"Talking"
'Thinking'
Jutsu/ Bijuu/ Summons
Flashbacks, Letters, and Setting
I don't own Naruto
Chapter 16: Preparing for Graduation
5 Years Later… (12 Years after Kyuubi Attack)
At the Academy
"Congratulations on getting this far, everyone." Iruka told his rowdy gang of students, who were now in their last year of the Academy. "Now, I know it's been a long journey, but there's one last obstacle to pass before any of you are considered real shinobi. The Genin Exams. I know I've been talking about it all semester, but now it's finally here. Next week, on Friday, we'll be holding the Genin Exams right here in this room."
The students in the room all began to stir with excitement, and they began looking at each other and sharing looks, communicating their thoughts with facial expressions and small body gestures. It had been 5 years of preparing to become shinobi of Konoha, and by next week Friday, they were going to finally become shinobi. It had been the hot topic of the class all semester.
"Now I'm going to give you a heads up on what's going to be on the exams, so you can all prepare for it during this coming week. We won't be giving you any homework this last week either, so I want you to use that extra time to train and prepare, ok? I don't want to see you messing around during that free time, and then come to me complaining after you fail the exams." Iruka informed and warned his students.
The students didn't want to hear any more of Iruka's nagging, so they motioned for him to continue.
"Yeah, yeah, I'm getting to the main point, so don't rush me. I just want to make sure you all understand how important this all is." Iruka told his impatient students. "Anyway, the exam will be divided in to 5 sections. The first will be the written portion, which will cover history and chakra theory. The second portion will be kunai and shurikenjutsu. The third will be physical fitness, where we'll test your endurance, strength, flexibility, agility, and reaction time with an obstacle course. The last 2 portions will take place after lunch. They will be the taijutsu test, and ninjutsu test, which are considered to be the main attraction of your exams. You may invite your parents to watch, and there will be several Jonin who will come to watch, and some of them may end up as your Jonin sensei, so make sure you come prepared."
The students began to stir again after Iruka finished his speech, sharing their thoughts on the exams. Iruka decided it was one of the last few times they would all gather like this and talk, so he decided to give them a few minutes to chat amongst themselves on the topic that was just discussed.
"I can't wait until Friday! Just watch me ace this exam and show all those dummies that I'm not a dead last loser! Can't wait to make them eat their words and leave this stupid, boring place behind me forever!" A fiery, redheaded girl exclaimed to her friends.
Sasuke just gave a smirk as a response, keeping his reaction minimal, though he too couldn't wait to prove himself.
Ino giggled at her redheaded friend's boisterous personality, though she couldn't help herself from stealing a few glances at her crush. A pink hair girl was also peeking over at Sasuke, and when her green eyes met Ino's teal ones, they began a stare-off and both decided to outdo the other and accepted each other's challenge, strangely communicating without any words.
Hinata's reaction was not as confident, and she felt nervous for the upcoming exams. What if she performed badly and dishonored her clan? Her father already deemed her a failure, and did not shy away from telling her how he felt. She was already practically excommunicated from her position as heiress, unofficially replaced by her younger sister Hanabi, who showed a lot more promise to her father. Hinata envied her friend's confidence. Even with all the setbacks that she faced, Narumi somehow was able to ignore them and remain confident that next time will be better.
"H-how are you so confident, Narumi-chan? A-aren't you worried you might not do well? What if we f-fail?" Hinata asked Narumi.
"Heh, as if! And what did I tell you Hinata-chan? You're the last person that needs to worry about failing! You're super smart ya know! And you're probably the strongest girl in our class when it comes to taijutsu!" Narumi told her pale-eyed friend to assure her. She meant it too. Hinata's father was harsh on Hinata, but Hinata was even harsher on herself as a result, and she didn't see the talent she possessed.
"T-thank you Narumi-chan." Hinata replied with a small smile. Narumi always made her feel better. She felt like Narumi had so much positive energy and confidence, that it seeped into the people around her, and Hinata always felt more confident when Narumi was with her.
Sakura raised her hand. "Iruka-sensei? What jutsu will we need to perform for the ninjutsu portion?"
"Oh yeah! I almost forgot to tell you. Thank you, Sakura." Iruka thanked Sakura as he smacked himself in the forehead for forgetting. "You'll need to perform 3 jutsu. The Kawarimi (Body Replacement), Henge (Transformation), and Bunshin (Clone)."
