[POV 1st person Terumi Yoshihiro]
"This would put a single of your ration pills at a price equivalent to almost ten regular ration pills," the Hokage said with a frown.
"Which I personally find to be heavily in Konoha's favor," I countered with an indifferent, borderline bored expression.
"Your vague promises don't make the pill sound ten times more powerful," Utatane Koharu spat with a scoff.
"For the same amount of pills they carry, your shinobi will be able to feed themselves with these pills three times as long. What price would you put on that?"
"Not ten times the regular price. The convenience of these pills already lies in the fact that they take up no space and provide nutrition for extended periods of time," Mitokado Homura argued sternly.
"When was the last time you were on a mission that required you to survive on pills instead of food?"
"What does that have to do with anything?"
"He's saying your argument is stupid because you don't know what you are talking about," Tsunade chimed in with a fed-up expression. "Convenience does not scale linearly. And Kiri's ration pills also provide more trace elements and fiber to the one consuming them. One can live on these pills for weeks. If you do that with the ration pills of our village, you will suffer from malnutrition."
Sarutobi Hiruzen looked like he wanted to scold his student immediately, arguing that she should not speak up for their 'enemy' and ridiculing a village elder in front of the envoy, me. But he kept quiet and merely gave both Tsunade and Mitokado a sign.
"We agree to your terms, but we want more pills," the Hokage decided. Tsunade might have spoken out of turn. But her point remained painfully true.
Additionally, he wanted to see if they truly couldn't replicate these pills. Danzō might have failed to get one of the recipes, but if they had enough pills, eventually they could figure out the secret. That was extremely unlikely, unless one of the twins Tsunade birthed inherited my talents… and sought me out for tutelage, of course.
I kept looking between the members of the Konoha delegation, staying quiet for a while. As the lone alchemist on the planet, I calculated the worth of my time for a while before conceding, "5% increase and you will pay the difference in ryo directly to me."
"Deal," Hiruzen said immediately without allowing anyone else to mess up the deal he was able to negotiate.
I could create hundreds of pills at a time in one furnace. For easy recipes that I figured out over a decade ago, I could even create this amount in minutes while half-asleep. In fact, I could just task some clones with making the easy pills. With the time dilation inside my plant dimension, I or one of my clones would waste about two minutes of real time for Konoha's demands each month.
A five percent increase would rob me of a few minutes each crafting spree at most. Potentially just a little more chakra as I tasked an additional clone with making the pills.
"In that case, sign my offer and I'll be on my way," I ordered and rolled up the scroll in front of me before tossing it across the table.
After that, I took out some dango from my plant dimension, pretending to take them from my sleeve. I bought them earlier just before the meeting.
After my second bite, I looked at the stick for a moment. There was no dango shop in Kiri. The only food available was rice, meat, and fish. No bakeries, just three bars with very mediocre alcohol made from fermented rice.
'I should see if I can't attract some capable artisans to Kiri. I can't believe I didn't eat any sweet food other than fruit in twenty years and never thought about that.'
I didn't see when he did, but the Third Hokage gave the signed scroll to Jiraiya who walked around the table to hand it to me.
"One more thing; By now, you should realise that I am also an Uzumaki. The next person scheming to systematically bully Uzumaki Naruto will have their entire clan wiped out. Plotting Tsunade's return to Konoha to correct this wrong will be my last leniency in this matter."
And with that threat I gave Tsunade a last look and walked out of the conference room.
Once outside the Hokage Tower I looked in a certain direction and disappeared from the perception of the ANBU who were tasked to look after me and arrived at a playground not far from the Senju compound at the very heart of Konoha.
"I'll catch you, villain!" A small child was chasing after another in a game of catch. The younger, blonde child was running faster and faster as more kids joined in.
Despite being chased by half a dozen brats, the blonde kid was never even close to getting caught. But nobody was pouting or angry. The blonde kid's laugh as he dodged everyone lifted the mood of the others like sweet ice tea in summer.
Eventually, the kid getting chased bumped into me, was caught, and the children quickly picked another 'villain' to chase.
"Are you okay?" I asked after bending down.
"How were you there, uncle? You appeared out of nowhere!" The blonde kid asked as he rubbed his butt where he had landed before.
"I am a very powerful shinobi and used a powerful jutsu to make myself invisible," I answered with a smirk.
Naruto's eyes started to shine before he looked at me guardedly.
"You don't have a Konoha headband!"
"True, I don't belong to your village," I admitted with a polite smile.
"I'm not supposed to talk to strangers," Naruto smartly argued as his posture turned guarded.
I shook my head with a gentle smile and argued, "Then you're in luck. I'm not a stranger. We're family."
Naruto's suspicious look only grew more concerned.
Before he could run or shout for help, I held up my hand and gestured at my hair.
"Did Tsunade not tell you about your parents after adopting you?"
