Okay, this really shouldn't have taken this long to get out here given it's short length, but several specific circumstances made focusing on this rather difficult. You know, things like Easter, final school projects, and oh yeah becoming an uncle for the first time ever!!! That's right, about four weeks ago my sister-in-law gave birth to a healthy baby girl, their first child and my first niece. Understandably, I've been a bit distracted since then, but even so I have finally managed to finish this epilogue. I know at least a couple of you were expecting something a great deal more than this, but all I really wanted to accomplish was to tie off a few loose story ends and set up a last handful of details before Full Circle. It's not much, but I think you all will enjoy it.

Anonymous reviews:
-Wolfkun: Really? I thought I had understood that several of the Villagers actually came to resent the Fourth for the way he dealt with the Fox. (Shrugs) Well, either way, I'm glad you enjoyed my story. Thanks in particular for that comment about Shino --his was one of the chapters I found hardest to write.
-Tonya S: I'm glad you liked the character flashbacks, because they were a fun challenge for me to write. And thank you very much for the Genius Approved Stamp. : ) As for Naruto's inauguration and his introspective, I'm afraid I don't have time for them at the moment. However, I do have a project planned in the future that they would be perfect for, so I'll hold on to them until then. Thanks for the ideas!

Disclaimer: FanFiction is like Monopoly; you can have a great deal of fun playing the game, but when everything is said and done you still own nothing.

Tsunade laid the small stack of papers on her desk and allowed herself a small satisfied smile. She'd read the report before, of course, but the ninja to whom it pertained was scheduled to return today.

The doors to her office slammed open with a bang! Tsunade glanced up casually and mused, Speak of the sun and it will shine… "Welcome back, Naruto."

The tall, blond, not-quite-so-obnoxious twenty-year-old in the doorway chuckled. "The Pervy Sage's right," he joked as he strode forward. "You hardly ever jump any more." He came to stand casually opposite her desk. "Naruto Uzumaki, reporting from duty."

Tsunade nodded and gestured for him to take a seat. "I've been expecting you. I trust your mission went well?" Her tone was formal --her 'official voice'-- but her canny smile belied the professionalism.

Naruto mirrored her expression and winked as if acknowledging some unspoken secret between them. "You might say that."

"Remind me again of the details?" she asked, more invitation than request.

A look of amusement crossed his face. "Well, I got married a couple months back, you know."

"Indeed." She nodded sagely. "Quite the spectacle, if I recall."

He chuckled again. "Yeah, I was pretty surprised myself. Anyway, our friend Queen Koyuki of the Land of Snow was there, and when she heard we weren't going to have time for a proper honeymoon--"

"No rest for the demands of a shinobi…"

"--she mentioned that she just happened to be opening a new resort to take advantage of the country's springtime." He schooled his face into serious lines but the mischief didn't leave his eyes. "Security was good, she said, but she wasn't sure it was good enough. She'd feel ever so much better if a couple ninja would attend in secret and stay the first month or two --disguised as a young married couple perhaps."

"Yes, I remember now. How convenient that I had just the young couple to recommend," the Hokage said straight faced. "She even offered to cover their stay in full as payment."

She watched the corner of his mouth curl upward. "Well, Hinata and I may have let ourselves be talked into it. For the sake of bringing our two nations closer, of course."

"Of course," Tsunade acknowledged coolly. She planted her elbows on her desk and propped her chin on her hands. "Please, continue with the details."

"Well, there was an opening ceremony that everyone thought was boring, at least until the fireworks at the end. After that we patrolled the park for a while, until Koyuki asked us to investigate 'something suspicious' at the ritziest hotel in town. Found the place, checked it out, found nothing, checked in --just to be sure." Naruto lounged back in his chair, closed his eyes and smiled at the memories. "The next day there was a carnival where we 'inspected' the rides for safety, the day after that we pursued rumors of shady characters at the water park, performed surveillance at the spa…" He chuckled. "I swear, by the time we left we must have been everywhere in that whole resort and city, seen and done everything --twice-- and never found anything more than a pickpocket and the occasional conman."

"How strange," Tsunade said with mock surprise. "It almost makes one wonder where these insubstantial reports were coming from."

