The First Namikaze
Yo, sorry for the long wait. Was adding more details to the time-line I created, soon one thing led to another, and now here we are, two months later. Again, sorry for the delay.
Chapter Twenty-Five
Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto.
– Previously –
"If I recall, you are chūnin Umino Ikkaku, yes?"
"Ah, that is correct." bowed the now named man. "Though I do hope to pass the jōnin exams in a few months."
"I'm sure you'll do fine." stated the blonde, who then looked at the female. "Hm-mm, I'm sorry, but your name escapes me...?"
"This here is my assistant, and fiance, Kohari." Ikkaku introduced. "She also hopes to pass the jōnin exam." Kohari bowed.
"Really now, engaged and two jōnin hopefuls. I look forward to seeing the impact your family has on the future of Konoha."
"Thank you very much, sir!" they both said.
"At ease you two. I'm not Hokage anymore, or even a Clan leader."
"...Um, then if I may be so bold to ask, what brings someone of your stature to our classroom?" asked Kohari.
"Ah that..." he cleared his throat. "Well, I'm here to pick up my team." he announced, earning gasps from the students.
"Oh! Did we get the time wrong?" inquired Ikkaku. "I thought teams were supposed to be assigned in a few hours? I apologize for the inconvenience-"
"It's okay." interrupted the blonde. "The time you have is correct. I merely wished to retrieve my team now."
"I see, well, the floor is yours."
Naruto gave the man his thanks. "Okay, stand up when you hear your name, and then proceed on over to the third training ground." he ordered, as all students leaned forward in anticipation. "Hatake Sakumo, Katō Dan, Yakushi Nonō, and Maito Dai." he announced.
– Now –
A group of four children were seen walking through the streets of Konoha, and normally, this wouldn't draw so much attention. However, seeing as it was only noon, and the academy, be it shinobi or civilian, did not end until three, they stuck out like sore thumbs.
The four children in question – Sakumo, Dan, Nonō, and Dai – were oblivious to the stares, or at least Dai was, the other three simply ignored them. The traveling quartet was simply too focused on their eventual meeting with their sensei, Namikaze Naruto.
Speaking of the former Nidaime, the man had vanished in a flash the second he had announced their names in class, and all four had to assume he was waiting for them at training ground three. All of them still found it hard to believe they were going to be taught by such a person, none more so than Nonō.
She was by no means a fangirl, but even she couldn't help the girlish squeal that escaped her lips when he had called her name, along with those of her friends. Sakumo and Dan didn't show it, but she could see they were shaking in anticipation. Her other friend, Dai, had no problem expressing his excitement. He had been spouting something about youth and how lucky they were to receive such a talented, and kind man as their teacher.
The bespectacled girl agreed with her excited friend, to an extent. She's heard tales of the Nidaime Hokage, and how kind he is, but what worried her was the talent aspect of Dai's statement. She was a bookworm plain and simple, and as such, she's read multiple books on not only the founding of her home, but on the men who founded it.
Nonō understood Namikaze Naruto was a monster on the battlefield, and only people such as Uchiha Madara and Senju Hashirama were a match for him, and therein lied her concern. She knew he was still strong, there was no denying that, but he was also older than most, and she wondered if his skills and power still matched the legend the books painted him out to be, especially in this day and age.
Unbeknownst to the glasses wearing girl, her three friends had stopped and she ended up crashing into Dai.
"Ow!"
"Oof."
Both children fell to the ground, one on his stomach, the other on her backside. Nonō snapped out of her musings, and quickly offered up an apology.
"I'm so sorry, Dai!" she bowed. "I was deep in thought and wasn't paying attention."
The youth named Maito Dai picked himself up, dusted off his gi, and gave her a big grin. "Don't worry about it. You apologized, and I accept!" he exclaimed, giving her a thumbs up.
Nonō couldn't help but smile at her teammate. He was so forgiving it should be a crime. "Why did we stop anyways?"
To her utter embarrassment, she was so engrossed in her thoughts of her sensei that she never noticed they had arrived at their destination. However, what made her want to crawl in a hole and never show her face again was the fact that her sensei had just watched her make a fool of herself!
