Chapter 26

"Oh yeah, this looks good." Naruto grinned when a large bowl of delicious pork ramen was placed in front of him.

"Eat up, Naruto." Ayame smiled and went back to work knowing full well that the large bowl would only probably last for a few minutes if not less. Naruto didn't just eat, he sort inhaled the dish. Sometimes Ayame wondered where Naruto was putting it all. He was a goofy kid, a bit strange, but that word applied to shinobi in general. Still he was a very kind and loyal person, so there was absolutely no reason not to serve him. It was never discussed, but Naruto enjoyed eating at Ichiraku's not so much because of his favorite dish, though that of course was a factor, it was just he felt welcomed here. If instead of a ramen stand there was a tailoring shop, Naruto most likely would've ripped his clothes on purpose just to have a reason to come.

"Ahh, Jiraiya-san, welcome. I see you too took a liking to my ramen." The old ramen chef smiled when the tall white haired man appeared. Ayame who was in the back preparing the noodles also noticed the man, but he had a reputation that made her very uneager to come closer. She just hated the idea of a ramen waitress appearing in Jiraiya's book as a character.

"Oh, pervy sage. How is it going?" Naruto waved at the man who took a seat next to Naruto.

"Stop calling me that!"

"Yeah, like that will happen."

"Tsk, you have no respect and here I was about to offer you a mission."

That for a moment made Naruto forget about ramen, a feat no easily accomplished in most cases. Generally the news of a mission would easily interest Naruto, but this was pervy sage who was talking, his missions should be just awesome.

"What kind of mission?"

"To find a certain someone, Hokage's personal request and …. "

"Jiraiya-san, I don't appreciate people sitting here without ordering."

The toad sage turned to the ramen chef with an annoyed look, but with a sigh ordered a bowl of ramen, leaving the choice of flavor for the old man."

"So, old man hokage asked you to do something and you need my help? That must mean I am awesome." Naruto grinned.

"Don't get too full of yourself, brat. I just think I might have a use for you during a mission, but it has more to do with your personality than your skills, which by the way are not awesome." Jiraiya leaned on the counter while Naruto turned back to his ramen.

"So then, do you agree?" Jiraiya asked once his own bowl of ramen was served.

"Umm, I don't know. I have to do lots of training with my team and all, I don't really want to leave them just to go on some mission with a perv."

"Pfft, it will be at least A ranked and I will train you while we are away."

"A rank, training? Why didn't you say so. What are you going to teach me, tell me, tell me!" Naruto was practically jumping in his seat while Jiraiya rolled his eyes fighting an urge to slam his head against the counter or drown himself in the ramen broth. To think that this kid had such hyperactive personality. It wasn't a good thing for a shinobi actually.

"I am going to teach you a jutsu. A good one, but it will be tough, it is not one of those simple techniques you can learn and master in a day or two. It is a complex, but very useful technique."

"I am not afraid of working hard, believe it." Naruto grinned. "Fine, I'll go on a mission with you if …."

"If? You dare set conditions considering how generous my offer is? You should be kissing my feet and worshiping my name."

"Why would I worship your name, pervy sage?"

"That is not my name! That is just how you call me, you ungrateful little brat!" Jiraiya fumed. Naruto eyed him angrily, but then just shrugged and turned back to his ramen.

"You are lucky I am in a good mood, brat. What is that condition of yours?"

"Well, you can pay for my ramen, to you know, settle the deal."

Jiraiya didn't like that smile. It was a smile of someone who was about to do something very, very bad and Jiraiya felt like a target. But he was a sannin, what was the worse the brat could do.

"Fine, I can agree to that."

"Awesome. Old man, keep that ramen coming, this guy is paying!" Naruto declared. For the next hour Jiraiya watched the blonde stuff himself with ramen as if his life depended on it. He just kept inhaling a bowl after a bowl without stopping. At first Jiraiya's face showed surprise, though he did know about the boys appetite, he just never witnessed Naruto go all out. The surprise was replaced with utter shock, as a tower of empty bowls kept growing.

