Legacy of the Lighthawk
Chapter 7: Meetings
Disclaimer: Don't own Naruto or Tenchi, though I wish I owned Sasami, she is too cute.
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Of all the worlds within the sphere of influence that was the Empire of Jurai, Furya was the most feared. The small planet which sat upon the edge of space and was half the size of Jurai was truly perilous. Not only was half of the planet unlivable but the gravity was also greater than any other in the system. While all others would increase by small increments over Earths, with Jurai topping it at five times Furya's gravity was ten times that of the Earths.
All this and more ran through the mind of Masaki Minaho as she stood in front of the large open wooden gates in front of the hidden leaf village. Before she or any other member of her family could step within the gates however two people landed in front of them dressed in blue pants, long sleeved blue shirts, and green vest with strange metal branded headbands upon their heads.
"Halt, state your name and purpose."
As the words registered Minaho barely held in the sigh of relief from hearing Japanese. If they spoke a different language it would have taken forever. Hell Achika had been on her ship for about eighty years before venturing out
"We are clan Masaki, I am Masaki Azusa, Emperor of Jurai. I demand to see your leader this instant."
'Shit.' Thought both chuunin as they eyed the group.
Both had been nervous upon spotting the group making their way towards the gates each of them dressed in clothing of better quality than even the Daimyo's. Luckily they had already called the ANBU who bless their hearts chose that moment to arrive.
Sarutobi Hizuren had been through and seen a lot in his life. Having lived through all three Shinobi Wars the man was the pinnacle of what a shinobi should aspire to be. However nothing in his carreer had ever prepared him for the merciless horde that was paperwork. The creation of pure evil before him was something that was befitting a punishment in hell, yet it tormented him on the mortal plane. His musings were cut off however as the double doors of his office were pushed open and a squad of ANBU filed in along with another six people, all of them dressed like royalty. Glancing at the time he sighed happy for the interruption by his two o'clock appointment. Standing the old man addressed the group politely introducing himself.
"I am Masaki Azusa, head of clan Masaki and Emperor of Jurai. These are my wives, Funaho, and Misaki, my mother-in-law Kimiki Seto, my son Yosho and his wife Airi. We are looking for a child by the name of Naruto, my great-grandson."
'Shit.' Thought Sarutobi unknowingly echoing the two chuunin guards from earlier.
While the Sandaime was in the meeting of his life the other members of the Masaki clan had taken to walking around and getting a look at the village. For Minaho it was nice to see the place where her youngest nephew grew up and the place her sister had made her third home. Along the way she couldn't help but notice the looks sent at the group but easily ignored it as she was doing with the group of masked men that was following them from the rooftops.
"Kiriko-san what can you tell me about the places my nephew frequents?" questioned Minaho after a bit of travel.
"Well from what we've learned very few people know anything about him or the places he frequents. Though everyone we spoke to knew of him most did not see him in a favorable light. What is known however is that he frequently visits a ramen stand called Ichiraku's." explained Kiriko sending an apologetic look to the woman.
"Then that's where we will head. If he is anything like his mother then he'll have a love for the stuff."
It had only taken them a few minutes of walking following Seina and his wives before they reached the small stand with a sign reading 'Ichiraku's'
"NARUTO DID WHAT!"
The shout had reached them before they even breached the threshold of the stand giving each person a short pause before Minaho moved up to the front to enter.
"I'm telling you Ino, he mowed through them like they weren't even there. I've never seen him so mad, hell I didn't even know he could get mad at least not enough to cut people down like grass." Said Sakura shivering slightly.
The trip from Nami no Kuni had been slow, and nearly uneventful. Normally when one finished a mission they traveled home at ninja speed. Kakashi however had opted to go at a slow walk as the bridge had been finished nearly a week ahead of schedule and as such gave the ninja of team seven plenty of time to make the trip. The only problem had come when they had run across a small team of bandits on the second day of their trip. The situation had been ended in less than two minutes as the blonde gennin of team seven had taken them all down with swift and brutal efficiency.
