Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto. Summary: Naruto and Orochimaru head back to the Leaf Village to find it has changed beyond their recognition. A/N: Sorry about the long absence. Problems arose and I had to deal with them. But now I am back! Here we go!
OoOoO
'Gah! Blasted Snake! Why can't you just make sense for once!' Naruto belted angrily at his inward companion.
"Its not my fault you are dense sometimes. This is a rather simple process. You just lack insight." The Snake responded with a slight venom in his voice.
'I am not dense! This is just hard to learn is all. Plus you aren't being any help at all!' Naruto fired back.
"If I could help you then it wouldn't be as rewarding would it? Plus what makes you think I would want to help you anyway?" the Large Snake asked while peering down at his host with a curious look and a lifted expression where his eyebrow would be.
Naruto wiped the mental sweat from his form and opened his mouth to speak but could not find anything to say to counter the elders claim. Instead he closed his mouth and focused once again. He put his hand in the ram seal and began to focus his chakra into his chest. Once he had gathered a decent amount he began to focus it into his stomach. He pushed his large mass of chakra into the deeper part of his stomach until it hit the acid. Once it hit the acid his chakra copied the properties of the fluid and Naruto willed it to come out his mouth. Naruto pulled his head back and spat forward with all his might only to have an ever so slight drop of acid leave his mouth and drop to the ground harmlessly. Naruto frowned and let out a frustrated sigh.
'I did it exactly like you said. I guess I can't use venom yet.'
"Hatchling, don't fret. Most members of the Snake Clan can't use venom until after the first hundred years."
'I don't have a hundred years to wait. I may need it soon. Speaking of time. Father should be back to have our spar. I'll talk to you later.' Naruto closed his mental eyes and shimmered out of his mindscape leaving the purple snake to be by himself.
"You are certainly an interesting hatchling." The Snake commented before lowering his head to rest his massive body.
OoOoO
Naruto opened his eyes to find himself back in the training center he and his father used so very often. Naruto was near a large body of water and Orochimaru was near the large vat of oil that could be set on fire in an instant.
"Enjoying your conversation with the Tenant?" Orochimaru asked with a smirk. Naruto frowned at his father's question. Ever since the Naruto and Mankuos started mentally training they had strained their relationship and it often made Naruto tired and sloppy by the Sannin's measures.
"As well as could be I guess." Naruto spoke and Orochimaru nodded.
"Naruto I need to tell you something. You remember how about a few months ago I was covered in bandages?" Naruto seemed to think about it and nodded to him.
"You see before I left the Village I discovered something. My body seemed to be decaying at a fast rate. Faster than normal. So when I left I began to search for a cure and to study what was going wrong with me. I did a lot of research and found a few others who had this throughout history. Turns out they all died from this sickness. This left me with no options at all for survival. I refused to let myself die without seeing you at all. So with that in mind I began to think of a new way to stay alive. I figured if the sickness only hurt my physical body then that must mean that if I transferred bodiesI would have no problems. So that's what I did. I created a jutsu that would allow me to transfer bodies to a new host. The process would be long and painful for the host body. It took time but I finally got it to work properly. I have transferred three times. With the last time being the one you saw a few months back. After I mastered this jutsu I made my goal Eternal life so I could be here for you when you need me. There is a drawback. The sickness is attached to my very soul and is slowly eating away at it. I do not have very long. Around twenty years left. I am sorry son." Orochimaru finished and looked down at the ground in a rare moment of sadness and pain. Naruto was on the verge of tears by the end of the story. Naruto sniffled hard and spoke with a shaking voice.
"Even if you transfer you will still die?" He asked though he knew the answer to his question already. Orochimaru looked up and nodded at his son.
"Promise you won't harm anyone by transferring again? I know you did it to be healthy and such for me but I am here now."
"Naruto my body will die out long before my soul does. In about three years I will need to transfer again or else I risk being crippled and stuck in a dead body."
