This story has been remastered and heavily edited.
Hero or Monster
Chapter Eleven – A Monster Enters Wave
I've spent my whole life so sure of what I wanted. I've never met a problem that the monster couldn't handle.
It would seem that I've finally met a foe that I can't defeat with brute strength.
Love.
I'm so lost, and I can't stand it. What do I want? Why can't I just choose? I… I hate this feeling.
I'm supposed to be a monster, so why don't I feel like one? I'm starting to drown in my own indecisiveness.
I need to wake up soon, or I'm going to lose myself in this insanity called sanity.
Anko was upset.
The kunoichi was uncharacteristically frustrated. Having someone out there who could make her feel like a shy academy girl was getting on her nerves. That person being nine years her junior made it all the more irritating.
After the duel four weeks ago, the blond was a constant in her mind. The Snake Mistress had, like most of the village, been one of his fans while he was still a secret operative in the ANBU. She was never an extreme fangirl of his, but she could appreciate the nation's greatest shinobi to a certain degree.
After her first encounter with the boy however, the Kamikage had become more of a personal savior than a world renowned hero. The removal of her curse mark had meant more to her than she honestly thought it would. She, of course, knew that she would be extremely grateful to the person if it ever happened, but when it went from dream to reality, when it actually happened, she wanted to do anything and everything she could to properly thank him.
Then, somehow, he had heard her inner most desire. Her heart was screaming out to be saved, for a knight in shining armor to rush in and rescue her from her burden. The sickening reminder of her traitorous sensei caused her stomach to curl every single day from the second she woke until she fell asleep. For that to be gone meant the world to her, and all she could do was make a fool out of herself when she tried to thank him.
She had no idea how she was going to thank him properly. It was incredibly hard to find something for someone like him, and she was not going to offer him her body. He was definitely cute, and she was attracted to him, but she didn't want him to think she was a slutty whore like a lot of the village did. He was someone important to her, and she didn't want him to look at her with disgusted eyes. That left her right back to square one; how the hell was she supposed to properly thank him?
During her little inner crisis, a certain purple-haired woman walked into the very same dango shop that she was at with a certain blond companion. Anko wasn't paying all that much attention, so when Yugao and Naruto walked up to her table and sat down, she didn't even notice.
Naruto smiled at the woman's focus. Yugao was a bit annoyed. Her cough was a little over dramatic.
"Ahem. It's rude to ignore your peers, Anko-chan." The kunoichi scolded her friend. When Anko made eye contact with Naruto she immediately choked on the dango in her mouth. After a minute of intense coughing, the Snake Mistress was very red from embarrassment.
"W-what are you guys doing here?" She asked a little angrily.
"Naruto wanted to speak with you, and wherever there's dango, you're always nearby." Anko chuckled at the dango remark but stayed silent. The Bringer of Hope wanted to speak with her? She definitely didn't want to make a fool out of herself in front of him.
"What did you want to talk about, soldier boy?" She asked playfully, trying to hide her nervousness.
She couldn't hide anything from him though, no one could.
He smiled like he was none the wiser though. "Umm, it's kind of private, so how about you and I take a walk, and nee-chan, you wait here. When we're done, we'll come back and have some dango." Yugao narrowed her eyes for a moment before relenting with a sigh.
"Alright, just hurry back." She looked accusingly at Anko. "And my otouto better come back a virgin." Anko gulped and Naruto sighed. He had no intention of having a quickie with Anko. At this rate he'd be a virgin at thirty.
"Yeah, yeah, whatever." Naruto said lazily. "We'll be back soon." And with that, Naruto led Anko out of the dango shop. "Sorry, Yugao is a little overprotective with me. She thinks every female in the world is out to steal my virginity." The blond explained while they walked side by side.
Anko rubbed the back of her neck sheepishly. "Ah, it's fine." She said a little awkwardly. "She's just trying to look out for you." She then gave a confused look. "Umm, where are we going by the way?"
Naruto smiled. "Well, I could take you to my room, since I've seen yours, but if it's okay with you I'd like to show you my favorite place in the village." The Uzumaki felt the woman's embarrassment, but held back his laughter.
"Sure." Anko said softly, her eyes looking everywhere but at him.
Naruto just nodded to himself and continued walking. Six minutes later and they were on top of the Hokage Tower. The view was beautiful, the giant Hokage Monument right behind them, acting like guardians, watching over their precious home.
"I have something I need to tell you." Naruto suddenly spoke out, causing Anko to look at him. "It's been bothering me for a long time now." He sighed, and ran his right hand through his blond hair. "I was born with this ability called empathy." He began. "With it, I'm able to feel the emotions of those around me to an extreme degree." Anko flushed a deep crimson. Great, now he could feel her emotions?
She wanted to speak up and ask him multiple questions, but the apprehensive look on his face made her hold her tongue, for now.
"When I removed your curse mark…" Here he even looked away, like he was ashamed of what he had done. "I had to… sync with you." Anko didn't understand, so he explained. "I needed to feel the foreign chakra and substances within your body. To do that, I needed to push my own chakra into your Chakra Circulatory System." He rubbed the back of his head awkwardly. "When I do that, my empathic abilities are at their highest." He sighed. "My mind became in sync with yours, and because of that, I saw your soul."
