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?"
"Because they're Jinchuriki. Only a Jinchuriki can truly understand a Jinchuriki. That aside, they're the only S-class ninja in the village aside from myself, Jiraiya and maybe the elders. On top of that, Naruto has a power that makes everyone start to believe in him." She explained as she wrote a message and gave it to the messenger toad, who disappeared in a cloud of smoke. Naruto had sent a request to share their knowledge on Akatsuki and Madara with Suna, to which she agreed. It would be a bad idea to keep such knowledge from allies after all. In a while, Naruto would re-summon the toad to retrieve the reply.
Two hours later, the reply had been received and Naruto, Fu, Kakashi, Baki, the honored siblings and the sand siblings were together in Gaara's office. Gaara sat at his desk while the others stood. The Shukaku was furious that most of his chakra had been taken and had, for now, left Gaara alone while he slept and recovered his chakra.
"I do not recall meeting you before." Gaara said to Fu.
"Well, I was transferred to Konoha and only officially joined recently. I'm Fu, Jinchuriki of the Nanabi. Nice to meet you." Fu said, Kankuro's eyes widened, everyone else in the room already knew except Gaara, who didn't visibly react. Ebizo had heard from Chiyo after the mission.
"It's a pleasure to meet you." Gaara responded cordially. "May I ask how you came to Konoha?" Fu told them the short version. That her village gave her away, she had traveled with Jiraiya until returning and that she was Naruto's girlfriend. "I see... I'm glad you both found someone who makes you happy."
"Thanks, oh, congratulations on becoming Kazekage by the way... you realize you're basically living my dream?" Naruto said with a smile. "I'm glad to see you've done so well. You've come a long way since we first met."
"I owe it all to you." Gaara replied. "Were it not for you, I wouldn't have understood the importance of bonds and would still be living in darkness."
"He has a way with people, doesn't he?" Fu asked.
"Ok, you guys can catch up before we leave. We have some things to discuss about the Akatsuki." Kakashi said.
"Ah, right." Fu said as she reached into her pocket, pulled out two scrolls and handed them to Gaara. "Here are the remains of Yura and Sasori."
"I still can't believe he was a traitor." Baki said with a furrowed brow. "To think he was a sleeper agent all this time... and that Shape Shifting Technique... the Akatsuki have truly powerful jutsu at their disposal."
"Yes... and it only gets worse, I'm afraid..." Kakashi began.
"What do you mean?" Gaara said with narrowed eyes.
"When we reached the base, we were able to get a good look at some of the Akatsuki member's eyes through that projection technique... and Naruto saw something troubling... it seems their leader has the Rinnegan." Kakashi said and the sand ninja's eyes widened.
"The Rinnegan... I thought it and the Sage of the Six Paths were just a myth..." Chiyo said.
"Most do, but they're real... Jiraiya-sensei once told us he trained a Rinnegan user in Ame..." Fu said. "Though he supposedly died years ago... he'll probably want to check on that." Naruto had asked the pervert once if he had any other students aside from the Fourth. He eventually told them of the Fourth's teammates, who died before they could make a name for themselves, and the trio of orphans in Ame.
"The second thing is the statue... apparently, it's called the Gedo Mazo and it has some connection to the Sage of the Six Paths, but aside from that, we don't know much about it." Kakashi said. The Biju had told them that much, but either they didn't know or refused to say anything else about the statue.
"To think our enemy has the legendary Rinnegan... the bloodline said to be able to save the world or reduce it to nothing." Ebizo said. "I don't suppose you know anything about what powers it might have?"
"Afraid not." Naruto replied.
"Is there anything else you know?" Temari asked.
"They already have one Biju, the Gobi according to Jiraiya's intel... but there is something much more troubling... and it may not have anything to do with the Akatsuki." Kakashi said, referring to Madara's believed connection to the organization.
"What is it... what could be more troubling?" Ebizo asked.
"... Fifteen and a half years ago... the night I was born... the Nine Tailed Demon Fox attacked Konoha... I'm sure you know that... what you don't know is that my mother was the previous Kyuubi Jinchuriki." Naruto said.
"What? Wait a minute, how could the seal just break?" Temari asked.
"A female Jinchuriki's seal weakens during child birth... so, when you were born, your mother's seal weakened and broke." Ebizo said. "That makes you Kushina's son... but why is this troubling now?"
"This should say it all... my father was Minato Namikaze." Naruto said, once more shocking the sand ninja, especially Gaara. They were more alike than he thought it seemed, both Jinchuriki and the children of their village's fourth kage.
"I see..." Ebizo said as he connected the dots.
"While that's interesting, why is that important here?" Kankuro asked.
"Because during a Jinchuriki's child birth, a seal master can maintain the seal to keep it from breaking and repair it afterwards... it would be well within my ability to do so and the Fourth Hokage far surpassed my abilities with sealing jutsu... he would certainly have been there to see his son born and would never have allowed the seal to break." Chiyo said. "That you would tell us this... you believe someone kept your father from repairing Kushina's weakened seal and took that opportunity to break it."
