Author's Note: Okay, I thought that I didn't have to explain this, but given the number of reviews that asked this, I guess I have no choice.
Orochimaru possessed one of the Uchihas he kidnapped the night of the insurrection, he didn't transplant their eyes into his skull like Kakashi or other people did. That's why he can activate and deactivate the Sharingan at will, and using the Sharingan for a long time doesn't leave him drained. I mean, isn't that what we wanted to do with Sasuke in canon? I mean, we do see trying to possess not only Sasuke, but Itachi as wel
Now that's out of the way, I won't address this issue again.
Also, this story has more than one thousand follows, and more than five hundred reviews! I was hoping to get to that number with this chapter, so i'm very please with it. Let's see how long it takes to break the one thousand reviews mark :)
Now, enjoy the chapter, and see you at the author's notes at the bottom:
Chapter 20:
The Troubles with Jinchuriki
or
Who would have guessed that the Demon Fox is a jerk?
"Dad, can I ask you something?" Naruto asked.
Jiraiya turned at him absentmindedly. "Hm?"
The blond jinchuriki and the white haired Hokage were resting under the shadow of a tree, after an hour or so of intense training. This time, Jiraiya had decided to come in person instead of sending a clone, and left Sarutobi to fill for him for the day, since there was something that he needed to do, something that a clone couldn't.
"What is your last name?" the blond asked.
"Why, Senju, of course. I thought you knew that" Jiraiya replied as if answering to something obvious.
Naruto frowned in return. "That's not what I mean, that's mom's last name!" he protested. "I mean your last name before you married. Which, by the way, how is it that you got mom's last name? In other couples, it's always the woman who gets the husband's last name. Is it because she's a Senju or something?"
Jiraiya chuckled. "Yeah, you could say that, but it's actually way more simple: the reason I got her last name when we married is because I never had a last name to begin with."
Naruto looked at him, eyes wide open in shock. "What!? And why not? You never knew about your family?"
"Exactly. By the way, why this sudden interest in me, Naruto?"
"I realized that I know a lot about mom's family, mostly thanks to history books, but I know very little about yours" he explained, then he frowned again. "Besides, you almost never tell me anything about you!"
Jiraiya shrugged. "You never asked. Besides, a man has to keep a little mystery, right?" he chuckled. "But then again, I didn't think my life before your birth was all that interesting."
"How can you say that? You are one of the Sannin, and trained my biological father! Besides, I will judge if it's interesting or not" Naruto sharply stated. "Now why don't you have a last name?"
Jiraiya cleared his throat to tell, in his opinion, the uninteresting tale of how he became a Konoha ninja. "Fifty years ago, the Elemental Nations were engaged in the First Ninja War. Sarutobi, my sensei, as Tobirama's student, was part of the seven-man unit with the Second leading it. There was this town whose name was lost to history, that Konoha ninja used to shelter and treat their wounded, before they were sent back to Konoha.
"So far, the Konoha ninja made a good job hiding their presence, but somehow, our enemies realized what Konoha was doing, and razed the village to the ground. When Sarutobi-sensei's unit went to the village as usual, they found nothing but scorched ruins, dead people, and a single survivor: a baby, not even a year old, with snow-white hair. Sensei took that baby, and brought him to Konoha, and he grew up in an orphanage. When that baby turned five, he learned about what happened to the place he was born in, the parents he would never know, and how he was saved by ninja. And thus, he decided to become a ninja himself."
"And that ninja was you, right?" Naruto excitedly asked.
Jiraiya laughed in return. "I believe that was obvious from the very beginning, don't you think so? So yeah, now you know why I don't have a last name, at least until I married Tsunade-hime. Though, like you said, even if I did have a last name, I don't think I would have to guts to make Tsunade discard her last name and adopt mine, given her family's importance, not only in Konoha, but in the ninja world as a whole."
"What about me? Maybe I should have been a Senju too" Naruto mentioned.
"Hey, the Uzumaki used to be a very strong clan before Uzushiogakure's fall. Besides, we thought that you should have something that linked you to Minato and Kushina" Jiraiya replied. "Besides, I'm sure that in the future, you will make the name Uzumaki famous again."
"And what about-"
"Enough talking!" Jiraiya interrupted Naruto, as he stood up from his resting spot. "We already chatted and rested enough. Now it's time to work on a very important matter."
Naruto stood up as well. "The Kyubi."
Jiraiya nodded.
FLASHBACK
A few minutes after Asuma, Kurenai and Anko left, somebody knocked the door of his office. After telling them to come in, the person in question was Kurenai.
"Excuse me, Hokage-sama, but there's something that I need to discuss with you in private. While I do trust Asuma and Anko, I think this is something I should talk with you and you alone. At least for the time being" the red-eyed Jonin said.
Jiraiya nodded, motioned her to take a seat, and made a hand seal. "The privacy seals are activated. Everything you say will never leave this room."
Kurenai took a few moments to mentally prepare before explaining her problem. "You see, there was an...unexpected incident during our mission."
Jiraiya raised an eyebrow. "You mean another one?"
