Welcome back, loyal readers! Before we get on with the big fight between Naruto and Ryobe, I'd like to say a few things. First off, this is the final chapter of the 'Beginnings' arc, and chapter 5 will begin the 'New Hope' arc. Second, if anyone has ideas for OCs for the next arc, lemme know. The format for submitted OCs is as follows: Name, Age, Height/Weight, Eye/Hair color, home village and a brief description. The following ninjas don't have any OC kids planned for them, so feel free to play around: Shino, Chouji, Shikamaru, Temari, Konohamaru, Udon, Moegi, Ebisu, Kakashi, Shizune, Anko, Iruka, Asuma, Kurenai, Kabuto, Baki, Kankuro, Jiraiya, Tsunade, Hanabi, Kisame (yikes!), Rock Lee, and Gai. As for the brothers Uchiha, that's for me to know and you to go crazy trying to figure out. (Thanks to Shadowmaster62 for that one. Read his stuff!) Be aware, only about 6 of the submitted OCs will be used. Send your submissions either in a message thing or an email, which can be found on my profile. Confirmed pairings are: Naruto x Sakura (obviously), Kiba x Ino (see this chapter for explanation), Neji x Tenten (seperated). Likely pairings include Shikamaru x Temari (not married), Kakashi x Shizune (cause it's funny), Iruka x Anko, and Konohamaru x ?. I haven't really decided who the little puke's getting paired with. I mean, look what I've inflicted on poor Sakura...
Disclaimer! I don't, and sadly never will, own Naruto. The closest I shall ever come is in the form of graphic novels, original characters and my own demented dreams. Also, suing me is pointless, as I'm dirt-poor and not making a cent off this venture.
Chapter 4: A New Start
Last time...
Naruto grinned a darked version of his normal grin. "It should. I've defeated that wuss Kabuto, your lame-ass snake of a boss, and that bastard Sasuke!"
A thoughtful look crossed Ryobe's face. "Huh. Been wondering where wonder-boy went. Oh well. Guess I'll just kill you" he said, and readied Kiribiki Houcho.
Now...
As the huge blade rose, Naruto dropped, his body in a loose three-point stance. His eyes narrowed as he stared at this man who'd defiled Zabuza's grave, killed his teammates, and now threatened him. This guy was so going down.
Flashing through the familiar seals, Naruto grinned. And Naruto grinned. And grinned. In fact, some 25 Naruto's grinned at Ryobe as the misplaced Mist-nin blinked, unsure of what had just happened. "What's wrong, jerk?" one clone taunted. "Can't sense the real deal?" another quipped from his perch on the underside of a low-hanging branch. Another gestured to himself with a thumb. "And this is just the beginning of what I got" he crowed as a pair of clones descended on Ryobe.
'Alright, so the kid can make an assload of bunshins. Big hairy whoop' he thought as the duo came at him. Smirking arrogantly, he thrust his blade casually at the one he thought was the real deal, and watched in satisfaction as the blonde ninja jerked to a stop on his blade. Glancing at the other one, he turned a blow to the temple into a shot square between the eyes.
The impaled ninja's head snapped up, a grin on his face. "Psych!" he yelled before vanishing into a puff of smoke. Ryobe staggered backward from the blow, a confused expression on his face.
"What the hell was that, I've never even seen a jutsu like that!" he spat as he reassumed a combat position. A clone dropped in front of him, driving a fist into his stomach.
"What..." it said. Another landed a grazing kick to the sword wielder's shoulder as it called "...never...". A third appeared below him and sent him airborne with a kick "...heard..." A pair of them rose to his sides. "...of Kage..." one cried as he launched a fist "...Bunshin!" finished the other as an axe-kick crashed into Ryobe's chest. Another form blurred into being above him and launched a driving kick into his chest "Uzumaki Rendan!" he cried as they impacted the ground.
Rising from the crater, Ryobe coughed, then quickly dove to the side as a spray of kunai impacted the spot where he'd landed. Darting forward with a slash, three clones vanished in a puff of smoke. Ryobe pivoted right cutting out at another clone, cursing as it proved to be just that. "Tachi-haji Gufuu!" he called out as he began a high-speed spin, lashing out in all directions. Bunshins popped left and right, leaving only the original, who dodged nimbly away from the whirling blade.
Landing in the stance he'd started the fight in, Naruto grimaced. "Guess you're better than I expected. Looks like I'll have to turn it up" he said as a grin spread across his face.
