.

Standing across from Naruto, Tsume had a grin in place. The former had his arms crossed and an unreadable expression on his face.

Kuromaru stood beside his partner, as how they had been for twelve years now. He had the appearance of a giant wolf, with a beige-colored underbelly and a dark blue coat; he was also missing his left ear and had an eye patch over his right eye.

The three of them were in a clearing, a training field not far from the forest of death.

"So this is the brat, Tsume? Doesn't look like much to me," Kuromaru said, practically mirroring Tsume's grin.

Naruto remained silent as he was ridiculed by this dog.

"Why did you discontinue your reputation, Tsume no Shi (Claws of Death)?" Naruto asked the woman, seemingly out of the blue as she drew her blades, flipping one of them into a reverse grip while holding the other normally.

Tsume's grin faltered slightly as she looked at the blades in her hands. "My career peaked at the end of the third shinobi war when I was around eighteen. Sometimes, I would come home from the front with blood soaked on me, and my clansmen would greet me, but then, they would go away in fear. By my twentieth birthday, I had well over two hundred people confirmed kills. My relatives could see the blood caked on my blades, the ones given to me by my father before he passed. I loved to fight, I loved the thrill of the kill, the rush…but it was when I pushed my mother to tears after I had started talking too in depth about a mission I decided enough was enough. I cleaned the blades for the last time and put this outfit up," she paused before she chuckled hollowly. "I'm surprised it still fits," she joked.

"But now that my kids are shinobi now, and there isn't a war where I can get my hands too dirty any more, I thought it was time to stop being a jonin who guards the village, and take it seriously," Tsume said as she twirled her trench knives in her hands.

Naruto listened, not really caring for the story, but smirked as an idea he would use later to manipulate her. The grin faded seconds later as he was engulfed by smoke.

Tsume used an arm to shield herself from smoke being blown into her eyes as it was harshly pushed away from Naruto's location.

A moment later it was revealed to her to see Naruto, gunbai in one hand, and kama in the other.

After a few moments, Tsume spoke. "As you know, Naruto-kun, I have to administer a test to you to see if you're capable of keeping up with me. Our team will be doing nothing less than C-Rank missions. I, myself, am a capable, A-Ranked Kunoichi. You cannot weigh me down in a fight and if you," she paused as if trying to force the words out, clear displeasure being visible on her visage, "die, then I will not be held responsible for your death," she finished as she shook herself free from the very displeasing thoughts. But it did surprise her in the amount of displeasure she felt from thinking of his death.

He twirled both weapons in his hands before hefting the gunbai to where it was positioned over his shoulder. He then sported a smirk.

"Actually, Tsume-san," Naruto began, "I was wondering if you could keep up with me," Naruto said while Tsume's eyes widened.

Aside from the small wave of warmth she felt from being called by her first name, Tsume gained a look of question and challenge. Cocky brat, she thought.

"As you put it, Naruto-kun, let's dance," she said as let her arms fall to her sides before charging at the youth. Kuromaru merely lay down and closed his eyes to take a nap.

Naruto ducked under the swing of her blades before raising his war fan in an effort to push her away only for her to jump on the gunbai much to his surprise, though due to the momentum she was propelled upwards into the air.

Grinning to herself she aimed both her knives to the front of her before she started to rotate. "Tsūga!" (Passing Fang) Tsume announced as she started to rotate enough to look like a drill.

Naruto's eyes remained impassive as he raised his war fan to guard just before Tsume impacted the gunbai with a large amount of force, her passing fang being many times more dangerous than her offspring's.

Naruto's eyes widened briefly as his feet dug into the ground enough to form small crater. Tsume seemed to keep rotating just as Naruto threw his Kama outward so that it would come back to him from behind Tsume.

Tsume's keen eyes widened as she noticed the kama coming at her. Growling slightly as she forgot about that weapon, she disengaged the passing fang only for Naruto to jump up into the air, kicking off of the war fan she was still situated on.

The force propelled her towards the flying scythe making her eyes widen considerably as she angled her body just under the direction of the weapon, making it fly overhead. She could even see a few of her hairs come off of her head.

Landing gracefully, she saw Naruto raise both hands, catching the gunbai and kama in their respective hands.

The jonin of the group raised her knives to where they would both be in reverse grip while guarding her. He uses the gunbai as a shield and while I'm occupied with it, he blindsides me with the scythe, I have to put him on a strict defensive, Tsume analyzed masterfully.

Naruto, however, didn't give her time to react as he threw both his weapons in the air, the chains leaving the seals within his sleeves as they grew longer and longer…before he stopped the growth by grabbing them by the chains and flinging them towards the jonin.

