章 31: Chapter 28 The Emperor and the Five Kages

Naruto's office

Yoshino found Haku sitting behind the Emperor's desk, hard at work and then smiled. He, of course, expected nothing less from Haku. The Ice User was a hard-working man and truly dedicated. The emperor had done well in bringing him into the fold. They didn't always agree. But that was fine. Nothing would be interesting if they all spoke in one voice and folded whenever someone said something. It was curios when someone had something negative to say–and the emperor welcomed it all.

"Are you done with Kabuto?"

Yoshino blinked. He stared at Haku curiously before sitting on the chair in front of the desk. "I don't remember briefing you on anything."

Haku shrugged nonchalantly. "It was predictable."

"You don't look like it, but you really do see what happens here."

"I just don't like getting involved in those matters." Haku said. "What then? Is he alive or dead?"

"Alive, but I have contained him somewhere until the Emperor awakens. I would rather not have him crawling in my land. He is dangerous, no matter how you want to look at it. Of course, I cannot question his Majesty's wisdom in this."

"Why didn't you just kill him then?"

"His Majesty can be mischievous at times. Sometimes I don't know what he is thinking. It possible that he left things like this just to test how far I am willing to trust his word. He didn't say anything to me about this matter and while I played it well with Kabuto, I am certain there is more to the story." Yoshino said, his tone flat.

For some reason, he seemed displeased.

Haku found some amusement in this. "It is rather rare to see you without your smile." He noted. "Something wrong? I don't want to think that it is simply just about Kabuto and Naruto's mischief…"

Yoshino was silent for a moment, gathering his thoughts. It was so unlike him to allow things to slip. Perhaps it was because Haku was safe.

"Personal issues. It does appear that I may have chewed more than I can swallow. I may need to talk to His Majesty about this…" He said, shaking his head. "Are you managing?"

"Yes; there isn't much to do anyway, except for trying to tie up some loose ends. Kirigakure still troubles me since Naruto didn't visit the Mizukage when he had to. And, these people are going to come soon, by then, we won't have anything concrete with them. I want to head there tomorrow to assure them that all is still well. I will require a quick method of transportation."

"Why don't you just have his Majesty give you the teleportation mark? You simply need to learn to activate it."

"It burns more chakra." Haku said with a wave of his right hand.

Yoshino merely shook his head. "I will keep watch while you are gone. With how hands-on you are with the Kiri issue, one is inclined to start thinking that perhaps you have a thing for the Mizukage. Well, she is a desirable woman–which does make me wonder why he hasn't been quick about this. She even fits the bill about being a proper woman."

Haku refused to comment on the part of him liking the Mizukage. "I think he is afraid of her."

Yoshino stared before laughing. "Afraid of a woman? Why?"

"Her demands and the fact that he can't possibly control her. She is going to stand on equal ground with him and won't allow him to dominate her. That aside, there is the issue of time. He doesn't have time to accommodate all the women in his life. It isn't just his personal life that requires time, but the Empire. And with how things are now, he deals with most of the work."

"He also prioritizes work over personal issues."

Haku could not disagree with that point.

"I will speak to the Mizukage regarding a way forward in case she becomes impatient or Naruto decides to do something else. And, I don't want your opinion on this matter."

Yoshino held up both his hands.

"I come in peace." He said, smiling.

Four Days Later

Naruto was standing in a training ground, stretching out his muscles. He hadn't thought it possible to feel so different, so strong. Of course, he'd always been strong, but there was a new energy flowing through his veins, and it made him feel itchy for a battle.

This just meant that Kabuto had been successful–he hadn't expected failure. Not when he had to see through this phase that was before the Empire.

"You took a little longer than expected to recover. I thought maybe a day or two would be enough." Kabuto said.

He was standing just away from the Emperor, Noroi and Naoki standing behind him, as if ready to decapitate him at any moment.

Naruto eyed Kabuto for a second before looking up into the sky. "Even for someone who is curious like you, fully understanding how my body works would be impossible."

"That much was apparent as even Karin failed to grasp some of the seals that seemed to blink during the operation."

"If your standard on that is going to be Karin's expertise, it sets the bar truly low." Naruto said casually. "In any case, there are certain things to iron out. But, I want to send you out on a mission."

"I thought you said you wanted to find out about Zetsu." Kabuto said.

He wasn't going to bring out the fact that Yoshino had admitted that Naruto had taken calculations into the fact that the others could have killed him if they wanted.

The Emperor hadn't even hinted it since he stood before him.

"Intel doesn't necessarily have to come out from you. I have other ways of getting it. You're conflicted in this situation, and the moment you did your thing, I no longer required you. We have ways of working out things. We have short-comings, indeed. That is why I am sending you out now. As for Madara, we are not as ignorant as I led you to believe. Why do you think I let you leave without asking questions as to how your departure would lead you to gain something valuable?"

Kabuto frowned slightly. He didn't like the way Naruto spoke. He didn't like his position. He would have thought that there was some value. There was some, as Naruto put it, but just not in the same level as he would have expected.

"You made it sound as if you needed me in the Madara issue?"

"I truly did think that I did need you, but I thought about things and realized there was no need. Quietness does bring me closer to certain memories…" Naruto said with a wave of his right hand.

"Gather information on whoever is working with Kurotsuchi. Get me answers and we will then talk. Naoki, escort him to the lab. And set up the teleportation portal, bound to the Wave. It should give him room to go to the island and get out without coming here."

"And, the privileges?"

"Revoke them." Naruto said with a wave of his right hand. "Trying to understand how this thing works will require time and effort. Unlike with other elements, this will truly become difficult to master, unless there is some special method to do the training. I cannot even draw out Mokuton, and that is perhaps the first step isn't it? No, the first step should be trying to turn my chakra into that which gives life. Then I can work on imaging."

Kabuto realized at that moment that the Emperor was no longer talking to him. And when he summoned thousands of clones into the training ground, he knew he had been dismissed.

Naruto had the clones settle into groups before turning to Noroi. "Let us go to the throne room to discuss matters of importance…"

"Yes, Your Majesty."

