Authors Notes: Ahem, Naruto WILL become more evil after the Wave mission. So don't think I'm going to continue to keep him acting only semi-evil. There's something else that I'm going to warn you readers about. There WILL be romance during the Wave Arc. I think you all know why. ;-) If not, then just look again at the pairing for this story. I'm going to try to write the romance in this story differently from how most romance is written in Naruto fanfics. Keyword being 'try.' I'm not really sure if I'll succeed or not. I kinda wanna make the romance seem similar to how authors write romance between Padme and Anakin in the Star Wars section of this site. I guess whether I'll succeed or not is up to you readers eh? Also, again, there are some things I changed in chapter four. Except instead of telling you all what changes I made, I'll just go ahead and tell you. One of the changes is that Tomoe and Kenshin weren't the only people that he allowed to touch him. There's one more person. If any of you know who I'm talking about, then great, but don't tell anyone. K? Also, the other change is that Naruto actually wore his cloak and straw hat during battle to hide his identity. Oh, and I want to thank RyumaOmega for more of his help and also I want to thank mannyg1218 for a new name for Kakashi that I can use. You'll see what name it is in this chapter. One more thing, I want to thank another reviewer (I can't find his name in my reviews) who alerted me to the faggotry of Naruto letting Sasuke know anything about the Hiten style, even if it's a watered down version. Therefore, I changed that as well to Naruto just teaching him samurai basics of the Japanese style of using a katana. It's simply like teaching someone the academy taijutsu. It's pretty worthless on its own. You'll know more about what I'm talking about later in the story. And there's one more thing I want to say. I'm not trying to make Naruto look cool by having him smoke. I'm just giving him a habit. Also, he has good reason to angst by the way. He's been forced to leave his home and he lost two people who he was very close to. I think I'd feel like shit too if I went through anything like that. Oh, and the omake might suck since it's my first one ever ;-). Have a happy Thanksgiving everybody!
Battousai's Apprentice: Chapter 10
It was a bright and sunny day as birds singed, insects made their noises, and a gentle breeze made the trees in the forest look like they were moving as their leafs danced in the wind. In the middle of this forest was a dirt path that Tazuna and Team 7 were currently walking on.
At the moment, Naruto was enjoying listening to the sounds of nature all around him without any interruption from the band of idiots he was traveling with. Yes, everyone was actually quiet. However, when they first began their journey, Sakura just wouldn't shut up because she kept asking questions to Tazuna about Nami no Kuni. And some of these questions were stupid because they could be figured out just by just using a little common sense.
For example, Sakura asked Tazuna if the country had ninjas. She should have already realized that if they did have ninjas, then why would Tazuna go all the way to Konohagakure to request a team of ninjas to protect him? It doesn't really take a genius to figure out then that Nami no Kuni doesn't have any shinobi or kunoichi.
It finally took Naruto glaring at Sakura for her to finally shut her mouth. Kakashi noticed the brief interaction and narrowed his one eye at Naruto. The Jounin vowed to speak to the young blond later about scaring his students.
Naruto took special notice of a puddle that they were walking past and immediately got ready to counter an attack. 'Today is very sunny and it seems it hasn't rained in days, so that puddle shouldn't be there. Plus I can sense two ki signatures hidden in that puddle as well. That's where the enemy will likely appear from.' Naruto thought.
And sure enough, Naruto was right. As soon as everyone walked past the puddle, two Kiri nukenin slowly and silently rose out of it. They targeted Kakashi first since they perceived him as the main threat and because he was at the back of the group. The two of them swiftly ran up to Kakashi and wrapped a spiked chain around him and then pulled on the chain, which resulted in ripping the Jounin to shreds.
"Kakashi-sensei!" Sakura shrieked.
The two Kiri shinobi looked towards the rest of the group. Naruto noticed that both attackers had some kind of mask on. He also noticed that both of them wore a clawed gauntlet on one of their hands and the chain they used to 'supposedly' kill Kakashi was connected from one clawed gauntlet to the other between them. Sasuke must have noticed this too, because as soon as the two Kiri nukenin charged towards Naruto, saying something about, "Two down," Sasuke threw a kunai and a shuriken that pinned down the middle part of the chain into a tree.
Sakura and Tazuna had solely focused their attention on Sasuke and the two Kiri ninja for only a second when the Uchiha had threw that kunai, before they noticed that Naruto had simply vanished. It was as if the blond samurai had disappeared as soon as everyone's eyes were completely off of him for only a short time.
"Where did that coward go? He ran away!" Tazuna yelled.
