When Temari woke up she wasn't disappointed to find herself still tangled up in bed with Naruto. What did annoy her, however, was the fact that he was wide awake. Admittedly, he did look much better, but there was still darkness around his eyes. A quick glance towards a nearby clock showed that it was late, very late. Apparently, they had slept the entire day away into the early hours of the next. Baki would be cross with her about ditching her duties to cuddle up to some guy, but it was well worth it. With a yawn she snuggled herself closer to him, enjoying his warmth as she nuzzled her face into his neck.

"Comfortable?" Naruto asked amusedly.

"Hmm, very," Temari said. "Now shush. Don't go ruining a good thing."

Naruto chuckled softly and gently stroked her hair. "I have to get up."

Temari groaned. "Whyyy?"

"There's some things I need to do," he said. "I let myself get carried away worrying about Tayuya and neglected too much. It would be best if I sorted them out sooner rather than later."

The blonde didn't ease up on her hold of him, instead trying to bury her face deeper into his neck. "But… warm."

Naruto hugged her back a little tighter. "I won't be long," he said, lowering himself down slightly. "And, once I get back, I can always try and make it up to you somehow," he whispered in her ear sending a shiver through her body.

"Ugh, fine," she said, pushing him off of her and wrapping herself up in the blanket. "Make it quick."

"I'll be back as soon as I can," he said. "Can you do me a favour while I'm gone?"

"Hmm?"

"Could you stay?" he asked. "If Tayuya wakes up while I'm gone, I don't want her to be alone. I need someone I can trust."

Temari waved her hand dismissively. "Yeah, yeah, no worries. I'll look after the place, and the bitch too if she wakes up."

She didn't bother getting up herself, leaving Naruto to get ready on his own, a task that took him a ridiculously short amount of time. He didn't say goodbye, not that she expected him to, but once he closed the door behind him Temari found herself feeling strangely alone in the dark and quiet apartment. It was an uncomfortable feeling. She had never been alone before, not really. Her whole life, as far as she could remember, she had always been around her family. As a child of the Kazekage, she was always kept under close watch, and once she and her brothers were old enough, they had never been apart. They lived together, trained together; she had never known the feeling of being alone. Things were different now. Her father was dead. In all honesty, that didn't affect her as much as most would expect. After what he had put them all through, he had been dead to her for years already.

It was Gaara's death that really shook her. She had loved him, the same as she had loved Kankuro, and both of her brothers were incredibly precious to her. They had always had her back like she had theirs. But now one was gone, and Kankuro, well, with everything that had happened she wasn't sure how far she could trust him at the present time. She knew his loyalty was well within her reach, nothing more than activating the seal Naruto had placed on her wrist, but that would put him in danger. No. She was alone now. Completely and absolutely alone. As all Kage were in some way. Being the pillar of strength for Suna was something Temari knew would require a lot from her, but it was already feeling like too much. As it happened however, while she was lost in her own internal musings, Temari had failed to realise that she was, funnily enough, not as alone as she had thought.

"Just had to be you, didn't it?"

Temari was out of the bed faster than her observer could have uttered another word, the blanket cast to the floor and a kunai clenched in her hand as she glanced towards the door and windows for the intruder. "Who's th… Tayuya?" the name almost died in her throat as she stared owlishly at the redhead. "You're meant to be…"

"Dead?" Tayuya interrupted, hobbling out from the bedroom into the dull light. She was pale, more so than usual. Dark marks around her eyes as if she hadn't just slept for nearly a week. "Don't worry, blondie, I feel like I should be," she said, stumbling her way towards the kitchen, all but collapsing onto a chair and rested her head on the table. "I need a drink."

It took a moment but eventually Temari snapped out of her stupor and rushed to the girl's side. "How do you feel? Are you okay?" she paused for a moment before narrowing her eyes at the girl. "Wait… You were listening?"

Tayuya smirked. "Listening. Watching. Just enjoying the entertainment in general."

"How long have you been awake?" Temari asked darkly.

"No idea," she said. "Dickhead didn't leave a clock in the room. But I woke up sometime yesterday. I was going to come out and surprise you two when you got back but then, you know, the show started. I have to say, blondie, I did not expect you to have the balls to be so forward with someone like Naruto. I'm impressed. Such a shame you didn't follow through."

Temari took a moment to compose herself. "Are you okay?" she asked, trying to change the subject.

Tayuya groaned. "I'm okay," she answered. "Feels like I'm going through the worst hangover possible."

"Do you remember what happened?"

Tayuya stared intently at the table. "Not really," she said. "Must have repressed it all already. Guess all those years of being one of Orochimaru's subjects paid off finally."

"Do you need anything?"

"A strong drink would be great."

"I don't think you should be drinking after just waking up from a coma," Temari said.

"And I don't remember you being a doctor," Tayuya quipped. "Now, are you going to interrogate me or can we please just have a drink together. Maybe you can tell me what last night was all about."

