Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto, Dante's Inferno, or anything else I use in this story.

Hello once again readers! Time for a new chapter!

So…COVID-19, am I right?

Seriously, this virus sucks. Until just a few weeks ago, I've been stuck at home with nothing to do, yet despite all that, I still had trouble getting another chapter out!

Whatever, I'm back at work again at least. My hours are reduced, but at least I have a consistent schedule of shit to do again.

I hope you all are staying safe and healthy during all this and that my writing brings at least some small amount joy to you.

But enough about that. I'll stop talking and let you get to reading.

Enjoy!

"Regular speech"

'Thoughts'

"Death/Demon/Angel/Summon/Other speech"

Special Weapon/Armor/Artifact

Chapter 24: A New Dawn

It was still early morning when the trio arrived outside the council chambers inside the Hokage Tower.

"Thanks for bringing us here, Neko-chan" Naruto thanked his former guardian.

"It was no trouble" she replied.

"Still, much appreciated" Jiraiya told her, "Well, let's head on in kid."

He was about to comply when Neko stopped them, "Actually, Jiraiya-sama" she began, "Before you head in, may I speak to Uzumaki-san alone?"

Jiraiya raised an eyebrow, but nodded, "Sure. He doesn't need to be there for the whole thing anyway. I'll go in and try to get the pointless stuff out of the way and you join me after you're done, okay?"

Naruto nodded.

As soon as Jiraiya left, Neko surprised her former charge by embracing him.

"Thank you" she told him.

Confused, Naruto still returned her embrace, "For what?" he asked.

"Saving Hayate" she told him, "He told me everything. I came so close to losing him…" her voice trembled slightly, "I don't know what I would've done if he had died. Thank you for saving my husband."

"You're welc—Husband?!" he nearly shouted in shock, releasing her.

Neko nodded, "After you saved him, he proposed to me and we had a quiet wedding a few days after that."

Naruto overcame his shock and smiled, "I'm glad" he told her, "You two deserve to be happy."

"And we are, thanks to you" she told him.

"After all you two did for me, it was the least I could do."

As he prepared to leave, she stopped him once more, "One last thing" she said, before surprising him even further by removing her mask, showing him her face for the first time. He always suspected she was beautiful behind her mask, and he was proven right. Warm brown eyes complimented her smiling face.

"My name is Yugao" she told him, "Yugao Uzuki Gekko."

Naruto's smile grew, "Pleased to meet you, Yugao" he held out his hand and she shook it, holding back her laughter.

"Now, I think you better get going" Yugao told him, "Jiraiya-sama is probably waiting for you."

"Probably" he replied, "Guess I'll see you around, Mrs. Gekko."

Yugao laughed, "You will, blondie."

The two then parted ways, with Naruto entering the Council Chambers.

"It's been three weeks since the attack! How is it you still haven't found Orochimaru yet?!"

The blonde Reaper's mood soured upon remembering who he was going to have to deal with.

"Oh, I'm sorry" Jiraiya told the civilian council member who just spoke sarcastically, "I didn't realize that's what I was supposed to be doing! Silly me! I'll just get right on that then!"

"Ignoring your borderline insubordinate tone, the fact that you've discovered nothing over the past month is disconcerting" Danzo Shimura cut in, frowning.

"And as I've told you people every single day since the attack, information gathering takes time" Jiraiya said, "I'm a spymaster, not a fortune-teller!"

"It would be extremely surprising if Jiraiya-sama was able to discover something so soon after the attack" Shibi Aburame defended the sannin, "This is, after all, the same man who escaped our notice for the past ten years prior to this."

"Ten years ago, Orochimaru did not possess an army to use against us" Danzo argued, "A single man can hide with ease. A hidden village cannot."

"It can if their leader knows how we operate" Jiraiya told him, "Bear in mind that Orochimaru was able to hide the fact that he is the leader of Otogakure all this time."

"Oto was not believed to be a threat when we first learned of it" Shikaku Nara spoke up, "And that's exactly what Orochimaru was counting on us doing. He hid in plain sight, right under our noses like the troublesome bastard he is."

"He can no longer hide" Homura Mitokado said, "Not after this."

"He can" Jiraiya told the old man, "And that's exactly what he's doing. It's what he's best at. I want him to pay for what he's done too, but we can't do anything until we find him" he explained, "Something I'd get done much faster if you all stopped bothering me and let me work!"

At this point, Naruto decided to intervene, "Nice to see government in action."

The entire room turned to face him, noticing him for the first time since he entered the room.

"Or maybe I should say: government inaction" he snarked as he walked in.

Tsume Inuzuka held in her laughter at the perfect description of what was going on.

Koharu Utatane narrowed her eyes, "And what are you doing here?" she demanded, "You were not invited to this meeting."

"Actually, he was" Jiraiya told her, "By me."

"For what purpose?" Homura asked, also narrowing his eyes at the blonde.

"For the real reason I agreed to come to this meeting: electing a new Hokage."

Naruto's eyes widened. A new Hokage? So soon?

"Finally, a problem we can do something about" Tsume said.

"Indeed" Shibi concurred, "And something that requires our attention."

"If we're going to select a new Hokage, I nominate Jiraiya-sama for the role" Choza Akimichi said, getting sounds of agreement from many of the other council members.

Jiraiya blanched, but recovered quickly, "I'm honored, Choza-san, but I must decline" he told the portly clan head, "I'm the last person who should be a kage. I'm good at intelligence gathering and fighting, but I'd make a terrible Hokage."

As many of the civilians and clan heads voiced their disagreements to his statement, Naruto found himself admiring the sannin's moment of modesty. The man could reign in his ego after all…

Danzo interrupted by stomping the floor with his cane, "While Jiraiya is a worthy candidate, he is correct in that he would be ill suited to become Hokage" his words sent many glares his way, "Do not mistake my meaning. His skill and devotion are without question, but he is best suited for field work and leading our efforts in locating Orochimaru."

The council had to grudgingly agree with that.

"However, he is not the only choice we have" the crippled man continued, "What we need is a leader, someone who knows the village's inner workings and how to handle them. Someone who has a great deal of experience in such things" he then paused for effect, before making his move, "For those reasons, I'd like to nominate myself for the position of Godaime Hokage."

The entire council (save for the other advisors) were stunned by the boldness and audacity of Danzo's statement. The silence was quickly ended by someone snickering.

Danzo glared at the one responsible, "Do you find something amusing, UzumakI?" he ground out.

The kept his silent laughter going for a moment before pretending to be shocked, "Wait, you're being serious? You as Hokage?"

Danzo's eye narrowed further, "You disagree?" he asked.

"Well…yeah!" Naruto said, "And I imagine most of the people in this room do too! No offense but electing you as Hokage would be a terrible choice for our village."

"And why is that exactly?" Danzo asked, "I have served this village faithfully throughout my entire life. I was once a candidate for Sandaime Hokage-"

"Forty years ago, when you still had both of your eyes and arms and could walk without a cane" Naruto interrupted.

Koharu narrowed her eyes once more, "Do not interrupt a member of this council, genin. Remember your place."

"My 'place'" Naruto argued, "Is to serve at the Hokage's behest and last I checked, no one in this room holds that title" he then opened his cloak, showing his new flak vest, "And since you seem unaware, my rank has changed."

While the other advisors were shocked, Danzo fumed. The Kyuubi Jinchuuriki was not meant to advance in rank. He needed to be at the lowest rank possible, where he could be more easily controlled. This fouled his plans even further.

"Your promotion was a mistake" Homura voiced his opinion, "You brought personal feelings into your battle with Neji Hyuuga and spent the entire match showboating."

"His 'showboating', as you call it, was a strategic move" Shikaku pointed out, "His showcasing of his skills and constant mocking were meant to exploit his opponent's weaknesses."

"Which he managed to do" Inoichi Yamanaka admitted grudgingly. Ever since the blonde chuunin walked in, he had been glaring at him, still enraged by the fact he was "cheating" on his daughter. Since entering the room, Naruto made it a point to not look at the enraged clan head.

"Hear, hear!" Tsume chimed in.

"Even if he did intend to show off, which I'm not convinced he did, the fact he saved our village from being destroyed by Suna's jinchuuriki is an act that deserves a promotion in and of itself. I noticed none of us rushing to engage the Ichibi."

The entire council was shocked by who had just defended Naruto Uzumaki: Hiashi Hyuuga. In the time since seeing his wife's spirit and seeing Neji redeemed, he had finally come to terms with the mistakes he had made and sought to rectify them. He had visited his nephew in the hospital and finally followed his brother's last wish, giving his nephew the letter his father left for him, explaining everything. When Neji asked why he waited so long, Hiashi told his nephew that he didn't want him to think Hizashi abandoned him and hate him for it. He figured it was better to let Neji think he had forced his father to sacrifice himself so that the hate would be directed at him instead.

Hiashi then surprised his nephew by begging for his forgiveness. Neji managed to overcome his shock and forgave him, happy to know the truth at last.

He had also begun to mend bridges with his daughters, finally seeing how Naruto had made Hinata stronger, not weaker.

"We're getting off topic" Koharu brought everyone out of their stupor, "We need to discuss the current situation. Councilman Shimura has nominated himself to become the next Hokage. His record of service is quite extensive and his loyalty to Konoha is unquestionable. I second his nomination."

"As do I" Homura agreed.

Danzo allowed a feeling of satisfaction to well up within him. Soon, he would achieve his goal…

"Then the two of you clearly do not have Konoha's best interests at heart" Naruto interrupted again, "While the 'honorable' councilman may have served the village admirably in the past, the fact of the matter is that he is not qualified for the position of Hokage in the present."

"And how do figure that?" Danzo nearly growled out, growing more and more irritated as the brat's defiance escalated.

"The Hokage has duties that you simply cannot fulfill" the blonde replied, "For one, the Hokage is required to serve in the village's armed forces during times of war, something you are clearly unable to do since you only have one arm, need a cane to walk, and lack the basic use of depth perception. Secondly, the Hokage is meant to defend the village itself in case of an attack, which again, your disabilities prevent you from doing. Finally, the Hokage, or any kage for that matter, is supposed to inspire the loyalty in their ninja and instill fear in their enemies. Once again, your disabilities render your intimidation factor non-existent and you haven't served as an active duty ninja in decades. How are our shinobi supposed to be inspired by someone who has actively avoided combat for so many years?"

Danzo gripped his cane in barely concealed rage. The brat was pretending to be respectful yet mocking him with every word he spoke!

"Troublesome" Shikaku muttered, "Before this devolves into a shouting match, how about we settle this with a vote?"

The other counselors voiced their agreements.

"All in favor of appointing Danzo Shimura as Godaime Hokage?"

The advisors and some of the civilians raised their hands.

"All opposed?"

The clan heads and remaining civilians raised their hands. Many of them had the same concerns Naruto did (even if some of them were rather begrudging to admit it) even before they were voiced aloud.

"The motion is denied" Shikaku said.

Danzo swore in his mind. He had come so close! If only his secret weapon behind his bandages could affect more than one person at a time and didn't have such an extensive waiting period afterward!

"…Very well" he said, forced to act respectful, "If that is the council's decision, I will abide by it."

Naruto felt satisfaction and a bit of relief. Danzo would never be Hokage as long as he had anything to say about it!

"Wow, that is a lot of rage coming from one person" Kurama noted, sensing the old man's resentment, "He's going to really be out for your head now!"

Naruto shrugged, 'Probably' he thought, 'But I'd rather die than let that greedy cyclops wear the old man's hat.'

Kurama nodded in agreement.

"Moving along" Homura said, clearly upset Danzo had been denied (as it would have benefited him as well), "We still need to elect someone to become Hokage. We've gone to long without one already."

"Agreed" Danzo said, regaining his composure, "A hidden village without a kage is vulnerable."

