It was strange, Yuki noted, just how much these kids were getting into the story and reflecting on their own decisions in life. Opening to the next chapter, the silverette god began "Chapter 6: Housemates and D-Ranks."
Timeskip - The Next Day
Midday, Sarutobi's Office, Hokage Tower
The eleven genin in the room had taken two sides. Ami's team were on one side, the rest were on the other side giving Ami's team the evil eye. At least the girls were. Ino, Sakura and Hinata had all been bullied by the purple haired menace that was Ami.
Again, the girls were mildly scowling at the mention of their tormentor, huh... must have been more of a bitch than the anime and manga show then...
The boys were indifferent.
Ino scoffed under her breath "of course..."
Kiba was dismissive of kunoichi, although Tsume and Hana, his mother and sister, were strong and well-respected kunoichi that no man wanted to get on the wrong side of.
Kiba was nervous. He knew how strong his mother and sister were and wanted no part in whatever delusions his other self had.
And yes, he knew what the word 'delusions' meant.
Shino was indifferent to petty rivalries as it was an illogical process.
Shino gave a nod at his other's thoughts, agreeing.
Shikamaru thought it was too troublesome.
Oh how he wish he had a pillow or something for all of this... troublesome...
Chōji might have cared if he had been on his own, but as it was, no.
Chōji gave a light embarrassed and uneasy half-hearted laugh as some of the others looked at him.
Sasuke regarded everyone around him as inferior, whether they are ninja or civilian, so the feuding between the kunoichi was of little interest to him.
"Thus proving the lack of brain cells among his fangirls..." Yuki muttered darkly, ignoring the hurt and angry looks he was getting from Ino and Sakura, the only two fangirls present.
The five jonin watching the genin did not think this was a good sign.
"Stupid brats are still caught up in their idiotic school rivalry." Anko said in an undertone to the others.
The girls turned their inner anger towards the book Anko.
"It has only been two days since graduation." Asuma pointed out, "Plus, they haven't even gone on any missions yet."
Kakashi sighed. "More importantly, Kurenai, where is your last student?"
Naruto tilted his head to the side, causing Hinata to blush from the cute action. She had moved back beside Naruto instead of on his lap like during the last chapter, and on the inside was wondering why she hasn't passed out yet.
"Yeah, where am I?" Naruto wondered out loud
The red-eyed jonin frowned. "I honestly don't know. From everything I have been able to find out about her, this is not like her. I half expected her to be waiting here early."
The blonde nodded, he would do just that... especially if he was excited.
Hayate laughed, before it spluttered into another cough. "That sounds like her. I remember when she was admitted to the academy. She was bouncing around like she was pumped full of pure adrenaline. It would have been cute…if it hadn't been so exhausting." he said after he recovered.
Naruto blushed a bit at the compliment.
Tenten spoke up at this point though "Is that guy ok? I've seen him a couple of times and he's always coughing... we won't have to worry about anything contagious when working with him, do we?"
Yuki shook his head "From what I gather, at some point in the past he had inhaled some poisonous smoke on a mission. While he's no longer in any danger health-wise, it left him with something like reverse asthma. He'll cough a lot doing normal things, but get him in a fight and it'll vanish until the fighting's over."
Asuma chuckled. "Yeah. I remember coming back for a visit when I was a member of the Guardian Ninja Twelve when she was five. I helped move her into her old apartment. She was so excited about getting her own house."
"This trip down memory lane -as fascinating as it is- still begs the question of 'where is Naruko?'" Kakashi said in a monotone.
Naruto leaned in a bit in anticipation.
Just then, the Hokage walked in. He looked between the two groups of genin with a sigh before he strode over to his desk and sat down behind it with yet another sigh.
"Well, now that we're all here, we can begin." Sarutobi said as he shuffled documents on his desk.
"Um...Hokage-sama, Naruko isn't here yet." Sakura said quickly.
"Yeah, where is she?" Sakura huffed, agreeing with her other
"I have to disagree there Sakura-chan. Naruko has been here before the Jonin arrived."
"Huh?" half the genin stated loudly
Sarutobi said with a small chuckle before he raised his voice slightly, "Naruko, you can come out now."
"Awwww, Ji-chan! You spoiled the surprise!" Naruko's voice whined from seemingly nowhere, "You could have waited until I made my entrance!"
This got a chuckle from those that knew what Naruto was like.
The other genin looked around for their fellow ninja, but couldn't catch sight of her. Even the Jonin couldn't find her and were looking around in puzzlement.
"My apologies, Naruko-chan but we do have a lot to get on with, so if you could show yourself, we can get on with it." Sarutobi said firmly.
A small sigh was heard from the hidden kunoichi. "Oh all right." Naruko said sulkily.
Then the ceiling started to collapse, or so the assembled Ninja thought. It was soon evident that it was a giant cloth painted and textured to look exactly like the ceiling of the Hokage's office. Four Shadow Clones of Naruko, henge'd into wearing her old jumpsuit, had been holding it up at each of the four corners of the office.
"A giant version of Ninpō: Kakuremino no Jutsu (Ninja Art: Magic Cloak of Invisibility Jutsu)?" Kurenai asked in disbelief, "And we never noticed her presence at all?"
Naruto was torn by being embarrassed by the praise and preen at the looks of awe most of his fellow genin were sporting.
The Shadow Clones rolled up the cloth and laid it to one side before dispelling themselves.
"It takes the concerted effort of up to ten teams of ANBU or the effort of one Umino Iruka to track down and bring in Naruko." Sarutobi said with a small smile, "Add in to that her stealth is above the level required for ANBU entry, and you have nothing to be ashamed of."
Yuki spoke up, taking off a couple of points with his fingers "Pranks. In orange. In broad daylight. Yes he is that good."
Naruto just seemed to soak in the praise at this point.
As the two adults spoke, the real Naruko dropped down to the floor, clad in a fresh set of her new outfit that drew some raised eyebrows. There were only three things different about her from when Sarutobi had seen her the previous day.
The first was that the trench coat now bore the spiral symbol of the Uzumaki Clan on its back and left arm, just as she had told him the previous day.
The second was the addition of an additional hitai-ate tied around her right upper arm, which bore the spiral symbol of Uzushiogakure. Evidently Naruko had come across her mother's possessions after he left.
Naruto's eyes immediately shot to Yuki's, looking at the god with a look of anxious hope.
