Chapter 4
Unknown-nin345: Hello and thank you for sticking with the story so far.
And just I don't get asked who has what element here you go: Nadare=Ice/Snow; Kaen=Water; Naruto=Fire; Denkou=Lightning.
Sorry it took so long to get this posted; it was a combination of getting acclimated to my new school, studying hard for the mid-terms followed by my SATs, and discovering my newest video game addiction: Guitar Hero-World Tour & Metallica (even though I'm stuck on medium for both games).
Summary: Four brothers, all cursed by what they hold. They grow & learn to be one with the shadows, but now their father & mentor decides the four should step into the light & show the world what they can do…
Disclaimer: I don't own any names/abilities/clothing/quotes/weapons/jutsus/bloodline limits from any other manga/anime/cartoon/book/video game/movie/fanfiction aside from those I made up. If you can't tell what it is that I made up.... then go read a book.
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The brothers were in high spirits as they made their way through the twisting and turning maze of tunnels beneath the sewers. Beating up a jackass who fervently hated what you were could put anyone in a good mood.
"We were awesome bros," Denkou cheered.
"Oh, yes dudes and dudettes, major league butt-kicking is back in town!" Naruto announced with his arms raised.
Nadare leaped around a corner and shouted, "Awesome!"
Naruto came up, laughing, and clapped a hand on his brother's shoulder as he said, "Righteous."
"Bossa nova!"
Nadare and Naruto paused and turned to look back at Denkou before they asked together, "Bossa nova?"
Denkou shrugged as he suggested, "Chevy nova?" When the two looked at each other in exasperation, the brunette tapped his clawed fingers in thought before he did an arm pump and shouted, "Excellent!" The other two gave approving shouts and high-fived Denkou before moving on.
"C'mon, let's move it. I'm starving," Naruto said. "We're talking major pizza-crave here dudes."
"Ooh pizza, I need it!" Denkou agreed.
Behind the three, Kaen followed quietly. He was trying to discern the feeling that had been nagging at the back of his head since the four of them had left the clearing. It was like that feeling one gets when they've forgotten something important and its hovering right beyond your grasp. So while his brothers were able to cheer and celebrate amongst themselves, Kaen pondered over the feeling that he was missing something.
Soon, the four came to the entrance to the Den. As he watched his brothers enter, Kaen turned back to where they had just come from as if seeking an answer from the stone wall.
Overcome by his frustrations, the boy muttered a soft, "Damn," before entering the Den. Nadare shushed the others as they entered the Den. The four quickly spotted Splinter, who was sitting on a meditation mat, and made their way over to him.
Nadare knelt down before Splinter and excitedly said, "We have had our first battle, Master Splinter. We disable our foe's abilities and kicked--" He paused before he calmed down and finished, "We fought well." Naruto and Denkou nodded their agreement.
"Were you seen?" Splinter asked, referring to their true forms. Kaen was the only one who didn't shake his head since he was still trying to figure out the bad feeling he had. (A/N: They're not counting Iruka because he saw them before they changed)
"In that, you must never lapse. Even those who would be our allies would be hard-pressed to fully understand. As shinobi, your domain is the shadow. Stray from it reluctantly for when you do, you must strike hard and fast, then fade away without a trace." He looked over the ones he called his sons as he said, "I am proud that all four of you are now one step closer to being genins, however, I wish to know what occurred tonight. The Hokage sent me a missive that stated Naruto had stolen an important scroll and I would like to hear the full tale."
Naruto took the lead in telling Splinter about what had occurred since his final exam, leaving out that he had a date with Hinata the next day. When he finished relaying the events of the night, Splinter closed his eyes in thought.
"Truly, the events that occurred tonight provide some cause for concern. Many questions arise from these events, several without answers. However, there is one question that I feel can be answered right now." Splinter opened his eyes and looked at Naruto before he asked, "Why did the mention of Orochimaru fill you with such anger my son?"
Naruto was silent for a moment as he clenched a fist and looked off to the side. "Lately, I've been having these odd dreams," The blonde began. "I didn't know why I was even having them until in one of the dreams I looked down into a puddle and saw a fox's face looking back at me." He looked back at the others and dropped the bombshell, "I think I was seeing Kyuubi's memories."
"That's all well and good, but what does it have to do with Orochimaru?" Kaen asked.
Naruto sighed and looked down at the stone floor before he continued, "In one of the memories, I'm walking through a forest when I heard yips and cries of pain. I started running towards the owners of the cries and I suddenly came up on this clearing. In the center of the clearing were these two fox kits, thrashing and flailing about on their backs with odd black markings spreading over their fur. Standing over them was Orochimaru, who was so intently studying the kits that he didn't notice me, and I dimly heard him mutter, 'I guess it doesn't work on animals after all, such a pity.' After he said that I could literally feel my blood boil and I rushed at Orochimaru. The pale bastard finally noticed I was there and promptly fled the clearing before I could get him. I was just about to chase him down when the two kits called out to me. They-"
Naruto paused as tears welled in his sapphire eyes before his next sentence came out as a whisper, "They begged me to kill them. They wanted the pain to end so much and when I looked down at them, I could feel their pain." Naruto looked back up at the four stunned listeners as he continued, "The Kyuubi was hurt greatly when it did what those two kits asked. After that, I could only remember anger…and the symbol on Orochimaru's hitai-ate: the symbol of Konohagakure."
The five of them fell silent when Naruto finished speaking; Splinter in contemplation while the brothers were trying to stem their rising anger.
