Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto
AN: let me know what you think of this chapter, I read all of your reviews and take them into consideration.If you catch any mistakes I would appreciate if you pointed them out for me.Enjoy.I've noticed some discrepancies between the app and the website version of my story. The website shows many errors that was corrected before Release, and when I try to correct it through the app, the error is not present on the app so I'm not sure how to correct certain details of the story. I apologize if the Flow is interrupted by these glaring mistakes.
"Go, chains" A red head shouted expectantly while pointing his hand at a home made target.
"Come forth chains!" Yelled an increasingly annoyed Naruto.
"I summon you, chains!"
"I activate my chains!" Naruto mustered the deepest voice he could.
"Come on chains, you were working just fine the other day. What? does my life need to be in peril or something. Jeez." Naruto plopped down on his couch, he eyed his clock.
'Only twenty minutes till school starts, I want to be able use my chains before class starts.' Thought an irritated Naruto.Releasing a deep sigh,"fine chains, if you want to play the silent treatment then two could play at that game"
Naruto stood up from his couch, and began walking to his backpack, red chains sprang out the back of his shoulder blades, and delicately grabbed the backpack, they began retracting with the backpack in tow.
"Huh, a bunch of pranksters are ya" accused Naruto.
"Well then how 'bout a pact then, me and you can pull some of the best pranks in class, what do ya say chains" asked an optimistic Naruto.
Small chains protruded from his left wrist began to wrap around his right hand, it was as if the chains were trying to shake his hand in agreement to the boy's statement. Naruto smiled at their shared interest.
"Good, now shall we be off my kind sir" Naruto spoke in a fictional pompous tone." School awaits us."
"Oops one more thing" Naruto rushed to his bedroom, opened a drawer and pulled out a long sleeve red shirt with a black and red swirl on the back. " can't be going to school shirtless now can I"
Baby blue eyes scanned the room. 'Only five more minutes before class starts' Ino thought.
The door at the front of the class opened to reveal a psyched up red head.
The sight drew Ino's attention. Ino always knew of the red head, he was a loud mouth, never paid attention in class, staring into space and doodling. The worst student. But there's something about the boy that always drew her eyes to him, perhaps it's his exotic looks. Nobody she has ever met or seen in the land of fire looks like Naruto does, she's surmised that Naruto is a foreigner. Well that's what Sakura and her decided when discussing classmates at a sleepover one night.
"Hey, hello, anybody in there" a curious Naruto said. Interrupting Ino's train of thought.
"Huh, what do you want" said an irritated Ino.
"Well, your kinda blocking the only available seat in the class, unless you plan on using that for...whatever it is you do"
"Uhh fine, whatever you can have it" Ino scooted in so Naruto could get the chair near the window.
Naruto began unpacking his back pack." You know, you look kind of familiar, do you happen to know ponytail man?"
"Ponytail man?" Ino asked
"Yeah, he wore like this really cool black trench coat and.."
Ino started laughing uncontrollably. Her father, the clan head, head of the Torture and interrogation department,as well as a renowned phycologist being referred to as 'ponytail man' was not something she even considered would be funny until now.
"Yes he's my dad" Ino said still chuckling.
"I knew you two were related, you even have the same ponytail as him." Naruto responded with a grin.
Ino began giggling again. "I don't think we've ever really talked before, but there's something I've been dying to know" Ino began. Naruto's eyebrow rose in curiosity. " your hair, what do you use to make it look so good, like what products do you use?"
Idly grabbing a red strand of hair."Huh products? What do you mean products, I just use shampoo like everybody else." Naruto said confused.
" oh come on, don't play coy, there's no way your hair is that flawless by only using shampoo" Ino accused.
The door suddenly flew open."alright, enough chit chat, it's time to start today's lesson" Iruka began. "Today we will be going over hand signals, and the importance of non-verbal communication." Finished Iruka.
Naruto slinked back in his chair. 'Damn, why can't he just talk about something more interesting like Jutsu's or sealing methods'
Naruto had a bored look on his face as the lecture went on, suddenly an idea came to mind.
