Hello again my dear readers, and lucky for you, I was able to get quite a bit done n this chapter. A big twist is on the way too, with some family revelations. Anyway I think this was a decent chapter, lacking much in the way of action sadly, but I think you'll get your action fix at the end of the Chunin Exams (am I right or am I right)
As is my custom now, a few reader responses to those who took the time to review with questions or complaints… or especially nice compliments. (those are always welcome)
mrenteria99: So yeah, I decided not to bring Orochimaru into things right now. I realized just how much he could screw up my plot line at the moment and things are going to be hectic enough as is… so no snake rape yet.
On another note Dark Naruto will remain a constant worry for quite a while. Unfortunately he is a part of Naruto, not an implanted emotion but an actual part of him. So he'll be sticking around. And yeah, he's supposed to be scary, in a cool sort of way. I'm taking ideas on how to resolve the issue of taming his inner self by the way. Any "suggestions" will be considered, but in the interest of mystery, please PM your ideas instead of reviewing them.
Aeroshadowclone : You know at first not many people liked the Dark Naruto concept, but now it seems like everyone likes the bastard. So I wanted to explain a few concepts about him.
First and foremost he IS Naruto, which means while he may be smarter or more cunning, he still has the same emotions on some things and reacts to events in similar ways. He's just much more extreme. Also you may have noticed that Dark Naruto refers to the Kyuubi by his name. But that is a special instance. Besides that he doesn't know anything more than Light Naruto. (this means that they share the same memories but Dark Naruto is more observant)
Dark Naruto has more control over some things such as his chakra and power, as in being able to knock Kurama around in his mindscape with no trouble, however he has much less control over his instincts and physical urgings.
I think it's fairly obvious just who Dark Naruto is. For those of you who might still not get it, Dark Naruto is the same being Light Naruto confronted with Killer B at the waterfall of truth on the great turtle island. (just making that clear for you guys)
AJGuardian : I made her eyes purple on purpose, (violet it you will) I thought it was reasonable enough to give her that color of eyes and I wanted her eye color to be slightly more unique than usual. After all the popular fan-culture says that most Uzumaki had violet or purple eyes. Over all, it's a small part of the story. Now if I gave her orange eyes then that would be something to yell about.
Both the readers and Naruto…
And now, on to the story!
(I still don't own Naruto.)
Chapter 8
ooo
Gaara sighed as he walked though the village. His steps led him ever closer to his destination, a certain three story apartment building in the old district. He wondered if Naruto was at home. He hoped so. The two of them had much to speak about and Gaara still wanted to thank him. Thank him for the valuable lesson he'd been taught three years ago in the middle of a broken forest.
Naruto had been his savoir… and to a certain extent, the savior of Suna and the Land of Wind. He saved the life of the one who would become the next Kazekage. That was a debt that he planned on repaying, if he could. He wasn't at all sure that Naruto would even accept such a debt. In the short time he'd known the blond he discovered much to be admired. Naruto was kind, generous, loyal. All the things that made a good friend, but he had other qualities that made him more of a leader than anyone Gaara had met before. Even himself.
Naruto knew how to forgive. That one ability to see into the hearts of others and let go of anger and hatred. That was one if not the best quality Naruto had. He knew that as a fellow Jinchuriki he would be forever grateful. And… if he could, he would ask Naruto to be his friend and ally
Gaara had a dream. Not just to protect his people, but a new one. Something that Naruto had inspired. He wanted to create a brotherhood of sorts. To bring all the Jinchuiki together in a group. From Shukaku to the Kyuubi he would gather the brothers and sisters of the Biju. They would form an alliance that transcended borders and countries. A council of the most powerful men and women in the world. Gaara had already spoken in passing to Lord B from Kumo. Like Naruto, he'd had a connection with the odd container of the Eighttails. Despite his up-side-down and backwards way of speaking
It was a promising sign of times to come… "Now if I can just find Naruto… How difficult can it be to find one famous boy who wears bright orange and seldom goes five minutes without shouting believe it…" Gaara frown to himself, wondering just how much the Jinchuriki if the Kyuubi had changed. He seemed much more relaxed and calm during the match then he usually was. Even his exchange with Mutsu over the Forth Hokage was tame in comparison to when Naruto confronted him years before.
And admittedly he hadn't used his catch phrase once… plus there was less orange. "I must assume that the training period he had with Jiraiya of the Sanin had excellent results."
Ooo
Five minutes later he stood at a door that supposedly belonged to one Naruto Uzumaki. However it didn't feel inviting. In fact the hairs on the back of his neck stood on end as he waited. He'd already knocked but no answer came from within. Gaara was beginning to wonder if he came to the right place.
From the massive matrix of seals he sensed, it was very possible that this wasn't Naruto's residence. After all, Naruto could hardly be considered paranoid. He didn't even know Naruto like his friends did and he knew that much. So why would he have such a sealing matrix set up around his home? It was like he was preparing for some full scale assault from his own village… Some of these defensive seals were capable of destroying an average Chunin in one blast.