"Yes, poor choice of words. Anyway, I'll get to the point. Shortly before we arrived at Sawa Town, we stopped at the Valley of the End, since I thought it would be good for the kids to see a place with so much historical importance. And while we were there, Naruto noticed that the Kyubi was growing restless."
Jiraiya was taken aback a little. "Come again?"
"It was as if the Kyubi disliked the place. I decided not to take any risks and leave as soon as possible and tell you about this once we were back in Konoha."
"You did good, Kurenai. Don't worry, I'll check Naruto's seal to make sure that the Kyubi isn't up to something and-"
"Actually, I didn't finish."
"Of course. There is always more, isn't it?" Jiraiya threw his hands in the air. "Okay, tell me."
"During the fight with Mizuki, Naruto tapped into the Nine Tails' power. It wasn't enough to beat Mizuki, but it clearly changed him, and not for the better. Besides being more powerful, Naruto acted way more violent and reckless. Even feral, I should say."
Jiraiya sighed, and leaned back on his chair. "Yes, there was a chance that this could happen. The Fourth used the Four Symbols Seal since he wanted Naruto to use the power of the Kyubi at some point in his life, otherwise he would have used another seal that would had completely isolated the beast from Naruto. This, however, had the downside that the Kyubi has the ability to influence Naruto to some extent. According to what I could gather from other jinchuriki, strong emotions are a good way to manifest the power of a Tailed Beast. If Naruto was angry with Mizuki for harming his friends..."
"Yes, it looked to be the case when I arrived at the fight" Kurenai confirmed.
"I did plan to train Naruto on how to use the power of the Kyubi" Jiraiya mentioned. "But I always kept leaving it for another time due to my fear of what could happen. Then the Uchiha revolt happened, and then I became Hokage...but I guess that I just can't keep putting this off any longer."
"By the way, I believe that I should have asked this the moment I became Naruto's sensei, but do you have any advice on what should I do if something like this happens again?"
"Unless you're proficient with Seal Jutsu, or Mind Jutsu, I believe there's nothing you can do. But I will create a sealing tag that can suppress the Kyubi's chakra, should Naruto ever lose control again."
"Good to hear that, Hokage-sama."
"Is there anything more you want to discuss with me?" Kurenai shook her head. "If that's the case, then you're dismissed."
END FLASHBACK
"Alright Naruto, let's get down to business. I've been putting this on hold for far too long, but we can't afford doing that anymore. Today, we will attempt to control the Nine Tails' chakra" the Sannin announced.
Naruto taken aback. "Really?.. Are you sure?"
"Given what your sensei told me, yes, we have no other options" Sensing his godson's worry, he added: "Don't worry, I already have taken countermeasures in case anything goes wrong."
"Okay...what do we do?" Naruto asked.
"First of all, let's sit down in front of each other" the Toad Sage instructed while both he and Naruto sat down.
"Now what?"
"Now, close your eyes. Breathe and exhale slowly. Relax every muscle in your body. Gather all the chakra you can, but don't force it, let it flow instead. Empty your head of thoughts. Once it's done, think on only one thing: the Nine Tails. Try to picture it inside your mind, and let your chakra drag you towards it."
Jiraiya's voice started to sound more and more distant. Naruto felt like he was falling asleep...but while somehow still being awake. It was an almost surreal situation. And to add to the weirdness, Naruto noticed that he was standing up, even if he didn't remember getting up. Confused, he decided to open his eyes.
Much to his shock, the Jinchuriki wasn't in Training Ground Three anymore with Jiraiya, but in what appeared to be a massive sewer. The floor was completely damp, yet Naruto didn't feel any wetness on his feet. There was nothing remarkable about that place, other than an equally massive gate that looked like the door of a prison.
Cautiously, Naruto approached the jail gate. The distance between the bars was big enough for Naruto to slip between them, but he didn't want to get inside the cell. As he got closer, he could hear something rumbling in the back of the cell, where there wasn't enough light for the blond to see.
"Hello...?" the blond timidly called. "Is somebody there?"
Naruto's answer came in the form of a loud grumble, as well as a pair of red eyes glowing in the darkness, looking into his very soul.
"Oh? Look who finally came to pay me a visit..." Naruto found the guttural voice vaguely familiar.
Naruto gulped, and cleared his throat before speaking. "Are you...the Nine Tails?"
The occupant of the cell moved closer to the gate, and now Naruto could see a massive orange fox with multiple tails –Naruto didn't count them but he guessed there would be nine– and red eyes that glowed faintly.
"Your observational skills are worth praising, brat, I'm sure that you are considered a prodigy among your peers."
Naruto could swear that the fox was mocking him. Still, he decided to ignore that jab, and get to the business at hand.
"Eh, I'll take that as a 'yes'. What is this place?" Naruto asked.
"Your tiny human mind would be unable to grasp the nature of this place that is my prison, but a very simplified description would be a pocket dimension created with your chakra that exists within you," the Kyubi answered.
"A pocket dimension...within me?" Naruto dumbly echoed. True to the Kyubi's words, his young mind didn't really understand those words. It didn't matter, he could ask Jiraiya about it later.
"While I'm flattered that you decided to come to see me after being together for so many years..." the fox's voice was oozing with sarcasm. "...why are you here?"
