No Good Deed Goes Unpunished
Chapter 4: Playing in the Big Leagues Now
Kuma walked down the main thoroughfare in a straight line, forcing those in his path to move to the side. This wasn't done out of anger or spite, but due to no one sitting in the driver's seat in his head. His body was on the road, walking on autopilot, while his brain was miles away still trying to wrap itself around the bombshell that the Hokage had just dropped on him minutes ago.
"What they don't tell you in class" Sarutobi said, "is that there are actually numerous other continents and islands that cover our world. They're separated by oceans that are so large it takes weeks to months to cross them. We are unable to cross the one that surrounds our continent, and as far as we know, no one has ever managed to find our home. No one but your father Bartholomew Kuma." Kuma was sitting in his seat, his back ramrod straight, listening with rapt attention. Hiruzen felt for the boy, this being the first real information he ever had on his family.
"His arrival came near the closing of the third great war. The 4th Hokage had been on patrol around the northern border of the Land of Fire when he saw a large explosion go off against the side of a mountain in the distance. Upon investigating the crater, he discovered a tall man standing in the center of it, his clothes shredded,but otherwise appearing well. The Hokage jumped down to inquire if he was well, but your father didn't understand our language and took the sudden arrival as an attack. The Hokage and him fought each other for the better part of the day, rearranging the face of the mountain in the process. Neither could get the upper hand with their powers countering each other so easily." He paused to check if the children were listening, only to see he still had their undivided attention. "Now can either of you tell me what made the 4th Hokage so special?"
"Pick me! I know!" Naruko shouted, sitting up suddenly. "He could use the flying thunder god technique to flash anywhere on a battlefield instantaneously."
"Good job Naruko!" Sarutobi congratulated her. "Now Kuma, your father had his own special power. He could 'push' anything he wanted to any place he had already been. He could also push pockets of air like projectiles at his enemies with his fists. Bartholomew would push the 4th Hokage away, only for him to flash back where they would attack each other until the process would repeat itself. The amazing thing about the fight was that your father never used chakra during it, he said he had gained his power in a far away land by eating a special fruit that only grew once."
The fight ended when the 4th finally managed to get lucky enough to drive a rasengan into Bartholomew's stomach, only for him to push away the attack before it could detonate fully. This damage Kuma enough that he was unable to continue fighting, but the 4th Hokage was too exhausted to continue either. As they both lay there, they finally opened up a dialogue, mostly with gestures and speaking slowly until ANBU finally felt it was safe enough to approach. Most of them converged to help the 4th, but one broke off to attend to Bartholomew. That ANBU would become your mother a year later." He cringed at the boy's hopeful expression, "I'm sorry but I can't give you her name right now, it could endanger people we still have undercover right now." Kuma nodded sadly, not wanting to risk anyone's life, but still bitter that he wasn't able to learn of his mother's name.
"Your parents died only a few nights after you were born. Your mother was on the front lines fighting against the Kyuubi's advance when she was killed by one of it's attacks. Your father had stayed behind with you at the hospital, intent on defending you no matter what. When the Kyuubi broke through the city wall, it started moving towards the hokage tower with the hospital right in the way. The evacuation of the patients was still on going when it arrived, and the maternity ward had yet to be saved. Your father left you in the hands of one of the nurses, before running outside to the Kyuubi and using his ability to push it outside of the village where the 4th was waiting for it. After the battle was over, we couldn't find any sign of your father. It was as if he had vanished. All that was left was the hat he always wore that he left with you. I had been saving it to give to you on your graduation from the academy, but this seems like a good time now for you to have it."
The Hokage pulled a large scroll out from his desk before opening a portion of it up to reveal a page covered in strange script and designs. He bit his thumb and swiped the blood on a specific design, activating a cloud of smoke. When the smoke cleared it revealed a tan bucket hat with bear ears on the sides of it. The back portion of it had a the edges singed as if it was brought too close to flames at one point. Kuma took the hat reverently in his hands. This was his connection to his father.
