Adult-FanFiction.org : Naruto

Escape Artist
By : sanlashix
Category: Naruto > Yaoi - Male/Male
Views: 4980 -:- Recommendations : 1 -:- Currently Reading : 2
Disclaimer: Don't own Naruto; not making any money from this.
Chapter List
- 7
- 8
- 9
Summary: Seal master Uzumaki Naruto finally perfected a battle-use seal to rewind time for short moments. What the idiot forgot was that he tended to overdo things when in a pinch. MinaNaru, timetravel.

Chapter 8: Not Mine
“But Kushina, I’ve run both Diagnosis X and Diagnosis Y on your seal twice already! I also proved to you in two different ways that Kyuubi doesn’t have…”
Minato’s eyes drifted over a clock. He suddenly leapt to his feet, violently knocking his chair over.
Kushina jumped in surprise. “What’s wrong?”
His face paled as he stared at the clock. “I-I was with a friend before taking you home. I promised him ramen but I lost track of time! I just left him there… Oh, shit…”
“Minato, language,” Kushina reprimanded.
“It’s allowed in this situation!”
He knew enough about Naruto to know that betrayal was considered the greatest offense, and abandonment fell solidly within that category. He had certainly abandoned him.
“Kushina, I have to go. We’ll go over this another day, okay?”
“Mina…” She started to say, but he was already gone, leaving behind a confused and disheartened redhead.
He disappeared and reappeared at Ichiraku in a blur of yellow, zipping the entire way in less than half a minute. He hastily ducked in, knowing it was impossible for Naruto to still be there but hoping otherwise. There was only one blond head to the right, but it was ugly compared to Naruto’s shade of gold. “Teuji-san! Was Naruto here? Blond hair, blue eyes.”
“So you’re the one he was waiting for!” Teuji shot him a withering glare. “You missed him by…thirty minutes.”
Throwing back a remorseful ‘thanks’, Minato zipped towards ANBU Headquarters, berating himself the entire way. Naruto had waited over two hours for him, only for him to never show. Two hours! Minato feared the anger and disappointment in Naruto’s eyes but knew he deserved it for breaking his promise and Naruto’s trust – that hard-earned trust that Naruto had given only to him, the Hokage, and maybe to the owners of Ichiraku.
God, what had he been thinking? A chance to study obscure Sealing Arts was no excuse!
He knocked apprehensively on Naruto’s door but received no reply. He knocked again, this time trying to sense Naruto with his chakra even though he knew Naruto’s chakra control was far better than his could ever hope to be, and that he would never be able to find the Hunter-nin that way.
After a third fruitless knock, he zipped to Naruto’s playground, the enormous Forest of Death, and conducted the most thorough but quick search he could, only to find nothing yet again. The only other place he knew to go was the Hokage Tower.
Standing in front of the Sandaime’s desk, he spoke before the Hokage could greet him.
“Hokage-sama, did Naruto come by?” Minato blurted out.
Konoha’s leader gave him a calculating look which made the ANBU Captain squirm before sighing heavily, looking like someone had died.
“Naruto left several minutes ago for a mission.” Minato received his second withering glare of the evening. “He suddenly informed me that he has been falling behind in his duties and was adamant about beginning them immediately. From what I saw of him in the short five minutes, he has regressed emotionally. He is now solely focused on his work.”
Minato winced.
“I will not ask the cause, Minato-kun, but I hope you can pull him back out. He won’t be back for two months at the least and six at most, and he may return not as Naruto but as his full Hunter-nin identity.” Sarutobi warned. “Do not allow him to leave in this state. A hero should not save his people out of obligation but out of the desire to protect. Currently, he is on autopilot in the former.” The Hokage looked back down at his paperwork. “He and his partner exited by the North Gate.”
Minato bowed hastily and disappeared in a messy cloud which revealed his panic. Even at his fastest, he felt the trip to the gate lasted ages. He asked himself again: how could he have forgotten about Naruto? The debate on seals and Kyuubi was always fascinating, but hadn’t he admitted his fixation on his friend just hours ago?
