DISCLAIMER
I do not own the anime or manga Naruto in any way, shape or form!
A Few Words
A thank you to everyone that read this story so far, a bigger to those that added it to their Fav's or Alerts list, and the biggest yet to those that took the time to review: Naginator, Akira Stridder, VLS, j0hnni, justbin, Krisis, T00STr00nG.
My answers:
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Naginator: I agree with you about water, but it simply will be much more beneficial for Naruto to learn earth Ninjutsu considering his teacher.
Akira Stridder: Kimimaro wasn't sick in my fic, and he was also around the same age as Kabuto, which is two-three years older than his canon age. About your second question, Kyuubi's chakra is very harmful to the common human, Naruto can withstand it because of the fact that he has 'grown with its presence' ( more on this in later chapters). Kabuto was hit on the chest by Naruto's arm that had a very high concentration of Kyuubi's chakra; Most people would have died, but he survived, although scarred, not being able to use healing techniques anymore, because it corrupted his chakra pathways. Imagine it like this: Kabuto's body managed to adapt to Kyuubi's chakra ( Sorry to say this again, but more will be revealed in later chapters)
VLS: Glad you liked it! And yes, I truly believe Orochimaru to be the most evil character in Naruto and his actions must reflect his disposition!
j0hnni: Of course he will learn to do so, I just stated that his seal will be of great use in that regard. Thank you for bringing this up and allowing me to clarify it. About how Naruto learned who his father was, I must say I truly hate all that Star Wars moment and in all the fanfics I've read nobody bothered to change it.
Justbin: Well, I have always considered Naruto to be a bit late to grow up in that regard, but by the time he returns to Konoha , he will be almost eighteen and will be a bit of a pervert, not unlike a normal guy would/should be. When I started this fic I had already thought of many techniques Naruto would use when he returned from his trip, and many are centered around the Rasengan; I have also hinted so in the last two chapters.
Krisis: Thanks!
T00STr00nG: I truly appreciate what you said about this story deserving more reviews, but as you know I can't express an unbiased opinion about it! That said, I am content with the number or people who decide to take a moment and share their thoughts with me, and of course more are welcome! I don't plan to have another time skip, one that would matter in any significant way at least. As for the pairing, I am not going to make this a Naru-Hina; Maybe the fact that I stated so in the first chapter cost me some readers, but I will stick to my original decision!
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In the spirit of trying to make this story better, I decided to merge the first two chapters before posting the last one. This made those who had reviewed the original chapter 10 unable to review the latest chapter; I apologise to anyone who wanted to share his/her thoughts on chapter 10: The Seal but couldn't do so. You are more than welcome to include any thoughts regarding that chapter in this one's review. Again, I am sorry for the inconvenience!
Moving on to the next chapter of NAToD( Naruto: A Tale of Determination)
Chapter 11: The Return to Konoha
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The sound of a quill constantly rubbing against a piece of paper was dominating a book filled, dark office; The figure holding it working quietly and efficiently, patiently putting each document aside when it was finished. To her annoyance, a drop of sweat fell on the still wet ink, destroying the signature she had just written. The quill stopped and a sigh from a feminine voice replaced its sound. The back of her hand cleared her forehead, in the center of which a violet rhombus resided. Stifling a yawn, she supported her back on the comfy armchair she was sitting on.
' I think it's time for a break; I have been working since yesterday night and it's morning now...'
She slowly stood up and moved to the room's exit; She was about to twist the handle to open it when she visibly grinned.
' Then again, maybe today I should use the other way out; It's been five and a half years since it was last used... Since Naruto left..."
She opened the window and removed the wooden supports that were used to secure it during the time no one was inside; She closed her eyes as the sudden light temporarily blinded her. After regaining her sight, she stepped out eagerly as she mumbled to herself in playful tone.
" You really should start doing your work yourself Hokage-sama; I could really get in trouble if anyone sees me signing documents with your signature...", said Sakura Haruno while her left hand went over her short pink hair, moving it behind her ear. Placing power in her lower limbs, she easily jumped of the building and to a nearby roof, moving in a fast and carefree manner.
Feeling the wind on her face was a truly welcome change compared to the small office or the hospital she usually ended up working in almost all of her time. She instantly relaxed, releasing all the tension that came with all the paperwork she had been reading for hours and began to think about her free time.
