Chapter One:
The Jinchuuriki and the Rurouni
Naruto liked to use the swings at the park. For as long as he has lived—six years to be exact—he liked to swing up and down, stare at the sky and feel how, every time that the swing went up, he was closer to touching those fluffy, white clouds. He felt that every time that he swings his troubles and sadness just fly away with the wind. It was a wonderful feeling, and it always helped him to ignore the fact that all the kids that were playing in the park right now were ignoring his presence. Yep… every time that he came to the park was the same. He gets on one of the swings and watches as everyone else plays together. Well, he didn't blame them… their parents are the ones that don't want them to hang out with him. Naruto never quite understood why, though. Had he done something bad? He doesn't remember doing anything wrong… Maybe he'll ask Iruka-sensei again, although, every time that he brings up the subject, Iruka quickly changes it. Sometimes he thought that everyone else knew something that he didn't, and he didn't like feeling left out; but he couldn't ask anyone since they'll just make him shut up, or say bad words at him, or even kick him out of the place. Ah well… no point on thinking about that then… Naruto thought to himself as he kept swinging.
"I just wish that Iruka-sensei wasn't on a mission right now… then he could make me some company… and buy me some ramen…" Naruto said sadly to no one in particular. He sighed as he stopped swinging and took of the goggles that were on his head. He smiled weakly as he remembered that those were the goggles that Iruka-sensei gave to him right before he left for the mission.
Flashback
"No, Iruka-sensei! Don't leave!" Naruto yelled as he gripped tightly to Iruka's vest. "I don't want you to go!"
"Naruto, let go!" Iruka said as he approached the gates of Konoha, his partners waiting for him.
"NO!" Naruto said, stubbornly.
"NARUTO!" Iruka said, getting angry at him. Naruto just grabbed onto him tighter.
"I don't want you to leave!"
"Naruto! What's with you!? Every time that I leave on a mission you make the same tantrum! Every single time!" Iruka yelled at the young blond.
Naruto's grip loosened, "It's just that… what if you don't… what if you don't come back…?" Naruto said with tears streaming down his cheeks, while he looked at Iruka with his big, blue and now watery eyes.
Iruka couldn't help but to feel sorry for the little kid, "Naruto…" he said, wearing a nice, small smile. He crouched down to Naruto's height and said, "what is a shinobi?"
"A shinobi… is a warrior, a warrior that lives and dies for their village…" Naruto replied between sniffles.
"Exactly… and what do shinobi do?" Iruka sensei said, while putting a hand on Naruto's shaking shoulder.
"They go on missions to… to make sure that their village lives well…" Naruto said, shaking even more.
Iruka nodded, "Nicely put Naruto, the well-being of this village is the top priority of a shinobi. That's why I'm going to this mission. I am going because I want to make sure that everyone on this village lives happy, even you Naruto." The young boy looked up at Iruka.
"Even me?" Iruka nodded.
"Of course! Konoha is not Konoha without you!" Iruka said, making Naruto smile slightly.
"But… what if you don't come back? I… I don't want to be alone…" Naruto said, sobbing louder now. Iruka felt the pain that Naruto was feeling. He had also been an orphan when he was young, and he always did pranks to get attention, but at least no one made fun of him or insulted him… unlike Naruto.
"Naruto…" Iruka said, frowning a bit. Then he smiled. He took of his back pack and reached for something in it.
"Naruto, close your eyes."
"Why?" Naruto asked with curiosity.
"Just do it, I have a surprise for you." Naruto did as told and Iruka took out a nice pair of goggles and placed them on Naruto's forehead. "Open them."
Naruto opened his eyes and touched his forehead. "What are these?"
"Those are my goggles. I used to wear them every time before I got my ninja headband," Iruka said, smiling at some of his most treasured memories. "I'm giving them to you for you to remember me by while I'm away."
"Really?" Naruto smiled widely. This was the very first time anyone gave him a present of any sort. "But… I don't have anything for you…"
"Don't worry, your big smile is enough for me!" Iruka said laughing. "Now, would you smile for me before I leave? But not just any smile… I want a Naruto-trademark smile!" Naruto giggled and smiled his biggest grin while giving the peace sign. Iruka smiled at the young boy's antics.
