Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto. I'm going to create a Mission Impossible III-style mask of Kishimoto and infiltrate his life, slowly learning what I need to pilfer the rights of the franchise for myself. People will totally buy that he grew to 6'1, 225 lbs. overnight.

This plan is foolproof.

Chapter 31: The Enemy of My Enemy

As Terumi Mei oversaw the salvage of what was left of her castle, it was easy to see that she was not a happy woman, 'Damned Uzumaki,' She thought to herself spitefully.

Burned to the ground. That punk kid and his cohort (which one it was, she had no idea) burned her stronghold to the ground. Whatever they'd used burned strong and rapidly, also, water didn't have much of an effect on it. A very bad thing, given that most of Mei's underlings utilized water release.

She bet those children got a good laugh about that. She could imagine getting her hands on them and melting them into puddles at her feet.

And it wasn't just Naruto, the exiled one. It was also Nagato – the clan head. His strong-arming was the reason this all happened. She'd had Naruto in a position to run her an errand important for Mizu no Kuni's stability. He'd accomplished it, but as Nagato had more or less bullied her into selling him out. Naruto responded in kind.

That bloodline had caused her no end of trouble with their in-clan feud, or whatever it was. They brought trouble to her territory.

"What happened?"

And now, it had brought him into her territory.

A shiver went down Mei's spine involuntarily at the sound of Danzo's voice. It wasn't like he'd snuck up on her from behind. He'd approached her from the front. But his presence was so unspectacular that she didn't notice him until he was within speaking range. He hadn't even brought escorts for her to identify.

And yet, she was in the position she was in because of him; because he had instigated the moves to put her into a position to influence Mizu no Kuni's goings-on. He had put her there, and Mei had little doubt that he could take the steps necessary to remove her if he saw fit. Therefore, it was prudent she reply.

Smoothing down the anger she felt at remembering the series of events, Mei kept an easy, light tone, "A gaggle of uppity brats decided to punch above their weight class. Don't worry. I'll handle it."

Her attempt to downplay the situation mattered little to Danzo, "I didn't ask you if you would handle it, Terumi-san. I don't care if you handle it. I asked you what happened."

Mei bit the inside of her cheek to keep her emotions in check before speaking again, "...A boy named Uzumaki Naruto came here, pursuing the swords. A jinchuuriki. I intercepted him and made a deal. As it turned out, Uzumaki Nagato came knocking in search of him. I chose to work with the one who was stronger."

Or who she thought was stronger, seeing as how Naruto came back and Nagato had not.

"And Naruto did this?" Danzo asked, turning to look at the ruined castle grounds, '...Namikaze's son, yet again,' The old man thought to himself.

First with the Guardian Ninja, now here in Mizu. Those weren't even the first two examples of the unintentional problems the boy's actions had brought to Danzo's ambitions.

"Who is that boy?" Mei asked. She had thought he was just a loud child swinging a very large and dangerous stick in the form of the biju sealed within him.

"It doesn't matter," Danzo said, disregarding Mei's desire to know of things that would no longer affect her, "It's business of the mainland. The important thing is that nothing that happened here did anything to cause us to lose our grasp of Mizu."

Mei felt a measure of relief when Danzo said 'our'. That meant she was still figured into plans and would maintain her position, "While he burned my castle... he did give the Kiba blades to the Hozuki Brothers. A fine choice," She was able to admit, "Personally, I want Uzumaki Naruto's head on a spike. But personal grievances won't further our aims."

"Exactly, " Danzo said in agreement, "And you have no idea what happened with Nagato?"

Mei shook her head, "My agents say he just vanished. No corpse or anything," As far as she knew, Konan was in the wind as well, "I would share access to my records, but as you can see, all but the most vital to my operation here burned."

"No need," Danzo said as he turned to wander through the burned ashes of the castle, "I am capable of finding anything else I need."

XxX

(Yu no Kuni – Unnamed Allied Shinobi Village)

The mainland had been built up a certain way in Tayuya's head for so long that she figured once she saw it for the first time, it would do nothing but let her down. This was not the case. Just on first impressions – the cleanliness of the port town they pulled into blew her away.

From the head of the ship, Tayuya watched wide-eyed as they sailed closer to shore. Everything seemed more colorful. The sun was brighter. The water had more of a shimmer to it. There was a distinct lack of the acrid smell and taste she had grown accustomed to when in port areas. It was a sensory overload.

Even once they had left Kaiza's ship and started moving on foot, the dry, lush forests of the countryside were so markedly different from what she was used to, she caught herself stopping and staring sometimes, taking it all in before having to speed up to catch up with the others.

There was something... freeing about not being locked to those damnable islands any longer. It was like a whole new world had just opened up for her to explore. Needless to say, it was kind of overwhelming. It took a lot for Tayuya to keep the others from seeing her sweat.

"You okay?" Tenten asked, moving closer to Tayuya to check on her before they reached the village, "You seem kind of out of it."

Tayuya shook her head, snapping herself out of her stupor, "Yeah, fine. Just getting a good look around. Getting my bearings. Not trying to get caught off-guard, you know?" She gave as an excuse.

Tenten nodded as a small smile started forming on her face, "Well, we're almost home."

"Your home, maybe," Tayuya said under her breath.

Fair enough. Tenten could admit that Tayuya had a point, "Yeah... and barely at that. We only recently started staying here," Tenten said, "Still, it'll be nice to finally be somewhere safe where we can rest."

Even with Tayuya trying to keep it to herself, Tenten could read that Tayuya was uneasy. Despite her, Kabuto, and Naruto's best efforts over the last few days, the farther away from familiar territory Tayuya got, the antsier she became. Mizu no Kuni might have been an unpleasant place full of horrible people, but it was what Tayuya had been accustomed to. To leave it and travel all the way across the ocean by herself was a major leap of faith.

Faith in what though? That remained to be seen.

As they finally reached the village, things seemed to have changed significantly in the time that they had been gone. As they got closer, they could see some of the territory that had been squared away for the use of the clans that had decided to join up. How Minato was deciding who went where was a process that Naruto personally wanted no knowledge of.

