Chapter 2: Learning the ways of the Leaf! Someone to adopt Nendora?
Hiruzen POV:
It was 6 AM as the clock read, and I was already inside my office doing paperwork. I had a lot to do that day, so I thought it would be a great idea to start early.
It had been almost 3 days since the S-ranked rogue ninja Deidara had sent us a letter telling us about his little brother, and how he wanted us to make sure that he was safe, so he gave him to us to make him a ninja of the Hidden Leaf. He also told us something about his "art" and how we would have to limit his usage on it. I figured it must be something that the two of them knew, but not something we would. I started to do some of the paperwork, when I heard a knock on my office door
"Come in." I said loud enough for them to hear. The door opened and one of my ANBU had walked in. He was wearing a dog mask and he was standing straight
"Lord Hokage, it's urgent news. A giant bird-like creature made out of clay had just flown into the village with a sleeping child. It had a pouch and a scope inside of it, but we haven't confiscated it just yet. We found another pouch on the child and inside it was similar to the clay that the bird was made of, so we aren't sure what they did to make it." The ANBU member explained calmly.
"Very well, bring him into the room and give him something to lay his head on." I replied in a relaxed manner. This child must have been Deidara's little brother, and he wanted to treat him with hospitality. Even if the kid tried to attack the Leaf Village, he was still a child and could be taken care of easily. For now, we were going to interact peacefully.
The ANBU member simply nodded and was gone in a flash, probably to either do what was instructed, or to inform the other ANBU that helped investigate what was going on.
I put my pencil down and got out of my chair. I took off my hat and went and got my pipe. I took in a big huff and let it out, releasing a cloud of smoke. It was going to be a long day, I could tell.
Nendora POV:
I opened my eyes and immediately jerked up, breathing hard. I put my hand on my chest, and tried to calm myself. The last thing I remember was being with Deidara. Two people showed up with black cloaks and...oh, God! I should be in the leaf village!
I looked around finally and saw a man who was well past his prime, smiling at me patiently in a chair.
"Good morning, young one. How are you feeling?" His voice was so calming and nice; it was practically begging for me to go to it. I got up and sat down with my legs crossing.
"I'm doing good, I guess. Who are you, un?" I asked which he then chuckled slightly. "I'm the Third Hokage, Hiruzen Sarutobi." my eyes bulged out when he said that. He was a Hokage?! Not that I believe he is lying but...I'm confused just slightly.
"No need for you to be in a state of worry. I have your brother's note right here." Hiruzen told me as I looked at the paper he had. "Do you want to read it?" He asked which I nodded quickly. He handed me the paper and I began reading it as hastily.
'Dear Leaf Village,
I am going to be sending my little brother, Nendora over to become a shinobi here. I do not feel like I can protect him any longer, and if he were near me it could be dangerous. I want you to make sure he is taken care of, and I want you to try and find someone for him to live with, or even adopt him. He won't have to take their last name if he doesn't want to, but I just want to make sure he is given the best treatment. I picked the Leaf Village because I felt like I could trust you the most with my brother, and I don't want to see him hurt.
Also, I want you to give my brother this so I can help him better himself. Nendora, I want you to know that our art is something that needs to be put on a limiter for now. Until you become a Genin, I will not allow you to use anything too dangerous; I want to make sure you don't cause any damage to the village on accident. The Hokage will decide what is too dangerous for you to use since I don't have much time to think about it. I also want you to be safe, but also to make good friends. I know that you will do good here, because I just feel it in my heart. I want you to always remember art is fleeting and that you should never let go of your beliefs; ever.
Little brother, I love you with all of my heart, and I want you to become a great shinobi who shows our art to the world alongside me. I know that being without me will be tough, but I know you will be okay on your own. I hope we can stay in contact, but I'm not sure how it will work. Remember this always: You and I will meet again. That's what I promised you.
I'll see you again one day, Nendora.
Deidara'
When I finished reading, tears began to swell in my eyes. He had been looking out for me, and he made sure I would be looked out for even when we are split apart. I felt like crying when a hand suddenly touched my shoulder. I looked over and saw the Hokage smiling at me.