"B-bunshin?" Narumi gasped as she deflated in her seat. Drat, it just had to be the one jutsu she struggled with.
"D-do you think you'll be alright, Narumi-chan? Isn't the bunshin the one you had t-trouble performing in class?" Hinata asked out of concern.
Narumi began pulling at her hair, with her face on her desk, until she had an idea. "Oh yeah! I'll ask Shizune-nee and Tsunade baa-chan to help me with chakra control! They're supposed to have the best chakra control in our village!"
"That is a sound idea, Narumi-san. It is reasonable to go to an expert to receive help in said field." Shino agreed in his usual monotone voice.
The seven agreed to work their butts off this week, and all become shinobi. They hoped they would be able to be on the same teams with at least one of the seven. Though it was unspoken, each of them knew there being 7 of them meant there was a chance the teams might be split into 3, 3, and 1, or 3, 2, and 2, or maybe even all on separate teams. Each of them just hoped they wouldn't be the one unlucky person.
It was going to be a long week of hard work.
Hours later, at Tsunade's House
"Welcome to dinner!" Tsunade greeted her favorite living relative, who came to have her weekly dinner with Tsunade and Shizune. "Naruto sent a message to let me know that he's busy tonight so he won't be able to make it." Tsunade informed Narumi.
"That's fine. It'll be like a girl's night! Sweet!" Narumi exclaimed, and Tsunade laughed at her youthful exuberance. She loved having the redhead around, and her positive energy had helped heal Tsunade's wounded heart, filling it with love and optimistic energy.
Tsunade had reached out to Naruto and Narumi, hoping to connect with her last remaining family members, and hoping to get closer, Tsunade had suggested having weekly dinners, so they could talk and catch up with each other. Both the Senju and their cousin clan, the Uzumaki, were big on family time, so Tsunade had grown up with family dinners which helped strengthen the bonds within the clan, and she had invited the siblings to do the same. It was her way of making up for lost time.
Naruto, due to his first encounter with Tsunade, and his resentment towards people who had abandoned him and his sister when they were young, didn't care for family dinner with someone he considered a stranger, or even worse, someone who had abandoned them in their time of need.
However, Narumi was excited to meet new family members, and was less jaded and bitter than Naruto, mostly because Naruto had showered her with love and kept her away from walking the same path as him. He wanted her to grow up as a happy and bright child, like he once was.
Since Narumi wanted to have the family dinners, Naruto reluctantly decided to tag along, mostly to make sure Narumi was alright. Over time however, he had softened up to Tsunade's presence due to her genuine and constant effort. While he didn't show it in the same open way as Narumi, he was close to Tsunade as well, though he struggled to show it, mostly communicating with her with sarcastic quips and comments.
"Dinner's ready!" Shizune announced, as she brought 2 trays of udon. One tray holding 2 bowls for her and Tsunade, and another tray holding a bowl of udon for Narumi, as well as a plate holding more noodles for refills, mostly for Narumi. "I made sure there are plenty of veggies, so you can get all the nutrients you need. There's also a plate of tempura in the kitchen. Do you mind getting it Narumi-chan?" Shizune asked Narumi as she began placing the bowls at their respective seats at the table.
"Sure thing Shizune nee-chan!" Narumi yelled out as she ran to the kitchen. Shizune chuckled as she watched her favorite teen bounce out of her seat. The two of them bonded closely ever since their first meeting. Shizune loved to spoil Narumi whenever she got the chance, and Narumi loved the big sister/ mom role that Shizune was able to play in her life.
A few moments later, the three were digging into their dinner, which Shizune cooked, since Tsunade seemed to have no talent for the culinary arts. While it wasn't ramen, Narumi still enjoyed what she considered to be ramen-lite.
"So, I heard the Genin Exams are taking place next Friday? You excited? Nervous?" Tsunade asked as she reached over with her chopsticks to grab a fried shrimp from the plate of tempura.
"Super excited! I can finally become a kunoichi, instead of being a snot-nosed academy brat, as you put it, obaa-chan!" Narumi replied as she slurped her second bowl of noodles.
"Told you not to call me that, brat." Tsunade replied with tick on her forehead.
"So how are your preparations going, Narumi-chan? You feeling confident in all of the sections?" Shizune asked, cutting in before things descended into chaos like it always did when an angry Tsunade was involved.