The amount of squabbling and potential back-room agreements that went into such a thing would likely make his head spin. Naruto was a boots-on-the-ground type, not a behind-the-desk type.

The heart of the village was still the existing portion they had originally come across when they'd lobbied to get the people there to agree to a shinobi settlement. More buildings were popping up though. There were also more people, notably clan shinobi, bustling about.

Tenten counted people clearly belonging to eight different clans moving around the village. It was an odd sight to see. Even though this was what she'd had a part in working towards for years, seeing it begin to take shape was surreal.

"So, now what?" Tayuya asked the group as they entered the main portion of the village.

"Now, I find my parents and check in," Naruto said, quickly reacting when Tayuya's grin promised a (likely profane) taunt about his closeness to his family, "Shut up. My dad is my boss, so I have to report back. But I'm pretty sure I'll end up running into-."

"MY BABY!"

Kushina's guttural call sent chills down Naruto's spine, "-...Running into my mom first..." Slowly turning into the direction he heard her voice come from, he tried to play it cool as she darted down the street his way, "Hi, mom," He knew she had not been a fan of his decision to go to Mizu no Kuni.

The redheaded mother was in front of Naruto so fast, it felt like she'd learned Hiraishin in his absence. Kushina's violet eyes locked firmly on her son, "Don't you 'hi, mom' me. You slipped out without even saying goodbye!" Before Naruto knew it, a lecturing finger was pointed right between his eyes, "You've got some nerve, running your butt off to Mizu no Kuni all by yourself."

Every step Naruto took back was matched by Kushina coming forward, "-I wasn't by myself. I had Tenten and Kabuto-."

"-Even worse!" Kushina continued, "You dragged your best friend and the new guy into it!"

Kabuto felt a need to defend Naruto from maternal admonishment, "It wasn't a big deal Uzumaki-san," Other than almost dying a few times.

Kushina temporarily paused in her tirade, "Hush, Kabuto-kun. I'm giving out to Naruto. I've waited a full month for this," With that bit of calm subsiding, she picked right up where she left off, "-All to find someone that did something to you years and years ago! For what? Did you even know what you were going to do when you found him?"

A great question. One he'd never answered for his parents before leaving. One he'd never vocally answered to his tagalongs for the duration of the trip, "I dunno..."

Tenten, for one, didn't necessarily need to be told what Naruto wanted to do to figure it out for herself, "Probably nothing more complex than 'punch him'."

Naruto bristled at his aforementioned best friend speaking up, "Thank you, Tenten!" He shouted sarcastically, "You suck!"

Tenten waved and smiled cheekily, enjoying every moment of the mother-son reunion, "Love you too, Naruto~!"

Kushina's scowl only deepened, "Another revenge tour?" She seemed more disappointed than angry, and that made Naruto feel awful, "Really? What did I tell you about revenge?"

Naruto sighed and droned out what he'd been told over the years about settling scores, "Revenge is fine, as long as you don't have to go out of you way to get it. Otherwise, just wait for your chance, quit being a dumbass, and get on with your life."

Kushina nodded at Naruto's textbook recounting of one of her many teachings, "That's right."

Tayuya stood back and watched in combined amusement and awe at what she was seeing. Some lady dressed like a housewife was giving one of the strongest people she'd ever met a thorough tongue-lashing, "I can't believe the guy I watched go toe-to-toe against someone with the goddamn Rinnegan is getting dressed down by his mommy."

"But Naruto loves his mommy," Tenten said with a giggle, before giving Tayuya something to think about, "Just take whatever you think about what you've seen Naruto do, and understand that he came out of her."

Left with that to mull around in her head as she continued to watch Kushina browbeat Naruto, Tayuya began looking at Kushina in a different light, "Holy shit."

Upon hearing the profane remark from a person she wasn't used to, Kushina's head snapped over in Tayuya's direction. The intensity of the older woman's stare left Tayuya taken aback, but she quickly remembered who she was and brashly puffed out her chest.

"And who is this?" Kushina asked, observing Tayuya closely, "Someone new?"

Naruto quickly jumped in, excited for the change in topic, "This is Tayuya. We met her in Mizu no Kuni. She really helped out a lot when it came to finding our way around."

Tayuya hissed at Naruto, prompting him to stop talking, "I can introduce myself, Golden Boy," She reset and went to do just that, "So, yeah. Name's Tayuya. I freelance, and your kid told me there was a chance I could get some work here."

"Did he now?" Kushina said, eyeing her son with an unreadable expression, "Well, he's not wrong. It's been a while since you picked up a stray, Naruto."

An offended Tayuya's mouth fell open before she bared her teeth, "I'm not a stray!" She said, utterly enraged.

Naruto and Kushina ignored her anger in exchange for going back and forth with each other, "What do you mean it's been a while? I picked up Kabuto just last month," He said, gesturing to said medic.

Kushina shook her head, "No, Tenten picked up Kabuto last month. You didn't do anything but get sick and almost die."

Naruto raised his nose at the reminder of his bout with the Five Elements Virus, "-And beat two Guardian Ninja, while I was sick and dying, because I rule!"

"Are you two listening to me?" Tayuya interjected, marching her way between the Uzumaki mother and son, "I said I'm not a stray!"

Kushina raised an eyebrow at Tayuya's attitude at her throwaway remark, "'Stray' doesn't mean anything bad, dear. It's just what I call freelancers who end up working for us. It's more fun."

Tayuya scoffed at the older redhead's assumption, "I said I was looking for work. I didn't fucking say I was going to work for you assholes just like that."

Kushina's eyes went wide at the brazen, unprompted profanity. Her head whipped towards Naruto, prompting him to explain, "She likes dropping F-bombs... and S-bombs... and all the other bombs," Tenten and Kabuto nodded in support.

Tayuya defensively made to stand as tall as she could, "Yeah, what of it?"

Kushina fixed the new arrival with a neutral look, "Please don't curse around my baby," She requested evenly.