The moment he stepped past the gate, what he saw – or what he didn’t see – halted him. There was neither a physical nor a chakra trail. If he didn’t know better, he would have thought the North Gate hadn’t been used since early morning. It would be impossible to find him without some clue. He might as well apply some of that genius he’d been lauded for and analyze what kind mission the Hunter-nin would take. Naruto was traveling northward. The chance of his destination being the Hot Water Country or Frost Country in the northeast was small; they were relatively calm and on friendly terms with Fire. Lightning Country further beyond was unlikely since they had their own Hunter-nin force. The territories north of Fire were empty, so the only logical destination was Hidden Waterfall to the northwest. What strengthened the guess were the three recent skirmishes along the border which Fire and Waterfall shared.
He took a step and became a blur of yellow.
Where are you?

After vanishing from Ichiraku in a near-silent puff of a dark cloud, Naruto had walked mechanically into a shinobi tattoo parlor for his seals. Kinjutsu Tattoos was where he had inked the time jutsu seal on his hip; they were the best in all of the five Great Shinobi Countries, and he required the best.
The first seal he needed inked was the Chakra Draining Seal which allowed his shadow clones to draw chakra into themselves to keep from expelling. He would apply his own chakra to the seal to open it as a gateway for foreign chakra to enter his body, absorbing from living sources like trees and animals around shinobi villages and, of course, from other shinobi. The only glitch was that the seal needed to be in contact with the source.
‘If only Kage Bunshin didn’t reject your stupid chakra, Kyuu,’ Naruto complained in an attempt to take his mind off of Minato.
‘Hmph!’ Kyuubi sent him an offended huff. ‘My chakra is much too superior in quality for your pitiful shadow clones to handle.’
‘Superior, my ass,’ Naruto shot back and snickered. ‘It’s like a lard of fat compared to my canola oil. The only way I can use it is when I get angry enough to liquefy that blubber.’ He chuckled darkly and blocked off the outraged growls coming from his furry friend.
Naruto requested the seal to be place on the pads of his two little fingers which would allow him the choice of activating the seal whenever he grabbed something. The seal was made of almost indecipherable and tiny symbols forming a triangular outline with three arrows pointing inwards on the three sides. Only the most skilled would be able to ink all of the symbols accurately.
The second seal was his Enduring Henge Seal that allowed him to apply a henge which would remain strong and unwavering even after loss of concentration or consciousness. It was circular for stability. The outline was a smooth circle, but the space within the circle was completely filled with symbols spiraling inwards for strength, connection, and flexibility. He placed these on the underside of his two large toes, the pads of his middle fingers, and the top of his head – the five farthest points on his body. To operate, he needed to concentrate chakra on all five points at once with the image of his desired form in mind. As long as none of these body parts got lopped off or the flesh burnt away, the henge would hold tightly. If combined with Kage Bunshin, he could henge into anything without worrying about exposure.
These seals were all inked with a translucent white ink infused with his chakra to keep them as discreet as possible. The end product looked like scars which had healed over to leave barely noticeable blemishes on skin.
Naruto left the parlor slightly less mechanically than when he entered. He still felt bitter and betrayed, but productivity had dulled down a little of the hurt. The next stop was the ANBU Armory for a temporary wakizashi until he had the chance to forge another.
On his rooftop sprint to Headquarters, he studied the Hokage Mountain. He hadn’t been up there once in the month he’d lived in this time. It was the most blatant evidence of what he had lost. The first time he had headed there, he stopped only after taking several steps, noticing that the little alcove at the corner of Yondaime’s right eye where he usually hid didn’t exist. That realization had forced him deep into the Forest of Death for another night of tears, wondering if this was some kind of divine retribution for something he had done in the past. He had simultaneously cried and laughed hysterically at that thought. The term ‘past’ was now so muddled that there was no point in even attempting to clear everything up.
