Prove the Pervert Wrong
Chapter Two: Enter the Librarian
Disclaimer: In case you didn't get it the first time, I don't own Naruto. Given the opportunity to change that fact, I would decline so that I could continue to read Kishimoto's work.
"Speech"
/Thoughts/
Kakashi relieved the ANBU of his post just in time to watch Naruto and Shizune leaving Ichiraku's. After following Naruto home, and he saw a very strange sight: Naruto sat at his table quietly, staring at a wall. For an hour. Of all the spying jobs Kakashi had had, that was by far the most boring. He was almost nearing the level of boredom where he would tell Naruto about his job of watching over the boy just to see the reaction when Naruto suddenly jumped up, shouted "yatta!" several times, and bolted out the door.
What he didn't realize, of course, was that Naruto had finally figured out how to start training. The boy had, for the first time in his life, spent an hour just sitting and thinking. His first decision was to not use Kyuubi's chakra anymore unless his life depended on it. If he used Kyuubi's chakra, he would never get stronger, and he didn't want to have to rely on the stupid fox. His second decision was to focus on his weaknesses instead of his strengths, another first. Remembering his fight with Sasuke, his weaknesses were his speed and taijutsu style. It had only taken him four minutes to realize that much, but the real problem was how to improve them. Then he had a brilliant idea: why not just imitate his predecessors? He was going to become the greatest Hokage, after all, so why not learn from those before him?
Running as quickly as he could towards the training grounds, Naruto thought about Yondaime. Widely regarded as the strongest Hokage (as far as Naruto knew), Yondaime had specialized in speed. Although his natural speed was probably impressive, Naruto faintly remembered hearing something about a jutsu to increase speed. /But how did he do it?/ Reaching the training ground at last, Naruto ran right into the middle of it and again stood still and silent. Kakashi settled into a tree just in time to hear Naruto screaming "chikushou!" He mentally prepared himself for a long day.
Mind racing, Naruto tried to think of how people invented techniques from scratch. While it was true that he had "invented" jutsu before, they were both bastardizations of existing techniques. Still, someone had to have invented those techniques, which meant that there had to be a way to invent new ones. All he had to do was think about how to make himself faster…
/That's it! When the Kyuubi chakra fills my body with chakra… Oh, right. I wasn't going to use his chakra anymore. Well, maybe if I just pump chakra into my muscles, it'll do the trick…/
To a jounin as experienced as Kakashi, it was pretty obvious what Naruto was trying to do. Still, it was hard to resist the urge to scrub his eye and look again. That Naruto would actually believe that he could duplicate shunshin no jutsu, an A-rank jutsu only known to Yondaime, was absurd. /Well, at least it'll be interesting…/
Two hours into Naruto's training, Kakashi was stunned. Granted, Naruto's new technique was by no means done, and it was certainly no shunshin no jutsu, but it was well on its way. The first few times Naruto had tried it, he had gotten no effect whatsoever. By the end of his little training period, he had been able to multiply his speed by one and a half. If he had kept going, Kakashi was sure he could have gotten it to double, but Naruto was contented for the day.
Recognizing that his jutsu was multiplying his speed instead of adding to it, Naruto realized that it would be much more effective if he trained his speed too. This, of course, meant that Naruto needed to focus on both techniques and physical training if he wanted to get Sasuke back.
Cursing his job all the while, Kakashi followed Naruto as the boy ran 100 laps around Konoha. Not only did Kakashi have to run enough laps around Konoha to leave him hard of breath under normal conditions, he had to do it while staying hidden. It was a good thing that Naruto was so slow, or Kakashi might have actually lost him. When Naruto finally stopped, he looked tired, but not nearly as tired as Kakashi had expected. Over six and a half hours of running, and the boy looked like he could go for at least two more.
"That's enough running for today!" The blond exclaimed his thought as though he knew someone was running with him, which put Kakashi on edge a little. Truth be told, Naruto had no idea who was following him, and he hadn't really been thinking of them when he had said it. "I wonder if Ichiraku's is still open…" Of course, Kakashi couldn't help but think about the irony of Naruto going against his word as he chased after the boy, who was running through the streets at a much faster pace than Kakashi would have thought possible.
By nine o'clock, Naruto had finished his dinner, which had consisted of ten bowls of miso ramen and ten bowls of pork ramen. To Kakashi's extreme chagrin, he once again found himself chasing after a moving target as Naruto ran back to the training grounds. For a moment, he found himself wondering whether Naruto was going to try his technique again, but the boy opted instead for more physical training: squats, push-ups, kicks, and punches.
As midnight rolled around, Naruto headed back to his apartment in a run. Mentally cursing whoever had invented running, as it appeared Naruto would be doing quite a bit of it, Kakashi followed. The midnight-to-noon guy, as Kakashi called him in his head, came and relieved him of duty. After slowly making his way home Kakashi fell into a blissful sleep, only to be plagued by nightmares of endless running.
Kakashi showed up outside of Ichiraku's a little early the next day (gasp!) so that the midnight-to-noon guy could give him an update on Naruto's progress. Even if he was assigned to tail Naruto, he felt he would be a pretty crappy sensei if he didn't bother to keep up with his student's progress. What he learned left him respecting Naruto more than almost any other ninja he had ever met.
Not only had Naruto gotten up at six in the morning, meaning that he had only gotten six hours of sleep, but the boy had run an additional hundred laps. The most impressive thing about it, however, was that he had improved his time. Significantly. With less sleep, and a small breakfast by anyone's standards, let alone his, Naruto had managed to run 100 laps of Konoha in five hours flat, meaning that he had reduced the time per lap by a full minute. The ANBU had actually gotten so winded that he lost Naruto after the ninetieth lap, and went back to the spot where Naruto had started to wait for him.
"This kid is incredible, Kakashi! It's just ridiculous! Even after all that running, he created fifty kage bunshin and had a taijutsu tournament! I don't know where he gets his stamina, but I wish he'd lend me some…"
"Thanks for the update, midni-- I mean, Hoshi. You should probably go rest for the rest of the day." /Where the hell is this coming from? I understand the stamina, but…/
After lunch, Naruto started into his physical workout first, to get it out of the way. It never once occurred to him that weakening his muscles before attempting to use a technique that increased their output would be a bad idea, but with his body it wasn't really a problem anyway. Kakashi watched as, from twelve-thirty to three, Naruto did squats, push-ups, punches, and kicks. /I can understand that he's determined, but this… this borders on obsessive! Not only that, he's improving so quickly that I can actually watch it! And he never runs out of energy… How badly did I underestimate you, Naruto?/
Then came the part of the day that Kakashi had been waiting for: Naruto's jutsu. Even though the idea that Naruto was working off of was different than Yondaime's, and probably wouldn't work quite as well, it was more fun to watch than anything else Naruto did. For eight hours Naruto tried the jutsu over and over again, until he got to the point where his speed was doubled. Then he collapsed, right in the middle of the field.
"Worked a little too hard, eh Naruto?" Kakashi walked over to check on Naruto, and wasn't surprised in the least to find him unconscious. Then he realized something very suspicious: Naruto skipped dinner! Having the decency to carry Naruto home and lay him in bed, Kakashi couldn't help but marvel at the kid's stamina. When Hoshi arrived, Kakashi went to get some sleep, deciding to tell Tsunade about Naruto's accomplishments the next morning.
Almost three weeks from the beginning of Naruto's new training regimen, and Kakashi was getting less and less impressed. No major improvements had really been made by the blond since that first day. He had reduced his lap time to two and a half minutes per lap and added twenty-five laps, which had caused midnight-to-noon guy to cry a little, and he had gotten his new jutsu to triple his speed instead of doubling it, but that was it.
Having about an hour left until Naruto's training for the day would end, Kakashi was reflecting on the promise Naruto had shown three weeks prior, when he saw something he hadn't expected. Naruto just stopped. He didn't look like he was suffering from chakra depletion or anything of that nature, he just… stopped.
