I'm not loyal to the Hokage, but ra

I'm not loyal to the Hokage, but rather, to the true king of Konoha: the future. That of course, includes the one who will lead us in the future." His sharp gaze slide over to Naruto, whose serious expression was ruined slightly by the blush on his whiskered cheeks. "He's still a bit of a loose-cannon idiot, but I agree with Naruto's ideas about the future of Konoha. That's why I serve him as my future Hokage. And since he dreams of a future where our actions are not ruled by hatred, I can reach my personal verdict quite easily. I believe that Sasuke Uchiha should be allowed his repentance: he should be allowed to serve the Leaf as a shinobi."

"Shikamaru…" Naruto breathed, his eyes swimming with emotion.

The genius tactician ignored him, looking towards the balcony. "I can't speak for my comrades, though."

Within seconds, the rest of the Konoha Eleven were on their feet. Sakura stepped forward, tears glistening on her cheeks. She looked around quickly, and after receiving nods of reassurance from everyone, she raised her voice. "We also stand behind Naruto as the future of Konoha. The Konoha Eleven agree with Shikamaru's verdict!"

A low mutter passed through the jury and the council. The judge nodded. "So, the future stands firmly behind their opinion. Now, the difficult part is for the past, and the present, to reach a verdict of their own." His eyes passed over the jury, which was composed of active Jounin, and the council, which was made up of Elders and their representatives.

The form of Naruto's clone suddenly flickered. "Damn, I'm out of chakra." He muttered, leaning over to pat Shikamaru's shoulder. "I'm returning to the original. I'll leave the rest to you, you know?"

As soon as the clone disappeared, the real debate began. Having said everything that he deemed important, Sasuke was guided back to his cell. Shikamaru smirked as he crossed his arms, preparing himself to ride out a storm that he predicted would last for the remainder of the night.

The following afternoon, Naruto was summoned to the Hokage's office. A heavy chill had settled over the village as evening approached, chasing most of the people into the warmth of their houses. Naruto's feet were as heavy as his heart as he made his way through the quiet streets, apprehensive as he wondered why Tsunade had summoned him before the official verdict from Sasuke's trial had been made.

The halls of the Hokage's mansion were just as silent as the street, the lights dimmed for the evening. Naruto's heart began to race nervously as he neared a familiar door, raising his fist to knock gently. When a soft voice summoned him from within, he twisted the handle; his blue eyes immediately locking onto light brown ones. The pig-tailed Hokage managed a small smile despite the dark circles under her eyes.

"Close the door, Naruto." She said, her voice hoarse. She shuffled through her paper work as Naruto did what he was asked before coming to stand before her. For a few minutes, she continued to scan the various papers and scrolls, pausing occasionally to sign or stamp something. Naruto waited patiently, sensing that her good mood was precarious at the moment. His patience was finally rewarded.

"We've been debating ever since your clone left yesterday afternoon." She said without looking up from her paperwork. "I had to excuse myself early. I'm still the Hokage, you know. All this paperwork piles up really quickly. Maybe I should start getting you to help me with it…"

Naruto remained silent as Tsunade's pen continued to scratch across the paper. A bead of sweat rolled down his temple as he fought to keep himself from making a sudden outburst.

"Come on, tell me what's going to happen to Sasuke!"

"By the way," Tsunade said, glancing up. "We received another message from the Cloud. It seems that Bee has managed to get that opposing faction under control for now, but they still request that you make your way there as soon as possible."

Naruto frowned. "I was planning to head out as soon as a verdict had been reached for Sasuke. But, if they don't need me to fight, what exactly do they expect me to do there? I'm not a politician or a smooth speaker or anything, you know?"

"It's a display of trust." The Hokage said, signing off the last scroll. "Raikage plans to show you the situation first hand, so you are fully aware of what's going on. You will probably have an opportunity to talk to one of the members of that rebelling group as well. Also, Raikage hopes to dispel any doubts that any of the people of the Cloud may have by allowing them to see you for themselves."

Naruto rubbed at his head. "I guess that makes sense. If it's a political mission like that, I definitely can't send a clone."

Tsunade nodded in agreement. She reached for her tea, avoiding Naruto's unblinking gaze as she sipped it. Tension hung in the awkward silence as the minutes crawled by. Finally, Tsunade slammed down her cup, her exhaustion finally dissolving her patience.

