Naruto sat at his desk and sighed to himself, "Why is this so dang hard!" he shouted as he looked at his laptop. He had finished the initial design on the new Freedom, but there were still a few things that were not matching up. He sighed to himself once again and got out of his chair. It was almost summer break and he wanted to at least have the designs done so he could start building when he got home. He sat down on his bed and laid back.
"Why is this not working?" he said out loud but no answer came. His vision was suddenly filled with red and smiled. He picked up Kyuubi from off his face and set her in his lap. He smiled as he started to slowly pet her fur making her purr. "You always know how to help me relax."
Naruto sat on his bed petting Kyuubi for awhile until her heard a knock at his door. He got up and set kyuubi on the bed, "Coming," he called and headed towards the door. Chifuyu stood in front of him her arms crossed around her chest. Naruto just looked at her with surprise. "Orimura-sensei, what brings you here?"
"May I come in?" she asked and Naruto nodded, moving aside. She walked inside and looked around the room. It had changed much since her last visit, except there were IS parts all over.
"Sorry for the mess," he said as he looked around the room, "I just have been busy."
"I can see that," Chifuyu stated as she sat down in the desk chair.
Naruto took the chair across from her and smiled, "So what brings you to my humble abode this fine day?"
"I just wanted to see how you were doing," she said looking at the blonde.
"I'm doing fine," he replied but could tell there was more to the visit, "But that not the real reason you came here is it?"
Chifuyu sighed inwardly, "Yes, that is true," she said and looked at the blonde, "I came to talk to you about our recent encounters."
Naruto looked at her with confusion, "What about them?" he asked.
"I think you have been out of line in your comments on my appearance," Chifuyu said making the blonde look at her as if she was crazy.
"So I can't give you a compliment of how you look?Why?" he asked.
This didn't surprise Chifuyu one bit, "It is not proper for a student to look at a teacher and compliment her on her looks," she said making Naruto fall to the ground.
"Why not?" he asked with a hint of annoyance in his voice.
"It is just not," she stated making Naruto facepan.
He shook his head, "That not an answer, "he replied and Chifuyu gave him a stern look.
"A student job is to listen to the teacher and try to retain what he/she is trying to teach, "she stated while looking the blonde in the eyes, "A student who falters his/her teacher is a disruption to the learning process and it makes it uncomfortable for the teacher."
"If you feel uncomfortable about me complimenting you, you could have told me to stop," he stated simply, "Is that what you want?"
"Yes," Chifuyu stated and Naruto nodded.
"I will try to keep it professional when we are in class," Naruto said.
Chifuyu nodded and got up, "Thank you," she said and headed towards the door.
"No problem Chifuyu," he said as he opened the door, "I see you around, and by the way you look stunning." Chifuyu looked at him with surprised; he said he would stop complimenting her. Naruto saw the confusion on her face, "I said I would stop complimenting while in class, we are not in class so that rule doesn't apply, and have a good day."
Chifuyu stood outside the door and soon a frown adorned her face, "That boy," she said and headed back towards her room, wanting nothing more than to use a bokken to beat Naruto into a bloody pulp.
-A few days later-
Naruto sighed to himself as he finished packing his gear. School has just let out for the summer and her planned to head home and work on his new IS. HE finally finished the design for the Strike Freedom and was happy with its overall design. He kept many of the original weapons from the Strike, he had added all the swords from Exia allowing him to be more effective as close range, the biggest addition was the high energy particle cannon he had added to the chest area. As he looked over the design he couldn't help but be happy. He was able to salvage most of the old Freedom and planned on integrating most of the parts into the new IS. Unfortunately he had to build a new frame for scratch. He sighed to himself as he packed the last box of parts and loaded them onto a pallet to be picked up later.
"That's the last of it," he said as he sat down and looked around the now empty IS storage area. Kyuubi walked over to him and wrapped one of her tails around his leg and tried to pull him along. He felt the pull and smiled, "Ok Kyu, I'm going."
Naruto picked up Kyuubi and help her in his arms and headed towards the tram area. He was excited to be going home yet sad at the same time. He was going to miss his friends and a few certain females. He sat down on one of the benches and waited for the tram lost in thought.
