"I can't believe you didn't tell us you were adopted into a clan!" Ryosuke whined. "I mean, really, Gundan!"
"I happened just yesterday!" I protested. "I was going to tell Itachi and Mai after the team test, and then you guys when we met next!"
Currently, my group of friends and I were gathered at a park in the shinobi district. While Itachi had practically dragged me to his house to bring along his mother and brother, Mai had gathered the rest of the Konoha Seven and brought them here, where they proceeded to grill into me. Obviously, Team 2 had passed their test… whatever it was.
"Still!" the boy protested, although less vehemently. "The Uzumaki! You're now an Uzumaki!"
"Adopted." I pointed out. "I'm not actually related by blood."
"Commoner, aside from a blood-test, there is no way to be certain." Hideki enlightened me. "Perhaps this new Uzumaki woman found you to be a member and simply has not told you yet."
I highly doubted that, considering Shaak Ti wasn't even human, and so shook my head. "Nah. The corps has my blood-work on file. We'd know if I was."
"Yes. Because you have a bloodline. How troublesome." Biko whined. "This is the sort of stuff you tell your friends, Gundan."
I hung my head. "I already told you guys – I just didn't want to be disliked." I shook my head and looked up at Mikoto, who seemed endlessly amused. "Mikoto oba-san, please help me."
She smirked and shrugged. "You dug yourself this hole by not believing in your friends, Gundan-kun. You must deal with it."
Traitor aunt!
"Gu- da!" Sasuke gurgled, slapping my face.
I sighed and wove the water from my glass into a dragon and made it fly around the boy's head, just out of reach. He happily squirmed around and tried to get at it.
"And to think, all this time, I thought it was a jutsu." Mai sighed. "So, when do we get to meet your new mother and siblings?"
"I consider her an aunt, at best." I reminded them. "And you already know Naruto."
Kitsuna just gave me a look.
"Alright, fine." I sighed. "How about we all meet up this weekend, say… at the Senju Clan Compound? It's where we're currently staying. I'm sure Tsunade-sama won't mind."
"You're living with Tsunade of the Sannin." It sounded like a monotone drone coming from Mai, as if she were just as 'done' as Anko was earlier today.
I sighed as the dragon belched out steam that didn't even come close to Sasuke. "Yes. But not in the same house. Anyway, I'll ask her just to be sure. Wait, she's Team 2's sensei, right?" I asked, blinking owlishly. "I'll just catch here when we visit the Training Grounds in the morning. You guys are right next to us, if my memory serves well."
"A party. How quaint." A familiar voice said, appearing behind us and scaring the crap out of almost everyone there including me... but not Mikoto, or even Sasuke, apparently, who was too engrossed in the flying water dragon to pay much notice. "Am I invited?"
"If you're going to pop in and make us scream again, I'm going to have to say no, Kakashi-senpai." I sighed. "Besides, we do not know each other well enough."
"But you do know me." He persisted, although he still did not look up from his green-cover book. 'Make Out Hot-spring', really?
"Knowing about you from the Bingo book and knowing you as an acquaintance are two very different things." I pointed out. "Besides, I'd rather not have someone who reads smut in front of children at my place."
The book was instantly snapped shut and set aside. He then blinked at the assortment of people present, before bowing towards Mikoto. "Greetings, Uchiha-sama."
Mikoto looked like she couldn't decide whether to be angry or amused. "Greetings, Hatake-kun."
"Yo." He waved at everyone else.
"Hatake Kakashi of the Sharingan." Mai noted, sounding too much like Kitsuna. She then turned to me with a neutral expression. "Are there any other S-rank shinobi you know that we need to know about?"
"Gundan always performs the unexpected." The real Kitsuna offered in way of explanation to Kakashi's questioning sound.
"Like he doesn't know." I muttered under my breath.
"Oh, that's right." He blinked. "I have been made aware of your eyes. Can I hope for privacy on the matter for me and my team?"
"As long as the lot of you stop following me around." I pouted, crossing my arms. "I'm a big boy now, you know." I smiled, gesturing towards my headband, tied around my arm as it was. "I can take care of myself."
"You're five." Biko muttered.
"Six, actually." I shrugged. "It was my birthday a couple of months ago." I wonder how my time from the Bleach universe in going to factor in, if at all…?
The collective blinked. It was odd as fuck. "Your birthday passed by and you didn't even tell us?!" Ryosuke demanded, looking scandalized.
I blinked. "Considering that I got you guys hard and grueling training for a present whenever you lot mentioned your birthday, I thought we could let it slide."
"Gundan-san, your 'hard and grueling training' allowed us to graduate early, one would argue it is an invaluable gift." Itachi pointed out, looking at me as if I was insane. "In addition to that, each of us here owe you far more than simply that for molding us into who we are today."
I blushed. "Look, I'm not really big on birthdays. I forget most of them all the time and so I don't expect much in return. What's the big deal?"
"What's the big- ow!" Ryosuke complained.
"We totally understand, Gundan-kun." Mai assured me, although I could see a calculating glint in her eye. "Also, could you please purchase some mochi for me from the stall over there?"
As she held out some ryo, Itachi held out his arm for his brother back. Well, maybe she just wants to calm Ryosuke down about the whole birthday thing, hopefully. I stood up and proceeded to do as asked, having a bad feeling all the while. It didn't help that when I got back to the table, the hushed conversation instantly quietened. Oh well… too late to eavesdrop now.
