-Konoha – Hokage's Office-

Fugaku was having a terrible day and he was afraid it was about to get worse. First, he finds a bunch of dead civilians, two chunin and the two Uchiha's he had watching the boy, all dead. Then, one of the teams he sent to investigate the scene reports in that the Kyuubi jinchuriki is dead as well. His body was beaten and broken with a Kami damned kitchen knife run through his heart. To make matters worse, he was waterlogged, and the autopsy showed that he was dead with no sign of the Kyuubi. For all he knew, the Kyuubi could show up at any moment and lay waist to his village. Zetsu had told him it would take years for the Kyuubi to reform, but that just seemed to put an ominous timer on the village's destruction.

Fugaku was informed that Kakashi Hatake had reported in alone, carrying a stasis scroll for one of his injured companions. He was receiving some urgent treatment in the hospital before he would report in. This left Fugaku time to muse on the possible success or failure of Kushina's assassination. A task that Fugaku knew could backfire in the worst way possible. Unfortunately for Fugaku, it took Kakashi three hours to finally report in.

"Hokage-Sama, I apologize for the delay. My wounds made it difficult for me to return." Fugaku waved him off before requesting a full mission report. Kakashi nodded and continued. "Ida, Kushina-Sensei and I were en route to the mission when we were attacked by twenty or so ninjas in black cloaks and blank masks. We engaged and Kushina-Sensei was able to kill most of them before she was stabbed through her back and stomach. In her last act of bravery, she used some jutsu to explode and took out the remaining five ninjas she was fighting. Ida and myself fought the remainder and I was able to kill the rest before succumbing to my injuries. I woke up to find a heavily injured Ida and a massive crater on the battleground. I put Ida in a stasis scroll to preserve his life and left my mission incomplete. I deemed it more important to report this to you than to complete the mission because it wasn't time sensitive."

Fugaku gritted his teeth throughout the report, but he found peace in knowing that Kushina was dead. "Was there anything left of Kushina's body?"

"No, Hokage-Sama. I found and recovered her sword. I planned on giving it to Naruto…"

"Kakashi, that will no longer be possible." Kakashi bristled at that bit of information and a look of cold fury occupied his lone visible eye. "Last night, a mob of villagers killed Naruto before an unknown ninja killed the whole mob. Naruto's body is in the morgue now and the autopsy already confirmed it."

Kakashi fell to his knees and wept for his dead mother and little brother figures. Fugaku allowed it since he wasn't a complete and total bastard yet. Okay, maybe he was, but he needed one of the strongest ninjas remaining in his village on his side. "Go home and rest, Kakashi. I will expect a written report in the next three days. I will most likely call you for testimony before the council in that time."

Two days later, Konoha's council was called to provide an update on the situation. Danzo had informed Fugaku that one of his agents made it back to Root headquarters heavily injured and corroborated Kakashi's story. Ida, who was recovering in the hospital after losing his left eye and right arm did as well. Now, Fugaku needed to address the council.

"Thank you everybody for responding to my call. I have called you here today to inform you of the death of Kushina Uzumaki and Naruto Uzumaki." The ninja heads jumped to their feet in an uproar while the civilian council cheered. Eventually, Fugaku restored order to the chamber and gave the official story of the events, which earned more outrage. The civilian council was appalled that so many civilians died during their valiant quest to rid the village of the demon. The shinobi council wondered who killed so many people and four ninjas.

Hiashi stood and asked the question. "Hokage-Sama, who could possibly have killed that many people and escaped from the village?"

Fugaku answered in a monotone. "Well, during our reports it appears as if the Uzumaki compound has been locked down by seals. In addition, Anko Mitarashi is MIA and ANBU found a note stuck to her front door with a kunai. She said she killed all of them to avenge her sensei's son. Tracker squads have been dispatched to locate her and I have added her into our bingo book as a B rank bounty."

Inoichi chuckled at that. "B rank? You think that is enough? I will tell you that girl has enormous potential, and she became a monster under Kushina's instruction. It should probably be higher."

Some random civilian stood up at that. "There is no way the snake whore is that strong. She finally betrayed the village, as we all knew she would…" The man was cut off by enormous killing intent coming from Tsume Inuzuka and Mikoto Uchiha, who was acting clan head until Itachi or Sasuke came of age.

It was Tsume that growled her threat at the man. "Well, maybe if you moronic civilians didn't kill the son of her sensei, she wouldn't have done that. Did you ever think of that?"

