The first thing Naruto heard was humming.

It certainly wasn't the loudest noise in Konoha. That went to some nocturnal old-timer who snored loud enough to wake the dead.

Naruto hated that mental analogy in hindsight, but he was too groggy to truly care.

But he focused on the humming, because it was pleasant and the voice familiar.

He opened one eye and glanced down to see Sakura humming a tune. With her were Hinata, Shikamaru, Kiba, and Neji. All of them looked to be having a picnic near his head, enjoying onigiri and some drinks while Kiba told some story about Akamaru getting stuck in a drawer.

Said hound was the first to notice Naruto's gaze upon them.

The second, of course, was Neji. "He's awake," he said bluntly.

This caused the rest of the young ninjas to look up in surprise, many exclaiming in shock. "Naruto!? How long have you been awake and just watching us?!" Kiba asked in surprise, while Hinata and Sakura helped pat Shikamaru on the back to keep him from choking on his rice roll.

Naruto grunted, probably alerting the entire village he was awake again. If not, his answer would do the trick. "Just now."

"Got it?" Sakura asked as Shikamaru took a deep breath and gave a thumbs up.

"Naruto, are you determined to kill me by surprising me too often!?" Shikamaru called up as he caught his breath.

Naruto hummed. "How long has it been?"

"Over a full day, almost two. You really must have been tired," Sakura noted with a concerned frown.

"Having a tiny moon dropped on you will do that," Naruto remarked with a yawn. That got some strange looks and comments, but most took it as an expression or joke. "Well, if I didn't wake up, that thing definitely hasn't shown up anywhere."

"Sh-Shikamaru was telling us all about your battles," Hinata said with a smile. "It sounds like...you've gotten very good at using your new powers?"

Sakura smiled in support of Hinata while Naruto just smiled in thanks to the praise.

"So, you're making tsunamis made of fire, and you can just stab your damn tails into the ground to make water? The hell?" Kiba asked with a grin. "What's next, you can control the weather?"

"You didn't tell them about the hole, did you?" Naruto asked with knowing amusement.

"The hole?" Sakura repeated.

"Look, that thing is probably sticking around no matter how much the terrain corps repairs the area," Shikamaru defended, rubbing his head. "Suffice to say, Naruto created at least one new landmark in Fire Country."

"Yeah, I probably shouldn't use that one too often until I figure out how to fill it back up myself," Naruto mused, scratching his head.

"That's about what the Hokage and the others request, yes," Kakashi said as he made his presence known, crouching next to the younger ninjas.

"Dammit! Why is everyone sneaking up on us today! We're just trying to eat and talk!" Kiba said in annoyance.

"Doesn't your clan have enhanced senses and everything?" Shikamaru reminded blandly.

"Enhancing senses doesn't help the senseless, Shika," Naruto reported with a grin.

"That's not what that means and you know it!" Sakura called up, mock berating the Bijuu.

Naruto chuckled shortly and so did Kakashi. "Glad to see we're all having a good time," Kakashi said as he looked up. "How are you feeling, Naruto?"

"After everything that happened lately? Wonderful," Naruto answered, rolling shoulders as he started to fully awake. "I can finally relax and not worry about the boney bastard showing up at any time."

"That's w-wonderful to hear," Hinata said with a smile. "We were all worried when you passed out on the mountain."

Naruto sighed deep. "I don't think my body needs to sleep, but my head still hasn't learned that."

"What, you? Not learning something?" Sakura asked playfully. "Nooooo."

Naruto looked at the pinkette.

"I don't like that look," Kiba muttered, Akamaru barking in agreement.

Naruto inhaled.

Kakashi and Neji made sure to channel chakra to keep them rooted to the floor.

Naruto blew a breath at the group.

"Ahh, shit!" Kiba said, pulling Akamaru off his head before the dog got thrown away.

Neji calmly waited for it to end while Hinata closed one eye.

Shikamaru nearly fell backward in annoyance.

But Sakura yelped as her qipao nearly went flying up before she quickly pushed it down with her hand. "Naruto, you ass!" she yelled over the wind.

Naruto, seeing what happened, abruptly ended his prank. "Sorry, sorry! Did not think that through," Naruto admitted in apology, having only intended to knock the girl on her butt at most. Despite this, he chuckled.

Sakura huffed with a blush and crossed arms, but couldn't stop smiling after a moment as she saw Naruto relax and enjoy the peace of the moment.

"So, if you're done breathing all over our food?" Kiba said with a smirk. "Are you going to tell us about this awesome fight you had?"

"Oh sure, as soon as Granny and the others decide what parts they want me to filter out," Naruto answered, pausing before glaring out at the village. "It's a damn ninja village! Everyone knows we leave shit out! "I" knew that."

"I don't even want to know who he's talking to," Shikamaru said with a sigh.

"And yes, Konohamaru! If Iruka says yes, you brats can all come up here and I will give your whole class story time about how I beat the bone monster. Have fun with that, Iruka!" Naruto called out deviously.

"Poor Iruka is going to be swarmed by those kids," Sakura said with a headshake. "So, Kakashi-sensei, are we finally getting the story behind this creature?"

