Breaking Limits
...
…
… (Awkward silence)
Disclaimer: (Crickets chirp while a hastily erected, half-assed sign is displayed: 'MRAY 4TW does not own Naruto')
36.
"Um, Hinata-chan? Wanna walk with me?"
It was a particularly cool morning. The weather was slightly cloudy, but only over where the sun shone on the town. The grass and the flowers among them swayed on either side of the path, obviously by the wind's influence. The weather was perfect. The atmosphere…it was decent. Perhaps it could have been because of Naruto's stammering from time to time.
They were clad in their typical shinobi wear as the mission demanded, but nothing was shinobi-like about how the two were carrying on. It was more like two tweens, very nerdish in fact; one who offhandedly told her other that she had feelings for him, and the guy who didn't know how to react.
"I, uh, didn't know you felt that way about me, Hinata-chan. To be honest, I haven't even given much thought into relationships. It's always felt like the most I would ever have are a few friends and a cheap tombstone by the time everything was said and done. I'm just…me."
"You're you," she affirmed with a small smile. "And that's what I love the most."
"You love me for who I am? For what I am? For what I will be?"
"What do you mean?" She nearly frowned. She had a feeling where he was carrying this conversation, but she wouldn't allow him to take this tangent too far.
"I'm…a jinchuriki, for Kami's sake. You know about Kyuubi. You know, 'demon fox'. I'm practically cursed by typical standards." He argued.
"You told me about him. Have you forgotten that he spoke to us in Nami no Kuni? He was…blunt. A bit like you, or you like him. Whichever. Besides," she stopped walking and he did too, allowing her to cup his cheek with her left hand. "I should thank him. No doubt it was his influence that gave you those whisker-marks. They look good on you, and that's actually an understatement."
He said nothing for a while as they resumed walking. "You basically have princess status in the village, since you're the heiress of the largest and currently most powerful clan in the village. Status, money, veto in authority, why waste your affection on me?" He asked testily.
"You're worth it, Naruto-kun. I just hope that I'm worthy of yours."
"I have nothing to offer. You already have all that you need!" He exclaimed suddenly. She didn't flinch, but to look him in the eyes regardless of the fact that he started having a wilder look in his.
"My material possessions and status intimidate you, Naruto-kun? Is that the reason why-"
"That's most of the reason," he admitted.
"My parents…" Hinata looked away for a bit before turning back to him. "Told me that I could pursue relationships outside of with those of my clan, even to the point of marriage."
"So they're understanding. That's alright of a set of parents from a stiff-necked clan, no offense." He wasn't too sure where she was carrying this conversation. Absentmindedly, he could swear that he could hear something like a mass of people cheering 'Naru-Hina' faintly. It was surely a lot of people, but it was faint as if coming from very far off. (1)
"At the expense of all I have in my clan. Heiress status, inheritances, all of which I have to speak of."
"…" His lower jaw dropped. "But…is it because it's me? You really shouldn't then…"
"And they knew that it was for you I had feelings for, but didn't mind. They admitted that would have applied for anyone I chose. They bear no ill feeling for you. In fact, both speak highly of you."
"I daresay that I don't know why, but I won't complain."
"There's nothing to complain about, Naruto-kun. I've made it clear that nothing you have or do bothers me, that I'm willing to forego all I have to be with you. Will you not let me in? To at least give a relationship between us a chance?"
"Are you sure that what you have going on is some kind of infatuation or-…" He rambled on and stammered, and Hinata could practically hear again what the Kyuubi had said so long ago back in Wave.
And so she did.
Her byakugan flared into activation and she promptly dropped her personality for a more dominating one; she grabbed Naruto's collar and upper-shirt in both of her hands in a firm grip to bring her closer to him. He was caught completely off-guard, as not even 'Reflex' had kicked in as she shook him back and forth while he faltered in fear.
"I! LOVE! YOU!" She yelled into his face at full volume, making him flinch in fear. "NOW TAKE ME ON A DATE!" She shouted at the top of her lungs.
"I will!" He exclaimed his answer in fear, his hands held half-up to try to try and placate her but she'd have none of it. "I will, I will! Geez! Don't kill me!"
"YOU'll DO IT, AND YOU'LL LIKE IT! OR SO HELP ME, I'M GONNA-!"
"I'll do it! I promise, dattebayo!" He started weeping anime tears as she clenched him in a tight hug, crying gleefully.
"I knew you'd come around!"
His tears increased while he sweat-dropped. "Does it have to be-"
"TONIGHT!"
'Oh sweet mercy of Kami, please spare me!' He could hear the cheering again, and something about it let him know that whichever faction had been doing it was now pleased as they now chanted the cheer.
'NA-RU-HI-NA! NA-RU-HI-NA! NA-RU-HI-NA!'
All Naruto could do was hope that he'd survive the night.
=X=X=
Tenten cautiously opened the door and entered. All she could see was only one occupant. All the others had left, no doubt to do what they pleased for the first part of the morning while the sole person stayed. He was recuperating, that was sure, but he could have been brooding as well.
"Hey Neji. How're you doing?"
No answer.
"Neji?" She tried again.
"Go away."
She sighed. This was a new side of him. Then again, she'd never seen him hurt before. To have gone through that much damage had to have raised the bar of his tolerance of pain by a steep amount. "I'm not taunting or anything. I'm just checking up on my teammate. Can't I do that?'"
She spoke as she walked slowly to the person seated at the desk in front of the window. The closer she got, the more trepidation grew in her until finally she was close enough to rest a hand on his shoulder. She didn't stop, as she was determined to show that she wasn't afraid of his tone, or of him for that matter. She finally stopped at his side, and from there she could see that his head was bandaged.
"I didn't know you had such a big chip on your shoulder for both me and Hinata. What did I ever do to you? What did Hinata do to you?"
"It's none of your concern."
"It is my concern!" She exploded while she held up her hands. "My hands are now scarred from your chakra burning them! It's my concern if you were so dead-set on trying to kill Naruto-kun yesterday! It's one thing to spar, but nothing happened yesterday that anyone would call it that!"
