AN: I'm so sorry guys…I was totally off schedule with this one, but it was for a good reason. For the past few weeks I had dance practice for an organization in my university from around 6 in the evening to 5 in the morning every day for a dance competition...which we did win so it was well worth it. Also, it was finals week and there were exams that I had to study for, and I felt HORRIBLE for not sticking to the schedule, so here we are. (Please don't murder me.) On a side note, I'll update The Eye of the Storm as soon as I can—and most likely a month from now. (REALLY SORRY for the wait guys.)
As I said before, I am going on a study abroad trip to Australia from May 15th to June 13th. So that's about a month. I won't always have internet connection and I cannot bring my laptop, but I have bought a specific notebook just for handwriting fanfics and I will bring all my notes for the next chapters, as well for The Eye of the Storm. That being said, when I return home I will quickly type them up and update. That's right. I will HANDWRITE my fanifcs for you guys.
This chapter is kind of a set up chapter for the next huge arc, and after that arc we will be on the final stretch. However, this chapter is very necessary and I have put in stuff here that hopefully you can be thinking about for the next month while I am gone!
Please read and review!
Chapter Seven:
Face Fall
"We are but a figment in the grand scheme of things, but one ripple from that figment can cause a slew of effects…and then we see who the master is."
"Do you honestly think Iwa is stupid enough to invade us now, especially with Minato here?" boomed the elderly Sandaime Hokage. "Both Iwa and Kumo have tried and failed to cripple Konoha. Minato is too strong for them and so is the village's loyalty to his leadership. If anything, they could try something in Suna during the Chuunin Exams, if our spy network is reliable. However, the best we can do is proceed with caution. Declining an offer to join in the Exams is the same thing as declining an alliance."
Voices echoed loudly throughout the chambers of the Leaf Village Council Room. The arguing had begun when information from Jiraya had come in stating that there might be a possibility of an attempted attack during the biannual Chuunin Exams. It seemed that Iwa had been planning it for years and hitting Suna was their best bet. It was unsure whether or not Kumo was involved, but someone who lived amongst the Rock Village reported it automatically. So far though, it was simply a heavy rumor.
"That is ludicrous!" bellowed the elderly Koharu. "You can't expect the village to just accept that offer and willingly put our genin in danger for a cause that we are not entirely sure about!" More angry tremors reverberated through the halls and people started to stand up. Chairs screeched back on the floor unpleasantly.
In the back center of the room, the Fourth Hokage rubbed his temples as he made a valiant attempt in calming himself down. The whole ordeal was creating a headache that throbbed like hot iron on the sides of his head.
"Our genin are always in danger during the Chuunin Exams, and no village is an exception to that fact," fought back Fugaku Uchiha with a burning glare. He and the old woman stared at each other in fury and multiple others joined in and backed either person up with ire.
The argument had been going on for a good two hours complete with men and women shooting retorts back and forth from one side to the other with no regards for anyone else but their own ideas and opinions. So far with one clan fighting with the other and with the Elders thinking that they obviously knew better than anyone else in the room, they were getting nowhere fast and no resolution had cropped up on the horizon. Everyone was simply incredibly annoyed.
Minato barely opened his mouth in all that time. He did not need to and frankly, he did not want to. He had enough experience with Konoha politics to know that saying something at that moment given his position would only serve to aggravate people more. It was a better strategy to wait for the opportune moment like a period of silence, when someone outright asked for what he thought, or when all the blabbering baboons decided to calm down for five seconds.
The moment finally came unexpectedly. The doors of the Council Chambers flung open with an abrupt bang. In stepped a cat masked ANBU member with dark brown hair that seemed to stick out from behind it. A yellow and green toad hopped in beside his sandaled feet, a hastily rolled-up paper scroll strapped to its back.
Minato raised a tired eyebrow. An ANBU always alerted his or her Hokage if they were going to interrupt a meeting or if they were going to appear without orders. The fact that this one said nothing at all meant that whatever they were about to report was heavily important. The toad by the man's feet only exemplified that fact.
The blond leader rose from his seat and the Council was uncharacteristically hushed. Beside him, the Third's arms tensed.
"Gamatabi," (1) intoned the Fourth and the toad seemed to nod and acknowledge its name as it hopped over to the man. As the amphibian came closer, Minato had a further sinking sensation within him. A toad meant Jiraya. A message from Jiraya accompanied with an ANBU meant bad news, very bad news.
The animal turned around, exposing its back, and Minato bent over to retrieve the scroll there. When he unraveled it and read the message, he knew that his instincts never failed him. But that did not mean that he had to like what they told him.
He really should have known. Not too long ago, Team Seven had been on a mission that indirectly pointed to something like this. They all internally saw it coming; this was just the hard, solid proof.
The kage lifted his head, a stern and serious flicker appeared in his azure eyes, and he looked at the crowd before him. No one dared to speak up. Even others that were just as powerful as Minato knew that whenever the Fourth gave that look, there was absolutely no room for arguing. This was a Hokage in action.
"We now have evidence that Orochimaru will mostly likely be involved in this possible attack," he thundered with authority. "This fact is now classified an S-rank secret and may not be shared with anyone outside this room unless they already know or if specifically advised. The only person I shall inform is our ally, the Kazekage." His eyes flashed darkly, "If any of this information is shared without my express consent, Orochimaru and his followers may find out we know and that will endanger everyone involved in any counterattack and I will consider you a traitor to the Leaf.
"Make no mistake. We now cannot afford to leave Suna alone with her own devices. Not only is the Sand our ally, but now one of our missing-nin is liable to attack them. It is our duty to obliterate the problem."
No one argued with his statements.
However, the bandaged old man, Danzo, made a move and suggested that if they were to enter the Exams anyway, that he offer up one of his special ninja. Minato narrowed his eyes, fully aware that ROOT still functioned even though the Third had officially disbanded the group years previously. Now, they were technically just more specialized ANBU agents, but the Fourth was no fool in more ways than one. He knew to keep an eye on the group, but he also knew that the village needed shinobi that would do the darkest deeds like they did.
"Fine," agreed Minato with a trace of hesitation. "One of the specialized ANBU will enter with a genin team from Konoha and help to infiltrate our enemy's plans." He swiftly turned to the ANBU that still stood at the door. "Cat," the leader commanded, "You will follow me to my office after this is done. I have an assignment for you."
And for the next few hours, the Council settled down on forming a plan for the Chuunin Exams that would occur in just over a month's time. A missive was secretly sent to the Kazekage on the Hokage's orders.
