeting to order.

"I believe you had an offer to present, Councilman Sugimoto."

Another sweaty bureaucrat rose to offer a hasty bow. 'Ah, I remember this man. He was the one arguing for me to become the Old Man's replacement while marrying his skinny daughter, the hypocrite.'

"Thank you, Hokage-sama." The perpetually sweaty man lifted a manila folder filled with a sheaf of pristine paper pressed between its folds. Scurrying around the civilian table and extending the motley collection with both hands, the sweaty man repeatedly bowed his way back to his seat but did not sit right away. Naruto tried to ignore the damp spots left behind by the slimy palms that bore it, instead bending his neck no more than necessary to acknowledge the gift.

It took a supreme force of will on his part not to wince at the rancid waves of sweat, his eyes flickering from the stack of paperwork, up to the nervously twitching body of the human imitating a fishing bobber, and his embarrassed Ji-.

'No, I suppose he may never be my Jiji again. He's the Sandaime Hokage of Konohagakure no Sato and I need to remember that.'

"If I may ask esteemed Councilor, what am I holding?" To be honest, he had a good feeling that he was sure of the folder's contents, but he was hoping the Hokage had more control of his village than this.

"Why certainly, Uzumaki-sama." Naruto winced internally. "These are profiles of the eligible women volunteering for your CRA initiative."

The look on the man's chubby face was hopeful but inside Naruto died just a bit. 'Well, no better time than the present to check off another item on the list.'

With a sigh, he rose gracefully from his seat and stepped over to calmly set the bachelorette profiles in front of the man proffering their daughters like cattle, much to Councilor Sugimoto's shocked dismay.

"I'm sure they are all lovely young ladies, the pride of Konoha. But this is not necessary for me and insulting for them." Odd that instead of angry shouts and rants from the civilians he saw silent confusion and curiosity - mostly from the softly blushing girls standing behind their greedy parents.

"B-B-But… why not?"

Naruto couldn't help but notice how quickly the formality faded away when the wheels began falling off the cabbage cart. "It's simple really." He tried not to laugh out loud at their apparent surprise and disappointment.

"It's not needed because I won't be staying in the Konoha armed forces."

Several sets of eyes on both sides of the chamber were beginning to bulge in a very unpleasant manner.

"Effective immediately, I tender my resignation from the Konoha Shinobi Corps."

This time pandemonium in the chamber did ensue.

~III~

---

"Move your ass, Akatsuchi!"

The big Iwa nin grimaced as he rapidly threw his belongings into his trusty travel chest. Kuro-chan was in a right foul mood, more so than usual and everyone in the Iwa contingent knew exactly why.

The forest event was supposed to be her big opportunity to get to the Yellow Flash wanna-be, her big chance to make absolutely sure that he died at her hands but he'd escaped them all. Oh, how she ranted and swore the entire way to the Tower - once she was one-hundred percent sure she'd exhausted every opportunity to hunt him down.

As it were, they'd barely made it to the Tower in time. Gasping, lungs burning, limbs twitching, her team reached the sealed doors and solved the entry riddle not five minutes before the deadline but no one challenged her on it, much to his annoyance.

He wasn't afraid of her. In fact, he thought people catered to her far too much as it was. being the granddaughter of the Tsuchikage didn't give you the right to be an absolute ass to everyone else.

He had to pause for a second as he considered the man holding the title and reconsidered that opinion.

"You're gonna get left behind, chunky-butt!"

He grimaced again but bit back the scathing retort at the tip of his tongue. They would lose at least four days of training just traveling to and from Iwagakure. These were unnecessary delays where he could be preparing for the dangerous teams he recognized at the final ceremony earlier today. It, unfortunately, made sense that their training should be kept secret from Konoha spies.

Akatsuchi just wasn't looking forward to the travel time.

Rather than comment, he slapped the chest closed, locked the three separate tumblers, then slung the straps over his shoulders as he thumped his way to the hotel lobby. Slapping the room key on the counter as he passed outside to his waiting team, the only Iwa team to survive the first two phases, he swore softly remembering he left his shampoo upstairs.

One look at the simmering hatred behind his cousin's eyes and he immediately wrote off the loss, his heavy footsteps shaking the earth as Kuro-chan immediately began stalking her way to the main gate, two hours of remaining daylight be damned.

He couldn't help but worry about the next thirty days.

---

~ Hokage Tower, Council Chamber ~

Hiruzen, as was becoming part of a disturbingly regular occurrence was sitting in his Chamber Chair staring blankly at Minato Namikaze's son trying to reconcile the utter failure that had been his attempt to safeguard and rear the child as a strong Konoha shinobi. As was also becoming part of a disturbingly regular habit, he was mentally apologizing for somehow failing the boy's departed parents as he watched the child's detached curiosity at the angrily or shocked reactions from the council members in the same chamber. It was Naruto's turn to face him, a half-smile on his lips as his right eyebrow rose just enough to indicate his humor, that snapped him out of his momentary fugue to regain control of the ongoing chaos.

The old man's right hand rose from the table, filled with chakra, then struck the metal gong plate bringing resounding silence as the booming reverberation of his palm faded away to nothing.

"One at a time esteemed Councilors," a phrase that took more control than he currently felt. "He cannot answer your questions if you shout them all at once."

With a nod to Hiashi, he surrendered the floor as quiet order reluctantly resumed.

"Uzumaki-san," the Hyuuga began only to flinch when the Uzu Daimyo turned a disapproving glare on him.

"My apologies, Uzumaki-omo." He offered a short bow but pressed on nonetheless. "I was wondering why you retiring from the shinobi forces would prevent you from partaking in the Konoha-sponsored CRA?"

"Hyuuga-san, as the Daimyo for my country, and with the intent to resurrect Uzushio from the waves, I cannot be beholden to another power even if it is an ally as old as Konoha."

Hiruzen caught the subtle tone in his words as did the astute shinobi clan heads now reeling their minds back to the alleged history between the two villages.

"While the plan is to have multiple heirs, per similar rules concerning the royal family of Uzu, any brides will need to be vetted by the new Uzukage and our shinobi intelligence forces, small though their number may be."

This brought several confused stares, most of which were blinking uncontrollably.

"Troublesome. Are you telling us that you already have a Kage selected?"

Hiruzen's stomach plummeted before Naruto's smile could grow even larger, which it did.

"Of course, Nara-san." Naruto pulsed his chakra once releasing enough energy to make the hair on the nape of every person in the room, civilian and shinobi alike, stand on end.

"Allow me to introduce you to my new Kage, the Yondaime Uzukage for the yet-to-be-reestablished Uzushiogakure no Sato," he paused as the double doors to the chamber opened to admit a figure in flowing ebony robes trimmed in bright blood red kanji, "Keina Uzumaki, S-ranked kunoichi and twin sister of former Uzu no Kuni Ambassador, Kushina Uzumaki."

Surprisingly enough, the civilian side of the chamber did not erupt into chaos - they were too busy trying to find suitable males to woo the admittedly attractive kunoichi to their individual causes. Several of the shinobi Clan Heads, however, were shocked into some form of action, the most prominent being Tsume Inuzuka, former close friend and partner in crime to the boy's deceased mother.

How could Naruto have known that Yoshino Nara and Tsume Inuzuka once made up the members of his mother's all-kunoichi Genin team? The brash Inuzuka Alpha never offered to share those stories, never offered to aide or shelter the child even at his lowest point growing up. How could he know?

His mother's sister, however, did know given the secret correspondence they shared over the years through the clan's messenger summons. Keina knew exactly who was supposed to help look out for her sister's Sochi, now her Sochi, and she was less than impressed with their sudden bout of fidelity.

That is exactly why Tsume's shell-shocked reaction as she rose from her chair whispering a tearful "Kushina" snapped the now annoyed redhead's attention over to the dog-nin slowly staggering her way around the table presumably to embrace the carbon copy of Kushina Uzumaki.

"Wrong!" Her harsh tone backed by just a touch of her formidable KI stopped Tsume in her tracks. "My nee-chan died over fifteen years ago. Do not confuse me for your long-lost opportunity to make amends."

While harsh, they all needed to hear that.

"But... where?... why?... How?!"

Keina calmly raised a palm-covered by black fingerless combat gloves bearing metal plates with the Uzu spiral. "You will need to ask your Hokage for those details." Several eyes questioningly shot over to their village leader.

"All you need understand is that I have resumed my clan duties as the Uzukage for our new Daimyo," her hands settled gently on the former blond Genin's shoulders, "and Uzushio will support its long-term allies one last time during their upcoming Chunin Exam Festival, our Daimyo fulfilling his Genin obligations as previously agreed to."

Her narrowed eyes made perfectly clear of which part of the finals she was referring to. Despite his trepidation, Hiruzen nodded his head once in understanding.

"Come, Daimyo-sama." She stepped aside to allow Naruto to leave ahead of her followed by his personal assistant on his left flank. Even as she took guard station to his right-hand side, her smile continued to grow with the satisfaction of something she'd been wanting to do for over fifteen years.

Her nephew was finally free of the last set of Konoha chains trapping him to this miserable village.

~III~

Despite the resulting chaos of what should have been a routine Council Meeting, Hiruzen escaped to his office with only another half hour of restricting information to his more than demanding Councilors, for once the shinobi side being the more demanding headache. As a group, they sought answers as to how long he'd known about another surviving Uzu royal and why it hadn't been shared with at least key shinobi leaders - despite the echoing outrage from the civilian side of the room.

Hiruzen snidely threw the release of Naruto's existence as the Kyuubi Jinchuuriki back in their faces and enjoyed their shrinking shame. None of them knew it was Danzo and the elders that released it so, as far as they were concerned, the perpetrators could still be in Konoha. They could be in that very chamber for all they knew.

That put an immediate damper on the remaining interrogation.

Sinking into his now well-worn office chair, Hiruzen was wondering how long it would take before the news reached his remaining student and in whatever mangled form that infor-.

"What the HELL sensei? Kushina's back from the dead?!"

'Welp, that answered that question.' "Come in Jiraiya so we can discuss the truth vice your hot tub rumor-mongering." The old man waited for five heartbeats as his student made himself comfortable on the well-worn office couch, snickering as the sage got his hand smacked away from the hidden kunoichi sharing one end of the plush accommodations.

"No, Kushina is still dead. Yes, she had a twin sister." Hiruzen thought the idea of triplets might be a bit much for his student at the moment.

Jiraiya's one-track mind cut him off before he could share more with a blurted, "Damn! I hope she's hot!"

Hiruzen's facepalm did little to stop the man's slobbering blush. Instead, he decided sidetracking the unrepenting perv with work would be best for both of them.

"Tell me something good about Danzo's former black-ops empire." The old man's satisfied smirk as Jiraiya's face took on a serious tint was more than enough for the moment.

"Ibiki and the Yamanaka have their hands full reintegrating what remains of Root. So far, only a dozen or so have had to be terminated having been deemed 'unrecoverable' but the rest appear to have been conditioned to serve for the betterment of Konoha. It's a small victory but we'll take it."

"Will they be ready in time for the finals and how many are we talking about?"

"Ibiki seems to believe so. With Danzo's death, the Cursed Tongue Juinjutsu has faded from his Root zombies making it much easier to sort things out." Jiraiya snorted feeling particularly pleased with his own greatness. "You're looking at an extra one-hundred and twenty ANBU-level operatives when all is said and done."

Hiruzen nodded happily. "Any luck locating the special team he dubbed," Hiruzen paused to glance over his notes on the matter, "the Sirens?"

"No, sorry sensei. No luck there so far but we believe they're staying under our surveillance trying to come to grips with their seals vanishing along with Danzo's death. It's a common enough theme among the operatives we captured tailing that gimpy bastard all over hell's half-acre."

"What of traction with Mifune?"

Here Jiraiya grimaced. "Not much luck there. He thanked us for the INTEL then blamed us for not curtailing Danzo's operations to begin with. Once we were quietly asked to leave the country, he promised he'd deal with the Root nest in his back yard."

Hiruzen grimaced in return. He knew Mifune on a personal level and could most likely deal with the blowback but he'd still wonder about how much damage Danzo had squirreled away in his alternate base. Hopefully, Konoha could survive the fallout to their image.

"I need to get back-."

"No, Jiraiya." The old man steepled his hands in front of his face. "I need you to break your self-imposed exile for the next thirty days." He raised his hands to forestall the petulant rant. "It's time to focus on home for a bit. The barrier team will need your help and I need you to re-engage with Naruto."

