Back with yet another chapter in The Forests new Heir! i really do not have shit to say so let's get into it shall we lol
Enjoy! (And I'm not sorry for the cliffhanger last chapter : p)
"Kuso," the masked nin spat out, as the two genin appeared right in front of both him and his comrade.
"Return to the forest."
Uzumaki Naruto forsook the promises he had made to both Yamato and the Sandaime, clasping his hands in the hebi sign, his only goal in mind to give a painful end to those that dared lay hands on his teammate, and friend.
"Moku-"
"Naruto, NO!"
The boy faltered, as from his left another figure burst through the foliage, before swiftly kicking the Uzumaki's hands apart, all the while forming the same seal as forementioned.
"Mokuton: Mokujoheki (Wood release: wood locking wall)," the now revealed Tenzo, fully donning his kitsune Anbu regalia, roared out, as several interjoining sections of wood burst through the ground, quickly beginning to consume the masked operative holding the young Yamanaka aloft.
The elder mokuton user could hardly believe it. As a former operative, he knew those masks from anywhere.
'Danzo... I won't allow your paws on my student!'
"Retreat!" the clear leader and target of Tenzo's attack bellowed, swiftly dropping the Yamanaka, letting her body sprawl to the forest floor, effectively creating space to avoid the jutsu that would have them trapped.
Leaping back, they suddenly found a pair of sharingan eyes blocking their path. The young Uchiha leapt from atop the wooden dome, bringing a heel down on the airborne target, who cross-blocked his attempt, before descending to the ground, quickly disengaging and jumping into the cover of the trees.
'Che, We have no chance to collect any data on the jinchuuriki's capabilities, only speculation,' the ninja thought to themselves as they began to dart out of the training grounds, their teammates already having created enough distance to be out of danger.
'We'll have to report our findings of the Yamanaka heiress, alongside the mystery of what the mokuton user was attempting to hide, for now though we just have to get ou-'
"Ack!"
Before the mysterious nin could complete their thoughts, they felt a sudden shock run through their system, a muffled yelp escaping their lips as the fell through the trees landing awkwardly onto the grass beneath them.
"Go, Naruto," Sasuke yelled from 25 meters behind their target, his index finger still sparking with electricity from his patented jutsu in a crouched position.
Needing no more assurance, Naruto, quickly followed by his sensei, leapt towards their stunned target.
'Tiger→ Ox → Tiger → Rat'
"Suiton: Suiho No Jutsu" The livid jinchuuriki bellowed, as he unleashed the steaming torrent of water towards his stunned target, who looked back with a seemingly staunched posture, struggling as they held up a single hand.
The boys' jutsu collided, tearing apart the earth as steam raised from its markings of destruction. Tenzo immediately landed on the forest floor as the boys jutsu ended, running up to make sure nothing went wrong with their apprehension of the target.
"Kuso," the man cursed, as Naruto raced up behind him in his Shinsei no Ken taijutsu stance, prepared for a battle if the assailant was still functioning.
"What are you doing, sensei! Capture the..." he trailed off, as in the place of the assailant was a simple log, known to be strewn around the training grounds for use of kawarimi.
"FUCK!" Naruto yelled, as he kicked the log as hard as he could, causing it to split in half from the already gaping hole he put through it via his water jutsu.
"Not now, Naruto-nii," Sasuke yelled out from above them, causing the two shinobi below to peer upwards, seeing the boy crouched, while holding an unconscious Yamanaka Ino in his arms.
"We have something more important to deal with."
Tenzo sighed as his student quickly lost his bloodlust, worry taking its place as he bounded up towards his brother, beginning to check over Ino's wounds in panic.
"Listen up you two," The man interjected before any more hysteria could creep up.
"Take her to the hospital immediately. She's hurt and is also the only one who knows anything about what happened here. I'll stay here and report what we know to Sandaime-sama, along with," he motioned to the lifeless body about 30 meters away, "That... Now go!"
