"Naruto, to the right!"
"On it."
The blonde curled as he descended in midair, swinging his arm out hurriedly to toss several shuriken toward his intended target.
They spun through the air rapidly, erupting with sparks and a loud clang as they were deflected by the sharp edge of the target's kunai.
Naruto grimaced.
"He blocked it huh…? In that case, I'll just have to do this!" the blonde snapped, landing on the floor gracefully as he formed a seal. "Kage Bunshin no Jutsu!"
In a flash several copies of the blonde burst into existence, each surrounded with a steaming plume of smoke that announced their arrival.
"You may be able to block three, but let's see how you handle an attack on all sides!" Naruto grinned.
The target said nothing, holding his kunai up defensively while scanning his immediate surroundings. Naruto had created a decent number of clones from all sides. The man smiled slightly.
He was surrounded.
"It's time for an all-out attack!" Naruto thought, his eyes gleaming as he pulled out several shuriken with both hands.
His clones did the same.
"Now, take this!" he announced, launching both arms forward to sling the weapons in front of him, directly toward the target's location just as his clones mimicked his movements.
Shuriken flew forward from all sides, closing in on the man leaving little to no time to dodge.
Again, the target smirked.
Without a single wasted movement, the man leapt upward, allowing the shuriken to clash against each other upon impact.
"It wasn't a bad plan," he thought, allowing his body to drift upward toward the ceiling, "but he could still use some work on his timing."
"Sakura, now!" the blonde hollered from below, catching the man's attention.
The pinkette nodded, appearing on the ceiling above the target, just as planned. "Hai, Naruto!"
As the target continued to drift upward, Sakura pushed off the ceiling toward him, pulling back her right first in preparation for a 100% blow.
In that instant, the target grinned. He flipped himself backward as he flew toward the woman, grabbing her arm with his own before slinging her down toward one of the many Naruto waiting below.
The pair cried out in pain as they crashed into each other, tumbling into the ground as the many clones vanished from existence.
Jiraiya chuckled as he landed back on the ground, assuming one of his many extravagant poses while gazing upon the two "youngins" that he had been training with.
"Well, there you have it!" he boasted eagerly, finishing his pose eagerly as his long, spiky hair drifted through nonexistent wind, "You're still a hundred years too early to be capable of defeating me!"
He pressed his hands to his hips and let loose a powerful laugh, listening to both Naruto and Sakura groan in annoyance as they tried to climb back to their feet.
NARUTO: Path to Kage
Chapter Two
Transferred
It had been a week since Mizuki attacked. Upon his defeat, Jiraiya had quickly summoned the "clean-up crew", as Naruto liked to call them, to handle any problems and concerns that would arise from the man's appearance.
The blonde never quite did know where they came from, or how Jiraiya managed to call them up so quickly, but in the long run he supposed it wasn't something to be overly concerned about. To be honest, Naruto suspected they were just part of some super-secret spy network his godfather ran, but again, such things drifted remarkably low on the blonde's list of things to learn.
That being said, Mizuki's appearance had made it clear just what Naruto was getting into by being the son of the Yondaime; and with his sudden determination to fill the role of Hokage, it was only natural that Jiraiya had begun training him.
He had been out of practice for quite a few years after all. Of course, despite being serious about becoming Hokage, Naruto hardly felt it fair that he had to stay up all night training when he'd rather be sleeping. He'd complained about it the first few days, but Jiraiya had soon made it clear that Naruto had a lot to catch up on.
"Man…." The blonde sighed as they left the room, both he and Sakura feeling sore and bruised, "Who would've thought that old geezer would be so hard to keep down."
"He isn't a Sannin for nothing…" Sakura spoke solemnly, trailing behind Naruto slightly as they climbed the steps, "It would be foolish of us to underestimate him."
"Right…" Naruto agreed, his mind drifting to different thoughts, "But, I have to say I'm even more surprised that we had all this down here! We've been coming down here the past few days, and I still can't believe this place existed and I never found it all the time I've lived here!"
Jiraiya chuckled from behind them, moving to explain, "When you've been a ninja for as long as I have, you get skilled at hiding things. Given that you never even thought about using chakra in all our time together, it wasn't too difficult to craft this place and hide it behind a subtle Genjutsu. Of course, there's also the requirement to knowing the passcode just to get through the door. I took many precautions to keep it hidden. Either way, Naruto, shouldn't you be moving a bit faster? It's about time for your high school to open up, isn't it?"
"…Eh?" Naruto asked.
That was right.
Even after deciding to give in to his godfather's requests and take action to become Hokage, it wasn't like Naruto could immediately drop everything else and put all his being into practicing Ninjutsu. It was the middle of the school year, and far too many questions would be raised if he were to simply drop off the face of the earth right then and there.
So he had to continue to attend Iruka's drawling lectures, no matter how much he wished he could ignore them.
