Sealkeeper: He Who Binds
Chapter 80 – A Bit Tied Up
Author's Note
2019.05.13-A
I started Typing up the AN last Monday as I had the week before because it made it easier to address things, but I think after this one I'll just post the chapters and keep my thoughts to the site.
Almost just deleted this one when I opened the file for its final check but I figure I already wasted the time typing it, might as well just keep it.
I have a feeling that there are some of you who would say I've done with the same with my story, I just can't fathom why you're still around if you hate it. Really wish I had that sort of free time.
Author's Note
2019.05.06
I'm really getting the strangest feeling that nobody actually reads my ANs or if they do then I'm failing miserably to convey my thoughts.
On the matter of Naruto's health- again. There is no "Healing" to be done. He is healed. Like a vase glued back together, he is whole but weaker. Why? Because if you recall back in earlier chapters when he was using them to create and destroy mountains of dirt as he terraformed one of the training grounds he was too damn powerful.
I like an overpowered main character as much as the next guy, but that wasn't the focus of this story.
The whole Mai sub-plot was apparently a grievous sin and the only thing anyone focuses on, which is getting kind of annoying. She just appeared again yet it's been all I hear about for the last three weeks. Her personal issues are there, a small story that popped into my head that I decided to explore. They are not going to be a major part of the story. Hell, I'm about to start on chapter 85 and the first scene is her getting with Naruto. Was supposed to be in 84 but I couldn't fit it in.
On that vein, complaints about chapter length make absolutely no sense. Since chapter one 5k chapters have been the standard. I was doing a 10k word special every fifth chapter for a bit and I have given bigger chapters before- I think the largest was like 30k words- but the tradeoff was that it was months between updates and so I dedicated every scrap of free time I could horde to provide the larger chapter as an apology.
The chapters have not changed in length.
Author's Note
2019.05.13-B
Well, if we're going to make this the last Author's Note we may as well be thorough, yeah? Not that there's terribly much to say. First, just a quick little reminder – The chapters are already done.
You know, in case you may have forgotten. If you suggest something and I do take it into consideration you will not notice anything for another month. This leads well into the next thing I'll go ahead and cover, the update schedule for the chapters I've already finished.
Chapter 80 – Today, 2019.05.13
Chapter 81 – 2019.05.20
Chapter 82 – 2019.05.27
Chapter 83 – 2019.06.03
Chapter 84 – 2019.06.10
Chapter 85 – 2019.06.17
As, again, these are already done the only thing that would hinder this plan would be me losing the files – they should be backed up, so that's not likely – or some sort of medical emergency, so you can expect them to be posted as listed above. I don't foresee the time changing much either, so they'll be posted first thing in the morning.
For me, anyway.
If you liked reading my Author's Notes you may consider checking out my Updates posted to Eyazahrid-dot-net. Having prepared the five reserve chapters I was aiming for there aren't as many Updates as there used to be but I do make sure to have one every Sunday.
Going forward, I'll try to collect my early responses- such as Author's Note 2019.05.06 or the first Author's Note in chapter 79 – and just have them posted to the site for anyone interested. Probably name it something like "Commentaries – Sealkeeper Chapter xx" or something along that vein.
You're probably sick of this Author's Note by now if you've read this far, so I'll wrap it up.
Progress is going pretty well on The Warlock of Winterhold but I will be using the last two or three days of the week to work on various projects and it won't always be it. This week, for example, I'd like to get more done for that Tatsuki one-shot I started forever ago.
Probably forgot about that, didn't you?
For more on my plans and projects, visit Eyazahrid-dot-net and follow me on Twitter at Eyazahrid.
Enough of my talking, go enjoy the chapter.
Or try, at least.
The first thing he was aware of was the blinding pain in his head, a series of hot knives repeatedly stabbing themselves at the base of his skull.
The second thing he was aware of was the fact that he seemed to be restrained in some manner.
The third was that he had finished all the work he had in his office. It was the last one that brought a small smile to his face despite his head's most valiant attempt to explode.
It took him a minute to realize the first and third thing were probably linked but he couldn't bring himself to care. If this was the price to pay for being able to focus all of his attention to the Wolves and still be able to be a Shinobi he'd gladly pay it.