Kakashi stayed with us well into the evening after we ate, trying to make conversation. As budding shinobi, he asked us how our training was going and gave us pointers along with Mikoto on what we should hear up for next. I politely declined their advice, informing the group that I already knew what to work on; I swear I saw his eye twitch.
When the group dispersed, Kakashi opted to walk me home.
I huffed as we began to short distance walk. "The Senju compound is literally two minutes away. And I can teleport. You know that, so why do this?"
He shrugged. "I figured that to move up from 'ANBU who stalks me', I should actually spend some time with you in proximity."
"But why does it matter?" I asked, waving to a passing Inazuka member. He had been the one to explain the village economy to me a year ago. "You're my watcher, I'm your target. What's the point in being friends?"
"At the rate your advancing, it won't be long until you're Jonin." He stated point-blank. "I'd just rather know a fellow genius who could, one day, be watching my back."
I rolled my eyes. I guess having the [Rapid Learner] skill did make me a genius in the most open sense of the word… "I'm not buying that, but I'm not going to be an ass and chase you off when you're clearly putting an effort into doing this." I smirked. "Besides, it's not like you can't use the company."
His single visible eye narrowed. "I'm not a loner."
"Okay." I shrugged. "Tell me when the last time was that you spent time with any friends you have outside of a mission?" By this point, we had reached the compound, and he walked in right alongside me without much fanfare. Hm… I suppose I should create a couple of clones to play gate-guards and relieve the ANBU. Probably not anytime soon though.
He was silent right until we reached the door of my house. "I don't see why I must tell you that."
I chuckled. "Whatever let's you sleep at night, pup. Goodnight, and remember your promise!" I walked in quickly.
When I next checked, only Hizashi and he remained as my ANBU watchers. Better, I suppose. It would have been folly to leave a new bloodline totally unguarded after it went public, after all.
"So that's it?" Tsunade asked, almost disappointed. "That's the brat's secret?"
"I wouldn't be sure." Kakashi muttered, rubbing his eye. "He still hasn't come clean to any of us about the Mark yet. The way he said it all those days ago… I think that's what it's called."
"Regardless. We can't afford to pressure him." Hiruzen said, frowning. "He's brought a lot to the table to risk breaking his trust in us. He's not only changed the village's social climate in every sense, but also redeemed Naruto in the eyes of the villagers. Add to that, he's managed to diffuse inter-clan tensions far enough that anything left can be counted as friendly rivalry. The way this Shaak Ti appeared is a conundrum, but I won't have any one of you pressuring him for more information on the Mark. Clearly something happened that day on the waters of Naka Lake – something that we have no clue about or can grasp the idea of. Perhaps the Mark itself is his bloodline, and all these other oddities about him are cropping up from there."
"That would not be too great of a leap." Orochimaru agreed. "Eye-techniques do not simply occur randomly. He takes us for fools if he believes that that will just slip over our heads like that. Granted, the origins of the Sharingan and Byakugan are lost to time, but they have a history nearly as old as the advent of chakra. His… 'Void Gaze' is too powerful to have suddenly appeared in an orphan who simply bears a resemblance to the Niidaime."
"Void Gaze…" Shikaku hummed. "Didn't Taka say describe the Mark as something similar? A 'void' that sucks in his mental energy and sends it off to god knows where?"
A minute of silence passed by in the office.
"This Shaak Ti… or Uzumaki Tisha, as she's been renamed," Orochimaru began, "do you not find it prudent to have her tested? If we were to harness her Senjutsu capabilities…"
"She's already told us about it. Gundan's already been tested, and I myself have run tests on several blood samples we have on hand of random shinobi." Tsunade sighed. "Nothing resembling these 'midichlorians' exist in our blood. But from the routine test we ran on her, it's obvious she isn't lying." She withdrew a few lab test reports from a file in her hand and set it on the table. "There are tiny micro-organisms in her blood that our equipment could barely detect, and that too was only because they're practically drinking in the Nature Energy all around us. I tried to extract them, but they don't survive if not in direct contact with her blood."
"So, for now, at least, this is lost to us." Hiruzen murmured, then straightened. "I want you to destroy any samples, lab-reports, and any history archived about Gundan-kun and Tisha-san in the Hospital, Tsunade. Have everyone who worked on them report to T&I for immediate memory wiping."
"You're going to help them remain secret?" Orochimaru asked, disappointed, but intrigued.
"I have a feeling about that boy." Hiruzen admitted, trading glances with Shikaku. "I have a feeling… that he's going to change our village even more. I won't pressure him, or have him on our bad side." He turned to Kakashi. "Effective immediately, you are removed from the ANBU roster. Instead, you will be assigned an extended-duration S-rank mission."
Kakashi sighed. "What is it, Hokage-sama?"
