Chapter Ten: Waves from a Ripple
Kurama Yakumo had always had a fascinated look on to a boy who would jog very early in the morning outside their house. She would look by at the window and would see a fiercely focused boy, who wore the silliest of spandex, the dorkiest of haircuts and the thickest set of eyebrows she had seen since ever. She had heard several times that he was a shinobi who graduated with not even a sliver of chakra that he could expel and use for techniques and her interest grew even further.
For being a child who could not even do the simplest of ninjutsu and the weakest of constitutions, Yakumo felt like she was watching a handicapped person will himself into such a rigorous profession that she could not help but feel admiration to this boy. His actions had lit a fire in her heart, a desire to overcome her weakness and live the same way as this boy had. He had shown her how powerful one's mind can be once it has been set.
And if anything, her mental fortitude was something she had to take pride on.
Then, one day, he stopped. A peculiar phenomenon, she thought. The boy's routine was literally every single day or at least every other day. And he would do it again the next day without as much as a sliver of whining. A strange thing, she thought. Certainly he couldn't have been killed on a mission, he was a genin from what she could tell. But she had known about the invasion and she was worried, everybody in Konoha knew about the invasion. Then she shook her head, it happened over a month before the invasion so it wasn't possible. She had heard that there are times people die during the chuunin exams which occurred a month before that. But for five days, the boy hadn't returned. Yakumo was worried and for the first time in her life, she was going to disobey her uncle as curiosity grew a second head within her.
"What happened to you, Lee-san?"
Naruto had been blessed by the goddess of fortune. Kakashi knew it. For a long time, during the several months long tenure of his only team, by far the luckiest of the three was Naruto. The boy just had mountains and mountains of good fortune set before him. Perhaps this was a transgression due to his past and maybe present? Kakashi didn't know but the fact that the boy had been on a lucky streak ever since the finals of the chuunin exams, the boy's recent promotions and the money he has won in a casino, and maybe, Kakashi thought, that the good fortune smiling upon Naruto was indeed good karma for what he has done or what he has endured throughout childhood.
That would certainly be the case, Tsunade didn't seem so enthused about going back to the village that had held too many painful memories but Naruto was able to do that. That was a feat worthy of legend, if he did say so. According to Jiraiya's account on the mission, Naruto not only almost neutralized Kabuto, he had convinced Tsunade to take the mantle. Such an accomplishment was understated with mere words. He had wished he could've seen what Naruto had done. Iruka stood beside the desk with a smile on his face, proud of what Naruto was able to accomplish what he couldn't back then at the academy, finish earlier than anyone.
So now, Kakashi was standing with his student beside him. To his right was Asuma who was smirking at his own pride and joy while Shikamaru was scratching his head in bewilderment.
"How the hell did I make chuunin, anyway?" He asked, Naruto merely gave a nervous laugh as Tsunade grabbed a few papers neatly covered by two folders as she reviewed the scores for the two genin.
"The first exam involved information gathering and taking calculated risks. And although one of you failed into gathering information…" She glares amusedly at Naruto who merely shrugged with an 'eh-what-can-you-do?' gesture who passed due to Ibiki's technicality.
"Shikamaru unsurprisingly passed that one while Naruto passed with flying colors by taking a calculated risk." She surmised as she turned the page, foregoing the second part of the exam due to it being more of an elimination stage as well as the preliminary battles.
"We didn't have to base a lot of grades in the second exam since the main requirement was to fulfill the objective and make it to home base as a team with a time limit, so that's easy enough. Your performances, however, were graded heavily on the third part of the exam." Tsunade then coughed a little as she began her report with a grin.
"It says here that you lost due to overuse of your Kage Mane no Jutsu but you masterfully created set up after set up to pin down your opponent with just one jutsu. I can see you are a good strategist taking after your father, so why the hell shouldn't you be promoted? You're team leader material, kid." Tsunade then turned to Naruto.
"As for you, brat, it says here that you have a knack for tricks and masterful use of the Kage Bunshin, you set up zones quickly to disable any first line option that your opponent may have making one-on-one taijutsu useless against you. Not only that, you can change strategies at the fly for adapting to different situations, create distractions, baits and set-ups for openings and split second sound decision making. You're a multi-purpose, multi-tasking, battlefield controller. It says here you're recommended for chuunin status immediately. And since I've reviewed the tape, I don't see why not. Like Shikamaru, you're a team leader in the making. I think you two deserve this promotion above anyone else."
Shikamaru looked at Naruto incredulously while Naruto grinned with his hands on the back of his head.
"Well, it's no big deal for someone like me." Naruto replied with a boast while Shikamaru and Tsunade rolled their eyes at that.
"Whatever the case, since your newly minted chuunin, Iruka here is going to present you your vests." Tsunade then pointed her thumb at Iruka who had two green flak vests at the ready. Naruto immediately grabbed his and fitted himself with it. The material felt snug on his torso and grinned at Kakashi who merely looked surprised.
'He resembles sensei quite well.'
Shikamaru followed suit and lazily put his on as well.
"And I thought all my troubles are going to go smoother from this point on…" Shikamaru mumbled thinking about how he should've given up even before entering the exams.
Tsunade then, to make it official, grabbed her stamp and pressed it on both Shikamaru's and Naruto's papers.
"From this moment on, you are now official chuunin of Konohagakure no Sato, wear your uniforms with pride." Tsunade said with a grin at the two as she stood up.
"Now excuse me, I have a couple of appointments that I need to check in the hospital. As soon as I leave, you four better get your asses out of my office!"
Iruka then calls out to Naruto before they leave, "Hey, Naruto, let's celebrate your promotion tonight at Ichiraku's. I'm paying!"
Naruto was grinning at his former teacher, "You're on, Iruka-sensei!"
With that, the four hurriedly left the office. Kakashi had a small chuckle as they were outside.
"What's so funny, Kakashi?" Asuma asked who picked up Kakashi's mirth, the scarecrow jounin turned around with a red book dangling in his hand as he was giggling.
"Looks like I won the bet."
Asuma felt sorry Gai then and there when he remembered what Kakashi was talking about.
"Kakashi, my rival!"
Speak of the devil.
"Oh hello, Gai, you're just in time." Kakashi said as he greeted his self-proclaimed rival with a simple wave as he was followed by Neji and Tenten.
"Is Tsunade-sama still inside? I have heard the most delightful news concerning about my most precious student, Lee!" He asked peering behind Kakashi, Gai saw Naruto and Shikamaru chatting with each other while his mouth stood agape.
"Oh that's right, I forgot to introduce you to my team's first chuunin, Uzumaki Naruto." Kakashi was gloating, Asuma could tell. The man really knew how to push someone's buttons especially Gai.
"NOOOOOOOOO!" Gai kneeled down on his knees and stretched his hands upwards.
"Oh yes, you know what that means, don't you?" Kakashi asked as he gave Gai a copy of Icha Icha complete with a bookmark to a specific page.