Narumi was about to respond, but she stopped herself to think for a moment, before she decided to ask for help. "Well, onee-chan, to be honest Naruto nii-chan trained me in all of the basics pretty well, and I'm really good with the physical stuff, but I'm struggling to get my bunshin right because of my sucky chakra control. You think you and obaa-chan can give me some help?"
"Of course! We know a lot of chakra control exercises since we're both medic nin! We'd love to help you Narumi-chan." Shizune replied eagerly.
"Sure thing, brat, but you could start by stop calling me granny. I'm not that old." Tsunade responded as she pinched the bridge of her nose.
"Sweet! Thanks, Shizune nee-chan, Tsunade obaa-chan!" Narumi replied, ignoring Tsunade's request, much to her chagrin.
"We could start after dinner if you want." Shizune offered.
"Naruto said he was gonna be busy till late at night, so he asked if you could sleepover. You can spend the night here and train with us if you want." Tsunade told Narumi.
"Ooooohh girl's night, help with chakra control, AND a sleepover! Awesome! We can watch movies too and have popcorn! Maybe we can even talk about finding a boyfriend for Shizune nee-chan!" Narumi yelled out in excitement, as she winked at Shizune, who blushed at the thought of a boyfriend. It had been 5 years since she moved to Konoha, and she was still single.
Tsunade chuckled at the sight. It was nice to be surrounded by family again.
At the Hokage's Office
The Sandaime was getting ready to leave his office, and go back home, when ANBU Fox appeared before him in a swirl of leaves.
"Ah, Naruto-kun. What can I do for you?" Hiruzen asked Fox with a smile.
Naruto took off his Fox mask, and placed it on the Hokage's table. "I'd like to resign from the ANBU, Hokage-sama."
Although only Hiruzen and Naruto were in plain sight, there were 5 gasps heard in the room.
"Very professional you guys." Naruto said as he rolled his eyes. He had trained these 4 ANBU guarding the Hokage to higher standards.
Hiruzen chuckled. "It's fine. I'm sure they weren't expecting to hear their beloved captain resigning out of the blue." His face became more serious as he asked, "I've got to admit I'm pretty shocked as well. Why all of a sudden?"
"It's something I've been planning for some time now, Hokage-sama." Naruto replied.
"But you're the best we've got. Your absence will leave a huge hole in our ANBU's capacity. Are you sure? Have you talked to the ANBU commander?" Hiruzen asked, hoping to change Naruto's mind. He was very reluctant to lose his most reliable ANBU member.
Naruto chuckled. "Heh. Let's just say he wasn't thrilled. Might have shed a few tears and held on to my ankles as I left, but you didn't hear this from me. Besides, it's not like I'll leave the ANBU with nothing. I've trained many of them, and I can't even count the number of seals I've created for their operations, and the equipment I've upgraded with them. They'll be fine." Naruto assured Hiruzen, who was still very reluctant to accept Naruto's resignation.
"I suppose you're right. You've been a great asset for the ANBU, and you've done more for this village in your 8 or 9 years of service in the ANBU, then most do their whole lives. Even if most people don't know, I do, and so does everyone in the ANBU." The Sandaime told the blonde in front of him.
"I must ask though, what do you plan to do now?" Hiruzen asked the now ex-ANBU captain.
Naruto responded with a grin. "It's time for me to claim my parents' legacy.
At the Sleepover
"Whew! That shower was just what I needed after falling into that stinkin' pond for the zillionth time!" Narumi exclaimed as she came out in her pajamas after taking a shower.
"It took a while for you to grasp the idea, but you've shown a lot of improvement tonight, Narumi. Naruto's idea of training with your shadow clones was brilliant. I'm still surprised at how effective it is. Most people can't do anything like that you know." Tsunade told Narumi, as she helped Shizune lay out several thin mattresses on the floor between the couches in the living room for their sleepover.
"With the kind of improvement you're showing, you'll be able to perform the bunshin with no problem, Narumi-chan!" Shizune told the redheaded girl, speaking behind the mountain of 3 pillows and blankets she carried out to the living room for the sleepover.
They got ready for bed in their pajamas, and got in bed after turning the lights off. The talking and gossip, the highlight of any sleepover, was about to begin.
"So how do they make the teams, obaa-chan? You think I can end up with my friends? It would suck if we all ended up on separate teams!" Narumi asked Tsunade.