"We knew it for a while now... but we recently found out who... we didn't believe it until Jiraiya confirmed it with absolute certainty." Kakashi said.
"Who was it?" Ebizo asked.
"... Madara Uchiha."
"What?" Temari exclaimed.
"He's still alive?" Chiyo asked in shock.
"I see... it seems he truly is a monster... this is far worse indeed. You believe he has a connection to the Akatsuki?" Ebizo asked.
"Yes... Naruto didn't see any Sharingan aside from Itachi's, but he could be controlling them from hiding... anyway, even if he isn't connected to the Akatsuki, we thought you should be aware he's alive." Fu said.
"How could he have survived all this time?" Chiyo asked.
"We don't know... but there are ways to extend a person's life unnaturally. Take Sasori for instance... or Orochimaru, who created a technique that allows him to live forever by taking over the bodies of others." Kakashi said.
The discussion continued for about ten more minutes. It was ultimately decided that they should keep this information to themselves for now after what happened with Yura.
An hour later at the front gate of Suna, Teams Kakashi and Gai were saying their goodbyes to the sand siblings, who had come to the gate to see them off. Naruto and stood in front of Gaara with Fu at his side.
"See ya." Kankuro said.
"Yeah." Naruto replied.
"It was nice meeting you all." Fu said.
"Likewise." Gaara replied with a nod. Naruto held up his hand to shake Gaara's. Everyone smiled as Gaara looked on with his usual, emotionless expression, but raised his own and shook hands with his fellow Jinchuriki.
"See you around, Gaara." Naruto said as they left.
"Yes. Take good care of each other." Gaara said, knowing what their lives had been like.
About half an hour later, the group walked through the desert sands, the sun bearing down on them as they made their way back to their village. Fu had introduced herself to Team Gai.
"So, you two are dating?" Tenten asked with wide eyes.
"Yeah, what's so shocking about it?" Fu asked with narrowed eyes.
"Nothing. He's a nice guy, but he seems like kind of a knucklehead."
"Hey, I'm not the same loudmouth I was before." Naruto said.
"I guess not. You wouldn't have gotten promoted otherwise." Tenten replied.
"That's right. I grew up a lot while we trained with the Pervy Sage." Naruto said with a grin.
"Yeah, it's true you did." Fu said before smirking. "Of course, that's not really saying much."
"Oh, come on, Fu." Naruto said with a mock pout and Fu giggled.
Neji seemed slightly worried as he heard all this. After his fight with Naruto and the revelation of what truly happened to his father, he had repaired his relationships with and grown close to his cousins and uncle. Once he did, it hadn't taken him long to learn of his cousin's love for the blond. He knew she wouldn't take this well.
"YOSH! NARUTO, NOT ONLY HAVE YOU SURPASSED ME IN RANK THROUGH PURE HARD WORK, YOU HAVE FOUND SOMEONE TO SHARE YOUR FLAMES OF YOUTH WITH! YOUR YOUTH BURNS BRIGHTLY!" Lee yelled, slightly more enthusiastically then normal and with tears streaming from his eyes. This meant one less rival for Sakura.
"THAT'S RIGHT! I LOOK FORWARD TO SEEING HOW FAR YOU WILL GO IN YOUR SPRINGTIME OF YOUTH!" Gai added.
"...Are they always like this?" Fu asked Tenten quietly.
"Unfortunately..." the weapon enthusiast answered with a cloud of gloom over her head.
"I feel so sorry for you." Fu replied.
"Thank you..." Tenten replied.
"I WILL NOT BE OUTDONE! MY YOUTH WILL BURN JUST AS BRIGHTLY! I WILL INCREASE MY TRAINING AND RUN FIVE THOUSAND LAPS AROUND KONOHA ON MY HANDS!" Lee yelled.
"AT A BOY, LEE! AND I'LL BE RIGHT THERE WITH YOU! I'LL HELP YOU FAN THE FLAMES OF YOUR YOUTH AND RISE EVEN FURTHER!" Gai said, giving him his nice guy pose.
"SENSEI!"
"LEE!"
"GAI-SENSEI!"
"LEE!"
"GAI-SENSEI!" With that, much to the horror of most others present, the two embraced each other and, somehow, a genjutsu of a beach sunset with crashing waves appeared behind them.
Naruto, Fu and Sakura cried out in horror as they beheld the sight and Fu and Naruto quickly began trying to dispel the nightmarish illusion.
"Why? Why won't it break?" Fu yelled, panicking as she tried in vain to free herself from the illusion, she and Naruto growing more desperate by the second.
"It can't be broken!" Sakura wailed in despair.
"What? Are you serious?" Naruto yelled. Last time he had seen this, he didn't know how to cancel genjutsu, so he wouldn't know that.
"I don't understand it either." Kakashi said, though he was disturbed by the sight, he was used to it, as were Tenten and Neji, who just sighed.