"I knew Naruto performed so well during the finals but I never expected…" Gai mumbled and while he was having a breakdown, Neji and Tenten approached Naruto and Shikamaru and congratulated them.
"For all it's worth, you two were probably the best choice." Tenten then looked at Neji who nodded.
"It is an honor to having fought against you, Naruto. You have my respect."
Naruto grinned as he said, "Well, I had to really prepare for the chuunin exams. Baa-chan basically said we're still not done and we can pass a letter of recommendation for peer considerations. We were just about to leave and talk about it some other time too."
Neji raised an eyebrow, "Who do you have in mind, exactly?"
Shikamaru scratched the back of his head, "We still don't know if we would push it through or not. Hokage-sama said it was just an optional choice but we can ask for another participant depending on his participation after the final exam and during the invasion for promotions as peer evaluations except for the Suna Shinobi."
"Wait, you guys are already doing peer recommendations, too? Isn't that a little early?" Tenten asked, Naruto and Shikamaru shrugged while Naruto spoke, "Yeah, but with all the casualties, we need all the help we can get and just two freshly minted chuunin aren't going to help very much."
"You need help with your recommendations? I'm sure Kakashi and I can…" Asuma offered, Shikamaru had cut him off with a shake of his head.
"There's no need, we're not going to rush this. If we think that there's someone worthy of note to be promoted for chuunin, we'd run it over to you guys and the other jounin instructors. For now, Naruto and I would have a lot to talk about."
Naruto and Kakashi had made headway after saying goodbye to Shikamaru and Asuma with the promise of Naruto discussing their peer reviews later. Once they got out of the tower, they were greeted with Jiraiya of the Sannin leaning beside the entrance of the building.
"Congratulations for finally becoming an official chuunin, brat." Jiraiya greeted the blonde who turned and grinned at the man.
"Jiraiya-sama." Kakashi greeted with a bow as Jiraiya nodded.
"Kakashi, I'm going to have to borrow Naruto again. Your team is waiting for you at the training grounds, no? What we will discuss is an important matter that he needs to know." Jiraiya told the masked jounin. Kakashi knew what the man was going to say the last meeting with the jounin had given him plenty of information as to what was going on aside from managing to bring back Tsunade from his mission.
Kakashi relented as Jiraiya commanded the boy, "Let's take a walk."
Naruto nodded as Jiraiya then continued, "Last night, we had a meeting, brat. Most of it concerns some disturbing information as to what happened in our absence. And although, I would have loved to tell you about this later as to another reason why I'm taking you as my apprentice, you need to know now."
Naruto stayed quiet as they turned to a corner, the blonde's hands were in his pocket, the boy never made eye contact at him as Jiraiya continued, "Do you remember what I said to you over a month ago about powerful people coming after you? Well, apparently they made their move while we were gone."
Naruto turned to Jiraiya, now alarmed, "What?"
"They infiltrated the village and managed to hold off three elite jounin before making an escape. Their target, though…" Jiraiya then pointed to the blonde.
"Was nowhere to be seen for several days around the village, they had assumed that you left under my protection which is probably why they didn't pursue you any further. I have no doubt that they are going to push their luck and come after you one of these days which is why I came here to warn you and get you up to par."
Jiraiya then held out a small piece of paper to the blonde and then continued, "Now that things have settled down, it's time for you to learn a more indept knowledge about Elemental Manipulation."
"Take the paper and apply chakra to it. I want to know your elemental type to get a good grasp of your strength and your weakness."
Naruto took the white paper and did as he was told. Not a second later, the paper reacted and split in half and confirming Jiraiya's suspicions.
"A Wind Chakra type… You don't get those much around here. Sad to say, I'm not even a wind type myself."
"What?" Naruto asked in confusion.
"You know the time when you saw your teammate use Katon? Or the time when Kakashi used Chidori?" Jiraiya asked and Naruto nodded vigorously.
"Well, those are techniques that are elemental in nature and instrumental to their chakra type. An ordinary person at the start of his or her career normally has a single chakra type as you have seen now. Fire turns that paper to ash, wind cleaves it in two, lightning crumples it, earth grinds it to dust and water gets it wet. Are you with me so far?"
Naruto nodded rapidly. Though he was disappointed he didn't get a flashier element like Lightning or Fire, he would just have to roll with it, like he had for most of his career.
"Good, now that we've established what your element is, here's a little something for you to work with."
Jiraiya then handed Naruto a scroll. The blonde raised an eyebrow at this before looking back to his teacher.
"What is this?" The boy asked, hoping it was a wind jutsu. Excitement filled his veins once more as the thought of learning an elemental jutsu not named the Tenrin would surely supplement his techniques!
"It's something to help with your Kage Bunshin, brat, because you're going to need it. I only asked for your element to prepare your training tomorrow. Tsunade has granted you at least five days of reprieve before she sends you out for missions. Now excuse me while I do some research and think of ways to train you tomorrow."
With that, the old man left in a cloud of smoke while Naruto unravelled the scroll. His eyes widened in surprise and gave a large grin.
"A variant of the Kage Bunshin, Ero-Sennin? THIS IS AWESOME!" He whooped in joy as he headed out to training ground seven.
Training Ground Seven:
"NO WAY!" Sakura said in shock as she looked at Naruto who was now sporting a green flak vest and giving off a grin that could split his face.
"You got promoted on your first try? That's insane!" Sakura could not believe what she was seeing right now nor could she believe that the person in front of her is her teammate.
"Leave it, Sakura. Rank doesn't equate to strength. He probably lucked out with one of the qualifications for chuunin." Sasuke commented as he was swinging the wooden sword down as part of his practice. Sasuke could care less about rank. To him right now, what mattered was skill. He had seen Shikamaru earlier wearing the same vest as they went to the barbecue place a while ago and he couldn't believe it as well. It seemed like strength wasn't the only thing that the judges were looking for in Chuunin candidates. Besides, he couldn't be bothered with it. Kakashi was recommending him to ANBU afterall.
"Judges give big points for certain criteria, Sakura. One of your friends, Shikamaru, he was promoted too."
Sakura was flabbergasted by it all. She simply couldn't just put it together now with Shikamaru being promoted as well "The two stupidest and laziest people in my batch get to be the first to become chuunin! How is that even possible? Naruto skipped class almost all the time! And Shikamaru couldn't be bothered to put up a pen and answer questions! HE SLEPT THROUGHOUT MOST OF THE WRITTEN EXAM FOR GENIN, FOR GOD'S SAKE!"
Kakashi simply waved his right hand as his focus was on his book, "Now, now, don't get bent over this. Shikamaru and Naruto displayed one thing that many of the other participants lacked."