Naruto saw that Sasuke was just a few rows in front of him, this is the perfect time to try out his new chains to mess with that show off.
Naruto put his left hand under the table, pointing his index finger towards the ground, a small red chain snaked out. The thin chain slithered it's way under the unsuspecting students. Making its way to its target.
Sasuke was paying close attention to Iruka sensei's lecture.He was a sponge for knowledge when it comes to becoming a Shinobi. He was gonna need everything in his arsenal if he was going to.. something started to poke at his left calf.
'What the hell keeps tapping my leg' Sasuke thought. Curiosity taking over his need to appear aloof, he looked to the left side of his seat, nothing, he checked the right to be thorough, still nothing. 'What the hell is going on? Is the person behind me trying to piss me off' thought an confused and aggravated Sasuke.
'Damn you Naruto, I can't concentrate on Iruka sensei's lesson with you giggling next to me' thought a irritated Ino.
Naruto could barely contain his laughter. For the past five minutes he's been having his chains poke Sasuke, and then quickly retreat only for Sasuke to investigate and find nothing. Naruto was not the best at reading body language, but he could definitely read the back of Sasuke's head like a book.He was confused and upset, the perfect combination.
Naruto struggled from making to much noise, occasionally a quiet giggle,or cackle would escape his tightly pressed lips. Every now and again when he saw Sasuke try to investigate where the nuisance was coming from, he felt like he was gonna burst out laughing. He had to resort to putting his non chain hand over his mouth to prevent a squeak of laughter. This spectacle had caught the attention of Ino.
'That goofball is up to something, and whatever it is I'm gonna find out.' Ino thought.
Ino began analyzing Naruto's face, his eyes were full of mirth, she would occasionally catch him squeezing his mouth shut with his right hand. Following his gaze, she saw a very irritated Sasuke eyeing the floor around his feet.
'Okay so Naruto must be agitating Sasuke somehow' Ino thought. 'Why would he pick on Sasuke, he's the coolest of the class' thought Ino.
Nudging Naruto. "Hey quit messing with Sasuke" Ino spoke silently, laced with aggression.
"Jeez okay" Naruto whispered back. The single finger chain slowly retracted back into his finger tip.
Naruto rested his head on his arms, becoming bored already. Naruto sat back up, pulled out a blank page and began scribbling furiously.'oh man I forgot about that debt with Hinata, I'm just gonna have to draw her something she might like...dammit I can't think of anything, I'll just draw her instead and hand it to her at lunch'.
After a few hours, lunch has commenced. Naruto tried to push pass the other students to get to Hinata. She was the first to exit the classroom. 'Damn, I'm not gonna let her slip through my fingers, I have to thank her for saving my life' Naruto continued chasing the short haired girl.
"Your a hard person to catch up to, it's like you can just slip your way through everyone" said a panting Naruto. "I just wanted to say, thanks. Thanks for saving my life, I mean it, if it wasn't for you..." Naruto trailed off
Hinata stared at her bear hands remembering the blood that clung to them. "It's alright Naruto, I hope you didn't mind me using a fishing line to close the wound" said a tired Hinata.
"Hey, if you would have told me sooner that all I had to do was get gutted to obtain free fishing line, I would of done it ages ago" said the smiling redhead.
Hinata smiled at that. " I'm sure there are better ways of getting fishing line than being in mortal danger" Hinata said rubbing her chin in a mock thoughtful pose.
"Oh by the way, I'm not sure how to repay you so I drew this sketch of you" Naruto said in an exuberant tone. He pulled out a studious looking Hinata on notebook paper. "Huh, I never knew you didn't have any pupils." Naruto took out an eraser and began erasing the pupils in his sketch."there you go, I know this doesn't make up for you saving me but I hope it's a start" Naruto said, holding out the sketch with a wide grin.