Sprinting towards his still-spinning foe, Naruto created yet another Kage Bunshin. Extending his right hand, he began the chakra swirl, which he handed off to the clone as he sprung into the air. The clone grimaced as the blade whirled in and slashed across his chest, than thrust the Rasengan forward. There was a moment of stillness, of quiet. Then Kiribiki Houcho, Zabuza's sword, shattered into a thousand pieces. Beginning his descent, another Rasengan formed in his hand, Naruto could only whisper his apologies. "Zabuza, Haku, I'm sorry."
Ryobe's balance ruined by the sword's destruction, the ex-Mist-nin staggered to a stop, staring in disbelief at the hilt he still held in his hand. Then he realized that the one who'd destroyed his blade had vanished into a smoke puff, and the real one had jumped into the air. Looking up, he blinked just as the swirling mass of blue chakra slammed into his face, and he knew only the void.
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Less than a month after war was declared on the Sound, Konoha crushed the Hidden Sound village in a resounding defeat. Although Yakushi Kabuto reportedly escaped into the Stone country, Orochimaru was defeated in combat by the last-ditch efforts of Jounin Gouraku Daisuke, older brother to the fallen Kenkichi, who sucessfully used the Gouraku bloodlimit suicide attack against the Snake Sennin. The battle was witnessed by Umino Iruka.
For their heroism in combat and vital role in weakening the Sound's defenses, Akimichi Chouji and Uzumaki Naruto were promoted to the rank of Jounin. As soon as he found out how much actual work a Jounin had to do, Naruto begged to be busted back to Chuunin. Tsunade just laughed.
Tenshin Yasuoka and Mazaki Kuemon were both promoted to Chuunin for their efforts in battle.
Kakashi finished volume 14 of Itcha Itcha Paradise.
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1 Year Later...
Naruto looked out at Konoha from the balcony of the apartment he shared with Sakura. Sighing, he glanced up at the face of the Fourth, then at old Sandaime. "Dammit old man, you never told me that being one of the best in Konoha was this much of a pain in the ass" he muttered as he leaned against the railing. Sighing, he strengthened his resolve. Tomorrow was the beginning of his own personal hell. Tomorrow, he began leading a Genin cell. Sighing, he glanced downward at the street. Watching the people go by with little interest, he stopped as he saw Kiba and Akamaru walking down the street with... Ino? Shaking his head, he blinked and looked again. "When the hell'd that happen?" he snorted rhetorically.
"About 5 months ago Naruto. Are you still seriously that dense?" Sakura laughed as she came in the front door. The blonde Jounin shook his head vigorously, as though trying to exorcise the disturbing image from his mind.
"No seriously, when and how did this happen? I thought that Ino hated Kiba? I mean, c'mon!" he said as he sat heavily in his beat-up old chair. Sakura had been trying for half a year to get him to get rid of it, and Naruto flat refused. He liked the piece of crap. Sakura smiled and sat on the couch opposite him.
"It was that whole fight with Neji right after we caught Sasuke. Apparently, whatever Kiba said really struck Ino-pig hard, and made her reconsider her opinion of him. Of course, our little run-in with her at Ichiraku didn't hurt either" Sakura said, giggling at the memory. Naruto grinned widely as he remebered Ino's expression at the phrase "Well, one of us had to get around to getting a boyfriend..." in reference to himself.
Feeling a sudden nudging at the back of his mind, Naruto frowned. "Hold on a minute, Sakura. The bastard fox wants to talk."
Retreating into his mindscape, Naruto confronted the caged form of the Kyuubi once more. 'Well, whaddaya want, bastard fox?' he asked as he settled into a comfortable position near the cage.
Rolling his eyes, the fox glared at Naruto. "You mean to tell me you haven't noticed?"
Naruto blinked. 'Noticed what?'
"Your bitch. Her scent is different, fool."
'Different?'
"You are actually this dense still?"
'Why do people keep asking me this question today?' Kyuubi sighed.
"Irregardlessly, the point is, she smells different."
'I'm still not getting it...'
"Unbelieveable. I forget at times that you and subtle go together like anko and pork miso"
'Hey! I like anko and pork miso!' Naruto cried defensively. The Kyuubi, the nine-tailed demon fox, stared at Naruto as though he'd sprouted a second head who spoke nothing but Portugese.
"Anyway... the point I was trying to make... forget it. You'll find out soon enough anyway" the Kyuubi said in the same tone that a tired mother speaks to her hyper 5 year old in.
Coming out of his trance, Naruto looked at Sakura curiously. "Well, what did HE have to say Naruto?" she asked in a mildly concerned tone.