Mibuki Haruno, a pink haired banshee of a councilor, screeched out. "I can't believe you would blame us, Tsume. That boy was the Kyuubi incarnate. Those civilians are heroes…"

Mikoto was caught by Fugaku a few inches before she could tear the pink banshee's heart out. That didn't stop her from terrifying every civilian to their core. "You evil, manipulative bitch. HE WAS A BOY! A mere child! Anyone who spent two minutes with him could have seen that! And you fucking people killed him!"

Fugaku was now struggling to contain his wife. It had been years since he saw her act out in such a way and it filled him with a strange mix of fear and respect. Then he was stunned as he saw the Mangekyo Sharingan spinning in his wife's eyes. "Yes, yes," he thought, "she did come from good stock. I will need some more children out of her." He signaled ANBU to help him restrain her.

"Calm down, Mikoto-Chan, calm down. Those responsible are already dead. The two survivors have already been interrogated by Ibiki and Inoichi."

Mikoto's head snapped to her husband. "You will bring me those two. They will die by my blade. I will not stand for them to remain alive."

The civilians protested this, but the unanimous vote of the ninja council and the elders made it crystal clear that they would be sentenced to death. The remainder of the council meeting was an unproductive mix of shouting and arguing that left every councilor with a headache. They were all concerned about the impending doom of the Kyuubi and about the village's lack of a jinchuriki. However, nothing more was decided that night.

-Two weeks later – Gates of Kumogakore no Sato-

A beautiful blonde woman carrying twin blades on her hips approached the gates of Kumogakore. The gate guards halted her and were in the process of inspecting the woman. She didn't have any papers, which was suspicious. The blonde woman then spoke.

"Look, you two, could you please tell Ai that an old friend is here to cash a favor from the third war? Once he meets me, he will understand."

Without much further protest, the gate guard had a bolt ninja, Kumo's version of ANBU, deliver the message to the Raikage. Ai was a beast of a man with milk-chocolate skin, blonde hair done back in corn rows and he constantly wore an open white coat. Ripped muscles filled the coat's opening and three golden weights adorned each wrist. It is a point of contestation how much each of his wrist weights actually weighs, but the rumors say somewhere between 100 and 500 pounds.

Ai was making his way with his most trusted shinobi, Darui, to the front gates. He was wondering who would call on him from the third great shinobi war that couldn't just present papers. As he approached the gates, he caught the guards standing around a blonde woman with a wonderful figure and two swords strapped to her hip. As he got closer, he started to recognize her, but the hair threw him for a loop. It wasn't until he was standing right in front of her and he recognized her, Kushina Uzumaki.

Before Ai could speak and blow her cover, Kushina spoke as she bowed to him. "Raikage-Sama, I am here to seek a private audience with you. It is important."

Without further discussion, Ai dismissed his gate guards and walked silently with the woman back to his office. He greeted his people as he made his way back up the mountain while his brain worked at a mile a minute to figure out why Kushina was here. Eventually, the group made it back to his office where he dismissed everyone except Darui. He then set up a privacy seal and opened the conversation.

"Kushina, not that it isn't good to see you here, but what can I do for you? And what's with the blonde hair? And why all the secrecy?"

Kushina smiled at Ai, a beautiful smile that made the man gulp. "Ai, it is good to see you again. Much has happened and I will tell you all. It was a long journey, is there any way I could get some tea?"

Ai nodded at Darui, who requested tea from Ai's fiery secretary, Karui, before closing the door. Kushina proceeded to tell Ai of all that happened since Minato died during the Kyuubi attack. Needless to say, Ai and Darui were a mix of stunned and enraged once Kushina finished catching them up. Karui entered midway into the conversation and Kushina pinged her chakra. It seemed like there was some Uzumaki blood in that fiery and foul-mouthed secretary.

Through gritted teeth, Ai responded. "I am sorry for all that. So, what is it that I can do for you?"

This was the crucial moment, she really needed this to work. "How would you like the Uzumaki clan to join Kumogakore? If this is something you desire, I would like something in return, which will benefit us both in the future."

Darui's mouth hung open in shock as Ai reeled at the suggestion. "Why, Kushina, would you willingly come to a village that attempted to kidnap you once?"

Kushina waved off the concern. "Shit happens and it was your father that ordered that. Minato and I always trusted you to be a decent man, Ai. He spoke fondly of your rivalry, which is why he didn't kill you and your brother after our battle. He knew you were the man that Kumo needed to get back on the right track."

Ai was pleasantly surprised by the response. Indeed, the rivalry between him and Minato was a thing of legends. "Okay, so, if I agree to this, what do I get and what would you need?"

