Promises

New chapter here and if anybody's curious about what other stories and ideas I have, hop into Shiro's Gaming Omniverse Discord server. I've got a channel in there.

Anyway, here's the chapter.

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"Hurry up or we'll be late!" I called to Rin through her door, my sister trying to find a clean shirt or something in her room, "You knew this ahead of time, Rin!"

"I'm trying!" She shouted back, scrambling around in the room still.

I just groaned and fought the urge to pull at my hair, opting to just fidget with my hands.

It had been about a couple weeks since the first meeting with Ay, and Tsunade was being officially sworn in today as Godaime.

And the information about our parentage was being revealed.

"Found it!" I heard Rin shout happily, making me let out a sigh of relief.

After about a minute, she came out with, you guessed it, an orange shirt that wasn't stained or wrinkled from Fuinjutsu work.

"Ready?" I asked, smiling at my sister, who I couldn't be more proud of.

She nodded happily and we both walked out of our apartment, her hand grabbing ahold of mine.

"Are you sure Hinata took it alright?" Rin asked apprehensively, leaning against me some as we walked towards the Hokage Tower for the swearing in.

I had told Ino about Rin and I being Jinchuriki, while the both of us explained it to Hinata.

Ino had surprisingly taken it better than Hinata at first, the realization of why I was private about my Yin instability making sense to her when I told her the Yin half was sealed in me.

Hinata didn't exactly take it badly, but it hurt her a bit that the two of us, her closest friends, didn't tell her earlier. She bounced back after a couple days, but it made me feel terrible that I made my soft-spoken friend sad.

"Yeah," I nodded, squeezing her hand some as we veered towards a different street to avoid traffic and I stopped, "I know her, Rin. Everything is alright."

The relief on Rin's face when we weren't rejected was a sight to see, and I could feel her chakra still practically radiating positivity after over a week.

"Let's avoid the traffic." I said, scaling the wall of the building with chakra.

Rin followed me up the wall and we raced towards the tower, jumping from roof to roof. I decided that I was going to win and combined a Shunshin with every other jump, overtaking Rin easily.

I heard her squawk in indignation as I shot away, getting to the tower no problem after crossing the roofs.

I jumped off the last rooftop and landed on the ground with a thud, bending my knees to soften the impact.

Hehe, loser. I laughed, looking up as my sister jumped down.

"Cheater!" Rin called out, landing next to me with an annoyed expression. "No fair." She pushed me slightly.

I took a step back to balance myself and laughed, pulling her into a one armed hug.

"Love you too." I said, turning when I felt three familiar presences.

Hinata, Ino, and Karin were walking straight towards us, staying away from the crowd of civilians awaiting the announcement about a hundred yards away.

"Hi, girls." I smiled happily, noticing that Karin was wearing a short sleeve shirt, the sight making me go quiet.

She didn't have any scars.

Karin walked straight towards me and pulled me into a hug, her chakra glowing in happiness.

"Tsunade-sama said you asked her to treat the scars," She mumbled, holding me tightly, "Thank you, Naruto."

I smiled and put my hand on her shoulder, thinking of how her hair was the exact shade of red as mine, pointing to our relation.

"You're family, Karin," I looked into her eyes, seeing that they were shining with emotion, "We gotta look out for each other, right?"

Nobody should have scars like that, especially my family.

"But how has training with Tsunade-sama gone for you three?" I looked at Ino and Hinata, the two girls also radiating positivity.

"I never thought I would learn so much after just a week." Ino said brightly, tucking a strand of hair behind her ear. "And Hinata impressed Tsunade-sama, didn't you?" She looked at the quiet girl, who flushed a bit at the praise.

"It wasn't that impressive," Hinata mumbled, pressing her fingers together nervously, "I only pointed out that her strength technique could be dangerous to use by a single Juken hit."

That got a laugh from me. For something that required delicate chakra control, that strength technique could be made unbalanced if the chakra feed could be disrupted. Tsunade undoubtedly knew a way to work around injuries or other impediments, but Hinata figuring out one of those impediments this quickly was impressive.

"Take the compliment, Hinata." I chuckled, letting go of Karin and walking towards the Tower. "Let's go before the rest of the village gets here." I then turned and started walking, the others following me.

The quintet of us walked towards the stairway that led up to the top, my presence being requested to announce me publicly as the clan head of the soon to be officially recognized Uzumaki clan in Konoha.

I felt Tsunade and Hiruzen's chakra signatures at the top and I smiled, thinking of how I prevented something much worse.

Hiruzen would live years longer now, and I planned on him seeing me become the Rokudaime.

And I was going to exceed him and Onoki as the longest serving Kage.

I focused a bit harder and I, to my surprise, felt Jiraiya's as well. He had ghosted everybody ever since the meeting with Ay, getting drunk at different bars constantly.

Hopefully he came here of his own volition, not being forced to.

We got up there and an ANBU emerged from the corner of the stairway that went to it, her hand raised to stop us.

"Only Uzumaki Naruto is allowed past here." She said, glancing at the others. "Hokage's orders."

Whatever. I thought, furrowing my brow at that.

"We'll just be in the crowd." Rin said, giving me a quick hug and the four left.

I gave the ANBU a respectful nod and walked past her, going up the steps and feeling a soft gust of wind blow my hair back.

Yep, that's stale alcohol. I caught Jiraiya's scent, my godfather standing next to Hiruzen, looking a bit paler than usual, but otherwise fine.

The three adults, with Tsunade looking a bit nervous, walked towards me and greeted me.

"Nervous?" Hiruzen asked me, giving me soft smile of reassurance.

I shook my head, smiling back at him.

"With you three here? They'll need an army to scare me." I looked straight at Jiraiya, trying to read how he'd handled everything.

I don't know why Itachi didn't give a proper debriefing beforehand. I could imagine Hiruzen tried to console him as best as he could, especially since he personally knew how it felt to have a student that went astray.

Jiraiya stared back and chuckled weakly.

"I'm fine, gaki. At least as good as I expected. I didn't exactly make a good impression, did I?" He finished with a bit of the sarcasm he always had, but it still sounded a little forced.

I don't think I'd react well finding out that a kid I raised for a couple years wasn't dead, but far worse; a threat that could potentially destroy everything I cared about.

"Just... Don't run off and ghost me, Sensei," I said, reaching up and putting my hand on his shoulder, "Who's going to teach me how to be a man?"

That got a better reaction from Jiraiya, who actually laughed with some more energy in it, his chakra feeling a little brighter.

"Let's just see Tsunade-hime get the hat, then we can talk."

I smiled slightly in relief at Jiraiya being reachable and stood next to Hiruzen, Tsunade prepping to give her speech to Konoha.

Hiruzen's chakra felt like the flow was faster than normal, making me tilt my head curiously.