Sakura and Sasuke raised an eyebrow at this as they looked at Kakashi and continued, "And that's exceptional decision making, strategizing and tactical prowess. When we reviewed the tapes of the completed fights, the judges made their decision to place their promotions on Naruto and Shikamaru. Chuunin are sometimes tasked to take on leadership roles in the absence of a jounin. You understand, don't you Sakura? After all, you saw all of it yourself."
"Somewhat, sensei, I still find it hard to believe, though." Sakura muttered at that part.
Kakashi gave a small chuckle and continued, "Welcome to the world of ninja, Sakura. Things don't always seem to make sense until you figure it out on your own."
"How did you even brush up your skills, Naruto? A month isn't enough to change many problems you had before going to the third part of the exam." She asked, utterly perplexed from the fact that Naruto rose quickly in their ranks compared to her and Sasuke, the top two students of the academy a few months ago.
Naruto gave grin, "Well, I found a neat trick with the Kage Bunshin. Anything they learn, the memory transfers to me once they're gone."
Sasuke widened his eyes at this, "And you haven't noticed it until now? How is that even possible, dobe?"
In typical Naruto fashion, he reacted more than he should have "Ah, shut up Sasuke! I didn't notice, okay? How the hell I am even supposed to know that learning that thing gives me my memories back? I had to learn the Kage Bunshin on the fly, bastard!"
Sasuke shook his head in exasperation, "Always read the damn fine print, dobe. Your face is telling me that you just skimmed through the rest, didn't you?"
Sasuke then pointed to the blonde and Naruto cringed, having been caught.
"S-Shut up, teme!"
Kakashi then clapped his hands twice interrupting what could have been a brawl between his two students as he smiled and said, "Now, now, infighting isn't allowed unless I regulate it. Now that you're here, Naruto, could we invite you to train with us right now?"
Naruto gave a grin and nodded to his sensei and the jounin returned the boy's toothy smile with a simple one of his own.
"Great! Just in time too, I was getting worried that you all were getting rusty with your teamwork. Let's have a team exercise after your individual training, shall we?" Kakashi imposed with a smile beneath his mask. Seeing Team Seven being complete again brought a smile in his face.
Sakura groaned in displeasure at the prospect. Kakashi's training was hellish enough, now he felt like he needed to extend his training time just because of a team exercise? That's ridiculous!
Sasuke on the other hand, seemed unfazed by it. He had to admit that he is curious of Naruto's current skill level. He had never seen the tapes that Kakashi was mentioning, but the thought of Naruto excelling and performing well enough that he was promoted to chuunin? To top it all off, he had beaten the said to be strongest genin in their current generation? Now he wanted to see what Naruto could do.
Two shadow clones popped up flanking the real Kakashi in the middle and each clone motioned for Naruto and Sakura to follow him while the real one stayed with Sasuke.
"Now then, let's begin your pre-initiation."
When Sasuke heard those words, his eyes widened as Kakashi's demeanour changed from laidback, to downright intimidating.
"Drop and give me two hundred push-ups, Sasuke."
Knowing it's best not to protest with this personality of the man, Sasuke went on and did so with all the thought that everything he was working for, he was doing for the sake of his goal.
With Naruto:
Naruto unfurled the scroll given to him by Jiraiya and began reading the contents. He was giddy with excitement, not only was he going to have an upgrade for his Kage Bunshin, he knew for a fact that this jutsu would add a tremendous amount of new ways to his current strategy and tactics in fighting.
This was a jutsu that was almost unavoidable if he played his cards right.
"Bunshin Daibakuha (Great Exploding Clone)? That's a pretty good jutsu for your style of fighting." Kakashi mentioned as he leaned down while the both of them read the contents of the scroll.
To Naruto, this was a foreign technique he was about to learn, to Kakashi, this was a chance to learn about one of Uchiha Itachi's jutsus that managed to catch him and Kurenai off guard.
"Yeah, no more expending clones just for cover, smokescreens and plastering them with explosive notes, I can take out anyone who makes a mistake of getting close to it." Naruto mentioned as his eyes were fixed to the scroll at hand before he continued, "My use of the Kage Bunshin would be further expanded with this and I get to save up on some of my explosive notes. It's freaking awesome."
Kakashi thought to himself that maybe he shouldn't have asked for a team exercise for this.
But of course, he needed to know how well enough had his three students grown in the time that passed since the chuunin exam.
"So, during your time with Jiraiya-sama, what have you learned?" Kakashi asked as Naruto turned to look at Kakashi with a raised eyebrow but answered with a grin nonetheless.
"I can mix and match my jutsu to anyway that I want, use them in creative ways and surprise opponents, but most of all, never ever get into a fight with a medic nin who know their stuff."
Kakashi nodded. Jiraiya had informed him of their encounter with Kabuto and how Naruto had almost died against fighting the silver haired man.
Kakashi had to admit, being able to stand his ground against the man he considered to be of equal at best was no laughing matter even if Kabuto was a medic nin.
It just showed the huge growth that Naruto displayed by leaps and bounds. Had everyone been wrong with his second most problematic student?
He knew conventional wisdom did not work against Naruto. If it did, then his growth as a shinobi would be something explainable and believable but this wasn't. Naruto had the mannerisms and behaviour of his former teammate, Uchiha Obito.
Naruto was loud, obnoxious, clumsy, a complete idiot in every sense of the word. But Kakashi knew that circumstances create mannerisms and attitudes of people. After all, no villain is born evil and no hero as he or she is, just in the same vein that no dunce is born dumb and no prodigy is born smart.
Talents mean nothing compared to actual self-realization and actualization of skill. Skills are meant to be learned by experience and not by theory alone. That, as he had thought all those years ago, is true mastery of an art form.
That was personal evolution.
Naruto, a boy who grew up practically neglected and emotionally abused, who had made it a point to see through things to the end, survive and become the best, it created a personality within the boy to excel in spite of his upbringing, in spite of what little knowledge he had.
Kakashi had mused, Naruto's life was something akin to a fairy tale. Even more so, to what Jiraiya had envisioned in his first novel so long ago…
He watched as Naruto stood up and performed a single clone.
The clone went far into the clearing as Naruto had never once separated both of his hands from the middle index cross seal and from then on, began weaving his hands into four more series of seals.
Saru, Hitsuji, Tora, Ryu
"Bunshin Daibakuha (Great Exploding Clone)!" Naruto shouted and watched in fascination as his clone swelled up but instead of a loud boom, a large smoke screen popped covering both Kakashi and Naruto.
"Still needs work." Kakashi commented while Naruto looked at his sensei.
"Gee, sensei, when did you figure that out?" Naruto snapped. Stating the obvious had never irritated him so much until now.
With Sakura:
Swinging her wooden sticks around, Sakura couldn't help but be surprised how natural things were becoming as she went deeper with her style. It felt so natural holding the stick and swinging it as if it became an extension of her arm. Sakura had theorized and daresay that if she were to remove the factor of her weapon, she could still nail someone well enough that she can either maim or kill with it.