'This is a very descriptive drawing' Hinata thought. Hinata never expected to be thanked for helping save Naruto's life. When she carried the dying redhead into town, she was immediately relieved of that duty by a hidden ANBU. She was told to go to the hokage's office and recount everything that had happened. After the whole ordeal, she was approached by her stern looking father and his entourage. He was not pleased about her dismissing Neji's training proposal to go on a survival expedition. She was never complimented on saving a life, she wasn't praised for her resourcefulness, no. Instead she has been worked to the bone day in and day out. She barely had anytime to practice with her bow. 'It's always about the clan, the prestige means more than the individual' Hinata bitterly thought.
"Uh hello, you good? " asked a concerned Naruto.
"Oh my apologies Naruto, my mind kind of wandered off for a bit, the picture is very adequate, I appreciate your thoughtfulness and hard work in making this for me" Hinata said formally.
Thinking back about her clan, she had to attend an obscene amount of lectures about decorum in public to maintain appearances.'no one wants to be around people as stuck up as I appear, it's all because of the clan rules, it makes us all look like a bunch of pompous jerks'. In reality she admired the red head, even envied him. He was free to express himself in ways she could only imagine. So it felt so wrong to not be herself around the boy who she secretly lives vicariously through. seeing him so open about himself, gives Hinata a little bit of hope for herself.She can imagine being open about her true self rather than this facade her clan has forced her to erect to maintain a appearances.
"Well it was nice talking to you Hinata, I hope we can talk more often" Naruto said. 'Damn I left my lunch inside when I decided to run after her' Naruto abruptly took off in the direction of the classroom.
'What a strange boy' Hinata smiled at his retreating form.
The hours had passed at a snails pace ,but class was finally over. Naruto sat at his desk waiting for everyone to leave. Seeing his chance, he approached his sensei.
"Umm Iruka sensei, would it be alright if I got your advice real quick" spoke a hesitant Naruto.
A single brown eyebrow rose questioningly." Sure, go ahead Naruto, what do you want to know?" Asked the scarred face Chunin.
"Well, I kinda realized that I need to get better, and I'm not much of a classroom learner, can you give me advice on the physical aspects of being a Shinobi I can work on" Naruto asked in rapid succession.
Iruka pondered the question. "Well the most important physical abilities that a Shinobi must hone would be speed, reflex, and endurance." Iruka stated.
Naruto was hanging off his every word. Iruka didn't even realize until now that Naruto was taking notes. " so how would I go about working on these abilities" asked an attentive Naruto.
" well with speed I would recommend doing lots of sprints, and lifting such as squats, leg press, calf raises. Now when it comes to reflex well, that could be worked in through experience such as constant sparing with a dedicated focus on reacting and dodging. When I was your age Naruto I didn't really have anyone close to me to work on reflex what I did was sprint through heavy foliage and dodge tree branches and shrubs exceteria." Iruka said
Naruto continued writing down what he was saying. "Hey I do the same thing from time to time, I didn't know it could be used as a training exercise" said the excited redhead.
"And finally endurance, this ones easy just go for a long run and get your heart rate up. Being a Shinobi relies on mobility, being able to get from point A to point B in a given time, being faster than your opponent, and being able to react quickly. Shinobi heavily rely upon their legs, so if you plan on doing some self training start by building a strong foundation." Implored a smiling Iruka.
Naruto wrote as fast as his hand could write. He wore a funny expression whenever he focused really hard. His face was scrunched in concentration. Naruto's hand stopped scurrying behind his notebook signaling he was finished.
"Hey Naruto, hows that textbook I've lent you on seals going" Iruka asked.
"Oh it's going great Iruka sensei, the first chapter says the user needs good calligraphy, which I already have, and identifying seals is a piece of cake" Naruto said enthusiastically.
"That's good Naruto, we are going to be going over seals next week, I would like to check your aptitude on seals before then, and if your good enough I'll make you a tutor for the day. How does that sound?" Iruka asked.