"... Neji, is it good or bad that this doesn't bother us anymore?" Tenten asked.
"... It's a bad thing... I'm certain of that..." the stoic Hyuuga replied.
The two separated and the illusion fell, to the relief of the other leaf ninja.
"... I didn't need anymore mental scars..." Fu said dejectedly and Naruto comforted her, dealing with it better as he had seen it before. After a moment, he turned to the jonin responsible.
"... Hey, Gai-sensei. Think you could teach me that?" Naruto asked, horrifying everyone aside from the spandex clad duo present, especially Fu.
"Sorry, I'm afraid I will not teach you the genjutsu. Though I will aid you in taijutsu, should you need it. Come on, we're moving too slowly. Our youth won't last for ever!"
"Yes, Gai-sensei! Let us make it back to Konoha in one day!" Lee said as the two took off. Once they were out of hearing range, everyone turned to Naruto.
"Naruto... why did you want to learn that genjutsu?" Fu asked fearfully. Naruto smirked evilly at the question.
"I was hoping I could figure out what made it unbreakable, and create genjutsu that even Itachi Uchiha couldn't escape from." Everyone present was relieved at his answer and Kakashi, Fu and Sakura imagined the possibilities.
"That's actually a good idea... I wonder what it's secret is." Kakashi mused as he, Fu and Sakura thought of genjutsu like Demonic Illusion: Tree Binding Death made unbreakable. Sadly, since Gai would teach no one his genjutsu, these thoughts would never become a reality.
"Come on, guys! If we don't hurry, we'll lose those two!" Tenten yelled before they all took off after their energetic comrades.
In a cave lit only by a lantern in the center of the room, the shadowy projections of the seven remaining members of Akatsuki stood.
"Well, the Kazekage's capture was a bust. What's the damage?" Kisame asked their leader. "And where is our artist duo? Surely they both didn't fall."
"Unfortunately, that is the case. Furthermore, we were unable to recover Deidara's ring. Skill wise, their loss is a great blow to our organization and Sasori's loss damages our spy network. Please mourn them silently. Kakuzu, I expect you to take over Sasori's duties. You will be compensated for the additional work."
"Understood." Kakuzu replied.
"God damn it!" Hidan roared. "Now we have to gather information? That's worse than collecting bounties."
Kakuzu glanced to his partner. "Stop complaining, just do your job. What about the statue?"
"The statue has suffered serious damage and is, for the moment, inoperable and will remain so for approximately two months. We will be unable seal the Biju for the time being. It seems we underestimated the lengths to which the villages will go to retrieve the Jinchuriki. For now, our hunt will have to be put on hold, with the exception of the Sanbi and the Rokubi and after this, we will have to take greater precautions to prevent interference. Zetsu, have you located either of Kiri's former Biju yet?"
"The Sanbi is hiding in a lake in the Land of Fangs. It's not going anywhere. We still haven't located the Rokubi host yet, but we're on his trail."
"Good, Locate it immediately. I want the Sanbi and Rokubi captured before the statue is repaired. Unlike the others, no one will try to rescue them. Itachi, I want you to deal with the Rokubi once it is located. Kakuzu, while working on the spy network, make it a priority to find the exact whereabouts of the remaining Jinchuriki and their abilities. Once we have the Rokubi, Zetsu will do the same while Itachi and Kisame work to gather funds, ideally by eliminating prominent ninja loyal to the villages and collecting their bounties as I'm certain Kakuzu will at every opportunity. As for the Sanbi, it will be left to our newest member." With that, a new shadow appeared, wearing a mask with a spiral design centering on his right eye.
"Hi! I can't believe I'm actually a member of the Akatsuki. Wow! What an awesome lair! Hello there, comrades, I'm Tobi." The masked man said energetically.
"Oh, are you fucking kidding me?" Hidan asked. He and Kakuzu had met Tobi once while he was with Zetsu, neither was impressed. "Tobi? All he can do is run away! Jashin would curse me if I sacrificed him."
"Oh, I don't know, he certainly brightens up our organization, doesn't he?" Kisame grinned.
"Thank you for the support! I'll work hard to help you collect the remaining Jinchuriki. After all, Tobi is a good boy!" Tobi said.
Deep within the headquarters of ROOT, Danzo stood in the center of a room. Kneeling before him on one knee is a pale boy with short black hair. Danzo had finalized his plans for infiltrating the Jinchuriki's team.
"I've arranged it so that you've been assigned to Team Kakashi. Not only are you around the same age as the Jinchuriki, you are among the strongest of your generation in the village and your artistic mind is amazing." Danzo said. "From today until the mission is complete, your name is Sai."
"I am... Sai." the boy replied with a smile that was obviously fake.
"Don't use fake smiles with me." Danzo said and Sai's smile fell into an emotionless expression.
"Sorry. The manual said that a smiling face appeals to people, but, I'm unable to make these facial expressions."