This was a truly terrifying art and it brought chills to her bone as she thought why Kakashi would want her to learn such a gruesome and absolutely deadly combat art.
The hits were quick and precise; every part of her hand, as she visualized her opponent, would hit the person minus the added range. Jabs, swings, thrusts, she saw them all. When one of her hands would deflect block or parry, the other would strike. It was like a performance of twin dragons coiling at a single prey and aiming to kill.
As she deflected a strike aimed at her left shoulder with one stick and seeing that split second stagger, she swung her right staff with a good low sweep and destabilizing her opponent's footing before she aimed for the person's chest with a quick and vicious thrust.
She stopped, completely surprised.
Dust danced in the air behind her.
In front of her stood nothing and to her left was Kakashi who was watching her.
"A new technique has been born, Sakura, congratulations. What shall you name it?" He asked. Sakura had no words, in the heat of her shadow fighting, she had been perfectly laid in a trance so powerful that her body seemed to have moved on its own and attacked.
To Kakashi, this was something that he had foreseen yet surprised him even still.
Sakura had managed to unlock the dangerous trance like state of Yaban'na Okami no Sakebi (Cry of the Savage Wolf).
He was sure of it, the way Sakura had moved, the way her eyes became almost as blank as the cloudless sky.
A bead of sweat escaped his forehead.
This was it.
Sakura had entered a state where systematic killing has been opened.
Shinobuto (Dance of Death)
"I… I imagined two dragons coiling a single prey, it was like seeing for myself how my movements became as natural as holding my sword. Souryu no Kajo (Coil of Twin Dragons)"
Kakashi noted with a nod and said to her, "Good, now let's practice with the real thing."
Sakura gulped and became pale.
But at the back of her mind, a little excitement couldn't help but escape her.
Inuzuka Compound:
Kiba had stared blankly down to the kennels of his clan's dogs as he began giving the canines their much needed bath.
"Still can't believe the fact that your two classmates are already chuunin?" A voice brought him out of his thoughts as he turned to right and saw his older sister smirking at him.
"Hey, you would be too if the class clown and the resident sloth made chuunin before you!" Kiba remarked, now rather annoyed that he was reminded that Naruto left him in the dust. Hana gave a snort.
"Yes, about that. Your two classmates are being regarded highly in our circle as of late. They said they were surprised that those two idiot friend of yours were doing better than most of their peers, it seems like they're reviewing the curriculum and thinking of putting up some reforms into the old system." Hana said this as she petted Kuromaru after giving the dog his current meal. She then continued as she grabbed another handful of food put into a bowl and fed to another of their dogs.
"I'm not surprised. Most of the things we learned in the academy are too dated and practically useless outside the classroom once we're in the field. For the most part, a modular type of education of the classic classroom is not conducive for creativity and use of different jutsus. The graduates are never thought how to strategize; just that it is merely implied once the true genin test becomes apparent. The fact that most of the fresh genin today are clan children except probably for one compared last year is a sign of a dwindling educational system that needs retooling for modern times." Hana continued as Kiba scratched the back of his head.
"So you think Naruto and Shikamaru are pioneers of our generation to have excelled without the approval of the academy?"
Hana smirked and laughed at Kiba's statement, "No, pup. If anything, the two of them are catalysts. Anomalous factors that threw the whole system for a loop, an aberration to age old conventional wisdom; it's actually quite fascinating if you think about it. That means that your age group has the capacity to overtake one another now that the rules are inapplicable to you. Right now, the academy is looking into finding that next dark horse, their next wild card aside from the potential rookie of the year."
Kiba raised an eyebrow at this and grinned, "That means I have a chance to overtake that bastard, Sasuke and become chuunin before he does!"
Hana simply snorted at this, "The keyword being 'chance', pup. Don't let it get to your head."
Kiba looked down at Akamaru who barked at him in response after cleaning himself up.
"What do you think, buddy? Should we go and prove nee-san's theory correct?"
Akamaru barked in affirmation as Kiba grinned.
"I like the sound of that, boy."
With that, he grabbed a now dried and fed Akamaru and put him above his head as he dashed outside leaving Hana alone to tend to the remaining dogs.
"That pup is eager to be an Alpha." Kuromaru commented as Hana gave a chuckle.
"Let him try. After all, there is no shame in going after lofty goals. Besides, he needs something to motivate him."
Kuromaru gave a snort. It didn't seem all to amused that the youngest pup was willing to go for such a thing that without bearing his true fangs at first.
Perhaps Tsume can be convinced to have Kiba visit their ancestral lands due west of Konoha. Maybe he could learn a thing or two there.
Yakiniku Q:
"I thought you said Naruto would be coming along with you so you wouldn't be able to celebrate with us." Ino said as she munched on a green bell pepper with a raised brow at Shikamaru. The chuunin simply sighed and shrugged his shoulders.
"Not exactly my fault, Jiraiya-sama pulled him out after leaving the tower. I think the toad sage is looking at a prospective apprentice."
Ino laughed at the suggestion, "Come on, Shikamaru. Naruto being a chuunin is farfetched enough as it is, but being apprenticed by the Great Toad Sage, Jiraiya-sama? You're just pulling our leg here."
Ino was about to laugh once more but stopped when Asuma wasn't smiling or that Shikamaru was thinking deeply.
"Right, Asuma-sensei?" She asked and Asuma appeared to have returned to normal as he said, "Well, let's consider the following: Naruto had just earned the rank of chuunin along with Shikamaru. Nearly a month ago, there were rumors flying about that there were only two passers of the exam that were promoted to chuunin. During those times and even before that, a lot of eyewitness accounts saw Naruto and Jiraiya-sama together even though they probably have nothing to talk about. But the final piece of the puzzle was two weeks ago when Naruto left the village along with Jiraiya for a mission. Do you remember the standing order for the shinobi work force?"
Ino nodded, "No shinobi shall be able to take a mission unless deployed by the council with the approval of the Jounin Commander."
Asuma nodded as he grabbed a stick of cigarette in his pocket.
"Exactly, no one is allowed to take missions until things started to wind down. Surprise, surprise as to who went missing for two weeks under the pre-tense of a mission with the full clearance of the council. Jiraiya-sama being one of the sannin, can pull an enormous amount of strings if he wishes to."
Ino could nod at that, but the question still remained, "But why Naruto?"
Shikamaru looked at his sensei without a word and only one open eye as he took a drink of orange juice. The son of the Third Hokage looked rather uncomfortable answering their female teammate.
"Well, certain circumstances happened as to why and how. We've been debriefed earlier due to adjusting some of the roster since we'll be having two slots missing. It's really all complicated stuff, Ino. I wouldn't think too much about it."
Ino looked at the older man, seemingly unconvinced as she leaned back down with her arms crossed.
"Suspicious."
Shikamaru and Asuma raised their eyebrow at this.