"Protect Gundan-kun and help his growth as a shinobi." Hiruzen ordered. "Lay down your life on the line, if necessary. Jiraiya has already informed me that word of his intelligence has spread beyond the walls of the village. When his other capabilities are more widely known, he'll be under a microscope by practically every political and military power in the Elemental Nations." He wearily rubbed the bridge of his nose. "He may very well be an Elite Jonin in capability, but he needs to have the right mindset and tactical know-how to act the part." He turned to his student next. "Orochimaru, I'm changing your punishment. Instead of having to take D-ranks for the next year, you're going to focus your attention on making your team as strong as possible. Fugaku was elected as Clan-Head recently, so Itachi is, as of now, the Uchiha heir. Guide him and the Yamanaka girl as best you see fit."
Orochimaru found this news far more pleasing than the lack of invasive tests being done on his student and said boy's new guardian. "As you wish, sensei."
"A year… oh, wait, for Danzo's arm." Shikaku sighed. "Troublesome. Have we found it yet, at all?"
"Wait. You're telling me we haven't found it and destroyed it yet?!" Tsunade demanded, turning angry. "That's my grand-father's genetic material out there, in god-knows whose hands!"
"We only had it's remains on Danzo's shoulder and the written records to understand what it was, Tsunade, and we haven't found the arm." Hiruzen sighed. "It was the reason I had all of Gundan-kun's equipment stripped and searched. It wasn't anywhere on him, sealed or otherwise. Perhaps Danzo had a failsafe active on it, but something of this nature wasn't written up with everything else." He thought for a moment before turning to Kakashi. "Before you resign, set your team up on a permanent guard around the Senju clan compound."
"Will do." Kakashi nodded.
"Sensei!" Tsunade interrupted, looking far less than pleased. "What are we doing about the arm made from my grandfather's cells?!"
"We already have a couple of ANBU tracking teams on it." Hiruzen assured her, mollifying her a little. "I also personally made sure that there were no traces of Senju DNA left in Orochimaru's labs."
Said snake-man eyed his female teammate wearily. "I was only doing as ordered." He lied.
"Whatever. You're still not off the hook yet." Tsunade muttered, then turned and strode from the room. As far as she was concerned, the trust she had in Orochimaru was shaken, and would take a long time to renew. The Sannin were teetering on the edge of permanently disbanding.
I dispersed my shadow clones and smirked at their progress. Having a skill that reduced learning time, in conjunction with this method of training, had allowed me to master my skills at an inhuman pace. I really don't know why Naruto didn't just learn everything under the sun using this method… oh wait. The mental feedback. I guess I was lucky that I had [Gamer's Mind] to take care of that.
Okay. Time to look at my screens.
I navigated over to my [Character Page] to assign my points and froze. I was supposed to gain two points each to [LCK] and [AGL] per level when I chose the path of the rogue. But now, they read eight points higher. Given that I leveled up twice, that meant four points per level, rather than two.
Hell yeah! Being OP for the win! I mean, it's not like I can fight it at this point, so I'm going to ride this wave for all it's worth!
Also, worth noting, my name had changed from simply Gundan to Uzumaki Gundan, although I didn't get any bonuses. Probably because I'm adopted and share no actual blood relation with any Uzumaki. Cool, but not really worth anything in my system, I guess.
Since I had sixty points, I assigned ten to each. I was a little bummed when I didn't get a skill as I crossed the threshold, but it made sense. I got a skill at the fifty, hundred-and-fifty, two-hundred-and-fifty, and five-hundred-point thresholds when my attribute cap was a thousand. Now that it was ten times higher…
Eh. Whatever.
I chose to navigate over to my [Perks] menu next and study it.
[Perks:
1. Mutant Gene 2 – Unlock a mutant gene.
Cost: 250 PP.
2. Magic Specialty 2 – Unlock a specialty field of magic
Cost: 250 PP.
3. Conduit Gene 2 – Unlock a Conduit element.
Cost: 250 PP.]
I had eight-hundred and twenty-five points remaining, so these were doable right now. First off, I selected the [Magic Specialty 2] for myself.
[Please select one of the following:
Air
Water
Earth
Fire
Celestial Gate
Perfume
Archive]
Ugh. I'm getting really tired with all of these ridiculous choices. Well, I'm reasonably sure that Elemental Make won't have Memory-Make, and besides that, I don't see any of them worth the shot. The other elements I can easily bend to my will, too. The Celestial Gate magic is too much like summoning for me to be comfortable with. So, I guess that my choice is obvious.
[You have selected Archive magic. Are you sure?]
Not in the least. But let's give it a whirl!
[You have learned Archive magic!]
PING!
[A skill has been created due to purchasing a perk.
Magic Specialty: Archive (Active) Lv 1 (0.00%)
Using your brain as a pseudo-mainframe and magic to affect the world around you, you transform your magic into a literal super-computer that can compute information and transfer it at a rapid rate. You can also interface with other entities using this skill to lend them it's benefits.
Features Unlocked: Calculator, Map, Telecommunication.]
Wait… wait, wait, wait… wait a minute. The guy with this spell, didn't he give Lucy her Urano Metria? So… does than mean that, with enough practice… I can give others my skills?! Yes! This is the very thing I had been looking for! I guess I'll have to level it up to unlock its features a bit, but hey, this is wonderful! Eh, if only I'd have unlocked this yesterday! Then I'd have been able to make more clones to work on it.
Okay, skill-orgasm done. So now, I've got a mutant and conduit gene each to deal with…
I quickly but quietly made my way up the stairs and into Tenten and Naruto's room. Thankfully, both were fast asleep. I quickly but gently took Naruto's hand, and what do you know? I guessed correct. The Five powers most prominent in inFAMOUS 2 were up for grabs. I quickly gave him the Ice Conduit Gene and left it at that.