Three days later, the leaf ninja finally reached Konoha and headed straight to Tsunade's office. Kakashi had just finished his report, he left out the information about Madara from the verbal report, the fewer who knew about that the better at the moment and Team Gai was there, but they did reveal the information on the statue and the Rinnegan to them. Then they talked about what Sasori had told them. Team Gai had already left, though they were interested in the information about Orochimaru, their squad had their own duties to deal with at the moment.
"I see... it could be a trap... either the Akatsuki could be using Orochimaru as bait or Orochimaru could know about the spy... and there are only six days to act on it." Tsunade said.
"Then we'll just have to fight our way through." Naruto said confidently.
"... I'll give you my answer about the mission in two hours. For now, rest. You just got back from a difficult mission."
Fu sighed. "We just got back and we're already being sent out again? Great, I was hoping we could look for a better place to stay once we got back." Naruto had wanted to find his parents' home, only to hear from Jiraiya that the modest house they lived in before they moved to the Hokage Residence had been destroyed in the Kyuubi attack.
"Oh yeah, I have a bounty to turn in." Naruto said as he brought out the scroll containing Deidara's corpse. "Deidara of Iwa."
"Right, the Akatsuki you fought. Nice job, that's 35 million for you and Kakashi each." Tsunade said as she took the scroll. "You know, if you guys are in search of a home, I've got a place if you're willing to buy."
"Really? Where?" Fu asked.
"The Senju clan compound." The eyes of everyone present bulged when they heard this.
"Lady Tsunade... you're willing to sell your family's home?" Sakura asked.
"Yeah, what else am I going to do with it?" Tsunade asked before looking to her desk with a sad expression, remembering her lost loved ones before turning to Naruto. "I'm the last of my clan and I'm already past child-bearing age... that aside, my grandmother was an Uzumaki and our clans are distantly related... you're the closest relative I have... actually, unless there's another Uzumaki out there, you're the only living relative I have." Tsunade said. "Who better to leave my family's legacy too?"
"Well... thanks Grandma Tsunade... heh, you really are like a grandma to me... so, how much?" Naruto asked with a smile and was a little put off when Tsunade smirked.
"100 million." (The equivalent of around 12 and a half million dollars.)
"Wha-" Naruto began, not at all happy with the price. "Wait, that's for everything on the property?"
"Of course... and all you have to do is pay and promise I can live there rent free once I retire." Tsunade replied.
"I probably shouldn't ask this but, shouldn't it cost more than that?"
"I'm giving you a discount because you're family and because you're going to maintain the place for me when I retire, trust me when I say you couldn't afford the full price, even now." Tsunade smirked. The truth was that wasn't close to what it was worth, but on the other hand, since he was her last living relative as far as she knew and like a grandson to her, she was planning to leave him the place in her will... no reason to let him know that now though...
"That's... a really good deal then..." Naruto said, though he was still a bit upset about the cost. "You said you're going to live there once you retire? You promise not to break a window or tear down a wall over something and make me fix it?"
"... You want to pay full price?" Tsunade glared and Naruto quickly shook his head no.
"If your upset about the cost, we can split it 50-50." Fu suggested.
"Sounds good." Naruto replied.
"You sure about that?" Kakashi asked. "You'll have joint ownership if you split the cost."
"Yeah, I'm sure." Naruto replied.
"It's a deal then... you do know no one's lived there since I left the village, right?" Tsunade asked.
"That's alright, with our shadow clones we should have it cleaned up in no time." Naruto replied.
"Well, come on then." Tsunade said as she stood up. "Once you've bought the compound, I'll place a blood seal on you that will allow you through the barrier that protects it. You'll have to use that until you're skilled enough to replace the seal. Let's go, I want to get this over with."
With that, the three left and Kakashi and Sakura decided to accompany them. They made their way to the bank to carry out the transaction. Naruto only paid 25 million, letting Tsunade take his part of Deidara's bounty for the rest and she gave them the keys and deed to the property before inscribing the seals on the Jinchuriki's forearms, drawing an intricate seal on their forearms in her blood and channeling chakra into them. Afterwards the group walked through the village. Along the way, Tsunade told them the highlights of their new home, namely the main house, the library, the storehouse and the armory. They soon arrived and stood before the compounds gates. It was almost on the opposite side of the village from where the Uchiha compound had been, though it was closer to the heart of the village than that estate, which was pretty much isolated. Speaking of the Uchiha compound, the council had it torn down and confiscated everything in their library and storehouses, since the last members of the clan had gone rouge.
The grounds of the compound were surrounded by a large stone wall with a wooden gate that had the Senju clan symbol engraved on it. It was far smaller than the Uchiha or Hyuuga clan compounds, but then, the Senju clan was smaller in number. That was part of the reason the clan died out, the rest could be attributed to bad luck on the battlefield and in love and a larger number of women born to the clan than men.
"Alright, we're here. With those seals I gave you, all you need is the key. Take a look around, I've got to get back to my office."
