Sorry 'bout the late ch. I had to come up with a lot of backstory and plot to pull off this ch., since they're discussing their plans. Didn't make it to the bell test. It'll be first thing next ch. Pairing poll for this fic in my profile. It's at no pairing right now, so if you want one, vote. Umm, FYI I don't do lemons and I'm not much for the sappy romance stuff, so keep that in mind when voting. Also, expect a ch. of Red Haze and another one for this fic by the end of this week. Cheers.
Disclaimed. Although I took last week off for "research" purposes, I am still not Masashi Kishimoto.
"Naruto...Naruto, wake up." Naruto shifted and groaned out, "Kakashi-sensei, come on, let me have five more minutes."
"I'm not your sensei, I'm your...host." Kakashi said emotionlessly. That finally got his attention. Naruto groggily opened his eyes to stare into a guttering fire. He remembered how he'd gotten here in the first place and blinked. 'Who knew that imaginary fires could go out?' he wondered. He shook his head and turned his attention to his host. "What's up?"
He got the feeling that Kakashi wanted to roll his eyes at him. "Meeting." He said shortly, "Sandaime-sama and Jiraiya-sama are waiting for you."
"Oh." He responded intelligently, "Got it. I'll take over and put you to sleep then? The discussion should be rather sensitive." The boy didn't answer and Naruto sighed mentally as he did as he'd said. 'We're gonna have to work on that. I can't believe Kakashi was such a stuck up bastard when he was a kid. Hmm, I can't wait till he meets Obito.' He grinned gleefully at that thought.
He was still day-dreaming when he heard someone clear their throat to get his attention. He looked at the Sandaime who was raising an eyebrow at him, "Did something good happen?" The man asked curiously.
Naruto laughed a little sheepishly and scratched the back of his head, "Kakashi-kun's attitude is hilarious, is all. I get the feeling it would be very easy to tease him. The Kakashi I knew was very much the opposite, you see." He shook his head with a fond smile and got serious. Looking around the very familiar Hokage's office, he saw Jiraiya was leaning against the wall, watching him with an impassive look on his face. Naruto hadn't paid much attention the day before, but the man looked a lot younger than he remembered. He was a little less large and his face no longer looked as worn as it had. Jiraiya's face also lacked it's usual cheerful cast.
One of the best things about Ero-sennin had been how jovial he was in all but the worst circumstances. His lighthearted perversity had oddly enough reflected a resilient strength that could only have come from a great deal of suffering and experience. This younger Jiraiya lacked that to a large extent. He hadn't come to terms with his team-mate's betrayal and all his students were still among the living. Kakashi-sensei was the same with his impervious eye-smiles and the non-chalant attitude he adopted in even the worst situations. Yamato-taichou had been right, Kakashi had downright showered them with his confidence in them and his reassurances. It was something that Naruto was truly coming to appreciate now that he was without it for the first time in half a decade. 'I guess it's my turn to provide that reassurance to them.'
With that in mind he smiled complacently at the untrusting man by the window, bringing a hand up to his face and letting his eyes widen when he finally felt the cloth covering his mouth. "Dammit, again with the friggin' mask! I should have known better than to mention that!" He slapped his forehead in consternation, earning dubious looks from the two men in the room. He noticed this and shook his head a bit. "Don't worry about it. I foolishly mentioned to Kakashi-kun that his older self wore a mask and it looks like he's decided it's cool to hide his facial expressions or something. I'd better watch it or next thing I know he'll be reading porn just like Kakashi-sensei."
He huffed a little and then asked, "So, should we get on with it? Granted, I'm sure we'll have plenty of time thanks to Obito, but there's no reason to waste the daylight." He removed the mask and breathed a sigh of relief. "I really hate masks." Jiji looked vastly amused by the byplay. "You are aware that we've been waiting for you, right?"
Naruto merely grinned at him and Jiraiya spoke up, finally losing patience. "So, Rokudaime, we've checked your seal; it's an eight-trigrams seal much like those used in the former Whirlpool country. That's a seal that is currently known only to a few Konoha shinobi, so that lends more credence to your story. The seal is functioning normally and poses no threat to Kakashi's health."
