Hello all readers. We are closing in on the end of the first arc of my Naruto fanfic. Naruto, Shino, and Hinata all progress very fast in these next few chapters. I hope you enjoy day two!
Uchiha Hideout
Naruto woke up early. After getting something to eat, he walked to the great chair in the main room and read Itachi's letter again. Although he had already memorized it, Naruto made sure to read it everyday just in case he missed something. "Let's see," Naruto said to himself, "the next thing on the list is to learn about chakra natures."
Naruto thought for a minute. "Well, the only thing I know about chakra natures is that they come in five types: fire, water, earth, wind, and lightning." Naruto nodded to himself and knew what to do. He grabbed his weapon scroll, jumped out of the hideout and rolled the stone back into place. He then headed towards the Hidden Leaf Village.
Hyuuga Mansion
Hinata woke to the sound of her father shuffling through the hallway. She rolled out of bed and after getting dressed, she walked down the stairs. She strolled into the kitchen and grabbed some fruit off of the table. "Ah, Hinata it is good to see that you are up so early." Hiashi smiled as he walked into the kitchen.
"Good morning father." Hinata smiled and sat to eat her fruit. "I've been meaning to talk to you." Hiashi started. "Your cousin and I are going on a mission in a few days. We are expected to help some travelers pass through the Land of Fire and it will take several days. I trust you will be able to handle yourself while we are gone?"
Hinata just smiled and nodded. "Of course father, I am a strong ninja now. Besides, my teamates will always help if I ask." Hiashi nodded. Even after all this time, he only barely approved of the team his daughter was assigned to.
A boy of the Aburame clan, Shino appeared to be mysterious and secretive. Hiashi always thought that only those guilty of a crime were meant to be secretive. However, it seemed that the entire clan kept to themselves. That made all of them suspicious. Her sensei, Kurenai, would not have been his choice either. He saw her as confident, but her authority seemed weak. She was too lenient on her students. Hiashi would have much rather prefered that Kakashi be his daughter's sensei.
Last of all was the nine-tailed boy, Naruto. Although he had to admit that he liked the boy's attitude, he did not completely trust him, especially with his daughter. He could not understand what she saw in that boy. She claimed that she loved him, but Hiashi knew better. A thirteen-year-old girl does not know what love is. On top of all of this, the rogue ninja Itachi Uchiha claimed to have trained Naruto personally. Not only could that lead to bad news in the future, but it was also disturbing that in spite of learning this, Hinata's feelings for the boy did not change.
Hiashi sighed and there was a knock at the door. Hinata nearly jumped out of her seat as she rushed to the door. She opened it and was not at all surprised to see Naruto. "Hey Hinata." Naruto said as he smiled. "Hi Naruto. What are we doing today?" Before Naruto could answer, Hiashi was behind Hinata. "Oh, hello Mr. Hyuuga, uh, sir." Hiashi nodded. "Good morning." Naruto laughed nervously. "Actually Hinata, I have a question for your father."
Naruto looked at Hiashi now who stood as cool as ever with a stone gaze. "Sir, what do you know about chakra natures?" Hiashi thought for a minute. "Well, there are five basic elements: water, wind, fire, earth, and lightning. Most ninja are proficient with one or two, however there are few that can use three effectively." Hiashi paused as if thinking. "The Hyuuga clan hardly ever uses ninjutsu though. So I don't know much else that would help you."
Naruto frowned and nodded. "However," Hiashi continued, "I do know that Kakashi is adept at revealing the element that a ninja is naturally proficient with." Naruto perked up instantly. "Thank you sir. May I take your daughter to go see Kakashi with me?" Hiashi nodded and the two of them left the house in a hurry.
As soon as the mansion was no longer in sight, Hinata kissed Naruto, which made him blush. "When did you become so polite?" Naruto just smiled. "I figured that I will have to be on good terms with your father eventually, so I might as well start early." Hinata smiled and they searched the village for Kakashi.
Hokage Mansion
The Third sighed as he looked out the window at the village. He missed the peaceful days of his first years as Hokage. He looked around at the village as the sun started to rise. He knew that those days had come and gone. "Lord Hokage." The Third turned around to see a familiar face. "Ah, Miss Kurenai. What can I do for you?"
Kurenai didn't smile and shut the door behind her. She then sighed and looked down and away. "Lord Hokage, Team 8 is no longer available to be sent on missions. It has been disbanded." The Third stood silent. "May I ask what has happened?" Kurenai still could not look directly at him. She brought her gaze up to rest at the Hokage's neck, avoiding his eyes.
"Sir, I assume you know that Itachi Uchiha has been captured by the ANBU Black Ops." The Third nodded and replied, "And Naruto is going to save him. Am I correct?" Kurenai tensed instantly and looked at the Hokage. "How did you…" The Third smirked. "It is an obvious reaction, especially for one as courageous as Naruto."
