Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto!
Shadow of the great tree
Next to the mountain portraying the Hokage's faces his office had the best view over the village. Ever since he became Hokage he loved watching the people go about their business. People smiling, children playing without a single care in the world. They didn't realize what kind of sacrifices where made to give them their freedom. Naruto however had done his share of sacrificing since the day he was born. Because it was that day he was given the job of keeping the Nine-Tails from destroying their village. And up until now it hadn't been a thankful job. The villagers and even some shinobi did anything in their power to make the boy miserable. Going as far as sabotaging his studies at the academy.
Naruto had been in the academy for six months, the rapport he had been given on his progress was a disgrace. There was nothing positive in the document, even the worst student would have some quality, according to the academy teachers Naruto didn't have any quality. And although he had always wanted Naruto to have a normal childhood he wasn't naïve, a normal childhood would mean a family, friends and some form of respect for his sacrifice, things Naruto didn't have.
He knew in his heart drastic measures needed to be taken. Ever since he had retaken his position as Hokage he had become weak. His body was deteriorating and for the last five years in his leadership was pathetic. The council was constantly opposing him, and through his weakness they became more powerful. This was not why the Nidaime created the civilian council, he wanted to give the civilians a place to give their opinion on village matters. But what had they become? Infatuated with their power, they used their political power only for themselves, they didn't care for the civilians in there district. The only thing that mattered was power and money, backstabbing snakes the whole lot of them.
He had been devastated by the dead of the love of his life during the Kyuubi's attack. She was so beautiful and headstrong. If you could see what I have become Biwako you would be disgusted. He could not change the past, but he would do anything in his power to create a better Konoha, a place that would make his predecessors proud.
There were many things that he needed to fix, one of them was the situation of Uzumaki Naruto. That is why his former rival was sitting across his desk. They hadn't agreed on anything for decades but that didn't matter this was village business.
"I know you are a busy man so ill keep it short. I need your help with something Danzo." It surprised him, but he didn't show it. In all the years of being Hokage his friend Hiruzen had never asked him for help.
"I am yours to command, Hokage-sama. Always." They were words he had to say, and so he said them.
"Those years we spent training under Hashirama-sensei and Tobirama-sensei... Kami, those were good years." The Hokage said trying to gauge Danzo's reaction, he found nothing.
"As you said I'm a very busy man. Besides I'm sure you didn't bring me here to reminisce about the old days Hiruzen." The Hokage threw back his head and laughed. "You never change Danzo even after all these years." The hokage replied while shaking his head. "I'll get to the point. I want you to teach Uzumaki Naruto." The Hokage asked.
Although Danzo tried to hide it, he could see the surprise on his face. "I heard the boy recently joined the academy. Why remove him now?" Danzo asked.
Anger flashed in Hiruzens eyes "The academy teachers believe him to be the demon he holds. They are not teaching him properly. He has been given an apartment, but the civilians are doing anything they can to sabotage him. They won't allow him in their shops and don't even recognize his existence." Hiruzen shook his head "How it must feel…so much hatred and hostility…to be treated with an animosity so intense as to be annihilating…to have so many around you who would deny you even the right to exist..." Danzo nodded at the explanation, he knew that the boy was seen as the demon he held by a large portion of the civilians and shinobi, it was something that disgusted him, the boys enormous potential was being wasted.
There was another question that needed to be asked. "Of all the shinobi under your command, why do you want me to teach him? I have requested to train him before and you refused my request. Even when I promised you I was not going turn him in to a mindless weapon." They hadn't been seeing eye to eye for a long time after all, and this was the kind of favor that would take years of work and dedication.
"The truth is, even after all the shit we have been through and all the disagreements we had in the past, you're the closest thing to a friend I got. What the fuck does that even say about me? To have an old bastard like you as my best friend?" The Hokage replied.
