It was a very beautiful day in Konohagakure. The sun wasn't too bright, but was still more than enough to bathe the whole village in her warm, vivid light. Sometimes, a light breeze swept through the air, bringing the aroma and petals of sakura blossom across the streets. An ideal weather for an outdoor picnic or hanging out at the park.

But everything was just trivial to Sakura Haruno.

Since after Naruto's departure, Sakura had buried herself in studying and training with her new master, Tsunade. And in just the time of one year, she had become the youngest qualified medic of Konohagakure during the last twenty years, and was the most promising candidate for the position of Head Medic after Tsunade retired in a few more years.

The young girl walked out of the operation room, wiping her forehead with the sleeve of her blouse. The surgery today had been a very serious case; had the patient arrived at the hospital just one hour later, he would have died from blood loss.

"That's enough for today, Sakura. You can go home and get a rest."

At the corner of her eyes, she saw Tsunade coming toward her with a smile. She answered with a tired smile of her own.

"It's all right, Master... I still have more than enough energy to work until my shift ends..."

Tsunade shook her head. "I said enough is enough, Sakura. Besides, you already forgot what day today is?"

Sakura blinked, confused. And then she remembered.

"Ah! Naruto and Fuu are supposed to be home today!"

"It's been three years already, eh? I really miss my friends!"

"Heheh... but this place still hasn't changed a bit! I want ramen!"

"Seriously, you brats..."

The three figures wearing straw hats stopped in front of the gate leading into Konoha. The gatekeepers, Izumo and Kotetsu, were immediately alarmed.

"Halt! Who are you, and what reason are you going to Konoha for...? Wait... you are..."

"Seriously, you guys," the younger man among them chuckled and reached for his hat, "you can forget even someone like me?"

The hat was thrown to the sky, and he disappeared.

A pair of feet landed on top of the tallest electric pole of the market venue of Konohagakure.

"GOOD DAY, KONOHA! NARUTO UZUMAKI IS BACK!"

"Damn, I'm hungry. I really need some ramen right now."

Jiraiya, walking next to Naruto, scowled. "Seriously? Is the only thing you care about in Konoha ramen, Naruto?"

Fuu, walking next to them, raised her hand helpfully. "I want ramen too."

The Toad Sage facepalmed. "What the hell have I taught them in the last three years...?"

The three had just arrived in front of Naruto's beloved Ichiraku Ramen. The blonde jinchuriki flipped the curtain up and walked into the shop.

"Hey old man! I'm back! Hope you haven't forgotten what I like to eat!"

Teuchi looked up from the counter, and a smile immediately bloomed on his face.

"Ah! Naruto! And Fuu too! Finally back, eh?"

"Yeah!" Naruto answered enthusiastically, jumping on a stool. "Some ramen, please, old man! Anything! Three years not allowed to eat your ramen is too much for me already!"

The ramen chef laughed when Fuu and Jiraiya settled themselves on their own stools. "Of course, of course! There is no way I can forget what you like to eat! Everything will be ready in a few minutes!"

As the Ichiraku chef disappeared behind the curtain leading into the kitchen, Jiraiya took a quick glance at other people sitting in the store. The chef's daughter, Ayame, wasn't there; she must have been going out for grocery or something. But he was a bit surprised when no one else in the shop even showed any noticeable reaction upon Naruto's entering.

Hmm... so at least citizens of this village still have a head to think...

He smirked. The days in Konoha were going to be much better days for Naruto in his life...

"Sorry for the wait. Please enjoy."

"Finally! My ramen! It's finally..." Naruto said, drooling at the steaming bowl which had just been set in front of him, but then, he realized that something was wrong, "...here...?"

He looked up, and realized he was looking into a pair of red eyes.

Four pairs of eyes looked at each other in the span of exactly five seconds.

"AAAAAHHH! WHY IS ITACHI HERE?!" Naruto jumped out of his stool and screamed, pointing at Itachi Uchiha, who was standing in front of him... in a cooking apron.

The man in question only raised an eyebrow.

"So what if I'm here?" he answered as if there was nothing more obvious in this world. "I cannot work as a shinobi anymore, so what's wrong with me working here?"

"Buh... buh... but... you... Itachi... ramen... cook..."

Fuu looked at Naruto, who was gaping like a fish next to her. "I think you broke him, Itachi-san," she said.

At that moment, the curtain leading into the shop was pulled open again.