"The Gaki? He and I aren't close you know."

"That's exactly my point. He's refused the Council's insipid CRA initiative and has established himself as the Uzu Daimyo."

Jiraiya goggled and sputtered in disbelief.

"If you can't reach him I fear will lose him to his aunt and the dead dream that was his former clan."

"And what's wrong with that?" Jiraiya irritably countered.

"His strength is needed here, Jiraiya. His parents sacrificed too much for him to wander about waiting for the Akatsuki to murder him."

"That's his decision, sensei. You can't force him to stay in a place that hates and suppresses him."

"That bridge can be spanned, Jiraiya. Naruto just needs to be led to understand that his chances at greatness are best tended to here in his father's homeland vice the graveyard of his ancestors."

Jiraiya sighed as if he were about to climb Hokage mountain with one hand tied behind his back. "Not this tired argument again."

Seeing his old sensei's jaw tighten in stubbornness, Jiraiya plowed on.

"Is he supposed to ignore their hatred? Is he supposed to forgive them despite no one asking or caring that he does? Why is it that Naruto needs to be the bigger man when he's the wronged party?" Jiraiya, despite being on the outs with the boy in question, was working himself into a lather.

"You forget yourself, Jiraiya. I do not answer to you."

Jiraiya, despite his moral outrage, couldn't argue against that fact and nodded his head in obeisance. The fact that the old man chose to pull rank vice answering the question was too telling to sit well with the sage.

~III~

Once outside, both Uzu royals were joined by the hooded female members of the Komodo Squad, the pale wind-based one to Haku's left, the shadow-based one to Keina's right.

"Haku-chan, please prepare a large meal tonight. Strike that," he handed her a padded yellow envelope, "have it catered and be sure to include lots of Ichiraku's."

"Of course, Naruto-sama." She bobbed a quick bow. "How many should I prepare for?"

His smile was feral. "At least a dozen. I'll be sure to have clones escorting people from the gate to the house proper."

"If I may be so bold, why the party, Sochi?"

That stopped the blond in his tracks as his mind registered the affectionate address. His three shadows froze in place waiting for some sort of response, Keina growing momentarily uncomfortable believing she may have erred up until the point where Naruto spun about and lunged at her wrapping his arms around her waist in a bear hug strong enough to force her to sheathe her entire abdomen with chakra to survive the embrace.

Haku and their two escorts immediately turned their eyes outward to watch both the nearby crowd, most of whom were absolutely confused by the females surrounding the well-dressed demon brat, and neighboring rooftops.

The pause was momentary and, all too soon for the now teary-eyed Kage, Naruto broke away to resume his pace, his voice choking up momentarily as he answered her query.

"We're having a celebration for the official beginning, no, the official rebirth of our clan." He looked over his shoulder and smiled up at his aunt-slash-adopted mother. "Please make sure all of the Squad is there."

"Sure thing, Sochi. We can discuss your training for the next month." It felt good to use the familiar address, a strange warmth blooming in her chest, until...

"Surely you're not leaving the Gallant Jiraiya out of that conversation?!"

Once again all five of them were stopped in the middle of a busy street, the fair-skinned Komodo Squad member positioning herself between her Walker (Daimyo was too new to be of any consequence to her) and the latest unwanted participant in their private conversation. She'd be damned if this fool got within arm's reach, having both heard about and been the subject of the same lecherous man's appetites.

She would not allow the man to corrupt her beloved Walker. The humans of the elemental nations had already taken more than should be allowed from the Umihebi and the Uzumaki and she was drawing a line in the proverbial sand.

Knowing full well who the two violent Komodo Squad members were (as they were in their full gear and mask ensemble), Jiraiya slowly, very slowly raised his palms to show he meant no harm.

"Easy now, let's just everyone pause a second and talk like reasonable adults."

Keina snorted drawing the toad shinobi's eyes her way. "That's ironic coming from you."

"You have me at a disadvantage, beautiful lady, as I don't believe we've been properly introduced." Undeterred by the hostile auras coming from all four women surrounding his (at least to him) godson, Jiraiya began his grand introduction only to freeze mid-pose as the pale-skinned beauty with the hourglass figure and D-cupped bosom (Jiraiya's boob-dar works just fine thank you) snapped out a metallic segmented whip, apparently pulling the wicked-looking tool from around her waist.

"Ahhahaha... I see you're not a fan of the theater," he quipped trying to ease the tension.

"Why are you following us and spying on our conversations, Jiraiya?"

Now Jiraiya was and is many things. He is brash, stubborn, hardheaded to a fault, and perverted to the core but a foolhardy shinobi he is not. While his strong sense of pride and accomplishment was raging at him to smack down the rude Genin-ranked shinobi he felt owed him more respect than that, the experienced nin able to survive against Hanzo the Salamander cautioned him to hold his tongue against the Uzu Daimyo surrounded by four battle-hardened kunoichi, two of which he knew for a fact could match him in close combat.

Trying to peek on one of them may have ended in that poignant point being driven home at kunai point.

He knew he couldn't survive two of them so he tempered his response.

"Look gaki," he paused as the dark-skinned one - he thought Nisshoku was her handle - hissed angrily at him. "Ahem, Daiymo-omo, I have been asked by my Hokage to offer training for the finals." He paused to make sure the women weren't about to gut him and noted the raised eyebrow on the young man all too comfortable with the current situation. "There are some things I can do to help prepare you and-."

A raised palm from the stunning redhead stopped him in his tracks.

"Please thank Hokage-dono for me but that will not be necessary," she calmly, too calmly, countered.

Jiraiya's annoyance at being disrespected and discounted was beginning to rise like bile in his throat.

"Please let him know that my training is well in hand but thank you for the offer."

In the end, the Toad Sage could only stand there flabbergasted as the Uzu quintet skirted his large frame and disappeared into the billowing Konoha shopping crowd.

~III~

It was well after dark when the ANBU squad crested the walled perimeter of what was now the Uzumaki orphan's residence, now that the Namikaze residence was officially off-limits. The self-appointed Uzu heir hadn't even altered the security seals of what was once Mizuki's familial home so bypassing those protocols took no time at all.

Silent as ghosts, Neko's squad flitted across the grounds to close in on the back yard hoping that the blueprints were still accurate; windows near the far side of the veranda should provide unobstructed views into the main dining hall of the conservative Clan Head residence.

They were not disappointed by the access, only the lack of life.

Inside was dark and motionless. The borrowed sensors assigned to her team for this mission could find no life forms or chakra signatures inside. They could, however, find the ten matching chakra signatures surrounding them in the trees.

This immediately put the team on high alert until one of the hidden signatures uncloaked on the ground right before their perch.

"Let's ignore the fact that a Konoha ANBU team is illegally spying on a diplomatic ally of Konoha. Let's ignore that your very presence here is an act of war, or at the very least an unprovoked act of aggression against a sovereign ally, and move on to you leaving via the most direct route possible, Neko-chan."

Embarrassment was the least of their worries but the affectionate address made her blush all the same. Something about the confidence in what had to be one of the gaki's clones appealed to her, however, Yugao had a job to do - and a boyfriend - so she pushed it aside.

"You would let us leave unchallenged?" she questioned back.

"Unchallenged but not unaccountable." She nodded in understanding. This would clearly be brought up, at a minimum, between the two Kage if not the Daimyos at some point. What a shit-show that would later become.

"ANBU, withdraw."

With that simple command, the five body team vanished the way they came, all the while a confused Neko wondering just where the target of their surveillance was if his party wasn't at his new estate.

~III~

---

~ The Glittering Grotto ~

Meanwhile raucous laughter surrounded the blond subject in question as he comfortably sat lotus inside a cavern outfitted specifically for members of his clan during visits to the Grotto. He was right next to the large cavern housing the boss summons and his mate, which meant he was right above Opal, Ella, and Titus, who occupied three of the ten caverns set aside for children of the current clutch leader (apparently there had been some boss summonses with as many as seven children so the need for so many caverns had not been too wasteful in the past).

For as long as they were staying to train, the empty chambers would be adjusted to provide for his entourage, meaning Keina and Karin would be sharing a chamber next to the siblings. Haku, arguing as his personal servant and attendant, would be allowed to stay in his chambers much to Opal and Ella's unhappy and fervent protestations, objections he was sure he hadn't heard the last of during his current dinner engagement.

As it currently stood, there were several mats set along the floor around a short-legged table large enough to accommodate up to twenty human-sized bodies. With his current list of party guests, that was enough not to warrant the second and third tables to either side of the one in use used during large gatherings of the Uzumaki Clan back in their hey-day.

At one end sat Naruto, his aunt immediately to his right and his confidant, Haku, next to her right. Both appeared to be enjoying themselves and the company despite the semi-tense atmosphere at the beginning of the dinner. Oddly enough, that atmosphere came about when trying to seat the very protective Ella-hime sitting immediately to his left, followed by Opal and then Titus.

Ella felt she should have been seated at his right, the seat of honor, as she was his senior summons. Unfortunately, her argument held little weight with the presence of his aunt, another royal among the Uzumaki. It was bad enough the overprotective woman wanted to sleep in his chambers but Ella knew she couldn't win every objection and contented herself with surrendering the seat of honor.

Directly across from Titus (and next to Haku) sat his cousin Karin. Now you might find this odd considering she was family and technically outranked Haku, however, Naruto and Keina both insisted on this arrangement and it appeared to be working as they'd hoped given Titus' fixation with the red-faced Karin directly across from him. Her persistent blush only increased throughout the night as she realized that his human form was a benefit to being a Celestial-class summons that just happened to be aligned with the Uzumaki Clan and available to be bonded with her, should she prove interested in the arrangement.

Judging by her incessant blush and the occasional trickle of blood from her nostrils, the idea more than appealed to her.

Naruto and Keina shared more than the occasional toast in that regard.

From there, the list of guests continued with the Komodo Squad alternating on either side of the table before Regnus and Magnus rounded out the list of standard guests and you got to Poseidus at the other end of the table with his beloved mate, Marianus.

It was almost surreal for Naruto and he wondered if his clan once upon a time did similar things in their relationship with the proud summoning clan. With that in mind, he raised his glass in a toast and waited as everyone else followed suit, his eyes pausing momentarily at the very studious look on Haku's face as her eyes stayed fixated on something just past the shoulders of his new guardians.

'Not now, one problem at a time,' he chided himself.

"To my family, both of blood and of spirit." All eyes were locked onto him now. "I reaffirm, as the new Prince of the Uzumaki, as the sovereign heir to the Uzu throne, that we shall never turn our backs on you, our eternal friends and family." His eyes took in every face at the table before landing on the mighty Poseidus.

"As of today, the onerous oath you swore to turn your back on the defense of Uzushiogakure is lifted." The eyes of shapeshifted sea serpents were beginning to grow with surprise, some growing with anticipation of revenge. "From this day forward, we will uphold the oaths sworn long before the Warring States and you will never again be asked to stand aside. We are one clan again and the Uzumaki will live and die beside our comrades no matter what this world sends our way."

He scanned the table one last time before roaring, "WILL YOU JOIN ME?!"

The answering roars reverberated off the of the cavern walls for several minutes even as a newly arrived Nectamia snuck up to crouch near him and deliver a whispered message to his ear. With a smile, a thank you, and a brief kiss to her cheek that brought a blush to the tiny messenger's face and a few questioning eyebrows from several of the females at the table - Kin, hatchling, and human - he turned back to the group.

"It seems Konoha decided to check up on our little gathering as we thought they would. You'd think they didn't trust us?" His joking tone was met with laughter.

"To be honest, we've made it clear where we stand with them," Keina interjected. "But that's neither here nor there since we still need to discuss your training starting tomorrow morning."

"I thought you'd never get to the really good part!" He sounded extra pleased, his hands slapping together as his palms rubbed back and forth.

"On that note," an oddly smiling Poseidus commented as he stood stiffly from the table, "we will take our leave so that you may all plot and scheme in private." He paused even as his mate rose to take his hand.

"Do us all proud, Walker. Let the world know fear when our roars shatter the heavens once again as it did in the old days." He looked almost wistful as if he longed to do battle once again.

Naruto bowed at the waist acknowledging the powerful boss summons, even as the unmasked Komodo Squad chanted eerily, "Rivers of blood."

The world would fear the Umihebi once again.

