Chapter 3: Prologue end
One week later
Kotarou's base
The noise of wood hitting against wood kept sounding through the empty corridors. In Arata's training room two puppets were fighting against each other, trying to get any advantage over each other they possibly could. Well, to be exact, one puppet was barely moving and its punches and kicks were as slow as they could possibly be, the other puppet was simply dancing around the first one.
The first puppet tried to land another punch on the second one, but the second one dodged it to the side and with a quick charge closed the distance between Naruto and it. As soon as it closed the distance it punched Naruto in the gut, sending him tumbling backwards. Kotarou sighed from the side, "I told you already, even if your puppet is the one that is doing the fighting you must never forget to move your own body. If you concentrate only on fighting with your puppet your opponent may gain the advantage and strike you down before you react."
Naruto leaned on a training dummy as he stood up and coughed a few times, "I'm trying, if I could simply do everything you tell me to I wouldn't be here training." Kotarou moved his fingers again and the puppet quickly closed the gap and punched Naruto again, "And yet, there was barely any improvement here. You can finally move the puppet, but your abilities are so poor it would be a shame to call it even beginner level, its even below that, if possible. You can finally walk on the walls for a few minutes before you lose control, we improved your taijutsu and I drilled everything I could about battling with puppets and anything else you need, but honestly, you are so slow I could have trained another 10 disciples to your level in the time it took you to reach here. Your level itself is barely above beginner even though we have been here for 2 weeks. With this training regime most would be around advanced beginner right now." Kotarou sighed, "I hope you don't get killed as soon as you get some action. It would mean I wasted so much time here. Alright, enough resting, move your puppet.
"Asshole..." Naruto said in a tone, barely above a whisper, "Increased difficulty tomorrow." Naruto's eyes shot open. "An opening." Kotarou yelled in a bored tone. Kotarou's puppet jumped over Naruto's and with another quick sprint it charged Naruto and punched him in the gut, sending him tumbling again, "Well, its only been 2 weeks so I didn't expect much from him, but the kid made some nice progress here. Probably a big portion of other kids would have given up or be stuck halfway where he is. Though I can't have him become cocky so I need to constantly beat up the kid and tell him how weak he is." Kotarou sighed again, "Alright, that's enough for today. Wash up and lets grab some food." Naruto cut off the chakra threads from the puppet and went to the bucket to wash up.
Honestly, from Naruto's point of view the time spent here after the small tournament could be described in one word – Hell. Kotarou used the tournament as an excuse to point out every single flaw Naruto did during the tournament and used that as an excuse to increase the training difficulty. With extreme training for hours, then he would have to deal with the annoying trio – Kagami, Akame and Ayame. After the tournament they began to look up to Naruto because he was so strong only after a week of training. They constantly asked him for tips and always asked him to show some cool techniques, even though Naruto himself didn't know any. Ayame even took it to the next level, she even began to follow Naruto around like a lost puppy, much to his annoyance. Just when he thought it couldn't get any worse all of them even began to call Naruto "senpai" because he was undergoing tougher training than them.
Naruto sighed again as he washed up his face, "I got better, but… It still isn't enough. I have to become stronger, much stronger. Ryuzaki was strong, I thought I could beat every other disciple here, but he appeared like out of nowhere. After he beat me I realized that there are more strong people out there that I don't know about. People stronger than me, Ryuzaki, maybe even Kotarou. I have to become stronger than the village, than Kotarou... Strongest of them all." Naruto thought inside his head as he clenched his fist.
Just as he was finishing up Ayami barged in through the door, "Morning, Senpai. You still alive? Lets go grab some food." Naruto did his best to ignore Ayami, but her words caught his attention, "Hey, Senpai. What is that tattoo on your back?" Naruto's eyes shot open, "Tattoo?" Naruto turned around to look at Ayami, "What are you talking about?" Ayami titled her head, "Well, you have a tattoo on your back. What, did you forget about it yourself?" She said as she turned around and pointed the spot on the back of her neck, "Its right here." Naruto stared wide eyed at her, "Ayami, I swear if its another one of your jokes..." Ayami's eyes opened up, "What? I'm serious! It looks like this." She said as she began drawing some random symbols in the air and trying to describe it to the best that she could.
