Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto, Masashi Kishimoto owns it. However, I do own some characters.
Chapter 3: The Training Begins
Hiruzen Sarutobi, the Third Hokage is currently sitting at his desk in his office finishing some paperwork. When he finally finished it, there was a knock at the door. Hiruzen looked up and said, "Come in!"
The door opened and Katori, Rin, and Kakashi entered.
"Ah! Katori-sama, Rin, you have returned," Hiruzen said with a surprised, but happy look on his face.
"Yes. We been here for a few weeks already, but I now decide to let our presence be known," Katori said with a nod.
Hiruzen nodded and noticed Kakashi with them.
"And I see that Kakashi's with you," Hiruzen said and turned his eyes to Kakashi.
"Yes, well he's the other reason I wanted our presence be known. He interrupted our training session with Naruto, Sasuke, and Hinata. I reunited him with one of his 'dead' teammate. We then left Kushina, Shisui, and Hanako to help train Naruto, Sasuke, and Hinata," Katori explained as he stared at Kakashi then back to Hiruzen.
Hiruzen's face then became serious, "So, Naruto knows about his parents and his heritage?"
Katori nodded, "Yes. It was bound to happen eventually, Hiruzen. He took it better than I expected. Hinata overheard us and now also knows about his heritage and promised to keep it a secret along with Naruto. Sasuke learned about it after he was reunited with Mikoto and promised to keep it a secret."
"Naruto and Hinata will make a great couple in the future," Katori said with a chuckle. Everyone in the room chuckled at the thought of that.
Hiruzen who calmed his laughter said with a smile, "…Yes they would, but only time will tell. Although I was hoping to tell Naruto about his heritage when he was older and strong enough to defend himself, but what happen happened. I'm glad he took it well, but I'm also surprised that little Hinata knows about his heritage."
Katori nodded in agreement, "I understand Hiruzen, but I felt that he needed to know. Besides, I will be training the boy along with Jiraiya, but he will need all the help he can later. In addition, when the time comes, I will help teach Naruto how to control the Nine-Tails' chakra with Kushina's help. He not ready yet. I will also help train Hinata to be stronger, so she can be more self-confident and grow closer to Naruto, along with her training with the Byakugan and shinobi arts. I will also have a little chat with Hiashi about him training his oldest daughter. Hanako already knows about it, so I know she will set him straight."
"I see… Very well then, I leave Naruto, Sasuke, and Hinata in you capable hands. Now, I sense that you have something else to tell me, correct Katori-sama?" Hiruzen said and his face became serious again.
Katori nodded and said, "Yes Hiruzen. It regards to them…"
Hiruzen nodded and said, "Kakashi…"
Kakashi looked at Hiruzen, "Yes?"
"You can't tell anyone about anything that was said in this room. This is an S-rank secret. Only Katori-sama and I alone can speak about this to anyone else. You understand?"
"Yes Hokage-sama," Kakashi replied with a nod.
Hiruzen nodded then turned back to Katori.
"So, I understand that you are personally training Naruto, Sasuke, and Hinata?"
Katori nodded, "Yes Hiruzen."
"How well are they coming along?"
Katori sighed before he said, "Well… Hinata is about average. She can do all the basics pretty well. Although, she lacks self-confidence, but I am sure Naruto and I can get her out of her shell. Sasuke is a genius of his own right and there is not much I can help him with right now. The only problem is his quest to get revenge on Itachi and 'Madara' for killed his parents and his clan. Nevertheless, my main concern is Naruto. He does okay with the Body Replacement Technique and Transformation Technique, but he has trouble with the Clone Technique. Like me, he has an incredible amount of chakra and the Clone Technique uses a very low amount of chakra and good control. I can use the Clone Technique to some extent, but I prefer the Shadow Clone Technique and Multiple Shadow Clone Technique. Since Kushina and I know that technique, we'll teach Naruto the Multiple Shadow Clone Technique since he can't do the normal Clone Technique by normal means."
