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Chapter 290:

After Anko left, Kurenai had to use her mask of composure throughout

the entire luncheon. Temari-chan showing up with her brother and

partaking in the festivities right beside Naruto didn't even bother her.

The only reprieve she received was when her Hokage asked her to

escort him outside with Jiraiya-sama.

Just outside Iruka's small fence, Hiruzen stops to say, "I'm aware your

students are currently undergoing special training with their respective

clans." Standing at attention, Kurenai nods and confirms his assertion

before asking, "am I correct in assuming you have time to spare?" With

her, "hai, Hokage-sama," Hiruzen asks in his gentle voice, "I would like

to add you to my protective detail along with Asuma-kun. I think it's

unnecessary however my student here can be quite stubborn."

Momentarily turning to a smirking Jiraiya, Kurenai nods once again and

asserts, "of course, Hokage-sama. It would be my honor."

"You have shown tremendous integrity and excellence in your duties,

Kurenai-kun," her leader praises. "It is I who would be honored to have

you."

To her great surprise, Jiraiya-sama of the legendary Sannin steps

forward and bows—'he's actually bowing… to me!'—before saying, "for

the care you've shown Naruto in my unforgivable absence, thank you.

Sensei and Naruto speak very highly of you and Iruka and I'm eternally

grateful."

"I- no. It was no trouble at all," Kurenai fumbles to say, trying not to

think about how much she enjoyed taking care of Naruto. After their

departure, Kurenai was delighted to receive such praise and mourning

in the tragic news of Hayate's death and Yūgao's anguish.

KARIN

Konoha's hospital is strategically located close to the center of the

circular high gates protecting the metropolis; meaning it's not terribly

far from any point within the walls of Konoha. Iruka's home on the

outskirts of the residential area is no exception, so it's not a major issue

when Ino asks, "can we borrow Karin-chan for twenty minutes? There's

a place we'd like to show her."

"We won't be late to lunch, promise," Sakura slowly adds. Two weeks

into the training regiment the pink-haired beauty told her about is

clearly getting to the her. It would kind of Karin to merely say she looks

haggard. Her lovely pink hair is messy, her posture is tired, her eyes

are unfocused, and her chakra is pale and unenergetic.

Eying his pink-haired teammate with deep concern, Naruto hastens as

he asks, "are you okay, Sakura? You look tired."

Through her chakra, Karin can tell the girl is more tired than her

response of, "of course I am. Strong as an ox," she adds, flexing her

bicep. The way her chakra fluctuates with lethargic potency told Karin

the girl had a masterful control of her chakra but also that she's been

pushing it and herself to the limit, likely every day. Though Naruto still

seemed worried about her, Sakura's clear desire to keep her fatigue to

herself kept Karin from revealing anything.

Still, standing in front of such beautiful potential friends requesting to

show her something excited Karin. Currently, she's only had a few

chances to talk with the girls, and though making new connections

makes her nervous, she feels very hopeful Ino and Sakura will be good

friends to have. The red-headed Uzumaki turns to her cousin, who only

smiles brightly and gives her an encouraging thumbs-up. Karin then

asks the girls, "where is it?"

The confident Ino smirks with her answer, "a surprise."

Along with Iruka's encouragement, they separate, and to make certain

to be on time to Iruka's 'Welcome Back' lunch, they sprint through the

village from rooftop to rooftop. Though Ino and Karin had to match

Sakura's decelerating speed, it didn't take them too long to reach the

seedier part of Konoha. As she had no reason to, Karin had never

been to this part of the village. From their height, it wasn't hard to spot

pieces of trash, broken glass, and rubbish accumulated around the

base of many old buildings. All windows and doors, regardless of

damage, were fitted with iron bars and the paint that wasn't tagged with

graffiti was old, pealing, and worn. As the three sprint from building-top

to building-top, Karin knows precisely why the motley of villagers

meandering about the streets below seem resigned to such destitution.

Recalling the one-bedroom shack Kusagakure assigned to her and her

mother, Karin can easily recognize the signs of a slum area. Her mind

can effortlessly overlap the impoverished neighbors of her old home to

the motley residents of this neighborhood and knows with near

certainty this state of living is the result of social, legal, and economic

pressures; for no village is without it's lower class. It's all too common.

Developers who prefer to cater their businesses to the wealthier avoid

investing in these areas; families who have lost their breadwinner have

nowhere else to live; gambles that didn't pay off; disabled veterans;

low-income jobs; and addicts all help to create what Karin is observing.

These people look about as miserable as the neighbors she

remembers.

'Misery loves company,' her mind reminds her. Taking in the

neighborhood as they race through it very much reminds her of the

depressive dismay of her old life; of the hard life her mother accepted

for them and of her mother's death. A hard pang of regret, anger,

resentment, and revulsion unsettles Karin's gut, heart, and tear ducts.

As the three land in front of a seedy four-story apartment building,

Karin tries to ignore the likelihood of a mother in the neighborhood

sacrificing nearly everything to keep her ungrateful daughter alive.

The four-story, rundown, squalid apartment complex with the

foreclosed poster on the door is boarded up, tatted with graffiti and

trashed, and mold but for some reason, they were here. Karin wonders

why, thinking, 'this can't be what they wanted to show me.'

Karin is debating offering an out-of-breath Sakura her arm to revitalize

her when the pink-haired kunoichi informs them, "we can't stay long…

if we want to get back in time to help with lunch."

"When we get back, the only way you're helping is by sitting down and

resting," Ino hotly returns.

"Wait," Karin calls, halting the two girls from entering the building. Aside

from sensing a dozen weak chakra signatures inside, she asks with a

pointed finger, "this is where you wanted to take me?"

Pressing her pink lips together like she's wincing, Ino admits, "I know, it

doesn't look like much." Turning to the rundown mess of a building, she

remarks, "but looks aren't everything."

"Come on," Sakura calls, cracking her knuckles. "There's rubble that

needs clearing."

"Wait," Karin calls, stopping the girls once again. Somewhat worried

about Sakura, she informs them, "there are twelve men in there."

With clear disappointment, Sakura asks, "that's it?"

Karin nods before evaluating aloud, "five grouped together on the east

wing of the first floor, two on the west side of the second, three on the

third, three on the top. The three on the top are the strongest."

Surprised, Ino asks, "did you even have to mold chakra to sense

them?"

Karin shakes her head, no, adding, "I've always been a pretty good

sensor-type," to which Ino smirks with a nod.

Sakura asks, "are any of them stronger than us?"

Shaking her lush red mane, no, Karin adds, "all have low chakra

reserves with weak potency."

Chapter 291:

Eying Karin with pupil-less blue eyes, Ino notes, "impressive," before

Sakura declares, "come on." She loosens her shoulder by rotating her

arm as she says, "I'm going to be pissed if we don't clear them out in a

minute."

Though Karin can defend herself well enough with her taijutsu, it's

never been her strong suit. Healing and sensing are her niches and

she's happy with that. Still, with Sakura's surprising one-hit knockouts

and Ino's quick counters, the three kunoichi easily dispatched of all

twelve gang members, sending the conscious ones running. On the

rooftop, looking out to the iconic stone monument in the distance,

Sakura was the only one that seemed tired, however, that had nothing

to do with fighting the hoodlums.

Ino is primping her lustrous platinum-blond hair when she asks Karin,

"so, what do you think?"

At a loss, Karin nervously answers, "uh, I don't get it? Think of what?"

"I guess we didn't explain much," Sakura replies with a tired smile.

