The Fox and the Hound
Chapter 22: Aftermaths and Afterthoughts.
Chapter Summary: Once all the buzz and twitter has died away what is left in the aftermath of all that has transpired here? And just where will it leave Naruto?
Author Note: Okay so the angst bunnies demanded sacrifice and I decided to oblige them. So plowing along we go. HOWEVER, I do want to do some missing moments chapters, some nice fluff and what not but as it stands I'm kinda on a stand still on those. (Go figure) So I figure maybe I'll ask you fine folks what kind of missing moments you all wanna see. :D I do aim to please. Fergnerd, you get whatever you want seeing as you're the one that decides (and with good reason) that I need a kick in the ass ;). Okay onward. *evil grin* need to be back in the groove.
It was really hard to imagine that a month had come and gone in the span of what only seemed like a week just a few days ago. But as it was Konoha was in a whirl of movement and change and things just seemed to move faster than they had when they all were stuck in the academy.
Two weeks ago he had come back from his little adventure with the old pervert and a week ago things set themselves into a tolerable routine of missions and training. Sasuke was nearby panting heavily while Naruto caught up to him out in the one place they probably should not be, and Sakura was more than likely following Shizune around the hospital on her rounds or being drilled by Tsunade in the tower.
They all three decided in the hospital to not allow themselves to be used, kidnapped, or left behind and so far they all three had their goals in mind: Sakura her medical ninjutsu, Naruto his seals, and Sasuke ninjutsu and trying to develop his Sharingan.
Naruto grinned a little as Sasuke glanced back at him. They were not really racing each other but they were fighting with each other. Naruto had been pursuing Sasuke and Sasuke believed that letting Naruto caught up would speed things along. They would sprint a while, take shots at one another, and then try to retreat enough that one or the other could not find them. Then repeat.
Their training ground of choice was way too open and easily accessible than either of them preferred and surprisingly Naruto had the answer: the Forest of Death. Sakura had visibly balked at this, she sometimes joined them for these spats whenever Tsunade was too busy but Sasuke had merely asked how they were going to gain access to such a restricted area.
Naruto had introduced him to the fun and joys of toying with Mitarashi Anko; which in of itself had suddenly become a training exercise for the boys and a growing frustration for poor Anko. Not that Naruto really worried too much about the Jounin, she always barked loud and threatened big but so far her only retaliation had been to booby trap Naruto's room and leave him hanging with bright pink hair until Kakashi had returned from one of his many missions. And if she had struck at Sasuke the dark-haired boy had not yet told him what his punishment had been.
Their first strike had been to get the keys for the gate to the forest that Naruto just KNEW she had to have. She had been way too familiar with the forest and its pitfalls during their exam it had to mean she used it regularly.
And as much as he should have wanted to avoid this area he was finding himself enjoying the freedom the forest gave. He and Sasuke could really go at each other without someone interfering or protesting and they did not have to worry too much about property damage.
Today they were enjoying trading blows back and forth before darting off and trying to lead each other. At one point Sasuke had conjured a Chidori but had never even gotten close to Naruto. Naruto retaliated with a Rasengan but found he was still a little slow with bringing the amount of chakra up fast enough and Sasuke had promptly countered by pulling him by that arm and throwing him into the trees.
"He will want to fight you, you better be prepared."
Anko's words of warning did resurface every so often whenever he and Sasuke really got into it. Sure he still worried about the curse mark upon his friend's shoulder but so far the mark had not broken free of the seal Kakashi had placed on it during the exams. Sasuke's will was still stronger than the will of the mark.
And maybe their little spats between missions was satisfying Sasuke's desire to advance, to be better, to fight.
Naruto could only hope.
Another fireball came zinging at him and Naruto ducked to the trees and he conjured a few Shadow clones to try to give him the distraction and time he needed to get a Rasengan ready. He was getting faster bit by bit but he still was not as fast as Jiraiya had been.
"Won't work." Sasuke grinned happily as he came out from behind and tried to kick Naruto from his perch. Naruto abandoned the trick and threw up his hands to block the kick. As soon as Sasuke was stopped he tried using one of his clones to strike at the Uchiha but Sasuke already had his Sharingan activated and flipped away; dispatching the clone. "You're getting faster! Why don't you try to add an element to it now that you've figured out the shape?"
Naruto ran up the tree and began searching out Sasuke. It was another benefit of their time in the forest. They both could speak freely here without having to worry about anyone hearing them. They could fling ideas back and forth to one another without criticism or outward influence. "I wouldn't even know where to start. I have no idea what element to work with."
"Why not ask Kakashi?" Sasuke took a wide swing and Naruto turned and grasped his wrist, fast enough to snatch him and throw him against a nearby trunk. Before he could punch at him he disappeared in a puff of smoke and Naruto snarled.
"Kakashi-nii is pretty busy if you haven't noticed. He's either gone or asleep and I'm not about to bug him about something stupid like that."
"I don't think that it would be something stupid. You can't just keep relying on Shadow Clones you dobe."
"Heh, watch me. With my shitty control I doubt it would make any difference if I knew what element I was."
"It would help, I think." Sasuke stood upside down from his perch and crossed his arms in front of him. "Elemental stuff uses more chakra and your control is screwy because of the amount of chakra you have. You have an easier time with things that would drop the rest of us at this stage. Shadow clones as an example…."
"Heh, well I'm still trying to get the speed up to Jiraiya's too. I think it's pointless to have something you can't just whip out unless you are at a tactical advantage to take your time."
Naruto watched Sasuke start and then shake his head. It was something to get used to for all of them but Sasuke seemed to appreciate Naruto's input more now that he had dropped the idiot role, even though he still clung to that mask when they were in the village. Sasuke continued to call him an idiot and a dobe purely to keep up that illusion for Naruto and he was thankful for that.
"Well what element was your family?"
"How the hell should I know? I'm an orphan stupid and Kakashi's not really my brother…."
"No shit." Sasuke huffed in response and flipped down to land near Naruto on his branch. "But usually most orphans know at least their family history a little bit…they never told you anything?"
"No…" Naruto frowned and turned away a little. "For all outward appearances they never existed."