"It's going to be an interesting summer," he thought as he waited, "I going to be building the Strike Freedom and working to improve the GN Drive output and power distribution. So I probably am going to be working all summer. It is going to be kinda lonely without Tatenashi, Honne, Cecilia, Maya, Tabane, and Chifuyu."
Naruto was pulled out of his thoughts as the tram pulled up and he boarded. The door was about to close when someone rushed in behind him. Naruto turned and saw a breathless Tatenashi standing behind him with a large suite case in hand.
"Safe," she said as she tried to catch her breath.
Naruto looked at her and sighed before pulling a bottle of water out of his bag, "Here." He said and held out the bottle of water to Tatenashi.
Tatenashi took the bottle and gave the blonde a grateful smile. "Thanks Naruto." She said as she opened the bottle and drank the water. Naruto watched as some of the content spilled out of the sides and slowly made it way down Tatenashi form and into her clothes. He quickly looked away and chided himself for acting like a pervert.
Tatenashi noticed that he looked and smiled; she walked over to Naruto and gave him a smile, "Naruto." She said making him look at her.
"Yes Tatena?" he asked when he felt her wrap her arms around his neck and pressed herself against him.
"Can I rest on you?" she whispered in his ear while he froze in place, "I'm soo tried from trying to make the tram." Naruto just nodded and Tatenashi smiled. She loved to make him freeze. Naruto machincally lifted his hand and held onto the stabilizing bar while Tatenashi leaned against him. They rode the tram all the way into town and beyond, finally stopping at the end of the line which was the local airport. Naruto had finally came to his senses and was blushing up a storm as he felt Tatenashi press herself against her body.
"Why does she do this to me?" he thought as he felt the tram come to a stop. Naruto sighed to himself in relief as he let his hand drop from the stabilizing bar.
"It's time to go." He said to Tatenashi but she didn't want to let go. "Tatenashi I need to move."
"No," Tatenashi replied, "This is too comfortable.
Naruto sighed and didn't know what to do. The tram was going to head back to the school soon and he didn't want to miss his flight. He looked down and saw Kyuubi using her tail to pick up one of his smaller bags and head out the tram. Naruto quickly grabbed his bags, as well as Tatenashi and held them in his arms. He then scooped up Tatenashi with his free arm and he rushed out the door. He followed Kyuubi through the crowd and soon they had exited the station and entered the airport. As he walked he failed to notice all the stares he was received as he walked around with Tatenashi in his arms. He walked towards the terminal and flashed his IS Academy badge, this allowed him to get through security with little hassle, if he didn't have Tatenashi in his arms that is.
One of the security officers help up his hand and stopped Naruto.
Naruto sighed and stopped not wanting to get into any more hassle. "Yes officer?" he asked trying to mask the annoyance in his voice.
"Can you show identification for the girl in your arms?" the officer stated and Naruto looked at him with annoyance.
"I do but I kinda can't get it." Naruto replied as his annoyance began to seep into his voice.
"I'm sorry for the incovinace but I will have to see some id." The officer stated.
Naruto gave the officer an evil glare and tried to see which bag had her id, but he couldn't find it. He looked down at Tatenashi and saw that she was asleep and knew she wouldn't be any help. "Can't you cut me a break she asleep." He asked but the officer shook his head.
"Id is required or you cannot enter," the officer stated.
"Oh come on!" Naruto replied with an elevated voice. "I need to get going my flight is going to leave soon."
"Until I can see her id I can let you through." The officer replied. Suddenly Tatenashi yond and lifted her head.
"Are we there yet Naruto?" she asked and looked up at the officers.
"No," Naruto replied, "They won't let us through without seeing your id."
"But I wanna go back to sleep." Tatenashi said with yon as her eyes started to close.
"Just tell me where you school id is and I can get it for you." Naruto said.
Tatenashi nodded and whispered it into his ear. The officer watched as Naruto's face became as red as a beat.
"It's there?" Naruto said with a bit of embarrassment in his voice. Tatenashi nodded. Naruto looked at the Officer, "Can you please let us through?"
"I need to see her id." The officer stated once again.