"Up, I see." The voice was familiar, but not so much that he instantly recognized it. Moving his head as little as possible, he was treated to the sight of his physician sitting next to the bed with a book in her hand and a most unimpressed look on her face.
"Good-" he strained his neck to look at the window behind his head. "-Evening, Kato-sensei."
"Is it?" She asked. "I can't imagine your head is treating you very well at the moment." She marked her place in the book and set it next to the lamp on the bedside table before crossing her arms over her chest.
"Not particularly, no." He was perfectly willing to...stretch the truth...when talking to his Wolves to keep them from worrying about him, but what was the point in having a physician if you didn't let them do their job?
"I do believe that would be an understatement." She gave a sigh. "I'm not sure where you learned an S-ranked Kinjutsu or why you were using Biju Chakra around the same time but please stop trying to kill yourself."
"I'm not trying to kill myself," Naruto objected. "I simply went a bit too far after succeeding." Using the Kage-Bunshin for a couple hours when you had been running on empty before summoning it? Yeah, maybe not the best idea. Karura's Chakra had helped- and probably kept him from killing himself- but that just put more strain on his system in the end.
He had experienced the result of too much strain first hand now and he had to say he really wasn't a fan.
She blinked in surprise and not a small amount of awe. "So you did actually manage it." It was not an easy technique and even ignoring the usual Chakra requirements most Jōnin would be hard pressed to perform it.
"One." He admitted, looking only a little embarrassed. "I can manage to make one." Kakashi could make between three and seven , with a maximum of four at a time, so making one wasn't very impressive.
"You don't have much Chakra," She noted with a thoughtful frown. "So your control must be incredible. Have you considered learning medical Jutsu?"
No, no he hadn't. Lifting one of his hands as much as he could against his bindings he stared at it for a moment, trying to imagine using it to heal people.
He couldn't see it.
At the same time, it was a fool who didn't vary their learning. You never knew when a bit of experience in something might save your life.
"Perhaps I'll learn a few some day, but I can't see myself becoming dedicated to such a path." He finally admitted. She seemed mildly disappointed but nodded her head in understanding.
"There aren't many who do, which is a shame." She shook her head of the thought, turning her attention back to the patient currently stealing her bed. "Now, care to tell me why I found that Biju Chakra in your system?"
"Not particularly." Her fists found themselves to her hips as she stared down at the young man and one brow slowly rose. It was one of Tsunade's favored techniques for dealing with troublesome patients and usually worked.
When Naruto continued to look up at her, completely unbothered, she realized it might not work quite as well on the people you outranked you. It was, after all, a technique rooted in intimidation.
His own brow slowly rising, she found, worked very well on her.
"Well, then, at least be careful with it. The human body isn't designed for a Biju's Chakra so it puts a lot of strain on your Chakra System." She frowned. "Actually, yours didn't show as much as I would expect, but even so you should exercise caution."
Naruto had a feeling that he had the fact that he was conceived in a body that constantly had traces of Mito's Chakra in it to thank for that one. He also suspected that the Chakra therapy he did a couple years ago with Yakushi-sensei had partially undone that. Considering it had been necessary for him to use his Chakra on his own and that Mito was gone, he supposed it was a fair trade. Now, however, he would have been much better off without it because he had Karura.
The warm tingle in his arms indicated she had been listening in again and she obviously liked what she was hearing.
"Of course, Kato-sensei." She gave him a flat look.
"I'm pretty sure you said the same thing when I told you to rest, too, and here you are again." A fair observation, really.
"With the Jutsu figured out, there isn't as much urgency for the rest of my tasks. I'll have much more time to rest now."
While she was sure having two of you could definitely free up time, in no way did it constitute as 'resting'. Very deliberately she reached down and lightly smacked his head. As expected, it was not a fun experience for the young man. "You're not resting if you're having another you working, especially if dispelling it is just going to land you here again."
Through the pain that clouded his mind, he agreed that she was probably right. Didn't mean he'd listen, though. He had far too much to do.
"I seem to be resting now."
"Resting after you collapse completely disregards the point of resting." She continued to stare down at him with a frown for almost a minute before she gave a sigh and reached down to touch his forehead. Green light sprung into existence and immediately he could feel the difference.
"Thank you, Kato-sensei. I may have to learn that one."
"You'll need to if you keep this up." He really couldn't deny that.