"But who could we choose?" Inoichi asked, "Aside from Jiraiya-sama, there are few in the village who are qualified for the position."

"Maybe not in the village" Jiraiya spoke up, "But I still know someone who fits the bill."

"And who would that be?" Choza asked.

The Toad Sage grinned, "Tsunade Senju, of course."

Naruto had not considered that option. He figured one of the clan heads (or maybe someone like Kakashi) would be chosen, someone who was already available.

The council was shocked once more.

"Tsunade?" Koharu repeated, "You cannot be serious!"

"I'm completely serious" Jiraiya said, losing his grin, "And so was sensei."

"What do you mean?" Shibi asked, confused.

"Before the invasion, sensei thought it would be a good idea to pick someone who could replace him if he died during the invasion" he explained, "His choices were between either me or Tsunade, and since I've already declined…"

"She certainly fits the bill" Tsume pointed out, "Strong, smart, experienced. She might not have much leadership experience, but she always commanded respect while in the village and on the battlefield."

"And she's the granddaughter and grandniece of the Shodai and Nidaime Hokages" Inoichi agreed, "Practically village royalty."

The other clan heads and civilians voiced their agreement.

"She would be a viable choice" Danzo admitted, "Were it not for the fact that she detests the position of Hokage and has for many years now."

"Indeed" Homura said, "If asked, she will likely outright refuse."

This information was new to Naruto. He had no idea Tsunade hated the role of Hokage. Why though? Her grandfather, granduncle, and sensei were all Hokage!

"She doesn't hate the role" Jiraiya defended his teammate, "She just has some bad experience with it."

Koharu's eyebrow rose, "The last time she was in the village, she drunkenly shouted about how much she hated it. She even said, in full view of several witnesses, that she would 'rather die than become Hokage'."

Jiriaya had the sense to look sheepish.

"Even so, she is the most viable option" Shibi pointed out, "Especially since Jiraiya-sama has outright refused to accept the role."

"And Sarutobi-sensei chose her personally" Jiraiya said, pulling out a note, "This decree says as much."

As the note was passed around, everyone was able to read it:

In the event of my death or retirement, I Hiruzen Sarutobi, Sandaime Hokage of Konoha, hereby appoint either of my two former students, Tsunade Senju or Jiraiya to succeed me as Hokage of the village of Konohagakure.

"Troublesome, it seems our hands are tied" Shikaku noted.

"Indeed, the Sandaime's last wish is for either of the two loyal sannin to inherit his title" Hiashi agreed.

"Even if Tsunade wanted to become Hokage, we have no idea where she is and any attempt to reach her would take months at best" Koharu pointed out.

"Not necessarily" Jiraiya interjected, "I know where to find her." The council all turned to stare at him, so he continued, "She's close, in Fire Country" he grinned, "Even better, she's in a village only a few days walk from here."

The council considered this. This was the closest the Slug Sannin had been to the village in years. If they were going to approach her, now would have to be the time.

"It seems our course of action is clear" Hiashi told them, "We must approach Tsunade-sama and somehow convince her to become Hokage."

"Still, we should put it to a vote" Shibi said, "All in favor of appointing Tsunade Senju as Godaime Hokage should she accept?"

All hands were raised, even the advisors. Tsunade was an emotional wreck of a woman with a short temper. If nothing else, she would be easy to manipulate.

"Carried unanimously" Shibi said, "Now we just need to contact her."

"I'll do it" Jiraiya spoke up, "She'll react better to the news if I'm the one to deliver it."

The council agreed.

"But" the Toad Sage spoke, "I have one condition."

"Condition?" Homura repeated/asked.

The self-proclaimed Super Pervert gestured to Naruto, "He's coming with me."

Naruto and the council were surprised by this. So that's why he was here!

"For what purpose?" Danzo asked, reluctant to allow the Kyuubi Jinchuuriki to leave the village while it was still recovering. More importantly, it would place him out of his gaze for a time.

"Because he's my apprentice and I've been away from him for too long" Jiraiya said, "I trained him while he was 'missing' remember?" he asked, bringing up his old cover story.

The council had to agree with that.

Naruto, meanwhile, had never heard the sage address him as his apprentice before. Was he just going along with the cover story or was he serious?

"Very well" Danzo said, surprising the blonde, "However…"

'Oh, here we go. What does he want now?'

"There are certain issues to discuss before then" the old man continued, preparing a list of reasons to either keep Naruto in the village or hinder him in some way.

"Such as?" Jiraiya asked, raising an eyebrow.

Before Danzo could continue, a civilian council member spoke up, "You can start by explaining the existence of that monster you call a pet" he said rudely.

Naruto felt anger beginning to well up within him, "Do not call her that" he growled out, "Beatrice is not a monster. She's more than a pet. She's my friend."

"Your 'friend' is a bloodthirsty brute" Homura spoke up, "The number of dead it left in its wake was appalling. How can you guarantee it won't rampage through the village?"

"She won't" Naruto said/corrected, "Unless I tell her to, or anyone is dumb enough to attack her, she's harmless."

In the aftermath of the invasion, Beatrice's existence was revealed to the village. Her monstrous appearance was frightening to the villagers and had caused a great deal of complaints amongst the populace. Mostly, it was fear of her turning on them. Most of the village's ninja were intimidated by (or outright afraid of) her. Humorously, many of the children in the village were unafraid of Beatrice and wanted to pet and ride the "big doggie", though their parents outright refused to let that happen.

"Considering your animosity towards some of our village's citizens, your reassurance is not comforting" Koharu said, also concerned with the massive beast.

"You're one to talk about animosity" the blonde told the old woman, glaring, "Whether or not you are reassured means nothing to me, because Beatrice isn't going anywhere."

"Agreed" Tsume spoke up, "I may not know what she is, but Beatrice is a friend of the Inuzuka Clan. My son's companion has named her kin, something that is not done lightly."

Naruto sent the Clan Head a grateful smile. After the invasion, Akamaru had introduced his fellow canines to the Asterian Beast. Much like with Akamaru, she bonded with them quickly, so much so that they considered her a member of the pack. She had aided them greatly in sniffing out any remnants of the enemy ninja still hiding within the village.

"So, you expect us to just tolerate the presence of a massive, demonic looking creature on your word?" Homura asked incredulously.

"No, I expect you to tolerate her because you have no choice" Naruto said, making it clear he would not budge on this issue, "Because as long as I live in this village, so will she."

"While disconcerting, the beast wasn't what I was referring to" Danzo interrupted, confusing the others, "The creature has already proven its worth in battle, despite the damage it caused to the village."

"Which is a drop in the ocean compared to the damage the enemy caused" Naruto pointed out.

Danzo ignored him and continued, "What I was going to refer to were two points. The first being the device on your right arm."

While the war hawk would have loved to exploit Beatrice as a weapon of war, it wasn't worth the hassle. The Inuzuka Clan had already labeled the beast a friend. Trying anything against it would anger both the Kyuubi Jinchuuriki and the aforementioned clan. A man of his position knew when to pick a fight and when to leave well enough alone, and in this case, the latter option was the correct choice.

Besides, when he finally had the brat under his control, he would have his "pet" as well.

Naruto became confused once more, "You mean the Melody Arm?" he asked, holding the weapon up.

The old man nodded, "It is a weapon created by either Orochimaru or one of his subordinates. As such, much could be learned from it."

The blonde immediately saw what he was getting at and stopped him, "I'm afraid I cannot allow that."

Danzo raised an eyebrow, "And why is that?"

"For the same reason you cannot ask any of the Clan Heads in this room for their techniques: it's a clan secret."

This caused the council to be surprised once again.

"'A clan secret?'" Koharu repeated, "How can you declare it as such? It's a tool, not a jutsu!"

"I labeled it a clan secret because, while it is the only one of its kind for now, I know how to construct more and plan for each of my future descendants to construct their own as a form of rite-of-passage" Naruto explained.

He had long expected the council to try and utilize his weapons to their advantage. He had nothing to worry about with Harvest, the Crucifix, Eternal Rest, or Raijin since they were one-of-a-kind and impossible to replicate, but the Melody Arm was another story, it could be replicated. While it was true no one else could use it unless he wanted them to, he decided to deal with this problem before the greedier sides of Konoha's ruling body could sink their claws into his most defensive weapon.

"It's possible to create more?" Shibi asked, interested.

Naruto nodded, "I have a scroll detailing how it was constructed" he explained, "Building one from scratch is difficult, but not impossible. I plan for my descendants to build their own and learn at least the basics of its use. Specialization with it will not be required."

Hiashi cringed inwardly. Great, another reason the elders of his clan had to bitch about keeping the blonde under control. His clan will eventually utilize a weapon that makes taijutsu dangerous to use against the wielder.

Danzo frowned. He didn't expect the brat to think that far ahead.

"If it's a clan secret, it's off limits" Tsume noted, "And since you are the de facto head of the Uzumaki Clan, you have the right to make that call."

"Exactly, so I'm afraid my gauntlet is staying with me" Naruto told the old man.

Danzo frowned further, but let it go, letting him have this minor victory, "Very well then" he said, "As the future head of your clan, I suppose you have that right."

"You suppose?" Naruto repeated.

"Moving on to the second issue" Danzo continued, ignoring him, "During the battle, witnesses reported that you used a rather unique weapon" the scarred old man continued noting Naruto tense slightly, "One that belongs to the village and a valuable piece of our history."

"What weapon?" an unnamed civilian council member wondered.

"A weapon that was stolen from the village years ago" Danzo answered, "The Nidaime Hokage's personal weapon."

The eyes of everyone in the room widened.

"You don't mean…?" Inoichi began.

Naruto sighed, knowing this was going to happen eventually, and brought out said weapon before activating it.

"The Raijin" Choza whispered, amazed to see the weapon in front of him.

"Indeed" Danzo said, "A legendary blade that was stolen from us years ago. Which begs the question: how do you possess it, Uzumaki?"

Naruto glared at the old man 'Like you don't fucking know' he thought bitterly before answering, "I happened across Aoi Rokusho last month while training for the final" he told the council, "He attacked me, I killed him, and then took the Raijin off his corpse" he explained simply.

"Why did he attack you?" Hiashi asked. He had to wonder how the Uzumaki encountered the former Konoha ninja and why they fought.

Naruto shrugged, "No idea" he lied, "I'd say ask him but…well, he's a little uncommunicative right now."

He did not inform the council about the attack on his manor. With the village leaderless, it was best they didn't know for now, lest Danzo try and manipulate everyone into starting a war with another country. The old man knew of the attack thanks to his minions but could not reveal this without revealing his complicity in it. Once a new Hokage was in place and had the council under control, then they could know.

Danzo frowned but continued, "The reason matters little" he explained/lied, "What matters is that the sword is back in Konoha where it belongs. If you would kindly return it-"

"No."

The council was shocked by the refusal. Danzo felt a small sense of satisfaction. If the brat refused to hand over village property, he could be tried with treason and punished accordingly.

"I beg your pardon?!" Koharu nearly shouted, "Are you refusing to return a priceless piece of village property?!"

"You would be wise to reconsider" Homura warned, "You could be executed for such an offense."

Naruto held up the blade, "First of all" he began, "The Sandaime Hokage himself gave me permission to use this."

"That's absurd!" Koharu said disbelievingly, "Hiruzen may have been fond of you for reasons I can't even begin to understand, but he would never allow you to keep sensei's prized weapon!"

"But he did" Jiraiya interrupted, gaining the attention of everyone in the room, "I was there. I heard him give his permission."

For some reason, Naruto wasn't surprised the sannin was listening in on the conversation.

