Chapter 36

(3 Days Later En Route to Takigakure)

Three days after their detour to Oni no Kuni, Naruto's group found themselves on the path to Takigakure. It was along this path, that the group decided to stop and have a break in a clearing slightly off the beaten path. Everyone set down their packs, and picked a spot to sit and rest.

"Man it feels good to sit down and relax." Tenten said with a content sigh, as leaned against a tree and sunk to the ground. "We've been walking for hours."

"You can say that again, my feet are killing me." Ino groaned out, as she rubbed her soar feet.

"Well, well looks like you're finally starting to show." Tenten said with a smile, as she looked at Ino's slightly swelling stomach. "You can still barely notice mine."

"Oh give it some more time, and you'll start to show." Ino reassured Tenten with a warm smile. Then a smirk spread across Ino's face, as she turned her head to look at Sakura. The pink-haired medic had just sat down, and was closing her eyes to try and catch a little sleep. "I mean look at Forehead and Hinata. They're both starting to swell up like balloons." Ino teased just loud enough so Sakura could hear.

"Watch it Ino-pig!" Sakura hissed, as she opened one eye to look at Ino. "Or I'll come over there and pummel you."

"Sure I'd like to see you try that Forehead." Ino shot back with a smirk, as she waved Sakura off dismissively.

"That's it!" Sakura exclaimed, as a vein bulged on her head. "When we're done with our pregnancies I want a rematch!"

"I'll fight you anytime Forehead, just name the time and place." Ino said with a grin. "You better get ready Sakura, because I'm not gonna go easy on you."

"You wouldn't be my rival if you went easy on me, Pig" Sakura said, as she placed a hand on her bicep and flexed slightly. "I'm not gonna hold back either."

Both girls glared at each other intensely for a few moments, but they both suddenly burst out laughing. However after a few moments Sakura stopped laughing, and put on a serious face.

"I wasn't joking Ino." Sakura said in a serious tone. "I want to have a rematch with you."

"I wasn't joking either Sakura." Ino said with a wolfish smirk. "Name the time and place, and I'll gladly fight you."

Naruto watched Sakura and Ino banter with a sad smile on his face. The two girls reminded him of how Sasuke and he used to act. Naruto sighed, and looked up into the clear blue sky.

"You stupid teme, why did things have to turn out this way? I'm sorry I had to kill you, but you gave me no choice. You were like a brother to me, but you betrayed me and Sakura-chan. I really wish things could have turned out differently between us." Naruto thought, as he closed his eyes and rested his head against the tree. But the blonde jinchuriki was interrupted when a voice spoke up next to him.

"You were thinking about Sasuke, weren't you?"

Naruto sighed and opened his eyes. He quickly spotted Sai standing next to him. The dark-haired man looked down at Naruto with a blank look on his face.

"Yeah I was thinking about Sasuke." Naruto replied, as he ran his hands through his blonde hair. "I was just thinking about how things could have turned out differently."

"I understand, but you shouldn't dwell on the past. You did the right thing, Sasuke needed to be stopped." Sai said, earning another sigh from Naruto.

"You know for a guy who isn't very good with his emotions, you sure know how to read people." Naruto said, causing Sai to smile.

"Well I do read a lot of books on human emotions. Plus I've always kept a close eye on how people interacted to study their reactions and emotions." Sai explained, as he pulled out a book about how to understand a girl's emotions. "But I always seem to have a hard time reading girl's emotions. Females are very strange."

"Tch, you can say that again." Naruto said with a chuckle. "Well I feel like stretching my legs. Do you wanna spar Sai?"

"Not right now, Naruto. I have a drawing I've been wanting to start, and now is the perfect time to start it." Sai answered, as he pulled out a scroll, a brush, and an ink well.

"Well alright then, I'm gonna see if Choji or Shisui wants to spar." Naruto said before he walked off to find the two other male members of his team.

After searching around, Naruto found Choji sitting underneath a large tree. The Akimichi was riffling through his pack, and pulling out various snack foods. Choji had just opened a bag of chips when Naruto stopped in front of him.

"Hey Choji!" Naruto exclaimed with a large smile.

"Hey Naruto," Choji said before he ate a handful of chips. "What can I do for ya?"

