-Konoha – Three Days after Raid on Orochimaru's Base-

Task Force Anaconda appeared in a yellow flash outside of Konoha's gates and stunned the hell out of Izumo and Kotetsu. Kotetsu was reclining back in his chair with his head hanging back and drool dribbling down his left cheek. When the flash went off, he was instinctively startled and fell backwards in his chair, which earned a round of laughter from the newly arrived group. Izumo had been leaning against the guard shack and he startled so heavily that he gave himself whiplash. Recomposing himself, Izumo's eyes widened when he saw the group.

"Holy shit, Naruto, I will never, ever get used to that." Izumo said through his stupor.

Kotetsu rose from behind the guard shack and saw a shit-eating grin on Naruto's face. He yawned sleepily and rubbed the bump on the back of his head. "Damnit, Naruto. Did you have to put your beacon right outside the guard shack?"

Naruto chuckled and cocked an eyebrow at the lazy duo, "Maybe if you weren't napping it wouldn't startle you so much. Anyway, we are back, we have some guests/prisoners. Mind calling the ANBU for us."

Shisui piped in here, "Already have. ANBU tattoo, remember?"

Naruto scratched the back of his neck sheepishly, "Oh, yeah. Never been a part of the corps. Kinda forgot about that."

Tsunade ruffled Naruto's hair, "It's okay kiddo. Leave a clone behind and sign us in. One of you two, will you notify the Hokage and council of our return? Tell Itachi to call an emergency meeting."

Izumo straightened up quick and snapped a salute, "Yes, Lady Tsunade!"

"Why do they do that for you? They always throw a cheap jab at me when I sign in." Jiraiya pouted.

Kotetsu suppressed a laugh and coughed, "Lord Jiraiya, you typically don't sign in. And when you do, well … you always joke with us, so we return the favor."

Naruto slapped a hand on Jiraiya's shoulder, "Yeah, Mr. Super Pervert Grandfather. You earned it."

After a round of laughter from the Task Force, a group of ANBU and a couple civilians showed up at the front gate. Naruto had two master scrolls linked around his back from all of the items sealed, Jiraiya had an extra master scroll on top of his usual one, Tsunade had two and almost everyone else was carrying one as well. The sacking of Otogakore came with a lot of items sealed over the last five days.

The victorious group handed off the prisoner and stasis scrolls to the ANBU forces and they enjoyed their victory lap as they walked through Konoha towards the Hokage tower. They drew many looks and evidently some of the citizens had heard about their mission to Oto. Crowds began gathering around and asking questions, but they were repeatedly told that they would need to wait for the announcement from the Hokage.

Guy, Kakashi, Kurenai and Asuma had come to join their previous teams after news had spread. They walked behind the young Task Force with proud looks on their faces and they decided to accompany them into the council chambers. By the time they entered, the joint council of Konoha was summoned once more. Naruto hated this big council, and he preferred the new council setup, but he figured not even this big council could hate on him now.

Task Force Anaconda halted in the center of the council chambers and waited for the Hokage to address them. Naruto noticed that Madame Shijimi was holding her tablet facing outward and Naruto gave a quick wink to Kinji before turning his eyes back toward Itachi. The mutterings of the room quickly quieted, and Itachi rose from his Hokage chair.

"Welcome back, Task Force Anaconda. I have shared your overall victory with the council already, but I have not heard the results. Naruto Senju-Uzumaki, please inform this council of what happened during your mission."

Naruto bowed and began to address the council while Tsunade watched on with a proud smirk on her face. "Objectives one, two and three are all complete. We moved from Kumo and attacked Otogakore from the North. We used my Sage mode to locate enemy locations and shinobi. We encountered Orochimaru and his main base on the third day after sacking nearly 20 of his labs and killing nearly 40 Oto shinobi."

