A/N:
Hi!
Here's the new chapter!
Sorry for the delay Naru285 and YeagerMeister31. And thanks for the review Brenda S., I'm glad you liked it.
I wanted this chapter to have over 4000 words but it ended up being over 5000 instead.
I hope you guys like it and please review!
Kiss
Chapter 2
Ready for his graduation
Almost four years passed by after Naruto's decision to show an happy-go-lucky image to the village and the time for his graduation from the ninja academy was approaching fast. He was able to slowly establish and maintain his mask, but his personality, knowledge and his body built changed a lot since then.
Everything started when, three months after he begun the academy, he was wandering in the forests around Konoha and he noticed a strange imprint on the ground written in kanji. One of his classmates that was particularly bully had pushed him into the ground as they were leaving the academy, so he was bleeding a bit from his knee. As a tiny drop of blood fell on the strange marking when he crouched down to check it, Naruto heard a puff and suddenly he was looking at a large house.
'What is going on?' He starts questioning himself, confused. 'This house wasn't here before.'
He stayed there a few seconds, weighing his options.
'Oh! Might as well explore a bit. It doesn't seem like anyone visited this place in a while…'
He might have been a little genius, but he still was a curious child. So he quietly entered the house, not knowing that his life would change after this experience.
As soon as he reached the living room, he saw the strangest thing he ever saw in his short life... In a shelf there was photo of the Yondaime Hokage and a beautiful and very pregnant red-haired woman that he presumed was Minato's wife. But that wasn't what surprised him, since he already suspected that no one had lived in the house for quite a while. No, what was strange was that there were two letters in either side of the frame with 'Naruto' written in the center of each, but in different calligraphies.
He could only assume that one was from the Yondaime and the other was, probably from his wife. Now, why the Yondaime's wife decided to write him a letter he could only guess.
Suddenly, all pieces of the puzzle started to fall into place. He already knew that he had the Kyuubi sealed inside him, so he could easily understand why the Yondaime would want to say something to him, but why the guy's wife would want to say anything to him? Unless… It made complete sense! He was blond with blue eyes like the Yondaime and he was, for some coincidence, chosen to be the jinchuriki of the Kyuubi? Naruto didn't think the man he admired above anyone else would go around and take a random person to bear this burden, which means that the only reasonable explanation was that he was the son of the Yondaime and his beautiful red-haired wife…
Now that he thought about it, of course someone would trust his or her son before any other person. Besides, being the Hokage, the blond couldn't ask someone to offer himself or herself or even someone's child for the sake of the village, when he wasn't ready to do the same.
'If I'm right, I'm the son of my hero.' He thought happily. However, a sudden thought made him want to slap his forehead. 'I can't believe I didn't see this before… I'm nearly his spitting image.'
He hoped he wasn't mistaken, since he would be devastated if he got his hopes up just to be proved wrong in the end. He always dreamt of finding out who his parents were and now he felt that his dream might have come true.
Making a snap decision, he quickly reached for the letter on the right side of the frame and opened it. It said:
"Dear Naruto,
If you're reading this is because I'm dead along with your father.
Minato probably didn't say much to you in that letter of his, since he doesn't know that I'm going after him to fight against the Kyuubi and he is probably counting on me to explain you everything when you're old enough to hear it, but now that I'm dead I guess this letter will have to do.
Everything you need to know about my life and jutsus as well as your father's are in the library in our personal diaries and in our notes. I'm kind of pressured by time so you will have to search for it on your own, but my advice is that you find the Kage Bunshin no Jutsu and learn it since it will help you go over everything faster.
You also need to know that the Kyuubi attack wasn't an accident, the Kyuubi was being controlled by a sharingan user. An Uchiha masked man interrupted your father when he was restoring the seal that contained the Kyuubi in my body since it was weak from giving birth to you. He was able to separate us and extract the Kyubi out of my body, only my special chakra saved me from dying in the process.