Nodding, Ino begins recounting, "yesterday, we had Sakura's family

over for dinner. Sakura's mother, Mebuki-san, works in the civilian

council and she's been having a really hard time with this property.

Apparently, any cash buyers or investors who seem interested in the

place are scared off. As the price of the building and area continues to

drop, the village bleeds ryo, causing a lot of headaches on the council."

"…Okay," Karin hums deep in thought before offhandedly asking,

"you're suggesting our clan invest in real estate?"

Nodding, Ino reveals, "this used to be Naruto's apartment before he

moved to Iruka's. It's seen better days, which is saying something,

because full disclosure, it wasn't much before."

"It may not be much to look at but it's got potential," Sakura admits.

"Since your clan has ryo to invest in a business, we thought this might

be a good option. If you think it's an option you might pursue, I can ask

kaa-san for more details."

"But please, no pressure," Ino quickly informs her. "There's no

obligation to do anything other than what you and Naruto want to. It's

not our intention to overstep. We just want to help in any way we can."

Looking around the cluttered streets below as well as other shabby

buildings on the street, Karin felt even closer to her caring cousin as

she absentmindedly asks, "Naruto used to live here?" Karin didn't

mean to ask her rhetorical question aloud, but they answered anyway.

Inspecting the similar living she apparently shared with her blond

cousin, she notes, "the neighborhood looks horrible too,"

The beautiful kunoichi look at each other nervously before Ino voices,

"…Yeah."

Karin wanted to put her all into building the Uzumaki clan with Naruto

but standing on that rooftop, she felt something profound blossom

within her. A connection to her selfless mother and what it could mean

to help here; like a motherly smile from the heavens above. Fighting

back melancholy tears, Karin boldly proclaims, "I like it."

Taken aback, Ino and Sakura ask in unison, "you do?"

"It's shit, but that's fine," Karin honestly conveys to them. "Hope doesn't

survive long in places like this but that just means there's a lot of

opportunity. We can buy low, fix it up, improve the neighborhood and

other businesses in the area. So you're damn right I like it!"

Touched by the redhead's conviction—that oddly reminds them of

Naruto—Ino and Sakura look on for a moment in reflective silence

before the three sprint back to Iruka's. They were late but not by much,

and as ordered, Sakura was forced to sit and relax as Haku, Ino, Karin,

and Kurenai prepare lunch. Hinata was kind enough to give Sakura a

much-needed massage while stories were shared around the table.

The Hokage attended but only stayed at the luncheon long enough to

greet the recovering Chūnin and his ninja.

Following the renowned leader to Kami knows where is the perverted,

and somehow equally caring, Jiraiya. When Naruto introduced them,

Karin was happy to add another member to their family, however, she

was less thrilled by his pervertedness. The tall, broad-shouldered elder

with his long, spiky, white hair toed the line between full-on deviant and

eccentric elder perfectly, leaving Karin to both love and hate the man

depending on the situation.

Many of the Konoha ninja couldn't stay. So close to the final exam,

those participating in the tournament—Hinata, Shino, Kiba, Shikamaru,

and to everyone's surprise, Sasuke—had to continue training, taking

their sensei and or teammates with them. Though it was explained

Sasuke's participation was merely to round out the tournament, Karin

wondered if there was more to it. The last Uchiha was brought up often

in Kusagakure's threat assessment. Out of all of the genin participating,

Uchiha Sasuke was an opponent ranked in the top one percent. It

would be in the best interest of other countries if he didn't participate in

the finals, so Karin can't imagine how much political strings must've

been pulled to authorize re-entry into the public tournament despite

having already lost in the private one. Far too embarrassed with dirty

thoughts about the handsome boy, Karin didn't approach him to ask.

The only ones to stay and have lunch with Iruka are Rock Lee, Haku,

Sakura, Temari, and her brother, Kankurō. The Sand siblings were

another source of wonder for Karin. Though polite and friendly, their

chakras felt restrained and alert, as if they didn't genuinely mean what

they were saying or how they were acting. When she brought it up to

her cousin, he assured her it was fine but it still bothered her.

Regardless, the lunch was fun and full of interesting classroom stories

about Naruto and people she didn't know. Such an enjoyable lunch felt

like fuel to Karin, and she couldn't wait to pitch her idea of helping

Naruto's old neighborhood to him.

Chapter 292:

NARUTO

Naruto feels close.

'Focus,' he tells himself. A dozen of his clones have been at it all day

and he joined them on Mount Myōboku right after lunch.

Days ago, Pa had taken Naruto to an otherworldly landscape on the

Toad mountain that was made primarily of jagged limestone

formations, like a forest of stone spikes anywhere from fifty to a

hundred feet tall. On the very tip of these tall spears, Pa has ordered

Naruto and his clones to sit on a square stone plate, become perfectly

still, and accept natural chakra into his chakra system. In the

beginning, it seemed impossible without the oil and it took Naruto

nearly all day to ignore the cold wind, stop thinking about falling, and

most importantly, to stop wobbling. Two days and hundreds of clones

later, Naruto is nearly balanced on the unforgiving stone slab, moments

away from being perfectly still and molding natural energy.

Sitting crossed leg on the stone square, he's just about balanced on

the very tip of the harpoon-like rock when he abruptly hears from

below, "NARUTOOOOOOHHH!" The scream was powerful and

desperate and the sudden earthquake sadly tips him over. Angling his

free-falling body in the rushing air to spin, slide and hop from stone

tower to stone tower, Naruto barely lands on his sandaled feet before

his tall, broad-shouldered godfather grips him in a painful bear-hug.

With giddy eyes and a great big smile, Jiraiya yells, "you lucky noodle!"

"Wha-" Naruto tries to ask the excited elder but the hug is too tight.

With his sandaled feet dangling around Jiraiya's shins, Naruto groans,

"argg, what!"

Quick as a whip and without dropping the blond, Jiraiya goes from

hugging the boy to holding him out enough by his shoulders to look him

proudly in eyes. The man was beaming as he emotionally expresses,

"now I know we're alike, you and I! You make me so proud!"

Gritting his teeth and lamenting the loss of his progress, Naruto

bellows, "what the hell, Ero-sennin? I almost had it-"

Shaking his head so his long spiky flails, Jiraiya asserts, "who cares

about that!" However, the other clones now dragging the stone slabs

back up the stone lances curse the old man. Jiraiya ignores them as he

begs to know, "why didn't you tell me!?"

Completely lost, Naruto huffs as he inquires, "tell you what? What are

you talking about-"

"Temari-chan, obviously," the perverted sage squeals.

"Temari-chan…" Skeptical of the topic, Naruto squints as he asks,

"what about her?"

Snickering like a loon, Jiraiya whimsically moans, "you two have gotten

close, haven't you?" Still being held off his feet by the powerful old

man, Naruto rolls his eyes as the excited Jiraiya preaches, "while some

may see her actions to get close to you as a preemptive attack to

neutralize your strength before their coordinated invasion of our home,

the manly spirit within us clearly recognizes her cuteness is worth the

risk!"

Shaking off the man's iron grip, Naruto casually lands on his feet as he

declares, "that's not, at all, what I was thinking!"

Thrusting his square jaw out with his powerful hands on his hips, the

old deviant contends, "you don't have to lie to me, son. Others may

think you foolish for risking the village over a beauty, but I one-

hundred-percent support you! So what if it might get you killed! Women

have a natural affinity to be as beautiful as they are deadly." Laughing

loudly, he adds, "and the more deadly they are, the more loving they

can be, HAHAhAHA!"