"Ah, you're right. It's almost 7:00." The blonde muttered, pulling ahead of the two to run into his bedroom, "I'll be getting changed then, you two. Maybe I'll actually make it on time for once!"
The two sighed at the blonde's antics as he disappeared into his room, snapping the door shut behind him as he did so. There had been far too many close calls in the past, and he didn't want to give his perverted godfather any more ideas for those porn novels he wrote.
Luckily for him, Jiraiya had better things to do.
The white-haired Sannin smirked a bit before turning to the pink-haired kunoichi sighing beside him.
"It's about time you got ready too, isn't it Sakura?"
The pinkette smiled knowingly, before giving the older man a single nod.
She too, retreated into the guest room, entering her own bathroom to prepare for a grueling day. She had yet to tell Naruto, though she was certain he'd find out soon enough.
Surprisingly, the blonde was not the first one out, despite having had a good minutes or two longer than the girl in the bath.
No.
It was Sakura who emerged from the bath in a school uniform first, her short, bristly hair combed down to present a less confident, more approachable look. She glanced at herself in the mirror as she passed.
"Not bad." Jiraiya told her, gazing at her from behind with a lecherous grin on his face. He cupped his hands together as if looking through a camera before aiming towards her. "Hmm…" he muttered, "I'd say… a B Plus?"
Sakura frowned, closing her eyes before walking away from the mirror in a hurry.
"While I'm grateful for your comment Jiraiya-sama," she began, "I'm certain both Naruto and I would prefer it if you didn't look at women half your age. It's unbecoming of someone of your stature."
"Ah come on," the man giggled, "there's nothing wrong with having some fun every now and then is there?"
Sakura paused, her eyes steeling as if preparing to say something nasty, but she stopped upon hearing the sound of a sliding door. Quickly, the girl leapt out of sight, nowhere to be seen as Naruto stepped back into the room wearing his own uniform.
"Huh? It's just you old man? I thought I heard Sakura a moment ago too." The blonde frowned.
"Ah well," Jiraiya chuckled, "She had to step out for a bit to run a few… errands for me."
The blonde sighed, "What's the matter with you, sending her off to do that kind of stuff alone? Well, whatever. Your perverted porn magazines have nothing to do with me."
He slugged his bag over his shoulder, walking past the man on his own way out.
"I'm gonna head out now Pervy Sage, gotta get to class and all that."
Jiraiya shook his head, watching the blonde mass of hair walk down the steps and disappear into the street.
"Naruto you idiot," he chuckled, a dirty gleam in his eye, "like I'd have a girl like Sakura buy me magazines."
The girl in question dropped back down behind the man as he finished his sentence.
"I should be leaving as well, Jiraiya-sama."
"Yeah." The man murmured, running a hand through his hair while turning toward the kitchen. "Have a good day, and take care of that brat, would ya? Something tells me Mizuki won't be the only one coming after him."
Sakura nodded, "Hai."
That much was obvious.
The moment "Akatsuki" discovered their first assassin failed, they were bound to send more, and when they did, it wasn't likely to be someone on Mizuki's level who showed up. The pinkette frowned, going over such thoughts in her mind as she too left the house.
She needed to watch over Naruto after all.
-School Grounds-
Naruto yawned, walking in through the front gate along with the arriving mass of students. From afar, his good friend Sora found him out, quickly running over to lightly jab the blonde in the ribs.
"Well, well… what's the occasion? It's not like you to show up to school on time!"
"Ah…" Naruto muttered incomprehensibly, scratching his ribs lightly as he formed a response. "There's no "occasion"… I just woke up early was all." He mumbled, earning a snicker from the boy instead.
"Heh, is that right? Iruka-sensei's gonna have a fit. I don't think you've ever arrived to a class on his on time."
"Yeah, yeah," Naruto waved the boy off, "you said as much yesterday. There's no need for you to say the same thing over and over."
"Ouch. Somebody's cranky." Sora retorted, leaning in close to study the blonde's face, "What's the matter? You wake up on the wrong side of the bed or something?"
"Ah… sorry…" Naruto apologized halfheartedly, "You could say I had a rough night." He frowned.
"You stay up all night studying, is that it?" Sora asked incredulously.
"If you can call exchanging blows with a legendary ninja for eight hours studying, sure." Naruto thought with a sigh, "Yeah… something like that."
"Well," Sora smirked, patting the blonde on the back of the shoulder as they entered the class, "No worries! Since we're still a few days away from the exam you can snooze all you want!"
Naruto grinned. At least Sora had a point there.
He collapsed in his seat, taking no time to settle down in his desk and drop his head onto its smooth surface. He was just about to drift off when-
"No way, the dobe, here on time? Unbelievable!"
"Greetings Ami." Naruto drawled sarcastically, glancing at the girl from the corner of his eye. "You're looking pleasant today."