Naruto was forced to pause here as the mutterings of the council became too loud for him to speak in an inside voice. Itachi banged his gavel and the room quieted down. He then addressed the council, "Joint council, most of you are guests here. Please remain silent until I call for your opinions. The next person to disturb this meeting will be forced to leave and fined $1,000. Now, please continue, Naruto."

Naruto flashed a smile toward Itachi. He truly appreciated his new control over the council. "I sensed Orochimaru from a way out and I sensed multiple powerful chakra signatures moving toward his main base. It seems like he planned to ambush us, but we turned it around on him. I set up a total isolation barrier to lock the snake in. Task Force Anaconda proceeded to decimate over 300 enemy shinobi, which included Orochimaru, Kabuto, the last Kagaya and many others."

There was a slight paused and Shikaku got approval to ask a question. "Naruto, you said that was day three. What have you been doing since then?"

Naruto answered with a smile, "Rather than leave a job half done, we completed our sweep of the Land of Rice paddies. We destroyed a total of 113 bases, and I don't care to think about the amount of enemy shinobi killed. I would rather tell this council that my task force saved the lives of over 1,000 civilians and other test subjects. We guided the survivors to the Daimyo of Rice country. Lord Kinji helped pressure him to provide shelter and safe passage to them. Thank you for that, Lord Kinji."

Madame Shijimi chuckled, "He said you are most welcome, my boy."

Mikoto stood up, "What of Sasuke?"

Naruto offered a sincere and understanding smile to Mikoto, "Teams 7, 9 and 10 fought Sasuke. He was a fearsome opponent with the cursed seal of heaven that is level two. My clone intervened when it looked like they were going to suffer casualties. Sasuke is currently in ANBU's care and was transported along with other shinobi of interest via stasis scroll."

Mikoto's hands clasped over her mouth. "Is he … is he going to be okay?"

Tsunade took a step forward and joined Naruto, "Medically, other than the effects of the cursed seal, he is fine. Psychologically, we will need to be careful moving forward. The first priority will be removing and containing the cursed seals. Orochimaru uses the seals as a form of immortality and body transfer. He places a piece of his soul in each seal and that has very negative effects."

Itachi decided to help his mother, "Tayuya, could you explain the cursed seal more and describe what it was like to be freed from it?"

Tayuya looked sheepish, but she stepped next to Naruto. "Lord Hokage, that fuckin' seal is a goddamn nightmare. It is like you are living on the edge of an abyss and the slightest tip of your emotions drags you into it. When you are in the abyss, you watch yourself do things you wouldn't normally do. It perverts your desires and corrupts your soul." Mikoto started crying here and Tayuya's tone softened. "Once I was free from it, I felt like myself for the first time in years. Orochimaru put the seal on me when I was ten. I used it often until Naruto removed it from me when I was 14. I believe Sasuke, and the others, will be okay, but the seal needs to be removed before you could possibly consider fixing anything else."

Everyone looked with pity towards Mikoto and Itachi. Itachi shook himself out of his despair and addressed Naruto. "Will you be able to remove it safely?"

Naruto smirked confidently, "With my new Sage mode, it will be even easier than before. I didn't do it in the field because there were other priorities, and he was safe in a stasis scroll."

Itachi nodded, "Very well, I will now open the floor with questions. Civilians will be asked to hold their questions seeing as this is a shinobi matter."

Hiashi stood up, "You said you have other shinobi, why did you save them?"

Naruto shrugged, "I saved an Uzumaki with a powerful sensory ability called the eye of Kaguya. I saved a crystal release user, a man that can enter Sage mode naturally named Jugo, a male from the Hozuki clan and a couple others. As you can see, each person could bring value to Konoha. If not voluntarily, then by force if necessary."

Hiruzen perked up at the mention of an Uzumaki, "You found a true Uzumaki?"

Naruto stiffened slightly, "Yes, Karin Uzumaki. I felt her chakra and know it to be true. After checking the family registry, the is the daughter of my mother's cousin."

"And what is your plan for her?" Hiruzen followed up.