"You're sure there's nothing you want to take?" Naruto asked.
"I already took everything I wanted. Just put anything you don't want lying around in one of the other houses or storerooms." Tsunade said, waving a hand as she walked back to her office.
"Thanks again, Grandma." Naruto said to the Sannin.
"If you want to thank me then stop calling me that." Tsunade replied over her shoulder as she walked away.
The pair of Jinchuriki had feelings of strong anticipation as Naruto reached for the gate. Fu, Kakashi and Sakura watched as he unlocked and slowly opened the gate and the teens' jaws almost dropped. The buildings were mostly in traditional Japanese styles (I largely based it on the Uchiha compound). There were two rows of buildings divided by a stone pathway which branched off at a few points and at the end of the path was the clan head's home, a two story mansion. There were also many trees on the property and the Senju clan symbol was emblazoned on the walls surrounding the property and many of the buildings.
However, though the buildings were largely intact, the place was covered with overgrown plants and they knew from past experiences the inside of the buildings would be covered with dust and some repairs may be necessary. For once the Jinchuriki were glad for all the D-rank missions they did... they may have had to pay for the repairs instead of handling most of it themselves otherwise. Not that they couldn't afford it, they both still had plenty of money and Naruto could easily make more at casinos. They would however, need to pay for someone to repair the weapons in the armory which had likely become somewhat worn from age.
"Whoa... this is where Grandma Tsunade grew up?" Naruto said in awe.
"You told me you used to prank clan compounds, so you must have seen a lot of them. How does our new home compare?" Fu asked as she looked around.
"Well, it's smaller than the Hyuuga compound and it doesn't have the same stuck up feeling that place gives off. It's definitely a lot nicer than the Inuzuka compound." Naruto mused.
"Wait, you pranked clan compounds? How'd you manage that?" Sakura asked.
"You do realize you're talking to the guy who managed to paint the entire Hokage Monument in broad daylight wearing a bright orange jumpsuit?" Naruto asked with a smirk and Sakura mentally slapped herself at having forgotten that as Fu took a few steps forward, looking at the buildings. Naruto cupped his chin in thought. "Let's see, what were the highlights of my pranking career aside from that masterpiece? There was the time I managed to sneak sneezing powder into the Akimichi's food supply, the time I snuck a dozen alley cats into the Inuzuka's kennels..." Sakura was trying not to laugh while Kakashi sighed.
"... I'm not surprised that was you." Kakashi said.
"... Then there was the time I dyed the Hyuuga's underwear pink." Naruto said and neither Fu nor Sakura could resist laughing. Kakashi just looked on impassively.
"You- you didn't tell me about that yet." Fu said as she struggled to breathe.
"Oh yeah, must of slipped my mind." Naruto smirked.
"How did you sneak around the Byakugan?" Sakura said, still laughing.
"I didn't even know about that at the time. Anyway, I snuck in at night; I guess the guards don't use it all the time." Naruto replied. The guards of the Hyuuga compound only used their Byakugan when looking for a known intruder to conserve chakra.
"Did he have a reputation for things like this?" Sakura asked Kakashi after she calmed down.
"Yes... catching him while he was playing pranks was the chunin's equivalent to a Tora the cat mission." Kakashi answered. "Iruka knew him well enough that he could usually find him fairly quickly... but I pitied anyone who was stuck with catching Naruto while he was busy."
"Well... at least he grew out of it." Sakura said.
"You should know he told me he intends to teach Konohamaru and his gang all his secrets." Fu smirked.
"Just what the village needed." Kakashi deadpanned. "Seems like it'll take a lot of work to clean and fix this whole place by yourselves."
"That's what shadow clones are for." Fu said.
"No, it's not." Sakura said. She really didn't like the thought of a technique of that level being used like that, though she couldn't deny it was convenient.
"I know that, but you know what I mean." Fu rolled her eyes.
"So, want to check this place out with us?" Naruto asked.
"Sure." Sakura replied.
"You go ahead; I have some things to take care of." Kakashi said before disappearing in a poof of smoke. He didn't mention he had to figure out what he would buy with his half of Deidara's bounty, though he'd likely just save it... though he did plan on buying some very rare, author signed collectors versions of all the Icha-Icha series books.
"You want to take a look at the library first?" Fu asked and Naruto and Sakura nodded. As they stepped inside the library, they looked around in awe. Even though the place was covered in dust, it didn't lessen how impressive it was. There were a few thousand scrolls and books and though many held such things as fundamentals of chakra and ninja arts for the children of the clan, clan history and history in general, weapons forging and mundane tasks or hobbies such as cooking or gardening, most of the scrolls contained knowledge of ninjutsu, genjutsu, various taijutsu styles, both cursed and normal sealing jutsu and kinjutsu. Clan with a thousand skills indeed.
