Way of the Ninja

by PokePikamon

What happens when Naruto gets overpowered at a young age and has to defend the village after which the responsibility of restoration of his clan is upon him alone. Naruto OP, Civilian Council bashing, Sasuke bashing, Naruto x Harem(lots of pairings), Might contain lemon, not decided yet. Still rated M just in case. If you can't stand long stories, don't read.

9. Academy : Part II

Hey guys, been a long time. last update was three months ago, right? I'm sorry. But busy with life, what can I say.

Thanks for all the support. I'll try my best to continue from now on too. Although, can't promise that.

Disclaimer : I don't own and never will any of the Naruto franchise. All rights reserved with the author Masashi Kishimoto and the creators.

Without further ado, let's get started.....

---

Chapter - 9

A feeling of déjà vu hit Naruto as he was sprinting towards the meeting location through the training area.

He had already stuffed away his jacket in one of the scrolls as soon as he was out of sight from the crowded areas because the heat was too much to bear. Under the jacket was a black T-shirt with a red swirl on the back. Although not too fashionable, he was now looking at the very least, normal, as he had also put away the glasses on his head.

When he could make sure that nobody was around anymore, he unsealed a Bokken from a storage scroll. It was then put inside a plastic sheath and tied behind his back so that he could use it like a real sword user would.

He closed his eyes and expanded his sensory range as well as sensitivity but it didn't give him any indications of anything unusual. Still he had his doubts that something was off.

While still running at a constant pace, he sent out his special wave of chakra from his body. His hunch appeared to be true as a smirk formed on his face.

---

"Hey guys, remember to keep your chakra suppressed as much as you can. He's coming, if we're lucky we'll catch him by surprise.", Yūgao said.

She knew from a few past interactions that Naruto was an excellent sensor. Even more so than herself, quite to her discontent and disbelief. He could always sneak up to them and pull pranks, yet no one could sneak up on him without getting caught. And she was an ANBU for crying out loud. Or maybe ex-AnBU? Part-time ANBU? Anyways, that wasn't the point.

But again, the boy was her student. So she couldn't help but feel proud of the fact that he would surely reach new heights quickly if he was this skilled early on. Only Kami knew what a shinobi would he be when he would be her age.

A few minutes later, Naruto was seen racing towards them on the dirt path exactly as they anticipated. They were hiding in the trees around the path stealthily to catch him by surprise. By the looks of it, it seemed that Naruto was oblivious of any type of trap or ambush that could be launched upon him any second.

"I guess our plan worked. Doesn't look to me like he suspects anything yet.", the newcomer said.

Hayate wasn't enthusiastic even a bit about trying to attack his own student out of the blue. Sure, they had coordinated surprise attacks during Naruto's training a lot of times to sharpen his reflexes. But subconsciously he was at least alert about that.

Now, it had been a lot of days since he was given a break from the training because of the fact that the academy session was going to be started. And he wouldn't exactly be expecting in the least for his teachers to ambush him like hunters or something. Granted, they were only going to use blunted weapons for the ambush, but that doesn't exactly make it reasonable.

"Guys, I still think we should just…..*coughs*…… let it go. He might have been occupied somewhere else. It was his first day …….*coughs*……at the academy after all.", he said.

But the other ones were not as reluctant as him. Since they thought that the reason was suitable enough to punish him in some way. And what better way to punish someone than surprise attack a kid who just came from his first day of school……. right?

"Well then, we don't agree. What kind of student keeps his teachers waiting ?! It's bad enough when it's the other way round, but this is just unacceptable.", Yūgao said.

She was even more annoyed because the teachers had gathered there before the meeting time with Naruto due to the fact that they had to explain quite a lot of things to him about Naruto since he was going to be the new instructor instead of the Hokage.

"Come on. That's not good enough a reason to do what we're about to. ……*coughs…… From what I see, you're acting on emotions more than you agree.", Hayate said.

"Hmph, I don't think so. Besides, it will be a good show of Naruto's skills to the new guy we have here. You remember we did the same thing first time, right?", Yūgao said.

Hayate shook his head slightly indicating that he knew it would be a waste of time arguing with her, so he turned his face towards the newbie with an expecting look.

He tried to ignore it first but then said, "Look, don't get me wrong. I definitely wouldn't want to do this in normal circumstances. But she says that the kid is skilled enough to hold his own, and I am curious about his abilities too. Moreover, I do want him to be punctual. I've already had enough of people being late already, and you know I'm talking about one person."

He was telling the truth, as the silver haired Jounin had made him wait everytime when they set up even a casual meeting. This had increased multifold after he left the ANBU where one had to be disciplined. Now he would make people wait for hours and hours which was quite irritating for anybody.

---

Somewhere on a mission, a shinobi sneezed while reading an erotica.

---

Hayate sighed as he knew that he had lost the argument against majority. Might as well look on the bright side now. Naruto would get a real life simulation of an ambush which made a point that a shinobi should always be alert of his surroundings even when he is relaxed or least expects it.

Naruto had almost reached the location where they were hiding and now the game was about to begin.

As soon as Naruto got into their range, Yūgao launched herself first in the hopes of getting the fight in their favour of on the beginning as she knew the boy had some heavy damage moves that he could use.

But before she could reach him, he dropped a few smoke bombs almost instantly as if expecting her and before anyone else could realise what was going on, the whole area got completely covered in smoke.

Hayate was the first to react as he entered the smoke cloud while the other one stayed put watching the show carefully. Inside, Yūgao was equally surprised since she also neither expected Naruto to have realised the trap nor did he show any sign that he did.

She kept her sword ready for any attack that might come her way and was proven right as a Bokken made it's way swinging towards her midsection from her four o'clock. While it was quite easily defendable, she was yet again outsmarted as a hand clasped her ankle from underground tightly causing her to lose her balance unable to cleanly dodge or block the hit that was almost upon her.

'Damn it, he attacked me from behind while he had already hid a shadow clone under the ground.', Yūgao thought.

Frankly speaking, she just found it very much annoying that he could hide his chakra so well. As she relied quite a lot on her chakra sensory abilities in addition to the original five senses, it was a no-brainer that she'd have difficulty overcoming that habit. It was almost……challenging. In a way she was training because of her student in these moments and not vice versa.

Anyways, as she prepared to take the first hit promising herself not to fall for the trick again, the Bokken was halted inches away from her by another sword.

Phew. It was safe to assume that Hayate had arrived just in the nick of time. He was in a better position than Yūgao to counterattack, so he swung his right foot into an opening which was created because Naruto had held the Bokken with both his arms to maximize the attack strength. Hayate's primary objective was to create some space between them to regain their balance since Naruto had overturned the element of surprise on them.

Yet it wasn't as good an idea now since Naruto instantly bursted into smoke upon getting the hit.

"He's underground. It was a trap to get our attention disturbed.", Yūgao told Hayate.

Hayate was about to reply in acknowledgement but the ground under them cracked in between from which Naruto emerged ready to attack.

This time the duo was ready for it. As soon as he was completely in the air, Hayate swung at him which was blocked by his Bokken. Yūgao had the advantage as she was in his blind spot. Hoping to take the edge, she kicked him straight in the back.

Two things occurred simultaneously. One, her foot ended up hitting Hayate's sword directly as yet another shadow clone popped out of existence in a cloud of smoke that was acting as a barrier between them.

'Oh, that Naruto and his shadow clones. Annoying as ever!', Yūgao thought.

'If this was a shadow clone then where's the rea--', Hayate thought before getting interrupted.

Second, they heard a feeble voice which was actually a really loud one but was dampened in the heat of the battle of which the only part audible to them was "Above you!" It was sufficient enough, well, it better had been.

Fortunately, the subconscious mind, or basically the instinct kicked in time and both jumped backwards in opposite directions, and not a moment too soon, as Naruto punched the ground hard shattering the earth around dozens of metres.

The Sensei duo weren't unscathed as the debris that flew due to the impact had grazed them quite a lot. However, there were no injuries except for a few scratches here and there as they managed to cut through most of the rocks easily. ANBU level ninja are no joke, obviously. (A/N: Haha, did you see the irony from the anime here? Honestly, regular ANBU are just fodder ninja.'')

Naruto stood straight and shook the dirt out of his hands and his clothes calmly. Both of the teachers looked at him with mild annoyance at his uncaring show off.

"Sensei, did you really think that you could play a prank on me? No way am I gonna let that happen. Although this one seemed a little too extreme to be a prank, don't you think? It's good that our guest here saved your butts by warning you or you'd have to visit the hospital, or at least first aid.", Naruto said.

Although still annoyed, they knew he was telling the truth. The voice that they heard had indirectly saved them from staying in too close with the attack which could deal a good amount of damage. They made a mental note to thank him later. But for now…….

"Shut up! This is not some prank. Do you know how late you are from our meeting time? Is this a way to show your manners? You were always on time before. One day at academy and you forgot about manners already?!", Yūgao snapped.

Naruto's expression changed to one of guilty and said, "I'm really sorry about that. I went to meet Jiji first and lost track of time until I realised I was late. It won't happen again. I'll always be on time now on. No, scratch that, I'll be here before the given time. Just please, forgive me today."

"Fine. But that won't just make me let it pass. As you may already know he is your new teacher. Why don't you show some of your skills since we're upto this?", Yūgao said in a scolding tone but inwardly she wasn't angry with him anymore which was kind of visible on her face. What girl could resist some cute kid asking for forgiveness, right?

"Really? Thank you! And sure, I'll show you how strong I am dattebayo……umm……Sensei!", Naruto said turning his head towards the tree after thanking Yūgao.

Both the males sweatdropped how easily Yūgao changed her mind about teaching Naruto a good lesson or something on those terms.