The fact that Iwa had also two jinchuuriki sat cripplingly in the back of everyone's minds like a weight.
ooo
When Naruto came home for a lunch break, he did not expect to run into his father in the kitchen. A pot of freshly made pork dumplings simmered on the stove and two bowls of jasmine rice sat on the round, wooden table in the dining room nearby. Curls of smoke floated above them and Naruto noticed that a dirty bowl was inside the sink. It seemed that his mother had already left for her mission.
But what was really odd was the fact that his dad was sitting at the table with his food at that hour of the day, especially since Naruto knew that he was been out doing work so early in the morning even before the boy had left for training exercises with his team.
The even stranger part was that his father did not bother to acknowledge his presence. It was totally out of character.
After gathering a few of the dumplings from the stove into his rice bowl, Naruto sat across from his dad, a fair eyebrow raised.
"Uh," spoke Naruto unsurely, "You okay, dad?"
The boy was met with utter silence and that only amplified his worry. Something must have happened, but being the Hokage's son made him privy to the fact that there were just some things that he could not ask about, no matter who he was.
Minato thoughtfully took a bite of his food after he used his chopsticks to dip a dumpling in a saucer full of soy sauce. The man still did not speak.
Naruto decided that it was best not to push him. He knew that his dad was not one to get angry per se, but he had a tendency to sink within himself whenever he had something on his mind. His mother often grew frustrated with this trait because it meant that the whole family did not know what was going on or how to help if ever there was a crisis until he actually spoke up.
But this was a different kind of silence from the other ones. It was penetrating one, like an imaginary lance trying to pierce through the air. The oppressive feeling made Naruto wonder just what kind of thing was on his dad's mind. Even as a quiet man, Minato was never quite quiet enough that he seemed like he was almost…reluctant to respond.
With that abrupt realization, the genin grimaced. He knew deep down that he was right.
Suddenly, he heard a plate screech across the table and Naruto glanced up from his rice bowl. His dad was looking him straight in the eye, an odd solemnity exuding through him.
"Kakashi has been telling me that your team's training has been going well," said the Hokage seriously. The tone made Naruto's skin tingle.
"Yeah." Naruto blinked. His gaze travelled to his untouched food and he avoided the blue irises that stared at him from the opposite end of the table.
"Your generation is talented. I know you will continue to work diligently."
The conversation ended there and the silence continued like it had never broken. It was uncomfortable to be that quiet, not at all like the comfortable silences that he and his dad would fall into if ever there was a time for them to not speak or if they ran out of words to exchange. For some reason, the boy felt a bit pressured to keep talking. He did not like how his dad was acting, and it even scared him a little. But he supposed that he should have seen it coming.
Not only were both of his parents worried sick about him after Team Seven returned from the botched C-rank mission in Rice Paddies, but the news that he was aware they brought back with them was disturbing. For the past week his father had been going to his office earlier and earlier in the mornings and coming back home sporadically. His mom fussed over his dad when he came back with bags under his eyes and stress was clearly written all over his face.
But it was today of all days that Minato seemed different. Not to mention that his mom was out at least for a while.
However, it was the mission that started it all, and Naruto was no exception from its effects. He bit his bottom lip and reluctantly went on to ask his father about what he had been thinking about the past few days. "So, I was wondering. That information we told you…about Orochi—"
Thunk.
Naruto's eyes widened when he was interrupted mid-sentence by his father's fist pounding loudly on the wooden surface. He watched as the hand used was tightly curled into a fist. It clenched tightly and the tendons on the back were tensed. Then, almost as if something snapped in the atmosphere, the hand abruptly relaxed and Minato's fingers uncurled until they lay flat on the table.
Naruto carefully let out a breath he did not know he was holding.
"You already did a few D-ranks today," Minato stated calmly. "Based on Kakashi's methods, that means that you're on a break until it is time for individual sparring or practice."
The young Namikzae gulped quietly and thought about the confusing behavior for a fleeting moment before simply shaking his head in order to clear his contemplations. "R—right. But I was asking about…"
"…and I'm pretty sure that your teacher will step it up considering that the three of you have been genin for a while now," continued the older man.
"But—"
"Listen, Naruto," and this time the son's head snapped up. The tenor in his father's voice had changed so quickly that it was difficult not to notice. It was deep and placid, but commanding. Whenever he heard this tone it was from a kage. "Whatever Kakashi says and suggests…I think you should listen to him. You should listen to your commanding officer no matter what."
Just the way the statement was spoken was the clue. This was not a proposal; it was an order. And to that, Naruto only nodded with a hint of confusion.
After a minute in extended silence, Minato informed his son that he had to get going and he wished him good luck in his trailing endeavors, but a strained underlying tone remained. It was almost like the strange situation had never occurred, but they both knew. However, Naruto was still in the dark as to what had instigated the ordeal in the first place.
But afterwards, the boy decided not to think too much on it. He took his time in eating the rest of his food, well aware that their sensei would be at least an hour late for their designated meeting time. An hour was even pushing it. Normally it was two or more, but considering that the day was already getting late, he considered that logically Kakashi-nii would want to work in the daylight hours mainly.
He stood up and went to the sink to wash his utensils before placing them carefully on the drying rack. Sighing, he replaced the sandals on his feet and took off to the training grounds.
He arrived in less than five minutes in a flurry of dust and leaves. As expected, only two of his teammates were actually there and Naruto, Sasuke, and Saukra all sighed in unison at the revelation. Instead of sparring like usual, the trio decided that they would patiently wait for their instructor to come to them and they plopped down near the trunk of a tree in a heap of frustrated limbs.
"Stupid sensei," growled the girl in the group and the boys nodded in agreement.
Surprisingly, Kakashi only came about half an hour after they had, but Sakura and Naruto bellowed at him anyway in their customary greeting.
"Now, now," the jounin leader said placatingly as he gestured with his hands in a calming matter. "I know we already did missions for today, so we're going to do an exercise that isn't too labor intensive."
Considering what his nii-san considered "labor intensive" was more of a work out than he liked to admit, a less intense exercise seemed to emit the possibility of being a normal exercise. As a result, Naruto snorted and crossed his arms.
"Right," mumbled Sasuke, "what are we gonna do? Throw a thousand shuriken each at about a million moving targets before we die?" Sakura giggled at the comment.
The team shifted a little and then they heard the movement of fabric and metal against skin. The three genin looked up to see that their sensei had revealed his scarred left eye and that his other eye was curved into a smile. If that said anything about their current situation, it clearly meant that this was not leading to a pleasant experience.
The teacher ignored the quiet complaints of his students and placed a hand on his hip. "We're going to perform a genjutsu exercise today."