"Kuma" the Hokage addressed him, pulling his attention back away from the object. "Your mother was a ninjutsu specialist who was skilled enough to be invite to the ANBU at a very early age. From what I hear about you from Iruka, you have the potential to follow in her footsteps. Keep working on your chakra control right now so you'll be able to handle your reserves as they develop. As for your father, we don't actually know if you'll inherit anything from him seeing as how he wasn't born with his gifts and they weren't chakra based. The Sannin Tsunade had a theory that his genetics had been rewritten to allow him to perform his feats, but nothing was tested before the Kyuubi arrived. Either way though, they loved you and only wanted the best for you. I'm sure you'll do great things in the future."
Kuma nudged Naruko off of him before standing shakily, tears threatening to leave his eyes. He offered a bow to the Hokage before running from the room, the hat clutched in his hands. Naruko jumped up to chase after him, but was held back by the old man. "He needs some time alone right now Naruko. He's just had a lot revealed to him at once. And you need to get home young lady, the streets aren't the safest place tonight." Naruko gasped as she realized that he was right, tonight was the night of October tenth. "Don't worry, he'll be back" the Hokage reassured her. "Now let's go and get you some ramen from your favorite stand to celebrate your birthday." Naruko nodded silently, happy for the gift but wanting to spend it with her friend.
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Kuma watched the sun begin to dip below the sky as the lights began to turn on on the top floors of the apartments that he could see over the treetops. His wandering had taken him to a wide open field with a single large pillar carved out of a rock dominating the hill in the center of it. A plaque next to it provided the boy with the information on the monument. He stared at the names of the fallen shinobi carved into the stone, each of them dying in service to the village. He wasn't able to find his father as he looked, before realizing that his dad had never been a shinobi, even if had died protecting the people of the village. It was even worse knowing his mother was carved somewhere on it too, but he couldn't tell which name was hers.
Sounds of cheering and drunken revelry brought Kuma out of hs thoughts, making him realize the significance of the night. 'If I hurry, I might be able to buy Naruko a gift before the stores close' he thought as he took off running back towards the market. 'She's always tried to be there for me, and if it wasn't for her, I wouldn't even have found out about my dad yet.'
The stalls flew past in a blur, Kuma sprinting at top speed towards a particular store he remembered seeing earlier while wandering aimlessly. Something had caught his eye in the window display, drawing him back to it like a magnet. Kuma arrived just as the shopkeeper was turning off his lights. "I'm sorry, I know it's late but can I just grab something I saw earlier?" the boy wheeze, doubled over as he tried to regain his breath.
The shopkeeper rolled his eyes, before pushing the door back open and walking behind the register. "Make it quick" he said, the words harsh, but a smile on his face. "I'm heading out to join the celebration out on the main street."
Kuma was gone in a flash, returning a moment later with his prize. "Thank you so much sir" he said, grateful for the man's patience. "Its my friend's birthday today and I'll know she'll love this."
The man paused as he finished wrapping up the gift, taking a closer look at the gift before his eyes trailed up to examine his customer's face. He physically recoiled as if attacked, the present dropping from his fingers towards the ground. Only Kuma's quick reflexes saved the gift from shattering as he caught it mere inches from destruction. "Take it and get out!" the man hissed, his finger shaking as it pointed towards the door. Kuma looked on in confusion as the man hurried towards the front door before locking it and turning out the lights. "Do you know what you've done?" The man asked, his face ashen in the dim light filtering in from outside. "I personally don't have a problem with her, but you know how the others are. If the see me selling something like this to you, especially on today of all days, then they'll burn down my store." He moved towards the back of the store, opening a door to the alley out back. "Quickly! Run and get inside somewhere!. This night isn't a good one to be out late."
Kuma wrapped up the package in his overshirt, leaving his tank top on before placing it in his weapons holster on his right leg. "I'm sorry to have done this, I didn't know. Here" he shoved the money, plus a hefty tip, into the merchant's hand before bowing low. He leaned out the door, scanning in both directions before running towards his apartment, the door softly closing and locking behind him. Kuma knew the city well enough to realize he had to cross the main shopping and bar district to reach his apartment near the government buildings. "I'll stick to the backway and stay out of the light" he thought to himself as he sprinted across a street before jumping into the next alley. If he had bothered to look over his shoulder in his rush, he would have seen dark shapes as they hopped across the rooftops in pursuit, the distance closing quickly
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Naruko ground her teeth in embarrassment as the streets passed beneath her. She had stayed out late with the Hokage, feeling as if she had owed him her time since he had gone out of his busy schedule to buy her dinner and take a long walk back to the tower. He had seemed preoccupied as the sun began to set, his eyes shifting at the slightest noises. Naruko had taken this as her indicator that it was time to leave, giving the old man a hug and promising to visit again before taking off running, not waiting for an answer.
