The council walked down a plain hallway and deep into the bowels of the administration building. The six person council arrived at the Hokages office. The office was flanked by 4 mask and robe clad ANBU. One opened the door as the council approached.

Minato walked around his desk and sat. Each councillor was brought a chair by a waiting ANBU who then promptly faded into the shadows.

"Shall we continue?" Tsunade asked

"Yes. Sai has been sponsored for the upcoming promotion trials. He Muta Aburame and Koen Nohara will be tested as squad captains. We have several other shinobi who will be assessed for ANBU suitability" Jiraiya replied.

"We have lined up several targets for elimination. They will complete the elimination under the supervision of Jiraiya, The Captain of Green Platoon Gecko, ANBU Deputy commander Dekai and the Hokage's personal representative." Koharu replied.

"Who are the targets?" Tsunade asked

"We have a big fish for them. A group we have been looking for, for a while that ANBU trio" Jiraiya replied eyeing the other councillors

"They have been located?!" Homura said as he shot out of his chair.

"My contact in the Village Hidden in the Jungle in the Land of Humidity located them. They have apparently set up shop there." Jiraiya continued.

"Should we not send a more seasoned group of ninja to make sure the mission goes well?" Koharu questioned.

"Don't worry they will not get away. Myself and Dekai are more than a match for them. If you add Captain Gecko into the mix we should be able to kill them without issue." Jiraiya said with a wave of his hand.

"I will be sending Torune as my personal representative. His skills will allow them to track the targets no matter where they run. Jiraiya please ensure his tracking Jutsu is applied prior to the assassination attempt." 4th Hokage said

The old sage simply knodded. "They will not get away. I promise that" the Toad Sage said with confidence.

"Good then that's settled. Shall we discuss the team members for Naruto?" Hiruzen added.

"Yes I've thought long and hard and I will be appointing several black platoon members to his squad. Two will pose as chunin and one will pose as a tokojo." Minato said.

"Ah that seems wise." Homura added.

"Who have you selected." Tsunade questioned.

"I have decided Eiji, Junko Inuzuka and Ryūjin Senju" Minato replied.

"An excellent team. Both powerful Tokojos in Ejij and Junko and then Ryūjin is an S-Rank an equal match for even Kakashi" Jiraiya said in acceptance.

"I will however need to add more shinobi into Black platoon to compensate for the loss." Minato added.

"I'm sure you can take 3 members from the current roster. Especially with the new recruits we have set to be trialed" Jiraiya replied warily.

Jiraiya eyed Minato 'what are you up to' he thought to himself.

"Jiraiya is right we will have a surplus of both ANBU candidates and squad captains after this trails intake." Hiruzen agreed.

"We actually will need to hold another trail soon. I plan on expanding Black Platoon to company size. This will mean adding two additional teams and a more in depth command team." Minato said.

"This is unacceptable" Homura blurted out.

"Hokage with all do respect. The village already expends a considerable amount of funds on maintaining Black Platoon. A company would be an unacceptable expense."Koharu added.

"You already have so many strong ninja sequestered under your direct command. Imagine the strength of the regular forces if those men and women were added. Or the boon to the mission department." Tsunade interjected.

"Minato expansion of Black Platoon at this time is not a good move. Let's table this for a few weeks and….." Minato interjected cutting his old sensei off.

"I was not aware this was a discussion? Have I asked for permission? Do I need to ask for permission? Am I now beholden to this council?" He asked as his mood had clearly grown darker

"You are beholden to no one. As long as you are acting in the best interest of the village. You should however heed the advice of this council as I implemented it so many years ago to lessen the burden on the Hokage." The Third said.

"I have made my decision we will move onto the next topic. I believe it is the dispute between the lord of Tau province and Leme Province" Minato replied.

"We are not children!" Homura yelled with anger.

"Homura enough" Koharu practically barked.

