I DO NOT OWN NARUTO/ NARUTO SHIPPUDEN
Chapter 5:
~ With Naruto Six Months later ~
It had been half a year since his 'date' with Hana, it had only been recently that they had made it official, much to the ire of Kiba. His response had been similar to when you overload a seal with too much chakra, volatile. He received a reprimanding from his mother and had been forced to apologise.
Naruto had met with Jiraiya and had finally signed the toad summoning contract. Naruto had really struggled to keep that quiet. He was currently in the Hidden Waterfall Village.
~ Flashback (Three Months Ago) ~
Naruto was making his way to the Hokage tower, he had missed the last chance to meet with Jiraiya due to his mental disposition. Jiraiya had been briefed on the relationship issues and decided that the topic would be taboo unless brought on by Naruto himself.
Jiraiya had also been told of a ninja that was willing to keep up his spy network, to which scoffed not believing that some kid could perform the tasks necessary. That was disproved by Genma Shiranui's skill in maintaining the spy ring, in fact he had outperformed the Toad Sage as he did not waste any time researching.
Against all his protesting Hiruzen had forcefully removed him from his role as spy master, the white-haired man in defiance said that he would still take up his Sanin travelling rights in regular trips around the Shinobi nations to which Hiruzen had no problem with.
Naruto when informed was ecstatic, he would have a sensei again. Ever since the Anko debacle he had stuck to training himself and as he promised to focus on his studies all training had taken a sharp halt.
Naruto had made practically made no progress in creating the wind style Rasengan by putting the wind elemental chakra into the shape of the Rasengan. On the other hand, implementing the change in chakra nature to the already formed Rasengan had minor successes. He needed to create a slightly smaller Rasengan to allow for the wind chakra he would pump into it, but with Jiraiya's training in size manipulation he would undoubtedly speed up in the forming of a complete jutsu.
As Naruto kept on his walk, he would think about the last three months, he had had four more dates with Hana, all of them had gone off without a hitch and he couldn't be happier. Naruto had returned to the academy and was currently sitting in the middle of the class along with Choji. Shikamaru had become the new 'dead last' but Naruto's nickname had stuck, Kiba also wasn't that far in front of the Nara heir.
Him and Ino had become closer as well, she wasn't attracted to the boy in any sort as she still had her heart set on 'her Sasuke-kun'. Naruto had voiced his displeasure to her, to which she used her 'love' for the boy as drive to be a proper ninja. He had said the same to Sakura but unfortunately Sakura had not decided to follow her blond-haired competitor's lead in properly training.
The trio of Naruto, Shino and Shikamaru had also become quite close, due to their shared knowledge of Naruto's parentage they would get together. Choji had learnt of their meeting and voiced his worry of being left out of the friendship group, to make the Akimichi heir believe that he wasn't being left out they told him out Naruto's parents. Choji found it incredibly 'cool' that Naruto was the son of the Fourth Hokage and as the plump boy was as loyal as an Inuzuka had been able to keep it a secret.
He walked through the gates of the tower's courtyard; the dust garden allowed him some final seconds of remembrance before finally entering the building. Seeing his older sister figure, he waved "Hey Nee-chan!"
"Hello Naruto-kun, Hokage-sama should be ready for you"
"Thanks Nee-chan! Wanna stretch the legs a bit, walk with me?"
"That sounds great but there is a meeting afterwards that I must prepare for" Naruto gave her a small pout to which she giggled, her and Naruto had spent even more of her time together since he dedicated himself to his studies. She acted as his tutor regularly filling the gaps in his knowledge.
His pout disappeared as she waved him off, he knew that she had a job to do. Looking upon the building's corridors always reminded him of his dream to be Hokage almost inversely to the Academy's corridors made him want to get out of there as quickly as possible.
The beige halls held a calm complexion which was contrasted by the very audible argument between what seemed the old man and Jiraiya. Seeing as they were in a less than pleasant mood, he decided to just swing the door wide open, the crack as it slammed against the wall drew their attention.
"Pervy-sage!"
