Rain: And this is the next chapter of our beloved Fic…This chapter will have Naruto and Jiraiya meet up as well as some other meetings as well. So…Let's start the show.
Mario: Here we go!
Reaper's Blood: Reincarnated
Chapter Fifty-Two
"Hurry up you guys! We need to see Naruto-kun!"
"Can you two be any slower?"
Shikamaru and Chōji traded looks of annoyance to each other as Ino and Hinata stood a little ways away from them, a frown on their faces. Ever since Naruto was wounded and taken to the hospital, Ino had visited him each and every day and dragged them along for the ride and while they wanted to see their friend, Ino having to force them to go was a bit annoying.
It also didn't help that Hinata decided to join her so they now had to hear the two argue endlessly.
All and all, A pretty bad time for the two males.
"Ino-chan, you must be patient," Haku chided while walking next to Ino, placing a hand on her shoulder. "Naruto-kun will not be going anywhere," Haku stated with while eyeing her carefully.
But it wasn't all bad.
Haku and Fū had decided to tag along as well to see their teammate to see how he was doing this time around which made it easier for males dealing with the headstrong female of their group.
"Yeah," Fū added with a quirked eyebrow at Hinata. "Chill out Hyūga, I know you and Ino want to see Naruto but have some patience. Otherwise, not only will you drive your team up the wall, you may do that to Naruto as well."
"I agree Fū-chan. You guys really need to learn some patience!" A familiar voice chimed out above the group, causing all of the shinobi to look up to see Naruto hanging out on a tree, watching them with a smile on his face.
"Naruto-kun!" Ino and Hinata exclaimed with happiness and relief at seeing their crush safe and sound, despite still wearing what he was wearing during his unconscious state in the forest.
"We need to learn some patience?" Shikamaru asked with a grin on his face before adding "Pot, meet kettle." Naruto stuck his tongue out at the shadow user before leaping down and joining them.
Once he landed on the ground, Naruto asked "So what did I miss?"
Fast Forward
Ichikaru's Ramen Stand
"So…The Chūnin exams were postponed for three months?" Naruto asked with a frown on his face.
The group nodded at in response with Chōji adding "Yeah. With Orochimaru attacking the Uchiha, many of our shinobi dead because of said Sannin and you and Anko-sensei being nearly killed. They decided to wait for three months for it all to die down until they start it. Luckily, everyone that is in the tournament will be staying."
Naruto nodded at this, already well aware of what happened after he was unconscious with everyone and he gave a sigh of relief. His sister was still in the village then and made him smile. But he all he knew was her name, which was Tayuya. He didn't know what she would look like.
But then he felt his heart drop as he replayed what she had said in his head. "Anko-sensei was nearly killed?! How?!" Naruto asked with anger in his voice, surprising the entire group but it caused Haku to chuckle softly.
Haku knew the two had to have been close due to her finding them snuggled up in Wave and also the way they acted around each other in general but to see Naruto really angered by this made her think there was something more to them than their student-teacher relationship.
Then again, Naruto was like this with anyone he deemed his friend as she had seen when he had fought her father. But still…It was interesting to see Naruto so enraged about someone hurting their sensei.
"I knew that bit of news would get your goat," Shikamaru said with a small grin on his face. "Yeah, from what our sensei told us, she fought Orochimaru herself."
"She fought Orochimaru…And she nearly died…" Naruto breathed out slowly. With worried eyes, Ino grabbed Naruto's hand and let a smile form on her face when he took her hand and gave it a small squeeze.
"I know Naruto-kun…It's not easy to know that she was nearly killed but she's still alive! We can help you find her so you can see that," Ino said to encourage her crush, which he rewarded her with a look of determination. Despite needing a change of clothes, Naruto knew that he had to find his sensei and be there for her.
He needed to make sure she was alright.
Hinata also took Naruto's other hand and gave a small frown and said "I know how much Anko-san means to you so I will help you look for her as well." Hinata did not like Anko but she knew Naruto cared for her and she loved him so if she had to deal with helping him find another women then she would.
Naruto looked at Hinata and Ino and felt a smile form on his face before lowering his head and saying "Guys…Thanks for telling me what I needed to know…"
Shikamaru shared a grin with Chōji before saying "It's no problem Naruto, you can always depend on us to be there for you. You are our friend after all."
"Yeah, In fact, you're one of the reasons we're still breathing. If it wasn't for you, those samurai would have slaughtered us…We owe you a debt that we could never repay," Shikamaru added with a small grin on his face.
"Besides…I don't think any of us could be without you…You've done so much for us, it's the least we could do…You saved us more times than we can even think…" Ino said with a smile on her face.
Naruto knew she wasn't just talking about their mission with the samurai or the saga in wave but she was speaking on having the Kyūbi sealed within him and it made him smile and Hinata's next words made his heart become larger with joy.