"I'm so sorry!" she apologized once more, this time sending it towards the blonde.
Naruto waved it off. "It's okay, even I get lost in my thoughts from time to time." he stated. "Just don't let it happen too often. Okay?"
She nodded vigorously. Naruto nodded, and began to walk further into the training ground, so he could begin his introduction, but before he did, he stopped halfway, and looked at Nonō head-on, a grin on his face.
"Oh, and you shouldn't worry about my age." he said, stunning her. "I'm still spry enough to kick all of your butts."
The former Nidaime had to hold his laughter in check, especially after seeing the gaping face of Nonō. Though what he said was true. Not only would his experience alone be more than enough to handle the children in front of him, but more than enough for anyone in the village, barring certain people in his age group.
He may look like a fifty-one year old, what with his blonde hair losing it's sheen, and the wrinkles all over his face, but he sure as hell didn't feel it. Nor would he look it once he dropped the transformation technique he'd placed over himself years ago. If he dropped it, he would revert back to looking like his twenty-four year old self.
Kurama had mentioned something like this happening, and seeing as he'd put seals on his wives and his friend, Madara, they were in the same boat. His friend didn't have to worry about looking young in a village, but he and his wives did. While he has not informed them of many things, he did inform them of this. It was then when the trio agreed to hide their true appearances, lest someone accuse them of venturing into forbidden territory. So here he was, masquerading around as a fifty-one year old.
Nonō's eyes widened behind her glasses as she clamped her hands down over her mouth. 'Did I say all of that out loud? Or did he read my mind?'
No longer able to hold it in, the blonde began to laugh.
"...Oh, your face, priceless." he chuckled. "Don't worry, Nonō. I have many abilities, but mind reading is not one of them." he stated. "If I could do that, then my wives would be the two happiest women in the world." he mused.
Seeing as his little revelation shocked her further, he decided to explain to her just how exactly he was able to see what she was thinking.
"Your body language informed me what you were thinking, Nonō." he explained. "It was like an open book for me to read."
The girl once more began to apologize but was stopped when the blonde raised his hand.
"You don't need to apologize for something you didn't know how to control." he said. "That's why I'm here. To teach you how to control it, and help all of you grow." he stated, finally addressing all of them.
Sakumo, Dan, and Dai stood up straighter when he finally addressed them, and were paying very close attention to what the man in front of them was about to say.
"Normally, I'm supposed to give you this whole big long speech about passing and failing, along with the consequences if you fail, but I'm scrapping that." he stated. "That's more Tobirama's way of doing things. What we're going to do is get right on into it, and what I mean by that," he pointed to the four of his students. "You four are going to spar against me."
He hadn't bothered to ask them to share a few things about themselves, or what they were good at or what they wanted to learn. That would come after he got a firsthand look at their current skills. Plus, he'd already skimmed through parts of their files, so he already knew a few things about them. Then again, he didn't really need to look at their files to know this was not your typical team, but that's also what he liked about them.
Sakumo broke his train of thought. "What are the parameters of the spar?" inquired the silver haired boy.
Naruto looked at the boy with a critical eye. His first impression of all four was that each was smart in their own way, but out of the four, the boy in front of him by far appeared to be the most tactically intelligent.
"This is a no-holds barred fight, so come at me with the intent to kill. You can use whatever you want against me." he answered, looking at all four.
His revelation surprised the four, but they quickly got that under control. It made sense why he would give them such a handicap. They were staring down a man who fought in the 1st war, and killed many a men and women. All four looked at one another, nodded, looked at him, and nodded once more. They were ready to start. The blonde gave returned that nod, and was glad to see they could become serious at the drop of a hat.
"Ready...Go!"
The second the word was out of his mouth, all four had retreated into the nearby forest, leaving him all alone. A soft hum escaped his lips. Just from the way they moved a second ago told him quite a bit. All of them were well trained, some more than others, but a well balanced unit nonetheless. Though out of the four, Dai was by far the biggest surprise.
