I don't own Naruto... if I did then there would be some sort of underlying theme about recurring cycles and god-like entities in this story...
Quote of the chapter/day: "They say you shouldn't hide your feelings away... but what if what you're feeling is something nobody wants to experience?"
Chapter 20: The Godaime and the The Sannin Showdown
-Last Chapter-
With that thought aside Naruto noticed they seemed to be heading towards some sort of bar, for some reason or another. Jiraiya probably though it'd be best to drown his sorrows in sake and women, not that the blond would let him... this time. However as they walked in, Naruto noticed a distinct chakra signal within the same bar.
"Well I'll be damned." Naruto muttered, as Jiraiya looked at him in confusion before following his gaze and noticing a blond woman with two ponytails and a rather ridiculously proportioned bust. Haku immediately looked down at herself and an embarrassed blush crossed her face, not that Naruto noticed; too busy staring at the woman. He wasn't even staring out of interest or hormones... he was staring because he couldn't believe they were functioning. How did she live with those?
"There you are!" Jiraiya exclaimed, walking towards the woman who turned to glare at him almost instantly. "...we've been looking for you. We need to talk, Tsunade."
-Start-
"Jiraiya?" Tsunade exclaimed in surprise, not expecting to see the man anytime soon. It also didn't help with her other issue... so that was a problem.
After getting over her ridiculously proportioned chest, Naruto took a few moments to take in the appearance of the third member of the Densetsu no Sannin... and he had to admit that she did not give out the 'really strong Shinobi' vibe. She looked – for all intents and purposes – like a normal woman, albeit one who was hiding her age under a transformation.
From the way Tsunade was looking at Jiraiya, it was rather clear that she didn't want to see him... or maybe she just didn't want to deal with Konoha, it was anyone's guess. 'Well... she certainly doesn't LOOK fifty.' Naruto thought to himself with an amused but disbelieving expression. The group walked over and joined her in her booth – along with Shizune, her apprentice – before all talk seemed to stop... for some reason.
"What a day... seeing old acquaintances everywhere." The woman said suddenly, causing Naruto to furrow his brows. 'Old acquaintances? Who could she have been fighting with that she knew? Unless...' The blond boy thought to himself inquisitively, before Jiraiya cut him off.
"Orochimaru?" The white haired man asked, getting a noticeable visual twitch from both Shizune and Tsunade. "...what happened?" He pried, though Tsunade didn't seem fazed by the question... though she did direct a small glare to Shizune, for whatever reason.
"Nothing much... we just said hello." She answered, as Naruto huffed in disbelief, though he made sure to not be heard. It was hardly respectful to huff at one of the Sannin, even if they were drunk blond women who were obviously lying...
Haku was mostly just ignoring the conversation, simply enjoying her food, but even she couldn't help but roll her eyes at Tsunade's answer. 'Well, this meeting just got a lot more interesting,' She thought to herself, looking over at Naruto. She knew he probably didn't want to see Orochimaru anytime soon, what with the cursed seal and the death of the Sandaime.
For some unknown reason, Tsunade pulled out a deck of cards and started shuffling them before placing them onto the table, where Jiraiya took them himself.
"What do you want?" The older woman said impatiently, obviously not really wanting to continue the conversation if she didn't have to.
"I'll get right to the point..." Jiraiya started, shuffling the cards himself. "...Tsunade, the village has requested that you become the Godaime Hokage." The statement gave pause to both Tsunade and Shizune, who had the decency to look surprised. Tsunade then settled into a rather uncaring expression, confusing Naruto and Haku.
"Did you hear about what happened to the Sandaime?" Jiraiya continued, though he was a little miffed that she didn't respond to being offered the most important role in the entirety of Konoha.
"Yeah, Orochimaru killed him right?" Tsunade said, instantly making Naruto grit his teeth in anger while grabbing the table forcefully. Haku noticed his reaction and comfortingly placed her hand on his shoulder. Shizune and Tsunade also noticed the reaction, but had varying reactions. "...I heard it from him directly." She continued, still seemingly uncaring. Naruto let out an aggravated sound at the casual mention, his patience being seriously tested.
"Don't you care at all?" Naruto asked suddenly, and disapprovingly. Tsunade shot him a glance of interest, but she was otherwise unfazed. "...the Sannin were students of the Sandaime, right? Shouldn't you at least be sorry that he's dead?" He asked as calmly as he could, though there were traces of anger in there. Tsunade huffed at the jab, not bothering to indulge him with an answer.
"Who is this kid?" She asked while looking at him glancingly. Naruto sighed at her attitude, but closed his eyes and resorted to staying silent. Jiraiya let a small smile raise across his features before answering.
"Naruto Uzumaki." The man said with a trace of pride, while Tsunade looked at him with surprise. 'So, this is the Kyūbi Jinchūriki huh?' She thought to herself with interest. It wasn't every day you met one of the nine people on the entire planet that contained a Bijū, and nor was it every day that you met an Uzumaki clan member.
"Pleasure to meet you, Tsunade-san..." Naruto said with a smirk, as he formed a small crystal needle in his hand and began shifting it between his fingers idly, intending to surprise the woman – which he did rather successfully. "...this is my friend Haku Yuki." He continued, as a playful smirk crossed Haku's face.