"Get ready then, here I come!", Yūgao said pulling back and pressing her foot on the ground before disappearing in a flicker.

Naruto saw that he also had a good opportunity to test out how much he had learnt so far. So in a way he was also excited to let loose and show off the results of his training, which he wanted to check for himself too. He pulled up his Bokken in front of him with both hands and prepared to meet his opponent head on as he too jumped vanishing in a flicker.

The volume of swords clanking wasn't as sharp or loud as it would have been in an actual sword fight, metal against metal, but there wasn't any less display of swordsmanship between the two.

Yūgao although was going easy on him since she was still quite better at this art due to her years of training and experience. But Naruto was trying his best to give her a good challenge.

He slashed diagonally on her shoulder which she dodged with a sidestep and brought her sword upwards in a slash. Naruto reacted quickly as he jumped backwards avoiding the sword.

Yūgao didn't give him much time to recover as she once again engaged him in a duel. At this moment, Hayate too barged in knowing that Naruto would be more pressured against two people since there was no telling how many opponents someone can have in a real battle simultaneously.

It wasn't anything new since they had him train with shadow clones regularly in a way simulating a situation like this. But both of them were more skilled than those clones of his, thus he'll have to improvise and push hard if he were to stand a chance. Moreover, it would give the spectator an even better impression of Naruto's skills. After all, it was because of this reason they were doing all this... right?

Anyways, it was already having an effect as the onlooker was observing closely with wide eyes how a mere kid could keep up with someone of an ANBU level ninja. Scratch that, now he was dealing with two. Granted, they were holding back from going all out, but still, he could clearly see that they weren't playing around either.

Neither was the kid. He was keeping up with both of them at the same time. Struggling a little, but keeping up nonetheless.

After calmly observing the clash of swords for some time, he knew that Naruto was starting to show signs of fatigue subconsciously. He decided to test him out a little himself before the others completely tire him out. Whatever was to be shown had been seen and acknowledged completely, so there wasn't any need for unnecessary further observation.

Naruto, on the other hand, was keeping up well with the two opponents but his body was slowing down little by little with every move, no matter how much he wanted to go on from the inside.

It wasn't all bright and sunny on the other side either, still at least they were faring much better than Naruto. Most of their fatigue rose due to the fact that Naruto's hits were sometimes chakra enhanced and they had to put much more force in blocking them if dodging wasn't the alternative.

Both of them were standing on opposite directions a few metres away on both the sides. He kept his gaze locked on both of them at the same time. Well, more like his sensory ability gaze, and not the visual one.

But that didn't mean he was not careful of the surroundings which showed when he backflipped as numerous shuriken hit the spot where he was standing moments before.

"Sensei, too impatient to just watch the fight, huh? I knew now or later you'd come down too. Guess you're as impulsive as me.", Naruto grinned focusing on the brunette guy.

"Nothing like that. I just didn't want the others to completely tire you out. To be honest, I'm impressed by your performance. But let's see how you handle this!", he challenged before he slammed his hands on the earth after weaving a few hand signs.

Naruto understood the hand signs that signified the use of a specific type of nature release but couldn't get away in time since he was tired, no matter how much he denied that.

Soon enough, the ground around him evaginated and enclosed him in a thick Earth style hemispherical barrier.

"Can't push your way out using your Bokken alone. Show me what you got!", he said encouraging Naruto since he was curious about what was to happen next.

The other duo had already sheathed their swords when it was indirectly declared that they were not to tire out Naruto more than they already did. They were equally curious what Naruto would do next, but for different reasons.

While the new guy had no idea what Naruto could do, they had anticipated a variety of ways Naruto would handle the situation. It wasn't that tough, after all.

The barrier was designed such that it would regenerate in a few seconds from wherever it would be damaged or broken. The castor had kept his hands on the ground connected to the jutsu to make this happen. He was fairly confident that no average trick would help Naruto break free.

In addition, making his way through the ground might have been an option before, but that trick was already taken into account. Naruto would be thrown back into the dome even if he managed to get underground. This was partially why the opponent used an Earth style based tactic.

But little did he know that if there was anything in the village which could be ranked at the top of "Surprise me" list, it would be that boy.

In a matter of a few seconds, a large part of the barrier instantly went brittle as an electric discharge of marked intensity passed inside it momentarily. What would have happened next was a no-brainer as half of the dome shattered with the debris flying outwards.

Naruto was visible standing inside the barrier or now lack thereof, with one hand balled into a fist where the wall would have been a few moments earlier, clearly confirming how the barrier broke.

Lightning Style : Spark

Although the barrier did have the ability to regenerate, the process was now extremely slowed down due to two reasons. More the area of barrier was damaged, more the time would be taken to repair it. And……

"I see you have even learnt how to manipulate Nature Release. A big feat enough itself. And fortunately your affinity is Raiton, which is the best counter against my Doton. Lightning is quite tough to control compared to some other natures. Well, guess I'll have to say it now. Mark me impressed, Uzumaki Naruto.", the opponent said.

"I am honoured by your words, thank you. But I still didn't get your name, Sensei!", Naruto said.

"Yamato. You can call me by this name. You've earned that at least, I can say.", he said with a smile.

"Still hiding your last name, huh, Yamato-sensei? I realize now, you've been far from actually testing my skills. You've yet to even activate your Sharingan. Don't think I'll let you go so easily without a good spar. We're just getting started.", Naruto said.

"What? I'm afraid you've got the wrong idea kid. I'm not who you think I am.", Yamato said with a neutral expression.

"Save it. I know exactly why you're here and what will I be training for. Furthermore, you didn't tell me your last name, why'd anybody hide it like that? I know that you're an Uchiha! Come on now, use your Sharingan. I wanna have a battle with you that way.", Naruto said.

"Look Naruto, I don't know why you think I'm an Uchiha, but I am not. Will you please stop that?", Yamato said.

"Fine, sensei."

Yamato was almost relieved that he'd drop the topic for good but he didn't know about Naruto's stubbornness.

"-- If you're not doing it voluntarily, I'll make you do it!", Naruto declared.

For a moment Yamato thought he heard laughter from where the other teacher duo was standing on a tree away from them. He ignored it knowing that they surely must be having fun watching the drama that Naruto was creating here unfold.

Although before he could say anything else, Naruto charged at him. He was now concentrating on parrying the blows since Naruto seemed to be attacking more aggressively than before. From what he thought, the most probable reason was exactly what Naruto said, to force him to activate his Sharingan.

Hell, he'd even activate it to stop the kid…..if only he had it, for Kami's sake! What was he supposed to do now except for wait until Naruto calms down a bit. But waiting wasn't as easy as it sounded, as he had his hands full of an obstinate child none other than Naruto himself.

Now, Naruto wasn't showing any signs of giving up at all, as he striked with more power and speed with every blow. He knew that he might not have any chance to win once his opponent goes serious but that's quite better than him holding back completely. He wanted him to acknowledge his own power not only by words but by actions too.

The increased speed wasn't giving Yamato a hard time as much as the power behind it. Quickly making some distance between them, Yamato weaved a few hand signs quickly and used a jutsu to push Naruto back without actually harming him……very much.

Suiton : Mizurappa (Water Style : Wild Water wave)

He let out a huge stream of water flowing towards Naruto at high speed in hopes of catching him off guard.

But Naruto didn't even hesitate as he too weaved some hand signs and slammed his hands on the ground.

Doton : Doryūheki (Earth Style : Mud Wall)

Soon enough, a wall erupted from the ground in front of him obstructing the path of wave into which it crashed in a matter of few seconds. Naruto just jumped over it and continued on his path running on the water smoothly.

'Wh-What?! I thought I saw him use Raiton before. Did he trick me? Did he manipulate my Earth style barrier using his own? Yeah, no matter how improbable, that must be it.', Yamato thought wide eyed.

Naruto yet again surprised him as he weaved a different set of hand signs this time and shouted,

Suiton : Suidan no jutsu (Water Style : Water Bullet)

A stream of water followed the straight path and Yamato was directly in line with it. He could've countered it somehow but was too gripped in astonishment. As the stream made its way towards him he thought,

'Suiton?! No way, I'm definitely sure he had used Doton. Then why is he able to use Suiton? He's just a kid. I'm starting to think it might just be a really good Genjutsu that I'm trapped in. Kai. Kai. Kai, damnit!'

The water jet hit him head on as he just had enough time and the reflexes to cross his arms in front of him and skidded backwards due to the pressure that was exerted upon him.

When he looked up to where the attack came from after it ceased, he found a widely grinning Naruto.

"What happened Sensei? Still not convinced enough to fight me seriously?", he shouted.

Yamato was about to make another exasperated remark but was cut off instantly as Naruto shouted again,

"I hope you will be after this!"

In a split second, the water behind him splashed from within and a figure flipped out holding a sword like weapon. Yamato only had the time to turn his head during which he barely saw the Naruto he was talking to burst into a cloud of smoke connoting that it was just another one of his shadow clones, before saw Naruto himself who was almost on top of him swinging his chakra covered Bokken on him.

"About time you activate that damn Sharingaaaaan!", Naruto shouted hoping to catch him off guard so that he would have no option other than to rely on his dōjutsu.

Alas, he didn't know that even if Yamato would have wanted to he just couldn't. Although, it did make him reveal his unique ability as he had almost just enough time to interlock his fingers and palm in the sign of Serpent.

With incredible speed, wooden pillars erupted from the ground as Yamato ducked to avoid getting hit. Before Naruto could make contact, his Bokken was blocked by one of the wooden trunks. The other ones coiled around Naruto and gripped him all around rendering him completely immobile.