"Yeah, Kakashi-sensei, are they getting the story?" Naruto asked with a chuckle.

"I'll leave telling you about the battle to my Fluffy student here," Kakashi assured with an eye smile before he looked at the others. "The short story was that this creature was exactly what it sounded like: a Gashadokuro."

"We call it a Hakaju," Naruto added in idly.

"Who the heck is "we?" Kiba muttered out loud.

"A giant skeleton demon in legends, said to be born from many deaths in a single instance, normally battles or massacres," Neji recalled with a frown. "So, those are not just myths?"

"Apparently not. We're unclear on how it was created, but it seems to have been an unintended side effect of the Curse Mark on some of Orochimaru's subordinates. Namely, the ones that tried to help Sasuke escape," Kakashi paused with a head tilted, "Those that died, at any rate."

Naruto made no comment or reaction to that version of the story. It wasn't the truth but it was close enough; especially when they didn't really know the truth. But it was probably a good idea to not imply that more Hakaju might spawn up in the future, as they hopefully would not.

"You meant those twin freaks and the others we fought?!" Kiba remembered with gritted teeth, Akamaru growling. "Didn't you say the one you fought was like a spider or something, Neji?"

"Yes. Though, by the sounds of it, the main factor would have been Lee's opponent, who also possessed the ability to grow and manipulate his own bones," Neji remarked.

The others all shivered at the reminder. "That is still one of those bloodlines that are so weird to think about," Sakura said, unnerved by the prospect.

"Eh, after you've seen your own skeleton hand a few times, it stops being wei- and I just realized how fucked up that sounds," Naruto said with wide eyes.

"Weeeee are going to talk about that later," Sakura said, sharing a look with Hinata, one of concern tinged with horror. The Hyuuga heiress nodded repeatedly at Sakura.

Kakashi cleared his throat to continue. "We don't believe Orochimaru did this intentionally or knows how to recreate it, but Lord Jiraiya will be looking into it regardless."

"He definitely didn't know about the thing, he would have been gloating about it," Naruto muttered with a snort.

"Wait...Orochimaru was there?" Shikamaru asked with a furrowed brow.

"Shika, you're smart; think about how many people are trying to watch me at any time," Naruto reminded flatly.

"...Ah," Shikamaru said in understanding.

"What does that mean?" Kiba asked with a furrowed brow.

"Obviously people attempt to spy on Naruto, many from other countries," Neji pointed out, as if it was obvious.

Hinata looked up in concern, seeing Naruto looking almost resigned and bored with the topic. He went as far to look over his shoulder, away from the village, and silently raised an arm to flip someone off.

"I'm going to assume that is one now," Sakura mused, getting a silent nod from Naruto.

Hinata knew all of that on a factual level, but it wasn't something she had thought about too much. That Naruto actively and constantly had people trying to spy on him, to gather information on him, and all looking at him as a potential threat. Because of course, who wouldn't?

He was the Kyuubi…the second, the Nidaime Kyuubi, but the Kyuubi nonetheless.

That kind of power attracted attention, good and bad, regardless of how it was used; Monsters like Orochimaru and others no doubt look to gain a power akin to what Naruto had. But then there were simply other people, from foreign ninja villages or countries, all simply worrying for their own safety in knowing that Fire Country had such a powerful ...

What WAS Naruto, in the eyes of the village leadership, and the daimyo? He could not be safely called a shinobi by any means. He was an ally, surely. But how many saw him as some kind of tool or pet to be handled and controlled?

She had heard the words before, random strangers or her own clan members saying how the Hokage needed to find a way to keep Naruto on a leash, or equally insulting phrases.

She hadn't thought too deeply about any of them at the time, because she was used to others talking about Naruto like that. But before he became a Bijuu, it had been like an unruly or overexcited child. Now it was something...worse, she only now came to realize.

Naruto started sniffing loudly. "Something is on fire," he commented, looking around for a bit before deadpanning. "Buddy, you have at least one ANBU watching you. If you were in trouble for having that, you'd already know it."

"I don't want to know," Shikamaru said with a sigh.

Hinata decided now was a good time to speak up. "D-do you know how long you'll be staying, Naruto?" she asked curiously.

"At least a few days. I'll probably head back north and say goodbye to everyone at the daimyo's place, but really, I just want Pervy Sage and Granny to give the all clear. That we're all pretty sure this thing isn't a problem anymore before I head down south," Naruto rambled idly.

"Say goodbye to everyone at the Daimyo's place," Neji repeated in amusement.

"He says that so casually," Sakura said with an amused sigh.

"Speaking of which, the Daimyo does send his gratitude, but I'm sure he'll be more than happy to give them in person," Kakashi mused. "Just try not to intimidate them too hard."

"Sensei, I was sleeping on the guy's front lawn for a while. Trust me, they're used to me by now. I think they were making jokes about renaming that mountain I laid on all the time to something like Kitsune's Rest, or Kitsune Perch," Naruto countered in amusement.

"Great, now he'll have a bridge and a mountain named after him," Sakura said with a snort of amusement.

"He has a what named after him!?" Kiba asked in surprise.