"Oh? Just friends are we now, Naruto-kun?" The young girl asked, making Naruto chuckle at the question before taking an overly serious expression for his own amusement.
"Well I'm not exactly going to go around introducing you as my girlfriend to people I just met." Naruto said plainly, making Haku pout somewhat. Naruto just rolled his eyes with amusement as Tsunade looked on a little bitterly, thinking back to her dead lover Dan. Shizune smiled at the young couple before Naruto looked over at her. "...oh, I'm sorry, who might you be miss?" He asked Shizune, having forgotten to introduce himself to her.
"Shizune. It's nice to meet you, Naruto, Haku." The woman stated. She was a rather nice looking woman, having straight black, shoulder-length hair with bangs covering her ears and face. She was wearing a long, bluish-black Kimono with white trimmings.
"Likewise." Haku stated, while Naruto just nodded with an inviting smile. Tsunade stayed quiet for the most part while Jiraiya just stared at her, waiting for some semblance of a response to the rather important question he gave her.
"You still haven't answered my question, Tsunade..." Jiraiya asked absently. "...the village wants you to be the next Hokage, will you take the role?" He continued, not giving her much room for dismissal. She was quiet for a few moments as she looked at a few cards, seemingly searching for something on their faces.
Naruto couldn't help but stare at her with a fair share of confusion, since he couldn't fathom anybody who would turn down the role... though he may have been then slightest bit bias. After a few moments, Tsunade threw her cards to the table.
"Not possible. I refuse." She said with clear confidence in her answer. Everyone around the table – except for Jiraiya – showed surprise at the action while Naruto actually resorted to laughing in disbelief. Haku looked at him with a little embarrassment, but decided chastising him in public would be... inadvisable.
"You've got to be kidding me..." Naruto said with exasperation now that he'd gotten over his initial surge of bafflement. "...you're being offered the greatest Shinobi position in existence and... you refuse?" He continued, his tone not carrying much of a respectful tone, too disbelieving to care about such courtesies at the moment.
Tsunade directed him a small glare, before taking a shot of sake that Jiraiya had poured for her. She then let out a small laugh before looking at Jiraiya, obviously shrugging of the question quite quickly.
"I don't see why you bothered taking another apprentice, he's just going to be a disappointment compared to the last." She said, trying to insult him without doing so. Naruto – to her surprise – actually let a small and amused smirk grace his features at the intended jab at his potential, since it wasn't received how she had intended it.
"Yeah well, they say Tou-san was pretty awesome." Naruto said almost smugly as he leaned back, placing his arms behind his head with amusement clear on his face as he looked on at the completely shell shocked expressions of the two women sitting in front of him. Haku looked at him questioningly while Jiraiya looked ready to burst a blood vessel.
"Naruto!" Jiraiya exclaimed loudly, in obvious disagreement about his casual admittance of his supposedly secret heritage. Honestly, this was exactly why he didn't tell the boy! Now it was seeming all the more like he was right to hide it.
"Oh don't worry about it! She was gonna find out when she became the Godaime anyway..." Naruto said wisely, crossing his arms in protest as he closed his eyes and turned to Haku's side. Jiraiya thought about it for a moment and couldn't help but agree with his logic... but still, it was a public place.
"Yeah well, next time you go blurting that out why don't you try doing it somewhere a little more private!" The white-haired man said quietly but dangerously. Naruto held up his hands in a placating gesture, agreeing with the man's logic. Meanwhile Tsunade and Shizune were staring at Naruto like he was some sort of once in a lifetime sight.
"Let me get this straight..." Tsunade said, still sounding a little baffled. "...he's one of the last Uzumaki clan members in existence, he's a Jinchūriki and he's the only heir of the Yondaime...? Feel free to add to that list!" She said quietly, before all but shouting on the last sentence.
"Yes... yes and... yes... huh, I never thought of it like that before." Jiraiya said slowly, having never realised just how important Naruto actually was until now. He was the only child of the Yondaime, one of the only Uzumaki survivors and one of the nine Jinchūriki currently alive. It was hardly a small role that Naruto possessed. Naruto quickly clicked his fingers a few times to get their attention.
"Hang on a second, how does she know I'm a Jinchūriki?" The blond boy asked quizzically, his eyes narrowed and brows furrowed in confusion. Jiraiya just shrugged before answering.
"It's essentially public knowledge to anyone Chūnin rank or higher... since they'll be in charge of stopping you if you go on a rampage." He answered plainly, as Naruto let out a small huff of annoyance. It wasn't exactly comforting to know that.
"Great... thanks for the vote of confidence Jiji..." Naruto stated, muttering most of it to himself, though since he was facing Haku's direction she was easily able to hear it and let out a small laugh despite herself.
"Well this has been fun, but I'm not going to be the Hokage... so it was nice seeing you three." Tsunade said with finality, a small smirk on her face that irritated Jiraiya considerably. Naruto furrowed his brows, unsure of what her reasoning was.
"Why don't you want to the Hokage anyway?" Haku asked suddenly, her expression even and more curious than anything else. Naruto nodded in agreement with her question, since he was very interested in what the woman's answer would be.