Hiruzen noticed and gave me a reassuring look. "My body is still recovering, I am not as young as I used to be. It is a chakra technique to relieve the pressure on my joints."

It was just another reminder of how old he was, and how he could no longer protect me.

It made me feel almost naked, unprotected, vulnerable.

Hiruzen then stepped forward and addressed the crowd of thousands, the roar and cheering being nothing compared to the echo of their emotions in their chakra at the sight of the Sandaime Hokage, alive and whole.

At least relatively whole.

"Citizens and Shinobi of Konoha," He announced, raising his arms up as he smiled broadly, "It heartens me that I can stand here to speak as your Hokage one final time."

The sound slowly died down as he spoke, his voice carrying in spite of his age.

"I have served as Hokage for over 40 years," He continued, "Many of those years trying and tumultuous. But just as I stand before you today, Konoha still stands!"

A cheer was let out and I basked in the wave of fire that rippled through the crowd, the individual signatures of Rin and my friends barely noticeable.

"Through war, we have persevered. Through the fire and flames of invasion, we carried on. I could not be more proud to lead such a loyal and steadfast village...," He trailed off for a moment, his chakra sharpening dangerously, "Save for one thing."

The silent murmurs from the crowd kicked in, questions being asked.

"Almost 15 years ago, I spoke of a successor that I thought capable of carrying on the Shodai's dream of a village to shield the innocent from conflict, to protect what is important. And thus, Namikaze Minato succeeded me."

I knew what Hiruzen was going to do. He was going to do it now.

"The Yondaime died protecting Konoha from the Kyuubi, sealing it into two newborn children... Innocent children."

I focused my sensing harder, wanting to drink in the reaction I secretly waited years for.

"You rejected them. Scorned them. Two children consigned to a life not of their own choosing, for your sake. To protect you!"

The shame radiating from them should have made me pleased, all the hatred and scorn I received being repaid in full at the realization that they were the monsters.

But all it did was make me feel cold.

"Lives were saved in the invasion because of what the two did," Hiruzen's voice was as cold as ice, his chakra matching it, "They fought alongside clan heirs and protected the innocent... Because that is what Shinobi do."

"For your sake, my successor, on a day he would have cherished for the rest of his days, sacrificed everything for you. His life. His soul... His twin children!"

The shock and horror that rippled through the population of Konoha had me closing my eyes and pulling back on my sensing from how horrible it felt.

The greatest secret held from them was revealed, something that would change how they saw us forever.

"Uzumaki Naruto and Uzumaki Rin are the children of Uzumaki Kushina and Namikaze Minato!" Hiruzen declared, the secret finally revealed.

I started to space out a bit as I forcefully reined in my chakra to not feel any more emotion, Hiruzen still speaking.

His proclamation of protecting the village from war by hiding our identities, sacrificing another precious thing of ours, for their sake, was another jab at their conduct towards us.

But he kept speaking.

"A mistake born from tragedy," He said softly, but his voice still seemed to reach out towards them, "I pray that such a travesty is never repeated again, that the faith I hold in all of Konoha's children is not false."

And there was the wise and forgiving grandfather. He gave them a severe scolding, but then embraced them and told them they were still loved.

I focused on Rin's chakra, ignoring everything else. My little sister mattered the most right now.

Her chakra was stained with a myriad of emotions, including anger and sadness. The sadness probably came from how much she had hated our dad, up until she realized what he really sacrificed.

"As is custom, although it is under different circumstances," Hiruzen stated, glancing at me for a moment, "I am publicly announcing the recognition of a new clan in Konoha, to be put in immediate effect."

I straightened my posture a bit, psyching myself up for what was next

"The Uzumaki clan had a close pact with the Senju, and our foundation in Fuinjutsu was possible because they assisted Konoha as an ally. I see no other way to repay the debt owed than for their clan to be recognized as heroes and for it to be headed by a worthy Shinobi, Uzumaki Naruto." His attention went to me, a flash of pride going across his face.

The warmth I felt from him had the tenseness in my shoulders loosening, the spotlight feeling a little less intimidating now.

The old man's attention went back to the crowd.

"Today, I entrust Konoha's continued guidance towards a better tomorrow to my student, Senju Tsunade, and may many years of prosperity follow. I will let the Godaime speak now." With a gentleness that stood contrary to what his profession had been for decades, Sarutobi Hiruzen removed the Hokage hat for the final time and walked towards Tsunade, placing it on her head.

"I should have come back earlier." Tsunade whispered, her voice barely understandable with my enhanced hearing.

"You came back, Tsuna," Hiruzen smiled, "That is all that matters. Now, address your people, Godaime-sama." The last sentence was the final order of the Sandaime Hokage, aimed at the newest successor.

Tsunade nodded, adjusting the hat slightly and walking up to the podium, clearing her throat.

"Citizens of Konoha and my fellow Shinobi." She began, my mind wondering as Tsunade made her first speech as the new Hokage.

//////////////

"Tsunade will do a proper job as Hokage, brother. You need not worry." Hashirama said to Tobirama, the two men walking towards the cemetery.

The two had supposed to have ended the Edo Tensei, but Hashirama wanted to stay until Tsunade was sworn in.

"Don't tell me you didn't see what she is under the surface, elder brother" Tobirama shook his head, "I can almost see the cracks in her spirit like I can see the cracks in your face. I never wanted to think of that look in Tsuna-chan's eyes that we saw too often."

So many Senju ended up broken by the constants conflicts with the Uchiha, and it still unsettled both brothers.

"She will persevere, just as we did." Hashirama stated, no doubt in his voice. "Senju have always endured, no matter the cost."

"You say that almost like we aren't human," Tobirama remarked sadly, "If only we weren't mortal... if only." He repeated with a soft tone.

"We never were afforded the luxury of being ordinary, Tobirama." Hashirama reminded his brother, "No matter how much I wished it."

They reached the entrance of the burial grounds of the village, Tobirama audibly sighing.

"Our clan ends with her," The younger Senju said cynically, gazing up at the sky, "I cannot fathom all of this, even after Saru told us everything. I never would have thought that our three clans would be brought so low."

Senju. Uchiha. Uzumaki. The first two would have endured the clan wars if the two brothers and Madara died, while the Uzumaki owed much of their prowess to Ashina's reforms. He put an end to specializing only in Fuinjutsu, diversifying their skills and exploiting their large chakra reserves.

"Our time may end," Hashirama admitted, pushing open the gate with ease, "But our legacy lives on. Saru held true when he lost so much, two of his students held true, and now I see so much of you in Uzumaki Naruto."

Tobirama snorted. "Me? Don't you mean yourself?"

Hashirama chuckled amusedly, clapping his brother on the shoulder.

"He has that endearing streak of vindictiveness that screams you, little brother." The eldest said the last part affectionately, "His sister seems to have my preferred temperament."

"Naive and empty-headed?" Tobirama raised a pale brow, drawing a laugh from his brother.