Once they arrived at the throne room, Naruto settled gracefully, and stared at Noroi with an expressionless mask before speaking. "What do you have for me? We know that Madara has many abilities and applies them expertly, but what is the movement here?"

"The members of the Akatsuki have gathered around Kisame and there is reason to believe that they will be working on Zetsu's instruction. They could possibly try to collect the Bijuu–as they were originally intended to do."

"They are strong enough, but this does give us reason to eliminate them one by one. What do you say, a common enemy gathers two?" Naruto paused thinking. "Surely, they will start with the first. But that should not happen now, at least with Gaara coming here. Perhaps on his return, they will try. And should there be enough muscles, they will succeed."

"Should we stop it?"

"We won't warn them about the Akatsuki, but we can say that Madara has returned. Once Gaara is attacked. We can go to the rescue. Our reasons become much more believable when there is an actual attack."

"There is no reason to believe that the one or two won't try to gather the others." Noroi said.

"Indeed." Naruto said with a nod. "When Yugito comes here, she mustn't leave. I don't mind making a move if I must. Darui is already going to offer her. If we have her, and we still have the Sanbi, Madara will have to turn to us."

That was the bigger problem more than anything.

He didn't want the Uchiha coming to him.

No, Naruto would rather he go to the Uchiha to battle him. He didn't want to leave a trail of destruction within this island. It had already seen enough when corrupted shinobi laid siege and nearly wiped the Uzumaki off the face of this world.

That could not be allowed to occur again.

He would have failed as a member of the Uzumaki clan.

The job to protect the clan was not on Yoshino's shoulders, but his shoulders. The elders may ridicule him and say reviving the clan to its Majesty in terms of members was not for him, but they still relied on him–he was still their protector.

And, he would not fail.

Surely, if he were to fail, the vultures lurking in the shadows would pounce.

"But, we would still not want to fight in our home."

"Of course not. We don't want anything happening to the village. It would be a sin that I can never forgive myself for If I allowed something to happen to this village and still live through the dangers, I would banish myself from it." The Emperor said. "How far is Yoshino moving with Kurotsuchi?"

"I think he plans on speaking to her when she comes here."

"Keep an eye on things." Naruto instructed. "I will begin preparations for fighting Madara. At this stage, I would rather not have much to deal with unless it specifically needs me. Have Haku deal with other issues. And, I want to see that the Sound Capital is completed quickly. I will still send clones to help with the developments, but aside from that, keep other issues away from me."

"You will be occupying the other throne room, then. It does have the privacy you will need." Noroi said. "What of Miyuki? Kabuto knows a couple of things and so does Zetsu. I have not been able to find evidence of anything, but it is suspicious."

"The Wave is free for all to enter and our seals have only been put on shinobi and kunoichi. Miyuki is neither, so she has been free of movement. It is rather hard to comprehend how a fellow Uzumaki would plot against us. But one could have their reasons for such actions. If she contacted Zetsu, it was not here but in the Wave. She frequented bars–I did meet her at one time. Of course, nothing happened, I did not like the innocence she displayed."

"Should I take action?"

"Bring her to me," Naruto said. "I'd like to have a chat with her. If she can be saved, then we can save her. If not, she will be good for giving Yoshino children…" He looked thoughtful for a moment. "What of her fuinjutsu skills?"

"She has displayed none."

"But, it is possible she is rather skilled…No, I am certain she knows Fuinjutsu well enough. Have your eyes open, should we find ourselves surprised. A woman spy can be lethally dangerous as she can easily disarm you with her charms."

Noroi smiled. "Would you not be the suspect in that scenario?"

The Emperor shared the smile. "On a good day but I usually avoid such women."

"That just make it sound as if you like women who are defenseless, Your Majesty."

"Nothing wrong with that… as long as I am not forcing myself on anyone." Naruto said in a quiet tone. "As the days pile up, I feel that I am drifting away from this world. I should try a little to have Koyuki bear me a child. Hmm, yes, tonight, I shall depart for the Snow. A child will certainly keep me grounded as I seem to be floating away."

"The Kages will be coming here by tomorrow, is it best to leave the village?"

"Haku can babysit them if need be. They are already coming here, we have them where we want them. Everyone wants something from me but I don't need them. It nevertheless makes sense for us to have better relations with them for the success of the Empire. The Kages dominate the military aspects of the Elemental Nations and the Feudal Lords dominate the politics. We play a dual role. Politics, military games, we can play either. If the Kage are being difficult, for our success, we merely have to spread the web towards the Daimyo. We have already established foundations."

"But the benefits of having better relations with the Kages cannot be understated."

"Indeed." Naruto said. "I'm merely pointing out that if we want to have a successful Empire, we don't need the Kage. But that is simply from my side of things. If things are done in a way that we side-step the Kages, it becomes easy for war games to occur."

Wave Country

Kurotsuchi felt that Darui was a treacherous bastard. They went to war together–both Kumo and Iwa, and yet, the former seems to be sailing smoothly while she gets to be pounded hard from all corners. They should all be suffering heavily. Maybe some of her village's actions were a little out of it, but it didn't change that she was the only one suffering. This person was bowing to the whims of the bastard who dared call them here.

It was a friendly suggestion, but she knew it was anything but that. These people knew they were able to call a meeting with the Kages, even when the Emperor was not one of them.

What qualified one to be the called a Kage anyway. Military power? The Emperor was an army by himself. But, he was still not a Kage. He certainly didn't seem to have any desire to be on their level. Perhaps he was making himself Emperor of the Elemental Nations.

She snorted at the thought.

The arrogant bastard.

She would get her revenge one day.

"Godaime Raikage." Kurotsuchi greeted Darui.

They were standing within a small train station close to the Uzumaki Bridge, ready to depart for Uzushiogakure. The Bridge had been completed and they were going to ride on it. It would be the first time she was riding on a train.

Quite honestly, Kurotsuchi was excited about it.

Darui could feel that this was going to be another one of those talks. He didn't want to do it, but he could not just decide to turn around. He glanced and Yugito and Samui for a moment before responding to the Tsuchikage.

