Well since I have nothing to do today except wait for some hiring manager to call me back about a job I figure I might as well be productive and give my fans the next chapter of Iron Shinobi. I hope this chapter is good enough to please you all and make you want to leave me nice reviews. Your reviews make my days of job hunting a little brighter and easier to bear. With that let's get on with the chapter.
Chapter 2 - Friends, Rivals, and Graduation
Uzumaki Naruto couldn't help but sigh as he headed for the Academy for his last week before graduation. 'It seems like so much has happened since I unlocked my bloodline. But, in a way it seems like time has just gone by without anyone noticing. It was only last year that Tenten-chan graduated and now here I am getting ready to do the same. It's almost surreal.' Naruto mused thoughtfully while walking into the Academy grounds.
"Hi, Naruto-kun, how was your weekend?" Ino asked him as she seemingly came out of nowhere.
"Not bad, Ino-chan, how about yours?" Naruto replied as the two ninja in training walked towards the front door.
"It was alright, I helped mom around the shop and trained with dad for awhile each day." Ino answered with a smile which Naruto returned with a grin of his own.
"Hey, dobe, fight me." Someone behind the duo demanded in an arrogant tone of voice. The two turned to find the only person that ever called Naruto a dobe, Uchiha Sasuke, standing behind them with his hands at his sides and a perpetual scowl on his face.
"Save it for Taijutsu class, Sasuke. I haven't got the time to smack you around right now." Naruto replied with a disinterested sigh while Ino giggled as the two continued towards the door.
"I wasn't giving you a choice!" Sasuke yelled before launching himself at Naruto; only to have Ino's foot smash into the side of his face and send him a few feet away.
"You heard him Sasuke. Save it for Taijutsu class." Ino said with frown as she and Naruto entered the Academy.
"Nice kick, Ino-chan." Naruto commented which made Ino smile at the compliment as the two walked down the hallway to their class.
"It was nothing, compared to our sparring sessions, Naruto-kun." Ino replied with a grin as they entered their classroom and took their usual seats beside each other. As they were waiting for their sensei to show up Naruto thought back on the first time Ino had asked him to help her get stronger.
-Flashback ~ One Week After Naruto Met Ino-
"Winner, Uchiha Sasuke." Iruka announced as Sasuke walked out of the Taijutsu ring leaving a beaten Ino laying on the ground trying not to cry at both her injuries and at being beaten so easily. The fact that Sasuke said she was nothing but a weakling wasting his time didn't help either. After Iruka helped her to the sidelines, Ino looked to her right as Naruto sat down beside her.
"Not exactly a nice guy, huh?" Naruto commented on Sasuke's behavior.
"Not at all. I can't believe I almost started liking him. I know he lost his family a few months ago, but that's no reason to treat everyone around him like trash." Ino stated with a huff before she groaned at one of her bruises hurting again.
"Very true, what he said to you was unnecessary. I'll beat him down for you later, if you want." Naruto offered with a grin which Ino returned.
"No thanks, I'd rather make it more painful for him to accept by beating him myself." Ino replied before looking Naruto directly in the eyes and asking a question. "Naruto, do you think you could help me get stronger?" she asked while still staring him directly in the eyes.
"Sure, Ino-san, it's my belief that if you want to become strong and are willing to work hard for it, strength will come naturally. Strangely enough, that's also my ancestor's views on strength. Maybe it's genetic?" Naruto explained while jokingly asking at the end causing Ino to giggle before replying.
"Thank you Naruto, I promise to work hard so I won't slow your training down." Ino stated with conviction to which Naruto grinned.
-End Flashback-
After that conversation the two trained together everyday. Whenever Ino wasn't training with her father in clan techniques or helping her mother in the store, she and Naruto could be found at a training ground sparring, exercising, or learning new techniques. It wasn't long before Tenten got involved and the groups' training ground was often littered with weapons after an intense session of sparring All in all, their group training gave them all a good deal of strength, so much so that the three began to stand out in their classes as advanced students. Tenten even graduated with the top kunoichi award for her year, just shy of taking Rookie of the Year away from Hyuuga Neji in the process. Ino had easily risen to the spot of top kunoichi in their class for the last four years running. Naruto was also close to the top of their class but his below average bookwork kept him from being at the very top. Sasuke held that position much to most of the guys' annoyance considering it gave him an excuse to be more arrogant and have a bigger ego.