' So then, what now? I guess I will visit Tsunade-sama, she should be at the training ground spar-'
Her thoughts were abruptly interrupted by a yell that filled the village.
" I'M BACK KONOHA!"
' I swear , these new genins are even louder than that baka teammate of mine...'; She could not help but smile faintly at the mention of the blond. She was immensely surprised at what she heard next.
"Oiroke: Onnanoko Dōshi no Jutsu!"(Sexy: Girl on Girl Technique)
Her head turned so fast it almost snapped; She could only think of one person that would even consider using it, and combined with the previous phrase, it meant one thing.
' Naruto...Already using that perverted jutsu...You haven't changed one bit...', she sighed while changing her course to match the direction the yells were coming from; Three seconds later, the pink haired girl spotted to two naked girls, gifted with otherworldly assets they were very proud of if one judged by the way they were displaying them to everyone, hugging each other in a very intimate manner.
' This is it... I'll show you what happens to perverts around here! Tsunade-sama has taught me well how to deal with you!'
She clenched her fist as green chakra began to surround it, her eyes completely focused on her target as she jumped yet another rooftop, aiming straight for the two girls on the street below.
" NARUTO!"
The gorgeous women stopped their hugging, which only resulted in revealing more of their amble breasts, and looked at her with a look that easily showed their fear.
" Sakura..."
She was mere inches away from them when the pink haired girl's ears caught the rest of the sentence.
"...-neesan..."
Her eyes widened at that word; She had been mistaken.
' It's just Konohamaru.... Of course, how could I have forgotten about him...'; The sadness she felt at the revelation did not reach her face, since she only smirked.
' At least he'll learn his lesson!'. She raised her fist and prepared for the blow that was to come, although she severely reduced the amount of chakra she had in her punch previously; Sakura finally pushed her arm forward, almost in front of one of the too-good-to-be-true girls.
Much to Sakura's confusion, a slight breeze briefly brushed against her forearm, while Konohamaru and his Kage Bunshin were blown away a few meters by its force.
' What the...?' ; She did not have time to finish the sentence as her hand connected with the ground, breaking it into hundreds of pieces of various sizes and spreading dust everywhere. Coughing profusely because of the dirt in the air, the short tempered girl tried to rationalise what she had just witnessed.
' I barely felt that wind but it was strong enough to push Konohamaru away... Must have been a jutsu...'
Swinging her palm around to breathe clear air, she saw Konohamaru sitting on the ground, his clone long since dispelled, with a pained expression on his face.
" Sakura-neesan, why did you do that for? You should know that it's a very important contest between Naruto-niisan and me...."
" Naruto? He's he-", she turned to face the other way mid sentence to see if the boy's words were true.
"Hey, Sakura-chan!", said a blond haired boy standing next to a much taller white haired man the girl recognised as another member of the Sannin, Jiraiya.
" Naruto!", she hastily walked closer to him and stood right in front of him for a minute to observe his change; He was wearing black shinobi pants that matched his new also black sandals, while a yellow long sleeved shirt with a blue swirl on the upper arms covered his chest. Above that was a robe-like piece of clothing that was exactly the same as his teacher's, with two differences: It was black instead of red, and the yellow dots also had a swirl each; The second one was that it was a bit longer, almost covering his knees.
" Wow, you've really changed..."; The blond grinned at the comment, pronouncing his whisker marks even more.
" You have changed too Sakura-chan...Huh, what's that on your forehead? It's just like Tsunade-baachan's..."
" Yeah, it's the same seal she has.... Welcome back!", she moved in and gave him a friendly hug which he returned. As she was pulling back, she whispered in his ear.
" If I see you use a perverted technique like Konohamaru I promise you I won't miss..."
The blond shivered at the thought, he had already seen how her punches crumbled the street. " Of course, of course; It's been ages since then."; Sakura sighed, mainly because she did not see his hand signalling an ok to praise the smaller boy, who smiled broadly, and vanished, eager to complete their 'competition' in the future.
" Well, I'll leave you two to catch up... It's been a while since I last 'researched' Konoha... There just is no place like home...", plainly stated the old man next to them, before forming a hand seal.
" I'll meet you in two hours at Ichiraku's..." were his last words before he vanished in a cloud of smoke.