I probably couldn't stop it so your father have sealed it inside of you, but he had to die for it to happen. I'm sure you'll learn the details when you become the seal master you're destined to be, if you aren't one already.
Don't blame yourself for the attack or our deaths and know that we, myself and your father will always love you.
Your mother,
Namikaze Kushina"
As he finished reading his mother's letter, he had tears streaming down his face, not only had he finally discovered who his parents were but he also couldn't be more proud of who they were and how they sacrificed their lives for the village.
He felt somehow lighter after learning that his mother was a jinchuriki of the Kyuubi before him. He still remembered when he first met the Kyubi two months before.
Start of flashback
It was only a month after he started the academy when he found himself in a small and usually unused training ground following the instruction that his academy's sensei gave him and his classmates to unlock their chakra.
As his chakra started to flow through his whole body, he felt like he was being pulled inside himself, his vision began to blacken and he promptly fell unconscious. When he opened his eyes again, he was no longer in the training ground but in what looked like a sewer staring directly at what looked like a enormous prison cell.
At first, he was a bit afraid since he suddenly heard a loud growl coming from the cage and a giant orange being whose form he couldn't recognize started to slowly raise itself from the ground, looking intently at him with big red eyes. However, he knew that whatever it was he couldn't show his fear or he might be attacked, that was just how nature worked.
"Hello." Naruto said in a soft and calm voice after deciding to try to talk to the giant being. "I'm not trying to be rude, but who are you and where are we?"
The being just stared at the blond boy with what could be surprise but before it could say anything, Naruto saw the being had 9 tails and quickly put the pieces together.
"Wait a minute!" He exclaimed suddenly before the now identified being could say anything. "You are the Kyuubi no Yoko! I thought you were dead but I guess the information I have is wrong. Unless… I'm dead too?"
Naruto saw the Kyuubi blink a few times and for his confusion and amazement, it started to laugh. It was a terrifying laughter yet it didn't seem like an evil one but more like one full of mirth.
"I have to say, you are an interesting human, gaki!" The giant fox said still chuckling a bit. "You are the first little one I ever met that isn't terrified of me."
Naruto stared at the nine-tailed fox with confusion and disbelief.
"I'm sorry, I don't understand…" He stated looking genuinely baffled. "Why should I be afraid of you?"
Still staring at the Kyuubi, Naruto couldn't fathom what he should be afraid of. Wasn't the fox locked away in the cell? Wasn't he out of the demon's reach?
"I don't even know if I should laugh or feel offended…" Kyuubi trailed of. "I killed hundreds of people in your village, normal people would be afraid of me."
"Well, I assumed you were locked in there and couldn't get out because of that strange piece of paper on the door with the kanji for seal." Naruto answered in a matter of fact tone. "Besides, you didn't answer me when I asked if I was dead, so I don't have to worry about you killing me if I am."
"That actually makes sense..." Kyuubi decided sweat dropping.
After a long moment of silence in what the giant fox seemed to be contemplating something, Naruto decided to get back on track.
"So… Am I?" He asks expectantly.
"Are you what, k…gaki?" Was the Kyuubi's counter-question.
"Am I dead?" The blond repeats
"No, you're not. You're in your mind space" The fox answered seemingly resigned. "The story your generation was told was a lie. You can't kill a Bijuu! Your Yondaime sealed me inside a baby after I was forced to attack Konoha…"
"Oh!" Naruto whispered sadly. "So you are sealed inside me… I guess now I know why the villagers and some shinobi treat me like they do. Some think that I am you and for the others I am a constant reminder of what they lost..."
"Rrrr! I can't believe I'm saying this!" The Kyubi grumbled. "But it's not your fault. That is why I hate humans! They always seem to find a scapegoat without caring if it's the real culprit. You shouldn't be mistreated because of what I did, you are far from being that great."
After a moment of stunned silence, Naruto remembered something that he didn't understood from the fox's speech.