After looking around for a few minutes, Naruto suggested they take a look at the main house. Since she wasn't going to live there, Sakura stayed at the library while Naruto and Fu left to inspect the two story mansion that served as the clan head's home. They took their sandals off at the entrance area and explored their new home. Despite its exterior, the buildings did have some more western styled rooms, most notably the living room and bedrooms.
The highlights of the first floor were the kitchen, which was decently sized and had a chabudai (Japanese short legged table) across from the stove. The stove and fridge were state of the art... when Tsunade left the village but they were still better than what most had. The kitchen was adjacent to the living room, which had, on one side of the room, three green couches around a coffee table, facing a 15 inch TV and against the nearby wall there was a daybed. On the other side of the room, there was another chabudai with eight cushions, as the room had a hardwood floor instead of the tatami mats found in the kitchen and most of the other rooms. The next thing they found was a study, prefect for meetings and working on seals. The remaining areas of interest of the first floor were a large dojo and a room with a fire pit for serving tea, both of which had a view of the backyard through the shoji doors, which was a Zen garden with a small-man made pond and waterfall.
While Fu continued to look around the first floor and the garden, Naruto walked up the stairs to the second floor and was joined by Fu minutes later. The second floor housed three bedrooms, each about twice the size of the Naruto's apartment bedroom, a few multi-purpose rooms and the master bedroom, which was half the size of Naruto's old apartment suite and had its own bathroom. The master bedroom had a queen sized bed with brown sheets and white pillows with a large dresser at its side. Across from the bed, there was a couch with another chabudai before a 12 inch TV sitting on a small dresser and the room had a byobu screen for privacy. The master bedroom also had its own full bathroom.
After checking out the rest of the house, they left and headed to the armory. There, they found a massive amount of swords of various types, normal and custom kunai, shuriken, battle fans and various other weapons. They then headed to the storehouse and found supplies like ration bars, plasma pills and chakra paper. They took one piece of chakra paper and returned to the library.
"So, what do you think of your new home?" Sakura asked, looking up from a scroll on the clan's history. They had been gone over half an hour.
"It's amazing, though I guess the Senju clan are the closest to thing to royalty in the village." Fu noted.
"You've got to see the main house." Naruto said. "Actually, what do you think of a house warming party?"
"Good idea. Sounds like fun." Fu replied.
"Yeah, I can't wait. If Lady Tsunade sends us to check on the spy and everything goes well, maybe Sasuke will be there too." Sakura said.
"Yeah, maybe." Naruto said. Though he decided that he would kill him if he went too far, until he crossed that line, he was still his lost friend. "Hey, Sakura, we found something for you."
"Huh?" Sakura responded before Naruto took out the piece of chakra paper. "What's that? Is that chakra paper?"
"That's right. Have you used it before?" Fu asked and Sakura shook her head, "Well, let's see what you have." Sakura took the slip of paper and focused her chakra into it and in a moment, the paper crumbled to dust.
"So I'm an earth type?"
"Looks like it. That makes our team pretty balanced." Fu said.
"Yeah, we've got all the affinities covered except fire and Naruto's skilled enough with that, not to mention you have that sword." Sakura said. "I'm gonna go see Lady Tsunade, mind if I borrow a few scrolls on earth jutsu?"
"It's fine, just be sure to bring them back." Naruto replied and Fu nodded. "We should probably go too. I'm kind of hungry and there's nothing to eat here."
"Same here. We still have over an hour before the Hokage makes her decision about the mission."
Tsunade sat on a couch in a room in the administration building across from Koharu and Homura, with Shizune standing behind her. They had called her there to talk as soon as she returned, though she didn't yet know why. She didn't particularly like the two. They were more militant than her and her sensei and this led to them frequently butting heads. They also tended to agree with Danzo, which didn't help them in her book.
"We've been informed you sent both of our Jinchuriki on a mission dealing with the Akatsuki." Homura began and Tsunade's eyes narrowed as she instantly knew what this was about. "Do not send them on missions that risk contact with Akatsuki. Also, you should put them on separate teams, and assign high ranking shinobi to them to increase our supervision and guard over them."
"Also, you should decrease their missions as much as possible and restrict their movements." Koharu added.
"Unacceptable." Tsunade replied adamantly.
"Tsunade, they are Jinchuriki. Normally, they shouldn't be allowed to leave the village at all and would be kept under constant supervision. We are making concessions here." Homura said.
"While I'm in favor of increasing their guard, I won't place such restrictions on them." Tsunade said. "Also, they were trained together by Jiraiya and they have been taught to work with each other. Separating them would be a mistake. As for leaving them in the village, that increases the risk of Akatsuki attacking the village like they did to Suna. That aside, Naruto has a special ability. He will grow to become a great power for Konoha, and I have confidence in Fu."
"You're being flippant, Tsunade. Speak like a Hokage."
"I'm also making concessions here!"
"Then can you truly guarantee that the Akatsuki won't take them? If the Akatsuki take either of them, they will become even more of a threat to Konoha, to all villages. That's part of the reason why Fu was sent here. Taki realized they couldn't protect her and gave her up to protect themselves and all villages. Can you guarantee they will not be captured?"