"Secondly" Naruto continued, "I'm not keeping it" he informed the council, "The old man said I could hold onto it until the day I die. After that, it is returned to the Hokage's personal vault. I'm not allowed to pass it on to my heirs nor gift it to anyone else" before more arguments could be made, he kept going, "And finally, the sword isn't village property, it belongs to the Senju Clan."

Danzo frowned again, "There are no Senju left in this village-"

"Which absolutely does not change the fact that the village has no claim on this sword" Naruto interrupted, "The only person who has any claim on this sword is the topic of the previous conversation: Tsunade Senju."

"He is correct" Shibi noted, "As she is the only surviving member of the Senju Clan, unless Tsunade says otherwise, the weapon belongs to her, not the village."

"And how it that offense and better than stealing from the village itself?" Homura asked, "That line of thinking means that he stole the blade from the Senju!"

"I didn't steal anything" Naruto pointed out, "I'm merely borrowing it."

"So, does that mean that if Tsunade asked for the sword's return, you would simply hand it over to her?" Danzo asked, not believing he would at all.

"I might" the blonde replied, "If she asked nicely."

Before the argument could continue, Jiraiya interrupted, "Look, it's obvious that this can't be solved right now" he began, "The only way to resolve this is to ask Tsunade and since Naruto's coming with me to meet her, we can get this sorted out soon."

The advisors and civilians wanted to argue further, but realized the decision was out of their hands.

"Fine" Danzo conceded, "This matter can be settled by the future Hokage, should she accept the position."

"Great, are we done now?" Naruto asked, bored of this bantering.

Danzo frowned once more, remarkably close to snarling, but reigned it in. He could bring up other issues, such as the fact that the brat was now romantically involved with the first Oto kunoichi to be taken in by him, but this was not widely known and he could not reveal this without casting himself into the spotlight. He could also bring up the other Oto kunoichi, but that would be pointless. The matter of her living arrangements was already settled.

"Quite" he nearly ground out, "Though I must first ask when the two of you plan to depart to find our next Hokage."

"First thing tomorrow morning" Jiraiya answered, "I'd like to get to her as soon as possible, just in case she decides to move again."

"We look forward to hearing news of your success, Jiraiya-sama" Choza told the sannin.

"And we look forward to giving it!" the Toad Sage replied.

At this, the meeting was adjourned.

"Nicely done in there, kid" Jiraiya told his student as they left.

Naruto nodded, "Thank you, Ero-sennin."

Jiraiya was once again ticked off by the nickname but ignored it, "Sorry about thrusting this upon you so suddenly, but I wanted to get in some more training with you."

"So, does that mean you were serious about that whole apprentice thing?" the blonde asked.

The sannin nodded, "Consider it a small way of making up for my absence your whole life."

"It's a start" Naruto told him, "See you tomorrow?" he asked.

Jiraiya nodded again, "I'll come by your place tomorrow morning and then we can head off, deal?"

"Deal."

The two then parted ways, preparing for their journey.

Later that evening:

"Please, please, please!"

"I'm sorry Tenten, but Ero-sennin said no."

"But…but she's my idol!"

"I know, but it's not my decision."

Naruto and his friends were currently eating at the village's best barbeque restaurant. Once they found out Naruto and Shikamaru had been promoted to chuunin, the other members of the Konoha 12 plus Haku and Karin had pitched in to treat them to a celebratory dinner. The only two who didn't show up were Neji (who was still in the hospital) and Sasuke (who straight up refused to come).

At the moment, Tenten was begging her blonde friend to come with him on his trip to find Tsunade Senju. Naruto wouldn't have minded if she came along, but when he asked Jiraiya, the sannin had politely refused.

"But why?!" the weapons mistress asked, "Why won't Jiraiya-sama let me come with you?!"

"He said that Tsunade might be put off by the presence of an overenthusiastic fan" the blonde replied.

"I am not overenthusiastic!" Tenten argued, "I just have a healthy respect for Tsunade-sama!"

"Not to sound unyouthful, but don't you have a life-sized poster of Tsunade-sama on the wall of your room?" Rock Lee asked, only to get a punch in the face by his teammate.

"SHUT UP LEE!" she shouted, blushing in embarrassment, causing the group to laugh.

"Man, you're so lucky" Kiba said, "You get to meet another sannin!"

"I wouldn't call it luck" Naruto told him, "This'll be the third one I've met and if she's anything like the other two, she'll be another walking bundle of issues."

"You shouldn't be so disrespectful of Jiraiya-sama" Sakura scolded him, worried he might offend both the Toad Sage and future Hokage.

"I know, but he makes it so easy!" the jinchuuriki told her.

"No offense, Sakura, but you haven't the pleasure of meeting Jiraiya-sama" Haku told the pinkette, "He leaves…quite the impression" she explained.

"You mean he's creepy" Karin pointed out.

"I'm sure he's not that bad" Hinata said, sitting of Naruto's right.

"Trust me, there's a reason I haven't introduced you and the others to him yet" Naruto told his first love.

Ino, sitting on Naruto's left, giggled and leaned into him, "I love how protective you are, but I think we can handle him."

"Yeah, he can't be that bad. I mean, he's a sannin!" Sakura pointed out.

"Not that bad, huh?" Naruto asked, "You know that 'book' Kakashi-sensei always carries around?"

"Unfortunately" the pinkette grumbled.

"He's the author of the series" her teammate explained.

There was a sudden silence as every woman at the table paled.

"…Ok, never mind" Ino said, "I don't want to be anywhere near him now!"

"Ditto" Hinata said.

"I feel like I need to take a shower" Sakura said, shuddering.

"Troublesome" Shikamaru said, "Of course he's the author of the one thing that angers women more than anything else. That book makes women even more unreasonable than they already are!"

Every woman at the table glared at him, "WHAT DID YOU SAY?!" they shouted in anger.

Shikamaru shrunk in on himself in fear, "Nothing!"

"THAT'S WHAT WE THOUGHT!"

The other guys laughed, "For someone who's so afraid of women, you're really good at pissing them off" Choji told his best friend.

"He'll learn his lesson one of these days" Naruto said.

"Or he'll be murdered in his sleep" Kiba added.

That made everyone except Shikamaru laugh.

"Still, I can put up with him if it means meeting Tsunade-sama!" Tenten vowed.

"Sorry Tenten, but no means no" he told her, only to immediately regret this when she pouted adorably with the puppy-eyes she was so good at making. Thinking quickly, Naruto smiled and spoke again, "Besides, this will give you more time to prepare for her inauguration!"

Tenten suddenly perked up, her eyes wide, "Oh my god!" she gasped, "I didn't think of that! What am I going to wear?! Do I even have any nice clothes?! I need to go check!"

With that, the bun-haired kunoichi ran out of the restaurant in a blur.

"There she goes" Shikamaru said, "Nice job getting her to let up, by the way."

"Thanks" Naruto replied, "Besides, she wouldn't have had a good time on the trip anyway" he smiled, "She'd be too worried about Neji to enjoy herself."

Everyone chuckled at that. It was no secret that Tenten had been spending a lot of time visiting Neji in the hospital, even more than Guy and Lee. People liked to joke that there was something going on between the two, but Naruto thought they would be a good match for each other. A tough, outspoken, no nonsense kind of woman like Tenten was exactly what Neji needed to keep him on the straight and narrow and not fall back into his fate nonsense.

Speaking of Neji, Naruto had also visited him from time to time…but only for short periods of time. The Hyuuga tended to flinch violently when he made sudden moves around him. Guess he still needed time to get over his fear of the blonde who very nearly killed him.

"She's fun to hang out with" Sakura chimed in, "But she does have her quirks."

Naruto nodded, "Yeah. Who knew she'd be such a fangirl?"

"I wouldn't go that far" Sakura noted, "She's just excited."

Her teammate nodded in agreement, "You're right, calling her a fangirl is an insult to her."

Sakura smiled, "I would know."

Naruto rubbed the back of his head sheepishly, "Sorry" he told her.

Sakura giggled, "That's ok" she told him, "That part of my life is behind me now, thanks to you."

Naruto smiled at her.

Hinata, Ino, Haku, and Karin could not help but note how close the two were. In fact, to anyone who didn't know them, they would almost look romantic.

'I wonder if forehead will end up with Naruto one day' Ino thought, 'It'd be funny, us spending years fighting over one guy, only to end up sharing another.'

Hinata was also wondering about this. She had long forgiven Sakura's ill treatment of her love when they were kids, but would she be able to share Naruto with her? She'd deal with that when or if it ever happened.

Naruto noticed they were being observed and spoke up, "Well guys, it's been fun. Thanks for dinner, but I had better get home. Gotta get up early tomorrow and go find our new Hokage!"

"Good luck, man!" Kiba said, "Go find her so we can kick Orochimaru's ass again!"

"You can count on me!" he replied.

With that after kissing Hinata and Ino goodnight, Naruto headed home, Haku and Karin on his arms, as he prepared for what he was certain would be another eventful journey.

Elsewhere:

Kabuto Yakushi took his time moving through the halls of the underground base that was now Otogakure's new headquarters. He finally had news worthy of his master's notice, but considering the mood he was in, the ashen-haired man was in no hurry to deliver it.

As he walked towards his master's private chambers, every Oto-nin he passed became silent, bowing with respect, but the medical ninja knew the real reason they stopped talking. It was no secret that morale was at an all-time low among the remaining Otogakure ninja. The losses they had suffered during the invasion were catastrophic. The battle had been a very humbling experience for the survivors. They thought that their master had made them invincible, but that had been proven false rather abruptly. Not only had the invasion failed, but now both Konoha and Suna were hunting them, destroying every base they could find in their quest to avenge the deaths of their kages. On top of this, it was known that one of Orochimaru's most powerful servants, one of his bodyguards no less, had betrayed them and was one of (if not the) primary reasons they were forced to hide like rats.

But worst of all, no one aside from Kabuto and the sannin's remaining bodyguards had seen the Otokage since the invasion ended. There were rumors spreading that Orochimaru had been mortally wounded during his battle with the Sandaime Hokage and was barely clinging to life. Some rumors even said he had been killed during the invasion and that Kabuto and the Sound Three (as they were now called by the lower ranking ninja) were keeping this fact hidden to keep morale up.

These were false, of course, and anyone who spoke such words were executed where they stood. Still, even though these were just rumors, Kabuto knew the truth was not too far off: Orochimaru was still very much alive but was nowhere near the man he once was. He had not left his quarters since he had been brought here and refused to see anyone but Kabuto, likely fearing his followers would desert him if they saw him in his weakened state.

Speaking of which, the Snake Sannin's right-hand man had arrived outside the entrance to his master's chambers. The Sound Three bowed as he passed, allowing him to enter unimpeded. After taking a deep breath, Kabuto entered the room, closing the door behind him.

Orochimaru was sitting on a throne across the room, his head lowered, causing his hair to hide his face from view.

"Orochimaru-sama?" Kabuto spoke.

He received no answer. Gulping, the medic moved closer before kneeling in front of his master.

"My lord" he began, "I have news I believe you should hear."

Again, no reply.

Clearing his throat, Kabuto continued, "I have the reports on the casualties we suffered during the invasion, as well as news on the status of our bases in both Fire and Wind Countries. According to our reports, casualties during the invasion are around 90% of all our forces deployed" when he heard no reply once again, he continued, "Fortunately, none of our ninja were captured and those who Konoha attempted to do so chose death instead. As for our bases…" he took a deep breath, "It appears Tayuya told them everything she knew, including their locations. Every base in Fire and Wind Country has been cleared out. Our ninja fought to the last, but they were outnumbered. The traitor also told them the location of our main base here in Sound Country. Luckily, thanks to your foresight, we evacuated long before the enemy arrived. We can also assume that she told them of our other bases in Sound as well, but they haven't tried attacking them yet. Still, I have ordered all personal to evacuate to our fallback points across the country. The Sound Daimyo is trying to cover for us, but we won't be able to stop an invasion forever. If we could just-."

