"Normal Speech"
-Thoughts-
"Demon Speech"
"Jutsu!"
XXXXXXXXXX
Chapter 11: A Bet's Aftermath
Otogakure might have been made by a villain, one that not even the cruelest of criminals would dare consider working with outside of personal preservation or fear, but beyond that it did what many hidden villages failed to do. It stayed hidden.
The official sight for Otogakure was located in the Land of Rice, but not even the greenest genin could even begin to think that the front that stood there actually was Oto, much less a location where Orochimaru would stay at. Separated into numerous underground and offshore sights, the real Oto and Orochimaru's personal creation was harder to pin down and locate than even the famed needle in a hay stack. He never stayed in one place, moving from one spot to another at least once a month, and while his army of shinobi was large, there were more than enough hideouts to split them up and keep out of sight from the rest of the world with. Should any of the hideouts ever be found, it was most likely to be destroyed mere moments later by some of the lackeys that he would always keep within them for such an occasion. And should any of the Oto shinobi be caught by another village then a slit throat would be what awaited them.
Orochimaru was easily marked as a snake, ranging from his personal appearance and skills to his entire mindset, and Otogakure reflected the nature of its creator in its elusiveness and danger.
And speaking of him, deep within one of his various lairs, the very man sat quietly in the darkness of his throne room. Candles littered the room, providing minimal lighting but also strengthening the shadows, and with the darkness disguising his form Orochimaru looked more like a demon serpent waiting to strike than a human. Bandages however covered his form, a simple grey kimono atop them, and the only thing left uncovered happened to a patch of silver hair atop his head and his left yellow serpentine eye. It flickered down to his hand, which twitched uncertainly upon the armrest of his throne. Slowly it moved, trembling but gaining more strength as it went, and once it was eye level to him he slowly squeezed the hand shut into a tight fist. Pleased with the test, he let the arm drop and his fingers uncurl, returning his gaze forward once more into the dim light of the room.
"Kabuto, I do hope you're not trying to sneak up on me." Orochimaru said with a hint of humor.
The shadows behind his throne seemed to bulge, and then from the darkness appeared Kabuto. Adjusting his glasses with a finger, Kabuto smirked and walked around to the front of the throne. He bowed. "I was merely seeing if you have regained all your strength Orochimaru-sama. I am happy to see that is the case."
"Yes, I am pleased as well." Orochimaru sneered under his bandages. "But to think that boy would dare do that to me! Filthy Uchiha, if I did not require the Sharingan to complete my plans!" Killer intent flooded the room to complete his unspoken threat. It died down quickly however, and once it did Kabuto adjusted his glasses again as Orochimaru fixed him with a glare. "Well? Get on with it boy! Have you obtained what I have asked for?"
"Yes Orochimaru-sama." Kabuto pulled out a small scroll, and after handing it to his master he began speaking of what lay inside of it. "It took a large amount of digging and luck from our spies, but I believe we finally have a solid lead on the location of Kazegakure. Interestingly enough, it appears that they are based somewhere within the Land of Water."
"They would dare claim a hold in Kirigakure's territory? What a foolish thing for them to do, as if the Land of Whirlpool wasn't proof enough of what Kiri thinks of other villages in their waters."
"What do you mean Orochimaru-sama?"
"Ah yes…" Orochimaru, satisfied with what he had read in the scroll, closed it and leaned back slightly in his throne. "You've never been to Kiri before, never read their hidden archives, so I doubt you would know of this. You must've only been around 2 or so at the time too…" Orochimaru rubbed his chin in thought. "The Land of Whirlpool, to the outside world and indeed for a long time, was simply a booming economic island bordering the Land of Lightning and the Land of Water. But after a while some of the inhabitants got tired of Kiri's ruthless ways, so they worked in secret to begin their own hidden village to compete against it. Suffice to say, Kiri was not so…fond, of such an idea."
"But…I have never heard of this Land of Whirlpool."
"Exactly"
The room fell silent at that, Kabuto analyzing the information he had just learned and Orochimaru basking in old memories of a certain survivor of the Land of Whirlpool, the only one to ever have been confirmed. He frowned under his bandages once those memories led up to a certain blonde Hokage. "That's enough for history lessons right now. I have read all there is in the scroll, but why don't you repeat them to me and give me your own…opinion Kabuto."
Kabuto smirked at the silent undertone his master's words held. "Yes Orochimaru-sama. As I originally said, we have seemingly located Kazegakure within the Land of Water. Such a discovery however was only truly confirmed once I was able to track down a number of informants who had seen several people wearing the Akatsuki cloaks moving out of the land and toward Konoha. But up until these sightings there has not been a single indication that Kaze exists at all within those waters." A thoughtful look crossed Kabuto's face. "If I may dare say Orochimaru-sama, I believe Kazegakure might have a level of secrecy that rivals Otogakure's possibly."
"Hmm…" Orochimaru gazed over at a large map of the Elemental Continent that lay hanging upon the right wall of the room. "But even which such secrecy, Kiri is showing far too much…kindness. They are a quite paranoid from all the long years of civil war and the bloodline genocide, and even I found it hard to enter that land. To think they wouldn't search with even the slightest hint of another village in their waters…"
"I believe I might know the reason Orochimaru-sama." Orochimaru gazed at Kabuto once more, and with a quick motion of his hand he ordered Kabuto to continue. "Kirigakure, in fact all of the Land of Water, has practically cut itself off entirely from the rest of the world. The fog that haunts the waters has thickened considerably, making passage between any of the islands near impossible, and any outside trade has dropped to almost nothing at all. A few of my spies have even speculated that there might not even be anyone alive anymore on some islands because of this." Kabuto adjusted his glasses. "But that was proven…wrong, once I sent some of them off to check and see. They disappeared into the fog and several days later I could only find their remains inside of their drifting boats, or never at all."
"Hmm…so they have retreated from the outside world completely now? They were always so reclusive, but to think…" Orochimaru muttered a few ineligible words and then raised his voice again. "Perhaps their genocide and civil wars have finally reached a peak? It certainly took a while if that's the case, but with the Seven Swordsman dead at their own hands and the bloodline clans not having enough time to train their fighters properly…"
"What should we do about all of this Orochimaru-sama?"
Orochimaru closed his one visible eye in thought, the room falling silent as he did so. Candlelight dimmed and brightened, their shadows dancing over the two occupants and casting both in a more evil light. Kabuto stood at attention the whole time, waiting patiently for his master to give a command over the matters at hand. Finally as the candles began to reach their ends, Orochimaru's eye snapped open again and an amused glint appeared in it.
"Your information has indeed been informative Kabuto, excellent work." The man stood and slowly walked to the large double doors of the throne room. With one hand touching and ready to open them, he gave his commands over his shoulder. "I want you to personally head to Kiri and deliver a message to them."
Kabuto bowed. "Very well, what shall this message be Orochimaru-sama, and may I ask how I shall accomplish this?"
"The message is fairly simply. Inform them of Kazegakure's presence within their lands, and be sure to press for a future favor in return for this information. It wouldn't do to part with this info without gaining something more beyond the destruction of Itachi's little village." Orochimaru opened one of the doors and stepped halfway out of the room. He turned to gaze at Kabuto with his visible serpent eye. "And as for getting there…tell me, what is Kimimaro's condition?"
Kabuto instantly caught on to his master's plan, and so with a smirk and quick adjustment of his glasses he replied. "Kimimaro's disease has finally caught up to him and I'm afraid he'll be bedridden for the rest of his life. However…he seems to have gained a strong 'mind over body' control with himself and can perhaps still function for a short period of time. With my assistance in prolonging this, and careful avoidance of any battling, I believe he should be able to last around a month after leaving the medical bay." The shadows danced around Kabuto's face and darkened his smirk considerably. "How funny, I believe that gives him just enough time to guide me in and out of the Land of Water if we were to hurry."
"Kukukukuku…then you know what to do Kabuto." Orochimaru finally left at that, the large doors of the throne room slamming loudly behind him.
As if awaiting this event the candles all died within seconds of the door closing. Kabuto stood there in the darkness, his face void of emotions as he seemingly awaited something. Then, a light formed above the throne, and as its strange black light somehow illuminated the room once more Kabuto turned to face the summoner of the light. He sat upon Orochimaru's throne, looking far more intimidating than even the snake man himself. His body was hidden not only by the shadows but by the large cloak he wore, only the occasional red cloud ruining the black form of his body. His face was hidden by a mask, but the one eyehole it had was more than enough to reveal the spinning red eye behind it.
"I hope his plans are to your satisfaction?" Kabuto said, bowing to the new figure.
"Yes…he can waste his time if he wishes in destroying Kazegakure. It does nothing to hamper my own plans, and eliminating that annoyance before I begin would merely be a bonus." The mysterious man replied.
"So then should I set out like he has ordered?"
The figure waved a hand dismissively. "Do as you wish, I do not require your service at the moment. Focus on Orochimaru and continue the charade of a faithful servant." The figure stood, and the black light above him moved along with him. "But remember my parameters, and should he ever step out of them…" The light vanished, and so too did the man with it.
