I'M SO STUPID?
Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto.
Has anybody noticed the latest info they've been putting out in Naruto lately, where they are starting to either add a bunch of new info at the last minute where some of the things people believed in years turns out to be false? Annoying and disappointing, and if you want an example, look up the Flying Thunder God Technique.
I'm not going to do the arcs, or at least directly, that occur after Naruto's return, like the rescue Gaara arc, mention them after their return, but not do them because I haven't seen any of them and it would be making them more like one big guess.
And in case somebody missed the memo, or I forgot to throw it out, this will be a NaruSaku fic, no harem. This in turn gives me a chance to come up with a few interesting couples, and if anybody has any ideas, let me know.
It has been a month since dinner at the Harunos and a change that was long past due in the village that was starting to take place, although there will always be those few who either refuse to let go of the past, like the generation of villagers who still hold an unwarranted grudge, or the civilian council who wanted to have more control over a ninja village. In other words, a bunch of really stubborn dumbasses.
During that time, mobs have finally become a thing of the past due to the fact that two more were formed between then and now, and they both were dealt with by Naruto's two genjutsus, and like ripples going off in water at the same time, those same people are now telling their friends that the boy is really just a boy with a big burden. But, and there always seem to be a but somewhere, even that had limitations because some people are more pigheaded than most.
The biggest example would be, as always, the civilian council who are still out for blood due to Naruto bringing Konoha back to the path Minato would have had the village run if the Kyubi was still alive.
Flashback
The council was in a half swing, the half being the civilians on a warpath, while Tsunade and the clan heads were just busy either trying to count down until the cooling off period or keeping both Tsume and Tsunade from going all femme fatale (hope I typed that right) on them.
The main topic was that Naruto was actually defending himself from the villagers and they didn't like the fact that some of the villagers were starting to change their opinion of the boy, while the brave few who tried to attack him were defeated faster than Anko on a dango craving.
"That boy is getting out of control." One councilman said, trying not to use any of the usual nicknames in order to keep his head. "He's been attacking the villagers like some kind of animal." Before he could continue, he was bombarded by a large wave of Killer Intent from Tsume and Shibi, reminding them on which clan utilizes animals in their jutsus.
"If you haven't been treating him so poorly to begin with then you wouldn't have anything to worry about." Shibi said, "Life is full of actions and reactions and now that Naruto is finally reacting to the things you have done to him, you don't like it."
"You've got that right," Tsume said, really sore about the animal comment, "It's like how we tell our pups how we need to never assume anything," then taking a quick look at the other side of the room, "Well, most of us anyway," She got a glare from the Civilian Council because they knew that it was a crack at their expense, "Or else there will be consequences for their own stupidity and they are dumb enough to do it anyway."
"Yeah, just ask Kiba." Naruto said as he entered the room, "He thought that I would be easy pickings just because I was forced to play the dead last and he ended up beaten for his troubles." He then turned to give a glare at the civilians, "And yet by the next day is when these idiots decided to try and make sure I either lose to Neji in the first round or make sure I don't make it at all because they were afraid I might actually stand a chance against their precious Uchiha."
"And no matter what, you will never be better than Sasuke." One of them yelled out.
"Does that include your children as well because it seems like it was always Sasuke this or Sasuke that, it makes one wonder if you just threw kids aside, only to bring them up whenever I stand up to them and win." Naruto said, "Or is it because of the fact that not only did they fail the team test, yet none of them were able to land on the same team as Sasuke?" Deciding to add a little salt on the wound, "And to let you know, I am better than Sasuke in every way, always have been and he has even acknowledged it to me."
"That's because their kids are just a means to an end for them." Choza said, "With your class, the ones with daughters were hoping that not only would they end up on the same team Sasuke is on, they would also be able to get into the Uchiha's heart enough to become his wife."
"While also not only gaining more power by tricking an allegiance between his clan and their own, they would be able to have access to the clan's funds and bloodline." Inochi continued, "An old trick as old as time itself."
"Which leads to the question on wither the girls have any freewill at all or just pawns used by their parents to do what they want just for money and power." Shikaku said, "Which is just as old as the trick because they refuse to let their own children take over their own lives."
