Man, I was WAY too lazy when it came to this chapter. Just a line here and there between unbelievably long chapters of Future Diary. Anything with a yandere in it immediately rises in the awesome-o-metre. Little bit of warning, because of change in the way canon works here, the progression of time will also be affected. Hence the Sound Four showing up before Tsunade.
Disclaimer: Is there anyone, ANYONE, who remembers Thundercats?!
Following the path
Hoshigake Kisame stood in the midst of the trees, his hand gripping the hilt of the giant Samehada. He looked around the fading woods, the first signs of autumn were beginning to show. The dawn sunlight shone down on the browning leaves, giving the already warm atmosphere a heated glow.
He raised his hand and swished it through the air, lightly knocking Naruto's slash away. He wore a casual grin as he listened to the first falling leaves, the light scrape against the bark and the rustle as they touched their brethren. It was quite a sight, very peaceful.
He turned Samehada slightly, so it covered his left side. Small mounds of sand struck it, scattering on the white wrappings as the chakra left them. He cast his eyes over the little pups jumping into the piles of leaves, they seemed so at ease, he couldn't help but feel a slight envy.
"Ah, what a nice afternoon." he sighed, with a content look, as he knocked Naruto's kick aside.
"Damn it Danna, you wanna try taking this seriously?!"
"Very well." Kisame replied, in the same tone. He slipped his hand back and caught Naruto in the chest, slamming him into a tree, "Actually, nah."
"Gagh!" Naruto grunted, as his back struck the tree. He slid down onto his knees, wincing in pain, "Ouch…"
"Damn it!"
"Don't even think about it." Kisame said, shaking his finger at Eko.
"What is it?" Naruto asked quietly, glancing at the blade in his hand.
"Kisame no Danna knew I was gonna do. Looks like the training wheels are coming off."
Naruto looked from the blade to Kisame, who was idly viewing the sky. So Eko would no longer take control huh? He didn't exactly mind that, it was always worrying when his body moved involuntarily. However, it was also a safety net he couldn't rely on anymore. That meant he would need to try harder.
"Alright then, lets go." he said, planting his hand on the ground and kicking off to a dash.
Kisame glanced at him as he drew nearer, as cool and composed as ever. But when Naruto threw Eko high above Kisame, his brow cocked in interest. He watched as Naruto leapt into the air, clasping his hands together.
"Ah." Kisame sounded, as he realised what was going on. He raised Samehada defensively, creating a wall between him and Naruto's Jutsu. The blast of wind resounded, but he felt no impact. It wasn't until he heard a jingling sound overhead that he discovered Naruto had used the Jutsu to heighten his jump. He watched in surprise, bringing Samehada over as Naruto grabbed Eko's hilt and slashed downwards.
Clang!
The two blades met in the air, sparks flying from the impact. Shreds of the wrappings around Samehada were cut, floating down to the ground. Naruto landed on the ground, the two blades still touching. He made sure to push up with Eko, hooking the katana into the scales of the larger blade, gripping it in place. Kisame grinned down at Naruto, an impressed look, but no signs of strain.
"At least you're using your head." he complimented, "But you'll need more than that."
He cocked a brow again though, curious about Naruto's grin. He noticed the boy's eyes flicker past him, and he whipped his head around. He was just in time to see more bullets of sand firing at him from the trees, four flying darts.
"Not bad." he commended, as he raised his free hand in a single seal. His cheeks then seemed to bulge, and he spat out four globules of water, each of a slightly greater size than the sand bullets. They collided in the air, the water bursting onto the sand, and scattered uselessly, "Nice teamwork."
He lifted Samehada into the air, dislodging it from Eko's hold. He slipped it back onto his back, Samehada using its chakra to keep itself in place.
"That's enough exercise." he said, looking from Naruto to the shadow obscured Gaara, "We'll take care of your training as we move."
Naruto slid Eko back into his hilt as Kisame turned away, and Gaara stepped out from the trees. The two of them waited as Naruto took the leashes from his waist and headed for the pups.
"You shouldn't keep those there by the way." Kisame said, "Those were what gave you away."
"Huh?" Naruto called, before looking down at the chains, "Oh, I guess these were a bad choice huh?"
"More than a little." Kisame replied, as he and Gaara began to move away.
"Hey, wait up!" Naruto shouted, looking back at them as he hastily reached out for one of the pups.