Kabuto bowed again, and with a quick adjustment of his glasses he turned to leave. "It will be as you wish, Uchiha-sama."
XXXXX
Sasuke awoke to a new day like many others before, but this time he mentally, and physically, noted a slight change in the norm of his life. Not bothering to open his eyes right away, he shifted slightly to get a better understanding of the change. Something heavy, not annoyingly but noticeable still, was lying atop him. And what's more it was obviously breathing, with two fair sized mounds pressing into him every time it breathed in. A quick shudder of dread rushing through him, Sasuke finally opened one eye and looked down toward his chest. Instead of seeing covers or perhaps an animal, all he saw was a mop of long red hair, the strands of it billowing out across his bed as Hinote slept. To further add to this cute but erotic sight, she was smiling in her sleep as she snuggled her naked body closer against Sasuke through the covers.
-I could've sworn I'd locked my door last night. – Sasuke thought, blushing madly at the sight.
With a quick Kawarimi, using a nearby dummy he'd left in his room for this very occasion, Sasuke grabbed his clothes and moved to the bathroom across the hallway. When he stepped out of the shower later and got dressed, he noted with a quick smile that Hinote was still asleep, that and he thoroughly enjoyed the view he got of her ass. He closed his bedroom door and moved downstairs, and once inside the dinning room he noted that only Itachi was there. He was reading a newspaper and munching on toast, but when he saw Sasuke he raised an eyebrow and then nodded. A crash echoed out from the kitchen, and as Uindo cursed at his mishap Haku could also be heard giggling from within.
"What's he trying to cook now?" Sasuke asked.
"Bacon I believe." Itachi replied. He took a large bite out of his toast and then sipped on some orange juice. "He's had the unfortunate luck however of getting hot grease sprayed all over him whenever he tries to pick up the bacon. Very interesting actually, it's almost like watching a fountain."
Sasuke sighed. It had been a little over a month now since Itachi and the other Akatsuki members had settled into the Uchiha District and Manor, and yet still throughout this time three things remained constant. Hinote would try to 'sleep' with Sasuke, Itachi and Sasuke would spar everyday, and Uindo would always muck up whatever it was he tried to cook. And what's worse he never gave up, even when Zabuza once turned blue after biting into a piece of steak. All of this did provide a little comedy to things, but Sasuke unfortunately happened to be that comedy more often than not, as was everyone else concerning the latter event.
"Have you heard word of Naruto-kun's return yet?" Itachi asked.
"Nah, he's still out on his mission, running late too according to what the Hokage said."
"Hn." Putting his newspaper down, Itachi gazed over at a nearby window with a thoughtful look. "It seems Konoha's new Hokage is not so happy for obtaining the job as many would think. I'm surprised they would actually think she would be happy, considering her own words just before leaving."
"Breakfast is ready!" Haku yelled, walking through the kitchen doorway with several plates of assorted foods. Behind her Uindo also walked in with plates, but unlike Haku he looked like he'd just walked through a storm of batter and something wet. Both of the Uchiha brothers refrained from laughing when Uindo glared at them, but that didn't stop Zabuza who walked in at the call for breakfast. He noticed Uindo, glancing over the top of his orange book, and then erupted into full blown laughter as he sat down. He didn't stop until Haku kicked him under the table, glaring at him for doing that and reading his book at the table. Everyone settled down after that and dived into their food, but seconds later Uindo went flying out of the room, his face green after taking a bite of his food.
"…Is it safe to eat our food Haku?" Sasuke asked, glancing at his pancakes with uncertainty. Haku smiled at him. "Don't worry Sasuke-san. I had Uindo only cook his own food today. That way he might learn to leave cooking alone from now on." Sasuke nodded, and then resumed his eating along with everyone else.
The meal went along mostly in silence, but once Hinote suddenly appeared and began eating, all the while with only winking at Sasuke once, the said Uchiha couldn't help but become curious about something. "Itachi…" Itachi looked over at his brother when he heard the whisper. "Why the hell does Hinote keep trying to…you know."
"Ah…well I'm not quite sure on all the details myself actually." Itachi paused to take a bite of his eggs, then resumed. "According to Uindo, Fire users of the Gogyou Tatsujin are very…unique, in their love life."
"What do you mean?"
"You of course know of their bloodlust issues within battles?" Sasuke nodded, shuddering when his battle flashed through his mind. Itachi smirked when he noticed it. "Well simply put that is how they come to love someone, more often than not at least."
Sasuke thought over his brother's strange words while he watched Uindo return, looking a little pale but otherwise fine. He did not however resume eating his food, opting instead to dump it into the nearest trash can and stealing a few bites from Zabuza's instead. "That doesn't make any sense Itachi."
Itachi nodded in agreement. "True, but does complete control over an element make any sense either, especially at the level they can obtain? If there is one thing to understand about those two is that impossible is not really so with them." Itachi paused again, glaring at Zabuza so he would stop choking Uindo for snatching his food. The former Demon of the Mist reluctantly released the blonde and turned to eating what he had left, and Uindo switched to asking for some of Haku's food this time. She happily replied, amused over Uindo's silly begging for food. "Anyway, Fire users have two ways of loosing their bloodlust like you know, but one of them has a slim chance of helping them find their 'true love'. This can only happen in the second emotion scenario, and if it does happen the Fire user tends to get a little…impatient in obtaining their lover. Usually their chosen lover gives in pretty fast, since 'confirming' their love has the added bonus of making them safe from any later bloodlust attacks."
Blushing madly, Sasuke glanced over at Hinote, and when she noticed him looking she winked at him again. He blushed even more and turned again to whisper toward Itachi. "But does that mean she doesn't even really love me?"
Itachi smirked as he took a sip of his orange juice. "No foolish brother, didn't I just say it helps her find her true love? If she has fallen so much for you, then obviously you are indeed that person. Consider yourself lucky actually, not many people are able to find true love within their lifetime."
Nodding uncertainly, Sasuke finally dropped the subject and simply focused on finishing his breakfast. Everyone was quiet after that and things sped along quickly. With all of their plates now empty and stomachs full, or half-full in Uindo's case, Haku brought the plates back into the kitchen to clean while Itachi stood and headed toward the door.
"Where are you going Itachi-sensei?" Uindo asked.
"Naruto-kun will be arriving eventually…" Itachi began. "So I believe I'll pay Sarutobi-san a visit and see if he has so or not. Either way it gives me something to do besides beating my little brother in our spars so much." Itachi smirked when he felt a little killer intent coming from Sasuke. Donning his cloak and hat, he bade everyone a farewell and left the mansion. Zabuza then pulled out his book again to read, Uindo began fiddling around with his violin a little, and Haku's gentle humming came from within the kitchen. All in all it was a pretty nice scene that had settled over the mansion, but with just one problem.
"Sasuke-kun, wait!" Hinote shouted. Sasuke froze, having tried to sneak away without Hinote noticing. Looking over his shoulder, his eyes widened when he noticed her wielding three kunai in each hand and a lustful look in her eye. –Oh shit! I do not want to know what she has planned with those! – Ignoring her calls to stop, Sasuke sped out of the mansion with Hinote giving chase. Uindo sighed, lowering his violin for a moment so as to shake his head at their actions. "He should just give it up and get it over with already…" Zabuza merely chuckled perversely at the blonde's words in response.
XXXXX
Itachi walked slowly along the streets of Konoha, taking in the day and sights around him. Construction had finally died off and all the formerly destroyed buildings were back up and running. Merchants and shopkeepers were shouting along the streets to advertise their wares, and people were gathered around many carts to view these items or heading indoors to buy things within the stores. Up above the crowd, an occasional shinobi could be made out jumping across the rooftops, and from time to time even a genin squad would suddenly appear among the crowd. It was sunny day in Konoha, one of many that blessed the village, and it seems everyone was out enjoying it, Itachi included.
-Konoha has certainly shown their Will of Fire to the world. To think only a little more than a month has passed since they were invaded, and yet here they are today looking none the worse off. – Itachi smiled as he pulled out a stick of pocky to chew on, this one vanilla flavored. –Of course, Naruto-kun and his team was mostly responsible for all of this, but still it takes a strong willed person to simply go on after a disaster, no matter how quick or small it was. -
Something suddenly caught his eye, and without even pausing Itachi made a casual turn to take a less crowded route. As he entered the small alleyway, the air behind him wavered, and then returned to normal without him seemingly noticing. He exited on the other side on a small side street, various signs hanging above doors to indicate this street as mainly being a bar locale. He picked one at random, the sign naming it The Chipped Shuriken, and when he entered he quickly took one of the more secluded tables. It had the added comfort of being in a dark corner, and after he asked the waitress for a bottle of sake and two cups he glanced behind himself.
"Would you care to share a drink with me, Kurenai?" Itachi asked. The air wavered, and soon Kurenai stood there, a slightly annoyed expression on her face for having been sighted. She took a seat across from him, and when the waitress returned with the sake Itachi poured her a glass. They both took a few sips in silence, and then Itachi removed his hat so as to let her see him better.