"What?" Was all Asuma could ask until Ino repeated her words.
"I said suspicious, sensei. There are still a lot of things that you're not telling me. And Shikamaru's look at you earlier tells me he might know something too."
Shikamaru groaned, "Ino, there are certain things better left unsaid. Don't try to make this all about your 'woman's intuition' thing because it is most certainly not."
"Though you really do have to wonder what brought the sudden apprenticeship of Naruto to Jiraiya-sama." Chouji had finally decided to speak after stuffing his face with grilled meat.
Asuma raised his hands and tried to stifle down Ino's suspicions, "Let's just say it has more to do with personal reasons rather than Jiraiya-sama looking for a suitable candidate. Besides, I heard Jiraiya-sama is done with taking apprentices ever since the Yondaime died."
"This calls for an investigation!" Ino said with fire burning in her eyes, eager to hear a scoop that could possibly be worth a goldmine. Shikamaru shook his head with an apathetic look.
"Sorry, not interested. Missions are going to be back on track in a few days. I'll be too busy as well as Naruto. So you should probably get nothing until you can corner Naruto. But that would be pretty hard if you ask me."
Ino then asked, "Why?"
Shikamaru smirked, "With Team Seven's current training regimen, missions outside the village and Jiraiya-sama taking up his time, you'll find that difficult to even talk to him."
Ino's thoughts of the challenge simply deflated her to her seat as Asuma gave a laugh.
"Well, if you really want to have good information gathering and interrogation skills, I guess I can teach you some things about that. Although I'm no expert, but a recommendation to Ibiki and Anko should probably do the trick."
Ino shivered at the thought and wondered if Asuma just walked all over her grave.
Outside Konoha Hospital:
Hyuuga Neji and Tenten were asked to remain outside the premises of the hospital when Rock Lee and Gai were ushered inside the clinic. Both of them were in solemn contemplation as to what might happen to their teammate.
"I hope that idiot can be helped. Seeing him looking so down these past few weeks was…"
"… Rather off-putting. I understand. Gai-sensei and Lee were the core that kept this team together, for better or worse." Neji replied. Tenten had raised an eyebrow.
"You know, you've changed quite a bit yourself. You were never this sociable when we started." Tenten replied as she scratched her head at this. Neji gave a simple smirk as he closed his eyes and leaned on the wall.
"Circumstances have humbled me these past few weeks and all that I have ever known were actually mere half-truths and not the totality of things. I was a fool to let my cynicism destroy me. For bearing with my state of my mind back then, I didn't know how you, Gai-sensei or Lee put up with someone like me."
Tenten merely snorted and replied dismissively, "My team is a team of complete basket cases and I'm perfectly fine with that. We all have our issues to deal with and we deal with them differently. It's just coping that defines our behavior whenever something pops up. Ever wonder why there are very few sane jounin on active duty? Hell, even ANBU?"
Neji raised an eyebrow at this, "Define sane."
"Sane, as in normal, run of the mill shmuck. You could probably count a few with your hand, the rest are people with weird behaviours that are outright disturbing to some of the civilians."
Neji seemed to understand this and he nodded, "I get what you mean. Gai-sensei has a tendency to show his emotions rather forwardly than most people. And I am saying this lightly."
Tenten seemed to tremble in good humor to Neji's way of saying a joke. That completely threw her for a loop!
"Telling jokes now too, huh? Seriously, Neji, I think that beating you got from the blonde got you good and then some. Are you really Neji?"
Neji gave a sigh and shook his head. Sometimes he had to be the sanest man on the team and reigning in on Gai and Lee's passionate tendencies but Tenten would probably do a better job than him in containing their damn voices.
"By the way, I couldn't help but notice the nodachi that is strapped on your back, Tenten. Am I to assume that you plan on specializing with swords?"
Tenten glanced at her shiny new toy with a questioning hum before she turned to Neji to answer, "Nah, as being dubbed by our batch as the weapon mistress, I intend to master this just like any other weapon. This Nodachi in particular though, has a more intriguing property that it lets out. It's made from very special metals that conduct and amplify chakra by several-fold and bend it to a specific element. In a way, I was planning to help out the Research and Development centres in exchange for ownership of the weapon. Pretty good trade off, to be honest."
Neji raised an eyebrow at this in curiosity.
Sensing Neji's confusion of the weapon in her hands right now and her current situation, Tenten answered her teammate.
"It has more to do with collecting ores and whatnot. Ryugamine-san's ideas are pretty good and I have a basic understanding of metallurgy so it's a good opportunity to create more exotic weapons."
"Ah." Was all Neji could say. A few more minutes of waiting outside earning a few more minutes of casual talk between Neji and Tenten to make up for lost time. Their talk ended when they saw Hinata being escorted outside the hospital by nurse.
"Hinata? What are you doing here?" Tenten asked. Hinata's attention turned from the nurse to Tenten who was looking at her with a raised eyebrow of her own.
"O-Oh, nothing much. I-I was just asked to take a monthly check up due to my injuries during the preliminary matches of the chuunin exams." She replied with a shake of her head.
Neji seemed to flinch from this from what Tenten could gather.
"Did they clear you?" She asked and Hinata gave a smile and a nod.
"Y-Yes, they did. I am now fit for active duty. Though missions don't begin in a few days with the arrival of Tsunade-sama, I'm just glad I will be able to take missions in time."
Tenten looked to her side and saw Neji being silent with his eyes closed as Hinata asked, "B-By the way, Tenten-san, what are you and Neji-niisan doing here?"
Tenten smiled, "We came to support our teammate of course. Lee is currently being seen by Tsunade-sama to try and look if they can fix the problem."
Hinata returned a smile with one of her own as she bowed, "I hope everything turns well for Lee-san. He has been working hard for his career. It would be saddening if this would cripple him for his entire life."
It was then that Neji spoke as he too gave a bow to his younger cousin, "Your concern is duly appreciated, Hinata-sama. I also apologize for what happened over a month ago. My anger has clouded me of my judgement. I intend to make amends and wish you well too in your endeavours."
Tenten had raised an eyebrow at this as she asked, "And that would be?"
Neji gave an answer as if it was the simplest thing in the world, "Why to get Uzumaki-san closer, of course."
Let it be said that there can be nothing redder at the moment than Hinata's face as she hid it with her hands.
"Neji-niisan…"
Inside the hospital, Lee and Gai were anxiously waiting as Tsunade was reading the notes and charts left behind by several of the rotating medic nin inside concerning Rock Lee's health for the past month or so. All of the papers stacked neatly just beside the desk as she flipped through a page and sighed.
"I'll admit, your case is nothing out of the ordinary for trauma patients, Lee, it's just that the severity of it is quite vexing. Multiple bone fragments crushed and the fractures are too many to count. Some are probably even microscopic."
Tsunade then flipped another page, "That being said, you're lucky that you are still alive. Some of the fragments invaded your circulatory system. I'm surprised that after this long, you haven't developed an embolism with the extent of the fractures done to your leg and arm."
