Sorry about the grammar up till the point where they return to the hidden leaf village. I could have corrected it but considering that the grammar, which isn't even all that bad, just misuse of commas, only lasted for two pages, it seemed like a waste of my time.
Now onto Naruto: Surprises Lie Within Frozen Tundras
"Haku?" Naruto said shakily, staring into the one eye visible from her broken mask.
He had hoped it wasn't her, that this feeling of foreboding he had felt the past couple days as he spent time with Haku was wrong. That even though the signs pointed to her being the enemy they were currently facing on the bridge, he had clung to the belief that it couldn't be.
The rest of Haku's mask fell off her face in shards of porcelain, completely shattered, just like Naruto's false hope.
"Why?" Naruto asked barely over a whisper, before his pent up emotions broke the surface and he raised his voice. "Why would you work for a man like Gato? You know what he's doing to this country!"
"I did it for my Master, Zabuza. For I am his tool, to be put to use in any way to help him fulfill his goals. However, it seems I have failed. I serve no purpose anymore, finish what you started and kill me." Haku said despondently.
"How can you ask that of me?" Naruto demanded.
Staring into her bright brown orbs, searching for an answer, Naruto couldn't even begin to understand why she would ask something so crazy. Wasn't it just two days ago that she had told him she liked him, and him her. Sure it wasn't love, they had only spoken for a week, but they had connected on a deep level, sharing the same pain. Not to mention Naruto didn't even know what love was. Not the love of a mother, a father, siblings, any kind of family or friend. But there was an attraction between the two, and just two days before they had taken the step from being friends, to a couple.
So now, kneeling over her prone, broken body, staring into brown eyes over a delicate face, how could she possibly expect him to do something like that.
Suddenly a hand on his cheek brought his attention back to her.
"I guess it doesn't matter either way, I'll soon die from internal bleeding." She said with a soft smile on her face.
"Please don't go, Haku." Naruto breathed out, not even trying to stop the tears streaming down his face.
"I was hoping that we could spend more time together, that circumstances could have been different, perhaps in another life." Haku told him with that small smile again, as if she had accepted her fate already.
"I guess this is goodbye then." Naruto said trying to summon up a small smile for her, but in the end failing and settling for a miserable look.
"Yes, Goodbye." Haku said as she raised her head and linked her arms around his neck, before pressing her lips against his.
Naruto almost aggressively returned the kiss closing his eyes, and trying to savor the moment.
Sakura watched from not too far off with Tazuna in tow. The girl they had been facing kissing Naruto gently with a pleased look on her face, delicate features and pale skin creating a deep contrast with her counterpart. Naruto smashing his lips against hers, needing, starving for this affection. Tears streaming down his tan skin and rough, feral looking whisker marks, combining with their lips and quickly being ignored by the duo. To Sakura, the two looked more like an art piece, beautiful yet tragic. A modern retelling of Romeo and Juliet. Sakura so caught up in the scene, she didn't notice the thin stream of chakra Haku had been pouring into Naruto since the start of the kiss.
The couple ended the kiss, but tried to erase as much space as possible between them. Resting their foreheads together, bathing in the afterglow of their kiss. Haku interlocked her fingers with Naruto's and smiled at him.
"Naruto, I don't have a lot of time left, but I've given you my control over ice, my kekkei genkai." She said seriously.
Naruto just widened his eyes in shock. To give someone their kekkei genkai, he wasn't even aware that was possible, but Haku stopped his train of thought.
"There's a hideout, 2 miles directly south of our meeting place in the clearing in the forest. I want you to go there and collect my scrolls on my discoveries into the kekkei genkai." She informed, suddenly burying her face in the crook of his neck, speaking much more softly. "And don't beat yourself up over my death, I don't want that. I want to see you succeed."
"I will Haku, I promise." Naruto whispered in her ear, wrapping his arms around her frame, his tears finally drying up and a soft look coming across his face.
It wasn't long before the girl released her last breath and fell limp within his arms. Lying her down on the bridge, Naruto idly noticed the small smile across her face.
"I'll be strong for you, Haku." Naruto declared before standing up, and walking slowly towards the battle that had died down between his sensei and Zabuza.
Kakashi was surprised when he saw Naruto walking towards them, but stopped his advance. Zabuza was little threat now with both his arms immobilized.
Staring at the man as he continued his march, Naruto couldn't even find it in himself to be angry with the man. He just felt numb, but he knew it would go away soon. They had been taught in the academy about how people reacted in certain situations.
"You know she died for you." Naruto stated as he stared apathetically up at the missing Mist Ninja's eyes.
"She was a tool that failed her duties. She is of no use to me." Zabuza stated as he looked away.
Despair cast it's cold grip on his heart and cradled it within its hands.
But that shouldn't be right, he was completely numb just a few moments ago. It was then that Naruto realized that these weren't his feelings, they were Zabuza's.
'Must be an after effect of The Nine Tails Chakra.' Naruto surmised with that same expressionless face staring up at Zabuza who towered above him.
"But you don't really believe that do you." Naruto stated more than asked. "Just as Haku saw you as her father, you saw her as your daughter, and speaking of her so callously is one of the most difficult things you've had to do."
"Shut up kid." The Swordsmen ordered, finally casting his gaze down towards the brat, not in the least bit ashamed of the tears streaming down his face. "You talk too much, you know that brat?"
"I've been told." Naruto said simply, finally letting a small smile grace his face, happy too see The Mist Ninja being honest with his feelings.
Kakashi finally let his Jutsu fizzle out, seeing that the tension between the two groups had died down and a stalemate had been reached. Kakashi was prepared to join in the light hearted fun, when an unexpected guest joined the party.
"Gato." Kakashi said in a whisper.
"Thanks again for defeating Gato, Hidden Leaf Ninja!" The townspeople cried.
The sounds of celebration and festivities did little to raise Naruto's mood. He wasn't beating himself up over Haku's death, but still, losing someone so close for the first time. It was difficult to handle, and he couldn't even find it in himself to put up a fake smile.
Sakura was concerned for her teammate. Sure he was an annoying loud mouthed idiot who never seemed to take a hint, but still they were a team, and this mission had brought them closer.
Sasuke watched from afar as the team said goodbye to the townspeople. He had woken up around the same time his teammate finished kissing the girl with ice mirrors, and what a surprise that was. Paralyzed he couldn't move a muscle, and being so close to the two, he couldn't do more than listen to the conversation.
