"Everyday is a gift, thats why they call it the present." -Unknown
Chapter 4- Food, Shogi, and Teams
Naruto walked alongside Shikamaru and his parents. His freshly cleaned hair blowing in the wind as it dried. He had been scared when Shikamaru's mother had become so downright murderous but she had simply had him wash and reclothed him before setting out for this Chouza's place. Honestly, Shikamaru's mother had been incredibly understanding and smiled constantly at him as they walked. It was nice and he found himself smiling back at her as he walked comfortably with his friend's family.
Shikamaru walked lazily next to his friend. He enjoyed seeing Naruto relaxed. Despite not knowing Naruto too well until recently, he still felt happy his friend was dropping that guard he seemed to constantly have. His sharp mind caught every flinch Naruto might have when he would be around Shikamaru's family. He had noticed how Naruto seemed uncomfortable with someone being so intimate as to wash him as Shikamaru's mother did but he allowed it to happen and now Naruto was starting to relax in her presence, as well as his father's.
When they were close to Chouza's place, Naruto finally broke the comfortable silence that had been surrounding their walk, "Ne! Where are we going?" he almost shouted. His exuberance shining through to his bright blue eyes.
Shikamaru's mother turned and smiled gently to him, "To a friend's place, their food is the best." she said quietly.
Naruto's eyes widened, "No Way! Ichiraku's Ramen is the best!" he said as he pointed at Shikamaru's mother accusingly.
Shikamaru and his Father chuckled as Yoshino's eyebrow twitched, suddenly a shout could be heard from the compound they were now standing in front of, "Oi!" a heavyset woman came bursting out the doors and the entire Nara family stepped back as the woman rounded on Naruto, "Who dares say my cooking is not the best in this village!" she shouted to Naruto.
Naruto glared back up at the woman, "No food is better than Ichiraku's. Ramen is the food of the Gods!" he shouted to the, now red faced, woman.
The woman's eyes narrowed, "We'll see if you can keep that tune after you eat my cooking!" the woman said as she brought herself up to her full height and Naruto saw that she was wearing a purple blouse with golden trimmings, a pair of black pants and heeled shoes. Her eyes had some coloring to the at the corners as she looked up at the Nara family and broke into a smile before reaching down and grabbing Naruto by the scruff of his clothes, "Let the lesson begin!" she shouted as she turned around and headed back into the compound, "Close the door behind you Shikamaru-kun." she yelled as Naruto got glimpses of a few doors before he was set into a seat.
Naruto's mouth watered as he looked at the veritable feast in front of him. Shikamaru chuckled as he walked up behind Naruto, "This is the Akimichi clan, they have some of the best restaurants in the city Naruto." he said as he sat down next to him. Naruto was still focusing on the food as the same woman from before and two males entered the room.
"Shikamaru *munch munch* so your the *munch* guest tonight." Choji said as he looked at his friend. He sat down next to him and finally noticed Naruto staring hungrily at the table. "Naruto?" he asked between munchs. Naruto turned to look at him with drool coming out of his mouth.
"Eh? Choji?" he asked as his eyes returned form their glazed look. His stomach giving a large growl as he hadn't eaten in a few days. Choji blinked at his stomach's growl and the older-looking Choji laughed heartily from the head of the table, bringing the young adult's attention to how Shikamaru's parents and Choji's parents had finally joined them.
Naruto looked up and was set upon by a certain fear. Something he had forgotten to do nagged at the back of his head for a few moments before he suddenly stood up, drawing everyone's attention to him. He blushed and rubbed the back of his head before he bowed deeply and said, "Ojamashimasu.(1)"
The parent's shocked looks were missed as Choji and Shikamaru stared at him oddly before Naruto raised his head to look and see if he did anything wrong. His etiquette lessons having demanded he do this. He was treated to everyone looking at him oddly. He almost started to panic when a smile came across Shikamaru's mother's face.
"I don't believe we have had introductions have we Naruto-san?" she said quietly. Naruto smiled at her and nodded.
"I am Uzumaki Naruto." he said boisterously breaking the shock of his manners.
"Nara Yoshino." Shikamaru's mother said as she smiled and elbowed her husband.
"Troublesome Woman." he muttered before saying, "Nara Shikaku."
"Akimichi Hamako." the heavyset woman from before stated as she looked at her husband eyeing the food hungrily, "And this is Akimichi Chouza." she said as she elbowed him as well prompting him to wave at Naruto cheerfully before returning to stare at the food. Naruto chuckled at the man's attitude.
"He seems alot like Choji." Naruto commented as he smiled at the adults. That caused a round of chuckles.
"Well, I can see we have 3 hungry people," Hamako said as she looked at Chouza, Choji, and Naruto before continuing, "the only thing left to say is... Itadakimasu!" with that, the feast began and Naruto gorged himself as fast as he could.