Gaara's frown deepened. "Perhaps I spoke to soon when I imagined that the village held him with some esteem now…"
He withdrew from his thoughts as he heard footsteps inside… Then the door opened and he came face to face with… someone.
His eyes took in her appearance. She was about his own height with almost the same color hair. Hers was long and straight, hanging down her back. Her attractive features were framed with two long bangs and a third hung between her deep purple eyes. Her skin was pale and made her hair seem even darker. She wore a white T-shirt which was very loose but still showed off her curves. Despite her scowl she was undeniably beautiful.
Gaara blinked, confused. Why was there a girl at Naruto's home? The only logical assumption to make was that she was his girlfriend. Admittedly he didn't think Naruto was really the kind of guy who took to living with one of the opposite sex. So with that in mind he attempted to be polite.
"Hello. I'm Gaara of the Desert. I wish to speak to Naruto Uzumaki."
She raised one eyebrow, looking him over before realization dawned on her and she blanched. "Holy shit! Why the hell are you here?!" She backed away from the door drawing a long flute colored a dull crimson.
He raised one hand. "Hold. I mean no harm. I am only here to speak with my friend."
"Friend?" She seemed the very definition of suspicious. "I know that you tried to kill him. Isn't that right?"
Gaara nodded, "At one time we were enemies, yes."
Her guard dropped instantly, "Aw fuck it. Who am I to talk? We've both tried to kill him before. I guess that just means he had another weird friend I didn't know about." She looked him up and down a second time, noting his dress. "You're the Kazekage too. Damn… what is up with Naruto and having friends in high places. It's fucking unnatural."
"I can fully understand that. There are few people who don't know of his exploits, one way or another. Now may I ask who you are? You seem familiar to me."
She huffed, "Damn well better, I was part of Orochimaru's personal guard. Got the living shit beat out of me by that…." She paused for a second rephrasing her words carefully, "That sister of yours. I ended up here with Naruto taking care of me. Name's Tayuya by the way. Tayuya Uzumaki."
Shocked by her words, Gaara's eyes popped open wide. It required several seconds to reassert his balance.
The redhead's eyebrow raised again, "Something wrong with you?"
Gaara shook his head, regaining his composure. "No… pardon me. I wasn't informed that he had married. I suppose congratulations are in order…"
Immediately her face flush red. "I…fuck…I mean, I'm not… Shit!" She turned away from him cursing. Gaara didn't know what he'd done wrong. He just stood there, feeling as though he needed another long lesson from Temari on how to act socially. Tayuya's reaction proved that he badly needed more practice. After a moment she turned around walking towards him till she stood right in his face. Gaara forced his sand away from her before it ripped something off in an attempt to defend him from the angry female. Tayuya opened her mouth to say something and then stopped dead.
Gaara clearly heard Naruto's voice from inside.
"Tayuya-chan!? Hey where'd you go?"
Her frown fought to remain in place. Gaara watched in fascination as her face displayed several conflicting emotions. Anger was much in evidence, but alongside it was confusion and… desire? Gaara spoke from the doorway, "Uzumaki!"
A second later Naruto was at the door, "Yo! Gaara! I was hoping I would get a chance to talk to you. How's the village?"
"It is doing quite well thanks to you."
Naruto blushed slightly in embarrassment. "Nah, Don't mention it." He glanced at Tayuya who was still red in the face. Gaara saw something shift in his expression, hardly noticeable, but there. "Uh Tayuya? Something wrong? Why are you….?"
She growled something incomprehensible, which Naruto nodded at and turned to go inside the house ignoring the question. Naruto looked to Gaara raising an eyebrow. "Uh.. what did you say to her?"
"I only asked to speak to you and when she introduced herself as your wife I congratulated her."
Naruto's mouth had formed an O and his eyes widened. "She actually said she was my wife?"
"Well, no. She said her last name was Uzumaki. I assumed since she was living with you that…." Gaara stopped and sighed. "I messed up didn't I?"
The blond shook his head, "Uh… How do I put this? You're wrong and you're right at the same time. Technically we're married, but it isn't public. We only did it because she needed protection inside the village and she's almost a full blooded Uzumaki."
Gaara blinked in surprise, "So… she's a natural born Uzumaki? That's interesting."
Naruto grinned, "Yeah, It's kinda awkward sometimes but we manage. We get along a lot better than we did at first. Actually it's funny cause you have red hair and the only people with red hair I've met so far were probably Uzumaki."
The sound of gagging from inside the apartment interrupted him. Gaara asked, "Who's that?"
"That's just Granny. I used Hirashin to bring her here and it makes most people a bit queasy."
"You're referring to the Hokage…."
A cheesy smile stretched his face again, "You got it! But then again I am the reason she's in charge." A thoughtful expression came over him. "Ya know… if you think about it. You and Granny. That means I'm responsible for two different Kage getting elected… Maybe I'm getting a reputation for it… Anyway I was going to get me and Tayuya-chan a blood test so I'll see you later."
"May I join you?"
Naruto shrugged, "Sure, Don't see why not. Just warning you, when I say Hirashin makes you a bit nauseous, I mean a lot. The only person who isn't affected besides me is Tayuya. And I think it's because she's an Uzumaki like me." He opened the door all the way and let the Kazekage enter his apartment.