He finally decided to think of his own eighteen years of ‘Past’ with a capitalized ‘P’, and the Future of his own timeline with a capitalized ‘F.’ See? Not as muddled anymore…
There was no time to go up there now. After he had become Hunter-nin, the visits had become routine – so routine that its original purpose and meaning had been lost. During childhood, he went up there to see the beauty of Konoha and remind himself of all the love and good in his beloved village. As time passed the trips became a habit and some type of therapy for him to wind down from mission stress. He may still have subconsciously felt the connection between the physical sight and the meanings behind it, but consciously, he had forgotten the reasons for his visits.
This last month, he had been selfish. Being preoccupied by his own stupid issues, he hadn’t given much thought to the village. Sure, he gave his pledge and made plans with Sandaime-Jijii, but Konoha had become passing thoughts while his emotional relapses and Minato had taken the forefront of his mind. He finally fully comprehended that the latter two could cease to exist if he stopped spending time with people. Sandaime-Jijii was wrong about him. He was correct in that Naruto was emotionally stunted, but interacting with others did more harm than good.
It was time to stop being distracted and stop being selfish. Konoha comes first.
As he walked through the training facility to the Armory, he couldn’t help but let out a tiny smile at the ANBU who waved enthusiastically to him. It was bittersweet. They accepted him. They accepted him so easily even after knowing the angry, malicious chakra which struck fear in all the shinobi in that gymnasium. But would the ANBU still accept him when they find that, to them, his kind was their rival and enemy? It was like the question from his Past of whether his precious people would still accept him when they discovered his relation to Kyuubi.
The answer: No way.
But that was fine since he wouldn’t be staying here much longer.
After the Armory was the ANBU Library. He had to hurry. He had sensed Minato on the move. The ANBU Captain was currently positioned in front of his dorm room door. Thank goodness for his crazy chakra regimen or his control would still be as terrible as in his genin days where everyone could sense him, but he couldn’t sense Kiba even if he stood right in front of him.
“ANBU-san, can I help you find anything?” The librarian to his left interrupted his thoughts. Naruto looked around but saw no one other than him and snorted inwardly at being called ‘ANBU-san’.
“No thank you. I know my way around,” he replied and hurried to the section for Sealing Arts. If he was going to be gone for several months as planned, he wouldn’t be able to directly hinder Minato’s progress on the Four Symbols Seal, so he’d just remove the sources of knowledge that the other Seal Master needed.
Naruto could sense Minato heading away from the building towards the Forest of Death. Good, that would give him enough time to get out of the village.
“Hokage-sama.” Haikage materialized in the Hokage’s office. "I request permission to travel outside of the village. It is time for me to fulfill my duty to Konoha. I will leave tonight for Takigakure to establish an alliance and move southward from there. I can guarantee Taki will be ours; I have an excellent offer that they will not pass up.”
Sarutobi frowned behind his pipe. “This is quite sudden, Haikage-kun. Is there any reason for the rush?”
“Too much time has been spent on trivial matters. I have already wasted the month since my arrival. The village will suffer if I do not act.”
“Why not leave tomorrow after a night of rest? You returned from a mission only this morning.”
“No, Hokage-sama. It is best if I take my leave now before complications arise.” Displeasure colored Haikage’s words.
“Would that complication come in the form of Minato-kun who is currently running through Training Ground Forty-Four?”
“The term ‘complication’ encompasses all which hinder me in fulfilling my pledge to protect Konoha.” Haikage answered mechanically, offering neither confirmation nor denial. “We have little over two years until war. Any more time wasted will be detrimental to your survival.”
Sarutobi squeezed his eyes shut for a moment before giving in. “Very well. Whatever your reasons, I approve your request. I wish you good hunting, Haikage-kun.”
The man in black gave a low bow and melted out of Konoha.

Minato was searching blindly. His yellow blur zigzagged through the empty forest, trying to catch any sign of human or chakra movement. He needed to hurry if he was going to find Naruto before the sun set.
Five minutes out of the village, he saw a black figure leaning against a tree. The figure felt dangerous regardless of his outwardly relaxed posture; it was like the man was surrounded by a thin layer of killing intent. Approaching cautiously, Minato saw he was dressed completely in black, from the black cloak to the ominous black mask. He seemed to suck in all light around him.
Minato readied himself for any sign of attack, but hostility never did much good. “Excuse me, sir. May I ask who you are?”