"Well you obviously came from somewhere." Sasuke folded his arms again and leaned back against the tree trunk.
"No shit." Naruto growled back in kind. He suddenly felt backed into a corner and he could not really figure out why. He had decided years ago to just let it drop because up to that point he had found no trace of any other Uzumaki's. That was just his fate…but he had to admit to still being curious. Sasuke had a damn good point too; rationally if he found out where he came from he could maybe start adding to his arsenal like Sasuke had been trying to do with family Fire Jutsu and other tricks that lended to his strengths.
There was a long drag of silence between them. Sasuke finally realized what line he had crossed and Naruto was fending off the dreaded chewing in his gut. It was not like he had given up the search and never thought about the subject again; it was just that it was a threatening subject all of the sudden.
"Sorry, you could have just told me to shut up." Sasuke made an awkward apology and began tightening his gear and brushing the dirt and grime out of his now shorter dark spikes.
"When's that ever worked?" Naruto smirked a bit and rubbed at his head to remove the same dirt and debris he had to have built up over the course of their training. "It's not like I've never tried but…"
"Another secret huh?" Sasuke frowned and began walking towards where they left their bags. "Seems there's a lot of those lying about anymore."
"Probably more the higher we get too." Naruto snuffed and came to walk beside Sasuke. "Not like I'm not used to it by now. Bets are they just didn't want to ever tell me cause of 'it'."
"Or maybe because it's important enough to keep it quiet." Sasuke pointed out and rolled one of his shoulders. "You ever think of that?"
"Right….had it been that important would they have used me to seal a demon into?" Naruto found himself barking back. "Had I a Clan or any kind of status to protect me don't you think they would have?"
"Hmm."
"You guys with Clans just have it so nice. Little estates, get to do what you want, family secrets…" Naruto reached down once they got back to their bags and began to dig for a water bottle he knew he had thrown in earlier. He wanted nothing more than to just dump it over his head; it was suddenly very hot and very uncomfortable. "Family techniques…"
"It's not all that it's cracked up to you idiot." Sasuke shot back at his jab. "It's a lot of hierarchy and if you weren't born first you might as well not have been born at all. Hell do you even know how the Hyuuga Clan works?"
"I've heard things." Naruto muttered thinking of his fight with Neji. "I just thought they were the oddballs…Choji and Shikamaru's families don't seem too bad."
"Heh, that's because they're small enough to not have to worry about who gets what and who gets to do what and when." Sasuke bluntly pointed out and sat heavily on the forest floor. "Sometimes I wonder if my brother did me a favor…."
Naruto raised an eyebrow and cocked his head to the side. Sakura had admitted being afraid of what meeting his brother would do to Sasuke and Naruto had to agree with her. They both knew what he wanted to do to his brother for the slaughter of his Clan and had on more than one occasion agreed with Sasuke's hatred. Had it been him surely he would be angry for the loss of his family…
But Sasuke suddenly seemed to do a three-sixty in this regard. He seemed more determined to become stronger but he did not seem to echo his statement a month or so ago when he finally woke up to deal with the Sound Ninja in the forest. At that time he had been more than eager to do whatever it took to gain that power but now it seemed his focus had changed.
"I mean what other explanation is there?" Sasuke looked up to him suddenly; the red faded back to dark black orbs and it almost looked like he was pleading with Naruto for an answer. "If he wanted to just erase the Clan he could have. If he had wanted to he could have killed me…twice now…and he hasn't. But what makes me any different from any one else he killed?"
"You were his brother." Naruto muttered without realizing it and fought the urge to flinch. He really should not have said such a thing, given the circumstances. Sasuke merely went still and stared at him. He did not look angry or upset, just lost.
Naruto sat down near Sasuke and leaned over his knees to look out into the dark unknown around them. "I think that's how we're alike ya know? Neither one of us knows the full picture and even if we did what would it change?"
"Maybe it would just make sense if we knew." Sasuke muttered and leaned up as well. "If I just had a reason, any reason better than 'just to test myself' I think I could let it go. No one seems to know and no one seems to care. All they care about is me getting the Clan back to what it was. To restore everything that he destroyed. What if that isn't what I want?"
"Then don't do it." Naruto shrugged and glanced over to Sasuke, now staring dead ahead. "Kakashi always tells me to not give a damn what others think. It's kinda hard to not hear them but I can't change it so I should do what I think is right."
"Hmph." Sasuke stood swiftly and took his backpack up on his shoulder. "When does Kakashi get back?"
"Not for another couple days according to what he said." Naruto sighed. It was hard getting used to this new harrowing schedule. Kakashi had suddenly found himself in high demand with so many still recovering or just plain gone and he had several missions some weeks. When he was home he was sleeping.
A couple of times he had joined Naruto when he had gone out to eat or to visit Sakura and Sasuke but for the most part he was getting rough around the edges. But Naruto was almost hoping that would happen so the old lady would give him a break. He had barely the time to talk to Kakashi let alone make sure he was alright and to show him what he had learned.
Granted he was a little nervous to do so. What if Kakashi was protective of his Sensei's jutsu? Jiraiya knew it but Jiraiya had taught the Fourth...
"We should go check on Sakura, see if she wants to eat or something." Sasuke's voice interrupted him and he glanced up. Sasuke was walking towards the back gate they always used to enter the forest and had taken back up his 'leader' tone. Naruto did not mind so much that he did it as long as it was not permanent. I mean Sasuke was the stronger individual after all.
"Eh you go on ahead, I was going to go digging around the library again. I'm getting the hang of that sensory seal the old perv showed me but I wanna try a couple of traps and he's nowhere to be found, go figure."
"Eh, whatever." Sasuke shrugged and soon Naruto was alone to his own devices. The Uchiha was good at disappearing as the need suited him. Naruto took his time back to the gate and double checked that everything was locked back up and any traces he and Sasuke might have left were erased.
He highly doubted that Anko was that stupid, the woman had to understand that the two of them were responsible for a missing key but so far she had not come to rectify the matter. Maybe she felt they needed the time out in the forest to toughen up a bit… but then again why did she care about it?