Yuki chuckled lightly "I'll take a look around your dimension afterwards and get you one, either your mother's or a traditional Uzushio one."
The third and final addition was the sword slung over her right shoulder. It was a katana, with a red-wrapped handle. The Tsuba was circular and was carved to resemble the Uzumaki Clan symbol. The sheath was black with spirals picked out in gold running down its length. Sarutobi recognised it immediately as Kushina's sword, Benihime.
"I'll look for that one too."
He wasn't the only one who recognized the sword. Kakashi went rigid when he saw it, as did Hayate although they did so for entirely different reasons. Kakashi recognized the sword of the person whom his sensei had loved, while Hayate recognized the Meitō (famous named sword) that had belonged to the best swordswoman in all of Konoha.
Naruto was in awe hearing about his mother while the others were looking at him in awe for having such an awesome mother.
"Heya guys." Naruko greeted her fellow graduates, but pointedly ignored Ami, Kasumi and Fuki.
"N-Naruko?" Sakura asked, shocked by her change in attire, "Is that really you?"
A full body picture of Naruto's outfit popped up onto the screen. Naruto thought it was badass and was definitely going to be getting a male version of it for himself. Ino nodded at the outfit, it passed her judgment and was a lot more stylish than Naruto's own orange jumpsuit.
'{Shannaro! She looks better without the damn orange monstrosity hiding her! She had better not go after my Sasuke-kun! Cha!}' Her inner self shouted.
This got the others attention, with Ino the first to ask "What the hell was that?"
Yuki spoke before Sakura got a chance to "That is a result of the lack of self-esteem on top of the bullying that Sakura went through, something like a cross between an ID and a split personality. While it can't take control of her body, it often just acts to voice her more brazen thoughts and in actuality is a decent defense against the weaker members of the Yamanaka clan. If you were to dive into Sakura's head Ino, the 'Inner Sakura's fist would be taller than you are."
Ino's just had her jaw hanging open at that.
"Yup." The Uzumaki Heiress replied, "Decided to put the jumpsuits away now I'm a real kunoichi and not a student."
"Heh. Clothes don't matter, Dobe." Kiba sneered, "You can't match me. Not now, not ever."
Yuki smirked as he remembered the Chunin Exam prelims.
"We'll see, mutt." Naruko shot back.
Kiba wanted to be angry at the remark, but seeing how his other is acting, he just couldn't muster the energy.
Shikamaru looked at her and rolled his eyes. "Urgh. Do you have to be so troublesome, Naruko?"
Naruko giggled. "Yup."
Shika just held his face in his hands from his seat "Troublesome..."
"…Hn." Sasuke grunted.
"Teme, as always you are a riveting conversationalist." Naruko said sarcastically.
"Baka!" Ino shouted, "Stop calling my Sasuke-kun that!"
"He has to say more than single syllable answers to any question he's asked before that'll happen Ino-chan." Naruko replied cheekily, "Yo Chōji, up for our eating contest after this?"
The other guys besides Sasuke, Shikamaru, Neji, and Lee snickered at Naruko's comeback, while Chōji's expression brightened at the mention of an eating contest.
"You bet!" The rotund boy replied happily. He had always liked Naruko. She had never teased him for his weight and was able to compete with him in eating contests, which was unheard of within Konoha. The Akimichi Clan, with their Karorī Kontorōru no Jutsu (Calorie Control Jutsu) were infamous for consuming an incredibly large amount of food.
The only person to equal them in this department was Naruko when it came to Ramen. Not even his father, Chōza, could out-eat Naruko when it came to Ramen.
Chōji's eyes looked like they were about to ignite as he looked at Naruto. Challenge Accepted.
Shino regarded Naruko speculatively but said nothing. Hinata's face was, as always, somewhat red when she looked at Naruko.
Sarutobi cleared his throat. "Naruko-chan, did you bring what I asked for?" he asked.
"Oh, yeah!" Naruko said as she opened her trench coat, reached in and pulled out a scroll, "Here you go Ji-chan."
She tossed the scroll at the Hokage, who deftly caught it. "My thanks. Take these to the mission counter and you will be paid for both missions." Sarutobi told her as he tossed a pair of scrolls back at Naruko, who caught them with a grin and a nod.
Ignoring the curious looks of her peers, Naruko pocketed the scrolls and pretended that her peers were not regarding her with suspicion.
Sarutobi decided now would be a good time to distract them. "Now, if all genin would line up in their teams?" he asked.
After the genin scrambled into lines, he was unsurprised to see Ami at the head of Team 6, Sasuke at the head of Team 7, Naruko at the head of Team 8 and a reluctant Shikamaru at the head of Team 10.
There was a barely repressed snort from Ino upon hearing that last part.
Turning to the jonin, Sarutobi said, "Now, I would like for you to select a member of your squad to be the second in command. This has no meaning in anything but C-Rank missions and above."
Noticing the half-incredulous looks coming from the genin, Sarutobi told them, "This is a precaution, nothing more, for the unlikely case that your Jonin-sensei is incapacitated for some reason, such as severe chakra exhaustion."
Wave mission popped into Yuki's head.
Sakura stuck her hand up.
"Yes, Sakura-chan? And there's no need to raise your hand to ask a question; you are no-longer at the Academy." Sarutobi said gently.
Sakura blushed, which deepened when Ino nudged her and smirked at the rosette.
"H-Hai, Hokage-sama." Sakura said nervously. She really envied Naruko's easy rapport with the village leader right now, "Err, what would the duties of a second in command actually be?"
"An excellent question, Sakura-chan." Sarutobi said approvingly, making the pinkette blush slightly, "A second in command or Assistant Squad Leader (ASL) is only relevant when the Jonin-sensei is either not around, such as an independent D-Rank or above mission, or if, as I have already said, the Jonin-sensei becomes incapacitated on a C-rank or higher mission."
He paused to light his pipe before continuing, "An ASL is considered to be in charge of the squad until such time as they either revive their Jonin-sensei or the mission is complete, whichever happens first or is more relevant. Disobeying the orders of an ASL is given the same oversight as disobeying the Jonin-sensei, so long as the order falls under the ORP criteria."
Again, seeing Hiruzen banging his head against the desk over in his brother's section made Yuki's grin widen.
"ORP? What the heck is that?" asked Ino.