"I knew him from before. I've seen him…he's acting as if he's someone, when we all know he's nothing. Just a clanless orphan playing ninja."
She could feel her blood pressure rising to new heights. "Then what am I? What is Lee? What is Sasuke, even? We're all orphans without a clan! That didn't stop any of us from becoming good ninjas!"
"Sasuke lost his parents after his mentality was instilled to become a ninja. You two were civilian born. You two weren't meant to be ninjas. You're both failures." He whispered plainly. "There's no denying fate."
"If fate is real, who's to say that you know what fate is? You called him a failure, and you got your ass kicked by him…he used only taijutsu to beat a so-called genius, a prodigy, of the Hyuugas. I can't help but wonder what you feel like," she mocked. "Oh wait...I know, you feel like shit. Welcome to the Failure Club. It's very exclusive, so don't take your membership for granted!"
"Is this a joke to you?" He turned and glared at his teammate. She could now see what a mess he was; Naruto had really done a number on him, given from the cuts, bruises, swelling and discolored welts.
"You're reading a bit too much into this. Did you expect to just enter life and win every fight, make no mistakes?" She folded her arms, waiting on his response. He had none for that, but tried to defend himself.
"He used a cheap-shot with dirt. The swine shows himself as what he is."
"You were using the Jyuuken, as in a chakra-aided taijutsu style. He was using his bare fists. I think that was fair…in fact, I'll bet that if he had used Ninjutsu, he'd have beaten you even quicker."
"I'm sure that he wouldn't. Fate would have made me prevail."
"Fate this, fate that." The Higurashi rolled her eyes. "You're starting to really worry me. And that's coming from a girl who needed serious psychological help." Her eyes widened now, as she suddenly realized the issue. "Oh damn. I see now. You're not talking about fate. You're arguing with it. As in not agreeing with it." All of a sudden, things made sense. Why he spoke the way he did. "You're pissed at fate, and have it on the forefront of your mind that it owes you…that it owes you the best of everything that you get and do."
The boy didn't reply; his lack of a response only added credit that she was correct. "The people you fight and win against…you covet them for what they have, and decide that it's both fate rewarding you victory against them, as well as fate punishing them with a loss because they must have had it 'too good for too long'. But why? Why hold a grudge against Hinata? Why bitter at Naruto-kun, Lee and me? None of us did anything to you, much less try to upset you."
"You've always believed that you've had it hard. You've never even once had to live, knowing that your life's only purpose was to serve-"
"At least you have life. I can think of a lot of people who'd want that…they're all dead. Give thanks for what you've got," she interrupted, speaking with a thoughtful look on her face. "You've got food, a family, house, clothes on your back-"
"None is mine. It's all being held in the name of the main branch." He said simply.
"You have clothes," Tenten said sternly. "You don't have to wear one suit of clothes, wash it, and go almost naked waiting for it to dry before putting it back on. You have a house. You don't have to go home, more than once, only to find that it's been razed to the ground. You have food. You don't have to hunt about in the streets, wondering when you're going to find your next scrap to eat. You have your sanity!" She yelled now. "You didn't have to go through months of psychological rehabilitation and head-peeping doctors being skeptical if you're sane or not! You have…" Her tone lost almost all of its volume as she whispered. "Parents. Those that love you, take care of you, kiss you on the cheek and wave goodbye to you when you leave your house in the morning and ask how your day went when you return home. Parents…" she let only one tear fall before she swiped it away in frustration. "Parents you didn't have to watch get butchered no more than two feet in front of you, their blood splashing on your face. So I don't want to hear your 'poor me' bullshit and just suck it up. The next time you get tempted to think that you have it bad, just know that us failures…even me…have had it ten times worse."
With that said, she turned on her heel and walked out briskly, leaving the sealed Hyuuga to stew in his own thoughts. On her way out, she couldn't help but wonder what was going to become of her teammate…and what would have become of her had it not been for Naruto.
As she closed the door behind her, her mind kept going back to that night when she as a passing favor helped a blond boy with his bag, and he repaid it by saving her life. Maybe it was the circle of living. Doing unto others what you'd want them to do unto you.
Maybe she took things for granted too. Maybe she took him for granted.
Did it matter now? She'd given her chance to Hinata.
Hopefully the circle of deeds would come back and repay the favor.
=X=X=
Asuma took up the small bag and peered into it. Did you see him do it Gai?
The Taijutsu-specialist shook his head. "I saw only when it was thrown in. Sometime after twelve in the morning, perhaps before one a.m.."
"Gai?" Asuma put the bag down on his dresser to start pulling on his proper shinobi clothing for the day.
"Yes?"
"There is A LOT of money in that bag. Ryo Bills of the highest order. And there was a note on top that said 'Use what's need, donate the rest'."
Gai felt that a yell of Naruto's youthfulness was in order, but decided not to. "Naruto gives a lot more than he gets. How does he manage a thing like that?"
"He's survived on so little," Asuma responded, feeling a tad guilty about how everyone in the Leaf, he himself included, had done little or nothing to help him. "He finds it easy to give any sort of surplus he gets. The Yondaime was a bit like that, too. Similarities are uncanny, they are."
All Gai could do was nod in agreement. But certain questions needed to be asked. "But where and how did he get the money? I've never known him to steal-"
"Maybe it's those Iwa ninja's bounties. Anyway, I'm not going to question it. So long as you don't hear about a theft…" He paused, knowing that the town was a corrupt cesspool, crime rampant. "A large theft of money, I'm not going to call him out on it. In fact, I'm just going to say that we were sponsored by someone affected by. That should motivate the genin to work harder; knowing they're being fed by some fellow's money who wants to see these creatures dead. Mess with their consciences."
A pounding came at the door now and without preface, the knocker barged in; the door hadn't been locked. The person was revealed to be the messenger from yesterday.
"Shōmō-sama has been murdered!"