"Nothing I just came by to check up on you." Naruto said, as he sat next to Choji.

"Well that's nice of you Naruto, but I'm fine." Choji said, as he rubbed the back of his head.

"Actually," Naruto said, as he quickly looked around to make sure no one was watching them. "I wanted to ask you what happened with Karui."

Choji nearly choked on the chips in his mouth, his entire face burned bright red in embarassment. He gulped and turned his head to see Naruto smirking at him. The blonde jinchuriki's smirk widened, as he scooted closer to Choji.

"So what happened," Naruto continued. "Come on man give me some details."

"I-It's none of your b-buisness." Choji stuttered out, as his face turned an ever brighter shade of red.

"You don't have to tell me everything just give me the basics." Naruto said, trying to convince Choji. "Give me something."

"Why do you want to know so bad?" Choji asked, as he raised an eyebrow.

"It's just that you two kinda seem like an unlikely couple." Naruto reeled back when Choji suddenly shot him a glare. "What I meant was that you guys hadn't met until we got to Kumo. Then after you two hung out a few times, you end up hooking up before we left Kumo. I'm just a little curious."

"Karui and I didn't 'hook up' before we left." Choji said, making Naruto raise a blonde eyebrow.

"What do you mean you two didn't hook up? She seemed pretty into you when we left." Naruto said in a confused tone.

"I mean we kissed twice, but we never did...you know." Choji explained as he rubbed his arm in embarassment, while his face blushed madly.

"Oh, I see now. So did you two go on any dates or anything?" Naruto asked, causing Choji to shift uncomfortably.

"After you had me drag Karui out of the hotel room, I took her to a couple restaurants. We started talking, and we really hit it off." Choji answered, as he started to feel a little more comfortable. "After that she asked me if I wanted to hang out later that night. I agreed, and that night she showed me around Kumo and we talked some more. At the end of the night, before she left, I asked her out on an actual date."

"WAIT!" Naruto exclaimed with wide eyes. "You asked her out!"

"Yeah," Choji replied with a confused look. "What's wrong with that?"

"Nothing, I just thought that Karui would be the one to ask you out." Naruto replied, as he scratched his head. The blonde jinchuriki suddenly crossed his legs, and gave Choji his undivided attention. "Sorry for interrupting, please continue."

"Okaaay," Choji said, still slightly confused. "Well I asked her out, and she said yes."

"So what did you guys do?" Naruto asked fully intrigued.

"Nothing too special," Choji answered as he shrugged his shoulders. "I went over to her place, and cooked her dinner."

"You can cook?" Naruto asked with a raised eyebrow.

"Yeah, I used to cook for our team all the time when we were on missions. Ino, Shikamaru, and Asuma-sensai all love my cooking." Choji explained, causing Naruto to grin.

"Then you'll have to make me dinner sometime."

"I'll be happy to cook for you guys anytime," Choji said with a smile. "As long as I get to eat some."

"Sounds like a plan," Naruto said returning the smile. "So did you and Karui do anything else on that date?"

"Well after we ate, I took her on a walk through the village. I told her about my life in Konoha, and she told me her life in Kumo." Choji explained, as his face started to turn red again. "A-After walking for a while, we found a spot and watched the sunset. T-Then Karui told me that she really liked me." Choji started to stutter, as his blush deepened. "I kinda got lost in her eyes, and we both started to lean forward. T-Then we k-kissed for a little bit. After we k-kissed I walked her home, and asked her if she wanted to go on a-another date. S-She agreed, and I guess you can k-kinda figure out the rest."

Naruto stifled a chuckle, as he watched Choji stutter in embarassment. He looked like a little kid who just had to retell the most embarrassing moment of his life. His face was so red, Naruto thought that he might pass out. The blonde jinchuriki smiled, and slapped Choji on the back.

"Well good for you man!" Naruto exclaimed. "Even though Karui is a total bitch to me, I can still tell that she's a nice girl. Karui is real tough too, kinda reminds me of Sakura-chan. And damn does she pack a mean punch."

"Thanks Naruto," Choji said with a chuckle. "So is there anything else you wanted."

"Actually I wanted know if you wanted to do a little sparring!" Naruto exclaimed, as he shot to his feet. "I need to blow off a little steam."