Naruto sighed, "Tatenashi can't you give me your id please." He said and a sleepy Tatenashi nodded. She moved her hands and reached down into her cleavage and pulled out a small wallet. She opened it up and gave Naruto her id. "Thanks." He said and she nodded and put the wallet back where she held it. While this was going on the officer looked on with indifference on their faces but on the inside they were surprised. "Here." Naruto stated and handed them Tatenashi id.
The officer came out of his stupor and looked over the id; he nodded and said, "You're clear to go through."
"Thank you," Naruto stated and headed through the checkpoint. He looked at the clock and saw that he was going to be late, but he didn't know where Tatenashi was going and he need to get her on her flight first.
"Hey Tatena," he said waking up the girl again.
"Yes Naruto," she said as she rubbed the sleep from her eyes
"Where your flight?" he asked her with urgency in his voice.
"Oh," she said and pulled out her ticket from her pocket, much to the relief of Naruto. "I departing from gate A32."
Naruto nodded when suddenly had a ping of surprise, "That where I departing from."
He stated.
"Really?" Tatenashi said with surprise that seemed rather faked. "I didn't know."
Naruto didn't believe her surprise one bit but he didn't have time to dwell on it. "Ok let's go." He said and headed towards their terminal. They soon arrived as boarding had started. Naruto tried to set Tatenashi down but she wouldn't have it.
"I still tired," she said and pulled herself closer to the blonde.
"Fine just give me your ticket." He said, Tatenashi nodded and handed him her ticket. They pair soon boarded the plane and Naruto found that he was actually sitting next to Tatenashi on the flight. He looked at Tatenashi who just gave him a smile. He knew she had somehow made it so they were sitting together but he didn't know how. He set her down in her chair and took his seat.
Tatenashi rested her head against his shoulder and smiled, "That was a fun." She stated as she leaned on the blonde.
"Yeah," Naruto answered back with a hint of sarcasm in his voice.
Tatenashi seemed to not notice or just ignored his comment as she soon fell asleep on the Naruto. He looked at Tatenashi and smiled. He grabbed her blanket in the seat pocket and put it over her sleeping form.
-After the flight-
Naruto streached as he walked through the airport towards the enterence with Tatenashi beside him. She tried to get him to carry her but he didn't fall for it this time, so she had to settle for walking beside him. They walked in silence letting the world pass them by, they finally reached the entrance and Naruto smiled he was home.
"I'll see you later," he said to Tatenashi, pulled out a set of keys, and headed towards the parking lot. He reached the first row of cars and found a light blue Subaru WRX hatchback with the license plate FOXZZ.
Naruto smiled and unlocked the car and loaded his bags into the trunk he was about close it when he saw a bag fly inside. He turned and saw Tatenashi standing there with a smile on her face.
"Umm…?" he said the confusion clearly evident on his face.
"Oh I got a job working at Konoha Industries." She stated with a smile.
Naruto looked at her for a moment, "When did this happen?" he asked
Tatenashi smiled, "Oh a while ago." She said and opened the passanger side door of the car and got inside. Naruto just stood there frozen; suddenly the sound of the car horn filled the air making him jump. He looked inside and saw Tatenashi giving him hurry up look. Naruto just nodded and got inside the car and they headed towards home.
They traveled in silence and Tatenashi watched as the trees rolled pasts. She had to smile as she watched the flashes of green. She had to admit that having the main facility in a forested area was different but it provided a welcome change from other IS companies. They just had flat concrete facilities that had no personality. Konoha on the other had was surrounded by nature and the workers seemed to enjoy it a lot. Naruto smiled as he saw the leaf symbol come into view.
"Home sweet home." Naruto stated with a smile as they pulled into the research complex. Tatenashi looked around with awe, it was a big facility and everywhere people could be seen working against the green backdrop. Everywhere there were different types of IS and IS parts that were being tested or developed. They soon arrived at the main building and pulled into the parking area. Naruto and Tatenashi exited the car and headed inside. They headed inside and Naruto led Tatenashi towards the main offices.
He walked toward a office in the back of the room with a look of determiation on his face. Tatenashi followed behind with a smile. As they passed a few desk someone called out to Naruto.
"Naruto!" a female voice said.