Naruto pleads with the laughing man, "are you even listening? I said

that's not what's going on-"

Leaning down, Jiraiya interrupts the blond to know, "how far have you

gone? Come now, you can tell me! I'm your Godfather! Have you held

hands? Petted? K-kissed?"

Waving his hand in Jiraiya's happy and blushing face, Naruto exclaims,

"will you calm down and let me explain!"

Slapping the air as if he hitting any excuse out of the way, Jiraiya

asserts, "bah! What's there to explain? You saw an opportunity to lose

your virginity and you took it like any man in your position would. She's

clearly on a mission to get close to you. Trust me," he laughs, slapping

his knee. "I recognize that move a mile away with my eyes closed.

There's little better treats in this world than an enemy country sending

a gorgeous assassin after you. Let me tell you, it's some of the best

times I've ever had!"

Rounded eyes of pure disbelief graced Naruto's countenance as he

skeptically asks, "what was tou-chan thinking making you my

Godfather?"

"Never question Minato-kun's brilliance," Jiraiya insists. "Before you

were even born, he clearly understood how much you'd need my

guidance in life. Now, as your Godfather, I need you to listen to me and

listen closely. Don't ever feel guilty for accepting the bounty of what's

sure to be Temari-chan's delicious treats. She's already trying to

deceive you; you've earned a bit of fun for the deception. It's only fair!"

'Mnn, that makes perfect sense,' Kurama reasons from his seal.

Naruto rolls his eyes as the big red-orange fox generously adds,

'finally, a reasonable human.'

Yelling, "will you listen," to both the perverts in his life, Naruto

professes his true intentions. "I want to learn more about Gaara! Yeah,

I thought maybe Temari was faking-"

"There's no maybe about it," Jiraiya imposes. "This close to the

invasion, she has to be working you. Hiruzen-sensei can't see it

because he doesn't know what's coming, but after observing every inch

of- ahm, of the way she was acting at lunch today, it's clear to me she's

not being genuine. The fact that she has an official dossier from the

Kazekage himself only shows how far they're willing to go."

"Even if that's the case, they're the ones being manipulated, not me,"

Naruto returns. Scratching his blond head, he explains, "if I go to Ji-

chan and out Suna now, whatever changes after that may not be the

same as Naru-nii's timeline. If I want some of the good things from the

invasion to happen, then some of the bad parts have to happen too."

Chapter 293:

Scratching his chin, the elders slowly asks, "hmm, you mean they won't

feel guilt or regret unless they wholeheartedly fail in their attempt first?"

"More like we're getting the chance to truly understand each other, but

instead of using our words, we're using our fists," Naruto explains. "It's

dangerous, for sure, but it's also more… enlightening."

"It's a gamble," Jiraiya reasonably remarks.

"Naru-nii said no civilians died," Naruto counters. "Which not only

means we did a good job protecting the villagers but that Suna's only

focused on fighting ninja, not destroying the village. Suna and Konoha

become even better friends afterward, so if anything, that's what I'm

fighting for."

"Mnn, if we out their plan of invading us without any concrete proof,

they can simply deny any such intentions," Jiraiya reasons out loud like

a thoughtful and proper shinobi. "There's the possibility they'd simply

try again later and the mistrust between our nations would continue."

Turning his attention to his godson, he proposes, "if we do it your way,

it's like forcing your enemy to quit; which isn't the same as losing.

There's no cowardice or failure in clearing the mind by quitting a fight

they were manipulated into starting. And Temari-chan?"

"Whether she's working me or not isn't important, because I'm not

going to let anything happen to Ji-chan, Konoha, or Suna."

Turning to the clones who are once again training, Jiraiya asks, "you

know the only reason they'd target you is because of your performance

in the preliminary matches, right?" Returning his attention to the ever-

stronger young blond, he adds, "it means they know you're the

Jinchūriki and while I doubt Temari-chan believes she can kill you,

poison will slow you down… She could also stab you… maybe use

explosive tags-"

"Yeah, fine, she could do all or any of that," Naruto shrugs those

possibilities off. "But… …okay, this isn't going to make much sense,

but, I have to believe in her and Gaara and all of Suna."

Observing his godson with a considerate and critical eye, Jiraiya

concludes, "…Because you want to be more than allies?"

Nodding, he explains, "I get nations watching out for themselves and

their interests. There's nothing wrong with that but that's not going to

solve the problem. It's so easy to trick countries because we're all so

divided. I want to unite the five nations way before the great war and

the only way to do that before then is by understanding each other with

our fists. So, yeah, I don't like that Suna is planning on invading us or

that they're working with Orochimaru but we're not really friends if we

can't accept them making a mistake."

Smiling, Jiraiya chimes, "look at you. You're Minato's kid alright."

"Thanks," an embarrassed Naruto gushes. "I wish I got to know them,

especially kaa-chan."

Patting his shoulder for comfort, the older man offers, "I may not know

everything but I'll tell you what I can."

"Thanks," Naruto hums with a smirk.

"And," Jiraiya loudly calls. "I have the first of your many obligatory

presents."

Lighting up, Naruto naturally asks, "and Karin's?"

Rolling his eyes, the toad hermit voices, "one at a time, one at a time,

yeesh. I'll get her something too."

Skipping in place, the happy blond asks, "what'd ya get me?"

Jiraiya stands rigidly straight, stroking his chin like a long beard existed

there and he asks himself, "Mnnn, what to do?" Groaning some more

and extending the delay, the mischievous elder baits Naruto by

mentioning, "I was planning on giving this to you before the exam, but,

if you want it now…"

Grabbing the old man's red haori, Naruto begs, "that's two whole

weeks away! Just give it to me now!"

Playing at extended thoughtfulness, Jiraiya calmly claims, "I'm sure you

can hold out for two whole weeks, but, if you really want it now…"

Naruto nods and hops repeatedly before the elder finishes, "… … …

you have to tell me when you're meeting Temari-chan again."

Excitement instantly dead, Naruto yells, "not telling!"

Gripped his chest like a wounded heart, Jiraiya protests, "how could

you be so cruel? We're family!"

"You're just a giant pervert!"

MABUI

Mabui straightens her high-collar, gray dress shirt and perfectly fitted

pencil-skirt in the mirror before walking out of the bedroom she shares

with Samui. Nothing was too tight against her athletically curvy figure,

however, she had no doubt she would be turning heads. After all, it

didn't take the team long to realize there are hardly and white-haired,

caramel-skinned people in Konoha. Along with her green eyes and

symmetrical face, she was an exotic figure that drew plenty of

attention; not a great quality when infiltrating an enemy country.

Fortunately, Ōyashiro's documents have helped allay all suspicion thus

far.

Mabui was ready to step out of the old door of their old shack to meet

Naruto when her team's captain voices from behind her, "meeting

outside of the library is the opportunity we've been waiting for. You

must succeed."

Turning to the fit and beautiful blond, Mabui wonders why Samui

waited until Atsui left to speak up… or even speak at all. She never

speaks unless she has to and Mabui tries engaging the reserved

woman as often as naturally possible; detailing her reports regarding

Naruto, asking Samui for clarification, and peppering in emotive

anecdotes. Though Mabui would rather not push her captain, it's still

her desire to see Samui make progress. The Monster Report is the

stuff of nightmares and before she took her oath to her village and

Kage, she took an oath to serve the benefit of the public health first.