Chomp.
"SON OF A-" Naruto yelled, as he pulled his hand back from Hotei, who had given him a harsh nip. The other pups barked excitedly, thinking they were going to get chased. They ran off, causing Naruto to stumble after them, "Aw come on!"
"Still a fool I see." Kisame muttered, as he headed through the trees.
"Yeah." Gaara agreed, folding his arms.
Eventually Naruto managed to get the pups leashed, though not before giving Hotei his punishment. A small brown bag was tied around the pups collar, holding a weight that made the little dog bow his head. It was something Naruto came up with on the fly, keeping the pups in check without hurting them. It seemed to be working, Hotei wasn't quite so chipper now.
"Eh, where'd they go?" Naruto wondered, looking around the trees. Unfortunately, they had been passing through an area of the forest which had no path or road on it, and so no obvious way of figuring out which way the other two had gone., "Great…"
As he walked, the pups quickly overtook him, urging him to move faster. It wasn't a desire he would indulge them in though, he was too busy trying to find his companions.
"Man, why does it feel weird to think of them like that?" he muttered, before looking down at the pups, "Hey, can't you sniff them out or something?"
"Arf!"
Naruto raised his brow in surprise as Koyane looked back at him. The little dog had wandered away from the others, and was tugging almost pointedly. The other pups looked at him, and then began to follow.
"Huh?" Naruto muttered, as all six pups pulled in the same direction. Koyane looked back at him again, before barking once more, "What is it?"
He turned a little to the left, humouring the pups by following him. Though they were all heading in the same direction, it seemed more like they were following Koyane than heading anywhere particular. It didn't take long for Naruto to realise this, but it did require some thought on his part as to why they were doing that.
"So… I guess he's the leader huh?" he thought, looking up ahead, "Gwah?!"
He couldn't explain it, but somehow, incredibly, the pups had managed to lead him to what appeared to be the back of a food bar. Now he was close enough, he could catch the scent of beef rising in vapours from the diner, the obvious motive for the pups' actions.
"Damn it!" he cursed, glaring at the pups in annoyance, "Like I got time for this!"
"Quit yelling idiot!" called Kisame's voice.
"Huh?" Naruto sounded, as he raised his head. Kisame was leaning out from the side of the bar, looking at him with tired eyes. Naruto cast his own gaze back down at the pups, who were looking up at him curiously, "Uh… good job?"
"Arf!"
Naruto stepped around the pups, walking around the side of the bar. It was there that he saw Kisame and Gaara sitting on stools, each eating some sort of stew broth. Naruto glanced up at the elderly chef, who was watching him with a peaceful look.
"You sitting down or what?" Kisame asked, without looking up from his bowl, "We're not stopping till noon, so get your fill while you can."
"Oh, uh, ok." Naruto replied, before stepping past Gaara and crouching by the third of four empty stools. Since each one was bolted to the ground, he crouched down and tied the leashes around one of the metal legs. He then sat down, looking again as the old man stood before him.
"What're yeh havin?" the old man asked, as relaxed as before.
"Uh, I'll just have what they're having-" Naruto began.
"Arf!"
"-and a plate of beef." he finished.
The old man nodded, turning around and setting to work ladling the ready made stew into a bowl. Once that was done he grabbed a plate and chopped up some steak, handing both to Naruto.
"Thanks." Naruto said, leaning back as he placed the plate down amongst the pups. He was almost bitten again as the little rascals dove in. He sat back up and took a spoon from the tray in front of him, digging in himself, "So where are we?"
"It's just a pit-stop village." Kisame replied, between mouthfuls, "A bar here and there, a couple of stores and an inn."
"Oh." Naruto muttered, as he began to eat his stew, "Where are we going?"
"Around." Kisame replied, with a shrug. Naruto hid his sigh with a slurp from his dish, it looked like Kisame was in an unusually mellow mood today. Not that that was a bad thing, it certainly made training easier on him. But it made things a whole lot less exciting as well.
He listened to the sounds of the pups tearing the meat apart as he ate, taking in the strong beef flavour of his meal. He glanced over to Gaara and Kisame, the former was already on his second bowl while the latter was on his third.
"Should I brew up some more?" the old man asked, as he begun to get an idea about this group.