The blonde crossed her arms. "Is that jealously I'm detecting?"

Tayuya shrugged. "What's to be jealous about? Unlike you I don't hold back when I want something. Besides, I have no issue sharing."

Temari blushed. "There is something very wrong with you, you know that, right?"

"You have a firm grasp of the obvious. Now where's that drink?"

For a time, the two of them sat in silence, Temari carefully thinking over what to do with Tayuya, and the redhead herself staring intently at the table top her head was now resting on. Temari had no idea how long Naruto would be gone for, and if she was being honest with herself, she wasn't entirely sure how long she could entertain Tayuya. "So…" the blonde began awkwardly. "You really don't remember anything?"

Tayuya glared at Temari for a second before sighing deeply. "Bits and pieces," she admitted. "It's not exactly easy remembering mental torture like that. I remember seeing that fuckwit Uchiha. Smug bastard with his stupid red eyes. Then fire, then nothing."

"But you feel okay now?" Temari asked. "Nothing lingering? I understand that some of the more intense genjutsu can continue to cause damage, days, if not weeks after the initial effect."

"Thankfully I'm not a novice," Tayuya said proudly. "Not that it helped me much. I don't think anyone without the Sharingan would stand much of a chance against the Tsukuyomi. There is a reason that Orochimaru is so desperate to get his hands on a set." She shuddered at the thought of her old master actually succeeding in his plans. There was no telling what kind of horrors the sick snake would put people through if he could utilise the genjutsu world of the Sharingan, and she wasn't willing to even humour the thought. "So, you and Naruto huh?" she asked with a sly smirk. "How long did it take of me being out cold for you to jump on that?"

"Nothing happened," Temari said sternly, crossing her arms.

Tayuya rolled her eyes. "Obviously," she groaned. "The idiot was so awkward with you last night I would almost believe him if he said he was a virgin. But the question still remains… what are you going to do now?"

"What do you mean?"

"Well, you like him, don't you?" the redhead asked.

"Within reason."

"Okay, fine. Keep your little façade up all you want, but the fact of the matter is that we are going to be leaving this sun scorched shithole soon enough, so you don't exactly have all the time in the world to fuck around and not get want you want while you can," Tayuya said. "Take it from an expert of getting what she wants. Life isn't going to go the way you want it, so take what you can, while you can, however you can."

Temari quirked her brow at the girl. "You know, for someone so brash, you do have an intriguing amount of wisdom in that thick skull."

"More like I've just been served the shit end of the stick enough times to know what's what," she said.

The blonde remained silent, eliciting a victorious smirk from Tayuya that quickly turned into a wince as she held her head. "Maybe I should call for a doctor to come and give you a once over," Temari said unsurely.

"I'm fine!" Tayuya snapped. "No more doctors, no more pity, and definitely no more surgeries. I just need a drink and something to distract myself from the fact that that creep had yet another chance to do whatever he wanted to me while I was out."

"That creep?"

"Yes. Naruto. He's a creep. I have no doubt that he did all sorts of deplorable things to me while I was in a coma… again."

Temari couldn't help but stare blankly at the girl. "You don't actually believe that do you?"

Tayuya shrugged. "If the boot fits, then it might as well go up his ass."

"Okay then," Temari said awkwardly. "Since you seem to be able to move around just fine, perhaps you'd like something to eat?"

As if on que Tayuya's stomach growled angrily. "That sounds pretty good actually," she said. "Do we have to leave here though?"

Temari was caught off guard. It wasn't so much what Tayuya had said, but rather how she had said it, whether consciously or not. There was a vulnerability in her tone that Temari hadn't heard the entire time she had known the girl. Not to say it was unexpected, Tayuya had just gone through an admittedly very traumatic experience. But still, for her defences to slip, even for a moment, it wasn't a good sign. Temari wasn't about to pry though, and as she watched the realisation set into Tayuya's expression, the look of horror and disgust at herself for showing weakness in front of someone, she didn't hesitate to smile reassuringly at the redhead.

"Don't worry," she said, being extra careful to not change her tone. "It's still too early to eat out anyway. I'll go get something made for us and bring it back. Leave you with some time to clean up and destress."

The way Tayuya's eyes lit up with relief, as she let out a breathe she didn't know she was holding, was almost enough to make Temari want to tease her about it. Sadly, such things would have to wait. Right now, she needed support and a very filling meal. She hadn't exactly lied when she said it was too early to get any food, but that didn't mean she didn't have her ways. Much to the surprise of almost anyone who found out, her brother Kankuro was an exceptional cook when push came to shove. All it took was the right type of coaxing, or threatening, and he could usually whip up something enjoyable to almost anyone. Thankfully she didn't need to threaten him this time. As soon as he heard of a pretty one-armed girl being hungry and in need of comfort, there would be nothing short of a beating that could stop him from doing his best to be a shoulder to cry on.

A wicked and cruel smile made its way to Temari's face. "Do you have any preferences on food?" she asked.