A vicious grin crossed Tayuya's face, and Naruto felt a chill go down his spine, "What, him? A little late for that, lady. I did worse around him than just curse," She said, fixing Naruto with a smug leer. He knew exactly where she was going.

Kushina quickly cut Tayuya off before she could part with information that Naruto would prefer she didn't, "What? No, not him. He's all old and beat up by the world-."

"-Love you too, mom!" Naruto shouted irritably. He wasn't old. He was fifteen.

"My daughter, on the other hand, is three," Kushina continued, a hint of warning in her tone, "If you curse around her, and she picks up your nasty vocabulary, I'll make you feel like I turned you inside out... 'kay?"

Tayuya clenched her fists and sneered at the challenge, "I'd love to see you try, you-."

Before sparks could fly, Naruto shoved his way between the two women. Having his mom and his new friend(?) throw down in the middle of the new village they were still building couldn't possibly end well, "Whoa! Jeez, Tayuya! Just try not to curse around my baby sister, okay? And mom, don't bring Kanako around Tayuya. Treat it like the Anko rule. Because even if Tayuya tried not to, I don't think she could stop cursing."

Tayuya looked at Tenten and Kabuto as though Naruto were insane, "Why would I want to stop cursing. Shit's awesome. They're like sentence-enhancers."

Tenten leaned in close to Kabuto to whisper, "I really think she might actually get a brain aneurysm if she had to go without it."

Kabuto massaged the bridge of his nose under his glasses, "That's not how aneurysms work..." The medical professional in him wanted to scream in their faces.

Naruto made a show of wiping imaginary dust off of his hands and throwing them into the air, "Okay! Done with introductions! Officially don't care about any of this anymore!" He exclaimed, choosing to walk away, set on unwinding, "Mom, you know I'm back, you can tell dad. I need to find something good to eat. The food in Mizu sucks!"

Tayuya watched as Naruto brushed past her and Kushina to wander his way off deeper into town, "Hey, where the fuck do you think you're going? You're just gonna make me figure things out around here by myself?" She asked. Naruto ignored her and kept walking. "Golden Boy! Hey!" Tayuya was quick to catch up to him.

Kushina watched the two teenagers depart before turning to Tenten and Kabuto, "Is that girl going to be trouble?" She asked, jerking her thumb in Tayuya's direction.

Tenten shrugged, "On a small scale? Yeah, probably."

"On a small scale?"

"You know, small-scale, like irritating you with her presence..." Tenten said with a grin, "...Because Naruto is one of three people she knows right now, so she's definitely going to be hanging around."

Kushina seemed more amused than anything else by Tenten's specific prediction of how Tayuya would fit in around them, "What would you consider large-scale trouble?"

Tenten didn't miss a beat in her response, "Getting the uppity clans Minato-sama attracted here to work together without killing each other and burning the village down."

Kushina chuckled, her mood again significantly lightened, "I love how you classify priorities."

Tenten rolled her eyes, "My best friend, your son, is a propagator of large-scale trouble," She had better have learned how to classify the difference between the two, "Just wait until you hear about what happened."

XxX

(Kaminari no Kuni)

Two clans, consisting of over 1,000 shinobi each stood across from each other in lines. Their chosen representatives stood between them, facing one another down. What looked like the precursor for a battle was actually the exact opposite. It was meant to mark the end of a war.

A war both of them had fought against someone else. A war neither of them ever had a chance to win.

All along both lines, shinobi and kunoichi from both sides stood looking ragged from the conflict in question. They all looked tired and nervous. Nervous about their futures.

From the end of both lines, two men walked between them, making a show of being seen by all. It was very important to the first of these figures that his presence was established to those who would soon be joining his fold.

The lead was a massive, muscular man with dark skin, white hair combed back, a small mustache and goatee. He wore a large, open haori with no shirt underneath, as well as large, golden bracers on his wrists. Over black pants with torn ends, he wore a gold belt around his waist with a boar's face engraved in the middle.

Following close behind was another muscular, dark-skinned man, shorter than the first. He also had slicked back white hair and a goatee. Choosing to go completely shirtless, he wore a white scarf, dark sunglasses, a long red rope belt tied around his waist over standard shinobi trousers, and a holster that carried seven identical swords.

The smaller, sunglasses-clad shinobi of the two glanced around at all of the trepidacious people around them, "Hey, bro, take a look. These guys are all shook."

"It's understandable, B," The larger one remarked sternly, his eyes cutting around at their surrounding public. No one he looked at could maintain eye contact with him, "We were bearing down on all of them until the truce was called yesterday. Give them time."

B nodded, seemingly to a rhythm in his own head instead of just in agreement with what had been said, "Time to lay down the law, let 'em know who's the man. Now they're part of the Alpha Clan."

"You heard him," The larger man said aloud, his voice booming in the open air, "For those of you who don't know us, I am A. This is Killer B," He introduced them, but from how everyone seemed to regard them, it was all a formality. That done, he continued, "The Rinha Clan. The Yotsuki Clan. As of now, those names are no more! Do you hear me? They mean nothing!"

Many flinched at the harshness and severity with which the end of their clans was announced. And yet, it wasn't said aimlessly. There was a reason they were all there. They were a captive audience to the terms and conditions of surrender.

A continued, pacing around, towering over everyone else nearby, "What makes you unique, special, powerful, will now add to the power of the Alpha. You are now all Alpha," He declared, gesturing around to everyone who could see him, "You are now just as important to me as my own brother," Killer B gave a thumbs up and a big grin to the crowd as support.

"A-sama..." The representative of the former Yotsuki Clan said.

A walked over to him and his counterpart in the Rinha clan, looking down at both of them, "As members of the Alpha Clan, you will have access to our resources, in exchange for sharing yours. Your shinobi will be able to learn from our deep well of secret techniques, in exchange for handing over all of your own to add."

Both men held back the urge to gulp grimly. They knew this was coming. The terms that the Alpha Clan operated under were common knowledge in Kaminari no Kuni. However, their best had already thrown their most powerful available techniques at them, and it hadn't done anything to stop the enemy. At this point, trading such things away for guaranteed peace was worthwhile enough to call the truce.