---

~ Konoha Market District, Early Evening ~

Kakashi's book, for once, was conspicuously absent as his drink languished near the end of his arm. Despite the normally raucous atmosphere of their favorite late-night hangout, none of the normal banter was free-flowing this time around. Fingering the rim of the saucer, his normally hidden peeper took stock of his tablemates noting all of the Jounin sensei appeared apprehensive and withdrawn.

To be honest they had every right to be as three of them only agreed to enter their teams as a means of "teaching them a lesson," their senseis hoping the harsh reality of the exams would kick their seriousness about being shinobi into gear. Boy, were they ever wrong and now all of their teams were going to have to fight in front of Konoha and the large elemental shinobi conglomerate.

It was going to be a shit-show of epic proportions, one that might bring more shame and ruin upon Konoha than the attack of the Kyuubi nearly sixteen years ago.

It was morale crushing to realize they would be responsible for it no matter how supportive friends like Hayate, Yugao, and Anko normally were. Fine with him since he didn't really like discussing-.

"So, how are you guys going to cope with the changes?" This from the brunette with legs and imitation Uchiha eyes.

'Damnit, why are the really pretty ones so talkative?' His hand twitched but this time it was to reach for his favorite distraction. By the grace of the Icha Icha gods, he prevailed and resisted its hypnotic pull - for now.

"I will train my team during the early hours to stoke their youth, then pray that their families can help them in the afternoon."

'Damn, even Gai is subdued.' It was even spoken at a normal volume.

"I think you all are overdoing the whole mother-hen routine." Several confused glares shot over the senbon-chewing Jounin but only one answered.

"Says the douche-rocket without brats of his own, pfft!" Anko's response was anything but anticipated.

"Yeah, yeah, brush off the voice of reason." He shifted his metal toothpick to the other side of his mouth.

"How do you figure?"

Kakashi could tell the snake-nin was getting aggravated, especially since no one really knew where her favorite gaki was at the moment or whether anyone was offering to help him.

"Simple. You've had them for almost a year at least, even the recent batch." He stood up and dropped a small pile of money on the table to cover his tab. "If they haven't learned enough by now then that's on them." He paused before turning away completely. "Unless you haven't taught them anything of substance, but we all know that can't be the case, can it?"

Genma strolled away with his hands shoved into his pocket leaving behind a suddenly nervous batch of senseis who thought they'd have more time with their students. Some decided on the spot to use a training method similar to Gai's suggestion to make up for as much lost time as best they could.

Maybe it would be enough to help them survive the coming battle, the Exams a distant concern.

---

~ The Grotto, Training Day 1 ~

Surprisingly enough he was steered away from the bath (there were no showers and plumbing was an interesting set of hollowed tubes and an odd set of Suiton seals) after relieving himself, Naruto found himself squeezed into a weighted battle kimono top missing its sleeves and a matching pair of grey pants. Both together had to weigh ten kilos or more and he was still sluggish given that it was just before four in the morning.

A smooth tunnel carved from the mountain itself led up towards the flat plains stretching between the Grotto cliff and the mountains several miles in the distance. In between those two landmarks were odd land formations, a forested valley just off to the east, and other notable geographical oddities he thought to explore on the one day a week he'd eventually be given as a day to rest and recoup. It was a pleasant thought to be snapped out of by the voice of his new Kage.

"Your day is going to be very busy, Sochi." He glanced up into the all to eager eyes of his new mom with trepidation.

"The first two hours of your day will be physical conditioning with your Guardians and that will be followed immediately by refreshers in basic and intermediate chakra control exercises." He nodded. So far this wasn't too far off from his original training plan.

You will have an hour to eat breakfast and then it's off to Taijutsu and Kenjutsu practice until lunch. That should cover the last three hours of the morning. We'll wrap up with a bath and a hot meal before transitioning to Ninjutsu with the Guardians and Fuinjutsu with me until dinner." So far, this was looking really good to the Uzu prince.

"Post dinner you'll spend two hours completing the bonding process with Ella and Opal and then the three of us end the day with more chakra control, the advanced stuff this time."

"Anything after that?" he asked with a hint of excitement in his voice, one that quickly faded once they started laughing a bit too loudly for his comfort.

"If you still have something left in the tank after that, then we'll talk," she managed between very tickled bouts of laughter.

He did not feel reassured.

The group, consisting of himself, the five Guardians, Ella-hime, Opal-hime, and his new adult figure followed a well-worn path from his new residence as it wound away from the cliff face and into the sparse trees and vegetation. It was almost serene and he lost his mind to the peaceful sounds around him as his feet followed behind the gently swaying hips of the ivory Guardian just ahead of him.

It was still mostly dark, having been dragged out of bed at the un-Kami like hour of three-thirty only to be stuffed into his weighted training clothes, cycled through his bathroom (so as to be kept out of the bath which was mostly reflex after years of routine), then forced out of his residence in a barely conscious state without coffee to artificially spike his metabolism.

He was beginning to consider this the cruelest and most unusual treatment until everyone jerked to a stop and he nearly walked chest-first into the back of his most determined protector.

"Huh? Whuzzat?"

Leaning his head to the right just enough to peer past her shoulder, Naruto's eyes took in a mid-sized bridge, much like the smaller arched ones you'd find in a family garden. Kneeling in the middle of the bridge was what appeared to be another Guardian, this one bereft of her hood and mask, her overly-large sword resting on the ground in front of her seiza'd body.

Just behind her and to either side of the bridge they'd have to eventually cross were two very large Umihebi, their heads bowed even as fire rippled across their lava-colored scales.

"Oh Dip."

Despite the seriousness of the situation, Taifū could not help the giggle that escaped her lips as she turned to meet his curious stare just past her right shoulder.

Then she blushed uncontrollably realizing just how close he was to her. It was almost... obscenely intimate.

Luckily for her Naruto was distracted since he could hear every muscle in Umi's body flex as the larger Guardian's hand gripped the weighted weapon he favored in both hands. "Walker-sama," he began with a voice dripping with anger only to pause as the blond icon gently raised his left palm to halt his objections.

"Patience and diligence should be rewarded and encouraged vice smothered from the light of knowledge," Naruto countered, a brief flush tickling his neck at one of Iruka's favorite quips. Without fear, he stepped around the nervously twitching Wind Sect member trying to slow his advance by hip-checking him.

With a gentle smile, he reached out with his right hand to push on her hip but only succeeded in making her blush at the intimate contact. It did let him pass by despite the nice feel of her firm buttocks pushing into his pelvis.

Trying not to cranially bleed out, he stepped around her to stride out towards the bridge knowing every semi-warm body behind him would be on his heels.

Pausing to stand on the left side of the kneeling figure in the middle of their path of travel, he could see her crimson eyes following his feet as her body twitched in uncertainty. Her eyes reminded him of another pair staring down at him through the valley of her cleavage in a room flooded with incense but he pushed that thought away with a violent shove.

Curse teenage hormones. He hated this part of growing up the first time he went through it.

"Hello there," he started off in the softest voice he could manage. "I'm told you'd like to speak to me." He tried not to notice the interesting gurgling sounds coming from the large echidnae crouching just past the bridge having noticed that both Ellamus and Opal had resumed their fully-scaled forms behind his mob of overprotective bodyguards.

Very slowly, and with one eye routinely checking the very high-strung Guardians watching her every move, the figure with blood-red hair haloing her face rotated her body until her bowed head hovered above the stone at his crouched feet. Bending forward until her forehead touched the backs of her triangled palms, she appeared to take several deep breaths to steady her nerves before taking one extra huge gulp of air to make use of her one opportunity to make her initial sales pitch.

"On behalf of the Umihebi Flame Sect, I, Kirameki no Kaen, offer this sword, which once belonged to my traitorous elder hatchling, and my life in death or in servitude, as payment in exchange for forgiveness for the wrong done against the Uzumaki Clan by the hated traitors, Gekido and Eito Terumī."

Naruto's face clearly showed his shock and intrigue at the subject matter but he recovered quickly enough to reach down and lift her face by the chin, raising her head just enough to see her wide-open eyes.

"Walk with me for a bit."

~III~

---

Samui Abe considered herself a practical kunoichi. She kind of had to be given the smaller Abe clan that adopted both her and her older brother Atsui; there weren't many civilian clans in Kumo but that didn't mean every clan was a major power. The Abe was a clan specializing in crafting shinobi tools and, while the work was steady in a military town like Kumogakure, her adoptive family weren't the only competitors.

Fierce competition for loyal customers meant a practical business sense was a necessity and, when not on-mission, Samui supported her family in every endeavor with her very logical and practical method of doing business.

Practicality predicated that her initial observations should earn her a satisfactory mission completion necessitating her return home.

Logic dictated that she, at a minimum, be reassigned to a combat-oriented mission more suited to her combat-oriented repertoire.

At the fucking least, prudent forethought would require that the bumbling pervert from her current mission be recalled so she could at least continue on unhindered with whatever remaining tasks her Raikage saw fit to assign her until he could arrive later in the month with Mabui in-tow.

She tried not to let her twitching eyebrow show at the stupid grin decorating the slob standing next to her knowing full well his eyes weren't on the scroll in her hands but on her bountiful cleavage.

Staring dumbfounded at the partially unrolled document ordering her to get closer to, if at all possible, the one person she knew would rather gut her like a fresh kill vice a soiled dove. She sighed almost angrily at her nigh-impossible task and scowled at the idiot they gave her to assist with it.

"So, Samui-chan, how about we get that friendly dinner and discuss our change in orders? Hmmmmm?"

Her eyes snapped up in annoyance to confirm that he still wasn't talking so much at her face as to her chest before she snapped the scroll close and stalked away.

"Not. Cool." The Undersecretary's simpering grin and bobblehead imitation in hopes of encouraging her to say "Yes" made her want to cave his face in with her fist. Instead, she stormed off.

"So. Not. Cool."

~III~

---

~ The Grotto, Training Day 2 ~

Naruto woke the next morning to an odd sensation. His bed was an actual bed, which he approved greatly of, and was perhaps one of the most comfortable he'd ever slept on even if it was large enough to fill his apartment bedroom back in Konoha all by itself. That wasn't the odd sensation, unfortunately.

What woke him was the gentle shaking of his arm by what he assumed was his war prize, Haku. Ugh, how he hated that term. Instead, he opened his still sleepy eyes to see a gently smiling Soyokaze, Taifū's real name he learned as he was getting ready for bed.

That wasn't the issue as his eyes shot open. The issue was that she was in bed with him wearing only a comfortable looking pair of women's underwear, the pale pink tips of her chest greeting him perkily as she sat up next to the slumbering shinobi.

His eyes shot to the sudden movement on his left and he found an equally undressed Nisshoku gently rubbing the sleep from her eye as one hand pressed to the mattress held her up in a similar sitting position, the slightly darker lavender tips of her chest equally bulging the shocked blue eyes of their owner.

"Doesn't anyone wear clothes around here?!"

Soyo giggled. "Ella-sama said you'd react like an old prude."

Naruto's shock faded quickly to an annoyed side-glare.

"We are not ashamed of our bodies, Walker-sama. All Halfkin, like our Wyrmkin masters, generally only armor ourselves for battle or when humans - other than you - are among us. As we," she mentioned to the very quiet but smiling Nisshoku, "will be around you a considerable amount, you are going to have to get used to seeing us like this. It is our way."

"Hnh," he grunted out deciding it was too much to worry about first thing in the morning without tea or coffee in his system.

~III~

Sasuke Uchiha awoke at an un-Kami-like hour when he shivered himself right out of bed. Taking one glance at the clock, he immediately went back to sleep and dreamt about pummeling a certain blond Genin in the upcoming finals.

~III~

"One-hundred and one..."

"One-hundred and two..."

"One-hundred and three..."

He was not focusing on the fact that his new Flame Guardian was sitting crosslegged on his shoulders counting aloud as he cranked out push-ups on his knuckles. Instead, he focused on surviving the physical bruising he was going to endure at the hands of his now six Guardians. Umi hadn't been pleased about that decision but what was done was done and Naruto had no intention of going back. Although if he were to be honest, Umi's outrage was justified considering what happened with the Flame Sect at the time of the Breaking.

"One-hundred and twenty..."

"One-hundred and twenty-one..."

"One-hundred and twenty-two..."

Kirameki was the younger sibling to the Flame Sect Guardian only she didn't steal the Fang now in her custody. Kirameki's sibling had renounced her sword and given it to her little sister to use once she became the next Guardian of the Sect.