"You… you saw my soul? What does that even mean?" Anko asked, unsure how to even begin to feel about that.
Naruto looked her straight in the eyes. "It means I've felt everything you've ever felt. I've seen everything you've ever seen. I've heard and smelled everything you've ever heard and smelled. I momentarily was you; your everything was transferred to me." He gave her a sad look. "I invaded your most private thoughts, your deepest secrets and fears were given to me without your approval. I… I stole from you." He shook his head. "I've killed men for taking what didn't belong to them before. I tried to tell myself that it was for your sake, that I helped you overcome what," here he saw Anko tense, "he did to you, but that excuse just doesn't work for me anymore."
After Naruto, Yugao and Hayate ate dinner last night, he couldn't sleep. He had no desire to dream about Mei again, and that left him with his thoughts. For shinobi, your own head could be a scary place. During his inner rambling, he had come upon something that had been bothering him for a long time; Anko. The woman was so misunderstood, and like certain beings he knew, Naruto wanted to help her.
Knowing someone the way he knew Anko obviously made her someone he felt close to. He had seen everything, her happiness, her pain and suffering, everything. How couldn't he feel close to her after that? He always said that once you understood someone completely, you can't help but love them, and because of that one encounter, Naruto had come to love Anko. He understood her probably better than she understood herself, and now that he had her memories, he couldn't help but feel guilty for taking the one thing that no one, not even he, could touch – her thoughts.
When Anko stayed silent, he continued. "That's why I brought you here." He said softly. "I thought you deserved to know something about me that only four other people in the whole village, the whole world, know."
Anko finally lifted her head, and Naruto smiled. "This is where my father proposed to my mother." Anko's face contorted into confusion. She had thought that the Kyuubi Jinchuuriki was an orphan who didn't know his parents. "My parentage is an S-rank secret, but since I have all of your secrets, you deserve to have some of mine." He turned his gaze to the Hokage Monument. "My father was Namikaze Minato, our Lord Fourth Hokage." Anko's eyes widened. She was sure she had heard the greatest secret Konoha had at the moment. "My mother was Uzumaki Kushina, and she was the Kyuubi's Jinchuuriki before me." The kunoichi wasn't sure if she was allowed to hear all of this information or not, but she was sure as hell not going to ask him to stop.
"I know that this won't make up for what I've done, but I just wanted you to at least have something of mine, too."
Anko swallowed hard, trying to make sure her voice wouldn't shake when she spoke. "I…" She took a deep breath to calm herself. "I'm not angry with you…" she whispered, shocking Naruto. "Even if you did take my thoughts with you," she looked him straight in the eye, "you removed the curse mark from me. I'd gladly give you anything for that."
Naruto could feel Anko's heart, and he hated himself even more now, but for a different reason.
He felt like he was betraying Mei, because he was positively, without a doubt, falling for the Snake Mistress.
He decided to think about his love interests later and deal with what was right in front of him. With his empathy, he could already tell that she wanted, needed, a way to express her sincere gratitude to him and couldn't find a right way how.
He decided to put her mind at ease.
"Can I tell you something else kind of personal, Anko?" He asked innocently.
Anko nodded. "Okay."
"You already know that I'm the Kyuubi's Jinchuuriki, and you now know that the man who sealed him within me was my own father." Anko gave him a sad look. "That night, the Kyuubi killed both my parents. I was orphaned not thirty minutes after I was born." He could feel Anko's sad mind. "You've probably read my Bingo Book entry." Anko nodded. "So you know I have full control over the Bijuu. What you don't know, and only four others do, is that I don't force the Kyuubi to help me." Anko was confused. "Everyone thinks that Uchiha Itachi was my first friend." That little piece of information was news to the kunoichi – shocking news – but she didn't voice it. "But he wasn't." He continued. "The Kyuubi no Kitsune was my very first friend."
Anko stopped breathing for a few seconds. Did she hear him right?
Naruto chuckled at her surprise. "People believe the Bijuu to be mindless demons that only crave death and destruction, but they aren't. They're just misunderstood entities, and they're mistreated because they're different. With my empathic abilities, I was able to understand the Kyuubi." He smiled. "I don't stand against, or even above the Bijuu, Anko. I stand beside them."
Anko was more than a little shocked at what the boy was saying. "Anyways, back to my point." He quickly said. "My first friend, the Kyuubi, killed my parents. I was orphaned because of him. I was beaten and shunned by the village because of him. And you want to know something," his smile grew even bigger, "he's never apologized, not even once." Anko looked at him incredulously. Why would he smile at something like that?
Naruto walked up to Anko, just close enough to outstretch his hand and place it over Anko's heart. "Do you know why he's never apologized to me? Why he's never asked for forgiveness from me for practically ruining my life?" Anko didn't nod, but Naruto continued anyways. He gave her a small, genuine smile. "Because with me," his eyes met hers, "words are not needed." Her brown eyes widened, finally understanding where he was going. He must have felt her conflicted mind. He knew she wanted to explain to him how she felt, and he took it upon himself to ease her mind.