"Yeah, Tsunade-neechan told me about them," Naruto admitted as he looked at my hair color and it looked like he might arrive at the answer in a few hours if I allowed him to think.
With a sigh, I turned around and pointed at the swirl at the back of my kimono. The same one he had on the back of his own jacket.
"I am an Uzumaki, just like Uzumaki Kushina, your mother."
Naruto's eyes widened dramatically before he tilted his head and pointed out smartly, "Tsunade-neechan said I was one of the last Uzumaki."
"That's true. Around the time your mother came to Konoha as a young child a little older than you now, the home of the Uzumaki was destroyed," I explained with a nod. "There's not many of us left."
Naruto turned sad for a short moment before he shook his head and muttered, "So that's why neechan never told me why."
Half a minute of silence later, Naruto finally looked up again and asked, "Why are you here, uncle?"
"I just wanted to see how you are doing now," I said with a smile as I placed my hand on his head. My chakra ran through his body and checked it. He hadn't been given my bloodline pill yet, clearly.
But it seemed like the nine-tails wasn't actively messing with him either.
*Kurama says he might keep an open mind, but no promises,* Saiken suddenly said in my mind.
Me touching Naruto was to allow my tailed beast to talk to the nine-tails inside the boy.
'Thanks, Saiken,' I replied inwardly.
There was no need for threats or negotiations. Naruto could solve the problem of the nine-tails' hatred all on his own with his talk-no-jutsu.
"Tsunade-neechan takes very good care of me. And Shizune-neechan is also very nice," Naruto answered me with a blinding smile.
"Then make them proud. And make your parents proud," I said with a smile. "If you ever feel lost or lonely. Know that you are not alone in the world. You have your Tsunade-neechan and Shizune-neechan, but you also have me. Terumi Yoshihiro, the Red Demon of Kiri."
And with that I vanished from Naruto's vision again as he suddenly held a small scroll in his hand.
It contained my insights into his father's technique, the Rasengan. I wasn't sure if Jiraiya would teach it to him, but now I could claim to be a better mentor than his father's sensei in the original timeline. Just like that.
Though, that wasn't entirely fair. Naruto was able to fight Pain in taijutsu and not instantly lose after the timeskip. So Jiraiya at the very least honed Naruto's basics, the foundational skills of a shinobi, to a very high degree even if the boy learned only a single actual jutsu in two years with Jiraiya… a slightly bigger Rasengan.
Maybe a neglected Naruto who only got recognition after turning 12 truly was only suited to be a one-dimensional fighter who was only good with shadow clones, Rasengan, and sage mode taijutsu. A physical-tank-kind of fighter with nigh-unlimited endurance and chakra.
When I reappeared, I stood in front of two of my clones holding two Konoha ANBU hostage not far from the playground.
"I appreciate that you didn't interfere with me meeting my clansman. And I'm glad Naruto isn't getting ostracized anymore. Obviously neither of you scum can take credit, you gladly watched as the son of the hero of your village was spat on. Shame on all of you," I scoffed as I dispelled the two clones who disappeared in small embers that my body slowly absorbed.
The two masked ninjas kept quiet and merely looked at me – at least they didn't take out any weapons to force me to obliterate them.
Taking a last look in the direction of the Senju compound, I body-flickered to the gate of Konoha.
"Goodbye," I greeted with a big, friendly smile, clasping the shoulders of two gate guards. Before they could say anything in response, I disappeared again. This time, I left Konoha in the direction of the Land of Iron.
Once I left Konoha's sensing barrier, I used my recently developed fire-travel jutsu and turned into flames that traveled much faster than I physically could.
In no time, I was at the border to the Land of Vegetables after passing through several small countries north of the Land of Wind. Before the day was over, I entered the Land of Demons.
—————
[POV 3rd person]
"Explain yourself," Hiruzen said as he looked at his student in front of him.
With him in the room were Jiraiya standing behind him with his arms crossed in front of his chest and Tsunade standing near the door with a defiant expression.
"What? You know I can't stand Homura," Senju Tsunade scoffed.
"I agree we shouldn't let Kiri enjoy these better pills alone and Terumi-kun was probably right, the price is still in our favor. But that's not how we negotiate. We keep a united front. I taught you this," Hiruzen scolded as he lit up his pipe. Tsunade raised an eyebrow as she heard her teacher casually refer to one of the strongest shinobi she knew as 'Terumi-kun'.
"Did you discuss this with the Red Demon beforehand? Is this why you met?" Jiraiya asked with furrowed brows. Tsunade frowned deeply – Jiraiya's jealousy had no place in this discussion.
"I did not sell out Konoha," Tsunade grumbled with gritted teeth as she glared at her former team mate. "If you must know, I saved it and you."
"How so?" Hiruzen inquired with an intrigued expression. He was glad that Jiraiya brought up the private meeting between Yoshihiro and Tsunade so he didn't have to.