Naruto gulped once again. He wanted to ask the Kyubi to let him lend its power, but he didn't know how to approach the topic. The sight of the strongest Tailed Beast was just too much for him, even if he was protected by the giant gates.
"I...I wanted to thank you for helping me back in the Land of the Rice Fields..." Naruto began. Maybe a little flattery would help.
The Kyubi snorted. "Keep your gratitude for someone who appreciates it, brat. My intentions were far from altruistic."
Naruto titled his head, a bit puzzled. "And why did you lend me your power back then, if you didn't want to help me?"
"It was of my interest for you to remain safe."
While there was a certain truth to that statement, it wasn't the whole truth.
"I helped you because my chakra will slowly erode the seal that keeps me imprisoned, and your strong emotions allow me to pump more chakra into your body" the Kyubi thought, but he obviously wasn't going to tell that to his jailer. "I presume that you didn't come here just to thank me, am I right?"
Naruto cursed inwardly. Were his intentions so predictable?
"N-No. Since you helped me that time, and you're interested in my safety...could you lend me your power in the future? It could save my life again."
The Kyubi did an admirable job containing its rage and maintaining his composure. Those words had hit all the wrong buttons. Even if fulfilling that request would accelerate the Tailed Beast's escape, his hatred and pride (which it had plenty to spare) got the best of it. Still, it would give Naruto a piece of its mind.
"So, this is it, right? In the end, it always amounts to the same. My power" the Kyubi grumbled. "That's all what your bastard race wants! Power! Well, you know what? Forget about it! I won't be your slave anymore!"
"What do you mean by 'anymore'?" Naruto asked.
"That's none of your business, brat. Now get lost."
"Me get lost? You said that this place is made of my chakra, hence I own it, meaning that I decide who stays and who leaves!"
The Kyubi snorted, and chuckled. "So you prefer if it's me who leaves? That, I can do. Open these gates, and you'll never see me again."
"Har har, you must think yourself so clever, right?" Naruto placed his hands on his hips. "Even if I'd love to get rid of you forever, I'm not going to let you out and kill more innocent people."
"None of your loathsome race is innocent. And I'm doing the world a favor by getting rid of you and your race. You're nothing but a plague upon this world."
Naruto sighed in defeat. "We're not getting anywhere."
"And you realized of that just now? Like I said before, you truly possess a privileged mind," the Kyubi snarked.
"Will you stop with the sarcasm? It's annoying" Naruto protested.
"So are you. And riling you up is the only entertainment I had in decades, so humor me here."
"You know, I tried to be nice, but if you're going to be an ass and not cooperate with me then...then I'll take your chakra by force!"
"You what!? BWAHAHAHAHA! That's a good one!" the Kyubi laughed uproariously. "You're welcome to try anytime, brat."
"Dad told me other Jinchuriki can do that, so I don't know why I couldn't do it myself. And then we will see who's the one laughing."
"But for the time being, that one will be me" the Kyubi retorted. "Now leave."
Naruto was about to retort, but he felt the floor below his feet disappear, leaving nothing but an empty void.
"AHHHHHHHHHHHH!" Naruto screamed at the top of his lungs while he fell to his apparent death.
"Naruto, calm down! I'm here!"
The blond opened his eyes, and realized that he was back in Konoha. Jiraiya was in front of him, grabbing him by his shoulders, with a panicked expression plastered over the Sannin's face.
"Uh?" Naruto asked, confused, as he slowly inspected his surroundings.
"Naruto, are you okay?" a concerned Jiraiya asked.
Panting a bit, Naruto managed to articulate a sentence. "W-What happened?"
"I was going to ask you the same. I mean, you were sitting there doing what I was asking you to, then all of sudden you starting yelling as if you were face to face with the fox itself!"
"Because I was face to face with the fox!" Naruto replied back.
Jiraiya was taken aback. "What? Did you see it for a second?"
"No, I had a whole conversation with it" Naruto said, trying to sound unironic. "Wait a minute, how much time passed since I was gone?"
"None at all" was Jiraiya's answer. "How did you managed to talk with the Nine Tails in less than a second?"
"That's the weird thing, from my point of view, I was gone for quite some time!"
"That's strange, but not impossible. We still know very little about the chakra-created artificial dimensions. Maybe time passes in a different way there" Jiraiya guessed.
"Like...why everything sealed inside a scroll remains the same until it's unsealed?"
"For example. So, tell me, did you find something during your talk with the Kyubi?" Jiraiya asked as he leaned forward. It's not that every day you could interact with a centuries-old demon.
"Yeah. That the Nine Tails is an asshole!"
…
Konoha Hospital
While Naruto had his less than friendly chat with his furry tenant, Hinata and Ino left the hospital after one of their lessons in medical ninjutsu with Tsunade. Thanks to the additional training they received from Shizune, Sakura and Karin progressed at a much faster pace than the rest of their classmates, and thus were moved to another class at another hour in which Tsunade taught them more advanced subjects and jutsu.
And since Shino had left with the rest of his team on their first C-Rank mission to Takigakure not long ago, that left only Hinata and Ino. Then again, none of them were complaining. That meant that Tsunade could focus entirely on the two of them, allowing them to progress at a faster rate, and in no point they'd be at the same level as Sakura and Karin.