A smirk appeared on Danzo's face. "I will teach the boy what it means to be a Konoha shinobi." The old Hokage nodded after which he took a deep breath "Before you leave there is something else I like to discuss. This all may seem sudden but I have been walking around with this for a few months. I have realized my leadership has been lacking since I retook the position of Sandaime Hokage. The loss of Biwako and Minato, I was lost in my grief it blinded me of my shortcomings it made me weak. Those snakes in the civilian council have been using there power for their own benefit, and because of my weakness our shinobi forces never recuperated like they should have after the Kyuubi's attack."The Hokage took a deep breath before continuing " I know I'm the one to blame for allowing this to happen. But I'm not going to stand on the sidelines while they destroy our village any longer. Even if I don't agree with many of your views at least you have always been honest with me Danzo."
A smile appeared on Danzo's face. "What are you planning Hiruzen?"
Once upon a time he was feared in all the elemental nations as the God of shinobi it was time to remind them who they were dealing with. "These backstabbing traitors Danzo. I've been betrayed and deceived from the very moment I retook my position as Sandaime Hokage. When I was at my weakest they took advantage of me and our village. This is a monstrous betrayal of Konoha, those who are guilty of this treachery shall drown in their own blood like everyone who betrays Konohagakure." The old man spoke with a conviction Danzo hadn't seen in the man in decades. For the first time in many years he believed Konoha would be alright.
Danzo stood and bowed deep for his kage "It seems the Kami no Shinobi has returned. I will stand beside you Hiruzen. I will help you rebuild Konoha in the image of our predecessors." It was a meeting between rivals that would change everything.
-xxx-
The investigation on the civilian council had taken four months. The betrayal ran much deeper than they expected. "Please tell me the highlights of your investigation Ibiki-kun." The Hokage asked while the scarred Jounin handed the 140 page file to the Hokage.
"As you wish Hokage-sama. Of the eighteen members of the civilian council seven have been found guilty of High Treason. They have been found guilty of arranging multiple murders, money laundering, stealing public funds, corruption, election fraud, and even selling secrets to other villages the list goes on and on. They will be allowed to perform seppuku, if they are uncooperative they will be restrained and decapitated as stated in section 24AA of Konohagakure's Crime act. The other councilors have used their power for minor offences and will be punished accordingly, property's and funds have been confiscated and they have all been stripped of their rank." Ibiki said his face emotionless as always.
The Hokage seemed to be in deep thoughts and took another puff from his pipe before he spoke "The Konohagakure Jōhōbu (Konoha Intelligence Division ) has been meticulous in its investigation. You and your division have done Konoha a great service Ibiki-kun this will not be forgotten. Schedule the executions for tomorrow at noon, as for those who are uncooperative, I will take care of them personally" The scarred man swallowed as the Hokage's eyes met his.
He bowed in respect for his leader "As you wish Hokage-sama. By your leave?" A wave of the Sandaime's hand approved his dismissal and in a puff of smoke he was gone. The council was taken care of but there was much to be done still, at least if the massive pile of paperwork on his desk was any indication.
"You seem busy sensei" A familiar voice spoke shaking the old Kage out of his deep thoughts "I didn't expect you so soon Jiraiya. It's good to see you." His student looked older, Minato's dead must have gotten to him. It was to be expected Minato was like a son to him after all.
"What is so important to take me away from my precious research sensei?" Jiraiya asked. The old man shook his head maybe he hadn't changed at all.
"Please close the door and take a seat we have a lot to discuss especially regarding your godson." He could see his former student tense at the mention of his godson. Jiraiya wanted to take Naruto with him or at least stay in Konoha until Naruto could fend for himself. The council didn't allow it, they needed his intelligence network more than ever after Minato's dead and letting the Kyuubi leave the village was out of the question.
The old Hokage spent two hours explaining everything that happened in the last five years, there was no sugar coating and Jiraiya had taken it better then he expected.
"After everything you told me, you still expect me to leave my godson in Konoha?" Jiraiya asked in disbelieve.
The Hokage took another puff from his pipe "For the last four months Naruto has been living with a new sensei. The very same man that taught you the basics of sealing and prepared you for the chuunin exams while I was training Orochimaru."