He was already aware of the boy having next to no talent when it came to ninjutsu, genjutsu, and most areas in-between, with taijutsu being the lone exception. Knowing that, it made sense what he just saw the boy do, but it still managed to catch him off-guard. Dai had just moved as fast, if not faster, than his peers. At his age, the boy was possibly already in better physical condition than most adults. He could not stop the grin from appearing on his face. He looked forward to seeing how he developed. Same for the other three.
Seeing as more than enough time had passed since the spar began, he decided it was high time for him to start his search, and the old-fashioned way, with his eyes. Because using his sensory ability would not only be unfair, but overkill, and honestly, he didn't need it. He could feel their eyes staring at him intently, paying close attention to see what he does. He made a mental note to teach them how to avoid doing this while on a mission. That being said though, for four academy students to hide themselves this decently, well, it was nothing short of amazing.
His musing on their skills so far was interrupted when his ears twitched. Something was coming right at him, and it was coming fast. That grin from earlier returned, and much bigger. One of the three who had an abundance of chakra had just sent a large fireball his way.
Without so much as moving a muscle, water began to form around him at an alarming rate, and shot out towards the giant fireball, extinguishing it, and causing a cool mist to spread throughout training ground.
'Let's see if they take advantage of the low visibility...'
His thought was right on point as two shadows emerged from the frost, coming right at him. One of them was easy to discern right off the bat, as they were coming in close for some hand-to-hand combat. This was obviously Dai. The other behind the eccentric boy was more a bit more of a mystery. Whoever this was, they had some pretty good accuracy as they were attacking the small openings Dai was giving them with their kunai and shuriken. Despite the thrower having such accuracy, the blonde still made sure none hit Dai at the expense of some hits landing.
Curious to see who his mystery attacker from afar was, he gathered wind chakra into the palms of his hands, and clapped. The force behind the wind gathered in his palms exploded outwards, clearing the mist with ease. Once it was cleared, and he got a look at who was using throwing weapons, he really shouldn't have been all that surprised to see Sakumo. He did have to wonder, just where were the other two? He shrugged, he was sure he would find out soon. Anyways, he beckoned the two in front of him to come forward.
Both boys complied. Dai was of course sticking to his taijutsu, and Sakumo was also coming in quite close, but with kunai in hand, slashing at any opening he saw. None of their attacks landed any real decent hits, but nonetheless, he was still rather impressed with their combo.
"Oof!" Both boys grunted as they were knocked down.
"Your teamwork is good," he complimented. "But you're going to need another method if you want to beat me. If you keep coming head-on, you're going to end up black and blue." he lectured, handing out some advice.
Neither listened, and attacked again. Dai feinted with a low kick towards his knee, but then changed its trajectory to his midsection. At that same moment, Sakumo, who used Dai's feint, leapt into the air, and was looking to slash open his chest. Unfortunately for them, he could multitask at the same time. He caught the kick with his right hand and simultaneously stopped the kunai inches away from his chest.
Out of the two, Sakumo was the most confused at the moment. "Wha-!?"
He didn't get a chance to wonder what had happened as they were both sent sprawling backwards once more. Deciding to teach another lesson, Naruto revealed exactly how he had stopped the kunai before it could reach him.
"I used the ninja wire wrapped around my right wrist to block the kunai while simultaneously catching the kick." he explained. "Always look underneath the underneath boys. Remember that, it could save your life one day."
The two grunted an affirmative, and rushed forward once more, making Naruto frown. He was slightly disappointed in the two. It seemed neither knew when it was time to call a retreat, or when to take some advice. Though he did praise them for their tenacity and willpower to continue on.
'Hm?'
Something caught his eye, and it was attached to the backs of Dai and Sakumo. Looking a bit closer, he almost let a chuckle out. It was shinobi wire, not unlike the very same around his wrist. Perhaps he should be the one to look underneath the underneath. Curious to see what was going on, he activated his sensory ability, though in minimal range. What he found made his eyes widen a fraction.
Nonō was on the other end of the wire, and was continuously healing the two in front of him, as quickly as she could. Though by what he felt of her chakra, she was near her limit. If the two in front of him did not find a way to finish this fight, then not only was she going to be on the ground in a few, but so to would they.
