Chapter 39

3 days back, Sunagakure

Baki looked over with increasing annoyance as the meeting of Sunagakure's advisory council went on. His growing frustration was mainly due to the tactless arguments (more like shouting) weren't arriving on any conclusive course of action. He tuned them out, instead choosing to focus on Temari's report of her brother's defeat. It was a shock of great magnitude to him when he had heard that Gaara had been soundly defeated.

He shook his head mentally. 'Just great. We have a situation that requires us to act as quickly and decisively as we can and these fools can't seem to agree on anything at all.'

It was quite fortunate that the Sand had managed to work out a ceasefire with a leaf, but Baki knew that it was temporary at best. Konoha would not hesitate to retaliate if any of Suna's shinobi so much as scowled at them. Tensions were high, and Suna needed something to convince Konoha of their sincerity in drawing up a new alliance treaty.

Baki cringed as he thought about the reports from the teams stationed at the Wind-Earth borders: More than average number of Iwa shinobi had been showing up. While not up to anything, Baki would bet anything that Iwa was testing their borders, looking for any weaknesses.

In the worst case scenario, Iwa would conquer Suna, which meant that they would practically be neighbors with Konoha. Given the history between those two countries, it could signal the start of the fourth great shinobi war.

With a sigh, he took a sip of his steaming tea to calm himself down a bit while still trying to think up of a way to regain Suna's military alliance with Konoha. Absently, he mentally recounted just how they lost: they invaded Konoha…Konoha forces were ready…..Orochimaru attacked the Sandaime hokage….Temari and Kankuro took Gaara into the forests…followed by the Uchiha….Gaara went crazy…unleashed Shukaku…stopped by a giant-

The epiphany hit him with such force that he almost spat out the tea he was drinking. Almost scrambling for Temari's report, he flipped pages until he found what he was looking for:-

Gaara was cleanly and efficiently defeated by Uzumaki (or is it Namikaze?) Naruto.

There was the answer and the epiphany he was looking for. Namikaze Naruto. Son of the legendary Yondaime Hokage.

A child of the Hokage….savior of the leaf…..

Pieces of a plan rapidly came together in a mind, forming a picture that was not the best solution, but perhaps the only solution they had at the moment.

He stood up, clearing his throat to gather everyone's attention. "Honorable members of the council, some new facts have come to my attention, and I believe I have found a solution to our current problem."

He had the undivided attention of some of the most politically powerful people in Suna. He could not afford to go back now, nor could he afford to make a single miscalculation.

"As you may all know, Iwa is currently testing out our borders. Our only solution to this problem is to somehow regain our alliance with Konoha. This is the only way we can buy enough time to recover from the loss of our forces. This is where our problem currently stands: How do we prove we won't betray Konoha again?"

A twinge of satisfaction rose up inside Baki as he saw the winces from several of the council members, reminding them that they had indeed, betrayed Konoha, falling into Orochimaru's manipulations.

Mutters were rising as the members considered his point. Baki took a deep breath and relaxed. The next statement was going to create tides.

"If I may have your attention once more," he spoke over the mutters, silencing them, "I am not yet finished. Before having an alliance with us, Konoha had an unshakable with another village, the Village hidden in Whirlpools. We need to procure back that level of an alliance with our….former ally."

Yoshin, one of the more senior members of the council and one of the people who Baki actually respected for his…relatively sensible arguments, spoke up. "How do you propose we do that, Baki?"

Baki stared dead in his eyes, "We follow the same procedure that they did, to achieve what they were able to achieve."

Seeing some confused faces in the council, Baki elaborated. "The alliance between Konoha and Uzushiogakure no sato was sealed by a marriage between the Shodai Hokage and a woman named Uzumaki Mito. The alliance lasted for decades, until Uzushiogakure fell to the combined attack of Kumo and Iwa. We can use that tradition to regain our alliance, which might be stronger than our previous one."

He was pleased to see that some of the members were actually thinking upon this. However, one of them stood up, almost foaming at the mouth. Hiroto Renji was someone who always made Baki wonder just how he managed to get on the council. He was a hot-headed person, exploding over the smallest of arguments and had none of the tact that was required to play the incredibly subtle game of politics. Also, he took utmost glee in pointing out faults at other members, while he himself never participated actively in any argument. Baki suspected that Renji feared looking too stupid.

"You can't possibly be serious! Like you said only moments ago," he sneered while saying 'you', "We need to recover our forces from the invasion. Which means, we need EVERY shinobi we have! Why would we offer one in the first place, and why would they accept in the first place?!"

Baki resisted the urge to rub his head at the moment. It would seem rather rude. "I thought it was quite obvious, council member, that given the history between the two, Konoha cannot afford to have Iwa at their doorstep."

Before Renji could blow up once again, another member spoke up, the slightest hints of irritation in his voice. "Just what are you trying to tell us, Baki?"

Baki picked up the report written by Temari of the fight that took place between Naruto and Gaara. "I will summarize this for you, as you all don't have this and it would take a long time for everyone to read this. Temari stated in her report that Gaara was, quote, "Soundly defeated" by a single genin, even after he had fully manifested his bijuu." He almost rolled his eyes at the exaggerated reaction that followed. "She states that Uzumaki Naruto, the aforementioned genin, could create water out of thin air and listen to this carefully, flash to places faster than she could even begin to follow."

