A/N: I would like to thank everyone that added this story to their favourites and follows as well as everyone that reviewed the last chapter.

"Tsunade, did you know about Naruto?"

Tsunade took a sip of her sake and kept her eyes fixated on the television screen as the Konoha Elders flung open the doors of her office. The three of them narrowed their eyes at her, their arms folded against their chest and they looked at the television screen that Tsunade decided to put inside her office for just this event.

"You lived up to your oath, Uzumaki and that is not an easy achievement." Several pair of eyes turned to the television screen where a muscular man stood up to hand the final medal to Naruto. A smile decorates his face and in her youth, Tsunade admired that man. But now Tsunade had her eyes fixated on the girl that helped her conquer her fear of blood.

Naruto had a smile on her face and her blue eyes seemed to be shining like the bright blue skies in Konoha. It was a whole different sight from what Tsunade was forced to see three years ago. Jiraiya might have decided to leave her alone in Japan but at least the man chose a country that seemed to heal her better than any medical jutsu I know. She darted her eyes to the councilmembers.

"Well Tsunade? Did you know?" Koharu demanded.

Shizune flickered her eyes to her and Tsunade just swirled her glass of sake. The councilmembers grinded their teeth and their eyes flashed with irritation at her lack of answer. Letting out a sigh, the woman put down her glass of sake and nodded. "Jiraiya informed me everything."

No words was spoken as the councilmembers stared at her. They pressed their lips into a thin line, almost looking as if they sucked a bad lemon, and took several deep breaths. From right beside her, Shizune knitted her eyebrows but the blond-haired woman just gulped down her glass of sake. She kept the glass close to her mouth, making sure not to allow them to see the smile that played on her lips.

"And why weren't we inform of this development?" Danzo demanded. "As the elders of this village and the councilmembers, we deserve the right to know the whereabouts of our own Jinchuuriki."

Tsunade schooled her expression and put down her glass. "If we placed spies in every single village in the Elemental Countries then it is reasonable to believe that they have done the same. How could I be certain that we would never be overheard by them?"

The three councilmembers glanced at each other and they grimaced at her words. Tsunade picked up the sake bottle, swirling it around and grimaced at the lack of sound from the sake bottle. It seemed like she might need her fourth sake bottle soon, which wasn't a big deal. She will probably have Sakura buy the more expensive kind for her so that Tsunade could celebrate Naruto's achievement.

Jirariya did a good job even though he only started to seriously train her in the last two weeks.

"And how did Naruto find out about Japan?" Koharu asked.

Tsunade raised a single eyebrow at her. "Didn't you wish for Naruto to be protected from the Akatsuki? Jiraiya did a lot of research on where is the best place to keep her protected as the three of you wished. In his research, Jiraiya thought of Japan."

I understand why he kept me in the dark but I have the right to know where he takes Naruto. He can't keep me in the dark until a week before this happens. She grabbed the bottle of sake and gulped down every single drop of her drink. Her eyes focused on the councilmembers, who frowned at her and tutted at her habit.

"And how could Jiraiya be certain that Japan is real?" Danzo questioned. His lone eye revealed no emotion and his voice was calm, almost too calm if someone asked her. He would have been the one to protest more and he was the one that insisted that Naruto stayed in the village. Tsunade put down the bottle of sake and pressed her lips into a thin line.

"From his spy network." Danzo and the two elders glanced at each other, their lips pressed into an even thinner line at her response. They narrowed their eyes at her while Shizune raised a single eyebrow at her, not looking at all like she believed her words.

Silence blanket over them as the councilmembers kept looking at each other. Tsunade shifted in her seat, hands clasped together and eyebrows knitted together as the three councilmembers huddled together. The Hokage glanced at Shizune, who now shook her head at her. The woman sighed. Once this was all done, she would explain everything to her.

"Did Jiraiya tell you if there is a chance that Japan would be of a concern to us?" The woman raised her eyebrow at Danzo while the councilmembers perked up at the question. Danzo straightened his back and darted his eyes throughout the office before landing his eyes on her. "With so many strong Kekkei Genkai, the country is a concern to us."

Tsunade grinded her teeth together. "They don't know that we exist just as most of us don't know that they exist."