Naruto saw his best friend blink. "I have the Sharingan," stated Sasuke matter-of-factly.
Kakashi nodded. "Yes," he replied, "and so do I," and then he pointed to his eyelid. "But for this purpose, I want you to pretend that you don't have it. Don not use your Sharingan. If there is anything I have learned from this implanted eye, it is that it has its limitations. If you use it too much, it causes a strain on your chakra, and I have heard that it is possible that it could put a strain on your eyesight as well."
The Uchiha looked, wide-eyed, toward his teacher and exchanged glances with Naruto who continued to pout.
"There may come a time when you are in that kind of bind and you can't use your bloodline limit," continued the Hatake, "and there may come a time when each of you are trapped in a genjutsu with little to no help."
"So what's the training, sensei?" inquired Sakura with raised eyebrows.
The jounin took a careful look at his pupils, his singular black eye shining in what appeared to be determination. But Naruto noticed that he had lingered a second longer on him than on the others and another strange emotion akin to worry flickered across his features and the blond scrunched his eyebrows together. But he did not know if that was just a fleeting observation or not.
What could Kakashi possibly be worried about?
He did not have time to question it.
"I'll put each of you under a C-rank genjutsu called the Warp," informed the teacher. "All of you will go under at the same time and I will time you to see how long it takes for you to break out of it. If you are in it for more than five minutes, I will break you out myself." He gazed at them again. "Are you ready?"
The three agreed that they were.
"Alright," the man added seriously. "One last piece of advice: remember that genjutsu is only a disruption of your chakra."
Team Seven minus their jounin leader spread out from each other a bit more and stood in a bent line in the sight of Kakashi. The grass rustled ominously in the afternoon winds and their sandals brushed the earth as they each lowered themselves into ready stances. They only looked at their prospective attacker with trepidation.
Naruto felt himself tense. He did not bother to glance at the other two. This was no teamwork exercise; it was individualized and he knew that all of them were very aware of that fact. Nervousness swam into his veins as he realized the situation. He had never really been in a genjutsu before…well, probably not as advanced at the one he was about to be put under. A small part of him vaguely remembered the strange illusion the Iwa ninjas tried to place him under long ago and he shuddered. He was past that now…
"Begin," rang Kakashi's monotone voice and it echoed and echoed as if the three of them were in a long, rocky cave on the coast of an ocean. He barely registered his teacher weaving his hands into signs.
The Namikaze knew he was in an illusion the moment the technique was put into effect. The strange thing was, it was like that thought was in the back of his mind but the rest of him was completely unaware of it. He could not control his body and as a result it followed its own predetermined motions like something programmed him to do so.
But of course; he was programmed to move like that. The boy was ensnared in a deception that was not of his own making.
The green scenery faded away and dissolved into nothingness. Rocks started to build themselves around him and fire sparked into existence. The sky overhead colored itself a darker shade of navy blue and he suddenly realized that he was in the middle of some sort of crater. Clouds streamed above him like gray ribbons.
And across from him, just meters away, was Sasuke. He looked older and taller with a strange white outfit that was tied around with a bulky purple rope. His eyes were furious and lightning cracked in his fist as he scowled over at Naruto.
But that was not the oddest part: Naruto actually thought that the scene was familiar.
The blond shook his head and clutched his forehead as he told himself again and again that it was a fake, an illusion created by someone else. He started to back away, but the lighting came closer and closer until Sasuke broke out into a full-out sprint.
Naruto's eyes widened into saucers. "Wait! Sasuke! Ah!" He fell backward and collapsed on his haunches, trying to roll over and avoid the lightning blade. A gigantic flash of light engulfed his vision as a sheet of bright white and then he was still rolling over, barely avoiding flying stacks of jagged pieces of wood that seemed to come out of nowhere.
A gurgle soundedand before him was the dead body of an older version of Neji Hyuuga and for some reason tears prickled at the corners of his eyes even as he watched an older Hinata sob over the corpse.
As soon as Naruto composed himself enough to try and figure out why this genjutsu was affecting him so much and that he really needed to get the hell out of there, a foot came and struck him in the stomach. He grunted and grasped at his tender midsection before wincing and moving his gaze towards the sky.
Glaring down at him was a single red eye. It glowed, crimson as the spilt blood of his comrade on the battlefield behind a bright orange mask. A man stood there, hovering over him in a black cloak with red clouds stitched onto it as the pattern, but all Naruto could focus on was the mask with its swirl and its increasing familiarity.
Was it the standout hue of it? Was it that the lifeblood of a fellow Leaf Village member had somehow soaked through his clothes and was now painted on his fingertips?
All that Naruto knew was that it was at that moment that he had completely forgotten he was alone and imprisoned in a genjutsu.
"What will you do, Uzumaki Naruto?" growled the mysterious figure as the world became darker and trembled around them. "It's your fault that your friends are now dying for your sake. How many more souls do you wish on your conscience?"
"No! None!" he shouted and he quickly got up in a panic to turn away and run.
The genin huffed and gasped, feet crunching through the grounds and then he was sinking and sinking in the cracked earth. It transformed into liquid and his legs were slowing down and he was pumping his body to move along with the flow of it. The current was thick; he was stuck in there like dirt on gum. He waved his arms around, flailing and moving and struggling until he was so deep within the earth that he was practically drowning in it, and then he disappeared all the way in.
Naruto took a deep breath and the weird substance pressed against his skin. He shut his eyes tightly and for a long while everything was dark and black, nothing to be seen.
When he no longer felt he liquid earth, Naruto opened his eyes. The surroundings were still very dark and dimly lit, but the air felt damper than it did before.
Suddenly, he fell into something with a splash. When he had the time to observe it, he saw that the thing he fell into was shining and golden water. Numerous ripples circled outward from his form and he breathed a short sigh of relief because he had finally left the terror that was the place from before. He would rather be soaked to the bone in metallic water than in metallic tasting blood.
For a moment he just laid there as he stared at his reflection. Then, a shimmer of something red appeared on the surface where his face should have been looking back at him.
He recognized that red easily.
"Neither of us have any sort of luck, do we?" the voice of his mother remarked thoughtfully, but he was not quite sure who she was talking to, "You keep the world at bay…but I keep you at bay." And then a familiar rumbling and snarling resounded around him and he thought he also heard the swishing of tails, but then another sound interrupted his musings.
A sandaled foot splashed onto the surface of the water, completely obscuring the mirrored image of his mother's face and there standing on it was someone else.