Naruto opened his eyes and gave her a coy look. "Well, you know how quickly rumors travel. They could come from anywhere --from the Queen herself, for all we knew."

She nodded and spoke matter-of-factly. "Well in any case, I'm sure she appreciated your efforts at keeping the peace. Well done." She straightened and let her mouth twist into a smirk. "Now then, a couple important happenings occurred during your absence that you should know about. First, I assume that by now you are aware of the new clan complex constructed under the name 'Uzumaki'."

An impish look crossed Naruto's face as he said, "I just came from there. I think the builders wanted to remain anonymous, but Zano hadn't quite finished painting by the time we got there. Hinata was so excited that I volunteered to come report for both of us and left her there to start settling in." He leveled a cool look in her direction. "And before you say it, yes, I've heard that Choji and Tanbe are engaged."

Tsunade arched her eyebrow at him, though her smirk remained amused. "You and Hinata seem to have set off a spree of such engagements. There have been three weddings in as many recent weeks and a half-dozen or so more scheduled within the next month, and none of that is counting civilians. Shikamaru and Ino have mysteriously vanished for 'about three weeks,' according to Choji."

The blond man grinned. "I was wondering why they weren't there to greet us."

The Hokage nodded, then waved dismissively. "But that's another matter. More important is what I have here," she said, feeling her eagerness well up as she indicated the small stack of papers on her desk. He sat up, his curiosity peaked. "This… is the latest consensus from the Council of Elders." She watched him carefully as she spoke, anticipating his reaction and trying not to show it. "They have reached the required majority --nearly unanimous, in fact. You, Naruto Uzumaki, are now my named successor to the title of Hokage."

To her great surprise, Naruto did not whoop or cheer. His smile grew wide, but when he spoke all he said was, "That's great news. It means a lot to me to hear that."

Impressed by his aplomb, she fixed a pointing finger and a mischievous expression on him. "But that doesn't mean you should start moving in here! It'll still be a few years before I start thinking about retirement, you hear me?"

He laughed and held his hands up in surrender. "That's just fine," he said. "In fact I'm glad to hear that too. Believe it; I'm in no hurry."

She settled back, smiling proudly at his maturity. "Good. Well then, unless there's anything else, you are dismissed."

But Naruto hesitated. "Actually, there is just one more thing," he began, drawing a quizzical look from the Hokage. "Several months from now Hinata will need an extended absence from duty."

"The reason?"

"Well…" A sly look crossed his face. "…let's just say I'm glad you're used to the name 'Granny'."

A spark of recognition lit behind Tsunade's eyes. "I see. Yes, that should be simple to arrange."

The future Hokage nodded his thanks and stood to leave. When he got to the door, Tsunade called after him, "Oh, and Naruto?" He turned. She winked. "Congratulations, Daddy."

(Story End)

Okay, let me just say two quick things here:
-First, now that the story is official done, you might want to go back and read it all again --you might notice a few connections and details you missed the first time through. For example, I know TimeShifter said he picked up on a lot of foreshadowing that he'd overlooked before. (shrugs) I'm not saying you have to --it is a lot of reading-- I just thought I'd make the suggestion.
-Second, since this is officially the last chapter, please note that I won't be able to reply to anonymous reviews. I'd still like to hear from you, just know that I can't reply.

Now then, I appreciate all of you for reading my story, but I'd like to take this opportunity to extend a special thanks to several reviewers in particular:

BlueJx23, for inspiring me to try FanFiction in the first place.

Demon of Konoha, for planting the idea for the entire chapter 7, 'A Night Under the Stars.'

Wingless-Crying-Angel, for taking the time to review every single chapter.

ArmorOfGeddon, JBM, and others, for helping me watch out for plotholes and inconsistencies.

Blinkin, Demon of Konoha, and others, for constructive criticism.

TimeShifter and Arkaine Deao, for reading my mind on several occasions with a scary degree of accuracy.

I'm sure there are others I meant to single out, and I may add to this list as I find them, but in the meantime thank you all once again. You've made this a very rewarding experience. As for my sequel, I'll probably have to wait until after finals to put any real work into it, but I'll try to get it out there as soon as I can. Look for it under the name Full Circle.

Until then,
~ArcTheJedi