The prospective Hokage woke up with a bright face, eager to train with his team after the time away. "I'll show the teme that I'm not to be underestimated." As always, the jōnin got to the grounds later than his pupils, but Naruto didn't care, for he had been memorizing the many bird's names that he could use in the battlefield, mainly the large build ones and those with elements that he didn't master yet. He was the best with Fūton, but he had an affinity for Raiton as well, taking after his father. Sakura had been staring at him for some reason, but he ignored it until Kakashi arrived. - The Haruno had braced for another date request when she saw Naruto, but he passed by her and sat under the tree, pulling an album of birds. "Aren't you going to ask me out?" The boy tilted his head.
"Don't you dislike that?" She gaped at that, then harrumphed with a frown, glancing at Sasuke, who had his gaze fixed on his male teammate. "Come, Tayou!" Naruto had slammed his hand on the ground, creating a plume of smoke. Sakura had braced for one of those disgusting amphibians. "Er, sorry, Mokou-san." A female with long silver hair and fiery wings was standing on the clearing, making the kids stare in surprise. "Make an effort until you get it down, but you can summon me if the situation calls for it." The raven-hair went for the blond after the woman went back, grabbing his lapels. "Let me sign that contract." Naruto had an awkward smile. "It's a clan summon, only Uzumakis have permission to call her guys." Sasuke frowned, once again he got a source of power right in front of him, yet he couldn't take it for himself. "Tch-! Whatever, something from you must be rubbish, anyway."
Sakura saw the decline in mood in her idol and glared at the culprit. Now Naruto was left alone on one side of the clearing as the duo kept themselves to the other. That was the scene Kakashi saw, which made him sigh in dejection at the regression of his pupils. "I see that we need to do the teamwork drills again. What a pity." - After exhausting his pupils, the jōnin took them to the Hokage to see if there was a mission they could take soon. "Actually, yes. A man came here to get help with his actress." Minato showed them the picture of a woman. "Ain't that Princess Gale?" Team 7 was to escort Fujikaze Yukie to Yuki, serving as additional security, departing within two days.
A woman with dark red hair overlooked the people, standing on the balcony while dressed with those white garbs that displayed her new authority. A masked figure stood protectively by her, a large sword strapped to his back. "It's done, Yagura is no more." Mei had doubts about that, for the man had fallen from a cliff into the sea. "Could the Sanbi enable him to survive?" Besides, it had been the product of a plan hatched by that sinister monster, the mindflayer. Until where the Terumi knew, the creature was just playing with them, using them to entertain herself. "People of Kiri, the Blood Purges are no more." She took in a deep breath. "I, Terumi Mei, promise to recover this land to its former glory as your Mizukage!"
The villagers cheered, for Yagura had put them under a reign of fear where anyone could die just by looking at a ninja wrong. The holders of kekkei genkai didn't need to watch their back with paranoia, for their new leader was one of them. What they didn't know was that the revolt had been aided by inhuman beings. Mei continued her speech to rouse the masses and soothe their worries. - A single red eye gazed at the scene from the shadows. "What's the matter~?" A sleek tentacle grazed dark hair before passing through as if the person was a mirage. "How did you-!" A lazy smirk unfolded, baring fangs. "This territory now belongs to us~" The man faced the many creatures that seemingly sprouted from the dark as if birthed by it. Tobi, the secret leader of Red Dawn decided that attempting to face unknown variables was a useless effort, so he slinked away into a portal.
{Did you tag that worm?} It had been just a wisp of muck imbued with some chakra, but it was enough. It would passively feed on him and mingle with his hair, unseen, giving the outer being the general feel of his location. {Kuhaha~ It shall be fun to witness the hunt for those critters~} Although these creatures saw themselves as being existences diverse from the usual yōkai, they shared the underlying disdain for the inferior mankind. Until the great dragon deity came to stomp them back to the void, they would explore the ample amount of livestock. {Shall we celebrate, my dear kindred?} Their urges were more than satisfied by the sentenced criminals given to them, but they had desires for fresh, tender minds.
Naruto was about to lay for sleep when the scenery changed from his bedroom to a certain altar and starry sky. "Mokou-san?" He sat up and faced the albino. The woman looked at him with a smirk. "Do you like gifts?" His eyes sparkled, recalling the flight with the vampires. "Is it wings? Are you gonna give me the power to fly? Please, say it's it!" The Fujiwara was surprised, his guess was partially correct. "So you tasted it, well... It's more like a marker of a future sage, and you won't fly just yet." Naruto deflated, falling on his bum while a depressed aura surrounded him, that is until he processed the 'yet'. "Can you explain?" She raised a hand, a ball of light silver fire that looked like solidified moonlight flickered softly.
"Here." She threw it to the boy, who took it with a slight fumble. "It's warm." It was akin to laying on the grass and letting the sun wash over you, or sitting by a bonfire during a chilly night. It felt pleasant and comforting, then he noticed that the ball was shrinking as if his body was taking it in. "It's a portion of my flames, I entrust it to you." He felt a hand messing with his hair. "Once you get used to each other, you will get your wings, that you so desire. Then, we shall start your training to become a sage." He looked up to Mokou, eyes shining with untold gratitude. "Now I can fulfill my promise to Kate..." The woman smiled, his voice had a hidden tone that spoke so much. "Good to know, best of luck to you, my summoner. Now, go home."