Or that's what Ino thought, until Hinata reminded her that Sakura and Karin also had Tsunade for themselves, plus Shizune as well.
"Man, this sucks! Then the gap between forehead girl and I will only get bigger and bigger! Just like her forehead!" Ino protested.
"W-Well, that's because Sakura-san is focusing all her time and efforts into becoming a medic-nin. We also have to master our clan's jutsu as well" Hinata observed.
"You have a point there" Ino conceded. "But that doesn't make it suck any less."
"Just because Sakura-san surpasses us in a single field doesn't mean that she's a better kunoichi than us," not that Hinata minded much if Sakura became a better kunoichi than her. She wasn't a competitive person. "I mean, we're still better than her at both taijutsu and ninjutsu, right?"
"Once again, you make another good point" Ino replied.
Hinata cleared her throat, and mentally prepared herself for her next question. She wasn't a busybody, but there was something about Ino and Sakura that got her curious, and this was a good chance to bring up the topic.
"Ino-san...can I ask you s-something? It's a bit personal..."
Much to Hinata's confusion, Ino's mouth formed a huge grin. "So you finally decided to tell Naruto about your feelings! And of course, you want some advice from me! Okay, listen carefully. The first thing you need to do-"
"It's not that!" Hinata interrupted, blushing furiously. Even she was surprised on how much she raised her voice. "I-I meant...personal about you."
Ino's grin disappeared, and was replaced by an expression of mild confusion. "Oh...yeah, sure, what do you want to know about me?"
"I-It's about you and Sakura-san..." Hinata noticed Ino's mood darkening. Still, she decided to keep going. "I r-remember back in the Academy that the two of you used to be inseparable, but then you drifted apart...what happened?" despite the question, Hinata already imagined the answer, but she thought that there was more to it than her mere conjectures.
The Yamanaka heiress sighed, and smiled sadly at Hinata. "Boy, people should be wary of you silent types. You make it look like you're not even there, but you see and listen to everything, don't you?"
Hinata smiled back at her. "Those are the markings of a ninja, aren't they?"
"A fair point. The third one in a row. You're on fire today, girl," Ino mentioned, chuckling, before her expression turned serious again. "Yeah, forehead girl and I used to be besties, as it's usually said. She used to be bullied because of that billboard of hers she calls a forehead, and let's say that I couldn't stand it, and defended her. That's how we met each other, and became friends."
"And...what happened then?"
"Both of us had a liking to one boy, you know who I'm talking about. Naturally, we couldn't be friends and love rivals at the same time, so it was inevitable that our friendship ended."
"B-But you don't like S-Sasuke-san anymore, right?"
"Exactly" Ino already guessed where Hinata was going. "But Sakura still does, and that's why we can't be friends again. This isn't a matter of a love fight anymore. She can't be my friend while pursuing somebody of the same clan who murdered my father."
"Ino-san, don't you think you're being unfair to him? Sasuke-san might be an Uchiha, but he didn't take part in the coup."
Ino looked at Hinata with her eyes wide open in disbelief. "Hinata, how can you say that!? I would never imagined that you, of all people, who also lost your father to the Uchiha, as well as many other clansmen, would defend Sasuke!"
"It's that...I don't think it's fair to judge him for what others did...his situation is too similar of that of Naruto-kun..."
"What do you mean?"
"Naruto-kun holds the Kyubi inside him...but a lot of people used to blame him for the destruction and death caused by the Kyubi...others think he'll turn evil due the Kyubi's influence, or that the Kyubi will escape at any time...but none of what the Kyubi did is Naruto-kun's fault."
Ino averted her gaze. "I know what you're trying to say...but whenever I see Sasuke, when I see his clan crest, when I see a Sharingan...I can't help but remember that horrible night, and the news about dad's death..."
"It was the same for me too, Ino-san" Hinata placed a hand on the blonde's shoulder. "And I'm not saying that you should befriend Sasuke-san, just that...you shouldn't judge him unfairly."
"I'll try, but don't expect me to be chummy with him or anything..."
"And now that that's out of the way, do you think that there's a chance that Sakura and you might bury the hatchet?"
Ino sighed. "It's not that easy, Hinata. There's still a lot of bad blood between us that will take some time to overcome, if we overcome it...by the way, why are you so interested in my past friendship with forehead girl?"
This time, it was Hinata who averted her gaze, as she started to twiddle her fingers. "W-Well, it's that...before meeting Naruto-kun, I didn't have any friends...not even in my clan. A-And if for whatever reason Naruto-kun and I stopped being friends, I don't know what I would do. That's why I think that what happened between you two is really sad. You and Sakura-san had a great friendship, and it would be a pity to see it go like that..."
"I see...boy, it's really sad when you put it like that...still, I don't think I would be able to walk to Sakura and ask her to forget about the past five or so years of non-stop mutual hostility" Ino replied.
"Maybe Sakura-san feels the same as you do..."
"That's a possibility, but for the time being, I'm not ready to take that step."
Hinata looked at Ino, and smiled. "It's okay. I don't want to force you to do something that you don't want to do."
