Perverts and Other Role Models

Naruto dashed through the maze-like network of narrow alleys with Sakura in close pursuit. The sun dipped low in the sky, casting long shadows across the buildings and alleyways of the village. Their boots kicked up dust from the cracked cobblestones as they raced onward.

"Are you sure this is the back side of the bathhouse?" Sakura asked, her breaths coming in short pants. "We've been searching for hours."

Naruto flashed her a confident grin over his shoulder. "Yeah, believe it. I know these back alleys better than anybody," he said, his voice sure and unwavering.

Sakura didn't ask how Naruto became so familiar with these lesser-known parts of the village. It was just one of those things she realized she'd have to learn to live with.

"Hold on, look," Naruto suddenly said, his tone shifting from playful to serious as he pointed up at one of the many towering trees that provided shade to the open-air bathhouse. High in the branches, a flash of movement caught his eye—a foot adorned with a distinctive wooden sandal. It could only belong to one person: Jiraiya, the infamous super pervert.

Sakura followed Naruto's hand as he pointed up, spotting the aging, white-haired shinobi perched on a branch with all the ease and agility of a seasoned ninja. Her eyes widened in disbelief as she realized their target was not only up a tree but perched high enough to blend in with the leaves as he looked into the bathhouse's open pools below.

"There's that old pervert. Now, how do we get him down?" Naruto said, rubbing the back of his head as he tried to think of the best approach.

Sakura, her righteous fury burning like a fire within her, darted towards the tree with the ferocity of a raging storm. Her fists clenched so tight her nails threatened to break the skin, and her fist shot out with an explosion of force, connecting squarely with the trunk.

The tree, an unwitting bystander, shook as it felt her blow shaking violently, causing the leaves above to shake before cascading down like a green waterfall. Jiraiya, perched precariously on one of the higher branches, was sent tumbling down with them.

As he tumbled, he twisted in the air and landed on the ground below with a loud thud, his pen and notebook landing next to him. Sakura, her heart still racing with adrenaline, stood over him with glaring bright white eyes that could curdle milk.

"You!" she seethed, "What gives you the right to go around spending other people's money, give Naruto his money back!"

Jiraiya, for his part, was at first surprised that was what she was upset about and not the peeping, he appeared more amused at her rant. He picked himself up, dusting off his cloak with nonchalance. Finding his pen and book on the ground he placed them in his vest pockets.

"Ah, my dear Sakura," he began with a twinkle in his eye, "I was just trying to gain some insight into the womanly form, you know for my ... research, of course. It's all for the greater good of my readers! Now about that money..."

Sakura, her anger simmering beneath the surface like a volcanic tremor, took a menacing step forward.

"Research?" she spat, "The only thing you're spreading is chaos and embarrassment. I don't care who you spy on, you old pervert! Now give Naruto his money back!" she almost screamed as she stood looking up at Jiraiya, he stood a good two feet taller than her and had to look almost straight up to look him in the eye.

Jiraiya's grin widened, unfazed by her fury. He raised an eyebrow at Naruto and gave him a sly wink. This was as good a time as any to test who was in charge. He was still unsure if Naruto was under a jutsu or if Sakura was truly bound to Naruto as the old scrolls said she should be.

"Naruto, tell Sakura to go stand over there," he said, pointing at a spot next to the bathhouse wall as he looked over Sakura's head at Naruto.

"Come on, Pervy Sensei, stop playing games," said Naruto.

"No, do it and we can talk," said Jiraiya, using his Sensei voice to let Naruto know he wasn't playing around anymore.

"Sakura, go stand over there… please," he said, giving in to his sensei's demands. Sakura looked at Naruto, huffed and puffed in anger, but she didn't say a word as she walked over to where he had pointed and stood there glaring at the older man before saying,

"Now pay up, pervert, or I will let them all know you were up there," she said, tapping the wall she was standing next to. Jiraiya knew she could take the wall down with one hit, and as soon as she screamed pervert, an army of enraged women would come running out to beat him to a pulp and this being a shinobi bathhouse it would hurt this time.