The Akimichi were a fast eating clan but they stared in slight digust as Naruto shoveled food into his mouth as fast as he possibly could. That is until he suddenly froze like a deer in the headlights, "Naruto-chan," Yoshino began as she smiled sweetly at him, his danger senses warning him to remain in his seat, "Please eat slower or I will be forced to tie you to the chair and spoon feed you." she finished as an Oni mask appeared behind her head. Naruto quickly nodded his head before sitting straight up and setting his chopsitcks down. He chewed his food slowly, enjoying the taste of the food now that he wasn't afraid of someone taking it from him.
Yoshino's Oni mask disappeared as her smile became a bit less frightening, "There... Much Better." she said before picking her own chopsticks up and beginning to eat her food at a sedate pace. The rest of the food was quickly consumed following the ravenous hunger of Naruto, despite his slower eating he was still very hungry from his forced fast, and the Akimichi family.
Once Naruto had eaten his fill, he sat back and smiled lazily at his newest friend and whispered to him, "Thank you for inviting me over Shikamaru."
Shikamaru just nodded back at Naruto as he sat in his own chair. Shikamaru's eyes darted over to Naruto and an unsual gleem appeared in his eyes as he spoke, "Would you like to play a game Naruto?" he asked. Naruto's intrigued expression was his answer.
"I enjoy playing Shogi, I want you to play a match with me." he said to his friend, the adults and Choji had disbelieving expressions on their faces, the only person to beat Shikamaru was Shikaku, and Naruto was not exactly the brightest shinobi in the world, the parent's knew of his academy performance.
"I don't know how to play Shikamaru, can you teach me?" Naruto asked curiously, though he knew Shogi was a boring game, he didn't want to deny playing a game with his friend, especially since he said he WANTED to play with him. Practically a first for Naruto.
Shikamaru nodded his head and looked up at the table, waiting for everyone else to finish eating, only to notice that everyone had their attention on them. Shikamaru shifted uncomfortably as his father opened his mouth to deny Naruto playing against him but Naruto came to the rescue.
"Why did we come over here to eat Yoshino-san?" Naruto asked curiously.
The adults looked a bit nervous but Hamako saved the day, "They wanted you to taste my awesome cooking! Now tell me that my food is definitely better than that ramen!" she shouted to break the awkwardness of the situation.
Naruto's eyes seemed to come alight as he looked at Hamako, "Never!" he said as if commiting a mutiny.
Yoshino smiled slightly and looked at Shikamaru and Choji, "Why don't you two go set up the game so we can talk to Naruto-chan?" she asked sweetly.
Shikamaru's eyes narrowed and Shikaku noticed it. He waved his son off and Shikamaru got the hint as he grabbed Choji and left the room to set up the board for shogi.
Naruto seemed to grow in his chair as his happy persona almost vanished, replaced with the look of a veteran shinobi hardened by years of service, "I don't care if you don't like me, just don't hurt your kids for playing with me." he said in a serious voice.
The adults all smiled sadly at him. Yoshino spoke again, "We are not mad at you Naruto-chan. If you wish to be friends with Shikamaru that is his decision. We will not hold him back from assisting you." she said smiling at him.
Chouza spoke up as well, "Choji is the same. We are not bigots Naruto-san. We may not have been able to help you well enough in your childhood but we have something to help you now."
Naruto's serious expression turned into one of confusion and the tension in the room disappeared as his attitude changed from a beaten and depressed aura to one of almost childlike wonder. "What did you do?" he asked eagerly.
Hamako spoke in a quiet tone, "When we saw how malnourished you were Naruto." Naruto's eyes snapped to Yoshino and Shikaku, "Yes they told us, but that is because the Akimichi are known as the masters of food. We are the ones ninja come to in order to devise a diet for training or for targeting specific areas of their bodies." Naruto looked up at the Akimichi with a bit of respect, "While the Naras are the ones with the best medicinal herbs and medicines made from their deer's antlers." Naruto's look turned to confusion.
"But what has this got to do with what we ate?" he asked loudly. Hamako shushed him for speaking so loudly.
Shikaku spoke now, "The food we all ate tonight, are double in the amount of nutrition it will give to us. In other words, since you ate this, you will be getting as if you ate for the last three days without actually having eaten it. It is unhealthy for a ninja to be as... scrawny as you are. This concoction is used for ninja who have been starved in interrogation or for ninja who return to the village dehydrated and malnourished. It will help you gain some fat and be able to work your body better." Shikaku explained. Naruto's eyes widened as he remembered what Kurenai had said about eating healthier.
"But this is only temporary, you need to eat more than ramen. It is not healthy to eat this concoction for extended periods of time." Chouza said.
Naruto's head fell and he mumbled something under his breath. He only understood half of what had been said, basically, this food was good for him but he couldn't eat it all the time. He was happy they had helped but he couldn't afford anything but ramen.
Yoshino's oni mask reappeared, "Naruto-chan, what did you say?" she asked.