"All the Hokage ever do is give and give for the village, and for what? They all end up dead for nothing... life isn't like money, only an idiot risks his life so easily. My grandfather and the Nidaime wished to end all war... but they wasted their lives before they could do anything about it." The woman replied rather cynically. For the most part Naruto remained still, though one could easily see the anger burning behind his eyes.
"You've changed Tsunade... I don't know what you've been thinking, but you just spelled it out." Jiraiya said almost mournfully, very unhappy about her change in opinions since leaving Konoha. It was obvious that her losses had made her very bitter.
"I'm in my fifties, even if I look like this... time changes people." She replied plainly, before her expression turned uncaring. "...just look what happened to Sarutobi-sensei? He fought for the village and was killed, and for what? Nothing. Orochimaru is still alive and he's dead." She continued coldly. Then she looked upwards and sighed.
"The title of Hokage means nothing... only a fool accepts it." She said, before a crystal needle found it's place in the wall right besides her neck. Naruto was staring at her rather intensely, his hand extended from throwing the needle but otherwise still. Haku knew that Tsunade's answer would rile him up, but she didn't realise the woman was so bitter.
"That... is some very stupid logic you hold..." Naruto said coldly and bluntly, making Tsunade scowl at him. "...what is a Shinobi? A Shinobi is somebody who fights and risks their life for the betterment of their village and those close to them. If you say being Hokage is risking death, then what does a Shinobi do every day?" He continued, though he quickly became angered. "...oh, but I suppose I can't include you in that list... since all you do is run around, gamble and drink your life away! You aren't a Shinobi, you're a woman who's hiding from her life! Don't you dare belittle the Hokage when you do nothing worth noting with your life to begin with!" Naruto shouted, barely containing the urge to draw his sword on the woman. Tsunade looked just as angered by his statement as he was by hers.
"What do you know about me?! How can you judge my decisions when you've barely been a Shinobi long enough to realise what the career holds? Everyone who I cared for died for that stupid role, so why should I give a damn about it?!" The woman raged at him, though Naruto sat unfazed as his heated glare dissipated into a disappointed one.
"If they died for the role, then you're insulting them just as much as you are the Hokage... would they be proud, Tsunade? That you are insulting the very thing they lived for?" Naruto said quietly but not holding back his thoughts one bit, and he was pretty sure his message got across when she jumped up and looked ready to kill him.
"You little brat..." Tsunade seethed, though Jiraiya quickly shot his hand out to block her from punching Naruto's face into the next building... without his body. Haku quickly shook Naruto's shoulder a little, though he didn't bother turning, happy to resort to staring at Tsunade accusingly.
"Naruto-kun... maybe you should stop antagonizing her..." The girl said worriedly, since Tsunade definitely looked ready to kill him.
"Tsunade-sama, please calm down!" Shizune urged in panic, now having stood up to attempt to calm her master. Neither Haku nor Shizune were successful in doing much other than getting their respective audiences to turn to them for a second before resuming what they were doing.
It was clear to the general audience that the two weren't exactly fond of the other. Naruto disliked Tsunade for her twisted views on the role and individuals which the boy revered while Tsunade was much less than amused by the fact that Naruto was so openly insulting of her suffering, claiming that she was handling her grief wrong.
Naruto wasn't just riling her up for nothing though, his Negative Emotions Sensing ability didn't just apply to hatred and intent to kill, it also applied to the more negative views on things. It was clear after getting her emotions rolling that she had a lot of pent up anger and grief that she simply hadn't let go of.
"These people you lost... losing them broke you, didn't it?" Naruto said seriously, his mood having changed dramatically. Tsunade was surprised that he changed to this topic, since she didn't really want to talk about it. "...and they wanted to become Hokage, but was that really the cause of their death? Aren't you being a little cynical about this? The Hokage were great men... you're being offered to stand alongside the likes of legends, is your grief really worth giving this up?" He continued, trying to break through her shell.
Tsunade stared at him for a few seconds, bewildered that a mere child could identify what she was felt and was doing so easily. It was clear to her that he wasn't what she initially thought, though that was obvious when he started playing with crystals that seemed to appear out of nowhere and when he pronounced himself as the son of the Yondaime Hokage... maybe he was worthy as an apprentice. She let out a small laugh as she realised why he was so... invested in this topic.
"You want to become Hokage too, don't you?" She asked as the rest of the participants at the table looked on rather confusedly, unsure how the mood managed to change so damn quickly. Honestly, Naruto was one perceptive kid.
Naruto smiled with sentimentality before closing his eyes and letting his mind drift back to the things that made him into who he was. Learning of the Will of Fire created by Hashirama Senju and deeply believed by the members of both the Senju and Sarutobi Clans, getting lectures of the amazing deeds of his hero (now known as his father) and generally just learning of his village made him deeply come to love the place and want to dedicate his life to it.
"More than anything..." The blond boy replied, before a small frown of concentration crossed his features and Tsunade could swear she saw his eyes flick to his side, where Haku was sat. "...well, almost anything." He said warmly, not that anyone present was sure what he meant. Haku narrowed her eyes on him searchingly, but couldn't really decipher anything.
Tsunade looked at him for a few moments and couldn't help but notice that if his hair was shorter, he'd look a lot like Nawaki, her dead brother. He even shared the same dream, it was simply too convenient. Letting out a sharp breath of derision, she stood up.
