Sorry for the weird spacing issues. Hopefully it is fixed. Sorry.

"Speech"

"Mental/Distorted"

'Thoughts'

"Bijuu/Techniques"

[Scene Shift]

Chapter 2: Truthful Consequences

The next morning, Naruto was seen standing in Gaara's office with the redhead giving him an even stare. Calm green eyes met apathetic blue that held a hint of happiness in them before the Godaime Kazekage spoke.

"You do understand that many people will have trouble adjusting to this change of yours, right Uzumaki?"

The blonde merely closed his eyes with a small smirk on his face reminiscent of his deceased master. "You make it sound like I'm becoming what I am now. Rest assured Gaara…this is me ceasing my act. For too long I've lived under the guise of a naïve child, hiding away my true abilities and experiences under Sasori; but no more. It's time I showed my true nature to the world since the promise to my old master is now void with his passing."

"I see… Tell me something though; was what you told me when we fought your mask…or the real you?"

Naruto just kept his smirk and made to leave the office. Once he opened the door, he looked back over his shoulder and asked, "What do you think?"

As soon as his office door closed, Gaara let a small smile grace his face. "I knew it…"

With the blonde puppeteer, he was walking down one of the many roads of Sunagakure with his hands in his pockets and a large scroll on his back. Since he decided to stop lying to the world, he unsealed all of the scrolls that held his puppets – 11 in total with the addition of Hiruko and Sasori – and placed them all in a scroll that was on par in size with the one Jiraiya always wore.

"Naruto!" called out a voice, making him turn and see Temari trying to flag him down. He stopped walking to let her catch up. "I'm glad I found you before you and your team left. I wanted to thank you for saving Gaara."

"No thanks are needed, Temari. Gaara's my friend and my brother, so I'd save him even if you didn't ask me to."

She nodded with a small smile before her gaze turned serious. "Is what Sakura told me true?"

His face became blank at the question. "About Sasori being my old master?" She nodded. "It's true…"

To his surprise, she chuckled lightly. "Quite the surprise when I heard her practically yelling about it to me. I think you may have broken her during the rescue." Her face formed a teasing grin before she asked, "Think you'd be able to fix her, oh great puppet master?"

"I'm afraid that she's far beyond fixing," he replied with a nonchalant wave of his hand before the two chuckled at the joke. "Does Kankuro know?"

"Not yet; why?"

"I honestly don't feel like getting hounded by him for details on Sasori-sensei's teachings or secrets," he answered with an annoyed expression, making her laugh at his face.

"I make no promises about not telling him, Whiskers," she stated as she bid him goodbye and headed to Gaara's office.

Naruto merely waved lightly to her as she left before he resumed his walk to the hotel his team and Team Gai were staying at. They left for Konoha in about an hour, so he wanted to be ready to go. One of the things he inherited from his master was his utter hatred for making others wait and being kept waiting. It was one of the main reasons why he actually screamed at Kakashi alongside Sakura when they were younger.

He entered the room he shared with Team 7 and was met with an awkward air in the room. It was obvious that they were still trying to figure out who Naruto really was now that he dropped his old mask. Sighing softly, he said nothing and prepared his backpack to leave, aware of the stares he was receiving from Kakashi and Sakura.

'Kami-sama, I hope we leave soon,' he mentally groaned.

[Timeskip: Departure Time (Suna's Main Entrance)]

The group of eight Konoha shinobi stood in front of the Suna Trio to say their farewells. The Jonin – Neji included – bowed respectfully while Lee cried "manly tears" about coming back for another "youthful visit" and the kunoichi merely nodded goodbye.

Naruto stepped forward and held out his hand to Gaara, which was taken almost immediately, and the two shook their hands in farewell. "I hope that your next trip here will be on better terms, Uzumaki."

"Same here, Gaara. I'll send you a message concerning what we talked about when I get settled back home," replied the blonde, making the redhead nod with a faint smile.