Laughing at the idea of running for his life from a raging mob of naked women and feeling the village was a little safer with her clearly under Naruto's control, Jiraiya searched around one of his many pockets and pulled out a roll of money, which he tossed to Naruto.

"That should cover my debt. Thanks for loaning me the money," said Jiraiya. "Now, if you don't mind, I have some research to finish." With that, he vanished in a swirl of leaves, heading to one of the other bathhouses in the village.

"Is that all of it?" asked Sakura as she walked over feeling back in control of herself again.

Opening the roll of money, Naruto's eyes went wide as he counted it. "It's actually more than he owed me!" he exclaimed, counting the money again to be sure and finding it to be almost double what Jiraiya had taken.

Tucking the money into his pocket, Naruto grinned. "I guess he really meant it when he said he needed to do some research," he remarked, shaking his head in disbelief. "Well, I guess we should go home and figure out how to spend this."

Sakura couldn't help but laugh at Naruto's reaction, glad to see him happy. "Come on Naruto we have been looking at bathhouses all day, I could sure use a nice hot bath right about now," she said, walking with Naruto out of the alley and pulling him around to the front of the bathhouse. They had a long day, and a warm bath was just what she needed to unwind.

"Go ahead, pay up and I will meet you out here in a couple of hours," she said as they entered the front door stopping at the counter to pick up their robes and locker key, looking up, they could see the large signs pointed to the MEN and WOMEN sides.

"Go on, get yourself settled in, and I'll meet you back out here in a couple of hours," Sakura said, nodding toward the entrance. The anticipation of unwinding in the steamy, serene waters was almost tangible.

Naruto entered the men's section, slipping into a clean, warm bathrobe. He glanced around, spotting familiar faces among the relaxing pool of fellow Genin. "Hey Neji, I heard you got a promotion," Naruto called out, greeting his peers.

Neji nodded with a hint of pride in his voice. "Yes, as fate would have it, I've been made a Chunin," he replied.

"And you, Kiba? Any news on your end?" Naruto asked jumping into the pool, turning to the dog boy.

Kiba swam over with a playful grin. "Nah, nothing as fancy as Neji here," he said, splashing some water in jest. "What about you, looser? Heard anything from the Hokage? You know, since Sasuke got a field promotion?"

Naruto's expression turned more serious. "Well, the Hokage said I still need to gain more experience," he admitted. "But that's okay. I've got a plan. One day, I will be Hokage, and nothing will stop me."

His friends all laughed at the idea of him being Hokage, all but one. "I believe you, Why?" Shino said, his tone calm and composed as always as floated over to join them, his sunglasses reflecting their face back to them. "You never give up on your dreams."

As Naruto joined the other Genin in the men's pool, Sakura, wearing her robe, made her way to the women's section, feeling a sense of tranquility wash over her as gentle music filled the women's side. 'Time to unwind.' She thought Taking a deep breath, she unhooked her robe and let it fall, revealing a toned physique carved by endless hours of training, her abs were sculpted, her legs defined, and her arms firm with lean muscle. Her firm breasts and sculpted butt drew the eyes of those around her, revealing her as a woman of strength and beauty. Throwing back her waist-long pink hair so it flowed down her back, her feet dipped into the pool, and she felt the tension begin to melt away. 'Finally,' she thought, closing her eyes as she submerged herself, a moment to unwind.'

Her calm, however, was brief as Ino glided over with an infectious grin. "Hey there, Forehead. So glad you could escape the clutches of Guy Sensei," Ino teased, her eyes twinkling with mischief.

Sakura smiled, shaking her head. "Yes, Naruto is back with the new Hokage. So I decided I needed a break," she confessed.

The sound of splashing water drew their attention to Kurenai, who approached them with a warm smile. "It seems like you've been putting in a lot of effort, Sakura," she observed, her eyes lingering on Sakura's well-defined arms. "Your hard work is showing. Although..." Kurenai's gaze shifted, concern flitting across her features, "I can't help but wonder if you've been using some... unconventional methods to achieve such results."