For the first time in the whole scuffle, it was Naruto who had been baffled and was at a loss for words. Not that Yamato was any less awed, but the one unusually calm was Naruto.

"Hey wait what? This is Mokuton. But it's supposed to have only been used by the Shodaime Hokage. No one else could master it for such a long time. How can you do it then? Oh, I see. The Sharingan, huh? It's supposed to cast one of the most powerful Genjutsu if I remember correctly. You really are an impressive Uchiha, Sensei! Guess I lost.", Naruto said.

"Don't you say that again, ever! I already told you I don't belong to the Uchiha. And frankly, I suck at Genjutsu. As for my last name, there is none. Now if we're done with this, let's talk about your Genjutsu first!", Yamato declared.

"Right back at you, Sensei! I suck at Genjutsu too. And don't give me that story. I mean, how can you use Wood Style if it had went extinct with the First Hokage? Even old man Sandaime can't use it.", Naruto retorted.

However before the conversation could escalate, both Yūgao and Hayate interrupted them.

"Okay okay guys, relax. We know both of you.must be quite surprised with each other, but trust me, we were too when we met you. Tenz-- Yamato can you please release him now?", Yūgao said.

"Sure. I guess nothing will come out if we keep arguing. I'm actually ashamed I lost my cool, even if what I saw seemed virtually impossible.", Yamato said releasing Naruto as the wooden vines traced their path back into the ground.

"Phew! I felt like my chakra was being drained or something. But now I feel okay.", Naruto said dusting off his clothes.

"Okay, so now let's clear up the--", Yūgao started but was interjected.

"First will be how he can use the Wood Style which is supposedly extinct! Anything else can wait until later.", Naruto said.

Yamato sighed but knew he'd have to do this before he got his chance for the questions.

"You're correct. Only Lord Shodaime Hokage had the ability to manipulate Wood Style. The fact that I'm able to use it is exactly because of that. His cells were implanted into me and hence I got this ability.", he explained.

"But your body must have rejected the transplanted cells instantly or vice versa. You'd explode into pieces before your body can even start to adapt. There's no way it could have happened.", Naruto stopped, "Unless--"

"I don't think further details would be relevant. Although I'm impressed by your knowledge of the human body, I must say.", Yamato said.

Naruto already understood how it would have happened to his teacher. The only time the body would've adapted to the foreign matter and incorporated into its own would be when he was an infant since they could've merged with his own totipotent stem cells. It would've been a high risk experiment whenever it was conducted and Yamato was fortunate enough to be alive.

On the other hand, there might have been numerous children who would've died like guinea pigs in an experiment. After all if it was that successful, would've more Mokuton users be walking around in Konoha? The mere thought of this sent a shiver up his spine as to who could be cruel enough to attempt such a diabolical act.

"Now if that's clear, would you tell me why did I see you using two different Nature Releases perfectly?", Yamato asked.

"Well, duh! Because I did use them, of course. And don't tell me you're so dumb that you didn't even realize I weakened your Earth style barrier using Raiton. Poor observation skills, Sensei.", Naruto said.

"What?! But how can you-- and hey, I did see that but ignored it because I already had seen you using two different natures clearly! What the hell is going on? Why can this kid use three different chakra natures?!", Yamato said looking at Naruto and Yūgao-Hayate back and forth.

"Well obviously because the author wanted me to. Get it inside your head Sensei, I'm the shounen protagonist here. The story revolves around me.", Naruto said.

(A/N: Hey Naruto wtf dude?! Don't break the fourth wall here! Others will realise I'm upto something. XD)

"What?!" "What?!" "What?!", asked the trio.

"Umm, I actually meant what type of a question is that. I was just trying to be sarcastic. I can use different chakra natures because I have an affinity to them, obviously.", Naruto said. (A/N: Nice save there, kid!)

All of them deadpanned at his statement but then Yamato said, "But still. THREE nature affinities?! That's something quite rare, I've never ever seen someone like that before."

Now it was time for the others to be silent waiting for one another to hope someone will stand up to let the cat out of the bag. Ultimately it was Hayate since both his student and his girlf-- ahem….fellow teacher were looking at him expectantly.

"Four.", Hayate said plainly.

"What?", Yamato asked.

"Naruto possesses not three but……..FOUR...different...chakra...natures.", Hayate said with his hands folded and eyes keenly on Yamato to defend himself in case Yamato thinks they were some novice ninja impostors or dispel some Genjutsu or……literally anything, given what the situation was. He also didn't cough since he was slowly speaking the entire sentence.

"What you said, my friend, just now is fuc-- absolutely ridiculous! That's not something rare, it's virtually next to impossible! I'm thinking I'll go nuts if I stay here any longer.", Yamato said.

"Get a hold of yourself, dude. You've been…*coughs*….. an ANBU for so long now. Don't you guys have to prepare for anything and...*coughs*….. everything?", Hayate said.

"Anything and everything, yes. But about all which is unexpected, not un...real.", Yamato said.

He added, "Hey, speaking of which, weren't you guys surprised when you found out about it?"

Both Hayate and Yūgao looked at each other while Yamato raised an eyebrow as we once again delve into another--

(Flashback) ;)

It had been a few months since Naruto started his training. Once his Ninjutsu training with the Hokage had been completed, both Hayate and Yūgao were on their way to meet him.

Although this time they decided to go pick him up from where he trained for a change rather than wait for him at the training grounds like they did mostly. To say they were surprised to see the changed landscape would be an understatement.

The area beside the pond was a complete mess. And it was even more surprising since the Hokage training grounds were maintained on high priority. That meant whatever happened was not too far back in the past.

The ground was erupted at a few places, water was accumulated in many places on the ground and many of the rocks seemed to be shattered. Scanning with their gaze around, they found Naruto lying down somewhere in the middle of it.

He was breathing heavily and his eyes were closed but slightly squinted indicating that he wasn't asleep or out cold, just tired. Sensing both of them approach he opened his eyes and said,

"Good morning, Sensei. What a surprise, you came here to pick me up?"

By this time both of them were on his side with one folding his hands and the other keeping them on her waist.

"What could have happened to make the scenery so beautiful around here, Naruto?", Yūgao asked in a sarcastic way which seemed obvious.

"Why don't you guys set up a picnic here then and I'll give you some privacy by going home?", Naruto retorted cheekily.

Yūgao blushed knowing that Naruto didn't exactly know what things could happen in privacy such as this. At the same time, she was also irked that he had like this many a times quite craftily got out of punishments or teasings.

"Answer the question, Naruto.", Hayate said.

"I…kind of…….zapped myself since there was so much water around.", Naruto said with an unusually embarrassed face.

"You zapped yourself? As in…..electrified?", Yūgao asked with a piqued interest.

"Well, duh! What else does that mean?", Naruto said.

"But how? There's no electric line anywhere nearby.", she asked.

Naruto remembered that he had not told them about his nature affinities. First he thought about pulling a prank by zapping them, but then dropped it knowing that he'd have to endure some sort of punishment and he was a little too tired at the moment for that.

"Let me show you. Please stand back.", Naruto said.

Both of them shrugged and took a few steps back.

Naruto formed a few hand signs in succession and put them on the ground as he crouched. Before anyone had a chance to say anything, a mud wall erupted from the earth. It wasn't perfect yet, as the shape and strength still needed work, but that was far from what the others were thinking.

"But I thought he had a Water affinity?", Hayate said.

"What was that about being zapped then?", Yūgao asked.

Unseen by them, Naruto had already started to weave a second set of hand signs behind the wall. A few moments later, he was on top of the wall and a simple press of his palm on the wall sent an electric wave throughout breaking it easily. He wasn't scratched a bit and landed feet first easily on the ground.

Both Hayate and Yūgao had their jaws on the ground too as they were at a loss for words.

"Naruto, how did you learn Doton and Raiton? It takes years…..*coughs*…… to master one chakra nature but three at once sounds really far-fetched.", Hayate said.

"It's because I have affinity for them all. And before we have this discussion all over again, first let me tell you I have one more. Although I can't control it properly so I don't use it.", Naruto said.

"Don't exaggerate it. It's already rare enough to hear that. Consider me surprised!", Yūgao said.

Naruto shrugged knowing that some things are really hard to digest unless proved otherwise. He formed the last set of hand seals and an invisible sphere of wind started to form in his hands.

Wind Style : Spiralling Wind Ball

Although halfway through, it started getting unstable and exploded point blank between the three. All of them were thrown by the shock wave several metres away skidding on their backs.

"See, told ya!", Naruto finished.

At this point, both of them wouldn't even have raised a single question if someone out of the blue told them that an alien race would plan to destroy earth someday. (A/N : See what I said there. ;)

(Flashback over)

"No, sure we were surprised but nothing unusual. Definitely not freak out like you did right now.", Yūgao said with an absolutely incredible poker face.

Even Hayate was surprised but kept quiet since it was better for him too. Yamato was looking at them with a blank expression wondering if he seriously was over reacting.

But then he understood that they were bluffing since no one could take in such a fact easily and die to the fact that Naruto had rolled his eyes at the exact same time.

However he didn't call them out in front of Naruto and made a mental note to tell them later.

"Fine, whatever. You win. Now I think that's enough for the introductions. I'd rather not see anything new for at least today. Why don't you guys leave him in my care now and go do your work or something?", Yamato said.

"He's all yours. We'll be here in the evening. Make sure not to overdo it, or he'd have a hard time training with us afterwards. Later.", Yūgao said.

Yamato just nodded as the duo left the training grounds in a Shunshin. He turned towards Naruto as he said,

"Any questions before we start?"

"Yeah. Since this is my first day training with you, can you please treat me to ramen afterwards?"

---

After some light Taijutsu spar, both Yamato and Naruto sat down in the shade to talk about things while taking a breather.