"Do not be completely angry at what occurred my sons, especially you Naruto," Splinter said suddenly. Each of the brothers looked at him in disbelief as he continued, "It is true that because of that man's actions you lost your family and had the Kyuubi sealed into you. However, it is also true that because of what he did, I traveled to Konoha and found you, my son. If Orochimaru had never done what he did then you, Naruto, would have never known your brothers as you do now. Would you trade the family and life you have now for one that would be completely unknown to you?" Naruto looked at his brothers; the three he had grown up all of his life with and knew his answer as soon as his eyes met theirs.
When Naruto shook his head, Splinter nodded and closed his eyes as he said, "I suggest we meditate now, on the events of this evening." Because his eyes were closed, Splinter never saw Naruto lean over to Denkou and mouth something to the brunette. The brown-haired boy nodded and quietly rushed over to the stereo.
Splinter had barely started his meditations when an upbeat jazz song (A/N: The one from the first Turtle's movie in the Den) began playing throughout the room. His black eyes snapped open and he quickly spotted Naruto and Denkou doing an impromptu dance on the training mat with their tails wrapped around their bodies as belts.
When he noticed Splinter looking over at the two of them, Naruto held out his hands and defensively said, "Well, this is sort of like meditating." Splinter just shook his head.
Nadare, who was bouncing to the music on his meditation mat with his tail wagging to the beat, noticed Kaen throwing on one of his darker trench-coats and asked, "Hey Kaen, where you going?"
"Out to a movie," He answered shortly. Kaen turned to Nadare with a wide-brimmed hat in his hand as he mockingly asked, "That okay with you?"
Nadare held up his hands as he lightly answered to stem off the green-skinned jinchuuriki's ire, "Yeah."
The jinchuuriki of the Sanbi headed for the door, but stopped right as he grabbed the handle and partially turned his head back to his brothers. He smiled lightly when he saw that Naruto, who had leaned a little too far back for one of the dance movements, was on the floor holding his head in pain while cursing every maker of stone in existence amidst laughs from the other two. Kaen shook his head in amusement as he left, hoping to rid himself of his bad feeling.
(One Hour Later)
Kaen exited the movie theater and walked a couple steps away before he looked back at it, along with the title, Critters, before shaking his head and groaning with disgust.
"Where do they come up with this stuff?" The jinchuuriki of the Sanbi asked to no one.
The silvery light of the moon bathed the quiet streets of Konoha in a luminescent glow as Kaen quietly strode through them. The boy turned his sea-green eyes, his headband having been left back at the Den, up to the shining moon as he kept walking. The four brothers had always liked staring up at the moon, for no other reason than that it was soothing to them and provided them with rare feelings of complete peace.
Because of this though, he didn't notice the female figure coming around the corner until they were both sent crashing to the ground. The two regained their feet and Kaen was able to get a good look at the girl he had bumped into.
She had flaming red hair that came down to her shoulders with a lock or two falling down into her face and a purple beanie resting no top of her head. The red head was wearing a skintight black tanktop underneath an open bright crimson jacket that displayed, yet at the same time, hid her perky B-cup breasts. She had black vinyl pants covering her legs with a golden ringlet-chain belt. Hanging on a small rope from said belt was a shining silver flute.
Kaen was just about to grudgingly apologize when she beat him to the punch, in a different way.
"Watch where you're fucking going you fucking motherfucker!" The redhead shouted.
Kaen blinked in surprise before he shouted back at her, "Well maybe if I weren't blind like a certain bitch, then maybe we wouldn't have ended up on the fucking ground flat chest!"
It was the redhead's turn to blink in surprise. Men usually told her to watch her mouth or just completely ignored her whenever she cursed; this one came out and cursed right back in her face. She smirked in excitement as she thought, 'Finally! A man who can keep up with me.'
"Who're you calling a flat chest you monkey-shit asshole!" She shouted in a challenging tone.
Kaen raised an eyebrowless-eyebrow, recognizing the challenge and smirked as he responded, "You, ya bitchy cock-juggling thunder-cunt!"
This continued on for another minute or two with the two cussers' respect and admiration growing with each phrase. Soon, the two were out of breath and both silently agreed on a ceasefire to get their second wind. During that pause, a sudden gust of strong wind sprung up out of nowhere and blew both of their hats promptly off their heads.
Kaen stared in amazement at the new additions on the head of the girl before him that had just been concealed by her beanie. A pair of golden jagged horns curved upwards and back on both sides of her head. Likewise with the redhead, Kaen's true form kept her from immediately shouting.
When she finally found her voice she softly asked, "What the hell are you?"
Kaen was silent for a moment for a moment before he asked, "If I tell you about me, will you tell me about you?" When she nodded he cleared his throat and said, "I'm Kajiarashi Kaen, jinchuuriki for the Sanbi no Isonade. When the bijuu was sealed into me, a lot of the youkai entered into my chakra system, and, well… gave me certain physical characteristics of the bijuu I contain." He removed his trenchcoat and combat boots so that the red-haired girl could see some of his more defining traits.
After a moment of silence the girl said, "My name is Yuureiko Tayuya, I'm half-human and half…" She turned her head away from Kaen and finished, "daemon." She closed her eyes as she expected shouts of fear or anger from the turtle-boy in front of her. When she didn't hear anything she tentatively looked back at Kaen, who was simply waiting for her to continue.
Tayuya took a steadying breath as she mentally prepared to tell the boy before her what she had never told anyone else before now, "My mother was a member of a cult that worshipped daemons. One day, she stumbled on an extremely ancient tome that held information on summoning daemons. So she did what the tome described, but she fucked up big time on the pentagram that was supposed to hold the daemon in place. When she summoned it, the daemon immediately broke free of the pentagram and, sensing that my mother was a young virgin, raped her." She clenched her fists as a disgusted grimace spread across her face. "Nine months later I was born, with these fucking horns on my head! When the rest of the cult discovered what had happened they heaped luxuries and praise on my mother, as if getting raped by a daemon was the greatest thing in the whole world to them!"
