Author's Note: Hi, so this is the first fic I'm posting here on ffnet. Newbie to this site so pardon all the mistakes and dumb errors I make in formatting – I'm trying my best.
This one's an eventual sealmaster Naruto fic, which I started pretty recently. I'll post all the chapters I've got so far once I get a hang of the posting process.
I've also chosen Friendship as a genre though there'll be romance in it too. The main ships are going to be ShikaNaru and SakuIno.
Anyway, it's crossposted on AO3, the platform I exclusively used before now for sharing the stuff I wrote. Hopefully, you will like this chapter and story!
Nights are a peaceful thing in 10 year old Naruto's life. They bring the calm he secretly enjoys after days full of loud proclamations and chatter at the Shinobi Academy. Konoha in itself, is a village carved out of life, colours, vibrancy and sounds. Lots of sounds.
The continuous shuffling of booted feet as civilians walk around from sunrise to sunset, the howling of animals from the forests surrounding Konoha, the opening of doors and windows, songs drifting through the village, carrying the melodies of a hundred birds.
Naruto likes those sounds too, they fill the otherwise perpetual silence in his life, they give him things to think about and he prefers that over his thoughts that stray down dark paths sometimes.
But nights bring not only silence from the world around him but also within him. A torrent being soothed, and contained – that's what Naruto feels like. Only the soft murmurs of some drunk shinobi or civilians, and the occasional hoot of an owl reach his ears.
He lays in his bed, idly counting the cracks in the ceiling. Hikari-sensei had told them that doing so helps bore the mind enough to let go of its consciousness and let slumber kick in. It never works for Naruto, though.
Yet the counting is helpful. He revises his tables sometimes, bunching 2 or 3 cracks together and though he inevitably forgets them a week later, during that week the math sums are much easier to solve.
He wants to sleep. He knows he should sleep. Academy starts at six in the morning tomorrow and they've got an inter-class sparring match. He'll need all his rest if he wants to beat some of his more powerful peers, like Sasuke or Ino or even Kiba.
But that anger, warm and uncomfortable is flowing through him again. It's a recurring event in his short life – whenever he's had a particularly bad day (Mizuki-sensei giving him a tongue lashing for poor taijutsu form with blatant hatred in his eyes or the old lady at the vegetable stall denying him the purchase of peas, pointedly ignoring him), anger simmers within his veins. It feels like his, but also not his at all. Like it's tainted, messed with and what comes out is his anger but with someone else's essence in it.
It's odd. The anger doesn't feel soothing but it feels fulfilling, like his chakra pathways are being overwhelmed with energy. They thrum with life and something powerful, tingling his fingertips and setting his palms on fire.
It usually doesn't last long, his anger dwindles very fast. With it, the unusual sensation of liquid fury dissipates from his insides and he feels hollow and empty for a bit before his mellow, blue chakra fills his pathways again – but not completely, not fully.
Not today though. As the breeze whistles in his ears, forcing a shiver to run down his spine, he pulls his ratty blanket to cover himself right upto his neck. Rage bubbles beneath his skin, memories from earlier today running rampant in his head.
••
"So today we'll be doing a brief lesson on the smaller, less prominent clans of Konoha," Iruka sensei says, smiling at the lot of his students, "It's important for us to understand not only the major clans like the Hyuga, the Akimichis, the Naras—" his eyes linger on Sasuke's stiff form, before blinking and looking away, "—but also the lesser known clans. They all contribute to our shinobi forces equally. It's not that these clans have fewer members or are not assets to the village. The only reason they're not popularly known are because they're either newer in their roots, don't have a kekkei genkai – which I know sounds incredibly prejudiced but the common populace is just that way – or they lack clan jutsus to make them truly stand out."
A hand goes up at the back of the class and Iruka halts his speech to nod at the student. A girl with pink hair stands up, looking at her sensei from behind the cover of her fringes.
"Uh, sensei, so you're speaking of clans like mine? The Haruno clan?"
Iruka nods at her, a grin breaking onto his face, "Exactly, Sakura! You pick up on things quite quick, as is usual for you." Sakura brightens up, looking ten times less shy, and Iruka continues, "Now that we're on the topic, Sakura why don't you tell us about your clan?"