"You know it's quite rude to stalk someone Kurenai, and I especially don't like it when it's me being stalked."
"Sorry." Kurenai muttered. "It's just…" She stopped when Itachi raised a hand.
"I understand that you might not find me very…trustworthy. A reputation such as mine after all tends to paint a rather dark image, perhaps even an insane one?" Itachi smirked a little and took another sip of sake. "So what is your question?"
"Why did you do it?" It didn't take a genius for anyone hearing the question to know what she referred to. Itachi answered at first by simply sipping on his sake, and then he set his cup down to look at her intently.
"Personal preservation, the life of a precious person, the survival of Konoha…the list might as well be infinite. It matters not, what's done is done, and I for one do not regret it in the least. The Uchiha clan of old was stuck up, arrogant, and relied far too much on the tool that is the Sharingan." Three tomoe swirled within his eyes, the red behind them adding to the menacing sight of the Sharingan. "They seemed to forget that we are not the Sharingan, but instead are a clan of elite shinobi. We may have an edge on any competition, but that does not give us the right to deem ourselves superior to all and let ourselves relax."
Kurenai nodded. When she noticed her cup was empty she moved to pour, but Itachi did it for her instead. "Thank you. So why do you want to ally your village with Konoha? It just doesn't make sense if you ask me."
His Sharingan deactivated, Itachi closed his eyes and hummed in thought. He finished off his cup and poured another as he did this. "I have plans, great ones that are nothing to be trifle with. And to even come close in succeeding these things I will need allies, numerous and powerful ones. Konoha is one, and with their help I will secure more allies afterwards. And from there…" He shrugged. "Who knows? Perhaps I will even obtain an alliance one day with a village that hates another one I'm allied with."
Kurenai narrowed her eyes, the grip on her cup strengthening. "Do you plan to go to war, and drag Konoha along with you?"
"Nothing of the sort, in fact I can only hope my plans will take things far from such things." Satisfied with his sake intake, Itachi placed his cup down and pulled out another pocky stick to munch on. "Now I have a question for you Kurenai. Why are you following me, and don't say it is because you do not trust me. I know that is not really the reason."
"I…I guess I'm curious."
"Curious? About what may I ask?"
"I'm…not sure."
Itachi raised an eyebrow. "You follow me, curious about something and yet you do not know what that it is?"
Kurenai blushed, embarrassed at the whole situation. "Y-Yes."
"Hmm…" A small chuckle escaped his lips, and after leaving money on the table he stood to leave. "I believe I know what that 'thing' might be, but I don't think it'd be sporting to go ahead and tell you. Good luck in finding out…Kurenai-chan." Kurenai whipped her head up to look at him, but all she saw were a few raven feathers floating to the ground.
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The rhythmic and faint beeping of a heart monitor was the first noise Kabuto noticed once he entered the medical bay. The second was the combined noise of labored breathing and the small air respirator that helped the man on the bed breath. Various tubes and liquids were all around him and sticking into his body, and atop his forehead was a large cloth with intricate seals atop it to help maintain his health. The curse seal centered on his upper torso glowed faintly in the dim light, and for a brief moment Kabuto swore he had seen the strange marking stretch out across Kimimaro's body as if activating. A blink of the eye showed that nothing of the sort was happening.
"K…Kabuto-san…" Kimimaro muttered, his troubled breathing hampering any words he tried to speak. "What…is my…condition?"
Adjusting his glasses, Kabuto walked over to a set of monitors and turned them on, reading over the various medical notes that appeared on the screens. He frowned slightly when some of the data proved unfavorable to his mission. "I'm afraid nothing has changed yet Kimimaro-san, you still are incapable of anything beyond lying within that bed."
"But…I must…help…Orochimaru-sama…"
"Ah, then you are in luck." Kabuto turned from the monitors, and if Kimimaro had been able to see he would have noted how the green glow of the monitors made Kabuto seem demonic in the shadows of their light. "I am about to head out on a personal mission for Orochimaru-sama, and you are to assist me."
"H…How…?"
"Why, by simply guiding me into Kirigakure."
Kimimaro's heart monitor jumped, and his body shuddered with pain and shock. When this sudden and brief event passed, Kimimaro inhaled sharply before sitting up slowly in his bed. Tubes snapped and containers broke, but eventually he was finally free of his restraints and removed the sealing paper from around his face. He gazed at Kabuto with a neutral expression, his eyes almost like glass that reflected his dark future of death. "Why…does Orochimaru-sama…wish that I…lead…you there?"
"I must deliver a message to Kiri, and hopefully eradicate a potential enemy of our master in the process."
"Then…" Kimimaro coughed, blood running between his fingers, but when he resumed his difficulty speaking was gone. "Then I shall do all that I can. I may no longer be a capable body for Orochimaru-sama to use, but I will use my last breath to help fulfill his goals, no matter what."
Kabuto smirked. "Excellent, just as I would expect from you Kimimaro-san." He carefully helped the last Kaguya the rest of the way out of his bed, and after using some medical jutsu to assure Kimimaro was fine for the moment, he turned to leave. "Let us hurry, I wish to make it there within the month if at all possible."
"Hai." Following the traitorous medic-nin, Kimimaro could feel an unfamiliar sense of happiness as he walked to what he was sure would be the last mission he would ever undertake for Orochimaru. –But that is fine… - He thought. –For this will bring Orochimaru-sama one step closer to achieving his goals. – The curse seal on his torso glowed fiercely at that. In front of him, Kabuto smirked with a knowing look in his eye.
XXXXX
After leaving Kurenai at the bar, and avoiding her weak attempts at following, Itachi finally made his way into the Hokage Tower. Upon entering, he was greeted with the weird sensation of the tower shaking, as if struck by something large. He glanced around, and when he noticed others pausing in their work to look for the source of the feeling, he knew he had not imagined it. But what was really odd was that the ANBU guards scattered around the building did not seem disturbed by the event.
-Interesting, I wonder what that was. – Itachi thought.
He walked up the stairs, lowering his hat more whenever a shinobi would come close to him, and soon he stood at the door to the Hokage's office. He got an approved nod from an ANBU guard, and when he knocked on the door he was mildly surprised to hear a women's voice call for him to enter. Now beyond curious, he opened the door and walked inside.
On the other side he saw Sarutobi sitting in a chair on one side of his desk, a smirk on his face and a cup of tea in hand. He was watching an angry women just now sitting back down at his desk, and when Itachi noted the blonde pigtails and busty chest he realized that it was Tsunade, the Sandaime's old student and now future Godaime. Naruto and Gaara were standing in front and to the side of the desk, the blonde laughing his ass off at something with Gaara nodding slightly as he noticed Itachi's presence. Taking it all in, Itachi moved to enter the room more, and then he found why Naruto was laughing so much. He felt something soft give way under his foot, and when the said object groaned in pain Itachi looked down, smirking when he saw the already battered face of Jiraiya now sporting his footprint to go with his feminine fury bruises. He took pity on the man and gently stepped off, but it didn't help that closing the door caused the edge of it to smack the man over the head.
"I take it he tried to cop a feel, Tsunade-sama?" Itachi asked. His voice finally made everyone beyond Gaara realize he indeed was standing there. The reaction of course came instantly.
"Itachi-sensei!" Naruto yelled, diving at the man and delivering a powerful hug to his waist. Itachi chuckled and hugged the blonde back, but then he pulled the boy away and slowly walked up to the front of the Hokage's desk. Removing his hat, he noticed Tsunade eyeing him a little warily.
"So…you're Itachi huh? The brat really liked to talk about you on our way back." She muttered. "Hard to believe you're supposedly an S-Rank criminal of the village while walking around like this."
Itachi smirked. "You'll soon find that a lot of…odd things, come with our village Tsunade-sama."
"Yeah…" She glanced behind Itachi toward Naruto, and Itachi couldn't help but chuckle again when he saw it.
"So then, shall we begin the final preparations?" Sarutobi asked. Itachi and Tsunade nodded, and after setting his tea down he walked over to the far wall where four pictures depicted the former Hokage's. He approached his own, biting his finger and smearing a little blood along the bottom part of the frame, and with a slight wavering of the air the picture slid down to reveal a small safe set inside the wall. A blood seal and combination lock later he opened it and pulled out three scrolls, one at least twice the size of the others. He handed the largest one to Tsunade and pocketed the others inside the Hokage robes he still wore. Itachi raised an eyebrow at this, but then decided to simply focus on the alliance document Tsunade was now reading over.
"Hmm…these are acceptable terms, and I see no problems with the shinobi exchange you wish…" Tsunade eyed the fine print of the treaty carefully. "All in all, I have no doubt that both Konoha and Kaze will benefit from all of this, both economically and in military strength." She smiled, but as she closed the scroll with a loud snap her expression turned serious. "There's just one thing I must ask you Itachi-san."