"How many times did I tell you not to call me that!" Naruto just shrugged it off. "Too many times for me to count" Jiraiya just mumbled something about children not respecting their elders before turning to him. "I was just talking to sensei here" he said whilst jerking his thumb in the direction of the old man "That I wanted to take to you out of the village for a bit, but being the stubborn old coot he is he wouldn't let me" The white haired man gave his best attempt at puppy eyes pleading at the boy to agree with him.
"Jiraiya, if Naruto wants to be successful in the academy this year he needs to be there"
"Ah, Hokage-sama, that's where you're wrong" Both of the men turned to face the whiskered blond. "I only have to be there for the Genin to pass correct?"
"Technically that would be right, but you really should be there" Naruto wanted to agree, he really did but going on a training trip with a member of the Sanin away from the village was an incredible prospect. "Hokage-sama, I would be foolish to turn down training with one of your students, it would be a good experience as it would also be the first time out of the village for me"
"I thought you would say that, if you really want to go, I'll have your travelling permits ready at the end of the week. That should give you plenty of time to say goodbye to everyone, is this acceptable?" Both gave a nod in agreement and Hiruzen just sighed. "I'll see the both of you off at the end of the week, now I must ask you to leave as I have a meeting soon"
Both Jiraiya and Naruto smiled at each other before leaping out of the windows.
Naruto spent the last few days in the village, saying goodbye to everyone. He had told the class that the Hokage was worried about the boy feeling cooped up in the village and asked Ninja that were going at the same time to have the boy dropped off in the nearest village to experience the outside world. Of course, to the people who knew of who his parents where he told them the real purpose of the trip.
He told Hana of what was happening, she had been disappointed that they wouldn't be going on any more dates, so Naruto made a gamble. He told Hana of his parents and his proficiency in the Flying Raijin, his only request was that she kept it secret and would only activate the seal on the kunai when no one was present. He had also given her a clan and village laws charter, with a specific page bookmarked. She promised to look at it afterwards and would try and restrict the use of the kunai to more private settings.
He had said goodbye to the ramen chefs in the only way he knew how, eating as much as possible before passing out. He told Iruka that he would take the academy literature with him, that titbit of knowledge appeased the instructor.
It had come to the end of the week, Jiraiya, Hiruzen, Iruka and Naruto were all at the villages main gate.
"Well I suppose it's high time we set off hey brat?"
"Sure thing Pervy-sage! See ya later Nii-san, Goodbye Hokage-sama"
Both took off, waving behind them. The two figures left early in the morning, so the luminous oranges and pinks were still present, surrounding the now two silhouettes.
~ A Week Later (on the road to the Hidden Waterfall) ~
"Hey Pervy-sage!"
"What do you want brat?"
"What will be the main point of this trip?" Naruto was getting a bit impatient; they had been on the road for seven whole days and they had done nothing. Naruto had just done similar wind style Rasengan training and the Hummingbird Taijutsu style just with smaller groups of clones.
"I was wondering when you would ask me that, well now that you are curious, I might as well just show you"
"Finally! I've been waiting for this!"
"Calm down, calm down I've been waiting for a while to give you this"
Jiraiya, bitting his right thumb and then smearing the blood against the left palm then going through the hand signs Boar, Dog, Bird, Monkey and Ram.
"Summoning Jutsu!"
From a puff of smoke Jiraiya appeared on top of the same toad as before, this time the toad had in its mouth a scroll a red and green scroll with gold lining.
"Is this…?" Naruto let the question draw out, he had heard of his dads escapades with the Toad's boss summon Gamabunta, this as well as Jiraiya himself with Gamabunta's brother Gamaken.
"You bet, now, go ahead and open that scroll and take a look inside. It's the contract with the summoning toads that's been handed down from earlier generations of ninja, your father was the generation between you and I as you likely already know"
Naruto did as the toad sage asked and unravelled the scroll, seeing the list of names, right to left, seeing the name furthest on the left, his breath hitched. Apart from his jutsu and being inside his house this was the closest he had been to his father, running his hand over his father's signature, he steeled himself. Biting down on his right thumb, similar to Jiraiya he allowed the blood to flow before signing his name. Then tapping the fingertips in blood, he planted them down on the scroll to finish signing the contract.