"Whatever, I'm still not taking the role..." She said with annoyance. Naruto let out a sigh at her attitude but made no other movements to stop her. Jiraiya just watched her go, while Haku was still staring at Naruto. She couldn't help but notice his eyes were fixed somewhere... inappropriate... on Tsunade.
The truth was he wasn't actually looking at her chest, but the thing that was dangling directly above it. The small green crystal that was hanging from the necklace seemed to... call to him, resonate with him... he wasn't sure how to describe it but he definitely felt some sort of connection to it. Haku began to grit her teeth somewhat when he didn't retract his eyes, and when he finally did all he saw was a rather angry person.
"Uh... something wrong Haku-chan?" Naruto asked with a mixture of amusement and confusion. Her anger didn't seem to lessen at the question, but it may have risen... not that Naruto could exactly explain that. All he knew was that his Negative Emotions Sensing was on the 'get the hell away from her' setting.
"You... pervert!" She shrieked, before punching him in the face and causing him to hit his head on the table. He groaned for a few moments before raising his head – which now had a noticeable fist mark on it – and rubbing his check while cringing at the feeling in it. He noticed Haku had stormed off... somewhere, so he simply sighed and lowered his head back to the table.
"Ow... what'd I do to deserve that...?"
Naruto was currently just outside the town after the rather pointless conversation with Tsunade. He hoped that his words had gotten through to her, but it was probably wishful thinking... she was undoubtedly far-gone in her grief and denial. Still, it didn't seem like they'd be leaving until she accepted the role, since Jiraiya was as unshakable as Naruto himself.
Due to this, Naruto decided he may as well get a little training done since it was up to Jiraiya to convince Tsunade at this point. Naruto didn't know the woman nearly enough to approach her and start trying to convince her to take the role, despite the fact that he really wanted to in order to erase her twisted and nonsensical views on the Hokage position.
Simply thinking about how she'd spoken about the Sandaime, his father and the Shodaime and Nidaime just made him furious, which was why several trees around him had spiral-shaped marks covering their faces, the result of the usage of an incomplete Rasengan. The fact that he'd learned his father was the Yondaime probably made him angrier, since his father sacrificed his own happiness for the village and Tsunade STILL had the gall to spit on his legacy... it was infuriating! Still, he had to at least try to keep his emotions in check around others, since nobody would benefit from him flying of the chain.
Thinking back, he probably came off a little childish and annoying during the conversation they had in the bar... but he couldn't exactly help it, the Hokage position had always meant the world to him and two people he cared for died for it, so could anyone blame him for getting a little upset when someone claims the role means nothing?
Creating another Rasengan in his hand he tried as hard as he could to stabilize the sphere to prevent the chakra being released on impact, before hitting it into a tree. Despite his efforts, very little changed at he let out an annoyed huff at the rather difficult task he needed to complete... still, it was refreshing to know he was already making good progress. Ducking suddenly, he saw a Senbon needle implant itself into the tree before turning around to see Haku wearing a small smile.
"Well, someone's on edge." Haku claimed teasingly, while Naruto just looked on with a very questioning face. It wasn't exactly the best test of nerves to throw sharp and potentially deadly needles at someone.
"If I hadn't been you would've stabbed me in the neck..." Naruto retorted plainly and with narrowed eyes, accusing her with his very gaze. The girl just shrugged and walked rather freely towards him, clearly in a good mood for whatever reason. Naruto raised an eyebrow at the action, not sure what to make of it... though he assumed it wouldn't end well for him. "...you seem to be in a good mood." He accused, as she smiled at him with a slight spring in her step.
"You could say that..." She said playfully and Naruto couldn't help but allow an amused smile to break out across his face. Her playfulness was very endearing to him, he couldn't help but smile when she was like this.
"May I ask why? I tend to be very wrong when I assume things..." Naruto said somewhat jokingly, though he knew he wasn't the best when it came to girls regardless. Haku blushed, lightly turning away as the question was asked, confusing Naruto since he was pretty sure he hadn't said anything embarrassing.
"Well... I was thinking... about what you said, in the bar..." Haku started, and honestly Naruto had no idea what she was talking about. "...you said... uh... being Hokage was more important to you than nearly anything... I was wondering what you meant... by that." She finished, and Naruto could now understand the awkwardness and shyness that had suddenly come over her.
If he was honest, she assumed correctly. He thought about what would hurt him most and relied on his heart to answer him... and the first thing he saw was her face. He knew that losing her would probably break him too, which was why he could somewhat sympathise with Tsunade. He couldn't imagine losing everyone precious to him in the same way... that would probably lead him to becoming rather hysterical himself.
"Oh is that all?" Naruto said casually, making Haku open her mouth in surprise. "...geez, I shouldn't even need to answer that... but whatever, if it helps then I will." He continued, now staring right at her with almost palpable seriousness. Haku felt herself begin to worry as his bright blue eyes bore into her own.
"Haku, you are more important to me than my dream." He stated with no doubt in his tone, which left Haku all but speechless. Even though she had assumed that answer it was very different to actually hear it. Naruto then dropped his serious expression and ran a hand through his overly long hair. "...at the end of the day I'd much rather be loved than be Hokage." Haku had to smile at this, since it made perfect sense to her. Being wanted had always been something she'd worried about, but to hear that he wanted her to be there for him was very gratifying.
