Chapter 2
The Kyuubi Festival is a tradition of kimono dress up carnival. Anyone attending must wear a kimono.
Darkness had subdued the Konoha skies. Moonlight glimmered as it cascaded down upon the festival. Nighttime was considered a beauty. The neon lights decorated Konoha like a Christmas tree. Temperatures dropped to low eighties like in paradise. Konoha was the first out of five great hidden shinobi village to be created after the Edo Era. Until this day, Konoha remains the first ever hidden village, superiority among the remaining and the world of shinobi. It was why Kushina's village had made a pack with Konoha through Senju Hashirama nearly a century ago. Her hidden village was perhaps the puniest among all and solitude from the rest of the world.
Konoha's streets packed with people wearing their favorite kimono. The festival does not have any rides, but various activities as the Uzumaki and the Uchiha approached a booth. Inside the booth, there was a board of balloons that was nailed down. Itachi paid the worker to obtain additional darts.
Itachi had the dart fingered properly, and gripped the dart as he had drawn his hand back. With such speed, he'd thrown the dart. Naruto had seen the balloon affront him popped. The popping sound just scared the heck out of him. He never expected the balloon to burst and make such a noise. He noticed the dart replaced the balloon's position. He had sworn he has never seen the dart left Itachi's hand. He wondered how he had done it.
"I want to try?"
Itachi had given the remaining darts to his little brother Sasuke surveyed the darts trying to find the gripping area. When he was, satisfy where to grip the dart. Sasuke had drawn his hand back. He felt a little sting in his right shoulder from the Shuriken practice in the day. He inhaled oxygen. His heart beat calmed. With enough confidence, Sasuke had thrown the dart. It missed to the right of the balloon. He tried again with another dart, but it missed upward. Sasuke tried again with two more darts that proved be too unsuccessful. Sasuke was starting to feel like shit as it reminds him of his Shuriken practice.
Itachi had grabbed Sasuke's hand before he had thrown the last dart, "Let me help you." Itachi repositioned his father's leg that got him into a bow and arrow stance. "Now take a deep breath and focus on your selective target. Think about something you hate. Visualize that hatred into the balloon," he backed away from Sasuke.
Sasuke tilted his head to look over his right shoulder. He saw a hefty grin on Naruto's face. Sasuke got the wrong notion that Naruto was teasing him. He wanted to throw this dart right into the blond toddler's face. Sasuke straightened his head focused on the balloon straight ahead. This time, Sasuke had no controlled over his breathing before he had thrown the dart into the balloon. The dart was right on target as it popped. To Sasuke, all he had seen was Naruto's face that he abhorred in the balloon's place.
"Yay!" Naruto clapped.
Mikoto had raised an eyebrow as she looked at Kushina, "I see he has your cheerfulness."
"You got that right. He is after all an Uzumaki," Kushina smiled.
Sasuke seemed baffled to why the brat was cheering for him. He turned to confront Itachi. As usual, Itachi showed no interest in Sasuke's accomplishments even during training sessions. Sasuke always wondered why his brother cannot show any appreciation or sympathy for him.
"Congratulations, what will it be?" The man pointed toward the inner left wall of the booth.
There was a large variety of stuffed dolls hanging. Most of them was chibi animals for the kids. Sasuke pointed out to the Chibi Thunderbird. The man removed the doll hanging from the wall. Sasuke receives his Chibi Thunderbird grinned at the man as he walked to his mother.
"Okaa-san, I'll let you do the choosing for me," said Itachi.
"Hmmm," Mikoto was trying to be picky. The dolphin... no... the pig... nope that will not do it either. Mikoto's eyes darted to the top roll of dolls as she finally came to a decision. "I want that penguin; it looks so adorable," she received the Chibi Penguin doll.
What the fuck. Itachi had seen the delightful sparkle in his mother's eye. Even so, his attention is now on the Uzumaki.
Kushina had paid for six additional darts as she handed them over to her son. Kushina showed her son how to grip the dart and throw it properly. Mama told him to release the dart once his hand was in full motion. Kushina stepped away from her son trying to give him space.
Naruto intake oxygen as he felt nervous about himself. In moments, he had drawn his hand back. The darts pointed end aimed high up that indicated where Naruto had his eyes. Naruto began to move his arm—when the arm was in full motion, Naruto released the dart. Naruto has done every procedure correctly but one. He had not extended his arm forwardly. Instead, he scooped his right arm like a scoop net as the dart sailed further to the left missing the balloon board. The dart passed through the man's bushy hair before plunging into the kitsune doll. Naruto felt terribly upset about himself, not for missing, but almost hit the man's head. Naruto faltered to his knee crying.