Kushina took a deep breath before delivering the big news. "Well, my sochi is the Kyuubi jinchuriki. In addition to gaining the most powerful biju, I would share some Uzumaki seals and techniques. I would join your forces and do everything I could to help Kumo prosper. I will guarantee my son's loyalty to Kumo and I will encourage him to propagate his bloodline here."

Ai was now envisioning the armies of Kumo equipped with Uzumaki seals before visions of Kumo's future was filled with the descendants of the two most powerful ninjas he had ever known. "Okay, Kushina, that sounds great, but what is it you want from me?"

"I would like for you and Kumo to assist me in rebuilding Uzushiogakore. I would like you to help me find any scattered Uzumaki. Until we have rebuilt Uzushio, I would like the clan to reside here. Once Uzushio is built, my son will head the clan here while you have strategic positioning and allies in Uzu."

Ai raised a massive hand to his chin as he thought it over. He would be harboring two or more fugitives from Konoha, big whoop, he could hide them from Konoha's spies. He would acquire a new jinchuriki, something that may bring war to Kumo, but he would have three jinchuriki to dissuade that. In return for basically building an outpost, he would gain a legendary clan and even some bloodline. That spurred Ai's next question.

"What bloodline does your son have?"

Kushina picked up the keen interest in Ai's tone, so she smirked before she answered. "Tsunade's genetic test confirmed chakra chains, massively enhanced chakra capacity and rapid regeneration. While they are untrained, he has three chakra natures as well, wind, lightning and water."

Ai smacked his lips at the prospect. He looked to Darui, who was equally impressed, and asked what he thought.

"Raikage-Sama, I have water and lightning elemental affinities, which is why I have my storm release. If the child is everything Kushina-Sama is saying, then he will become a monster. With the right training, he would be able to eclipse all of us."

Ai turned to Kushina and hardened his eyes and set himself into professional mode. "Very well, Kushina Uzumaki, I will accept you and your kin into Kumogakore. In return, I will aid you in resurrecting the Uzumaki."

Kushina pulled out a scroll, carefully and slowly, and asked. "Would you care to put it all down on an Uzumaki blood contract?" Ai looked hesitant before he asked what the contract would do. "An Uzumaki blood contract is unbreakable. In the event either party betrays the other, the contract will take the offending party's life. Let's say I betrayed Kumo in some way, the seal would activate, and I would die. Let's say you kill me and take my sochi, the seal would activate, and you would die. The Uzumaki used this in their most serious treaties and agreements, and it protected the clan for centuries before we were … betrayed."

Ai looked at her seriously. "So, you can't just activate the seal and kill me?" Ai looked closely at her for any sign of deceit or malice.

"No, it does not work like that. We write out the contract, which links to our blood. Unless either of us breaks the contract, nothing will happen."

Ai sighed. If he didn't trust this troublesome woman, he would never do such a thing. However, the potential gains for Kumo as a whole make it worth it. "Very well."

So, the contract between Ai, the Raikage of Kumo, and Kushina Uzumaki was signed. Kushina stayed in Kumo for a day before returning to Naruto and the rest of her family. She gave Ai the original contract and held onto a copy for herself.

-Tanzaku Guy – After Kushina Left-

Anko sighed as she played with her shiny blonde hair. It was the best way to throw pursuers off of her unique purple hair. She also put scent blocking seals on all of her clothes to prevent any of the Inuzukas from catching her scent. She sighed again as the troublesome blonde boy flew off the tree again.

"Too much chakra, gaki." She laughed as the cute boy pouted at her.

"Anko-Ne, why is this so hard for me?"

"Well, Gaki, you have more chakra than I do and you haven't really learned to control it yet."

Shizune stifled her chuckle before she jumped in. She instructed the excitable boy to take a seat on the ground before she began. "Okay, Naruto-Kun, I know you are a smart boy so let me explain. Chakra is the mix between physical, yan, energy and spiritual, yin, energy. In our bodies we can combine these to energies to produce chakra and mold it to enhance our bodies, like your Ba-Chan, or perform external jutsu. In our bodies, chakra is constantly flowing. It is like your blood and it has its own special pathways that lead from the top of your head, to the tips of your fingers, to the tips of your toes. Are you with me so far?" At Naruto's nod, she continued. "Well, in those special pathways are points called tenketsu. These tenketsu are where chakra mixes and takes shape. The bigger the tenketsu, the more powerful jutsu you can perform at once. Still with me?" Another nod from the blonde who's serious gaze was digging into Shizune as if looking for the answers behind her eyes. "Okay, well the special pathway, the chakra circulatory system, pulls chakra out of the primary chakra reservoir, your heart. This chakra flows at various rates and a couple of factors come in to play. The bigger the chakra reserve, like yours, the faster the chakra flows. The faster chakra flows, the more difficult it becomes to mold. Especially since your tenketsu are still relatively small in comparison to your enormous reserves. Finally, chakra has different density. The more dense chakra is, the stronger the jutsu; however, denser chakra also makes it more difficult to mold."