Something about her whole involvement during the chuunin exams had been too familiar. She knew Orochimaru and how he acted….and Kakashi had noted that many had wanted to put her in a cage and keep her sealed away. Maybe she knew how Sasuke was going to react because she had seen something similar already.
Naruto easily moved between streets and homes till he was back at his apartment and changed. Riri was nowhere to be seen when he entered and Naruto was still surprised that the shepherd had not started joining Sasuke and he out on their training but Riri still was wary of Sasuke after what had happened. Naruto could not blame him entirely but that had been two months ago.
He stopped by his windowsill of plants and just stared at them. Sasuke's and his conversation still stuck in his head and he was desperate to quiet the curiosity again. It was momentarily relieved when he noted the small azalea bush that Ino's mother had given him a while back had finally begun to take off while he was gone and finally in the middle of the bush was a small bud.
He grinned and sat down next to the burnt orange pot and carefully isolated the bud and saw small groupings of others elsewhere on the plant. All of his plants seemed to be in good condition when he had returned, if not a little overgrown in some of their cases. This one he had been eager to see because she had not given him the cultivar or any hint as to what color it would be. Instead she just said he would enjoy it.
So against his better judgment he carefully began to prod the biggest bud open by peeling it carefully. This bud would be trimmed off but it was just too much and he wanted to see if it was the russet color it appeared to be from the outside.
Instead of a russet when he peeled it open the bloom's petals were fire orange. Naruto blinked momentarily before breaking out into a huge grin. He was not aware azalea's came in orange but now that he saw it he was absolutely eager for the rest of the buds to break out into actual blooms. He was about to turn around and tell Riri to look and remembered the dog was out and about.
It was odd the way Riri was acting but maybe the shepherd was trying to learn something new as well and since he did not seem to want to trust Sasuke yet he was out doing so himself or harassing Sakura for more of those treats she made.
Naruto sighed and glanced around the empty apartment. It only made the conversation come flaring back up and he shuddered and headed out the window. It did no good to brood over it and if he just sat there he would just continue to stew. So he set off with no particular destination in mind.
So it was odd when he looked up and found himself at the Nara residence.
He knew where Shikamaru lived even though he never had really been invited there or had come here to visit. He had never done so before because of the fear of rejection. Shikamaru, Choji and he had always kept their friendship at the school and when they decided to skip. At the end of the day they always parted ways and that was how it was.
Now as he stood at the door, waiting to see if anyone answered, Naruto wondered if this would end up being some sort of breech.
A dark haired woman answered and smiled at him a bit, leading him through the residence and out a back door. There in a small yard was Shikamaru laid out flat on his back in the grass and Choji sitting up nearby snacking on chips. Choji straightened up and waved at Naruto eagerly and Shikamaru merely waved before letting his arm drop back down to the soft grass.
The woman left them and Naruto timidly walked over and sat just behind Shikamaru's head.
"So you made it back in one piece. Sakura was really starting to wonder." Shikamaru drawled without opening his eyes even a crack to look at him.
"Yeah you were gone a long time there Naruto." Choji offered up the bag and Naruto snagged a handful and just shrugged. "So what did you end up doing? Where all did you go? Shikamaru said you left with one of the Sannin??"
"Yeah he calls himself that." Naruto snorted and quickly swallowed the chips, finding he was hungry now that he was no longer thinking. "Some place called Tanzaku and all over while the Perv decided to peep instead of actually doing something productive."
"Does he let you call him that?" Shikamaru was finally waking up a bit it looked like.
"No, not really but that's what he is." Naruto smiled as Shikamaru sat up and rubbed at the back of his neck. "Glad to see things haven't changed here too much. Still sleeping the afternoon away."
"Oh no we just got back a few hours ago." Choji shook his head and pointed at Shikamaru suddenly. "We've been getting a lot of C-ranks because they promoted Shikamaru to Chuunin last week…."
"Damn it Choji do we have to keep bringing that up?" Shikamaru groaned while Naruto blinked.
"They what?!" Naruto began laughing a bit.
"Yeah that crazy woman you seemed to have brought back to be Hokage went ahead and took all the proctor's recommendations and made me a Chuunin. What a drag…."
"Yeah, yeah, tell him what they said about you Shikamaru!" Choji was happily laughing now too.
"Promoted you…." Naruto was a little in shock. They actually promoted someone from the exam? But the more and more he thought about it the more he began to smirk. Of all the people they promoted it was Shikamaru of all people. "They promoted you? That's perfect! Did they not take in account that you surrendered your match?"
"I did that because I felt something was up, you idiot."
"That's his excuse." Choji was whispering back to Naruto and it earned him a hard glare.
"And good thing too. It's not like I asked to be a Chuunin…"
"I bet Asuma was shocked." Naruto continued to goad Shikamaru and received a hard glare. "Oh is he actually training you hard now? I bet he's just eager to get you all set for Jounin now."
"Do not get him started on that." Shikamaru growled. "The plan was simple, make chuunin, meet some plain girl and have two kids. A nice quiet life. There is no chance I'm going to be a Jounin and take up those crazy missions."
"Nope, I bet Asuma won't let you slack off now. I bet you were the only one they promoted!" Choji began to nod enthusiastically as Naruto grabbed more chips. "See he won't let you go back to being that unmotivated slacker. You're stuck now genius."
At this Shikamaru stood and pointed over to the porch running outside the length of the house. Naruto blinked and then looked over to where he was pointing and saw a Shogi board sitting outside one of the doors. After he was sure Naruto had seen it he stood and drug himself over to the board and began placing pieces out in front of him.
"Oh now you're in for it." Choji chuckled and stood to go sit at the edge of the porch. Naruto debated for a little bit and then decided to go ahead and give it a shot. He was not too good at these types of games but he really needed the distraction.
Naruto came to sit on the other side of the board and landed in a hunched over slump as he began to mimic Shikamaru's pieces on his own side of the board. He had to admit not really knowing how to play the game that well and it was very evident the first few games where Shikamaru merely beat him in a few plays.
After a few of those he began to piece together the intricate little moves and piece maneuvers that allowed Shikamaru to 'capture' him constantly. And in a few more rounds he began striking back and taking some of Shikamaru's pieces.