Serious man that he was, it was a surprise when A actually encouraged the losers of the conflict, "Keep your head up. You fought well, given the odds against you. You may feel like you have lost the best among you, but now, you're Alpha! And that means you'll never lose again!"

Cheers rang out. But not from the Yotsuki Clan and Rinha Clan. It came from the circle of Alpha Clan shinobi that outnumbered them three times over.

XxX

(That Evening – Yu no Kuni – Unnamed Allied Shinobi Village)

After a few hours of rest and relaxation, Tenten decided to venture out and find Naruto. He had never returned to the hotel that served as temporary lodging for Naruto's family while arrangements were still being made for land. Her short search led her to a small steakhouse, where she found Naruto's unmistakable hair sticking out like a sore thumb at the bar.

This alone prompted Tenten to raise an eyebrow, 'Naruto doesn't drink. He hates the taste,' Something everyone learned back when Jiraiya slipped him his first taste a few years back.

As she approached, she saw that it wasn't Naruto imbibing in alcohol. It was Tayuya... liberally. The musical kunoichi was more than a few drinks deep from how she bobbed side-to-side in her seat as she and Naruto conversed about whatever. Said conversation consisted of Naruto bemusedly responding to whatever query Tayuya had for how things were in the mainland, or whatever else came up.

"Get the fuck outta town!" Tayuya exclaimed, swaying hard enough to set her head on Naruto's shoulder for a moment. She pushed herself off and had to be grabbed by him to keep from falling off of her stool, "You're just bullshitting me because you know about my Doki now, Golden Boy."

"No, cross my heart," Naruto insisted, his usual demeanor almost as animated as an intoxicated Tayuya's, "Bigger than any tree in the forest. Bigger than some mountains."

A skeptical Tayuya needled Naruto further, "And you can summon him? Ha! I'll believe it when I see it."

"Well, I can't just do it whenever I want. He doesn't like that," Naruto admitted sheepishly, "He lets Ero-sennin summon him whenever he wants though. I have to bribe him with sake. Do you know how much sake it takes to satisfy a giant toad? A lot!"

It was at this point that Tenten made it over to the two of them, able to closely observe Tayuya's state, "Is she drunk?" Naruto shrugged, while Tayuya guiltily grinned like a loon, "Naruto! You let Tayuya get drunk on your first date? Come on!"

Naruto gave Tenten a sideways look, "What do you mean 'let her'? And what do you mean, 'date'?" He hadn't asked Tayuya out. He was showing her around, which also doubled as showing himself around, because he still wasn't familiar with everything himself.

"Huh?" Tayuya needed to take a moment to process what Tenten was telling her. Once it all sank in, she started smiling like a loon, "Hey, yeah. A date. This is totally a fucking date! Golden Boy, pay for all of my drinks like a gentleman."

Naruto rolled his eyes, as he'd already planned to pay for her anyway, given he had more money than her, and she was a guest, "Order some actual food too. Dad doesn't need it looking like I'm taking advantage of you. We're still new here."

"Yeah, yeah, yeah," Tayuya muttered, trying to flag the bartender down to put in an order. It was a reasonable enough request, and again, she wouldn't have to pay for it, "Anyone who thinks that is a fucking idiot. You're like a golden retriever in human form," She squinted at Naruto trying to picture it, and laughed at her own comparison.

Tenten sighed and sat down at the bar with her friend and recent acquaintance, "It all comes back to that magic word again. Jinchuuriki."

"What's with that anyway?" Tayuya asked, poking Naruto in the stomach, "What, because you have a monster sealed in your belly, that means you don't have home training?" She didn't know Kushina at all, but from the limited interaction they had, Mama Uzumaki didn't seem to be the type tolerate some ne'er-do-well as her child, tailed beast within him or not.

"Power is scary. So is ambition," Tenten tried to reason with a shrug, "Naruto has a lot of power, his dad has a big ambition."

"Hmm," Tayuya hummed thoughtfully, staring down into her drink, "I haven't seen anyone scared of you yet, Golden Boy."

"That's because you haven't seen any of the clans yet," Naruto said pessimistically, "...You'll see it."

There was a reason that Shino had been the only clan shinobi that Naruto had ever worked with consistently before his return to the Aburame. Hana had done well when she'd worked with them during the Inuzuka Clan's troubles, but things had moved so fast back then, there was a never a chance for her to really let the nature of her company sink in.

Even drunk, Tayuya realized that the mood had been brought down by the change in conversation, "So, Buns. Did you come here for a reason, or just to rain on this particular parade?"

Tenten winced. It hadn't been her intention to do so. She just wanted to find Naruto for something, "Right... um, I came because I heard rumblings about some stuff going on."

Naruto flitted his hand at the vague teaser remark, "Good stuff? Bad stuff? Stuffy stuff? What kind of stuff?"

"The Alpha Clan," Tenten said, a grave expression on her face and in her tone. One that was utterly lost on both Naruto and Tayuya, "...Nothing? Seriously?" At least Tayuya had the excuse of never having been to the mainland. But Naruto?

"...I don't know who that is," The blond team leader said, squinting his eyes at his best friend, "Is that supposed to mean something to me?"

Tenten wasn't surprised, but she had hoped that he'd kept his ear to the ground about other things. It was fine though, "The Alpha Clan are the big force up north," She explained, "They wage wars with other clans and just assimilate them."

Naruto nodded with a serious hum, slowly understanding what he was being told, "Right. Assimilate. Like the Uchiha Clan and the Senju. That's bad."

Tenten shook her head in the negative, "Not even. Senju and Uchiha will pretty much keep clans intact and use them as tributaries. The Alpha Clan just absorb the clans they beat. Marry in who they want, kill all dissenters. Clans just don't exist anymore after they come through," She said, "They take all techniques and secrets and make them community property. For everyone."