Gai looked at Lee who held an expression of anxiety as he held his crutches tightly with his hands.
"Is there anything that can be done, Hokage-sama?" Gai asked and Tsunade gave a deep breath.
"There probably is. But the problem would be is that it is still on an experimental state. I can't guarantee total safety for your student. This is micro-surgery on a level that should be consulted with the top medics in the country."
She closed Lee's progress notes and began writing on a blank piece of paper.
"You're operation is not something to be happy about. Don't get me wrong it is something that is completely necessary due to your condition. But I must state this as a doctor, that at most your survival in this operation is only fifty-eight percent. Are you sure you are willing to continue? The odds of you surviving are technically good but as you can see, when it comes to patient care, I don't take any chances and it is completely up to you."
Tsunade then gave the paper to Gai while she began instructing her subordinate, "Make sure to deliver that to the fire capital and tell the top medics there in orthopaedics that I've returned and to make their way here in a week's time after your student says yes. That is, if he is actually willing."
"H-Hokage-sama, I appreciate your concern for me and I will consider what you have given me today. From the bottom of my heart, I thank you." Lee said in a bow as he stood up with the help of his crutches and went out of the office followed behind by his concerned sensei.
'Whatever happens, it will all be up to that boy.' Tsunade thought as she grabbed another chart on her desk.
Back in training ground seven:
Kakashi was currently looking at all three of his students on the grassy ground as they sat with their legs crossed and began discussing strategy.
"Kakashi-sensei said earlier that it was going to be a team fight and that we should come out full force at the beginning or else this is going to be like that stupid bell test all over again." Naruto replied as Sakura nodded as did Sasuke.
Kakashi overheard their conversation, it wasn't as if they were being discrete about it anyway, with how they were coming up with their assignments, he was sure that most of what they'll be doing is on the fly.
"Right, until I can get a full understanding on how much you two can do, I say we hold out on any strategic discussions and see things for myself. The best that I can provide you two is with cover and looking for openings. So don't be surprised if you guys are suddenly protected by one of my clones or intercepts Kakashi-sensei."
Sasuke gave a scoff at this, "Fine, I'll try to do some quick hit and run attacks to debilitate him. Sakura can provide as backup and finish the job."
Naruto looked at Sakura and asked, "You up for this, Sakura?"
Sakura had a thoughtful look for a moment before she replied, "It would be better if Sasuke-kun would hit Kakashi-sensei quick enough for me to come in and finish the job with a grapple, but that would be wishful thinking, Kakashi-sensei is bigger and stronger than me at the moment. Things like grapples and throw downs will never work on sensei."
Naruto nodded at this, "Right, we have our roles and we have our assignments, I'll provide as support and cover while Sasuke gets in and cripples sensei and Sakura finishes the job."
Sasuke then looked at Sakura, "Can you keep up?"
The girl somewhat nodded, "Kind of, I have an idea on how to get close enough without you worrying if your maximum speed wouldn't be used to the fullest."
"You know discussing your strategy while I'm still here is detrimental, right?" Kakashi asked while all three of his genin turned back to him with a glance.
"It's not like you can even tell what's going to happen next, sensei!" It was Sakura this time that triggered the beginning of the match by throwing a surprise volley of shuriken to Kakashi who managed to dodge well enough after each projectile. Quick to capitalize, Kakashi was suddenly surrounded by four shadow clones on all sides as he was about to move forward.
"Keep up the pressure, Sakura!" Naruto shouted as he generated another set of clones to clash with Kakashi as his current set was dispelled.
Sasuke for his part, had disappeared the moment Sakura threw her projectiles at the man. The smokescreen laid out by Naruto's shadow clones provided perfect cover for him to move at a proper position. Crouching down below, he made sure not to make a sound as Naruto kept bombarding their sensei with clones and taijutsu.
Sasuke looked closely as he examined Naruto's movements with his Sharingan. He noted that the blonde's taijutsu levelled up to decent in the last month or so and noticed that whatever gap or glaring openings he had, he covered it up with another shadow clone effectively forming an almost impenetrable wall of arms and legs. It wasn't like how each clone was doing their own thing and not covering each other's ass as he had seen before. This one looked coordinated, well managed and timed perfectly.
'Leadership quality, huh?' Sasuke thought as he leaned forward and grabbed his wooden sword before he built up chakra to his feet
'It's no wonder he beat Hyuuga Neji, then. Apart from his taijutsu that can be rendered useless, he doesn't have enough of a solution to stop Naruto once he gets the ball rolling. Kakashi, however…' Another set of clones destroyed and Sasuke performed a single handseal.
He knew from experience that Kakashi was on a whole another level. Kakashi may not practice the gentle fist, but his versatility was nothing of the sort that Naruto has ever encountered. And it was something that brought and advantageous edge over anything that Naruto could ever throw at their sensei.
Multiple Ninjutsu, advanced Taijutsu, decent genjutsu and a working sharingan made Kakashi a force to be reckoned with the likes of which, Sasuke was sure could catch up to any of the legendary Sannin.
'THERE!' Sasuke immediately saw an opening and rushed from his hiding spot and leaped forward performing the Shunshin no Jutsu (Body Flicker Technique)
Kakashi was immediately on guard the moment that he felt Sasuke had leapt into the fray on his own. He was surprised that Sasuke had managed to close the gap between them in a fraction of a second and the boy was already in mid swing to his torso. Kakashi twisted his body well enough in mid-air that he had narrowly evaded the strike to his stomach as he then proceeded to have one foot stomp on the blade as with his other foot, smacked Sasuke across the face as he was sent rolling on the ground. Only to be replaced with a Naruto clone that was under a henge and dispelling in a cloud of smoke.
'That was Uchiha Shisui's movements just now. He's learning. And Naruto's timing too… They're getting good.'
Sasuke once more disappeared from his view and his tracks were covered when several Naruto clones were blocking his path.
He had not noticed Sakura disappear from view as well until he noticed that Naruto was by himself now.
'Kakashi-sensei is too good. He is better than Kabuto at hand to hand at least.' Naruto noted as he created another wave of shadow clones to create zones and force an opening.
'Knowing Sasuke, he'll try something else.' The blonde continued and as he guessed, instead of going for close range, Sasuke had sent several fireballs Kakashi's way.
The clones dispersed from the field as Kakashi was engulfed in flames while all three of them remained ever vigilant.
A crack in the earth brought Naruto's senses on full alert as Kakashi popped underneath him to grab a hold of his ankle and drag him down. A shuriken was quick to fly at Kakashi's reaching hand that stopped the man from doing so as Naruto jumped back twice before disappearing with the Shunshin no jutsu.
'So it's actually Sakura that's providing cover.'