Sakura glances to her right where Ino sits, purposely looking away with her nose held high. The pinkhead turns back to her teacher with a tiny smile,
"Sure, sensei." Getting an encouraging nod in return, she continues, "The Haruno clan migrated to Konoha sometime after the second shinobi world war, my mother says she was only 5 when she came here. She says Konoha became their safe haven, a place they could call home after being on the run for so long." She gives a small smile again and is surprised that everyone's focused on her and her alone. She hurries along,
"My clan's roots lie in Iwa but long before our clan actually became large enough to be called one, we were already in the land of fire. Our specialty lies in, uh, understanding chakra? I mean, we are more attuned to chakra, but not like sensors. We can't actually distinguish between the nature of two shinobis' chakra but we know how chakra works in general because we can feel it better. Chakra in its purest form, that is. My great grandpa, he was a highly renowned scholar and um, he's written books on chakra theory, even pioneered research on the subject. But we're not considered, a 'strong' clan in general."
Iruka sensei's brows furrow just the tiniest bit and he raises a hand for her to stop,
"Good job, Sakura. Thanks for providing all that information. Before moving forward let's address one topic. You said your clan's not considered strong, why so?"
Sakura clearly hesitates but when all her classmates wait for her patiently to articulate an answer, she sighs and begins, "Because the strength of our chakra cores is abysmal. Almost all of us have small, civilian-like cores and even the strongest of our clan only end up as tokubetsu jounin. So, we're usually underestimated alot. Even when we come up with new jutsus, we don't restrict its use to our clansmen, instead making it a public resource—" she shrugs, "—I'm not sure why my clan does that but having no clan jutsu doesn't help us establish ourselves as a major clan."
Iruka sensei motions for her to sit down and she does so, prior confidence vanishing once again.
"That was quite helpful, Sakura. See children, I need you to understand that strength does not lie solely in flashy jutsus or huge chakra cores. Being knowledgeable about a certain aspect of shinobi lives, like chakra or taijutsu katas or even shinobi wear makes us strong and valuable in different ways. Major or minor, each clan helps the village progress and provides aid to our shinobi forces. So, don't let the narrow-minded thinking of other people affect your judgement."
Shikamaru's hand goes up, the lazy student appearing alert for once.
"Yes, Shikamaru?"
"What about the civilian-born shinobi? Do they have no connections to clans? Like the fourth Hokage, he was an extremely skilled shinobi but both his parents were civilians. Was it just random? Or are civilians not inherently 'weak', as we have been told to believe?"
Iruka throws a tiny smirk at the boy, knowing that the Nara had purposely brought up this topic.
"Those are some valid questions, Shikamaru. Here's the thing: civilians are usually civilians because their affinity towards shinobi arts is very low. It doesn't mean they always have small or less dense cores but it's usually the case. However, there have been many civilian-born shinobi in history who have outshone all the clans and it's not a one time thing either. My advice for you all is to never discriminate or have misconceptions about the shinobi who come from civilian families. Take your classmates for instance, Teru can easily beat Ino in taijutsu despite having no prior training before the academy—" the black haired girl beams at the acknowledgement.
"—but Ino can just as easily trap Teru under a genjutsu. Everyone has their strength and weaknesses and though our backgrounds may contribute towards them, they aren't the only deciding factor. Our individual strengths matter, separate from where we're born or whom we were born to."
Naruto listens to his teacher intently, for once his brain doesn't wander and before he can stop himself, his hand goes up. Iruka sensei seems a bit surprised at seeing his usually inattentive student interested in the class.
He purses his lips but calls out to Naruto to speak his mind. It's not like he doesn't like the boy – quite the opposite actually. He's grown fond of Naruto, his endless enthusiasm and determination but the boy is almost always distracted in class, creating nuisance for his other teachers and pranking people for fun. It gets tiresome after a while, the reprimanding becomes a chore.
And then there's the fact that Naruto is the nine tails' jinchuuriki.
Iruka knows he's being unfair when he acts a bit harsher towards Naruto than the rest of his class but he allows himself to let that resentment out in tiny bursts instead of lashing at the boy like his other colleagues. He's wary of Naruto, because his treacherous mind seems convinced that Naruto has some hidden malice behind all those smiles, something sinister lurking inside him and he waits for the other shoe to drop.
"Uh, sensei?"