Gaara was a little surprised by the inside. He'd expected it to be a mess, or at least untidy. What he didn't expect was the neat little room. One side had a kitchen nook while the other two empty sides held two separate beds. A second door probably led to the bathroom. Off to one side of the room, butted up against one bed was a low round table with several scrolls spread out over it. Gaara recognized the script on the paper as Fuinjutsu, but wasn't personally skilled enough in the craft to understand what kind of seal it was.
He turned his attention away from the room its self and to those in the room. Tayuya was sitting cross-legged on one bed next to Naruto who was grinning with his legs hanging off the side. In the center of the room Tsunade was slowly recovering from the stomach twisting sensation of being Naruto's unwilling passenger.
A moment later she was able to stand up straight. She shot a glare at her fellow blond. "B..brat… Could have given me a better warning. That felt horrendous!"
Naruto rolled his eyes and Tayuya got over her embarrassment enough to laugh at her. "Come on. Calling yourself a Kage. Can't you take a little bit of discomfort?"
Tsunade looked up angrily and met the gaze of her fellow kage. She spluttered, causing Tayuya to burst out laughing and Gaara to shrug dismissively.
"So uh…. I've got seals all over now. I sent out clones to put them in a grid pattern around the village, plus a ton of different important spots like Ichiraku and the hospital." He scratched his head, "Can we go yet?" Garra shrugged again and nodded while Tayuya huffed. Naruto glance between the two redheads. "Granny? You ok yet?"
She grumbled to herself and made to rip the small seal paper off her arm. "Thanks but no thanks. I can walk to the hospital brat. I don't feel the need to experience that again simply for convenience sake. You can wait for me there if you must." Tsuande glared at Naruto as he gave her a quick thumbs up.
"See you later then Granny." Naruto jumped off the bed and landed next to Gaara, smacking a seal tag on his shoulder as Tayuya got off the bed and walked over. Tsunade watched as Naruto grabbed Tayuya's hand, her cheeks burning red again.
Tsunade frowned as all three disappeared.
Ooo
Reality reasserted its self a moment later, leaving three figures standing in Konoha's main hospital. As they appeared every man and woman in the room jumped from the spike in chakra. Several Shinobi drew steel… only to gasp when they saw a blond haired young man and a red haired girl standing close together. Then they realized who it was and relaxed…. Slightly. Most were still unnerved (if not frozen in shock) by their sudden appearance… Especially the method of their appearance.
Naruto glanced around at the wary faces, some of which were already changing to distaste. He ignored those few civilians in the room and led His two friends over to one side of the hospital where a nurse sat on one side of a large counter.
She looked up as he stopped in front of her.
"Ah… what are you here for Uzumaki-san?"
"Hey Granny Tsunade's showing up in a little bit to do a blood test for me and Tayuya-chan here." Naruto's gestured to the fuming redhead. "She's an Uzumaki too, but we needed to check everything else too."
The nurse nodded slowly and looked down. "I can put you down for room 204. It has the equipment you'll need for an advanced blood test. You can head there now. I will inform Kokage-sama of your location when she arrives."
"Thanks!"
The nurse blinked as the two redheads again found themselves being dragged along. She sighed and went back to her work.
Five minutes later an annoyed Kage stalked up to the counter with a frown deep set in her features. "What room?"
"204 Hokage-sama."
Without another word Tsunade turned and headed in the same direction as the trio before her. She sighed again. "Why do I always get stuck on duty when those two are throwing killing intent like it's as natural as breathing? I'm not even sure the Hokage realizes she's releasing a constant stream of it these days…." Peering around she noticed that several of the other ninja in the lobby were looking rather pale. "Troublesome…."
Ooo
Ooo
The room where the advanced blood testing equipment was reminded Tayuya of Orochimaru's medical lab. Only that hadn't been as advanced as this. She looked around, taking note of the large metal boxes with their digital screens and gentle humming sounds. She didn't like it. She's always disliked hospitals. Even before she'd ever met Orochimaru. Back when she was an Orphan in Iwa she still hated them. They reminded her of the men who would come to collect lost children for their work. It almost made her shudder… If Naruto hadn't been holding her hand at the moment.
She didn't know why he was doing that and she'd already smacked him upside the head for it, but he just ignored it. How? How did he just ignore being smacked in the head with the back of her hand? She had no clue. But he didn't even register the impact.
Gaara raised one eyebrow in curiosity, but otherwise made no comment. Tayuya assumed that Naruto was ignoring it on purpose… which led the question of why he was holding her hand. She found out a moment later when Tsunade entered the room.
That was when she found out Naruto… Jinchuriki of the Leaf… was afraid of needles.
It required several minutes to stop the manic fit chuckles that seized her.
"Will you shut up and let me draw the blood damn it?!" Tsunade shouted, forcing her to calm down and wait as the needle sank into her elbow.
Tayuya looked over the where Naruto was rubbing at his arms with a sheepish expression. "You know what Naruto… I never thought you'd be a pussy when it came to needles. I mean… haven't you been stabbed before… Like… majorly stabbed? What the fuck is so bad about a tiny little piece of steel that doesn't even leave a mark?"