He paused and the look on his face hardened. "Now, since you're the one who claims that something needs to be done about Orochimaru, what do you suggest? Surely you don't expect us to kill him without evidence?" He scoffed. It hurt Naruto to see his sensei so angry towards him, but he could understand it. He merely smiled sympathetically at the man and turned to the Sandaime. Jiji nodded at him, giving him permission to speak.
He returned his attention to Jiraiya and said bluntly. "I think that you should handle the investigation yourself. You know the most about him and when you become convinced is when his guilt is assured. I know you wont cover up his activities and you're one of the few that wont get caught by him." Naruto looked away from Jiraiya, staring out the window with a haunted look in his eyes as he continued. "Besides, he's your best friend. You have to see for yourself. And in a way, it's your responsibility to him to see what he's become and end it." He whispered the last before giving Jiraiya a determined and encouraging look. The man looked somewhat shaken, but nodded.
Jiraiya looked at Hiruzen. "I agree, I'll start looking into it as soon as this meeting is finished." He looked determined to prove Orochimaru's innocence and Hiruzen visibly hesitated before nodding. "I'll leave it to you, then."
He gave Naruto a searching look and then changed the subject. "I'd like to hear more about your plans, Naruto, as well as more about you personally. It's obvious that you were avoiding the subject yesterday, so we'd like to know why now." Naruto looked pained for a second before sighing and replying honestly.
"It's not me that I was trying to avoid talking about." Hiruzen raised an eyebrow again and Naruto continued hurriedly with a wince. "It's the best friend that I mentioned earlier. Well, him and Ero-sennin. My parents were the only ones who knew that Madara was behind the attack and they didn't get a chance to tell anyone before they died. The villagers ended up blaming the Uchiha clan.
I wouldn't be surprised if Madara had something to do with it, actually. He had a special hatred for his clan because it remained loyal to Konoha and Hashirama when he wanted more political power. The details are complicated, but basically Madara succeeded in getting the entire Uchiha clan wiped out, except for two. The elder of the two brothers, Uchiha Itachi, took it upon himself to join Madara and spy on him, while the younger, my genin teammate Uchiha Sasuke, remained in Konoha.
That is until Orochimaru put a seal on him. After Sasuke was marked by the cursed seal, he betrayed Konoha for the power that Orochimaru offered. Orochimaru wanted his body for his immortality jutsu so that he could gain the power of the Sharingan, but instead Sasuke killed him when the time came. Itachi died around that time and so there was nothing to keep Sasuke from joining Madara. He became a central part of Madara's plan and because of Madara's interference I was unable to kill him when we fought a little over a month before I came here." Naruto looked solemn as he finished his summary and it wasn't lost of the two men that there were glaring holes in his story.
Hiruzen was somewhat less shocked to hear about the destruction of the Uchiha clan than he might have been. After all, after hearing of Madara's plans yesterday, the destruction of one clan seemed rather tame. Hiruzen eyed the boy's closed expression and decided that they wouldn't get anymore out of Naruto on the subject for the moment. Instead he asked, "Why didn't you want to talk about Jiraiya?"
Naruto got that pained look on his face again and obviously restrained himself from looking over at the man in question. "Ero-sennin was my shishou from when I was thirteen to when he died fulfilling his part of the prophecy when I was sixteen." He said it softly, staring at the Hokage's desk the entire time. Hiruzen couldn't help thinking how boy looked all of six saying this even as he felt his back go rigid in shock.
Jiraiya answered first, bursting out excitedly. "What! You saw the prophecy fulfilled? What was the result? Was it Nagato after all?" He'd undoubtedly heard the part about him dying, but was more interested in the outcome of his life's work than the fact that he would die accomplishing it.
Naruto smiled at him sadly, "You did great. Because you kept believing and didn't give up, disaster was averted." Jiraiya had apparently forgotten that he was an adult and was practically jumping for joy. "So my book will change the world!" He cheered.
Hiruzen, however, didn't join in. He continued to watch the boy for a bit before quietly observing, "You're leaving out something important. You're going to have to tell us eventually if you want our help." Naruto looked at him with some annoyance, "You could've let him enjoy it for a bit longer, Jiji. Besides, I was enjoying watching my sensei act like an even bigger idiot than me."