Ami Horuna, a vile girl who claimed to be the queen bee of Naruto's grade class. The blonde had once thought there might have been something fishy about her, due the suspicious similarity her last name held with the Haruno Clan. Those thoughts had soon been dashed however, upon his discovery that the girl was little more than an attention-seeking popularity whore.
"Hmph, like I'd want to be complimented by you, dobe!" she spat, tossing a hand through her asymmetrical purple hair nonchalantly. "Anyway, don't think that Iruka-sensei will give you any extra credit just for showing up to class on time for once! Besides, it won't matter in the end, I'll still be the one with the higher score come midterms!"
"Hai, Hai…" the blonde yawned, "Now then, if you're about done, I'd really like to get some sleep here-"
Ami grimaced, slamming both her hands down onto the edge of the table, "Uzumaki! Don't think I'll let you get away with trying to brush me off! Just you wait! No one looks down on me and gets away with it! I'll make you pay for-"
"Ami." Naruto spoke calmly, looking up at the girl blankly.
The Horuna reeled back in surprise, blinking down at the boy in confusion. "W-What?"
"Go away. You're interrupting my sleep."
The girl's eyes flashed viciously, and she made to slam her hands down on his desk again. "Why you, damn Uzumaki-!"
"Alright everyone, get to your seats." Iruka called as he entered the room at the front, cutting Ami short before she could go into a tirade. "We have a lot to get through today, and not much time so let's hurry up and get settled in, alright?"
Ami huffed, giving a glare at the blonde that signified they weren't done before heading off to the corner with the rest of her friends. Naruto sighed as she left.
"How annoying… why is she such a bitch?"
He dropped his head down, waiting for his name to be stated during the traditional roll call. It was quite some time before it was, considering the use of his mother's maiden name Uzumaki. He was practically the last person called on the list.
"Uzumaki, Naruto?" Iruka sighed, already raising his pen to mark the boy tardy yet again.
"Here…" the boy yawned loudly, raising his hand from the back of the class.
"N-Naruto?" the man blinked in surprise, lowering his pen in shock for a moment before gathering his wits. "You're actually here?"
"Hai. Problem sensei?" he asked tiredly.
Iruka shook his head, his eyes still wide with surprise at the blonde's presence. "N-Not at all. In fact, this makes for a rather good change of pace. Let's see if you can keep up with it." He marked through the name, ensuring the boy was listed as present on the sheet.
"Now then, before we get started with today's lecture, I'd like to introduce a new student. It may seem a bit strange to have transferees in the middle of the school year like this, so let's all be sure to give her a warm welcome to the class, alright?"
Sora grinned eagerly, subtly jabbing Naruto in the ribs again, snapping the boy from his half-dazed state.
"You hear that pal? A new student, and it's a chick! Makes you wonder if we'll finally have a chance, right?"
"What?" Naruto drawled, staring at the boy in confusion. "New student? Today?" his eyes focused, brain running full speed to try and catch up with everything that had just been said.
New student. Female. Transfer in the middle of the school year.
He frowned.
"I didn't see Sakura when I left this morning… she had been acting rather excited for the past week as well… Her initial reason for being here in the first place was to make sure I'd be protected… running errands for the Pervy Sage…." His cerulean blue orbs narrowed in suspicion. "Impossible… would they really…? Well, I guess it makes more sense to transfer someone in than transfer another out… but, this might be a bit much….!"
"Hey, pal, you listening?" Sora asked, "Iruka-sensei's about to bring her in!"
Naruto closed his eyes for a moment, steeling himself for what was to come while formulating a plan. No doubt Sakura and Jiraiya had talked this over numerous times. If she really was the person transferring in, then that meant they both would have agreed on it, meaning that there was some good to come out of this plan after all.
The blonde frowned.
That much was obvious. Not only would it allow Sakura to have eyes on him at all times, but it'd give her better foresight into his current mindset and character. She'd be able to observe him in action! But… was it really too much for them to have told him in advance? Now he didn't know how they wanted to handle this!
Would they act out their roles as they were, reunited childhood friends? Or would it be better for them to act as if they didn't know each other?
His jaw tightening in thought as the door slid open Naruto glanced up, watching as the pinkette entered the room silently, trailing behind Iruka.
She turned to face the class, catching his eyes in the process.
In that one moment, they had an unspoken conversation.
Just as Iruka opened his mouth telling the girl to introduce herself, Naruto declined his head slightly, the two of them deciding on a plan of attack.
"So, why don't you go ahead and introduce yourself to us Sakura-san?" Iruka smiled, "Likes, Dislikes, don't be shy."
The girl nodded, turning toward the class confidently before opening her mouth to speak.
"Hello," she greeted, "my name is Sakura Haruno. I like trivia games and studying medical material in my free time. My favorite foods are Umeboshi and Anmitsu, but I hate just about everything spicy I get my hands on. In the future, I hope to use my knowledge of medical studies to help heal those who find themselves injured after acting recklessly."
