After Team 7's actual sensei woke up from his coma, Naruto went out with Anko, leaving the rest of the team behind. He insisted on alone time with his favorite sensei. Actually referring to her with those words made Kakashi wince. They were in the forest above Hokage Rock. It was a place away from any prying eyes or ears. Were certain things to occur, it would be in privacy.
"Why'd you want to hang out here of all places?" She asked, following his lead.
Naruto shrugged. "I was here with the Old Man once." He looked up at a tree branch not too thick yet not to thin. Jumping, he took hold of it and let his weight break it off. "Wanna help me fish?"
"Is that what you did?" She picked out her own branch, jumped, and broke it off.
He kept going to the stream in his memory. "No. I asked him about my parents."
She looked down. "...Let me guess: 'there's no use asking about them.'"
He chuckled. "His exact fucking words." Glancing back at her, his lips thinned into a line. "Did you ask him about yours?"
"When what little leads I had led to dead ends." Anko frowned. "All I know is someone left me at the orphanage's doorstep with nothing but the clothes I was wearing and a name." She smiled at him frowning. "That was years ago! Don't worry about it." Inclining her head, she raised an eyebrow. "So the 'Super Pervert' taught you the Rasengan, huh?" Her eyes narrowed. "He didn't teach you any perverted things, did he?"
"Just the Rasengan. It took me a while."
She scoffed. "Of course it did! You had to concentrate chakra to the point it was visible in a stable, swirling ball. I'd only be surprised you learned it in just two weeks if you didn't have the chakra reserves to fight a Tailed Beast."
"Beat a Tailed Beast." Naruto smirked while she giggled. "It came in real handy against…" Drifting off, he debated whether or not to tell her.
"Did Itachi go back for you?" Her expression soured when his did.
"The older of the Uchiha Asshole Brothers didn't go back to get killed by me."
"Okay, what the hell happened?" She stopped, making him do so too. "The clone that was with me nearly cuddled the kid, and then the real you looks at him like he's the biggest piece of shit you've ever seen."
"He just might be."
"Why?"
He looked away for a second. "Can we just spend time together and not worry about anything else?" He grinned. "I mean, I did make jonin."
"...Okay." She smiled and ruffled his hair. "But, if this blows up in your face, don't come crying to me about it."
"I won't." He resumed walking.
She followed. "So what did the Rasengan come in handy against?"
"I'll tell you when we're cooking fish."
They reached their destination a couple minutes after. Using the broken end of the stick like the point of a spear, they stabbed at the trout as they swam through the stream. A total of six fell to them. One gathered firewood and branches to hold up the fish while the other gathered stones. Both stood over a nearly complete fire lacking the roaring flames that made it so, their meals impaled on wood spikes embedded on to the ground by what was supposed to be their heating source.
"I've got it." Anko took wire from one of her pouches, broke a strand off, wrapped the thread around one of the branches the boy brought, bit down on the filament, threw the kindling on to the pit, and went through four hand seals.
The boy watched a flame travel through the wire into the wood and ignite it. "When are you gonna teach me that?"
"You're not done with Wind Style just yet." She sat down. "Still got a few tricks to show you."
"Like what?" He joined her.
"Tell me what you used the Rasengan on, and I'll tell you."
Staring into the fire, he titled his head. "Do you know a Kimimaro?" He glanced at her shocked face. "Yeah, I used it on him."
"You were attacked by Orochimaru?!" She leaned in closer, making him lean back. "You used a close-range jutsu on the human porcupine!?"
"He took a bunch of exploding clones like they weren't shit; what else was I supposed to do?"
"What about Orochimaru?" She got out of his space.
"I wouldn't exactly call it a fight, but Tsunade and Jiraiya used their Summoning Jutsu against his Summoning Jutsu. He was there to get some healing only the granny could give: the Old Man actually fucked him up real bad."
"How bad?"
Naruto shrugged. "Something about his arms. He didn't use any jutsu except his weird body shit." He frowned. "That asshole still got away."
She relaxed. "At least he didn't get you, and Kimimaro is dead."
"I thought he was, but he spit himself out like you did."
"He what?!" She put a hand to her cursed mark. "That son of a bitch is gonna be impossible to kill now."
