Rising Dragon

Chapter 1

He awoke to find himself lying in a bed in a strange building. He looked around and saw someone standing at the foot of his bed. She had bright pink hair that was held back with a red headband, green eyes, and fair skin. She was wearing a red top with circle designs on it and a pair of black shorts with a short, pink apron skirt over them. She carried a pouch and a tanto at her hip.

"Um, who are you, and where the hell am I?"

The girl looked up, "Oh, you're awake. Good. My name's Sakura. As to where you are, you're in Konoha hospital."

"The hospital? How did I…" Then the memories came flooding back: the fighting, his escape, finding a town and collapsing at its gate. "Now I remember," He went to sit up only to have his ribs feel like someone had him in a vice. He laid back down panting.

"Please, try not to move. You're wounds are rather extensive. What exactly happened?"

He laid there for a few seconds before answering, "We were ambushed. I was on my way here with two of my friends when these bandits jumped us. They killed my friends. I managed to fight them off and escape. Last thing I remember is passing out in front of the gates."

Sakura nodded, "We got a report of some bandits in the area. I'm…I'm sorry for the loss of your friends." She looked at his chart and then back at him, "How badly do you want out of that bed?"

"Very badly. I was hoping to apply to be assigned to one of the ninja squads here."

Sakura raised an eyebrow, "Little old to be going through the academy, aren't you?"

The man shook his head, "I'm a Chunin from an outlying village. My name's Ryuu."

Sakura nodded and closed the door. She turned back to Ryuu. She took a moment to take in his features. He was about six feet tall and had dark-red hair. He was muscular, meaning he could easily hold his own in a fight. But what really caught her attention were his eyes. The irises were an unusual shade of orange, much like the color of a flame.

"Right then, let's get you out of here," Sakura walked over to Ryuu and sat in a chair next to his bed. She placed her hands over him and began to use healing jutsu on him. Ryuu could immediately feel his wounds healing. Within a few minutes, Sakura had finished.

Ryuu sat up; this time there was no pain. He got of the bed and bounced around on the balls of his feet, "I feel great! Hell, I haven't felt this good in a long time. Thank you, Sakura."

She smiled, "It's no problem. Let me get your release paper and you can go."

Ryuu nodded, "Just one question. Where are my clothes?"

A few hours later, Ryuu was walking out of the main administration building of Konoha. Because of his Chunin status, he wouldn't be placed on a squad. Instead, he would be assigned to different missions when needed. He had been given a key to an apartment in the complex where the other ninjas lived and a jacket worn by the Chunin. He would get a salary at the end of each week. In the mean time, he could do some odd jobs around town to make some extra cash. First thing was first though. He found his apartment and unlocked the door. The room was sparsely furnished, having only a couch, bed, and a dining room/kitchen complete with stove, oven and fridge. He reached into a pouch at his side and pulled out several pieces of paper with writing on them. He looked at each piece of paper and placed it in a specific place. Once they were all in place, Ryuu made a few quick hand signs. There were several popping sounds as the tags released the items sealed within. Ryuu had figured out how to take a sealing scroll and reduce it to a tag. It made moving around much simpler. He was straightening some things on a shelf when there was a knock of the door.

"Come in," he said. The door opened to reveal a blonde, sixteen year old boy in an orange and black jumpsuit. His blonde hair was spiked up and he had a cheesy grin on his face—like he always went around happy. "Can I help you?"

"Actually, I'm here to help you. My name's Naruto Uzimaki. I'm supposed to show you around town."

"Really? Ok, just give me a moment and I'll be ready." Ryuu finished arranging his possessions and left with Naruto.

Naruto led Ryuu around the town for the rest of the day, showing him the market district, the arena, the training grounds, as well as making a stop at his favorite Ramen shop. Ryuu realized he hadn't eaten since he woke up. He paid the shop owner and received a large bowl of the ramen. Since it had been a few days since his last real meal, the ramen tasted like heaven to him—even though it was the best ramen he had ever had.

"Hey Naruto," Ryuu said. Naruto looked up from his bowl, still slurping his spicy ramen, "That mountain I saw behind the city, who are those people?"

Naruto finished his ramen and put down his bowl with a sigh, "That's the Great Hokage Mountain. It houses the faces of the five Hokages that Konoha has had, including the current one. I plan on having my face carved on it one day."

"High goals, especially for a genin."

"Only reason I'm a genin is because I was off training for three years."

Ryuu was about to say something when a Jonin appeared behind him, "Ryuu, Naruto, Lady Tsunade requires your presence immediately."

Ryuu did a spit-take, "Tsunade! As in the Sonin of Konohagakure Tsunade?"

"Yes, she is the current Hokage. Now please hurry to her office. Sakura and Kakashi are already there. A mission requires your skills." With that, the ninja disappeared.

Ryuu downed what was left of his ramen and he and Naruto left for the office of the Hokage.

Ryuu and Naruto entered into Tsunade's office. Ryuu recognized Sakura and guessed the white haired Jonin was Kakashi. Ryuu took in the man's looks. He was dressed like a regular Jonin—vest, kunai pouches, the standard forehead protector that covered his left eye and a mask that covered his lower face, which left only the upper right part of his face visible. He turned his attention to the woman behind the desk. Her clothes were simple enough. A simple, grass-green haori worn over a grey, kimono-style blouse with no sleeves. The blouse was closed down low, revealing ample cleavage. Her skin was fair and her eyes were brown. Her blonde hair was tied back into two pony-tails and her shoulder-length bangs covered her face. Her intense look was only made more so by the red diamond on her forehead. Ryuu knew that this was Tsunade.

"It's about time you two showed up," Tsunade said.

Ryuu bowed, "Forgive me Lady Hokage, I'm new to town."

"So I've heard. What's your excuse, Naruto."

"I was making sure Ryuu could keep up. Geez, lighten up Granny."

Ryuu blinked, Granny? "I assure you, I could move faster. I thought that was as fast as you could go."

"Can we get on with this?" Tsunade asked. Ryuu looked back at Tsunade and nodded. "Good. We've received word that the Akatsuke are on the move again. The members in question are not known, though we can assume they are powerful." She looked at Ryuu, "No doubt you have questions about who the Akatsuke are, but I don't have time to explain. Kakashi, who will be leading this mission, will fill you in on the way. You have one hour to gather your equipment and leave. I'm sending Sakura because you may need a medical ninja. If there are no other questions, then you're dismissed."