Naruto, feeling the KI from Yoshino, quickly popped to attention in his seat and said quietly, "I can't afford anything else."
A quick glance around the table had a nod from Chouza and a grateful smile from Yoshino. "Then you will come eat in Akimichi restaurants from now on Naruto-san. I can not allow my son's friend to be so unfit for shinobi duty. It is against my clan's purpose within Konoha. For the next week, we will keep feeding you food with this concoction so that you may regain some weight, but that is the limt." Chouza said, earning a teary-eyed Naruto.
"H-Hontoni?" he asked trembling. Chouza smiled and nodded his head while saying, "For free, for the first week, Naruto-san but after that, you will have to pay."
The big man was suddenly set upon by a blur of grey and burnt orange crashing into him and hugging him tightly as Naruto fought tears. The man merely patted his back as the adults shared a sad smile at such a small courtesy meaning so much to the small one in front of them.
"Naruto the board is set." Shikamaru called from outside the house. Naruto smiled and wiped his face with a towel offered from Hamako and the group left to find Chouji and Shikamaru sitting on the porch leading to the backyard with a shogi board in front of Shikamaru. Naruto witheld a grimace as he despised board games, he prefferred to be running around but he was feeling kinda sleepy since he had eaten his fill. So, he plopped down on the opposite side of the board and said, "So, how does this work?" Naruto asked.
With those words, Shikamaru set to teaching Naruto how to play shogi and how each piece moved as well as the rules. Once he was done, "Want to try one game Naruto?" he asked.
Naruto's face was in a scrunched up expression, indicating him trying to focus extremely hard on something, the two females were restraining from grabbing him and hugging him to death screaming 'Kawaii.' After a few more moments, Naruto nodded and motioned for Shikamaru to begin the game. Shikamaru nodded and the game of minds began.
3 turns later, Shikamaru was in his thinking position causing everyone but Naruto to be gaping at the board as they tried to figure out what Naruto was doing. Shikamaru only used his thinking pose when he needed to plan almost thousands of moves ahead. A few moments later, Shikamaru moved his piece with Naruto following suit almost immediately.
5 turns later, Shikamaru sat in his thinking pose again trying to figure out Naruto's ploy as Shikaku sat next to the board and kept giving heated glares to Naruto. What no one could understand, was why Shikaku was so frustrated.
"He's got no strategy but his luck is out of this world, if I wasn't sure he didn't know what he was doing I would assume he was a master!" Shikaku screamed in his head.
25 turns later, Shikamaru moved his final piece and said, "Game." Naruto's eyebrows furrowed and he stared at the board intently. Shikamaru's face was sweating lightly from all the calculations he put into the game, he knew Naruto was good, but this was ridiculous.
"Again." Naruto said and began rearranging the pieces. Shikamaru smiled slightly and said, "Sure."
This match lasted 60 turns before Shikamaru moved his piece into position and repeated, "Game." Naruto's eyebrows furrowed again and a frustrated look appeared on his face.
"Again." he said forcefully and began rearranging the pieces. Shikamaru sighed but complied and the group around them sat in stunned silence for the next match.
At turn 100, Naruto moved his piece and said, "Game." confidantly. Shikaku and Shikamaru blinked and looked at the board before looking back at Naruto. Chouji, Chouza, Hamako, and Yoshino all had their jaws on the ground as Shikamaru held his hand out.
"I have never had anyone my age beat me before Naruto, good game." he said as Naruto shook his hand with a huge smile on his face.
"That was actually fun, can we do that again?" he asked. Shikamaru smiled and nodded his head, glad to have someone other than his father or Asuma to play against.
Naruto looked up at the sky and noticed it was starting to get dark. "I think I should head home." he said. "It's getting late and I need to go to sleep." the group agreed with him and Shikamaru packed up his board while everyone else got ready. Chouji and his family waved at Naruto and the Nara family as they walked away, Naruto with one last invite to come eat in the Akimichi clan restaurants.
As they were walking, Naruto recalled that he had often been thrown out of restaurants but he had never come into the clan district. It was too far away. He smiled as he walked down the street heading to the fork in the road that would lead to the central hub and indicate the separating of him and his new friend. It had been a great ending to a horrible realization. But he was determined to remain positive and kept his happy feelings as they neared the fork.
"Naruto," Shikamaru started gaining his attention, "where could I find you, say 3 tomorrow afternoon?" he asked.
Naruto scratched his head as he grinned, "Probably around training ground 7." he replied.
Shikamaru nodded and smiled as they reached the fork in the road. "Well, it was nice meeting you Naruto. I'll be by tomorrow with a few things you will probably like." he said cryptically before he shook Naruto's hand.
"What is it?" Naruto shouted while holding onto Shikamaru's hand firmly. He wouldn't let go until Shikamaru told him.