Tsume's eyes widened as he went on the offensive, using his gunbai as a weapon before she leapt out of the way of the supposed shield and scythe as they impacted the ground beside her making a crater.

She didn't have time to act as he used the chains to maneuver them to her next location. Crap! She thought as he anticipated her landing. She growled as she drew chakra into her stomach and made a hand sign. "Fūton: Daitoppa!" (Wind Release: Great Breakthrough) she announced, using the technique to propel her out of the way of the weapons as well as hopefully causing them damage.

The great gust of wind impacted the ground, causing a large amount of dust to be kicked up into the air and for a couple trees in the forest behind them to be knocked down.

Wind release? Naruto thought with curiosity as he caught his undamaged weapons in either hand just as Tsume herself landed.

Tsume looked at the newly minted genin with a look of admiration, he was clearly skilled enough to keep up with her, not that she had any doubts. However, she wanted to see how far he could go.

"Let's step this up a notch, hmm, Naruto-kun?" Tsume asked as she grinned while flipped both her knives in a reverse grip.

That was before one of the knives became encased in wind-natured chakra, and the other began to spark before it developed a blue hue with sparks originating from the chakra infused metal.

Naruto's eyes widened briefly, even he didn't know about this. He schooled his features just as his kama was engulfed in flames making Tsume's eyes gleam in a way that complimented her new grin.

"There was a reason I was so deadly on the battlefield, Naruto-kun, now…" she grinned, "let's dance again. This is…" Tsume paused again as she licked her lips before a gleam found its way to her eyes, "exhilarating."

Naruto didn't respond as he flung his scythe at her before he jumped in the air allowing the chain to lengthen before he flung his gunbai at her, its new spear point hell bent on piercing her abdomen.

Tsume used her blades to deflect the kama, though she did notice that it was not cut, even from her wind or lightning releases, the two most piercing of the nature transformations. She turned her body, exhaling as she jumped in the air as the gunbai impacted the ground, and within a few moments, she landed on the still grounded war fan before she used chakra to enhance her grip and begin running along the chain and up to the now falling Naruto.

Naruto remained impassive as he landed and caught the flaming kama before he grabbed the gunbai's chain and whipping it towards the jonin making it produce a wave.

Noticing this, Tsume jumped in the air and began to spin, the wind and lightning melding together as she announced her clan's technique. "Tsūga!" she yelled as she drilled towards Naruto's position.

Tch, her piercing power with that attack will be ridiculous, he though as he jumped out of the way of the very, very deadly passing fang before catching the kama and gunbai in his opposite hands as Tsume almost impacted the ground…only for her to bounce off of it and come straight towards Naruto.

His eyes widened briefly, it seems that Kiba and Hana were novices at the technique as they couldn't change their trajectory.

Growling, he readied his gunbai in front of him, allowing it to shield him at an angle. Moments later, the Inuzuka matriarch impacted the war fan with a great deal of force making hid boots dig into the ground, tearing up dirt and debris, and then, Naruto knew it was time.

"Uchihagaeshi!" (Uchiha Return) he whispered harshly as he flung her backward with his gunbai, the chakra absorbed from the technique being flung back in the form of an incredible gust of wind at the now stationary Tsume making her eyes widen.

The technique impacted the area making even more dust fly into the area. Naruto readied his weapons once more as he focused his eyes to see Tsume standing there, a few knicks on her clothing and a few splotches of dirt had found its way to her but she was relatively unharmed.

He then noticed the grin was still there as there was an off look in her eyes. She's craving even more battle, and if it continues, there won't be any holding back on her part. As much as I would enjoy the dance, this has gone on for too long, Naruto thought as he readied his weapons again before he ran towards her.

Taking the challenge, she ran towards him as well, her knives dropping to her sides as she channeled more natured chakra to them.

As the proximity between the two closed, Naruto threw his gunbai to the sky, allowing the chain lengthen as he grabbed the kama in a reverse grip. Seconds later, she impacted his kama with both of her knives making him grunt as she pushed on him heavily, the two of them essentially being put into a deadlock.

A moments later, Naruto pulled on the chain of the gunbai, pulling it to the ground violently making her look up for a moment and that was when he struck.

Naruto tilted to the side slightly making the unaware Tsume fall forward enough for her grip to falter. She stumbled as the gunbai impacted the ground behind her, the sharp end of the gunbai sticking in the ground, though she noticed that Naruto had gotten her in a hold, his left arm holding her across her breasts and detaining her arms while the other held her waist close to his, all in all, there wasn't any personal space to speak of.