Unfortunately, Kirameki's sister was fleeing with one of the two echidnae from the fire-based strain as they were bonded to the two most hated Uzumaki traitors in the entire summoning clan's history, her self-appointed mission to keep the powerful beasts from doing any additional harm to future Uzumaki should they cross paths. That did nothing to stop the men bonded to both female wyrms, however, and the traitorous acts they committed heaped additional scorn upon the names of the traitors that fled the clutch.

Kirameki tried to talk her elder out of it, pleaded with her to no avail. So, while the summonses fled to the Salamander lands, the flaming Ifrit lands being the only place warm enough to match the lava-like home of the Sect living on the fringe of echidnae society, it was still isolation from all they'd known. Beyond that, she had no idea as to how the exiles were doing given that the Flame Sect had remained on lockdown since the Breaking, all contact lost as the remaining Sect suffered for Gekido and Eito Terumī's poisoned influence.

"One-hundred and seventy..."

"One-hundred and seventy-one..."

"One-hundred and seventy-two..."

Worst of it all was that no one would tell Kirameki what the traitors had done to incur such wrath and isolation upon them all, lamenting the fact that the entire Sect had been pushed to the fringes as lepers and pariahs, something Naruto could fully associate with. He, on the other hand, did know having fully digested Mito-Hī-obā-chan's journal in full.

Gekido was the elder of the Terumī branch of the Uzumaki long held to be a potential candidate for Uzukage. As made popular through the Terumīs of Mizu no Kuni, their bonding with the fire generating echidnae produced not one but often two heat-powered Kekkei Genkai, Lava Release and Boil Release, both of which Naruto knew were personified in the current Mizukage, Mei Terumī.

That meant at least one traitor fled to Kiri, one of the villages complicit in the destruction of his clan. Kurotsuchi's use of Lava Release gave him a good idea of where the other fled to but which nation protected Gekido?

This nasty little truth complicated things further for him concerning the missing Fang currently in Suigetsu's possession and political minefields in general, but he'd worry about that later.

"Two-hundred and seven..."

"Two-hundred and eight..."

"Two-hundred and nine..."

See, Gekido was a right petty bastard who stated on multiple occasions that he should have been the Uzukage to follow Ashina above Mito's brother Saito and especially above Kushina, who was rumored to be the next Kage-in-training once Saito was ready to step down. Fortunately, it was rumored (at the time) to be several years off as the younger Uzumaki had just turned seven.

A petty, vain, and jealous man like Gekido didn't care, so it did not take long, once he'd been informed that he was going to be passed over yet again, for the red and silver-haired Uzumaki Clan elder to stop ignoring the platitudes being sent his way by the current Sandaime Tsuchikage, one "Ōnoki of Both Scales."

From there it was only a short step from an informant to full-on spy with the added promise of being made the new Uzukage and the greatest ally of Iwa following the removal of his political obstacles, a promise the Tsuchikage never intended to fulfill.

Gekido, with those incentives, would play his part exceedingly well managing to coerce his eldest son and daughter into supporting him under equal measures stemming from threats of exposure (the Uzumaki did not treat traitors well and Gekido's son Eito knew it) and promises of power and wealth (as needed to convince his greedy daughter to provide support).

By the time Saito was made aware of the situation through their spy network, which had taken several serious and unexplained blows in Iwa no Kuni, the invasion was only months away but the Uzumaki leadership still had no idea where the leaks and damages to their information networks were coming from. This would lead to Mito's return to Uzushio, in an act of desperation, and her failed attempt to bond with multiple Echidnae, which would further result in the emergency transfer of the Kyuubi to a new host.

She would not die right away.

"Two-hundred and forty-eight..."

"Two-hundred and forty-nine..."

"Two-hundred and FIFTY!" She hopped off his back and he promptly rolled over as Nisshi-chan plopped her firm rear down atop his toes for sit-ups without breaking his train of thought. As a lingering thought, he enjoyed the way the shy Guardian blushed every time he came up for a count. At the same time, he tried to ignore the way her soft chest pressed against his shins once her arms wrapped around his calves to keep his legs steady.

"One..." the soft-spoken Halfkin began as Kira-chan plopped down next to him and smacked his stomach with the flat of her palms every time he rolled down to his back.

"Two..." SMACK!

"T-Three..." SMACK! If his chakra control waivered, they would know it instantly as he curled up into a fetal position. Kira-chan's hands stung if he failed to reinforce his gut.

"Four..." SMACK!

"Five..." SMACK!

As emergency protocols would begin to take place, Saito would transfer power to Mito's granddaughter and disappear into the shadows to make sure the clan's legacy was safe, per the dying wishes of his sister. Kushina would be evacuated to Konoha, their long-time ally weeks before the final days.

Fortunately, in Mito's final hours prior to her deteriorating health and the increased damage to her already destroyed chakra network by the loss of the Kyuubi's sustaining youki, she would glean the identity of one of their betrayers. She would risk it all even as she used the last of her chakra during the brutal invasion of her homeland to secure his identity for any survivor strong enough to later bond with the Umihebi; beyond being world-class travelers, the Shadow Sect of the Umihebi made for excellent spies and it was in the earliest moments of the invasion that her final request to the elusive serpents of the night would bear fruit. That they would spy on Gekido and his son as they selectively deactivated traps or breached defenses long enough for the enemy to flank and overpower Uzu no Kuni defenders was enough to solidify their treachery among the Celestial Clan of summons.

She would die cursing the name of Gekido Terumī and all his descendants.

~III~

~ The Grotto, Training Day 3 ~

By the morning of the third day, he was no longer surprised by his unusual wake-up calls and could only yawn in sluggish humor at being bracketed by both female Guardians charged with his personal well-being in addition to finding Haku sprawled out across his chest in her usual sleeping yukata.

With his morning ablutions an existential blur, he found his heavy footfalls leading back out at the training grounds where the entire Guardian team would put him through his horrid paces.

'Kami, I hate this part.'

With a malicious grin, Keina made a half Ram seal and the crushing weight of his vest plastered Naruto to the unflinching ground. None of his trainers explained to Naruto that the training uniform increased in weight as he got stronger, the only gauge it set being how much weight was needed to bear him to the ground without him sheathing his body in chakra. This allowed his trainers to gauge his growth in strength based on how much chakra they used in freeing the hidden seals within the garments dragging him to the earth.

This also allowed them to take advantage of the bijū's accelerated healing making him develop faster.

Despite needing nearly ten minutes to gather enough strength and chakra to rise up from the ground, his morning of physical training generally went well, at least he felt so. Never mind that he usually ached from head to toe. Never mind that he barely had the focus to complete the requisite chakra control session during the last hour before breakfast. He loved every minute of running along cliffs or across the sand, wrestling his Guardians (always a different one each day), and sweating himself into a helpless puddle.

It was one of two exercise periods he was not allowed to use clones for, the second being his two-hour chakra molding session with his summonses which nearly put him to sleep since it immediately came after dinner when all the blood rushed to his overfull stomach.

Ella-hime really didn't appreciate his lack of enthusiasm on that first night.

For the rest of his training sessions, he was instructed to form anywhere from eight to nine overpowered shadow clones so they could, in turn, produce two-hundred and fifty modified clones for training. These clones would run through their paces, alongside the original who trained with Keina, pushing through chakra control (once before breakfast and once after molding and shaping his Uzumaki chakra), five-elements taijutsu, five elements kenjutsu, and ninjutsu with all six of the Guardians. Once his clone generals absorbed the experiences of their troops, he'd, in turn, begin the slow process of absorbing them one at a time to prevent being laid out for hours with a migraine he could not afford.

While his ninjutsu was being refined across the board, Naruto would spend that chunk of time building on his already strong Fuinjutsu background with Keina, who he was now calling Kaa-san much to her delight.

With Saturdays being a day of lighter training focusing more on endurance and flexibility, Sundays would become a true day of rest and recovery.

He hoped.

~III~

~ The Glittering Grotto, Walker's Den, Sunday ~

Naruto was enjoying the evening view from the entry foyer to his temporary lodgings. It was his only true day off in the training cycle as seven training days a week was too much for even his youki-enhanced recovery. What he equated to Saturday back in the world of mortals was more of a prolonged warm-up and stretch session while he talked strategy with his newest bunch of friends, who also happened to like this particular chamber for the spectacular view.

Despite the largely bare chamber funneling to a well-lit passageway, it did provide a spectacular view of the oceanic waters beyond their cliff. It was also the only chamber large enough to accommodate a full-sized serpent allowing them to shift to a more human-friendly appearance since all of the other entrances in his quarters (the ones joining the sleeping, bathing, dining, and living chambers) were sized for Uzumaki clansmen and women.

"Please consider it."

Keina's voice snapped him out of his thoughts, his head swinging around to lock onto the attractive redhead standing to his right.

"It's to restore the clan. We're not asking you to marry anyone."

His brows knit together even as the pleasant memory of the dinner party faded to the background. "You're asking me to help casually bring new Uzumaki life into the world, a life I can't be a regular part of. You know how I feel about that."

She nodded. "I do but no one is saying you can't be a part of their lives. You'll always be their father and no one will take that, no one can take that from you."

His eyes turned back out to sea. "But how many are you talking about here?"

She knew this would be the deal breaker but they needed more royals to rebuild both the main and side branches. Each woman that previously agreed to this would be free to marry another, provided that person could deal with a single mother vice the highly coveted virgin bride. She wasn't worried about birth defects given their resilient genetics; the Uzumaki had interbred on more than one occasion to "keep the line pure" and the bloodline was fairly reliable at preventing extra limbs and other deformities.

She released a heavy sigh. "At least four that I know of," she answered intentionally keeping their identities secret.

"I don't know about this."

"And what if you die in the exams? What then? Are we to be left without another Walker or another Uzu royal?"

He waved it off. "You're young and pretty plus there's Karin."

"Not enough!" She was shaking her great mane of hair from side to side and fighting a blush at the same time. "The next heir needs to be more than half-blood.

His guffawed laughter interrupted her train of thought. "I'M only half!"

"But your other half is mostly Senju royalty, which more than makes up for it."

They were both interrupted by Haku and Umi walking into the chamber to join them, Keina turning to gently touch his cheek and regain his attention.

"Just consider it, Naruto. Please?"

Sparing one quick glance to the approaching duo, he turned back to her enough to nod once with a soft, "Hai, Kaa-san." Her wide grin did nothing to ease the agonizing decision she'd just dumped on him so he turned back to the approaching duo.

"Heading back to the enclave, Umi?" he called out with a weak smile which only shot straight to confused once the large blue male dropped to one knee, his hood and mask lowered and his head bowed in shame.

"Um, what's going on?" Came the blond's confused opener.

"I just learned that a good chunk of Kiri's proud history is a lie." Haku's voice was soft as if she'd suffered shell-shock from a near-miss paper bomb.

"What?"

"Come on." Keina jumped in as she walked past the still kneeling Water Sect hatchling to tug on his arm and get him moving. "I'll make some tea since this is going to take a minute to explain."

Not ten minutes later, Naruto was sitting in a comfortable chair with all of the Guardians kneeling around him in a half-circle sputtering into his teacup.

"What do you mean Kubikiribōchō never belonged to Kiri? Slow down and explain it to me from the beginning," one hand wiping the hot tea from his chin before Haku could attack it with a handy towel.

"While we were enjoying dinner that first night, I noticed that all of the Guardians except for one set a sword behind their seat. That sword, each and every one of them, looks a lot like Zabuza-sama's weapon."

Naruto nodded his agreement having considered the similarities.

Keina told him earlier that day when he met the five of them that the Guardians were always meant to guard the current Walker, the clan head - more or less - reigning over all Umihebi. One of them, he thought the bronze-skinned one was named or called Ishi, leaned forward and passed him the blade hanging across his back in a harness eerily familiar to Naruto.

With the blade carefully balanced across his palms, he had an extremely difficult time telling this sword apart from the one Zabuza tried to cleave him in half with during their very first run-in with the nukenin. It was a difficult sword to forget; it made a unique sound if you were nearby when it split the surrounding air in two.

Handing it back to the large Halfkin with a nod, he turned back to Haku's rather unsteady, but still extremely pretty, face. "That explains why the blade always seemed too big for a normal human," he commented. Male Halfkins were much larger than normal males.

"Umi-san told me a rather tragic story that I think you should hear."

