In the vast desert of sands on nowhere, several shinobi were looking for something. It was hotter than anywhere else on the continent. But for them, its just a typical day. For this is their home, it is where they were born. This much heat were nothing to them. They were Shinobi of the Hidden Sand Village. Its been days since their failed invasion on the Hidden Leaf Village. However, what made them frustrated is something else. They were unable to find something they were searching for several days.

“Damn it! We are going nowhere with this again! Divide into two man teams! Search every corner, every rock, every crevices on the sands! Check everything!”The captain decided to divide further his squad, they decided to separate once again to spread out.

Many have died foolishly on that invasion. It would be their greatest regret and also their greatest mistake since the founding of their village. Their ancestors would be rolling in their graves if they ever heard about it.

Then they all heard a loud sound of a whistle. All of them rushed to the source.

Finally.

Several teams of Suna-nin quickly appeared by group on the said location of the one who used the whistle.

“It’s over here.” The suna-nin who found it pointed at the sand pit.

They were shocked to their terror and anger at the sight.

“Th-this is-”

“It can’t be!”

Several dead bodies were on the bottom of the said pit. Already rotting with maggots and sand flies. Few of the Suna-nin jumped to the bottom and investigated further. It took them several minutes before they looked to the one commanding them.

“They’re…already dead for several days. The state… of their body says that it has been a while… since they were killed...” The inspector of the bodies even hesitated to continue. Especially when the dead bodies he just looked were people whom he greatly respected.

“Out with it!” one of the angry captain impatiently asked.

“My… estimates were probably…fuck, fuck!” it almost seemed like he punched his forehead but he just slapped it to force himself to continue. “-ever since before the start of the Chunin Exams with Konohagakure.”

All of the suna-nin who heard this was immediately doused in the waters of despair. Because it only means one thing and it confirmed it to their very eyes and ears in this very moment.

“I see… so that’s what happened!!” the commander of the search party gripped his fists in pure anger that it caused it to bleed. His own gritting teeth caused his gums to bleed the same.

“That bastard, Orochimaru!”

They can only cry in mourning for their dead Kazekage that is still being hideously devoured by maggots.

The true cause of the invasion have finally revealed itself. Orochimaru killed their Kazekage and his bodyguards. Then he and Kabuto pretended to be the Kazekage then plotted an invasion to Konoha. They were able to use the entire Suna-nin of the Hidden Sand Village to their own devious plots.

They were all stupidly deceived as mindless puppets. The real mastermind behind all of this is not their Kazekage but the snake they stupidly trusted.

“This was extremely careless of us! Fuck!”

“Tell the elders to immediately send a missive and envoy to Konoha! Tell them everything that happened here!”

We must end this before any battle starts! We just lost an ally for betraying them. And our credibility was lost at the same time. No village would ally themselves with us now. Worse, their former enemies other than Konoha would make this as an opportunity to strike and no one will ever help them.

A complete surrender is to be declared to the Hidden Leaf. If this is the only way to save their village from destruction of a new war, then so be it. They can still heal from this wounds and losses.

Then they will have their revenge.

“Orochimaru, you snake bastard! We will forever remember this!”

:x:x:x:x:x:x:x:

Its been days since the attack. For the citizens of Konoha, it was back to their normal lives. Businesses are back to normal. Public Baths were one of them. Especially for shinobi that helped fix and clean the ruins of the attack.

For Karasu and her fellow female jounin friends, it was a great day for a bath and relaxation.

“Ahhh! Finally!” she exclaimed. “I can feel the exhaustion leaving me…”

“I heard that the cake shop nearby have reopened! We should visit later!” her friend undid her towels and took a dip to the waters.

“I want to have a tea and sweet chocolate cake…”

“Arent you worried that you get fat from over eating?” one of them giggled in tease.

“I heard from Anko that most of the time, fats goes through your chest first.” Karasu said.

“I think that only applies to her.” A girl said in tired smile. “Mine haven’t grown in years no matter how much I eat.”

“Then let me help you with that!” Karasu suddenly groped the girl’s chest. “I heard massages help its growth also!”

“Kyaaa!! Nooo!! What the hell are you doing!”

Series of giggles and laughs were floating on their private rest circle.

