NOTE: CURRENTLY TRYING TO COME UP WITH AN OPENING SONG FOR THIS FIC…
Special Thanks to:
silvioxp1300 for his wonderful idea of the Sage's Comet
greymatter1098 for being a one of a kind writing partner
OH HELLLLLL YYYEEEAAAAHHHH! 100 FAVORITES COMPLETE! Thank you guys for supporting this story and I promise to make this even better! Only 17 reviews remain and my third objective will be complete then! We are now on the tenth chapter of this story, ladies and gentlemen! I update fast, don't you think? LOL. So last chapter, we all witnessed how did the preliminaries of the Chuunin Exams all went down. But at the end, Hiruzen announced that there will be a semifinals round! Oh, what kind of semifinals would it be then? Kurama and Naruto will finally meet, but how? Well, you'll find out in this chapter! The poll regarding the special ability of Naruto's Uchūtengan has finally come to a close, everyone! And the winner is… TIME MANIPULATION! I'll use every bit of free time I have to try and create the jutsu that will activate his ability, guys! Take note that I will NOT be making it too OP and to elaborate in that further, simply wait for his special ability to make its debut! But before we get to the chapter itself, let's go do my daily routine: answering reviews!
the mangekyo nerd: I believe I said 'only about 10 teams', meaning I estimated to the nearest number.
Phantomsoul2015: One of my theories in Naruto… Say, does your profile pic mean you are into Rayshipping? If it doesn't I don't know what it means then…
Rose Tiger: Let's see if she does!
Bloody Rogue dragon deity king: One thing's for sure, they can't do it without training from Naruto himself because only him can use it considering the requirements…
Rogue Deity Master: Journal, huh? Maybe… Cocky SOB? What do you mean by that? Is it because Naruto fought an arrogant bitch like Takeru?… Hinata was not dependent, if I may add. She just showed off the results of her training… And it's not a taijutsu style, btw…
bloody dragon fang: Oh, now I get it…
Antex- The Legendary Zoroark: Ok, you asked for the teasers, you'll get them! At the end of this chapter!
Old No-Name: A village, huh? Well, I advise you to read the summaries I wrote in Chapter 9… You'll see a new enemy there that is not a village, but close enough.
P.S. Guys, I've been thinking about it for some time now, I already talked to my writing partner, greymatter 1098, about it and he agreed with me but I'll need your approval to finalize it. I was thinking of having Shion be included in this story, where in the first Shippuden movie will be incorporated. I loved her character ever since and I ship her with Naruto. Now regarding Shion herself, I've been thinking of following the plot of the movie and have her bear a child with Naruto.
Before you get mad at me, take note of these. Naruto will not be having an affair with her, because Hinata will approve of Shion after getting to know about her more during the mission to protect her from Moryo. To NaruHina fans, Naruto's virginity will already be taken by Hinata before Shion does, you just have to wait for that chapter to come. After having sex with her, Naruto starts a long-distance relationship with her since she can't abandon her role as priestess even though both him and Hinata want her to live in Konoha with them. Then at the end of the last arc, Shion will finally move to to the village to live with Naruto and Hinata. But then again, she could show up at various points in the story, depending on the storyline or the reception of her character.
I've put up a poll in my profile whether I should include Shion in this story. If you don't want to vote there, simply drop a review if you want her to be here or not. But take note of this. Hinata will still be his main love, although he loves Shion just as much. And just because I want to include her here DOESN'T mean that I will be turning this into a harem story. Besides, two girls with a guy can hardly be called one, in my opinion. So please guys, start voting if you want her to be in this or not. Voting will last until Chapter 18 of this story (excluding the Author's Notes). Now with that out of the way let's move to the chapter!
"Normal Talking"
'Thoughts'
Flashbacks
Jutsus and Battle Intros
"Beasts and other high beings talking"
Disclaimer: Don't own Naruto…
"In case you didn't get it, there will be a semifinals round," Hiruzen continued, getting confused looks from everyone. "It appears that I need to elaborate quite further." He cleared his throat and began walking towards all the genin. "The original plan was to only have two rounds, the preliminaries and the finals. However, the number of participants that passed the prelims exceeded our expectations and so we have come to the decision to have another round, and that will be the semifinals."
"Does that mean we have to fight each other again?" asked Kankuro in a loud voice that captured the Hokage's attention.
"Why yes, of course!" - the Sandaime announced, getting bored looks from almost everyone. But then, he chuckled slightly. "It seems you misinterpreted what I just said. Yes, you will have to fight against each other again, but not in one-on-one fashion." - he continued, and all of them raised an eyebrow.
"What do you mean by that, Hokage-sama?" asked Naruto, getting interested in just what might transpire.
Hiruzen's face then morphed into a serious expression. "In the semifinals round, the same rules apply. Last man standing wins, or rather, men. Because all of you will fight against each other in teams of two!" - he announced, causing everyone to widen their eyes.
The electric board above the statue shuffled through the remaining participants' names before it revealed three sets of team fights. Some of the genins smiled because they get to team up with someone they can work well with and some scowled because they got paired up with someone they didn't even consider as a friend.
"The semifinals and finals will be held at the same time at the stadium in the village! You have one month to prepare and train for your upcoming battles. But be reminded that the point here isn't to win, it's simply about proving yourself if you have what it takes to attain the Chuunin rank! The Kazekage himself will attend the event and assist in pointing out which of the genins deserve to be of Chuunin rank." - he pressed on, leaving all of the young shinobi to ponder over what he just said. "Once again, congratulations to all of you! This may be only the preliminaries but I know that you all have potential." All of the jounin teachers shunshined beside the Hokage.
"Your teachers shall lead you out of the forest. Be sure to train all throughout the month. Good day to everyone." - he finished, bowing slightly to everyone before being led away by the group of Anbu that was keeping watch on him all the time.
"Sweet!" - exclaimed Naruto as he ruffled Hinata's dark blue locks. "See that? We're going to be a team, Hina-chan!" - he flashed his signature grin and thumbs-up. "Now we can train together for as long as we want!"
The girl giggled at his antics before playfully smacking his arm. "No funny business, Naruto-kun," she warned. "We're supposed to train, not be lovey-dovey at the moment, got it?" - she threw him a suspicious look with her eyes narrowed at him, causing him to gulp nervously.