"Family above all, always and forever." Naruto answered simply, which earned groans from the council. "For those of you that don't know, I am the heir to Daimyo of the Land of Eddies and Land of Waves. Karin will be offered the chance to return to her homeland and join my family."

More groans from the council until someone shouted, "What? So, you are just going to abandon Konoha?" Itachi made a hand signal and ANBU dragged the man out by the collar of his shirt. Still, the question had been asked and Naruto needed to announce his intentions sooner or later.

Naruto flashed into his Golden Sage Mode and looked around at the shinobi and civilians gathered. "I abandon nobody. I am honoring my ancestors by accepting the responsibility of the Daimyo role. I am rebuilding my homeland and Wave has requested annexation upon my 21st birthday. I will serve Konoha as a shinobi until then. For those of you that weren't there the first time I said this, I will say it again. If you think you can control me, you can't. If you think you can manipulate me, you can't. If you think I will be contained to Konoha, you are delusional. If you dare harm those I love, I offer nothing but death. Alas, if you stay out of my way, I will make Konoha thrive along with the rest of our allies. I will help the Elemental Nations move out of its current cycle and upon my 21st birthday, I will do so from Uzushiogakore."

Naruto's chakra was warm, and his feelings were conveyed openly through it. The weight of his chakra added emphasis and conviction to every word. Silence followed his statement and Naruto could feel a variety of emotions. Some felt betrayed, some felt sad, some felt repentant and there was a significant amount of greed and lust. It disgusted Naruto and he really wanted to get out of this joint council. It wasn't necessary to move things forward.

Itachi stood and looked around the council chamber, "Understand this. Naruto is under my protection, the Daimyo's protection and the protection of our allies. It was on Lord Kinji's insistence that he revive Uzushiogakore…"

"Why would you let our strongest shinobi leave the village?" Someone shouted and got murmurs of approval before that person was dragged out of the chamber.

Itachi flared his chakra and activated his Sharingan. "Silence! It is fools like that man that are the reason the Senju clan will leave Konoha!" More shouts before Itachi flared up even more and ANBU got involved. "Shut. The. Fuck. Up. You are guests in my council chambers. You were called here to listen to a mission report. Nothing more, nothing less. You will keep you mouths shut during my proceedings. In fact, ANBU, please escort the civilians aside from the core council out of the chambers. I am through with them."

Task Force Anaconda and many shinobi watched on with an obvious amusement as the so-called 'influential' civilian family heads were escorted from the council chambers while protesting loudly. After ten minutes, a blessed silence overtook the council chambers once more and everyone took a second to recenter themselves. Finally, Itachi spoke once more.

"Now, there is more to be covered. What did the Rice Daimyo have to say about our activities in Rice country?"

Madame Shijimi spoke up here, "He was forced to sanction it. Between Wind, Lightning, Fire and Wave, he had no alternative. He has signed an agreement not to harbor another shinobi village for the next ten years. He is free to contract with other shinobi villages, but he cannot harbor his own force other than a samurai contingent."

"What of Orochimaru's remains?" Hiruzen asked, feeling slightly guilty about the death of his old pupil.

Jiraiya giggled, "Hime smashed him. Wasn't much left and all that was left was incinerated."

Tsunade locked eyes with Hiruzen, "I fought Orochimaru. He didn't even last 15-minutes. I should also mention that I killed Manda and two of his oldest children also died to our task force."

Anko spoke up here, "I will have to go to Ryuchi cave and speak with the White Snake Sage to figure out the snake summoning contract moving forward. Sasuke also has the snake contract, but after he used his Sharingan on the snake summons, I doubt he will remain a summoner."

Itachi nodded, "Very well. When that happens, I will expect a status update."

Chouza Akimichi spoke up next, "Were their any casualties on the task force?"

Tsunade fielded this question, "All injuries were treatable in the field. After the amount of shinobi we faced and traps we triggered, it was inevitable. That being said, every member made it back in full health."