"And how can you be certain?" Danzo asked. He leaned his right body to his cane and took several breaths while Homura and Koharu bobbed their heads. "That young man who screamed about respect looks like a member of your grandmother's clan; our allies. How can we be certain that they didn't tell them?"

Tsunade's eyebrows twitched and the woman clenched her hands into a fist. Shizune leaned forward but the blond-haired woman slammed her hands against the table, cracking and splitting into half. Danzo remained motionless in his spot while Koharu and Homura took a few steps back, lips pressed into a frown at her behaviour.

"If my grandmother's clan informed Japan about us then we would have been attacked by now," Tsunade grinded her teeth together. "It is quite clear that they haven't informed them. We can't even be certain that the man is a member of the Uzumaki Clan."

Koharu narrowed her eyes at her. "Tsunade, you were there when Kushina came to this village with her cousin. The boy looks like Uzumaki Kenji and only a fool will be blind about his resemblance. The Uzumaki clan was thought to be destroyed 25 years ago. The boy looks like he is 22 and his resemblance is nearly the same as Uzumaki Kenji's appearance in the Bingo Book."

The young woman pressed her lips into a thin line. Words were stuck in her throat as memory flooded into her mind. A pair of hazel eyes flashing with concern as another pair of violet eyes looked at Tsunade's grandmother with betrayal. Taking a deep breath, Tsunade grinded her teeth together and kept quiet. There was just no way she could deny his words.

"If Kenji is as alive as you think he is then why haven't they attack the village if that is your concern?" Tsunade growled. The councilmembers looked at each other with their lips pressed into a thin line. "As far as I am concerned, if the Uzumaki clan still exist then they wouldn't tell that country about us. My word is final."

Danzo narrowed his eyes at her and Tsunade clenched her jaws. It felt like she was a genin again with the way that bastard kept looking at her like she was a child that still needed to learn. Why did Hiruzen-sensei keep him around was still an absolute mystery to her. Bastard is more likely to betray my orders then listen to it.

"Then why don't we send our shinobi to investigate the country," Danzo inhaled and exhaled. "Why don't we make certain that country is truly ignorant as you claimed? An investigation should be conducted on the country and the level of threat it can pose to us. Do not let your fond memories of your grandmother and her clan cloud your judgement. Remember Tsunade: the village must always come first."

With those words, the councilmembers walked out of the room and left her alone with Shizune. The blond-haired woman took a deep breath, brown eyes flickering to the shadows before letting out a sigh. She darted her eyes to Shizune, who opened her mouth but only to close it when the woman shook her head.

"Shizune, can you please leave me alone?"

Shizune nibbled her bottom lip, black eyes wavering at her request before finally nodding her head. Tsunade swirled the bottle of sake, closing her eyes as her assistant walked out of the office. Shizune wavered for just a moment before straightening her black and closing the door as quietly as she could.

As soon as the door was closed, a monkey-masked man popped out of the shadows and Tsunade let out a sigh.

"You heard him, didn't you Monkey?"

Monkey exhaled, turned his head to the closed door and then looked at her. "Did you really know where Naru-chan go? Or were you lying to them about knowing about her whereabouts? Jiraiya refused to let me go and check up on her during her imposed exile."

Tsunade inhaled and exhaled as the ANBU guard took a seat on the chair. The man came long way from being a little brat that used to annoy his father for attention and it was times like these where she could hear her teacher echoing out of him. Too bad the council had chosen either her or Jiraiya for this crap job.

"He only informed me two weeks ago about this," Tsunade licked her lips and let out a sigh. "God, I'm happy that the kid won and everything, since it shows that her claims weren't always empty boasts. But Jiraiya should have made certain that the girl didn't enter such well-known place. If we saw her then Iwa saw her and everyone knows how much Iwa hates Minato."

Monkey leaned his body back and looked up at the ceiling. "Naru-chan isn't just a concern, Hokage-sama. That Explosive Boy is also another concern for us…do you realize who he resembles? He looks a little bit similar to the Fourth."

"I saw the resemblance," Tsunade pressed her lips into a thin line. "Not many people know this but the Fourth Hokage's birth certificate was forged as a request by his father. Minato never talked about his birth place and if it weren't for his resemblance to his father, people would question about where he was born. Souta was always so careful in dodging about where his newfound son came from."