"We... um... seem to have these conversations a lot." Haku said after a small silence, making Naruto let out a laugh of agreement before nodding. They had a lot more serious relationship talks than they needed to in all honesty.
"I guess so. Now..." The blond stated, before a Rasengan formed in his hand once more as the other gripped his wrist tightly. Feeling a little more confident than the last time he let a slight smirk cross his face before thrusting it into the tree again, but unfortunately another spiral patterned cut appeared on the tree. Naruto sighed before laying his head back.
"There must be a trick to this..."
"Alright... so far I've tried focusing the chakra more specifically, I've tried creating a form of chakra 'bubble' around the outside... I've tried... ah, I don't even know anymore!" Naruto exclaimed before sitting down against one of the non-destroyed trees and looking at his slightly trembling hand. "...this is like trying to do two things at once." He continued, before looking over at Haku who seemed to be trying to do something herself.
Walking over, he noticed there was a gathering of frost and ice in a small area in front of her while she was breathing heavily. Arching an eyebrow in interest he stopped at her side and waited for her to calm her breathing.
"Problem?" Naruto asked almost jokingly, since it was kind of obvious she was trying to do something. She spared him a sidewards glance before inhaling once more and closing her eyes and gathering chakra in her lungs.
"Hyōton: Gouon wo Zotto (Ice Release: Chilling Roar)!" She thought to herself, before forcefully exhaling a large cloud of extremely cold air. The results were impressive, causing noteworthy gatherings of ice and frost over everything in front of her for a couple dozen feet. Naruto let out a whistle as he walked in front of her and could already feel the cold temperatures.
"Impressive... how long have you been working on this?" The blond asked as he brushed a hand over a frozen tree, before quickly pulling back as the cold temperature actually 'burned' his hand a little. Shaking his hand he looked over at her with a rather amazed look on his face.
"A little while. After learning to use my Fūton chakra correctly I found that more wind-based Hyōton techniques were able to be made." The black haired beauty stated, though Naruto could understand the logic quite easily. Kekkei Genkai are (generally) composed of two or more elements... so the two together creates a mixture. That mixture – however – can be more like one element than the other, like how Haku's ice mirrors are more water-like while her 'cold clouds' are more wind-like.
"Yeah, I get that." Naruto answered, though the discussion actually helped him considerably. What if his chakra wasn't being changed into the correct 'type'? Chakra could take all sorts of different uses and shapes, maybe he just wasn't ensuring that the chakra he was using to form the Rasengan was... corporeal enough, rather than being the normal wispy chakra that was the base for the more basic techniques
It made sense, he hadn't actually used his normal chakra (in other words, non elemental) to form physical shapes before... maybe he was just going about this wrong... and maybe he could use his findings on chakra shape stability to make his shadow clones a bit more durable. They were just chakra, so it could work.
Gathering the chakra carefully in his palm once more, Naruto thought for a second about the increased stability it required... but he was only using one hand, and his chakra control wasn't exactly the best, so that meant...
"Maybe I can think of a work around... for now at least." He mused aloud with a small smile of anticipation. He placed his other hand over the other and began working it around to get the rotation going while the bottom hand was still, trying to increase the stability of the sphere so it wouldn't disperse when he used it. The results looked promising, the rotation continued to increase while the orb maintained the shape, until it began to glow bright blue to signify it's completion.
Naruto moved his hand from above it and moved the hand that was supporting the Rasengan around a little, to see if the orb would dissipate or lose stability, but it seemed quite stable. Positioning himself near a large boulder, he thrust his hand forward.
"Rasengan! (Spiralling Sphere!)" He called out, and immediately noticed the lack of a spiral formation while his hand continued to bore through the rock. After a few seconds he completely got through the rock and marvelled at the hole in it. As he marvelled at the damage, Haku's head poked into view on the other side of the rock as she too looked at it.
"Nice, so is it complete now?" Haku asked with a smile as she continued to look through the hole in the rock rather than go around it. Naruto arched one of the corners of his mouth at her silliness, but decided not to comment of it.
"I think so! Although it is a little timely to create and I do need two hands... but that's fine for now, I'm just happy to have it battle ready." Naruto stated, as he pulled a small book out of his pouch. Haku looked over at him with confusion as he also pulled out a pencil and started – or at least appeared to be – doodling something.
"What are you drawing?" Haku asked, as she peered over to see. Naruto quickly shut the book with a small blush as he turned and began to walk away, leaving a rather confused girl in his wake.
"Nothing important..." He muttered as he continued walking. A sly smirk crossed Haku's face as she crossed her arms.
"Oh, we'll see about that..." She mused, before following after him.
-A few Days Later-
It had been a rather uneventful week. Jiraiya had failed to convince Tsunade to take the Hokage role while Shizune had been repeatedly apologetic. Tsunade herself seemed to become even crankier and more distant from just about everyone as the week passed by. Haku and Naruto spent most of the time together, just enjoying the peace a little... though Naruto was getting bored of waiting.
"We should just leave, it's clear that Tsunade doesn't want to be the Hokage anytime soon... there are plenty of candidates that would be happy to take the role." Naruto said with clear exasperation, since they'd been waiting a week for what seemed to be nothing. He didn't exactly have any personal issues with Tsunade other than her rather cynical views, but she was hardly worth this trouble.