They were silent during these games and Naruto slowly began to think about his conversation with Sasuke more as the moves became more instinctual and not actually thought out guesses. Choji sat quietly to the side watching and grinning each time Naruto made a good move and Shikamaru was taking more and more time between his moves.
But finally the silence broke them all.
"So what's up?" Shikamaru asked at one point during one of their longer stand-offs. "You look like someone just closed the ramen stand."
"Eh, it's nothing I'm just trying to work something out." Naruto found himself growling a little bit and watched as Shikamaru reached out and clicked a piece one step closer to his side of the board. Shikamaru shrugged and went back to the silence game.
Two weeks ago he had come home and two weeks ago things seemed to have gone back to normal; except normal was not what he was used to. They were all busy and they were all taking on more work and Shikamaru was a Chuunin for all intent's purposes. Everything seemed to have gone to fast forward.
He clicked one of his bishops and stared at the pieces on the board. Shikamaru straightened in response and cupped his hands in front of him just like he had at the Chuunin exam. Naruto stopped and blinked at this and then over to Choji who did not seem surprised by this.
"He's thinking." Choji whispered very carefully. "You're really good at this. He only usually has to do that move with his dad and Asuma-sensei."
Naruto frowned once Shikamaru's hands came back up and snaked out for one of his knights and proceeded to force his one piece back, but only slightly. He frowned even more seeing the move and about two others Shikamaru could have chosen. Shikamaru was purposefully baiting him it seemed.
"If I do what he wants me to he'll take three pieces. If I go the way he's left open he'll take five." Naruto quietly began fidgeting and then decided to move the closest piece to Shikamaru's side of the board and instantly Shikamaru straightened.
"What the…" Shikamaru sat up and really began to study the board. He did this for a good two minutes before gaping up at Naruto. "You just stopped the game, we're at an impasse."
"Oh what's that?" Naruto looked down and then back up. He was not aware that he had done anything wrong but then again he did not know the official rules.
"It's like a stalemate. I can't find…"
"He actually stopped you!" Choji was leaning up now too to look at the pieces. "He didn't win but he stopped your advance."
"I see that!" Shikamaru snapped to the side then returned to staring at Naruto. "I thought you did not know how to play?"
"I don't."
"He's watching your moves and reacting to them instinctively." A voice caught them all by surprise and looked up to find Shikamaru's father standing at the doorway watching the same game. "He's merely moving the pieces in a way that prevents you from doing what you've done in the past games. I believe we call that dumb luck."
Naruto squirmed under the happy smirk Shikaku threw his way before closing the door and calling out the woman in the house about their son's 'loss'. Shikamaru huffed and crossed his arms in front of him staring at the game board obsessively looking for a small crack in the set up of the pieces.
"So what is it you're trying to work out Naruto?" Choji decided to fill the silence and scooted up closer to the board. He must have known Shikamaru would not want to start over another game; he was too busy studying the game that Naruto had inadvertently stopped.
"I dunno exactly." Naruto sighed and began to pick at the rocks stuck in the bottom of his shoes. "You ever want to know the answer to something but something tells you that you really don't want to know?"
"That's the weirdest thing I've ever heard." Shikamaru murmured while reaching over to quietly reposition a few of the pieces and then began thinking again. "But I guess it makes sense. Is this about the whole 'secret' thing?"
Naruto cringed a little. He had forgotten that Shikamaru and Choji had in their own way promised to keep their ears open as to why he was officially a secret in the village. He knew the answer to this particular secret already and so did his teammates. But the two people he considered his best friends did not. That suddenly seemed very wrong and very selfish of him. They had a right to know.
"Uh, no, uh…about that you guys." Naruto rubbed at his neck nervously and shrunk a little. "I, I kinda found out what that was all about…"
"Really?" Choji leaned up noting how low Naruto's voice had gotten. "My dad says not to ask stupid questions whenever I ask. Shikamaru's dad tells us we're crazy or just waves us off…"
"Yeah they would." Naruto took a deep breath and sighed. "I was kinda born the night the fox attacked the village…."
"Yeah so? Why would that make you a secret?" Shikamaru frowned and raised his eyebrow. "If that's all it is that's pretty stup…."
"Because the Fourth was unable to just kill a demon." Naruto interrupted Shikamaru harshly and lowered his gaze. "Please just let me finish it's hard enough as it is." When nothing else was said and Shikamaru finally started putting pieces away from atop the Shogi board. "You remember Gaara don't you?"
"Kinda hard to forget a psycho." Shikamaru huffed.
"You remember what he said that day in the hospital don't you?"
"Yeah kinda, what the hell Uzumaki, what's this got to do with anything?"
"I'm like him."
Choji just cocked his head to the side and looked to Shikamaru since he had been the one present for the incident in question.
"You're like…there's no way…there's." Shikamaru finally looked directly at him and Naruto found he had to look away. "Naruto you are no way like that…"
"No, I'm not because I got lucky, someone decided to see me and take me in. But the Fourth Hokage had to do what the Kazekage did to save the village. He sealed the fox into a newborn and I was born the night the fox attacked."
"Naruto…" Choji whispered but afterwards there was nothing but silence and the sounds of birds chirping around in the gardens.
Naruto closed his eyes and waited. He had been friends with Choji and Shikamaru longer than anyone else. He should have told them sooner but this was what he was afraid of. Sooner or later he would have to tell Lee but he knew Lee was probably still recovering after Tsunade's visit. Just because she was a super medic did not mean Lee would be one-hundred percent instantly.
"When did you find out? You did not know when we were in school?" Shikamaru finally questioned and put his elbow on the board to lean forward and catch his gaze.
"No…my, my guardian finally told me after graduation. He figured I had a right to know." Naruto lied. The Third had told him expressly not to go into details about Mizuki's betrayal, especially at the school because many saw him as a good teacher.
"Jees man that's rough." Shikamaru shook his head and let out a long sigh. "I mean that has to be just a little tough to swallow. And that Sand guy must've freaked you out…no wonder you went white as a sheet."
"It doesn't hurt you does it Naruto?" Choji was for once quiet and still, not shoving his hand in his bag to nervously snag at the food he found comfort in.