"Sorry Naruto, but I'm exhausted from all the walking we've been doing." Choji said, instantly making Naruto deflate. "Maybe some other time."

"Alright," Naruto said in a deflated tone. "Thanks for telling me about you and Karui. I guess I'll go see if Shisui wants to spar."

Choji couldn't help but sweatdrop, as he watched Naruto walk off with his shoulders slumped and his head down. The blonde jinchuriki left Choji to go and find Shisui. Naruto searched for the Uchiha, and found him sitting underneath a tree slightly away from the rest of the group. Shisui appeared to be to be writing something.

"Hey Shisui," Naruto said as he approached the Uchiha. "What are you doing all the way over here?"

"Oh hello Naruto," Shisui said putting what he had been writing down. "I was just writing some mission reports to Hokage-sama."

Naruto picked up one of the pieces of paper, and began to read it. But what Naruto started to read wasn't a mission report, it appeared to be a letter.

"Uh, Shisui this isn't a mission report." Naruto said, as he showed Shisui the paper he had been reading.

"Oh! That's a letter I was writing to Itachi." Shisui explained, as he took the letter back from Naruto. "I've been trying to keep in touch with him, while we're on this mission."

"So has anything happened since we've left the village?" Naruto asked, as he took a seat next to Shisui.

"A few things actually," Shisui answered pulling out a few old letters from his pack. "Apparently the village started construction of the police station last week. We've already got over a dozen officers, but they work out of the Hokage Tower for right now. Itachi says the police force has already managed to cut down on the crime rate in the village. Plus the other shinobi and ANBU are quite happy now that they don't have to deal with petty crimes."

"Wow that's pretty impressive," Naruto commented. "Itachi and Obito must be doing a very good job, so anything else?"

"Let's see," Shisui replied as he read through the old letters. "Well Rin started working at the hospital two weeks ago, and she's being retrained by Tsunade-sama and Shizune."

"Well that's great to hear. I just hope Rin can survive baa-chan's training." Naruto said, as a shiver ran down his spine. "I know she won't be going through the same training Sakura-chan did. But I know how harsh baa-chan can be at times."

"Hmm, what else did Itachi have to say?" Shisui said, as he scanned through the letters. "Apparently Kakashi-sama and Shizune have officially started dating, same thing with Tsunade-sama and Jiraiya-sama."

"Ha, that's no surprise to me." Naruto said with a grin. "I know baa-chan gives ero-sennin a hard time, but I know that he means a lot to her. I just hope that they're happy together. I also kinda had a feeling that Kakashi-sensei and Shizune would hook up too. Shizune always gave Kakashi-sensei these looks and glances. I knew it was just a matter of time before they got together."

"Oh I forgot about this," Shisui said with a smirk as he read a particular letter. "Apparently Itachi found a girl too."

"Really!" Naruto exclaimed wide-eyed. "Who is it?!"

"Let's see," Shisui replied as he read through the letter. "Ah! Here it is, her name is Karin Uzumaki. Hey wait...doesn't that mean she's related to you?"

Naruto chocked on his own breath he heard this. He quickly yanked the letter out of Shisui's hand, and began to read it. The blonde jinchuriki's fists clenched as he continued to read the letter.

"He better not hurt her." Naruto said with a hint of anger in his voice.

"Naruto you need to calm down a little. Itachi would never hurt Karin." Shisui reassured Naruto, as he placed a hand his shoulder.

"I know," Naruto said in a quite tone. "I'm just really protective with my precious people. Especially Karin, since I only recently found out that we're related. She's the only living Uzumaki family I have left, she's like a sister to me. So I want to keep her safe."

"You have nothing to worry about Naruto. Itachi will keep her safe." Shisui said with a smile, as he put the old letters away. "Well if there's nothing else, I have to get back to this mission report."

"Actually I wanted to see if we could possibly spar a little." Naruto said, as he stood up. "I haven't really had a chance to practice my moves since I sparred with Gaara back in Suna."

Shisui looked down at the half finished mission report. He then looked back at Naruto, who was grinning down at him. With a sigh Shisui stood back up.

"Ah what the hell, why not? I can always finish those mission reports later." Shisui said with a grin of his own.