That was all she could take. It was over, she couldn't deny it anymore.
She was in love with him.
Anko smiled the most genuine, happy smile she'd given anyone since her sensei before she bent down and placed a soft kiss on the blond's lips. Naruto kind of saw it coming – his empathy and all – so he was able to kiss her back before it ended.
When it did, Anko sighed. "You're amazing, you know that?" She said, shaking her head. How a fifteen year old had managed to interest her so much was a feat she thought impossible.
"So I've been told." He replied with a smirk.
"Oh? And cheeky, too." She added before she took in a deep breath of the cool afternoon air. "We should get back before Yugao thinks I've raped you or something." Naruto sighed with a small chuckle.
"Yeah." He said while making for the stairs. "Yeah, we should."
Neither of them knew where their feelings were going to take them, but they decided to just see what fate had in store for them. They didn't know if they would even have a relationship beyond friends, but if that's what ended up happening, they'd be okay with it, because they would at least be there for each other.
Naruto had made another bond, this one stronger than the others, and if he were honest, much more complicated.
What was he doing? What about Mei? That's when it hit him with all the gentleness of a sledgehammer; what if Mei had moved on and forgotten about him?
His emotional struggles angered him. They reminded him of his mortality. They reminded him that he wasn't invincible.
"Seriously?" Naruto asked a little excitedly. "Right now?" he asked again, a smile on his face the entire time.
"Yeah." Yugao replied as she walked beside her brother towards the Inuzuka Compound. "Hayate-kun said it was alright with him, so unless you don't want one…" She drawled out, waiting for his response.
"No!" He shouted quickly. "Of course I want one." His reaction got a smile from Yugao. Whenever she got her otouto to act his age she felt like she completed an S-rank mission.
"Good." Yugao nodded, a triumphant smirk across her face. "I mean, who doesn't like puppies?" The two were headed to the Inuzuka Compound to pick out a dog for the apartment. Considering that they were all battle-hardened shinobi, two of which were ANBU, they quickly decided that a ninken would be the best choice. The only place in the whole village to find a ninken was with the Inuzuka, and since Yugao was such good friends with Hana, they could pick from the cream of the crop.
Yugao had thought that a puppy would take Naruto's mind off Mei, since the Mizukage was obviously on it. After talking it over with Hayate, they decided that they could handle a puppy, if they all shared the responsibilities. Obviously, Hayate was going to be taking care of it the most, what with Yugao being an ANBU captain and Naruto being, well, the Bringer of Hope, they were the two that were out of the village the most.
The blond could feel his sister's mind and knew that she was trying to get him to stop thinking about Mei. The only problem was that he wasn't just thinking about the auburn-haired beauty. After his talk with Anko, he had been so unsure of himself. He no longer knew what he really wanted. He loved both of them, equally.
With Mei, he had been accepted by a complete stranger. She was the very first woman Naruto had any interest in, and after the nights of sleeping in the same bed together, and her giving him his first kiss – and then the second, and third, and fourth, and so on – he had developed genuine feelings for her. She understood him, and didn't fear his power, but thought it was attractive.
Then with Anko, he had completely understood the woman. He had seen her entire life laid out in front of him. It was like he had known her his entire life, like he was with her during all of her experiences. He had never been so close to someone in his whole life. He knew what her soul looked like, and he was captivated by it.
So here he was, torn between two women. Again, he was forced to realize his humanity. He was forced to realize that the monster couldn't fix every problem. It infuriated him beyond belief.
On the bright side he was getting a puppy…
"Here we are." Yugao suddenly said, snapping Naruto out of his thoughts. "Now," she said happily, "let's go get us a pup." Naruto gave her his best attempt at a happy smile, trying to convince her that nothing was bothering him.
The two walked in the compound, many of the people greeting Yugao. The purple-haired kunoichi had been to the compound many times, and the Inuzuka were friendly towards people they knew. They were a very pack-like people, and Yugao was a known friend of their Clan Head's daughter, making her part of the chunin's pack.
A short walk later had Naruto and Yugao standing in front of the Inuzuka Animal Clinic. It was a fairly small building, just enough to fit everything that was required of veterinarians. Dark gray in color, it had a very professional feel to it. With one last glance, the brother-sister duo made their way into Hana's workplace. The moment they entered, the Inuzuka pounced on them, like she was waiting for them at the door the whole time.
"Finally!" The Inuzuka Heiress shouted, her calm and collected look gone, replaced with a brash and playful one. It seemed like whenever she was in the presence of a close friend she became a completely different person. It was like she was awake when one of them was around. That thought made Naruto sigh. He hadn't been awake in such a long time. "I was wondering if you'd ever show up!" Yugao smiled, patting the woman's head, receiving a grateful hum in return.
