On one misty morning after the funeral, Aceso was back to doing her duties at the hospital. She had set new beds down and had delivered a baby. She was now heading to the ramen shop to meet up with Naruto for breakfast at Irchiraku.

As she was walking down the hall, she had a bunch of water bottles in a crate she was carrying. Then a door opened and Lee stuck out his head.

" Good morning, Lee," Aceso greeted with a smile.

" Good morning, Red Rose," Lee greeted. " Where are you heading off to?"

" I'm handing out water to the people helping with rebuilding the village, and then off to Irchiraku to meet with Naruto," Aceso answered.

" And after that?" Lee asked.

" I'm coming back here to resume my training, do my work...and well tea," Aceso answered.

" Training?" Lee asked.

" Yeah," Aceso smiled more. " I'm about 48% there, for your surgery."

" How are you feeling?" Lee asked

" Huh?" Aceso asked as she tilted her head.

" From your injuries?" Lee asked.

" I'm healed," Aceso answered. " Though it's been a long time since I was the patient, it was weird." Lee laughed. " I will see you later." 

" See you later," Lee agreed, she then walked away. She handed water to she passed and saw working, then she met Naruto at the ramen place. He stripped down to his underwear, he was frantically looking or something. Shaking his pants with furry. 

" Did you lose something?" Aceso asked.

" A ticket," Naruto answered. " I hope I didn't give Konohamaru my last one!"

" Don't you think taking off all your clothes is a bit ridiculous to look for one ticket?" Aceso asked.

" Nu-uh," Naruto denied as he took off his headband and a piece of paper fell out. Naruto was back in their clothes and the two were sitting down. Chowing down on some ramen.

" False alarm there, huh?" Teuchi asked.

" Yeah," Naruto answered as he slurped up his food. " What happened there was, I stuck it behind my headband because I was so freaked out it was going to fall out of my pants or something while I was working out earlier this morning.

" Well, it all worked out in the end," Teuchi said as Naruto laughed. " Now go on, eat up, so you can do your best.

" Huh?" Naruto asked.

" You've got more training ahead of you, don't you?" Teuchi asked.

" You bet I do!" Naruto laughed. " I'm going to work my butt off!"

" Can I train with you Naruto?" Aceso asked.

" All right!" Naruto cheered before slurping up more ramen.

" That's the spirit," Teuchi smiled. " Here have some more." He put more noodles in Naruto's bowl. He looked up at the man. " That one there is on the house. Dig in."

" Oh man, thanks a bunch!" Naruto cheered as he returned to his bowl.

" Hey there, come on in," Teuchi greeted. Aceso turned to see Jiraya coming into the ramen place.

" I had to see it with my own eyes," Jiraya said before moving the curtain. " It looks like you do eat nothing but ramen, huh, short stuff?" Soon they were walking with Jiraya, he wanted Naruto to go on a mission with him.

" What? No way!" Naruto denied. " How come I get stuck tagging along with you while you do research for another one of your pervy books?"

" Look, kid, I can assure you this isn't just another research trip," Jiraya said. " There's a woman I have to find. A very remarkable woman."

" Well count me out, old man," Naruto denied. " I don't have time to help you find a girlfriend. I've gotta get busy with my training. I told Aceso that I would train with her."

" What training?" Jiraya asked.

" It's time Kakashi-sensei taught me something new, like the Chidori thing," Naruto said as he put both his arms behind his head.

" I see," Jiraya said. " You'd just be wasting your time. Chidori's not really your style."

" I agree," Aceso said. " It's more of Sasuke's style and not yours."

" Who's side are you on here!?" Naruto exclaimed.

" And besides that, kid, the woman we're looking for is really beautiful. I mean gorgeous."

" Like I care," Naruto grunted. " Look, Pervy Sage, who do you think you're talking to? I'm not some dumb kid you can fool with lame excuses. I'm not going!"

" Okay, fine, suit yourself," Jiraya gave in. " Doctor Matsuba, would you like to help me to find this beautiful woman?"

" Huh?" Aceso asked.

" And I can teach you jutsu that made Chidori look like kid's stuff," Jiraya said as he began to walk away. " Maybe I'll just see if Sasuke wants to come too."

" Right!" Naruto exclaimed as he grabbed Aceso's hand, and bolted in front of the sage. " When do we leave? We'll go pack our bags! Ha, ha. Stay right there, Pervy Sage."