He smirked at Jiraiya earning an offended, "Oi!" from the toad sage. "Naruto." The Sandaime said warningly, using the same voice he'd used on Jiraiya the day before.
Naruto slumped a little, reluctantly complying with the man's command. "There are two children of prophecy, in a sense. One is Nagato and the other is me. Ero-sennin didn't give up even at the end and believed in me, so I in turn chose to believe in what he'd believed in. When Nagato saw my determination, he entrusted his dream of peace to me as well and sacrificed himself to bring back all the people that had died that day as a result of Akatsuki's attack. I don't know if the prophecy will stay the same, though. It hurts my head to think about. One or both of us might even receive a summons from the toad sage sometime soon." He finished, rubbing his forehead in agitation.
Again the two men exchanges glances, knowing that Naruto was leaving important information out, but the pointed glare the boy sent them practically dared them to press further, so they left things as they were. For now. "Hey, what did you look like before?" Jiraiya asked abruptly. Naruto was confused, but agreed to henge into, of all people, himself. It was a little weird, doing jutsu in another person's body, but Kakashi had excellent chakra control so the chakra flowed smoother than he was used to.
After he was done, Jiraiya whistled, "You look a lot like Minato, alright." He paused and then added, "Not to mention a huge idiot. What's up with the orange, anyway?" The large grin that had been stretching Naruto's whisker marks turned into a scowl and he sat back down in his chair, crossing his arms and huffing loudly. "Orange is my favorite color! Besides, it was your future self that gave me these clothes and your red isn't much better, you hypocrite."
Now it was Jiraiya's turn to scowl, "At least I change when I go out on combat missions, brat. I get the feeling that you always wore that." Naruto pouted and whined, "Shut up!" before Hiruzen cleared his throat yet again to draw the bickering ninjas' attention.
"We still need to discuss where we will go from here and we don't have a lot of time before Kakashi-kun needs to go meet with his team." Naruto forced himself to focus once again, but it was hard. He'd been enjoying joking around with Ero-sennin more than he'd enjoyed anything in awhile and was secretly reluctant to end their petty fighting. Or maybe not so secretly, considering the gleam in the third's eye. And if the third had noticed there was a fair possibility that Jiraiya was doing it on purpose.
He took a glance at the man only to notice the same calculating look he'd received the day before disappear behind a more serious but still somewhat amused mask. Ninja games, huh? Underneath the underneath and all that. He snorted and shook his head in amusement. Trust ninja to turn something as simple as teasing each other into a chance to manipulate and gather information. Well, at least the man was less angry at him if he was going out of his way to reassure him at all. Hearing about Sasuke and that Naruto was the Child of Prophecy probably had something to do with that.
"Will you assign team seven to retrieve Tsunade?" He asked the Third, getting straight to the point. The Sandaime looked to be considering it. "Hmm, yes, but first I want them to get some experience in the field. Once they finish a few c-ranks, I'll clear them for the b-rank retrieval mission. Besides, if it doesn't take him too long, I want Jirairya to come with you after he finishes his investigation. She'll be a lot more likely to listen to you if he's with you."
Naruto laughed, "No kidding, I wouldn't want to get on her bad side. I'm still smarting from the last time I pissed her off." Naruto thought about that for a moment and screwed up his face. "Huh? Well, I guess I'm not anymore. Weird. Ok, so what about getting a message to Suna?"
This time it was Jiraiya who answered, "We're not technically at war with Suna at all, right now, although we're not on the best terms with them because of the last war. They've been keeping their head's down ever since Iwa attacked them after the Sandaime Kazekage died. So it wouldn't be a problem to just send Suna's council an encrypted message. The problem is that if we claim to have information about who killed their Kazekage, they would most likely suspect us. In fact, I think the only reason they haven't attacked us yet is because they haven't chosen a new Kazekage yet." The man frowned in thought. "On the other hand, if the information is passed to them from an anonymous source, chances are that they will dismiss it."
Naruto let out a frustrated sigh, "There's got to be a way...if only I could meet with Chiyo-baa. She wouldn't trust a stranger, but she might keep a better eye on Sasori and if anyone can catch him, it's her."