"Sorry, Hana-chan." The ANBU woman said. "We stopped to speak with Anko. Naruto-kun needed to discuss something with her." Hana suddenly seemed very embarrassed. Naruto chuckled. She only noticed he was there when Yugao mentioned him. Most people paid so much attention to him it felt like he was royalty and not just a shinobi. Being ignored was refreshing.
"Hello, Hana-san, it's nice to finally meet you." Naruto said. "Last time," he paused, bringing his hand to his neck, "I didn't get the chance to properly meet you."
Hana was silent for all but four seconds before she became her bubbly self again. "Yes, nice to meet you, too. Anko tried to hog you all to herself last time." She offered her hand to Naruto. "Inuzuka Hana, and you, my cute blond friend, are the Bringer of Hope!"
Naruto smiled and shook the offered hand. Usually he was a little put off when people called him cute. It more than likely meant that a girl liked him or someone was making a crack at his age. It seemed like neither was the case with Hana. She was just being friendly, and Naruto found himself appreciating the woman's attitude.
"Yeah, sorry about that." He began. "There was a much needed conversation to have and Anko… well, you know." he smirked. "She's not the most patient of people." Hana laughed and Yugao snorted.
"You don't even know the half of it, cutie." Naruto chuckled, both at the apparent nickname he had acquired from the woman, and at the fact that he knew exactly how impatient Anko could be. He knew the woman better than anyone else.
"Now, if I'm not mistaken, you have a couple of puppies we can look at?" Yugao said. Naruto laughed a little at that. He didn't know who was more excited about getting a dog, him, or his nee-chan.
"Ah, yes." Hana said cheerily. "Follow me, they're in the back." Yugao nodded, walking next to Hana and speaking about something that involved a fight with Hana and her mother, but Naruto paid little attention to the conversation.
As he walked slowly behind the two kunoichi, he couldn't help but have this bad feeling, like someone he was close to was in trouble. He sighed, it was times like these that he wished his empathy didn't have such a short range of effect. If he could feel the entire world, he wouldn't have to worry if someone he considered precious to him was in danger.
Deciding that there was nothing he could do at the moment, he put his attention on picking out one of the six puppies he was now in front of.
"Aww, they're all so cute!" Yugao cried in a momentarily uncharacteristic girlish way. The ANBU captain was by no means manly, or even unfeminine, she just barely showed her girly side. Apparently, puppies were her weakness. "But you get to choose, Naruto-kun." She finished with a small, happy smile on her face.
Naruto gave each puppy a glance, trying to find the one with that certain look in its eye, the look of intelligence. Puppies One and Two were out of the picture. They looked so dull that Naruto wanted to ask if they were slow in the head. He quickly reconsidered, deciding that both Hana and Yugao would give him that special evil-eyed look that only females could give.
Puppies Three and Four were a little better, but they just weren't what he was looking for. The fifth puppy looked like he was a Nara, the way he was sprawled out on his back, just staring at the ceiling. It actually made Naruto chuckle, he'd have to tell Shikamaru that he had a twin, and that twin was a pup.
That's when he saw her. The sixth puppy was definitely the one that Naruto wanted. The look in her eye told him everything he needed to know. The pup had spirit and an intelligent look in her eye, a look that screamed awareness. If he was going to trust a dog to protect his home it was going to be one that knew what it was doing.
"The last one on the right." he said. "I want that one." His smile faded when he felt Hana's mind.
"Ah, I don't think that's a good idea." Hana replied. "She's somewhat of a wild one. She doesn't listen to anyone, not even the Alpha's." The Inuzuka sighed. "She hasn't even accepted a name." She shook her head. "You should pick a more obedient pup."
Naruto thought it over for a second before he asked, "Do you know why she's so disobedient?"
Hana sighed again. "Her mother mated with a wild wolf." She began to explain. "Wolves are harder to train, especially if they're wild. I don't know if the pup will ever find a master."
Naruto smirked. "May I try something?" He asked. There was nothing the Kamikage couldn't do.
"Umm, sure, just don't be too disappointed if nothing changes." Yugao gave a short laugh and Hana turned to her. "What?" she asked, a little confused.
"You've never met an Alpha like Naruto before, Hana." She explained. "He's an Alpha among Alpha's. That puppy will obey Naruto, just like everyone else." Hana highly doubted that. The boy might be the most powerful shinobi in Konoha, but he was overestimating himself. He knew nothing of the minds of dogs, and he would soon understand that.
Naruto walked right up to the puppy that he had chosen, and bent down to look it in the eyes. She was on a table, so he didn't have to bend down far. The half-breed had beautiful white fur, and her eyes were a mix of green and yellow. The pup started to growl as Naruto's face got closer, and Hana was seriously worried that she'd claw at it.
"Hello." he greeted her, earning a lower growl. She began to bare her fangs at him, and he chuckled. "You're a wild one, aren't you?" The dog snarled, crouching low like she was about to attack. That's when the blond's eyes turned gold, his body flooding with natural energy. The second his eyes changed, the puppy began to whimper, already feeling the purity of the world's power within the human. Naruto smiled. "I'm your Master now, okay." He stated, picking the pup up. When she just let him pick her up, he scratched her head lightly. "Good girl." he said happily.