Kurenai's tension eased a bit and she looked like she was about to collapse. "Lord Hokage, the rest of Team 8, Shino Aburame and Hinata Hyuuga, have decided to help him rescue Itachi." The Third sighed. He turned around and looked back out the window. He grasped at his arm, but he found nothing. He laughed nervously. He had forgotten that he had lost his arm to Orochimaru.
"What is your decision, Kurenai?" Kurenai kneeled before him. "My Lord, no matter how close I am to my team, my loyalty to the village and the ANBU comes first." The Third nodded in agreement. He brought a pipe out of his pocket and put it into his mouth. With a wave of his hand, a flame ignited and he blew a puff of smoke. "Young lady, I admire your loyalty, but I can tell that you are torn."
Kurenai looked up at the Third. He stood before her with the presence only a Hokage could sustain. Even with only one arm, he commanded more authority and respect than anyone in the village she knew. "I am." The Third nodded and smoked his pipe for a few more minutes.
"Do you believe he can do it?" The Third's question shook her. Did she believe that three newly-made chuunin could break through all of the defenses of the ANBU, rescue an S-Class criminal, and escape the grip of the head of the ANBU Black Ops, Danzo? "I've never known any ninja that would be able to infiltrate the Black Ops headquarters and live."
The Third Hokage smirked. "You avoided my question." Kurenai hesitated. "No. I trained them well, but they are not ready for this type of mission. They are not expert trackers, nor are they expert traplayers." The Hokage interrupted. "But Kurenai, isn't that the reason you chose them?" She was shocked and her eyes opened wide. He was right. She chose them because they had no specialty as a group, but rather a specialty as a group of individuals.
Kurenai looked down in shame and tears came to her eyes. "Miss Kurenai, you chose a fine team." He paused. "What I'm about to tell you will change the way you look at things." Kurenai wiped away her tears and stood before the Hokage.
The Hokage took a breath. "There is a conspiracy against me. It is no surprise, I have been Hokage for thirteen years more than I ought to have been. After the Fourth Hokage died, I was put back into office as a temporary replacement. There were several people who were unhappy about my reappointment, but the death of the Fourth compelled them to hold their tongues." Kurenai was puzzled. Why was he telling her this now?
He continued. "My spies have informed me about an overthrow that is being planned. It is said to come from the leader of the ANBU Black Ops." Kurenai was stunned. She couldn't believe what she was hearing. "Kurenai, no matter how many people support me, I will be overthrown. I am past my prime and now that I have only one arm, I will be seen as unable to protect the village. It is just a matter of time."
Kurenai frowned. "Lord Hokage, why does Lord Danzo want to be the Fifth Hokage?" The Third sighed. "That is a story for another time. Listen to me, Danzo will be a tyrant. I know him too well. He is one who will abuse power." The Third made a few handsigns with his only hand and touched Kurenai's forehead. "Seal Break." There was a faint sound of something shattering like glass and Kurenai felt a wave crash over her. It felt as if a huge weight was lifted.
"Kurenai Yuuhi, you have been released from your oath to the ANBU Black Ops." It hit her like a wall. *Released? Can he do that?* There were so many emotions that she could barely control herself. "Why, Lord Hokage?" He smiled. "Some time in the future, there will be a rebellion against Danzo led by none other than Naruto Uzumaki. I ask you to assure that he safely gets out of the village, and that you support him when he returns."
The world was spinning. Kurenai felt like her mind was being shredded and burned at the same time. "I'm sorry that I can't say more. Danzo will likely see my doing this as betrayal and will remove me once he has the support he needs." He turned to look at her. "This is not an order Kurenai, it is a request. Please, save the Hidden Leaf."
Traning Ground 3
Kakashi was breathing heavily. He had been training with Sakura and Kiba for days. Now that they were chuunin, he planned on taking them on much more dangerous missions. However, now that Sasuke had formally left the team and the Hidden Leaf, he was one member short. He sat down and after a minute or two of resting, he saw two familiar faces.
"Ah, Naruto, Hinata, how are the two of you?" They both smiled and walked closer. "Hey Kakashi, we are doing well. I actually have a question for you." Kakashi leaned back against a tree and sighed. "Oh?" The two of them stopped and looked at eachother, then back at Kakashi. "Sir, we heard that you can help us discover what our chakra natures are."
Kakashi stood and stretched his back. "I can, but that is an odd curiosity. The average ninja doesn't worry about chakra natures out of the blue. May I ask why?" Naruto gave a fake smile and said, "Well, I would like to learn a little bit of everything before I decide what I master." Hinata chimed in. "And I was wanting to learn a few elemental ninjutsu. The Hyuuga clan doesn't usually bother with anything that isn't traditional, but I'm different."
