Chapter 102 : Planning for Dawn (2)

It had been two days since the battle outside Tanzaku-gai. Naruto had explained everything about Itachi being his operative in the Akatsuki, and the truth behind the Uchiha massacre.

To say the Senju-hime was greatly shocked would be an understatement. For Tsunade, she knew just how slippery and underhanded Danzo was, and for him to actually slaughter an entire clan because he saw fit to, it made her livid.

That little fact made Tsunade a friend in Itachi for life. The Senju and Uchiha always had a rivalry of sorts, and to see that the last Senju was on the side of the last two Uchiha really struck a chord in the ex-Akatsuki agent.

No… they weren't the last two Uchiha, and he had informed Naruto of such. Within those two days, Itachi had explained everything he knew about the Akatsuki and their goals. It was a lot of information, which was why Naruto had just finally gotten around to speaking with Tsunade and Jiraiya in private.

She was going to be the next Hokage, the next figurehead of Konohagakure no Sato. She deserved to know everything she was really getting herself into. And Jiraiya was their information hub, so he needed to be there just as much as Tsunade did.

Itachi was resting in a hotel room with Sasuke, the brothers enjoying each other's company over some tea. It was the little things that counted, and after everything they had been through, they deserved it. Gaara was, once again, napping, taking strange amounts of pleasure in sleeping. It made sense, though.

The poor Jinchuuriki was so sleep deprived; Naruto wondered if he'd ever catch up on it. Shizune was, like always, by Tsunade's side, serving the three of them tea as they made themselves comfortable in the quite large hotel room. Privacy seals littered the room so greatly that Naruto himself wouldn't be able to break through and hear anything unless he actually broke through the walls. Not very subtle, though.

Taking a sip of his hot, fresh tea, Naruto cleared his throat, ready to begin this rather important conversation.

"Before we begin, you should know, Shizune, that we are about to discuss S-ranked secrets, so if you wish to leave now, you should do so. Otherwise, you will be expected to never speak what you are about hear. Do you understand?" Naruto began, deciding it was important for the medic-nin to know just exactly what it was that she was about to hear.

Shizune looked to her shishou nervously, taking a moment to think about her choices. She could leave, and not worry about an accidental slip of the tongue, or she could stay and hear probably one of the most important conversations of her era…

She sighed. That may be too much responsibility for her to handle, but her curiosity got the better of her. She nodded.

"I am prepared for that burden, Naruto-san. I would like to stay."

Naruto met her gaze, and after a moment of feeling her true emotions with empathy, he also nodded, deciding that she could stay. Shizune was already somewhat of an assistant to Tsunade, so she'd probably be made an official one when Tsunade was announced to be the Godaime Hokage.

"Very well then." Naruto started. "Firstly, Sandaime-sama is not dead." He stated flatly, his eyes examining the confused ones of his new Hokage.

"I thought Orochimaru killed him?" Tsunade asked confusingly.

Jiraiya nodded, his arms crossed. "Sensei was killed by Orochimaru," he began, "He just didn't stay dead." Jiraiya looked at Naruto, nodding his head, gesturing for the blond to explain.

"I've developed a new form of Senjutsu that allows me to shape Sage Dust, tangible Natural Energy, in the Pure World." The words this young shinobi was speaking were both incredible and confusing.

To her knowledge, Naruto was implying… "When Sandaime-sama died, I reached into the Pure World and forced jiji's soul back into his body. I call it Resurrection."

Tsunade sat very still for a moment, her mind awhirl with thoughts and emotions, emotions that Naruto could feel like they were his own. He stayed silent, though, deciding not to intrude on the woman's thoughts. It took a good ten minutes before Tsunade finally spoke.

"You meant it when you said you could bring back Dan and Nawaki… didn't you…" She whispered, her eyes locking onto the ground at her feet. "What are you…?" she whispered softer, so soft, that only Naruto could hear her.

"I'm exactly what you think I am, Hokage-sama." He responded, greatly surprising her once again. Her head snapped up to look at the blond, her eyes wide. She went to say something, anything, but no words came to her mind. Naruto continued.

"I took my first life when I was three, you know…" his voice seemed… tired?.