'If using the chakra of a 100-foot-tall fox is unconventional then yah.', thought sakura as she just smiled at the well-endowed sensei. "Lots of hard work is all," said Sakura, sinking into the water up to her chin.

Hinata came floating over her Byakugan active for a few seconds before saying, "I see you and Naruto are taking time together. I thought you were after Sasuke?"

"Ino can have that bastard for all I care.", said Sakura seeing a flash of anger in Hinata's eyes

"I would think after everything you said and done to Naruto you would leave him in peace to find his own way.", Hinata added, getting closer to Sakura as the others floated away leaving these two to figure out their personal problems.

"Naruto is Mine!", whispered Hinata as she moved up to Sakura

"Yours? Are you out of your mind? What have you done for him?" said Sakura.

Hinata's eyes narrowed. "You're a piece of work, Sakura. Naruto deserves better. "He doesn't need someone who only sees him as a tool," she said, her voice taking on a steely edge. "He deserves someone who respects him for who he is, not what he can do for you."

The tension between them hung in the air as Sakura and Hinata locked eyes, each silently daring the other to back down.

"Careful, girls," Kurenai said, floating between them. "Let's not ruin our relaxing bath with petty arguments." Sakura and Hinata glared at each other for a moment before wordlessly retreating, their tension hanging heavy in the steam-filled air.

"Wow, I knew she had a thing for Naruto but I didn't think she would go that far," said Ino moving to Sakura's side as Kurenai pulled Hinata to the side to have a little chat with her.

"The academy days are over and things change, she had her chance a thousand times over and did nothing," said Sakura, as she shifted in the hot bubbling water, feeling the soothing jets of water caressing her skin as she settled into an underwater seat. Ino joined her, her eyes closed as she relaxed in the warm embrace of the pool.

Sakura glanced sideways at Ino, a half-smile playing at the corners of her lips as she listened to her friend's words.

"We all did nothing, Sakura, including you," Ino replied, her voice soft but firm.

Sakura's smile faded, her eyes narrowing slightly as she looked at Ino. "True, but now I have done something and I didn't need to be under a jutsu to do it."

Ino's eyes snapped open, a hint of frustration flickering across her features. "Come on, Sakura, that isn't fair, I just feel I should give Naruto a chance."

Sakura's voice rose slightly, her frustration evident. "A chance, what, because someone told you he looks good on your arm? Naruto isn't some accessory for you to wear."

Ino's eyes hardened, her gaze locking with Sakura's. "That's not what I meant, and you know it. Naruto deserves a chance, just like anyone else."

Sakura's lips tightened, but she said nothing, the tension between them simmering just beneath the surface.

Sakura's expression darkened as Ino's words cut through the air like a sharpened blade. "Ino, you do know that I am living with him," she said, her voice tight with irritation.

Ino's eyes narrowed, a smirk playing at the corners of her lips. "I hear you, you said living, not sleeping. You're just some roommate, and you know it. He hasn't made a move on you, has he?"

Sakura's jaw clenched, her nails digging into the palms of her hands as she fought to control her rising anger. "That's none of your business, Ino," she shot back, her tone laced with warning. The image of this morning with her laying on Naruto half naked and he didn't do anything came to mind. What was she to him?

Ino's smirk widened, a glint of mischief in her eyes as she could see confusion in Sakura's face. "It's every bit my business, Sakura. If you won't take the opportunity, I will."

Sakura's eyes narrowed, a spark of defiance flaring within her. "You stay away from him, Ino. Naruto is mine."

"Yours's, now who is the crazy one, you or Hinata? Unless I hear it from Naruto then you're just a roommate," said Ino her gaze didn't waver, her smirk growing into a playful grin. "You're too possessive, Sakura. He doesn't belong to you."

Sakura's fists clenched, her voice shaking with anger. "I know he's not an object, Ino. He's a person, and I care about him. If you really care about him too, then respect that."

Ino's grin faltered, her expression softening slightly. "I know you care about him, Sakura. I do too. But don't you see? If you don't take the chance, then I will. You can't keep him all to yourself."