"Alright class, let's all head out to the Taijutsu area and get some practice spars in before graduation this Friday." Iruka said as all the students stood up and headed out of the classroom towards the training field. Once everyone had arrived Iruka and Mizuki divided up the students and started calling out names when it was a persons turn to spar. Naruto and Ino sat next to each other and watched the matches as they were fought. The two took note of people with potential and watched their matches more closely. Some of the matches the two really focused on were Akimichi Chouji vs. Aburame Shino, Inuzuka Kiba vs. Nara Shikamaru, and Hyuuga Hinata vs. Ami.
"Alright the next two sparring will be Haruno Sakura and Yamanaka Ino." Iruka announced while Sakura walked towards the field and Ino stood up from her spot next to Naruto.
"Good luck, Ino-chan. Don't hurt her too badly." Naruto said with a grin.
"Oh, you know I won't do that." Ino responded innocently while smiling at him before heading down into the ring.
"Are you both ready?" Iruka asked from the side of the ring. When both girls nodded Iruka shouted, "Begin!", and stood back to observe the match.
"You ready to lose Ino-pig?" Sakura questioned while glaring at Ino.
"Nope, how about you Sakura?" Ino questioned as she knew Sakura had started to dislike her ever since she and Naruto had become friends.
"I won't lose, I'm fighting so Sasuke-kun will notice me." Sakura said proudly while Ino simply sighed before she shot towards Sakura and punched her in the stomach. Sakura doubled over grabbing her stomach in pain and coughing violently trying to get air back into her lungs.
"Do you surrender, Sakura?" Ino asked as she retook her fighting stance.
"No, I can't lose in front of Sasuke-kun." Sakura replied between coughs as she tried to straighten back up.
"Ok, but I asked." Ino stated before she sent a roundhouse kick and connected with the side of Sakura's head. The pink haired girl hit the ground and laid there clearly unconscious.
"Winner, Yamanaka Ino." Iruka called before having Mizuki take the girl to the nurse's office to have her injuries looked at.
"Nice match, Ino-chan." Naruto congratulated as Ino sat back down beside him.
"Thanks, Naruto-kun." Ino replied with a small blush at the compliment.
"The final match will be between Uchiha Sasuke and Uzumaki Naruto." Iruka announced as Sasuke strode into the ring with his typical arrogance. Naruto simply stood up and walked down into the ring until he was standing across from Sasuke.
"Are you both ready?" Iruka asked while the two boys simply nodded. "Begin!" Iruka called before jumping back to the edge of the ring.
"Take this, dobe!" Sasuke yelled before delivering a vicious right hook to Naruto jaw; only to pull his hand back in pain as it felt like he'd just punched a steel plate.
"Take what, Uchiha?" Naruto questioned with a raised eyebrow that infuriated Sasuke. Sasuke flew into a flurry of left-handed punches and various kicks all of which Naruto either dodged or blocked causing Sasuke further injuries and making him angrier.
"Stay still and fight me, dobe!" Sasuke roared as his punches and kicks began getting sloppier.
"Why should I? An enemy shinobi won't stand still and let you hit him, so why should I? Besides you've already lost your cool and you're getting sloppy. You'll defeat yourself at this rate." Naruto said while knocking aside another of Sasuke's kicks.
"Shut up!" Sasuke yelled before over extending his punch leaving Naruto with the perfect opportunity to counterattack. Which he did, in the form of an elbow to the back of the head that sent Sasuke sprawling.
"Winner, Uzumaki Naruto." Iruka announced as he went to check on Sasuke.
"Hey, Iruka-sensei, would it be alright if me and Ino-chan sparred before we went back inside? I didn't get much practice out of my spar with Sasuke." Naruto said while Iruka helped a disorientated Sasuke out of the ring.
"Alright, but only so Sasuke has some time to recover from that blow to the head you gave him." Iruka stated while Ino walked down to the ring.
"Ready, Ino-chan?" Naruto asked as he got into his Taijutsu stance.
"Whenever you are, Naruto-kun." Ino replied before she quickly side-stepped to the right before moving into Naruto's left side with a sidekick aimed at his midsection. Naruto blocked the kick with his forearm and sent a front kick of his own at Ino's chin. Ino leaned her head back dodging the kick before sending a straight front kick at Naruto's stomach. Naruto took the kick and grinned at Ino who simply stuck her tongue out before spinning around and aiming a roundhouse at the back of Naruto's head. Naruto leaned forward dodging the kick; only to have Ino's hand grab the back of his head and shove it into the floor of the ring. "Whose your momma?" Ino asked teasingly as she held Naruto's head down on the ring floor. Naruto's right hand clamping down on her wrist was the only warning Ino got before she was jerked off of Naruto's back and slammed onto the ring floor beside him.