"I have to go now Naruto, but I promise that I'll be back," Iruka said, hugging Naruto and heading toward the gates of Konohagakure…
End flashback.
Naruto smiled again as he kept looking at his goggles. He kept swinging back and forth, liking the breeze that he felt on his face, until suddenly, the swing stopped abruptly and someone pushed him to the ground. He turned around to face the person that had pushed him just to see some of the kids that were playing in the park. Apparently they got bored and decided to pick on poor little Naruto. There were six of them in total, and all of them were wearing smug and arrogant grins on their faces. The biggest-looking one grabbed Naruto by the collar of the shirt, making him stand up, while he pulled Naruto closer to his face.
"How many times have we need to tell you to stay away from OUR park?" he said, glaring at Naruto with a lot of hate in his eyes. It was true, he had told him many times to stay away from the park. The first time he had told Naruto to do so, he obliged, until Iruka told him not to do such a foolish thing. He told him that the park was a place where every child in Konohagakure could have fun. So Naruto started going to the park again… not without getting a horrible pounding from these guys… but at least Iruka-sensei protected him from them almost every time…
"I asked you a question!" the big guy said.
"The park is a place where every child in Konohagakure can have fun!" Naruto replied, repeating the same words that Iruka said to him.
"Oh, is that so?" the kid said. He took the goggles off Naruto's head. "Well, let's have fun then!" Naruto's eyes widened.
"Give them back! Those are Iruka's!" Naruto yelled, struggling from the kid's tight grasp.
"Iruka's? What are you doing with them? Did you stole them?" the kid asked, with a huge devious grin.
"NO! IRUKA-SENSEI GAVE THEM TO ME!" Naruto yelled even louder. The kid just kept grinning.
"Oh… so they must be pretty valuable for you, huh?" the kid asked. He dropped Naruto on the ground. "I think they would look nice up there on that tree!" the kid said pointing to a very high tree that was used specially for teaching young gennin how to climb trees without using their hands. Naruto was far too young to know the first thing about climbing such high trees.
"NO! GIVE THEM BACK!" Naruto got ready to pounce on the big kid, but before he could even get to his feet, the other five kids hold him tightly. The kid smirked again and with all of his strength, he threw Naruto's goggles toward the tree. It landed on a pretty high branch. Even if it wasn't so high, Naruto was not going to be able to get it by himself.
"Ah… damn… I wanted it to go higher… ah well…" he motioned to the other kids to let go of him. As soon as Naruto hit the ground, all of them started to kick him in the stomach, in the face and in various parts of his body. After giving the young child a hard beating, the kids left the park, leaving Naruto there all alone, with a bunch of bruises all over his body. Slowly, he sat up and looked up to where the goggles had landed. It was pretty high, and Naruto knew that he was not going to be able to get them, unless someone got them for him. Naruto fell a warm sensation burning his eyes… it was a very familiar sensation, since he had it every night before going to bed.
He lowered his head and felt as his whole body began trembling. He felt rage.
This was one of the reasons why he hated to go out of his house on the day of his birthday.
People seemed to try to hurt him even more.
"Why!?" he asked himself as he stood up from the ground with a lot of effort. He kept glaring at the ground. Why do people always pick on me?
He looked up to the sky, as if he was looking for answers that were hiding from him between the white clouds.
"Why…" he asked himself again, but in a whisper. Why do they hate me so much? He kept looking at the sky as he felt the rage turn into sadness, feeling said sadness slide down his cheeks in the form of tears. I only want to have friends! Is that too much to ask? He kept looking at the sky… as he asked one question… a question that he has always feared to ask… even Iruka.
Did my parents… hate me too? Naruto knew that his parents were dead but… what if they hated him too, before they died? Maybe they died hating him. He won't be able to life with himself if he found out that that was true. He felt more tears roll down his whiskered cheeks.
He began to look again to where his goggles were. He dried the tears from his face and sniffled softly.