"Kurotsuchi-dono." He nodded at the man standing behind her, whom he recognized as her father. Not wanting to talk about serious issues, he was quick to say something else. "They have rebuilt this place rather quickly. You wouldn't think it was the same country that suffered massive damages not long ago."

Bitterly admittedly, the work that was done on the Wave was remarkable.

The Empire was quick.

"While silently developing the Sound at the same time." Kurotsuchi said through her teeth. "I wonder where all the money is coming from."

"The Wave has long been fine economically, rebuilding would not have been a problem for them. And, these trains have been in the process for a while now." Darui said.

The Wave was different from other nations. The method of transportation via trains was only complete in this place. You would not think you were in the Elemental Nations. The nation did seem truly advanced in terms of technology. Far superior to any other nation.

"And, the Sound?"

Darui shrugged his shoulders carelessly. He immediately regretted doing that as it gave Kurotsuchi a chance to say her cents.

"In the past meetings, the Cloud and Stone were always On the same page. We have not had the same partnership as our predecessors did. However, I'd like to believe that we will still back each other in this meeting." She said with narrowed eyes.

"That will depend."

"On?"

"Certain details." Darui said vaguely. "I really don't want to get to this now. I just want to get on this train and get to Uzu before resting. It has been a rather slow and tiresome journey from the Cloud."

Kurotsuchi frowned deeply. Things were not going smoothly. But, if she thought things would change because they were speaking in person, she would have been a naïve little girl. The circumstances were different; Darui was thinking about his village. Naturally, this did her no favors and from the looks of things, he didn't care about what happened to her village. Her grandfather surely left her in a mess. She was going to be surrounded by people who didn't support her.

But, there had been no option but to pack her bags and come here.

Maybe she could salvage something.

Uzushiogakure

Unlike the usual times where they were welcomed by someone at the harbor, this time around, there were only signs. There was no sign of Naruto or Haku. Mei had given the message that she would arrive early. And, from how things worked, the people in the village certainly knew that she had landed.

"This place makes me wary." Ao said, walking beside the Mizukage.

Mei could not deny that a person walking around the place for the first time would find this place eerily silent. They were walking in a narrow road, with visible tracks of carriages. It seemed to be the only open way towards the village, but it was disturbingly silent and devoid of any life. The tall trees that surrounded him shed no light.

It was only darkness beneath them. The green leaves blocked the sun from touching the ground. You could not see much behind the trees.

As it was within the village, Ao had already said he could not see anything beyond the trees either. Why had these people made this place like this?

You could easily get lost in the forest.

Perhaps it was a way to keep people out.

"It is by design." Mei ended up saying.

It would have been nice if someone had come to welcome them. She had grown to like Haku. If he had come, she would not have minded. Of course, her target was the Emperor but for some reason, he has been making his presence very scarce before her.

"But, you should not be worried about anything. While to blindly trust a shinobi would be a fatal error, we cannot ignore that these people have shown themselves to be trustworthy."

To them at least.

"Regardless of the situation, you can never get rid of your shinobi instincts."

"Just make sure those instincts don't make you do anything I wouldn't agree with."

"Of course." Ao said.

Even he knew that this was going to be groundbreaking. He would not do anything that would sabotage this new change that was about to come to the Elemental Nations.

Who knew?

It could lead to a better future.

Xxx

Mei found Naruto smiling inside his office, but he wasn't sitting behind his desk. Haku was the one sitting there. The Emperor was on the couch, legs folded. Haku had mentioned that he was acting as the Emperor while Naruto rested. He hadn't said from what exactly but there had been something.

The Emperor looked perfectly fine though.

She walked over to the couches and sat across the Emperor before speaking.

"You seem to be in a good mood." She commented in a quiet tone.

"Well, I am seeing you…Is there a reason not to smile?" Naruto responded. "Unless you're displeased about seeing me, then I will hide this…"

Mei shook her head slowly. "But, if you wanted to see me, you could have made plans to do so. Traveling around distances isn't a problem for you, is it?"

"No, distance is not a barrier for me. But despite that being the case, I haven't been able to leave this village since completing my marriage to Shizuka. There are many things that bind me here." Naruto explained lightly. "Besides, in terms of time, I don't see reason to worry. Age doesn't really seem to affect you at all."

Mei smiled slyly. He didn't usually look like it, but it was true, the Emperor does have a way with words. The again, he does have a little history with women.

"Your words and actions are truly different things. I am flattered but not happy with the situation at hand. I would rather not waste my time. You are not a child and you know how to separate your personal feelings from your work, I know how to do the same." Mei stated in a firm tone.

"Being a leader requires you to be rational at all times." Naruto responded in a measured tone. He wasn't the least put off by Mei's response. "You are the first to arrive here. But, the Tsuchikage and Raikage are already at the Wave country. They should be arriving soon. The Kazekage and Hokage arrive early tomorrow morning."

"Meaning?"

"You have the time to vent if you must."

"I have nothing to vent about. I do find it curious with how you deal with things. It is as if the people around you mean nothing and they only reason you care is to achieve your end."

"You make it sound as if I am inconsiderate of other people. If that is so, I will strongly disagree with that statement." Naruto said in hardened tone.

He then smiled, taking off the edge on his tone.

"I have a couple of things to thank you for…The situation with the Water Daimyo was resolved because of you. As Emperor, I must offer you my gratitude."

"You could have sorted it out any other way. Don't make me think that you had no other option in this picture."

Naruto continued to smile.

He turned to Haku for a moment to see if he would comment but the man pretended as if he could not feel his gaze.

"My methods can be extreme at times. That is not to say reckless but extremely, and brutally efficient. When there is another way of doing things without the use of force, it represents an opportunity to see things different. I have a realistic way of viewing things. But, I am willing to be persuaded to look away from my usual urges, as long as it makes sense. If it is nonsense, I do not accept. Haku presented a reasonable prospect that I was willing to gamble on. People have different views to circumstances. Your way isn't always right. Just because I am the Emperor doesn't mean that anyone else can't come up with a good idea. You handled a situation that could have turned bloody with care and you have proved that persuasion does work. I don't always expect bloodshed."