"Naruto-kun, you saved me from myself when I truly needed it. Not only when you fought Zabuza to save my life…Not only when you had to fight me and get me to open my eyes…But even when we were little…You have always been there for me when I needed you and even when I pulled away…You were always my strength…Of course I would always be there for you…"
While Naruto felt himself smiling so hard, his face was hurting, Fū couldn't help but feel a bit envious of him.
She had never heard such a genuine display of friendship without it being whispered in fear of being killed and when they did get killed, no one bothered to be her friend.
And yet…
Naruto, a jinchūriki like herself, had friends here that meant a lot to him, he even had Ino and that Hyūga girl chasing after him…And from what Danzō had told her, he had a past similar to hers…And yet here he was, surrounded by those that cared for him and vice versa.
But she had to admit, there was something special about him. She knew that due to knowing he was the one that saved her from her prison by that Gato. He didn't even know her and yet he risked life and limb to save her life and deep down, she felt that this was something he deserved.
She just hoped that sooner or later, she'll have the chance to sit down and actually speak to him one on one to express that thanks to him for saving her.
Little did she know, Haku was feeling the same way. Haku knew the moment Naruto and Zabuza faced off for Hinata's life that Naruto was indeed one of a kind and so far, he had not proved her thoughts wrong.
"And you know the two of us will help you, Naruto-kun…You are our friend and teammate," Haku stated with Fū nodding as well in agreement.
"You guys are the greatest friends a guy could ask for…" Naruto said with a smile on his face before standing up and saying "But I want you guys to have fun and train. I will find Anko-sensei. It can't be hard. I mean she could be at Konoha General Hospital or Sandaime Memorial Hospital. But thank you guys for the offer…"
"Are you sure?" Shikamaru asked with frown on his face.
"I'm sure. Now before I go…" Naruto paused to lean down and pecked both Hinata and Ino on their cheeks, causing their faces to blush. "Thank you both…" He whispered into their ears before leaning up and saying to the others "See you guys later!"
And with that, Naruto dashed out of Ichikaru's…After paying Ayame and Old man Ichikaru of course.
Sandaime Memorial Hospital
Anko was hurting.
She had been stuck in this damn hospital room since being on the ass end of an ass-kicking against her former sensei, Orochimaru.
She had put up a valiant battle with him but she came up short but it wasn't because of the seal that she lost against the slimy bastard…
It was because of what he said to her that made her lose focus.
Flashback
Forest of Death
"You have gotten stronger, Ko-chan," Orochimaru said with pride in his voice, causing Anko to scowl with anger. She did not want this man to call her by his pet name, nor did she want him to look at her with pride. She wasn't his student anymore! She didn't want even be associated with this sick bastard but here she was, facing him down…alone.
"My name is Anko, you sick bastard…." She growled out while clutching the curse seal that adorned her neck, the pain coursing through her as it glowed a sickly purple.
"Ko-chan," He taunted with a grin on his face, causing her scowl to become feral. "I have to see, I've been watching
you for a long time…I am proud of your accomplishments. Not only did you become a Jōnin, but you have your own powerful team."
"You must have not heard me…I don't want your fucking approval!" Anko shouted before dashing towards the man with her kunai, ready to go for the kill but instead of hitting his flesh, her small blade was blocked against his famed sword.
"But you have earned it, my apprentice…" Orochimaru stated while forcing the kunai into the air and kicking her in the stomach, sending her soaring backwards but she managed to get her feet on the tree branch beneath her and swiftly ducked the arching swing of her former sensei's blade then blocked it with the gauntlet she hid under her brown trench coat.
"You not only have the last Hyōton user in your team, but you have two Jinchūriki as well on your team," He added with approval, causing her eyes to widen in shock.
"H-How do you know that?!" Anko hissed out.
Orochimaru smirked and patted her cheek with his free hand but she quickly smacked it away and decked him in the face with her free arm, sending Orochimaru soaring off the of tree branch but instead of being in pain, the bastard was laughing as he gently landed on the branch to the left of her at the bottom level.
"I have eyes in this village, Ko-chan…They are all impressive but Naruto…He is truly impressive! If he wasn't killed by my apprentice, I would have given him a gift!" Orochimaru yelled out, causing Anko to still immediately, shock, horror and rage filling her system.
Naruto…Was…Killed…?
No, that couldn't have been possible…Naruto had survived so much in his life…From the villagers ignoring his existence…From Mizuki…from her own test in this very forest…The Samurai, Zabuza, Gaara, that damn fortress and the machines he told her about.
Naruto had come close but he was never truly killed nor defeated so she couldn't allow herself to believe this but Orochimaru never joked about something like this and despite her being his enemy, she knew he would never joke about getting someone killed.
And if he wasn't joking...Then could Naruto truly be killed?
"I…I don't believe that bullshit!" Anko shouted with a surprising amount of fury in her voice.
