Admittedly, I'm not sure about updating so soon as Mangahero18 pointed out that I might burn out from updating so fast and to give it some time…but I'm still on fire. Anyone got advice on how to 'slow down' on the updates?
Also, thank you all you reviewers for your reviews!
Disclaimer: I own not Naruto. Or the rights to Microsoft Word, but as you can see, I've been putting the program to very good use! Let's just hope I don't butch either.
Word of Honor
Chapter 9: Bloodline Basics
Sarutobi took a long drag on his pipe, looking out the window of the tower in the center of the Forest of Death. He wasn't worried about the teams that had been sent from his own village; he had faith in the decisions of their jonin senseis, and in what they'd been allowed to teach their genin.
He hung his head at the thought of the different laws that had been set up by him just after the Second Great Shinobi War. Back then, they hadn't had nearly the same rules about teaching their students. However, when Sarutobi had been appointed Hokage, he'd learned from the other village's mistakes. He'd seen what their missing-nin could do, no matter their beginning skill level. Momochi Zabuza was one such example; a genin taught to do far more than was necessary that just so happened to turn into one of the most vicious missing-nin to have come from Kirigakure no Sato. Proof that their methods currently worked could be seen in the fact that Team 7, a team that had been given only what was necessary to learn, had taken on and defeated said missing-nin.
That hadn't gone over so well from their sensei when he'd been told about it. Kakashi understood the theory just as much as he did when he'd learn about the laws, but he'd pushed himself to get around those barriers the moment he'd figured it out when he'd turned eight years old. Thankfully, he was a different man now. He followed the law, though teamwork was his main focus, and didn't push his genin to pass their limits like he had himself. He let them push themselves as much as they knew they could, trying to distance himself to keep from pushing the boundaries of the law.
Sarutobi rubbed the bridge of his nose, sighing as he turned away. His team had potential, and actually had a pretty good shot of becoming chunin. He would've thought only Sasuke and Sakura would pass, but Naruto had surprised him. Just like the other two, he'd gotten full marks on his test. The curious thing was that none of the chunin had seen how he'd gotten the answers. One chunin theorized that someone had managed to slip him the answers at some point, but no one had seen any such transaction. It was…professional.
Speaking of his favorite blonde, he turned to the other side of the room. Seated on the corner of his desk, was the gift Naruto had given him. He'd nearly jumped out of his skin when Naruto had barged in, having expected Naruto to pull off some kind of prank for his birthday. Instead, he got him a tree. A bonsai tree.
It had been a rather touching gift, especially since Naruto had never known about his birthday before, because he'd expected something…worse. Obviously he'd had help, because it was beyond Naruto's mental capacity to buy something, anything really, that Sarutobi would like and that wouldn't be useless. Like ramen coupons or a painted face on the Hokage Monument. Granted, Naruto telling him that he was getting him the gift because 'you're old as dirt, and I heard this tree will be older than you so you'll have something to do when you make me Hokage' was not the most intelligent thing to say. But it was the Naruto thing to say.
Sitting down at his desk, and looking at the tree, it also reminded him very much of just how much patience it took to deal with the young up and coming genin that were entering the tower. He just hoped that Naruto and his team proved their sensei's faith was not misplaced, and arrived safely. Smiling at that thought, it didn't last long as someone knocked at the door.
"Come in."
The chunin that entered looked nervous. Hesitantly, he spoke. "Sir, two teams have made it to the tower already."
Sarutobi raised an eyebrow. That wasn't something to be hesitant about. "I see, a new record for fastest to the tower. I'll have to go down and congratulate them when I get the chance." Sarutobi tented his fingers, and rested his chin on the point. "Let's not beat around the bush. What's the bad news?"
The chunin didn't bat an eyelash at his bluntness, most likely knowing that Sarutobi would want to know what was wrong. "Orochimaru is suspected to have entered the exams."
Sarutobi stared at the chunin, not saying anything for a moment as he mulled over what that would mean. 'Orochimaru…you've returned? But…what are you after? What plan have you thought up?'
"Hokage-sama?" The chunin said, regaining his attention. "Anko has also entered the tower. She reports to have had contact with her former sensei."