She exchanged glances with Naruto for a moment, but not long enough for anyone to notice. The blonde grinned sheepishly as Sakura bowed to the class.
"I know it may seem a bit strange for me to be transferring in at such a critical time of the school year, but due to the my parents' work, I find myself moving about rather often. I'll be staying with some friends of my parents for the duration of the school year, and it'll be strange having to adjust to meeting new people, so please take good care of me."
The class clapped politely, some of the boys a bit longer than the others. From the corner of the room, Ami frowned.
"Well, if you study hard I'm sure you'll be able to make your dream a reality." Iruka assured her before gesturing to the class. "Go ahead and find a seat Haruno-san, and we'll begin class."
The girl nodded at once, swiftly making her way to the back of the room toward a seat behind Naruto. His eyes narrowed as she passed him without saying a word; just as planned. At least it would have been, if he hadn't felt the weight of a paper note falling into his hands.
He glanced at it subtly. For a ninja like him, there was no risk of being caught.
'Are you sure this is what you want?'
He smiled lightly, shaking his head in bemusement. It was just like Sakura to be worried about him. He grabbed a pen, scribbling back a quick response as he felt her climb down into the seat behind him.
'Yeah. Don't worry about it.'
He heard a soft sigh from behind him. It seemed she didn't care for his decision all that much. He could understand her reasons. She had been away from him for half her life, and now he was effectively asking her to do the same thing yet again. It was bound to stress her out.
But they would be spending nearly all their time together at home as it was. He didn't want her to feel suffocated, especially not when she had yet to have to the civilian high school experience. He smiled to himself dryly, before setting his head down to get some sleep.
-Several Hours Later-
"Hey, new girl!" Ami's voice rang through the room at the end of Iruka's lecture, rousing Naruto from his exquisite nap, "Why don't you come sit with us?"
Sakura's head tilted toward them curiously, giving them a soft nod for a moment after another glance at the blonde mop of hair sitting in front of her.
"Alright." She agreed, standing from her seat and making her way over to the girls quietly.
She sat in the only open seat available, in the middle of the three most annoying girls in the school.
Ami, Kasumi, and Fuki.
The members of Iruka's class liked to call them the triad, in part due to their cruel and vicious nature with those they deemed "uncool". What many found humorous about the situation however was the fact that they themselves were not "all that". Most of their antics failed to garner any decent attention from the "in" crowd, and though Ami had attempted to join their clique on many occasion, she often found herself greeted with the same treatment she liked to give others.
Sora frowned as he watched Sakura descend into a conversation with the three, and he glanced toward Naruto worriedly.
"Ah man… and there she goes. If Ami's the one trying to get her claws in, there's no way either of us will have a chance with her." He sighed.
"Speak for yourself." Naruto muttered, knowing full well that Sakura wouldn't fall for any of the girl's lures and tricks.
Besides, knowing Ami, she'd likely just waste all her time badmouthing some poor soul who'd had the misfortune of crossing her.
"…and so I said, "Like I'd want to be complimented by you, dobe!" and everyone started laughing." Ami squawked, "It was so amazing, you should have seen his face. He was like, so heartbroken!"
"I… see." Sakura muttered, listening to the conversation with a bored gleam in her eyes.
Honestly, she could have cared less what the purple-haired girl had to say. The only reason she was even there in the first place was because Naruto had decided it'd be better to act as if they didn't know each other for the time being. She didn't know why he bothered. Couldn't he see that the only thing worth going through all this trouble for was him? Certainly, she wanted to see what high school life was like; but she wanted to experience it with him, not with a group of muttering harpies who couldn't tell a kunai from a kitchen knife if it skewered them across the face! The pinkette sighed, blowing a stray strand of hair out her face as she turned her attention back to the conversation unfolding in front of her.
"…and then Iruka-sensei came in and broke us up." Ami smirked, folding her arms haughtily, "So, what about you Haruno? You got any good tales from where you're from? Where was that again…?"
"Ah… Tonika Village." Sakura murmured, giving the name of a town just outside Konoha's boundaries. "It's a small place, not much to do."
"I bet." Kasumi muttered from beside her, "That's right by Fire Country isn't it? I've heard of it. It's a famous tourist attraction because of that giant hole located around it, right?"
"Hm…? She knows her geography." Sakura thought, giving her a firm nod, "That's right. Researchers still haven't decided whether it was manmade or not."
"Ah, well I could care less about that!" Ami broke in, not comfortable delving into conversations she didn't know a lot about. "I'm more interested in finding out why you sat where you did. There were a whole bunch of seats available you know? Don't tell me…" Ami's eyes narrowed with a smirk, "You plan on chatting up the dobe?"
Sakura blinked, "Dobe?" "There's that term again…"
"Right, right. You're still new so you don't know." Fuki broke in, leaning close to whisper quietly, as if everyone couldn't hear. "You see, that guy you sit behind is Naruto Uzumaki. He's a real troublemaker that one."
