Hey! I'm back with a super long chapter! :) Be warned though, I found out that I can't really write tests or poetry or fight scenes... I probably should've split this chapter in two because it took so long to write, but at least it's super long. ;) I actually just finished this chapter yesterday, just in time for Thanksgiving dinner. I would've had t out then, but I had to edit (which really just means rereading the chapter and hoping for the best XD)... Anyways, hope you like it!

Thanks for the reviews, follows, and favorites! They always make me happy to see! :)

P.S. I finally drew a picture for the cover and my profile page (but I can't draw well, so they aren't that good... If anyone wants to help draw a cover, just PM me. ;)

Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto...

The First Day of the Month

"Why can't you teach me too?" Naruto peered up at Kakashi through his lashes.

The masked-jounin gulped but replied firmly, "The council forbids it. Besides, there's nothing left I can teach you… You already know about chakra manipulation, elemental chakra manipulation, and way more about sealing than I could ever understand. The only thing I can really help you out with would be weapons training. But you don't really use weapons to fight... I could probably teach you a few new Taijutsu stances, but they'd just hinder your unpredictable style. I would teach you more Ninjutsu but all of mine sort of need the Sharingan to use since I copied them…"

"Oh…" Naruto reluctantly nodded. He could see what Kakashi was saying, and it made sense that he'd be training Sasuke considering they both have the Sharingan and similar styles of fighting. "But then who's going to train me?"

"Don't worry about that. I asked the Hokage for a special favor," the jounin eye-smiled at Naruto, happy that his blonde would have another connection to his parents.

"What? You asked Jiji?" Naruto asked in shock. Suddenly recalling a fragment of one of his dreams, he asked suspiciously, "It's not closet pervert, is it?"

"Who?" Kakashi asked, wondering if Naruto somehow already found out about Jiraiya.

"You know, the weirdo who follows Konohamaru around everywhere and really likes lecturing people…" he explained.

"Ah, that guy… No, it's not him. The Hokage suggested him at first, but you already know the basics so he won't be of any help to you. No, I got someone even better to teach you!" Kakashi grinned seeing the blonde hooked onto his words.

"Who is it?" he asked eagerly.

"Seal Master Jiraiya of the Sannin is going to train you!"

Naruto's eyes widened. Jiraiya is going to train me? Hey Kurama, didn't that guy train my dad too?

Hmm? Your dad's trainer? The fox lazily stretched out his tails as he lounged in his hot tub. Yeah, I remember your mother mentioning him. If I remember correctly, they decided to name you after a character in one of his books. I think he writes the series your teacher likes to read…

"I'm named after a character from Icha Icha?!" Naruto shouted in dismay. Were my parents perverts too?

"I don't know who told you that, but no, you weren't named after the Icha Icha series. You were named after the other book series Jiraiya wrote about a ninja who never gave up," Kakashi explained, not realizing Naruto was already lost in his own world.

Wait, I've got it! Mito said that back in the day Hashirama and Madara were both perverts! And both of them founded the village! After that, Hashirama must've passed on his perverseness to Jiji, because his brother was teaching him. And come to think of it, Jiji said the Mummy-dude was on his team too and he's after Sasuke just like Orochimaru who was Jiji's student. And Jiraiya was also Jiji's student and he writes Icha Icha! He must've passed it on to dad who infected mom with it. It all makes sense now!

Believe me kid, your mom was 'infected' with it a long, long time ago. Way before she ever met the Yellow Flash, Kurama interjected, trying to hold back his laughter. He couldn't believe how drastic of a turn Naruto's thoughts took from the truth. It was hilarious to see the way his Kit viewed Konoha's legendary heroes!

See! He's even called the Yellow 'Flash'! He must've been a pervert to get a nickname like that! Naruto pointed out, acting as if he had an epiphany.

At this point, the nine-tailed demon was shaking in silent laughter. No way was he going to fix this delightful misunderstanding. After all, this was the perfect revenge to get on the blonde who trapped him in here for eternity… Not that he really minded it anymore.

Yeah, and then dad must've passed it onto his team and Kaka-sensei who then passed it onto only Sakura so far. Naruto thought, recalling how Sakura fell for Konohamaru's special boy-on-boy version of the Orioke no Jutsu. I think he's still trying to get Sasuke to read Icha Icha, so there's still a chance for him to fall to the disease.

Kit, perverseness isn't a disease. You should know that by now, considering how your village is full of perverts. Kurama chuckled, sinking deeper into the warm water.

Really? But it has side effects just like diseases. The people who have it faint a lot, have nose-bleeds, get dizzy, see hallucinations, get fevers, have rapid heartbeats, and lose control of most of their mental functions when their condition flares up again.

…You've put a lot of thought into this… Kurama sweat-dropped.

Well, at first, I thought Jiji was dying because of a disease so I looked up his symptoms but I couldn't find one that matched his circumstances. Later, I found out all of his symptoms were caused by that orange book of his. That's why I decided that being a pervert is a horrifying illness that sadly, can't be cured… That's when I invented the Orioke no Jutsu. It's the only way to stop them, even if it only works temporarily. Naruto explained sagely.

Hahaha, Kurama burst out laughing. He couldn't hold it back anymore. This was quality entertainment! He should've tried meeting Naruto way earlier if this was what came out of it. Every day now felt so light and happy and he no longer felt his suffocating hatred. Instead, he finally felt at peace in the blonde's company.

"And Icha Icha is a great series! A lot of people name their kids off of the main characters. Especially when it inspired the parents to have a child!" Kakashi continued, before switching back to the original topic. "Anyways, it's not that I don't want to teach you, it's just that you'd learn a lot more from Jiraiya than me…" Kakashi pouted a little here. He was happy that Naruto was getting a specialized teacher suited just for him, but it still hurt that he wasn't able to teach the sunny blonde anything else. This must be how it feels when your kids are all grown up! Kakashi wiped away a stray tear thinking, they grow so fast!

"Kay! But you have to promise to train with me after the Chunin Exams!" Naruto negotiated, instantly snapping Kakashi out of his funk.

"Sure!" Kakashi grinned widely underneath his mask and ruffled the blonde's fluffy hair. He took out a scroll and passed it to Naruto saying, "Work hard, okay?"

"Un!" He nodded and watched as Kakashi left the clearing. Unrolling the scroll, he quickly scanned it, skipping over the extra chakra control exercises, and went down to the section about Jiraiya. Memorizing the location, Naruto took off in the direction it said Jiraiya was in.

Enter: The Toad Sage

"Hehehe…" echoed from the hot springs, the closer Naruto got to them. He kept walking until he reached the entrance. The scroll said that Jiraiya-sensei would be inside here… Entering the men's bath area, he looked around and found a spiky white-haired man facing the fence and giggling like a little girl. Creepy… Naruto thought and turned away from him only to see Ebisu.

"Closet Perv! What are you doing here?" Naruto walked to the edge of the hot springs and asked.

Ebisu looked up to see who had disturbed his peaceful relaxation, only to be met by two curious cerulean eyes. His first instinct was to call the boy the Demon-brat, but he pushed it that reaction down. No, this is the boy that inspired Konohamaru. Ebisu recalled Konohamaru's determination when he said that there were no shortcuts and that the only way to become the Hokage was through hard work. He taught us both a valuable lesson that day. Ebisu was about to answer when he noticed a spiky white-haired man crouched in front of the fence separating the men's and women's baths. Pushing up his glasses, the elite jounin jumped out of the hot springs and said, "I don't know who you are or where you're from, but I will not permit any disreputable behavior!" He announced, launching himself at the older man.

"Gross! Closet Perv, you forgot your clothes!" Naruto shrieked, scrunching his eyes shut, wishing he didn't have to see that.

There there, Kit. Kurama comforted, secretly glad he wasn't watching the screen at that time.

"Huh?" The other man turned around and summoned a toad who then proceeded to knock Ebisu out with his tongue. "Sheesh! I don't know where you've got your information from, but I, The Most Holy Hermit Sage of the Mount Myoboku Toads, otherwise known as the Toad Sage Jiraiya, only want naked women who throw themselves at me! Not men! Only one of my teammates would like that, and his age range is a lot lower than yours!"

Naruto just stared, with his jaw dropped wide open. This blatant perv was the one who taught dad?! No way!

Believe it! Kurama borrowed Naruto's catchphrase, snickering at the blonde's disbelief.

"…You're the Toad Sage?" Naruto finally spluttered out as Jiraiya nodded in confirmation. "Then do your duty and take over as the supervisor of my training!" Whoops, that didn't come out right…

No kidding! Kurama face-palmed at the blonde's bluntness.

Predictably, Jiraiya refused, "No way! I can't stand rude jerks! And I absolutely hate men!"

Shit! What should I do to fix this? Do you have any ideas? Naruto frantically asked Kurama for advice.

Doesn't he write those books? Why don't you compliment them or something? Kurama suggested, twitching his tails.

Great idea! Thanks! "That Make-out Paradise book… It was the coolest… really," Naruto said with no eagerness in his voice.

You sounded just like that emotionless-brat right now…

"Liar! That book is for adults only!" Jiraiya immediately called him out on his lie. "Flattery will get you nowhere. If you really want me to train you, then you should bring me a ripe and curvy fruit!" Jiraiya leered making gestures with his hands. "I don't want it to be apple-sized or orange-sized this time around, it's got to be big!"

"Got it, Dattebayo!" Naruto nodded and rushed off to the village, internally thinking, Yes! I still have a chance!

Jiraiya watched him go and shook his head in shock. Minato, your son doesn't take after you at all… He's definitely his mother's child. They even share the same speech tic! At least he understands the virtues of women just like me! Kami knows what I would've done if he'd taken after Kushina there… The Toad Sage shuddered remembering the red-head's "shipping phase." Poor Minato was stuck posing with the other male ninja of the village to satisfy Kushina's muse... He rued the day she introduced her fellow kunoichi to it. Ever since then, there'd been rumors of him and Orochi-teme that just wouldn't die out no matter how hard he tried. Jiraiya pouted. Why couldn'the rumors have been with Tsunade instead… But then again, maybe it was for the best. The medic-nin definitely would've punched him if she ever heard those types of rumors flying around about them. Settling his thoughts, Jiraiya looked off in the direction Naruto ran off in and promised to protect the sunny blonde. Don't worry Minato, your son is in good hands. I'll mold him to become just like me!

Naruto almost tripped when he suddenly felt his stomach clench. Rubbing it absently, he decided to go and eat lunch before he went and got what the pervy-sage asked for. He knew just where to find the perfect fruit! Ever since he saw it at the market the other day while shopping in his special Henge form, he couldn't get it out of his mind. Ero-sennin would have to teach him when he brought him what he asked for. There was no way he was going to lose this challenge!

Minato's souls shifted in its resting place. He stirred briefly to think, why does it feel like Jiraiya is going to try and corrupt my precious Naru-chan? His last thought before the seal once again forced him into stasis was, if that shady pervert makes Naruto take after him, I'm going to Rasengan him in between the legs! Or worse, I'll tell Kushina what that pervert taught our cute little Naru-chan!

Jiraiya shivered, suddenly feeling as if his dead student was out to get him. He shook his head and continued his attempt at picking up yet another hidden Kunoichi, only to be slapped for all his efforts. Why did it feel like all the female ninja in Konoha got together and were secretly interfering with all his attempts to get a girl? The Toad Sage sighed, rubbing his red cheek, moving on to his next location. He didn't believe that he wouldn't be able to get a girl if he tried hard enough. After all, what were the odds that every lady he tried to pick up would be a hidden Kunoichi? Little did he know that he was right before. The Pervert Brigade was indeed stalking him to ruin all his attempts to sweet-talk any girls by inserting their operatives as diversions. By the time they were through with him, the Toad Sage would learn the meaning of the word abstinence. Hopefully, this would be enough to keep his lecherous advances off the girls of Konoha. And if not, well, at least it would serve as a painful reminder of why he shouldn't mess with women!

A Brief Interlude: Danzo

Danzo was having a bad week. It had first started when he'd tried to get out of bed, only to end up collapsed on the floor, wondering if his ceiling had always looked that dull. After an eventful morning where his cereal had somehow been replaced with packets of Ramen—Empty packets of Ramen. There hadn't even been any crumbs, just pristine empty wrappers that had been inflated to look like they were full! What kind of sick manipulative soul would even do such a thing? Maybe he could take lessons from them…—and his milk had been switched out for an oozy white substance that he refused to touch after it had growled at him. He was hoping for a quiet day, not that it looked like that was going to happen.

As if his morning wasn't bad enough, every time he turned the corner on his way to the Root base, he stepped into dog poop! Every. Single. Damned. Time! How was this even possible?! Too bad he couldn't let out a burst of chakra to check if anyone was following him to lay those infernal animal feces in his tracks. The village was swarming with foreign ninja and he couldn't reveal his hand that early. Sandiame might be a fool in his growing old age, but other Kage could have specialized sensors that might be old enough to notice something off with his chakra signature. He couldn't risk them connecting it back to the Uchiha or worse, the Shodai.

Danzo grimaced and took off his sandals, recalling all the shit he'd stepped in earlier that day. He could ignore whoever had done this if they had stopped at that, but no, they had to go one step further. Somehow, they'd been able to figure out which clan each of his Root Operatives hailed from and painted their insignias on each and every mask. Now none of them could run any missions as their masks would reveal exactly who they were, and they couldn't go without the masks as the powerful seals on them helped conceal their identities from any prying (cough-Hyuuga-cough) eyes. And he couldn't even use the backup masks because they'd been stolen! Rubbing his forehead in agitation, Danzo looked down at the stack of paperwork in front of him and groaned. This was going to be a long day.

Sai was having a great week. He smirked as he saw Danzo groan again as he looked through the paperwork for ordering new masks. Really, if the man hadn't wanted to be pranked he shouldn't have told Sai to give his name as his previous landlord. After all the bad things he'd told Naruto his 'landlord' had done, the blonde was adamant to help him get revenge. It was the first time he'd seen vengeance be carried out in such a petty manner. The blonde was a mastermind at annoying people without actually getting them to snap from the stress. He stretched out the torture as far as he could before he made the victim believe everything was okay, only to then go in for the kill. It was really amazing to actually see it play out in reality. Naruto should join T&I later on. He's really good at breaking people without actually physically hurting them. I wonder what he could do if he combined the force of his words and his punch… Sai thought in admiration, reaffirming his decision to follow the blonde. Danzo wouldn't know what had hit him after Naruto was done with him, and the best part about this whole thing was the fact that Danzo had actually ordered Sai to go along with Naruto's pranks. So, he was technically getting paid to help Naruto annoy Danzo and the man didn't even know it! Sai snickered silently as he saw Danzo shoot a fireball at his sandals. Life was sweet! And I'm sure that as long as I remain by Naruto's side, it will only get even more interesting!

Jiraiya collapsed to the floor in dramatic tears after his 53rd failure. "What have I been doing wrong! Why can't I find a beautiful woman to take home with me?"

As if he heard him, Naruto yelled out, "Yo! Ero-sennin! I brought back what you asked for!"

Jiraiya instantly perked up off the ground like an eager puppy about to get a treat. "Well? Where is she?"

"She's right here!" Naruto answered and deposited a large curvy watermelon in Jiraiya's outstretched arms. "I saw this a few days ago and I just knew I had to have it! Who knew that it'd actually come in handy?" He preened, waiting for Jiraiya's reaction.

"Th-this wasn't what I wanted when I said a curvy fruit!" Jiraiya cried, tears overflowing from his eyes, as he brought out a knife and chopped the watermelon into even slices.

"Woah, that was so cool, pervy-sage!" Naruto looked at the Toad Sage with shining eyes as he took a bite out of one of the slices.

"I wanted a woman!" the older man wailed, sulking as he saw Naruto finishing off the watermelon wedge.

"Oh, why didn't you just say so?" Naruto asked and made the hand seals for his Orioke no Jutsu. "Is this what you wanted, Ji-rai-ya-sama~" he asked, winking and blowing him a kiss.

"Yeah!" The other man gave him a thumbs-up, grinning in a daze as blood leaked from his nose.

Naruto sweat-dropped but still asked in a flirtatious voice, "Will you train me now, sensei~?"

"Oh, yes, I'd do anything for you," Jiraiya promised in a stupor as he circled Naruto.

"Cool!" Naruto said and transformed back into himself.

Apparently, the old pervert wasn't finished gawking because he said, "But… only if you stay in that form…" Naruto just blankly stared at the man, wondering if this was a bad idea after all. Noticing his godson looking up at him distrustfully Jiraiya coughed, "Ahem, I was only joking… Ha ha, but all joking aside… Alright, I'll supervise your training."

"Wahoo!" Naruto jumped up in joy.

Jiraiya smiled. It was nice seeing his godson happy. He hadn't been able to be there for the first part of the boy's life, but now that he was, he'd do anything to see the blonde smiling happily. He knew Naruto's childhood must've been lonely, with no one there to look after him. The Sandiame had banned him and Kakashi from interacting with the blonde due to the fear that his parentage may be revealed. It was a downer that in his first real meeting with the child, he'd had to act as though he didn't want to train the boy and only took an interest in him due to pity to throw off any spies off the trail of the blonde's origins. He wasn't really worried about anyone from Iwa finding out, but if Danzo or the council found out… The Toad Sage grimaced. There was no way his godson was being forced into a marriage for a political alliance! Although, Danzo probably wouldn't back that idea like the rest of the council. He'd probably do something much worse. Jiraiya could just see the old war hawk releasing information about Naruto's parentage as an excuse to declare war on Iwa and Kumo.

Either way, he was glad that he was finally getting to spend quality time with his godson. He couldn't wait to teach the blonde Rasengan! Speaking of training, he had better find out what Naruto already knew. "So, before we begin, I need you to tell me what you can do so far."

"Well, I know how to do Kawarimi and Henge and have an unpredictable Taijutsu style according to Kaka-sensei. I'm okay with weapons I guess, but I don't really use them… What else do I know? Oh, yeah! I also know the campfire three along with the modified versions." Jiraiya nodded. He'd heard how his godson had modified those three jutsus to become more useful, and he couldn't be prouder! The kid was a natural. He was already taking after his perverted ways. Jiraiya reminisced about how he made his Transparent Escape Technique to spy on the girls' hot springs. Good times. Good times… "And I know Kage Bunshin and a whole bunch of Wind Jutsus! Iruka-sensei says my traps can trick jounin and I just finished off the sealing books Kaka-sensei gave me. I'm probably expert level now!" Naruto grinned. Jiraiya raised an eyebrow at the last remark. He could believe the rest, but an expert level mastery in seals? Even he himself, with his years of studying, was only barely master level. Either this kid was fooling himself or the last thirty years he'd spent on sealing were wasted.

"Hmm? So, if I tested you on expert level seals, you'd be able to pass?" Jiraiya asked and Naruto nodded. "Okay, then here, try filling this out," he said, humoring the blonde. According to the Hokage, Naruto had only started seals recently, so he should only be at the beginner level right now, and at most the intermediate level.

While he was thinking, Naruto had already filled out the scroll. "Hey, Ero-sennin, you sure this is really the expert level test? It's way too easy!" Naruto frowned looking at the simple seal scenarios.

"Oi, don't underestimate me brat!" Jiraiya said aloud while inwardly, he was proud that Naruto was past the beginner level. "That scroll contains the tests for all the levels. You have to pass each section to get to the next. It gets harder and harder as you go along. Once you finish one set of answers, the scroll will unroll itself and let you answer the next set of questions. At the end of it, it'll take in your chakra and spit out a customized badge saying what level of seal mastery you have," Jiraiya explained the features of the scroll. Although they were expensive to use on beginner level seal masters, he was fine with letting Naruto use this one to get his own badge.

He still had plenty of them sealed away in his pack. He'd been trying to pass the legendary master level of sealing's entry tests for the past few months now with no success. The Seal Association's Guild had made these disposable testing scrolls because most seal masters were either hermits or wandered the world like Jiraiya did. They usually didn't stick around in a place long enough to sit through a test. To standardize the level of all seal users, the Seal Association had decided to make these scrolls and just have them add the test results to their archives at headquarters. As each scroll only worked based on a person's chakra signature, none of the test takers could cheat or use someone else's badge. It really was an ingenious invention when you thought about it. Jiraiya sat down against the tree, watching Naruto fill out the scroll. He was excited to see what the blonde's level was and couldn't wait to teach him everything he knew about seals!

The Sealing Test

Congratulations! You have passed the beginner level examinations! This tested your knowledge on simple sealing theory and mastery of the basic three: The Enclosing Technique, The Unsealing Technique, and The Explosive Tag.

However, that is not all that is needed for sealing. Although you can make them, we must see if you can use them. Before continuing any further, we must test your logical thinking skills. You will be given a number of scenarios and we wish to see how you will solve them using only the above three seals.

After this part of the exam, we will release your scores for both parts and you may choose to continue on to the intermediate level exams.

And let the tests begin! May the odds ever be in your favor!

Almost vibrating in excitement, Naruto eagerly awaited the next set of questions. He quickly scanned the scenarios and picked up his brush, ready to fill out the rest.

Scenario 1: You are resting in an inn, waiting for dinner when you find out the town is suffering from a famine due to drought. You remember that you passed a lush forest filled with wildlife on your way here. The village leader asks for your help. What do you do?

Naruto's first thought was to tell everyone in the village to just go to the forest for food. Foraging was always fun, and you could always find the most interesting mushrooms to eat, but he dismissed it as he figured civilians wouldn't know which ones were safe to eat. Biting the edge of his brush, he pondered it over before brightening up, finally thinking of an answer!

First, I'd go back to the forest and use the Enclosing Technique to seal a bunch of food and meat away. Then I'd go find the stream and use Explosive Tags to redirect it to the village. And finally, I'd go back to the village and use the Unsealing Technique to let everyone eat what I got back from the forest!

Naruto grinned as he finished off his answer with a flourish. This wasn't too bad! He hummed and moved on to the next question. Easily answering the other two scenarios, he closed up his scroll, signaling he was finished, and waited for his results. The scroll glowed and unrolled, revealing how he'd done.

Uzumaki Naruto

Seal Theory (40/40)

Enclosing Technique (20/20)

Explosive Tag (20/20)

Unsealing Technique (20/20)

Overall: (100/100)

You are now an official Intermediate Level Seal Specialist! If you wish to stop the tests, close your scroll. Otherwise, please wait for the next test to begin.

3…

2…

1…

Welcome to the Intermediate level tests. Please diagnose the following seals that appear on the page and explain how they can be removed.

Naruto scrunched his nose up as he quickly made his way through the list. He'd already practiced identifying seals on people before at Shikamaru's house, so this was a piece of cake to him. The blonde almost laughed as he recognized the last seal. It was the same one the Snake Creep gave him in the Forest of Death! Writing down all he knew about the Five Elements Seal and Unseal, he closed up the scroll and waited for the next portion of the test.

Well done! You have passed the intermediate level test! To become an expert at sealing, you must be able to modify already existing seals. The next test will show you a seal and it is your job to modify it.

I would wish you good luck, but I don't believe in luck. So, may the seals be with you!

Fidgeting, Naruto stared at the scroll, wanting to see what seal he'd have to modify. Maybe they're going to give me a Chakra Draining Seal, or a Barrier Talisman. Or maybe they'd let me mess around with a Contract Seal! Naruto excitedly imagined all the possibilities. He couldn't wait to see what he'd get.

The scroll unrolled and revealed the seal called Watch Your Steps! Naruto fell over when he saw his long-awaited test was something so simple. "What the heck! This is way too easy!" the blonde grumbled, but easily modified the seal to have it bombard the victim with never-ending frying pans until they lost consciousness instead of only the two from the original technique. Naruto closed the scroll and hoped the next seal would be cooler. Opening it again, this time the seal was the same one that Sai used to have: The Cursed Tongue Eradication Seal. "Alright! This is what I'm talking about!" Naruto giddily started working on the seal, erasing lines here and there, adding extra spirals and triangles until the seal no longer resembled what it was before.

Jiraiya snuck a peak at the convoluted mess and sweat-dropped thinking that Naruto wasn't going to pass. Well, the kid had done well so far. He'd already passed the intermediate level tests, which is where he'd expected the genin to be. That was already amazing considering he'd only started sealing a few months ago! He couldn't wait to train the blonde!

Kurama face-palmed as he read the Toad Sage's thoughts. The old pervert honestly didn't believe that Naruto could pass this exam, but he knew better. The seal that his Kit had made was almost to the level of things he'd seen his father make! Although he had no idea what the seal was supposed to do, he knew that Naruto was definitely going to pass this test. Settling lazily on the couch, Kurama smirked. He couldn't wait to see the look on Jiraiya's face when the Kit surpassed him!

Not noticing the other two's reactions, Naruto finished up modifying the last seal on the paper. It was just a simple smoke releasing seal called The Winding Smoke Technique. Naruto altered it to release sleeping gas that was colored orange instead of the green smoke from before. He figured a seal that sent everyone to sleep was better than one that just spewed out smoke to obscure everyone's vision. And orange was a way cooler color than green anyways!

The scroll shut itself and sent the results to headquarters for the graders to check. Jiraiya grinned at Naruto, knowing that it'd take the graders at least five minutes for each modification to see if the seal was valid and if it actually could do what the description said it would. He couldn't wait to see what Naruto had come up with, even if they weren't likely to work.

Seal Masters Headquarters

"Yo, Boss, we got another test to grade!" A researcher shouted out when he noticed the test scrolls glowing.

"It's not another one of Jiraiya's, is it? He's such a nuisance. I don't want to see another one of his testing scrolls again!" A grumpy old man looked at the researcher in distaste. Usually, he'd welcome the glowing of another scroll as it meant welcoming a new Fuinjutsu expert into their small circle. But, lately, all the glowing scrolls have been from that annoying Toad Sage who never knew when to give up. He'd just barely passed the master level exit tests. He wasn't ready yet for the legendary master level entry tests. Although Jiraiya knew this, it didn't stop him from submitting a new test every single day leading to more and more paperwork. It's like he's doing this on purpose, out of spite, because he couldn't pass and he knew that the bane of any Kage was paperwork…

"Ah, no Boss, this time it's a kid named Uzumaki Naruto…" the researcher trailed off.

"Uzumaki? Did you say Uzumaki?" the other researchers perked up, wanting to know if the new test taker was from the legendary clan of seal masters that had all been wiped out.

"Uzumaki, eh?" The old man rubbed his long white beard. "Didn't we have another one of them working for us? Maybe we could get her to mentor this child."

The researcher racked his brain trying to remember whom his Boss was talking about, "Ah! You mean Honoka, don't you?" He swallowed, remembering what had happened to her. "We, um, lost her on The Forgotten Island, Boss… And we never actually found out if she was an Uzumaki or not."

"…Right," The elderly man slowly nodded, remembering that report. "So, this is our last chance to find out about the legendary Uzumaki Clan, and more importantly their seals!" He almost drooled at the thought of laying his hands on those masterpieces. "Quick, put up his test on the enlarging seal so everyone can see it!" he commanded, the researchers quickly moving to follow his instructions. Silence followed as they digested what they read.

"How old was he again?" an assistant asked, convinced she was looking at the expertise of an old Uzumaki relic who trained in the art of sealing for at least 60 years.

Shaking as he announced this, the researcher read out, "He's only turned 12 this year…"

"What!? No way!" the researchers were shocked. They couldn't believe that the youngster had accomplished something so amazing!

"Get a hold of this! He's only been studying sealing for a few months, and Jiraiya was the one who gave him the testing scroll!" Another researcher announced, looking at the test paper.

"I always knew I liked Jiraiya. He's been such an asset to the guild. Remind me to invite him and his student over for dinner sometime soon," the old guild master said, rubbing his long white beard sagely.

The researchers sweat-dropped, thinking, didn't you just say that he was such a nuisance and that you didn't want to see another one of his testing scrolls again?

"This is a masterpiece! Award him full points! He's definitely ready for the next test! Oh, and don't sign it by the acronym. SAG, who thought of that anyways? It's horrendous" the guild master grumbled.

"…Um, you did Boss. You said the old one SIC for Sealer's Information Center was worse and that you didn't want to be known as a sicko… Not that the new one is much better…" The assistant mumbled, the other researchers agreeing with her.

Ignoring them, the old master turned his attention back to the seals as the researchers nodded and hurriedly obeyed, leaving the old man to his thoughts. I wonder how far this little one will come in his studies… Ashina, I hope you know that your genius has lived on to be inherited even when you're gone. Another Uzumaki carries your legacy, and nothing will stop me from aiding him to become the next Legendary Seal Artificer!

The Results

"They're here!" Naruto joyfully announced as the seal glowed brightly again.

"Well, go on, open it!" Jiraiya eagerly anticipated his godson's results.

"Okay," Naruto breathed in deeply before slowly unraveling the scroll.

"So, how'd you do?" Jiraiya asked on tenterhooks as the blonde stiffened.

"I…passed," Naruto said in wonder. Originally, he'd been thinking the seal tests were super easy, but then Jiraiya had told him how hard it was for most geniuses to pass the intermediate level exit tests. He hadn't believed him at first, but then he started thinking of all the ways he could've improved the seals and that what he did wasn't good enough to pass. But it looks like he worried for nothing, he'd passed! He never passed anything with full marks in the academy! In fact, even when he had the right answers down, he still got marked down sometimes. Remembering this vaguely, the blonde had subconsciously been thinking that the same thing would happen with the sealing tests. Luckily, the sealing headquarters weren't located anywhere near Konoha and therefore held no grudge against the Kyuubi container like the other village graders had. In fact, it was actually the opposite. Uzumaki were worshipped over there for their seals. There was no way that they'd purposefully fail an Uzumaki when sealing was practically in their blood. Even if they didn't show favoritism to one test taker over another, it was almost guaranteed that an Uzumaki would always pass based on sheer talent alone.

Jiraiya's eyes goggled in shock. He knew his godson was a genius, but this? To actually pass the intermediate level tests on his first try? And that, at 12? That was unheard of ever since the last Legendary Seal Artificer Ashina has passed the Master level exit tests at age 16! Now, it looked like Naruto was following in his footsteps. The blonde might even be able to set a new record at the rate he was going! "What comments did they make on your seals?" the Toad Sage asked curiously, wondering what that mess of a seal he'd seen earlier did.

"Let's see… They wrote…" Naruto read off the comments.

