TRT16: Path of a Shinobi! – By DS Wynne


Disclaimer: R1/2, SM, ST, Naruto and other properties belong to the respective owners.

Note: This is a multi-genre story. This is also a 1000-plus word edition.

Special Note: This story takes place shortly after the first "Robotech War".


Part 11


It's been a week since the death of Jiraiya the Senin, a few days since his funeral. In spite of his wacky antics, Jiraiya was still a beloved member of Konohagakure. The village inhabitants were mourning the loss in various ways, ranging from anger to sadness. Even the various ladies of the community who were annoyed at the thought of the so-called "Erotic Sage" peeping on them, were saddened by his untimely departure. Meanwhile, the village elders and local clan leaders in Hinokuni ("Land of Fire") Prefecture have become concerned about the implications over the cause of Jiraiya's death. And that is why an emergency meeting within the Konoha Council was taking place, where Ranma gave his complete intelligence report...

"This is terrible," said Elder Homura Mitokado, as he adjusted his glasses. "The loss of one of the Sanin on an important mission is…tragic."

Pause.

"At least you were able to retrieve one of Pain's bodies for examination, while capturing a prisoner for Ibuki's interrogation as evidence of the threat posed by the Hidden Rain Village."

Ranma remembered as he (as "Ranko Tendo") escaped the village with Orochi, in an effort to help a dying Jiraiya, Pain's other paths tried to ambushed them, most likely brought back to life by Pain's Heaven and Hell Paths somehow. In many ways, he blamed himself for getting caught up in the fight, and felt that had he had not, Jiraiya could have still been saved. Nevertheless, in addition of capturing prisoners earlier, a path of Pain was captured as well…

"What's more tragic is that this criminal Pain is now threatening our village," said Elder Koharu Utatane, as she continued to knit. She then stops, and faces the Jade King, the one who is lord over the Five Great Shinobi Countries.

"Well, Lord Ranshin? You were entrusted to keep the peace, and have failed in this endeavor."

Ranma was ignoring this accusation, as he continues to stare out the window…

"Did you not hear me?"

"My father hears just fine," said Lord Kenshin Rantsu, the present 'Lord of Fire', and the one who is directly over the Hokage, who is under the oversight of the Konoha Council. "And if you have a problem with my father's tenure, you can take it up to me."

"Very well, Lord Ranshin," said Elder Danzo Shimura, as he adjusted in his seat. "Ever since you were placed in charge over our nation, the loss of life has increased. I mean no disrespect, of course."

That's when the Hokage spoke up.

"Need I remind Elder Danzo that had 'Root' been less autonomous we would have had better intelligence?" Lady Tsunade said, as she grits her teeth.

"Are you accusing me of being selfish?" Danzo said angrily.

"I'm accusing you of negligence, Elder. You never liked the fact that you were passed over as Hokage repeatedly, and have taking only the slimmest of measures to protect the interest of this village."

"If I'm guilty of your accusations, then you should also blame the Rantsu clan," Danzo said.

"Us?" Kenshin said. "What did we do?"

"You hid the fact that your clan possesses the Sharingan 'bloodline trait', but hid this fact from everyone."

Pause.

"So how many other Sharingan users are they, Lord Ranshin? And should I let everyone know that the Fourth Hokage is really-"

Ranma turns towards to look at Danzo with steel in his eyes.

"I might as well tell you all the following, since we are here together," Ranma said, as he turns to hand each of the participants a sealed envelope. "My wife and I are going to take the twins on a training journey, since we know that Pain is going to come for them to take the Null-Tail and Nine-Tail demons from them. In the mean time, each of you will have a set of instructions to follow to the letter, in case Pain does indeed come here."

"So, you're abandoning us?" Danzo asked.

"No. The envelopes contain contingency plans, if and when Pain shows up. Furthermore, I've asked a few of my friends to look after things while we're away, under Tsunade's direction."

"You don't think we can protect our own village?" asked Homura.

"It's not about me not thinking that; it's about having the people here who can deal with the Heaven and Hell Paths, while the rest of you prepare the village for Pain's attack," Ranma said.

"We'll do our best, Dad," Kenshin said.

"Do better than that," Ranma said somberly. "Pain will not stop at nothing until he inflicts misery on everyone."