"It will be alright, young one. I want you to know that I will treat you like I treat everyone else in this village, no matter what. You may be an outsider, but that will change with time." he said as he walked back over to his chair. I walked to his desk and he then sat down and looked at me.
"If it's okay, would you mind answering a few questions?" Hokage asked and I nodded.
"Alright. What is your 'art' and what does it do?" He asked me which I showed him my hands. The hand mouths appeared and he simply nodded.
"This is what helps me make my art, yah." I explained as I then went over to my pouch. I put my hand into the pouch and allowed it to start chewing on clay. It took about 10 seconds for it to be ready, and my hand mouth spat it out, revealing a small bird that had the power of N1.
I threw it into the air and let it expand, making it the size of a regular bird. The Hokage looked intrigued by it and started watching it with amazed looks.
"Incredible. Your art is so refined; you put chakra into it to make it like this, correct?" He asked which I nodded.
"Of course, but after I put my chakra it has the ability to move on it's own and it can be given orders by me mentally, un." I explained as he nodded his head, taking all of the information in.
"Does it do anything else?" Hokage asked as I smirked.
"Watch this, un." I said as I had it grab the pen off of his desk, and it flew into the air. "Art is fleeting; a single moment it is here and gone in the next...that is what art truly is. Art...is an explosion! Katsu!" I said as I did the Seal of Confrontation, which made it blow up, sending the pen it held straight at the Hokage. I smirked, but then my eyes widened when I saw he was holding it with his fingers and smiled.
"Interesting...your art can explode and that is what makes it fleeting. I find this very impressive, especially for a kid who isn't even old enough to be a Genin." the Hokage stated which made Nendora's smirk return. All of a sudden, three ANBU members appeared into the room in less than a second.
"Lord Hokage, we heard an explosion! Is everything alr-"
"It is alright, you three. Nothing to worry about. Go back to where you were guarding." Hiruzen said as the three ANBU nodded, and vanished back to their posts
"Now, back where we were. Can you tell me what that was specifically?"
"That was my personal creation; N1. It has little to no explosive power, but it is mainly used as a force that pushes things away from where it was."
"In that case, what else do you know?" He asked while I then explained C1 and C2. He looked at me with complete interest in what I was saying, making me like him more and more.
"I understand now. C1 is the weaker of the two and it explodes causing damage, while C2 can cause more damage than the other one." Hokage asked while I nodded happily.
"Yes, Lord Hokage. Those are the only ones I can use so far, but I plan on making more of my own "N" style, yah." I said which he nodded in understanding.
"Well, your brother said I would have to decide your limitations. I think I know what we will do." he said which made me look up.
"You can only use your N1 whenever you want, but don't use it for anything dangerous. You can only use C1 whenever you are training on a dummy or a log by yourself or with someone you and I both can trust; and lastly, your C2 technique. That will be unable to be used until you become a Genin, and even then your Jounin Sensei must allow it for you to use it. Understand?" Hokage explained as I nodded.
"Yes, Lord Hokage!" I said which made him happy.
"Good. Now, here is what will we do. You are a little bit older than 8 right?" he asked which I nodded.
"That means you will be able to go into the Academy this year, if you go into it when other children usually do, and graduate in 4 years after that. So in 4 years you will become a Genin, understand?" He asked which I nodded. (A lot of people nodding in this chapter.)
"Alright, the next order of business is to find you someone who will adopt you." the Hokage said as I just remembered that part.
"How will I decide on who I want to adopt me?" I asked as he just chuckled.
"Simple, I will allow you to go around the village with one of my ANBU so you can be watched over, and make sure you learn the village as well." the Hokage said as my face lit up.
"You mean I get to meet new people?" I said excited.
"Yes, young one. Did you not get to meet new people where you were from?" he asked which I quickly shook my head.
"I lived away from the village, so I lived with my big brother alone. I haven't met that many people ever since then" I said which Hiruzen looked at Nendora with a small smile
"I see, in that case, go and try to make new friends, as well." Hiruzen said as a knock on the door was heard. "Come in." He said as the door opened, revealing the ANBU who came in earlier that day.
"Good morning, Lord Hokage. Is the new kid doing well?" the dog masked ANBU asked, which the Hokage nodded with a smile.
