NARUTO:
THE LEAF IN THE WHIRLPOOL
CHAPTER 20
REBUILD REDUX
Konohagakure
3 Months Later
He knew he was dreaming but he didn't care. Right now he had everything he ever wanted. A family of his own, the title of Hokage and the power to protect everyone. He was standing in front of the entire village as the Rokudaime Hokage, waving and smiling to the people he was charged to protect.
Two arms suddenly wrapped around his middle and a warm body pressed itself to his back. Naruto smiled as the scent of lavender washed over him. He turned around and enveloped his wife in a hug.
"Naruto-kun, I love you very much" she looked up and he finally got to see her face.
"Hinata-chan" he said softly and he lowered his head to kiss her.
"WAAAAAAAAAAAAAAKE UP!! Big brother" A huge head of sister was in the sky screaming at him.
Naruto sat up straight in his bed as shock raced through his body.
"Hinata" he said.
"No silly, I'm not Hinata. I'm your little sister Hoshika" Naruto looked up to see his little sister sitting on top of his desk.
"HOSHIKA!" he heard his mom scream followed by the sound of footsteps coming up the stairs. The door to his room burst open and his mom stood surveying the situation. "Little missy, I asked you to wake Naruto up, not the entire Village" she said with a vein throbbing on her forehead.
Naruto was too afraid to point out that her own shout was even louder that Hoshika's. Instead he pulled back the covers and got out of bed to appease his mom. "Its ok mom, I was gonna wake up soon anyway. Plus you can't stay mad at Hoshi" he said with a wink to his little sister who got the message and climbed off his desk and came beside him.
"I'm sorry mommy, I was just excited" she said making a sad face.
"Ah, my little boy is helping out his little sister" his mother said with a sudden change of mood. "It's so cute" she said and she approached them and brought them into a hug.
When the hug broke apart Naruto saw some unshed tears in his mom's eyes.
"Naruto, wash up and get dressed, breakfast is about to be served soon" she said while taking Hoshi with her.
Naruto removed his gama night cap and shambled to the en suite bathroom. He brushed his teeth and then undressed and went into the shower. Naruto finished and went to his cupboard. He opened it and looked at its contents and he went about the laborious task of deciding which orange jumpsuit to wear. Most people thought he always wore the same one but in reality he had over fifty and could tell the difference between each one.
"NARUTO! Hurry up sweetheart, the foods about to be served!" his mother's said.
Naruto needed no other statement; he grabbed his lightweight jumpsuit, got dressed and raced down the stairs into his seat. By the time his mom turned with the first batch of pancakes he had his knife and fork in his hands.
"Good morning Naruto" his father said with a smile on his face.
"Morning dad" Naruto said cheerfully. Despite the short since they had been reunited, they had bonded and become a close family unit. The pains of the past were not forgotten but they did not shadow the joyous present.
Sometime later.
"Wow mom that was fantastic." Naruto said, with a satisfied look on his face.
"Yeah honey, definitely one of your best." His dad agreed as he got up from the table. "Now to work off some of that energy" His dad was wearing his training uniform and that only meant one thing.
"Thanks for the food mom" he said as he followed his dad outside.
Naruto was already stretching as he made his way to the training ground at the back of their house.
"Some light sparing will get us into the correct mood for what I want to teach you today son" his dad had been warming up and he was now ready to go.
Naruto never took his eyes off of his dad for instant and he was able to crouch and roll forward, to avoid the round house kick aimed at his head.
He got to his feet quickly and assumed a defensive stance to block his fathers attack. For the most part his dad was doing the attacking and due to his greater height and longer reach Naruto was getting more than he gave.
After thirty minutes his dad called a stop to the sparring.
"That certainly got the blood pumping, hey son?"
"Yeah it dad" Naruto admitted.
"Two times, seems like a nice way to end off the warm-up ne?" his father asked.
Naruto thought for a moment before he answered. "Let's make it four, to keep things interesting" he said with a huge grin.
"That's my boy, always reaching higher, just like his old man"
"Ready" Naruto said getting up
"Set" His dad added
"GO!" the voice of his sister shouted and in a burst of pure speed both were off.
Naruto raced through the Village thankful that the streets were mostly empty because it meant there was no need to worry about collisions. He made it to the gates of the Village at almost the same time as his dad and he immediately turned left while his father turned right.
Naruto pushed himself to his maximum speed as he went around the perimeter of the Village. Due to the speed almost everything was a blur so Naruto channelled some chakra to his eyes 'to see better'.