It seems he misjudged the two combatants in front of him, as they were not just jumping headfirst into a battle with no plan. Though he did have to wonder what their endgame was. Surely it wasn't what they were doing now, right? If it was, then they were wasting Nonō's efforts.
No sooner had the thought entered his mind did his danger sense flare to life. He didn't know what it was, but he felt something foreign trying to enter his mind and body. It tried it's hardest, but he was able to forcefully expel it, but not without damage it seemed. He could feel some type of damage done to the inside of his body. Had he not had his healing factor thanks to his link with the fox, he grimaced to know what might have happened to his body. In fact, he was still going to go see a doctor after this.
Not believing the sudden internal attack to be coincidence, as there was no such thing as coincidences in their world, he decided it was time to end the test. He knocked out Sakumo and Dai instantly. Nonō followed soon after, though hers was more from exhaustion. Dan was a bit farther away, though not by much. He knew this because he had picked up the boy earlier when he used his sensory skills, but let him be since he was not apart of the trio who had attacked him.
Creating a single clone, he ordered it to bring him Dan. While he waited, he gently began to lay his three students down on the ground, next to one another. His clone finally returned, and with his only conscious student, though from the looks of it, Dan appeared exhausted as well.
"So, want to explain why you're so exhausted?"
He of course knew why, as the surprise attack no doubt came from Dan, but what he wanted was a bit more information. Just what technique did he use to get him in such a state?
"Don't worry. You don't have to explain the mechanics of how the technique was created." he informed him. "I'm just curious as to what it does since I just experienced it firsthand."
Dan hesitated for a bit longer before nodding. "It's a technique that my father created, and had begun to teach me before he died. It allows the user to leave their body, and enter another."
"And what can you do once inside?" he asked, as this was sounding more and more like a Yamanaka technique.
"The user can do whatever they want."
Naruto nodded, it definitely sounded like a Yamanaka technique.
"And the after effects?" inquired the blonde.
The boy grimaced. "...The after effects of the technique aren't apart of the technique. I don't know why the body starts to deteriorate after I've been inside, it just does."
Now it was the blonde's turn to grimace, it was like the Yamanaka Clan technique, but definitely a lot more way more gruesome.
"I see." he muttered. "How long can you hold the technique for, if you don't mind me asking?"
"...Ten seconds." he answered embarrassingly. "I also can't hold it for long against strong willed people." he added.
"Not yet you can't."
Dan looked up at his teacher surprised.
"Don't look so surprised, Dan. My job is to not only teach you new things, but to polish any skills you've already attained." he stated. "By the way, care to enlighten me as to how your teammates already knew you could do this?" he asked, as they would have had to have known, otherwise they wouldn't have trusted him enough to use it during the spar. "I kinda figured Sakumo, Dai, and Nonō were up to something when I found the wire attached to your two teammates, but I didn't know what."
A smile, the first one he'd seen on the boy, formed on Dan's face. "Long before we became a team, the four of us were already friends. Though I only ever told Sakumo about the technique. It's not that I do not trust the other two, Sakumo and I are just closer is all."
Naruto nodded, understanding now. It seems he was right on the mark about Sakumo being the most tactically intelligent, as the plan no doubt came from him since only he knew about Dan's technique. He then shook his head. Just from the way these kids came at him, it felt like he was looking at an anbu squad.
That grin from earlier resurfaced when he thought of it like that. He couldn't wait to start teaching them. Circumstances had taken most of his time away early on from teaching his own children, but he would not allow that to happen again, not here. The three on the ground began to stir, and soon they were awake.
He addressed them. "You four did a great job, much better than I honestly expected, especially when you four are fresh out of the academy." he complimented. "Now that the spar is out of the way, and I've gotten a firsthand look at your current skill level, what do you want to learn?"
While two of the four were taking their time, Sakumo and Dai stepped forward, though it was the silver haired youngster who spoke first.
"I wish to learn more ninjutsu, and kenjutsu."
The blonde nodded, he could do both of those. He made a mental note to at least check to see what his student was most attuned with, though it would probably be a while before he actually taught him any techniques. He also needed to see what style would best suit him. Before Dai could speak, Dan stepped up.
"I also want to learn more ninjutsu, but I also want to be better at taijutsu."