The lightness of the conversation was a stark contrast to their location, the eery silence being staved off by the brothers.

"Although, she does have a particular closeness to the one Uchiha boy." Tobirama mused, looking thoughtful. "But your curiosity with the Uchiha wasn't motivated by infatuation, was it?"

Hashirama almost scowled at the attempt at dry humour, not amused by it.

"I sincerely doubt Naruto would enjoy those thoughts. He is almost a copy of Madara on being protective of his younger sibling."

"That just makes the situation more amusing." Tobirama pointed out, narrowing his eyes and promptly turning left down a corridor of tombstones. "And don't tell me you aren't curious about the product of such a union."

Hashirama groaned out loud, covering his face.

"Don't try to be clinical about such a beautiful and spiritual thing as making love," Hashirama lightly scolded the white haired man, "But... yes, I am curious after what has been revealed, especially with her being a Jinchuriki at that."

The revealing of the Sage being a real person, and that the Uchiha and Senju descended from his sons, made the conflict feel all the more heart wrenching in hindsight.

"The Yin and Yang aspects combined," Tobirama abruptly stopped, looking down at the tombstone, "Could you imagine how dangerous either we or the Uchiha would have been if we had each other's respective abilities?"

Tobirama sounded almost hungry at the thought of and Uzumaki or Senju with the Sharingan, the prospects enticing.

"That law of yours doesn't cover that, Tobirama," Hashirama, for the first time, injected actual irritation in his voice and chakra, "I cannot believe you thought such a law was a good idea." The Shodai crossed his arms and glared at his brother.

The Clan Restoration Act was definitely a horrifically distasteful thing. Tobirama would admit that in an instance. But it didn't per se mandate repopulating a nearly extinct clan.

Male members could receive the normal tax cuts that married clan members received for having children, but marital benefits would also apply to any additional lovers they took, the letter of the law not distinguishing between married and unmarried.

And it allowed for a surviving clansmen a massive degree of leeway with how the children were raised, if unable to raise them themselves.

It wasn't like it forced broken clans to spread their bloodline to other clans. None of the clan heads at the time would have accepted it without potentially leaving the village.

It was a financial incentive to get a new generation kick started, nothing else.

"I wasn't insinuating that that law would be applicable," Tobirama grumbled kneeling down in front of the tombstone, "I simply pointed out that something better may come out of the ashes of our two clans, something greater than the two separated."

Hashirama relented, understanding now.

"Why are we at your tombstone?" Hashirama switched the subject, tilting his head at his brother, "This can't be comfortable for you to sense."

"Definitely odd to feel my own corpse under the earth," Tobirama scowled, going through hand seals to coax some of the earth away, "But I can sense the seals in my armour."

At the elder's look of confusion, the white haired man explained.

"I'll have a clone drop off the armour for Naruto to study. Ashina-sensei did not write down the complete schematics, but his descendant can benefit from a working model."

Ashina had developed armour that had multiple storage seals in them that would catch Ninjutsu that directly impacted the plate, the seals being attached at the front in a scale pattern.

Tobirama managed to make his own armour with Ashina assisting him, but his teacher did it on his own.

"But digging up your own grave." Hashirama said disgustedly, "It's not right."

"Not like anyone else will." Tobirama scoffed, pulling upward as he made a ram seal.

A square chunk of earth started to rise and fell to the side, revealing a box with seals on it.

"The grave has been disturbed." Tobirama frowned, jumping down to investigate.

After a few seconds of checking, Tobirama pried the box open and began rummaging around.

"Ashina put traps on the coffin." Tobirama's voice echoed a bit, being obscured from sight.

After a couple minutes, a blue chest plate, pauldrons, bracers, and a couple leg protectors were tossed out of the grave.

Hashirama inspected his brother's armour and couldn't conceal the horror he felt as he looked at it.

"They buried you in this one?" He slowly lifted up the shattered and damaged chest plate.

This was the armour his brother wore when he died.

Cracks ran through it from what looked like blunt impact, deep rents in the armour from slashes, and multiple areas where stabs penetrated.

The dried blood that hadn't been removed completely left a faint echo of chakra that could be felt.

But the most noted part was the seals etched into the metal that looked partially melted from containing Ninjutsu that struck it, acting like a storage seal, only much more sophisticated.

"That plate saved my life multiple times." Tobirama's jumped up from the grave, turning around to put the earth back on top with a couple hand seals.

Hashirama had been aware of his approaching death. He'd been aware for a few years that the injuries he incurred throughout years of fighting would catch up to him and shorten his life, but Tobirama died violently.

"Then may the knowledge it provides protect Konoha as it did you." Hashirama mumbled, tossing it to his brother.

Tobirama caught it and made a shadow clone to pick the rest up and took the plate, going towards the apartment of the Uzumaki twins.

"Is it time now?"

Tobirama shrugged.

"Do you wish to visit Mito's?"

Hashirama clenched his fist lightly, looking almost sick at the question. If he went to her's, he would also need to go to his children and grandchildren.

He couldn't mentally handle it.

"No. I just want to go back."

Tobirama nodded and walked up to his brother, setting his hand on his shoulder.

"We've earned rest. Don't think any less of yourself, brother. I know you think it is your fault what had happened."

Before he could protest, Tobirama shook his head.

"I know you better than anyone, Hashirama. You took all the burdens when you didn't need to. We both protected Konoha... no matter the cost." The younger of the two's voice trailed off slightly.

Hashirama put his own hand on Tobirama's shoulder and pulled his brother into an embrace.

"What did you say after father struck me for talking out of line? It's you and me against the world?" Hashirama whispered, still holding on to his brother.

"And never forget it." Tobirama responded, his red eyes holding a lightness to them rarely shown.

The two broke away and went towards a clearing in the trees that surrounded the graveyard.

"What did you mean by Naruto being like Ashina, when you said it a few days back?" Hashirama queried, preparing to be released shortly from the summoning.

"His chakra felt... off." Tobirama clicked his tongue, "Ashina had moments where he would trail off and be reclusive, but his was more pronounced than Naruto. His chakra has faint ripples in it identical to Ashina's."

"A side effect of his Bloodline ability?" Hashirama offered.

Tobirama grunted a response, shrugging his shoulders.

"Ashina suspected that, even if he downplayed how much it effected him. But Tadamichi didn't suffer from that."

"Is there anything that can be done?" Hashirama asked worriedly, hoping that a possible solution was available.

The Kyuubi seemed willing to cooperate with the Uzumaki twins, but Jinchuriki weren't known for being the most stable of people. The risk of Uzumaki Naruto being compromised was frightening.

The pondering of the Shodai was interrupted by a swift shake of the head from Tobirama, the man shifting his balance.

"He isn't at risk of any mental instability." His younger brother assured him. "I dare say his two friends I spoke most with, the Yamanaka especially, act as a stabilizing influence on the boy."