Kakashi had to commend his team for coming up with something on the fly and try to reverse roles as quick as they can. It's not as noticeable as Naruto's tricks of the trade but it was quietly effective.
'Any other ninja would have fallen to their idea of tricks. They're learning faster than I had anticipated.'
"Katon: Housenka no Jutsu (Fire Release: Mythical Fire Flower Technique)!"
A hail of small but quick fireballs escaped from the rooftops as Kakashi jumped back and began weaving a series of handseals on his own.
"Doton: Doryuheki (Earth Release: Earth Wall Barrier Formation)!" Kakashi touched the earth with his right hand just as he was about to take a turn and a wall of earth erupted from the ground as it blocked Sasuke's fireballs with ease.
It was then that four Naruto clones had surrounded Kakashi once more while another stood on top of the earthen wall.
All of them held a kunai in their hands as they charged at Kakashi simultaneously as the silver haired jounin immediately went for the first clone he could grab and pulled the clone closer. Kakashi then struck his elbow downwards straight to the clone's skull as it dispelled in a cloud of smoke before spinning again once more to parry the next clone's out stretched hand holding a kunai with an empty palm and viciously breaking the clone's arm with another elbow strike to the boy's forearm dispelling it. Kakashi then swiped his arm for a clothesline at the next clone and hit it directly at the neck dispelling it with much ease.
The last clone gritted its teeth and instead of attacking forward, it leapt back and let loose a hail of shuriken before it dispelled.
Kakashi ducked and noticed the whizzing sound of the metal was later than what he had anticipated.
It was then that he saw the real ones coming right at him fast. He rolled to the side as the shuriken became planted on the ground.
'Sakura used a bunshin for that one as Naruto jumped back. She used a smoke screen to cover her attack. Sneaky little kid… But still, she needs a better set of projectiles on her in order to keep up with Naruto and Sasuke.'
As he landed Kakashi smiled beneath his mask. Back then, when he first met his wayward genin, they had an unspoken sense of hostility towards one another. Unlike his former team, Sasuke, Sakura and Naruto were far, far worse than him, Rin and Obito by three times. It didn't help that Sakura made things worse for both Naruto and Sasuke.
But somehow, right now, watching all three of them performing so well with each other, it got him thinking that many of the things they experienced perhaps changed them to this degree. It made them forget all the little follies of life as a shinobi of the village. He lamented that he wished they were done in better circumstances but that was neither here nor there to be discussed anymore. Sasuke now had a flourishing sense of loyalty to an ideal that will give him the necessary drive as it once did Itachi. He was hoping for the better that Sasuke stuck to that ideal unlike his brother. Sakura was slowly going out of her phase as a wishy-washy girl whose priorities were not inclined for shinobi lifestyle. Naruto? How astounding was it that Naruto to straighten his act and go beyond just self-aggrandizement in order to become Hokage? From being an obnoxious, scatter-brained kid to a shinobi carrying his vest with pride, Naruto became a selfless boy that Kakashi could tell that emulated his former teammate and father well.
No matter what, perhaps his sensei would be proud of Naruto anyway.
'I guess I should take this more seriously from now on, or else, they're going to think that they're catching up to me faster.'
Kakashi then grabbed a kunai from his pouch and said, "You have all grown so well. For that my reward for all three of you is that I will take you more seriously now."
Naruto, Sasuke and Sakura shivered altogether.
A few hours later:
Naruto, Sakura and Sasuke were dragging themselves in Konoha as they went to their respective appointments or homes on time. Sakura was glad Sasuke had lived on the way to hers and Naruto had an appointment with Iruka over at Ichiraku's meaning that he was going to help her carry Sasuke all the way back home today.
"Sasuke… Just had to be the one to be the most… Exhausted." Naruto replied with teeth clenching as he helped Sasuke up.
"He just tried too much…" Sakura muttered. Sasuke did indeed over exert himself once more. It ended with him exhausting himself out to the point his cursed seal began to pulse and he had to stop.
"Does this… Usually happen when… you train with Kakashi-sensei while I was gone?" Naruto asked and Sakura nodded.
"More times than I can count."
Naruto gave a chuckle at that, "Sasuke, you really aren't that much different from me, aren't you?"
Sasuke gave an indignant huff, "Shut up… Idiot."
"If I wasn't so tired, I'd deck you in the face, bastard."
"Like you could even do that when you're at your peak…"
"THAT'S ENOUGH FROM BOTH OF YOU CLOWNS!" Sakura yelled at the two who looked at her rather incredulously in utter silence as she somewhat blushed and turned away in embarrassment with a blush on her face.
"The first few days of being together again and we're already at each other's throats, it's a miracle that we managed to stay coordinated for as long as we could against Kakashi-sensei earlier." If she had both of her hands unoccupied right now, she would be massaging her temples in frustration.
"Sometimes I don't get how we survive as a team."
Naruto, having lapses of being a simpleton as he is, answered in a matter-of-fact voice, "That's easy, Sakura. We're awesome that way."
"How is that even an answer, idiot?" Sasuke asked as he looked at the blonde with a deadpan question
"I'll give you an answer once I shove my foot up your…"
"WOULD BOTH OF YOU CUT IT OUT!?"
Naruto and Sasuke eventually shut up.
A few more arguments later, all three of them decided on their separate ways once Sasuke made it back to his home. Ichiraku was still a few ways away when he encountered on a bridge as he looked down on the waters below. Naruto recognized that he was probably deep in thought.
"Yo, Lee!"
Lee's thoughts were interrupted when Naruto called out to him. The boy had a weary smile on his face as he waved at the boy. When Lee saw Naruto wearing the flak jacket, feelings of jealousy rose to his stomach.
A failure like him had beaten Neji and the ultimate reward was the promotion he had coveted. Lee may be happy for Naruto, but he also felt petty on the boy's amazing luck and skill that rose by leaps in bounds within a month. Lee knew Naruto was the deadlast of his class, yet for all of Naruto's misgivings in their career, the boy was the one who had made better strides than the rest of them. Lee could not help but feel absolutely mortified at this while holding his crutches.
"Naruto-kun…" The boy said as he looked down, trying to suppress his feelings of envy for the boy and instead gave a smile to know that he was happy for his friend.
"How was the meeting with the old lady? I asked her to take a good look at you when I was with Ero-sennin on my mission as a favour."
Lee was surprised. Tsunade-sama had never mentioned this to him before. Naruto likely never opened up about it since the night before and only said they had to see Tsunade-sama. Somehow, his feelings of jealousy were overlapped with regret. Naruto would go this far just to help him.
"Yes, she has seen me and the assessment of my injuries that she has given me is not well."
To this Naruto frowned, "What do you mean 'not well'? Are you saying you can't be healed?"
Lee shook his head, "No, no, it can be solved. It can be healed. But the problem is the procedure carries a huge risk and I might die in the process."