Naruto knew that Tenten was trying to make the Alpha Clan sound imposing, but still, he had his own thoughts, "Honestly, that last thing doesn't sound so bad."

"It's not about making things even for everything," Tenten said, "It's about erasing clan identity and getting people to fall in line. How many clans have you heard of from Kaminari no Kuni?" Naruto drew a blank and it showed all over his face, "There's a reason for that."

"So, what about these fuckers?" Tayuya ventured to ask. She wasn't in on whatever business Naruto and Tenten were associated with, but curiosity beckoned her.

"I heard that they're moving south," Tenten said gravely, "Whatever they're after, that would mean they would move through here before they get to Hi no Kuni, where they're probably headed."

Naruto wanted to at least try and be positive, "They could always just leave us alone though, right?"

Tenten smiled stiffly, "There are five big clans here. When they find that out, I don't think they'll ignore this place."

Tayuya smacked her palm to her forehead. Of course when she decided to go somewhere else, it was also a dangerous hellhole, "I thought you said this place was safer than Mizu no Kuni," She complained.

Naruto took offense to being called dishonest, "Hey, I never said it was safer. I just said it was better," As in, 'better quality of life' better. There was no guarantee that said life would be any more peaceful, "...Right then," He said as he pushed himself up from his seat, gesturing for the check, "I'm paying for mine and hers."

Tayuya took offense to Naruto's attempted departure, feeling as though she were being ditched by her 'date', "Hey, where are you going? We've got a fucking thing going on here, you dick," Naruto simply paid and waved goodbye, "What the hell?"

Her question was posed to Tenten, given that she was the best (and only) person to ask, "Relax. You'll see him later. He's staying at the same place we're taking you to stay."

"I don't give a shit if I see him later," Tayuya lied. It was such an obvious lie that Tayuya didn't even bother harping on it when she received a skeptical look in return, "...Whatever."

XxX

It didn't take Naruto long to make it to the inn that served as their current base of operations and temporary home. Taking great care not to wake up his little sister, or alert his mother that he had returned, he slipped into the room being used as his father's office, giving a knock at the door before he went inside, "Hey, dad."

Minato looked up from his desk at the greeting and smiled at his eldest child, "Hey, yourself buddy," Naruto grinned and quickly took a seat. Minato was grateful for the distraction from his work, "You taking the time to decompress? I heard you had it pretty rough."

"You have no idea," Naruto heaved a heavy sigh, slouching deeply in his chair.

"Bring back a souvenir?"

Naruto let out a bark of laughter, "Yeah. Her name's Tayuya," His happy mood quickly departed when he realized how insulting that could have been seen as, "...Don't tell her I said that, or she'll kick my ass."

Minato didn't even know who this Tayuya person was, "She isn't the only one," He said, setting his papers aside, "Your mother is... shall we say, less than pleased about your vacation choices."

Naruto winced, knowing how Kushina could get about certain things, "How is she still mad about me heading to Mizu? She already chewed me out about that."

Minato raised an eyebrow, "Did she know about just what you got up to over there?" Naruto answered in the form of sheepish laughter. Minato shook his head in return, "I've been hearing about it all day. Seriously, fighting Nagato? Naruto, come on."

"Tenten," Naruto hissed, knowing who was the most likely to have spilled the beans between her and Kabuto, "I wasn't going to tell her about that."

Minato chuckled at Naruto's 'what she doesn't know won't hurt her' concept, "That doesn't make it better, you know. So, what brings you by so late? We were going to see each other at breakfast."

Naruto drummed his fingers off of the arm of the chair, "Tenten told me about this whole Alpha Clan thing. Do you know them?"

Minato let out a low hum, his expression turning grave, "I know of them. I never worked with them, because they don't use freelancers. I never fought against them either. Jiraiya says that's a good thing."

"Are they really that tough?" Naruto asked. For Jiraiya to say that it was a good thing that Minato never took them on was a big deal.

Minato pursed his lips in thought on how to approach the subject, "I wasn't there for this... because it was back before I knew which end of the kunai went into the bad guy, but they went down to Hi no Kuni once before. You know their deal, right?"

Naruto regurgitated the rundown Tenten had given him at the steakhouse, "Tenten said they fight clans and make them join when they win."

"Basically," Minato said, "Way before your time, they took a shot at the Senju."

Naruto's eyes went wide. The only ones he knew of who had ever been able to do that had been the Uchiha, "Holy crap. What happened?"

"It happened during a lull in the Senju-Uchiha wars, so they were pretty well off at the time. It didn't last," Minato explained, "I have no idea how they turned them back, but seeing as how the Senju Clan are still a thing..." He trailed off, given the obvious, "I'm glad you brought this up by the way. I was going to wait until you had a day or two to yourself, but I have a mission for you-."

Naruto abruptly stood, eagerly placing his hands on Minato's desk, "-Go kick the Alpha Clan head's ass. Got it."

Minato physically recoiled backwards in his chair, "What? No. Why would I want you to-? What!?" He screeched, only for Naruto to shrug, "It's just a scouting mission. No fighting."

Naruto blinked, processing the request, "Oh. Cool," He slowly sat back down.

Minato turned his chair to look out the window behind his desk, an idea forming in his mind, "You know, I was going to ask the Hyuuga Clan to provide one of theirs to go with you... but why don't the two of us go ourselves?" The more Minato thought of it, the better he liked that plan, "Yeah. What do you say we do this one together?"

He would have had Jiraiya handle it, but he had his former sensei looking into whatever he could get on Danzo. Still, with what was being said about the Alpha Clan moving south, it couldn't be left alone.

Naruto was excited by the idea, but he was more shocked than anything else. So much so that it threw Minato off, "What? Y-You and me? But you've never gone on a mission with me."

Minato opened his mouth to protest, but nothing came out. When he tried to think of an example to back up his argument, he found that he couldn't recall ever working with his son, "I-I haven't?" Naruto confirmed with a shake of his head, "Wow. Man, I really suck at this whole 'being a dad' thing, huh?" He remarked self-deprecatingly.