Tsume's mind went blank as she recalled the situation from two weeks ago, the battle-haze fading mere moments later as her face became red as a blush overcame it. "What are you doing, N-Naruto-kun?" Tsume stuttered as she noticed where his left arm was.

Naruto smirked slightly at this. The manipulation would begin.

"You were in a haze, Tsume-san, I had to stop you somehow," he said to her, his breath tickling her ear making her face heat up even more.

Her eyes widened only briefly as her mind was still stuck in the moment she was in. "S-Sorry you had to see that, Naruto-kun," she told the younger man as she pressed her body to him even more only for him to let go of her completely and turn around as if nothing happened.

Tsume's eyes widened before she growled to herself, both in frustration and slight sadness as she sheathed her knives. "You pass, Naruto-kun. I believe that you and I will work together well as a team and neither of us will weigh the other down. Let's go find Mikoto and Kushina and see how their test is going," Tsume said as she walked off to training ground seven to find her friends, not looking at Naruto as she walked, Kuromaru not far behind her.

Naruto had resealed his weapons as he noticed Tsume seemingly angry, but all according to plan. And he surely hoped that was a suggestion when she told him to go find Uchiha-san and Uzumaki-san.

He really didn't enjoy being told what to do.

….

"Bring it on, Sasuko-chan! You'll never beat me with just throwing around jutsu!" Kushina taunted with a grin on her face to her might-as-well-be niece.

Sasuko, clad in her usual attire as well as Kushina, faced off against one another, the former with a few scrapes and bruises while the latter was practically unscathed.

The Uchiha heiress grunted to herself as she scowled at her teacher before she gripped her sword and charged. Kushina grinned at this as she raised her own sword to guard against the newly minted genin.

Sasuko swung her sword to the left thus making the Uzumaki matriarch raise her sword to parry. Upon succession, Kushina pushed Sasuko's sword away with her own and kicked her away making Sasuko scowl again.

Mikoto was actually impressed at Sasuko's determination and at her skill. Of course she was no Isane, but if Sasuko kept the drive she possessed the she would be soon.

The Uchiha Matriarch, Namikaze-Uzumaki Heiress, and Inuzuka Heiress all watched as Sasuko sparred against their first sensei. The two genin had sparred against Kushina earlier as a sort of test. If they could last against her, then they would pass her genin exam.

Hana and the Haimaru Brothers had gone against Kushina and had lasted a while due to their teamwork, and Kimiko had lasted a good bit, but when Kushina had unleashed more than one chakra chain, it was all over.

Kushina knew, however, if she were to tame Sasuko's nerves she would be a formidable opponent.

"You've gotta keep your senses open, Sasuko-chan," Kushina heard a voice, only turning after she had sent Sasuko flying into a tree. She saw Naruto and Tsume, though she remembered the outfit from her earlier years and smiled at Tsume taking her blades out for a spin.

Looking at the now standing but panting Sasuko, Kushina sheathed her sword and smiled to all of her students. "I'm proud of you all and I'm sure we'll be an amazing team. You all pass and you're now my cute little genin," Kushina smiled to each of them while Hana and Kimiko both smiled to each other before dropping to the ground, exhausted.

Mikoto merely giggled at them as Sasuko limped over with her sword sheathed before she sat down as well.

Tsume smiled at her daughter and she would check on Kiba but she was sure with his determination that he would pass the test as well so she wasn't really worrying. It's not that she didn't that Hana could take care of herself but it was that she didn't feel that it was best to be alone with Naruto lest she might do something she would regret.

Minutes later, all of the women in the group could be seen as they sat on the ground near a tree with Kimiko resting her back on it, Hana to her left, Sasuko to her right, Tsume parallel to Kimiko, Kushina to Hana's left and Mikoto next to Sasuko. The shade was welcome to the group. Naruto was standing against the tree, and that was mostly why Kimiko had decided to lean against it though Naruto was barely paying attention to anyone as he was practicing his sensory skills.

Each of them save Naruto was eating their lunches. Kimiko was eating ramen cooked by her mother, Tsume was eating rice balls with a side of fish, and Mikoto was eating fried rice with a side of teriyaki chicken. Sasuko ate a tomato sandwich, Hana was eating cooked vegetables and fried rice and Kushina ate something a bit healthier than her daughter, cut up steak and a side of rice balls.

The dogs of the group were lying out in the field of the training ground, sunbathing while resting on their backs letting their legs sprawl out in laziness.