" I can't just leave the hospital Naruto," Aceso protested as he ran, her legs weren't even touching the ground.

" Sure you can!" Naruto laughed. " We'll be right back! Don't move!" Naruto brought Aceso to her room. " Get packing, I'll be back in five minutes." He then bolted before she could protest.

" Where are you going now?" a voice, she looked to see Lee coming towards her.

" Looking for someone," Aceso answered. " I'm pretty sure the Sanin Jiraya was just using me as a tactic to get Naruto to tag along, but I don't think Naruto interpreted it." She went inside her room, and Lee followed, she began to pack. " Naruto didn't leave such a choice."

" So you're going?" Lee asked, there was sadness in his voice.

" Yeah," Aceso breathed. " Along the way, maybe I can pick new medicine, different ones, maybe I'll come back with a new one again. A lot of training is happening on this search."

" So now tea tonight?" Lee asked.

" Sadly no," Aceso answered, she then picked up a new flower that was put in her vase. She turned and held it out for him. " I shall be back by the time the last petal falls." 

" Hm," Lee smiled as he took the flower. " It is one's youth to travel, I wish you a good trip."

" Thank you," Aceso smiled.

" I will see you when you get back," Lee said as he turned to leave. 

" Bye Lee," Aceso said as he walked out. Soon Naruto came back in as Aceso had just finished packing and he dragged her to the front of the Leaf Village where Jiraya was waiting for them.

" All right, I'm ready," Naruto declared as he stood up after fixing his shoe. He picked up his backpack, and his knees began to buckle.

" I think you packed too much," Aceso said.

" Did not!" Naruto denied. " Let's move out!"

" You, uh, don't think might have overdone it a little?" Jiraya asked. " You do realize we're not going on a trip around the world, right?" Naruto grunted as he started to try to move forward. 

" Come on Naruto, we don't have time to mess around," Aceso said. They got him to give up a ton of things before hitting the road.

" Well, come on, Pervy Sage!" Naruto urged as he walked in front of them. " I'm on pins and needles. What's this new jutsu you're gonna teach me? The last time around it was the Walk on Water Jutsu! Oh, is it walking through fire? Or wait...Maybe walking on air."

" I thought the summoning jutsu was the last thing he taught you," Aceso said. " And walking on water is more about focusing your Chakra rather than a jutsu."

"Doesn't matter!" Naruto laughed. " Aw, come on, Pervy Sage! Let's hear it already."

" All right, enough with the Pervy Sage," Jiraya ordered as they stopped walking. " You have no idea how amazing a guy I am, do you?"

" Huh? What, amazingly pervy?" Naruto asked.

" You--" Jiraya grunted. " All right, listen up!" He ran up to the middle bridge and then turned to look at the two below, he hopped on one foot. " The Toad Sage is only my cover." He put his other foot down. " Allow me to reveal my true identity. From the north to the south and east to the west. Not even the spirits can defeat the Sannin. The White-Maned Tpad Charmer!" He was now on top of a toad. " A red hot ninja who strikes fear in the hearts of men! Master Jiraya, ha, ha! Yes, I'm speaking of none other than myself." He looked at the two laughing. Aceso and Naruto looked at each other, blinked, and looked at the man.

" Uh-huh," the two breathed before going on the bridge to get to the other side. 

" So how much longer do we walk?" Naruto asked.

" Well,  we should be coming up to some cross signs very soon," Aceso recalled. " From there we will know where to go." They soon reached a cross sign, the two stared up at it.

" Uh, Atafuku town--" Naruto read. " That's 10 kilometers from here."

" I think it's pronounced Otafuku town," Aceso corrected as Jiraay passed.

" Hey, hey hey!" Naruto yelled as they ran to catch up with him. " Wait, a second! Pervy Sage!"

" Look, kid, I told you already, it's Jiraya," Jiraya corrected. " Come on!"

" So the fact such bigwig Pervy Sage chose us as his traveling companion must mean something, right?" Naruto asked. " We must be a potential genius in the making. Aw man, it's just like I always thought!" He started laughing and running around. " We will be the greatest ninja siblings! Come on, come on, come on. Why did you choose us, huh?"

" Well, the truth is, kid, a long time ago, the Fourth Hokage used to be a disciple of mine," Jiraiya explained.