He briefly put the report down to add his own point. "When I say flash, I mean it in the literal sense, council members."

He resumed from where he had left off, "He then summoned a massive, dark blue fox of all things, with seven tails, that was almost as large as Shukaku."

Baki looked up again, "Now, we don't know why Uzumaki has a summoning contract for foxes, so-"

"Could it be that he is the jinchuriki of the Kyuubi?"

Everyone turned to look at the council member who said this. Baki thought hard about how to reply; the speculation was actually quite considerable. Why else would someone be able to summon foxes?

"It could be," Baki carefully said, slowly as to emphasize the point, "But we don't have any evidence to substantiate that speculation. I have to stress on this council member: do not hold onto that speculation. For all we know, the boy could have stumbled upon it by accident. As I said, there was nothing that pointed towards Uzumaki having the Kyuubi inside him. Not even a wisp of demonic chakra, as is the trademark feeling everyone gets when near a jinchuriki."

Baki was very uncomfortable with this topic, so he decided to move on. "Moving on, a relatively recent report suggested that he is apprenticed to Jiraiya of the Sannin. They were both spotted travelling together through a town."

Yoshin once again raised a valid argument. "It could be that they were simply on a mission together. Nothing you say points towards the claim of being an apprentice."

Baki conceded the point with a nod, "Indeed, it could be that as well. But keep in mind that in the past, no reports have ever stated that Jiraiya-sama needed someone with him on a mission, given how powerful he is. Why would he allow anyone to travel with him unless they were being trained or taught by him? Also, he was highly proficient in fuinjutsu, just like Jiraiya-sama is."

Yoshino nodded thoughtfully and sat back. Baki continued with his previous statement, "As I was saying, he seems to be apprenticed to Jiraiya-sama, and speaking of apprentice, I believe you are all aware as to who the last apprentice of the man was?"

Thankfully, everyone nodded.

Baki rested his arms on the table. This was the crux of his argument. "To those who were not present at the chunin exams," which was everyone, excluding himself, "Uzumaki Naruto has been revealed to the world as Namikaze Minato's only child."

He dropped the bomb on them, waiting to see their reactions. And they were just like he expected them to be. Most of the members' jaws dropped in disbelief, some even choking on air. A few sensible members such as Yoshin were taking deep breaths, trying to force rational thought as to how this was possible. Renji was the only one who was shaking his head, whispering under his breath, "This can't be, this can't be…"

A member asked after regaining their wits. "Do you have any evidence to substantiate your claim?"

The question was asked slowly, for the member still had difficulties believing the latest revelation. Baki wordlessly picked up his file again and flipped to the photo of Naruto. He then put up the file on the table in such a way that everyone would be able to see.

It only took a moment a moment for everyone to connect the dots. Yoshino shook his head in slight awe, "Looks like you were right, Baki. He really does look like his father."

Baki added with a smirk, "Not only that, but he can use Hiraishin no jutsu just like his father

"But what does this have to do with us regaining our alliance?"

Baki grinned as he put his proposal forward. "It should be quite obvious by now: We offer Temari in marriage as a gesture of good faith on our part."

Renji frowned, "Why Temari? She is the daughter of our late kage, and is quite skilled. Couldn't we offer someone less significant?"

Baki looked at Renji, fully intent on shutting him up, "Believe me, council member when I say this. If we are going to offer a marriage proposal to someone as important as Namikaze Naruto, we have to ensure that the person from our side is of equal status as him. Naruto and Temari, both are children of a Kage. Any children that would result from their marriage would become formidable shinobi when they grow up. We can insert a clause stating that their eldest child must become the liaison for both of our villages after becoming a chunin."

Baki could have said that their eldest child should be married back into Suna, but they were in no position to make any demands from Konoha. It was best to stay on the safe side and make him/her a liaison after becoming a chunin, or a dual citizen. Also, the news of the Namikaze having an heir would have probably reached Iwa by now. Given how much the son is like the father and how Iwa feared him, their safety could be guaranteed.

…Or, Iwa would probably try to assassinate Naruto before he became too powerful for their liking. But that was a risk they had to take.

Regain the alliance, or face Iwa alone.

The council pondered over Baki's proposal. It was more than enough to gain back their alliance. Perhaps Konoha was benefitting too much from this, but they had no choice other than to offer Konoha as much as they can. Like Baki, they came to the conclusion that they really weren't in a position to demand anything from Konoha. But they would have a powerful ally once again, with powerful shinobi in their command.

Soon, everyone came to an agreement and the decision was made official. The offer was sent, proposing a marriage contract to the Konoha council.

All they had to do now was wait.

XXXXXXX

"WHAT DID YOU SAY?!"

The yell echoed throughout the building, the rage in it clear for all those who hear it. Temari gave her hottest glare yet to Baki, who was standing right in front of her and her siblings, doing his best not to show any nervousness or fear. Unsurprisingly, Kankuro found himself hiding from his sister's wrath…behind the back of his younger brother.