=X=X=
"Everyone here?!" Asuma yelled for role-call. He heard varied answers and saw that all was present, sans Neji. That made sense. Let him stay recuperating for a bit more-…a knockout like the one he got gave him a concussion, and he'd be lucky not to develop brain damage and become retarded.
"Alright! We all know that despicable and carnivorous creatures are doing this! Trackers, get to work! I want all evidence presented, and a path pointed out to where they went!" He shouted to them all before turning to the lawmen. "Any witnesses?"
"There's one this time. A guard for a local bank; trustworthy fellow. The guy's shaken up, we can't get him to talk coherently. Poor guy, he had to break into a woman's house nearby to hide." The lawman shifted uncomfortably while twitching his nose in disgust. The smell of drying blood was almost as strong as when it was freshly spilled.
"He's got a right to be," Ino overheard and offered her input while grimacing. "The whole corner's a mess, blood, fabric and some papers all over."
"Stow your bellyaching, Ino. Get to work. Go find out what Shika can piece together," he shooed her verbally, making her hurry to her teammate while he turned back to the man. "A guard? Any reason he was passing through the area at the time? I have reason to believe that this took place at two in the morning." 'That's when Gai said he heard the scream. In fact, I don't think he slept much last night.'
"It is. Let him tell you."
Said guard was sitting on a bench close by when Asuma spotted him. "Hey. How're you feeling?" He spoke casually to get on the man's good nerves as best as possible to get him to open up about what he saw.
The man only looked at the jounin as if looking right through him. He shook his head, and Asuma took that as a bad sign. After trying for a few minutes and the man still wasn't speaking none too proper, the Sarutobi gave up. While the genin was finding all sorts of evidence, they needed testimony from someone to connect all the dots. Why was one fabric so expensive and colorful and the other so black and cheap? What kind of papers where they? The blood had soiled seemingly all the good parts. And why was an important official in this seedy part of town so late at night?
Suddenly, the man's eyes widened as he stared past the jounin. "Huh. It's that kid from yesterday."
Asuma looked over his shoulder to look at whomever he was speaking about. "The boy with the dog? Or the girl with the pink hair?"
"No. The blond one. The boy. He came to the bank yesterday to 'get some currency'. He even gave me some cash to buy a weapon to defend myself." The man got angrier all of a sudden. "I wish I hadn't gone and wasted my money on a cutlass; if I'd 'ave known that it was beasts like the ones like last night killing people…Damn! This place really is cursed!"
Sarutobi knew that the man was making some sense now. But it came to him that since he had established contact with the blond ('small world', he thought,) he should talk with him. Maybe he'd even have far better luck than himself talking to the man, seeing as how he became talkative when and where the Uzumaki was involved. "How about I call him over? Wanna talk with him?"
"Sure, why not," the guard answered with a shrugging vibe. "I don't mind."
Asuma rotated fully and waved. "Yo, Naruto! A minute, I need you over here!"
"Hmm?" Naruto looked up. "I'll be right over." He tore himself from Hinata's company and approached the two men to one side. "Yeah? Oh, I remember you. The guard from yesterday." He looked at the man's waist and saw a cutlass hanging from it in a case. "So you got a 'wep' after all, huh?"
"It wouldn't 'ave done anything against what I saw!" The man exclaimed. "They were five of 'em! Two really big ones, half the size of houses and the three smaller ones like horses."
Naruto turned to Asuma, but got only a nod from the man as he walked away. He must've passed the responsibility to him to get information; he didn't question it, he only obliged. "What did they look like?"
"In the night? I'd say they look like dogs. Maybe demon dogs is more like it," the man muttered. "I work afternoons right back to the first half of the night. I had gone out at six in the evening to hurry and buy a cutlass at the hardware store and came back to watch the bank for the first half of the night shift. Shōmō-sama had passed by at the bank and he asked me as I changed shifts to follow him home; he must've wanted a guard. It was the graveyard hour, so all I wanted was to go home. But he's authority, second only to Mayor Risaikuru-sama so he wasn't really asking me; it was veto and I had to oblige. He fetched his briefcase, and things, then we left the bank. So we were walking, and as we reached this corner, I saw a lady of the night. She was wearing some skimpy clothing, standing at the corner under a streetlight. When he reached her, he stopped. I asked him why he was stopping, but listen, I'm paraphrasing but he said some very colorful language, translating that I should scram. It looked like he was buying time, and wanted privacy to do what he wanted. A real prick, I'd say. He could've just said a 'thank you', but no. I can respect a man's privacy, but he was being an asshole about it. I looked down on things like that, so I decided to just leave him alone."
"Buying time?" Naruto raised an eyebrow. "What do you mean?"
"The woman's a hooker."
"So after that, then what?" Naruto pressed.
As I was about to walk past to go home me'self, it felt like the place was getting darker. The streetlight was still on, but I swear, it's like the light was on, but it just wasn't lighting up the place. Or maybe the surroundings itself became darker, I dunno. It got harder to see, and then I started hearing some kind of cackling. Like someone's laughing in a maniac-kind-of-merry, y'know?"
"No. Can I get a better description?"
"Ever met someone who just loves seeing you in pain? You're a kid; I bet you've met a bully or two. Nothing can sound like what the laughing sounds like, I'm just telling you the vibe it gave off; like someone who loves seeing people hurt."
"I can think of quite a few," Naruto murmured as he looked off in the direction of Konoha, recalling his own past. "Then what?"
The voices doing the laughing...they start yelling and screaming all kinds of messed up shit. Things like 'Waste!' 'Decimate!' and joining those two words like 'Decimate waste!' 'Devastate!' Shit like that."
"Basically, they were yelling about destruction." 'But why say the destruction of waste?' Naruto wondered. "What next, friend?"
"Well, you know the answer, don't you? Shōmō and the whore got butchered. I had the pleasure of slashing willy-nilly with my cutlass, half-pissing myself before breaking into a woman's house to hide."
Naruto could be empathetic to the man. But he needed more specifics. "What did they do to Shōmō and the woman?" He already could tell that they were murdered, but how? Why? What manner?