"Well, it depends. The teams are usually formed with either a specialty in mind, such as a tracking team or an assault team, or sometimes they form them based on how their skills work together. An example of that would be the famous InoShikaCho trio, which many of their clan members are placed into. Some teams have a certain tradition associated with them. My team, team 7, was one of those teams. Team 7 has a tradition of taking the rookie of the year, kunoichi of the year, and the dead last of the year, and balancing the team out. Seems to work pretty well, considering some of the shinobi produced from past team 7s, such as my team,the Sannin, or Kakashi. I heard there's another Team 7 being formed this year, so we'll have to see." Tsunade told her relative, who listened to her attentively.
"Drat! Sasuke's definitely rookie of the year, but I'm not quite sure who the kunoichi of the year is. It's either gonna be Hinata, Ino, or Sakura, but we won't know until after the Genin Exams. Same thing with dead last. It's either gonna be Chouji, or Kiba-" Narumi paused for a second, before shamefully admitting. "Or maybe me." She perked up again to finish. "BUT! I'm gonna ace this exam! So, I won't be dead last!"
Shizune giggled. "Well, don't worry. I'm sure there's a good chance you'll have at least have one of your friends on your team. Even if you don't, it's a good opportunity to make new friends. They say the bonds you form with your Genin team lasts a lifetime."
"Blehhh, imagine being on the same team with Kiba and Sakura! I'd rather quit. Can't stand those two." Narumi gagged at the thought.
"Anyway, hopefully I can get a cool sensei too. Too bad Izumi nee-chan got super busy with her police work ever since she got promoted to Jonin a couple years ago. She would have been awesome. How about you nee-chan? Wanna be my sensei?" Narumi asked Shizune.
"I'd love to be your sensei, but I'm needed at the hospital Narumi-chan. Besides, the Jonin don't get to pick their students. The Hokage forms teams and assigns them leaders, based on what he envisions for that team." Shizune told Narumi. "That being said, I did hear about some of the Jonin who volunteered to be Jonin senseis for this batch of Genin."
"Really? Who is it? Who is it? Are they super awesome and super strong?" Narumi asked rapidly, unable to hide her excitement on an insider's scoop.
Shizune found Narumi's pure excitement and innocence to be adorable. She couldn't help but giggle. "Well, I've heard Kurenai-chan wants to be a sensei now that she was promoted to Jonin. And of course, now that she's a sensei, who else but Asuma is gonna apply to be a sensei as well."
"Asuma? He's back from the fire capital?" Tsunade asked to that bit of gossip.
"Are they strong? Are they awesome?" Narumi asked.
"Yes, he's back from the capital, Tsunade-sama, and yes, they're both very strong, Narumi-chan." Shizune replied to barrage of questions that were coming at her. "Asuma-san is Hokage-sama's son, and was strong enough to catch the fire daimyo's eye and be recruited as one of the 12 guardian shinobi."
Narumi's violet eyes sparkled with excitement as she imagined being trained by one of the 12 guardian ninja.
"Kurenai is quite strong as well, although in a different field. She's one of the best, if not the best, genjutsu users in the entire village, and is known as the genjutsu mistress." Shizune continued to inform Narumi.
Narumi stuck out her tongue. "Blehhh, genjutsu is lame. I suck at it anyway. I hope I don't get her."
The three continued to talk late into the night, until they fell asleep, one by one.
The Academy, A Day before the Genin Exams
The classroom was filled with the excited chatter of students discussing the upcoming exams, and who was going to be on who's team. Narumi and her friends were some of those students discussing that very same topic.
"So how do you think our team placements will be?" Narumi asked her group. "Hopefully I don't end up with Sakura, Ami, or Kiba. They're the worst."
Hinata nodded. "They do seem to b-bully you the most. I just hope I have a kind t-team and sensei." The pale-eyed girl admitted.
"Maybe we could be on the same team, Sasuke-kun." Ino asked Sasuke as she tucked her hair behind her ear.
"Maybe. As long as I get strong people on my team who won't hold me back, I don't mind." Sasuke replied.
"You probably won't be on the same team." Shikamaru lazily mentioned with his head resting on his arms on the desk. Ino gave him a death glare. He was used to it and shrugged it off.