Kakashi turned to Katori with concern on his face and asked, "Are you sure you can teach him that technique, Katori-sama? I can understand the Shadow Clone Technique since it is a B-rank technique, but why the Multiple Shadow Clone Technique? It is an A-rank technique and a forbidden skill. Not to mention, it uses up a large amount of chakra. I can use it to some extent but are you sure he can use it?"
Katori turned to Kakashi and nodded with a smile.
"Oh, he can Kakashi, he can. If I can use it, then so can he. He is just like me. Do not forget he has the Nine-Tails inside of him and I have the Ten-Tails. With its chakra, I can make a one-man army if I want to with little to no side effects. So, I believe without a doubt Naruto can pull off the Multiple Shadow Clone Technique."
Kakashi could only nod, "If you say so…"
Katori turned back to Hiruzen and continued, "Currently, they are all working on their Chakra Control. Right now, they are learning tree climbing. After they master that, they will learn water walking. When they finish that, they other ways of Chakra Control. We will help them with their studies. Naruto is smart, but he learns differently than the other students. I am sure Kushina and I can help him with that. The others and I will return to Third Training Ground to teach Naruto and Sasuke the Shadow Clone Technique and if possible, Hinata but I will not teach her and Sasuke the Multiple Shadow Clone Technique just yet. They no doubt don't have enough chakra yet and won't be able to handle the strain of using it."
"I agree," Hiruzen nodded, "Very well then. Dismissed, please keep me informed of their development. And I'll try to keep Hiashi off your back."
"Understand, Hokage-sama. When I'm done with them, they may get you a few surprises."
Both of them laughed before Hiruzen asked with curiosity, "Oh, I've been meaning to ask. How is that daughter or yours and Kushina's?"
This caught the interest of Kakashi who asked with surprise, "You had a child with Kushina, Katori-sama?"
Katori chuckled nervously, scratching the back of his head, "Yeah, well, I didn't really intend to marry her at first, but you know how stubborn she is. She eventually convinced me otherwise. You see, after the Nine-Tails Attack, I've been blaming himself for not seeing it coming and tried to prevent it. Not only that, Minato died because of it. It reminded me of all my past failures and promises I couldn't keep, even to my little sister. Kushina confronted me about it and I told her how I felt. She told me that I couldn't have know, that it was because of me that she is still alive, and that I shouldn't blame myself for what happened. She reminded me that Minato made his choice in doing the sealing himself because he was Naruto's father. I then remembered Minato making me promise that if anyone happened to him, I would take care of her and Naruto. I promised, but at the time, I didn't think anything could kill him so easily. It's only after the attack that I realized how wrong I was."
Everyone in the room listened intently as he continued, "Six months later, she asked me out on a date after an S-rank mission. I was reluctant at first, but you know how she is. And despite me telling her how old I was, I wasn't right for her because I would out live her, and Minato was her husband, she didn't back down. She told me that Minato is dead and that she's moved on from that. She also said that throughout her entire live in Konoha, I've always looked out for her and watched over her, so she couldn't think of anyone better to spend the rest of her live with. (Sigh) That stubborn woman, I wonder if this is what Minato had to put up with everyday in his youth. I pity the poor man."
The whole room burst out laughing at that. They all know how stubborn and hardheaded Kushina can be sometimes.
"But still, she has some likeable qualities. Anyway, I then told her about my past after which she comforted me and proclaimed she was going to fill that hole in my heart. I can never forget how happy she made me that day. After two years of dating, I proposed to her which happily accepted. A few months later, we got married. A month later, Kushina found out she was pregnant again. I've never seen Kushina so happy since the time she learned she was pregnant with Naruto. Ah, it was so the happiest moment of my life as well. Now I know how happy Minato and Kushina were about having Naruto. Then nine months later, our daughter was born. We decided to name her Mito Uzumaki after Hashirama's wife. I'm sure if Mito-nēsan was still alive, she would be happy that we named our daughter after her. We told Mito and her bodyguards to meet us at Yakiniku Q. Well, we best get back to the others. I wonder how Naruto going to feel about me being his father-in-law and himself being an older brother."