"WILL YOU CEASE YOUR INANE PRATTLING!"

Ororchimaru's sudden, violent shout made Kabuto stop talking immediately. The sannin finally looked up, showing his face at last. He looked horrible, his eyes were crazed and heavily bloodshot, he was sweating a cold sweat, and he looked so ragged that he appeared almost feral!

Kabuto flinched, "M-My lord, I don't-."

"Be silent!" the Snake Sannin snarled, "How dare you walk into my chambers and waste my time with inconsequential nonsense!"

"B-But I was only trying to-!"

"Help?" Orochimaru finished, "Is that what you were going to say? You were trying to help me? If you truly wish to help, you can stop wasting my time and do something useful by FIXING THIS!"

He thrust his arms forward, showing that they were now completely covered in bandages…all except the back of his left hand, which he ordered to leave uncovered so he could keep an eye on the brand upon it.

Kabuto gulped again, "B-But Orochimaru-sama, I-I've tried everything I can think of!" he said, fearful for his life, "I've spent the last month trying to find a way to heal whatever the Hokage did to you, b-but I can't!"

"Do not fling your spittle at me!" Orochimaru snarled out, growing more and more enraged by the second, "Why do I bother keeping you alive if all you're good for are excuses?!"

"I-I'm not making excuses, Orochimaru-sama!" he pleaded, "I'm doing everything I can, but nothing's worked so far! Please, I just need more time! Give me more time and I can-!"

He was stopped when the Kusanagi's blade shot out of his master's mouth and extended towards him. Kabuto scrambled backwards towards the door as the poisonous tip of the blade drew closer to him. As he was pressed against the door, it finally stopped, barely a centimeter away from piercing his throat.

There was a long pause…before the blade retracted and slid back down its wielder's throat.

"Get out" Orochimaru growled, "Do not return until you have something useful to share!" when Kabuto remained frozen, the sannin shouted, "GO!"

The medic wasted no time and fled, the door slamming behind him.

Orochimaru panted in rage, before hissing as the pain in his arms flared up again. Since encountering Death, the pain refused to go away. No matter how many painkillers he took, it would not stop! He couldn't sleep, food and drink had lost all taste, and he wouldn't stop shaking!

He looked down at the brand, the only thing worse than the pain he was going through. The skull on it seemed to be taunting him, laughing at him, just as Sarutobi had no doubt done as he died! That infuriating smile…and Death's final taunt!

See you soon.

Those words enraged him most of all. The Lord of Bones was so confident he had won! Well, he would show him! It was not over yet! He would recover from this and achieve his ambitions no matter who or what stood in his way!

But how could he fulfill his destiny in this crippled state? If even Kabuto could not fix him, then who could?

…But perhaps who was not the problem, but rather what.

Standing up, the Snake Sannin moved towards the center of the room and did what no one alive had ever seen him do…

He kneeled.

He hated having to resort to this, but it was his only chance. His need overpowered his pride.

And so, he took a deep breath…and called out. Not with his words, but with his mind and soul.

At first, nothing happened…then, it began. Black smoke began to fill the room, before gathering right in front of where the sannin was kneeling, forming a shapeless mass that hovered in front of him.

Then, the mass formed a pair of evil, yellow eyes…and spoke.

"Why have you summoned me?" a deep, demonic voice asked, shaking the very room they were in, "I require nothing from you."

Orochimaru grit his teeth and spoke, "But it is I who have need of you, Lord Azazel."

The mass that was a projection of Hell's mightiest Demon Lord narrowed its eyes, "You dare demand something of me?"

"I have summoned you to ask for your help" the mortal sannin said, emphasizing the word "ask", "I require your assistance."

"But I do not require yours" Azazel pointed out, "And that is the only thing that matters to me."

Orochimaru reigned in his anger at how casually he was being dismissed, "So you won't aid me?" he asked, "Despite all I've done for you?"

"You did what you were made to do, nothing more" the Lord of Violence told him, "Ours is not an alliance or a partnership. You exist to serve me, and I give you all that you need to enact my will."

The sannin grit his teeth harder in anger, "I won't be of much use at all in the future without your help, my lord" he said, grounding out the last two words as though they physically hurt to say.

Azazel looked upon his servant. He said nothing for a few moments before speaking again, "Your soul" he began, "It is damaged."

He then looked down at Orochimaru's left hand, sensing something strange upon it. Without warning, a tendril of smoke shot out and grabbed the mortal's left arm, pulling him forward. The Snake Sannin cried out briefly in pain as the Lord of Hell raised the hand up to look upon it.

And he saw it. The brand, the mark of Orochimaru's failure.

He knew immediately what the brand was, and what it meant.

"You have been marked" he noted, "The Embodiment of Entropy has branded you with his mark. He has doomed you" he then dropped the sannin onto the ground, "Your usefulness to me has ended. I can do nothing with one so lost."

Orochimaru's eyes widened in horror as he realized his last hope would not help him. Horror, however, was soon replaced with rage.

"So…So that's it?" he growled out, "After all I've done, all I've sacrificed, you are going to just let me die?!"

Azazel's projection was about to fade away before this last sentence stopped him. He turned to face his doomed servant, "You are a pawn" he explained, "I have made no secret of this. You were informed the day you started serving me. Pawns are meant to be sacrificed. Where you will fall, others will take your place."

"None of your 'pawns' have done as much for you as I have!" Ororchimaru shouted, "I've destroyed entire villages, corrupted countless souls, caused discord and destruction for your amusement! I deceived Suna into helping me destroy Konoha in your name!"

"Do not pretend all that you have done has been in my name" the Lord of Violence warned, "You enjoy the suffering of others almost as much as I. You wished to destroy the village you were once apart of because of your own need for vengeance, not to gain my favor."

"You were the one who showed me how to recreate the reanimation jutsu!" Orochimaru argued, "All so that I could spread chaos in your name! I gave you exactly what you wanted: conflict!"

"A mere ember compared to the blaze I desired" Azazel said, "A one-sided slaughter. You spoiled your warriors, made them think they were invincible and because of that, they rushed to meet their ends."

"And when they died, their souls went to you!" the sannin reminded him, "I fed their bloodlust, knowing they would be sent to you following their deaths! Their souls feed your armies! Give you the material needed to create more demons!"

"You merely hastened their ends. With or without you, they will all become mine soon enough."

Orochimaru snarled in hate, "If I die, you will never reach the heights you could have!" he nearly screamed, "You will never find a more powerful servant! You need me!"

Suddenly, the entire bunker shook with Azazel's growing fury, with all its occupants unable to figure out what was happening. Orochimaru suddenly struggled to breath as the projection glared down at him, the dark energies of it nearly unbearable.

"I need nothing from you!" the Demon Lord growled, "You were nothing when I first approached you! You were weak, an unwanted child! Without me, you never would have even come to exist! All that you have is because of me! Your power, your abilities, even your means of longevity are all because of me! You are a convenience! A resource meant to be exploited!" he very nearly snarled, "Never forget that!"

Orochimaru was struggling to stay conscious. He knew angering the Lord of Violence was a mistake, but he had to get the Demon Lord to see reason.

"A resource…like all other things" Orochimaru gasped out, "You were the one…to teach me…that all things are meant…to be exploited…to their fullest…potential!" he said, "If you…let me die…you will be…throwing away a resource…before it is fully spent!"

The projection glared down at the crippled sannin for several more silent moments…before the hateful aura vanished, and the ground stopped shaking. Orochimaru gasped for air as Azazel addressed him once more.

"…Perhaps" the projection conceded, "Even so, I cannot remove your mark. Not even the Morning Star could remove that brand. Only the Lord of Bones could undo what he has done."

Orochimaru cursed inwardly. If Azazel could not remove the brand, then what could?

He would deal with that problem later. At the very least, the Demon Lord could do something to alleviate his pain.

"Then fix my arms at least" the Snake Sannin replied, "So that I can be at full strength again, so I can find a way to remove this mark and continue serving you!"

Azazel stared at his servant for a few moments before responding, "…And if you fail? If your mark consumes you?"

Orochimaru snarled, "Then I will make this world suffer for denying me my ambitions! I will dedicate my life to seeing the Earth destroyed!"

The most powerful and favored of Demon Lords was silent, considering his options…before two more tendrils of smoke lashed out and latched onto Orochimaru's arms. They then started to glow red as an unknown energy flowed through them into the mortal. After several agonizing seconds, the tendrils detached, and the red glow appeared on the sannin's arms before fading.

The pain of the transfer faded after a few more seconds…and Orochimaru was elated to find the pain in his arms gone! Not only that, but he could feel his arms again!

The Snake Sannin attempted to move his arms and succeeded…only to be hit with that same horrid agonizing pain once more! He hissed in pain and noted the pain ceased when he stopped trying to move his arms again.

"Your soul is still damaged" Azazel explained, "But I have enabled you the use of your arms again. The pain will remain, a reminder of your failure and the price that comes with it."

The projection then began to fade again, "Do not disappoint me again. My time is eternal…" immortal yellow eyes peered into mortal yellow eyes, "My patience is not."

And with that, the projection faded.

Orochimaru stood up. He could not begin to describe how much he hated Azazel. The Lord of Violence had been a part of his life for decades, always so arrogant in his belief he was invincible. The loathsome creature was wrong about him. He may have given Orochimaru a head start, but his skill, abilities, and longevity jutsu were his creations! His, not Azazel's!

Had Orochimaru only known the day he agreed to serve him that he would never be able to escape said servitude, he may not have made such a bargain!

Well, one day he would escape from being under the Lord of Violence's thumb. It might take hundreds, or even thousands, of years, but thanks to his means of longevity, he would not only outlast the Demon Lord, but surpass him!

But until that day…

He looked at his arms and raised them up. He ignored the pain this caused him and bent his fingers, also ignoring the pain.

His arms still looked rotted, but he could use them again. It was a start. Now that he could use his arms again, he could focus his efforts on finding a way to remove his brand.

But first, he needed to find a way to stop the pain moving them caused…but how?

Azazel spitefully refused to fix this, and Kabuto was unable to do anything either. If even the best medic he knew couldn't-?

Wait.

Kabuto wasn't the best medical ninja he knew! That honor belonged to-!

Suddenly, the doors burst open and Kabuto rushed in.

"Orochimaru-sama, are you alright?" he asked, concerned, "When the ground shook, I thought that-!"

"Your concern is unnecessary" his master interrupted him, before shocking him by rolling his shoulders, showing that his arms were useable again.

"My lord, how are you-?"

"That is none of your concern" Orochimaru interrupted him again, before showing his hideous smirk for the first time in the past month, "But I have good news for you, Kabuto. You finally get to do something useful."

The spectacled man overcame his surprise and kneeled, "What do you wish of me, master?"

"Send word to our informants across the continent" he commanded, "Tell them to be on the lookout for a very special someone and that they are to report to me once they've found her."

Kabuto frowned in confusion, "Who, my lord?"

Orochimaru smirked once again, "Tsunade Senju."

Early the next morning:

Of all the challenges Naruto Uzumaki had faced in the past, none were as difficult as the one he was facing now. Fighting Orochimaru and Gaara was nothing compared to the task he now had to undertake…

He had to say goodbye to his girlfriends.

It was only as he was about to set out with Jiraiya that he realized with horror that this was the first time since he started dating them that he would have to leave them for any period of time.

They knew it too, which made saying goodbye even more difficult. Well…except for Kurama, who was very thankful she couldn't be separated from her true love.

"God this is hard" Naruto said, standing in front of the Uzumaki Clan Manor. All of them were there, including Hinata and Ino, who wanted to see him off. They didn't do so at the village gates because Kin wasn't allowed to be leave the property and she wanted to say goodbye just as much as they did. Tayuya was also there, but only because Kin had forced her to come.