Naruto stared at her for a few seconds trying to make out the scribble she tried to do in the air and her description, "I never had any tattoos before. Its at the back of my neck? Well, this is Ayami, but… She doesn't look like she is lying. I should talk with Kotarou-shishou about this." Naruto looked up as Ayami walked right in front of him and grabbed the towel on his head. She gripped it tightly and started roughly moving it on Naruto's head in random circles, "Ow!" Naruto grabbed her hands and pushed them away, "What are you doing?" Ayami smiled, "My mom told me that if you don't properly dry your hair you will catch a cold." Naruto looked at her blankly, "Only idiots catch colds." He said as he put on his kimono top and walked past her and out of the room. Ayami turned around, "Senpai, wait up."
Naruto walked into the dinning room and his eyes quickly fell on Kotarou. He started walking towards Kotarou, but Ayami grabbed him by his wrist, "Our table is that way. Or did you forget?" Naruto looked back, "I will join you guys later, I need to talk to Kotarou-shishou." Naruto turned around and walked to Kotarou's table, "Shishou, can we talk?" Kotarou turned to Naruto, "Go ahead." Naruto glanced around, "Can we talk, somewhere more private?" Kotarou put on a confused face, "Alright." He said as he stood up and started walking.
In a different room
After Kotarou found a quiet room Naruto told him about the tattoo Ayami saw on his neck. Kotarou put on a thinking face, "Tattoo? You don't have anything like that. At least I don't think so… Turn around." Naruto turned around. Kotarou looked at Naruto's neck for a few second, "There's nothing there. But from what Naruto told me, Ayami did a rather detailed description. Her lies are obvious so they are easy to see through. I don't think she was making stuff up, but there is nothing there."
"Hmm, it could be that I just didn't notice it because Naruto's hair was covering it up. But that doesn't explain the fact that Naruto himself didn't know about it." Kotarou was pondering inside his head. His slit eyes opened a little, "Naruto, channel some chakra." Naruto was confused for a while but did as he was told and starting releasing some chakra around him. For a few seconds there was nothing but then Kotarou put his palm on the back of Naruto's head and moved his hair upwards a little. After the hair was out of the way, a little symbol revealed itself, "So, its like this. This isn't a tattoo, its a seal. A good one at that. Its made that it would only show itself if the person would use chakra. But… I have never seen anything like it before. It didn't effect Naruto in any way. He can battle freely, there are no changes to his personality when he uses chakra, no second chakra in his system. It looks like a simple tattoo. But to go to through all the trouble to hide it and do it so discreetly so that even Naruto wouldn't know about it. I doubt its there just for show." Kotarou sighed, "Yep, its there."
Naruto's eyes widened as he cut off the chakra flow and turned around, "What?"Kotarou lifted one hand, "Calm down, first of all that is not a tattoo, its a seal. Even I don't know what it is but until we know its best to leave it be." Naruto's eyes widened, "A seal? How? When?" Kotarou thought about it for a while, "Its probably been there for a while. Seals don't activate and its done, there should have been some preparation to put it on you and it should have been given time to settle down. It has probably been on you before you even arrived at Suna. I don't know who or when put it on you, but for now, act like you don't know its there. Don't tell anybody and I mean anybody about it. Got that?" Naruto nodded his head, "Good, I will look into the seal. It shouldn't act up since it hasn't until now, so you focus on your training and pretend you don't know its there. I will have a talk with Ayami. Now, go have some food and rest up because later, I will teach you a new combat technique. Also, wait up. I will make a quick copy of the seal so I can study it." Naruto nodded his head and left the room after Kotarou was done. Kotarou was left in thought for a few minutes, looking at the seal "I better consult Arata."
