I DO NOT OWN NARUTO/ NARUTO SHIPPUDEN
Chapter 11
"Haku!"
Naruto screamed; he wouldn't believe his eyes.
"So, my future is all used up huh? Wrong again Kakashi" Zabuza sneered, at first shocked, kept his face set
Nothing passed through Naruto's mind apart from the fact that Haku was killed. He refused to believe it. It didn't matter what he believed; this was proven by the blood that poured from Haku's chest and arms to the bridge's floor.
"Za-Zabuza… Thank you, Naru-t-to, you will be strong, I-i know you w-will" Haku croaked out.
Kakashi glanced around to take in the situation, his summoning scroll had been pierced by 'Ice needles?'. Looking to the three opposing ninja he understood. There was an Ice mirror right next to where Haku had appeared.
Not only had the boy leapt in front of an attack knowing he would die, he covered all bases by hitting his scroll and Asuma with needles. The scroll being ruined caused the hounds to de-summon back to their plane, Asuma had been struck twice in the lower portion of the neck and three times near the coccyx.
Asuma was in a state of disbelief. He had just been standing there, his blades protruding through the young boy when he crumpled into an undignified heap, completely unable to move his lower body. he would gladly give his life for the village but to experience being on the other end of it was truly eye-opening. "The boy threw himself in front of my attack."
Kakashi was furious, while Haku was by no means innocent, the last thing he deserved was this. "He saved you worthless life at the cost of his own." Looking into the boy's eyes he was met with nothing but warmth.
"Well done Haku" Zabuza said, the warmth was not in his eyes, there was only hatred. He screamed as he gripped his tremendous Zanbatou, unclipping it, he brought it up to swing through Haku, Asuma and Naruto in one sweep. Using the speed, he had left, Naruto made contact with the two and flashed to the seal on Kakashi's arm.
"I knew I'd found treasure when I found you boy. You not only gave me your life, but theirs's too." Zabuza spoke, he had a maniacal look in his eye, one that had lost, one that no longer cared.
"You…" Naruto muttered, in all the silence it carried to everyone's ears. "What brat? got something to say to me?" Zabuza mocked.
"You killed him…" Zabuza's smirked returned.
"Wrong, he gave his life for me, that sensei of yours was the one who killed him."
Naruto silently lay Haku's lifeless body on the ground, closing his eye's heat started to permeate the air. Kakashi looked to Naruto, he could see the air around him mould into sporadic shapes.
"Wrong Zabuza, you killed him! You gave him this life! You're the one who should have died for him!"
Orange flames flickered around him as dread spread through all near. Naruto's normally smooth golden locks gained a feral roughness, His birthmarks which were fine marks darkened as he looked towards the swordsman.
The man had frozen in fear, this level of pure hatred seems too much for a mere human. 'What is this kid?' He thought, seeing the boy tilt his head in his direction, he prepared to see the blue orbs he'd come to expect.
What he saw was the definition of anger, his eyes had become blood red, the pupils becoming slitted. They were no longer eyes of a human, they were an animal's.
An animal that wanted to kill.
Leaning over the body at his feet he stretched out onto his hands and feet. The orange flames to take more shape, encircling the boy in what appeared to be a tornado, this tornado was different.
This tornado was made purely out of chakra, Kakashi had only felt this presence once before. That was a day he never wanted to think about again, the day he had lost two of the last people truly close to him.
Minato and Kushina. It was the day of the Nine-tailed fox attack. 'Could it be! The seal has been broken. No... it has been loosened and a glimmer of the Nine-tailed fox chakra has slipped through, but the seal still holds.'
There was a deep growl, one that emanated from the depths of Naruto's stomach. His eyes, never leaving his target, closed, the beast was preparing.
They shot open as he himself made an attempt at the Mist Jonin. At a speed unknown his fist impacted the man's face, before he could even register the pain he'd been struck again, this time in the stomach. For a third time he was hit, this time a downwards elbow to the back of the head.
Impacting the floor face first he heard Naruto yell. "Do you feel nothing?! Does the fact that he gave his life for you mean nothing?!"
"Be quiet you fool, Haku's dead what does it matter?" Pounded further into the bridge Naruto asked. "You can just stand there and look at his body and feel nothing? You and Haku were together for years! Doesn't that mean anything?!"