"Yeah, sounds similar to your basic fan girl." Naruto said, deciding on getting to the reason why he is here, "Back to why I'm here, well I was going over the books for both of my parents' clans and when I went to the bank, turns out both accounts were just about gone." This got everybody's attention, but for different reasons, Tsunade and the clan heads knew that the Namikaze clan had the largest account in the village, and when Kushina gave her clan's account, which were also the accounts for the entire Uzu village, then that would have made Naruto the richest person of all five nations combined (think trillions), while the civilians were looking nervous, "And when I confronted the bank manager about it, turns out that she didn't know anything about it because of the fact that she took over for the last one who mysteriously died while I was gone."
This got a lot of people's attention, especially the civilians who were hearing that for the first time, "If it is who you think it is then most of us know what you are talking about." Hiashi said, "Because around that time, my clans as well as the other ninja clans were noticing a big drop and when we, along with Lady Hokage who notices that the Senju Clan accounts were being drained more then what she gambled away, brought it up to the council. A week later was when we found out the head of the bank at the time was dead."
"Well it turns out that Danzo had a hand in that," Naruto said, the ninjas not surprised at this and the civilians shocked because of how far Danzo would go just to keep a secret, "Anyway, the bank manager was able to trace where the money went and now," He pulls out a small handful of papers from his cloak, "I'm filing a Return of Stolen Funds under the Clan Protection Clause in the village charter which states that if there is still at least one person still alive that everything that belongs to clan, which includes property, funds, etc."
After he handed the papers to Tsunade, one of the civilians spoke out, "You weren't register as a Namikaze at the time, so we felt entitled to put that money into good use." She said, "Besides, that money is spread out to fund programs throughout the village and the rest we have saved in banks outside of fire country."
"Yeah, my money, which was used not only for your own selfish gain, which was also done by that mummy and his two cohorts to not only give themselves a status boost, yet also to help fund the Foundation Army." Naruto said, before deciding to bring out the counter, "And to remind you that even though I wasn't a Namikaze, I was registered as an Uzumaki, whose accounts were tied to the Namikaze account through my mother, so which in turn meant that the money taken was still mine." This caused the civilians to pale a bit because the blonde is going to be the end of them, "And while it's true that I can't touch the money outside the country, the money you do have inside the village can be touched the same way you've been touching other people's money and used not only to refill what was lost as well as compensate for all of the wrong you have done on my expense." Seeing as his targets were making the Hyugas look brighter skin wise, he decided to go for the kill, "And you guys will be getting something similar from the Uchihas because I bumped into Sasuke at the bank and he was not happy."
Naruto decided to give them the kicker before making his exit, "From what he told me, his clan's account is even worse than mine meaning that you'll have two clans to repay." He said before he disappeared through a mini explosion of fire.
Flashback ends
And Naruto wasn't kidding when he said that not only were both Uchihas were pissed about being robbed, they also followed Naruto's lead and gave them the same papers, which caused the Civilian Council to turn on each other, the usual finger pointing and all that jazz. It didn't end there for them because all of the ninja clans found the same thing, followed suit and due to the clause stating that they can only leave the village with the clothes on their backs if they try to sneak out, now they not only los t their positions to people with common sense, now them and their families are as broke as Naruto was when he started out in life.
As for Naruto and Sakura, there relationship has improved, from acquaintance to friendship within a couple of weeks, with Naruto opening up enough to let Sakura in and Sakura learning to control her temper enough to save the hitting for when they spar.
Flashback #2
Naruto and Sakura are at small pizza joint that opened up a few months before Naruto's return, making it one of the few places that didn't only not know about Naruto as a child, but also didn't have reason to not serve him. They are sharing a deep dish pizza (think Chicago-style) while catching up on everything.
While keeping him up with the couples and gossip in Konoha that she received from Ino, Sakura was feeling better at the fact that her and Naruto were starting to get close. Not joined at hip close that her inner self keeps throwing her way just to show off her perverted side, but close enough to feel that her path to redemption has taken another step.
Naruto in return has been telling him what he has been doing since his return and what has been going on with their friends from around the world. He has seen that Sakura has taken his advice to heart and started to prove that she really wanted to have a strong future with him. Right now he was telling her about what happened at the council meeting that took place a couple of days ago and the results afterwards.