"No… I won't let that hold me back! I'm going to get those goggles even if it is the last thing I do!" Naruto said with a lot of determination in his voice as he began to walk toward the tree. He stopped right in front of it and he looked up.
"If I want to be Hokage one day… I have to fight all obstacles right? So this tree might just be one of the many obstacles I might have to face one day!" he said in his usual loud voice. "I'm going to get them back!" and with those words Naruto began climbing the tall tree, with only his confidence by his side.
-O-O-O-O-
A small, shy girl with white eyes and soft and pale skin, who had watched everything from the safety of a bench, alongside her cousin—who almost looked identical to her—watched as the little boy kept trying to climb that tree.
-O-O-O-O-
A young man with long red hair wearing a yukata, has just arrived to the Hidden Leaf, and so far, he has always liked this place. The people were quite friendly, and they didn't mind that he had a sword tied to his waist. He kept walking through the village, admiring his surroundings. Being a wanderer as he was, he traveled a lot, so he has visited plenty of hidden villages. Though, from all of the Hidden Villages he has visited, Konoha was his favorite.
"Sessha can't stay here long though… Sessha will only gather some provisions and I'll be in my way, de gozaru…" he said to no one in particular as he kept walking. "But first… sessha is going to need some money, de gozaru yo..." he said with a sheepish look on his face. "Hmm… maybe someone here could spare a part time job or something…" he kept walking looking for a place that might offer him a job, so he could get some money, so he could buy some provisions, so he could continue living his life as a wanderer. He kept walking until he reached a place called 'Ichiraku's'. He entered the small ramen shop, to find two people working there: a young, attractive girl, and an older man. The young woman smiled at him when they saw him come in.
"Welcome to Ichiraku's! Can I take your order?" the young woman said, smiling widely at him.
"Ah, yes, hello miss," he said politely, smiling back. "Sessha was just wondering… are you willing to have someone work here part-time? It is just that sessha needs the money, de gozaru. Sessha just arrived into town, and… well… to put it frankly… I'm broke," he said smiling sheepishly, scratching the back of his head. The young woman looked at him a bit confusedly. She didn't think that they needed help… but he seemed so nice and polite… and maybe, to just do him the favor, they could let him work there for a while.
"Father," the young woman said, getting the attention of the older man, "this man wants to work part time here, what do you think?" she said
"Hmm… well boy… do you have any idea how to cook ramen?" he said. The older man seemed quite friendly.
"Well… not really… but maybe this one could help by cleaning the dishes, de gozaru," he said, "Sessha just needs money to buy provisions, so sessha can continue his life as a wanderer," he said frankly. The owner of the restaurant though that maybe he could use an extra hand when it came to cleaning the shop. He nodded.
"All right. I could use the extra help, you can start right away if you like." the older man smiled and nodded. "We'll talk about your salary later." The stranger smiled and bowed.
"Sessha is grateful, de gozaru yo!" the man smiled once again.
"My name is Ayame," the young woman said. "Can we know your name?
"Oh, how impolite of sessha! My name's is Himura… Himura Kenshin."
-O-O-O-O-
After six hours of trying to get his goggles with no avail, Naruto laid on the ground, breathing exhaustedly. Sure, he has climbed trees before, but not so high up, and in the condition he was… it just made things harder. It was already 7 o clock in the evening, so the moon was shinning brightly in the night sky, and the music from the festival in Konoha, the festival that they celebrate every 10th of October, has just begun. Naruto never liked to assist to that festival. From some reason, people used to treat him worse when he went.
He sighed, "Man… this is harder than I thought…" he said panting softly. He sat up softly and rested his back against the tree.
"With those kinds of bruises, you will never be able to climb such a high tree, de gozaru." an unfamiliar voice said to him. The person walked to where Naruto was resting. He was wearing a informal yukata, with a sword tied to his waist, long red hair, a cross-shaped scar on his left cheek, wearing a nice, wide smile.
Naruto couldn't help but to feel a bit anxious. People who carried swords were usually merciless killers. Naruto gulped. Maybe he came to kill him… since everyone in his village always has hated him.