Once they had entered the village Kakashi had dismissed the group of gennin opting to turn in the mission report on his own. Naruto hadn't spared the other two even a glance before he'd leapt away. That hadn't really bothered Sakura at least not as much as Sasuke following his example and leaving her without a word. Frustrated she'd moved to head home only to run into Ino and her team along the way followed by team eight before they took a place at the ramen stand to Choji's delight.
Before anymore could be said however a full platoon of ANBU landed before the stand around the members of clan Masaki.
"Lady Minaho, the presence of your group has been requested in the council chamber, we are to escort you." Spoke the apparent leader wearing a tiger mask.
"Nara, Akimichi, Yamanaka, Inuzuka, Aburame, Hyuga, Haruno, you are each to report to the council chamber a full session is being called." Said the same ANBU turning to face the flaps of the stand.
"Ichiraku-san your presence has also been requested. Uzumaki…" started the captain only to pause as he looked inside.
"Where's Uzumaki?" questioned the bewildered ANBU, he'd been sure the boy would head straight there after his mission.
"Ano, N-N-Naruto-kun's in a bad mood. You should check the Hokage Monument, and if he's not there the academy roof." Said Hinata as she emerged from the stand with the other gennin.
"You know your classmate well Hyuga-sama." Said the ANBU dispatching a Neko (cat) masked operative along with an Oushi (bull) to check the requested spots.
"It's kind of weird we'd be summoned for a council meeting." Said Kiba as he exited with his small pup riding on his head.
"You are the heirs to the premier clans of our village and Haruno-san's father sits at the head of the merchant's guild. Sometimes you will be called for meetings if you are allowed to know the things discussed." Remarked one of the ANBU this one in a tori (bird) mask.
It had taken twenty minutes for majority of those called for to gather within the large chamber reserved for council meetings within the Hokage Tower. It was rare for a meeting of the full council to be called happening usually only twice a year. For them to be summoned nowhere near those times spoke volumes of itself. As everyone filed in Sarutobi Hizuren watched them enter the room calmly while ignoring the looks sent at the unfamiliar people within the room. He of course had known the group was large but the multitude of people did actually surprise him somewhat.
Naruto was the last to enter and when he did the old man was not surprised to see his eyes widen, though he was surprised when he settled into a neutral glare before he moved to the empty seat Sarutobi motioned to that was beside him. Many eyes narrowed on the blonde who was unknowingly sitting in the Senju seat.
"I'm happy everyone could make it on such short notice and in a prompt manner." Started the Sandaime sparing a glance over at Kakashi who stood with the jounin sensei's of the rookie gennin teams along with Maito Gai, Iruka, and Gekkyo Hayate.
"The position of Hokage is not the glamorous position that everyone dreams off growing up. Instead it is a stress filled position that eats away at you over time. It is a position of sacrifice that never stops until your dying breath. In my time as Hokage I've made choices that I've often regretted that even went against my own instincts for the good of the village.
I missed seeing my children grow up, I was pulled away from my sons wedding, my grandsons birth. After the infraction of the peace treaty by Kumo eight years ago my heart screamed for war yet I opted against it due to the state of our village after the Kyuubi attack. I allowed a potential successor to commit seppaku for saving his comrades over finishing a mission, something we had always stressed since our villages founding. Perhaps the thing I regret most however beating even Orochimaru's betrayal is a lie I told over a decade ago."
As he was speaking all eyes zoomed onto the old man who for the first time many were seeing as a fellow human and not as the invincible warrior he was said to be.
"That was a dark time for the village. The Kyuubi had just attacked and many lives had been lost including that of the Yondaime's. It hadn't been hard to make that lie as I had done it once before. I also had no intention of these truths coming out, at least any time soon. In fact I had hoped I'd be able to put this off for at least another eight years but with our current situation I no longer have that choice.