He hummed. "Just who is he?" His eyes narrowed at the fire. "I don't think I've ever met anyone like him." He looked down. "I mean, I've beaten a Tailed Beast and faced down jonin, but I didn't really win that fight. Not even sure super exploding him with half my chakra would work. The same trick I used to land the Rasengan won't fool him twice."
"Kimimaro Kaguya. Really, Kimimaro or Kaguya would fit enough: he's the only member of the Kaguya Clan left. Orochimaru and I picked him up when he was just a brat, and he looked up to him like he was some kind of god ever since. That kekkai genkai of his made him deadly with Taijutsu before he even got good at it. We taught him some Ninjutsu, but he preferred playing to his strengths."
"So ranged Ninjutsu is anyone's best bet."
She nodded as she examined their cooking meals. "Fire and lightning. You'd have to use some super strong wind to cut through him or a massive amount of earth to crush him. Just forget about water."
He held back a laugh. "What is with you and water?"
"It fucking sucks." She slid an arm over his shoulder and pulled him close, making his heart race. "The Hidden Mole Jutsu, the most basic of earth, is more useful than most of the advanced water jutsu."
"…Anko-sensei." His lips parted.
"Yeah?" She turned to see him, eyes half-lidded, inching his face closer to hers. Lifting a finger to stop him, she looked away. "Naruto… I don't like you that way." The memory of their first moments together made her wince. "I dress almost naked, flirt, and say and do crazy shit to feel better about myself." A sigh left her lips as she took her finger away from his. "I like...feeling desired and having people's attention. As a chick, I can just dress like this for that, but it doesn't actually make me happy because no one appreciates me for who I am." She looked down. "I'm sorry. What I've been doing isn't right or healthy for either of us."
He went to say something, stopped, brought his lips together into a line, and looked up to the sky. "I… I don't know what to feel towards you or how to say it." Frowning, he closed his eyes. "All I want to do is be close to you, but I'm scared of losing you, whether I'm too close or not close enough." His face turned red as the blood rushed up rather than down. "Sometimes, a lot of times really, I want to be something more than just your student. As a guy, I can't help it. Maybe I'm still being stupid and thinking sex is love." The red left, leaving pink on his cheeks, when he opened his eyes. "I understand exactly what it's like to not be happy because people don't appreciate you." His blue met her brown before he smiled. "But I appreciate you for being who you are, Anko-sensei."
Her vision began to blur. "I appreciate you for who you are too, you perverted brat." She pulled him even closer and wrapped her other arm around him. "I'm scared of losing you." Laughing, tears began streaming down her cheeks. "Which is why I flirt back."
He hugged her back. "And why you let me play with your boobs?"
"It was the one time!" She couldn't help but laugh.
"You still did it." Glancing at their now-crispy fish, he raised an eyebrow. "I think our food is done." He let go as she did the same. "Can we still sleep in the same bed?"
She wiped her tears on her sleeve, pinched his cheek with one hand, and grabbed a makeshift skewer with the other. "You are my cuddly-wuddly." Shifting the roasted fish towards her, she took a bite out its head.
"What?" He laughed before grabbing his own and digging into its side.
Her hand shifted from pinching his cheek to patting the top of his head. "My cuddly-wuddly." Swallowing, she held back a giggle at his blushing face. "Are you?"
"I am." He chewed and gulped.
"Are you?!"
"I am!"
The rest of their little camp date was filled with nothing but wholesome warmth. Much of what most people would consider inappropriate tension was gone. As soon as they finished eating, they traveled back to the Mitarashi Residence. Both rested on the same bed as other with neither lustful nor improper thoughts. It was like their first night yet far more innocent.
"You know…" Anko drifted off, putting her hand over the cursed mark on her neck. "I actually tried the same thing on Orochimaru."
"Eww."
She rolled her eyes. "I told you he used to be handsome." Nuzzling his whiskered cheek, she giggled. "Anyway, he thought it was adorable, so he never stopped until… Holy shit." She frowned. "I was doing the same thing he did to me to you."
"You're still nothing like him." He nuzzled her back.
"Naruto, I wouldn't have ever left him if he didn't throw me away. I've done a lot of terrible things. Just because I returned to the village doesn't change that. Pretty sure I'm only behaving well because you're here."
He blinked. "...Really?"
"Really." She blushed. "I'm weak to praise and affection." She took a deep breath and sighed. "It's pathetic, but I'm the kind of person who needs other people."