Now, for the mutant gene. I quickly cast a Disillusionment charm over myself and soundlessly apparated to the civilian district. Slipping into [Subterfuge] but casting a Silencio on my feet to be sure, I made my way to the Haruno household. Wait... don't my boots cancel all noise? Eh, whatever. It's good practice.
Unfortunately, the entire family was up and running about. I had to wait a couple of hours, during Which I created multiple clones to go and play with Archive, until the family finally fell asleep.
I walked up the wall and into Sakura's room, who was, thankfully, asleep. Taking her arm, I quickly selected and accepted the [Mutant Gene 2] perk.
[Please select one of the following:
Sonic Screaming
Solar Energy Projection
Bestial Morph
Complete Human Shapeshifting
Telepathy
Diamond Skin
Magnetokinesis
Energy Absorption and Redirection
Elemental Control]
These… are all the powers from the X-Men: First Class movie! The one where Sebastian Shaw is the Villain. Holy. But wait, why wasn't Azazel's teleportation on here? Eh, there'll probably be a good reason for it.
So, what's a good choice for someone in her position? I know she's always been called a banshee in fanfiction, but right now she looks like a little angel sleeping in her bear blanket. Aww! I wish I had a teddy-bear on hand to leave for her.
Okay, random choice again.
[Are you sure you would like to give Haruno Sakura Magnetokinesis?]
Sure! I'm all for powerful women!
[You have given Haruno Sakura Magnetokinesis!]
Great. Now that she's on a surefire way to being super cool, I'm going to go be somewhere where I don't feel like a creep. Withdrawing my chakra gently and setting her hand down, I quickly vanished back to my room, then dropped the spells and left [Subterfuge], checking my new list of perks.
[Perks:
1. Armiger – Blessed by the Magic Crystal of Insomnia, you have been granted an ancient power.
Cost: 300PP
2. Bloodline 3 – Unlock a Bloodline.
Cost: 300PP
3. Conduit Gene 3 – Unlock a Conduit Gene.
Cost: 300PP
4. Enhanced Mode 1 – Unlock a special phase of your powers.
Cost: 300PP
5. Fullbring Final – Unlock a Fullbring.
Cost: 300PP
6. Magic Specialty 3 – Unlock a Magic Specialty.
Cost: 300PP
7. Mutant Gene 3 – Unlock a Mutant Gene.
Cost: 300PP
8. Signature Weapon 1 – Unlock access to a renown weapon as one of your Zanpakuto forms.
Cost: 300PP]
Oh boy. Eight? That would mean I need… two-thousand and four hundred points. Damn I'm grateful for the level up bonus of a hundred, or else I'd have to master a rather large number of skills. Okay, so planning…
Armiger will go to Tenten. I'll just have to make sure none of Noctis' Sasuke-esque behavior develops in her. Given her propensity for weapons in canon, this is the perfect power for her to have. It even fits well with her summoning. Bloodline three will have four elements now… I'll give that to Hideki. It will probably drag him to the front-lines, but damn if he doesn't deserve something good – he's a tsundere, but a tsundere that I'm friends with. That reminds me, I still need to find a way to train Mai in the use of Zaiphon. I wonder how I'll do that… never mind; I'll figure something out eventually. The Fullbring can go to… Biko – the only one of my friends I haven't powered up yet. Hey, it says final! So that means… there's at least another set of Conduit, Mutant, and Magic options… oh boy.
I'm itching to give the Conduit gene to one of my friends, but I don't know which one and to whom. I'll probably have a choice between the Second Son powers, so… Video. Definitely. Neon may look aesthetically pleasing, but Video is massive in sheer capability. That will go to… Ryosuke? He's an orphan so people won't be too taken aback if he suddenly develops strange powers. The Mutant gene can go to… someone. I'll figure it out later.
Three will go to me. Enhanced Mode is probably like a powerup that fictional characters use, like Goku's Super Saiyan Mode or Natsu's Lightning-Flame Mode. I can't wait to see what it can be. No one else I know can use magic, so there. And since only I have a Zanpakuto amongst everyone I know, I'm the only logical choice.
So, there. That's a good plan all hashed out. Now, I have a hundred and one perk points on hand, so I will need at least a hundred and ninety-nine more to purchase another. God, only leveling up ain't gonna cut it fast enough for me. Hopefully the experience required only grows by five-thousand each time; since I've become a Nephilim a lot of things have changed in the system.
Great. Now that I'm done with that, it's time to go to ask Tsunade about the gathering, then on to team training!
A full hour later saw an almost exasperated Orochimaru looking at a sheepish trio of Genin and an amused Anko. Tsunade seemed very interested in me… I think that Hiruzen and the Sannin are talking about me behind my back. She quizzed Itachi, Mai (the two of whom were already present), and me on my control and teaching thereof but was not very surprised when I showed her my mastery on the subject. I wonder what she would have said had I shown her my flight skill…? Regardless, she did allow the gathering to take place, but on the caveat that the Sannin and Hokage be allowed to attend. Needless to say, Mai was thrilled.