Kushina looked to Naruto before she smiled slightly at him, though it went unnoticed. "So, Tsume-chan, how did Naruto-kun do on his test?" Kushina asked the Inuzuka matriarch whose eyes widened briefly as she blushed slightly at remembering what Naruto did to calm her before she controlled herself.

Naruto wasn't paying attention as he was still practicing, though he was trying to figure out this, how to put it, omnipresent feeling about one hundred yards from his location, watching him and those around him.

"He did well, Kushina-chan, I'm sure we'll do extremely well together in the field," Tsume said as she ate from her lunch bento.

Kushina and the others smiled at Naruto, happy to know that she believed he would do well, but again saw that he had his eyes closed, focusing on something else.

Kushina then noticed that he wasn't eating anything like the rest of them. "Naruto-kun?" she questioned towards him and stopped eating. The others were talking amongst themselves as she spoke so they weren't really paying attention.

Naruto said nothing as Kushina got up and walked over to Naruto, her bento in hand. "Here you go. I noticed you didn't have anything to eat so you can have the rest of mine," she said as she offered him her bento, the chopsticks still in the piece of plastic-ware.

Naruto's right eye peered open to gaze at the bento and the person holding it. Kushina had a small smile in place as she offered it to him. "It's quite alright, Uzumaki-san, I am not hungry," he said to her plainly.

Kushina's smile fell slightly as she was told this but remembered the nod from earlier that day. Her smile was rejuvenated before she closed the bento. "I'll save it for later just in case you get hungry, Naruto-kun," she told him with a smile as she walked back over to her seat.

Naruto grunted lightly as he felt a pang in his chest, from emotional turmoil of being near that woman, or was it from gratitude, or it could have been indigestion, he didn't know. The young Uchiha closed his eyes once more before his stomach rumbled slightly. He 'hmm'ed' in annoyance as it was confirmed that he was slightly hungry, but he wouldn't accept food from that woman.

Performing three hand-signs, Naruto bit his gloveless thumb, drawing blood. "Kuchiyose no Jutsu," he said as a small plume of smoke was created from the ground in front of him.

The others were instantly put on guard, standing as they drew weapons, Hana drawing a kunai, Tsume drawing her trench knives, while the other four women unsheathed their swords slightly. They had no idea what was going on as they had not heard Naruto speak.

Moments later after the smoke dissipated, a small, dog-like animal could be seen. It stood at about three feet tall and had a lithe build, its four legs being those of a regular-sized dog, however it had blue scales covering its body. On its lower legs it had gold-colored, armor-like, yet organic, plating as well as its shoulder blades and lower jaw. Atop its head it sported golden-colored horns that jutted straight out of the top of its skull and pointed straight forward. It had a white mane of hair on its neck, hinds of its legs, underbelly, beneath its jaw, and had white fur along its long, thick tail and had what seemed like small golden spikes protruding from it.

Tsume lowered her guard as the dog-like creature looked at Naruto. "Jin'ōga," Tsume said in awe as her eyes widened. The others lowered their guard as well as Mikoto rose an eyebrow at Tsume of which the latter noticed. "Zinogre, a fanged wyvern, a dragon wolf, extraordinarily rare. Our clan had been trying to find that contract for decades. There have only been a handful of summoners and the first few clan heads of the Inuzuka clan had it but we lost it long ago, and now Naruto-kun has it, but how, I don't know," Tsume elaborated to the group of which nodded in understanding but said the last part more to herself.

"Send a message to Tsunade Senju, tell her to meet me at the usual spot with Mei, Kisamu, and Shizune. If you do well, Yoro, I'll give you a treat," Naruto smiled lightly, very lightly, as he knelt down and patted the dragon wolf on the head.

The dragon wolf pup yipped in happiness as it bolted off in a literal bolt of lightning before appearing nearby, approximately twenty yards out before disappearing again.

Naruto's smile left his visage as soon as the Zinogre pup left the vicinity before he put his glove back on and turned to the gathered company. "I believe we are done for the day, Inuzuka-san, so if you'll excuse me," Naruto said as he turned around and began to walk away. "Enjoy the rest of your lunch, Uzumaki-san," Naruto said, directed towards Kushina of which sported a sad smile at that.

The others turned to Tsume to see if she would say anything. The matriarch did not say anything to the youth as she was still determined to figure out what had exactly happened to her earlier in the afternoon, both in her haze and what he did to calm her, awakening feelings she didn't know she had.

She turned to the others and smiled nervously. "So, let's finish lunch, ne?" she said with a shaky chuckle as both Mikoto and Kushina sported frowns.