Your modification of the first seal was ingenious! We never thought to add the loop at the end of the seal to make the frying pans constantly reappear and bombard the ninja until they were unconscious. It was a great idea to have the seal link onto the ninja's chakra supply, so it'd stop when the victim lost consciousness. Your added notes on how to make it so that the nature chakra in the environment to sustain it instead were also a marvelous idea!

The second seal modification was almost too complicated for us mere researchers to understand. Luckily, the guild master was here and he was able to decipher the improvements you implemented. At first, we thought you made a whole another seal, but then we noticed that the base of the seal matrix was the same, allowing the user to not only know if their secret was told but also to make the affected ninja act normally and subconsciously avoid telling others about the secret. The added protection features also make it next to impossible to remove unless you have the sealer's permission. What we really liked about it was the fact the affected ninja had to give permission to the user before they were able to place the seal on them. This way, they'd only be able to be silenced if both of them agreed upon it beforehand, meaning it couldn't be forced upon another ninja! That was really kind of you!

Finally, for your last seal, let me just say that we are in awe of how you came up with these changes. Originally, we also had the same idea to seal other poisonous gasses or paralytics into the seal, but we were always unable to have it last and keep its properties. We thought of using a storage seal, but that just made it unbalanced and forced a breakdown of the contents to occur, making it only work for a week at most. The way you did it was just too cool for words! I could never have thought of using a time-specific separate pocket dimension to store the gas, bypassing the fit issues altogether! The orange coloring was also a nice touch! Who knew that changing the angle of all the symbols a few degrees could actually make such a difference? I certainly didn't! And, I'm going to stop writing now because the guild master is yelling at me. Anyways, congratulations! You are now an official Expert Level Seal Master! I would advise you to move on to the next test as you are more than ready!

Also, feel free to drop by headquarters sometime, we're all looking forward to meeting our new addition! Just ask Jiraiya about where to find us.

Expecting you soon, ~Seal Masters HQ's Kenkyu Josha

Uzumaki Naruto

Seal Theory (60/60)

Watch Your Steps! (10/10)

Cursed Tongue Eradication Seal (20/20)

The Winding Smoke Technique (10/10)

Overall: (100/100)

Jiraiya's jaw hung open as heard the comments. Just how did Naruto persuade the guild master to ask for a private meeting? He was sure that the old fart hated him ever since he started bombarding headquarters with test grading requests. How did he convince the stubborn old Shiru Masuta to want to meet him in my company?

Nice job! You should take the next test, little one. Kurama almost purred in delight. He knew Naruto would pass! And it was so satisfying to see the old Toad fool's face when he was shocked. Humph, serves him right for ignoring my Kit for all those years! He mentally pushed away the guilt that still lingered from ignoring the blonde for the majority of his life and leaving him to be surrounded by the hatred of his village.

"Awesome! I'm starting the next test Ero-sennin!" Naruto announced and quickly opened the scroll again to see what it entailed.

Welcome to the exit level tests of the Expert Level Seal Mastery. You have already been tested on your theory, but now you have to apply it to new heights and break your limits. We want you to create a new seal based on what you have learned so far! You may also submit a design you've already made in the past or take some time to think of a new one. Either way, the seal must be your own work and may not be a modified existing seal. Please take your time to creatively come up with a new design!

(When submitting make sure to only draw the condensed version so no one will know the entire formula of your seal. If it is valid it'll be copyrighted under your name, so please also include a name no longer than four words for it.)

Jiraiya snickered as he saw Naruto read the last part. The blonde may not know it, but those last instructions were actually put into place because of his parents. Really, Spiraling Flash Super Round Dance Howl Style Three? What on Earth was Minato thinking? The Toad Sage chuckled and shook his head at his past student's antics. Not that Kushina was much better… She actually wanted to call the Watch Your Steps! Seal the Attack of the Twin Flying Frying Pans of Doom! ...Naruto… You don't know how lucky you are that your parents decided to name you off the character from my book. I heard what they'd come up with and… Jiraiya shuddered. I know they both loved Ramen, something it looks like you inherited, but to name a boy Beni Togarashi Wakame Sansho Yuzukosho or a girl Tamago Chashu Nori Kamaboko Kakuni are just horrible ideas! Luckily, I got them to narrow it down to one food topping name. If they hadn't taken a shining to my book, I might be looking at the next Menma Namikaze-Uzumaki right now… How weird would that be?

Unaware of how close he'd been to being given an unbelievably long name, Naruto continued copying his seal down onto the scroll. He'd already memorized the seal he'd used on his bracelets, so he decided to use that for the next part of the exams. He'd been meaning to get it copyrighted under his clan name anyways. This would only speed up the process. Finishing off the last brush stroke of the condensed seal, he closed the scroll and waited for it to glow. Sure enough, it was glowing brightly a few minutes later. Hold in a in a breath, Naruto unfastened it and scanned what they wrote. "Yatta! I passed!" the blonde cheered, dancing around in a circle.

"E-Eh? Re-ally?" Jiraiya stuttered, stunned that the blonde was almost on par with him now. All that hard work… And he easily breezed past me! The Toad Sage sunk down gloomily, his eyes overflowing with tears.

Mistaking the tears as tears of joy, Naruto nodded, "Yeah! I passed! I'm almost a Seal Master! They said that my communication seal was super useable and they gave me a copyright for it." Naruto grinned before pouting as he remembered what else they'd said, "They didn't like my first name for it because it was too boring. What's wrong with Bracelet Seal? Sounds good enough for me… Anyways, they liked my second name for it: Communication Seal. Apparently, the seal was 'unique' and had none of the drawbacks of a 'tel-e-phone,' whatever that is… They liked that it worked over long distances and that there was no way to lose or break it due to the security and durability seals installed in the matrix making it only work for a person based on their chakra signature. One way to improve it would be to have it connect to only certain people instead of everyone who has one, but why would I want to do that? I'd much rather be together with everyone than alone in silence…" Naruto trailed off, remembering how alone he'd been before.

Don't worry, you have me now. And I'm not going anywhere… Kurama soothed in his gravelly voice.

Jiraiya felt another pang of guilt run through him for not being there for his godson. At least he was here now and there was nothing that could keep him away anymore. Not even the threat of Danzo or the councilmen or Iwa could stop him now. Clearing his throat, he asked, "So, are you going to try to take the entry level test for Seal Mastery?"

"Mm, I think so," Naruto absently unfurled the scroll, watching dazedly as the words appeared. This time the test was just a multiple choice styled test for advanced seal theory. He breezed through it and closed the seal, waiting for the good news.

You are now a Seal Master! From now on the tests will become a lot more rigorous! The remaining tests are the Exit Level Test for Seal Masters, the Entry and Exit Level Tests for Legendary Seal Masters, and finally the Entry and Exit Level Tests for Seal Artificers, although there haven't been one of those since the days of the Sandiame Uzukage Ashina Uzumaki! We hope to see you follow in his footsteps and continue your journey into the world of seals!

Unlike the other tests, the next test has a few more requirements than just passing the previous tests. To properly become a Seal Master, you must study the art of sealing as a Seal Master for at least six months and pass on what you've learned to at least one other student. You also must recreate an old lost seal from your research. The seal does not have to be complete, but it does have to have an in-depth dissertation on how to go about making it and theories on how to succeed in its creation. Please take the next six months and thoroughly research the seal you wish to recreate.

We look forward to your next test, ~Sealing Headquarters.

Uzumaki Naruto

Creativity (15/15)

Concept Creation (20/20)

Functionality & Ease of Use (25/25)

Seal Theory (40/40)

Overall: (100/100)

The badge included signifies your official rank as a Seal Master.

"Aw, man! I have to wait another six months before I move on!" Naruto pouted as he pinned the badge to his jumpsuit.

Jiraiya snorted at his impatience, "Do you even know which seal you're going to recreate?"

"Ah…No, not really," the blonde admitted sheepishly, rubbing the back of his head.

"Hahaha," Jiraiya laughed, seeing his expression. "Brat! If you go any further, there won't be anything left for me to teach you! You're almost past my level of mastery! In fact, I think you may have actually surpassed me!" Jiraiya rubbed his chin thoughtfully. Maybe I should have him check out Orochimaru's seal. He's certainly more than qualified enough. And he'd probably have more luck trying to figure it out than I ever would… I'll ask him about it after the Chunin Exams. I don't want him getting distracted and neglecting his training with Orochimaru on the loose. Who knows what he'll do to my cute little godson? I already heard that he licked and felt Naruto up in the Forest of Death! Who knows what he'll do next!? No, there can't be any distractions. I need to have him learn to access the Kyuubi's chakra to keep him safe from all the perverts out there! Jiraiya decided, not recognizing the fact that he was the biggest pervert of them all.

Somehow, I feel Ero-sennin is thinking up some really weird thoughts… Naruto sweat-dropped as he heard the Toad Sage mutter about perverts. "So, Ero-sennin, what training are we going to do now since sealing is out for the next six months?" Naruto asked, snapping the Toad Sage out of his trance.

"Hmm, good question. Why don't you head on home for now and we'll pick up training again tomorrow? I'll pick you up from your apartment in the morning," Jiraiya suggested, as he noticed it getting late.

"Sounds good, Ero-sennin!" Naruto cheekily saluted and bounded away before Jiraiya could say anything.

"Brat!" The Toad Sage called out fondly as he watched the orange blur disappear over the hill. Tomorrow was going to be interesting…

The Next Morning

"So, Ero-sennin, what seal did you recreate for your test?" Naruto asked as he followed the Toad Sage deeper into the training grounds.

"I recreated the Time-Release Technique. But instead of making it explode on activation, I had it transport the victim away through the use of summons," Jiraiya explained before stopping at an empty training ground.

"So cool!" Naruto's eyes lighted up in delight at the thought of making a seal that went against its fundamental properties.

Jiraiya chuckled seeing how happy the blonde as. Ruffling his hair, he said, "Okay, today I'm going to teach you how to summon Toads!" Jiraiya posed, summoning the same toad from yesterday.

"Wow! So cool!" Naruto's eyes widened.

"Listen up, Kiddo!" Jiraiya said as he dismissed the toad, and unfurled a huge scroll. "This here is the contract with the summoning toads. It's been handed down through the generations. First, you sign your name with your own blood and then you make a fingerprint impression with all the fingers of one hand!" Naruto bit his finger and signed the contract as Jiraiya continued. "After that's done, when you're in a place where you want to call the toads, prepare your chakra and place the hand you signed the contract with, on the ground and make the following hand signs: Boar, Dog, Rooster, Monkey, Sheep."

"Can I make handprints with both of my hands?" Naruto asked, looking up at Jiraiya with his clear blue eyes.

"…I don't see why not," Jiraiya finally said, inwardly thinking, Damn! I should've thought of that! It so would've helped when Tsunade broke my hand and refused to heal it after I peeped on her that one time...

"All right! That's it?" Naruto asked once his small handprints were pressed into the scroll.

"Yeah! You should be able to summon a toad now pretty easily, so have a go at it. Remember to use all the chakra you have in you," Jiraiya stressed. He was going to ask if Naruto noticed that he had two chakras in him, but he wanted to see what the boy could do with his own first. The blonde had surprised him yesterday with his sealing prowess. And considering he already knew both the tree and water walking exercises along with some Wind techniques, Jiraiya couldn't use those to exhaust his chakra supply. Besides, the boy had more than enough chakra to summon a toad, even though it'd be a very small one. He's probably going to summon a tadpole on his first try…

"Ok, I'm on it!" Naruto grinned, reaching inside himself for his chakra, waking up Kurama.

Oy, Kit, what're you doing? The fox yawned and sleepily asked the blonde.

I'm trying out a new Jutsu that uses up a lot of chakra! Ero-sennin said the more the better!

Oh, in that case, why don't you use some of mine too. Kurama suggested, sending his own red chakra to meld with Naruto's. As Naruto made the hand signs, the golden chakra enveloped the area, forcing Jiraiya to shut his eyes. "Kuchiyose no Jutsu!" Naruto cried out.

Once the light was gone, Jiraiya opened his eyes only to see that Naruto vanished! Scratching his head, the old Toad Sage wondered what had happened. What went wrong? Did he get reverse summoned? But Gamabunta doesn't usually do that to new summoners… Maybe he did it because Naruto was Minato's son? Figuring he needed to actually go to Mount Myoboku to find out more, Jiraiya summoned a toad and told him to reverse summon him. He was going to get to the bottom of this and if he found out someone had kidnapped his godson, they were in for a pounding of a lifetime!

Somewhere in the Sage Realm

"Ack! Where am I?" Naruto looked around him only to see a forest surrounding him.

Kurama lazily stared at the screen, only to widen his eyes when he realized he knew the surroundings. Oi, Kit, go into the burrow behind you, I need to check something out.

Okay. Naruto agreed and pushed away the stone blocking the entrance. Entering the den, he looked around only to see it was empty except for some dusty furniture and a painting hanging on the wall. Moving closer to the painting, Naruto was shocked when he saw a small Kurama standing next to a wrinkly old man with a red spiral in the middle of his forehead. "Who's this?" Naruto asked, breaking the silence.

That's…my father, the Sage of Six Paths… He painted this for me shortly before he di-left. Kurama said in a quiet voice. I-I…don't think I'll ever see him again as he has already entered the pure land, and I am a chakra construct and therefore immortal. Even if I 'die,' my body would just recreate itself a few years later. It…it was one of the reasons I allowed myself to be bound to you. A small part of me wanted to go to the pure land with you when you died to see my father again…

Naruto could hear the sadness in Kurama's voice. We could always ask the Shinigami if we could see your dad. The blonde suggested, wanting to let Kurama see his father without dying forever. He was startled to hear Kurama laugh out loud.

Yeah, that sounds like a plan. Kurama agreed, mentally scolding himself for letting his Kit worry about him, when it should be the other way around. He had no doubts that the blonde wouldn't do exactly as he said, and calling the Shinigami for anything was never a good idea, even if Naruto had already gotten permission to summon him without any real consequences. Putting aside his emotions, Kurama focused on the fact that they were actually at his home, which was strange considering the fact it was in the summoning realm. Kit, what Jutsu were you attempting before we came here?

I was trying to summon a toad, Naruto explained sheepishly.

Why on Earth would you want to summon a lowly amphibian when you have me, the most powerful of the tailed beasts? Kurama asked, more than a little jealous.

I can summon you? Aren't you, like you know, trapped in my stomach? Naruto questioned doubtfully.

Well, yeah, but that doesn't mean you can't still summon me… Probably… Anyways, come into your mindscape for a bit. I want you to sign something.

Okay! Naruto agreed without hesitating, and signed the scroll Kurama gave him.

"There. Now, you signed my contract, so you don't have to sign any Toad Summoning Contracts..." Kurama smirked when he said the last few words.

"What?! But I already signed their contract! Isn't it bad to have more than two summons?" Naruto panicked, thinking he was going to explode.

"Baka! You know about seals, what are you panicking for?" Kurama scolded the blonde who laughed awkwardly and scratched the back of his head, finally calming down. "Hmm, but I didn't expect that you'd already signed the Toad's Contract. Oh well, I'll just have to have a little… chat with them before we leave this place. If remember correctly, Mount Myoboku should just be over this hill… For now, why don't you go back outside and try summoning me. Just use the same technique but say Kyuubi instead of Toads. Actually, say Kurama instead, that should make the contract even stronger."

Naruto nodded and followed the nine-tailed fox's directions. Drawing on both their chakras, Naruto called out, "Kuchiyose no Jutsu: Kurama!" successfully summoning the Kyuubi to the Sage realm.

"It seems like the chakra put into the technique was used to create a newly formed chakra construct that my consciousness may reside in." Seeing Naruto looking confused, Kurama simplified what he said, "It means the time you can summon me for depends on how much chakra is put into the technique. When I dispel, I'll go back to the seal."

"Ohhh," Naruto tilted his head digesting what Kurama said. "This is great! Now I can introduce you to Jiji and Kaka-sensei and Iruka-sensei and all my friends!" Naruto excitedly babbled.

Laughing, Kurama said, "We can plan that out later, Kit. For now, we need to go visit Mount Myoboku before my time runs out." Wrapping a tail around the blonde, the Kyuubi placed him on his back, telling him to hold on tight.

Clutching the silky reddish-orange fur, Naruto whooped as Kurama jumped, carrying them across the forest to one of the peaks. Landing quietly, Kurama shapeshifted into a humanoid form, still carrying Naruto on his back, only this time in a piggyback. Naruto wrapped his arms around the demon's neck and watched eagerly as they approached a waterfall surrounded by a bunch of towering toad statues. So entranced by them, he almost missed the gigantic toad standing with a smaller one in front of the waterfalls. "You! You're the toad from my dreams!" Naruto exclaimed, pointing at the toads.

Blushing brightly, the smaller toad with a black stick said, "Wow! I haven't had an admirer in years! I'm flattered, but I must tell you that I am happily married. So sorry to disappoint."

"Not you! You!" Naruto gestured at the bigger toad. "You keep appearing in my dreams and telling me about the future! Though, you're not very good at it…" Naruto muttered, remembering how some of the predictions didn't come true while others did.

"…A mischievous boy with blue eyes…" the larger toad muttered, not listening to what Naruto had said. Snapping out of his trance, he said, "Eh? What did you say?"

"I said that I've been dreaming about you!" Naruto repeated loudly as Kurama watched this play out in deep amusement.

"Oh… I'm sorry, but you're a little too young for me. Don't worry, I'm sure you'd find one of your own species to be with," the larger toad consoled.

A tick mark formed on Naruto's forehead. "Not like that!" he practically yelled.

"It's okay, I know rejection can be hard. There's no need for denial," the large toad said in an understanding tone.

"I said it's not like that!" Naruto fumed. "I meant that you keep predicting the future in my dreams and saying that the pineapple-haired boy changed it and stuff!"

Waiting for a reply, Naruto stared at the larger toad who only looked at him and said, "Sorry, but who are you again?" Naruto fell over as the smaller toad repeated what had just happened. "Oh, right, that pineapple-haired boy. The one who ruined all my predictions and forced change on the world…"

Naruto sweat-dropped at the description but forged on with his questions. "Yo, old Toad-dude is there a reason that you keep sending me those dreams?"

"Sending you them? No, I did not send them to you. Perhaps it's a sign that we were meant to be together!"

"I'm not going out with you!" Naruto screamed, traumatized from the earlier misunderstandings.

"No, no, you're too young for me," the toad sage said as everyone face-palmed. That's the problem? Not the species? "I meant as Toad and Summoner!" he clarified.

"So, you want to be my main Toad Summons?" Naruto asked doubtfully. "Aren't you too old to fight, Giant Toad Gramps?"

"Yes, as the boy said, Ojiji-sama. Won't fighting be too hard for your old bones?" the smaller toad asked.

"Quiet, Fukasaku! I can still fight, in fact I was known for my prowess back in the times of the Sage! Boy, do you want to be my summoner?" the old Toad squinted down at Naruto.

"Sure, Deka-jii-chan!" Naruto chirped, happy that he had his own toad to summon.

Fukasaku stiffened in shock that the elderly toad had a summoner again. I better go tell Bunta about this new development… He thought, and rushed away to find the Toad Chief before he could screw things up and inadvertently insult the new summoner.

Kurama stifled a snicker at the name Naruto dubbed the Great Toad Sage. Deciding to speak up, he said, "Ogama-sennin Gamamaru, the brat was my summoner first, so you're just going to have to share him."

"Who are you?" the great toad sage squinted at the red-haired man. Something about him looked familiar.

"I'm Kurama, the Sage's son. You might remember me as the Kyuubi," he grinned wickedly, showing off his pointed teeth. "Listen up, this here is my Kit, so you better treat him well, or else there'll be consequences!" He glared at him threateningly. "He's signed both our contracts, so I'm sure there'll be no problems with that, right?" Kurama smiled sweetly again, promising retribution if the old Toad said no.

"Of course! The more the merrier! I better let Bunta know about this so he doesn't throw a fit. Young ones nowadays," Gamamaru shook his head helplessly at Kurama who nodded in sympathy. Young ones were very hard to guide nowadays. Just look at Naruto, he befriended the Shinigami despite Kurama's efforts to steer him away from that idea.

"Our summoner likes to get into a lot of trouble too," Kurama commiserated. "Do you have a human form to make it easier to talk to?"

"A human form? Hmm, I forgot, let me check…" Gamamaru focused on his nature chakra and shifted down into the form of a shaggy brown-haired middle-aged man, still wearing his professor's hat and oil necklace. "I forgot I could do this," he looked at his limbs, impressed and flexed his fingers, marveling at their dexterity.

"Woah, Deka-jii-chan, you look younger than Jiji!" Naruto stared at the brunette, wide-eyed.

"What about me?" Kurama interjected, feeling the need to establish his presence.

"Oh, were you jealous? Don't worry, you look a lot younger than Jiji!" Naruto beamed and flashed him a thumbs-up.

"…" That doesn't really make me feel any better! Before he could reply, another large toad smoking a pipe came into the clearing.

"What's this about a new summoner?" his voice boomed as he set his eyes on Naruto, not seeing Gamamaru or Kurama standing nearby. "Are you the new summoner?"

"Yeah! And Deka-jii-chan says he's going to be my main summons!" Naruto happily replied.

"A personal summons? For you? You haven't even exchanged Sake with me yet!" Gamabunta retorted.

"Why would I have to do that? Deka-jii-chan already said he'd be my summons! What do you have to do with anything?" Naruto asked in growing annoyance.

"What? Who do you think your talking too? How dare a stripling who can't legally exchange sake cups declare that I, Lord Gamabunta, the Chief Toad have nothing to do with my subordinates! Surrender now and show some respect! Then I might just make you my henchman… Be grateful!"

Before Naruto could say anything, Gamamaru spoke up, "Bunta! How dare you threaten my summoner!"

"Hmm? Who are you?" Gamabunta glanced at the brunette.

Fukasaku, who showed up, smacked Gamabunta with his walking stick. "Idiot! Show some respect! That's the Old Geezer—I mean, the Great and Honorable Toad Sage!"

"Right!" Gamamaru nodded at Fukasaku. "And that boy there is my summoner!" he proudly stated as Naruto blushed brightly at the possessive tone the toad spoke in.

"What? That scamp?" Gamabunta asked, taken aback.

"Yes, and he's also my summoner. So, you better show him the respect he deserves!" Kurama purred.

"Who are you? I don't recognize you as one of my subordinates, that means you're another summoning beast?! You allowed the boy to sign another contract? Were toads not good enough for him that he had to go and acquire another beast?" he sneered at Kurama.

"Close your croaker, tadpole!" Kurama growled at him.

"Why? What are you going to do about it?" Gamabunta challenged. Although he (reluctantly) accepted the blonde as he was Gamamaru's summoner, he didn't like the fact that he also had another summons. In his opinion, toads were more than enough!

Kurama bared his teeth at Gamabunta, before transforming back into his original form. "Recognize me?"

"Kyuubi," Gamabunta whispered. "That means…" he stared at the blonde, connecting the dots.

"Right, he is Minato's child," Kurama confirmed as he wrapped his tails around Naruto protectively. "And more importantly, he's mine."

"R-Right," Gamabunta nodded stiffly. There was no way he could fight against the Kyuubi and come out on top. With Gamamaru supporting him, he had no chance of winning. It looked like there'd be hell to pay if he upset the child summoner. Not to mention the fact that he was Minato's son which already made him a part of the family. Clearing his throat, he changed the subject, "So, is he here to learn about the Sage arts?"

"That's not a bad idea…" Gamamaru said, looking at Kurama. "Is there a special way for you to learn how to access nature chakra?"

"No," Kurama shook his head. "I don't use Sage chakra. Feel free to teach him your way of using it…"

Gamabunta watched them discuss with each other and hesitantly spoke up. "Alright… I've still got some paperwork to do. So… I'mgoingtoleavenow. Bye!" He said and hurriedly left the place. No way was he sticking around when one slip might land him in a world of pain. He'd have to be very careful with how he treated the blonde from now on…

Fukasaku watched as Gamabunta left and sighed. If only he'd learn how to control his temper, then he wouldn't keep getting himself into situations like these… But to think that the blonde was actually Minato's boy, how exciting!

Kurama brought the tail wrapped around Naruto up to his face and said. "Ok, Naruto, while we wait for Jiraiya, why don't you practice sensing nature chakra. Fukasaku will advise you while we watch." Seeing Naruto nod his head in agreement, Kurama set the blonde down right next to Fukasaku.

By now, Jiraiya was panicking. He'd already searched all the surroundings of Mount Myoboku after following Naruto's trail there, when it vanished in thin air. Almost as if he teleported away from the clearing he'd been standing in. (Or had a Biju jump while carrying him, but Jiraiya didn't know that…) Figuring the blonde had went back to the real world, he had also checked all of Konoha, only to find nothing. Going back to the Sage realm, he made his way to find Gamamaru. Perhaps the old geezer might be able to foretell where Naruto had disappeared off to. After asking the other toads to point him in the direction of the Great Toad Sage, Jiraiya walked to the training grounds, only to have his mouth drop open in shock, seeing Naruto balance on a wooden board on the peak of the spiked cavern with orange circles around his closed eyes.

"Wha—How, wait what?!" Jiraiya sputtered, watching Naruto open his orange eyes. "You know Sage Mode?!"

"What? No, of course not! Don't be stupid Jiraiya-chan, Sage Mode would be too harsh on his body right now," Fukasaku admonished him.

"But orange eyes!" Jiraiya pointed at Naruto, deeply flabbergasted.

"Tsk, tsk, Jiraiya-chan, I think we need to up your training if you don't know what's going on here. Or maybe I should lecture you over dinner, my wife is making a delicious bug stew today!" Fukasaku continued, not noticing Jiraiya's face turning green.

"Ah, no that's okay… Why don't you just tell me what's going on here?" Jiraiya suggested, changing the subject.

Gamamaru decided to answer him this time, "Jiraiya-boy, I shared some of my own nature chakra with Naruto-boy to help him sense it better. This way's a lot less stressful on the body than using toad oil to enhance his senses, although it is a lot slower… The orange circles around his eyes are from the Sage chakra in his system. They'll go away in a few minutes when my chakra dissipates."

Jiraiya nodded dumbfoundedly. Damn, does this mean if I was younger, than I wouldn't have had to go through that hellish stick-and-oil training method?

As if understanding what he was thinking, Fukasaku took out his black stick and whacked Jiraiya over the head.

"Ow! What was that for?" the old pervert groaned, rubbing the bump on his head.

"…I had the feeling that you weren't respecting your elders," Fukasaku replied with a glint in his eyes, enjoying that he got to whack someone today with his trusty stick. The old geezer wouldn't let him hit his summoner even when he was distracted. With Gamamaru's control over nature chakra, he could easily stop it from turning Naruto into a frog statue without having to resort to beating it out of him, making Fukasaku feel useless. Luckily, Jiraiya came along, so he was still able to hit someone today. Now, if only Bunta would come by too. He was sure he'd be able to whack the Toad Chief for some perceived disrespect. It was easy to see that Bunta had no idea how to act around the little blonde without feeling the need to pressure him to obey him. But as he was the Great Toad Sage's summoner, he actually ranked above Bunta, leaving them both in an awkward place. Hopefully, the Toad Chief would learn to get along with him like he did with his father Minato. But not too soon, I still want to whack him a few times round the head with my stick. It's been getting a little too quiet around here recently. Maybe this brat would change things up…

"So, how much longer do you guys think you'll take?" Jiraiya hedged, wondering if he could still follow through with his plans of having Naruto unlock the Kyuubi's chakra today.

"Hmm, he's taken to it better than you have, so it'll probably take a week at most. We also want to teach him the basics of Frog Kumite. Like the moves he can do without being a Sage, so he'll be ready for it later on," Fukasaku explained.

"Alright," Jiraiya sighed, running his hand through his hair. It looked like he was going to be stuck here for a while… Oh well, at least this way, he can get a head start on the new book he was writing! Let's have Akemi-chan meet Tora-kun for a night out when he mysteriously gets summoned away by an elder spirit... Who turns out to be a beautiful goddess! Hehehe, He started giggling perversely, making Fukasaku smack him again. "Oww…" he groaned as the Toad Elder smirked. This was going to be so much fun!

The next few days passed by as Naruto trained and Jiraiya wrote, both too lost in their own worlds to care about the outside world. It was for this reason, that when they went back to Konoha, the irate Sandiame dragged Jiraiya back to his office by the ear and proceeded to lecture him about leaving a notification behind telling him that he had gone for training. Jiraiya sheepishly promised not to do it again and showed Hiruzen the manuscript of his next novel in apology. By the time their meeting was finished, both of them were dazed and giggling as blood dripped form their noses. Seeing this sight, Naruto slowly closed the door and left the building, not wanting to know what they were discussing. The two powerful ninja's giggles could be heard from the hallway, leading to the foreign delegates staying at the Hokage Tower to wonder if the place was haunted by a couple of perverted ghosts. No one dared to enter their showers that night…

Leaving the Hokage Tower, Naruto bumped into a purple-haired kunoichi. "Hey! Watch were you're—Blondie? What are you doing here?" Anko asked as she helped Naruto up off the ground. They'd been meeting regularly, at least once a week, ever since that fateful meeting.

"My teacher for the exams is having a 'meeting' with Jiji," Naruto admitted, brushing the dirt off his orange jumpsuit. "What about you? What're you doing here?"

"I got a new mission!" Noticing his wistful look and drooping shoulders, Anko blurted out, "Want to come with me? It's only a C-rank, so I shouldn't be too hard…"

"Really?" Naruto perked up.

"Yeah, I needed another genin anyways!" Anko nodded her head.

Fisting the air in joy, he said "Awesome! What's the mission about?"

"It's an intelligence gathering mission. I was picked for it due to my skills at Tea Ceremony. See, the kunoichi at the academy learn tea ceremony and flower language for reconnaissance missions. Usually, the best places to get information about the wealthy are at tea houses where the secret messages are written in flower language. The only problem with this mission is that no boys are allowed in the tea house, so you're going to need a disguise," Anko said, eyeing Naruto up. With the right type of clothes, she was sure she could pass him off as a girl…probably…

"Oh, that's easy! I'll just use my Orioke no Jutsu!" Naruto grinned and made the hand signs for his jutsu, transforming into a girl version of him minus the whisker marks. "Does this work?" Naruto asked, looking up at Anko with his still sky-blue eyes.