Sasuke had laughed. This made Mikoto very irate as she slapped the Chibi Penguin doll behind his head. "O-ouch!" Sasuke winced, "How very inconsiderable of you! Do you think this is FUNNY?" Sasuke had shaken his head painfully. Mama never yelled at him, until now. Mikoto and Itachi walked over and had stood Naruto up and eased him. Kushina had made an apology to the man before she hugged her son. Sasuke couldn't believe to what he was seeing. Why do they care about this brat? He's nothing more like "dobe" to me. He folded his arms displeased before kicking the dirt beneath his sandals.
"Kushina-sama, may you allow me to provide some assistance?"
"Go ahead," she grinned.
Itachi also put Naruto into a bow and arrow stance. Before Itachi backed away from Naruto, he had activated the Sharingan. A Gen-jutsu was immediately cast upon Naruto. His eyes bared the markings of the Sharingan indicated his will was under the influence of Itachi's will—this momentarily deactivated Itachi's Sharingan.
Naruto flung the dart into the balloon like a true professional. The dart had hit the dead center into the balloon on the upper level of balloons. Two seconds later, he had thrown three more darts that hit dead center into three balloons. The Sharingan marking on Naruto's iris vanished. He couldn't explain what happen to him.
Naruto felt as if something were in control of his body when he had thrown the first four darts. He looked behind at his mother to see a smiled on her face. Naruto had gotten the feeling how to motion at his arm properly when he was under the influence of the unknown force.
He calmed his breathing to ease his heart beat before he had thrown the final dart. The dart wobbled a little, but it founded its way to the balloon barely missing the balloon by two centimeters. Naruto celebrated by jumping up and down. Sasuke skin was paled white with mouth wide opened as if he has just seen a ghost. He couldn't believe the dope could hit five in a roll. However, the mothers gave Itachi an angry glare.
Kushina knew that most Gen-jutsu will never do any harmed to a person, but she still frowned to the idea Itachi manipulated Naruto. Mikoto, on the other hand, seemed much more furious with Itachi.
"You're another one!" she slapped Itachi multiple times with the Chibi Penguin doll. "He's just a little boy! How could you even think of doing that?"
"I'm sorry Okaa-san I was trying to help," he said it in a goofy way.
Mikoto sighed before walking towards Naruto. Itachi had a very hard time to restrain his laughter. His mother was so carefree that allowed him to become the Uchiha ultimate weapon, but here; her behavior was off the charts. He believed it had something to do with Kushina. He noticed that Mama's behavior was that of a commoner than a noble. Kushina was a bad influence for her, but he couldn't help to like this side of Mikoto.
Naruto made his selective choice and chose five stuffed doll. First, he felt so guilty about hitting the Chibi Kitsune doll. His second choice was a Chibi Frog, and the last three was a Chibi version of the Yondaime Hokage dressed in different ninja attired besides the Hokage's white gowned. Kushina eyes are sparkled with love as her face flushed red.
"So cute how they made him!" Kushina seized one Yondaime dolls from Naruto and flushed the doll's head to her cheek.
"Don't go making love to it in public," Mikoto teased.
Kushina jolted her body to face Mikoto, "I was rejoicing in the moment," Kushina and Mikoto smiles.
"I'll put these dolls into storage. You can play with them later... okay son."
"Yes Mommy."
Kushina had rummaged through her Kimono's pocket and pulled out a small size hand scroll. She had rolled it opened on the ground. There were multiple layers of circular black formulas written in the scroll that looked much like a target sign. She had molded chakra and weaved the following hand seals. The formula started to glow light blue as she dropped the Yondaime stuffed doll onto the scroll as it sank into the formula like quicksand. She does that with the remaining four pushie dolls. Before she could pick up the scroll, Kushina weaved another set of hand seals for the closing of the seal.
Itachi was quite intrigued to the type of fuuin Kushina has used. He has never seen Fuuin-jutsu used like this before. He knew the history of the Yondaime's Fuuin-jutsu skills was taught to him by his wife. He wondered where Kushina had learned to used Fuuin-jutsu
The Uzumaki and the Uchiha strolled away from the booth as they went further into town. Naruto noticed all the goodies and sweets in the concession stand they passed by. Naruto's mouth was widely opened drooling of hunger. Kushina noticed Naruto was hungry for sweets. Kushina chuckled as she took her son up to the cotton candy concession stand. Naruto had seen a different variety of color cotton candy to choose.