Shikamaru chuckled, "I will only tell you tomorrow Naruto. I need to look at some stuff for you." he explained a bit. Naruto's eyes squinted but he finally nodded and let go of Shikamaru before turning and bowing to Yoshino and Shikaku. He thanked them for dinner before turning and beginning to walk home.
Once he was out of earshot, Shikamaru turned to his parents, "We need to talk." he said, his usually lazy voice displaying a level of seriousness they never knew he had. Shikaku and Yoshino sighed, having a genius child creates alot of problems.
Naruto looked up at the darkening sky as he walked into his apartment. "Today was nice. I wonder when I will see Kurenai-san again." he thought as he closed his door and proceeded to his bedroom.
Naruto walked down the street leading to his team's meeting bridge. A bright smile adorned his face as he walked through the village. He was remaining true to what he had discovered yesterday, he would be the same him as always, just trying to lessen his attempts with his teammates.
So, he walked through the village, his fake smile plastered on his face as he was allowing his thoughts to run wild, "I wonder what Kurenai-san is doing?" his mind came up with first. He shook his head as he smiled a bitter smile, "Probably teaching her team. Not that Kakashi-sensei trains us in anything. " He reached a distance where he could pick out his teammates standing on the bridge and a wave of disappointment and sadness washed through him, "If this could be called a team." he thought to himself.
He let his eyes wander to the clouds in the sky and his fake smile was replaced with a small smile of happiness, "What is Shikamaru gonna bring me?" he thought to himself. "I hope its training books, Ooooh! I bet its going to be some awesome jutsus!" Naruto's normal exuberance shining through as he thought of learning flashy jutsus and defeating his enemies while finally arriving at the bridge. He opened his mouth, his previous exuberance still in effect as he shouted, "Ohayo Sakura, Sasuke."
Though he was still his normally loud self, he did not add the affectionate '-chan' to the end of Sakura's name because of her actions leading up to this point. Naruto's exuberance was smashed as Sasuke and Sakura gave their usual greetings, "Hn." Sasuke grunted before ignoring him again.
Sakura, on the other hand, marched over to him and smacked him on the back of the head as he smiled at his team. He never saw it coming as he felt dirt enter his mouth and looked up to see Sakura with eyes almost burning with, what she believed to be, righteous fury. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Sasuke looking back over at him with his usual Uchiha pride but the smirk on his face was unmistakable. Naruto's heart clenched as Sakura began to speak, "You Baka!" she shouted at him, "Because of you, our whole day yesterday was wasted and we couldn't take any missions!" she berated him as Naruto's eyes turned to an almost icy blue.
Naruto dusted himself off and turned around, ""I'm not done with you!" Sakura shouted and reached out to turn him back around. Only Kakashi's arrival, 2 and a half hours early, saved her from being struck with Naruto's clawed hands.
Unknown to Sasuke or Sakura, Kakashi had seen Naruto's eyes flash red as his two teammates continued to berate him for not being there the day before. He had not come up with an answer about what to do with his team when Naruto had appeared today and greeted them. He had smiled under his mask when he heard Naruto's loud shout even without the affectionate term for Sakura, his plan for their teamwork could still work without his infatuation of Sakura. In fact, he had been even happier to see that Naruto had given up on her as he didn't like his sensei's son being abused by the pinkette.
That didn't make him stop her though, if Naruto wanted to allow her to hit him, it was not his place to tell him otherwise, only if it would hurt their team dynamic, despite any personal feelings, would he interfere with their relationships. The love triangle that the team had, was not important enough for him to address just yet. He felt they would grow out of their crushes as they matured and it would only be worked through with time.
"Maa Maa, Sakura-chan. Naruto must have a good reason for leaving us early yesterday." Kakashi said from behind Sakura. Sakura whirled around with wide eyes, even Sasuke was staring at their early sensei while Naruto's hands were clenching and unclenching as his hands turned back to normal. After a few moments, Naruto turned back around and looked at Kakashi with icy blue eyes.
Kakashi's single eye widened but Sakura and Sasuke did not see it as they tried to comprehend that Kakashi was actually there. Kakashi almost took a step back from the likeness of his sensei in Naruto's face, the only thing stopping him was the fact that this was Naruto. Instantly, Kakashi's mind went into overdrive as he took in this latest complication for his team. "Shit, I thought we could salvage this but it seems Naruto has had enough of it. This is bad, especially with what I saw earlier. I'm going to have to step in if it gets out of hand. If his eyes flash red again, I am bringing him to Hokage-sama for the seal to be checked." he thought to himself as all his plans for teamwork went flying out the proverbial window, "Plus it seems this team will never work together." Kakashi witheld his sigh as he eye-smiled at Naruto.