Some time later
Naruto and Kotarou stood in the training room, "Alright, the next combat technique I will teach you will be "Emotion"." Naruto stood there confused, "Emotion? Alright, you lost me. You mean, Those emotions, right? The ones: happy, sad etc." Kotarou nodded his head, "How can emotion be a combat technique?" Naruto asked. Kotarou smiled, "Emotion is a very good combat technique. Not everybody can learn to use it. Most people fail to control their emotions. Even you won't be able to do this right now, but I think its worthwhile to tell you about it because I believe you can master it in the future." Naruto stood there dumbfounded, "Right, I am gonna go practice with the puppets." Kotarou sighed from the side, "Even I haven't mastered my emotions you know. In our group master Arata has the best control over his emotions. I doubt any of this is getting through to you, so, I want you to pick up that kunai and attack me." Naruto looked to his right and saw a kunai stuck in a training dummy near him.
He picked up the kunai and charged Kotarou. For a few seconds there was nothing, but as Naruto was two steps from Kotarou he felt a shiver going down his spine. The relaxed and easy going aura around Kotarou disappeared and was replaced with a malicious aura. It was an aura Naruto had felt before, but it was stronger. A lot stronger than the simple glaring ones who wish they could hurt Naruto. A sense of dread overcame Naruto. He saw what felt like a vision of the future, Naruto coming near Kotarou and being struck in one quick move. Naruto's head flying off from the rest of his body. Naruto's body froze in one spot and he couldn't move those last two steps towards Kotarou. Its was as if a tiger has cornered his prey and was about to jump in for the kill. Naruto, was about to break under he pressure. Instantly, the pressure disappeared and was replaced with a relaxed atmosphere again.
Naruto looked up to Kotarou, while sweating bullets, "This, is one of many emotions you can use in battle. In battle emotions have their own benefits, each emotion brings forth something, but if you let that emotion overwhelm you, it will be your downfall. For example, if in battle you suppress your emotions, you can think clearly and move with precision. If you become angry, you call forth power. If you become sad and pessimistic you become more careful and planning. Each emotion heightens one of your abilities at the cost of lowering some of the others, each emotion will cost you something. Finally, at the very bottom of the cellar of each person there is one emotion, wrath. Wrath is like an upgraded version of anger. When you call forth anger you obtain strength, power. But when you call forth Wrath, you bring forth destruction, your strength goes even higher than when you use anger. But the reason why nobody uses wrath is because the cost is your reasoning. You become unable to distinguish foe from ally. You destroy everybody in your way. Also, at the peak of Wrath control there sleeps Killing Intent. When your wrath accumulates enough, it becomes the Will to Kill. Not simply destroying everything and leaving it, but actually taking the life of another person. What you experienced was my Killing Intent. I compressed my Wrath together and called forth my Will to Kill you, in turn, your instincts warned you about my intentions and made you freeze in fear for your safety. If your mind and will are stronger than your opponents then you can even beat them with Killing Intent. But be warned, the price of Killing Intent is your humanity. When you use it, you become able to kill a person, but each time you use it you lose your emotions that make you human, pity, guilt and along the way kindness. All that is left in the end is the peak of wrath, you become Wrath itself. If your Killing Intent overwhelms you, you will turn into a demon that murders everyone he sees." Naruto gulped.
Kotarou smirked, "See? Emotion control can be useful. Now, I will teach you how to control your emotions. You see, the trick is to be able to call forth the particular emotion you want and being able to suppress them at will. I find it easier for me to use my memories. If I want to use anger, I recall something that would make me angry, if I want to become more cunning and planning I recall something that made me lose faith in this world so I would become more pessimistic and if I want to suppress my emotions I let rationality take control and try to do everything with simple reasoning."