Itachi raised an eyebrow. "And what is that Tsunade-sama?"
Tsunade paused, a thoughtful look on her face as she thought over her next words. Glancing over the two Kaze shinobi in front of her, she steeled herself and pushed on. "Why should I even consider signing this?"
"What!? What the hell are you thinking Baa-chan? You just said yourself that it would only benefit Konoha to…" A hand on Naruto's shoulder made the blonde stop. He looked behind himself, and seeing the silent words within Gaara's gaze, he decided to shut up. Itachi glanced at Naruto, and then faced Tsunade once more. "My student and fellow Akatsuki does have a point. Why would you decline an alliance with us?"
"To make is simple? I don't like your plans."
"I see no reason for you to hate them."
Tsunade slammed her hands down on the table, standing and glaring at Itachi. "And that's what I don't like! You think you can actually pull something like that off? You really think people are just going to accept such a…a drastic change in everything?" Her fingers clenched, and with her inhuman strength the wood under them creaked ominously near breaking. "Anyone who's ever tried to do such a thing has only ended up destroying their lands, or dying before even the first real steps are made! And if we ally ourselves with you, we might very well suffer the same fate as you if you fail!"
"But there is something that they all lacked Tsunade-sama, something that I am confident we do have."
"What?"
Itachi didn't respond, and his neutral gaze implied nothing of the sort happening anytime soon. Seeing that he would not reply, Tsunade narrowed her eyes and looked behind him toward Naruto. To her surprise the normally expressive blonde was almost exactly like his sensei, except instead of being emotionless his eyes had a steely gaze to them that held back an inner flame. It was so hauntingly familiar that for a second Tsunade swore that time had reversed a little over 12 years into the past. Nobody spoke for a long time, the standoff growing tenser as Itachi refused to reply and Tsunade pressing for a response. Finally it broke with the cry of a raven outside the window, and with that sudden noise Tsunade sighed and slumped back into her new chair.
"You're not going to tell me anything, are you?" She whispered. Itachi still remained silent. She sighed again. "Fine, but I hope that…whatever it is, can really change the unlucky fate that your goal has had before."
Itachi finally broke his silence with a smile and chuckle. "I assure you Tsunade-sama, we will not fail."
"Don't worry Baa-chan! You can count on us to succeed!" Naruto yelled, even going as far as to give her thumbs up and a blinding smile. Somewhere two green spandex clad men felt a sudden rush of 'Youth', which led them to proclaiming various things related to it to the world, much to their teams chagrin.
Tsunade chuckled at the blonde's action, and then with a quick flourish she unrolled the scroll again and produced a quilt pen. "Well then I think we can go ahead and start signing this, but the ceremony will still have to be done in order to make it completely official. I'll make a copy and leave the signature lines blank so that everyone can resign it there."
Itachi nodded, and after accepting the pen he scribbled down his name. Naruto then did it, and once Tsunade wrote her name she closed the scroll again and placed it safely inside her desk. "Once the other Akatsuki members get here I'll have them sign the original too outside the ceremony and the copy as well."
"Hmm…speaking of my fellow Akatsuki members, I do believe we should be expecting them soon…" Itachi suddenly froze, and just before the door banged open he placed his hat back on. A chuunin stood in the doorway, a thin layer of sweat and his labored breathing showing he had rushed there in a hurry. Once he regained his breath he began relaying his report.
"Hokage-sama! Two mysterious figures have been spotted at the gate! One of them has been confirmed as S-Rank criminal Kisame Hoshigaki, but the other is an unknown kunoichi. What's more, they appear to be trying to enter the village under the disguise of Kazegakure's Akatsuki!"
Naruto ran a hand down his face, muttering several colorful curses behind it, and although Itachi's face could no longer be seen, his obvious annoyance practically radiated from him. "I thought I told that idiot to wear his hat?" He muttered. He turned and faced Naruto. "Come Naruto, we have an idiotic shark to deal with."
"Hai!" They both disappeared in twin clouds of smoke. Tsunade dismissed the chuunin with a wave of her hand, and after doing that she turned to face Gaara. Much to her annoyance however the red head was now gone, only a small circle of sand on the floor where he'd stood indicating his exit. With her new office now mostly empty and with the stressful occurrence she had just dealt with now over, she felt a nice bottle of sake was in order. She retrieved one from a scroll, and after gulping some down she sighed.
"How did you ever deal with this crap sensei?" She muttered. Sarutobi simply smiled and sipped his tea in response.
"Ugh…what the hell happened?" Jiraiya muttered, rubbing his bruised face and wincing at the bump on his head. Seconds later he was knocked out again by an empty sake bottle, Tsunade not wanting to deal with the pervert at the moment.
XXXXX
"So…how many do you want Yugito?"
Yugito glanced up at Kisame, an annoyed look on her face. "We're not here to kill them, baka. We're supposed to be signing a treaty with them."
"Really?" Adjusting his Samehada, Kisame looked over the small crowd of jonin and ANBU that formed a semicircle in front of them and the gate. Each of them were brandishing one form of weapon or another, and the ANBU even had what looked to be the first hand sign of various jutsu's all ready. What's more, Kisame could even feel the two chuunin gate guards behind them preparing to attack as well. "You could've fooled me, what with the whole warm reception and all."
"Perhaps then you should've worn your hat like Itachi's always telling you to?"
-Shut up Isonade. –
"Perhaps then you should've worn your hat like Itachi's always telling you to?" Yugito asked.
Silence met her words as Kisame stared at her with a curious gaze. She felt his gaze, and when she looked up to him with an eyebrow raised Kisame decided to ask his question. "Since when could you hear what Isonade said Yugito?"
Both Yugito and the two demons they held sweatdropped. "Baka." She muttered.
"Baka." Both demons growled.
An ANBU broke off from the group and approached, raising his ninjato toward the two. "Kisame Hoshigaki, you and your companion are to surrender at once. Refusal to comply will result in forceful restraining and possible immediate execution."
Both Kisame and Yugito stared at him, the former with a large grin on his face while the latter looked annoyed. Neither of them said nor did anything, and taking this as refusal the ANBU began to motion for the others to attack. That's when Kisame spoke up. "10."
"Eh?" Kisame chuckled at the baffled tone of the ANBU. He shifted Samehada on his back slightly, tightening his grip on its handle as well. "10, maybe 12 minutes, that's how long it'll take us to finish you all off." Killer intent began building amongst the Konoha-nin, but Kisame merely laughed at their attempts to terrify him. "You're all a quick and tasty snack for my Samehada to enjoy!"
As Kisame's laughter grew and tension finally gave way to attacking, something called it all to a halt. A cry called out above them, and with a loud fluttering of wings a flock of ravens swooped down upon them. They pecked and flapped at the shinobi, and while the majority of the ravens distracted them another smaller group began circling around Kisame and Yugito. Just before they were consumed by black feathers, the paling features of Kisame and the growing smirk on Yugito's face could be made out, and then they were gone. Seconds after the two Akatsuki vanished from sight the entire flock of ravens vanished in various clouds of smoke. When it cleared, the Konoha-nin let out a cry of shock in finding the two missing, and with a quick order from an ANUB captain they all spread out to find and capture the two.
Meanwhile, over in the Uchiha district a similar scene was beginning to occur. Ravens swarmed in the training field, and when they cleared away they revealed several people now standing there. Itachi stood in front of Kisame, glaring with Sharingan activated at the poor shark man. Nearby Yugito was leaning against a tree and talking with Naruto, both of whom were splitting their time between talking and smiling at the scene in front of them.
"Kisame…" Itachi was slightly satisfied when Kisame flinched. "What have I told you about wearing your hat when traveling? You know you're not exactly the stealthiest person, and that's not counting that mammoth sword of yours."
"Umm…I…forgot?" Kisame nearly asked.
Silence filled the air, tension and killer intent mounting, and then with a sigh Itachi smacked Kisame over the head before deactivating his Sharingan. "Baka…just remember to wear it next time." The Sharingan flared to life again for a moment. "GOT IT!?"
"YES SIR!" Yugito and Naruto snickered when Kisame literally jumped and stood at attention.
"Good." Itachi turned and walked to the door. "Well now since that's taken care of lets get on with the rest of it shall we?"
The four quickly made their way indoors, but the small peace they had obtained was broken when Naruto suddenly found himself staring up at the ceiling. Dazed, it took him a minute to realize that the ceiling couldn't have beautiful brown eyes like it seemed to, and then once Haku's face became clear he smiled ear to ear. He opened his mouth to speak, but Haku stole his lips with hers before anything could come out. They kept this up for over a minute, both even providing a little tongue to it, and then as they broke for air Itachi coughed to gain their attention. "Now, now Haku-chan, you can spend time with Naruto-kun later after all matters are taken care of." Both blushed brightly, and Itachi couldn't help but mess with them a little further. "And besides, I doubt you'd let us watch without paying first." That got Itachi's desired reaction, namely Haku's eyes glazing over while blood began trickling down Naruto's nose despite his glare.