"ORP. Ordinary, Reasonable and Prudent." explained Sarutobi, "In other words, if an order given is judged by seasoned jonin to be something an ordinary, reasonable and prudent ninja would have followed when it was not, the full weight of the law -military law, not civilian law- would be brought to bear on the one who disobeyed it."
Yuki snorted thinking to Sasuke's run in with Itachi during the Tsunade retrieval arc. "Sasuke, I've seen your future decisions in life after you graduated. How the hell did you even graduate as rookie of the year?" this got everyone's attention, "In your first run in with your brother-slash-revenge target, you got his attention, then ran at him with a half mastered assassination technique at what would amount as low chunin speeds. He's a high ANBU level opponent and that wouldn't have worked even if you tried to get the element of surprise because the damn technique is so loud and distinctive."
Nobody could refute how idiotic that sounded, not even Sasuke. Yuki continued anyways "Oh right, it's because the real ones that were top of the class held back their skills like true ninja." Shikamaru and Shino "Then there's the fact that it was highly likely that most of the teachers modified your grades to make them higher just like they most likely lowered Naruto's." Nobody could say anything after that.
"And if the order was not what an 'ORP' ninja would follow?" Sasuke asked insolence in his body language as if such a thing was beneath him.
"Again questioning the IQ of his fangirls..." Yuki muttered
"Then the ASL would be the one brought under scrutiny instead." Sarutobi replied, looking the arrogant boy in the eyes sternly, "Should the ASL be found wanting, they could face several penalties which, while not as severe as what a chunin or jonin would face in a similar situation, would be most…unpleasant for them, their family's…and their Clan's lands and money."
Sasuke scowled as the warning struck home. With an "Hn" of what could be imagined to be acknowledgement, he shoved his hands in his pockets and remained silent.
"Now, Hayate, who will you recommend?" Sarutobi asked after a lingering look of disappointment at the Uchiha.
"{Cough} I recommend Matsura Ami." Hayate said. Ami smirked arrogantly at this.
"Very well. Kakashi?" Sarutobi hid his concern at the girl's arrogance. It seemed that this year, arrogant ninja were the norm.
"I recommend Haruno Sakura." The silver-haired man said lazily. Sakura looked shocked.
So did the Sakura listening along.
"WHAT!?" snarled Sasuke, "I am an Uchiha! My lineage demands that I be in charge! She is just a civilian!"
"And a mere kunoichi." Kiba sneered.
"ENOUGH!" Sarutobi thundered angrily, while Naruko and Hinata glared at Sasuke and Kiba. Team 6, Sakura and Ino were looking at Sasuke with hurt shock at his attitude towards civilians.
"Sasuke, a person's origin does not determine their place in life." Sarutobi spoke softly, but with anger clear in his voice, "Nor does a person's gender, Kiba. I confess to being disappointed in you both. As punishment, all your mission-pay from the next twenty missions is to be forfeited to Haruno Sakura for conduct unbecoming of a shinobi of Konoha. Understood?"
Even Sasuke was starting to become disgusted with how his other was acting, although he never showed it.
Meanwhile Sakura's crush on Sasuke was starting to die a painful and slow death... with extra dying thrown in.
Sasuke and Kiba looked sullen as they nodded bitterly. Sarutobi settled down and motioned to Kurenai.
"I recommend Uzumaki Naruko." she said with a smile. Naruko looked like she had been sucker punched in the gut.
Yuki stopped any questions "It will tell you later in the story."
"Wait, the Dobe is gonna be an ASL?" Ami asked incredulously, "Might as well mark them as KIA right now." Her two flunkies sniggered in agreement with her.
Naruto was starting to see why the girls hated Ami; he was starting to feel the same way.
Naruko glared murderously at Ami, while Ino and Hinata adding their glares to the mix. Team 10 were not too happy either. Sakura was glaring as well, while Sasuke and Kiba looked as if they agreed with Ami.
Sasuke was sweating while Kiba was shrinking in his seat at the combined glares being sent their way.
Sarutobi sighed. It seemed Ami, Sasuke and Kiba were this year's troublemakers. "Ami, cease this childish idea that you are superior to others based on academic records and do not ridicule others in such a cruel manner or I will punish you as I have Sasuke and Kiba." he said in an almost resigned way, while his eyes glowered at the civilian-born genin.
Ami quailed at the look the Hokage gave her and shut up with an almost inaudible "Hai."
"Asuma, what about you?" Sarutobi asked.
"I recommend Nara Shikamaru." Asuma replied. Shikamaru huffed and muttered his family's catchphrase, "Troublesome."
"Very well. I fully endorse the recommendations of the Jonin." the Hokage said formally, "Ami, Sakura, Naruko, Shikamaru; do you accept the responsibility offered to you?"
"Hell yeah!" crowed Ami, who had recovered from her fear somewhat.
"I-I…yes. I accept, Hokage-sama." Sakura said standing straighter.
"Nobody'll get to my friends while I'm on the job! I'm in." Naruko stated forcefully, shooting Ami a quick scowl.
"Damn right!" Naruto shouted, agreeing wholeheartedly with his other.
"Troublesome. Okaa-san will nag me to death if I don't accept. I'll do it." grumbled Shikamaru.
"Very good." Sarutobi said. "The second reason I have called you here is to inform you of the Genin Housing Act."
"What's that?" asked Fuki, who had been silent so far.
"Rather basically, it means that each team will be living in the same house or apartment together." replied Sarutobi.
The genin, aside from Naruko, looked at the Hokage in shock. Then Sasuke crossed his arms.
"I'll pass on this." he stated unequivocally.
"You have no choice." Sarutobi shot back, eyes narrowed at the Last Uchiha, "Unless you resign as a ninja, you will comply with my command."
Sasuke scowled again. "Why do we have to do this?" he spat out.
"I believe that it will help improve your teamwork faster. Living together and working together should help you all bond more quickly and thus raise the speed of your on-the-job efficiency." Sarutobi explained, " In addition, having to pay for your utilities, such as water and electricity, out of your mission pay and standard genin pay will teach you a sense of responsibility and aid in your maturity, which will be needed on C-Rank and above missions and the Chunin Selection Exams."
Sasuke did not look convinced. "I disagree strongly with this. If I'm living elsewhere, who will maintain the Uchiha Compound?" he argued.
