Summary: OlderNaruto! Naruto needs a teacher. Obito just so happens to want a student. Watch as this unlikely duo takes the shinobi world by storm as the shadows of war loom on the horizon. What's the worst that can happen?
Disclaimer: If I owned the damn franchise, do you think I'd be on here?
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"I admired you, I envied you, and . . . I loved you . . . Namikaze Naruto."
Blue eyes, normally vibrant with energy, were dark, contemplative even. It was a sight to behold on the blond haired, blue eyed 15 year old boy, dressed in a white tracksuit with three orange stripes on the sleeves, mesh under-armor, a pair of black pants and sandals, strapped to his back was a tanto. A gust of wind gently ruffled the boy's hair as he overlooked the village from on top of the head of his father, the Yondaime Hokage.
His eyes were staring at the village, glazed over as he internally digested his emotions. He did not take notice of the Shinobi Academy, the Administration Building, nor the Grand Archive, or the Shinobi Academy, nor the hundreds if not thousands of busy villagers unawares of the tragedy that had occurred.
Instead, his grief laden blue eyes focused upon the large white building that was Konoha Hospital, where his last remaining teammate laid on death's doorstep.
All because of him.
He clenched his fist tightly at that thought. So tightly, that his nails dug into the palms of his hand deep enough to draw blood.
Manic laughter echoed in the air and crazed purple eyes stared straight into his soul. Naruto's team lay around him. His sensei, Sarutobi Jin, was dead and his other teammate, Sinamora Akosha, would be with him soon enough.
In his arms was his third teammate, Tatsuki Rika, clinging desperately to life.
"The great Lord Jashin will be pleased with my sacrifices!" Those soulless purple eyes flickered to Naruto. "Pleased indeed . . ."
A wicked grin crossed the man's face and Naruto's world was eclipsed in red.
Naruto violently shook his head, hoping to remove the moments that replayed constantly in his mind. It was his entire fault! Because of his decision . . . Rika was dead and Akosha was grievously injured. His sensei, the Hokage's son, was dead! Never in his wildest dreams did Naruto ever think his sensei would ever lose, let alone die! He was the heir of the Sarutobi Clan and was in a class of his own, easily an A-Rank borderline S-Rank shinobi.
But the monkey did not fall without a fight, that was for sure. It had been a brutal and horrendous battle of life and death that unfortunately led to the death of a great shinobi. Just thinking about it sent chills down Naruto's back.
Akosha had clung to life so arduously and by some stroke of God, he had made it out alive.
Unfortunately, so had Naruto.
Those soulless purple eyes flashed into his vision briefly and Naruto released low growl, his chakra, stronger and more potent than both of his parents put together, began to seep out of him.
He would kill that Jashinist Priest, he would protect his village, and he would make his father proud. Never again would he be powerless before another being, helpless.
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The Meeting Hall inside of the Hokage Tower was eerily silent. Damn near every active Jonin, Special Jonin, and even a few Chunin, was in attendance.
At the forefront stood the Sandaime Hokage, Sarutobi Hiruzen, his face solemn and grim. To his sides stood his former teammates and advisors, Homura Mitokado and Utatane Koharu.
Clearing his throat, Sarutobi began. "I have called you all here to discuss the tragic occurrence that has befallen us. Yesterday morning whilst completing a C turned B-Rank assignment, the team under my eldest son, Sarutobi Jin, came under assault by an unknown S-Class assailant on the northwestern borders of the country."
Murmurs spread amongst the gathered crowd and after a few moments one of the newer Jonin, Yuhi Kurenai, spoke up with concern evident in her voice. "Were there any casualties?"
The Sandaime turned his dark gaze upon her and then next to her, to his second child Sarutobi Asuma. "The attack resulted in the deaths of Sarutobi Jin and a student of his, Tatsuki Rika."
The news caused multiple gasps, especially amongst the rookie Jonin. Sarutobi Jin was amongst the elite of the village and was a model shinobi, rivaling the likes of Might Gai and Hatake Kakashi, many of the younger shinobi looked up to him. To hear that he had been defeated, within Fire Country itself, was not welcome.
Looking around the room, he saw that his remaining son looked stricken, whilst Kakashi looked grave and Gai lacked his usual mirth.
Uzumaki Kushina registered that knowledge, before a horrifying thought invaded her mind. "Wait, Sandaime-sama, isn't that the team Naruto to was on?! Is he okay?!" she asked desperately. Her son had been gone for weeks and she had received no notice on his return. The fact that such a tragedy had occurred to him must have been traumatizing.