"You, me, and Chouji are most likely gonna be placed on the newest generation of InoShikaCho team, since we're all clan heirs." Shikamaru explained. Ino knew this made sense, but tried to deny it. A girl can dream, can't she?
"With our Kikaichu's tracking skills, I am likely to be placed on a tracking team. Perhaps I will be on a team with Hinata-san and Kiba-san." Shino speculated.
"You never know. I just hope I have at least one of you guys on my team. Also did you guys hear anything about who might be the Jonin senseis? Hope we get good ones!" Narumi asked her friends.
"I've heard the names Mitarashi Anko and Shiranui Genma being discussed by my father." Chouji told his friends in between bites of his chips.
"ANKO?" Narumi and Sasuke yelled out in unison. Sasuke feared that woman ever since he first met her, and his pale complexion paled further at the mention of her name.
"That crazy snake nee-chan is gonna be a sensei? She's gonna scare some poor Genin into retirement." Narumi sighed as she shook her head.
"K-Kurenai-san told me she was planning on becoming a sensei. She's quite kind. I hope I get her as my s-sensei." Hinata softly spoke out.
"Really? I heard she's gonna be a sensei too, but she's a lame genjutsu user. I heard the Hokage's son is gonna be a Jonin sensei this year! Heard he's super strong! I hope I get him!" Narumi shouted out.
"As if someone like the Hokage's son is gonna be your sensei, loser." Ami condescendingly told Narumi with a smirk, as she walked over towards her with her gang. They always tried to belittle her in front of their precious Sasuke-kun.
"Shut up Ami. No one was talking to you anyway." Narumi spat back at her.
"As if the dead last loser is gonna pass the exams in the first place. She might see basic math on the test and run away crying." Sakura teased, and the rest of them broke out in laughter.
"Even if you do pass, a loser like you will probably get a lame team and a lame sensei. I guess that quiet blind girl is gonna be on your team." Another bully teased, referring to Hinata.
"YOU! You shut your stinkin' mouth about Hinata-chan, or I'll do it for you!" Narumi shouted out as she shook her fist at the bully.
"What? You don't want to be on a team with miss no-personality? I thought she was your friend? Just face it, dead last. No one else wants to be on your team. Even Shisui didn't want you on his team so bad he killed himself just to avoid you." Ami disrespectfully told Narumi.
Narumi stopped yelling at the bullies and sat down and opened her bag to pull out the biggest textbook she had.
"What, you think you some last-minute cramming will help you pass, loser?" Sakura asked Narumi.
Narumi calmly turned around and threw the book at Ami's face as hard as she could. The book smashed into her cheek and sent her flying into the wall, where she smashed her head. She slumped over, passed out.
"Hey you can't do that!" Sakura yelled out, only to be silenced when a metal ruler embedded itself 13.4 cm deep into the concrete wall next to her head, if the markings on the ruler were anything to go by.
"If any of you talk about Shisui nii-chan or Hinata-chan like that ever again, and I'll beat you up so bad, you won't ever be able to talk about anyone ever again!" Narumi shouted out, her hair floating up behind her, and a fire burning in her eyes.
Sakura looked at the ruler next to her head and gulped. She and the rest of the bullies grabbed Ami's unconscious body and slinked away to their seats.
Council Meeting
"Now that everyone has gathered, the council meeting will now-" Koharu was cut off when the doors of the council meeting room were slammed open.
Naruto walked into the room in his new Jonin attire, now that he was a regular Jonin for the first time. He wore a blue, short sleeved cloak that reached down to his lower calves, and were embroidered with black flames at the bottom. It looked just like his father's cloak, except it was blue and black, and had an orange Uzumaki swirl on the back instead of having the characters for Yondaime. Under that he wore a black, long-sleeved turtle neck shirt underneath his Jonin vest, and black ANBU pants.
"What is the meaning of this? You can't just walk in like this during a council meeting! This is outrageous. ANBU! Escort him out of here!" Koharu commanded the ANBU protecting the council meeting.
"And why not? I'm a clan head after all." Naruto asked the council.
"You are not a clan head, boy. Who told you you could act like this?" Homura rebuked.
"I most certainly am a clan head. That empty seat seems to have my name on it." Naruto defended himself as he pointed at the empty Uzumaki seat next to Tsunade.
"ANBU are supposed to be neutral! They are not allowed to represent their clan!" Homura argued back.