Standing completely still, staring into space, Naruto realized something that should have been obvious to him from the start. /Hand seals! …But which ones? How do people figure this kind of thing out, anyway? What, do they just move their hands at random and happen across techniques…?/ With that he (warily) went through, trying each hand seal with the jutsu to see which would work best. He found that the rabbit and sheep seals were the only ones that really changed anything, and decided to try them together. He found that using sheep then rabbit actually reduced the effectiveness, but using rabbit then sheep actually doubled it! Though he was low on chakra, he was able to multiply his speed about six times by the end of the night.
Kakashi was so shocked by the effectiveness of Naruto's technique that he didn't even notice the boy pass out. This boy, a gennin, had created a jutsu almost as effective as Yondaime Hokage's most frequented jutsu! Not only that, his technique showed the potential to overcome Yondaime's, because Shunshin no Jutsu always multiplied speed eight fold, while Naruto's jutsu's effect was proportional to the chakra used. In other words, the stronger Naruto got, the more useful the technique got. A few minutes later Kakashi finally realized that Naruto wasn't going to get back up, so he took the gennin home and laid him in bed.
Saturday came once more, marking the three week point, and Naruto had named his jutsu. "Naruto senkou no jutsu (Naruto flash technique)" was born, and Naruto was able to get it to multiply his speed by ten without collapsing. Kakashi was curious about where Naruto would go from there, though. If Naruto was really planning on basing his training on the skills of the previous Hokage, he would need to know more about the man. More, in fact, than would be possible to learn.
Naruto, noting the same problem, was avoiding at all costs making the conclusion that he knew was necessary. Even if he had known other skills of Yondaime, he would eventually have had to move on to his other predecessors if he was to execute his plan. This, unfortunately, led to an extremely undesirable eventuality. He would have to go to the library.
In his entire life, Naruto had only been to the library once. He had only gone because one of his classmates had told him that only idiots never went to the library, and he had wanted to find something that could help with his pitiful grades at the academy. Instead, he found a maze of scrolls with no apparent method of navigation, a mean old lady who seemed to think that breathing too loudly should be outlawed, and an odd smell. While he had always enjoyed reading the scrolls that the academy gave him, he had trouble believing that the library was worth the trouble.
Suddenly the library was becoming an important resource, and he had no idea how to use it.
Placing her hand over the cut, and using her precise chakra control, Sakura watched it heal over completely. "Yatta! I did it, Tsunade-shishou!"
Tsunade looked up to see that the cut was completely healed. "Good job, Sakura! You'll need to heal a larger cut just to make sure, but I think you're probably ready for the next jutsu." She prepared the kunai to make the incision, but there was a knock at the door. "Come in." As Kakashi made his way into the room, she couldn't help but feel a little annoyed. "Kakashi? Aren't you supposed to be on a mission!"
"Hai, Tsunade-sama, but I left that in the hands of an ANBU so that I could come speak to you." He glanced at Sakura, "it's about Naruto's training…"
"Has Jiraiya finally realized that he's being an idiot?"
"No…" He glanced at Sakura again, making it much more obvious this time.
"Anything you have to tell me, you can tell to my apprentice as well, Kakashi." Sakura stiffened slightly. "Is he having trouble?"
"Not exactly, Tsunade-sama." Realizing at last that Tsunade was not going to excuse Sakura from the room, Kakashi sighed. "The truth is that he's probably doing a better job of training himself than Jiraiya could ever hope to do." Tsunade, who had started making the cut on the rabbit, slipped and made an extremely large gash on its abdomen.
"Whoops…" She started healing the rabbit, "continue please, Kakashi."
"Yes, well… Aside from having a level of stamina that has, quite literally, brought an elite ANBU to tears, Naruto has nearly doubled his natural speed. He has also--"
"Doubled!" Sakura felt embarrassed about being completely outclassed in such a way. "He doubled his speed in three weeks?"
"Not quite, Sakura, but nearly. Laps around Konoha, which took him four minutes three weeks ago, now take him about two and a half minutes each. He's taken to doing 125 of them each morning after waking up, which is causing Hoshi--"
"Does he keep the same pace the entire way?" Tsunade felt it was a legitimate question. It would enable her to judge his speed increase and his stamina increase in one go. "He does 125 laps in a little over five hours, but does he run full speed the entire way or slow down as time goes by?"
"He keeps his maximum pace the entire way." Sakura and Tsunade both had the same expression: one they would probably wear after being hit in the face with a frying pan. "Which, as I was saying, causes Hoshi to lose track of him for up to an hour at a time. The first time that Naruto reached this pace, Hoshi actually did cry a little." Kakashi got a smile on his eye. "That was pretty funny to watch. Although, to be fair, it's probably good that Hoshi's getting some decent training in while he's on this mission… Anyway, that isn't the impressive part, Tsunade-sama."
"Not the impressive part!" Thinking about it, Tsunade began to wonder if she could hold her maximum pace for five hour spurts right after waking up. "What the hell could be more impressive than that!"
"Well, for one thing, he's only getting six hours of sleep per night, and he's skipping breakfast and dinner." Several moments of silence ensued. "Although," he added more to break the silence than because he thought it important, "that may just be a money issue. Without missions, we can hardly expect him to continue to eat the same amount…"
"Oh crap!" /I didn't even think about that!/ "Er… I'll arrange to get him some kind of paid leave. So, are we to the part where I can freak out yet, or is there more?" She felt there was no real need to ask the question, as little could be more impressive than that level of improvement and stamina with a reduced diet and less sleep. She was, as usual, wrong.
"There's more." Kakashi had a wide grin on his face, but was thankful that his mask was hiding it. "He's already invented a jutsu. A powerful jutsu."
Sakura could feel a little jealousy setting in. "Naruto invented a jutsu! Are you sure it's really Naruto?"
"Yes, Sakura, I'm sure. Tsunade-sama, you might want to sit down for this. It's one hell of an accomplishment." Tsunade, deciding not to argue at this point in the conversation, sat where she was on the floor and motioned Sakura to do the same. "Naruto's jutsu… Do you remember shunshin no jutsu?"
"He's duplicated Yondaime's jutsu? Even Jiraiya never figured that out!"
"Relax, Tsunade-sama, he didn't duplicate it." He couldn't help but grin at the relieved look on her face. "He made his own technique that has the same type of effect, only Naruto's technique is more effective."
"More… MORE effective! Are you sure?"
"Tsunade-sama, Yondaime was my sensei. I'm entirely sure."
Sakura, confused beyond reason, decided it was time to get in on the conversation. "Excuse me, Tsunade-shishou, but… what's shunshin no jutsu?"
"It was a technique created by Yondaime, Sakura." Tsunade decided there was no reason not to tell Sakura, since she had been the one to say that Sakura should stay anyway. "shunshin no jutsu, which Yondaime never taught to anyone and a sharingan couldn't copy, was a supplementary technique. Using the technique, Yondaime was able to multiply his speed eight fold." Sakura looked completely shocked. Tsunade didn't know whether it was because of the effect of the jutsu or the fact that Naruto's was more effective than Yondaime's, but she didn't really care. "How effective is Naruto's?"
"Well, Tsunade-sama, it… depends."
"Depends? On what?"
"Naruto's technique is able to change how much it amplifies his speed based on how much chakra is poured into it. At his current level, he can multiply his speed by ten comfortably. That is, of course, after his daily laps, kage bunshin taijutsu tournament, and physical workout. If I had to guess, I would say that he's capable of multiplying his speed twenty-five fold without becoming completely useless."
Yet more silence met Kakashi's ears at this statement, but it was an expected silence. A stunned silence, at the fact that Naruto had essentially surpassed Yondaime in three weeks. He felt the need to give the kid proper tribute, though, so he added "the technique is called 'Naruto senkou no jutsu.'"
This caused Tsunade to start chuckling, which in turn brought Sakura to her senses. "So he couldn't resist naming it after himself, huh? What rank do you think it is?"
"B-rank. Maybe A-rank, but for now I'll say it's in the upper bounds of B-rank. Also, there's something odd about it…"
"Odd? Aside from the fact that a gennin, who was considered by everyone to be weaker than average, managed to create it to be more powerful than the technique that a genius Hokage created?"