The two feel into silence for a few minutes, even as Shizune finished her Jutsu, and it was some time until anyone interrupted it.
"Naruto..."
"Yes, Kato-sensei?"
The medic paused for a second, gathering her courage, before giving a deep sigh.
"I'm sorry, Naruto. I shouldn't have doubted you and I shouldn't have discarded your work without looking further into it."
Naruto gave a sigh of his own before shaking his head. "No, don't apologize. The responsibility lies with me. My style of Fuinjutsu is not traditional and to you I look like nothing more than a young boy. It is understandable- and commendable- that you did not trust my work." He gave another sigh. "Thinking about it, I realize I would have been more disappointed to learn that you made use of a matrix you knew nothing about. If anyone owes an apology, it's me."
He began attempting to get up but both the restraints and one of Shizune's hands on his chest stopped him.
"Maybe we can just say we were both wrong?"
He thought for a moment before giving a nod. "If you wish."
Shizune gave him a smile. "Good, maybe my team will stop worrying about being thrown back to Ibiki now."
"Oh?" His brow rose. "Learned that much, have we?" Her arms crossed with a huff.
"In all the time I've spent around them, that's all I've managed. Didn't even know for sure until one of Kurenai's comments confirmed it."
Naruto shrugged as much as he could in his bindings. "To be fair, the goal was for you to remain blissfully ignorant while they were coerced into following your every order."
"Not exactly to plan then, huh?"
"It rarely is, but things tend to work out in the end."
"Like your training?"
He gave her a flat stare. "Like my training."
"Do try to dial it down a bit, I'm getting tired of having panicked Wolves bursting through my doors in the middle of the night."
"I'll do my best." They both knew that wasn't saying much but it wasn't brought up. Naruto would continue being Naruto and Shizune would be here to patch him up and tell him to be more careful.
The silence that descended upon the room again was much more comfortable this time. After a few minutes, however, a restless Naruto began tugging at his bindings again.
"You probably want out of those, don't you?"
"It would be appreciated."
"Tough, you're staying there and resting."
He stared at her for a minute before nodding in acceptance.
"I suppose that's fair."
Shizune may have lost her bed, but she would still consider this a victory.
Now if only she could keep him from needing her bed in the first place.
It had been fantastic, beyond fantastic even, but she couldn't shake the horrible empty feeling that pulled at her chest. He had done it first, her logical side argued, but her heart still screamed in utter agony.
He wasn't hers, it countered, but she belonged to him. How could she betray him like this?
She looked to the bed beside her where Tsume blissfully slumbered. Only the thin white sheets hid the older woman's body from view and Mai found herself tempted to remove them to drink in the sight yet again.
She liked the woman a lot, probably even loved her to some degree, but the thought of doing it again was enough to churn her stomach with guilt. She shouldn't be here, should never have come here, and now she was probably going to end up hurting Tsume the same way Naruto had hurt her.
She ran her fingers gently through the Inuzuka's hair and, while it wasn't her intention, two brown eyes fluttered open to stare at her in what moonlight spilled through the open window.
"Hmm? What is it, Mai?"
"N-nothing, Tsume, go back to sleep." Of course, that response only caused the Inuzuka matriarch to worry and with a frown she pushed herself into a sitting position against the headboard.
"Don't do this again, Mai. What's wrong?"
"That was my first, and it was wonderful, but..."
Tsume gave a sigh and leaned over to wrap the young woman in a hug. "But you wanted Naruto to be your first, right?"
Mai couldn't bring herself to say it, settling for a nod. "It feels like I've taken something from him, robbed him of a gift that was always meant for him."
There was a pregnant pause for some time before Tsume finally asked; "Do you regret it?"
"No!" Mai was quick to object, but the answer she had wasn't as straightforward as she would've liked to provide. "I mean, I regret not being able to give it to him, but I don't regret what we did together."
Tsume's frown deepened slightly at the answer, but she knew what she was getting into when she accepted this invitation. Just like Mai, she couldn't fully regret the decision she had made. It was still bittersweet.
"So, no us then?" She was pretty sure of the answer already but knew better than to assume. She wanted them to both be on the same page for this.
"No." Mai's mournful tone was filled with apology. "No, I don't think I can do this. Not right now. I'm sorry, Tsume."
"It's okay, Mai, it's okay." She began to rock the girl in her arms comfortingly. "I understand."