Iruka breaks out of his thoughts and once again, finds himself surprised to see Naruto look so unsure of himself. He's standing behind his desk, hands fidgeting with the fabric of his well-worn jacket.
"Yes, yes. What's the question?" Iruka asks, hoping that he doesn't sound as impatient as he feels.
"I was wondering..." Naruto says, looking up into Iruka's eyes now, "about my roots. Does—was Uzumaki a clan? Or the surname of some shinobi? Are there, like, records to go through which can tell me who my parents were? Were they both Uzumakis? Or did my other parent belong to some other clan or family? I just...I just want to know."
Iruka stiffens as Naruto rambles and a hush falls over the class. The students realise that this is a rather sensitive topic for the blond and they'd rather not interrupt this important moment.
Iruka walks upto his desk, dropping the chalk gripped in his hand into the small tray and slides into his comfortable chair. He looks at Naruto who's still pointedly staring at his table.
"Naruto, you can't access the shinobi archives unfortunately. You're not authorised to," Iruka informs him, trying to be somewhat gentle about it, "You might not know who your parents are, Naruto, for a long time." He cringes inwardly upon seeing the sullen look on Naruto's face.
In retrospect, it would've been better to hold off on the answer till after the school dismisses because this is unnecessarily forcing Naruto to be vulnerable in front of all his peers.
He wonders if he can salvage this situation somehow, and debates whether he should break the unsaid, unwritten rule of not talking about the Uzumaki clan for just a moment before the words escape his mouth of their own volition.
"I can tell you about the Uzumakis though, um, if you'd want me to?"
Naruto looks at him with wide eyes and so much awe that Iruka is taken aback for just a moment. He should've expected it, Naruto – he's been an orphan right from birth. His sense of identity has never been connected to his parentage, and Iruka knows how much this will mean to Naruto – to finally have a morsel of knowledge about his ancestry.
"Really Iruka-sensei? Yes, please, thank you!" he exclaims, failing to keep his excitement at bay.
Iruka chuckles but raises a placating hand, "Not now Naruto. We'll have a talk after class, alright? Right now, we've got some points to cover before I end the lecture."
Naruto opens his mouth, as if to argue but thinks better of it. He sits down, a wide smile plastered to his face and continues to stay attentive during the rest of the class.
When the bell goes off, everyone hurries outside, eager to go to their respective homes and rest or train. Naruto lingers in the classroom, awkwardly shuffling on his feet and waits silently for Iruka-sensei to complete sorting through his lectures notes.
Soon, his teacher stands up with a stack of papers clutched underneath his arm and motions for Naruto to follow him outside with a jerk of his head. The blond complies easily but doesn't say anything as they walk towards the staffroom.
"So, the Uzumakis huh?" Iruka asks mildly and smiles at seeing Naruto's hurried nod.
"Alright then. First things first, the Uzumakis were a clan, and not a civilian family."
Naruto's lips turn downward, "Were? As in, they're not one anymore?"
Iruka gives him a sympathetic look that irritates Naruto, "Yes. They're not a clan anymore. You see, the Uzumaki clan was one of the founding clans of Uzushiogakure. They were well-respected inside and outside the village due to their battle prowess and mastery over sealing. But during the 3rd war, the whole village was destroyed, wiping away most of your clan."
Naruto shows no outward reaction beyond the clenching of his jaw.
"Who did it?" he asks, "And why?"
"Their – our enemies did. During the war, we were allied with Suna and Uzushio while the other major villages opposed us. There was an invasion of sorts, Iwa and Kiri directing all their forces towards Uzushio while Kumo distracted Konoha and Suna. We were made to believe that an attack was coming, towards Konoha. But instead, we were mislead and Uzushio paid the price."
Naruto gulps and goes silent as Iruka enters the staffroom and adds his load to the pile on his assigned spot. He glances at his student, hoping to see some sort of reaction to that terrible news, but once again, sees none.
"Why were we never told about this village and my clan, sensei?" he asks quietly.
Iruka scratches his neck, "Villages hold their pride in weird ways Naruto. For Konoha, the falling of Uzushio is a personal failure, one which they don't like to be reminded of, atleast not in words."
"What do you mean?" Naruto inquires, reaching out for a chair to sit on.