"Be a good idea." Kisame replied, as he drained his third and motioned for a fourth. As he waited, he turned in his seat to look at Naruto, "Hey, be a good boy and show this guy how to learn Futon will ya?"
"Huh, you want me to do it?" Naruto asked, looking at Kisame with his spoon halfway to his mouth, "I thought we were gonna go see Naomi-chan again."
"Nah, those two disappeared." Kisame said, as he took his next helping. Naruto dropped his spoon, leaning on the table as he looked at his sensei incredulously.
"What?!" he exclaimed, "Disappeared?!"
"Move." Gaara said, pushing Naruto back onto his seat. He seemed to show no interest in the situation, only on that which lay before him.
"You think after our little run-in it'd be safe to stay there?" Kisame asked, with a cocked brow, "Nah, they're looking for somewhere else to stay."
Naruto sat back, a look of relief on his face. He had misinterpreted what Kisame had meant by "disappeared", and was glad of it.
"Still, I guess it'll be good for Aiko-chan." Kisame continued, as he stirred his broth, "Get off that hill, ya know?"
"Yeah." Naruto agreed, as he looked into his bowl with a smile. It was a pity though, he'd kind of been looking forward to the idea of visiting them again. but now that he thought about it, since he knew what to do there wouldn't be that much of a difference.
"More." Gaara said, lifting his empty bowl to the cook.
"Right you are sir." the old man replied, smiling weakly and taking the bowl. Naruto made the same look, there was one key difference after all.
* * * * *
Jiraiya, Tsunade and Shizune sat in a booth in the corner of a bar, each with full drinks before them. Jiraiya sat opposite the two women, his arms propped on the table and his fingers intertwined before his face. Tsunade and Shizune looked at him, the former with a frown and the other with slight worry. In Shizune's arms, a pig wearing a pearl necklace and red waistcoat by the name of Tonton rested contentedly.
"So he was affiliated with Ame, though from the looks of things it was only a little while." Jiraiya muttered, his creased brow showing his attention not to be on anything close by, "He was then seen in Kusa no Kuni, though his purpose was unclear…"
"I thought he was just a kid playing at ninja." Shizune mumbled, with poignant embarrassment, "I figured that katana he had was a toy too."
"Whatever he's doing, he's not travelling alone." Jiraiya said, more to himself than the others, "And he may be affiliated with those two…"
"Those two?" Tsunade asked, resting her arm on the table.
"Hoshigake Kisame, and Uchiha Itachi." Jiraiya replied, his eyes flickering to his old team mate.
"Uchiha Itachi?" Tsunade repeated, her frown deepening, "Didn't all the Uchiha die?"
"No, there were two survivors, Uchihas Itachi and Sasuke." Jiraiya replied, his gaze dropping for a moment, "It was Uchiha Itachi who wiped out his clan."
"Really?" Tsunade muttered, raising her little cup to her lips, "That's a surprise. I always wondered what happened with them."
"And if what I hear is right, he joined up with a group called Akatsuki." Jiraiya added, "… It's the group Orochimaru joined."
"You think there's a connection between the two?" Tsunade asked, as Shizune refilled her cup.
"The whole reason Orochimaru came to Konoha was for Uchiha Sasuke." Jiraiya replied, "The invasion, killing the Sandaime, those were just to kill time."
Tsunade's fist clenched and her jaw tightened. Shizune's hand twitched, she nearly spilled sake on the counter. All the while the little pig looked around, before bowing her head.
"Oink." she said, her tone describing the mood perfectly. Shizune placed the jug back on the counter, sitting back and holding Tonton close to her chest. She fixed her eyes on the table for a few moments, her expression troubled. But then she looked up again, first at Tsunade, then Jiraiya.
"I don't really know the full details concerning Orochimaru." she said, uncertainly, "Why would he want Uchiha Sasuke?"
"You saw him, didn't you?" Jiraiya asked, sitting back and resting his arm across the back of the seat, "Looked pretty spry for a man in his fifties. Though considering the condition he was in, it doesn't seem likely he was using a Henge like a certain someone."
"I'm going to pretend I didn't hear that." Tsunade said irritably, as she lowered her cup, "At the moment my biggest concern is the village. How bad is it?"
"I'm not gonna lie to you, it's bad." Jiraiya answered, resting his other arm on the seat as well, "When I left, they were still identifying bodies, both ally and enemy."