Monkey let out a sigh. "The only person who would be able to answer the question was murdered when Naruto was two. It was no coincidence that after the Third told Danzo that Uzumaki Naruto was to live a normal life with her grandmother that she just died."

"If he wanted to take Naruto under his wing then he went about it the wrong way," Tsunade said wearily.

The ANBU commander shook his head. "He was trying everything in his power to get the hat that you were given by the other two elders. In the first six months of Naruto's life, things were easy between her and her grandmother but someone leaked out that Naruto was the jinchuuriki. They conveniently left out the fact that she was the Fourth's daughter, which would have made her life easier in the village."

"The villagers would not have believed it," Tsunade said dryly. "Despite her strong resemblance to Minato, the villagers would rather let their anger and hater for the beast cloud what is right in front of their eyes."

Monkey nodded and let out a sigh before flickering his eyes to the doors and then to the trees outside of the office. He shook his head and stood up, only to pause when Tsunade held her hand up to him. He tilted his head as the brown-eyed woman took a deep breath.

"You will have a long mission ahead of you, Monkey." Tsunade grimaced. "You will need to investigate what is happening and keep an eye on Naruto. I trust Jiraiya to protect her but we cannot afford for anything to happen to her. You might not be able to see your son for a maximum of a year."

Monkey sighed and hunched his shoulders. "My brother will keep an eye on him while I'm out for this mission. It will give him and Kurenai some practice of raising kids if they ever decide to have kids."

The sizzling scent of beef being grilled tickled Eisuke's nostrils and the red-haired man wiped the drool off of his face, ignoring the amused look from his fellow hero. Chatter flooded the Korean restaurant, booming and bouncing through the walls as the occasional customer took out their phone to take a picture of him and Hawks.

Eisuke flashed a smile when one of the girls took a photo of him and his smile broadens when the girl flushed a light shade of pink. Hawks chuckled and took a piece of chicken from the grill, dropping it straight down to his bowl.

"Your girlfriend is going to kill you if she sees that you are flirting with them," Hawks pulled his lips into a smile. He flickered his eyes to the smiling crowds, waving his hands at them and he took a sip of his own drink.

Eisuke tore his eyes away from the giggling girls. "My girlfriend works in this business and knows very well that we need to keep up appearances. I might flirt, smile and even joke with them but I won't ever cheat on her."

"Oh, serious about this one are you?" Hawks leaned forward and the red-haired hero rubbed the back of his neck as his cheeks flushed a bright shade of red. "She must be really something for you to suddenly decide to settle down."

Silence hung between them as Eisuke flickered his eyes to the crowds that were now either too busy grilling their food, chatting with each other or looking at their menus with interest. The winged-hero raised his eyebrow at him and the red-haired man slumped his shoulders, before nodding his head at the hero.

Hawks smiled. "So if you are serious about her then why didn't you bring her with you to the Sports Festival? The two of you aren't having trouble in paradise, are you?"

"I just told you that I'm serious about her, didn't I?" Eisuke grumbled. Hawks just tilted his head at him, one eyebrow raised at him and the young man shook his head. "We are perfectly happy but I can't run an agency and watch the tournament at the same time."

His fellow hero raised a single eyebrow at him. "Can't you make clones? They could run the agency and you would have a perfect date with your pretty girlfriend."

Eisuke sighed and run his hand through his hair. His fellow hero tilted his head and Eisuke's green eyes darted everywhere but at the curious eyes of his comrade. Taking a deep breath, the hero pushed his meat back and forth as he nibbled his bottom lip. Finally, the hero let out a sigh and focused his eyes at the winged-hero.

"If I were to make clones then I will get a headache," Eisuke informed him. "The one time I overdid it with the clones and my Dad made me pop all of them to make sure I learn the consequence of my actions. It felt like I had a hangover that lasted for three days."

The red-haired hero quirked his lips into a smile and swirled his beer around while Hawks took a sip of his own soda. He looked at the smiling parents with their kids and green eyes twinkled with mirth as the irritated voice of his father echoed in his ear along with another set of memories.

"My father called me a punk for trying to take the easy way out for studying for all those exams," Eisuke continued and Hawks blinked at this piece of information. "Bastard punish me real good for acting like a little shit."