With that, Katori and the others turned and left through the door. Hiruzen sighed and then smirked, 'Things are about to get interesting around here.'
His smirk then faded at the thought of villagers. I hope they do not try doing anything foolish around Kushina and Katori-sama. They are both are very protective of Naruto. Not to mention, those two combined can destroy half the village, or if maybe, the entire village if provoked or rubbed in the wrong way, Hiruzen cringed at the thought of it.
(Third Training Ground)
Kushina, Shisui, and Hanako had moved deeper into the training ground so not to be disturbed again and are now starting Naruto, Sasuke, and Hinata's training.
"So, now the training begins!" Shisui said with a happy tone.
"Yes sir!" Naruto yelled out.
"So…before that, let me explain chakra power for a ninja, from the basics," Shisui says holding up his index finger.
Sasuke closes his eyes and said, "At this point…"
"Of course we know about that dattebayo! Chatora, right?" Naruto says with a smile.
Shisui sighs and corrects him, "It's chakra…"
Naruto sweat-drops and looks embarrassed.
"Yes, Kushina-san…?" Shisui asked handing lecher over to Kushina.
Kushina puts her hands and her hips and asked, "Are you listening, Naruto? I'll explain it simply so you can understand!"
"Chakra is energy that a ninja needs when he uses a technique! It is made of two energies: 1) Physical energy gathered together from every cell in the body and 2) Spiritual energy accumulated based on numerous trainings and experiences! In other words, a technique wrings out and combines these two energies from within the body, and this is called 'combining the chakra.' Then chakra is activated by forming hand 'seals.'"
"Wow! That's exactly right!" Shisui said in astonishment, "You would make a good teacher at the Academy, Kushina-san."
Kushina smiles with a blush and said while scratching the back of her head sheepishly, "Oh, stop it Shisui! You're making me blush ttebane!"
"Whatever! I may not understand difficult explanations dattebayo, but I'll just learn it with my body!" Naruto exclaimed.
Sasuke closed his eyes and replied, "Naruto is absolutely right… We're already able to use techniques…"
"No! All of you still haven't used chakra efficiently." Shisui said correcting them while crossing his arms.
Sasuke was surprised by this and Naruto yelled with shock, "What!"
Shisui sighed and said, "Hold on and listen… As Kushina-san explained earlier, combining chakra means picking up both the physical and spiritual energies and mixing them together within the body. In addition, of course the amount of energy, the preparation of the energy, changes based on the technique you want to activate… None of you at present is using chakra efficiently! Even if you are able to combine a lot of chakra, if you are not able to control, it in a balance way the effectiveness of the technique not only will cut in half but it may not activated at all. Wasting energy will prevent you from battling for long periods. These are some of the weaknesses that can occur."
"W-What should we do…?" Naruto asked and scratched the back of his head sheepishly and laughed in embarrassment.
"You need to learn to control the chakra with your body! It is difficult training that requires you to put your life on the line to master!" Shisui said with a serious look then closed his eyes.
Naruto stared at him puzzled look, Sasuke stared at him with a neutral look, and Hinata stared at him with a concerned look.
"W-What will we do?" Hinata asked staring at their Sensei.
Shisui opened his eyes then held his index finger up, "Hm? Tree Climbing…"
"Tree Climbing?" they asked looking up at the trees.
Shisui then smiled while Kushina and Hanako giggled and raised a finger, "That's right. However, it is not just simple tree climbing! You will climb without using your hands."
"What? How?" Naruto asked, as he looked skeptical, Hinata looked confused, and Sasuke looked surprised.
"Well! Just watched. You'll see what I mean," Shisui then made the "Ram" hand sign and gathered some chakra at the bottom of his feet, which blow back some dirt near his feet. He then walked over to a tree and placed a foot on the tree, which immediately stuck to the tree, surprising Naruto, Sasuke, and Hinata.