The former was quite old. Kankuro had hid from his sister a number of times in the past, for he was quite scared of her. Whenever she got angry, he was her usual outlet for that anger, for neither of them dared to get close to Gaara. Only the spot to hide had changed.

Ever since they had returned to their home, Kankuro had seen an incredible change in Gaara. Gaara had stopped threatening everyone who came in his sight, and wasn't radiating bloodlust constantly. Perhaps the best thing was that he hadn't killed once upon his return from Konoha.

However, the one part that didn't change was that Gaara never got afraid of Temari when she was enraged. Kankuro knew Gaara had no grasp of how to interpret certain feelings, but time heals all wounds.

Anyway, the point was that his sister was enraged beyond all belief, and he was using Gaara as a human shield.

Temari was not in the best of moods as she stood in front of her sensei. Carefully reigning in her anger, she managed to keep her voice steady as she spoke. "Why are you doing this to me?!"

Baki kept his face carefully neutral, trying not to show the pity he felt for his soon to be former student. Pity was the last thing Temari needed right now. 'This reaction was not exactly unexpected…..in fact, I was more worried about how Gaara would react. It's nothing short of a miracle he hasn't used sand burial on me already.'

He took a deep breath and began his explanation. "This is a direct order from the council itself, Temari. We need this to cement our alliance with the leaf once more."

Temari grit her teeth, unwilling to just lose like this. "So you will just offer me up like a lamb to be SACRIFICED?! WASN'T THERE ANY OTHER WAY?!"

Baki shook his head sadly. "I'm sorry Temari, but there was no other way. Do you think this order would have gotten passed if there was?"

Temari just wanted to scream her throat hoarse. So much injustice was being done to her, and she couldn't do anything about it. What was worse was that, they seemed to think she was the only one who could perform this duty, and they were right!

Kankuro was too much of an idiot to do this, and the village would sooner sacrifice their shinobi than give up their jinchuriki, never minding the fact that Gaara was a former blood lusting psychopath, so there was a dense air of mistrust around him.

She painfully reminded herself that a shinobi's duty is to endure and sacrifice for their village, no matter what the circumstances. "I don't like this, but I know that I have to do my duty, sensei."

Baki smiled sadly and nodded, "That you do."

"Has my future husband been decided?"

Baki considered whether or not to tell her. However, before he could say anything, Gaara spoke up. "I want to know as well, Baki."

Ok, now there was no way to back out of this. Even though Gaara restrained himself greatly from killing anyone in his sight, Baki was not going to take a risk. Gaara's newfound protectiveness for his siblings was apparent, and it was nothing short of a miracle that he hadn't killed Baki for giving his sister away to Konoha, just like that.

Clearing his throat, he simply answered the question. "Yes."

He sweat a little when he saw three sets of eyes looking at him expectantly. One was pure curiosity, the other was curiosity mixed with suspicion, and the last one was impatience and rage, combined with acceptance. You can guess who they are.

Temari tapped her foot in irritation. "Well, out with it! Who is it?"

Baki took a deep breath. Here goes nothing. "He is the same person who defeated Gaara. You may know him as Namikaze Naruto."

Temari blinked, and blinked again. And blinked again. Her thoughts drifted back to her hot, make-out session with the blonde in the alley. She didn't realize it, but her face was slowly turning red enough, enough to give Gaara's hair a run for its money.

Baki frowned in concern. "Temari?"

"…I see. I have a lot to think about, sensei. I'll see you later!"

Completely unlike her, Temari turned and hastily walked away, leaving a confused audience behind her. Baki had a puzzled expression- Temari never acted like this before. But then again, this situation is a first for her, so this might have prompted a new response as well. He turned to the other two, "You two are dismissed as well. You best leave her alone for a while. This is a very big and sudden decision she has been forced to agree to. It's best if she gathers her thoughts for a while."

With that, Baki left. Gaara turned to Kankuro, a very rare, confused expression on his face. "Kankuro, do you know why nee-san left?"

Kankuro shrugged in confusion, "Even I don't know Gaara. You can never know what's going on in women's heads."

XXXXXXX

Temari hastily made her way to the training ground that was reserved only for the Kazekages, however as the children of a kage, they got access to it without any problem. She made her way to her favorite spot, on the lowest branch of one of the few trees that were in the training grounds.

She climbed onto the branch, and finally let out the giggle she had been keeping inside her. 'It's so surreal! I mean, what are the odds?! I never imagined that this would happen!'

The giggles receded and a soft smile to its place as she gazed at the setting sun. She still couldn't wrap her head around it. She was going to get married to Naruto of all people! The same Naruto who she had feelings for, and had only grown from the time she had come back to Suna. In all honesty, she never thought that she could form a relationship with him as much as she wanted to, and she pretty much believed that he thought the same. She was of Suna and he was of Konoha. But it was almost as if the universe wanted to prove both of them wrong, but for the good.

Then the confusion and hesitance hit her, with a pinch of insecurity. Was she really ready to get married? No. Granted, she did have, dare she say, strong feelings for the blonde, but were they strong enough that she could happily live with him as a permanent partner? She didn't know that. Was she ready to make this sort of commitment so early in her life?