Hawks let out a laugh and his brown eyes shone with just a little bit of amusement. His lips curled into a smile but it was not like the usual smiles that his fellow hero gave to his fans. No, it was almost like the smiles that Eisuke see his father has whenever he saw children playing without a care in the world.

It was a wonder why Hawks would envy him.

"What is wrong with taking the easy way out, Uzushiokage?" Hawks let out a sigh. "Heroes should have more free time to themselves so that they could enjoy life."

Eisuke just smiled and took a sip of his beer, green eyes fixated at the smiling faces of the civilians that walked in those streets with laughter and their shoulders sat straight. He inhaled as a pair of strict eyes flashed before his eyes along with harsh words which echoed in his ear. Six years passed since that stunt and his body still shivered at his father's words.

"The easy way out doesn't always mean the smartest choice," Eisuke kept his face straight and lowered his voice, which earned a raised eyebrow from his hero. The winged-man covered his mouth, trying to muffle his laughs and the other customers glanced at them. They smiled at them, eyes filled with stars and the two heroes beamed at them.

"Who the hell were you trying to sound like?" Hawks demanded.

At that moment, a ringtone echoed between them and the winged-hero raised an eyebrow at him. Eisuke smiled, pulled out his phone and gulped at the name beeping out of his phone. Old man. His hands trembled and he cleared his throat. The hero took a deep breath, trying to stop the trembles that seemed to running throughout his body.

"Yo, Pops." He closed his eyes and twisted his fingers together as Hawks tilted his head to the side, body leaning forward and a smile playing on his lips.

"You went to the Yuuei Sports Festival, didn't you?" Eisuke almost let out a sigh of relief. Maybe he didn't see what I did. He bobbed his head and blinked when his comrade raised an eyebrow at his actions.

The red-haired hero took a deep breath. "Yeah, I decided to go because I just wanted to know which one of those kids was capable of—"

"Eisuke, I'm not asking why you decided to watch it live and frankly I don't give a shit why you went." Eisuke sighed and rubbed the back of his neck, shaking his head at his father's behavior. It was just too much for him to hope that his father had an interest to know why he went but his old man cared more about his business and that dojo he ran.

Uzushiokage took a sip of his beer. "Then why are you asking me if—"

"I am asking if you watched Uzumaki Naruto," Eisuke blinked and swirled his beer at the mention of the girl that stood out so much in the Sports Festival. He nodded his head, only to blink at the realization that his father was not right beside him but was instead a voice in the phone. The red-haired hero sweated even more.

"I did," Eisuke took a sip of his beer. "She was quite amazing. She did things that I didn't think a girl like her would do."

His father let out a snort. "Do you honestly believe that girl is like you or the other second-generation of Uzumaki that were born here. She wasn't raised in this part of the world."

The hero let out a sigh and took a sip of his own drinks, lips pressed into a thin line. He ran his fingers through his hair, ignoring the curious looks being thrown at him by his comrade. Eisuke looked up at the ceiling, rubbing the back of his neck and then looking at the smiling customers that seemed to be laughing without a care in the world.

"I thought so." Eisuke finally answered.

Hawks raised his eyebrow and the red-haired hero took a deep breath. He held his hand up to the hero, excusing himself from the meal and walking out of the door. I have a feeling that this might be a long conversation. He forced himself to smile when the civilians looked at him with wide eyes.

"I figured it out when I saw the author of Icha-Icha too," Eisuke took a deep breath. "Didn't you say you know him? Did you know that he was going to be here?"

"I told you that I know of him," His father sighed. "And are you certain Eisuke that you saw Jiraiya? That you saw the Toad Sannin?"

Eisuke pressed his lips into a thin line. "Pops, I think I will recognize the author of our favorite book series."

His father let out a chuckled and a smile played on Eisuke's face. Green eyes flickered towards the smiling schoolgirls, who now had their arms linked together and the red-haired hero looked up at the evening skies. He rubbed the back of his neck, easing the aches in his neck.

"Will it help if I tell you that he seemed to be talking to her?"

There was no answer between them and Eisuke held his breath. Time seemed to slow down as he waited for his father to say something. His palms began to sweat and his lips almost wobbled at the lack of answer. He hunched his shoulders and shifted back and forth.

"Eisuke, I want you to get close to the girl." Eisuke blinked and he could hear his father turning his chair around, which told the man that his father must be in his office and not in his training room. "And I want you to take a piece of hair from her so we can run a DNA test. If my suspicions are correct about her then you will need to keep an eye on her."