"Yes, and you are just the man I was wanting to see. I was just finished telling Nendora about how he should go around and meet new people and potentially a person to adopt him, and you could be the person who watched over him while he went around the village. You can say no if you want to, but do you want to do the job?" the ANBU nodded to the Hokage's request.
"Very well. Nendora, you are to go around the village with him being your escort. He will obviously be in a transformation jutsu, but it will be to keep his presence less known. The villagers wouldn't see it as normal with an ANBU walking around with a person your age." he said as I nodded.
"Alright, off you two go." Hiruzen said as we both walked out, the ANBU giving a slight bow and vanishing out the doorway, while Nendora simply gave a smirk and ran out the door.
'I believe that by the end of the day, I know who Nendora will be adopted by.' Hiruzen thought with a smile. He looked at the clock and saw that over an hour had been used with Nendora talking to him and everything else that happened. He sighed slightly and got to his paperwork.
"So, kid, what do you want to do first?" the ANBU, who transformed himself into looking like a regular villager, asked Nendora.
"I really would like to know the place first, and then look for kids my age to be my friend. After that we can try to find someone to adopt me." I responded which he nodded to.
"Alright then, let me give you a tour." then he started walking, holding Nendora's hand as they walked. He gave me a quick tour of the village, showing me everything I would need to know immediately, including some nice places to eat. I heard there was a place called Ichiraku Ramen, but I'm not so sure if it's good.
"If you don't know about the place, then why do you think it's bad?"
"I don't think it's bad or good. I don't know until I've tried it, un!" I said, which got the ANBU to chuckle.
"Alright then, how about we try it later?"
"That sounds like a great idea, yah!" I said as I pumped my fist into the air.
"Now let's hurry and find me a f- huh?" I stopped what I was saying and saw a kid with bright-yellow hair running in our direction, a big smirk plastered on his face and he was looking behind him looking for someone.
"Who's that?" I wondered when I realized the kid was running directly at me! He had his head turned, so he ran directly into me.
"Oww! That hurt!" the blonde said as he looked up and saw who he ran into. "Oh, uh...gotta go!" the kid said as he took off.
I barely got up in time to see the kid turn the corner. I went to put my hand into my pouch, when the ANBU grabbed my hand and sent me a smile.
"How about we not try to blow someone up over something he didn't mean to do?" The ANBU said as I then sighed.
"Alright. Who was that kid anyway, un?" I asked which the ANBU then looked at me, stopped smiling for a second, and then responded.
"His name is Naruto Uzumaki." he said in a tone that said he didn't care much about how he acted.
"Alright then...anyway, I think we should have breakfast. Is there any place that is calm and quiet?" I asked which he nodded.
"There is a small café that also serves dango. If you want, we could go over and-" he was cut off by me jumping in joy.
"I love dango! My brother always made the best dango, and he picked up the talent because he liked it, too! Lead the way, yah!" I said which got the man to chuckle again.
"Alright then, this way." He said which I followed with a giant smile on my face.
We got there in about 5 minutes, and when we sat down, I noticed there was two people playing Shogi, my favorite strategy game. I saw that one of the kids was about my age, and he had black hair in a spiked up ponytail. he had brown eyes, and his father looked very similar to him. When we sat down, I noticed they just finished, and the kid looked a little flustered.
"Hey, would it be okay if I were to go and play with that kid?" I asked as he looked over and saw who I was talking about. His eyes widened a fraction, and immediately tried to make me not.
"Are you sure it's a good idea? That kid is from the Nara clan, and all of them have intellect that is unrivaled in Konoha. Are you sure you want to play him?" He asked as I nodded. He sighed in defeat and just smiled. "If that's the case, then what type of dango do you want?" the ANBU asked me, which I immediately responded with "I don't care, as long as it is spicy, un." I said as I walked off to the two.
"This is such a drag. I can't beat you, dad." the boy said as his father chuckled. "What's so funny?" the same boy asked with annoyance in his tone.
"Nothing. Just I think we have someone else you can play against." the father Nara said as he pointed to me.
"Hello, my name is Nendora. Would you two mind if I were to play Shogi? I've always loved the game." I said which slightly stunned both of them. They hardly knew of people my age who loved Shogi.