"Ahh, that was good." Naruto sighed, rubbing his belly.

"Your bill." Jiraiya carefully took a slip of paper and began to cry silently. He could only hope that Naruto didn't eat this much during the mission, or else Jiraiya might come back broke.

"So, when are we going, pervy sage?"

"You have three hours to go pack whatever you think you will need and meet me at the gates. I settled everything with your sensei, so don't worry about that." Jiraiya said while counting the money. The ramen chef and his daughter smiled brightly at the sight of a growing pile of money.

….

Fifteen minutes into their journey and Jiraiya understood that the trip would not be peaceful, then again he never liked things to be uneventful.

"For the last time, we can't start your training. I need special equipment to teach you the technique, but we will only be able to buy it when we get to the nearest town."

"Pfft, why couldn't you buy it back in the village?"

"I don't know, maybe because someone forced me to waste a ton of money on ramen?" Jiraiya turned to Naruto. It wasn't a very good argument, but it seemed to convince Naruto.

"At least tell me who are we looking for, you should brief me on the mission, shouldn't you, after all you are the team leader."

Jiraiya sighed in relief. That question was worthy of a professional ninja, though it should've been the first question Naruto asked.

"We are looking for Senju Tsunade, my old teammate."

"Senju …. Sound familiar." Naruto scratched the back of his head digging through the memories. It was clearly something from the academy, but when he remembered the academy it was either Iruka sensei or how he painted the hokage monument …

"Senju, that was the last name of the first and second hokage." Naruto exclaimed.

"At least you know something about the village history. Tsunade is the granddaughter of the first hokage."

"Cool, so how does she look like? I mean I know she should be somewhere around your age, so she is an old lady, but still."

"Old lady …. Yeah, you'd be surprised."

"Huh?"

"Whatever, she had blond hair tied into two ponytails and brown eyes. I also know she travels with a personal assistant named Shizune, who also has a pet pig."

"Weird. What else?"

"Hmm, well …. " Jiraiya thought. When describing Tsunade one trait always came to mind, but Jiraiya didn't want to give Naruto any more reason to call him a perv. "She has a nasty temper and …. Oh, she sucks at gambling. Actually she is so bad, that when she actually wins it is bad luck."

"So, we are looking for an old lady gambler with an assistant and a pet pig? Why?!" Naruto turned to Jiraiya who was trying not laugh over the way Naruto summed it up.

"She is a powerful shinobi and the best medic out there. If you have an injury and if it can be healed you can trust her to heal it."

"Oh a medic, I get it. Maybe she will help bushy eyebrows?" Naruto turned hopefully to Jiraiya.

"I have no idea who you are talking about."

"You know, bushy eyebrows, green spandex suit, orange legwarmers, eyebrows that you don't see everyday?" Naruto explained.

"Oh, him. Didn't know Gai got injured, seemed perfectly fine when I last saw him."

"Not Gai-sensei. His student, Lee!" Naruto slapped himself. Figures people would be confused by two idiots that looked like older or younger version of the same person.

"Hmm, Lee, Lee ….. no, never met him. But if anyone can help it is Tsunade." Jiraiya nodded.

"Then what are we waiting for? The faster we find her the better."

"Hold on. I know where she is headed. We will arrive there before she will and thus will never miss her. I already planned out our jorney with enough time for your training."

"Awesome, you are actually pretty smart for a perv."

….

"Kakashi-sensei, was it really wise to let Naruto go on a mission with master Jiraiya?" Sakura asked Kakashi. They had just completed a simple, but somewhat annoying D rank mission. For these mission a full set of genin wasn't necessary, but Naruto's clones were missed. Those were great for large amounts of manual labor.

"Worried about your teammate? There is no need, master Jiraiya is a very powerful shinobi."

