NHRK Chapter 64

Iwa’s, Oto’s and Suna’s forces were overwhelmed.

Even with the element of surprise, attacking past Konoha’s defences, they were still at a disadvantage of not knowing the terrain as Konoha’s forces did.

Moreover, it seemed the Iwa’s forces were much less in number than expected, somehow diminished in might.

With their Kage apprehended, and Jinchuuriki’s sealed by Kushina Uzumaki, as well as the sound five being dealt with by Naruto’s students, it was a rather one-sided battle from then on.

As was expected for those who tried to invade the home of Naruto Hagoromo.

Ever since Pain’s destruction of Konoha, Naruto left no stone unturned when it came to the safety of his village.

He’d left Hiraishin kunais everywhere, as well as sealing arrays for mass numbers of foreign shinobis to encounter.

Ever since he was a child, he’d always been good at setting traps in the form of pranks.

Now, those skills were displayed in a much more practical manner today.

As the sun set, the rowdy war cries and grunts of pain were muted by Konoha’s victory.

A decisive victory.

And one name rang through all the citizens and shinobi alike.

Naruto Hagoromo.

From the legions of clones that helped more than any did in the invasion, all knew at the very least, what he looked like, and would go on to find out the name of the one who’d helped them.

The young man in particular, did not want his name to be revealed this way.

There were other threats that could strike when his attention was averted.

Akatsuki.

But after what he’d done to three of their members, there was no doubt that they knew of him already.

Hearing the hope that his name inspired within the citizens, he was reminded of the time after he dealt with Pain in his old world. The time where nothing was left but ruins and a crater that spanned the entire village.

The citizens needed someone to look up to, and know that there was someone strong to protect them in times of despair and ongoing crisis.

Naruto was that man, and he would not shirk his responsibilities.

So he watched the admiring eyes of those around him as he made his way to Hiruzen, who was successful in his own fight against the Kazekage, with the surprise addition of the very man that made his heart ache in nostalgia.

Jiraiya.

How long has it been?

“Naruto-sama,” a civilian called out, holding a baby in her arms. Naruto stopped in his tracks to address the concerns of the civilian woman.

“Yes?” Naruto answered.

“I…you’ve saved me and my baby when our building collapsed, I wanted to thank you,” she said, bowing her head to him.

Naruto shook his head.

“It is the duty of a shinobi to protect our home and our people. I should rather thank you, for being so brave and for listening to my instructions so thoroughly, Mrs. Yamaoka,” Naruto responded.

The lady jolted, looking taken aback that he knew her name before she bowed once more. “I’ve only stayed calm because you were there to give me strength. Please, accept my gratitude.”

Naruto smiled and nodded. “You’re very welcome.”

Before Naruto could leave however, the civilian called out once more.

“I’ve named my son after you, Naruto-sama. I…I hope you don’t mind. I want him to grow up brave and strong so that one day he may protect others as you did for the both of us,” she said.

It was Naruto’s turn to look taken aback.

Then he lowered his gaze to the baby, whose innocent brown eyes stared back at him like warm soothing orbs.

“Gahah” the baby chuckled at him as he reached out to Naruto with tiny fingers.

Naruto’s smile softened to one of love. The citizens of Konoha were precious to him. The childrens even more so. They are the future, the lifeforce, the hope against despair.

Naruto reached out a finger from his non-bandaged arm to let the tiny hands of the baby clutch on to him.

Mrs. Yamaoka looked like she was holding back tears.

“He’s strong,” Naruto smiled, “already even as a babe. It is an honour to share the same name, dattebayo.”

When Naruto let go of the baby’s hand, the lady stepped back and bowed once more. “Thank you. Thank you for everything, Naruto-sama.”

Naruto nodded and went on his way.

It was then made quite obvious that Mrs. Yamaoka wasn’t the only one who wanted to stop and greet him.

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“You’re late,” Hiruzen said.

Naruto scratched the back of his head. “I got held up. How are you, Jiji?”