He shivered. "It isn't the needle Tayuya-chan… It's the stuffin the needles I don't like."
"But she's not putting anything in. She's drawing blood out."
"Still feels the same." He muttered to himself as Tsunade finished drawing the blood out.
She sighed and put the vial of blood to the side before moving over to him. Tsunade smiled wickedly as she drew forth a needle about twice as large as Tayuya's. "You ready brat?"
"HEY!? That one's like twice as big as hers!"
"Exactly."
Still sitting next to him Tayuya giggled. "Payback's a bitch isn't it?"
"This isn't fair!" Naruto cried as Tsunade snicked him in the forehead, snapping his head backwards with a snap. Tayuya watched wide eyed as he collapsed unconscious. Knocking him out was okay in her book but that sounded like a fair bit more than unconscious! That snap sounded lethal. Tsunade sighed gratefully as Naruto was successfully knocked out.
"Well that makes it easier… and it's so much more quiet." Tsunade drew Naruto's blood and turned to the large machine which analyzed the blood. Tayuya was still too shocked to speak and had turned to shaking Naruto gently. Apparently he was still alive since she could hear faint grinding noises from his neck.
"Fuck?! Just how durable is he?!" Tayuya muttered inwardly as she registered a muted pop from the blond. "She snaps his neck and it doesn't even phase those two!"
"Would you wait a moment Hokage?"
Tsunade and Tayuya turned to see Gaara with one arm extended. "Kazekage? You want me to test you as well? Don't you know everything that this test would reveal?"
He shook his head. "You must understand that out of all the nations only Kiri has more advanced technology from… before. And Suna's is second worst after Iwa. Counting in the fact that my sand prevented any kind of test when I was younger…."
"Ah. I see. You never were tested because nothing came close to you."
He nodded and she shrugged, moving to the side of the room and pulling out a drawer. She shifted around for a moment before she came up with a smaller syringe. She walked over as Gaara suppressed his sand. "Is this the first time you've ever had blood work done?"
"I believe so yes."
"You believe so?"
Gaara explained. "When I was a child I often raged in my other form. I was always defeated by my father because of his mastery over magnet release. He used gold dust, something I have only just begun to experiment with. It is far heavier than sand… and because I do not possess the Lightning affinity, it is harder to move metal than sand."
"So your father was stronger?"
"In a way." Gaara sighed as she withdrew the needle. "Father was more skilled than I…and that isn't counting his knowledge of additional jutsu besides the Magnet or Sand release. However I have far more chakra now than he ever did." He smiled thinly. "Perks of being a Jinchuriki I suppose, but as you must recall, Naruto has more chakra in his middle finger than I do in my whole body. He proved that when he defeated me in single combat while in full possession mode."
"Hey! I was wondering about that!"
Gaara and Tsunade glanced to Tayuya who was frowning. "Yes? What was your question?"
"Exactly how was he able to fight you at all much less take you down. I mean you went into fucking tailed beast state like you said. He said that he only knew like two jutsu back then. How did he take down something that could walk through a sea of Jonin and not even get hurt?"
A smirk appeared on Gaara's lips. "You see Tayuya-san. He used a summoning jutsu to summon a toad as large as the Shukaku its self. Then he used a combination transformation jutsu to turn both into a pint sized version of the Kyuubi. Then he managed to latch onto me, even while in full possession mode. After that he dispelled the transformation and was able to reverse the process."
Gaara saw that this surprised both women enough that Tayuya's jaw was slack. Eventually she threw her hands up in defeat. "Now I've heard almost everything! Next thing I know he'll turn out to be the great grandson of Kami freaking sama herself!"
Garra shrugged as thought this was entirely possible. Tsunade just shook her head. Truly, Naruto was one of the great mysteries of the world… along with where the 'log' came from that was used for substitution. But that was a migraine inducing question for another day.
She moved over to the machine and inputted the three vials of blood. Then she operated the touchpad while Tayuya and Gaara talked about the blond. She sighed and wanted the three minutes necessary for the first vial. She decided to process Gaara's first since she could see just what blood he had in him. It was another second as a small paper printed off the back of the machine. She grabbed it and examined the results as she activated the process for Naruto.
She almost laughed as she read the read out and then glanced at Gaara.
"I knew it."
Both redheads turned to look at her.
"You've got Uzumaki blood too Gaara. About sixteen percent… on your father's side from what I can tell. Which would mean that he was almost a fourth Uzumaki." She saw him nod once then smile slightly.
"Does that mean Naruto and I are related in some way?"
She moved over to hand him the slip of paper. "Hard to say. The Uzumaki clan was massive. Depending on where beck in your family tree the Uzumaki blood is… or how many sources there are… I'd say you have between a 2% and 8% chance of being related. I'm related to Naruto… closely. My grandmother was a full blooded Uzumaki who also happened to be the sister of Naruto's great great grandmother." Tsunade sighed and moved back to the machine. "It really depends but if you think about it, there's most likely Uzumaki blood in every royal family in every nation."