Hana didn't quite believe what she was seeing. "Are you serious?!" She yelled a little indignantly. "That mutt hasn't let anyone, not even my mother, even get near her, and you say a few words and she's all of a sudden obedient?"
Yugao chuckled. "I told you, Hana. There isn't a thing in this world my cute little brother can't do." Naruto rolled his eyes at the cute remark; his sister was always giving him a hard time. "What are you going to name her, Naruto-kun?" She asked.
When he picked her up, he heard the little bell around her neck ring, which gave him an idea. "Suzu." he suddenly said. "Her name is Suzu." He looked down at his new puppy to see if she liked the name. When she gave a happy bark he smiled.
"Bell, huh?" Yugao said in concentration. "Not very original, but appropriate." She nodded her head. "I like it. Suzu it is." they both smiled at each other.
"She accepted the first name you gave her, too? What the hell are you?" Apparently Hana was still incredibly confused.
Naruto just smiled. "It's an animalistic thing." he pet Suzu on the head again. "So, how much do we owe you?"
Hana just shook her head in exasperation. Yugao wasn't kidding when she meant he was capable of anything.
"What are they doing in Nami no Kuni?" Naruto asked the Lord Third. After he took Suzu home and introduced her to Hayate, he had spent the rest of the day with Yugao, just talking about whatever came up. Naruto explained how he was getting along with all of the genin and jonin he was assigned to, and how he enjoyed making bonds with people nearer his age. Yugao now knew who every genin he had bonded with was, and a description of each of their personalities.
Yugao had smiled the whole time, loving the fact that her brother was making new friends. Then Hayate had made dinner, and the three of them ate together, like a family. Naruto loved their family time.
A restless night's sleep with dreams not only of Mei, but Anko as well, had Naruto a little tired, and incredibly embarrassed. Some of his dreams were not the kind you could speak out loud about, and some of them had both Anko and Mei in them at the same time.
Now he was in the Hokage's office, trying to figure out where his next assignment was. Apparently, they were in Nami no Kuni.
"I gave them their very first C-rank mission." Hiruzen said. "They were all very eager to take on higher-ranked tasks."
Naruto nodded in understanding. He had watched Team Ten do plenty of D-rank missions to know that they were not fun. "Alright," he sighed, "I guess I'll make my way there now, then." He made for the door but was stopped by his commander.
"Wait, Naruto-kun." Hiruzen held up his hand. "There's something I'd like you to handle for me while you're there."
Haruno Sakura was having a rough day.
It started out fantastic. Team Seven was finally given a C-rank mission after she and her crush Uchiha Sasuke pleaded for one. She and her teammates were ecstatic to finally be rid of the annoyingly boring D-ranks, and had started their first C-rank with high hopes.
Not an hour in their little trip to the Land of Waves and they were attacked by two crazy Kiri missing-nin. When their sensei, Hatake Kakashi had seemingly been torn to shreds – literally – Sakura had thought she was going to die. Oh, she protected the client, an old drunk of a bridge builder named Tazuna, with her body, but she was still horrified that she was going to be killed.
When Sasuke and their other teammate, a strange and incredibly rude, pale boy named Sai, had taken the two head on, she was surprised. They both looked so cool! She might not like Sai at all, what with him calling her ugly all the time, but inner Sakura thought he was cute.
She was so relieved when Kakashi-sensei had rushed out of nowhere and apprehended the two chunin-ranked shinobi. She wanted to yell at her sensei for almost giving her a heart attack, but when he complimented all of them for what they did, even her, she decided to keep her mouth shut.
After arriving in Nami no Kuni, they were again attacked, this time by a powerful jonin Kiri missing-nin. Momochi Zabuza was apparently the Kirigakure no Kijin (Demon of the Hidden Mist), and one of the Seven Swordsmen of Kirigakure. The man had almost cut them down by throwing his sword at them. Luckily, Kakashi-sensei had noticed it in time, or she wouldn't still be breathing.
Their sensei had revealed that he had the Sharingan, the dojutsu of Sasuke-kun's clan, and used it to fight the missing-nin. After a brief but no less intense death match, Kakashi-sensei had been trapped in Zabuza's Suiro no Jutsu (Water Prison Technique). Sakura was again terrified, but like with the Oni Kyodai (Demon Brothers), she had stood her ground and protected the client.
After ignoring Kakashi-sensei's order to retreat, Sasuke and Sai managed to free him with clever usage of Sai's Choju Giga (Super Beast Imitation Drawing) and Sasuke's Demon Wind Shuriken. Once free, Kakashi-sensei did something with his Sharingan where he predicted everything Zabuza did, and then used it against him. A couple of Suiton Jutsu later and Kakashi was about to deliver the blow that would end the man's life, but he was beat to it by a Kiri Hunter-nin.
After Kakashi had explained what a Hunter-nin was, he had collapsed. Sakura feared for his life, but was relieved when he told them that it was only exhaustion. They carried their incapacitated sensei to Tazuna's house, where his daughter and grandson also lived.