Hiruzen chuckled. “I’m doing quite well, other than the usual creaking of my old bones. I saw what you did for the civilians.”

Hiruzen pointed at the crystal ball on his desk.

“Of course you did,” Naruto muttered, “also, is there any reason why the great Jiraiya of the Sannin is standing outside of your window, successfully failing in being inconspicuous?”

For a moment, there was no reply.

Then.

“IT IS I, JIRAIYA OF THE SANN–”

He was cut off as Hiruzen smacked him in the back of the head with a staff.

“That’s enough of that you old fool,” Hiruzen scolded, “I’ve had to deal with your entrances for too long to stand another minute of it.”

Naruto chuckled, unable to hold in his laughter.

That caught Jiraiya’s attention from his subsequent sulking. The white haired old man’s eyes widened as he took Naruto in.

“You’ve told me about him, Sensei, but to see him with my own eyes…it’s hard to believe…” Jiraiya muttered, immediately becoming sober.

Naruto raised his eyebrows.

In his heart, there was a twinge of pain, of longing, but deep down he knew that this was not the Jiraiya he knew, not his godfather just as Kushina was not truly his mother.

They were different people, similar, achingly so, but not the same.

“Greetings, Jiraiya, I’m Naruto Hagoromo. It’s an honour to meet you,” Naruto introduced, “How much do you know about me, exactly?”

“Not much,” Jiraiya replied, “just that Konoha has received a new prodigy unlike any we’ve ever seen. Coming from the old man and seeing how many monsters Konoha has managed to produce, it was high praise.”

Then Jiraiya met his eyes and stared hard at him. “Now I see why.”

Naruto raised his eyebrows before he turned his gaze to Hiruzen.

The old Hokage said nothing.

Naruto knew what that meant. Whether Jiraiya would have to know of his existence was up to him.

It was up to him whether he wanted a replacement for his godfather.

He didn’t.

But then again, leaving Jiraiya out of this when his counterpart had done so much for Naruto in another life…

…seemed wrong as well.

Then there was also the other Sannin that was still alive.

Tsunade.

“Perhaps at another time, I’ll tell you more about me, Jiraiya-sama,” Naruto said solemnly, “but not today.”

Jiraiya’s gaze remained unbroken but he nodded in response. “Another time then. Now, what is it that you’ve called me here for old man? I was in the middle of something extremely important.”

Hiruzen’s eyebrows twitched. “You mean spying on the–”

“-AHEM,” Jiraiya interrupted, “would hate to ruin the impression I have on this young man now, would we?”

Hiruzen rolled his eyes and Naruto bit back a chuckle. Whatever impression Jiraiya tried to fabricate was well and gone now after his entrance, but Naruto knew just how deadly the Sannin could be if he tried.

“I want you both to find Tsunade and bring her back home,” Hiruzen said.

Naruto almost choked on his spit whilst Jiraiya looked like he was about to nope the heck out of there.

“...As much as I love my old teammate, my wives–” Jiyaiya tried to say.

“-will understand after something as important as the invasion has just taken place in Konoha,” the Kage finished for him, “Konoha needs its strength back and we can spare no man.”

“...yikes,” was all the Jiraiya could say, “I’ll grab a bottle of high quality Sake then.”

“Here, bring this one,” Hiruzen said, bringing out a bottle from under his desk, “aged wine, 47 years. She’ll like it.”

Jiraiya blew an impressive whistle.

Before he could take it however, Hiruzen tossed the bottle Naruto’s way.

“Like I’d trust you to not touch it before you get there,” Hiruzen scowled.

Naruto immediately stashed the liquor in the storage seal on his arm, much to Jiraiya’s chagrin.

“I’ll be sure to get us there and back in one piece, dattebayo,” Naruto said.

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“You’re leaving again?” a voice said from behind him as he was readying his gear to set out the next day.

He turned to face his student, Sarada.

“It seems so, though it’ll be a much quicker trip this time. I expect to return in a week at most,” Naruto responded, placing a storage seal into his backpack.