"They fuckin' got eaten. Not a single bit of 'em went to waste, if you ask me. I was praying to Kami that they'd leave me alone, but it was like they didn't care for me. I even cut one badly with the cutlass before I dusted out, but it's like they decided I wasn't worth their attention." The man shivered. "I've never felt better in my life to be ignored."
Naruto sat by the big man on the bench. "Don't you worry. We'll get 'em. Soon, this will only be like a forgotten nightmare."
"I'm still hoping that I'm gonna wake up. Take care of yourself."
…
…
…
Asuma was soon told all he had garnered from the witness. "Like dogs, huh? Naruto, I hear you're pretty smart. You've said so on multiple occasions. Even Kurenai said you claimed to have a brain the size of Iron country. What can you make of this?"
"I have a theory," Naruto said slowly, pondering if his Insight ability could assist him in this endeavor. "I'm going to need to talk with Shikamaru, Kiba, Shino and…" He thought some more. "Hmm…just those three. Come to think of it, why'd you ask me first?"
"Naruto…" Asuma looked up and at the bloody scene.
"Yeah, Asuma-sensei?"
"This is…hard for me to admit it," the Sarutobi obviously said with a hesitate. 'But do whatever you need to do, and make sure that the mission doesn't elevate to an S ranked one. Kurenai calls it a curse because of your involvement in missions, but it's starting to feel like it's your involvement is what's getting it done."
Naruto smiled to himself. He felt…acknowledged. "Aye, aye, sir!" He exclaimed with a mock salute, making the older man grin.
…
…
…
"Why'd you call us, Naruto?" Kiba frowned. "Wass'up this this time?"
"I need you three guys in order to piece something together. Did Akamaru smell the creatures that did this in the area?"
"No. But he did say that he got spooked. The whole area felt unsafe to him. As if he was in a bigger dog's territory, y'know?" He fidgeted as he spoke. "I felt it too."
"…" Naruto nodded grimly. "As I thought. I didn't get intimidated though, but I could feel the sense that I was standing in a creature's territory. I was hoping that maybe they marked it, and you could track them."
"Not a scent, except for blood. I can't even try to track by blood, because it's practically normal as soon as you get off scene."
"There's not even any footprints?" Shino asked. "I've hunted for them, and surely, not even tracks of animals capable of eating people without leaving a bone on the spot should have left paw or even claw tracks on the ground. It's like they flew away."
"I've been told that the creatures could be modeled after dogs," Naruto reminded. "They don't have wings. So unless they've mastered walking on air, that's not going to work. Shikamaru? I know you saw something on the ground. What was it?"
The Nara sighed as he fished for his evidence collected. "It was a document. Most of it was bloodied, but it was a document penning the transfer of money, from what I could make out. But I can't tell how much, or from who to who."
"Hey, Shino. Since you're kikaichu have been known to chew right through arteries and such, they should have something on their body to allow blood to slick off easily so that they can continue to fly, huh? Like birds with natural oils?"
"They do. They secrete special anti-coagulants to avoid having blood dry on them. You wish for me to use their anti-coagulants on the dried blood, hoping that the blood will be able to drain off? But then, how will it be cleaned?"
"We only need to see through it to the other side to be able to read the words. I'll need a lighter. Kiba, can you get Asuma's?"
"Sure, why not." The Inuzuka heaved himself up and left from the shade of the oversized tarpaulin while Naruto fetched a basin for the document.
"Why didn't you send me? I'm closer to Asuma-sensei since I'm on the his team, you know?" Shikamaru sighed.
"Would you have gone to get his lighter if I had asked you?"
"…"
"…"
"Good point."
…
…
…
One half-clean sheet of paper later, Naruto held the lighter behind it while the boys gathered behind and beside him. "What does it say?" Kiba asked eagerly.
"Just as I expected." Naruto sighed. "Shōmō was embezzling money from the town's treasury."
"Huh?"
"He was stealing money from his peoples' taxes." Shino deadpanned.
"Oh. Well, why didn't you say that before?" Kiba asked as he led the way back to the group at the scene. "Now what?"
"Insight, Kiba. Now, I need Insight."
…
…
…
"Alright, it looks like he's coming back with the boys, Sakura."
"What do you think they're going to contribute? Shikamaru's supposed to be smart, Shino's supposed to be well rounded, Kiba's an Inuzuka tracker and Naruto…it's like I don't know him anymore," the Haruno remarked thoughtfully. "He even beat Neji with only taijutsu. Yeah, he used dirt and all, but, that shouldn't have fazed a guy with the Byakugan. I heard from Lee that no one had ever beaten Neji before."
Ino only stared at her friend, deciding that a mandatory statement needed to be said. "But still not strong enough to beat Sasuke-kun."
"Of course not, Ino," Sakura answered in a retort, although it was in agreement and affirmation. "Now shush, they're here. Maybe they've got something useful."
They two of them strafed close by, hoping to hear whatever made the boys and the jounin have to whisper, but all too soon, they stopped talking, much to their disappointment. Shortly after, Naruto shaded his eyes with his hand, as if from the sun, but Sakura could see that his eyes looked different, not from shade, but as if they became black. As she studied the Uzumaki, she could finally make out the pattern to memorize it, and realized that the blond might really have had a dojutsu after all.
But what kind? She had never seen it before in her life. She decided to keep that tidbit of knowledge to herself. This morning, Naruto had insisted that they were contact lenses that he wore to intimidate people, but she saw him 'activate' it. Why would he hide it? Furthermore, how and where did he get it?
It looked like there was more to him that met the eye…bad pun intended.
…
…
…
Naruto activated Insight and looked around the scene. Almost everything came out in a silver color, as the crime scene was everything a ninja should be wary and careful around. Soon, silver disappeared around most things, leaving only silver around a particular blood stain on the wall. Looking back to where the people had been slain, he easily deduced that no blood spatter from the people should have reached so far.
It was chance exceeding 500:1, or so Insight told him.