Now he wasn't the only one on the team with a valuable kekkei genkai, excluding Kakashi.
Sasuke frowned slightly when he thought back on the power that girl had held. She had taken her kekkei genkai to its heights, and developed a jutsu that even with the help of his sharingan, he couldn't beat.
Now looking at Naruto, Sasuke refused to underestimate the new power his teammate held. Maybe now, he would be an even better rival.
Kakashi looked like he was reading porn once again, but he was discreetly observing his blonde charge. After yesterday's events, he couldn't blame the kid for looking the way he did. He had held the exact same look when both his teammates died within the span of several months.
"Well kids, it's time to head back to the village." Kakashi chirped.
Naruto watched as the man lazily strolled in the other direction of the bridge. His team closely followed, and Naruto took up the rear.
Shafts of light flickered through the branches, and lit up the forests surroundings. Leaves fell here and there signifying the coming of fall. The leaves hadn't changed color yet, but it couldn't be more than a month before it happened.
Naruto fingered the scroll he had picked up last night, taking up space within his kunai pouch. There were many things he would have to change.
He couldnt dick around like he used too, he had to take this ninja business more seriously.
First things first, it was time to drop the persona. Naruto had discovered early on in life that if he acted harmless and an all around idiot, people would give him an easier time. It wasn't a large shift from previous behaviours, but he took anything he could get at the time. That had proven disastrous. As great as it was to be under the radar, it took serious self control not to lash out at his classmates over the years.
At first he had coped by distracting himself with his so called "crush" on his now teammate. Sure she was pretty, but god was she violent. Naruto couldn't even understand what men found so appealing about screamers; whatever the hell it meant, he was sure he would never feel the same after putting up with Sakura and Ino's shit all these years.
When that wasn't enough to tide him over, and Naruto felt his control slipping, he had found an easy target in Sasuke. He was an all around jerk, and Naruto vented his frustrations on the black haired boy, but he could understand the reasons behind the other boy's behaviour. However, no matter how hard it got, Naruto had never gotten arrogant, and that's what painted such a large bullseye on the Uchiha's back.
Looking at the back of his teammate, who was walking not too far in front of him, he let a small smirk settled across his face. That red and white fan was truly a bullseye.
'Shit, i'm not doing much better.' The blonde boy scrunched his face in slight disgust looking down at his articles of clothing.
If Sasuke was wearing a bullseye, than Naruto was wearing a bright neon sign at 2 am.
A change of wardrobe was heavily needed, maybe blue in homage of Haku. Even now it was clear to the blonde that Haku would forever change his life and influence him from now on.
For a brief moment an image of her long flowing hair and a dark blue kimono she had worn at one point, flashed into Naruto's head.
Absentmindedly Naruto tugged at a couple strands of his own hair. They were slightly longer than they were yesterday.
A side effect of The NIne Tails sealed within him, The Old Man had once told him, was that it gave him a strong healing factor. It was based off the formation of cells being ramped up, so when he used The Nine Tails' chakra, his hair grew. An extreme example of the cell production overload was his nail growth; they elongated into claws and became incredibly dense.
Naruto came to the conclusion that for the next few days as The Nine Tails' chakra continued filtering and assimilating to his own chakra, his hair would grow pretty fast. That wasn't a problem though, in fact the blonde welcomed this change. He thought the idea of growing his hair out long like Haku would be nice.
Another thing to work on was his new found abilities, as well as his basic shinobi skills. He was lacking to put it simply, and that just wouldn't fly anymore. If there was anything he had learned this mission, it was that he was just a kid way over his head. Naruto wasn't in the least bit prepared for the real world, but that would change. Starting from here on out was the beginning of the new Naruto.
And for the first time in a long time, Naruto let a small smile grace his face.
A true smile.
The large gates of the village towered over the team as they neared the entrance to The Hidden Leaf. The familiar sounds of the daily hustle and bustle welcomed the 4 ninja.
It felt nice to be home.
But then something not too far in the distance grabbed his attention.
'Are those Sakura's parents?' Naruto thought when he saw a shock of pink hair.
"Mom!Dad!" Sakura cried out as she ran into her parents waiting arms.
The couple seemed incredibly distraught, but upon seeing their daughter safe, they quickly broke out in tears.
"We're so glad you're safe, we heard about what happened." The woman said almost unintelligibly, busy as she was with hugging the life out of her daughter.
Kakashi, Sasuke, and Naruto stood in a line watching the family reconcile.
While Kakashi had long ago come to terms with the loss of family and friends, Naruto and Sasuke hadn't. It was easy to see by the expressions on their face. While Naruto bit his lip softly, the two were wearing identical expressions. That longing look that made their faces look so much older than they really were. Like tired old men who had lived through a war, but weren't really living.
"Hey, Naruto." Sasuke called out, almost hesitantly.
Naruto's attention quickly shifted to Sasuke, his eyes a bit more alert. After all, Sasuke never called him by his name; it had always been insults.
"Yeah." He answered in a soft spoken voice.
And now it was Sasuke's turn to be thrown for a loop.
Naruto, speaking softly. The idiot was always yelling, what had happened.
'No, I know what happened. I couldn't be the only one who's changed because of that fight on the bridge.' Sasuke thought with his eyes closed.
When he opened them again, he asked the question he had been preparing for.
"Do you want to spar?" Sasuke asked.
Only this time his tone wasn't laced with mockery or arrogance. No just a simple question, as if he was asking the day of the week.
Naruto wasn't the only one shocked. Kakashi aimed his gaze at his black haired charge.
It took a second for Naruto to respond, but when he did, it was with a smirk and a hint of that past competitive nature within his eye.
"Sure." He agreed easily, head tilted down and eyes slightly narrowed in challenge.
Sasuke threw a smirk back at him, his nose turned up slightly.
"I didn't think you were already able to use your bloodline." Sasuke said in between panting for air.
It was well into the later hours of the night now, and the two boys lay on their back within the devastated training field. Scorch Marks, and ice constructs littered the landscape, evidence of the fight they had just finished.
"I got a scroll from Haku which helped me get a grasp for it," Naruto replied, sweat pouring off him in rivers. "But, even then, it just comes naturally to me."
"Huh." Sasuke let out a thoughtful noise.