"The Uchiha compound is in dire need of extensive maintenance anyway Sasuke." Sarutobi said firmly, "I'm sure that you have done your best to hold the fort there, but the fact of the matter is that it took at least twenty people, sometimes as many as fifty, to maintain the small things on a day-to-day basis, let alone what any serious repairs required. So far, you have refused all offers at aid in that department, but with this, I am afraid you will have to relent."
Yuki stared at Sasuke until it seemed the boy got the hint.
Seeing there was nothing to be done, Sasuke huffed slightly and said nothing.
Glad that the Uchiha had acceded, albeit reluctantly, Sarutobi continued with his briefing. "Your Jonin-sensei have a set of keys for each of you, plus an extra set of their own for emergencies. The houses have been stocked with a week's worth of food, but I advise that you make up a shopping list so everyone can get whatever else you need for now."
Seeing that the genin had calmed down and accepted the idea, Sarutobi smiled. "OK then. Teams 6, 7 and 10 can move out and start moving out, pardon the pun. Team 8; stay behind as there are additional things to be discussed."
Naruto snickered lightly at the pun.
Meanwhile in two separate worlds
An immortal centaur sneezed before telling his charges that Argus, the head of security at their camp, would 'keep an eye on things' before sending them off onto a quest.
A buxom blonde huntress-in-training, sneezed before heading off to find a Yangin' club to get a drink at, and maybe find more on her mother.
Back with the readers...
As the other genin filed out after their sensei, they snuck looks at Team 8, no doubt wondering what the Hokage wanted with them. Had Naruko perhaps played another prank on a prominent clan again?
Once the door had closed behind them, Sarutobi got up and swiftly knelt next to Naruko. "Don't believe what Ami said." He told her as he looked into her sapphire blue eyes, which had been quivering with barely concealed fear when the others hadn't been looking, ever since Ami had so flippantly made her cruel remark.
This got the genins' attentions, what would have the ever brave and confident Naruto/Naruko so scared?
"But-But yesterday they were almost killed just because they were on the same squad as me, Ji-chan." Naruko whispered brokenly, "What if it happens again? What if one of them gets hurt or even dies because some idiot who was after me gets them instead? I don't think I could take it if that happened."
The girls felt sad and were agreeing more and more with the thought a few chapters back 'and they think he/she's a demon?'
"Naruko…" Ino whispered as she saw the usually strong girl tremble in fear and self-doubt. Drawing herself up, Ino strode forward and roughly spun Naruko around. Sarutobi wisely got out of the firing line of the irate kunoichi.
"Now you listen here Uzumaki Naruko!" Ino snarled, "Get it through your head that Hinata and I are both kunoichi too! Having brushes with death is a risk we accepted when we accepted our hitai-ate! So don't you dare try and coddle us!"
Naruko stared at Ino in ill-disguised shock. "You don't understand-" she tried to say, before Ino cut her off.
"You mean how everyone thinks you're the Kyūbi reborn just because you were the only one born that day?" the Yamanaka Heiress snorted in disgust as she spoke.
Naruko, Sarutobi, Kurenai and Anko went rigid at these words. "How'd you…?" Naruko asked timorously.
"I did some thinking, and then daddy told me his suspicions." Ino replied, "He seemed just as irritated as I am by the whole thing. Really! As if Hokage-sama would have let you live in the village if that was the case!"
Sarutobi relaxed slightly. He had to admit; focusing the girl on one part of the villagers' misguided beliefs was a smart thing on Inoichi's part, even more so because it offended Ino that people would think such a thing of one of her friends. Ino had always been highly protective of those close to her and this latest incident with her own cousin trying to kill Naruko seemed to have kicked that instinct into overdrive.
Copying Naruto's previous outburst, Ino nodded with her other's protectiveness "Damn Straight!"
"Naruko-chan." Hinata, up until now silent, walked forward to stand next to Ino, "I-I understand that y-you want to protect us, and I a-appreciate the thought, but Ino-chan is right. We are kunoichi a-and we will risk dying on an m-mission eventually. Please, trust us. We are y-your teammates and I no more believe that you are the Kyūbi than Ino-chan does."
That did it. Naruko grabbed her teammates into a tight hug and cried freely, for the first time in who knows how long, all the while sobbing out her thanks to them. Although startled at first, Ino and Hinata returned the hug with feeling, sensing that their friend needed this.
Naruto was in tears while Hinata held him in her arms.
Ino, meanwhile, was torn. She wanted to go over and comfort her fellow blonde too...
Kurenai, Anko and Sarutobi smiled at the sight before them. Even although the two other genin kunoichi didn't know the full truth yet, they still dismissed the idea that Naruko was the Kyūbi reincarnated without a second thought, which boded well for when Naruko told them the real truth.
'Naruko, trust in your friends. They will not let you down.' Sarutobi thought as he watched the girl who was his granddaughter in all but blood weep herself dry.
At length, Naruko recovered her composure and apologised to her friends for doubting them.
"Don't let it happen again!" Ino said, her threatening tone mitigated by her gentle smile. Hinata blushed red and pushed her forefingers together in embarrassment.
"Naruko, is that your mother's sword?" Sarutobi asked, trying to lighten the mood.
"Yeah, I found her last night." Naruko said, brightening slightly, "Do you want to see her?"
The screen changed into a short video on what was happening.
"If you wouldn't mind." Sarutobi replied. Naruko reached back, grasped the hilt and drew the sword, which made a metallic {ZING} sound as it was drawn.
The blade was a work of art; there was no other way to describe it. The distinctive ripple of master-forged steel reflected back at the watching ninja. Engraved on the blade were intricately worked waves, tides and swirls that almost seemed to be in motion.
Tenten's mouth was watering at the craftsmanship she was seeing, while Neji scooted away from her with a slightly disturbed look on his face.
"W-Wow…" Breathed Hinata. Ino was, rather unusually for her, speechless at the sight of the sword. Anko whistled appreciatively and Kurenai could only nod in silent agreement with her friend.
"Beautiful, isn't she?" Naruko said proudly.
"Naruko, why do you keep referring to the sword as a female?" Sarutobi asked curiously.
Naruko grinned. "Only a lady could be as beautiful as Benihime here." she replied.
"'Crimson Princess'?" Kurenai asked with a raised eyebrow.
"Beats 'Ryūketsu Shinigami' any day of the week." Naruko replied with a shrug.
This time, Anko was the one to raise an eyebrow. "Wow, that name takes me back. 'Bloody Reaper' used to make the Kiri-nin run for the hills as soon as Kushina-sama drew it. Aside from the Seven Swordsmen."