"Yes. My sharingan was unable to copy the technique, even though he uses hand seals for it."
Of the many things that were running through Tsunade's mind, the one that came out of her mouth was the one that made her angriest. "You tried to copy his first original jutsu!"
"Yes, and I'll take the time to be ashamed later." He didn't really plan on being ashamed, as copying techniques was part of what had made him such a powerful ninja, but she didn't need to know that. "The important point right now is that I couldn't copy the jutsu, meaning that Sasuke and Itachi won't be able to either."
"… Are you sure?"
"Yes."
Her mood lightening a little bit, Tsunade decided that Sakura's training needed some stepping up. "Is there anything else you need to tell me, or can my apprentice resume her training now?"
"Just one more thing that I forgot to mention." Of course, Kakashi hadn't forgotten it. He had left it out on purpose to add dramatic effect. "Since Naruto's jutsu works differently than Yondaime's, it also has a… bonus effect." He paused to watch her reaction, which was priceless. "Where Yondaime's jutsu only increased speed, Naruto's also increases strength to the same degree."
"What did you just say? I'm sorry but I could have sworn I just heard you say--"
"I did." /Sometimes it really pays to wear a mask…/ "And it does."
With that, Kakashi left the room to speak to Gai. It took a few minutes for Sakura to feel up to continuing her training, and her chakra control was slightly worse than normal when she did continue.
Gai, having heard the same speech about Naruto's training, looked like he had seen a ghost. "So you're telling me that your student, Uzumaki Naruto, has created a B-rank jutsu that would allow him to be stronger and faster than Lee?"
"Actually, his speed and strength would probably be on par with mine, if he went all out with it…"
"But, if Lee used the hachimon, he could still--"
"Yes, Gai, but that isn't the point." Kakashi sighed. /His obsession with Lee is a little creepy sometimes…/ "My point is that I'm starting to feel guilty about giving in to Jiraiya so easily. With Naruto working so hard, I could probably get him to sannin level in a year or two…"
"Yes, he really does embrace the spirit of youth quite well, doesn't he?" Kakashi almost sweat-dropped. "I regret not being able to aid his training, but Jiraiya can be… persuasive."
"Couldn't you at least give him some kind of scroll without Jiraiya finding out?" Kakashi was reduced to pleading, but he still managed to sound aloof. "I would hate to see that talent go to waste, and you are the best taijutsu user in Konoha…"
"Well, I don't really have any scrolls… I could probably get him some weights, but I have a feeling that Jiraiya would find out about that... I'll think of something! The burdens of age will not douse his burning spirit of youth!" Pondering the mechanics of Gai's shining tooth, Kakashi made his way back to his mission.
There it was: the library. Looming over him like as the very gates of hell, the door to this home of demonic, old, quiet-obsessed ladies dared Naruto to enter, so that the monsters inside could devour the very essence of his suffering in the air. His interior struggle ending, he decided to take a cautious peek inside. Seeing no one sitting at the librarian's desk, he quickly dashed inside. He was glad to not have to deal with the old lady immediately, but he knew it was coming. Randomly picking an aisle to search, as the numbering system made no sense to him whatsoever, he checked a few of the books.
"Icha Icha Paradise...? Why do they have adult books in the library!"
"Oh, so that's where he put it!" The owner of the voice, a beautiful young girl with light brown shoulder-length hair and brown eyes, snatched the book from Naruto, smiling at him. "I knew he had to have hidden one somewhere; he never comes to the library without doing that."
"Ero-sennin was here?"
"Ero-sennin? You mean Jiraiya-sama? Yes, he was here."
"Oh." Realizing that he really didn't have a reason to care, Naruto had nothing else to say about it. He stood there silently for a few seconds before turning back to the shelf and looking through the books. After about four books, he realized that nothing on this aisle would be of any use unless he wanted a biology lesson. "Kuso! How am I supposed to find anything in this place, anyway?"
The girl smiled cheerily. "I could help you! I'm Mabui, what's your name?"
He stared at her for a second before asking, "You don't know?" Frowning slightly, she shook her head. "I'm Uzumaki Naruto, the next Hokage! If you're--"
"You're the Uzumaki Naruto? That's so cool!" Unknown to Naruto, Mabui was probably the only non-ninja in the village who had ever considered Naruto a hero. She had only been seven years old when the Kyuubi had been sealed, but she still knew about it all. "I never thought I'd get to meet the hero of the village! And on my first day as the head librarian, this is so cool!"
Three things about her reaction struck Naruto as wrong. First, even though she clearly knew about Kyuubi, she seemed to be glad that he was there instead of angry that he was breathing her air. Second, she had just called him "the hero of the village," which was about the furthest thing from what everyone else called him that he could imagine. Finally, she had said that she was a librarian, yet she was clearly an energetic, loud young girl. Deciding not to press his luck on the first two points, Naruto decided to ask her about the third. "You're a librarian? What happened to the old lady?"
"Hmm? Oh, she retired yesterday. I'm her replacement! If there's anything I can ever help you with, don't hesitate to ask! I'd be honored to help!"
Naruto just stared at her in shock, his jaw dropped. If he had heard her correctly, and he wasn't sure that he had, she had just said that she would be "honored to help" him, and the he shouldn't hesitate to ask. "Could you repeat that please? I'm sure there was some kind of cruel sarcasm that I missed the first time or something, because for a moment I thought you actually offered to help me…"
"I did offer to help you!" Her smile never wavered, but she felt a strike of pity for him. The way the villagers had treated him was horrible, and she knew it. "Any time you need my help, I'd be honored to give it to you! It's the least I could do…"
"Oh…" /That's a first./ Smiling, he decided that she was serious. "Could you help me find info on the past Hokages, then? It would really help my training, but I can't--"
"The Hokages? Sure thing, Naruto-kun! You only missed it by two aisles."
When they got to the Hokage information, Mabui took it upon herself to get him the best information available. He came out of the aisle with three scrolls and a book, and she assured him that the assortment was the most detailed account of the Hokages available, including their styles. After getting him set up at one of the research tables visible from her desk, she returned to her post.
Naruto, still freaked out by the fact that one of the villagers seemed to think of him as a hero, started with the book. Mabui had recommended a certain reading order, and he wasn't about to question it. The information he got from the book was mildly discouraging though. Apparently most of Shodai's techniques were only usable by him, and they were the core of his style. Doubting his ability to mimic that, Naruto moved on to the first scroll. After an interesting story about Nidaime's tutelage, it revealed that most of Nidaime's jutsu were extremely advanced water jutsu. Naruto, not knowing anything about water jutsu, moved on to the third scroll.
While Sandaime's background story was very interesting, his style was almost the exact opposite of Naruto's. Sandaime was known for knowing every non-bloodline technique in Konoha, a feat that would take too long for Naruto to accomplish. Not only that, Sarutobi didn't use taijutsu at all, opting instead for weapon combat. Naruto didn't like where his excursion was heading, but he forced himself to open the final scroll. The first thing he noticed was that large portions of the scroll, including all references to Yondaime's name and background, had been carefully covered in ink. The second thing he noticed was that he looked a lot more like Yondaime than the mountain had made him think.
"Mabui-chan?"
She rushed over. "Yes, Naruto-kun? Can I help you with something?"
"Why is all of this stuff about Yondaime blacked out?"
"Oh, that." She had really hoped that he wouldn't ask about that. "Well, Sandaime passed a law stating that that information couldn't be transmitted by any means… Godaime has stated that the law is to be upheld, so it would be illegal for us to have an uncensored version of the scroll."
"Why would his name have to be secret? I can understand the rest of it, maybe, but his name!"
"I'm sorry, Naruto-kun, but the only way you could learn his name would be to ask someone who knew him, and even then they would have to break the law to tell you."
"Oh… Thanks."
"No problem, Naruto-kun!" She slowly ambled back to her post.
