The journey to Konoha normally took two days for a shinobi traveling at full speed. But Naruto and Jiraiya were going at a relaxed pace, so it would take them three full days.
At first light the next morning, they set off. The sun was just rising, painting the sky soft orange as they left Yugakure behind.
While walking side by side along the dirt road, Naruto glanced up at Jiraiya.
"Master, when are you going to teach me Sage Mode?"
Jiraiya let out a long, sigh.
"Kid, I've told you a hundred times already it's way too early for you. I promised I'd take you to Mount Myōboku once you reach jōnin level. Then I'll talk to the Great Toad Sages and get them to train you personally."
Naruto crossed his arms and huffed.
"Fine, Master… I'll wait. But don't forget! If you forget, I'm never speaking to you again hmpf!"
Jiraiya chuckled and patted Naruto's head roughly.
"I'm the Toad Sage, remember? When I make a promise, I keep it."
Naruto sped up a few steps ahead without another word. A few days earlier, Jiraiya had explained Sage Mode in detail how insanely powerful it was, how it drew natural energy from the environment and blended it with a shinobi's own chakra. The only catch? The traditional method required two old toads to cling to your body during the process. But Jiraiya had also mentioned that a truly talented person could learn to activate it alone, without the toads. Naruto was absolutely confident he could do it the solo way. He was itching to start training, to master that technique and become even stronger. But Jiraiya wouldn't budge until he reached jōnin rank.
*Alright then,* Naruto thought firmly. *I'll become a jōnin. That's my goal the moment i get to Konoha.*
The first day passed quietly. That evening they stopped at a small roadside inn and rented a double room. As they dropped their bags, Jiraiya stretched with an exaggerated yawn.
"Naruto, I'll be back late tonight. I'm going to… *cough*… do some research."
The moment Naruto heard the word "research," his face went pale. A visible shiver ran through him. Memories of the hot spring disaster flashed in his mind—the giggling women, the naked sprint through the village.
"Haha… okay, Master. Good luck!"
His voice cracked a little. From that one traumatic experience, the word "research" now triggered an instant, uncontrollable reaction like a mini-PTSD episode. Jiraiya just laughed and waved as he headed out the door. The next morning they woke early, packed up, and continued on the road. The second day was much the same: walking, light conversation, Naruto practicing chakra control while moving, Jiraiya occasionally pointing out useful survival tips or ninja history facts. And just like that, three days passed. On the morning of the fourth day, as the sun climbed higher, the massive gates of Konoha finally came into view tall, proud, and familiar even to Naruto, who had no memories of ever seeing them before.
They stopped for a moment at the top of the last hill. Naruto stared at the village below: red rooftops, the Hokage Rock carved into the mountain, the faint sounds of life drifting up on the breeze.
Jiraiya placed a hand on his shoulder.
"Welcome home, Naruto."
Naruto took a slow, deep breath, nodded once, and started walking again toward the gates. As they reached the gates, Jiraiya raised a hand in casual greeting to the two shinobi standing guard.
"Hey, boys! Long time no see."
Izumo Kamizuki and Kotetsu Hagane turned, and their faces immediately lit up with big grins.
"Jiraiya-sama! And Naruto!" Izumo said warmly.
Kotetsu nodded. "Welcome back!"
But as their eyes landed on Naruto, both of them froze for a second. The boy looked… different with longer hair, darker clothes, a quieter and more reserved demeanor, he had changed a lot in just two and half years.
Naruto felt their stares like spotlights. Instinctively, he stepped behind Jiraiya, half-hiding behind his master's broad back, peeking out cautiously.
Jiraiya glanced down at him with a gentle smile. "Don't worry, Naruto. These two are chūnin from the village Izumo Kamizuki and Kotetsu Hagane. Good guys. They've been guarding these gates since a long time."
Izumo and Kotetsu exchanged a quick, surprised look. *This brat… forgot us?* they both thought at the same time.
Jiraiya caught the shift in their expressions and chuckled.
"Haha, sorry, boys. Long story short, I don't have time to explain it all right now Naruto lost his memories. That's why he's acting like this. Don't take it personally."
"Ohhh… so that's why," Izumo said, nodding slowly.
Kotetsu scratched his head. "Got it. No wonder he looks so… shy."
They didn't press further. Both gave Naruto small, understanding smiles instead of pushing the issue. With a final wave from Jiraiya, the two passed through the gates and stepped into the village. The moment Naruto laid eyes on Konoha, his jaw dropped.
The streets were wide and bustling, lined with shops, restaurants, tall buildings, and colorful roofs stretching out in every direction. The Hokage Rock loomed proudly in the distance, carved faces staring down over everything.
"Yugakure is so tiny compared to this…" Naruto whispered, completely stunned.