"Don't worry child, sessha won't hurt you, de gozaru" the man said, still smiling. Naruto didn't know why, but he could feel that this man did not mean any harm. Said man pulled back the longs sleeves of the yukata, and began climbing the tree with his hands. Naruto kept looking at him with wide eyes. He was helping him. Naruto was just speechless. The man climbed down the tree with the goggles in his hand. He smiled again as he handed the goggles to Naruto.
Naruto stared at him for a moment. Why… had this stranger helped him? Didn't he hate him, like the rest of the people from Konoha… unless he wasn't from Konoha…
Naruto finally found his voice. "Uh… I… uh… thank… you," Naruto said, still looking a bit confused, taking the goggles. The man nodded, without the smile leaving his face, not once, and turned around to leave.
Naruto looked up again just to see that the man wasn't there anymore. He frowned a bit. He wanted to learn his name, so he could at least thank him properly. Oh well… maybe next time I see him, I'll ask his name.
-O-O-O-O-
Naruto began walking to his house. He felt happy; not fake happy, but happy-happy! For the first time in his life, someone beside Iruka or the Hokage, helped him with something! Naruto kept walking, humming a happy tune, when he noticed something peculiar… there weren't any villagers glaring at him… in fact there weren't any villagers at all… not around where he was standing anyway. What was more weird was that the festival was supposed to be today… he had heard the music, so where was everybody? He looked around some more, until he saw a huge cloud of smoke, rising up to the sky, not to far from where he was standing. Naruto, with his curious nature kicking in, decided that he wanted to check it out, so he ran to where the smoke was coming from… only to stop in his tracks abruptly. He gasped at what he saw.
His apartment was on fire.
But what shocked him even more, was not that his apartment was burning, It was the fact that every single villager he always saw when he walked his way home were standing there, some drunks, other sober, some with dangerous weapons on hand, others came empty handed, but were cracking their knuckles in pure excitement. Naruto gulped. He knew where this was going. At his current age (and state), he definitely couldn't fight almost 50 people all by himself, so he did what kids his age are best at doing…
He ran.
They followed.
Naruto began running, taking turns, trying to confuse them and shake them off. His body was aching and begging him to stop, but he knew that if he did, he wouldn't survive. Naruto felt his eyes burning again. Where am I going to go now? My apartment is on fire! Where can I hide? Where!? He thought to himself as he kept running. Then he got it!
The Hokage Tower.
As much as the villagers hated it, Sarutobi the Sandaime has always stood up for Naruto; so if he went there, the Sandaime would protect him, no matter what. Naruto looked over his right shoulder, only to see that the villagers were getting closer. Naruto took another look upwards, seeing some of them running on the roof tops, meaning that they were probably ninja. Naruto stopped hastily as four chunnin landed right in front of him. He was about to head back, only to find all the villagers standing behind him with detestable looks on their eyes.
"Where do you think you're going, demon brat?" said one of the chunnin that were standing in front of him. Naruto's eyes were wide. He stayed silent.
Another chunnin smiled in a devious way, looking at Naruto evilly, "Heh, I say we waste him, here and now. If the Hokage asks, we'll just tell him that we found his body inside the death forest." A lot of people nodded in agreement.
"You will regret destroying our village six years ago… and killing our hero," another chunnin said, reaching for a kunai on his weapon's pouch. Naruto didn't understand what was going on. How did he attack the village six years ago? He was a newborn! When have you seen newborns destroying villages? Naruto backed up against a wall, as the chunnin and villagers approached him.
"Say your prayers, demon brat!" the first chunnin said as launched himself—with a kunai in hand—toward the blond-haired child. He closed his eyes tightly, waiting for the blow that would end his life for sure. He was shaking and sweating, sobbing too. He was scared to death as he waited.
And waited…
And waited…
And waited…
But the hit never came. Naruto opened his eyes after he heard a dry sounding 'thud.' When he did, he felt as his jaw hit the ground. There he was, the man that had retrieved his goggles from the high tree, with his sword in hand, looking menacingly at the ninjas, who were standing in front of him with wide eyes. When had he arrived? How long had he been watching? He didn't even make a sound when he appeared... Naruto thought. He was still standing against the wall. He was waiting to see what the stranger was about to do. To his amazement, he just sheathed his sword away. Naruto stared at him as if he had grown a second head. What is he doing? Doesn't he know that he's actually going to fight real ninjas?