Naruto immediately tensed up. "Uhh, nothing important... I gotta go find Kiba and... ummm... ask him something!" he stammered as he backed up to the balcony, then lightly hopped down. Landing heavily in the street, his head swung around rapidly, then he dashed off in the direction that Kiba and Ino'd gone earlier. Sakura stared at her boyfriend as he bolted off, more then a little worried. Then her stomach turned sour, and she ran for the bathroom.
Dashing down the street, Naruto wondered if what he'd done was the smartest thing. 'Eh, I'll worry about it later' he thought as he rounded a corner, and spotted Ino and Kiba, chatting quietly. Akamaru slumbered nearby, his massive frame curled up behind the young couple as they talked. Pausing behind the corner, Naruto considered his options. 'Hmmm, I could just walk up to them and ask Kiba, but Ino'd probably yell at me. I could wait until they split up, but that could take a while... dammit!' he thought as Akamaru woke up and shuffled over to him, barking loudly as he did. Kiba looked over, his expression going from annoyance to mild amusement at Naruto's expression.
"What's up Naruto?" he drawled with a grin.
Naruto grinned sheepishly. "Um, hi guys..." he said. "Uh, hey Kiba, I... uh need to talk. Y'know... privately.." he said uncomfortably.
Kiba furrowed his brow. "Okay. Gimme a sec Ino, I'll be right back" he said, pausing to give her a peck on the cheek. Naruto winced at the extremely odd display (to him), and proceeded to walk a short distance away from Ino and stopped, waiting for his friend. Kiba sidled up alongside him and stopped, leaning against a nearby building. "Alright Naruto, what's this all about?" he asked, crossing his arms over his chest. Scratching his head, Naruto paused for moment, searching for the right words.
After a moment, he looked Kiba straight in the eyes and bluntly said "What's it mean when a female's scent changes?"
"Why do you ask Naruto?" Kiba asked slowly.
Looking around, Naruto leaned in conspiratorily. "HE mentioned it" the blonde ninja whispered. Kiba's eyes widened momentarily.
He'd been let in on Naruto's secret some time earlier, and understood the meaning of HIM. "Usually it means that the bitch is pregnant" he whispered back.
Naruto's jaw dropped as the implications set in. "Thanks Kiba" Naruto managed to stutter as he turned and took off towards his apartment. Walking back over to his girlfriend, Kiba shook his head.
"What the hell was that about?" Ino snorted. Kiba just shrugged. "I think that Naruto and Sakura might be expecting..."
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6 Months Later...
"Dammit Obaa-chan, why me? Sakura's due in less than a month, and you wanna send my team on a mission of 'indeterminate duration'? What the hell's up with that?" Naruto yelled at Tsunade, his eyes narrowed. Returning the glare, the Godaime Hokage shook her head.
"It's out of the question Naruto. I understand the situation, probably better than you do. But your team is the only one available that's qualified for this mission, and I put Konoha first" she said, her tone leaving no room for argument. Staring hard at her, Naruto grunted his assent.
"I'll warn you now Baa-chan, I fully plan to finish this mission as fast, and ruthlessly, as possible" he said, a grim set to his jaw.
Later that day, Naruto's team left Konoha. Sakura managed to make it to the East gate to see them off. Casting a lingering look back at the woman he loved, Naruto forced himself to look forward, and set a brutal pace that would have Lee or Gai straining to maintain. After some 20 minutes or so, it occured to him that, just maybe, his students didn't quite have his stamina. Glancing back, Eriko and Yukio's haggard expressions, and Kazu's rather unexpected glare, confirmed this theory. "Hehe, sorry guys. I just wanna get this over with" he said with a sheepish grin on his face.
Narrowing her grey eyes at him, Eriko sneered. "Gee, we couldn't tell Naruto-sensei. It wasn't obvious at all." Not wanting to become involved in the inevitable explosion of immaturity, Yukio engrossed himself in the study of the local flora, while Kazu sighed.
'Why do they have to do this every time?' he thought. 'It's bad enough that she has that ridiculous crush on him, but she may well be even more obnoxious than Lee-sempai. Who did I anger to get stuck with such a strange group of people in my life?' While Kazu mused over his luck, Naruto and Eriko had an argument resembling something between 6 year olds.
"You're dumb!"
"Oh yeah, you smell like a wet dog!"
"Yeah right, do I look like Kiba?"
"Nah, he's better looking."
"Maybe if you like dumb mutts." Having come out of his reverie, Kazu stared at them in mute amazement.