Naruto saw Sakura's anger and decided to distract her, lest face the consequences.
" Your new outfit suits you; The seal seems nice too, you know!". Sakura laughed awkwardly at that comment, but answered nonetheless.
" You too; You look a bit like Jiraiya-sama, what with the longer hair and your coat..."
" You have no idea...", Naruto simply stated as a memory from the past surfaced violently in his mind.
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-FLASHBACK, ONE AND A HALF YEARS AGO-
" Admit it Jin, he looks way better than with that orange nightmare he used to wear!", a smiling Jiraiya proudly said as he observed his newest apprentice. Jin, for his part, glanced at the boy only to be surprised by what was before him.
" I think you overdid it Jiraiya-sensei...", he slowly retorted as a Naruto dressed in the exact same way as the Gama Sennin stood in front of him.
" Nonsense! It's perfect! What do you say gaki?", the Perverted Sage eagerly asked, clearly waiting for a positive retort.
He was in for a surprise.
" No way I'm wearing this Ero-Sennin! First of all, there's not even a hint of orange anywhere, and second of all, this scroll on the back is too big and uncomfortable... Why do you have it anyway?". The smirk that formed on the older man's face meant that Naruto shouldn't have asked that question.
" Women always prefer the one with the biggest scroll... Remember this gaki....", his tone was sturdy and his expression dead-serious, like he had just explained a jutsu of vital importance. Jin sighed while Naruto slowly answered, growing more annoyed by the second.
"But in the end what matters is what's sealed inside and not its size, right? I mean, this scroll is empty and just for show.... And just why in Kami's sake would a woman be interested in a sealing scroll of all things?"
The white haired man giggled a bit before standing next to the boy and patting his shoulder.
" Keep dreaming kid...", he said as he formed the hand seal for the Shunshin no jutsu and was replaced by a cloud of smoke. The boy gazed the cloud for a few more seconds, replaying the scene in his mind, trying to figure out his sensei truly meant until it suddenly hit him; He briefly looked down before talking to his younger sensei.
" Sensei, was he saying this about...", he left his sentence unfinished but Jin, who obviously understood, nodded.
" What a pervert...", he slowly mumbled as he frowned.
' I wonder if it's true...'
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" Naruto!", the blond heard a loud voice calling his name again, with an irritated tone no less.
" You had a distant look in your face for a minute there... Is everything ok?", a mildly worried Sakura asked. The Uzumaki laughed it off.
" Sure! More importantly, tell me about everyone; I see that you've become much stronger since I last saw you, but what about the others?". Sakura smirked in a way that would make Sasuke jealous.
" Walk with me...", was her only answer and her teammate gladly complied. Soon after, the pink haired girl began her explanations.
" Things have changed quite a bit since you left; You see, Konoha has , under the instruction of Tsunade-sama, adopted a somewhat different style of fighting: Inter Team Teamwork or ITT.", the blond gave her a confused glance.
" Inter Team Teamwork? Didn't our teams cooperate before? I'm sure that more than one teams used to work together even years ago...", he said, his hand rubbing his chin and his brows borrowed in thought.
" That is true, but there is a big difference between things then and now: You see, teams were encouraged to work together in certain missions, now it's obligatory. The reason for this change is that even if the desire to work together was there, team members simply did not know of each other's abilities; This led to confusion and in some cases one team hindered the other, resulting in unnecessary injuries, deaths and mission failures." she said in a matter-of-factly tone.
" That makes sense I guess... So what's this ITT's point?"
" It basically is very much like a normal four man cell, where one whole team represents each member. During the years, Tsunade-sama together with Shizune-neesan have formed those special teams so that each can undertake all kinds of missions, from simple border watch to Missing-nin assassinations; The members are very familiar with each other's strengths and weaknesses and can cooperate very efficiently.", Sakura calmly explained, still in lecture mode.
" It sounds good, but aren't there too many people? I mean, twenty or so people moving together are a bit too easy to see, don't you agree?". The pair had by now almost reached the gates of Konoha again, this time heading for the training grounds.
Sakura turned to look at her teammate, clearly surprised the blond would ask such an intelligent question just moments after the concept was explained to him. The Uzumaki figured out her thoughts and smiled as he answered.