"Huh?" Sakura blinked in surprise, "Really?"
"Tell me about it." Ami sighed, throwing her hand through her hair in annoyance, "He's always holding up lectures with that tardiness of his, and then he still has the nerve to walk in and act like he owns the place! He's really just a pain in the ass with no friends, I'd bet that even that frustrating Sora is only nice because he pities the brat!"
There was a loud cracking noise, and the three girls turned towards Sakura.
"Hm? You feeling alright Haruno?"
"A-Ah…" the pinkette smiled sweetly. Far too sweetly. "Y-Yes… I'm feeling just fine. So, you were saying?"
"Oh, right!" Ami grinned, eager to get back to bashing her favorite target, "He spends most of his time running around with some kid who is a few grades beneath us… what was his name again Fuki?"
"Hibari? No… Inari? I think?" the girl shrugged, "I wouldn't remember."
"Mm… Well, anyway, the point is he's such a bum, it's hard to believe he's still got the number three spot in the class," Ami huffed, "Obviously he must be cheating somehow. There's no way he can come in here and sleep all the time and still get all A's on the exams! That sort of thing just doesn't happen! And he spends all his time hanging out with little kids… it's so pathetic!"
A second loud crack. Again, the three girls glanced back at Sakura.
"Are… Are you sure you're feeling alright?" Kasumi repeated Ami's earlier question, glancing at the girl with concern, "You're not some kind of sick girl with some weird disease are you?" she asked, rearing back as if fearful from getting germs.
Sakura continued to smile sweetly, her face the epitome of happiness. "No, I'm fine, I assure you. And I'm not sick or anything like that."
"Anyway," Ami butt in once Sakura had again affirmed her healthiness, "the point is nothing good will come from hanging around that guy. Now that you understand, you should change seats while you still can and move over to sit by us!"
She clapped her hand down on Sakura's shoulder.
"Ah, I see. That would be the best thing to do wouldn't it?" Sakura asked sweetly, tilting her head kindly at the girl's touch.
"Yeah," Ami grinned, glad to see that she had finally broken through to someone.
"As if!" Sakura shrieked suddenly, drawing the entire class's attention.
Naruto looked up in surprise, his eyes going wide as he glanced at the scene in front of him.
"Don't look down on Naruto, SHANNARO!"
-PtK-
The boy and girl walked down the street in silence, neither quite sure what they should say to the other. After a moment, they looked at each other awkwardly for several seconds before glancing back at the road ahead.
"So…" Naruto began.
"So…" Sakura repeated.
Another brief moment of awkward silence broke in… until finally-
"I can't believe you punched her."
"She was badmouthing you," Sakura shrugged, "I wasn't just going to sit there and do nothing."
"Still though," Naruto muttered, "you punched her… in the face."
Another brief silence.
"What did it… what did it feel like?" the blonde asked in wonder, glancing at the pinkette in awe.
Sakura frowned, holding up her right fist curiously and gazing at it, as if remembering the sensation.
"Squishy."
"Like… Like ramen?" Naruto asked curiously.
Sakura sighed, rubbing her brow calmly before answering her friend. "What is it with you and-? No Naruto, not like ramen. It was soft, and wet… like a sponge." She smiled slightly, "And you should have seen the look on her face after I did it! She was looking up at me with these big, teary eyes… like she was a kicked puppy or something."
Naruto laughed a bit, scratching his cheek in thought. "That… sounds like Ami."
Sakura smiled, dropping her hands back in front of her as she continued to walk beside the blonde. "So… I guess this means there's no need to hold back anymore, right?"
"Guess not." Naruto sighed.
With Sakura's having punched Ami for being rude, Naruto's strategy had been rendered all but moot. If it hadn't been him she had been standing up for, there would still have been a chance to salvage it but now…
"Yeah, you pretty much ruined everything with that punch of yours." The blonde smiled wryly, "You'll be able to act like my childhood friend as much as you want now."
"Good. I didn't care for that idea of yours all that much to begin with you know." Sakura muttered, giving Naruto a halfhearted glare, "Why would you even think about telling me to act like I don't know you? That'd be counterproductive to my mission. With this, I'll be able to keep you close at all times, Naruto."
The blonde sighed. "That was the point, Sakura. With us not knowing each other, there'd be no reason for us to interact in school. You'd be able to have some space. Since you'd be spending the rest of your day with me, I thought you'd like having a few hours where you could sit back and enjoy yourself without having to worry about me, you know?"
Sakura frowned, and stopped walking.
It took Naruto several steps to realize the girl was no longer trailing behind him, and he turned back, glancing at her worriedly.
"Sakura…?"
"What if I don't want space?" Sakura asked quietly.
Naruto blinked in confusion, "Huh?"
