This was delayed as I couldn't figure out how to motivate and get Naruto stronger without the Opness of Shadowclones... what could get the lazy boy to read and learn independently... I figured it out... and so this chapter was born..
Enjoy.
After this chapter Naruto is the Main character... this was the rest of the Prologue so to speak.
"This is pathetic... how did he graduate?" Tsunade gaped at Naruto, watching the boy she loved as he sparred with Iruka. "He is slow, sloppy... he is showing no skills or technique. I wouldn't even call him genin level!" It was painful to watch, knowing what it would mean for the boy when she was done with this test. Turning to Shizune, who was standing next to her, she gestured to the papers in her hands. "How did he score in the academic's portion?"
"He failed it, he couldn't even answer what Chakra was..." Shizune looked as baffled as Tsuande felt. "How did he graduate my lady, there is no way he could have done so with... this?"
"I read his files... it turns out Danzo was right, can't believe I just said that." She shuddered as her mind drifted to the conversation she had at the counsel meeting just a few hours ago.
"So the boy is no longer a Jinchuuriki." Homura sighed out, slumping in her seat. "We are doomed without the power to balance everything out, we have so few power houses anymore. We must fine and recover the Kyuubi once it reforms. Can the boy hold the power of the Kyuubi once more?"
Tsunade sighed herself, feeling the weight of the boy's loss. "No, he cannot. Naruto was filled with Sage chakra before he died, and a chemical I have only ever seen in the curse Seal Orochimaru uses. It burned out the boy's tissues, chakra coils and all the cells in his body. I used the residual chakra of Kyuubi in his tissues to regenerate his coils but they hardened too much to be reused as a vessel. Naruto's actual chakra has diminished considerably. You see he only has access to whatever chakra his body would naturally produce without Kyuubi's influence. In effect he may as well have never had or been the vessel of Kyuubi. The Sage chakra altered his cells. They mutated them then, caused mass divide but the new cells were without the effects of Kyuubi's chakra. They were pure, untainted by even a trace of that chakra. It was like he was reborn, almost cloned without the effects of Kyuubi's chakra.
His chakra levels are still high, he is an Uzumaki and that has not changed, but not enough to make any clones... or summon anything larger then a small toad. He cannot make a rasengan without a clone so that is gone. For a comparison, he has twice as much chakra as Sasuke Uchiha."
Kakashi, who was allowed in the meeting due to his relation to Naruto, frowned behind his mask. "Sasuke had enough chakra to make a clone though, I taught him the jutsu to make sure he could make the chidori."
"The shadow clone jutsu, like all jutsu, require a mix of physical and spiritual energy. Naruto's chakra has always been almost pure physical chakra but before he had enough chakra to force the jutsu. Now, without enough spiritual chakra to give them sentience, Naruto cannot safely make a clone. However he might be able to do regular clones with his reduced levels."
Nodding, Kakashi let out a huge sigh but it was Danzo who spoke next. "Then the boy is useless to us."
"The boy has done a great many services for the village, won a great many battles-"
"All due to the Kyuubi's chakra." Tsunade stopped in place, stunned by Danzo's words and everyone's nod.
Shukaku turned to her with a sigh. " Lady Tsunade, I know you care for Naruto but Danzo is right. Naruto has only ever won due to Kyuubi's influence. His fight at Wave, according to the report, was due to Kyuubi's chakra overpowering his enemy. His fight with Kiba was due to his stamina and healing factor allowing him to win by attrition so he could get lucky and fart on Kiba's face. His fight with Neji was a war of attrition, the Referee not calling the match when he ought to have and Naruto being able to unlock his chakra points with Kyuubi's chakra. He fought Gaara by using Kyuubi's chakra to summon the Great Toad. According to your reports he only managed to beat Kabuto, after you beat the man bloody anyway, due to being able to take a hit and use Rasegan which required Kyuubi's chakra to make the clones for it... he only managed to fight Sasuke at the Valley of the end due to the power of Kyuubi... You see every major event required it. He has shown no skills in combat... he shouldn't have even graduated ... if you do not believe my words, then check his files and watch the recordings on the chunin exams."