"Naruto will not be taken... nor will Fu. I trust in that."
"And what if you're wrong? What will you do?" Koharu asked.
"If that places this village or country in danger, then I'll put my life on the line as Hokage to protect it, as the Fifth Hokage." Tsunade replied. Shizune smiled as she heard this.
"... Very well, if you're that convinced... however, as she has no connection to Sasuke, do not send Fu to deal with the spy... also allow us to choose a new member to work with and protect them when necessary." Homura said.
"Danzo, you may enter." Koharu said.
Tsunade turned her head to the door to see the old war hawk of Konoha enter the room.
"...You..." Tsunade said.
"It's been a while, Princess Tsunade."
"If you're here, that means the new member is..."
As the pair of Jinchuriki made their way to Ichiraku's, they went by the Chunin Exam Preparatory Committee building to find Shikamaru taking a break looking up at the clouds.
"Hey, are you up to?" Naruto said.
"Oh hey, guys. Just taking a break. This Chunin Exam stuff's so troublesome..."
"Shikamaru... here's the lunch your mother told me to bring... oh, hi Naruto, Fu..." Choji said as he walked over, carrying Shikamru's lunch.
"Hey, Choji." Naruto said.
"We were on our way to Ichiraku's before we see about a mission, want to come?" Fu asked.
"No, thanks but I'm already late to meet Ino and Asuma-sensei, so I'll have to-" he was cut off as they all noticed a presence. Naruto turned, summoned his Hisho Taichi and created a wind blade with a slash all in one fluid motion. He made it fairly weak since they were in the village but it was powerful enough to destroy the strange ink figure that had been a few feet behind him before vanishing. They all looked to the top of a building to see Sai sitting on top with a scroll rolled out in front of him.
"Who's that? He's wearing a leaf forehead protector." Fu asked.
"I don't know, I've never seen him before. Anyway, he attacked us, so we need to capture him." Naruto replied. "Either of you seen him?"
"No, never saw him around the village." Shikamaru said.
Seeing the pale boy begin drawing, Naruto charged forward and launched a wind blade to attempt to disrupt his opponent's jutsu. Sai jumped to the side to dodge while he finished his drawing.
"Ninja Art: Super Beasts Scroll." The six lions he drew came to life and charged at Naruto, who destroyed three with a wind blade before ducking as he sensed Fu appear behind him. She destroyed the remaining lions with a pair of water swords and Naruto vanished. He reappeared behind Sai and swung his sword down. Sai blocked with his tanto held in a reverse grip.
"You're... fairly weak... what do you have between your legs?" Sai asked with an obviously fake smile.
Naruto's eyes widened at the question before they narrowed dangerously. In a moment, he broke Sai's guard and delivered a powerful kick to his stomach which sent him flying from the roof they were standing on a crashing into another. Naruto had held back to avoid causing property damage. Otherwise he would have sent him through the roof for that remark.
Sai began to get up when insects swarmed towards him from all corners of the roof. He quickly jumped into the air and left in an Ink Body Flicker.
'That guy...his fake smile ... wasn't like ours... Fu and I smiled to hide our pain... this guy... there's nothing behind his smile at all... ROOT...' Jiraiya had eventually told him and Fu about Danzo and ROOT.
Naruto jumped off the roof to return to the others and Fu recalled her insects while Ino approached the group from behind.
"Jeez, there you are Choji. Asuma-sensei's angry you haven't shown up yet."
"Sorry, I got asked by Shikamaru's mom to bring him lunch but we were attacked by this weird guy." Choji asked as Naruto joined them.
"Weird guy?" Ino asked.
"Yeah, he used a jutsu to bring ink drawings to life. We almost had him but he got away." Fu said.
"Hm... I've never heard of anyone like that." Ino noted. "Anyway, Choji and I need to meet Asuma-sensei, see you guys later."
"See you. Sorry, Shikamaru, but we should get going to." Naruto said.
"No problem. I should get back to work anyway." Shikamaru replied and they parted ways.
Tsunade sat in her office in front of an ANBU wearing a cat mask. The only survivor of Orochimaru's experiments on implanting the First Hokage's cells into infants.
"So that's how it is." Tsunade said as she finished her explanation. "You will join Team Kakashi."
"Working with Kakashi will be an honor, milady."
"This isn't an ANBU mission, but a regular one. You will remove your mask and be assigned a codename. For the duration, you will be known as Yamato."
"I understand." Yamato said, removing his mask.
"There is one more person, a member of ROOT, the black ops training division, assigned to Team Kakashi. Keep an eye on his movements."
"... What do you mean?"
"The new member is one that Danzo recommended. Danzo is a man that opposed the Third Hokage, emphasizing military power over diplomacy. He founded a separate division of ANBU, ROOT, with himself as leader. I'm sure you've heard of him before. The group has since been disbanded and he lost his position, but I'm still suspicious of him."