"We had a very interesting C-rank mission that turned into an A-Rank mission," Kakashi explained simply.

"Interesting. That certainly is a word, Sensei," Sakura said neutrally.

"Sakura, you have no room to talk," Naruto said bluntly. "You were the only one of the three of us to not get pincushioned with ice needles."

Shikamaru furrowed his brow. "Enemy with an ice-manipulation bloodline?"

"That is the short answer," Naruto agreed flatly. "Go on, Sensei, regal them about the time you got stuck in a wet ball."

"...I believe we need context for that," Neji said with a raised eyebrow.

Kakashi sighed dramatically. "Very well! I shall start by telling you all of the time Naruto almost bled out while making a dramatic blood oath and thought he was going to die."

Naruto chuckled sheepishly at the reminder, but made no effort to deny it. "Fair play, Sensei."

Meanwhile

"Well, Naruto is doing well by the sounds of it," Tsunade said as she poured a drink for herself and her old teammate.

"He certainly deserved a rest after everything," Jiraiya said as he took the drink. He paused for a moment. "Naruto? I'm sure those giant ears of yours are listening, but try not to react to anything. Or play it off if you have to."

"Pervy Sage, what do you think I do all day here?" Naruto retorted purposefully.

"He's not wrong," Tsunade admitted. "But what are you concerned about?"

"I finally had time to check the body of the man Naruto and Kakashi fought near Rain," Jiraiya mused with a scowl. "I knew him."

"Hmm?" Tsunade furrowed her brow.

"There were some children I helped back in Rain, during the war. I taught them some things, to help them survive," he explained idly.

"And the leader of the Akatsuki is one of them?" Tsunade asked with a scowl.

"I'm not sure. The report you read is about the same as what Kakashi told me; a man that appeared to have six bodies. If this is the Yahiko I know, I can't be sure if he's the leader, a victim of his, or something else. For all I know, this is some strange variant of Orochimaru's Jutsu to take over another's body, but allowing one to puppet others," Jiraiya mused with a troubled look. "Naruto is convinced the Akatsuki leader, whoever it is, isn't dead yet. And considering the damage I saw from his fight with Naruto..."

"To think someone that powerful was lurking under the radar, in Rain," Tsunade mused. "Did those kids have any powers, a bloodline or something that might explain this?"

Jiraiya frowned. "Maybe. One had unusual eyes. And Kakashi said these bodies had similar eyes, but they didn't belong to Yahiko. And Yahiko's corpse doesn't have them anymore, so I'm a little lost there."

Tsunade frowned. "We both know how little that can mean. Transferring eyes is tricky but not impossible."

Jiraiya nodded. "I'm going to give him a quiet burial after you're done examining him. Try and keep that to yourself, you know Danzo might try something."

"Of course," Tsunade said in understanding. "Did you discover anything from the site of the Hakaju?"

"Besides the new tourist spot Naruto created? Not much. The physical part of the seal was pretty well destroyed. What little I found was fairly archaic."

"Archaic? That seal seemed pretty powerful to me," Tsunade retorted.

"I don't doubt it. I don't mean it was low quality or outdated, I mean the symbols, design, and writing used in them were ancient. Predating most ninja clans, if I had to guess," Jiraiya said with a frown. "Someone with some old roots either stepped out of the shadows, or was robbed."

"And we have no leads on who," Tsunade summarized. "Do you think the Akatsuki is uninvolved?"

"It's hard to say. We're trained to suspect coincidence, but the fight with this Pain character might have just been them trying to see if they could defeat Naruto."

The two sat in silence for now, contemplating everything. The life of a ninja was rarely calm for too long. The longer one lived, the more true that became.

"All of this, and the Daimyo is considering aiding Rain in its civil war," Tsunade said with a sigh.

"I stand by that!" Naruto called out.

"Was that aimed at us?" Tsunade asked curiously.

"Probably," Jiraiya murmured with an uncertain frown.

Tsunade had heard of this situation before Naruto awoke, that Jiraiya had concerns about the Daimyo's apparent trust in Naruto. Was the man intimidated? Was he just trying to keep on Naruto's good side?

She wasn't sure, but she wasn't as concerned about it as Jiraiya. If Naruto and the Daimyo got along, all the better. She had feared the worst outcome, the Daimyo trying to order Naruto around like any other subject- or worse, a pet- and Naruto responding in a typical Naruto-ish way that would have made everything harder for everyone involved. Instead, Naruto and the lord of Fire Country had formed some kind of respectful understanding. How it came about was less important than it existed.

End of Chapter

Well, this is the first of Naruto's de-stressing chapters. Fun talks with friends, the typical "I hear everything" humor," Hinata also had a little introspection on Naruto's situation, and Jiraiya and Tsunade discuss some of the things that happened.

Also, yeah, Jiraiya didn't get a good look at the Pain body before he sealed it. It was bitten in half, they were in a hurry, the rinneggan doesn't show on the corpses, and so forth.

Happy Thanksgiving!

Early viewing of chapters 32-33 avaliable on my pat-reon:

p a treon . com (slash) akumakami64