As some of you may know and remember twenty years ago a young woman entered our village as a refugee of the destroyed Uzu no Kuni. She was hailed as a prodigy of kenjutsu and a water manipulation given the nickname of The Red Death due to her long red hair, her name was Kushina. Over the next eight years I learned that she was a very private person always managing to steer a conversation away from her past. Throughout that time she had stayed in touch with Minato who was a member of the team that brought her to the village.
They kept their relationship secret and after the war was over decided to marry. A year later Kyuubi attack only a week after the birth of their son. Somehow the two were able to come up with a plan to beat the fox, Kushina would hold it immobile and Minato would seal it within their son."
Immediately after he said this several eyes widened in shock at the revelation as many of the adults within the room snapped their heads in Naruto's direction who was seated calmly within his seat surprising everyone.
"Before they left Kushina gave me a set of instructions regarding their son. The first thing she told me however was that the person she presented herself as wasn't who she was as Kushina didn't actually exist. She told me that one day people would come searching for her using her true name and that these people would be members of her clan most likely her parents. This however would only be after Naruto made gennin.
After they left the fox was killed instead of sealed, which we had thought for years until Naruto told us otherwise. During the battle Naruto woke up and somehow made it possible to kill the beast which Minato did. Minato died sealing the beast within the Shinigami's stomach and Kushina died after using the last of her energy to place a seal on Naruto to seal away his abilities which had nearly killed him that night.
I remember Tobirama-sensei once telling me that the best way to hide something is to put it in plain sight. I made the announcement about Naruto holding the Kyuubi, hoping you all would follow the plan and see him as the hero who stopped the beast, then placed him within the orphanage. I knew the other hidden village would send people soon to investigate and with Naruto in the orphanage instead of with myself, Jiraiya or Tsunade no one made the obvious connection between him and Minato, especially not Iwa. We were in no shape to be fighting a war with them at the time.
I knew this would work because I did the same thing with Minato. Outside of myself only a handful of people knew my sensei had taken a lover nor that she was expecting. When he died and I was appointed Hokage I convinced her to let the boy go by her name. I had told her, the child would be the future of the village. I knew if the world knew that there was an heir to the Senju clan the child would be dead within the first week.
However coming from a no name family no one would expect the child to amount to anything past a chuunin rank. They would never expect them to have the potential to become a Kage. Still even I never expected the emergence of the 'Yellow Flash'. That man won us the Third War when he revealed the Hiraishin to the world.
I knew Naruto possessed that same potential, perhaps even more. This was even displayed in his pranks the trap making genius of his father and the mischievousness of his mother. Who else but their son would think that since no one wanted to train them he would make them do so. For years he made our shinobi from gennin to ANBU train him forcing them to help him improve his trap making skills, stealth, speed, and agility."
"You said you wished to keep this secret perhaps another eight years. Why break the silence now?" questioned Aburame Shibi in the monotone his clan is known for.
"It was one of the promises I made to Kushina, that once those coming for Naruto arrived I would make the announcement of his heritage. Until that time however the secret would be kept." Explained the Sandaime calmly.
"And who are they exactly that we would hand over such a valuable member of our village!" demanded Koharu.
"You will do so because I command it. Otherwise I'd reduce this entire place to ash." Stated Azusa calmly ignoring the killing intent that suddenly filled the room.
"I am Masaki Azusa, head of the Masaki Clan, and Emperor of the royal kingdom of Jurai. From what I've learned from Sarutobi-san about the treatment of one of my clan I'd have no problem destroying this little rat hole."
Before anymore could be said three masked figures materialized around him swinging swords down onto him. Just before the struck each of them disappeared in a blur only for a resounding crash to echo through the room. Deep guttural growling had them all turning towards the sound only to find the three masked shinobi pinned to the ground by demonic looking canine like creatures their scaled flesh standing on end and glowing an angry orange color made all the more fearsome by their glowing silver eyes.
"That's enough Naruto. I think you've made your point."
At the words the blonde whistled causing the three hounds to snarl once more in their faces before backing off towards Naruto their scaled flesh lying down and turning darker which each step until they lied flat and were pitch black.
