Naruto: Nine And Seven

Chapter 10

It was a usual sunny day in Konoha. Tsunade sat in her office and her assistant and first apprentice, Shizune stood before her. Naruto had sent their report via a messenger toad which traveled directly to Konoha by dispelling itself and traveling through the portal that linked the village with Mt. Myoboku. As Tsunade read the report, after a certain point, her eyes widened and continued to widen further until she reached the end. Moments later, she placed the report on her desk and sighed as she rubbed her temples.

"What's wrong, Lady Tsunade? Did something happen on the mission?" Shizune asked worriedly.

"Not exactly. The mission went off without a hitch. The Kazekage was rescued and both Akatsuki were defeated. Team Kakashi and Team Gai will return to Konoha in three days." Tsunade answered.

"Then what's wrong?"

"... The Akatsuki members were using some form of projection technique so all their members could be present to aid with the extraction. The technique left their eyes visible... and Naruto discovered the apparent leader has the Rinnegan." Shizune's eyes widened in shock.

"The... Rinnegan? Are you sure? I mean, aren't they just a legend?"

"No... the Senju clan has some knowledge of those eyes. They're real and going by the description in the message, the brat's right." Tsunade replied with a sigh before turning to the window. "Good news is, between this and the Kazekage's abduction, we may be able to appeal to Kumo for an alliance." Kumo didn't seem particularly worried about the Akatsuki because their people had faith that their Jinchuriki could defend themselves against a group of criminals, even S-rank ones. This incident, together with the fact that they possess the Rinnegan, may prove to them that the Akatsuki are a bigger threat than they realize. Working with them on this might also go a long way towards repairing relations between their villages and could even be the first step towards a true alliance between them. Aid from Kiri and Iwa were completely out of the question at the moment. According to Jiraiya's intel, Kiri currently had no Jinchuriki. An alliance with Iwa wouldn't happen for obvious reasons.

Speaking of Iwagakure, she knew that there was another problem this affair had opened up. Even though the Third Tsuchikage, Onoki of Both Scales, would have killed his former apprentice without hesitation if ever given the chance, he and his village still held Deidara in high regard for his abilities, kind of like Kumo and their Gold and Silver brothers, and would no doubt look into the incident and investigate his killer. When she thought about it, having Minato's son trained by both Kakashi, his only surviving student and Jiraiya, his sensei, may not have been the best idea. Put that together with his resemblance to his father and it likely wouldn't take two seconds for Onoki and many others in Iwa to make the connection and then the shit would hit the fan. While Onoki and most of Iwa wouldn't make an attempt on his life, either because they realize that it's pointless to get back at a dead man or just because they don't want to risk starting a war, there would certainly be those who would be like Sasuke, consumed by the thirst for revenge and willing to sacrifice anything, even the well being of their village, for that purpose or those who would fear he might become a second Yellow Flash (such fears were not unfounded, considering he was learning the technique) and would want to kill him before he became too strong, believing it was for the good of Iwa. That was a disaster waiting to happen. There were also many Iwa missing-nin who had a grudge against Minato and if any of them were to find out Naruto was his son, they wouldn't hesitate to make a move. Not to mention all the other problems it was going to cause her grandson figure once his heritage became common knowledge, especially once he mastered the Hiraishin.

"Lady Tsunade..." Shizune began and the Sannin turned to her. "...Was it really a good idea... to send Naruto and Fu, who are also Jinchuriki, to save Gaara from the Akatsuki? Why would you take such a risk?"