Atsui may be beyond her ability to help, but she has faith she can get

through to Samui.

In their one-bedroom hideout at the edge of one of Konoha's many

farms, Samui is sitting on the small table in the middle of the room,

writing a message that will no doubt be express-delivered to the

Raikage. Since Ōyashiro's departure, Samui has been sending and

receiving messages every other day; which is odd in itself. With the

frequency of messages, so too was the possibility of discovery,

however, that didn't seem to concern Samui, Dodai, or A-sama.

She always knew Bee-sama desired Kubikiribōchō and to placate his

brotherly partner as well as keep him in the village, A-sama agreed to

get it for him. It must mean a lot to the Raikage that she facilitates a

relationship with Naruto, the owner of Kubikiribōchō… however,

something about the mission felt different now. Mabui can't be sure

what it is. There's nothing tangible to suggest perfidy but something in

her intellect was telling her that the top brass want her to seduce

Naruto more than what seemed reasonable… as if they were either

testing her dedication or the prize was something more than a sword.

Chapter 294:

Irresolutely, an apprehensive Mabui answers her team leader, "I see."

"Do what you must," the beautiful blond orders and though Mabui is

glad Samui is talking more, she isn't thrilled by dialog. She deflates at

the significance of 'do what you must.'

Mabui genuinely wants to help Samui, however, she finds it frustrating

when the stoic woman casually orders her to use her body, if need be,

to swindle a sixteen-year-old boy out of his property. Mabui won't deny

she gets aroused when Naruto assertively reveals to her which

professional authors are blatantly wrong and boldly demonstrates a far

more effective and clever way of executing a technique. It thrills her

from scalp to toes in all the right places when he showcases his

astounding brilliance. Just picturing stuffy, sixty-year-old men, so sure

in their knowledge, balking at the genius of a sixteen-year-old makes

her warm and uninhibited.

Still, the metal bounty behind their deception is so frustrating, Mabui

can't help but ask Samui, "for a sword?"

Turning from her thin strip of written paper, Samui calmly replies, "for

the mission."

Staring at the oddly located, lengthy, and secluded waterfall, Mabui

asks the blond beside her "are we jumping through the water?" She

had asked for privacy to show him the special Fūinjutsu her parents left

behind, however, she wasn't expecting this. She thought a room

somewhere without windows or crawl spaces for eavesdropping would

be sagacious. She could then do as ordered and seduce the genius

whilst fighting herself to not feel orgasmic at the prospect of having sex

with one of the most brilliant minds she's ever met.

Naruto turns to her with his unique smile, popping the P sound as he

responds, "yup! Just follow right behind me and you won't hit anything."

Though Mabui can sense with subtle sight and sound the entrance

behind the rushing water and jumping herself isn't impossible, wearing

a fitted gray pencil-skirt that hinders leaping seems to benefit the

mission. Samui's voice of 'for the mission,' forces Mabui to ask, "would

you mind carrying me? I didn't wear the right outfit for this."

Suddenly realizing his lack of consideration, Naruto winces, "my bad,

Mabui-chan. I should've- It's just when you said you wanted some

privacy, I immediately thought of here."

Mentally tallying, 'getting wet,' to the benefit of the mission, Mabui

asks, "no one knows about your hideout?"

"Only a few people, but no one should be around," Naruto answers her.

Moving just shy of touching his furnace-like body, Mabui wraps her

arms around his strong neck. She avoids being overly sexual,

seductive, or even forward by paying more attention to the waterfall

than him as she casually asks, "what do you do here anyway?"

To her quasi-delight, he hesitates when she presses her pliant breasts

against him. Clearing his throat and wrapping an arm around her back

and under her thighs, he answers, "I, uh, train… mostly."

He lifted her like she weighed nothing and though she leans in, she

remains aloof to the affectionate closeness of such an embrace.

Despite a mission-first mentality, Mabui does wonder why his body is

so warm, like wearing clothes straight out of the dryer; toasty. Leaping

through the rushing water and hidden hole in the granite was effortless

for the strong blond and Mabui held on tightly until he set her down. It

was a little disheartening he didn't blush as much as she was

expecting.

'There's no way he didn't feel my breasts,' her thoughts manifest.

Despite being able to see through her wet blouse, his cheeks had a

little blush to them and his baby-blue eyes didn't wander or glaze.

Mabui even let her soaked hair down, clinging to her wet caramel skin,

and yet his lacking reaction makes her wonder if she's his type. A

hormonal boy would be great for the mission, but deep down, Mabui is

a little more excited Naruto has the mental fortitude to remain in

control.

As Naruto stepped away to grab a towel, she observed the room to be

larger than the shack she and her team reside in. The walls are uneven

and seemed to have been carved out by a rounded chisel. Coming

from a farming village, she's surprised she couldn't identify the tool

Naruto must've used to carve out this sizable room. Toweling herself

off, she observes a simple cot against the wall with an orange and

black quilt over it, a lantern on a table in the middle of the room, two

chairs, and a fern near the entrance.

With sufficient light streaming from the cavern's watery entryway, she

unseals and sets up her materials on the small table as Naruto

casually explains how he spends his time here. Mabui repeats,

"sewing?" She can understand training in taijutsu or ninjutsu, but

learning the trade of a tailor was unexpected.

Both seated at the table, towels around their necks, with the ultra-large

scroll in question between them, Mabui takes a deep breath before she

sheepishly admits, "…I'm nervous." This old scroll before her means a

lot to her future. She's gambling she'll make Jōnin on this jutsu so if it

turns out to be nothing, she'll have wasted months of her time on a

worthless dud. She needs this to pan out.

"I can tell," Naruto replies with his smile. "You don't have to be, but, I'd

rather prove you can trust me."

"I want to trust you with this," Mabui returns, delicately placing her hand

over the worn and old scroll. "I just don't know so much about

Fūinjutsu, it's rare for me to feel this vulnerable."

"I get it," he states, hoping it's comforting. "It always comes down to

honesty with me. I like saying what I want, when I want, because so

many people you meet will try to put you down and tell you not to say

this or don't do that. Sometimes there's not even a good reason for it.

So, every time I speak my mind, it's like I'm fighting against what others

want me to be. I'm being me. Or at least that's how I see. If you want to

show me your family's Fūinjutsu, great. I'm not going to betray that

trust. And if you don't, that's fine too. We'll still be friends, so just be

who you want to be."

"Who I want to be…" she casually repeats. Eying her future in the scroll

in front of her, she adds, "you make it seem so easy."

"That's only cause I like jumpin' right in," he proclaims with a grin.

"Most of the times things tend to turn out alright."

Chapter 295:

After a deep breath and several nods that shake loose a few strands of

her grayish damp hair, the beautiful woman agrees, "okay." Alluringly

tucking her hair behind her ear, she continues, "even though we

haven't known each other all that long and I'm nervous, I feel like I'd

rather trust you than not."

Mabui unrolls the ultra-large and dated scroll on the table. The height

of the scroll takes up most of the tabletop and the length of it means

she'll have to unroll it on one side of the table and roll it up on the other

side as he reads section by section. Mabui thought all the bending over

would give the genius blond plenty of chances to see her moist bosom,

but to her secretly thrilling enjoyment, Naruto's focus remained strictly

on the ancient Fūin characters. In spite of her rising anxiety, Mabui

takes a moment to simply admire the fascination in Naruto's large eyes

as he reads the complicated arrays of old characters. She can

practically feel the knowledge being ripped from the page and

swallowed by his brain. It's a predatory intellect that was making her

heart race and her core heat.