Reading through the scroll, Naruto was surprised to find that Yondaime was only famous for three techniques, and his physical training methods were unknown to everyone except Jiraiya. Realizing that the scrolls had been something of a waste of time, Naruto tried to think of some way that he could mimic one of them. He finally came to the conclusion that he would just have to improve on the techniques he had, and went to put everything away. It was at that point that he realized he had no idea where everything went.
"Um, Mabui-chan? Where did this stuff go again?"
"Oh, let me help you!" With her help, the scrolls and book were back in place in a matter of seconds, which he found marginally creepy. "Did you find everything you needed, Naruto-kun?"
"Well, yes, but it wasn't as helpful as I thought it would be…" Mabui's face was instantly downcast.
"Well…" she brightened up, "if you ever need anything, just ask! I have a lot of free time, so all you'll have to do is find me. Oh!" She got a pen and some paper, and quickly wrote something down before handing it to him. "Here's my address, just in case you can't find me here!"
"You… gave me your address?" /Is she crazy? She just met me!/
"Of course! I've always wanted to meet you, ever since… well, you know. The way they treat you, it's criminal! Especially after you saved our lives and our village! That and I can tell that you're a really nice person! I'd be honored to help you with anything!"
Still slightly freaked out by the fact that a librarian made a habit of shouting almost every sentence, Naruto couldn't help but smile. Here was a person who, before even meeting him, didn't hate him for carrying the Kyuubi. She even trusted and liked him! The only other person for whom that held true, in his memory, was Sandaime, but Mabui was different somehow…
"Well, I've gotta go train. Thanks for everything, Mabui-chan!"
Kakashi came back to his post just in time to see Naruto leave the library, of all places, and was treated to an afternoon run. Naruto was using the thinking time provided by running around the village 125 times to plan his next move. Over five hours later, Naruto came to a sudden halt in front of training ground seven. He had a vague idea of how he could improve the rasengan, but he wasn't really sure how to work it.
Kakashi, an elite jounin and ex-ANBU, had his hands on his knees in his attempt to catch his breath. Suddenly, he found himself very able to sympathize with Hoshi. He even considered apologizing for saying that it would be good training for the poor man. How Naruto could keep up such a pace for such a long time so often was completely beyond human comprehension. Naruto's second five-hour all out sprint of the day, and the boy barely looked tired at all!
When he finally caught his breath, Kakashi was more than a little surprised to see Naruto standing in the same place, staring off into space. It was becoming too common an occurrence in the usually boisterous boy. At this point that Kakashi decided it: Naruto was officially the weirdest person to spy on in the history of ninja.
"Might as well try it…" Naruto figured that he could at least give his idea a shot, seeing as how the library was closed. His idea was really pretty simple: increase the number of directions of rotation in the rasengan. From what he could remember of his training with Jiraiya, having multiple rotational directions was one of the key elements of power for the technique. He also remembered Jiraiya saying something about the direction of the swirl being different for different people, because their coils twisted in different directions. Put simply, the fact that the coils had twists in them limited the number of directions that the chakra could rotate in.
The idea that Naruto had come up with, however, seemed to eliminate that problem. He reasoned that, if he introduced the rotation with both hands at the same time, each hand would cause rotation in a different direction. When you place two clocks face to face, clockwise on one will be counter-clockwise on the other. Thinking this over in his head a few times, and finding no flaws, he decided to try it.
Facing his hands toward each other with enough space between them for a normal rasengan, Naruto concentrated on swirling his chakra. Nothing happened. Frustrated, Naruto tried harder, only to realize a fatal flaw in his plan: if the hands rotate chakra in opposite directions, they cancel each other out. Never one to be discouraged by something as unimportant as logic, Naruto continued to try through most of the night. He found that he could get the rotations on different timings, but he couldn't keep them from meeting at some point in the rotation.
Kakashi was a little too tired to figure out exactly what Naruto was trying to do to the rasengan, but he still thought it looked promising. Considering the boy's first jutsu, he really couldn't wait to see how this would turn out. Still, he seriously hoped that Naruto would get the running out of his system in the morning the next day.
"Mabui-chan? Could you help me for a second?" Naruto had decided during his morning run that he would need to do some research, even if he had no idea how to go about the task. He was certain that his idea would work, but he couldn't think of what he was doing wrong on his own.
/He actually came back! This is so cool!/ "Sure thing, Naruto-kun! What do you need?"
"Do you know of any good books about… um… physics?"
"Physics…? You sure have a weird set of interests, Naruto-kun!" Although it still freaked Naruto out when she was nice to him, he had to admit that it was nice to know someone who was always so cheerful. "What kind of physics?"
"'What kind?' What do you mean 'what kind?'"
"Well, what do you want to learn about? Physics is just a generalization for a bunch of different types of sciences… Why don't you just tell me what you want to know? I'm sure I can help you!"
"Er…" /What exactly do I want to know?/ Through a somewhat sheepish grin, he managed to say "I guess I want to know about rotational stuff…"
"Oh, you mean centripetal force?" At Naruto's blank look, she explained, "centripetal force is the basic force that allows for rotation. Centripetal means 'center seeking,' and it's called that because it provides a push on the object in the direction of the center of the circle of rotation."
"Huh?" It clearly made sense to her, but to him it was just gibberish.
"Hmm… I know! Imagine that a horse is pulling a cart through a field. If you walk alongside the horse, pushing its shoulders, you can make it turn, right?"
"Yeah, but what does--"
"Assuming that you apply a constant pressure to the horse, you can cause it to go in circles through the field, right?" Naruto nodded. "When you push the horse, you don't push it in the direction you want it to go. Instead, you push it towards the center of the circle. The horse will move forward in a straight line if left to itself, but because you push it towards that center-point, its path becomes a compromise of your trajectory and its own! That's all that centripetal force really means."
"That… that made sense!" /No one's ever explained anything so clearly before!/ "Are you sure that was science talk? It just seemed like a normal conversation…" /Well, maybe not normal, exactly…/
Mabui couldn't help but giggle a little. "Yes, I'm sure. Is that the kind of thing you're looking for?"
"Yeah, definitely! I need to learn this stuff for a technique I'm working on!"
"A technique?" /He wants my help with a technique?/ "I can find you all kinds of stuff!"
Mabui soon showed that she wasn't a librarian for nothing. Not only had she read seemingly every book in the entire building, she seemed to remember which ones had what information! She made Sakura look like an idiot! Naruto ended up back at the same table with fifteen books and thirteen scrolls, all bookmarked at the places where Mabui had thought they would be most helpful.
Starting into the first book, Naruto instantly realized that Mabui was even more of a genius than he gave her credit for. He couldn't make heads or tails of anything it said. /"Centripetal force has a magnitude equal to the mass of the object multiplied by the square of its velocity divided by the radius of the circle." What the hell does that mean!/
Seeing Naruto almost ripping his hair out within minutes, Mabui got slightly worried. "Naruto-kun? Do you need some help?" Getting no response, she made her way over to the table. "Oh, is the jargon a little hard for you to understand?"
"Jargon? You mean these are actually words! I was beginning to think that the person just wrote random letters to confuse me…"
"Well, it never really gets very busy around here. I could help you learn this stuff if you want…" /I wonder if that came off nonchalant.../
His face brightened considerably. "You'd do that?"
"Of course! I'd be happy to help!"
Naruto glared at her suspiciously for a second. "Why are you so nice to me?"
"… What do you mean? I like you! You're funny, smarter than you give yourself credit for, and fun to be around."
"But no one's this nice to me! Not even Iruka-sensei or baa-chan…"
"Baa-chan?"
"Tsunade."
"She lets you call her baa-chan? Wow… Well, if no one else is this nice to you, than they don't know what they're missing!" Naruto's glare disappeared. "So… what did you need help with?"
"Actually… do you want to go get lunch first?" He mentally checked his wallet. "I know a great ramen place, and--"
"Ramen? I love ramen! Here, let me just go on break!"
