' 'so imagine my surprise when I find the Gaki, and he 's surrounded by Toad 's stalling him from running away, ' Jiraiya chuckled lightheartedly, but Hiruzen imagined that it would be quite shocking to have his most trusted allies in such a situation without an explanation. If Jiraiya had been disturbed, he hid it well.

'He didn 't want to fight, and the Toads convinced him to stay and listen. I gave him the usual recruitment speech. He listened to it and then answered all my questions without a problem. Most of it was difficult to believe, even with the Toads there to back him up. When I suggested he might have to submit to memory checks in Konoha, the Toads had to sit on him to keep him there. I was alarmed and suspicious, but Fukasaku-sama pulled me aside to explain. ' Jiraiya paused, a pained expression crossed his face. It wasn 't difficult to summon the emotion by imagining what would happen if Kuniharu was forced to reveal his foreknowledge and it got into the wrong hands. Into Danzou's hands.

'When he and Kurama were captured, there was a nin with techniques like the Yamanaka clan, though I 'm told they are not the same. Kurama 's mind was nearly destroyed by their attempts to rip Uzumaki's secrets from him, and though Kuniharu did not have the information they sought, he was forced to endure the violent intrusions until Kurama died to help him escape. He is reasonably nervous to allow anyone into his mind, even if he trusts them. I believe Inoichi-sama would call it mental intrusion hypersensitivity; there are scars from this incident that would prove very painful to both Kuniharu and the person infiltrating without his permission. '

Hiruzen sighed deeply, pained both by the boy 's past and the predicament it placed them in.

'I must admit this is troubling, ' Hiruzen said.

Jiraiya didn 't seem surprised. He nodded in understanding.

'I would agree if that were the end of it. Have you heard of the Seal of Truth? ' Jiraiya asked.

Hiruzen 's face turned thoughtful. He shifted through his memories for the information that seemed to be there, hidden beneath years of other such information piling up, but Kakashi 's eye widened in understanding immediately.

'Kushina told us about it, ' Kakashi admitted, bringing the attention to him, 'the Uzumaki used it in their most serious interrogations to ensure the truthfulness of the reporting. It forced compliance and punished you for lying. '

'Correct, ' Jiraiya grimaced. He remembered Kuniharu demonstrating the effectiveness of the seal. 'Kuniharu knew the location of the seal and agreed to a full interrogation under it if I would plead his case here. However, he will undergo a memory check if you still require it and agree to give him forewarning to meditate. That would allow him to mitigate the pain and protect the infiltrator. He has also agreed that if at any time you feel he is a danger to Konoha, he will allow it with these conditions. I believe this to be reasonable. '

Jiraiya waited to allow Hiruzen to consider this before his sensei nodded.

'I will take that under advisement after you report your findings with the seal, and I have the chance to talk to him once more, ' Hiruzen conceded.

Jiraiya repressed a relieved sigh. They were halfway there.

'I agreed to his conditions, and he led me to the seal, which I recognized to be real. It activated, which proved definitively that he is an Uzumaki, as it only would react to their blood. He also agreed to prove the seal worked by purposely lying so that it punished him before I could tell him to cool it. '

Jiraiya visibly shuddered. Kakashi was both impressed and concerned that the Uzumaki was willing to do such a thing. Was he that desperate to prove that he was trustworthy? Was that suspicious or just endearing? Both?

'I went through our previous interrogation to prove that he had not been lying. It all proved to be true. I grilled him for hours about his ties outside the village, about his feelings about Konoha and the major figures in the village. I checked that he had no knowledge of Naruto after he revealed his connection to Kushina-chan. I checked for ties to any other Hidden Villages, who his teachers had been, what his abilities were, and even his darkest secrets. I took an accounting of all of this here, ' Jiraiya pulled a scroll from his pack alongside a weather-beaten box with a seal painted across it. 'And these are the letters that Kushina-chan sent to her Aunt. ' He placed the scroll and the box in front of Hiruzen.

'I was satisfied with the information I received, ' Jiraiya said truthfully, 'he is an incredibly powerful shinobi, but his only desire is to protect the memory of his clan, to help those unable to help themselves, and even, ' Jiraiya smiled at this, 'the foolish dream of bringing peace to the shinobi world. '

Hiruzen saw the light in Jiraiya 's eyes, which he had not seen since Minato passed. He remembered Jiraiya 's own dreams for peace. He remembered a certain novel that had held these dreams for the man. He thought that perhaps he now understood why Jiraiya was so taken with him. A Toad Sage with a proclivity for peace, a man connected to his godson, and a good person if all that was to be believed.

'Why did you take so long to get back? ' Kakashi couldn 't help but ask, while Hiruzen opened the box and took out the letters to scan them. Kakashi saw a melancholic expression take over the Hokage 's face as he quickly scanned each letter before settling on the last one. Jiraiya looked sadly at the letters for a moment before he turned to answer Kakashi.