Closing his eyes, he let his mind wander back on the battle. Everytime he had spit out a fireball, Naruto had just used ice walls to counter. And for some reason, whenever he had tried to engage in taijutsu, he ended up smashing clones. Naruto, showing strategic thinking Sasuke didn't know him capable of, tended to use the smokescreen as a cover for traps, or even to hide the shuriken he sent flying.
He was fighting smarter now, and he wasn't nearly as loud as before.
Thank god.
Opening his eyes again, Sasuke saw an arm stretched out to help him up. He had initially wanted to refuse, but right now he didn't think he had the energy to actually pull himself up.
Averting his eyes in slight embarrassment, Sasuke took the offer, and mumbled an apology.
A quick glance at the sky showed just how late it was.
Maybe he should extend a hand too. It was only the right thing to do.
"It's getting late, do you want to stay over?" He asked.
The signs of exhaustion and fatigue were clear on the blonde face, Sasuke wouldn't make him walk across the village to his apartment.
Afterall, he was trying to be a better teammate now.
Naruto turned his weary eyes onto him, the dark bags only that much more noticeable in the faint light of the full moon.
"Yeah, thanks." He replied.
The two boys took a step towards Sasuke's apartment, only to both fall flat on their faces.
Naruto let out a slight groan that was muffled from his position face down in the dirt.
Sasuke just burst out laughing at the blonde's misfortune, and soon enough, Naruto joined in as well.
It was a nice night out, sleeping on the ground wouldn't be too bad.
The next morning Naruto returned to his own apartment. The team had an entire week off, and now fully rested, Naruto planned on making the most of the week by training.
Probably his biggest obstacle was his chakra control, so the entire week he would have shadow clones around the clock working on it. He was a little ashamed that it had taken him his first mission to realize the memories of his clones would return to him, but in his defense he didn't have enough time to read the whole explanation from the Scroll of Seals before Iruka rolled up.
Now that only left him.
He had tasks for his clones to do, but what would he be doing this week.
He could practice his taijutsu, but that still left time throughout the day where he was doing nothing.
Naruto rose from the couch and panned a look across his small apartment.
The kitchen was somewhat clean, but he could do better. The hardwood could get mopped again, and the scrolls cluttering the coffee table could go back on the bookshelf.
Naruto moved to the sink first, resigning himself to a morning of cleaning.
Perhaps he would think of something to do come afternoon.
It wasn't even 11 yet, and he was almost done.
He just had to make room on his bookshelf for the last few books lying around. However it seemed pretty full.
Taking a few books out at random, Naruto replaced them with the few that had taken up space around his living room.
Turning the few books and scrolls he had taken out, Naruto turned over the first to see it was a book on sealing.
'If I remember correctly, The Old Man grabbed these for me a few years back.' He reminisced.
Back when he was 9, he didn't understand the first thing about sealing, and had thrown the book up on the shelf and forgot about it.
Of course now he was older and could probably understand the concepts, not to mention he had been looking for something to do this week.
And all those calligraphy lessons he had taken under The Old Man as a way to pass time when he was younger, would only mean he could start that much sooner.
Walking into his room, Naruto created 7 clones, and gave each a different book.
Keeping the only scroll for himself, Naruto set in for a long day of reading.
"Just dispel whenever you finish, hopefully we can get this all done today."
"Ok this isn't working."
Pushing a hand through his hair, Naruto sighed loudly.
Unlike what he had previously thought, having his clones read the books for him, wasn't the most effective option.
It was like switching through 5 different books in the span of an hour, and then being asked to summarize the first chapters of each one.
It all resulted in a mismatch of information, and more than enough confusion.
Luckily he wasn't reading for plot, but memorizing information and getting a grasp on general theory, so it wasn't a complete waste of his time.
He still got all the information the clones got, and because they had dispelled at differing intervals, none of the information became mixed up.
Even so.
"There's still way too many gaps in my knowledge." He groaned out. "I can't even get started without a solid foundation."
Making another clone, Naruto handed him some paper and pens.
"Write down everything we know about sealing," He ordered. "Hopefully this will let us know what we should be looking for."
Upon seeing his creator grab his wallet in preparation to leave, The clone asked.
"Where are you off to?"
"To get something warmer, all this Ice Manipulation is making me colder than before." He responded, referring to the spar yesterday with Sasuke.
He would have to stop by a training ground to pump out some more clones to get started on his chakra control. Maybe by the end of the week, they could even learn that water walking exercise Kakashi had mentioned in passing.
In a much better mood now that he had something to focus on this week, Naruto left his place, and set off for the market district.
Of course he should have known that good mood wouldn't last long. He didn't need to walk the streets long to see that.
Having stayed in Wave, even if only for a week, Naruto had felt at ease. It had been so easy for him to forget what it was like back in his village.
'And now I'm back in the center of it all.' He thought with a slight grimace
Naruto had to brush past the civilians, the large crowd uncaring of his existence.
It made his blood boil how they refused to even acknowledge his very existence.
They just ignored him! Acted like he wasn't important enough to even spare a glance; as if he was below even the dirt under their shoe.
But then again, he was just "That boy".
He was "The Demon Brat".
No one even knew why The Third allowed him to stay in the village.
Naruto had to resist the urge to spit on the ground in disgust.
Weaving through the throng of moving civilians, Naruto kept his head down. It wouldn't do good to let them see the glare he had fixated on the ground.
Back when he was younger, everyone looked at him in fear. He had hated that. It made him feel as if he was truly the monster the men and women had painted him out to be.
That was the main reason he had put up the facade.
To appear harmless.
'A lot good that did me though." He muttered under his breath.
Now they ignored him. They didn't even have the decency to move out of his way. They just kept going straight as if he didn't even register on the radar.
Maybe he should just take a page from their book and ignore them they same way they ignored him.
Schooling his face into his best impression of Sasuke, Naruto did a good job of appearing bored.
"How fucking dare he... " His hearing caught the disgusted whisper; a hushed conversation between two women. "Acting as if he's all that."
He had to stop himself from bursting out in condescending laughter.
The sheer gall of him, huh! How dare he!
It was getting a little hard to hold the smirk off his face. Pissing people off was kind of fun.
However, the blonde froze up real quick as images flashed through his mind.
Sasuke's default look was a smirk, at least when he wasn't looking around with a cold expression.
Was that it? Did Sasuke just like to piss people off?
Maybe, just maybe he wasn't actually an asshole; perhaps even, he wasn't all that arrogant either.