"No it doesn't hurt me, at least I don't think it does." Naruto looked up to Shikamaru guiltily. "I didn't mean to hide it I just…"
"Yeah that's not exactly something you want broadcast to the world, I get it." Shikamaru shrugged. "But do all the adults know?"
"Yeah I think so. That's why a lot of the older villagers kinda react badly to me and what not…"
"Who's your guardian? I mean they knew about it and took you in?" Choji was grinning. "Whoever it was must be really nice to do that for you…"
"Uh, well, that'd be Kakashi."
"Kakashi? As in your Sensei?" Shikamaru blinked a bit.
"Yeah, he took me in…a long time before this."
"Damn." Shikamaru shook his head and lay back on the wood boards of the porch. "I'm really losing my touch. Normally I can figure that kind of stuff out. Kinda like how Asuma and Kurenai are always skirting around each other like a couple of teenagers."
Naruto could not help but snort and start laughing so hard until tears started forming at the edge of his eyes. "Oh. Man. That's just….You're good Shikamaru."
"That's how you know Asuma-sensei!" Choji perked up. "He said he was known to harass Kakashi-sensei when he was younger!"
Naruto nodded as he tried to reign in the laughter. Oh they knew about Asuma and Kurenai already. Why was it that the two of them thought they could hide such a relationship in a village filled with trained information gatherers? "Yeah they even looked after me whenever Kakashi had to leave for a real long mission or something. Well that and I started pranking Asuma just for kicks."
"Really? Like how?"
"You want in on it?" Naruto questioned back to Shikamaru and laughed when Shikamaru nodded. Bets were after his promotion Asuma believed Shikamaru would turn around his laziness into motivation. Instead Shikamaru was getting more than he bargained for and wanted revenge. "Perfect, I've wanted a shot at him since graduation, just so he doesn't forget."
"Naruto, look, about the 'secret'." Shikamaru cut off his diversionary conversation. "We won't tell anyone, will we Choji?"
"Nope."
"And we won't let anyone mess with you, got it?"
"Huh?"
"We kinda overheard a few people at the festivals." Choji muttered and lowered his head this time. "They always were angry you came with us and they were always acting like they were going to find you afterwards to make sure you didn't come back. Guess it makes sense now, but back then it was weird."
"Oh…yeah well I'm used to that kind of shit. It's actually let up since I graduated…"
"Still, if anyone messes with you we'll mess back." Choji came back up and looked very much like his father. Shikamaru looked a lot like his father back in the bar, leaning up on the shogi board and just watching Naruto's reaction. And in an ideal world he could pretend that he looked like Inoichi.
And that just brought back up his dilemma. He stood and smiled a little. "Thanks guys, I appreciate that but I don't want to cause trouble."
"So what exactly is it you're trying to figure out?" Shikamaru questioned again. "If it wasn't that what was it?"
"Eh nothing, it's something stupid really. And I should be going. Riri's probably trying to find me or Sakura and Sasuke. They said something about getting something to eat."
"Before you go how is the emo-jerk doing?" Shikamaru raised an interested eyebrow and speared Naruto particularly hard.
"He's doing better. He hasn't drawn on that thing since the fight with Gaara and he actually seems sorry that he did." Naruto shuddered. "Don't worry about it guys I've got it handled."
"I hope so cause I don't wanna have to be the one to drag your ass back to Konoha when he finally goes berserk." Shikamaru muttered and waved at him a little. "Let's get together later this week. I need an excuse to get away from Asuma."
"Hah, yeah and we need to plan our prank on him." Naruto waved and walked around the outside porch to exit without seeing Shikamaru's parents. He was almost afraid that Shikaku had stayed nearby and had heard the confession but even so Shikaku probably already knew. And he never seemed to care either way about Naruto.
It was still something he was nervous about. So far no one that he personally had told had reacted badly yet. They had merely reacted in concern for him and had understood his silence about such a thing. Maybe Kakashi had been right all along that those he called friends would understand and accept it. If they reacted badly maybe they had never been his friends in the first place.
All in all nothing bad was coming from his friends knowing about his 'tenant' and so far nothing bad had come from people knowing about Kakashi taking him in.
So maybe nothing bad would happen if he tried one last time to figure out where he had come from. Kakashi mentioned they had upped the security a little in the scroll rooms but that did not necessarily mean that the records rooms had been hit as well. He took a glance up at the familiar tower and guessing by how busy it was lately there would be fewer guards and sentries. It was an ideal time to go digging through records again.
But what good would that do him? He had tried from about six-and-a-half to just after turning eight years old and not once had he been able to dig up anyone else with the name of Uzumaki. They did not exist in the records at all. He had been obsessive about it when he was seven and checked everything he could. There was no one else like him…
But perhaps the problem had always been he had been looking for the wrong thing.
"Finally." Kakashi heaved a huge sigh of relief once the Hokage took his report and, instead of handing out another slip of paper with a mission briefing on it, merely dismissed him for the foreseeable future. He bowed to the woman he was now trained to see instead of Sandaime and exited calmly through the door.
Konoha was still spread thin. The attack came after a graduating class and as much as they liked to tout Sasuke as a genius none of the rookie nine was really that ready for promotions. He was still surprised that the Hokage had given Shikamaru a gain in rank but going back over what Naruto had told him about Shikamaru's match against the Sand Ninja and subsequently hearing it from Asuma; the boy was the only one of the bunch without a hot head on his shoulders. Everyone else was out to prove themselves still and they only thought about winning, they did not think about probability and tactical moves in the least.
Still they were only kids and the last time kids their age had been fast-tracked to C and B ranks was during the war in which he had gotten a fast education in.
Even Tsunade seemed wary in doing this despite the obvious lack of manpower at the present moment. They would continue on until people recovered and the 'kids' became more reliable and mature. It would slow eventually but the influx of missions and requests had gone up because of the Chuunin exams themselves and the ability the Leaf had in repelling an invasion without losing more than they did.
They were reliable and strong; that was the view of those who had heard and seen and now they were overrun with requests.