The toad sage's eyes widened as a shiver ran down his spine. That was something he would never forget. He had begged Danzo to train him for the chuunin exams when Sarutobi turned him down in favor of Orochimaru. The man's training methods where vicious, he could still remember the words spoken to him by Danzo while he lay on the floor bruised and beaten barely able to stay conscious "The only hope you have is to accept the fact that you're already dead Jiraiya. The sooner you accept that, the sooner you'll be able to function as a shinobi is supposed to function: without mercy, without compassion, without remorse. The survival of Konoha depends upon it." The training was brutal but very effective it pushed him to the next level. It was Danzo that helped him unleash the potential deep within him. If anything, Naruto would become strong under Danzo's tutelage, and with Danzo looking after him he should at least be safe.
"I would like to train him myself but I know that's not possible, I know I'm still needed outside of the village. When the time comes I want him to sign the toad contract, he is my godson after all" Jiraiya said. The old Hokage nodded, the request was modest and acceptable.
"I have a mission for you Jiraiya, I need you to write a rapport on the military capability of Iwagakure and Kumogakure. They are still a serious threat to our village, and since our information is outdated we need to know where we stand if war becomes a reality." Jiraiya sighed " You know what this means sensei, I will have to delay the release of my new book."
A true smile appeared on Sarutobi's face, as perverted has his former student may be, Jiraiya was the one that always came through for Konoha.
-xxx-
"Hokage-sama I understand you have a mission for me?" The young chuunin asked while entering the Sandaime's office.
"Aah, Naruto-kun good to see you my boy. Yes I have an assignment. You will be joining Hatake Kakashi on a B-ranked mission." The young blond lifted his eyebrows, why would Hatake Kakashi be sent on a B-rank? The man was a legend, sending that man on a B-rank was preposterous.
"You are still easy to read Naruto. You think I have gone senile sending a shinobi of Kakashi's caliber on a simple B-ranked mission. The thing is, The person requesting this mission is the Daimyo's wife, Madame Shinji." The Hokage said.
That explained everything, the Daimyo would not demand the Hokage to sent their best, but he would expect it, not doing so would be a grave insult.
"I understand Hokage-sama, when do we leave?" Naruto asked.
The Hokage took another puff from his precious tobacco "You will leave in two hours at the west gate, be sure to pack for at least two weeks."
The young chuunin nodded "Thank you for the opportunity Hokage-sama. I will not disappoint you." He didn't ask why the Hokage deemed it necessary to sent him to act as Kakashi's partner for a B-rank mission. The man sure as hell didn't need one, knowing the Hokage this was purely for his benefit. Working with someone like Kakashi would definitely be a good learning experience and getting in the good graces of the Daimyo was nice bonus as well.
On the other side of Konoha near training ground three the twenty nine year old Elite Jounin Hatake Kakashi sighed as he stared at the memorial stone. He would meet with Sensei's son in two hours to go on a B-ranked mission. He knew he would run in to the boy sooner or later but this came unexpected, besides what the Hokage told him didn't make the mission any easier. The Hokage was worried about Naruto because six days ago an ANBU squad passing through the forest reported demonic chakra being used inside the Forest.
The Hokage had not given Naruto a teacher after entering the shinobi ranks because he wanted Naruto to have more of a social life. He believed that without a teacher and some missions to keep him busy Naruto would put a hold on his constant training and focus on missions, giving him a chance to finally make some friends. Unfortunately it didn't turn out that way, even without guidance Naruto trained and studied day and night. Now the Hokage had as much as ordered him to spy on his sensei's son. He couldn't even blame the man, training with the Nine-Tails chakra without any form of supervision was extremely dangerous. Then again the Hokage chose not to give Naruto any supervision, of course Naruto would continue to train in order to become stronger. How could he fault the boy for something he himself had done as well? Creating the Chidori nearly cost him his life both in training and when he went against his teachers advise to use the technique in battle.
