The afternoon before the day of the third round of the chunin exams, Naruto’s real self finally went to meet Karin for a little bit on the way home. He’d left his work to a clone to take care of and had decided that he would spend time with his wife and daughter who would be back from the academy soon. His son, on the other hand, was still training with Sasuke and would only return at night.

Reaching the safe house, he just used his copy of the key to enter the house and walk in, only to see Karin sitting on the couch in nothing but an oversized t-shirt that left pretty much all of her legs visible. With her having put her leg up and folding it under the other, sitting in a very unladylike manner, she pretty much had her entire lower half visible to Naruto.

“You gonna try to cover yourself up?” He asked with a raised brow as he closed the door behind himself.

“What’s the point?” She asked while eating chips from a huge bag while watching TV. It was an episode of the recollection of the Fourth Ninja War. “You’ve already seen and touched everything. Plus, I’ve spent my whole life covering myself up.”

Naruto couldn’t help but cough as he approached her.

“By the way,” Karin said. “You’re running the propaganda a bit hard don’t you think?” She asked him, “This show plays for four hours each afternoon with different channels covering different parts of the war. You guys really don’t want the kids to watch anything else when they come back from school and ninja academy, do you?”

“It works,” Naruto said casually taking a seat on the other couch from Karin. “Our people adore the Hokage and Konoha in general. The Will of Fire burns strong in our youth. Plus, a good chunk of the village’s budget went into its production and the advertisers want to milk it dry.”

“What happened, Hokage-sama?” Karin turned to look at Naruto before standing up, “Did you need something from me?” She approached him. Clad in nothing but the thin yet oversized half-sleeved top, she made her intentions abundantly clear.

“I’m not here to take advantage of you, Karin,” Naruto said. “I know my shadow clone left you confused and unaware of the exact circumstances surrounding the seal on your neck.”

The Uzumaki girl bit her lower lip and nodded, “Is it like his cursed seal?” She asked.

“That’s not something you need to worry about,” Naruto said. “While this seal does allow me to track your location, it has none of the adverse effects that came with Orochimaru’s cursed seal. Its purpose is to constantly maintain a simple Yin-Yang Release healing jutsu that is maintained by your own chakra so that whenever you heal someone, the injury is healed naturally instead of forming a permanent mark.”

Naruto could see Karin’s eyes trembling as she stood in front of his seated self, “I’m not forcing myself, Hokage-sama …” Karin said, leaning forward and plopping herself in Naruto’s lap. “I am truly, from the bottom of my heart, grateful to you for what you have done for me.”

Her actions made Naruto smile and he wrapped an arm around her waist while leaning his head a little. He clasped his lips over the Mark of Dominion before giving the area a few licks and teasing Karin a little while passing his chakra into her body to examine the effects. He appreciated the cute moans that she released right beside his ear while hugging him back, seeming ready to take the next step.

Naruto, however, didn’t give her the response that she expected. He pulled back from her neck before looking into her eyes, “You see, Karin,” He said, “I don’t want you to feel coerced or forced into giving yourself to me. Because the current circumstances are exactly the kind that would lead one to come to such a conclusion. I want you to think hard about the circumstances surrounding the relationship that we might develop. You belong to me, for your very long and healthy life. In what way? That’s for you to decide. If you wish to be my mistress while working as the head of my research department, that’s fine. If you wish to be nothing more than a subordinate to me and eventually have a separate personal life with a husband while still staying subordinated to me, that’s also your choice. Think about it before you give me your decision, okay?”

Karin went silent at Naruto’s words, seeming to be deep in her thoughts.

“Also,” Naruto said, “If you do decide to be my mistress, I will not accept your decision to break it off at any point. You will not be finding another man for yourself, ever. Whether it is after ten years or after fifty or more. I hope I’ve made myself clear. So think long and hard about it before you give me your answer.”

“Dude, I was just horny and wanted to fuck …” Karin whined. “Why would you drop such a bomb on me like that? Can’t you just not care and do a one-time fling? It’s clear to me that you don’t have much inhibitions about cheating on your wife.” She pouted and rested her head on his shoulder, comfortably nestling herself in the presence of his warmth that always made her feel like an addict who got her dose of a drug.

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“Karin,” Naruto met her eyes with a deep look. “My relationship with Hinata is not something that you need to analyze. I love my wife from the bottom of my heart and will continue to do so for a very long time, do you understand?”

“Then why?” She asked. “Why would you cheat on her like that? Going so far as to offer to make me your mistress. I don’t particularly mind because I have nothing to lose here and everything to gain. But why you?”

“That’s a good question that I will tell you the answer to when I have one,” Naruto said.

“Your thoughts are also a mess, aren’t they?” Karin said, turning her head a little and leaning forward to lick his neck the same way that he had done a few minutes ago.