"Find the place where you want to summon the creature then build up chakra and put down the hand you used to sign the contract. After you have done that goes through the same signs that I did, they are, Boar, Dog, Bird, Monkey and Ram"
Naruto had finished rolling the contract back up, seeing the toad's tongue pick the scroll back up and draw it into its mouth, he turned to his sensei.
"Now go through the signs that I showed you and pump as much chakra into the jutsu as possible"
Naruto gave the man a nod of affirmation before rushing through the signs.
"Summoning Jutsu!"
The result was less than impressive, there was a toad that matched the look of the one that Jiraiya was perched atop although this one was wearing a small blue haori.
"Jiraiya? Why did you summon me? And who is the kid?"
"Ah! Gamakichi you've grown so big since I last saw you! The brat is your new summoner!"
"So, this is the brat that you've been chatting to Uncle-ken about is it?"
Naruto was amused by the relationship that Jiraiya had with the toads, it seemed as if he was one of them. He seemed to be part of their family, it seemed like a great prospect.
"You bet, he's your dad's partner's kid"
"You mean…?"
"Yep, this is him! Naruto Uzumaki-Namikaze" Gamakichi had heard of his pops work with Naruto's father, if this kid was half the ninja his dad was, he would still be ridiculously strong.
"That's so cool, Ma and Pa have been waiting for him to sign the contract and when we were going to meet him. I get to tell them." Turning to the smirking Naruto, Gamakichi realised that he was probably summoned for a reason. "What can I do for you kid?"
"Oh sorry, I was just trying out the jutsu, next time I call for you it'll be for a reason"
"That's cool, though next time you call me or my brother, you better have a snack ready. See ya round Naruto"
"See ya"
And with that Naruto had become a summoner of the Toads of Mt. Myoboku. Naruto was now the second person alive to be able to summon them and joined a minute few who had ever had that privilege.
"This is so cool Pervy-sage!"
"I let you summon the toads and you still call me that you ungrateful brat!" Jiraiya's rant, while it might have come across as serious, he enjoyed the affectionate nickname. It just proved how close the two were.
"No no this is really great, thank you for the opportunity Jiraiya-sensei!" Naruto finished with a small bow. Jiraiya frowned inwardly, though on the outside he smirked, Naruto should not cower under the gaze of anyone. "Naruto do not forget who you are. Do not be afraid to be who you are, show respect, to go against what you believe in to appease someone, its unbecoming"
Naruto had a thoughtful position as his sensei spoke, Jiraiya was right Naruto was losing himself. Time to get that back.
"You got it Pervy-sage!"
"You brat, that doesn't mean you should call me that!" Jiraiya bopped him on the head, it was good to see the kid with some passion again.
~ Four Days Later ~
Naruto and Jiraiya were on the outskirts of the Hidden Waterfall village, the older of the two had told a contact of his that he would be coming to the village very soon.
He had told him of his arrival as their village was quite paranoid about intruders, they had never been invaded, they prided themselves and didn't intend to lose this reputation.
Should anyone come unannounced they would be turned around and barred entry into the village, even someone with the stature of the Sanin would be refused access.
Naruto gazed upon the massive tree, for a village hidden in the waterfalls their biggest feature was that tree, it had to be almost a kilometre tall. As he marvelled at the sight of the tree, he did not notice their approach to the bridge, this bridge connected the village to mainland, it was obviously used for transporting goods.
At the base of the tree was what appeared to be an opening, a massive archway, Naruto guessed it was the entrance to the village.
As they closed in on the bridge, they were stopped by what seemed to be a guard.
"Hold up there, who are you and what business do you have here?"
"I am Jiraiya of the Sanin, this is my apprentice Naruto Uzumaki. I have already alerted your village of my arrival; we are he to talk to Hizen-sama"
"Ah! I apologise for my ignorance Jiraiya-sama, please follow me across the bridge"
"See kiddo, that's how you treat someone with the respect they deserve!"
"What do you mean you old coot?" The bridge guard simply chuckled at the interaction of sensei and student; he was more than aware of the feats of Jiraiya of the Sanin and for him to take on an apprentice he must be skilled.
Crossing the bridge was immense, the sparkling water, the mammoth shadow cast by the great tree was astounding. Naruto was so caught up in the sights that he hadn't realised that he had made it to the base of the tree.