Sakura's breath caught in her throat, her heart pounding in her chest. She knew Ino was right. Naruto wasn't hers to claim, and she couldn't control his feelings. If she didn't make a move, someone else would. And she wasn't ready to let that happen.

Sakura, her mind racing with thoughts of Naruto and the future. She knew she had to talk to him, to lay her feelings on the table and see where they stood. She just hoped it wouldn't be too late. She knew she would die without him, or more likely kill someone but that was her family curse she had to live with.

"Just stay away, Ino," she said quietly, her voice filled with uncertainty, she didn't want to hurt Ino but deep down she knew she would if Ino got in the way.

"Well see Sakura, we'll see," said Ino, turning away and leaning back into the bubbles.

Relaxing into the pool Sakura allowed all of her physical and emotional pain and worries to float away as she lay there next to Ino half asleep when the sound of people leaving shook her awake to look over at the large clock on the wall.

'Shit it's been almost three hours', she said to herself bumping Ino as she got up.

"Hey what's up," said Ino looking at Sakura as she climbed out of the pool.

"I told Naruto I would meet him outside almost an hour ago," said Sakura, picking up her robe and rushing to the changing rooms.

Ino's words echoed in Sakura's mind as she made her way out of the women's section. She could feel the weight of her doubts pressing against her chest, threatening to suffocate her with every step. As she got dressed she couldn't shake the feeling that she was making a mistake, but she knew she couldn't let Ino's words control her actions.

"Hold up forehead, I'll come with you," said Ino tying her hair into her standard ponytail as they walked.

As Sakura reached the door to the men's section, she saw Naruto chatting with Kiba and Shino. She hesitated for a moment, the familiar sense of longing and desire threatening to overwhelm her. But then she took a deep breath and approached Naruto, steeling herself for what she was about to do.

"Naruto," she said, her voice wavering slightly, pulling everyone's eyes to her as she walked up to Naruto and placed her palm on his chest, looking up into his bright blue eyes.

"Hi, Sakura. Are you ready to go? We still have to talk to the Hokage," said Naruto, all sunshine smiles with a sparkle in his eyes.

It was an impulse, she knew it, and still couldn't stop it even if she wanted to. Reaching up with both hands, she cupped Naruto's cheeks and pulled him down into a soft kiss that she quickly took deeper as she wrapped her arms around his neck. The world fell away as she closed her eyes to her first real kiss even as her body's natural reaction was to pull at his chakra.

Breaking the kiss, she stepped back, partly out of breath and partly high on his chakra, and looked up at him in a daze.

"Okay, forehead, if that is how you want to play the game," said Ino, nudging Sakura to the side and wrapping her arms around Naruto's neck. To the shocked boy, she planted a passionate kiss on his lips as Kirbe yelled and hooted his approval. Ino hung on Naruto as long as he would allow before he came to his senses and gently moved her back.

They all heard a scream in the distance as Hinata gave up all hope and turned to run home.

"Naruto got game," yelled Kirbe, slapping Naruto on the back.

"What!? What's going on?" said Naruto, feeling confused and excited all at the same time. Ino had kissed him before but never like that.

"I think Naruto is in trouble, why? Because those two girls are nothing but trouble," said Shino from behind his high collar and sunglasses.

"Come on, Naruto, we have to go see the Hokage," said Sakura, grabbing his hand and pulling him away. Naruto still had that confused and somewhat silly grin on his face as they walked, while Sakura gave Ino a look that promised pain in the future. The sound of Kirbe yelling "You're whipped" echoed down the street.

Entering the Hokage's office, Naruto looked around, trying to recall the path that had brought them there. Tsunade stood behind her desk, staring out the window with her hands clasped behind her back. He walked up to stand next to her, a mischievous grin on his face, and mimicked her posture by placing his hands behind his back and bouncing on his heels.

"You okay, Baa-chan?" he said, his grin growing wider as he matched her pose. He ducked under her half-hearted swing to slap him on the back of the head, dancing back out of range with a laugh.