The mission was very straightforward, Madame Shinji's cousin was robbed by a group of bandits near the border of the land of rivers. During the robbery her cousin was beaten severely, he would more than likely spend the rest of his life in a wheelchair. The border area was far from safe, something her cousin was aware of but he had foolishly chosen not to hire shinobi protection, something he would probably regret for the rest of his life. The Fire Daimyo could not let this slide, it would be seen as a sign of weakness and in his position that was unacceptable.
The bandits had taken refuge in an abandoned house six miles from the border. It didn't take long to find them and now they were patiently watching them from the foliage.
"So do you have any ideas on how to take them out?" The copy-nin asked his young partner. His eye never leaving the target house.
"I could use one of my sealing tags with paralytic gas. If I place it inside the house the gas will kill them all under a minute." The young chuunin replied while showing a sealing tag twice the size of an explosive note.
"Very well, we will wait until most of them are sleeping then you can go in." Kakashi replied.
It was easy to sneak into the house under the cover of darkness, most of the bandits seemed to be sleeping only few were in the kitchen playing cards, he could hear the wood crack as a bandit moved down the stairs in to the hall. The moment the man's back was turned a kunai entered the man's throat. Naruto had learned this at a young age, attack from the shadows without hesitation and without as much as a sound. He quickly placed his seal on the wall in the main hall, the paralytic poison would spread quickly they wouldn't know what hit them.
"The seal has been placed, I will activate it by your order." The blond said while eyeing his superior, the blood from his first victim still dripping from his hands. A simple nod was all he was given as he formed a single handseal, effectively releasing the poison in the house.
"A poison like that is hard to come by in Konoha. Did you make it yourself?" Kakashi asked.
Naruto shook his head "I didn't invent the poison, but I reproduced it. The poison originates from Amegakure." Naruto took a deep breath before continuing "During the second world war this poison was effectively used against Konoha. Fortunately after two weeks of research and testing Senju Tsunade made an antidote. In order to test her antidote she created more of the poison, this process was well documented and available in the Konoha Archive." Kakashi nodded at the explanation.
"The cool thing about it is how Tsunade-sama reproduced it. You see, the poison was made by removing a substance called Saxitoxin from a specific shellfish and enhancing the toxicity with chakra. Unfortunately these shellfish don't live anywhere in the land of fire, according to the records at that time they only lived in a swamp 30 miles north of Amegakure. Without the source of the poison making an antidote is nearly impossible" Naruto left a moment of silence before continuing."At that point I would have given up. Fortunately for Konoha Tsunade didn't give up. And in a moment of brilliance she found the only other place to have these shellfish, the swamp in training area 44, the Forest of Death, The ingredient for the antidote was in our own backyard all along."
Kakashi chuckled at the young chuunins enthusiasm "Well she is part of the legendary Sannin. All three of them are geniuses in their field of expertise." Naruto nodded in agreement.
"The poison should be cleared by now. Lets clear the house from the bodies and burn them." Kakashi said while walking towards the house.
It took thirty minutes for Naruto and his Kage Bunshin clones to clear the house, they found eighteen bodies. Two of which were located in the basement, they were the original owners of the house, an old couple laying in a pool of blood, their throats were cut, their bodies slowly decaying like pieces of garbage.
Naruto cursed under his breath as he finished digging a grave to give the old couple a proper burial. His lazy partner was busy reading one of his perverted books, he had to give the man credit though, he was very effective, he finished his part of the job by incinerating the remains of the bandits with single high level fire technique.
" Madame Shinji was definitely right about one thing." Naruto said while placing a large stone on the old couple's grave.
Kakashi turned his head. "What?" He asked.
Naruto pointed towards the smoldering remains of the bandits. "Those bastards are all better off dead." Naruto replied.
Kakashi shrugged "Can't argue with that." after which he continue to read his erotic literature.
-xxx-
"I didn't expect you back this soon Kakashi" The Hokage said while eyeing the infamous copy-nin.
"Well I didn't think I would be back either but Naruto has great endurance, he easily kept up with me all the way to the border, so we travelled much faster than I anticipated" The Hokage nodded.