"So where are Uindo and Hinote?" Kisame asked. Footsteps came from ahead of them, and from around a corner Uindo walked up to them with a smile.
"I'm right here, and I'm pretty sure my sister's trying to nab Sasuke again." Uindo replied.
"Why does your sister want Sasuke?" Yugito asked.
"She's my sister, and a Fire user, why do you think she wants him?"
Yugito merely closed her eyes and nodded, while Kisame smirked. "My, my, my, it seems your little brother is going to be reviving your clan before you Itachi."
"I highly doubt that." Itachi snapped, suddenly irritated by the implication.
"So should I go find her Itachi-sensei?" Uindo asked. Calming down, Itachi shook his head and raised a finger.
"There is no need." Pointing, Itachi turned everyone's direction to the end of the hallway where the front door lay. No sooner had everyone looked at it did it slam open and closed, Sasuke now inside the house breathing heavily with cuts running along his clothes. He didn't even register anyone there as he frantically looked around for escape. He found it by running up the stairs, and with the loud slamming of his room door Hinote also appeared in the hallway around the others, her entrance marked with the flames of her Shunshin. Smiling and wielding a kunai, she practically skipped up the stairs and began the tedious task of picking the lock, which was severely reinforced to stop her from doing so. A minute passed as everyone simply walked upstairs to watch her work, but eventually Itachi grew tired of this and decided to save his brother…for now at least.
"Hinote…" Hinote ignored Itachi as she continued her task.
"…Hinote…" She could feel something begin to give out inside the lock, and so with a huge grin she sped up in her attempts.
"Hinote" A click sounded within the door, and with a small cry of success she stood and placed a hand on the knob.
"HINOTE!"
"EEK!"
Spinning around, Hinote finally took note of Itachi and the others standing there. Sporting a slight blush in embarrassment, she grinned sheepishly and rubbed the back of her head. "H-Hello there Itachi-sensei…Heheh…"
Itachi sighed. "You can rape my brother later Hinote…" A loud squawk came from within Sasuke's room at that and Hinote looked close to laughing evilly. "We need to settle some Akatsuki business, so it's time to behave."
"Hai, Itachi-sensei!" Itachi took one careful look over Hinote, before nodding in approval and walking down the stairs. Everyone followed, but just as many began walking to the dinning room for the meeting Itachi waved them over to the door. "We shall use the Uchiha council chamber, much more secure and I'm certain the silencing seals are still operational too."
They all left the house, walking through the old and abandoned streets of the Uchiha district. After a few minutes they turned a final corner and entered a small courtyard, the stone pavement still retaining a faint red color from that night long ago. On the far end was the round front wall of the council chamber, various uchiwa running along it to mark the importance of the building to the Uchiha clan. Sliding open the main door, Itachi led them through a circling hallway and to another double door, this one made of iron and clearly reinforced by seals. Itachi merely swiped some of his blood across it and bade them all inside once the seals died off. Inside was the council chamber itself, a semi circular room with the clan heads seat elevated slightly and by itself on the flat side of the room with elevated council seats facing it on the other side. Itachi took that seat while the others took to the council ones, Yugito muttering once about how the blood on her seat might ruin her cloak despite having dried up years ago.
Everyone now seated and business set to begin, Itachi locked his fingers together and leaned his chin on them, staring intently at everyone. "Now then, let this meeting of the Kazegakure Akatsuki begin. Naruto, if you would please start off?"
Not bothering to stand, Naruto leaned back in his chair and proper his feet on the empty chair below him. "Gaara has accepted our offer to join Kazegakure, and he's also already signed his half of the transfer papers. All that is left to do is get Suna to go along with it."
"That might be difficult to do, what with there being no Kazekage and the hatred his village has for him," Uindo said.
"No such thing, all that's needed is…persuasion." Itachi closed his eyes, and then opened them once an idea came to mind. "Uindo, I'd like you to head to Suna with Gaara and make sure everyone realizes the benefits of taking him off their hands…physically if needed. And also extend an alliance with them as well, it wouldn't do to leave such a chance for one open."
"Hai, Itachi-sensei."
"I'm sure everyone here knows that the treaty is ready to be signed and completed." Hinote suddenly spoke up. "So what's next after we sign it?"
"Hmm…allying ourselves with Konoha has many benefits and drawbacks as well. While they are indeed one of the strongest villages, even among the five great, they also have many powerful enemies because of this. Iwa is perhaps the greatest example of this, and I doubt any alliance with them now will work." Itachi muttered.
"So is there nobody we can ally with now?" Kisame asked.
"No, but as I knew it is going to be very difficult from now on to obtain any."
"Well…at least we can be sure that Takigakure will ally with us. They always form an alliance with anyone Konoha has." Uindo said.
Itachi nodded. "True, but in case they falter for some reason I want you to go there Yugito and make sure they do ally with us." Yugito nodded in reply. Itachi then looked over everyone again. "Now then, what shall we do with Orochimaru?"
"Leave him be." Everyone turned to look at Naruto disbelievingly. "What? I do have a reason ya know."
"You should probably explain it to us Naruto." Yugito said.
"Err…right. You see, despite being a cunning bastard, he's also basically screwing himself over. Imagine, what do you think would happen if all his little secrets got out to the right people?" Realization crossed their faces, and Naruto smiled. "And with it all pointed at Orochimaru, we can perhaps use it to our advantage in gaining alliances with anyone we'd normally have a problem with."
"But that's very risky Naruto-kun." Haku said. "What's to assure that everything will really work in our favor?"
"While you do have a point Haku, I'm afraid I must agree with Naruto-kun at the moment. We shall leave Orochimaru to his scheming, and when we're certain he's gathered enough evidence against himself we'll send it to everyone that'll need to know it." Everyone nodded, and Itachi smiled from behind his fingers. "Now then, I've heard an interesting thing from some of the ANBU and Sarutobi-san. Is it true that one of Orochimaru's elites has been captured?"
"I can vouch for that. Gaara told me all about how he spared this girl named Tayuya and had his siblings capture her. She's seems to actually hate the Hebi-teme and has a pretty nasty potty mouth, plus since she has a curse seal I'm sure she'd be really useful in finding some way to remove them." Naruto said.
"Any chance we can get Tsunade-sama to transfer her over to us?" Uindo asked. Naruto shook his head. "Not likely. Plus I don't think we should anyway, she'd be a lot more useful here in Konoha where Baa-chan can look over the curse seal research herself."
"Very well, Konoha can keep her, but I still think she's too valuable to simply leave to Konoha alone." Another idea suddenly struck Itachi. "I have it. After Gaara and Uindo have dealt with the transfer matters, I want Gaara to return here to Konoha and act on our behalf in interrogating her."
"I'll be sure to relay the mission to Gaara during our trip." Uindo said.
"Good, then to end this meeting I have a mission for you Kisame." Kisame perked up at this. "I want you to gather a small squad of chuunin once we return to the village and take them with you on some infiltration and sabotage missions in the Land of Rice. Just because we'll leave Orochimaru alone for now doesn't mean we'll leave his lackeys alone. The time frame will be a month, and should you become compromised before that time I want you to immediately pull out, no crazy antics, understood?"
Kisame nodded, and then began chuckling to himself. "Fresh blood…" He muttered gleefully.
"Is there anything else?" Itachi glanced over everyone, and when nobody voiced anything he stood and stepped down from his seat. "Then I declare this meeting…over." In a flash various Shunshin filled the room, everyone including Itachi heading off to deal with their own business or fun.
XXXXX
Ramen was heaven, ramen was Kami's divine gift to man, ramen and Haku-chan together was a disturbing fantasy that only Naruto could ever dare to have, or else. But all the weird ideas and beliefs aside, if there really was one thing in common with Naruto and ramen was that he could eat a lot, we're talking warehouse full lots.
And this was what Naruto was trying to do now, sitting inside Ichiraku with Haku and enjoying his 10th bowl so far. Behind them and outside the shop various shinobi could be seen hopping from rooftop to rooftop, no doubt still searching the village for Yugito and Kisame. Naruto smirked knowing they'd never find them, since Kisame had left the village until the signing ceremony to train in peace, and Yugito was far too stealthy to ever be found if she didn't want to be. Slurping down another bowl and ordering more, he turned to look over at Haku. "Neh, Haku-chan, how's Konoha been while I was gone?"
"It's been pretty peaceful Naruto-kun." Haku replied, slurping away at her own bowl of ramen as she spoke. "There's a strange tenseness with all the ANBU in the village, but I imagine that's just because they're still cautious after the invasion. How was the mission with Gaara-san and Jiraiya-sama?"
"Hn, I'm actually a little curious about that too."
Both Naruto and Haku turned in time to see Sasuke part the flaps and walk into the stand. He smiled at the young couple and took a seat next to Naruto, and after ordering a bowl he turned back to Naruto. "So how bout it dobe? I doubt someone like Tsunade was really happy to come back here. I've heard about her rather…fond hatred of the village."