Anko's eyebrows weren't the only ones to go up as the group had their own awe-filled expressions.
Sarutobi chuckled. "Yes, but then only a couple of them could go toe-to-toe with Kushina on anything approaching an even footing. The rest were beaten to a bloody pulp and never dared challenge her again if they survived."
He then looked at Naruko seriously. "I must warn you, do not let anyone else try and hold the blade once you have bloodied it. It will be sealed to you and no one else will be able to hold it after it is drawn from the sheath." He warned Naruko sternly.
Tenten's half shouted/half begged "What?! Why?!" was ignored for the moment.
"Yeah, there was a note on it from the Nidaime Uzukage, Uzumaki Rensa." Naruko replied, "She was the one who made it."
"Wait, Uzukage? Uzumaki Rensa?" Ino asked, confused.
"The Uzukage was the leader of Uzushiogakure no Sato, which was destroyed at the start of the Third Great Shinobi War." Naruko replied, "And most of the population of Uzushiogakure was made up of the Uzumaki Clan, so all of the Uzukage's were Uzumaki's. Rensa-baa-chan was my Great-Great-Great Grandmother."
Naruto was soaking in any knowledge he could about his family.
Yuki spoke up "The history and names vary from dimension to dimension, I'll add in a scroll on some history for your own Lineage afterwards Naruto. As for anyone else, if you see something that your other has that you want, I'll give you scrolls on it before you're sent home, but only for what your others have learned. You will not be getting techniques your classmates learn unless your other learns them too." he looked at Sasuke "Which means that any jutsu that Naruto or Naruto learn you cannot ask for unless your own other learns it too."
"You're in the same situation as Sasuke-san." Hinata breathed.
Naruko snorted. "And unlike him, I'm not a teme about it. He is such an EMO!"
Yuki snorted and muttered to himself "That meme has become so distorted..."
Sarutobi interrupted before Mount. Ino could erupt. "Have you thought of a new name for Benihime yet?" he asked.
The question was enough to distract Ino from the snickers at the nickname.
"Not yet." Naruko said with a shake of her head, "I mean it's not something to decide on at the drop of a hat!"
"Very true." Sarutobi said approvingly, "Kushina was careful not to use Benihime until she had decided on a name. She used an ANBU ninjatō until then. I would advise you to do the same."
"Right." Naruko nodded as she re-sheathed Benihime.
"I don't get it." Ino said with a frown, "It's a nice sword, sure, but why can't anyone use it once Naruko's blooded it? And why is it so special?"
"There are cunningly wrought seals on the blade and hilt that react badly to such a thing happening." Sarutobi replied, "If someone other than the chosen wielder tries to hold it, Benihime sends a massive electrical shock up their arm, directly through the tenketsu and into the chakra network."
Hinata and Neji both gasped upon hearing that "B-But that w-would cause irreparable damage!" causing the rest of the group to gain shocked looks.
Yuki halfheartedly glared at them "Can you not do that?"
Hinata looked back at Yuki "D-Do what?"
Yuki went back to the book and read the next line,
Hinata's eyes widened. "T-That kind of damage would be irreparable!" she exclaimed. As a Hyūga, she was an expert on attacks on the chakra network, so nobody disbelieved her.
Then looked back at Hinata and Neji, causing the girl to blush and Neji to look away in attempt to hide his slightly reddening cheeks.
"And as for why it is so special…" Sarutobi said with a small smile, "The one who wields Benihime -or whatever the wielder calls the blade- is the Heir or Heiress of the Uzumaki Clan."
"Not that being the Heiress is any great feat when it's just me in the Clan." Naruko muttered.
Ino smacked her lightly across the back of the head. "Stop trying to be like Sasuke-kun! You can't be as cool as he is, so stop trying!"
"Who'd want to be like Sasuke-teme?!" Naruko shot back as she rubbed her head where Ino had hit her, "And I wasn't trying to be like him anyway!"
"Yeah? Well you were doing a half-decent attempt at it!" Ino retorted. Kurenai and Anko hid smiles as they saw what Ino was doing.
"LIKE HELL!" Naruko shouted indignantly.
Yuki couldn't keep the smirked off his face when he saw the exact same look on Naruto's face as his other had in the book.
Sarutobi coughed. "As…important as this must be too you two, I should tell you all what I held your team back for, would you say Naruko?"
Naruko brightened and grinned mischievously. A grin that Sarutobi returned, making Ino and Hinata shift nervously.
"Now, unlike the other teams, Team 8 will not be moved into an ordinary house or apartment." Sarutobi said once he finished grinning at Naruko, "This is for the reason that Ino-chan here recently discovered."
Ino and Hinata cursed under their breaths at the villagers in general.
"While I disagree with your way of expressing yourselves on the subject, I agree with your sentiments." Sarutobi told them wryly, "Anyway, Naruko recently defeated Toji Mizuki, last of the Toji Clan, when he was about to become a Nuke-nin, thus she qualified for both the Spoils of Victory Act, as well as the Conquering Clan Act."
This got quite the confused looks from everyone.
Hinata's jaw dropped. "Y-You mean Naruko-chan now owns everything that once b-belonged to Mizuki? A-And everything his Clan owned too?" she blurted out in astonishment.
"Just so." Sarutobi said, Seeing the incomprehension and stupefaction on the faces on the two jonin and Ino, Sarutobi explained, "The Spoils of Victory Act was passed by the Shodaime as an incentive to capture Nuke-nin before they left the village. Anyone who succeeds in capturing a Nuke-nin before they leave the village, as long as the captor is from a Clan, is entitled to all ninja equipment owned by the Nuke-nin.
The Conquering Clan Act was actually introduced by my sensei, Senju Tobirama, the Nidaime Hokage, when several smaller clans were severely reduced or wiped out during the Great Shinobi Wars. There was a lot of nonsense about honour duels between shinobi who were the last of their clan back then, so Tobirama-sensei, having gotten sick of the whole business, made this law to put a stop to it. Very basically, if the last members of two separate clans fight, the loser cedes all belongings, properties and monies to the victor.
Yuki winced, remembering the fight between Sasuke and Naruto at the valley of the end.
As you can imagine, after the first couple of losers did lose everything of their clan, the honour duels tapered of fairly quickly."
"No doubt." Kurenai muttered in shock.