"I know" Hinata told him, "But you'll only be gone a week or two at most. Besides, it's not a dangerous mission, so you'll come back with no problems."

"Creator, I hope so" he replied, "I've had enough action for a while."

Hinata giggled and gave him a chaste kiss, "Just find Tsunade-sama and come back to us in one piece, ok?"

Naruto grinned, "Yes ma'am."

The two then shared a brief but passionate kiss before parting.

"I love you, Hinata-hime."

"And I love you, Naruto-kun."

The blonde then moved to Ino.

"I'm not worried about you not coming back" she told him.

"Oh?" he asked, smiling, "And why's that?"

Ino flipped her hair back and gave him a sexy smirk, "Because if a hottie like me isn't enough to motivate you to hurry back, nothing will!"

Naruto laughed, "Well, in that case…"

He then pulled her close and kissed her passionately, "See you soon" he finished, after they parted.

Ino grinned, "Damn right you will!"

Next, it was Haku's turn.

"You're the strongest person I know" the ice user told him, "But still, be careful. Come back safe and quickly."

Naruto placed his hand on her cheek, "I will, my beloved Haku-hime."

Another kiss and it was Karin's turn.

"I'll miss you…my handsome teddy bear" she said, blushing slightly.

Naruto smiled warmly, "And I'll miss you…my sexy body pillow."

Karin blushed brighter and smiled. The two shared a kiss and after they parted.

"Come back soon, Naru-sama" she whispered seductively into his ear, "The bed will be so cold without you!~"

Naruto shuddered in pleasure and replied, "Hell itself couldn't keep me from coming back."

Another kiss, and Naruto moved on to Kin.

"So" she began, "First mission after the invasion, huh?"

"Yep" he replied, "And it's the hardest one I've been on already."

"Because you're leaving us behind?"

"Leaving behind the most amazing women in all of Creation? You're damn right!"

Kin giggled, "You're such a romantic, Naruto-kun!"

"How can I not be?" he asked, "Being so deeply in love with you all?"

Kin giggled again, "Just come back soon" she then leaned into him, "And I'll have a nice surprise for you when you get home.~"

The blonde perked up, "What kind of surprise?" he asked.

Kin gave him a seductive look, "One that has me wearing some of Karin's 'sleepwear'" she answered, before she winked, "Or maybe nothing at all!~"

A drop of blood fell down Naruto's nose before he grabbed the blackette and kissed her with all that he had.

"Be home soon" he vowed, causing her to laugh.

With that, he prepared to leave…only to remember Tayuya was still there. The redhead was scowling, avoiding looking at him. He smiled and moved over to her.

The former Sound Four member had changed her wardrobe since defecting. She now wore a red coat with black outlines that had the sleeves cut off, under which she wore a black shirt. She also wore a pair of black long pants, and a pair of black and red wrist guards on her arms. For some reason, she insisted on keeping her hat from Oto and still wore it. Her trademark flute was strapped to her side.

"You're not expecting a fucking kiss, are you?" she asked, her tone grumpy.

Naruto chuckled, "Not unless you want me too" he told her.

"Well, it's never gonna happen!" she told him.

Naruto gave an exaggerated sigh, "It's probably for the best" he told her, "I have but one heart to break. To kiss such an image of loveliness once and then be bereft of her would surely end me."

Tayuya blushed brightly, not at all used to such passionate words being spoken to her, even as a joke.

The other girls giggled but found it very romantic as well.

"Ugh!" Tayuya groaned out, exasperated.

Naruto chuckled, "Seriously though, I'll miss you Tayuya-chan."

"Fuck off" the redhead said, looking away and blushing brightly.

Kin couldn't help but notice this and smile, 'She's totally into him' she thought, 'She just needs to admit it to herself.'

Naruto, meanwhile, was not offended in the slightest by her words.

With one last goodbye, he left the manor. Jiraiya, who was waiting outside the gates, held in his laughter when he saw the stream of anime tears pour down the blonde's face as he passed.

'Like father like son' he thought, 'Minato was the toughest man I've ever known, but he was a big baby when it came to Kushina.'

He shook his head and followed his student as they set out to find his long-lost teammate.

Two hours after Naruto and Jiraiya left the village:

Now that the invasion was over, Izumo Kamizuki and Kotetsu Hagane were back to their usual roles: watching over entrance to the village main gates…or rather, what was left of them. The gates themselves were toppled by one of the giant snakes during the invasion and had yet to be repaired.

"You ever wonder who we pissed off to be stuck with guarding the front gates all the time?" Kotetsu asked his best friend, annoyed at being placed on guard duty again.

"We haven't done anything wrong" Izumo told him, "We're just being placed where we are best suited."

"Which is the exact same god damn place we're always at!"

"Look on the bright side: it's easy work."

"You call it easy; I call it boring."

Suddenly, the sound of someone clearing their throat broke the two out of their argument. The two chuunin looked up…and were surprised by what they saw.

Two men stood in front of them. Both wore the exact same outfit, high-collared black cloaks with a red cloud pattern and straw hats atop their heads.

This apparel hid their faces from view. Aside from the fact that one was significantly taller than the other and had a massive bandaged sword on his back, nothing else could be discerned about them.

What was so surprising was that these two seemingly came out nowhere and neither chuunin had seen or heard them coming.

"Who are-?" Kotetsu attempted to ask but was interrupted when the shorter stranger looked him in the eyes. His eyes were red and flashed for an instant, causing Kotetsu to collapse to the ground, unconscious.

Before Izumo could react, the stranger looked him in the eye as well, causing the chuunin to join his friend in unconsciousness.

"You know, genjutsu's all well and good, but I could've accomplished the same thing by killing them" the taller stranger told him companion.

"Yes, but that would've made more noise and alerted the village" the shorter man explained, "I would like to be done with this quickly. I do not enjoy being here."

The taller man nodded, "Yeah, given what happened the last time you were here, I can see why."

"Exactly" his companion replied, "Now, let's find our target and leave as quickly as possible."

With that, the two entered Konoha itself.

The second the shorter man crossed into the village, he felt a sudden shift, a coldness that enveloped him and disappeared as quickly as it appeared.

"Something wrong?" the taller stranger asked, noticing when his partner stopped.

The shorter man was silent for a moment before speaking, "…It's nothing" he replied, "Let's get this done quickly."

And so, the strange duo continued onward, setting off a chain of events that would forever alter the course of the Shinobi World's history.

Later:

Despite Jiraiya's insistence on finding his old teammate, he seemed in no hurry to reach her quickly, so he and his new student walked to their destination via the main road rather than leap through the trees of the nearby forest. Naruto was fine with this as he was in no hurry either.

The duo had made only light conversation on their journey, but Naruto wanted to ask a question that had been bugging him since yesterday.

"Hey, Ero-sennin?" he began.

"Hm?" was the lazy reply.

"Can I ask you something?"

"Shoot."

Naruto took a deep breath and brought up what was almost certainly a personal issue, "Is what the advisors said true? Does Tsunade really hate the position of Hokage?"

The Toad Sage tensed briefly. He was hoping this wouldn't come up, as he knew the answer would upset his godson, but he knew he had to answer him anyway.

"…Yeah" he answered him, "She does."

"But why?" Naruto asked, confused, "Her grandfather, granduncle, and the old man were Hokage. How could she possibly hate the position the people she was closest to held? Did she have some kind of falling out with them?"

Jiraiya shook his head, "Of course not. Tsunade loved her grandfather and granduncle and saw sensei as a second father" he sighed, "Her reasons are more…personal."

The blonde raised an eyebrow, "Personal how?" he asked, growing more confused.

It took Jiraiya several moments before he answered, "Look, what you have to understand is that Tsunade's been through a lot" he began, "She's lost a great deal and it's…it hurt her pretty badly."

"What did she lose?" his student asked.

"Not what, who" he corrected, before stopping and turning to face him, "Look, before I explain, I want you to promise me you won't say anything about this to Tsunade" he said, looking absolutely serious, "If this gets brought up, any chance of her becoming Hokage will disappear, got it?"

Naruto nodded, "I won't say a thing."

Jiraiya sighed, "The reason Tsunade hates the position of Hokage…is because the people she loved the most died trying to achieve it."

Naruto arched an eyebrow, "What?" he asked, not understanding how that was possible.

"Tsunade had a younger brother, Nawaki" the Toad Sage explained, "He was energetic, ambitious, full of life. He dreamed of becoming Hokage one day, just like his grandfather and Tsunade supported him fully" his expression saddened, "Then, the day after his twelfth birthday…he turned up dead" he said, "He was on a C-ranked mission. It was supposed to be simple…but his team walked into an ambush. He stepped on an explosive tag trap. His body was so messed up we almost didn't recognize him."

Naruto was horrified by this. To die so young, never to achieve his dream…

"We didn't think she'd ever recover from that" Jiraiya continued, "But she did, thanks to Dan."

"Dan?" Naruto asked.

"Another ninja from our village" he explained, "Nice guy, compassionate. He lost his sister just like Tsunade did. The two met while she was trying to advocate to the council about having at least one medical ninja on every team. He spoke up in agreement with her. The motion failed, but they grew closer after that, started dating. He wanted to be Hokage too, just like Nawaki."

Naruto noticed a spike of something in his godfather's emotions. It was faint, barely detectable, but he still sensed it…

Jealousy.

Did that mean the self-proclaimed "Super Pervert" had feelings for the Slug Sannin? He didn't think the man could feel anything for a woman besides lust.

"I'm guessing something happened to him too" Naruto theorized, deciding not to bring up what he had detected.

Jiraiya nodded, "Yeah. During the Second Shinobi World War, he was wounded pretty badly. Tsunade did everything she could to save him…but he lost to much blood" his expression saddened further, "He died in her arms."

Naruto noted that despite the earlier feeling of jealousy, the Toad Sage still felt sadness about Dan's death. Good to see that he could move past his jealousy and feel genuine sympathy for his teammate's lover.

"After that…there was no consoling her" Jiraiya continued, "She fell apart. Dan's death affected her so badly that she developed a fear of blood."

Naruto's eyes widened, "She has hemophobia?" he asked, shocked that the most renowned medical ninja on the planet had a phobia of blood.

"Yeah, pretty badly too" his godfather answered, "It ruined her ability to perform medical ninjutsu and made her quit being a ninja" he sighed, "And because the people she loved most died trying to become Hokage, she started hating the title."

Naruto was given a lot to ponder. While he was processing what he had learned, he wondered something: how the hell where they going to convince someone who hated the position of Hokage to become Hokage?

"But enough doom and gloom" Jiraiya said, forcing a bright smile to appear on his face, "I brought you with me so we could continue your training, and what I've got in store for you next is something you're gonna love!"

Taking his godson off the road and to a nearby stream he stopped and turned to face him once again.

"So" Naruto began, deciding to humor his obvious and desperate attempt to change the subject, "What are you going to teach me this time?"

Jiraiya smirked, "Oh, just this."

He then held out his hand and channeled chakra into it. Very quickly, a glowing blue ball of spinning energy appeared in it.

Naruto's eyes widened in surprise. He knew that technique anywhere…

"The Rasengan" he whispered, staring into it.

Jiraiya nodded, "Yep! With how quickly you're advancing, I figured it was time to teach you your dad's original jutsu!"

Naruto looked up at him, his expression still surprised, "You think I'm ready for this?" he asked hopefully.

"I do" he replied, "And I think you're more than up for it."

"I do too" Kurama chimed in, "If anyone deserves to learn the Rasengan, it's you!"

Naruto smiled, joyful at the faith that was being shown in him.

"I'm ready" he said.

"Great!" Jiraiya replied, "Now, learning the Rasengan is extremely difficult. It requires a great deal of skill in both chakra control and shape transformation. In order for your dad to create it, he divided it into three steps."