Orochimaru chuckled at this fury and responded with "You know me, Ko-chan…I have never joked about having someone killed nor will I deceive you. Uzumaki Naruto…The boy you had grown so close to during your mission in Wave…Is dead! He's dead! Kuroi made sure of that!"
"No…It can't be true…" Anko took a step back, her heart feeling as if something was crushing it in a vice. Naruto couldn't be dead. It was impossible. He couldn't be…But as Orochimaru laughed, she felt sadness rolling through her as if she was being hit by multiple waves.
Naruto was gone…
She…She had lost her student…Her dumbass, reckless, cute, cheerful, smiling; ramen loving, chubby cheeked student was gone from her life.
Gone was the chance to make him into the shinobi Iruka would have been proud of. Gone was the chance of seeing him become the Hokage like she was starting to believe he could become.
Gone was the chance of truly forgive him for his involvement in Iruka's death…
Naruto was gone…And she was pissed. She knew that Orochimaru was powerful and that she had no chance in defeating the man that had trained her but she was too far gone in her fury to care.
He was the reason Naruto was gone and she will get revenge for him and if she was to die, then she was going to take the bastard with her.
"Orochimaru…I…I will kill you!" Anko roared out before she leapt at her sensei.
End Flashback
She had poured all she had into that battle but in the end, her sensei had taken advantage of her rage and ran her through with her own kunai in shoulder with his blade going straight through her stomach to her back then left her to die there.
But luckily, she was saved by some of her comrades moments later but despite being saved in time, unless the mighty Tsunade were to come heal her, the doctors told her that she would no longer be able to walk due to Orochimaru's blade piercing her spine.
But there was more to hear.
From what Gai had told her once she had awaken and gotten over that bad news of no longer being able to walk, she was saying her student's name while she drifted in and out of her unconscious state and not only that, he stated she was sobbing and Gai would not joke about something as "Youthful" as that, in his words.
Which stunned her greatly.
She would have expected to say Iruka during that time but…the Gaki's name? She was saying his name instead of Iruka's?! What the hell is going on with her?
"What is wrong with me…?" Anko asked herself while shutting her eyes.
None of this made sense to her anymore. She shouldn't have lost that much control of her emotions during her battle with Orochimaru but she had and it seemed that he knew she would lose it if he bought Naruto up.
But why did it take him bringing up Naruto to set her off. Orochimaru must have known about Iruka if he knew about her accomplishments so why hadn't he bought Iruka up?
Was it because Orochimaru saw something she had with Naruto as something more than him being her student and figured that would be a better target?
But if that was true…Then he saw something between them that she didn't see…But it didn't matter now…Naruto was gone…and despite herself, Anko felt tears falling from her eyes.
She lost her fiancé…She had lost her student she was growing fond of…and her career as a shinobi is no more…
How much more could she lose in one lifetime?
Uzumaki Naruto
'Anko-sensei…Please be ok…' Naruto thought as he dashed from roof to roof with a frown on his face. He didn't want to tell the others but he didn't want to waste any time in forming teams and whatever to start the search. He needed to make sure she was ok right away.
But if one thing truly eased his worries was his friends.
They were willing to put their day aside to help him and he couldn't find the words to really thank them, especially due to his issues with trust lately.
'I should find a way to thank them…It's the least I could do…' Naruto thought to himself but as he moved through the roof, he passed over the hot springs and that was when he noticed something.
He saw a man spying on the women at the hot spring and he instantly remembered his mother's words…
Flashback
"Jiraiya is within the village. Go to the Hot springs…That'll be the first place he'll visit…" Kushina said with a bit of annoyance in her voice.
"The Hot springs? Why there?" Naruto asked in confusion.
Kushina's eyes were closed and she had an annoyed grin on her face and ironically, he found himself thinking about that rude Oto-nin Kunoichi he had met during the exams.
"Trust me…He'll be there," Kushina responded wryly.
End Flashback
He had seen pictures of Jiraiya in the Hokage's office and knew exactly what he looked like but to know his mother knew him and knew where he would be was shocking to him but as he landed on the roof of the hot spring, he was at a crossroad.
He needed to do what his mother asked but he needed to see his sensei…What should he do? 'My mom said that I had to find Jiraiya but…Anko-sensei…She's hurt and I need to make sure she's ok…As much as my mother knows I need him, I need my sensei first and foremost…'
With his mind made up, Naruto was about to get ready to go to the hospital but then he heard an unfamiliar voice say "So…What are we waiting for up here?" Jumping, Naruto turned around to see Jiraiya standing behind him with his arms crossed, a grin on his face.
Rain: And that is it for this chapter. So things aren't looking so hot for Anko right now. What will happen to both Naruto and Jiraiya? And what about Anko? Find out in the next chapter…
Mario: See you next time!