The guard made a hand sign and flared his chakra, it must have been a signal as two more shinobi wearing similar clothing.
"These two will take you into the village follow them and you'll be there in no time" Giving the two a polite smile he waves and started making his way back across the bridge.
The pair turned to the new set of guards before shrugging and following their lead.
Just like with the bridge it was a short walk, the majority of the time was spent in complete darkness. It was a short while before Naruto noticed light emanating from the end of the tunnel. Before anyone could say anything, Naruto had taken off like a rocket. Jiraiya looked at the two amused expressions on the guards faces before letting out a tired sigh, as mature as he was, he was still a child.
With Naruto he had just made it out of the tunnel to be met with blinding light, it took some time for his eyes to adjust. When they finally did Naruto froze, the village appeared to be in a valley, on every peak there seemed to be a waterfall of some sort.
'No wonder they call if the hidden waterfall' he thought with a blank expression.
He had completely forgotten about his sensei and the point of their venture, he got to experience a new village, this was so cool! He bolted towards the shopping district, upon reaching there it seemed to be like a smaller version of the leaf village, people were a bit apprehensive of him, but he put that aside as he was new.
There was a smell that caught him, it was familiar yet different. Ramen! Seeing the small stand, he ordered his usual, three large bowls of miso ramen with extra chashu.
"You sure you can eat all that kid?" The stand owner looked at him curiously, there was no way this boy put away that much food.
"Wouldn't have ordered it I couldn't!" Naruto shot back with a foxy grin; the man just chuckled. "Three bowls coming right up!"
It was half an hour later when Naruto had finished eating, he had ordered five more bowls, leaving the money on the counter to a very satisfied shop owner. Before he could leave, he noticed a commotion outside, a crowd had gathered and appeared to be making some noise. The blond was curious, this crowd were downright furious, pushing his way to the front, he noticed a girl his age staring at the crowd forcing a smile, so forced that it looked painful.
Naruto saw that she was the one being shouted at and couldn't help but think of his treatment in his village, this had never happened to him. He dashed forward, scooping the girl up before she could protest and leaping away.
While Naruto was hopping from rooftop, she was screaming at him to be let down, reaching a small secluded part of a park he did just that.
"Hey! Let go of me!"
"Sorry, did I hurt you?" Naruto knew that what he did might not have come across the way he meant but he was just worried.
All of the girls protests died in her throat, had someone just been worried about her?
Before she could respond he continued "Sorry, it's I saw what happened and thought I'd intervene" Naruto tried to give a chuckle, but the nervousness was evident, the girl was dumbfounded.
"Don't you think the same way as them? Don't you think that I'm a monster to?" Naruto had never been on this side of the conversation.
"No, you look just like a girl to me."
"Don't you think I'm evil because of it?" Naruto pieced it together before he quietly breathed out "You're a jinchuuriki aren't you?" The girl was still confused, that term was not widespread, they were normally referred to as 'containers'. He must be in close proximity to another one to that term. "Yeah and so what if I am?"
"This is so cool!" He had been saying and thinking that a lot recently. The girl's face looked like it had just been hit by a shovel, the expression of complete confusion. Naruto simply lifted up his shirt, the girl blushed and tried to look away, but before she could, she spotted black markings along his stomach, the markings looked like a seal… wait, that means?
Almost as if reading her thoughts, he spoke "Yep, I'm one too" Naruto wasn't proud of being a jinchuuriki, but he had just found someone who shared the same burden that he did.
Naruto quickly noted that he had rushed into the conversation, letting his shirt fall back down. "Sorry, I never asked your name?" once he had slowed down, he took a good look at the girl, lime green hair, deep orange eyes and beautiful caramel skin, wrapped up in a white two-piece set, paired with fish nets. Overall, she was the image of exotic beauty.
The girls visible surprise faded from her face before respond in a chirpy manner "I'm Fuu, nice to meet you!" Naruto had a gentle smile, he was the exact same when some showed interest in him, he too leapt at the opportunity for a friendship.
"It's nice to meet you to, I'm Naruto Uzumaki! What were you doing in the village?"