He was done in five minutes and he headed straight home. As usual his dad was waiting for him but Naruto could still see the trail of dust in his wake which meant he was improving in his speed.
"So what are you going to teach me today?" Naruto asked excitedly.
"I am going to teach you the Kame-Sennin style of martial arts, handed down among the heirs of the Namikaze clan" his dad said solemnly. "Are you ready Naruto?"
"Yes, I am ready" Naruto answered.
"Then follow me" his dad's words trailed off as the space and air around him began to warp and then a flash of Yellow light and his dad was gone.
Naruto concentrated all of his chakra and his willpower to bend the space and time around him and a flash of Orange light appeared as he was transported to that world.
--
"Mommy, big brother, and daddy disappeared again" Hoshika complained
Kushina looked up to see her daughter standing at the kitchen door.
"I know honey, it's kind of hard to miss the flash of light" she said in an understanding tone. "They will be back sooner than you think" She then resumed her task of washing the dishes while her daughter went to the living room.
Although her voice had been calm she was a bit worried on the inside. The martial arts that Minato was going to teach Naruto were extremely difficult to know and master. Naruto was lucky that he was able to undergo the training because the Kame Sennin style was developed by Minato to suit his high speed and as such only someone who could move as fast as Minato could utilize it.
She was only comforted by the fact that Naruto had her clan's bloodline limit to help him see when moving so fast, although how Minato managed it she still had no idea.
Thinking about their bloodline made her realize that it was time to start tutoring Naruto in its use. She had known that he awoke it in the battle with Gaara but she had wanted him to get a feel for it himself before she started teaching him how to fully use it.
Naruto was a truly remarkable child. In their absence he had come so far that she knew he would actually surpass them in a few years and she was going to make sure that he led the next generation….
Kushina became lost in memories…
"Kushina" a tall man with long red hair said. "You are my daughter and my only child but according to the customs of our people you cannot succeed me…."
"But father!" she pleaded "I have already proven that I am strong enough, I have mastered our bloodline limit and excelled in all disciplines of the Ninja…how can I not be your heir" the last was said with tears in her young eyes.
"Ah my child, that you are the most powerful and talented of your generation is in no doubt but there is no way we can change the tradition… and besides the Seer's have spoken of another…"
The words that the Seer's of Whirlpool had spoken so long ago came to her mind
"His birth cry will shake the foundations of the world, his feet shall run on the sky and his will shall shape world"
Although she had never been one for prophecies she could not deny this one….
--
Naruto recognized the dimension they were in as the place he went to when he performed the Hiraishin. He had never really entered this dimension for an extended period of time and he was suddenly feeling how weird it was. There was no light in the traditional sense but he could see clearly.
"You noticed how different it is when you spend more than a few seconds in here ne?" his father said from across him. They were seated in the lotus position and had been since they arrived.
"The air in here is heavy and somehow I feel heavier." Naruto answered.
"The Hiraishin is a gateway that we use to enter this place, there are no doors, or pathways only your will directs your way. The Seals we place are markers to easily identify a location, view its surroundings and appear wherever we please, in the real world it seems like an instant but in this world time is transitory." His father explained.
"You mean we control our perception of time in this place."
"Yes, our Will is the key. We are the first people in a long time to walk in this place, it is not simply coming here that is important it is actually surviving in this place."
"What is this place…?" Naruto asked
"A Warren…more importantly, the Warren of Darkness, the First One… I asked if you were ready Naruto…and from your eyes I know you are."
His father then shot off at a high speed and without a moment's hesitation Naruto went after him. It took him a bit of time but he finally caught up to his dad and then the funniest thing happened.
His dad turned around and started running backwards, yet he still maintained his speed. They were moving side by side and Naruto also perceived that his father was moving a bit slower for him to keep up.
Naruto sent chakra to his eyes and he was just in time to see his dad's fist heading for him but because of his own speed he couldn't actually stop it.
The impact of the fist sent him careening into the ground but it did not stop his momentum. He hastily erected a wind barrier around himself as he drilled through ground. When he finally came to a stop he looked at his impact trench.
His dad's face suddenly came into view. "You took that better than I expected" he said with a smile.
Naruto reached up to grab it and once again he was shocked by his dad's strength. "You could have warned me you know" he accused.