"You're late. I hope that isn't the only thing you learned from that one-eyed sensei of yours," said Tsunade, turning back to take her seat behind the desk. Sakura and Naruto formed a line in front of her, awaiting her next words.

"No Hokage," they said in unison, Naruto grinning like a fool.

"What are you grinning about?" she asked as Naruto looked genuinely happy not that fake smile he wore so often.

Sakura kissed me!" he blurted out, "And then Ino Kissed me!" he yelled a little louder.

"The Yamanaka girl? Why?" said Tsunade as Sakura gave Naruto the look, trying to get him to shut up.

"I have no idea," he said, still grinning like he found an endless bowl of ramen.

The Hokage looked at the two and could see that something was going on, 'I am too old to get involved in teenage drama.' she thought as she decided to change the subject.

"Let's move on, report, did you find that old fool and get your money he owned you," said Tsunade, getting down to business, the quicker she was done with these two the quicker she could open that bottle the Jonin Commander dropped off at her desk as a welcome present.

"Yes Hokage," said Sakura before Naruto had a chance to speak, he clearly had his mind on other things right now, "We got everything we deserve." she looked over at Naruto, willing him to keep his mouth shut, the Hokage could take any extra money away from them for any reason.

"Good, and I was looking into the files and it seems they didn't assign a rank to your mission to come find me, so here, take this to the bank in the morning," she said handing Naruto a slip of paper.

"What! S-Rank, come on Baa-chan it wasn't that hard to find you," said Naruto waving the paper around, keeping it out of Sakura's hands as she reached for it. What he didn't understand was that she had grown up with so little money that she wasn't letting anything get away if she could help it.

"Don't be stupid, you fought Me, Itachi, and Orochimaru on that mission, if that isn't S-rank then nothing is," said Tsunade looking behind her desk at the bottle on the floor calling to her.

"Thank you, Hokage Sama," said Sakura finally getting the paper out of Naruto's hands, and with a bow to show some respect she hid it away in her dress for later. Tsunade gave her a nod in return, seeing that Sakura had some brains about her, at least when it comes to money.

"Now get out of here, once we find a replacement for Sasuke you will start doing missions again so train hard," said Tsunade in her best Hokage voice.

Once out of the Hokage tower, Sakura locked arms with Naruto and guided him to the Clan Bank, where she still maintained an account. He allowed her to lead the way as he mindlessly watched his feet, deep in thought about the events of the day involving Sakura and Ino. He had always dreamed of having someone he could trust and rely on, and now he found himself with two such people. What was he to do? He hated the idea of hurting either one of them.

Naruto's thoughts were interrupted when they stopped, and he looked around with panic in his eyes. He was about to make a run for it when Sakura's firm grip stopped him.

"Naruto? What's wrong?" she asked, holding him still.

"You don't understand, Sakura. I can't be here. Even the Hokage told me never to come to this building," Naruto explained, looking around as if expecting Anbu to swoop down and take him away.

"Naruto, hold on. It's okay. I come here all the time, and you're with me, so you're safe," Sakura reassured him, trying to direct his focus back to her and away from the curious onlookers that had started to gather.

"Are you sure, Sakura? I don't want to get you in trouble," Naruto said, taking a deep breath and looking at the bank entrance with apprehension.

"Yes, I am sure. Now, come on," she said, linking arms with him again, determined to lead him through this.

The bank hadn't changed since Sakura's last visit, except for the lack of a line and only one open window at this late hour. They approached the teller, who pushed his glasses up and looked at them with a polite smile.

"How may I help you, young shinobi?" the teller asked.

"We would like to open a new account and deposit this," Sakura said, pulling out the S-rank pay slip from a hidden pocket.

The teller inspected the slip and the Hokage's signature before raising his hand to signal the bank manager. "Deposits of this size will need to be approved by the manager. Please wait here," he said.

A tall, thin man in an expensive suit approached them. "How can I help you?" the manager said to them, his gaze fixed on the teller, who slid the paper over to him.

