Operation: KARMA

Blanket disclaimer: I do not own Naruto or Tenjho Tenge

AUTHOR'S NOTE:

This chapter was a blast to write. Here is chapter 6:

Last time:

With that Anko left with a slight sway in her hips and closed the door behind her.

"Wait! What about a date Anko-chan?!" wailed Bunshichi.

"She's already long gone chief." said Naruto from behind the jonin.

"You've been here this whole time?!" asked Bunshichi.

Naruto nodded. "Yep, Anko nee-chan said it would be educational for me. I am glad you want to help me though Bunshichi-sensei."

The jonin just shook his head. "Seduced by a walking wet dream only to have fun poked at me by an Academy student. Oh how the mighty have fallen."

Naruto smiled and tossed Tawara his cigarettes. "Now you owe me. I was going to hold those hostage if you didn't cooperate."

The jonin just gaped in shock as Naruto led him out of the meat locker…It was a difficult to render Tawara Bunshichi speechless but the orange wearing brat had done it.

…

Chapter 6

Konoha, Hokage's Office

Surutobi Hiruzen, The God of Shinobi, was very concerned. It had been a month since Naruto found out about his heritage and…no pranks. Not a one. Naruto hadn't even revealed his Mother's identity to the other students and Hiruzen had to wonder why. The Hokage was just waiting for the bomb to drop. That isn't to say he hadn't helped Naruto out a bit. The young Uzumaki had seventy-eight seals patented and Hiruzen arranged for him to sell them under a nom de plume. The boy was literally making money hand over fist. The elderly Sarutobi also realized that both Mitarashi Anko and Tawara Bunshichi were helping Naruto out and arranged for them to have time to be his (mission paid) personal tutors out on the private training grounds of the Natsume Clan.

Speaking of the Natsume Clan; Hyūga Hanako and her two granddaughters had taken up residence in the Natsume household and Hanako was helping to instruct the Natsume sisters as well as Naruto in the art of swordsmanship. She also introduced young Hinata to wielding twin kodachis and the girl now was flourishing under her grandmother's guidance in both taijutsu and kenjutsu. Naruto invested a great deal of his time helping out at the Natsume household and Hanako had taken it upon herself to pound some manners into the boy as well as improving his study habits. He'd moved up into the middle of the class in scores. (Iruka was now always grading his tests personally and that also helped).

However, there was still the threat of Naruto getting even with everyone and him raining hell down upon Konoha through pranking. The ANBU had all been on high alert about it since the semi legendary 'Three Day War' that occurred last summer when Naruto unleashed seventy-two hours of nightmarish pranks on the village…He hadn't ever been caught and they could prove nothing.

It was terrifying to know a mere boy could do so much damage in so little time. The Jonin Commander Nara Shikaku's assessment of the situation was it was nothing short of brilliant and had Naruto been serious the village infrastructure could have collapsed…poor Shikaku nearly had a nervous breakdown trying to figure out how Naruto pulled it off. Hiruzen finally closed the case since his Jonin commander was starting to drink heavily.

There was also something else weighing on Hiruzen's mind. Jiraiya's recent field reports indicated Suna Village and the new Village of Oto in the Land of Rice in close contact with one another and were both mobilizing for war by all indications. Worse yet, Oto's leader was none other than Orochimaru. They would be fully prepared within eight months –coincidentally when the Chunin Exams were held in Konoha this year.

The new genin squads would be completely raw and would be slaughtered without field experience. Shimura Danzo suggested they have those ready for it graduate early so they would be prepared to fight and Hiruzen agreed with his comrade/rival so instead of graduating in five months those that were ready would graduate in two months.

That would give the new genins six months to build up their field experience. Certainly not enough for a full-scale war but it would be enough to keep them alive. Bunshichi, Iruka and others all independently evaluated the most recent group and came up with virtually identical results. Those chosen for advanced graduation were:

Aburame Shino

Akimichi Choji

Haruno Sakura

Hyūga Hinata

Inuzuka Kiba

Isuzu Emi

Nara Shikamaru

Natsume Maya

Uchiha Sasuke

Uzumaki Naruto

Yamanaka Ino

That gave Konaha eleven strong potential genins and to fill the last slot Danzo supplied a boy of outstanding ability named Sai. That would allow them to form four teams. It was going to be hard on these youngsters but their childhoods were officially over in two months. That was the way it was going to be and Iruka was going to be making the announcements for the advanced class today. It was simply going to be stated that they had a shortage of qualified genins and the rest of the class would graduate normally.