Licking her plump lips, the silver-haired beauty was nearly drawn into

an erotic daydream when the blond finally voices, "it's a transportation

jutsu." Standing straighter and ignoring her turned on womanhood, she

continues to help unroll the scroll as he sporadically adds, "range is

unclear… or unspecified." From right beside him, Mabui leans in as he

points to a numerical calculation she can't understand, thoroughly

impressing her when he explains, "hmm, it uses this symbol set here to

modify matter structures… but I can't see for what yet. Keep unrolling."

She unrolls the large scroll until he moans, "oooh, that's interesting."

She moves to his side, pressing her soft flesh against him as she

eagerly asks, "what?"

"You can transfer stuff almost anywhere on the planet," he answers

with an impressed tone. Without even looking at her, he asks, "did this

come with a stage or ring, or something to stand on?"

"Y-yes, actually," she staggers to answer. The fact that he's so casually

dismantling the intricately complex jutsu makes her heart race faster as

she doesn't hesitate to offer, "a three-leveled stone platform. You can

tell that?"

"Yeah," he hums whilst reading. He then educates her. To her kinky

delight, a sixteen-year-old prodigy is educating her—a dual doctorate

sensei—and could feel herself grow aroused and wet as he orates,

"the destination of the transfer depends on the platform, as well,

though I can't see how yet. Keep unrolling. Reading over the key

parameters of the Fūin formula here… and judging by the reduction in

matter before effective transfer, I'd say it wouldn't be a good idea to

transfer anything living. The compression of matter capacity and speed

of transfer would rip any living thing apart."

Mabui is breathing heavily, half focusing on his brilliance and half

focusing on the miniature tremors titillating her leaking sex; nearly

moaning, "mnn, that's good… uhm, good to know." Mabui hasn't felt

such arousal since her departed fiance classes. Effortlessly, her

stimulated mind recalls how by the end of his lectures, more often than

not, she'd have to dart the bathroom to relieve herself. She's only spent

a few weeks with Naruto, but his knowledge is once-in-a-century and to

be in witness of it in action is exhilarating to someone with her sexual

fetish.

He reads in silence for another twenty minutes—giving her a respite to

gather herself—before he voices, "oh, hey, the instruction on activating

the jutsu. Huh, it's not much, actually. Once you've encoded the

contract with your chakra… mnn, between the Ha characters here…

it's just the Ram seal and the necessary amount chakra. Then you can

teleport anything inanimate, anywhere. Easy enough."

With a thrilled smile, Mabui felt too good; not only in the moment but for

her future as well. Being able to transfer anything to any part of the

world is definitely a valuable jutsu; 'worthy of promotion,' her mind

sings.

Naruto's voice then expresses, "they even use the extra space here to

write…"

The odd was he tilts his head and focuses on the last bit of the scroll

has Mabui asking, "to write?" But Naruto doesn't respond for several

moments; time enough for her to grow concerned. "Naruto?"

Turning a sad gaze on her is unexpected enough without him slowly

explaining, "this Fūinjutsu was a present… from Uzumaki Ashina to his

daughter Kushiinada. This jutsu originally belonged to the Uzumaki

clan… my clan."

Forgetting about her arousal and promotion, she mentally yells, 'fuck,'

as her sharp mind senses the anxiety in his voice and eyes. Attempting

to stabilize an already deteriorating situation, Mabui tries to point out,

"but- wait, it doesn't say Uzumaki anywhere on here."

"It's a cipher," Naruto retorts. Pointing to the section in question, Naruto

explains, "these aren't Fūin characters. Sometimes, practitioners hide

messages using geometric symbols you sub for letters."

Taken aback by this unexpected turn of events, she can hardly say,

"Naruto, how do you know-," before he gets up and moves away from

her.

Pacing, he bluntly states, "I just do." Before she can ask for details, he

hastens to ask, "where did you get this? I thought you said it was your

family's jutsu."

"It is," she vehemently declares.

"But it isn't," he counters, becoming more animated. "Look, right

there," he orders, point at the swirl inside of a circle symbol. "That's my

family's crest; my clan's symbol. I don't know who this Ashina guy is but

my mom's name is Kushina so there's gotta be a close relation."

This is all news to her, and without more information, Mabui leans

toward honesty. To avoid subconsciously challenging him, she remains

still and seated as she tells him, "I don't know what to say, Naruto. I

didn't know about any of this, I swear. After my parents died, they left

me what little they owned and this just happened to be among their

possessions."

Chapter 296:

Though he's trying to remain calm, she can tell this is bothering him as

he implores, "and they never told you how they ended up with a jutsu

that belongs to my clan?" Her, "no," was quickly curtailed with his, "no

mention of the Uzumaki clan? Of Uzushiogakure?" Shaking her head

multiple times, he returns to pacing as he tries to wrap his mind around

this startling discovery. "You just took it? Like, like, didn't you wonder

where it came from? Why your parents had it?"

Rather than allow him to continue to question her sincerity, Mabui uses

her training in psychology to calmly speak, "Naruto, I hear what you're

saying. I do, but, I'm missing some information. Please, take your time,

speak your mind, and tell me, why this is bothering you?"

She got what she wanted when he yells, "my clan was targeted and

destroyed! All those people I could've gotten to know-" Fortunately, he

takes a breath before heatedly lamenting, "I'm the orphaned son of

orphaned parents of a murdered people, and now this!" Mabui

understands Naruto isn't an angry person by nature. She can see the

signs of sadness and confusion when he woefully explains, "you said

yourself you're not originally from Konoha. How do I know your parents

weren't involved in destroying my clan?"

With her green eyes glued to his blue ones, a composed Mabui nods

as she clearly communicates, "I understand, Naruto. You have every

right to feel the way you do. I'm not at all saying you're wrong, but I

swear to you, I didn't know-" however, in that instant, she recalls the

Uzumaki name spoken before somewhere in Kumo.

Whether he spotted the shift in her almond eyes, Naruto breaks eye

contact, blurting as he leaves, "I… I gotta go."

"Wait," she calls, jumping to her feet. Mabui manages, "you don't have

to-" before he jumps out of the watery entrance. "…leave."

Walking through the door of their tiny base, a dry Mabui was dreading

her report. Sure enough, Samui is waiting behind the table, and though

Mabui can't tell what she's thinking, it feels as if Samui already knows;

as if her emotionless ice-blue eyes somehow knows she risked the

mission to crack a jutsu for a promotion, eventually blowing her

relationship with the target. Atsui is leaning against the wall, chewing

his nails and obviously dreading what Mabui has to say, as if she was

going to recount every second of her sexual interlude with Naruto. The

cabin feels more confining and Mabui groans by the number of blue-

eyed blonds agitating her today.

"Report," Samui voices.

Without much choice, Mabui sits opposite Samui and takes a page out

of her team leader's book. As minimally informative as possible, Mabui

reports, "there was a set back-" an emotional Atsui heaves a loud sigh

of relief quicker than Mabui can continue to say, "but, I promise, I can

turn this around. I'll make things right."

Samui sighs before she takes out the latest missive from their Raikage,

ordering her brother in the process, "Atsui, give us the room."

Affronted, Atsui turns to her sister and calls out, "what? Oh, come on,

sis-"

"Please," she gently asks.

"…Fine," he huffs, clearly upset until the door closes behind him.