…

"Cheeky brat is as late as ever, reminds me of Kakashi," Tsunade said as she, Shizune, Mei, Kisamu, and Tonton sat in a booth at a somewhat fancy restaurant.

Tsunade and Shizune were both garbed in their usual attire while Mei and Kisamu were wearing their off duty clothing.

Mei wore a black, skin-tight shirt that ended at her lower bicep with a turtleneck. Over that she wore a white, thin over shirt with a folded over collar and zipper though it was only zipped to below her breasts while the sleeves were rolled up to her elbows. On her legs she wore form-fitting jeans with a black belt and black boots that ended below the knee. It was a strange outfit to most but she enjoyed her choice of clothing.

Kisamu wore a blue, form-fitting loose tank top with a pair of black pants and blue, open-toed boots that ended at the knee. Overall, her choice of clothing was more traditional than her companions.

During the course of the week, Minato had tested the two of them, Mei not revealing that she had more than one Kekkai Genkai (bloodline limit) in her test against various jonin so that she would not spark more than required interest in her own being. It was revealed that Kisamu had the Samahada and other than a slight interrogation on Minato's part as to where she acquired the sword, Kisamu was allowed to keep the weapon and both Kunoichi were revealed to be at least B-Rank in skills however Minato had only given them the rank of Tokubetsu Jonin and for a certain period could not leave the village without the express written consent of Tsunade herself for any reason. Though after the period they would be promoted to jonin and could leave the village to do missions freely.

The two former Mist citizens were currently living with Tsunade and Shizune at the Senju compound as they hadn't been on any mission to accumulate any wealth to speak of but Tsunade didn't mind, she enjoyed the company of all three of them, treating them all as daughters she never had, nor wanted.

Tsunade had always disliked childbirth, or rather the thought of herself giving birth to a child and that was why she had never found man, simply because she never wanted to. Every man seemed too inferior for her tastes; call her a bitch but that was how she was. Settling was not in her agenda.

Though something about Uchiha Naruto intrigued her to no end, be it the eyes or his chilling personality, how detached he was to the world at such a young age. He couldn't have possibly seen anything truly horrifying, so did he train himself to become like that, or was he brought up that way like Danzo's root?

No, it couldn't have been seeing as how he was outside of the village and was looking around somewhat curiously when they entered the village. Either that or he was a very good actor.

Sighing to herself, Tsunade waved down a nearby waitress, calling her over to her booth. "Two bottles of Nabunaga Sake," she said, holding up two fingers. The waitress quickly bowed in respect and acknowledgment before she walked away briskly.

Kisamu chuckled nervously as she scratched the back of her head. "Isn't it a little early to drink, Tsunade-sama?" the blue skinned woman asked as it was around four in the afternoon.

The slug princess shot the blue-skinned woman a glare making the latter shrink back in slight fear. "That's what I thought," Tsunade mumbled to herself as she propped her chin up with her left hand.

"Have you already ordered?" she heard a deep voice to her left making her head turn to see Naruto, wearing long sleeve, red shirt that hugged his body appreciatively, showing his muscles. On his legs he wore loose-fitting black pants with white tape around the shins and black, closed toe sandals. On his waist he wore a red sash and a familiar headband hung from it. There were few scuffs on the clothing showing he had just finished some type of outdoor activity.

"No, we haven't, Naruto-kun," Tsunade said as she finished inspecting him, eyes lingering over his chest once more as well as his face before her eyes traveled to the table before she scooted over to allow him to sit down. Naruto accepted the invitation and sat down beside the slug Sannin, putting his left ankle atop his right knee, leaning back and extending an arm behind Tsunade though it did not touch her as it rested on the top of the seat.

It was silent when Naruto entered the booth as Kisamu and Mei were still looking at him but he paid it no mind.

"I see you're a Konoha shinobi now, Naruto-san. What rank are you?" It was Shizune who broke the ice that had formed when the only male had arrived.

Naruto closed his eyes and sighed slightly. "Genin," he answered. He did not sigh at her for asking the question, well, slightly, but it was simply in annoyance at the rank he had been given.

Shizune tilted her head in question while Tsunade nodded. "It's due to his age, Shizune. They placed you in the graduating class I presume?" Naruto nodded curtly in response.

Kisamu nodded herself as that made sense. That was before she noticed the lacking of Mei beside her. She then noticed something kicking her foot.

Mei giggled as she pounced from beneath the table to where Naruto was making Tsunade's eyes widen slightly and jump in response as Mei grabbed the young Uchiha's head, practically slamming it between her breasts and climbing in his lap.