Tears began collecting in her eyes as she went on, "When I turned ten, my mother told me about how I was 'conceived'. She also told me that throughout it all she felt extreme pleasure from what the daemon did to her, and that the only reason what happened had been labeled as rape was because she was too 'overwhelmed' by the pleasure to do anything back to the daemon! So here I am, stuck like this because that bitch enjoyed being raped!" Silence fell upon the two; Kaen quietly digesting what had been disclosed to him and Tayuya struggling to hold in her tears.
Kaen rubbed the top of his green head and sighed. "I guess we're not so different from each other," he said as his sea-green eyes met her earthy-brown eyes. "I hate my mother too. Before he did the sealing, my biological father explained to my mother that I would not become the Sanbi, only contain it. Yet, after she saw me like you see me now, she tried to kill me. I would have died then and there if I hadn't been saved by the one that I now call my father." He chuckled mirthlessly and asked, "I guess both out mothers were shitty bitches, huh?"
Tayuya shook her head and smirked, even though her eyes still bore tears, as she said, "Worse than that. They give shitty bitches a bad name."
The two shared a small laugh and smiled lightly at each other, seeing a kindred spirit beneath the traits that made them different from everyone else. Kaen retrieved his hat and tossed Tayuya her beanie as he threw his trenchcoat back on.
Tayuya noticed the questioning look Kaen sent her way after she placed her beanie back on her head. "It has a special seal on it that lets my horns be hidden whenever I put it on. It's not like people will just accept me two horns growing at the sides of my fucking head," she explained. Kaen nodded and placed his own hat back on his head. He then looked back at where he had just come from before turning back to Tayuya.
"The second matinee at the theater should be starting soon, want to go catch it?" he asked.
Tayuya raised an eyebrow and asked in return, "As a date?"
Kaen shrugged and said, "If you want it to be."
Tayuya was silent as she thought it over. Truthfully, she was flattered since her mouth or attitude always turned off other guys and for those that it didn't, they never thought of her as dating material.
Finally, a smile quirked her lips as she said, "Fuck it, my first date could have been worse. Let's go!"
Kaen smiled as well and the two made their way to the movie theater where they watched some sappy romance flick. When they exited after the movie had finished, both were laughing their asses off at how stupid they had found it.
After the two of them calmed down, they walked aimlessly as they talked a little bit more about themselves.
Tayuya revealed that she had run away no long after her mother had told her the truth. A couple days later, a traveling merchant found her out cold on the side of the road and adopted her. She went on to (somewhat) sheepishly admit that the source of why she swore so much was because some of the clients she had met with alongside her adopted father were sailors (and we know how bad they can be, no offense meant to any sailors reading this).
Kaen told that he was also adopted and that he had three brothers who were 'similar' to him, but he didn't go into any details aside from their names. He also told her that he had just graduated from the shinobi academy in Konoha and that he would soon be a genin.
Soon, the two came to a small square that had a fountain in its center with a small clock on top of it.
The two sat down on a stone bench and were silent for a minute or two.
"So, are you leaving soon?" Kaen asked.
Tayuya nodded and said, "Yeah, the day after tomorrow."
Kaen nodded as well before he asked, "Will I be able to see you again?"
"Mmhm, Tou-san visits Konoha every three months and this year that puts us right in time for the Chunin Exams," Tayuya informed him. She looked over at the clock and gasped when she saw what time it was, "Fuck!" She stood up, Kaen rising as well, and turned to the green-skinned jinchuuriki as she said, "I got to go. Tou-san's probably worried about me by now."
Kaen nodded but grabbed her arm before she could leave. When she looked back at him he asked, "Do you think you could meet me here tomorrow around noon? There's something I'd like to show you."
Tayuya cocked an eyebrow and asked, "And just how will I know it's you? Are you gonna dress in drag and do the hula?"
"Very funny," Kaen commented dryly. He held out his ring and said, "You'll know it's me because I'll be wearing this openly around my neck.
The redhead was silent as she committed the details of the ring to her memory. When she had finished she looked back up at Kaen with a devious smile and said, "I guess I'll see ya tomorrow…Ka-kun." Tayuya quickly leaned closer and kissed Kaen on his cheek before she took off, her crimson locks bouncing as she ran.
Kaen wasn't even aware that he had raised his fingers to touch the cheek that had just been kissed as he muttered, "Damn."
-- (The Next Day) --
Tayuya fidgeted nervously as she waited in the square wearing similar clothes to the ones she had worn last night except with the colors reversed. This was going to be her second date with a guy she had just met, but at the same time she felt like she had known him all of her life. The redhead chewed her bottom lip in frustration as thoughts careened through her head that she normally wouldn't have given a second thought towards, most importantly the small splash of guilt.
All these thoughts flew from her though when she finally saw the only person who could possibly be Kaen. He was wearing his normal outfit with a red and black bandana covering the top of his head in place of his hitai-ate, his ring proudly hanging around his neck.
Tayuya's eyes trailed slowly over the rippling muscles covering Kaen's torso as she muttered, "Holy fucking shit!" She quickly wiped away the drool that had begun gathering as Kaen drew nearer.
"Morning bitch," Kaen greeted with a smile.
Tayuya smiled back and said, "Morning ya bastard. So, what was it you wanted to show me?"
Kaen winked and said, "It's a surprise. C'mon, let's get going." With that the two started their trek through the streets of Konoha. As the two walked they talked a little more about each other, mostly just their favorites in a variety of categories (food, music, etc.). Soon, the two exited the crowded streets of the city and came to the village's surrounding forest.
After about ten to fifteen minutes of walking through the forest Tayuya turned to Kaen and was about to ask him something when her breath was stolen by the most beautiful sight she had ever seen in her young life.