Mei stared at the blond for a long moment before speaking. "You have a simplistic yet difficult way of looking at things…Discussions tomorrow will be on the Elemental Nations in general. You are closer to us than you are to other Nations."

"We should have something concrete then." Naruto finished Mei's thoughts. "If there is any benefit to gain, you want first hand. But, I would think your worry would be more on the kind of world that you desire and how you exploit my rational way of thinking into achieving that dream."

"I wasn't planning on exploiting you."

Naruto waved his right hand dismissively. "I don't hold grudges. I usually don't hate people since I would find no plausible benefit in doing so. I won't mind if you use me to achieve your dream."

Two Hours Later

Kurotsuchi could not hide her contempt when she stepped into the Emperor's throne room. He was sitting there on the throne like a god, looking down at all of them. She felt disrespected as if she had come here to report to him. She clicked her tongue in anger. But, no words left her mouth.

The Emperor had been quick to speak before anyone could even say anything.

"Welcome to Uzushiogakure, Tsuchikage, Raikage." the Emperor said as he got up from his throne.

He started walking towards the group slowly while speaking. "I apologize for not being able to welcome you when you arrived at the Island, I was held up in a rather interesting meeting with another leader." He said with a small smile.

"It must be nice being you." Kurotsuchi said through gritted teeth.

Darui sighed hearing this. One could not mistake the hatred in the Tsuchikage's tone. But, he really had no time for it. It was even all a bothersome issue that would just give him a headache. Well, it had nothing to do with him. He could just turn a blind eye on it.

"We had an opportunity to see the village." Darui said. "We'd like to see more of it nevertheless…"

"I will get you settled in quickly and then you can have a tour. Haku will be more than pleased to show you around the village. Perhaps he will interest you in some of the Fuinjutsu." Naruto said calmly.

Darui raised an eye. "You'd bring that up?"

Naruto waved his right hand. "We are proud of our work and we would like to sell it. It makes for great business and it can change many things in your lives."

"I'm not sure anyone would be willing to trust you."

Naruto stared at Kurotsuchi with a blank look on his face. "You used to be lovable before but now you have turned into something very unattractive…And it's quite honestly disappointing."

"Forgive me for disappointing you, Your Majesty." Kurotsuchi responded with mild sarcasm.

Naruto just shook his head. For what reasons did he have to leave this woman still breathing? He should have just incinerated her when he had her by her throat. But now he had to deal with her nonsense. She wasn't just a contemptuous kunoichi, she was a Kage who could influence an entire army to act against him.

He was looking at a threat to his quietness and rule. He should have made her bow to him. Perhaps her irrational contempt would be justified. Either way, Yoshino would have to move quickly. He could not balance things without acting on his whims. Even now he held himself from saying something–that would surely get her to explode.

"You should really learn to control your daughter. With that attitude, the Earth will become deeply isolated and in a few years, it will become a former Great Nation."

Kitsuchi could not argue with that. But, Kurotsuchi had been rational when they were at home. She was now allowing her anger to control her. If she handled things like this during the meeting, they would not gain anything but lose everything.

They might even be excluded in future meetings.

"Is that a threat?"

"Interpret it however you see it. But, let me warn you: A village is its people. If you lead Iwa towards isolation, it will be the people who will suffer. People can be loyal to their villages and not to the Kage. If many agree that you are driving the village towards death, they will rebel. Not that only, but some people will leave. And when that happens, there will be no order and people you make enemies of will be more than happy to destroy you."

Kurotsuchi glared hatefully. What maddened her was the fact that he was completely right. She was not going to admit it to his face but he was right. There were already some voices of discontent due to the difficulties the village was facing.

Civilians didn't care about pride–they just wanted to live their lives.

"No doubt you'd be more than willing to stir the trouble."

Naruto smiled. "Well, I do love a bit of chaos." He, said only to make Kurotsuchi angry but he did not focus on her; he turned to Samui and Yugito.

"Good seeing you again. We will talk later, for now, I must leave for other arrangements."

xxx

Maybe it was the habit that had Yoshino smiling when he walked up to Kurotsuchi from the top of the hotel she was placed. The place had a good view of the Emperor's compound. Perhaps she was stalking the man to see what happened there. But the compound was protected by a barrier. Unless it was taken down, what you saw happening from the outside was not truly what was happening.

Naturally, Yoshino would never tell anyone that.

"What do you want?" Kurotsuchi demanded in a hardened tone without even looking at the Uzumaki.

Yoshino took a couple of steps closer and then sat down by Kurotsuchi's right side. After a couple of moments went by, he then spoke.

"It is rather peaceful, isn't it?"

Kurotsuchi looked around for a moment. The air was a little cold, but the atmosphere was not heavy. The village was not that big. It was rather ridiculous that they lost a war to these people. This didn't look like a shinobi village. But it was true that it was rather quiet and peaceful here.

It also seemed to be detached from the rest of the Elemental Nations. The people here were not ignorant of what happened outside but they were also not bothered by it–they had their beloved Emperor. She thought of the love the people had here with nothing but contempt.

"A little." she was only willing to admit that much.

"Home is a place you should be able to find peace and relax. It took a while for people here to become 'carefree'. We had always lived in fear of extinction and invasion."

"Those who invaded made a mistake of not wiping out the entire clan. We would not have been here if not for such a blunder." Kurotsuchi eyed the Uzumaki, trying to see how he would react to her words.

There was none.

Yoshino didn't even blink.

"There is a huge difference in dying because of service to your village and dying simply because you live. That gives you fear that you cannot escape. We lived in hiding because we were afraid. I was afraid. But I wanted to continue living. And it is the desire to live that built all this. Your village can face the same consequences. If you make enemies of all the Great Nations, Earth Shinobi will not be welcomed anywhere. As a result, doing missions will become impossible. If you are unable to complete missions, you lose all business. Shinobi will suffer. Your village will speed toward the edge of a cliff for a quick dive to death.

"We all love our villages. We all want them to prosper. We have grudges but we must be willing to overlook them."

"You want me to overlook what this village did?"