It was a great way of getting back into a groove though and after a good sleep and rest he was more than likely going to snag his three Genin and see what kind of trouble they had been getting into in his absence. They all seemed to have a renewed sense of learning and Tsunade had inquired about Sakura before taking the girl on as an apprentice.
She was very pleased with the girl's knowledge and control but berated Kakashi endlessly on her inability to react properly to a real threat. "She actually closed her eyes when I started attacking her Kakashi, where the hell did she learn that from and why haven't you fixed it? She'll get herself killed that way."
Kakashi had no answer but did ask why exactly the Hokage had attacked the girl when she was supposed to be learning medical ninjutsu. Tsunade had only smirked knowingly and told him that the girl was exceptional at chakra control and that in itself gave her a lot of options beyond medical or Genjutsu.
Which meant the woman had truly taken Sakura as her apprentice and was teaching her that monstrous strength Tsunade was said to control. Which, depending on how well Sakura learned it, was going to make training sessions dangerous.
Sasuke and Naruto had renewed their rivalry and the two were constantly sparring or off somewhere doing Kami knew what. But it did not seem as intense as it could be. They both seemed to enjoy this newfound freedom to pursue their interests and they both seemed to have grown closer because of it. Kakashi had been worried about Sasuke's state of mind but Naruto had quickly reassured him and said Sasuke had yet to make it 'serious'.
Kakashi was glad to finally have a break because he knew Naruto was getting somewhat nervous. He was sure that he still was having trouble adjusting to Tsunade and knew that the kid still believed he needed time to recover as well so a little break would be good just to reassure Naruto he was fine and maybe touch base with all three of the kids.
He had to act like a sensei some of the time of course.
Something else seemed off as well and as he entered the dark apartment to find only Ririshii whimpering at Naruto's closed door it only piqued that particular sense. The dog looked downright distraught and did not even notice he had entered the living room.
During the few little passing moments he and Naruto would have it would seem like Naruto wanted to ask him something but then would think better of it and he always allowed it to pass without a second thought. Sooner or later whatever was bothering the blonde would surface and he could fix it.
"Hmm seems it came up while I was gone." He placed his pack to the side of the door and walked over to stand just behind Ririshii. "What's up?"
Riri came up instantly and whined loudly. "He won't let me in. He's upset, I don't know why, I tried to go in through the window and he got angry and told me to leave him alone. What did I do? I didn't mean to...to go off on my own when we got home; I promise I just wanted to find Akamaru!"
"Wait, slow down." Kakashi reached down and began to pet between the large ears perked up and swiveling in an agitated manor. "He's upset with you?"
"I don't know." Riri whimpered and began to snuggle up against Kakashi's chest as he kneeled down to pet the dog. "I don't know what's wrong. He was yelling, he was screaming and asking himself why he was so stupid. I wanted to ask him but he got angry and told me to go away. He kept talking and yelling but he's been quiet today. He was quiet today…"
"So he's been doing that for longer than today?" Kakashi peered at the door. Like Ririshii had said it was absolutely quiet and dark in the apartment. He had not at first been aware anyone was there. What the hell was going on? Why in the world was Naruto shoving Riri away?
"Yes, started two days ago. He came home late, really late with some sort of papers and just went to his room and he ignored me. Then he started muttering and then to yelling and crying. He was really upset….I can't open the door, why can't I open doors…"
"Relax he didn't want to hurt you." Kakashi reassured the dog with a pat on his back before standing and moving to the door. He wondered if Sasuke had finally started acting like they were expecting him to or if someone finally told him about Lee's outcome. There were just too many what if's though until he could see what exactly it was that had upset Naruto.
It was rare though that he would be upset enough to be outwardly upset to such a level. Riri was beside himself and from his description Naruto had been yelling and crying. He took a steadying breath and just decided to open the door and see what happened.
At first it was hard to discern where the kid was at first because it was dark in the room as well and Naruto was not in his bed or sitting at the desk covered in plants. Instead he was sitting pressed into a corner of the room; his arms were wrapped around his knees and his head rested atop them; eyes just staring out into the dark room.
Naruto winced a little when the light from the hall that Kakashi had momentarily flicked on to get a better look hit the room and he turned his head to the side and tried to bury his head in his arms. He made no move to acknowledge or greet Kakashi and remained tightly balled into his corner.
"Naruto?"
"Go away."
Kakashi raised an eyebrow and shifted his weight a bit. His voice sounded husky and raw, like he had indeed been crying as Ririshii reported. The dog took a tentative glance inside the door and whimpered. Kakashi merely took another step forward and was met with another growl.
"Leave. Me. Alone."
Kakashi ignored the warning and sat on the edge of Naruto's bed, just a few steps away from where Naruto was sitting and watched carefully. He never brought his eyes up to Kakashi when he snarled and even in close quarters Naruto made no move whatsoever to look up and enforce his words with eye contract.
"You know I can't do that." Kakashi finally replied calmly.
"You can you're just choosing not to." Naruto retorted rather harshly and Kakashi sat back a bit to give him a little more space. He was upset and he was hostile, that was a new combination. He took a moment to glance around the room; looking for any source for this behavior. His eye finally came to rest on a small pile of papers, just as Riri had explained, piled just at the edge of his bed. He reached over and took a handful of the papers and froze instantly.
Namikaze, Minato
- see also Yondaime Hokage
Registration ID: 009432
Birthdate: January 25th
Graduation Age: 10
Chuunin Promotion Age: 15
Jounin Promotion Age: 18
Promoted to Kage Status March 23rd
Missions Completed:
D-Rank: 122
C-Rank: 147
B-Rank: 216
A-Rank: 323
S-Rank: 39
Team Information:
Team: Gennai Yoshino, Warashi Tobin
Apprenticed to Jiraiya
Jounin Instructor of Team 7: Hatake Kakashi, Uchiha Obito, Rin
Current Status: Deceased as of October 10th
History:
No information regarding the family of Namikaze Minato has been uncovered at this time. Was found in outlying orphanage at age of two and entered the academy at age of three. It is believed he was an abandoned child from a passing ninja or other such individual due to ability and chakra reserves.