At the mention of taijutsu, Dai began to speak up but was cut off by the blonde.
"I know you wish to learn more taijutsu, Dai, but being one-dimensional in our world is no good." he explained, making the boy frown. "I will teach you more hand-to-hand, do not worry about that, but I am also going to teach you how to wield a weapon, a multitude of them." he said, as utilizing multiple weapons was his way of making up for Dai's lack of versatility. "It may well take you years to become a taijutsu, and bukijutsu, master, but with your tenacity and hard work, I know you can pull it off."
Apparently, those were the correct things to say to the youngster, as Dai had stars in his eyes, and was bowing like crazy.
"Thank you for the compliment, sensei!" he exclaimed. "I promise to live up to your expectations of me, and if I cannot, then I will-"
"You're quite welcome, Dai." interrupted the blonde. He then looked at the only female. "Nonō, what do you want to learn?"
"I want to learn more medical ninjutsu, and genjutsu as well."
Now that request made him pause for a second. While he was proficient in both areas, he was nowhere near the best, and he only wanted the best for these children. He could handle Dan, Sakumo, and Dai's training alone, but Nonō was a different story. Well, one of the areas was. He already had a genjutsu instructor in mind, but it was the medical aspect that was holding things up. A person did come to his mind, and while he was sure the man wouldn't mind teaching, he would have to split that as Nonō would not be his only student. He would see what he could do. Returning his attention back to the kids, he gave them all a nod.
"Okay, I will do my absolute best in training you in what you wish to learn, but your individual skills will not the only things to be polished. They are in fact only half of the equation." he said. "The other half is standing right next to you."
The four looked at one another, and then back at him. He nodded.
"That's right. Your teammates are the other-half." he confirmed. "I want you to take to heart what I'm about to tell you next." he said. "...I want you to think of this group, this team, as your family. That the person standing next to you is your sibling, and we protect one another, because that's what families do." he paused. "They protect one another, and above all, they trust each other. Because if you can't trust your family, then you can you trust?"
Naruto could see they were hanging off his every word, a new fire had been lit under them. He had to be very careful when choosing what to say, especially about family, as all of his team were orphans. It was true that Sakumo had the backing of a Clan, but he still had no parents. It made sense why these kids were friends in school, they're all the same, and birds of a feather flock together. Maybe that's why he chose them in the first place? Because like them, he lost his parents, biological and foster. Well, whatever it was, he was glad to be teaching them.
He shook his head, snapping himself out of the past. "Anyways, great work today guys. You can have the rest of the day to yourself, but I want you back here tomorrow bright and early, around six a.m." he ordered. "Cause tomorrow we start the hard stuff." he said, a grin on his face.
'The hard stuff?'
~The Following Day~
"Congratulations team, you made it through a hard days work."
Mention of the word "work" got a small groan out of the children, except from Dai, who was to tired to make a sound. He had been run ragged. Mostly because he was in the best physical condition out of all of them.
The entire training session had been nothing but a physical workout, with a very long rest break in-between. However, once the break was over, it was back to the grind, and the second time around was used to see if they could break any of their previous marks set from earlier in the day. It didn't matter by how much, as long as it was broken.
Naruto had thrown in a stipulation however. If everyone on the team could break their previous mark set, then he would take them into the market district, specifically a weapons shop, and he would buy them anything they wanted. Price was no issue.
They were currently on their way towards the shop.
The group of five entered the shop Naruto frequented, and all the fatigue the four children had mere seconds ago vanished in an instant. He sent a nod to the shop owner, who returned it, and watched as each child scampered off in specific direction of the shop.
He didn't really need anything at the moment, so he merely wandered the aisles until his students came to retrieve him. Suddenly feeling a tug on his clothes, he looked down and spotted Nonō, with Dan not far behind her.
"Well, that was quick." he muttered. Both must have known what they wanted already. Looking at the items in their hands, he really wasn't surprised to see books. He looked at Nonō's book first. "Lets see here. Human Anatomy & The Chakra Pathway System." he read.
He gave her a nod, glad she was being proactive and learning about the subject on her own, instead of waiting until he delivered on the teacher, which he was still working on by the way. He took a look at Dan's book, and was surprised to see the subject it entailed.