"Why would I want space?" Sakura questioned, approaching the boy with a steady frown plastered on her face, "I've… I've been separated from you for seven long years, Naruto." She stopped just in front of him, placing a hand on his cheek and smiling at him sadly. "Why would I want space from you, when it's only been a week since I've started to get to know you again…?"
"Sakura…" the blonde frowned.
"I've thought about you a lot you know… whether or not you loathed me for all this time. That's why, I was glad when I found out you didn't hate me. And even after all this time you were still just like I remembered…"
Naruto looked back at Sakura in surprise, a light blush crossing over his features as he listened to her speak.
Sakura allowed her words to trail off for a moment, closing her eyes and making as if to remove her hand, only to stop at the last moment and grab the blonde's cheek roughly.
"Which made me wonder… what all this nonsense was about being the class dobe. Dead Last, Bum? Your classmates sure do have some interesting nicknames for you, Naruto…" she grumbled darkly.
The blonde winced in pain as his face was pulled forward a few inches, Sakura pulling and pinching on his cheek with a deadpan look on her face.
"O-Ow… Hey, Sakura, cut it out already!" he hissed, freeing himself from the girl's grasp to rub on his bruising cheek soothingly. "What's the matter with you? What's this about?"
"That's what I'd like to know." Sakura replied in the same deadpan manner, setting her hands on her hips roughly. "What's all this about you being late all the time, Naruto…? I know better than to believe that girl's lies about cheating, as we dealt with harder material than this back when we were children… but… running late is definitely something I can see you doing."
"Oh come on… don't you have any faith in me?" Naruto tried weakly, turning away from the pinkette only to feel her dirty glare piercing through him from behind.
He hid the overwhelming urge he had to shiver.
"Well…" he admitted, "I… may have gotten into the habit of going to classes a few minutes late…"
"Man," the girl sighed, frowning as she caught back up with the blonde, "and here I thought you actually might have matured a little. Naruto… it's not good to show up to classes late. What will your teachers think?"
"Well, you saw it was." Naruto shrugged, "I'm sure you must've been listening in when Iruka-sensei took roll. It's a habit."
"One you inherited from that perverted Jiraiya no doubt." Sakura muttered, letting loose a disappointed sigh before allowing a small smile to cross her face. "You really haven't changed, Naruto."
The blonde glanced at her curiously, tucking his hands behind his head relaxingly for a few moments before grinning back at her.
"You haven't changed either, Sakura-chan."
And in that moment, Naruto found himself skewered by several kunai.
Sakura's eyes went wide, leaping backward as several kunai landed where she was less than a second ago as well.
"Naruto-!" the pinkette started to shout, only to cut off when she realized what had happened.
The blonde's body vanished as it fell to the floor, leaving nothing behind but the pierced remnants of a brutalized, well-shaped log.
"Substitution Jutsu!" Sakura thought, swiveling around as she grabbed a single kunai from her side pocket. "In that case… there!"
She launched it forward into a shaded tree, watching as a shaded silhouette leapt away into another pair of shadows.
The girl grimaced.
"They're running away? Then-!"
"Sakura, behind you!" Naruto's voice shouted out, catching her off guard.
Quickly she spun around, her eyes widening in surprise as a pair of gleaming chains sped toward her.
"Ngh!" Naruto grunted, appearing in front of her and knocking them away with his own kunai.
He was once again in his ninja gear.
"Be careful…" he warned, "There's two of them."
Sakura nodded solemnly, releasing the Henge technique that disguised her true clothing. In an instant the red shirt and light shorts she was wearing disappeared, making way for the kunoichi outfit she had prepared after arriving.
"Ho…" one of the voices belonging to their assailants murmured from above, "Looks like they may have some skill after all. I guess that report about Mizuki being defeated wasn't an entire lie."
"What should we do brother?" the second voice muttered, "Rip them to pieces, tear them to shreds?"
"I wonder…."
Naruto grimaced, pushing his back beside Sakura's as they scanned the area. "Damn! I can hear them… but where are they? The sounds coming from all around us!"
"Naruto," Sakura began, earning a firm nod from the blonde at her back.
"I know!" He hissed, glancing all around him.
"Where are they? Left, Right, Above?!"
Nothing but clear sky.
His eyes widened.
"-! Sakura!"
"Hai!"
They leapt upward in separate directions, and not a moment too soon.
From beneath them the earth broke, a gas-mask wearing shinobi erupting upward and swiping toward them with a steel gauntlet clad across his right hand.
"Nrgh…" the man grimaced as he fell back to the ground below, unable to hit either of them, "So you found me out."
"It would seem they do have some talent, brother." The second voice added, a similar looking shinobi emerging from the forests and moving to stand by the former, "Our efforts won't be wasted after all."
Sakura grimaced, stretching her glove in a preparative fashion before falling back into a ready position.
"Who are you two?! What do you want?!"
"Oh…?" the first shinobi asked, turning around to face the woman, "Of course, how rude of us to forget. We are Gozu and Meizu, the Demon Brothers of the Kirigakure Clan… or at least we were, until we took the Red Cloud's invitation to eliminate the Hokage apparent."