March 3rd Determined at age five that Namikaze Minato was Genius level and given appropriate levels of coursework and allowed to graduate at age ten with Gennai Yoshino and Warashi Tobin, both eleven. All three taken as Genin under Jiraiya of the Sannin.
October, 7th Age fifteen taken as personal apprentice to Jiraiya and given rank of Chuunin after exemplar performance at the Chuunin Exams held in the Village Hidden in the Clouds. Revealed that Namikaze has developed a rather interesting and powerful rank Jutsu, the Body Flicker that will allow the user to move himself between multiple locations unnoticed and undetected. Believed it is achieved with a number of seals and ninjutsu combined.
January 25th Age eighteen: promoted to Jounin rank due to influence provided during the evacuation of Whirlpool country. Influenced the truce and acquisition of surviving Whirlpool Ninja as Leaf Ninja and gives displaced Whirlpool citizens full rights and protections under Konoha's name.
July 29th Namikaze Minato given full rights as Jounin Instructor and given the right to take on one Hatake Kakashi as apprentice as of his promotion as Chuunin; age six. Three years later given two more Genin to complete cell of appropriate skill set and level: Uchiha Obito and Rin.
June 4th completed successfully mission to destroy bridge in Iwa territories allowing Iwa forces to advance on Fire. This completion was vital in the ending of the war and led to multiple peace treaties on all sides. Only one casualty was reported on the mission; Chuunin Rank Uchiha Obito.
April 3rd Age 24 completes work on technique called the Rasengan. A-rank jutsu, information regarding technique are sealed in the second records room floor for further study and development.
March 23rd Age twenty six promoted by Lord Sandaime Hokage, Sarutobi Hiruzen, to position of Hokage of the Village Hidden in the Leaves.
October 10th the Yondaime Hokage was killed in the line of duty after an attack by the Demon Nine-Tailed Fox on Konoha. The Demon was sealed by the Yondaime Hokage successfully into newborn child of Namikaze Minato and Uzumaki Kushina. One Uzumaki Naruto given into protective custody of former Sandaime Hokage, Sarutobi Hiruzen.
Kakashi was in shock. There before him was pretty much the summary sheet of notable achievements and advancements of the Yondaime Hokage. He glanced over to the rest of the papers and noted there were several other files, probably more in-depth reports and details and more than likely Kushina's files. He glanced back down at the page in his hand and the final entry, the one entry that caused the Sandaime Hokage to seal away all pertinent information regarding the Fourth and his history.
He believed that any ill will towards Minato from the world at large would land squarely on Naruto along with the burden of the Demon Fox's sealing in the boy. It was a logical reaction and so they gave Naruto Kushina's name and sealed away all records. There were so few that actually knew the truth that no one ever really asked for those records because the Fourth had already been a hero and most of his feats were known widespread by that point.
It was also that final entry that explained everything in painful clarity.
"I'm so stupid." Naruto sniffed below him and buried his head further. "I'm so fucking stupid. Why did I listen to him….why can't I just be an idiot and not know any better."
"Naruto…"
"Cause I'm too damn smart to just leave it alone. He just had to tell me I looked like him. Just had to explain that I was just like his precious Yondaime. He even taught me his jutsu didn't he…."
Naruto's voice was steadily becoming louder and his face scrunched up in pain as he went on. His fingers gripped at the smooth black material of his pants and tugged and pulled anxiously as the words just kept spilling out. Kakashi put the paper to the side and slid down to the floor and just waited.
"You never said anything!" Naruto finally lashed out, letting go of his legs and leaning up to yell at Kakashi. "You never said a damn word! And you knew! You had to know! You lived with him didn't you? That's what the old perv said…that …that he took you in after your father died. He looked after you…he cared about you!!!"
Kakashi winced at the harsh words and could easily understand Naruto's reaction. After learning about the Fox and how the Fourth had sealed it into him, telling Naruto that it was his own father to have done such a deed just seemed cruel; at least that was how the Sandaime had seen it. Slowly Kakashi had given in to that and allowed Sarutobi to do as he wished…of course until that fateful day eight years ago.
"But he didn't care enough about me did he! He….he used me. I'm just like Gaara. His father made him a weapon too…and that's what he did didn't he?" Naruto yelled forcibly and reacted enough to shove at Kakashi in an effort to get an answer or just to vent his frustration, Kakashi was not sure but the words struck deep and he reacted by reaching out and grabbing Naruto by the shoulders which caused the boy to flinch.
"Don't." Kakashi found it extremely hard to force out words all the sudden but he owed Naruto an answer. All he had was information on a sheet of paper, he did not know the underlying decisions or conversations that led up to such things. All Naruto saw was how his own father had sealed a demon away into his own child. "Don't say such a thing. Don't you ever think such a thing ever again."
Naruto glared at him angrily and Kakashi could not blame him for believing what he saw at face value. He was an orphan; orphan's normally had this need in them to find out where they came from and Naruto was no different. Kakashi knew he had dug around before; looking for any clues to his family but what had finally led him to the Fourth?
"Jiraiya…."
"Sensei cared about you more than anything, even before you were born." Kakashi found the words finally and pulled on the resistant shoulder until he could wrap his arms around the trembling blonde who was caught between outright rage and sorrow. "All he talked about was how things were going to be once you came. But no one could have guessed what happened would ever happen. "
"But he still did it." Naruto struggled but Kakashi held fast. "He still did it no matter what he said."
"Because he had no other choice, Naruto. There's something the history lessons don't cover and it's the fact that we had advance warning about the Kyuubi. Several outposts reported seeing it before they were overrun. He had the time to summon Gamabunta and perform the sealing jutsu before it ever threatened us. But he couldn't do it…he couldn't do it until the fox was breathing down our necks and the only way anyone was going to survive, including you, was if he did what he did."
Naruto did not respond fully to that and Kakashi pressed onward.
"You read his information didn't you? You saw it right? He was an orphan just like you Naruto. He NEVER wanted you to suffer like that. He wanted to marry your mother, but she was a stubborn woman, and buy a home and he wanted us to all be a family." Kakashi felt the boy go limp and the dampness starting on his sleeve. And Kakashi buried his cheek in the familiar soft hair.
