Chapter 49: Ray of Hope

He silently sat on the shores of a beautiful lake, the bright moonlight was enlightening the water with its grace. The breeze was cool and relaxed his tensed muscles as he sat in the shade of a tree, he carefully removed his face mask as he looked at his reflection in the water.

Naruto was actually surprised when he spotted faint shades of beard grown on his smooth cheeks.

Kurama carefully watched as his friend chuckled a little, the boy had not uttered a single word during the entire journey. The Biju could clearly feel the boy's rampant emotions. Naruto was a mess right now, a part of his mind was forcing him to disregard Kabuto's offer...while a small part of his heart wanted to get his family back again.

Kurama knew who Naruto really was at heart, behind the identity of the Anbu captain was a simple boy who yearned for family.

In any other circumstances the feelings Naruto had in his heart would not be termed as selfish, but they were dealing with Orochimaru. And even a simple civilian knew the man could not be trusted, and that snake had put the Biju in a great turmoil.

Orochimaru had sown the seeds of doubts inside Naruto's fragile mind that he had a daughter, the boy had already started getting faint memories of his now deceased daughter. If he discovered she was dead, he would fall into a deep abyss of sorrow and guilt from where he would never rise again.

But hiding this fact from him would be more dangerous now, Kurama cursed himself for accepting Itachi's plan and betraying Naruto. He had broken the boy's trust, the only human who gave him a chance and considered him a friend. Kurama knew there would be severe consequences, and someone was going to pay dearly.

And in this case, that person was going to be him.

He blamed himself, he could have stopped that atrocity...h-he could have trusted in Naruto's will.

"Kurama, why are you feeling guilty?" asked Naruto sternly, he could easily feel the Biju was stressed about something.

The accused person looked at Naruto, what was he supposed to say? Did he even have the courage to say the truth?

"I-I'm worried about you. What are you going to do now?" asked Kurama worriedly, and he was surprised when Naruto got a small smile on his face.

"Do you remember who I am?" asked Naruto silently, as Kurama wondered what his friend meant until realization dawned on him.

"Those of the foundation have no names, no emotions. I have no past nor any future, the only thing that matters is the mission alone"

His words were said with so much determination, and Kurama was surprised when a small smile came on Naruto's face.

"And yet, I could never control my emotions. Danzo was right, I was not fit for Anbu..." said Naruto jokingly, as Kurama smiled a little.

"You were not fit for many things, my friend...but you did them regardless. You did the impossible, in my entire life I have never seen a human with so much conviction for his cause. You're a man of honor..." said Kurama proudly, as Naruto shook his head bemusedly,

"You flatter me, old friend. I am many things, but not a man of honor" said Naruto seriously,

"I'm afraid you are such a man..." said Kurama persuasively, as Naruto's eyes shifted to the moon in the sky.

"A man of honor would put duty above everything else, shinobi have no honor. We kill, we betray, we lie, we murder, we do every single thing a man of honor wouldn't do. I thought you would have understood this by now," said Naruto flatly, as he picked up a small stone from the ground.

Kurama was happy on seeing the boy's honesty, he knew what he was and had the power to say the truth. That itself made him a man of honor in the Biju's eyes...

"And yet I have seen Shinobi protecting people, fighting for the weak, destroying the evil. Yes, there are rotten ninja, but there are good ones like you too. Naruto, you may not believe it but this world is not so bad, it can change- if you have the will to change it" suggested Kurama smartly, as Naruto threw the stone far away in the lake as the object made a splashing sound and disrupted the flow of water.

"Maybe..."

"Naruto, what is it that you desire the most in this world? Fame, power, love,-"

"Family...I want to live with my family, that's the only thing I ever wanted. Tell me, Kurama...did my mother love me?" asked Naruto calmly,

"Of course, she loved you. Kushina was practically jumping with joy the whole 9 months...and she cried tears of joy when you were born," said Kurama truthfully, however a frown came on his face when Naruto took out his cigarette and started smoking.