…

Konoha Ninja Academy

Iruka had just finished reading off the list of genin hopefuls that would be in the advanced class. Truthfully, he was very worried for those students but he also knew they were made of sterner stuff than the others. "…And as a result, you eleven will be put in advanced classes per the Hokage's orders. You will be joined by one other but I do not know who he or she is. The decision has not been made who your instructor or instructors will be and you will be reporting to classroom 301 at 4 A.M. starting this coming Monday. I want you to know I'm proud of all of you and I know you will excel in your advanced classes."

"4 A.M.?" was the collective shriek of those chosen.

"You're cramming five months of classes into less than half of that time so your days will be long and hard." said Iruka. "It will be a challenge but I promise you it will pay off."

"It's Thursday so that means we only have four days left to have social lives!" lamented Ino. "On the positive side it means I get more time to spend with Sasuke-kun."

Sasuke cringed a bit. He was glad to see Maya was in the class but was disgusted that Naruto was in it too. Ever since the Uchiha lost that spar that landed him in the hospital Naruto hadn't lost to him (or anyone) once. His pride as a Uchiha demanded retribution on the blonde but Naruto's eyes seemed to always burn with a vengeance these days. Sasuke didn't know what had changed but Naruto was no longer someone he (or anyone) could push around. Worst of all Maya stuck to Naruto like glue just like Hinata and the new (and talented) girl Emi. It seemed all the competent kunoichi's were interested in the former dead last for some reason…

"Did you hear that Naruto-kun?" asked Emi. "We've both been selected for the advanced class. Of course, it's little wonder since you're so strong. Let's do our best okay?"

Naruto wasn't sure what to think of Isuzu Emi. She had been very excited to meet him and always praised his efforts. She was very nice to him and even asked him to call her Emi-chan. "Ummm…sure Emi-san."

"Emi-chan, remember? You don't need to be so formal with me Naruto-kun." she said with a giggle.

Naruto just didn't get it. Emi seemed so serious around everyone else but she was always girly and friendly with him. 'I guess it's just one of life's mysteries…' he thought to himself. Neither Maya-chan nor Hinata-chan seemed to like Emi very much but they both admitted they respected her skills as a kunoichi. She was unbelievable with kunai and she was quite scary when angered.

Speaking of scary, Hinata-chan was becoming rather fearsome herself. Hanako Obaa-chan (Yes, Naruto called her Obaa-chan too) had taken Hinata's juken and completely overhauled it from top to bottom. The indigo haired kunoichi was learning fast. The new forms that Hinata-chan learned in the last month alone were making his shy friend into a fighting machine and her confidence and self-worth had skyrocketed. Naruto and Maya were both very proud of her.

…

Flashback…

Last night, Naruto was over at the Natsume Clan home enjoying some quality dinner with the Natsume sisters and the Hyūga sisters as well as his favorite Obaa-chan, Hanako. Hinata-chan had insisted on cooking that night and Hanabi-chan assisted her. "This is great Hinata-chan! You'll make a wonderful wife someday." praised Naruto causing the bluenette to sport an atomic blush.

"I can't wait for Hinata-chan's famous cinnamon rolls for dessert." chirped Aya happily. "Mealtimes are so much better now."

"My cooking isn't that bad…" pouted Maya. Her eyes narrowed sinisterly at her little sister.

"I meant it's much better because everyone is here eating together!" said Aya sweating at her older sister's calculative look.

Maya smiled rather smugly. "Well, it is nice having two new sisters and a great Obaa-chan to teach us. It's also great that Naruto-kun finally agreed to use Jiji's old office as his fuinjutsu studio. Jiji would have loved that. Now if we could just convince Naruto-kun to move out of his drafty old apartment and out here. It isn't like there isn't plenty of room."

Naruto decided to change the subject before everyone joined in on him moving into the Natsume residence. Truthfully, he loved the idea but he didn't want any of the hate aimed at him to ever get any of the girls hurt. He'd told Maya-chan and Hinata-chan all about the Kyubi (and Hanako already knew of course) but he didn't want Hanabi-chan or Aya-chan to know just yet. He exclaimed, "That aside, you should have seen Hinata-chan in our spars today, she really kicked some ass!"

Hanako darted a chopstick that bounced off of Naruto's forehead. "Language Naruto-kun! There are ladies present and you need to comport yourself properly in the company of others regardless!"