"I knew I could find you here, Naruto!"

Naruto turned to the entrance of the ramen shop, and his face brightened. "Sakura!"

The aforementioned girl grinned, and pulled him into a bone-crushing hug.

"So you finished your training, eh?"

Naruto nodded while sucking in his string of noodle. "Yup! And I must warn you, I'm way stronger than before! Now I'm not scared of anyone, even Madara himself!" he boasted.

'What did I tell you about bragging, Naruto?'

Naruto scowled mentally. 'Oh come on! It's rare to have a chance like this, at least let me have a time for myself!'

Kokuoh in Naruto's head huffed. 'Fine, but don't come to me crying when something happens.'

"Oh, really?" Sakura exclaimed. Then she suddenly broke out a devious smile. "But you should prepare to be scared of us, Naruto."

"Really? Oh, you have been training with baa-chan too, right?" Naruto blinked.

Sakura smiled. "Yeah, but that's not everything. Everyone else of the Konoha 15, after you left for your training trip, also pushed themselves to surpass their own limit over and over. Right now, everyone already advanced to Chuunin, and some, like the whole Team Gai and Shikamaru, had already reached Special Jonin of their specialty! Actually Neji could have gone for full Jonin already, but he just refused the promotion again and again, saying that he needed to gather more experience first... And to be honest, I was surprised when Shikamaru decided to accept his promotion to Special Jonin, considering how lazy he is..."

Naruto's mouth formed an "O". "Wow, that's incredible! So what about you and Sasuke?"

"Oh, us?" Sakura's nose pointed to the air. "We're already Jonin."

Silence.

"WHAT?! SO NOW I'M THE LOWEST RANKING SHINOBI OF TEAM 7?"

"Yup!" Sakura said cheerfully. "And since you already returned, you'd better reach Jonin quickly, because we're not gonna wait for you to catch up to us!"

She ended her sentence with a wink. Naruto was dumbfounded for a few seconds, and then, his surprised face disappeared, replaced by a confident smile.

"Just wait for it! I will catch up to you two so soon you won't be able to realize it, believe it!"

"Yo, jiji! We're back!"

The Third Hokage raised his head from the paperwork he was doing, and smiled. "Ah, Naruto and Fuu! Welcome back! How was the training trip? Brought any baby home yet?"

From three different directions in Konoha, three "WHAT?!" of outrage echoed through the air.

The two jinchuriki turned bright red. "H-Hokage-sama! We're not like that!" Fuu exclaimed, mortified and embarrassed.

Hiruzen laughed. "I'm kidding, I'm kidding. But seriously, I hope the trip was not a waste. Did you two get any stronger than before?"

"Of course!" This time, it was Naruto who answered. "We traveled across the whole Elemental Continent, learned a lot of jutsu, met a lot of cool people in all the lands, and our relationship with our Tailed Beast friends is better than ever! Now we're not afraid of anything, believe it!" he pumped his fist to emphasize.

The Hokage's eyes twinkled. "Then it's all right if I give you two a test, right?"

"Bring it on! I'm not afraid of any stupid test!" Naruto pumped his fist again. Then his face suddenly fell. "Except if it is a written test like before..."

Hiruzen chuckled. "That's something we will leave for later," he said, to Naruto's horror. "But an important ability a jonin needs to have is fighting many enemies of equal or higher skills at the same time. Therefore, the first test I will give you two would be a two-on-one battle between you and two jonin of my choice. And I assure you, they will be nothing like the opponents you have faced so far. Are you up to the challenge?"

The two jinchuriki glanced at each other, and the same confident smirked appeared on their faces.

"Of course we're always ready for any challenge, Hokage-sama!" Fuu said, punching her right palm with her left fist. The Hokage smiled, satisfied.

"Good. Then, Naruto, tomorrow at eight o'clock, you will meet me at Training Ground 7. Fuu, you will go to Training Ground 11, and we will conduct your test there. That's all for today; you can go home to rest and prepare now, or go meet your friends if you want; I'm sure they will be thrilled to meet you two after such a long time. Now, dismiss!"

"Sir!"

After Naruto and Fuu had disappeared behind the door, Hiruzen turned to Jiraiya.

"You were their master during the training trip; how strong do you estimate them to have become?"