"Still, this little talk made me think..." Ino looked at the sky, as if thinking of the future. "Well, I gotta go. Asuma-sensei will be mad if I'm not on time for our daily training."
"It's okay, I also have some training to do as well."
"And next time, we will talk about something personal of YOUR life!" Despite sounding so menacing, Ino winked at Hinata. The Hyuga heiress knew all too well what the blond girl was referring to.
…
Takigakure
Kakashi's Animal Squad had taken their first C-Rank mission, to escort the young leader of Takigakure, Shibuki, back to his home village. So far, the journey happened without any incident –not even bandits attacked them– and the group of five arrived to the minor ninja village with their client untouched.
After a job well done, Kakashi was ready to go back to Konoha, but his three Genin begged him to let them stay in the village at least a day, so they could get to know it better, and maybe have the chance to meet ninja from another village –besides Shibuki, that is–. It was a way to make up for the "boringness" of the mission. Not in the mood for arguing, Kakashi decided to indulge them this time around, seeing no harm in letting them spend one more day outside Konoha.
The village of Takigakure was build around a river, surrounding a small delta on it.. A massive tree grew in the middle of said delta, whose branches and leaves were so lush that they almost completely blocked the sky. Not even the giant trees of Konoha's Training Ground Forty Four –the infamous "Forest of Death"– were so big.
The surrounding trees acted like a natural barrier around the village. The only way to access it was through an underwater cave system whose entrance was behind a waterfall –hence the village's name– . This made Takigakure the only one of the Hidden Ninja Villages who was actually hidden.
Then again, it took no time for the Genin to regret their plea, since they found that there was almost nothing to do there. And then they regretted voicing their complaints, as Shibuki, with Kakashi's approval, assigned them a D-Rank mission: pick up trash from the water.
"Can somebody explain to me how we ended up doing a D-Rank mission? We asked Kakashi-sensei to do this mission so we could stop doing those menial tasks" Tamaki complained as she picked an empty can from the river's shore.
"I believe that this is a hidden punishment for our behavior, first for asking him to stay here longer, and then for complaining once we got our request," Shino guessed.
"Ugh, another one. I wish Kakashi-sensei wasn't such a walking enigma. With all his hidden tests and underlying messages and whatnot," Kiba sourly commented. "I wish that man went straight to the point just once."
Kiba would never forget their True Genin Test, taking a couple bells from Kakashi. The whole point of the test was to use teamwork, but since there were only two bells, that meant that one of the Genin would go back to the academy, which in his opinion discouraged teamwork. In the end, they passed when Kakashi gave them a second chance, which of course was another hidden test –to see if Tamaki and Shino would share their food with Kiba, who ended up tied to a post when he tried to steal some of Kakashi's food, even when Kakashi forbade them to do so.
"Well, there's a reason he wears a mask, doesn't he? I think that guy likes to keep some mystery" Tamaki added.
"Besides, we are ninja. As Kakashi-sensei said, we need to see underneath the underneath. We can't expect him to give us all the answers. And-" Shino suddenly grew silent.
"Shino? Is there anything wrong?" Tamaki asked.
"Don't you hear that?"
Nobody said anything so they could hear whatever Shino was hearing. Soon, Kiba and Tamaki heard a buzz. It sounded like a flying insect, except much louder, which meant that it was a huge insect. While Shino knew of quite a few giant insects already, all of them made a different noise when they flew. This was something Shino had never seen.
"The buzz is getting louder, which means it's coming in our direction" nobody could be able to tell, given his usual stoicism, but Shino was really excited.
A shadow quickly passed above them. They both looked upwards, and were surprised by what they saw. It wasn't an insect, but a girl. A girl with insect-like wings protruding from her back. The flying girl paid them no mind, and flew towards the giant tree in the middle of the lake.
Again, nobody would be able to tell the difference, but Shino was speechless.
"What was that?" Kiba asked.
"Shino?" Tamaki asked, upon seeing his silent teammate staring into the direction the winged girl flew. Soon, it was obvious what was going through his head, and she knew what to do. "Shino, if you want, you can go and find that girl. Kiba and I will do your part."
"Hey!" Kiba wasn't kind to people speaking in his name, especially when it came to do additional work.
Shino was snapped from his stupor. "No" was his response. "I would be a bad teammate and ninja if I left without doing my part of the job. While it is true that I wish to know more about that girl, I don't want to do it at your expense."
"What, Shino interested in a girl? That's new" Kiba smirked at the Aburame. "If that's the case, I'm with Tamaki. Besides, we've been working for a couple hours and picked up most of the garbage. We can finish this without you."
"I see. Thank you then. I won't forget this" Shino said before leaving.
…
Konoha, Training Ground Ten
Team Asuma was resting under the shade of a tree after an intense training session with Asuma, which soon would resume. Choji was eating chips as usual, while Shikamaru looked at the clouds, and Ino filed her nails. Then, she suddenly perked up.
"Ino?" Choji asked.
"My gossip senses are tingling," Ino stated. "It feels almost like...like a boy we know developed a crush on a girl he just meet!"
"You can sense people's relationships? Shikamaru asked in disbelief. "Troublesome."