'When the interrogation was done, and I offered him a place in Konoha, he was still hesitant despite everything he had gone through to prove himself. I could sense this when he said he had loose ends to tie up before he could freely associate himself with Konoha. I suggested that I accompany him. I also admit I wanted to ensure that I hadn 't been duped, but he agreed right away after I hinted at training together. He had never fought another Sage besides the Toads before, and I honestly haven 't had that level of spar in years. It was educational, ' Jiraiya 's eyes were full of mirth as he spoke. Hiruzen looked up from the letter, took his pipe from his mouth, and smiled broadly for the first time that day.

'He is worth keeping around if only to get you to train, Jiraiya-chan, ' Hiruzen teased before his eyes slid over to Kakashi, 'and perhaps, he will give you a run for your money, Kakashi. '

'Hn, ' Kakashi shrugged.

Kakashi could admit to himself he was intrigued. Anyone who could impress Jiraiya in a spar would be a worthy opponent. His thoughts were already whirring with plans and ideas of how to combat Kuniharu 's likely strengths. Techniques learned from Kushina-nee-chan unearthed after years of pushing them down, just for a slight edge against the Uzumaki. Yes, he wanted to spar with the man. He might even make the effort of asking himself 'that is, if he couldn 't weasel a way into it without looking like he wanted to do it in the first place. Kakashi 's lackadaisical reply didn 't fool Jiraiya. He saw the glint in the copycat 's eye.

'Very well, ' Hiruzen said as he placed the letters on the desk and looked up at Jiraiya again. 'If I see nothing worrying in our conversation, I will offer him a place here. Do you both concur? '

Jiraiya nodded with a grin. Kakashi waited a moment, but then he dipped his head in agreement as well. Then, he voiced the elephant in the room.

'If he 's staying here, he 's bound to run into Naruto, ' Kakashi pointed out.

Jiraiya controlled his expression when Hiruzen turned to look questioningly at him.

'What do you suggest, Jiraiya? ' Hiruzen asked, 'Do you think the two should be introduced? '

'Yes, ' Jiraiya nodded. 'I say we give him a probation period before we let them meet, just to be safe. I don 't think he will hold it against us. He knows what it is to be one of the last Uzumaki and that we would be protecting Naruto rather than punishing him. But I would not make them wait too long. I imagine both would do well with having a family around, and he is not tied to Minato. We don 't have the right to keep that from them if Kuniharu is not a danger. '

Jiraiya wanted to insist that they allow both his godsons to meet immediately, but that would never pass with Hiruzen, so he came up with a compromise. He knew that Kuniharu would agree with the plan.

'I agree, ' Hiruzen nodded, 'I think it would be good for Naruto to have someone to teach him about his clan. He knew about Kushina, so I must assume that he has nothing against Jinchuuriki? '

Jiraiya nodded, 'The Uzumaki clan felt differently about Jinchuuriki than most do. With their history and knowledge of sealing, they understand the difference between the demon and the container. It was viewed as a sacred duty. I even think he would help Naruto understand it himself when he eventually becomes aware of it. '

Hiruzen nodded gravely. It eased him to think that Naruto 's remaining family member would not hold his Jinchuuriki status against him if it ever came out to him. He turned to Kakashi and smiled slyly at the man.

'Go get our guest. Kakashi, ' he ordered. 'If he accepts our offer, then you will be in charge of watching him during his probation period. I 'll even let you be his opponent during his assessment for rank. I imagine he is a Jounin, but to be sure ' 'Hiruzen smiled at Kakashi, who was maintaining his aloof aura by the skin of his teeth.

He knew the Hokage had already guessed at his desire to test himself against the stranger and his 'certain interest in him. Just to make sure he wasn 't a threat to Konoha, of course.

Kakashi sighed and waved at Hiruzen and Jiraiya. 'Fine, fine, ' he grumbled before he ambled to the door after the privacy seal had been deactivated.

'And Kakashi, ' Hiruzen announced; Kakashi turned to eye his Hokage before he left, 'don 't take longer than an hour or so. '

Hiruzen knew demanding anything shorter would cause the Jounin to rebel, even with the stern look in his eyes. He sent Kakashi to get him, both because he knew it would annoy the man and because he wanted time to go over the interrogation scroll with Jiraiya in private.

'Hai, hai, ' Kakashi exhaled before he left the office and then walked off in the opposite direction of the cafeteria. He would exit the building and then go around to the window with a view of the whole room. He would watch the Uzumaki from a distance, and this time, he was determined not to be found by the man. He was Kakashi no Sharigan, dammit. He would not be made a fool!

<>

'You 've got something, just there, ' Iruka laughed before he pointed at the corner of his mouth to illustrate the noodle hanging from Haru 's, which flung broth whenever the man moved to make a point enthusiastically.

Haru found the noodle with his tongue and sucked it up. He was amused at the disgust which creased Iruka 's face.