Jiraiya burst out laughing, clapping him on the back.
"Of course, kid! Konoha is the strongest village in the world, after all. What did you expect?"
He straightened up, tone shifting to something more official.
"Alright, enough sightseeing for now. Let's head straight to Tsunade and report that we're back."
"Okay, Master," Naruto replied, eyes still wide with wonder.
He was especially curious about the woman they were going to meet: the strongest kunoichi in the world, one of the Legendary Sannin, and Jiraiya's old teammate. The Fifth Hokage herself Tsunade. As they walked deeper into the village, Naruto stayed close to Jiraiya's side, taking in every sight, sound, and smell feeling like a stranger in what was supposed to be his home.
When they reached a large building, Jiraiya stopped and pointed.
"This is the Hokage's office. Come on, kid—let's go in."
As they approached the door, two masked ANBU ninjas with cat masks bowed respectfully toward Jiraiya.
Jiraiya gave a casual wave. "Is Tsunade in her office?"
"Yes, Jiraiya-sama. Do you want us to announce you?"
"No need. I'll go myself."
He grabbed Naruto by the shoulder and led him inside. They walked down a short hallway until they reached a big door. Jiraiya knocked twice.
"Come in," a woman's voice called from the other side.
Jiraiya opened the door with a click and stepped inside. Naruto followed a step behind, looking a little shy and awkward.
"Jiraiya, brat, long time no see," Tsunade said with a smile when she saw them.
Jiraiya's eyes immediately dropped to her chest. His face turned into his pervert grin. "Hey, Tsunade… yeah, it's been a while. Heheh."
Tsunade clenched her fist, ready to smack him, but she noticed Naruto standing there and stopped herself.
Naruto felt her looking at him. He stepped forward, bowed politely, and said, "Hello, Hokage-sama. I've returned. I hope you're doing well."
Tsunade's face froze for a second. She blinked, then quickly recovered.
"Jiraiya… what happened to this kid? Did he hit his head or something?"
Jiraiya gave an awkward smile and rubbed the back of his neck. "Pretty much. For reasons I don't know, Naruto lost all his memories. That's why he's acting so different. Haha."
In his head, Jiraiya thought: *If Tsunade finds out it happened because of my training, she'll definitely beat me to death. Better keep it short.*
Tsunade stared at Naruto. He looked like a completely different person. The old idiot kid was gone. A sharp pain hit her in the chest.
Naruto noticed her expression and spoke up. "Hokage-sama, don't worry. Even without my memories, I haven't lost any of my abilities. As a jinchūriki, I can protect myself."He thought maybe that was why she looked so worried.
Tsunade looked at him and snorted. "Even with amnesia, You are still slow in mind.."
She stood up from her chair, walked over, and pulled him into a tight hug. "You've been through a lot, kid. Don't worry, you're home now." Naruto froze. Why was the leader of the village hugging him like this? In the five months since losing his memories, he had realized something important: he couldn't feel emotions like normal people. When he smiled or looked sad, it was just his body making expressions. He could change his face whenever he wanted, but he didn't actually understand human feelings. So right now, he had no idea why this powerful woman was acting this way Jiraiya watched Naruto's face buried between Tsunade's breasts. His fists clenched hard. *Damn it… this lucky brat.*
Tsunade finally let him go. "Naruto, you'll stay at my place for a while. I'll try to heal you. I'll call the head of the Yamanaka clan to come examine you."
Naruto nodded. "Okay, Hokage-sama. Thank you."
After Naruto thanked Tsunade, the door opened with a soft click. A woman with long black hair walked in, cradling a small pink piglet in her arms.
When she saw them, she gave Jiraiya a polite bow.
"Lord Jiraiya, it's been a long time."
Then her eyes moved to Naruto. A gentle smile spread across her face.
"Naruto… you've grown so much. You look very handsome now," she said with a soft laugh.
Naruto stared at her awkwardly, completely unsure how to respond. He shifted on his feet, mouth opening and closing without any words coming out.
Tsunade noticed right away and spoke up quickly.
"Shizune, Naruto lost his memories."
Shizune's eyes widened in shock. She looked straight at Naruto, then back at Tsunade.
"Lost his memories…?"
Tsunade nodded.
"Naruto, this is my right-hand woman—Shizune."
Naruto recovered quickly. He gave her a polite smile and stepped forward.
"Nice to meet you, Lady Shizune. I'm sorry I can't remember you right now, but I hope we'll get along well."
Before she could reply, he gently took her free hand, bowed slightly, and kissed the back of it in a very formal, gentlemanly way.
Shizune froze. Her face turned bright red in an instant. The piglet in her arms let out a small confused squeak.
Jiraiya and Tsunade both stared at Naruto with identical stunned expressions.