He then pulled out a pair of empty balloons and filled both with the water from the stream. He then held one in his palm.

"Step one: Rotation" he began, "The Rasengan is made of a ball of constantly rotating chakra. In order to create it, you have to first learn how to spin your chakra in multiple directions at once" he then held out the water balloon, "To practice, Minato came up with this: using your chakra, you have to rotate the water inside the balloon until it bursts."

He then demonstrated, the water inside the balloon starting to churn, bulging outward until, finally, it burst, sending water flying everywhere.

The Toad Sage then handed his godson the second balloon, "Now you try."

Naruto took the offered water balloon and held it up, beginning to manipulate his chakra. To Jiraiya's astonishment, it only took a few moments for the water to start to churn, and another minute for the balloon to burst!

"Kid…that was…how did you do that so quickly?" he asked, amazed.

"Chakra control is vital for the Reaper Ninjutsu I perform" the blonde answered, holding out his now empty hand and channeling his power into it, causing it to glow with a dark energy, "Each Reaper is given a portion of our master's power when we join. Passively, it makes us stronger, faster, and tougher than ordinary humans. Using this power for anything outside of this, however, requires a great deal of control. Death's power is entropic in nature, meaning it rots and destroys whatever it is used on. If we aren't careful, this power can destroy us. If we lose control for even a moment, we would be wiped from the face of Creation" to prove this, he then touched a nearby shrub with his glowing hand, causing it to wither and die. He then stopped channeling his power.

Jiraiya gulped, "Damn" he said, impressed, "Don't you get scared of using it, knowing that?" he asked.

Naruto shrugged, "If I hadn't been trained in how to use it, sure. But I've been taught by the best, by Reapers who've been using this power for thousands of years."

"Th-Thousands?!" the sannin gasped in shock.

Naruto nodded, "When you join the Reaper Corps, you stop aging and become immune to disease. The only way we can die is if we are directly killed."

"Does that mean you'll never age?" Jiraiya asked, astonished.

The blonde shook his head, "I'm a special case" he informed him, "I've got all the other benefits of being a Reaper: the enhanced strength, speed, and durability, and immunity to disease, but since I died before my time, Death had to restore me to life. Since I'm still alive, I still age like a normal human does" he then laughed, "The others like to say that I might be the first Reaper to ever die in his bed!"

Jiraiya could only stare in amazement. He did so until his godson broke the awkward silence.

"So…are you going to show me the next step?" he asked, eager to learn the Rasengan.

"Huh? Oh right!" the sannin said, suddenly remembering what they were doing prior to all this. He then pulled out two rubber balls, "So, the next step is called Power. For this part, instead of rotating your chakra, you have to increase it's volume and density until you can burst the rubber ball."

He then did as he explained, causing the ball to expand before bursting with a loud "pop!"

"Now you try" he said, handing his student the other ball.

Naruto took it and held it in his hand. Like before, the ball began to expand, but the blonde struggled to pop it.

"This is harder than before" he noticed, still trying.

Jiraiya nodded, "Yeah, the rubber is a lot more difficult to break" he explained, he then noticed the sun was getting higher. "Can you practice and walk at the same time?" he asked. Upon receiving a nod, the Toad Sage began to walk away, "Then let's get going. I'd like to reach the next town before sundown."

Naruto nodded again and the two set out once more.

A few hours later:

"Here we are" Jiriaya pointed out, "Shukuba Town, our stop."

Naruto cocked an eyebrow, "'Inn-town Town?'" he asked, translating the name, "The hell kind of name is that?"

Jiraiya shrugged, "Beats me. That's just what it's called."

As the two entered the town, the blonde noted it was composed mostly of inns, hotels, and bars.

"Why are we stopping here, again?" he asked.

"Because one of my sources says that Tsunade passed through here on her way to another village called Tanzaku Town" Jiraiya replied, "I just want to double check with my source that she's still heading that way."

"Uh huh" Naruto said, disbelieving him upon seeing a street seemingly covered with nothing but brothels. Looking up at the street sign, he couldn't believe the name.

"'Fun Fun Avenue?'" he read aloud, before sighing, "God damn it" he said, frustrated and disappointed by the stupidity of the name.

"I don't think they gave much thought to the name while designing this place" Kurama noted.

It was then that a stunningly beautiful woman with long black hair crossed their path. She surprised them by looking at Jiriaya, smiling and winking before sauntering away.

'What level of fucked up is she to find Ero-sennin attractive?' Naruto wondered.

"She's either a hooker, brain-dead, or really hates her father" Kurama said, also amazed.

Jiraiya, meanwhile, was drooling after the beauty and made his usual perv face.

"Uh, kid, why don't you go pay for a room" he said, tossing him some money, "I have to uh…check with a source."

And with that, the Super Pervert ran off after the young woman.

Naruto sighed, "Fucking hell" he muttered. He couldn't get mad because he wasn't in the middle of training him when he ran off, so he didn't break their deal.

He sighed again and went to a nearby inn. After paying for a room, he headed to the top floor and settled into it.

Sitting on one of the two beds, he decided to keep practicing in order to learn the Rasengan. He pulled out the rubber ball and began to try and burst it. Amazingly, after only ten minutes since sitting down, he finely did it!

'Yes!' he shouted in his mind as the ball popped finally after hours of work, 'Finally!'

"Good job love" Kurama complimented, "You're already picking up on this faster than your dad did!"

Before Naruto could reply, he heard a knock at the door. Sighing, he got up and walked over to it.

"What happened, Ero-sennin?" he asked aloud, before opening the door, "Did she turn you…down…already?"

His eyes widened when he saw who was waiting on the other side of the door. There were two men and they were most definitely not Jiraiya!

Both wore black cloaks with red clouds on them and wore slashed-through headbands, but those were where the similarities ended.

The first was fairly tall, with jet-black hair tied in a ponytail and had deep lines under his eyes running down his face. Not scars, but tear-troughs. His headband had the symbol of Konoha on it.

The second was a giant of a man with pale blue skin and marks on his cheekbones that looked like gills. His hair was dark blue and shaped like a shark's dorsal fin, and his teeth, shown by his wicked grin, were sharpened. The man looked more like a walking shark than a human being! His headband held the Kiri symbol and he had a massive, bandaged sword the size of a grown man strapped to his back.

Despite the appearance of the shark-man, it was the other stranger that held the blonde's focus. OR rather, it was his eyes.

His blazing, red, fully matured Sharingan Eyes…

And, upon seeing them, Naruto immediately knew who this was. The resemblance to Sasuke was uncanny. This could only be…

"Itachi Uchiha" Naruto whispered in shock at being face to face with his teammate's clan-killing older brother.

"Naruto Uzumaki" Itachi replied, his eyes boring into the blonde jinchuuriki, "You will come with us."

Despite the calmness of the voice that spoke it, it was clear Naruto wasn't being given a choice. He also knew full well he didn't stand a chance against Itachi.

Still…

Naruto replied by pulling out Eternal Rest with lightning speed and aiming it at the Uchiha's head. Despite his speed, Itachi was faster and grabbed the blonde's arm, holding it up and away from him. Despite this, the blonde pulled the trigger.

Even though the pistol was aimed away from him, it was still right next to his left ear. When it fired, the sound deafened him, causing him to grunt out in pain and release the blonde. Naruto then sent a powerful kick forward, sending the clan-killer flying into the wall, nearly breaking right through it.

As Naruto aimed and made to finish off the stunned Uchiha, his partner brought out his blade and swung it, knocking Eternal Rest out of his foe's hand.

"Bad idea, kid" the shark-man said, grinning wickedly, "If you had come quietly, it would've been painless. Now I get to hurt you!"

He swung his blade again, but this time Naruto was ready and pulled out Harvest, blocking it. Whatever this man was, he was strong! His strength nearly rivaling the Reaper's own enhanced strength! Whoever he was, he was clearly used to being the strongest man in the room, so was caught off guard when the blonde pushed him back out into the hallway. The shark-man then recovered and shoved back, pushing him far off to the side.

"Interesting" he said, still grinning, "Guess the rumors of you beating Zabuza were true!"

He then rushed forward, "But then again, he always was the weakest of us!"

The two then clashed with blades, each trying to overpower the other with their enhanced strength. Despite his skill, Naruto knew the creature in front of him was a far better kenjutsu expert than him. Trying a different tactic, the blonde shoved the blade to the side, formed a Dark Release: Fist of Shadow on his free hand and thrust his fist forward, aiming for a bone-breaking punch to his ribcage.

The shark-man, however, recovered quickly and blocked it with the flat of his blade. Naruto still expected the blow to send him flying backward…but instead, the chakra covering his fist dissipated on impact!

'What?!'

"Nice try" the creature told him, "But Samehada can absorb your chakra! Your jutsu are useless against me!" he then noticed that his opponent's fist was still in contact with his sword. His sadistic grin growing even wider, he yanked his blade sharply to the side.

Naruto cried out as the skin on his hand was shredded. He leapt back and looked down at his bloody knuckles before looking up at his foe. When he moved his sword, some of the bandages covering it were torn off, revealing…

'Scales?' Naruto thought. Sure enough, there was no metal covering the massive blade, only rows of dark scales.

The shark-man's grin widened even more, "That's right. My blade doesn't cut, it shaves!"

"Stop fooling around, Kisame" Itachi spoke up, finally recovering from his stunned state and regaining his hearing, "We need him alive."

"But he doesn't need to be in one piece" the now named Kisame replied, "Surely Leader-sama won't mind if he's missing a limb or two!"

Before Itachi could reply, a shout filled the hallway.

"Itachi!"

Everyone turned. There, standing on the other side of the hall, his Sharingan Eyes burning with raw hatred, was Sasuke Uchiha.

'Oh, you've got to be shitting me!' Naruto growled to himself, 'What the fuck is he doing here?!'

"This is not good timing" Kurama noted, "If he tries to fight Itachi, he'll die!"

'Neither of us can win this fight' he told his second love, 'I just hope Ero-sennin heard that shot!'

If looks could kill, Sasuke's snarling face would have left his older brother dead ten times over. Despite this, Itachi looked more bored than anything.

"Hello, Sasuke" Itachi greeted blandly, "Long time no see."

"Not long enough" the younger Uchiha snarled.

"Sasuke?" Kisame questioned, "You mean the brother you told me about? That's him?"

"Unfortunately" Itachi replied.

"Damn! He looks just like you!"

"So I've been told."

Sasuke trembled with rage, "You still see me as weak?!" he growled.

"Until you prove to me otherwise, I will always think of you as weak" came Itachi's reply.

"I will prove it!" the younger Uchiha shouted, "Right here, right now!"

"Sasuke, don't!" Naruto pleaded, "You can't beat him! Run or he'll kill you!"

His teammate ignored him, "I've done what you said, Itachi!" he shouted, "I've held onto my hatred for all these years, ready to unleash it upon you when we met again!" he then clutched his arm and began forming a Chidori, "And now, that time has come! Time to make you pay for what you did!"

"Sasuke, no!" Naruto shouted.

"CHIDORI!" the younger Uchiha shouted as he charged with blinding speed.

This was it! The moment he had been training for all these years! Every battle, every test has led up to this moment! The moment he would finally have revenge!

But as he prepared to impale his older brother with his new jutsu…his hopes were crushed.

Itachi didn't even attempt to dodge as his younger brother approached. He did nothing until the split second before the attack would have hit him. With shocking speed, he grabbed Sasuke's wrist, stopping the attack cold. The younger Uchiha could only stare up in horror as his best attack was easily stopped.

Itachi gazed down at his younger brother…before snapping his wrist.

Sasuke cried out in agony as the electricity covering his arm faded. Before he could react, Itachi reached out with his free hand and grabbed Sasuke by the throat, lifting him up and slamming him into the wall.