"You are strong, but you don't understand the way of shinobi. I merely used him just as Gato used me, Now, it's over. His usefulness is at an end, the loss of his strength and skill, yes, that means something to me. But the boy, nothing."
"If you mean that you're even more of a demon then everyone thinks." Naruto releases his rage into a stomping kick to the stomach, Zabuza coughs up blood. The crater they were already standing in just expanded.
"Why you! You ungrateful... after everything he did for you! Haku lived for you!" Releasing his foot from the man's gut he waited until their eyes met. "You were the most important thing in the world for him! And he meant nothing to you? Nothing at all?"
Naruto reached down and picked the man up, facing him to see the limp body of the ice-user. "Well he was sacrificing everything for you! You never felt anything at all for him?!"
"If I become a shinobi, strong just like you say, will I become as cold-hearted as you are?! He threw his life away! And for what? For you and your dream?!" Shaking the man vigorously he began to feel tears prick at the corners of his eyes. His anger long since gone.
"You never let him have a dream of his own! But he didn't care! And you just toss him aside like he was nothing! A broken tool… man that's so wrong, so wrong!" Naruto froze upon hearing the least expected thing.
'Drip… drip… drip…' The floor around Zabuza had three small damp spots, looking at the back of the mans head. "You talk too much" Zabuza stated, the tone was distraught. Naruto looked on in surprise.
"Your words cut deep, deeper than any blade." Kakashi had lost all his anger too, the man was not good by any stretch of the imagination. But he experienced something that no one should but every does.
Loss.
"While he fought you, his heart was breaking two. You see Haku was always too soft and too kind, he felt pain and sorrow and now, cruse him, I feel them too. And something else, I feel content that this is the way it ends." The tone was sad but calm, he truly had accepted his death, yet another form of strength.
"Too right you are there Zabuza!" All head turned to face the new voice; A short man was stood in front of a large, armed crowd.
"Gato" Zabuza stated, anger returning. "Why are you here?"
"Well, you see there's been a slight change in plans. According to the new plan, you die right here in this bridge Zabuza." The swordsman's eye's widened slowly.
"You were too expensive, so I decided to take you off the payroll. Of course, even these thugs I brought with me cost something, so if you could manage to slaughter a few of them before they take you down, I'd appreciate it."
Gato chuckled to himself. "Think you can handle that Demon of the Hidden Mist. Although you're currently being held up by that child, so my hopes aren't too high." He mocked.
"Well, well Leaf ninja. It would seem that our fight is at an end. Since I am no longer in Gato's employment, Tazuna is safe, we have no quarrel."
"It would appear so." Kakashi said, clearly strained.
Naruto slowly put the man down. Zabuza flexed his hand. "Kid, can you give me my sword?" Naruto nodded, unseen by Zabuza, trekking the blade that lay scattered on the floor.
Though the blade was broken, it's end was broken, halfway through the circular hole. "Gato, this is known as the Executioner's Blade, The immortal blade. Do you know why that is?"
Gato was slightly scared now, but he would not let it show. "Oh, do tell."
"This blade, when broken has a special ability. It uses the iron form the blood of its victims to rebuild itself. And currently It's broken, I will now show it's ability firsthand." Naruto gripped the blade, on top of his skill's, this blade was the reason Zabuza was so well known. It would be his legacy.
Zabuza gripped his sword, familiar as always. A feral grin spread across his features, even hidden by the mask it was visible and scared most of the thugs that Gato had brought with him. That included Gato himself.
Running to hide behind the crowd Gato yelled. "That's enough of this! Take him down now!" The large assortment of thugs cheered, readying themselves before charging.
Zabuza stared at them impassively, they were not his target. Bruised, beaten and finally… broken he charged too, instead of trying to avoid them he simply hacked away, cleaving through five or six at a time. This opened him to attacks, he was pierced multiple times, their swords and spears hanging out of the entirety of his body.
That was until they realised the futility in trying. The man was not interested in them, he was focused on their employer. "Somebody do something!" Gato yelled.
Naruto wanted to turn away, it was a horrid sight, the bloodshed was vile. Kakashi noticed his younger brother's movements and whispered. "Don't turn away, when you live like a warrior, this is how it ends."
Naruto looked on in sadness and understanding, he respected Zabuza. The man clearly cared for Haku and his loss had been the final straw, he'd broken, and he was taking out his hatred on a man that deserved it.