The man said nothing for half a minute as he seemed to appraise the ANBU Captain. He finally answered in a low but powerful voice which resonated through the air. “I am called Haikage, friend of Konoha.”
Minato had never heard of a Haikage or a Haigakure, Hidden Village of Ashes. He didn’t think Haikage was lying when he declared himself an ally, but the ANBU Captain didn’t relax. “Haikaga-sama, I am searching for a friend who should be traveling through in this general direction. Have you seen anyone pass by?”
Haikage didn’t answer for another half minute. Minato waited awkwardly but patiently, somehow knowing instinctively that this man would have the information he was seeking.
He nodded sharply and looked to his side. “Naruto.”
A moment later, a dark figure materialized from the shadows right beside the Haikage, surprising the ANBU Captain. Minato hadn’t even noticed a presence there.
“Minato! What are you doing out here? You’re a mess.” Naruto asked curiously at his disheveled state, sounding perfectly cheerful. Nothing revealed his thoughts of the incident at Ichiraku.
“I want to apologize to you about earlier,” Minato said in a rush. “I didn’t mean to leave you there, and I’m sorry I didn’t return. I heard from Teuji-san that you waited over two hours. I’m so sorry.”
Naruto rubbed the back of his head and gave a sheepish smile. “There’s nothing to be sorry about. We all get sidetracked occasionally. Actually, I do it all the time.”
“Then why are you leaving?” Minato was confused. Naruto’s decision to leave and his actions now were completely at odds with each other. He knew the Hunter-nin had been upset; even Sandaime-sama had said so. But here, it looked like nothing was wrong, that this was just any other pleasant day.
“I reeeally need to do this mission. I was supposed to start earlier, but I kept pushing it back since it’s pretty tedious.” Naruto frowned petulantly. “But I can’t get away with pushing it back anymore. Sucks right?”
“Aren’t you mad at me for earlier? Is that not why you’re leaving?”
“Of course not!” He replied in honest surprise. It seemed so real and so sincere, but Minato knew it a lie having received the disapproving glares of Teuji-san and Hokage-sama. He also knew the Hunter-nin was an expert Infiltrator and lived up to his title of the Master of Deception. If he wanted, Naruto could be anyone and anything.
“I’m so sorry. Please don’t pretend with me. I don’t think I could handle you hating me. Please at least tell me what you’re thinking,” Minato begged. He had to fix this before he lost Naruto forever; Hokage-sama had warned that his full Hunter-nin persona would take over if he left for the mission hiding behind falsities.
Naruto’s face tilted in confused bewilderment. “What are you talking about? I’m not pretending at all–”
“Naruto!” Minato cut in harshly, realizing this approach wasn’t working. “Stop faking!” Naruto made to retort but he cut him off again. “I know you’re upset. Don’t lie to me. I made a mistake. I left you there. But I’m trying to figure out how I can make it up to you. I can’t do that if I’m talking to a fake. Show me your real face!”
The Hunter-nin’s expression transformed into one of outrage, but seconds later, the facade crumbled.
“Minato…” Naruto whispered. He looked tired and defeated and barely hanging on. His shoulders slumped, and his eyes were shadowed by his bangs.
“Minato…I’m going crazy in that village. My emotions keep getting tossed around. You’ve seen it for yourself. It’s painful. Every corner I turn, I expect to see my precious people, but they’re never, ever there. They’re all gone. I just keep getting reminded that there’s nothing left for me. The only thing I have left is my pledge to Sandaime-Jijii and Konoha, and I must fulfill that pledge. I will never go back on my word.”
“No you have me! I’m in the village! Naruto, can’t I be your precious person?” Minato tried to grab at loose threads.
Naruto shook his head angrily. “Minato, you can’t be mine because you belong to this village. I, on the other hand, don’t! I can only belong on the outside. Anything I gain on the inside will only add more to what I can’t reach.” Naruto lifted bitter, pain-filled eyes. “I don’t have the right to call anything within Konoha mine except for my promise to protect it – as a whole. I won’t be able to own anything there, ever. They’ll never amount to anything, which is why human interactions are mere distractions.”