"How do ya figure that?" Tayuya seemed curious.
"Look at it this way. The Uzumaki clan was known far and wide for their longevity, physical and mental strength.. their Fuinjutsu… Kenjutsu… massive chakra… Basically having an Uzumaki husband or wife was guaranteed to improve the gene pool for your clan. Especially if you were a small clan like Konoha's Sarutobi family, who are known for their above average chakra reserves. Most just associate that with them being close to the Hokage's office for a long time. The Sarutobi clan has always produced powerful Shinobi, but the reality is that there have been three separate full blooded Uzumaki in the clan in the last hundred years."
She heard the click of the machine and held her hand over the opening waiting for the paper to come out.
"Anyway… Uzumaki are the perfect containers for Bijuu. The fact being that almost no other clan besides the Uzumaki are capable of holding the Kyuubi is a point in fact." A whirring sound heralded the paper being ejected. She pulled it free. "So it makes sense that the other nations royal families would have some Uzumaki blood in them since Jinchuriki are typically chosen from the children of the Kage or close family."
Tsunade gestured to Tayuya. "You're almost a full blooded Uzumaki so you would be perfect for the sealing of a Biju. Naruto is about….."
Whatever she was about to say caught in her throat as she dropped Tayuya's vial of blood. It smashed in a red splatter on the ground.
Gaara stood. "What is it? Are those Naruto's results?!"
She nodded. "It says here… That he has approximately fifty eight percent Uzumaki heritage, and…" She quickly bypassed the Namikaze family statistics in favor of the third clan listed… "…the Yuki clan…."
Her eyes dropped lower. His elemental affinities are registered as dormant…. The same ones as Tayuya… but also… Ice release…. Equal measures of Wind and Water affinities." Tsunade's eyes bypassed the secondary bloodline from his father and finished. "His chakra levels are currently measured at 963 times the norm for a Shinobi his age, which is high Chunin." She muttered distractedly, "Put in layman's terms…. he has enough chakra to rival six Kage…"
Gaara was speechless, but Tayuya was quicker to recover. She groaned and fell back next to the unconscious blond. "GREAT! So….. Piss-for-brains has endless chakra and a supposedly extinct bloodline from Kiri on his father's side… Since I know his mom was a full blooded Uzumaki. That means his dad had to be a Yuki clan member right?!"
"Not really… Naruto has shown a talent for wind release recently, but Kekkei genkei often stay dormant until a life threatening occurrence happens to bring it out. Theoretically Naruto could have twenty bloodlines… just as theoretically I should be able to use my grandfather's Wood release… It's just that it's almost impossible to awaken bloodlines that have been dormant for generations. It says he's twenty-two percent Yuki clan… so that means that his father was half…"
Tsunade frowned. It seemed impossible for Naruto to have this. If he did have a bloodline like this, it wouldn't have registered if there wasn't at least a chance of him bringing it out. She had the strongest ties to her father besides Yamato and her blood didn't even register the Wood Release bloodline. So… that must have meant Minato had Ice Release… "But why didn't I know? Why didn't Kushina tell me, and why the hell wasn't it well known? Did he keep it a secret for some reason I don't know? The bloodline purges hadn't ended yet so the Yuki clan hadn't been destroyed at the time. What reason would he have for keeping it quiet?!"
As far as she knew, Minato had Wind and Lightning release while Kushina had fire and Water… mostly Water though because of her family's powerful ties to the element. So how did Naruto inherit this bloodline so strongly if he didn't get Water affinity from his father? Could Kushina have passed her Water affinity along with Minato's Wind affinity to him? Getting a separate element from each parent was unheard of and even more so for it to allow the child access to a bloodline that only one parent shared…
Naruto chose this moment to wake up. He jerked up right and glared at Tsunade with predator's intensity. "That hurt Grandma. Now the Kyuubi is ranting about having to heal a concussion and a fractured vertebra in my neck because of you." He rubbed the back of his neck scowling while receiving disbelieving stares from all present. "Why are you looking at me like that?!"
His face twitched as he saw the sheet in her hand. "Oi! You have the results yet?!"
Tayuya face-palmed at his sudden personality shift. Tsunade said bluntly. "You have Ice release."
Naruto's face didn't change for a moment. He seemed to be thinking this over and after a few minutes he shrugged. "Cool. Anything else?"
"WTF Naruto?! You have ever loving ICE release! Don't you get how OP that makes you?! And you're already so over powered that it isn't funny anymore!"
He scratched the back of his head. "Yeah… Well since I started working on Water chakra manipulation I figured that I had water release or something since it's so much easier than lightning or fire." Naruto looked into Tayuya's surprised expression, wondering why she was making a big deal out of it. Hell, wasn't she the one who came up with the seal to use all five elements without even training with them? Having a bloodline with only two elements shouldn't have come as a shock to her. Especially after he told her his progress.
"Um… I get that me having Ice release is real special and all… and… I like the idea of having ties to the Yuuki clan seeing how I used to have a friend from that family, but is this really that astonishing?"
"YES!" Tayuya shouted. "Do you know how inhumanly powerful this can make you?!"