Naruto turned and faced a fair-skinned woman of average height and slender built with blue eyes and black hair. He face lit up, he rushed over and pulled the woman into a hug. "Shizune, it's soo good to see you." He said as he squeezed Shizune with all his might.
"I…It…i..is…grea….great…too….se….see…y…you too." Shizune stammered trying to catch her breath. "Can…you…let…go…can't ….breath."
Naruto let Shizune go and gave her a sheepish smile. "Sorry," he stated and Shizune just smiled at him.
"It's ok," she said, "It been awhile since we last saw each other. Well I have to go, Tsuande needs me, I will see you later."
Naruto watched as Shizune started to walk away, "I see you later." He stated and she nodded.
Tatenashi watched the exchange with interest, she smiled and wrapped her arms around Naruto neck, "Who was that?" She asked Naruto.
Naruto tried not to freeze as he felt Tatenashi press herself against him. "That my sister Shizune." He stated.
"Your sister?" Tatenashi said with a hint of surprise in her voice. "I thought you were an only child."
Naruto smiled, "I am," he stated, "Shizune is the adopted daughter of my grandmother Tsunade Senju, she been with me since I grew up so she is my sister."
"Oh," Tatenashi said as they started to walk again. They soon arrived at a large oak door with the name Kushina Namikaze on it. Naruto smiled and opened the door. Kushina sat at her desk review papers as Naruto and Tatenashi walked in. She looked up and smiled when she saw the pair and set down her work.
"Welcome home," Kushina said with a smile and pulled her son into a bone crushing hug. "I've missed you."
Naruto was trying to breathe, "Can…..can't…breath." he stammered but Kushina didn't seem to hear him. Naruto vision slowly went black and he passed out.
Kushina finally noticed that Naruto was out cold, "OH NO!" she shouted and started to shake Naruto profusly. "I sorry!"
Tatenashi watched this and giggled, she just knew that this was going to be an interesting . She watched as Kushina moved Naruto towards a couch on the side wall of the office and laid him down. She looked over son with a smile on her face before turning to face Tatenashi.
Kushina moved towards her desk and motioned for Tatenashi to sit in the chair in front of the desk. Tatenashi did as directed and sat down. She watched as Kushina expression changed from that of a loving mother to the eyes of a harden business woman.
Kushina looked over the girl in front of her and opened a file on her desk, she read over a few papers and than looked over at Tatenashi. "I see you have to top grades in your class as well as the strongest pilot at the Academy." Kushina said looking Tatenashi in the eyes. "The reason I brought you here is to test our improved model of the one of our older generation IS models." Tatenashi nodded and Kushina continued. "The models you will be test are the following, first we have theZGMF-X2000 Gouf Ignited. This IS suit is equipped with the following, MA-M757 "Slayer Whip" Heat Rod, M181SE "Draupnir" 4-barrel Beam Gun, MMI-558 "Tempest" Beam Sword, Shield, and M68 "Cattus" 500mm Recoilless Rifle. Next we have the GAT-04 Wingdom, this is a decanted of the Strike, it is equipped with M2M5 "Todesschrecken" 12.5mm Automatic CIWS, ES04B Beam Saber, Mk315 "Stiletto" Rocket-Propelled Anti-Armor Penetrator, A52 Offensive Shield Type E, Mk438/B Dual Multipurpose Missile "Würger" SA10, and M9409L Beam Rifle. Another feature of the Wingdom is that ability to mount Striker packs. Lastly you will test one of our news models, will be testing our lasted model the SVMS-01 Union Flag, this is our lasted prototype. These suit is equipped with Linear Rifle, Sonic Blade, Defense Rod and 20mm Machine Gun."
Tatenashi looked over all the designs and marveled at how many IS she was going to test, she thought she was just testing one but three was surprising. She was confused though, she thought the Strike was going to be their main focus, "What about the Strike?" she asked Kushina.
Kushina sighed, "The Gat-X05 Strike is an extreme well made machine," Kushina replied and looked out the window, "Unfortantly the material to produce the Strike on a massive scale are very expensive so it would be counterproductive to out business. The Strike is being reclassified as a personal Machine for Honne Nohotoke."