"A Beginners Guide To: Fūinjutsu." he read aloud, and looked at the boy. "Why do you have this when you made no mention of wanting to learn about seals the other day?"
"While I did say I wanted to learn more ninjutsu and taijutsu, there aren't exactly things here that will help me in that regard." stated the boy. "So, I figured that I could at least learn something that would benefit the team, even if I can only make storage scrolls."
Naruto was stunned silent at the sheer maturity that Dan just exhibited, placing his teammates above himself.
"I'm very proud of you for thinking like that, Dan." he complimented. "It's very mature of you." the blonde added. He took a knee. "I know learning seals is nothing more than a way for you to pass the time when not learning ninjutsu or taijutsu, but if you'd like, I can teach you after hours from time to time." he offered. "Or even if you don't want to further your knowledge on the subject, I can at least guide you so you don't hurt yourself."
"I'd like that."
"Which part?"
"A little bit of the former, and a lot of the latter."
The former Hokage nodded, he could deal with that. "...Now then, where are your teammates?"
The pale-blue haired boy pointed him the direction of the weapons section. Nodding, he walked on over and spotted Sakumo with two weapons in each hand. A katana in his left, and a tantō in his right.
"What's the problem, Sakumo?"
"...I don't know which to choose?"
"Hm-mm, that is a problem..." hummed the blonde, as he knew choosing the right weapon was just as vital for a practitioner as the style they practiced was. "Let me ask you something. Which feels more natural in your hand?"
Taking a full minute to weigh the question in his mind, and looking between both weapons a multiple amount of times, he placed the katana back down. He was going with a tantō. Naruto then turned to look in on his last student, and he grimaced. Dai appeared to be torn between choosing a weapon, a pair of nunchuks, or an appalling skin-tight green suit.
"Dai..." he grabbed his attention. "...Why the suit?"
"I don't know, sensei. It just called out to me." he said in a serious tone. "Plus, it would make me more aerodynamic, making me even faster!"
"I'm sure it would..." Naruto nodded his head. "But do you want to know something else?"
Dai nodded. "What?"
"A weapon would help you out even more in the long run." he answered.
The youngster hummed. He was always told to listen to his elders, and if his sensei said it would, then it would. Slowly but surely, he began to put the green suit down. "...I'll be back for you one day." he promised the piece of clothing.
The blonde could only nod, knowing his student would keep that promise. Seeing as all four were done making their choices, he led them back to the front, and paid for their items. A smile made it's way to his face as he saw all the smiles and grins on his students faces.
"Alright team, let's end today with some food. What are you guys feeling?"
"Yakiniku!" chorused the group simultaneously.
The once Nidaime Hokage grinned, and nodded. He could go for some barbecued meat.
~Three Weeks Later~
Naruto let out a sigh.
He was currently in a tree-top, watching his team operate from afar. After a few days of some physical conditioning, a week teaching them how to walk on trees, and another couple of days teaching the four of them in one of their desired areas, he decided to test their teamwork with another test. Though this was not going to be like their first test where they went against him.
The test was as follows.
He was placing them in a hostage situation, and one of their goals was to rescue the hostage, the other was to then eliminate the one who had captured the innocent.
Obviously, since this was a test, they weren't in any real danger, as their enemy was a clone of his own making disguised as a bandit. That being said, the clone would hurt them. Which is why he stressed to them the importance of them treating this as a real mission. Why? Because he would rather these kids
freeze up here, trying to kill a clone, than freezing up out there, where it was not a clone, and no second chances were given.
That was one of his goals, to get them blooded against a clone. It may or may not be effective, he didn't know, but they would at least have the experience. His other goal was to see who out of the four could lead the team in his stead when he was not present. This was the third time they were running this exercise, and currently Nonō was chosen to lead this time.
So far, it appeared that only Sakumo and Dan were proving they could handle the responsibility of leading the team. He was confident Nonō could do the same, as she was making all of the correct decisions, same as the previous two, but what separated her from them was her hesitance. That's not to say Dan or Sakumo didn't hesitate during their time as leader, because they did. What separated her from them was the time and place she was hesitating.