Her feelings for Naruto and her duty as a kunoichi of her village were making her thoughts nothing less than a mess. Would Naruto be happy that he would have to spend his whole life bonded to her as her husband? What if he isn't happy?

She groaned as she rubbed her head, trying to make some sense out of the mess that was her mind. In attempt to block out the incoming headache, she diverted the train of thought to the political implications of the marriage. She was the daughter of the Yondaime Kazekage, and Naruto was the only son of the Yondaime Hokage, arguably the most dangerous man the leaf had ever produced, and it was clear as drinking water that Naruto was well on his way to claim that title for himself. The marriage between two children of two Kages was sure an effective way to cement an alliance between two villages. Not only that, but her interest in Naruto had led her to attempt to study his background when she was back in Suna.

Shocked was an understatement, to say the least. She had known that Naruto went by the surname of Uzumaki, so she researched that first. Interestingly, that was the name of the clan that was cousins with the legendary Senju clan, and allies of Konoha. The Uzumaki clan lived in Uzushiogakure no sato, the land hidden in whirlpools. But it was wiped out out in the last war, with the combined efforts of Kumo and Iwa.

But apparently there was a survivor, who made it to Konoha and married the Yondaime to give birth to Naruto. Of course, since there was only one survivor, the clan was then given a seat in the council, as a gesture of the friendship they used to have with the village. Which meant that Naruto was now the sole heir of the Uzumaki clan, soon to be head, because of undoubtedly making chunin.

Another shocking fact was that Naruto was the head of two clans, not one. It was no secret that the person who becomes a kage, his name is automatically granted clan status. In essence, Naruto was the soon to be head of Namikaze clan as well.

He would become a very powerful figure in village politics, with two clan seats backing him. That was a lot of power and responsibility for a single person. She thought with some relief that he would have her to share the responsibilities. He wouldn't have to be alone in that.

Finally her thoughts took a turn that was long coming. Her face turned red as she suddenly thought about the implications of her marriage to Naruto. More specifically, what they have to do on their wedding night.

Temari's entire face went the shade of Gaara's hair red. She recalled what they had done in the alley that night, her and Naruto. The places his hands had touched….

She let out an embarrassed squeal as she put her face in hands. Why was she getting so embarrassed?! It didn't make any sense!

In the end, her thoughts came to this: While she was happy that she was getting to marry someone like Naruto and not some snob, like the Uchiha, she wanted to see if the bond that was there between them had the potential to grow stronger or not. Whether both of them were truly capable of loving each other or not.

And she wouldn't say no to any more…..naughty things that happened between them along the way, that helped reinforce that bond.

Nope, not at all.

XXXXXXX

Tsunade watched amused, did Shizune, as both Naruto and Jiraiya quarreled like children. This was the first time she was seeing Naruto get so heated in an argument so childish such as this.

"-lame as hell, mind you! You are always going on and on and on, about how you're such an awesome shinobi! And yet, you got nailed by her perverted attack?! You ero-sennin!"

"URU SAI!"

The two of them were literally butting heads, teeth grounding audibly. Naruto was the first to back off, a smirk on his face. It felt good to act childish once in a while, especially when he is making fun of his perverted godfather. "You know I'm right, ero-sennin."

"You know Naruto, that's quite an apt nickname for Jiraiya," Tsunade chuckled in mirth. Jiraiya's head instantly dropped in depression.

Naruto nodded graciously, "In all honesty, I never really thought about it. It simply came out of my mouth at the moment."

The journey back to Konoha had been covered in very high spirits. Tsunade finally had an air around her that felt like the Hokage she was about to become. Soon enough, the gates of Konoha came within their sight, the size of an ant.

Jiraiya scoffed, "Hmph! You people have no respect for me!"

He received three deadpan stares at the same time, causing him to chuckle nervously as he rubbed the back of his head. Naruto turned his head away, spotting the gates of Konoha in the distance. All of a sudden, a thought popped into his head, causing him to grin challengingly. Both Tsunade and Shizune noticed the grin, and knew a devious thought had just taken root in the crazy mind of Uzumaki Naruto.

"Hey, ero-sennin!"

The call caused Jiraiya to almost cry at him in indignance, but stopped when he noticed the grin on that face. "What's on your mind, gaki?"

Naruto pointed his index finger in the direction of the gates. "You can see them, right?"

The three of them had to squint a little, but nodded after a moment. "We've reached. What about it?"

Naruto's smirk could have put almost every ANBU in Konoha on alert. "Care for a race? Just you and me."

Jiraiya laughed haughtily and said, "Brat! You are a hundred years too young to even challenge the like of me!"

But then he added with a cocky smile, "But I wouldn't mind showing you just how inferior you are."

"Excuse me," an irritated voice cut into their challenge and both turned to face an annoyed Tsunade, her right hand cocked on her hip and foot tapping the ground in irritation. Shizune simply stood behind her, not knowing what to do. "I hope you weren't planning to forget that we are here too!"

Naruto's face suddenly changed into a completely innocent expression, something that caused Tsunade to stiffen in guard. She rather preferred his devious expression rather than this. At least that look suited him; this look almost had her convinced that Naruto was a completely innocent boy!