"But Hinata-chan did really well. It was more like watching her dance than fight. She was really graceful Obaa-chan!" whined Naruto as he rubbed his forehead where the 'chopstick of doom' had nailed him.

"Then you should have said that to begin with like a gentleman Naruto-kun." said Hanako in a pontificating tone. She turned to Hinata. "I'm very proud of you for doing so well Hinata-chan. I knew you would."

Hinata smiled softly. She really loved having everyone here as a family. She knew Hanako Obaa-chan and Naruto got along really well also. It made everyone happy and content it seemed…

Flashback end…

…

Naruto smiled. He had to admit, Hanako Obaa-chan was awesome. She was strict as hell but she had really helped him a lot. It meant a lot to him that she genuinely cared. Hanako had told him a lot about the Kyubi and how it was passed down from Uzumaki Mito-sama to his Mother and then to him. She also had known a few Uzumakis in her time and had been to the Land of Whirlpools before it was destroyed. Her stories really helped him connect with his lost family. It also made him wonder if he'd ever meet any of his distant cousins like Senju Tsunade someday.

…

Lunchtime

Isuzu Emi was sitting with Naruto, Hinata and Maya once again. There normally was an underlying tension between the girls (with Naruto sitting obliviously in the line of fire between them) but today's news of the advanced classes pretty much overrode any personal differences between them. "It's almost appropriate they drop a bomb on us on a day with such overcast weather." said Emi in a glum tone as she got out her supersized bento. The others wondered where she put all that food.

"I have to agree." said Maya. "It's supposed to be cloudy for days and I think it's a new moon tonight."

Hinata nodded and said quietly, "I have a feeling we're not going to have time to enjoy the weather much the next couple of months anyway. You're going to have to not prank the teachers in class and really work hard on the bookwork Naruto-kun."

"I'm trying Hinata-chan." said Naruto. "This is a real shock to me; I mean, 4 A.M.?"

"Don't worry Naruto-kun; I'm sure you'll do great." said Emi confidently.

"Well, here's to our last few days of freedom." said Maya as the four of them toasted with their water bottles.

"We should celebrate by you joining me for dinner on Friday evening after class ends." said Sasuke out of nowhere to Maya. All the fan girls in the class gasped that Sasuke actually asked Maya out. Most were in shock though some were in denial.

Maya got a flat look and was about to retort that she wasn't interested but Naruto cut her off instead. "I'm flattered Sasuke-chan but I don't swing that way. This does explain why you never went out with any of those girls that asked you out though. For what it's worth I suppose I should congratulate you on following Mizuki-sensei's example and finally coming out of the closet."

Sasuke's face turned white in shock as both Maya and Emi exploded into laughter at his expense. Even the always shy Hinata started giggling. Sasuke's eyebrows started twitching uncontrollably as his face turned red and he pointed angrily at Naruto. "YOU….Damn you bastard! I was asking Maya out!"

Naruto didn't bat an eyelash. "Just because you don't take rejection from me well doesn't mean you have to drag poor Maya-chan into this. I'm sure there's a man out there just waiting for an emo pretty boy like you."

Sasuke was purple by now and ready to go off like a bomb. "That will be enough out of both of you!" yelled Iruka before the bloodletting started. "The Hokage doesn't want you all beat up Monday so stand down. Sasuke; go over and eat at the table you always eat at." Sasuke stormed off in a rage swearing to murder the 'orange menace.'

Iruka shook his head. "You're really not helping matters Naruto."

"You're right Iruka-sensei." said Naruto amiably. "I should have sent Sasuke-chan over to Mizuki-sensei for some hair care tips and tender loving care. But really; I am straight. My gay friends in the apartment building I live in refer to me as being 'hopelessly heterosexual.' 'ttebayo. I can't help it that I don't swing his way."

Iruka found the girl's laughter was infectious and practically had to shove his fist in his mouth to keep from bursting into hysterics himself. He wagged a finger accusingly at Naruto before he body flickered away to crack up in private. Fan girls aside, most of the class was either snickering or openly laughing at Sasuke's expense. While all this was going on Naruto cast a glance over at Mizuki. The predatory gleam in his eye was unmistakable to Hinata but she figured whatever Naruto did to Mizuki would be well deserved…

…

Midnight

Naruto slept peacefully in his apartment as the ANBU quietly monitored him per the Hokage's orders. If he got up and started some massive prank they were to stop him. ANBU Commander Dragon did not want a repeat of the Three Day War. Naruto rolled over and cracked an eye open at his clock. He smiled to himself as he saw the second hand hit 12 A.M. He thought to himself with a vulpine smirk, 'Operation: KARMA is go!' and then went back to sleep.