"As you may already know, our primary objective of training is to harness the colossal amount of chakra that is sealed inside of you. You must now also realise why I was chosen for this job. Mokuton is a special technique that can suppress the power of Nine Tails. Although to be honest, I'm not even a fraction of what our skilled Lord Shodaime Hokage was.", Yamato said.

He added, "However that won't be all. Basic ninja skills are necessary before learning the advanced ones. You're already in the academy where you'll be taught all of that. Now here's the deal. You don't have to just learn it like any other student to pass. We'll work on how to excel at it."

"I get what you're saying but can you elaborate?", Naruto asked.

"You might have heard the saying 'A ninja who has practiced 10000 moves is not as deadly as the one who has practiced one move 10000 times.'. Every small skill like throwing shuriken/kunai properly or laying traps quickly are essential for a shinobi. These may not be as flashy as Ninjutsu but are a step you can't skip. No matter how tall a structure is, it doesn't stand for long as long as the foundation is weak.", Yamato said.

Naruto noticed that Yamato skipped a moment after saying foundation but didn't ask right then.

"Hayate and Yūgao are training you specifically in Kenjutsu and that's good. I'll talk to them about teaching you how to use shorter blades or heavier weapons as well, if they haven't already thought about it. In the meantime, we'll also keep practicing Ninjutsu. I'm not Lord Hokage but still I can help you with Doton and Suiton at least.", Yamato said.

Naruto was an enthusiastic kid and all, but keeping up with the expectations of everyone seemed a little tougher after hearing it all. This was also reflected in his expression as Yamato noticed it and asked with a smile,

"Getting cold feet, are we?

"No, that's not it. I want to keep getting stronger and all, but--", Naruto stopped at a loss for words.

"It happens with everyone, kid. You just have to endure and keep going. That's what it means to be a shinobi. Truth be told, I wasn't exactly on the same page with Lord Hokage when he told me that I'll have to train a kid like you who has barely gotten into the ninja academy to control the power which could destroy nations altogether. But watching you here today actually made me this that you can do it.", Yamato encouraged.

"Is that how you really feel or are you just trying to cheer me up? I have mostly seen you serious faced unlike Hayate sensei, Yūgao sensei or Jiji.", Naruto asked.

"Look, I can't go into details but listen. When I was your age, I was raised by some hardliner ninjas. It was Lord Hokage who took me under his wing afterwards and I became who I am today because of that. He said that he saw potential in me and that I'd be able to become a great asset to the Leaf Village as a shinobi.", Yamato said.

He added after a pause, "Why I'm telling you this, is because I see the same potential he was talking about then inside you, and much much greater. You are quite strong as of today, and I can write it down for you that it was because of the hard work you did until now. You falter here, all that would be for nothing. Keep on enduring whatever hardships come your way, until you achieve your goal. I heard that it was to become the Hokage, and it would take nothing less than that to achieve it."

Naruto felt refreshed after hearing that and stood up as he said, "Arigatou, Sensei! I was a little gloomy for a bit but now your words have fueled me again. I'm ready to go whenever you are!"

Yamato smiled just a little bit knowing that this training definitely won't be a waste of time after all.

---

Time Skip (Few days later)

"Ugggghhhhhh……..I can't do it, Sensei! We've been at this for so much time and nothing has happened. Isn't there any other method?", Naruto said as he laid on his back after sitting upright for many hours now.

"No Naruto, there isn't. Only you can reach the inside of your mind, no one else. You've got to focus harder or it won't happen.", Yamato said bending his elbow after keeping his palm straight at him for the same amount of time.

There was no special type of training or anything until now. Just plain old Naruto trying to concentrate and Yamato keeping the Kyūbi at bay in case it goes out of control.

This was because there couldn't be anything else that could be done to have him use or control Kyūbi's power before there is at least some sort of contact between them.

"But Sensei, for how long will we continue this? I don't see an end. I could sit here we everyday for my whole life and still there's no certainty that it will occur.", Naruto said.

"Well, last time it happened due to your elevated emotional state as you told me. Guess I should throw you off a cliff and let's see what happens.", Yamato wondered.

"Haha, very funny! Don't you dare do that ever, I'm warning you. Just find some non-violent way, dattebayo!", Naruto said.

"Unless you're high on emotions, the seal will hold quite durably. Lord Fourth wasn't some joke, kid. He must have kept all measures to keep the Kyūbi at bay so that a calamity like that doesn't happen ever again.", Yamato said.

"Yeah, I know.", Naruto said putting his palm on his abdomen.

"But, if Lord Third thinks that it's best for the village, then we don't have to worry about anything. Let's keep trying.", Yamato said.

"You're right. Jiji always cares for the village and everyone in it. So anyways, I was thinking that can't we just loosen the seal or something so I can get in?", Naruto said.

"You idiot! Did you even listen what I was saying? The seal is the only thing that's keeping the Kyūbi from getting out.", Yamato scolded.

"Sorry, I guess I'm getting too impatient because of all this.", Naruto said.

Yamato contemplated for a few moments quietly before speaking up, "On second thought, your idea may not seem so bad after all."

"What? But you said--", Naruto started.

Yamato put up a finger and interrupted in between, and said, "Don't get the wrong idea. I'm not tampering with the seal. Actually I can't even if I tried, because that would need a key. Anyways, coming back to the point, what I can do is temporarily suppress the effect of the seal that's stopping you from reaching out inside your mind.", Yamato said.

He added, "But keep in mind, this is will only be for a few moments. Even with Mokuton, there's not much I can do to a seal of that level. You will have to have all your focus concentrated in that moment, or whatever the result be, it definitely won't be good for you and probably not for everyone around too."

Naruto nodded in understanding as he once again sat up folding his legs and his hands straight resting on the knees in a meditating pose.

After a few minutes toning his breathing and relaxing his body, he said, "Ready when you are, Sensei!"

Yamato nodded and formed a seal on his palm. He waited for a few seconds to reaffirm his decision but then with a 'The hell with it!' moment placed it on the Doble Tetragram seal that had kept the demon fox contained for many years until now.

Naruto felt nothing initially, but kept his focus throughout and the suppression of the seal took effect. He was suddenly pulled inside somewhere in darkness but in reality which was actually what they were hoping to achieve after all

His body became absolutely still as he was still in the meditation pose.

Yamato was concerned for a moment and thus said, "Hey, Naruto. You okay? Did it work?"

Getting no response, he knew that it might or might not have worked. But if it did, he'd have to give him some time. So he just sat there once again with his palm in the direction of Naruto working on his job to keep the Nine Tails' power suppressed.

---

Naruto once again found himself in a familiar place that he had once encountered many years ago. Although this time he knew what it was, and also what he had come here to do.

He walked through the same pipelines, covered seemingly endlessly with darkness with the sound of his feet splashing quietly in the water. He knew where the presence of the fox spirit was located and cautiously made his way towards it.

A tiny bit of fear was creeping up in him, which was actually natural since not just about anyone could watch a legendary demon fox in front of him and not wet his pants. Naruto was trying to shrug it off but it wasn't going to, since a bigger part of his fear was actually anxiety at what he was supposed to do now.

At the end of the dark tunnel there was the same old room with pipes all around and also a huge cage in the centre behind which was contained the gigantic creature in the form of a fox.

Naruto looked around and remembered the time when Shizune would be teaching him and when he related everything to ramen she'd frustratingly say that his mind was a garbage dump or something.

'I guess Shizune nee-chan wasn't that far from the truth.', he thought.

He took a few steps forward but didn't get too close to the cage or he'd have to face a nail from the fox's claw like last time.

"Hey, Nine Tails!", Naruto shouted.

He didn't know the reason, but all the uncertainty and doubt left his mind instantly as soon as he said these words aslnd the only thing left now was his will power and courage.

An eye could be seen opening slowly on the other side which radiated nothing but pure evil and malice from its giant red pupils. It waited for a few moments before addressing the boy in front of him.

"What are you doing here, you brat?! Go back wherever you came from and don't disturb my slumber.", the Nine Tailed Fox said.

"I'm not here to disturb your sleep, Nine Tails. But I do want to talk to you!", Naruto said.

"Hahahahaha, why do you think a mighty creature like myself who has lived through eons in this world would consider wasting my time talking to some lowly human, and with a child even then?", Kyūbi said.

"Well, firstly we are already talking. Secondly, don't consider me immature just because I'm a kid. And lastly, if you think you're better than humans, why are you stuck in someone such as me, huh?!", Naruto retorted.

The Nine Tails growled showing its majestic fangs in anger and a little frustration at the remark. The effect it desired would have on Naruto although, wasn't seen even for a moment.

"I swear, if it weren't for that damned Fourth Hokage, I'd be free from these containments and do as I please. And yet, you humans do nothing but try to restrain us beasts only for the purpose that you strengthen your own militaristic power using the mighty strength that we possess. Make no mistake, I will achieve freedom and when I do, you for one, will be dead.", Kyūbi said.

"Don't blame Lord Fourth, you stupid fox! If it weren't for him, our village would have been turned into rubble and ashes. Courtesy of you! So don't try telling me again that you're just an innocent creature that was just passing by like any other tourist.", Naruto replied.

"Just get lost, you annoying brat! You'd fail to understand what the truth is even if I tell you, which is in any case quite the opposite of what I intend to do to you.", Kyūbi growled and flared it's chakra but was immediately back to normal again.

'What is this force which could supress my power? The seal holds my power, it doesn't suppress it. No, it's something else. I'll have to find that out too.', Kyūbi thought.

"Yeah whatever. Try what you can. I'm not afraid, I'll stop you. I am not letting you or anyone lay a hand (or maybe a paw?) on my village. That is my duty as a citizen of the village and as someone who aspires to be the Hokage.", Naruto said.

