The shadow clone training method will not be abused like it is in most other FanFics, including my other one, or even in canon. It seems a little ridiculous for it to work that well, and Naruto could pretty much be the strongest person in the world by like, the end of his first or second year, if he wanted to, so I'm dulling the number down a bit. Might have it make a comeback for a short time like how we see him use it for the Rasenshuriken training, but if that's the case it will wear him down a ridiculous amount. He'll still be able to use a large amount of shadow clones like canon, but won't be using them that way for training.
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The trip, while dangerous to the average man, was easy for the four jonin level shinobi. The boat was scarcely big enough to hold them, but it did its job. They had left just before first light, and arrived at the island right at sunset. The boat beached itself, having been propelled forward by some light chakra manipulation.
Jiraiya made to jump onto the shore, but Itachi held up a hand, the universal sign for wait.
"What's the deal?" Jiraiya said.
"They will be weary that I am not actually me, and most certainly have laid out traps throughout the island. Best to notify the scout." Itachi said. He let out a series of whistles, and then shot off a miniature version of the Uchiha's trademark fireball jutsu, one that barely required a hand seal to do.
There was a rustle in a bush, and Naruto popped out. His blond hair ruffled in the wind, shorter than Minato's had been, but the same color. His blue eyes analyzed the situation, taking in the newcomers. That looked familiar to Jiraiya, it was the same gaze that Minato often had. The only difference he could see was in the shape of their face, where Minato's had been pointed, Naruto's was moreround.
The blond finally seemed to accept what he saw, after trying to dispel a genjutsu two or three times, and even biting his lip till it bled. He ran at Itachi with his arms open.
" 'Tachi-niichan! You're back! And you brought old people!"
Before Naruto could wrap his arms around Itachi, who had made his way to the sand, Itachi stuck two fingers out, and poked the boy in his forehead. Naruto's momentum was halted, and he sat down roughly in the sand, sporting a pout on his face.
"Naruto-kun, what did I tell you about being a scout?"
"That I shouldn't reveal myself until the real me has been notified?"
"Yes, and did you notify yourself?" Itachi asked.
The blond's eyes lit up, and he made a cross hand seal. A shadow clone came to existence next to him without a word, and before it knew what was happening, Naruto stabbed it with a kunai, dispelling it.
"As a matter of fact, I did 'Tachi." He said with a slight giggle. "Now, who're the old people? And their daughter? And is that pig our dinner!?" Naruto said.
Jiraiya thought that was hilarious, but Tsunade looked like she was going to kill him. Before she could do anything, another blond came flying into the clearing, followed by a raven haired boy about the same age and size.
"'Tachi you jerk! Why didn't you let my clone hug you?" Naruto said indignantly.
"You know why, Naruto-kun. You have his memories."
"Well his memories are dumb, you shoulda let me, er… him? Give you a hug!"
Itachi chose to ignore him, not wanting to wind him up too much in their company. "Hello, Sasuke-kun. How was your time while I was away?"
"Nothing of interest to report, no intruders or bandits." Sasuke held up a scroll. "I do have a whole list of all the dumb things Naruto did while you were gone though." He unfurled the scroll, and quickly began to read. "He tried to surprise, then catch up to and ride, a deer. Tried to enter one of the buildings that had a seal on it and got his eyebrows fried off. Tried too—"
"That's enough, Sasuke-kun. I'll just take the scroll and read it myself. We have company."
Sasuke smirked at having gotten to read some of Naruto's dumb ideas, but then took a defensive stance when he saw the three guests.
"Is that dinner?" He asked, pointing to TonTon.
"TonTon is a pet, not a farm animal!" Shizune said
"Well does he taste good?" Naruto said.
"How dare you!"
Itachi rolled his eyes, Tsunade glared at the two kids, and Jiraiya held his gut while laughing. Itachi eventually led them down a meandering path to the clearing that they had called home for the last year.
"You didn't use one of the existing homes?" Jiriaya asked, referencing the building, which was clearly made with simple earth release jutsus.
"They do not belong to us." Itachi said, as if it were the simplest answer in the world. Truthfully, they might have belonged to Naruto, but he wasn't sure if there were other Uzumaki left, and what their claim was to the village. He and Sasuke would have stayed here regardless, and in the end, Naruto would stay with them.
Their home was more of a shack really. Itachi had just been working on Earth Release when he was forced to leave the village. While he was becoming formidable with now, when they had first arrived in Uzushio, he couldn't do more than a basic building.