Naruto crossed his arms. "As in me having chakra reserves on par with a Bijuu even without the Kyuubi? And with me using that chakra to use bloodline techniques large enough that only another jinchuriki could stop them? Yeah I understand that it's OP, but come on. I did spar with Killer B, who is like the most powerful Jinchuriki out there. All of this is well…. Not expected but it doesn't change anything."
Tsunade raised an eyebrow. "Explain that why don't you."
"Sure." He held up a hand, counting off on his fingers. "First, I'm a Jinchuriki, which makes me a target. Second, I'm one of the last Uzumaki… which also makes me a target. Third I'm well versed in sealing… which makes me both super valuable to the village, but paints another target on my back. Fourth I'm male so being captured by another village means that they aren't stuck waiting a generation to have my bloodline well distributed." He frowned at that. "Tayuya, you could still be used the same way, but can only have so many children at the same time."
"Fifth, I'm close to tons of people all over the world from my missions and traveling with Pervy Sage… which makes me a good bargaining chip. All of this paints a freaking huge red bull's eye on me and adding in Yuki clan bloodline…. That's not going to make it any worse than it already is… Unless Kiri decides that the Yuki bloodline belongs to them or something. And I still don't see how that would work out or how it changes my position."
He looked at the three of them. "This is just another part of Naruto Uzumaki. Me. I'm not going to make a big deal about it and as far as I'm concerned let the world know. I'm gonna be famous after the end of the Exams anyway."
"What are you planning Naruto?" Tsunade looked wary.
"Uh… does Hirashin ring any bells? If that doesn't get their attention nothing will. Before the year is out they'll be calling me the second coming of the Yellow Flash! Believe it Granny!"
She groaned and turned to the machine again, imputing the third vial from Tayuya. "I'm fairly sure that you'd end up with that nickname, exams or not. You've used Hirashin in front of every Kage in the Elemental nations intentionally or not. They know what you have now. Keeping you safe is going to be like filling a bucket with a hole in the bottom."
A few moments later Tsunade grumbled to herself about Naruto and his ability to defy the laws of common sense and reason as she drew another sample of blood from Tayuya. She waited while the results processed and then snatched the third and final paper from the back of the blood tester. She scanned down the list.
"Okay… not exactly a lot in the way of surprises. Ninty something percent Uzumaki… It looks like you have the potential to use chakra chains… That's somewhat surprising since it usually takes someone with extreme amounts of chakra to use them. And as for bloodlines it says you have the typical Uzumaki ones. Advanced regeneration, the ability to manipulate your physical chakra outside your body without using the other half, which is exactly what allows you to use chakra chains. And….."
Tsunade's jaw dropped and her eyes flicked up to glance quickly between the two redheads. "Magnet release…."
Tayuya had been nodding until she came to that last part. Then her eyes popped open wide.
"WHAT?!/ What?"
Tayuya and Garra spoke up at the exact same time, both jumping to their feet as they did so. Tayuya was shocked and Gaara looked alarmed and suspicions.
"Hokage… what do you mean by… Magnet release."
Tsunade grimaced and handed her fellow Kage the paper. Gaara scanned the list before his own pale eyes widened imperceptibly. "It's true… apparently the two of us are related… cousins. From what I see here you only have a very small fraction of Subaku blood in you, which makes your blood line far more unlikely than even Naruto's." He glanced at Naruto. "Looks like you've been outdone."
"Wait! I call bullshit! How can I have that bloodline?! I'm originally from Iwa. I was an orphan since I was six. How do I have a bloodline that the royal family of Suna uses?! That doesn't make any sense! And I know I wasn't kidnapped or any of that shit so how?!" Tayuya was shouting at Tsunade who simply shook her head.
"Hey! Gaara, finally found you!"
Tayuya, along with everyone else in the room suddenly froze at the thought of someone overhearing them. Naruto leaned over to the side to see who was standing in the now open doorway.
"Oh? It's Kankuro! How ya been doing?"
"Fine I guess." The young man replied, looking mildly curious as to why the four of them were here of all places. He was dressed in his usual black body suit, though it looked as though it had been recently armored. Crow was absent from his back, as were his other puppets. However… what was there happened to be a large scroll.
Naruto eyed it for a moment before asking, "You think you could help us out Kankuro?" Tsunade and Tayuya's jaws dropped at what they thought he was about to say, but Gaara nodded.
"Um… with what? And why are you all looking at me like that? Is this some secret I'm not supposed to know?"
Tsunade jerked her head in the affirmative, but Gaara held up a hand to placate her. "Actually Hokage, my brother can help. His duty in your village currently is reconciling your historical records with our own. I believe if was Temari or Shikamaru's idea originally, but Kankuro has taken particular interest in how the noble and royal families of the villages are linked. Suna and Konoha specifically of course."
"That true?" Tsunade turned to regard him fully. "If it is get your ass in here."
Kankuro shrugged and entered the room, closing the door behind him. He glanced at Naruto and Tayuya who were sitting on one of the hospital beds. Gaara was seated by himself now, having dropped back into his chair. Tsunade was leaning on a large machine, giving him a piercing look. He mentally shivered and had to remind himself that he wasn't in trouble. Then he tucked his hands in his pockets and looked to his brother.