Naruto scratched his head in frustration. "So, let me get this straight, I have super amounts of chakra, my chakra is super dense and it moves super-fast, which all make it harder to mold. Is that right, Shizune-Nechan?"

Shizune rubbed Naruto's spiky, blonde locks. "Very good, Naruto-Kun. Yes, that is correct."

Naruto frowned at this. "I am screwed. I will never be a great ninja because I have too much stinkin chakra to mold, dattebayo."

Anko tossed an empty dango stick at Naruto. "No, gaki, you have the potential to become one of the greatest ninjas ever. You will just have to work 100 times harder than any other gaki to control your chakra."

"She is right, Naruto-Kun. It will be difficult, but you have the most potential I have ever seen."

Naruto hopped to his feet and gave each sister a hug. He thanked them before running over to the tree and giving it another go. Unfortunately, things are never that easy. He continued to progress, but it would be weeks before he was able to comfortably perform the tree-walking exercise.

During their breaks in training, Shizune or Tsunade would walk Naruto through Tanzaku Guy. When Tsunade was alone with Naruto, she would sneak him into the casino so that he could play with his Ba-Chan. The casinos couldn't believe the winning streak the legendary sucker went on. Tsunade paid off every debt in Tanzaku Guy before she pocketed enough money to secure a compound. She started at the slots with Naruto and then she would play 'Texas Hold 'Em' or 'Five Card Stud'. The gamblers around town tried to take advantage of her rotten luck until Tsunade cleaned them all out. It was even more embarrassing that a five-year-old child was taunting them from her lap.

The gambling spree lasted for five days before Shizune busted Tsunade for it. Shizune's anger was tempered when Tsunade told her that she had paid off her debts and got them a new home. Shizune squealed in happiness and gave full credit to her little brother for this, which earned an angry tick mark from Tsunade. Anko was just glad to get out of the hotel and move into an actual house. She knew that she would have to lay low in town that was so close to Konoha, but it still sucked that she missed out on all of the fun.

Shizune would take Naruto around town to visit some of the food stalls and bookstores. She was glad that the kid enjoyed reading so much and she was happy to see the light return to his azure blue eyes over the past couple weeks. She had walked with Naruto to a particular corner where he had been spending some time near a girl playing a flute. Naruto let go of Shizune's hand and ran up to Tayuya and gave her some fresh Takoyaki and a couple sticks of dango. She watched on as Naruto's infectious smile crept onto the redhead's face. After she finished eating, she played a truly enchanting song on her flute. The music drew a crowd that would toss a couple coins in the girls hat. Shizune recognized that the music was laced with a genjutsu, but it was so serene that she decided not to break the genjutsu.

Naruto was about to say goodbye to his new friend when he noticed that a couple older guys pulled her into an alley. He charged off to help his friend and it took Shizune a minute to realize he was gone. When Naruto entered the alley, his blood lit aflame in a fiery rage. There was one thug holding Tayuya's arms above her head and leering at her. Another thug was picking her pockets for the money she earned. The last guy was looking at Tayuya's flute before he snapped it in half. That seemed to break Tayuya's spirt, but it lit Naruto on fire.

Before they knew what was happening, three chains, sparkling with electricity, stabbed through each thug. Their cries of pain filled the alley and they dropped Tayuya, who fell to her knees. Shizune sprinted into the alley and gasped at what she saw. Three chains sprouted out of Naruto's back and they were impaling three men that were 15-feet away from the blonde. She knew immediately that one of the men was dead but two of them were twitching as they continued to be electrocuted. It was then she noticed the blue sparks of lightning chakra that danced along the chains and into the men's bodies.

"Naruto-Kun, that is enough. You need to calm down, now!" Shizune's strict tone reached Naruto through the haze of his anger.

Naruto snapped back into his normal frame of mind and paled at what he had just done. Before he knew it, the chakra chains retreated back into his body and left him standing there, gaping. The men were crumpled heaps on the ground and each of them was now dead from either their wounds or the electricity. Shizune remained in a stunned silence until Naruto started crying and throwing up on the wall. Tayuya remained on her knees, her eyes fixed on the broken flute. The last remnant of her mother.