Hiruzen regarded the red haired Uzumaki, speaking proudly. "Namikaze Naruto was able to fend off and escape his assailant with his surviving teammate, Sinamora Akosha." He turned towards the rest of the shinobi in the room. "Unfortunately, Sinamora was injured far to gravely and will never again be a shinobi." He said solemnly.
A moment of silence followed his words as most shinobi either bowed their heads or simply remained silent to honor both fallen and handicapped comrades. It was one of the many risks of being a shinobi that not many liked to consider.
Hiruzen cleared his throat, "As such, we find ourselves with a dilemma. Namikaze Naruto is without a teacher and a team. He is a talented shinobi with extraordinary potential to be greater than even his father and a fine career ahead of him, yet to reach that horizon he must be guided. I am aware that there are no teams now with open positions so until such a time arises, I would ask one of you to accept him as a student."
This elicited even more murmuring and whispering amongst the Jonin present. Most of the Jonin were either busy with high profile missions or Genin teams. Kurenai and Asuma had their eyes set on the soon to be graduating Academy students though Asuma did state he would be giving Naruto a visit, Anko was too busy interrogating missing-nin to 'babysit a blond brat', and Gai had his own team to look after.
Kakashi sighed, closing his one visible eye as he took a step forward. In his usual drawl, the one eyed man addressed the Hokage. "I'll take him as my own student, Hokage-sama."
Before the Sandaime could respond, a lightly chuckle reverberated off the walls of the chambers. From the crowd of shinobi, a figure draped in shadows moved up next to the silver haired man, slouched and hands within his pockets.
"Maa, I didn't think you'd make it. It seems as though no old lady needed help across the street, eh?" Kakashi jested.
The figure chuckled. "Don't be silly Kakashi, there's always an old lady who needs help." He turned towards the Hokage. "Hokage-sama, if you would allow it, allow me to take him as my student. Kakashi here will be essential in the training of Uchiha Sasuke and will be an excellent influence on the Yondaime's daughter, Namikaze Tsubaki."
Hiruzen tilted his head, gazing down at his subordinate. "And would Kakashi not be a good influence on Naruto as well?"
The figure bowed his head. "Of course he would Hokage-sama, however, Naruto has just suffered a horrendous tragedy and is sitting at a crossroads leading to a dark path. He must be handled with a different kind of care and I myself have . . . quite enough experience in the subject to turn him away from that path and mold him into the shinobi you desire. Kakashi would be best suited in the training of Uchiha Sasuke and Namikaze Tsubaki."
Sarutobi sucked his teeth as he observed the shinobi before him. He was calm and collected, with an unshakable confidence in his stance yet with that same mischievous gleam in his eye from his childhood. He had come far in his time as a shinobi with his own share of tragedies. Yes, he would be a fine teacher for the boy.
"If Kakashi has no objections . . ." Sarutobi looked towards the silver haired cyclops, who shrugged playfully, he nodded his head towards the figure.
"Very well, he's in your care now . . . Uchiha Obito."
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Naruto solemnly entered his house, his eyes cast down. Judging from the time of day, Tsubaki should be home, but honestly he didn't want to see her. And, lo and behold, there she was inside the kitchen.
He and Tsubaki had never truly connected as siblings. He could remember the first day that he held her when he visited his weakened mother in the hospital. He thought that she was cute and that she would grow up to be a beautiful and strong shinobi like Kushina. However, as the years progressed and she got older, he began to see another side of her that he did not like seeing.
She became arrogant when she learned of the Kyuubi being sealed within her, walking around the village acting as if it owed her for keeping them safe. No one would attack her as it would bring upon his wrath but damn, the idea was appealing sometimes. They both held different views as to how they should continue their father's legacy. Naruto believed that preserving and defending the village and its people without senseless violence was the way to go. Tsubaki believed that in order to defend the village one must gain great personal power so as to strike fear into their enemies, to display the strength of the village for all to see.
What was worst was her favorite warmongering 'uncle', Shimura Danzo, did nothing but encourage her attitude, which only angered the elder Namikaze further. Whenever he would say something about it, she would pout and throw a temper tantrum like a baby and accuse him of trying to hold her back.
Naruto just sighed and decided to get it over with. Walking into the kitchen he murmured a quiet "Hello Tsubaki . . ."
Tsubaki snorted, rolling her cerulean eyes. "So I heard you received a high ranked mission." She grinned. "And I hear that bitch Rika is six feet under."