"Everyone needs or wants someone. You're just used to only having one major person in your life, right?" He smiled. "Try to make more friends; I'm sure you'll probably get along with Kakashi if you keep training us. You'll have to live with it otherwise." Chuckling, he closed his eyes. "I'm the same way, if you haven't noticed. For the longest time, the Old Man was the only one I had, and I lost it when he died… I don't want you to either."
"You're not gonna die anytime soon, but I get it." She yawned and shut her eyes as well.
"I thought you wanted to take her with you. If there was a chance of that happening, you just directed her away from it. Or are you changing your mind?"
He frowned. 'I don't want her to come with me if she's just going to be the Haku to my Zabuza, and I don't want her to fall apart if I leave.' His eyes opened. 'I want her to be happy; I want her to be better."
"You wanted the same thing for yourself once."
'And I've got it: no more feeling like I'm nothing, no more being conflicted, and no more looking for validation in other people.' His frown shifted into a smile. 'What I wanted was just down a different road.'
"The chances of her opposing you are greater if you encourage her to mingle with the gnats."
'Even if she does, I'll let her go.'
"What happened to being done with idiots who put vermin above people they actually know?"
He nearly scoffed. 'I was barely done processing a fuck ton of grief. I went from sad, to angry, and to happy when I came back here. Do you go through with everything you say when you're out of your mind?'
"I am never out of my mind, yet I do go through with everything I say."
'You getting sealed was inevitable then.'
The Tailed Beast growled to no avail. Its jailer closed his eyes and fell asleep, content it got it back for calling him a hormonal idiot. Neither was wrong on their assessment of the other: they knew each other better than anyone else. In the future they were both choosing, they'd be the only one either had for a very long time.
The morning after had them waking up to the sound of a tweeting bird. It seemed to be standing directly by the window still. Only one of them knew what it was. While there were many possibilities for complications when it came to a carrier pigeon notification system, they were less prone so inside of the village.
"Ah fuck." Anko reached out, grabbed the handle of her blinders, and pushed them aside. "Kid, we've gotta go."
He lifted his upper body to squint at the bird. "What the hell is that?"
"Notice for jonin only, which means shit is about to get real or we're changing some bullshit regulation no one follows anyway." She slipped out of bed with a yawn.
He rolled off and on to his feet. "Is this because of granny?" He stretched as he followed her out.
"Probably. If this is about the flak jackets, I couldn't give less of a fuck: the green's too on the nose and the gray of her generation made our shinobi look like bootleg samurai."
They left the Mitarashi Residence through the yard, taking the rooftops. On the way over, they saw flickers of other would-be jonin. All were headed to the Hokage Residence by the accursed Academy. The younger jonin followed the older through the complex into a meeting room. Seating cushions were arranged before a line-up of clan heads and the elders with the current Hokage sitting at the center.
Kakashi, back in his basic jonin outfit, raised a hand in greeting from his seat. "Welcome to your first briefing, Naruto."
"That's…" A man with the signature blank eyes of the Hyuga punched his hand into an open palm and inclined his head, a gesture two other men with the same eyes mimicked. "It's an honor, Uzumaki. Your match against Neji was brilliant."
The boy blushed, which made both his sensei laugh. "Thanks, uh?"
"Hoheto Hyuga," the eldest with sunken eyes said.
One with the second-most lines on his face cleared his throat. "Iroha Hyuga."
The youngest lifted his head. "Ko Hyuga." A flash of recognition sparked in his eyes, but he said nothing.
"Right." Naruto sat down left of Anko, who sat herself left of Kakashi. "...This is weird," he whispered to her, noticing all the glances aimed his way by the others.
"And here I thought you loved attention too." She snickered.
"I'm not used to this."
She patted his head. "There, there."
Tsunade cleared her throat when the last of the jonin arrived. "I have called you all here to inform you of vital information relayed to us by an envoy of the Sand." Her gaze steeled as most of theirs did. "The Fourth Kazekage was found dead rotting in the desert. He's apparently been dead since before the start of the Chunin Exams. Orochimaru is expected to be responsible."
"Lady Fifth," one of the lesser jonin said, "that sounds like a lie to escape reprisal."
"I know."
"Regardless if it's a lie or not, the Sand has surrendered completely and requested an alliance," Danzo said.
Koharu inclined her head. "Lady Hokage, guided by our council, has agreed."