Sarutobi pushed himself out of his chair, moving slowly so as to not disturb his chair. "I see. Well then we'd better go see to her condition. Knowing my former student, I doubt he would simply return her to us."
The chunin nodded, following after him as they walked to the room that Anko was in. As he stopped in front of the door, he sighed. It was going to be a long day.
-xxxxx-
"Sakura who…did that to you?"
"S-Sasuke-kun?"
It was an odd sight for all who watched to see. Sasuke, who'd been unconscious moments before had awoken, wreathed in dark chakra with black flame-like marks running down his left arm and up the left side of his face. Not wasting a moment, his eyes had zeroed in on Sakura and her injuries, Sharingan whirling and taking in everyone in the clearing as though looking for an enemy.
"Sasuke-kun?" Ino said, her eyes not able to understand what she was seeing. She'd always seen her Sasuke as a valiant knight, who she would fight beside and win the right to stand beside him. This though, was like looking into the eyes of an enemy, and recognizing a former friend. She'd never seen Sasuke use his Sharingan before, but with the tainted chakra that spun around him, it seemed to make his eyes seem far more evil than she'd thought possible. And she'd never believed that Sasuke's eyes could look evil in the first place.
Not only that, but he'd immediately focused on Sakura. Granted, she was injured, but to think that her being injured had garnered his attention like this was disturbing for Ino. She'd done so much, gone out of her way and even got Naruto to help, and here he was worried about Sakura of everyone there.
'No, he's not worried.' Ino realized, noticing that his eyes took in everyone in the clearing hungrily. 'He's…hunting. He's looking to fight someone…and Sakura's his excuse to fight them. What…what's going on with him?'
"Uchiha-san." Neji said from the other side of the clearing. "We are not your enemy. Suppress your chakra."
Sasuke looked at his hand, clenching and unclenching it experimentally. "Why? I feel great. In fact, I feel…great." He looked up, a sickening smirk on his face. "He gave me power. I…I understand now –"
"Uchiha-san, if you do not suppress your chakra, I'll be forced to do so for you." Neji said, sliding into the Jyuuken basic stance with the veins around his eyes bulging out as he called upon his Byakugan.
Seeing Sasuke about to take Neji up on the offer, Sakura felt a lump in her throat. 'This…this isn't Sasuke-kun. No, Sasuke-kun is more than this.' She thought as she jumped between them. "Sasuke-kun! They aren't our enemy! They, they helped us…so please."
Sasuke stared into her eyes, his Sharingan etching her terrified yet resolute expression. Still somewhat high off the initial release of the seal, he felt himself lock up as his eyes met hers. It seemed like an eternity, the chakra making his eyes memorize her expression thoroughly. He wouldn't be the first to admit it, but that expression terrified him.
He figured he'd looked pretty similar when Itachi had killed his clan, though without the resoluteness.
His eyes trailed to everyone in the clearing a second time, this time looking closer at their faces. Ino and Choji seemed similar to Sakura, with Choji placing his hands closer together to form a seal should Sasuke try anything. Shikamaru and Tenten were observant, knowing that he was acting like a threat, but unsure of what their next move was. Neji stared back into his own eyes, with his own soul piercing gaze that seemed a thousand yards and more. And Naruto…
"What…what happened to Naruto?" Sasuke asked, slowly pushing back the tainted chakra. He needed to focus, and right now his thoughts felt strange. When the seal was completely repressed, he fell to his hands and knees, his breath ragged and his eyes burning from borderline chakra exhaustion.
Ino spoke for the group, no one else responding well to Sasuke's violent change in demeanor. "Naruto fought the Oto genin off when they tried to attack you."
"Oto?" Sasuke questioned, the word coming out raspy and harsh in his throat. He'd never heard of them.
Ino nodded. "Lee-san and Sakura had been holding them off, and were pretty beat up by them." She glanced at Sakura, then looked away sheepishly. "I was actually going to drag my team out to help when Naruto showed up. It was really weird though. It was like he never really woke up. Like he was fighting in his sleep."