Tayuya smiled nervously under the blonde's newfound expression. "Uhhh, anything with meat in it?"

Temari nodded. "I'll see what can be arranged." With that said she turned tail and quickly left, leaving a very confused Tayuya in her wake.

'Naruto sure knows how to attract the crazy ones' she thought to herself as she got up and began rummaging through the cupboards and the fridge. "Come on, there's gotta be something alcoholic around here somewhere."


Meanwhile, beyond the defensive walls of Suna, out in the middle of the desert, Naruto stood patiently under the fading stars. The land of wind was well known for the savagery of the deserts, but not many, outside of those who lived in it, truly understood the beauty that came with the peacefulness of night. While colder than most would like, the vast emptiness could help even the most troubled shinobi feel detached from the world and find peace should they seek it. Peace, however, was not the reason for the jinchuuriki's midnight stroll. No, there were much more pressing matters to attend to than his own inner peace of mind, one such reason taking the form of a worse for wear, amber eyed, Akatsuki cloak wearing individual appearing before him as if she had been there the whole time.

He glanced her up and down curiously. She lacked any hostility, be it in her expression or stance. If anything, she seemed defeated, both inside and out. Her cloak was torn and burnt, barely hanging on her shoulders loosely and doing nothing for the chill in the air. Her pale skin, now quite visible thanks to the revealing nature of her outfit beneath, was littered with singe marks and cuts. A heap of messily wrapped bandages around her midsection were almost soaked through with blood, covering what appeared to be a very deep wound. In Naruto's opinion, she was lucky to still be standing let alone meeting him out here in her condition.

"You came," she said, letting out a breath of relief.

Naruto pulled a small paper card from his pocket and let it float back to the woman. "You didn't exactly give me much of a choice," he said. "I can't just go having yet another grudge match in Suna without getting kicked out prematurely."

"I didn't come here to fight."

"Clearly," Naruto interrupted. "You don't look like you'd put up much of a fight in your state. Which of course begs more questions, but I suppose those can wait for now. Your message said you had a question. Well, I'm here. Ask away."

Konan took a deep breath, barely holding back a wince. "How did you know?" she asked.

"How did I know what?" Naruto responded, feigning ignorance. "I know a lot of things about a lot of things, you'll have to be more specific."

"How did you know of Danzō and Pein's… association?"

Naruto hummed thoughtfully. "I'll tell you what. I'll tell you how I know, and I might even add a little bit of extra information in while I'm at it, if you provide me with some information in return. Sound fair?"

Konan remained emotionless. "I suppose," she said. "What would you like to know?"

"What happened to you?" he asked.

She looked down, avoiding his piercing stare. She knew she looked miserable, desperate even. Gone now were the times that she could walk with her head held high as the angel of Amegakure. Now she was alone. The same lost little girl shuffling along through life hoping to not be noticed. In her eyes, she might as well have been thrown back to that age, to the war, to a time when things were hopeless. "Pein… Nagato…" she began uneasily. "I confronted him. And Madara. The Uchiha did not take lightly to my 'snooping' as he called it. I had thought Nagato would understand but…"

"He's too far gone," Naruto said disappointedly.

"Madara's hold on him is too strong," Konan said. "In spite of all his power, the Sharingan has poisoned and twisted his mind. I don't even know if there is any of Nagato left anymore."

"Yes, well, those Uchiha have a good way of breaking people's minds," the jinchuuriki said bitterly. "Trust me, the slow twisting method is pleasant by their standards."

"Your turn," Konan said sternly. "How did you know?"

Naruto shrugged. "I was in Konoha recently. Stealing secret information was how I made a living for so many years. Does it really surprise you that I would get as much dirt as I could on that senile kage wannabe?"

"So, you have more information on Danzō and his organisation?"

"Enough to be valuable to the right people."

Konan paused for a moment before walking closer to the jinchuuriki. "Name your price."

"You couldn't afford it."

"I will do what I must to pay, however I can," she said, a fierce tone of determination finally breaking through her cold and calm façade.

"And what exactly would you do with this information?" Naruto asked.

"Destroy him," she said without missing a beat.

"Is that all?"

"I would bring all he has worked and schemed for crumbling down on top of him. I would make an example to all who would dare think of following a path even near as treacherous as his."

Naruto couldn't help but chuckle. "As good of an idea as that sounds, you aren't in a position to accomplish anything. And even if you were, I can't guarantee that what information I have will be enough for you."

"It is a step in the right direction," she countered.

"Still, you would be willing to let me name a price on something that may not be worth it," he said. "You clearly aren't thinking straight. I mean, you asked to meet me out here, all alone, half dead. If I wanted to, I could kill you right now and no one would ever know."

Konan bowed her head shamefully. "I expected as much," she said. "I would not beg for mercy from you. The Akatsuki will not show your kind that courtesy. It seems only fair that you should kill me while you can. I only came her to find out what I could."