He dabbed his finger into it, but it was still dry. 'Maybe it's the creatures' blood; perhaps they brushed against the wall. The guard claimed to have cut them with his cutlass, but this is the only bloodstain that lit up in gray. What else?' He peered around, hoping to find a bigger clue. He had the bulk of it already, but nothing concrete.
He shut off his Insight and turned back to face everyone, only to find that they were staring at him, Sakura in distinct. "What?" He hoped none of them had seen his dojutsu; he had hidden it as if he was shading his eyes from the sun.
"Nothing," Sakura said hurriedly. "Did you find anything interesting?"
He didn't know why she drew that word out, but decided to ignore it. "No, not really. But I can't really say anything unless I have something more solid to talk about. And there's no way to get evidence without having a casualty."
"Well, so what do we do, then?" Ino asked worriedly. "Just wait until more people die?"
"Don't worry, Ino!" Naruto tried to smiled it off, hoping that he wasn't worrying anyone. "If I'm right, then good people have nothing to worry about. Enough said."
=X=X=
"Um…Hinata-chan, I don't think we should go out tonight. Can't it wait 'till after the creatures are killed, or at least stopped? It's dangerous out at night. You know what they're capable of."
She looked up, eyes wide in mock-surprise. "The Naruto Uzumaki afraid? What'll happen next?"
"Girls wearing 'the pants' in relationships," the blond mumbled under his breath.
"What was that?"
Knowing that he was far from capable of lying, he chose to forgo that question. "I'm not afraid. Well, yes, I am afraid. Afraid that something might happen to you. Besides, business places will close early, so the owners can get home before dark."
"We'll go out at five."
Naruto sighed. "This is so sudden."
"Is that why you're hesitant?" She raised an eyebrow in parallel with her question, all the while wondering what his reasons were. She really wanted this.
"In truth, I'm actually more afraid to go on this date. I don't know what to do. I'm been nothing more than an orphan chased away by eating establishments except for Old Man Ichiraku's. So of course it's going to be awkward. I don't even know what to wear, how to eat the 'fancier foods' that isn't ramen and all that." He glanced at her and saw her eyebrow ticking a bit. "Was I talking all of that out loud?"
"You were."
"I'll…come for you at a quarter before five. But since we don't have any going-out clothes since we came on mission-"
"The clothes are we have now's fine. It's just a first date, mostly getting to know one another better. It'll be fine."
…
…
…
"I'm gonna mess this whole thing up!" Naruto yelled through clenched teeth while yanking on his hair.
He was stretched out on his mattress while Tenten sat in the chair next to him, her hands folded under her chin while she nodded. "Mm hmm, mm hmm…go on."
"I'm gonna fail!"
"Mm hmm, mm hmm…go on."
"This is going to turn into a gigantic shit-show!"
"Interesting… Now tell me, how does this make you feel?" She asked, akin to typical psychiatrist's manner.
"I feel like I'm gonna make a titanic fool of myself, maybe swallow my chopsticks on purpose, or trip over my own feet before bursting into flames!" Naruto yelled. He turned to where Tenten was seated with one foot angled over another. "What do I do, doc?!"
"Your case seems desperate…" She began.
"It is!" He shouted.
"Normally, I prescribe patients a two-to-three dosage of the drug 'Getagrip' to ease their stress, but it would appear that you're going to need something more potent."
He scrambled of his mattress and stood up to face her as she got to her feet as well. "Really?! What's it called?"
"It's called 'Calmthefuckdown'."
"Doc, that sounds foreign. Are you sure it's the one for me?"
"It's good for anyone stressing out over a date." She assured.
"Well, administer it, then! I need it!"
She needed no further prompting as she grabbed a hold of his shirt and started slapping him across the face repeatedly back and forth, punctuating each one with a word. "CALM! (Slap)... THE! (Slap)... FUCK! (Slap)... DOWN! (Slap)
After that, she went full bedlam for another five seconds before the last one knocked him flat. "Got it?!"
His cheeks were badly reddened with handprints as he got back up. "Wow! I think it's working! Is the dreadful pain in my face a side-effect?"
"Why, yes it is! Glad to help!" She grinned at this, but it soon fell into a sad-looking smile as she helped him up and walked him to the mirror hanging over the dresser, knowing that she would soon lose him to someone else. "But seriously, Naruto-kun, it'll be okay. Hinata and I talked. She's not expecting anything much, she just wants to start off real easy." She rolled her eyes as she picked up a brush off the dresser and started brushing his hair while he listened. "If we had been back in Konoha, it probably would have been a different story. Wining and dining, flirting and whatnot. Then the money you'd have to spend." She shook her head. "Oh boy, I think you're making some money now, but as far as I'm concerned, you're still as broke financially as…well, Konoha a few years ago."
"I've got the coin. And besides, I'm sure that if she was after money, she would have just dated another guy's wallet. There must be a reason why she'd want to date…" He gestured to himself. "This."
He didn't say it in a narcissistic manner…he almost said it with a grimace. He was either humiliating himself, or humbling himself to dust. There wasn't a difference between the two at all, really.
"You're a swell guy. Besides, if not you, then who? Who do you think would go great as a guy to hold her by the arm, huh?"
"Um…well, I don't know anyone of us, but maybe there's a guy in the village? Maybe?" He asked pathetically. "Damn, I think the drug's wearing off already."
The weapon's mistress couldn't help but laugh. "Classic Naruto. Fights baddies day and night and still loses his head when a pretty girl starts talking to him." She stopped brushing now, as he looked to her cheekily.
"Huh…would you look at that." He felt his head and pretended to check its stability. "I'm talking to you, and I still have my head on."
Her mind was beginning to process what he was saying, and it was hard to interpret what he was saying…he was either complimenting her, or calling her…unattractive.
"Did you just call me ugly?!" She yelled loudly while her eyebrow nearly ticked off of her face, brandishing a clenched fist.
"No, no, no!" He was suddenly afraid for the second time that day. What about women could it be that was so intimidating? "I'm calling you pretty!"
She calmed down instantly. "Huh…oh. Thanks, I guess." Her cheeks painted a bit but it soon fled as she frowned. "You're about as well socialized as…as…" She trailed off in her description as he gazed at her, waiting. "I can't describe it. You're the new measuring stick for anti-socialism."