Her mood sullened "I was shopping for groceries"
"Cool, let's get back there and finish you shopping" Once again her face showed a wide grin. "As a jinchuuriki friends are to come by so let's stick together, I'll be your friend" giving her his trademark grin and thumbs up that two matching shinobi would be proud of.
"You'll be my friend?" Naruto inwardly frowned at the hopeful tone, no one should experience something like this. Receiving a reassuring nod, she continued "If it feels this good with one friend then I'll make one hundred friends!"
"Sounds like a plan, before we go shopping, we should meet with my sensei!"
"Huh why?"
"Well I kind of just ran off and he's probably wondering where I am" 'or he's busy perving at anything that resembles hot springs' he lamented inwardly "He's really famous, I'll tell you about him before you meet him as he can often be quite underwhelming"
Fuu was excited, could she make another friend? "Really? Who is he?"
"Jiraiya of the Sanin" Fuu just froze, her new friend was amongst legendary company, to be trained by the likes of Jiraiya.
"That's so cool!" Oh no, she was beginning to sound like him.
The young pair made their way back along the streets, the glares were back as well as some looks of confusion, someone was treating her normally. This had struck a chord in some of the on lookers, they could see how happy she was that someone treated her that way, while they found it hard to look past the grievances caused by the seven-tailed rhinoceros beetle. It was hard to attribute the beasts deeds to the green-haired girl. The feeling of guilt reverberated through many of the crowd.
Naruto saw the looks and smiled, hopefully this were on the up for the young energetic girl.
They had been walking for close to half an hour when Naruto heard the familiar boasts of a legendary pervert.
"Oh, ladies that isn't even my best story!"
"That's incredible Jiraiya-sama, you must be incredibly strong!"
"Indeed, I am"
Naruto's face fell upon hearing his sensei, the man had no care for his image or self-respect for that matter. Fuu simply quirked an eyebrow, this couldn't be the same Jiraiya that Naruto was talking about.
"Fuu wait up, I've got to go prank my sensei!"
She did as told and waited for the young blond's returns. Only three minute later the boy returned with a devious smirk plastered across his features. This was contrasted by the look of a distraught man who appeared to be in his fifties.
"I can't believe you left your child unattended, you sick old man!" Naruto just snickered while the aforementioned man just gave the boy a venomous look.
"you actually told them that I left a child to go do that!"
"Hey, you're the one who was wasting time!" Naruto said indignantly
"Because you ran off, I had no idea where you went!" Naruto instantly stooped and scratched the back of his head while giving the man a sheepish grin.
"Never mind that, it seems as if you found quite the attractive friend here, already got a date I see, my you work so fast" Jiraiya was playing up to the boy whilst crying waterfall like tears. Both of the Jinchuuriki's blushed a deep crimson.
"I don't like what you're insinuating Pervy-sage!" Naruto was aware of his clans commitment to 'repopulate', at least that was the nicest way to put it. Fuu lost the rose tint that adorned her cheeks, did he not want to spend time her?
Sensing the worry from Fuu, he sparked a conversation "Me and my new friend Fuu here" gesturing and the once again blushing girl, for being put on the spot "Were looking for you just before we go shopping for some groceries for her" The girl gave an affirmative nod to the older man.
"Well he has always had something with the ladies. I presume he's told you about me?"
"Indeed Pervy-sage"
"No! Now you have other people calling me that too!?" going back to the exaggerated crying.
The rest of the day was spent collecting the groceries and looking for a place to stay, Naruto had decided to bunk with Fuu while Jiraiya was not offered the same honour on account of his demeaning habits.
~ End Flashback ~
Naruto had spent the last three months in the village, the best part about his stay was the difference I the way they treated Fuu. He regularly protested those who refused her entry or barred sale of items to her. The majority of the village had begun to look at her like another member of the village and she had made thirteen new friends, and kept looking for that hundred, she kept all of their names written down in her small notebook.
Naruto had spent a day every second week with Hana, Tsume had queried the girl on her disappearances and unfortunately had barged in on the two in the bedroom. The two had not been doing anything unsightly, but the Inuzuka patriarch had assumed the worst. She questioned his being in the village, he had had to explain his use of the Flying Raijin and that he just wanted to spend time with Hana.