"Couldn't you just put a seal on the body to make it last till you died or something of that manner?" Orochimaru looked at his son with a stunned and somewhat surprised look. Sure he had thought of doing that before but the way his son spoke with such hurt in his voice made him seriously consider the boy and his words. Naruto sounded like he truly was hurt of his measures to survive. Orochimaru decided at that moment to seriously look into making a survival seal to keep the body alive till it was his time to go. This caused the Snake Sannin to smile as it reminded him of his precious lost love.
"Very well son. I will work on it. Now how about a spar before we rest for tomorrow?" Naruto perked up instantly and nodded vigorously "Using everything you can to win. Ready?" Orochimaru asked as the two readied up "Begin!"
Naruto launched from his stance and ran to his father with his right hand cocked back. Naruto threw his right fist at his father and found it was instantly blocked by a forearm. Naruto instantly brought his knee up to hit Orochimaru's ribs but was easily blocked by his free hand. Orochimaru brought his own right hand back and threw it at Naruto's head on the side. Naruto quickly did a back flip to dodge the punch. While jumping backwards Naruto ran through some simple hand seals before he landed. Once landed Naruto held both palms up and from his sleeves a dozen snakes launched out at poised themselves at Orochimaru. The Snake Sannin jumped back and quickly and drew his sword. The snakes kept on their path and shot after Orochimaru with deadly speed. Orochimaru quickly and systematically cut them apart with speed and grace. Once the snakes puffed out of existence Orochimaru looked around for Naruto.
Naruto on the other hand had disappeared in the confusion and teleported to the roof quietly. He quickly analyzed the situation at hand like he was taught to do. He narrowed his eyes as he focused on his target. Time slowed down and the thoughts began.
'Let's see now. Target has superior skills in every aspect of the Ninja arts. He has superior height and weight. Now how to bring him down? He is very observant so he will be hard to trick. Genjutsu is not my strength so that is out. I have the edge in Ninjutsu due to my supply of chakra. He has the edge in Taijutsu and Kenjutsu. Now let's see. What do I have an edge in? Smaller, Harder to spot, Harder to follow…..Wait that's it! I can see body heat if I push chakra up to my eyes. If I set the oil on fire and let it burn for a while I could get it really hot. But ill need another distraction. Clones will have to do for that job. Then I'll use the water and put the fire out with a light sprinkle to create a lot of smoke. Ill have clone hold a wind jutsu to keep the smoke down low but without blowing it away. I'll drop down low and use speed and my heat vision to attack swiftly and from all angles without making noise. He will have a lower heat than the rest of the steam so that will make him easy to identify. Once he catches on and removes the steam I'll use the water in the air to create a giant water prison and trap him. That's it!' Naruto smirked at his plan and began it. Time slowly sped back up and Naruto launched his plan.
A large plume of smoke erupted from the roof and several Narutos dropped down to combat their father. While the clones do their work Naruto made another clone and left him up there as the real Naruto fell down. Once he fell Naruto casted an ever so small fire jutsu at the oil causing it to ignite in a hurry. Naruto smirked and turned around just in time to see his last clone puff out of life and to feel the rush of memories come back. Naruto ran through the hand seals again and sent another small army out towards his father. Orochimaru for his part kept cutting and slashing the clones with brutal efficiency Naruto quickly took his chance and shot a stream of water that broke into a type of sprinkler and the steam started to rise. Naruto looked up and signaled to his clone. The clone began to use the gentle wind jutsu and held to steam down. Once the area was covered Naruto activated his eyes and used them to see in the dense steam. He locked onto his father and sped off without a sound. With a kunai in his hand he made several cuts and slashes on his target before Orochimaru jumped out of the steam and stuck to the ceiling and killed the wind using Naruto. Orochimaru looked down at his son and smiled.
"Very good plan son with the water and fire. If I was sloppy or careless I would have been dead." Naruto smiled at him and relaxed from his stance.
"Will I ever be as good as you?" Naruto asked his father who looked down at him with a slight frown.
"No Naruto you will likely be much better than I am. You have the raw potential to surpass all the Sannin." Naruto seemed to brighten up at this with his purple hair flowing slightly behind him and his green eyes glowing with fury."Now let's get cleaned up. We have a long way to travel today and I want to get there on time. Ill meet you at the gate in one hour." And with this Orochimaru vanished from sight leaving Naruto by himself.