His daughter, Tsunami, was a beautiful, dark-haired woman who was incredibly polite. When they arrived she had tried to help all that she could with comforting their sensei. After thirty minutes, Kakashi-sensei was situated in one of the rooms on the second floor. Sasuke, Sai and herself had taken it upon themselves to explain the situation they were in, and offered to help out as much as they could for housing them.
That's how she ended up here, helping Tsunami prepare dinner, while Sasuke-kun and Sai sat at the dinner table, waiting to be useful. Tazuna was drinking as usual on the other side of the Konoha genin, and Tsunami's son, Inari, was in his room still. They hadn't met the boy yet. Apparently, he was reclusive.
"Thank you for the help, Sakura-san. I really appreciate it." Tsunami thanked the pink-haired girl. "It's nice having another girl around." she smiled. "Living with two boys is so tiring at times."
Before Sakura could reply, Tazuna shouted, "I'm no boy! I'm a man!" his words were slurred and that made Sakura and Tsunami laugh all the more. Even Sasuke-kun smirked, and Sai… well Sai gave his creepy fake smile.
"As I was saying…" Tsunami continued, ignoring her father's claims of manhood. "It's wonderful having you here, even under such," she paused and looked at her father with worried eyes, "troubling times."
Sakura shook her head. "No need to thank me, Tsunami-san." she gave the woman a bright smile. "I don't mind at all. I actually enjoy cooking, so it's not a bother."
She could see the gratefulness in the woman's eyes. She was thankful for them. Most shinobi would have turned back when they realized that the mission was beyond what they were paid to do. For them to decide to overlook her father's deception and help anyways meant the world to her.
"Even if you don't mind, I'm still very thankful." Tsunami really wanted to make sure they understood her gratitude.
Sakura smiled and opened her mouth as if to say something but was cut off by a knock at the door. The three shinobi tensed, thinking that it might be another attack. 'So soon?' Sakura thought. They faced Zabuza barely an hour ago, another attack so soon was a little unexpected.
Sai stood and took out his scroll and paint brush, ready to protect Tazuna. Sakura brought up a kunai, deciding to stay by Tsunami and protect her. Sasuke also took out a kunai and made his way to the door. When someone knocked again, Sasuke slowly opened it and paused. Sakura had thought that it was out of fear, but when she saw his confused face she let herself calm, but only slightly.
"Who are you?" Sasuke asked bluntly. He had a frown on his face, an obvious indication that he was upset for being bothered.
"Jonin Uzumaki Naruto, here to observe Jonin Hatake Kakashi." A voice called out, causing Sakura to calm even more. "May I come in? I haven't seen Kakashi-senpai in a couple of weeks." The voice was polite and cheery, obviously a friendly.
When Sakura saw Sai put his scroll and brush away, she sighed and put her kunai back in her weapons pouch. A blond boy a few years older than the rest of them in a black shirt, his entire right sleeve a burnt orange, a Konoha Flak Jacket and black pants walked in, his hands in his pockets and a small smile on his face.
"So they sent a slightly older runt to help out." Tazuna slurred. "Wonderful. I feel safer already." he deadpanned. After he spoke, he took a giant gulp of his alcohol.
Naruto just smiled at the man. "It's nice to meet you all. I'm Uzumaki Naruto, a jonin from Konohagakure." He then looked up at the roof. "So senpai's injured? What happened?" He directed his question at Sasuke.
"Kakashi became exhausted when he fought Momochi Zabuza. He's fine; he's just low on chakra." Sasuke answered stoically. "He's resting upstairs for now. He should be back to normal in a few days."
Naruto smirked and waved his hand in front of him. "Mah, mah." he made his way for the stairs. "I'll get him up and going right now." Sasuke raised an eyebrow and followed the blond, wanting to see what he'd do. Chakra exhaustion was a serious thing, and even skilled medical-nin couldn't help it. Sakura also followed, she, too, curious about the blond's claim. Sai seemed not to care all that much and decided to stay downstairs.
When the three young shinobi made it to the room Kakashi was in, Naruto immediately smiled. "Oi, Kakashi-nii, get up already!" He said happily as he kneeled down and placed a hand on the silver-haired man's chest.
Sasuke and Sakura couldn't see it, but Naruto had flooded Kakashi's system with his own chakra, energizing him completely. Kakashi's only visible eye shot open, and he quickly sat up, already feeling the effects of having such potent chakra in his body. He felt better than ever, like he just had the greatest sleep in his life.
When he saw Naruto kneeling beside him with a bright smile on his face, he gave the Uzumaki one of his trademark eye smiles. "Ah, Naruto-kun." he began. "It's good to see you. It's been a couple of weeks, otouto." He put his hand on the blond's shoulder, expressing his gratefulness at receiving his chakra.
"I know. We've both been so busy lately." He perked up a little. "Oh, Yugao-nee let me get a puppy." He cheered. "Her name's Suzu, she's as cool as Pakkun, I swear!" Kakashi kept his eye smile the whole time, nodding at the boy's words.