Too late to matter, Naruto tried to play it nonchalantly, looking away and throwing his hands up behind his neck, "Eh, you're good with Kana-chan. That's all that matters. Don't worry so much about it. I'm too old for something like that to bug me."

Minato knew better. Naruto was terrible at hiding how he felt about things. His original reaction to the offer had spoken volumes. Even so, the offer had been legitimate. Minato really wanted to spend real, quality time with his son, "So, would you like to work together on this one?"

Even if Naruto tried to play things cool, inside, he was jumping with joy. It had been a long time since he'd even trained with Minato. He never got the chance to hang out with his father, "I guess so, if you really want to. Just make sure you don't slow me down, old man," He taunted.

Minato smirked at the insult. The cocky brat must have forgotten who the fastest really was, "The only way I don't leave you in the dust is if I hold your hand like you're Kanako."

XxX

(Kaminari no Kuni)

In the years since A had taken over as the head of the Alpha Clan, their influence had expanded several times over compared to his predecessor. This was plenty of reason to take pride, as A thought the world of his father, the previous 'A', and to improve so greatly on what he had built before was a big deal.

But A was the type who was never able to take the time to appreciate the scope of what he had accomplished, not when there was so much more to do. And there was plenty left to do.

When Killer B came to find his brother for the celebration marking the end of the conflict with the Yotsuki and Rinha Clans, and their induction into the Alpha Clan, he found his brother pouring over maps and written reports and records. Still working. Always working.

"Ay, yo, bro! What'chu cooped in here fo'?" B asked, trying to look over A's shoulder at the mounds of documents, "Work can wait! Time to celebrate!"

A didn't bother looking up to humor Killer B, "The time I rest is the time our enemies have to make their moves against us," He growled, "The history of the human race is a history of war. Every clan in existence has fought for the strongest techniques. The weak will be crushed, that is inescapable truth of the ninja world. And I refuse to allow the Alpha to fall like so many others."

What went unsaid was that the Alpha Clan had been the reason that so many others had fallen. Even if they themselves preferred to call it something else, the truth was that clan names and traits from decades ago were slowly fading away. Within a generation or so, the children of those conquerored fifty years ago would no longer associate themselves with the lineage they'd descended from at all.

That was how it would be for all. This was how the shinobi world would finally unify, no matter how hard others fought against it. They would be assimilated, or they would be eliminated.

A's current focus on his maps happened to be Hi no Kuni, a country entirely untouched by the Alpha Clan, though not for lack of trying, "The last time our clan tried to move on the clans to our south, my father was defeated by Senju Tobirama and Sarutobi Hiruzen," It still ate at him to think about, "That was eighteen years ago, B."

"I know, I know," Killer B reached out and put a hand on A, "I was with you, bro."

"Nineteen years, and we never ventured south again, even after we had heard he'd died. It took two of the greatest shinobi of their time, banding together to stop us. And now, we're several times stronger than we were then. And the Senju are weaker than ever."

Nowadays, they didn't have a Hashirama or a Tobirama. Their current leader Tsunade was more respected for her medical knowledge than her achievements in combat. They had been stagnating for years. On the other hand, A had been conquering everything in his path ever since the Alpha Clan had last been turned away. He had grown accustomed to victory, while keeping the bitter taste of his clan's sole defeat in his memory.

He would right that wrong. He would avenge that defeat. No single clan could stop them. Even those that banded together were simply fighting a losing battle. The Alpha Clan had the manpower, and they had the raw power in the form of something that had foolishly been believed to be taboo by the shinobi world.

"We have you, and we have Yugito," A said, placing a hand on his younger brother's shoulder, "And if Tsunade has the guts to step onto the battlefield, I'll deal with her myself."

He would do so with great pleasure.

XxX

(The Next Morning – Hi no Kuni – Uchiha Clan Compound)

Sasuke had gotten in late from his most recent assignment. Eager to give his report and put in for another mission, first thing in the morning, he made a beeline for his father and clan head's office.

When he arrived however, he could hear the happenings of a heated conversation going on inside. His father's deep, booming voice was clear and present, but the other person he could hear inside left him surprised, 'Itachi?'

Why was his older brother arguing with their father? What could Itachi, who was the absolute best shinobi they had, have possibly said to have worked Fugaku up to such an extent?

Sasuke tried not to eavesdrop, but curiosity won out. He listened in closely, until the door slid open and Itachi briskly walked away, not even bothering to close it behind him. He walked with the same confident, hard-to-read demeanor that he always did, but as someone who had been close to Itachi for his entire life, Sasuke could see the frustration in his body language.

Sasuke had never seen Itachi like that before. No one they walked past picked up on it, but the feeling radiated off of him, "Itachi," Sasuke eventually called out, stopping him at a pond in the compound garden, "What was that? What were you and father fighting about?"

Itachi chuckled, "Fighting is an overstatement of what happened. It was nothing so dramatic, little brother."

"Oh really?" Sasuke replied sardonically, "Because you seem pretty pissed off about it."

"I feel emotions too, Sasuke," Itachi said with a sigh before deciding to let Sasuke in on the situation, "...You are aware of what's coming from the north aren't you? What they're likely after?"

"The Alpha Clan," Sasuke said with a frown and a shrug, "If they want to kill off the Senju Clan again, let them," He reasoned, "If they deal with the Senju themselves, as anticlimactic as that would be, that would help us. Hell, we should probably help, right?"

"No," Itachi said sternly and resolutely, turning away to glare at the water, "No, in fact, I say helping to fight against the Senju is the worst decision we could make."

Sasuke studied his brother closely and chose his next words carefully before saying anything else, "...Itachi, why do you care about what happens to the Senju Clan?"

"It's not necessarily about what will happen to them," Itachi said, "It's about what will happen to all of us if they fall."

Sasuke could surmise what Itachi was trying to get at, that the Alpha Clan would eye up the rest of the clans in Hi no Kuni once they were finished with the Senju Clan, the Uchiha Clan included. He would have loved to see them try it, "We can deal with the Alpha Clan if they're dumb enough to come for us next."