He became dejected. "Why? Because I complimented you?"
Tenten sighed. "It's complicated. Since you're going to be dating now, you're going to want to be as pla-"
She was about to say 'platonic as possible to other girls besides Hinata', but a new thought came to her; a bad one. Naruto was like clay. She had a feeling that she could tell him any advice and he'd listen. Anything; mold him into anyone she'd want him to be because he'd listen to her and take anything she said to heart. Perhaps she could even get him to upset Hinata, and then when she was over him because of that, she'd just dust Naruto off and take him as her own. Simple? Yes. Despicable? Yes. Would it work? Most likely. How many people would it piss off? Almost everyone in the female population except for her if she played her cards right.
"As player-like as possible," she finished with a rather devious smile.
"Huh? What does that mean?" He asked curiously. Well, he was about to find out as she started to explain.
"See a pretty girl? Tell her that you like her ass and pinch it. Hard. Do it to every girl. They love that," she gestured here and there while she told him, and his eyes widened more and more as she spoke. "And a lot of women like it when men touch their breasts during dinner. It helps to start a conversation. Best way to stay on every girl's good side."
She hadn't even finished explaining when she felt his hands plant securely on where her breasts were starting to come in. Sure, she was a late bloomer in terms of size, but damn, that didn't mean she didn't feel his hands practically groping her by them.
"Yipe!" She instantly folded her arms over them as quick as a blink as her face heated to supernova proportions. She turned away from him speedily to face away from him, but as soon as she did, she felt a pair of fingers pinch her left butt-cheek roughly and she was sure he slightly tugged on the flesh below her fabric while doing so. She yelped again as she leapt away from him, watching him to make sure he didn't do anything more.
It hadn't even five seconds properly into her plan, and she felt liked she was practically raped. She quickly got over it, realizing that it was because of her doing. 'Suck it up, Tenten.'
"I like your ass. So, how'd I do?" He asked innocently.
She felt like yelling her lungs out at him while pinching his ass to challenge him if he liked it, but decided not to. She gave two shaky thumbs up while grinning lopsidedly. "You did great." She drawled shakily.
"Thanks! What next?"
She steeled herself, hoping to just finish the plan and be done with it. "Uh huh. For every girl you meet, tell 'em they look fat."
"Why?"
"You see, girls don't really eat that much mostly. They don't have the appetite. So since they're so slim and thin most of the time, they like to feel like they've put on some weight. That their healthier, but in a good way." She hoped her lie was plausible enough to be believed, and luckily, he bought it.
"Tenten? You look fatter. Looks like you've been eating more than your usual amount. Like that, right?" He asked hopefully.
She gave him a deadpan look. She knew how slim she was, almost to the point of being thin. And she was an eater. She knew that very well. So she couldn't take him seriously at all. "Yeah. Just like that. And don't forget to be brutally honest about a girl's faults. Like a girl's breasts, and body sizes and whatnot. Girls love it when a guy can be real with them like that."
"Thanks a lot, Tenten!" He was about to charge through the door, ecstatic. "You're a lifesaver! I owe you one!"
There he was, about to leave. The best guy she had ever had in her life, of the best ideals and morality she had ever known, about to leave and turn into a 'GRADE A+ DOUCHEBAG' to women. She knew how blunt he could be, and if he wasn't smeared as a bloodstain under a girl's fist within the next hour, he'd be the luckiest guy on earth.
But still, he'd be hers for the taking when this all blew over.
=X=X=
"I guess so," she told it. "I've forgiven you. I don't really blame you."
"I was only trying to escape," it spoke again, "to escape from the man who was trying to seal me, just so he could use me as a battery. He asked me if I wanted to become an asset to him. He dodged most of my techniques, except for a Tailed Beast Bomb, but I didn't try that one. I feared that he would seal me before I could get one off. That's why I was heading to another cavern where I could hide out."
"So Taki was in your way, then?" She asked the beast.
"Unfortunately, yes. As everyone knows, the shortest distance between two points is a straight line, so since if I couldn't fly because of wing injuries, I bulldozed my way to get to the cavern. It was in a dried up aquifer under a place I think was called Kimyō Town."
"I remember that name!" Fu said excitedly. "Naruto-kun told me about a mission he had there! A madman nearly sunk the town under there by bombing the ceiling of the aquifer. Naruto-kun killed him though."
"Naruto-kun, Naruto-kun," the Nanabi chanted. "You like him, don't you?"
"What's not to like?" She shot back.
"…"
"…"
"I've never met him. So how should I know?"
"I've visited with his brothers-" the mint haired girl began, but she was cut off.
"His clones." Nanabi interrupted with the reminder.
"Clones, yes," she admitted. "But they're flesh and blood. Besides, they mostly act like him, but each of them as far as I've seen developed one emotion or characteristic and wear it on their sleeve. Like one's extremely sarcastic, one's stubborn, one's almost meek and another's bossy. That kind of thing. But still, like him, y'know?"
"I can well imagine. You did visit them in the Savannah. It's a good thing you don't have to worry about people hounding after you, since your 'handler' Fukira 'mysteriously disappeared in the middle of the night.' Hmm…" The beast suddenly became very thoughtful.
"What?" Fu asked curiously.
"I wonder if anyone noticed. No one noticed at all."
"Noticed what?"
"The names. It's so strange. It's like names prove to be more of a character-definition than anything else. Fu, your name means 'wind' and all, right? Your uncle's name was Fukira, wasn't it? Well, the 'Fu' part means 'wind' and it means you in particular, but what does 'Kira' mean?"
"…It means 'killer'," Fu deadpanned with realization. "And damnitall, if he didn't come close to ending me."
"And your mother's name. Fugisei. The very same who died to seal me in you. What does 'gisei' mean?"
Fu had the classic look of realization on her face as she got up to stand. "It means 'sacrifice'. Holy shit; didn't anyone notice? These names are getting a bit…huh. I dunno. Names are powerful, I guess."