"I think you mean, whose your daddy." Naruto joked as he sat on Ino's back while keeping her arm in an arm lock behind her back. Ino's response was to use her flexibility and slam a kick with the heel of her foot into the back of Naruto's head; which caused Naruto to let her arm go as he fell forward off of her.
"Not you, at least not yet." Ino answered as she got up and gave Naruto a flirtatious wink that had Naruto blush slightly at the comment as he stood up. "How about we both go full strength on this last attack Naruto-kun? We'll decide the match with our real power." Ino suggested while Naruto grinned.
"You're on, Ino-chan. But you know I have trouble controlling my full power; so I don't plan to go for any vital areas." Naruto commented as he reached for his neck where he kept thin piece of black cloth. Ino was like wise pushing up her arm warmers revealing a set of weights hidden beneath them. When Ino dropped the weights on her arms to the floor the resulting sound they caused on impact let everyone know they had to be close to twenty pounds each. But Ino wasn't done as she reached down for the two anklets she wore as well. When the first anklet hit the ring floor it made a dull thud that caused several of the other girls in the class to widen their eyes in shock. After Ino had gotten the second one off, with the same dull thud, she looked expectantly at Naruto who was still holding on to the front of his cloth neckband. Naruto, seeing the look, quickly smiled before pulling the neck band forward causing the back to separate and the band to be removed. On the inside of the black cloth, in what appeared to be white ink, were several seals that only Iruka and the newly returned Mizuki could identify.
"That's more like it, Naruto-kun." Ino stated with a smile before a huge surge of chakra exploded out of Naruto's body covering him in a dark blue aura of chakra that kicked up a breeze and scattered leaves an dust away from the teenager. The aura died down until it was only surrounding Naruto and didn't extend further than an inch from his skin before he put the cloth band in his pocket and got back into his Taijutsu stance.
"Ready, Ino-chan?" Naruto called while Ino smirked and got into her own Taijutsu stance. Both of the teens suddenly disappeared from the sight of the students, though Iruka and Mizuki were able to follow the two's movements, and suddenly reappeared at opposite ends of the ring. "Not bad, Ino-chan." Naruto commented with blood coming from his nose and his busted lip.
"Not quite good enough though, is it?" Ino asked as she moved her hands away from her left side revealing that some of the bandages she wore around her torso were torn and she had a nasty looking bruise that was a dark red and slowly turning purple. "I can see your movement but I can't react in time to stop it." she commented as she slowly stood up and turned to face Naruto who turned around to look at her.
"You're still getting better Ino-chan, you'll be able to block and counter that thrust soon enough." Naruto encouraged her while pulling out the black cloth neckband and putting it back on. As soon as the band connected in the back the aura around Naruto vanished and he walked towards Ino to help her put her weights back on.
"Um…yes, ok. Winner, Uzumaki Naruto." Iruka called out to the still shocked crowd of students who simply stared dumbly at the two teens that were walking out of the ring together. As Iruka and Mizuki started getting the students to head back to class a familiar arrogant voice made itself known.
"Dobe, what the hell was that?" Sasuke demanded as he stormed up to the two that were heading for the nurse's office to get Ino's injury looked at.
"Yeah, Naruto, what was that?" Sakura questioned from behind the Uchiha while glaring a little at Ino. Though she wouldn't say anything to her directly after seeing Ino's true strength; which also made her feel bad knowing that Ino had beaten her without much effort at all, while wearing weights.
"What was what, exactly?" Naruto questioned as he let Ino lean on him to alleviate pressure on her injury.
"That chakra, that power, tell me what that thing is!" Sasuke demanded as he pointed at Naruto's neckband.
"The chakra is mine, it's just how much I have. High chakra capacity runs in my family. As to what this is." Naruto touched his neckband. "It's a sealing object that holds back a large portion of my chakra. If I didn't have it I couldn't enjoy any of my fights because I wouldn't be able to hold back. I'd end battles too quickly and I'd never have any fun." Naruto stated with a feral grin at the end of his explanation. Both Sasuke and Sakura took a step back at Naruto's explanation and another step back when they saw his grin. "Now, if you two will excuse us, Ino-chan and I are heading for the nurse's office." Naruto stated dismissively before walking with Ino into the Academy.
-Time Skip ~ Day of Graduation-
Naruto and Ino were both patiently awaiting their turn to test for graduation from the academy. Both cursed the fact that their names were so far down the alphabet and had to wait to pass this exam they could have passed last year.