"You know, we won't make any progress with you two standing there arguing like idiots" he calmly stated. Both teacher and student halted in mid-insult at this observation.
"Crap, he's right!" Naruto yelled, and once more took off at high speeds, although this time at a pace his team could handle.
Coming up alongside the blonde jounin, Yukio spoke quietly. "Umm, so what exactly is our mission Naruto-sensei?" Looking at the quiet young genius, Naruto scratched his head.
"Long-story short, we are to go to the remains of Hidden Sound, and assess whether or not there is any activity going on there, and if so, neutralize any possible threats to Konoha" he answered. Yukio nodded and fell back, already formulating plans for both search and defense. Having studied all available material on the layouts of all the major ninja villages, the young prodigy considered various options for traps and genjutsu placements.
Further back, Eriko sulked. "Why does Naruto-sensei wanna hurry through this mission?" she muttered in a sulking tone.
"Because he's worried about Sakura-san and their coming child, dolt" came a monotone response from Kazu.
Turning her sulk into a glare she turned on him. "Why should he care about her? I mean, look how fat she's gotten since he became our teacher" she spat venomously, still keeping her voice low.
Kazu sighed and rubbed the bridge of his nose. "That would be because she's pregnant"
"I know that!"
"I refuse to become involved in an idiotic argument with you" he stated flatly and sped up.
"Dammit Kazu, don't you run off!" she yelled, and attempted to catch up to him, but her speed was no match for the Taijutsu specialist's. "Jerk!
Two weeks later, Genin cell 8 arrived at the remains of the Hidden Sound Village. Passing through the shattered south gate, Eriko shuddered. She'd heard some real horror stories about Sound ninja's from Naruto sensei and his friends. Especially Orochimaru. She'd seen a picture of him when Naruto-sensei had decided they needed to know about nukenin, and especially the class-A criminals from Konoha. Although the Uchiha brothers both had expressions that were intense to the point of scariness, at least they were cute. That Kabuto guy was kinda creepy, but more because he looked alot younger than he actually was. Not-so with Orochimaru. The Snake-sennin, former teammate to the Godaime Hokage and Naruto-sensei's own teacher, Jiraya-sama (who they'd met when he came back to Konoha to visit Naruto some time after he'd become their Jounin teacher, and she'd immediately decided was a complete pervert), was scary on a whole different level. He frightened her. She jumped when she felt a hand on her shoulder as Yukio attempted to bring her back to reality. "Dammit! Don't do that!" she yelled.
Yukio cowered, knowing full-well that she could thrash him. "I'm sorry, but I need some help setting these Genjutsu. I'd ask Kazu, but he's helping Naruto-sensei set up traps at the points I showed them on the map"
Eriko scowled. "What map?"
"This one" Yukio said as he produced a huge scroll from his pack, showing a detailed layout of the Hidden Sound village as it'd been prior to the attack, and already showing some recent changes to represent the damage to the village.
Eriko gaped. "You brought this with you?" she stammered.
"Sort of. I drew it as we traveled, and then I began modifying it when we got here earlier. Did anyone ever tell you that you're not that observant Eriko?" he said with an impish smile.
"Shut up. All that aside, why can't I help Naruto-sensei? I'm as good at trap-setting as Kazu" she said with a pout.
Yukio's expression became thoughtful for a moment. "I guess that's because I told him to take Kazu. You're better at Genjutsu than him anyway" he said with a shrug. Her face contorted slightly as she inwardly struggled with the fact that he had just complimented her, but she wanted to throttle him for seperating her from her beloved Naruto-sensei.
Finally, she threw her hands in the air in defeat. "Okay, where do we put 'em and what kind do you want?" she said in an exasperated tone.
A strange grin crossed the genius ninja's face. "Funny you should ask..."
Two days later, an alarm genjutsu was triggered. Groggily sitting up, Naruto was surprised to see Kazu already awake, with Eriko readying a pair of long-knives for her peculiar fighting style. Yukio sat nearby, pulling on the odd goggles he always wore hanging around his neck. Pulling on his flak-vest, Naruto cracked his neck. "'bout time something happened" he said with a grin. As the Konoha team moved into a defensive formation, a voice came from the darkness.
"Oh relax. We ain't gonna jump out and kill ya. I happen to like my victims to know exactly who killed 'em. 'sides, the odds are even, no? Let's make this fun and fight each other one-on-one. You can even pick your opponents" he said as he stepped into the moonlight. Eriko started at the sheer size of him, and his frightening, feral features.