"I killed a Jinchuuriki when I was five, and I slew the Yondaime Mizukage when I was seven. I decimated Suna, Oto, and Iwa, and I recently fought the Shinigami for Sandaime-sama's soul," this piece of information hadn't reached Tsunade or Shizune yet, so when they looked to Jiraiya for conformation, the Toad Sannin just nodded, his face the picture of seriousness.

"All of these things I have done for my village, and all of these things have saved me from what I really am, what you fear…" Tsunade narrowed her eyes in confusion… was he… reading her mind?

"So yes, I am a monster, but I am a monster that would burn the world to ash if asked to by my Hokage. I am not some abused child that clings to his abuser in a misguided notion of love. No, I am the embodiment of ANBU.

I am the sword. I am the shield. I am the dogs that are let loose when you cry havoc. I am a shinobi of Konoha, and I won't stop until our enemies bend their knee, or recognize what we, as shinobi of the Will of Fire, desire more than anything.

You need to realize this, or you'll never make a good Hokage." The Kamikage's words stuck a chord in Tsunade, and she actually chuckled.

"You're just like your dad, kid." The Slug Sannin commented, making Naruto smirk.

Being compared to his father was something not many – if any – could claim, and it was an actual honor to be so.

"You don't look like much, but you're probably the scariest shinobi alive… Those must have been some powerful genes…" She shook her head in amusement, crossing her arms under her impressive bust.

Naruto smirked again, the look on his face a herald of shocking news, no doubt.

"I'm glad you feel so fondly of my father, Hokage-sama," Naruto began, "Because the second bit of information you need to be aware of is that I also resurrected the Yondaime Hokage."

Shizune, who was sipping down her delicious tea, suddenly spit all of the warm liquid onto the floor, choking noises sounding around the room as she tried to breathe.

Tsunade stared at the blond for a moment with analytical eyes, her face not betraying her emotions, but, Naruto being Naruto, her emotions betrayed her emotions. Finally, she sighed, shaking her head in exasperation.

"Let me guess," Tsunade began, "You felt the need to bring back that nightmare to what… scare our enemies with the idea of two yellow flashed?"

Naruto actually turned his head and blushed slightly, huffing.

"No…" he said sheepishly, before turning back to a slightly surprised Tsunade. "Well, that was only part of the reason…" He straightened, his childish behavior vanishing just as quickly as it appeared.

"When jiji died, I was so shocked, so angry and hurt that I summoned the Shinigami. After that, I fought it in a battle of wills, and, because I shocked the thing so much by even attempting such a feat, I was able to rip my father's soul from his clutches." Naruto smirked.

"Someone else would like to explain the rest."

Tsunade raised an eyebrow, confused. Before she could ask who he was talking about, the boy's eyes slit vertically, and bled a crimson red. The room seemed to fall silent, and colder. There was something not human among them now, and it was painfully obvious.

A shiver ran up Shizune's body, and she noticed that her hand shook slightly. Tsunade didn't show it, but Jiraiya knew his former teammate like the back of his hand. She was tense.

"So you are the one to replace the old monkey, hmm?" When Naruto spoke, it was not his voice that reached their ears.

"Ah well, I guess even God has to rest sometimes." The person that spoke was not human, and that was not the strangest thing about the whole experience.

Tsunade was forced to think, for the slightest second, that Naruto wasn't ever human, and that the voice that spoke to her was more befitting of him. "As my partner was saying, after he saved the monkey's soul from the Shinigami, we also felt my other half, which was sealed within the Yondaime thirteen years ago.

Naruto promised me that he'd reunite me with my Yin half, and Naruto, as you will very soon discover, never goes back on his promises." Jiraiya hummed, nodding his head in approval. It was a universal truth. True men, true hero's, never went back on their word.

"With only my Yang half, together with Naruto, we could face the entire shinobi world if we so chose," Tsunade felt her stomach drop, "And now that I am complete again, together, we were strong enough to hold back the Death God long enough to Resurrect the Yondaime." These were the words of a being that was beyond their comprehension.

"Y-You're…" Shizune stuttered.

Naruto smiled, his canines sharpened, and his eyes the color of blood. "There are three types of humans, girl." Kurama began.