Sasuke swore he could see a shiver go down Itachi's spine, and one went down his when Itachi slowly turned back his way, onyx eyes covered by the bangs of his hair, "Do you think so Sasuke? Do you really think so? Do you think that the Uchiha Clan can defeat a clan capable of conquering our mortal enemies? Do you think we can defeat a clan that would do in days, weeks, or months what we haven't been able to do in centuries?"

For a moment, Sasuke faltered, but fell back on that old emotional shield of pride in where he'd come from, "You don't believe in our clan's power?" He asked challengingly.

Itachi didn't rise to the bait, "I am not a fool, Sasuke. And I didn't take you to be one either," He dressed the younger Uchiha down on his simplistic view, "Power by itself only means so much. A lion can be overwhelmed by enough hyenas. The numbers of the Alpha Clan dwarfed our own when they attacked the first time."

"They were stopped the first time," Sasuke argued.

"Things are not the same now as they were then," Itachi said, shaking his head, "Our numbers and those of the Senju do not compare to what they once did. Perpetual warfare has eaten away at our forces. The Alpha Clan's size only continue to grow. Even were we to join forces with the Senju, in all-out war, we would be outnumbered."

Itachi had always been objective when it came to the Uchiha Clan's chances in any endeavor Fugaku wanted them to undertake. His pragmatism had helped them minimize losses for years. Just the fact that he was saying such things now was enough reason for Sasuke to stop and take note, "It's hard to think of you talking about joining forces with the Senju so easily."

For a moment, Itachi's posture slumped, showing how tired he must have felt, "Believe me when I say it is not spoken of easily. Things need to change, Sasuke. The world is changing. It has been for a long time now, and I fear we are failing to adapt with it."

Sasuke's face twisted in confusion, "I don't understand, Itachi," They were just as great as they ever had been, weren't they?

"We hold onto the organization and our clan name. We cling to triumphs of the past," Itachi explained, "These things limit us and limit our capacities. Such things deserve to be shunned, Sasuke. It is foolish to fear what we've yet to see and know!"

The things coming out of Itachi's mouth, Sasuke had never heard before. Not from him, or anyone else in the clan, "You want to end the war with the Senju Clan, don't you?"

Itachi didn't dispute the accusation, "What has war with the Senju done for our clan in the last century or two? Nothing but hold us back. There's so much more that can be achieved. Better things. Not just for us either. For everyone."

Such a thing sounded nice to people outside of the loop. But Sasuke and Itachi were both deeply involved in the goings-on, and both knew it wasn't going to happen, "Father would never do something like that."

Itachi nodded, "I know. That's why I never brought that part up," Let it never be known that Uchiha Itachi was a fool. He knew what was possible and what wasn't, "...Just the helping the Senju for self-preservation purposes part," And even that had failed in the end.

Sasuke, however, was looking to the not-so-distant future, "But you're going to be the one that takes over one day."

A ghost of a smile drifted across Itachi's face, "Maybe that will be the day something changes," If they survived that long, "But whether it happens or not, until then, it would behoove me to try and at least set the table."

Thinking toward the future was nice... if they survived to see it.

XxX

(Yu no Kuni – Unnamed Allied Shinobi Village)

Early mornings were usually pretty lazy on days where nothing important was planned. Tenten was very much accustomed to dragging herself to breakfast and waiting as everyone else slogged in and took their own seats.

To her surprise, when she made it to the table, Naruto was already there, fully dressed and geared up, stuffing his face with junk food ramen before anyone could try to scold him for it. Tenten sat with him, but was curious. Naruto never got up early when he didn't have to, and it always took him a bit of time to get moving. On this day, however, he seemed excited, enthusiastic.

It was weird, but Tenten wasn't awake enough to handle whatever his deal was just yet. It took a few more minutes, after Tayuya walked in, bleary-eyed and hair all askew, for someone to bring it up.

Tayuya needed a full cup of coffee before recognizing that Naruto was outfitted for travel, "Why the fuck are you dressed like you're going somewhere?"

"Because I am going somewhere," Naruto said, a big smile on his face, "I've got a mission."

Tenten considered Naruto's attitude, considerably more chipper than it had been in quite some time in regards to getting an assignment, "You get missions all the time. Stupid-dangerous ones, like you like. Why do you look so proud of this one?"

Tayuya didn't care about why Naruto seemed so upbeat. All she knew was that it again seemed like Naruto was flaking out on her, "Hey, asshole, you said we were going to train later!"

Naruto rememebered saying as much when he and Tayuya had been gallivanting around the village, "I'm surprised you remember that, the way you were last night."

Tayuya huffed and crossed her arms over her chest, "I wasn't that drunk. And don't change the goddamn subject."

Naruto rolled his eyes, "We are going to train later. Just not 'today' later," Tayuya inhaled like she was about to let him have it. Naruto noticed and cut her off before she could, "I promise, we'll do it when I get back! You can train with Tenten or something until I do," He turned to his best friend, "You were going to work out with Hinata after breakfast, right?"

Tenten frowned, but nodded, "Tayuya, you can come with me if you want," She offered, before focusing on Naruto, "But you. We just got back from Mizu no Kuni not even 18 hours ago, Naruto. What in the world are you doing that you have to go right back out?"

She knew he was a stamina monster, and that if anyone could deal with a heavy workload, it was him. She still didn't like the idea of him stretching himself thin. As much as she knew Naruto hated the still life, proper rest was important for everyone.

Before Naruto could say more, Minato walked in, fully outfitted, much like Naruto, "Hey, everyone," He greeted before realizing that one of the faces at the table was new, "This must be Tayuya."

Tayuya huffed, "Fucking got it in one. And you must be Golden Boy's daddy," With that realization, she spared Minato a proper glance, studying his features for a moment, before making a remark towards Naruto, "Hm. You look more like your mom."

"Kushina would have loved to have heard that one," Minato muttered, walking up behind Naruto to give him a pat on the back, "You ready to go?"

