"One of the Kazekage's children is believed to be the host of the Shukaku," Haruto read from the scroll. "How can you be sure?" He eyed Jiraiya with irritation. Since his appearance, the perverted sage had heralded nothing but trouble and bad news. Okay, that was unfair as the intelligence Jiraiya provided for Konoha was certainly useful, if not downright vital at times.
"So Suna has a jinchuuriki, but we don't know who it is. That's just great." Haruto had known that his failure to axe the Suna siblings would come back to haunt him. If only he hadn't been so drained and exhausted at the time.
"It was hard enough to get even this intelligence. Like I said, Sunagakure is locked down even tighter than the Land of Rain," Jiraiya explained.
"Your intelligence network must suck, Ero-sama," Haruto deadpanned.
The Toad Hermit looked at Sarutobi with raised eyebrows before shooting an offended look at the loud blond. "Treat your elders with the appropriate respect, you little brat!"
"I called you 'sama,' didn't I? And I would love to hear your argument against me calling you a pervert."
"I'm not a pervert. I'm a SUPER PERVERT! Get it right, brat!" Jiraiya corrected with great seriousness. Haruto stared back at the Toad Hermit as if he were on crack.
"That's enough from both of you! We have work," Sarutobi interrupted, glaring at both to get the point across. Entertaining as the two were, there were important things to discuss.
"Sorry, Hokage-sama," Haruto and Jiraiya responded in properly contrite tones.
"This won't really change anything. The ANBU teams and reserve task forces should still deploy as planned. Both Captain Tenzou and I will be in the area, so we should be able to handle Suna's jinchuuriki," Haruto stated. As a carrier of the Shodai's genes and his special bloodline, Tenzou was an excellent counter to Suna's secret weapon. On the other hand, there was the possibility that the good captain would be sent elsewhere, leaving the container of the tailed beast unattended.
"I'm also pretty sure I can handle all three siblings by myself," Haruto added. Jiraiya raised an eyebrow, recognizing that the child was stating a fact and not a boast.
"Even if the Shukaku is released?" Sarutobi asked. Haruto thought for a moment before nodding confidently. The Hokage paused hesitantly at this point.
"Just tell him," Jiraiya urged, directing a serious look at his teacher when the older shinobi looked at him. Haruto looked between his two elders and suppressed the urge to groan. He hated it when adults conspired against him in the open like this. It wasn't like he didn't know they were up to something.
"Come on, old man, I thought we got past this sort of thing. Just tell me what it is. You know I can handle it." Even so, Sarutobi hesitated. The ANBU sighed.
"Ok. Let me guess, it's about the Kyuubi or my father, the Yondaime, or maybe both."
"See? What did I tell you?" Jiraiya was quick to jump on his teacher's case, who gracefully accepted that he had acted unwisely. Sarutobi had suspected as much, but never mustered the courage to confront Haruto about his past.
"How long have you known?" the Hokage asked. On the plus side, this revelation meant they didn't need to have a long and grueling talk about a painful past that no one wanted to remember.
"A couple of years. It was hard at first, but I sort of accepted things over time," Haruto explained in a matter of fact manner. Sarutobi didn't know whether to feel pleased or saddened by the young boy's quiet acceptance of the past. It did, however, solidify his opinion of the boy's maturity and readiness.
"Can you tap the beast's power without losing conscious control of your body?" Jiraiya asked, going straight to the heart of things.
"I can go up to four tails with the Kyuubi's chakra without suffering any major problem. I'm sure that's more than enough to handle the one-tailed demon." While surprised at the declaration, both Jiraiya and Sarutobi nodded at the sound assessment. While a jinchuuriki could only wield a fraction of a tailed beast's full power, the base strength of the creatures increased by orders of magnitude with additional tails. So the container of a very powerful tailed beast could, in theory, go toe-to-toe against a weaker one.
"You'll be masquerading as your other persona, right? Utilizing that many tails of chakra will most likely reveal you to others," Jiraiya noted helpfully.
"I know that. But if it means protecting the village, then so be it," Haruto replied with casual ease. It was as if he didn't even care that he might be called upon to throw away the life he had spent years to build. The legendary member of the Sannin stared at the youngster with a blank look before turning to his teacher. Suddenly, the old man's faith in the brat made a hell of a lot more sense. Sarutobi smiled faintly, having long since recognized the young blond's aptitude for dedication and near fanatical devotion.
"Ok, fine. So what can I do to help in all this?" Jiraiya offered at last. The Hokage's smile widened in response. The ninja leader nodded at Haruto when he turned to him with a questioning gaze.
Sarutobi just loved it when one of his plans came together.
Many hours later, the two men and one boy finally finished revising Haruto's original plan.
"That sounds good to me. You know what, brat? I think I underestimated you by a little bit," Jiraiya conceded. His half-grudging praise for the youngster was very circumspect but also very much heartfelt. It was hard not to be impressed by the kid genius.