There was a main room, with three other rooms strutting off from the left, right, and opposite the front door. Smaller earth jutsu had been utilized to make simple tables and stools to sit on, as well as frames for their simple sleeping bags. It was not a luxurious life by any means. The only non essentials that Jiraiya could find in the "building" were ninja tools, and just how essential those were could be argued.
In Naruto's room it looked like there was a sealing kit, though he didn't see any sign of seals from where he was standing in the main room. Jiraiya was dismayed that his Godson was being forced to stay in such a barebones place. Naruto seemed to be happy though, joyful even, and that was a great consolation to the toad sage.
Tsunade interrupted their impromptu tour, short as it was, to get to work on Itachi. He hadn't allowed her to begin treatment until he was back with his brothers, and he wasn't looking too hot.
Sasuke and Naruto were right at his bedside before Tsunade could even begin, and it fell to Jiraiya to get them out of her hair so she could work properly.
"So, Itachi said that you two have been training to be ninja? Would you care to show me what you got?" He asked.
The two locked eyes, Sasuke's flashing red for the briefest of moments, before they turned together, and both nodded.
It was an odd interaction, but it happened so fast that Jiraiya wasn't even sure that he saw it. He led them out of the small shack-like building, looking for a clearing where they could let loose.
While Jiraiya led the boys away, Tsunade and Shizune got to work on Itachi. The legendary healer asked him question after question about the disease, symptoms, and his health habits. She was surprised to hear that he was otherwise a perfectly healthy human. A model patient in fact. The conversation drifted towards their missing company as she began the final process of the days treatment.
"So," the remaining Sannin said, "is Jiraiya in for a good workout? Shadow clones and a matured sharingan at that age don't come along all that often."
"My brothers are… talented. Jiraiya-sama is a first rate shinobi though, they shouldn't give him too much trouble. Unless they decide to work together. Or they try that new combination." Itachi seemed to stare off into the distance as he contemplated.
Tsunade chuckled, thinking Itachi was joking around. She continued thinking so, until Jiraiya came stomping into the main room.
"Just what kind of monsters are you raising, Uchiha!?"
"Calm down, Jiraiya." Tsunade said, even as she looked over his burn marks and scorched clothing.
"I told you they are becoming quite formidable, Jiraiya-sama.
"They know two chakra natures each? Already? They can do combination jutsu flawlessly?" Jiraiya questioned.
"'Tachi's the best teacher in the world!" Naruto said, rubbing some dried mud out of his hair. "Probably way better than whatever bum taught you!"
"Naruto you idiot, this is Jiraiya. Of the Legendary Sannin." Sasuke said.
"So?"
"Do you remember from Itachi's lessons who taught the Sannin?"
"Yeah! It was Jiji!—" the blond suddenly caught on. "You knew the old man? He taught you?"
"Yes he did." Jiraiya said, canceling the rest of his jutsu. "But he didn't teach me my second chakra nature until I was a chunin. Even Orochimaru, damn him, only knew two at that aged."
"They showed you two natures, did they Jiraiya-sama? They must really like you."
"Damn near burned my hair off with that wind and fire combo. And who teaches water and shadow clones to an eleven year old."
Itachi sat up as he listened. "Naruto, I think they might need a room of their own. Would you mind knocking down the westward walls so that we can expand? I believe you know just the jutsu."
The blond grinned maniacally and held up two hands crackling with lightning as he did his best evil laugh. Jiraiya's eyes widened as he strutted over to the wall and demolished it with the lightning.
"Sasuke, I believe we could use some new rooms, would you do the honors please?"
Sasuke nodded, a less maniacal grin on his face as he ran through some hand signs, and made four mudwalls, topped with a ceiling. He repeated the process two more times for the guests, and once more to replace the room that Naruto had just destroyed. When he was done, he was dripping sweat and looked a little light headed.
"3 each? You're raising monsters alright." Jiraiya said. The good kind though, especially when they were on your side.
"Nii-chans worst natures are lightning and earth though." Naruto spoke up. "Got any jutsu you can show us?" Jiraiya couldn't tell if coming there was the best or worst decision of his life.
Itachi smiled broadly, something he rarely did nowadays. Tsunade's treatment didn't make him feel much better immediately, though he could feel the work that had been done. It was going to be a long six months, especially if he was barred from using chakra.
"We'll continue doing treatments every sunset. Any more often than that, and your body won't be able to keep up. Absolutely no chakra, unless you want it to take longer."
Itachi nodded, having expected as much. "Sasuke." The raven haired boy faced his brother. "My illness will require supplementary treatment after the first six months. Tsunade-sama has agreed to teach you the necessary skills so that I won't have to seek her out every week. Will you learn that for me, Little Brother?"