Homura adjusted his glasses. "To compensate for the losses sustained by our hiatus, missions will resume and be given more frequently for some time." He ignored the relieved look on some of their faces.
"The hiatus will remain in place for genin and select chunin," Tsunade said. "The Academy will remain closed in the meantime until finances are stabilized. You are all dismissed."
"That's it?" Naruto asked his favorite sensei as they all began to rise.
Anko nodded. "A little column real shit, and a little column bullshit occasionally pop up, like this one." She put a hand on his shoulder before he could walk towards the exit.
"What's up?" He glanced around to find a few other jonin staying as well, most which he could recognize.
Kakashi walked over. "None of us have missions right now, so today's the perfect day to induct you as one of us."
"What the hell does that mean?" He looked to the exit at other jonin still leaving. "And why is it just you guys?"
Guy, grinning, pointed his thumb at himself. "We are the elite of the elite!" With his other hand, he gestured towards the line-up of Leaf Village officials.
"Since the founding of the Leaf Village, there have been jonin worth distinguishing from other jonin: those with abilities that or near the level of Kage," Danzo said.
Tsunade nodded with a smile. "There are no special privileges to being considered as such, other than the respect of your peers. Your victory over the One-Tail and performance against an enemy that bested me proves you're worthy of the distinction though."
"Welcome to the big leagues, kid." Asuma took a drag from his cigarette.
Kurenai smirked at the growing red on the boy's face. "You'll be fine."
"Still haven't told me what it really is." He looked down, doing his best to ignore their appreciative stares.
Tsunade looked to Anko. "Bring him around at 6PM." She focused on her charge. "Congratulations, Naruto."
With that, the rest began to leave. The boy, eager to get away from the strange looks, was one of the first out followed by his favorite sensei. She followed him through the halls of the Hokage Residence and out the entrance. Hateful, ignorant eyes belonging to civilians focused on just one of them as they went down the mid-morning streets.
"That's better." He took a deep breath and sighed.
She shot him a look. "You're more comfortable with people hating you than liking you?"
"Kinda?" He smiled when she patted his head.
"Don't seem to be uncomfortable with me."
"I don't know these fucking people."
In reality, he didn't want the other ninja to like him: it'd make facing them far more of an internal ordeal than external. Better they remained nameless and wary for him to cut down with less thought. That was how he was confidant he could slaughter almost the entire village, save the children. His Tailed Beast wouldn't shut up about it if the positive treatment continued either.
"Uh?" Anko glanced at him. "Where are we going?"
"To Ichiraku's. I haven't had a fresh bowl there in over a month."
"Why don't we get dango?"
He squinted at her. "That was the one thing we ate for almost the entire time we trained together." He scoffed. "I made jonin! Can't we have what I want for once?"
She deflated. "...Okay." Her mood lightened a little when he led her by the hand.
They continued on with little words. Neither cared at all about how strange a sight they made. To some of the ninja watching, it looked unmistakably like an excited child leading his tired mother to his favorite place in the world. One's particular state of dress cast doubts about that in the rest's minds. The banners of the ramen place the other could would call paradise were in reach.
The boy almost jumped on to the counter when he walked past them. "Hey!" He grinned as the two people always manning the kitchen jumped. "I'm home." In the corner of his eye, he spotted a familiar face nearly choking on his ramen. "Iruka-sensei?"
With wide eyes, the chunin swallowed. "Naruto?" His voice conveyed his worry even as he smiled. "I haven't seen you in over a month."
"Neither have we," Ayame said in the same tone as his teacher's.
Teuchi glanced at the boy from the corner of his eye. "Are you gonna say it?"
Naruto cleared his throat. "A large serving of miso ramen with roasted pork fillet!" He sat in the stool next to his first sensei.
"Coming right up!" Smiling, the cook got to work.
Anko sat in the one to their student's left. "I'll have what he's having."
"Tha–" Ayame froze at the sight of her.
"What's wro–" The other sensei blinked. "Anko?"
She turned to face him. "Hey...nose-scar guy?"
"...It's Iruka." He glanced from his grinning former student to her. "I never heard how exactly you knew each other."
"She trained me for the final round of the Chunin Exams. If I never saw her use the Explosive Shadow Clone Jutsu, I wouldn't have been able to stop the One-Tail."
Anko ruffled his hair. "Still can't believe you figured that out on your own."