Team 8 had returned with three additional people, two of which would go back to their continent to beg for forgiveness from their superiors for shirking their duties, while the kid would stay in Konoha, making a certain Inuzuka mushy from happiness. Hinata had sent a message to the Daitengu, giving Aya permission to keep the Bashōsen, earning her an avian who almost cried with gratitude and had held her in a hug for the good part of a day. The remainder of the tools would stay with the Hyūga until contact was made with Kumo, seeing how she was indirectly related to their creator. Kurenai had been slightly nervous as to whether the merchant would react badly, but until they dropped the man off, he had engaged in an interesting conversation with the tengus.
They had turned in the report, with the Inuzukas welcoming a new member in their midst. Shino got ambushed by a certain jinchūriki and dragged away. Kurenai just wanted to sleep in her bed to de-stress. Hinata went to search for Menma, finding him sending his brother off. "Was that the actress of Princess Gale?" Golden eyes glinted with a pleasant surprise. "Yes, he was quite eager for the chance of getting an autograph." She giggled, knowing how the blond could turn obsessed for some things. "It reminds me of him, Naruto is almost like him." Menma huffed at the idea, then smiled. "Let's catch up on our lives?" He extended a hand, which she took. "I missed you." "Me too, so... How was your mission?"
The couple was sitting on the Hokage Monument, enjoying the slight breeze and each other's company. "It's nice to know that there's more acceptance for yōkai, as little it may be." Hinata had been an enforcer, controlling the creatures so they wouldn't wipe all the humans, making them learn co-existence. For now, she couldn't do the same here, for she was still weak. "And you said that Naruto found Mokou?" The pair reminisced about things that happened so long ago that felt almost like dreams. "I hope the little dork stays safe, but knowing his luck, I think he will run into ninjas from some nation and pick a fight with their leader." Menma had a sullen expression that didn't last long under the loving cuddles of his girlfriend. "I think that his luck will also keep him safe, don't worry."
The travel group was in an inn to let Sandayū and Yukie rest, all while digesting the fact that the actress was actually the heir of Yuki. "That guy Doto sounds like a bastard..." Naruto wondered how he would react if his father was to get taken down by a similar person. "Are we going to help them, Kakashi-sensei?" Sakura thought about the dangers they were about to face, fearful of the enemies. "It's a chance to obtain more allies for our country. I expect you to be in your best shape." Naruto was silent, politics were still a complicated theme for him. "Well, I've already shown her to my summons, so if things go south, we'll have extra help." But it wasn't as if Doto would use an aerial transport just to take away the princess.
A raucous laughter hit Naruto's ears. "Ergh, can't those drunkards moderate themselves?" Sakura had a frown, but the blond went out. The other two kids decided to follow him, as this was unusual for him to do. "Yo! I just knew you guys were here!" Five females were in sight, two he knew not. "Yo, gaki-chan, did you come get another pummeling?" Their horns were hidden, but the rest was the same, like those happy grins. "Not yet, I just wanted to see you guys. By the way, who are they?" A blonde and a brunette were gazing at him with a strange emotion. "Heh, we got that beansprout with a bet, now she needs to win another to drop us off her back." Yuugi saw the little pair by the door.
"Come here, pipsqueaks." Sakura stared at one of them. "That's Tsunade of the Sannin! What an honor!" Naruto had a bored face. "Knowing Ero-sennin, she got some nasty habit." Kasen laughed, patting his back. "How right you are, she tried to win a drinking bet against Suika!" The Senju had a throbbing vein on her neck that reached its limit, so she headbutted the Ibaraki and Namikaze. "Oh./AWCH!" Tsunade was glaring at Naruto for the blatant disrespect, only to get a cheek pinch from the Hoshiguma. "Hey, you won't get your share of sake acting like this, besides, we paid your debts and saved you from that snake." The jinchūriki had heard about the last Senju's habits, so he understood the other reasons for her to be stuck with them.
Naruto turned to the youth holding a pig. "If the obāba is here, you must be Shizune, right?" Another headbutt, one that he dodged, making Tsunade hit Suika and get a headlock in retribution. "Tou-san talked about you two, he really wants you to help with medic training." The Onis stared at the woman, all of them recalling the events that led up here. "Remember that condition? Tsuna-chan?" She scoffed, turning to the wall. "I already told you my stance on that." Yuugi sighed. "Fine, then. But you still have to come with us, we're tagging with them for now." Tsunade almost protested, but the serene stares made her go silent. "Do what you want, I don't care anymore."
Yep, our dear Hinata is going to become quite the big shot in the future. I've recently found Darling in the Franxx and really enjoyed it, the pervy undertones are really nice. And I'm planning some nice action for the next chapter, look below.
Sneak peek:
The Onis saw that there was only one alternative. "Gaki, come here." Yuugi grabbed Kasen, who grabbed Naruto. "Don't bite your tongue." He looked to the two females, confused as heck. "Eh?" Suika, after increasing her size like the Akimichi, grabbed all three and geared up for a throw. "Oni Special, Living Fastball! Is a go!" With a powerful roar, the orange Oni launched them, making the ground crumble under her feet.