Before the two lay a small grove with small lake in the middle that was surrounded by all sorts of beautiful flowers and had a small creek flowing out of it. A waterfall cascaded down into the lake and, with the current angle of the sun, created a rainbow that hovered a short distance above the lake. A mist-like foam rose from where the waterfall connected with the lake and carried the colors of the previously mentioned rainbow.
The stunned redhead turned to Kaen and tried several times to say something about the sight before her. She even lifted her arms to gesture at the scene but let them fall when no words accompanied the gesture.
Kaen nodded and smiled knowingly as he said, "Yeah, I had a similar reaction when I first found this place." He kicked off his boots before he strode over to the edge of the water and let the cool liquid lap against his feet. Tayuya did the same with her sandals as Kaen continued speaking, "Whenever I got a lot on my mind and I just want a quiet place to think, I come out here."
"So, how many other girls have you brought out here?" Tayuya teasingly asked.
"You're the first," Kaen replied without any hesitation.
A smile touched the redhead's lips as she said, "Good answer."
Kaen shrugged and said, "The truth usually is." He sighed peacefully and the two stood in silence for a moment before Kaen continued, "But this isn't all that I wanted to show you." He removed his trenchcoat and threw it back by his boots.
Tayuya looked over when she noticed what he just did, but was speechless for a moment as her eyes took in the up-close sight of Kaen's rock-hard muscular body. She was brought out of her staring by another rustle of clothing and a sudden splash of water. She shook her head and looked over at the smirking boy treading water.
"Come on in, unless you're afraid to get wet Tay-chan!" Kaen shouted at her.
Tayuya softly growled before she stripped out of her jacket, tanktop, and pants until she was left standing in a two-piece white string bikini that left extremely little to Kaen's imagination. Kaen's eyebrows shot up when he noticed the tattoo surrounding her bellybutton (for accurate pic, go here: ) and wolf-whistled as the redhead jumped into the perfect water.
When she reached the sea-green-eyed boy, she splashed him and asked, "Was this just some plot to get to see me in a bikini?"
Kaen splashed her back and said, "Partly. I knew that we'd end up in the water eventually so I was looking forward to right now. Besides you shouldn't be embarrassed, you got a smokin' hot bod."
Tayuya blushed lightly as she said, "Same goes for you stud, except more along the lines of ruggedly ripped. So, now what?"
"Follow me," Kaen said as he began swimming over to the waterfall with Tayuya following. He looked over at her and shouted, "Take a deep breath and follow me!" Before the redhead could say anything, the Jinchuuriki for the Sanbi took a deep breath and dove beneath the water.
Tayuya blew out a frustrated breath before she breathed in deeply and went down below the surface. After her eyes adjusted to being underwater, Tayuya spotted Kaen hovering next to the entrance of an underwater tunnel. The sea-green-eyed boy waited until the brown-eyed girl got closer before he entered the tunnel with Tayuya following behind him.
Just when she thought her lungs were about to burst from the need to breathe, she saw Kaen break the surface and sped up a bit. When she came up, she began breathing in deeply to replenish the needed oxygen. Kaen helped her onto the rocky floor where she laid down and rested as Kaen sat down next to her (his eyes constantly drawn down to her rising and falling chest).
Tayuya cracked her eyes open and smiled when she noticed where Kaen's gaze was. "Pervert," She accused.
Kaen blushed lightly and moved his eyes to hers. "Well, I wouldn't be such a pervert if you weren't so hot," He argued.
The redhead thought on this for a second before she shrugged and agreed, "True."
Both of them stood up and then began walking down the short tunnel. Soon, they came to a dead end.
Tayuya looked over at Kaen with an eyebrow raised and expression that clearly asked: 'This is it?'
Kaen chuckled and placed his hand on a seemingly random spot on the wall. With a grunt he pushed in the spot where his hand was and turned it to the left. With a shudder the wall rose and Tayuya's breath was once again stolen.
A small cavern lay before the two with a small hot spring in the middle of it. This alone wouldn't have been so breathtaking if it hadn't included crystals that jutted out from the walls of the cavern that turned different colors. With each change a small, clear note of varying pitch sounded from each crystal.
Kaen looked over at Tayuya and said, "Whenever everything gets to be too much and I need to get away from everything and just be absolutely alone, I come down here and listen to the crystals."
"It's amazing," The redhead said softly. She looked at Kaen and asked, "Why'd you show me this? We just met after all."
"I can't really explain it," Kaen said with a shrug. He stared into her eyes as he continued, "But, ever since I've gotten to know you, I feel like…well, I don't need to be so alone and by myself. I've never felt this way about anyone before."
Tayuya smiled and said, "Way to be Mr. Romantic."
Kaen smiled back and asked, "Did it work?"
The redhead stepped closer and stood on her tiptoes as she whispered, "Hell yeah," while she closed her eyes and wrapped her arms around Kaen's neck before her lips captured his.
The boy's sea-green eyes widened minutely before he closed them and wrapped his arms around the girl kissing him and drew her bikini-clad body in closer to his. While the two were locked in their embrace, the crystals around them changed to a soft shade of blue.
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-- (With Naruto/ Later that day) --
The blonde Jinchuuriki nervously shuffled his feet as he waited outside the Hyuuga clan's main gate for the guard to come back with Hinata. He wasn't nervous about how the guards would react to him coming for Hinata; thankfully the Hyuuga clan never saw him as the Kyuubi thanks to their Byakugan, which allowed them to see that the fox's chakra was mostly separate from his. Instead he was nervous about how the date would go as well as how he looked.