She had made it less than a block before a black blur had scooped her up from the streets, depositing her on it's back and telling her to hold on. Naruko used to love riding on Cat's back as she roof hopped. It was what she imagined the feeling of flying would be like and she had resolved to never stop training until she could move like her female idol. Now, it made her feel like a little kid when Cat did it to her, not helping at all with the image of a grown kunoichi that she was trying to project.
Cat had ignored her charge's requests to be dropped off at Kuma's apartment. The Hokage's order had been to bring Naruko to her own apartment, and that was what the ANBU intended to do. Naruko huffed as her pleas were once again rebuffed before looking off in the distance, seeing Kuma's apartment complex. She frowned as she noticed that all of the boy's lights were off. Kuma had a rigid schedule that he worked hard to adhere to. He would be training on his chakra control for at least another hour before he cooked dinner, even when he was sick or injured. The only reason the light's would be off was if he wasn't home yet. Her eyes scanned over the roofs towards the center of the village. The area was extremely well lit as most of the villagers had gathered there for the festives. This ironically made the rest of the village much darker, the normal lights streaming from windows absent as the houses' occupants were all gone at the moment.
The change in light allowed her to notice another bright spot in the village. It seemed to be moving between the alleyways erratically, sometimes splitting off onto multiple streets before converging again. Naruko recognised the makings of a 'fox hunt' the villagers loved to do when they got drunk enough on this day every year. She was with Cat though so who could they possibly have found to be their 'fox'? Her eyes flew open as she made the connection. If they couldn't get her, then her best friend would make a perfect target.
"You've been quiet back there for a while now Naruko. You're not still mad at me are you?" No answer was given as the ANBU lazily hopped across the rooftops, enjoying the quiet night in the dead part of the city. "Look, lets talk for a second. Just us girls." Cat stopped on a flat roof, kneeling down but not feeling the weight on her back shift at all. She let go of the legs, the arms sliding off of her shoulders as the body dropped bonelessly to the ground. Cat turned in bewilderment, only to find a straw dummy looking back at her, the face painted in a huge grin reminiscent of her absent charge's. She couldn't believe how well she had been fooled, the dummy having the exact same weight as Naruko, and even dressed in a pair of her dirty laundry to match her scent. She hadn't even felt the replacement technique take hold. "At least I know her training is already paying off" Cat thought ruefully as she leapt off into the night, ready to hunt Naruko down again.
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"Shit! Shit! Shit!" Kuma swore softly to himself as he tore off a section of his shirt to use as a makeshift bandage for the cut on his upper arm. It hadn't taken long for Kuma to realize he was being followed, but he wasn't able to shake his pursuers. His first idea was to simply use the exercises that Iruka had taught him to take to the rooftops to avoid the growing mob below, but there were dark shapes interspersed among the rooftops that he couldn't seem to get away from. They would attack him, flinging weapons with insanely good accuracy until he would drop back down to the streets where they would just observe his struggles. This was no way safe for him though as the drunken mob was hot on his heels, chanting "Fox Bait!" repetitively at the top of their lungs as they tried to catch him. He had initially tried to fight back, civilians being no real threat to him after all of his work in and out of class. This went nowhere though as he found out the hard way that there were drunk genin and chunin mixed in with the regular villagers. He had taken a shuriken to his thigh, and a kunai to his shoulder before he was able to use a flash bomb to put a few blocks distance between him and the crowd.