Minato’s chakra spiked as hurt filled his core at being called a ‘mere distraction’. “What in the world are you talking about? You’re a part of Konoha. Even if you say everyone is gone, you’re still a part of it. The village itself is yours.”
“This village isn’t mine, Minato. Nothing in it is mine.”
“Then what do you call our friendship? It’s yours and mine, isn’t it?” Minato had never felt so insignificant before; his friendship with Naruto was one of his most treasured possessions, but Naruto, here, was saying it would never carry any weight for himself. “Answer me, Naruto! Is it not yours and mine? Ours?”
The Hunter-nin fidgeted and averted his gaze to the ground. Minato stayed silent, refusing to make a sound until he received a response.
After minutes of stillness, Naruto glanced back at the taller blonde. Minato met that glance with unwavering cerulean eyes. The younger blonde quickly dropped his eyes back down, but yielded a small, hesitant nod.
Minato breathed a shuddering sigh of relief and smiled. Their friendship was reciprocated.
“If we can be friends, it’s not impossible for others. You just have to open yourself to these possibilities instead of shutting yourself out.”
“But that’s just setting myself up for…” Naruto absently lifted his left arm towards his chest but noticed halfway and dropped it back down with a grimace. “No, I’ll lose my sanity when I lose everything in the end. Minato…I’ve already lost my precious people twice. I won’t be able to patch myself back together if I lose them a third time.”
Minato was losing ground again.
“You said you made a pledge to protect Konoha, right?” Naruto narrowed his eyes at Minato’s question. “Why do you have to do it on your own? Shinobi work best in teams. Many heads are better than one.”
“Teams.” Naruto barked out an ugly laugh, and his voice became arctic. “Minato, I’m a Hunter-nin. I’m at my best when I work alone. All but Hunter-nin work in teams. But regardless of how we work, no one will accept us.”
Minato recoiled at the chill of those words. “What about Ferret and the others?”
Naruto snorted and arched a patronizing eyebrow. “They don’t know I’m Hunter-nin. They think I’m one of their own, but once they find out otherwise, they’ll hate me for what I am and how I operate. Don’t forget, we’re not as nice as ANBU kiddies. And just because of that, your organization has been against us since Corps was established.”
Minato didn’t know how to respond because it was true. He had also thought like that, though perhaps to a much lesser degree than most, until his mission with Akashiori who gave him a hint of the Hunter-nins’ perspective. Even worse, the animosity all originated and was kept alive from the ANBU side.
Naruto ruffled his hair in frustration. “…I really have to go now…” He clenched his hand in the golden strands.
Suddenly, Naruto appeared right in front of him, eyes shifting as if conflicted. He raised a tentative hand to tug experimentally on a jaw-length eartail framing Minato’s face, then gave the taller blonde a fierce hug.
“I’ll find you when I get back in a few months,” Naruto mumbled into a warm shoulder, “We’ll figure this out then.” He hastily released him as if burnt. After another quick tug on the hair, the Hunter-nin melted into the shadows.

Haikage was pissed at himself.
What had just happened?
Uzuhara had decided to stay away from human interactions. Then he goes and hugs the person he had decided to avoid most.
It had gone so well in the beginning. He had felt Minato coming a mile away, chakra signature in turmoil, and decided to humor the poor man. Haikage had created a shadow clone and henged himself into Uzuhara Naruto to play out the confrontation. His Uzuhara had been perfect until Minato became harsh and angry. That had thrown him completely off balance; he’d never faced any expression other than kind, protective, and playful.
After Uzuhara’s mental composure had stumbled, Minato’s every angry word and every frustrated expression had caused Uzuhara to fall apart to become Uzumaki Naruto. This was only the second time anyone had ever broken through, but last time Akashiori had been under torture.
Namikaze Minato was more dangerous that he had thought.
He didn’t know what mind technique the ANBU Captain used, but he had somehow chipped away at the carefully constructed persona. Haikage needed to find out what it was and make sure no one else knew that technique. If it was a genjutsu, finding or creating a counter would be tricky. And if it was mind manipulation, he didn’t know where to start researching.