"Hahahaha, you? The Hokage? Freaking hilarious. Haven't heard something like that in the last thousands of years. The Fourth Hokage was a skilled genius, and you on the other hand, are a completely foolish kid. Forget fighting me, you'd be lucky if you realise what happened before you get crushed beneath my paws.", Kyūbi taunted.

"You'll be the one that's under my feet before you know it, you stupid fox! Just you wait until I train hard and become stronger. Even stronger than Lord Fourth or any Hokage that has ever existed!", Naruto exclaimed.

"I have no business with you. Do what you wish. After all, it won't be long before I'm free from this prison and the first human I'm going after would be you.", Kyūbi growled and closed it's eyes.

"I'm not the one inside the cage so don't go thinking you can do whatever you want. If you're gonna be using my body to live inside, you'll have to pay up rent as well. And I'll be taking your chakra as a currency for that. Do you understand?!", Naruto declared.

The Nine Tails was about to tell him to go to hell for Kami's sake and let him rest here in peace but then a brainwave hit him.

'Maybe it won't be so bad after all, I'll let my chakra leak away slowly so the seal would gradually weaken and when the time comes, I'll take full control of his body.', Kyūbi thought.

"You entertain me if nothing else, kid. Tell you what, I'll let you borrow my chakra whenever you need it. Need it, not want it.", Kyūbi said.

"Huh? That was easy. Well, saves me the trouble. But wait, how can I believe that whatever you said was true? What if you turn your back and deny it later?", Naruto asked with some hesitation.

"Don't date compare me with those pathetic humans you have in that village of yours, brat. I am one of the mightiest creations on this planet and I have my pride. But whatever, think what you want. I don't care about what your opinion is anyways.", Kyūbi growled going back to sleep.

Naruto wanted to talk more but knew that this was the best he could get out from that fox at this point of time. He looked around for a few more minutes and found literally nothing but pipes and water. He focused on going back into reality from his mindscape and succeeded in a few seconds.

He opened his eyes and said, "Phew. Coming out is really quite easier than trying to go in, dattebayo!"

Yamato looked at him surprised which was evident as he blinked his eyes multiple times and said, "Wait, what happened? Didn't it work? I thought for a moment you did it."

"What're you taking about, Sensei? I already did all that and I'm back here. What were you doing all this time, dozing off?", Naruto asked.

"What? B-but you've barely been like that for like fifteen seconds before you opened your eyes again. Did you really manage to have a conversation with the Nine Tailed Fox?", Yamato asked.

"No, I was there for like fifteen minutes. Maybe since it's inside my mind, the sense of time must be different for both of us.", Naruto said.

"Are you positive? You're not telling this of get out of this training, right?", Yamato asked doubtfully.

"No, I am absolutely positive I saw a monster fox who threatened to kill me along with this vilage and probably this entire human race if he could. There's only one way to prove that and I don't think any one of us would like to watch that happen. Same thing again after all the trouble Lord Fourth went through.", Naruto said.

"Okay okay. You win. I believe you. No need to be so contentious. So how did it go? Judging by your behaviour it doesn't seem like you could get any points across very well.", Yamato said raising his hands in defeat and then being serious again.

"Yeah, that stupid fox is so annoying. Acting all high and mighty. Telling me that humans are trash or something. Just wait until I leave him behind eating dust.", Naruto said and exhaled sharply.

"You can't outmatch the Kyūbi's power as easy and simple as you make it seem. Even Hokage level shinobi can't do that in a battle of strength. It's a different story although since we're ninja, we can always outfox the opponent.", Yamato said laughing at his own pun.

Naruto stood there with a deadpanned look at his poor attempt to make it humorous. But he ignored it too uninterested to comment on it.

"I don't care about that. I'm gonna be the strongest Hokage of all! And if Shodaime Hokage could do it, then I'll be able to do it too, one way or the other.", he declared.

"Yeah yeah. I heard it. I've been hearing that quite a lot and your training has barely started. Don't you ever want to be a little more……quiet?", Yamato said.

"What, you don't want me to remain motivated?", Naruto asked.

"It's not that, just keep it to yourself. Use that energy in your training rather than announcing it to everyone every 15 minutes.", Yamato said.

"Believe it (or not), saying it out loud gives me more energy and enthusiasm. And I don't have any shortage of energy if that's what you were implying in any way.", Naruto replied.

"Just…….nevermind. We're going off topic here. What happened between you and the Nine Tails?", Yamato asked.

"Nothing much…….I kinda threatened him to give me chakra and he said yes.", Naruto said.

Yamato was standing there with his jaw hitting the ground comically alongwith protruding eyes.

He retorted with a baffled expression, "Yeah, right. Do you take me for a fool?! That is a demon fox who has the power to annihilate the whole village in one blow. You want me to believe you asked and it just relented? Like yeah, whatever you want Naruto-sama?"

"Hahaha, that look on your face. No, it wasn't like that at all. He was quite annoying as I told you already and didn't even talk straight.", Naruto said.

"Phew, this is not the time for jokes.", Yamato breathed a sigh of relief.

"I never lied though. He did accept to give me chakra if the need arises. I can't be sure that it would actually be true but judging by how high and mighty he showed himself bathing in pride, I doubt that he'll back down ", Naruto said

"Wow, every moment brings twists and turns when I'm with you Naruto. And I guess it would rather take control over your body later rather than dying alongwith you if you're in a life-or-death situation.", Yamato theorized.

"So he would die if I were to die too?", Naruto asked.

"Well, temporarily.", Yamato answered

"Meaning?"

"Well…... About that, sometime later Naruto."

"What? Why?"

"We are going off topic again."

"Aww, that's not faiiiiiiirrrrrrr."

"..."

"Fiiiiiine."

"Good, now this situation however it may have turned has been better for us. I was hoping we'd mange to have some sort of communication after some tries but you've as always exceeded my expectations.", Yamato praised

"Thanks Sensei! So what do we do now?", Naruto asked.

"Now, back to the basics..", Yamato said as he pulled out a pack of kunai and shuriken.

"Awwwwwww maaaannnn, boooorrrriiiinnngggggg."

---

Scene Break and Time Skip

(At the academy)

"Nara Shikamaru."

"Pre…..*yawn*……sent."

"Uchiha Sasuke."

"Present, Sensei."

"Uzumaki Naruto."

"Yes, here! I'm here, Sensei!"

"You don't have to shout everytime, Naruto. I hear you just alright.", Iruka said.

"Hehe, sorry.", Naruto said adjusting the glasses on his head.

"Ok class, today's topic is about……", Iruka started.

It had been a few months since Naruto had joined the academy and everything was going smoothly. Smooth, theoritically. Not in a practical sense. At least what was bound to happen was definitely happening, if nothing else.

"Naruto, you've scored the lowest marks in the test this time. How many times do I have to tell you to improve your score and study more?!", Iruka scolded.

"Sorry Sensei, I'll try better next time!", Naruto said.

"And Shikamaru, can you at least lift the pencil and write your name first? I had to go through previous tests and compare your handwriting.", he added.

"Write my name, what a drag!", Shikamaru replied with half closed eyes.

"Why do I have to put up with a bunch of kids like you, uhhhh?! Learn something from Sasuke here, he scored the highest marks in all the previous tests and has the best practical skills out of any of you.", Iruka said.

As always most of the boys looked towards Sasuke enviously and the girls with animated hearts in their eyes.

Sasuke though, was collected, smiling and didn't make any attempt to brag or belittle anyone everytime he scored well. It was because he had never seen Itachi do it despite him being stronger than most of the ninjas in their clan or even the entire village, and Sasuke wanted to follow in his elder brother's footsteps as he respected him a lot more than anyone else.

A few boys didn't care as much though, including Naruto who had went back to scribble some formulas on the back of his notebook which looked like doodling but which only he could know what they were meant for. Shikamaru, who had already gone to sleep after listening to Iruka. Choji, who was munching on his potato chips as always trying to hide the pack in his bag like Kiba who was trying to do the same thing but with his puppy.

(A/N: I'm referring to the hiding part here, not the eating part. xD)

Coming back to Naruto, he had done an excellent job at disguising his abilities. Despite having numerous chances and impulses to show off, nor did he once act on it. No one in his class had any idea that he was far ahead of what he seemed, or far ahead of any of them too. At least that's what he wanted to believe.

Iruka left the class for lunch break. As always, everyone scattered around and chattered loudly.

"Hey Naruto, what're you doing?", Sasuke asked.

"Huh, oh this? Nothing...in particular.", Naruto replied wanting to lie as less as possible.

"I think you should study more. You won't be scolded by Sensei anymore then. And it is not easy to graduate if the score is very low throughout the year. So I hope you will try harder because I also don't want you to fail the Academy test.", Sasuke said.

Naruto looked at him and knew that he was genuinely concerned, so replied, "Thanks Sasuke. I will. Don't worry, as I've always said I won't let anything get in my way of becoming the Hokage!"

"Anyways, how is your elder brother doing these days? It's been so long since I last met him.", Naruto asked wanting to change the topic.

It was in a sense true as Itachi only came a few times to pick up Sasuke and talked to both of them for a little bit

Although in actuality, Naruto knew that Itachi had came to see Sasuke numerous times during the Academy hours. His stealth skills were exceptional but Naruto's sensory abilities outmatched them completely. But Naruto never showed even the slightest bit that he had known about him the entire time. As oblivious as one could seem, he did.

"Yeah. He's quite busy these days with his duties. Even I'm unable to spend time with him. So I think you should probably forget about meeting him again soon, haha.", Sasuke said.