"…All the way out," she calls out. After several silent moments, Samui

is satisfied with her brother's distance and states, "I know why you're

hesitating to complete the mission."

The silver-haired beauty can't deny she's been reluctant to seduce a

boy ten years her junior, however, Mabui is strenuously more curious

about what Samui referring to and cautiously asks, "you do?"

The exotic beauty was stunned to hear the theory behind her hesitation

has nothing to do with prostituting herself for a sword when Samui

explains, "you're hesitating because of your relationship with Darui-

sempai."

Sitting straighter, a wide-eyed Mabui rebuffs, "excuse me?"

With a detached sense of confidence, Samui explains, "you're

distressed. Anxiety over betraying him is hindering you from doing all

that's required to complete the mission."

Mabui tries to respond, "that…" when her throat clogs and closes up

with palpable disbelief. As fast as she wanted to vehemently deny her

captain, her mind goes blank, leaving her stunned and without words.

Mabui wanted to know everything in that moment—who knew what,

when, and why—then Samui slides over the table's surface a thin slip

of parchment with Darui's sloppy handwriting on it.

As Mabui reads the coded parchment. Mabui reread the slip five times

in the time it takes Samui to recite, "Darui-sempai has given you his

blessing to do everything in your power to seduce Uzumaki Naruto.

Please fulfill your duty without concern."

'As if Darui was the only distressing me about seducing an

impressionable sixteen-year-old boy!' Her mind yells at Samui, 'I don't

want sex to be a transaction! I don't want to look at A-sama and my

superiors like my pimps, forcing me to prostitute myself for a slab of

metal that isn't even for me! …I don't want to hurt a young man—a

genius who may allow hate in his heart because of my betrayal.

Uzumaki Naruto's name will live on for centuries in his innovations and

the history books… and I have to break his heart for a fucking sword?'

Mabui isn't sure where to begin voicing her misgivings and groans in

annoyance before she attempts, "I'm sorry, I don't- I don't," before

finally huffing, "why?"

She didn't feel right about any of this, but she quickly felt stuck when

the strong and capable Samui gently voices, "as team leader, it's my

duty to assure the mission's success. In addition to requesting a

rendezvous team to secure our exit, I had expressed concern about

your hesitation. It was then Darui-sempai made clear your arrangement

with him-"

Chapter 297:

Stunned yet again, Mabui repeats, "my arrangement?"

"Sex," Samui casually answers with a straight face, provoking an

embarrassed Mabui to repeat under her breath, "my arrangement?"

"Sempai explained it's casual," Samui voices before telling the shocked

Mabui, "it's why he's approved."

A slow strong pull of her intestines forces Mabui to lean forward in

nauseating sickness, fixating on the keywords, "Darui… Approved… As

if I needed his fucking-" Sick to her stomach, Mabui felt this was the

worst day of any mission she's ever been on.

When it seemed like Mabui wasn't going to say more, Samui flatly

orders, "please, continue your objective. It's not infidelity if he doesn't

care."

Mabui's flaring emotions felt demanding, wresting control from her

orderly mind to mentally yell, 'bitch!' Mabui knows it isn't right to take

out her frustrations on Samui. She knows Samui's ethos is unsound

due to her traumatized past and is incapable of navigating numerous

social interactions. She knows if Samui truly understood what was in

her heart, the gorgeous blond would not act as though everything is

fine now. Mabui knows all of this but she can't think around how

annoyed, upset, and angry she currently feels.

'And for a fucking sword!' her mind repeatedly yells. For her nation, she

has to hurt Naruto—hurting her self in the process—yet A-sama, Darui,

and Samui live on peacefully as if the mission is of no consequence.

'No,' Mabui's mind answers as this new emotional outlook fuels the

spark to a solution. Returning clearer and focused green eyes on the

busty blond, Mabui patiently communicates, "I have a plan, Samui-

taichou." The expressionless look on Samui's model face makes Mabui

smile as she adds, "but, it'll require your assistance."

KABUTO

"What are you doing, Kabuto-san," said the Anbu mask of a cat-like

nose and mouth, and three red swipe marks on each side of the

forehead. It's the dead of night and the silver-haired spy is leaning

against the corner of a shop neighboring across the street from Ten

Out of Ten.

Though Kabuto didn't take his eyes off the motionless apartment above

the weapon's shop, he knew the person behind him was Root. With the

boy's pale-white skin and short black hair, Kabuto didn't need anything

else to know with certainty, "you're new."

"Danzo-sama offers you his well-wishes," the pale-skinned boy flatly

expresses.

"How kind of him," Kabuto replies with his fake smile. "Please relay my

gratitude in kind." The pale-skinned Root member disappears with a bit

of an artistic flare. It was enough of a warning for Kabuto to understand

Danzo has staked a claim on Haku, which means he'll have to inform

Orochimaru. He can already feel conflicting feelings rousing within him.

Entering the Chūnin exam for years, Kabuto's recruited nearly a

hundred ninja for Orochimaru, however, such a system is only possible

due to the shaky truce between the immoral leaders. With their shared

past of inhumane acts, the two titans command enough damaging

information about one another, it assures them they can go about their

business without interruption. To avoid mutually assured disadvantage,

Danzo turns a blind eye to Orochimaru's experimentations and

Orochimaru remains benign to Danzo's quest for power. It's the only

reason Kabuto has operated in Konoha for so long without harassment

from his former one-eyed commander.

Looking at the dark apartment window above the shop, Ten Out of Ten,

Kabuto recalls his history with Root. With intimate knowledge of Root's

surveillance network, he's certain Danzo knows enough about the open

communication between Suna and Oto nin, which means he's only

allowing it because he met with Orochimaru. Kabuto may not have

been at the meeting, but he has no doubt one took place between

them. The greatness of Konoha the old war-hawk prattles on about

only ever means the greatness of his Konoha, which makes targets

like Sarutobi Hiruzen an enemy. At the meeting Kabuto is certain

must've taken place, he has no doubt someone as crafty as

Orochimaru dangled the intention of removing the current Hokage; an

option that would be too alluring to resist. Whether Danzo guessed the

invasion or not, Kabuto couldn't say, however, he was certain the man

wouldn't mind so long as the aftermath gave him more power.

Retreating from his vantage point, it's clear to Kabuto he's treading a

line that's uncomfortable for Danzo. Orochimaru wants him to recruit

Haku for the same reason Danzo undoubtedly wants for himself;

Haku's kekkei genkai. But a growing, disconcerting desire within

Kabuto strongly wants to deny them both. Kabuto can't explain how he

feels about the beautiful boy, however, he can't help but feel for Haku.

He's different as if he somehow possesses answers Kabuto's been

searching for since the orphanage.

'It's in his smile,' Kabuto thinks, wishing the kind Haku a good night.

With this warning from Danzo, he won't be able to see Haku tonight,

and this close to the invasion, he can't risk destabilizing the long-

standing arrangement between the conniving leaders.

TEMARI

It was late into the night when Temari gently taps on Iruka's front door.

Like they had agreed to earlier in the day, Naruto quietly exits his home

to avoid waking his mentor. Though the luncheon was good progress,

the invasion was only fourteen days away and she needed to take

more drastic steps if she has any hope of creating a love strong

enough to destabilize the blond when she betrays him. Under the

pressure of her time-limit, Temari takes the initiative to ask for a

secluded area with a lake or body of water. "Somewhere we can swim,"

she explains, adding, "there aren't many lakes in the desert."