This man, Gato had found his way to the edge of the bridge. Looking over the edge it was a colossal drop, he turned to face his crowd of thugs when it burst open. What he saw was not a man, this figure had his mammoth sword in his right hand, high in the air.
He was coming at him with a pure intent to kill, he drew the sword back. When he was close enough, he thrust the blade forward, due to it being broken it dug to large holes in the mans chest. He pinned the man to the ground when Gato spoke through coughing up blood. "You crazy fool, if you're so eager to join your friend then go ahead but you're not taking me! Not this time!"
Zabuza bore holes into the man with his stare. "I won't be joining Haku, where he's gone, I cannot follow. We wouldn't be welcome where he's gone to, hells where we're going Gato!" He plucked the blade from the mans chest and let it fall to his side. Instead he pulled a spear the had been lodged in his side and drove it into the man's stomach.
As he dragged the man to the edge of the bridge with the spear he spoke. "I can't think of a more fitting destination for a demon ninja, can you? I am told there are many demon's down there of all shapes and sizes. Oh yes, I should fit right in! You on the other hand Gato, well I fear you're in for a long and very painful eternity!"
With that he held the skewered man up by the spear and launched it off the edge of the bridge. Gato was dead.
Turning to face the crowd he began his slow walk towards them. His visioned blurred as he looked upon the shell of a body that was Haku, the sight was so wrong. Haku was such a warm person, to see his body so cold just didn't make sense.
"Haku… so this is goodbye at last, not once did I ever thank you, forgive me for that." Zabuza pleaded to no one in particular. As he began to fall to his knees, eventually collapsing face first. The large assortment of thugs turned to the three ninjas.
"Yoo hoo! Don't go getting too comfortable!"
"This party ain't over yet! Who's gonna pay us now that Gato gone?"
"No way we're gonna leave here empty handed! So, we'll just have to hit that village and see what they've got for us" the crowd cheered at this, they didn't care as long as they got paid, they were fine.
"I'm not in the mood for this…" Naruto muttered, only heard by Kakashi and Asuma. Placing his hands in the familiar cross symbol he shouted.
"Multi-Shadow Jutsu!" The bridge was swamped with black-clad ninja's. More than a hundred of them had appeared and easily outnumbered the goons. "I recommend you leave; I have never killed someone, and I don't want to start today."
The lack of emotion in Naruto's voice ran chills through the crowd. One brave, possibly stupid man stepped forward, Naruto took this as a sign of aggression, one clone sped forward. Landing a punch to the gut, the others who were already looking at him suddenly saw the boy appear and injure one of them with complete ease.
It was a moment later that an arrow embedded itself right next to the foot of the first man to speak.
"There's one little thing that your forgetting about! Before you set one foot in our village, you'll have to go through all of us first!" Looking around all saw a crowd that matched the size of Naruto's army. Inari at the helm, helmet on his head and crossbow in hand.
"Hero's always turn up, especially at the last moment!" Inari cheered, the boy was emitting pure joy.
Behind him were Ino, Sakura, Choji, Tsunami and the rest of the villagers from Wave. Naruto and the two Jonin smiled at the sight. It was also at this point that Sai and Sasuke made themselves known, appearing in an ink body flicker, Tazuna behind them. The older man looked at the crowd behind at his grandson, tears in his eyes.
"They've all come, the whole village." He said proudly.
The thugs couldn't keep their fear hidden, scrambling over each other as they tried to send themselves off the end of the bridge to the boat they came in on. With the amount of them leaping on to the boat and the gushing water it almost capsized from all the movement.
"Victory!" Inari screamed, pure elation.
The villagers cheered, not only had Gato been killed, the thugs and underlings that worked for him were leaving to. It was more than time for celebration, there was no way that any of the people alive today would ever forget this.
Naruto dispelled his clones once all the enemies had finally fled. There was no smile on his face, he walked over to the downed Zabuza, the man was still breathing, clutching at the straws of life.
"Sounds like it's over." Zabuza sounded relieved, he felt that maybe what he'd done could make Haku proud.
"Yeah, it is, you can rest now." Naruto replied softly.
"Kid, I have a favour to ask."
"Anything." Naruto said, the dying wish of a man like Zabuza was one to he heard and adhered to.
"Take me to him, before I go, I need to see him one last time." Zabuza croaked out, his breathing ragged.
"Of course." He began slowly pulling all of the weapons out of the swordsman, Haku would hate to see him in such a state. Picking Zabuza up with a hand behind his neck and one under his knees, he began what seemed to be the longest fifty feet of his life.