Kakashi nodded and thought for a moment. He put a hand behind his back and when it was visable again, he had little white pieces of paper in his hand. "What are those?" Naruto asked. "These," Kakashi said as he handed one to each of them, "are little things called chakra slips. When chakra passes through it, something happens to the paper. The nature of your chakra depends on what happens to the paper."
Naruto and Hinata held the slip delicately in their hands. Kakashi continued. "If the slip becomes wet, then you nature is water. Likewise, when the slip is burnt, cut, eroded, or charged, the chakra nature that passed through it is fire, wind, earth, and lightning respectively." Naruto nodded and looked at the slip in his hands.
"Go on, press the paper between your hands and channel your chakra thorugh it." The two of them nodded and did as Kakashi said. They must have stood there for over an hour because Naruto could tell that it was almost ten in the morning. When Naruto opened his hands, he was shocked. In the top of the paper was a slight cut. It was fine so he knew that it wasn't a tear.
"Ah, it looks like your nature is wind, Naruto." Hinata looked over at Naruto and the opened her hands. The paper was damp. "And it seems that Hinata's is water." The two of them looked at Kakashi expectantly. "Kakashi sir, could you help us use our natures?" Kakashi sighed and rubbed the back of his head. "Well, I don't know anything about wind chakra. Actually I don't think I could use it half as effectively as you could after some training." Naruto frowned.
"However, water jutsu is one of my specialties, and I would be more than happy to teach you, Hinata." Hinata smiled and looked at Naruto. He nodded and Hinata walked up to Kakashi. "Thank you Kakashi-sensei." Kakashi seemed to smile behind his mask. "Naruto, there are only a few ninja in the Hidden Leaf that can use wind ninjutsu effectively. I would suggest seeing Asuma."
"Thank you sir." Naruto turned to look at Hinata. She frowned. "I will see you at the meeting place tonight." Naruto smiled and hugged her. He then kissed her and jumped off towards the Hidden Leaf. "Now then, let's get started shall we?" Hinata nodded and followed Kakashi.
Hidden Leaf Village
Naruto jumped from roof to roof in search of Asuma. He didn't really know much of Asuma's team. He knew Shikamaru pretty well from the mission the two of them went on a few months ago, but that was all. When Naruto finally found him, he dropped down behind Asuma. "Asuma, sir!" Asuma truned around to see young Naruto in his black outfit. "Naruto, what a…pleasant surprise."
Asuma carefully slid his hand down to his waist to check the kunai that he kept there. Naruto saw him and was ready for whatever would happen next. "Sir, I was wondering if you could teach me to use wind ninjutsu." Asuma hesitated. After learning about Naruto's affiliation with Itachi, Asuma kept his distance from him. Although there was no proof, Asuma believed that Naruto would turn out just like Itachi, a traitor.
"I'm sorry Naruto. You will have to look somewhere else for a tutor." He intentionally put a nasty ring on the last word. Naruto watched him suspiciously. Asuma lit a cigarrete and turned around slowly, obviously waiting for Naruto to attack. Naruto felt uneasy, but he turned and jumped up to the roof.
When Asuma was out of sight, Naruto let out a breath. He seriously thought that Asuma was going to attack him. A few streets over he saw Shikamaru. Naruto smiled and headed towards him. "Hey, Shikamaru!" He turned to see Naruto and smiled. Naruto landed in front of him and smiled. "Naruto, long time no see." Naruto nodded. "Yeah, same. What are you up to?" Shikamaru shrugged. "Actually nothing. I was just walking around trying to find something to do."
Naruto frowned. "I went to go see Asuma about teaching me how to use wind ninjutsu. He didn't seem happy to see me." Shikamaru nodded. "I think that what happened around the chuunin exams put him on edge, especially about you." Naruto shook his head. "You know I'm not a bad guy, right Shikamaru?" He laughed. "Of course I know that Naruto. I've known you long enough to see that you are everything a ninja of the Leaf should be."
Naruto smiled. "Thanks Shikamaru. I'll see you later." Naruto turned to leave. "Hey, Naruto." He put his hand on Naruto's shoulder. "I could teach you how to use wind chakra." Naruto was shocked. "Really? I thought you use shadow type jutsu." Shikamaru nodded. "I do, but shadow ninjutsu is a branch off of wind. Though they aren't that similar, the basics should be the same." Naruto smiled. "Sweet, thanks Shikamaru!" He smiled. "No problem, now let's get started."
Aburame Clan House
Shino was hiding in the tree in his yard. His parents had set up a little exam for him to pass before they would recognize him as a chuunin. It was a family tradition. The last part of Shino's exam was today. He had to avoid being detected by his mother for four hours. He only had ten minutes to go and had almost been caught several times.