They were on his trail in no time again, doggedly pursuing him as they were directed from the shadows on the rooftops. He noticed the streets were becoming lighter as he limped along, his muscles burning form exertion. 'They've lead me back to the bars again' he realized as his heart sank, unable to think of how to escape. He stumbled out of the alley onto the main street, barely dodging a half empty bottle as it shattered above his head, showering him in it's contents and cutting his brow from the flying glass. Blood began to flow down his forehead, blinding his left eye as he looked around in a panic the escape routes all clogged with villagers chanting for his death. Their expressions deformed into a mockery of normally kind and cheerful faces, showing teeth gritted in anger and eyes high on perceived power as they finally had someone at their mercy, just as they were at the Kyuubi's mercy all those years ago.
Kuma was kicked in his ribs, one of them audibly snapping as he was sent rolling into the side of a building. The pain took his breath away, but he still leveraged himself to his feet, taking a kunai in each hand and swinging like a savage animal backed into a corner. None of the villagers could work up enough courage to test the boys defenses, but were unwilling to back down. The boy snarled, his vision reduced to a sea of blurs as his remaining eye started to have blood run into it. Kuma pocket one kunai before ripping off the remnants of his shirt, wiping away the blood before wrapping it around his forehead. His eyes darkened as he stood up straight, shoulders back as if to square off with the world. He took the hat out of his back pocket, determined to at least wear it one day if this was to be the end. A few of the villagers paled as they saw the bucket hat with the bear ears go on top of the boys head. They looked as if they had seen a ghost.
"Kuma" he heard his name screamed, the voice familiar enough to make him not immediately attack. Naruko landed in front of him, having jumped over the last of the crowd to reach her friend. She looked like she had just run the gauntlet herself if he was seeing her right. Her hair was frazzled, dried blood causing it to clump up in chunks. Her clothes were a lost cause at this point, ripped and torn to the point of barely covering her modesty and doing nothing to hide the multitude of cuts, bruises, and stabbings she had endured from everyone she had passed in her single minded pursuit to reach him. She stumbled as she moved forwards, the pain finally catching up with her as her adrenaline wore down, causing her to grit her teeth. She steadied herself before finally reaching him. She threw her arms around his chest, leaning her full weight on him as she finally realized just how exhausted she really was. Everything was ok now though, she had made it to him in time.
A blur of movement was all the warning Kuma received as a chunin rushed forwards out of the crowd, a kunai raised as he took his chance to finally end the demon that had tormented his life for so long. Naruko felt herself flung forwards to her hands and knees as Kuma sidestepped around her, no longer supporting her weight. She heard a clash of steal before there was a meaty thud, followed by a low murmuring from the crowd. She raised her head, spinning around onto her butt, only to see Kuma blocking the chunin's kunai with his own. The man's other hand, which had been hidden before, was now holding the handle of a second blade, which was buried in Kuma's right pectoral.
Her breath caught in her throat as she watched Kuma stand strong against his attacker, the boy's free hand moving back as if he was chambering a punch before flying forward. There was a whoosh of air as the punch landed, then the chunin vanished before everyone's eyes. The crowd murmured as they began to look around in panic, trying to find their comrade before a faint screaming sound filled their ears. A man looked up, before calling out and pointing at the sky. Everyone looked at the direction he indicated, able to see a falling object against the backdrop of the moon. The shape soon resolved itself into the body of the chunin, the man's arms and legs flailing in panic as he screamed his lungs out. The crowd backed up, watching as the man impacted the street, the large splat indicating that he had come at least close to terminal velocity before impact. A low growl caused them to look back up at Kuma, the moon reflecting off of him in such a way that his eyes seemed to almost glow a solid white.
A woman broke and ran, followed seconds later by two other men. It soon turned into a route as the civilians ran screaming in every direction as if a spell was broken, intent on getting away with their lives intact. All that was left was a group of nine ninja, spread out from where they had stood in the crowd. Naruko was ecstatic, having never seen Kuma show power like that before. She always knew that her friend was special, but never had any idea of the kind of potential that he had just shown. Her smile slid off of her face though as her best friend didn't move from his position. With a wheeze and a gurgle, Kuma fell to his knees, his head held back towards the stars. "Did I do good dad?" he whispered before pitching backwards, his head making a stomach turning sound as it impacted the walkway.