They all stared at Shisui as he started walking up the tree as if it was easy while Kushina, Shisui, and Hanako just smirked.
Sasuke just watched with interest.
"He's climbing…" Naruto said stunned.
"Perpendicular to the tree and with his feet!" Hinata finish in astonishment.
Shisui then walked upside-down on a branch and stopped; hanging upside-down with chakra, "So see, kind of like this… Focus the chakra on the bottoms of your feet and make them stick to the tree truck. If you use chakra well, you can do things like this."
Shisui then smiles at them and chuckles.
"Wait a minute, sensei! How does something like this make us stronger?" Naruto yelled.
"So this is the main point… The aim of this training is to accumulate the required amount of chakra to the required spot. This is surprisingly difficult even for a jōnin-level ninja. The amount of chakra used for tree climbing is very subtle. In addition, the bottoms of your feet are the most difficult place to gather chakra. In other words, if you can master that control it is possible to master any technique. In theory, that is! The second aim is to maintain that chakra. Ninja combine the most chakra during battles. Under such situations, 'control' and 'maintenance' of chakra becomes most difficult. Now with that said, it time for you two to give it a try," Shisui explained.
Shisui then pulls out three kunai and throws them at their feet. Naruto, Sasuke, and Hinata stare down at the kunai, confused, "Use the kunai to put a mark at the spot where you can climb up to under your own strength now. Next, make an effort to put a mark further from it. You are not good enough to walk up from the start, so run, and use your momentum to get used to it… You understand?"
"Yes sensei!" They replied as they retrieved the kunai.
Shisui smiled, "Good, now try climbing any tree."
Ok, so first I need to gather the chakra on the bottoms of my feet… Naruto thought as he, Sasuke, and Hinata made the "Ram" hand sign and gathered some chakra at the bottoms of their feet, which blow back some dirt near their feet.
Naruto then yelled, "Ready! Here I go!"
He, Sasuke, and Hinata ran towards the closest tree. Naruto only got up two steps on the tree before falling backward and landing on his head, which caused him to groan in pain and hold his head while rolling side-to-side. Sasuke ran a few steps up the tree until his foot pushed too much chakra onto the tree and the bark moved away from his foot. He then slashed the tree, flipped backwards, and landed on the ground.
He then looks back up and glares at the spot he marked, I didn't think it'd be this difficult to maintain a constant amount of chakra… If the chakra is too strong you get pushed back…
He then turned to Naruto who rolled side-to-side holding his head in pain with tears rolling down his face, But if the chakra is too weak, there's no sticking power and that happens.
Shisui sighed and thought. Well… The difference between Naruto and Sasuke sadly seems about right.
"This is pretty easy!"
Everyone looked up to see Hinata near the top of the tree.
"H-Hinata!" Naruto
"N-Naruto-kun, are you okay? You look to have hit your head pretty hard," she called down felling very concerned.
Naruto got up and looked up at Hinata, "Yeah, I am all right, but look at you! Wow! You can go that high, Hinata?"
Hinata giggled and said with a cute smile, "Y-Yeah, I'm pretty good… at Chakra Control. It's not that hard."
"Well well, it looks like the one with the best Chakra Control is Hinata!" Shisui said with interest causing Hinata to blush.
"Wow! Way a go, Hinata! You are amazing! Just what you'd expect from someone I like who's from the Hyūga clan!" Naruto cheered, while mentally, he was little disappointed. 'But, it does sort of tick me off a little.'
Hinata blushed cutely from his statement and squirmed with excitement. Naruto is noticing me! Naruto is finally noticing me!
Sasuke looked away with a slightly pissed off look, "Whatever!"
She then notices this and felt a little dejected.
"Don't worry Naruto-kun, Sasuke-kun! I am… I am sure you will get the hang of it! You just need… some more practice!" She said in hopes of encouraging them.
Naruto then looks up at Hinata surprised, and grins widely.