Once Naruto had been revealed, the argument had been touching but irritating at the same time. Naruto couldn’t give himself away, but he wanted so badly for Minato to understand a little of why he was so reluctant to make new ties. When Minato had tried to convince him there were people in the village that cared, especially Minato himself, Uzumaki Naruto had felt warm and loved, but Uzumaki also knew to be wary.
Then Minato just had to mention teams. ‘Teams’ was a difficult concept for him. He had both good and bad experiences with teams, possibly more bad than good. He had been much happier when training and traveling alone, which was partly why he chose the Hunter-nin Corps over ANBU. The other part was that when you worked alone, no one was in a position to betray you. Of course, that comment had transitioned smoothly over to the ANBU vs. Hunter-nin hate-indifference relationship. People disliked Hunter-nin because they didn’t understand this minority of tormented souls. Everyone just stereotyped them as heartless killers and forgot that they too were protectors of the village, just like ANBU but working under a different system.
Minato’s silence had hurt. Deep down, Naruto had hoped Minato would show a bit of support for Naruto the Hunter-nin. None had come, and that had stung. He decided the confrontation had lasted too long and was about to end it, but Minato had been so remorseful and so sweet and so desperate. Uzumaki Naruto’s compassionate heart couldn’t stomach leaving him in such a troubled state, so he had hugged him. He had hugged him and tugged on Minato’s eartails that he liked so much.
It was a stupid thing to do, but he felt happy after doing it. This just further proved that human interactions were unhealthy for his sanity, but he had felt happy.
Ugh. Now he’d completely slipped out of the Haikage persona and was having a difficult time retrieving it – a lost cause. He might as well relax his mind as Uzumaki Naruto until Haikage was needed.
It was around midnight that Naruto decided to stop for the night.
‘Kyuu, how are you feeling from our meeting with my mom?’ He asked as he materialized in his mindscape.
‘I am fine, kit. Kushina is the one who will be having difficulties.’ Kyuubi nudged Naruto a hello with his nose, and his nose received nuzzle in return. ‘My past self technically ‘warped’ out so it did the seal no damage. However, the seal still exists and is infused with residuals of my chakra which is why it reaches out to me when we are nearby.’
‘Sooo, does that mean when we’re too close, her seal is trying to suck you back in, but when we’re thirty feet away, our seal slowly sucks your residue chakra into us?’
‘Yes, that is basically what is happening. The connection will dissipate once we have acquired all of my residual chakra.’
‘That sounds like a pain…especially since I don’t really want to see her right now.’ Naruto burrowed against a warm, furry side. ‘Aren’t I supposed to want to see her? She’s my mom.’
‘You didn’t want to see your father at first either,’ Kyuubi pointed out, ‘But now you have become attached.’
‘Attached…’ Naruto scowled at the word. ‘I guess I can’t deny that. I don’t see Minato as my dad or the Yondaime anymore. He’s more like a close friend. Remember what I decided in the laundry room?’
‘That you would treat him as you would a complete stranger.’
‘I’m doing a pretty good job of it, right?’ Naruto looked up at Kyuubi for his opinion.
He agreed with a gentle swish of a tail against the boy. ‘Then why do you refer to Kushina as your mother? Not once have you used her given name.’
‘I’m…not really sure. It doesn’t feel right to call her anything other than ‘mom.’ Maybe because she has the seal. I can’t help seeing her as a relative. Being friends never even crossed my mind.’
‘Perhaps that is a good thing. The two of you in one setting is a frightening thought.’ The demon fox chuckled softly, creating pleasant vibrations under Naruto’s back.
‘That’s not going to matter anymore though. I wasn’t supposed to get close, but I let that stupid self take over. I’m done with that. Konoha’s going to fall apart if we don’t focus.’ Naruto hugged close what he could grab of the large tail.
‘If you say so,’ Kyuubi replied with carefully hidden skepticism. ‘What you want for yourself and what you want for Konoha do not need to conflict.’