"The Kame-Sennin style is basically high speed Ninjutsu combat at its ultimate level. There are no warnings, only death. Simply appearing wherever you want does not kill armies"
"Back there, when you turned around you weren't physically running weren't you?" Naruto asked.
"Nope, I used a combination of chakra and my life energy to keep me moving. Until now there has never been anyone but me who could do it."
"So who is the other guy?"
"You… son" his dad reached down offering a helping hand and Naruto grasped it.
--
Kushina saw the yellow flash as it flooded the living room and once her vision returned she saw her husband standing in the middle of the room with her son on his back. He looked very roughed up and Minato was not looking that much better.
"So how did it go?" she asked as she resumed helping Hoshika with her colouring.
"He's your son, you should know how it went" Minato said and she did not need to turn around to see his smile. She heard him make his way to the stairs.
"So now that you are done I guess it's my turn?"
"Let him rest a bit Kushina, Kami knows he's gonna need it…" she heard his voice coming from the stairs.
"What are you gonna be teaching big brother?" Hoshika asked.
"Quite simply my little star, I am going to teach him to see" she said with a smile.
--
Naruto slowly opened his eyes and he immediately realized was in his room. He turned to the wall clock and saw that it read 15:00. His thoughts went to the training with his father and he groaned with the remembrance of pain but at the same time he appreciated that he had come so far already. Right now he needed to eat and if he was lucky he could get to eat some Ramen.
His mom had not been a fan of his eating habits and so his instant Ramen cups were thrown out of the window and they were replaced with well balanced meals and the like. The only upside was that his mom's Ramen tasted even better than Ichiraku's and when he asked her why she gave him a kiss on the cheek and told him it was because they were made with love.
Naruto got up and repeated his earlier washing and changing and he then made his way downstairs.
"Big Brother, you're awake again" Hoshika said as she ran up to greet him with a hug.
"Hi little sis" he said. "Where's mom?"
"Oh she's outside in the garden." His sister answered. "She left lunch in the microwave for you, but I sort of had a little bit"
"That's alright" Naruto said reassuringly as he made his way to the kitchen. "I was going to offer you some anyway…that's what big brothers are for"
Naruto suddenly felt the small body of his sister attach to his back. "I love you big brother." She said
"I love you too little sister" Naruto carried her into the kitchen with him and put her down and retrieved his lunch.
"Let's go outside and see mom" he said as he got up and went to the backyard for the second time that day.
Naruto found his mom getting up from their shared garden. He smiled at how many similarities he had with his mom. Gardening was one of them and she had immediately helped his fledgling garden. They had both tended it and it was growing beautifully.
"Naruto-kun, it's good to see you up again." She said as she came over. She took of her gardening gloves and removed her apron. "Did you have fun with your father this morning?"
Naruto grimaced. "Yeah sort of… there was a lot to take in" he admitted. "But it's only the beginning." His grimace, turned into a grin as he realized how strong he would be at the end of the training.
"Hoshi-chan, please take these and put them into the shed?" she handed the items to his sister.
"Yes mommy" his sister said enthusiastically she started to turn away but she stopped as she remembered something. "It's almost time for Daddy to come and pick me up" she said. "I should go and change." She then raced into shed and a moment later Naruto saw her run into the house.
"She might take after your father, but there is still a little bit of me in her" his mom said with a smile.
"It's time, isn't it?" Naruto asked simply.
"Yes, Naruto-kun it is." She sat down on the floor and Naruto followed suit. "It is called The Shingan"
Naruto absorbed the name and understanding came upon him.
"The blood in our veins Naruto quite simply put is Ancient and Holy" Many questions went through his head but he did not voice them.
His mother eyes slowly began to change. Her eyes started to glow a brilliant blue similar to how his eyes glowed. Slowly the light receded and his mother's green eyes were replaced by deep blue ones.
"To reach this level and master our Family doujutsu, requires focus and determination. I have watched you Naruto and in the short time since you have awoken your Shingan, you have advanced in leaps and bounds."
Naruto channelled his chakra and called forth his doujutsu. The Shingan.
"Its initial properties as you have learned are to detect all forms of chakra, it can see through Genjutsu and Ninjutsu and allows you to see movements. It also increases your sixth sense to a level where your intuition is not just a feeling but a tool you can use."
Naruto nodded confirming that he was familiar with these abilities.
"Despite all of your enhanced abilities there is so much more waiting for you. My son you must master yourself and reach the next level"
Naruto nodded and closed his eyes.
END of Chapter Twenty
Next chapter: Onyx Eyes