"Uzumaki Naruto, please come into the next room for your test." Iruka called from the doorway to the examination room.
"Wish me luck, Ino-chan." Naruto grinned as he made his way to the examination room.
"Good luck, Naruto-kun." Ino said with a smile as Naruto walked down the steps towards Iruka.
Once he'd entered the examination room Iruka took his seat, beside Mizuki, behind the desk covered in Konoha headbands.
"Alright Naruto, I need you to perform the Henge no jutsu (Literally; Transformation Technique)." Iruka stated as he watched Naruto with his clipboard ready.
"Sure, sensei." Naruto responded before going through the hand seals and being covered in ninja smoke. When the smoke cleared the two Chuunin were gazing at the Sandaime Hokage with his trademarked pipe hanging from the corner of his mouth.
"Very good Naruto, or should I say Sandaime-sama?" Iruka joked as Naruto dispelled his jutsu.
"Nah, Godaime-sama or Rokudaime-sama, maybe. Sandaime is already taken." Naruto replied with a chuckle.
"Alright, next up is the Kawarimi no jutsu (Literally; Replacement Technique)." Iruka told him after marking down a pass for the Henge.
"No problem, sensei." Naruto replied before replacing himself with the empty chair next to Iruka and then switching back.
"Very good, Naruto. Just one more and you pass the graduation exam." Iruka said with a smile as Naruto grinned.
"Bring it on, sensei." Naruto challenged as he prepared himself.
"I need you to perform the Bunshin no jutsu (Literally; Clone Technique). Once you do you'll pass your exam." Iruka explained as Naruto nodded.
"Here it goes." Naruto said as he finished the hand seals and was covered in a large cloud of ninja smoke. Once the smoke cleared Iruka was facing thirty copies of the black clad blonde. "Damn, I still used to much. I try for three and end up with ten times that much. That must mean I'm using ten times more chakra than I need too. I guess Ino-chan is right, I really do suck at chakra control." Naruto muttered to himself as he looked at all of his clones.
"Impressive, to say the least, Naruto. Congratulations, you graduate. Please come and pick a headband of your own." Iruka told him as Naruto came up to the table and grabbed a headband with a black cloth.
"Ino would never let me hear the end of it if I picked a headband that didn't match my shinobi attire." Naruto said while rubbing the back of his head sheepishly. The statement caused Iruka to chuckle before he ushered Naruto back into the classroom. Once Naruto had retaken his seat Iruka called out the next person to be tested.
"Yamanaka Ino, please come to the examination room for your test." Iruka called out as Ino stood up and passed Naruto on his way back to his seat.
"Wish me luck?" Ino asked Naruto with a smile.
"Good luck, Ino-chan." Naruto said with a grin before Ino headed down the rest of the steps and entered the examination room. Several minutes later and Ino emerged from the room with her new headband tied around her waist like a belt. She made her way back towards her seat next to Naruto before sitting down with a grin.
"Not nearly as hard as I thought." Ino mused while Naruto nodded in response. A few minutes later Iruka and Mizuki re-entered the room and preceded to announce the top scores for the graduating class.
"The top score in Taijutsu for the shinobi category this year belongs to Uzumaki Naruto, congratulations." Iruka announced while Naruto nodded at the information. "The top score in Taijutsu for the kunoichi category this year belongs to Yamanaka Ino, congratulations." Iruka continued as Ino smiled at Naruto who grinned back.
"The top score in Ninjutsu for the shinobi category this year belongs to Uchiha Sasuke, congratulations." Mizuki announced to the happy screams of Sasuke's fan girls. "The top score in Ninjutsu for the kunoichi category this year belongs to Yamanaka Ino, congratulations." Mizuki stated as Ino grinned at Naruto who simply stuck his tongue out at her.
"The top score in Genjutsu for the shinobi category goes to Uchiha Sasuke, congratulations." Iruka announced to even more screams of delight from the Uchiha's fan girls. "The top score in Genjutsu for the kunoichi category goes to Yamanaka Ino, congratulations." Iruka stated as Ino simply had a huge smile on her face while Naruto rolled his eyes at Ino's happy smirk in his direction. "Now, this years' Rookie of the Year goes to Uchiha Sasuke, congratulations." Iruka finished amidst screams of joy from Sasuke's fan girls.
"Damn, I thought you had it Ino-chan." Naruto said with a thoughtful expression.