To this, Naruto stopped and his silence spoke for them. Naruto clenched and unclenched his fist as if trying to figure out what to do or say to his friend. What could he say? What was he supposed to say? To find out that you could lose your life just so you can continue to be a ninja? Naruto admitted to himself that he could not comprehend the amount of conflict that arose within Lee's mind. Could he take that risk? Would he?
He thought of whatever things he could say to his friend and clarity had hit his head for several seconds when he reached out to Lee who was about to leave.
"Hey, bushy brows…"
Naruto called out, Lee turned to Naruto who had called him by his nickname and looked in question. The blonde patted his friend on the shoulder and spoke to him in the most reassuring way possible.
"What's your goal in life?"
Lee looked confused, "I don't understand what you are implying, Naruto-kun…"
"'To be a splendid Ninja who can only use Taijutsu.' That was your goal, right?" Naruto asked with a grin. Lee looked down and said.
"But looking at the situation now, although I wish to feel optimistic, I cannot help but feel this lingering fear that I might die in the process."
Naruto then began to walk forward with Lee behind him, he looked back at Lee and then grinned.
"Bushy brows, your strength is the kind of strength that I acknowledge. You're the kind of guy that I think is cool, so go after your dream. We'll be with you all the way and I still haven't fought you properly. I want to fight you for real next time. So don't hold back."
With that, Naruto left as he went to Ichiraku when he heard a voice booming from the crowd as it called out for Lee.
"Lee! Know that whatever happens, I and your team will be with you all the way! I will risk everything to make sure you become a ninja once more!"
Naruto grinned when he heard those words. Those reassuring words meant for Lee to strengthen his resolve. No other person could bring that out to him other than the person who had gave him hope in the first place. If anyone could bring Lee out of his funk, it was Gai.
"Have you seen a boy wearing green spandex and a strange bowl cut hair with arms wrapped in bandages?"
Naruto turned his direction towards the source of the voice and saw a brown haired girl with a fairly cute face looking at him with worry.
"You're talking about Bushy Brows? Yeah, I just saw him back there, lady. His sensei is having a talk with him there. You can go there if you like." Naruto then pointed backwards with his thumbs by the bridge and began to walk.
With that, he waved the girl goodbye and headed straight to Ichiraku.
Once he arrived, Iruka was waiting for him with a smile.
"How was your day?"
"Eh, so-so, couldn't bond with the team, too worn out from all the training." Naruto replied as he sat down.
"Congratulations on being chuunin, though. I think you rightfully deserved your rank, Naruto."
Naruto gave a smirk as Iruka gave two orders of Miso Ramen.
"Thanks, Iruka-sensei. I'm glad I made chuunin, now we're about equals in rank!"
Iruka chuckled a little as he grabbed Naruto with his arm and said playfully, "Don't let it get to your head, Naruto. You're still far too young to be able to take me on as a chuunin."
"Alright, alright already, Iruka-sensei, just let me go, damn it!"
Once Iruka let go, he had a smile on his face as Naruto did the same. Teuchi came up with their order and both dug in with much gusto.
When they finished, Naruto begged for another bowl while Iruka relented. It would probably be the last one though; as Naruto insisted he pay for the next should he choose to have another.
Naruto seemed to have other thoughts as he dug to his ramen.
The thought of Gai and the girl looking over at Lee with concern brought a quizzical and honestly curious mind upfront.
"Hey, Iruka-sensei, what's it like to love someone?"
Iruka choked on his food as Ayame immediately grabbed a glass of water for Iruka to down.
Releasing a sigh of relief, Iruka turned to Naruto and asked him, "What's with that all of a sudden?"
Ayame and Teuchi looked on at the blonde curiously as well.
"Nothing, really, just curious, what's it like to give your worries for people that you care about?"
Ayame smiled and answered for the boy, "Naruto, there are many types of love that a person can have, it has multiple facets for different people that you care about."
"Wait a minute, Naruto, is this about Sakura, again?" Iruka asked with a scratch on the back of his head and Naruto answered with a smile on his own.
"This isn't about her, Iruka-sensei. Like I said, I was just curious. I saw Lee earlier and he looked absolutely sad, I tried to cheer him up, remind him what he wanted to accomplish in life despite the high stakes that the Hokage laid out for him earlier. Lee felt like he was denied to being a Shinobi of Konoha. But then super bushy brows-sensei appeared out of nowhere and saying he'd risk anything for Lee and that he was with him all the way."
That was something he had no idea what to feel of.
Teuchi had to reply as he began filtering the noodles.
"So if it's not Sakura, are you over her, boy? Let me tell you, she's fine as your friend but as your girlfriend, you'll be spending most of your time throwing plates at each other, not a good sign for a healthy relationship, if you ask me."
"I told you, it's not about her, guys! I'm just genuinely curious! I'm not after Sakura anymore!"
Now it was Ayame who piled up on Naruto, "Really? So who's the girl now? Tell me about her or else!"
Naruto just groaned. Sometimes he felt like he was the one surrounded by nutcases.
"Let's try to give Naruto some breathing room, guys. To answer your question Naruto, I guess you could consider how I felt when you stole the forbidden scroll." Iruka answered as he gave a sheepish grin all the while scratching his cheek in embarrassment.
"Love comes with multiple emotions along with it, joy, sadness, anger and worry. For you to love means you are willing to throw a part of yourself for someone. Along with your worries, your anger, your sadness and your happiness, you are giving that person a chance to be a part of your circle. Like how I am with you." Iruka admitted with a grin as he put a hand on Naruto's head. The blonde looked down on his bowl of ramen as he felt somewhat happy with Iruka's statements.
"Bah, Iruka, you're no fun, Naruto just stated he's over his teammate, Sakura. That's amazing if you ask me. Naruto, my boy, it was probably for the best." Teuchi dismissed whatever tripe Iruka and Naruto were getting into and headed straight for the juicy parts of their conversation.
"That's right, so who is it now, Naruto? It's okay to tell us, we won't spill it, we swear!" Ayame decided to cut in.
Naruto had promptly hit his head on the counter.
To be Continued…
Well, that's it for this chapter, short, filled with character development, drama and the like but in all honesty, downtime would be one of my weaknesses due to my insistence to stay on point. But it doesn't mean I would never touch upon a subject I didn't want or like. Improvement happens when you constantly practice, anyway.
Belated Happy Holidays everybody, and a happy New Year
Chapter preview:
"I accept the operation. I wish to go through with it."
"Unfortunately, Kurenai and Kakashi are pre-occupied with a mission of their own, so your teams are stuck with two team leaders for this mission for them to get a hang of things. Don't worry; this isn't too much trouble, just a simple escort mission of a caravan to Wave Country."
"Is it just me, Shino or is Hinata spending quite a number of her time with Naruto all of a sudden?"
"I came to you to introduce you to a good potential recruit into ANBU. I hope you can shape him into a shinobi loyal to nothing but the Hokage and Konoha."
Read and Review, please!