"Since you three have decided to show, we will begin our first day as active duty ninja." Orochimaru began reaching into his pocket and pulling out three sheets of paper. I almost smacked my forehead in irritation – I forgot about the chakra paper thing again! "Since we will be occupied performing only training for the next year, I refuse to lag behind. Let us begin by testing your elemental affinities."
"Sensei, if I may ask," Itachi spoke up, "will we not be performing missions?"
"Our team has been banned from missions for a reason I don't find that you need to know of." He said, making the three of us sweat-drop. I wonder why that happened… "Here." He said, handing the papers out. "Channel your chakra through it and we can observe the results."
The three of us looked at each other and did just that.
Itachi's paper split cleanly into two sharp halves. One burned up almost immediately, and another crinkled until it formed a ball. Mai's paper was drenched so bad it almost lost its shape. Mine… remained the same.
"Strong wind, fire, and lightning affinities." Orochimaru noted, looking at Itachi's paper curiously. "Three elements from the beginning… my, my. We do have a prodigy on our hands."
Itachi blushed but said nothing, looking at me meaningfully. I arched an eyebrow, wondering what that was all about.
"A strong water affinity." Orochimaru noted, observing Mai's paper. "Almost strange to find one in Fire Country, but that is a boon for us."
Mai blushed, but asked, "Sensei, how is it strange? Didn't the Niidaime have a water affinity?"
Orochimaru sighed but indulged her. "The Five Great Countries are named because of more than a flight of fancy. In Fire country, almost all the inhabitants have a primary fire affinity. In Water Country, the same happens with a water affinity, and so on. The only exception to this is Wind Country, who find an affinity for fire or earth most of the time – wind is truly a rare affinity to have." He explained, looking at Itachi. "Of the active shinobi currently in Konoha, only two have a natural wind affinity – Sarutobi Asuma, and me."
Oh, yeah. Orochimaru was especially fond of wind ninjutsu, I remember from the manga. He threw around Great Breakthroughs like they were going out of style.
"Since Water is the natural opposite of Fire, that you have an affinity for it is out of the norm." he continued. "There are currently only eight active ninjas in Konoha with this element naturally."
"Sensei, you keep saying 'naturally'." I noted. "What's the reason for your emphasis on it?"
He smirked for some unknown reason. "Good catch, Gundan-kun." Oh god. Even when he's not being evil, he sounds pedophilic. Why hasn't anyone called him out on it yet? "The natural affinity of a ninja is one he is most inclined to. Whatever element he may choose to use, he will never find as great results as he would with said element. However, he may choose to develop an affinity to another element. In this case, his developed affinity will never be as strong as his natural one, but it will be far better to use than other elements he has not worked on."
That made sense. So, if canon Naruto tried a lightning jutsu, he'd have been able to use it, but it would not be as effective as Sasuke's – at least, before he got Ashura's powers. "Then, that means…" I trailed, looking down at my paper.
"Correct. Normally, if you so choose, you can develop an affinity for an element." He nodded, then gently took the paper out of my hands and eyed it critically. "Your case is an exception. You see, it is impossible for any living organism to have elementally-unaligned chakra. Whether they be newborns, animals, or plants, all who live and have chakra possess a propensity to a certain element. You posses none." He turned to hold the sheet of paper up for everyone present to examine. "Notice how none of the standard effects are being represented on this paper, even a little? This is theoretically impossible and violates many recognized laws of chakra nature."
"But it's because of his bloodline, right?" Mai asked, face scrunched up. "Since his bloodline is the first to emerge of its kind, at least publicly, shouldn't it be seen as a quirk of it?"
"That is the case, yes." Orochimaru allowed. Wow, even Anko seemed really into this impromptu lecture; but that's probably because she worshiped the ground the snake-sage walked on… at least for now. "However, unless we test it further, we can't be sure. Given that his chakra is neutral in nature, I am hesitant to allow him to perform any elemental-manipulation exercise and risk losing his bloodline completely."
I doubt that would happen, otherwise I'd never be able to learn bending in the first place. I'm pretty sure I was born with neutral chakra so that I could pick my favorite Bloodline from the perks' menu. If everything went as planned, I'd have an affinity to all the elements soon enough.
"So, let us not dwell on this for now." Our teacher interrupted our individual silent musings. "Since we now know your elements, I can teach you some jutsu that I know." He brought his hand up in a cross and created two clones, who began to herd Itachi and Mai to different parts of our training ground. "Anko-chan, you must continue your poison-brewing practice. Unseal your chemistry set and begin." He ordered.
"Hai, sensei!" said girl saluted, before turning and heading for a relatively flat stretch of ground a few paces away.
"That girl… talented, but tactless." He muttered, then turned to me.
I didn't feel comfortable with the way he was regarding me. "What will we be doing, sensei?"
He was quiet for a moment. "I… am unsure." He said. From his tone of voice, he wasn't very happy about it either. "What do you wish to learn?"
"Well…" I trailed, honestly unsure myself. "I'm an expert with taijutsu and genjutsu, and my sword skills are the best in the world, so I guess I should move on to mastering the other ninja arts besides ninjutsu. I would like to learn medical ninjutsu and sealing, in that order."
He looked at me with a growing smirk. "Expert in three branches of shinobi combat? Care to show me?"
I shifted from foot to foot. "Um… sure…? How, though?"