"My name is Shikaku, and this is my son Shikamaru. If you truly want to, you could play a game with us." He said as I nodded.
"Troublesome. Dad, how do we know she is any good?" Shikamaru said which made my eye twitch.
"I am a BOY." I said through gritted teeth, shocking Shikamaru.
"You shouldn't run your mouth assuming things, son. Otherwise things like this will happen." Shikuaku scolded Shikamaru, making him slightly annoyed.
"In that case, you can't ignore a challenge from me. Otherwise that would be rude, considering you called me a girl, yah." I said which Shikamaru sighed in defeat.
"Fine, let's play." Shikamaru said as we reset the board. "Now, you know how the pieces work, right?" I nodded in response. "Alright, I won't hold back then." He said as he began by moving his pawn that was in front of his king.
25 minutes later
This had to have been the most intense Shogi match I have ever had. I placed my bishop in front of his bishop, ending the game.
"You...beat me." Shikamaru said. From the way he said it, it sounded like it was something that shouldn't have been possible. Shikamaru and Shikaku both had faces of shock, but Shikaku's also held respect.
"You must be a pretty good Shogi player if you were capable of beating Shikamaru. He may have lost to me, but he hasn't lost to anyone else. In fact, I don't think I've heard of a kid beating a Nara their age." Shikaku said analytically, making the smirk on my face bigger.
"That must mean I must be pretty smart or tactical, then. That was a fun game, yah!" I said as I held my hand out for him to shake. He smirked and accepted my hand.
"That was a pretty good game. I can't wait for us to play again." Shikamaru said.
"Wait, again?" I responded in return.
"Well, duh. That's what friends do, right?"
"You consider me a friend?"
"Of course. Anyone who I feel comfortable around, plays Shogi, or both are considered my friend to some degree. Like I said, I hope we can be good friends." Shikamaru said.
"Alright then, un. I'll see you around, Shikamaru!" I said as I walked back to my table, the ANBU member smiling at me.
"That was a good game you had, Nendora." The man said to me handing me my spicy dango.
"Of course it was. I consider it a way to think strategically on a battlefield. Otherwise my clay wouldn't be as effective, un." I said as I took a bite into the dango. It was spicy, but delicious. Just like I wanted.
"So, ANBU guy, is it okay if I ask for your name?" I asked abruptly, making him almost choke on his food.
"W-why do you want to know, kid?" The ANBU asked me right away.
"I just kind of felt weird that I was calling you ANBU; plus I can tell you don't always love it, y'know?" I said, which made him clear his throat.
"Unfortunately, I'm not allowed to give you my name just yet." he said, which got a small pout from me.
"Alright...so what now?" I said, finishing my dango.
"Well, we are now going to go look for some people who might be up to adopting you." The ANBU said as I just nodded.
"Let's get going." The ANBU said as I nodded and we continued on our 'mission'.
Later
It has been hours and yet nobody has wanted to adopt me. We've asked ninjas of multiple ranks and several other people who the ANBU said were kind and they declined it almost instantly! The sun was about to set so I'd say it was around 7-8 p.m. and it was still a fruitless search. We finally decided to eat some dinner at Ichiraku Ramen. I was skeptic at first, but then it immediately was washed away.
"This is amazing, un! This is a really delicious bowl of ramen!" I complemented, as Teuchi just started laughing and rubbing the back of his head.
"It's not much, but I did put my effort into it. Hope you enjoy your meals, you two!" the man said as we continued to dig in.
"It's a shame nobody wanted to even attempt to adopt me. I don't think there's anything that bad about me, un!" I said as I dug into my ramen a bit more.
"Well, it might have something to do with you having to show your hand mouths to everyone. Not everyone thinks that looks good." the ANBU said as he also began eating.
"Mrfrfrfff-" I tried to say, but had a full mouth.
"You should use manners, Nendora." he said in a teasing manner. I swallowed hard, and gasped slightly for air.
"As I tried to say, I don't want them to find out after adopting me; that would be a rude thing to do, un." I said as he just chuckled.
"Alright, if you say so." he shrugged. I was about to say something back, when a certain kid sat on a stool.