Tsume was floored, she had never expected this child who apparently had never showed any enthusiasm in the academy and more than struggled in the academic pursuits, but when he explained the Uzumaki's natural affinity she understood. She apologised about not telling him about his parents and promised to keep his knowledge of the facts secret from everyone.
Naruto had really loved his time in the waterfall village, it still wasn't quite like the Hidden leaf, but it had it's positives. The time he spent with the mint-haired girl had given him a further sense of perspective, while he didn't have it good in his village, the way Fuu used to be treated was completely unforgivable.
But being the compassionate two they were, unlike any others they were able to put the past behind them to move on.
The two had gotten really close, as Fuu still lived on the borders of the and had relatively small living quarters, the two resorted to sharing a bed after several uncomfortable nights swapping between couch and bed. Once again Naruto had left a lasting impact on a female. He had even told her of his parentage, as they were both harbouring dangerous secrets, he chose to place his trust in the
"Do you really have to go?" Naruto didn't want to leave the girl; he had become quite attached to her.
"Yes, but I wish you could come with me" That simple statement was enough to redden the poor girls cheeks, while she had made more friends, she could never forget what the boy had cone for her. She also worried that with him gone everyone would treat her the way she used to.
"Fine, but you have to come back, I can't have you forgetting about me" By now her eyes were glossy and tears stung their corners.
"Here" he handed her one of his kunai "Whenever you need me, need me I'll come, just don't use it too much. We've all heard of the boy who cried wolf" She gave a sad chuckle.
As he began to turn, she wrapped her arms around his chest. "I'm going to miss you"
"Me too, it'll be weird without you. But I need to go" The blond's eyes were closed so he didn't see what was happening, Fuu stretched her neck out to press her lips against his cheek only to stumble against an empty space.
He had left before she could show him what he meant to her, he was just gone, now that he was gone could she build up the confidence to do it again, hopefully.
~ With Naruto and Jiraiya ~
The odd pair were on the road the silence was comfortable, while Jiraiya acted like a father more than sensei for Minato, he filled the same shoes for Naruto. They had their petty squabbles, but they were always in good humour, and now that Jiraiya no longer had a spy ring to maintain he did not need to disappear for periods of time anymore. While Jiraiya did not approve of being forced out of his role, he loved having more freedom and being able to spend more time with the young blond.
He would also tease our favourite Jinchuuriki about his relationship with the female Inuzuka, asking for material for his book or just note taking whenever she was brought up, this earned him hour long chases, one again all in jest.
Just like their relationship had developed, so had Naruto's ability in the form of summoning. He had refrained from summoning Gamabunta as he had been told by his son, Gamakichi that his father was touchy, even around Jiraiya. Naruto knew that soon enough he would have to summon the boss toad as told by Jiraiya it is extremely beneficial, that and It would be awkward for him to summon the toad himself and then him choose to not fight.
On the other hand, he worked very well with Gamahiro, the massive lime green toad had great proficiency in Taijutsu as well as the use of the two swords he carried on his back. Gamaken was quite amicable as well although his constant statements of how 'ungraceful' he was grated on the young Uzumaki's nerves, apart from that he was a highly skilled toad, although he was happiest remaining as Jiraiya's main summon.
Naruto, Gamakichi and Gamatatsu often spent a lot of time together, 'Kichi' and the summoner had become very close, the relationship similar to brothers. He was told that in a few years Kichi would be as big as his father and he quotes, 'Humans just grow to slowly'.
Back to the pair on the road, they were going home, it would give Naruto two days before the final Genin exam. Naruto had suspicions amongst some of the teachers at the academy, this had aligned with similar thoughts of Iruka, some of the Chunnin were just too friendly. Naruto had proposed the similarities with that of Mizuki but the were quickly disregarded, Mizuki had been a friend of Iruka for almost a decade, they graduated in the same class after all.
It would be good to see his friends again, the Hokage, the Ichiraku's pair and as much as he didn't want to think about her, Anko. They had not spoken since the incident in the forest, Naruto made no attempt to push her as that was what had put them in the situation in the first place.
Well, he was two weeks away from being a ninja, everything was looking up.