Kakashi arrived outside Ichiraku's ramen stand to find a very different midnight-to-noon guy than he was used to. Not only was Hoshi's breathing normal, the man was standing in plain sight, even though he was supposed to be spying on Naruto. Kakashi quickly pulled him into an alley to question his behavior.
"You do realize that Naruto isn't supposed to see you when you're spying, right Hoshi?"
"Oh relax. It's not like he wasn't told we were watching him… Besides, he's way too distracted right now to notice me."
"Distracted? By what?"
"He made a friend. A real friend. I have to admit, when I first took the job, I didn't really like him, but he's grown on me. This girl he's met, though... Wow! She's like the perfect friend for him!"
"What do you mean by that?" Kakashi decided to ignore the fact that Hoshi had, like everyone else, written Naruto off without even meeting him.
"It seems she always thought of him as a hero. I haven't heard her explicitly say it, probably because I wasn't paying much attention at first, but it's pretty obvious in her actions and words."
"A… hero?" /So someone actually did see it the same way as sensei…/ "How old is she?"
"Twenty. She lost her father and brother in the Kyuubi attack, too. Now that I think about it, though, he really is something of a hero. He didn't exactly plan it, but…"
"Is there anything I need to know about this girl?"
"Other than the fact that she's a librarian, has an IQ of 210 and a photographic memory, and managed to teach Naruto the basic principles of centripetal force in about thirty seconds? Not really."
"210?"
"Yup. Well, that's what all of our reports say, but it might be higher. Anyway, I'm gonna go get some sleep. The kid's getting a little faster with those laps again, and I have a feeling I'm going to need it."
"… 210?" Kakashi, wondering how it was that Naruto always happened upon the perfect person for whatever situation he was in, went back to his post. He had to admit, as he watched the two of them eat lunch, that Hoshi was right: she really was the perfect friend for him. Perpetually cheerful, energetic, full of laughter, and kind. She enjoyed his company as much as he enjoyed hers, and she was probably the only person Naruto had ever met who had been unconditionally kind to him from the start.
The two just sat together, spending more time talking than eating, getting to know each other. Most of the things they talked about were fairly trivial; Mabui knew enough to avoid the topic of Naruto's past. Kakashi was a little surprised to see that her face never faltered when Naruto mentioned his dream of being the greatest Hokage, indicating that she believed wholeheartedly that he would succeed. Considering that she had never seen him in action, it was hard to believe that someone of her intelligence could have such blind faith in the boy.
/So begins a beautiful friendship… or something like that./
"Let's see, how can I explain this? By 'magnitude' they just mean the amount of force. As for velocity, that's just the speed the thing is moving at."
"Oh… I guess that makes sense, but I still don't really get it."
"Hold on." Mabui went to her desk, retrieved a pen and some paper, and came back to Naruto. "Let's go back to the example we used earlier, forgetting the cart. The average horse is, what, 1000 lbs?" As he honestly didn't know, Naruto just shrugged. "Well, let's just leave it at that for now..." She scribbled it down on the paper. "As for velocity, a horse's steps are probably about three feet, and most horses probably take one step per second or so, so we'll just say three feet per second." She wrote down the new figure. "Assuming that you want to force the horse to walk in a circle with a diameter of forty feet," she wrote this down as well, " you would need to apply… 450 lbs of constant pressure."
"That's it? But the horse weighs so much more than that!"
"Yeah, but I already told you, you and the horse are working together. Applying force to a body in motion will cause..."
Kakashi just watched in awe as Mabui held Naruto's interest for five more hours with, of all things, physics. He was surprised, to say the least, that Naruto was trying to understand the physics of the rasengan. How it was supposed to help, Kakashi had no idea, but he knew it couldn't hurt. What amazed him was the fact that Mabui managed to explain things like centripetal force and vector addition to Naruto in such a way that the boy could understand. Even he, the elite genius jounin, was learning a few new things from their conversation. In fact, he was slightly disappointed when it came to a close.
"Oh, Naruto-kun, the library's going to close soon…"
"Already? But we just got started…"
"I could let you stay late, if you like! I'm pretty much in charge around here, so it isn't a problem."
"No, that's okay. I should try out all of this stuff you've taught me today and see if it's helping yet!" He put on a big grin, surprised that he didn't have to fake it.
"If you say so…" /Kuso! Well, maybe next time…/ "Just remember: any time you need any help, I'm always at the ready!"
"Thanks, Mabui-chan!" And with that he was gone.
"He's going to make an excellent Hokage, don't you think?"
Kakashi was a little startled. "You knew I was there? So they were right, you are a genius…"
"Does that mean you agree with me, or are you just commenting on my observational skills?"
"… A little of both."
"So, according to what Mabui-chan was telling me earlier, my problem is that the hands aren't working together. I think. Instead of avoiding the other rotation-thingies, they're meeting head-on. If their, what did she call them, 'magnitudes' are equal, they cancel out, and otherwise the stronger one continues on in a weakened state… Yatta! I actually understood it!"
Kakashi was getting frustrated. /I'm a jounin for God's sake! Why the hell can't I figure out what he's doing? Is it just because I don't know how to use the rasengan?/ The main part of why watching Naruto develop Naruto senkou no jutsu had been fun was that Kakashi had known what Naruto was trying to do, and he could gauge the boy's progress. Watching a boy standing in a forest with his hands a foot apart, talking to himself, was not something that interested the jounin.
"Hmm… I guess that means I'll have to find a way to make them not collide. Maybe if I put them on different timings…?" Grinning at how much Mabui had helped him, Naruto tried to do just that.
Five minutes later, the blond sat on the ground with a heavy sigh. "Kuso! I can't get the timings right! Rasengan takes enough concentration normally! How am I supposed to concentrate on two hands… at… once! That's it!" Jumping back up, Naruto formed a kage bunshin. "If I can only concentrate on one hand at a time, then someone else needs to concentrate on the other hand!"
Standing side-by-side, Naruto and his bunshin prepared the technique. Naruto held out his right palm towards his bunshin's left palm, and Naruto went first. Taking turns adding rotations to the rasengan, Naruto and his bunshin were able to create… nothing. The process of synching with the bunshin was more difficult than Naruto had anticipated.
As midnight came around, no progress had been made on the technique. Kakashi, who had almost fallen asleep several times, followed a frustrated Naruto home before leaving Hoshi in charge. It escaped the jounin how Naruto could have gone from dropout to genius and back to dropout in the course of less than a month, but he didn't really want to think about it. For all he knew, Naruto's idea, whatever it was, was going to be some spectacular all-powerful jutsu that could kill hundreds of ninja in the blink of an eye.
Wednesday rolled around, and Naruto was making almost no progress with his technique. The additional days of study with Mabui had helped him understand the rasengan almost completely, but they hadn't helped him understand the problem with his new technique. As he pulled on the library door, confident that Mabui's help would eventually get the problem solved, he found that it wouldn't open.
Trying the door a few more times, he was sure that it was locked. "Chikushou! What am I supposed to do now?" Several minutes of complaining later, a thought occurred to Naruto. /Oh yeah, she gave me her address… I don't really want to bug her at home, though. Hmm… Well, maybe we could go out to lunch again! I remember thinking a lot better after having lunch with her the first time, so it might help./
Hoshi, crying on the inside, followed as Naruto sprinted across town to his apartment, and then back across town to Mabui's apartment. It wouldn't have been too bad, except that Naruto had not only just finished his morning run, he had finished it in record time. Some days, it just didn't pay to be an ANBU.
Naruto just stood outside of Mabui's apartment, unsure of what to do. No one had ever given him their address before, much less invited him to come to their home whenever he wanted to. He couldn't help but think that it would be rude to show up unannounced, even if she had said it would be okay. What if she had company, or was still asleep? Or worse, what if she was sick? He definitely didn't want her to strain herself.
In the end, he decided that he wanted to talk to Mabui badly enough that he didn't mind the rudeness factor. She had been the one to invite him over unprompted, after all, and she hadn't said what times would be convenient, so he had no real reason not to give it a shot. He knocked twice.