However, someone else was joining their fun.

Enjoying it more than them.

“Hehehehehehehe!” a perverted laugh came out from a voyeur. A man in red clothes and with great white mane was peeking at them through his own personal spyglass. He took advantage that the girls chose the open air bath and he made himself comfortable on top of the building higher than the bathhouse. “Keep it coming girls. Hehehehe.”

Then he heard a familiar voice behind him.

“I see that you still haven’t given up on foolish things. Haven’t you Jiraiya?” it was an old voice of a woman. Even much older than him.

“I’m just doing it once in a while for reference.” He replied without turning. Then he made a one last look at the naked sight from his spyglass and stood. He folded his favorite tool and notebook back to his sling.

Two elderly people were looking at him with indifference. Old but they carry much authority on this village. They assist in helping the Hokage run things, both civilian and military issues.

“Homura Oichan and Koharu-sensei, right?” he asked. “What business does the committee advisors of Konoha have with me?”

The attack on the Sandaime left him cripple and injured. Not capable anymore to be a Hokage of this village. He had retired once when he gave the mantle to Yondaime, Minato. But was forced to take it back when the Fourth died. And this time, Sarutobi made a strong case to make his retirement. It is not possible for him to continue such position. They must choose someone that could carry the village name under his or her name. So they as trusted advisors of this village, they were only in front of him for one thing.

“What business are we here for?” the old man repeated his question. “We have something to tell you. And you probably already understand why.”

“So you say… even though your faces don’t look like it, the talks with the Sand (A/N: Sunagakure or Hidden Sand Village) are going well, hasn’t it been concluded?” Jiraiya sneered.

“Right now… the relationship with the sand is not that important.” The old man dismiss his question. “The power of Hidden Leaf is declining. People are starting to get scared. Clients were making questions. Bad questions for our reputation. Under these circumstances, the top priority is now to make preparation for the upcoming crisis. Against the worst case scenario.”

“Because we do not know when the neighboring villages will take such bold actions once again. It will still depends…” the old woman continued for her colleague. “Until the power of the village is restored, several of our top members from the army were summoned to form a committee. This is how emergency executive committee were always formed. And this is how this matter was decided and always dealt with… now first of all…”

Both of the elders looked at him with unknown tense. He always have a hard time reading old men and women.

“We need a strong leader to rely on.” The old woman said. “Especially right now. There is some troubling issues that will be coming to our way. And it is not only Orochimaru.”

“You see, what we’ve been trying to say is that we need to build a foundation for this plan against any more future threats. And one of them is to select a new hokage. A Go Daime hokage is needed.” The old woman added.

“And also, at the urgent meeting with the Fire Country’s Daimyo yesterday…” she looked at him with resolve eyes.

“…Jiraiya we decided it to be you.”

“…”

“This is the decision we have made. So-” the old man said but he was interrupted by Jiraiya.

“Unlucky for you.” He raised his right hand to stop them from continuing.

“I’m not the type for it.”

They were still making expressions as if they were indifferent but now, Jiraiya could sense that theres a slight disappointment in their faces.

“Are you not one of the Three Legendary Sannin of Leaf?” the old man asked. “If you are not the type then tell us who else is.”

“You elderly truly are getting senile.” Jiraiya shrugged. “Did you forgot that there is another person among us three?”

“Hm…” the two elders knew who he was talking about.

“That person comes from a line of Hokage and was far better suited to this role due to her personality, skills and beliefs.” Jiraiya scratched his back before continuing. “That person is Tsunade.”

“That is true… but even if that woman is qualified to succeed… we do not know of her whereabouts.” The old woman said.

“That’s why I am leaving the village for now.” Jiraiya raised his sling on his back. “I am going to look for her and bring her back. Then that shouldn’t be a problem, right?”

“…” the two elders looked at each other and returned their gaze on him.

“We understand. We will take that matter into consideration immediately.” The old man nodded.

“However, you need to bring several ANBU with you for your Search Party.” The old woman clarified.

Am I not that trustworthy? Jiraiya felt a little sting at such offer.

“I’m not going to run away so that’s a little excessive to have someone watch over me. However, there is one person I would like to accompany me.” Jiraiya smiled mischeviously. “I found and interesting new egg.”