That would make sense. Hashirama admitted, aware of how attuned to emotions the Yamanaka were.

The white haired Senju made another clone and gripped his arm tightly, cracking the joint.

"Paper bomb?" Hashirama asked, suspecting what his brother was preparing for.

Tobirama nodded. "Slightly modified to properly incinerate the sacrifices. It would be rather rude to have two bodies rotting in the cemetery where people wish to pay their respects to loved ones."

"I can just seal them into trees." Hashirama offered, agreeing with disposing of the bodies they had been summoned through.

With a flexing of his chakra, Hashirama coaxed two trees into wrapping around him and his brother, slowly beginning to cover them.

"Your clone, brother." Hashirama started to say, but Tobirama was already ahead.

The clone went through the needed hand seals to disable the Edo Tensei, a surge of chakra running through Hashirama as the form destabilized.

Cracks began to form around the two as the trees almost completely covered them, a faint smile appearing on Tobirama's face.

"Two trees. It reminds me of a story Ashina told me about, including a spider."

Hashirama gazed upon his brother, smiling as he felt his artificial body begin to crumble.

"We will see them again, elder brother." Tobirama's right side completely crumbled away, revealing a young man's arm and chest. "I pray Naruto brings a better tomorrow."

The wood encased the two of them as Hashirama felt a pulling sensation, his vision going white as he saw a familiar sight.

The two reanimations completely broke down and disappeared, leaving behind two trees that stood taller than the rest surrounding them.

/////////////////////

"I know you're not taking it well, but what's going to happen now?" I asked Jiraiya, the two of us sequestered in the woods after the first clan meeting I attended, my breathing coming in soft pants.

The last month was personally chaotic for me. Between figuring out a financial plan for my clan and trying to argue about zoning issues for a clan compound, I was getting stretched thin.

Not to mention Jiraiya was pounding me into the ground in taijutsu and Ninjutsu training.

The Toad Sannin adjusted his jacket, inspecting a cut or two I managed to land.

"I honestly don't know," He sighed, opening up a storage scroll to pull out a chair, which he sat down heavily in, "I've made my peace, or at least I hope, with Nagato being alive and actively trying to destroy the entire world. But that's not what's troubling right now. Something's going on in Iwa, and I have no damned clue what it is."

I plopped on the ground, not caring about getting more dirt on me because I was already covered in grass stains from getting thrown around and getting ragdolled.

"What's changed?" I questioned, paying close attention.

It was probably a reaction to Roshi being killed, but I couldn't be completely certain.

"My agents were completely locked out of even middling positions," He scowled, shaking his head, "Complete information blackout aside from drills and exercises being done, the kind for war preparation."

"Do," I said, pausing for a moment to gauge Jiraiya's thoughts, "Do you think they found out about Roshi getting killed?"

My godfather's dark eyes flicked towards mine, a look of realization in them.

"Unless Ashina dragged his body too Iwa and dropped it off, I don't see how they would know for sure. But he hasn't been seen for a month, so they might be assuming the worst."

Given that he got killed after spying on Konoha, I felt justified in my cynicism concerning Iwa not getting all buddy buddy with us and Kumo.

If anything, they might be preparing for war with the both of us.

"But don't you be worried about that," Jiraiya waved me off, stretching his legs forward a bit, "I'm the spy master, and I've discovered a little thing about you."

Oh great. I grumbled internally, expecting some asinine crap to annoy me.

"Which of the fifty or so girls is going to be the Uzumaki matriarch?" He snickered.

I didn't say anything, only flipping him off as I groaned audibly.

Now that it was revealed that our dad was Namikaze Minato, Rin and I were subjected to the expected ass kissing from many of the villagers, especially me.

Because I was the clan head, I attracted the lion's share of the bootlickers and opportunists, while most of the people that approached Rin were genuine in how sorrowful they felt about mistreating us.

And some of the opportunists were people who wanted me, or wanted me with their daughters.

"None." I said flatly, flicking the blunt end of a kunai at Jiraiya.

He didn't break eye contact, catching it between his index and middle fingers with contemptuous ease.

"Mind your manners, gaki. You're gonna need my advice on handling all the girls."

I visibly scowled and shook my head at the offer. "Your advice is neither needed or welcome. I'm not sleeping around with girls who want the notoriety of getting dicked by me."

"You sure it's not just a pity fuck because you're a ginger?" He asked casually, a faint smirk on his face.

I inhaled sharply and bit my tongue to not say what I wanted to say, deciding to not be a dick.

"I regret the day I met you." I muttered, avoiding the smack he tried to lay on my shoulder.

"But I don't regret watching you get conceived." Jiraiya laughed, talking under his breath about making money from inspiration.

"The fact that I can't tell whether you're joking or not scares me." I deadpanned, not joking about it. Jiraiya was simultaneously one of the most dangerous and degenerate humans I've ever met, and the thought of him spying on my parents made me feel uncomfortable, especially since he was harassing me about the stupid girls, because I wasn't being generous about calling the females older than me by a few to several years women. They're a bunch of skanks if they think they can flirt with me a bit and get a reaction.

"Man, you're really pissed about it." Jiraiya stifled his laughter at the expression on my face, standing up from his chair. "Unless..." The look he adopted filled me with dread. "Your heart belongs to another."

I jumped up to my feet and glared at him. "If you start harassing my friends, ero-sennin, I'll castrate you in your sleep."

"You don't have a big enough blade," Jiraiya scoffed, "And I can tell you're really particular about me not talking with your friends, specifically of the female persuasion. Which one is it?" He asked sinisterly.

I was not letting Jiraiya get near Ino or Hinata, especially Hinata. I didn't want Jiraiya making idiotic comparison between me and him about a clan heiress.

Especially since Hinata was training under Tsunade.

"I will get strong enough for the sole purpose of kicking your ass hard enough to force you into an early retirement." I threatened, but Jiraiya just laughed at the threat.

"I'm trying to think of what kind of girl you like, the shy ones or the more assertive ones." He mused, ignoring my growl of irritation and the previous threat.

"Ero-sennin." I warned.

"It's not my fault that I can't tell what kind of girl you like," Jiraiya frowned, crossing his arms, "You don't stare at any girls and I've only seen you look at some of the women I was hitting on."

I moaned under my breath as I resigned myself to being asked by Jiraiya about this stuff after training. He tended to do that.

//////////////////

Your presence is requested at the Hokage Tower at 7:30. Don't be late.

Signed,

Office of the Hokage

"Rude." I muttered, having just opened up the note given to me by the ANBU and read it.

I went back into the kitchen and grabbed something quick to eat, expecting the meeting to take some time.

Making my way to the tower, I Henged to not get harassed by anybody, giving me a slight reprieve.

Jumping up to a rooftop to get there faster, I started running towards my destination, getting there without difficulty.