"See this symbol," Iruka points at his uniform where a red spiral is stitched onto the blue cotton, "It's the symbol of the Uzumaki clan."
Naruto shifts his feet, and takes a better look at the symbol before darting his gaze on the same spiral adorning his clothes.
"That's...so I've been wearing my clan's symbol unknowingly for so long." He mumbles to himself, somewhat revered by the fact but also equally sad.
"Yes," Iruka says, having heard his soft muttering, "it's actually the bare bones of the very first seal created by your clan."
Naruto takes in the information given to him then. Iruka provides him with lots of trivia about his dead clan (and there's an ache there, a longing and he wonders if this is how Sasuke feels like).
He soon realises though that his teacher isn't really telling him things of importance, it's all superficial. Like the colour of their hair (and he wishes he had red hair, if only to feel more connected to his family), their features, their specialities, their behaviour.
But Naruto wants to know: were they good people? Were they kind and loving? Would they have liked Naruto? Who are those people who escaped that day? Which Uzumakis remain in the nations, roaming and searching for an abode?
Unfortunately, Iruka sensei doesn't have those answers. He knows only so much about his clan and he tells Naruto as much when the blond asks those questions.
"Sorry Naruto," Iruka sensei says with a strained smile, "I'm afraid the information I have about the Uzumaki clan is quite limited. I can't give you any more details. Have patience though, one day you'll be a jounin yeah? And then you can get those documents you want. Perhaps even tomes or war records only accessible to the higher-ups."
Naruto musters up a smile for him, "It's alright sensei! Thanks for this!"
••
Looking back, he doesn't know what exactly is making him so angry.
Maybe the total lack of anything about the Uzumaki clan or Uzushio from their history textbooks. Or Konoha's incompetence when it came to helping her ally. Or Iwa and Kiri's dirty tactics that wrought destruction at such a large scale.
Or maybe the fact that Naruto's always kept in the dark about so many matters concerning himself.
He still doesn't know what about him makes him so different from other children. He knows his orphancy isn't to blame. In a shinobi village, orphans were quite common and he's never seen random villagers sneering at a child who's simply walking in the market like they do for him.
He doesn't know what's that flow of steady rage that encompasses him internally.
He doesn't know why the old man Hokage never mentioned his dead clan to him before.
Doesn't matter, though. He's going to find out who he is. As Naruto and as an Uzumaki, whatever that may entail.
He goes to sleep with the seal – the symbol – of his clan swirling behind his lids; quiet anger still rolling through his body in tandem with his slow breathing.
He wakes up with a jolt, hand slamming onto his ringing alarm clock reflexively. He rubs his eyes harshly, trying to wake himself up. It's cold, he realises. Or well, he feels cold. Colder than the night before now that the bubbling energy has subsided completely. He squints his eyes at the sunlight peeking through his curtains and thinks about what he'd seen in his dream that night.
Flashes of white, sharp teeth looking at him with disdain.
Orange and red fur intermingled with black shaping into the form of something grand and majestic.
The feeling of wetness beneath his feet.
That's all he recollects and though it's a weird dream, he's not really bothered by it. There was something undoubtedly familiar about it. Something that made him more curious than wary.
Shaking himself out of his inner musings, he hops into the shower. He steps out and quickly dresses himself before making a small breakfast. He ends up burning his omelette but with enough chilli sauce, he finds it tasteful enough to eat.
He rushes outside after strapping on his kunai pouches and taming his hair some. Only after he enters the academy does he realise that he's actually early this morning, if the lack of hustle-bustle in the grounds outside is any indication.
He peeks inside his classroom and the presence of the sleeping Nara inside is expected. He's aware that Shikamaru arrives here with his father, who usually runs early shifts at the Kage Tower, hence forcing his classmate to get here early as well. Naruto doesn't move inside, but walks in the opposite direction where the Academy's library is located. The librarian raises a brow at him as he walks in briskly, avoiding eye contact with the chunin on duty.
He eyes the books in the 'History' section, failing to spot anything related to Uzumaki or Uzushio. He double checks to make sure he's not missed anything and huffs a defeated sigh when he finds nothing. He drags himself to the other sections, just in case.
Nothing worth of note catches his eye in the 'Exercise', 'Literary' or 'Self-help' sections. He continues and groans while shifting books around in the 'Shinobi Arts' aisle. He coughs when the dust at the very end of the bookshelf enters his nostrils and he blows over the stack of ratty books irritatedly.