Sasuke looked at Kakashi with interest. It was strange that a ninja like Jiraiya was interested in Naruto, but Sasuke already knew that the toad sage was a master of seals, so perhaps it was somehow connected with Naruto's burden.

"I mean we are a teammate short now." Sakura explained. "You preach about teamwork, but how can we practice teamwork without all of our teammates present."

"My, Sakura, I thought you'd appreciate some chance of training with just Sasuke. Glad you are turning into a true ninja, duty comes first."

"Eh?" Sakura looked at Sasuke who for some reason took a careful step away from here. To be honest Sakura didn't think of such possibilities at first, but now that Kakashi pointed it out …..

"Well, you are right that teamwork exercise are out of the question now, but developing personal skills is important also. So I say we concentrate on that while Naruto is away. Sasuke, I heard that Hayate has a day off. You shuld use the opportunities to practice with that katana of yours."

"Hn, alright."

"Sasuke wait, maybe … hmm?" Sakura felt Kakashi grab her shoulder. Sasuke took the moment to disappear jumping up onto the roofs.

"Sorry Sakura, but I think I have been neglecting your development lately. You should do some catching up and as your sensei, I will do all in my power to help with that."

"Sure, whatever you say, Kakashi-sensei." Sakura sighed. She was a bit disappointed over Kakashi's decision, but if she wanted to be a valuable member of the team she really did need to develop her skills more and if Kakashi-sensei was offering his help, she would be a fool to pass it up.

"Umm, so what are we going to do, Kakashi-sensei?"

"I gave it some thought. You were working hard lately, even if it was somewhat against your will. But you are no longer as fragile and you learned some tricks that can save you in battle or come in handy otherwise. But what you really lack is a role, a purpose in the team. Naruto and Sasuke both have very clear roles. Naruto creates distractions, diversion, or large scale destruction, while Sasuke goes in for a kill with well timed attack."

"So what should be my role?"

"Ninjutsu will not suit. Even though learning a couple technique could prove useful eventually, you will never be able to match or come anywhere close to your teammates in that area. You are also not very well suited for taijutsu. Learning to defend yourself in close quarters is important, by again, this is hardly your best option. What you have is this." Kakashi poked Sakura's forehead.

"You too sensei." Sakura looked away.

"I am not referring to that nickname." Kakashi sighed remembering that Sakura was teased in the academy because of her forehead. "I mean your brains. You have excellent memory and your mind is well organized. You also have a good amount of willpower, as I remember you actually being able to overcome Ino's jutsu during the exams. I think we best put your talents to use."

"What do you mean exactly, sensei?"

"Your mind and your excellent control over your chakra make you well suited for the use of illusionary and medical skills. I know little to nothing about chakra based medical techniques, but genjutsu, that is a field I can help you with."

"Then what will be my role in the team, sensei?"

"You will be support. You can rely on your teammates to deliver the strike, but you will be their key to making that strike. You will protect them and make the enemy vulnerable. That will be your purpose. Techniques alone will be of little use, so when Naruto gets back we will work on combining your individual skills into something that every enemy will be wary to face. In a team, every member has his purpose, making the team a unified fighting unit flexible enough to adapt and achieve victory. But for that to happen everyone has to contribute equally and that is what we will be working on.

"Got it, sensei." Sakura nodded.

….

"Fine, we will stop here for the night and by tomorrow morning we will reach the nearby town. We should rest, especially you as tomorrow you will start your training." Jiraiya said. He and NAruto stopped under a large tree growing not far from the road. The night promised to be warm and there wasn't a cloud in the sky so little chance of raining, thus there was no reason to set up a tent. So the simple camp was set in just a few minutes with a warm campfire dancing and granting warmth to the duo sitting in front of it.

"Yes, finally." Naruto grinned when he saw that the water began to boil. He reached for his small backpack and pulled out a scroll. Jiraiya raised an eyebrow when Naruto unsealed a cup of instant ramen.