With the wind in my hair, I focused my sight on the village, soaking in the sunlight and chakra of everything around me.

"Dismount." I called out, turning on my leg and backflipping off the last roof, spinning and landing flawlessly in front of the steps to the tower.

Chakra is awesome. I laughed, running up the steps and feeling a couple of familiar chajra signatures.

Rin, Sasuke, and Itachi were in the room with Tsunade.

And I could feel faint traces of Killing Intent when I sensed them.

Tsunade, I hope you know what you're doing.

If I had to deal with Rin, who had been training extensively with Sasuke, even staying over at his house some, being pissed at Itachi, then I'm going to be very displeased.

I got to the entrance to the office and nodded at the ANBU guards, doing my typical showing of my identity by pulsing chakra through my fingers, making a shimmering blade.

The two stepped aside and opened the door for me, allowing me to walk in.

Sure enough, the four people I sensed were in here, Sasuke specifically being as physically far away from Itachi as he could manage.

The tenseness in the air was pretty damn palpable, and I didn't like it.

"Did somebody die?" I asked, trying to hopefully relieve the uncomfortable nature of the likely discussion.

It didn't work.

"Chunin Uzumaki," Tsunade addressed me by my rank, meaning this was serious, "How has your training with Jiraiya been going?"

My eyes flicked towards Rin, who was standing next to Sasuke, probably to keep him calm when in the same room as Itachi.

Tsunade was undoubtedly told by Jiraiya, but I had my suspicions on why she was asking me.

"It has... been good. I can see why my dad was as good as he was with the kind of training he got." I was completely honest in how good Jiraiya was at hands on training, especially compared to Kakashi.

Tsunade inclined her head in acknowledgement, her eyes focused on me.

"I have just finished having a very... illuminating discussion about Itachi's role in Konoha's betterment, and I would like your opinion."

That was when I realized some of Sasuke's irritation was aimed at me, not just his brother. Because I mentioned it to Itachi, it could very well happen.

"Since it was you who floated the idea of Itachi potentially training one of you three," Tsunade continued, her nails tapping against the desk, "I want to hear you thoughts on it. All three have... voiced," Her chakra shifted a bit as she levelled a cold look at the other three, Rin looking a little sheepish, "Their thoughts on it."

I grimaced as I looked at Rin and Sasuke, specifically how they were both looking at me with a less than pleased look.

Best just rip it off like a band-aid. I thought morosely, clearing my throat.

"I'll repeat what I said to you the last time we talked," I looked at Itachi, who looked, now that I was staring at him intently, much better and less pale, "You're the best to train Sasuke in utilizing his Sharingan and making him an S-rank."

I felt Sasuke's chakra churn under his skin, the youngest Uchiha's glare intensifying.

"I will no-" Sasuke started, but I cut him off.

"I don't care what either of you two Uchiha think about it." I snapped, looking between the two equally infuriating brothers, "Jiraiya doesn't know how to train an Uchiha."

"Kakashi." Sasuke responded, refusing to still look in Itachi's direction.

I shook my head and glanced at Itachi.

"My grandfather told me about the Susanoo, can Kakashi do that? Or switch eyes with Sasuke?"

Itachi could tell what I was doing, and so could Sasuke.

"I'm not putting his eyes in my head." Sasuke spat, looking between me and his brother murderously.

Tsunade shot Sasuke a warning look, which he reluctantly submitted to.

Noticing that Rin was being rather quiet, I addressed her next.

"Rin," I said softly, conveying how much I wanted her to listen, "What do you think?"

My sister furrowed her brow, biting her lip lightly as she considered the conversation.

The last month had been a bit hectic, with me mostly spending time with Jiraiya training, and most of my spare time spent around Ino and Hinata to stay abreast of their progress in Iryo-ninjutsu under Tsunade.

"I," She glanced between me and Sasuke uncomfortably, "Can't Kakashi help out Sasuke?"

Tsunade shook her head.

"Kakashi will be running classified missions soon. He will be unavailable."

So that's probably why he's not here. I thought. It would be difficult to explain this in person to Rin.

Rin's expression twisted into a scowl, her balance shifting from one leg to the other.

"If there's nobody else other than Itachi to train Sasuke, I might as well train with him," She stared defiantly at Itachi, "You did it for a month. You can do it longer."

I managed to hide how pleased I was. I might've preferred Rin being trained alongside me, but Jiraiya made it clear that he wanted to hard focus on me because Itachi was suddenly available as someone who could train Rin into being extremely dangerous.

"No," Sasuke said flatly, looking at Rin, "I'm not agreeing to this."

Itachi decided to speak up at this point.

"Do not think this is something I want either, Sasuke," Itachi remarked, keeping a steady tone, "I would rather avoid having an openly antagonistic student. You wouldn't handle the training I have planned anyway. Uzumaki Naruto would though." I could feel his chakra spark slightly, the only sign from him that he was up to something.

The way Sasuke's chakra sharpened moments later had me figuring out what Itachi just did.

Oooh, you devious bastard. I thought gleefully, knowing that Itachi just manipulated Sasuke by appealing to his ego and dislike for him.

"I am uniquely aware of the Akatsuki and Tobi, and his capabilities," Itachi continued on, "I at least have the means to kill them, unlike you. You would only slow us down if your progress remains the way it is."

Sasuke's fists clenched slightly and he marched up to Itachi, glaring up at him.

"Is that a challenge?!" He bit out, the chakra emanating from his head cluing me in that he activated his Sharingan.

"I don't know," Itachi tilted his head, a cold smirk dancing across his face, "Is it? Is your dream of surpassing me just that now, a dream? Will you accept the challenge, or give up on your foolish dream, little brother?"

Looking at it from a third person perspective was weird. Normally, it was me that was manipulating Sasuke to make the right choice, but Itachi was doing it much easier than me, and I actually know Sasuke as he is now.

Sasuke's jaw clenched tightly, before he seemed to rein it in.

"You'll train the both of us." He ordered, turning on his heel and leaving the room.

"You were not dismissed." Tsunade said, sounding annoyed.

"Punish me with D-ranks, I don't care," Sasuke didn't turn around, "Nothing is worse than being in the same room as Itachi." He then disappeared around the corner.

Even if Itachi was like a sheet of ice in my sensing most of the time from how strong a grip he had on his emotions, I could tell it bothered him that Sasuke already disobeyed an order just to get away from him.

Tsunade sighed and turned to Rin. "You are dismissed. Make sure he doesn't do anything stupid."

Rin nodded and exited the room, her footsteps audible to me when she sped up to reach Sasuke.

Now that it was only three of us, Tsunade steepled her fingers almost like Hiruzen did and fixed me with an unrelenting look with her amber eyes.

"You will be limited in your movements outside of Konoha and limited on what missions you can take."