"Yes, ma'am! No funny business!" - the blonde did a military salute, and she giggled even more before Kakashi suddenly appeared in front of them, carrying an unconscious Sakura on his shoulder. Naruto raised an eyebrow and decided to ask. "Kakashi-sensei, why is Sakura-chan out cold on your shoulder?"
"Sorry to break up the romance, but I think we should get going now, Naruto," said Kakashi with an eye smile. "Hinata needs to go to her team too and as for Sakura here, you and I are gonna have a little chat outside this place. So hurry up and say goodbye to each other for now."
Naruto stared at Kakashi for a moment before turning his attention to Hinata. "Well, I guess I'll see you around, Hina-chan. What do you say to some training tomorrow?" - he asked, rubbing the back of his head.
"Maybe not now, Naruto-kun," she replied sadly. "Father will start to wonder where I've been running off to every time I go out of the compound. And I'm not sure that he would appreciate it when he finds out that I'm with you all the time."
"Oh, well that sucks. Guess I'll just wait for you to be free then!" - he stepped forward and leaned in to kiss her temple, before waving his hand goodbye as he and Kakashi walked out of the tower, leaving her staring at the electric board, which still showed all of the participants' names for the semifinals.
'I am ready for you, nii-san,' the girl thought, internally swearing. 'I will prove to you and my father that I am not the same weak girl anymore…'
Naruto Uzumaki & Hinata Hyuuga vs Neji Hyuuga & Sasuke Uchiha
Shino Aburame & Kiba Inuzuka vs Temari & Sakura Haruno
Shikamaru Nara & Dosu Kinuta vs Kankuro & Gaara
Outside the tower…
"'Hina-chan', huh?" Kakashi said in a teasing tone, causing a vein to bulge on Naruto's forehead in annoyance. "You already have a nickname for her, yet you two still aren't dating." The two (three if you include Sakura) were currently walking through Training Ground 44 on their route back to the village. In the process, Kakashi had been teasing the blonde about Hinata the whole time after leaving the tower.
"Shut up, sensei!" - Naruto screamed.
"Oh? But it's fun to tease you, Naruto!" he pressed on. "Not to mention you and Ms. Hyuuga will be partners or teammates for the upcoming semifinals! I think you two should come up with a combination ninjutsu of some sort to show that you love each other! What do you think about it?" he looked at Naruto, hoping to get answer, but he wasn't there by his side. He looked behind him and his eyes widened.
Naruto had a sadistic smile on his face as he held Kakashi's beloved green book. He lit up his right hand with blue flames like what he did during his battle with Takeru earlier, and moved the book closer to it. "NOOOOOOOO!" Kakashi screamed out, running towards him.
"I warned you, sensei," Naruto breathed out. "Now be a good boy and apologize."
Then Kakashi was kneeling in front of him, bowing down like a knight to his king. "PLEASE, NO. PLEASE, NO. PLEASE, NO. PLEASE, NO. PLEASE, NO!" he pleaded continuously out of desperation, causing Naruto to both sweat-drop and sigh, knowing he needs to endure this pain in his ears until his teacher would calm the heck down.
One hour later…
Naruto groaned and ran down a hand through his stomach. The blonde was feeling so hungry and he forgot to sneak away some food from the tower earlier. Him and Kakashi had been walking for more than an hour, and of course, any human would feel hungry after such a time. The first time he asked his jounin teacher if he had any food tucked away, Kakashi stepped away from him and held onto his green book protectively, making Naruto sweat-drop.
"Kakashi-sensei, when are we going to eat?!" - he complained loudly, grabbing his hair in frustration. "I swear I'm so hungry right now that I could eat anything!"
Kakashi stopped walking and stared at Naruto, making the latter stop as well, but wondered why his teacher was looking at him like that. "What is it, sensei?"
Kakashi laid Sakura on the ground and took a deep breath. "Well, since you say you're hungry, why don't you Meteor your way back to the village? Just bring your teammate as well." - he plainly stated, and Naruto raised an eyebrow.
"Are you serious?" he replied. Kakashi nodded. "You're not being sarcastic or something?" - Kakashi shook his head, and Naruto widened his eyes for a moment before returning to their original sizes. "Then why didn't you tell me about this before?!" - a tick mark appeared on Naruto's head. "And I had to endure a whole hour of no food!"
Kakashi shrugged. "Well, you never asked. Just use your Meteor, I need to be off somewhere, anyway."
This made Naruto wonder about it. "Where are you heading off to, sensei?"
"To the hospital. Need to inform Sasuke that he'll be teaming up with Neji Hyuuga and the two of them will be taking on you and Ms. Hyuuga and I have to check up on his condition. Because when I left him earlier, he was quite unstable and he kept struggling while rambling about his brother." - Naruto threw him a confused look. "The seal on his neck caused him to act crazy for a while, but I managed to put him to sleep before he could do anything. Now get a move on, Naruto."
The blonde was a bit hesitant to do it, as he wanted to see how Sasuke was doing after Kakashi explained the Uchiha's condition at the moment. He would always be his first friend, the guy whom he considered family being the son of his Mikoto-obasan. But nonetheless, Naruto sighed and made his way towards Sakura, who was still unconscious. "Um, sensei? Mind telling me why Sakura-chan is out cold in the first place?"
"Oh, I didn't want her to persuade me to take her to see Sasuke. And I was planning this earlier, this way she can't see you use your Meteor."
Naruto nodded and proceeded to carry Sakura piggy-back style before his body became covered in yellow light. "See you later, sensei," said Naruto as he flew off, making Kakashi sigh in relief. As soon as Naruto was gone, he brought out his green book and planted a kiss on it, before hugging it like there was no tomorrow while saying how defended his 'precious' against the yellow 'monster'.
Back in Konoha…
Due to numerous training sessions and bonding time, Naruto knew just where to drop off his pink-haired teammate. Her parents never liked it when Naruto would go even an inch near their house, much because they hated the 'demon' for what happened twelve years ago. Whenever he did drop by however with the whole team, which included Sasuke, they'll only allow Naruto to stay outside the front door, but welcome the others inside as if it were home.
Today though, the blonde didn't plan on showing up to both of her parents. What's more, if either one of them found him carrying an unconscious Sakura on his back, they'll assume he killed her and who knows what kind of ruckus that would create.