Tenten groaned. "Great, there's another one out there." She muttered, looking towards Lee as she said it. When everyone else looked at her, she explained. "Lee trained so much, he somehow found a way to keep running and training in his sleep. One time he was even found fighting while asleep.
Said spandex clad genin seemed obviously to everyone's gaze, as he nodded in agreement with Ino's statement. "Indeed. It was shortly after myself and Sakura had attempted to fight them off. The Oto shinobi…they were strong. They said their attacks were able to move at the speed of sound, and proved that they could unbalance me."
Sasuke looked at Lee, then back at Sakura. "Sakura, who's this?"
Sakura blinked. "Oh! This is Rock Lee. He helped me before Naruto drove the Oto genin off."
Sasuke looked at Naruto again, once again in disbelief. 'Naruto was able to defeat that giant snake, and three unknown genin that Sakura and Lee couldn't take on? Well…I guess he's doing pretty good for himself then. Whatever training he's doing is working if he can fight off…wait. Something's not adding up.'
"Are you trying to tell me…that Naruto's somehow…been getting stronger since we've been in the forest?"
Sakura gave him a curious look. "What do you mean Sasuke-kun?"
Sasuke stared at Naruto, his brow twisted in bewilderment. "He got ambushed by one Ame shinobi, yet he was able to beat and stop that giant snake, and defeat a group of Oto shinobi while asleep. It doesn't make sense."
Lee held up his hand, looking like a little kid in the Academy as he spoke. "Perhaps he has fought more while asleep, and is not currently capable of drawing on his latent talent while awake. Truly, he has not yet discovered how to fully focus his flames of youth!"
Choji blinked at the response, speaking for the first time. "Uh, does that mean that Naruto is some kind of…sleepwalking fighter?"
Sasuke blinked, thinking over what he knew about Naruto. What he knew was oddly not a lot, and that was saying something. He knew Naruto wore orange, liked ramen, planned on becoming Hokage, could make solid clones, and had a thing for making promises. Beyond that he knew nothing. Not one damn thing.
Ino on the other hand, was nodding in agreement. It would make sense that Naruto had some 'inner force' that was driving him. It explained the guy in his mind better than believing that he had some kind of split personality. The fact that it had a definite shape meant that Naruto had been practicing this for a long time though, which made her shiver at the thought. Naruto, probably stronger than Sasuke? While asleep of all things? She'd have to tread carefully around his mind should she go looking for information without permission again.
Shikamaru sighed. "Troublesome. Look, can we just get to the tower already?" Noting Sasuke's confusion, he explained. "Look, with three teams, and all of us already having both scrolls we shouldn't encounter as many enemy teams."
Sasuke didn't question why he thought they had both scrolls, the 'earth scroll' being the only obvious scroll he could see. When they asked what they should do with Naruto, he pushed himself up and offered to carry him. Naruto had saved him when he was ready to give up to that Kusa genin, and had protected his team when they were attacked while unconscious. He deserved a bit of extra rest.
He didn't expect Ino to ask Choji to help carry him, but was grateful nothing the less. He barely had enough energy as it was; having Choji shoulder some of the weight would help out a lot. Before they began their journey to the tower, Sasuke walked over and pocketed the scroll that came from who knows where.
'Probably what the Oto guys used to bargain to get away with.' He looked at Naruto, tilting his head in thought. 'Naruto…you were the one who realized that Kusa genin could have killed us at any time. Yet when you were in a position of power over them…you let them go? If I'd woken before you, what would I have done?'
As everyone around him packed up, he found that he had no good answer.
-xxxxx-
"Okay, so where were we?"
"We didn't even start yet." Naruto muttered, a disappointed scowl on his face. After Naruto had gotten stabbed in the face and Han'ishiki had left, Kushina had stood silently for a moment before asking the question. "You were going off how you didn't remember the 'basic concept' or something like that."
Kushina rolled her eyes, knowing Naruto's tone only too well. "Yeah, I remember now. Look there are two basic abilities that come with our bloodline. The first, is binding. I'll explain that first.
"For any other person, making a promise is just words. For an Uzumaki man, these words mean so much more. Mainly because they are bound to the promises they make. Any questions yet?"