"NO!" Naruko shouted, rushing forward. She landed on her knees in front of the boy, bending over him as she checked for life signs frantically. Kuma had stopped breathing, a thin trail of bright red blood escaping from the corner of his mouth as his eyes remained closed. "Kuma!" Naruko called out frantically, slapping his face and not getting any kind of response. She placed her ear directly over his heart, but couldn't hear the steady beat that had accompanied her off to sleep every night. She sat back on her knees, pulling the boys head and chest onto her lap as she gripped her arms around his chest. Her hair fell like a curtain around her face as she sobbed brokenly, unable to form words.
Movement on the corner of her vision caused her to look up, wiping her eyes to see the ninja start to advance. The one in the front had a sick grin on his face as he watched her grief, practically revelling in her outpouring of emotions. "It's your turn now little Kyuubi. We're going to take turns with your demon pussy before we each carve off a chunk of you to bring home as trophies!" He looked over his shoulder towards his friends, indicating towards the blonde with his kunai. "I've got the head boys, so try to keep it intact." His friends laughed cruelly as they began to advance, one going so far as to lick his lips as he looked at her with excitement in his eyes.
This was the last straw for Naruko. As the lead ninja reached forward to grab her, she threw her head back and let out a primal scream. White chakra flew from her body as she held onto Kuma's body with a death grip. The ninja began to slid back before rooting their feet to the ground with chakra, using all of their strength just to remain grounded. Naruko's eyes rolled back in her head before a flash of almost liquid chakra ran over them. When it receded, it revealed purple eyes, multiple black rings contained in them expanding out from a small black pupil. A clear bubble of chakra formed around her, growing more and more solid before the blonde unconsciously threw an arm forward and shouted "Shinra Tensei!" in a voice deeper than her normal one. The bubble flew forward in all directions, picking up the ninja and crushing them against buildings before blowing through them too. When the bubble finally disappeared, nothing was left of the square block of houses and stores, but a crater with Naruko kneeling in the center of it, still protecting her friend. The blonde had passed out in the position, unwilling to leave her friend for anything.
Four black shapes began to land on the edge of the crater before making their way forwards. They halted as they looked into the city before turning and fleeing towards the great wall in the distance. A moment later ANBU arrived, Cat heading directly for Naruko before drawing back as she saw Kuma's condition. "Medic!" she screamed out, four white cloaked ANBU landing near her, before rushing forwards. "Stabilize and evacuate to the hospital!" she ordered quickly, indicating to Kuma before picking up Naruko bridal style in her arms. "I'll meet you there and have them prep for his arrival." She disappeared in a body flicker, the rest of the ANBU left to look around bleaky at the damage, not sure even where to start investigating.
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Kuma woke up, surprised to be still be alive as he stared around the unfamiliar room. He had initially worried that he was actually dead and this was paradise, but the amount of pain his body was in could only mean he was still alive and kicking. The steady beeps of machinery and familiar tiled ceiling helped him recognize the standard room design of the hospital. He should know it well enough from the times he had to come here before for chakra exhaustion, or a training injury. His body never felt this bad before during a visit though.
He was brought out of his reflection as a black, shoulder length, haired nurse bustled in, picking up the clipboard from the foot of his bed before checking the machine next to his bed and writing something down. She wore a black kimono and didn't look any older than her mid twenties. His cough caused her to jump, bringing a hand to her chest as the shock wore off. "How are you even awake?" she said in astonishment? "You've only been out of surgery for three hours, the anesthesia should have had you under for the better part of the day."
Kuma tried to speak, only for his voice to come out as a rasping cough, his mouth drier than the desert in Suna. The nurse recognized the problem immediately, brustling over to fill up a cup of water from the sink before bringing it to Kuma and putting the straw in his mouth. He drank greedily from it, the liquid was the best tasting thing he had ever had in his life. He sighed in contentment, before trying out his voice again. "What happened?" he rasped, his voive barely above a whisper. The nurse leaned in to hear him, inadvertently giving him a view of her cleavage as her kimono dipped forward a bit. Kuma blushed and tried to turn his head away, only succeeding in moving it to the side a bit, his muscles protesting the sudden movement.