"So the gaki gets Mizuki's room at the barracks?" Anko asked, seemingly unperturbed and unimpressed.
"No, no." Sarutobi replied, "She gets the Toji Clan's Compound and estate in the Clan Residential District, in addition to everything in it, a few shares in various businesses in and out of Konoha, as well as any and all Clan Jutsu and styles formerly belonging to the Toji Clan."
Anko actually staggered slightly. "She gets ownership of the Fūshiryū (Wind Death Dragon) Fūma Shuriken style?" she asked weakly.
Upon seeing everyone's looks, Yuki waved them off "It was a style unique to that dimension to sorta explain why Mizuki used Dai Shuriken when he attempted to kill Naruto and Iruka. Defeating him and protecting your former teacher is pretty much the reason, on top of learning the Shadow Clone, why Naruto graduated."
Seeing that Naruko was confused, Sarutobi said, "A style that focuses on using Fūma Shuriken in close combat. The Toji Clan was well known for their prowess with the style and several members were well known for fighting several foes at once while using it."
"Fūma Shuriken are large shuriken with a single edge to each blade, while Dai Shuriken are just large shuriken that look like enlarged normal shuriken."
"Cool. Definitely have to add one to my 'special arsenal'." Naruko said with a smirk.
"That would be a good idea." Sarutobi agreed, "Moving on, Naruko here has spent the last few days cleaning the place up, as it has not been used in twenty years. I believe I shall have to pay you for, let's see now, four D-Rank Missions for your hard work Naruko-chan."
"Ji-chan, I was just cleaning my new house!" Naruko protested.
"An estate that can house fifty people comfortably, not to mention moderately large grounds that need a gardeners touch." Sarutobi said dryly. "I think you deserve the money for the effort. Not to mention the fact that I'm taking liberty with your property by making it your genin team's home."
"Well…if you say so Ji-chan." Naruko brightened slightly, "Hey that makes four solo D-Ranks, one solo B-Rank and one solo A-Rank, all before I'm an official genin! Beat that, Sasuke-teme!"
Sasuke ruthlessly crushed the feeling of jealousy that had attempted to rise upon hearing that.
Ino smiled ruefully. Even she had to admit that Naruko had beaten Sasuke here. But still…
"Baka! Stop calling him a teme!" Ino shouted as she bopped Naruko across the head lightly, just hard enough to get her point across.
"But he is a teme, Ino-chan!" Naruko retorted, "Look at how he treated Sakura-chan just now!"
Sakura blushed and shyly looked at the ground, hearing how vehemently Naruto/Naruko protected her honor like that.
Ino faltered slightly. She knew Naruko had a point. Sakura hadn't done anything to deserve those scathing remarks about her origin. And as for Kiba…
"I'm more worried about Kiba, actually." Ino said, chewing her lip slightly, "I mean, you saw how he treated Forehead as well, right? What if he tries something with her?"
"He'll get neutered." Naruko said flatly, "If not by me or you, then by Tsume-sama or Hana-sempai. He's an idiot, but he isn't that foolish."
Everyone ignored Kiba's loud whimper as the boy instinctively curled into a ball on the floor while protecting his junk. He had seen the last idiot that got neutered by his mother after all.
"He'd better not be that stupid." Anko growled a kunai in one hand that Sarutobi couldn't remember her having drawn.
Ok, now the whimpering was getting louder, but was still ignored in favor of most of the genin wondering where she hid it, and Tenten wondering if the woman would teach her how to do it.
"I am certain that Kiba will behave himself." Sarutobi said in a placating manner, "And I have taken the precaution of giving Haruno Sakura a chakra sensitive locking seal on her door. None but she can open the door, and the door itself is reinforced with several seals that make it resilient to all but high rank fire jutsu."
"That…ought to make her relatively safe." Kurenai said thoughtfully, "This is supposing that Inuzuka Kiba is stupid enough to try to do something to her, of course."
"I'm going to start working on Fūinjutsu." Naruko said grimly, "I was looking over the index of the Uzumaki Fūinjutsu Library and there are some useful seals in there, like one that sends up a chakra flare when certain conditions are violated the Koware Kyōkai Fūin (Broken Boundary Seal)."
Sarutobi's head snapped around at that. "You could have that seal made?" he asked quickly.
"My calligraphy needs some work before I can begin to learn even basic storage seals and explosive tags." Naruko said thoughtfully, "But with my clones and access to Iruka-sensei, I could probably get to the point of creating an intermediate seal like the Koware Kyōkai Fūin in about three months, perhaps two if I really abuse my clones."
"Do it." Sarutobi said, making it an order, "That seal could be far more useful than just guarding a genin's bedroom. Consider this an ongoing C-Rank mission."
Naruto's expression shot up. That seal is that important? And he'd get to learn it?!
Naruko snapped to attention. "Hai, Hokage-sama." she said seriously, soldier to commander rather than granddaughter to grandfather as she usually did.
Sarutobi nodded. "Now, let's head to Team 8's new home. Naruko-chan, send some clones to the Hyūga estate and the Yamanaka Flower Shop to pick up your teammates things."
Naruko nodded and created fifty shadow clones, which split into two groups and sped off out the door to the homes of her teammates.
"Why do I suddenly feel like I unleashed gremlins in a machine shop?" Sarutobi asked aloud, "Oh, that's right - I just sent fifty Naruko's out into Konoha without supervision."
Naruko pouted at this remark.
Everyone else chuckled as Naruto copied his other in pouting
Ten minutes later
Gate to Former Toji Clan Estate, Clan Residential District
"That…is an impressive gate." Anko deadpanned. Team 8 and the Hokage stood in front of what was indeed an impressive gate. The gate itself was three meters high and made of intricately woven steel, forming a kind of lattice. In structure, the gate would be termed a Nijūmon (Two Story Gate) as it had a second floor that was obviously accessible, considering it had a half dozen of Naruko-clones standing guard on the second level.
While the gate looked impressive from the picture, seeing the Naruko clones kinda ruined any intimidation factor it might've had.
Naruko is just too cute.
"Impressive, but useless against shinobi." Kurenai said critically.
Naruko shrugged and walked over to the gate and stopped on top of a circular indentation just in front of the gate and turned towards the group.
"I, Uzumaki Naruko, Clan Heiress of the Uzumaki Clan, do recognize Yamanaka Ino, Hyūga Hinata, Mitarashi Anko and Yūhi Kurenai as honoured guests and allies of the Uzumaki Clan." the last Uzumaki said in a clear voice, "They may come and go from here at their own discretion."