Naruto jumped up so eagerly, he nearly backed his chair into Minato, "Whenever you are, old man."

"You'd better watch it with that 'old man' stuff," Minato shot back, "I'm not even 40 yet," Woe be to Naruto if Kushina caught wind of that jab.

Tenten looked over at the father-son duo, "Wait, are you actually going on a mission with Naruto?"

Minato sighed and visibly slumped in dejection, "Why does everyone make it sound like there's a better chance of the Sage of Six Paths coming back than me hanging out with my kid?"

"Does Kushina-sama know?" Tenten questioned with a raised eyebrow, knowing that the redheaded mother had a similar mindset to hers over Naruto overworking himself.

Minato replied with all of the diplomacy he had developed over more than a decade and a half of pursuing his dream, "This decision was made after she went to sleep, and we're leaving before she wakes up... so, no," Tenten gave him a deadpan stare, "Don't look at me like that. I left her a note, and we should be back in two days."

"Don't..." Tenten massaged the bridge of her nose with one hand and held up her other hand in a stop gesture, "Don't give me a timetable. You know full well we pretty much never keep our deadlines."

The girl was exasperated, and for the life of him, Minato couldn't understand why, "I can literally Hiraishin back here whenever I want," He said.

Despite deeply respecting him, Tenten had been around this family long enough to be skeptical, even of him, "I know what I asked, Minato-sama."

Naruto sighed and started heading for the door, "I'm not letting you kill my buzz for this. We're just going to go now. Bye."

"Bye," Tenten said as Naruto and Minato departed, "Man, now I kind of feel bad. I'm glad Naruto is doing something with Minato-sama."

Tayuya was good enough at catching cues to pick up on the family byplay, "So, Golden Boy isn't a daddy's boy?"

Tenten snickered, but denied it, "No. He's not really like that with either of his parents. He's fairly independent, given the position he's in."

Naruto was more used to not having Minato around in his life than actually having him, and the time he'd spent away from Kushina, risking his life back when he and Tenten had first met had instilled a sense of self-determination in him that he kept even after she was freed from her hostage situation. He did missions because he wanted to help his family, not because anyone gave him orders.

In fact, in the three-to-four years that she had been around him, Tenten couldn't recall Naruto ever taking a mission because it was simply given to him. He just asked for them like clockwork, so Minato learned to always have something set up for when he did. Other than that, he just did whatever struck his fancy... including interjecting himself on missions that she took and needed backup on, because they were best friends.

Tiny footsteps gave way to a slowly awakening Kanako wandering into the room, looking around as though she were trying to find something she could swear had been there, but couldn't find, "Where's daddy and Ruto-nii?"

Tayuya caught herself staring at the little girl as she wandered automatically over to a smiling Tenten who boosted her up onto her lap, "Oh my God, she's so stinking cute," She exclaimed, very much out of character, which she recognized, "I... didn't say that out loud."

"You did," Tenten said, very much amused by Tayuya's first reaction to the smallest member of the Namikaze-Uzumaki marital union, "It's better than what I was afraid you would say though."

Tayuya wasn't in the business of pissing off the wife of the guy who ran the place just because, "Mama Red told me to watch my mouth around what I assume is Baby Red," Tayuya said, gesturing to a groggy Kanako, who continued to confusedly look around for her non-present father and brother, even as Tenten bounced her dotingly, "I don't hate this place yet, and I'd rather not get my a-," She growled and quickly edited herself, "-Butt booted out of here until I'm ready to go on my own."

"I'm glad we have an understanding on that," Kushina remarked as she arrived to join the other girls, "So, you're staying here for the time being?"

Tayuya shrugged, "At least until I get my bearings. Never been to the mainland before. Heard it sucks, just not like how Mizu does," She paused upon realizing her fringe curse, "I can say 'sucks', right?"

Kushina thought about it for a moment, "Yes. I'll give you that inch, but please don't try to take a mile. Now, where are my menfolk?" She asked expectantly as she went over to dote on Kanako.

Tenten grumbled her response, giving the little girl up when Kushina went to pick her up, "A mission, apparently. Minato-sama said he left you a note," Kushina peered behind the weapon-user and peeled a sheet of paper off of her back, "What? When did he-? I didn't even see him-."

Kushina hummed, "Hm, Naruto left this. The handwriting's a dead giveaway," Good boy, trying to cover his father's backside. Kushina proceeded to dryly read, "'Gone north for reasons. Not stabby-reasons; scouty-reasons. Will be back in two days… probably,'" She let out a laugh, "Well, isn't that explanatory? Little brat is probably ducking me so I don't get to lay into him about fighting Nagato."

Kushina was a lot more casual about everything than Tenten thought she'd be. She was definitely cooler about it than Tenten was herself, "It's just the two of them though. Aren't you worried?"

If it had been just Naruto and anyone else, probably, because that boy attracted trouble. But with Minato leading him, everything should have been fine. Namikaze Minato might have been flaky as a new administrator adjusting to his duties, but in the field, the man was a machine.

Try as she might, Kushina couldn't muster a scenario in her head where the two would be in real trouble, "Even if they weren't just going out to scout, I can't think of a stronger father and son alive than Minato and Naruto. I'm sure they'll be fine."

Major Clan Information

Alpha Clan
Leader: A

Population: 5/5
Military Strength: 5/5
Economy: 2/5
Notable Traits: Dominates shinobi business in Kaminari no Kuni. Comprised of hundreds of clans conquered and ingratiated into Alpha Clan life and culture. Population that easily dwarfs most other notable clans combined. Extremely diverse range of combat styles and specializations. Leadership heavily centralized solely to the head of the clan, identified by the title 'A'.
Area of Operations: All of Kaminari no Kuni and immediate surrounding areas.

That's the chapter, guys. Storm clouds are moving in from Kaminari no Kuni. Heh? Get it? Storm clouds. Heh? You get it?

Ahh... you get it.

Alright, I've eaten up enough of your time. Go find some other way to spend your day. I'm done here.

Until the next time, guys. Kenchi out.