What?! My thoughts practically echoed in my head, my breath deepening as I fought the urge to be antagonizing.

"May I ask why, Hokage-sama?" I said coldly, my fingers curling into my palms.

"With the public knowledge of your parentage," She replied, "And your particular skill, you will be specifically targeted."

"And Rin won't?" I scoffed.

"She will be with Itachi," Tsunade clarified, "Just like you wanted. And don't confuse it with house arrest or impeding your progress. Kakashi will be going on any serious mission for extra firepower with you, or other Shinobi of similar tier. No solo missions."

I let out a breath I didn't realize I was holding.

"Sorry, Godaime-sama," I replied, putting actual deference in my tone, "I misunderstood."

Tsunade waved it off, not looking aggravated.

"I understand your thoughts, Naruto. Believe me, I understand the drive to protect those I love, more than many." She added the last part quietly.

She seemed to bounce back promptly though.

"Has Jiraiya explained what the next couple years of training is going to be like?"

"No," I muttered, looking at Itachi uncomfortably, "He was being his typical self."

Tsunade snorted, discreetly reaching under the desk to probably grab some sake.

"Go ahead and share. Hot springs?"

"No," I scowled, not caring that Itachi was about to hear this, and I waited until Tsunade started taking a drink of sake, "He is trying to give me advice on seducing your students."

Tsunade choked on the drink and spilled it all over her chest, making her swear.

Jiraiya would say something stupid about slurping it up. I thought to myself, snickering at seeing Tsunade take off her haori to wipe the alcohol off her.

"You timed that on purpose." She accused, turning to Itachi. "Out." She ordered, "Prepare what you need to train the two."

Itachi left the room, leaving me alone with a blonde with a temper.

Tsunade, if I didn't have my general dislike for her at times in the back of my head, and us technically being related, was damned attractive. I could understand why Jiraiya was infatuated with her, but I wasn't interested in her because of the previous two reasons.

"Which student do I need to warn?" She asked exasperatedly, making me roll my eyes at remembering what Jiraiya did.

"He said he needed inspiration for his stories, so he 'adviced' me," I made air quotes, "On the merits of each one, listing each reason. Why does your teammate torture me?"

"Because you talk back," Tsunade deadpanned, "Hiruzen told me about you, so I was prepared for a ginger Jiraiya."

"Jiraiya wishes he was like me." I said, scandalized at the comparison, "And I don't openly stare at women's tits, so don't compare me to the degenerate."

Tsunade let out a soft laugh, gesturing for me to come closer.

I did as requested and sat in the chair in front of her, waiting for her to talk.

The blonde Sannin pulled put another glass and poured some in pushing it towards me.

"Ever had a drink before?"

I nodded and took it, holding off on drinking it for a moment.

"I didn't adjust well after the Forest of Death." I said quietly, knowing Tsunade would have been informed.

She nodded sadly, saluting me before taking a drink.

"You never deserved that, kid." She said, setting down the glass.

"Seldom anybody does." I tipped the glass and gulped the sake down, coughing slightly at the burn.

I didn't know why Tsunade wanted to talk with me alone, but I didn't really mind it. I could do with the reprieve from Jiraiya constantly.

Sometimes, I just needed a different person to be around.

Tsunade peered at me strangely, an even stranger expression on her face.

"You look so much like my uncle Tadamichi." She leaned a bit closer, tilting her head. "You really do take after our grandfather in looks. I can see Minato, but I see our blood as well."

"Would," I blinked, having heard stuff about Ashina and my clan from Hiruzen and Jiraiya, but not from someone related to them, "Would you be able to tell me about them?"

Tsunade smiled, nodding happily.

"I would love to."

////////////////////

"Hi, girls." Naruto said happily, crashing their little meet up at Yakiniku Q's after training with Tsunade.

The four students of the Slug Princess watched as Naruto plopped next to Ino, who had the misfortune of being the nearest to them.

It had started to be a bit of a tradition for the four to eat together after a rather tedious training session, which it was.

"Naruto." Ino grumbled, shifting and pushing against him as best as she could. "Move over."

Much to her dismay, Naruto barely shifted from him being practically shoved.

"You need to eat more meat if you wanna be strong enough to push me away, Ino-chan." He laughed, grabbing an entire slice of meat off her plate and eating the whole thing.

"Naruto!" Ino practically growled, elbowing him in the ribs, "Quit being a pest."

Naruto laughed and shifted over to stop squashing her, glancing at the other three.

"Sooo, how's training going?" He looked at Hinata first, the girl eating quietly.

Ino noticed, after the last couple weeks of interacting with her more often, the Hyuga heiress had impeccable table manners, bordering on obsessive.

And that included properly chewing before speaking.

After she did finish her bite, Hinata smiled brightly at Naruto.

"Excellent." Her eyes practically shone with positivity. "All four of us have been doing, what did Tsunade-sama say, impressive?" She asked, glancing at Sakura.

The pinkette nodded.

"But I'm better than Ino." Sakura smirked, making Ino roll her eyes.

It was mostly just playful jesting, even though Sakura definitely did progress faster than what Ino was currently.

They weren't exactly friends, but the main topic of contention between the two wasn't an issue anymore. So it boded well for them to potentially get along again.

"And how is my beautiful cousin doing?" Naruto leaned on Ino a bit and over the table to look at Karin clearly.

Kami, you are so annoying. Ino grunted as she tried to get away from Naruto, but she sensed his amusement when he discreetly clamped his hand down on her leg to hold her in place.

Ino saw Hinata noticed what was happening, but the girl at least had the decency to stifle her giggling.

"Oh, hush you," Karin scoffed amusedly at her cousin's escapades, "And I'm doing lovely. Has a decision been made about where the clan compound is going to be?" The redhead changed the subject.

"Eh," Naruto made an iffy gesture, finally getting off Ino for good, much to her relief, "The old temple and the surrounding area has been given to us, but there's not much room to expand however many years down the road."

Ino could feel the irritation bleeding into Naruto's chakra, the normally bright and soft feel to it stained.

"That's a long way until necessary." Karin pointed out, a flash of amusement being felt by Ino, "Unless Sasuke and Rin start early."

Naruto let out the little strangled yelp noise he'd make when he was extremely uncomfortable as a response and shook his head vigorously.

"Not funny." He crossed his arms, his eyes narrowed.

Ino started laughing at the boy's predicament, the overprotectiveness he displayed being absolutely adorable.

"Ah, is the new clan head not happy about Uchiha-sama's courtship?" Ino asked all cutesy, expecting a death glare from the boy.

He didn't disappoint.

"Your are a cruel and terrible friend," He threaded his fingers through his hair, pressing his forehead to the table dramatically.

He's just being overdramatic. Ino could tell from his chakra that he wasn't actually upset or actually annoyed.

"I'm so sorry if I made you sad," She patted Naruto's arm, smiling devilishly as she remembered something, "How can I make it up to you, Uzumaki-sama?" She asked reverently.