He just liked getting a response out of someone.
Like a little damned troll.
With that image in mind, it was a miracle that Naruto managed to keep up that indifferent look, and not make a scene by bursting into a fit of laughter in the middle of the market district.
He was even more surprised at how his body on autopilot had been moving through the dense crowd with ease. The way his torso reacted to all the different movement around him; how his legs led him through the best path, and his shoulders rotated to shuffle and sidestep past them all.
Just then, the boy caught an affronted look cross some stranger's visage as they passed by.
Naruto likened it to the CEO of a company who had just been payed disrespect by some rookie intern.
Yeah that was a good analogy.
Letting his eyes pan across the storefronts and merchants stalls, confident in his body's ability to keep him clear of collision, the blonde haired shinobi looked out for anything interesting.
'Bingo.' Naruto zeroed in on his target.
Wrapped around a mannequin within one of the clothing stores was a dark blue-grey robe with grey lining and a fur collar.
Hell, even from this distance he could tell it was his size.
Crossing the street, Naruto wouldn't even let the crowd get in his way. Sidestepping, jerking his body this way and that, he flowed around his obstacles like water rushing around rocks, until finally, he made it to the entrance.
Stepping inside, he made a beeline for the sales clerk.
Upon stepping into his view, Naruto could see the man's face sour.
"What do you want?" He asked gruffly.
Ponting his head to the clothes he had been looking at earlier, Naruto returned the man's earlier enthusiasm.
"The blue robe over there." Naruto replied with an indifferent look.
The man just gave out a long sigh and went to grab it.
'Oh wait, he's not gonna hassle me?' Naruto thought as he settled for a more neutral pose and fixed his features. 'He doesnt deserve for me to act like an ass.'
Afterall, if he just started pissing everyone off with zero discrimination, he'd turn into Sasuke.
Yeah, no. Naruto decided then and there he would only mess with people who deserved it.
The man returned and looked at the tag, before giving his price.
It was 25% more than advertised.
"Don't lie to me, I saw the tag when I walked in." Naruto said with a frown.
Before the man could say anything, Naruto took out the amount of money he had seen it priced at and set it down on the counter.
The man closed his eyes and let out a slight groan.
"Fine then kid, just take it and leave, I'm ready to go on break." he announced, before scooping up all the money, putting it in the register, and walking towards the back room.
Naruto blinked.
He hadn't expected it to go over so well.
"Now," He said picking up his new best friend with a bright smile. "We just need to go find some pants."
After all the ones he was currently wearing were getting a bit tight, and he couldn't get the full range of movement like before.
Walking out the store, and traversing through the crowd like a skilled navigator, the boy went to one of the more general stores in the area.
A military outfitters; a good place for shinobi to stock up, or replace what they needed for missions.
Entering, Naruto was met with a much more welcoming atmosphere. Racks of clothes took up most of the floor space along the right side of the entrance; shelves of weapons and other such tools further back. To his left was a display case holding some more miscellaneous and limited supply items. The case flowed from one end on the room to the other with one lone man standing behind the waist high glass maning the cash register. A long hardwood floor that led straight down to the bathrooms and dressing rooms cut a direct line and separated the two sections of the store.
"Were having a sale right now, young man." The guy up front said with a lazy drawl. "All the items in the clearance aisle are 70% off."
Naruto eagerly took advantage of the deal to splurge on clothes, and made sure to grab things in somewhat large quantities. Chainmail shirts, and other such undergarments were the first items to be nabbed.
Next up came sandals, and man was there a large variety. Shrugging and deciding to stick to what he was used to, Naruto just picked up a black pair in his size and continued on.
Finally stopping by for what he had originally sought out, Naruto grabbed some pant's of varying colors. Funny enough, he ended up picking the same style his sensei usually wore. Adding the items to the steadily growing pile within his shopping basket, Naruto went further back to where the weapons were out of curiosity.
Perusing the shelves for a while, Naruto happened upon quite the beauty.
It was a curved sword that was slightly shorter than the katana lying nearby. The sheath was a blend of dark and light blues that contrasted well with the stark white snowflakes blowing across. The blade itself was made of a tinted blue steel that Naruto admired within the light. A small guard that, sticking to the overall theme, was shaped like a snowflake. The handle was a deep obsidian black with an off white cloth binding in the standard diamond shape.
"Yuki-onna." He read out the name breathlessly.
Taking it off the rack gingerly, Naruto walked towards the front of the store.
The cashier tallied up all the clothes Naruto had bought, before Naruto paid the necessary amount.
"Can you tell me the price of this?" Naruto asked, an anxiousness making itself known in his stomach.
When the man answered, Naruto realized it was far too high for him to afford.
However there was one other option he had available.
"Naruto?" Came Sarutobi's surprised voice.
But who could blame him, the aged man hadn't seen the boy since he had assigned Team 7 to that mission 2 weeks ago.
"Hey, Hiruzen?" Naruto started off, walking further into his office until he was right at his desk. "Have I ever told you how much I loved you?"
Sarutobi sighed, it was as if the boy had no shame.
"Quite frequently when you were younger, although I haven't heard it from you the past few years now."
"Well in case you had forgotten, I do."
The Old Man just looked down at the paperwork on his desk. Sure he only had this one sheet left to finish, but that didn't mean he wasn't tired.
God, he didn't have time for any of the kids' bullshit today. It didn't matter how long he hadn't seen him.
"Look whatever you're trying to butter me up for, just go ahead and ask already."
"It's a sword, I really want it, but it's way too expensive."
Having gone back to his paperwork, only really listening with half an ear, He casually asked the price.
Perhaps he could just give the boy some money and be done with it.
Naruto gave the price.
Hiruzen declined.
"Look at least come see it before you go off and say no."
Hiruzen now finished with his work, had no real reason to refuse.
Hiruzen could see how set the blonde was on obtaining this specific sword. And according to Kakashi's report, he could understand why.
"Old Man, I know I haven't been taking my career all that seriously, but I'm making a change now." Naruto spoke up, his gaze still locked on the blue steel of the blade.
"And I'm much more mature than I used to be."
'More like you finally decided to stop pretending to be so immature.' Sarutobi though.
"I haven't pulled any pranks as of recently, I've taken my training seriously, and I promise I'll treat it with care."
"This is a Katate-uchi." Hiruzen explained.