"No I will not be quiet. You think you can do what ever you want that you can divert village resources to carry out your own missions to go where you please and kill who you please. This ends now. Your black platoon is far worse than Root ever was and you killed Danzō. You killed my friend for the very acts you now perpetrate"

"Enough you fool. He is your Hokage and you will speak to him with respect!" Hiruzen shouted.

"No I will not be silenced. This boy changed all our plans. He refuses to unify the nine tails now that Naruto can control it. He modified the Seal on Sai to allow him access to the chakra. He's building his own black ops unit that is accountable to no one. He hides spies within our allies and mongers for war to settle old disputes. His worst transgression is that he has made his hier apparent Kakashi Hatake! That man is the spitting image of the Hokage!"

"And what do you mean by that Homura!?" Minato demanded.

Homura paused looking around the room. Hiruzen shot a stern look at him as if to tell him not to speak another word. The tension hung thick in the air. It was Jiraiya of all people to break the tension.

"What he means is that Kakashi is seen as a killer. Nothing more nothing less. He is a well known and skilled shinobi. But he has spent so much time in the ANBU that it's hard to see him as anything other than your hand picked killer."

Minato looked at his old sensei. He saw the gaint of a man slump into his seat in a relaxed manner.

"We all know Kakashi is a capable ninja. Perhaps he is the strongest candidate for the job. But his name is spoken in hushed tones at the edge of conversation. He is known to be your right hand and your right hand is soaked in blood. For the jonin to accept him as our next Hokage he needs to step out of your shadow." As Jiraiya spoke he didn't even look at Minato.

A silence hung in the air for what seemed like an hour but was mere seconds.

The Third Hokage broke the tension by clearing his throat. "Ehhmm perhaps we table this conversation for another time."

Minato stared deeply at his old teacher. For his part the giant of a man never looked back. He continued to sit slumped in his chair eyes pinned to the wall.

"We should discuss village affairs." The Third continued.

"There has been an increase in requests for medical support all over the Land of Fire. Many are simple alignments that a first year medic can treat. Currently I do not have the man power to answer all the calls." Tsunade interrupted in an attempt to distract for the more contentious conversation.

"What support do you need to meet these needs" Minato asked. His eyes were pinned on Jiraiya never leaving him.

"If you could spare some of the older genin who don't have much prospect of being promoted. I can roster them with a chunin medic and send those teams out. We can have them learn basic first aid, carry supplies, screen patients and treat superficial wounds. It will greatly reduce the burden on my forces and allow us to meet the needs of missions teams, the regular forces and fulfill our obligation to the land of fire." Tsunade explained

"Our contracts with many nobles include medical services for their people. I would agree with Tsunade's plan" Koharu added

"It sounds fine with me. I would like to discuss some changes in leadership though" Minato stated

"Oh what changes would that be" the Third asked

"Well for starters it's time for Torfui to retire." Minato replied.

"He has held the position of mission commander since its inception" Koharu protested.

"You can't simple remove him the man single handedly created that role" Homura barked.

"He can't stay awake during mission briefings. Most of his task are taken care of by his deputy and civilians. He adds no value to the village anymore. It's time" Tsunade scolded

"As much as it pains me I do believe it is time for change. I have been speaking with Shikaku and he is preparing to retire. He takes on many roles in our village and will be hard to replace. It's time we start training the next generation." Hiruzen said

"I couldn't agree more." Jiraiya said. Still not looking at Minato

"What of the dispute between Tau province and Leme Province?" Hiruzen asked.

"It's getting nasty. Since we refused Lord Leme's request to assisinate Lord Tau. He has sought out the services of Kaiyōgakure. In turn Tau hired Umigakure" Jiraiya explained

"Umigakure is well known for its Steam release and Kaiyōgakure has the formidable Rainbow release." Homura murmured

"I don't like having that many powerful ninja in our lands." Hiruzen said cautiously

"Agreed" Koharu seconded this thought

"What shall we do?" Homura inquired

" I have ordered Itachi and Torune squads to impress upon the lords that this nonsense stops today." Minato said.

"Will they be able to deliver the message without thier captains?" Tsunade said.