"What is a Bijuu?" He suddenly inquired curiously.
"Is what the tailed-beasts are called." Kyuubi answered grudgingly.
"Tailed-beasts?" Naruto asked. "You're not the only one?"
"We are nine but I'm the strongest one since I have more tails and you are what humans called a jinchuriki because you are the host of a tailed-beast. Now get out of here! I'm done answering your damn questions!" The fox roared and pushed its red chakra towards Naruto, effectively sending the blond out of his mind scape.
End of flashback
After this incident, he was a bit upset that he had to hold back the Kyuubi when he wasn't even a ninja yet, surely some talented shinobi would be more adequate for the job. Now, he felt a bit relieved because he was doing something his mother did before him.
When he felt that he was calm enough, he opened his father's letter and it said:
"Dear Naruto,
I hope that your mother already explained everything to you. However, I need to tell you why I did it.
As the Hokage, I couldn't ask someone to offer their child to hold the Kyuubi when I wasn't ready to the same. You see the sealing jutsu I used to seal the Kyuubi in you wouldn't have hold so well if it wasn't done in a baby since the babies don't have their chakra coils completely formed yet and the person performing the jutsu dies automatically in the process.
I'm sorry Naruto! I'm sorry that you have to live with this burden and that I'm not there to support you! I hope the village treats you like the hero you are.
You have all the right to hate me, but know that I will always believe in you! You are strong Naruto! How could you not be? You are my son.
I know I have no right to act all fatherly and ask you anything, but please take care of your mother and Kashi for me.
I hope one day you can find it in your heart to forgive me.
I love you my son. Forever!
Namikaze Minato"
Naruto had to read the letter a few times to fully comprehend what his father was saying to him.
'Dad!' He thought in angst, starting to cry again. His painful sobs nothing like the slow and quiet tears that streamed down his face when he read his mother's letter.
"How could you think that I could ever hate you dad?" He whispered in between sobs. "I'm so proud of who you were!"
After what seemed like hours of silence to him but were only a few minutes, he was finally able to stop crying.
"You were forced to sacrifice yourself and your son to save this village but its inhabitants spit on your grave everyday by treating me like trash, therefore going against your dying wish." The blond boy spoke again. "However, you didn't have a choice, so there's no way I could hate you. I will always love you and I will do everything to make sure I honour your wish! I can't protect mom since she's dead too but I give you my word that I will find out who this Kashi is and I will take care of him. And I never go back on my word, that's my nindo!"
XXX
Five hours later, he was on the floor breathing heavily and with a mouth splitting grin on his face. He was able to find the scroll with the Kage Bunshin no Jutsu and learned it successfully but it took a lot out of him so he needed to recharge his energy. Naruto didn't know at the time, but it was quite impressive that he was able to master that jutsu at the young age of 8 years old.
When he had been able to gather enough energy to stand up, he noticed that it was already completely dark outside. He was thinking in staying in the house for the night, but suddenly his stomach rumbled. However, as he looked in the kitchen cupboards he was surprised to find some food that seemed in good condition. He was only puzzled for a few seconds since he promptly noticed a strange piece of paper in the cupboards' doors so he easily deduced that his father had used some sort of sealing jutsu to keep the food fresh seeing that his father seemed to have been good with sealing.
After a quick dinner, he realized that it was barely past eight at night so he decided to head towards the library to explore it a bit. As he entered the room, he stopped in his tracks at the door with his mouth hanging open. He had never seen a room so beautiful as his parents' library. He had been there before to look for the scroll with the Kage Bunshin no Jutsu, but he didn't really looked at the room.
Completely entering in the library, he found himself lost in the information he could take from the room. One of the first things he notice was a photo where his father was accompanied by two boys and girl, probably a genin team he got to teach. The girl had brown hair, brown eyes and strange marks in her cheeks; the boy on the left had black hair and black eyes that was easily identified as an Uchiha; the other boy had a strange silver color to his hair and black eyes using a dark mask that covered more than half of his face. As he turned it around, it read "Team seven consisting of Hatake Kakashi, Uchiha Obito and Nohara Rin, led by jounin Namikaze Minato".