"A type of one edged blade. However it's different from the blade most ANBU use, in that this one has a curved blade." He began, going into lecture mode as he took the sword upfront to pay for it. "However, it's shorter than a Katana, a two handed blade that most shinobi tend to ignore. It is because of this blades shorter length that it's a one handed blade."
"A hybrid between a chokuto and a Katana," Hiruzen reached into his robe to pull out some money, which the cashier was all too happy to take. "It's got reach, its incredibly sharp, and you can use it with one hand. A perfect blade for you, Naruto."
Handing the sword over to the young boy, Sarutobi started making his way out the shop.
"I'll be going now, Naruto."
And then he was gone.
Naruto took his new sword and his bag of clothes towards the clothing room with a fond smile on his face. This was the best gift anyone had ever given him.
He'd make sure to do the Old Man proud.
Right when he was about to enter, Naruto passed by a modified utility belt hanging off a hook on the wall. Grabbing it, Naruto walked in.
Once he had put on a pair of black pants and wrapped his shins in bandages, Naruto put on the robe. However he wasn't expecting it to fall down so far, it reached almost to his knees.
Naruto secured the belt around his waist, then pulled up on the robe so the excess spilled over and hid the belt from view. Turning around in the mirror some, Naruto found it now only reached an inch above mid thigh.
Finally the last touch, placing the sword at his side, Naruto felt like a new person.
"You're back." Hiruzen said with a deadpanned expression.
"Haha, yeah," Naruto replied sheepishly, setting down his bag of clothes near the door. "I just thought I should ask you for some help with my training."
Hiruzen sighed, but relented. He offered Naruto advice on training methods, and how to best wield his sword. Once that was over, he was about to send him off when a thought occured.
"Naruto," He said looking at the boy a little closer. "You have the Ice Style now, right?"
"Yeah, but all I can really do is make Ice Walls and Ice Senbon." He replied.
"Well, back during the 2nd Great Shinobi War, I fought against a few Ice Style Users. I can't remember any handsigns, just the relative shape and effect of the jutsu they used." Hiruzen offered.
That's cool and all, but If you don't know the handsigns, how will I be able to recreate it?" the boy asked.
"Well, with most Jutsu, there are 2 factors that create it." Sarutobi, now in lecture mode started. "Nature Transformation, which changes your chakra into one of the 5 natures: Fire, Wind, Lightning, Earth, and Water, or in your case Ice. Then, Shape Transformation. This just altars the shape you want your Jutsu to take on."
"So what that means is that, if you can change the chakra's elemental nature, and then alter it's shape, you don't need any hand signs except maybe to channel it or to help convert the raw chakra into one element." He finished.
"And luckily I know of a great exercise to help you get started with Shape Transformation."
Naruto just smiled brightly, he couldn't even imagine all the possibilities.
"Since Shape Transformation is just manipulating our raw chakra, I'll give you a simple exercise. And once you finish you can just start experimenting on your own and begin devising your own training methods."
Taking a balloon from out of seemingly nowhere, Sarutobi filled it with water from his sink off to the side, before returning to stand in front of the boy.
'It'll be fine if I only teach him this step, once Jiraiya returns, he can show him the next two parts.' Sarutobi thought, but in reality, he had only ever learned this first exercise, having no real need to learn the Rasengan.
"All you have to do is burst this balloon only using chakra." He then demonstrated, before filling up another one for the blonde to practice with. "The key is to get the water spinning in multiple directions at once. Oh and you should rotate yours to the right."
Of course, it was easier said than done.
Keeping all these individual strands of chakra rotating all at once was fairly difficult. If Naruto's concentration lapsed for even a second,or if he couldn't spread his focus enough, the water within would fail to spin correctly.
It was like pushing a ball through a loop. You had to keep the force along the walls or else the ball would fall towards the center and destroy the momentum.
Naruto thanked the Hokage for everything he had done today, picked up his bag by the front door, and made his way home.
On his way back, he'd have to put most of his chakra into creating clones to help train his chakra control.
Now with a clear task in mind, and a list of work to do this week, Naruto took to the rooftops, a bright smile on his face.
It had only been a week since they had returned from Wave, but even then, Kakashi could see that all his students had changed.
Physically and Emotionally.
It was evident in their facial expressions.
Whereas before, Sasuke only showed indifference or a cold seriousness, now he seemed to be more neutral.
Sakura had taken to a look of determination and hadn't sent any glances or proclamations of love Sasuke's way.
Perhaps she was taking her job more seriously.
And then there was Naruto, he had changed the most. The boisterous attitude was replaced with attentiveness.
"So did you guys just plan this out, or is it a coincidence?" Kakashi asked humorously, referring to everyone's wardrobe change.
"Haha," Sakura laughed in slight embarrassment as everyone had taken to looking around. "It just kinda happened."
Sakura had gotten rid of the long flowing dress and opted for a shorter red one, as well as putting her hair into a ponytail at the nape of her neck, only leaving some of her bangs to frame the sides of her face.
Sasuke had gotten rid of the arm and leg bands in favor of some shin guards. He still wore the same white shorts, but he had opted to now wear a black, long-sleeve, high collar shirt, the typical Uchiha crest still on the back.
Naruto of course, having the biggest upgrade. Black shinobi sandals, and dark purple, practically bordering on black, pants with bandages wrapped around his shins. A sword that hung on his left side, attached to a utility belt that, from what wasn't covered by his top, appeared to be filled with scrolls and weapons. Most of this belt was of course, covered by a long dark-blue robe with a fur collar, which reached almost mid thigh. In addition, his hair was a couple inches longer, his ears soon to be swallowed underneath the new growth.
"You any good with that?" Sasuke suddenly asked, referring to the sword hanging off his side.
"I only know the basic guard, cuts, thrusts, and parries. Its enough to deal with any bandits, but I'll need more than just a week before I could fight anyone who's been at it for some time." Naruto answered.
"You know I have a chokuto lying around," Sasuke started off.
'Wait is he gonna ask for help, voluntarily!' Was the thought that went through the remaining team members heads as Sasuke took a deep breath.
"Mind teaching me."
A chorus of sighs rang out through the clearing.
"Say please."
Surprisingly, Sasuke only hesitated for 3 seconds before going through with it.
Averting his eyes, Sasuke mumbled out a please.
"Alright then, I'll show you what I know after training." Naruto responded.