Inhaling some fresh air, his eyes scan the content on their spines and they light up, impossibly bright, when they read a particular title-
Monograph: The ins and outs of sealing arts by Katsuri Uzumaki.
The moment his brain comprehends the title, he grabs the book and dusts it more thoroughly. It's definitely older than his age, worn with yellowed pages and water stains. The ink has merged in a few places, making the kanji indecipherable for those words.
Otherwise the thick book is in a good condition, but it's full of diagrams and designs that Naruto doesn't understand and the preface is full of words that go over his head. He'll need a dictionary if he ever hopes to read this book properly.
He makes his way to the librarian's desk with the monograph held tightly within his hands. The chunin eyes him skeptically but stamps the book without a word before shooing him away. He's grateful that the shinobi aren't as nasty towards him as the civilians.
When he enters his class again, it's full of people. Listening to Kiba's excited storytelling in the background, he walks down the aisle, towards his designated seat.
He makes sure to be as discreet as possible while dropping the book in the small slot under his table and looks up to meet Shikamaru's brown eyes, staring at him with something unreadable. Ino's loud voice draws their attention and Shikamaru blinks before looking away, seemingly bored again.
Naruto sits on his small dining table and lies open the book in front of him. He keeps a dictionary by his side and a parchment and some ink are placed neatly to his left.
He's already gone through the Table of Contents twice and he flips the page to finally start the first chapter. By the information provided before, he knows that the author of this monograph had been a Kunoichi in Uzushio, a jounin who came up with many of the earlier versions of seals he sees today.
She'd been hailed as a genius, a marvelous thinker and creator and Naruto feels like this is a privilege, an honour to have found this book. He wastes no time in reading the fine script on the page:
[...sealing can be a deceitful little term for beginners. They may think that sealing is related to containment or confinement of something/s strictly. Allow me to provide a simple definition of this broad shinobi art, a crude one, that is:
The art of sealing deals with the creation of a certain type of medium that allows the user to forego hand signs and/or verbal proclamations to perform a task using chakra. It may be offensive, defensive or wholly neutral in nature. Sealing does have its roots in quite literally sealing things (primarily chakra) but it's not limited to it.
Note: While one may require the use of different materials to assist the seal to actually contain something, the primary necessity for a beginner is only a paper and ink.]
Naruto grins at reading the last line and turns the page. The chapter covers topics related to what sealing is in general, types of sealing and their uses. Naruto takes all the information like a duck takes to water.
He ends up reading only one chapter due to the abundant breaks while reading to look up the meaning of a word in the dictionary but when he goes to bed, he's content. He's happy with himself.
He feels a sort of fulfilment that has nothing to do with the mysterious anger but everything to do with his own sense of self. Maybe learning the art of seals is his way of learning to be an Uzumaki.
His dreams feature an ocean, vast and shiny blue like the painted picture on the book's cover. The horizon doesn't appear out of reach, but something easily attainable like Naruto could outstretch his hand and catch the glowing sun within his palms.
Shikamaru stretches his arms, a yawn splitting through his lips as he stands up taking support from the trunk of the tree he was using as a pillow moments ago. He pockets his hands and spots Chouji munching on some peanuts while sitting on a swing.
They don't come to the park often, but when they do Shikamaru prefers to spend it napping in the shade of the trees. They're blooming today, with light orange and slightly pink flowers. It's looks like a huge wreath, light green leaves shadowing the small blossoms.
A lazy smile stretches across his face as he walks towards Chouji who stands up.
"Had a nice nap Shika?" he asks amiably as both boys walks towards the exit.
"Obviously," he replies, "The only place more comfortable for sleeping than this spot is my extra fluffy futon."
Chouji chuckles good naturedly, "That aside, Mum's called you over for dinner. Shikaku-san, Inoichi-san and dad are having their...er drinking night. Did your mom mention it?"
Shika eyes the faint crescent of the moon peeking through some clouds, despite the orange glow spread across the sky. The sun slowly disappears from view at the opposite side, slowly shrouding the sky in darkness.
"Yeah, she did." He says, "but this is all so troublesome man. Why can't we just go to my place and order dinner instead?"