Temari gave her fellow blonde a hug goodbye while Kankuro shook his hand. He then gained a slightly pleading look and was about to speak before he was elbowed in the gut by his sister who gave him a stern look. A cloud of depression formed over his head while Naruto followed after his team with a light chuckle.

About a half an hour of walking later, Kakashi gave his blonde student a sidelong glance. The blonde merely kept his gaze on the path before him while he walked with his hands in his pockets. "Naruto," he began, getting the Uzumaki to give him a bored look in acknowledgment, "you do realize that Tsunade-sama will need to know about this…revelation of yours, right?"

"It crossed my mind, yes," he answered calmly, making the silver haired Jonin sigh. Honestly, the blonde sounded way too much like the deceased Akatsuki member that it was slightly scary.

"I still can't believe you never told us or trusted us with this, Naruto. We're your teammates! You have to be able to trust us!" Sakura declared with a hurt look.

Naruto's blank gaze fell on her for the briefest of moments before he shrugged and refocused on the desert. "Whether or not I have to trust you is irrelevant. I made a promise and I followed through with it. My promises are taken with the upmost care, Sakura."

She still looked hurt, but she reluctantly let it go since he had shown many times that he kept his promises to the letter. However, the pinkette was surprised to see Tenten suddenly stop in her tracks and turn to Naruto in surprise. "Wait a minute…" she murmured.

Naruto met her gaze calmly before his lips quirked in a small smirk, making her eyes widen.

"You spoke…smart like!" she exclaimed.

"Yes…" he drawled out with his smirk growing slightly. "I finally woke up, Tenten."

He then surprised the others when he used his fingers to plug his ears. However, their surprise was cut short with Tenten's arms stretching over her head in excitement and a cry of, "FINALLY!"

Their ears rang at the sheer volume of her excited exclamation while Naruto unplugged his ears with a content sigh. "I take it you're relieved?" he asked.

"What do you think?!" she asked with a grin before she pulled him in a headlock and rubbed his head affectionately. "I was wondering if you'd ever show your real self again, little brother!"

"Brother?" asked the others collectively.

"Tenten, would you care to explain?" asked Kakashi with a curious glance at her actions toward Naruto.

The weapon specialist let go of the blonde and shrugged. "Nothing much to explain, really… I found him practicing with his chakra strings a few years ago and saw that he was using them with kunai to throw them in multiple directions. I was interested and revealed myself to him, which nearly got me killed by the way," she stated while giving a deadpan look at Naruto who shrugged without any sign of regret or guilt.

"You surprised me," he defended. "You really think it was wise to sneak up on someone who obviously had a grasp on their chakra?"

She stuck her tongue out at him childishly in response, making him chuckle lightly. "Anyway, after I explained why I was there, he flat out told me no. I ended up following him for a few days asking him constantly to teach me, but he refused every time. It got to the point that I ended up visiting him now and then without even asking him to teach me and I saw him work on a puppet occasionally. It was then that I came up with a deal for him; he teaches me the chakra strings and I let him use my forge to work in private and I supply his puppets with weapons. I was also sworn into secrecy in regards to his skills in exchange for him making me a few high grade seals."

"So…you hid your true strength all along?" Neji questioned the blonde with a raised brow.

"I did," he admitted. "But it was all for the sake of keeping a promise to my now deceased teacher. The Naruto you think you know was just an act; a façade to keep everyone else in the dark about my skills. Only a few of my experiences were truly me and not an act."

"And those were…?" Kakashi asked with a slight narrowing of his eye.

"I plan to tell Tsunade everything when we get back," stated the blonde. "You can all hear about it then."

Annoyed but seeing that trying to force him to tell would be counterproductive, the Jonin just nodded with a sigh as the two teams kept heading for Konoha.

[Tsunade's Office (A couple of days later)]

"Teams 7 and 9 reporting in, Hokage-sama," saluted Kakashi as he stood in front of her desk with the others.

The blonde Senju looked up from her paperwork while her assistant, Shizune, stood to the side with her pet pig, Tonton, ever present in her arms. She gave them all a narrowed gaze, but it lingered on a certain fellow blonde's the most. What surprised her was the look of pure calm under her piercing stare, but it only proved what was sent to her hours before by Kakashi's summon dog, Pakkun.