"Ok, now we can get onto training." Kakashi said, gathering the attention of all 3 present and getting them back on track. "I came to a decision this week to take your training to the next level. This week I'll be focusing on your chakra control to bring it up to snuff. Once you've completed the exercise, I'll be teaching each of you one c-rank offensive Jutsu, and possibly supplementary techniques. When were not working on that, I'll be giving you evasion training, or we'll work on your Taijutsu."
The three genin let off excited smiles. They were finally done with the kiddie stuff.
"To begin today, we'll be sparring. And since I can see how intent you two are on knocking the stuffing out of each other," Kakashi said referring to the two boys on Team 7. "You'll be each others opponent. How nice am I."
The two boys stood to face each other at different ends of the field.
Sasuke, surprisingly without a condescending smirk. No he looked attentive, he was taking this seriously.
Naruto's expression mirrored Sasuke's, the boy had nothing to prove to the other one.
They were both equals as of this moment, and they each took into consideration how the other had probably grown throughout the past week since their return from Wave.
'I wonder what new tricks you have up your sleeve?' The two boys thought, silently sizing each other up, not making a single movement.
"You've got 1 minute boys." Kakashi said.
And like that the tension was broken and his hand had been forced, Sasuke didn't want to rush in head first, he still was wary of Haruto's possibly new skillset, not to mention the time Naruto had spent over at his place, Sasuke had seen he was suddenly capable of strategic thinking and his own asspull tactics in the heat of the moment.
Naruto was slightly surprised at the speed Sasuke came at him, but he had also gotten faster over the break, this wasn't anything Naruto couldn't handle
Shinobi Battle Techniques: Part 1 - Taijutsu
Sasuke immediately took the offensive, Sharingan already out and blazing, it was obvious he wasn't taking any chances. Naruto went on the defensive, easily able to keep up with Sasuke's pace.
Sasuke lashing out with kicks, furiously throwing punches and pushing forward. Naruto parrying the strikes blocking where he could and focusing on any small opening he could take advantage of, more than willing to let his body move on autopilot, sidestepping out of the way of his attacks.
Sasuke was getting frustrated with how little ground he had been making, and in that split second of distraction, Naruto threw a right jab that Sasuke barely managed to avoid.
'Shit, that one almost got me.' Sasuke thought worriedly, as he watched Naruto jump back several yards, putting some distance between them.
'No doubt to recuperate, his moves were getting a little sloppy towards the end.' Sasuke wasn't about to give Naruto any time to breath.
He quickly launched forward ready to pick up where they left off, completely unaware of the trap the blonde had set up in a moment of genius.
Naruto had noticed the patch of sunlight hitting his midsection when he had landed in this spot, his original intention to withdraw his blade, but then a clever idea hit him.
Once Sasuke had gotten close enough, Naruto unsheathed a small portion of his blade. The sunlight bounced off the steel and hit Sasuke straight in his eyes!
Sasuke recoiled out of sheer reflex, and Naruto took this as his chance. Sending a reverse spin kick into his side, Naruto was shocked when Sasuke still managed to capture his ankle.
'Fuck!' Naruto cursed in his head.
But not all was lost, Sasuke still hadn't recovered from the glare, and Naruto took this as his last option.
Planting his right hand on the ground, quickly followed by his left, Naruto flipped up and sent his left heel crashing under the other boys chin.
Sasuke was sent flying through the air, but luckily he managed to right himself, doing a backflip to land upright.
Naruto was still in on his hands, however pushing absurd amounts of chakra to his palms, he was able to throw himself high into the air, enough so that he could see the entirety of the field.
Frontflipping so as to right himself in the air, Naruto gripped his left wrist in his right hand.
'Seal: Release.' He said within his mind, the storage seal on his left palm unleashing a small amount of water, before closing.
Sasuke still on the ground, knew Naruto was up to something. What it was, he wasn't sure, but it couldn't have been good. Sasuke began circulating chakra throughout his body, making preparations for anything Naruto would throw at him.
'Ice Style: Ice Senbon.' Naruto intoned, shaping the water into frozen needles, before sending a literal hailstorm in Sasuke's direction.
Naruto smiled in satisfaction, the efforts of creating jutsu without hand seals having been realized. Now he had a strong base with which all his other Ice Style Jutsu would derive from.
However that smile turned into a look of shock when Naruto saw a large fireball engulf the ice needles, and felt through the chakra connection, the ice actually melting.
'Damn, Sasuke's flames have gotten even hotter, enough that he can actually melt the ice, that or mine just isn't strong enough.' Naruto thought.
Naruto had already reached the peak of his ascent and began to fall, the flames racing to meet him.
Suddenly, images of Haku's strongest jutsu flashed by his mind, and suddenly he had an idea.
Forming an Ice Mirror, Naruto was ecstatic to see it remain floating in the air as if supported by pillars underneath. Landing gracefully, Naruto then flipped off the platform and back to his beginning position opposite Sasuke.
The two looked up to see the end result of the flames assault on Naruto's Ice Mirror.
It was halfway melted.
Naruto cursed in his mind, he still had work to do.
Finally they both looked at eachother with serious expressions on their faces. Neither daring to move a muscle, but looking for the slightest sign to re-engage.
"Times up!" Kakashi yelled out all to happily.
Slightly miffed about not being able to continue, but satisfied none the less, the two walked over to face him, Sakura in between them.
"That was very good you two." He congratulated, before clapping his hands together.
"Ok now to begin Evasion Training," Kakashi announced the last task of the day. "Naruto, you're first."
Naruto stepped forward.
"Ok, first were gonna spar. In the beginning I'll go fairly slow, but I'll steadily be increasing the speed." The man explained. "Once I've landed a blow, the fight is off."
True to his word, Kakashi came at him fairly slow, but kept increasing it. It was one minute in when Naruto had to start parrying and blocking.
However once Kakashi landed the first hit, and the spar ended, he was happy to see the vast improvement in his footwork and dodging. It must have been all that walking through the crowded market district the past week.
When it was Sasuke turn, the boy had only lasted slightly longer than Naruto.
The two sat on the ground and watched Sakura. After 2 minutes, the training was over.
"Ok, now onto the results." The Jonin announced. "Naruto, you can handle your own against a mid chunnin level enemy. Sasuke, you got the same."
"And now you, Sakura." He looked at her with an eye smile. "I was pleasantly surprised to see you aren't far behind the boys in this aspect. You could handle a low chunnin level threat."
Sakura beamed.