“Do you have any more questions?” He didn’t mind Karin making herself comfortable. If anything, he enjoyed the way her soft body pressed against him.

“May I stay like this for a while, Hokage-sama?” She asked him, “The bed is … cold. And lonely …”

“You may,” Naruto said. “I still have an hour before I need to leave.”

“Will you occasionally meet me with your real body?” She asked next, “Your clones aren’t as bright and warm …”

“Long as I have the time. Why not?”

…

Naruto ended up spending half an hour with Karin before she wordlessly got off of his lap and sat back in her previous spot. He let her dwell in her thoughts while he got up and bade her goodbye.

[Are you sure you’re okay with this, Naruto?]

[What? Getting a mistress?]

[I don’t particularly care, but humans are a monogamous species. You might not have an issue, but what about Hinata? I hope you’ve thought about what you are doing.]

Naruto couldn’t help but chuckle at Kurama’s words.

[I’m not thinking with my dick if that’s what you’re worried about, Kurama. I am fully aware of what I’m doing and the consequences. But if my plans and the necessary results are to come to fruition, I need to take some actions that have morally ambiguous implications. It shall all make sense in the eventual future. Hopefully.]

[That’s not what I’m worried about, Naruto. Whoever you fuck is your headache. I’m thinking about someone realizing what you’ve gone through and taking action against you. The old Naruto would never have had such a thought, let alone acted upon it. Uchiha Sasuke can easily deduce that something is off with you. With how observant he is, it is very plausible that he will find out something based on the smallest of inconsistencies.]

Naruto didn’t seem to care about the potential threat that Kurama mentioned, brushing the fox’s concerns off with an uncaring laugh.

[He’ll think that I’m possessed. It doesn’t matter really. His purpose has already been established in the grand scheme of things.]

Hearing Naruto’s exceedingly logical and almost sociopathic thoughts and plans, Kurama found it easy to deduce Naruto’s motives.

[Are you going to scheme his death to make your so-called disciple awaken the Mangekyō? That must be why you are trying to bring his daughter closer to him.]

[Of course. That’s the optimal way that things should go, no? He won’t accept my Mark of Dominion even if his life is on the line. In that case, he can serve as the catalyst for his daughter to get stronger. Who is not only very trusting of me, but she already has the mark on her.]

[I cannot truly understand why the mark is so important to you, Naruto. But I have to ask this … Is your warm and loving nature with your family all an act? I cannot particularly fathom how long you have lived, but I know from experience that even existing for a fraction of that time can leave someone an unfeeling, emotionless entity. What about you?]

Kurama’s words made Naruto stop in his tracks as if he were pondering something. His reply came after what seemed like an eternity to both him and Kurama.

[I … don’t know, my friend. I don’t truly know if it’s all an act or not. I had an entire plan mapped out after my return, each event and each moment perfectly designed to result in the optimal outcome. But that’s not what’s happening. My heart races when I see my wife as if it’s still the day of our wedding. Spending time with Hima and Boruto fills me with a warmth that’s hard to describe. Instead of focusing with a one-track mindset on my already established plans, I’m spending an exceeding amount of time with Hinata, Himawari, and even Boruto to an extent — If he wasn’t busy training with Sasuke and trying his best to avoid me all the time, I would’ve even guided him with his training. Initially, I thought that it was just a temporary feeling that would pass after a while, after which I would completely focus on my plans, but that isn’t the case. The more time I spend with my family, the more I feel a sense of fulfillment inside. Hell, even when it comes to things other than my family … Like how I’m gladly giving Sarada all kinds of emotional guidance and spending time with her, time that I could be utilizing to explore the Uzumaki ruins for information on the Mark. I could just send a clone to deal with that stuff and call it a day, but I don’t do that. I make it a point to spend time with her with my real body. Here even, I came to talk to and to comfort Karin since she’s been bored and lonely after being cooped up in that house for so many days. Even that little thing with Hanabi a few days ago where we took the casual flirting into a slightly weird territory. Despite being a clone, it was an aspect of my own mind that was playfully flirting with her … I’m not sure what I will end up doing, Kurama.]

Naruto’s long monologue made an inexpressive breath escape Kurama’s maw. The thoughtful Hokage had the illusion that the fox’s shoulders loosened as if a sense of tenseness had left the beast.

[I understand, partner.]

Kurama went silent at that point as Naruto continued walking home, thoughtful yet calm. As for the fox sealed within him, he just curled up, using some of his tails as a pillow to sleep peacefully in Naruto’s mindscape.

(A/N: I ended up rewriting a certain part of this chapter so many times … I’m still not sure if I got it right. At least I hope it expresses Naruto’s inner thoughts to an extent. He’s not a sociopath, nor is he an emotional fool. He’s somewhere in between … at least that’s what I’m envisioning right now. As the story flows, things should naturally get clearer.)