The crowd were silent, this was no longer a time for cheering. It was disgusting the lives that ninjas had to live, this was what was happening now. Zabuza's arms fell loosely, he had no strength left, he looked up to see something that he would truly cherish before passing.
It was snowing.
"Impossible, snowing at this time of year?" one villager commented.
'Is it you Haku? Are you weeping?' Zabuza thought, the boy fought and killed for him without a single ounce of emotion. To think that Haku could finally express himself, himself, not the boy Zabuza thought he wanted, but himself was a hard sight to swallow.
Naruto had finally reached Haku's body and laid the man down beside him, Zabuza tilted to see Haku's body, also facing him. "Thank you, kid."
"You were always at my side. The least I can do is to be beside you at the end. Even in death Haku looked content, it felt like he was being stabbed all over again knowing that this boy had, without second thought thrown his life away for him.
Fighting to reach his hand to Haku's face he ran his finger's along his smooth skin. "I know it cannot be, but I wish I could go to where you have gone. I wish I could join you there. Haku..." He tiredly cried, all the emotion he'd locked away for years were coming to the surface.
Sun began to peek through the gathered clouds, streaming onto the fallen pair.
"Haku told me that where he came from it was always snowing, all the time. It must be him; his spirit was as pure as the snow you see now. Don't worry Zabuza, I think you just might join him there, who's to say?" Zabuza smiled sadly, he let out a long sigh before finally closing his eyes for the last time.
Naruto took another look at the pair, if this was the life that people had to life, then he would never let this happen. He would not rest until the nations accepted each other.
~ A Week Later ~
"Is that really it Kakashi-sensei?" Sakura questioned as she placed a floral assortment on the two crosses. They overlooked the bridge, their final resting place, they might have deserved more, but they would have been happy.
"Is that the ninja way? To use and be used by people like tools?"
"Shinobi are all merely tools in the hands of destiny. No point wondering whether it's right or wrong, it just is." Kakashi stated, it was a grim truth they all had to accept, better sooner than later. "It's the same in the Village Hidden in the Leaves."
With that all but two had left the gravesite, only Naruto and Kakashi remained. "Zabuza was someone who seemed to enjoy the thrill of killing. Someone who lived for power and control, but all he wanted was freedom, he knew that what he was doing was wrong, yet he persisted because it was his dream." Kakashi looked upon the boy, he hadn't said a single word since the time on the bridge.
"Would Zabuza and Haku be forgotten?" Naruto asked.
"Unfortunately, they will be forgotten, a sick reality for missing-nin, even those like them." Kakashi stated, he was worried, Naruto had been exposed to too much reality in such a short time. Kakashi had years to break whereas the boy had minutes.
"They deserve so much more." Naruto muttered underneath his breath. "That blade will be his legacy, he was the Demon of the Hidden Mist. A vile killer, one who had slain his entire class in the academy and scores of another ninja when he graduated. But he was a man that fought for his dream and died for it too."
Walking to the blade he plucked it from the freshly lain soil and strapped it to his back. "Haku was a boy that fought and died to protect the one person he found precious to him. I will use this blade to fight for both of them, my dream of being Hokage will be completed and until I die, I will protect everyone I find precious to me."
"Just like them, I will do whatever I can to make sure this happens. I will no longer go against my word, should I give it, I will follow through until it's done."
Naruto spoke with complete certainty, it would take time, but he would make it happen. He promised Haku that, he would do it for him and everyone else.
Kakashi, while still worried, eye-smiled at the boy's promise. He would make a fine Hokage someday, he knew it.
Kakashi gave an unseen nod to the boy as he followed him towards the bridge.
The walk was just as silent as before, the masked Jonin thought it would be sometime before the boy would be back to himself. The two arrived at the bridge, Sakura wanted to ask about the sword but was silenced by a threatening glare from Kakashi.
All leaf ninja lined themselves up in front of the mass of villagers who had come to see them off. Tazuna, with one hand on Inari's shoulder, spoke to them. "We could never have finished the bridge without you, I can't tell you how much we're going to miss you."
"Do be careful." Tsunami cheekily commented.
"Thank you for everything." Kakashi started.
Inari couldn't hold the tears in, breaking down into a bawling mess he sprinted an launched himself into Naruto's side. "I promised myself I wouldn't cry." Naruto smiled fondly at the boy.