" My appearance isn't the only thing that changed over the years you know...". She blushed at the shame she felt before responding.
" You always managed to exceed the expectations everyone had of you... Even back then, against Sasuke...", her emerald eyes dimmed for a bit. Naruto understood yet again what she meant. He tried to move place his arm on her shoulder, to reassure her, to give her hope.
But he couldn't do any of those things no matter how much he wanted to.
' I wish I could tell her that everything will be fine; That Sasuke will come back to us safely... But I finally understand now; The next time Sasuke and I fight, one of us will probably...'
" The teams can work in pairs in missions that require more discretion...", Sakura began, mainly in an effort to change the subject, " Also, our members have specialized in neutralizing enemies that are stronger than them as individuals, Teams 8 and 10 together even managed to stop Tsunade-sama a few times... I don't know if she was being serious though...". Naruto was shocked beyond words at that; Tsunade was Konoha's Hokage, the fact that even she had been restrained was a feat regardless of the fact that she may have held back a bit.
" I never thought that you'd get so strong... I better watch it then; I wouldn't want to end up like Baachan!", he confidently stated as he put up one of his hands in excitement.
" Call her Tsunade-sama, Naruto! You're too old to be rude now!... And speaking of her, she should be around here somewhere...", the pink haired woman said as she turned her head to all directions, searching for a sign of her master. Naruto's mind was troubled by another little detail that he was eager to voice.
" Is Team 7 in an ITT cell? You already said Teams 8 and 10 are together, so you are with them?"
" Yes, Teams 7,8,10 and Team Guy form one ITT cell; It was assumed that if the members had already spent some time together, it would be beneficial for the teamwork.", she absent-mindedly answered, still looking around for the ground's clearing. The blond released a breath he had not realised he had been holding.
" Good, I'm glad that you weren't alone inside the village all this time... More than five years with no missions tend to dull a shinobi's skills!"
"You're one to talk, mister Civilian!", she said in a playful tone, only receive a passionate reply from her teammate.
" Hey, that one was a hit under the belt!", he pretended to pout a bit, but was utterly unsuccessful.
" Whoever the Hell is talking...hic... SHUT UP! I'll have you ...hic...Suspended if you don't!"
Naruto couldn't stifle his laughter at the statement, while Sakura paled in fear. After a few moments, the Uzumaki removed a tear that was formed in his eyes, his attention on his teammate.
" Tsunade-baachan is drunk again... I bet she told you she was going to train here right? I'm surprised she even decided to show up at all!". Sakura did not answer, opting to get near her master to use one of her medical jutsus to remove the excess alcohol in her system. Moments later, the older woman began to sober up, slowly touching her head and looking around a bit; She immediately focused on a wide smiling face in front of her, so she proceeded to close and reopen her eyes in an effort to assure what she was seeing was not a drunken vision.
" I'm back Tsunade-baachan!"
" Naruto...", she slowly stood up with both their help, only to see that the blond was just as tall as her." You've grown, gaki..."
" You have gotten older too, Baachan! I noticed you got your face on the Monument...Don't you think you should have them make a realistic face? I mean, the other Hokages' faces were showing how they looked when they led the village, not how they were twenty years ago...". A vein popped on her temple as the hand she had over Naruto's shoulders for support tightened around his neck.
"...But you're still as annoying as ever! You really should act like your age..." Cold sweat formed on her face as she realised what this meant.
' He's just like Jiraiya! I bet he even has one of Them is his pouch!'
She hastily reached his pouch and in a quick motion removed the object in question. She gazed at what she had caught and read the title with barely concealed disgust.
" Icha Icha Tactics: Deluxe Extended Edition & A Virgin's Plight Double Pack..." Tsunade glanced at the lower end of the cover. " … Double the length, double the fun.... He really has become senile these last years...He apparently doesn't even understand what that means..." the blond woman turned to the man next to her. " And you read this trash! I thought you knew better than that!", she started berating him, while Sakura's glance promised years of unimaginable pain.
" I don't read this stuff!...It's just something I brought for Kakashi-sensei!", he immediately tried to reason with them, his hands moving around in a pleading manner.
They both visibly calmed at the explanation, so Naruto allowed himself to lower his guard for a moment, glad that ordeal was over with.
" So..That means the pervert is inside the village 'researching' freely... I'll deal with him...", she began her walk back to her office, leaving the pair in the grounds.