Hiruzen raised his eyebrows at him incredulously, "You're familiar with Chiyo the Poisoner?" Naruto smiled amusedly, "Yah, nice old lady if I remember correctly." He paused before admitting, "Although her laugh was a bit creepy, now that I think about it."
While Hiruzen was shaking his head at Naruto, Jiraiya looked thoughtful. "We need bait. Something that wont provoke an attack, but will earn a private audience with her." The three sat in silence for a few minutes, thinking it over before a devious grin spread slowly over Naruto's face. "I know just the thing. They may be trying to keep their heads down, but they're also angry at Iwa right now. And Chiyo-baa's opinion carries a lot of weight with the council; her brother's a councillor as well and she's well-respected. If we can convince her to meet with us to discuss a possible alliance against Iwa, then we can kill two birds with one stone by telling her about Sasori too."
He paused and Jiraiya looked at him impatiently, a small scowl on his face. "So how do you plan to convince them that it's not a trap? There are any number of ways that such a meeting could be used against them. Even if it were straight-forward, we could easily just be trying to make it seem that there was an alliance to get Iwa's attention off of us." Naruto grinned,
"That's where the bait you mentioned comes in. You see, Chiyo-baa's son and his wife were killed by Sakumo in the last war. She hates him and when she met Kakashi in my time, she immediately attacked him. So, we offer a hostage to ensure that the meeting will remain aboveboard. It'll get the council's attention, as well, that one of Konoha's clan heirs is being offered as a hostage at all. Actually, on second thought, if we're vague as to the actual reason for the meeting, it might be better. If we just tell them that we have information that they'll want and are willing to offer it to further relations between our countries, they'll probably be so curious that they'll take the risk." Naruto finished with an excited gleam in his eyes.
Hiruzen considered him carefully. "You're willing to offer Kakashi and yourself as hostages to obtain the meeting?" Naruto's eyes hardened in determination, "There are two ways to keep Madara from gaining enough power to execute his plan. One is to protect his targets: the Jinchuuriki. The other is to keep him from getting the allies he had before while we gather allies ourselves. We have to do both and somehow set up a trap for him all without alerting him to the fact that his plan's been compromised.
He wont go after the Jinchuuriki for awhile, hopefully, and luckily they can mostly look after themselves so the best we can do right now is to try to make peace with the other nations and stop him from completing the formation of Akatsuki. As far as I know, he's already got Zetsu, Hidan, Kakuzu and maybe Kisame. That leaves first Sasori and Orochimaru, then Pain and Tenchi, and later Itachi and Deidara. We've got to keep them from joining Akatsuki. If we can do that, it'll buy us time to figure out how to kill the persistent fucker. While I was preparing to come back, I got as much information from our allies on Akatsuki's background as I could. Sasori joined a few years from now officially, but there's a good chance he's already in contact with Madara and he has a nasty habit of placing spies. By the time I was twelve, he had a spy in the genin ranks in Konoha, and a spy on the council in Suna. We need to do something before he escapes to Madara's protection."
Jiraiya crossed his arms and frowned at him. "That's all well and good, but you are aware that she might kill Kakashi anyway, right? If she hates Sakumo and Kakashi as much as you say..." Naruto smiled, "She might be called the poisoner, but she's completely dedicated to Suna. She wont do anything to endanger it. That's also why I trust her to stop Sasori. She did in my time, after all."
Hiruzen shook his head, but didn't contradict him. "Alright, I'll send them our proposal and we'll see how they respond. Is there anything else that we need to discuss?"
Naruto sat silently for a minute, thinking. "We'll need to warn the Jinchuuriki of the danger at some point, but that can probably wait. We're already doing as much about the war with Iwa as we can and Kumo's still recovering from the incident with their Jinchuuriki, so...that only leaves Kiri." He looked between the two men grimly.
"I hate to admit it, but I'm not sure what we can do about them at the moment. The bloodline purges that Yagura's carrying out right now..."Naruto scowled heavily. "Madara's behind them. He's controlling the Yondaime Mizukage and using Kiri as a base for Akatsuki to form and operate from. He'll abandon it once he's prepared, but for now it's his territory. We can't just let him have it, but I'll be damned if I know what we can do about it without declaring war on Kiri and we obviously couldn't handle that right now. Not to mention it would be stupid to go to war with our future allies."