"Alright! Follow me, I found a clearing not too far from here!" Naruto cheered, as he sprinted off into the woods.

"Jeez that kid has way too much energy to burn." Shisui said to himself before he followed after Naruto.

About two minutes later, Naruto stopped in the middle of a large clearing in the woods. Shisui sprinted into the clearing shortly after Naruto did.

"So what are the rules of this sparring session?" Shisui asked as he stood across from Naruto.

"No offensive jutsus, sharingan, rinnegan, or sage mode. Other than that anything is allowed." Naruto said, as he pulled out a kunai. "So do you agree to these terms?"

"Sure," Shisui answered as he rested a hand on his tantō. "I'm ready when you are, Naruto."

Naruto and Shisui stared each other down from opposite ends of the clearing. Naruto tightened the grip around his tantō, while Naruto did the same with his kunai. A sudden wind blew through the clearing. Naruto and Shisui's eyes hardened, as they glared at each other. Suddenly the wind died down, and both shinobi shot forward at an incredible speed.

Uzumaki and Uchiha clashed in the middle of the clearing. Sparks flew as Naruto's kunai struck Shisui's tantō. After the initial clash both Naruto and Shisui jumped backwards. When Naruto was a sufficient distance away, he quickly formed a familiar hand sign.

"Kage Bunshin no Justsu!"

Two Kage Bunshin appeared on either side of Naruto. Both clones were brandishing their own kunai. Naruto pulled out a second kunai, as he charged Shisui. The Uchiha looked unfazed by the introduction of Naruto's Kage Bunshin. The first clone blindly swung his kunai at Shisui, but Shisui saw this coming and ducked underneath the swing. Bringing his tantō up, Shisui stabbed the clone clean through his stomach. The Kage Bunshin gasped before it exploded into a cloud of smoke.

Shisui was slightly caught off guard when the second clone burst through the smoke that was created by the first Kage Bunshin. But the Uchiha's reflexes were quick. Forming a lightning fast hand sigh, Shisui used a Shunshin to teleport away. The Kage Bunshin stumbled forward as he swung at open air. Suddenly the Kage Bunshin got hit in the head with three shuriken, causing it to pop away in a cloud of smoke.

Naruto followed where the shuriken had come from, and spotted Shisui standing in a tree just on the edge of the clearing. The Uchiha was smirking, as he twirled a shuriken around his index finger. A growl escaped Naruto's throat, as his body became encased with golden chakra. With his bijuu mode activated, Naruto charged Shisui.

"Ah, it looks like he's getting serious now." Shisui thought, as he dodged a first of pure chakra.

Shisui used another Shunshin to dodge a barrage of chakra fists from Naruto. The blonde jinchuriki spun around, and scanned the forest. Suddenly Naruto heard a noise behind him. He quickly spun around to see Shisui charging at him. The Uchiha threw a pair of kunai at Naruto, but a hand of pure chakra caught the kunai before they could reach Naruto. Shisui unseated his tantō, and prepared to swing at Naruto. Panting heavily, the blonde jinchuriki took out his own kunai, and prepared to meet Shisui head on again.

But before the two shinobi clashed, Naruto's vision started to become blurry. Naruto fell to his hands and knees, as the golden chakra disappeared from around his body. The jinchuriki was panting heavily, as sweat dripped from his brow. Naruto could faintly hear Shisui frantically calling out to him. The last thing Naruto felt before he fell unconscious was Shisui's hand on his shoulder, after that everything went completely black.

When Naruto regained his consciousness, he could feel the tingle of healing chakra and the cool feel of a damp towel on his head. With a groan Naruto cracked his eyes open. He saw Sakura and Ino hovering over him, as their hands glowed green. The rest of his group was gathered around the two medics, as they examined Naruto. But when Sakura saw that Naruto's eyes were open she gasped, and instantly wrapped her arms around him. Naruto could feel a few of her tears land on his shoulder, as she hugged him.

"You had us so worried," Sakura managed to say through her tears of relief. "Shisui just came running back here with you unconscious in his arms. He said you passed out while you two were sparring. You were so pale Naruto."

"H-How long was I out for?" Naruto asked, as he rubbed his throbbing head.

"You were out for about an hour gaki." Anko answered with a worried look. "Pinky is right, you had us all worried half to death."