"I…I don't know." Sakura whispered. Her eyes were wide and she was scared to death. Sakura was sure that Sasuke could protect them all. But she also knew that Tazuna and her team had a greater chance of surviving if Naruto was here. He was the unofficial team leader when Kakashi wasn't around. Though she did hope and believe that Sasuke would surpass him someday in both leadership and skill.
Back to the battle, the two Kiri shinobi were trying to get their chain unstuck from the tree. Before anything else could happen though, everybody heard a yell from up above that sounded as if it echoed for miles.
"Hiten Mitsurugi Ryu: Ryu Tsui Sen!"
Everyone looked up to see a blur way up high in the air that turned out to be Naruto. He was diving quicky towards one of the Kiri missing-nin before he delivered a downward slash to his left shoulder. There was a small crater where Naruto landed. As a result of Naruto's katana, the missing-nin lost his left arm, which as it turns out was the arm that wore a gauntlet.
The Kiri ninja only had a short moment to scream in agony before Naruto did a spin to the right and swung his sword, which he held in his right hand, horizontally towards the man's neck. The shinobi's head came clean off. Blood flew out of the dead man's neck and the body slowly dropped to its knees before falling down completely to the ground.
'Judging by how they fight and their ki levels, these guys must be Chuunin shinobi.' Naruto thought.
"Meizu! No!" the other Kiri missing-nin exclaimed as he disconnected the chain from his gauntlet. He looked away from his fallen comrade and glared hatefully at Naruto. "You little bastard! I'll kill you!" he screamed as he charged headfirst towards Naruto in a fit of rage.
Naruto prepared to finish the living Chuunin nukenin off quickly. However, it was not to be as Kakashi immediately jumped out of a tree and knocked the charging missing-nin out cold.
Everyone was silent. Sakura and Sasuke stared at Naruto in fear and awe. Though Sasuke felt a little irritated since he didn't get show off more because of Naruto interfering. Tazuna just looked at the samurai in disbelief. He had no idea that there were kids that were so skilled at killing people at such a young age, more specifically in regards to killing ninjas. After a moment of staring at Naruto, all three of them suddenly realized that Kakashi was alive! Of course, leave it up to Sakura to state the obvious. "Kakashi-sensei! You're not dead!" she shouted in joy.
Kakashi continued to tie up the only living Kiri missing-nin to a tree before turning towards Sakura and giving her an eye-smile. "Of course Sakura. Did you really have so little faith in your sensei that you believed I would be taken down so easily?"
'As arrogant as always.' Naruto thought. 'Just like the Uchiha.'
Kakashi turned to look at Sasuke. "Sasuke, good job. You were able to neutralize the threat that chain presented and provided a distraction so that Naruto could catch them by surprise." Sasuke smirked arrogantly, but inside he was still a little pissed that he didn't get to show off and get in on the action like Naruto did.
Kakashi turned his head towards his female student. "Sakura, you guarded Tazuna even in the face of danger. That takes courage and loyalty. You did well." Sakura smiled.
Kakashi then looked at Naruto. "As for you, Naruto, you went overboard with what you did. There was no need for you to interfere. Sasuke could have handled the situation on his own. Also," and here is where Kakashi's voice got harsh as he narrowed his one eye, "don't you ever kill in front of my students again. They don't need to see such things yet. They're still young Genin fresh out of the academy. They didn't grow up the way you did and don't need to. Do I make myself clear?"
"Fine, but just keep in mind that you'll be at fault along with me if anything happens to these kids because you ordered me to hold back when we fight enemies who would kill us with no hesitation. Shinobi like those two nukenin I fought would kill any of us if they could and would lose no sleep over it. Sooner or later the Uchiha and Haruno will have to face the hard cold ground of reality," Naruto said.
"They'll face it when I think they're ready," Kakashi growled. "And besides, as long as I'm around, nothing will happen to them, so there's no need for you to kill in front of them. Understand?"
Naruto sighed. "Sure. Whatever." 'He truly is an idiot in denial,' Naruto thought.
"Good," Kakashi said.
At the meantime, while Naruto and Kakashi had ended their argument, Sasuke was pissed. Even though Naruto was the same age as him, he still thought of him as only a kid! How dare he judge an Uchiha that way? Naruto was the deadlast and he himself was an elite Uchiha! And then there was Kakashi. That man was holding back on him. Kakashi apparently didn't think he was ready to kill or see someone be killed even though he was the last survivor of the Uchiha clan massacre.
So Kakashi apparently wasn't planning to teach him anything lethal anytime soon. His sensei just wasn't planning to make him more powerful soon enough. That meant that he would probably have to rely more on what Naruto would teach him.