The Toad Sage shook his head. "I think you will have to see it yourself to know, sensei. There is only one thing I can say... is that just like I told you before we left, when you look at them fighting, you won't even see the old Naruto and Fuu in them anymore."

"Karin-nee-chan, I'm home!"

A loud crash, and the girl ran out of the kitchen, and engulfed her foster brother in a big hug.

"Aaaaaahhh... it's so good to finally be outside again..." Goku stretched and yawned loudly, before throwing his body on the sofa in the living room.

No one in the room argued with the ape man on that one. Sure, Naruto's mindscape was not bad, but three years having to stay in there without even a chance to get out was just too much for anyone, human or Tailed Beast. Having a real body in the real world is just completely different, nothing else can compare. No wonder why Kurama and the other Tailed Beasts were so pissed being sealed inside jinchuriki.

"So, what did you guys do during your trip?" Karin asked when setting a glass of apple juice, the drink Naruto had taken a fondness of after travelling back in time, to the table. Naruto, of course, grabbed the glass enthusiastically and took a big gulp.

"Oh, a lot of things!" he said after putting the glass down. "We travelled across the land, searching far and wide... OW! What the hell was that for?!"

Karin calmly retracted her fist, which had just landed on Naruto's cranium. "That's for ripping off Pokémon, idiot. Now, go straight to the point."

Naruto rubbed the place where he had just been punched in annoyance. "Geez, you really don't know what a joke is... But seriously, during the trip we did go searching for a lot of things. We also managed to reach the ruins of the destroyed Uzushiogakure, you know."

Karin's mouth turned into an "O". "Really? How was it? Did you find anything there?" she asked in thrill. Naruto shrugged.

"Not much, since almost everything of the village was destroyed already, remember? But here, I managed to bring back something I think you will like."

He pulled out a sealing scroll from his weapon pouch, opened it up then unsealed the content. A very thick, very big book the size of half the table popped out of the scroll in a puff of smoke. Karin grabbed the book, and gasped.

"Uzumaki's Hidden Sealing Arts... Naruto, do you know how valuable this book is? Many sealmasters in the world have been hunting for it, including Orochimaru! How did you..."

Naruto shrugged again. "Yeah, I know. Found it in a secret room below the ruins. I really didn't want to, but Pervy Sage forced me to learn everything in it by heart, so yeah, I don't really need it much by now. You just keep it to learn, Karin-chan. And don't worry about protecting it; I've sealed it up so that only people with Uzumaki bloodline can open it, so for now, only the two of us and maybe Tsunade-baa-chan can have any use for it."

Karin stared at the book in front of her in awe. Having stayed with Orochimaru, she had heard about this incredible treasure countless times, but to be able to actually hold it on her hands...

Then remembering something, she turned to Naruto. "You said you learned it by heart? How in the world can you remember something like this," she pointed at the huge book with a trembling finger, "by heart? It's like, thousands of sealing jutsu written in here!"

Naruto just shrugged again. "Shadow Clone Jutsu, of course."

Karin facepalmed. Sure, any problem which can't be solved by one Shadow Clone can be solved by a lot of Shadow Clones, at least to this blonde brat.

Then she blinked. "Wait, that means you can use ninjutsu without your right hand? How is that possible?"

Naruto just gave her a mysterious smile. "Oh, there are still many things you haven't known about me, Karin-chan."

Right at that time, the doorbell rang.

"Oh, seriously! We've just been outside for five minutes!" Shukaku complained.

"Well, I guess it's time for us to return, eh?" Isobu yawned, and the Tailed Beasts disappeared in puffs of smoke, leaving only Karin and Naruto in the room.

"I'll take it!" Naruto jumped out of his chair and walked to the front door. He grabbed the doorknob with his left hand, twisted it open...

...and heard a loud gasp, then, his vision was covered in a mop of silky black hair.

"Yeah, I miss you too," he murmured, hugging back the girl who was crushing his ribs while crying heartily, "Hinata-chan."

After that, Naruto and Hinata were kicked out of the house by a giggling Karin, who said something about having to start reading her precious book and that the two of them "should go for a date to make up for three years not meeting each other", much to Naruto's rage and Hinata's squeaks of embarrassment.

Therefore, now they're walking in the park near the Hyuuga clan compound, hand in hand, just like a real couple. Poor Hinata was on the verge of fainting from blood rushing into her head. But that's understandable, as Naruto was also a blushing wreck at the moment.