Naruto wriggled to stand up by himself, but instead a calloused hand appeared in his line of sight and offered to help him up. Attached to that arm was Naruto's dad who was in his Hokage coat and appeared a bit younger than he remembered. The bit of wrinkles under the man's eyes were nonexistent, but there was a sort of sadness that emanated from him that there never was before. It was not the guilt he was used to, but rather much more than that.
Regret…?
"I know your name because I named you," the Yondaime explained without any previous context. "You are my son."
Naruto was definitely more confused than he was before. "I know that already, dad."
But the man seemed to be unable to hear him, so he went on as if nothing was said. "When I sealed half of the demon's chakra into you, I also sealed part of my psyche into the sealing spell as a failsafe if you ever reached the eighth tail." Then, his azure eyes flashed to somewhere behind them. "I never wanted to see you again…Kyuubi."
Then, like all the times when Minato would teach Naruto something or if Naruto needed help, his eyes softened considerably and father and son were looking at each other. "But I guess we can call it even. I get to see my son as a grown man."
The genin gasped in shock and saw that his own reflection was indeed of an older version of himself, one he did not recognize. And then the surface rippled again and before him was his Jiraya-jii with his arms crossed and his trademark smirk.
"We really gotta work on your genjutsu breaking skills," the white-haired man spouted confidentially, "To put it simply, you pretty much suck at it. How are you going to fight against that Uchiha kid if you can't leave a genjutsu on your own?"
Genjutsu.
Genjutsu.
What? Why did that sound so familiar?
"C'mon," the older shinobi said. "One of my toads will put you under one and you have to break out of it."
Break out.
A flash and it was a different person before him and he was in the training fields in an even more obnoxiously bright orange jacket than he was originally wearing. This one had accents of bright, bright blues on it instead of his customary blacks, grays, and oranges. A silver-haired Kakashi puffed in front of him and chimed, "Shinobi tactics lesson number three: genjutsu…!" And then he was making hand signs and then…
"Oh!" yelled Naruto shakily and he remembered what was actually happening. He pushed all the chakra he could into his exhausted limbs and yelled, "RELEASE!"
The illusion melted before him.
Naruto gasped and fell like a puppet with its strings cut. He was on his knees before he knew it and when he glimpsed at his surroundings, he noted that he was the last one to exit the genjutsu. Closing his eyes and quaking, he placed his head into his arms and shut his eyes tight. Sweat trickled down his forehead in rivulets and he used his hands to grasp at his hair as he curled a bit into himself. His head was pounding violently.
"Three minutes and forty-eight seconds," he heard their teacher say, "You were starting to push it there, Naruto. Both Sakura and Sasuke broke out before or right after the two minute mark."
Unfortunately for the jounin, Naruto was nowhere near to actually paying attention to what was being said. Instead, he decided to speak out with an unrelated question. "That genjutsu…w—what was it? What did it do?" he asked with his lips barely parted as he tried to compose himself.
"You okay?" the boy heard as he was patted on the back and Sasuke helped his friend stand up.
Instead of answering, the blond stared at Kakashi who was now lowering his headband and retying the cloth to cover his bad eye. After a moment, he was finally met with the answer he was craving for.
"Warp is short for Warp Memory," replied Kakashi lazily. "It's only a C-rank and it isn't as powerful as the Uchiha genjutsu, but it is a tricky one which is why I picked it." He scratched the back of his hair and tilted his head to the side a little. "Essentially it doesn't really rely on the creativity of the caster as much as it does on the actual memories of the victim…"
Naruto leaned on Sasuke a bit before straightening himself and brushing his clothes off, hands still slightly pallid in color. "And that stuff means…?"
The jounin let out a breath. "Meaning that it takes some of your memories and 'warps' them into something strange, hitting anyone personally in whatever way possible," continued he. "The reason why the technique is not a higher ranking is because generally its illusions take a lot less control and once detected, are very easily broken out of. Usually it only takes one try to destroy it."
The pieces of information that he was just told came crashing down on him like multiple flaming meteors all at once. It was mostly because none of it made any sense, but at the same time it made all the sense in the world.
But what scared him was the act that the genjutsu was based on his memories. If his memories were those, what did that mean? But if those were his memories, then the Kyuubi's constant cryptic messages and his strange dreams made sense.
Naruto let out a fake smile that both Sasuke and Kakashi detected and said that he was fine, but both males knew better than to dispute that kind of lie.
Instead, Kakashi sighed. "Well I think that's enough training for today." Then the man whipped out a scroll and opened it to read from it, much to the surprise of his team. "Now onto the last business for today…I have nominated Team Seven for the Chuunin Exams that will be held in the Sand Village in about two months."
ooo
After the shocking news from their sensei, the team had gone their separate ways.
Sakura had simply looked at both her fellow genin and nervously accepted the application for her possible joining. Saskue and Naruto were excited and more than willing to participate, as always, and Kakashi seemed openly glad to hear it. ("Great! I've got to tell Asuma that he lost the bet!") They were to turn in the applications the day of intended departure, so they had plenty of time to think about it.
Well, that was over a month ago now. There were now a handful of weeks until decision time.
And in that month, things did not go as originally thought. As soon as Naruto heard the news that his team was nominated for the Chuunin Exams, he sprinted home with a grin on his face, eager to let his father know when they both returned. He could let his mother know when she came back from her mission. The excitement was real and true and he felt the blood pumping in his veins. All thoughts of his strange genjutsu training left him for that moment.
But, hours into being home alone and his mom already coming back, he had wondered where his dad was. Surely he could have heard by then.
When Naruto asked around midnight, a masked ANBU agent had appeared before him and simply stated, "The Hokage is busy."
And that statement had defined their relationship for the month and then some.
Every time he went to his father's office to offer him lunch like he normally had, he was met with the same response over and over again. The office was either empty or too occupied for Naruto to think about entering. He barely saw his dad in the house. He did not even get to eat dinners with him anymore. It was like the man did not exist in his life.
When he spoke of his concerns to his mom, Kushina only sighed sadly and ruffled his hair, oddly not saying anything.
So he did not know what the problem was, not for that entire time, and frankly he was growing more and more frustrated.
It was like they were getting detached from each other. Naruto only ever saw Minato when it was official Hokage business. He was met with a distant voice and a distant presence, not at all his own father. They were acting like strangers, not family.
And it hurt.
Kakashi and his team went for a short C-rank to deliver a package in the next village over and when they returned for the debriefing, it was all business as usual.
"Team Seven reporting from a successful C-rank mission, sir," drawled Kakashi and the team members hung out in the background, listening as intently as they could without falling asleep. And throughout the one-sided conversation, Naruto stared at his father who seemed to be totally unaware that his son was in the room, but he knew otherwise.