"So, you know how to use a basic storage seal. Very good. It is a very simple one, but good introduction into the world of seals for those who want to master this complex art."

"It is neat." Naruto nodded after slurping up some noodles. "I can carry tons of stuff around using these things. Kakashi-sensei explained that not all gear should be sealed up though. Some kunai and shuriken should always be within reach."

"Yes, using a seal, even a basic one needs time, so it is not something that is often used in battles, except for times when one gets enough time to prepare them. In most cases an enemy will not give you a chance to use a complex seal. The stronger the enemy, the less chances there are."

"Hmm." Naruto looked up and then settled his ramen aside earning a surprised look from Jiraiya.

"Then how did the fourth do this?" Naruto pointed at his stomach. There was no need for him to explain what exactly he was referring to. "This one seems kind of complex to me."

"Oh yes, that is one of the most powerful and complex seals out there. Actually it is so powerful that alone no man can use it properly. There are some weaker modifications, but the real deal is something nobody can replicate it alone."

"So, someone helped the fourth use this seal to stop the angry furball?"

Jiraiya chuckled at the way Naruto referred to the mighty tailed beast, but if Naruto gave someone a nickname it meant that he at least respected that person, or his strength and Kyuubi's power demanded respect.

"You could say that he got some help. Somewhat."

"What do you mean?"

"Fine, I guess you of all people should know how that works. The fourth had to summon a certain someone to use the seal."

"Who? Some powerful ninja or a summon animal like Gamabunta?"

"No, nothing like that. To use that seal the fourth summoned the Shinigami. Don't ask me how, I won't tell, but that is the truth. The god of death can be summoned and his power can be used to rip out the soul and chakra of any entity and then seal it inside of the summoner himself or another target. In this case you. As I explained before, only a newborn can live with such a power sealed inside of him, his body growing and developing with that burden. Thus you have an amazing amount of chakra, your chakra system and chakra pool grew in order to adapt to that great power hidden by the seal on your stomach."

"The god of death." Naruto mumbled. The idea alone terrified him. To think that such a being was partially responsible for the seal Naruto carried. For a second Naruto felt like some cold hand touched him, but he shook his head, clearing his mind and not letting his imagination run wild.

"What happens to the summoner then?"

"The power always comes at a price, often a horrible price."

"The fourth died." Naruto nodded sadly.

"If only it was that simple. No, the fourth didn't sacrifice just his life, Naruto, he sacrificed his soul. That is the price of using this technique. Once it is performed your own soul is ripped out and consumed by the god of death and there is no way around that."

"That is ….. " Naruto felt how a single tear rolled down his cheek. He knew the fourth made a terrible sacrifice, but not this terrible.

"So you have make sure you learn to use that power you were left with properly, otherwise you will shame that sacrifice, Naruto."

The blonde ninja turned to toad mountain sage with wide eyes and then nodded with clear determination.

"Don't worry, I can handle the furball."

"You made the first step, but lets not think about that for now. If you want I can show you the jutsu you will start learning tomorrow."

"Really? Come on, I am ready." Naruto was smiling again.

"This jutsu will fit you, especially now that you know a bit more about your past. The fourth died leaving you with a heavy burden to carry, so I find it perfectly logical that you will get to learn a jutsu the fourth hokage created. You will carry on part of his legacy Naruto."

Jiraiya held up his palm and in awe Naruto saw how chakra began to gather, spinning violently, forming a ball of highly compressed violent chakra that now illuminated the area. It wasn't big, but the power could be felt.

"Remember this day, this moment and your past, Naruto. Perhaps this knowledge will give you the determination to learn the jutsu left by the foruth hokage. Remember the sacrifice and the reason it was made. You will use this jutsu to protect the village as did the fourth. You will continue his work. You will learn …" Jiaraiya held his hand up, the jutsu shining over his head as the toad mountain sage stood up.

"….. the rasengan!"