"Amazing I had thought the Furyan Hellhounds had gone extinct." Said Washu making her presence known as she moved over to the three.
"And you would be?" questioned the blonde politely.
"Hikubi Washu, at your service, the greatest scientific mind ever."
"I've heard of you rumor had it you disappeared some time ago, about a century give or take a decade r so. Unfortunately you're correct, these three girls are the last." Said Naruto patting one of the three on head as the red head studied another."
"What exactly are those things?" asked the Inuzuka head eyeing the three beast carefully.
"Do you know nothing of the creature's native to this planet. Furyan Hellhounds are Lupine/Reptilia hybrids best known for their speed and strength which they are bred for. They are classified among the most dangerous creatures to ever live." Explained Washu shortly.
"Not that this isn't interesting, Lady Washu, but we must get back on topic." Stated a new voice breaking her away from her discovery.
"Of course Lord Katsuhito." Said Washu retaking her seat.
"As Lord Azusa was trying to explain before he was interrupted, Naruto is a prince of Jurai a member of the empire in which you live. Before you ask the Jurai Empire is not a collection of countries but of planets, yours setting upon the northern edge of its space." Explained the old man calmly ignoring the incredulous looks sent his way by the members of Konoha's council.
"Furyans are known as the greatest warriors to ever live among the galaxy, so it is only natural the planet would sit on the edge where any trouble would pass through us." Said Naruto locking eyes with the old man.
"That is correct now the reason for this meeting, is that we would like to welcome you back into the society in which Furyans helped found." Explained Funaho shocking the group.
"Welcome us back?" questioned Nara Shikaku showing actual interest for once.
"Correct. However that is a story for another time, when the rest of the leaders arrive here next month. According to your Hokage you host a Chuunin Exam here beginning this week. The day before the final exam however the leaders of this world will meet here to discuss the situation. When we leave the planet you're children will be offered the chance to come along to study alongside Naruto." Said Funaho calmly.
"While I'm sure you have much more you wish to discuss, our time must end for now so you can digest what you've learned. However information packets have already been delivered to your homes for you to look over in private. We ask that none of this information however is discussed at all outside of this room, failure to comply will result in revoking the offer made to you. This means the bonus's you would get would no longer happen, and when we take Naruto he won't come back." Explained Misaki getting nods from the room.
"Naruto, perhaps you should freshen up before I take you to see your parents." Said Sarutobi.
At that Naruto stood and moved to leave before pausing to face the Juraian's getting a nod from Funaho.
"There will be trouble later." Said the Seto almost as soon as the room was clear.
"They'll be marriage proposals in my office before the day ends." Finished the old man.
When Naruto returned to the tower he found he wasn't the only one to do so. Not only had he made a return trip but the heads of the Yamanaka, Inuzuka, and Hyuga clans as well. seeing them seated calmly in the lobby of the Sandaime's office told him the old man was most likely still busy with the Juraians. With this in mind Naruto made his way towards and through the doors nodding towards the ANBU member who allowed him past.
Within the office Naruto found that true to his suspicion the old man was indeed still entertaining the Juraians, though whatever they were discussing was placed on hold as he made his way in.
"Ah Naruto my boy, I'm glad you could join us." Said Hizuren with a smile which the blonde tried to return.
"I'm sorry for earlier but it was something your mother asked of me before she passed." Explained the old man getting a nod from the youth.
"This is a larger group than what I anticipated would come." Said Naruto calmly as he eyed the large group of people.
"How long have you known?" asked Naruto eyeing the man calmly.
"The whole time. Your mother explained the truth of her past to a select few people when she found out she was pregnant with you. Those people were of course your father, your godfather Jiraiya, Tsunade, and of course myself. Of course she also made me swear a blood oath to not reveal the secret of your heritage until the day came that her family came to retrieve you."
A slight shifting had Naruto turning and faster than most could blink the bladed edge of a kunai was pressed into the flesh of a woman's neck.