"What are we doing today Kakashi-sensei?" Naruto asked without his usual exuberance. Sasuke's eyes darted to Naruto's and only his pride kept him from shivering at the cold look within them. He instantly knew something was wrong. He had thought, just as Kakashi did, that, because he was his usual self, Naruto was fine, but this action only proved that it was far from the truth. The Naruto he knew, would never have such an uncaring look in his eyes, as if his teammates meant nothing to him. As if, they did not exist except as things you might pass over when walking around, such as a twig or a bush.
He hated that look. The look that said 'you are beneath me' and more. It was so alike Itachi's eyes on that night. Sasuke shivered and turned away from his comrade, his closest friend, the person who understood him best, despite him not acknowledging it.
Sakura was woefully oblivious to Naruto's gaze as she simply yelled at him before turning to face Kakashi, "So, what's the excuse?" she shouted.
Naruto simply ignored her as he stared into Kakashi's eye, awaiting the answer to his question. Kakashi mentally shivered but said, "Alright, I need to talk to Naruto. Sakura-chan, Sasuke, please head to the Hokage tower and wait for us so we can pick up our mission for the day." he turned to them and eyesmiled as he mentally prepared himself for this talk. His tone of voice was polite but it was obviously an order.
Sakura's face lit up as she heard she would be alone with her crush, it was slightly dampened by the annoyance she felt towards Naruto. Though she found him an annoyance, she did wonder what would possess him to leave their training early, he had always been one to love training, always asking for more. But she quickly brushed that aside as she nodded to her sensei before turning and looking for Sasuke, only to find he had already started walking away from the bridge.
Sasuke didn't wait around. He was glad to escape such a gaze, had it registered that it was Naruto who was the owner of said gaze, he might have become angry but the reappearance of those memories kept him from realizing this fact, and so he simply escaped so he could sort out his confused thoughts.
As his two teammates left, Naruto's icy blue eyes seemed to regain their usual brightness as he leaned against the bridge's railing and looked over the river underneath their bridge. He didn't look up at his sensei as Kakashi leaned against the rail next to him. Naruto's mind was in turmoil. He couldn't believe how his teammates treated him! He had greeted them happily and they had ignored him, in Sasuke's case, or beat him before berating him, in Sakura's case. Neither of them checked to see if it might have been something wrong, as people who care about others usually did. Neither of them even thought he might have a good reason for walking off, regardless of the fact he didn't, it was the principle of the matter. His eyes stung as tears threatened to come to his eyes, but he blinked them back. Naruto's resolve set in stone before Kakashi even spoke, he would never attempt to help his teammates, outside of practice, again.
Kakashi sighed as he stood next to Naruto. He couldn't tell what the blonde was thinking and it scared him. He was usually a good reader. He could almost always tell what a person was feeling or the direction of their thoughts, when he had gotten the sharingan it had only improved his already keen insight. This was the reason he was able to fight S-rank Ninja. The reason he was S-rank himself when he used his sharingan. But this Naruto had somehow managed to go from a complete open book two days ago, to an unreadable ninja in the same time. Kakashi looked down, saddened that this had happened but he knew he needed to speak with Naruto for this team to work.
"Naruto." Kakashi began slowly. "What's wrong?" he asked.
Naruto didn't even look up as he answered his sensei in a fake happy voice that almost had Kakashi fooled, "Nothing Kakashi-sensei! What did you want to speak about?"
Kakashi wasn't fooled, he could see something was bothering Naruto and it was affecting the team's teamwork he sighed before standing away from the railing and facing Naruto with the full force of his presence bearing down on his student, "Naruto, whatever is happening with you has been affecting the team's efficiency and ability to work together." Kakashi stated in a firm tone, the first time Naruto had seen him be serious about something. Still, Naruto did not look up at his sensei as he contemplated what Kakashi was saying, "I try to keep from invading your personal lives but when it comes to this team, you need to be able to work with your teammates and obviously, something from your life is affecting that. I need you to tell me what that is." Kakashi said. Still, Naruto would not look up.
Naruto heard everything that his sensei was saying but he was mentally screaming in his head, "This isn't a team and you do not teach us anything!" as his mind replayed the events on the bridge for the past two days. He cringed slightly when he thought of the overwhelming sense of hate that had emanated from himself when Sakura had reached out to touch him again. He, somehow, knew he had tapped into that forbidden and evil chakra laying dormant inside him. He shivered as he thought of the unrestrained bloodlust that had engulfed him when he had only barely touched the vast ocean that was Kyuubi. Though he had managed to keep a lid on the feelings so his team wouldn't see or sense anything, he had bore the full brunt of the feeling. That was why he could almost shrug off Kakashi's presence even while he was standing so close to him. The lingering feeling of Kyuubi's oppressive nature overshadowing anything his sensei could provide.