"Great." Tsunade grumbled, rubbing her face with the heel of her palms, "For such a sneaky bastard, he sure does like to make an entrance, doesn't he?"
"Say something like that when there aren't any dead civilians." Jiraiya said, his expression and tone showing evident distaste, "You have a responsibility now."
"Don't talk to me like I'm a kid." Tsunade sharply replied, "Especially when you turned down this job yourself."
"It couldn't be helped." Jiraiya sighed, squeezing his neck, "Even though Orochimaru left Akatsuki… I can't afford to take my eyes off them."
Tsunade fell silent, staring angrily at her cup. Jiraiya looked up at the ceiling, his eyes distant and cold. Shizune and Tonton looked between the two concernedly, not completely sure of the situation themselves.
"Oink…"
* * * * *
With their stomachs full and their wallets lighter, Naruto, with the pups, walked close to Gaara and Kisame as they made their way alongside a steep hill rested in shadows. It was still early enough that the sunlight didn't quite break over the peak of the hill, though the shade was slowly reclining. Naruto walked with his hands resting behind his head, as Gaara clasped a leaf in his hands. His brow was furrowed deeply as he glared at the small green piece of nature in his grip, looking like he was praying angrily. Kisame was speculating aloud, coming up with ideas for Naruto's training while Gaara was preoccupied.
"Taijutsu, Ninjutsu or Kenjutsu?" he wondered, looking thoughtfully to the sky, "Or we could get an early start on training the dogs."
"Do you know how?" Naruto asked, looking at his sensei with a raised brow.
"It can't be that different from training you." Kisame replied, as he procured what looked like a dog biscuit from his cloak, "C'mon, sit boy!"
"Kisame-sensei… that's cruel." Naruto muttered, his voice partially obscured by Eko's laughter, "And more importantly, why do you even have those?"
"I guess the idea of training ninken just sorta grew on me." Kisame shrugged, dropping the biscuit for the pups to fight amongst, "Dogs don't hold back after all."
Naruto glanced back as he heard Gaara's grunt of annoyance. He had just checked the leaf in his hands, and was angered to find it hadn't the slightest semblance of a cut to it. He clamped his hands shut, gripping the leaf even tighter as he tried again.
"Looks like it's a lot harder without the Kage Bunshin no Jutsu." Naruto thought, relieved that he had chosen that Jutsu from the Scroll of Seals. He then glanced down at the pups, raising his brow in surprise, "Oh yeah!"
He crouched down on the ground, reaching into the small mass of pups. He found Hotei and removed the bag from his collar, that was punishment enough. The little dog raised his head to look up at Naruto, who smiled at him and petted his chin. He then straightened up and pocketed the bag, continuing on his way.
"With those Kage Bunshin, Ekokaeten and that Futon Jutsu, you've got your close-mid range bases pretty much covered." Kisame continued, when Naruto was beside him again, "I think you could do with a decent long range Jutsu."
"A long range Jutsu?" Naruto repeated, excitedly, "Like what?"
"I dunno, I'm just thinking aloud." the giant Shinobi admitted, scratching his head, "I guess the best thin to do would be to train you in shape manipulation, since you've already got nature worked out. If you can get shape as well, it'll be a lot easier to create your own Jutsu."
"Shape- wait, create my own Jutsu?!" Naruto exclaimed in shock, "I can do that?!"
"Not yet you can't." Kisame bluntly replied, "You're gonna need to learn shape first."
"RAGH!" Gaara yelled, tossing his leaf to the ground. Naruto looked back at the red haired boy bewilderedly, that was the first time he'd ever heard Gaara so angry, even compared to the times they'd fought. It wasn't something he expected from him, he didn't usually let things like that bother him.
"Looks like he's the impatient type." Kisame noted, looking back with a raised brow. He then spoke up, "Throwing the thing's not gonna do ya any good."
Gaara looked up at Kisame, the glare he'd been giving the leaf meeting his new sensei's gaze. Kisame grinned broadly at Gaara's expression, feeling the killer intent rising from him. He then released some of his own, his grin widening as Gaara's brow twitched. Naruto, though a bystander in this situation, stepped in as he heard six collective whines.
"Come on, the little guys can't handle this." he said, looking nervously at Kisame. His sensei glanced down at the dogs, all of whom were bowing their heads and shaking. He sighed, and Naruto felt the spike of malcontent lower. Gaara however, kept his expression, undeterred by the pups' unease.