The indentation glowed and the impressive gate behind her retracted into the ground with barely a well-oiled click, leaving Team 8 gawking. Naruko merely turned and walked through the gateway as if it was an everyday occurrence, which it probably was for her.
Ok, now everyone was in awe seeing that.
"…How?" Kurenai got out.
"That's what we'd like to know" Ino muttered in a mixture of irritation and awe.
"The original Clan Compounds of Konoha have defenses that activate when the seals that govern them detect that the bloodline they are keyed to be reduced to a single member." Sarutobi told them as he led them through the gateway, "A lot of them were created by the Nidaime Hokage and, when he forced through the Conquering Clan Act, he altered those seals to also detect when his law had been invoked correctly, so as you can see, Naruko is well protected here."
"But that gate-" Kurenai started to ask, before the sight before her made her speechless.
A beautiful oriental manor stood proudly before them, made in the Buke-Zukuri style (Military Family Style) of a traditional aristocrat's palace. The main stone-paved path was lined on either side by Komainu (Lion-Dog) statues, with the occasional pair of Kitsune statues here and there.
That sight was breath-taking enough, but the army of Naruko clones running through katas across the grounds was even more so. Especially since the clones were practicing a style that none of Team 8 recognized.
"This is the Uzushiogakure version of our own Hakage style, the Ushio-ken." Sarutobi explained, "In order to learn her Clan Style, Naruko has to master this style first."
Ok, that level of puppy dog eyes from Naruto should be illegal "It's in the list..."
"Shouldn't she focus on fixing the errors in the Hakage style that she knows first, before she learns an advanced Taijutsu style like that one?" Kurenai asked.
Sarutobi gave her a strange look. "Kurenai that is a basic style that was taught to entry-level genin in Uzushiogakure." he said carefully.
Kurenai's eyes bulged slightly. "But…that taijutsu, at least from what I could make of the kata, was more advanced than the style that I use!" she exclaimed.
The Hokage shrugged. "Uzu had much higher expectations of its genin. Of course almost every shinobi in Uzu, with a few exceptions, were members of the Uzumaki Clan." he replied.
Oh my, the awe is contagious...
"Damn. The gaki's not doing too badly." Anko said appreciatively, "Hey old man, won't she need to spar in order to improve her style some more?"
"From what I hear Anko, your services will not be needed in that department." The Hokage replied with a chuckle, "Gai-kun has asked to be allowed to give her remedial taijutsu lessons, as well as give her stamina, muscle and endurance training, subject to Kurenai's permission of course."
Kurenai's eyebrow twitched. 'First she goes to Iruka for advice on the Kage Bunshin no Jutsu, then she says she's going to have remedial calligraphy lessons with Iruka and now Gai is wanting to give her training as well. Is she even my student?'
Aloud, she said carefully, "Hokage-sama, is it just me, or is everyone trying to poach my student?"
Sarutobi chuckled again as they approached the entrance to the mansion proper. "I'm certain it seems that way to you Kurenai, but Naruko has been quite severely handicapped by the Academy sensei and their sabotage. She requires help in areas that you yourself have admitted you have little skill in: your calligraphy is average at best and you are a genjutsu expert with, again, average skill in taijutsu. I would advise you to allow Iruka-kun and Gai-kun to aid her in those areas and focus on her chakra control and adding a few ninjutsu to her arsenal."
Kurenai grumbled at first, but accepted it with a slight sagging of her shoulders.
Naruko was waiting for them at the front door, a smile on her face. "This way." she called over her shoulder as she opened the door and stepped through, closely followed by Team 8 and the Hokage.
The interior of the building was surprisingly spartan for such a fancy mansion, although Naruko explained that she had gathered up most of the expensive things and sealed them in storage scrolls, as well as throwing out most of the damaged things.
"Ji-chan told me about the G.H.A. yesterday, so I set some of my clones to setting up rooms for Ino-chan and Hinata-chan, as well as rooms for Anko-sensei and Kurenai-sensei for if they want to stay here." Naruko told them as they walked towards the living quarters.
"Naruko, you didn't have to do that!" Kurenai protested.
The Uzumaki Heiress shrugged. "It was more for Anko-sensei, because Ji-chan told me her landlord is being a teme again." she replied.
"Yes, Naruto. Just like yours. Maybe you can talk to the Hokage about getting you ownership over your apartment complex or something."
Anko looked briefly surprised, before sending a small glare towards Sarutobi, who had an innocent look on his face.
The Snake Mistress turned back to Naruko. "I won't accept charity, gaki, so I'll be paying you rent. Understand?"
Naruko nodded. "How much does your landlord charge you, Anko-sensei?" she asked.
"Five hundred ryo a month for a dingy little apartment." Anko said sourly.
Naruko scowled. That was how much she had had to pay for her old apartment.
That got the more financially sound of the genin to get that sour look too, either that or he left out some unsweetened lemonade by mistake...
"I think two hundred a month is more than enough, wouldn't you say." Naruko offered.
"Deal!" Anko said quickly, making Kurenai and the Hokage laugh. Ino and Hinata giggled at the mutual accord the two had struck.
"I'll draw up a rental contract later on." Sarutobi said once he stopped laughing, "Would tomorrow be acceptable?"
"Hai, Hokage-sama." Anko said with a small grin.
"Here we are." Naruko said as they reached a wall that had a five pointed star that had symbols on its points representing the five elemental ninjutsu on it and a Yin and Yang symbol in the centre.
"A dead end?" Ino asked curiously, tilting her head to the side.
"A dead end?" Ino asked bluntly.
Everyone chuckled as Ino blushed at the echoed comment.
"Nope, a Karakuri hidden door." Naruko said with a grin. She walked up to the wall and hit the elements in a specific order so fast that no one could see the order. With a grinding clank, the Yin and Yang centre of the star opened up, revealing a switch.
Naruko flipped the switch up and down before pushing it in and quickly withdrawing her hand. The flap for the switch compartment closed with a snap and the entire wall shuddered before sinking into the ground, revealing a corridor beyond it.
"This way." Naruko said as she stepped through the doorway.
Everyone was in awe as they watched, Karakuri mechanisms weren't really known in their Elemental Nations outside of the Suna puppets after all.