"Never be scared to cry when you're happy Inari. It shows you're human. And don't worry, we'll be back."
"You swear you will?" Naruto ruffled the boy's hair as he looked down at the quivering mess. "Of course."
Naruto pushed the boy away from him, holding him at arm's length. Making sure to look him in the eyes as he spoke. "Make sure when I see you again you've become something for everyone to be proud of. If not for them or for you, then for me, you got that." Inari for his part calmed hi breathing as he maintained eye-contact.
Not trusting his voice, he nodded furiously.
The seven shinobi turned to leave, as they walked away Tazuna spoke to himself. "It was all his doing, that boy made you stronger Inari, and you intern made the rest of us stronger. It was thanks to that boy we are able to build a bridge to a place we've never known, a place where we found our courage."
"A place to fulfill our dreams."
A villager spoke up. "Say, speaking of the bridge, now that it's finished. Shouldn't we name it?"
"Yes, of course." Tazuna replied, he'd been thinking on its name since the beginning of its construction, but his choice had been made with days left before it was finished. "And I know just the name."
"You do? What?"
"We'll call it… The Great Naruto Bridge!"
The party of ninja walked across the bridge.
Asuma was thinking of how differently he would train his students, he would not want them to be in a situation like that ever again. He would work them to the bone, he would never watch let them die or worse, get themselves killed because of inadequacies due to a lack of training.
Ino and Sakura were bickering as usual, they had not been exposed to what the others had. Though both knew that things would have to change.
Choji and Shikamaru were conversing, not on the usual trivial matters of the best flavour of chips, but of training regiments and formations. They would never be underprepared; they would be on top of every confrontation they had.
Kakashi was reading his book, though this one was different. It was still written by Jiraiya, but it was an earlier novel.
'Tales of a Gutsy Ninja' The title read, Kakashi couldn't help but compare the character in this book to Naruto, heck he was named after the character. He knew that the boy had to overcome adversity, he had complete faith that the boy could.
Sasuke was strolling with his hands in his pockets, he was angered slightly be his lack of involvement in the plan. He was supposed to act when Sai ran decoy later on but Zabuza hadn't survived long enough, Naruto's beating of him had come as unexpected. That quelled his anger, if only slightly.
Sai was Sai, no one had any clue what the boy was thinking, but something had changed. His face held a tinge of sadness and confusion, he would ask Danzo later when giving his debriefing.
And Naruto, well, he had some thinking to do.
"You sure about that name Tazuna?" The man chuckled at the uncertainty. "It's a name that brought us good luck, it will do the same for the bridge. I think this bridge will stand for a long, long time."
He looked at the distant group.
"Perhaps it will even be famous one day, the name Naruto, known throughout the world. That would be something, wouldn't it?"
~ Three Days Later, The Hokage's Office ~
"I see, that will be all." Hiruzen stated. "All but Kakashi, Asuma and Naruto leave, you're dismissed." Sai left in his usual body flicker; the rest slowly flied out the office door. Sakura proceeded to pester Sasuke about spending time together, which he vehemently refused. Squad '10' left together going to Yakiniku Q, Asuma had promised congratulatory lunch for their first successful mission outside of the village, an a-rank at that.
The two sensei turned to their leader for him to speak. "You told me about the seal, has it weakened?" Kakashi shook his head. "None that me or Naruto-kun could see Hokage-sama, though having Jiraiya see it couldn't hurt."
"I will do just that, thank you." Kakashi was disappointed at the response, but he knew that was all they could do.
"Asuma." The Jonin straightened in response. "I am sorry for putting your team through thi-" He was cut off by the younger Sarutobi, clearly in a rush to leave.
"Don't fret Hokage-sama."
"No, I am sorry for what I did, and I can only say congratulations on the mission, you have a fine squad. That and I'm proud, she always was too." Asuma frowned, the man had always put his role before parental duties, so this was new. He also referred to his mother, Biwako Sarutobi, a strict woman. But she cared more for her children than anyone else, she would make sure that they were always ready and cleaned up.
"Thank you… Hokage-sama" Hiruzen beamed, he just wanted to know that Asuma knew how much he cared, it was hard to show because of his position.
"That is all, now you have some genin to attend to." Both gave a nod, disappearing in a cloud of smoke. "Now Naruto, how are you." The boy's frown didn't leave his face. "To be honest I don't know, I'm just trying to understand, that's all." He admitted.