"And then what? You plan on just dying out here?"

"I have nothing left."

Naruto groaned. "You people that exist solely for a single purpose or person really are depressing. Do you realise how insane you sound right now?"

"If you don't kill me, Madara will send others to finish me off once he learns I am still alive," she said. "It's only a matter of time. If I can, I would use what time I have left tearing apart the life of the man who has had his hand to play in too much of the suffering I have seen and known."

She was right. He should kill her. Naruto knew that she was a wild card now. The Akatsuki would be after her to silence whatever she knew, which he assumed was a lot, and she would likely rip Konoha as a whole to shreds in a vein last attempt at getting to Danzō if she had the strength left to do so. Giving her the information would be pointless. She would only cause more destruction and inevitably die in her cause. But killing her here and now seemed… wrong, or at the very least, wasteful. She was, after all, a now former leader of Akatsuki. If her story was to be believed, then she had gone toe to toe with both Pein and the self-proclaimed Madara. Powerful kunoichi like her were rare, and who was he to waste an opportunity when it so openly walked his way.

"You want to kill Danzō?" he asked.

"Yes."

"What are you willing to do to accomplish that?"

"Anything."

He smiled. Not a happy smile, but more one of understanding. Her resolve was admirable, her goal a little less so, but who was he to judge. Greater people had aspired to do much worse for far less. "Come with me," he said, gesturing for her to follow him and he began walking back to Suna.

"Where are we going?" she asked curiously.

"Somewhere safe for the night," he said. "You're going to tell me everything you know about the Akatsuki, and in return I am willing to help you get a fair chance at dealing with Danzō."

He was fully aware that his actions were going to cause some more ripples in the pond that was the world. Tayuya's ranting and raving had already pre-emptively began chorusing themselves in his head as he walked. He couldn't even imagine how Temari would react to it all. Hopefully this wouldn't be the final nail in the coffin for her sanity. Naruto wasn't sure how well his chances of survival would go against her if she fully lost her mind.

'Oh, the joys of being me.'


"Do you think the hair thing is weird?" Tayuya asked, her mouth full of food.

"What do you mean?" Temari said, her words likewise muffled by her refusal to wait to eat.

"Like, he dyes his hair red," the redhead said. "Don't you find that weird? Who does that? I mean, obviously people do, but I dunno… it just seems really weird for him to keep doing it."

Temari thought about it for a second as she chewed her food. "Maybe there's a good reason," she mused. "He is the son of the yellow flash. Maybe his natural blond hair would draw too much attention."

Tayuya snorted. "What a little bitch."

"Your vocabulary truly is fascinating."

"Fuck you."

"Would you rather him grow it back out to blond?" Temari asked. "Is that your type?"

Tayuya blushed. "Don't turn this back on me. He's the one being weird. It had nothing to do with what I'm into."

"It would make him a bigger target, and you by extension. Is that what you want?"

Tayuya mumbled something under her breath as she went back to her food.

"I thought so," Temari said, noticing a small bird land on a nearby open window. "We have company."

The door opened and a rather unhappy looking Naruto strolled in, followed closely by a tall blue haired woman wearing a barely intact cloak. The silence that followed was eery in the sense that Naruto could have sworn he could hear Tayuya's inner monologue screaming at him from across the room, her eyes doing little to hide her disbelief as she gawked at him.

"What. The. Fuck."

"Oh, right. I guess introductions are in order," Naruto said. "Temari, Tayuya, this is Konan. Konan, this is Temari, the Kazekage, and Tayuya, my uhh…"

"Don't you dare finish that fucking sentence, shit for brains!" Tayuya said, pointing accusing at Konan. "Now shut up and explain what the hell she is doing here!"

Naruto's eye twitched. "Do I shut up or do I explain?"

"Explain, please," Temari interrupted. "I am just as curious."

"Okay, long story short, Konan used to be a part of Akatsuki, but she didn't agree with their methods and defected and nearly died and came to warn me about their plans, so I'm going to let her tag along for a little while so I can help her get a chance at killing Danzo as thanks for her no longer trying to kill me," he rattled off quickly. "Everyone happy? Good. I'm going to bed."

"Fuck no!" Tayuya yelled. "You do not just get to drag some half dead bitch back to the hotel, vomit up that lame ass excuse, and then expect us to just accept it."

"As much as it pains me to admit, I have to agree with Tayuya on this one," Temari said. "Anything involving the Akatsuki should be handled with a bit more care and thought. Especially considering we have no means to validate her story. It could be a deception for all we know." She turned her gaze to Konan and stepped towards her. "Care to weigh in?"

"You are right to mistrust me," Konan said. "The Akatsuki would utilise any means to obtain the bijuu. Deception is not beneath them."

"And the methods you didn't agree with, what were they?" Temari asked.

Konan stared emptily at the blonde. "Our leader allied himself with Danzo of Konoha. I will not be a part of anything other than his death and the destruction of all he has created," she said coldly.