A low growl escaped from the Biju's mouth in protest, but his partner casually ignored him for a few moments. Finally, Kurama had enough as he barked loudly making Naruto sigh in defeat.

"Can't you just let me enjoy a little bit..." whined Naruto, as Kurama's glare intensified.

"You told me that you had quit this stupid habit of yours," said Kurama sternly, as a mischievous smile came on Naruto's face and to further irke his partner he took another deep sip.

"I told you I would try to leave this habit of smoking...and I'm trying, really" said Naruto mockingly, as he continued his smoking.

"You're an asshole..." said Kurama frustratedly, as Naruto nodded happily.

"A trait I inherited from my father..." said Naruto nonchalantly, as Kurama got a little interested.

Naruto rarely talked about Minato, he would sometimes dream about Kushina but Kurama never saw him remembering his father. It was as if the boy just didn't care...

"Do you hate your father?" asked Kurama curiously, as a small "Tch" escaped from his lips.

"Considering he made me a Jinchuuriki, fucked up my life for eternity, chose my life as if he was fucking Kami...No, I don't like him very much. He can rot in the Shinigami's belly for all I care," said Naruto harshly, as a tired sigh escaped from the Biju's throat.

"Why do pretend that you don't care about him? Even your mother agreed to make you a Jinchuuriki in the end...don't you think you are a bit partial towards Kushina?" asked Kurama hesitantly,

"I owe my mother a debt for bringing me in this world, the only thing my father gave me was disgrace and his sperm. He maybe a hero for the people, but for me he is a fucking piece of shit and if I meet him again, I'll kill him myself," said Naruto distastefully,

He quickly put his face mask back on, only a few hours were left for morning and he had to reach the orphanage. His parents were dead, and he had an offer to consider.

Kurama watched the boy getting ready for their journey, no matter how much he tried to show that he had no feelings for his parents, one way or another they always came out and this was his way of stopping any discussion.

How he wished that Kurenai was here, she was the only person who could reach his heart.

The real Naruto that Kurama knew was in a state of denial, he had pretended to hate his parents for years in order to escape from the pain of being an orphan. If Naruto revealed his true feelings, then he would miss his parents more than ever, and he was doing everything in his power to prevent this from happening.

However there were bigger issues that needed their attention, and it seemed Naruto was aware of this fact.

"Don't worry, I know who we're dealing with...I'll think of something," said Naruto calmly,

"I'm sure you'll make the right choice..."

(Konoha)

"W-what did you say...?"

Her eyes widened in shock as her trembling lips desperately tried to reestablish themselves, Kurenai felt as if she was hit by the Kyuubi itself. How in the seven hells was this possible at all?

This was just absurd, there was no way it was true.

It can't be the truth.

"You're lying..." said Kurenai shakingly, not only Naruto had a daughter but now she was dead?

Just how many more secrets were kept hidden from her? She was a ninja too, but never in her wildest dreams had she seen such a treacherous world.

"It's the truth...Rei was the girl's Codename, I know it's a lot to take in and I will explain everything. But you must calm down" requested Kakashi patiently,

He sat calmly as she wiped the sweat that was formed on her forehead and quickly drank a cup of water in order to calm her nerves. She closed her eyes for a few more moments and took a few deep breaths in order to hear the truth.

"Alright..."

Kakashi was relieved when she regained her composure and was now looking at him seriously with her dark red colored eyes showing the strength she possessed, and her courage to hear the truth. He knew it was not going to be easy, but it had to be done.

"You said Rei was her Codename? Don't they have real names in Root?" asked Kurenai seriously, as he disagreed.

"No, Root Anbu are only given Codenames. Sai, Shin, Rei, Kinoe, Baro, these are various types of codenames given to the ninja of Root. Kurenai, I have worked with Root ninja in the past, it's a dark place and Danzo was one of the most dangerous and manipulative person I had the misfortune of knowing. Naruto's codename was Falcon" explained Kakashi briefly, as she nodded in agreement.