Tatenashi nodded, "Is there anything else you need ma'am." Tatenashi asked.
Kushina smiled, "Nothing else," she said, "Except, no hanky panky on the clock, got it?"
Tatenashi smiled, "Yes ma'am." She replied with a salute.
"Good," Kushina said as a warm smile spread across her face. "I will have Shizune show you to your room, I expecpt great things from you."
Tatenashi nodded and exited the office with a smile on her face.
-With Chifuyu-
It had been a week since school had ended and Chifuyu had spent most of the time at her home. She had been review most of the test scores of the class and had finally settled on Naruto's. She looked at his face and sighed. He was the one person who unnerved her,he was just so different from anyone she had ever met. He was always smiling and care free, only to be serious and cool when the time calls for it. She recalled the battle against the Silver Gospel and couldn't help but smile as she watched Naruto take down the IS with a nearly detroyed IS. He never gave up and always pushed forward, it was one of his more endering qualities.
"That boy," she mumered as she set down his file. Why did he linger in her mind? Why was he so different? She sighed to herself and got up from her desk and headed out of her room. As she walked she saw her brother Ichika sitting on the couch surrounded by Houki, Charlotte, Rin, and Laura. They were all trying to get his attention while he was completely oblivious to it all. Chifuyu decided it was better to head out then watch the scene go on. She headed back to her room and quickly changed.
She finally left the house and headed towards the local bar. A good drink was always a good way to clear the mind, or cloud it, depending on a person opinion. As she walked she didn't notice someone walking towards her.
"Chifuyu," a voice said from behind. Chifuyu turned and saw Miya standing there with a smile on her face.
"Maya," Chifuyu said with her usual aloofness.
Maya smiled, "So what brings you this way?" she asked her friend.
"Just need a drink," Chifuyu replied, "There been a lot on my mind lately."
"Mind if I join you," Maya asked, "It is always better to drink with a friend."
Chifuyu nodded and the pair headed towards the bar. They walked in silence each in theit own little world. They reached the bar and found a few open seats at the end of the bar. They took their seats and ordered, a friendly silence between them.
Chifuyu looked at Maya and couldn't help but notice something differnet about her. Ever since Naurto had came to the Academy Maya had changed, it was a minute change but a change just the same. She had glow about her that Chifuyu couldn't pinpoint. She watched Maya as she took a sip of her drink and decided to question her.
"Maya," Chifuyu said getting her friend's attention. "Can I ask you something?"
Maya looked at Chifuyu and smiled, "Sure."
"What changed?" Chifuyu asked.
Maya looked at her firend with a look of confusion on her face, "what do you mean?" she asked.
"You seem different," Chifuyu replied as she tried to put it into words, "You seem too different. I was wondering what changed."
"I don't feel different," Maya stated as she thought about it, "I feel the same as I did before."
Chifuyu nodded and started to think, "The change started to happen when Naurto first came to school."
Maya's face started to get a slight red hue to it at the mention of Naruto's name. This wasn't lost on Chifuyu and she decided to press Miya about it. "Did something happen between the two of you?" she asked and she watched Miya blush even more.
Maya was silent as she tried to find the right words to say. She didn't expect for Chifuyu to bring up Naruto.
"It's all right you can tell me." Chifuyu said taking another swing of her drink.
Maya was quiet for a few more moments, "We became close during the semester." She finally stated as she looked back on her encounters with Naruto.
"Close?" Chifuyu said not showing any emotions.
Maya nodded as a smile spread across her face, "Yes close. Naruto has something about him that makes me want to be near him." Maya said as she remembered her times with the Naruto.
Chifuyu listened and couldn't help but agree with what Maya was saying. Naruto had a way to draw people to him. She seen it with Cecilia,Honne, Tatenashi, Tabane, Maya, and surprisingly herself. He was truly one of a kind. She pictured the Naruto in her mind and smile, a small hint of a blush on her face.
"Maybe I will pay him a visit." Chifuyu stated as she finished of her drink.