Naruto's head jerked up right as Hinata let out a tinkling laugh behind her.

"Do not call me that." He hissed, his bright blue eyes boring into hers.

"Oh," She put her hand on her mouth faux sheepishly, "Do you prefer Naru-chan?"

That was when Karin and Sakura started giggling, much to Naruto's annoyance.

He just sighed and sulked quietly, practically pouting.

"Don't crash our dinner, Naruto." She poked his shoulder, her eyes gleaming in triumph.

"Hmph." He muttered back, but she could tell he wasn't actually upset. He was just playing it up.

Ino went along with it and went back to talking with Hinata and the others, genuinely happy at how everything was laid-back and simple.

/////////////////////

"You're still an impolite shit, Tobirama." I muttered in English, carving a seal into some metal with my bloodline ability.

Did Tobirama try and find me and politely offer to give me advice on Fuinjutsu? Did he follow proper decorum that is often demanded of a biped sapient, let alone the Nidaime Hokage? No, he decides to drop unwashed armour that he wore when he died on my damned bed. And it smelled like stale jerky, which was fucking disgusting.

I was still grumbling under my breath about it, testing out what he said.

The note he left explaining what it was got straight to the point, that it was an extremely novel design made by Ashina to conserve chakra to not use defensive Ninjutsu.

Wiping my brow to get my hair out of my face, I pushed some chakra in the seal and pressed it to settle.

With a small flash, the seal imprinted into the metal, being burned into it.

"Let there be light." I said, looking at the seal I just carved into the square iron plate.

I stood up and made a clone, tossing it to the construct.

"Why do you hate me?" The clone scowled, muttering about abuse of power.

"Because I hate you, that's why." I said sarcastically, "Now, be a good little clone and stand a few feet away."

The clone stomped to the other end of my room and held the plate in front of his chest, facing me.

"You're a bastard." The clone said completely seriously.

"I know." I shrugged, making a half seal and pursing my lips.

Suiton: Tenkyu.

I spat a water senbon directly at the metal plate, expecting a ping from the impact. The clone tensed as the senbon struck, prepared to get popped.

But all I heard was a slight puff sound, the senbon sinking into the metal.

"Ho. Ly. Shit." I said incredulously, shocked that I got it to work on the first try.

The clone slowly turned the plate around and looked at it, the seal glowing faintly.

"We're so smart," The clone laughed happily at not dying, tilting his head as he peered closer at the seal, "It almost reminds me of th-"

The seal suddenly exploded violently and the senbon went flying out, striking my clone in the eye and whistling out the window, breaking it.

The feedback hit me and I clutched my eye, the sensation of a high velocity stream of water tearing through my skull hitting me.

"Fucking fuck fuck!" I shouted, curling up as I pressed my palm against my face and kept on swearing.

I felt Rin's signature flare and I saw her flying through the broken window, her knife out and whistling from a wind blade being channeled through it.

"Hi," I groaned out, still holding my eye and fighting the phantom pain, "You're home early."

Rin had been out training with Sasuke and going on a few C-rank missions over the last few weeks, even if all of Team 7 was technically Chunin.

"Training was finished early," She explained, putting away her tanto and looking closely at me, "What did you do?"

"Botched a seal and my clone got a compressed jet of skullfuck to the face." I muttered, standing up now that most of the aching passed.

"Please don't use that word." Rin chided me, walking towards the remnants of the metal plate "I don't even know how you came up with that."

AK Jesus. I wanted to say, but Rin was technically part of the unwashed barbarians that weren't sufficiently educated enough about a culture they didn't even know existed.

"And we agreed on not using Fuinjutsu in the apartment." She had a lecturing tone to it.

"Nothing that was area effect." I countered, trying not to sound a bit petulant about it.

Rin held up the broken plate with a raised brow, then glanced at the window.

"That was from Ninjutsu, and we didn't make rules about no Ninjutsu."

"W-well," Rin sputtered, going red-faced as she got aggravated, "It's pretty implicit, Naruto!"

Before I could say anything else, Rin chucked the metal at me. "And you botched the nature release portion again."

I caught the broken piece of iron and scowled.

"You don't even know what I'm doing," I went over to the table with Tobirama's armour on it, "So how would you know?"

I'd been studying how to even etch a seal properly into the metal. My bracers were made differently, where the storage seals were less dynamic in storing large volumes of water.

They weren't designed to take hits and absorb attacks.

The paper ones that Rin and I used were different because that type of paper held a seal better because it was biological material that had extremely faint chakra emanating from it, unlike metal.

Rin walked up to the armour and started inspecting it while I grabbed a few papers and another metal plate.

"Why does this smell like old meat?" Rin asked, her nose scrunched in disgust.

"That's the armour the Nidaime was buried in," I said casually, "You're smelling his body."

Rin turned an impressive shade of green and dropped the armour with a thunk, gagging audibly.

"Groooooss!" She started wringing her hands, before wiping them on my shoulder, "You're so disgusting. Why didn't you clean it?!"

"I did." I said flatly, pulsing chakra into my fingers again to get started on another seal. "He's just really ripe."

After Rin finished being grossed out by the smell, she looked over my shoulder at what I was doing, her hair brushing against mine from how close she was.

What I was doing right now, working on an armour design, reminded me of how I was trying to figure out a way to incorporate the principles in reactive armour in my old life into this.

But I overlooked how physics worked here.

Creating a pocket dimension to absorb an attack was so obvious for a seal master, but I overlooked it.

Ashina was something else to incorporate such a simple thing into a design to counter Ninjutsu.

"It won't work." Rin's voice cut through my thoughts.

I frowned and turned to look at her, her violet eyes staring at the seal.

"You're using your own chakra. It won't contain the jutsu properly."

"It did before." I replied, still etching in the seal. I completed it and went to go test it again, but my sister stopped me.

"Metal is different from paper, Naruto." Rin's hand reached out and grabbed it, taking it away.

I started to tell her to give it back, but she threw the plate to the other side of the room and made a hand seal.

I watched as a blade of wind struck it and was absorbed, the metal hitting the floor with a loud clunk.

I tensed in preparation for it to explode, but after about 15 seconds, it didn't.

Rin walked towards it and picked it up, shooting me a grin.

"See?" She waved it, "I know what I'm talking about."

I felt my face flush at Rin figuring out the reason it didn't work so easily. Did I really overlook that?

"But can't you just use the paper ones and layer them over steel?" She asked confusedly.

That would work, but it would be more susceptible to damage from hits that might remove them.

"I want durability." I explained, pulling out the drawing I made on how I wanted it made. "Here." I handed it to her.

There were two designs I already had as a possibility. One was the preferred one, with the seals etched into the metal, while the backup was wax coated paper seals that were glued to a steel chest plate that overlapped slightly to completely cover the area.