"So disappointing" he said, still sounding bored.

Sasuke couldn't believe it. After all his training, all his trials and tribulations, he had put everything he had into this…and still failed!

"H-How?" Sasuke choked out, "How are you still stronger than me?! I did what you said! I used my hate!"

Itachi shook his head, "No you didn't, my foolish brother" he said, "I told you to use your hatred. Instead, you let it use you. And until you can learn the difference, you will always be weak."

He then raised Sasuke up to eye level and his eyes changed. His pupils now resembled a three-pronged pinwheel.

Sasuke's own eyes widened in horror. He knew those eyes well and he knew what was coming.

Despite his struggles, he could not stop his brother…as he spoke a single word.

"Tsukuyomi."

With this one word, Sasuke started screaming. The screams were horrid, gut-wrenching, and Naruto desperately wanted them to stop. He and Sasuke were not friends, but whatever Itachi was doing, his teammate nowhere near deserved it.

"Sasuke!" he shouted, attempting to rush past Kisame in order to stop whatever torture the older Uchiha was inflicting on his teammate, but the shark-man stopped him, jumping in front of him and forcing him back.

"Now, now" he chided, "Let's not interrupt this touching family reunion!"

Naruto growled and charged again. Kisame grinned and charged as well. As the two approached each other, the shark-man swung his blade downward. Instead of trying to block the blade with his scythe, Naruto held up his right arm…and blocked it with the Melody Arm.

Time seemed to slow as Samehada struck the gauntlet. When it did, their battle abruptly ended.

The strong impact had created an immense amount of vibrations for the Melody Arm to absorb…and those vibrations were released at the exact same time they were absorbed.

A massive explosion of sound rapidly spread outward, ripping through the walls and ceiling.

Thanks to his Sharingan, Itachi saw the attack coming and made to avoid it, throwing Sasuke down the hall away from the blast and running that same direction.

Again, it seemed to happen in slow motion…but Naruto could have sworn, from his angle, it looked like Itachi was shielding Sasuke from the blast…

Then time resumed, the massive blast blinding them. The explosion of sound tearing the roof off the inn and flattening every room on the top floor. Luckily, no one else had a room on this floor to likely die from the impact. The explosion was heard and felt by the entire town, with citizens and visitors alike screaming and running for cover.

When the dust cleared, Naruto was lying in a pile of rubble. Groaning, he pulled himself up shakily and looked around.

Kisame was gone. There was no sign of the shark-looking man anywhere. Hearing a groan, Naruto spotted Itachi pulling himself out of another pile of rubble. Nearby, Sasuke was unconscious but alive.

For a moment, Itachi glanced at his unconscious younger sibling and Naruto sensed something. It was very brief, so brief that the blonde was almost certain he had imagined it, but in that instant, he could have sworn Itachi felt…sadness?

The clan-killer then locked eyes with the blonde Reaper, his eyes returning to normal. It seemed their confrontation would continue…until a new voice spoke up.

"What a mess!"

Naruto turned to look behind him and saw Jiraiya standing behind him!

'About fucking time!' he thought.

"You ok, kid?" the sannin asked.

Naruto nodded.

"Good" he then looked towards Itachi, "Hello, Itachi" he said, smiling, "It's been too long!"

The Uchiha tensed and began to back away. Despite his power, he knew he was no match for the Toad Sage.

"Jiraiya" he said, "I was hoping to accomplish my mission without your interference."

"Which you tried to do by casting a genjutsu on a helpless young woman" he replied, "Too bad for your plan that I can tell when a woman isn't actually interested in me!"

"He can?" Kurama said, surprised.

Itachi stared at the sannin for a moment…before casting his gaze on Naruto.

"We will meet again."

The infamous missing ninja then turned and ran.

"Oh no you don't!" Jiraiya shouted, biting his thumb and forming handsigns, "Summoning Jutsu: Toad Mouth Bind!"

After slamming his palm into the ground, what was left of the walls and floor rapidly became covered by a fleshy substance. Just as Itachi was about to try and leap over it, the flesh began to expand over him, trapping him in a tunnel. Instead, he kept running, trying to escape the rapidly expanding jutsu.

"Run all you want!" Jiraiya taunted, "This jutsu can't be escaped from!"

Itachi was forced to turn a corner as the fleshy substance threatened to engulf him. He saw an opening in the trap, but it was quickly closing. So quickly, in fact, that there was no way he would make it in time.

He couldn't be captured. He could not fail. If he did, everything he worked for would be for nothing.

And so, closing his eyes, he gathered his chakra into them and opened them.

"Amaterasu!"

From their position, the Reaper and sannin heard what sounded like the crackling of flames. When they rushed over to see what had happened, they found that Itachi had escaped.

But it was how he did it that surprised them.

The hole in the wall the Uchiha clearly escaped from had patches of flame along it…

Black flames.

"What the hell is that?" Naruto asked the obvious question.

"I…I don't know" the Toad answered in shock, "But whatever it is, it's not ordinary fire."

"Yeah, no shit it's not ordinary fire!" the blonde shot back.

"You don't understand. That summoning technique summons the oesophagus of a giant, fire breathing toad! No flame should be able to burn through it!" Jiraiya told him.

"Well, this one did" Naruto replied, before reaching out with his senses, "And whatever kind of fire this is, it's energy is dark. If it were possible for fire to be pure evil, this would be what it looked and felt like."

"We need to take a sample of it and have it studied" his godfather decided.

"Can you seal it?" Naruto asked.

The sannin nodded.

"Then do it and give it to me" he continued, "The Reaper Corps can figure out what it is. If anyone can figure it out, they can."

Jiraiya frowned, "You sure it's safe to just give them 'evil' fire?"

"They know things that would drive ordinary people mad" Naruto answered, "They'll know what it is, and even if they don't it'll be safer at the palace than anywhere else."

Jiraiya thought for a moment before nodding, "Fine, but I'm taking a sample as well for Konoha to study."

Naruto shrugged, "Works for me."

After sealing all the patches of black flames, the Toad Sage handed him a scroll.

"Hopefully, both the village and your organization can figure out what the hell that was."

"They will" Naruto assured him.

"Then we had better get your teammate and-"

"Dynamic Entry!"

Suddenly, a green blur flew by, kicking the Toad Sage in the face.

"Ha!" one Might Guy cried out, "You thought you could escape, unyouthful fiends? Well no one can outrun the fires of-!"

He noticed who had just kicked, "J-Jiraiya-sama?!"

"You idiot!" the sage shouted, nursing the side of his face, "What the hell is wrong with you?! Do I look like a bad guy you dumbass celery stick?!"

"I-I'm so sorry!" Guy apologized frantically, "I followed Itachi and his unyouthful companion here from the village! I thought you were one of them!"

Naruto, who had been laughing hysterically at the time, suddenly stopped upon hearing this.

"They were at the village?" he asked, worried.

Guy nodded, "Kurenai, Asuma, Kakashi, and I fought them before they fled" he explained, "Kurenai is unharmed, Asuma took a pretty bad hit to his shoulder, and Kakashi…"

"What?" Naruto demanded, "What happened?!"

"…I'm not sure how, but all Itachi did was look Kakashi in the eye…and he just collapsed, catatonic" Guy explained.

Naruto's rage spiked upon hearing his sensei had been hurt. Jiraiya flinched upon hearing this, as he knew the blonde would react badly to it.

Naruto then marched over to Sasuke, picked him up, and shoved him into Guy's arms.

"Catatonic" he growled, "Like this?"

Guy looked down at the Uchiha, noting his pained breathing and cold sweat, "Yes" he answered, "Kakashi looked just like this."

"Itachi did exactly what you described to Sasuke" Naruto told him, "Is Kakashi-sensei alright?"

Guy nodded, "He's unharmed, physically" he explained, "Whatever Itachi did, if affected Kakashi on a psychological level. Inoichi's doing everything he can to fix it."

Naruto was relieved somewhat. He still worried, but if anyone could fix a damaged mind, Ino's father could.

Guy then looked to Jiraiya, "What do we do now, Jiraiya-sama?" he asked, "Do we search for them?"

The Toad Sage shook his head, "No point, they're long gone by now. The only thing we can do right now is keep to our current mission and find Tsunade. Itachi's return needs to be dealt with as soon as possible, so we need a Hokage."

Guy nodded, "I understand" he then hefted Sasuke over his shoulder, "Then I'll take young Sasuke back to the village so Inoichi can heal his mind while you two continue to search for Tsunade-sama."

"Sounds good" Jiraiya told him, "When you get back, make sure the rest of the village stays on the lookout for Itachi and his friend. I doubt they'll return, but we can't afford to take any chances."

Guy bowed in acknowledgement and hurried back towards Konoha with Sasuke in tow.

Jiraiya was about to address his godson…but was interrupted when said godson grabbed him and slammed him into a wall, holding him there.

"Who were they?" he demanded to know, growling.

Jiraiya gulped, "I don't-"

"Don't you dare give me that bullshit!" the blonde snarled, "They came here looking for me! Itachi said I was supposed to be taken alive! That means they were at the village searching for me!" his eyes started to red and slitted as he unconsciously used Kurama's power, "Kakashi-sensei is hurt because of me!"

Jiraiya, not wanting Naruto to know how much danger he was in, but also not wanting to him to go full jinchuuriki, tried to reason with him, "Kid…I want to tell you…but the risks-!"

"Are already happening" the blonde interrupted, "Someone's after me, and if this person is powerful enough to have someone like Itachi Uchiha working for him, then I need to know who."

Jiraiya considered for a moment. He really didn't want his godson to know about this, lest he try and find the people that were after him…but he was right. The cat was out of the bag. He might as well know the truth.

"…They're called the Akatsuki" the Toad Sage gave in.

Naruto arched an eyebrow as he released his godfather, "Akatsuki?" he repeated.

Jiraiya nodded, "I've only heard rumors, but from what I can tell, they're some kind of mercenary guild but very exclusive. Apparently, the entire group is made up of nothing but S-Ranked Missing-ninja, all wearing the same uniform: black cloaks with red clouds."

Naruto's eyes widened. Only S-Ranked? That meant that these people could be Kage-level shinobi!

"Why are they after me?" he questioned.

"They're not after you" the sannin told him, "They're after what's inside you."

It took a moment for Naruto to understand, and his eyes widened in terror.

"The Kyuubi" he whispered, not using her real name.

"And not just the fox" Jiraiya continued, "Apparently, they want all the Tailed Beasts."

Naruto was now both scared and enraged. He wasn't afraid for himself, but for Kurama. She was his partner and, more importantly, one of the great loves of his life.

'No!' he growled, 'They won't take her! I won't let them!'

"I know you won't" Kurama told him, "But please, don't go seeking them out just to protect me!"

'I can't lose you!' he told her, 'I love you! I'd rather die a thousand times then let these bastards take you away!'

"And I love you" she replied, "More than I've ever loved anyone else. But if they rip me out of you, you'll die! I'd rather stay imprisoned forever, never see the sun again, than lose you!"

Naruto's eyes widened in shock. She loved him that much?

"My love, you're the best thing that's ever happened to me" she continued, "Every second of every day is a treasure to me, because I get to spend them with you" she became saddened, "If I lost you…I wouldn't be able to live. I'd never love again. I'd spend every waking second trying to join you in death, because a life without you would be my personal hell."

'Kurama…' he whispered in utter shock.

"Promise me" she pleaded, nearly in tears, "Promise me you won't seek them out! Promise me you'll stay safe!"

Naruto had to hold back his own tears. He had never heard his partner so afraid before.

'…I promise, on my love for you, that I won't seek them out' he vowed.

Kurama smiled, "Thank you, my beloved. I love you."

'As I love you.'