"Heheh sorry about that." Naruto said with a sheepish smile.

"What happened Naruto? Sakura and Ino couldn't find anything wrong with you." Temari asked, as she crouched next to the blonde jinchuriki.

"Yeah," Sakura said releasing Naruto, and quickly wiping away her tears. "Ino and I didn't find any signs of illness or poison, and nothing appeared to be wrong with your chakra flow, so what happened to you?"

Naruto sighed and lowered his gaze to the ground.

"I don't know exactly myself," Naruto explained as he clenched his fists. "I've just been getting exhausted so easily lately, and I seem to burn through my chakra so fast. Things like this have actually been happening since arrived in Kumo."

"What!" Sakura exclaimed in an angry tone. "Something like this has been happening for almost two weeks, and you're just telling us about this now! You could be in danger Naruto!"

"I know it was stupid of me." Naruto said hanging his head. "I just didn't want to worry you guys."

"Naruto I get that you don't want us to worry, but this could be a very serious problem." Konan said placing her hand on Naruto's shoulder. "We can't have you getting injured."

"Are you okay to walk?" Sakura asked with a huff, she was clearly still a little upset. "Because we're only a few hours away from Takigakure, and we'll be able to examine you better there."

"Yeah I'm fine now," Naruto said standing up on shaky legs. "I'll just need to take it easy."

"Well if you're good to travel, we should get going." Ryuuzetsu said, as she put on her pack.

"Actually there's one other thing that's been bothering me." Naruto said placing a hand on his stomach. "I haven't been able to talk to Kurama since we left Kumo."

Everyone in the group gasped, and stopped dead in their tracks.

"What do you mean you can't talk with Kurama?" Choji asked with a shocked look on his face.

"It's just like I said. I don't know if the furball is ignoring me, or if something is blocking our connection, but yeah I haven't talked with him for almost two weeks. I can still access small amounts of his chakra, but it runs out extremely fast and it left me exhausted after I used it." Naruto explained making everyone's eyes widen.

"That's it!" Sakura exclaimed, as she grabbed Naruto's arm. "We're ending this mission early, and taking you back to the village. Something is seriously wrong with you, and we need examine you."

"Sakura-chan we're almost halfway done with this mission, we're not going back." Naruto said in a determined tone. "This mission is essential for me to become Hokage, so I will finish it. All I have to do is take it easy, and once we finish the mission you can examine me all you want."

Sakura's emerald eyes met Naruto's blue eyes. An unspoken conversation went on, as they stared at each other. Sakura saw that Naruto wasn't going to budge on his decision. Sakura released a heavy sigh, and let go of Naruto's arm.

"Fine, we'll finish the mission." Sakura said slinging her pack over her shoulder. "You just better not get hurt."

"Thanks Sakura-chan." Naruto said giving Sakura a quick hug. "I promise nothing bad will happen to me."

"You better be right you baka." Sakura said grasping Naruto's hand. "Now let's get going, Takigakure is not too far from here."

With that the rest of the group packed their belongings, and followed Naruto and Sakura back onto the path towards Takigakure.

(3 Hours Later; 5:00 p.m.)

After three hours of walking, Naruto's group spotted the gates to Takigakure ahead of them. The village was centered around a massive tree that towered over the surrounding forest. As the group approached the gates several shinobi dropped down in front of them.

"State your names and business." The closest guard said, as he halted the group.

"I'm Naruto Uzumaki, I am a Konoha shinobi, and I'm here on a mission directly from the Hokage. May I speak with your village head, Shibuki?" Naruto asked as the group showed the guards their identification papers.

The guards took the papers from Naruto's group, and gave them all a look over. After eyeing the group for a few moments one of the guards nodded, and the village gates opened.

"You may enter, but you must wait until we've notified Shibuki-sama." The guard said leading Naruto's group into the village. "Just don't cause any trouble, and remember you're being constantly monitored."

With that warning the guards all disappeared, leaving Naruto's group alone.

"Come on Naruto, we need to do a better examination on you." Sakura said dragging Naruto off towards an inn. The pinkette was followed closely behind by Ino and Hinata. "We don't have long before the guards return to take you to Shibuki. So we have to get as much done as possible right now."