He was wearing black pants that had dual orange stripes running up the side with the hems of his pants being wrapped with shinobi tape that led down to his shinobi-styled sandals. On his torso was a dark orange t-shirt that had a thin black stripe going up the middle of it with an open black vest over it that had a red spiral on the back. Finally, since he wasn't wearing his hitai-ate (or his headband, the orange one), a couple strands of his blonde hair fell down onto his forehead and into his sapphire eyes.
He was brought out of his nervous musings by the sound of the gate opening followed by Hinata's, as always, gentle voice, "Good afternoon Naruto-kun." The blonde looked up at the lavender-eyed girl and if it could have, his jaw would have surely crashed through the ground.
The midnight-blue-haired girl was wearing a button-up black shirt with white swirling designs that gave the blonde a good view of Hinata's cleavage as well as a hint of her firm, toned stomach since she had neglected to button the bottom two buttons. On her sensuous legs were black hip-hugging pants that clung to her curvy hips and legs. Dangling from each ear was a sapphire earring in the shape of a tear and she had on only the tiniest splashes of makeup around her pearl-like eyes and on her lips.
The lightly blushing girl was mentally cheering at the blonde's expression, 'Yatta! Operation: Stupefy Naruto-kun is a success! I'm going to have to definitely thank ba-san for these clothes later.'
"Wow," Naruto whispered reverently. "I must have gone to heaven, for surely Kami-sama's most beautiful angel is standing here before me," The blonde said, making the Hyuuga heiress's blush darken slightly. The two guards, even if they didn't show it, were impressed with the line and were memorizing it for when they would take their girlfriends out.
"You are looking quite handsome yourself Naruto-kun," Hinata complimented back with a sincere smile.
Naruto smiled somewhat sheepishly as he said, "Thanks Hinata." He quickly looked over at the setting sun and turned back to Hinata. "We should be going now, or else we're going to miss the show," He said and held out a hand to the shy heiress.
Hinata placed her hand in his and marveled at how well they seemed to fit together before she said, "I wouldn't want to miss it for the world."
Hand in hand the two walked through the streets of Konoha. A few of the villagers that saw that the two of them walking together holding hands were confused at what the shy, pure Hyuuga heiress was doing with the 'Kyuubi'. Surely someone as pure and pristine as the heiress couldn't be willingly corrupted by a demon, could they?
But, seeing the girl giggling softly at the story that the blonde was telling her made a small amount of villagers wonder if, perhaps, they were wrong about the blonde-haired boy.
Soon, the two came to a spot below the Hokage monument and Naruto stopped walking. He turned to a curious Hinata and pulled out a black blindfold.
In response to her questioning look he asked, "Could you put this on Hinata? I want where we're going to be a surprise." Hinata accepted the blindfold with a nod and tied it on her head over her eyes.
When he saw that she was done, he gently grabbed her right hand and placed it on his shoulder before he formed a handseal. "Hold on tight Hinata, and don't let go," Naruto said. After he was sure she had secure grip on his shoulder he calmly intoned, "Shushin no Jutsu."
In a 'poof' of smoke, the two disappeared and reappeared on top of the Hokage Monument. After the smoke dissipated, Hinata swayed unsteadily and nearly fell to her knees before Naruto grabbed her in a gentle hug that sent the midnight-blue-haired girl blushing at the feeling of Naruto's muscular body.
"Sorry 'bout that Hinata, I should've told you that the first time is always a little unsettling," Naruto apologized.
Hinata took a shaky breath before she replied, "T-that's okay Naruto-kun. It wasn't that bad." She regained her footing and regretfully pulled herself from Naruto's body. "I'm okay now."
Naruto smiled, "Good." He grabbed her hand and started guiding Hinata to where he had set up their picnic as he teasingly said, "I hope you're not using your Byakugan to peek. Otherwise it won't be a surprise."
Hinata smiled since the thought had occurred to her, although for other (less pure) reasons, before she said, "Don't worry Naruto-kun. I'm not peeking."
"Good," Naruto said before he stopped and turned towards Hinata, still holding her delicate hand. "You can take off the blindfold now."
Hinata reached up with her free hand and pulled off her blindfold, the loose knot she had tied easily coming undone. The sight that greeted her lavender eyes prompted a soft gasp to pass her lips as he hand let the blindfold flutter down to the ground. It wasn't the black cloth that had a small assortment of food laid out on it along with the lavender candles burning slowly, but what lay beyond.
A golden-orange sun was setting, changing the sky to various hues that only a sunset could create; the deep-red that turned into rich purple which led up to the remainder of the sapphire-blue sky. The few clouds that lingered in the sky had either been painted magenta with a light pink bottom or golden with a hood of grey. Dotted across the purple expanse in the sky were the night's first stars, each eagerly waiting for the sun to sink so that they could shine to their full radiance.
All Hinata could utter were words that she felt would never be able to fully describe the sight she was seeing, "It's so beautiful."
Naruto nodded in agreement, "Yeah. I like to come up here every now and then to just watch the sunset or sunrise since the view is so great up here." He looked over at her and smiled as he said, "Now, I believe we came up here to have dinner."
Hinata smiled back and nodded, "That we did."
The two walked over to where the picnic cloth was and started eating the food that Naruto had prepared earlier that day. After taking her first bite, Hinata instantly complimented Naruto on his cooking and said that the last time she could remember having food this good was back when her mother was still alive. This led to Naruto asking when and how she died.
Hinata told the blonde that her mother had gotten sick while she had been pregnant with her younger sister and that while they managed to save her sister, they couldn't do anything for her mother. She then went on to say how her father had become stricter in her training, how he would always comment on whenever she did something wrong and never when she did something right.
Naruto was silent for a moment as he processed this while Hinata tried to hold back her tears. Naruto stood and walked over to Hinata before he sat down right beside her and wrapped an arm around her shoulders.