By the time he had finished, both men looked startled. "Madara has control of Kiri and you're just mentioning this now?" Jiraiya practically shouted. Naruto sighed and shrugged, "Like I said, I don't know what we can do about it right now. Not even the Kiri-nin I met knew how long Madara had been there. I want to help the bloodline clans of Kiri, especially since I was friends with a few people from them, but anything we do while Madara's in power is likely to provoke a war."
The Sandaime hmmed, and frowned in concentration. "That is problematic. As long as we're at war with Iwa, we can't afford to do anything overt. The best we might be able to manage is to smuggle a few bloodline wielders out of Mizu no Kuni, but we'd have to be very careful. We can't risk exposure and we'd have to be careful not to help too many or Kiri would realize what we're up to. We also couldn't hide them here without making it obvious who helped them."
Naruto perked up at that. "What about the wave? If we could quietly help a few get to wave, they could handle the rest themselves." He grimaced. "Although if they're caught even once, Yagura will destroy Nami no Kuni. Definitely not something I want to risk."
Jiraiya smirked, "I have contacts in Kaminari no kuni that might be willing to help with that. If the refugees go through wave and lightning country first, we can bring them to Hi no Kuni without worrying about it getting back to Madara that we're involved."
Naruto nodded before replying, "I know of a man in wave who is brave enough to house and feed them as long as we make sure it isn't traced back to him and guarantee his family's protection. We might have to owe him a favor as well, but he's a good man and will only ask for help if his family is in danger."
Sandaime nodded. "Good, contacting him will be team seven's first mission, then. Jiraiya, send messages to your contacts in Kaminari and let them know we might need them to discreetly offer temporary shelter to a few people in the coming months. Also, do you happen to have any established contacts in Kiri? The hardest part in all of this will be tracking down the kekkei genkai bearers in the first place."
Jiraiya scowled, "Yah, I've been thinking about that. There are a few people I can contact, but I doubt they'll have much information-"
"Terumi." Naruto cut in, earning a glare from the Toad Sannin. "We just need to find the remnants of the Terumi clan. Terumi Mei, the Godaime Mizukage, told me once that her father managed to escape with her when the bloodline purges began. Apparently, he helped a lot of others escape pursuit before he was finally killed, although they didn't really have anywhere to escape to. Thankfully, Mei was able to look after herself after he was killed and later took down Yagura, but if we can find Terumi-san, he'll be able to help us." Naruto grinned cheerfully.
"Alright, I'll see if my contacts in Kiri can track him down." Jiraiya said with a sigh, "It looks like we have our work cut out for us." Naruto nodded, "I think that's all, for now at least." The Sandaime sighed and eyed his paperwork resignedly, "Alright then, if you think of anything else let us know, Naruto." He turned to Jiraiya and said a little regretfully, "I expect regular reports on the progress of your assignment, Jiraiya." Jiraiya nodded grudgingly and hopped out the window before they could say anything else. -
Naruto sat waiting for Kakashi's team to arrive, listening to the comforting swish swoosh of the Sandaime's brush-strokes. He had the distinct feeling he was forgetting something important and thought back to his friends. He already missed them, unsurprisingly. He just hoped that he could make sure they were born into a better world than last time. And that he was lucky enough to see them again. He sat, lost in good memories for a bit before swearing silently. 'Fuck. Sai!' Of course. How could he forget about Danzo?
He groaned and banged his head softly against the Sandaime's desk, carefully avoiding jostling the old man's (or, more accurately, the middle-aged man's) papers. The Sandaime paused in his writing. "Is something wrong, Naruto?" Naruto sighed, "There's something I forgot to mention." He grimaced. "It's about Danzo, Jiji. I think he's been using his Ne ANBU to undertake missions without your approval. I don't know how far he's taken it at this point, but in my time Danzo made a deal with Orochimaru to get the Shodai's cells grafted into his arm so he could use Mokuton and had a Sharingan eye, as well as several more in his arm. He kept them hidden under bandages.