"That's all for today, see you all here at 8 o'clock sharp tomorrow morning." He said vanishing in a column of leaves.
"Let's get going, yeah?" Sasuke said more than asked Naruto, hands in his pockets and looking like he was ready to leave.
"I want to eat something first." Naruto responded, before seeing Sakura fidget slightly. "Actually, Sakura, Sasuke, lets all eat together."
"As a team?" Sakura asked slightly surprised by the notion.
"Yeah, a team is suppose to be like a family, right? So let's go." Naruto exclaimed, as he started walking towards town.
"As long as everyone's paying for their own meal." Sasuke added, before he followed.
Sakura stood their for a second, her eyes widened.
"Hey, wait up!" She called out as she ran to catch up.
Naruto walked into his apartment around 10. It was dark out, and he had just gotten back from Sasuke's place, the two of them having fought with their swords.
Sasuke had used his Sharingan to copy what Naruto already knew, then the two had practiced for several hours.
Now back at home, he was ready to get in the shower, and hit the sack.
Passing by his kitchen, Naruto saw notes scattered about; new seals that his clone had been working on he could only assume.
But if that was the case, his clone should have dispelled, and the memories would go to him.
Upon opening his bedroom door, it was apparent why he was in the dark.
His clone had opted to go to sleep once it had finished its duties.
Damn.
He couldn't even say anything because it was him.
Letting out a groan and just accepting it, Naruto went to his bathroom to shower, stripping layers of clothes until he finally made it.
Once out, Naruto rolled the Naruto clone on the bed, off, and took the spot for himself.
The clone popped upon hitting the ground, the real Naruto still climbing into bed.
The effects of his clone having been unconscious and being popped forcefully, as well as Naruto being mentally as well as physically drained, and Naruto's mental defenses were down.
He was completely incapacitated.
The perfect conditions for a certain meeting that had been long overdue.
Naruto's body hit the bed, appearing as if asleep, however he wasn't going to be getting much sleep that night.
"Where the hell am I?" Naruto asked no one, watching the breath come out his mouth in a thin white vapor.
Looking around at his surroundings, he quickly deduced that he was in an Arctic Tundra.
It looked to be a large platform; a giant sheet of ice, with him in the middle. It was about a mile and a half in radius, and surrounding the mass of land on all sides was an ocean. It rolled gently, but the water was a sinister dark blue that seemed more black than anything else. Large ponds of still water dotted the landscape, but Naruto couldn't see any living creatures within.
A large gust of wind blew by him, and Naruto realized just how windy it was.
Suddenly he was aware of a very large presence behind him.
Turning around, Naruto found himself standing before the entrance to a cave. The lip extending up so far, Naruto had to lean back to see the ceiling. Golden bars with kanji engraved on them, lined the entrance.
Then, lumbering out of the darkness, clouds of mist blowing out the bars like steam, a form appeared.
"I've been trying to contact you for some time," Came the deep booming voice, as the owner sat down and peered down at the young boy. "I must say, I'm disappointed in how pathetically weak you are."
Naruto didn't even register the insult for what it was. He just stared in shock and awe for several seconds.
"So we finally meet." He breathed out.
"Yes." The great fox answered, his voice having an odd flanging quality to it, and sounding deep as if originating from the back of its throat.
"Hey, wait a second." Naruto suddenly asked, seemingly having come to terms with the sight before him. "Aren't you suppose to have red fur, does this have anything to do with me gaining the Ice Style Kekkei Genkai?"
The great Nine Tailed Fox in all its glory was now a stark white, a deep contrast to it's blood red eyes that seemed to glow within the arctic setting.
"Yes, seeing as you and I are connected, I've taken on this new appearance." The fox spoke, leaning its head down in a show of intimidation and baring it's fangs. "You got something to say about that."
"No, it's just you look really majestic, like an arctic fox." Naruto said with clear enthusiasm if the wide eyed look on his face was any indicator. "Like some sort of Hunter."
The fox pulled back and laid its head down on it's front paws. Closing it's eyes it said almost lazily.
"Huntress."
Naruto's perception of the world shattered with that short sentence.
"You… you're… " Naruto fumbled out falling flat on his ass.
"Yes, Female." She answered with total disregard for the mental breakdown the young boy was having.
Naruto had been taught by The Old Man to respect women from a young age. He had been told stories that instilled a healthy amount of wariness for the opposite sex. It wasn't as far as to ever condone whipping, but Naruto learned that sometimes it was best to just keep a woman happy.
And if there was one thing that ever stood out, it was one simple phrase.
Hell hath no fury like a woman's wrath.
The fact that the single most powerful entity in this world was a woman, sent Naruto down a long trail of scenarios that scared him more than any male Nine Tailed Fox could have.
Naruto somehow found it in himself to get it together, finally asking the question that was on his mind.
"Hey this is my mindscape, right?"
"Oh, you're still here?" She said mockingly. "I can't believe it took you that long to realize that, you must really be an idiot."
Damn, did she have to insult him like that.
"If that's the case, why does my mindscape look the way it does?" He inquired. "I've got a rough idea, but I'd like to hear it from you."
"You're mindscape's appearance is based heavily off your chakra, or more specifically it's affinities." She explained, now without the flanging quality making her sound less masculine.
"Then what does that lightning storm over in the distance indicate," Naruto pushed. "Again I already have an idea of what it means, but I want confirmation."
"If that's so," She began opening one eye and peering down on his form. "Then why do you keep bothering me."
"For confirmation, I don't want to go around with the wrong information." Naruto answered getting a little frustrated. "And weren't you the one who's been trying to contact me?"
"Yes, and I've already gotten what I wanted. You're disgustingly pathetic; you're a representation of my power and yet you're so weak." She said with disdain.
"I've been a ninja for less than two weeks! And you expect me to live up to something greater than most Jonin!?" He said incredulously.
She blew out a big breath through her nose, which sent Naruto's clothes rustling in the wind.
"You say that, but you could have been out the academy earlier." Only now deigning to look at him with both eyes. "Why is that, why purposefully hold yourself back like that."
Naruto couldn't do much more than clench his jaw and keep his mouth shut.
"Oh, I'm a little surprised. You're actually capable of seeing your flaws for what they are. You aren't even trying to make excuses. Your eyes tell me that there's a fairly good reason for it, but you won't utter a word." She said haughtily, a smirk playing on her lips, stretching across the row of sharp teeth that only showed how malicious the creature he stood in front of was. "I'll have to hand that to you. You aren't nearly as stupid as you lead everyone to be."