Chouza retook his seat and Inoichi stood. "Naruto, I will call you to Tandi tomorrow to remove the seals. What is your assessment of the prisoners?"

"Guren will be your biggest challenge. For reasons unknown, she was loyal to Orochimaru. They will each require extensive counseling and screening. Jugo is a safety risk and will need to be sealed until I can develop a seal to help him control his natural energy. You will also have to partner with the hospital because each of Orochimaru's followers were given a variety of strength-enhancing drugs. In time, I believe they are all convertible or useable given enough time." Naruto answered.

After fielding some more questions from the clan heads, Itachi was going to bring the meeting to a close when Naruto spoke up. "Lord Hokage, I request an audience with you and Lord Hiashi. I have uncovered sensitive information that I need to discuss with you two."

"Very well, the council is dismissed. Hiashi, are you free?" Itachi asked.

Hiashi nodded formally, "Yes, Lord Hokage."

Itachi, Hiashi, Naruto, Jiraiya and Tsunade moved into the Hokage's office and Naruto set up the privacy barrier for the group. They each got comfortable before Naruto spoke.

"Hizashi is under my protection and is residing in Uzushiogakore." Naruto said, which earned faces of stunned disbelief.

Hiashi, who's professional visage had completely collapsed, stuttered out, "Wha … wha … say what?"

-Flashback – First Morning of Snake Hunt-

The clone Naruto formed while meditating moved out toward the two signatures he had sensed. They were in the mountains of Lightning country, and they were heading towards Kumo. That meant that Naruto needed to get involved and stop them before anything else happened. The clone masked its presence by coating itself in nature chakra and closed the distance between his two queries.

The clone continued to observe the two all day and watched as they scanned Kumo from a couple miles out. Naruto had already written to Ai and told him that he was tailing two Akatsuki. He told him to keep Bee and Yugito in the city and have a quick response squad ready for a signal. Ai had reluctantly agreed, and Naruto had informed his clone by quickly dispelling one clone. Finally, night settled on the two and the Naruto wood clone tracked them to a cave. He waited for a moment to ambush the two and sank into the ground without leaving a trace.

Kisame liked fighting strong opponents and he joined the Akatsuki for that express purpose. He hadn't been disappointed thus far, but he sincerely hated always sleeping on the ground. He enjoyed having Hizashi with him because the ranged of the dudes Byakugan was insane and basically guaranteed that they couldn't be sneaked up on. Plus, the Hyuga was super polite, especially for a missing ninja. All in all, Kisame admitted that he had the best partner in the Akatsuki, and he trusted Hizashi, at least a little bit.

Kisame took the second shift, which meant that he got to rest his weary eyes. He hated Kumo because he was in high altitude and the mountains didn't have much water. Therefore, he ended the day feeling dehydrated and exhausted. He lay in his sleeping bag with Samehada by his side. The shark skin sword snuggled into him and enjoyed snacking on his chakra overnight. Then, he was startled awake as strong wooden bindings lashed over his body and constricted him tightly.

"What the fuck!" Kisame shouted.

"Screee!" Samehada screeched as the golden wood clone placed its hand on Samehada. Kisame watched on in horror as Samehada ceased writhing and turned into stone. The sword was the greatest creation of Kirigakore and it had its own independent chakra system. That was why Kisame couldn't understand what was happening. Why was Samehada not simply absorbing the chakra?

The Naruto clone left the sword in a stoney state and placed its hand on Kisame's head. Kisame screamed as an unfamiliar energy entered his system. It overloaded his coils in a strange way and for the briefest instant, he felt more powerful. However, his body couldn't use this chakra and he watched on in morbid fascination as his fingers, toes, hands and feet began turning into stone. Then, the clone was forced to release its hold on Kisame as Hizashi came blurring forward with hands glowing with chakra.

The clone dodged as it formed the snake seal and Kisame screamed as the wooden bindings turned thorny and tightened around him. Between the petrification of his hands and feet and the pain of the wooden thorns, Kisame could barely track the fight that was raging around the cave. He breathed out a sigh of sweet release when the wood stopped constricting and he was simply left immobilized. He sent the emergency signal through his ring and hoped that help would arrive in time.