"I'm impressed with your success on the mission. I had thought the Kazekage was passed, but I received a scroll detailing his gratitude toward Konoha for his safe return." She raised a brow to the Copy-Nin and asked, "He was dead, right?"

"Hai, but Elder Chiyo used a sacrificial jutsu to exchange the remainder of her life to bring back the Kazekage. She was buried honorably upon our return to Suna."

"I see," replied the Godaime with her gaze lowered. "I'm sure her passing was hard for many. However, we must not linger on the past and focus on the now. You're all dismissed except for you, brat," she said, pointing at the Uzumaki. "I'd like a word with you."

Once the others left – some more reluctant than others – Naruto crossed his arms over his chest and relaxed his stance slightly. "I take it you have questions about what happened on the mission."

"Of course I do!" she yelled. "How could you keep something like that a secret for so long?! Sasori was an S-Rank criminal and you were taught by the man! Do you realize how important that information could've been to Konoha?"

She was surprised when he glared at her so coldly that his blue eyes looked to be made of pure ice. Shizune unconsciously shivered in fright at the glare and almost took a step back. The blonde noticed this and lessened his stare slightly. There was no sense in projecting his anger at her when she did nothing wrong.

"I will not betray the man who pulled me out of my own despair for 'the good of the village'," he stated in a deathly calm tone. "As for lying to everyone; I made a promise to him when he returned me to the Leaf. I don't know about you, Tsunade, but I take my promises seriously; more so than anything else. And besides, Konoha would've just abused his teachings and tossed me aside. You know this since they've done it for as long as I can remember."

She cringed slightly at the truth of his words. If the Council got word of his tutelage under Sasori, they'd have him give them everything he learned before they cast him aside after his usefulness was over. "You still could've trusted some people with it. You can trust me, Naruto?"

He scoffed, making her narrow her eyes. "Oh sure, trust the woman who had to be convinced to return to her home to fulfill her duty as a medic and had almost given into the silver tongue of that snake, Orochimaru."

"Watch it, brat," she warned.

"Why, because you can't handle the truth? Honestly, Tsunade, who in this village would you trust if you were in my shoes?"

"My teammates," was the immediate answer, but even Shizune gave a disbelieving look at that.

"Yea, my team… You mean the one consisting of a lazy man who taught us nothing, an emotionally unstable survivor of the Uchiha Massacre, and a girl whose sole reason for even joining the ninja core was said survivor?" asked the Uzumaki with his tone practically bathed in sarcasm.

The Senju frowned at his words, but she stayed silent since she couldn't argue. "What about my sensei?"

"Why should I trust the man who lied about my own burden and never told me who my parents were?"

"Y-You know?!" asked a shocked Tsunade, making him glare at her in growing rage.

"You knew too, huh? Who else knew; Jiraiya; the Jonin; the entire village?!" he roared at her, making her cringe. "You expect me to trust you when you yourself have kept secrets from me; secrets about me! Well you know what? You can all go to hell like every other fucking hypocrite in this worthless place!"

With his anger driving him, he turned and left the office, slamming the door so hard that every picture frame fell off of its hangings and to the floor. Tsunade looked down with regret swimming in her eyes while Shizune kept staring at the door sadly. Gently placing Tonton down on the couch in the office, she hurried after the blonde puppeteer in hopes of trying to calm him down.

She caught up to him when he made his way to one of the training fields. "Naruto-kun, wait!" she called out, making him turn to her with his glare still present.

"What do you want?" he asked lowly. "I'm not in the mood to talk to anyone, so hurry up and say what you want."

She faltered slightly before standing strong under his gaze. "I want you to know that there are some people who never lied to you and trust you, Naruto-kun. There are some people you can trust…"

"And who would those people be, Shizune? Who in this entire village has never lied to the Bane of Konoha?" he asked bitterly.