"Well I guess that leaves the rest of use to do our own thing." Shisui said, as he scanned around the village. "I'm gonna look around a little, and see if I can find anything interesting."

"I'm gonna do some training, anyone else wanna join me?" Tenten asked the rest of the group.

"Sure I'll go." Temari replied resting a hand on her hip. "I need to work on some of my jutsus."

"I too will join you." Sai said, as he walked up to Temari and Tenten. "I haven't had much time to train, while on this mission. So it will be nice to practice some of my techniques."

"Well let's find a good place to train then." Tenten said walking off with Temari and Sai walking beside her.

"I guess I can see if this village's academy needs any assistance." Konan said spotting the academy across the street. "Do any of you wish to join me?"

"I'll go with you." Ryuuzetsu answered with a smile. "It had so much fun helping those kids in Oto, I'd like to do something like that again."

"That's great to hear." Konan said smiling at Ryuuzetsu. "Now let's go see if they could use our assistance."

"Well I guess that just leaves you and me big guy." Anko said with a grin. "How about we find something to eat, because I'm starving!"

"Sounds like a plan," Choji said with a massive smile. "I see a place across the street that looks pretty good."

"You're reading my mind buddy! Let's get some grub!" Anko cheered, as she walked towards the restaurant with Choji in tow.

In a tree just outside the village walls, a hooded figure watched Naruto's group disperse. The figure had an evil smirk on his face, when he saw Naruto be dragged off by Sakura.

"Well, well looks like the dobe finally hooked up with Sakura. It also looks like he's got a few other girls with him as well, interesting." The figure said as a gust of wind displaced the hood covering his head, revealing a pair of sharingan eyes. "Now that the experimental poison I took from Orochimaru's lab is in your system all I have to do is wait. Over time the poison will continue to block the Kyuubi and you. It will also mess with your chakra reserves, making you run out of chakra much quicker than usual and makes it take longer to replenish your chakra. The poison will even affect his nature energy gathering for his sage mode. It's just a matter of time before I get my revolution Naruto, I'll enjoy killing you and all the other kage."

Taking one last look at Naruto the figure formed a hand sign, and disappeared from the tree in a swirl of leaves.

(10 Minutes Later)

"Damnit!" Sakura cursed as the green chakra faded from her hands. "I can't find what's wrong with you Naruto. It doesn't help that I don't know exactly what we're dealing with."

"I can't pick anything out either." Ino said, as the green healing chakra dissipated from her hands as well. "Whatever is affecting you is something we've never encountered before."

"Hinata, do you see anything wrong?" Sakura asked the Hyuuga, who had her Byakugan activated.

"I see nothing out of the ordinary." Hinata said with a sigh, as she deactivated her Byakugan. "Although it looked like it was taking his chakra reserves a long time to refill."

"That's strange," Sakura said rubbing her chin. "Well have to wait until we get back to Konoha to do a more thorough examination. Maybe shishu will have an idea as to what going with Naruto."

"I sure hope so I-" Ino was cut off when a few knocks were heard at the door. "I guess I'll get that."

Ino got up and opened to door. Standing in the doorway was one of the guards from earlier.

"Hello, I'm here to escort Uzumaki-san. He's to meet with Shibuki-sama immediately."

"Alright Naruto go meet with Shibuki, and do your business." Sakura said ushering Naruto towards the door.

"If you'll please follow me Uzumaki-san." The guard said walking down the hall.

After a silent walk through the small village, Naruto eventually found himself at the village head's residence near the back of the village. The guard lead Naruto through the residence, stopping in front of set of double doors. The guard raised his hand, and knocked on the door.

"Come in." A voice called out from inside the room.

The guard opened the doors, and led Naruto inside the room. The blonde jinchuriki spotted Shibuki sitting at desk, reading a scroll. The brown-haired man looked up from the scroll, and smiled when he saw Naruto.

"AH! Naruto it's been a while!" Shibuki said gesturing to the seats in front of him. "Please take a seat."

"Thanks Shibuki," Naruto said with a smile of his own, as he sat down in the seat.

"You're dismissed," Shibuki said to the guard. The guard bowed, and walked out of the room. "Now Naruto what can I do for you?"