After his smirk, he leads her to Training Ground 3. Though she was

curious about the three logs protruding from the ground, she's happy to

see the wide river not far past the stumps. With the grass crunching

under their feet, the bobs and dips of the flowing surface water catch

the moonlight, dancing along with the distorted reflection of gray clouds

under the starry sky above.

Chapter 298:

"It's beautiful," Temari notes, enjoying the wet sound of gently flowing

water.

"This is the Training Ground Team 7 met at," Naruto happily tells her.

Snickering, he pointed to the stump in the middle and recalls for her

amusement, "I got tied to that pole right there!"

Snorting, Temari turns to him and asks, "really? Why?"

Sheepishly, he admits, "I thought I could take Kakashi-sensei on my

own, shesheshe."

"The Copy-Ninja? That was…"

"Pretty dumb," he laughs.

"I didn't want to say it," Temari offers. "But yeah." Looking out at the

wide river, her plan makes her a little nervous. Her mind knows what

has to happen, but her heart is uneasy about her first time. She isn't

sure how she will feel before, during, and after her union with Naruto.

Kissing him is already better than she ever expected it to feel, and now,

she plans to let him inside her; let him thrust his pole in her most

intimate of place. Temari's face is burning just thinking about it.

"Come on," Temari calls, rushing through her nerves as she takes off

her clothes. For the occasion, she bought her very first bikini. She

never bothered with such an outfit before as she never thought she'd

be on a mission like this. She mentally laughs when she recalls telling

herself, 'a true kunoichi didn't need such a tool.'

With her sandals and red sash off, she's removing her long-sleeved

purple dress when Naruto nervously chimes, "whoa, what uh, what are

you doing there, Temari-chan?"

Quickly folding her dress, she asks, "what's it look like?"

With wide eyes, he observes, "looks like you're taking your clothes off,"

to her amusement.

"I don't want to get them wet," she responds. Though she rather be

taken seriously for her ability and intellect, she's still proud of her foxy

physique. Plenty of boys and men look, not that any would try anything

with the daughter of the Kazekage. Arching her lower back to

straighten her posture accentuates her round bottom and pert breasts

in her two-piece triangle bikini. Enjoying the coolness of the air as she

checks the position of her bottoms, she asks, "are you coming?"

With a shrug and a smile, Naruto quickly removes his jumper suit until

he's in his boxers. She's letting her hair down when she's suddenly

lifted off her feet, shrieking in delight when he hops into the cool river.

She was surprised he would be so bold but felt that was good

progress. She enjoys the water so much, it's moments like these when

Temari forgets she's even on a mission. They play fight, race, and dive.

By the end, Temari was on his back with her arms are wrapped around

his neck, enjoying the toasty warmth of his body as he swam in the

cool water.

Lethargically comfortable, Temari lazily asks, "can I ask you?" With his

nod, she asks, "your godfather, is he thee Jiraiya of the Sannin?" His

casual nod and, "mnn," surprised Temari and prompted her to press

her breasts further into his back so she can lean in more and ask,

"really? Why didn't you tell me? He's a legend even in Suna."

"Uuuh, I don't know," Naruto finally answers. The motion of his

breaststroke adds more rocking back and forth to her back hug as

Naruto admits, "I only met him a couple weeks ago. I'm still getting to

know him."

'Ugh,' Temari mentally groans. Though she knows Konoha's fate, it

doesn't mean she likes hearing about a family member the orphan has

only just met. "Well, it's nice that he's in your life now."

"Yeah, it's been pretty great," Naruto chimes. "I mean, he's a huge

pervert, but it's still fun." He stops swimming to turn and face her,

loosening her embrace so her forearms rest on his traps. Placing his

hands on her hips, he asks, "can I ask you about Gaara?"

Wincing, she offers a regretful, "sorry he couldn't make it to lunch."

"It's fine," he says with a shrug. "I can tell he has a hard time trusting

people but I know I can help."

"That's kind of you, really," she begins. "But, with Gaara, you sort of

have to let him be. He's not in a place to accept others." Before he can

twist the guilt-knife in any deeper with offers of helping her family,

Temari asks, "can we not talk about Gaara right now?"

"I only want to help," he conveys.

"I know," Temari acknowledges. She may not be convinced Naruto

loves her, but, she is sure the blond wants to help her homicidal baby

brother. "And that's sweet of you," she conveys with a quick kiss. At his

smile, she adds, "really, really, sweet of you," before hugging him

closer and dragging him down to kiss him underwater. Though the

sharp contrast between his warm lips and strong body, and the cold

wetness enveloping them was a uniquely pleasant sensation to feel,

Temari quickly discovered the challenge of keeping water out of

windpipes. Pulling away and rising to the surface, Temari coughs

before croaking, "underwater kissing… isn't nearly as romantic as I

thought it'd be!"

Coughing himself, Naruto managed to agree, sputtering, "water went

down my windpipe!"

"Ugh, that felt like being water-boarded," Temari exaggerates and they

both grunt a tired laugh. It isn't until several moments later when

they've both recovered that she remarks, "at least I can scratch that off

the list."

Quirking a brow, he asks, "list?"

Temari plays her angle, drawing out an, "…uh," before answering,

"okay, this is going to be really embarrassing, but, uh, I made a list… of

things I want to do."

"Oh," he hums in amusement before asking, "kissing underwater was

one of them?"

"Don't laugh," she huffs, playfully splashing him with some water. "It's

something every girl wants to try out."

Hands up in defeat, he replies, "alright, alright. What else is on your

list?"

With a seductive charm she rarely acts on, Temari teases, "wouldn't

you like to know."

"Aw, come on," he gaily gripes. "I won't laugh and I won't tell anyone,

promise. So…"

Pausing for a few moments, she relents, "I guess. It's not like I have

much of a choice anyway." At his curious look, she flirtatiously

confesses, "some- well, a lot of the stuff on the list are activities I'd like

to do… with you."

"Really?"

Temari doesn't have to pretend to shyly answer, "yeah."

"Like what?"

At the rushing thoughts of hot wet sexes thrusting repeatedly against

each other, Temari feels her face heat up with hot blushing. Spinning

around in the water, she whines, "don't make me say."

Chapter 299:

He asks, "are you sure," but it doesn't have the confident, yet playful

tone she was hoping for, prompting her to turn around. With serious

blue eyes observing her, she can tell he's grown serious. She's certain

when he asks, "what if you don't like me later? I don't want you to

regret doing any of your firsts with me."

Taken aback by his consideration, she quickly assures him, "I won't."

With deep attention to a future she's certain he won't have, Naruto

asks, "and if you do regret it?" It's as if he's asking if she'll regret what

she and her village have to do to Konoha and it's disheartening

because she's only following orders. Her hesitation allows him to add,

"look, I get that you don't want to regret anything but we can't know

what the future might bring. I'll treat you right no matter what, so even if

we're just friends, I'd be happy with that."

"This is so strange," Temari carelessly voices before gathering herself.

With a weak smile, she tells him, "it's just surprising that you're saying

no. Most boys wouldn't."

"I wouldn't say I'm saying no," Naruto shyly admits. "I just don't want

you to rush into anything if you think you might regret it later. It's

important to me that whatever we do is from the heart, you know?"

"You're a surprising person, Naruto," Temari admits with a huff, adding,

"and I think you're right. I have been thinking of myself, haven't I? It's

only right that I be more honest with you." Slowly embracing him again,

they tread water as she explains, "I suppose I've been preoccupied

with my predicament. If we don't… if the Omiai between us doesn't

work, then I have no other option but to marry someone for the good of

the village. I feel like I'm embracing this steamy behavior with you

because it may be the last time I have a choice."