Naruto scratched his head. "Uh, how do I…activate it?"
Kushina brightened. "Oh, that's easy! You can activate it in one of two ways. The first way is you turn fifteen. The second –"
"Why fifteen? Why not from when we're born?" Naruto asked. As the question came from his mouth, it quickly shut and his head dropped. "Sorry. Please go on."
Kushina raised an eyebrow at his reaction. "No, those were good questions. If you want to know something, or for me to explain it, don't be afraid to ask. Okay?"
Naruto nodded. "Got it. So, why fifteen?"
"Well, do you expect baby's to be able to make promises?" Kushina asked, a bemused look on her face. "Have you ever seen little kids make those pinky promise's kids make? What would happen if years later those kids were still keeping their promise's, but had forgotten them because they were so young? That's why it usually activates when they turn fifteen; people are...more grown up. They can begin to deal with the consequences of their actions and are usually taught how to handle when it happens.
"The second way to activate it is by making a powerful oath." Kushina continued. "These kind of promises are very difficult to predict, because any one of them could go awry, and are usually made by clan members who haven't been taught about their bloodline yet. You're probably like me, falling into the second category because we weren't told that doing that was a very bad idea."
Naruto looked thoughtful, mulling over what he'd just heard. "So…I made some kind of huge promise, and that activated my bloodline?"
Kushina nodded. "Yes. It probably was something that really brought focus to your life."
Naruto's eyes widened. "You mean that promising Sakura that I wouldn't go on dates activated my bloodline? That so unfair!"
Kushina blinked at Naruto's outburst, then began laughing. "Oh man, that's funny."
Naruto scowled. "What? What's so funny?"
"That sort of promise? That would be so flimsy and weak, you wouldn't think twice about breaking it if your bloodline weren't already activated." Kushina said, grinning from ear to ear at Naruto's confused expression. "No, your promise was probably bigger, and meant more to you. Think back on what kind of promise might do that."
Bowing his head and folding his arms, Naruto thought back and forth through his life. He'd declared that he'd become Hokage, but that wasn't a promise. He'd promised that he wouldn't play pranks anymore, but he'd already had his bloodline active before then. He'd stabbed himself in the hand…
"Oh! When I promised I wouldn't back down!" Naruto exclaimed.
Kushina nodded. "Bingo. Thing is, if you had just let it be empty words, your bloodline would have activated later. But when you didn't run from Zabuza, you brought it out and gained the strengths that come with this bloodline."
Naruto grinned, rubbing the bridge of his nose sheepishly. "Hehehe, I'm awesome." Pausing in thought, he raised his hand. "Kushina-san, what sort of abilities do we have?"
"Well, remember how I told you I wouldn't be able to tell you much because you're a boy and I'm a girl?"
"Yeah."
"Well, I kinda remember why that is." Kushina said, pulling a blackboard from…hammer space. On the board, there were two chalk people with yin-yang symbols in them. "Now, say the person on the left is a girl, and the person on the right is a boy.
"Uzumaki girls are really in tune with their yin chakra, or spiritual chakra. Because of this, we have to push more of our yang chakra, or physical chakra, into it to manifest our abilities. The only ability I really found that us girls could do was create chains constructed completely of chakra that were really good at binding opponents."
"Wow." Naruto said, his eyes widening as the chalk person animatedly reacted to what she was saying. The top half of its yin-yang circle glowed white, before pushing into the other half. Then, chalk chains sprouted from the 'girl's' back in a way that looked really cool. "Man, I wish I was a girl."
Kushina raised an eyebrow at that. "Oh? And what makes you think that being a girl is all that great?"
Naruto grinned. "You can make chains out of chakra. How is that NOT totally awesome?"
"Well…you have to deal with all the…girly things that come with being a girl." Kushina said, not sure how to explain being a girl to Naruto.
"Hey, maybe my Oiroke no Jutsu can do that for me!" Naruto grinned, placing his hands into the seal for his technique.