As the other three stepped into view, Naruto shrugged. "We couldn't ask for a better deal in this situation. C'mon super-size, you're mine!" he said confidently, sprinting into the darkness. The large man grinned, then dashed off after Naruto. Sizing up their opponents, Kazu pointed to a man no older than Naruto, than ran to the west, his chosen foe hot on his heels.
"I'll fight you" Yukio said as he gestured to a small man wearing a heavy cloak. The shrouded man nodded and turned, gesturing for Yukio to follow. Yukio nodded grimly to Eriko, than followed into the murk.
Turning to face her opponent, she sighed. "Dammit, why do they always think that I HAVE to fight the other girl. It's damn annoying, y'know?" she complained to her opponent.
The red-haired girl nodded. "Nothing we can do, eh? Shall we start?" she said as she grinned sadistically. Eriko brought her long-knives to the ready.
"Anytime you are!" she said with a grin.
The redhead flashed her hands through a series of seals, then extended her left hand. Eriko watched in wonder as a peculiar pinkish energy coalesced around her hand. "What the hell is That?" she exclaimed, not dropping her guard.
"What's the matter honey, never seen plasma before? Well, you're gonna get to know it real well" the redhead smirked as she began a charge. Dropping into an impossibly low stance, Eriko drove her knives into the ground in front of her, and yanked herself forward on them, pulling them from the ground as she did. Lauching herself towards her opponent at Lee-esqe speeds, she smirked as she twisted her body in mid-lunge, bringing herself into a barrel-roll. Twisting in mid-air, she barely dodged a thrust from her foe's glowing left hand, and retaliated with a lashing blow with her own left. Pulling out of the roll and flipping around, she landed low and hard on her feet and pivoted, rewarded by the sight of blood running down her opponent's cheek.
"First blood" she taunted with a smirk, bringing her blades to bear again...
Yukio nimbly dodged his opponent's lashing katanas, which continued coming within a hair's width of hitting him. 'I guess all the sparring with Kazu paid off after all' he thought as another blade whizzed by his face. Continuing to dance out of his foe's attack range, he carefully led him to an area which he'd specially prepared for just such an event. Yukio gasped as a blade nicked his nose, producing a cut very similar to the one on Iruka. Ignoring the pain and free-flowing blood, he continued to dance backwards into the area he'd chosen. 'Almost there...' he thought as he rolled away from a double slash. Springing up from the crouch, he landed nimbly on the roof of a burned out building, likely one destroyed with a Katon.
As the sword-user leapt onto the roof, a puzzled expression crossed what was visible of his face. "What, no more running? Pity. I'd hoped we'd get to play a bit longer, at least. Ah well" he said with a shrug, then began his final charge.
As the twin-sword came closer, Yukio yanked up his goggles over his eyes and quickly made the sign of the rat, then called out "Zettai Kyoufushin!", and watched as his opponent stumbled, then began to weep. Drawing a kunai, Yukio walked to the kneeling man and slit his throat, understanding that it was the only way to ensure that his teammates would be safe. Wiping off his kunai, he replaced it in the holster, then he gingerly touched his new scar-to-be. "Ow!" he said, wincing. Then he sighed, and retrieved the small bottle of anti-septic from his belt pouch and sat down. This was going to hurt...
Kazu stood calmly, appraising the man who stood across from him. Shifting into a basic taijutsu stance, he spoke. "You'll have to forgive me. My fighting style isn't nearly as flashy or spectacular as my teammates, nor do I really enjoy using any weapons."
The other man shrugged. "Eh, just means I won't get to use my 'special trick' he said as he bent down and grabbed a piece of metal. Focusing his chakra for a moment, the piece of steel fractured, then simply fell apart. His eyes mildly widening, Kazu just shrugged.
"I'm not made of metal, so I've nothing to fear" he said as the other man fell into a stance not unlike his own, then lunged forward. Blocking the first few punches, then dodging the next couple of attacks, Kazu calmly observed his foe's body movement and chakra flow. Deciding he'd learned enough, he ducked under a high kick, then rushed in and proceeded to launch into a barrage of high-speed punches to his opponent.
Staggered by the attack, the other man fell back. "What the hell was that?" he asked incredulously as Kazu reassumed his starting stance.
"Don't really got a name for it. Probably should though, huh?" he replied matter-of-factly, then vanished. The sound-nin swung his head around, trying to find him. "Behind you" came Kazu's voice. Spinning about, he found nothing, then the back of his head exploded in pain. An explosion of blows rained down on his back, culminating in a rising double-kick to the middle of his back which sent him airborne. Kazu broke his stealth jutsu, then launched himself into the air. "Lion Rendan!" he cried as he blasted the metal-shattering Sound-nin, then righted himself in midair, landing lightly on the ground. His foe rose from the crater created by the impact, appearing no worse for the wear. "Damn" Kazu swore, then began executing the seals for another jutsu...