With a sleepy sweep of his eyes Naruto looked around his peaceful but tainted mindscape. After Yamanaka’s evaluation, he and Kyuubi had restored his memories to their rightful places. ‘Kyuu, that’s that over there in the middle? I don’t remember seeing it before.’ He pointed at a bunch of exposed flowers growing awkwardly by itself in the empty grassy land.
‘Those are purple lilacs, kit. They sprouted two weeks ago.’
‘What’s it stand for?’
Kyuubi studied Naruto carefully from the corner of his eye. ‘You will have to discover that for yourself.’
‘Oh, come on…please? I don’t know if Taki will have a flower shop.’
‘Idiot, what village doesn’t have a flower shop, especially one of Takigakure’s size?’ Kyuubi swatted him with a second affectionate tail. ‘Just go to sleep. You have a long week ahead of you.’
The boy nodded and snuggled into the warmth.

Haikage arrived at Takigakure after three days of travel and scouting. As expected of a village which boasted to have never successfully been invaded, its natural defenses were solid and its shinobi were strong. He hoped his missive had been well received.
“Welcome to Takigakure, Haikage-sama.” The Takikage and Haikage sat across from each other in a comfortable office with a clear view of Waterfall’s giant Hero Water tree. In the end, Haikage had chosen to use his black masked figure and ‘Haikage of Konoha’ name when conferring with village and country leaders, but only the leaders. He would be a secret among those of the highest positions but exist as rumors at most among the general public.
“Thank you, Takikage-sama. I am grateful for the time you have spared to allow this meeting.”
“If I understand correctly, you would like to form an alliance between Konohagakure and Takigakure,” the Takikage began in a diplomatically polite voice of steel. “What have you to offer?”
The two leaders spent the next several days deliberating both military and business aspects of the alliance.
Konoha offered reduced rates on coal for the next five years in return for access to the Waterfall Country borders to Grass and Earth Country. It was quite simple. Of the smaller nations, Taki was the second largest importer of coal from Stone. By gradually taking over much of that trade, Konoha could cut into Stone’s yearly revenue and increase their own trade. Furthermore, the coal would originate from an independent company located outside of Fire but secretly owned by Konoha, throwing off suspicions of Fire Country’s involvement.
The two men continued to negotiate further trade routes and ninja protocols. In the end, Haikage had managed draw up a five-year renewable agreement to claim sixty percent of Taki’s various Earth Country imports, unrestricted access to its borders, the assistance of Taki’s superior shinobi forces during times of need, and permission to establish the beginnings of a widespread information network useful to both.
Finally, as an act of goodwill to cement the alliance, Haikage made a daring offer.
“Takikage-sama, to express gratitude for your outstanding hospitality, I would like to offer a final gift.” Haikage waited for the village leader’s permission to continue. “We have not always seen eye-to-eye in the past, but I hope this alliance will allow us to form peaceful relations for many years to come. I know of one man who holds a threatening grudge against Takigakure. I am sure you know who I am referring to.” The Takikage tensed and nodded warily at the mention of Takigakure’s order to assassinate the Shodaime Hokage around seven decades ago.
“I present to you the option of his elimination.”
The Takikage was unable to hide his shock. “His elimination? That is impossible. We have sent team after team, but none have managed.”
“I know of a way, and I myself will accomplish this task.” Haikage said confidently, remembering the time when he’d killed the man in the Fourth Shinobi World War.
The leader thought back on the threat of the traitor who carried the secret of Taki’s prized technique and had killed all of the village elders. There was no knowing when that insane man may return to destroy the village out of hate and revenge. The Takikage nodded sharply. “Haikage-sama, I accept.”
Haikage nodded and smiled viciously under his mask. “I will return within three weeks’ time with his head and what may remain of his body. We will finalize the documents at that time. Takikage-sama, consider Kakuzu eliminated.”
The man in black faded out of the room.

Haikage arrived back in Takigakure with four days to spare. It had taken him much longer to locate and chase down the missing-nin than he had expected.