There was no sideways glance or a smile to let him know of a job well done. Just that cold, blank, distance that Naruto despised.
After the report, Naruto said, "Mom isn't cooking today. She said I can go to the Uchiha's to eat dinner. I'll see you at home, da—"
But then, stern blue eyes met his. A sunken feeling enveloped his chest and Naruto lowered his gaze.
"…Hokage-sama," Naruto whispered instead with great hesitancy, and he stormed out the door, questioning looks from his team members boring into his back.
He walked out of the Tower, partially in a daze and partially with ever growing anger. He had never felt that frustrated before. He had not felt so cast aside. The distancing, the chill between him and his father, it was all building up to a powerful strain between them. And Naruto did not understand at all. His dad never used to be that way. It was like Minato was deciding after years of being his dad, that he would be just be his Hokage now.
Like they were never meant to know each other in the first place.
"Ugh!" Naruto murmured as he clutched at his head. He did not notice that his three remaining teammates were following him worriedly until he was moments away from the Uchiha District.
He swiftly whipped around, fire in his eyes. "What?!"
Sasuke, Sakura, and Kakashi stared, not saying anything.
The wind was harsh in the damp, heated air, like it was pushing vigorously on all of those that inhabited the Leaf Village. It pressed and pressed on them like a pressure unseen, wild and untamed. It was much like the mood Naruto was feeling that time: confused and boiling to the brim with so much irritation than it might as well have been palpable.
The two guards in front of the Uchiha District were staring at him too, he could feel it.
But amidst the tension, it was Sakura would spoke out first. "You've been acting angry lately and we're worried about you and…"
"You're never like this, idiot," finished Sasuke.
"You don't know anything!" shouted the Namikaze. He crossed his arms and tried to hide his emotions. It was not working. "Forget it."
Saskue and Sakura glanced at each other and the Uchiha reluctantly invited her inside to eat as well. He decided that she was there anyway, so it did not matter. They left him alone and walked to the home together until their third teammate would join them.
Naruto was about to turn and leave as well until he felt a hand grip at his turning shoulder. When he looked up, he easily recognized the black eye of his teacher.
"Naruto," Kakashi remarked, "The others might not know it, but I know what's bothering you," at the crinkle in the boy's eyebrows, he knew he had hit a soft spot. "Whatever you're thinking, it is not your fault. Trust me. I know what it's like to have a father with a somewhat dual personality, hm?"
The blond glanced at the Hatake in surprise. He had forgotten that the man had a famous parent, Konoha's White Fang.
Kakashi's good eye curved into a smile. "I guess you could say that the real problem here isn't why this is happening, but more of how it's being handled, right?" he went on. "I'm your sensei. You can learn a few things from a guy like me."
And then he vanished into thin air and a swirl of leaves.
Naruto knew what the man really meant behind his words. He had spent enough time with his family-like-figure to understand the underlying meaning. You can talk to me, he said. I can help you fix it.
He wanted to be grateful, he really did, but a part of him did not know what to feel exactly.
So instead he attempted to bury his feelings in the deep recesses of his heart and he walked past the guard with a nod and followed his friends to the Uchiha Head's family home after he shoved his hands into his pockets.
When he arrived at the dining table, it was like he entered a place he was not supposed to be. It felt like as soon as he entered, all conversations shifted someplace else than what they originally were. He was given a nervous smile from Sakura, but no one else seemed to notice and no one else seemed to make any other indications that there were other conversations going around before Naruto had come in.
Surprisingly, even Itachi was at the table, contentedly sitting cross-legged and awaiting for food to be served.
But when Naruto sat down next to Sasuke at their low table on top of a cushion on the floor, he eyed his rice bowl warily. For some reason, Naruto just did not feel all that hungry. He barely heard the conversations circulating around him, nor did he notice that he was eating his food at all. For the most part, he did not speak, but every time he did he was grinning and laughing joyously.
It was all a part of hiding his emotions though.
And maybe when he looked back on it, he would realize that almost everyone recognized the tactic like it was the backs of their own hands.
When Sakura had to excuse herself because of the time and her mother's strict schedule, she was escorted politely outside and soon that left just Itachi, Sasuke, and Naruto. It was suggested that the brothers should take Naruto home as well. None of them complained because it only meant that there was more time to talk.
However, as Mikoto and Fugaku Uchiha left the table, Itachi seemed to have other ideas.
Naruto and Sasuke got up to leave, but Itachi shoot his head and put a finger up to his lips and motioned for them to follow. Confused, they followed him to a back room in a part of the Uchiha Mansion that Naruto had astoundingly never ventured to beforehand.
The teen slid the door shut quietly and their bare feet pattered on the tatami mats in the dark room. It was empty save for a single low table that was pushed up against a wall and there was one circular window that gave the place its only light. Since the sun was setting, the rays that streamed through it were at a minimum, hitting the mats in tiny dying rivulets.
Sasuke gave his older brother a look. "You're being really secretive. What's going on?"
Itachi ignored his younger sibling's comment and instead turned to Naruto. "Everyone is worried about you, Naruto," at the silent warning nudge from Sasuke's elbow, he seemed to disagree. "Even though they're trying to hide it from you, I think you should know."
The feelings of confusion and anger rushed back into Naruto. The blond huffed. "I don't know what you're talking about," he stated irritably. "If that's it, I'm going home."
"I told you that you shouldn't have said anything," whispered Sasuke harshly to Itachi.
Naruto looked between them and signed. He had enough of that. He needed to leave, then.
"The Fox," the elder Uchiha brother explained quickly. The teen received the reaction he was searching for. Naruto stopped dead in his tracks. "That's the reason the Hokage seems to be distancing himself from you."
There was no response after that.
"It's more complicated than you think," offered Itachi. "If you need any proof, I know exactly how to get it. It helps that my little brother knows your secret as well."
Naruto did not know how he got into that next situation, precisely. It just kind of happened. He found himself sitting on the dark blue tile roof of the Uchiha Head's home over the rafters of some meeting room. Itachi touched each Sasuke and Naruto with a technique and somehow their chakra reserves were hidden from sight. They inched to the floor and sat next to a partially open set of windows and crouched underneath them.
Behind the windows they could hear faint talking and Naruto recognized the voices as the parents of Sasuke and Itachi.
"This is ridiculous, Fugaku," he heard the soft voice of Mikoto reply to something that was said previously. "How are we supposed to agree to this?"
"We already have," said a deeper tenor.
There was some shuffling and fabric rustling. "Itachi knows, of course, and Sasuke may be distantly aware of it, but this is dangerous!"