While news has spread like wildfire over how the Civilian Council were forced to become poor, or in some cases, again, it is different when you hear it from the source. Sakura had to beat down the food she just swallowed when Naruto told her that the Council was robbing Sasuke blind while trying to inflate his ego big enough to where hopefully he won't look into it.
When she recovered, "So you're saying that the Civilian Council have been taking advantage of Sasuke's trust just so they can gain access to his money?" She asked, getting a nod in return, "And if Sasuke caught them earlier, then how . . ." She was about to ask until she remembered which village she was in, and that one dark part of the past the villagers had put upon themselves, "Right, they would have pointed the finger at the village scapegoat knowing that the truth wouldn't set you free." Sakura couldn't help but feel more disappointed with her own villager because most of the people try to make other people responsible for all the bad in their lives, especially if they were trying to commit a crime, "And now they have to pay you back all the money they stole from your clans' accounts?"
"Mine, Uchiha, every single ninja clan in the village," Naruto answered, "And the clause also includes a nice little bonus where if they so much as try to make a break for it, the only thing they are allowed to leave with is the clothes on their backs while everything else is either sold or auctioned off to pay up what was owed." He explained, "And from the arguments I've been hearing lately, turns out some of them aren't even loyal to each other."
Sakura wasn't sure wither to feel sick or giggle like crazy. Sick at the fact that these people would stab everybody in the back, including their 'friends' and the giggles because of the fact that karma was not the only thing biting them in the ass. Deciding that now would be a good time to change the topic, "So besides training and fixing all the wrongs in the village, what have you been doing lately?" She asked.
Giving a small sigh before answering, "I've been doing some research on Uzushio, mainly trying to find out where it is located." Naruto answered, getting her attention, "While I've been learning plenty of things about my father's clan and its history, the only thing I've picked up on my mother's is just from what she left behind and whatever tidbit I can get from Jiraiya and Tsunade that right now, I'm still feeling clueless."
Flashback ends
Since then Sakura helped both blondes with their research, as well as to give them some closure. Naruto for learning more about his mother and the Uzumaki Clans, and for Tsunade to learn about the village that her grandmother, Mito Uzumaki, came from.
Now here we are at the end of the month, where right now Team Kakashi and Team Gai, with the assistance from both Itachi and Kisame, are out on a rescue to Suna to get Gaara out of the clutches of Akatsuki. Unfortunately for Ayame, who was finally getting back on the dating scene with Itachi, and Yugao, who fell in love with Kisame due to him being a fellow swordsman, they have to wait for their boyfriends to come back to them.
At the moment Ino was looking for her boyfriend who vanished after she mentioned the words "You have to go on a diet." When she was warned by both Naruto and Shikamaru on using the word that was considered taboo to the Akimichi Clan, now she knows why. A clan that loves food to a point where it acts like fuel for their jutsus, the last thing you want to say to them is that they want to cut the intake by at least half.
When she rounded a corner, she encountered Ami, one of the last people she would ever want to encounter. "Oh look, its little miss perfect walking with us common folk." Ami said with venom.
Ino gave a small sigh at this. As much as she wanted to just ignore her and keep hunting for her boyfriend, right now she needed to give this girl a long overdue wake up call. The main reason she wanted to do this was because not only were they both devas during the academy, in a way, Ino could see what could have been her if she didn't get her act together when she became a genin, which also led to her questioning what it would have been like if she did end up on a team with Sasuke and Naruto instead of Sakura. Would she be a spoiled brat trying to impress the rookie year by sacrificing her health and training while torturing the so-called demon dead-last for kicks? Or would she have been able to swallow her pride and open her eyes wide enough to realize what was expected of her, both as a ninja and as a person.
"Look Ami, this is something that is past due, so here it is," Ino started to say, "But grow up already and make your own choices for a change." This caught Ami by surprise because she was expecting a battle of the bitches, not a verbal slap to the face, ""All your life you've been doing everything you're parents told you to do and you are nothing more than a pawn to them."
While Ami was mad, while also in denial, about the truth, Shikamaru came walking up. "Hey Shika, do you know where Choji went?" Ino asked, "I said what you told me not to and he moved faster than he did when somebody offers him barbeque."