"They wish to open an account," the teller explained.

"Yes, yes, I see," the manager said, holding the paper up to the light as if it were counterfeit. "Naruto Uzumaki, is that you, young man?" he asked, examining the paper.

"Yes, that's me. Believe it!" Naruto replied confidently.

"Good, good. First, we must verify the paperwork. Can you come with me?" the manager asked, and the two young shinobi followed him to a small office marked "Manager."

"Please be seated," he said, motioning for them to sit down. He unfurled a large scroll, revealing an intricate seal inscribed with gold and silver ink.

Placed the paper in the middle and made a simple hand sign before pushing his hand down on the paper in the middle, the glow was instant as the chakra of the Hokage matched the chakra of the seal. Lucky for both of them she had updated all the bank paperwork and many other seals in the first hour after becoming Hokage.

''Nice, you must have been given this today, most shinobi wait to come in and the chakra has faded some. Now the next step, to open an account at this bank you must be a member of a registered clan or one of their affiliates," he said as if everyone knew this.

"I don't have a clan. I am an orphan," Naruto said, standing up to leave, but Sakura pulled him back down.

"There must be another way. I have an account here. Does that matter?" she asked, looking around the desk.

"Well, yes. If you were married, but being an orphan means you must pass the test. After all the wars, many children of the clans went missing," the manager explained, pulling out another, larger scroll.

"Every clan in the village has placed a drop of blood on this seal. If you are born of any of the clans, this will tell me," he said, handing Naruto a small knife. "A drop of blood here, then press your finger into it." He pointed to a small circle in the center of the seal.

Naruto looked down at the scroll, it was a pattern of circles within circles within circles with the names of clans dotted around the edges of each circle. Some were large and bold and some so small he couldn't make out the name. He spotted all the names of his old classmates, even Sakura's clan name was off to the far side as if it had been the last one added.

Cutting his thumb, he let a few drops of blood land on the scroll and then pressed his thumb into the small pool.

"Now, a little chakra to activate the seal," said the manager, seeing that Naruto didn't know that was the next step.

The result was a flash of light so bright that even people outside of the office had to shield their eyes. Once the light faded, the manager removed his hands from his eyes and looked down.

"Oh my dear sir, it's an honor to have you join our bank," the tone and manner of the manager changed in an instant once he looked at the scroll. Sakura stood and looked to see the clan names that still glowed with an affirmation of Naruto's bloodline.

"Naruto, do you see this?" said Sakura, looking at the seal even as Naruto pressed his thumb into the dust that was his blood.

"I… I don't understand," he said, still not clearly seeing the seal as the light had blinded him. With all the dots floating around, he could barely see the desk.

"The names Senju, Uzumaki, Namikaze, and the family trees of each of the first, second, fourth, and fifth Hokage are all linked to your blood," she said as if in awe.

"What? No, that can't be, I'm an orphan, a nobody." Naruto's voice was on the edge of cracking as the very idea of having so many linked to him and still being alone was overwhelming.

"Young sir, please, you must know that the Hokage is the last of her line; there are no other Senju, and the Uzumaki were all wiped out in the last war. None survived, none, that is, but you, it would seem," said the bank manager, trying his best to calm down the shinobi in his office. He had moved to the village only five years ago, but he was always a student of his best customers.

"But… But how?" said Naruto, still not understanding how he could be linked to so many.

"Young sir, wars make people do 'unusual' things; battlefield romances resulting in a child are not uncommon. You could be the fortunate result of many such encounters," said the manager, thinking Naruto was a lost and forgotten bastard of many bastards over time.

"Romances? What do you mean?" said Naruto, his brows knitted together in confusion. It was then that Sakura realized that Naruto may not know how children come into the world. Was he so naive that he didn't know about sex?

Sitting down hard in her chair, Sakura stared at Naruto's back, her mind racing. This explained so much; he was never in the sex classes at the academy as the Sensei always found a way to kick him out. He had no real guy friends to share stories of their adventures with girls. Most of all, even with her throwing herself on him the other day, he did nothing.