"So Gaara, what do you guys need to know. I haven't finished my research into the subject yet. I only just managed to work through the huge mess concerning our own family tree."
"That's what we need to know about Kankuro." Garra crossed his arms, closing his eyes as he did so. Tayuya here is a nearly full blooded Uzumaki, yet when her blood work was done it was discovered she has the potential for Magnet release. Which is something that should be impossible, is it not?"
Tayuya nodded. "Right! You got any answers for us or not Cat-boy?!"
"What did you call me?"
Gaara sighed. "Ignore it Kankuro and tell us what you know of the Subaku's connection to the Uzumaki clan."
"Tsk… Fine. As far as I know we're pretty closely related to the Uzumaki clan. Two of the four previous Kazekage have been married to Uzumaki, the first and third to be specific. I'm not completely sure of the reasons as the records we have aren't very specific, but the First Kazekage married a close cousin to Mito Uzumaki, the wife of the first Kazekage."
Kankuro scratched his chin thoughtfully. "I suppose it could actually have a lot to do with the Subaku bloodline. Magnet release requires a passive ability to control millions upon millions of separate particles, whether it's sand, gold dust, or iron sand like the Third Kazekage. The Uzumaki were famous for their ability to work complex seals involving hundreds of different Kanji that mixed in infinite ways. It's easy to assume that the Uzumaki clan's marriage to the First Kazekage made a dramatic improvement to our talent with the style. Even if the bloodline its self didn't improve, our ability to make efficient use of it probably did. In addition to that Magnet release is notorious for its chakra usage. Gaara is quickly becoming known as a rival to the Third Kazekage only because he has the chakra to keep fighting when other Magnet users would have exhausted themselves."
Tayuya's eyebrows furrowed as she glared at him. "But I'm not from Suna. I'm from Iwa. How does that work, especially with the fact that I have so much Uzumaki. I couldn't be part Subaku and still have over 90% Uzumaki blood." She pointed to Tsunade. "She said it herself before you came in. She should have Wood Release, but she doesn't and she can trace a direct unbroken line to the First Hokage."
"Well I don't know about that, but even the First Hokage's children didn't have Wood Release. So… I suppose she never had the chance to inherit that bloodline. But as to why you have it when you're from Iwo…. That actually makes perfect sense to me."
"Wha…?"
"Let me explain. The first Kazekage was the first Subaku we know of to marry an Uzumaki, but that might not be true. For all we know we might be branched off from one another. It's impossible to say since the Warring Clans era was so badly recorded. But your case is easy to explain. You see the First Kazekage had three children. One son, who became the Second Kazekage, and two daughters." Kankuro frowned. "Sometime after the First Kazekage died and the Second was nominated, one of the daughters disappeared. At the time we believed that she ran away because she was a candidate for the Shukaku's sealing."
Naruto scratched the back of his head confused. "What does that have to do with anything?"
"It has everything to do with it because she didn't run away, she was kidnapped by Iwa…" Kankuro walked further into the room and pulled up a chair to sit in before continuing. "From there the records get sketchy, but it's obvious that the Second Kazekage knew what happened. He must have had some plan in mind, but I don't know what it could have been. The point is that she was used to breed a new generation of Magnet users in Iwa."
Tsunade held up a hand to stop him. "So…" She sounded rather disbelieving. "If they've had Magnet release this whole time why haven't they ever revealed it?"
"Don't know the answer to that, however if what I mentioned about the Uzumaki clan shoring up the Subaku bloodline was correct then Iwa probably had problems with obtaining a viable Magnet release. Obviously they would have problems since the Uzumaki blood would be diluted with each new generation. And the Uzumaki clan has never been a very trusting clan. They only sided with Konoha in the beginning because the daughter of the Clan's leader married the First Hokage."
Leaning back in his chair Kankuro gestured to Tayuya. "If my guess is right, she is probably a cast off of Iwa's Magnet release project. Everyone knows that Iwa has the least sophisticated medical equipment. It's doubtful that they could reliably judge who had inherited Magnet release or not."
"That doesn't explain how I have over 90% Uzumaki blood in me Cat-boy." Tayuya said, frowning."
"Actually that's easy to explain. I seriously doubt that the reason for their failure to master Magnet release was lost on Iwa. They probably knew they needed fresh Uzumaki blood every few generations to keep the bloodline fresh and strong. I'm not a hundred percent sure, but it may have contributed to why they attacked the village of Uzu and destroyed it with Kumo and Kiri. It was their only real chance to capture multiple Uzumaki alive. She's probably got so much Uzumaki blood because they were trying to see just how much Uzumaki heritage they needed to raise a competent Magnet user."
Everyone was silent for several minutes as they digested this information. Gaara was impassive, but was looking at Tayuya was a curious glint in his eyes. Just how powerful could she be if she was almost entirely Uzumaki? How much did hers and Naruto's heritage affect the potency of the Subaku bloodline? And just how closely were they related?