"Yessir, Niisan." Sasuke said. He was acting extremely serious for an eleven year old. Naruto and Itachi were his whole world though, and he would learn whatever was necessary to keep them safe.
"What about me 'Tachi?" Naruto asked. "Can I learn medical stuff too?"
"Actually, Jiraiya-sama has agreed to teach you other skills. How would you like to learn sealing and some jutsu from him?"
"Yeah! Can he teach me how to make a lightning dragon?"
"He can teach you a lot of things, Naruto." Itachi waved both of the boys closer to him, and tapped them on the forehead with his middle and index finger at the same time. They gave an indignant cry to protest, but he knew it was just because they were embarrassed in front of their guests.
"Alright, nightly meditation for you two, then off to bed." To Naruto and Sasuke's credit, they didn't even groan about it. It had been a long day for them, physically and emotionally.
Itachi turned to his newly acquired company. "For tonight, you will have to survive with the current accommodations, but tomorrow we can see about upgrading them. After all, a beautiful young lady shouldn't have to live in such terrible conditions." He nodded at Shizune.
The young apprentice to Tsunade blushed deeply at Itachi's comment. She couldn't tell if it was romantic or not, but being called beautiful by someone not drunk in a bar or casino was a rarity for her.
"Oho, he's smooth with the ladies as well! I might have to write that line down for my next book." Jiraiya flipped out his notepad and began scribbling in it. "We'll be fine though, Kid. We're all shinobi here, we've seen much worse." He added absentmindedly. Neither Shizune nor Tsunade argued with that, so Itachi nodded, and made his way outside to join his brothers in their meditation.
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Time went by slowly for Itachi. Dreadfully slowly if he were being honest with himself. Three months of treatment had been rough on his body and his mind. No doubt he had been through worse, endured worse. Much worse. But for a ninja who had spent a majority of the second half of his life with his Sharingan activated, it was tough to not be able to use it. It was the first time in his life that he had taken a day or more off from training. There was always something to master, something to get better at, and ample ways to do so. Because for all that he was a pacifist, the one way that he thought he could bring peace was to be strong enough to not have to fight. That was the driving force behind teaching Sasuke and Naruto everything that he could. Right now though, all he had was his mind, and his company. One was much more pleasant to be with than the other.
The sannin and Shizune were great guests. They helped hunt, collect fresh water, and they even helped upgrade the 'house', which was actually starting to live up to that title. Tsunade had insisted a second building be made for her and Shizune, and pulled on Jiraiya's ear until it was built to her liking. That left extra room within the original building, which could better be used for storage and dining. They had even converted one of the rooms into a smokehouse, so that they could cure meat.
Overall, the quality of life was upgraded in a big way, but the biggest change was in the boys. Naruto and Sasuke were growing at ridiculous rates. Even without his sharingan, Itachi could see the differences in them day to day. They were maturing, the presence of other adults forcing them to remember not only regular civilization, but the reason they weren't a part of it in the first place.
Itachi had, of course, clued them in on the Sannin's eventual plans to dethrone Danzo. The boy's had, of course, jumped at the opportunity to be a part of it. They threw themselves into their training, as they always had. Determined. They were so determined to make their goals reality. It was a great deal of pride for Itachi to seem them work that way, to see how far they had come, and how far they would go. It was also, in his opinion, one of his greatest failures. Sometimes he wished he had whisked them away. Taken them to a small village in a small nation, maybe even out East, where things were more chaos than order. Away from all the nations and hidden villages and the troubles that they created. Away from the power hungry leaders, and their mindless subordinates. Away from war.
He could not do it though. Because as much as he was a brother to Naruto and Sasuke, he was a shinobi of Konoha. Even if the Leaf didn't recognize him anymore, or worse yet, thought of him as a villain, he would be there for it. One of his biggest regrets was loving something that would never love him back. Not truly.
He sighed.
He was a bad brother if he let them fight. He was a bad shinobi if he kept them from helping save the village. He knew which one was more important to him, so why couldn't he act upon that?
He knew the answer of course. Deep down, passed the facade he put up, then the buffer that kept him separated from his emotions. Passed the darkness that lay within his heart and inevitably tainted his soul, he knew in his very core, that they were meant for more. They wouldn't be resigned to living the lives of farmers or merchants. Couldn't be. Their very beings demanded greatness. He could see that. He didn't need his sharingan to do so, didn't even need his eyes really. He could feel it more than anything. His brothers were meant to be something special, he would make damn sure they lived long enough to fulfill that prophecy. To bring some sort of balance to the Leaf, and maybe to the world.