"Oh, how I missed you, sensei-kun! I'm so happy you became an actual shinobi! Now we can go on missions together!" Mei rambled on with a large smile on her face, her arms wrapped around his head preventing escape.

Naruto's sitting position did not change in the slightest, his arm still behind where Tsunade's head rested, his legs still crossed. Mei did miss, however, his other arm that hung free.

Mei was still rambling while the others at the table sighed at how the Tokubetsu jonin hugged the genin affectionately. That was until a loud moan escaped Mei's lips, her mouth forming an 'O' shape as they saw what made them slack-jawed.

Naruto had used his free left hand to pinch Mei's breast, right on the nipple to be exact.

Jealousy was felt from two individuals in the group as they witnessed this act of debauchery right in front of them.

In mere moments of surprising flexibility, Mei had disappeared back under the table and reclaimed her seat beside Kisamu, glaring scornfully at the man before her, a large, extremely evident blush clear on her face.

"S-Sensei-kun!" Mei stuttered, covering her chest protectively all the while glaring. "Why d-did you do that?!" she said in a harsh whisper.

Naruto merely blew some hair out from in front of his eye before it fell down in the same spot he blew it from. "You presented me with limited possibilities, Mei-san," he said while the others sweat-dropped slightly.

Mei merely glared a little harder at that. It was the same answer he'd given her before and is wasn't the first time he had done obscene things to get her to stop her rants about he missed her. She had done it three times including now. The first time he had slapped her ass rather hard and the second he had licked her earlobe sensually and even sucked on it.

Secretly, she enjoyed the sensations, and that was why she came back for more.

Back to reality and not Mei's deranged fantasy, Naruto remained silent as the normality of his visit reigned, the sake coming moments later.

The waitress had a trey with two red-colored bottles on them, both being sealed with a cork. The trey also had four saucers on it, one for each of the adults of the group.

The waitress sat a saucer in front of Shizune, Mei, Kisamu, and Tsunade before placing the bottles in the middle of the table making Naruto raise an eyebrow before he sighed softly. That was before Shizune slid her saucer over to Naruto.

"It's far too early for me to drink, Naruto-kun. You can have mine," she told kindly to the man of which curtly nodded to her only for the waitress to place a hand on her hip.

"This establishment doesn't support underage drinking, young man," the waitress said as she extended a hand to grab the saucer only for Naruto to raise his headband silently making the waitress pause before she quickly placed her arm to her side, bowing in apology before she quickly walked away, silence following her.

It was quiet at the table before Naruto wordlessly grabbed the bottle, opened the cork, and poured himself some sake into the saucer. "I know who's not getting a tip," he mumbled before downing the warm liquid, a familiar burning sensation following afterward as he placed the saucer back down.

The women of the group laughed softly at the dry humor Naruto usually presented, though it was unintentional.

Tsunade, still slightly smiling at the joke, grabbed the opened bottle and refilled Naruto's saucer before filling Mei's, Kisamu's as well as her own.

She raised her saucer as she relished her company. It had been too long that she was last surrounded by friends, ready to have a good time. "Bottom's up!" she announced, a grin in place as she downed her sake, Mei, Kisamu, following shortly afterward while Naruto simply rose his saucer to where it was eye-level and rested his elbow on the table.

He had his eyes closed and a small smirk was sported on his face.

Perhaps it was time he celebrated. What was he celebrating?

Huh. Now that was a good question.

….

People in the restaurant were really underestimating the amount of shit-faced Tsunade and her company was at the moment.

It was around 10 P.M. and each of the women at the table sported blushes while Naruto had a faint hue of pink on his cheeks.

Empty plates as well as empty and tipped-over bottles were scattered on the table of the booth they were at, the plates cleared of food and the tipped-over bottles as well as standing ones devoid of sake.

Mei and Kisamu giggled at anything that breathed, Shizune had started drinking around 8 o'clock simply out of not wanting to consciously deal with her master and due to being a light-weight, was heavily intoxicated, and Tsunade and Naruto were having a drinking contest.

People from all over the restaurant were around the booth, some cheering for the busty nurse while others rooted for the newly minted genin who seemed to be handling the liquor like a champ.

Naruto and Tsunade each had close to a dozen and a half saucers filled with sake around them and as each one that was downed, two more seemed to take its place due to more-than-happy restaurant owners ready to sell.

The two were each on the seventeenth saucer before they downed another.

Mei and Kisamu cheered for both parties, trying to contain the giggles more-so than anything while Shizune sported a decent blush though the alcohol was fading. She simply smiled lightly at her master having such a wonderful time.