"To me it seems like he doesn't want to lose you," he softly said. When she looked at him in confusion he smiled lightly as he continued, "Your father lost the woman he loved and he probably felt weak and powerless because he couldn't do anything to help her. I think the reason he's so harsh and strict with you is because he doesn't want to lose you either. He cares Hinata; he just probably has a hard time showing it properly."
The lavender-eyed girl let a few tears fall to the ground when she heard this and promptly wrapped Naruto in a hug. The blonde was startled for a moment before he returned the gesture and held her gently in his arms.
"Arigatou Naruto-kun," Hinata whispered softly.
"No problem…Hinata-chan," Naruto whispered back. They pulled back slightly, their arms still loosely around each other, and just stared into each other's eyes, sapphire meeting lavender, oblivious to the world around them.
Naruto knew at that moment that he had to tell her about his secret. If she rejected him because of it, well, it would be better to do it now than after things began to get serious for the two.
"Hinata-chan, there's something I have to tell you, but I'm not sure how to say it," Naruto nervously began. He was surprised when a lightly-smiling Hinata placed a finger on his lips.
"Don't worry, I know you are the container for the Kyuubi and I don't care," she said, further shocking the blonde.
"What? When did-? I mean, how?" Naruto tried to get out the question, but his mind was in too much confusion to function correctly.
Hinata giggled at his expression before she explained, "Last night, a messenger told tou-san that someone had stolen the Forbidden Scroll and since I knew you hadn't passed the exams, I immediately assumed the worst and thought that you had taken it." She raised an eyebrow when he sheepishly smiled but continued on, "So, I snuck out and started looking for you. After a couple of minutes, I had just rounded a corner and standing a few feet away were these two chunin. I went back around the corner and I was just about to be on my way when I heard them talking about who could have stolen the scroll."
Hinata sighed and leaned her head on the blonde's chest before she continued, "One of them said 'The demon brat must have taken it' and then the other said 'Yeah, I guess the Kyuubi has finally decided to show his true colors'. Then someone else came up and asked for a report, one of the chunin started to say something about the 'demon brat' again, but apparently the new person didn't like that because the chunin stuttered and corrected himself by saying your name. I filled in the rest for myself as I made my way back home."
"So now you know," Naruto said, "And you aren't…" he trailed off, not sure what to say.
"Afraid? Disgusted? Angry? Downright revolted?" Hinata filled in before both chuckled. "No, you're still you except now I know you have a fox sealed in your belly. You'll always be Naruto-kun, the stubborn blonde who never gives up to me."
Naruto hooked a finger underneath her chin and guided her face closer to his. "Thank you, Hinata-chan," He whispered and then his lips claimed hers underneath the light of the moon.
Down on the Hokage's Tower stood two figures that were watching the scene through binoculars. Both were cheering for their younger brother and his accomplishment.
"Alright Naru!" The two quietly shouted as they gave each other a high-five and wishing their other brother could be here to see this.
-- (Otafuki no Gai) --
Denkou sneezed and almost tripped due to the force of it. As he rubbed his nose the brown-haired boy thought, 'Why do I have this sudden urge to shout 9.95?'
He was torn from his musings by a scream of pain as the body of a man flew past him at high speeds. Denkou followed the flight of the man who crashed into a nearby fruit stand.
"THAT'S WHAT YOU GET FOR TRYING TO GROPE ME YOU FUCKING PERVERT!!" A female's voice angrily shouted that made Denkou stop in surprise. The brunette looked over at where the voice came from and saw the owner standing on the other side of a hole in the wall.
The woman had platinum-blonde hair that came down to her back in two specialized pigtails and a purple diamond in the middle of her forehead. She wore a green jacket that had the kanji for 'gambler' on the back over a white gi that barely contained her impossibly huge breasts along with blue leather pants that clung to her strong legs. Currently, her almond-brown eyes were narrowed in anger as she glared at the man she had just thrown through the wall.
Her name was Senju Tsunade, granddaughter of the Shodaime Hokage and the world's greatest medical shinobi.
'And if Tsunade-shishou is here,' Denkou thought as he looked over at the wall, 'then that means she is here as well.'
"Tsunade-sama!" Another female voice scolded as the owner of the voice came within view of the hole and Denkou's heart fluttered when he saw her.
Her black hair just came down to her shoulders and framed her face which held two black eyes. She was wearing a dark blue kimono that came down to the her knees with a small slit to give a tantalizing, teasing view of one of the woman's toned legs and was open slightly at the top to reveal just the tiniest bit of her cleavage along with the mesh bodysuit she wore underneath. In her arms rested a pink pig that was wearing a red and tan vest, and, if anything, also looked slightly annoyed at Tsunade's behavior.
Denkou smiled as the black-haired woman began scolding the clearly older blonde and he walked closer before shouting, "Shizune-chan, Tsunade-shishou!" The two looked over at him before both smiled.
"Denkou-kun!" "Gaki," Shizune and Tsunade greeted respectively. The black-haired girl climbed through the hole and walked over to the brunette before she gave him a hug that sent the boy blushing lightly. Tsunade smirked in amusement as she stepped through the hole as well and made her way over to the two.
When black-haired girl apprentice had released Denkou from the hug Tsunade ruffled his shaggy brown hair as she said, "So what brings you out here gaki? Surely you didn't come all this way just to get a hug from Shizune did you?" Her question sent the other two into blushes of embarrassment while the pig, named Ton-Ton, squealed in what sounded like mocking laughter.
Denkou shook his head as the group started walking off to nowhere in particular before he replied, "No, I actually came out here to get some supplies that I needed for some modifications to the Den." His face suddenly brightened before he said, "But while I'm here I can show you a medical jutsu I developed. We should probably go somewhere secluded though; I don't think it would be wise for me to show it out in the open."