"My name is PooPoo."
"WHAT?" Fu couldn't believe her ears. The Nanabi had a name? And what kind of retarded name was that?
"Just kidding!" The Nanabi chirped. "My name's Chomei!"
Fu smiled as she looked up to the gigantic beast in her mindscape. "Nah!" She teased. She held up one palm open to the beast and placed her two fingers from underneath it to rest against the palm; it clearly represented the number 'seven', as in seven fingers. "Your name is 'Lucky 7'!"
"…I like it. But…Fu, I'm really sorry about your mother, and how…everyone treats you."
"Kaa-chan did what she had to do to make sure you didn't level Taki, I guess. Not a perfect score on that plan, but I'm over it. And I have friends now, even though there mostly a bunch of clones with diverse personalities created by my first best friend." Fu answered enthusiastically. "But still, why didn't you heal the wounds that I got over the years?"
"To be honest, I was hoping that you'd have perished," Lucky 7 deadpanned, making Fu sweat-drop heavily. "So I could reform again, and then make my way to hide like I just told you."
"Who is this guy to make you so scared?" Fu asked. "Should I be?"
"I don't know if he knows that you are my jinchuriki. But if he does, maybe he's already hounding after you for me. He only wants me as a battery, in the hopes of making himself more powerful."
"Battery, battery," Fu got annoyed quickly. "For what?"
"He said something about a Kekkei Genkai that had eight abilities. It was certainly powerful, from the way he was carrying on. But apparently, he couldn't get it. Maybe it's not fully evolved, or unattainable or something of the sort. Maybe he wants to impersonate it, for he mentioned that its original purpose was to master a move only the Yondaime Hokage was capable of doing in the highest degree. I assume impersonate, because the Yondaime's dead, with no heir. If he had had sired a child, then the child was sure to have gotten it. Biju chakra is powerful. I've even heard that people could create abilities from the art of Fuinjutsu, if they were skilled enough in the art. Creating abilities that could even be handed down. If he could get a hold of kin of mine, a Biju or even me, he could most certainly create seals that can grant powers. You see, it's not powers quite like Kekkei Genkai, but they affected mostly how the body works. Change if you had to sleep or not, how you processed information, if you could feel pain or not. Emotions, way of thinking. But you'd need powerful chakra to power the seal once, and it'd serve you for life. If he actually intended to use me as a continual battery, he'd have been significantly more powerful."
"I understood…most of that," Fu remarked. "Fuinjutsu, huh? Isn't it a dying technique in the ninja arts?"
"I believe that that same person could be a master of it, or close to one."
Fu sighed. "I'm not gonna dwell on this, Chomei. It must be getting late."
"I like our face to face chats," the rhinoceros beetle complained.
"Me too. I'm gonna buy something to eat." Fu left the mindscape, and came back to the waking world on her bed. Yawning contentedly, she let herself off the side and looked around. Her room…was one of three in a LARGE cave close by to her shack of a house she had abandoned. She hadn't let anyone seen her exiting her new home, and she was glad she was still unsought after in the village. They hadn't come looking, and she was glad. Her new home was well furnished, stove, bed, couch, even a television and some lighting she had receiving electricity from a noiseless generator in a small room, ventilated out into open air via tubes.
A far better way of living. And all it took was a couple of henges, some gold and outside trading on the boys' (Naruto's brothers) part to get it to her. She got it made right about now, and she took out some money out of a purse she had had changed in from gold and did a flawless henge of her usual disguise of a nondescript middle-aged woman with black hair.
…
…
…
"I want these eight pounds of rice, four pounds of chicken, two pounds of parrot fish, this five-pack of seasoning," she listed them all as they were placed on the counter for the cashier to ring them up. "And these ten flasks of honey."
"Yay! Yummy honey!"
'Quiet you,' Fu barked in her mind. 'I blame you for this addiction! So help me, if I ever get Type Two Diabetes, I'm gonna-' She was interrupted by the cashier asking for payment so she paid her.
"Got a sweet tooth, huh?"
"Yeah, me and my kid," Fu answered with a smile. "It's a good sweetener, and a healthy alternative to sugar."
"Don't I know it, lady," the cashier nodded. "Take care."
3:00 pm
"So you're just sticking me with two people I don't even know?" Fu complained to the jounin.
"Shut your mouth. No one asked you!" The bigger boy complained with an air if intimidation, as if hoping to cow her down. That was far from successful…Fu was the strongest physically she knew, as not only had she finally reached tier four with her gravity seal, but Nanabi had finally endowed her with the ability to always increase strength…if she could train to lift it, she'd eventually be able to.
That was how she made the cave where she lived, after all.
So if a guy whose head she could punch off of his body kept mouthing off to her, she might be liable to do just that.
The littler one just sneered at her the whole time but she ignored him as well, waiting for the jounin's answer. "Well," the jounin began, "I'm going to be frank. This team was short a member, and you were available. In honesty, you should be grateful. Now you might actually get the chance to rank up to chunin."
'I'm already a chunin by normal standards of a shinobi,' she thought. 'Maybe even more. And these bastards are just using my state of being a sole genin to round off a team.' "Really? A chunin?" She asked enthusiastically, although it was superbly faked. "I can get to be one?"
"If you're worthy of promotion, the panel of Kage and councilors will say so, then Taki will give you the rank. So Taki could still refuse you."
"I guess not," Fu sighed dejectedly. "I'm not gonna get promoted then."
"A lack of skill, most likely," the shorter boy said. "You're not like us."
"I'll never be like you," the jinchuriki retorted. "I'm not biased against, I don't have family, and I'm not soft like you."
"I'm gonna-"
"Easy, easy," the jounin sighed. 'Why the hell did I have to get the two brothers? Fu isn't all that bad. A pity the village doesn't see that.' "I don't want any fighting. We haven't even had a chance to train, or get to know each other, or even get to know one another's names."
"I ain't telling her Jack shit." The bigger one growled.