"Coming!" Naruto could hear the sound of pans crashing to the ground and dresser drawers being thrown open. So he had woken her up… "Oh, Naruto-kun! Can I help you with something?"
"Uh… I'm sorry to bug you while you're sleeping, but I couldn't get into the library for some reason, and--"
"Oh, you didn't know? The Konoha library is closed on Wednesdays and Thursdays…"
"What? Why Wednesdays and Thursdays?"
"Someone figured out that those were the days when the smallest number of people used the library, and that librarians needed two days off per week, so they just used those days. I could let you in though!"
"Huh? Oh, that's okay. I actually came to ask if you wanted to have lunch with me, but if I'm bugging you it's alright--"
"Bugging me? Don't be ridiculous! I'd love to have lunch with you! I was going to go to that ramen place you showed me anyway, I've never had ramen so good!"
"You really want to have lunch with me?"
"Of course! Just let me grab my shoes…"
With the way he had been training, it was an extremely odd feeling for Naruto to walk to Ichiraku's, but he didn't mind. The extra time gave him a chance to talk to Mabui a little bit more. When they finally arrived they both started off with ten bowls of ramen: four miso, four pork, and two teriyaki chicken.
"So, Naruto-kun, how's your technique coming along? Has your studying been paying off?"
Naruto's face darkened slightly. "Well, a little… I can't figure out what I'm doing wrong, but I know I'm missing something. Still, I'm a lot farther along than I would have been without your help!"
"That's good!"
The ramen arrived, at which point they yelled in unison "itadakimasu!" and began eating.
"What does the technique do?"
"It's a little hard to explain… Basically I'm taking a technique that someone else invented and making it better! The technique rotates air in a ball with chakra, creating a little typhoon, and--"
"Like Yondaime's technique?"
"Eh?"
"Yondaime had a technique like that, he called it--"
"Rasengan. Yeah, that's the technique that I'm improving. How do you know about it? I don't remember seeing it in that scroll that you gave me about him, and I know it isn't one of his famous techniques…"
"Oh, well, uh…" Mabui looked like she was trying to hide something, so Naruto cut her off.
"You don't have to tell me, I was just curious. Anyway, I'm trying to make a little change to the technique that should make it way more powerful, but it's turning out to be harder than I thought it would be…"
There were a few moments of silence as they both ate their ramen. "Could you show me your technique? Maybe I could help you figure out what's wrong."
"Are you serious?" It seemed a little ridiculous that she would waste her day off helping him train. "You'd give up your plans to help me?"
"Well, yes, but I didn't really have any plans."
"No way! A great person like you?"
"Yeah, well… My dad was killed during the Kyuubi attack, and my little brother died shortly thereafter. That takes care of my family, except my mother, who I can't stand in the least. I haven't really had any friends since I was a kid, mostly because I can't stand jerks that don't recognize a hero for what he is, and I don't have much of a love life, so--"
"Why do you keep calling me that?"
"Calling you what?"
"A hero. It's not like I really did anything…"
"That's not true! You're the most heroic person I've ever met!" Naruto looked up from his ramen. "It might be true that you didn't have any choice when it came to… you-know-what, but you still saved the lives of all of the villagers! Not only that, but the way you've handled things has been, well, amazing! Growing up completely alone, with people fearing and hating you when they should have been loving and honoring you, you still managed to become such a cool person! A determined, hard working, caring, funny dreamer, who'll stop at nothing to protect the people he cares about! And that's just what I've seen of you in the few days since I met you! Even though these people have hated you all of your life, and they let you know it, you turned around and sought the job of being their protector! You've got a strong spirit, Naruto-kun, and that makes you a hero as far as I'm concerned!"
Even Ayame and the old man were left staring in shock after her outburst. They had to admit to themselves, though, that she had a pretty damned good point. Most people would have killed themselves in Naruto's position, or else killed everyone around them, but Naruto had taken to the idea of becoming their protector: the Hokage…
"You really think that? Even though your dad--"
"That wasn't you! That was the thing that you saved us from! If I hear you associate that thing with yourself again, I swear I'll hit you! Anyone who hates you because they lost a family member should be thanking you that they didn't get killed as well, and you shouldn't let them get away with blaming you for its actions!"
Naruto smiled for a moment before frowning again. "So… the reason that you don't get along with people is me? I'm wrecking your life?"
"Far from it, actually." Her face lit up. "That's one more reason I've always thought of you as a hero, actually. I can separate out the completely idiotic jerks from the reasonable people based on how they think of you! It's true that there are people who dislike me simply because I don't dislike you, but those are people I never would have wanted to get involved with anyway. The way I see it, you're saving me from involving myself with the wrong kinds of people!" Naruto's grin flickered back to life. "So, will you show me the technique?"
"Technique...? Oh, right… sure! If you really have nothing better to do, I could use the help."
"Cool!" /I hope I can help…/ "Let's go right after lunch then!"
Kakashi arrived a few minutes later, five minutes before he was supposed to go on duty. Although it had been extremely difficult for him to arrive early (for a real reason), Tsunade had been very persuasive in the matter, as he had an extra side-mission. Seeing the pair eating quickly and quietly, he decided that it would be the perfect time to interrupt.
"Yo, Naruto."
"Kakashi-sensei! What are you doing here?"
Mabui's smile faltered as she looked up from her ramen. "This is your sensei?" /Why was his sensei the one sent to spy on him?/
"Yeah, I'm his sensei. Anyway, Naruto, I was told to give you this," he handed Naruto an envelope, "and to tell you to expect the rest in the mail."
"Rest? Rest of what?"
"Your pay… You didn't really think that Tsunade-sama was going to stop giving you missions and leave you to starve to death, did you?"
"Pay? How can I get pay without doing missions?"
"You're technically on paid leave right now, Naruto. Unless you'd rather not be paid, because I'm sure I can arrange that--"
"No! Don't do that!"
Seeing the boy nearing tears, Kakashi couldn't help but think that Naruto was just no fun. "It's okay, Naruto, I was just joking."
Instantly cheering up, Naruto asked the first question that came to mind: "How much am I getting?"
"She didn't tell me, but probably not very much."
Completely missing the fact that the first check had taken more than three weeks to get to him, Naruto opened the envelope to see how much the check was worth. His mouth opened, but no sound came out, and his eyes became as wide as they had ever been.
"Naruto-kun?" Seeing him completely freeze up for several seconds, Mabui peeked over his shoulder at the check. "How much is it wo-- oh my god! That's a lot of money!"
"Hmm? Let me see…" Kakashi couldn't help but be interested after Mabui's reaction. His face would have been priceless if it hadn't been hidden. "What! That's more than I get paid for S-rank missions! She's giving you this much every week!" He realized only a moment too late that hysteria is not cool, and embarrassedly recomposed himself. "Yeah, well… I have to go now, Naruto. I've got a mission. Later."
Naruto stood completely still, staring at the check for a few moments, until Ayame commented that his ramen was getting cold. He and Mabui instantly continued with their lunch, not wanting to let perfectly good ramen go to waste.
Naruto and Mabui arrived at training ground seven at about 12:30. Mabui, who had never bothered to attend the academy because she had never had a desire to be a ninja, was getting slightly anxious. From everything that she had read of ninja techniques, most of the difficulty was in chakra manipulation, and she had no experience with that. She decided to trust Naruto's judgment, considering that he was a professional. "So, Naruto-kun, why don't you start by showing me the original technique?"
"Yoshi!" Naruto, utterly convinced that Mabui would figure out the problem, formed a kage bunshin, which proceeded to swirl chakra in his hand. A few seconds later he dispelled the bunshin and held out the newly formed rasengan for Mabui to look at. "This is the rasengan that Yondaime came up with."
Mabui stared at it for a few seconds, seemingly in a daze, before switching her gaze to Naruto and adopting a serious look. "Okay, I think I've gleaned all I can from seeing this one. What was your idea to make it better?"
"Huh? Oh, right…" He quickly explained his idea and his progress, which Mabui took a moment to process. "Do you know what I'm doing wrong?"