Sasuke was also a little bitch who was still scared of Naruto, so he wasn't really going to complain to him about his interference in the fight with those two Kiri shinobi.
Sakura agreed with Kakashi that she wasn't ready to see things such as people being killed or doing the killing herself. In fact, she was naïve enough to believe that she could fight in the world of ninjas without ever having to kill. She was actually horrified of seeing a person kill another person. But Sakura did think that Sasuke was ready to see those kinds of things since he was, well, the great Sasuke!
Sasuke came out of his brooding when Sakura asked Kakashi a question. "Kakashi-sensei? How are you still alive? I could have sworn I saw you…," but Sakura never got to finish her words as she saw Kakashi point to the spot where he was supposedly 'ripped to shreds.' She looked towards where he was pointing and realized there were pieces of a log scattered all over the ground.
'He used a kawarimi…' Sakura thought in astonishment.
Sasuke's eyes widened as he too saw the pieces of a log scattered where Kakashi had faked his death and realized how the Jounin did it. He clenched his fists in anger. 'I can't believe I didn't notice it before. He had to point it out to me for me to understand! I fell to such a basic trick!' And so the Uchiha brooded even more if that's even possible.
Kakashi looked at Tazuna, who was busy staring at the ground. "Tazunua-san…we need to talk," he said.
Tazuna gulped and started to sweat more than he's usually been doing on this mission so far. "About what?"
Kakashi narrowed his one eye at the old drunk. "From what I observed, those nukenin were after you Tazuna-san. They clearly were trying to ambush and eliminate me quickly before killing off the Genins. I believe they finally would have targeted you after getting rid of the rest of us."
"There is also the fact that you looked a lot more nervous and scared when Kakashit mentioned to Sakura that there wouldn't be any foreign ninjas on this mission when she was asking questions. It's pretty obvious that you've been keeping some important secrets from us Tazuna-san," Naruto said.
Kakashi looked annoyed with Naruto calling him 'Kakashit,' but he grudgingly agreed with the samurai. "Naruto...is right. The shinobi that attacked us looked like Kiri Chuunin. They're known to continue fighting no matter what. Our mission was to simply protect you from thieves or gangs." Kakashi took a moment to clear his throat. "This mission is now at least a B-rank. This was supposed to be a simple protection until you finished the bridge. I'm sure you had a reason to lie, but it causes problems when you're not truthful about the mission. As of now, we are operating outside of duties."
Sakura was still a little shaken up from the battle awhile ago and so she decided to voice her opinion. "I don't think we're ready for a mission like this Kakashi-sensei. Let's quit," she said.
Sasuke glared at Sakura while Naruto and Kakashi looked indifferent.
"Wait, at least hear me out!" Tazuna said.
Kakashi looked at Tazuna and nodded. "Go on."
Tazuna sighed. "You're right. I did lie about the mission. It's most likely outside of your duties. It turns out that a super dangerous man is after my life."
"Who?" Kakashi asked.
"You've probably at least heard his name before," Tazuna said. He paused before continuing. "The wealthy shipping magnate. His name is Gato."
Kakashi looked surprised. "Huh? Gatou from that Gatou Company? He's one of the world's few extremely wealthy people," he said.
Tazuna nodded. "Yes. Officially he runs a large shipping company. But secretly he sells drugs and other illegal items, using ninjas and gang members to take over businesses and countries. He's a very nasty man." Tazuna looked up at the sky and paused again before continuing. "It was about a year ago when he set his eyes on Nami no Kuni. Through money and violence, he quickly took control of the country's shipping industry. Gato now has a monopoly on all business traffic in the country. The only thing he fears now is the completion of the bridge that will connect Nami no Kunu to Hi no Kuni."
"So since you're building the bridge, that means you're in the way," Sakura said.
"So those shinobi were hired by Gatou?" Sasuke asked.
Tazuna didn't answer.
"But what I don't understand is if shinobi could be after you, then why did you hide that fact when you hired us?" Kakashi asked.
"Isn't it obvious?" Naruto asked in that calm and quiet voice he always used. Everyone looked at him. "This man, Gatou, has obviously drained Nami no Kuni dry. The country must have been poor to begin with if Gatou was able to take it over after just one year. So that means most everyone at that country must be poor. Tazuna-san here just simply couldn't afford a B-rank mission," he said.
Naruto then lit up a cigarette and started smoking it.
Kakashi looked at the old bridge builder. "Is this true Tazuna-san?" he asked.
Tazuna closed his eyes and nodded. "Yes, it's true. It's all true."