"I don't know about that, Naruto-kun. Pakkun is pretty cool." Kakashi replied.
Naruto shook his head. "Honest! You have to meet her. She's half wolf, and her eyes are really pretty." Kakashi chuckled, and then stood to his feet.
"I most definitely want to meet this Suzu. I need to see if she is as amazing as you say she is." He then noticed his genin's strange looks. "Ah, that's right." he turned to Naruto again. "Naruto, these are two of my cute little students, Haruno Sakura and Uchiha Sasuke."
He knew Naruto knew who Sasuke was, but decided to play along with Naruto's wishes to act like he didn't for the time being. "Guy's, this is my little brother, Uzumaki Naruto. He's been a jonin for…" he paused for a second, bringing his hand to his chin in a thinking pose. "Four weeks now, I think." he looked at Naruto for confirmation. When the blond nodded, he continued. "Yeah, four weeks now." He saw that their faces still looked confused. "What is it?"
"How are you better, sensei? I thought you'd be out for at least a day or two." Sakura said what was on both genin's minds.
"Ah, that." the scarecrow said lazily. "Naruto-kun here can transfer chakra. He just gave me some of his just now." That was a bit of an understatement. Naruto had flooded his system with two times more than he had before he left Konoha. If he gave him anymore it would have burst his tenketsu.
"I've never heard of someone being able to do that before." Sasuke muttered. Naruto gave the Uchiha a smile.
"I'm a little special, Sasuke-san. I can do a lot of things you've never heard of before." Naruto said as he moved to stand by Kakashi.
"You don't look all that special to me." Sasuke retorted, not even bothering to look the blond in the face. "You only just became a jonin; don't let it go to your head." Naruto chuckled a little at that one.
"Mah, you shouldn't speak about things you don't know, Sasuke." Kakashi suddenly said. "Naruto-kun might have just become a jonin, but that doesn't mean he isn't special. My otouto joined the ranks of jonin after just recently leaving the ANBU." Both Sasuke and Sakura's eyes widened. "He was with the Black Ops for eight years, and has accomplished more than even I have." He gave another eye smile. "You're in the presence of the Kamikage." His eye smile then turned into a smirk. "Show a little respect."
At their shocked expressions and minds, Naruto smiled and shook his head. "It's fine, senpai." He held his hand in front of the two. "I'd like it if we could just be friends, if that's okay with you." Sakura broke out of her shock induced stupor and grabbed the blond's hand.
"Yeah, nice to meet you, too." she said excitedly. "I'll gladly be your friend." Naruto smiled at the girl's attitude. And her larger than average forehead strengthened his deduction that this was Ino's rival. The way her emotions were towards the Uchiha made it clear.
"Hn." Was all Sasuke 'said', but Naruto knew his answer. The raven-haired boy was glad to have met him.
"Umm, sensei…" she turned to Naruto. "No offense, Naruto-san," she then turned back to Kakashi, "but why is he here?" She asked, very curious as to why someone so incredibly famous came to their rescue when they hadn't even asked for help.
Naruto had thought that Team Seven would know about his assignment by now, but apparently none of the teams conversed. Kakashi started to walk out of the room while he answered.
"Naruto-kohai has been assigned a special teaching mission. He has to observe some of the jonin with genin teams so that he can take on his own squad one day. He's already been attached to two others." He turned to Naruto. "That reminds me, how was your time with Gai and Asuma?"
Naruto smiled at his captain. "It was educational, but most of all, fun." He chuckled. "Gai is a real piece of work." Kakashi nodded in understanding.
"That he is." he said before reaching the bottom of the stairs. "And Asuma?" he asked, wanting to know how the Sarutobi treated his brother.
Naruto smiled again. "It took him a couple of days, but he warmed up to me quick enough."
"Good." Kakashi replied softly. He really didn't want to lose a friend because said friend treated his kohai badly.
When they reached the kitchen, Tsunami gasped. "K-Kakashi-san, you shouldn't be up!"
The silver-haired man patted Naruto on the back. "No worries, Tsunami-san. My kohai here made it all better."
Tsunami looked at the blond and smiled, if a bit apprehensive. "Well, just take it easy." she said politely.
Kakashi nodded. "Of course." Sasuke sat back down and Sakura continued to help the woman with dinner. "At least now we can rest easy." The Copy-nin sighed. "Even if Zabuza isn't dead yet, it won't matter now since the Bringer of Hope has joined us."
At those words, everyone froze, for several different reasons.
"Zabuza's alive?!" Sakura shouted.
"Bringer of Hope?!" Tsunami asked in amazement.
"That crazy demon's still breathing? Wonderful…" Tazuna slurred, taking another gulp from his bottle. This day just kept getting better and better.
Naruto chuckled and Kakashi sighed. It looked like he had a lot of explaining to do.
Kakashi spent a good half an hour explaining everything that needed to be discussed. Tsunami and Tazuna were star struck when the Copy-nin introduced the young blond as the Bringer of Hope. Apparently his name even reached the small nations, and even the civilians knew quite a few of his accomplishments.