"Oh, it wasn't easy…" Naruto trailed off into a sigh and he actually paused in his eating to idly push the noodles around in his bowl. "She downright hated the idea, even insulted everyone who was a Hokage before her." The grip on his chopsticks tightened to the point of nearly breaking them. "Damn, it was so infuriating to hear her badmouth them, especially since she was related to most of them in some way or another."
"So why did she come back then Naruto-kun?" Haku asked.
"…"
"Hey what's the matter dobe?" Naruto looked over at Sasuke, an irritated look on his face. "Sorry, just thinking over what she said a little." Irritation quickly evaporated however as a grin covered his face. "Well really, I figured the only way to make her come back would be to beat her at her own game."
"And what's that?"
Naruto's grin grew. "Gambling my dear teme, gambling. So of course I made a bet with her."
Flashback
"What?"
"You heard me, I want to make a bet with you ya old hag!"
Tsunade could feel her anger building with the blonde's irritating name for her. But instead of driving his head into the ground she simply huffed and crossed her arms over her ample chest. "Alright I'll bite, what it is you want to bet exactly…" She paused. "Brat."
Naruto smirked, knowing full well that he now had her hooked. "Alright listen up! I bet you that I can learn anything you throw at me within any time period of your choosing. It can be as difficult as you want, forbidden or otherwise, hell I dare you to even make an original jutsu out of thin air even!"
-He's kidding right? No way could someone be so stupid as to make it that easy for them to lose. – Tsunade eyed Naruto cautiously, taking note of his posture and eyes. When she saw that he was speaking the truth, she raised an eyebrow. –I guess there really are people that stupid in this world. All the reason for me to take advantage of this I guess. – Now fully confident in winning for once, Tsunade smirked. "And what exactly would we win?"
"If I win, you come to Konoha and become the next Hokage. Plus you gotta hand over that necklace of yours." Naruto added to his statement by pointing at the said green gem.
Being reminded of the item made Tsunade flinch and wrap a hand defensively around it. It was a dark and cursed treasure of hers, one that helped remind her of the loved ones she'd lost but at the same time reminding her of the curse the item had for anyone who wore it besides her. But then as quickly as dread filled her at giving it away did she furiously stomp it down. –Why should I care if he wears it? It's not like he's anything special, it's not like I should care if he's gonna live or not. Yeah, if he wins by some odd chance I'll just hand it over, skip on becoming Hokage, and when he dies shortly after I'll just retrieve the thing from around his…dead body. – Her reassurances only fueled her dread and fear.
"O-Okay brat…but if I win then you…you…" Tsunade searched desperately for anything she could take from the blonde, eyeing his clothing, weapons, and even sizing him up for the darker ideas she had. She finally settled on the sword strapped to his back. "You have to hand over all your money, and your sword." Naruto growled a little at her bet, which made her smug with the idea that the sword was indeed something quite valuable, if not in money than just to the blonde. "Oh? Are you afraid of making this bet now, brat?"
"Hmph! Not in your life hag. It's a deal!" They both shook hands, and after a moment Naruto grew tired of the sudden silence that had filled the air between them. "So? What's the jutsu?"
"Just give me a minute brat! I actually need to think of one before I can tell you it…" Tsunade muttered. Returning to her thoughts, Tsunade searched through the mental library of all the jutsu she had ever seen or learn in her life. She quickly marked off anything forbidden or near suicide. She hated the brat, but no need to actually kill him. Then she dived into the medical area, her biggest arsenal and hands down the most difficult jutsu to learn. Marking off the basic stuff, she thought about a master skill, perhaps the healing circle, seals and all? –No, as much as I want to just cheat, it…just doesn't feel right. –
A faint tapping reached her ears and Tsunade focused back on Naruto. He was still standing there, a little impatient but only showing it by tapping his foot in a rhythmic beat. Seeing the way he stood, arms crossed, slightly pouted lips, mock glare trying to drill into her brain to make her hurry up, that mess of spiky blonde hair just barely concealing his headband…
-I've got it. –
Tsunade smirked. "Alright brat, I've finally got something for you."
"About time, I was starting to get bored just standing here."
"Heheh…" Tsunade chuckled a little under her breath and turned to the side a little. "Okay, here's your challenge. Go to that pervert, ask him about the Rasengan, and make him teach you it. Once he agrees to, you have three days to train and master it completely." Turning fully, Tsunade failed to catch the fanged smirk Naruto was giving her as she walked away.
"What's the phrase I'm looking for here Kyuubi?" Naruto whispered. Inside him, Kyuubi chuckled at the situation.
"I believe it's 'Don't look a gift horse in the mouth' Kit."
XXXXX
Three days quickly passed by for Tsunade and Naruto, although both of them had near opposite feelings by the end of the time period. Naruto had taken the three free days Tsunade had given him and simply trained on other things, mainly the jutsu that Kyuubi had been trying to teach him. He had made splendid progress on it, but although he was certain he had now mastered it he could not really tell until he had a test subject to use it on.
But Tsunade was not faring so well with such positive thoughts. She had at first ignored him on the first day, but when she caught sight of him returning to his hotel room she had been shocked by the happy smile he had and the unharmed condition of his clothes and body. She had been certain he would be frustrated, dirty, cursing up a storm, bruised, hell she even expected him to just throw in the towel despite the stubbornness he seemed to have. But when she secretly followed him the second day she was shocked. He first entered his little training field, made several hundred Kage Bunshin, and then using their memory sharing trick he split them all up on learning or practicing various things. As for the real Naruto, he found a comfy place nearby and sat down to meditate, taking on the lotus position and all. For hours nothing changed except for Naruto making more clones if their numbers dropped. The real one did nothing beyond meditating, and Tsunade found that stranger by how he seemed to mumble to himself at times. When he called it quits for training, Tsunade quickly left the scene and acted like she hadn't been spying when he returned to the hotel a few minute after her.
The third day was nothing too different, except that Tsunade was surprised to see Shizune walk into the field and try to talk Naruto out of the deal. She even gave the detailed story behind the necklace Tsunade wore, but Naruto simply scowled and marked it all as ridiculous. Not the dark memories, but the supposed curse the necklace had.
"I have one hell of a convincing comrade that tells me differently." He had said. "Frankly, I think I'll side with him and say curses are just a bunch of bullshit. It saves me from a massive headache too if he decides to push his point." Weirdly enough Naruto rubbed his head seconds later, as if a headache was beginning to form.
Shizune left after that, a strange expression on her face as she hugged Tonton, their pig companion, closer to her. From there Naruto resumed his normal training regimen, but about three hours before he had stopped yesterday he called an end and dismissed his clones. Taking a moment to organize the memories, Naruto then walked to the center of the field and unsheathed his sword. Slowly he began performing his swings, ducking and rolling when an imaginary enemy closed in. He stabbed and spun, smiling when he imagined several enemies dying, and then Tsunade watched in awe when he somehow divided the blade up into nine chain whips. From there things seemed to blur, the rapid movements of Naruto and his whips too fast for most to follow. But Tsunade could follow, and she was awed at the control and seeming ease he danced alongside his chains. He didn't just attack with the chain whips, using a kunai in his left hand as he guided the chain whips with his right. It chilled Tsunade to see it, and she only could see why when Naruto did a particular move. Spinning, he brought the nine whips to circle around him like a saw and cut through the invisible swarm surrounding him. He then raised the handle of his sword above his head, and, still spinning, he made the chain whips point to the ground as they continued to circle around him like the spray of a fountain, only the faint humming of metallic death saying otherwise to what the illusion made it seem. Then Tsunade noticed the chakra building, but it built so fast that it was mere seconds before Naruto yelled and stopped spinning with a powerful swing of his sword. Pure chakra lashed out from the tips of each chain whip, arching across the ground and crashing into a nearby boulder, completely decimating it. But it didn't stop from there and traveled past, a trench forming when the chakra crashed into the ground. It only stopped once it struck a small nearby waterfall, and even then Naruto's strange attack completely destroyed it.
Tsunade turned to focus back on Naruto, and gasped at the sight. He held his sword behind his back, the handle just above his tailbone and the chain whips slowly moving through the air behind him. They still glowed with chakra, red and blue pulsing together as one and continuing to animate the chains. Naruto's other hand was empty now, the fingers arched and his arm low enough to nearly touch the ground as he bent at the knees. He looked ready to pounce, ready to shred anything that dared to attack him. And with his red eyes glowing between the bangs of his hair, along with the chain whips still behind him and the slight growling noise he made, Tsunade felt terrified suddenly as a certain line of text flashed through her mind.
One swing of its mighty tail could crumble mountains and cause tsunamis.