"What is it that you wish to understand?"
"The way of shinobi. Whether they're just tools for killing and destruction or if it is something else." Hiruzen thought about this, Kushina had a similar problem. She struggled to come to terms with this fact, as she was so honest and straight forward in her beliefs she disagreed wholeheartedly.
"And if you decide that it is?"
"It should change, no one should live like that, I might not be that change but that doesn't mean I won't try. To stop people living lives like Zabuza and Haku, that's what should change."
"While you are more silent, you are still Naruto-kun, it's great to see. Never change, do not forget who you are. Do not be afraid to be who you are."
Naruto nodded absently.
"Now, I've seen that sword, I could assign you a sensei for that?" Naruto frowned, he was not interested in training with Neko, not again. If it was someone else, he would be glad to accept. "Who would that be Hokage-sama?"
"Hayate Gekko, elite Jonin. The foremost ninja in the skill of Kenjutsu, he has technique scrolls for larger blades and can help you learn. Though this will not be as frequent as your used to."
He remembered Neko often talking about the man, so he assumed that it would be prudent to turn down the opportunity.
"That would be great Hokage-sama." A little bit of life returning to his voice. Pleasing the man behind the desk. "Wonderful, you are dismissed, I hope you find the answers you are look-"
The door shot open as a small yellow blur charged in. "Old man! I challenge you!" Naruto had been leaving when the boy bumped into him. He looked down to see the young boy who was giving him a murderous glare. Shrugging it off he thanked the Hokage and began to leave once more.
"What the hell?" the little boy screamed; another figure rounded the corner to gaze at the situation. This one looked to be in his late twenties, a bandanna headband and circular sunglasses. He was blocking the exit.
'It's that kid! Of course, The Nine-tailed fox, the worst kind of troublemaker' The man thought, pushing his glasses up the bridge of his nose. "Honourable grandson!" he called out.
The boy stomped up behind Naruto and gripped the bottom of his jacket. "What do you think your doing? You can't walk into me and just leave!" he shouted pointing at the boy.
Naruto was not amused by the little display, so he made his way to the door, ignoring the boy, which in turn further infuriated him. "Apologise to the honourable grandson! He's the honourable grandson of the honourable Third Hokage!"
'That stopped him, just like all the rest. Now that he knows who I am, he won't dare lay a finger on me.' The boy thought triumphantly, further proving Naruto's next point.
"Honourable this, honourable that. I see a man who worked for his title and a spoilt brat riding off his coattails. He ran into me, if anything I deserve an apology." Naruto ground out. The man was affronted by the lack of respect shown. He remained still in his blocking of the doorway.
'This guy's… different' was the boy's second thought, he was not used to being treated like this. He always received pampered treatment, like he was glass, no one would say anything that might be harmful.
"Move." It was one word, but it meant a whole lot more. 'Move or you'll end up in serious pain!' was the most common translation. Nevertheless, the man held firm, Naruto sighed, he didn't care enough, using the leaf body flicker he vanished.
The man who donned sunglasses turned to the boy. "Listen carefully, you are the honourable grandson of the honourable Third Hokage. Riff raff like this will draw you into a fight, even though he deserves it." Hiruzen and the boy frowned. "You see, he's far beneath you. Do not stoop to his level, as your elite ninja trainer, I am never wrong which means I'm always right. I'm far above the other trainers so heed my every word."
Turning away from the boy to look out the window.
"Your goal is to become the next Hokage, I can teach you the best way to do it, indeed, due to my great skill I can take you quickly and easily to the top. You understand me, right honourable grandson?"
When he finally looked down, he noticed the vacant space that was once occupied by the boy. Frantically scouring the room, he turned to the Hokage.
"Where'd he go now?!" Ebisu asked himself in his hysteria. "I think he followed Naruto, though I have no idea where they're going."
"He's with Naruto! That's a disaster!" Sprinting out of the room the Hokage could hear one thing.
"Honourable grandson!"
~ With Naruto ~
He had seated himself on his father's head, it was still the best place in the village to think. Looking out on the village, he thought of what he promised Haku. The people he found precious were all here, they too had people close to them and so on. To save everyone from the gruesome truth he would protect everyone.
He was torn from his thoughts as a light scuffling of feet made themselves known. He glanced upwards, tilting his head backwards to see a small figure wrapped in a beige towel. This was amusing, he remembered when he thought that was hiding, it was nostalgic.