"Perhaps you're worrying too much, milady."
"... Never mind. The other members of the team should be here any minute."
"Alright."
Twenty minutes later, Sai had joined Tsunade and Yamato and the other members of Team Kakashi walked through the door. Naruto and Fu were surprised to see Sai there and Kakashi was surprised to see Yamato, who was now dressed as a jonin instead of a member of ANBU.
"Hiya." Sai said with his fake smile.
"I'm glad to see you're here. I'm surprised you're on time, Kakashi."
"Only because we dragged him here. So, I'm guessing they're the new members of our team?" Fu said.
"That's correct, this is Yamato, I'm told you two already met Sai."
"So, that's what you're going to go by while your with us? It's been a while, hasn't it?" Kakashi asked Yamato.
"Indeed, Kakashi. It's an honor to work with you again." Yamato said with a nod.
"You know each other?" Naruto asked.
"He was my subordinate back when I was in ANBU." Kakashi replied. "So, will we be checking on the spy?"
"Yes, but I'm afraid that there are going to be some changes to the team. This mission requires a four-man squad and since we have had a special request for Kakashi, Yamato will temporarily lead Team Kakashi. Also, Sai will take Fu's place on this mission."
"What?" Naruto asked, a little surprised.
"Like I said, this is going to be a four-man team and Fu doesn't know Sasuke, so there's no real reason to send her. Also, some of the council doesn't want me to send both our Jinchuriki on the same mission, especially one where we risk an encounter with the Akatsuki. That being said Fu, I need you for another mission. You're to meet up with Team Asuma at the gate and replace Shikamaru on a B-rank escort mission."
"I understand. What exactly is the mission, Lady Hokage?" Fu asked.
"Takahiro, the Daimyo from the Land of Honey just completed negotiations with the Daimyo of the Land of Hot Water and needs an escort back to his country. You can hear the rest from Asuma. He and his team should be waiting at the west gate, so I'm afraid you'll have to leave immediately."
"Ok, see you guys when we all get back. Take care, Naruto." Fu said as she turned to the door.
"You too, Fu." Naruto replied.
"Alright, let's get acquainted elsewhere." Yamato said and with that, they headed to the door, Kakashi stayed behind as he had to be briefed on his mission.
Asuma, Choji and Ino stood at Konoha's north gate, waiting for their fourth teammate. Ino was tapping her foot as she looked around impatiently.
"When's our help going to show up?" Ino asked.
"Be more patient Ino. They'll probably be here as soon as Lady Hokage tells them about the mission." Asuma admonished before he sensed someone approaching.
"Sorry about that." Fu said as she appeared before them in a burst of speed.
"About time." Ino said. "What took you so long?"
"It's like he said, Lady Hokage just told me."
"So you'll be Shikamaru's replacement? How much has Lady Hokage told you?" Asuma asked.
"Not much, just that we're escorting the Land of Honey's Daimyo back to his country after a meeting. She said you could fill me in on the rest."
"I see. Come on, we're expected to meet him by tomorrow morning and we've got a days journey ahead of us. I'll tell you more on the way." Asuma said as he started to walk off before turning around. "You need time to get more supplies?"
Fu responded by taking out two scrolls from her coat pocket. "I'm good. Ero-sensei taught us to always carry around enough supplies in scrolls to last few days."
"Good. Then let's get going." Asuma said as they took off, jumping through the trees.
"So, why weren't we hired for the way there too?" Fu asked.
"Apparently, there was an attempt on his life during the meeting. He's lucky that a lot of the Hot Springs Daimyo's guard is made up of ninja of their former village. They managed to chase the assassins off." Asuma replied. "But he won't have that protection once they leave the Daimyo's residence. We'll meet him and his servants in a town near the place. Afterwards, it'll take three days to reach the Land of Honey."
Meanwhile, Naruto, Sakura, Sai and Yamato stood at the location he chose.
"Hey, Naruto, how do you know him anyway?" Sakura asked gesturing towards Sai.
"He attacked me and Fu out of nowhere." Naruto replied, glaring slightly at Sai who smiled back. He knew this guy was probably either spying on them for Danzo or had some alternate mission and would likely betray them at some point. Or both.
"I just wanted to test your strength, dickless. I have to say I underestimated you." Sai said with his fake smile. Naruto's eye twitched.
"...For the sake of the team and the mission, I'm going to pretend you didn't call me that." Naruto said after taking a deep breath.
"You know, you shouldn't just attack someone without warning or say things like that. It's not good for a first impression or for building trust or teamwork." Sakura scolded the ROOT ninja.
"Why thank you, I'll keep that in mind. You're a friendly crone, aren't you?" Sai replied.
"WHAT DID YOU CALL ME?" Sakura yelled as she lunged at the pale teen. Yamato held her back from giving the ROOT ninja a demonstration of her strength. Sai looked on, his smile not faltering for a moment and Naruto face palmed.
'This is going to be a long mission...'