"I met Yoshihiro during my travels. He is the reason I returned to the village, as he said in the end. He told me about the fate of Naruto… which you had failed to mention, Jiraiya," the white-haired ninja flinched a little, "and I will tell you this. He is much, much stronger than you think or still want to admit. I wouldn't be surprised if he was as strong as my grandpa."
Hiruzen raised his eyebrows in surprise before a frown settled on his wrinkled face.
"You warned me, yet never judged him like this… but he was inside Konoha. What could he have done so deep in enemy territory as just one ninja?"
Tsunade laughed derisively for a short moment before rebuking, "Would my grandfather fear strutting into an enemy village? I came here not just to give birth but specifically to study my grandmother's notes to see if I can create a sealing jutsu capable of neutralizing him and him alone."
"Konoha has a capable sealing team, we could always use the Death Reaper Seal like Minato did," Hiruzen countered with his frown deepening.
"He is an Uzumaki," Tsunade rebuked with another scoff. "What makes you think he'd allow you to use that jutsu in front of him? Or that it would even work against him?"
"Surely he can't be that str-" Jiraiya began to interject but Tsunade cut him off. With a glare, she spat, "He has the Adamantine Sealing Chains like my grandmother and Kushina. He is dangerous, cunning, and very vindictive. The only thing stronger than his frightening fire nature transformation is his chakra control. He can instantly use any B-rank ninjutsu without hand seals! Maybe even A-rank!"
The Hokage stayed quiet, same as Jiraiya behind him, as they thought about everything she just said and didn't say.
"Why would he go against Konoha and Jiraiya if the deal fell through?" The old man finally inquired as he took another deep drag from his pipe.
Tsunade flared her nostrils in defiance before simply saying, "To get back at me."
Before Sarutobi Hiruzen could ask further, an ANBU entered the office and kneeled down next to the desk. With 'guests' present, even if they were Sannin, these ANBU ninja wouldn't do that unless it was urgent.
"Speak," Hiruzen immediately ordered. Whatever it was, he could at the very least trust his students with some small secrets.
"The Red Demon has made contact with Uzumaki Naruto. Two of his clones disabled Neko and I before we could intervene," the ANBU immediately and concisely answered.
Tsunade's eyes immediately constricted as she asked, "How is Naruto?"
"The boy is fine, they just talked."
Hiruzen gritted his teeth for a short moment before asking, "What did they talk about? Did he touch him?"
Answering the implied third question, the ANBU who had guarded Naruto explained, "He did not check the seal on his stomach but touched Naruto's head with a gentle head pat after watching him play with the village kids. Your late wife's sister was put under genjutsu and didn't intervene, Hokage-sama. She is fine now. Terumi Yoshihiro introduced himself as a fellow Uzumaki and talked about Naruto's parents and the fall of Uzushiogakure. After inquiring about his well-being, Terumi-san left the boy with a scroll and came to… scold us for the village daring to treat him like a demon-fox."
Jiraiya looked dumbfounded as he asked, "What?"
Tsunade kept quiet but clenched her fist as the Hokage listened with narrowed eyes.
"Where is Terumi Yoshihiro now?"
—————
[POV 1st person Terumi Yoshihiro]
"It was much easier to get an audience with you than I suspected," I jovially greeted with a sincere smile.
"I know the purpose of your visit, Terumi Yoshihiro," the high-priestess of the Land of Demons, dressed in her splendid shrine outfit with elaborate headgear, stated in a dreamy voice from her throne.
"You know my name and why I came here?" I asked in surprise as I looked around the otherwise empty shrine. While she was gorgeous and seemed to have no ill-intention toward me, I couldn't be sure what Priestess Miroku's deal was.
"You have come for me and the demon," Miroku replied plainly and calmly.
I froze for a short moment before asking, "How would you know that?"
"A gift," she answered with a friendly, reassuring smile. "I can see glimpses of the future and some time ago, my end changed. It took me a while to figure it out. It was you deciding to come here that changed it all."
"I see," I muttered with furrowed brows. But I didn't see at all.
Maybe I should have asked around for more rumors and information about this place. Looking around, I asked, "The changes were all good? Or why did you send away all your guards?"
"I will be able to see my daughter grow up, even my grandchildren. Originally, I should have died when she was a teenager," Miroku explained calmly. "And you are the reason why. Whatever it is you plan to do, I will assist you wholeheartedly."
Still sensing no malice from the woman, I finally inquired in mild confusion, "So I came here for the demon, I get that. You said I also came for you?"
Her confidence finally wavered as her cheeks gained a rosy blush. She stood up and started walking towards me.
"In the glimpses I saw, you were taken by my beauty. But you didn't act on your lust because of my exalted status until I demonstrated my extensive sealing knowledge to you. No worries, I will teach you," the high priestess offered coyly and came to a stop in front of me, taking my hand into hers. "Follow me, I will take you to Moryo."