Kakashi waited for Naruto to answer, but when there was no visible affect of his words, Kakashi resorted to something he had hoped never to use against the blonde, "Naruto." he stated his voice firm and carrying a tone of authority that had not been there before, the tone of an ANBU captain, "I am going to have to suspend your ninja license if you can not tell me what is wrong," Here, Naruto's air of fake happiness and restrained disappointment turned to one of shock, Naruto could not see the frown on Kakashi' face, "It will be suspended until such a time that a mental fortitude test can be taken and a ninja psychiatrist has deemed you fit to return to duty. Your attack on your comrade earlier today shows that you need help and if you are not willing to talk to me then I must, as your sensei, protect you and my other students." he said.
Naruto finally turned to look at his sensei, his eyes still had that shine from before but Kakashi could see the hint of icy blue beneath them. Naruto stared into Kakashi's lone eye for a few seconds before his eyes turned icy cold again and Kakashi mentally cringed, "Wrong move Kakashi." he thought to himself.
"Team?" Naruto stated incredulously, "This is no team Kakashi-sensei." Kakashi's eye widened, "If I am to be brought to the psychiatrist then Sakura should be sent for repeatedly attacking me outside of a spar and the Uchiha should be sent on counts of insubordination as he constantly ignores you." Naruto said in a odd voice. "Our teamwork is horrible but you already knew that didn't you?" he questioned rhetorically, "You are even worse," Naruto said while pointing at Kakashi, "you don't teach us anything and you expect us to work together simply because we were put on the same team," Kakashi's eye hardened, but Naruto didn't seem to notice, "I will no longer attempt to make friends with my teammates," Kakashi's eye widened slightly but the fierce gleam in his eye told anyone that he would have words about this, "They do not want my friendship, during missions and team exercises I will attempt to work together but outside of that, this team is dead and it is a disappointment to the Will of Fire Jiji speaks of." Naruto said as he glared into his sensei's shocked eyes.
Naruto blinked and his eyes seemed to lose some of it's icyness. He looked shocked that he had said everything he did but he shrugged it off before nodding his head and turning to walk away.
Kakashi looked down, saddened that Naruto actually thought that. But he was adamant that his teaching methods were the correct path. Their teamwork needs the most work and he was going to make sure that they worked as a cohesive unit when working on missions. His eye picked out Naruto as he vanished into the crowd of people heading to the Hokage tower. He shook his head, deciding to consult the Hokage before making any further decisions regarding Naruto. He disappeared in a swirl of leaves to meet his team at the Tower for their mission.
Naruto plastered a big smile on his face as he walked towards the Hokage Tower leaving his sensei behind. He didn't know why he said all those things. He had no idea he even thought that until just now when he voiced them. He mentally frowned as he realized that he had not actually contemplated saying those things until Kakashi had threatened him. Despite this, he could not figure out why he had said such hurtful things. His team may not be perfect but they were still decent companions when they were forced to work together right?
"You know exactly why you said those things Naruto." an ethereal voice whispered to Naruto. Naruto stopped and his eyes unfocused as he was caught by surprise. He looked around swiftly, his blonde locks swishing in the air as he tried to find the source of the voice.
"Who's there?" he asked quietly. His eyes darted around trying to find his opponent, "Show yourself!" he almost yelled drawing the glares of the populous to him. Naruto immediately looked sheepish from all of the glares and scratched the back of his head in embarrassment as he smiled at them all. Most just scoffed and muttered under their breath before continuing their walk. The others continued to glare at him as he started to walk again.
Naruto walked through the village with little care in the world as the incident with the voice had been written off as Naruto's lack of sleep because he was getting up earlier than normal for practices. Naruto continued towards the Hokage Tower, completely ignoring the little voice in the back of his head that sounded like it let go an exasperated sigh.
Naruto walked onto Training ground 7 with a smile on his face as he noticed that Shikamaru was already there. He put the horrible D rank mission behind him. His team had been forced to capture Tora the cat again and they had spent most of the day attempting to catch it. Oddly enough, Naruto had been the one to capture Tora, and upon petting the demonic kitten, the thing had turned into a motorboat as it purred all the way to the Hokage Tower while sitting docilely in Naruto's arms.
True to his word, Naruto had worked well with his teammates, at least as well as was possible with their current teamwork, and the mission had gone rather smoothly. Kakashi had seemed mildly shocked but still not happy. Naruto had all but crushed his loudmouth nature next to his teammates through sheer willpower alone. It had created an awkward tension between the team but they had worked together nonetheless. Naruto couldn't be happier.
As Naruto drew closer however, his smile faded as he saw a pile of books sitting next to Shikamaru. By the time he was near Shikamaru he was eyeing the books with a wary eye as he greeted his friend, whose amused expression did not bode well for Naruto. "Konnichiwa Shikamaru." Naruto greeted loudly as he grinned happily despite the growing feeling of dread forming in the pit of his stomach.
"Konnichiwa Naruto." Shikamaru said in his usual lazy drawl. He withheld the smirk that threatened to come to his lips as he saw Naruto eye the pile of books beside him with disdain. He knew Naruto was not very good at reading books but he had made sure, after a long talk with his parent's about what he could remove from their library, the books were fairly easy on the comprehension needed. "I brought you a few things I thought you might like." he said to Naruto.