Shikamaru gave a small, troublesome sigh, before answering, "Yeah, he should be at his clan's compound." He answered, "You might want to wait a day or two before you try to approach him because the entire Akimichi would try to protect him from you."
Ino let her head fall down a bit, "Yeah, I kind of expected that since I let my mouth get the best of me." She said, "Anyway, I'll go see if any of the other girls want to have a little time out."
Ami finally got tired of being ignored, "What do you mean I'm nothing more than a pawn to them?" She practically screamed out, "My parents love me; they always look out for me."
"And when you failed to not only secure a spot on Sasuke's Team, yet become a genin altogether, how did they react?" Shikamaru asked, getting a sad look in return, "Here is another question, if by some chance you were able to get Sasuke to fall in love with you, then what was supposed to happen?" When Ami gave him a look asking if he was some kind of idiot, making it too troublesome for Shikamaru to say the word itself, "What I'm saying is that where will your loyalties lie most, with Sasuke or your parents?"
When Ami looked confused, Ino stepped in, "What he saying is that your love for Sasuke, or even Naruto, are nothing more than a way for your parents to gain access to power and money that don't belong to them." She said.
"What do you mean don't belong to them!" Ami yelled out, "Everything belongs to them!"
Shikamaru shook his head at this, "Does that mean you are nothing more than property to them?" He asked, before walking away.
Ami was mad because nobody was bowing down to her like she was used to. Ino decided that she just wanted to get away from this pathetic girl, "And to let you know, your parents don't own a damn thing, including me." She said, "It's that attitude that got them busted for stealing money from the wrong people."
When she was left behind, the only thing Ami felt like doing is to go home to mama.
A couple of hours later, *BAM* a familiar white missile could be seem flying from the Hokage Tower. What was going on was this:
Tsunade was filling the Toad Sage in on what happened with Naruto and council and he gave two responses, shocked which lead into extreme laughter. He hated the Civilian Council because like the Main, they acted like a virus that tried to spread its influence into everything. Another is that they tried to get him into keeping an account in Konoha only to get a hearty fuck you in return because he suspected that somehow Danzo was able to find out how well off he was.
When he recovered, "Man, not only does that boy have balls of solid iron, he knows how to back it up." Jiraiya said, "I wish I was there to see somebody bill the Council."
Tsunade had a serious look on her face, even though she was giving off an evil smirk on the inside, "Speaking of bills, here is yours." She said, getting a surprised look form the pervert when she tossed him a scroll, "Courtesy of Naruto."
Looking over the scroll, seeing that Naruto kept not only the amounts taken from him, yet also the dates, which started from their trip to find Tsunade all the way to the end of their first year together traveling, as well as including the money he helped himself to when Minato was around. "What, that brat is actually expecting me to pay him!?" Jiraiya yelled out, "Especially the times I borrowed money from Minato."
While she enjoys seeing the pervert act like this, "Yeah, Naruto told me that those are for all the times you tricked them out of money just so you can use it on booze and bitches." She then turned serious, "Although Naruto also told me that you were loaded thanks to your other job, I'm curious on why would you rob your own students of the money that they might need for something more important, like bills or something."
"Well for one, I'm banned from most of the banks in the village because I pissed off all the female staff that work there." Jiraiya explained, not fully aware of his surroundings, "Plus I usually manage to get away before they can even try to utter a no."
This was when Jiraiya felt like death was upon him. He looked up and knew that no matter how he said that, there would be no right way to avoid the pounding heading his way. Standing in front of him was Tsunade Senju raising her foot, "Well consider this payback for nearly ruining their lives." She said before launching him through the winder, courtesy of a strong kick between the legs.
A couple of hours later were when the teams returned from Suna and after noticing the look on their faces. "As nice as it is to see that everyone is back alive and well," Tsunade started to say, "But what's with the look on your faces?"
This was when Naruto said the sad shocker, "Obito Uchiha is still alive and is with Akatsuki."
Here is the latest chapter, which includes a little cliffhanger. Sorry it took a while, I've been sorting out story ideas, and while at the same time making sure nothing gets left hanging. Plus with all the last minute extras being thrown into the series, it makes writing these stories a bit too troublesome. Have a Happy New Year. Read a & Review.