"Aww, that's bad. He's a nice guy to talk to.", Naruto said.

"Of course he is. He's the pride of the Uchiha clan! One day, I'll be just like him.", Sasuke said.

"Haha, then maybe I'll try to be like him too!", Naruto joked.

Both of them bursted into laughter. It wasn't much later after that the girls started swarming around Sasuke. Naruto gladly took the chance and slipped away from the group.

"Later Sasuke, see ya!", Naruto's words reached Sasuke's ears but he was out of sight as soon as he said that.

"Well, however your scores may be, at least you don't have to put up with this, Naruto ", Sasuke internally voiced exasperated.

---

Scene Break and Time Skip

(Somewhere secluded on Hokage tower)

There were two people standing under the dim evening twilight. It was getting dark but not darker than what tragedy had taken place in the Hidden Leaf village.

"I apologize, Lord Hokage. It had to be done. The clan members were going to attempt the coup d'etat tonight.", the shadowy figure explained.

"I see. It's very unfortunate to hear this news. I deeply regret that I couldn't do anything to save my village through the means of peace. And to put such a burden on a shinobi like you at such a young age, I have miserably failed in my duty as the Hokage. Still I must say this, Konoha will forever be indebted to you, Itachi.", the Fire Shadow bowed his head.

"Please My Lord, you are the one who has kept the best interests of the village in mind more than anyone else. I am merely playing my role in helping to protect the village as much as I possibly can.", Itachi replied still kneeling down in front of him.

"Perhaps, if Minato was here he'd have handled the situation well and it wouldn't have come to this. I guess it's time I handed over my title to a suitable successor. To be honest, I was waiting for you to grow up into a shinobi worthy enough to lead the village. And without a doubt, you are already like that. Unfortunately, the circumstances are far opposite from what I had wanted.", the Hokage sighed.

"If I may, Lord Hokage? It's my wish that you continue to be the Hokage. It may sound selfish of me but I need you to assure me that my younger brother, Uchiha Sasuke, will never be harmed in this village.", Itachi said.

"Of course, you don't need to ask for it. But why do you think anyone will want to inflict harm upon him?", the Hokage asked.

"My orders were clear, Sir. Leave no survivors. As you know, Sasuke is still alive. And I wish him to be like that from now on too. He is to be the legacy of the Uchiha.", Itachi said.

"What do you mean orders? I gave no order to take any actions against the clan. Although I had doubts why you acted on your own, I chose to let them go. But now you're telling me that you were following someone's orders?", Hiruzen asked sternly.

"I was ordered by Lord Danzou, Sir. I had assumed that he was acting on your behalf. But I can't trust him with my brother's life.", Itachi confessed.

"Danzou, that damned old war hawk. I won't let this go easily. I will personally see that no harm comes to young Sasuke by Danzou or any other person in this village. Rest assured about that, but now what about you? I never would have wished for such a fine shinobi like you to be disgraced as a rogue ninja. Keep in contact with me, and ask if you need any help.", the Hokage said.

"To be named as a rogue ninja is not a disgrace to me in the least, Lord Hokage. It is in essence of actually being a rogue ninja that is disgraceful. I am Itachi Uchiha of the Leaf, and forever will be as long as I shall live.", he said.

"I wish the next generation of shinobi are just like you, Konoha will surely have a bright future.", the Hokage said with a tiny glimpse of smile on his face for the first time after hearing the tragic news.

"I'm honoured. But I think I should take my leave now.", Itachi said and disappeared hastily.

The Hokage picked this up quite quickly as he turned around maintaining a calm expression only to find someone who just arrived there.

"Naruto, what are you doing here? And how did you know I was here?", he asked.

"Well, duh! Did you forget Jiji, I'm a master class sensor. *sunglasses emoji* xD ", Naruto said.

"Yeah, how silly of me. But that doesn't answer why are you here. What was so urgent you couldn't wait?", the Hokage asked.

"You're asking what was so urgent? Let me ask you what was so urgent that you had to call all of my teachers at once. Who am I supposed to train with now?", Naruto said in his usual loud voice

"Important ANBU affairs, Naruto. It's something that requires all of them, including Hayate. You'll have to train on your own until they come back. I can't do anything about it.", he said in a tone which said 'Don't argue, just quietly follow whatever instructions I gave or there'll be consequences.'

Naruto gulped and nodded saying, "I understand. I'll go train on my own."

"Very well then. You may leave. Now.", the Hokage ordered as Naruto prepared to leave.

"Hai!", he said as he disappeared in a Body Flicker.

After leaping through a few buildings, Naruto stopped on a roof of a tall building and released a deep breath he didn't know he was holding.

"Phew! I didn't know Jiji could be so scary. Well he's not the Hokage just for it's name. I must have interrupted him at a really bad time or in a bad mood. And if all the ANBU force is being summoned, then it must be about something big.", he said out loud.

'Well, I guess I should just go home and train. It's already getting dark so no benefit going to the training fields and back. I also have academy classes tomorrow morning.', he thought speeding through the village towards his home.

---

Scene Break and Time Skip

(Uchiha District)

It was a scene nobody would willingly want to encounter in the part of village where the Uchiha lived, the word 'lived' literally being true as the entire clan had now been slaughtered.

The bodies of the clan members lay as lifeless as dolls who had been disposed of, ruthlessly. The streets were soaked not with water but blood.

Blood, of innocent women, as well as children.

Blood, of each and every one person who lived there.

Blood, of an entire clan.

That very blood, shimmered in the moonlight at the sight of which even the most stone-hearted person would get shivers up his spine.

The Hokage had already reached the place with his ANBU teams and sealed it to restrict any access to general public.

The ANBU were assigned to different parts of the area to collect the corpses and look for survivors, if any. Most of them were under the Hokage's direct command but many were also Root members.

"Hokage-sama! We found a survivor. Identified as Uchiha Sasuke, son of the now deceased head of the Uchiha clan, Uchiha Fugaku. Status, stable condition. He doesn't seem to have any life threatening injuries. But we've already sent him to the hospital. He's fine, at least physically. Further investigation will only be possible when he wakes up.", a female ANBU with violet hair reported.

"Good. Make sure he's well protected. He's in quite a danger being the last of Uchiha.", the Third said eyeing Danzou.

"Hai, Hokage-sama!", she said and vanished.

Turning to his old teammate he said, "Danzou, I heard you had given certain orders without consulting with me or taking my permission. It won't go unpunished."

Danzou replied, "With all regards, Lord Hokage, I did what I felt would be in the best interests of the vill--"

"Enough already! No more excuses. Your organization, The ANBU Root, is officially dissolved with immediate effect and as is your position as my second-in-command. You're now nothing more than a member of the advisory council like Koharu and Homura. And you better don't try anything stupid or there'll be consequences.", the Hokage ordered in a low but stern voice.

"You don't know what you're doing, Hiruzen. They weren't going to settle for peaceful negotiations anyways. If I hadn't done this the whole village would have been in a civil war.", Danzou replied.

"One more word, my friend and you'll regret it.", was the only reply he got from the Hokage.

Danzou wasn't one to be intimidated that easily but he knew his limits. Hiruzen was the Hokage and he could very well have him arrested and executed on account of what he had done. Neither could he stage a rebellion without proper planning. So he decided to accept it for now.

"Hai, Hokage-sama.", he said as he bowed his head and left with two of his guards.

Not more than a minute later, he was stopped by one of his own bodyguard making him even more irritated.

"Now what do you --

He was completed taken aback to see a set of menacing crimson eyes known as the Sharingan digging deeply into his own.

"Wha-- What are you doing here?", he asked subconsciously sweating.

"I heard the conversation between you and Hokage-sama there. Doesn't look like there's much left for you to do. And it's good that way. But that's not why I'm here.", he said.

"Just a reminder, Danzou-san. I know for a fact that you love this village as much as I do and wouldn't want anything bad to happen. But, if anything happens to my younger brother, I will forget all the debts that I owe to the village and I will personally see that our enemies get the complete top secret confidential information that I had access to which will surely not be good for Konoha. Consider this as a gentle reminder or a warning for this village, as you may. No one touches Sasuke.", Itachi said in a calm but deadly manner.

He then disappeared into the sky transforming into a flock of crows leaving a stunned and sweating Danzou.

(A/N : Did you guys know that a group of crows is known as "murder"? Gee, don't believe me? Google it!)

"Damn it!", was all he could say out loud.

---

Scene Break and Time Skip

(Shinobi Academy) (Few weeks later)

Naruto watched Sasuke who was sitting all alone sulking in the corner of the class.

It had been some time now that he had heard the news of the massacre of the Uchiha clan. The fact was irrefutable that it was Itachi Uchiha who had committed such a heinous crime and was now a rogue shinobi. Just being tagged as a rogue shinobi is in itself an ultimate disgrace to a ninja, and killing an entire clan on top of that? That too his own? Undeniably inhuman.

And yet, despite all of this, Naruto couldn't help but wonder why would someone like Itachi do all of this. How, was not the question. He was a capable shinobi and considered a genius among all. He could easily pull off something like that with the element of surprise. But why, why did he do it?

He hadn't asked the Hokage anything since he knew that anything not made public was classified information and he wasn't exactly someone who should know about it. Although he did try asking his teachers, but all he got was "Honestly Naruto, we don't know anything about that more than you do. And even if we did, really, do you think we could just tell you anything without having serious consequences? We're ANBU, and you aren't even a ninja yet. Now get going with your training!"

Anyways, that was all in the past now. What he had to do was go to Sasuke and help him through this time. This was his first day at the academy after the incident. And he didn't seem in a good mood either, not that he should be. After all, the one he looked up to the most, was the very person who had ruined his life, it seemed. Why was Sasuke left to live though, was also one of the questions in Naruto's mind.