And that was exactly what she did... watching the videos, reading Naruto's academy files... and everything she could find since he became a Ninja and what she saw was a textbook case of someone riding on a power not theirs, unable to follow orders or respect authority. Naruto had no place on a battle field...
And she hated that she had to tell him that... but first she had to reassess him, just to make sure. He redid the academy graduation exam, was currently sparring with Iruka and she tested his throwing skills and academy jutsu...
He only barely passed the throwing skills and trap making portions... and she had to give him a huge amount of credit for the creative Transformation, but nothing else.
Even if it would break her heart she had to do this...
"Naruto that's enough." The fighting stopped and she saw the raw of sunshine turn her, his happiness falling away as he saw her miserable expression.
"What's wrong Granny?"
She cringed, knowing that she might lose that loving title... " Naruto... I am sorry to say this but without Kyuubi's power to rely on... you are barely a genin level Ninja. Hell I wouldn't even call you a genin. I cannot in good conscious allow you to stay in the shinobi forces."
His eyes went wide. "But, I... I am already a ninja! I have to become Hokage."
"And you won't ever become Hokage with your skills... Naruto you can't even tell me what Chakra is. You've won every fight with Kyuubi's powers and none of your own. Everything you had that allowed you to pass it gone."
"But that's not my fault."
"Which is why I am putting you in the reserves for a month. I will give you one month to get back to Genin level, in all areas, if you cannot I will have no choice but to take your headband."
Silence, dead and cold, Naruto looking at her like she had cut off his puppy's head. It destroyed her to be the source of his pain but she had no choice. Love wasn't just about being kind, it was about caring for the person and being tough when they needed it.
Naruto sniffled at her, his eyes filled with tears. " A month, that's it... but I... What do I need to do? I can't make clones anymore... So I can't use the rasengan."
Sighing, she sat down and gestured for Naruto to do the same. Ignoring her crowd, she pulled the boy in for a hug before putting her hands on his shoulders. "I need you to pass everything the academy needs for graduation. Ninjutsu, taijutsu, throwing skills, the written portion... everything. You have a month to study, train and learn. I cannot let you have access to the library anymore, but you can use the academy books and scrolls."
She could taste his whining before he even opened his mouth. "But reading is so boring, why do I need to learn all that pointless complicated stu-" He froze, almost having a seizure as her chakra spiked.
"Naruto, do you think being Hokage is just about being strong? It's about being smart, knowing your history so you can learn from it and make better choices as a diplomat. It is about knowing battle tactics so you can make the right choices to save as many lives as possible. It is about having so broad a base of knowledge you can fill any roll in any area of the village and hire just the right person, or promote then knowing they will be an asset and not a hinderance...
Did you know the First Hokage was a healer like me but even better?" Naruto froze again but this time it was out of curiosity. "He could use any weapon, had a perfect knowledge of the body and barriers. He was a great sealer, taijutsu master and sensor and that was with his Wood style that made him so dangerous. The Second Hokage was a master sealer, taijtusu master, created the time space jutsu that made the Fourth so powerful and made a jutsu that could reanimate the dead and made the shadow clone jutsu you used. He was a sword master and a sensor and many other things. The Third was a master of all of the elements, knew every jutsu our village ever made that wasn't restricted to clans, was a great sealer, historian, taijutsu juggernaut, bo staff master, summoner... The Fourth was a sealing god, taijtusu monster, throwing weapon master, sensor... he made several jutsu all on his own.
They didn't become and stay Hokage just by being strong. They were smart, great leaders as children and with their genin and chunin comrades. They were respected and they earned it. Maybe they were meant to be powerful but they also earned respect, power and skill. They had their own advantages but they had to work it into true greatness. If you want to be Hokage then you need to do this too... you need to learn, read and grow.