With a simple head nod, the lone Uchiha took off. Tenzo turned, making his way towards the deceased enemy he could only assume the girl had taken out, as he heard a soft call of his name.
"Tenzo-sensei..."
The man turned around, seeing his student stare at him with an unusual amount of gratefulness inside of them.
"I almost did something that I would have really regretted... thank you for being there for me."
Without another word, Naruto leapt after his brother, leaving the man there to soak up his words of appreciation.
Shaking loose the small moment he had with Naruto, Tenzo quickly collected the body of the woman, sealing it in a scroll he had on his person, and prepared to make his way towards the Hokage Tower. However, before he left, his head snapped hard to the right of him, glaring at the shrubbery and foliage about 12 feet away, before snorting, and using shunshin to leave the area.
Sarutobi Konohamaru, along with the Konohamaru Corps quickly let out a breath the did not know they were withholding, as the most adrenaline they had ever felt in their lives coursed through their veins.
"K- Konohama-maru... w-was that a... a dead..." Moegi could not even stomach the last word as she released the contents of her earlier meal that day on the ground, in disbelief of the small amount of the true ninja world she was exposed to this day. Udon was not even able to speak, his breathe still caught in his throat as he had turned a pastey white, clearly fearful of the things he had just witnessed.
Konohamaru was floored. He had heard about the great escapades of his Uncle Asuma, and his journeys as one of the 12 guardian shinobi. He'd heard even greater tales, no, legends of his grandfather Sarutobi Hiruzen from all three of the great wars. He knew death was something shinobi dealt with, but to see it so up close and personal...
As the Konohamaru Corps escaped from the training grounds as fast as they could, they could almost still see the beautiful green eyes of the dead woman they witnessed peer back into their own, as they not only felt their naivete of the ninja world die out, but a small part of their innocence fade alongside it.
Ino was not sure what was happening.
She peered out in the deep nothingness as anxiety crept up into her mind, fearful of not the darkness itself, but of what she imagined could be existing alongside her in it.
Finding the courage to begin moving, she walked. She walked for what felt like hours in what seemed to be some sort of hell she couldn't escape from.
Eventually, she found a singular door, which seemed to emanate light as she walked up towards it cautiously. Seeing no other path for herself to take in the endless chasm, she opened up the doorway and peered inside.
As she looked through, she sighed of relief, entering the doorway into, if she had to guess, a pocketed forest. However, as she entered, she quickly felt the door behind her disappear, which gave her a sinking feeling as she faced forward into the foliage.
"Ino..."
The blondes blood ran cold, as she unknowingly began to hold her breath in fear of what it was that called out from behind her.
"Please... help..."
Turning slowly, what she had hoped to avoid ever seeing again quickly became the focus of her vision, as she stared at the woman she took the life of, her lifeless body positioned exactly how she remembered it being, in that ragdoll posture, her kunai glinting in an almost disgustingly poetic way. However, the womans eyes seem to stare straight into the young girl's soul, as she muttered,
"Please... don't kill me."
A cold sweat covering her entire body, the kunoichi awoken in a fright, a strangled garb of shrieks escaping her lips as she shot up from her position.
She suddenly felt a pair of familiar arms wrap around her, as she stopped her fearful screams and looked, with wide eyes, at the platinum blonde hair that was similar to her own covering her vision.
"Daddy...?"
She felt a hot wetness cascade down her shoulder.
"I'm sorry, little flower. I am so sorry."
Tears began to roll down her face.
"I wasn't there for you, but I'm here now."
Ino immediately wrapped her father in her own arms, sobbing openly as she let all the worry and fear for her life she had been withholding finally escape her body and mind.
Her mother looked on inside the hospital room, her hands covering her mouth and nose, as she too, cried for what she had not expected her daughter to have to face so soon.
After the much-needed therapeutic session the small immediate family had together, Ino quickly began to shoot questions that had bogged her mind after she could think clearly.