Breathing heavily, Eriko watched as her opponent traced a series of movements, lined pink in the plasma energy. Wincing at the pain from the burn on her side, she brought up her right hand, flitting a glance at the knife lying on the ground, and her own burned left hand. Grimacing, she realized that she really only had one option, but she wasn't sure she could handle THAT jutsu, but she'd give it a try. Flinging her remaining blade in an arcing toss, she began flashing through seals. Finishing the seals, she grinned, hiding her uncertainty behind the confidence that could only come from being a student of Uzumaki Naruto. "Kage Bunshin no Jutsu!" she cried out into the night, which suddenly was very, very crowded. The red-haired sound-nin began to panic at this sudden numeric disadvantage, and wildy swung at the enemies all around her, only to have those she hit vanish into a puff of smoke, and those she missed blast her with kicks and punches. The small swarm of Eriko's began to descend on her redheaded opponent, now wielding kunai in addition to the furious unarmed assault.
"Damn Leaf bitch!" the Sound-nin cried into the darkness, then she was pummeled into unconciousness. Falling backwards, Eriko was caught by two of the few surviving clones.
"Good job" one said as the two of them hi-fived, then vanished into a puff of smoke as Eriko passed out from chakra depletion.
Wiping the blood from his eye, Kazu watched as his foe did the same. 'I don't get it. All his basic movements mimic my own. There must be some significance that I'm missing. Damn... wait!' he thought as he watched his opponent, and realized that he'd been copying his every basic move, but the complex ones, namely the Taijutsu techniques, seemed unmimicable. A thought, a good one, albeit an extremely dangerous one, began to creep into his mind. 'Well, I did promise Lee-sempai I'd only use it in a desperate situation, and this is right about there...' passed across his mind as he began to execute the seals to his most powerful jutsu. As he'd anticipated, his opponent immediately began mimicing him, but likely didn't have a clue as to what he was getting into. Grunting as he finished the seals, he felt his chakra flow increase half-again. "Omote Renge!" he grunted through clenched teeth. Watching his foe's eyes, the increased power must have been quite the surprise, not that it'd matter. Charging in towards him, Kazu blurred momentarily, appearing beneath him. Launching the sound-nin airborne with another double-kick, Kazu again blurred, this time appearing behind him. The forearm wrappings that Lee-sempai had suggested to him, had encouraged him to use, now extended, seemingly of their own will. Wrapping tightly around the stunned sound-nin, they pulled him in close to Kazu, who reversed their momentum and put them into a headlong spin. "Copy this, dick" he said. "Kage Konoha Buyou!" he cried as they impacted the ground. As the dust cleared, it was Kazu sitting at the edge of the impact crater, looking at the way his enemy's neck had snapped. "Ahh, that hurt a bit" he muttered as he forced himself to his feet. "I'd better go find Eriko. She's probably in a bad way by now" he added as he began to trudge back to where he'd left the two girls behind to fight.
Naruto looked confidently at his opponent, who was at least 2 meters tall and as wide across as Jiraiya. "Well, that makes the score us 3, you guys 0. You wanna give up?" he taunted, knowing full well that the large man wouldn't. In response, the big man just snarled and attacked. Darting out of the attack's way, Naruto realized his mistake. This big oaf was likely the least talented one in the whole group. All he had going for him were size and a crazy bloodlust. Sighing at his mistake, the thought that his students might be in real danger now occured to him. 'Crap, I'd better do this quick' he thought as his mind raced through all the jutsus he knew, and the handful of medical ones that he'd learned from Sakura came to him. A grin crossing his face, Naruto suddenly launched backflipping high-kick, squarly connecting with his opponent's jaw. Quickly forming the seals, he lashed out as he cried "Chakra Enjintou!" and drove the chakra scalpel into the large man's heart. The huge man's eye's widened slightly, and he opened his mouth to speak, but only blood spilled over his lips. As the large man toppled over, Naruto was already headed for his students' chakra signatures.