"You still look too much like yourself. Make yourself taller with black hair and green eyes. Make your breasts bigger too," Anko commanded as Naruto complied. "Change your jumpsuit into a frilly black dress—No wait, make it a maid's outfit! Perfect!" Anko grinned, already having forgotten the original purpose of this and instead acting as a little girl playing dress-up with a doll would. Only, in this case, the doll being a lot more life-sized than usual.

"Are you sure about this?" Naruto asked, feeling slightly self-conscious. Although he was used to pulling pranks with his jutsu, they were only for short amounts of time. He didn't know how long he could actually act like a girl for without messing up. Plus, it was weird to not wear a jumpsuit. He'd rather be naked than wearing one of these uncomfortable tight maid outfits. Tugging the skirt down, he stared at Anko pleadingly, hoping she'd let him wear his jumpsuit.

"Yep! It's perfect, Blondie! There's no way they'd find out you're not a girl," Anko reassured him, mistaking his look for nervousness. "Come on, you can tell me how far you've gotten on my seal while we walk," she said, dragging him along with her.

"…and I got my Sealing Mastery, so legally I can try out the new seal I made on you. I just need to tweak it a little so it doesn't overload your system with chakra when I release it. It'll take about a week before I'm done," Naruto finished his explanation.

"Oooh! Yes, I can finally get rid of this thing!" Anko beamed at Naruto, overjoyed as they stopped right in front of the tea house on Konoha Tea Avenue. "I can't wait for next week, but for now we should focus on our mission," she dropped her voice, making sure no one could overhear them. Striding through the doors as if she worked there, she greeted the owner, "Chamise! You in today?"

"Anko-san, what a pleasure to see you today. How may I help you? It's not your day to work, correct?" an elderly petite woman with smile lines on her face welcomed them in. She was wearing a vivid red kimono that swayed as she walked, almost making it look like she was on fire. Naruto pouted when he saw that everyone else was wearing kimonos. Why do I have to wear this stupid thing instead?

"I took in a new apprentice, I want to teach her the correct way to conduct a Tea Ceremony in the proper settings. Will you be able to open up a private room for us?" Anko asked as she led Naruto to the back.

"Of course," Chamise agreed, unlocking a room for them. "Oh, my! Your student is too cute! Are you sure you don't want to give this one to me? I'll have her become a master at tea ceremony in no time!" She winked at Anko as Naruto flushed. He wasn't cute! The blonde thought indignantly before belatedly remembering he was a girl right now.

"Haha, sorry, no can do, old friend! This one is going to be trained specially by me," Anko grinned at Chamise, who just raised one of her elegant eyebrows at her.

"I see. That's too bad. I'll leave you to your training," she got up, bowed, and then exited the room.

The moment the door closed, Anko locked it and activated the privacy seals she took out. "There, that should make sure no spies get our information," Anko wiped the sweat off her brow and settled down next to Naruto. "Oy, Blondie, there should be a small groove in the wall over there," she said pointing towards it.

"This?" Naruto asked as he felt a small leaf actually engraved in the wall, blending in with the wallpaper. If he hadn't been looking for it, he wasn't sure he would've found it.

"Yep, that's the one," Anko confirmed. "Put in some chakra in it to activate it." Naruto followed her directions, and was amazed to see the wall in front of them become transparent, allowing them to see into the tea house. Seeing the blonde's jaw drop open, Anko smirked. "These seals were made to be a replacement to the Hyuuga's Byakugan. The only problem with it was that they didn't allow us to see through objects that had chakra in them, meaning they don't work on people."

"Wouldn't perverts use this seal to see through the walls?" Naruto asked, thinking of Jiraiya and how much he'd like this seal.

Anko laughed, "Nah, you'd think so, but it turns out that most of the buildings here are actually made with chakra fortified materials, meaning the seal can't work on them either. This place was specifically built for this purpose. The waitresses and owners are all 'retired' ninja, that now work for the information department. Why else would we waste our time on tea and flowers in the academy?"

"I always thought it was to help with chakra control and was a type of meditation or something," Naruto scratched the back of his head as he tried to remember what the shadow clone attending the class had heard his teacher say about the purpose of the class.

Snorting, Anko responded, "They only tell that to the kids at the academy, so no one leaks it if they don't become a genin. Only once you've retired after many years of service do you find out about it."

"Should you be telling this to me then?" Naruto asked, sweat-dropping when he heard Anko's reply.

"Ah, probably not…" Anko admitted, still grinning. "But I don't really care. It's not like you're going to defect from our village anyways when you want to become the Hokage. Besides, I believe in you." She patted his head, before turning back to the tea shop to decode the messages hidden in the flower arrangements.

A warm feeling fluttered its way through Naruto. He felt…something he couldn't put into words. Anko only knew him for about a month and she already trusted him, which was more than he could say about almost everyone in his life. Actually, other than Kaka-sensei and Jiji (who knew him since he was a baby, so they had to trust him), Teuchi and Ayame (who'd gotten to know him after he started showing up ever since that one free bowl of Ramen), and Sai and Karin (who both were orphans and joined his clan in hopes of a family), it took at least a few years before anyone from Konoha trusted him enough to be his friend. Heck, some of the villagers still hated him. And that hurt. A lot. To be despised and shunned, to be watched warily as if he were a criminal… It hurt to see the village he loved so much treat him this way. There were times where he'd questioned himself, asked if it was worth it to try to prove himself to everyone, to show that he could become a strong ninja that could protect and that he wasn't the demon they made him out to be. But then, he'd remember hearing his Jiji talking about how he loved the village, how it was his family that he'd do anything to protect. He wanted that. A family to cherish that he could protect with all his strength. Even if he was scorned and ignored, he'd smile because he knew that once he proved himself, they could no longer hate him. Only then would he get the family he wished for. So, it was really strange to receive unconditional support without trying to prove himself for once. Maybe it helped that they both were outcasts to Konoha (he'd seen Anko get the same stares he got from the civilians, though on a smaller scale). Maybe it was this bond that let her trust him when he hadn't done anything in return. Maybe… this is how it felt like to be accepted…

Anko, on the other hand, didn't think about her words too deeply. Yeah, she was telling the blonde a village secret and all, but he was trustworthy in her opinion. He'd impressed her with his seal work and she knew he was something special. Not for the fact that he was a Jinchuuriki, but rather because she saw him put up with those shitty civilians and still have the energy to smile back at them. And she knew how hard that was with her own experiences. If she hadn't had Kurenai and the other Jounin in her year, she didn't think she would've survived this long. But this kid, he had no one (the Hokage didn't count, because even though the kid called him Jiji, there was no way the Sandiame could actually be free enough to take care of him with all his work) and yet, he never once gave up. He was all alone in that small apartment he'd grown up in, and from what she'd heard, he'd only recently made friends with the genin that graduated from the academy this year. With no support, no reassurances, and barely any love or affection, anyone would've been tempted to get revenge or just give up, but the blonde just took it all in stride, vowing to never give up. She was sure he'd sway the villagers eventually and take up the mantle as Hokage. She couldn't wait to see that day come.

"Mm, I'm almost done. Were you able to decode any of them?" Anko asked, looking over at the paper Naruto was writing on.

"Yeah, I know a little about the flower's meanings and stuff," he nodded, showing her the messages, he'd decoded. "The easiest one was the message for Oto in the musical notes vase with the Orange Lily. I mean, considering Orochimaru has something to so with Oto, hatred and revenge made a lot of sense. The hardest was the glass vase because I couldn't figure out which village it was talking about, but then I realized that glass was made from hot sand. But I still don't see what the yellow roses and primroses meaning jealousy and desperation have to do with Sand."

"Hmm, I think it's a warning saying that Oto and Sand might've teamed up for an attack because Sand was jealous and desperate that all their jobs kept going to Konoha. Orochimaru must've used that and teamed up with them to get revenge on Konoha…" Anko hypothesized, lazily looking over the kid's work.

"I guess that makes sense…" Naruto agreed after pondering it over. "So, are we done here then?" he asked, seeing her start to pack up her stuff.

"Yeah, I've already written down all the messages, so we're good to go," she flashed a thumbs-up at him. "Nice work, kid! Your decoded messages were pretty much spot on. Just make sure to not mix up the Anemone and the Gardenia. I know they look similar but one means sincerity and the other means secret love. It'd be bad to find out that someone who we thought to be an ally turned out to have a secret alliance behind our backs, like it looks like Sand is doing with Oto."

"Yes, Anko-sensei!" Naruto saluted her, as they began to leave the shop. Waving goodbye to Chamise, the blonde asked the question that'd been bothering him all along. "Hey, Anko-sensei, I'm still confused. Why did I have to wear this maid's outfit if we were going to a traditional tea shop?"

"Well, you see…About that…" Anko sweated nervously. I can't just tell him that I wanted him to wear it because it looked cute. Quickly racking her brains for an excuse, she said, "Hey, look, a distraction!"

"What?! There's nothing…there…" By the time the blonde realized what she'd said, she was already gone. Don't tell me I suffered for nothing! Naruto raged, a tick-mark forming on his forehead as he marched down the street to the Hokage Tower, hoping Ero-sennin was finally done with his 'meeting,' not noticing the stares he was getting due to his outfit. As Naruto entered the Hokage Tower, history repeated itself and he was bumped into and knocked over again. Only this time it wasn't by a purple-haired kunoichi with a love for Dango. No, this time, it was by an old spiky white-haired pervert.

"Hey! Watch where you're go—Well, hello there, pretty lady," Jiraiya greeted suavely, reaching out a hand to pull up the hot babe in the maid's outfit. "It's nice to meet you, we should get to know each other better," he waggled his eyebrows at her, as the girl just stared up at him with her jaw-dropped open. Naruto wanted to look away but was oddly compelled to watch the ongoing train wreck that was his Godfather f-f-flirting with him. "And I, the gallant Jiraiya, the world's most renown Super Pervert that ever lived, will take you on a most fabulous journey to the reaches of the stars above!" He posed with his usual, one-foot three-hops signature look.

"Gross, Ero-sennin, I thought you had better sensing skills than that!" Naruto deadpanned as he transformed back into himself. "I'm going to tell Grandpa Sage that you've been slacking on your personal training!"

Jiraiya, who was still shocked by what had happened before him, snapped out of his statuesque state when he heard this. "Wait! No, you can't tell him! He'll make me do—shudder—supplementary training!" he pleaded, throwing himself at Naruto's legs, wrapping his arms around them and not letting go.

"Ack! Let go, Ero-sennin!" Naruto flailed his hands as he tried to get out of Jiraiya's grip, which only tightened.

"No! Not until you promise not to tell him!" he refused with a desperate glint in his eyes.

"Ok! Alright already!" Naruto gave in as Jiraiya let go in relief. Naruto rubbed his legs, he'd only been teasing anyways. He wouldn't have actually ratted out Jiraiya to the Toad Elder, no matter how annoying he was. He'd seen that so-called 'supplementary-training' and was so glad he didn't have to suffer its horrors. Eating those bug snacks while getting smacked over the head with that stick, how terrible! Shuddering, he pushed away those memories and refocused on Jiraiya. "But, you have to do me one favor!" the blonde held up a finger, signifying his declaration.

Scrutinizing Naruto for any signs of deceitfulness, Jiraiya eventually agreed when he found none. "Okay, what do you want?" he asked, figuring the kid would want a new Jutsu or training technique.

"I want you to…havedinnerwithme," Naruto spoke in a rush. Jiraiya just raised an eyebrow at him, not understanding what the blonde had said. Taking in a deep breath, Naruto spoke slower this time, "I said, that I wanted to have… dinner with you. At my apartment." Seeing Jiraiya was still unresponsive, he hesitantly backtracked, "Um, never mind, you don't have to—"

"What? No! I'll come!" Jiraiya hurriedly reassured. He'd just been surprised that the blonde had wanted him over, as he'd thought Naruto disliked him. The nickname Ero-sennin only further validated that impression. But it seems, he was mistaken. The blonde must like him if the deep flush that stained his cheeks was anything to go by.

"Really? Awesome!" Naruto grinned at Jiraiya, his face still bright red. It was his first time inviting anyone over to his house for dinner, and them accepting it. He'd asked Sakura before, back when he'd thought he'd loved her, but she'd refused. And Kakashi-sensei invited himself over for dinner, so no asking on his part necessary… Lately, dinner had been feeling lonely. Sai was busy (stalking Danzo) so his apartment felt a little more empty than usual. On the spur of the moment, he'd invited his godfather over for dinner and he had accepted! This was going to be great!

The two made their way to Naruto's apartment where they spent the night away, getting to know each other better. Telling jokes and stories until they could no longer keep their eyes open. In the end, even Kurama was impressed with the Toad Sage and told Naruto that he approved even if he was a 'pervert that consorted with amphibians.' This was the first, but not last, time that the two bonded, becoming closer as godfather and godson until the lines blurred and they were a father-son pair that were so tightly bound, no one could see they weren't related. It got to the point where Bingo Books listed Naruto as the son of Toad Sage, and when it got out that he was actually the Yondiame's son, even Iwa had trouble believing it despite their close resemblance. When Jiraiya eventually rose to the pure world, he'd be greeted by the tearful face of his disciple accusing him of 'stealing' his son. In the end, Jiraiya never denied the accusations, even when a vengeful red-haired woman chased him down for corrupting her Naru-chan. Because it was true, he thought of Naruto as the son he'd never had and the blonde looked up to him as his surrogate father. They might not be related by blood, but the only bonds family needed were ones of love. But this happened much, much later, so we should be getting back to the original story.

Week (2/4) - Uzumaki Clan vs. The Council Elders

"And last but not least, will the Hyuuga Clan notify us of any new developments they feel will or could affect the village?" Koharu spoke in a monotone tone of voice. She was so bored of these meetings. I mean, did they really need to know about upcoming births or complaints about something inconsequential like how much of their mission's funds are going back to the village?

"Thank you, Utatane-san," Hiashi nodded at her. "We have recently forbidden the use of the Caged Bird Seal on our branch clan."

"What?!" Koharu nearly spit out her drink in shock. The traditions-are-everything Hyuuga Clan actually got rid of their seal? …Am I still dreaming?

Likewise, Danzo was also shocked. No one had reported this to him! Now what was protecting the Hyuuga's eyes? Hmm, maybe this isn't such a bad thing after all Perhaps I can interest them in use of my…special seals. … Danzo thought, already forgetting that his Root ANBU hadn't learned of this beforehand.

"You cannot get rid of it! What will stop other villages from taking your eyes?" Homura asked in agitation.

"You forget your place, Mitokado-san," Hiashi narrowed his eyes at the elder. "You have no control over whether or not my clan uses a seal on our eyes."

"I do if it is a security risk to the village! I say we put the seal on everyone. Look at what happened to the Uchiha! If you aren't careful then the same thing might happen to—"

"Homura, enough!" Hiruzen warned, fiercely glaring at him to shut up. The less people knew about the Uchiha disaster, the better in his opinion.

"If you had let me continue, you would find out that we have already implemented a new seal to prevent eye theft," Hiashi dryly commented, his earlier anger settled when he saw the Hokage scold Homura like an errant toddler.

"How can we know this seal is trustworthy?" Koharu asked, verbally stating the doubts everyone had on mind.

"The seal was described in our clan history books and was certified and placed by a Konoha seal master," Hiashi deliberately left out the fact that it was a twelve-year-old who was doing it and not the Toad Sage. Everyone relaxed once more (except Shikaku who just stared at Hiashi with a knowing look in his eyes), and waited for him to continue explaining. "I will not say much about the seal, but every member of the Hyuuga Clan has it now, not just the branch clan. Also, the detailed punishments are very painful, ranging anywhere from full-body electrocution to the disintegration of all your tendons. We had an unlucky foreign delegate who witnessed this first hand." Many of the people in the room shuddered as they remembered the report of the missing-nin who had been found on the Hyuuga Clan grounds with all his bones and organs liquefied. If that was a sample of the seal's effects, there was no way they ever wanted to try and find out.

"Moving on to requests put forth by clan heads. There is only one on the agenda here today. Uzumaki, please state your request."

Naruto, who had been zoning out, stood up and said, "I want to…" He looked at Sakura, who discretely showed him what he had to say. "I formally request permission to re-establish the Uzumaki Clan Compound. As a finalist in the Chunin Exams and my previous achievements, I believe I have the right to re-open it," he finished reading and sat back down.

There was silence for a moment before everyone exploded. "What Clan Compound?" "That's unfair!" "The dem—brat is only a genin, he can't do that!" The last person was glared at by almost everyone in the room. The man who'd said it shrunk down in his chair. He was only substituting for his Clan Head as he was sick. He didn't get what the big deal was about calling the demon-brat a demon. Everyone knew he was one anyways…

"Silence!" the Hokage commanded, making everyone stop talking. Rubbing his forehead, Hiruzen sighed and followed the proper protocols for this type of thing. He knew if he didn't the elders might take it away from Naruto on grounds of him being unfairly biased towards the blonde. "As this has to do with the redistribution of a Clan Compound, only the council elders and the Hokage have any right to question his right. Are there any objections from the council elders? Anyone may respond to these refutations."

"Hokage-sama, in all due respect, Uzumaki is only twelve-years-old. Although he has taken over as Clan Head, he does not know enough to manage a Clan Compound. I suggest we wait until he is older before we reopen this issue," Homura spoke up.

"Objection, honorable elder," Sakura defended Naruto. She was ready for anything they could throw at her and had spent the last few days reading up on everything she could find that had anything to do with the law. "Naruto is a genin, meaning he is an adult and therefore should be treated as such despite his age. Also, Sasuke Uchiha has been managing his Clan Compound ever since the massacre with little to no formal training as his brother was expected to take over. If an academy student could do that, there is no reason a genin could not, especially considering the fact that they are both at the same rank and are teammates."

Homura scowled as his refutation was discredited, before lightening up as he thought of another one. "Haruno-san, you stated that the Uzumaki was merely a genin. While the management of a clan compound only requires one to be an academy student, the re-opening or establishment of one requires one to be a Chunin, which the Uzumaki is not." He smirked at the pink-haired girl, sure that he had derailed her arguments.

Sakura calmly looked him in the eye, not backing down. "That may be true, but only so for Clans that are part of the Konoha. The Uzumaki Clan is officially listed as its own separate entity as it hails from Uzushio rather than Konoha. As such, it falls under its own special laws which state that one must be of genin rank or higher to manage, re-open, or re-establish the Clan Compound situated in Konoha." Sakura's eyes glinted as she repeated the law. She just knew they were going to raise this point!

Homura opened his mouth, only to close it as he realized he had nothing to say to that. Utatane remained silent as she couldn't think of anything to raise as an argument. The Uzumaki Clan already surpassed the three-or-more-person requirement and Naruto was a genin, so there was nothing that could stop him now. "Any other objections? Homura? Mitokado?" Hiruzen asked as they both shook their heads no. "Alright, then Naruto you may—"

"May I raise a point that was overlooked Hokage-sama?" Danzo asked. Hiruzen didn't want to agree as Danzo technically wasn't an elder, but he knew if he did, it'd only come back to bite him in the butt later. Seeing Hiruzen reluctantly nod, Danzo continued, "Although Uzumaki-san passes the requirements for re-establishing his Clan Compound, where will he place it? The previous compound has already been written over to someone else, and there is no more room in Konoha for a new Clan Compound to be built."

Hiruzen sighed in relief. This objection, he could easily answer. "That is a non-issue in this case," he grinned at Danzo's sharp look at him. "The previous Clan Compound was indeed put under the Yondiame's name as there were no more Uzumaki left in Konoha (after he married Kushina), but he stated in his will that the Compound should be given to the remaining Uzumaki (Kushina and Naruto) in the case of his demise." With this, even Danzo had to remain silent as he couldn't go against the Yondiame's will. Looking at the crowd, Hiruzen said, "Then it's settled. The previous Clan Compound will be handed over to Naruto to do as he sees fit. As there is nothing else on the agenda for today, I declare this meeting over. Make sure to remain courteous to the foreign delegates in the village, I will see you all at the next meeting." Everyone filed out of the room until only Naruto, Sakura, and Hiruzen were left over.

Noticing them, Hiruzen walked over and said, "Naruto, Sakura, what can I do for you today?"

"Jiji! I met another Uzumaki named Karin, but she's from Kusagakure but they don't treat her right there so she wants to join Konoha instead!" Naruto spoke in a rush, the words just falling out of his mouth.

"Hmm, she's from Kusagakure?" the Hokage frowned and stroked his beard. "But you said she was an Uzumaki?" Naruto nodded and Hiruzen brightened up. "Then it's not a big deal. Just have her send a letter to her jounin-sensei saying that her Clan Head told her to stay in Konoha. They can't do anything as any Uzumaki, is by default, from Uzushio rather than the village they're staying in. It's why many chose to remain nomads, wandering across the nations rather than tying themselves down to one village," he lectured, going into his mode of his namesake The Professor.

"So, she can stay here?" Naruto asked, the cogs still churning in his brain, trying to make sense of what his Jiji had just said.

Hiruzen chuckled, "Yes, she can stay here." He ruffled Naruto's head and smiled as he saw the blonde beaming at him before he left with his teammate. Hiruzen watched them leave, happy to see that Naruto was finally getting what he'd always wanted: a family.

Kakashi's Attempts at Training

Okay, remember, this is all for my cute little genin. Kakashi thought, taking in a deep breath to bolster himself. He'd left Sasuke training on the cliff with his shadow clone to make time for this. Squatting on a tree, he sharply stared at his target, waiting for the door to open. There! Kakashi jumped down from the tree, about to attack when a rope shot out of the forest towards him. Flipping to the side to dodge it, Kakashi sighed in relief as he saw it go wide. Must've been a fan-girl who was behind it this time… Last time, it had been a hunter-nin that trapped him and reeled him into the forest. Luckily, she'd only wanted a dance so he obliged and went on his merry way. Not that anyone had believed his excuse that he'd met a 'pretty girl in the forest, and she wanted to dance… So, we did.'

Straightening up again, Kakashi cursed as he noticed that his mark had already left the building. Hopping to the next tree, Kakashi followed the path his target had taken when he saw a black cat sitting on the next branch. Seeing the red ribbon on the cat's right ear, Kakashi gulped and decided to take the long way around the village. The last time he'd seen Tora, his owner Madame Shijimi had forced—ahem—asked him to help get him back after the last genin squad had somehow drenched the cat in black paint. Nowadays, no matter how long it took, Kakashi always took the opposite route from the cat to get to wherever he needed to go. It was a much better alternative to helping capture that demon-cat again. Plus, he liked the excuse of 'I came across a black cat, so I took a detour around the village' than 'I had to help an old lady find her cat.'

Changing directions, Kakashi decided that he wouldn't risk cutting through the shopping district to chase after his target. Although it shortened the journey by about ten minutes, it wasn't worth the chance that he might run into an old lady that conveniently dropped her grocery bags when she saw him. The masked-jounin had a sneaking suspicion that most of those 'old-ladies' were actually fan-girls in disguise, trying to see under his mask. It didn't help that most of them used Henge to conceal themselves, making it blatantly obvious for any ninja to tell, not that he could actually do anything to stop helping them. If he avoided too many of their attempts, the fan-girls would just stalk him around the village, never giving him a moment of peace. It was better to indulge them every now and then, than having them follow him everywhere. After all, helping them with their groceries was much a better alternative to being chased around town by them like Sasuke's fan-girls did to him.

Deciding to take the underground tunnel systems instead, Kakashi ducked into the passageway and eyed the two identical paths, trying to tell them apart. Relying on his gut, he went with the right entrance, only to realize half-way through that he'd taken the wrong one. Suppressing a groan, he back-tracked and took the other tunnel this time, wasting another fifteen minutes. He could never get the hang of where each tunnel led to. The Yondiame had made all of them look exactly the same, so enemy-nin wouldn't be able to traverse them. This backfired as no one could tell them apart, leading to almost no one using them anymore. The only reason he still kept using them was to have some familiarity with them as Naruto liked to hide out in them a lot whenever he was younger. Although the blonde didn't use them as much anymore, the retired ANBU was still used to using them by now and refused to let the tunnels confuse him any longer. Despite his experience with them, he still got lost whenever he used them. The seals that layered the tunnels with the Sly Mind Affect Technique didn't really help matters either… Finally reaching his destination, Kakashi exited the tunnels and approached the spot he'd told the target to come to if he didn't see him during the day. Judging by the sky, he must've been waiting there for at least an hour.

Not bad, I'm only an hour late! Kakashi rejoiced, opening his mouth to explain, "Sorry, I'm late. I was lost of the Road of Life." He scratched his head sheepishly. It was embarrassing for an ex-ANBU like him to get lost in the Routes Officially Added Downstairs Only For Locally Informed Fellow Experts. Minato-sensei really liked using long names for things… The ANBU nowadays, referred to it as the Road of Life, which in Kakashi's opinion, was a brilliant way to mess with people's minds. (He always did forget that none of the other ninja in Konoha except for the ANBU and Hokage knew about the tunnel system, leading to a number of Jounin and Chunin to think he was purposefully late. They never did understand why the Hokage never reprimanded his tardiness and only gave him an understanding look in return. He, himself, had gotten lost in those tunnels for over two days. An hour or two late really wasn't that mush in comparison…)

"That's alright!" The green spandex glinted in the light, as his target gave him a thumbs-up. "I'd always wait for my eternal rival! How youthful of you to issue a challenge! I can't wait to beat you with the power of youth!"

"This is not a challenge," Kakashi stressed. "This is a spar, not a challenge," he felt the need to repeat it. Although he had asked Gai to help him train, there was no way he was going to fall to his level and get entrapped in his challenges. Gai pouted, which just further convinced Kakashi that he would never ever issue a challenge to the bowl-haired man, no matter how badly he needed training.

Stepping back, Gai became serious for once. "Kakashi…" Have you finally let go of the past? Are you willing to become strong again to protect your students?

Answering the unspoken questions, the masked jounin hummed, "Mm, I just realized that I need to become stronger to protect my cute little students."

Gai grinned. "I won't be holding back, my eternal rival!" he yelled, before launching into an attack.

Kakashi smirked back. "Neither will I…my eternal rival," Kakashi answered as he began his own attack.

The green-spandex wearing jounin faltered in joy, narrowly missing the masked-jounin's attack. Well played, my eternal rival, well played, he thought, easing into his next move. It would take a lot more than an admission like that to catch a ninja of his caliber off guard.

Both men jumped into battle, launching a multitude of kicks and punches, strictly sticking to only Taijutsu moves. They fought the day away, only sinking down to rest against a tree when they noticed the sky darkening.

Wiping his sweat away, the bushy-browed man jumped up and yelled jubilantly, "What a battle! I'll be sure to take you down next time, Kakashi!"

The masked-jounin merely lifted his eyebrow at him and asked, "Hmm? Did you say something?" Smothering his laughter, Kakashi watched Gai fall over in hysterics vowing to beat his 'hip' and 'cool' rival. "Gai…"

Gai looked up from his spot on the ground.

"Good match…" And thank you for doing this…

"No problem!" You can ask me for anything, my closest friend…

They sat there, basking in the afterglow of their fight, watching the sunset silently. Words weren't needed between the two who knew each other intimately after experiencing many life or death battles. They had each other's backs and that was all they need to know. Nothing could replace the calm you felt in the presence of someone you could trust unconditionally. Kakashi leaned against the tree, closing his eyes. He would get stronger to protect his genin, his family. No one would take them away from him again…

Week (3/4) - The Ice Cream Parlor: Meeting #9

"Mmmmm, it's soooo good!" Naruto moaned as he shoveled another spoonful of Ramen flavored ice cream into his mouth. He relaxed his shoulders as he savored his ice cream. It had been a long day and he definitely deserved a treat after all his hard work with the Hyuuga. Removing all their seals and replacing them with the new and improved versions really took a lot of time and effort, but was worth it when he saw their smiles of awe of finally being free again. Hiashi had even taken him aside and thanked him for removing those curse seals and replacing them with versions that only protected their eyes from theft without giving main branch members any control over the branch clan members. The Hyuuga Clan Head looked relieved that he was finally free from this burden and had actually taken the day off to talk to his nephew about the truth of what happened to his father. Neji hadn't wanted to believe him at first, but the letter from his father just confirmed what his uncle had said. He could no longer blame the main branch or fate anymore. But that was okay. People could forge their own destinies, something that Naruto and Hinata had shown him by never giving up. Besides, he was a little afraid of Hinata now. He'd gone to see one of her practice matches against the other girls, and let's just say it wasn't a pretty picture. He was so glad she ran out of her 'supplies' before their match! If this was how skilled she was, he couldn't fathom fighting Naruto, whom she said was much stronger than her… Maybe I should just forfeit my match… Neji despaired, vowing to train even harder. That still didn't stop him from seeking out the blonde when he'd come by to unseal everyone. Naruto was overjoyed to have a new friend and invited him to hang out with everyone after the unsealing, but Neji declined as he still had some training to do with his uncle before the end of the day.

And that led to where Naruto was right now: devouring Ramen flavored ice cream as he waited for the rest of the genin to come.

"That looks good! What flavor are you eating?" Ino asked curiously as the rest of Team 10 joined Naruto at the table after placing their orders.

Licking his lips, the blonde replied, "Ramen flavored!" He grinned mischievously at the genin as they facepalmed.

"Leave it to Naruto to find Ramen in an ice cream store, of all places…" Kiba snorted as he and Team 8 took their place at the table. "So how have you guys been? Training hard?"

"Before we even get into that," Shikamaru turned to ace Naruto and gestured to the boy sitting next to him. "Who's your friend?"

"Oh, right, I forgot to introduce you guys. Everyone, this is Gami E. Shin!" Naruto chirped, patting Shin's back.

The dark-haired boy wrapped in black bandages waved hello, "You may call me Shin. This combination of frozen fruits mixed in with cold curdled dairy products is very interesting. I particularly suggest trying the Soul Shatteringly Sweet flavor. Although it doesn't taste like real souls, it is still quite an experience!" Shin recommended, wanting to get along with Naruto's friends. It surprised him that the first time Naruto would summon him would be to eat ice cream, instead of helping reap someone's soul. But that just further intrigued him, making him want to get to know the silly little blonde even more. It's been a long time since I've last enjoyed myself. And Kami has been telling me to get out more… Taking a day or two off of work wouldn't hurt anyone…probably… He reasoned, deciding to forget about his duties for once. Little did he know about how much paperwork would be waiting for him back at his realm due to a small massacre. He'd have to work overtime for the next few weeks to get everything back. But that was for later. Right now, he was enjoying life to the fullest.