Shizune was no fool. She could clearly tell that Tsunade enjoyed Naruto's presence. Her master's smiles would become a little brighter, when she spoke to him, she could tell minute moments of embarrassment, though the alcohol fixed that immediately.

If anything, she could tell that Naruto enjoyed Tsunade's presence somewhat at least as well though she could have been receiving the wrong signals. Naruto did always call their group if he wanted to eat, but could that have been him looking for a free meal? No, he had always footed his part of the bill. When a conversation was interesting, he would sometimes partake, and he was very intellectual, even offering some suggestions to Tsunade-sama about medical jutsu.

Eh, she was still feeling nice at the moments so she didn't think too hard about it.

Tsunade and Naruto were each on their twenty fourth saucer of sake, only for the Sannin to completely miss her mouth, soak her shirt, blouse, and haori, and for her to land in the booth behind her, unconscious before she hit the ground.

Naruto allowed a slight, drunken smile to grace itself upon his features as he downed the twenty fourth and raise his arms in the air in victory. Mei, Kisamu, and Shizune each cheered for him along with the rest of the crowd.

Naruto's metabolism never truly allowed him to get drunk, simply placing him in a state of being buzzed as the alcohol was being processed out of his liver as he drank, but he preferred being buzzed to being drunk, better spatial awareness that way.

Naruto looked at his students and Shizune before glancing down the still unconscious Tsunade before he huffed lightly before reaching into his pants pocket and laying down a large wad of cash. Should cover the tip and stuff, he thought simply as he picked up Tsunade bridal style before scooting out of the booth and past the now scattering bystanders.

He stumbled lightly as the alcohol he had just ingested took effect. Kisamu, Mei, and Shizune were right behind him as they too lightly stumbled out of the booth and then the restaurant, following the supposed leader of the group as the Sannin was rendered unable to lead by suggestion.

It being a Friday and around ten o'clock, the night life of Konoha was still relatively young. There were a good bit of people out and about, most openly staring at Naruto carrying Tsunade through the streets though no one said anything.

Shizune was supporting herself while Mei was leaning on Kisamu for support, the blue skinned woman clearly being able to handle her sake better than the other woman.

Kisamu sped up, groggily putting one foot in front of the other as to catch up to Naruto of which was powering through his almost drunken state like a trooper.

"So, boss-kun," Kisamu paused as she hiccupped lightly, "where're we goin', hush?" she asked him, slurring her words lightly.

Naruto walked absent-mindedly along the street, walking past people with no hurry in his step to get anywhere, but he had acknowledged Kisamu's question. Where to go, hmm? He wondered. He felt so care-free at the moment. While he still had firm grips on reality, he held no drive to complete any objectives unlike while in a sober state of mind. Naruto vaguely noticed that he talked more when intoxicated and a slightly higher tolerance for fools.

But only slightly.

He wouldn't go to the Sarutobi compound as that would raise too many questions and no doubt Biwako would be questioning where he went and would certainly raise several different types of hell if she discovered his drinking.

Naruto considered his newly bought apartment briefly but soon discarded the notion as it wasn't furnished as of yet.

He then looked down to the still sleeping Tsunade of which had buried her face into his chest in search of warmth. The young Uchiha could see the wet spot on her clothes where she had spilled her sake and the still damp portions added a shine to her breasts.

Huh, apparently he was more of a pervert as well.

Naruto shook his head, almost making himself trip as he rid himself of the thoughts. "Senju compound he said as Kisamu and Shizune nodded lightly.

Mei merely smiled. "Hehehe~," she giggled.

…

The walk to the Senju compound was relatively uneventful, save for Mei and Kisamu tripping the hell out over the how many stairs there were, stating over and over again that they were going in circles as they ascended the Hokage monument.

Shizune had to stay behind the two Tokubetsu jonin so they wouldn't fall and surprisingly Naruto had a very good sense of balance even when buzzed.

Shizune ruffled for the keys to the compound, juggling them around several times to find the right one and then eventually succeeding.

Kisamu was still supporting Mei but both looked dead tired as if they were ready to pass out.

Naruto was still carrying the slug Sannin with no difficulties though he was more interested in the architecture of the compound as he hadn't been here before.

It had large, wooden doors that provided entrance to the compound with the Senju emblem on it as well as white walls that surrounded the almost-fortress.

As the five of them entered it, they were greeted with a large single-story mansion with green roofing and white walls with wooden sliding doors, a few koi ponds here and there, as well as a large forested area to their left and field to their right.