It was the tough decisions that were doing her in, and he couldn't really blame her for them, no one could. Hell, most adults would hesitate in making the decisions he was asking her to make. He knew he was being unreasonably unfair in his expectations of these kids, but he had to be. It was just as unfair outside of their walls, and he wanted them to live so they could see tomorrow.
He let out another sigh. The test was over.
The quartet had managed to save the hostage, but at the cost of one of their lives. Both Nonō and Dai had hesitated when it came to delivering the killing blow. He went down to meet them.
Once they saw him, the two immediately began to apologize, but he stopped them.
"It's okay." he said. "This is why we practice, this is why we spar, this is why I'm here."
The two nodded, and both fell silent, as did the other two, until Dai spoke up.
"...I know we are shinobi and kunoichi, but just because we are, does that mean we have to kill?"
Naruto looked down at Dai, and then at Nonō. He could clearly see she had wanted to ask that very same question herself but was beaten to the punch. Looking at them both, he suddenly felt like he was looking at his children all over again, having this same conversation once more. He smiled down sadly at them.
"...No, you don't have to kill, none of you do." he started. "But letting an enemy live after they just tried to hurt you, or someone you care about, will be one of the hardest things you'll ever do. Because you never know when they'll come back." he explained.
He had all of their undivided attention.
"I can't promise that you won't ever get your hands dirty, the world just doesn't work like that." he said. "What I can promise you is this. If you truly wish to walk down this path, then I'll be there right beside you, doing everything within my power to make sure ready for it."
All four took his words to heart, and they nodded, understanding in their eyes. He nodded in return and told them to start cleaning up, and once they were done, he would take them out for some lunch. Before the four could get started, a voice stopped them in their tracks.
"My, how generous of you, Naruto.
The children spotted none other than Senju Hashirama walking into the clearing of their training ground, followed closely by a teenage girl a few years older than them. Naruto was just as surprised as his team.
"What are you doing here, Hashirama?" he inquired. "I thought our meeting wasn't for another few hours?"
The four children under his tutelage looked at him confused, a meeting? He gave them a nod.
"Well, it's a meeting between Hashirama and I actually, about Nonō."
The bespectacled girl was clearly caught off-guard by this. "Why is it about me?"
Naruto looked at one of his oldest friends, silently asking him the question he had asked him over two weeks ago. The Senju gave him a nod.
"Nonō, meet your new teacher in medical ninjutsu. Along with his only other student, his niece, and my goddaughter, Tsunade." he introduced. "Now, he won't be able to teach you everyday, much like it is with Tōka and your genjutsu training. At most, he will only be able to teach you three days out of every other week." he explained. After all, he still had to train her as well. "Is that okay?"
The girl could only nod.
"Well then, now that that's out of the way, shall we?" inquired the Senju, looking at his newest pupil with a soft smile.
Nonō shyly walked over to Hashirama and Tsunade, and as they turned to leave, she suddenly stopped and ran back towards Naruto, giving him a bone crushing hug.
"Thank you." she whispered, tears on the verge of falling. No one had ever done so much for her.
The blonde sent her a warm smile. "You're welcome." he whispered back, reciprocating the hug, and then took a knee. "I want you to listen to everything he has to say, okay? You won't find a better teacher than him."
Nonō suddenly shook her head, confusing him. "That's not true. I'm hugging the best one now."
Naruto couldn't lie, that one got to him. Well damn, now he didn't want to let go, alas, he had to. It was time for her to go. Gently prying her off, he guided her back to Hashirama. The two men locked eyes for the briefest of seconds, but the message was sent.
Take care of her.
Hashirama nodded at the request, and began to guide her and his niece towards the Senju Clan compound. Naruto let out a sigh, and turned to face his three boys.
"Don't worry guys, I haven't forgotten about you." he said. "Once we're done cleaning up and we have our lunch, I plan on teaching you the other subject you wanted to learn."
Sakumo and Dan looked very pleased that they were going to finally start learning ninjutsu, and so early on. Dai was the same as his two teammates as he couldn't stop the grin from forming on his face. The trio nodded and started to clean up faster.