"And who's throat is this?" asked Naruto.
"That would be my daughter Ryoko." Said Washu.
Ryoko herself was wide eyed her form still half materialized as she held a box of food in her hands. It had been a long time since someone had been able to since her upon approach like the blonde had just done.
"Ryoko, the space pirate. You'll find Furyans don't take surprise entrances well." Said Naruto removing the blade from the woman's throat and sheathing it.
"Well allow me to properly introduce you." Said the Sandaime hoping to break up the tension.
"Naruto-kun, as you may know this is Masaki Azuza-sama, his first wife Lady Funaho, and his second Lady Misaki, along with her mother Lady Seto. They as you may or may not know make up Jurai's high council. Next we have Prince Yosho and Airi, your grandparents and your aunt Lady Minaho. Princess's Aeka and Sasami, Yosho's sisters, and your cousins Tennyo and Tenchi."
At their introduction each person nodded their head, smiled, or waved in greeting which the blonde returned. The for Yosho he had changed from an old man to younger one surprising the blonde who hadn't been able to detect the henge, which was strange considering his advanced one.
"Over her we have Yamada Seina, the third prince of Jurai. With him are his wives Kiriko, Amane, Neju, and Balta Ryoko. Of course you remember Hakubi Washu, and her daughter Ryoko, and this is Kuramitsu Mihoshi. Is that everyone?" questioned the old man at the end.
"Well everyone aside for these two. These are also my daughters Ryo-ohki, and Fuku." Said Washu motioning to the two creatures in her lap.
Naruto blinked at the sight and words before looking towards the woman for an explanation.
"Ryo-ohki and Fuku, take the form of Cabbit's, which are cats mixed with rabbits. Ryoko, who was created first was created by using my ovum, which gives her the more human appearance. While I didn't use this specific organ with Ryo-ohki and Fuku I did use my genetics which still makes them my daughters as in their other forms they look similar to Ryoko and I." explained Washu causing both Naruto and Hizuren to blink before both simply nodded.
"Now then there is also the matter of your inheritance to discuss." Said Hizuren catching the blondes attention.
"Your father, as not only Hokage but this village's seal master had been able to accumulate quite a bit of wealth. This includes the titles to several properties including the apartment complex you live in. In fact your apartment was actually the one your parents shared. Both your parents had collected a vast library of techniques as well all of which, including your fathers scroll of Forbidden Techniques, have been given to your grandfather for you.
I've also contacted your godfather, who has been on a very high priority S-class assignment for the last decade. In fact if it wasn't for what he's been able to learn and keep his targets from learning you'd have probably died long ago. Anyway he will be returning to help prepare you for the Chuunin Exams. As for the wealth I set it up in a private shinobi account, which requires fresh blood and chakra to verify your identity for withdrawls, where it has been gathering interest for the last 13 years.
Unfortunately your mothers sword I've been unable to recover. Honestly I have no idea where she hid it, but she guaranteed you would be the only one who can get to it. Along with that you will also find a scroll written by your father detailing the Hiraishin no jutsu and the tools needed to accomplish it. Though before that I'd recommend studying up on seals, as without the knowledge of them you could actually kill yourself trying the technique.
Finally, neither of your parents were buried in the Hokage's graveyard as is customary. Instead your mother insisted they be taken to her ship. From what she said it would preserve their bodies so that they could be given proper burials. As such when they died their bodies immediately disappeared most likely to her ship, if you know where that is." Finished the old man.
"Now I'm sure you would like to get to know your newfound family so don't let me hold you up." Said the old man after a few minutes of silence.
"Very well then. I shall speak with you soon."
With the said Azusa stood to his feet before he along with everyone aside from the Sandaime simply faded from the room.
AN: That's it the meeting chapter is done, now everyone can stop stressing me about it. Seriously this was probably the most important part of the story so I decided to give it it's own chapter and it just grew on its own. Anyway let me know what you think, now flames, but constructive criticsm is welcome. Till next time, LATER.