"'Scary' is the word I'd use," Choji added, sharing his lazy teammate's disbelief.
…
Back in Takigakure
It took very little time for the Aburame's kikai bugs to track the mysterious flying girl, who was now happily sitting on one of the tree's extremely large branches, doing nothing in particular.
Shino studied the girl before approaching her. She was his age, more or less. She had mint green hair, tanned skin, and orange eyes. She was wearing a short sleeveless white midriff shirt with fishnet armor underneath, long white armlets, and fishnet shorts with a short white apron skirt over it. She was wearing a Takigakure headband tied to her right arm, in a similar fashion to Shikamaru, which meant that she was one of the village's ninja. She was also carrying a red, cylindrical backpack.
After some internal debate, Shino decided to make his presence known to the girl. "Hello," the Aburame laconically said as he walked towards her.
The green haired girl was a bit startled, then she looked at the approaching Konoha ninja and smiled. "Oh, hi! You aren't from here, are you? I don't remember seeing you before."
"Your assumption is correct. My name is Shino Aburame, and I'm from Konoha. My team came here while escorting the leader of this village."
In less than a second, the girl was now standing up in front of him with her hand stretched. "My name is Fu, and I'm from Taki, but you probably guessed that already, hehehe!"
Shino shook her hand, and noticed that for having such a petite frame, the girl was rather strong.
"Nice to meet you, Fu."
"By the way, not to be rude or anything, but this is my secret spot. How did you find it?" the green haired girl asked.
"I saw you flying towards this place, and followed suit" Shino explained.
"So, you saw a pretty girl, and decided to follow her like that? My, my, what a stalker you are!" Fu joked, as she punched him in the shoulder.
"I don't do that with every girl I see" Shino replied, a bit defensively.
"Oh, so there was something special about me that caught your attention?" Fu asked, smiling at him. "Care to tell me what it is?"
"It's your wings. And excuse me if I'm being too blunt, but could you show them to me?"
"Oh, don't worry, it's okay, look!" Fu turned around, and two long, insect-like green and orange wings sprouted from her hips, surprising Shino a bit. "So, what do you think?" Fu playfully asked while fluttering her wings a bit. "You can touch them if you want!"
"Eh...I prefer not" Shino awkwardly answered as he tried his hardest not to blush. "How did you get those wings?"
Fu's wings disappeared. The girl suddenly lost all her cheerful attitude, grew a bit somber, and started rubbing her arm. "Eh, I'd love to tell you but...Shibuki told me not to tell anybody out of the village about my wings, sorry."
"I see" Shino adjusted his shades. "Can you tell me at least if it's something anybody can learn? Maybe I can learn to do that on my own."
Fu chuckled. "I don't think so, Shino. Let's say it's an unique ability of mine."
"So it's a Bloodline Limit. I understand then your leader's reservation about sharing those secrets with me. My apologies for asking."
Fu started to smile again all of sudden. "It's okay! You know, you're the first one who showed any interest in my wings, which is kind of nice" Fu's cheerfulness was back in full force as well. "I have an idea! I can give you a ride if you want! You don't appreciate how pretty Takigakure is unless you see it from a bird's eye view!"
"No, it's okay, I prefer if- HEY!"
Before Shino could react, he found himself high in the air, with Fu's surprisingly strong arms grabbing him by his armpits.
"I know a lot of people are a bit afraid the first time they fly, but trust me, you're going to enjoy this!" Fu assured.
Shino was too terrified to protest or even scream.
…
Training Ground Eight
"Wind Release: Cyclone Shockwave!"
A tornado formed around Naruto, in a similar way to the Wind Release: Wind Wall, except that it also violently expanded outwards.
"Good job, Naruto" Kurenai praised. "Keep working, and you'll increase the radius of effect with each try." The Jonin then turned at Hinata, who nodded and made several hand seals.
"Lightning Release: Thunderbolt!"
Hinata released a myriad of lightning bolt branches from her fingertips, hitting the ground, setting the grass on fire while scorching some land.
"Nice one, Hinata. See? Now you have another ranged attack in case you're unable to reach an enemy in close combat" Kurenai stated. Hinata merely nodded.
Kurenai looked at the last of her Genin, Haku. The Ice Release user nodded, and made several hand seals.
"Demonic Illusion: Ice Prison!"
Kurenai allowed the genjutsu to affect her, and she found herself suddenly trapped inside a block of ice that simply left her head exposed. The genjutsu only lasted a few seconds before Haku himself dispelled it.
"So, how was it?"
"The execution was almost flawless, but I can't help but wonder why you modified the original jutsu" Kurenai had taught Haku the Tree Binding Death, one of her most used genjutsu.
"Besides ice fitting me better, I believe it was a good way to confuse my enemies. Since I use ice jutsu, my enemies wouldn't be able to differentiate which ones are real and which ones are illusions."
Kurenai nodded and smiled. "Interesting reasoning, Haku. I applaud your inventiveness."
Haku smiled back at her.
"I'm very glad to see how fast the three of you are progressing. I had my reservations at first, but now I believe that you're ready."
"R-Ready for what, Kurenai-sensei?" Hinata asked.