Then Sakura felt sick when she was told that Kakashi thought Zabuza was still alive, even though he had felt no vitals, and his suspicions that the 'Hunter-nin' was actually his accomplice. Sasuke was a little excited to fight the Kiri fake, and couldn't wait to begin the special training their sensei promised them.
After they ate dinner, Kakashi had assigned Naruto to accompany Tsunami to the marketplace the next day, just to make sure she wasn't used to bait Tazuna out by getting herself kidnapped. After a short conversation, the two jonin joined the genin in sleeping. When Naruto woke – an hour before anyone else – he had been surprised to see Tsunami was already awake, and after the two had some tea that the woman made, they decided to get the shopping done sooner rather than later.
So now Naruto and Tsunami walked side by side into town. The woman needed to buy extra ingredients for tonight's dinner since there were so many guests.
"Thank you for accompanying me, Naruto-san." Tsunami said for the fifth time. The woman was the most polite person he'd ever met.
"It's not a problem, Tsunami-san. Kakashi-senpai asked me to look out for you, and I've only been here once before, so I kind of wanted to look around and see the sights." Naruto replied. He really had only been to Nami no Kuni once, and it was only to pass through it, so he didn't get a real chance to see the actual villages. He was excited, until he saw how poor and depressing it was.
Tsunami had seen his eyes wander around sadly, and decided to let him know why the small fishing village was in such a sorry state. However, before she could begin, there was a cry for help in a nearby shop. When the woman saw Naruto begin to walk towards to noise, she tried to stop him.
"No, Naruto-san, it's too dangerous to get involved." She pleaded. "It's most likely Gato's men, they force the shop owners to pay a 'protection' tax, and if they don't, well…" She didn't have to finish her sentence; the screams for help were enough.
"I'll be fine, Tsunami-san." Naruto explained. He walked into the shop to find three rough-looking thugs, each with a weapon of some kind, huddled around an older looking man. He cleared his throat. "Excuse me, but I'd really appreciate it if you'd leave the man alone."
The apparent leader of the ragtag group didn't even turn his face when he spoke. "Beat it brat, this doesn't concern you." After that was said he started poking his sorry excuse for a sword dangerously close to the man's neck.
Before anyone knew exactly what happened, a real sword was shoved into the 'leaders' throat, his crimson blood splattering on the other two.
"It concerns me now." the blonde whispered, his voice colder than winter. The two living thugs screamed in surprise.
"W-what the hell?" the one with a dull kunai shouted, bringing the kunai up to slam it in the kid's face. The blond dropped his tanto and caught the man's arm in his hand, crushing it with his steel like grip until it snapped like a twig under the pressure. The scum's cries of pain only brought a smile to Naruto's face.
"Fuck off, creep!" The only unhurt thug shouted as he tried to free his wounded friend from the crazy looking blond. His sorry attempt at thrusting a rusty pocket knife at his back was evaded with ease. Naruto spun out of the blow, grabbing the wielder by the throat and slammed him into the wall of the shop, cracking it by the force of the collision.
"Now that we have that settled," Naruto said with a sadistic smile on his face, "I'd like you to send your little boss a message." He leaned in close to the man he still had by the throat. "He takes his last breaths." His smile grew even wilder. "God has passed his judgment on him," he took the man and threw him out of the shop, "and has decided to send his Harbinger to cleanse Nami no Kuni of his filth. Give this message to Gato. He's been warned."
With that said, he turned to the man whose arm was still broken. "As for you," he picked his tanto back up – which he kept in a seal tattooed on his left arm – and pointed it at the man. "It only takes one to deliver a message." The last thing the black-haired thug saw was the terrifying face of a monster.
Gato Company had recently crossed Konoha, in what way Naruto wasn't told, because it didn't matter. The Hokage had ordered him to kill Gato while he was observing Kakashi, which was one of the reasons why he gave them this particular mission. It was a way to get the Kamikage in Nami no Kuni, and then he could end the little man's life.
Like Yagura, Gato didn't fear Konoha or the Lord Third Hokage, and just like Yagura, he would see the foolishness in his sins.
Naruto felt fear behind him, and he sighed. "I'm sorry that you had to see that, Tsunami-san." He turned to face the woman who was trying her best to not look totally terrified. "I know it's hard not to be afraid, but you have nothing to fear from me." He took a step towards the woman and was relieved that she didn't take a step back. He put his hand on the woman's shoulder. "I'm here to protect you and your family, but to do that, I have to become a monster that our enemies will fear." Tsunami just nodded, still scared, but trusting the famous Bringer of Hope with his word. "Now, let's get back to the main reason we came here." He said, motioning for her to continue her shopping.
The rest of the trip was made in silence.
Sometimes, being a monster meant doing the things that needed to be done, but at the cost of others distancing themselves from you out of fear.
And that never felt good.
Ever.
Special thanks to Dreaming of the Phoenix for all the help.
hyvnn.
As ever, you are welcome my friend. It's good to be working on this again… Now let's see how long that lasts, lol.
~Dreaming of the Phoenix