"I guess now I know who is the person dad asked me to take care of." Naruto spoke to no one but then wondered. "The guy is much older than me and seem to be a level headed person, why would dad want me to take care of someone like him?"
For many it might have seemed silly to automatically assume that the Kashi person that Minato talked about in his letter and Hatake Kakashi were one and the same. However, Naruto didn't have any doubts that he was right, he felt some strange connection with the silver haired boy in the picture and knew it had to be him that his father was talking about. Besides the guy looked kind of cool, like what an older brother would be like.
Putting his mind back on track, he quickly folded his parent's journals and was gone to find a room for the night, deciding to explore the rest the following day and start reading the journals in bed. Too tired to look around much, he decided to stay in the master bedroom that night. The little blond found some old pajamas that suited him somehow and he guessed they were from his father when he was younger.
When he was finally in bed, he started to read his father's journal but quickly fell asleep.
XXX
The following day, Naruto woke up around six. It was fairly early, but he still thanked God for being Saturday since that meant that he had the whole weekend to explore the house.
The little blond made some breakfast and ate it before creating a few Kage Bunshin to explore the house and the scrolls from the library while he read his parents journals.
He opened first the one that belonged to Minato. It seemed to start with his father's days as a genin, how he saved Kushina from being kidnapped and who were some of his friends. Naruto learned that the older blond was already an accomplished shinobi by the time he was a genin and that his sensei was Jiraya of the Sannin, a self proclaimed 'Super Pervert', who later made Minato his apprentice.
Naruto also learned the story of the creation of the new team 7 led by Minato as well as Kakashi's life story until before the older blond's death. He read how the silver haired boy lost his father and was sort of adopted by Minato but the little guy seemed adverse to accept help in the beginning. He learn how the other members of the team died and Kakashi's feelings of guilt over his teammates' deaths. He also read that the silver haired, by that time, jounin had been chosen for anbu by Minato himself when he became Hokage and was attributed the code name "Inu".
After learning that little piece of information, he suddenly stopped reading, startled by what it made him remember. There was an anbu that always took care of Naruto, much more than any other person in the village even counting the Hokage and Teuchi and Ayame from the Ichiraku. That anbu had a dog-like mask and the Hokage always called him Inu. Naruto had felt connected with him, like he was family but the masked nin acted like a big brother so he didn't see more into it. However, in that moment everything finally made sense.
'He must have been unable to take care of me as himself so he used his anbu alas to still be there for me.' Naruto thought, not knowing how to feel about that revelation. 'Of course! It's probably well known that he was dad's student and since I look like dad, if he hanged around with me, dad's enemies would be all over Konoha trying to kill me. But he disappeared two months before my anbu protection ended when I became an academy student, so... He might have been forced to step down from anbu. He didn't leave me because he wanted to!'
He was so happy with the conclusions he reached that he had to force himself not to jump up and down in excitement or fall down on the ground crying his eyes out, it was like the tension that he had accumulated in his small body that he didn't even know existed melted away. He was starting to think that maybe the kind anbu never really cared for him and that the fact that he took care of him was only because the masked nin was focused on the mission that was handed to him and Naruto was seeing a connection where there wasn't one because of the older boy's caring nature. But in that moment the little blond was sure that Kakashi genuinely cared for him.
After a deep breath, he started reading again. He discovered that even in anbu, Kakashi was having trouble focusing on the missions and was still deeply depressed over his teammates' deaths. He learned how his father reacted to his mother's pregnancy, that he was name after a character of Jiraiya's best book, making the white haired man his godfather and the worries that the Sandaime and his wife Biwako lifted about the seal breaking during the childbirth. He read that his father gave Kakashi the mission of protecting his mother and him in hopes to get him to keep the silver haired boy's head above the water as well as his parents intention of adopting Kakashi officially after his birth if the silver haired fourteen years old agreed with it.