The man finally spoke, "Sessha shall give you an opportunity to back away now, and you shall not be harmed, de gozaru," he said seriously. All of them laughed as if he was telling a great, funny joke.
"Do you really think that you can take on all of us? Seriously, get real!" said one of the villagers. The stranger said nothing. "Look, our business is not with you, so if you just step aside, we will kill this demon brat, and go on with our lives. So move out of the way!" The stranger did not move.
"Fine! Have it your way then!" The four chunnin launched a simultaneous attack at the stranger. Naruto didn't know how it happened, but all four chunnin were in the ground, all unconscious. He saw how the man, in less than a second, took out his sword and blocked all of their attacks with a counter attack of his own. They all just flew backwards and landed on the ground. Naruto's eyes couldn't be wider. He has never seen anyone like this man. He knocked them out in less than second! Four chunnin! He wondered if they were dead…
The red-haired stranger still had the sword in his hand as he looked toward the rest of the villagers. They were all glaring at him with looks of pure hatred.
"You're going to pay for that, you bastard!" one of the sober villagers said, "Let's get him!" All fifty villagers charged at him. He did not flinch. Naruto tried not to blink, just to see how that man fights. At the speed of sound, the man leaped at least 10 feet in the air, dodging all of those angry villagers' attacks. He landed at least 3 feet away from them; as he charged at them at full speed. The only thing that Naruto got to see were the bright slashes of the sword attacking the villagers, and said villagers flying backwards and falling to the ground, either dead or unconscious. Naruto really couldn't tell. In a matter of seconds, every single one of the villagers was in the ground, defeated. Naruto looked at this man with eyes filled with inspiration and admire. That man has just done yet another good thing for him! He saved his life! Naruto kept looking at the man as he turned around and smiles at him.
"Are you ok, you child?" the man said, with a look of concern in his eyes.
Naruto just said one thing, "You're awesome! Train me!" The stranger had a confused look on his eyes.
"Oro?" he couldn't believe what the boy was saying. He didn't know if to consider it rude for asking just like that without even saying 'thanks for saving me', or cute for seeing that the child thought that he was… 'Awesome.'
"I want you to train me, mister! Your fighting skills are awesome! I want to be a great fighter, like you!" Naruto said, smiling widely. The stranger could swear that the child's eyes were sparkling with excitement.
"Um… Sessha doesn't think that your parents will approve, de gozaru…" the stranger said, scratching his head with a sheepish smile.
"That won't be a problem… since… well… since I don't have parents, I'm an orphan," Naruto said, his smile completely banishing from his face. The stranger felt sorry for the child.
"Oh… gomenasai…" the swordsman said with a look of sadness in his face. He decided to change the topic. "Why were those people following you, child?"
Naruto tilted his head in thought. "Hmm… I really don't know… the people from this village just hate me, I guess…" he shrugged.
"Oro? What do you mean 'they just hate you?'"
"Just that. They've always hated me for a reason I was never able to understand… maybe it's because my birthday is the same day as the day that the Kyuubi attacked Konoha…"
"That's not a good enough reason, de gozaru…" the stranger said. "Do you have caretakers? Don't they stand up for you when these villagers do… such horrible things?" the man couldn't really understand how more than fifty villagers could gang up on an innocent child.
Naruto shook his head, "No, I live by myself… well, Hokage-ojii-san gives me a weekly allowance so I can buy food an stuff…but I live alone." The man though this was an outrage. How can a child his age live alone? All of the good thoughts he had about this village at first, were slowly dissolving with this newly acquired information.
The man sighed, "What is your name, child?" he asked.
"My name's Uzumaki Naruto! I will one day become a great ninja! And after that, I will become Hokage! So the people of this village will start respecting me and looking up to me!"
"What's yours?"
"Himura Kenshin."