"A dangerous mission? Please let it be a dangerous mission!" Naruto excitedly shouted.
Kurenai just shook her head, and chuckled. Despite that close call with Orochimaru, Naruto still wanted more missions like that. Then again, Naruto didn't have to fight Orochimaru, that "honor" fell upon her and her friends' shoulders.
"Actually, better than that, Naruto. The Chunin Exams are in less than two weeks, and if you pass them, you will be promoted to Chunin" the raven-haired sensei explained.
"Whoa, that's even better!"
"That's what I said. Though in the end, the ultimate decision is yours" Kurenai looked at them. "But you don't look like you want to miss this, am I right?"
"Does that mean that our other classmates will be taking the exam as well?" Hinata asked.
Kurenai shrugged. "That depends on their senseis, as well as themselves. If a Jonin-sensei doesn't feel like their Genin are ready, then he or she can ban them from taking the exam. And just like I told you, the Genin themselves must feel that they're ready, or at least willing, to take the exam. As for myself, I'll recommend you when Hokage-sama calls for the meeting."
…
Nighttime, Senju Residence
It was a rare sight to see all six members of Naruto's adoptive family to have dinner at the same time, given that Jiraiya and Tsunade were often missing due their duties as Hokage and Chief Medic of the Konoha Hospital, respectively. But today wasn't one of those days. Which was perfect for Naruto, who wanted to announce his participation in the exams.
"Hey, dad, Kurenai-sensei said that the Chunin Exams are going to be soon, right?" Naruto asked.
Jiraiya nodded. "Yeah. This time they will be held here, meaning that it's my responsibility to ensure that they go on without a hitch."
Tsunade cleared her throat. "Did Kurenai mention if she was going to recommend you?"
"You can bet she did! Man, I can't wait for the exams to arrive, and I get to show people how strong I got since the Academy!" Naruto boasted.
"You graduated the Academy three months ago. Don't be in over your head. Those exams are nothing compared to the ones you take in the Academy. People actually die there" Tsunade sternly replied.
"Well, I have an -S-Rank mission under my belt, so I think I can handle it" upon seeing Tsunade's scowl, Naruto added: "But yeah, I'll be careful, mom. I won't give you a reason to worry."
Tsunade's scowl disappeared, and was replaced by a content smile. Then she realized of something, and turned to her apprentice. "Shizune, what about your team? Are you going to recommend them?"
The black haired woman nodded. "The three of them are rather strong, and their teamwork has improved a lot since the time I became their sensei. Sakura and Karin don't bicker as much as they used to."
"Would you say that Sasuke is stronger than me?" Naruto asked.
Shizune looked at him and smiled. "Well...it's hard to tell. Both of you are really strong so I couldn't say unless I saw you fight against each other."
"That has an easy solution then! Tomorrow I'll challenge Sasuke to a fight!"
Jiraiya just shook his head. "Naruto...you should stop obsessing about beating Sasuke. A rivalry can be a good motivator to improve one's self, but it shouldn't be the only one."
Tsunade dryly laughed. "Look who's talking! You were obsessed with beating both Orochimaru and I as long as we were teammates!"
Jiraiya shot Tsunade an unamused look. "That was completely different, it was a matter of principle! Besides, in the end, I surpassed both of you!"
Tsunade dropped her fork, and looked at Jiraiya incredulously. "Excuse me? When did that happen? I've always been, and still am, way stronger than you!"
Shizune was sweating bullets, as her eyes drifted back and forth between Tsunade and Jiraiya. She didn't like where this was going. If the two of them decided to fight, the house wouldn't survive.
"Do you want to put your money where your mouth is?" Jiraiya challenged.
Tsunade merely chuckled, and continued eating. "I'd love to, but I don't want to humiliate you in front of the kids, so let's leave this for another moment, okay? We were having a nice dinner."
Jiraiya decided not to press the issue further, but this in turn raised another question. He looked at his godson. "Naruto, why are you so determined to beat Sasuke? Is it because he was the strongest of your classmates?"
"Yeah, but it's not just that" Naruto began. "It's the way he acted. All cool and hip, with that 'you're all beneath me' attitude."
"Well, Sasuke is a...complicated kid. I don't think he means any harm. It's just his way to cope" Shizune interceded. "It's obvious that losing most of his clan during the Uchiha Insurrection affected him deeply, and the way some people treat him for being an Uchiha doesn't help matters. But we're working on that. He simply needs a positive influence in his life."
"Well, Hinata lost her dad that night too, and she doesn't act like Sasuke." Naruto protested, crossing his arms.
"Naruto-kun, everyone has a different way to cope with loss and tragedy, and it's unfair to expect everybody to react the same way to such events" Shizune countered.
"At least it wouldn't be so bad if all the girls didn't act like he's the most interesting guy in the world."
Tsunade leaned forward, and smiled mischievously. "Oh, so that's what this is about? Is there a girl you like who has a crush on Sasuke?"
Naruto almost choked on his food. "W-What!? Of course not!" Naruto then turned a bit red and averted his gaze. "But you know, it would be nice to be as popular with the girls as Sasuke is. I mean, almost every girl worships the ground he walks on, and he hardly cares!"