"Thank you Tsume. I don't think I deserve you, either of you." The Inuzuka immediately stopped, reaching down to force Mai to look at her.
"Don't you dare say that," She admonished. "You deserve happiness just as much as anyone else."
There was no response for a minute or two and Tsume didn't have any more to add.
"Thank you, Tsume." The older woman smiled down at her.
"I'm here for you Mai, no matter what. If you need anything I want you to let me know."
"You're too good to me."
Tsume snorted. "Well, someone has to be. Naruto's obviously not doing a very good job. He'll be lucky I don't bend him over my knee when I next see him." The image was enough to get a giggle from Mai but she also didn't want to see the two most important people- outside her brother, of course- in her life fighting. She gently swatted the Inuzuka's shoulder.
"Don't do that, you'll get us both in trouble."
Tsume gave her a broad grin, the moonlight showing her slightly elongated canines.
"Didn't you know Mai? We Inuzuka love trouble."
Kakashi was already weeping manly tears when Naruto arrived to training ground seven with a bounce in his step-
-four hours late.
"My apologies, everyone. She had me tied to her bed this time and I couldn't get away."
The Jōnin let out a happy- and completely masculine- giggle as the two Kunoichi went bright red.
"My, my, I think I might be able to learn more from you than you can learn from me, Naruto." Kakashi beamed. "I think I'd also like to know who your doctor is, I may need an appointment or two."
Naruto gave an amused snort. "Like I'm going to let you try to steal her, she's mine."
Kakashi gave a shrug. With what he was hearing he couldn't blame the young man. "Worth a shot."
"Gods," Cried Naruko. "You're both horrible. Kakashi's excuses are bad enough, can't either of you at least try to make up something believable?"
One of Naruto's brows rose and after sharing a brief glance with Kakashi he held up one of his hands. The ropes hadn't been too tight but they had been tight enough that he managed to get a nice red mark through the night.
"Who said anything about making it up? Kato-sensei was very insistent that I not leave her bed."
Kakashi gave another giggle, Sakura became even more red, and Naruko seemed absolutely stunned.
"Wha-she," Her stunned confusion quickly gave way to Uzumaki temper. "You're not old enough for that kind of stuff!"
Naruto blinked once and gave another small snort. "A little late for that, Naruko."
Whether it was the news that he'd been at this for a while or the fact that he had actually said her name, Naruko's anger quickly vanished and she simply stood there staring at him.
Naruto was in too good a mood to pay it any mind. "Alright," He clapped his hands together. "Now that we've covered my love life..." He didn't bother correcting the obvious assumption everyone would have drawn between himself and Kato-sensei. "Let's proceed with training, shall we?"
"Oh, in a chipper mood this morning, I see. Was it a good night?" On one hand, Kakashi's ego was a little hurt because he hadn't spent the night with a woman, on the other hand he kept discovering new heights that his pride for the boy could go and wanted all the juicy details.
"Quite." Naruto's smile told them all just how much of an understatement that was.
It had been a very, very good night. In fact, after the night he spent with Orochimaru it was the best he'd ever had.
He would definitely need to reward her when he saw her again.
Deep in her base of Otogakure, Orochimaru felt a sudden, burning desire to rush back to Konoha as fast as she could.
Kakashi, still in training ground seven, felt a sudden surge in 'The Hip'. He knew exactly who had caused it and was so proud of his pup he ended up crying for the rest of the day.
He didn't care what anyone else said, he was promoting himself from brother to father.
Gaara looked down at his family- part of it, anyway- from the edge of the Onsen. Jiji was in the corner, still moping about Konoha's occupation of his beloved Sunagakure no Sato. Kankurō-nii was tinkering with a part of his puppet while several tools and spare pieces floated around him.
Temari, his beloved other Kaa-san, was leaning back against the stone wall with her eyes closed and one arm holding her towel to her chest tightly. He didn't know why they were all sharing the bath, why they all needed towels, or why one would submerge themselves in the water in the first place.
What he did know what that he didn't particularly want to enter the Onsen.
When Temari cracked open an eye and beckoned him in before patting the spot next to her, however, he really didn't have much of a choice. Gaara never had been able to go against a Kaa-san.
Hesitantly he moved one foot in and when she smiled at him for just that the found all the motivation he needed to submerge himself fully.