"Kenshin-san, eh?" Naruto smiled at this. "So… are you going to train me, or what?" Kenshin smiled sheepishly.
"I don't know, Naruto-kun…" Kenshin said, scratching his head.
"Awww, Kenshin-nii-san! Pleeaaaseeee!" Naruto said with a pleading look on his eyes.
"What if we talk about this in the morning? We need to get those wounds and bruises tended." Kenshin said. Naruto pouted. He has never liked to go to the hospital.
"Hai, Kenshin-nii-san…" he said. Kenshin smiled slightly.
"C'mon, let's go Naruto-kun," Kenshin said as he motioned Naruto to get on his back, since he knew that the small boy must be tired. Naruto hesitated, but obliged. Kenshin took of with the young boy on his back to head toward the hospital in Konoha.
-O-O-O-O-
After Kenshin left Naruto at the Konoha Hospital, so they could treat their wounds, he decided to visit a very good, old friend, and while he was there he planned to tell him what the villagers tried to do to poor Naruto. Kenshin headed toward the Hokage tower, hoping that his good friend Sarutobi was still in there, and hadn't left to his house yet. He smiled at the thought of his good friend. He climbed the stairs, and walked toward two chunnin that were standing in the entrance to the Hokage's Office.
"Excuse me, but sessha would like to speak with the Hokage, de gozaru," Kenshin said smiling widely, "That is, if he's not too busy."
One of the chunnin looked at him strangely, "Who are you, sir?"
"I'm an old friend of his, Himura Kenshin," the chunnin looked at each other.
"I'm sorry Himura-san, but unless you have an emergency situation to inform the Hokage, he cannot attend anyone without an appointment, please forgive this inconvenience," the other chunnin said.
"That's the point. Some child, by the name Uzumaki Naruto, was attacked by a mob of angry villagers… fifty villagers and four chunnin," the swordsman informed. The chunnin's eyes widened.
"You can pass, sir! Where's the child?"
"Don't worry about him, he's safe and sound at the hospital, de gozaru," Kenshin said smiling. The chunnin nodded as they followed him inside the office.
-O-O-O-O-
Sarutobi was sitting as his desk, with a lot of paper work to do. He sighed. Even though that he liked to be the Hokage, so that way he could ensure the safety of his precious village, but he still needed to look for a predecessor soon… he was getting too old to stay up late, doing paper work. Sarutobi yawned widely, as he felt his eyes betraying him. He took another sip from the cup that contained his, now cold, coffee to see if he could stay awake for a bit longer. He placed the cup back at the desk, and rubbed his temples. His head was bobbing side to side, feeling that anytime now, his head will just drop onto the desk for his own tiredness.
"Hn… I should take a vacation… I wouldn't mind relaxing for a while at the hot springs…" he said sitting up straight again. Suddenly the door busted open, revealing two chunnin and a man with long, red hair and a cross-shaped scar on his left check…
"Kenshin!" Sarutobi said, with 'shock' written all over his face. He stood up from his desk and smiled as he headed toward his friend and gave him a hug, (A/N: friendly hug at that) "it's a pleasure to see you again!" They broke the hug.
"Hai, it is, de gozaru," Kenshin said smiling at Sarutobi, "but I'm afraid that sessha comes porting bad news, de gozaru," Kenshin added.
"Bad news? What happened?"
Kenshin's smile disappeared from his face as he explained the Sandaime everything that had happened today. He described what those villagers did to Naruto, not leaving any detail out.
Sarutobi sighed, "They will just never learn, will they?" he shook his head. "Kotetsu, Izumo… inform the ANBU about this. I want every villager and ninja that was part of this to be seriously questioned," both of the chunnin nodded and left the office. Sarutobi rubbed his temples once more.
"I've take it that you have been stressed lately?" Kenshin asked as he sat down on a chair in front of the Hokage's desk.
"More than you can imagine… I've been through a lot of sleepless nights lately… specially with what happened at the Uchiha compound a couple of weeks ago… I'm just getting too old for this…" Sarutobi said, taking out a small bottle of sake and purring it on two cups. He offered Kenshin one, who gladly accepted.