"So, what have you guys been up to?" Naruto asked, changing the subject as he finished off the rest of his tasty frozen dessert.

"Since Shino was the only one still in the exam, Kurenai-sensei is giving him extra elemental chakra training. Hinata's stuck doing clan duties, so I've just been training with my clan. My sister taught Akamaru and I some really cool combination attacks! I can't wait to try them out at our next training session!" Kiba excitedly explained.

"As for me, I have taken to learning more Earth Jutsus to protect my Hive from external forces. My clan has also taught me a few new techniques as well," Shino tilted his head at Hinata, signifying he was finished.

"I-I've been helping my father restructure the clan. There will no longer be a main and branch house. Neji-nii-san has also been training me, although he still refuses to spar with me when I use my weapons…" Hinata pouted slightly. She had wanted to show her cousin how far she'd come by developing an entire new style to suit herself. This way he'd no longer think that fate controlled everything, and that hard work and perseverance could also aid you in the completion of your goals. Although, it seemed like that wasn't necessary anymore. As ever since Naruto had removed his seal, Neji had been looking at the world in a whole new way. Hinata figured he finally left fate behind and decided to set out to forge his own destiny.

"He's probably too scared to, after seeing you at our practice spar," Ino said, hitting the nail right on the head. "Well, for us, Asuma-sensei is training Shikamaru one-on-one while Choji and I are learning clan techniques. Oh, and my dad's teaching me a few of his torture techniques and poisons," she grinned sadistically, remembering how she beat Sakura last time with her new poisons. The pink-haired genin in a fit of inspiration, signed up at the hospital to practice her new techniques. Last week's match was a lot harder with her employing her medic-nin ninjutsu. It may not sound like much but those chakra scalpels were really, really sharp! And hurt like hell when they sliced against you. If they hadn't limited the spars to non-fatal strikes, Ino didn't know who would win. She only had the advantage so far because she specialized in paralytics and non-lethal poisons which gave her the upper hand over Sakura's pulverizing punches and Hinata's fatal explosives. Ino shuddered remembering their devastating effects on the training ground when Hinata forgot to limit her chakra.

Seeing Ino lost in her thoughts, Shikamaru picked up from there, "I've been brushing up on my tactics with Asuma-sensei. The matches aren't really about who wins but rather how you win. The fact that you made it to the finals, already shows you're a skilled ninja. To be a good Chunin, you have to be able to show leadership skills and know how to finish a fight efficiently." Everyone stared at the usually lazy-nin, wondering why he was so talkative today. The pineapple-haired boy ignored their looks. He'd heard that Kakashi was training Sasuke and that Naruto was left with an unknown teacher who probably wouldn't tell him about the basics of the exam. He was just letting the blonde know to put them all on an even footing, not because he was worried about the orange genin or anything…

"Tactics, eh?" Naruto rubbed his chin in thought, unknowingly mimicking Jiraiya. "Ero-sennin didn't mention any of that… Then again, after that first day of sealing, we've been spending our entire time on summoning, so he probably forgot to tell me about that."

"Summoning? What contract are you using?" Choji asked, interested for once. His clan had the contract for butterfly summons, although no one really used it nowadays as they were too fragile to battle with. He wondered who Naruto got his summoning contract from as he was an orphan. Maybe he inherited it from an Uzumaki or found it on his last mission to Whirlpool.

"Well, I've got two—" Naruto began only to be cut off.

"Two of them?!" Ino echoed in shock. She had heard about how finicky summons could be about their summoners. She'd never heard of anyone having two contracts before!

"Yeah, at first, I was going to have Toad summons, but I might have accidentally forgotten to sign the contract before making the hand seals and reverse summoned myself to Inari Mountain where the Fox summons took me over to the Toad summons and they made an agreement saying I was allowed to summon both," Naruto grinned, rubbing the back of his head. He couldn't actually tell them what had really happened, and this was close enough to the truth anyways… After all, who'd believe that the Kyuubi was jealous that he signing the Toad contract, so he forced him to sign the Fox contract too? It sounded ridiculous when you said it out loud.

Humph, I still say you should get rid of the Toad contract. Foxes are way cooler! Kurama grumbled. Even the old amphibian admitted it.

He only did that because you threatened him! Naruto retorted and sweat-dropped.

Yeah? Well, foxes are still super awesome, Kurama pouted.

I know, Naruto fondly agreed with Kurama. It was just too cute to see the ancient Nine-tailed Fox Demon sulk because he signed the Toad contract first. Don't worry, I'll always like you the best! Naruto assured, mentally sending some of his chakra to entwine with Kurama's, turning it a brilliant gold as it combined. They both relaxed as the gold chakra engulfed them.

Hey, don't forget about me! You can summon me too! A voice interrupted their bonding.

Shin, you know that's not the same. Kurama is with me at all times, he's like the other half of my soul! We're literally stuck together forever, through thick and thin. Naruto explained.

Kurama perked up hearing this, his tails swaying in pleasure at what his Kit said. It was great to know Naruto felt that way about him. Now if only he could get the blonde to stop making friends with such strange (and dangerous) people…

Hmm, it is true that your souls are connected… Shin conceded, figuring that two melded souls would resonate further with each other than he ever could, considering he wasn't even sure he had a soul… That reminds me, I should get going soon. Whenever I leave my minions for too long, they tend to get antsy. It was nice meeting you both again, we'll have to do this again sometime!

Oh, Naruto pouted, sad that Shin had to leave. You're still coming to watch the finals, right? He implored, mentally projecting his puppy dog eyes at him. Kurama snickered as he saw that even the Shinigami couldn't resist his adorable little Kit.

Of course! Shin rubbed the blonde's hair. I wouldn't miss it for a mass genocide, no matter how much paper work it would bring! He promised, standing up. "It has been nice to meet all of you but I must get going. Lots of paperwork to do, so ta-ta for now!" He waved goodbye to the genin before leaving in a puff of what the genin would've mistaken as smoke, if it weren't for the fact the white gas was wriggling around and moaning.

"That was interesting," Ino commented as she eyed the still moving white gas.

"He has to stop forgetting to take his souls with him when he leaves…" Naruto muttered under his breath, too low for any of the genin to hear. Glancing at the clock, the blonde said, "Okay, it was nice seeing you guys again, but I got to go. Ero-sennin said we were having special training tomorrow, so I need to rest up. The last time he said that, we spent the whole day doing strengthening exercises!" Saying this, Naruto hopped off his chair and said goodbye to the genin, leaving after paying.

Watching the blonde walk away, Kiba pointed out, "You know, he never did say who was teaching him…" The genin sat in silence, wondering who this mysterious Ero-sennin was… They never would've guessed it was actually the Legendary Toad Sage Jiraiya…

A Father's Legacy: An Ultimate Jutsu!

"So, what's the super cool awesome jutsu you were talking about, Ero-sennin?" Naruto bounced, eager to see what the old had in store for him today. He was warming up to the old geezer and his antics. Though he seemed unreliable, his godfather had actually taught him quite a lot in the few weeks they had together. The first day was sealing and the next day was summoning (with the week after that devoted to training Frog Kata and Nature Chakra). After that, they took a day off where Jiraiya went to 'report' about where they'd been. Although the mission with Anko wasn't very exciting, it was still interesting to see seals used in action! The next four days, they'd worked on his sensory skills. Kurama still wouldn't let Naruto use the negative emotions sensing ability, but now he was able to sense other people and feel their chakras. According to Jiraiya, he was a pretty good sensor, although he still couldn't sense people to the extent that Karin did. (She'd joined them to train for those four days and could see, taste, and feel other people's chakras!) He found out that he much preferred evading sensors than being a sensor. There was just something about that rush he got whenever he ditched another ANBU on his trail and disappeared for hours on end after a particularly good prank. They'd taken another two-day break where he helped out the Hyuuga's and went to the weekly genin meeting with his friends. Today, the Toad Sage had promised him a super awesome Jutsu, and he was so ready for it!

"This Jutsu that I'm going to teach you is the ultimate form of shape transformation and is the Fourth's personal technique!" Jiraiya posed. "Observe!" he said, forming a small spinning blue ball on the tip of his outstretched hand. "The Rasengan!"

Naruto oohed and ahhed, watching the small blue ball flicker out. "I'm going to be learning that?" My dad's technique?

Answering his wide-eyed student, Jiraiya ruffled his head and said, "Yes, but there are three steps you have to learn before mastering it. Step One is Rotation. You have to pop this water balloon with your chakra before we can move on to the next step." He said, handing the balloon over to Naruto. "Now, don't be surprised if you can't get it down right away, it took me at least a week—"

"I did it!" Naruto beamed at Jiraiya, thrusting the remains of the water balloon at him. The Toad Sage goggled at the rubber remains.

"What? How'd you do it so fast?" he whined, remembering how it had taken him two days straight of chakra control practice before he could even find out the direction his chakra automatically rotated in.

"Easy, I just made it pointy! Like those medic scalpels Sakura uses," he explained as he molded his chakra into a spike.

"Ahem, that's one way to do it…" Jiraiya recomposed himself, realizing his student hadn't surpassed him yet. "But, remember, this step is all about rotation. Think about it again, and try to pop the balloon by rotating your chakra."

"Rotation?" Naruto wondered, trying to think of things that rotated and could pop things. Rotation, rotation… What rotates and can go through things? Naruto wracked his brains trying to come up with something. Ah! That's it! Naruto smacked his fist on his hand. "Neji… I got it!" He closed his eyes and molded his chakra and shot it at the water balloon. "There!" he grinned at Jiraiya, who just stared at the smoking hole in the ground.

"What did you just do?" he asked, almost scared to know how this had happened. How can anyone mess up this training technique so badly?

"I was trying to remember things that spin and can go through things to pop it. At first, I thought of a Whirlpool but that doesn't really pierce things so I tried to think of something else when I remembered Hinata's cousin Neji! His name means screw, and those are pointy things that can rotate! Using that, I molded my chakra into a drill shape and shot it at the balloon!" the blonde looked up at Jiraiya with his bright blue eyes, almost as if saying, 'praise me, praise me!' Jiraiya swore he could almost see a tail wagging back and forth, as the genin stared up at him.

"Nice job, but still not what I was going for…Although, now that I think of it, that could be a great technique to have. It's almost like a shooting version of the Rasengan. If we speed up the spinning and add a little more juice to it…" Shaking his thoughts of improvement of, he returned back to the lesson, "Anyways, I'm going to make this very clear for you. In this step, you're supposed to spin your chakra in multiple directions at once fast enough to burst the balloon. Think you can do it?" Jiraiya challenged.

"I'll show you, old man!" Naruto rose to the challenge and focused all his attention on the water balloon, trying to make it pop.

Jiraiya sunk down onto the ground and thought about that technique Naruto just used. It was reminiscent of an air bullet, except it was spinning and was more of a piercing attack made with pure chakra. If he made it so that it spun in multiple directions and added wind chakra to it, it'd be a lot more penetrative than the Jutsu his father invented… Jiraiya pouted. Why do all my students have to idiotic geniuses? Even back when Minato invented his technique, it was only because he thought the spinning chakra looked pretty and he wanted to impress Kushina… Only after the Sannin had knocked some sense into his disciple, did he realize how powerful the technique could be and then work on perfecting it for the next three years.

Speaking of students, Jiraiya looked over at Naruto. Shaking his head fondly, he watched the blonde concentrate on the water balloon. Jiraiya smiled, before frowning. He still needed to think of a way to bring out the Kyuubi's chakra. Minato's seal filtered it and allowed Naruto access to it. The boy would need all the help he could get with Akatsuki gunning for him. It'd be okay if he'd never used it before, but reports from all over came in saying that he had unlocked it on the bridge in Wave. (Jiraiya still couldn't believe that he had a bridge named after him! How does that even happen?!) With the boy's Jinchuuriki status no longer under wraps (not that it ever was, with the villagers calling him Demon-brat) and the Akatsuki on the move, his godson was in a danger of undergoing extraction. The Toad Sage also wouldn't put it past Danzo to have one of his Root minions staging an attack to take the Kyuubi for himself. Luckily, the old mummy hadn't found someone suitable enough to house the Biju, so he still hadn't made a move on Naruto yet… But that wouldn't keep the blonde safe forever. Jiraiya needed him to learn to access the Kyuubi's chakra to be able to protect himself if he wasn't there to do so. Ideally, Naruto would be able to become Kage rank without relying on the Kyuubi's chakra, but that took time, time they didn't have. The only way to ensure his safety for now was to unlock that chakra which would automatically defend himself if he was in danger. At least then, he'd have some protection against everyone out to get him.

The Sannin rubbed his forehead, trying to think of a way to get the blonde to unlock the chakra hidden deep inside him. If only, he knew how to draw up that power and use it consciously… Jiraiya sighed. How to draw it up out of him? The last time he did it, he was in mortal danger, but I could never put him in any real danger. Not after I left him alone for so long… The next best thing would be to fake a dangerous situation, but what would he be afraid of? The most likely scenario would be to attack one of his friends, but he'd never forgive me if I did that, even if it was all fake…

Moaning about this dilemma, Jiraiya almost missed it when Naruto formed a perfectly spiraling sphere inside the water balloon. Gaping at the sphere, Jiraiya watched as the blonde narrowed his eyes and concentrated, the rotations of the sphere becoming faster and faster until it popped. "Dattebayo!" Naruto whooped, fisting the air in joy.

I can't believe he actually got it down in a few hours… The Toad Sage thought in shock, not realizing how much Naruto's training in Wind Release had helped with his chakra control. Normally, Naruto wouldn't have been able to get it down so fast as the Jutsu required lots and lots of chakra control, but ever since the first genin meeting, the blonde had been training his chakra control with mass amounts of Kage Bunshin. As the seal around Kurama hadn't cracked until Wave, training with mass amounts of shadow clones held no risk of the Kyuubi escaping. And after the trip to Whirlpool, Kurama had become partners with Naruto, further lessening the risk to a nonconcern… As each clone took some of Naruto's chakra to create, the more clones the blonde used, the easier it was for him to learn chakra control. And when he released the clones, all that experience would go back to him, until he tried it out with fewer clones, repeating the process until he could do it all by himself. By doing this, the blonde had almost high-jounin levels of chakra control, which helped him easily master the basics of Wind Release. By the time Jiraiya took over, Naruto had already been on the split-a-waterfall step of getting down his element. All of these things combined helped him learn the first stage of the Rasengan so quickly.

Closing his jaw, Jiraiya said, "Well done! The next step is Power. You have to increase the volume and density of the chakra you put into it."

"What's that mean?" Naruto asked cluelessly, as Jiraiya fell over.

"Just put more chakra into it," Jiraiya simplified and tossed a rubber ball at Naruto. Catching it, Naruto looked up and caught Jiraiya's eye. "Try popping this instead of the balloon. If you succeed, then that means you're ready for the last step."

"Alright!" the blonde took the rubber ball and started concentrating on it. Jiraiya watched as the light blue chakra swirled faster and harder. An hour later, the chakra strands going into the technique got stronger and stronger until-POP!

What? I knew that he was good at shape manipulation, but isn't this still way too fast? It only took him a day to get down parts one and two! So not fair! It took me a week to get those down…

"Oi, Ero-sennin, what's the last part?" Naruto asked, pocketing the remains of the rubber ball to throw away later.

"I'll tell you the last part tomorrow, it's too late for us to be working on it today. We've been here for about seven hours, and it's getting dark outside. Come on, I'll buy you some dinner," Jiraiya said as he noticed the sky darkening.

"Ramen?" Naruto asked, feeling his tummy grumble at the thought of those springy noodles smothered in salty broth, a liquid golden egg melting on top. The food of the gods, he thought drooling.

"Why don't we try something else for once?" Jiraiya groaned at the thought of more Ramen. Why did all of his students worship that salty packet of empty carbs? He was going to get fat at this rate… "Why don't I take you to my favorite restaurant?"

"…Okay," Naruto nodded hesitantly. He still craved Ramen, but his interest in finding out what the old pervert's favorite food outweighed it.

"Great!" Jiraiya clapped his hands together before grabbing onto Naruto. "Hold on tight!" he said before he shunshined them to the front of the restaurant. "Welcome to the great and wonderful Shushu-ya!"

"This is a pub not a restaurant! Don't tell me you brought us here just for the sake!?" Naruto accused, narrowing his eyes at the Toad Sage.

"Don't mistake me for my teammate! She's the one with an incurable sake fixation!" He yelled, before nervously looking both ways to see if she'd heard him. (Years of conditioning taught him to be on the lookout for a descending fist whenever he insulted the fiery medic-nin.) "Besides, it's also a restaurant! It's known for its large-platter and charcoal-fire cooking. And, the Karaage-fried chicken is really, really good here!" he drooled, picturing the deep-fried chicken.

"Okay. Are you paying?" Naruto wondered, as Jiraiya confirmed. "You're not secretly taking the money from Gama-chan again, are you?" the blonde asked in suspicion.

"That was only one time!" Jiraiya protested. "You're never going to let that go, are you?"

"Nope!" Naruto smirked at him.

"Fine, fine, I'll pay! See, here's my wallet," Jiraiya said, holding it up.

"Alright, let's go," Naruto hummed, and walked into the restaurant, Jiraiya trailing behind him.

"Whatever did I do to deserve such an untrusting student?" the Toad Sage whined, wiping away his fake tears as Naruto just ignored him sat at a table. "Why doesn't my adorable Naru-chan trust his sensei?"

"Don't call me that!" the blonde blushed a furious red. "It makes you sound like a pervert!"

"No, it's not true, I'm not a pervert!" he hurriedly denied.

"What!? Yeah right…" the blonde snorted.

"I'm a super pervert! Roar!" Jiraiya roared, making the diners around them stare at him in distrust.

Damn, he's totally crazy… Naruto laughed out loud, shaking his head fondly at his godfather.

Jiraiya smiled warmly at the blonde. He loved it when the blonde let go and laughed freely. It brought a warm feeling inside his chest and convinced him that Naruto actually liked him despite all the years he'd let him down. And that maybe… Even when he finds out the truth, that I am his godfather and was supposed to take care of him when he was younger, he'll understand and still love me… At least Jiraiya hoped he would. Being hated by the sunny blonde would kill him. He wouldn't be able to go on knowing that the last member of his family hated him too.

He didn't have much to live for… There was almost no one from his generation left. And Hiruzen was too busy as the Hokage to even have time for his grandson, much less his adult student. His old teammate, Tsunade refused to even meet up with him, not wanting another reminder of Konoha. And Orochimaru… the less said, the better… All his other students were long dead along with their disciples (except for Kakashi, Minato's student, but the masked-jounin only looked up to him as a respected Sannin and writer, not as part of his family) … The only one left for him was Naruto, and he could already feel himself connecting to the lonely boy, who was rapidly filling in a slot in his life that felt like it was purposefully left open for him. If the blonde cut him out of his life… Jiraiya definitely wouldn't be able to continue on any longer… Writing books and flirting with girls were alright, but… He wanted a warm loving family too. Jiraiya could almost picture himself opening the door and welcoming in a blonde with the words, "Welcome home." And Naruto smiling and saying, "I'm back Da—" No, no, no… Not going there, no matter how much I want it. It won't change the truth of the matter. He hushed the voices in his head saying that he could tell Naruto, and that the blonde would still love him.

So distracted, Naruto's voice jolted him into almost launching a Kunai at the waiter. Calming himself, he hid his shaking hands and cleared his scratchy throat. "What did you say? I was… distracted by that beautiful woman over there!" he said pointing in a random direction, hoping the blonde would buy it.

"Really?" Naruto raised an eyebrow at him, not buying it for even a second. His godfather might love women, but he never looked like he was about to cry when he ogled them.

"Hey, she was super beautiful," he defended, trying to sound sincere. It was a testament to their close bond that the blonde was able to instantaneously see through Jiraiya's excuse. Anyone else would've fallen for it, figuring that a busty woman would've definitely distracted the lusty Toad Sage, not questioning why he looked so out of sorts or why his face was so pale… "What did you just say right now?" Jiraiya prompted again, not wanting Naruto to ask him why he was distracted.

"I said I know that you're my godfather, Ero-sennin," Naruto repeated, biting a chunk of meat off his skewer. Jiraiya's face paled this time for another reason. The blonde continued on, not looking at all like he'd revealed an earth-shattering secret out of nowhere, "And I just wanted to say, thanks." He stared at Jiraiya, trying to convey his hidden emotions without voicing them. Thanks for training me, for caring about me, for… not hating me.

Jiraiya swallowed harshly, seeing the sincerity in the blonde's eyes. He doesn't hate me, doesn't hold it against me that I wasn't there for him… "I-I should've been there for you, I just—I shouldn't have left," he finished lamely, wavering slightly when those blue eyes just continued staring at him.

Before he could say sorry, Naruto spoke in a stern voice, compelling him to stay silent and listen for once. "Listen, you don't have to feel so bad for leaving me alone. It's okay, I get it, besides… You came back. You came back to the village to teach me. You didn't have to care for me, but you still did. Even though you probably heard about how I was the dead last at the academy, you still took me on as your student. I know that I'm not the smartest or most patient of people, but despite all that you never once left me or gave up on me. And…when I felt alone, you stood by my side and reminded me that I had a family," Naruto smiled gently, remembering how Jiraiya had split an ice-cream with him when he was feeling particularly down when he saw a happy family eating ice-cream together. The old Toad Sage had blocked his view with a frozen treat and deliberately looked away, saying, "Oy, Brat, I'm too old to finish this by myself. Why don't we share it?" It was at that moment that he knew that Jiraiya was another addition to his slowly growing list of precious people. He felt something in the pervy sage that he felt nowhere else. Whenever he finished a new technique or got further in his training, he wanted to show it to Jiraiya first, almost as if he was a little kid wanting to be praised by his… d-dad. From then on, he knew, that he'd always see the older man as the father he never had. It might've been weird to believe in someone so much when he only knew them for less than a month, but Naruto had a gut-feeling that he could trust Jiraiya no matter what. That he'd never try to actually hurt him on purpose and that he would always look out for him no matter what.

Jiraiya tried to hold back his emotions, but couldn't any longer. The old man launched himself at Naruto, blubbering, "Aww, my cute little student loves me! I love you too Naru-chan!" He cried, hugging the struggling blonde tightly.

"Ero-sennin, let go of me! And don't call me Naru-chan!" he hissed, but his happy flush gave him away. Flustered that someone had told him, that they loved him, he hid his head. This was just way too shocking. No one had ever told him that before! Giving up, he relaxed in the Toad Sage's grip, enjoying the warmth of the hug. He could get used to this.

The Next Day: A Cliffhanger in the Making

Jiraiya stared at the training grounds and sighed, again, for the 56th time, Gama would know, he'd been counting.

"What should I do Gama? I need to get Naruto to unlock the Kyuubi's chakra, but he only draws upon it when he's in danger or needs to protect someone… And there's no way I can actually put him in any real danger…" he sighed again, making it the 57th time so far.

"…" Gama just blinked. Human problems were beyond his expertise.

"It's too bad I can't just scare him. He needs to feel like he's about to die to unlock it… Maybe I can fake a dangerous situation. Quick, Gama, what are you afraid of?" he looked at his companion eagerly.

"Gamabunta," the answer came almost instantaneously.

"…Anything else?" Jiraiya asked, shivering at the thought of the Toad Chief.

"…Fire?" he answered after thinking about it for some time. He'd seen what Toad oil mixed with fire could do to a toad, and it wasn't pretty…

"I can't just set him on fire!" the Toad Sage threw his hands up dramatically. "What else do people fear that won't kill them?"

"Heights?" Gama shrugged. "As a tadpole, you used to shriek whenever you rode Gamabunta and he tried bucking you off. I remember that Fukasaku used to chuckle about it and say you sounded just like Shima whenever he tried to scare—I mean, 'surprise' her…"

"I do not scream like a girl!" Jiraiya thundered, a vein throbbing on his forehead. "I have a deep and manly voice that women from all over the nation want to hear!" He struck a pose as Gama just sweat-dropped. Stroking his chin, he pondered, "Hmm, but heights… That might just work! Thanks Gama!" the Toad Sage yelled, hugging the startled Toad before he shunshined back to his apartment. If this was going to work, then he was going to need to make lots and lots of seals. It'd take a lot of work, but it was worth it to keep Naruto safe and help him unlock the Kyuubi's chakra.

A Few Hours Later…

"Come on, come on, just a little bit more… And— POP! —Damnit!" Naruto frowned at the popped balloon.

"Hahaha!" Jiraiya laughed seeing the surprised look on the blonde's face.

"Could you be a little more supportive?!" Naruto yelled back.

"Y-Your f-face!" the Toad Sage snorted, clutching his stomach as he hunched over laughing.

"Urghh, this is sooooo hard!" Naruto groaned, flopping over onto his stomach and panting heavily. Jiraiya had left him at the top of a ravine, working on the last part of the Rasengan: containment. Trying to make it inside the water balloon without popping it was way harder than all the other parts combined so far. Each time he'd focus on one part, the other part ended up unbalanced and exploded! "Ero-sennin, I'm almost out of chakra… I don't think I can do this any longer today," Naruto pouted. He didn't want to stop, but he barely had enough chakra left over.

"Come on, just try it one more time. I'm sure you have enough chakra for one more attempt…" Jiraiya commanded. He could still feel some chakra circling in the blonde's chakra system. To unlock the Kyuubi's chakra, Naruto needed to empty his own reserves. It was a bit dangerous, but Jiraiya was sure that the blonde would pull through.

"All-right," Naruto shakily stood up and began forming a Rasengan, drawing on the last of his reserves.

Sorry, Kit. Kurama's gravelly voice echoed in his head. You should've stopped three Rasengan ago. Now, I can't even push anymore chakra into your system without it harming you!

That's okay, I've still got enough chakra in me to make one more! Naruto reassured him, forming a wobbly blue sphere that flickered before it went out. The blonde wobbled before collapsing on the ground, barely conscious.

Seeing Naruto on the ground, Jiraiya pulled the blonde up and shunshined over to the edge of the cliff. "Get up!"

"Huh, where am I?" Naruto asked, still light-headed.

"Your training ends today. If you value your life, you've got to figure out things for yourself! Okay…?"

"Huh?" Naruto asked in confusion, ignoring the pit in his stomach. He had a bad feeling about this… "Ero-sennin…?" he looked up at the Toad Sage with wide blue eyes and the next thing he knew was that he was falling. "Waaaaaaaaaaahhhhhhh!"

As the ground approached faster and faster, Naruto hurriedly tried thinking of a way to live. Shit! I don't have any seals that can stop me and I don't have enough chakra to use my Wind element. Quick! Kurama, give me some chakra!

Your body can't handle any more of it! And even if I give you some, I'm fire-natured, not wind. It'd take way more chakra than you can handle to save yourself!

I know! I'm going to summon Gamamaru! He's big enough to save us!

Summon me instead. Kurama commanded, sending his chakra through the blonde, wincing as Naruto convulsed. Furrowing his brows together, the blonde concentrated and yelled, "Kuchiyose no Jutsu: Kurama!" summoning him in a puff of smoke. The fox immediately took ahold of Naruto and shunshined to the edge of the wall, using chakra to slide down it and slowly stop their fall until they came to a stop at the bottom of the cliff. By then, Naruto was already out cold, and it was only by sheer willpower that Kurama was still there. He growled when he felt the Toad Sage's chakra heading towards them. They were going to have a long talk before he trusted Naruto with him again. Stroking the blonde's hair, he calmed down, waiting for Jiraiya at the bottom of the cliff.

Jiraiya looked on stoically as the blonde screamed, ignoring the growing guilt he felt rising up inside him. He'll be okay. The Toad Sage convinced himself. Those seals I made will keep him safe even if he doesn't use the Kyuubi's chakra. Calming down slightly, he waved as he saw Ken walking over. "All done placing the seals at the bottom of the cliff?"

Ken frowned. "Cliff? You told me to put them at the bottom of the Hokage Monument!"

"What?!" Jiraiya stiffened and rushed over to the edge and saw the blonde hurtling towards the spikes at the bottom of the cliff. "Naruto!" Jiraiya screamed in horror, not wanting to see his godson end up as a splatter on the bottom of the ravine. Jiraiya panicked, but it was already too late. "No," he whispered, falling to his knees. I just killed my godson… He felt numb, when all of a sudden, a familiar demonic chakra spiked from the pit. "Naruto?" Jiraiya shunshined down to the bottom and found Naruto prone body hanging limply in the hands of a red-haired man.

Kurama glared at the white-haired man. "What were you thinking?! He could've died!"

Jiraiya still didn't know who the other man was. "Who are you?" he asked, not replying to the question.

"Humph, who I am doesn't matter. What does matter is the fact that you threw your godson off a cliff!" Kurama accused with barely suppressed anger. His chakra was still rampaging throughout Naruto's body, burning its way through the blonde's system. The worst part about this was that the burns would have to heal up naturally. He couldn't infuse his chakra to speed up the healing process because Naruto's body couldn't handle any more of it. The next few days, his Kit was going to be in a lot of pain and there was nothing he could do about it.

"I-I didn't mean too…" Jiraiya anxiously ran his hand through his thick mane. "There were supposed to be seals that would save him, but they were put on the wrong cliff…"

Kurama slightly relaxed when he heard that. Looks like the Toad Sage wasn't trying to kill Naruto off. He'd truly made a mistake, but that still didn't excuse him. "Do you know how this looks like?" he asked while the Toad Sage remained silent, the guilt eating away at him. "It looks like you were trying to kill him!"

"No! I wasn't, that wasn't what I was trying to do. I was—" he frantically explained.

"It doesn't matter!" Kurama bellowed and then continued in a softer voice. "You know… Naruto thinks of you as a father. To have thrown him off that cliff… You broke his trust. He's probably going to forgive you because he's a bright ball of sunshine like that, but you have to tell him what you were doing when he wakes up. Don't let him think that you hate him and want to get rid of him like the villagers do! That would just crush his heart. Promise me that you'll tell him your reasons, all of them," he implored, staring straight into the Toad Sage's eyes.

"I promise," Jiraiya swore. He knew he messed up and the only way to make it right would be to apologize and tell the blonde the whole truth.

Kurama nodded, sensing the white-haired man's truthfulness. Trusting that Naruto would be alright with him, he handed the blonde over to the Toad Sage who looked at him in surprise. "Take him to the hospital. I cannot help with his injuries and I must be going. Stay by his side. He doesn't like being alone, especially in hospitals…" Kurama said, repressing his distaste as he remembered what Naruto had told him of his prior doctors' visits.