Making up his mind, he went to Sasuke in hopes of trying to talk to him. He was also worried a little as he had read in medical science that some people go into depression when there is any psychological trauma that could have a great impact. Time wasn't an issue as the lunch break had just started.

"Hey there, Sasuke! How you doing, buddy?", Naruto asked as he was genuinely concerned though there was som hesitation since he didn't know what exactly to expect in reaction.

What he didn't expect though, was no reaction at all. Sasuke just looked at him and went back to look outside the window. Naruto was a little confused as to what happened, so he tried again.

"Sasuke! It's been a few days since I met you. Are you doing fine now?"

Sasuke said in a low but sharp voice without ever turning his gaze from the window, "Get lost, Naruto."

Naruto kept on trying to talk to him despite the cold attitude he was receiving, since he didn't want to break what friendship they had just because he was upset.

"Sasuke, please listen to me. I'm sorry about your loss, I really am. You are bound to be angry and it's okay, but don't get cut off from people or it'll get worse. Trust me, I understand how you feel. And I don't even know what to say about Itachi except that I am as baffled as you must be. Just...talk to someone, anyone, if not me.", Naruto said.

Sasuke had already stopped listening when he heard the name Itachi. Anger flared up inside him and he acted on it immediately as he stood up facing Naruto as soon as he had finished speaking.

"You say you understand how I feel?! Have you ever lost your parents? To your own brother? And with them your entire fucking clan? The one you revered the most suddenly fuck up your life? No you fucking don't Naruto. And how'd you know, you don't even have a clan or had parents in the first place. So just get your shit out of my face!", Sasuke said.

He had said this in a not-so-loud voice but the fangirls sulking around in some distance because their dear Sasuke wouldn't talk to anyone noticed his angry expression. As expected, they made their way to Naruto to beat some sense into him and maybe get a good impression from Sasuke.

On the other hand, Naruto was surprised that Sasuke was using such a tone and language. He had never seen him like this as he was always polite to everyone else before including himself.

"Sasuke cool down I didn't mean to--"

Naruto was pushed away harshly by Sasuke before he could say anything to him. Naruto could've easily blocked or dodged it but it was against his code that no one should be aware of his strength.

The outcome was the he stumbled backwards and into somebody on his side just behind. The force was enough for both of them to lose their balance and trip down on the floor sliding across the wide stairs a bit.

The fangirls ignored Naruto and immediately surrounded Sasuke asking if he's hurt or if Naruto did something. Sakura was the most enthusiastic one but all of them were turned down as he calmed down and left the room as now most of the eyes were fixed upon what was going on.

Meanwhile, Naruto opened his eyes feeling the weight of somebody else on him only to find a light blue set of eyes upon him. What's peculiar was the other person was equally transfixed into the deep ocean blue eyes of Naruto.

"Umm…….Ino?"

Right, it had to be Ino. She was among the fangirls but fell down alongwith Naruto, although she wasn't hurt as she was above him and he felt all the pain.

Anyways, at the moment she was trying to interpret what had happened so suddenly. Not that she fell down, but what she had felt when she looked into the eyes of this young ninja. Her clan had a special ability known throughout the land that they were able to tap into the minds of their opponents. Involuntarily, something of that sort did occur with her, probably.

And that was even more surprising as she felt Naruto to be way more powerful than anyone else in the class. Not to mention he did feel toned under the loose clothes he always wore. Wow, who'd have thought that --

"Hey Ino! Are you listening?", Naruto said taking her out of her thoughts.

"Uhh, Naruto. You idiot! Why'd you have to stumble I to me? Now get the hell away!", she said.

"Umm, okay but you would have to move first.", he said innocently.

She quickly realised that they weren't in a position that she'd want anyone to look at. She quickly stood up and straightened as Sasuke walked out of the room. Well, phew, that was good. Nobody saw them like that.

"You are not to tell anyone about this, okay? If you do I'll punch you so much you won't be able to identify yourself.", Ino said.

"Whatever. It isn't like I would go gossiping about such a small thing. Later.", Naruto said and walked away leaving a fuming Ino who thought she was being ignored.

Naruto although, was more concerned about what happened with Sasuke. He had reached a stage where he was being……violent. Not a good sign, but still, there was something more Naruto could see other than anger, and it was far more reaching than anger.

Ego.

Anger was temporary. But once someone becomes egoistic, it's quite tough to turn back.

He was walking and thinking over it facing downwards when he heard a feminine voice directed at him.

"N-Naruto-san, you're not hurt right?", she said.

"Huh?", Naruto reflexively said as he looked up.

"A-Are you alright?", she repeated with constantly increasing blush on her face.

"Oh, I'm alright. That was nothing at all. But thanks for asking, Hinata-- right?", he said.

"Yes.", she replied

"It's nice to meet you. Didn't see you around very much though.", he said extending a hand.

"Umm, it's nice to meet you too. And yes, sorry about that.", Hinata said not knowing what to say as she had always sneaked out in lunch eating alone due to her shyness.

"Nothing to be sorry about, Hinata. But hey, why do I feel like I've met you somewhere before?", he asked.

Hinata's blush intensified suddenly as she thought, 'He remembers that time. And he remembered me too.'

"Umm, maybe it was the time when I was lost in town and you saved me from some bullies. Thank you for that again.", she said fidgeting her fingers. (A/N : Her trademark move xD.)

"Yeah, that's right. Now I remember! And hehe, sorry from my side this time, I forgot. But hey, are you okay Hinata? You're looking so red, you don't have a fever or something, right?", Naruto said.

Hinata was unable to reply anything much longer so she said, "I have to go for lunch, Naruto-san. Maybe I'll see you later?"

"Oh, right. Thanks again for checking on me. And yeah, I'd always love to talk to my friends.", Naruto said showing a thumbs up and a wide grin.

Hinata gasped slightly hearing the last line and quickly walked away before she would have a heat stroke given the amount of heat that was burning her face up.

"Whoa, she left in a hurry. Well, I gotta go have lunch too.", Naruto said.

---

A group of students came back to the classroom after packing up their finished lunchboxes. They had all become good friends in the past few months including Naruto as well as Sasuke.

"Shikamaru, I really wish we could go live at Choji's place. His mom makes such good food I can eat it forever.", Naruto said.

"No thanks, I'd like to just go to my own home and sleep in my backyard watching the clouds drift by.", Shikamaru replied yawning.

"Thanks, Naruto. I'll have Mom pack some more from tomorrow on if you like it.", Choji said.

"No no, I was just joking. I mean, not joking about the food, it was awesome. But I don't want her to have to do extra work because of me. I'll make sure to only take it from your share of food, my dear friend.", Naruto teased.

"Yeah, like hell. I require certain amount of calories and I take them whatever happens, regularly.", Choji replied.

"Yeah, we can see that in your good shape.", Naruto joked.

"What did you just say?!",Choji said in an angry voice.

"I- I mean your health is as good as ever.", Naruto sweatdropped.

Suddenly Choji started laughing and said, "Well, you're not the only one who gets to pull someone's leg."

Everyone else started laughing too except for Shikamaru who was yawning and Shino who remained quiet as always.

Kiba said, "Now we'll have to deal with classes again. I'm tired. We should get more training than these boring classes. This is a Ninja Academy, after all."

"We have to be able to understand things before we go apply them so that we don't go into battles without having a clue what's going on. It's essential for a ninja.", Naruto cleared.

"Yeah right, as if I'd listen to someone like you. Do you remember who has the lowest grade average in our whole class? Yeah, it's you!", Kiba retorted.

This was still what everyone thought in the class, that Naruto was just a dumb knucklehead. Except for one guy. Guess who?

Right, Shikamaru of course.

This guy was literally too smart not to notice the little things. He had also confronted Naruto about his doubts when he first observed something out of ordinary. And Naruto had thought clearly about it beforehand since the members of the Nara clan are the most curious ones, even though they're lazy as hell.

He had indirectly told Shikamaru that his analysis was correct and Naruto indeed wasn't as he looked like. Upon confirmation, he also asked Shikamaru not to tell anyone about it, just in case. As expected, Shikamaru assured him that it won't happen as gossiping was too much work anyway.

Rest of them though, didn't have a clue

"Hey guys, I want to ask something. It's about Sasuke.", Naruto said.

"About how he pushed you around today? Or how he ignored and belittled us when we went to check on him earlier? No thanks. I don't want to have anything to do with him now. Here we are trying to help him and he's acting all high and mighty because of Kami knows what.", Kiba said angrily.

"It's true, Naruto. We did go to check on him before.", Choji said munching some newly opened potato chips.

"Indeed, his behaviour was not one would expect from him in this time.", Shino said.

"Whoa Shino, you can talk too?", Kiba joked.

"Shut up, Kiba.", he replied in the same neutral expression.

"Okay guys, I see. It can't be helped. It's up to him now I guess. All we can do is let him take his time.", Naruto sighed as the teacher entered for the next class.

---

Scene Break and Time Skip

(Training Grounds)

"So what will we be training today, Sensei? The usual sparring?", Naruto asked.

"No, *coughs* it's time for something advanced. You can practice when you're alone, since there's always scope for improvement. For now, it won't help even if we spar with you continuously. *cough* So we'll be going to the next lesson. I hope you're ready.", Hayate said.

"I'm always ready, dattebayo!", said Naruto.

"Yeah yeah we get it already, just calm down. Now listen carefully, this exercise is different than the others and is a quite advanced version of Kenjutsu.", Yūgao said.

"Wow, I'm getting to learn an advanced technique right now. Yeah!", Naruto said.