Kushina's eyes widened as Naruto was enveloped into a cloud of smoke. When he returned, he…was a she. An honest to goodness girl, covered only by the smoke that surrounded her. She had to rub her eyes to make sure she wasn't just hallucinating as Naruto tried to do what the blackboard had shown him. A tick mark grew on her head as she realized what Naruto had just done. An instant later, she'd drawn back her arm and slammed it into his head. "Baka!"
Naruto returned in a burst of smoke, rubbing it sheepishly. "Uh…sorry?"
Kushina rubbed her forehead in exasperation, trying not to blush at what had just happened. "It…it doesn't work like that. You can't just use an elaborate Henge (Transformation) into a girl and expect to suddenly be able to do all the stuff that girls do."
"Aw, that sucks." Naruto moaned, wondering if he could make it work with enough pushing. After all, the chains were awesome. What could possibly be better than that?
"Now for the guys. Uzumaki guys, like yourself, are more in tune with your yang chakra. Since guys are more physical in nature means that you can make your yin chakra capacity grow faster than even other shinobi. This means that when you learn that when you learn powerful techniques, you can begin practicing them and using them in battle younger than any other shinobi. It also means that if you weren't trained while you were young, your chakra control will be much harder than it needs to be when you're older." Kushina said, talking in hopes of distracting herself. So far, it wasn't working as well as she had hoped. "The connection to your yang chakra is what makes you bound to your promises."
Naruto blinked, very much distracted by the return to the topic. "Wait…so the girls don't have to keep their promises?"
Kushina shook her head. "No. Us girls are able to bind our opponents, while you are bound to your promises."
"…we got screwed on our end didn't we?" Naruto asked, scowling at this revelation. He should've known that guys were getting the short end of the stick.
"Hey, that's not true." Kushina said, pointing to the board again. "You just need to figure out your key to unlock the full extent of your strength."
Naruto tilted his head in confusion. "Key?"
"Yes, key. It's more of a codeword, really." Kushina said with a shrug. "I didn't have to worry about learning anything like that, but I did learn that Uzumaki guys have some 'word' that they say that enhances their abilities. It's unique to each guy, so you have to find it on your own."
Naruto's eyes widened. "Really?" his voice quickly became skeptical as he thought of something. "How does saying a word make me stronger?"
"Well, your body is not always working at one hundred percent. Everyone who's alive represses their full strength so that they don't over exert themselves. If they did, their muscles would disintegrate. Other people have found a way to temporarily get around those limitations by unlocking the Kaimon (Gate of Opening) in order to use more than their usual amount of physical strength. By making a promise, you can access slightly more physical strength and chakra than you normally could. It's not quite the same as opening the gate, but it's more than you normally would use."
Naruto looked skeptical. "Really? You mean that I'll be faster and stronger when I make a promise then when I don't?"
"Smarter too."
Naruto leapt a foot in the air, which was pretty impressive seeing as he was still sitting down. He looked over his shoulder at Han'ishiki, who had returned to the balcony. "Where did you go?"
"I had to take care of your promise since you wouldn't have been able to considering your current unconscious condition. Don't worry, your teammates are safe."
Naruto shook his head looking very, very confused. "Uh, okay? Thanks? Now what did you mean by smarter? Are you calling me dumb?"
Han'ishiki looked to Kushina, who sighed. "Naruto, there's no easy way of explaining this…Han'ishiki is your subconsciousness. Normally people use all of their mind, focused on a lot of thing at once and change by learning new things. Uzumaki's are born with an enhanced subconsciousness that is higher functioning than their conscious mind that they can delve into when they make promises or go about life."
"I don't get it." Naruto muttered, trying to wrap his mind around what she'd just said.
"Basically, you are an idiot with a subconscious that can tell you to do things that would normally be suicidal, or that you don't realize you're doing. Basically, you've got untapped genius hidden in your subconscious."
There was a short silence in the room as Naruto stared at Han'ishiki and Kushina. "…the only part of that I understood was the 'you're an idiot' and 'untapped genius' part." Grinning widely, he jumped up. "Which means that my bloodline is totally more awesome than Sasuke's! Woohoo! I'm smarter than I look!"
Kushina slapped her forehead exasperatedly. "No, Naruto. It's not better or worse than…wait, Sasuke? Uchiha Sasuke?"