:x:x:x:x:x:x:x:

"Sven? Are you alright?" Beta asked when she noticed how the older boy had frozen all of sudden.

"I... yes, I'm fine," he said, pinching the bridge of his nose. "I thought I had felt something, for a moment. I'm probably just tired."

"Maybe because Sven has read so much lately," Ta'Sava offered. Yes, it was probably that. That morning Master Conrad had retired to the basement that they had been forced to build. He’d carried along an armful of things and asked not be disturbed unless someone was trying to kill them. He still hadn’t emerged.

So they had been left mostly to their own devices, and after some simple experiments with new spells they had opted to study and compare notes. They didn't have many books from Tamriel, either in Nordic or Cyrodilic, and between the three of them they had read all of them by now. There were also the books in Akaviri, of course. Mostly about history, geography and a few other subjects that Inoichi had declared 'not classified'.

They weren't sure what was more tiring, reading all these volumes in multiple languages or Master Conrad's 'practical lessons'.

The silence in the clearing was broken by the sound of yet another balloon being torn apart. The trio looked up to see Naruto, Conrad's nephew, sitting on a charred piece of rock and loudly voicing his dismay.

Strangely, the sounds of the small toys blowing up weren't that disturbing. It was like having a clock: the kid would destroy a balloon just every few minutes. They had even timed the brewing of their tea based on them.

The boy looked up, as if he was sensing being observed. Sven met his eyes but quickly went back to his tome. He didn’t want to make the kid feel bad for having an audience witness his failures, and Sven still had a few chapters to go and notes to take.

He had barely read a page when he heard Master Conrad’s nephew sit beside him.

"Uh, hey," the younger boy told them. "What are you guys doing?"

"Studying," Sven said, pointing at the small pile of books.

"Sounds boring."

"It's fascinating, actually," Beta countered, picking up some of the notes she had written down so far. "Especially since there is so much Tamriel doesn't know or had forgotten about Akavir."

“Akavir?” Naruto asked, looking genuinely confused.

“That’s… wait, you guys call it the Elemental Nations, right?” Beta quickly asked. Naruto nodded and she continued. “See, Akavir is what these lands were called by your people a long time ago, and how Tamriel still calls them.”

“Maybe the Akaviri changed the name after all this time,” Ta’Sava suggested.

“But why would they have to change it?” Sven asked.

“Ta’Sava doesn’t know, Ta’sava is just guessing.”

“Anyway, we have known about this continent for a long time but most of what was written in the books, it turns out were… err…”

“Wrong,” Sven offered. “I can’t wait to see what the teachers at Winterhold will say when we’ll tell them.”

“Hey, at least you knew that we existed,” Naruto said. “We didn’t know about you guys at all.”

“Very strange, that,” Beta said. “We were invaded by your people a few times, you know.”

“Really? We did?”

“Yes. But that was thousands of years ago.”

“How do you know all that stuff?”

“Books,” Ta’Sava answered for everyone. “The three of us are students at this… school, back in Skyrim.”

“And we have to read a lot,” Beta added.

“How long do people have to study in school where you are from?” the kid asked.

“Arch-Mage Ervine always says that a wizard never stops studying,” Beta explained with a smile. “That’s, uh, the leader of our school.”

“Oh, like the Hokage?” Naruto asked, being suddenly very interested.

“I wouldn’t put it like that, the Hokage is the leader of Konoha, right?” Sven asked.

“You bet,” Naruto nodded. “And one day, I’m going to be Hokage too!”

Sven looked at his friends, who didn’t seem to know how to react to that statement. “Anyway, the Arch-Mage is the leader of the school, not the city around it.”

“Oh,” the kid said, almost sounding disappointed. Didn’t he realize how powerful an Arch-Mage could be?! “So, about all the stuff you’re learning…”

“Yes?” Sven asked, wondering when he could go back to his studies.

“Can you tell me about it?”

:x:x:x:x:x:x:x:

One more day, one more time Kakashi-sensei was late. Team 7, minus their lazy teacher, was waiting near the bridge they used as a meeting place, trying to distract themselves with various things to not be utterly bored.