"What is it?" Naruto asked, the moving towel slightly shifted to reveal a set of black eyes peaking our from underneath it. "Oh, it's you, come to apologise?" He taunted, if the boy was anything like him, he would burst a blood vessel in anger.
"No! But the rumours about you are true, you really are good!" Once again pointing a finger at the older bit he spoke. "Alright! I'll be your apprentice and you'll be my trainer!"
Naruto was dumbfounded, he'd completely forgotten whatever he was just thinking about. "And afterward you've gotta show me some super cool ninja technique to destroy the old man."
"This is some sort of joke, isn't it?" Naruto asked in confusion. "No, I need a new trainer! Please boss?"
"Huh?" 'Boss, that doesn't sound so bad.' He thought giddily. "Boss?" Naruto confirmed, he would humour the kid.
"Yeah! You're the boss! Boss! Boss! Boss!" Naruto smiled at the enthusiasm; it was just like when Anko had agreed to train him. He wouldn't let the thought of her weigh him down.
"Well, let's get started, shall we?" Naruto stood up and joined the boy above him. He walked over to the base of the nearest tree. "What I'm about to show you is not some 'super cool ninja technique', it's a control exercise that helps you use all of your Jutsu's more efficiently."
The boy was on the fence, it wasn't some one-hit technique, but it would help when he needed it. Sensing the indecisiveness, he showed the boy what he meant. Placing one foot on the tree, it gripped, then taking another few steps, he was perfectly parallel with the ground.
"Wow! That's so cool!" He was more like Naruto than either expected.
Instantly he came around to the idea.
"Now, your young so it's going to be tough."
"Okay, okay how do it do it?" the boy was bouncing around in anticipation. He was ecstatic that he could learn something like this, his previous trainer had only helped him with the academy jutsu and history. That stuff was no fun, this was different.
"Calm down." Naruto knew that if when he was younger, he calmed down during training he would be levels above where he is now. Something confused him about the boy.
"Before we begin, why did you burst into Hokage-sama's office professing to defeating him like that?" The boy's mood sullened, clearly a tough topic.
"My grandfather named me Konohamaru after the ancient name of the village. So, it should be easy to remember but no one calls me that name, not one person in the whole village. That's because when they look at me, they don't really see me, all they see is the honourable grandson of the Third Hokage. No one knows who I am, I can't stand it anymore, it's like I'm invisible. Like I don't exist, I hate that."
'Konohamaru's just like me.' Naruto recognised, he remembered when he was that age and all he wanted was to be respected, he still did. Konohamaru clenched his fists as he studied the meadows.
"That's the reason I have to become the Hokage now! So, people can know who I am!" The drive for success was there, Naruto acknowledged that, but the boy wasn't ready to start heavy training let alone run a village.
"You know, people are only going to think that you became Hokage because of your grandfather and looking at you they'd be right. Some brat can't become Hokage because they beat some senile man, not just after a day or two. Your grandfather worked for decades to become Hokage, you haven't even lived that long." Naruto didn't want to rile the boy up, as funny as it was, he just needed Konohamaru to understand.
"What?!" Konohamaru screamed, just because he was training him it didn't mean that he could get off treating him like that.
"You don't get it, not yet. Spouting that you're gonna be the next Hokage isn't that simple, do you know what you'll have to do?"
"What?" The little bot could take whatever was thrown at him.
"You're going to send people you care about away on missions where chances of survival won't be high. And when they don't survive, you're going to have to tell their families that what you sent them to do got their loved one's killed. Can you do that?"
"Oh…" Konohamaru up until then had idolised his grandfather, not as a leader but as the strongest ninja in the village. He was mistaken in the simplicity, there was no chance that he could do that to anyone.
"I definitely couldn't do that; I'm fighting for a world without that. There will never be a world without danger but if we have peace it's made that much easier." Konohamaru looked on in awe, this kid who knocked him over, who acted nothing like the rest of the villagers was incredible.
"Your hurdle is your grandfather's legacy, he was the student of the Second Hokage, that's a lot to live up to. My hurdle is that I'm not incredibly well liked due to something out of my control so becoming Hokage will be long and arduous, but that won't stop me, and it shouldn't stop you either. Because if you can't even come out of your grandfather's shadow what chance do have of being Hokage, let alone a good one?"