"Yeesh, the Toji Clan was paranoid." Anko muttered as they followed Naruko. Behind them, the door clanked shut again.
"You think that's paranoid? Aside from the living quarters, the entire mansion is nothing but one giant trap!" Naruko called over her shoulders as they walked into the living room.
Sitting down, Naruko continued, "The rest of the mansion is a decoy. The entire Clan lived in this wing, which is marked down as being 'storage' on almost every blueprint you look at. There are traps of all sorts across the entirety of the decoy-part of the mansion, which are controlled from a special room in the basement of this section."
"How'd you get into this section then? If you didn't know it was here, then it might as well not exist." asked Kurenai.
The others were just as curious; some even going as far as to lean forward in anticipation.
"The key line is 'almost every blueprint,' Kurenai-sensei." Naruko replied, "Almost none of the blueprints submitted to the Civil Management Office are anything close to accurate, but the secret files in the Hokage's office are 100% accurate and have to be by law."
"Makes sense." Anko remarked, "If you have a rowdy Clan that needs putting down, having an accurate layout is critical to reducing casualties."
"Just so." Sarutobi said with an approving nod at Anko's deduction. "The Toji Clan specialised in creating Karakuri mechanisms, as well as their unique shuriken fighting style, so it is of no surprise that their mansion is a death-trap once the mechanisms are activated."
Ino gulped. Noticing the uneasiness in Ino's posture, Naruko gave her a reassuring smile. "Don't worry Ino-chan. The traps are deactivated and only the Clan Heir or Clan Head can activate them." she reassured her friend, who smiled back and nodded her thanks.
A loud clank signalled the arrival of the platoon of Naruko-clones carrying Ino and Hinata's stuff.
"Let's get you girls settled in!" Naruko said enthusiastically.
The Next Day, 11.00am
Hokage's Office, Hokage Tower
"Team 8, reporting for duty Hokage-sama." Kurenai said with a small smile. Behind her, Naruko, Ino and Hinata were waiting for their first mission. Well, Naruko had already technically completed six missions and was on her seventh, but this was her first mission as a member of a team.
Again, Sasuke quashed the feelings of jealousy
"Indeed." smiled Sarutobi. Next to him was Iruka, who nodded to Naruko with a grin.
"Let's see here…" Sarutobi said, looking through the scrolls of D-Ranks for a decent one. "Ah, here we are. The Konoha Hospital ordered a delivery of medicine from Kusa no Kuni and it is waiting in the warehouse for delivery."
Kurenai looked at her genin. Naruko didn't like hospitals and was slightly pale, but nodded at her. Ino and Hinata were indifferent to the mission.
"Soo... Many... Needles..."
"Team 8 accepts the mission." Kurenai said, taking the scroll from the Hokage. "Team 8, move out!" she ordered and they did indeed move out.
Thanks to Naruko's Shadow Clones, Team 8 finished the delivery mission in good time to accept another one, this time weeding a garden.
The members of the story's squad 8 who were listening to the story (I.E. Naruto, Ino, and Hinata) perked up at that.
Naruto because of his gardening hobby.
Hinata for her flower pressing hobby and her mother's garden.
Ino for her clan's store.
Hinata and Ino were the ones to shine in this mission, Ino because of her knowledge of botany and Hinata because she grew herbs as a hobby, so Naruko had taken her lead from them.
Naruto pouted and got a giggle and a sympathetic pat on the head from Hinata. It seemed that his other didn't have the same hobby.
The Hokage had been very pleased with Team 8 and had dismissed them early so they could help Anko move into Naruko's home.
"Jeez, Anko-sensei. You like bondage or something?" Naruko asked as a full body latex suit fell out of a box onto the floor of Anko's former apartment, much to Anko's embarrassment. Ino and Hinata went bright red at the sight, with Hinata fainting at Naruko's words.
So did a few of the others, either out of embarrassment (the girls minus Tenten), mortification (Naruto and Chōji), or due to a nosebleed (Kiba).
Yuki waited until they were conscious again before continuing
"So what if I do gaki?" Anko shot back, a blush on her face.
"Soooo…you like being tied up?" Ino asked her face still red.
"And who says that I'm the one who's tied up?" Anko said with a lecherous grin on her face.
"B-But that's a female bodysuit!" Ino pointed out.
"And?" Anko asked unperturbed, "I like girls and guys."
And Kiba was out like a light again.
"Eh? You can do that?" Naruko asked, curiously.
"Yeah, 'course you can." Anko replied as she put the suit back in the box and secured the lid properly before giving it to a Naruko-clone, "Quite a few kunoichi bat for the other team, although most of 'em aren't as open about it as I am. Then you get kunoichi like me, who are, as I like to call it, greedy and bat for both teams."
"ANKO!" Kurenai shrieked her face bright red, "This is hardly appropriate for three twelve year olds! They shouldn't even do…that…until they're married!"
"Firstly Nai-chan, they are legally adults. Old enough to kill, old enough to sleep with someone, or even listen to someone talk about bondage." Anko said seriously, "Second, don't try and enforce your morals on others. I know you don't approve of the fact I like girls as well as boys, but it's up to these gakis to decide for themselves who and what they like, not you."
The three genin gulped as the small apartment filled with tension as the two jonin stared each other in the eyes, both unwilling to concede the point.
The genin that were awake at the moment gulped, thankful that they weren't anywhere near that argument.
Naruko looked between the two older females and sighed. 'Why the hell does everything I ask always end up causing problems?' she thought and clapped her hands once, which broke the tension and drew the attention of Anko and Kurenai.
"Look, I only asked because I was curious. I don't want you two fighting because of a question I asked." Naruko said, "And for the record, Anko-sensei is right. We decide who we like, not you Kurenai-sensei. I will listen to your opinion, but I will like who I like regardless."
"Attagirl, gaki!" Anko said, clapping Naruko on the back heartily, "Now, wake up Hinata there so we can get this show on the road!"
As her team scurried around handing boxes to Naruko-clones, Kurenai frowned. Naruko and Anko, in constant close proximity, for an extended period….
…This was a bad thing.
'They'll either kill each other, or Naruko will end up bound in that latex suit.' Kurenai concluded with a feeling of dread.
And Kiba's down for a third time.
"And that's the end of that chapter, the next one is Chapter 7: More D-Ranks, Training and the Flames."
Those that knew what the 'flames' entailed shivered, except for Lee.