Sasuke was practicing shuriken. Sakura was checking the explosive tag she had prepared. She had taken a bit of an interest in them after the fight with Gaara and had asked Kakashi-sensei to teach her. It was a dud, obviously, just for training purposes. Otherwise Naruto and Sasuke would’ve been standing a bit further away.

Naruto could’ve practiced creating a Rasengan, not that he was getting anywhere yet. Instead, he was moping. But he had a good reason!

“I can’t believe he made me clean my room.”

“Quit whining, Naruto,” Sakura said while making a few corrections to her tag. “That’s what parents do.”

“First of all, he’s my uncle,” Naruto pointed out. “But still, it’s my room. I’m the only person living there! Why does it matter if it’s messy?”

“A tidy room is a good thing,” she replied without looking up. The thump of Sasuke’s shuriken against the target got a bit louder.

“But he threatened to ban ramen for a week if I didn’t clean it!” he said, still not able to believe that had actually happened. That made her look up at him.

“Wait, you’ve never… you haven’t done chores before? Never been punished for misbehaving?”

Naruto thought about it. “I’ve been punished for my pranks?”

“That’s not...” she sighed, putting down the equipment and turning towards him. “Look, that’s normal, you see? That’s what parents, or family, do! They make you clean your room, do chores and eat healthier food.”

“Again, he’s my uncle! And I’m not sure his food is that healthy…” he mumbled remembering the assortment of odd dishes his uncle and Sven had prepared. Lots of meat, lots of cheese—which had led to a lot of comments about the village not having the right kind of cheese—, lots of spices, lots of butter, almost no rice, a lot of bread... oh dang, he was hungry now. It was all tasty, even the ones that had more vegetables than Naruto cared for. But it wasn't ramen!

"I mean, your uncle is pretty much your parent, isn't he? I know my mom always makes me eat her weird cooking too. Sounds like the same thing to me."

“They don’t use chopsticks either, Sakura-chan!” Naruto continued. “My uncle saidー”

"Would you keep it down? You’re distracting me," Sasuke interrupted, biting out the words through clenched teeth. Much to Naruto and Sakura’s surprise, quite a few of the Uchiha’s weapons had missed their mark.

For a few moments nobody said anything. Sakura returned her attention to the paper tag, Sasuke started pulling his shuriken out of the tree he had been using as a target and Naruto considered taking out the equipment for the Rasengan. Then an idea came to him.

“Hey, Sasuke, what do you think about it?”

Sasuke stood straighter before turning around to glare coldly at him. For a moment, Naruto was sure that he had said something wrong for some reason, then Sasuke just looked away. “I think you should learn that jutsu you’ve been trying to use for weeks.”

Puzzled, Naruto looked at his teammate. “Yeah, but I still don’t know what to do about my weird uncle who won’t stop telling me what to do!”

“I’m going for a walk,” Sasuke said sharply before leaving the two of them by the bridge.

“Hey, come on! What should I do?!”

“Sasuke-kun, remember that Kakashi-sensei was supposed to be here one hour ago, so be sure to come back in two, tops!” Sakura yelled at their teammate’s retreating form before turning towards Naruto. “Honestly, just do what your uncle asks you so you won’t be grounded.”

“Grounded?” Naruto repeated the alien word he had never used before. “But he can’t do that! …can he?”

:x:x:x:x:x:x:x:

Streets of Konoha were once again bustling with people continuing their lives and work. The former image of a ruinous invasion have finally disappeared from the surface.

“Phew! That’s quite a village to return to their normal days just days after an invasion. So this is Leaf, huh. I had to admit, I’m impressed.”

Two men in black cloaks with straw hats were overlooking the village center on a high tree branch. Then they instantly jumped to the ground without even making anyone suspicious of their landing. They walked through the crowded streets. Children playing hit them once in a while, and they continue on.

“It’s been a long time since your homecoming. What do you think?” the taller man that carries a large rectangular thing that’s covered in bandage said. “Let’s stop by that sweet shop before we do our search.”

On a far corner of their sight was a famous sweet shop that he had once visited frequently in the past.

“Yeah that sounds good…” the smaller one answered.

They walked confidently with their black cloack with red clouds.

It has been a while.