The large blue-skinned male seemed nervous even as he prepared to relay his tale, his eyes flickering from the floor to briefly glance at his new Walker almost as if he feared to be punished. Inside he knew that the Walker was a forgiving person, after all, he'd forgiven that cancerous Flame Sect so... perhaps there was hope for Umi?

"I'm not here to judge you, Umi." The large blue shoulders sagged a bit in relief. "Tell me what I need to know."

It was several moments before the Kin's rumbling bass of a voice began, but, once he did, Naruto was hooked.

His story went back before Naruto's birth almost a quarter-century. The loss of his sword began with the Great Breaking, as the summoning clan referred to it. It was the day the Uzumaki Clan fell to a combined assault from honorless cowards.

Naruto tried not to snort given the prideful Halfkin was talking about shinobi, people trained from an early age to lie, cheat, steal, and rob blind anyone not from their own village.

Umi was and has been, for the past seventy-five years, the appointed Guardian of the Water Sect. Like all Guardians, their primary responsibility is to safeguard the current Walker, the protection of the entire clan of serpents a strict and distant second priority.

All of the Kin, Wyrm and Half alike, know this to be resolute; there were plenty of Hatchlings to defend the great serpents that really didn't need anyone's help en masse. When you think about it, who would be idiotic enough to attack them at home?

There are, however, several little secrets inherent in their breed that make this directive to protect, preserve and nurture the current Walker a driving force in their very specific existence but to become one is the ultimate pinnacle of achievement for the half-bloods that would otherwise be shunned in any normal human realm.

First and as previously discussed, their genetics make them stronger than normal, every facet of their biology tweaked because of their mixed parentage to give them the edge. Dense muscles, stronger tendons (and ligaments), greater lung capacity, an almost reptilian ability to regenerate (including lost extremities short of a head), heightened senses similar to their reptilian parents, an extended life span reaching up to five hundred years in rare cases, and a reduced dependency on sleep and nutrition make them dangerous bodyguards.

Second of all, their mixed heritage also allows them to transcend both realms and prolong their stay for up to decades at a time in the mortal realm in order to protect their liege. They must return to the summoning realm for a year after such prolonged stays but it's not nearly as debilitating for the Halfkin.

Finally, there is a bonding process to tie them to their Walker. There are few perks but that's not the intent. As it's Fuinjutsu driven, it serves as a loyalty seal that provides limited awareness of the state of their Walker letting them know where he or she is within a mile (a general direction and loose sense of distance if they're farther away).

These benefits are not without their downsides as Halfkin cannot reproduce (being sterile), cannot learn elemental transformations beyond their initial Sect, and cannot survive beyond their Walker unless released from the bond; a Walker that dies before their time takes their Guardians with them to the grave.

It was at this point in Umi's tale that Naruto stared with wide eyes at the six Halfkin sitting around him in a half-circle, a tear trailing from his eye as Taifū reached up from his right side to gently squeeze his hand. He was trying to think of the negative connotations to the new seal located just under his left collarbone matching the seals newly added above the hearts of all six Guardians.

But Umi wasn't done here.

All of these reasons were why each sect provided only one, their strongest to be a Guardian; the rest would aid in either defending the clutch or the Walker if he were in the Grotto. In times of dire emergency, they could be summoned to Uzushio to rain death upon enemies of the clan.

To help in keeping their sovereign safe, each Guardian was provided a special blade - called the Serpent's Fang - formed from secret techniques known among the Uzumaki. These techniques Keina had informed him of earlier stating that he'd be learning these at the hands of the best Sect blacksmiths and his beloved Aunt, who happened to be the strongest Fuinjutsu master among her sisters (apparently his mother was the stronger taijutsu-slash-kenjutsu master and Karin's mom was the healer of the three).

This was an important lesson as the Walker, when strong enough, carried the seventh and final Fang linked to all six blades wielded by the Guardians.

Even the one walking around in Kiri in the hands of a defiler.

While a month, even with clones, wasn't enough to master the kenjutsu styles he'd be learning from his Aunt and all of the Guardians, he didn't care as he'd most likely pick up the basics and intermediate skills well enough that he'd crush his competition in the Exams. As Suigetsu's face hovered in his mind's eye, that was more than enough for him.

This sword provided to the Halfkin looked an awful lot like Zabuza's Decapitating Carving Knife down to the extra holes, a fact Keina reinforced once she handed him a soft leather journal discussing some of the clan's secret crafting specialties. Inside it confirmed not only the sword's origin but many of the hidden abilities its former owners may or may not have known about. Slapping the book closed for later reading, he turned to Umi with a question already on his lips.

"So that explains what Kubikiribōchō is but not why it's currently running around Kiri and why you," he held up a palm to indicate the blue-skinned Halfkin, "are the only Guardian without a sword."

Umi nodded sheepishly even as his eyes traveled over to the massive polearm, a Yanyuedao he called it, leaning against the chamber wall, the gently curving fauchard-like blade more than a hand's width wide and four-hand width's long. It still looked like it could deal an obscene amount of damage and they all had a secondary weapon of some type but it didn't explain where his sword was.

"As we were all dealing with being forbidden to come to the aid of the Uzumaki," Umi's jaw tightened at the dishonorable memory, "horrible things were happening within the summoning clan and we spent sixty days suppressing the uprising caused when the clan was ordered to stand down.

"The dishonor was too much for the younger Halfkin to bear and they fought to travel to Uzushio anyway."

"How many?" Naruto asked into the growing silence, a question that brought up the great blue head from the floor.

"Too many, Walker-sama." After several more deep breaths, he continued. "A third of the great wyrms and over sixty percent of the Kin perished that day."

Naruto noted the bowed heads of his remaining five but chose to keep his thoughts to himself.

"It was into this absolute chaos that my younger brother, Kisame, stole away from the clan and fled our lands with the Fang gifted to me."

Despite the recognition in his eyes at the rogue shinobi's name, Naruto's gaze grew confused until Taifū chose to clarify for him.

"This was before the blood seals linking the swords to their carriers were added, Walker-sama. To steal a Guardian's blade today while the Guardian still lives is to invite certain death via a wasting disease curse seal."

"True," Umi continued. "At the time, honor and loyalty were the only safeguards needed. No Halfkin would dare to steal the sword of a Guardian. There were only six made for the six protectors and, given their size, it would be difficult to keep one hidden. We never thought he'd flee or, even worse, side with the Chondrichthyes."

Naruto simply turned his head to lock flat eyes with the wind sect Guardian, her face breaking into a small smile as his behavior tickled some bone deep inside her core. "Sharks, Walker-sama. He sided with our mortal enemies."

"Aah, that's why he has the gill things under his beady little eyes."

Umi's face wrinkled up in distaste. "He has squandered the gifts of our clan to lie with sharks." The large man turned to spit on the carpeted floor until the svelte wind user reached up to smack the back of his head with a loud CRACK!

"You will NOT defile Walker-sama's domicile." Her stern voice left little room for argument so the large man could only bow sheepishly and swallow his own spit with a grimace.

'Must have been a tasty one,' Naruto chuckled.

"What we know is that he swam out to sea during the confusion and, even after peace and order were restored and we mourned our dead, it was another three months before his absence was accounted for. By then, he was long gone along with my blade." The large Kin sighed heavily. "By Umihebi law, I cannot have another forged and my honor cannot be cleansed until I've regained my original weapon and slain him, preferably with it."

"This may be more difficult than we think since the blade has fallen into the hands of a Kiri shinobi," Naruto offered drawing Haku back into the conversation.

"But he's in the exams, isn't he?"

"He is," the blond agreed, "but chances are slim that I'll randomly be selected to fight him during the trials."

"We can only hope that fortune is with us then, Walker-sama," Umi intoned seriously.

Naruto's one eye closed even as the other one squinted nearly shut. "You're not gonna stop calling me that, are you?"

Taifū could only giggle at his ongoing antics thinking to herself, 'It was good to be a family again.'

~III~

~ The Summoning Realm of the Ifrit Salamander ~

"Thank you, Lamapades. You will not regret lending us your aid!"

The enormous flame-scaled serpent only nodded its head at the gushing human, his white mane and beard nearly brushing the ash-covered ground. She also could not ignore the overly proud glare from the hatchling human standing next to him, her arrogant appearance remaining even after the old man reached up to press down on the child's neck forcing her to show a modicum of respect.

It was several seconds after they left in a cloud of smoke before the large muzzle wrinkled up in clear distaste.

Oh, how she hated him for bringing her to this shame and she knew that he realized this. Mistakenly he believed it was because she felt shame for her "unjust exile" when, in reality, she loathed him for convincing her those years before that she should support him in his attempt to heal a corrupted clan, her summoning clan and the Uzumaki they lovingly served.

Many nights she blamed the bond and its corrosive influence but she knew it was the sweet words he poured into her ears once upon a time. It only became worse once her younger sibling, Wadjet, joined her bonded summoner in their folly soon to be followed by their Sect's Guardian.

It was her shame that forced her to hide in the lands of lesser creatures. It was her torn heart that prevented her from ever raising a hand against the survivors of the clan, directly or indirectly much to the angry little man's dismay.

Oh, how he railed against her over the years and now he dares to come before her once more demanding her aid against, if what she was hearing was true, what could be the very last Walker of Uzu no Kuni? It took a great deal of effort to hide the racing of her great heart and the disgust his presence brought to her face. Perhaps her sister and she could finally atone for their weakness. Speaking of which...

Kagayaki, no longer going by her given Guardian name, glanced to her left as another figure joined her in a defensive position before the twin mountains of molten scales. Given the large amounts of raw power flowing through the twin Echidnae, it was no surprise that the greedy human could not detect Kirameki-chan hiding behind Wadjet's reclining form.

For the second time that day, she had to still her heart at the sight of her baby sister in full Guardian regalia bearing her Fang.

"Will you help them?" Kirameki asked with a calm voice filled with iron. The elder Guardian merely turned backwards as if seeking permission.

"We will but not in the manner to which they ascribe."

The younger girl's head twisted upwards to face the elder wyrm in confusion at her response.

"Tell your Walker-sama that I will travel to these games with the female hatchling, as the traitor Gekido requests."

"You never raised claw nor fang against the clan. He will forgive your trespasses and bring you back to the clutch. You know this, yes?"

The creature's large muzzle seemed to curl up into a smile. "I'm counting on it, blessed one."

~III~

~ Near the Suna-Konoha Border ~

"You're not disappointed that we're almost a week behind everyone else?"

Temari was trying very hard to ignore Kankuro's wheedling. For a minion, he wasn't being very supportive and his whiny voice was starting to give her a headache.

Glancing briefly at her youngest brother as they continued their early morning trek across the rocky plains preceding the deep desert, She couldn't prevent another deep-seated shiver at the impossible things she'd both seen and been privy to. It made her feel small, truly small like the first time she'd seen Gaara smash his way through an angry mob at the age of five.

She hated it then and hated it still. It was what forced her to re-evaluate her advancement in her chosen profession. It didn't matter that the profession was chosen for her without her consent. If this was to be her lot in life, then she'd be the strongest kunoichi from Suna bar none. It would only be a matter of time before she could claim a title as impressive as the one female Sannin of the shinobi world.

It would happen and she would make it so.

This was the way.

Then she spent a week in Konoha surrounded by people she wouldn't soil the soles of her pragmatic sandals with if she had to step through their blood to get home. It only got worse when she had to spend five days with a blond monster that made her knees shake with fear and she suddenly felt just like she did at the age of eight watching Gaara mulching Chunin and Jounin alike in his sand storm.

The way this blond force of nature almost casually disregarded them... It brought all of her greatest fears bubbling back to the surface and she hated hit, every single minute of it.

To make matters worse, after their seals master - yet another fucking Sannin! - strapped their brother to a sealing table more complicated than anything Chiyo-baa-sama possessed and casually "corrected" her brother's faulty seal (if you consider the hour of screaming being ripped from her baby brother's throat casual), they "oh so casually" informed them and their sensei that the real Kazekage, their miserable, worthless waste of a father, was dead and had in fact been dead for several months.

As if that wasn't a big enough kick in the nuts (whether she had them or not), they showed them all available pictures of the ambush site and where they could find it on a map of the region. They would not, unfortunately, tell them who they thought committed the deed but Temari knew.

She could read it in their scheming, untrustworthy, tree-hugging eyes.

The fact that Konoha had accurate maps of Suna geography was not a surprise. The fact that they knew the reigning Kazekage was dead and where to find his body as proof was.