Shino knew his mother well though. She was not a pure tracker shinobi, so the challenge wasn't impossible. She was, however, a master of avoiding detection herself. She knew all the places to hide, all of the cheap tricks that could be used, and worst of all, she knew every nook and cranny of the Hidden Leaf like the back of her hand.
Being her son, Shino knew how she tracked and how she thought. He also knew that her insects tracked using scent, whereas his tracked using chakra. So, he did the most logical thing. He ran all over the Hidden Leaf, spreading his scent as much as he could, and then came back to hide at home. His mom would be busy searching everywhere he had been while he sat at home, where his scent was familiar and hard to isolate.
The ten minutes were up and Shino jumped down from the tree. When he landed, he almost fell backwards when he saw his mother standing just in front of where he landed. "Ah, there you are Shino." His mother said with a smile. "You did very well, but next time you should keep an eye on your tracker as well as yourself." Shino sighed and nodded. "Yes mother."
"Well then." She said. "Now that the exam is over and you are a chuunin in our eyes—we can trust you to keep an eye on things while we are gone." Shino's father appeared from behind the corner as he finished his wife's sentence. The two of them had a tendency to do that a lot. "What do you mean?" Shino asked.
"Your mother and I will be at a meeting in the Emerald Mountains for the next week-so we are counting you to watch over the house." Shino nodded. "I will do the best I can." His mother smiled. "There is a catch-the house will be on lockdown. So you will have to keep watch from the outside." His father continued.
"Alright mom, dad, I'll do my best." The two of them smiled. "Now it's my turn for news. This won't be easy to explain, but it is important that you know." His parents listened cautiously. "Team 8 has been disbanded. It was not intentional, but I knew that it would happen eventually. Itachi Uchiha was taken by the ANBU two days ago. Naruto has decided to go after them. As a teammate and a friend, I cannot let him do it alone."
Shino's mother was the first to speak. "Son, do you know what you are getting yourself into? If you help Naruto in this, you will be labeled as a traito to the Hidden Leaf!" Shino nodded. "And you still want to do this?" Shino nodded again. "Yes. Out of everything you two have taught me, perhaps the greatest thing was loyalty to my friends." His father talked now. "Yes, but Shino, we also taught you about loyalty to your village."
Shino sighed. He knew this wasn't going to be easy. "Father, I am loyal to the Hidden Leaf—Then why do you insist on attacking it!" His father finished. "Father, the Third Hokage has lost an arm, made decisions that most of the villagers question, and has all but sided with Itachi Uchiha. How long do you think he will still be allowed to lead?" His parents were stunned, but their son was right. The Third Hokage would be overthrown soon, it was just a matter of time.
Shino looked at his mother. "Mother, father, I am loyal to the Hidden Leaf Village that is led by the Third Hokage, but do you know who is next in line to succeed him?" His mother nodded. "The Head of the ANBU Black Ops, Danzo." Shino nodded. "I have my reasons to doubt his leadership and his plans for the Hidden Leaf. Please, trust me." Shino's father exchanged looks with his wife, then looked back at Shino. "We do trust you—" His mom started, "But we will stay loyal to the Hidden Leaf until that time comes."
It was the best answer Shino could hope for. "When were you planning to start the mission?" Shino looked at them. "It's scheduled for five days from now. It's all the time Naruto was given." His father nodded. "I see, you had better start training then." Shino smiled and shook his father's hand. The Aburame clan was not fond of full physical contact. "Thank you. I will do you proud." His mother spoke up. "You already have, Shino."
Uchiha Hideout
Naruto got back late. He and Shikamaru had trained all day and he could barely even conjure a breeze. There was nothing he could do though. He only planned one day for each thing on the list itachi had left him. He would just have to come back to wind chakra training later.
Naruto walked into the kitchen to grab something to eat. When he was done, he streched his limbs and walked into his room. He had not seen or heard from Hinata since he left her with Kakashi. As if reading his mind, Hinata dropped into the hideout. When she saw him, she smiled.
"Hinata, how did your training go?" She walked over to Naruto and hugged him. "It was awesome, watch." She released him and made a few handsigns. "Water Style: Liquid Palm." Slowly, her hands were covered in water. She walked over to a dummy and hit it a few times. The water stayed in place and continued to cover her hands. "It isn't much, it just covers my hands in water. But it's a start."
Naruto smiled. "That's great Hinata." She smiled. "How did your training go?" Naruto frowned. "Well, Asuma wouldn't help me, but Shikamaru was able to teach me a little bit. I can't do nearly as much as you can though." Hinata shrugged. "That's alright. Everyone learns at a different pace." Naruto nodded and walked into his room. Hinata followed him and when they got to his room, Naruto turned and kissed her. She was surprised but her arms instinctively wrapped around him. They fell on the bed and the door shut.
Thank you all for reading. Before you get any ideas about that last scene remember that both Hinata and Naruto are only 13 so nothing too serious happens. Please Review and stay ready for day 3!