"Right! I will keep doing it until I get to the top! I will not let this stop me! I will be Hokage someday dattebayo!" Naruto exclaimed proudly, throwing his fist into the air.
Sasuke turns and looks at him for a moment and smirks before looking forward. Hinata smiled affectionately, and giggled as she sat there on the branch showing the scene down below.
Kushina, Shisui, and Hanako smile genuinely, chucked while thinking. Well, he has his father's looks, but has Kushina-san's/my personality. He has a good heart and a strong will, just like the Fourth/Minato.
(Outside the Hokage Mansion)
Katori, Rin, and Kakashi were making their way to the entrance to the gate surrounding the Mansion.
Katori turned to Kakashi and asked. "So Kakashi, what are you going to do now?"
Kakashi sighed then turned and answered. "Well, I'm thinking of doing some reading. I'll meet you guys later."
Katori nodded and said, "Alright, see you later Kakashi. And remember; don't tell anyone that Shisui, Rin, Hanako, and Mikoto are alive until the Hokage approves of it, okay?"
Kakashi nodded and he and the others go their separate ways.
(Third Training Ground)
"Ohhhhh…" Naruto yelled as he tried to run up the tree to stop a few feet up the tree and fall on his head. He then held his head bring his knees up to his head shaking in pain and cried out, "Ou-ch!"
Sasuke was standing on one knee viewing his progress, worn out and exhausted.
Hinata was flat on her back and resting her head on the truck of a tree, exhausted as well. She turns her head to Naruto and Sasuke thinking. I am totally worn out! How much stamina does those two have? I'm able to keep up with them, but they're still going at it.
Naruto, who rubbed the pained away from the bump on his head, looked up the tree truck he is climbing on to see his progress. Sadly, he is barely making any progress at all.
Hinata sighed sadly and sat up. Oh Naruto-kun. He is not getting any better at all. He will soon get up and start throwing a tantrum.
Right on cue, he stood up, staring at the marks he made on the tree, and yells stomping his left foot, "Damn it!"
Hinata smiled and giggled. I knew it! Sometimes, it is cute and funny when he does that.
Then, Naruto walks over to Hinata and squats down to eye level. Hinata stared at him with a confused look on her face.
"Hey Hinata, can you give me some tips?" Naruto asked cupping a hand on the side of his face.
"Huh?" She asked shocked.
Naruto then said, "Without telling Sasuke, okay, okay?"
Sasuke watched this with interest. He was surprised that Naruto would ask someone for advice. This catches everyone else's attention as well. They all then smile happily at the two.
He is getting stronger and stronger… How strong will he get…? At any rate Naruto, the amount of your dormant chakra is probably more than Hinata or Sasuke's chakra. In addition, it is even more than mine is! I look forward to it… I really do, Shisui thought to himself.
"R-Really? Y-You want m-my help?" Hinata asked with happiness.
"Yeah, can you help me?" He asked with hope in his voice.
Hinata nodded and said, "Okay listen. chakra uses spiritual energy, so you must not get too strained or frantic. Relax and concentrate on the tree so that you can constantly accumulate a fixed amount of chakra in the bottom of your feet. Got it?"
Naruto nodded and smiled sheepishly, causing Hinata to blush a little, "Thanks Hinata. You're a great friend."
Hinata gasps silently, blushing a little darker and stares in shock as his words fill her with happiness. A g-great friend? He thinks of m-me as a friend.
"T-Thanks Naruto-kun. T-That means a lot to me," She said happily.
Naruto giggled and said, "No problem Hinata."
Naruto turns and heads back to the tree. Hanako then called out to her, "Hey Hinata!"
"Y-Yes Kāsan? What is it?" She replied.
"Let's go work on your Gentle Fist and something else if we have time since you're mastered tree-climbing," Hanako said to her with a smile. "Kay?"
"Oh… Okay!" She replied and turned to Naruto and Sasuke, "See you guys, we'll be back later!"
"Later Hinata," They replied casually. Then everyone but Kushina walked off to watch the two Hyūga's train on the training field.