Haru felt truly content for the first time in a long time. He sat with one of his precious people in his village, which was thriving and as peaceful as it had ever been. He was home, and he was happy. Kurama chuckled in the back of his head before his tails covered his eyes, and the fox fell back to sleep. He had taken to periodically checking on the kit to make sure he held up under the pressure. It soothed him that Naruto was happy. It had pained him in the past year that his mistake had left him stranded. Now, his kit had taken a new name and started a new life. His only hope was that it would be what the boy deserved.

Kuniharu prompted Iruka to continue the running list of the pranks his younger self had committed leading up to the graduation exam. It had been prompted when Iruka commented about one of his students (Ino) beating another student (Naruto) for dying her hair pink in retaliation for her making fun of another student (Sakura). He gently prodded the man to continue talking about his class, though Iruka was careful to only speak in generalities.

It didn 't help that Kuniharu had been there for all the incidents, but he appreciated that Iruka tried to protect his students even as he gossiped and complained about them. He had to fight the urge to grin unnaturally large or seem to be too interested. It was hilarious to hear his sensei complain about corralling fangirls (Ino and Sakura) or brooding know-it-alls (Sasuke and surprisingly Shino) try to coax a lazy genius to pass (Shikamaru) keep a foodie from eating ALL class (Chouji) about keeping a girl from sabotaging herself with her self-esteem issues (Hinata) and keep two rowdy and temperamental troublemakers in line (Kiba and Naruto).

'You care a lot about them, ' Haru observed as he traded one empty bowl for another after he stacked his empty one with the two others.

Iruka rolled his eyes at the gathering pile. He still ate his one bowl of ramen while Haru was working on his fourth. Iruka was convinced, there was no way this man was not related to Naruto. No way at all.

'I 'm their teacher, ' Iruka said, a blush tinged his face when Haru gave him a knowing look even as he shoved ramen into his mouth. 'I 'm supposed to care about them and their successes. '

'I didn 't say it was a bad thing, ' Haru said with a gentle smile, 'they won 't fully appreciate it until later, but I bet all of your students will take your lessons to heart and treasure their academy years eventually. Once they see the truth of the shinobi world, they will understand why you have been hard on them and appreciate when you encouraged them. '

Haru spoke as if from experience.

Which, of course, he was.

It wasn 't just him who had become nostalgic about the carefree days of the academy, learning from Iruka. Over the years, all the Rookie 9 that Iruka had taught made it a habit to visit the man, not just Haru. After the war and the losses they had suffered, it made the bonds that remained and the happier times all that much more important. Haru meant it when he said that Iruka 's students would appreciate him. He had lived it himself.

'If you say so, ' Iruka deadpanned and rolled his eyes when Haru bumped his shoulder playfully.

It was ridiculous, but Iruka already felt like the two of them had been friends for years. Haru was so easy to get along with. He was bright and enthusiastic, just like Naruto, but if the boy had been tempered by experience and genuine confidence.

Haru decided that it would be suspicious if he kept asking for more academy stories, so he started telling one of his own. He told Iruko about when he had tricked Jiraiya into propositioning him in disguise. The prank had been spurred on because Jiraiya had irritated Haru by waking him up repeatedly the night before because he had wanted Haru 's opinion on an Icha Icha chapter that was giving him trouble. Iruka 's face was brilliant red as Haru described Jiraiya 's issue, whether to have the orgy before or after the main couple's elaborate boat sex scene.

Haru could tell several Chuunin in the room were listening in by how their faces steadily pinked or when they looked away quickly when he scanned the room. There were no Jounin in the room, and certainly, no genin. Haru wouldn 't be forcing Iruka to listen to this otherwise. He wasn 't like Kakashi and Jiraiya. He had no intention of corrupting baby genin, even if their embarrassment would be funny. He wasn 't a sadist 'well, okay, he could admit that Kakashi melding into the shadows outside to watch him from the window may have something to do with his current tirade. He enjoyed imagining Kakashi torn between hearing secrets about his beloved books and the chance of spoilers. It was still the Jounin 's greatest weakness.

He finally stopped when Iruka looked like he was going to explode. Instead, he tread into safer waters by describing the furthest reaches of the continent that few shinobi traveled to. After the war, he traveled for a time to re-establish Jiraiya 's spy network and lend his help when he could. He hadn 't taken it over, but he had helped Sai set it up before giving him the reigns. It had been good for Sai to get out of the village and travel himself, interacting with multitudes of people to slowly heal what Root had taken from him, all while still being useful to the village. Sai had been in the village more than Jiraiya ( a certain blond had ensured that), but he had traveled often. It had been Sai who had gotten the intel about the dissidents gathering against the Kage, who would eventually attack Kakashi and end with Haru being in the past in the first place.

Iruka asked questions that Haru was happy to answer, but in the back of his mind, he tracked three vaguely familiar chakra signatures that approached the cafeteria. He wondered how he would react to seeing his friend 's parents in this time 'at least one of them he would have to be on his guard against. If anyone would be able to pull the thread that was the mystery of Kuniharu and come up with an answer, it would be a Nara.

This was going to be fun.