"Itachi can take care of himself, you know that, and so can Sasuke. If anything, he has his brother there with him and not to mention his sensei and the Hokage himself. I'm not worried about it."
He heard sighing from the woman and he strained his ears to hear her better when her voice started to sound a bit more muffled. He imagined that she was cupping her hands to her face as if in distress. "It's not our boys taking care of themselves that I'm worried about. They're shinobi and our family is used to these kinds of situations." A pause. "I'm more worried about the reason Team Seven was nominated for the Chuunin Exams."
At this, both Sasuke and Naruto glanced at each other in awe and both soundlessly leaned in closer to hear.
"They would have been nominated regardless, Mikoto," responded Fukagu. "They have been ready."
"I know that," said the mother. "But it's like they don't have a choice. Minato knows that the team will accept. The boys are too eager and Sakura will be pulled in whether she likes it or not. Kakashi will find a way to convince them if they say otherwise…it's just…" He heard another heavy sigh. "It's like he's using them without telling them and the only ones who know are the adults.
"This isn't like the Hokage at all."
Naruto imagined Fugaku's face as he looked at his wife. Probably stern, possibly concerned. He could not tell.
"It is like the Hokage to do this," refuted the man, "but no…it is not like Minato."
More movement indicated that Mikoto was re-crossing her legs as if fidgeting. "Kushina has been telling me that Naruto is frustrated about his father, that it seems like Minato is distancing himself. She knows why, of course, but she really can't do anything about it. She can't say anything to her son because if the genin on the team knew why they have to go to the Exams, there is a good chance that Sakura might outright refuse and that the Council has stupidly rejected telling them, but he usually goes against their wishes anyway…
"I don't know, Fugaku. With all of this out of context, and the possible invasion during the Exams coming up, how could the Hokage not tell Naruto that he needs him to go there as the jinchuuriki of the Leaf, to use the power of the bijuu? And Sasuke…I know his Sharingan can be strong enough to control…the demon if something goes out of hand."
Naruto felt something inside him sink so low in his throat that it felt like a boulder was choking him from the inside out.
"From what Kushina says, Minato does not want to get too close to Naruto right now if he needs to see him as a weapon just in case the time comes."
"Knowing him, it could be a way of punishing himself for it," they heard the father say out loud and with another sigh. "He has done that before."
ooo
What he could remember of his dream was that he was all alone in that dusty, downtrodden apartment of his, gazing at a plastic bowl of supposedly fantastic instant ramen. (Limited edition, if he had to say so himself.) The container was red and bright, filled with delicious steaming noodles.
He had played cards with himself—his shadow clones—in an attempt for some normalcy and to lessen the overbearing feeling of loneliness that permeated the walls.
And then some strange person clad in obnoxious green spandex came knocking on his window to call him over with the others to go and hang out at the bath house. Not that he minded. He remembered that his dream self eagerly awaited that moment because he had felt so lonely.
Then he had accepted, things happened, shenanigans occurred. Maybe he was caught peeking or something, he could not quite recall.
But what he did remember the best was that at the end of his vivid he was alone again in the apartment. Alone and sitting there at his table, slurping on yet another bowl of instant ramen noodles after everyone had already left to go home while he sat there, gorging himself because really there was nothing else he could do in the dead of night. Nothing except look around and sit and wander the streets.
Maybe his dream self did other things like flick open a canister of spray paint and vandalize some poor bloke's storefront.
A dream had never felt so lonely and boring before. You would think that his mind would be more creative with things. Maybe pictures could have come to life and started to chase him around while they played some glorified game of tag. Maybe he convinced his dad to make a new law stating that every Tuesday was Ramen Day and that the tasty noodles should be celebrated and served in special flavors that one day a week. He could have lived with that.
Instead, as Naruto walked to Kakashi-sensei's apartment complex he thought about how dull it all was to dream like that. How drab and dark. He did not even wake up from it with a start, as he would have rather endured. He woke up calmly as if nothing was wrong, slightly dazed and groggy from sleep, but normally nonetheless.
And the blond finally reached the door to his teacher's place, a sigh resting on his lips that morning. It was a Sunday so the team was off, naturally. The one day that they ever could be off was on a Sunday.
There was only a week left till the final words on the Chuunin Exams, but so far almost every day Naruto would go to Kakashi's place secretly before or after practice on when they were off. The other two members did not know about it, not even Sasuke. For some reason, it felt really personal. He had not told his mom either…or his dad.
Not that he would care anyway, thought Naruto with a frustrated clench of his fists.
There was not anything routine about Naruto coming over to Kakashi's, but for some reason every time he knocked the silver-haired jounin was always there. It was like he had a sixth sense or something; it was like he knew exactly when to be home.
The genin raised his fist to tap on the door, but it swung open just as he was about to make a sound.
"I'd know your footsteps anywhere," a fully awake Kakashi Hatake said as the entrance was propped open. However, the man did not say anything about anticipating his student's arrival. "I made some tea. I'll pour you a cup."
Naruto followed the man in after slipping off his sandals. The sun was peeking through the closed blinds, but only just. The time of day was early still and the sun had just risen. He wondered just how early Kakashi actually got up every morning for a moment, but then he realized that he had been getting up before the sun for a while now.
"What's on your mind, dear pupil of mine?" questioned Kakashi in a sing-song voice as he placed the steaming mug of tea on the table in front of where Naruto slid a chair backward to sit on.
The boy snorted at his usual antics. "The usual."
"Ah," came the calming reply.
For days Naruto came to Kakashi's home and they had the same routine almost every time. They would sit down at the table and eat something or drink something for a few hours, just talking about this and that, but mostly a very particular topic.
For some reason, Naruto felt like he could really trust Kakashi to confide in. It was like the man really understood where he was coming from. He did not want to worry Sasuke or Itachi after what they had been eavesdropping on really hit them. He did not want to bring Sakura into it and risk her fussing over him like a mother hen. His own mother couldn't help, not because she did not want to, but because she did not know how to deal with Minato's self-deprecating personality at the moment. Jiraya was out of the picture until he came back from spying around the world again to report his findings. Shikamaru and Chouji would not understand…
So Kakashi was who he had left.
That day outside of the Uchiha District, Naruto did not think that he was actually accept the hand the man was willing to offer. But for some reason or another, it was like his legs automatically brought him there.
And for once in a while, he could feel a bit more lighthearted.
"I've been talking to the Hokage," Kakashi informed with a drawl. "Been trying to ask him why I haven't seen him on the training fields with you lately." He groaned, "I got the usual answer."