He landed in a dark alleyway as the yellow light provided by his Meteor dissipated. He made Sakura lean on the wall behind her as he took a rock and began to wrote something on the wall opposite to the pinkette. After writing his message, he gave her a weak smack on the head in order to wake her up. And she began to open her eyes slightly, he immediately used his Meteor to fly out of there.
Now that his problem with Sakura was solved, his hunger was the next problem he needed to solve. And he knew just where to stop by.
He couldn't take it anymore and began to run towards his most favorite place in the village, Ichiraku Ramen. When he got there, he spotted Zabuza and Haku eating a bowl of ramen for themselves. The two of them, including both Teuchi and Ayame from behind the counter, turned their heads at the newest customer for the day.
"Hey, brat!" exclaimed Zabuza with a grin. "How you doin?"
"H-Hey, Naruto," stuttered Haku with a small blush on her face.
"Welcome back, my boy! How was the Chuunin Exams?" said Teuchi with a smile.
"Naruto! It's so good to see you again!" said Ayame.
The blonde took a seat beside Zabuza and Teuchi walked closer to him to take his order. "The usual, my boy?" - Naruto nodded, and the old man grinned in response before getting to work on his order.
Zabuza patted him on the shoulder. "Hey, I asked you how you were doin? I heard from Hatake that you whooped your opponent's ass during your fight! Is that true?" - the blonde shrugged, causing the Demon of the Mist to cackle like a witch. "I knew you could do it, I never doubted you for a second, brat."
"Well, to be honest, he wasn't that strong anyway," explained Naruto. "It was easy to find a weakness around his attacks. And he was cocky as hell."
"Now that's what I want to hear from you!" - Zabuza patted him harder on the back, making Naruto grunt in annoyance. "I taught you well, didn't I? I'm such a great teacher!" - he flashed a sheepish grin and Naruto started muttering about how much Zabuza had changed ever since the Land of Waves.
"Congratulations, Naruto," - said Haku with an eye smile. "I'm happy for you."
"Thanks! Means a lot coming from you!" - he replied, causing Haku to blush.
"As a reward, how 'bout watching the Sage's Comet with us all night?" asked Zabuza, which got Naruto to raise an eyebrow in confusion.
"Sage's… Comet? What's that?" he asked out of curiosity.
"Seems like you don't know about it yet, Naruto," said Haku, sipping the last of her ramen before ordering another bowl. "Me and otou-sama just found out about this yesterday. Hatake-sensei said that a beautiful comet passes by Earth every 300 years and today it will show up again. It's named the 'Sage's Comet' because of it's unique shade of white that is parallel to the color of the legendary Rikuddo-Sennin. It's quite a beautiful sight according to most of the villagers. What's more, it'll pass by tonight."
Zabuza wrapped an arm around Naruto and pulled him closer to him. "Hear that, brat? We're going stargazing tonight!" - he said, laughing out loud which also caused Naruto to groan in annoyance.
Eight hours later, 8:42 P.M…
Any moment now and the comet will show up. Every villager of Konoha went out of their houses, even the shinobis wanted to watch the fabled Sage's Comet since it only passes by the planet every 300 years. While it wasn't anything important of the sort, it can't be denied that the view it provides while flying through the night sky is very pleasant to the eyes. What's more, it was even named after the legendary Sage of the Six Paths, so of course people will treat it with importance. Currently, Naruto was walking through the streets with his beloved Hinata. Earlier in the late afternoon, after they ate at Ichiraku's, Haku asked him if she could watch the comet with him, but he politely declined, saying that he'll be watching with his team. Though a bit sad, Haku forced a smile on her face but Naruto noticed it. He suggested on her watching it together with Zabuza instead, because she did consider the man a father. The Ice user agreed with his idea and left to find her father figure, who disappeared suddenly after they left the ramen restaurant.
Naruto picked her up from the Hyuuga compound earlier and she was anxious to even see him, and afterwards, the two were trying to find the perfect spot to watch the comet in the sky. While walking hand-in-hand, Hinata suddenly tensed visibly and stopped moving all of a sudden, causing Naruto to throw her a raised eyebrow. "Hey, what's the matter, Hina-chan? Are you sick or something?" he asked out of worry.
She looked at him with pleading eyes. "Naruto-kun, I'm sorry. But I can't watch the comet with you tonight." - she said with sadness in her voice, causing Naruto to widen his eyes in surprise. "I don't think my father can handle me roaming the streets at night," she looked down on the ground sadly in shame. "Naruto, I really want to watch it with you, but as soon as my father finds out that I'm not at home tonight, we're both going to be in big trouble!" Tears began flowing out of her eyes as she leaned on his chest. He tried patting her back in order to comfort her.
After about a minute, she stopped crying and looked up at the blonde with her tear-stained face and his eyes were full of worry and concern. He kissed her temple to try and stop her from sniffles. "Listen to me, it's okay," he said to her, pressing their foreheads together. "It'll be okay, got it? I promised you that all of this will be over with soon, remember? Just be patient, Hinata please. Do it for the both of us, Hinata. Okay?" - she nodded slowly. "I'll take you back to the Hyuuga compound, is that all right with you, though?"
"Y-Yes," she answered in a soft and sad voice.
"Okay, I need you to close your eyes, Hinata. Can you do that for me?" - she nodded and closed her eyes. "Don't open them until I say so." - he continued on, and she nodded again. She then felt her arms being held by Naruto and for the next few seconds that passed by, she could tell that the wind was against her so fast and she felt her feet not touching the ground anymore. She got confused but she knew that she must not open her eyes until the blonde said so. After about half a minute, she felt the ground beneath her feet once more, making her all the more confused and curious. "You can open your eyes now, Hinata."
The Hyuuga heiress opened her eyes and she noticed that she was standing just in front of the door of the Hyuuga compound. She raised an eyebrow and turned her head to the left and and right to see that she was indeed at the street where her clan's homes were. She suddenly began to think deeply to herself. 'How did I end up here?' she thought. 'One minute earlier, I was with Naruto-kun passing by Ichiraku's Ramen and then the next thing I know, I'm here? What happened?' - she questioned herself before a certain person came up in her mind. 'Okay, I'll just ask Naruto then! Maybe he knew what happened!' - she turned around, about to ask if the blonde Uzumaki knew what happened, but he wasn't there. "Naruto?" she tried calling out, but no one answered. "Naruto?" - she once again called out in a much louder voice but still, there was no answer. She scratched her hair in confusion afterwards before shrugging her shoulders. 'Strange. Where is he? Did he already leave to watch the comet himself?' - she thought, entering the compound.
