Hi everybody!
Back to another chapter of A Web of Hidden Truths.
So the time to know the kid's name is here.
Before we go to the chapter, the disclaimer here. I'm don't any of the characters, they belong to Masashi Kishimoto; just this single plot going on is from my imagination.
Done with that, let's get back to the story!
Chapter 9: The Kid
Konohakure no Sato
At this, Tsunade chuckled and some the others gave a soft smile. "If that gaki didn't want anyone to know about this, she wouldn't have even asked for you all to know the truth." She paused with another smile and slowly answered, "A girl. She named her Ume Uzumaki-Namikaze. Looks-wise, she didn't take up on Naruto but instead looks like a perfect Uzumaki. She has long, bright red hair and bluish-purple eye colour. But character-wise, she absolutely took on Naruto, bubbly, energetic, loud and never the one to give up".
Everyone in the room chuckled at this. The Rookies who hadn't seen the kid felt the urge see her. They wanted to get to know more about her. Seeing their looks, the rest of them decided to give them some more information about the kid that stole their hearts, a minute after her birth.
"The only thankful thing that she didn't inherit from her mother was her habit of playing pranks. All of us were relieved due to that since we all took turns in taking care of her until when she had to attend the academy", added in Kakashi while he continued to chuckle. "Ume-chan was over five months old by the time Naruto came back to the academy. So we men were able to manage her alone for a few hours. She was an absolute angel as she didn't fuss about who carried her or fed her even though she was choosy in certain matters."
"She had the power of YOUTH to even keep me on my toes for the whole day", Gai added in proudly.
"She could eat like a whole buffet and still be hungry", Kurenai remembered with a laugh. "I have no idea how Naru-chan even managed her".
"Oh please!", Iruka rolled his eyes. "Naruto was a wonderful mother. It almost looked like she was meant to be. She acted mature and responsible around her that even we couldn't believe she was the same girl from the academy."
"Yeah… She even mothered the rest of us every time we tried to do something in front of Ume-chan", added in Genma as he chuckled.
"It was like a 180-degree flip to see Naruto leave the house and enter the village and the academy. She absolutely knew how to keep her appearance in the open. But all-in-all she knew her responsibilities and the outcome of her actions. So she worked hard day and night", Raidō put out some facts he learnt while being her ANBU guard. "She has the best of both Minato-san and Kushina-san."
"But how did you all manage to hide this about Naruto and also hide Ume for over a decade?", questioned Ino.
"At first, Ume-chan was hidden inside the Uchiha compound. Whenever she had to be bought into the village, she was henge-d and brought in with one of us instead of Naruto. Later on, when she came with Naruto or Sasuke, they all would henge and enter the village." Asuma answered. "But things got a lot easier once you all became Genin as Ume-chan had nearly turned four and was ready to attend the pre-academy herself. So while we all would be on missions or in the training grounds, Ume-chan would be with Iruka in the academy as 'Ume Sato', a newly moved in student from Hana no Kuni and whenever Naruto or Sasuke had to go out with her, the would pose as her parents in a solid henge with the help of Naruto's seals and moved around the village easily."
The group of friends absorbs information like cotton cloth absorption water. The had learnt more above their heroic friend, more in the last few hours than the combined number of years they knew her.
"But if Naruto knew how to make seals and do a henge so well, how did she fail the Genin exam?", questioned Kiba.
"She didn't fake the failing if you are wondering. She did fail because she didn't know how to do the Bunshin jutsu. More like she could never perform it for the level of chakra she possessed. All of us knew this and so we even had a plan to help her learn another Bunshin jutsu in the following week before she would pass. But Mizuku butted in and we knew that we had to catch him red-handed. So we let things play out. In the end, it turned to our advantage itself as we caught Mizuki and Naruto passed that day itself", answered Iwashi.
"What about when we all had to go out on C rank missions? Who took care of Ume-chan during that time?", questioned Choji.
"She would mostly stay with me. But whenever I was busy Kono-kun took care of her along with Meogi-chan and Udon-kun. And for the nights, if I couldn't take care of her, one of the other's who was free, took her in. Else Sandaime-sama kept her with Kono-kun", Iruka
"Yeah! Ume-chan was totally adorable. She used to love her Nīsan and followed Konohamaru everywhere and tried to always copy his actions. It was so funny seeing her chasing him whenever he tried to get a break when we did the babysitting" Meogi spoke. "Even once she entered the academy, Konohamaru was acting like an over-protective brother and stayed with her during the breaks and before and after the classes".
"What about during the time of the Chūnin finals when the Sound attacked?", asked in Tenten.
"We had already suspected the attack. So the day before the finals, Ume-chan along with Konohamaru, Meogi and Udon were placed in the farthest safe house from the village along with Raidō and Iwashi." Answered Genma.
Around this time, Sasuke couldn't take the wait any more. He absolutely loved his Goddaughter and his Imōto. They were his only living family. But his guilt was eating him inside out. So he needed answers. He broke his silence and stopped the light conversations going around.
"Now at least, could one of you tell me how it happened?", he asked.
Another short chapter. What do you think of the relation I posed for Ume and Konohamaru? Also, what do you think Sasuke is asking about? If you are confused, do go back to chapter 3. The reference is given there.
Coming to the name, I want to pick something significant and so I chose Ume. Ume is a Japanese Apricot flower which signifies elegance, faithfulness and pure heart.
So, what do you think of this chapter? Do let me know!
As always, read and review! Would love to hear your opinion of the name and the story on the whole.
That's it for now. See you in the next chapter.