"That's not true, Temari-chan," he insists. "You always have a choice."

"No," she says, gently shaking her head. Combing his wet golden-

blond hair with her fingers, she adds, "the options are choose the

village and damn myself, or, choose myself and damn the village. And

that's no choice, at all. I'll choose my village—my family—every single

time. Which, of course, also means everything I do with the husband

my father selects for me won't truly be of my choosing; not like you

anyway. That's the truth. So you're right. You and I are not in love, but I

really really like you. You have this goodness… about you, that's- well,

it's very moving."

Holding her tighter, Naruto expresses, "I think you're a good person

too, Temari-chan."

"No," she rebukes.

"It's true," she insists, squeezing for emphasis. "I can see it- actually, I

can feel it."

Eyes widening, she scoffs as she asks, "what?"

"Yup," he grins. "When we kiss, it's like you're curious-"

Interrupting, she jests, "are you calling me inexperienced?"

"No," he laughs, attempting to temper her with, "just… innocent?"

"I can't believe you're calling me a virgin," she jovially denotes.

"You're totally twisting my words," he defends. "I just mean… I like

kissing you."

Temari battles back with, "only like, huh?" Naruto's gladsome groan

makes her laugh as she assures him, "I'm teasing. I enjoy our time

together too, kissing or not." Leaning in, she kisses him for several

warm seconds before pulling away enough to huff, "but definitely when

we're kissing." Pressing her body flush against his, she deepens their

intimate kiss. Because he knows she likes it, he allows her to dominate

his lips and mouth as the strong fingers of his formidable hands drag

down the toned flesh of her back, slowly tenderizing either side of her

spine until they grip the taut muscles of her shapely love handles. The

way he focuses his impressively confident ministrations on her lower

back sparks a warm desire growing from the core of her loins.

Her cloudy mind reminds her, 'he's doing it again,' as her sex becomes

more aroused and demanding. Despite her duty, Temari couldn't have

anticipated how talented Naruto would be. Some nights he would leave

her feeling glittery, hot, bothered, and antsy for more. Bobbing in the

water, pressed flush against their nearly naked bodies, this make-out

session feels even hotter than the others. Without thought or consent

from her brain, her hand automatically descends low under the water,

rubbing down from his strong chest and abs to his erect thickness

popping out his boxers. Gripping his hot meat-stick is the only thing to

snap her out of her euphoric haze, pulling back in surprise and

separating their swollen lips.

His gentle, "do you want to stop?" made her recall her mission and she

shakes her head. But when he says, "you don't have to force yourself,"

it almost felt like he was daring her; urging her competitive spirit within

to break through her fears.

Temari gives him a quick kiss before ordering him, "come on."

She pulls away and swims to the riverbank. Once on dry land, he asks,

"where are we going?"

In preparation for the inevitable, Temari allocated a second suite on the

top level of their hotel. One located well away from where her brothers

or Baki could possibly hear her. So as she tosses him his clothes, she

answers, "my room." The words felt so final leaving her mouth, Temari

felt scared, excited, and a little sick. Her heart reminds her this isn't

how she imagined losing her virginity, however, she made peace with

her decision and won't stop it now.

Chapter 300:

"Wait," Naruto's voice cuts right through her momentum. "We can't."

Turning to the blond, he hasn't put his clothes on. Temari genuinely

admits to him, "I don't understand," as she mentally adds, 'I'm throwing

myself at you!' Tentatively, she fears the answer to her question, "am I

not… good enough?"

"No, it's nothing like that," Naruto quickly assures her, rushing to stand

in front of her. "I think you're beautiful and hot and I definitely would…

with you. But, I have to tell you something, and I think it would wrong if

I told you after we, uh, do anything in your room."

"Okay," Temari slowly chimes. Though she's concerned, she doesn't let

it show as she asks, "what is it?"

"There's no easy way to say this, so I'm just going to say it," he

proclaims. "Oh, and I've been told any reaction you have is perfectly

normal." Temari grows nervous by the amount of set up and clears her

mind lingering arousal as she nods. "I have someone I've grown to

love. Someone important to me I'd like to be with."

Her sharp mind immediately asks, 'then why did you agree to Omiai if-'

but she uncovers the answer right away, asking him, rather than bluntly

stating, "does she love you back?"

Smiling, he admits, "she's flat out told me not to fall in love with her

because nothing could ever happen between us and she didn't want to

break my heart." Though Temari appreciates his honesty, his

unrequited love won't stop her. She's about to say as much when he

continues, "but, she said that when we first met and I agreed to it

because I didn't love her either; I didn't even know her. Anyway, I'm

saying all this because even if you and I become a couple, at some

point in the future, I'm going to ask her if she'd also be my girlfriend

too."

"I'm sorry, what?" Temari has to laugh as she says, "are you saying… I

don't think I heard you right because it sounds like you're saying you

want to have multiple girlfriends." Her laughter doesn't last long against

Naruto's serious countenance and finally, she asks, "you- you're

serious?" With his quick nod, Temari momentarily forgets the mission

for her knee-jerk hatred of all cheaters, players, and womanizers, and

heatedly asks him, "you want me to be okay with you cheating on me!"

Though his stance puckers up by her sudden ire, he dauntlessly

shakes his head as he responds, "no, no, definitely not. The very first

thing I'd want you to be is comfortable, then, if you can find it in your

heart to also be in a relationship with her, the three of us would be in

one relationship. It's called polyamory; it's basically one big family-"

Temari struggles to retain control of herself, like a weakened dam

trying to restrain the rising pressure of a flooding reservoir. But after

holding in what her little brother and father are forcing her to do, after

losing her mother, after losing what could have been with Daimaru,

after being rejected by a boy who then wants her to accept consensual

affairs, Temari firmly voices, "no! That's not what that basically is! You

only care to sleep around with as many women as you want; with my

approval, no less! I-"

"You're right," Naruto interjects with a weak and understanding smile,

raising his hands in surrender. "How you feel is right and I respect it.

Since you're not into that—which, again, is okay—we shouldn't go any

further, right? It would be wrong." With that, he steps away from her

and Temari's mind instantly remembers herself and the mission and

properly curses, 'fuck.' As he puts his clothes on, he adds, "even if we

have different preferences in relationships, I still want us to be friends,

so don't worry, we can still pretend for your tou-chan if you want."

Naruto zips up his jacket as he finishes, "I hope you don't regret kissing

me. Night, Temari-chan." She wants to stop him but she's panicking

and she's disciplined enough to know any decision in that state of mind

is bound to be a bad one. The whiplash of such a turnaround has her

reach out to him as he turns away from her and silent as he leaps

away.

Temari's mind was in a confusing daze all the way to her bed, replaying

every word or gesture that led to such an unexpected failure. The

entirety of her night was a carousel of thoughts; from what her father

will say, to what Gaara will do, to the effect this may have on the

invasion, to even her views on relationships and polyamory. She felt

her anger is completely justifiable but in terms of the mission, she

regrets her emotional response because it didn't have to end that way.

She was so caught up in her own beliefs that she completely forgot

about the archaic Code of Hammurabi during The Warring States

period; allowing for multiple spouses. She wasn't sure it was still legal

but there was precedence she could've worked with. If there was ever

a moment to make Naruto fall for her, flipping that moment around

would've been it.

Temari did not sleep that night.