"Well good thing he isn't ANBU anymore then. He resigned a few days ago." Hiruzen spoke up, silencing the debate. "Please, go and take your seat Naruto-kun."
Naruto gave the opposing council members a smug look as he took his seat.
"Now that's been settled, we'll begin the meeting. Let's start by congratulating Naruto-k-," Hiruzen caught himself. "Let's congratulate Naruto-san on joining the council." Mikoto and Tsunade warmly welcomed him, while the other council members did the same, but less enthusiastically.
"Now, let's hear reports on how things have been going for the village. Shikaku?" The Third asked, letting the Jonin Commander know to begin his report.
The council members took their turns reporting on their respective areas, and it was finally Mebuki's turn to report on Konoha's financial situation.
"Trade has been steadily increasing, and we have passed the levels of trade we have had even before the Kyuubi attack in some areas. We're close to being back to where we were. Our emergency coffers have been restocked, and our treasury is almost 90% of where it was before."
Hiruzen was happy to hear the good news of Konoha's recovery. It had been a tough 12 years, but Konoha was almost just as strong as it once was, at least economically. It would take more than 12 years to replace several entire generations of experienced shinobi that perished in the Kyuubi attack.
"Excellent. In a few months we'll be able to complete our recovery, and even surpass our past wealth if all things go well." Hiruzen optimistically stated.
"Great. Now that Konoha is filthy rich again, how about it pays me back the money it stole from my clan?" Naruto interjected.
"Such disrespect, as expected from a 19-year-old." Hiashi stated in distaste.
"You will address the council more respectfully, boy." Danzo told Naruto who rolled his eyes at him. As if he would listen to a treasonous old bat who was going to face justice sometime soon.
"Can you stop trying to change the subject and tell me when I'm getting my money?" Naruto demanded.
"The village stole no money from you, Naruto-san." Hiashi said to Naruto.
"As the stewards of your inheritance, and as your guardians, we had every right to use that money however we saw fit to best provide for your needs and for your well-being. The council decided the way that would achieve that best was to have a stable village. Don't act as if you didn't benefit from having running water and electricity. Our stable economy was what put food into your orphan mouths." Mebuki told Naruto. She hated that boy ever since he humiliated her 5 years ago.
"Oh, is that so? So, you think the best way to take care of children is to make sure the village is stable? Then please tell me, how much of your own money you put into the village's recovery, so that your children could benefit from running water and electricity and having enough food to eat. Go on, I'm waiting." Naruto fired back in response.
"Well, it's different since you were an orphan. You were supposed to be taken care of by the village run orphanage, and the orphanage depends on the village. The village needed to be stable to provide for the orphanage, and in turn, you and your sister." Mebuki explained.
"That's nonsense. You promised me that you would refill the accounts of his clan when our village recovered financially. You just told me we were a few months away from reaching that goal, so I supposed we'll be able to finally repay him for the loans he unwittingly gave us." The Sandaime concluded.
"Good to hear that. Thank you, Mebuki-san. I'll be waiting. Don't forget to add interest. I'm sure someone of your position is well acquainted with the concept of interest after borrowing money, right?" Naruto sarcastically asked Mebuki.
"Now, based on the letter my parents left me, it says our clan had around 50 billion Ryo. So, since you left me with around 100,000 Ryo, oh yeah, and you took care of our needs with basic necessities for a few months too. Let's be generous and say you spent 300,000 Ryo on us for 4 months, that adds up to 1.3 million Ryo you actually spent on us or gave back to us. That means the village "borrowed" 49,998,700,000 Ryo from my clan. Let's just be nice and say I want a 1% interest for that money. I believe in Konoha the interest rate compounds every year?" The blonde teen asked the chief of finance of Konoha.
Mebuki ran some quick calculations before she began to sweat. "T-the interest alone would be close to 6.3 billion Ryo!" She stuttered out.
"Oh, is that so? My calculations told me it was somewhere around 6.341 billion. That 41 million sure would be missed by me, Mebuki-san." Naruto told her smugly.
"That's outrageous! We can't afford to pay that much money simply on interest!" Mebuki shouted out.
"Well, if you can't afford to pay it back, you shouldn't have borrowed. I refuse to let my clan be taken advantage of. I'll refuse my sealing services, and I'll even reclaim some of my work until I get what I am owed."