Looking at the clock after he finished reading his father's journal, he noticed it was already noon so he ate a quick lunch and started with his mother's one.
Most of the information was the same but his mother's journal started when she came to Konoha to be the Kyuubi's jinchuuriki. He read about his mother's friends, how she fell in love with his father, her thoughts about preferring Obito over Kakashi as well as her change of heart about the little silver haired jounin who she came to love like a son after Obito and Rin's deaths and her choice of making Senju Tsunade who had been Kushina's sensei, before the blond woman left the village, his godmother.
When he finished, seeing it was still early for dinner and that he wasn't hungry, he sat processing everything he learned about his parents' lives.
A few minutes later, the single clone that was exploring the property with the exception of the library that was being explored by a few other clones, dispelled himself and Naruto received a detailed map of the property. Since he had an eidetic memory, something he seemed to get from his father, it was really easy to remember everything that existed inside and outside of the house.
After spending the afternoon thinking in what to do with the information he gained and having a quick dinner, Naruto sat in the sofa processing what his clones, who dispelled soon after he ate, found in the library.
"Let's see!" He thought out loud. "All the Ninjutsu mom and dad learned… Mom's Kenjutsu style… Dad's Taijutsu style as well as mom's… The Fuinjutsu belonging to the Uzumaki family, dad and my perverted godfather… World history… Chakra control exercises… How to be an healthy and fit shinobi… The history of team seven since Jiji's genin team led by the Nidaime... Medical Ninjutsu and anatomy… Chakra theory and physics… Cool! I have information on everything I need to know to be the best ninja ever born!"
XXX
Two years later, Naruto had all but given up on the academy.
He was in the third month of his third year of the academy, but he was barely doing enough to pass the classes, making himself look like the idiot everyone started to call him.
He noticed early in his education that none of the academy teachers cared if he did good or bad and that some even tried to hinder him. So he gave up in trying to show he was good and started to show only what people wanted to see the happy-go-lucky troublemaker, the idiot, the dead last.
Since the first two years were the basics of what it is being a shinobi and they learned that type of things at home, the clan's kids only entered the academy for the third and fourth years. That meant that anyone who could be smart enough to figure him out in the beginning, namely Nara Shikamaru, wasn't there so no one notice that he was hiding his abilities.
He was able to use one of his Kage Bunshin combined with the Henge to sleep in his old and stinky apartment as well as hide his figure while living and training at his parents house. Since he looked too much like his father for his safety, he took to hide it with a light Henge. However, he decided not to hide his height, making Naruto the tallest kid in his class. He was actually the smallest when he was eight, but after he found his parents house he started a proper diet, using the Henge to look like a common old villager to buy his food for the normal prices, and with all the training he was doing, he grew faster than his peers.
At some point, he started to wear an obnoxious orange jumpsuit that not only helped him training his stealth but also helped his image as an idiot.
When he first started his third year and met one of the new teachers, he felt a little guilty for not showing what he could do and also for acting like an obnoxious little brat. He could see that Umino Iruka didn't like him very much yet the man tried to treat him like he would everyone else but Naruto didn't make it easy for the scarred teacher. However, the blond knew that there would come a time that it would be helpful to be considered an idiot by everyone.
A week later, he felt guilty again but because of a different person. Uchiha Sasuke had lost his all family, everyone in his clan murdered by his own brother, Itachi. Naruto knew he could help the dark haired boy avoid the path of vengeance if he showed his true self, but he also knew that he couldn't drop the mask, not at that point in time.
He thought of Sasuke everyday and how he could help the other boy when he was able to finally drop his mask. It was that day's musings that led to startling revelation.