"In a spar, of course." He spoke as if I was an idiot. "We will be testing your combat skills first, and your illusion skills after." Saying that, he opened his mouth and reached into it with his hand, and pulled out a straight, simple looking sword. I wasn't fooled, though. That was the Kusanagi no Tsurugi, the sword made by the Rikudo Senin that can cut through anything. Would it cut through my Zanpakuto, too, I wonder?
Only one way to find out.
PING!
[Main Quest Alert!
Underneath the Molting Skin
Your new teacher, Orochimaru, wishes to test your claims about your ability. Prove yourself right.
Objectives
Best Orochimaru in a kenjutsu spar.
Best Orochimaru in a taijutsu spar.
Pass Orochimaru's genjutsu test.
Bonus Objectives
Do not use any special Zanpakuto souls during the spar.
Rewards
50000 EXP, +REP with Orochimaru, +REP with Mitarashi Anko, +REP with ?, ?]
I accepted the quest, and, not reacting to his odd way of unsheathing his sword in the least since I secretly found it to be cool, simply reached behind and undid my Zanpakuto sheath, holding it loosely in my left hand to go into my favorite sword stance. "As you wish. I will be using Iaido, if that is fine with you."
His face split into a grin. "You may use whatever you wish."
I cocked my head. "Very well. Let's begin, sensei."
And then we clashed.
He thrusted forward with his sword, but I parried it and used the opportunity to slash his arm. His expression was priceless. I had wondered what he would look like when he realized I was holding back in the test yesterday. Now, I guess, this was it.
Form there, we devolved into a dance of blades. Instinctively, I channeled Reiryoku to my eyes. Every strike of his, I parried with my sheath and retaliated with my sword. For every contortion his wove his body through, I danced around him. For every time he increased his speed, I calmly matched with my own tempo.
Sometime during the clash, I scanned him.
[Orochimaru – Level 94
(Incomplete Snake Sage)
Race - Human
HP - 23910/26100
CP - 31950/32300
Constitution - 261
Strength - 285
Agility - 398
Intelligence - 323
Luck - 50
Wisdom - 210
After being orphaned, Orochimaru was mystified with the idea of immortality. To that end, he worked himself endlessly through his life, using his clever mind to spot every trick in the book and make several new ones to work smartly on his way to power. He believes that, by mastering all ninjutsu, he will be able to achieve true immortality. A brilliant scientist and gifted learner, he allied himself with the snakes due to using the summoning jutsu without having signed a contract – it is perhaps because of this alliance that he opted to present himself as a member of his summoning species more than a human.]
Those stats were beyond the standard five-points-per-level rule. He's augmented himself immensely and worked hard to get where he is.
Pity he's still human. Each stat point of mine is ten times as effective when compared to one of his. I already outmatch him in every way, except for his hit-points and chakra-level, something which I'm inclined to believe uses a different system for NPCs.
That title though… it was worth looking into it. I wonder if I can see his race and title only because I ascended?
I ducked under a swing of his sword and struck his stomach hard with the hilt of mine, sending him flying and crashing into a tree.
PING!
I ignored that and slashed my sword downward, and then sheathed it. "Is that proof enough, sensei?"
When the cloud of dust cleared, Orochimaru was sitting at the bottom of a tree that crashed, rubbing his stomach. "Impressive." He murmured, but his eyes looked hungry. Oh god, I wasn't doing anyone any favors by winning against him, was I? Well, I can't exactly fail this quest, and for some reason it makes me have a better relationship with him? I'll have to abuse [Serpent-tongue] to get him back on track, I suppose. "Why did my sword not cut yours?"
"My sword is special, too." I shrugged. "More than that, it is the spirit behind the man who wields the sword that matters, not the weapon itself."
"Is that so?" he asked, standing and popping his shoulder back in its socket. "How?"
"You fight to win." I explained, setting my sword back on my back and crossing my arms. "I fight to prove myself to you, so that I can grow stronger to protect those important to me." Images of Naruto and Shaak Ti flashed through my mind. "Thus, my will is stronger than yours."
"Nonsense." He spat. "Your sword is simply superior to mine, impossible as it may be." He then proceeded to swallow his own weapon. "That is the answer."
I shook my head. "It is not my sword, but my beliefs that strengthen me. That is how, without an ounce of formal combat training, I was able to take down ROOT in a single evening. My mind thought then what it thinks now – I need to protect my own."
"You and sensei would get along famously." He snarled. "A shinobi's strength comes from his chakra, his skill, his arsenal! Not his 'heart'!"
"Is that so?" I arched an eyebrow. "Then let me prove you wrong." I slid into a familiar stance. "I will best you with my fists as well, while holding myself back."
"If I win," Orochimaru said, slipping into a strange stance of his own, "you will give me your sword."
"And if I win, you will have to spend an hour with me every day, whenever I say, for the next year." I responded in kind, smirking. "Deal?"
His face twisted in a grimace before it lost all emotion altogether. "Deal. Let's begin!"
PING!
Not now!
The taijutsu match-up went much the same. He was an impressive contortionist, but I was a master at hand-to-hand fighting. There wasn't much he could do to take me by surprise with my eyes switched on given that this was a no-ninjutsu battle. We dodged and struck almost in tandem, like a strange dance of violence that only we were privy to. Fighting a ninja was far different than fighting an Arrancar, that was for sure. The souls were all power and no finesse, while the humans were balanced in both areas. It was only de to my maxed-out skill that I was able to surpass him while staying well-below what my highest speed was.