"Oh, so kidnapping and killing people to capture all the bijuu to create some stupid super weapon is all okay in your books, but mutually jerking off some old prick is where you draw the line?" Tayuya chimed in. "And people say my morality is fucked up."

Naruto groaned to himself. This was going to be a long night indeed.


Jiraiya was, to put it politely, a seasoned man. He wouldn't dare say he was getting old, but he had seen a lot. There was not much the world had left to offer that surprised him save for a few moments and individuals he had the pleasure of running into. Shikamaru Nara was not meant to be one of those people, and right now should not have been one of those moments. And yet, here he was, mouth agape and eyes nearly bugging out of his skull as he stared stupidly at the boy in front of him.

"Are you going to keep doing that?" Shikamaru asked. His eyes were closed in concentration, but one didn't need to see to know that the Sanin was pulling a stupid face.

"I'll stop when you start making sense," Jiraiya said. He was keeping his distance from the boy, watching on as he trained his families signature shadow ensnaring jutsu. Along with his exceptional intellect, Shikamaru showed immense potential with his families jutsu, merely lacking the chakra reserves and raw power needed to truly match the likes of his father.

Shikamaru muttered under his breath as he continued to ignore the man, his mind focussed on the tendrils of shadow currently spreading out from his own. Manipulating a shadow was easy enough, even the imitation jutsu was simplistic to an extent, but the real art of his families' techniques was in the unexpected aspects of reality. Everyone knew that shadows were physically harmless. Everyone knew that you can't touch a shadow. That was what made the Nara clan so formidable to begin with. How do you stop something you can't even touch? The simple answer; you don't. That's where chakra came into it. Controlling shadows was easy, using shadows to control people was easy, but using shadows as an actual weapon? That was where the Nara truly earned their reputation on the battlefield.

With barely a twitch of his fingers, tendrils of shadow that had been slowly and methodically crawling along the ground sprung to life. No longer bound to a two-dimensional existence, they moved swiftly and accurately towards their target, impossibly interacting with the physical world as they skewered a nearby training dummy from almost every direction. Opening his eyes to admire his accomplishment, Shikamaru allowed himself to smirk. With some minor adjustments and practice to his chakra control he had managed to increase the range of his technique by several feet without compromising on the lethality.

"Distance," he said. "Above all things, one should always keep a good distance between them and the world. Get too caught up in things and you can't see the bigger picture. Get too far away and you overstep your abilities and lose yourself to the unobtainable. It all comes down to distance."

"Okay? I'm pretty sure the actual sage here should be the one spewing nonsense wisdom."

"You let yourself get too far away," Shikamaru said. "And now that you're facing the consequences of that, you have, unsurprisingly, gotten too close. You aren't able to see the real problems."

"Easy kid," Jiraiya said. "You're smart, but don't go thinking you know everything. I see more than you could possibly know."

Shikamaru turned a cold gaze to the Sanin before pointing a finger to behind him. Jiraiya followed the line, coming face to face with the needle point of a shadow spear, only inches away from his neck. "You might be able to see more than me, but that doesn't mean that you are seeing it. You're too tangled up, too blinded by everything you know is going on to notice the things you should. No shinobi of your skill should have let a genin get the drop on you like that, and yet here we are."

"I'm sure this little display has some kind of point to it?" Jiraiya asked in annoyance. The kid was right, he was distracted. Enough so that he hadn't noticed the shadows of the trees behind him. But that didn't mean it was worth noticing. He could feel the chakra in the shadow. From this distance, it was lucky to have the strength to puncture his skin, let alone do any real damage.

"What do you think is Konoha's biggest issue right now?" Shikamaru asked curiously.

"You mean aside from the fact that the Hokage was just murdered in the middle of the village?"

"That was a result of the problem at large."

Jiraiya shrugged his shoulder, unravelling the shadow like it was a wisp of air as he glared at the boy. "Explain," he said warningly.

"My best friend was killed trying to retrieve the Uchiha," he said. "He died, for the sake of someone who abandoned this village, someone who didn't care about the consequences of his actions. This village was nearly wiped from the map because those in charge attempted to capture Naruto to be used as a weapon. Me and my friends followed you into another village unpermitted and risked both our lives, and the fragile treaty between our villages, all in the name of doing what we thought was right, what was just."

With a small series of hand seals Shikamaru took a deep breath and extended his shadow out once more, this time in a single strand. It extended slowly in a tightly wound S-line, gradually getting skinnier as he stretched his reach to its max. Eventually his shadow came to a crawling stop, the single now needle like point aimed straight ahead towards a tree in the distance. With only a slight shimmer as a warning, the shadow moved, striking rapidly and precisely like a snake, it straightened out with speed that most chunin would struggle to dodge. The tree it was aimed at was skewered by a now much longer and thread-like shadow, showcasing a lethal range the likes that many a Nara could only ever dream of accomplishing.

"Neat trick, kid," Jiraiya said, "But I don't think a needle is going to phase anyone."