"Hey, could you make me a Miso Ramen with extra pork, please?" the kid asked as Teuchi nodded. I noticed the kid and my eyes widened a fraction. It was the kid that bumped into me! Naruto was his name, I think.
"It's on the house kid." he said as he handed him a bowl. The kid began eating haphazardly, looking like he was about to swallow the whole bowl.
"Manners, please. You have someone sitting right next to you." Teuchi said as he pointed to the stool to the Naruto's right. He looked and his eyes almost bulged out of his head.
"MMMF!" Naruto tried to say something, but he had such a full mouth, he almost choked on his ramen. He swallowed even harder than I did, gasped for air, and then pointed a finger at me.
"You're that girl from earlier I ran into!" Naruto yelled as an anger tick appeared on me.
"I. AM. A. GUY! UN!" I roared, shocking Naruto.
"Really?! I'm sorry!" he responded, bowing multiple times.
"It's okay. At least you didn't make fun of my art."
"What art?" Naruto asked.
"Duh, my art! My art is fleeting, that of a single moment! In fact, it is so amazing it remains in the memory of those who see it!" I said as I put my chopsticks down, grabbing a bit of clay and made a small N1 bird.
"Look, my art is really incredible, yah?" I said as Naruto looked at it excitedly.
"Wow! It looks so cool! So, can it do anything else?"
"It can also explode." I said which got Naruto's attention.
"You should show me how it works!" Naruto said as I then decided to look at Mr. I won't tell you my name and saw he had finished his ramen, leaving his chopsticks out.
"Watch this." I said as I had my clay bird grab the chopsticks and had it fly and grab the ANBU's chopsticks.
"Katsu!" I said as the explosion sent the chopsticks flying into the ground, one broke while the other went into the ground halfway.
"Whoa! You're art is amazing!" Naruto said as I chuckled.
"Nice to know a friend enjoys my art, un!" I said which made him stop and look at me.
"You want to be friends? That easily?" Naruto asked me with a face that said he was surprised, but also prepared for that to be a joke.
"Of course. Anyone who compliments my art is one of my best friends, yah!" I said which made his eyes grow with happiness.
"That's amazing to hear. My name is Naruto Uzumaki, what's yours?" He asked me as I smiled at him. Not my smirk, but a warm smile.
"The name is Nendora, un." I said and we bumped our fists.
"By the way, those hands on your mouth look amazing!" Naruto said which made me smile.
"You really think so? I love them, too." I said which made him put on that same cheeky smile he had earlier.
We both finished our ramen and said our goodbyes. Me and my ANBU friend then began our walk back to Lord Hokage's office.
"Say, ANBU, I have a question." I said and he looked at me slightly confused.
"What is it, Nendora?"
"I really felt like I should say this now...but thank you so much for helping me out today." I said and the ANBU might not have shown it, but his eyes flickered up a bit.
"..What?"
"I wanted to say thank you for helping me out today. I don't think I would have been able to do anything or make the friends I made today, so thank you so much sir!" I said, bowing deeply. Nendora didn't notice, but a tear started to form in the ANBU's eye, but he quickly cleared it without it being seen.
"You're...You're very welcome, Nendora." he said, smiling warmly at the kid in front of him.
They finished talking and wound up back in the Hokage's office soon after.
"So, I'm guessing that nobody wanted to adopt you, young one?" Hiruzen said as they both nodded, the ANBU member releasing the Transformation Jutsu.
"That took a bit of effort to keep that transformation on that long.." the ANBU said as he shook off his fatigue.
"So, I guess we will have to try to find someone to adopt him tomorrow. You may bo-"
"Hold on." the ANBU interrupted.
"What is it?" Hiruzen asked, already knowing what he was about to say.
"I would like to personally adopt Nendora, Lord Hokage." the ANBU said, shocking Nendora.
"I felt so joyful today...I haven't felt this happy in years." he said, reminding him of when he was his age. Even then, he didn't feel as happy as this day made him feel.
"I understand. Very well, I need both of you to sign this." The Hokage said as they both signed their names. Nendora went last, and he saw his name. Nendora smirked at it, but then remembered that he had to hurry and give it back.