"For the last time, they won't let you become Hokage at thirteen years of age!" Haku said with annoyance, since Naruto had been (jokingly) saying that the entire week. Said boy just huffed and crossed his arms in defiance.
"You don't know that..." Naruto muttered, before Haku just sighed and looked over at his pouch that was laying on his bed. She attempted to sneak over and grab it, before Naruto himself grabbed it and put in on the side of his thigh. "...I've told you that you can't see that book Haku-chan." He continued with an amused smile, while she just huffed and turned away.
Then – as if in waiting – the door burst open and Shizune came running in. She looked rather panicked and Naruto just looked at her with confusion and a little annoyance, she could've knocked! Then the woman looked around a little before calming down a little.
"Where's Jiraiya... or Tsunade-sama?" The woman asked quickly, while Naruto and Haku looked at each other, equally confused about what was going on.
"We have no idea, why do you ask Shizune?" Haku asked courteously, though she was a little annoyed about the intrusion as well. Shizune bit her nail as they all heard a noise outside the window. Naruto rolled his eyes and walked over, before opening it to find a rather sweaty and sick looking Jiraiya.
"What the heck happened to you?" Naruto said, with a clear attempt to sound serious... though it ended up coming out in an amused fashion. The man just grunted with obviously laboured breathing as Shizune came outside the window to check on him.
'It seems like he's been given some form of drug that weakens the body and chakra network temporarily.' Shizune analysed with ease. She wasn't the apprentice of the best medic-nin alive for nothing, so it wasn't exactly hard to see what had been done to him.
"Tsunade must've poisoned me with something last night... I can't believe I didn't notice." Jiraiya stated, and Naruto could tell he was a little ashamed about letting Tsunade do it without him noticing. Still, it mattered little since he had no idea what was going on.
"What's goin' on anyway?" Naruto asked casually, wondering what the fuss was about. Shizune was panicked about something, Jiraiya was poisoned by Tsunade, it all seemed a little unusual that this would all occur for nothing.
"Right before you ran into us we were found by Orochimaru, as you know... but he offered a deal to revive Dan and Nawaki; Tsunade-sama's lover and brother... if she healed his arms so that he could destroy Konoha." Shizune said guiltily, since she did want to tell them about this but wasn't able to since it would've been a betrayal to her master. Naruto scowled at the mention of Orochimaru but took a deep breath to calm himself.
"...and the deadline was today, right?" He finished for her, receiving a nod before running a hand through his hair. "...great, I was hoping not to see Orochimaru before I was prepared to slit his damned throat..." He growled out, subconsciously touching his neck where Orochimaru bit him and lay his curse mark. Shizune narrowed her eyes at him questioningly, unaware that they were... acquainted.
"You've met Orochimaru?" Shizune asked, while Naruto let out a huff before channelling his cursed seal and letting it spread about halfway across his face before turning to Shizune, who was a little shocked by the action.
"You could say that..." The blond stated, before forcing the mark to recede. "...now are we gonna stop Tsunade from doing something colossally stupid or what?" He said light heartedly, making everyone shake their head at his fluctuating attitude before nodding and standing up.
"Let's get going!"
-With Tsunade-
Despite what she had made apparent to everyone else, Tsunade never planned to heal Orochimaru's arms but in fact she was intending to kill him with a rather subtle medical technique. Unfortunately, Kabuto had intervened due to his knowledge of medical Ninjutsu and the three had run off to a nearby field to do battle.
Tsunade had severely overestimated her abilities with her hemophobia, since she was unable to hold off even Kabuto after he intentionally cut himself, causing a noteworthy amount of blood to splatter on her and all but paralyse her. So here she was, on the floor, completely spaced out as Kabuto prepared to kill her. Imagine the surprise of the group when Kabuto's Kunai was blocked by a sword wielded by a rather familiar blond Shinobi.
"Kabuto... I knew you couldn't be trusted." Naruto stated as he held the silver haired spy back. Kabuto let out a tsk of annoyance before jumping back to Orochimaru's side. The group of four regrouped next to Tsunade, who was essentially useless at this point while Naruto just stared at her. Quick assumptions led him to believe that she was either paralysed by a Genjutsu or the blood on her. Considering Orochimaru apparently had no functioning arms and that she had excellent chakra control he had to guess the latter.
"Ahhh Naruto-kun, how nice to see you again." Orochimaru hissed out, while Naruto just glared at the snake and resisted the urge to foolishly charge at him. Jiraiya was somewhat childishly staring at Tsunade for poisoning him while Shizune was looking her over. "...you know, I was actually planning to send some of my men to retrieve you, so this all very convenient!" He finished, as Naruto felt like either laughing or sighing at the man's persistence.
"Orochimaru-sama has taken interest in you, Naruto-kun... you should join us, where you'll be truly valued for your skills!" Kabuto claimed, and this time Naruto really did sigh. It was actually quite ridiculous how mentally unstable Orochimaru and his cohorts thought the blond was.
"What are you, stupid? You really think I'd betray Konoha, in front of two non-disabled Sannin for that matter?" Naruto said plainly, his face betraying nothing. Kabuto just frowned at the jab, since it just meant that Naruto would have to be dealt with a different way.