Sarutobi took a sip, "Aah… there's nothing like a good sake between friends, eh?" he said as he laughed, almost sourly.
Kenshin also took a sip, "Oh… did sessha tell you that Naruto-kun asked me to train him?" Sarutobi couldn't help but to smile.
"I bet that he was impressed with your fighting skills, Kenshin," Sarutobi said, "what did you tell him?"
"Sessha told him that we would talk about this in the morning, de gozaru yo," Kenshin said smiling.
Sarutobi sighed slightly, "You do know why the villagers hate Naruto so much, right?"
"Well… sessha isn't completely sure… but sessha thinks that it has something to do with the Kyubbi, the strongest of the Bijuu, right?" Kenshin said,
The Sandaime nodded, "Exactly six years ago, in a day just like this, the Kyuubi, one of the Tailed Demon Lords, attacked Konoha, destroying half of the village, and killing hundreds in the process. I suppose that you remember Arashi, right?"
Kenshin nodded, "Yes, the Yondaime, if I'm not mistaken… Sessha heard that he had deceased, de gozaru."
"Yes, he did. He died when he saved the village from the Kyuubi, by sealing it inside the body of a newborn…"
"That newborn being Naruto, correct?" Kenshin asked. Sarutobi nodded again.
"That is correct. His last wish was that everyone saw Naruto as a hero, for he had been the one that saved the village from complete and total destruction. But… I'm afraid that his wish was not granted, as you have seen…" Sarutobi said, with a lot of sadness in his voice.
"Sessha understands now…a lot of things that were quite unclear, de gozaru," Kenshin said. Silence filled the room when they both stopped talking.
Sarutobi looked at Kenshin with an almost sorrowful look on his face, "Can I ask you a small favor, Himura Kenshin?" the young swordsman looked at the Hokage with seriousness. When his friend used his whole name, it normally meant that he was going to say something important.
"Hai?"
"Can you take him and train him? He really is better off away from this village… just bring him back when he's ready to graduate from the Ninja Academy," Sarutobi said with a pleading look on his eyes. "He just… he just isn't going to be happy here, Kenshin. You saw how those villagers tried to kill him. That happens all the time. He's not going to be safe here. I know that you are a very caring person Kenshin, so consider this a favor between friends… please, Kenshin… I'm practically begging you."
Kenshin smiled slightly, "All right, my friend, if that's what you wish, sessha shall take Naruto-kun under my tutoring, de gozaru yo," he said nodding toward his friend. "Sessha shall take care of him as if he was my own."
Sarutobi smiled, "Thank you, Kenshin. I knew that I could count on you."
Kenshin nodded, "But I'm going to stay a few days, sessha has to work, so sessha can buy provisions for our long trip, de gozaru."
"Hai, I shall give you a small payment too though," Sarutobi said.
Kenshin smiled and nodded. This is surely going to be an interesting experience, de gozaru yo.
-O-O-O-O-
A/N: What can I say? I wanted to write this a long time ago… I've had this chapter on a Jump drive for a while so… yeah…
The reason why I haven't uploaded my other stories was because my computer busted, so now I'm using a borrowed one… one that blocks almost everything since this comp was given to me by a the school, for a limited time. Neh…
Ok, I think that I should explain some things about this fanfic:
In this chapter, Kenshin is currently 26, he has fought alongside Konoha a few times now, (which will be explained in the fan fic in latter chapters). He knows a few ninja skills, but of course, his forte is his style, the Hiten Mitsurugi.
Naruto will be gone for five years, and he will return when he is 11 years old, so he can go to the Academy for at least a year, so he can graduate and become a gennin.
Gaara will also be appearing in this fan fic, he is going to be one of the main characters. Eventually, he will join Naruto and Kenshin on their travels.
Japanese Terms
1-Sessha- This unworthy one.
2-de gozaru- its like a verb, its something similar to Naruto's 'datte bayo'
3- Chunnin- commoners,
4-Gennin- Junior Ninja
5- ANBU- Black Ops.
6-Hokage- Fire Shadow.
7-Konohagakura- The village of the Leaf
Until the next chapter!
Ja ne!