Glancing up from her brother to their still-healing sensei, Baki, Temari had to assume his murdering of a Konoha Jounin three nights ago, weakened due to illness or not, would have to be of concern in some way, shape, or form down the road as Suna navigated this potential minefield.

She only regretted that Baki hadn't killed more of them but that wouldn't address the death of their fa-Kazekage.

Anyone strong enough to murder their strongest nin, their leader, and his elite guard was of serious concern. It was a fact only made worse by the fact that her now exceedingly calm brother, who was once again in full possession of his chakra, was reconsidering ever fulfilling his part of a plan now clearly doomed to fail given Konoha's hinted knowledge and overwhelming strength.

She sincerely doubted that their blond tormentor from the second stage of the exam requested the Sannin's help in fixing her brother's seal but that was the story Konoha told and that was good enough for Gaara and his new Pocky addiction.

Oh, yes. She'd get the blond bastard for that as well.

The entire sum of frustrating realization was making her re-prioritize personal plans, plans devised the day she was assigned to Gaara's Genin Squad and involved sacrificing her favorite minion to Gaara's blood lust as a distraction, of escaping her home village.

He was just a minion after all and she was the Queen.

This was always the way.

~III~

~ The Grotto, Training Day 8 ~

Ella and Opal were standing off to the side of the training grounds watching six separate mobs of Walkers, each mob numbering a few hundred or more copies of the same blond human, run through different forms of sword fighting using weighted training versions of the dreaded Fang, known among the humans as the Severing Sword. Each group was being led by a different Guardian, each style different from the other to serve a purpose.

Some were better at defense, others better at offense. The Shadow Guardian's style was one of two forms that used both hands to wield the weapon, the weak hand cradling the back of the blade keeping it close to the body for short, quick slices to either hamstring or otherwise incapacitate their opponent. The Fuuton Sect used two blades, the Walker having just learned the technique allowing him to temporarily duplicate the weapon - his fragile technique showing he needs tons more practice before he could use it in combat. Umi, using a similar training weapon, was able to demonstrate the other two-handed form using a wide grip but utilizing powerful fluid strokes to flow around its opponent and defend against multiple attackers.

They were all deadly forms in their own way.

"How goes the progress?" Ella's eyes never left the original leading a smaller group training in the Uzumaki style with Keina off to the side.

"He's learning at absurd levels of quickness," Nectamia responded, her sister strangely quiet for once.

"Of course, the clones."

"It's more than that, Ella-sama." The elder wyrm looked down to the slimmer messenger for clarification. "Yes, the clones help but he's a physical learner. Movements come easier to him than reading books and that gift is compounded by the number of clones." The slender wyrm arched her graceful neck upwards to the senior princess.

"The Guardians think he'll master the median forms within the next two weeks."

Ellamus's eyebrows shot upwards at that brand of high praise knowing previous Walkers had taken months to master even the basic forms of each style.

It was high praise indeed. Both sisters settled down to watch as the rote forms period ended and each circle gathered up the clones to utilize what they'd learned through combat, the best reinforcement they could find knowing a clone's death would not hurt the original.

They observed through the entire two-hour taijutsu barrage enjoying the resounding gongs from the toad forms. When the magenta pugilist stepped away to rest, the rushing sounds of training weapons splitting the air made Ella smile; the forms were graceful and deadly reminding her more of an Echidnae's spiked tail slashing at its foes vice the forearm length teeth it was named after. Patiently the sisters endured a sedate lunch break followed by the billowing flames, eruptions, bursts of electricity and stone-crushing tidal waves that highlighted their Walker's slowly diminishing lack of chakra control as this meant the chaos caused by hundreds upon hundreds of shadow clones was drawing to its nightly end.

It would be their turn soon enough and, before they knew it, then it was.

Both sisters paused while Naruto sent one last batch off with Keina for training in the Walker's library domicile since it housed the sealing chamber reserved for the clan head's use. There would be no threat to the rest of the clutch with the seal-reinforced chamber.

Good, that meant they could retire to Ella's den, her favorite time of the day.

"Are you ready, Walker?"

Naruto sighed despite his fatigue. The next two hours would give him more than a chance to catch his breath and restore his waning chakra reserves. All he had to do was sit and concentrate on his chakra network, which wasn't as strenuous a task as it used to be.

It was an added bonus that Opal's chakra acted as a recuperative that healed wounds, bruises, and cuts.

Nodding, the climbed up into the great bowl comprising Ella's bed and settled in laying flat on his back - he liked to stare at the crystals in the ceiling since it helped him to concentrate on something other than what he knew was going to happen next.

'Kiba in a speedo!' 'Kiba in a speedo!' 'Kiba in a speedo!'

No sooner had he released a cleansing breath than Ella and Opal both stretched out next to him, both Echidnae pressing his upper arms between their rather plush human cushions as they sidled up next to him and draped one shapely thigh over each of his own.

'Sandaime in a speedo!' 'Sandaime in a speedo!' 'Sandaime in a-!'

Opal's soft hand landed on his right pectoral as Ella's tapped him lightly on the forehead breaking up his stabilizing mantra.

"The first hour will be the same, Walker. We will continue to purify and mature your hereditary chakra as before." He nodded once as both serpents had become very proficient at filtering his youki-laden chakra to the point they could leave most of the bijū's youki loitering in his network reducing any residual harm to themselves.

"For the second hour, we will teach you how to identify and separate the individual components of your own chakra, the parts you know as Yin and Yang."

This did shock him enough to force a question. "Why?" It was Opal that provided an answer this time.

"Keina-sama says that you must master this skill if you are to master the chains that continue to elude you." When his eyebrows knotted up in confusion, she continued.

"She says that Uzumaki chakra is heavily biased towards the Yang. It is how you are able to form sturdy enough chakra constructs to make lots of them. As we mature your Uzumaki chakra, your natural Yin-Yang balance will shift from an equal ratio to favor the latter. Once you have matured your chakra, she says your true training with the chains can begin."

"She also says there is a downside to this." Naruto turned from Opal's beaming smile to Ella's wrinkled brow. "She says that the other Uzumaki bloodline traits are governed by this balance meaning you cannot learn all of them as you originally wished to do."

This did make him frown.

"The healing gift of your cousin requires a different balance than the chains but her control is good enough that she can partially master the latter skill up to a degree."

He took that to mean she could do the attack chains but never be strong enough to master barriers, or at least be as strong as either he will be or his mother Kushina was with them.

"She will never have potent enough chakra, however, to make the solid constructs some of your clansmen are capable of, therefore, she will never have your talent with Uzumaki sealing."

That sort of made sense to the Uzu Prince, meaning she'd never be able to do chakra scribing and make solid seals without ink.

He also realized that door swung both ways, unfortunately, and that explained why he'd never match her talent with Mind's Eye of the Kagura. He'd probably never have her aptitude for passive detection but he could live with that.

'Fair enough.'

With a heavy sigh, he settled in and closed his eyes, his left pectoral registering Ella's palm as it settled over his heart.

Then the soothing warmth of their Reika Chakra began flowing through his system...

~III~

~ Personal Training Ground of the Sandaime Tsuchikage ~

Two of the oldest shinobi still active in Iwa were passively observing the dark-haired kunoichi being pushed through her paces by the stoic five-tails jinchuuriki, Han. From Gekido's wince, she was not faring as well as either men would have preferred.

"Relax your shoulders, Kuro-chan. He is considerably bigger than you are. Let him tire himself out without becoming one large bruise yourself."

Both men opted to ignore the stream of profanity sent their way.

"That's another ten Ryu, Mushi," crowed.

"Kuso!"

"That makes it ten-fifty."

The girl scowled but kept silent as she tucked into the training session oblivious to the ongoing conversation by the sidelines.

"I have my doubts, Gekido." The Tsuchikage was observing his granddaughter with an exceptionally critical eye.

"With Lampades agreeing to support her, I do not."

Ōnoki grunted and walked away.

~III~

~ The Grotto, Training Day 15 ~

Naruto, the original, stood before the magenta-hued Gama trying to shake his excitement. Both were standing in baggy training shorts that reached past their knees, the only other ornamentation being the wraps covering everything from their knuckles to their elbows and everything from their shins down to their insteps - or, er, their flippers.

"Mornin' Tadpole," the nearly three-meter battle toad croaked out. "We've pushed hard ter get you back up ta' standard but I think it's time we crank 'er up a notch."

All two-hundred and fifty-one pairs of ocean blue eyes glittered despite their twelve-hundred plus siblings grunting in pain all across the stone training yard.

"We got ten days ter make you a functional in'ermediate an' I intend ter push hard. Hop to, boya!"

A resounding "OSSU!" from those two-hundred and fifty-plus throats began a grueling day of deep-tissue sheathing followed by the most grueling upgrade of Naruto's Tetsuken taijutsu style to date.

The remaining army of clones would find it extremely hard to concentrate with the pained screams coming from that side of the training ground.

It would take several minutes after their workout concluded (and an overly-pleased Gama departed for home) before Naruto was coherent enough to move on to practicing with a sword.

~III~

~ The Grotto, Training Day 24 ~

The past three weeks had been great for Naruto's uninterrupted development. He had to admit the focused attention from skilled shinobi wanting to actually help him almost replaced the empty hole in his chest he felt from time to time when memories of his clone fragments reared up. Now his life almost seemed normal when he awoke to find four women glomped onto a chosen extremity.

Ivory hair, royal purple, crimson and brunette waves of silk surrounded him, their (mostly) warm bodies pressingly softly but firmly against him was a pleasant way to wake up for the last three weeks. Too bad he doubted any wife he'd be fortunate to find would consider keeping the arrangement.

With a sigh, he untangled his limbs gently waking his platonic bedmates and set about his modified early morning routine. Today would be special.

Today was an assessment.

Nisshoku and Haku both pecked him lightly on the cheek before dressing and gliding off to prepare a big breakfast. Soyo-chan and Kira-chan only stripped down further to join him through a thorough bathing and preparatory session as they decked him out in his training gear.

If things went well, it would be the last time this month he'd need to wear it and that by itself was enough to keep a smile on his face as the Halfkin gently scrubbed his back and arms. Once they were all dressed, another round of cheek kissing led to the five sharing a healthy breakfast before heading off to the training grounds.

Upon arrival, his company broke off to their respective positions - Haku joining Poseidus, Marianus, Titus, Ella and Opal on the sidelines while his three female Guardians took their places next to the males and a wide-grinning Gamatetsu. Just because the toad agreed to limit his effort to a seasoned intermediate student of his brand of Toad Kata didn't mean he wasn't going to enjoy this round.

"You ready, Boya?"

Naruto's shit-eating grin was all the reply Gamatetsu needed to begin.

The ground shook on their first clash, the stone earth cracking beneath their feet/ flippers while Halfkin assigned to tending the training fields tsked and grumbled at another long day's worth of mending stone.

Gamatetsu pushed off from their crossed forearms using his heavier form to move Naruto with an almost gentle shove. Leaping after the smaller human, one heavily-wrapped flipper-fist roaring downwards in an overhand smash. Knowing better than to try and block it, Naruto slipped to the outside of the right earth crusher and shot an overhand left past the massive bicep at his sensei's wide chin, where it connected with a resounding GONG!

It cost him in the form of a toad elbow to the ribs, which produced a slightly higher-toned response in kind.

When the left flipper chased after the right elbow, Naruto dropped to one knee and nudged the limb higher with his own elbow strike. Leaning back to avoid the magenta knee strike headed for his chin, Naruto slapped the palm of his left hand to the ground, swung the sole of his right foot up to kick the raised toad limb aside, then re-chambered a thrust kick into Gamatetsu's abdomen from his two-point stance. Since the toad was using chakra to anchor his other flipper to the ground, the lighter mass ricocheted into a forward roll and regained his feet to square up again.

Both fighters took three to four seconds to take stock of the other before charging in and resumed with a blistering barrage of short jabs, palm blocks rolled into back-fists, close-in elbow strikes, and joint locks leading to an on-going series of reversals and escapes.

As the pace of their engagement continued to escalate, the echoing gong-like tone of their clashes went from periodic BOOMS to a constant thrumming the observers could feel in their bones. Every tenth clash or so, a chakra-enhanced fist or foot stomp would crater or spiderweb the concrete beneath their bodies to the ever-cringing regret of the caretakers.