Hizashi struggled in his fight against the wood clone, and he could tell that the clone was guiding the fight outside of the cave. This was his first contact with Naruto since he left the village, so he decided to go along with it because he could tell the clone was holding back on him. Then, the clone grabbed him and literally chucked him to the mountain that was adjacent to the current one and Hizashi was no longer sure that Naruto was holding back.

The Naruto clone smirked devilishly as he watched the black cloak sail across the gap between mountains and slam into it. He winced at the size of the indent and force of the impact, but it simply shrugged its shoulders before flashing over to Hizashi. The clone appeared above Hizashi with a palm extended and Hizashi couldn't fully dodge the impact of the clone's hand. He felt his body begin to stiffen before it locked up completely and he was caught in wooden bindings.

"How long do we have to talk before the fake Madara shows up in his spacetime jutsu?" Naruto asked.

Hizashi breathed a sigh of relief knowing that Naruto wasn't going to kill him. "If Kisame activated the ring, then it could only be a minute or two."

Naruto nodded, "Do you wish to leave the Akatsuki and have a chance to reconnect with your son?"

Hizashi didn't even hesitate before his stoic façade cracked and nodded eagerly. "Yes, I believe I have enough information."

The Naruto clone nodded sadly, "Okay then, this is gunna hurt. The ring is the connection to the Akatsuki, right?" Hizashi nodded with a hesitant look on his face. "I'll be as quick as possible."

The Naruto clone activated the wooden bindings through the snake seal and thorny vines pierced Hizashi all over in non-vital places. Naruto acted quickly and severed the finger that held the Akatsuki ring, and he ripped the Akatsuki cloak off of Hizashi. He then used a widescale 'Mokuton – Violent Deep Forest Emergence', which covered the mountain in viny trees.

The trees avoided Hizashi, who looked confused by the display. Then, ten clones sprouted around the pair and began having a crazy fight that began making craters and devastating the mountain. Pieces of the cloak were scattered everywhere, and the mountain looked as if a terrifying battle took place before a golden flash illuminated the dark of the mountain. Then, massive fireballs were shot into the air and toward the mountain that held Kisame. This was Kumo's cue to send the quick reaction force and the clones dispelled themselves.

Hizashi opened his eyes as he heard the sound of the sea and he realized that he was in an oceanside home that looked out over the island and ocean. He looked at the clone, who offered him a simple smile as its hands glowed green and the warm comfort of the healing chakra encompassed his wounds. Hizashi soaked in the healing chakra, and he was content to wait for Naruto to begin the conversation.

"So, Hizashi, I guess I should start by telling you I am a wood clone."

Hizashi blinked, and then blinked again, before his eyes went wide in disbelief. "You bested two 'S' rank shinobi, and you are a wood clone?"

The Naruto clone simply shrugged and kept healing Hizashi. He grabbed Hizashi's right hand and made him wince as the clone began regrowing his finger. "Boss gave me Kurama's chakra and I can enter my full sage mode. To be fair, I also ambushed Kisame, and you weren't really trying to fight me."

Hizashi nodded dumbly before snapping out of it. "You said I could reconnect with Neji and that I could leave the Akatsuki. Could you explain that for me?"

The clone chuckled as it kept at its work, "Boss is the Daimyo of these lands. He has already talked with Lord Kinji and Lord Hoto. They will grant your pardon in return for your service as an undercover agent." The clone paused its healing and reach into the pockets of its pants and pulled out the sealing scroll and letter. "This will let you connect with your son. When the time is right, like when I get back to the village, I will bring Neji here."

Hizashi began shedding tears as his white eyes watered over and went misty. "Thank you."

The clone shrugged before resuming its healing, "Don't thank me, thank the boss. He felt super bad this whole time that he couldn't help you. That being said, if you could write up an intelligence report, that would be appreciated."