He also sold the identities of the regular ANBU to him when I was sixteen just so he could get an operative of his close enough to assassinate Sasuke. And he cut a deal with Hanzo a few years from now that resulted in the death of one of Ero-sennin's students, Yahiko. At some point you ordered him to disband Ne and he unofficially kept them as his own private operatives. There was also some speculation that he was involved with the situation in Kiri somehow, but I don't know how accurate that is. I do know, however, that he was the main force in Konoha behind the Uchiha massacre that Madara engineered.
My friend Sai was a member of Ne and even after the seal on his tongue was deactivated, all he could really tell us about the man was that he was extremely paranoid and claimed to be working for the protection of Konoha. I think the man does genuinely believe that he's acting in Konoha's best interest. The problem is that he thinks that the good of Konoha involves him becoming Hokage, turning ninja into mindless tools that would sacrifice their comrades at the drop of a pin and working with Konoha's enemies whenever he finds it beneficial. He even got himself elected Hokage by the Daimyo when Tsunade-baa-chan fell into a coma for awhile after Pain destroyed Konoha.
And then he used his Sharingan and nearly managed to get himself elected the leader of the Alliance of the Five Nations, as well. Sasuke assassinated him afterwards in retaliation for the Uchiha Massacre and thankfully Baa-chan woke from her coma, but we came dangerously close to having him in charge of the whole military of the five great nations and I don't want to think about how that might have gone. I know that Danzo has done a lot for Konoha in the past, but I think his methods do more harm than good and that he's too power-hungry to really be trustworthy. Whatever the case, I think you should keep a very close eye on him, Jiji." Naruto looked at Hiruzen with a worried look on his face, waiting for his response.
The Sandaime had listened intently throughout Naruto's rant and sat still for a long while afterwards with an odd look on his face. Finally, he sighed. "I agree, Naruto-kun. Danzo has always been passionate about Konoha's defense and tends towards a very militaristic view of the world. If he's not kept in check, he will probably do exactly as you have said. And I'm afraid I wont be able to keep him in check forever, either. In the last few years he's become more and more contemptuous of my leadership abilities. I don't want to, but if what you've said is true, then soon I will be forced to actively restrict his power. It will be difficult, though, because my old teammates have tended towards agreeing with him more and more lately. Especially since that incident with Sakumo. They have become jaded by war, I fear, and are more inclined to agree with Danzo's extreme ideas than before."
Naruto nodded, "Yah, they were still cautious around him when I knew them, but by the time Baa-chan took office, they definitely seemed to have lost a lot of faith in the Hokage title. I think that was mostly due to my father's and your deaths, though. But Sakumo-san will regain their confidence now, I'm sure of it. And you're a great Hokage, Jiji. You just have to rekindle their will of fire like you kindled it in me and the others before." He grinned widely, "You were the one that raised me and the others so strong, Jiji. Hell, I probably would have lost hope when I was just a little kid if it weren't for you."
The Sandaime laughed at his ebullience, despite the seriousness of the conversation. "I find that hard to believe, Naruto." Naruto pouted a bit. "It's true, you were great, Jiji!" Before Hiruzen could respond, there was a knock on the door. Naruto quickly canceled his henge and pulled up Kakashi's mask. "Enter!" the Hokage called.
Akiko opened the door enough to stick her head through. Her brown hair was up in a bun with little strands coming loose and her brown eyes held exasperation. "Hokage-sama, team seven's been waiting awhile and the boy is getting quite loud about his displeasure, even though he showed up late. Do you want me to ask them to come back later?"
Hiruzen looked at the clock and had to resist cursing. It was already 11:10 and he had a council meeting at 11:30 that he was unprepared for. He turned back to Akiko, "Kakashi-kun will be out in a moment. And after that could you help me find the files for the next council meeting?" Akiko straightened her glasses and responded with, "Right away, Hokage-sama." before clicking the door shut.
"You'd better get going." the Hokage said to Naruto. The boy collapsed back in his chair before pulling himself upright and muttering groggily, "I'm never going to get used to that."
"You'd be surprised what you can get used to, Kakashi-kun." The boy just stared at him blankly and he said pointedly, "Your team's waiting for you outside."