"Where's my team?! Before I fell unconscious, I sensed them approaching! Are they still out there?!" She asked in rapid succession, making a move to get out of her hospital bed.
"Ino! Don't even think about it," Inoichi ordered sternly, as her mother looked on from the foot of the bed.
"Your team is fine. They're the ones who brought you in and reported what they saw to begin with."
It was at this moment Ino noticed the bountiful flowers set up for her in the hospital room.
"How long... have I been out?"
"A little less than a day," her mother replied, quickly catching her daughters gaze as a wry smile appeared on her lips. "Your friends certainly are quick on the uptake. These are some alluring bouquets."
Ino's eyes were drawn to the largest set of them, her father quickly noticing and handing them to her.
"Purple lilacs and blossoms... who-"
"That Naruto boy sure was a bother to get out of here you know," her father quickly interjected.
"As soon as we heard the news, we both rushed here. Walking in it seemed as though he already had enough time to grab you those and come back before anyone else could arrive."
"Not to mention that even as all your other friends heard of what happened, he was the only one that was constantly in the room with us, even as others left," her mother finished for Inoichi.
"Che, the brat even argued with me about staying as long as he did," the man muttered, annoyance clearly prevalent as he spoke of the boy.
Ino allowed a small smile adorn her features as she thought of the whiskered shinobi that was her teammate. She unconsciously gripped the lavender flowing beaded necklace as her mind wandered to him. He was the only reason she had found the courage to fight as she had. She couldn't figure out exactly why that was, or at least she was avoiding the answer to it.
"Well, Ino, you do know Sandaime-sama is expecting you. Your injuries were all fully healed by our medic nin maybe 10 hours ago now. Make sure you go report to him immediately," her father stated, grabbing his sleeveless red haori, donning it as he prepared to leave.
Ino knew her dad must have already forsaken hours to check up on her, but as the leader of the T&I division, he couldn't stay away for too long.
"Hai, I'll go immediately."
"Awh," her mother keened, before wrapping her daughter in a huge hug once more.
"We love you baby. I know this life our family walks will never be safe, but please, do the best you can for us okay?"
"Of course, mom," she replied as she held her mother, before they both released and smiled at each other, a small laugh escaping their lips.
Her mother got up and followed behind her father, leaving Ino on her lonesome for a moment.
As she got dressed in a fresh pair of her ninja garb, which she guessed her parents brought in for her, she began to replay the battle she went through a day before.
She winced as those green eyes invaded her vision once more, before shaking off the thoughts.
'This is what I signed up for,' the girl thought to herself as she bounded over rooftops, making her way towards the tower.
'I have to understand that this most likely... most definitely will not be the last time.'
Hiruzen was having a hard time keeping his composure. As Tenzo stated yesterday, it has appeared the old war hawk began to take notice of the secrets Naruto now held. In hindsight it made sense as to why Danzo made none of the usual fuss he would create when the third would summon for him.
'He must have had this planned after I told him of our meeting' the old hokage thought vehemently. It was a shame that the Yamanaka child had to deal with whatever Danzo had been up to on her lonesome.
While he expected this interest in his surrogate grandson to come about at some point, he didn't expect the man to make a move so soon after the genins' graduation.
After Tenzo brought in his intel and the body of the young woman, he immediately ordered her to go into examination, as Tenzo explained what happened from his point of view.
After his brief explanation on what he witnessed and partook in, it was clear that the Sandaime had to wait for the Yamanaka heiress to fully understand what had gone down in his village.
'Just try it, Danzo... Naruto won't defer to you, nor your faction.'
As the Hokage contemplated the current dilemma, one of the sources of the problem knocked away at his office's door.
"Enter."
In walked the platinum blonde heiress, bowing as she stated, "Genin, Yamanaka Ino reporting, Hokage-sama."
Hiruzen assumed his 'Professor' persona, before motioning for the girl to sit.