Naruto nodded. It was not anything new. "The Chuunin Exams," the genin stated seriously, "You know I know about them." He had told his mentor about what he had overheard a few days previously. At first he was met with a cold silence and a quietly simmering ire that Itachi had gone so directly against orders, but after a talk with the teen, Kakashi had come around and saw reason.
Itachi wanted Naruto to know, even if Sasuke did not. He thought it was for the best because of what was going on, and it was not just strategically wise, but more so. Naruto and Sasuke could not tell anyone besides their sensei that they knew, of course. They found out later that the team not knowing had more to do with the possibility of enemies snaking it out of them later on rather than just a simple order, but still…Naruto had to know.
Itachi sympathized the kid because for a short while he had gone through the same treatment from his own family. That is, until all the rumors that the Uchiha were involved with the Kyuubi Attack were successfully dissipated. It was like a burden had been lifted because he had less expectations riding on him.
Though Naruto also got the feeling that it was also because the teen had been on a temporary team with Asuma Sarutobi in the past and they had establish some sort of understanding friendship. And Naruto knew that Asuma and his father, the Third Hokage, had similar problems that did not end up well at all. To this day the Third and his remaining son were not on great terms with each other.
Perhaps it was that kind of fear the Naruto held. He did not want to end up like that…practically estranged because he could not bring himself to speak to his own flesh and blood. Though with the way things were going, it seemed like it might happen.
Damn he hated it.
"I'm just a weapon for the village."
"Stop saying that," replied Kakashi swiftly and fiercely. "I thought we taught you better than that."
It was strange. Whatever he started developing towards his father in terms of feeling was not just distance, it was some kind of irrational anger, but it was also sadness. (2) He so desperately wanted the father he had before back, the dad he could come home to that would give him advice on anything, train with him, and tease him. But then the anger would come in and he did not want to see his dad. He just wanted to see him as the Hokage because at least nothing would be so complicated.
In fact, part of him hated his dad for being so dumb. He understood inherently why things were going on as they were, but he did not want to accept them.
So the resentment and frustration built up so much that he could not talk to the Hokage without sounding the least bit mad. And the anger grew to the point where he was not just angry with the Hokage, but with himself and how nothing was getting resolved either.
"It's so stupid," the blond fumed. "How is this better for me?"
There was a pause in the conversation. Then, Kakashi clicked his mug to the tabletop. "Did I ever tell you why my father distanced himself?"
He received a negative reply.
"It was because he started to become a famous shinobi. More and more people wanted him dead, so he thought that the best way to put me out of it was to pretend that I was practically not there," the jounin supplied as an answer. "It wasn't fair to either of us, and it was utterly stupid…and I felt the same as you…mad at him, mad at me, mad at what was happening. Until…well…"
Naruto raised his blue eyes. "Until what?"
"…until he was finally gone."
Naruto sucked in a breath and took a gulp out of his tea with a frown.
Kakashi breathed in and out as he looked at the student across from him. "In the end I only grew more angry and bitter. My anger at my father from before became hatred. I hated him and his actions. I hated that he had to kill himself because he was so depressed. I hated that he left me behind. But you know what?" And this time he really made sure to get the point across. "My weapon of choice was a family heirloom…my father's own weapon.
"No matter how I thought I felt, there was a part of me that didn't hate him."
The irrational emotions that filled Naruto's system started to seep out for a bit, but he knew they would return. His teacher suggested that the Hokage and his son would actually try to speak to one another as opposed to what they were doing at the moment. Reluctantly, the Namikaze agreed to try it.
Then, there was a tapping on the window and a Konoha hawk was pecking its beak on the glass. A scroll was strapped to its back. The jounin went to the window to retrieve the message and unfurled it to read it. He signed and handed Naruto the note.
On the paper it read:
On the Hokage's orders, genin Naruto Namikaze is to learn the Rasengan from jounin Kakashi Hatake in preparation for its possible use in the Chuunin Exams.
Signed,
Iruka Umino
All thoughts of simply talking to his dad left his head at that very moment. The anger welled up in him and Kakashi knew it all too well. There was no stopping the raging hurricane now. Naruto was out the door before he could pay the hawk back with a cracker and a pat on the head. But once that he was done with that, the man sprinted after his student.
Naruto was at the Hokage's office in minutes with Kakashi hot on his heels as he arrived seconds later, and even as the man tried to stop him from what he knew the boy was about to do, it was too late. The outburst had already begun.
"You're what?" Naruto fumed. His hand balled tightly into fists. "You're ordering me to learn the Rasengan?"
The boy was met with a cold stare from the Fourth Hokage in question.
Naruto's face scrunched up angrily and unwittingly his eyes turned glassy with irritated tears. "I don't even know who you are anymore! I would have gladly learned the Rasengan anyway, but this—" He gestured wildly with his arm to the open air. "This is—"
"You'll start your training with your assigned sensei as soon as possible," replied the man steadily behind his desk. Luckily, none of the chuunin were in the office as well.
Suddenly, the genin took a deep breath, inhaling slowly and closing his eyes. When he let out a breath, he continued. "Forget it," he said considerably more calmly, albeit with residual anger. "Understood…Hokage-sama." The last word was said sarcastically and with a hint of venom, then the younger Namikaze spun on his heels and stormed out the door, slamming it behind him.
Kakashi stared at his sensei with a display of disappointment lingering in his single visible eye and with an indescribable feeling, Minato lowered his gaze stoically.
With some invisible line crossed, Naruto and Minato's relationship with each other took a turn for the worse during the period of time that lead to the actual start of the Exams. Naruto did not even attempt to try to call his father by any familiar titles anymore; instead he called the man by his official one in any conversation held with anyone, except with his mother with whom he referred to him simply though the usage of male pronouns.
Kakashi would teach Naruto the steps of the Rasengan during the team's training sessions, but Naruto's frustration with his father was also somehow directed at anything he was ordered to do by the Hokage and as a result his lessons learning the A-class technique were not getting very far. Thankfully, Naruto's overall progress as a shinobi was not deteriorating, but if the teacher had any say, he would have put off the Rasengan until the entire spat was over.
If it was ever going to be over, that is.
Naruto acted fairly normally around his friends and teammates and for the most part it was like nothing was wrong, but the sudden distance was unmistakable. It was so bad that some of it was projected unto Kushina, a person he used to confide in all the time. When she would yell at him for being so coldshouldered, Naruto would simply shrug it off. It would sometimes even get to the point where she would sigh and give up, a trait that was so foreign to her personality.
Naruto would often leave practice for Sasuke's home or if he was not available, the blond would take off to walk around the village on his own unlike before when he would enthusiastically leap from rooftop to rooftop just to taste his mother's home cooked meals.