"But why?" Tsunade asked, concerned for her daughter Tsuna.

"As the saying goes: 'Misery loves company'. As far as everyone is concerned, if everyone is equally traumatized, then no one will dare harm another."

"Because of empathy."

"Precisely. I don't buy that argument for a second, but that's the kind of psychology we're facing at the moment, so be prepared…"

Pause.

"Anyway, I've already made the arrangements with my...friends, so I won't be around to see to their arrival. And Elder Danzo? Don't involve them in your affairs. Understood?"

"Of course, Jade King," Danzo said with quiet anger. "You have my word..."

'I wonder about that,' Orochi said, as she listened from the roof above Tsunade's window. 'But, we'll see.'

After the meeting with the Council of Elders, Ranma, Kenshin and Tsunade relaxed a bit with Shizune serving beverages.

"I don't like that man," Tsunade said, as she breathed a sigh, as she tended to her daughter, Tsuna, as the toddler ate her snack.

"Who?" Kenshin asked.

"Danzo, who else?" Ranma said, as he continued to write some signed documents for legal purposes. "And he certainly hates the Rantsu clan's overt influence with the Five Great Shinobi Countries…"

With a sigh, Ranma sets his pen down.

"There. All the necessary documents have been signed."

"What did you sign, Lord Ranshin?" Shizune asked.

"Well, as the executor of Master Jiraiya's estate, I want to make sure that all of his debt has been paid," Ranma said. "Plus, it gives me license to peep of women in the local baths, which I will do so to fulfill Jiraiya's legacy."

Shizune gives off a shocked expression.

"I'm just kidding, Miss Shizune," Ranma said with a grin. "It's times like these that one must find a happy medium."

"Well, just remember that you are the Jade King," Tsunade said. "And my daughter's father. I don't want her to grow up burdened by your antics-"

"Weeeeeeee!" said Orochimaruko, as she surfed on a river of snakes as she passed by Tsunade's office, which was on the second floor of the main hall. She was practicing a new summoning jutsu called "Waves of the Serpent", which would be used to overwhelm armies.

"Or hers," Tsunade said, as she twitched one eye, causing Tsuna to giggle.

"She is the least of your concern, Tsunade," Ranma said, as he gets up. "Now, I want to talk to Tsunade alone."

"Lady Tsunade?" Shizune asked out of concern.

"Yes, I need to speak to Lord Ranshin alone," Tsunade said, as she picks up her daughter. She then turns towards Tsuna.

"Go with Shizune," Tsunade said gently.

"Okay!" Tsuna said, as she hugged her mother, before being passed over to Shizune.

"Dad?" Kenshin asked his father. "You're still coming over for dinner? Yaku fixes a mean ox stew."

"Yeah, I'll be over," Ranma said. "In fact, everyone will be."

"Got it," Kenshin said, as he leaves the room with Shizune and his baby sister Tsuna. "See ya, Pops…"

After the three leaves, Ranma turns towards Tsunade.

"Are you ready to make the pact?" Ranma asked.

"Honestly, I don't know," Tsunade said, as she walks over towards the Jade King. "But if you're right…"

"It's just a precaution," Ranma said, as he began to take off his clothes. "Naruto and Renata's training could take days…maybe weeks, depending on their progress. Should Pain decides to make a move before we return, I want to make sure that the pact that I made with Jiraiya is made with you."

"But…is being nude necessary for the pact to be made?" Tsunade said, as she completely disrobes.

"No, but it is a lot of fun," Ranma grinned.

"If you weren't my husband, I'd send you into orbit for that remark," Tsunade said, thinking about the fact that while mourning for the death of her old friend Jiriaya, she made the decision to secretly marry Ranma, so that their daughter will be legally recognized as a Rantsu.

"Well, I'll just send you into orbit in other ways," as he embraced his newest wife.

"Which is why I even bother putting up with this nonsense," Tsunade said, as she began to melt in Ranma's arms…

The next day…

"Alright, Pop!" Naruto Uzumaki yelled excitedly. "Let's go!"

The knuckle-headed shinobi pushed up his backpack on his pack while waiting for the rest of his family to arrive at main gate of the Hidden Leaf Village.