"…Well, I have never lied to you," she answered in a soft tone. "I didn't know who your parents were either, so it came as much of a surprise to me when you called Tsunade-sama out on keeping the truth from you." She slowly approached him, pleased that he didn't make any motions that would push her away. "You can trust me, Naruto-kun."

He turned away from her, and she knew it was his anger still in control which brought a look of sadness to her face. "How do I know you aren't lying to me now? How do I know that I can trust you?" He then sighed in a way that reminded Shizune of someone far older than Naruto should be. He looked to her and the woman's eyes saddened further at the almost dead look in his blue orbs. "How can I trust anyone when they always let me down in the end? The only person I ever trusted is dead," his eyes began to tear up and he choked out, "and it's all my fault… I'm responsible for his death. I killed the only person who ever saw me as his son…"

He fell to his knees in pure sadness and released his tears, prompting Shizune to quickly wrap her arms around him and hold him close, tears of her own threatening to spill. 'So that was why he got so angry… He's not entirely mad at Tsunade-sama's accusations, and his real pain is knowing that he killed his own teacher and father figure for the sake of duty… Naruto-kun, I can't even begin to imagine the pain you must be feeling right now.'

For an unknown period of time, she just held him close and let him release his sadness while whispering words of comfort into his ear. He slowly calmed down, but he didn't move from her embrace. He felt safe with her.

Still being held by her, he looked up into Shizune's eyes showing the vulnerability in his own. "…You swear that you've never lied to me, and that you never will?" he asked in a quiet tone.

She gave him a kind smile and nodded. "I promise you that I never have, and never will, lie to you or betray your trust, Naruto-kun."

For an agonizing five minutes, his blue orbs stared deep into her black ones before he slowly nodded. "I…believe you, Shizune-chan," he said as a ghost of a smile appeared on his face.

She smiled back and gave him one last squeeze before she let him go and helped him to his feet. "I'm glad to hear that, Naruto-kun. Just remember that you can talk to me any time, and about anything." When he nodded, she placed a comforting hand on his shoulder and gently squeezed it. "Don't give up on others just yet, Naruto-kun. Now, I should return back to Tsunade-sama since she probably hasn't touched another sheet of paperwork since I left. Be sure to come by later and at least try to reconcile with her. Could you do that for me?"

He looked unsure, but the pleading look in her eyes withered away any chance of denial and he simply nodded in affirmative, making her smile.

"Good… I'll be there also to make sure things go alright." She then surprised both him and herself when she leaned in and kissed him lightly on his cheek. "I'll be waiting, Naruto-kun," she stated before she left in a Shunshin (Body Flicker), leaving a blushing Naruto alone in the training field with a hand shakily touching his cheek.

"S-She just…just kissed me," he whispered as his blush deepened and he hurried off to his home.

Back with Shizune, she wasn't fairing any better and arrived at the Hokage Tower with a red face. 'I can't believe I just did that… I kissed him! I mean, it was on the cheek, but I still kissed him!'

'And what's so bad about that?' questioned a voice just like hers.

'He's practically my little brother! I can't just up and kiss him!'

'Why not? You and I both know that you've always had a soft spot for Naruto-kun. What's so wrong with showing that you care for him?'

'B-But-'

'Listen, you care for him, right?'

'Of course I do!'

'And you hate seeing him sad like he was earlier, right?'

She internally frowned at the thought of him so down. 'I don't think I could ever handle seeing like that again…'

'Of course you couldn't, and you want to know why?'

'Why?'

'Because, deep down and unknown to you, you love him…'

Shizune froze in her tracks, unknowingly in the doorway to Tsunade's office as she held the knob in her hands. The Godaime looked up from her desk and raised a brow at the look of shock on her assistant's face as she gazed at nothing in particular.

"Shizune…?" she asked in confusion.

The poor woman was too far gone to have heard her as she still registered what the deeper part of her mind told her. 'I…I love Naruto-kun…?'

'Of course you do… He's brave, strong, loyal, and he trusts you above everyone else. For Kami-sama's sake, he literally fell apart in your arms but was able to get back up because you were there for him! Face it girl; you want him.'

