A Mother's Knight

Part 37

Uzumaki Compound

From the rooftop of the compound, Naruto was overlooking the birth of a new day.

Nature was truly a beauty. It was life giving. If the ground refused to give food, humans would not be able to sustain themselves. Yet, this beautiful world that gives life is treated with contempt. So much blood shed. So much destruction. The world was constantly seeing things it should not. Wars were never good. For both humans and nature. But humans never learned anything, did they? They repeated things, mistakes, over and over again.

Should people be allowed to be rotten, unrepentant, and unjust? Of course, Naruto had no care for justice. He didn't care. He didn't concern himself with it. But admittedly, he did love nature. He was after all at peace with it and he didn't like human behavior at times. Especially, when it happened right in front of him.

"Are you sneaking in behind me?" Naruto asked Sai without looking back, but he could feel the presence of the former Ne shinobi.

Sai sighed. He had thought he would at least be able to get in behind Naruto. The blond watched his back as if he had eyes at the back of his head. Despite many attempts, he has failed. "You could at least pretend to be surprised just once."

"I'd rather not flatter you with false praise."

Sai shook his head and settled down beside Naruto. "Your mother is very different."

"Yes, she is. I'm sure she wants you to be friends with me. She must have been disappointed learning that you are not like normal teenagers. You're actually worse than me."

"You don't have a problem with connecting to people. You just don't do it unless it is convenient." Sai said. "But Ino is helping me. She says it will be helpful if I want to blend in with society."

"She is correct." Naruto said. "But you have always been playing in the shadows. And I don't think one can play for both sides. You can wear a mask during day or rip it off during night."

"But you can be both."

"It's impossible to sustain both masks for long periods of time. You run the risks of losing it and expose yourself you take on too much. I'm smart enough to understand that a single person cannot do everything by himself." Naruto said. "During my younger days, I travelled a lot with the Sandaime and made friends. One of those friendships was with the Feudal Lord. I hadn't cashed in this part because it was never convenient. Trouble is coming and I need to have a grip on things. If I cannot influence Kages, Daimyos will do. Your next mission is to gather Intel on all Daimyos. We will decide what to do with the Intel."

"Should I take Ino?"

Naruto shook his head. "This is dangerous and you will be effective on your own. I have my own journey; I will take her with me."

Sai nodded before standing up. "I will depart immediately."

"Karin's work with Orochimaru was conducting experiments and research... yes?"

"That is correct."

Naruto appeared thoughtful for a few moments before speaking. "If you come across Orochimaru's hideouts, please take any document you may find." He took out a scroll and threw it at Sai. "It might prove useful in getting Karin distracted enough to stay here."

Hokage Office

Tsunade didn't like being awoken early in the morning when she was still enjoying her sleep. It was especially a problem when it was being done by her former teammate. She knew it was serious. If he was being playful, the Sannin would have rather watched her sleep. It was creepy in all sense of the word, but she would still prefer it than having being awoken so early in the morning.