PING!
Oh for fuck's sake!
The bout ended when he recovered from an over-balance that I forced him to take. While he rolled forward on the ground, I leapt over him and kicked him like a football, sending him flying and hitting another tree. I scanned the cloud, to be sure.
[H P - 1962/26100]
Woah. I… am. AWESOME! I just owned OROCHIMARU in COMBAT! HOLY FUCK! I SO don't regret being as strong as I am! Well, being a Nephilim is a huge part of it due to the way my stats overpower his, but still!
There was the sound of coughing from the dust cloud, which soon was carried away by the breeze. He looked up at me with a conflicted expression. "How?! How can you win against me?! I have done many things to reach where I am today! You are a brat barely out of the Academy!"
I simply straightened and shrugged. "I told you. You fight only for yourself. I know you seek immortality, Orochimaru-sensei; I have my way of knowing such things. What you don't realize is that it's not our age that makes us immortal, but the memories we make whilst we live." Cheap advice from me, given that if I worked hard enough at it, I could probably be functionally immortal as well. "Until you seek false happiness, you'll never be able to beat me."
PING!
I ignored that as the both of us stared steadily at each other. He, with a snarl on his face, and I, with a small smile.
Eventually, he scoffed and opened his mouth wide. Two hands emerged from within and spread it even wider, and soon, a saliva-covered Orochimaru emerged from the previous body. Wait, did he already experiment on himself to make himself that snake-of-snakes?! Wait, no, Sasuke used the technique, too, in his battle against Itachi, so I guess it was just a normal technique.
"Your genjutsu aptitude remains to be tested." He growled, and then went through rapid hand-signs.
Silence. I felt a bit awkward just standing there, so I spoke. "Um… sensei, genjutsu doesn't work on me."
I could see the vein in his forehead throbbing with his anger and irritation. "Fine! Cast one of yours at me, then, and let's see if I can break it."
Here we go. My one last chance to shove him onto a better path. I didn't bother with hand-signs, and merely let my gaze connect with his. Instantly, he was on the ground an unconscious, in a dream fabricated to test his version of happiness against a normal person's.
"Sensei!/Gundan-kun!"
I blinked, then turned around. Anko, Itachi, and Mai, were rapidly approaching. I noticed that the man's shadow clones had popped… probably because he was off in la-la-land.
I held out my hand to prevent Anko from approaching. "Stop. We're still not finished with our bout. When he wakes, we will be done."
She glared at me, pointing at me accusingly. "Who are you?! It is impossible for a six-year-old brat from the Academy to defeat Orochimaru-sensei!"
I chuckled. "Rest assured, I am Gundan, truly. I'm just… talented."
The three boggled at me as if I was insane.
"You… just took on a Sannin… and won." Mai spoke flatly. Odd. Was Kitsuna affecting her more than I thought?
"Yes…?" I trailed, wondering where the question was.
Given that the three were content in boggling their eyes and looking at me, I turned to regard my screens.
[The Void Gaze has copied the Swordsmanship Style: Serpent's Tail!]
[Serpent-tongue was successful!]
[The Void Gaze has copied the Martial Arts Style: Snake Style!]
[Serpent-tongue was successful!]
Oh, wow. Cool.
"Gundan-san… just how strong are you?"
I turned to Itachi and sighed. "I'm strong because of many reasons, Itachi. Honestly, no one can really understand them. Tisha oba-chan might, but no one else."
Mai just screamed in aggravation. "This is unbelievable! First, you have a hidden bloodline that none of us knew about! Now, you're a combatant on par with Orochimaru of the Sannin! Why are you even a Genin?!"
I frowned. "I may be strong, but I have good reasons for remaining where I am."
"Oh yeah?" Anko challenged, crossing her arms. "What is it? Does the Hokage not know? Are you actually a secret ANBU plant? Are you-"
"The Hokage offered me a Jonin position right after I… right after I rescued Naruto from a shadow organization much like ANBU." I admitted, somehow unable to meet their eyes. "He's a person of interest to many factions for many reasons – and before you ask, they're S-rank secrets." I ran a hand through my hair and looked at the sky. "I refused the promotion. The look on Hokage-sama and Jiraiya's faces were laugh-worthy. I didn't know why I did it at first. But when they asked… I already knew."
"What was the reason?" Itachi whispered. I still couldn't bring myself to look at him.
"It was… you guys." I answered back. I finally brought my eyes down to look at the expressions of pure shock on their faces. "You, Itachi, and you, Mai. Also Hideki, Ryosuke, Biko, Kitsuna… I couldn't leave you guys behind." Dammit why were my eyes leaking? "For better or for worse, you guys were stuck with me the moment you agreed to join our little study group – we're the Konoha Seven, dammit! We either advance altogether, or not at all!" I said, waving my hands about. "Some measly promotion ain't gonna separate us, no sir!"
The two of them were emotional. Dammit, I was emotional. Wasn't there a skill to prevent this? Why was it not seeing sadness as a 'mental debilitation'?
"Gundan-san…" Itachi trailed, looking at me with wet eyes.