"I think we need to finish setting up the account, we can talk later about all this, OK?" said Sakura from behind Naruto, wavering her hand at the manager to move along.

"Yes, yes, these things are best discussed in private. Now I need you to read over these pages, sign them and I will despot your pay slip into your new account.", said the manager all smiles as he pulled out the required papers from his desk to set up a gold member account.

Naruto was confused as he had never seen anything like these papers before, many of the words made no sense to him. Sakura leaned over his shoulder and pointed out where to sign and even helped with placing his thumbprint on the ID card. It all took a long boring five minutes before they pushed the papers back over to the manager who glanced at them before filing them away.

Pulling out a small piece of paper the manager said, "If you don't mind writing down the amount you would like to take what you today I will personally process it for you."

This was happening all too fast for Naruto, he had a family now gone, a clan even, and now he was opening a bank account in a bank he had been told to never ever go into, this was more than he could think about right now and pushed the paper over to Sakura.

"Whatever you think is best Sakura," he said, falling back into his seat, slumping down deep in thought about more important things than stupid money. Now he had to become Hokage for real like his ancestors, his bragging that he would be Hokage took on a new meaning, he had to make it real.

From this day forward he would focus on one thing and one thing only to become the strongest shinobi in all the world. He would bring peace to the world in the only way he knew how. To beat the world into submission so that they all would listen to him.

With all the papers in hand, the manager said something to Sakura. Naruto didn't even bother to listen to, so deep in his own thoughts. The world had changed too much in the last hour for him to care.

Sakura's heart ached as she watched Naruto struggle with the weight of his heritage. She wished she could take away his confusion and doubts, but this was something he had to navigate on his own. She reached out to take his hand but he pulled away, he shook his head in disbelief, trying to wrap his head around what he had learned.

"You don't have to figure it out right now," Sakura said gently. "But you should know that you're not alone. I'll help you through this."

"What's to figure out, I will become Hokage and when I do then things like this will never have to happen as I will put a stop to stupid useless wars.", said Naruto staring at his hands, his words made his thoughts real and for once in his life it was clear what path he had to take.

Before Sakura could ask what he was talking about the manager walked in and handed her his copy of the papers and a nice amount of money that she quickly hid in her dress pockets seeing that Naruto wasn't even paying attention. She would take care of him as much as he was taking care of her in her own way of course.

And with that, they left the bank, Naruto still trying to make sense of everything he had just learned. But for now, he was glad to know that he had Sakura by his side.

"Naruto, remember when I said we didn't have anything at the house?" said Sakura, her voice pulling him from his swirling thoughts.

"Ya, but we have lots of stuff," replied Naruto, not quite understanding her hint.

"I mean food, Naruto. We need to go shopping for groceries; we can't eat out every day. Besides, don't you want to taste some home-cooked meals?" she said, a hint of excitement in her voice, she had never really cooked anything beyond the basics but how hard could it be? The plan she was forming was to keep Naruto inside when he wasn't training then Ino couldn't get her hooks into him

"Sure, Sakura, let's go," Naruto said enthusiastically, the idea of home-cooked meals sounded great to him, he only hoped she knew how to cook ramen.

He headed towards the only shop he knew of that would let him buy food. But when they reached the front of the overpriced 24-hour convenience store, Sakura stopped him.

"I think it would be better if we went to a regular store; this one only has junk food," Sakura explained.

"Regular store? What do you mean?" Naruto asked, confused but willing to follow Sakura's lead.

"Come on, let me take you to the one my mother used to send me to, it has everything," Sakura replied, locking arms with Naruto and guiding him back to the other side of the village where she grew up.

Sakura made it a point to walk down the most populated streets locking arms with Naruto daring anyone to say a word as they walked by. She was done letting people act like fools or worse, she never understood showing so much hate at someone containing the very thing that if unleashed would destroy them all. The idea of Naruto going down the path Gaara had taken was scary, with the Nine-Tails chakra released he would be near unstoppable and these idiots wanted to call him names.