"Thank you, both of you. And it appears Nendora signed to have him take your last name. You should be very pleased with this news. Now, off you go. You should take him back to your house, so he now has somewhere to live." the ANBU nodded at this. He grabbed Nendora's hand, and walked off with him.
While they walked away, Hiruzen smiled happily, because he knew how this day would end. 'Let's see if this will make you happy...Kakashi Hatake.' he thought inwardly as he finished the last of the paperwork
"So, how do you feel, Nendora?" the ANBU, now in his regular attire, asked his new son-in-law.
"I feel pretty good, Kakashi. How about you?" I asked the ninja, who just got out something called "Make-Out Paradise" or something like that. He says I'm not allowed to read it yet. Weird how I'm not allowed to; I'm a very intelligent person, if I do say so myself.
"Alright, here we are." Kakashi said, getting us to his...err...our house. It was a modest one, and seemed to be a very tidy house, too.
"I have a guest room, so you can make that your bedroom if you'd like." Kakashi explained, and I nodded. We opened the door...only for a shadow to jump at Kakashi!
"Oh, no! Why now of all times?!" Kakashi cried in anguish as the figure revealed itself...I was shocked when I saw that the figure had a bowl haircut, a green suit, and caterpillars for eyebrows.
"KAKASHI! IT'S TIME FOR ANOTHER CHALLENGE! THIS TIME I'LL WIN!" The figure bellowed, making my hands go into my clay pouches. I then saw the look at the person, and saw they were a leaf ninja. I took my hand out and let out a sigh.
"What do you want, Gai? It's late, and I need to help him get to sleep." Kakashi said as he had a bored expression and a dull look in his eyes...or eye, if you want to be specific. He has his headband covering the eye and a mask covering his face.
"Get who to sl-!" Gai freaked when he saw me. "Who are you, young one?" Gai asked nicely.
"I am Nendora. Kakashi is trying to get us to bed."
"But why would he bring you to his house?" Gai wondered aloud.
"Because I adopted him." Kakashi said, shocking Gai.
"No way! You adopted someone?! This is great! My eternal rival has gotten an amazing child! So youthful! The Flames of Youth burn on even in his child, we shall hope!" Gai yelled out, leaving only one thing in Nendora's mind...
'This guy must have had a stick lit by the flames of youth shoved up his rear to make him act like this...'
"So, since you have him with you, I guess I will leave for now." Gai said, flashing away, to come back with a small note. "And take this, Nendora. Something tells me you might like what it says" Gai said showing off a winning smiling, his teeth sending off a weird shine.
I took a look at the note, and it said only two sentences.
'I really am interested in why Kakashi would adopt you, so I would like to see personally why you are interesting him. Meet me at Training Ground 4 tomorrow, and be prepared to do some exercises!' the note read, ending with a small drawing of Gai giving a thumbs up.
"I'll be off now, eternal rival. Until our paths cross again!" Gai said as he vanished into thin air.
"Anyway...let's get into the house." Kakashi said as he put his book up.
"Yes, Kakashi." Nendora said as he walked into the house after him.
'I wasn't so sure about the Leaf Village being a good place for me...but now I know that I will love my time here.' I mentally thought as I walked out and into the house, closing the door behind me.
And that's the chapter! This was roughly 5,500 words without the Author's Notes! I also have an announcement to make.
I have thought about this, and my schedule has way too many fanfiction stories in it for me to update at a fast rate, so I'm doing this. I'm going to have one of them leave the schedule, meaning that it will be updated whenever I want. That one is this fanfiction, since I feel like this one will be my best one yet!
I also would like to say that this one will be one with long chapters. I will try my hardest to have each chapter be at least 5000 words, and some chapters may be over 10,000 if I really wanted to.
Kakashi is the ANBU who adopted Nendora? Bet you didn't see that one coming! I will have lots of fun writing this story, so I hope you have fun reading this!
For this Fanfiction, much like my Seven Deadly Sins Fanfiction, I will put a question of the chapter after each chapter. Here is this chapter's question!
If you could be any Naruto character, who would you be and why? Please respond by reviewing or by private message!
Have a good day/night, an awesome week, and as always: stay positive!