She shuddered, only relaxing once Naruto slipped out of the stance and sheathed his now normal sword. Kyuubi's chakra was gone from inside him, and with a glance Tsunade missed that he shot toward where she hid he walked out of the field and back toward the hotel. Tsunade slumped to the ground and clutched the stone around her neck. –So…he's the Kyuubi's container. Minato… -
The next day Naruto didn't approach Tsunade about the bet, and Tsunade made no point to pressure him in revealing his progress. He knew she needed to think a little after the realization she had no doubt made about him. He would give her that time, and then smirk victoriously as he baffled her with a completed Rasengan in his hand. –Serves her right, and it's not like she asked if I knew the jutsu before she challenged me to learn it. – He thought. For the extra day of relaxation he skipped training and simply relaxed, enjoying the hot spring of the town and talking with Gaara a little. The red head had apparently spent the last few days simply sleeping, enjoying this new found joy in his life that Shukaku had deprived him of for so long beforehand. But he easily spent time with Naruto and even told a little about what his old life in Suna was really like, and mentioned the red haired girl he had spared back in the Chuunin Exam invasion. Naruto made a mental note to check out this girl later for possible information.
It was on the fifth day after making the bet that Tsunade finally cornered Naruto and asked him about it.
"Alright brat, I might've…forgotten to have asked you yesterday…" Tsunade paused, taking a quick note of the expression Naruto was giving her. –Did he know I was there? – She wondered. "But times really up now. Show me what you've learned."
Naruto nodded, and then without any real flourish he whipped up a perfect and complete Rasengan, the ball of chakra whistling as the chakra within seemingly pulled in air around it like a vacuum. Tsunade completely gave up on looking smug and stared incredulously at the sight. "B-But…I watched you train! You never even once practiced this, how could you have possibly learned the Rasengan in just three days?!"
"I didn't." Naruto admitted. Releasing the jutsu, he flexed his fingers a little and then casually rested his arms behind his head. "I learned it in about two weeks, just before the final exams in the Chuunin Exams. You never said it couldn't be a jutsu I already knew and judging by your stupid little smirk back then you probably thought I didn't know it." Naruto shrugged, taking note of the slight tremble that was shaking Tsunade's body. "Really it was your fault for not thinking this bet out more ya old hag. So I've technically won, and you've lost. This means…" Naruto smirked, and by now Tsunade was grinding her teeth and clenching her fists. "Welcome to the job, Hokage-sama."
"YOU LITTLE BRAT!!" Roaring, Tsunade charged at Naruto with fist raised and chakra visible around it. She slammed it hard into his face, crushing his skull and destroying his brain, and then when the clone collapsed into mud did the battle really start.
End Flashback
XXXXX
Itachi stared carefully at the two ANBU guards standing outside a large metal door. He had not worn his hat inside the interrogation division's prison block, since only ANBU were allowed within its corridors and he was cleared with all of them thanks to the Sandaime. But orders did nothing to dispel the anger and fear that many of the people in Konoha had for traitors. True he did deserve such stares and feelings, since he did indeed kill his clan, but really it got to be annoying after a while. The two ANBU in front of him, both radiating anger behind their porcelain masks, were beginning to greatly annoy him.
"I believe the Sandaime has told you of my clearance?" Itachi asked, raising an amused eyebrow when the ANBU on his left tensed slightly.
"He did." The more relaxed ANBU to his right replied. His mask was shaped to resemble a bear, while his partner had a rat mask.
"Then would the two of you kindly step aside so as I might enter the cell?"
Both ANBU shared a tiny glance between each other, the slightest turn of their heads being the only indication, and then the rat ANBU huffed before releasing the seals upon the door. It swung outwards, its creaking joints muffling a curse the rat ANBU sent at Itachi, and once Itachi was inside it closed behind him with a thunderous slam. Itachi took a moment to be sure no one was listening, before turning his attention to the red head sitting cross-legged on her bed.
"What the fuck do you want fag?" She spat. Her clothes were very dirty, no doubt from having to wear them nonstop over the past month, and her hair was in complete disarray around her face and back. The chains around her wrists had been shifted so that she could hold her hands out in front of herself, but otherwise the red skin around them showed they had been on her for a long time. Itachi smiled behind the high collar of his cloak, and then with a casual air about him he sat down besides her, making the girl glare at him.
"Now, now, no need to be so defensive around me. I mean no harm Tayuya-san." Itachi said.
Tayuya scoffed. "That's what they all say, and then suddenly the girl finds herself held down while they f-" Tayuya glared at Itachi while she shouted muffled curses behind the sandwich he had lodged into her mouth.
"No need for such vulgar language too, at least not while eating."
It took a moment for Tayuya to eat the sandwich, since Itachi continued to mess with her by trapping her hands with his own, but once she was done she bared her teeth at him. "Alright cut the shit asshole! Who the hell are you and what do you want with me? You sure as hell don't look like any of those hippies out there."
"They might be 'hippies' Tayuya-san, but they also happen to be future allies with my village." Itachi pulled out a pocky stick and began chewing on it. "And since we're soon to be allied, Tsunade-sama has graciously allowed me and my fellow Akatsuki access to certain prisoners, namely you."
"What the hell for?"
"You used to work for Orochimaru, correct?" Tayuya remained silent, only nodding slightly while shooting Itachi a curious look. "Then you no doubt have some form of information that my village might be able to use against him in the near future."
"Oh I get it. You want to gut that Hebi fag." Tayuya muttered a curse and pulled her legs up against her chest. "Well you'll get your information in due time, so stop being so goddamn impatient. It's bad enough I have to deal with that scarred freak in the interrogation department."
-She's probably talking about Ibiki. – Itachi thought. "Be that as it may, I would like to obtain the information straight from the source if at all possible." A light tap came from the door, and with that signal Itachi stood to leave. "It seems my time is up Tayuya-san, so I'll make this quick. In a week or so one of my Akatsuki members shall begin visiting you and asking you questions. I trust you won't withhold anything from him?"
"And why shouldn't I?"
"You mean beside the fact that Ibiki-san will simply drag it out of you in the end if you resist?" Itachi smirked as Tayuya shuddered. "I have a feeling you won't mind telling your savior a few things in repayment." Handing Tayuya a folded up piece of paper, he turned to leave. Just as the door opened however, he heard Tayuya mutter something to him.
"I could've killed you ya know, the snake trained me well enough to do so." Itachi glanced over his shoulder, smiling slightly as Tayuya rubbed her now freed hands.
"True, but then that would mean you're obviously still loyal to Orochimaru." The door slammed shut, leaving Tayuya alone in her silent prison cell. She sat there for a time, waiting to see if any of her guards would come in and restrain her again. When they didn't after ten minutes, she rubbed her raw wrists again and unfolded the paper Itachi had given her. It was actually a photo, one that would often be found in a shinobi's record. On it was the upper half of a red headed boy, his pale green eyes looking cold enough to pierce your soul. A gourd could be made out strapped to his back, but beyond that the only real special feature about him was the tattoo adorning the left side of his forehead, the kanji for 'Love' clear as day. Tayuya stared at the picture of Gaara, the few memories she had of the boy flashing through her mind, and then with a curse she ripped the picture and slumped back on her bed.
"Why won't that fucking tanuki just leave me the hell alone?"
XXXXX
It had been roughly two minutes since Naruto had stopped talking, leaving both Sasuke and Haku hanging as to how his battle with Tsunade had gone. He smirked behind the mouthful of noodles he had, enjoying the sight of his girlfriend pouting at him while Sasuke scowled playfully. He wondered how long it would take before they started asking for him to continue.
"Alright dobe, stop messing with us and get on with it." Ah, roughly three minutes exactly. Naruto turned to Sasuke, feigning confusion. "Eh, what are you talking about Sasuke?"
"Naruto-kun…" Haku whined. "It's not nice to tease us like this."
"Hmm…well if you really want to know…"
"YES!" Sasuke and Haku both shouted. Seeing Naruto's amused expression, they both realized what they had done and blushed in embarrassment, Haku playfully punching Naruto's shoulder.
"Alright, I'll tell you." Naruto slurped down the last of his bowl and ordered another. "You see…"
Flashback
A loud explosion shook the field as Naruto fled from the enraged Sannin behind him. Tsunade's eyes burned with rage and fury, her main thoughts solely focused on pounding Naruto to death for, in her opinion, cheating on their bet and forcing her to do something she didn't wish to do. It didn't help that her plans were fueled by her chakra enhanced super strength, or that Naruto clearly was simply toying with her by maneuvering her clear of the town, thus reducing the damage she would have inflicted upon it in her messed up mindset. They were now both standing on opposite ends of a large clearing, several rocks littering the ground here and there. Naruto briefly ran an eye over all of this, hoping to see anything useful for his battle, but then he again dodged out of the way of Tsunade's punch.
A clone popped into existence besides him, several explosive tags already drawn from its equipment pouch and held in his fingers. It applied each of them to one of Naruto's kunai, and then the original launched a volley of them at Tsunade while the clone charged in after them. She slapped a hand down upon the ground, raising a slab of earth in front of her that stopped all the kunai. She then flipped it upside down, burying the kunai just as they started to hiss, and when she jumped clear the entire area was bathed in dirt and rock as they detonated, taking out the clone with ease. Naruto didn't waver though and produced three more clones, each holding a hand sign, and then they charged at the other blonde. Tsunade replied to these three by expertly kicking them all together in a roundhouse kick, but paled when she saw them smirking. A log splintered into ashen remains from the detonating clones, leaving Naruto once more on the run as Tsunade burst from the ground with an uppercut that barely missed. She closed in, grabbing hold of Naruto's shirt, and with a roar she easily threw him through a nearby boulder, a clear tunnel made from his body passing through it before it crumbled entirely.