"I see," Kakashi said.
"Well if you quit the mission now…I definitely will be killed," Tazuna said.
"But…" Kakashi started to say before being interrupted.
"Don't worry about it!" Tazuna said as he laughed. "If I die, my cute ten-year old will just cry for a few days!"
Kakashi and everyone else sweat dropped.
"Oh yeah, and my daughter will live a sad life hating Konoha ninjas forever. But it won't be your fault. Not at all!" Tazuna said.
Kakashi rubbed his forehead in frustration. "Look, let me see what my team's opinion is on this before I make any decision to go forth with this mission or not," he said. Kakashi looked at the three Genin under his command. "We're going to have a vote. Who thinks we should continue and who thinks we should go back to the village?" he asked.
Sasuke was quick to answer. "We should move forward," he said. 'I want to see how far I came in terms of skill.'
Kakashi nodded and looked at Sakura.
Sakura was biting her bottom lip and looking nervous. She really didn't want to continue. But she didn't want to hold Sasuke back and make him mad at her either. So she decided to be the typical loyal puppy that she's always been to the Uchiha. "I…I think we should continue," she said.
Kakashi then looked at Naruto and waited for his answer.
Naruto finished smoking his cigarette and threw it to the ground before stomping on it. "I think we should go back. We're just Genins, thus technically we're not ready for this type of mission yet."
Sasuke looked annoyed at Naruto's answer while Sakura looked hopeful. But at the same time she was irritated that Naruto was disagreeing with Sasuke, though she wouldn't dare voice it out loud.
Kakashi scoffed. "Don't be ridicules Naruto. You and I know that we're both the strongest members of this little group. You just want to go back to D-rank missions. Well guess what? You've been outvoted…again. And all the rest of the members of our team will be fine. Sasuke is an Uchiha after all and Sakura is…umm…, well…never mind. You get the point," he said.
Sakura looked dejected, but no one really cared.
Kakashi turned around to look at Tazuna. "We'll continue with the mission, but after it's finished, you'll have to pay more money to the village since this mission has been upgraded to a B-rank. Got it?"
Tazuna nodded enthusiastically. "Yes of course!" he said.
The real reason Kakashi was continuing with the mission though was because Sasuke wanted to keep going. Kakashi didn't want to deny anything to the last loyal Uchiha. So even if Sasuke had been outvoted, Kakashi would have continued with the mission regardless. The only opinions that mattered to him are his own and Sasuke's.
Besides, as much as he loathed admitting it, the whole group had a better chance of getting through this mission alive with Naruto being with them. The young samurai was powerful enough to be at Kage level and he himself was at Jounin level. So Kakashi believed everyone would be fine. Though the only lives that truly and sincerely mattered to him were his own and Sasuke's.
Kakashi turned back around to look at the three Genin again. "Now listen, there's a high possibility that there will be a stronger shinobi that will attack us. Most likely the attacker will be at Jounin level. So I want all of you to be completely on your guard, ok?"
Sakura and Sasuke nodded while Naruto just didn't show any signs of acknowledgment of what Kakashi said. He already knew there was a high chance of stronger shinobi attacking them.
"Alright then, let's get going." Kakashi said.
And so the group moved forward.
Omake:
"Meizu! No!" the other Kiri nukenin exclaimed as he disconnected the chain from his gauntlet. He looked away from his fallen comrade and glared hatefully at Naruto. "You little bastard! I'll kill you!" he screamed as he charged headfirst towards Naruto in a fit of rage.
"Wait!" Naruto yelled as he pointed his finger at the charging nukenin.
The Kiri Chuunin stopped and blinked a couple times in confusion. Weren't they supposed to be in some kind of epic battle?
"Don't you want to know why I killed your partner?" Naruto asked.
The nukenin grounded his teeth together in anger. "Because you're an asshole?" he screamed.
Naruto closed his eyes and took a deep breath before opening them. "I did it…for the lulz," he answered simply.
The Kiri Chuunin once again blinked in confusion. "What?"
Naruto shrugged. "I figured out that trolling in real life is much more fun than on the Internet. Causing massive butthurt to n00bs like yourself gives me quiet the entertainment," he said with a smile.
Now everyone was completely confused.
"What the fuck are you talking about kid?" the nukenin screamed.
Naruto sighed. "Nevermind," he said, before all of a sudden appearing right in front of the guy and vertically slicing him clean in half with his katana.
Naruto lit up a cigarette as he stood over the remains of his latest kill. As a wisp of smoke escaped his lips, there was only one thing the samurai could say.
"Pwned your ass bitch."
End of Omake