Naruto's eyes widened and he started to jump on the balls of his feet, "Ne ne, is it some cool jutsu that we can use to burn those books?" he said while pointing at Shikamaru's pile of books. Naruto's smile was ear splitting.
Shikamaru sweatdropped, "How can he be so serious and down to Konoha one moment while being completely out the village the next?" he questioned to himself before looking at Naruto and shaking his head, "No," he said which prompted Naruto to stand still and begin to glare at the books. "I brought you some books on what I think would help you immensely." he said.
Naruto turned to Shikamaru with a full on pout, "Mou! But I hate reading!" he complained.
Shikamaru sighed and with a muttered "troublesome" began to hand each book over to Naruto one at a time as he watched Naruto grab them reluctantly.
Shinobi Rules
Basic Chakra Control + Advanced methods for those with large reserves
History of Konoha
How to train
Genjutsu for beginners
Were the five books that Shikamaru handed to him. Naruto's eyebrows furrowed as he looked at them. He opened his mouth and exclaimed, "What would I need History of Konoha for?" he asked, "History won't teach me how to be a better ninja." he exclaimed.
Shikamaru almost frowned but replied, "It will teach you how to use that mind of yours Naruto." he said while chuckling at his own joke, Naruto pouted.
"I can do just fine without this thanks!" he said as he was about to hand the book back, Shikamaru decided to play his trump card.
"But did you know there was a passage about a clan named Uzumaki?" he asked quietly. He knew Naruto did not know who his parents were, as such he was hesitant to bring up the information. He shouldn't have been worried as Naruto's eyes widened and he almost dropped the book before trying to rush through the pages to look at his own clan. Shikamaru smiled slightly as he knew Naruto would be interested then. He looked on as Naruto almost tore a page out of the book and decided to stop his frenzy, "I know you're eager Naruto but there are some other books, besides you get to keep these." he said while smirking.
Naruto's face lit up like a light bulb when he heard he owned something his friend had given to him. He smiled broadly at Shikamaru, his book left laying in his hands as he thanked his friend. "Arigatou, Shikamaru." Naruto said.
Shikamaru nodded and waved at the other books, "Any other questions?" he asked lazily as he slouched down and could feel the need for cloud watching reappear.
Naruto looked at the rest of them before saying, "What's this about genjutsu?" he asked which caused Shikamaru's bored expression to go right back to interested, "I want to blow someone up not try to get into their brains!" he complained loudly.
Shikamaru merely leaned back against a tree trunk and said, "This is probably the best branch of Shinobi arts you can use Naruto." he said. Naruto's eyes narrowed and he replied.
"Nuh uh!" he said, "Jiji said that I would be perfect for ninjutsu."
Shikamaru nodded his head, acceding to the old man's point but disagreed, "Naruto, your mind is a veritable maze of crazy ideas. As a result, you are not the smartest of us." he said drawing a pout from Naruto. "However, when the going gets tough you always seem to come up with some plan or some action that manages to bring you to complete your task better than anyone else can." he explained as he finally looked straight into Naruto's eyes. "Genjutsu would be the perfect area for you as you would be able to create your own jutsu." he explained. Naruto's face had gone from pouting to excitement at hearing him make his own jutsu. "On top of that, with all of your ideas, you would be the most versatile shinobi since the Yondaime Hokage." Naruto's eyes widened.
Time for the icing on the cake, "Plus, so few people think that genjutsu is any good..." he started drawing Naruto's attention back to him from his excitement, "It is said that being a genjutsu master is a waste of time and that only the weakest of shinobi would study this." Shikamaru said drawing a thoughtful look from Naruto, "It is said that to be a master of illusions would be a waste of time and that anyone could beat them. No one ever takes genjutsu seriously." Naruto frowned about to ask why he should even try it then, "So, imagine what everyone would think when you manage to be the most powerful ninja in this village with a specialization in something that everyone else sees as worthless?" Shikamaru finished with a smirk on his face, knowing that would stoke Naruto's flames.
Shikamaru knew Naruto craved acknowledgement. From everything Naruto had told him, he had easily picked out that aspect of Naruto. So, he knew that phrasing his explanation about why genjutsu would be the perfect way to get Naruto to take it up. He was not lying and trying to make him use the wrong branch of jutsu, he truly believed that Naruto would be perfect with genjutsu. His extremely analytical mind while within combat would be an asset to any aspiring genjutsu users. Additionally, Naruto's pranks showed that he had a creative mind and this would put that creativity to use instead of it being squandered by preset ninjutsus that Naruto would be consistently firing off. On top of all of that, Naruto's stealth was phenomenal. If Naruto used his stealth in combination with even a basic sense altering genjutsu, Naruto would be one of the greatest assassins the world had ever seen.