"I'm on a mission from the Hokage. I've been tasked with going to each of the shinobi villages with bijuu, and checking on their current situation." Naruto explained to Shibuki.

"Okay, well then let's get started we have much to discuss." Shibuki said pulling out several scrolls.

Fours hours later Shibuki had finished filling Naruto in on everything that had been happening in the village. Naruto was half asleep by the time Shibuki had finished.

"Well that's pretty much everything." Shibuki said snapping Naruto to attention. "Is there anything you need to know Naruto."

"Actually do you know where Fū is? I need to speak with her." Naruto asked earning a sad look from Shibuki.

"I'm sorry Naruto Fū has been dead for quite some time. She was captured by the Akatsuki, and had her bijuu extracted." Shibuki said with a sigh. "I know most of the villagers despised Fū, but I always liked her. She had spunk, and loved to make friends. Actually she was a lot like you Naruto."

"She hasn't come back to village? Then I'll have to find her." Naruto said standing up from his seat.

"Wait, Naruto what are you talking about?" Shibuki asked with a confused look.

"No time to explain!" Naruto called out as he ran out of the room.

"I have to find her quick before she does something stupid!" Naruto thought as he ran out of the village.

Naruto stopped running just outside of the village. He quickly sat down, and started to gather nature energy. But Naruto immediately felt that something was off. He could tell that he was gathering nature energy at a much slower rate, and he was gathering less of it than usual.

"Shit! What ever is wrong with me is also affecting my sage mode." Naruto thought as he tried to concentrate on gathering nature energy. Eventually , after twice the normal amount if time, Naruto entered sage mode. The blonde jinchuriki began to search for Fū's chakra. He found it almost immediately, and she wasn't too far away. Using his sage mode enhanced speed, Naruto took off after Fū.

Following Fū's trail, Naruto found himself at a secluded waterfall. The water was clear, and the air was clean. Naruto scanned for Fū, and found her sitting with her feet in the water as she stared at her own reflection. Naruto slowly approached Fū so that he wouldn't startle her, he stopped just behind Fū

"Hey," Naruto said quietly touching Fū's shoulder. The mint-haired girl gasped, and quickly spun around to face Naruto. "Sorry I didn't mean to scare you."

"Oh, it's you the Kyuubi jinchuriki." Fū said with a smile. "What was your name again?"

"I'm Naruto Uzumaki!" Naruto exclaimed with a grin, but Naruto's grin quickly faded. "Why are you all the way out here Fū?"

Fū sighed and turned back to stare at her reflection. She looked to be in deep thought, as she gazed into the water.

"I don't know what to do." Fū said after a few moments. "Chōmei isn't sealed inside me anymore, so I should be able to go back to the village. But I'm afraid that they'll still hate me even if I don't have Chōmei sealed in me. I want to go back to the village, but I just have this feeling that everyone will still resent me."

"I know how you feel." Naruto said with a sympathetic look. "I went through the same problem in my village."

"You did?" Fū asked turning back to face Naruto again.

"Yeah I did. I was hated by most of the villagers. But I persevered, and eventually won the villagers over." Naruto said making Fū's eye widen.

"You were able to make the villagers stop hating you?" Fū asked with a skeptical look.

"It took a long time, but yes I did eventually get the villagers to like me." Naruto answered with a smile. "And I know if you persevere, and show them how awesome you are, you can eventually get the villagers to like you too."

"You really think I can?" Fū asked with a hopeful look.

"I know you can, you just have to stick with it, and let anything drag you down." Naruto replied making Fū smile.

"Thanks Naruto that actually helped a lot." Fū said as she stood up. "I think I'll head back to the village, I'm sure Shibuki will be shocked to see me. Oh, maybe I should play a prank on him for old times sake!"

"Wait Fū before you head back I have something I need to tell you." Naruto said as he grabbed Fū's shoulder.

"What is it Naruto?" Fū asked with a confused look.

Naruto took a deep breath and looked Fū in the eyes.

"Chōmei wants to be sealed back inside you." Naruto said making Fū's eyes widen. "He wants you to be his jinchuriki again."

Fū couldn't even speak as her mind began to race. Should she give Chōmei another chance, or should she try to move on. Fū didn't know what to say, as Naruto waited for her answer.