Naruto stared at Kotarou for a while, "Why would I want to become pessimistic?" Kotarou smirked, "Surprisingly, its useful. When you become pessimistic, you assume that your enemy will see through every single move you make, so you start creating a one big web of plans that you can rely on in any situation. Being optimistic is the same, you assume that every single move you make will go according to plan and you gain courage." Naruto was trying really hard to comprehend everything but it was obvious he was having a really hard time, Kotarou smirked, "I know, its hard. I was the same as you when Arata explained it to me for the first time." Naruto focused again, "But what about Killing Intent? How do you call it forth and how do you remain in control?" Kotarou opened his eyes slightly, "That, my student, is a secret. Each person has his own way to call forth his Killing Intent. Some try to recall painful memories that would make them call for blood. Others, harden their resolve to carry the guilt of killing somebody. To each his own, my student."
Naruto simply hmmed and looked like he was in thought, "Alright, lets continue your basic training. I will try to help you with your emotion control from tomorrow onwards." Naruto nodded his head.
One week later
Naruto came into the training room and saw Kotarou sitting on the ground, "You called?" Kotarou nodded his head and signaled for Naruto to sit down in front of him. When he did Kotarou spoke, "Alright, I guess this is it. You will be leaving today so this is where your training ends. These were a short 3 weeks but I'm glad I was the one who got to teach you." Naruto nodded his head, "Now, I have some parting gifts." He said as he took out of his bag some objects and put them between naruto and himself.
He took a thick, brown book and handed it to Naruto, "This will help you with your training. During these 3 weeks I put in all of my effort into writing it. Well, to tell the truth, this book was handed down to me, but it was never finished so I decided to rewrite some parts and to finish the book. In here you will find taijutsu techniques, chakra control techniques, puppet combat techniques various people came up with and even poison recipes. I also included other stuff like puppet designs you may find useful and fuinjutsu beginner lessons. Anyway, you will just read it yourself.
He took a red scroll and handed it to Naruto, "This scroll contains a lot of materials you will need. You said you are an orphan so I bet getting funds for training would be difficult so I packed in here a lot of things you will need, though, it will only last you for a while so you should try to think of some ways to make money." Naruto nodded his head.
Kotarou took another scroll, this time black, "Inside this scroll, there is a forbidden technique. Its incomplete because it was only recently that we acquired it, or truth be told, tried to recreate it. Its a technique called Human Puppet technique. Its as it sound a technique that turns humans into puppets, allowing them to retain their chakra system and kekkei genkai. All of those abilities at your disposal. This scroll-" "Wait, Wait, Wait! Wait just a minute. Human puppets? Turning real humans into puppets for their abilities? Wh-" "Listen, Naruto. I know what you are thinking right now. Believe me, I do. But believe me when I say that normal puppetry has its limits. It is very difficult to overcome them. Many tried, very few succeeded. Sooner or later you will encounter them. For now take this scroll and hold on to it. Simply keep it near you. When the time comes and you find yourself in need of power, you will know where to look. Right now, simply trust your shishou and just leave it at the back of your mind. In due time you will understand why I'm giving this to you" Naruto knew that Kotarou wouldn't give him something useless or something that will put him in harms way. So, reluctantly he decided to trust Kotarou and put it in his bag.
"And lastly, there is one thing I have to pass on to you. Its a technique that only the current leader and the second in command know how to pass on and only people they have approved of can gain this technique. Roll up your right sleeve and give me your hand." naruto did as he was told and extended his hand to Kotarou. Kotarou opened a bottle of ink and took a brush, then he began painting some seals on Naruto's arm. After he was done Naruto took a look at the seal on his arm, it was a pitch black seal with intricate yet elegant writing and what seemed like a small demonic eye in the middle of it all.
"This, Naruto, is a secret technique you can only gain if you have mastered your emotions to a certain degree. You haven't mastered yours, but I don't think I will be able to pass it on to you in the future and I believe you will one day achieve that level of mastery. So, I passed this seal on to you and added some extra details. This seal will now be locked, but after a certain amount of years the lock will expire and hopefully you will have mastered you emotions enough to use it. This seal has a name in our group its called, "Emperors Wrath". Its a seal that forcefully draws out a very big amount of wrath from inside you. It will cause you to enter a state similar to berserk but if you have enough control over your emotions you will be able to retain your sanity. The seal will also automatically draw your chakra through itself and, how to say it, make it stronger, more potent but the more power you call upon the harder it will be to retain your sanity so you have to make sure to diligently try to master your emotions until the lock on the seal expires. The book I gave you earlier will have a more detailed explanation written in it." Naruto examined the seal on his hand again.