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Three days later, Cell 8 began their trek back to Konoha, with an injured (and very-much chakra-drained) Eriko being carried by one of Naruto's Bunshins, much to her delight. Another carried the unconscious form of the red-haired girl who Eriko defeated, who was to become a formal prisoner of Konoha. Kazu, although Naruto had admonished him for the use of the Initial Lotus, wore a private grin at his victory. Meanwhile, Yukio spent most of the trip prodding the wound across his nose, wincing everytime he touched it. This, of course, sparked Eriko to comment. "Dammit Yukio, it wouldn't hurt if you didn't touch it. Honestly, I can't believe that you had the easiest win, other than Naruto-sensei, and you're still bitching and whining" she stated from her location on the Naruto clone. Kazu just rolled his eyes, knowing full well how long this might go on. "I mean, look at Kazu. He used that Lotus thingy and still managed to walk his way over to me. And all you did was activate a Genjutsu trap and slit the guy's throat, but you're still whining. What a baby" she continued on. In fact, the better part of the next two days was taken up by this. Only when their prisoner awoke did the tirade end.
"Uhhh, what the hell hit me?" she moaned as she came around. As her vision cleared, she immediately noticed two things: she was being carried by a blonde man who was running next to a guy who was identical to him, and the girl who'd beat her was being carried by a third guy who looked the same as the first two. This all being more than her slightly concussed brain could handle, she passed back out.
Observing this whole scene, Yukio looked squarely at Eriko. "And you've been complaining about me" was all he said, in the most smug tone any of them had ever heard him use in the time they'd known him.
Arriving at Konoha's North Gate 17 days after leaving the ruins of Hidden Sound, Naruto set to work. Immediately, he had his clones deliver the girls to the hospital, and sent Kazu and Yukio home, while he went directly to the Hokage's tower. Arriving at the base shortly by Shikamaru, who at the very least appeared surprised at Naruto's arrival. "Hey Shikamaru" Naruto greeted him breathlessly as he began up the stairs to the Hokage's tower proper.
"Hold on Naruto" Shikamaru said. Pausing, Naruto looked at his usually quiet friend.
"What?" he said in an exasperated tone, glancing anxiously in the direction of his and Sakura's apartment.
Shikamaru sighed. "I just thought that you might want to know Hokage-sama is entertaining foreign dignitaries" he said as her glanced over Naruto's shoulder, his expression almost... hopeful? Turning around, Naruto was more than mildly surprised to find Temari, of all people, standing behind him.
"Hi Naruto" she said as she stepped around him, and sidled up to Shikamaru. Turning around, she looked at him. "Oh, you might wanna go see my brother. He's upstairs meeting with the old ba... I mean, the Hokage" she said with a snicker. Rolling his eyes, Shikamaru took her arm and turned away, waving to Naruto as he did.
Returning the gesture, Naruto scratched his head as he began to scale the steps. "One of these days, I'm going to have to sit down and find out exactly who's dating who around here. I'm getting seriously confused" he said to himself as he reached the midway point.
Tsunade's right hand had been inching towards her hidden sake bottle when she heard the thump and groan coming from outside the door. A puzzled look (for him) on his face, Gaara extended a tentacle of sand and opened the door, then caught Uzumaki Naruto as he fell forward. Raising his head, Naruto grinned weakly. "Hey Gaara, Obaa-chan. I'm back."
Tsunade glared at him. "Naruto! Show proper respect for the Hokage dammit!" she snapped as she leaned forward to examine Naruto. "When did you last sleep anyway?"
Sheepishly grinning, Naruto ran his fingers through his hair. "Ummm, about 5 days ago" he said in his best impression of innocent.
"Five... days... Did you at least let your students rest?" she said in a tone somewhere between rage and disbelief.
"Yeah. I had bunshins carry 'em while they slept. That reminds me. We kinda ran into a team of Sound nins, and brought one back for questioning. Her and Eriko are both at the hospital. They kinda tore each other up. Kazu and Yukio are a bit banged up, but pretty much fine" he said nonchalantly. Gaping at him, Tsunade shook her head and withdrew the afforementioned sake from it's hiding place, and took a big draw off it.
"So, how have you been Uzumaki Naruto?" Gaara asked in his most casual tone (which is only mildly more personable than Ben Stein).
Shrugging, Naruto replied. "Not bad. Hey, 'd you know that your sister and Shikamaru are on some kinda date right now?" He could have sworn that he saw Gaara's face tic, just for a moment.
"No, I was unaware of that Naruto. Thank you."
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A little while later, Naruto, as assisted by Rock Lee, was returning home. Lee, who'd just returned from his own mission in Hidden Waterfall, had graciously offered his assistance (grabbed Naruto before he could object), and had thusly headed towards Naruto's apartment. "So, how long until the baby come my friend?" Lee asked him in a surprisingly subdued voice.