At the end of a half-hour of wrestling, both Naruto and his Gama-sensei ended up dual-trapped; Gama's left flipper was caught in an arm-bar while Naruto's neck was being stretched by Gama's chakra-coated webbed foot (so he couldn't squirm away).

"Yield, Boya!"

"Nev'r! I'll chew er orf firss!" He was hard to understand with the toad's foot chakra stuck to his chin as Gama tried to pop off his skull like a dandelion.

All of the sweat-dropping observers were shaking their heads in pity.

"Someone please call the fight or we'll be here until one of them runs out of chakra." Having made his decree, Poseidus officially called it a draw.

With the match officially ended, Naruto embraced his Gama brother taking the, "Heh, nice one, tadpole," comment in stride. Their next clash was guaranteed to be an epic upgrade.

The shuffling of training uniforms behind him alerted the blond Genin to his next challenge as all Six of his Guardians took up residence in a different (undamaged) training circle, each with their own training Fang. Gamatetsu waddled off to join the peanut gallery as Naruto spun about to face his next challenge.

Grinning he stepped into a circle with Soyo-chan as a sealless shadow clone matched up with the other five instructors. The rules were simple for this bout.

The first three crippling or greater equivalent strikes earned the win.

Any decapitating blow was an automatic win.

Fleeing the circle was to concede defeat.

No advanced techniques could be used by either opponent.

Finally, Naruto could only fight using his opponent's branch of the elemental style, this rule enabling an accurate assessment of his skill in the art of the summoning clan.

Nervous for this next challenge, Naruto took a deep breath and tried to still his mind. "When I let go of what I am, I become what I might be," he muttered softly, his eyes unfocused. His words, easily picked up by his ivory opponent, piqued her interest.

"More Musashi, Walker-sama?" He often quoted the famed Nittojutsu master during training.

He shook his head smiling as his eyes met hers. "Not this time. Sun Tzu."

She nodded, raising her blunted training blade up before her body bringing both of them to the ready as he reciprocated. The observers noted that the same gesture was being repeated in each circle, Guardian and clone alike. As one, they all, including Naruto and his clones, intoned:

"May justice shape our path unerringly to decide upon a course in accordance with reason and humility, without wavering from one's chosen path; give me the fortitude to die when to die is right, the skill to strike when to strike is right. May courage, not false bravery, strengthen my strike and firm my hand with justice to guide the way. Never shall I let my power to dispense justice strip me of my humanity, creating the monster within me I seek to master. May this humanity lead to a fervent love for my comrades and the helpless I seek to shield with my blade. May my will to defend be tempered with sincerity, mercy, honor, and loyalty to my sovereign Lord through strong morals, knowledge, and prudence til my blade sings no more*."

As one, the entire set of gladiators lowered their blades right before the somber silence was broken with the collision of weighted practice swords against one another.

Earth Sect

Crossing blades with Ishi was one of Naruto's favorite things. The large male was just as calm and methodical in his combat style as he was in speaking, his technique drawing heavily on earth as a defensive form meant to tank more powerful enemies away from his team. It was fortunate, not so much as in this duel but with the other Guardians, that none of them would be allowed to channel chakra during this test.

There would be less collateral damage that way.

Knowing the gentle giant would not initiate, Naruto charged, his hands taking a firm spread grip on the pommel of his training blade.

Ishi smiled and tilted his weapon up above his head, his left palm opening up to cup the back of the weapon in the "V" of his palm while his dominate hand gripped the pommel angling the weapon so that the overhead shop seeking to render him comatose ended with the edge of his sword. With an almost casual flick of the blade, he tugged backwards on the pommel while using his guiding hand to flick the forward edge down and away from his body sending Naruto's weapon into the dirt.

As Naruto's momentum carried him past his silent sensei, the large Halfkin followed up with a roundhouse from his lead leg, which his student rolled forward under to dodge, planting his toes and torquing his body around almost four-hundred and fifty degrees as the flat of his weapon swept back around to club the boy out of the circle hoping to win the match.

Seeing the pivot, Naruto planted his foot and whipped his shoulders around in time to jam the tip of his sword into the hard earth, his lead foot jutting forward so that the balls of his feet slammed against the flat of the blade as chakra surged into his toes to keep them from breaking with the impact of Ishi's sword against his own.

He didn't shift until he heard the resounding CLANG of both weapons and realized he kept a functioning foot utilizing the block.

That hadn't always been the case in the early days of practice.

Slamming his trail foot into the back of his own weapon and stepping through to push his opponent backwards, Naruto freed his blade from the stony earth with a resounding WHUMP and a stinging spray of shattered stone.

Ishi ducked behind his weapon as he brought it up to shield his body and clear his student's reach with a smile spreading across his strong jaw.

This was the essence of the Earth Sect.

With a mutual grin, both swordsmen charged in to resume the clash.

Fire Sect

Kirameki, despite her elemental alignment, was the exact opposite of Ishi in temperament. With earth was methodical and resilient, the flame was a hungering beast seeking to devour everything in its path.

Sweeping strikes with both hands gripping tightly to the pommel split the air as the blade sought its opponent. Tip or edge, never the flat, it was a never-ending clash of blows raining sparks into the late morning air. Naruto could only be glad that she could not enhance the weapon with the searing flames of her art.

He'd seen those leave ash in their wake.

Together they surged, their momentum deflecting them time and time again into human meteors across the training circle. More than once Naruto's grip shook as his hands trembled attempting to maintain his grip.

The flame was ever-hungry. It was always searching for its next meal.

And so on the clashes continued as clone or student danced with their masters to a deadly melody. The Water Sect combined the defensive properties of Earth with the deadly striking temper of Flame, lulling its opponent in with a sedate two-handed defense only to uncoil like a serpent when the target's defense grew complacent. The fierce Lightning Sect relied on fierce speed to breathe life into its strikes given the debilitating power of its element missing with the elemental ban on the exam as opponents raced to be the first to draw blood. With Shadow being primarily an assassin's art, the two sat and traded stories while the fierce double-weaponed Wind Sect twirled in their deadly dance, dual blades sparking repeatedly against each other with the fluidity and grace of a gentle summer breeze through the raised poles breaking up the flat ground of their combat arena.

~III~

~ The Grotto, Training Day 25 ~

Naruto, resting on his feet in what he'd learned was called The Chamber of Lights, was kneeling calmly between Ella and Opal, one to either side. Around them in the chamber where he'd first sought the Oracle of Tides anxiously awaited the entire summoning clan. Proudly standing behind him were his aunt, his cousin, and his Guardians, who were bedecked in full battle gear.

He'd survived their trials without ever knowing he was undergoing them. He'd considered it all training for the finals of the exam tackling it all with his trusty bullheaded determination.

In the process, he'd earned their respect and something more.

His eyes looked down to the royal blue cloth folded neatly on the hard earth before his knees (secretly he was hoping this ceremony would hurry up because no chakra use was permitted and the chamber floor was rather uncomfortable to kneel on). It wasn't the cloth that held his interest but the leather harness needed to carry his new Fang, the Walker's blade.

Unlike the weapons of his Guardians, unlike the renamed Severing Sword stolen by Kisame and bequeathed to a thieving Mizu no Kuni, this weapon was one solid sheet of glistening black metal. Only the edge, which gleamed like liquid fire, was a different color, the guardless pommel wrapped in sturdy leather from the hide of deceased Shadow Sect Wyrmkin. The blade apparently attached to a circular disk in the center of his back using magnetic seals that released only upon the pommel being gripped or by being commanded by its wielder - if within visual range of the weapon.

They keyed the blade to his blood (as proof to unlock all of the weapon's seals) and his chakra at the end of yesterday's test, the blade humming an eerie melody reminiscent of whales for a good half hour while their chakras harmonized.

For a non-sentient weapon, Naruto found it unsettling at first, the melody becoming more soothing the more in sync their energies became.

Naruto was having a hard time following Poseidus's meandering speech, something about the clans being whole again and the renewed blah-blah-blah. He knew his tenant was paying attention and they could rewind it all later but, for right now, his focus was locked on the reinforced chest resting just beyond his new blade and his hard-won gear waiting to be claimed.

He was going to enjoy the first day of the competition.

Behind him, Keina leaned over and every human not kneeling in front of the long-winded hypocrite leaned in to listen.

"Pack everything up. We're returning to Konoha tonight and no training for the last five days,"

Sharp nods responded all around.

"Make sure all of our friends are at the house tonight so we can confirm everything is still a-go." The Guardians nodded this time, Kirameki having been fully read into the plan and anxious to prove her worth to her new mas-Walker.

~III~

~ Konoha, Training Day 27 (Late Friday Evening) ~

From the overhung safety of the clan wall safeguarding the new Uzumaki Ambassadorial Compound, Naruto Uzumaki watched the ANBU materialize, glance around briefly, then saunter off towards the nearby Aburame estate. It wasn't like he had a ton of time to vanish using Ero-sennin's signature jutsu; the sulking agent was good but, then again, most active ANBU were fairly good. Despite that, a three-second delay after chaining a half dozen Body Flickers opened up just enough space to get hidden behind the compound's cloaking seals.

It would appear that Konoha picked up quickly on their return and was soon back up to their old games. His sigh registered all of his disappointment.

Turning away from the street, he jumped down to the immaculately tended lawn of his family estate knowing anyone else would have a difficult time sneaking in without him being alerted. Forget sneaking into the mansion itself unless they were keyed into the seals blanketing the place. He would know having been shown them all by the Naozumi family over the past year, a few of which the elder family man only had remote ideas of what they did.

A small pulse of chakra from his palm and the double doors made of imported wood, mahogany he once heard it called, swung open soundlessly only to swing shut immediately after he passed through. For such a small clan, Mizuki's people had quality tastes.

Once inside the main entrance, he quickly made his way to the central living room and plopped down tiredly into one of the over-cushioned chairs next to the in-ground fireplace, his right hand swinging up almost on reflex as another gentle hand placed a saucer of room temperature sake into it.

"Welcome home, Naruto-sama."

Naruto glanced to the right side of his very comfortable chair with a deadpanned grimace at the formal greeting. If he thought he could break the Hyōton user of the annoying habit, he just might give it an honest go. Instead, he sipped the refreshing drink and turned his attention back to the business at hand.

"Is he gone?" Naruto's voice seemed almost lethargic even as his eyes rose to lock with the vibrant redhead sitting across from him in the other comfy chair, similar drink in hand. It took an enormous feat of mental strength to not call her "Kaa-san" once Dragon took off the mask the night the Uzumaki CRA was announced. If she objected to the few times he actually let it slip, he'd never heard the eldest Uzumaki royal object to it and he'd never corrected it after.

It just felt right.

"Ferret moved on to the Aburame estate, but I doubt he'll be fooled next time." Her voice snapped him out of his funk with a nod.

"It won't matter once we're set up in the original Uzumaki estate. We won't need to sneak around much longer." His eyes took in the two locked chests resting next to a third with the lid wide open. He could see a couple dozen scrolls resting inside the banded footlockers and smiled at the mementos of his parents.

'No more hiding,' he thought with a vengeance.

"If things are going so according to plan," everyone looked up at the purplette just now settling into the three-cushion sofa, "when are you planning to pick up our last member?" Several eyes turned expectantly to the blond ringleader.

"I'm going tonight but we're not there yet. We need to get past the first day of competition to be sure."

Anko shivered right before excepting her own drink. "You are so deep in debt for this."

He couldn't deny that. There was a huge debt to repay but he'd address that soon enough. It was time to switch the focus of the conversation.

"Glad to see that you all made it here safely," Naruto began making all eyes turn to him. "We have a few things to adjust, however, with the wrench Konoha threw into the third phase not to mention there will be almost twice as many dignitaries coming to the exams this year."

Anko let loose with a long whistle even as Haku poured her a fresh refill and deposited the bottle atop the end table near her elbow. "We babysittin' them all?"

"No, definitely not." Anko deflated in relief immediately. "I'm only concerned with Yuki, Nadeshiko, and our guests for the night."

Everyone turned to raise toasts to a fiercely blushing Hinata, both her arms wrapped equally fiercely around the right bicep of an almost uncomfortable Shino Aburame.

"Uzumaki-sama-." He was stopped almost immediately by Naruto's raised palm.

"You've known me too long to go with that formality crap."

Everyone could see the highly-disciplined bug nin struggling but he eventually nodded forcing out a tepid, "Naruto-san."

Naruto chalked it up to progress and shrugged it away.