Kankuro glanced between his brother who was still watching Tayuya… and Tayuya who's eyes were cast down to the floor in deep thought. Then he looked to the Hokage. She was standing with furrowed brow, obviously wondering about the political ramifications of this information. How would the other nations react to her or Konoha when they found out they had Magnet release in their grasp. Suna wouldn't object for obvious reasons. Gaara had at least some faith in the Hokage and he certainly trusted Naruto.
So the real question was how Iwa and Kumo reacted. Kiri wasn't as big a threat as they used to be after coming out of their bloody civil war. Kumo would likely stay neutral sine they didn't have a real reason to object to it. Although they would most likely try their best to get their hands on such a powerful bloodline. Iwa on the other hand would be the most dangerous. While they couldn't insist on the return of their Shinobi, seeing how it would be a double standard. They wouldn't be able to demand Tayuya back seeing how she was only there in the first place because of a kidnapping. However they would almost certainly try to kill her or steal her away. If only because they would know they had a viable Magnet user in their grasp who was also a full blooded Uzumaki.
Kankuro finally glanced to Naruto and stiffened.
Naruto jaw was clenched and his hands were balled into fists, the knuckles gone white. The blond looked up to meet Kankuro's eyes.
"So…" Naruto's eyes flashed red. "If Tayuya-chan is 90% Uzumaki… and she was taken in by Orochimaru… that means that Iwa still has captive Uzumaki… right?"
"That's possible." Kankuro allowed. "But they'd likely be impossible to reach. I know you grew up as an orphan Naruto, but you can't try to rescue every Uzumaki that might be out there."
Naruto's demeanor changed instantly, his eyes turning back to an icy blue. A deathly grin pulled over his lips. "There isn't any try about it. I will find the rest of my clan if they're out there. No one is going to stop me from doing that."
Gaara, Tsunade, and Tayuya all looked at him as he growled low in his throat. "I refuse to let anyone keep my family for that purpose." Naruto stood. "I'm going to train. I'd prefer if no one interrupted me."
A flash of yellow light and he was gone.
Ooo
Ooo
Four figures stood in a cavernous room, their pale faces dancing and jumping in the hash blue light cast by their flickering bodies. The four spectral beings spoke in normal tones, but each exchange held a tension that was a dead give away to their relationship. They were enemies, brought together for a common purpose.
"It's the perfect opportunity to capture the Onetails. As he leaves Konoha he will be an easy target with little or nothing in the way of protection!"
"True, but such a battle will be obvious for many miles around. Reinforcements from Konoha would not be easy to deal with. Their reputation for the strongest village is well earned. Their Genin consistently outdo those of other villages, as do their Chunin and Jonin. It won't be as easy as your escape from Iwa."
"Cha! As if anyone could compete with my art! I can take the Kazekage alone. No problem. Just let me at him when he leaves the village!"
A grunt of condescension came from one of the figures, a short, hunched over man with a blade like tail. "You idiot… Your 'art' would draw more attention than anyone here. Such flashy techniques would get us found in moments."
"And they'd be destroyed just as quickly!"
"Or you'd blow yourself up. Just like I've always said you would."
"Hey who are you talking to? You overgrown sand scorpion!"
"-sigh- Would both of you shut up. It's getting on my nerves. If I hear another smart ass comment I'll feed you to my sword."
"As if you could…. Whatever ne…"
They went silent again as the last member of the foursome spoke. "Sasory… you will go with Deidara to take the Onetails. Kisame and I will distract the leaf and then vanish. These are Pein's orders. I don't think he would take kindly to being disobeyed.
"Then let's get on with it!"
"Finally we agree on something, I hate waiting."
"Very well. Itachi, let's head out and see if we can have some fun before the mission."
"Do what you like. I have business to attend to."
"If you say so. I'm gone."
Three of the four figured vanished in the crackle of static. The last member rubbed at his eyes before at last vanishing himself.
Ooo
Ooo
That's a wrap. See, told you there would be some revelations. Naruto has ice release! Hooray! But unlike the normal Ice release I intend on making Naruto's a bit different. After all shenbon just aren't his style. And for those of you who think this makes him too OP, well… I have plans for that. Anyway, you can trust me, the writer! (right?)
Also! I'm taking suggestions on what kind of metal sand Tayuya will use in the future! Speaking of which….. Actually no. This is a completely different subject, but what the hell?
I've written about ten-thousand words of a 'Strike the Blood' story and want to know if you guys out there had watched the anime and want me to post it once I have the chance. It's yet another one of those projects I have. Keep in mind it isn't a cross over and Naruto won't be involved.
And on a Bleach related note, I have had my pole up for a while and I can't help but notice that Yuroichi and Orihime have far more than their fair share of votes. Are you all being realistic? I mean, is there no one else you would highly recommend? I'm not doing a Naruto/Orihime pairing. I minds as well just bring Hinata out of the Naruverse if I'm pairing him with a super shy girl who hardly speaks and doesn't have a big role.
I was expecting more support for the other less used girls… but I guess there aren't as many jaded Bleach fans out there as I thought. Oh well….
Anyway, you should all know how much I enjoy reviews so het to it! Remember how quick this came? Reviews speed up the writing process!