Eisuke raised his eyebrow. "My sidekicks will think that I took her in because of her last name."

"Stop your complaining, Eisuke!" He winced and his father took several deep breaths. "If your sidekicks know you at all then they would know that isn't the reason you decide to intern her. You saw her eyes, didn't you Eisuke?"

Eisuke nibbled his bottom lip and took a deep breath. "She is like you, isn't she?"

There was no answer from his father but the young man just sighed. He doesn't need to answer me, it is obvious. Eisuke clenched and unclenched his hands, green eyes flickering to the people that seemed to be walking around without a care in the world. Some of these people might be having happy lives while others might be going back home to a family that hurt them.

His heart ached at those families while a pair of turquoise eyes flashed before him.

"She is," his father confirmed. "If Jiraiya is here then it confirms that she is a kunoichi from Konoha. If he is looking after her then she is important to that village."

Eisuke sighed and his father let out a sigh. The red-haired man tensed up when he heard a growl coming from the phone. What did I do this time? Could he just close the phone? No, it would just be avoiding the inevitable because his father will just call him until he had no choice but to answer the phone.

"Your sister just sent me a message telling me about the great speech you made during the Sports Festival." Eisuke swore under his breath. "Don't you cuss young man! There is a reason why I never allowed you to enter Yuuei High! You just showed the whole world that the Uzumaki clan is still alive! What the hell were you thinking?"

"C'mon I forgot Old Man!"

His father scribbled something down. "Eisuke, I don't know if the Elemental Countries knows who that girl is but there is no doubt that they will know who you are."

What the hell was his father talking about?

"I never lived there! I was born here!"

"Eisuke, you are my son." His father took several deep breaths and the red-haired hero gulped down a lump. "You look like me and that is enough for anyone to connect the dots. That is enough for them to know that the Uzumaki clan is still alive and thriving. Things won't look good from here on out so you will need to keep an eye out for things."

Dread crept up in his stomach and Eisuke gulped down a lump. "What do you mean?"

"I will tell you when you come back home," his father let out a sigh. "There are things that you and the other children need to know when it comes to the Elemental Countries."

There was no answer and Eisuke wondered what the hell was going to happen soon.

"Uzumaki-chan! Congratulations for winning!"

Naruto stiffened her back when a pair of slim arms wrapped around her. All around her were her fellow customers, who seemed content with either staring at her, Todoroki and Midoriya or coming up to them to congratulate them for their matches. It felt weird for so many people to admire her but Naruto could only smile at the attention.

She twisted her head around and blinked at the sight of smiling Nejire. Right behind her senior was Amejiki and Togata. The two other teens smiled at her and flickered their eyes to the curious eyes of Todoroki and Midoriya, who blinked at the sight of the three of them standing here.

"You guys were amazing," Togata declared, flashing them a smile. "But Midoriya, you reminded me of All Might when you fought Todoroki."

Her green-haired friend sweated and rubbed the back of his neck as a nervous laugh bubbled out of his mouth. Todoroki darted his eyes to Naruto. She shrugged, uncertain how to answer his question because she doesn't know anything about this. Her friend took a deep breath and Naruto forced herself to smile.

"So what are you guys doing here?" Naruto asked and she flashed a smile to Midoriya. Her friend took a deep breath, giving her a small grateful smile. Her stomach twisted and turned and the girl clenched and unclenched her hands.

Amejiki rubbed the back of his neck and took a deep breath. "Hadou and Mirio made a bet on who would win the tournament and since Mirio won the Third-Year tournament, he chose to come here."

He avoided her blue eyes and Naruto knitted her eyebrows, rubbing the back of her neck. She flickered her eyes to Nejire and Togata, who looked at the dark-haired boy with smiles playing on their lips. Her blond-haired senior swung his arm over Amejiki's shoulder while Nejire just giggled.

"And aren't you glad that we came here, Tamaki?" Naruto knitted her eyebrows and the dark-haired senior flushed a bright shade of red. He shook his head and sighed at his smiling friend, bowing his head down till Naruto could not see his head. Nejire smiled even wider and nudged the boy with her elbow, earning a smile from the periwrinkled-haired girl.