"Gundan-kun…" Mai whispered. Her eyes weren't any drier.
"You're an idiot." Anko whispered, crying for some reason as well.
I wiped my eyes and shrugged. "So yeah, I'm stupidly powerful, and I'll only continue to grow. But… I want you guys to grow right alongside me."
"Ugh…" Orochimaru groaned. We all turned to see him slowly getting to his feet.
"Sensei!" Anko called out, running towards him to help. She was just about to offer a hand but flinched back, unsure.
Her face morphed from anxious hesitance to surprised joy when the man grasped her shoulder to steady himself. "Thank you, Anko-chan…"
"Sensei…" Anko trailed, eyes wide.
Okay… so maybe my [Serpent-tongue] worked wonderfully…
Orochimaru looked up at me and… oh hell. His eyes were clouded with indecision. The scary monster of a man from just a few minutes ago was gone, replaced by a weary man who just wanted a door out. He turned to gaze at the three of us collectively. "I need… I need to see my sensei." The man straightened, then looked at me head-on. "From tomorrow… I will train the three of you to the best of my ability. For today, I think Gundan-kun is more than adequate to train you both."
My eyes were wide. Okay, I think it worked a bit too well…
He looked at Anko next. "Meet me at the Main Lab in the afternoon. There is something I must do." And in the next second, he vanished in a swirl of leaves.
The four of us stared at the spot he was in for a long moment, before Anko turned and launched at me, hugging me so tight I was afraid my HP would start falling. "I don't know what you did… but thank you." Then she released me and messed my hair. She vanished, too.
PING!
[Quest Complete!
Main Quest: Underneath the Molting Skin
Your new teacher, Orochimaru, wishes to test your claims about your ability. Prove yourself right.
Objectives Completed
Best Orochimaru in a kenjutsu spar.
Best Orochimaru in a taijutsu spar.
Pass Orochimaru's genjutsu test.
Bonus Objectives Completed
Do not use any special Zanpakuto souls during the spar.
Best Orochimaru in all three bouts in less than ten minutes total.
Change Orochimaru's worldview.
Rewards
50000 EXP, +REP with Orochimaru, +REP with Mitarashi Anko, +REP with Sarutobi Hiruzen, 300PP, Ninja Art: Speed Enhancement Scroll, +REP with Jiraiya, +REP with Tsunade]
[You have levelled up multiple times! You are now level 5!
Received 60 stat points and 200 perk points!]
Whew. That's… wow. I swiped that away and looked at the spot she occupied with a sad smile. I guess… at her heart, she was always someone who loved Orochimaru after all.
"Gundan…"
I sighed and turned to two anxious messes. "Look, I get it if you guys don't like me anymore…"
"No!" Mai interrupted me immediately, eye brimming with tears. "How could you possibly say that?! You're so… you!"
I blinked at her. "Okay…"
"In the beginning…" she started, then sniffed and squared her shoulders. "In the beginning, mom asked me to be your friend. I didn't know what to think when I met you the first day at the Academy and was shocked beyond belief when you said you wanted to pass out in a year. I knew that I'd have to pass along with you because we were supposed to be on the same team." She admitted, looking at the ground.
Okay, nothing I didn't already know.
"But then… I got to know you." She continued, smiling a small smile. "The way you are, the way you behaved… the way you cared… Gundan-kun, no one amongst us is weary of you. I can say this with complete confidence that we looked to you for support in this past year. The way you took care of us, took care of Naruto, and took care of the village… it won our hearts. I think Hideki and Ryosuke both like you more than all of us combined."
Wait… what?
"So… yeah. Tomorrow you might spring a new bomb on us, but we aren't leaving. We may be mad, we may not understand why you have to keep all these secrets…" here, she looked up at me resolutely. Next to her, Itachi did the same. "but you're never going to get rid of us, not but a long shot. We don't call you our mother because it's funny – we call you that because you've nurtured and helped us grow the way a mother would."
"Mai…" I trailed, honestly unsure how to deal with this. My heart felt like it would explode any moment.
"We all feel the same, Gundan-san." Itachi added his own two cents. "None of us would ever abandon you, no matter what."
"You guys…" What the HELL AM I SUPPOSED TO SAY HERE?! WHAT WORDS COULD POSSIBLY FIT THIS SITUATION-
Oh, fuck it all.
I lurched forwards and brought them both in a crushing hug. "You six are my family… and I swear: no harm will ever come to you or yours while I breathe."
"Figures." My mumbled somewhere over my head. "You'll just bash them over the head like you bashed Orochimaru-sensei."
I laughed a shaky laugh as I withdrew and looked up (a little) at the two of them with a wide smile. "So… what now?"
"Now," Itachi answered, "you train us."
"Yeah." Mai nodded. "We've got a whole day to use." She squinted at me. "What… do you have for us?"
I decided to give them something good. "Well, I'm good with this technique called Chakra Nagashi…"
"That's a Jonin-level skill." Itachi simply noted – no surprise, no inflection.
"Well, he's a Jonin-level ninja." Mai shrugged. "I don't know what it is, but it's gotta be good." She clapped her hands. "Let's get started!"
"Wait, before that…" I cleared my throat. "What exactly did you mean by that thing with Hideki and Ryosuke?"
The two of them paled a little.