Naruto wore a slight scowl"tutor? Nobody in this class respects me enough for that Iruka sensei"
"Well if you don't want the job I won't give it to you, it's a shame to I was gonna offer you an all you can eat at Ichiraku for your help, but looks like I'll have to find another helper who'll appreciate gourmet ramen" said with a dramatic sigh.
"No, wait...I'll .. I'll help tutor sensei, only if they call me Naruto sensei then it's a deal" voiced the cheerful redhead.
"We'll have to put a pin in the whole sensei thing for now, come back tomorrow after class I'll test your knowledge on seals"
"That was quiet the bold proposal, coming from you Hiruzen" spoke a mildly impressed Danzou.
"As I've said at the council meeting, our numbers are at an all time low, we have to replenish our forces before another village can take advantage" finished the old Sarutobi, while packing tobacco in his pipe.
"You feel it best to change the course curriculum at the academy as well as raise the retention rates, expecting higher quality and quantity is a paradox Hiruzen"
Taking a few puffs of smoke before retorting." I had to move some money around, in order to produce better quality at the academy I've raised the learning requirements, and as for raising retention, I've thrown in more tutors in the program, to make sure everyone isn't at a disadvantage" spoke the calm Hiruzen.
Danzou took a moment to ponder his words. "I've heard no mention of where this money was coming from, I've seen your tax plan Hiruzen, if this money was coming from taxes, you would of had quiet the hurdle to jump getting this proposal off the ground. Your getting this money from somewhere Hiruzen"
The cats out of the bag, or only partially so."I'm borrowing the funds from the the Uchiha, Minato and Kushina's accounts. Since their money is sitting idly by, we can use it to expand our forces, I emphasis the only 'borrowing' part, when the time comes I will fully pay back their accounts." Said a calm Hiruzen.
Danzou stroked his scarred chin with his good hand in contemplative thought." I suppose that's better than I originally thought, I had believed you had taken a loan from the dayimo" said Danzou.
The door to the office swung open to reveal a middle aged woman in formal clothing. She carried a tray full of snacks with a tea pot in the middle." The tea you've requested lord hokage" she placed the tray on his desk between the hokage and Danzou.
"Thank you Aimi, that will be all"
Pouring himself a cup. "I haven't called you to my office to discuss my proposal the other day. I'm more curious about why I'm getting reports that a' bandit' camp in Kumo is causing such a ruckus, its almost as if the 'bandit' camp is run by some undercover Anbu agents" accused the third hokage.
"Why would I concern myself over some bandit camp in another country" fired back Danzou.
"When Jiraiya tells me that an organized bandit camp is striking crucial supply lines for Kumo, I get curious. Now when I'm told these bandits are employing Shinobi tactics and only parade themselves around as bandits, that's where my attention is peaked. You are poking a sleeping bear Danzou, if they discover that you're behind this or if they found out that Konoha is somehow invovled, this will spark another war"
"I merely created a foothold inside Kumo should a war ever break out" Danzou said evenly.
"A foothold I understand. But intentionally targeting merchants and Shinobi is going to cause suspicion. Pull them out before they are discovered we can't have another war approach us so soon" Hiruzen countered.
"I don't think you understand Hiruzen. Kumo is on the rise, their military strength has exponentially grown. They are in possession of the second strongest tailed beast, and he's a perfect Jinchuriki for kami's sake. I hear that they started to train their second Jinchuriki, now would be the time to assassinate her, she's still in training, with her dead Kumo losses an important asset." Danzou took a moment to let that sink in. "How do you plan on handling this, we can't just use our Jinchuriki should war break out, we don't even have the slightest clue on how they made a perfect Jinchuuriki. Danzou finished.
Hiruzen took a long drag from his pipe before speaking. "Pull out your root Danzou, stirring up trouble will only cause unnecessary bloodshed. That is my final decision on the matter, you are dismissed"
Danzou stood from his chair and walked to the door. "You're still to weak to do what is necessary for our survival, your peaceful philosophy will one day come back and bite you for it" Danzou gave one last hard look at his former teammate before leaving the office.