Nejire tilted her head. "So what are you guys doing here?"

"Uzumaki invited us here," Todoroki replied, putting down his chopsticks. He darted his eyes at her, knitting his eyebrows together and Naruto smiled at him. His lips twitched, almost looking like a smile while Midoriya and Nejire flickered their eyes between them.

Nejire tilted her head. "Really, Uzumaki-chan?"

Naruto nodded and swirled her ramen. Her lips wobbled down, rubbing the back of her neck as Nejire and her seniors blinked at her. Taking a deep breath, the girl looked away from her miso bowl and she looked at the three older teens.

They have always been there for me too, especially Hadou. Naruto pushed her bottom lip forward and knitted her eyebrows. Hadou's concerned eyes. Togata's easy smile and Amejiki's flushed red cheeks flashed right before her. Her heart ached and her stomach turned like there was no tomorrow. Those three visited her in the hospital and Hadou even helped her in her first day of high school.

'The best way to find out if you trust someone is to trust them.'

She took a deep breath and jumped off of her seat, bowing down to them. Several eyes grew large and her body trembled. Her hair covered her eyes, hiding it from everyone as her heart jumped up to her throat. She gulped it down and reminded herself that she was a strong woman.

"I owe the three of you an apology," Naruto exhaled and kept her eyes focused on the floor. "I'm sorry for acting like a complete and utter bitch to all of you."

Silence blanket over them and the blond-haired girl gulped down a lump. Almost everyone seemed to be looking at her with wide eyes but only one person was not surprised at Naruto's apology. Todoroki just took a sip of his drink, mismatch eyes focused on Naruto.

Amejiki frowned and knelt down till he was at the same eye level with Naruto. His dark eyes fixated on her and the blond-haired girl saw another pair of eyes flashing before her. Dark eyes that used to twinkle with joy at the sight of her and the promise of being best friends forever echoed in her ears. He isn't Sasuke and it is not fair for me to keep unconscious comparing them.

"Why are you sorry?" Amejiki placed his hands on her shoulder.

The concern in his eyes made her throat dry up as Sasuke's dark eyes flashed before her again. It was not long before another pair of green eyes appeared right in front of her. Pale milky eyes too appeared and Naruto balled her hands into a fist. They collided against her mind and Naruto knew that she had been especially cruel to this guy.

She felt her cheeks burning up when the boy knitted his eyebrows at her.

"I kept pushing you guys away," Naruto swallowed down the lump and shoved the memories of her childhood to one side. "And I'm sorry for my actions and my behaviour in general. I guess I have been the most unfair to Nejire and Amejiki."

Nejire's eyes widened at the use of her first name and Naruto flashed them a smile. The older girl's eyes softened while Amejiki just stared at her with flushed cheeks. Togata flickered his eyes between the three of them while Midoriya flickered his eyes between Naruto, Todoroki and Amejiki.

Togata grinned.

"If you want to be forgiven Uzumaki then you need to take responsibility." Naruto blinked and swirled her head at her fellow blonde. Amejiki paled, shaking his head as if he knew exactly what his best friend was planning to do, while Nejire let out a giggle.

"R-Responsibility?" Naruto squeaked.

"You and your friends join us in my celebratory meal!" Togata pulled Amejiki into a standing position and slapped his friend hard on the shoulder. "Tamaki offered to pay for our meals so you don't need to worry about paying for us."

Amejiki blinked. "Since when did I—"

Nejire nudged the boy and pointed to Naruto, who blinked and smiled widely at hearing the offer of someone else paying for her meal. Amejiki flushed a light shade of red while Togata grinned before taking a seat right beside Midoriya.

"I guess I am paying for the meal." Amejiki said, shaking his head.

Today is probably one of the best days of my life.

Naruto's newfound joy would soon fade in the next couple of weeks as it would only be a couple of weeks later when Naruto came to regret what happened next. If only she took into account of the events that would soon transpired because she never imagined what happened next.

She never meant for any of it to happen.

A/N: Please review and tell me what you think of this chapter. The next installation of the series may come in the next couple of weeks and I hope that all of you enjoyed reading the first book and the interactions between the characters.

Additional Note: Since I cannot post notes as chapters due to the site's rules and regulation, so I would like to say that the new book: Guardian is out and picks off a day after the events of the chapter.