Yeah, three years of being taught about romantic love by Jiraiya, of all people, finally managed to bash the concept of "love" into the skull thicker than a coconut of the boy. Good for him; at least now he didn't think romantic love to be the same as ramen love anymore.

Walking next to Hinata, Naruto finally had the chance to look at the girl up close. Before, even in his timeline, he could never get this close to the Hyuuga girl without her fainting or they being in a huge battle. And his blush deepened when he realized how beautiful the girl in front of him was.

Hinata wasn't someone who liked to dress up, like Ino or other girls. But even without any makeup on her face, Naruto could still feel a serene beauty coming from her. Maybe it was because of her pearly eyes, which always holds the same gentle, caring look. Or maybe it was because of the scent of lavender sent to his nose every time a breeze swept across. Or maybe it was the long, silky black hair flowing down her shoulders. Or maybe it was what even the thick, figure-hiding jacket she always wore couldn't hide, her voluptuous, D-cup...

Gah! Bad, bad Naruto! You cannot think of Hinata-chan like that!

"Aww... our Naruto-kun is growing up~" Matatabi cooed in his head.

"But seriously, is there even a man in this world not thinking of her like that?" Goku added in. "I mean, just look at her! That pair of soft, bouncy melo..."

"SHUT UUUUUUUUP!"

To stop his utter embarrassment, Naruto turned to Hinata. "H-hey, Hinata-chan! So how was it during the three years I was gone? It must be awesome, huh? Hahaha..."

Upon finishing his sentence, Naruto immediately felt like to slap himself. With him away from Konoha for three whole years, there's no way she could feel awesome about it...

...right?

'You are overestimating yourself too much there, Naruto.'

But contrary to what Naruto thought, Hinata answered him with a gentle smile.

"Mm... well... I have learnt a lot during the three years from Neji-niisan and Father, and... well... even though I am still not as good as Neji-niisan, I still managed to reach chuunin, so... I'm sure that if anything happens I won't be a helpless girl who always has to depend on you, Naruto-kun."

Naruto stared at Hinata in awe. Not only had she become more beautiful during the three years, she had also grown much, much more confident in herself. Naruto dared say that she's now anything but the doormat she had been a few years ago.

"Having a date five minutes after arriving home? You sure got bold after those three years, Naruto."

Naruto nearly jumped out of his clothes upon hearing the voice right next to his ears. "I-I-Ino!? When did you get here? And how...?!"

'Oh, maybe because you paid too much attention to your precious Hinata-chan to notice anything else about you?' Kurama snarked in his head.

"Yep, that's me!" the girl in question grinned cheekily, flashing a peace sign at him. Then she licked her lips in a naughty way. "And you look much yummier than three years ago, mmm..."

"Ino-san!" Hinata protested in a voice that could be considered half a shriek.

Ino laughed. "I'm kidding, I'm kidding, Hinata. I'm not going to steal your boyfriend..." - this part gained her another squeak of protest from the poor Hyuuga girl - "...after all, I already had one, remember?"

Naruto blinked. "Wait, you already had a boyfriend?"

"She has been dating Juugo for about two years already," Shikamaru, the one next to Ino, said. "Seriously, that guy is just unreasonably nice. I swear I can't even believe he used to work for Orochimaru..."

"So," Choji, the last member of Team 10, butted in with a bright smile, "to celebrate Naruto and Fuu coming back, let's go to my family's restaurant! We should invite everyone else, too; they're also eager to meet you two!"

Naruto laughed. "Awesome! I'm still keeping the coupons you gave me three years ago, hope they still work!"

"Of course, of course! We Akimichi BBQ always welcome you..."

"So you're finally home, Boss!"

Naruto blinked at the sudden interrupting voice. "Huh...?"

Then the whole park was covered in smoke.

"Wha... what the...?!" Naruto coughed out.

From inside the smokescreen emerged two human figures.

"Behold, the ultimate man-slaying jutsu, the most perfect, powerful form of the Sexy Art! Sexy: Girl-on-Girl Jutsu!"

The smoke cleared, and nosebleeding ensued.

Naruto facepalmed when he saw the figures of naked Hinata and Ino straddling each other in a very provocative way in front of him, with Shikamaru and Choji lying on the ground unconscious in puddles of their own blood.

"Konohamaru..."

Konohamaru gave him a smirk when the two female figures disappeared, leaving the original boy in a cloud of