"That is all." Kotarou said with a bored tone. Naruto stood up and bowed, "Thanks." Kotarou smirked, "What for? We had a deal, remember? As long as you remember it its fine. Now scram, brat, I have some important matters to attend to." A vein appeared on Naruto's, "Fine, douche." Naruto walked through the door after sending one last glance towards Kotarou.
Kotarou sat there in the silence, "Phew, I'm not good with goodbyes and stuff. But, it was actually fun hanging around with the brat. If its him I bet he will be alright, but now, I lost my only source of fun around here." A small shadow appeared in the corner of the room, "Missing him already?" Kotarou smirked, "Nah, its more like I'm looking forward to see what he will accomplish in the future." The shadow smirked, "True, he was kind of interesting, for a kid. Anyway, Arata wants to see you." Kotarou nodded his head.
Hallway
Naruto was nearing the exit when the trio caught up to him, "Senpai, are you really leaving?" Ayami shouted as she caught up to him, the other two also ran beside her. Naruto took a glance at them, "Yeah." Ayami finally stopped panting and straightened her back, "Why didn't you tell us?" Kagami asked as he also finally straightened up, "There was no real reason to." Naruto answered.
Ayami looked at Naruto's arm then at Naruto, "Of course there is, you are our senpai. If we won't be able to see you anymore we want to at least say goodbye." Naruto looked through the three of them and saw that they all agreed. He sighed, "So, you will be happy if you get to say goodbye?" All three nodded their heads, "This won't be the last time we see you, right, senpai?" Naruto sighed, "I'm not good with goodbyes and stuff." He thought in his head, "Who knows, maybe we will see each other again, maybe not." Ayami seemed down after hearing that. Naruto scratched the back of his head with an annoyed look on his face, "Look, I'm not good with this stuff. I don't know if we will meet again, but there is nothing that says we won't meet. As long as you don't forget about me then there will always be a chance, and later on a way, for us to meet." All tree kids smiled, "Alright, then I will work hard and next time I will become cool like Senpai." Ayami said with start shinning in her eyes. Naruto turned around, "Whatever, do your best, midget." Naruto said as he walked out of the base ignoring the yells "I'm not a midget."
Village gates
Sarutobi saw Naruto come into view, walking slowly. After a minute Naruto walked up to Sarutobi and the Kazekage, "Ah, finally. Alright then, thank you for your hospitality, Kazekage. I hope that this alliance will benefit both of our villages." The Kazekage nodded his head, "Yes, I hope that our villages will prosper in peace from now on."
Sarutobi looked down to Naruto behind him, who simply bowed and said nothing, "Alright, we can't spend here all day so we will set off now. Farewell, Kazekage." The kazekage nodded his head, "Safe travels, Hokage."
Alrighty then, chapter 3 is done and this signals the end of the prologue. Now, I will seriously stop uploading chapters until I'm done catching up with the original story. Nothing too serious in this chapter… Damn, I don't know what to say. So…Haha, how was your new year? I hope all of you didn't get too excited, though, I hope you did have a pleasant time. Its important to release all the stress you kept pent up during the year and do your best with the "New year, new me" stuff. Though, I personally follow the, "New year, why should I change. I'm perfectly fine as I am" hype.
Also, i have decided to add a progress tracker to my profile. If you are curious where i currently am, you can go to my profile and see what part i am currently writing.
Anyway, I don't really have anything to say. Keep on sending those puppet ideas, I still accept them. Sypnotick, out.
Oh and… I will enjoy this.
TO BE CONTINUED