XXX
"I have a much better view up here!" Naruto bragged loudly, while sitting at the top of the Fourth Hokage's face at the Hokage monument. 'I hope Hina-chan doesn't ask me questions the next time we meet,' he thought to himself. He had just used his Meteor to take Hinata back to her home and once more to fly all the way here. He wanted to be sure he gets first class when he watches the comet pass by. 'Maybe tomorrow, I can borrow my scroll from jiji and train by the forest! It tires me as well whenever I have to activate my Uchūtengan to read the scroll that I have!' - he ranted, that he didn't even notice the fabled comet had already showed up in the sky. It was only thanks to the roars of the villagers that he was snapped out of his thoughts. He covered his ears with his hands, due to how loud the screams of the people were. 'Geez, what's with the villagers tonight? It's not like —' he was cut off from his thoughts when he looked up at the sky.
"THERE IT IS!" he exclaimed happily, standing up and jumping back to the land at the top of the monument near the trees. "Wow!" he said, admiring the white-colored space rock fly through the sky. 'I'm almost tempted to fly beside it!' he thought excitedly as images of him flying with his Meteor alongside the Sage's Comet filled his mind. ' Yeah, that'd be so awesome!' - he began dancing around in joy. "It's so beautiful, Haku and Zabuza were right!" - he continued, that he didn't even notice that the white-colored space rock in the sky began to slowly change it's course.
When he finally stopped dancing, he turned back to look at the comet, only to see it completely different from before. His eyes widened when he saw the comet suddenly began to head to the direction of the village. He thought that maybe he was just dreaming, so he shook it off. However, after several minutes, it didn't change course. 'What the hell?' he thought to himself. 'Why is it headed here?! It wasn't like that earlier!' - the comet was getting closer and closer by the second.
'It will crash in the village!' - he thought out loud, until he observed that altitude the comet was crashing. 'Wait a second, it's not headed there… It's headed here to my location!' - he began panicking inside on what he should do to avoid it until and idea went to his brain.
'Wait, I think I can stop that!' - he stopped moving for a second as yellow light covered his body. 'I'm sorry, dude. But I don't care if people like watching you! I want to live!' - however, before he could take off the ground and fly towards the space rock, it did the unexpected.
It flew over his head and crashed into the trees behind him.
He raised an eyebrow as confusion took over.
Why did the comet change direction?
Why did it crash here?
Why didn't it hit him?
To answer his own questions, he began walking slowly over to the crash site of the comet but stopped within a meter of his original position earlier. He began to glance between the trees and the village, wondering what he should do at the moment. 'What should I do? If I go there, who knows what trouble I would get into… But if I don't, I'll miss this chance to see what real space rock looks like!' - he thought about it for over a minute before he finally shrugged.
'Oh, well. I'll just fly away from here before I can get caught,' he thought cockily, walking towards the trees where he last saw the comet. 'That's the advantages of having advanced eyes!' - he continued with a chuckle.
At the Hokage tower…
"Did you see that?!" said Hiruzen, shocked that the comet didn't crash into the village. However, it did end up near the top of the Hokage monument, and it's only fitting that they know where it did crash. Seeing it brought back the dreadful memory twelve years ago when Minato sacrificed himself to stop an incoming meteor from destroying the village. It hurt his heart to even reminisce about it. "Captain!" - he turned to the ANBU captain.
"Hai, Hokage-sama," he answered, kneeling on a knee as a sign of respect.
"There's no doubt that many people would head to the monument if they saw that the comet crashed there," he breathed out. "I want you to take a squad with you and prevent any incoming villager or shinobi who wish to go up the monument. I will go there myself with Kakashi and a few ANBU to investigate the crash site. Understood?"
"Hai, Hokage-sama." - he bowed his head down before standing up to head for the village with his men.
"You seem desperate in this matter, Sandaime," said Kakashi with a suspicious tone. "Is something bothering you?"
"Oh, nothing, Kakashi." - he replied in a sad tone. "It's just that this event has led me to remember a bad memory years ago." - the masked jounin raised an eyebrow before nodding in response.
"I understand, hokage-sama." - Kakashi said in an understanding tone.
"Now, let's get going. Who knows if a person has already set foot in the crash site of the Sage's Comet? I just hope that this night goes by without trouble." - he finished, before leading the way towards the Hokage monument.
At Hokage Rock…
Naruto followed the scent of smoke earlier when he smelt it, and so it led him to the crash site of the famous comet that people have been talking about in the village. He saw that the space rock was at the bottom of a small crater, engulfed with blue flames, explaining the color it was emitting earlier while still in the sky.
He jumped inside the crater, and looked at the burning rock. He furrowed his eyebrows for a moment before his eyes widened slightly.
He looked at his right hand and took a deep breath. 'I hope this works…' he thought, as his hand got covered with the same blue flames. He then walked closer to the remains of the comet, and slightly hovered his hand above the fire burning around it. His eyes widened and marvelled at what he was seeing when he started absorbing the flames through his own fire.
'Wow! Who knew I could do this?!' - he thought to himself, amazed at this new ability of his that he discovered. 'Wait, I wonder if this also applies to normal fire?! Oh, I gotta figure out tomorrow!' - he thought excitedly.
When all the blue flames had gone, he breathed out a small fireball towards one of the rock fragments around to serve as light. He began to observe the space rock that almost crashed into him earlier. He just might find something interesting with it in some way.
'What the hell? This is just like any other rock!' - he ranted. 'It looks the same and feels the same! Why do people treat it as something important if that's the case, anyway?' - he scratched his head to think of something, but nothing came to his mind. 'This is pointless, nothing's going to happen.' - he sighed and began to walk away, disappointed that nothing really happened.
'This was a complete waste of time, why did I eve —' before he could complete his rant, an idea went to his head. 'Oh, right! Why didn't I think of that before?!' - he turned back to the crash site and jumped back in. He looked at the remains of the comet and took a deep breath as he closed his eyes.
'Sure hope something awesome happens…' - he started channeling chakra in his eyes. After a few seconds, he opened them, revealing his Uchūtengan.
He looked at the space rock with his yellow eyes, and for the first few seconds, nothing happened. But after a minute, he saw white chakra seeping out of the hundred rock fragments around him.