…

With Mizuki…

Mizuki woke up handcuffed by the legs and arms to a chair. His chakra was sealed and to his horror he was wearing nothing but a white leather speedo with a matching white Gestapo style hat and dog collar. He had a fifty ryo bill of sale stuck in his mouth and it was tattooed on his ass 'Likes it Rough.' He saw the biggest, hairiest man he'd ever seen in his life and paled when the man yelled over his shoulder he had to 'break in the new meat.' The man then came over and said, "Your soul had better belong to the Kami little bitch; because your ass belongs to me! Now bend over and squeal like a pig!"

Soon Mizuki was…This sequence has been deleted to protect the sanity of others and prevent projectile vomiting. A mere 'Adult' rating is simply not enough to cover this scene in the author's opinion. We now return you to your regularly scheduled story…After a good week of conditioning Mizuki would learn to answer to bitch (it was one of the nicer things he was called) as he serviced gray haired old gentlemen in the Fire Capital's red-light district…male sex slavery was a tough job and the crooked sensei was just praying for death…

…

The Inuzuka compound…

In the middle of the night Inuzuka Kiba woke up to the horrid sounds of….cats! The whole place reeked of the smell of fish sausages and he found he had a string of them wrapped around his neck. He opened the door to his room and he and Akamaru witnessed a battle royale going on between their Inuzuka clansmen and a massive, horrid feline invasion. He heard his Mother scream, "This is worse than the Third Shinobi War!" They would be battling fiendish felines until mid-morning when they finally declared victory and located a sales tag to mean old man Kato's fish market. What few remaining Inuzukas in combat shape followed the scent back to old man Kato's and proceed to kick his ass so hard that the old man's ancestors felt it. (It was mere coincidence old man Kato refused service to Naruto as a kid).

…

The Sarutobi Compound…

Sarutobi Asuma woke up tiredly around 4 A.M. to relieve himself. Then he noticed his mirror had been replaced with a hideous painting of a bearded geisha when he washed his hands. He then was shocked awake when he realized it was his mirror. After shrieking like a little girl he turned on his bedroom light and realized his room had been redone with white walls covered in red hearts and his bed was covered in rose petals and smelled like cheap perfume. He quickly dashed out and saw all the adult males done up the way he was and were in a state of shock. Their wives and girlfriends were laughing hysterically at their appearance as well as the children.

Seeing his Father come out of the main room he saw Hiruzen come out dressed to kill in the fanciest outfit of all. He was obviously the 'madam' of this operation. Asuma's seven-year-old nephew Konohamaru was laughing himself sick at his Jiji's appearance. The outside of the compound had a huge banner that said, 'For Your Eyes Only: Lady Hiruzen's Male Courtesans GRAND OPENING SALE!' The outside of the compound was also decorated is tasteless heart patterns in pink and red. The only positive thing Asuma could think was 'At least Kurenai-chan is out on a mission…Kaa-san is probably spinning in her grave.'

…

The Akimichi Compound…

Much to the horror of the pleasingly plump Akimichi Clan all of their food had been switched for diet and low-fat substitutes. This was a fate worse than death for the clan and they went on the warpath to find who had committed this atrocity. They soon found the health food stores had secretly stashed all their real food for things like granola and all hell broke loose. The health food chains suffered the full wrath of the big boned clan and the property damage was astronomical…

…

The Nara Compound…

The Nara's work up and found their home was painted floor to ceiling and wall to wall with abstract art that was so random the Vincent van Gogh would have gotten vertigo looking at it all. They couldn't help themselves but to look for patterns and soon were screaming out running or literally getting sick in the floor just looking at the paintwork.

It was horrific and the Clan Head Nara Shikaku did the only thing he could do: He ordered every member of the Nara household out to buy paint and brushes to cover this abomination. Unfortunately for the hapless Naras there was already a huge rush on paint. As they came into the village proper, they found buildings painted up in zebra stripes, checkers, zigzags, and every other pattern known to man.