*That brat… how is he so gentlemanly now?* they both thought at the same time.
When Naruto saw their expressions, he felt a strange prickle of unease. "Is this gesture wrong?" he wondered.According to the book written by his master a man of immense power this was a gesture of politeness. Just last month, driven by
curiosity about his master's work, Naruto
had picked up Icha Icha Paradise. Although much of it went over his head, he was convinced the book contained hidden codes how to become strong. Since then, he had spent many sleepless nights trying to unravel his master's "secrets."
Jiraiya finally broke the silence, clearing his throat. "Okay, Tsunade I'm leaving Naruto in your hands. I've got something important to take care of." Naruto glanced at his master's face and immediately recognized the familiar gleam in his eyes. Even without saying it out loud, the word was written all over Jiraiya's expression: *research*.
Naruto's own face twitched slightly. He gave a small, forced smile and nodded.
"Okay, Master. Be careful."
Jiraiya waved casually and headed for the door, already mentally halfway to whatever "important" spot he had in mind.
Tsunade sighed and shook her head.
"That pervert never changes."
Shizune was still blushing, carefully setting the piglet down so she could fan her face with her hand. Naruto stood there quietly, wondering if he'd done something wrong again but deciding it was probably fine. After all, it was in the book.
"Shizune, go get Sakura and Kakashi," Tsunade said, glancing toward the door.
"Okay, Tsunade-sama," Shizune replied. She gave a quick bow, adjusted the piglet in her arms, and hurried out of the office.
Once the door clicked shut, Tsunade turned back to Naruto and started explaining.
"Haruno Sakura is your teammate—she's in Team 7 with you. Hatake Kakashi is your jōnin sensei, the one who trained your squad."
Naruto nodded calmly.
"Master Jiraiya already told me about them before we arrived in Konoha, Hokage-sama."
Tsunade gave a small nod, looking relieved.
"Good. That saves me the long explanation then."
She paused for a second, then added with a softer tone,
"And Naruto… you can just call me Lady Tsunade. Like you used to before. You don't have to be so formal and use 'Hokage-sama' every time. We're not that distant."
In her mind, she couldn't help but smirk a little. *Hehe… this brat used to call me obaa-chan all the time. Now I can get him to say 'Lady Tsunade' instead. Much better.*
Naruto tilted his head slightly, then bowed a little in apology.
"Okay, Lady Tsunade. I'm sorry if I made you feel uncomfortable."
Tsunade let out a short, amused laugh.
"Hehe, it's fine as long as you understand."
She leaned back in her chair, crossing her arms, still smiling at how polite and composed this new version of Naruto was. It felt strange but not entirely bad. After a few minutes of waiting, the door opened again. Shizune walked in, accompanied by a girl with bright pink hair and a tall man with silver-white hair, his face half-covered by a mask that left only one eye visible.
"Naruto… it's been a while. You look… different," Sakura said, stepping forward with a small smile. She scanned his longer hair, darker clothes, and calmer demeanor, her cheeks turning a light pink.
Kakashi gave a lazy eye-smile behind his mask.
"You've grown, Naruto."
Tsunade cleared her throat, interrupting before things got too sentimental.
"Kakashi, Sakura listen up. Naruto lost all his memories for some unknown reason. Right now, he doesn't recognize anyone. I hope you understand the situation."
Sakura and Kakashi both froze, staring at Naruto in shock.
"Naruto… is this true? Or is this one of your stupid pranks?" Sakura asked, half-joking, half-worried.
Naruto met her eyes seriously.
"I'm sorry, Sakura-san. I really can't remember anything. I hope we can get along in the future, even if I'm different from the Naruto you knew."
He stepped closer, bowed politely, gently took her hand, and kissed the back of it just like he had done with Shizune.
"Naruto, you…" Sakura started to pull her hand back, but when she saw how serious and earnest he looked, she stopped. Her face flushed bright red.
Tsunade muttered under her breath, "This brat kissed Shizune's hand, kissed Sakura's hand… but not mine? Do I look that bad?"
She glanced sideways at Shizune's chest, then at Sakura's, and finally down at her own. *I look fine, right?* she thought, frowning slightly.
Shizune sighed quietly when she saw Naruto kiss Sakura's hand too. *So… Naruto does this with every girl.*
Kakashi raised his visible eyebrow, clearly surprised to see his usually hyper student acting like such a smooth "heartthrob."
Sakura, still blushing hard, took a quick step back to put some distance between them.
Naruto, noticing her reaction, felt confused again. *Why didn't Sakura like the gesture either? Maybe Master's book got it wrong?* He thought about asking Jiraiya later, but quickly pushed the idea aside he remembered his master had strictly forbidden him from reading that book.
He turned to Kakashi instead.
"Kakashi-sensei, nice to meet you. I hope we'll get along in the future."