Tsunade nodded and said, "We can head to the hotel room Shizune and I are renting."
With that, they set off ignoring the hole in the wall and the crowd that was gathering. As they walked back to the blonde sannin's hotel room, the two women inquired to Denkou about what had happened to him since the three (four if you count Ton-Ton) of them had last been together. The brunette told the two that he and his brothers had all passed their graduation exam as well as the beat down they had given to Mizuki. Both of the women laughed when Denkou mentioned that Naruto and he might have hit Mizuki in his balls with their respective weapons.
Soon they arrived at the hotel room and the three plus the pig entered. Tsunade sat down on one of the beds and chucked her jacket off to the corner, not caring that her top was barely keeping her huge breasts from popping out into the open.
"Alright gaki, let's see this jutsu of yours," Tsunade said as Shizune sat down on the other bed in the room. Denkou nodded and reached into his pack before he pulled out the scroll, not the least bit affected by the barely concealed sight of Tsunade's enormous hooters (Something that impressed the two women since Denkou would constantly be blushing the last time he had studied under Tsunade).
He unrolled it on the other bed and palmed the seal. An unconscious clone of the brown-haired boy appeared with a poof of smoke.
Oblivious to the stares, Denkou started speaking, "Tsunade-shishou do you remember that one time where you mentioned that one medical jutsu used to shock a person's nervous system, but you said it was too dangerous to use unless in an extremely controlled situation due to the fact that the nervous system is very sensitive?" When she nodded the brown-haired boy grinned and continued, "Well, one day after me and the others were sparring I thought about what you had told me about it since Naruto had been knocked unconscious so I thought; 'If the nervous system is as fragile as shishou said, then what about the chakra system?' So I fired up the jutsu and instead of targeting the nervous system I went after Naruto's chakra networks. It worked…sort of," he admitted as he sheepishly scratched the back of his head.
Tsunade, who was looking very intrigued, asked, "What happened?"
"Well he woke up, but for the next hour he was like a chipmunk that had inhaled too much sugar and caffeine before he fell flat on his face," he said and shrugged at their disbelieving looks before continuing, "Apparently, when the jutsu is used in that way it gives the target an incredible energy boost that eventually leads to a crash in all motor functions. So, I changed it up a little and came up with this."
Denkou went through a quick group of handseal before he clapped his hands together. After a couple seconds he began to quickly rub his hands up and down. Soon, they began to emit a bright yellow shine and the sound of crackling filled the room. After a minute or so of doing this, Denkou slowly pulled his hands apart and the women were shocked to see little bolts of lightning dance between the two appendages.
"Clear!" Denkou shouted before he quickly slammed both of his hands onto his clone's body. A moment after Denkou's hand slammed onto its body the clone snapped awake and immediately drew in quick gasps of air. Once its breathing leveled out, it tenderly sat up and looked around.
The clone then turned back to the original and asked, "Does this mean I can go now?" Denkou nodded and the clone shimmered out of existence. The brunette Jinchuuriki looked up at the two astonished women (and one indifferent pig) and smiled as he said, "After a lot of practice on my brothers that usually left them grumbling obscenities, I developed what I like to call; the Dangei Kara Nemuri no Jutsu."
Tsunade raised an eyebrow and asked, "Shock From Sleep Technique? Not very original gaki."
"Says the woman who didn't come up with the idea first," Denkou countered. The blonde-haired woman grumbled while Shizune giggled at the look on her mentors face. Before Tsunade could say anything back at him, Denkou said, "It still targets the chakra system, all I really had to do was lower the actual amount of my chakra that I had put into the technique and change it to be more aligned with my lightning element. However, there is a drawback. The user needs to have an elemental alignment with lightning in order to use the technique, otherwise they'll end up severely shocking themselves."
"Nevertheless it is impressive. Don't you think so Tsunade-sama?" Shizune asked her mentor.
Tsunade nodded her head in agreement as she said, "Yes it is, but you're going to be hard-pressed to find those with a lightning alignment in Konoha gaki."
The brown-haired boy groaned and asked, "Are you ever going to stop calling me 'gaki'?"
The blonde-haired buxom woman smirked before she answered, "I'll stop when you ask Shizune out on a date."
Both teens blushed while Shizune shouted, "Tsunade-sama!"
Tsunade shrugged as she asked, "What? You like him, he likes you, so quit beating around the bush already!"
Before Shizune could shout again Denkou went over to her and whispered something in the black-haired woman's ear. She looked at him with an eyebrow raised before her gaze shifted back to a confused Tsunade and she began giggling lightly.
The yellow-eyed boy grinned and held out an arm to her, "Shall we be going milady?"
Shizune giggled again before she stood up and accepted the arm. Together the two walked out of the hotel room, leaving a blonde that was torn between satisfaction and bemusement.
Tsunade looked over at Ton-Ton and asked, "What the heck just happened?" The pink pig just 'buwei'-ed in confusion.
Meanwhile Shizune and Denkou walked arm in arm to a nearby restaurant, sharing a laugh between them about what the brown-haired boy had whispered to Shizune before they had left the room: "Let's leave her to her whimsical matchmaking, it's one of the few sports an old hag has left." The two sat down and ordered some dinner while they talked a little bit more about what each had been doing since the time they had last been together.
Denkou nearly busted a gut when Shizune told him about the time her and Tsunade stumbled on a nudist colony that had a massive genjutsu in it that made everyone's clothes invisible. Apparently the saying about streets running red with blood came true in this instance since Tsunade's nude body had caused the whole teen and adult population to have massive nosebleeds (even the women).