"Can you just answer the question." Naruto interrupted with a cold stare.
Seeing as she hadn't been able to draw an angry response out of him, The Nine Tails sighed.
"Before you gained the Ice Style, you already had two different natures. Wind being your primary, and Lightning coming secondary." She conceded, going on to answer his earlier question. "However when you acquired the Ice Style, you also gained an affinity towards water. Water being the secondary element for Ice Style users. Now you had 2 affinities with the same amount of presence within you. Usually affinities fight for control, but since they were equally matched, your chakra adapted to this and now you have a second kekkei genkai."
"A second?" Naruto said quietly.
"Yes, along with the Ice Style, you now hold the Storm Style."
"How are you able to change your grip so fast and fluidly?" Kakashi asked, referring to the way Naruto was able to switch between wielding backhanded and normally within the span of a second.
Kakashi had asked for him to stay after they were done training for the day. It was Saturday and the last training session of the week would be tomorrow.
The 3 genin improved significantly, and learned the material given at a startling rate. They had finished early enough that each of them had learned a supplementary technique.
Sasuke had been taught Water Style: Water Clone, and he had taken to using them as distractions, or even hit them with fire to make smoke screens. The other Jutsu he had learned was Earth Style: Earth Wall.
Sakura had quickly mastered Earth Release:Tearing Earth Turning Palm a devastating jutsu for it's low rank, but due to her small reserves she could only do it twice before she collapsed. Due to this, she relied a lot more on Senbon spitting, a technique that let her shoot opponents with senbon from her mouth. She tended to pull it out of her ass more times than not, but she used the jutsu efficiently, they would have to give her that.
Naruto had been taught Wind Style: Great Breakthrough, but had quickly recreated it to be utilised with no hand seals, and with only one palm. That way he had his other hand to wield his sword. After he had been taught Hidden In Mist Jutsu, which Kakashi had managed to copy during their fight in wave. At first he had trouble traversing through the mist, but then he started deliberately pumping large amounts of chakra into the mist. This allowed him to sense everything that his chakra touched, and had the tendency to screw with other ninja's senses.
This paired along with the jutsu he already knew, and Naruto felt he overpassed everyone else in his graduating class.
"I use my chakra to spin the blade in my hand," Naruto replied, demonstrating how he had taken that water balloon exercise to rotate the handle of his blade just using chakra. "From there it's simply re-adjusting the grip."
Kakashi gave one of his patent eye smiles.
"That's pretty clever, back in ANBU we just had to stick with a normal handed grip, or risk not being effective enough in battle."
"Wait, you were in ANBU?" Naruto asked.
"Yeah, I actually used to be a captain before I took on you guys." Kakashi replied faking modesty.
"Well if that's the case…"
"Train them like ANBU?" Hiruzen repeated quizzically.
"Yeah, he asked if I could train the three of them like ANBU recruits, and after giving a bit of thought, I want to go through with it."
Hiruzen took a long drag from his pipe, before getting up from his chair. Walking toward the window with his back turned to Kakashi, Hiruzen watched over the village mulling over the decision.
Kakashi obediently kept quiet, he had seen his leader get like this sometimes.
Honestly it was a damn good idea. Sasuke was a flight risk, and though he had seen the boy slowly interacting and opening up to his teammates more, Hiruzen knew it would only take one meeting with Itachi, and all their progress would flush down the drain. Sasuke was a valuable ninja, they couldn't risk losing the Sharingan.
And then there was Naruto. His own personal feelings aside about seeing the boy become a strong ninja, The Akatsuki was a serious threat. It wouldn't be long before they went after the jinchuuriki.
Then there was the rumours that The Hidden Leaf was going soft; that the ninja they were producing weren't quality.
Many other thoughts like this went through Hiruzen's mind, but he knew from the start what his answer was.
"Kakashi, in 10 months it will be The Hidden Leaf's turn to host the Chunnin Exams." Finally turning around, the man addressed Kakashi. "I want you to turn them into elite shinobi by that time, the only thing keeping them from defeating ANBU on their own being a lack of experience."
"Sir." Kakashi replied, plans already running through his head a mile a minute.
"Cat, Tenzo." The Hokage called out.
Kakashi stepped back slightly as the two ANBU members appeared kneeling.
"All three of you will train Team 7 in isolation over the next 9 months, the last month before the exams spent taking missions and re entering society."
A chorus of "yes" was his response.
"The three of you will immediately begin planning, but before that," Hiruzen searched his desk for 1 scroll in particular. "A mission for you and your team; a B-rank."
"They have been growing at an incredible rate already, I'm positive all of you can handle it." Sarutobi quickly supplied seeing Kakashi about to speak up.
"Alright." Kakashi grabbed the scroll, before the three of them left to plan out the training of Genin Team 7. On the way there, Kakashi opened the scroll and began to read the details.
'Hmm, so I'll be spying on Sand, while the kids get to travel to the historic ruins of Ouran and take down Missing Nin' Mukade.'
Kakashi sighed, the kids got to have all the fun this mission.
"Oh well, I'll just have to tort- train them even harder." Kakashi said with a pleasant smile.
AN: So next chapter will be based off of "Naruto: Lost Tower" the movie. And before anyone says the movies not canon, this is a fanfic, whatever I've put in here is my own brand of canon.
Now that I've finished this chapter, I can finish the first chapter for my other two stories. Once those have come out I can work on an actual update schedule. Until then, Unfortunately I'll be putting this on hold. However the longest you'll have to wait is 3 weeks.
Other things to note: No Naruto will not become Menma, he won't have black hair, he won't become evil.
Naruto wont be spamming shadow clones for days, I gave a good reason in this chapter as to why he can't abuse the fuck out of this technique, and become godlike in 5 weeks. And I'll be going into further detail later about Naruto's 'mask' and the facade he put on when he was younger, in later chapters as I have some pretty good explanations for that.
This will not be a Naruto x Fem. Kyuubi pairing. I have made The Nine Tails a girl in this story for more than aesthetics though, as this will become a pivotal part of the plot later into the story.
Pairings: Nothing but candidates at the moment, and it will be very clear who those candidates are when they're introduced.
Now that this is over, I ask you to check out Naruto: Midnight Green, which should come out sometime next week.