Naruto POV~

It didn't take long for the kage to assemble again, once they heard I was free.

Once again, I found myself in the middle of a five kage summit. This time, though, it was much more secluded, and took place within a single meeting spot whose location was only known to the kage, the two shinobi coming with them, and me. Kakashi and Yamato stood silently behind Tsunade. There was no big fancy building, no samurai guarding the place, it wasn't even listed as an official meeting.

That didn't make it any less dire.

This time, Kurama managed to shake off his distaste and insisted on staying in his chibi form on my shoulder the entire time. It made me feel better, knowing he was there. Of course, he was always there no matter what, but now he was in a visible place where I could look over and see him immediately, and that definitely helped calm my nerves.

The Kage themselves were seated around the round table. The supposed "bar" we were in was completely empty besides them and their bodyguards hovering behind their shoulders. No one was taking any chances, considering how easily the kage summit was infiltrated last time.

"I trust that this location is as secret as they get?" the Tsuchikage said, dubious as ever. I have only met him once before and I could already label him "crabby old man."

"Nobody knows where it is besides the people here." I said. Somehow, I ended up taking charge of the conversation, and although they continued to watch me warily they did nothing to stop me. Maybe the fact that Kurama was glaring at them from his seat on my shoulder had some influence in that.

"There is only so much we can do, with the limited information we have." I started, "Tobi is trying to revive the Ten-Tails, and until we know exactly why, how, when, and where he's doing that, there isn't much we can do to stop him."

"We could protect our Jinchuriki. Keep them under high protection to prevent him from getting them." the Raikage said. As I recalled, Killer Bee was his...brother? Adopted brother?

Of course, considering how often chosen Jinchuriki happened to have close relations to people in the village, especially people in charge. It often prevented them from doing what I did. 

No wonder they disliked me. Especially with the bare reminder sitting on my shoulder.

"That didn't stop him from snagging me in a room full of kage, shinobi, and samurai." I pointed out. I never had much fear or any real respect to people of authority unless they appealed to me, and I wasn't about to stop that habit anytime soon. 

The Raikage just narrowed his eyes and didn't argue further. Kurama's lip curled in the beginnings of a snarl when he looked at him.

"Anyways, I have a plan. Before I start, though, I need you to promise not to dismiss it entirely, considering how limited our options are."

"That depends on the plan." the Mizukage said, which was...a reasonable point.

I sighed quietly and went on, "I'm going to find Tobi. With Kurama, it won't be hard, and - "

"Kurama?" the Tsuchikage interrupted for, like, the fifth time. Honestly, and they called me disrespectful.

"That would be me." Kurama said, the first words he's spoken this whole time. He seemed to startle them, except for those who expected it (namely Tsunade and Gaara, who had a much more annoying Shukaku at one point), "My chakra allows us to sense any chakra signature, anywhere."

The Tsuchikage scowled at Kurama warily. Kurama just swished his tails and stared evenly back.

I cleared my throat, already desperate to end this awkward meeting. "As I was saying, I am going to find Tobi and confront him. Before that, we will take out the Akatsuki members who have not been incapacitated yet, and deal with them. At the very least spread them out where they can't lend each other assistance. When I confront Tobi, I'll try to find out his motives. Now that I know how to avoid him I should be able to prevent getting caught again. But my main goal," I paused, "my main goal is to find the Gedo statue where the first two tailed beasts are being held. Once I free Shukaku and Matatabi, that is, the One-Tails and the Two-Tails, I ask that they be left alone."

"Left alone?" the Tsuchikage's voice shook with anger, "Two Bijuu, left alone? Not only are the Akatsuki after them, they are unpredictable! I've listened to you but your plan is bordering ridiculous at this point - "

"You seem to have conveniently forgotten that I am right here." Kurama interjected sharply. His voice carried much further than it did last time, echoing across the walls and effectively shutting up the Tsuchikage. The old kage stared at him in momentary confusion, but Kurama kept going. It seemed he was done staying silent.

Kurama never cared what humans did, besides the ones he cared about, but this was the Bijuu we were talking about. "You didn't wait to hear him out before interrupting. But you will listen to me. All of you brats will. Interrupt once and I will not hesitate to take Naruto far away from here, but not before I take every single one of the Bijuu with us so that your grimy hands never touch us again. Understand?"

"Kurama - "

"I'm sick of them." he growled back, "And if for a second you think I'm bluffing, then you're mistaken."

Nobody said a thing. Kurama went on. 

"Those were the bare details of our plan," his voice garnered no tolerance of disrespect, "Once we rescue the two fools who got caught, they will be under our protection. It's true, by ourselves we will not be able to protect all of the Bijuu, but because of that we'll convince them to stay in the Hidden Villages under protection. We have our own hidden sanctuaries, after all, if you didn't know. By leave them alone, Naruto meant not to imprison them within Jinchuriki or seals. Don't worry about them being stubborn or difficult, because despite that, we're not stupid. They will listen to reason." Kurama hardened his gaze and looked each of them in the eye. A collective chill, no matter how slight, came over the group.