"Do you also want us to overlook what your village did? Don't be a naïve child. You are a Kage. Start thinking like one or your village will suffer. We nearly became extinct because of what you did. If you want to hold a grudge over the fact that you lost a war–which you started, we will revisit the sins of the past. And unlike you, we will not leave even a stone standing but the stone can be reduced to dust.

"I'm not here to threaten you but tell you to grow up and stop being a naïve little girl. And I'm also warning you; if you want revenge, between you and me, who has a valid reason to seek vengeance? Your grandfather died in war. We have not touched what you did. We can make those demands but we are not blinded by hatred. But if you want us to wear our hatred, we will do so. Think about it, hard. Because your attitude determines the fate of your village. We are not afraid to demand heads to roll. And given that you are already isolated, no one will support you. No one will speak for you. You have made wrongs, but are unwilling to admit them yet want to punish others for what you perceive as wrong against you. The same stick you use to beat others will be the same stick we will use to beat you."

It made Kurotsuchi feel like filth to be getting a lecture from the enemy. Naruto would probably not have the same idea.

Then what was the purpose of this lecture?

What did this man hope to achieve?

What did he want from her?

She eyed him for a moment before asking.

"What do you want?"

"Like I said; I want you to understand things clearly. And to be honest, His Majesty would not think twice about destroying Iwagakure. You are more of problem than anything because of your attitude."

"Are you openly admitting that?"

Yoshino smiled. "I did so. What I want is to develop a better relationship between you and I. Maybe that can extend to our respective villages. I am the leader of Uzushiogakure and I choose what is best for it."

Kurotsuchi found it hard to believe that Naruto would allow another person to do the work. "You think I'm stupid?"

"I never gave that impression. You are truly too quick to judge instead of hearing the merits of the case one is making." Yoshino said with a slight shake if his head, expressing disappointment. "You should ask how the politics works around this place and maybe you will get a response that is favorable."

The Following Day

Naruto had to raise an eye brow seeing the company that Tsunade had brought with her. She had truly brought her war room warriors with her. There had been no stipulation as to how many people one could bring but he had not expected her to bring in the heavy weights.

It didn't matter that much anyway. Nothing changed. Everything still went as planned. He eyed Gaara for a moment and smiled. The man hadn't brought his sister with him. There must have been reason there, but Naruto was not going to think about it.

"Welcome to Uzushiogakure." Naruto greeted the company from Konoha and Suna with a small smile. "This is quite the company; the Leaf isn't here to wage war, is it?"

Tsunade blinked.

He wasn't serious…And so that meant he was joking with them? What the hell was wrong with that picture? Naruto had not been kind to them recently.

"We might be." Kakashi responded before Tsunade could.

"But it all depends on how we are treated and how things go on during our talks." Shikamaru finished with a small smile on his lips.

"Yikes; those are some strict terms. I have not been known for treating people too well. The first words I say might cause you to look at me with contempt."

"We hope you at least manage to hold on after the introductions." Kakashi said.

Naruto's smile lingered for moment before he wiped it off.

"We can only hope." He said before turning his eyes towards the Kazekage. "Kazekage."

"Emperor. You are in a good mood."

"Not at all; when one has visitors, they must be greeted well to make them feel comfortable. I've often found it that people are willing to speak freely when they are comfortable. We don't want anyone to hold their breaths because of some misunderstandings. We have gone past war and are now moving towards something else. I'd like the start to be smooth…"

Naruto shook his head.

"It wasn't really smooth with the other group. But nothing for you to worry…"

"Not that I don't find this interesting." Tsunade started in a slow tone. "But I wish to rest. We start in the afternoon."

"Well, you decided to stay an extra day in the Wave…" Naruto said.

It wasn't his problem.

Of course, he still found it curious that they would choose to stay in the Wave for a little while longer than planned. He hadn't received the report but he could make a few assumptions.

"The Wave is just a curious country. It is different from the last time I saw it. The developments you have made were something worth looking at. And since we don't know how things will go during the meeting, it was decided that we should look have a look first before anything happens."

"Have a little hope, Princess Tsunade." Naruto said. "There are perfectly understandable reasons to be hopeful about a breakthrough that leads into a path that we will not all regret."

xxx

The guards were all outside. The Kages were not allowed to bring a person inside the meeting room. There would still be another meeting tomorrow or the day after. It all depended on how things were processed. But, during that second meeting, the other people would be permitted.

Not everyone had been willing to leave their guards outside even though Naruto had assured everyone's safety.

These people didn't want to take his word.

"I must say, it is rather sad not to be trusted." The Emperor said to no one in particular while sitting beside a round table. Tsunade and Darui sat on his right side and left side respectively while Kurotsuchi, Gaara and Mei sat further ahead.

"I didn't think you'd find a problem with that." Mei said with a raised brow.

"I'm still a person with feelings." Naruto said with a stare. "And I value words that I say. When someone doesn't seem to value them, it does bother me."

"The issue was not a matter of trust." Darui started in a slow tone. "It was simply a surprise as we had not discussed this. Besides, we are not all on friendly terms. Everyone wants to see a face they know will guard their backs."

"In this village, you need not worry about who watches your back-Uzushio watches your back. Admittedly, that can be difficult to accept given the past." Naruto said quietly. "But we want to try to change that. Let me begin to express my sincere appreciation to all of you for coming here. It must not have been an easy decision but you came and I am thankful for that.

"I won't waste time with pointless talk. The first order of business would be about the war we just walked past. It only affected two Great Nations and I want to make plain how we have come to try to solve things with the two nations. Iwa is being difficult but we made some breakthrough with the Cloud."

Darui took it as his cue to start talking.

"I have expressed with the emperor that the war should not have occurred in the first place and it was a mistake from our past leader. Out of respect for him, I will not criticize him. However, I will admit that the war was our fault. We started it along with the Stone and we lost it. There are consequences for such actions and I'd like to think that the agreement between the lines is something that is personal between the Cloud and the Empire." Darui said in a stern tone.

Naruto was impressed that Darui would opt to keep the little details to himself. He would not have said it but if Darui was going to keep it hidden, Naruto would not complain.

He could accept it.