Naruto and Sasuke focused some chakra at the bottoms of their feet and charged up the tree. Naruto yelled as they ran up the tree. Naruto suddenly slipped and winced before marking the tree. He then flipped back and land on the ground.
He looked up and saw that Sasuke still running up the tree and cursed while panting hard. Damn it! Damn it! Are you telling me that Sasuke it still climbing dattebayo!
Soon, Sasuke came to a stop and marked the tree before using his and Naruto's tree to leap down to the ground safely. On the way down, he noticed Naruto's progress and cursed. Damn it… He is gradually catching up…
He then landed on the ground and slid to a stop. Naruto then turned away. Damn it! No! No! Naruto thought as he shook his head trying to clear his thoughts. If I let myself get distracted by Sasuke, my concentration will be disturbed dattebayo!
He then closes his eyes, forms the Ram hand sign while remembering what Hinata told him earlier about relaxing and concentrating.
Concentrate! Concentrate! Okay. I am getting good vibes dattebayo! Naruto thought as his feet soon start to glow white-blue. He then opens his eyes with excitement on his face. Okay! This is it!
He was about to race at the tree when Sasuke called out, "Hey…Naruto!"
Naruto stumbles and lands on the ground face first. A tic mark appeared on the left side of his head as he lifts his head up, and yelled to Sasuke, "God, what the hell's wrong with you dattebayo! Don't interfere when I'm trying to concentrate!"
He sat up on his legs that he spread out and glared at Sasuke who was struggling to tell him something, "U…Uh…Well…"
"W-What is it?" Naruto muttered squinting angrily at him, crossed his arms, and pouted. I'm not used to him speaking to me first… Sasuke looked away for a second embarrassed then looked back at him.
"Y-You asked Hinata to give you some tips before…" he asked with his right eye twitching before looking away, "What did she say to you…?"
"Hun?" Naruto asked, looking at him surprised, then a goofy grin appeared on his face before saying deadpanned, "I'm not telling!"
Sasuke gagged then looked at him angrily with his right eye twitching. They both glared at each other, causing Kushina and Shisui to have a hard time to suppress their chuckles. "They're just like me and Mikoto back when we were young," Kushina said with a giggle and Shisui chuckled, "Yeah and like between me and Itachi when we were kids, too."
(Half an Hour Later)
Katori and the others arrived with Hinata and Hanako who had finished her training at the spot that Naruto and Sasuke where training only to find Shisui and Kushina standing by a tree.
"Hey Shisui, Kushina, where's Naruto and Sasuke?" Katori asked, looking around for them.
Right on cue, two kunai landed right in front of them. They eyed the kunai in surprise and looked up to see Naruto and Sasuke at the three-fourths the way to the top of their trees. Naruto chuckled and yelled, "Hey, Katori-sensei! We almost mastered the tree-climbing training!"
They both then ran down the tree and walked in front of Katori. Katori smiled at the two and ruffled their hair, "Good! Naruto, Sasuke, starting tomorrow, you both begin the next phase of your training. And when you complete the tree-climbing exercise, you both get to learn a new technique tomorrow."
Naruto, Sasuke, and Hinata's eyes widen, and then Naruto jumped in the air and cheered, "Yippee! Hinata! We get to learn a new technique dattebayo!"
Naruto then grabs Hinata and puts her into a hug. As he laughs and shakes her, she just stands there in a daze of shock, 'Naruto… H-He is holding me! H-He's holding me!'
They all laugh at the scene Naruto made, then Katori spoke up and said, "Alright, you two. Let us go get something to eat. I bet you two are starving, right?"
They both nodded and said, "We sure are!"
They then stared at each other, blushing from embarrassment and looked away shyly. The adults laughed at the pair again. When they calmed down, they then left for the Yakiniku Q restaurant.
A/N: Hey guys! I hope you like this chapter! Oh… and please vote in my poll in my profile if you have not and send me reviews. Moreover, check out my other story, Naruto: AVP. See you next time!