"It is good to see you are well, my child. Forgive me for being so straightforward, but please, fill me in on exactly what happened to you yesterday."
"Katon: Gokakyu no jutsu(Fire style: Fireball jutsu)!"
Our resident jinchuuriki substituted with the nearest item his chakra could search out, effectively evading the jutsu his brother sent towards him, before using one of his signature hand signs, creating 4 copies of himself before engaging Sasuke in taijutsu.
Sasuke, while holding his own, was fighting Naruto harder than he ever has had to before.
Dodging one attempt at a grapple from the clone to his left and rolling away from the 2 to his right, Sasuke rebalanced himself and engaged the one he figured was the real Naruto due to his sharingan.
'I figured that Ino business really got to him, as soon as he got home from the hospital, he asked me to spar,' Sasuke thought to himself before feeling his left leg give out, one of the clones managing to strike the backside of it, as the original landed a haymaker on the Uchiha's jaw, launching him sideways as he fought off unconsciousness.
Sasuke rolled to a stop, immediately snapping his head forward, to see his counterpart just finishing weaving his main water jutsu.
"Suiton: Suiho no Jutsu (Water release: water canon jutsu!"
The only reason Sasuke managed to avoid the brunt of the attack was because of his sharingan hastening his perception, leaping just as the beam impacted with the spot he was in, the pressure sending him away as the beam drilled into the earth.
Letting out an annoyed growl, Sasuke ran through the two handsigns needed for his own technique.
Landing off to the left, he immediately pointed his finger-gun towards the other boy racing impossibly fast towards him.
"Raiton: Kamina-"
"Hijutsu: Sennen Goroshi(Hidden jutsu: One-thousand Years of death!"
Uchiha Sasuke has experienced pain many never feel in their entire lives. He had seen and felt embarrassment in the forms of both his brothers inflicting it on him.
The scream that emanated from the lone Uchihas mouth as he sailed past his jaw-dropped brother would never be forgotten by the three men in attendance.
Landing in a heap near the edge of the lake, Sasuke grabbed his rear in unaltered pain, silently squinting away tears from the violation he'd just experienced.
"Well... I've never quite heard that shrill a response before from that jutsu..." team 7's new sensei trailed off, as Naruto, jaw still dropped, slowly felt the corner of his lips begin to turn upwards as his head looked back and forth between the other two before resting on his defeated brother.
"D-Damn you Kakashi..." Sasuke groaned out, beginning to stand as he felt the pain begin to subside, still continuously soothing himself.
"Pfft-"
"DO NOT!" Sasuke roared at his brother, whose hands clasped tightly over his mouth in an attempt to stifle the immense laughter fighting its way out.
"Ahem," Kakashi coughed, as the boys turned to stare at him, one with hatred and the other with confusion showing through his clear enjoyment of what he just witnessed.
"Sorry to interrupt your spar, but Sandaime-sama has requested our team."
"And before you say anything, Naruto," Kakashi continued, seeing the boy in question about to interrupt.
"Ino is already in his office. Let's get a move on."
That caused the Uzumaki to drop all other thoughts, as he quickly left the area before the other two, racing to the Hokage tower.
"Maa, I figured he'd have that reaction," Kakashi muttered to himself as he watched the boy race off, before feeling a bead of sweat roll down his brow, sensing the Uchiha boys sharingan glaring a hole into his head.
"Uh... See you there!" the man exclaimed, throwing a peace sign as he shunshin'd away, narrowly missing the two shuriken flying through the exact spot he was in moments ago.
Sasuke sighed, before also making his trek to the tower.
This team was already proving to be, taking a page out of that lazy Nara's book, troublesome.
Hope you guys enjoyed this chapter! I'm currently feeling that burst of inspiration again so I'll probably get the next chapter out fairly soon, but knowing me, take that with a grain of salt lol.
Like and review, thanks so much for reading!