"Without a doubt. Those boys are a different breed. Even without their captain" Jiraiya said with a chuckle.

"We shall see" Homura replied sceptically.

"If there is nothing else" Minato said as he looked around. "Kakashi is currently briefing Black platoon. We will conclude the meeting."

"Koharu please compile a list of qualified shinobi for us to review at the next council meeting. Hiruzen please relay our decision to Torifu. I will be taking my leave for the summit. I'll trust you all to handle the ANBU trials. I'll be gone for a little over a week. Lord Third will rule the village in my stead."

———————

Zabuza turned to Pakura as Mei left.

"Good we should report in."

"Guh I hate talking to *them*" Pakura replied as she jumped down from her rock.

"It can't be helped. We need them. Both for you to take your revenge on the Sand and me to get freedom for my people." The reply very gruff.

The pair walked deeper into the winding cave that was their hide out. They entered a chamber with talismans and tags spread around the room. The room was barely lit by touch's spread across the circular chamber.

Both formed some quick hand seals then in unison said "Ninja Art- Astro Projection Jutsu"

Their consciousness were sudden projected into a large chamber. Three shinobi stood in the center of the room.

One was a woman. She had purple hair with a large origami flower pinned into it. Another a man who had bright red hair with strange swirling purple eyes. He had a slight build and his skin was very pale. The last an orange haired shinobi who projected confidence and commanded respect without the need for words. He had a large sword stapled to his back and his blue eyes were serious and hard. Each wore the robes of the Akatsuki.

"Report" the orange haired shinobi ordered.

"We are set" the disembodied projecting of Pakura said.

"Excellent" The female kunoichi said in approval.

"What about the others" Zabuza asked.

"They will be here momentarily." The red headed ninja answered.

Almost as if summoned. Six more ninja appeared. They were nothing more than projecting of the consciousness of the other members.

"Good everyone's here" The red headed ninja said.

"We will be moving ahead as planned. You each have your targets. In one week when the Kage met we will carry out the plan." The orange haired ninja said.

"Are you all set?" Asked the red head.

"Team one has its target acquired. Spies in the sand village revealed the route he will be taking for his next patrol. We will take him near the land of rivers hide out." Replied a shadow figure who appeared hunched over.

"Excellent and team two?" Questioned the Haired man.

"Our target is currently at a monastery. She isn't scheduled to leave for well over a month." Replied another shadowy figure.

"She is lightly guarded but they won't be an issue." Replied the figure next to him.

"I need not remind you that you are to take the target ALIVE. Understood" The Orange haired ninja said placing extra emphasis on alive.

Both figures of team two scoffed and nodded in acknowledgement.

"Team three?" Red headed ninja followed up.

"We have our target he is a hermit who lives away from the village it should not take much to take him". Came a reply from one of the projections. Not much could be made out but the man had slit pupils.

"Good. Team three you are to be commended on your work with the Third Tsuchikage. The Kage summit was a needed prerequisite for us to launch this operation." The Orange haired man commended.

"It was nothing. The old man is not what he once was" replied the same shadow figure.

"Alright everyone but team 4 is dismissed. One week. Do not fail" The orange haired ninja order.

With that 6 of the 8 projection faded.

"We will be moving to you now. The 5 of us should be more than enough to deal with the Mizukage and his men." The Orange haired ninja said.

"We will await your arrival." Zabuza replied.

With that they both disappeared leaving only the original 3 ninja there.

"Yahiko" The purple haired woman said as she turned to look at the man with Orange hair.

"What is it Konan?" Replied Yahiko

"Is it wise to try and take all 4 hosts at once. Shouldn't we take them one at a time?" The woman named Konan asked.

"We went over this already Konan" the red headed ninja snapped.

"It's okay Nagato. We need to get them off balance and get them at each others throats. We will capture the first 4 beats seal them in order then start in on the rest. The world needs to change and we need the beats to change it." Yahiko replied trying to placate his fellow member.

"Okay I'll trust you two" Konan replied.

"We should get going if we want to reach the rendezvous on time." Nagato stated.