'What's happening? This didn't happen earlier,' he thought, confused at what was happening currently. 'This is… chakra, right?' - he asked himself, raising an eyebrow at the white stuff he was seeing. He turned around and saw that all the white chakra had formed a chakra cloud that was floating in front of him.
Now, Naruto was really confused. This didn't happen earlier. When he activated his dōjutsu, this suddenly occurred. Could it be that his powers triggered this? Or is this just a big coincidence?
Feeling curious and interested at the same time, he took a step forward and tried to reach out for the cloud, but it was like smoke, so he wasn't able to grasp any of it. He scratched the back of his head in confusion.
Suddenly, the chakra cloud began to go inside him, through his stomach. He raised his eyebrow even further, wondering what caused it to go inside him. After a few moments, he just shrugged and decided to let it go. 'Ok, I don't know what's happening earlier, then all of a sudden this white stuff that looks like chakra goes inside me?' he asked himself. 'Hmm, I wonder why... Is it because I can see it? Or is it because— AAARRGGGHHH!' he suddenly screamed in pain as he fell to his knees.
The chakra cloud infused itself inside him completely. The last of it had just entered through his stomach just now. Naruto clutched his stomach in pain. 'Whar the heck's going on with me?! Why am I feeling a sick pit in my stomach?! I… can't… AAARRGGGHHH!' - he felt himself drifting into unconsciousness.
Naruto's Mindscape…
Naruto's eyes snapped open. The first thing he saw was complete darkness. "What just happened?" he said, sitting up in the process. He made a quick scan around him but there was nothing to be seen. The area around him was pitch black. He activated his Uchūtengan and tried to see if something could be seen, but there was still none. "Am I… dead?" he asked himself, before he heard a low voice in the distance.
"So you have his blood flowing inside you… Interesting…" said the low voice, which sounded like a beast of some sort.
The blonde's head turned to different directions to see who just spoke. "Who's there?!" he said, out of nervousness.
"Come closer," the voice said. Naruto didn't know what he was doing, nor was he sure that it would be the right thing to do. He found that his legs were betraying him as he stood up and followed the direction on where the voice originated.
"Tell me, Naruto Uzumaki... How did you acquire such powerful eyes?"
The blonde's eyes widened. "H-How do you know my name? And what do you know out of my e-eyes?"
"Oh, I know who you are. I've been watching from inside you this whole time, you know." - the blonde raised an eyebrow at what the voice just said. "It just so happens that I can't talk to you no matter how hard I tried to. If I only could have talked to you sooner, you wouldn't have been alone when Kushina died…"
Naruto's eyebrows furrowed when the voice mentioned his mother. His nervousness was then replaced by suspicion and confusion. "How do you know about my mother?! And what do you mean 'watching from inside of me'?! Show yourself!" - he said in a more serious tone.
A grin suddenly appeared in front of him, accompanied by red, animal-like eyes, which scared the blonde a bit. "We finally meet… Naruto…" - the voice said before light engulfed the whole place, revealing everything on sight.
As soon as the place he was in finally had light, he quickly looked around but all he saw was pitch black darkness that stretched for who-knows-how long. He looked down to see that the light source was on the water he was standing on. When he heard loud breathing in front of him, he looked up to see a mighty beast in front of him.
'Red eyes, sharp teeth, whiskers, nine tails…' - Naruto thought, examining the monster in front of him who was just plain smirking at the blonde. As soon as he figured out who was the beast, his eyes widened and he took a step back out of fear. "Wait a second!" - he said as his eyes widened. "Y-You're the Kyuubi! Mizuki told me about you!" - he exclaimed, pointing his finger at the beast.
The smirk on the fox's face disappeared and was replaced by a sinister glare. "That's right. And now that I've finally met you," he growled. "I have no choice but to eat you!" he continued, causing Naruto to curl up his knees to his chest and close his eyes while crying like a child. Kurama couldn't take it and he began to laugh uncontrollably because of Naruto's reaction to his threat.
When he noticed the loud laugh that wasn't from him, Naruto looked up to see the Kyuubi laughing like there was no tomorrow. The blonde frowned and stormed over to where the beast was and began to pull on his fur at his foor, with all signs of fear gone from him. "What gives?! Why the heck are you laughing like crazy?!" Naruto demanded.
The Kyuubi finally stopped laughing and gently brushed Naruto off his foot before clearing his throat. "Sorry, kit." - he plainly stated while shrugging. "It was priceless to see your reaction when I said I'm gonna eat you," he continued while suppressing a chuckle.
"Well, it ain't funny, so stop laughing!" - he complained, a tick mark appearing on his head and the Kyuubi just shrugged. "Anyway, how do you know my mom?" he asked suspiciously. "I think it's obvious on how you know my name, but how do you know her? Like you said, this is the first time we have met."
"You know kit, before you, your mother was my host." - he said, causing Naruto to widen his eyes.
"WHAT?!" - he screamed and Kurama smirked at his reaction. "How? She never told me about you being inside her!"
The Kyuubi crossed his arms. "Obviously, she wanted to protect you, kit. How do you think you'd react when you find out that your mother once had a demon fox inside her? You'd be scared, right?" Naruto nodded. "Exactly. Anyway, if I could have talked to you during that time, I'd have told you the truth to mess with her!" - he joked, causing Naruto to raise an eyebrow.
"Wait, what do you mean 'you could have'? Are you saying that you can't talk to me back then?"
Kurama sighed. "You don't know how long I've wanted to talk to you, kit. It's just that the stupid seal was too strong that I can't even pull you into your subcons —" - the blonde cut him off from his statement.
"What seal? I don't see any seal around here, Kyuubi." - said Naruto, taking a quick scan of his surroundings.
"Would you please let me finish?!" he retorted, causing Naruto to raise his arms up in defeat. "Now then, back to what I was saying before you interrupted me. The seal that kept me concealed from you was so strong, I couldn't do anything to get your attention."
"If it was so strong, then why isn't it here? Or were you lying about that seal?"
"We'll get to that later, kit. I have so much to tell you and we need to start from the beginning. Remember that this is the first time I talked to you, so hear me out. Got it?"
"Fine," Naruto pouted, crossing his arms. "Just make it quick but easy to understand. I may get bored and fall asleep."