"Son, which one you like?" Naruto pointed out to the orange cotton candy.
Naruto received a white small size paper cone with the cotton candy swirled on the top. Naruto consumed his cotton candy. It melted in his mouth the exact second it touched his tongue. Naruto never tasted something this palatable before in his life. Mikoto had paid for Sasuke apple caramel on a stick. Sasuke had a prominent taste in the apple with caramel toppings. Both the toddlers grinned at one another.
"Ohhh... Mikoto. How have you been?"
Mikoto had jerked her head to the left to see who greeted her.
Mikoto had seen a dark-brown hair woman wearing a female's violet outing kimono with black flower patterns as she waved her hands smiling at Mikoto. The lady had a silver earring on the bottom of her left ear. She was traveling with her husband Nara Shikaku the Jonin Commander and leader of the Nara Clan, and her son Nara Shikamaru the same age as Naruto and Sasuke.
Shikaku wore a dark-gray tiger skin outing kimono and his son also wore a tiger skin outing kimono, but a different hue to it, which was brown.
"Yoshino! What a surprise. You look lovely tonight!"
"Same to you," she hugged Yoshino.
The Uchiha and Nara took their time to greet and meeting another. It is the first time that the two boys meet. Sasuke seems to at the Nara boy because he has that look of laziness in his eyes. Shikamaru can see that the Uchiha boy had a gloomy facial expression of 'boring'.
Shikamaru had always abhorred being bored with something.
Yoshino looked passed Mikoto to see a woman with long rosy red hair down to ankle level. Yoshino had an exhilarated ecstatic look in her eyes as she lounged herself into Kushina, embracing her. Yoshino cried blissfully trying to gather her thoughts. Kushina just rubbed Yoshino's back with a smile on her face.
"Yoshino, how are you?"
Yoshino detached herself from Kushina, "Still living strongly," she wiped the remain moisture under her eyes.
"So do I," she had glanced down on black on the toddler whom Yoshino was holding hands with,
"Who do we have here?"
"This is my son Nara Shikamaru, " Kushina crouched down to shake Shikamaru's hand. "Son, this is Uzumaki Kushina... she and I are shopping friends back in those days."
Shopping friend? Shikamaru wondered. "Um hello..." Shikamaru shakes the hand of Kushina.
"Such beauty as always," he greeted before kissing her hand.
"Shikaku I hope you have been taking great care of Yoshino."
"Blunt as always my lady."
"Is this your and Minato's boy?" Kushina nodded her head. Yoshino carries and cuddles Naruto.
"So CUTE! He looks just like Minato and handsome," she exclaimed.
Kushina broke out laughing with Mikoto.
Naruto's face flushed red when she rubs her noise against his. The heck... he's not your son; Shikamaru frowned. Yoshino quickly put Naruto down.
Shikaku reaches out to shake Naruto's hand. The guy had looked freakish dismayed by his two long, distinctive scars above the right eye and under. Naruto feels scare again until Shikaku smiles.
"Young man, I will not hurt you. I promise," Shikaku had that innocent grinned that made Naruto felt such at ease. "My name is Nara Shikaku, what's yours?"
"My name is Uzumaki Naruto," he connected his hand with the Jonin Commander.
Shikamaru stood in front of his father. He surveyed the blond toddler. Shikamaru noticed the blond boy had six whisker markings three on each cheek. He wonders if it is real or fake.
"Naruto, this is my son Nara Shikamaru. Son, this is Uzumaki Naruto."
The boys greeted on another before shaking hands. Naruto felt so convivial about meeting boys his age. Shikamaru found Naruto to be a high-spirited person and full of energy, which he thought was bogus, but not boring at the same time. The toddlers smiled upon one another.
While the Uzumaki, Uchiha, and the Nara was busy getting acquainted with one another. Konoha villagers had plotted their brutal chastise on Naruto, who is unaware of their presence. The villagers had torches, blunted weapons and knives. It is the man who Kushina previously shoved into the hay stack.
"When they're separated from the clans, several guys go after the rant. I need all of you to help me deal with that whore." The man has that sadistic predator look in his eyes.