"Okay, so what's Rei? I mean, how is she his daughter? Did he.." asked Kurenai sadly, her broken voice clearly showed how desperately she didn't want to hear the answer.

It took Kakashi a moment to realize what she meant, but he quickly put a comforting hand on her shoulder and looked her straight in the eye.

"Kurenai, you were the only one woman he ever loved. Naruto may have done some stupid things to you, he never cheated on you..." said Kakashi reassuringly,

"Hai, I want to believe that...but it takes the power of both a man and a woman to bring a child in this world. And there is only one way to do that in this world..." said Kurenai silently, she was not a fool.

There was no way beside intercourse to conceive a child, however the look in Kakashi's eyes suggested something more devious...

"You're right, we cannot bring children in our world without sex. Although Rei was a clone made from Naruto's cells" clarified Kakashi honestly, as somethings started making sense to her.

"So, she's not his daughter...rather just a living breathing shadow clone of Naruto which Orochimaru created with Danzo's help?" asked Kurenai patiently, as Kakashi gave a hesitant nod.

"Technically, it is true that Rei is just a clone...but Naruto didn't consider her that. For him she was his daughter, a child whom he wanted to give a better future and provide every happiness that he didn't get for a part of his life" explained Kakashi proudly, there were some traits of Naruto that even Kakashi admired and respected him for that.

Naruto may be a person who wanted to bear everything alone, but he was also a person who valued friendship and the bonds of family. He was an orphan just like Kakashi, and as such both of them could understand why he felt so strongly for Rei.

"Naruto begged the Hokage to spare Rei's life and even threatened to unleash the Kyuubi on Konoha if anything happened to her," said Kakashi gravely,

"The Kyuubi..." said Kurenai in shock, just how much precious was this girl to him?

"Hai, as you can see if anything happened to Rei, it could have caused Naruto to go berserk and put the village in danger. Kurenai, Naruto lost one of his childhood friends during his mission against Root. His name was Sai, and his death shook him to the core- he killed more than 300 of his comrades, people whom he grew up and fought beside with, he lost Sai during the mission. He was not in a right state of mind, and unfortunately Rei died of chakra overuse that night," said Kakashi gravely, making her understand the grave situation.

"He had to fight her too?" asked Kurenai sadly, even if Rei was a clone...she did mean a lot to Naruto, on top of that she was just a child.

"Yes, it was unavoidable. From the start, Danzo brainwashed her as he does with every Root Anbu...but Naruto did defeat her, but she died of chakra over usage. The Anbu commander found her body in the base, and fooled Naruto into thinking she was alive," said Kakashi bitterly,

"So many lies, the more I discover about Anbu Blackops the more I hate that outfit..." said Kurenai distastefully, this just strengthened her resolve to make Naruto quit Anbu.

"That's why they are Blackops, they perform dirty jobs that maintains the peace and we are not supposed to know about it. However Hiruzen took this mission to another level.."

"What did he do?"

"He was scared about the consequences of what Naruto might do if he discovered the truth. So he wiped Rei's memories out from Naruto's mind and buried her body" explained Kakashi briefly, as she smashed her hand on the wooden table making it break into pieces.

"He had no right to do that, the village was not responsible for her death. Naruto would have understood that if he was given a chance to grieve, Hiruzen landed us in a shitstorm by doing this..." said Kurenai angrily,

Rei may not be his daughter, but she was Naruto's blood. At the very at least he had the right to bury her, this just made her even more resentful towards the current shinobi world. Hiruzen was like a grandfather to Naruto, and even he did this to him? After everything Naruto sacrificed for Konoha...

...Was this his reward?

"Well, it's already done but I won't stand by this. Moreover you cannot be certain that deleted memories from a person's mind cannot come back, and if Naruto finds out he will feel betrayed, and that won't be good." said Kakashi carefully, as she looked at him sternly.