"Very well then, it looks like Gaara-san here needs some… private tutoring." Kisame said, replacing his killer intent with a sadistic grin, "Whaddaya say? You up for a little battle?"
Naruto looked at Kisame in alarm, was he seriously challenging Gaara to a fight?! He looked over to the other person, whose eyes were dark and cold. He already had an idea of his response, and was actually a little worried for him. He had trained with the both of them, and he knew truthfully that if these two were to fight, they wouldn't want to stop.
"Alright." Gaara replied, his voice low and daunting. Naruto whipped his head around to him, was he serious?! Naruto could only stand Kisame's killer intent because he had travelled with him. Gaara had actually been affected by that intent, even if it was only minor. Was he trying to get himself killed?!
"Heh heh, nice thirst." Kisame chuckled, as he turned to his right, "Hey runt, go on ahead without us. See if you can toughen those mutts up, or they won't last long."
"Gah- wait min-" Naruto began.
"Move." Gaara said, pushing Naruto aside as he headed in the same direction as Kisame. Both of them began descending the hill to the trees far below, both forgetting Naruto completely.
"Hey, com on!" Naruto called, holding his hands to his mouth.
"Don't bother, Kisame no Danna really does love a fight."
Naruto let out an exasperated groan, knowing that Eko was right. Even though he didn't like it, this situation had nothing to do with him. it would be better just to hope that Kisame would let up before he did something too dangerous.
Guiltily, he turned back to the road and resumed walking. Though Kisame and Gaara were gone from his vision, he could still hear the light crunching of grass as they descended. But he was soon distracted by that sound as he heard the pups whine again. He looked at them, they all seemed quite down, their tails and heads lowered as they followed Naruto.
"Hey, you guys ok?" he asked, crouching down to them. He held out his hand, and each of the pups padded towards him. They gathered around his outstretched hand, to which he turned it over and pet each of them on the head. That seemed to lift their spirits a little, their heads rising higher as Naruto removed his hand from them. He then reached into his pouch and grabbed a small box, Kisame wasn't the only one to buy treats for the pups. He took out six small biscuits and gave one to each of them, which they quickly ate up. Once they were finished, he straightened up again and walked on, the pups now calm enough to keep up with him quietly.
* * * * *
"So what are you going to do?" Tsunade asked, placing her hand on her hip. She, Shizune, Tonton and Jiraiya stood at the exit of a passing village, with trees on one side and buildings on the other. It was still early morning, but they had decided to try and get back to Konoha as soon as possible.
"Right now my priority is to get back to Konoha." Jiraiya replied, "With what you told me, I'm beginning to get a picture about what Akatsuki is planning. I'll need to check up some stuff in the archives first though."
"You sure about that?" Tsunade asked, with a bemused frown, "Second hand information isn't exactly your preference."
"I'd rather put off checking out Ame until I know what I'm looking for." Jiraiya said, smirking from Tsunade's insinuation, "There isn't any concrete evidence that he was ever actually affiliated with Ame. The fact that he has a slashed headband is displaying that he's a missing-nin, something most other missing-nin would try to avoid. I need to find out why first."
"I guess, since he was only a civilian at the time there won't be much I can do." Tsunade said, folding her arms, "Though, if you do find the kid, what'll you do?"
Jiraiya scratched the back of his neck as he glanced off into space, a look of concern on his face.
"If he doesn't want to go back to Konoha, I can't make him." he said, sighing, "However, Minato-kun did make me the boy's godfather, so I'm technically responsible for him. Sarutobi-sensei was able to look after him in my stead… but now…"
Jiraiya's thoughts were suddenly disturbed by a faint hint of laughter. He looked at Tsunade, who had her hand in front of her mouth, and a little colour showing in her cheeks.
"You almost sound like a responsible adult." she commented, with a smile. But then her tone grew a little softer, "Are you sure you wanna do that again?"
Jiraiya raised his brow in surprise, his hand loosing its grip on his neck. His expression slowly lowered however, into a distant and slightly sad look.
"Maybe this time I'll do it right." he said, as he turned and began the journey back to Konoha. Tsunade followed him with her eyes, her smile slipping.
"Jiraiya…" she whispered.