Naruto nodded. "Yeah. Why?"
"I thought so!" Kushina's eyes lit up. "Did he grow up to be as cute as I thought he'd be?"
"I don't know…" Naruto said, looking betrayed. 'He didn't even have to meet her to make her bend to his charm! Curse you and your creepy ability to make instant fan girls Sasuke!'
Kushina sighed. "Aw, too bad. I knew his mom, and I always told her that he would be cute as a button."
Naruto's eyes widened. "You knew Sasuke's mom? But…that would mean you're not that old!"
A cold chill washed over him. "Old huh? And what made you think that I'm old?"
Naruto gulped. "Uh…Han'ishiki called you senzo?"
The cold rush turned into flaming righteous fury. Surprisingly, it was actually directed towards Han'ishiki instead of Naruto. "This is getting out of hand!"
Han'ishiki didn't so much as blink under Kushina's gaze. "You're doing what you need to, and what we both know he can handle. You know the consequences of telling him to much from experience. Remember to walk carefully senzo."
Kushina winced as she remembered the incident that had nearly caused her to be taken to Kumogakure. "Oh, right." She turned to Naruto, giving him a stern glare. She would make certain that Naruto didn't fall into the same situation that she herself had all those years before. "Naruto, I want you to remember something. Your bloodline is a powerful tool for you to use, and other people will want it, or want to use you because you'll be the ultimate trustworthy person. There are even some people who will do anything to get you because of your bloodline."
To her surprise, Naruto seemed to understand. "People like Zabuza?"
Kushina had to pinch herself as she swore she saw the corners of Han'ishiki's mouth twitch upwards at what Naruto had said. "Not quite like Zabuza. He was actually a pretty decent person, and only took Haku to ensure his survival." His face shifted to his normal deathly serious expression, which seemed even more accentuated by the stress lines on his face. "But there are others out there…other people who are worse than Zabuza. People who will send good guys like Zabuza or shinobi who are powerful like he was but as greedy as Gato, because they are seeking your power. Even within your own village, there will be people looking to step upon others and use you as a way to do that. You cannot break your promises, which means that you would be at their mercy if you aren't carful, and would be utterly crushed beneath them. Do you understand what I'm saying?"
Swallowing hard, Naruto nodded quickly. Naruto liked Zabuza, but if there were people as strong as him who were more like Gato, he was certain that he wouldn't be able to fight them off. Not yet.
Han'ishiki nodded. "Good. You're beginning to understand."
Kushina palmed her face. "Okay, enough you two. Back to me. Now Naruto, I want you to repeat what you understood back to me."
Naruto nodded. "Okay. I have a bloodline. Which make me have to use my yang chakra when I make promises that make me stronger and smarter than other people." Naruto scratched his head. "Uh, is that really it? I mean, that's all the abilities my bloodline gives me?" His eyes widened, his hand shooting into the air. "Oh! Oh! You said there were two abilities!"
Kushina shook her head. "That's right, there is a second basic ability that us Uzumaki have that you should know. You're bloodline enhances your vitality."
"My what?" Naruto asked, having never heard the word before.
Kushina sighed. "Think of vitality as 'life force'."
Naruto frowned, but nodded. "Okay, I get that. But what's so special about it?"
"Well, like with the stuff before, it's different for guys and girls. For girls, because our bloodline is more focused on our yin chakra, we only have so much physical vitality, while having a lot of mental vitality. On our last legs, we can power thought most situations on willpower alone. Unlike men though, as we grow older as we age though our minds stay as sharp as when we are at our prime. We do live longer than most people, but physically we won't be able to fight like men will at an advanced age."
Despite being oblivious to most things, Naruto did pick up on what Kushina had said. "What does that mean?"
Kushina rubbed the back of her head nervously. "It means…well, your abilities come from using yang chakra. Since Uzumaki's vitality is directly tied the chakra they use most, as long you have enough excess yang chakra you'll bounce back faster than your average shinobi. As you age, you'll actually become more difficult to defeat, though it won't be impossible since you will slow down."
Kushina allowed Naruto a short reprieve as he digested this information. After all, when most people heard this, they started out jumping for joy, before sobering up years later. She wasn't sure what to do though, seeing as Naruto didn't seem to be reacting in any way.