The boy continued to stare for a moment before standing and bowing abruptly. "My apologies, Hokage-sama, please excuse me." With that the boy left and the Hokage relutantly got back to his job.-
While he was waking up he heard a warning that caused him to stare dumbly at the Hokage for far too long. 'Kakashi, you're team leader is a relative of mine, so don't be startled by the resemblance. Remember my presence here is a secret for the time being. Enjoy your test!' Naturo's voice sounded gleeful and Kakashi knew that was not a good thing for him. He recollected himself long enough to apologize to the Hokage for his inattention and leave the office.
'What test?' He thought at the man, but receiving no response he refocused on his surroundings. He immediately regretted it, however, when his vision was filled by a goggles-wearing monstrosity. The boy had spiky black hair and wore a blue jacket lined in orange. "You're late! Who do you think you are keeping us waiting for so long!" Kakashi merely stared at the loud boy, not deeming an answer necessary.
A smooth, female voice responded instead. "Obito, you were late yourself, you're one to talk." Obito turned around immediately and whined, "But Rin, we waited for hours today and yesterday too! The least he can do is apologize!" The girl seemed to agree with that at least and they both turned to him expectantly. Only to find him ignoring them utterly and staring at their sensei, who was leaning up against the wall with his ankles and arms crossed, watching the exchange silently.
The moment Kakashi laid eyes on the man, he felt a great surge of emotion from within him that left him blinking. 'He died when I was young. I didn't know him well. Sorry 'bout that.' Naruto supplied wryly. Kakashi continued to stare at the man who bore such an uncanny resemblance to the one sealed in his stomach and an awkward silence descended upon the group.
Minato finally broke it, straightening up and saying, "Meet me at training ground seven in ten minutes." Without another word he disappeared in a swirl of leaves. The genin looked at each other and started running, earning them glares from the numerous ninja in the tower's hallways. -
When they arrived at the indicated training ground, they found their sensei sitting on the center-most of three posts and looking bored. "Sit down and introduce yourselves: your names, likes, dislikes, dreams for the future, hobbies, that sort of thing." He ordered, waving a hand at them. They sat in the grass in front of them, but Obito objected, "Minato-sensei, you should introduce yourself first!"
Instead of looking annoyed, however, the man seemed amused and complied. "My name is Namikaze Minato. I have many likes and few dislikes. I'll tell you my dream if it comes true, and as for hobbies, I have a few." Kakashi thought at Naruto, annoyed, 'Was he always this vague?'
He felt Naruto's voice float up from somewhere inside him in response. 'Hmm, don't know. Like I said, I didn't know him well.' He chuckled. 'Kakashi-sensei was always frustrating like that, though. Now I know where he got it from. But you should pay more attention. He's already evaluating you.'
Kakashi wondered while he listened to Rin talk about wanting to be a med-nin and liking to read if he would ever get used to the disconcerting way Naruto mentioned his future self so casually. Naruto seemed to pick up on his unease. 'Don't worry about the future or about me, just be yourself and try to appreciate your team.' Kakashi had his doubts about the easy words, but ignored them and dutifully answered when Minato called on him next.
"I'm Hatake Kakashi. I have few likes and many dislikes. My hobby is training and I don't feel like telling you my dream." Minato nodded and simply said, "Obito, you're next."
"I'm Uchiha Obito! I like my cousin Itachi-chan, my parents, Konoha, Ichiraku's ramen, Hokage-sama, my new team and making jokes. I dislike it when people think they're too good to respond when others are talking to them and when people keep secrets from their teammates. My hobby is cooking for my family. My dream is to be Hokage one day!" He finished cheerfully and Minato hopped down.
"Hmm, you're all interesting. Now we just need to see if you have what it takes to be ninja." Obito yelled, "We're already ninja, sensei!"
Minato continued as if Obito hadn't spoken. "Tomorrow morning I will test you with a survival exercise. If you fail, you'll be going back to the academy. Oh, and this test fails two out of three genin hopefuls, so prepare yourselves. We'll meet here at eight; don't be late. And a little suggestion, don't eat breakfast if you don't want to puke." With that Minato was gone and at least two of the kids were already feeling queasy.
The third was just feeling annoyed by the smug chuckling ringing inside his head. 'Obito really reminds me of myself when I was that age. I think this will be fun to watch.' Kakashi did his best to ignore the annoying man, instead finding a free training ground to train at for the rest of the day. If he was going to pass this test in spite of his weak teammates, he'd need to be at his best.-
R&R
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