"Of course he would feel betrayed, Hiruzen-"

"Did the wrong thing, and you will help me in making this right" stated Kakashi simply, and if her furrowed brows were any indication then Kurenai Yuhi was definitely confused.

"How?"

She watched curiously as he got up from her couch, put his hand inside his pockets and out came out a piece of paper, and that mischievous glint in his eyes made her a little uncomfortable.

"What are you doing?" asked Kurenai suspiciously, as he gave her an eye smile.

"Nothing, you are going on a vacation to Saizkuma Island for 7 days. I hear its quite a beautiful place..." said Kakashi victoriously, and the gobsmacked expression on her face was so priceless.

Saizkuma islands were one of the most beautiful and attractive tourist destinations in the entire Fire Country. Grand luxurious hotels, beautiful gardens, the best hot springs in the entire fire country, casinos, and...

It was the best place for shopping, there was not a single thing that was not available there. Clothes, diamonds, and every other thing a woman could ever wish for in her dreams.

It was practically heaven for women...

And watching the starry look in her eyes made Kakashi a little nervous as he knew what was coming now.

"Naruto, you better have deep pockets" thought Kakashi bemusedly, if this plan worked then it would help bring them closer and she could help him deal with the loss.

She was the only one who could do this...

He gently coughed a little bringing her back to reality, as her cheeks went bright red in embarrassment.

"Well, if you are done day dreaming. You are on shore leave, I already convinced Hiruzen to let you have a small vacation in order to get your mind of things which have happened recently. And he approved it, and he personally gave me the funds to buy you a vacation at any place you wanted," explained Kakashi happily,

"This is all good, and I'm thankful to you...but we are planning to help Naruto, right?" asked Kurenai curiously,

"Ah, yes...it just so happens that he is in that region and being the good kunoichi you are, I'm sure-" said Kakashi happily, but was silenced when she jumped from her seat and hugged him tightly.

"Thank you, Kakashi..." said Kurenai emotionally, as a small tear slipped from her eyes while the copy ninja just returned the hug respectfully,

"No need for that, you are my family. I may have failed in understanding him, but I will do what I can to help both of you. Find him, spend some time together and try to sort out your feelings. It has been a long time since he left, remind that idiot to come back home soon..." said Kakashi silently, his voice was a little low and choked, but it was enough to make her understand his feelings.

"I will, and when the time's right I will reveal the truth to him..."

( Early Morning: Orphanage)

Naruto calmly walked through the doors of the orphanage, and he was quite surprised when he found Nono standing before him with a bright smile on her face.

Kurama was even surprised when the woman came forward and hugged him tightly, as tears of joy ran down her face. Naruto quickly hugged her back and whispered comforting words in her ears.

"I'm home..."

"You don't know how much it lifts my heart to see you unharmed. I was so worried about you.." said Nono tearfully, as he just smiled in return.

"Well, you don't have to worry now. I'm finally here, now how about having a good breakfast together?" asked Naruto happily, as she gently broke the hug and put her hand on his face affectionately.

"We finally found a cure for your disease..." said Nono happily,

"NANI?" yelled Naruto in shock, even Kurama was overjoyed on hearing this. Things had finally started to turn in their favor now...

"It's true, and very soon we shall be ready with all the preparations for your eye transplant" stated Nono happily, and the relived look in his eyes brought a smile on her face.

"Thank you, you don't know how much you have done for me. But what do you mean by...WE? I mean I never helped in you in finding the cure..." said Naruto confusedly, however his sharp ears picked up the sound of sandals approaching from the shadows.

"You're right...she helped in finding a cure for you," said Nono proudly, as the person came in front of Naruto.

His eyes went wide as saucers when he saw that person, who was flashing him a wide happy smile in return.

"Fuck me..." said Naruto in shock, as Kurama laughed loudly on seeing the boy's gobsmacked expression.

"It's been a long time, Naru-chan..." said the person happily,

Naruto couldn't believe his eyes when he saw that face, those loving eyes, was this reality or a dream? Cause...

Tsunade Senju had finally arrived...