"I will," Jiraiya promised, cradling his student protectively. Kurama nodded and stopped fighting the re-summoning process, vanishing back to Naruto's seal. The Toad Sage stood in the empty clearing for a second, wondering where the red-haired man had gone, before he shunshined to the Konoha Hospital and checked the blonde in to a room.

When he heard the doctor's diagnosis, he felt even more remorseful. 'Extreme chakra exhaustion' and 'burns on his chakra coils'… This was all his fault. He hadn't even noticed that the blonde had already been using the Kyuubi's chakra all along because it had lost its malevolent quality when it mixed with his own chakra. He'd literally forced the kid to empty out all his reserves until he was just barely standing and then pushed him off a cliff, without checking to even see if the seals were in place. He was a horrible godfather… Naruto would never forgive him or trust him after this.

It was late in the night, when Naruto finally woke up, feeling as if Gamabunta had accidentally sat upon him. The first thing he saw when he woke up were Ero-sennin's deeply worried eyes staring at him. "Ero-sennin?"

"I'm sorry," Jiraiya blurted out making Naruto's heart sink. What? He's sorry? Does this mean he doesn't want to train me anymore? Does he…agree with the villagers…and think that I'm a monster? Naruto panicked, his heart racing, when Jiraiya continued. "I was trying to get you to unlock the Kyuubi's chakra so you could use it to protect yourself, but that didn't really work out... I…" he faltered but continued when he saw those wide cerulean eyes staring at him. "There were supposed to be seals that'd stop you when you fell, but they were on the wrong cliff… I'm so, so sorry. If you don't want me to be your teacher anymore… I understand," he gulped, waiting for the blonde's judgment.

"…" Naruto remained silent, thinking over what the Toad Sage had just said. So, he doesn't hate me… He was just trying to help me unlock Kurama's chakra to protect me! He really does care about me…even if he did push me off a cliff! "What? No way! You're not leaving me, Ero-sennin! You're going to have to try harder than a little cliff diving to get rid of me!" he stubbornly grabbed ahold of the Toad Sage's sash, refusing to let him leave.

"How can you still stand me? I almost killed you!" Jiraiya asked in disbelief.

"Yeah, but it wasn't on purpose," Naruto shrugged, as if that made all the difference. And to the blonde, it did. "You were just trying to help me… If I hated all the people who tried to kill me, I would never be happy. Why should I hate someone who accidentally almost killed me that I actually like? Everyone makes mistakes, even Jiji does. It's alright, I forgive you," he consoled. He'd get Jiraiya back later for almost dying part. There were so many pranks he couldn't wait to try on him. Maybe I should use the Level 4 one or those new prank seals I made! He thought giddily, rubbing his hands together as he plotted.

I almost feel bad for the Toad Sage… Kurama sweat-dropped.

"Really?" Jiraiya asked, getting his hopes up.

"Mm hmm, but only on one condition!" the blonde grinned mischievously up at Jiraiya.

"What?" the Toad Sage asked, feeling anxious again. Did he change his mind?

"Teach me another Jutsu!" Naruto grinned up at him.

Jiraiya relaxed again. "I'll teach you all the Jutsus you want when you get better. You're not getting rid of me anytime soon," he said, ruffling Naruto's hair. Jiraiya smiled gently at him, continuing to pet him until he finally fell asleep again.

Two Days Before the Chunin Exams

Holding her clipboard, Sakura quickly entered the next room on her list. She hurriedly scanned the next entry as she pushed open the door to her next patient's room. "Let's see… Mm, it says the next one is in here for chakra exhaustion… Hello, my name is Saku—Naruto? What are you doing here?" Sakura asked in surprise, seeing her teammate lying on the hospital bed.

Propping himself up on his elbows, the blonde looked up and grinned brightly, "Sakura-chan! Wow, this is so cool! You're wearing all those things doctors have! Is this what you've been doing for the month? Helping out at the hospital? How's it going? Do you like it? Are you my doctor? Because if you are, you should help me check out, it's so boooring in here!"

Sakura's head spun from all the questions Naruto shot out. Before she could say anything, the other man in the room spoke up, "No, you can't leave yet. You had severe chakra exhaustion! Even if you've mostly recovered, you're staying here overnight for observation," the spiky white-haired man firmly said.

"But Ero-sennin, the Chunin Exams are tomorrow," Naruto whined. "I need to train!"

Jiraiya looked away before he could get trapped by his godson's eyes, "No means no!"

"But training—" the blonde pouted even more.

"No Training! La la la, I can't hear you! Na na na—" the Toad Sage plugged his ears with his fingers to block out Naruto's voice.

Sakura just watched the two interact in a surreal silence. What? She was speechless to see the so-called Toad Sage of the Legendary Sannin acting like an immature three-year-old. Then again, Orochimaru wasn't much better… Recomposing herself, Sakura interrupted the two and said, "As…nice as this is, I need to check on Naruto, so if you could please move, that'd be great!"

Unplugging his ears, Jiraiya flushed slightly at having been caught acting like this and moved out of the way. He couldn't believe that he'd forgotten about the other girl in the room! There was just something about Naruto that brought out the kid in him. He felt so free, like he could do anything in front of his godson, and he wouldn't be judged. He didn't have to keep up the image of Jiraiya: The Gallant Toad Sage or Jiraiya: The Pervert, he could just be himself, be only Jiraiya with no attached definitions. Naruto could see through his masks and easily drew out his true self. If felt amazing, and he no longer felt the gaping hole in his heart anymore.

While Jiraiya was reflecting, Sakura finished checking Naruto out. "Okay, so it looks like you just had a case of severe chakra exhaustion. As long as you don't use any chakra for the rest of the day, you'll be all set for tomorrow. But you still have to stay the night, just in case," she finished, averting her eyes from Naruto's pout.

"Aww, I don't want to stay here the whole night. Can't you let me out early, please Sakura-chan?" Naruto pleaded. He hated hospitals. The permeating smell of anti-septic, the dull white tones of the wall, the glaring staff, just everything about the hospital sucked! And the worst part was that they had no Ramen! His stomach growled in hunger. He remembered when he was younger and he was stuck in here after another attempt. They'd forced him to eat this weird gooey green liquid that was 'medicine.' It tasted terrible and made him sick for another week! He never saw those doctors again, but he was still wary about being here. The nurses were never nice and all the treatments hurt, but maybe it wouldn't be so bad this time because Sakura-chan was here.

"Sorry, Naruto," Sakura said apologetically. She could see how much her teammate was itching to leave this place. Even when they were in the hospital after the trip to Wave, Naruto was always pacing around and anxious to leave. He must really hate hospitals, she guessed correctly. "The report said that you exhausted your reserves and that if you'd even used up a little more, you could've been in a coma or worse died! There's no way you're leaving tonight," she firmly denied, wondering how Naruto, of all people, could get chakra exhaustion when he was literally bursting with it. "I need to get going now to see my other patients, but I'll come back to see you after my shift is done. See you later!" She said and stood up to leave.

"Bye Sakura-chan!" Naruto waved at her as she left the room, before sinking back down into the covers again. He knew he had to stay the night, but that didn't mean he had to like it. At least none of the bad nurses and doctors he knew were here, and he didn't have to drink any of that yucky medicine to get better this time around. He just had to wait here until his chakra came back. And it's not like it'll be any different from the apartment. I'm just as alone there as I am here…

Seeing the dejected expression on the usually sunny blonde's face, Jiraiya felt a pang of guilt in his heart. It was his fault that Naruto was here. If he hadn't forced the other boy to empty out his reserves and pushed him off a cliff, he wouldn't be stuck in here.

As if he read Jiraiya's mind, Naruto reached out a hand to his godfather and smoothed out the frown on his face. "It wasn't your fault," he plainly said, letting his hand drop.

Jiraiya made a small noise in his throat, before insisting, "It is my fault. I should've known. What kind of teacher am I if I can't even tell my student has no chakra left? You could've died!" He ran his fingers through his spiky hair in frustration, still not understanding why Naruto didn't blame him.

"But I didn't," Naruto simply said, grabbing ahold of his godfather's hand and bringing it to rest on his heart. "I'm still alive."

Feeling the steady beating, Jiraiya relaxed a little. "Yeah, but if I hadn't—"

"If you really want to make it up to me, Ero-sennin, then stay with me. If I'm stuck here because of you, then you should be stuck here too!" He grinned and playfully stuck his tongue out at the Toad Sage.

"Okay," Jiraiya laughed, this time in relief. He'd been so scared that Naruto would hate him for what he'd done. But it looked like he had nothing to worry about. He still had a lot of things to make up to the kid, but that would come later. For now, he was content to just stay by his godson's side. He'd already left the kid alone once, he wasn't making the same mistake again twice.

Snakes and Beetles

"Danzo has ordered me to sabotage the Uchiha's grave digging attempts, but I made it so that it is only delayed until after the Chunin Exams as a backup plan," a glasses-wearing white-haired man reported as he bowed before the Snake Sage.

"Kabuto, are you doubting my plans?" he raised an eyebrow at the boy kneeling before him.

"No, I could never doubt your plans, Orochimaru-sama! I just thought that it would be beneficial to have more eyes to experiment on," he bowed before him servilely.

"Oh? Is that so?" Orochimaru smirked at his follower, but didn't pursue the matter, not caring either way. He turned his thoughts back to the forest, remembering the blonde child that had the guts to defy him. That fiery look in his blue eyes just made him want to grab the youngster and turn him against Konoha. It would be the ultimate revenge to have that passionate gaze directed towards his beloved home village. Perhaps the boy would even join young Sasuke and come to Sound with them. Actually, that's a great idea! I should go hunt him down and persuade him to join right now when he's at his most vulnerable… Children are the easiest to brainwash after they've been hurt, just look at Kabuto! Standing up, the Snake Sage dismissed Kabuto and made his way to the hospital. He had a little Jinchuuriki to catch, and nothing was going to stop him!

A Hospital Visit

"3380… 3396… Ah, we're here! Room #3401!" Ino announced, pushing open the door. "Choji, we're here with food for you!"

"Troublesome…" Shikamaru grumbled as he lugged the large fruit basket into the room. "It's not like he can even eat this food anyways…" he muttered under his breath, setting the basket in the corner.

"Sakura! What are you doing here?" Ino asked, seeing the pink-haired genin standing next to Choji with a clipboard in her hands.

"I'm working at the hospital to learn more medical ninjutsu," she explained, adjusting the papers attached to Choji's bed.

"Oh yeah, I forgot," Ino scratched the back of her head, sheepishly. "How's Choji doing?"

"He's doing fine. In another few hours, he'll have digested most of it and will be able to be checked out. In the meantime, no eating anything that isn't hospital food until after he checks out." Hearing that, Shikamaru groaned at the fact that he's carried that heavy fruit basket all the way up here for nothing. Hearing him, Sakura looked over to where he was sitting and saw the basket. "Is that fruit basket for Naruto? It's nice that you guys are visiting him. I don't think he's had any other visitors except for me and his teacher."

"Naruto? Is he okay?" Shikamaru asked worriedly as the rest of his team looked at Sakura in concern for their blonde friend.

"Yeah, he's okay now, but when he was brought in, he was passed out from severe chakra exhaustion. He's fine now, but he's been getting bored. I'm sure he'd welcome it if you guys visited him," Sakura answered back and the pineapple-haired boy nodded, making a note to visit the blonde after they'd finished talking to Choji.

Gaara and Other Green-Eyed Monsters

"Hmm…?" Naruto blinked, waking up to see Shikamaru sitting next to his bed.

"Hey, you finally woke up. I heard you've been unconscious for three days," he said putting down the book he was reading.

"Why am I here with you? Where's the pervy-sage?" Naruto asked, still a little out of it.

"Huh? How should I know?" Shikamaru asked, leaning over Naruto's bed. "I mean… I'm here because I came to visit Choji, even though it's a total drag… When I heard you were laid out too, I poked my head in."

"What?! He got hurt that bad?" Naruto scrunched his eyebrows together in concern.

"Not quite… After his match, Choji ate too much barbecue…and got a severe case of indigestion," Shikamaru dryly explained, internally shaking his head at his friend's eating habits.

"Hahaha, that's just like Choji!" Naruto laughed, making Shikamaru smile back at him.

"Humph, you two aren't the type to get female visitors, so…" he said, suddenly feeling the need to tease the blonde.

"Speak for yourself! Sakura-chan visited me!" Naruto pouted. Sakura had been his only female visitor so far unless you counted the time when Jiraiya dressed up as a nurse to 'cheer' him up… That backfired on the Toad Sage when Jiji had walked in, took one look at him, and dragged him out by the ear. Ero-sennin must be still getting a lecture… Naruto snickered.

"Oh! Right! It's a huge pain… I brought this basket of food for Choji, but he's not allowed to have it… Doctor's orders. So, let's eat it ourselves," Shikamaru grinned, trying hard to look nonchalant as he placed the basket on the table next to Naruto.

"Cool! You sure?!" the blonde asked, almost drooling as he saw the instant Ramen packets in the basket. "Man, you're a pretty cool guy!" he complimented Shikamaru who flushed.

"Shut up! It'd be a shame to let it go to waste," the pineapple-haired boy retorted, hiding his embarrassment.

"…" Naruto smirked mischievously at him.

"Huh!? What?" Shikamaru asked, wondering if the blonde had figured out that he'd actually specially bought the basket for him.

"Hee hee hee! Just for fun, why don't we eat this in front of Choji!" Naruto giggled.

"…You're such a weirdo!" Shikamaru complained, but couldn't help smiling back at the blonde. Opening up a packet of Ramen, the pineapple-haired boy asked, "So, how are you feeling? Sakura mentioned that you were in here due to extreme chakra exhaustion…"

Naruto happily took the steaming Ramen from Shikamaru and answered, "Yeah, the first few days were rough, but I'm all better now! Not that they'll let me out of here tonight…" The blonde pursed his lips together in annoyance. "They say I have to stay here for at least another night for observation… Ero-sennin won't even let me train!"

"Good," Shikamaru nodded his head, reassured to see that Naruto's mysterious teacher was looking out for him.

"Shikaaaaaaaaa," Naruto whined. "You could at least pretend to have some sympathy!"

He snorted, "Why you would ever want to go and train when you can watch the clouds instead, I'll never understand…" Shaking his head at the blonde, Shikamaru took out another packet of Ramen and began adding hot water to it. "Anyone else come by to visit? Other than Sakura?" he asked in interest, figuring that at least Iruka would have dropped by. Their former sensei really looked out for Naruto as if he was the younger brother he never had.

"Hmm, other than pervy-sage who brought me here, Jiji also came by. Other than that, no one else came to visit when I was awake…"

"Not even Iruka-sensei or Kakashi?" he asked in disbelief. There was no way those two overprotective mother-hens wouldn't have stopped by if they knew that the blonde was in here.

"Nope! But it's not like they know I'm in here…" Naruto easily dismissed Shikamaru's misgivings. "Oh! But Hattori came by to take my last letter! He didn't have any letters for me, but it was still thoughtful of him to visit!"

"I don't think that really counts…" Shikamaru sweat-dropped. "Why haven't you told anyone you're in here. Even I wouldn't have known about it if Sakura hadn't been your nurse."

"I didn't think it was a big deal. It's not like anyone would come and visit anyways…" Naruto shrugged. He'd never really gotten visits before (other than that one time after their mission to Whirlpool, but that didn't really count because it was for a meeting). All the other times he'd come to the hospital, he was usually checked out too quickly to even have a visitor stop by. The only other times he could think of that he'd actually gotten a visitor was after an incident. The Hokage generally stopped by to ask what had happened, but he never stayed for long. Inu also stayed behind too, but that didn't really count either because he was usually stuck on ANBU protection duty…

It was strange that people wanted to visit him now. Jiraiya said that even Sai and Karin had been by when he was sleeping. (He still wasn't sure if the pervert was joking or not about that…How they even found out where he was, he'd never know. Sai's intelligence network and Karin's sensing talents were way too overpowered. Put them together and you get two ninja that can track down practically anyone in the Elemental nations. Even Kurama was wary of what those two would do together without him there to supervise…)

Still, he was getting tired of staying in the hospital for so long. Actually, it was only because of pervy-sage's insisting that he was still stuck in here. The doctor had told him that he could leave right after he'd woken up, muttering that it was a waste of a space for him to sleep on a patient's bed when he could easily do so at home… His godfather didn't agree and practically forced him to lay back down, before kicking out the doctor who said that. He even brought in another doctor who agreed with him, forcing him to be stuck in observation for the next few days! It was so not fair. I could've been training right now! I'm so close to finishing the Rasengan, I can practically feel it! If only Jiraiya hadn't attached that chakra monitor seal on my bed…

Shikamaru saw the contemplative look on Naruto's face and felt his heart sink. The blonde really believed that no one would care that he was in the hospital. And who could blame him? He was an orphan and it's not like he had any close friends back at the academy. No one would have noticed if he hadn't showed up to class… All those times he'd been sick, did he have to endure it all by himself at his apartment? No one there to comfort him and tell him he'd be all right. No one there to take care of him… Suddenly feeling the need to show the blonde that he had people who cared about him, Shikamaru placed his hand on Naruto's shoulder and said, "If you ever get sick…or even just need something, you know that you can always come to me, right?" He needed to make Naruto understand that he was there for him.

Naruto was confused by how serious Shikamaru was being, but nodded nonetheless. "Okay," he agreed, feeling a warm feeling travel throughout him. They stared at each other, a strange tension hanging in the air, when the door banged open, startling Shikamaru into letting go of the blonde.

Turning his attention to the door, Naruto was surprised to see the familiar figure. "Gaara! What're you doing here?" he perked up, happy to see the stiff red-head standing in front of the door.

Gaara surveyed the room and slowly positioned himself at the other side of Naruto's bed. He glanced at Shikamaru briefly before he answered, "Moth—I mean, Father heard Kurama mention that you were in the hospital, so I came to find you." He scowled at Naruto. "What were you thinking?! Using that chakra when you knew it'd burn you! If I didn't know you any better, I'd think you were trying to kill yourself!" he accused.

"Hey! It was either that or being impaled by the spikes at the bottom of the cliff," Naruto grinned at Gaara, realizing that the red-head was just worried for him.

"How you ever even managed to fall off a cliff, I will never understand…" Gaara shook his head at the blonde, finally relaxing and feeling relief course through him now that he knew Naruto was okay.

"I'll have you know that I was pushed off the cliff," Naruto sniffed, while Shikamaru watched the exchange in silence, an unknown emotion gripping at his insides.

"Was it another… attempt?" Gaara's face darkened, his sand swirling around him as it responded to his agitation.

"No, no," Naruto hurriedly denied. "Believe it or not, it was actually an accident this time around…"

"Really?" the red-head asked in suspicion, not entirely believing that it was just an accident.

"Really," the blonde nodded his head vigorously.

"Alright then," Gaara reluctantly dropped the subject.

"…" Shikamaru just narrowed his eyes at the red-head, not liking that someone from Sand knew more about Naruto's life than he did. Just who is this Kurama? And why did Gaara's father, of all people, know about Naruto being in the hospital? What are these attempts that they were talking about and how exactly did Naruto end up in here? Falling off a cliff doesn't cause chakra exhaustion! He gripped his ponytail in frustration.

"I saw some of your friends on the way here too… The dog boy Akamaru I believe?" Naruto snickered at that. He couldn't wait to tell Kiba that Gaara had mistaken him to be Akamaru! "He was with the one in the trench coat and the pale-eyed girl Hinata? I told them you were in here too. Thought they might want to visit as well," Gaara averted his eyes, not knowing if this was the proper protocol to follow with friends…

"Really? Awesome! It was getting boring in here anyways, the more people, the merrier!" Naruto whooped, beaming at Gaara.

Shikamaru pouted slightly. He had wanted to be alone with the blonde. The hyperactive boy was just so interesting. He never reacted the way Shikamaru thought he would. It was thrilling to see his reactions to each and every thing. It was almost as good as cloud-watching…

Before anyone else could say something, the door whooshed open again revealing Team 8. "Naruto! Heard you were sick so we came to visit!" Kiba boomed as Akamaru pounced on the blonde, licking him all over.

"Hahaha! Stop it, that tickles!" Naruto laughed as Akamaru continued cuddling with him until Hinata finally pulled him off. "Thanks, Hinata!" Naruto smiled at her.

"Y-You're welcome, Naruto-kun," she said shyly, hugging Akamaru to her chest.

"How are you feeling right now? Do you still believe you will be able to attend the Chunin Exams tomorrow?" Shino asked, walking over to stand beside Hinata. The blonde looked a little paler than usual, but seemed fine other than that.

"I'm fine! They said I'd be all better in time for the exams tomorrow!" Naruto answered back. "I'm pumped for tomorrow! What about you, Shino, Shika, Gaara?" he asked looking back and forth between the three.

"It'll be a drag, but I'm ready for tomorrow," Shikamaru replied, biting back a groan at the thought of having to fight.

Shino let out his Kikaichu, allowing them to swarm around the room before he pulled them back in. "As you can see, my partners and I are ready for tomorrow!" he answered stoically.

"…Tomorrow shall be interesting," Gaara finally replied. He had 'tipped' off the Hokage about tomorrow's planned attack by faking the death of that one jounin who had overheard them, so he was hoping that there wouldn't be a battle tomorrow. Temari had somehow found out that he didn't want to fight (which wasn't really all that hard, considering how the red-head's only friend was Naruto…), and was trying to convince the Kazekage to stop the invasion. Kankuro just gave up and told them that he'd follow whatever they decided, figuring that anyone who could sway Gaara into becoming semi-stable had to be amazing… Besides, even if Temari didn't succeed, there was always the back-up plan. But he really, really didn't want it to come to that…

Come on, it'll be fun! Shukaku tried to coax Gaara.

And that's precisely why I don't want to use it… Anything you approve of, can't be all that good… Gaara dryly retorted. Ever since Naruto had helped fix up his seal, he was beginning to get more and more clear-headed. A good night's worth of sleep really worked wonders on your sanity! Now, if only he could transfer some of that sanity to that loud-mouth raccoon stuck in his head…

Haha, nice try! But, Ore-sama will never bow down to normality! Ore-sama tried it once and found it way too boring! Besides insanity is relative. It depends on who has who locked up in what cage. Of course, you wouldn't understand Ore-sama's brilliance. Muahahaha! Shukaku cackled madly as Gaara sighed wondering why he'd gotten stuck with the crazy Biju.

Then again, maybe it's for the best… He thought, shuddering at what would've happened if Naruto had Shukaku sealed inside him instead of Kurama. He could just see the blonde storming all the Ramen stands across the nation as Shukaku egged him on… Yup, it's definitely a good thing he has Kurama instead… The fox doted upon him, treating and taking care of him as if he was his own 'Kit'. Without him, the red-head couldn't even begin to imagine the amount of trouble Naruto would get into. For example: deciding to tell a blood-thirsty Jinchuuriki that you're his brother without having ever met him before…

"—ara, Gaara? Woohoo, anyone there?" Naruto waved his hand in front of the zoned out red-head.

"Hmm? Oh, yeah, before I forget, Temari told be to give this to you," Gaara dug a plant out of his gourd. "She told me that friends usually bring gifts to people in the hospital. You said you liked taking care of plants before, so I bought you this. Is it satisfactory?"

Naruto gasped as the red-head peered at him, waiting for his reaction. "Wow! This is so cool! I've never seen a plant like this before! Mr. Ukki is going to be so happy to finally have company!" he said, thrilled to have another addition to his growing plant collection.

"I'm glad you like it. The man at the shop mentioned that Hashirama's, your village founder's, best friend used to have a pet cat named Ryo that just loved playing with this particular plant whenever he grew it, leading him to name it Mokutenryo," Gaara explained, placing the plant on a table. After he was sure it wouldn't fall over, the red-head turned around and moved closer to the blonde who was flushed red. "Naruto? What's wro—" he didn't even get to finish his sentence because Naruto had pulled Gaara up on top of him.

"Mm, what's that smell?" he inhaled deeply and sunk into Gaara's shoulder, while the red-head squirmed, flustered.

"Naruto, you need to let go," Gaara said sternly, trying to pry the blonde off of him, but Naruto only clung onto him tighter.

"Noooo, I don't want to let go," the blonde pleaded, staring up at Gaara with out-of-focus eyes. "You smell soooo good," he mumbled, slumping down even further.

"Naruto, you need to wake up!" Gaara began panicking, seeing the blonde's beginning to close his eyes. By now, the other genin were getting anxious too.

"We need to call a doctor!" Kiba frowned at the blonde's unresponsive state as Hinata pushed the button to call the nurse on the bed. Within a few seconds, Sakura appeared at the door.

"What's wrong?" she asked, a wrinkle forming between her brows as she saw Naruto's near catatonic state. Maneuvering around Gaara, she took his vitals, she said, "There appears to be an airborne sedative that is affecting him. Did any one of you bring anything new into this room?"

The genin shook their heads no, when Shikamaru blurted out, "The plant! It must be what's affecting him…"

Sakura nodded. "That also explains why he's clinging to Gaara… I recognize this plant, it's Mokutenryo, also known as Catnip…"

"Isn't that supposed to make cats really energetic?" Shikamaru asked, not understanding why it was having the opposite effect on Naruto.

"No," Kiba shook his head. "It doesn't only affect cats, it also affects dogs. Only, it makes them really sleepy instead of hyper…" he explained, remembering how lethargic Akamaru became when he'd accidentally eaten a patch of it when he was a puppy. His sister, Hana had also mentioned that the plant could even affect humans, although it was very rare. "But it's only supposed to have a mild calming effect on humans," he quoted his sister.

"Well, drugs can affect people differently," Sakura shrugged, adding Naruto's reaction to the plant to his medical files. "Maybe this one just affects him more than normal…"

"You can let go of him now," Shikamaru interrupted their discussion, staring directly at Gaara. Just realizing that the red-head was practically hugging, their beloved blonde, the other genin in the room snapped their heads to glare straight at Gaara, mentally commanding him to let go.

Gaara sighed, running his free-hand through his hair. "I would if I could," he shrugged helplessly. It didn't seem like Naruto was letting go anytime soon.

"Naruto, you have to let go of Gaara now. He needs to get back to his family," Sakura persuaded, while Gaara sweat-dropped. He didn't really need to go back to the hotel anytime soon. In fact, he didn't actually mind the blonde hugging him. It felt sort of nice to be surrounded by warmth for once without it being a death threat. He ignored the fact that his last hug had been from his uncle who was trying to murder him…

"No," Naruto whined in a soft voice, almost half-asleep. Cracking his eyes open, he stared at Gaara with wide teary eyes and pleaded, "Don't go." Tugging on the red-head's clothes he implored, "Please." Seeing this display, the other genin's faces darkened, as they glowered harder at the red-head with a small spike of killing intent, not wanting their Naruto to be held by someone they barely knew. Heck, they still glared at Kakashi whenever he got too close to their blonde. What made it any different for someone who didn't even live in their village?

Gaara rose an eyebrow at the killing intent directed at him, but brushed it off. It was nowhere near the amount he was used to whenever assassins came after him. Twisting around in Naruto's hold, he faced the blonde and gently shook his shoulder. "Hey," he began once he was sure Naruto was listening to him. "I'm fine with staying here the night, but this position is uncomfortable. Move over so I can have some more room," he ordered, mentally noting the killing intent triple in the room.

"Mm hmm," Naruto agreed sleepily and moved over, making room for Gaara to slip in next to him. He then went back to sleep, an arm around Gaara, heedless to the tension in the room.

"I'll let you have an extended visitor's stay, as he doesn't seem to be letting go anytime soon," Sakura finally sighed, marking it off in her notepad. She knew how stubborn the blonde could be when he really wanted something. Just look at how long he'd chased after her back at the academy despite how brutally she'd rejected him each time. "But, the rest of you have to leave," she said, addressing the rest of the genin. "Visitors' hours have already ended and he's asleep so there's no point to staying here any longer…"

They nodded and headed to the exit reluctantly. Shikamaru glanced back at the bed and tightly fisted his hands when he saw the red-head's arms wrapped around the blonde. He felt an unfamiliar emotion burn his insides. I should be the one to be at Naruto's side—Wait! What am I thinking? He shook his head as he left the room, lost to his thoughts…

Jiraiya turned the corner, knocking over a girl. "Are you okay?" he asked, helping her up. At least this time it wasn't his godson he thought, remembering what happened last time… Banishing away those memories, he refocused his attention on the pale-eyed girl again. Hey, wait a minute. I recognize this girl, isn't she one of Naruto's friends?

Hinata got up of the ground and said, "Thank you for your assistance." She bowed slightly, not realizing that her nosebleed had started up again.

"Woah! Your nose is bleeding! Did you hit it when I knocked you over?" Jiraiya asked, looking around to see if there was a medic-nin nearby.

"Please don't worry, it wasn't caused by the fall…" Hinata blushed slightly. It was mortifying to admit, but the sight of Naruto and Gaara together in the same bed together was too stimulating for her… Luckily, she hadn't fainted this time around. Instead, she'd only gotten a nosebleed. How embarrassing!

"…Okay, if you're sure," Jiraiya scratched his head. Kids were getting harder and harder to understand nowadays.

"I must be going now, but thank you for your help," Hinata said.

"Anything for a beautiful lady like you!" Jiraiya said, giving her a thumbs-up. She blushed but waved goodbye as she left the hospital. Chuckling, Jiraiya continued down the hallway on his way to Naruto's room. He opened the door and announced, "Brat! I'm back!~" Only to see the blonde curled up on his bed with a red-head wrapped around him. Wow! The kid works fast! He whistled. Like father like son, they both went after red-heads. Must be a family-trait… Jiraiya thought, misunderstanding what was going on.

Hearing the door open, Gaara stirred and opened his eyes to stare at Jiraiya. Who's that? He thought, getting ready to attack with his sand, just in case.

"Woah, hold your horses, sonny," Jiraiya put his hands up, seeing the sand lift up threateningly. "I'm Naruto's godfather," he said proudly, puffing out his chest. Gaara relaxed again, staring at the weird man in front of him claiming to be Naruto's godfather. "And as his godfather, I'm also the one who will come after you and kill you if you do anything to hurt him!" he stared sharply at Gaara, letting him know he was serious.