"Well, that's too bad... we can't have people with control over their cursed seals just running around freely." Kabuto said, before charging in to attack, while Jiraiya went towards Orochimaru. The two Sannin quickly started having a large scale battle involving snakes and giants swamps, but Naruto wasn't really concerned about them for the moment. Before he was able to do anything, Shizune decided to deal with Kabuto herself.
"Let me handle this, you two protect Tsunade-sama." She urged, as she began to clash with the silver haired man. Naruto felt the need to protest, but jumped back to Tsunade regardless. Shizune began firing off Senbon from a wrist-mounted launcher which Kabuto evaded, before the man came in with a curved Kunai and attempted to cut her down, only to be evaded himself.
Shizune then breathed out a large quantity of purple gas that enveloped Kabuto, which Naruto quickly deduced to be poison. After a few moments, it seemed like Kabuto wasn't going to re-emerge, but then he appeared and knocked Shizune out.
"Well... so much for that plan." Naruto muttered, as he looked over at Haku and shrugged. "...you want to do this together or one at a time?" He asked quietly, as he spared a glance at Kabuto who seemed to be waiting rather smugly.
"Together." The girl replied with an even face, as Naruto nodded before looking right at Kabuto. Then, he ran forward and grabbed a Kunai that was hidden within his sleeve and attempted a quick swipe on Kabuto, who easily evaded it, but quickly found a Senbon lodged in his shoulder. Naruto allowed a smirk to cross his face at the annoyed expression on Kabuto's face, two on one was always more fun... if a little unsporting.
Naruto found himself having to clash his Kunai with Kabuto's own, before the man before to overpower him. He mustered his strength while seeing Haku dashing in behind the man, before Kabuto kicked him to the ground before turning around and jumping out of the way of Haku's attempted stabbing attack; her Senbon gripped between her knuckles.
"You two are out of your depth, you can't beat me." Kabuto boasted arrogantly, making Naruto roll his eyes and Haku shake her head.
"Yeah yeah, that's what they all say." Naruto retorted, making Kabuto shrug casually, obviously believing that he was talking the truth.
With the small break in conversation over, Haku gave Naruto a small signal to keep Kabuto busy, which he immediately acknowledged. Forming the clone seal, four shadow clones poofed into existence while Naruto nodded at them as they dashed forward. Kabuto laughed at the action, kicking the first clone away easily and taking a vertical slice on the next.
The third got behind him and attempted to trip him, but Kabuto easily jumped over it and swung around into an attack that landed with ease. The last clone looked a little worried as it brandished a Kunai and attempted to throw it at Kabuto, who caught it in the ring and threw it back. Thinking that he'd won, Kabuto smiled again, but quickly realised that he couldn't see Haku.
"Hyōton: Gouon wo Zotto!" He heard her shout, as he whipped around to see an incoming whitish cloud, with a few sparkles in there to signify shards of ice. He jumped to evade the cloud, but was caught on his non-dominant arm, which immediately began to burn in pain and feel stiff. Hissing in pain, he glared at the pair who were again side-by-side with their weapons of choice in hand.
"Don't get overconfident, Kabuto." Naruto advised sportingly. "...I mean c'mon, I hardly want this dance to end before the music is over." He continued, but he could've sworn he felt Haku mentally slap him across the head. Kabuto looked at him in confusion, but the man shook his head and got ready to attack again, before going through a few signs that Naruto was familiar with.
"Suiton: Suiryūdan no Jutsu (Water Release: Water Dragon Bullet Technique)!" Kabuto shouted, as a water dragon seemed to appear out of thin air, surprising both Naruto and Haku. It quickly shot forward, as Haku held her hands out and began to exude chakra. Then, as the dragon was about to reach her it froze and stopped in place. Naruto arched a brow, impressed with the feat before shaking his head to regain his composure. Kabuto – as you'd expect – didn't look pleased.
"Have that back!" Haku shouted, as the now ice dragon turned around and shot back towards Kabuto. The man growled as he began dodging the dragon, before he felt himself hit against a rock. Thinking quickly, he jumped straight up as the dragon crashed into the rock and shattered. Naruto frowned but shrugged, since it made him waste some stamina at least.
"You didn't know you could do that, did you?" Naruto whispered quietly, as an embarrassed smile crossed Haku's face.
"Not a clue!" She replied, making Naruto let out a small laugh. Kabuto scowled at the fact that they were seemingly so confident that they had time to chat amongst themselves. He dashed forward at Haku – who he could tell had the lesser Taijutsu skill between them – before stabbing his Kunai forward. Haku began to weave around his attacks, since her style didn't really focus on defence but rather evasion, before Naruto – who had now drawn his sword – attempted to cut the man in half with a sloppy swing. Kabuto blocked the swing with a smile before punching Naruto in the face and causing him to fall back a few feet before he was kicked to the ground.
As Kabuto prepared to finish him with his Kunai, a mass of small water needles formed in the air and aimed themselves at the silver haired man, who was forced to retreat before they got to him. Naruto stood up and brushed a knuckle across his face, hardly happy that he got hit. Haku shot him a worried glance – though she hid it well – before turning her attention back to Kabuto.