"Oh no, not at all!" Naruto denied with a shake of his head as he took off his backpack, holding it out to Tsunade, who raised an eyebrow in question. Naruto just put his hand forward, "Just hold it for a second please?"

Tsunade begrudgingly took the backpack and slung it over her right shoulder, only because the brat said please though. She was confused when Naruto then walked around her so that he was standing right behind her and Shizune. "You are a part of this race as well. In fact," he slung his hands over the shoulders of both of them, "You both are the referees." With that, he flashed them to the marker he had put on the gates of Konoha.

Naruto turned to Jiraiya, who shook his head and said, "Tsunade will beat you into the ground for not warning her."

Naruto waved dismissively, "She won't. Even if she attempts to do that, she's way too slow to catch someone as fast as me. Also, a shinobi must always be on guard."

Jiraiya snorted but said nothing. He liked this characteristic of Naruto; the kid didn't give a damn about who wanted to beat him and had the balls and skills to pull off such a stunt. He picked up a pebble and bounced it in his hand. "You ready?"

Naruto came to stand beside him, having deactivated the resistance seals for this. "Ready when you are."

Jiraiya flicked his finger, sending the pebble flying into the air. The both tensed as it neared the ground, and as soon as it touched the ground, they both disappeared.

Tsunade and Shizune blinked as they suddenly found themselves standing right at the gates of Konoha. The gate guards, Izumo and Kotetsu, blinked in shock as they found themselves suddenly staring at one of the legendary figures of Konoha. Senju Tsunade was not only considered the strongest kunoichi in the elemental nations, but also the most beautiful as well. And right now they found themselves scared, for her beautiful face was angry as hell.

Tsunade clenched her fist and snarled, "That BRAT! Didn't even give me a warning and forcing me into this petty race!"

However, her rant was cut off as two dust clouds rapidly made their way to her position. Remembering why Naruto had sent her here like this, she grudgingly kept an eye on them, ready to see who was winner.

Both figures shot post her right into the village, leaving a surprised Tsunade and Shizune. They had both seen who was the winner. Of course, there was little doubt….

Jiraiya huffed as he tried to catch his breath, looking at an equally huffing Naruto. The brat had almost beat him! His reflexes were as scary as ever, for Naruto had dashed as soon as the stone was a millimeter above the ground, with Jiraiya immediately dashing after. If not for the flex of his chakra near the end, he would have totally lost.

"Would you look at that? Jiraiya almost lost to a thirteen year old." Both of them turned to seen a smirking Tsunade walking up to them, carelessly throwing Naruto's bag at him. Jiraiya looked away petulantly.

"But I didn't! Also, I was carrying extra luggage!"

Naruto slung his bag, "I will concede to my defeat. You are better than me, ero-sennin….for now at least."

Jiraiya's triumphant smirk faltered at the end of Naruto's sentence. Of course, he planned on taking the brat on a training trip sometime later, and he had no doubts that Naruto would surpass him.

Naruto faced the three of them, "Alright, my mission finishes over here. I'll report tomorrow morning for debriefing, baa-chan. Enjoy your walk of fame, Hokage-sama." He added teasingly before disappearing in a flash.

Tsunade's eye twitched in irritation, before a small smile of fondness came onto her face. "He may look like his father, and even act like him most of the time, but he sure has his mother's moments as well."

With that, they made their way to the Hokage tower. Naruto wasn't wrong- people were not discreet at all when they saw two of the Sannin walking together, one of which had returned from an absence of almost a decade and a half. Tsunade found herself smiling against her will as she gazed upon the home of her precious people once again. People were smiling in relief, after seeing two, powerful shinobi of Konoha walking through the streets. Things were still a bit shaky among the civilians, but Tsunade's appearance might cause them to settle back down, Jiraiya mused.

As they reached towards the Hokage's tower and in a few minutes, the Hokage's office, Tsunade found herself having an epiphany. It hit her that she really had missed her sensei. Jiraiya saw this and allowed her a few moments to collect herself.

Tsunade took a few deep breaths to calm herself down. When she was ready, she raised a slightly shaking hand and knocked the door three times.

"Enter!"

The same, raspy old voice that she had heard since her genin days, full of wisdom, gave the command. Tsunade opened the door and was greeted with what she should have expected, but still filled her with a strange amount of relief and nostalgia.

Sarutobi Hiruzen was sitting at the Hokage's desk, doing paperwork. His eyes lifted up and widened in surprise. He slowly put down his writing brush, and stood up, never wavering his eyes from Tsunade. When he spoke, his voice conveyed suffering and relief, at the same time. "Tsunade…."

Tsunade herself was finding it hard to reign in her tears. It hit her once again- if it hadn't been for Naruto, Hiruzen would not have been standing here right now. He would either have been in a hospital or worse, buried in a grave, six feet under the ground.

"….I'm back, sensei." Tsunade said as she gave the old man a watery smile. It seemed that she had missed him more than she had thought. Sarutobi was more than just a sensei to her. He had been more like a father to all of her team. He nurtured them with his own two hands. He might have been tough as hell, but at the end of the day, he treated team 7 like his own children.