"Calm down, Naruto," Sakura said, as she, Ino, Hinata, Lady Tsunade (with Tsuna in arms), Kakashi-sensei, Anko-sensei and Iruka-sensei saw the Rantsu patriarch and family off on their training. Even Naruto's rival Sasuke and Naruto's somewhat "apprentice" Konohamaru were there to see Naruto off.

"But I can't wait until I get to training."

"I heard the training will be tough," Ino said.

"Oh, Naruto, please careful!" Hinata said with worry.

Sakura, Ino and Hinata were Naruto's designated fiancées, with varying degrees of results. Sakura was ambivalent about her feelings towards Naruto, Ino was the most adamant against the arrangement and Hinata was the most enthusiastic about the arrangement…

"I finally get to learn new things that use to help protect the village from the guys who killed the Pervy Sage."

Naruto turns towards Sasuke.

"I bet you're jealous of me for this extra training, huh?" Naruto grinned.

"Like I'd be jealous of you," Sasuke said with a smirk. "And besides, I already had my advanced training."

"Huh?"

"Sasuke was promoted to the rank of 'Jonin' this week," Kakashi said.

"What?"

"Congratulations, Sasuke-kun!" Sakura said.

"Whatever," Sasuke scoffed. "Rank, is one thing; skill is another."

"The reason why Sasuke was promoted from Tokubetsu Jonin to full Jonin is because of his leadership experience," Tsunade said. "I gave him credit when he lead the Teen Titans for a semester in America.

Previously, Sasuke, Naruto's twin sister Renata was promoted to the rank of Tokubetsu Jonin because of their specialization. Sasuke had gotten a promotion for mastering the Mangekyo Sharingan without the need to take another Sharingan user's eye (a technique developed by Ranma), while Renata perfected her Wind-style Ninjutsu. Naruto, as accomplished as he was in the shinobi arts, as yet to specialize, and all Chunin, including Naruto, had put in time to teach Genin and academy students, either as instructors or assistant instructors. It took much time and considerable patience on the part of Naruto's parents to instill enough discipline in their son to see the value of having a well-rounded education, which is why Naruto was promoted to Chunin in the first place. Otherwise, Naruto would still be a Genin…

Still, if Naruto masters the next level of his training, he could get that promotion to Tokubetsu Jonin, should he survive the training.

"Humph," Naruto said.

"Look at it this way," Iruka-sensei said. "If you succeed, I'll treat you to some beef bowl ramen."

"Can I have two bowls?"

"Knock yourself out."

"Alright!"

Just then, Ranma, Orochi and the rest of the Rantsu clan walk up to the main gate.

"Ah, you're here," Anko-sensei said to her student. "You're excited, Renata?"

"Yep!" Renata said bubbly. Renata looked like Naruto's girl form, without the whiskers…

"Well, little brother, I wish you best of luck," Kenshin said.

"You did the training?" Naruto asked.

"No, I never did, actually," Kenshin said. "But, I'm not bad with the skills, you know."

"You'll be the first Rantsu after me to do this training," Ranma said.

"So, will I do the training, too?" Renata asked.

"You're training will be slightly different in focus," Orochi said. "But, you'll have the benefit of being your brother's equal, if you succeed."

"Okay…"

"Good luck!" Yaku said.

"Take care, grandpa!" Liru said, as she waved happily.

"Kiddo, I will," Ranma said. He then gets on his knees.

"You take care of yourself, Genko," Ranma said, as he hugs Genko.

"And be good," Orochi said, as she gave a hugged her daughter as well.

"I will, Father, Mother," Genko said, as she hugged Ranma back.

"Come on!" Naruto said. "I want to get started on the training!"

"Fine, fine," Ranma said, as he and Orochi stand back. He then directs everyone to stand back.

"Okay, everyone, be good," Orochi said.

"Ken, you're the man of the house," Ranma said.

"I find that sexist," Tsunade said. "But, whatever."

"Bye-bye!" Tsuna said, as she waved good-bye.

"Bye-bye!" Ranma said with a grin. "Okay, everyone, stand back…we're off to the Immaterial World. Next Stop: Sage Training."

"How can we contact you in case Pain shows up early?" Kenshin asked.

"I'll leave a messenger frog behind, just in case," Ranma said, as he places an index and middle finger on his forehead. "Bye."

FLASH!

And everyone was gone.

Tbc.