"Very well, kit. Why don't you sit down because this will be a long chat between us?" Naruto sat down and began to listen to the fox in front of him. "Okay, before you became my host, your mother came first. She was known as a jinchuuriki for having a tailed beast like me inside her. She was always pushed around by other kids back then, but she never gave in to them. She didn't need my power in order to deal with them. Because of that, she earned my respect. It didn't take long before we became friends." Naruto widened his eyes.
"Ironic, actually. I'm the last being I expected to have friends with somebody. As your mother grew up, we became partners. I always help her during her battles and she became a well-known person in the world for her strength and skill. But she admitted to herself that she couldn't have made it that far without me. And in return, I started to like being sealed in a container instead of roaming around the world." - Naruto smiled as an image of Kushina appeared in his mind.
"After your father married your mother and became pregnant with you, that was when it all changed."
"What do you mean?"
"The night you were about to be born, a masked man extracted me from your mother. She was quite lucky that she was an Uzumaki. If it were a normal person to have a tailed beast extracted from them, they'll die. That man took control of my actions through his Sharingan and made me attack Konoha."
Naruto's eyebrows scrunched the moment he heard 'Sharingan'. "Sharingan? Did you mean that an Uchiha was responsible for controlling you?"
The fox nodded. "Anyway, you're father was able to defeat that masked guy and he went to Kushina. I was still mind-controlled that time and I was about to kill them, but I just can't harm the first human I've ever had. I managed to break free of his control and I demanded to be sealed again before he controls me once more. Your mother, father, and the current Hokage all decided that it was you who would be my next host. That was when your mother made me promise to look after you all the time and protect you from every danger and as you grow up, she wanted you to be like her, fighting alongside a tailed beast whom she considered a friend."
Naruto's mouth was hanging open before he coughed to compose himself. "Wow, I never thought that kaa-san was friends with you, Kyuubi!" - he said with a wide grin.
"Kurama."
Naruto raised an eyebrow. "Huh?"
"Call me by my real name, Kurama." - he said calmly.
"Sure thing!" - Naruto gave him a thumbs-up causing the fox to chuckle slightly. "So what were you saying again? You said that you promised kaa-san you'd protect me, right?" Kurama nodded. "Then why did you show yourself now? Why right now? Not during the times I needed help?"
"Don't look at me, blame your father, kit." He crossed his arms and looked away. "The seal he made was so strong that I couldn't even lend you some chakra nor my power even temporarily."
"Really? So that's why you weren't able to talk to me…" - he started to tap his chin with his index finger. "Who was my dad? From what you said, he must be really strong then."
The Kyuubi looked back at Naruto. "It's not my place to tell you, Naruto. But I can tell you that it's been a long time ever since he died. He sacrificed himself for the village, and he passed on as a hero."
"Oh…" Naruto breathed out, with a hint of sadness in his voice. He may not have known Minato, but from what Kurama is trying to say, his father must be a great guy and a loyal shinobi to the village.
"Anyway, I didn't want to talk to you so you could mope around for your parents, kit." Naruto looked at him with a confused expression on his face. "Look, I know you want to see your parents, both of them, but this is much bigger than that. It's about your eyes."
"You know about them?" asked Naruto curiously.
"Of course I do," Kurama answered with a tick mark appearing on his head. "I have eyes, you know and I can see everything you see as well, so stop treating like I'm some idiot who doesn't know anything because you're clearly the idiot here!" - he remarked, causing Naruto to shrink in fear.
"Sorry," he weakly said in a high-pitched voice.
Kurama took a deep breath. "Anyway, you remember the scroll that you received, right?" Naruto nodded. "Do you understand everything that was written in there?" The blonde nodded again. "You understand how it got to generation after generation, right?" Naruto nodded once more. "But do you how your eyes were created, kit?"
Naruto thought about it for a moment before shaking his head. "Now that you mention it, I don't know how the old man made these eyes. It didn't say anything in the scroll either, Kurama."
The fox narrowed his eyes and began to think deeply. "Just as I thought. This is surely interesting…"
"Hey, what are you rambling on about? I'm right here, you know."
Kurama looked at Naruto with a serious expression on his face. "Kit, do you remember the white stuff that you saw come out of the rocks earlier?" he asked and Naruto nodded. "Do you know what it is?"
The blonde shrugged his shoulders. "Pretty sure it's just smoke or something…"
"Kit, you don't know how wrong you are."
"Huh?"
"That white stuff earlier wasn't smoke. It was chakra." - he explained, causing Naruto to widen his eyes in shock.
"How can you be sure?"
Kurama grunted. "I know that chakra when I feel it. The moment you tried to touch it earlier, I knew whose chakra it belonged to. I think it's the reason why the seal that was holding me prisoner here suddenly disappear. That chakra was so powerful that it overpowered the seal your father made. It was too familiar and it brought back memories for me."
"What do you mean?"
"Kit, the chakra that just went inside your body was none other than the chakra of the Sage of the Six Paths himself." - the blonde's eyes were now as wide as saucers as he tried to take every bit of detail in.
"W-WHAT? How?! T-That doesn't even make sense! I mean, why would the Sage of the Six Paths' chakra be attracted to me?! What, am I some sort of magnet for chakra to be attracted to?!"
"I don't know about that yet, kit. But I can guarantee you that the chakra that went inside you is the chakra of the Rikuddo Sennin. I would know since he was my father." When he saw Naruto about to ask what he meant by that, he raised a hand to stop him for speaking up. "Yes, he was my father. Not biologically, but in truth, he created me. Long ago, the Rikuddo Sennin made nine separate living entities of chakra that he called the Tailed Beasts. I was one of them because I am the Nine-Tails. The other Tailed Beasts may be either roaming this world at the moment or they are sealed inside jinchuurikis like you. I know when it is the chakra of the Rikuddo Sennin when I feel it. Did you get it?" - Naruto nodded. "Are you still going to doubt me again?" he asked in a low voice.
"N-No," said Naruto quickly, causing the fox to smirk. Naruto pouted and looked away before a memory flashed back into his mind. "Well, since you said you helped kaa-san during her battles, do you think you could help me as well?" - Naruto tried to look as innocent as possible, hoping the beast would approve of it.
Kurama eyed him from top to bottom for a few moments before clearing his throat. "No," he stated blankly, making Naruto's face drop in disappointment and surprise.
"May I ask why?" - Naruto tried sounding sweet and kind, which Kurama could tell that it was obviously fake, forcing him to bite back a chuckle.