To her surprise, he laughed. Laughed hard, and Jiraiya and the ANBU in the room stared open mouthed, for that was the heartiest laugh they had heard from the Hokage in years. Finally, when he stopped laughing, he said, "I'm so happy to see you back, Tsunade."

He gave the signal to his guards to give them some privacy. Once they had left, he sealed the room completely. He then walked around the table and pulled out his secret stash of sake from the fake compartment in his drawer. He took out three cups and poured all of them a drink. He winked as he handed them the sake, "I normally restrain myself, but I believe this occasion calls for some celebration."

Tsunade smirked as she took her cup, followed by Jiraiya. They clinked their cups together and drank it all in one gulp, with Tsunade giving it an approving nod. "Nice sake."

Hiruzen smirked, "Being Hokage has privileges, you know."

Jiraiya sighed happily as he refilled and drank once again. "I should have invited the gaki to drink with us. After all," he winked at his teammate, "He performed his first S-rank mission quite impressively."

Hiruzen made a sound of realization. "Ah yes! We should have called him. To celebrate his first successful mission as a jonin, that too S-rank! I knew I made a correct choice in promoting him. I want your report on this, Jiraiya. I know Naruto's will reach to me by tomorrow morning."

Jiraiya nodded, "Will do, sensei."

Tsunade frowned, "How do you know that his report will reach you tomorrow morning? He said that in front of us, not you."

Hiruzen smiled, "It has been his habit ever since he started doing missions. He always gives in his report a day after the mission is completed. A very peculiar habit though, if I do say so myself. I never quite found out the reason why." He walked around his table, "However, he has been very consistent, so I have no reason to doubt that he wouldn't deliver it tomorrow morning."

Before they could continue catching up and discussing about Naruto, there was a knock at the door. All three of them gave the door an annoyed look, before Sarutobi put his sake away, sitting back on his chair. Tsunade and Jiraiya stood in front of his desk, as there were no chairs for them to sit on. Hiruzen unsealed the privacy seals and called his ANBU back. Once they were back in their positions, he gave the order.

"Enter!"

Hiruzen and Jiraiya were able to keep their faces blank, however Tsunade's tongue soured as she took in the arrivals. The elders, Homura and Koharu, had been her least favorite people when she was a genin and chunin under her sensei. She schooled her expression as they bowed to her.

"Welcome back, Tsunade-sama," they bowed. Even though the respect was shown, she still considered them highly annoyed. A pair of old, senile fools completely set in their ways of thinking. They were also quite assertive, wanting their opinion to be the only decision there is, despite of them only being advisors to the Hokage. They also believed that they knew best, if she remembered correctly. She would have to talk to sensei about doing something about them. They should have retired quite some time ago.

They looked above from their bow and then turned their attention to the Hokage, completely ignoring the other Sannin in the room. Of course, Jiraiya had no problem in returning the favor. He never liked them in the first place, and they fell from his eyes even more when he heard from Hiruzen just how vocal they had been against Naruto's promotion to chunin, let alone jonin, even if he was deserving.

"Hokage-sama, now that Tsunade-sama is here, perhaps we should brief her on the recent happenings and news from Sunagakure?"

Homura's suggestion earned a nod from Hiruzen and a questioning eyebrow from Jiraiya and Tsunade. Hiruzen took out a scroll from his drawer and handed it to his successor. "I want to hear what your thoughts are on this, Tsunade."

Jiraiya moved closer to Tsunade to read over the contents of the scroll. Both their eyebrows rose in surprise and incredulity as they finished reading it. Shocked looks were sent to the old Hokage, who sighed and said, "I have already given my approval to this. They made an offer that would have been otherwise foolish to refuse."

Jiraiya pulled Tsunade to the side to whisper to her, "This is ridiculous! They can't to do this to a clan head, can they?"

Tsunade eyes widened a bit at that. She had forgotten that after becoming jonin, Naruto had essentially become clan head to Uzumaki and Namikaze clans…..in all but official capacity. She grudgingly said, "He hasn't been officially appointed as such and has yet to take his seat at the council. This wouldn't have been possible if he had been clan head in official capacity without his permission, but since he's not, it could be, sorry, has been done. He can't refuse the order of the Hokage, Jiraiya."

Jiraiya frowned, obviously not liking the notion that his sensei dictated the life of his godson like this. Naruto would now have to marry someone from another village for his duty. He would never get a shot at love on his own.

But like Tsunade said, Naruto was not in any capacity to refuse. Tsunade did not like this as well. She had slowly taken a liking to Naruto on their way back to Konoha, and she saw what kind of a person Naruto was. He did not deserve to be treated like this. She racked her brain, trying to see the positive side to this. After a few moments, a stray thought caused her to back up and a small smile formed on her face.

She faced the Hokage and the elders. "The full council has agreed to this?"

Hiruzen nodded in affirmative.

The elders nodded as well, "Hai."

Her smile turned into a small grin. She needed to double check if her sensei had thought this through from all angles or not, before making his decision. "Does the council also believe that Suna is aware of Naruto's heritage?"