Eventually, Shizune calmed Naruto down and performed a quick fire jutsu to get rid of the bodies. She didn't need people looking into her little brother for the murder of some common street thugs. She let Tayuya take the money off the dead thugs before offering to take her back to the hotel. Tayuya nodded her head and walked with them silently to the hotel. She would spend the next week or so with Naruto and company until Kushina returned.

Nearly a month after her departure, and a week after Tayuya joined the gang, Kushina returned to Tanzaku Guy. She skillfully dodged the patrols of Konoha ninjas and had to take her time after she crossed back into fire country. She went to the hotel, where the woman at the desk informed her that Tsunade left a note for her. Tsunade's note guided her to a nice house on the northern edge of Tanzaku Guy.

It was a humble two-story house with a small yard and a garden out front. Kushina heard the sound of her son's laughter accompanied by laughter that sounded like a young girl. She walked through the house and out onto the back porch where Tsunade was drinking sake while watching the kids train with Anko and Shizune.

"Care to explain how you could afford to move into a house, Tsunade?"

Tsunade turned around to see Kushina with her arms crossed and an eyebrow raised. "Haha, well your brat gave me a lucky streak. I cleaned house for a couple days before I had enough to pay off my debts and I won this place off a poker game."

Kushina's hair flared up and began to separate into nine distinct tails. "You took my sochi into casinos so you could win some money!?"

Tsunade stood up and held both her hand in a placating gesture. "Now, Kushi-Chan, he was safe with me the whole time…"

Kushina flew into a fit of motherly rage and laid a beating on Tsunade. Tsunade decided to just take her lumps and not resist. Thus, Naruto and Tayuya walked up to a Tsunade with multiple lumps protruding from the top of her head. Oh well, her debts paid off, totally worth it.

"Ka-Chan, why are you being mean to Ba-Chan?" Naruto's innocent tone shattered Kushina's rage into millions of pieces.

"Naruto-Kun!" Kushina darted over to Naruto and pulled him into a tight, yet loving, hug. Naruto was gasping for air before she let him go. She then noticed the cute little redhead that was next to her son. "What's this, sochi, got yourself a girlfriend already?"

Tayuya blushed but the comment went right over Naruto's head. "Yup! Ka-Chan, this is Tayuya-Chan. I saved her from some bad guys, and she is staying with us!"

Kushina linked eyes with Tsunade before turning to look at Tayuya. "Well, Tayuya-Chan, welcome. Can you tell me what happened to your parents?"

Tayuya looked down and tears brimmed in her eyes. "M-my, my momma died a-a-and m-m-my d-d-daddy left me."

Kushina pulled the girl into a motherly embrace. She got another familiar sense from the girl's chakra, so she decided to ask. "Tayuya, what was your mother's name?"

The girl looked up through the gap in Kushina's bust and muffled out something incomprehensible. Kushina gave the girl a little space and gasped when Tayuya said, "Tami, Tami Uzumaki."

Tsunade joined her in a stunned silence before Kushina scooped the girl into an overwhelming hug. "Well, Tayuya-Chan, I am Kushina Uzumaki, and this is my son Naruto. Your mom was my cousin and now you are part of my family."

Tayuya cried into Kushina's chest while Naruto whooped in joy. Kushina took the kids out to eat to celebrate discovering a new family member. Kushina smiled brilliantly as she watched the two kids chat the night away and eat their meals. She looked to the sky and thanked Kami for this blessing. It seemed only good things happened since she left Konoha. That thought changed a little bit when Shizune recounted the story of Naruto saving Tayuya. Naruto was a wreck for a couple days, but Tayuya broke him out of his spell, and he has been better since.

The group stayed in Tanzaku Guy for another week so that Kushina could spend time with Tsunade. Naruto and Tayuya were inseparable; thus, Anko and Shizune would train the two in basic chakra control. Anko brought out dull kunais and got the kids started on proper handling of the ninja tools. During that week, Kushina took Naruto and Tayuya to a music store and Tayuya was able to choose a flute of her choice. Naruto paid for it with some of the money that Tsunade won and gave to him as his cut because he said he wanted to buy something nice for his sister. It was an adorable gesture that made Tayuya blush crimson and Kushina giggle mischievously.

(A/N: Making this for the fic community. Would love feedback on the story so far. This is pretty much it for the set up and the story will start taking off from here. Message me with reviews and ideas you have for the story. This story is unfinished as of yet and I have room to adapt.)