Naruto shook his head. "No clue. Best guess is sometime this week, actually. She might have already had the baby" Naruto said as his eyes widened at this possiblity.
Lee smiled lightly and chuckled. "I somehow doubt that is the situation my friend. However, to assuage your worries, let us make haste!" the spandex-clad ninja cried as he hoisted his companion onto his back and sprinted the remainder of the way. A few moments later, Naruto and Lee stood at the front door of his building.
Pulling out his keys, Naruto opened the door and stepped in. "Thanks for the lift Lee. Also, please don't teach my students potentially lethal techniques in the future" he said with a weary grin as he began walking up the stairs.
Walking through his front door, Naruto was immediately greeted by the sound of snoring. Tracing this sound to his favorite chair, Naruto found Konohamaru asleep, drooling quite heavily. A deadpan expression on his face, Naruto thumped him on the head. "Ow! Who the hell..." Konohamaru trailed off as he saw Naruto standing over him, a less than pleasant expression on his face. "Oh, hey Naruto... I... uh... Oh yeah! Sakura-chan asked me to wait here for you! She started having some abdominal pains and..." Konohamaru never finshed the sentance as Naruto jolted into movement and exited via the window. Meanwhile, Rock Lee had decided to take a relaxing walk before returning home. As he strolled along, an orange blur flew by him.
"Could that have been... no. I knew that I should not have partaken of that official's generosity in drink last night" he muttered as he shook his head, then resumed his walk home.
Minutes later, Naruto burst into the Konoha hospital and grabbed the first nurse available and started grilling her. The poor girl was already in tears before Natsume, a nurse who Naruto had befriended during one of his (many) hospital stays, spotted him. "Oh, Naruto-san! Are you here to see Sakura?" she called. Naruto was in front of her before she'd even finished her sentance.
"Where is she?" he asked in a very unstable-sounding tone.
"This way" Natsume said as she backed off a bit, then began leading Naruto down the hall. Stopping at a door a few steps inside the maternity ward, she opened it just in time to keep Naruto from plowing through it.
Stopping at her bedside, Naruto saw Sakura looking at him, a gentle smile on her face. "Hi Naruto, miss me?" she said as he smiled, then passed out from chakra exhaustion.
Five days later, at 4:14 PM, Sakura went into labor. For 7 hours, she screamed, cursed, and crushed virtually every bone in Naruto's right hand. Fortunately, Naruto's regenerative factor was keeping pace with her strength every step of the way, which meant his hand hurt way more than it should have been able to. Finally, at 11:13 PM, Naruto and Sakura had a baby girl. A small mess of blonde hair topped her head, and each cheek bore 3 thin whisker marks. Holding her gently in his arms, Naruto looked down at this life he'd helped create. "What should we name her?" he asked in a small voice, still awed by the enormity of this.
Sakura smiled wearily at him. "I'd actually been thinking about this Naruto. How about Hinata?" she said softly, resting a hand on his arm. A sad smile crossed his face.
Looking at his daughter, it widened a bit. "Hinata... I think it's perfect."
A week later, Naruto and Sakura were married in a quiet ceremony. All their friends, including the Kazekage, attended. Naruto couldn't help but notice that Shikamaru went out of his way to avoid Gaara, and could only barely contain his laughter at his expression when Temari asked him to dance. Neji, who out of deferance to his teammates had come, had nearly come to tears when the happy couple announced their daughter's name. Biting his lip, he had quietly exited through the back, unnoticed by all but a rather concerned Tenten. When asked where they planned to have their honeymoon, Naruto said "The bedroom, likely" with a big grin. Most of the older guests (Iruka, Tsunade, Shizune) had the grace to blush, while pretty much everybody else laughed. It only got louder when Kiba offer to 'watch the pup' for them. Kakashi, surprisingly enough, did not have his book with him. Rather, had anyone been paying attention, he was watching a certain dark-haired medic-nin with a rather forlorn look in his visible eye. Afterwards, Naruto took his infant daughter to his favorite thinking spot. Looking into her eyes, which looked very much like those of her mother, he spoke to her. "You just watch. Someday, I'm gonna be Hokage, so I can protect you and every other precious person I have. That is a promise, and I never go back on my word."
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Bleah! Finally, the marathon that is Chapter 4 is done. This concludes the 'Beginnings' arc, and I'd like to thank everybody who's given me their honest input on this project. I'd especially like to thank Anasha Atla for his reviews, and I hope that I'll get a bunch of submissions for the OCs. Well, until I finish chapter 5, please keep up with the input. Honto arigato!
-Shun