She paused, noting how Naruto didn't immediately counter to her move, and carefully made her away around to the other side of the rock pile. Naruto laid there, his head buried in a small trench his landing had made. His rib cage seemed to have collapsed in the impact, and a good deal of blood was all over the ground around him. Seeing the red liquid Tsunade froze, breathing deeply and her pupils shrinking, and with this underhanded trick complete Naruto emerged from the ground behind her with Rasengan in hand. She barely noted the body before her turning to mud before her world, especially her back, exploded in pain and she went spiraling through the air. She crashed some 50 feet away against a large boulder, the rock nearly crumbling from her impact, but just as Naruto thought it was over she slowly stood up and shakily turned to face her.
If Naruto had thought she was enraged before, the look she gave him now would have to define a whole level of the word. She raised trembling hands to form a hand sign, seals running over her face, and with a shout Naruto could not make out clearly she unleashed her latest trick. Chakra surged around her from the seal, mending the wounds all over her body, and with renewed strength she shattered the already fragile rock behind her with her fist. She then grabbed hold of the ground in front of her, digging into it with her monstrous strength, and despite himself Naruto couldn't help but whistle at the massive amount of earth she picked up above her head.
-That's got to at least equal about the size of a large house. – He thought. –That is gonna fucking hurt if I don't move…hmm… -
Tsunade somehow found more strength within herself to jump, yet again impressing Naruto with just how high she could jump with such a heavy load. At the peak of her jump she threw the mound of earth and rock at Naruto, and he luckily finished the long hand sign sequence just as she did.
"Raiton: Tomoshibi no Tou!"
With the pile of earth just feet above him, Naruto's body exploded in electricity. When the earth began to crush him, a powerful beam of lightning tore right through it all and soared up into the sky. Tsunade watched warily as the pillar of light faded, showing a lightly panting but otherwise unharmed Naruto. Dirt and rock littered the area around him, and not wanting to waste it, he began rushing through more hand signs.
"Doton: Sune-Kudansu no Gekai!"
The dirt and rock piled together, forming a dozen snakes before they dived into the ground. The earth rumbled with small lines of upturned earth racing toward Tsunade, but when they neared her they vanished and nothing happened. The battlefield grew silent, both standing still as Naruto continued to hold the last hand sign, and after a minute passed Tsunade carefully stepped forward. As soon as her foot touched down one of the snakes jumped out to bite her, but it was quickly destroyed by a well placed punch between its eyes. The dirt and stone fell to the ground, and when it did three more snakes shot out to wrap around Tsunade. They managed to trap her like planned, but then with a roar she ripped them apart like tissue. The remaining eight snakes of the jutsu shot up all around her, circling her and hissing a threat, but with a stomp of her foot she cracked the earth around her and shattered the snakes with ease. She smirked.
"It's that all you've got brat!" She yelled. The earth rumbled in response, and a massive rock serpent easily five times the size of the others opened its massive jaws around Tsunade before swallowing her. The earth snake hissed, coiling around itself in hopes of keeping her within its stomach, but its body was ripped in two with Tsunade's impressive strength. Naruto could see his jutsu was a flop, so he lowered his hands and then raised his right to unsheathe Kyuubi from his back.
-Her strength makes close combat impossible, and any jutsu I use can probably be blocked or dodged. Old or not, out of practice or not, she's still a Sannin. – Grimacing, Naruto slipped into a drawing stance, the Kyuubi's blade rested gently against the left side of his waist. –This ends now. -
Tsunade barely noticed it before it was all over. She saw Naruto slip into his stance, noticed the small spike of chakra, but then the field in front of her was completely empty. Confused, she turned her head to look for him, only to freeze. Four chain whips were slowly moving in the air to her left, each one moving at a pace that made it seem almost hypnotic. She looked to her right and saw the other five floating there as well, and tracing them to their source she found Naruto, standing behind her and facing away with the Kyuubi's handle pointed straight ahead. He glanced over his shoulder at her, his eye shifting between red and blue, and muttered one word.
"Inabikari!"
The chains snapped back into the blade of a sword, and with a simple flourish Naruto returned it to its sheath. Tsunade wondered what the blonde had done exactly, and then she felt something wet run down her cheek. Eyes widening, she raised a trembling hand to dab some of the wet fluid onto her fingers, and when she pulled it back she noticed that there was blood on it. She then felt even more wet spots form over her body, running along her arms, legs and back, and when the blood loss finally caught up to her she collapsed onto the ground, the grass beneath her stained by the various small cuts that lined her body. The seal on her forehead returned to its dormant state and slowly she seemed to age before Naruto's eyes.
"…Sorry Baa-chan" Naruto muttered. He crouched down next to her, and using a basic healing jutsu Haku had taught him he went to work on mending the small wounds he had inflicted. While he worked he talked to Tsunade. "You're just too damn stubborn you know? What's the point of running, especially if everyone you know is just gonna bring it all back one day? You should be happy! You lover and brother died, yes…but now you can honor their memories and take the job they dreamed of. You can protect the village, your grandfathers greatest treasure, your sensei's too, from any harm that might come to it. Konoha can flourish under your reign, if only you can just get over this stupid fear of blood and accept the sad truth."
Of course Tsunade didn't respond, still being unconscious, but somehow Naruto knew that the message was still getting across to her. The cuts now gone and the blood having been cleaned up by him, Naruto gently lifted Tsunade up and moved her over to a nearby tree to rest against. No sooner did he do this that Jiraiya and Gaara appeared via Shunshin's and approached him. Jiraiya eyed Tsunade, taking note of the few smears of blood covering her clothing and her aged appearance. "Did you hurt her badly Naruto?" He asked.
"No, I let her vent a little and then ended it quickly." Blue eyes traveled down to Tsunade's form. "She was incredible though, and if she's so fucked up that this is like…only half her true strength…." Naruto chuckled. "I'd have another true fight on my hands, something I've missed for a while now…"
"…" Gaara carefully crouched down next to Tsunade and checked her pulse. "She's still very weak Naruto. Should we not see to giving her some proper care for her injuries?"
"Hmmm, I guess so." Naruto carefully picked Tsunade up again, but then Jiraiya took her off his hands. "Thanks Jiraiya. I think Shizune-san can take care of anything she might need, so let's just head back to town and drop her off in her hotel."
End Flashback
"…And after that, Baa-chan woke up sometime later and I talked to her more about everything. She wasn't very happy really, but somehow I still got through to her and she accepted the job." Naruto reached into his cloak and pulled out the very necklace Tsunade used to wear. "And she decided to keep to the bet and gave me her necklace like promised!"
"Wow…" Haku leaned a little closer and gazed at the green gem. "It's so beautiful Naruto-kun."
"Hn." Sasuke slurped up his second bowl of ramen and gazed at the necklace idly. "Not bad dobe, it looks pretty valuable. Why'd you want it anyway?"
"It actually is pretty valuable. I could probably buy a mountain or two with this." Naruto began, earning a raised eyebrow from Sasuke. "But really, the value of this necklace exceeds that with the right circumstances. Kyuubi hasn't told me much, but he think this thing might be 'the key to our problems'."
"Key?" Haku eyed the necklace this time a little warily. "Naruto-kun…is it safe to use?"
Naruto chuckled, and then leaned over to kiss Haku on the cheek. "I'm positive Haku-chan! And with it, there's not limit to what I'll be able to do, just you wait and see."
Haku smiled at Naruto, and then with no further words the trio resumed eating. After a couple more bowls, mostly Naruto's, they all parted and Sasuke left to head to the Uchiha district. Wrapping one arm around Naruto's, Haku giggled and leaned into him. "So Naruto-kun, what should we do now?"
Naruto grinned at his girlfriend. "How about we go watch the sunset Haku-chan? The Hokage Monument has the best view in the entire village." The two walked off, chatting and having a good time. Neither of them noticed or paid attention to the two shinobi watching them from the shadows.
XXXXXXXXXX
Author's Note: Finally! At last I've posted this bloody chapter, and damn if it wasn't annoying! This one actually was hard to post not because of lack of material, but because there was way too much of it! Ah, anyway I'm glad that this is finally up, and the next chapter should...maybe...probably...be up sometime late next month.
Just a little reminder, all the original jutsu I've made up for this story(so far) will only be explained in a special chapter that I'll be posting after Chapter 15, and I'l do so every 15 chapters afterwards, all the way to the end where I'll have a final chapter listing EVERY jutsu I've made for this story at once. If any of them catch your eyes, then please go ahead and use them, but ONLY if you give me a little credit for having made it up. Till next time!