Shikamaru grunted as he made a few more hand seals and poured what chakra he had left into his shadow. "I'm not done yet," he said.

Much to Jiraiya's surprise, Shikamaru's shadow detached from its source at his feet and appeared to quickly retract into the trunk of the tree. The victorious look Shikamaru's face lasted a few seconds before he collapsed to one knee exhausted.

"I'm still slightly lost," Jiraiya said, eyeballing the tree curiously.

"My clan call it a shadow seed," Shikamaru started, taking his time to catch his breath. "It's a rare technique. Requires too much precision to warrant using it often enough to be viable outside of specialised espionage missions. If planted in something alive, it self sustains on a small amount of chakra leached from its host. The user of the technique can then keep a vague idea of the whereabouts of the host, and if the situation calls for it…" he put his hands into one final seal and watched as the tree was turned into a pincushion of shadow needles bursting from inside itself. "Makes for a quick termination tactic."

Jiraiya's eyes widened slightly at the display. Nara's were usually scary enough with their high intellect and battle tactics, but this was over the top. Had he known such a technique existed he would have been far more respectful to Shikaku. "How long can it last inside a host?" he asked worriedly.

"Not too long," Shikamaru said. "It can only leach so much chakra from the host without being noticeable and would take too much initial chakra for it to last longer than a day. Two days would be stretching things for monitoring purposes, the bursting needles are only viable for a couple hours after the initial technique. Like I said, not a very useful technique. Every little thing counts though."

"Konoha has always been dedicated to what is right, no matter the cost," Shikamaru continued. "The first Hokage was arguably the worst. His strength was unchallenged, and it was only by pure chance that his intentions were decent. His methods however were childish and not thought through. Capturing the tailed beasts by himself and distributing them around to the shinobi villages was… stupid."

"You have a lot of gall to be questioning the wisdom of the Hokage that brought peace to these nations."

"His idea of peace was foolish, short lived, no more than a bandage on the wound. He should have known that as soon as he died things would only go downhill. But none of that matters anymore. What's done is done. No one can change that now," Shikamaru said. "But we can change things going forward. Make them better, do better, be better. And it all starts right here, with you."

"Me?"

"Yes, you. Jiraiya of the Sannin. Student of the third Hokage, Sensei of the fourth. Whether you like it or not, your name carries weight, and not just for Konoha. The shinobi world at large knows you, and now it's time to put that name to use," Shikamaru said. "Konoha needs a leader. Not a puppet, or a place holder, or someone who would twist the very idea of what a kage is supposed to be. We need someone honest, someone true, and someone strong enough to do what needs to be done. Sadly, without many other options available, you are our best hope."

Jiraiya frowned. "Sorry kid, but no," he said. "I've made too many mistakes. I can't."

"Good. Then you should know how to not make those mistakes again," Shikamaru argued.

"That isn't how it works, brat."

"Then make it work," the Nara said harshly, taking a breath to calm himself. "My best friend is dead. The Hokage is dead. The village is ready to rise or fall at a moments notice. I'm not asking you to do this. I am telling you. Get off your ass and do what needs to be done. Right and wrong mean nothing if there is nothing left."

"And what if it all goes wrong?"

"Then at least we tried. And we can die with our heads held high for those that are waiting for us, those that we failed. We owe it to them. To all of them. We can't keep failing," Shikamaru said.

"So, I take the hat, then what?" Jiraiya asked. "I don't know the first thing about running a village."

Shikamaru sighed deeply. Neither did he. No one in Konoha seemed to know how it was supposed to run. None of the hidden village's were perfect, everyone knew that. But no one was willing to try and fix them either. Not when they could point at others who were doing it worse. Konoha didn't need to be ruled. It needed to be reformed. Remade into something stronger, something better, something purer. No one knew how to do that, so it didn't matter how they did it. They could figure it out as they went.

"We clean house."


"Where will you go?" Temari asked.

She knew this was coming, but as she stood there, seeing them off, Temari almost wished they could have stayed. Well, Naruto at least. The other two were still up for debate. Sadly, she knew they couldn't. Suna was already getting far more attention than it needed right now. They had to leave, whether they wanted to or not.

"Wouldn't be considered going into hiding if I just told people where we were going," Naruto joked. "Don't worry. You can still reach me if you need to. I can be here in a flash."

Tayuya snorted. "You're such a fucking dork," she said. "Now hurry up and kiss so we can get a move on. You two love birds are taking all bloody night."

"Vulgarity aside, the child is right. We should leave now," Konan said. She would be the first to admit that going into hiding wasn't something she wanted, but she had yet to recover from her grudge match with Madara, so she had no choice. At least she wasn't going to be alone. Naruto and Tayuya were young, and brash, but they would make useful allies for the time being.

"Who the fuck are you calling a child?"

Naruto rolled his eyes. "Alright, alright, we are leaving," he said, smiling at Temari. "Take care of yourself. Don't do anything I wouldn't do."