"Well Leaf village here I come!"
OoOoO
Roughly an hour had passed since the training session and Naruto had cleaned himself up and was beginning to ponder his Father's words. Did he truly believe he would be able to best all the Sannin one day? Would he be able to accomplish such a feat? That's when it dawned on him and he felt rather ashamed he never asked before. His Father did always say "Understand your enemy before besting them." Naruto moved with a little bit more purpose in his step as the question burned in his head: Just who were the Sannin to his Father? Naruto re-dressed himself and went off to the direction of the gate.
After a few quick rooftop hops and a rather unpleasant encounter with a bird who felt threatened he made it to the area he was supposed to meet his father. His flowing purple hair, now a mess thanks to the encounter, came back and settled behind him peacefully despite its messy look. Naruto frowned and was going to meet his father when an Anbu dropped down in front of him.
"Apologies honored son of the Otokage. As per orders I have to scan you to make sure you are indeed the son of the Otokage. Please stand still." Naruto complied with his instructions but could not hide his blush on his cheeks from embarrassment. He could never get used to people treating him like Kami-sama walking the Earth. The way people addressed him was a certain change. No longer was he trampled over and beat for no reason. Now people couldn't do enough for him. Time and Time again he told them they didn't need to do this but they genuinely wanted to be nice and help it. A refreshing change for sure. Naruto was brought out of his thoughts when he heard the Anbu signal him that he was clear. He walked forward and was met by his Father in his Kage robes with the matching hat with the Kanji for "Sound" written on it.
"Nice of you to join us. Are you ready to begin the trip?" Orochimaru asked his son with a mix of excitement and dread in his voice.
"Of course! Let's get going!" Naruto thrusted his hand in the air for added emphasis. Orochimaru chuckled at his son before dismissing the Anbu and heading into the forest. Orochimaru looked down as his son excitedly trotted ahead, dreading what was coming next.
'Let's see just how much things have changed.'
OoOoO
It had been several long hours since the duo had left their respective village and Naruto was getting antsy. He had been thinking of a way to bring up the subject without upsetting his Father to the point of not talking and creating and awkward silence. He quickly took in a breath and began to speak.
"Hey Father?" Orochimaru lofted an eyebrow at him. He had noticed the boy to be squirmy as of late and figured something was occupying his mind rather intensely.
"Yes?" This was it. Time to start learning more about his Father.
"What are the Sannin like?"
"What do you mean Naruto?" His father narrowed his eyes at him. Time to tread lightly.
"What were they like? Did you like them? What was your sensei like? How did you earn that title? I have heard the legend and the stories but I wanted to hear from you." He said the last part in a hushed whisper more than a statement.
Orochimaru for his part was deep in thought. Of course he knew the boy and his curious nature would cause him to seek answers about his past. This was a hard thing for him to talk about but luckily he had not asked about his mother quiet yet. His reputation as the Sannin was easier to talk about but still a hard topic.
"Very well. As you know we were part of the third Hokage's team before he was the Hokage. Sensei was a…. fair man if only a little short sighted. Not like his rival Danzo but that is beside the point." He took in a deep breath and noted Naruto was listening intently. "We were tested under the bell test."He paused upon seeing his sons confused look. "The bell test is used to demonstrate teamwork. The sensei ties two bells to his waist and tells the genin team to get them and the one that doesn't has to go back to the academy while the other two move on."
"So in their desperation they lose themselves to their pride and abandon teamwork?" Naruto asked quizzically.
"Exactly. The genin would need to work together to even have a small chance to collect the bells. Thus how the test is ran. If the team could work together then they would pass. If they couldn't then all of them would fail. Simple really when you think about it. Either way, We passed the test and went on as a team." Orochimaru had a distant look in his eye as he recalled memories together. Naruto felt bad for bringing up the subject as it seemed to be very sensitive to him. "At any rate, We began to do our missions and started gaining fame for it. We did countless missions for Konoha and gained enormous fame over the years. It wasn't until a trip to Ame that earned us the titles of Sannin."