"Naruto-nii san, what about Hinata-chan? She's really cute" Kaida piped in.
"Yeah, and she doesn't drool over Sasuke" Hagane added.
"W-WHAT!?" Naruto barked in shock, blushing furiously. "But...Hinata's my friend!"
"Ohhhhhhh, look at him, getting all red!" Tsunade teasingly said.
The twins started to sing. "Naruto and Hinata, sitting on a tree. K-I-S-"
As much as Jiraiya wanted to join in the fun, he decided to cut Naruto some slack. "Let's change the topic, okay? We're making the kid feel uncomfortable. I know that girls are a delicate issue, especially given the age you're in."
"What's wrong with my age?"
"Nothing. But you and I will have an important talk soon. Don't worry, it's nothing bad" Jiraiya smiled impishly. Naruto just raised an eyebrow.
…
Taki, Next Morning
Kakashi's Animal Squad was ready to return to Konoha. The Copy Ninja had to admit that, in hindsight, it was a good thing that they decided to stay. Turns out that a Taki renegade Jonin named Suien, helped by several Ame missing-nin, were about to steal the village's famous Hero Water, an elixir that dramatically increases the power of those who drank it, albeit with a potentially fatal cost.
Kiba, Shino, and Tamaki managed to stop Suien's minions from kidnapping several civilians to use as hostages in exchange of the Hero Water, while Kakashi and Shibuki dealt with Suien himself. The Taki missing-nin fell under the power of Kakashi's Lightning Blade.
"Thank you, all of you. You helped my village far more than what I had asked of from you" Shibuki said as he shook Kakashi's hand.
"Eh, no need to thank us. We were in the right place at the right time" Kakashi replied, rubbing the back of his neck. "Besides, there's no way a single, unimposing man, as Suien with a bunch of followers would be able to threaten a whole ninja village."
While Kakashi and Shibuki talked, Fu was saying goodbye to the Konoha Genin.
"It's a pity you guys have to leave so soon. I'd love to get to know you better" Fu said, pouting a bit. "Shibuki doesn't let me out of the village since it's 'dangerous', and there are almost no kids my age here. This village is small, you know."
"It's okay, you can always write" Tamaki suggested.
"Or we can just come to pay you a visit. Taki isn't that far away from Konoha" Kiba added.
"Like my friends and teammates said, we well do our best to keep contact" Shino finished.
Fu then pulled the three of them into a bone-crushing hug. "Aw, you guys are awesome!" the green haired girl cooed. Then, she whispered into Shino's ear. "Though… we might see each other sooner than you think, hehe."
…
Konoha, Hokage's Office
Jiraiya was at his office –this time it was really him, not a clone,– doing the usual paperwork, when somebody entered the room. Turned out it was Sarutobi. He looked mildly worried, as he was holding a small scroll in his hand. He stopped what he was doing and nodded his former sensei to speak.
"Jiraiya, we got a message," Sarutobi began. "From Kumo."
The Sannin's curiosity spiked. He hasn't heard from that village ever since the Hyuga Affair nine years ago. He wondered what they wanted this time.
"What is it, sensei?"
"It's about the Chunin Exams. Kumo is going to send several teams to undertake the exam here."
…
Author's note: a few things to discuss here. Let's begin.
Albeit this is obvious, Jiraiya's backstory is completely made up by me. The manga never showed us where does Jiraiya come from, if he has (or had) any family (at least we knew that Orochimaru was an orphan who lost his parents while being a kid) or what moved him to become a ninja (according to the databook, he graduated at six, so that didn't give me too much of a window of time). I hope you enjoyed this little bit of background.
And Naruto meets the Fox for the first time. Sorry for those of you who were expecting that Naruto would befriend the Fox and thus have access to his powers, but that won't happen as for now. I don't want to make Naruto too overpowered, and frankly, befriending the Kyubi so fast would be beyond unrealistc.
If you watched the OVA "Protect the Waterfall Village", you probably noticed a few elements of it in this chapter. Well, that's because this was meant to be a full adaptation of that OVA. My idea was to send Kakashi and Kurenai's teams to escort Shibuki and later fight Suiren. That way I could have the Assasult Squad interacting a bit with the Animal Squad, kinda how the way they did with the Tactical Squad in the previous arc. And, unlike that OVA, it would feature Fu. There was, however, a little problem that stopped me from doing such a thing.
I absolutely loathed that OVA.
Like, four guys are able to take over a ninja village? Seriously? Is Shibuki the only ninja there? And that's not even getting on Naruto being at his most obnoxious and incompetent, except for the last five minutes, where he's suddenly able to control de Kyubi's chakra for no reason (this took place before the Chunin Exams). And Sakura did nothing but get captured by the bad guys (the usual for her), leaving Sasuke as the only one to do anything. That's why I decided to only adapt a few parts, and they were mostly to flesh out the Animal Squad a bit more. Too bad for the Animal Squad/Assault Squad interactions, thought.
Anyway, there will more inter-team interactions in the next arc, which is a big favorite of mine. In two weeks, the Chunin Exam Arc will begin! In the meantime, leave a review! Reviews make me very, very, very happy!