"First, I'm not some sort of secret weapon you have inside you. Second, you have powerful eyes, what would you need me for? And third, I promised your mother that I would let you use my full power when you're worthy of it."
"And what is it gonna take for me to be worthy of it?"
"When I say so." - he said mockingly, causing Naruto to grunt loudly in response. "Aw, don't cry you big baby," he continued. "I can still lend you a little bit of my power and chakra when during in times of emergency." - he pressed on, making Naruto smile a bit but retain the main look of disappointment on his face.
"Are you going to help me train regarding my strange powers, though?" he asked and Kurama shook his head sadly.
"I'm afraid not, kit. To be honest, I'm still intrigued with what your eyes can do. I would love to help you, but I still need to learn more about your eyes because this is the first time I've seen dōjutsu as such. Ask me again once I get familiar with your abilities, then I will help you train. Got it?"
"Yeah, sure no problem!" - Naruto flashed his grin and thumbs-up.
"Good, we're on speaking terms then. You should get back to your own world, kit." - the fox yawned loudly and lied on his stomach, feeling tired. "I'm done for the night, I'll see you tomorrow morning…" - he finished, quickly falling asleep.
Back in the real world…
Naruto's eyes slowly opened and he immediately felt cold soil underneath him. He sat up and saw that he was at the bottom of the small crater where the comet crashed earlier. He saw his hands flaring off orange chakra and he immediately recognized it as Kurama's chakra due to the distinct color and feeling. 'I guess I wasn't dreaming...' Naruto thought to himself. 'Woah, I never thought that the Kyuubi was actually a pretty decent guy... From all the stories I've heard, he was described as —' he was cut off from his thoughts when he heard different voices in the distance.
"Where did it crash?"
"It must be around here somewhere..."
"I think I saw it over there!"
"What about over here?"
The blonde turned his head to the direction where the voices originated and he narrowed his eyes. 'I can't let people see me here. I gotta get home...' - he finished, covering himself in bright light before flying out of the place, just as the voices drew in even closer.
When Hiruzen, Kakashi, and the ANBU squad the brought with them finally arrived at the crash site, they were all relieved to see that it didn't cause any forest fires or anything worse than that. What got Kakashi and the Hokage's attentions were a wisp of yellow light in the air that they could see clearly. The two first looked at each other before Hiruzen cleared his throat. "Captain, please search the area," he said, turning to the ANBU captain.. "We have to be sure that nothing bad really happened here." The ANBU nodded and all of them split up in different directions to begin their search. When they had gone, Kakashi looked at the Sandaime.
"Do you think Naruto might have —" before he could speak any further, Hiruzen had already raised a hand to stop him.
"It's obvious that the boy went here, Kakashi," said Hiruzen. "That yellow light we saw earlier is no doubt the product of his Meteor, my boy."
"What do you think he was doing here, then?"
"How should I know, Kakashi?" - the hokage replied, kicking away a small rock fragment of the comet. "We can only hope that that boy doesn't do anything out of place, don't you think?" Kakashi nodded. "I wonder what he was doing here, though."
"He could have been watching the comet from here, Hokage-sama."
"I already know that, I am talking about what he was doing here in this crater we're standing on." - the masked jounin looked around him for a moment before he shrugged his shoulders. "By the way, Kakashi, are you aware that Jiraiya would be returning to the village tomorrow?"
"Really?" - said Kakashi in slight disbelief. He had always been a fan of Jiraiya's Icha Icha series and he reads his books everywhere he goes. "YES! ANOTHER BOOK FOR —" before he could finish his statement, the hokage was already narrowing his eyes at him, causing Kakashi to scratch his head in embarrassment before clearing his throat. "And what of Jiraiya-sensei? I can tell that this is an important matter that needs to be discussed, Hokage-sama."
"Oh, you'll find out tomorrow, my boy..." said Hiruzen with a small smile.
The following day, Naruto's Apartment...
Naruto awoke with a start. After a kip-up to get himself out of bed, he went to his kitchen to prepare himself a quick bowl of ramen before he would head to the old man's office to ask for his scroll so that he could train. After flying out of the crash site of the Sage's Comet, he stopped out over at the Hyuuga compound first to check on Hinata to see if she did got home safely. Afterwards, he headed back to his apartment to call it a night, but not before flying away from an angry mob of villagers, like always. "Hey, Kurama. You up?" - he asked the tailed beast inside him.
The Kyuubi opened only one eye to indicate he was awake. "What do you want, kit?" he replied.
"How do you feel now that we finally met?"
"What kind of a question is that?"
"Nothing, I just want to know your take on our situation right now. I mean, now we can talk to each other, not like back then, where I had no idea that you wanted to talk to me so badly."
"Hmph... can't say I'm too happy that I can talk to you now, kit," he grumbled. "But I am relieved that the seal holding me back is gone for good. I guess I'll have to thank Rikuddo-jiji for his chakra, then!" - he started laughing like a crazy person, causing Naruto to sweat-drop.
"Sure thing, you big softie. I was just trying to —"
"Be quiet, kit." - said Kurama quite defensively. "I can sense someone's presence here in your house." Naruto raised an eyebrow. "I can't put my finger on it, but it seems as if this person wants to talk to you... Wait, I'm not sure if it is a person at all..."
"And where do you think this person is, then?" Naruto asked.
"Just waiting in your living room. Be careful, though. I don't think it's a wise decision to —"
"Relax, Kurama!" Naruto assured. "From the way you described it, seems like Hina-chan came over early to visit me!" said Naruto confidently. "She must be really anxious to see me since we weren't together last night!" - he finished, before leaving for his living room.
"Kit, I don't know if —" before Kurama could even continue, Naruto cut him off.
"Don't worry, Kurama! I got this!"
"Fine. Don't come crying to me when the person outside is actually an enemy..." the fox grumbled as he closed both of his eyes, sleep taking over him.
As soon as Naruto left the kitchen and went to the living room, he closed his eyes and threw his arms out wide. "Nice to see you, as always, Hina-chan!" he greeted happily. "How about a hug?!" A few seconds passed, but nothing happened and he started to get confused. When he finally decided to open his eyes, there was nothing in the room except for a weird-looking bird that perched on the couch.