– Six Months Later –
Naruto and his team were currently standing in front of the Hokage, waiting to hear why they had been summoned to his office. Kagami's eyes roamed over each child, and he could see that each of them has been trained well in the past six months. He turned his attention to his predecessor.
"I summoned you because I have a mission for your team." he revealed. "However, this mission will by far be the hardest, and most dangerous, you've undertaken."
So far, the group in front of him had completed 35 D-ranks, 10 C-ranks, and 3 B-ranks. Normally, most genin teams only accumulate so many missions like that after years of being together, but with Naruto as their teacher, that logic was thrown out the window. As a result of this, the blonde's team was one of the most promising the village has ever had.
"How dangerous are we talking about?" questioned the blonde.
Kagami sighed. "It's an A-rank with the potential to become an S-rank."
That got somewhat excited grins from the genin, but a deep frown from their teacher.
"What are the specifics of the mission?"
"It's a reconnaissance and surveillance mission, long-term, in the Land of Earth." he explained to the man. "Information suggests that Iwagakure is amassing a large army, but we don't have exact numbers on the actual size." he said. "Normally, I'd send an anbu team, but with all of the equalist attacks on our borders, I can't spread them too thin." Kagami looked at Naruto head-on. "I wouldn't have asked you to do this if I didn't think you couldn't do it, and protect your students at the same time."
It seems Naruto had guessed correctly in his assumption as to why it was his team that was being given this mission. He would have mulled over the situation in front of him, but one look at Kagami's face told him just how important a mission this was. Rumors of war were once more starting to spread, and while it probably wouldn't happen for a few years, as villages had to prepare, it was better to be one step ahead of the game. And Kagami was right. He could do this mission whilst simultaneously keeping an eye on his team. He gave the man a reluctant nod, and then looked at his team.
"Pack your gear for at least five to six months, and then meet me at the front gate."
~A Few Minutes Later~
"You guys ready for this?"
The quartet looked at their teacher, and each gave him a rather confident nod.
"Alright then, move out."
As the team followed after their blonde teacher, he suddenly decided to grab their attention once more.
"Listen up. We're currently traveling to enemy territory. I want all of you to be alter at all times, and if anything should happen to me, abandon the mission, and save yourselves." he ordered, gaining looks of shock from them. He didn't think it would happen, but he wasn't cocky enough to believe he couldn't die on a mission either.
"...Sensei, what about the rules of never abandoning the mission?" inquired Sakumo. "If we abandon the mission, let alone you, then we'll be shunned for doing such a thing."
Hearing that suddenly made the blonde stop, forcing the others to as well. Turning around, he looked at all of them square in the eye. "If at any point in your life, you have to abandon a mission to save your life, or the lives of your comrades, and someone is giving you grief for it, just point them out to me. I'll set them straight. Rules be damned." he told the entire group. "Do you understand?"
All four gave him nods, and their respect for the man in front of them grew by leaps and bounds that day.
~Three Weeks Later~
The group of five had broken past the Land of Earth's border a week and a half into their mission, and used the next two to reach the coordinates that had the most activity, the northern shore. Kagami's reports stated that there had been some fighting going on around there, however, what they saw when they arrived was more than they had anticipated.
What was in front of their faces was a large army, a very large army, one that was still growing larger yet, and they were preparing for war. Though against who was the question. One that the blonde would see answered. Pulling out a blank scroll, he jotted down a few things before summoning a falcon to his side.
"Deliver this message to the Sandaime Hokage." he ordered, and the proud avian bobbed it's head in confirmation.
Turning to his team, he was glad to see they were still paying attention to their surroundings and to him, even when he summoned his falcon. He knew they were fascinated with summons the second he had brought one out months ago, and used that fascination to his advantage. He went and made a deal with them.
If the group could complete a required amount of missions before their fifteenth birthday, then he would allow them to sign the contract. Of course, there was a reason it was until they turned that age. Their chakra would be more developed by that time, and much larger.
"Guys..." he grabbed their attention. "Our original mission was to gather intel on an estimation of Iwa's forces, but another objective has been added. We are going to find out who they're building this army for."
End of Chapter Twenty-Five