Hizashi nodded, "Yes, Lord Senju."

The clone visibly cringed, "None of that nonsense, Hizashi. It is just Naruto. We just need to know what is going on in Amegakore and Iwagakore. Also, how are Pain and Konan doing?"

Hizashi seemed shocked by that, "How do you know the leader and his angel?"

The clone laughed, "Secret. Anyway, I know the leader because he is a cousin of mine, and I had a chat with him a couple years back. Konan was also in on that conversation. Anyway, any updates on Akatsuki before I dispel and let boss know?"

Hizashi looked down at the ground, "They caught and sealed the three tails. Iwa's completely under their thumb and they are ready to move. They also have 10,000 white zetsu clones that they can use to attack. The plant monsters can copy any chakra signature that they absorb. The first target is Suna, after Daedara and Sasori capture the one-tail."

The Naruto clone was shocked, "Are they moving on Gaara already?"

Hizashi shrugged, "Our last meeting was three days ago. We were told to scout Kumo and their jinchuriki and Daedara and Sasori were sent to Suna."

The clone nodded, "Alright, I am going to dispel and let the boss know."

-End of Flashback-

It was Hiashi that spoke first, "Why did you never tell me of your arrangement with Hizashi?"

Naruto shrugged, "Why would I make you a traitor by proxy? I have immunity and it is within my rights as a Daimyo to pardon him. I have already spoken to Lord Kinji and Lord Hoto, and they agreed to pardon him. I simply took advantage of this opportunity to extract him."

Itachi coughed, "Look, the Hyuga business is important, but you are telling me that you took out Kisame Hoshigaki, the strongest of the Seven Swordsmen of the Mist, with a wood clone?"

Naruto sighed, "No, sadly I did not. I thought I had him tied up and that Kumo would collect him, but Madara showed up and extracted him." Then a feral smirk graced Naruto's face. "Although, he isn't nearly as much of a threat without his precious sword."

Tsunade laughed, which made Itachi ask another question. "How did you disable his sword though? Won't the effect wear off?"

Naruto laughed with Tsunade and Jiraiya, which made Itachi look around in confusion. "Well, any Sage would know that natural energy poisoning isn't reversible, especially with a sword that only has a simplistic chakra network. It is basically a stone club now."

Itachi sighed and rubbed his temples, "Why didn't you just kill him?"

Naruto stopped laughing abruptly, "Because I want the Akatsuki to fear me. I want them to feel hunted. I want them to know that only death awaits them at the end of their current path. I simply didn't feel like dealing with a chakra eating sword that is a cheat code. Plus, this was an alibi for Hizashi, and I can finally live up to my promise to Neji."

Hiashi bowed low to Naruto, "Lord Senju, thank you for taking care of my brother." Hiashi then rose and bowed toward the Hokage. "Lord Hokage, could you please allow Neji a week of leave so that he may reconnect with his father."

Itachi nodded over his folded hands, "Yes, I will allow it. Naruto, I know you know that he can't come back to Konoha. It would cause far too many issues."

Naruto nodded, "I know. I have allied the Uzumaki and Senju clans to the Hyuga clan. Now, we just have to negotiate a start to the Uzu branch of the Hyuga clan."

Hiashi looked confused at Naruto, "Come again?" He said in startled confusion.

Tsunade stepped in, "We are going to harbor Hizashi. He can still find a second wife and start the Hyuga clan. If Neji is allowed to transfer once the island is up and running, then we will be able to start a Hyuga branch. We wanted to be up front with our intentions to the Hyuga clan."

Hiashi looked lost in thought before he slowly nodded, "That will do for now. We can't do anything official until he is pardoned. When the time comes, we will form a stronger bond between our clans. I have already approved the Suna branch, so one more won't matter." Itachi, Tsunade and Jiraiya looked at him for further explanation. "I approve the engagement of my daughter Hinata to Subaku no Gaara."