-With Naruto-
It had been several days since Naruto had returned home and he was currently held up in his personal research lab. He stared at his computer screen and looked over the blueprints of the Strike Freedom and smiled. He had everything in it proper place and he was ready to start fabrication. He got up and headed towards the far side of the wall. On one of the tables sat kyuubi lying next to a large pile of metals. He petted Kyuubi head for a few moments before pulling out a few pieces of longe square pieces and walked over to the wielding station. Naruto like to use more hand on methods in building his IS. He always felt better when he had hand crafted each part, screwed in each screw, and polished the out shell till it shined. It made him feel as if he was one with his IS.
He grabbed his wielding gear and set one of the bars on the wielding table. Slowly he turned on the gas that powered the wielder and he pulled his wielding mask down to cover his face. He ignited the wielding rod and watched as the super heated flames came to life. He brought the super heated rod towards the metal bar and let the sparks fly. He slowly started cut the bar in half and soon the sound of metal hitting the floor. Naruto smiled and continued his work.
-With Tatenashi-
Tatenashi sat in the waiting room in her IS gear. It had been several days since she came to the facility and today was the first day she was going to be able to pilot one of the IS she was going to test. She was excited; she had read over the specs for the three machines and couldn't help but be in awe of their capabilities. The Gouf Ignited was a very durable IS, it was built to take a hit and didn't need to summon weapons to fight. All weapons were on the machine and you were never unarmed. Next was the Wingdom, it was a water down version of the Strike but with an experienced pilot it could take on any third generation with ease. The Striker Packs is what set it apart from the others so it was very easy to change equipment to fit the situation. Finally there was the Flag, this was by far the fastest machine of the three, it had a simpler design and relied mostly on it close combat weapons. It had a unique defence feature in it defense bar, this bar basically spun and blocked all the projectiles shot at it.
A tech came in, "We are ready for you." He said and Tatenashi nodded.
She followed the tech into the lab and saw the resting form of the Gouf Ignited waiting for her. Its blue color shining in the dimly lit room, it's frame was a bit bulky, but it made up for it in armor. On the right was shield which held the beam sword while on the left was the whip. Tatenashi smiled and walked over the IS and placed her had on it. She felt as the IS surrounded her and adjusted to her body. She looked around a saw that she was wearing a visor. She turned looked in a mirror. The Gouf's shoulders were rounded with a spike on top, the middle hugged her body and protected her all over. The legs were a bit bulky but the extra boosters on the boots allowed for fast adjustments in battle. Finally the head gear, it was a single band around her head with a spike coming out of the middle of the forehead. The visor covered the eyes and the only thing that could be seen by the opponent was a large red eye.
"This is amazing," she said as she looked around the room. She turned towards the tech and smiled. "So where to next?"
"You are to head towards area three," one of the techs said. "Your opponent is waiting for you."
Tatenashi nodded and lifted off the ground and settled into a light hover. She was happy with the quick response of the Gouf and couldn't to really test it abilities even more. She entered the launch area of the Arena three and headed out into the field. She flew to the middle and waited for her opponent. Soon a flash of red was seen and a IS similar to the Gouf flew out. She looked at and saw the computer recognize it at a Zaku. She zoomed in on the pilot and was shocked. Kushina was her opponent.
Kushina smiled as she looked over at Tatenashi, "Surprised?" she asked.
Tatenashi nodded, "I didn't know you could pilot an IS." She replied.
Kushina nodded, "Yeah most people don't know about it," she said, "I was always the first to test when Minato was alive."
Tatenashi nodded, "Shall we get started." She said and lifted her rifle.
Kushina smiled and did the same, "Show me what you got little girl." She replied and charged.
This is chapter ten folks; it is unedited so if there is any grammar issues please bar with me it will be edited as soon as possible I just wanted to get it posted so bad. I really sorry it has taken awhile for an update it just didn't want to come out, but here it is and I hope to get the next chapters out faster. This is a really fun chapter to write as I plan on having a certain someone finally acknowledge her feeling for a certain blonde. Please tell me what you think of the chapter in a review, the longer the better. It helps me want to write more and helps get the idea flowing. I want to thank all my readers who have stuck by me inuboy86, it been thanks to your constant push, it allowed me to finish the chapter so I thank you. Again please review and tell me, IN DETAIL! what you think of this chapter and of the story overall. I thank you all. PLEASE READ AND REVIEW!