They walked to the patio before they each took their shoes off save the unconscious Tsunade of which only shifted lightly when Naruto stepped onto the deck. Mei and Kisamu were already accustomed to the place so the taller blue woman basically dragging the former to bed, Mei moaning and groaning in displeasure, telling her sensei-kun to give her a goodnight kiss of which Naruto responded.

The only kiss she received that night was one she wasn't even present for.

"Muah," she heard him say loudly making her pout.

Afterward, Shizune led Naruto Tsunade's room so that he could lay her down, the apprentice completely forgetting to tell Naruto where to sleep.

The mansion was elegant if Naruto had anything to say though the ever-present theme of wooden floors, sliding doors, white walls, and green here and there was somewhat disorienting.

As Shizune stumbled away to her room Naruto closed the door with his foot and walked over Tsunade's bed. The room was lavish if he had to say anything.

It had a king-sized bed with white sheets and green pillows making Naruto internally groan. There was a large window that overlooked a large, private onsen and koi pond. There was a large closet off to the right with various articles of clothing, a few dressers with mirrors, a connected master bathroom, and a large Victorian-style, wooden desk in front of the window with stacks of papers and a chair.

Naruto walked over to the right side of the bed and gently placed the Sannin down, the unconscious woman groaning in discomfort at the loss of warmth.

Naruto, his drunken blush staying strong, looked down at the sannin's state of dress once more. It had various food stains on it and the spill from earlier had spread. He sighed briefly, using his buzzed logic to undress her.

Naruto started with her sandals, unclasping both of them before pulling them off of her feet and putting them in the floor. He then gently moved her haori off of her as to not wake her and succeeded eventually before tossing that garment in the floor as well. He then undid her sash that connected her obi and removed it along with the obi itself, exposing her, well…

Damn, was all Naruto thought as he looked at the sannin's bra-clad breasts, his slightly less indecent side trying to coerce him into copping a feel. However, that was beneath his status as a womanizer, a damn good one at that.

Briefly discarding the indecent thoughts, he looked down to her pants and rolled his eyes as he gently pulled them off of her, again, trying not to disturb her and wake her as that would be compromising of his purely peaceful agenda at the moment.

Moments later, the young Uchiha put the shirt, sash, and pants in the floor to see a peacefully sleeping Tsunade clad in a pair of plain pink panties and bra.

His eyes lingered as he marveled at the sleeping beauty before him. "Truly beautiful," he told himself before he shook his head lightly and turned around to go to the bathroom to wash his face, get a cup of water, obtain a robe as well as two painkilling pills for in the morning.

He put the pills and cup of water on the nightstand next to the sleeping Sannin and slowly put the white robe on her making her snuggled into the bed before turning on her side.

Seconds later, Naruto blinked. Why the fuck was he being nice to this woman.

Must be the alcohol, Naruto rationalized as he pulled off his shirt, exposing his bare abdomen to the world.

He then walked over the other side of the bed and pulled the sheets off of it before climbing into the bed. He wasn't about to go looking for a spare room or sleep on a couch.

The bed was damn soft too.

He got to the middle of the bed as Tsunade was still off to right side of it.

Naruto yawned as he felt his eyes grow heavy before putting his right arm on his chest and putting his left behind his head and closing his eyes.

Just as he was about to fall asleep, he felt the bed rustle making his eyes open lazily to reveal Tsunade propping herself up with her right arm, using her left to rub her eyes. She had a sleepy expression on her face as well as one of slight confusion. The slug Sannin looked around, almost disorientedly before her amber eyes found their gaze set on Naruto.

"Naruto-kun," she mumbled sleepily as she crawled over to him, pulling the covers over her frame and snuggling into the young Uchiha making her bountiful assets press into his side and for her left leg to drape itself over his left leg and hook around it. Seconds later he could hear her breathing become rhythmic and deepen.

"She's a cuddler when she's drunk," Naruto mumbled sleepily. Not that he was complaining.

Not that he was complaining at all.

…

REVIEW!

Haha! Take that! I updated before the six month mark! It's only been a little over a month.

Gotta say, the more I think about how badass I can make Naruto, and his romances, the more I want to write.

Anyways, REVIEW!

Tell me how the sparring scene was, and tell me about the attempts at humor.

And I think I made some decent character development here and Naruto is, by the way, one of those tight-knit people who unwind considerably when drunk.

I was considering crows or bears for the second summoning contract but I was like fuck it; give him a lightning, dragon wolf from monster hunter, never seen it before soooo yeah.

Anyways, it's 6:30 in the goddamn morning.

Peace~