Hiruzen frowned and looked at Jiraiya in confusion, who cursed mentally and gave him an apologetic look. He turned back to Tsunade, "It seems that Jiraiya forgot to tell you what happened in the chunin exams, Tsunade. Naruto publicly announced his heritage. It is safe to assume to by now, all the elemental nations know just who Naruto is."

Tsunade gave an annoyed look to Jiraiya, who rubbed the back of his head sheepishly. Deciding that she would deal with him later, she asked them her next question. "Then am I to assume that the council has also thought about the domestic ramifications of Naruto's marriage?"

Her grin widened when a look of confusion passed among the elders, Jiraiya and her sensei. However, Sarutobi' s eyes widened as he caught onto the meaning of her question. An expression passed over his face as he viciously cursed himself for not thinking about this sooner, but then a grin passed over his face when he realized what it meant for Naruto. Jiraiya was a little slow to catch up, but then too grinned when he came to the same realization as her and sensei.

The elders still hadn't caught up to them. Koharu spoke for both of them, "We're not sure what you mean, Tsunade-sama."

With a smirk worthy to match Naruto's in deviousness, she explained. "When Naruto marries, he will officially have claimed his position as the the head of both Namikaze and Uzumaki clans. Meaning he will inherit everything from both of those clans including funds, property and land in those clans' possessions. That also includes the seats of both the clans on the council. Surely you realized this before sending the reply?"

The faces of both the elders had dropped in dismay. They never realized that by marrying off Naruto, they were pushing for him to become clan head for two clans. How could they have overlooked something as important as this?!

Hiruzen was enjoying the looks on the faces of his former teammates' faces. To add into their dismay, he added with a chuckle, "Of course, I should have realized this when I appointed him as a jonin."

Homura's and Koharu's faces showed horror by now. They had completely overlooked the fact that a person becomes eligible for head of clan position upon becoming a chunin or jonin. They were too biased against Naruto, too focused on trying to keep him under their control that they lost sight of other things. They should have realized this the moment Hiruzen appointed him a jonin.

Naruto was already clan head long before this discussion was taking place. It just needed to be officialized.

Hiruzen looked entirely too amused. "It seems you need a moment, Homura and Koharu. Perhaps you would like to step outside the room? Me and my students have a few things to catch up on."

The elders walked out of room in a daze.

The three of them finally let loose their chuckles, or in Jiraiya's case, laughter. Jiraiya said as he calmed down, "It's about time someone taught them a lesson."

Hiruzen smirked as he looked at his student, "Looks like I made the right choice in choosing my successor. You know you're worthy if you are able to outsmart them."

However, the atmosphere turned serious when Jiraiya brought up another concern. "However, we must not overlook the consequences of Naruto revealing his heritage."

Hiruzen and Tsunade immediately caught on to what he was saying. The former had been worrying about this for a long time. Minato's enemies now had a new target to focus on. If they couldn't get revenge on the yondaime, they would take it out on their son.

XXXXXXX

Naruto had flashed to his apartment and immediately disassembled his backpack. After taking a very satisfying hot water shower in his bathroom, he cooked himself fish, rice and eggs. Preservative seals were oh so awesome.

After he finished his meal, he sat on the couch and put on a movie. He wondered on what to do. After finishing an S-rank mission, it was mandatory for the shinobi to at least take a week of leave, maximum two weeks. However, Naruto knew he was quickly going to get bored of doing nothing for a week straight. He mentally recounted what he couldn't do.

He was in no mood to work on seals right now. Training was out of the question, because he had just returned from a mission. He had nothing to read, and he had no video games, for he was firm of the belief that they rot your mind.

'You sure are acting like a brat right now, you know,' came the voice from within.

Naruto rolled his eyes. 'Not all of us can sleep on a whim like you, Kurama. You are sleeping almost all the time when you have nothing to do.'

Naruto heard a scoff. 'Whatever brat. What I want to say is you could seek your pineapple headed friend for a game of shogi. Good exercise for your feeble, human mind.'

Naruto ignored the insult as he thought about the suggestion. It was not bad at all, and he would have fun teasing Shikamaru about his added duties as well.

He got up from the couch and went to his room to change clothes. A minute later, he emerged in something casual. A dirty white, long sleeves t-shirt folded to his elbows, with dark blue jeans. Over the t-shirt, he wore a black shirt with buttons opened, sleeves folded till elbows. The necklace Tsunade had given him hung out of his t-shirt.

All in all, he looked as cool as a breeze.

He stepped outside of his building and began a slow walk, having located the chakra signature of his friend in the training ground 10. He allowed his feet to carry him as he thought about the possible changes that could happen now that Tsunade was back. On the way back, Jiraiya had once told him that Tsunade had once asked Sarutobi permission to start a medic training program. However, it was wartime, and there weren't enough shinobi to spare for the training program, not to mention the lack of interest on the part of many shinobi.

So lost he was in his thoughts that he failed to notice the appreciative looks from the female population that were being sent in his direction. Girls that were eight to nine years old were blushing while looking at him while the girls his age were shamelessly checking him out. But again, he was too lost in his thoughts to really notice that.