Because the Naras habitually slept in, they were too late to buy paint due to a massive rush. Worse still; all the paint vendors found their wares were ruined because each can was neatly punctured that caused massive paint spills that would take weeks to clean up. The streets had arrows with wrong directions painted on them and all the regular street signs were painted out. Evidence was everywhere leading to false trails and fistfights between victims and 'culprits' that had nothing to do with the damage. All the paint vendors on the east side of the village organized against all the paint vendors on the west side and a massive rumble broke out in the marketplace that was quite epic given most of them were really out of shape.

…

The Hyūga Compound….

All the main house members woke up with fake caged bird seals painted on their foreheads that could not be distinguished from the real ones except they didn't work. They were horrified and mortified with shame. Worse still their compound was decorated in nothing but hot pink and pastel green polka dots that made all the buildings in their stately manor look like a joke. Their Clan robes matched the buildings and all of the men's and women's undergarments had been switched leading to the men all being accused of being perverts and being beaten appropriately.

…

The Uchiha District…

Sasuke awoke only to find every door and window in the Uchiha district was missing. All of his clothes were gone (even those he went to bed in!) and everything was coated in itching powder. Even the sheets and drapes were gone. His chakra was disrupted by a tiny seal (of unknown origin) so he couldn't use a henge. If his fan girls ever found out he'd surely be gang raped…His only choice was to streak through the village and run towards Konoha Hospital and hope he didn't get recognized…

…

The Hokage's Advisors…

The homes of Utatane Koharu, Mitokado Homura, and Shimura Danzo all had plumbing issues. As a matter of fact; their basements were flooded with raw sewage to the degree that it was hard to tell which one held the record for the biggest septic tank in the history of Konoha. Even worse (for Danzo at least) the backflow of sewer kept pumping in and was filling up the secret ROOT ANBU tunnels that were connected to his home. The smell was so atrocious that their underground hideouts were uninhabitable for the time being.

The Konoha Hospital was painted in red and white candy stripes and was overloaded with people trying to deal with various ailments of every nature known to man. Konoha was essentially paralyzed top to bottom.

…

ANBU Headquarters…

All the ANBU's masks were switched with hideous clown masks and their uniforms now looked like skin tight spandex superhero outfits. ANBU Commander Dragon (AKA Bozo) ordered a full-scale manhunt for the one and only Uzumaki Naruto…More chaos had been unleashed in one night than the entire 'Three Day War' and he had to be stopped at all costs.

…

The Natsume Clan Home…

Strangely the Natsume home was spared of any damage (maybe because it was on the outskirts of town). The girls all got up early at 6 A.M. for their morning workout with Hanako Obaa-chan when they noticed the festival like fireworks display above Konoha that was now painted to look like a circus. "Oh dear…" said Hinata.

"Obaa-chan, what's going on?" asked Hanabi. The Natsume sisters couldn't see as much without the byakugan but even they could tell mass chaos reigned in the village.

Hanako searched with her byakugan for a few moments and sighed. "I think it's safe to say that the Ninja Academy is closed today so you girls will be staying home. I hope there isn't an invasion. I believe two teenaged civilian girls and a puppy could take Konoha in this state."

…

With Naruto…

An orange blur was running from the ANBU screaming "Help! Killer Clowns are after me!" 'The Prankster King from Hell' led the ANBU all over town on a merry chase for the next few hours as he admired his handiwork…or rather the handiwork of hundreds of shadow clones planting seals all over the village over the last month. He'd accomplished about eighty five percent of what he had planned (he had to move up the schedule because of the advanced Academy classes) but Naruto's general thought was 'Operation: KARMA –A complete success!'

Naruto was soon in ANBU Headquarters where Ibiki (now with red painted skin, a goatee and horns glued on the sides of his head) and Inoichi (with his head shaved completely bald and a turban stuck on his head via a chakra seal) were raking Naruto over the coals. After Naruto 'mistook' the Hokage for the head of the Daimyō's harem he'd been banished down there. Naruto was completely truthful about the whole matter and said, "I did nothing to the village and I deny all charges! You people do realize I was sleeping last night and even I'm a victim. My apartment building was painted bright orange and has a red flame job. From what I saw running from the Killer Clowns -"

"ANBU agents!" roared Ibiki.

"-Killer Clowns that falsely accused me and attacked without provocation." Naruto continued, "It would have taken an army and massive amounts of planning to pull this invasion off! You're blaming an Academy student?! Give me a break! It's not my fault your security is so lax. If you want to blame someone; blame yourselves!"