OoOoO
(Flashback)
It was raining. No it was pouring down buckets of water but this was typical of Amegakure. Alas, Orochimaru didn't care. Sure it was getting him colder the longer they stayed in it. On the plus side it washed away all the sweat that was no doubt coming off his body at this point. Orochimaru spared a quick glance to his side and noted the sight. There stood his two teammates, Jiraiya and Tsunade, With Tsunade having her arm around Jiraiya's neck. Orochimaru looked back forward and tensed at the sight he saw. Standing on top of a Salamander was Hanzo, their target. He seemed worn down and weakened but still looked ready to fight. What happened next would be written as the birth of legends.
"Well I must say I am impressed by you three. You have certainly pushed me to a limit." Hanzo paused for a moment to let the sound of rain sink in along with his words. The aforementioned three said nothing but instead kept their gaze focused on the man before them with the intent to move if need be. Hanzo simply chuckled at them and waved his hand. "This fight has begun to bore me. You have no need to fear me any longer. Ninja like you do not come around often. I dare say you could even rival me if you had more time." Hanzo gave a slight curt nod to the group before finishing. "Good luck Sannin. You'll need it."
(End)
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"….And after that he left and we took our belongings and left as well. When we made the report the name kind of stuck and that finishes that." Naruto was looking at his dad in awe. For such a simple moment to lead to the title that so many respected or feared. "Of course we were just the Sannin back then. As we did more increasingly difficult missions and pulled them off. Each of us are famous for different things too. I am infamous for my ninjutsu and Snake summons. Tsunade is famous for her incredible strength and medical ninjutsu along with her drinking and gambling plus her Slug summon.. Jiraiya is famous for his toads and rather unpleasant spying on females." Orochimaru sighed at this last part and pinched the bridge of his nose.
"Well how were they as teammates?"
"In truth they weren't all that bad and we worked together nearly perfectly. Although as we got older our goals in life shifted. I fell down a dark path and Tsunade lost her love and little bother and Jiraiya just seemingly lost interest in the village and life in general. They were….decent people. The war changed them. It changed us all." He trailed off quietly and seemed to be saddened by the words which struck home for Naruto. For the Snake Sannin who had murdered countless people and done horrendous things in the name of science. For him to show remorse was almost unheard of.
"Thank you. I know it must be hard to talk about but thank you for sharing that with me. It means a lot." Naruto smiled at his father who in return smiled back. It was rare for the two to share tender moments with the training and all.
"Its good to share that sometimes. Helps remove some pain. Anyway, We are here." Naruto looked away from his father and his eyes lit up with joy.
They were back in Konoha.
OoOoO
The pair strode through the village. Each were hit with a nostalgia special to each of them. Naruto got the fond memories of his team and Ramen and the Hyuuga. Orochimaru was hit with war memories and his old team and his distaste for the wretched place. Naruto wore a big smile which may have looked bright and sunny if he looked like his old self. With his new look it made him look far too sinister for someone his age. Orochimaru was fixed into a more permanent scowl of disgust. Once they reached the quasi center of town Orochimaru stopped them.
"Naruto I have business to attend to here. Stay out of trouble and meet me back here in four hours okay?" Naruto nodded wildly and took off into the village. Orochimaru smiled at his son then turned his attention to the hokage tower and frowned before setting off after it at a leisure pace.
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Orochimaru entered the tower with no resistance as he was expected there. He found this slightly odd but walked up the tower anyway and was guided into the room where the others were meeting. Inside was the Head of Suna and the Head of Konoha along with Danzo of the leaf.
"Greetings Otokage, I hope your travels went well?" Hiruzen asked with a calm voice hinting at no emotion. In truth coming to the tower had brought up a list of emotions within Orochimaru that he long had forgotten about.
"They did but If it is all the same to you. Id very much like to discuss business and purpose for my being here." This earned him nods from all in attendance. "I am entering Oto in the Exams." This got an alarm from the Hokage as to why exactly he would want that.
"What gives Otogakure the right to enter the exams?" This was Danzo who spoke. Orochimaru had a general dislike of the man just from the way he carried himself. This statement only served to upset Orochimaru but he was ready for such a thing.