Temari was pleased to have him join her, snuggled closely to her side, but Kankurō just about choked on laughter at the trail of sand that was washed behind him as he moved.
Gaara wasn't a fan of the baths, but he loved spending time with both of his Kaa-san.
He supposed Kankurō-nii wasn't too bad either.
Sitting in his corner, Rasa continued to mope.
"There are leaves in my sand, leaves in my sand"
Kankurō was personally of the opinion that he should be more concerned about the sand in the water the resort would probably charge them for but in the end it wasn't the Puppeteer's money. With a shrug, he got back to work.
Idly, he realized that this was the first time they had actually spent as a family since Gaara's birth.
He really didn't see the charm.
It wasn't until later that morning the Mai realized exactly how long she had been gone and with a sudden surge of panic she flew from the bed to gather her clothes.
"Mai?" Awakened by the hurried movement, Tsume peered out from under her blankets- she had to replace them when she wasn't able to find out which of the Wolves had stolen the first set- to watch the young woman dart around the room.
"Ah, sorry Tsume, but I've been gone too long."
"I don't see why you're so panicked." The Inuzuka yawned. "I'm sure everything's fine. Naruto's been there to take care of things, right?"
Mai started to move even faster. "That's what I'm afraid of!"
Tsume's brow rose. "He seemed plenty capable to me." In fact, he seemed more capable than someone his age had any real right to be. Uchiha Itachi had been a young genius, however, and even Mai here was very mature for her age, so she supposed it wasn't too out of the ordinary.
"To do the work, absolutely." Mai agreed as she slipped on her dress. "But to limit himself? He'll work himself to death if we let him and the Wolves do nothing but enable him."
She was suddenly reminded of the last order she had given her Wolf and her heart dropped into her stomach like a frozen stone. Naruto with his own work would have been bad enough, but she had been keeping all the paperwork in her room and sending it to him in more manageable chunks. Because most of it came from Nami no Kuni and had to be sent it usually arrived in large quantities which Mai divided across the days until the next delivery was expected.
If he had access to all of it she knew for a fact he'd done the entire month's already. Fool probably hadn't slept either.
"Couldn't you just send a Wolf?" Questioned Tsume. "I could send an Inuzuka too, if you'd like."
"The only problem with that is that he won't listen to them. I'm the only one there nearly as stubborn as he is." She would have said more stubborn, but that was a blatant lie. No one was more stubborn than Tsukiyomi.
Tsume gave an amused snort. "Then go remind your man who's in charge." She suggested. "You may pity him enough to let him know his ass is mine the next time I see him, too."
Mai rolled her eyes. "Please don't, Tsume, it won't end well."
"Maybe not for him."
The moon's left hand- as far as Shizune and her team were concerned- turned to meet the older woman's gaze. "Tsume, please. He's very important to the Wolves."
"How important?" She never had managed to learn that, though she was aware he was important enough for Mai to constantly be worrying about him. Then again, that might have been more personal than professional.
"Important enough that they may very well cut ties with you immediately." Mai warned seriously. "They love Hana, but they'll toss her back here in a heartbeat if they think her presence might offend him."
Tsume blinked in surprise from under her covers. That was pretty damn important. That was, she suspected, Mai-level importance and she was supposed to be Tsukiyomi's second in command.
Were Mai and Naruto of equal rank, then?
It certainly explained why he was so comfortable speaking to her as if they too were equals. The Wolves were a noble house of Hi no Kuni, members of the Imperial Fire Court. Even if neither of them were the head of the family they could still be considered nobles- and not minor nobles, either.
In fact, with the Wolves being the sole ruling 'family' of Nami no Kuni Naruto and Mai were essentially a prince and princess respectively. No wonder he wasn't intimidated when he spoke to a mere clan head.
"Huh, well damn." Guess she wouldn't be able to teach him a lesson for causing Mai so much distress. She'd definitely be giving him an earful about it, though.
Making her princess cry, what a bastard.
"Still, might want to at least let him know I'm not exactly pleased that he hurt you." Tsume shrugged. "Wouldn't' want him caught too off guard when I give him a tongue-lashing painful enough to make a Biju whimper like a naughty pup."
Mai gave a laugh. "I appreciate it, but I'd still rather you didn't. I don't want the two of you fighting."
Tsume could understand that, but she'd still be having words with the boy.