'Wait...' He thought, all thoughts of Sasuke's obsession with power and revenge gone. 'Sasuke is the last loyal Uchiha. So, that means that Kashi will probably be his jounin sensei or at least appear occasionally to give him advice on how to use his sharingan when he unlocks it. Since I'm the dead last and Sasuke his on his way to be the Rookie Of The Year, we will probably end up in the same team and I will finally reunite with Kashi then!'
He couldn't stop his excitement at that line of thought and it helped him steeling himself to keep up the appearances. Naruto really couldn't wait to meet his brother again.
XXX
Now, Naruto just finished his last day in the academy before the graduation exams. If he had to evaluate his own abilities, he would say that he had near perfect chakra control as well as Kage level reserves, was at middle to high jounin level in both ninjutsu, taijutsu and kenjutsu, was a fuinjutsu master and one of the best at that, his level at genjutsu was complicated to define and was elite jounin level in speed. Overall, he could say that he was at middle to high jounin level but this was only theoretical as it was without taking into account actual experience in the field which he had zero.
Of course, this was a level that he was only able to reach because of his training with massive amounts of Kage Bunshin.
Lucky for him, he also had a secret weapon. He was able to reach an understanding with the Kyuubi.
Start of flashback
One day, Naruto sat in his bed after diner meditating when an idea passed through his head and he entered in his mindscape.
"Hey!" He softly greeted the Bijuu and then continued without waiting for an answer. "I just remembered something… What is your name? Surely your name isn't Kyuubi, is it? That sounds more like a title."
The demon fox stared at the 11 years old boy stupefied, no other human had ever thought of ask that.
"Kurama." He finally informed, deciding that the blond little boy deserved to know after having the forethought to ask. "My name is Kurama."
"Kurama?" Naruto asked, testing the name and then smiled softly. "It fits you."
"Thanks Kit." The Bijuu answered softly, finally dropping any pretenses that he didn't like or at least respected the blond boy after over three years of occasional civilized conversations.
"Listen Kurama, the other day I was studying the seal that my dad used to seal you inside me." The blond informed, treading carefully hoping not to upset. "I was trying to find a way to release you, but unfortunately every single one of them would result in my death."
The demon couldn't believe the weird conversation that his jailer started and to add more weirdness to the situation, he actually found that he didn't want his freedom back if it meant that the boy had to die. However, before he could say anything, Naruto continued.
"A few years back, I would probably be able to do it." He admitted, shocking Kurama even more. "I would find a place recluse from the civilization and give you back your freedom. However, now I can't do it. I'm sorry, but I can't do that to Kashi. I fear that it would kill him to find out I died and I just can't hurt the only family I have left. I'm so sorry Kurama!"
And with that affirmation, the blond boy started to sob uncontrollably.
"Kit you have to calm down!" Kurama said softly but with urgency. "You're going to make yourself sick."
He had somehow become attached to the boy over the years without realizing and somehow it hurted him seeing Naruto in such pain and sorrow.
"Let's make a deal Kit." He continued. "When you find who has the key for the seal, you open it so you can use my chakra freely and I won't try to escape. The only condition I have is that you make sure you someday find the guy who made me attack Konoha and let me help you kill him."
Naruto stared at him, calm again, and saw that he was sincere. The blond boy just knew that the demon wasn't going to try to escape when the seal was broken.
"But why would you do that for me?" Naruto had to ask, his eyes still red from all the crying.
It was then that Kyuubi told him how he and his brothers and sisters were created and their creator's last words to them.
"And I believe you are the person Jiji was talking about." Kurama concluded. "If I'm right, I'm more than honored that I have you as my jailer."
"I'm not your jailer anymore and you're not my prisoner." The blond remarked. "From this day on, we are partners and you are Kurama, not the demon fox but the other half of the best Konoha's tag team."
Instead of answering, his new partner offered him a fist bump which was quickly accepted by a grinning Naruto.
End of flashback
Now the blond boy knew that he still had a lot to learn, but he also knew that was more than ready for his graduation.