"I wish I had more time to talk to you about this, Naruto. I'd prefer to have official documentation and mission objectives to hand you but there isn't time. The final verdict will depend on your response to what I'm about to say."

Naruto stepped forward, his face set seriously. "Tell me what's going on, Granny."

The Hokage leaned forward, her expression just as intense. "Are you willing to accept a life-long mission, one that will challenge your devotion to this village? If you accept this mission, you will be carrying the fate of your comrades, Naruto. Are you prepared to shoulder this burden?"

Naruto's blue eyes scanned the face of his Hokage. Finally, he nodded firmly.

"So be it." Tsunade said. "I will now explain your top-secret mission: Operation Moon-Guardian."

Inoichi Yamanaka, head of the Intel division, rubbed at his eyes tiredly. He made his way down the silent hallway, slipping quietly into the room where a silver-haired ninja awaited him. Kakashi looked up from his book, one dark and disinterested eye the only visible part of his face. He snapped the book shut after carefully marking his page, leaning back comfortably against the frame of the open window. Behind him, the sunset burned red and orange, the light gleaming in Kakashi's pale hair.

"How did it go, Inoichi?"

The blond sighed heavily as he deposited himself onto a bench, crossing his arms over his chest. "Well, everything they said appears to be true. I scoured Sasuke's mind for a good few hours, and it doesn't seem like they hid anything from us."

He looked up, the fiery sunset reflected in his piercing blue eyes. After a moment of thought, he shook his head sadly. "I've been doing this job for a long time, Kakashi. And I have to say, I've never examined a mind like that Uchiha boys before. Every single thought was surrounded by turmoil. Such a dark and reckless mind. And yet, the boy is extremely intelligent, and by looking at his life, I can't help but feel pity for him."

Kakashi averted his gaze, studying the ground before his feet. A flock of sparrows took flight from a nearby tree, spiraling as a disorganized mass before setting course for the Nara forest. Feeling the gaze of the other man on him, Kakashi peered upwards with a questioning hum.

"Kakashi," Inoichi began in a low voice. "I can't help but be worried after seeing Sasuke's mind. It's true that he's forsaken his desire for revenge, but that void has been filled with a psychological dependency on Naruto that borders on obsession. The type of thing you only see in couples who have been married for fifty-odd years: like he has no idea how to exist without Naruto."

Much to Inoichi's confusion, the legendary sharingan user began to laugh. A smile crinkled the corners of his eye as he shook his head slowly. "If you were to take a peek into Naruto's mind, I'm positive that you would see something similar."

"Sensei?"

Kakashi swung his weight forward lazily, walking over to sit on the bench. He examined his gloved hands for a moment, collecting his thoughts.

"Keep in mind, Inoichi, that their bond is one that transcended time and distance; one that ignored their differences. What the two of them have was strong enough to destroy every obstacle that stood in their way, including hatred. Their bond goes beyond that of comrades, and I daresay beyond friendship as well. I think that what exists between those two can be labeled as nothing other than love. Neither of them have families, and I think they have filled that void with each other."

Kakashi turned to smile at the open-mouthed Yamanaka. "I'm extremely proud of my students." He said. "Honestly, I'm almost a little jealous. It must be nice to have a bond like that."

Before Inoichi could reply, the sound of footsteps echoed from down the hall. They turned in unison to see Naruto and Tsunade walking side-by-side. Naruto had gone through another growth spurt recently, Kakashi noticed. His limbs had become rather long and elegant, and for a moment, under the glowing light of the sunset, Kakashi almost thought he was looking at his old sensei.

Inoichi jumped to attention, saluting formally. "Tsunade-sama, Naruto-sama!"

Kakashi also rose to his feet, still staring in disbelief as Naruto came to stand in front of him, his blue eyes level with the copy-nins. Naruto noticed his scrutiny, glancing over questioningly.

"At ease, Inoichi." Tsunade said with a soft smile. "Have you finished your investigation?"

"Yes, Hokage-sama." He said, glancing nervously at Naruto. "It seems that everything they claimed is true. I found no information significant enough to alter the verdict."

The tension visibly drained out of Naruto's shoulders. The Hokage nodded curtly. "Excellent work, Inoichi. Let's proceed to the court room."