"Aren't you just too cute" the nurse cooed at him, a coy smile on her face signaling he had been caught. I'm Shizune, and I just finished helping Lady Tsunade patch you back together in the surgery." She placed the clipboard at the foot of the bed, before walking to the door. "I wouldn't be caught staring at another woman if I was you" she said as she opened the door, "She might get jealous and do something about it. I'll go let Lady Tsunade know that you're awake."
Kuma sat confused by her words before looking down his bed, only to find a head of blonde hair resting on her arms on the side of his bed. Naruko turned towards him, as if sensing him in her sleep, before letting out a loud snore and burying her face back into her arm pillow. Kuma smiled wryly at his friend, wondering why she was here with him instead of in a hospital bed of her own.
He looked up as the door opened again, this time admitting a blonde woman with a green dot on her forehead, and possibly the biggest pair of breasts he had ever seen only partially covered in a doctor's coat. She briskly walked up to him, grunting to herself as she poked and prodded at different parts of his body, every touch bringing a new round of pain and increasing his ire towards her. Just before he got the courage to start swearing at her, she spoke lowly, her eyes not leaving his shoulder as she examined the stitches revealed as she peeled back the bandage. "You have no idea how lucky you are to be alive right now. It's nothing short of a miracle and I have no idea how you are recovering so fast. You'll be out of here in weeks instead of months at this rate."
He opened his mouth to make a smart ass comment, before thinking better of it and closing it. Her smirk showed how she felt about his choice. "Thank you for saving me." he rasped, his voice already starting to sound more normal. "I'm pretty sure I actually died since I can remember hearing people talking that sounded familiar, yet also like strangers. I don't have much money since I'm on the orphan stipend, but I owe you my life and I'll find a way to pay you back."
Tsunade's clinical smile wavered for a second, before it became more natural. She leaned forward, kissing Kuma on the forehead, causing him to blush. "I appreciate the offer, but seeing you alive is all the thanks I need. Just keep growing and don't waste the life that has been returned to you."
Kuma nodded, her words hitting home as he realized how much he still wanted to do. A fire was lit in his eyes, his resolve strengthening a thousand fold. Tsunade smiled as she watched him, now assured that he would actually be ok, not just physically, but mentally too. Children could go either way after a traumatic event, some never fully recovering. Kuma gestured to Naruko with his hand that wasn't stuck in a cast, his other encased from the wrist all the way to his neck. "Is she ok? I know how she looked when she found me, and there is now way she isn't injured."
"She's fine now, just exhausted" Tsunade fudged, not willing to divulge Naruko's secret if the blonde girl hadn't told him yet. "I healed her from most of her injuries, which weren't too deep. Right now she is exhausted physically and her chakra is depleted so she needs to rest and recover it. Mentally and emotionally, she isn't all that well yet." At his frown of confusion, she elaborated, "She saw her friend die in front of her, protecting her. You don't just move on normally from that. That's why she's here," she indicated at the sleeping blonde, "instead of in her own bed. You can help her at this point more than I can. Can I trust her care to you?" She smiled at his serious nod, ruffling his hair with her hand before heading for the door. "Call if you need help with anything."
The door slammed shut, causing Naruko to jar awake. Kuma cursed the meddling doctor in his head. He knew she had done that on purpose, but he wasn't ready for this confrontation yet. He watched as the blonde raised her head up, smacking her lips as her bleary eyes looked around the room as she tried to place where she was. They panned towards him, continuing on to the wall before jerking back towards him and flying open. In a blink, Naruko was on top of him, squeezing his face to her chest as she held on for dear life. He felt water falling on his head, before the realization hit that they were tears. "Don't ever do that again!" she whispered, squeezing him harder for a moment for good measure. She leaned back, holding his head in her hands as she tilted it up so he was staring into her watery eyes. "You don't get to leave me like that ever again. I was supposed to save you, not you dying to save me!" She forced herself to calm down, her breath hitching as she brought it under control. "What the hell were you even doing out there? You know what day it was! Those assholes torment me every year for some reason on that day." He blinked in confusion, 'What happened to her eyes?' he asked himself before mentally shrugging.