Temari laughed. "That doesn't exactly limit my options, you know." She leaned in and gave him a hug. "Thank you. Don't be a stranger," she said, giving him a quick kiss on the cheek.

"Can we just leave already," Tayuya groaned. "This is making me sick."

Naruto chuckled. Winking at Temari, he waved and began to walk away. "Let's get going then," he said. Tayuya was all too keen to lead the group as she marched off into the desert, but Konan maintained a much more docile pace. She was still recovering from her injuries, so Naruto took the time to maintain his pace with her. There were still a lot of questions that needed to be answered, and they had a long walk to fill with plenty of conversation.

"You have yet to tell me where we are heading," Konan said.

"Haven't I?"

Konan nodded. "I understand. You still do not trust me," she said. "Smart. But I could offer intel on Akatsuki's interests or activities for wherever we are headed. It would be unwise to wander into a territory in which we will be disadvantaged."

"True. But wouldn't that ruin the surprise?" Naruto said with a grin.

"Being caught off guard is not a good kind of surprise."

"Kiri," Naruto said simply. "Anything worth knowing?"

Konan stopped walking and looked at Naruto with slightly more seriousness than her normal emotionless expression. "We should avoid going there," she said.

"Well, that just makes me want to go more. Why?"

"The Mizukage was the jinchuuriki of the Sanbi. Madara had him under his control until his recent death," Konan explained. "The turmoil established there is the work of Madara. I cannot see him passing up the opportunity to reinstate his hold over the village, and also to capture a now unsealed bijuu."

"Yeah, that tracks," Naruto said. "But that can work to our advantage. The civil war is over, but the chaos will linger for some time yet. We can keep our heads down and maybe even help Kiri get back on its feet. Anything to mess with Akatsuki's plans is worth doing at this point. Although it is interesting that Madara would choose to control a jinchuuriki instead of simply capturing them straight away. Any thoughts?"

Konan shook her head. "It was… strange. Even at the time. But we assumed it wouldn't prove to be of any concern."

"So, you guys really just blindly followed his orders, huh? What did he do to get that kind of loyalty so suddenly?"

"He is Madara Uchiha," Konan said. "When he came to us, we had our doubts, both of who he claimed to be, and of what he promised. But he has proven many times to hold both the knowledge and power of the legendary Uchiha. Even the rinnegan is powerless against him. He bends the fabric of space effortlessly."

Naruto frowned. "Noted," he said, already thinking of some way to counter space time techniques. That was going to be a tough solution to come up with. "So long as we keep our heads down for now, I don't see anyone going out of their way to hunt us down, save for the odd overly brave bounty hunter. Nothing we can't handle while we figure out what to do next."

"And what exactly are we doing now?"

"Regrouping," Naruto said with a shrug. "Well, I guess just grouping, since we weren't allied before. I need time to get Tayuya up to a level I'm comfortable with, maybe recruit some more wayward souls to help out where needed. Nothing too overt. You also need time to recover and prove that you aren't going to stab me in the back. No offence."

"None taken," Konan said.

"We can use this time to tap into some spy networks," he said. "That puppet friend of yours… any chances his loyalty is malleable?"

Konan would be the first to question the loyalty of any member of the Akatsuki, save for Nagato himself, although now that loyalty was clearly the result of brainwashing of some kind. The lesser members were all questionable individuals, none of whom showed much care towards the cause save for the promise of extreme compensation and the freedom to do as they pleased between tasks. Kisame and Itachi were the only two she believed would truly not jump at a better opportunity. But Sasori, well, he was barely human, and openly considered himself above any emotional or political restraints.

"He has no loyalty to the cause. Any substantial better offer would likely sway his interest," she said. "He aided me in the raiding of Danzo's outpost. It seems he too bares some form of grudge against the man. We could use that."

Naruto nodded. "Excellent. I will leave you to set up a meeting. Consider that the first step to earning my trust."

Konan frowned. "Can someone like you ever truly trust someone?" she asked.

"No," Naruto said with a grin. "But you're welcome to try and change my mind on that. Could be entertaining."

Ignoring the boy, she turned her eyes to the girl ahead of them. "Tayuya… she is of your clan?" she asked.

"In a sense of the word."

"What are you going to do with her?"

"Train her. Help her find somewhere to settle down if she wants to," Naruto said, shrugging. He didn't really know what he was doing with Tayuya. From the beginning it had all been a giant clusterfuck, but he felt it was worth it. The Uzumaki were all but gone. What microscopic dregs of the clan that were left weren't worth anything to anyone anymore, except for him. There was no bringing the clan back, not truly. Naruto knew that. He wasn't deranged enough to think that a handful or less of surviving bloodline members could repopulate them, assuming the rest of the world allowed it to begin with. No, the Uzumaki would die out eventually. He was fine with that. But those that lingered, those that were scattered around the world, being used and abused for their bodies and blood, they were not dead yet.