" Really?" Aceso asked.

" Yes, and Naruto bears such a striking resemblance to the Fourth that it's almost laughable," Jiraiya said. " Doctor Matsuba was just supposed to be a reason to get you to come along and not actually go, but you brought her along anyway." He started walking again. " Sorry, that's the only reason I got for you."

" So wait..." Naruto began. " I'm like the Fourth? Holy crap!" He bolted forward.

 Heh-heh-heh!" Jiraya jumped as Naruto passed him.

" That's awesome!" Naruto cheered.

" What's up with you?" Aceso asked.

" Oh, man!" Naruto cheered as he continued to run. " Heh-heh-heh!" He stopped and looked back at them. " If I'm like the Fourth Hokage that means possess the same level of genius he did! I'm on my way to Hokage after all." He began jumping around.  " Woo-hoo! Heh-hehe-heh!" He jumped up and then began to panic as he fell back to the ground. " Ah, no, I just stepped in some dog doo!"

" Ugh," Aceso breathed.

" The only similarities you share with the Fourth Hokage is pigheadedness and that spiky blonde hair of yours!" Jiraya informed as he pointed at him.

" What was that, you senile olf perv?" Naruto demanded as he stepped in dog doo again. " Not again!"

" Such a knucklehead," Jiraya groaned.

"Let's keep going," Aceso said as she walked past Naruto. " I want to see what medicine they have in this town." They soon made a pit stop a building they were passing to sit for a minute. Naruto was playing with the bells.

" Keep it up, you'll be cursed," Jiraya said as he dug into the pocket of his clothes and took out food to eat.

" Hey, uh, Pervy Sage?" Naruto asked they looked over at him. " There were four of him, two on the other two shoulders. " What kind of student was the Fourth Hokage?"

" Well, I think it's safe to say he rose to greatness because of my tutelage," Jiraiya answered. " So to land me as a sensei--Well, kid, let's just say you hit the jackpot, okay?"

" Huh?" they all asked.

" You don't believe him?" Aceso asked. 

" A good sensei will naturally beget good disciples," Jiraiya said. " That goes without saying."

" So wait, a second, Pervy Sage," Naruto began. " If that's true, then who did you have for a sensei?"

" Who, me?" Jiraiya asked. " I first studied under the Third Hokage."

" The Third?" Aceso asked.

" Yep," Jiraiya confirmed. " This was back when the Third Hokage was still a young spring chicken."

" The Hokage--A spring chicken?" All the Narutos asked.

" That's right," Jiraiya smiled at him. " I was a young buck myself back then."

" Young buck?" the Narutos exclaimed as they fell over, they pulled down both bells, and one hit Naruto in the head. He then tumbled down the stairs as he was tangled up in the drapes. He landed laughing. " I, uh, got a little tangled up."

" He did tell you those are cursed," Aceso reminded him as the other two stood up.

" No joke," Jiraiya added before sitting down, laughing lightly. " So wait a second. If you studied with Kakashi, that means you must have gone through the bell training. Am I right?"

" Huh?" Naruto asked. " Yeah, I did. Forgot about that...Only I was tied to a stump."

" Good to know Kakashi didn't go easy," Aceso smiled.

" Shut up," Naruto huffed, she smiled more. " Man, I forgot about how bad that all sucked."

" What? You too?" Jiraiya asked.

" Me too?" Naruto asked. " Me too what?"

" Forget it," Jiraiya said. " Just hurry up and put those things back where you got 'em."

" Easier said than done," Naruto said as he struggled. Aceso walked down the steps over to him. " I'm kind of tied up." She knelt beside him and began to get him freed. The two then went to put the bells back, and minutes later they heard Jiraya laughing as he stood up.

" What is it?" Aceso asked as Naruto laughed.

" Come on, spill it," Naruto pleaded as he went up to the Sannin. " What's so funny, Pervy Sage?"

" Huh?" Jiraya said before putting his hand on Naruto's hair. " Ah, you know, kid--Just what I was saying before: A good teacher produces good disciples."

" What are you talking about?" Naruto asked as he stepped back.

" Just make sure everything's back the way it was, and let's go," Jiraiya ordered.

" We did it," Aceso informed as she walked over.

" See?" Naruto asked as he pulled on the drapes lightly. The three then began to go back off on their adventure to find this woman.