" And Sakura.... We are running low on the chakra-enhancing medicine... Take care of it..."
"Yes, Tsunade-sama!", came the obedient reply from the girl.
" Chakra-enhancing medicine?" Sakura simply nodded.
" Yes, Tsunade-sama managed to convince the Akimichi to share the secrets of their special chakra pills and the Naras to do the same with their medicinal techniques. After some years of research, we managed to change the burst of chakra that the original pills contained to a steady increase of the chakra capacity instead; Of course, there was unexpected development that, while good, it has its drawbacks..." At the puzzled look Naruto gave her , she continued." I'll show you; They shouldn't be far from here."
A few minutes later, they had almost reached their destination and Naruto could hear some battle shouts, although they were way too faint for him to understand the words or who the person that spoke them was.
" You see, the medicine slowly widens the chakra pathways, allowing more chakra to flow at once, in addition to letting the various organs produce more chakra..." She grabbed his hand and stopped him, before pointing at a nearby clearing. The Uzumaki's eyes widened at what he saw and heard.
" Seishun Katon: Sei Gokakyu no Jutsu!" (Youth Fire Style: Youthful Great Fireball Technique!)
He watched as two green jumpsuit wearing men with bobbed hair and thick eyebrows performed the exact same hand motions before bringing one hand near their lips and blowing a stream of vibrant red flames all over the grounds; Everything around them had a black colour, much like a charcoal.
"..."
" … I agree with you Naruto...Tsunade-sama has forbidden him from training alone since he accidentally burned Training Ground 6 completely... He is also more energetic than ever; It's no surprise if you consider the fact that chakra is essentially life energy... And his own reserves have increased to about a low Chuunin level, which is around fifty times the amount he had when you left..."
" Yosh, Guy-sensei, if I can't perform another thousand fireball jutsus, I'll do one hundred Seishun Katon: Sei Karyu Endan no Jutsu( Youth Fire Style: Youthful Fire Flame Projectiles) while doing two thousand squats!"
" Yosh my youthful student, if you do that, then I will do two thousand fireball jutsus and if I can't, I will do five hundred laps around Konoha using only my hands, while I sustain the fireball the entire time!"
The two members of Team watched as both Lee and his Sensei proceeded to form yet more hand seals and breathing out more fire.
" I guess fire suits Lee, with all those flames of youth that burn brightly, huh?"
"Yeah... Naruto, Tsunade-sama told me you trained with another Sensei besides Jiraiya-sama; Where is he? "
The blond's expression hardened a bit before he answered. " We went our separate ways once we got here; He told us he wanted to see someone here in Konoha... And that he'd meet with me soon after..."
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-MEANWHILE-
The echoes coming from a wooden clutch banging against the also wooden floor was the only thing audible inside the dark tube-like structure Jin was now in; Standing on top of a wide wooden bridge that formed a crossroad together with another one, he patiently waited for the person he had been waiting for since he entered Konoha. His wait was not in vain, as he heard a voice he immediately recognised.
" So you have decided to show your face here again..."
" I just wanted to inform you of a certain situation father, or rather Danzo-san..."
The bandage-covered man did not respond and instead waited for Jin to continue.
" I intend to live in Konoha for a while..."
" Do as you like, I couldn't care less; My son is dead, he has been dead for twenty years now."
Jin briefly looked down before he turned away to leave. " So you still intend to go through with your plan after all this time...'
" I will become Hokage; I will do it for the village, because that is the only way the Leaf will be safe and powerful..." were the older man's only words.
Jin only gave him a bitter smile." When the time comes, I will do something for the village too then... I hope that you'll forgive me...Again"
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Author's Notes
Thanks for reading Chapter 11 of NAToD ( Naruto: A Tale of Determination). To be honest, I am a bit unsatisfied with the way this chapter turned out, since I kind of had to force it out so that the story could move forward.
It is a bit on the humorous side, and the next one will be a bit too, but remember, the weather is most calm right before the storm!
Any thoughts on the chapter are welcome. Also, those that did not have the chance to review the last chapter because of the changes made in the chapters' structure are welcome to do so in this one's review.
Tell me if you like the changes I've made with the whole ITT cell concept and the chakra-enhancing treatment too!