Later that evening; Ibiki and Inoichi were talking with the Hokage (all still in their attire that wouldn't come off). "We've been trying to crack Uzumaki for fourteen hours straight and he hasn't given in a millimeter." said a tired Ibiki. "…And Anko is still laughing at this ridiculous devil costume! There's even a red pitchfork I found in my secured office!"

Hiruzen nodded. 'I suppose the boy did deserve some payback but my god; he brought Konoha to its knees in one night and we can't prove a thing!' "What are your views on the matter Inoichi?"

Inoichi sighed. "As hard as it is to believe; all my observations and questions show the boy is telling the absolute truth. It isn't like the 'Three Day War' where he worded things in a sly way with double meanings. He said he didn't do it and short of a mind walk which I'm reluctant to do with Kyubi in there; I say all evidence is he's innocent of wrongdoing –Although I don't believe it for a second. Truthfully, I think he's some kind of evil, diabolical, mad genius! Look at the way I'm dressed damn it! -I'm bald with a turban and have 'mystic eyes' painted on my palms like some damn fortune teller! You do realize the family flower shop's cash register was replaced with a crystal ball and 'Free Psychic Readings' replaced the 'Yamanaka Flower Shop' sign. It's even done in the exact same letters and colors. We're never going to get rid of the smell of burning incense in there."

"At least you two don't look like a Geisha Madam that's way past her prime…" said Sarutobi grumpily. Inoichi and Ibiki looked a bit abashed. "Let me talk to Naruto-kun and then we'll release him."

"Are you certain Hokage-sama?" asked Ibiki.

Hiruzen nodded. "Considering how people have spit on the Fourth Hokage's sacrifice and the undeserved persecution that boy has endured I think we owe him this. Besides, if he was anyone but Kushina's son he would have broken by now."

Inoichi went wide eyed. "He's Uzumaki Kushina's son? That means his Father is-"

"Yes Inoichi." said Sarutobi cutting him off with hard eyes.

Inoichi was completely baffled, "But that mean's Naruto is Royalty. Does he know about any of this?"

Hiruzen sighed. "Naruto knows it all. I gave him permission to reveal his Mother but his Father and his Royal heritage are still classified." He turned to Ibiki and said. "You don't know the full story Ibiki; you're a half generation younger. It's classified so don't ask." Ibiki nodded in silence.

Inoichi asked, "Then why hasn't he revealed his Mother's identity? Kushina was a legend in her own time (and beat the crap out of me on multiple occasions –I still fear tomatoes!). Is he ashamed of her in some way?"

The Hokage looked into the room where Naruto was strapped down. The boy wasn't going to break so why not just let him go? "I don't know why he hasn't revealed Kushina, Inoichi. I know he's very proud to be her son, so it makes no sense to me. I'm already on thin enough ice with him so I'm not going to push him to reveal something so personal. I will ask him though. This has gone on long enough gentlemen; let's let Naruto go."

Inoichi and Ibiki followed the Hokage in and undid the straps. "By the decree of Hokage-sama you're free to go Uzumaki." said Ibiki gruffly.

"So you're releasing an innocent person Ibiki-chan? How big hearted of you." said Naruto sarcastically.

Ibiki growled and muttered something like "little bastard." under his breath. He caught a death glare from Naruto that would freeze hell and muttered, "Sorry."

"I'd like to talk to Naruto-kun alone." said Hiruzen. "I think I can show him the way out of ANBU Headquarters though he probably already knows it." Inoichi and Ibiki excused themselves the Inoichi bowed on the way out which made Naruto raise an eyebrow.

After the others left Naruto said in a jovial tone, "So what's new Sarutobi baa-chan?"

"Must you poor salt on an open wound Naruto-kun?" asked the Hokage.

"Gee, welcome to my world." said Naruto coldly.

Hiruzen winced and then sighed. "I guess I deserved that reply. How do you get this damned geisha makeup off anyway?"

Naruto rested his chin in his hand and looked thoughtful. "Hmmm…How the hell should I know? Try sandpaper. It's not like I did it or anything."

Realizing he was getting nowhere fast, the old man asked, "I was wondering why you hadn't revealed you were Kushina's son Naruto-kun. That could open a lot of doors in our society for you. I know you're proud of her but haven't told anybody without swearing them to secrecy."

"I know who she is and that's all that matters." said Naruto. "My Kaa-san would be ashamed of this village for what it's done to me. Her name is too good for the likes of them."