Knowing Naruto would crave acknowledgement, Shikamaru planned to make him a genjutsu master on par with Yuuhi Kurenai. He knew that taking advantage of Naruto's craving for acknowledgement might be considered unfriendly, but Shikamaru was using it to Naruto's own advantage as, if he was useful with genjutsu, then any ninjutsu he learned would be excess as he wouldn't have to rely on them as most ninja did. He was hoping to make Naruto into an unstoppable force on the battelfield and help him achieve his goal of being Hokage. Shikamaru was smart enough to know that Naruto's natural charisma, which had managed to spark his own curiousity, would benefit Konoha best from within the Hokage position. That is not to say he was doing this for Konoha. Naruto wished it and it just so happened to coincide nicely for Konoha's future, should Naruto decide to give up on being Hokage, Shikamaru would support his decision. After all, Shikamaru was more of a friend than he would ever be a shinobi.
Naruto's eyes roared with a fire from within him as he looked at Shikamaru's smirk. "They don't think that genjutsu is any good?" he stated incredulously, "I'll show them!" he proclaimed as he raised his fist to the air, "I will become a master of genjutsu and then become Hokage to show them all that genjutsu isn't worthless!" he shouted.
Shikamaru leaned back and smiled a lazy smile, "Then I guess you have no more questions about those books?" he asked. Naruto looked back at Shikamaru and grinned foxily.
"Nope. Arigatou Shikamaru!" he said loudly. Shikamaru simply nodded lazily.
"If you need anymore books Naruto, just ask." he said before starting to walk away. "You can come eat dinner anytime at my house, my troublesome mother has invited you." he said as he left the training grounds.
Naruto smiled and looked down at his books. He was eager to read about his clan but the genjutsu book as well, "Kurenai-san is a master of genjutsu. I wonder if..." he thought to himself, "Nah, she already denied me. I will train by myself. Besides, she has her own team. I will prove that Genjutsu is useful." That was part of the reason he had agreed with Shikamaru at the end of his speech, unknown to the boy himself. Naruto had remembered that Kurenai was a master of genjutsu and he would be damned if her art was looked down upon. Naruto suddenly smiled foxily, his mind already coming up with different ways to use illusions. After all, this was the same mind that came up with the Oiroke no Jutsu.
A/N: Nothing really to say except I am loving the feedback for my story! Keep it up, even those who disagree with me, it is interesting to hear your take on the story.
Reviews:
My Kakashi 'bashing' is not so much bashing as it is my take on how Kakashi would act. Continue reading and you will see what I mean, I am not bashing him by making him a 'demon hater' or something of the like, I am using the traits we have seen of him to create a character that Naruto actually sees for what he is.
One person asked how long Naruto can go without food, it is proven a normal person could go without food for up to a week with just water because of our bodies components. His body is further enhanced by the Kyuubi's youki and his own chakra. Within the manga, their bodies are much more durable than our own. If I had to make a definite number, close to 2 weeks with just clean water.
Bleedndreamz made a point of fleshing out Kurenai's character. I suppose I should have made this clear, you will see some of story from a 'third person' view as if you were standing there and looking at the characters as if through a TV. Like if you watch an anime you can see stuff the main character misses? That is the feeling you will get by reading this fic. You will see Naruto's assumptions and conclusions but rarely ever see anything else besides a quick switch to another point of view for a couple of paragraphs. There is a reason behind this. Though, this will happen throughout the main beginning of the story, after certain facts have been revealed, i.e. his heritage and the like, you will see others' backstories and characters fleshed out further.
luvdarkharry... all I can say is that If I could add a third tag it would be angst. If you don't like it, you probably won't like this fic, it will be an emotional roller coaster so make of that what you will.
Simukai, my Naruto is going to sorta seem schizophrenic to a point. It is possible for a person to be like this and he will swing back and forth at odd times. Nothing so serious a swing as he did in this chapter but he will change his emotion. As for the chapters not clicking, I'm not sure how old you are, but I know myself, when I was a teenager I felt like it was me against the world, no matter the fact I had at least 10 friends willing to go to hell and back for me it still felt like I was alone. Naruto has that feeling even more intensely. He knows they are there for him but it still is almost a small comfort. It will slowly grow.
Knight2000, you don't like his eyes, I suppose I explained them wrong, his eyes look like a veteran in the case that he has a mask up like most do who hide their pain or sadness. He recognizes the look from war veterans that regret or have a great sadness they attempt to hide. That was the feeling I was going for but it came out wrong now that you point it out. I couldn't think of another way to write it however.
Finally, I don't remember who, and I can't seem to find the review, but someone mentioned how Shikamaru is a complete stranger to Naruto, that is false, in canon it was proven Naruto skipped classes with Chouji, Shiamaru, and Kiba back during the Academy. He is not a complete stranger and Shikamaru was a friendly face who was there to help. Again, this is close to Naruto's canon self who tells everyone everything.