Walking into the largest grocery story Naruto had ever seen, Sakura handed him a basket to carry as she headed down the isles she had walked a thousand times before only to be stopped by the store manager who came running out of his office when an old lady banged on his door to point them out.

"Excuse me, this is a cash-only store we don't offer credit.", he said looking at Naruto knowing the boy never had any money. Rumor had it that he owed that poor Raman stand owner a year's back pay. He wouldn't allow that in his store.

Sakura stopped Naruto from turning to leave and looked the man up and down as if he were trash to be taken out. She knew this was going to happen and had asked the bank manager for proof of his status as Naruto was in his little daze after learning of his heritage.

Without saying a word she pulled out the proof of Naruto's account and handed it over, as the man read and reread the note she stood there tapping her foot.

Yanking the paper back she said "Is that enough proof for you or do I have to call Naruto's Baa-Chan, you know the Hokage to talk to you?"

The idea that the Hokage was somehow related to the village pariah, this outcast with no family made him take a step back before saying, "No… There is no need for that, please enjoy my humble store and if you need anything, anything at all please see me." With those words still in the air the manager turned and almost ran back to his office calling in the hand clerk to tell them to leave Naruto and his girlfriend alone.

"What was that?", asked Naruto pointing at the paper still in Sakura's hand

"Oh, this is a note from the Clan Bank," she said loudly to all who could hear, "As a member in good standing at the Clan Bank you have funds to cover any purchase backed by the full credit of the Clan Bank." that last part she almost shouted as every eye was on her.

"Now that that is over let's shop.", she said in a lower voice heading deeper into the store as rumors and stories of what people thought they hurt started to spread out of the store into the village proper.

Entering the apartment after a normal and completely uneventful and to Naruto's mind BORING shopping trip he dropped the bags on the counter and sat down as Sakura started putting things in every cabinet and shelf she could find room in.

"I still think we should have stopped at Ichiraku Ramen on the way back.", said Naruto breaking rule 23 of the man code and restarting an argument they had already settled.

"No. I am going to cook so no more talk about Ramen, " came Sakura's reply as she started pulling out pots and pans Naruto didn't even know they had all the while chopping and cutting things he didn't know the names of into bite-sized pieces.

"OK, but is that supposed to be smoking," said Naruto after a few minutes as Sakura pulled the pan of burning onions off the stove. With every clatter of the pots and pans and each unrecognizable ingredient she added, Naruto's apprehension grew.

Suddenly, with a puff of steam, the lid on a pot soared towards the ceiling, ricocheted off the walls, and crashed onto the floor, sending bubbles of water splattering across the stovetop. Uncertain whether to offer help or run for his life, Naruto stood frozen in morbid curiosity as his once-peaceful kitchen transformed into a chaotic battleground, with Sakura clearly on the losing end.

With a scream, Sakura leaped back and watched as a blob of what was once potatoes crawled its way out of the pot and landed with a splat on the floor to lay there quivering as one of the pans burst into flames sending Naruto into action as he opened the door and windows.

Leaping over the blob to avoid its poisonous touch, Naruto turned off the stove and dropped a lid on the flames, moving swiftly to prevent the whole building from burning down. He avoided the hissing thing growing in the sink, a creature that Sakura had somehow managed to create without using any jutsu. Rejoining Sakura, Naruto found her staring at her total failure, frozen in disbelief at what had happened in the tiny kitchen.

Naruto surveyed the wreckage with a mixture of awe and horror. "Well, that was... something," he remarked, trying to suppress a grin as he stepped gingerly around a puddle of unidentifiable goo wiggling on the floor as it made its way to the living room.

Sakura looked like she'd seen a ghost, her eyes wide with disbelief. "I swear, I followed the recipe to the letter," she protested weakly, gesturing at the charred remains of what was once dinner.

"So… Ramen?" he said with a grin

...

After a visit from my sister, I dropped her off at the airport today and I am now free to write again. It was a fun visit and it did give me time to think of how I want to end this. I still have many chapters to go but for my fellow writers, you know the feeling you get when you know the ending.