"I probably would have, if I'd had better bookwork grades. He beat me in that constantly." Ino mused as she stood up after Iruka dismissed them and lead Naruto to her house to celebrate with her family and Naruto's guardian, Yachiru. After several hours of celebration with Ino's family and Yachiru; along with the families of Chouji and Shikamaru, because they were family friends, Ino and Naruto told everyone they were heading out to a training ground to have a spar before they were placed on teams the following Monday. After getting the ok from their respective parents and guardian and Inoichi threatening Naruto about how Ino had better still be a virgin when they came back. The two set off for one of the less used training grounds so that they could go all out and not disturb anybody.
"You know your dad can be really scary when he wants to be." Naruto commented as he and Ino were tree hopping to the training ground.
"Yeah, he's a bit protective of me, but he means well so I don't mind." Ino giggled out as she and Naruto landed at the training ground and started warm up exercises to loosen their muscles in preparation for the all out battle that was about to take place. Right as the two were about to drop their restraints and start the fight, they heard the sounds of someone tree hopping in their direction and both moved into the shadow of a small shack at one end of the training grounds to hide their presence. Not even a minute later their Academy sensei, Mizuki, landed in the middle of the training ground panting and out of breath.
"What's Mizuki-sensei doing way out here at this hour?" Naruto whispered to Ino who shrugged before replying.
"I don't know; but, that scroll on his back has the kanji character for 'Forbidden' on it. Something tells me he shouldn't have that, but he may be on a mission right now so the best thing we can do is confront him about it. If he's on a mission we let him be, if not we double team him and subdue him until either Jounin or ANBU arrive." Ino whispered back as Naruto grinned at the plan while Ino smirked. With that both teens leapt out into Mizuki's line of sight and stood their letting him recognize them.
"Nice evening, right Mizuki-sensei?" Naruto asked the Chuunin as Ino stood beside him.
"What're you doing way out here this time of night?" Ino asked while preparing for anything.
"Shit, I don't have time to waste with you two." Mizuki growled before taking one of the large shuriken off his back and hurling it at the two teens. Naruto smirked before knocking the shuriken away with his bare hand.
"Seems, you were right Ino-chan. Mizuki isn't suppose to have that scroll." Naruto stated as Ino nodded before pushing up her arm warmers and unhooking the weights, letting them fall to the ground with a heavy thud. Mizuki quickly threw his other large shuriken at the two teens before starting hand seals. Naruto caught the shuriken with his bare hand this time before throwing it back at Mizuki and interrupting his hand seals as the Chuunin dodged out of the way. By this time Ino had gotten off both of her anklets and was ready to go all out to stop Mizuki. Naruto nodded to Ino, who nodded back, before the two rushed the traitor and engaged him in Taijutsu that started pushing Mizuki back.
Mizuki quickly jumped back while throwing several kunai at the two teens which Naruto shielded Ino from with his Koutetsu hardened body. Mizuki landed on the other side of the clearing before devising a plan to get Ino to attack Naruto and allow himself to escape.
"Hey, Naruto, would you like to know why the villagers hate you so much?" Mizuki questioned with a sick grin on his face. Both Naruto and Ino stopped at the question and looked at Mizuki with bewilderment.
"What are you talking about? The villagers have always disliked me, that's just how it has always been." Naruto stated as he took at step forward while Ino looked on curiously, she had noticed the glares Naruto had gotten from the majority of the civilians and had always wondered why they glared at him in the first place, this may be a chance to find out.
"That's true, but the reason they hate you is because of the law that was made twelve years ago." Mizuki said with malice in his voice.
"What law?" Naruto questioned while Ino looked curious as well.
"The law that states that no one can tell you the Kyuubi no Kitsune was sealed into you the night it attacked our village! You are the fox that destroyed our home, decimated our shinobi, and killed multitudes of civilians! You're nothing but a monster! Even your little girlfriend Ino should be trying to kill you right now!" Mizuki yelled with an almost psychotic glee.
Ino gasped and looked towards Naruto worried at what this revelation might mean to him. Naruto simply stood there shocked for a moment before he started chuckling and quickly ended up full blown laughing at what Mizuki said.
"So I have a big ass fox with near limitless chakra sealed inside me, huh?" Naruto laughed as he stared at Mizuki's shocked face. "Sounds like it'd be a blast to fight! This could be the best news I've heard in a while. Now how do I repay you for letting me know that I have a potential sparring partner with me at all times?" Naruto questioned as he sharpened his fingers into small blades and his arms gained a distinct cutting edge. "I know, how about I beat you within an inch of your life?" Naruto asked with a grin as he took a step forward.