"And I think I overestimated you by a lot, Ero-sama," Haruto fired back. The white-haired pervert mumbled darkly about ungrateful cheeky brats. As for Sarutobi, well, he just leaned back and enjoyed the fireworks. It had been so long since he was so thoroughly entertained.
"Is that all?" Haruto asked. Drafting and modifying operational schematics with someone as sharp and knowledgeable as the Hokage was tough enough already, tossing Jiraiya of the Sannin into the mix made things a hundred times more difficult.
"Just about. There is one more thing before you go," Sarutobi began. The elderly shinobi reached under a drawer and retrieved a necklace of sorts. "This is a family heirloom that originally belonged to the Shodai. His granddaughter and my student, Tsunade, left it in your father's care when she left. It passed on to me when he died. And from this day onwards, it'll be yours."
Haruto looked at the old man in shock. This necklace represented the legacy of the Shodai, founder of Konohagakure and establisher of its greatest dynastic family, which unfortunately became defunct with Tsunade's exile. Surely, the Hokage was joking. It would be a pretty cruel and heartless joke, but still he couldn't be serious, could he? Sarutobi, however, was serious and held the necklace out in front of him.
"Ahm, I, eh, I can't accept that," Haruto protested demurely even as he dallied. Everyone in the room, however, knew what was ultimately going to happen. One simply did not refuse such an honor from the God of Shinobi.
"Just take the necklace, brat," Jiraiya said in exasperation. He would never have believed that someone so loud and boisterous could be so modest. He figured Haruto would have jumped at the chance to receive such a positive affirmation from the Hokage. It would appear that he had misread the brat again.
Spurred by Jiraiya's words, Haruto accepted the old man's gift. His small hands instinctively traced the worn edges of the jewelry as if to spatially memorize the designs.
"Thank you, Hokage-sama. I don't know what to say or do."
"Just do what you have always done and you'll be fine, and the people will love you for it."
Wait, what?
"I, I don't understand," Haruto admitted. The old man was trying to say something, but he couldn't pinpoint what it was.
"If we win the battle to come, I want to make public all classified information regarding your life: the Kyuubi, your father and your alias. I ordered these secrets kept so as to protect you, but I realized instead that I've only stunted your growth and ability to interact with others. I wish to right that wrong."
The young ninja looked at his leader as if he was crazy.
"I have not gone senile, Haruto," Sarutobi added. "Not yet at least." The blond blushed as the Hokage answered the question running through his mind.
"Sorry, I was just—"
"It's alright. I understand your hesitation and I promise you that this will only happen if you want it to happen. All I ask is for you to think about it. Will you do that for me, Haruto?" Sarutobi asked. Jiraiya rolled his eyes as the twelve-year-old nodded his head furiously.
"This plan of yours has a very good chance of giving Konoha a great victory. If and when we win, the people will demand a hero. I can think of no one better than you. Can you, Jiraiya?"
"If this works? Nope," the white-haired pervert interjected as he crossed his arms. He had looked over the plan and the results thus far, and was very impressed with what he had seen.
"What about my detractors?" Haruto asked, being ever cautious and paranoid. "I thought it would take years for me to build up enough support and connections to, you know…"
"That's normally true, but like you said about this invasion, timing is important. If we time the revelation of your secrets at the moment when people are most receptive to you, then it won't matter."
"Once the people know about your achievements, they will have no choice but to accept you. The few remaining detractors won't be able to do anything, not when you have Jiraiya and myself by your side, and the support of Captain Tenzou and his subordinates. I have already discussed the details with the captain and he said he will support you one hundred percent." Sarutobi smiled softly as he observed the myriad of emotions flashing across Haruto's face.
"You still have time to think about it, but I hope you'll agree with my proposal, Haruto. You will no longer have to hide behind an alias, and you, not Genji, will be recognized for your successes and accomplishments." The Hokage's last words burned themselves into Haruto's mind, and he could not help but marvel at how awesome that would be. The blond jounin didn't take long to make up his mind.
"I'll do it, old man," Haruto declared. How could he refuse when this was the exact sort of unvarnished recognition he was striving for? After all, it wasn't like Genji could ever become Hokage.
Sarutobi grinned, "You made the right choice, Haruto."
With his mind and attention occupied by heady thoughts, Haruto never saw the grinning Jiraiya closing in.
"Way to go, brat!" the Toad Hermit called out as he proceeded to give the youngster the messiest noogie possible. Haruto could only offer futile resistance as the bigger man massacred his hair follicles. Minutes later, Jiraiya smiled at his work while Haruto glared back from under his mop of messed up blond locks. As far as the young prankster was concerned, the older nin's action amounted to a declaration of war.
"Oh yeah, let's see how you handle this, Ero-sama!"