'B-But he's so much younger than I am!'

'Age is but a number… How long are you going to lie to yourself and keep from being with Naruto-kun?'

Shizune's answer was left silent when Tsunade snapped her fingers in front of her face. "Shizune, you're spacing out! Wake up!"

"Huh, what?" questioned the woman as she snapped back into focus. She took a look at her surroundings and tilted her head slightly in confusion. "How'd I get here? I thought I was still at the entrance?"

"You spaced out for some time," explained the Senju with a critical gaze on her assistant, her medical training kicking in. "Do you remember what it was?"

To the Godaime's surprise, Shizune averted her gaze with a faint blush. "Well, it was something…personal."

"Is that right?" asked Tsunade as a small grin made its way to her face. "Thinking about someone special, eh?"

"I don't know… I'm confused about what to do."

"Well, if you need to talk to someone, I'm here. But for now, I need your help with this infuriating paperwork."

Shizune gave a wistful smile and shook her head in amusement. "Hai Shishō."

[The Next Day (Hokage Office)]

Naruto stood before Tsunade and Shizune once again, but Jiraiya was there as well per Tsunade's request. "So, Sasori was supposed to meet one of his spies for Orochimaru in less than a week at the Tenchi Bridge… Do you know who this spy would be, Naruto?" asked Tsunade carefully, not wanting to upset the blonde again. After he left her office yesterday, she went over their discussion and she couldn't fault him for his outburst or his feelings toward the village. If she were in his shoes, she'd most likely feel the same.

So, she made a promise to herself to make it up to him by showing him that he could trust her.

Jiraiya, having been told about Naruto's revelation before the blonde arrived, was unsure on what to do. Sasori was said to have a spy network that could easily rival his own and he feared that the teen could've given Sasori some secrets pertaining to Konoha. He also felt ashamed that he couldn't be there for Naruto and it hurt him to learn that the blonde found comfort learning from Suna's worst criminal and even learned from him.

The boy even called the Kage Killer "Master", something reserved for teachers that are respected above all else. If Sasori was his "Master", then what was the point of accepting his offer to become an apprentice to the Toad Sage?

Shizune was conflicted as she looked at the whiskered Uzumaki. The deeper part of her mind wouldn't keep quiet about how she was lying to herself about not loving him anymore than that of a sister loving her brother.

However, Shizune couldn't help but think back on all of the times she spent with the blonde. None of those moments were all that special, but it was remembering how his eyes looked when he was with her. Instead of the pain and loneliness she saw when she first met him with Jiraiya, she saw slight comfort and content. The deeper part of her mind told her that she was the only one who noticed since no one else said anything about it; either that or no one cared enough for him to notice and she did.

"That should be Yakushi Kabuto. I met him when I was about 7yrs old and Sasori-Shishō took me to visit his spy network. As far as I know, Kabuto should feel the effects of the elixir Sasori gave him years ago soon and remember about the meeting. He'll be expecting Sasori to be there in his Hiruko puppet," answered Naruto with a calm stare; something Shizune mentally sighed in relief about. It wouldn't do to have him get angry about this.

"Which means that we'll need to make one and have someone pose as Sasori to fool Kabuto," Jiraiya mused with his hand on his chin.

"Not necessarily," interjected the Uzumaki. "I have the remains of Hiruko and plan to restore it while adding a few personal touches. Once I'm done, I'll be able to pose as Shishō and question Kabuto. Even if my cover is blown, I could always say that I'm taking over Sasori's network." He then added mentally, 'Which I plan to do anyway… I suppose I need to make a few trips soon.'

"I can't allow you to risk yourself like that, Naruto," Tsunade stated with a stern gaze. "If Kabuto suspects you, then things could go south real fast."

"Not to mention that Orochimaru could follow Kabuto to try and get some info on Sasori. You'd be stuck with two enemy shinobi that are both over A-Rank in skill easily," Jiraiya added.