He turned away and curled up on my shoulder, tails lowering and resting lightly against my back and around my neck. He was done.

I cleared my throat and said, "It's as Kurama said. Objections and pointers are appreciated."

There was a beat of silence before Gaara said, "It's a good plan. There is one major concern I have, though."

I raised an eyebrow and Kurama cracked open an eyelid. "Yes?"

Gaara looked us over, an unreadable expression on his face. "There is the matter of your own security to worry about. This plan of yours may be fine, but it puts your safety at risk, since you're putting yourself in such a dangerous position. You could die."

I stared at him, the words taking a moment to register in my mind. 

To be honest, I didn't expect to hear such a thing. From anyone.

There was complete quiet until laughter broke through. It was Kurama, chuckling lowly like he always did.

"If it were someone else saying that, I might have been offended." he said. Gaara had no idea what high praise he was getting right now. "I would worry about what problems you have on your own hands, little Kazekage. Naruto's safety is a full-time job for me. It has been for years. I have it covered."

Gaara stared at Kurama for a moment before saying, in a bit of awe, "If you insist."

I understood whatever he was feeling right now. I've met Shukaku. Shukaku is a bit more...wild than Kurama, after all.

I nodded, slightly embarrassed. Somehow, Kurama became the leader of this whole discussion. It was a nice thought, taking the whole history of Bijuu and humans into account.

"I'll be leaving now." I reached into my pocket and pulled out a piece of paper. "Kurama?"

"On it." he grunted, and disappeared from my shoulder. A second later, my senses were flooded with widespread sensory. I zoned in on each and every one I could find, quickly scribbling them on a piece of paper. It took several minutes, with everyone in the room leaning forward in curiosity, but when I was finished I put the pen back in my pocket and slid the paper to the center of the table.

"These are the current locations of every surviving Akatsuki member, not including Tobi and the one called Zetsu. Those two are constantly moving. Orochimaru's hideouts are a bit difficult to zero in on, but right now the snake is here." I pointed to the location I'd scrawled out. "They probably won't be there long, but right now they're all in one spot and these locations will make it easier to find them wherever they go next, if only to narrow the area you need to search. I'm counting on you." I glanced up. "Of course, if nobody is up to any Akatsuki-hunting, for whatever reason, I could just go and take them down myself, considering that they're all in separate places right now, but that would take a lot of time. I would prefer a little help."

Everyone was gaping at me. If they weren't completely stunned before they were now.

"You just found the location of every single Akatsuki member? Right now?" Tsunade asked. Kakashi and Yamato were looking at me wondrously from behind her.

I was just now realizing that it would probably amaze them, the fact that Kurama's sensory ability could do this, and nodded sheepishly. "Um...yeah?"

"That's incredible." Gaara said.

"Why are you just now doing this, if you have such sensory?" the Raikage demanded in a slightly-less demanding tone than before.

"Because I had no need to. There were other things I had to do besides hunting down the Akatsuki. At the time, I didn't need to take out each and every one of them, and I didn't have enough information on them to do it. I'd go into a battle blind. The situation has changed. Besides," my voice took on a darker note, "who's to say I never used it before? I was willing to use whatever I could to escape angry villagers, people who hated me, shinobi searching for me..." I shrugged, "The best way to avoid getting caught was to know exactly where my enemy was and predict what they were doing so I could counter it. It's a decent tactic."

"Villagers were your enemy?" the Mizukage asked softly.

"To a young boy who everyone viewed as demon? Yes."

Nobody asked any more after that.

"Anyways, I will go do my part. Since there were no objections, I trust that you will do yours." I nodded, "Goodbye."

I left, then. Not in a blaze of gold, not in a blur, not running out as fast as I could. I simply walked out.

The time for running was over.

Raikage POV~

I had never spoken to a Bijuu before. I knew Bee cooperated with the Hachibi, but the Hachibi stayed inside him and never bothered with the rest of us.

My first experience actually talking to one of the Beasts was different from what I expected.

Instead of a spiteful monster, or a prideful thing, or a simple beast even, the Kyuubi sat on the boy's shoulder with a haughty glare and a form that looked like it could be crushed with my pinky finger. His voice instantly proved otherwise.

He was definitely a spiteful creature, practically radiating killing intent, but Naruto Uzumaki didn't look at all concerned or fearful. If anything, he just looked embarrassed. 

It was somewhat admirable. I knew how Jinchuriki were treated, and I knew better than to naively assume them as tools or monsters, but rarely have I seen anyone say the same for the Tailed Beasts themselves.

This boy was interesting. I felt I would have to keep an eye on him. He'd already proven full of surprises, so much so that I was starting to compare him to Bee.

It was enough to make me wonder what he would do next.