"Hinata-hime and I wish to thank you for all you've done for us. The Aburame, so long as I breathe, will forever be in your debt." His words were accompanied by a deep bow mirrored by his mother and father standing directly behind the grateful couple.

"Hey, hey! None of that now!" Naruto scooted over to start picking people up. "We're not out of the woods yet, Shino. Remember, we need to keep it up until the end of day one. Okay?"

Despite the excited buzzing Naruto could hear clear as day, he was still shocked to be embraced by the stoic shinobi, which was in turn followed by one from Hinata, his mother Junko Aburame, and finally his father, Shibi.

"Make sure you take the tunnels back, Shino. I'll make sure she gets to the finals unmolested by her evil family."

With a final embrace for his bride-to-be, Shino departed with his parents via tunnels linking both estates.

"Do they have a chance?" Naruto turned to answer his cousin's question with a frown.

"It's hard to say. The Fire Daimyo refused the Hokage's request for help in breaking the marriage contract which makes me think he has a personal stake in this. That makes me question just how much the Hyuuga actually fought to negotiate for her freedom." Naruto wasn't going to leave it to chance keeping his plans to emancipate her up to the very end.

"It's been harder to get information out of the old man since my formal resignation," Keina casually commented once the barrier seals underground registered them clear of the walls, "however, he requested help from the Komodo Squad during stages two and three," she motioned to the six hooded figures lurking near the edges of the large room, "so that means there are dribbles we can use coming our way."

It was becoming increasingly obvious that her decade-and-a-half of service to the village meant next to nothing – a "not what you've done for us but what have you done lately" sort of relationship. Shrugging off the bitter feelings of betrayal, she leaned forward to unroll a map of the village across the coffee table resting between the three comfortable pieces of furniture and began laying out what little she knew.

They would strategize late into the night before parting to go their separate ways, Naruto leaving a squad of six clones to provide security for the night while he stepped out for a minute.

Everything hinged on getting through the first two stages without fumbling the plan.

~III~

~ Yamanaka Flower Emporium ~

"I'm off to bed, mom."

"Night sweety." Inoichi did not join in, his cup of tea steaming quietly in his palms much like his emotions did at his daughter's tragic regression to fan-girlism.

"You wrong her with this grudge," Sumiko gently chided.

"I can't support this." His eyes were bloodshot and pained. "I just can't."

"So you'd push her away?"

Turning away from her temporary perch at the bend in their stairwell, Ino tried to block out the latest rehash of her horrific social life. There wasn't anything new there to spice it up so lurking like some gargoyle wasn't going to make the conversation any more palatable.

'Just another sparkling day at the Yamanaka Clan!'

To be honest this had been the worst month of her life and there didn't appear to be a respite in the near future. She huffed once trying to remind herself that the end was in sight. Getting Chunin would put her in line to transfer soon out of active duty. 'Chunin and I'm done!'

Yeah, that sounded just fine to her.

Stepping into her darkened room while closing the door softly behind herself, Ino reached over to flick on the light pausing as the bulb pulsed briefly before she heard a POP followed by the smell of burning ozone.

'Perfect! Just like that the rest of my day turns to-.'

Her train of thought cut off as a very firm forearm wrapped around her shoulders as a gloved hand clamped over her mouth.

Her reaction was automatic as her foot stomped down on the instep of her attacker, who promptly released a strangled groan of pain. While he was preoccupied with a bleeding shin, she reached up and grabbed the thumb of the hand covering her mouth yanking viciously down and away from her face.

Her attacker had two choices: he could try to overpower her (and lose a thumb) or roll with it. The figure, who was taller than her, thumping gently across her carpeted floor chose wisely but that wouldn't help him much when the kunai in her hand chased after him.

Down below, Sumiko paused mid-breath glancing up to the ceiling.

~III~

"...and I don't see why- you okay dear?" Inoichi caught her distraction only for his wife to shake her head briefly brushing off what she thought she heard as part of her imagination. Internally she was hiding a smile behind her tea knowing full well that things were about to hopefully turn for the better.

'About time he fought for her,' she carped.

~III~

The figure rolled tucking in his shoulder and kicking off the bedframe to swing his foot around placing his feet against her stomach. She anchored her feet and leaned in hoping to pin him down as her weaponized hand descended towards what she hoped was a head.

There was THUMP as her forearm clashed with the forearm of her attacker, his second hand reaching across the shadowed figure to clamp onto hers in a vise-like grip.

~III~

"Come dear," Sumiko gently patted her now irritated husband's hand as she steered him upstairs towards their bedroom, "we aren't going to solve this tonight."

"Don't tell me you're comfortable with her returned infatuation on that psychopath?!" Inoichi followed along despite his unrequited angst.

"Of course not dear." She climbed steadily hoping to distract him with more pleasant diversions. "Now come bed me before it grows too late and sleep steals another aggressive night of snuggling.

Inoichi, despite grumbling his way up the stairs, could not ignore the possibility of his favorite after-hours pastime.

~III~

Ino grunted as she pushed against the masked figure in her room, her ears picking up the gentle conversation of her parents headed upstairs to bed meaning things were about to become a bit more complicated. Sucking in a lungful of air, she prepared to scream for help only to be interrupted on the hissing "H" of her exhale turning a yelled "Help" into more of a "H-urrk!"

She landed on her bed, her attacker up off the floor and straddling her waist in the blink of an eye even though their wrists and forearms stayed locked together. Gritting her teeth as she pushed upwards with her kunai to keep him engaged, her left hand broke free grabbed a handful of cloth yanking the mask from his head revealing the pained eyes and blond hair of Naruto Uzumaki.

KNOCK! KNOCK! KNOCK!

Both sets of eyes grew enormous at the sound of Ino's mother just past her bedroom door.

"Ino! Are you okay dear?!"

~III~

---

Omake: Friends to the Bitter End

"Naruto, do you have a minute?"

The blond Genin glanced up from the seventh volume of his latest obsession: Volume Seven of the Konoha Fūinjutsu Compendium. He really should have been asleep considering he had third watch in a few hours, a fact that would make their early morning all the more painful but what could you do. His eyes locked with the ice blue orbs of his gorgeous teammate bringing a smile to his lips and a flush to her cheeks, which he found incredibly attractive.

"Always for you, Ino-hime." Setting the tome aside, he rested his hands on his lotus-folded legs and waited as she flopped down directly in front of him, a heavy sigh following her on the way down. It didn't take long to realize it must have been important once her eyes started searching avidly for anything of interest on the ground of their campsite.

"Okay, what's wrong?" He figured it was either humor her for an hour while she floundered with whatever she wanted to say or cut to the chase so he could get back to studying up on linking complex arrays, timing interfaces and Stage III Sealing Logic.

She twitched but her eyes never left the ground, her comments a mumbled and incoherent mess.

"I'm sorry," he sputtered out, "you want me to what?!"

"I want you to save her," the distraught blond mumbled just a bit louder forcing the male blond to blink unresponsively before muttering out a stuttered...

"Save… who?"

"It's 'whom' not 'who' and that 'whom' is Hinata."

Naruto promptly ignored the trademark expletive from the Nara heir on the other side of the campfire. They'd had this conversation before, but he'd been able to either forestall it or escape to a "prior engagement." Here in the middle of a mission, he had nowhere to run meaning he couldn't delay the inevitable any longer.

"Have you thought this through?" he countered, a question that caught the kunoichi flat-footed.

"…"

"It's a simple question, Ino. Have you really thought this through?"

"What is there to think about, Naruto?" Her eyes were pleading. "If she marries that… pig… she'll be miserable!"

"Ino…" he tried to interrupt gently before she fell too deeply into an emotional spiral. Ino was clearly having none of it.

"She doesn't deserve what's going to happen to her!"

"Ino…"

"He's going to abuse her even worse than her family does!"

"Ino, please…"

"She LOVES YOU!" her emotional explosion caught him flat-footed that time, Shika taking that exact moment to get up from his bedroll and go on a quiet stroll to give the couple some space.

Naruto let out a heavy sigh of his own wondering if he should disabuse her of her faulty assumption. Instead, he opted to steer her around to joining his skullduggery. "So, what happens when-IF," he corrected, "…she agrees to this crazy scheme and the Daimyo sends his samurai to murder us all?"

"That's easy! All she has to do is leave her clan and then you can swoop in and scoop her up!" He almost facepalmed himself but the excitement in her eyes showed just how much faith she had in everything magically working out like some fairy-tale involving knights and villains. Not to be dissuaded, she pressed on hurriedly.

"All you have to do is keep the Uzumaki diplomatic thingy going and they can't touch you!" Ino, as brilliant as she was, had never been the greatest strategist.

"And we'll just live happily ever after? Me, you, and Hinata-chan?" he asked with more than a bit of skepticism in his voice. Despite her now raging blush, Ino nodded her head enthusiastically afraid to speak more or her sudden rush of daring-do might fail her.

"Do you remember those weird physics classes we took during the second year?" Here Ino faced scrunched up in utter shock at the sudden topic shift.

"Huh?"

"You remember, especially that one weird day with the rules about heat dynamics… that really old science no one uses anymore…" His hands were flailing about as he tried to recall the unfamiliar subject until Ino's eyes suddenly lit up.

"You're talking about those Laws of Thermodynamics Iruka was so excited about." Naruto nodded, his eyes taking on a sneaky cast in the dim light - his photographic memory had a detailed explanation of the subject but she didn't need to know that. "It was the only class Sasuke actually took an interest in."

It wasn't too hard to see why she remembered it then. Despite the heavy focus on elemental chakra to generate Katon energy, the Academy still taught a fundamental understanding of the elements, kinetics, and energy transfer. The intent was to establish a basic familiarity with the old sciences of the previous era as the knowledge could help in tactical planning; knowing how fire acted and reacted could help a shinobi corner or kill an opponent through the cunning use of traps. Sasuke's natural fire affinity drew him to the topic but Ino found she just liked the old theories - she enjoyed the sciences of the past.

"Why bring those up?"

"Let's use that one about opposite reactions to break down what will happen if I 'rush off to save Hinata'," he challenged complete with air quotes. "What's the initial action?"

"We help Hinata escape," Ino responded resolutely.

"Okay," he acknowledged, "and we will assume that my hiding behind the Uzu Alliance keeps the Fire Daimyo out of the problem, for now. What is the opposite reaction we should immediately be concerned about?" Ino chewed her lower lip for a moment deep in thought.

"This act ruins her arranged marriage and the Hyuugas get really angry?" She seemed less certain about this answer.

"That's their reaction, a side effect at best. What would they do as a result of being angry? How could they hurt her… or us?" His questions provoked several more minutes of really cute lip chewing.

"They might look to punish her," she began before her head shot up and their eyes met. "They might try to get even with us." Her eyes were focusing now as she chewed through the problem.

"And how could they do either of those?" he returned. She was almost there he just needed to push a bit farther.

"They could kill her. They could disown her, but they would need to brand her first." Ino's brow knotted up in concentration. "Hinata mentioned that the clan seal gets dangerous to apply the older the member is meaning that act alone might kill her, and they would get off completely free of charges stating she was just too old to be branded. What's worse is we can't prevent it since it's their clan tradition and she'd be branded the moment she tried to leave."

Naruto nodded slowly but she wasn't done yet.

"Worst case they could brand her then use the seal to kill her saying she died of complications. No one would know the truth other than those slimy elders." Here she began to growl. "Once they finished with her, they might target us as a way to get revenge."

He nodded at the end of her process. "So, you need to ask yourself two things, he began while she focused in on his next words. "Is this a risk worth taking and," his eyes got really serious at this point, "if it is, how do we save her without her clan killing her before she can escape them, preferably without the caged bird seal being applied to her."

She sagged at the near-impossible mission objective.

"Figure those two out and we'll talk about what to do." He calmly picked up his tome and resumed reading.

"You never refused to take her in," Ino said with a smile growing on her face as the seconds ticked by. "If we save her, you do realize that you'll have to marry her to keep her safe." Naruto glanced up from his book as he mulled over words.

"No, I guess I didn't refuse, did I?" Her smile only grew larger as he went back to reading chapter twelve of his current volume.

~III~

---

A/N: *The oath recited right before the Kenjutsu challenge is developed from the Bushido Code: The Eight Virtues of the Samurai. I thought it prevalent given the Uzumaki blade master heritage and liberally adopted that oath from the Unwritten Samurai Code of Conduct as expounded upon by Nitobe (1899) - so don't blame Nitobe for me being a baddie!

~Siva'a