" 'Tachi?" Naruto broke him from his existential thoughts. Not the first time he'd done so. Certainly wouldn't be the last, either.
"Yes, Naruto-kun?" He opened his eyes, but saw nobody. He couldn't use chakra to sense, couldn't use his sharingan to find his chakra signature. Couldn't enhance his smell, or his hearing. But he was Itachi Uchiha, and failure was not ever an option to him. Even in something as small as an impromptu game of hide and seek with Naruto.
Itachi sighed again, hearing Naruto chuckle at his misfortune. Jiraiya had been teaching him more tricks. He quietly palmed some of the dusty dirt that he was sitting on, locking in on the area that he had heard Naruto from, and quick as a flash flung the dust at the boy. The particles bloomed into the air, catching the wind just right, and spreading in a cloud the size of an 11 year old. The dust clung to Naruto as it surrounded him, revealing him despite his cloaking jutsu.
In a healthier time, Itachi would have flickered behind him with a kunai, or caught him in a genjutsu to emphasize the need to be careful when sneaking about. For now though, hearing his favorite knuckleheads frustrated cries about how he almost got him that time, would have to be enough.
"Your cloak was impeccable, Naruto. The rest of you wasn't very stealthy though. If you want to sneak, you have to be quiet."
"But 'Tachi, what's the point of being good at sneaking around, if nobody knows how good you are?" Naruto said, as if that was a perfectly logical question. The child was smarter than anybody had ever given him credit for, and yet, he tended to drive Itachi nuts. Or, more nuts than he already felt.
"Sometimes Naruto, an impressive feat is only impressive because nobody finds out."
"Mmm, that sounds like one of your riddles, and I'm invisible right now so I'm gonna pretend I didn't hear it." The blond dropped the cloak, shaking his spiking locks. "Isn't that jutsu that Jiraiya-Jiji showed me awesome!?"
"It's quite impressive, Naruto-kun. What have you done with Sasuke though?"
Naruto's grin threatened to split his face in half, and purely on a hunch developed after thousands of hours with him, Itachi leaned hard to the right. He felt someone stumble over his left hip, and soon after Sasuke was revealed after tumbling to the dirt in front of him.
"Your stealth skills are commendable, Sasuke. Without my chakra I was not aware of your presence. If you're going to use Naruto as a diversion though, make sure he doesn't give it away." He shot them both a soft smirk, and they smiled up at him in awe.
Truth be told, it was getting harder and harder to impress the two. If Naruto hadn't smiled, Sasuke would have had him, he truly hadn't known he was there. Of course use of his chakra would go a long way, but they were still leagues ahead of where they had been a year, or even six months ago.
"Naruto you idiot, I had him!"
"Don't blame me, I gave you plenty of time to get him! I told you that you should've been the distraction!" He crossed his arms in a fit.
Itachi let out a rare chuckle, enjoying the liveliness of his brothers. He would like to join them someday, but he had three more months of treatment, and a lifetime of problems to deal with first.
"Sasuke, I think your break with Tsunade is over, you better get back to her."
Sasuke's eye widened. "But Itachi, She's so—"
"So what Sasuke? Please, don't stop on my account." The shadow of the legendary ninja encompassed the young Uchiha, and he felt colder than he ever had in his life. Colder than the time that his mother had taken him to the land of snow and he'd forgotten his gloves.
He slowly turned around, fighting his grimace to put on a shaky smile for her. "So great Tsunade-sensei, I can't wait to learn more from such a wonderful teacher." He held a shy thumbs up at her.
"Tch, c'mon brat, we got work to do, and you're two days behind schedule."
Sasuke mouthed 'help me' at Naruto as he was dragged off into the medical wing of their house, the building of which was why he was two days behind.
Naruto was laughing hysterically at his misfortune, when a sudden chill ran down his spine too.
"What are you laughing at, Kid? You gotta work on your seals until your hand cramps, or I'm gonna send you to learn with Tsunade too." Jiraiya said from… somewhere. His cloaking jutsu was much finer than the boys. Naruto straightened quickly, and ran off to wherever he had left his sealing kit last.
Itachi smiled to himself and couldn't help but let out a sharp, genuine laugh. He was truly in a state of peaceful happiness, no matter how crazy a lack of chakra drove him.
Things are going to get much more intense next chapter.
I know that Naruto and Sasuke seem a little younger than the roughly 11 that they would be, but I just wanted to emphasize that they're younger than canon, plus it was fun to write them that way.
Also I have a much harder time spelling or grammar checking from my iPad, so bear with me for the next chapter or two when it comes to that.