Mabui stayed silent, a frown on her face. When Naruto went to ask her again, though, she cut him off. "I might, but I'm not really sure. Could I see you try it?"
"Okay…" Naruto was a little embarrassed to be demonstrating an unfinished technique to Mabui, but if it was going to help… Naruto and his newly formed kage bunshin stood side-by-side, just like every other time, and started their technique. Mabui watched intently as the technique seemed to work, but suddenly stopped for no apparent reason. She had been right after all. "I don't know why, but it always stops right there…"
"It doesn't have enough room."
Naruto stared dumbly at her for a second. "Huh? What do you mean? It's just spinning air, how can it not have enough room?"
"It's not just spinning air, Naruto-kun." The seriousness of her tone freaked him out a little bit, and she could tell, but she didn't let it bother her. "Your chakra mixes with the air, taking up space on the surface of the sphere. The original attack never had space as a factor because, despite you bunshin's method of introducing rotation, it could pretty much be as big as it wanted to sitting on your hand. It auto-sized itself to be as compact as possible with the amount of chakra that you were pouring into it, which made it more powerful than if it had been more loosely put together."
"Uh… oh, I get it. But what does that have to do--"
"Everything. Because you're trying to add more directions of rotation, you're putting more chakra into the technique, which means that the technique will take up more space. It looked like you and your bunshin left barely enough space for a normal rasengan, meaning that your new technique was out of the question."
"So…" When Naruto finished processing what she had said, his got the biggest smile that Mabui had ever seen. "So all I have to do is give it more room! Yatta! Thank you so much, Mabui-chan!" Just glad that she could be of help, Mabui smiled on as Naruto got ready to try the technique again.
Getting the distance down was not as easy as it sounded, however. Naruto tried for hours, Mabui watching all the while, but he couldn't get the technique to work. If the hands were too far apart, the rotations never met, and if the hands were close enough for the chakra to meet, it would fizzle out after a few seconds. Just as Mabui was getting frustrated, thinking that she had either been wrong or overlooked something, Naruto thought of something.
"I have an idea, Mabui-chan!" He put on a big fox grin. "You said that the rasengan adjusts its size while it's being formed, right?"
"Huh? Yeah, I think so… I'm not a ninja, but that's what it looked like."
"Can you think of any reason that it couldn't adjust from small to big?" She shook her head slowly, trying to grasp his idea. "Just watch." He put his hand out just far enough from the bunshin's for a normal-sized rasengan. As the rasengan started forming, he and his bunshin pulled their hands apart. They did it far too quickly, resulting in the technique's dispersal, but Mabui understood his idea.
"That's a great idea, Naruto-kun! I never would have thought of that!" /I really wouldn't have…/ "It'll probably throw off your timing a bit, but I'm sure it'll work eventually!"
Naruto's grin just grew wider. A few hours later, the grin was completely gone. He hadn't even managed to get the separation speed down, let alone the technique. Even Mabui's cheer had visibly fallen several notches. She had been sure that he would get the hang of it quickly, but, then again, she didn't really know what 'quickly' meant in the ninja world.
Kakashi, watching from his hiding spot, knew exactly what 'quickly' meant in the ninja world. For five hours, he had watched Naruto progress more quickly than he could ever have imagined. The boy showed more intuition and determination than the sannin, Yondaime, and Kakashi combined. Even though he hadn't understood the explanation that Naruto had given, he could tell that Naruto was going to get it within a few days, at the rate he was going.
"I think that's it for today, Mabui-chan."
"You're giving up already, Naruto-kun?"
"Of course not!" His grin returned. "I'll just have to keep trying tomorrow! There's other training I need to do today, and I don't want to fall behind."
"You have more training? Do you mind if I stay and watch?"
"You want to watch…? Why?"
"I don't know, I just do!" Her smile finally returned. "Do you mind or not?"
"I guess not…"
"Great! We should get some dinner first, though. It can't be healthy for you to train all night without eating."
After dinner, Naruto's training amazed Mabui. She knew that ninja had more stamina and strength than normal people, but he was expending more energy than she did in a month, and he didn't even look winded!
Naruto, meanwhile, couldn't understand why she would want to watch him repeatedly punch and kick a log, jump rope, and do push-ups, sit-ups, and squats, but she refused to leave unless he said that he specifically didn't want her there. He couldn't bring himself to lie to her, so she stayed.
By the time that midnight rolled around, Mabui was still watching. Even she couldn't say exactly what had caused her to stay so long, but she felt no desire to leave. Naruto, finishing his last squat, looked over to her. "That's it for today…"
She smiled at him. "Then I'll see you tomorrow!"
He glared at her suspiciously for a moment. "Why are you so interested in me?"
"What do you mean, Naruto-kun?"
"I mean exactly what I asked Mabui-chan. Why are you so interested in me? It's one thing to be willing to help me, but you almost act like there's nothing you'd rather do than hang around me all day! You must have a reason…"
"…I don't really know. A big part of it is that you're just fun to be around, and some of it is that you remind me of my dad, but… there's just something about you. I can't really explain it, but I feel better being around you. Better about myself, my life, my everything." She stared off into space for a moment before continuing, "I guess it's just the kind of person you are! Your attitude, your actions, what you say and how you say it… I can't get enough of you!"
Naruto, taking this the wrong way, panicked. /Kuso! Why'd she have to fall in love with me! Aside from the fact that she's seven years older than me, it just seems… creepy!/ Laughing nervously, he tried to let her down easy. "Um, Mabui-chan… I, er… I don't really like you quite, er, that way, but--"
Immediately figuring out what he was thinking, Mabui had a sudden urge to vomit. Something about the idea of Naruto even thinking that she had feelings for him felt sick and wrong. "Oh! No, I didn't mean it like that!" Seeing his face relax slightly made Mabui much more comfortable. "I meant it in a platonic way, like a family member or a really close friend!"
/Oh thank god!/
Naruto walked Mabui home, but not before she made him promise to have lunch with her the next day. Kakashi, making a mental note to report a few things to Tsunade in the morning, switched with Hoshi before going to get some sleep.
Kakashi really didn't like the way that his meeting had turned out, but he really had no choice about what he was about to do. Although he had tried to assure Tsunade that Mabui's intentions were pure, she demanded to meet the girl. With a sigh, he came out of the shadows. Orders are orders, after all.
"Yo, Naruto."
"Kakashi-sensei? What are you doing at Mabui-chan's apartment?"
"Well, Naruto…" /How can I put this so as not to piss him off?/ "I'm actually here to see Mabui."
"Who, me?" Mabui, having only spoken with Kakashi twice, was more than a little surprised. "Why?"
"Tsunade-sama asked to see you. I'm supposed to take you as soon as possible."
"What!" Naruto was outraged. "Why does baa-chan want to see Mabui-chan right now? We were about to go to lunch!"
Kakashi sighed. This didn't promise to be easy. "She just wants to ask Mabui a few questions, Naruto." Seeing Mabui getting worried, he added, "it's nothing bad, Mabui-san." She didn't cheer up. "Hmm… I probably shouldn't do this, but why don't you guys have lunch before we go?"
Mabui looked even more worried. "What? I can't let you get in trouble for me! If you keep Hokage-sama waiting, she could--"
"Don't worry about it." Kakashi's eye smiled. "I'm pretty well known for being late, and it really isn't that important anyway. I've already told her the answers to all of her questions, she just wants to hear it from you."
"Oh." She smiled and turned to Naruto. "So, Naruto, where do you want to go for lunch? I feel like going to Ichiraku's again, but if you'd rather have something else I wouldn't mind."
Naruto, of course, didn't feel like going somewhere else. Twenty bowls of ramen (each) later, Naruto and Mabui had to part ways. Mabui was disappointed that she wouldn't be able to help Naruto with his technique, but she knew that she couldn't oppose the leader of the village.
As Kakashi led her in the office, Mabui felt a little anxious. What kind of questions did the Hokage have for her, and why weren't Kakashi's answers satisfactory? Kakashi had made it pretty clear on their first meeting that she had been thoroughly researched, and as a civilian she wasn't exactly a master of hiding things like ninja were. Try as she might, she couldn't think of what questions were coming, which of course meant that she couldn't prepare herself for them. Tsunade's angry voice jerked her out of her thoughts.