"And yet you fail to see that no one else would be able to pull it off. No one knows Shishō like I do, so they wouldn't be able to play the part if Kabuto starts asking questions to have the actor prove that they're Shishō," Naruto countered. "I'm the best suited for this and you all know it."

The Godaime sighed tiredly at the truth in his argument. With the little amount of time they have, no one would be able to learn enough to act like Sasori perfectly where as Naruto spent five years with the man. 'I still need to get the details of his time with Sasori,' she thought before she nodded. "Alright, you'll pose as Sasori, Naruto. However, I want Team 7 to accompany you along with Sasuke's replacement and your new assistant teacher."

Raising a brow, Naruto asked, "Who replaced Sasuke and why do we need another teacher?"

"You'll meet Sasuke's replacement soon. As for the other teacher; he's a member of the ANBU and wields my grandfather's bloodline."

"A Mokuton user, huh?" mused the blonde thoughtfully. "You wouldn't happen to have chosen him because of the Kyuubi residing in me, would you?" She met his stare with a straight face which made him shrug uncaringly. "I don't see what you're so worried about since the fox doesn't even bother me all that much other than give insight on situations. Fox Face and I have come to an understanding of sorts, so we mutually help one another."

That surprised the others, especially Jiraiya. "You made a deal…with the Kyuubi?"

"Of course… Why wouldn't I when we're both stuck with each other for the rest of our lives? If you're curious about the deal, then it was basically giving the fox access to my senses and allowing it more open space in the seal in exchange for it helping me every now and then. So far, I've only used its power three times; once during the day of the Chunin Exams and the Suna/Oto Invasion, once against Sasuke to counter his Curse Mark and keep myself from using my puppets, and once against Jiraiya when I found out he was meant to be my godfather. You suspected that it was because you screwed with the seal, but that only allowed the fox access to my deeper memories and thoughts."

"You almost killed me that day!" Jiraiya yelled, making Naruto glare at him.

"And you nearly left me to my life as a martyr if we hadn't met by chance during the month of training for the Finals. You never once checked up on me, so I think I deserved to vent my anger on you."

"Enough!" Tsunade yelled, stopping them from arguing further. "What's done is done! Let's focus on preparing for this mission! Naruto, are you sure you could convince Kabuto to give us the information we need?"

"I can guarantee it," he answered without a shred of doubt.

"Alright then. You and the others will leave in two days for the Tenchi Bridge. Until then, I expect you to get ready."

"Of course," replied the Uzumaki before he left the office.

"This is a big gamble that you're taking, hime," Jiraiya warned the Senju. "And you know how you are with gambling…"

"You don't have to remind me… I just hope the brat will be okay."

"You two should really have more faith in Naruto-kun," admonished Shizune with a slight narrowing of her eyes. "When has he ever let you or anyone else down? Even if what we thought we knew of him was mostly lies, he's still performed to the best of his ability and proved many people wrong time and time again." She then turned her gaze to the door and gave a soft smile. "He'll be fine; I'm sure of it."

The two Sannin kept looking at Shizune in slight surprise at how she defended Naruto so much. Jiraiya eventually waved it off as her worrying about him and putting on a brave front, but Tsunade had other thoughts. She remembered that Shizune left after Naruto yesterday when he yelled at Tsunade in her office, how she seemed out of it when she returned, and how she said that whatever was conflicting her was personal with a slight blush.

'She couldn't possibly see the brat that way…can she?' she mentally asked herself before she added, 'I better keep an eye on her. I don't mind her seeing Naruto in that light, but I need to see if it will impede her during her duties.'

Inside Tenten's forge, Naruto slaved away at restoring his Master's old puppet suit and modifying it. Kabuto would be but the first of many spies he would visit and/or replace. After all, it wouldn't due to have conflicting interests between him and Sasori's old followers.

'Fist Kabuto at the Tenchi Bridge…then I make my way to Kumo and pay a little visit.'

(End Chapter)

This is just a repost not a new chapter. I just fixed the spacing issues. sorry for the mix-up.