Sarada stayed silent, leaning back on the door as she closed it behind her and crossed her arms. She eyed his movement as he went about finishing his packing.

“Was there anything you needed?” Naruto asked awkwardly.

“No.”

…

“Are you sure?” Naruto coughed.

“Yes.”

Naruto gulped and shrugged as he put the final tags on the backpack and sealed it all into another scroll to place in his waist pouch.

“Alright, I’m done–”

Naruto could finish his sentence as Sarada grabbed him by the collar and pulled him downwards.

She kissed him, hungrily and her wants and needs suddenly radiated from her like heat from a furnace.

Naruto’s empath senses blared from the weight of her emotions, as if he was being washed away by a flood.

Still, he reciprocated her gesture, biting her lip slightly to surprise her, which then allowed him the advantage of being in the lead.

It didn’t take long for him to guide his tongue inside of her mouth, taking in her taste and revelling in her moans.

Then he separated from her and took in her painting state, her dazed look, her need for more.

“Sarada?” Naruto probed.

“Hm?” she responded.

“Why?” he asked.

She merely raised her eyebrows in response before she blinked, trying to drive away the wretched feeling of butterflies that kept inhabiting her stomach.

“Why what?”

“Why…are you doing this?” Naruto asked.

She now looked at him like he was stupid. Then her look of confusion morphed into one of frustration.

“Do you not like me?” she bit out.

“What?!” Naruto yelped, stepping back. His own confusion, evident. “Of Course I like you! You’re a frie–”

“Not like that!” she growled, “Like a…a woman.”

Her voice died as she finished her sentence, as if doubting her own words. She’d been pretending to be a man, pretending to be Sasuke for so long that she now had little confidence in her own femininity, her own appeal.

“I know I’m small, and thin, and don’t have the womanly assets like Hinata does,” she muttered, before meeting his eyes as her own orbs welled up slightly in tears. “I want to be seen as a girl too. Most of all by you”

“Of Course I see you as a girl,” Naruto told her, his voice more confident than it has been about anything before, “You’re beautiful, and your body…you never have to be ashamed about it, Sarada. You should rather feel pride, because despite your smaller size, you’ve beaten the majority of ninja women.”

“Then why won’t you fuck me like you did Sakura and Hinata?!” Sarada snapped.

Silence rang as Naruto’s brain proceeded to short circuit from those words. Naruto’s throat dried up as his mouth opened and closed like a fish.

“Wh–what?” he intelligently asked.

Sarada huffed as she yanked him by his collar again and met his lips once more, now with her taking the advantage. She would show him, rather than tell.

She would show him how much she wanted to indulge after holding back for so long. How much she needed to feel his touch.

How much she loved him, unlike anything she’d ever felt before.

It wasn’t the same love that she held for her mom and, as diminished as it was, for her brother.

It was a love that burned fiercely ever since Naruto had made the effort to set her straight, to help her, to befriend her.

To be the light that banished away the darkness that almost consumed her as it did her otherworldly male counterpart.

When she felt this way for the first time, she did not know what to do with it. So, just like anything she didn’t know how to deal with, she kept it under lock and key, and hid it away under the semblance of her aloof, almost bratty attitude.

Just like with everything, she had faithfully waited for it to resolve itself. For the world to fix her problems.

She’d always been first. In the academy, and when Naruto took her into his circle of students, first in the amount of wins in spars.

She’d always worked for those results, don’t get her wrong but naturally, she assumed that she’d be the first to gain Naruto’s heart as time went.

She was wrong.

Sakura, the blasted pink-haired brute of a woman, had gotten to him first, taking advantage of her time with him as he took her for a mission in Kiri. Then it was her fellow clan heir, Hinata, who she’d trusted to keep things appropriate as was befitting of her station. No. She’d tossed herself at him as well when her guard was down.

Now, after her exams are over, Sarada was sure she made chuunin. It was their initial unspoken agreement that they would pursue Naruto once they became a respectable ninja of rank.