Jiraiya had finally given Naruto enough of a clue to start digging in the right place but why? The old man had asked if Naruto knew and maybe it was because he found it outrageous that the son of his student didn't know exactly what a legacy he carried. Or perhaps the older man wanted to prod this information out of Kakashi finally because he believed it to be his 'place' to do so.
And Naruto had done as he always did and gone and dug on his own instead of asking. Which had Naruto asked would he have been able to answer him properly? Kakashi had been too cowardly to outright tell him and even faced with it he still did not want to shatter Naruto sense of self.
"That is my biggest failing Naruto." He whispered into the shaking head beneath him and desperately sought for a way to make it go away. "I should have told you, a hundred times before this, I am sorry."
"I just don't understand why." Naruto finally sobbed. "Why didn't you tell me? Why didn't Jiji tell me?"
"The same reason we pretended you didn't live here. I've made a lot of enemies over the years and so had the Fourth. He was a very dangerous man and as such had a very high standing in many Bingo books. People would have reacted to you in much of the same way they would have reacted to him; kill on sight. It's not the right answer but it's what we decided."
"Was it part of the rule?"
"Yes, it was part of that rule that the Sandaime passed. It was just a horrible thing that happened, Naruto. Sensei believed that Kushina was still alive when he left and that she would protect you that you wouldn't be alone…but then again that's another one of my failings."
"You were a kid too." Naruto muttered and sniffed as he clutched at the familiar black cloth of his shirt sleeve.
"I was old enough to know." Kakashi refuted. "You could have just asked Naruto. I would have told you…you did not have to try to find it on your own."
"I had to…I… I just wanted to know. I didn't think Sasuke would be right when he said no one told me cause it was important…."
"I didn't say anything because I was unsure if you would really want to know or not. And because Jiraiya is right you know; you do look just like him. Sooner or later someone would have figured it out Naruto."
"I look like him…" Naruto mulled over and over again. It seemed that was the trigger that Jiraiya had given Naruto to prod this revelation. Kakashi rubbed absently at the shoulder beneath his hand and sighed.
"You do, but you act more like your mother."
"really…"
"Yes, she was stubborn, outspoken, and she loved pulling pranks on people, especially after she became a Leaf Ninja. That's how they met actually, Sensei made it his responsibility to make sure the Whirlpool Ninja were assimilating well and to correct any issues that had come up and Kushina, just to tick him off, would pull these elaborate pranks." Kakashi chuckled a little remembering how pink Minato's apartment had gotten one day after Minato had told Kushina she was not feminine enough to ever be datable. "I think they both liked the challenge."
"What happened to her? You said he thought she was still alive…"
"She did not want him to go alone. She wanted to be with him and you when it happened but she never made it that far." Kakashi winced, remembering how he found the woman alone in the forest trapped beneath one of the larger trees, a scared Genin girl pushed up against a nearby tree, white as a sheet. Kushina had saved the poor girl at her own expense for whatever stupid reason.
It was quiet again, only small sniffs and the occasional clenching of his hand around Kakashi's sleeve was the only indication that he was still awake. Riri cautiously came into the room and laid just a few steps into the door. Kakashi looked back over at the papers and other assorted files Naruto had on his bed and sighed.
"How many laws did you break to get to these?"
"I dunno."
"Well Kushina would be proud. That's twice now you've gotten into restricted files without anyone noticing."
Naruto laughed a little at that and reached up to wipe furiously at his face. Kakashi merely leaned his back up against the nearby bed and began to pet the boy's blonde hair.
"I didn't mean to steal anything I was just going to look but then…"
"It's alright." Kakashi cut Naruto off and took a deep breath. "I'm sure you can get them back in there before anyone notices they're gone. Just…please…next time ask me."
There was a long pause and Naruto tensed a little before finally answering. "Okay…"
"I mean it Naruto." Kakashi poked at his head lightly. "I was late realizing what happened before but we really are brothers. You can ask me anything and I will try my best to answer it…"
"Did you…did you only take me in because of him?"
"No." Kakashi shook his head. "No I took you in because I was lonely. And we both obviously needed somebody. It's too much work living alone and being alone all the time…"
"Sasuke's alone…" Naruto mumbled somewhat coherently around a yawn.
"He is, but I think he's coming around to us don't you think?"
"'suppose so." Naruto shrugged a little. With the yelling and accusations over with Naruto seemed to be deflating a little by little.
"When's the last time you slept?"
"Couple days ago."
"I suppose that's the last time you ate too. Riri says you've been in here for a couple of days."
"I guess so." Naruto shrugged. Kakashi did not press it any further and just continued to pet the golden locks until Naruto's breathing evened out and he watched his eyes close. Naruto was probably still upset about the whole truth and Kakashi could not blame him. His whole life was secret after secret.
And Kakashi had made that worse by keeping the secret. Naruto had been so angry at first about the fact that his father had been the one to cause him this burden. Bets were he was still going to be angry when he woke up but maybe now that Kakashi had been honest with him he would start asking questions.
Maybe the more he knew the less he would hate the Fourth for his actions.
But watching the boy sleep, a somewhat pained look across his face, Kakashi could easily see this was going to be something hard to swallow than the farce of the Hokage just using a random orphan. At least then it was not a personal thing it was just what had to be done. Now it was personal.
"Nii-san? You're not angry aren't you?" Naruto breathed half-asleep half awake. "You like me don't you?"
"I'm not angry Naruto." Kakashi replied back and tugged on the blanket on the bed, scattering the papers to the floor. He draped the blanket over Naruto's shoulders and watched Riri curl up at the boy's feet, now sure his master was not going to shoo him away. "And we are a family Naruto and you are the best brother anyone could ask for."
Author note x2: Ahhhhh the angst bunnies have been appeased. The little info sheet, most info came from the rest I was kinda winging it so …. Eh shoot me if you must but I wanted something Naruto could find of definitive info so …there it was. Kinda a slow sappy bit of fun but we're at a point of preparation and building up to fan-freaking-tastic changes and we gotta build up some motivations! :D okay off and away to feed the Farmville addiction then a week full of mornings :D goooo overtime!