"Your name is Jack Shit?" Fu asked in a tone of mock innocence. "Or was it Jack's Shit? Can never really tell when the letter 'S' follows names. You might think there might be an apostrophe there."
"Bitch!" The younger one scream-whispered.
"Stop acting like you're seeing your period, you two," the jounin chastised. "You wanna get your chance to be promoted or not? Now everyone exchange your goddamned names."
"Fu," the girl said easily enough.
"Shiri." The bigger one said reluctantly. The smaller one said 'Ana' rather quietly. As the names turned over in her head, her face fell in a slack-jaw.
'Is it just me, or did Kami just take a dump on me and then let me in on the inside joke? What the hell?! The first one's name translates as 'ass' and the second one translates as 'holes'. Kami, why me?!'
'Well, I'm sorry for you, Fu. That's messed up. I bet that you can tell how this is going to end up for these two.'
"Fine, I'll join the team. But why did you need a team so impromptu?" The kunoichi asked the jounin.
"For the upcoming chunin exams."
"Really?" She looked to her forehead, suddenly excited at the thought. Maybe, just maybe, she might get to do some travelling and see new sights, meet new people and make better and more non-discriminate people like Naruto. "Where?"
"In Konohagakure. Anyway, let's run through some basic team exercises. You three are a lot of work." The jounin turned and beckoned over his shoulder. The two boys followed immediately, but it was promptly noticed that Fu was still standing in her spot, having a thousand yard stare. "Fu?"
Fu. exe had stopped responding.
"Fu? Fu!" The jounin yelled.
Suddenly the girl was alive and well again, as she made an enormous leap into the air, flailing her limbs out in celebration. "YATTA!"
=X=X=
It was night in Konoha, as a lone man walked. He was hooded, and for good reason. He didn't belong here, but he felt like he needed to visit someone. It had been far too long.
There was new moon out tonight; there would be no light, and he was grateful. It was so simple to get into the village with his swift release, but he decided to wait until it was dark. Even if he were caught, he decided to just use his baton and knock the (any) witness out. His tanto was always in its sheathe on his back and smiled grimly. Why he fought with such weapons, he had no idea. He just favored the simple things.
But as power was concerned, he wanted…no, needed it. He was unwell, and he was sure that he could prolong his weakening existence. But just in case he didn't make it, he needed to say some goodbyes. In fact, the person who he was visiting was old too, and he smiled as he thought of her. She had tried so hard to with him. He was her mistake, but at least she owned up to her responsibility and took care of him.
Soon, he was at her door, as per the directions he had received by consulting a directory. Why she now lived on the ground floor, he had no idea. She used to, and liked living on upper floors. Made her feel tall. He didn't mind it then either, but-
He knocked on the door, and almost at the same time he heard stirring. "Who is it?"
"It's me, kaa-chan," he answered.
He heard what sounded like frantic hobbling to the door, and it was opened hastily. "Come in!" The old woman muttered urgently.
"I'm coming, I'm coming." He entered at her behest and using his most recently acquired ability, a dojutsu to see in absolute darkness, turned in the light switch and beheld the room. "Hmm…cozy, kaa-chan." He started to turn, but before he did completely, the door was closed and the old woman embraced him.
"Ito! Sochi! It's been so long!"
The man could tell the mirth in her voice was sincere, but he wasn't prepared to take in the sight of a decrepit old woman short one leg and on crutches, as she balanced on him. "Oh Kami…what happened to you?"
"If you had been here to visit with fourteen years, you wouldn't be asking that now!" Koharu accused. "I…lost it in an explosion in a council meeting. An Anbu committed suicide to try and kill the Kyuubi jinchuriki."
"Naruto?" The man asked in surprise after a brief silence.
"You know of him?"
"I know him. We almost know each other personally," the man remarked. "He hates me as much as the Kyuubi does. If they could kill me by just thinking it…" The man sighed. "That's not important. I just came to visit, that's all."
She reached up and removed his hood, him allowing her to do it. As she gazed at his disfigured face, she smiled grimly. "Still as ugly as ever. You really didn't get my side when it comes to genes," she said rather affectionately.
"It's not like tou-san's ugly," he reminded. "I wish things were different."
"Me too, son. Me too."
"Kaa-chan?"
"Yes, sochi?" She began trying to put the kettle on the stove, but he took over and did it himself.
"I'm not long for this world."
"Neither am I. But that doesn't mean I want to stay." She remarked in a dead tone. "I'm miserable."
"I can tell. Just in case anything happens…I just wanna say-"
"Don't say it," Koharu started weeping before she brushed off her tears with her sleeve. "Don't say it."
"I love you, kaa-chan. By the way, use my middle name. I'm still exiled from Konoha, and the walls have ears. When you called me in, you basically called every shinobi in the area."
She knew that he wanted to tell her goodbye, and all of a sudden, this felt like a dream, or more like a nightmare. Her only glimpse of her son after more than a decade and he was already leaving. All she was left with was herself, as he blinked out of view, gone, as only as the wind ever could.
"Goodbye, Hanson," Koharu muttered, just before she heard the sounds of murder outside her door, knowing that it was most likely the death of Anbu, or even multiple. "Take care, my son."
AN- Good chapter! I think this was a good one, don't you agree? A lot of things happened today, not to mention, reveal of important plot info, and my tendencies with making names as you all know! Tell me what you think!
1 - Fourth wall break. It's this world that was cheering Naru-Hina. I myself thought it to be funny.
Plot- The Revelation chapter of a plot resolve and analysis will occur soon, but not too soon. It's months away, so make your guesses as you please.
Tenten and Hinata- Well, I have a choice for you all. Let Tenten allow Naruto to turn into an ass in behavior where women are concerned, are stop him. Let me know WHAT YOU WANT! I don't care if it's PMs or reviews or whatever. It's not a massive change to the plot, but it changes this part of the fic for either Romance or for Drama. I couldn't make up my mind. Really. When this happens, I usually flip a coin. I can't find any; you can't flip paper.
That's it, everyone. Thanks for sticking around so long.
Valete omnes,
MRAY 4TW.