Ayame pursed her lips. "Iruka told us what happened." Her eyes held nothing but warmth. "Are you okay, Naruto?"
"Better than ever." He glanced from his doubtful-looking Academy teacher to her. "Really, I am." Focusing on the man, he smiled. "Konohamaru snapped me out of it."
The disbelief left his face in favor of a smile. "I'm glad. You wouldn't believe how worried he was."
His own turned into a frown. "Is he alright?" He looked down. "I acted like a jackass."
"He's doing just fine, and I'm sure he'd love to see you again." Iruka returned to slurping his noodles.
"What kind of training did you do with Naruto?" Ayame asked the other woman, barely restrained hostility in her tone.
Anko tilted her head, blinked, and smirked. "Better question is what kind of training I didn't do with him." She held back laughter at the other sensei choking while the other woman twitched.
"You dirty bitch."
"Ayame! That is no wa–" Teuchi turned and froze. "...Oh."
The boy pouted. "I already tried having sex with her, but she turned me down." He looked from one woman to the other. "Please get along." Earnest sadness crept into his voice. "I don't want to see you fight." His blood rushed to his face when his favorite sensei draped an arm over his shoulder to pull him close and the first girl he ever knew began patting his head.
"There, there." Anko shushed.
Ayame's vision blurred. "Little Naruto, is that you?"
"I'm not a baby," he whined. "I'm a ninja."
"And we're very proud of you."
Teuchi set the bowl and chopsticks down in front of him. "Here you go." He didn't look at his half-naked companion. "I'll have yours in just a bit."
Anko looked down at the red-faced brat breaking his chopsticks. "Are you gonna tell them the good news?"
"What good news?" Ayame asked.
Naruto glanced at their curious faces before swirling the noodles in his bowl. "I made jonin."
Iruka, learning from his mistakes, properly swallowed his mouthful. "You what?!" He looked to the grinning face of the other elite ninja.
"He blew up a Tailed Beast!" She laughed. "Did you think he'd make just chunin?"
"I…" Drifting off, he focused on his uncharacteristically uncaring former student.
He glanced at him while he lifted his chopsticks to his lips. "Yeah?"
"Shouldn't you be excited?"
He slurped down some of his noodles. "I guess?" Shrugging, he pinched up more. "After everything I've been through… After everything I've done, it doesn't mean anything to me."
"Huh." He paused for a moment before smiling. "You've grown a lot, Naruto. Feels like just yesterday I brought you here to make up for ruining your fight with Sasuke." He blinked when the boy's expression soured.
Ayame frowned. "Are you two butting heads again? I thought you were finally getting along after coming home from Wave."
"Don't ask: neither of them are saying anything about it to anyone." Anko shook her head just as her bowl was set down.
"Shame," Teuchi said. "You two really seemed like honest friends." He flinched when the boy's eyes narrowed.
"Can we talk about something else?" He looked up from his breakfast meal. "Grandma Tsunade accepted an alliance offer from the Sand."
Iruka furrowed his brow. "Naruto, just because you're a jonin now doesn't mean you can disrespect the Hokage." He tilted his head. "Wait, what?"
Anko broke her chopsticks in half. "Supposedly, the Kazekage was assassinated before the Chunin Exams actually started. They think Orochimaru did it, but I wouldn't put it behind the top players in the Sand deciding Rasa fucked up too big."
"Wouldn't be the first time a Kazekage was assassinated under extremely suspicious circumstances." He gathered up the last of his noodles while his former student made a curious look. "Every Kazekage since the foundation of the Sand Village has been assassinated. Although, the Third just went missing during the Third Shinobi World War."
"Chances are they just didn't leave a body that time."
Ayame shuddered. "What is wrong with those people? I understand it's politics, but you can't just attack someone and try to be friends. Can't decide to kill your leader and blame everything on them either."
"Orochimaru could've actually done it for shits and giggles." She scooped up some noodles. "Still doesn't mean what they did is alright, but what does holding a grudge get us when the other villages think we're both weak?" Slurping them down, she murmured in delight. "This is good."
Iruka frowned. "Politically speaking, it's the most advantageous move on both our parts to ally with the other for now." He put his lips to the edge of the bowl and began downing what was left.
"If what they brought for the invasion was their best, they're nothing we can't handle," Naruto said. "Heard they use puppets, but I didn't see any except that one genin use them."