It was about the size of an eagle, and its feathers were of the color orange, making it more unique from other birds in the whole world because it resembled flames. It had a small crest of feathers on its head, and Naruto could tell that its wings were large just by looking at them. There were also three small fingers at the top of each wing, similar to that of a dragon's. Its legs looked like half the size of its whole body. Its talons on its three-fingered feet looked sharp that it could probably kill a person with just a few strikes. Its face was clean, with no feathers ruining it features. Its beak was about as long as the size of its head and but what's most distinct about the creature was its eyes. They were of four different colors that divided its pupil. Orange, brown, blue, and white. In simple words, it was a phoenix.
When Naruto noticed that the bird was just plain staring at him, he walked slowly over to it and scratched his head. "Hey there, little guy!" - he tried sounding innocent, although he wondered how he would make the bird go away without provoking it, as he didn't want his home to be ruined with bird poop. "You got lost, little one? Do you want me to take you to your nest?" What happened next was indescribable for the blonde.
The weird-looking bird bowed its head and knelt to its knees, like a servant to its king, causing Naruto to scrunch his eyebrows in confusion. Even Kurama, who was awake, watched on confused. "Master Uzumaki," the bird spoke in a neutral tone, causing both Naruto and Kurama to widen their eyes in shock at the phoenix. "It's good to finally see you."
"Y-Y-YOU C-CAN TALK?!" said Naruto, taking a few steps back out of shock. The bird nodded its head. "A-Are you s-some kind of T-Tailed Beast or something like Kurama?! How can you talk?!" - he asked, unable to comprehend that the bird just spoke.
"I assure you, I am nothing like Kurama, Matatabi, Gyuki, or the other tailed beasts." - the phoenix continued with its blank tone, making both Naruto and Kurama widen their eyes even more, especially the fox. Just how did the bird know about him or the other bijuu?! And how can it even talk?! It was just an ordinary animal! "Instead, I am a phoenix. An elemental phoenix. I can control and manipulate the five natural elements around us. You can call me 'Mika'. I was sent here to serve as your summon, Master Uzumaki."
"WOAH, WOAH, WAIT JUST A MINUTE!" - Naruto waved his arms frantically as if to stop the bird from speaking. He took a few deep breaths in order to calm down. "Now, what in the name of the Sage are you talking about, uhm, Mika?" - he asked in a calm tone, while trying to remember the phoenix's name.
"I was told to give you this as soon as I meet you," answered Mika, using her fingers to pull out a small roll of paper from the small bag it was carrying on it back before handing it over to Naruto. The blonde took it and began to read its contents.
I see that you have finally gotten familiar to the Uchūtengan, young Naruto! I can't deny how proud I am of your growing strength but this is only the start of your journey. There is still so much for you to learn, and for that, I am giving you one of the gifts that I told you about the last time I spoke to you. She is an elemental phoenix named Mika. She will be your summon and will gladly help you throughout your journey. Her abilities are not to be underestimated, for her race is one of a kind. Do not treat her like a pet, but rather as a friend and partner, like the bijuu inside you, Kurama. Take care of her and I will write to you again soon. May the guidance of the stars shine brightly upon you always, young Uzumaki.
P.S. Mika is not that familiar with the cultures and traditions of your planet, Naruto. Do you think you can teach her some of the ways on how you people there live your lives? Being an old man, I no longer have the strength nor time to teach her... Please? And also, I told you that I will give you two gifts, and Mika is the first. Be patient, for you shall receive the second one in time.
As soon as Naruto finished reading the contents of the letter, he finally understood. He looked at Mika, who was still staring at him with a neutral face. He glanced back at the paper, before looking at Mika once again. He did this several times before he finally came up with his resolve. Taking a deep breath, he walked closer over to the bird again and grinned sheepishly. "So we're gonna be partners from now on, huh?" - Mika nodded. "Well, first things first, the name's Uzumaki Naruto! Nice to meet you, Mika!" - he announced lively.
Next on The Celestial Shinobi…
"He's… my godfather?"
"The Kyuubi can't be trusted, Naruto…"
"What do you mean, you 'already have a summon'?"
"And who else knows about your eyes?"
CHAPTER 11: HELLO, ERO-SENNIN!
Things to remember: The Uchūtengan was created by mixing Hagoromo's blood with the energy of heavenly bodies, explaining how Naruto has the Rikuddo Sennin's blood in him, and how it attracted the comet. Mika was the 'first gift' from the old man that sent the scroll in Chapter 4, if you look back. The 'second gift' is still to come.
And finally, Naruto and Kurama meet each other! Not only that, the chakra of Hagoromo that came from the comet was absorbed by Naruto! What would this do to our blonde hero? Will it grant him Six Paths powers? The Rinnegan? Or something else? And what exactly is the story behind the comet? Mika, the Elemental Phoenix of Naruto, makes her debut! How will she affect Naruto's life? How can she help Naruto in his battles? Oh, this'll be good! There's one more gift left from the old man that sent the letter, though? I wonder what would it be? The semifinals round has been announced and they're going to be tag team battles! It'll be Naruto and Hinata taking on Neji and Sasuke! How could that play out? Temari and Sakura team up against Shino and Kiba! Gaara and Kankuro vs Shikamaru and Dosu! How were they? Cause for me, it'll be epic once I get to write them fight scenes. I'm so excited!
Even though, it was only one, there was still someone who asked for teasers. Okay, well the three teasers I'm showing you will be in chronological order. (Training at Turtle Island arc, Restoration of Konoha arc, and Rise of the Uzumaki Empire arc, acronyms). Take note that these will just last until we get to the Turtle Island arc. Enjoy the first set of teasers! (Bonus points if you manage to figure out what's happening in the teasers, guys!)
TATI: "Art is an explosion, wouldn't you say, Uchiha?"
ROK: "Where did you all gone off to for the past 5 years?!"
ROUE: "Obito, Rin, is that you?!"
And that's it! Anyway, for the next chapter, Jiraiya will be making his debut and how would he react to the fact that Naruto both has a dōjutsu and is friends with Kurama? Will he be shocked? Most likely. Naruto and Hinata are teaming up against Neji and Sasuke! How could this play out? Oh, it'll be unpredictable! Temari and Sakura teaming up?! Sounds weird, if you ask me... Dosu and Shikamaru? Meh, not interested. PLEASE REVIEW GUYS, I NEED YOUR FEEDBACK AND OPINION ON THIS CHAPTER…" Don't forget to follow/fave this fanfic if you liked it. Goodbye… and good night! BANG! *too sweet gesture*
-Lance