"While that decision is commendable, it is the interest of balance of power within the Elemental Nations that we know certain things. It would do us no good if the Empire has seized control over the Cloud." Tsunade said in a hardened tone, staring straight at Naruto–who didn't even blink.

"I have to agree with the Godaime on that one. We don't want to have a situation where another nation seizes control over others by force. Such a situation would lead to conflicts because those being controlled will eventually fight back to have control over their nation." Gaara added.

Of course, he didn't think that Naruto would have done that. If he was as smart as he thought he was, he would have known that such a move would be rejected by others. Maybe the Mizukage would have been the first to voice her displeasure and talk about strong actions against the Emperor.

There was that possibility that the Great Five could unite against the Empire–if surely, he was going to the wrong path, such a notion was quite possible.

Gaara would have things go differently nevertheless.

"It is truly sad to be distrusted." The emperor said calmly. "But no, we have not had such plans. I know that we would lose the allies we have gained should we take such actions. I'm not stupid enough to do something that would unite all Great Nations against me. War is war, but there must be consequences for those who ignite it. Now, the Raikage wants to keep those details to himself, and I am not going to go against that. However, I will say that we have not gone to the path of subjugation and have no such intentions."

"I'm sure it did cross your mind." Kurotsuchi could not help but add.

"With you? Yes, I did come to mind. You have been stubborn in admitting that Iwagakure was culpable and refuse to pay for damages done to the Wave country. Not only that, you have been rather unkind to us despite our efforts. If we wanted, we could have put the Stone in flames over what was done to the Wave but to avoid any more bloodshed, we did not, yet you have been unwilling, which is rather unfortunate but not something we can tolerate for too long."

"I don't think such a language is going to get us anywhere." Mei cautioned. "But hearing that Iwa refuses to take responsibility over its actions is quite honestly disappointing. I would have thought that the current Tsuchikage has learned from her predecessor's mistakes."

"The pressure being applied by us should have shown them the way." Tsunade added with clear disappointment in her face. "What the hell is wrong with you?" She demanded with a glare.

Not a single person expected the Hokage to phrase anything in that tone. Everyone was surprised by the hardness of her question. Kurotsuchi was the one who was completely caught off-guard. She did expect some questions but she did not expect for Tsunade to talk to her like she was talking to one of her subordinates.

"Nothing is wrong with me." Kurotsuchi responded in a flat tone. "And while I am young, I will not allow myself to be talked to in such a manner. I am still a Kage like you."

"Nobody questioned that. But if you are so much as refusing to take responsibility over your actions, you have much to learn. I would have thought that Iwa's current situation would have opened your eyes. Does being stubborn run in the family? No, Onoki was stubborn, but at least he was smart enough to know when a battle was lost. You don't seem to see that."

"Responsibility, for what? Maybe we were the ones who started the actual war, but he certainly helped fueling it. And even if he did not, he did nothing to try to stop it from occurring. What happened to the Wave was unfortunate but we cannot be expected to pay for the costs of war. It is not like we have not suffered from it."

"When you go to war, know that you will also lose something. Didn't your grandfather tell you that? Stop being the victim and accept that Iwa did wrong and move on from it. If you cannot accept that you did wrong, there really isn't much we can talk about with you and I don't see why if we are here to discuss the future we must talk it with you. Because the Kazekage and I are not going to move past what you tried to do in that war."

The sins of the past. At that time, it had not been a sin. Kurotsuchi had praised her grandfather's genius at the plan he had devised. Unluckily for them, they had failed. Nothing came out of it. They ended up drawing the attention of their worst enemy and things had gone south.

Every village has always fought for its interests and benefits. The concept of right and wrong didn't apply to anyone.

Iwagakure has always done things this way. And it wasn't like the other villages haven't done any wrong things. If they were going to talk about the sins, these people should not only point fingers at her. Still, Kurotsuchi would not bring that argument–she was not going to win it.

She had concluded that she needed to swallow her pride and speak the same language as the others.

"I won't speak about the past in which you have all done something wrong. I didn't fight in the past wars, but this one I experienced. Both sides are supposed to suffer in war, but what we fought was not a war but a brutal slaughter of shinobi from Cloud and Stone. It makes me angry just think of the many that were killed by just one man. But it was a war that we started. How the Emperor fought was up to him. This village would have been reduced to ashes had we succeeded. Right or wrong? That has never had any relevence in shinobi matters for as long as I have lived.

But it does seem that things are changing. For this reason, I must admit that Iwa was wrong in trying to disrupt the relationship between Suna and Konoha. We indeed intended for you to fight at the worst-case scenario, for you at least. We should have never tried to get you involved when you had stated your intentions of keeping out of it." She managed to utter those words in a humble tone, yet eyes stern in defiance.

There was momentary silence after Kurotsuchi spoke.

Gaara broke it with a cold tone.

"Is that the best you can give?" Gaara asked. "You put my sister's life in danger and tried to have my village fight with its ally and those hollow words are the best you can give? Are you really serious?"

Kurotsuchi frowned deeply.

"What do you want me to do?" She demanded a bit more harshly than intended.

"I cannot tell you that." Gaara said with a slight shake of his head. "We came here to discuss the future but it does seem like we have a future with Iwa. I have to agree with the Godaime that if that is the case, then we do not need Iwa in this meeting. I propose we vote to remove Iwa from this meeting. Those remaining can speak in one voice."

Kurotsuchi's whole body tensed when she heard those words.

These people were brutal.

This was something that she could not afford to be excluded from. Iwa would suffer. Her village would be broken and her people would certainly turn on her as it has been pointed out to her. She could not have that situation. If there was any better time to beg, it was now. There was nothing more valuable to her than Iwa's future.

Her pride could take a jump off a cliff but if Iwa survived, she would have served her duties well.

She looked around trying to see if someone would come to her defense. Darui seemed to be disagreeing but ended up shrugging. She could almost read the look on his face. He was probably saying something I want to defend you but it will be too much of a drag since everyone else is against you.

She wanted to blame Naruto, but she knew that she would just be refusing to take responsibility.

Maybe Yoshino had been speaking sense.