"…" Gaara blinked before saying, "I think you are misinterpreting something. Naruto and I are only friends. At most, brothers." Gaara explained, interrupting the Toad Sage before he could say anything else. "The only reason we are sleeping together is because that plant," he pointed at the table before continuing. "Affected him and made him clingy. As I was the last one to handle the plant, he refused to let go of me. One of his friends, the pink-haired nurse, came in and said that the plant was known to act as a sedative upon humans and dogs, although usually not to as extreme a degree…"

"Dogs…Foxes… Sedative," Jiraiya murmured as he took everything in, figuring out that the plant was super effective on Naruto due to him holding the Kyuubi. Foxes are a part of the Canis family which is closely related to dogs. As it acts as a sedative on both humans and dogs, both those things together must make it so that he is highly susceptible to the plant. He figured, nodding his head. No wonder he looks so out of it… "If that's the case, for now we should isolate the plant so it no longer affects him," Jiraiya spoke aloud, sealing the plant away into a storage seal. "I'll take it back to his apartment later," he explained, already thinking of making a new seal that would filter out smells so the plant would no longer affect the blonde. He began mumbling different calculations under his breath, lost in his own world. Gaara blinked at the Toad Sage, and drifted off back to sleep, to the quiet murmuring of Jiraiya's mutterings.

Orochimaru Bugs Out!

A figure slithered his way across the floor, heading towards the room he knew his target was in. He'd seen Sarutobi pull Jiraiya out of the room earlier and knew that there was no one else powerful enough to stop him from accomplishing his goal. Turning the corner, he crept across the floor to the room and stopped in front of the door. Slowly turning the door knob, he opened the door…and then rapidly shut it, the image of bugs swarming the room firmly stuck in his head. How did they know of my one true weakness?! He slipped away from the floor his heart pounding as he left the hospital in a hurry. There was no way he was going to stay there any longer in the presence of those creatures. He could write a poem declaring his hatred for those slimy, sick pests. In fact, he had one written down for moments like these, it went:

Icky Crawly Creature: Bugs!

I hate them!

More than Hiruzen, more than Danzo, more than Konoha.

I hate them!

Time to die,

SQUISH,

The end…

Such a nice ending. Why couldn't this poem reflect real life? Extinction to all species! Murder those abominations! They didn't deserve to exist on this Earth living with him. The world would be better off without them. Sure, the ecosystem might collapse and there might be world-wide food shortages, but it'd be worth it to live in a bug-free world! Too bad, no one at Sound agreed with him. Not even Kabuto enjoyed the longer version of his poem:

I am Orochimaru who will exterminate all those crawly creatures,

And I refuse to believe that

bugs are useful.

I realize that this may be a shock, but

bugs are helpful.

No, actually, this is a lie!

Bugs are super evil!

In time, the world will know that

I have my priorities straight (I am not crazy) because

a bug-free world

is way more important than

something like pollination.

I tell you this:

Once upon a time,

bugs covered the lands.

But this will not be true in my era,

Orochimaru will wipe out this world of bugs!

Research shows that

the world can live without bugs.

So, I do not conclude that

bugs are necessary.

In fact, in the future,

bugs will be extinct.

No longer can it be said that

bugs outnumber ninja.

It will be evident that

bugs deserve to die off.

It is foolish to presume that

bugs can be helpful.

Unfortunately, no one from Sound agreed… They preferred reading his poem backwards, thinking it to be a reverse poem. They still didn't understand the true horrors those pests could be…

Maybe he should leave writing to Jiraiya… He'd heard his dim-witted ex-teammate made a killing on those perverted books he used to write. And everyone thought he was the depraved one! Just because he preferred taking over younger bodies to older ones, didn't mean he was a pedophile. They didn't understand that the younger a body was, the easier it was to connect with it as the chakra pathways hadn't fully formed yet to reject his chakra…

But anyways, back to the main topic of his rant. He spent years living in Konoha without once having to partner up with an Aburame. How did Sarutobi ever find out about his Entomophobia? It seems like that old fool is trickier than I thought… I better move up the plan before he can stop me. The next step is…the Kazekage…

The Kazekage's Last Regrets

If he could, Rasa would slam his head on the wall behind him to put him out of his misery. This was the third time an elder from the council had cornered him, asking him about what Gaara had said during the fight. They were convinced he had been pulling Gaara's strings all along and that his 'mother' was just a farce to discourage people from getting closer to Gaara... He still had no idea where his youngest had got the idea that his imaginary friend was somehow him… Then again, nothing Gaara did ever made any sense, although he seemed more subdued now… In fact, he'd even made a friend with a young blonde…

Leaving the meeting room, Rasa walked to his bedroom, dreading the talking-to he was going to get from Temari. His daughter had somehow gotten it in her head that he was the reason Gaara was crazy… Well, she wasn't exactly wrong, but not for the reasons she thought so. He should've never decided to follow the elders' suggestion to seal Shukaku into Gaara. Maybe then the red-head wouldn't be so off… Oh well, it was too late for any regrets now. He dragged his legs, wishing for a distraction, anything to keep him away from the promised tirade…

"Kazekage, how pleasant to see you," a voice greeted him.

Turning around, Rasa acknowledged the Snake Sage's presence, "Orochimaru. What do you want?"

"Now, now, is that anyway to talk to your benefactor?" his sickly-sweet voice dipped with hidden threats. "Let's take this somewhere else before someone can stumble upon us, hmmm?" Rasa stiffly nodded and followed the Snake Sage into a private room, locking the door. At least he was delaying his daughter's lecture…

"Talk," Rasa commanded.

"How pitiful, you think you can actually demand me to do something?" Orochimaru mocked, as Rasa felt even more unsettled.

"Speak quickly then," Rasa hissed. "I have an appointment back at my room to get to!" He said, not really knowing why he was insisting to leave when he knew the horrors awaiting him.

"Don't worry, it'll be quick," Orochimaru promised, the wicked smile not leaving his face. "I just need to… borrow your body for a bit."

The Snake Sage's eyes gleamed and the next thing Rasa knew was that he was on the floor staring as Orochimaru drained his body. His last thoughts were, at least I don't have to listen to that lecture anymore…

Orochimaru flexed his fingers, feeling his soul settle into his newest husk. "I better get going. Wouldn't want to miss my meeting," he smirked and headed towards Rasa's room.

Only to curse himself an hour later as Temari berated him.

"And you shouldn't send assassins after Gaara anymore, no matter how badly you want to get rid of them. You already traumatized him enough by pretending to be his best friend…"

If he knew this was going to happen, then he would've waited another day, heck even another week to escape this she-devil… This all those bugs' fault! If they hadn't spooked me, I wouldn't have overtaken the Kazekage's body so soon… Curse those bugs! Just wait, after I become immortal, I'm coming after you next! Be ready to go extinct you stupid pests! Muahahaha!

"Dad, are you listening to me?" Temari asked in outrage, seeing her father not focusing on her.

"Yes, dear, whatever you say," Orochimaru replied automatically.

"Great, so will you sign this then?" she asked in her most innocent voice.

"Sure, sure," he replied, willing to do anything to get rid of the evil child in front of him. Temari secretly smirked as she saw her 'father' sign the paper in front of him. This would definitely put a stop to his plans! She couldn't understand why Gaara didn't like it. She thought it was a brilliant plan and way easier than persuading their stubborn father to change his mind…

Orochimaru just smiled at Temari, waiting for her to leave the room. Good riddance, he thought when she finally left. The next day was the Chunin Exams and he had a lot more to do to be ready for the invasion…

The Chunin Exams

Naruto stood next to Gaara, staring at the crowd in anticipation. He couldn't wait to fight Neji today! Scanning the crowd, he found Sai and waved at him, tuning back in time to hear the proctor say that he'd give Sasuke until his turn to show up before he was disqualified. Where are you Teme? Naruto thought as he searched the crowd for that familiar set of white gravity-defying hair, only to be disappointed. At this rate, they're going to miss my fight! He fretted as Gaara patted his back, noticing how tense his friend was.

"Relax, they probably just woke up a little late…" he reassured the blonde, mentally deciding to destroy them if they didn't show up in the next five minutes. Luckily for everyone, Kakashi showed up with Sasuke in tow right at that moment.

"Sorry we're late, but we lost track of time on the mountain," he scratched the back of his head sheepishly. They almost hadn't made it in time. Fortunately, his shadow clone had dispersed telling him to book it to the stadium if he didn't want to miss Naruto's fight.

"Kaka-sensei!" Naruto grinned up at him, happy to see his sensei again after a month.

"Alright, settle down now. Stop fidgeting and face towards the guests," the proctor warned the genin, before gesturing for Kakashi to take his place in the crowd. The jounin ruffled Naruto's hair and shunshined to join the other jounin in the stands.

"Ahem, ladies and gentlemen, esteemed guests… Welcome and a heartfelt thanks for gathering here in Konohagakure for… the Chunin Selection Examination!" The Hokage announced as the crowd cheered. "We will now begin the matches of the final round between the eight candidates who advanced in the preliminaries!" Please sit back and enjoy!"

The proctor stepped forward and said, "Before we begin, I have a few announcements…" He took out a chart and continued, "Look here! There have been a few last-minute changes. Look again and confirm your assigned opponent."

Naruto looked over at the sheet and was surprised to see that the order they were fighting in had changed. What? Why is my fight last? Even Sasuke's is before mine… He pouted at the thought of having to wait to fight.

"Hey, you mean my match has been moved up?!" Shikamaru groaned. Well, better earlier than later… Then I can relax for the other matches…

"Listen up all of you, this is the last exam. The landscape may be different, but just as with prelims, there are no set rules. You fight until one of you admits defeat unless I determine that a clear winner has already been decided… In which case, I'll stop the match before anyone's killed, understand?" the proctor spoke sternly to the genin who nodded. "Alright then… Match One: Temari and Shikamaru Nara, you two stay down here… The rest of you, proceed to the waiting room outside the arena." The genin slowly filed out, earning the crowd's wrath.

"Hey! Start the match already! Just get it over with!" the crowd jeered in anticipation. Hey! Hey! What's the rush?! Hold your horses! Why am I always getting shafted in the match schedule, huh? Darn it… I should just withdraw…

"All right! Go get 'em, Shikamaru!" Naruto patted Shikamaru's back, accidentally using too much strength, knocking him over.

"Ugh," Shikamaru groaned. Naruto, you jerk… Now I can't withdraw…

"How long are you gonna lie there? Get up, kid!" the proctor prodded.

Shikamaru just laid out sprawled on the ground unmoving, like a dead starfish. No one cares about the outcome of my match… Is there any point in fighting?

"What, are you going to give up?" Temari mocked, seeing him lazily lie on the ground.

Asuma sighed. That kid doesn't have a competitive bone in his body…

"Hey, Shikamaru! Get up and fight!" Naruto encouraged from the stands. Shikamaru perked up hearing Naruto calling his name, deciding to show off a little. He readied his smoke bombs, knowing he'd already ticked off his opponent.

"If you won't come to me, I'm going to come to you!" Temari yelled, rushing forward.

"Hey! I haven't told you start yet…" the proctor complained.

"Sheesh, this chick really wants to fight," he grumbled, stabbing his Kunai into the wall next to him. The next moment, the stadium exploded and when the smoke cleared, Shikamaru could be seen standing on two Kunai stuck into the wall, crossing his arms. "I don't really care if I become a Chunin or not, but… I can't stand the idea of losing to a girl, so… I guess I'm in!"

Temari just gaped at the confidence the boy who was laying prone on the ground a second ago showed. "Humph," she sniffed, opening her large fan and swinging it around, destroying the platform. Only to see no one standing where she'd aimed. He's quick…

Naruto sat down next to Ino and looked up to see Sasuke walking over to the stands opposite of them. Why's he sitting all the way over there? He wondered, staring over at the raven-haired boy.

Following his gaze, Sakura sighed and stood up. "I'll go see what's wrong with him. You stay here, he might just be wanting to hide what he's learned from you for the finals…" she sighed, knowing how stubborn Sasuke could get. Naruto nodded at her, watching her disappear in the crowd and then turning back to the genin.

"Hey, where's Kiba and Hinata?" he asked Shino who was standing behind them.

"Hinata is sitting up there with her family," he pointed at the crowd. "Her father wanted her and Neji to sit together today to show how they'd changed their policies of no longer having a branch house… Kiba had to go to the bathroom after drinking some rotten milk, so who knows how long he'll take," Shino shrugged as Naruto winced in sympathy.

They both turned back to the fight, just in time to see Shikamaru and Temari facing off. Ino jumped up and swung her fist, "Knock her block off, Shikamaru! Just hit her with a 1-punch combo!" She cheered as Choji sat down next to her, munching on some chips.

"Hmm? I thought Naruto's match was first?" he wondered, watching Shikamaru duck under the blonde girl's giant fan.

"Oh… It's you... Is your stomach better already?" Ino asked, seeing him finish off his bag of chips.

"Yeah, I'm all better now," he answered. "Huh… Shikamaru fighting in the finals? It's kind of weird…"

"Don't say that! Shikamaru may not be a superstar or anything, but he's really good at strategy and stuff! That's why he made it all the way through the prelims. Besides, you of all people know how hard he's trained for this…"

"You think?" Choji asked, unconvinced. He couldn't see Shikamaru wanting to pass the exams and gaining all the extra responsibilities being a Chunin would entail. "Well… I bet he's going to give up and quit pretty quickly. He's so lazy…"

"That's not true!" Ino argued. "You missed his dramatic beginning leap to show off. He seems unusually aggressive today! He's got a passionate side to him too!"

Wait, really? He's actually trying for once? Choji could barely believe it.

"Go, Shikamaru!" Naruto called out, waving at the pineapple-haired genin who suddenly acted as if he'd been injected with chicken's blood and jumped onto the tree.

…Then again, Choji thought, eyeing Naruto. If anyone could get him this pumped up, it'd be him…

Shikamaru stared dazedly at the skies. Oh… How I envy the clouds… They're so free… He crouched down again to miss Temari's air blast. I have no desire to fight… The whole reason I became a ninja in the first place was so I could live my life anyway I wanted… He frowned at a hole in the ground, the beginnings of a plan already forming.

"Hey, c'mon! Go Shikamaru!" he heard Naruto cheer.

…But it looks like it won't be that easy. He smirked, plotting how to beat Temari.

Temari just scowled at him. What's that stupid expression on his face… Is he mocking me?! She growled and unleashed her Ninja Art: Kamitachi Wind Scythe!

Whoa, Shikamaru thought as he braced himself against the attack and let his shadow trail out towards her. Unfortunately, she saw through his ploy and leaped back.

"The Shadow Possession Technique revealed! It seems there are limits to how far you can reach your shadow, hmm?" she derided, mentally calculating how far his reach was. 32 cm… That's how far I have to stay out of reach…

Shikamaru sighed, but inwardly smirked that she'd fallen for her trap. Now to make it realistic… He touched his thumb and fingers together making an 'O' shape, his signature thinking pose. This should throw her off, if what I saw during training was correct…

Temari narrowed her eyes at him. Humph, let's see what you can come up with! I don't believe that you can defeat me even after thinking about it… She recalled how he'd make that pose whenever he was 'training' with his teacher. Each time he made it, he'd win the game they were playing. But this was real life, not a game. There was no way he could rely on some ploy to defeat her… No matter what strategy you come up with, I'll always be able to beat you!

"Huh? What is that hand sign?" Kurenai asked in confusion.

Asuma chortled, "That's not a sign. It's just a habit of his…"

"Habit?" she probed, turning around to face her boyfriend.

"Whenever he gets stuck, he always assumes that pose." Seeing his girlfriend's confusion, he clarified. "He's plotting his strategy. I've never beat him once when he got serious…"

"Strategy? This is a real battle, not a game! Geez…" she frowned, unknowingly echoing Temari's reaction.

"People say that before they became play pieces. Those same 'games' were used by military advisers to plan their strategies… So, I guess Shikamaru would make a first-rate military advisor!" Asuma blew out some smoke.

"Oh, really?" Kurenai asked, unconvinced. "But I remember that his grades back at the academy were as bad as Naruto's!" she accused, before drawing back as a shuriken came between them.

"Ahem," Kakashi interrupted. "Don't bring my cute little genin into this, okay?" he eye-smiled threateningly at them, promising to get revenge if they continued on that line of thought.

"R-right," Asuma glanced at Kakashi's glinting eyes and sweat-dropped at how protective the one-eyed jounin was being. "Back at the academy he was too lazy to take notes and he always dozed off at exams…" Asuma began, drawing Kurenai's attention. "I was so baffled by his proficiency at games… that I tricked him into taking an IQ test."

"So? What was his score?" she leaned in, waiting to hear how the story ended.

"He's a sharp one alright! His IQ is over 200! He's a freakin' genius!" Asuma bragged, taking another puff of his cigarette.

T-two hundred?! Kurenai gasped in shock. Turning back to the arena to see what the lazy boy would do next. Shikamaru was just standing there, when suddenly he stretched out his shadow again toward the blonde girl, reaching across the spot she marked before.

"The sun… It made his shadow longer," Asuma explained as Temari hopped back, only to have parachuting Kunai extend Shikamaru's shadow even further.

"He's going too easy on her," Kurenai complained, seeing the girl dodge once again.

"Hmm… This girl's a pretty good strategist too. She's analyzing and anticipating his attacks…" Asuma stroked his beard in contemplation, wondering what his student would do next. He watched as Temari gathered her remaining chakra and raised her fan in one last attack, only to freeze.

"That boy…How many steps ahead is he thinking?!" Kurenai said in shock.

"That's Shikamaru's strength!" Asuma proudly stated, watching his student reveal how he'd caught her in his trap.

"No way!" Kurenai said in disbelief, seeing the second shadow Shikamaru extended along the arena's side, taking advantage of its shadow to trail his and entrap Temari from behind.

"All right! Get her!" Naruto cheered.

"Go for it!" Ino clenched her fists in joy, while Choji just shook his head at the eager blondes.

Temari just glared at the genin in front of her, involuntarily stepping backwards towards the wall. Those parachutes were a diversion?! You…You jerk!

She closed her eyes, waiting for the final blow, when she heard him say, "That's it… I'm done…" What?! She opened her eyes in disbelief.

Ino fell over hearing him say that as Naruto just stared at the proceedings in shock. "I told you he was going to quit… You really don't know anything about Shikamaru, do you, Ino?" Choji munched on his chips.

"Wh-What?" Temari couldn't accept this.

"…I give up!" he announced clearly about to leave the stage, when he caught sight of Naruto's questioning blue eyes. He sighed and explained, "I used up too much chakra doing all those shadow possessions in succession… I won't be able to hold you for more than 10 seconds. So even though I've planned out around 200 moves, I think I'm out of time…" He walked towards the proctor and muttered, "And this fighting stuff is a drag… One match is enough for me."

"Then…the winner is Temari!" the proctor announced thinking, What a weird kid…

Saying his part, Shikamaru calmly walked off the stage towards where the others were waiting. Temari watched him go, feeling conflicted about their match. She didn't want to admit it, but she shouldn't have won… But if he's out of chakra… I guess it's okay.

"Aw man, I'm beat…" Shikamaru rolled his shoulders, tired from all his fight.

"Argh! What a waste! Why…? He could've become a Chunin!" Ino raged, miming strangling someone.

Choji just smiled, "Shikamaru's Shikamaru."

"Well, I still think Shikamaru gave up too early. What do you think?" Ino asked the other genin pointedly, not getting the response she wanted from Choji.

"Why'd he give up? Is he stupid or something? That really makes me mad!" Kiba yelled, back from the bathroom just in time to see Shikamaru forfeit and angry that he gave up his chance to become a Chunin even though he was so close. Akamaru barked, also showing his displeasure.

Naruto pushed up his sleeves and made a determined face, "I'm going to go give him a lecture he won't ever forget!"

He clambered over the rail and leapt onto the arena as Shino warned, "Lecturing is difficult. One must not anger the audience." The blonde nodded at the reminder to keep his talk with Shikamaru private, before heading towards the pineapple-haired boy.

"Oh well, it's just like him," Ino laughed, watching Naruto storm his way to Shikamaru. "Shikamaru always did whatever he wanted to…"

A Chunin sitting next to the genin decided to pipe in, "Well, at least he has more promise than Naruto to become a Chunin…" Only to be glared at by eight murderous stares and one jounin emitting killing intent. He shrunk back under the power of those stares wondering, What'd I say?

Over on the arena, Shikamaru stretched out his aching back when Naruto jabbed a finger at him and called out, "Stupid-head!"

"Shut it, Mega-dork!" he instantly shot back.

"Why'd you give up?! I know you have more chakra than that," the blonde accused, remembering all those times they'd trained together in practice matches. "There's no way you ran out so soon!"

"At this point, what does it matter?" he grinned at Naruto, catching the blonde off guard. "Let's go watch the next match, okay? I bet it's going to end early," he predicted, swinging his arm around Naruto's shoulders and steering him to the rest of the genin.

"What? But, but, huh?" Naruto tilted his head up at Shikamaru, his eyes so lost he looked like a cute little kitten not knowing what was going on.

Shikamaru's throat felt itchy, but suppressed the feeling and avoided Naruto's gaze. "I'll tell you about it after the next match," he finally said.

"Okay," Naruto reluctantly nodded and allowed Shikamaru to guide him back to the stands, placing him next to Gaara and quickly occupying the seat next to him.

The red-head merely raised an eyebrow at Shikamaru having overheard them. "So, you know?" he asked, as Naruto looked back and forth between the two.

The pineapple-haired boy sucked in a breath, realizing his suspicions were correct, "Yeah. I know."

"Good." Gaara said and then gestured at Naruto. "Keep him safe." He didn't want anything happening to the blonde and it relieved him to know that someone suspected what was about to happen.

"I don't need you to tell me that…" Shikamaru coolly replied, turning back to the crowd as the proctor announced the next match.

"Would Aburame Shino and Kankuro come down to the arena, please?"

Kankuro glanced at Gaara and Temari, before raising his hand and saying, "I forfeit!" He figured the match was a waste of time, no matter what happened today. Besides, it was always good to have a trump card up his sleeve.

Shino, who had gotten up, sat back down, a dark cloud hanging over his head. When will I ever get to fight? He thought aggrieved as his Kikaichu tried comforting him.

"Woah, how did you know that was going to happen?" Naruto demanded, turning back to Shikamaru.

"…You won't believe me if I say it was a lucky guess, would you?" Shikamaru dryly responded, licking his lips as he tried to think of a way to explain this without anyone overhearing.

"Nope!" Naruto shook his head, waiting to hear what was going on.

"Remember that time in the hospital?" Shikamaru began explaining. "He said that today was going to be interesting, so something big must be happening today. Considering we saw Orochimaru in the Forest of Death… I figured there was going to be a big fight today…"

"My father, the one that isn't stuck in my head, wants to attack Konoha during my match," Gaara cut in, and then nodded at Shikamaru. "He seems to have suspected that Sand would attack today. That's why he forfeited, to save chakra in case of a fight…" Naruto gaped at Gaara, who solemnly said, "But don't be mistaken, my sister and I are against this plan. We have a way to stop the fighting before it begins, but I really, really hate our plan, so I'm hoping that he changes his mind and stops the attack… Otherwise…" Gaara grimaced.

Naruto swiveled around to look at the Kazekage, only to see him staring right at him and grinning. He shivered, as he saw the other man grin and use his long tongue to lick his lips. Wait… long tongue?! Anxious, he stretched out his chakra to read the Kazekage's chakra signature only to be blocked by a barrier. Frowning, he asked Kurama to get a read on him instead.

You're right, Kit… That man isn't the Kazekage, it's Orochimaru in disguise. Kurama scowled as he felt the snake-like chakra signature emitted out by the man. You better warn your Hokage about this, he advised, not liking the idea of Naruto going near the Snake Sage, but knowing there was no other way to get the message across. After all, who'd believe a twelve-year old that the Kazekage was an imposter, and not just any imposter, but actually the infamous Snake Sage Orochimaru? Besides there could spies around that might overhear the blonde and decide to take him out… He wasn't willing to risk that. At least with the Hokage there, Naruto would be safe…

"What's wrong?" Shikamaru asked, seeing how pale Naruto's face had gotten.

The blonde motioned for them to get closer. Both Gaara and Shikamaru leaned in to hear him say, "That dude, the Kazekage, he's actually Orochimaru!" Naruto whispered fiercely.

Gaara's eyebrows rose in astonishment. Really? This made things more complicated… Looks like they now had no choice but to use the backup plan… Great…

Shikamaru stiffly nodded, not daring to look at the Kage box in case someone might notice. "What now?" he wondered aloud, trying to think of a way to let the Hokage know.

Naruto stood up, a flinty glint in his eyes. "I'm going to go tell Jiji!"

Shikamaru grabbed ahold of the blonde's arm and dragged him back down, hissing, "Are you crazy?! He's in there with him! What if he decides to attack? You'll just be in the way!"

"But… I have to do something…" A wrinkled formed on his forehead as he looked up at Shikamaru desperately. He couldn't just leave him there!

"Look," Gaara interrupted. "I think Naruto's right… My match is next and that's when he plans to attack. If you're going to tell the Hokage, you have to do it now. I'll try to stall, but I can't promise anything…"

He finished just as the proctor called out, "Will Uchiha Sasuke and Gaara come down to the arena?" Gaara looked pointedly at the two and walked down as slowly as he could to the match. He was going to delay it as far as he could.

Naruto and Shikamaru exchanged glances, before Shikamaru sighed and gave in. "Fine, but I'm coming with you!"

"Let's go!" Naruto beamed at him and they both headed towards where the Hokage was seated. Halfway there, Naruto abruptly stopped and said, "Wait! The others! They don't know what's going on! You have to warn them!"

"What? I'm not going to leave you to do this by yourself!" Shikamaru argued heatedly. There was no way he was going to let Naruto confront Orochimaru and who knows who else all alone.

"But they need to know," Naruto insisted. He wished he still had his bracelets to tell them quickly. Unfortunately, he had to turn those in to get his copyright on the seal. It'd take another few weeks before he got them back and could make new ones without anyone being able to steal/copy his design.

"Yeah, but…" Shikamaru faltered. He couldn't deny that someone needed to tell the other jounin about Orochimaru and the planned invasion. Though they already seem to know about the invasion… He figured, scanning the place and noticing the large amount of ANBU scattered everywhere.

Naruto was going to persuade Shikamaru to go, when a hand landed on his shoulder. He looked up and was surprised to see a familiar pale-skinned boy. "Sai!"

"You should go warn the others. I'll make sure Naruto stays out of trouble," he fake-smiled at Naruto's friend, noting that the other boy still looked reluctant to leave.

"I'll be alright. Sai's strong, he can help me fight," Naruto reassured and Shikamaru nodded reluctantly.

"Alright. You better not die!" he warned and yanked the blonde into a quick hug, before letting go and hurrying away, his ears red.

Naruto just stood there staring at his back, surprised that Shikamaru had hugged him. That felt… sort of nice. He thought dazedly, his face flushed.

Sai mentally jotted down Naruto's reaction. Strange, it appears wrapping your arms around someone can disable them for a short amount of time. How interesting, I must remember to try it out during our next sparring match. Glancing at the arena, he shook off his thoughts and reminded, "We should be leaving now, if you wish to make it in time. The genin from Sand can only stall for so long before Orochimaru attacks…" Naruto snapped out of his trance and they both hurried towards the box.

Gaara vs. Sasuke: Best Friends vs. Brothers

"And, match start!" the proctor announced, hurrying out of the way of the two genin.

Gaara instantly encased Sasuke in his sand, preventing him from moving. He kneeled down and ignored the venomous gaze the raven-haired boy directed at him. "Listen, we need to stall..." He was about to continue, but Sasuke broke free from his restraints and attacked.

"I don't know who you are, but I don't care! Nothing's going to stop our fight!" he glared at Gaara, thinking the red-head was lying.

Dodging the attack, Gaara spoke up again, "If you are truly Naruto's best friend, then you'd hear me out."

Sasuke lunged at Gaara, his eyes flashing red. "Shut up! Who do you think you are to tell me what to do?!" He raged, not believing the red-head at all. "If you're trying to trick me, you can give up now. It's not going to work!"

Gaara felt himself growing more and more pissed off the longer this 'fight' continued. If it wasn't for the fact that his opponent was one of Naruto's friends and that he needed to stall, he would've already ended this farce by now. What was with this idiot?! Could he not see that he was being serious? How could he just risk the safety of his self-proclaimed best friend like that?! He stared sharply at Sasuke and huffed. Well, if it was a fight he wanted, then a fight he'd get! Clenching his fist, he shot a stream of sand at the other boy, aiming for where he was dodging towards.

"You won't catch me with just that!" Sasuke smirked as he flipped in mid-air and turned to appear behind Gaara, aiming for his head.

The red-head stepped out of the way of yet another barrage of punches and kicks, trying to calm himself down. Remember, no killing Naruto's friend… "Can't you just listen to me for once?" he grumpily asked, sinking Sasuke's feet into the ground, effectively trapping him.

The raven-haired boy just used kawarimi to switch positions and attacked again. "Stop talking and fight!" he grunted, rushing at Gaara to attack again.

The red-head glared at the Uchiha and used his sand to hover above him, deflecting the Kunai and shuriken aimed at him. No matter how annoying this was, he'd promised to stall, so stall he would...

Sasuke just fumed as he tried to think of a way to reach Gaara. There must be something I can do… He thought, furiously trying to think up a plan.

Hey, why don't you tear his head off, crack it open, and spill out his brains? Think of all the blood! Shukaku egged his jailor on.

Yeah, that's not happening… Gaara deadpanned, ignoring his insane raccoon.

Aww, pretty please? Shukaku whined, but the red-head didn't respond.

Seeing his opponent so annoyed, Gaara smirked and turned to look towards the Kage box. Orochimaru was signaling for him to start the invasion by releasing Shukaku, but he just ignored him. There was no way he was listening to an imposter that was wearing his father's face! Not that he'd bother listening even if it was his father up there commanding him to release Shukaku... It wasn't even possible anymore for him to do that with his new and improved seal blocking out that mad Tanuki from overtaking his body… Pretending to not have seen the signal, Gaara faced his opponent again. His eyes widened as he saw the raven-haired genin run up the wall and launch a kick at him. Waving his hand, he made his sand move to avoid the blow. I can't keep this up for much longer, it drains too much chakra… Guess I'll have to use that… He lowered himself to the ground and encased himself in a sphere of sand, deciding to wait things out. At least I'll have an excuse as to why I didn't see the signal…

Sasuke eyed the ball of sand, but stepped closer when it didn't move. He tried punching it, but his attack was ineffective. It's time to use that… The sound of chirping birds filled the arena as he aimed his lightning clad hand at the ball of sand. "Chidori!" Sasuke yelled, stabbing down and penetrating through sand shell. Grinning he tried to pull back, only to frown as his hand got stuck in the sand. Channeling some chakra, he ripped his hand free and stared at the hole he'd just made.