"Of course, and you are very well able to learn it now. But keep in mind two things. This is a delicate task so you'll have to be extra careful and it will take far more practice than you've previously had.", she added.

"Getting to the point, *coughs* what you'll be doing is using chakra with your sword.", Hayate said.

"But I already do that, don't I? I can add chakra to my Bokken to make it more durable and sharp.", Naruto asked.

"Yes, you can. But what we'll now be doing is that we'll add elemental chakra to the sword.", Yūgao said.

"Whoa you mean, like I can add chakra natures to them too? Damn it, I can't do Katon yet. How cool would it have been to swing a blazing sword.", Naruto pouted while showing an action of slow moving sword with his Bokken.

"Shut it, how many times have I told you that this isn't child's play. If you weren't so good at this, I would haven't even tried to train you.", Yūgao scolded.

"Sorry, I'll make sure to be serious from now on, dattebayo!", Naruto said while saluting in the attention pose which was actually comical, and ultimately which made a tick appear on Yūgao's forehead.

"Next time you fool around Naruto I swear I'm gonna-", Yūgao started.

"Okay, okay. Cool down. Let's keep our composure, *coughs* and stay focused.", Hayate said eyeing both of them.

"Fine. Give me your Bokken, Naruto.", Yūgao said.

"What? But why?", he asked.

Yūgao gave him a quick hard state which drained any thoughts of arguing with her out of him. He pulled out his Bokken and handed it to her quietly.

"Look closely ", she said.

She coated the Bokken with a thin film of raw chakra and said, "You already know how to do this."

A few moments later, the chakra started transforming violently giving out electric sparks. Unfortunately, the Bokken wasn't able to withstand it and the wood splintered almost immediately.

"W-Wait! I'm sorry, I won't fool around. Please don't break my Bokken like that.", Naruto said.

"Look closely Naruto. She isn't *coughs* breaking it. This is what you're going to be training for from now on. *coughs* Do you think your Bokken would be able to withstand that?", Hayate said.

Naruto realised that it was indeed true. She had channeled lightning chakra in the Bokken and it shattered on it's own.

"So…….I'm guessing you have a solution to this problem?", Naruto asked expectantly.

"Of course we do.", Yūgao said.

She pulled out a scroll from the back and rolled it open in front of them. She weaved a few hand signs and placed her hand on a storage seal.

In a moments as the cloud of smoke disappeared, and a plain thin rectangular staff of pitch black stainless steel became visible. Although it was quite shiny and attractive, it still didn't look much different from a Bokken, except that it wasn't wood.

"This is what you'll be training with, from now on.", Yūgao said.

Naruto blinked twice before looking at it again. Wasn't kenjutsu supposed to be trained with a sword? But again, a Bokken wouldn't do, so I'm gonna train with a staff?

"I don't have any problem with it or anything but isn't changing the weapon type going to be diverting from the current training. We are training Kenjutsu at the moment, after all.", Naruto asked.

This time, Hayate and Yūgao blinked looking at each other and then towards Naruto.

"What *coughs* do you think this is?", Hayate asked.

"A metal staff. Well?", Naruto said.

Yūgao just shook her head while Hayate just picked it up and threw it to Naruto who caught it easily. Upon handling it though, something seemed off.

"Got something to say?", Hayate asked.

"Yeah. It's so light. It feels kind of like a sword. This staff is actually great for Kenjutsu.", Naruto said.

Suddenly he felt a light punch on the top of his head.

"Oowwwww! What's that for?", Naruto said. Apparently, it wasn't that light as a lump formed on Naruto's head animé style.

"What was that for, you ask? What did I teach you in the beginning, Kenjutsu is a revered art and you should always respect the sword. Using other weapons too as a whole is regarded Bukijutsu. Kenjutsu is all about swords, never forget that. A Bokken might be a wooden sword used for practice, but it's a sword nonetheless.", Yūgao said.

"I don't understand. First you give it to me yourself, and now you're the one who's complaining about it.", Naruto said.

"*coughs* Hold the edges of your so called staff, and pull them. No questions.", Hayate said.

Naruto frowned at first as he was indeed going to ask about it. Nonetheless he followed the instruction exactly as was told to.

To his surprise though, it detached from itself on the right side and inside it could clearly be seen a sword, without a doubt. And it wasn't just another ordinary sword, he could feel.

"Wow, it's a sword. I could've never imagined.", Naruto said.

"Well, that was unexpected to be honest. Considering how much books you read, I thought you'd have a good knowledge in all the subjects. Looks like you don't study as much after all.", Yūgao said in a teasing manner.

"Hmph, it's one thing to read and another to actually memorize all of it. Don't expect that I can recall everything.", Naruto said.

"This type of sword is called a Shikomizue. *coughs* Originally, it was the name of a sword that was concealed in a cane, but it can also be referred as a swordstick. It might also resemble the *coughs* Shirasaya, but that is used solely for the purpose of storage. It is because a sword without Tsuka is quite dangerous in combat, and for the same reason it's going to be risky for you too.", Hayate explained.

Naruto was listening intently and recalled quite a lot from when he had read about all types of weapons. He was grateful that his teachers had given him such a sword. Yet he could not stop but wonder about one thing.

"But Sensei, if you think that it's not good for combat then why did you buy it in the first place?", Naruto asked.

"As a matter of fact, neither of us bought it. It's a gift to you…….from Lord Hokage.", Hayate said.

(Flashback)

"Oh Hayate, it's you. Come inside.", the Hokage said after hearing a knock on the door of his office.

"I came here for the weekly report on Naruto's training. I hope I'm not disturbing you? *coughs*", Hayate asked seeing all the stacks of papers around the table.

Since it was meaningless for both of them to approach the Hokage just to submit a report, they had decided to take turns every week. It was Hayate's turn this time.

"Of course not. These things just have no end to them. Still this is something I just have to do………..phew. Anyways, I hope the boy's not lagging around in his lessons? I missed the last few reports since I was quite busy.", the Hokage asked extending his hand to accept the report Hayate had formed.

As the Hokage was reading it, Hayate replied, "No Sir, it's quite the opposite. The kid's improved a lot. He still has a lot to learn, but at least it's safe *coughs* to say that he can handle a sword on his own."

"So, keeping the same schedule for the next weeks?", the Hokage asked flipping pages from the report.

"I think it's time to change that, *coughs* Sir. There's only little he can learn just by sparring. I talked to Yūgao and we came to a combined conclusion that we should start teaching him something new. It's advanced but the earlier we start, more the time he'll get to practice. *coughs* With your permission, of course.", Hayate said.

Having completed reading the report and request, the Hokage said, "Since I don't know first hand, I'll leave it to you people to figure out what's right. You have my permission."

"Sir, understood. Thank you.", Hayate said.

"You still intend to teach him that with a Bokken?", Hiruzen asked with an amused expression.

"N-No, of course not. I'll find him a good sword for practice somewhere.", Hayate said.

"I see. Hold on for a minute.", Hiruzen said as he stood and went towards his almirah while Hayate stood there quietly wondering what it was about.

The Hokage unlocked the almirah, took out a scroll and handed it to Hayate.

Upon reading the name of the article written on the scroll, Hayate was dumbfounded.

"B-But Sir, this is not something to be given to a child. *coughs* With all due respect, I know you see potential in him, but still……", Hayate said.

"I understand your concern, but don't worry. Give it to him, train him well. I had given the original one to one of my students...and it sure was a grave mistake. Still, I believe in the Will of Fire. And me giving him the blade is just a little token of that belief. It might not be the original one, but it's still quite tough and sturdy. Good luck teaching him, he's not an easy student to handle, haha.", the Hokage said taking out the pipe out of his mouth and exhaling the smoke at the same time.

"Yes Sir, if you say so. And yeah hehe thanks. If there's nothing else, I'd like to take permission to leave.", Hayate asked.

The Hokage turned to go back to his table while waving his hand to dismiss him.

Once he was gone, Hiruzen said, "Twelve more stacks, huh. Even Shadow Clones wouldn't help for this much. Well, I guess it can't be helped if some of these cigar ashes fall on the papers accidentally and catch fire.", with a pleased grin on his face.

(P.S. - I know Hokage do the paperwork very diligently but this was something I saw in a lot of fanfics and found funny. So don't start on how I'm disrespecting the dude or something.)

(Flashback over)

"From Jiji?", Naruto asked blinking twice.

"Yes, and this is no ordinary one either, as you may already feel.", Hayate said.

"Not an……ordinary blade?", Naruto repeated.

(A/N : Ok guys if any one of you didn't get which one I'm talking about even after such an explanation, that's totally a hopeless situation. But oh well, I can't leave you in the dark either, so…..)

"It has a name. It is known as the Sword of Kusanagi, The Grass Blade. *coughs* Although it's not the original one, but still holds the sharpness and durability which outdoes most of the run-of-the-mill swords. Personally speaking, *coughs* I don't think it should be used by anyone other than a master swordsman. But Hokage-sama has placed his belief in you that you will one day prove to be worthy of it.", Hayate said.

Naruto once again ran his eyes on the sword which he held in his hands. It was truly…….. amazing. And the Hokage had assessed him worthy of wielding it.

'That's it. I won't disappoint him. No matter what happens.', he thought.

(A/N : If you still can't figure out go search Sasuke's Chokutō on Google. Phew, how tiring is it to explain such little things. But you're my dear readers after all. xD)

"Do you think you're worthy of wielding it?", Yūgao asked Naruto out of curiosity.

"Well, I guess we'll know in a few years.", Naruto said with an excited smile on his face.

---

And over. Hope you liked it. Can't promise if or when the next chapter will be uploaded.

Although I'll try my best, that I can assure you guys. Thanks for all the support.

Leave a comment if possible, gives motivation.

Sayonara.