"So what did you think of him?" the Hokage asked.
Kakashi shrugged "He reminds me of myself when I was his age. Obsessed with training, much more mature then his peers and very professional. Fortunately he is a lot more sociable then I was at that age."
"He has no friends to speak of Kakashi, I wouldn't call him sociable." The old kage replied.
Kakashi shook his head in disagreement "You are right he has no friends, but he is not like other children. The civilians treat him as if he has the plague, they don't violate your law but they sure as hell despise him and make sure to remind him of it at any chance they get. It's no wonder he spends so much time in the Forest of Death, compared to the way he is treated in the village, the forest is probably like sanctuary."
The Hokage sighed, he knew Naruto was treated badly but hearing someone else say it made it that much more painful "What of his skills as a shinobi?" he asked asked.
"We spoke quite a bit about his skills as a shinobi and about his training. He believes his Ninjutsu, Taijutsu and stealth are Jounin level and I believe he might be right about that. He also told me he can't use genjutsu because of his massive chakra reserves, so in order to be well rounded he started using and creating poisons." At this the Hokage lifted his eyebrows "He seems to be quite the fan of your former student Tsunade and her work on poisons during the second world war." Kakashi continued "As to what he actually showed me, I haven't sparred with him yet but during the mission he used Kage Bunshin and he showed me a Fuuton technique called Fuuton Shinkuha, I wouldn't like being on the receiving end of that one." Kakashi replied.
The Hokage chuckled, that was one of Danzo's favorite techniques after all it was not surprising Naruto would use it as well "I have a new assignment for you, a new batch of Genins has graduated the academy. You will have two of them under your care Haruno Sakura and Uchiha Sasuke failing them will not be an option." The Hokage said.
"I would like Naruto to join my team as well, he has no sensei and I wouldn't mind having him on my team." The Hokage grabbed a brown folder from his desk and handed it to Kakashi.
"I'm sorry Kakashi that won't be possible, another shinobi has been selected to join your team. As soon as Jiraiya returns Naruto will be placed under his tutelage. You will find the information on your third team member in the folder." Kakashi nodded in agreement, not that he had much choice in the matter.
"As you wish Hokage-sama. By your leave?" After a small nod Kakashi walked out of the office.
-xxx-
It was only nine days but it felt like an eternity, border patrol was a real bitch, and he would have to stay on the border for another six days. The money was alright though and he sure as hell needed more money. Fortunately he had a nice teammate this time.
"Naruto wake your ass up and get your gear I want to eat lunch at the valley." His teammate said while standing over her sleeping teammate.
"Alright Hana, I didn't think you would make your move so quickly. But if you want a romantic lunch I'm game." A drowsy Naruto said while gathering his gear to move out.
"Ow shut the hell up! You are even more obnoxious then my little brother if that is humanly possible." The inuzuka replied.
Naruto chuckled "I'll take that as a compliment." One off the Haimaru brothers barked in agreement.
"Now even my own ninken are turning against me!" Hana replied. Naruto couldn't help but laugh even louder.
Just as they were about to leave camp a red flare lit up the sky five miles west of their position, this could only mean one thing, one of the border patrol teams was in trouble. The young Inuzuka was the quick to react "That position can only be Kisuke's team let's move quickly!"
Naruto didn't respond but started to move in the direction of the flare immediately it was only a few miles and they would be there in a few minutes.
"I smell a lot of blood, be on guard this could be a trap." Hana said her eyes taking in every detail atound her.
Naruto nodded "I'll sent in one of my Kage Bunshin first." Naruto replied while quickly forming a Kage Bunshins that moved in to the clearing.
"It's safe let's move in!" Naruto said to his teammate.
One of the chuunin was nearly cut in half by a Fuuma shuriken and lay dead on the forest floor his guts and blood all over the area. His teammate was bleeding badly but was still alive. His voice was soft as he spoke to Hana "Traitor.. Mizuki has scroll of seals..tell my wife..i..i.." It was the last thing he said before losing consciousness.