Through gritted teeth, Kurotsuchi spoke. "We don't have to take things that far." She pleaded. "Iwagakure is struggling as things are. If things continue, my people will suffer. I know we have issues, but I promise you that we will work towards solving them and Iwa will not be halfhearted about it. This is something that is difficult and cannot be solved in a single day. But I give you my word in front of everyone here that Iwa will try to make things right."

Naruto thought of laughing hearing Kurotsuchi speak in such a pitiful tone.

He rested his hands on the table and stared at her before speaking.

"The words of a ninja are worthless at times. What gives anyone the assurance that you will do as you are told? It is possible that you are saying that just so you won't be excluded in any agreement that may benefit your village. But if you see things working, you might decide against following through on your promises."

"I know you won't trust me that easily." Kurotsuchi shot a hateful glare at the Emperor.

He seemed to be enjoying seeing her struggle and suffocate. Cold hearted bastard. She wished he could just start choking and just die from where he sat. of course, things would not change for her. The other three would still glare at her.

"But this is a word I am saying in front of all Kages and if I cannot stay true to my word, if you wish to do something to Iwa, you will be free to do it."

"It isn't like we can invade Iwa."

"Well, we can." Tsunade corrected Gaara.

"But we are trying to move away from that kind of path. We want to try something peaceful that isn't solved by needless bloodshed." Mei added.

"I have a proposal." Naruto started. "We have built prison cells in the islands heading towards the Water Country. These are fine locks that cannot be escaped as long as you term is yet to be finished. If the Kages judge her to have failed in fulfilling her promises, you can give us the go ahead to put her in prison for the term you wish. In that way, no bloodshed and you can resolve the issues with Iwa's new Kage afterwards."

"That is not a bad idea." Darui said with a nod of his head. "But if the Tsuchikage is indeed serious about this, then we don't have to worry about putting one of our own in such a situation."

Kurotsuchi closed her eyes. She was seething. Of course, that bastard would have a fine proposal for this. She knew what it was like to be his prisoner. And, she certainly didn't want to experience it again. But she still had no other choice but to agree to this.

"I have no issues with it."

"Then we will draft an agreement and have everyone in this room sign on it." Gaara said. "Is everyone pleased with that?"

They all agreed

"While we are at this subject, I believe we should talk about how we do things in case another village decides to ignite the flames of war. Our predecessors were never united. The Five Kages never spoke in one voice. But we have a situation where it is possible. If we can speak with one voice then it is possible for us to take action when one of us decides to play war. I cannot speak of past wars because I never experienced them, but the war between the Empire and Cloud and Earth could have been avoided if we were not too focused on our villages to care about what happens to our world."

Gaara's eyes moved around the table, trying to gather the reactions the Kages and the Emperor.

The reaction from the latter was predictably the same-there was nothing on his face. The others seemed to absorb his words. Mei seemed to the be one who seemed to appreciate them best. At least no one looked at him with contempt.

"If Konoha, Suna and Kiri had stood together to defend the Empire, things would have been different." Darui said. "I know for certain Kumo would have chosen against fighting. I don't know about Iwagakure."

"There was always the fear that if Konoha decided to take part, things would be unfavorable. But my grandfather would not have pulled out. He believed Konoha was no longer as strong as it had been. But the danger was there–that is why he took the 'misguided' steps to ensure Konoha did not interfere. Of course, it would have been a different story if both Sand and Mist were getting involved." Kurotsuchi responded in a much calmer tone.

"Kages united can achieve much. But it has been the general lack of care for others that has resulted in wars and for the fact that we sometimes started wars for our own benefit. But that was simply the result of the Kages allowing space to form between them. If we form a line of communication and face each other often, we could avoid disastrous situations." Mei said in thought. She then eyed Naruto before adding. "Of course, in this case, the Empire had decided to take things head on."

"Which is something we must never allow to occur again. If we are going to operate as one, the six of us, we cannot allow such unilateral actions to occur again." Tsunade said, staring at the Emperor.

"Why does it sound like you are now ganging up on me?" Naruto asked with a raised brow, some amusement spelled across his lips.

"Do you disagree with us?"

Naruto shook his head. Worst case scenario had been these people leading the charge. It was expected. They were the Kages and would not allow him to dictate everything. Naruto was not going to complain. As long as he got what he wanted, he could play peace with the Kages.

He just had to be mindful of certain things.

"Not at all." Naruto said with a slight shake of his head. "I would be irrational to come up with anything different. What do you propose then?"

"Konoha and the Sand have a close relationship. We will be able to take the same stance we did against anyone who tries anything as we did with the Stone. If we are going to make some agreements on trade, which I assume will be your main focus." Gaara said looking at Naruto. "Then, any village that goes foul of any rules we make has to be kicked out of that agreement and when we hold meetings, such a village must not be included until it has suffered the full consequences of breaking rules which we will agree on."

This was now going to be a long meeting.

They would need another one before the day ends and tomorrow.

Both of which will have the others getting involved.

"I think Kiri and Suna will get along just fine. We seem to have similar interests. I already have a relationship with the Empire. We just need to develop those relationships with each other and things can go well. Of course, there will be disagreements but such a summit should always be held to solve such matters. And given that Uzushio has become something else, its role will be significant, but not the center of all things."

"We will need time to consider such a situation."

"But do we all agree that this is something we should look at?"

No one voiced any disapproval.

Naruto then decided to take the opportunity to get his message across.

"I have two proposals. You know how the Wave country is now and that has been the result of our work. You may have noticed that we are building rail tracks around the Fire Nation and other nations. This has been done with the permission of Feudal Lords. What we seek is to create a network of transport that connects all nations. We will need to get into all your villages to build the infrastructure for our trains. This is our business and we would like to keep it that way."

"The system is interesting and will make life easier but I imagine the Empire will make a lot of money off this. I can't imagine the Daimyo agreeing to this without expecting something."

"You also want something?"

"This thing would be operating in our villages. It gives the Empire access to all nations. You can move anything and anywhere. I imagine information will flow through the trains."

"This will also have a negative consequence on shinobi. Some escort missions might be cut off." Gaara said.