Naruto hadn't needed a plan for the past few years, but now, as an idea began to form in his mind, he realised he was going to have to start concocting something. Tayuya was the start. Her existence confirmed all he needed to know. Deep down, he knew he would do anything to keep her safe, to protect what little he had of his family that was left. There wasn't a doubt in his mind that such feelings would extend to any other surviving members of the Uzumaki. All he needed to do was find them.

"Hey, Tayuya," he called out, earning an annoyed stare.

"What?"

"Does Orochimaru have any Uzumaki under his thumb?"

Tayuya flapped her arms in an exaggerated manner. "I don't fucking know. Probably. It's not like I cared to learn anyone's names."

Naruto chuckled. It was good to see she was still as lively as ever. The Tsukuyomi didn't seem to have any ill effect on her personality at least. "Fair enough. As you were," he said, turning back to Konan. "And you? Aside from killing Danzo, what are you planning to do?"

"Kill Madara. Free Nagato," she said simply.

"Ah, that makes sense. But what if Nagato is too far gone?"

Konan shook her head. "He is strong. With the rinnegan, he will recover. I'm sure of it." She took a moment to think, eyeing the jinchuuriki carefully and contemplating just what information she could impart to him. "You should know something… about Nagato…"

Naruto sighed deeply, already knowing what she was going to say. "He's an Uzumaki. I know."

"How?"

"I was there, in Ame," he said. "The day Hanzo of the salamander was killed. Before I fled, I found out everything I could about you and your little group. Wasn't much back then, but it was enough. I was almost going to approach you, but then Nagato slaughtered everyone Hanzo knew or associated with. Been keeping my distance ever since."

"And you knew Hanzo?" Konan asked. That man was not someone she wanted to remember, nor associate with anyone connected with him. Not to say she had much choice in the matter. Allies would be extremely difficult to come by in her current circumstances.

Naruto grinned sheepishly and with a quick hand sign and a drop of blood, a small salamander was popped into existence in his hands. The tiny little creature quickly scrambling up his arm and perching on his shoulder, staring warily at Konan. "For a little while there, he was my sensei," he said. "Not the nicest guy, don't get me wrong. But he saw something in me that I didn't at the time. He trained me, brutally, and when he passed, I claimed the salamander summons as my own." Naruto noticed the stern gaze Konan now watched him with and sighed. "Don't worry. I don't hold a grudge about his death. I trust you will share the same courtesy and not hold me in the same regard as him."

"I… will try," Konan said. She made no promises. Hanzo was directly responsible for Yahiko's death, and that couldn't be forgiven. To think she was now going to be working alongside the man's student of all people. She hoped Yahiko could forgive her when she finally met him again. For now, Naruto had given her enough reason to trust him, at an arms distance of course, but she would be much more wary around him for the time being.

"I'm going to try and find what's left of my clan," Naruto said. "I don't really know what is coming, but it can't be good. If the least I can do is make sure the Uzumaki die out in peace, then that'll be enough for me."

"And once you've found them all?"

"Haven't thought that far ahead. But I guess, depending on what's happening with the world at that point, I will have to step in where I can and help out," he said thoughtfully. "The world is winding up to something big, that much is clear. I don't know if the shinobi villages are prepared for what it will be. I'm definitely not. I'm hoping you have some idea of what Madara is trying to do. Maybe we can stop it all before it happens."

Konan nodded. "I can tell you what I know, but it isn't much."

"That's fine. We have time. I'll figure it out eventually," Naruto said with a smile.

Konan wanted to scoff at that claim. The boy was too confident, too trusting, and too optimistic. 'Too much like he was…' she thought to herself. If only Yahiko were still alive. None of this would be happening. That man could have seen the brighter side of anything. He would never have let Madara corrupt their cause as he had or taken such control of Nagato. But he was gone. They were both gone. Everything she had ever loved was taken from her… and she was going to take it back, one head at a time. With a new resolve, she continued walking alongside Naruto. She would work with him, help him save what remained of his clan, and in return he would aid her in the slaughter of all those who had wronged her.

A simple deal. A simple life.

For now, that was enough.


A/N:

Three years went by terribly quick, didn't it. Bet I lost most of you who were actually invested in this story. Sorry about that. I've started getting back into my writing again recently so hopefully I don't continue letting you all down with this one. Only time will tell, and I can't make any promises.

Now, this chapter is kinda meh. I know. But I lost whatever idea's I had for where things were going from before, so I had to slap this together as a quick little ending to this part of the story. Suna arc was dragging on painfully anyway, so I'll be glad to be done with it honestly. That being said, the next chapter will be after the timeskip. Gives me a bit more flexibility with picking this story back up the way I am. Hope that isn't an issue.

As always, reviews are always welcome, although after all this time I do not expect anyone to be happy with me. Complaints are welcome too, I guess.

Next chapter will definitly be posted sooner rather than later. Fingers crossed I can stick with it.

Till next time guys.