"You ok, kid?"

Jiraiya's question brought him out of his conversation with his second love, "I'm fine" he answered, "Are you sure they're after the Tailed Beasts?"

"I'm almost certain" he replied, "When they first showed up, they presented themselves as a cheaper alternative to the shinobi villages" he explained, "They specialized in missions most ninja would consider suicide and they did them for a fraction of the cost the Five Great Villages would ask for. The only thing they asked in return was to not ask any questions on who they were or how they got the job done" he frowned, "But lately, my sources have been telling me they've been asking questions about the Tailed Beasts: where they are, who they're sealed into, what villages they belong to, things like that. The only reason I can think of as to why they would do that…"

"Is to prepare to capture them" Naruto finished, his godfather nodding, "But why are they after them?"

"I have no idea" the sannin answered honestly, "But whatever it is, it can't be good. If these guys get their hands on all nine of them, they control the most powerful source of chakra on the planet."

"And no one would be able to stop them" Naruto said, "What else do you know about them?"

"Not much" Jiraiya said, "They are very secretive. I only found out about them a few years ago by complete accident."

Naruto raised an eyebrow, "How do you 'accidently' find out about something like this?" he asked.

Jiraiya sighed, "I was chasing after leads about Orochimaru" he answered, "I found out about the Akatsuki when he joined them."

The blonde's eyes widened again, "Orochimaru's a member?!"

Jiraiya shook his head, "Not anymore" he answered, causing his student to sigh in relief, "Apparently, he was forced out after he betrayed him. They've been out for his blood ever since."

Naruto scoffed internally. Of course Orochimaru would betray them. Betrayal was the snake's defining characteristic. Anyone who trusted him deserved whatever he did to them.

"Do you know any of the other members?" he asked.

"Aside from Orochimaru, Itachi was the only one I knew about" was the reply, "Apparently, the snake's betrayal involved attacking Itachi, who beat him pretty easily."

Naruto was once again shocked to his core. Itachi was more powerful than Orochimaru? He knew the Uchiha was skilled, and certainly more powerful than he was at present, but to be even stronger than the Snake Sannin?

The blonde would need to become far more powerful before he could face either of them again.

He then registered something his mentor said, "Wait, why did Orochimaru attack Itachi?"

"I wondered about that myself" the Toad Sage replied, "I had theories, but that Tayuya girl is the one that confirmed them when she told us about how the snake could cheat death."

Naruto immediately understood, "He tried to take over Itachi's body!" he realized, "But Itachi must've been too strong for him! That's why he's so interested in Sasuke! He's the only other Uchiha to choose from!"

Jiraiya nodded, "That's what I'm thinking too. Apparently, Sasuke was the backup plan."

After taking a moment to calm down from the sudden realization, Naruto asked another question, "So you don't know any of the other members?" he asked.

Jiraiya shook his head, "Not a one."

"What about Itachi's partner?" the blonde asked, "Did you recognize him?"

"No" was the reply, "I didn't get a good enough look at him since you blasted him. What did he look like?"

"Tall, blue skin, sharp teeth, carried a huge-ass sword. He looked like a walking shark" Naruto described, "Itachi called him 'Kisame.'"

Jiraiya immediately recognized the name, "Only one person I know fits that description: Kisame Hoshigaki."

"You know him?" the blonde Reaper asked.

"Only by reputation" the Toad Sage answered, "He's a former member of the Seven Swordsmen of the Mist. People call him 'the Monster of the Hidden Mist.' He was brutal, sadistic, possibly psychotic, but efficient. He disappeared years ago after Kiri found out he was involved in the attempted assassination of the Yondaime Mizukage. He definitely fits the Akatsuki's membership criteria."

Naruto immediately understood why Kisame said he knew Zabuza: they were both members of the Seven Swordsmen. He would have to send his comrade a message, ask him for information about this 'Monster of the Hidden Mist.'

"Do you know anything else about them?" Naruto asked.

"Not a damn thing" was Jiraiya's answer.

Naruto sighed, "So, what do we do now?"

"We can't stay here" the sannin told him, "Even with me here, they might come back and try and nab you again, so we'll keep moving and rest up at the next town. We still need to find Tsunade."

Naruto nodded in agreement.

As the two prepared to leave, the blonde suddenly stopped them.

"Oh, by the way" he began, a massive grin on his face, "I completed the second step!"

A few miles away:

Itachi Uchiha grunted in pain as he dressed his wounds in the middle of a forest clearing.

That explosion had been completely unexpected. Even he couldn't avoid coming out of it without some injuries.

Unexpected was also the word he would use to describe Naruto Uzumaki. He and Kisame had been told the blonde jinchuuriki "might be difficult" to capture, but that was a gross understatement.

He had not only been temporarily deafened by the blonde but had also been hit by him. That kick was strong, strong enough that he was certain at least one of his ribs was bruised.

It was his own fault. He should not have underestimated the younger man, no matter how far apart they were in terms of skill.

A snapped twig brought him out of his thoughts. He prepared to defend himself, but relaxed when his partner emerged from the trees. Kisame was, battered, bruised, and using Samehada as a walking stick in order to stand, but was still alive.

"So, you survived I see" Itachi commented.

"WHAT?!" Kisame shouted, cupping his ear, "I CAN'T HEAR YOU! MY EARS ARE STILL RINGING FROM THAT BLAST!"

Itachi couldn't help but sweatdrop, "How did you survive?" he had to ask.

"WHAT?!"

Itachi sighed, "I said: how did you survive?" Itachi repeated, louder this time.

"WHAT?!"

"How did you survive?!" Itachi shouted (or, at least, the closest he came to shouting).

"WHAT?! I STILL CAN'T HEAR YOU!"

Itachi sighed again and grabbed a nearby twig before using it to write his question into the dirt.

"OH!" Kisame finally understood, "THAT BLAST SENT ME FLYING OUT OF THE VILLAGE, BUT I MANAGED TO LAND IN A NEARBY STREAM!" he explained, "SAMEHADA ABSORBED ENOUGH CHAKRA TO FIX MOST OF MY WOUNDS!"

Itachi nodded in understanding. At least they both survived. With how caught off guard they were, that was something at least.

Still…

"Our leader is going to be furious" Itachi muttered to himself. This was the best chance they had at capturing the Kyuubi Jinchuuriki and they blew it. Now that Jiraiya was around, they had no chance of succeeding.

"WHAT?!"

Itachi groaned and waved his partner off, telling him "nevermind."

What's done is done. All they could do now was rest up and contact their leader to report their failure.

Hopefully, Kisame's hearing would come back by then.

XXX

Another chapter done.

No Codex this time.

You know the drill, let's go over what happened:

Naruto now knows Yugao's identity and they have become closer. Like I said before, she and Hayate won't be major characters in this series, but they'll appear every now and then.

Naruto, once again, has made the council look like fools, countering all their arguments with logical precision. I'm guessing the only reason Danzo didn't try to become Hokage in the series after Hiruzen died is because his character didn't exist until part 2. Well, he tried in this and, of course, failed. It's clear for anyone to see that Danzo is woefully unqualified for the position. I know he's logical, smart, and stronger than he looks, but he actively avoids conflict until he has no other choice. He's old and, like Hiruzen, far past his prime. The only reason he lasts in a fight against powerful foes, is because of his Izanagi and even then, he can only use it a certain number of times. Even in his old age Hiruzen was both respected and feared, while Danzo…well, he prefers to operate anonymously, so very few people outside the village even know about him.

Hiashi has finally stopped being a stoic jackass and is becoming a kinder, more understanding soul. Inoichi, on the other hand, still wants to murder our protagonist. The more things change…

I actually have no idea how big a fan of Tsunade's Tenten actually is (we only know she admires her) but thought her being starstruck level of obsessed would be funny. I thought about bringing her along for the journey. But decided not to. The way Tsunade is when we're first introduced to her would be heart-breaking to Tenten. Besides, she wouldn't have stood a chance against the Akatsuki. Also, yes, I've hinted towards a NejixTenten pairing. I think they'd be good together. Neji needs a girl who can get him to relax and enjoy life.

Orochimaru hasn't handled his defeat well. With what Death did to him, he's constantly angry and paranoid to the point of nearly losing his mind. Even Kabuto set him off just by trying to talk to him. Many of you will be disappointed, but the snake has regained the use of his arms thanks to certain Demon Lord we haven't heard from in a while. Orochimaru has had dealings with Azazel for a very long time. How long? You'll find out one day. The hints for the truth behind their relationship are there, you just have to read carefully in order to find them. In any case, it's a "partnership" the sannin wants out of but can't. Anyway, since Orochimaru is acquainted with the supernatural, he knows that no medical jutsu can restore his damaged soul. Thanks to Azazel, he can use his arms, but not without agonizing pain. So, he needs the best medical ninja on the continent in order to dull it.

I never understood why Orochimaru and Tsunade both seem absolutely, one-hundred percent certain that she's capable of restoring a damaged soul in the series. Why? Is have a piece of your soul ripped out a common problem in the Naruto Universe? Hell, for how crazy it is, it might be for all I know. Let me make this clear: there is no way in hell Tsunade could fix a wound like that…at least, not in my stories.

Azazel's method of appearing before Orochimaru is similar to how Lucifer appears in front of Dante to taunt him in Dante's Inferno. In the game, Lucifer can appear in the shape of a human male made of smoke. This isn't his true form, as his real body is chained down in the Ninth Circle of Hell: Treachery. I assume Lucifer is somehow projecting his consciousness out from his body in order to speak to others over great distances. In this series, the Demon Lords can do something similar, though their forms are mostly shapeless masses of smoke with eyes, since they are not as powerful as their master.

While writing this, I noticed that this would be the first time Naruto left the village since the Chuunin Exams started and, thus, the first time he'd be separated from his harem. If you had to leave behind a group of drop-dead gorgeous women at home for any period of time, you'd cry too! Still, I managed to sneak in another Naruto and Tayuya pairing hint…well, not a hint, since I've straight up told you she's going to join his harem, but you get it.

With a little prodding, Jiraiya has spilled the beans on the reason why Tsunade hates the position of Hokage. Why did I have him do this? You'll find out next chapter…and I think you'll like it!

Naruto has started learning the Rasengan! He's having a much easier time learning it since he's had a lot of practice with chakra control. He completed the first two steps to learning his father's jutsu in a single day. How long will it take to cover the third? Probably another chapter at least, but you never know.

Just so you know, the town where Naruto first encounters the Akatsuki is actually called Shukuba Town and, yes, the name translates to "Inn-town Town" and it also has a street called "Fun Fun Avenue", the most anime name for a street I've ever heard in my entire life.

I skipped the fight between Itachi and Kisame against Kurenai, Asuma, Kakashi, and Guy because it wasn't really that important. It happened the same way it did in the series. Also, how is that Tsunade can heal people who've been exposed to the Tsukuyomi? I imagine the damage it inflicts is to the psyche, so how can someone who focuses on physical injuries heal that? Whatever, I changed it.

Naruto fought both Itachi and Kisame but, of course, he stood absolutely no chance against them. He managed to take Itachi by surprise and land a solid blow on him and was only able to "defeat" Kisame by blasting him away with his Melody Arm. The battle in this story caused far more damage to the inn than what actually happened.

Finally, Naruto forced Jiraiya to be honest with him about the Akatsuki and their intentions towards him. This is the last time we'll see any of it's member for quite some time. In fact, they probably won't ever appear in this story again, aside from being mention in conversation. They'll become more important in the third part of this series.

And that's that. We're done. I hope you all enjoyed this chapter considering how long it took me to but finish the fucking thing.

Until next time, stay home and stay safe! I'll see you all again in the next chapter!

Next time: Meeting the Slug Sannin…

Until next time, this is Intimidator1323 signing off!