"We can arrange that in the form of taxes. And these trains will need to be protected. If something goes wrong, someone needs to take action, quick. There are bad people out there, and someone will have to be on the lookout. The Empire will hire shinobi from all nations to guard these trains and the train stations. That should keep your shinobi at work and earning a living.

"The trains can also be used to transport goods. We would need trains designed for such. We have that and are willing to transport goods to your nations. We have made some agreements with merchants."

"I don't like that this gives you more power." Kurotsuchi voiced her displeasure.

"We came up with the plan. No one can complain. Of course, the Kages are here to stand guard to see if I am doing anything wrong. It has never been argued that I cannot go against all of you. And if you are true to your agreements, there really will be no need to worry." Naruto said with a bit of nonchalance.

"True but I have one question: where are you going to get the money to build all these? You are already building things rapidly in the Sound…"

"And I still have questions regarding that…" Kurotsuchi added. "The Empire is not in a path of taking over villages is it?"

"We borrowed money from your Daimyos. They have the money." Naruto said calmly. "And unless any nation decides to join the Empire, we will not be doing any invasions. I think that is Iwa's specialty."

"The dig aside." Tsunade started. "We want you to come to an agreement with the Kages that if as you say, any nation wants to join the Empire, we must look at it first to see if the situation is not forced and does not threaten anything."

"I have no problems with that." Naruto said. "Will you allow me to hunt down your criminals? I have prisons that I made to house criminals."

"As long as you alert us."

"What of war prisoners you took?" Kurotsuchi questioned. "I'd like Iwa shinobi to be released."

"Why?"

"Aren't we moving past our issues?"

"We have not solved anything as yet. And you still owe Konoha and Suna. Deal with that and let us solve our issues, them we can talk about our prisoners. I don't care if you think I'm holding you hostage."

"That isn't the kind of talk to you take to a negotiating table." Mei cautioned the Emperor. "We want to make peace and I understand that there are still issues with Iwa. Given its attitude, it would be best to hold off on certain benefits to ensure that there is the satisfaction of promises made. We set an example and move as one rather than as individuals. In that I think as a gesture of goodwill, the Empire should release some prisoners."

"I agree with that."

"Well, I cannot disagree to it since the Empire has some of my shinobi," Darui said in a quiet tone.

Of course, the problem of holding such things were things were done by the consensus meant that he would have such situations. It was troublesome but it was the price Naruto had to pay to appease these people. If he refused, everything would fall apart.

"I'll release hundred." Naruto said. "I cannot go higher than that."

"How many do you actually have?"

Naruto appeared to think about it for a moment before responding. "Around 1500 from both nations. The Raikage and I can make an arrangement on how I release all his prisoners since we have come to an understanding."

"There should be a mediator from the Five Kages in such talks. I believe along with the issue with Iwagakure. I am more than willing to play that role?" Mei offered.

"You are an ally of the Empire, I don't trust you'd be fair. The Kazekage either. That role should go to Konoha." Kurotsuchi suggested.

"I don't have a problem with it." Tsunade faced Naruto and asked. "Do you?"

"None at all." he said. "As long as you don't forget that you are only playing the mediator, we should not have any issues. We wish for all issues to be resolved as smoothly as possible."

"I'm sure you do." Kurotsuchi said with a hint of sarcasm.

Tsunade ignored this as she pushed for a delicate subject. "We must also talk about your Empire's growth and how that affects all nations. Your power is something that does make certain people uncomfortable. There has to be a way to contain that and ensure that things do not spill out of control. For this, I believe the Kages should discuss the issue without you."

All eyes were on Naruto. He wondered what he should do. The option was simple and there but things could be made interesting. He shook his head–there was no need to be difficult when there was really nothing he could lose.

"We should meet later on around 4pm to discuss how we go about the rules. We could conclude on this tomorrow and depart with something to sign on for the future." Naruto said as he stood up.

"Before you leave." Tsunade started in a hardened tone. "Intelligence tells me that there is something that is happening and you probably know something. There is also the issue around the Tsuchikage."

"The remaining members of the Akatsuki have been making strange movements and I believe that they are going to do something real soon. With the issue of the Tsuchikage: she received assistance from someone we believe to be an enemy of the Elemental Nations. This person has some connections with an experiment Orochimaru conducted some years ago. It is going to be dangerous but we don't have enough information to say what happens when and where. That is also something you can discuss amongst yourself."

Outside the chamber

"Meeting over?" Haku asked as Naruto walked past the guards of the Kages.

The Emperor shook his head. "They kicked me out saying they wanted to discuss something amongst themselves. Perhaps a reminder that I am not a Kage, thus not one of them. It is cheap politics but this is not the time to be going into arguments that will achieve nothing."

It was better to offer an image of cooperation than resistance. Besides, it wasn't like he would not know what they are talking about in his absence. He had a friend there.

"You're really fine with that?"

"Why wouldn't I be? It isn't like I will lose something. We have placed enough hands on Cloud, Kiri and Suna to be certain they will speak for us."

Haku shook his head. So, there was nothing to worry about. He wasn't making any whimsical decisions. He must account for them reminding him that they were the five Kage.

"I assume things went well."

"I would not have walked out if things didn't go well. There are still certain details that we must iron out. You are probably going to join us in the next meeting."

"You must be pleased with proceedings then. Well, I hope things work out for the best. Did you tell them about Madara?"

Naruto shook his head.

"I'm not saying a thing until they see the danger. They don't trust me enough to take my word for it when I mention danger. It is convenient if an attack occurs. They will be troubled and we will have answers and the fire power to make things happen." Naruto said. And then glanced at Haku. "You don't like it?"

"People could die before then and some of our allies can be attacked."

"I know that."

This was a cold hearted move from the Emperor. Haku would be willing to tell the others but it was true that they didn't trust Naruto.

"On the bright side of things, Madara becomes an even bigger threat than you."

"Which is why I am glad I am not stronger than him. They didn't specifically say it but I know they were thinking that we mustn't be stronger than them." Naruto said calmly. "We must be strategic on how we take this one. Their help will be required, for them to think 'he could not have done it without us.' That will work best for the future and has them thinking they can take me on at any time. The problem with being too powerful is that people start looking at you with suspicion in your every move."