"Yeah let's got" Yahiko agreed.

With that the three ninja left the chamber.

—————————

Kakashi left the council meeting and went to brief his men. He and the Hokage had already agreed on deployments and how Black platoon would be utilized during the down time caused by the Kage summit.

He walked into the ANBU HQ. It was located several levels under the village Administration building. It had been built deep in the ground to make infiltration more difficult for enemy agents.

As Kakashi descended into the bowels of the Administration building he past the guards recognizing White Company's 11th team. White company was charged with critical infrastructure and VIP protection. At least one team was stationed at the entrance at all times with an entire platoon guarding the Administration building.

As he entered the ANBU headquaters he walked to the team briefing rooms. He could hear his platoon in the briefing room.

"No way!" one male voice yelled.

"Yes way!" A female voice replied.

"There is no fucking way Tsunade beats Jiraiya" the male voice said back.

"She would obliterate him. Lady Tsunade is the strongest female ninja in history!" The female voice replied.

"So! Strongest woman is nothing to strongest man! Captain Tenzo back me up!" The male voice said.

"You idiots can argue all day long I want no part of it." Tenzo replied as he sat behind a desk reading through a pile of scrolls in front of him.

"Fine Sai back me up" the man called out towards a pale skinned boy with black hair.

"I have no opion either way." Sai replied as he continued to play cards with another ninja.

"Fuck that you have an opinion" the male ninja said.

"You know If you don't answer him he will keep going" said the brown haired girl playing with Sai.

Kakashi paused with his hand on the door. He allowed a small smile to creep across his face before turning the handle and walking in.

The second the door opened Tenzo saw and yelled "Captain in the room!" With that every ninja in the room shot up to attention.

" At ease" Kakashi said in his usually lazy tone. "Alright everyone listen up" Kakashi said as he walked to the front of the room.

"We have some missions. As you know the Kage summit is coming up. Myself, Fū, Tenzo and Itachi will be escorting the Hokage." Kakashi said.

Grumbles raced through the room at this. Many of the shinobi in the room weren't happy that nearly all missions were canceled for the summit and they would be stuck in the village for the most part.

"Sir" the same male voice before said.

"What is it Towa?" Kakashi said

"Why is it the Captains get to have all the fun?" The ninja with a bird mask and black pony tail said.

Tenzo buried his face in his palm shaking his head.

"Fun?" Kakashi said.

"Sir Please don't lump us all in with this idiot" the female voice form before said.

"Hey don't call me an idiot Junko!" Towea said.

"Hey sit down and shut up!" Fū yelled.

Towa slumped his shoulders and sat down as the other Anbu around him snickered and laughed.

"Now that we are done. There is nothing fun about baby sitting the Hokage while the others Kage scowl at him. So like I said Itachi, Tenzo, Myself and Fū will be escorting the Hokage. Keon, Muta and Sai your each going to accompany Torune in a mission. He will brief you. Itachi's and Torune's boys I'll be needing you to make a house call for me. We have two lords who aren't behaving. You need to go and get them back in line. Salamander and Coyote will have command of their respective teams." Kakashi looked over at Fū who threw two scrolls one to each of the Shinobi he just named.

"You will find all the details in the scrolls. Your appointed captains will brief you on the way. Head out" he said.

Quickly 20 or so ninja got up and filed out.

"You three can go with Torune" Kakashi said as he gestured to Keon, Muta and Sai.

"Alright for the rest of you" Kakashi said turning to the remaining ninja. "Fū's boys you are to report to the Intel department. Inoichi is waiting for you. Tenzo's team it's your lucky day. You are all on leave. Stay in the village and stay out of trouble."

Kakashi watched as the ninja left the room leaving only the escort team.

"Alright we are leaving at sun up. We are barred from wearing our masks. The Hokage wants us to wear standard Jonin uniform. Equip yourself as you see fit. I'll see you all at the North gate." Kakashi said.

Each captain nodded then disappeared.

Kakashi was left alone. He exhaled loudly then disappeared himself.