"There is the unworthy. These humans are those who are unworthy of not only speaking, but knowing my name. Then there is the worthy. These humans are those who are worthy of knowing my name, but unworthy of speaking it. Then, there are humans like the pervert and the monkey.

They are the respected. Those are the humans that are worthy of knowing and speaking my name. A name is a very powerful thing. It is the title given to one by its creator, and thus, it is the most important thing about them.

I was given my name by the greatest man to ever walk the earth, so my name is not something to be given lightly." Shizune was held within the gaze of those crimson orbs.

"You, girl, are the unworthy. You have not earned the right to know or speak my name. So you may call me what most humans do."

Tsunade narrowed her eyes. Being disrespectful was not called for, and the Slug Sannin didn't like it one bit. "You-"

Tsunade was cut off by the Bijuu's voice. "Say it, girl. What am I?" A sinister smirk twisted Naruto's face, and it didn't look out of place whatsoever.

"K-Kyuubi…" Shizune whispered.

Kurama chuckled darkly, a low, demonic sound that vibrated throughout the room. He didn't say anything after that, though. He just retreated back into Naruto's mindscape, the Kamikage's eyes slowly fading back to their original azure.

"Now that he's had his fun in "scaring the humans", let's get back on track, shall we." Naruto said, his voice once again his own.

Mentioning how messed up finding pleasure in "scaring humans" sounded like it would start a conversation Tsunade really didn't want to have, so instead, she agreed.

"What else do I need to know?" The Godaime asked. There couldn't be much more shocking news than the apparent revival of two Hokage.

"The Akatsuki," Naruto began, "We have a plan for them." He looked to Jiraiya, who nodded. "Itachi has recently updated their roster information for us." Naruto actually wished he would have killed Kisame now, after hearing of the members the Akatsuki still possessed.

"There are eight in total. Most of them aren't really that big of a deal. Kakashi and Gai could stand their ground against most of them, but there are a couple that we need to seriously take as a threat… even me." The thought that someone like Naruto was forced to take other shinobi seriously felt… strange to Jiraiya.

"So you're saying that there are shinobi in this organization that even you aren't one hundred percent sure you can face alone?" Tsunade asked. "Wonderful…" she sighed. It seemed that her position as Hokage wasn't going to be a peaceful one.

"Not necessarily." Naruto began. "If you look underneath my insatiable craving for slaughtering our enemies, you'd see that I am not an arrogant ninja.

I know I'm not invincible. Damn near un-killable, but alas, I still bleed like any other man." He said dramatically, causing his godfather to snort. After chuckling, Naruto started again.

"I don't fear these shinobi, I'm just cautious of them. I'm cautious of anyone Itachi thinks is a serious threat, really." It was a common fact. If one of the most badass people you know is wary of someone, you should not take that person lightly.

"The one they call Pain, the leader of the Akatsuki, apparently possess the Rinnegan." That one word, "Rinnegan", was enough to make Tsunade's blood turn cold.

"What's the Rinnegan?" Shizune asked, confused.

"The Rinnegan is the dojutsu that the Sage of Six Paths used to create… well, everything. He changed the entire world with every step he took, and it was all possible because of his legendary eyes. Because of the Rinnegan." Naruto explained.

"I thought they were just a myth, though." Tsunade said.

"I house three Bijuu, Hokage-sama. They were created by the Rikudo Sennin. He, and the Rinnegan, is very real." Naruto replied.

"Do you remember those three Ame children I trained a while back, hime?" Jiraiya asked. When she nodded, he continued. "Well, one of them, Nagato, wielded those eyes as well." He sighed. "I kept it a secret after I left them so that nations wouldn't seek him out."

"Are you saying that this Pain character is one of your students?" Tsunade asked.

Jiraiya shook his head. "I don't think so. Last I heard all three of them died before the end of the war." He narrowed his eyes in thought. "But who knows? It's a possibility."

"Itachi says that Pain is someone only I should try to fight. He's much too powerful for ordinary shinobi." Tsunade nodded, agreeing with him. "Then there's the one that goes by Tobi…"

...

___________

if you want to read ahead of the public release

my p atreon is :

https://www.p atreon.com/Huvnn

________________