"She would want you to tell others about her if it would help you though." said Hiruzen in a Grandfatherly tone.

"Maybe someday Sarutobi Jiji." said the blonde sounding depressed.

"Fair enough." replied Hiruzen. "Do you want me to announce it publicly so the people would have no doubts?"

Naruto shook his head. "No, there's no need to waste words on them. I'd rather keep it private."

"Alright then; let's get you out of here Naruto-kun." said the Hokage as he led the young man out. When they got to the surface and out of ANBU Headquarters; Hiruzen asked, "So what do you think of being in the advanced class of genins Naruto-kun? Are you excited? There aren't that many being honored with this chance."

"Somehow I think there is more to it than being honored about it Jiji." said Naruto.

Sarutobi fixed Naruto with a serious gaze. "I see dark times ahead Naruto-kun. I want you and the others to be ready. That's between you and I. Work hard and encourage the others also; understand?"

Naruto nodded seriously, "Yes Hokage-Jiji. I'll do my best."

"That's all I can ask for my boy." said Hiruzen with a smile. "You should probably lay low at the Natsume residence over the weekend. You haven't made a lot of friends today." Naruto nodded and took off in an orange blur. The Hokage sighed to himself. 'I wonder how he pulled that massive prank off. It's frightening but when he puts his mind his mind to it Naruto-kun really is a genius. With tactics like those he'll be an excellent field commander in the future.'

…

Yamanaka Psychic Reading/Flower Shop

Inoichi was quietly talking with his wife Yamanako Ayano*①. Ayano said excitedly, "You mean he's Uzumaki Kushina-sama's son? That means he's Uzu Royalty. The boy is a Prince!" she practically squealed. "Kushina-sama never talked much about it at the Academy when we were kids but it was always obvious she was special."

"Ayano, the fact he's Royalty is classified!" whispered Inoichi.

"But the fact he's Kushina's son isn't?" asked Ayano in full gossip mode (Ino had to get it from somewhere).

Inoichi said, "Honey, Naruto hasn't ever told anybody. I don't think he wants the public to know."

"Well why not?" asked Ayano with a raised eyebrow. "Kushina was a Kage level kunoichi. If I was him I'd be yelling it in the streets! Where's his sense of pride? Wait! That means his Father was-"

"That's classified too Ayano." said Inoichi in a deadly serious tone. "If that leaks out our heads will literally roll. Promise me you'll keep it to yourself?"

"Alright; I promise." said Ayano. "You realize it breaks my heart not to spread something this juicy around don't you Inoichi-kun?"

"I shouldn't have mentioned it Ayano. I'm sorry." replied Inoichi.

"It's alright Inoichi-kun." said Ayano as she kissed her husband. Then she thought deviously to herself, 'There's no reason I can't encourage our little Ino-chan to like him…she doesn't have to know why just yet.'

Upstairs…

"…You mean he's Uzumaki Kushina-sama's son? That means he's Uzu Royalty. The boy is a Prince!"

Yamanaka Ino heard her Mother's voice through the floorboards. 'Uzumaki Kushina; who's that? Is that the knucklehead's Mother?! He's an Uzu Prince?! Is that possible? I need to call forehead. We need to research this!' If Ino could count on her best friend/worst rival for anything, it was Sakura's incredible brain power. 'That may be why Maya, Hinata and Emi like him. They probably know due to their connections as nobles. It makes perfect sense!'

…

POSTSCRIPT:

*①: Yamanaka Ayano is an OC name for Ino's Mother. To my knowledge, she was never given a name by Kishimoto.

Okay, Operation: KARMA was inspired by an endless amount of fanfics over the years. I couldn't tell you we're a lot of the ideas came from but most were influenced by other fics so I want to give credit where it's due. I originally was going to be harder on Sasuke but the point in the pranks was to get back at the adult's hatred rather than the fact the Uchiha's a prick. As for Mizuki…well, that's pretty much original. It won't be the last we see of the traitor though.

About Jiraiya: Since he's not around to help Naruto I thought I'd make him a very competent spymaster. That isn't to say he won't be in trouble with Naruto later but he'll be more than just going around being an idiot peeping on girls (not to say he isn't still a super-pervert). We'll also be seeing a different side of Tsunade in the future.

Yes, Ino's Mother (and Ino to a lesser degree) are being opportunistic, hypocritical harpies. That being said we'll see what Ino and Sakura find out next chapter when the advanced genin training begins. See you next time. Blue out. 6/2/23