The Hokage's eyes widened with realization. "No wait, Haruto, don't!"
It was too late.
"Oiroke no Jutsu!"
Jiraiya instinctively tensed in preparation for battle. The earlier bruises he received from the band of angry females were still fresh. However, as the smoke cleared away and he noticed that his opponent was unarmed and female, the man quickly reverted to baser instincts.
"Hey, your breasts got even bigger!" If Jiraiya were in a more composed state of mind, he probably would not have said that. In his defense, few warm blooded heterosexual males could maintain their composure in the presence of a completely naked blonde bombshell. And the pervert was right about her bust size. This Haruka was almost an entire cup size bigger than her earlier incarnation.
"Yes, yes, they did. I'm so glad you noticed, Jiraiya-sama," the girl cooed with delight. "You're so observant. Perhaps you would like to inspect more closely?" The perky teenager bent forward and squeezed her ample bosoms together in an altogether inviting gesture.
The crashing sound of a chair striking the floor signified the fall of the venerable and great Sandaime Hokage. The old man was an unintended casualty of Haruka's devastating Weapon of Mass Seduction. While her efforts were directed at Jiraiya, this was war and innocents were bound to get caught in the crossfire.
For his part, Jiraiya did not escape unscathed. Based on his nonsensical muttering, Haruto's creation was wreaking havoc with his hormones and mind. On the one hand, his intellect recognized that the fleshy female supermodel before him was a preteen boy. On the other hand, it was really, really hard for the pervert of legendary proportions to care. He had spent years traveling the elemental lands in search of exotic locales and elusive sex goddesses for his books. Had he known what perfection existed within Konoha's very walls, he might never have left the village in the first place.
"I've told you this a million times, Haruto. Please refrain from using that technique in this office," Sarutobi stated sharply after picking himself up from the floor. Haruto immediately dropped the technique and apologized. Of course, it was hard to imagine that he was being sincere, what with that smug grin plastered across his face.
"And Jiraiya, please stop thinking about Haruto's breasts. Remember, he's a twelve-year-old boy." His old sensei's rebuke finally succeeded in punching through Jiraiya's post-traumatic haze. For his own sanctity of mind, however, the Toad Hermit ignored the substance of his teacher's statement. There were just too many things wrong with that thought. The recently transformed youngster, however, found the whole affair hilarious.
"Thank you, Haruto. You may go," Sarutobi stated hurriedly, lest the prankster's presence evoke additional chaos.
"Two zip, eh, Ero-sama?" Haruto crowed, getting in the last word as he Shunshin'd away.
"You dumb brat, I'll get you for this! I swear I will!" The dumb brat, however, was long gone, leaving behind a fuming Toad Hermit and a moderately amused Hokage.
Sarutobi waited until he was sure that the lively youth was gone before gracing his student with a solemn look.
"Thank you, Jiraiya. Your action helped keep Haruto from dwelling on the other things that have happened," he stated. Since this whole operation began, especially after the events of the Forest of Death, the elderly ninja had major concerns about his young prodigy's state of health. He could not even begin to describe how joyous it was to see Haruto happy and carefree even if it lasted but a few minutes.
"I figured I should give the brat a break. And I guess you're right, Sensei. He's a good kid," Jiraiya admitted with a wry grin. His opinion of Minato's kid hadn't changed completely, but it had improved for the better. For one thing, the Toad Hermit just couldn't imagine someone like Orochimaru or Itachi transforming into a female to prank unsuspecting victims.
"I know you don't like what he has become, Jiraiya. And I'm partly to blame for that. I vilify Danzou and his projects, but in the end, am I any different?"
"Sensei, we both know you're nothing like him!" Jiraiya rose almost instinctively to defend his teacher.
Sarutobi seemed to ignore the response as he made his next point.
"Promise me that you'll look after him." The elderly man immediately lifted a hand to stop the expected protests. "I've made too many mistakes to rectify by myself. I need your strength and your help, Jiraiya. Besides, you'll be around, won't you?" The Hokage laid it on thick, giving his student no room to wiggle or maneuver.
At last, a defeated Jiraiya acquiesced to his teacher's wishes. "Of course I'll help, Sensei, but why are you saying this now?" To say the least, he was surprised and disturbed by the finality and defeated tone of his teacher. The Hokage, as usual, refused to clarify.
"Fine. I'd better go settle my things then. Oh, but before I forget…" Jiraiya reached into his pocket and carefully retrieved a small orange book. He handed it to his leader with both hands. "Here's the newest edition. It hits the bookstores next month, but I thought you might not want to wait."
"You are a good man, Jiraiya. Did I ever tell you that you're my best student?" Sarutobi asked in a serious tone. The legendary spymaster chuckled as he nodded.
"A few times. Have a good day, sensei," Jiraiya stated respectfully as he left, knowing that the Sandaime would want to be left alone for the next couple of hours.