The Power to Heal and Destroy by Phoenixsun

Chapter 40: I'll See You Before I Go

"I highly doubt that Sarutobi-sensei enjoyed making such a call." The Sannin assured. "But the overwhelming evidence they had at the time suggested that the Uchiha were about to launch a rebellion. The village had just gotten out of the Third Great Shinobi war and it was not in any shape to deal with something like that head on." The Godaime explained.

Not being satisfied with the Hokage's words, Naruto paced impatiently back and forth in the office. I had been a couple of days since he had returned from Demon Country and the blond had finally confronted Tsunade about everything he had learned while at the Land of Snow.

During his time trapped in the weird genjutsu, the Jinchuuriki had learned a lot of shocking revelation from Itachi that had left the young man questioning his own understanding of his role as a shinobi of the Hidden Leaf. At the end, the older Sharigan user had advised him to seek confirmation of his words with the Hokage. "So... All this time... Sasuke has been unaware that the guy he wants revenge on is actually a deep undercover agent for the village?" He asked.

The Fifth nodded. "Yes... It was Itachi's one requirement for carrying out such a mission." She answered. "He wanted Sasuke to be able to live without burden of knowing the truth behind the Uchiha clan... If Itachi decided to tell you it must be because he thought you were mature enough to understand it." The kunoichi offered almost as a way to appease the restless genin.

"Hah!" A sound reminiscing of laughter escaped the spiky haired boy as he finally sat down. "Then the other thing... What he wants me to do..." He muttered.

A sigh escaped the medic nin as she massaged between her eyes. "It was apparently always part of the Third's plan." She confessed. "A Jinchuuriki with a Sharingan is something that would give a lot of people pause... Last time an Uchiha got his hands on a Bijuu it almost spelled the end of the village and it required my grandfather to get directly involved." The woman explained.

Naruto growled. "I get that much, but why do I have to leave the village?!" He complained.

"Like I said, this was all set up by the Third the moment you awakened your Sharingan." The Hokage repeated herself. "Besides, you might not be completely safe in the Hidden Leaf. Both the Akatsuki and this new group that has come out had a lot of information about you... At this moment we cannot rule out that there is a mole within the village's ranks." Tsunade said with a serious tone.

The Hokage's demeanor was enough to make the angry teen settle down a bit. "I still don't like it..." The Jinchuuriki said softly.

Softening her expression, the Sannin gave the younger blond a smile. "The Third wanted you to be safe and to be ready for the tough life he knew was waiting for you." She pointed.

The genin sighed. "Three weeks, huh? Sakura is going to be pissed..." He moaned. "I can already hear her ranting..."

A soft chuckle escaped the village leader. "Oh, and one more thing before I forget..." The kunoichi suddenly said as she stood up started looking in some of her drawers. "It would make it easier than explaining what a genin is doing outside of the village unsupervised for such a long period of time, though truly it has been a long time coming." The Godaime commented to a puzzled Naruto. "Ah! Here's one your size!" She exclaimed as she pull out a green vest.

The spiky haired boy's eyes widened.

End Flashback

"Argh! This sucks..." Kiba complained as the group stood around the village gate to see Naruto off.

Ino placed her hand on her hips and turned to the Inuzuka. "Are you saying that because Naruto is leaving? Or are you still jealous that he became a chunin before you?" She asked knowingly.