What? He actually broke through my ultimate defense!? Well, I guess there was a reason Naruto said he was strong… Gaara grumbled, shaking off the sand as he brought down his sphere. What else am I supposed to do to stall? I can't keep pretending much longer… Ignoring Sasuke, the red-head glanced at the crowd and sighed in relief as he saw Naruto walking towards the Hokage. That relief turned into panic when he saw Orochimaru rip off his face and take the Hokage hostage and Shunshin away, neither of them noticing Naruto grab on and join them in the ensuing chaos. Shit! He thought and hurriedly moved towards the Hokage box.

Only to stop as Sasuke blocked him. "I won't let you leave!" he shouted aiming another Chidori at Gaara.

"I don't have time for this!" The red-head made a hand of sand and swatted Sasuke away, sending him flying towards the wall, knocking him out. Ignoring the proctor, Gaara took off and headed towards the Kage box, his siblings and Baki joining him soon after.

"It's started!" Baki proclaimed, seeing the falling feathers of the genjutsu scatter across the crowd. "We need to join the fight! Gaara, why haven't you released Shukaku yet?"

"We're not fighting, Baki," Temari spoke calmly, ignoring her teacher's shocked look. "We are stopping the fight! Gaara, are you ready?" she asked.

Gaara nodded, exiting the stadium and seeing Naruto trapped on top of a building by a barrier. He frowned, but reluctantly turned away, seeing there was nothing he could do. Seals weren't his specialty, he had no way of breaking through the barrier. "Take me to where the most Suna shinobi are," he commanded. There's no way I can help him now… All I can do now is my part of the plan.

Back to Naruto and Sai

"Just a little longer, we're almost there," Naruto muttered under his breath. He sped up as he saw Gaara struggling to stall.

Sai followed Naruto, also racing up to reach the Hokage before the invasion started. Danzo didn't say anything about an invasion… Did he know about this? Or was his information compromised by a spy? But if it was a spy… Just who could hide this from the rest of ROOT?

"Okay, now I just need to tell Jiji about Orochimaru," Naruto rubbed his hands together, about to enter the Kage box when all of a sudden, the Kazekage ripped off his face revealing Orochimaru! He swiftly took out a Kunai and held it to the Hokage's throat. Jiji! I've got to save him! Naruto panicked, rushing forwards when he was blocked off by a white-haired ANBU agent.

"I'm sorry, but I cannot allow you to go in there Uzumaki-san," the ANBU stopped him.

"What?! Why not? Jiji needs help!" Naruto scowled at the ANBU, itching to go and help his grandfather figure.

"Be that as it may, it is unsafe for a genin like yourself to enter this fight. Hokage-sama has commanded us to not let his fight be interrupted," the ANBU responded.

Sai, noticing there was something off about the situation from his years spent as part of ROOT, stepped forwards and said, "How would he have commanded you to back off? He was being held hostage by Orochimaru. He had no time to give you any commands…" Naruto gaped as Sai continued voicing his doubts. "If anything, you should be helping the Hokage, not trying to stall us. Only an imposter would try to stop us," he accused, smiling falsely at the suspicious ANBU.

"As you can see from my mask, I am no imposter," the ANBU replied in a bland tone of voice.

"Then where's your ANBU tattoo?" Sai asked, pointing at the ANBU's bared shoulders. Naruto nodded, remembering Hiruzen's many lectures on which ANBU he could trust. Each one of them had a specialized tattoo on their shoulder that marked them to be in the Hokage's service. The guy in front of them had a mark on his upper arm, but it wasn't on his shoulder and it didn't contain the Third's chakra signature, meaning he was an imposter!

I knew I was forgetting something… "Ah… I see that I am in a spot of trouble here. Looks like my disguise was for nothing…" he muttered, before removing his mask. "I'm afraid I cannot let you past!" he smirked at the ruffled blonde and stoic Root robot in front of him. "You'll have to get past me before you can help the Hokage!"

"Kabuto!" Naruto snarled at the white-haired man blocking their path. He didn't have time to waste on this poser!

"I see… So, you were the spy all along…" Sai realized, his hands already reaching for his supplies.

"What are you going to do about it?" Kabuto crossed his arms, still smirking at the two.

"We're going to kick your butt! And then save Jiji!" Naruto yelled, glowering at him.

"Hmm, you can try, but it doesn't look like you have that much time left… Will you be able to beat me in time to save the Third? I may not look like it, but I am ANBU-ranked…" Kabuto patronized them.

Naruto fisted his hands, clenching them tight enough to draw blood. He wanted to pound this annoying guy into the ground, but he had no time. He had to save Jiji! Noticing Naruto's tension, Sai patted the blonde's shoulder. "Leave this man to me, go after the Hokage! I can handle him by myself."

Naruto wanted to refuse, but he knew he couldn't. Instead, he made two shadow clones and slapped a durability seal on them. "Okay, but be safe. You better not die here!" Naruto threatened.

"I will, don't worry. Now, hurry up and leave!" Sai responded and then engaged Kabuto in battle.

"You won't be able to leave so easily!" Kabuto growled, stretching out his arms to catch ahold of the blonde genin, only to have a bunch of smoke-releasing stink bombs explode. "Urghh!" Kabuto grunted as he fell back, leaving Naruto an opening to escape.

"I won't let you hurt Naruto!" Sai blocked him, a hard glint in his eyes. Kabuto shuddered, recognizing that determined look appear in the large female following of Sasuke Uchiha. I wonder if fanboys are just as bad as fangirls…? He pondered briefly, before focusing on the fight. Years later he found out the answer: Fanboys, fangirls, it doesn't matter which, both are rabid when it comes to the protection of Uzumaki Naruto!

The Hokage and his Student

"I thought this day would come… However, my head won't come off so easily!" Hiruzen stood strong, as if there wasn't a Kunai held to his throat.

"I thought I told you to hurry up and name the Fifth Hokage! Because the Third is going to die right here!" Orochimaru smirked wickedly, his long tongue lolling out the corner of his mouth.

Naruto ignored the commotion and crept closer to the pair. Kurama, can you make it so they can't sense me?

You got it, Kit… The nine-tailed fox nodded, masking Naruto's chakra signature with his own before making both undetectable. It's done… The Kyuubi frowned, feeling the rapid drain on the blonde's chakra. He didn't like that Naruto was putting himself in danger for someone who was way stronger than him, but he knew that no matter what he said the stubborn blonde wouldn't listen. The only thing he could do to protect him now was to watch carefully and shield his Kit from the inside. Remember to summon me if you're in danger, he urged.

Thanks, Kurama! Don't worry, I'll call you if anything bad happens! Utilizing the hiding skills he got from years of pranks, Naruto crept up to the Kage box and grabbed onto the Hokage's robe right before Orochimaru shunshined them outside to the roof.

Once they reached the rooftop, the Snake Sage commanded his underlings, "Set up the barrier. Now!" Following his orders, the Sound Four erected a barrier, trapping everyone inside.

Outside, the ANBU were tense as they stood in a long line and surveyed the barrier. Only one of them had tried breaching it, only to be burnt on contact.

"It's quite a crowd…" Kakashi mused as he crouched on the stands beside Gai. At the first signs of the Temple of Nirvana Technique, the jounin-sensei had quickly left the viewing platform and made their way to their genin. Now, they were gauging the situation and awaiting orders. As a former ANBU commander, Kakashi was the most fit to make decisions in the Hokage's absence. They trusted the white-haired man to assign them tasks to protect the village along with their genin.

"That's not all… There's something even worse," Gai furrowed his bushy eyebrows together and stared out the window. Kakashi quirked his eyebrow at Gai, wondering what could be worse. "Look over toward the roof of the central viewing tower."

"That's…!" Kakashi's eyes widened when he followed Gai's directions. "A barrier ninjutsu!"

"Kakashi, look closely, inside the barrier," Gai said gravely.

Kakashi nodded and was about to use look closer when he was interrupted by Shikamaru. "You—huff—have to—puff—save him!" he panted, his hands on his knees.

"Save who?" Sakura asked, having already thrown off the genjutsu.

"Naruto!" Shikamaru practically yelled, having finally caught his breath. "We found out that the Kazekage was actually Orochimaru in disguise and that he was going to invade Konoha during the exam. Naruto refused to let me go with him and went after the Hokage to tell him what was going on. We have to go help him!"

"What?!" Kakashi heart skipped a beat as he turned to look at the barrier and saw the Hokage, Orochimaru…and a little blonde genin in an orange jumpsuit. Sucking in a breath, he forced himself to calm down before he did something stupid like racing off to the barrier without any plans. "Alright. Here's what we're going to do," Kakashi spoke sharply, his usual lazy drawl abandoned. Sakura shivered. She'd never seen her sensei look so serious before. Not even when Zabuza attacked was he like this… "Sakura, you and Shikamaru are going to help wake up the other genin here. I want you to go with Kiba and Shino and take Sasuke to the hospital. He's out cold and with the impact of that hit, I doubt he's going to wake up anytime soon… After checking him in, protect the hospital from any invaders and do your best to heal everyone."

"Yes sensei!" Sakura nodded. She could do this! She wasn't the useless fangirl anymore. It was her turn to protect her teammates this time around! She wouldn't fail them like she had in the forest.

"Shikamaru," Kakashi turned to the pineapple haired boy and spoke, "I want you to take Ino and Choji and go after Gaara. He's—"

"Gaara isn't part of the invasion. He's trying to stop it," Shikamaru quickly interrupted. Seeing the disbelief on everyone's faces, he justified, "He was the one who told us about the invasion in the first place. Besides, he's Naruto's brother. There's no way he'd do anything that could potentially hurt that troublesome blonde."

Assimilating this information, Kakashi nodded and adjusted his plans. "Alright. Take your team and go to protect the academy. Don't worry about Naruto, I'll go after him myself." After relaying the commands to the genin, Kakashi addressed the jounin-sensei, "Kurenai, Gai, go to the hospital with them. Asuma, go to the academy with your team. Iruka should be there too. He'll help you protect the children… There are enough ANBU here to protect the crowd. I'm going to go see what I can do about the barrier." With that, everyone split off and went to their assigned locations.

Kakashi's heart thudded as he neared the barrier. Although he issued out commands coolly, he was anything but calm. The thought of his precious little student stuck in a barrier with arguably the two strongest ninja here was giving him a mini panic attack. Catching a glimpse of that bight blonde hair flashing in the barrier, he held his breath as Naruto interrupted the fight. He released it in relief when the Third pushed Naruto behind him. Narutooooooo! What are you doing?! Don't aggravate ninja that can kill you in the blink of an eye! You're going to give me a heart attack at this rate! Reaching the barrier, he winced as he saw a burnt ANBU standing near it. He studied it and groaned as he recognized the Four Violet Flames Formation.

"Can you break it?" Bird asked Kakashi, knowing that the other man had a background in seals. The ANBU captain was sure his former captain could think of a way to dismantle the barrier.

Kakashi shook his head no, "I don't know enough about seals to reverse the barrier." If only Naruto or Jiraiya was here… Shaking his head clear, Kakashi tried remembering what he knew about this seal. Wait! Minato-sensei mentioned this seal before! If I remember correctly, he said that the only way to dismantle the seal is to use a layered barrier talisman with the same resonance frequencies as the barrier. Apparently, it works off of the Barrier Gate Five Seals Technique: Castle Closing Eight Gates, which uses a seal that has the same frequency of the barrier to enter it. If I can make one that resonates with this barrier, then I can attack one of the ninja holding it up to make it collapse! With renewed determination, Kakashi began deciphering the barrier, trying to find out its frequency.

"You found something?" Bird asked, seeing Kakashi's renewed burning spirit.

"Yeah, I might be able to break it. Give me 45—no, 30 minutes and I'll have it cracked!" Kakashi spoke with resolve. He would break down this damned barrier in the next half hour, and there was nothing that could stop him!

"We're counting on you," Bird nodded and let the masked-jounin work.

Back to the Belly of the Barrier

"Are you just overjoyed, or is it…" Hiruzen began, but was cut off by Orochimaru stabbing down with his Kunai. He didn't even blink when he saw that the Snake Sage had pierced his own hand. "Or is it that you actually possess some regret at the thought of killing your teacher and mentor?"

To the ANBU's surprise, Orochimaru actually had a tear in his eye. "There… That feels better," he grinned, releasing Hiruzen and waving around his bloody hand.

What feels better? Don't tell me that he's not just a pedophile, but also a masochist?! Naruto thought in disbelief, as the Kyuubi snorted.

Oh Kit… If only everyone knew what you were thinking… He snickered at what the Snake Sage would do if Naruto called him out on his supposed masochistic tendencies.

"Nah… I'm just a bit sleepy… Some tears welled up as I yawned, that's all…" the Snake Sage denied, ignoring the throbbing pain in his chest. Must be time to change bodies again… He dismissed as he moved away from Hiruzen.

"Exactly as I expected…" the Hokage shook his head. "I know you're not a man to be moved by hatred…You have neither the motives nor purpose."

"Hmmm? Actually, I do have purpose. Well, to put it simply… I enjoy watching moving objects. It's boring when things stand still, don't you agree?" He sneered at Hiruzen, throwing off Rasa's cloak and hat. "A motionless pinwheel isn't worth watching… Then again, when it's stopped it can be sentimental too… Either way, I want to make the pinwheel spin with the destruction of Konoha right now…"

"Humph, you haven't changed a bit…" Sarutobi smirked at him, seeing traces of his former student. Orochimaru never was one to sit still…

Pinwheels, pinwheels, and pinwheels… Is that all this guy can talk about? Naruto ranted in his head as the Kyuubi sniggered. Man, I feel sorry for Jiji if Orochimaru hasn't changed at all… It must be tough being stuck with a masochistic pedophile that loves pinwheels… I can already see the conversations: Orochimaru, don't let that guy attack you! Stop stalking children, Orochimaru! "Urghh, for the last time, I don't care about pinwheels Orochimaru!" He accidentally said the last one aloud, stunning the other two into silence. Both aged shinobi were shocked to see that Naruto had tagged along with them without anyone noticing!

Just what are they teaching academy students these days? Orochimaru thought, intrigued as he stared at the blonde genin who was oblivious to the sudden attention.

What? Naruto? How did he even get here?! I must be getting old if he was able to slip past me… Hiruzen sighed, rubbing his forehead to stave off his impending headache. Maybe I should start looking for the next Hokage…

Kit, KIT! They noticed you! Kurama warned the blonde knucklehead, who sheepishly rubbed the back of his neck and said, "Oops…?" Seeing everyone as still staring at him, he nervously spoke again, "Um... Your pinwheel thing was great! You should totally go back to talking about that and ignore me because I'm… a distraction?" Before Orochimaru could respond, Naruto yelled, "Take this! Orioke no Jutsu: New Sexy Technique – Otokonoko Version!"

Orochimaru could only gape as Naruto Henged into a devil version of Sasuke holding a whip. What? You can use Henge that way?! I must learn this secret technique for research—I mean, to learn all the Jutsu of the world! He backtracked, as the word 'research' reminded him of his ex-teammate's perversion. And he was not a pervert, no matter what everyone else said about him! He refused to be put upon the same level as that moron!

The ANBU just gawked at the spectacle, wondering if that actually just happened. Wait… Wasn't that the same technique that downed the Third?! They looked at Naruto with respect. If the blonde could devise a Jutsu that could stop two powerful ninja in their tracks, just what could he do when he was older?

Expecting Naruto to pull something like this the moment he saw that mischievous grin on the blonde's face, Hiruzen made use of the interruption to summon Enma. Together, they mounted a sneak attack on Orochimaru.

Unfortunately, the Snake Sage dodged. Even when distracted, he could still pull off an escape. He was a member of the Sannin after all…

The Third pulled back, gently placing Naruto behind him. There was no way he was letting a genin get hurt in this fight. Especially when said genin was practically his surrogate grandson! "Orochimaru," Hiruzen growled as Naruto peeked at the fight from behind his Jiji.

The Snake Sage turned to face his once teacher and tipped his head mockingly, "Hiruzen…"

"Don't bring children into our fight! I would've taken care of you a long time ago if I knew you were going to pull off something like this…" the Third glared at Orochimaru, mistakenly believing that the Snake Sage had purposefully brought Naruto here so that he wouldn't be able to go all out.

Feeling a pang in his heart from once again being blamed for something he didn't do, Orochimaru growled, "You think I brought him here?!" He scowled, not bothering to correct Hiruzen's incorrect beliefs. He knew no one would believe him anyways… "Never mind, it doesn't matter. I could care less about what you think! Besides the blonde is intriguing. I don't mind him being here." He leered at Naruto who shrieked.

"I knew you were a masochistic pedophile who's after Sasuke!" the genin accused as the ANBU face-palmed. Orochimaru looked more amused than murderous, if a touch bewildered. Just where were these baseless accusations coming from? As if reading his thoughts, Naruto immediately explained, "You said I'm intriguing and I'm Henged like Sasuke with a whip… I knew you had issues, but I never knew they were this bad… You're just as perverted as Ero-sennin," he muttered the last part, but everyone still heard him with their enhanced senses.

Hearing this, Orochimaru couldn't help but get angry. "Don't compare me to that buffoon! I am nowhere near as perverted as him!" he hissed. Just why did everyone compare him to that moron? Why did everyone think that he was a pervert but not see that Jiraiya was just as, if not more, perverted? So what if he couldn't write as well as him? He was stronger than that Toad-loving fool. He even had a village and was a Kage! Hah! Beat that, Jiraiya! He thought smugly.

"Yeah, I don't buy it. You marked Sasuke because you wanted his body! If that's not perverted, I don't know what is…" Naruto just looked at Orochimaru with skepticism. A look that was echoed by the ANBU crowd. The Snake Sage grinded his teeth together. Why did no one ever believe him when he told them he wasn't a pervert?

Ignoring the ongoing chaos (he'd always suspected that Orochimaru had an issue with morality…), the Hokage launched the Shadow Shuriken Doppelganger Technique at Orochimaru while signaling for Enma to cover Naruto.

The Snake Sage didn't disappoint and immediately performed, "Kuchiyose: Edotensei! Summoning: Reanimation!"

Three coffins shot out of the roof, labeled as: The First, the Second, and the Fourth. Don't tell me…! Could he really be raising those spirits…?! Hiruzen quickly ran through a few hand signs, rushing to disturb the summoning process, but only managed to stop the last tomb. Damnit! He cursed as the creaked open revealing the First and Second Hokage.

"Woah! Who're they?" Naruto asked, gawking at the corpses stepping out of their coffins.

"Do you mean to tell me that you can't recognize the illustrious founders of Konoha?" Orochimaru mocked as he slapped a seal onto the First and Second Hokage.

"What? I thought they were long dead! And wasn't that technique lost a long time ago?" Naruto gaped at them, while Hiruzen's face became unusually grave. "They're not zombies, are they? I better summon Shin, he'll know what's going on…" the last sentence was murmured too quietly for anyone to catch, except for Enma who was standing right next to the blonde.

Shin? Enma looked at Naruto with curiosity. Does he have a summoning contract? He stared at the genin, wondering what he was going to do, but doubting it would make a difference in a fight between two opponents that both vastly outclassed the blonde.

Channeling his chakra, Naruto pushed some into the seal that held the Death God Mask. Yo, Shin, you coming?

Oh, is it already your turn? Shin asked, materializing in front of Naruto and Enma.

The Monkey King's jaw dropped open at the man in front of him. He's not a summons! How did he get through the barrier?! That's impossible! He denied, not believing his eyes.

"What's going on?" Shin asked, seeing that they weren't in the arena anymore. Naruto was supposed to summon him right before his match, but by the looks of it, things seemed a lot more complicated than just having the Chunin Exams.

"Orochimaru made the First and Second Hokage come back to life without using the mask! Is he allowed to do that? How'd he even find out how to do it, I thought all that information was long gone?" Naruto asked, frowning at the battle between Hiruzen and the two Hokage.

Shin glanced at the battle and made a disapproving clicking noise. "Tch, he must've used Edotensei. He probably worked backwards to remake it. That technique has been a pain in the ass ever since that damned Tobirama made it…" He scowled before smiling vindictively, "But I got my revenge on him for it. Whenever someone uses it, I make him do all the paperwork for it. And it creates a lot."

Enma shuddered. He didn't know who the man in front of him was, but he could feel the death energy radiating off of him. The last time he felt this aura was back when the Kyuubi had attacked Konoha and the Fourth was forced to use the Dead Demon Consuming Seal that called the… Shinigami! Wide-eyed, he watched 'Shin' ruffle Naruto's hair and say he'd take care of things, before disappearing into the shadows.

"Who is that?!" Enma demanded of Naruto, who just smiled serenely at him.

"That's my friend, Shin! Gami E. Shin," the blonde replied.

Gami E. Shin? Wait… Shin E. Gami, Shin-E-Gami, Shinigami?! "How did you even meet him?!" The child was going to give him a heart attack. What the heck was he thinking, making friends with the Death god?! Sweating, the monkey rubbed his forehead. He knew that only trouble would come from the Uzumaki and the Fourth procreating… With their penchants for getting into trouble (no matter what they were doing) and their (abnormal) ability to befriend almost anything, a child of the two was a disaster waiting to happen… Fortunately, the little rascal seemed to be possessed by Lady Luck, with the way he left the ridiculous situations he got into unscathed. Point in case: the blonde was somehow in the midst of a battle between the most powerful ninja in Konoha and the Death God said he'd help out… He could just see the child going out for a bite of Ramen (with those two as parents, there's no way the blonde couldn't like Ramen) and accidentally meeting a Kage from another country in disguise, somehow averting a nation-wide war… (Which incidentally did happen, although it was a Daimyo instead of a Kage…)

Seeing Enma's constipated look, Kurama felt empathetic. Give it up old monkey. There's no way to convince the knucklehead that this was a bad idea. Sage knows I tried… There was no way the blonde even remotely considered that befriending the fricking Death God, of all entities, was possibly dangerous. For Kami's sake, he even threatened him on their first meeting! Then again, he couldn't really say much seeing as he was the Kyuubi, the Biju known for his mass destruction of Konoha, and the blonde had almost no hesitation to befriending him… But even he knew that the Shinigami was not someone you could casually become friends with. Not that it made a difference to the blonde menace… Kurama thought fondly, his tails swaying in affection.

Naruto watched Shin appear next to the two revived Kage and shove his hands through their chests. "Return!" he shouted, ripping the souls out of their mortal bodies. "I'll be back later," he directed at Naruto. He wasn't too worried about the blonde. The genin wasn't scheduled to die anytime soon. So, unless Fate radically changed something (which she couldn't do without discussing with him), the blonde would stay safe. "I need to head over to the pure world and get these two back to where they belong…and assign some paperwork" his eyes flashed mischievously when he said the last part. Seeing Naruto nod at him, Shin wrapped himself in shadows and left. I can't wait to give Tobirama all the paperwork his fight created! Maybe I'll even add in some of my less important paperwork… He thought sadistically.

Enma was still too shocked at what had just happened to even move. It took Naruto prodding the Monkey King before he was able to reform any thoughts again. "Hey, you should go help Jiji. He'd never let me help him out, but you can still help him. Don't worry about me, I'll be safe," he promised. Seeing the sincerity in those his wide blue eyes, Enma couldn't help but stiffly nodding. Somehow, he knew that the blonde would be alright. Looking back one last time at the smiling blonde, he left to join Hiruzen in the battle against his student.

"I wish I could help," Naruto watched the battle in concern. Jiji was getting old and it didn't look like he could fight for much longer…

Kit, there's nothing you can do. You'd only be in the way… Kurama pacified, sending his chakra to soothe the blonde's agitated system. If you really want to help them, why don't you work on taking down this barrier? I've noticed that your teacher has only gotten a fourth of the way through. With you helping, it should be a lot faster… He suggested as Naruto perked up and wandered towards where Kakashi was standing in front of the barrier. Waving at the masked-jounin, Naruto signed that he would help and for Kakashi to show him what he'd done so far. The white-haired jounin held up his work and Naruto unsealed a paper, quickly copying it down and making adjustments where he saw fit. At the rate the two were working, it'd only take another ten more minutes before the inner barrier came down.

They never noticed an ANBU eyeing them ominously…

It's the Early Bird that gets the Worm, but it's the Toad that gets the Snake!

"Shit! We're not going to make it! That snake's just ripping everything apart! It'll reach the village soon if we don't stop it!" A panicked jounin rubbed his forehead, trying to think of a way to stop the Snake Summons, but coming up with nothing.

"Grr… This is out of control," Ibiki growled, watching the snake thrash upon the ground, smashing a few ninja into the trees.

"Kuchiyose no Jutsu: Mayhem Technique!" a voice rang out as a toad the size of the Hokage Monument dropped upon the snake, making it cough up blood.

"This technique…" Ibiki covered his face from the dust, finally feeling a small bit of hope rising. Could it be…?

Spiky white-hair flowed down the strong back of the man in front of them. He was carrying a scroll on his back, surveying his surroundings. "Ibiki… Long time no see! Sheesh! Is that hulking bulk of yours the only thing that's matured?"

"Lord Jiraiya…" Ibiki didn't know what to say. He still couldn't believe what had just happened.

"Lord Jiraiya?" the jounin from earlier asked in disbelief. "As in one of the three great Shinobi?!"

"I couldn't just keep watching!" Jiraiya made his signature pose, flashing the remaining snakes a wide grin. "You baby chicks! Open wide those beady little eyes of your and watch closely. Thank the heavens because here comes the unorthodox ninja sage Jiraiya! He's here to run amok among all the otherworldly creatures!"

The snakes quivered. They'd seen what the Toad Sage had done to their brethren. The crazy man had crushed their strongest like a worm! There was no way they wanted to end up in the same position! Mommy, I want to go home! A smaller snake whimpered. If snakes could pee, they'd be wetting their pants…their bellies right now.

"Yonder snakes trapped by my toad's stare, begone!" Jiraiya bellowed, watching as the snakes were forcefully recalled. So it's begun, eh, Orochimaru? Dropping down next to Ibiki, he asked, "Where's the Third?"

The skilled shinobi answered promptly, "The examination area, sir!"

"…I see," Jiraiya frowned. Don't you dare die old man… He had a gut feeling that something horrible was going to happen…

But was brought out of his thoughts by a familiar voice. "Jiraiya! Stop dropping me on people!" Gamabunta raged. "I told you the next time this happened, I was going to make you feel how it is to be dropped onto someone! Hey, where are you going—Get back here! I'm not done with you yet, you ninny!"

Jiraiya didn't even stop to hear the Toad's rants. He just kept on running. There was no way he was sticking around for whatever Gamabunta deemed as 'punishment'! The last time he was 'punished', he'd had to buy out three whole candy stores and one liquor store to make up for it! His poor wallet couldn't handle the burden of feeding the Toad when his cute little student had already cleaned him out earlier this week. The blonde was a bottomless stomach. He still didn't know where all the Ramen went. Then again, with parents like those… Before he could continue on this topic any longer, Jiraiya tripped and felt a tongue wrap around him. Shit! He caught me! He gulped as he saw the menacing grin on the Toad Boss's face. I knew something bad was going to happen today… He thought, resigning himself to his fate.

Hiruzen Sarutobi Must Die!

Kinoto watched as that traitor Hatake and the blonde brat were deciphering the barrier. If he had his way, that barrier would never be taken down.

'Your job is to assassinate Hiruzen Sarutobi to pave the way for the new Hokage: Me!' Danzo-sama's directions from that day years ago echoed in his head. It was the day he'd failed all thanks to that man.

He would never forgive Kakashi Hatake for betraying Danzo-sama's trust. That awful night would forever be seared into his brain. He had failed Danzo-sama. He deserved to be discarded... But, Danzo-sama didn't care. He allowed him to remain in his wondrous presence even though he didn't deserve it. He didn't even blame him for losing to that damnable Hatake for the second time when he was tasked to retrieve his Sharingan!

But now, he had a chance to make Danzo-sama's dreams come true! All he had to do was 'fix' the seals they were working on. Then, none of the ANBU would be able to help the Hokage battle Orochimaru. And with the Third's advanced age, it would take next to no time for him to fall to his student. Then they could 'persuade' the council to call a vote of no-confidence and boot him out of the spot of Hokage!

The best part about this was that he had the perfect alibi! Everyone knew he was a Juinjutsu specialist, which meant he knew way more about sealing than those two amateurs ever would. Hatake was only a lowly Seal Expert. He had no way of telling whether or not he was actually right or wrong. The only way to tell would be if the brat was a Seal Master or something, which honestly wasn't very likely…

If he caused big enough of a disaster, the Third might even get distracted and finally be killed off! Maybe Orochimaru would even take care of the blonde nuisance while he was at it. Then, they'd finally be able to take control of the Kyuubi and seal it into one of their more… trusted members.

Walking over to the white-haired jounin, Kinoto struggled not to attack him. If it weren't for the masked-jounin, they would've succeeded in taking out the Third that day and Danzo-sama would've already been on the throne by now… Gripping his hands tightly in his pockets, he forced himself to speak in a neutral tone. "May I see what you are working on? I have a mastery in Juinjutsu and might be able to crack the code."

"Ah, I think we're fine on our own… But thanks for the offer," Kakashi refused bluntly. Something was incredibly off about the man, making his senses go into overdrive as he tried to remember where he knew him from. The only thing he could recall was that their meeting wasn't a good one.

"I insist. Allow me to help take down the barrier. I've had years of experience," he smiled genially, or at least tried to. Those self-help books Danzo-sama had given him weren't really that helpful…

Meanwhile, as the Root ANBU reminisced, alarms were going off in Kakashi's head. If the other man knew how to take down the barrier, why didn't he offer his help earlier? Why now when they were almost finished? It was rather suspicious of him to show interest in them this late. Could he be a spy…?

He was startled out of his thoughts when Naruto yelled out, "I'm done! Check it out!" The blonde then proceeded to show them both the completed version of the seal.

Before Kakashi could do anything, Kinoto exclaimed, "That's great! Why don't we test it out!" He then proceeded to make the hand signs to activate the seal.