"Red Cloud?!" Naruto thought, readying his kunai for battle, "Akatsuki! So you two worked with Mizuki!"
"Hmph, don't compare us to that wimp." The second brother, Meizu, grimaced. "We are far more powerful than he is, and we'll demonstrate that now."
The two brothers turned, both facing one of their opponents before they began demonstrating an identical hand seal.
That of the tiger.
"Ninja Art:" they spoke in unison, "Hidden Mist Jutsu!"
The sound could be heard of them exhaling, and in seconds the air had condensed rapidly, wrapping the area in a thick, cloud-like fog.
"Crap!" Naruto grimaced, "We won't be able to see them at this rate!"
The sound of a weapon slinging toward him broke Naruto's thought, and he raised his kunai to defend himself just in time.
Meizu's masked face appeared from the mist, his eyes giving off the impression that he was grimacing at the boy beneath that gas-mask of his.
His gauntlet clattered against the edge of Naruto's steel nosily.
"Ngn, so it's you isn't it… Naruto Namikaze." Meizu grunted, attempting to weigh down on the boy with force.
Naruto grunted back at the man, slowly reaching for the hilt of his ninjato with his free hand.
"You Akatsuki peons seem rather focused on me," the blonde muttered, "What? Did dropping that friend of yours off the roof of a building leave an impression on the top brass?"
He felt his hand tighten around the blade, and he quickly swung it sideways, only for Meizu to leap back into the fog away from him.
The assassin chuckled.
"Not at all. Being the flesh and blood son of the Yondaime may have its perks, but it only means you'll be targeted that more often. It's too bad. You might've managed to live a bit longer, if you hadn't come across us."
Naruto's eyes went wide as he felt the man's presence appear behind him. He spun on his heel, his teeth clenching in frustration as he swung his blade in a swift arc, feeling its steel clatter against the man's gauntlet a second time.
"Tch… big words…" the blonde scowled, pressing his own feet inward to not give up any ground, "but can you back them up?"
On the other side of the street, Sakura was dealing with her own problems.
She ducked downward, allowing Gozu's claw to drift above her before leaping backward, only to feel her body crash against the walls signifying the street's edge. She scowled.
"Nowhere left to run, girl." The assassin mused, his eyes flashing dangerously as he drove his claw forward in a piercing motion.
Again the pinkette scowled, dropping her body to the ground in a hurry before sweeping her left leg out toward the man. Gozu leapt upward to avoid the sudden motion.
"They clouded the area to make things easier for them, but they certainly aren't unskilled." Sakura thought, "Even so… if I can land just a single hit…"
Yes. Sakura's chakra-enhanced fighting style may provide slow attacks, but it made up for it with its destructive power. A single sharpened hit from the pinkette would be more than enough to destroy the floor of a building, and that was if she wasn't trying. If he slipped up, Gozu knew he'd be in for a world of hurt.
He sped upward toward the branch of a nearby tree, flinging himself up and around it before shooting back down toward the girl's location.
The sound of rushing wind whizzed around him.
"This is it for you, girl!" he thought, raising his gauntlet victoriously for a piercing blow.
Sakura's eyes flashed at the exposed killing intent, and she flourished into motion, moving her body to the side and allowing the steel claw to breeze past her location. Before Gozu could adjust himself for a second attack however, she grabbed his extended arm, swinging him over her before slamming him down into the earth below.
"Don't look down on me, CHA!" the girl thought violently, a small crater erupting upon the man's contact with the earth.
His mouth open wide with pain, several drops of blood flying from his lips as he felt several of his bones shatter upon impact. He laid beneath her, his eyes trembling in fear as she cracked her knuckles angrily.
"And now, for the finishing blow." Sakura muttered, rearing back her fist.
"SHANNARO!" she howled, slinging it downward in a mad display of strength and power.
As he felt the girl's fist make contact with her face, Gozu's world with black.
Naruto and Meizu both leapt apart upon hearing a small rumble erupt several meters away from them. The blonde grinned.
"Heh, sounds like Sakura-chan's dealing with that brother of yours just fine."
"Hmph, that may be so," Meizu agreed, "but it doesn't matter as long as I'm able to eliminate the target!"
He rushed forward, his eyes gleaming angrily as he began swiping at Naruto like a mad man.
"Che, what's that…? You're not even worried about your comrade?" the blonde questioned, dodging and leaping back through the blows skillfully.
As much as he hated to admit it, Jiraiya's daily training regimen had been useful in helping him avoid attacks.
"If Gozu was too weak to handle the target, then there was no point for him to be here." Meizu explained arrogantly, "And if he cost us the mission, he'll only find himself dead anyway!"
Naruto scowled, blocking another swipe of Meizu's claw before kicking his right leg down toward the man's gut.