It was on one of these walks that Naruto spotted a pale, black-haired shinobi that appeared about his age. He looked like he was coming from the direction of the Hokage Tower, an observation that Naruto saw to with a hint of bitterness.
The boy had short hair and a strange all black outfit that was cropped short, just above his torso which was exposed. He wore black pants and the traditional shinobi sandals. Strapped to his back was a short sword. Naruto raised his eyebrows. He had not seen that ninja before.
He was about to walk by when suddenly, something clicked. "Sai," Naruto said, confusion in his voice.
The boy turned to him at the sound of his name. "I'm sorry, do I know you? How do you know my name?"
"I—I don't know," responded the blond genin. "You just seem really familiar."
He got an odd questioning stare in return.
"I'm Naruto Namikaze," supplied the boy hesitantly as if in an afterthought, "I guess I'll see you around…"
"See you around…dickless."
At the awful nickname, Naruto was opening and closing his mouth like a guppy fish. For some reason, even as the boy turned and disappeared in the crowds, he felt like he should feel more insulted that some stranger, a guy he had never met before in his life, had called him something so rude. But for some reason, the rudeness felt familiar.
Shaking his head, he remembered what his team was informed earlier that day…
"Okay! Team Seven will report to Hokage Tower tomorrow morning at 0900 hours sharp for briefing on the Chuunin Exams," sang the Kakashi in his mind. "See you then!" And then he had puffed away in a cloud of a billowing smokescreen.
So, as usual, he went home without any rush.
The next morning, Naruto found himself alone. No food was prepared for him this time. Perhaps it was payback from the time Naruto ignored his mother the evening previously, not that he cared. It was not like everyone would be at the table anyway.
He grabbed a bowl from one of the cabinets and shoved leftover rice into it. He retrieved an egg from the refrigerator and cracked it just above, then he poured a bit of liquid brown soy sauce into the yolk for a nice tasty effect. After sitting down, he took a pair of chopsticks and swirled the eggs around before digging in by himself.
By himself.
It was not always like that.
Damn, he might as well not have any parents at all if they were both going to be like that. His anger at his father did not help. But the thought of no parents struck him in the core. He shook his head furiously and continued to eat. He had an appointment with the Hokage that morning after all. He was going to turn in the application to join the Chuunin Exams just like his dad knew he would.
He groaned into his rice and huffed. Something saltier than the soy sauce trickled onto his taste buds. With a startling realization, Naruto realized that he had tears coming out of his eyes. He clenched his chopsticks tightly, closing his eyelids shut so tight that he willed the tears to stop welling up and off of his lashes.
A frustrated bang resounded for a few seconds after he placed his empty bowl into the sink and then he wiped his eyes clean with a sleeve on his jacket. He told himself that it was no time for emotional outbursts. He needed to calm down.
The rest of Naruto's morning routine went along as fine as it could be. He gathered his supplies and his pack, noting that he had to have enough stuff for at least two weeks as he would be in Suna for a month at the maximum. He could restock there, but it was so much cheaper to have supplies on hand.
And then when he finally arrived, it seemed for once he was the last one. Even Kakashi was there before him. He raised an eyebrow. He was only a minute late. Kakashi eye-smiled at him and rubbed the back of his neck. Naruto could only deduce that someone told the guy that the time changed to 0700 rather than 0900 in order to make sure that he was there on time. It was the only feasible explanation on hand.
Considering that the rest of Team Seven was there, they were all going to the Chuunin Exams and so they gave their applications to one of the desk chuunin.
And then the Hokage spoke and Naruto silently simmered. "You will be leaving today for Sunagakure located in the Wind Country. It will take you three days at top speed and I expect you all to leave together and arrive together." He did not even glace at Team Seven.
"Take a look around you," Minato commanded, "Your three teams will be representing the Leaf in these Exams. So do your best, as always."
Naruto did look around, if only for the fact that he was curious. In the background, the Fourth was introducing each team and team member, but the jinchuuriki ignored it for his own observations. Of course there was his own team that consisted of himself, Sasuke, Sakura, and Kakashi-sensei. Then there was another team that was a year older than him. He recognized Might Gai in his trademark forest green training spandex coupled with orange leg warmers, and Neji Hyuuga who he had been acquainted with for some time.
"Ten Ten," he whispered to himself with the stark realization that he somehow knew the girl in foreign-looking pink attire with brown hair in dual buns, "and Rock Lee…" Could it have been that strange guy from his dream from before? No…
And then the other team was Team Eleven. Itachi was their sensei. A girl he had never seen before named Chihiro was the female of the group. Her hair was wavy and dark and tied into a high ponytail. But it was the other two that really gotten him. One of them was Sai and the other one made his spine tingle in what could only be called fear and anticipation, like his body knew him but his mind didn't.
It was a guy that looked a bit older than he was with round glasses and silvery-white hair that was tied up. Bangs alighted on the sides of his face. But was it was the smile that this guy had—a smile that seemed like he was hiding something underneath a façade.
And then, a name rang into his brain with all the malice in the world with a voice that was unmistakably the Fox's.
"Kabuto Yakushi."
The frustration at his father was already there, and then the strange thought he had been having about knowing people he really shouldn't know the names of. The dreams, the Warp Memory…maybe now it all made sense. A part of him remembered something terrible. A part of him remembered that he was supposedly in a loop…but what was he supposed to do about it? How was he supposed to get out?
He was supposed to go to the Chuunin Exams and follow orders, and he would.
But he kept asking himself over and over—even as the three teams exited the gates of the village—why did he recall a memory in the back of his mind of this Kabuto reading a card aloud that recorded his stats and that his name was Naruto Uzumaki?
And why did some part of Naruto agree that that was his real name?
Even though he was really angry at the Hokage, he did not think that his subconscious would be angry enough to erase his last name from his life.
"Now you're starting to get it," he heard the Fox murmur as he leapt from tree to tree behind his sensei, "Naruto Uzumaki."
Coming up next… (In one month.)
Chapter Eight: Magnum Opus Part I (Sandstorm)
Answers to questions that you might have been wanting to ask…
(1) Gamatabi means something along the lines of "Journey Toad."
(2) "It was strange. Whatever he started developing towards his father in terms of feeling was not just distance, it was some kind of irrational anger, but it was also sadness." The conflict between Naruto and Minato's relationship here was introduced based on personal experience with my mother. And I have to say that this is exactly what I felt because it came out of nowhere. Like Naruto and Minato, we had been very close for years and then suddenly she had started to distance herself from me a few years ago because she got sick and even though she got better she did not want to get too close because she thought it was be better for me, even though now our relationship is strained.