I'll tell you what, since Jiraiya won't teach you anymore... I will give you this opportunity. If you make Chunin in the next year and show me that you are truly serious... I will train you to become Hokage. I will take you to meetings, spar with you, show you how to deal with paperwork and make hard choices. I will put you on missions to give you the reputation that you need to be taken seriously and one day become Hokage. But you have to earn it.
Can you do that?"
There was another bout of silence... and then Naruto nodded. " I think I can..." For once he didn't sound confident like she knew he was, and she wondered if perhaps this was the real Naruto... behind the mask of excitement and hyper activity. If he really was this little, lost boy looking for a way to prove himself. Somehow that made her feel just a little better...
"Now, since we are here... I want you to tell me how Kakashi and Jiraiya trained you so I can help you find a method that works for you. Everyone learns differently. I cannot train you as you aren't medic material but I can give you this much since you are important to me and have done a lot for this village."
She was not prepared for what he had to say.
'""
"And for you failure to teach Naruto almost anything, to prepare him and make him a worthy genin you both shall be fined three A rank Missions." Tsunade enjoyed the stunned look on Jiraiya's and Kakashi's faces. Both of them looked at her like she was crazy.
"Lady Tsunade, in all fairness Naruto has never exactly been a skilled Ninja. When I first met him he though Chakra was called Catra." Kakashi said, then dodged the sake glass Tsunade tossed at him.
"He passed graduation barely so it was your duty to get him to chunin level and yet you put him in the chunin exams when neither he or Sakura had the skills for it. I read the reports, you threw them to the wolves for Sasuke... who is the only student you taught anything of note to. You chose to toss them both aside during the chunin exams as well, giving Naruto to a man who has no respect for him. You shame yourself, this village and the Fourth with your inaction. You will also be fined the same for your neglect of Sakura. I am appalled at how behind she is despite having been put in the chunin exams. You disgust me."
Done with Kakashi, who was deflated, she turned to Jiraiya who actually flinched at her hateful glare. " He is your godson, you abandoned him his entire life then tossed him down a canyon you had no way to save him from should he fail to summon the Kyuubi's power? You barely taught him the rasegan, he explained it to me, you went to bars and brothels while giving the barest explanations. The kid is a freaking genius if he could manage it on his own like that, I don't doubt he will pass my test. Why did you not correct his taijutsu? He was facing Neji Hyuuga... or when you were on your trip? It seems to me all you wanted out of him was a perfect Jinchuuriki and not a capable ninja." The look in Jiraiya's face told her everything. "That is what you wanted wasn't it... you wanted him to be a Jinchuuriki... you perfect fool. Kushina wasn't a perfect Jinchuuriki and she was stronger then me.. My grandmother was comparable to My Uncle and she barely used Kyuubi's power. We have never relied on it's power, we teach our Jinchuurki to be great on their own. No... you cannot explain this away. I don't want to hear it.
Other then your fine, you will be assigned a series of A and S rank missions for the next two years you would have been on the trip with Naruto. Staring immediately... both of you actually. You will also be writing down the Rasegan and Chidori so I can have others learn it. Naruto has already agreed by the way Jiraiya so you can't squirrel your way out of it. I expect a scroll of each on my desk by the morning before you leave for your missions. You are dismissed."
Both men, silently and with great pain, turned and walked out of her office, neither were very happy but neither able to say a word.
She didn't care for their pain, for their worries. She just needed to undo the damage as much as she could... and she only had so much time for it...
'The rest is up to you Naruto. I punished your neglectful teachers but you need to work on your laziness and sense of entitlement... can you become Hokage or are you destined for mediocrity ... I believe in you, now you just need to prove me right...'
Chapter end, tell me what you think in the reviews.
This was beyond fun to write and has been in my brain all day.
Love, your Ninja Overlord,
Mika.