Denkou relayed to Shizune the tale of how Naruto had painted the Hokage monument in bright daylight while he had been wearing his hideous orange jumpsuit. It was Shizune's turn to laugh when the brown-haired boy described what Naruto down to each face; after painting a huge icha icha book next to the faces, he had the Shodaime looking at the book slightly annoyed with it, the Nidaime had his eyes pointing skywards as if he was exasperated, the Sandaime had a nosebleed and a small blush, and finally the Yondaime looked like he was laughing at the other three Hokages' expressions.
To the both of them, the date seemed to end too soon. Denkou walked Shizune back to the hotel she was staying at and before she entered, gave her a light peck on the cheek and left to go get the supplies he needed.
Shizune was in a slight daze as she walked up to her and Tsunade's room. Upon seeing her apprentice's state, Tsunade smirked to herself mentally cheered at her ability to pair up her students.
--- (One week later) ---
The four brothers once more arrived at the Academy and split up to their classrooms. Naruto smiled as he entered the room and saw Hinata sitting in her chosen spot at the top of the room. The blonde nodded his head in acknowledgement to Shino, who nodded back, as he walked up and sat down beside Hinata. As he slid his hand into hers, Hinata leaned over and kissed him on his cheek which caused Shino to raise an eyebrow before the Aburame smiled an unseen smile and went back to looking out the window.
Naruto returned the kiss and looked over his girlfriend. Hinata had decided to trade in her bulky jacket for a more form-fitting one that she, with some encouragement from Naruto, decided to leave unzipped and revealed the purple tanktop she wore underneath that clung to her body (that could unanimously be agreed was definitely better than any of the other girls in the class) like a second skin. Since the two had started dating, Hinata's confidence had exponentionally increased which partially explained her change in apparel.
The blonde leaned back in his chair and thought back on the meeting he had with Hiashi Hyuuga, Hinata's father, when he had gone to take her on their second date. The Hyuuga Head had approved of Naruto's going out with his daughter and only laid down three stipulations: Hinata was to be home before eleven o'clock at night, there was to be no drinking of any alcohol, and finally, absolutely no sex until the both of them were at least chunin (Naruto couldn't get rid of his blush for the next thirty minutes after that last one, nor could Hinata once he told her about the stipulations). Her father's approval had been the deciding factor in the midnight-blue haired girl's change.
So now here they both were, waiting for the team announcements to be made and praying to Kami-sama that they could be on the same team as their significant other. Soon, the rest of the students piled into the room, many of the boys do double-takes at Hinata's new look while many of the girls self-consciously glanced down at their own less-than-stellar bodies and seemed to shrink in on themselves.
One deluded fool made the mistake of trying to ask Hinata out while completely ignoring the signs that the Hyuuga heiress was already taken. He soon found himself going cross-eyed as he stared down the length of one of Naruto's combat knives.
The fools' eyes snapped back to Naruto when the blonde said, "I'd appreciate it if you would back off of my girlfriend dude. Or else you'll become well and truly blind." To emphasize his point, Naruto twisted the knife so that the blade was horizontal and poised to slash into either the fool's right or left eye. The fool got the point slowly backed off while Naruto kept the knife in his hand. To help drive home the statement Naruto made, Hinata turned the blonde's head to her and proceeded to lip-lock with him.
Iruka, who had walked in right when the kiss began, coughed to bring attention to himself before he said, "Alright lovebirds. If you can finish up we can get along to the team assignments." Hinata and Naruto broke apart with small blushes lighting up each of their faces. Iruka smiled as he continued speaking, "Before I begin reading the actual team assignments could Uzumaki Naruto, Aburame Shino, and Hyuuga Hinata please go out to the hall?"
The three aforementioned genin-to-be looked slightly confused before they all stood up and walked out into the hallway (Hinata and Naruto holding hands). Once the three of them arrived in the hall, they were surprised to see an Anbu with a boar mask waiting for them. Without any explanation, the Anbu motioned for the three to follow him and began leading them away from the academy.
Soon, the small group arrived at a nondescript black building bore the kanji for Ansatsu Senjutsu Tokushu Butai. The boar-masked Anbu lead the way into the building and through the plain hallways of the Anbu headquarters. Soon he came to a stop at a set of double doors and turned to face the three genin-to-be's.
"This is usually the part where the mysterious stranger offers some small bit of wisdom right?" He asked and gained a small sweatdrop from the three teens. After the three nodded slowly the Anbu looked up at the ceiling in thought before he looked back down at them. "Ah, how about this: I can only show you the door; you're the one that will need to open it."
The three young ones looked at each other in confusion at the line before Naruto shrugged and opened the door, holding it as Hinata and Shino before he himself went through. They found themselves in a medium-sized room that contained an assortment of people.
Nadare, Kaen, and Denkou were there along with the black-haired boy that had fought against Shino as well as the black and white-haired twins from the taijutsu portion of the final exam. There was also a small group of Anbu standing in a semi-circle behind the Hokage.
Sarutobi Hiruzen smiled lightly at the new arrivals and said, "Good. Now, I bet you're all wondering why you are here. There's a rather simple explanation: you nine are here to become Anbu."
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Chapter End
Unknown-nin345: Well, that's the end of Chapter Four.
I'm sorry if it's long but I just wanted to get the dates all done with and out of the way. And for those of you who are wondering what Nadare and Ayame did since I didn't feature their date; They went dancing at a jazz club and had dinner at a semi-exclusive restaurant, not one for the very rich people, but a place the average jane and joe could go every now and then.
I'm surprised that no one has managed to guess who had seen the Brothers true forms yet. Someone guessed it was Hinata, but as you read in this chapter it wasn't her. How about a little prize for the first who manages to guess who saw them: You'll get to pick who the Brother's fight against during the preliminaries of the Chunin Exams.
That good enough incentive? Then get guessing.
COWABUNGA!!!