Once a seal got tripped, I could tear it off and fling it away so it didn't cook for too long and blow up on top of me.

"This looks awesome." Rin said wide eyed in astonishment, "You really know how to draw."

I wasn't going to tell her that I got the armour design from somewhere else. I was fine with stroking my ego by letting everyone think I was a creative genius on sexy as hell armour.

"But should you really be distracted from working on the Hiraishin?" She asked me, sounding suddenly... off, "I can work on it instead."

My head perked up when I felt her chakra get cold all of a sudden, causing me to look at my twin more closely.

"Is something wrong?" I asked calmly, a little worried at the shift in mood.

Rin fidgeted uncomfortably and walked towards me, gently grabbing my hand and holding it.

"I," She gripped my hand tighter, nervously looking up at me, "I think I'm going to leave the village."

My brain seemed to short circuit as my breathing stopped, the world tunnelling at what I just heard from Rin's mouth..

"What?" I asked quietly, gripping her hand tightly.

Rin looked pale at how nervous and frightened I looked, her other hand grabbing mine just as gently as before.

"I talked with Tsunade-sama," She said softly, "And Itachi, Sasuke, and I are probably leaving on a training trip."

This was something I was worried about when Tsunade told me a few weeks back about how I was going to be limited on my movements. Rin and me both, now that all the information about us was out, would need to be separated.

I had just assumed it would be me and Jiraiya that would be out in the unknown, not my little sister.

"How soon?" I asked, my voice cracking.

"This week." Her breathing was faint as she shivered at my gaze.

She's probably scared I'm going to react badly.

Not wanting her to be worried, I let go of her hand and cupped her cheek.

"I'm scared," I said gently, rubbing my thumb gently along her cheek bone, seeing her eyes glint from the light in the room, "I knew this would probably happen, but... I'm scared, Rin."

I'd never been truly separated from her for our entire lives. We'd always been within a couple miles at most from each other, except for Wave. But even then, we were still connected on one of us helping the other if an ambush occured.

This wouldn't be the case.

"Tousan told me to protect you," I smiled weakly, drinking in the sight of the person I loved most in the world, "And I know this will help you protect yourself when I'm not there."

What I said felt like ash in my mouth, but my emotions didn't matter. Rin did. Her continued safety and happiness couldn't be exclusively mine to maintain.

Managing to calm myself, I pulled Rin into a hug, running my fingers through her hair as I felt her arms wrap around me.

"I need to tell you something," I whispered, "Sasuke and I kept it secret because I was scared."

The next several minutes was me telling her one of the last remaining secrets I had.

I told her what Orochimaru did to me.

We were both sitting on my bed, my emotions raw from regaling Rin with one of the most traumatic memories I ever had.

"I wish you would have told me," She held me tight, leaning against me, "You didn't have to keep it secret."

"I saw what it did to Sasuke," I mumbled next to her, breathing in the scent of her hair, focusing on the familiarity, "Even after I lied and said it was a Genjutsu."

Rin's back was pressed against me, her fingers fidgeting with her hair.

"I understand," She whispered, looking up at me, "But promise me, no more secrets. We're in this together, that's what you said when the villagers hated us. 100 years from now, you'll still be my brother. I don't want you to keep anything like that from me."

For the first time in over 13 years, I was tempted to tell her...

Everything.

But I couldn't. I couldn't mentally deal with the vague chance that she would stop seeing me as me. I was already feeling nauseous from barely thinking of everybody turning their backs on me.

Rin. Sasuke. Hinata. Ino. Kakashi. Anko. Hiruzen. Jiraiya. Everybody that mattered to me rejecting me, leaving alone.

I can't.

"No more secrets." I promised, kissing the top of her head as I held her in my arms.

Rin snuggled closer to me and tucked her hair behind her ear.

"Can I sleep in here?" She asked, her voice unsure. "I don't want to be alone."

This would probably be the final time Rin and I would be this physically close. It had already been awhile since we had separate rooms, but I needed her to help assure me that my fears weren't grounded in reality.

My fears were trying to consume me, but I would endure.

My response was holding her closer, clearing my throat as quietly as I could.

"In a hole in the ground," I recited a children's story I told Rin for the first time the night I came back from the hospital, when she was clutching me tightly, scared that I'd disappear, "There lived a hobbit."

////////////////

Kabuto hurriedly grabbed and sealed all the records of experiments and samples he could, having been forced to operate discreetly from joint ANBU missions carried out by both Konoha and Kumo that were actively searching for Orochimaru's bases.

Uzumaki Naruto turned out to be much more dangerous than he could have possibly imagined. To defeat a Jinchuriki and Kimimaro at thirteen was a frightening prospect, especially since he was likely to be unreachable.

With the death of Itachi, the Akatsuki would be scrambling for damage control, as well as the two strongest villages cooperating to combat them.

With the amount of information Kabuto had about all the villages, he was almost certain full scale conflict would be fired off in a couple years, perhaps faster.

And Kabuto planned on surviving it.

Orochimaru spoke of understanding one's true self, and how constant progression was the path to true understanding.

Danzo. Sasori. Orochimaru. Kabuto had many masters, Shinobi far too powerful to contend with. In their shadow, Kabuto was forced to be anything but himself...

Until he forgot himself totally.

But for the first time in years, he was free. With the vials of blood and tissue samples, combined with the knowledge he acquired from serving under Orochimaru, no individual could stop him.

Giving a final, long look at the disguised entrance of the latest base that tge ANBU were close to finding, Kabuto made a hand seal to trigger the tags planted.

With a whoosh and roar, the base exploded in a stream of red and orange, the wind pushing his hair back from hundreds of yards away.

Onto the next one. Kabuto raced away from the burning remnants, heading to a base full of failed experiments.

Konoha and Kumo would enjoy cleaning up after the creatures.

//////////////////

End chapter:

Tsunade gets sworn in as Hokage and Naruto's pestering on Itachi actually doing something productive for the village both pays off and backfires.

Some of the stuff that isn't completely explained in this chapter, like what Naruto is going to be doing during the timeskip timeframe, will be clarified in the next chapter or two. He's still going to be doing missions outside of Konoha, but the world is going to be different from a more hot conflict with Iwa on the horizon.

The stuff with Iwa that Jiraiya doesn't know about can be guessed pretty easily, but only one person actually knows what's exactly going on.

The armour stuff is something I haven't seen in any fic, but I already have it figured out so it's a very effective use of Fuinjutsu, but isn't op when I flesh it out as the details are revealed about it when Naruto and Rin work on it.

Speaking of which, the latest part between the two is basically Naruto letting go of what he's clung to for years: The desire to protect Rin and shield her. It'll be rough for him when they part ways, but he won't be a total mess from her being gone.

But that's about it. Here's a new chapter and the next one has some more stuff. Later.

Raging.