45 A Peaceful Return

The trip back to Konoha was rather dull and uneventful. We traveled nonstop and literally nothing happened. Of course I had made sure to destroy all evidence of the ritual being made, since that would only invite trouble later on.

Isobu, who had been very chatty when we met him, was now sleeping like a log, probably to not wake up until he was needed or something dangerous popped up. I honestly couldn't have been happier with being his Jinchuriki, since he was nice overall. Being fair though, the only Bijuu I wouldn't be able to handle would be Gyuki. He was just too over the top with everything.

"There it is, the West Gate"

Travelling nonstop for almost two weeks with stops only to eat once in a while was, matter-of-factly, the most tiring thing I had donde since my training in the Thousand Fissures Desert. Not physically, even though I was somewhat tired, but mentally. All I wanted was to sleep, even if I had slept for two entire days already. That happened when I fainted, since it was the time it took my body to get used to the foreign soure of energy. In fact, now I had to retrain my Chakra control because of how stupid my reserves now were. I could somewhat understand how Naruto felt now.

Still, I was sure it would take only a couple days. There was something I was looking forward to, though. Chakra Cloak. Since I had the same seal Naruto did and Isobu was willingly giving me his Chakra, I was also able to enter the Chakra Mode Naruto did. I was so looking forward to looking cool. The one thing I was wondering was what color would Isobu's chakra be, as I hadn't used it yet.

My thoughts were cut short because of our arrival at the West Gate, which was the only gate I had seen, traveling towards the Land of Rivers both times I left the village. There, I could see the same two guys that always acted as guards.

"Hey! Look who's back"

"Hey guys, took us a long time but we finally got the mission finished"

After a short interaction between Anko and the guards, we were asked to present our ID's. Once that was over, we were free to enter the village once again. The first thing we did was going to the Hokage's Office, were we reported everything that happened to Hiruzen.

"... that is when Ryota said he had an idea and learned how to use the Sage Arts..."

"HE DID WHAT?!"

I must admit that seeing the old man loosing his cool was extremely entertaining, but it was something I shouldn't get used to. They say that things lose their shine when you get used to them.

"Can you show me, Ryota-shounen?"

"Sure"

During the time we had been traveling I kept switching between regular and Sage Mode, training to make the shift as quick and smooth as possible. It still took me at least a minute, but I was already a lot better than Naruto who had to either meditate or summon a clone. I had thought of teaching him how to connect with Nature better, but apparently it was a bad idea, since each Sage Art worked differently and mixing them could cause death -though only in extreme cases.

When the marks appeared in my face and my overall appearance got a bit wilder, Hiruzen's jaw almost hit the floor. I only stayed like that for a couple seconds, since I wasn't in need of using it for a long time. When Hiruzen asked me how far I had delved into the Sage Mode, I simply explained my current limits.

One hour was the limit I could stay in Sage Mode currently without overloading my body and possibly dying. It wasn't because of my capabilities or talent, but because of a lack of growth. Apparently, the older I grew the longer I could stay in Sage Mode. Though I was pretty sure the limit would be somewhere around five or six hours unless I mastered it or got Hagoromo's blessing, much like Naruto and Sasuke would, in which case there would be no limit.

"I must say I am impressed. You are already on the same level as the Sannin and I don't want to hear you denying it"

"... Thanks for the praise, Hokage-sama"

I could only answer after forcing a wry smile out of my face. I didn't really like to consider myself as strong as them, even if I was. The reason being that, even if weaker, I was sure Orochimaru and Jiraiya would be able to kill me through smarts and tactics. Tsunade was, in my honest opinion, the weakest of the three.

Once our mission was reporter, I stayed behind for a while and asked Hiruzen about Naruto and Sasuke, since I couldn't feel their presence in the village -a perk of being a Sage and a Jinchuriki, I could feel everyone in the entire village if I wanted. He told me that Sasuke had deserted sortly after I parted and Naruto was currently with Jiraiya, searching for hiw successor, the Fifth Hokage-to-be. Already knowing who it was and how things would develop, I decided to show myself on that stage for a little bit. Just to showcase how much I had grown and make Orochimaru mad at a kid he is three times older than being a Sage.

"There is another piece of news I have to give you, Ryota-shounen"

I was a bit surprised at that, since it wasn't everyday that the old man gave me news like that. Before he spoke though, I realized a peculiar thing. Neji and Lee were in the village but Tenten wasn't. I didn't panick at first, keeping myself in check. If something had indeed happened to Tenten though... Kurama's rampage on Konoha would be a child's play compared to what would happen to the one responsible.

"Where is Tenten?"

"She received an offer... from a panda"

I almost fell on my butt when I heard what Hiruzen said. Even he must've realized how stupid it sounded. Still, he had no reazon to lie to me. As such, I asked for more information.

"Elaborate, please"

Then he explained to me everything that Tenten told him. How a panda magically appeared in my personal training grounds, how it told her that the wolves had moved and how it said they got to her. It didn't take a genius to figure out she had been contacted by a Sage Race, but as happy as I felt for her, I was slightly saddened at not being able to see her for a while. I consoled myself with the fact she would come back a lot stronger.

"Ok, you are dismissed, Ryota-shounen. I want you at the door of my office tomorrow after lunchtime. We'll announce you being a Jinchuriki to the village"

"Ok, see ya old m... WHAT ARE WE DOING?!"