"You shouldn't use weapons you aren't comfortable with, Naruto-kun." Kabuto said mockingly, though Naruto didn't even care about what he was implying. No, the issue was with the rather irritating suffix that he had no right or reason to use.
"Why do you all insist on calling me 'Naruto-kun'? You aren't my girlfriend, 'ttebayo..." The blond said plainly, making Kabuto blush in embarrassment but otherwise ignore the jab. Haku stifled a laugh, but shot Naruto a small smile. Kabuto then placed his Kunai in a pouch, confusing the duo. That was – at least – before both his hands began to glow with blue chakra, before he shot forward.
Naruto was prepared to underestimate the attack, but quickly remembered due to the Rasengan that pure chakra was not something to take lightly. Blocking with his sword, Kabuto thrust his hand downwards and clashed with the blade, which Naruto noticed did not cut into the man's hand, so the chakra coating must've been substantially sharp or strong.
"You were in the Chūnin Exams... but you worked for Orochimaru the whole time didn't you?" Naruto questioned, while maintaining their deadlock as carefully as he could. Kabuto just let a smirk cross his face before chuckling to himself.
"As if I'd be a Genin at my age... or be committed to that crap hole of a village." Kabuto retorted, as Naruto's face shifted into a very serious visage. Kabuto noticed that Naruto – despite having his free hand behind the blade, to support it against Kabuto's strength – was going through a few one handed seals with it carefully.
"I'm an understanding guy..." Naruto stated, a few crystal Shuriken began to take form in the air around him as he glared at Kabuto. "...but I have no patience for traitors and spies... now begone!" He shouted as he prepared to have his Shuriken kill Kabuto where he stood. He felt – however – a strange sensation that he hadn't felt since...
"No..." The blond muttered, as his cursed seal began to flare to life against his will. The action caught him off guard severely, since he was all but... no, he was certain that the cursed seal was under wraps. Elsewhere on the battlefield, Orochimaru let his tongue extend from his mouth as a smile crossed his features. 'You thought I wouldn't have a fall back plan, Naruto-kun?' Orochimaru thought to himself, before going back to his own fight.
Naruto completely lost control of his body at this point, allowing Kabuto to easily force him to the ground as he clutched his neck in pain. The silver haired man smiled arrogantly as he observed Naruto in his helpless state. Naruto meanwhile, was thinking every curse word he could possibly think of as he realised he was most likely going to die... he simply couldn't think of a reason for this to happen!
"I can't stop it mortal... it seems the snake had a fail safe installed." Kurama stated worriedly, since his life was in Naruto's hands at this point. He didn't even know what would happen if he reformed with only half his power, since no portion of the Bijū had never been sealed in the Shinigami's stomach before. Yin release was used to give him form while Yang release was used to give him life, since only half of him existed he could be incapable of living at all...
"Looks like this is the end of you, Naruto-kun." Kabuto said with rare seriousness, dashing forward to stab Naruto with a Kunai once more, no longer needing to waste the chakra scalpels... however he found himself stopped before he had chance. He briefly noticed a head of black hair in front of him before feeling pain in his chest. After his mind cleared, he found he had stabbed Haku somewhere lethal, while she had stabbed him with three Senbon in the chest in return. Naruto merely looked on, with clear shock.
"What... what have you done?" Naruto said breathlessly, his eyes wide with shock. Despite herself, Haku allowed a small smile to rise to her face.
"I guess I just panicked... I wanted to..." She started, but coughed up a fair amount of blood while Kabuto fell back and pulled the Senbon out of his chest. "...I wanted to protect you." She finished, as she fell back, but Naruto caught her, completely ignorant of the fact that he managed to move just fine with the cursed seal keeping him immobile.
"Come on, you'll be fine! We had plans, right? We were going to face the Akatsuki together..." Naruto said comfortingly, though he quickly felt tears begin to flow. "...you can't... not like this..." He continued, now openly crying. Haku reached up, touching his cheek with obvious difficulty; one last defiant act.
"N-Naruto-kun... it's...it's alright... I... l-love you." She said, with a difficult smile that seemed to degrade into nothingness as Naruto sat motionless; his wide and weeping eyes moving madly across her face to see a sign of life.
Tsunade looked on at the scene with a morbid sense of Deja vu, it was just like her and Dan. She began to rigidly stand; to attempt to get to the girl to save her. 'Not again... nobody will go through what I did!' Tsunade thought to herself as she began to walk towards the two. Before she could get there, a large wave of force knocked her over.
When she raised her head she noticed everyone had paused, with the centre of attention being Naruto. He was not as he used to be though... no, now he was covered by a thick coat of red chakra and a single tail was waving behind him as his blood red, slitted eyes stared at a certain silver haired man.
"KABUTOOOOOOO! YOU'RE FUCKING DEAD!"
-End-
There is some not-so-subtle foreshadowing in this chapter, can you guess what it is?
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LiamMorg. Out.
Ja Ne!
-Original Technique(s)-
Hyōton: Gouon wo Zotto (Ice Release: Chilling Roar): The user (Haku) releases a hyper-cooled blast of air from her mouth in a large cloud. This cloud then causes a flash freezing effect that severely hinders an opponent and/or causes frostbite. Range is variable based on chakra usage and the skill/chakra control of the user. (C-Rank. Offensive)