"We do not have the money for a buy in but we do have connections. My land controls a vast amount of all the Rice, Flour and Wheat that is sold to the major villages. If I were to simply stop selling what do you think would happen? How long would you last without food?" Orochimaru ended with a smirk and let the others think on this. Hiruzen seemed to come to peace with it rather fast considering his wisdom and experience. The Kazekage seemed annoyed by his attempt to bully his way into the honored exams but could not fight his logic. Suna relied heavily on the foods like that. Being in a desert didn't leave them many food options. Danzo was having a hard time denying the logic. Konoha could last for a bit. A few months or so due to its reserves in storage seals but after that they would be hard pressed to obtain food.
"His logic is sound." The Kazekage spoke in a flat tone but the others could hear the irritation in his voice.
"I agree with the Kazekage. Oto will be allowed perform in the exams that will be held here in Konoha." Hiruzen ended with a sage like nod. Orochimaru opened his mouth to protest but the old Hokage cut him off "Due to the other villages, which are not present, have already agreed to."Orochimaru closed his mouth and nodded stiffly. "Now lets discuss the stages of the Exams and what it will entail…" The other Kages were so focused on learning all they could about the exams that no one noticed Danzo suddenly vanished from sight and reappeared with a sick and twisted grin on his face when he looked down from his building to see a certain purple haired boy looking completely crushed and defeated.
OoOoO
It had been only a few minutes since Naruto went off in a very familiar direction from his childhood. His smile only seemed to grow with the more familiar the location seemed to get for him. Then an idea hit him. Why not try out his stealth and surprise his Hinata-chan by showing up? It was brilliant! Naruto grinned mischievously and ascended to the rooftops near the Hyuuga compound. He slowly crawled over to the end of the building and looked down at the vast and beautiful place where his friend resided. Naruto was about to hop on down and begin his stealthy intrusion when someone else approached the door to the place and was passed by the guards. This figure looked strangely familiar to him with long dark hair and a female form. The female paused for a moment before slowly knocking on the door. Within moments the door was answered.
"Hello miss. How may I help you today?" A branch member asked in a polite enough tone.
"I came to see Hinata please." The figure spoke in a saddened tone.
"I'm sorry miss. Hinata-sama does not wish to be disturbed from her training at the moment."
"Not even for her Sensei?"
"No miss not even for you. Though she does have a message for you in case you were to drop by. She says that while you may not agree with her choice of training to become Hokage she hopes that you will honor her dream to do so in order to honor Naruto like she wants to."
"I understand but Naruto isn't dead. He is alive and I know she knows that." Kurenai finished with a stern expression on her face. The branch member frowned slightly as Hinata made her way to the door and dismissed her.
"How can I help you sensei?" Hinata's tone no longer held the joy it once had. Instead it was the voice of someone focused on a goal that desperately needed to be achieved. She was focused and nothing was going to stop her. Her hair had grown a fair amount and she had gotten a fair amount taller as well. At least for Hinata. She still sported her normal orange hoodie with her navy blue pants. Just a larger version to match her increased size.
"Hinata wont you come join me for Cinnamon rolls?" This made Hinata frown. She had long since given up on the treat as she needed the time to focus and train. Hinata shook her head and was going to close the door when Hinata saw a sight she longed for.
"Well maybe she will go when I am there huh?" The two females in attendance turned around to see the owner of the masculine voice. Both had mixed expressions for very different reasons.
Kurenai looked upon Naruto with an excited feeling but also a slightly abrasive one. Here was her former student looking exactly like son of the Sannin that he was. The missing nin his father was and she couldn't help but to feel a bit of malice due to that.
Hinata was ecstatic. The boy that gave her so much confidence and love when she was young is back. Never mind how he looked. Sure it was slightly creepy and a little eerie but it sounded like Naruto so that is who it must be. She let out an "Eep" that made her seem like the little girl she once was.
Needless to say the trio picked back up as if nothing had ever happened.
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Sorry to cut it off here folks, I figured with my absence being so long I would atleast give you all something after so long. Next chapter will be the second part of this chapter and will finish out what the summary is about. Till next time!