Chouji pats his back, "There, there. Don't cry, Shika. I'm sure you'll have loads of time to act like a sloth tomorrow."
Shikamaru rolls his eyes, somewhat conceding to the point – it's Sunday tomorrow after all.
They turn around the corner and Shikamaru spots a head full of yellow, bright hair that seem almost alight under the streetlights illuminating the area. Naruto's seated across Sakura, both engrossed over some kind of notebook, whispering about Kami knows what.
If not for the absence of food aside from a plate of dumplings – where only the sticks remain – and the almost academic activity both are engaged in, Shikamaru would've thought that Naruto had finally scored that date with Sakura.
He looks at Chouji who is also observing the same scene as him.
"Wanna go say hi?" his friend suggests and a denial is just at the tip of Shikamaru's tongue but his traitorous curiosity somehow makes him nod his head in agreement.
The two approach the duo and Sakura snaps her head towards them, apparently startled.
"Oh, hey." Naruto says when his eyes land on Chouji and Shikamaru, having followed Sakura's abrupt movement.
"Hi, Naruto. Sakura. What are y'all up to?" Chouji asks, offering his opened pack of dry fruits to them.
Sakura takes a few in her hand gratefully while Naruto replies,
"Er...just figuring out a few things about this. This um, seal."
This doesn't surprise Shikamaru. He's observed Naruto enough during these last couple months to note his sudden interest in seals. They only have one class about sealing biweekly where Naruto's been an enthusiastic participant lately.
Last week, he'd managed to draw a perfect string of swirls to create a fully functional sealing scroll. Their teacher had only given him a dismissive compliment – evidently ingenuine – and moved on with the class. That's something to ponder on later though.
"What's it about? The seal?" he inquires, trying to keep his tone casual.
"Ooo! It's like a chain on a scroll to transmit chakra. To like, y'know, transfer chakra through the long tag or well, an unfolded scroll into an object though I want to make it possible to do it for another person too."
Shikamaru repeats those words in his head, trying to get a grip on the concept but Sakura adds helpfully,
"Imagine a wire. But instead of conducting electricity, it'll conduct chakra particles."
"Wow," Chouji mutters, awed and leans to have a look at what they're working on.
Shikamaru conceals his amazement at the idea, even if he knows that it's a feat not accomplished yet. The concept alone is impressive enough. He tilts his head subtly to catch a glimpse of different commas and diagrams drawn haphazardly across two pages.
"Sakura-chan is helping me understand how pure chakra behaves normally!" Naruto informs them, grinning at the pinkhead, "She's awesome guys! Half the stuff she says bounces off my head but then she, er...dumbs it down for me so I can understand."
Sakura snorts, something she'd never do in class and makes a few circles here and there on the notebook.
"Enough flattery for today Naruto," she says, "Besides, it's not me who's doing the main work here. I don't get one thing you've drawn here beyond the very basic symbols. It looks like some traditional art form to be honest."
Naruto nods slowly, "It's kind of like art anyway. More precise and meaningful though. Like um, geometry? Ofcourse, it's more intuition and creativity here. There's no set rules for making seals. As far as I'm concerned, I prefer it this way. The trial and error is how I learn best anyway."
Sakura hums, but doesn't add to the conversation.
So, Chouji says, "Let us know when you do make this into a seal. It's super cool already."
Naruto smiles freely, "Sure thing, Chouji! And you'll have to show me your expansion jutsu too once you master it."
"I will," Chouji promises
Naruto faces Shikamaru then, "What's going on in that head of yours? I can tell you're thinking hard about something."
Shikamaru blinks and replies honestly, "Just wondering about why you've picked up on seals so suddenly."
"Oh," Naruto blinks back, "Long story. I'll tell you later, maybe?"
Shikamaru shrugs, giving a tiny nod.
"I think we should get going," Chouji speaks up, "Mum's going to go beserk if we get home after dinner is served."
Naruto's smile twitches downward a bit before it turns into a grin, "Get going then! You don't want to keep your parents waiting."
With that, Chouji starts walking away waving at Naruto and Sakura. Shikamaru trails behind him silently and can't help himself from looking behind at the blond who's once again scribbling furiously on the sheet, a tiny smile on his face, eyes ablaze.
Shikamaru shakes his head. How troublesome.
Thank you for reading. Have a good day!!