Naruto tensed at that, his eyes narrowing as his mind traveled back to the traumatic experience he had just dealt with, his turbulent emotions stirring something deep within him, like a storm far out to sea. He couldn't see it and could only feel its effects. Yet it was enough for him to know its potency. Violent. Dangerous. Uncompromising fury often ended very badly for most people. But for shinobi, it was much worse. Tsubaki continued, either ignoring her brother's reaction or not noticing it.
"It was bound to happen, I told you that. She was a weak bitch with barely anymore ability than an academy student. All she ever did was hold you back. Not only that, but she was arrogant, believing herself to be greater than me." She said with a sly smirk on her face.
The storm surged higher in his chest as Naruto glared at his sister, fighting tooth and nail to stay composed. His raging chakra was burning, filled with the potency of all his sadness, anger, and vengefulness was beginning to be too much to bear. Yet still, Tsubaki did not stop.
"And to think, she thought she could master one of your jutsu. Stupid bitch, she deserved-"
That was it; he couldn't take it any longer. He could not listen to his sister be a vindictive bitch to someone who she barely knew. Tsubaki had walked into the lion's den and woke up the sleeping lion without fear of retribution. She would have to be reminded of her place in the established food chain.
"That is enough!" Naruto roared, cowing Tsubaki into stunned silence as for just a moment, his tight grip on his chakra faltered and the storm within him surged. "You will not speak ill of Rika in front of me, ever again! Do you understand dear sister? If I so much as hear you insult her posthumously I will beat your ass from here to Iwagakure, drag you back, and then again."
Tsubaki would not be cowed for long and after a moment, composed herself as she snorted. "As if you could beat me, all I would need to do is call upon-" Her voice stopped dead in her throat as she stared into Naruto's brilliant blue eyes that were visibly glowing with barely restrained anger and chakra.
"Do it," he said lowly, walking up to her so that he was whispering into her ear. "Call upon your failsafe, your oh so precious Kyuubi. I swear to you Tsubaki, do not push me. Because Kyuubi or not, sister or not, if you cross my line, I will show you what the true differences between you and I are."
With that said he turned on his heels and walked quickly out of the kitchen in seething anger. The storm in his chest was stronger than ever and was begging desperately to be released. A flash of red caught his eye and he looked up to see his mother approaching him. That wasn't good; he couldn't deal with her with himself all in a mess. So, catching her eyes he gathered the appropriate amount of chakra for one of his original techniques.
A light breeze engulfed him. Then, a moment later with a flare of chakra, he was gone with the wind.
Kushina pursed her lips as she approached where her son once stood, before sighing and walking into her home. He'd be back sure enough, that was a definite.
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Namikaze Naruto had been granted two and a half weeks of reprieve and Obito was going to take advantage that to the fullest to prepare. First impressions were incredibly important in the world of shinobi, even more so for sensei and their prospective students. Among them, Naruto would be a special case. A genin team that had lost its sensei was an anomaly for the greatest of the shinobi villages and a team who lost all but one of its members was almost unheard of.
Team Sarutobi had been quite the anomaly of a team. Sarutobi Jin was an accomplished shinobi, well on his way to becoming a living legend in the shinobi world. Like his father, he was quite skilled in all aspects of the shinobi arts, but focused more on taijutsu and ninjutsu. It was only natural for him to have a talented team.
Sinamora Akosha was an incredibly talented taijutsu specialist with a unique repertoire of close-combat ninjutsu techniques that would devastate even the most experienced of opponents, which was surprising as his scores in the academy weren't too incredibly good. He was labeled as a jokester and troublemaker.
The cunning Tatsuki Rika and her startlingly advanced genjutsu was also another surprise. As, apparently, she had been quite anonymous in her class, rarely speaking and doing just the bare minimum to get by. Reports stated that she didn't quite want to be shinobi, but it was the only way for her to move out of poverty.
That left the true enigma of Team Sarutobi: Namikaze Naruto. The eldest heir of the Yondaime Hokage with an incredibly potent pool of chakra, quite possibly due to the fact that Kushina still contained the Kyuubi within her when she pregnant with him. Academy records show that he displayed great potential, yet did not apply himself while reports by his dead sensei would indicate that in his own right, Naruto was a genius. However, it would also be noted that he clung to notions of camaraderie, normality, and family almost desperately. Leaving him highly impressionable to tragic loses.
He would have to approach the situation delicately . . .