He was about to turn towards the training grounds when he sighed. This was getting boring very fast. "Come out, Konohamaru! I won't tell you a second time!"

As soon as he had shouted, a brown haired boy darted around the corner, and came running over to him. "Naruto nii-chan! Play ninja with me!"

That earned him a harsh finger flick, right in the center of the forehead. Konohamaru yelped, immediately rubbing the spot.

Naruto looked at his unofficial charge with some amusement. Konohamaru wanting to play ninja with him was a common request by now. But since today was a day on which Naruto had nothing to do, why not give a few life lessons to the kid. Teach him the real meaning of being a ninja.

Konohamaru was immediately indignant. "What was that for?"

"I won't be playing ninja with you today, Konohamaru," came the bored reply. Then he frowned, "Also, aren't you supposed to be in the academy right now?"

Indeed, it was only noon right now, so the young Sarutobi should have been having lunch in his class. Konohamaru crossed his arms and pouted, "Iruka-sensei's lessons are very boring!"

Naruto let out a small chuckle, "You aren't wrong in saying that. However," his face adopted a stern expression, "That excuse is not enough for you to skip classes. They are teaching you things that will allow you to survive as a shinobi. Even I found those classes dreadfully boring, but I always followed what was going on."

No need to tell the kid that he skipped quite a few classes himself because of his stupidity act. Of course, he had also been way ahead of his class.

"Also, you should start training seriously instead of playing ninja in your free time. It is never too early for a shinobi to start training on chakra control!"

Konohamaru frowned, "Does this mean you will no longer play ninja with me?"

Naruto sighed, trying to decide how to best explain this. He looked around, thoughts running wild, when he spotted the Hokage monument. An idea sprang into his head and without giving any warning to the kid, he grabbed his shoulder and flashed away.

Konohamaru blinked when he suddenly found himself standing over the head of the Yondaime. He shrieked and backed off, only to collide with something solid. Turning back, he saw the face of Naruto, looking over the village.

"Being a ninja is not a game, Konohamaru," Naruto said softly, looking into the eyes of his charge. "Sure, kids can play, but in the world that we grow up, it is best not to treat it as a game."

He sat down, pulling the kid down with him. Konohamaru sat beside his idol and frowned, not understanding what Naruto was trying to say. "What do you mean, Naruto nii-chan?"

Naruto did not look away from the village. "Let me ask you something, Konohamaru. What do you think it means to be a shinobi?"

Konohamaru opened his mouth to answer…..and stopped. He thought really hard, something he very rarely did. It was obviously a question that had a deep answer. He thought and thought, but the answer was lost to him.

"To be a shinobi means to endure. A shinobi is the one who can follow or lead others into any darkness and work together to overcome that darkness and make it out the other side. A shinobi walks towards danger when everyone else is running away, that is because it is the duty of a shinobi to look at any foe and say- "Bring it." That is because shinobi exist to protect those who can't protect themselves."

Naruto recited the same answer that jiji had given to him years ago. The answer had a deep and profound effect on him. It was one of the main reasons he pushed himself so hard every day to get strong, so he could protect his loved ones. He hoped it would have the same effect on Konohamaru.

The said boy was deeply thinking about Naruto's answer. He had never thought like that, always thinking it as a game, that being a shinobi meant to throw cool jutsu around. He had never imagined there would be such a deep reason behind what being a shinobi meant. Only one thing came to his mind right now. "Why are you telling me this?"

"Your grandfather almost lost his life in the invasion."

The words were like a splash of cold water down Konohamaru's spine. The announcement filled him with dread, which was visible in a violent shiver on the outside. "W-What? H-How?!"

Naruto gave an expressionless look to the boy, "He acted like a true shinobi. I told you, didn't I? Being a shinobi is not a game, a Hokage less so."

Konohamaru viciously tried to hold back his tears upon hearing the news of his grandfather. He had never known about this. Why was Naruto nii-chan telling him all of this?!

"To teach you a lesson," came the answer, almost as if Naruto had read his thoughts. "I am telling you this to teach you a lesson, Konohamaru. You want to become Hokage, don't you?"

At the mention of his ultimate goal, Konohamaru hastily wiped his tears off. "Y-Yeah!"

Naruto stood up, brushing his pants. "Then start taking your training seriously. Not too much, though. Take ample time to rest and relax, so your body can appropriately recover as well. Eat healthy food in ample amounts, without hesitating. Just don't joke around when it comes to your duties as a shinobi, alright?"

Konohamaru stood at attention, determination coursing through him. "Hai, Naruto nii-chan!"

Naruto smiled and ruffled the boy's hair. "Good. And if you need any help on how to properly train, don't hesitate to ask. Become a shinobi first, then I'll tell you what it means to be Hokage, alright?"

Konohamaru smiled and nodded. He would make his brother and grandfather proud of him, by becoming a true shinobi. "Hai, Naruto nii-chan. But don't you forget this," he pointed a finger at the blonde challengingly, "We are still rivals for Hokage!"

Naruto chuckled, "That's the spirit! Now let's get you back to the academy!"

He put a hand on Konohamaru's shoulder and flashed to the only person in the academy who had his Hiraishin seal on himself.