"Not unless you let me help, Naruto-kun." Ino stated as she stepped beside him causing the teen to turn towards her.
"So it doesn't matter to you that I've got a Bijuu sealed inside of me?" Naruto asked with a curious expression.
"Hell no, you're still the battle loving boy that helped me get stronger and you're my closest friend. A fox in your body doesn't mean shit to me!" Ino stated with confidence as she looked at Naruto with warm, caring eyes.
"Where do you think you're going Mizuki-teme?" Naruto questioned as he saw Mizuki preparing to sneak away with the Forbidden Scroll. Before the traitor could say anything Ino and Naruto were upon him trying to take him apart with their combined Taijutsu attacks. Mizuki blocked a kick from Ino only to have to jump back as Naruto's fingers turned blades nearly disemboweled him. This series of blocks and dodges went on for close to a minute before Ino snagged the Forbidden Scroll with her foot and tore it from Mizuki's back. Mizuki, distracted by the loss of the scroll didn't notice Naruto's bladed arm coming down until it cut into his chest through his Chuunin flak vest.
"Ahhhhh! Damn it!" Mizuki cursed as he jumped back and tried to stop the bleeding from his chest; only to go flying back towards Naruto courtesy of Ino's foot slamming into his back. The last thing Mizuki saw before he lost consciousness was Naruto's fist heading towards his face. When Naruto saw Mizuki was out like a light after getting his Koutetsu hardened fist smashed into his face he motioned Ino to bring the Forbidden Scroll over and sat against the shack. Ino soon joined him with the scroll in hand.
"Thanks, Ino, it really means a lot to me that you still want to be friends with me after what we learned tonight." Naruto breathed out as he leaned back against the shack.
"I'll stay by you forever, unless you really piss me off. Then I'll simply beat the heck out of you until I feel better." Ino stated with a satisfied grin as Naruto smiled hesitantly while vowing not to piss Ino off.
"You know, we could read this scroll and find out why it's so forbidden if we want. I wouldn't tell if you didn't." Naruto suggested with a grin which Ino quickly mirrored.
Half an hour later found Naruto and Ino, with Mizuki's unconscious body dragging behind them, at the base of the Hokage Tower where the search teams that were sent out to look for the scroll had gathered along with Sarutobi, when the old Hokage had called off the search stating that the scroll had been recovered and was being returned.
After delivering Mizuki to an all too happy Torture and Interrogation department and returning the scroll to the Hokage; the two newly minted Genin teens were sitting in front of the Hokage's desk discussing what had been revealed to them tonight with Sarutobi.
"So you're saying the fox is sealed inside me, it has no control over my actions or emotions unless I'm using its' chakra?" Naruto questioned Sarutobi.
"That's correct Naruto, the Kyuubi is kept completely separate from you by the seal. As long as you aren't actively drawing on it's chakra it has no ability to influence you." Sarutobi stated as he took a drag on his pipe and blew the tobacco smoke out through his nose.
"So Naruto is Naruto and Kyuubi is Kyuubi? Completely separate with no interaction between them, right?" Ino asked the Hokage; who nodded at her question. "Then it's fine, he's still Naruto; the battle crazy, fight loving guy I've known for years." Ino stated with a nod at her own declaration.
"If only the rest of the villagers had your mindset, young Yamanaka. Naruto may have had a much more normal childhood." Sarutobi said with a tired sigh.
"Well, I've got all the answers I needed, you ready to head home Ino-chan?" Naruto questioned as he stood up.
"Yeah, I'm good. Walk me home?" Ino asked while batting her eyelashes.
"After you, Ino-hime." Naruto joked as he bowed her out the Hokage's office door, while he held it open for her.
Once the two teens were gone Sarutobi couldn't help but crack a smile at their antics. 'Something tells me they'll be dating within the year.' He thought with a little perverted giggle before he stood up and started to make his way to his own home for the night.
-End Chapter-
So what's the verdict? Good? Bad? Let me know with your reviews. Anyway, since a few people seemed to like this I decided to be productive with my free time and get another chapter out for this story. The hiring manager I was waiting to get a call back from never called so that was just great, seriously these hiring people are assholes now days. Oh, well hopefully I'll get some good news soon. Oh, and before you ask; yes, I did purposely leave out the scene that shows what Ino and Naruto read from the scroll. I'll let it play with your imaginations for a little while before I tell you what they read. But, until my next chapter I must bid you adieu, later.