"Fuck subtlety!" Obito cried out, grabbing his hair in frustration.
He was sitting on his couch in his apartment, with Kakashi leaning against the wall with that damn orange book of his. The apartment itself wasn't anything special. It was spartan, befitting a shinobi whose life was in constant motion.
Upon hearing his friends' exclamation, Kakashi turned his one eyed gaze towards the Uchiha and smiled.
"Stuck?"
Obito groaned in response. "You have no idea. How the hell do you approach a kid whose sensei and teammate died with the other being injured permanently? Everyone says to tread carefully and delicately but dammit, I don't quite know how to treat this delicately."
Kakashi did not reply with words, only a deep "hmm".
"To hell with delicacy, I can do this my own way and shape him into a shinobi sensei would be proud of." Obito declared.
"Mhm, sure you can." Kakashi said, flipping a page.
Obito's right eye twitched as he turned his eyes to Kakashi. "I can."
"I know."
"No really, I can. I'm a different guy, not nearly the same as that mischievous kid all those years ago. I gots maturity."
"I have maturity, baka." Kakashi corrected.
"Now I know you're mocking me!"
Kakashi chuckled at the accusation, but did not refute it. "When am I not?"
"Dammit Kakashi, I'm not that big green eyesore you call your 'eternal rival'! You can't just get under my skin with clipped responses and condescending eye contact! I'm far more mature than that." Obito growled, ignoring Kakashi's muttering of "His words, not mine".
"Sure I can't."
". . . You're an ass, you know that?"
"Believe me, I know." Kakashi replied, closing his limited edition Icha Icha. He glanced out the corner of his eye towards his friend, sighing. "You're going to have to approach him sooner or late. Kushina is worried about him. He's allowing his grief to consume him. If you don't intervene soon . . ."
"Yeah, yeah I know Kakashi. Go home and read your porn or something." Obito waved him away, grabbing his flak vest as he stood up from his seat.
"I am home." Kakashi laughed, rubbing his neck. "Now that I think about it, with the amount of time you spend over here, you should be paying some of my bills."
Obito blinked, before smiling widely as he opened the door. "Into the breach, eh?" And with those words exchanged, he left.
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To say that Naruto could be found by the memorial stone would be an understatement. He damn near lived at the engraved rock. Ever since the funerals of his sensei and teammate, he had done nothing during his reprieve except visit Akosha and the memorial stone.
It was pathetic and he knew. But he couldn't help but stare at the names etched into massive slab entrenched in the ground, surrounded hundreds if not thousands of names written upon it. How they managed to fit all the names of the shinobi who had fallen was beyond the blond, but he was sure that the Sandaime knew.
The area surrounding the stone was deserted, it usually was. Occasionally a few Chunin would stop by to pay their respects to lost friends and even a Jonin or two would come. Rarely, an Anbu could be seen observing the stone. But Naruto paid them no mind. None whatsoever. It was just him, alone by the stone, surrounded by birds chirping and singing songs of spring. The sound of frogs croaking at the nearby lake echoed through the air, and all manner of wildlife bustled.
He sat, cross-legged in front of the stone, his mind drifting to times of fun and happiness. A time when his sensei stood strong and his teammate smiled that bright happy smile of hers. He was so caught up in these memories, that he hardly registered the presence that appeared above him.
"Hey . . . how about we talk, Uzumaki Naruto?"
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Haha, yep, I'm still here. I've been working on a variety of stories in my computers library, most specifically this one as it showed the most promise. It's been stuck in my head for a while, honestly. What if, by chance, Naruto was forced through a traumatic experience while he was still quite impressionable? But not a regular Naruto, not at all. A Naruto who was calm, collected, confident, and gifted with prodigious skill in the shinobi arts. What if, while still in that impressionable age, he was unable to use said skill and knowledge to save anyone and had to watch his friend and sensei killed in front of him? Well, I thought he'd become quite Obito/Kakashi-like, honestly. But, I can't have that, he has to become his own man.
I have no idea how long it'll take me to update this or so on and so forth, but hopefully, I can update it once every two weeks. As for anyone interested to know, I plan on uploading the next chapter to The Magnificent Seven pretty soon and also plan on uploading a Medic!Naruto story and a Sci-Fi/Steampunk/whateveridecide Naruto story. Yep, so please, review and let me have some idea onto your thoughts on this. What you like, dislike(NoFlaming), what you would like to see, what you would take out, etc.
Until then, ja ne