Those two cheated.

She was first. This was her right.

So, she indulged, taking in the scent that was Naruto Hagoromo and the taste that she was soon becoming addicted to.

Soon, very soon they would–

A loud bang was heard as someone kicked down Naruto’s door. Sarada yelped, before her hands shot to the hilt of her sword in response.

Naruto’s hand on top of hers stopped her from drawing it and beheading their surprise attacker, however.

Sarada almost cursed as the sight of one Ino Yamanaka came into view.

“I knew it!” Ino snarled, “you bitch! You said that we would go together!”

Sarada narrowed her eyes at the Yamanaka clan heiress. “I deserve him more.”

“As if!” Ino shouted as she dashed to tackle the smaller girl.

Sarada was faster, as always, and sidestepped the attack and pushed her from behind.

The joke was on Sarada, however, as Ino’s plan had worked in her favour. With that little manoeuvre, Sarada had involuntarily pushed Ino into the still stunned Naruto’s arms.

The platinum blonde wasted no time in taking advantage of that fact as she practically latched on to Naruto’s lips with her own, embedding her body into his and wrapping her arms around the back of his neck, smothering herself into his face.

Naruto’s muffled cries of alarm were drowned out by the fact that Ino already had her tongue down Naruto’s throat and was sucking the life out of him.

Sarada pried the girl off of him as he took a moment to get in a gasp of air.

“What are you doing, you red-eyed short stack!” Ino yelped.

“What do you think you’re doing barging into our moment like that!” Sarada bit back, “you idiot blonde bimbo!”

They glared at each other and it was almost as if sparks of lightning were shooting out of their eyes and meeting in the middle.

“Now now girls,” another voice perpetrated the room and both Sarada and Ino felt the hairs on the back of their neck stand on end.

They both knew who this voice belonged to.

They did not fuck with that voice, especially that tone.

Kushina Uzumaki had a smile on her face though it eerily twitched on the corners as if she was holding back her temper with a monumental effort.

The girls straightened up and ceased arguing.

“I knew that you’re both excited from doing so well in the exam and your contributions in the invasion, but my son has a big mission ahead tomorrow, and you are both patient enough to postpone whatever plans you have with him until after he returns, correct?” Kushina asked.

“Yes ma’am!” they both said.

“Good,” Kushina nodded, “Now, go home and spend the night with your family. It’s good to consolidate and be grateful that each and everyone of your precious family members are alive and well after such an event.”

No more words needed to be said as both Sarada and Ino saw themselves out.

Kushina waited a moment to make sure she heard the front door click closed before she sighed.

“This harem thing is more hectic than I thought,” she muttered under her breath as she leaned down to grab the knocked-down door of Naruto’s bedroom. “Didn’t expect potential property damage was one of the things I’d have to worry about.”

Naruto got up from his stupor and helped Kushina fix the door back into place with a bit of earth binding jutsus.

When it was functional and warded again, Kushina sighed and stepped toward Naruto to envelope him in an embrace.

“Can’t believe that I’m not going with you this time,” Kushina muttered into his chest. “But I know how much you’d appreciate some alone time with your old mentor so such is life.”

Naruto chuckled as he patted her back. “I appreciate it, but let's not forget that you could be by my side at any time with the Hiraishin kunai I always carry.”

“It’s not the same as being with you in person, my son,” Kushina said.

She saw the wince that Naruto tried to hide when she used the title and she’d seen it enough these days for it to become worrying. It seemed that now it was an issue that could no longer go on unaddressed.

But first things first.

Kushina’s hand lowered to…another place that was very much an intimate part of Naruto.

“It’s a Friday, and I know how much those girls have riled you up,” Kushina commented, “It’s been a while since the last time it's been just us…so what do you say?”

Naruto could only gulp and nod, somehow feeling that from the way Kushina looked up at him mischievously and from the husk in her voice, this time…this time…would be different.

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