Finally, Naruto spoke. "So…if me and my friends weren't shinobi, I'd probably outlive my friends?"
Kushina smiled. She'd expected him to immediately jump at being able to fight even when he was old. However, when presented with this fact, Naruto was showing a surprising amount of maturity, thinking of the friend he would be leaving behind. It made her feel quite proud of him.
"Yes." Han'ishiki said, cutting through both of their thoughts. "However, you can't just forget that you're still just as mortal as anyone else; you just heal fast and get harder to kill before you slip up and get killed."
Naruto blinked, staring at Han'ishiki. Then, "So I'll be the most kickass Hokage ever! Even when I'm as old as Hokage-jiji, I'll still be able to take names and –"
"Naruto!" Kushina said, cutting off his tirade. "There's a little bit more. Because of this ability, you'll be more resilient to certain techniques because you can heal faster. For instance, opening the Kaimon I mentioned earlier, and learning the techniques you can use by opening it aren't easier, but are safer for you to use more often than a normal shinobi." Her eyes glinted dangerously as she stared down Naruto. "However, if you go around trying to learn any technique like that before you become jonin, I will knock your empty head right off your shoulders."
Naruto gulped, rubbing the back of his neck sheepishly. "Okay, but you'll have to hit pretty hard. Sakura-chan has been hitting me for a long time."
"And how old is she?" Kushina asked in a falsely sweet tone.
"Uh, twelve?"
"I see. Don't you think that someone who's most definitely older than her might just have the experience to hit you far harder than some twelve year old?"
Naruto paled, nodding his head and straightening in fear. "Yes Kushina-san."
Han'ishiki looked between the two, silently debating. "Should I tell her? Hm, well, Naruto is going to pull a Naruto…so eventually I won't have to tell her. But if I tell her now, I'll be more ready to enjoy the show. Decisions, decisions."
Kushina smiled. "Good boy. You now know what you need to about your bloodline. You are to come back here again once you figure out how to get back here on your own, got it?"
Naruto nodded, his head feeling like it would fall off with how fast it shook. "Yes."
"Alright then. When you get back here, I'll teach you some more about our bloodline. Now go, your friends are getting worried." Kushina told him, making a 'shooing' motion with her hand. As soon as she left, she sighed. "I wish I didn't have to be his teacher."
Han'ishiki shook his head. "You have no choice. Had you been alive, he would have learned what you'll teach him now. Here though, if you tell him you're his mother –"
"Yeah, I remember." Kushina said, pushing her hair behind her ear. "I just…I just really want to see my son grow up to be the best he can be."
"You will…in a way. And you will still be helping him to grow into the man you want him to be."
Kushina frowned. "You think about Naruto in a really detached way. I mean, you're his subconscious, you're just the other half of him." Not getting a reply, she pressed on. "Right?"
Han'ishiki said nothing; merely turned and walked away. As he left, Kushina felt her chest tighten, and gently placed her hand on it to quell her pounding heart. There were apparently more things she needed to learn about the guy's side of the bloodline, like what Han'ishiki really was.
She also needed to figure out how to teach Naruto the hijutsu (Clan Techniques) that she knew.
AN: Scene. And there's the first clip on Naruto's bloodline abilities! Along with a pretty pointless part with the Sandaime, and a scene where Sasuke is forced to question himself verse the ever growing Naruto.
Just so you know, I think that the question Sasuke asked does make sense. After all, Naruto got captured and tied up by a single Ame shinobi…and was capable of stopping a giant snake? I think they had that moment when they fought the Ame team later…but I felt it was necessary to ask now. After all, without knowing about Fuzzball, what other conclusion could they come to? Seriously?
And just to make sure you all know, Han'ishiki was the one who fought the Oto genin, not Naruto. Which means Naruto doesn't know the Bijuu's Imari. Well, not yet.
Next time on Word of Honor: Preliminary Prelude. The genin finish traveling to the tower and meet with a certain jonin sensei, while Kabuto's team botches a break in.
EDIT: Removed the unneeded bold paragraphs.