"That kind of thinking… it's so backwards!"
Meizu coughed, falling back slightly as Naruto's foot made contact. He stumbled around for a moment, regaining himself before thrusting himself forward once more.
"Shut up!" the man snapped, "I don't need to hear the opinion of a dead man!"
Naruto's eyes gleamed dangerously as he leapt back.
"Someone like you," he stated confidently, landing and forming the cross seal, "will never be able to kill me! Kage Bunshin no Jutsu!"
Amongst the already thick fog the plumes of smoke were not even visible as hundreds of Naruto clones popped into being, all staring at Meizu with a single intention:
To squash him like a bug.
In his defense, Meizu did manage to hold off several of the clones for some time, a testament to his experience and training as a shinobi.
However, compared to the weight of the odds stacked against him, it was inevitable that the man fell eventually.
A horde of Naruto clones punched and kicked at him like an angry swarm, colliding with him blow for blow as he began to tire.
Sakura watched the scene from afar, her own battle having long been concluded. She was ready to jump in at a moment's notice of course, but she doubted Naruto would need the help.
The conclusion had come.
One of the Naruto clones finally managed to land a solid blow on Mizuki, launching him backward with a well-placed punch to the face.
It took next to no time for the clones to jump in on the action, swarming beneath him as he fell and kicking him upward to prevent his escape.
Meizu grunted in pain at the actions, his body soaring upward beyond his control as his eyes squinted open.
Above him, a single Naruto appeared, spiraling down toward him with an extended leg.
He scowled beneath his mask. It couldn't be…
The blonde's leg crashed down on Meizu's face, cutting any comment or retort he could think up short. Blood flew from his lips as he was sent crashing back down into the earth, his face slamming against the cold concrete delivering that much more damage to his being.
He didn't move.
"It's over!" Naruto decided, landing in front of his defeated opponent firmly and sweeping his arm to the side, "Don't underestimate the Uzumaki Barrage!"
There was no response, as was expected, but with no one left to maintain the technique, the unnaturally thick fog faded, returning to the sunny demeanor the area had prior to the Demon Brother's appearance.
"Stronger than Mizuki they said…" Sakura sighed, dragging the limp body of Gozu behind her and dropping it beside Meizu, "hardly. So, what do you think we should do with them, Naruto?"
The blonde sighed, running a hand through his golden locks as he frowned at the two curiously.
"We'll have that Pervy Sage deal with them… Doesn't he have people who deal with things like this?"
"Hmhmhm… indeed I do." The lecherous old man murmured, appearing behind the pair as if he were there the whole time.
"E-Eh?!" Naruto gawked, backpedaling away from the man before pointing at him accusingly, "P-Pervy Sage! When did you get here?!"
"I was here all along of course." Jiraiya mused, rubbing his chin in deep thought while glancing at the Demon Brothers, "I was willing to step in if it looked like you needed assistance but… it doesn't look like that was the case, was it?"
"Tch… I should've known." The blonde frowned, folding his arms impatiently, "There's no way you'd let someone get so close to the house without keeping an eye on them."
"But Jiraiya-sama," Sakura broke in, "If they showed up this close then doesn't that mean they know where we live? Shouldn't we take precautions?"
"Yeah, probably." Jiraiya nodded, "We know Naruto was being targeted, but I didn't expect them to send someone new to get the job done so quickly… It looks like we'll have to step up your training, Naruto. Well, at least it looks like you've got the basics down."
Naruto clenched his teeth, "Of course I did! Stuff like that is child's play! But… for a second there I was worried that that Hidden Mist Jutsu might be a problem…"
Jiraiya chuckled, "You need more training if you thought something like that would be a problem. But, even if it was, I doubt your cute little friend here would let anything happen to you, right Sakura?"
The girl's face flushed for several seconds, before closing her eyes and regaining her composure.
"Of course not," she answered, "I would have been able to protect Naruto at a moment's notice."
The Sannin just grinned in reply, heaving the two brothers over each of his shoulders before turning to leave.
"Well then, there you have it. I'll need to go deal with these two so…" he glanced back at them, "go on and head home, unless…" he tilted his head, "you two were planning to go on a date…?"
Naruto's eye twitched as Sakura blushed lightly, and the two of them turned to punch Jiraiya in the face.
""Shut up, you Perverted Sage!""
-Elsewhere-
"So… Meizu and Gozu were defeated."
"Hai, it appears the Namikaze is stronger than we anticipated."
"Heh."
The sound of a large sword smashing into the ground echoed through the room, and a pair of burning brown eyes pierced through the darkness.
"Interesting. Perhaps it wasn't a waste of my time to come out here after all. Fine. I'll let you have fun with this little plan of yours. But…" the eyes narrowed, "Don't disappoint me, Haku."
Before the pair of eyes, a kneeling figure rose, giving a soft nod of the head.
"Hai, Zabuza-sama."
-Chapter Two-
END