"We have to get that scroll back, it holds many secrets of Konoha we can't let it fall in our enemy's hands!" Hana said while eyeing Naruto.
"You know medical techniques Hana, you must try to stabilize him, I won't let this traitor get away." Naruto replied. She knew Naruto was right besides more back up was going to show up at any moment, Naruto just need to stall Mizuki until they arrived.
"Alright you go on ahead be carefull Naruto." She said while trying to stop the chuunin from bleeding to dead.
Naruto moved as fast as he could he knew he was gaining on the man. Mizuki was running all the way from Konoha, there was no way he was going to reach the border before Naruto would catch up to him.
Naruto quickly jumped to the side barely avoiding the five shuriken Mizuki threw at him from a hidden position.
"Look at that, this must be my lucky day. Not only do I steal the scroll of seals successfully I also get to kill the demon, what a treat." The traitorous chuunin said, he was standing on tree branch the Scroll of Seals safely strapped to his back.
"Mizuki I presume? A traitor like you dares to call me a demon?" Naruto asked.
A victorious smirk appeared on Mizuki's face "Do you know why everyone in the village hates you? You see, on the day you were born.." Naruto interrupted Mizuki's speech with a chuckle.
"You really think I don't know I'm a Jinchuuriki? Alright I'll humor you." Naruto said while leaning against a large tree "Tell me I'm everything you despise. That I'm the personification of evil. That I'm a one-man genocide, a true demon. Say everything you want to say to me. But you better tell me quickly because you don't have much time left to live."
Mizuki's face turned to a snarl "You think you can defeat me? You have seen what I did to those who tried to stop me. It is futile to put up any resistance against me, in the end you will die!" Mizuki said while quickly grabbing a Fuuma shuriken which he launched towards Naruto.
The accuracy and strength where admirable but the attack was to linear to have any effect. Naruto quickly moved out of the way and started forming hand seals of his own while filling his lungs with air "Fuuton: Shinkuha" The deadly blade of wind moved extremely fast and cut right through the tree Mizuki was standing on, unfortunately the chuunin had used a quick Kawarimi to avoid his early demise.
Mizuki landed on the forest floor and quickly grabbed a kunai, his eyes narrowed as red chakra started to take shape around the young jinchuuriki, the ancient demonic chakra placing a pressure on him he hadn't felt since he first met Orochimaru.
"I believe you told me that it was "futile" to put up resistance Mizuki? That there was nothing I could do? Allow me to correct you somewhat. The situation in which you find yourself right now, that is what I call "futile"!"
Mizuki swallowed as his bladder emptied itself, he was frozen in his own body, forced to watch as a red blur descended upon him. He finally regained his bearings as Naruto stood right in front of him, when he looked down he followed the arm that extended from his chest, his blood freely leaking from his body, his eyes showed nothing but terror as his soul was embraced by the shinigami.
Naruto stared at his bloodied arm as the kyuubi's chakra receded back in to the seal, he quickly grabbed the scroll from the traitors back and placed it on his own. He turned around as someone jumped in to the clearing followed by three ninken.
"Naruto, thank god you are alright. I was worried sick when I felt that powerful chakra" Hana said, her voice filled with worry.
Naruto lifted his eyebrows "You were worried about little old me? There is no denying it now, you are in to me!" Naruto replied a smirk on his face.
"Ow shut the hell up!" Hana said while looking at Mizuki's body. There was no question as to what killed the man since there was a fist sized hole in his chest.
"About that powerful chakra you felt. You know that I am a jichuuriki right?" The blond asked; receiving a small nod "I used the Kyuubi's chakra to take that traitor out. He didn't stand a chance against me with that power!" Naruto said while petting one of the Haimaru triplets.
Hana shrugged "As long as the bastard is dead I don't care how you did it. I stabilized Kisuke and he is going to make it, team five and six are moving him back to Konoha as we speak. We will remain here until we are relieved by another team. You did well Naruto the Hokage will be pleased." A true smile appeared on Naruto's face, maybe border duty wasn't that bad after all.
To be continued