Kakashi felt a little strange seeing his normally energetic student so calm and polite.
"Yeah, Naruto. Of course," he said, reaching over to ruffle the boy's hair.
Tsunade clapped her hands once to get everyone's attention.
"Okay, Sakura take Naruto around the village. Show him everything. Maybe something will jog his memory. Come back to my place later this evening."
"Yes, Tsunade-sensei," Sakura replied. She glanced at this new, quieter Naruto, still a bit embarrassed, and gave him a small, awkward smile.
"Naruto… follow me."
Naruto nodded politely and stepped toward the door behind her, ready to see the village he was supposed to call home.
When they stepped out of the Hokage building, Sakura turned to Naruto.
"Naruto, is there any special place you want to see first?"
Naruto thought for a moment and answered calmly,
"I'd like to see the house where I live. Maybe it'll help me remember something."
Sakura looked at him for a second, then nodded.
"Okay. Let's go there."
They started walking slowly through the village streets. Naruto's face was full of quiet wonder as he took in everything—the busy shops, the colorful signs, the people chatting and laughing, the smell of food from street vendors. His eyes moved from one thing to another like he was seeing it all for the first time.
Sakura kept glancing at him from the corner of her eye.
*This Naruto… he's so cute right now, like a little kid discovering the world,* she thought. But then she noticed how mature he looked with his longer hair, calm expression, dark clothes that made him seem cool and composed. Her cheeks warmed up.
*Sakura, what's wrong with you? This is still Naruto… right?*
A quick image of the the black-haired boy flashed in her mind, and she let out a small, sad sigh.
Naruto, who was paying attention to his surroundings, heard the sigh. He frowned slightly.
*What happened? Why does Sakura look so down?*
An idea popped into his head. In Icha Icha Paradise, one of the "tips" he'd read was that when a girl seems upset, you should offer her something to cheer her up. He stopped walking.
"Sakura-san, wait just a moment, please."
Before she could answer, Naruto hurried over to a nearby yakitori stall, bought two skewers of grilled meat, and came right back. He held one out to her with both hands and a big, practiced smile the kind he'd rehearsed in the mirror many times.
"Sakura-san, eat this. It will make you feel better, okay?"
Sakura stared at him. His smile hit her hard this smile bright, genuine, and somehow different from the old Naruto's goofy grin. Her heart started pounding. After a few seconds, she slowly reached out and took the skewer. She managed a small smile.
"Naruto… you don't have to call me Sakura-san anymore. You can call me Sakura-chan, like you used to."
Naruto tilted his head, looking genuinely curious.
"Sakura-san… calling you Sakura-chan sounds too familiar, doesn't it? From what Master Jiraiya and Lady Tsunade told me, we have a professional relationship as members of Team 7. If I misunderstood, please tell me what exactly is our relationship?"
Sakura's hand froze on the skewer. Her face turned bright red. She didn't know how to answer. After a second of awkward silence, she snatched the skewer from his hand, muttered "Hmph, idiot," and started walking ahead quickly, trying to hide her embarrassment.
Naruto watched her go, confused.
*She didn't like that either? Maybe I need to study Master's book more carefully in the future. Human emotions are really hard to understand.*
He sighed quietly to himself and followed after her, still determined to figure it out eventually.
When Sakura and Naruto finally arrived in front of a small apartment building, Sakura stopped and pointed.
"Naruto, this is where you live."
Naruto looked at the modest door with curiosity. He reached into his pocket and pulled out the key Jiraiya had given him earlier, saying it was for his place. With a soft click, he turned the lock and pushed the door open. The moment they stepped inside, both of them started coughing. Thick dust hung in the air, covering every surface furniture, shelves, even the floor. The room smelled stale, like no one had lived there in a long time.
"Haha… I've been gone for two and a half years, so it's not really surprising," Naruto said, rubbing the back of his neck a little embarrassed.
"Sakura-sa—" He caught himself and corrected quickly. "Sakura-chan… you can go now. I want to clean up and look through my things. Maybe something will jog my memory." Sakura's face flushed bright red when she heard him call her "Sakura-chan" just like before. But at the same time, she felt surprised. *Why is my heart racing like this? It never used to happen in the past…*
After a short pause, she shook her head.
"It's okay. I'll help you clean."
Naruto blinked, surprised.
"Is that really alright with you?"
Sakura gave a small nod, trying to act casual.
"It's fine. Don't worry about it."
Naruto's face lit up with a genuine smile.
"Okay, Sakura-chan. Thank you."
Sakura turned away quickly so he wouldn't see how red her cheeks had gotten again. She rolled up her sleeves and looked around the dusty room.
"Let's start with opening the windows first. It's way too stuffy in here."
Naruto nodded eagerly and moved to help.