Kuma ducked his head in embarrassment. Naruko had always wore her emotions on her sleeve, but he had never encountered them pointed at him when they were so raw before. He felt terrible at what had happened. He pointed towards the pile of his clothes at the corner of the room. "Bring me my holster would you and I'll show you." Naruko gave him a confused look, but grabbed the ouch, placing it on his chest as she took her seat again. "Close your eyes" he ordered, getting a pout from her as she obeyed his command. He reached into the holster, saying a quick prayer to Kami before pulling out the gift, seeing it was still unbroken. He pulled it out of his shirt, leaving it in the gift wrap, holding it up in front of her face. "Open your eyes" he said softly. She'd tell him when she was ready to. Naruko looked up in surprise at the gift he was holding out to her, taking it reverently. "Happy Birthday Naruko" he said, "This is what I was out there for. I wanted to get it before it was too late."
She opened the gift carefully, unwilling to even rip the paper as she unconsciously held her breath in excitement. The paper folded back, revealing a tiny gold fox statue. The beast was sitting up on its back hanches, nine tails waved behind it. It had a huge grin that spread from ear to ear and its eyes were tiny rubies embedded in its head. "The smile reminded me of yours" he said scratching his head as he looked away in embarrassment.
Her hand touched his face, gently turning it back towards her. Her smile lit up the room, puting the statue's to shame. "Thank you!" She shouted, flinging her arms around his neck. Naruko had leaned in and kissed him on the cheek before he even realized that she was moving. She let go of him before laying down on the bed next to him, her head laying on his stomach as she smiled at her fox. He rolled his eyes good naturedly, running his good hand through her hair, deep enough to give her scalp a massage. Naruko was snoring less than a minute later, her grip on her new statue not lessening in the slightest as she relaxed. Kuma leaned back into the pillow again, ready to shut his own eyes and begin the healing process. A minute later he opened them again frowning. She was laying on his bladder.
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Tsunade smiled softly as she watched through the one way mirror at the show the two young adults had just inadvertently put on. "Are you satisfied now that she is under control and not an actual danger to the village?" She asked to the rest of the audience as they also observed the pair.
Jiraiya gave her a thumbs up from his spot along the back wall, secretly proud of how well his goddaughter was doing in snagging the man she loved. "Beat that Fugaku and Hiashi" he muttered under his breath, giving a small fist pump.
Hiruzen nodded as well, before turning to the last of their group. "You realize that this pretty much places him off limits now. Eliminating him or entering him into ROOT to minimize his influence on Naruko won't work any longer with how deep her bond is to him now."
Danzo snorted as he tapped his cane on the floor, already heading towards the door after he saw what he needed to. "Those options were voided the moment the confrontation with the villagers happened. If their story is true, than he has begun to unlock his father's legacy and has managed to figure out how to use it with chakra. We will need to groom him just as we would clan heir because there is a distinct possibility of him starting one. We will each ensure he grows in our own ways Lord Hokage" he finished before the door was shut behind him.
Jiraiya turned back towards his teacher as the room was sealed again. "If Naruko wasn't the child of prophecy before, those eyes pretty much ensure it now. When she gets older, I'll need to take her to train with the toads so she can learn to use her power."
"Not before she is a chunin" Hiruzen laid down the law, not willing to budge on his previous decision. She needs to grow bonds with her peers that only time as a genin can provide. If she doesn't cultivate more bonds past her immediate one with Kuma, than it'll be impossible to convince her to carry her burden for the village when she is finally made aware of it." He paused, trying to recall the ANBU report. "From what I remember, the secret was almost told tonight anyways. After interrogations pulls everything from them, I want them liquidated. The fact that foreign agents were able to not only incite a riot in a bid to assassinate our jinchuuriki, but to also distract our quick reaction force for long enough to pull it off frightens the hell out of me. The village security measures will be adjusted for a higher alert level until further notice. Make sure the correct people know" he told the sage before leaving.
"Long night" Jiraiya said as he sidled up next to Tsunade. "I don't know about you, but I'm feeling the stress." At the blonde's snort of confirmation he continued, going for broke. "How about we go out and get a few drinks and reset our brains for tomorrow?"
Tsunade threw her coat over a chair in the corner before donning her favorite green jacket, the word 'Gamble' stitched prominently across the back. "You're buying" she told the grinning toad sage, pulling him towards the door. "They're Shizune's problem tonight."