Over the month and a half he had been in the past, Haikage wondered when and how he should get rid of the future pain-in-the-asses that would eventually screw Konoha. He could kill them, put them out of commission, turn them to Konoha’s side, or discourage them from attacking. It was all about timing and consequences…
He might be from the Future, but that didn't mean he knew who died, where, when, how, why, and who they killed before they died. However, he did know that majority of the best shinobi, legit or missing-nin, had participated in the Fourth Shinobi World War. That meant he had a general idea of who could become future pain-in-the-asses. Why not get rid of the worst of them now, and why not benefit from them in more than just the bounty?
“Takikage-sama, I have returned.” Haikage bowed and held out a scroll stained with dried blood. “Within this containment scroll are Kakuzu’s head and his five hearts.”
The Taki leader gasped as Kakuzu’s mangled, bloody remains were unsealed. “H-How…?”
“I merely knew his weaknesses and a technique with which to defeat him.” He let a smirk form on his masked face as he watched the Takikage’s eyes widen at the simple response spoken in a careless manner.
“E-Excellent work, Haikage-sama.”
“Thank you.” His tone was low but pleasant. If it weren’t for the mask, it could have been called cheerful. “Two and a half weeks have passed since we drafted our alliance. Do the terms still hold?”
“Yes, certainly,” the Takikage replied firmly.
‘Ahh, perfect,’ Haikage thought smugly. Although the idea had been a bit risky and could have backfired, this was why he put off signing the alliance until after he killed Kakuzu. Not only did it give the Takikage time to make certain he was truly comfortable partaking in every aspect of the agreement, it also proved Haikage’s, and by extension Konoha’s, strength and confidence. He already knew this alliance would work out; it was fair and safe and offered more wealth for Takigakure than any other country. He just needed to make certain Takigakure wanted to be loyal. Grass may be Stone’s underhanded way into Fire Country, but now that Konoha had Waterfall Country, Stone would have no easy way to enter Fire once he took care of a few things in Grass.
His next stop would be River Country located south of Grass and Rain and divided Wind Country from Fire.

Minato walked out of the ANBU cafeteria, wondering how Naruto was doing. Three months had passed since the Hunter-nin had left, but time seemed to drag. He missed taking meals together and hanging out in his room. Talking with Kushina about seals wasn’t fun anymore, and he couldn’t seem to make any progress on the Four Symbols Seal. After a month, Kushina had gotten fed up with him ‘moping around’ everywhere and sucker punched him, which snapped him out of it until he passed Ichiraku.
He knew it was pathetic. Naruto said they would talk when he returned in a few months. Hokage-sama said Naruto would be gone for two to six months. Where had he lost his abundance of patience? Probably back in the forest when Naruto had tugged on his hair. That had been the singularly most simple yet charming thing anyone had ever done to/for him. It beat the time when Kushina had discreetly slipped into his hand a containment scroll of a home-made boxed-lunch before he left for a week-long mission. The lunch had been delicious, but the tug was sweeter.
Back in his room, Minato settled on his bed where he had sat when Naruto had flopped over his legs. That had been fun. That had been comfortable.
God, it sounded like he was pining. It was embarrassing and…
Before he could think deeper on the issue, a red mission scroll dropped into his inbox. Red for urgent.
With the scroll clutched tightly in his hand, his yellow blur flew over rooftops. Green was for regular summons to Mission Control. Yellow was ‘come as soon as possible’ summons with mission details. And Red was for ‘drop everything and report’ summons. This scroll was red, lined with silver edges: Drop everything and report personally to the Hokage now!
These were extremely rare. Most shinobi never received one in their careers, and many didn’t believe they even existed.
The Hokage didn’t bother with greetings. “Minato, I need you to lead an urgent search and retrieval mission.”
“Yes, Hokage-sama. Who are we to retrieve?”
“…Uzuhara Naruto.”

A/N: Now it’s Minato’s turn to fall apart :P
Next chapter: Minato to the rescue!
May 31, 2012
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Escape Artist	By : sanlashix Category: Naruto > Yaoi - Male/Male Views: 4980 -:- Recommendations : 1 -:- Currently Reading : 2
Disclaimer: Don't own Naruto; not making any money from this.

Escape Artist