The council was in uproar. They couldn't afford to pay over 56.3 billion Ryo. That would empty the village's treasury and throw the village into chaos. However, they couldn't afford to lose Konoha's access to Naruto's seals, which were the best in the world right now, and what gave Konoha a huge edge over everyone else when it came to seals and overall security. With Naruto framing it as the village taking advantage of a clan, it would also set a terrible precedent for future relations between the clans and the village.
"Perhaps we could levy a special income tax so we can pay Naruto-san back?" Mikoto suggested. "It would be quite difficult to pay in one lump sum, but with our recovered economy, thanks to Naruto-san's generous loan, we are able to generate higher revenues than before. We will be able to pay him back slowly, if he'll accept.
"Ah, an excellent point Mikoto-san. I was hoping to receive it soon, but you bring up a good alternative." Naruto was glad there was someone in the council that he didn't consider a slimy rat.
The council began to grumble at the prospect of higher taxes, but the Hokage silenced them.
"That's enough. That seems to be the best solution. We still have a few months before the proposed deadline to begin payments anyway, so we'll come up with some good figures before then. Now let's move on to the next topic." Hiruzen concluded.
Nobody was quite happy at the outcome, but they were happy to discuss something else for the time being.
After the meeting, Several hours later
The council chamber emptied as the members all began to leave. Soon there was no one left, besides for Naruto, who stayed in his seat, and the Hokage, who was leaving.
"Hokage-sama!" Naruto called out to get the Hokage's attention. "May I have a word?"
Hiruzen turned around to face Naruto. "Of course, Naruto-kun. How can I help you?"
"I understand that many are unhappy with paying me back, even though it is within the confines of the law." Naruto started.
"It's true. It is always easier to borrow, than it is to pay it back. I'll get them to see reason, don't worry." The Third told Naruto.
"Of course, Hokage-sama. Though I do have a suggestion. How about I lower the debt or interest rate?" The blonde boy suggested.
Hiruzen perked up at the prospect. "And in return?"
Naruto gave the old man a mischievous smile. "I'd like a small favor."
At the Namikaze-Uzumaki Household
Narumi dug into her chicken teriyaki that Naruto cooked up for her dinner with plenty of veggies to help her grow. She had been quite short as a 7-year-old, but now she had grown to be 155cm (5'2 for US readers) which wasn't bad for a 12-year-old girl.
"Onii-chan?" Narumi asked her brother.
"Hmmm? What's up?" Naruto asked in response.
"You know how the Genin Exams are tomorrow? I know you've been super busy these days with your ANBU stuff, but do you think you could come to see me at the exams tomorrow?" She asked gingerly.
Naruto gave her a warm smile. "Of course, Narumi-chan. I'll clear my schedule for tomorrow. What time do I need to come?"
Narumi beamed. She was scared he would be too busy and not be able to come, leaving her by herself, when everyone else had their parents with them.
"R-really nii-chan? You won't be too busy? That's awesome! You just need to come after lunch! The taijutsu portion and ninjutsu portion is where the spectators are allowed, so you can come watch and cheer me on!" Naruto rapidly blurted out, elated.
Naruto chuckled. "Sounds good imouto. I'll make sure I'm there on time." He told his sister who was noticeably excited. "Let's get some last-minute training in after dinner, to make sure you're in tip top shape tomorrow. We've got a bunch of haters to prove wrong tomorrow after all."
*Author's Note*
Back with another chapter! I wanted to finish writing this chapter earlier, but I've been busy.
Yeah, I thought I'd be able to get to team placements by the end of this chapter, but it ended up getting longer than I expected. Hopefully I can get to that by the end of the next chapter at least. Made me change the title I had planned. Anyway, this is kind of half of the chapter I was intending on uploading, so hopefully I can upload the other half soon.
So, any guesses on who Narumi's Sensei is going to be?
Anyway here are the latest votes for Naruto's pairing. It's either gonna be Shizune or Samui at this rate, but most likely Shizune based on the numbers.
Shizune 166
Samui 101
Izumi 84
Mei 83
Anko 81
Pakura (undecided at the moment but 11 so far, not counting the average as the starting point, if i did, it would be like in the 90's, but idk)
Anyway, thanks for reading another chapter of the Jinchuuriki's brother! Hope you guys enjoyed it.
Please leave a comment or review, and I'll be back soon with another chapter! Hope you have a nice day! Until next time!