"They were used in the village: I helped against some. I don't think the forces at the arena were meant to actually win but stall for time."
Anko swallowed another mouth full of ramen. "Probably aimed to kill the morale of our elite by taking care of the Old Man first."
"Didn't save them." Naruto scoffed. "They need us way more than we need them." He slurped up and swallowed a few chopsticks worth of noodles. "I wonder how Gaara is doing."
"The jinchuriki?" She blinked at his nod. "He's alive?"
He shrugged. "Both of us broke a lot of things in our fall. Could be he bled out internally or something." Frowning, he stared in his bowl. "I hope he didn't."
She almost laughed. "Both of you were itching to kill someone in the preliminaries and almost did."
"We were a lot alike then and still kind of are, but I want him to be better too." He moved his chopsticks through the broth again.
Ayame smiled. "That's really sweet of you, Naruto." She tilted her head. "But what happened in the preliminaries of what now?"
"Nose-scar didn't tell you?" Anko grinned as her charge froze.
He groaned. "Please don't."
The ramen cook squinted at him. "What happened?" She looked to his head-shaking academy teacher.
Iruka sighed. "First, he showed up without a lot of ski–"
"I brought back Granny Tsunade!" Naruto pointed a thumb at himself. "She got her ass handed to her by some bone guy, and I fucked him up with a move the Pervy Jiraiya showed me while he stopped that giant snake asshole Orochimaru from giving him a hickey!"
"…What?" The civilians and chunin said.
Anko nodded in realization. "Had a feeling he was the enemy she was talking about: Kimimaro isn't someone you can fight without intel."
"You fought against Orochimaru?!" Iruka yelled.
"The Pervy Sage, Jiraiya, did, and it sucked until Granny got her shit together." He focused back on his ramen bowl. "If I wasn't gonna make jonin for the One-Tail, I was definitely going to make it for doing better than her against Kimimaro."
"That's… really impressive." He smiled and patted his old student on the head, making him blush.
Anko patted the boy's back. "Told you I'd make you a flee-on-sight-level hottie, and that's exactly what you're gonna be."
Naruto glanced from his old sensei to his favorite civilians. "I never told any of you this, but I…" He looked down at his knees. "I'm grateful for everything." Looking up, he smiled at the ramen cooks. "This place has made me happy for as long as I could remember." He turned to Iruka with a laugh. "When you took me here all those years ago, that was one of the happiest moments of my life."
They watched in silence as the child that used to throw angry, violent tantrums happily slurp his favorite fatty food away. His favorite sensei joined him with her own bowl, not wanting good food to go cold or be wasted. When they were finished, they paid for their meals and left with happy goodbyes, leaving the three of them to their shock.
"...Little Baby Naruto came back," Ayame said, tears finally leaving her eyes.
Iruka couldn't help but join her in crying. "He was the worst in his class, and now he's doing the best out of them all."
Teuchi took a deep breath and sighed. "Just seems like yesterday I was trying to save that kid from the rain." He saluted as he let himself weep. "Thank you for saving my business from destruction and closing."
A few streets down, Naruto blinked. "Did we just tell high-security secrets to civilians?"
"If they don't tell you to keep your mouth shut, you can tell anyone about it," Anko said.
"Oh…" He looked down at the dirt road. "You know, I thought ramen was love once too."
"What changed?"
He smiled. "I had some awful instant."
They laughed as they kept on walking, ignoring or accepting the looks they got for it. This was, unknowingly to one, the dying throes of their precious time together. Only a few more loose-ends were left to resolve before the inevitable goodbye.
AN: I had the weirdest case of Writer's Block for this chapter. When it came to Ichiraku's, the complete lack of it hit me like a ton of bricks. So much to make up for, so much to actually talk about, and how to resolve everything relating to three of the most important figures in Naruto's early life. Also, trying to write while sleep deprived is a very stupid thing and makes you sleep for even longer. Don't do it, lesson of the day.
I hope you've picked up on a little hint or two in there. I spent an entire day thinking over how to write what's coming. Combed over the chapters of the arc for little details to include or imagining how some changed scenarios would play out.
We are now over 400 followers! Good to have you with me. I hope to entertain even more people as I finish up part 1 and move on to part 2. Got a little surprise waiting I've been foreshadowing since after the big Christmas Gift.
Feel free to leave your thoughts in the form of a review or PM.