Naruto's blue eyes widened as he saw only half of the seal activate and cancel out all of the inner barriers. He gulped. This was not good…

Kakashi watched in growing horror as the man performed the hand signs to remove the inner barriers of the Sound Four, who were all at least jounin level. Even he would have trouble beating them! And now Naruto had to face tham all by himself?!

"Why didn't it work?" Kinoto asked, feigning confusion. Internally he was feeling smug for pulling it off.

"Because you only did the version for the inner barriers!" Kakashi growled through his gritted teeth. "Now we have to wait until all of them are defeated to remove the outer barrier!"

"Oh… That's too bad…" Kinoto shrugged. "I'm sorry it didn't work out…"

"You shouldn't have interfered in the first place!" Kakashi hissed, emitting killing intent. "For your sake, I hope Naruto gets out of this unhurt. Otherwise, I'm going to hunt you down and make you wish this had never happened!"

Kinoto just remained silent. No matter what the copy-nin did to him, he'd never regret helping out his precious Danzo-sama.

Sakon watched the inner barrier protecting him melt away. Oi, Ukon, what's going on?

It appears that the trash has used a seal to take down the inner barrier… Ukon replied.

We must stop him! We can't let him take it down! Sakon thought back. But… How to stop him? If someone's not holding up the barrier, won't it fall?

…This is why they have the saying 'Wise older brother, foolish younger brother'. Ukon thought back in fond exasperation. Can't you feel it? The seal somehow made it so that we're connected to the outer barrier even if we move around.

Ohhh… Hey! Sakon indignantly replied.

Go meet up with the others, so we can take out the trash! Ukon commanded.

Aww, but I wanted to go and finish him off! Sakon whined.

There's no time for games, Sakon. Ukon scolded, as Sakon neared the rest of the Sound Four.

I know. Sakon grumbled but listened to his older brother.

They never realized this would be the last fight they ever fought.

Shit! Kurama cursed as he saw the four shinobi who were holding up the barrier walk towards Naruto. Kit, why don't you summon me? He suggested, wanting to be able to protect Naruto incase anything went wrong.

That's a great idea! Let me summon both of you! Naruto grinned and went through the hand signs to summon them.

Wait! Kit, I don't think that's a great idea— Kurama began but was cut off when he was summoned into the real world. Coughing from the smoke, he looked up and saw Gamamaru had landed upon the fat barrier-holder with orange hair. Well, that's one way of getting rid of them… He sweat-dropped when Gamamaru shrunk down into his human version and stepped on the ninja he'd just flattened.

Jirobo groaned, he felt like that one time when Sakon had 'accidentally' dropped his Rashomon upon him after he'd eaten his lunch. He tried to shakily stand up, but found that none of his limbs were moving the way he wanted them to. His last thought before becoming unconscious was, I wish I'd eaten at that Ramen place…

Naruto tensed, not understanding why he suddenly felt companionship with the ninja that Gamamaru had landed upon. He shook his head, dismissing his feelings as tiredness. He was still a little drained from summoning three times in a row, but that wouldn't stop him from kicking their butts!

Kurama stood lazily, appraising the ninja in front to see which one of them was the biggest threat. "Gamamaru, you take on the white-haired one, while I'll take on the one with spiky-hair." Gamamaru nodded and they both went off to fight their respective opponents.

Kurama cracked his fists. This was going to be fun~!

That means I have to fight the girl… Naruto thought, already forming the hand sign needed for his signature jutsu.

Tayuya scoffed, slipping into her Level 1 cursed form. She didn't need her Level 2 form to deal with this worm. As if this midget could beat her! Using her flute, she started playing The Chains of Fantasia.

Naruto's breathing became labored as the genjutsu took effect, his clones dispelling at the first signs of the genjutsu, hitting him with multiple memories of being bound and burned. It felt like a bunch of ropes were wrapped around him and then pulled tight as someone tried melting off his flesh. He gritted his teeth together, ignoring the pain and pulled against the ropes.

"Give it up! No one has survived the sound of my flute!" Tayuya mocked, confident in her abilities. She'd read the reports, and according to them, the worm sucked at dispelling genjutsu.

Normally Naruto would get around this weakness by relying on Kurama to shock him out of it. But, Kurama was outside of him today, fighting that other shinobi. So, he was on his own. Ignoring the scorching sensation of his skin dripping off, Naruto yanked at his bindings with all his strength, grinning as he heard one snap.

"How are you doing this?!" Tayuya raged, not understanding how the midget was manipulating her genjutsu. People were usually in too much pain to even bother trying to break free from their constraints. But that didn't stop Naruto. He was used to pain. It only gave him another reason to try harder.

He tugged at the ropes once more and finally yanked himself free, breaking the genjutsu manually. At once, he unsealed two earplugs and stuffed them into his ears so he couldn't hear anything. He figured since the girl didn't do anything other than play her flute, the genjutsu must've come from the sound.

Tayuya scowled, not having thought that the blonde would've figured it out so quickly. Focusing on her anger, she transformed into her Level 2 cursed form. "For an idiot like you, understanding the complexity of my melody isn't too bad. But there is no way that you can completely comprehend this song. I'll play you a melody of death!" She yelled and then summoned her Doki, three ten-foot tall Rage Ogres that had their mouths sewn shut.

Naruto's jaw dropped open as he saw the three angry demons in front of him. What are those? He wondered in morbid curiosity, almost forgetting that they were fighting. Jumping out of the way of a club that was three times as big as him, he rolled and made more Kage Bunshin. "Listen, here's what we're going to do…" The clones huddled together to listen to his plan.

"Come out, come out, wherever you are, little rat," Temari called out, giggling as one of her Doki smashed another piece of fallen debris. Leaving the search to her summons, Tayuya surveyed the battlefield. The Third, Enma, and Orochimaru were still fighting, while Jirobo was lying on the ground looking like a dead fish. Always knew he was useless waste of space… She sneered at her teammate and turned away to see how the others were doing. Kidomaru was flat on the floor in a growing puddle of blood, a red-head standing next to him. Sakon and Ukon were knocked out by the frogman that had squished Jirobo before. Shitty weak scum of teammates! She cursed, redoubling her efforts to find the brat. Those two summons were definitely stronger than her. If she took the brat hostage, she could force them to stop fighting. Either way, she had to finish this fight and fast!

Flicking the blood off his clawed hands, Kurama moved towards where he sensed Naruto was, only to be stopped by a Doki with needles stuck in its head like a pincushion. He growled at the figure blocking him. He didn't have much chakra left over. Naruto had used almost half his chakra to summon the Shinigami and let it stay so long. He used another third of his chakra to summon both him and Gamamaru, making them only have enough chakra to stay for about twenty minutes without using it. He'd already used up five minutes of it in the battle, and had stayed for about ten minutes, meaning he only had about five minutes left over. Gamamaru, that stupid frog, got excited and used up all his chakra in his haste to help out Naruto, causing him to be recalled, as he forgot he could use his own chakra to stay behind. Narrowing his eyes at the Doki in front of him, Kurama measured that he had enough chakra to make one more move before dissipating. Ok, got to make this one count! He drew back his clawed arm and scratched at the air, sending an air slice that cleaved through two of the Doki. Now only Tayuya and one another Doki remained. Satisfied that he'd protected his Kit, he allowed himself to be recalled.

Naruto and his clones threw themselves at the Doki with the club. "Attack! 100-punch-combo!" Naruto yelled as 100 of his clones aimed a punch at the Doki. Unfortunately, it didn't even phase it. "100-wind-bullet!" Naruto shouted out the next part of his plan. The Doki roared as cuts appeared all over him. Unfortunately, even 100 wind bullets barely hurt him! Naruto scowled and signaled to his clones to begin the last part of his plan. They chained themselves into a loop and threw Naruto at the Doki. Making another shadow clone, Naruto dodged the club and used another shadow clone to launch himself at the Doki's behind. He only had one shot at this. "1000 Years of Death-Naruto style!" he yelled and plunged a Kunai up the Doki's ass. This, the Doki definitely felt. He swung his club at the clones, dispelling them into smoke and grabbed Naruto with his one free hand, trapping him against the roof of the outer barrier.

Kakashi panicked as he saw Naruto's face turning blue. No! He thought, wishing he could help out.

Kinoto smirked. Did the blonde really think shoving a Kunai up an Ogre's butt would stop it? Humph, good riddance!

Tayuya grinned, planning to take out the blonde scum before he could do any more damage. "Revolt of the Demon World!" she yelled out as a materialized spirit flew out of the Doki's mouth towards Naruto.

He made a face as he saw the creepy blob fish with piranha teeth wriggling towards him. Gross… He thought, not at all panicking. Instead he yelled, "Explode!" He shut his eyes as the Kunai inside the Doki detonated sending bits flying everywhere. Flipping as he fell, he landed in a crater, smirking ferally at the red-head as chunks of meat rained down from the sky.

Tayuya stared at the scene before her in disbelief. Just where did it all go wrong? Kinoto silently agreed with her wondering why the blonde brat was so hard to kill.

Kakashi, on the other hand, was relieved to see his little bundle of joy safe on the ground. Now all he had to do was defeat Tayuya and then he'd be able to take down the barrier. You can do it, Naruto!

Naruto grinned, happy to see his plan to take down the Doki had worked. So, caught up in his fight with the Doki, he didn't notice that the shadow clone Tayuya secretly made snuck up behind him.

LOOK OUT! Kurama screamed in his mind, but it was already too late… "Underworld Turnover Technique!" the clone shouted, trapping Naruto in a dome of stone, as his body went limp.

Kit? KIT? Kurama panicked. He couldn't feel Naruto anymore!

Tayuya saw the boy's body fall onto the ground and released a sigh. Alright, it actually worked… Now I just need to go heal the others. She was about to go do that when her thoughts were cut off by a snarl. "You…! No way!" She backed away in horror as a red-pupiled Naruto's face twisted into a look of hatred.

"You've just taken away my most cherished treasure, and now, I'm going to kill you!" Kurama growled, as he used Naruto's body to slice through the red-head in front of him. He turned towards the stone dome and flared his chakra, stretching out his sensing ability. There! He walked towards the spot he felt Naruto's spirit at and wrapped his chakra around it gently, slowly coaxing it back into the blonde's body. When he was all finished, he breathed a sigh of relief and slumped down, returning control to Naruto.

"Urghh, what happened?" Naruto groaned, falling to the floor and blinking his bright blue eyes at the sky. "I feel terrible…"

Ah, sorry Kit, that's my fault. Kurama replied sheepishly. He'd gone a bit overboard when he'd taken over the blonde's body. He was just so angry and scared at the thought of losing Naruto forever, that he just reacted, not taking into consideration how much of his chakra Naruto's body could handle…

"Oh, that's alright then. So, we won?" Naruto asked curiously, as he sat up. He was still too tired to stand, so he just stayed sitting, watching the barrier shake as it collapsed on itself.

Yeah, we won. Kurama replied, wrapping his chakra around Naruto's. He needed a physical (or as close as he could get to physical) reminder that the blonde was still there and that he didn't lose him. Naruto shivered at the touch, but relaxed. It felt nice, as if Kurama was protecting him with his own chakra.

The barrier finally broke, letting the ANBU inside. Kakashi immediately entered the broken barrier and wrapped his arms protectively around Naruto in a warm hug. The rest of the ANBU went off to help the Hokage, only a few staying behind to secure the Sound Four.

Kinoto forced himself not to scowl. He was so close to getting rid of the Third and the blonde brat when everything went pear-shaped. He should've counted on the fact that the Kyuubi would protect its container from harm. Why else would the blonde have an advanced healing technique (other than his Uzumaki legacy)? …The worst part about this was that he couldn't even do anything now to harm the brat as it'd look suspicious…

Everyone was too caught up in their own thoughts to notice the barrier suddenly flare green. No one was ready when the barrier suddenly stabilized, reforming rapidly and kicking everyone out.

A Battle Amongst the Best

"Stop playing, Orochimaru!" Hiruzen grunted as he deflected yet another blow with Enma.

"Humph," Orochimaru huffed. Honestly, sensei's no fun… Stretching his mouth open, he yanked out a sword. They flew in a flurry of strikes, sword against monkey, monkey against sword. Sparks flew as they struck, the two battle hardened shinobi drawing back after an intense bout of blows. "It seems like your adamantine staff is no match against my Kusanagi," he sneered.

"No matter the pain, Enma and I won't stop until you're taken down!" Hiruzen stated solemnly. He was about to continue when the barrier around them started flickering. "What? Has someone taken it down?" he wondered in shock.

Orochimaru gritted his teeth. All his plans were falling apart. He couldn't get Sasuke's body in the forest because of the pink-haired-she-devil, he couldn't get the Kyuubi container because of the evil bug-boy, and now he couldn't kill Sarutobi because of his useless minions. How did the dead-last of the academy defeat his elite Sound Four? Even with the Kyuubi helping, they shouldn't have been defeated so easily! Damn, if only Kimimaro was here… No matter, at least I'll be able to test out my backup plan. Channeling his chakra, Orochimaru sent it into the barrier, activating the secondary set of seals he'd hidden in the old formation. "Chakra Barrier Release!" he yelled out, as the barrier pulled itself back together and removed everyone who had a lower chakra level than him. The only people who could freely enter the barrier were those who had an equal or higher chakra level to him, meaning only the Third. Those meddling ANBU would have no way to stop him now! The only flaw in this plan, was that the barrier had shrunk itself and that it trapped those within it until the user ran out of chakra or let go of the technique. This meant that for every second he held it up, it drained him of .01% of his chakra reserves. As he only had about 20% of his reserves leftover, he had to end this and fast.

Naruto was enjoying the warmth of Kakashi's hug, when suddenly it was ripped away from him. Too exhausted to resist, he let the barrier carry him closer to the fight between the Hokage and Orochimaru. Studying the reformed barrier, he suppressed a groan as he realized it would only give way if the one who activated it let it go. Considering it didn't look like the Snake Sage was going to do that anytime soon, his chances of leaving were looking slim… Pushing himself up, he shakily used his sealing brush to add a few symbols to the barrier. Hah! Take that you stupid snake-perv! He couldn't take it down as he had next to no chakra leftover, but he could make it so that it drained Orochimaru's reserves faster! Satisfied with his work, the blonde slumped down again, deciding to watch the fight from afar.

Orochimaru grunted as he met another attack from Hiruzen. Pulling back, he rechecked his chakra levels. What?! Why do I only have 5% leftover?! He thought in shock. According to his calculations, he should've had 10% not 5%. What could have changed it? Unless…! Narrowing his eyes at the barrier's borders in suspicion, he noticed the blonde brat sitting against the barrier, smiling smugly. He must have done something to drain my chakra! Orochimaru concluded as he dodged another attack of the Third. It doesn't look like I'll be able to kill of the old man… Time to make my escape! His slitted yellow eyes glinted as he thought up a plan. Smirking, he launched an attack at Hiruzen, his grin widening as Hiruzen dodged it. "You're getting old, sensei, if you couldn't see through an attack like that!" he taunted.

Hiruzen frowned, wondering what his wayward student was talking about. See through the attack…? His eyes widened as he realized that Orochimaru had wanted him to dodge the attack. A foreboding feeling filled him, as he turned around and saw the attack headed towards Naruto! "No!" he yelled, but it was too late. He watched helplessly as those blue eyes widened at the incoming attack. The blonde's body trying to move but being unable to. "No," he whispered.

Orochimaru's eyes gleamed as he saw Sarutobi distracted. It was a shame he had to kill the blonde, but you couldn't have everything you wanted. At least he could get revenge for his ruined plans… Moving in for the kill, he was about to attack when a shockwave knocked him over. Looking up, his eyes widened as he recognized that familiar figure standing inside a crater.

A Few Moments Ago—Back to when the Barrier was Reformed

The ANBU that had been evicted, picked themselves off the ground and hurriedly secured Orochimaru's disciples. All of them (except for Kinoto) were angry at what just happened. They were so close to taking down Orochimaru for good when that stupid barrier came back up, trapping the Hokage, Orochimaru, and the Kyuubi brat. Unfortunately, none of them had the reserves to enter the barrier. It was actually impressive to see that the blonde was still stuck in the barrier considering he appeared to be chakra exhausted… How much chakra did he have to be able to match Orochimaru and the Third?

Kakashi glared at the barrier, hoping it would self-destruct so he could have his cute little student tucked away in his arms so he couldn't get into any more trouble. It was terrifying to see how close to the battle the blonde was. Just one missed attack and he could be taken away from them forever! He growled as he saw one of the attacks just miss the blonde by a few feet. Watching the fight, he saw Orochimaru sneak a glance at Naruto before aiming his last attack at the Third. Feeling something sinister about that last attack, Kakashi followed it and panicked when he saw it headed towards the unsuspecting blonde! He watched in growing horror as the attack drew closer and closer until it was only a little bit away. "Move! Get out of the way!" he urged desperately, paling when he saw the blonde's limbs only twitch as he tried to move out of the way. Thinking it was the end, he was surprised when someone dropped down from the sky, forming a crater where they landed. As the dust cleared, a pig-tailed blonde stood in the center of the crater in front of Naruto, protecting the genin.

Everyone was silent. They couldn't believe that she was actually here… What the hell?

Baa-chan is Back!

Naruto closed his eyes, waiting for the attack to hit him, when he felt a rumble instead. An earthquake? He thought, opening his eyes to see a blonde lady in a grass-green haori standing in front of him. Kake? Gamble? He read the word inside the red circle on her back.

"Orochimaru…" she said, glaring at the Snake Sage,

"Tsunade, how pleasant to see you again. Why are you here again? I thought you vowed to never come back…" Orochimaru asked, looking at his ex-teammate.

"I'm here for this Gaki," she gestured towards Naruto. "No one hurts my grandson and gets away with it!"

"Baa-chan!" Naruto was open-mouthed in a mixture of shock and elation at seeing Tsunade standing in front of him. He never expected she'd actually come to see him!

"Brat," she grinned at the blonde. After all those letters, she just had to come. There was no putting it off any longer. She couldn't neglect her only living relative that actually took the time to write to her for months, despite getting no response. She still felt pain to see Konoha in all its glory without Dan or Nawaki by her side, but she was glad she'd come. If she hadn't, she might've lost another precious person to her without being able to do anything. At least this time, she could be there for him…

Emotions welled up in Orochimaru. How was the brat doing this?! All his plots so far have been stopped in one way or the other due to the blonde. It was like he was a jinx sent from hell to ruin all his plans. He tightened his fist as rage, frustration, resentment, and a small amount of awe surged through him. Closing his eyes, he took a deep breath and forced himself to calm down. It looked like all his plans to attack were out. He had to think up a plan to escape, it was the only way he was going to get out of this alive. Okay, think Orochimaru. What are their weaknesses? How can I exploit them? Aha! Got it! When he opened his pale-yellow eyes a few seconds later, he'd already thought up a way to escape. Normally, this would be impossible, but Orochimaru wasn't called a genius for nothing! What would take others hours to plan, would only take him mere moments before he was able to formulate a new strategy.

Double-checking that everyone was distracted by his ex-teammate's arrival, Orochimaru sent a shadow clone with Kusanagi to deal with Sarutobi and rushed Tsunade.

The Slug Princess punched out at Orochimaru, expecting him to avoid it. However, the Snake Sage didn't alter his route and met the punch head on with his backup sword which shattered into a million pieces from the force of the punch, scratching Tsunade. The pig-tailed blonde froze as red rivulets of blood dripped down her fist.

She was paralyzed, the memories of her failures running through her head in a loop. Dan, Nawaki, I'm so, so sorry… I couldn't heal you, I'm a failure. I can't heal anyone...

Orochimaru smirked sadistically as he saw her stiffen up. Looks like she really does have hemophobia… What a surprise for a medic of her caliber to succumb to something so irrational… He aimed another attack at her, intending to kill her so no one would be able to stop him from leaving. The ANBU had already helped Hiruzen deal with his clone, and he didn't want to take any chances that they could catch him. If he killed her, then they'd be too busy trying to heal her to go after him.

Naruto watched in awe at how Tsunade battled Orochimaru, only to have it change to horror when she stopped and stood in place as Orochimaru shot a Lightning Water Dragon Bullet at her. "Baa-chan! Move!" he yelled, but she still didn't snap out of her trance-like state. Gathering all his remaining strength, Naruto pushed Tsunade out of the way, only to black out as the attack pierced a hole through his chest.

KIT! YOU CAN'T DIE ON ME! I WON'T ALLOW IT! Kurama boomed, saturating Naruto's system with his chakra, wincing at the blonde's cry of pain. Although it hurt, this was the only way he could make sure the blonde would survive until he got some medical help.

The scream of pain finally startled Tsunade out of her trance. Before she knew what she's doing, she was already summoning Katsuyu and telling the slug to heal Naruto. Seeing the blonde lying on the ground, bleeding out from a hole in his chest, fury coursed through her veins and the next thing she knew was that she'd delivered a punch to Orochimaru's abdomen, pulverizing him into a bloody mess. Unfortunately, he'd already shed his body using his Slithering Snake Mode to escape. Kneeling down next to the blonde, she tried using Mystic Palm Technique to stem the blood, only to see it wasn't working. The wound was too deep and he was losing too much blood for them to attempt surgery. There was only one way she could heal him now. She drew four formula lines around the wound and sat down, using the single-person version of the Regenerative Healing Jutsu. Usually this technique took multiple healers working together for hours on end to work, but she was Tsunade of the Sannin, Konoha's Slug Princess, the Legendary Sucker, the world's strongest kunoichi and medical-nin! With Katsuyu helping her, there was no way she could fail. Carefully controlling her chakra, she sent it through the hole and was relieved to see it closing up. Wow, it's healing up faster than I thought it would… Could the Kyuubi be helping the boy? She thought absently as she finished healing the blonde. Only when there was no sign of any damage did she stop, gently gathering Naruto up in her arms. "Sensei, I'm going to the hospital," she spoke abruptly and left the clearing, leaving the dazed ANBU and her stunned teacher behind. Only Kakashi had the presence of mind to follow her.

Hiruzen watched his student leave with his surrogate grandson, bemused but relieved that Naruto was alright. He surveyed the village from his position and was surprised to see Sand fighting against Sound under the command of a red-head who he was sure was the Suna Jinchuuriki from the exams. The snakes had been defeated by Jiraiya and it looked like none of the enemy-nin were able to breach the hospital nor the academy. The last few remnants of Oto had fled while the rest were either captured or dead. All in all, this was a very successful campaign, as they'd defended their home against the invaders with minimal casualties. It was a pity that Orochimaru had escaped Konoha yet again… Next time, the Snake Sage wouldn't be so lucky, Hiruzen swore as he made his way towards the ANBU commander. There would be a lot more work (and paperwork) to get done before Konoha was back to the way it was before the invasion…

Replies to Reviews:

MoKhan97: I'm pretty sure Yaoi stories have sex in them? (I could be wrong...) So, no, this story isn't yaoi because I can't really write romance that far yet. As for pairings, both boys and girls like Naruto but I don't really want to pair him up with anyone yet, although I am leaning towards Shikamaru just because I liked their relationship in the manga version. Their friendship was really great! :) Buthonestly, this story will probably be gen with hints from everyone (just more heavily from Shikamaru)...

Wyrtha: Actually, I haven't seen any of the episodes... *cries* I have no plans as of yet to include her, but maybe she'll come in during the training arc? I really don't know yet because I haven't planned that far out... Orochimaru is just too slick like that. :) They can't avoid him even if they tried! I won't say anything about the curse seals because I think that'll be in the next chapter or the one after hopefully... Glad you liked Karin! I thought she was super entertaining when I first read about her, so I just had to include her! :) Also, I don't think I mentioned it above, but Naruto does get paid by Hiashi. I have no idea who'll be promoted yet, but I like that idea of advancing everyone! They've all really grown, haven't they? Except for Sasuke... I feel I gave him the short stick... His skills haven't really improved at all from canon while everyone else around him has advanced further... But it is his fault for being to stubborn to join the training sessions... Glad you liked the meetings from before. When I first started writing this story I was going to have it so it only had meetings discussing canon events and strictly followed canon. Don't know where that went as I deviated so far from canon that it's a whole another adventure. But I'm glad it did, what came out was fun in its own way! :)

aespopd: I love bonding between characters. Those stories are my favorite to read! Haha, I totally get what you're talking about with Kurama being super ooc in gender or teachings. I tried not to make him too ooc, but he's still different from canon. I think I made him too overprotective and attached to Naruto, but that too has a draw in tis own way. :)

hennessyswagg83: Haha, actually in this chapter in the hospital, it was supposed to be Ino who gave Naruto the plantbut somehow it became Gaara and I have no idea what happened to Ino. I was going to change it later on but then I got lazy and left it as Gaara. Karin's super awesome! I don't know so many people forget about Karin, she's so amusing! I have no idea how closely related everyone is, but I get what you mean about the incest thing, but I think that if you know how closely related to someone you are, then it's probably too close, haha. :) Wow, I never knew he had sooooo many female interests! Now I'm going to have to think of a way to include all of them in somehow, ahhhhhh! Oh well, I'm sure it'll work out somehow... ;)

duchessliz: Glad you liked that! I was worried that it was too repetitive, but I though it was funny too, haha. :) Actually, if Naruto uses Kurama's chakra to access the bracelets, then people would be able to hear him too. (But I think I was careful enough in the last chapter so they haven't heard him yet.) So true about Neji having a crush on Naruto! And there was no fight scene... I tried to write one but I couldn't imagine it with their new dynamics as Naruto didn't need to punch sense into Neji anymore, it'd be sort of a drawn out spar... And considering he spars with Hinata, I think Naruto would be able to reopen his blocked chakra pathways pretty easily, so it'd be a pretty one-sided fight, which would be boring... Hope you like his fight with Tayuya and her Doki though instead. I don't think Kakahsi knows how far Naruto is with his sealing prowess considering he'd never been tested before. I mean, someone can say they read all the books for a class, but until they're tested, you don't actually know how much they learned... Haha, Kakashi is definitely better informed than the rest, but even he doesn't know how powerful they are. But from what he's seen, he wants to get more powerful so he doesn't get left behind. :) I actually day dreamed that Rasa and Gaara bit and just had to have it because I burst out laughing in class. It was too funny to not include! Yay, Sai for the win! I'm still pro NaruShika, haha! :)

Ash0011: Haha, I haven't even decided what to do about Pein yet... Do you think the Uzumaki genes will shine through and he'll be a Ramen addict too? Yeah, I think I mentioned that other Uzumaki working on an island in this chapter, but she's dead (and I got my info from wiki that she was only a suspected Uzumaki, but I made her a real one)... Haha, I might just have to invite you in to do that, Sasuke has always frustrated me in canon! Nothing he did ever made any sense! (That might be why my subconscious made him so under-powered compared to everyone else...) Right now his "inner-self" doesn't want him to kill Naruto for power, but his "Orochimaru inner-self" does and he thinks that his "Orochimaru inner-self" is his real "inner-self"... I read "It's for a good cause" after you recommended it and what they did with Gaara was hilarious! ;) Aww, you can't leave me hanging like that, I want to know what the other similar story was. :) Does TLDR mean my chapter was too long? Because this chapter is longer, though I really should've split it up, bit oh well, it's too late for that now. ;) I didn't know I could write either until I stuck with it. Actually, I edited the first chapter for 6 whole days until I finally thought it flowed right. In the end, it was totally different from how it began, so I guess practice makes better. If you ever do write something, it'd be fun to read. :)

HalfwayParanoid: Oooh, glad you liked the length, because I think this chapter is even longer! :)

KK: Potato chips, yum! But now I'm hungry... :( Yeah, I felt it was going too fast too, but I thought it was entertaining so I kept it. Plus, I really don't like slow build-ups as they sort of bore me so insta-power-ups it was. But to defend, in canon, it only took a month of super-focused Naruto to learn something, so the learning skill is there, he just doesn't use it... Haha, and I think it's fun having everyone super-focused on him, so I left that in. (But I really should think of an excuse for that. How does Kyuubi-induced pheromones sound? Lol...) :) But yay, you're comment made me happy! Glad you liked it!

scarlet00500: Glad you like it and that you understand! :) I'll try to reply to all comments as long as the story is continuing because I like reading them, so everyone deserves a response, right? (Plus, I only get about 10 comments per chapter, so it isn't too hard... XD ) Haha, I remember AP classes, which one are you taking? My school offered a lot so I took about five senior and junior year (which sucked and I totally don't recommend doing...) I like Orochimaru too! He's funny to me, plus his backstory is kind of fishy... I was rereading the manga to write this chapter, and I never noticed that he was crying when fighting the Third?! It was never explained later on, so I kind of want to explore that depth in this story. Yeah, discontinued stories make me cry too... It's like when you're reading a story that's marked as 'complete' and you get to the end, only to find out it's discontinued! I don't think I could ever abandon my story, even though I have no idea what I'm going to do about the whole crazy space aliens thing yet... Thanks for the support! Do well on your midterms too! Haha, that last sentence was perfect, thank you so much! :)

cdog1019: Yes, toast is just so seductive! ;) Oh my god, I didn't even realize I wrote that, haha! I think I'm going to keep it like that because it was too funny (and because I'm lazy). Nice catch!

JustADamFrenchFry: Sorry about not updating that month, but here's a chapter! Crying Naruto would just tug on my heartstrings too. So far, he's only told the Hokage and the Toads about Kurama. Oh, and the Shinigami, but he already knew, so that doesn't count. Yup, you got it in one! He still doubts his acceptance among the genin. He's been alone for so long, I don't think he remembers how to let people in and know about his problems. I feel if eh was going to tell anyone (after the Hokage), it'd have to be Iruka then Kakashi and then all the rest. But, he doesn't hide his relationship with Kurama, he just doesn't tell anyone who exactly Kurama is. I think you've got everything right about Karin! I thought she was funny reading her description on wiki, but you can see some hints of her in this chapter. I feel like she's the opposite of Sai in some ways... Yeah, Sasuke's seal is an issue that I'm hoping to solve in the next few chapters. I have an outline of what I want to do, so we'll see how it goes. :)

serialkeller: I love fluffy things! It's in the name, haha. :)

arisu: Harem Naru with everyone all the way, haha! That's great, I would so read a story with this. ;)

Meh: Here's the update! I've finally finished typing it yesterday! :)

Giraffeknees: Don't worry, I'll continue! In fact, here's the continuation! :)