"You're late Kakashi!"
"Ah, sorry Tsunade-sama. I was attacked on the way to her apartment by three merchants from wind country carrying a magic lamp, and--"
"Save your stories for Gai, Kakashi! Where the hell were you?"
Mabui wasn't really sure that it was a good idea, but she didn't want Kakashi to get in trouble, so she said the first thing that came to her head. "It's my fault, Tsunade-sama." Clearly, it had been the wrong time to speak, as Tsunade gave her a look somewhere between "who asked you!" and "I will kill you in the most inconceivably horrible and painful way I can think of!" Still, in an amazing feat of bravery that few jounin were capable of, she continued to speak in coherent sentences. "Kakashi-san told me that you wanted to see me immediately, and that you had important questions to ask me, but I insisted on having lunch first. If you're going to blame anyone, blame me."
"Nice try, but I know you're lying." Tsunade was bluffing, of course. Mabui's lie had been completely flawless, but Tsunade knew Kakashi too well to believe that he would have said the questions were important. "What really happened Kakashi? It had better not involve Naruto, or so help me I'll--"
"Why can't it have involved Naruto?"
"I'll deal with you in a moment, so I suggest you keep quiet until then. Kakashi, answer the question."
Kakashi, who had been interrupted the first two times he had tried to answer, waited a moment to make sure that there wouldn't be any interruptions. "I allowed her to have lunch with Naruto before coming here, Tsunade-sama. She eats as much ramen as Naruto, actually, which is why it took so long."
"YOU LET HER HAVE LUNCH WITH NARUTO? I specifically ordered that you not allow her to have contact with Naruto until after I have this talk with her! As it is, with her skill in lying, I'm tempted to have ANBU lock her up just to be safe! If she turns out to be a spy I'm holding you personally responsible for any--"
"I already told you, Tsunade-sama, she isn't a spy." Kakashi sighed. He really didn't appreciate having his judgment questioned this completely, even if Tsunade was just trying to look out for Naruto. "The idea is ridiculous. When she first met Naruto, she practically worshipped the ground he walked on and--"
"That's exactly why it's suspicious Kakashi! You know as well as I do that the people of this town, especially civilians, hold an irrational hatred of Naruto. She's old enough to know about Kyuubi, so it's absurd for you to trust her because she doesn't hate him! I don't like it any more than you, but that's just--" Tsunade stopped speaking as Mabui slapped her in the face.
Tsunade had crossed the line, and Mabui wasn't about to let her get away with it. "You think that people who recognize a hero can't be trusted? It's 'absurd' to trust me because I don't hate the boy to whom I owe my life! Wow, that really is suspicious! You'd better arrest me now before I start calling Sandaime and Yondaime heroes too, you old hag!" Tsunade, still holding her face where Mabui had slapped it, stared at Kakashi in shock. He hadn't been kidding: she really did get angry at people who didn't recognize Naruto as a hero. Overriding her fear of getting slapped again, Tsunade decided to answer the poor girl.
"I didn't… I didn't mean it like that." Another slap met her face.
"Yes you did! You wouldn't have even felt badly about it if I hadn't pointed out how horrible the idea was! Hell, you were one step from saying that Naruto-kun is better off without friends, because anyone who would associate with him is suspicious! That you could actually think that… That someone Naruto-kun likes and respects as much as you could actually think such a thing about him is horrifying! Even if the villagers are betraying him, at least they aren't doing it from the position of a friend!"
If she could have gotten away with it, Mabui would have stormed out of the office, but she somehow doubted that the ANBU at the door were left as speechless as the Hokage in front of her. Kakashi, however, was. He merely stared wide-eyed at the idea of someone not only standing up to Tsunade while she was in a bad temper, but slapping her, twice, and living to tell the tale. Tsunade hung her head in shame, realizing how true Mabui's statements were.
"For what it's worth… I'm sorry. I just want what's best for Naruto, and considering the people who are out to get him right now, we really can't afford to be lenient on anyone."
Mabui thought for a few moments. "Is this about Uchiha Itachi?"
"How do you know that?" Even Kakashi adopted a (somewhat relaxed) fighting stance at the mention of Itachi. "That is the single most classified piece of information in Konoha! There's no way you can possibly know about that group if you're an average civilian!"
"Group? I thought Uchiha Itachi was a single person, not a group…"
"Don't play stupid! You can't possibly know that Itachi is after Naruto unless you know about Akatsuki!"
"Akatsuki? So there's a group called Akatsuki after Naruto, and the perpetrator of the Uchiha massacre is in it? That's why Jiraiya-sama was acting strangely…"
"You know Jiraiya? That changes everything… He never could shut up around cute girls."
Mabui suddenly smiled. "You really think I'm cute?"
Kakashi gave her a quick glance before deciding that she had to be kidding. She was easily the most stunningly beautiful girl he had seen in his entire perverted life. Tsunade, thinking along the same lines but with a more jealous twinge, took a moment to respond. "If you know Jiraiya, I'm surprised you don't know more about Akatsuki than I do."
Mabui left Tsunade's office extremely disappointed. Although she had managed to completely clear her name, she had spent the entire day doing it, finally leaving at midnight. She had no chance to help Naruto develop his technique, and she was most likely not going to get to be there when he finished it.
Naruto was fairly disappointed as well. He had finally gotten down the speed at which his hand needed to separate from the bunshin's, but the timing was drastically different during the separation than before or after it. If Mabui had been able to come he was sure that she would have been able to help somehow, but she had never shown up.
On Friday, he stopped by the library, and the pair had lunch, but Mabui couldn't think of any way to help Naruto. She did have to work, after all. He had been extremely curious about what Tsunade had wanted, but Mabui didn't tell him anything. Training continued as usual, resulting in Naruto not quite having the technique down, but he was showing plenty of promise.
It was on Saturday that Kakashi decided that Jiraiya could take his books and shove them up his… well, you know. Naruto, finally succeeding in getting the timings down, had tested his new variation on the rasengan. To say that it was more powerful than its predecessor would be like saying that a bolt of lightning is more powerful than static cling, in Kakashi's opinion at least. Not only was the tree he attacked completely obliterated, but the impact caused a sphere of destruction at least twenty times as large as the attack itself. The ground was cracked, fifteen trees were completely destroyed, and the winds released had knocked over several other trees. Rasengan would have just damaged the main target, and that would have been the end of it.
Naruto concluded the day by giving his attack a name: "oodama rasengan (great sphere rasengan)." Kakashi concluded the day by leaving a scroll and a note on Naruto's table before Hoshi arrived, hoping against hope that Hoshi didn't notice, and deciding that another talk with Gai would be necessary.
A/N: Told you it'd be longer! On another, slightly more random note, I've developed a small crush on my own original character. I guess it's to be expected, considering that I modeled her personality after what I would look for in a girl, but I still find it kind of creepy… For those of you who would bother to look up the name, "mabui" means "cute" in Japanese. I didn't mention her surname because I'm not entirely sure what I want it to be yet. Please tell me if her explanations didn't make sense (or were wrong in some way). I've never taken a physics course or anything, and I'm not a super-genius, even if she is…
Just to warn you, I probably won't be including the technique that Kishimoto is having Naruto develop under Kakashi. If I do (which will only be if it's particularly badass and feasible) it'll be way later in the story, as I already have him developing techniques I came up with. Sorry, but it really wouldn't make sense for Kakashi to give him that special training right now anyway, as you'll see in the next chapter. I came up with all of the techniques I want Naruto to learn before Kishimoto started the new technique arc, so I really didn't fit it into my plans...
I'm not exactly sure about the order of events, but I do have a plan for this story. If you're concerned about the lack of fighting, you should know that there will be plenty later, but you should also know that I've never written a fight scene before. I could be horrible at it, or I could be a prodigy, but we won't know for another few chapters… In the meantime, please review!