She just had to make sure Mai didn't find out.
"Alright, fine. A tongue-lashing painful enough to make a Jōnin cry."
"I suppose that's probably as good as I'm going to get, huh?" Mai shook her head with a smile. "Thank you again, Tsume. For everything. I'll see you soon."
The Inuzuka matriarch lifted one of her hands from her nest of blankets in a wave before blowing a playful kiss to the young woman.
"Next time you stop by I want to hear that you've got that collar back on your man, understood?"
Mai gave another laugh as she slipped out of the door. "I'll see what I can do."
Alone in the room, Tsume briefly considered getting up for the day.
The thought was quickly discarded.
Maybe in an hour or two.
Of all the things she had expected to walk into, Naruto leisurely sipping coffee at his desk had not been one of them. There were no piles of paperwork, no injuries covering him, and he even seemed very well rested.
She attempted to dispel a Genjutsu three times before she accepted what she was seeing as reality.
"Ah, good morning Mai." He greeted her with a soft smile. "Is everything alright?" He was obviously referring to whatever it was that had drawn her away for the last few days- and she hadn't' come up with something on the way over here, she realized- but he didn't' seem at all concerned.
'Because he has faith in you.' Part of her chimed up. 'He knows you're capable of handling whatever happens.'
The thought caused her stomach to twist but she did her best to return his smile.
"It is, I'm sorry for the delay." He waved of her apology.
"I'm sure it was important if it drew you away for so long, thank you for taking care of it."
He hadn't even asked what it was, knowing that if he needed the details she would have provided them.
"You should get some rest." He commented as he drained the last of his drink. "Anything that requires days of attention must have you exhausted."
"Oh, no. I took a chance to rest before coming back." She had just woken up, she supposed. "But thank you for your concern."
Naruto frowned slightly at that. "Of course, Mai." He actually seemed a bit insulted that she thought being concerned for her was anything noteworthy. He was always concerned about her well being.
Golden eyes peered closely at her.
"Are you sure you got some rest? You seem pretty tired." She had just woken up, but she hadn't been asleep for long.
"I'm fine," copying his own gesture she waved off his inquiry and immediately distracted him by offering one of her own. "Did something happen to your eyes?"
The golden eyes blinked in surprise, almost as if they didn't know their own color, before he gave her another smile. "Just a result of using Karura's Chakra. Do you like them?"
They were very pretty, she thought, but she much preferred his own amethyst orbs.
Knowing the Biju might be able to hear her, she chose her words carefully.
"They're gorgeous, Naruto-kun, but I still love your eyes more." His smile grew.
"Thank you, Mai, Karura is very pleased to hear that." Yeah, the Biju had definitely been able to hear her.
"It's the truth." She was quick to switch the subject. "Were there any issues while I was gone?" There should be reports from her Wolves waiting for her in her office that would tell her exactly what she needed to know but she also wanted to hear it from Naruto himself.
Some small part of her, the part that still questioned him, wondered how much he would actually tell her.
His pause was not heartening.
Naruto was silent much longer than she was comfortable with before he shook his head. "No, no issues. Everything was just fine."
'Hes' lying.' As much as she wanted to deny the seed of doubt that cried out from her heart she knew him well enough that she was absolutely certain he hadn't just told the truth. Just how often had he done this before?
Her inner Wolf immediately came to the surface, trying to assuage her fears by reminding her that the Alpha didn't want her to worry and that such lies were to be expected.
It did little to comfort her.
"I see." Her tone must have conveyed something she hadn't meant for him to know because his smile instantly turned into a frown.
"Is everything okay Mai?"
"Y-yeah. Just more tired than I realized. I think I'll retire to my room for a bit." And now she was lying to him. Her Wolf raged in her chest while the little seed of doubt seemed to quiver in righteous satisfaction. Served him right for lying to her, it said. She found a traitorous part of her agreeing with it.
His frown instantly vanished to show that small, genuine smile she loved so much. "Of course Mai, I understand. Rest well."
She had turned to leave when his voice stopped her.
"And Mai?" With one hand on the door's handle she turned back to him, a sudden dread pooling in her stomach.
It was unfounded.
"It's good to have you back home."
As she gave him a small smile and said "It's good to be back." she had never hated herself more.
Until I next have your attention,
-Eyazahrid