"You think that you need shortcuts to being Hokage, to be quicker. There are no shortcuts, that position requires dedication if you're not willing to give that then you'll never be Hokage."
Konohamaru took in what he was saying but something stuck. "You wanna be Hokage too?"
"You bet! I'm going to be the best Hokage yet, I won't die until I do! Now let's get to your training!" Konohamaru gave a stiff nod, he knew now what he had to do.
The two trained on tree climbing for close to three hours, Konohamaru had shown incredible improvement. "You seem to have inherited the Sarutobi chakra control. Your grandfather and uncle are the same, Asuma uses chakra weapons as his main style of attack and your grandfather has a mastery of the five elements."
'Who knew the old man was so cool?' the boy thought. 'Uncle Asuma too!' Naruto beckoned the boy down who was resting on a branch halfway up the tree. "We've trained for long enough, any longer and you'll injure yourself. That won't help you become Hokage now, will it?"
Konohamaru stood up, hands on hips, just as he prepared to jump off the tree his foot came out from underneath him. For a few seconds he fought to recover his balance when he toppled over the edge of the branch, just as Naruto was about to leap into stop him Konohamaru swung down the branch and was hanging upside down by his feet.
"Why don't I think this will end well?" Naruto muttered to himself, the boy on the other hand was cackling maniacally, impressed with his prank.
Just as Naruto finished, he heard a distinct popping sound, looking up he saw that the boy's feet had become detached from the branch. Naruto shot into action, bolting up the tree he leapt and caught Konohamaru in mid-air before landing safely on the ground.
"You scared me for a second there." Naruto said, the reaction he received was a wide-eyed look and a tight hug from the small boy.
Ruffling his hair, he said. "Let's go get a drink, shall we?" Konohamaru nodded into his chest, he put him back on his feet and began walking to the nearest vendor.
The pair had been conversing for some time now, simple things like their favourite Hokage's. Konohamaru said Hashirama and his grandfather and Naruto told him it was Tobirama and Minato, not mentioning any relation. They talked about favourite weapons and Konohamaru asked about the massive sword on his back.
Naruto had given a brief summary, saying that he didn't want Zabuza or Haku to be forgotten and that this blade would help. Naruto felt a presence approaching, turning his head around he saw the man from before.
"I found you!" He called out. 'The Nine-Tailed Fox.' He thought, Naruto recognised the look and frowned, he was not intimidated.
"So honourable grandson-"
"His name is Konohamaru, you'd do best to respect it and call him that." Naruto said calmly, the boy nodded in agreement.
"You'd also do best to not tell me how to teach my student after you steal him away from me." The man returned, hotly, the brat needed to know his place.
"You do not threaten me. I will not cower to you." Once again there was no fear in his voice. "You should, you are merely a genin while I am an elite Jonin."
"Ebisu, I've seen, you are a special Jonin, not elite. Do not lie to me, you say that I should fear you. Look at the blade on my back, the Executioners blade, previously owned by Zabuza Momochi. I defeated him and you do not hold a candle to his skill." Zabuza was technically killed by his wounds, but Ebisu would never know that.
"Are you trying to fight, upstart?" Ebisu questioned. "No, I just want you to call Konohamaru by his name. If you asked, that's all he ever wanted, he doesn't want to be known as the 'honourable grandson'." That stopped Ebisu in his tracks. "He just wants to be recognised, so please for his sake, give him that luxury." Naruto left in a swirl of leaves.
Konohamaru charged at Ebisu. "You scared the boss away!" Ebisu juggled trying to dodge the uncoordinated attacks from the boy with explaining himself and the twinge of guilt brought on Naruto's words.
"Please calm down. If you do this, I can't train you properly, you won't get the fast track to being Hokage."
"There's no such thing as the fast track to being Hokage! You have to earn it through dedication, that's what the boss said!" Ebisu was floored, this boy who he'd written off entirely had come in and changed Konohamaru in less than a day, something that he'd been trying to do for two years.
"I see, that's all the more reason to train is it not?" Ebisu would give Naruto the benefit of the doubt, a second chance.
A few people were sceptical of Naruto 'Not being fast enough'. Think about this, if he didn't react and watched on, you know when you're scared, dear stuck in headlights and everything.
Naruto took Zabuza's blade, it always seemed like a waste to leave it behind, as Naruto has grown more healthily he has more height to use the blade.