"Love is the reason why there is pain. When we lose someone precious to us, hate is born. Vengeance is the product of that hate and death follows. But in death there is only more hate. This will give rise to more pain. In this cursed world we live in, it is a cycle of hatred that will not cease."
A man with orange hair and multiple piercings was standing over Naruto. In his hands a black rod came down to stab the Hyuga heiress. Everything was quiet, then Naruto's eyes bleed red.
Now a skinny man with red hair was speaking to Naruto.
"You ask me why I'm doing this? My answer won't change anything. But if we have a little chat, then maybe. My goal is something not even Jiraiya could achieve. I've told you before. Through death I will bring Peace and Justice."
"Peace? Justice? You've gotta be kidding. You've gotta be freaking kidding me. My Master! My Teachers! My Friends! My Village! How can you say that when you destroyed them all?!"
Naruto was red in the face when he yelled back. His eyes held unshed tears and his fists were curled in anger.
"Then what do you want?"
"I want to defeat you and bring peace to the world of ninjas!"
"I see. That's wonderful. That is justice. But my family, my friends, my village were all destroyed too. Do you really think the ninjas of Konoha are the only ones allowed to talk about peace and justice?"
At this Naruto hesitated. Confusion crossed his face.
"What do you mean?
The red head closed his rinnegan eyes and spoke.
"The land of fire and Konoha have grown too big. The nations make war to protect their interests and national gain, if not, the people would starve. But the battleground was always our small village, our small land. And each time, our land laid waste and people were left impoverished. After many wars, the great land stabilized and our small country was left to bear the wounds of wars. We both want the same thing. We both want the peace Jiraiya spoke of. You and I are no different. We're both working for our own justice. The justice I have carried out against Konoha, is exactly the same as what you're trying to carry out against me. Everyone feels the pain of loss the same. We both know that pain. You are working for your justice, and I for mine. We are just ordinary people driven to revenge in the name of justice. But if revenge is called justice, then that justice breeds yet more revenge. And that becomes a chain of hatred, living within it, aware of the past, predicting the future. That is what it means to know history. We cannot help but know that people cannot understand each other. The world of ninjas is ruled by hatred. How would you face this hatred to build peace? Let me hear you answer."
Naruto didn't speak for a long time. When he did only honesty and resignation shone through his words.
"I don't know. I just don't know."
The redhead sighed and nodded his head. He understood Naruto's lack of answer.
"I created Akatsuki in order to break that chain of hatred. I can do it. That's why I need the nine-tailed beast's power. With the power of all the tailed beasts, I will build a weapon far more powerful than what it took to destroy this village. It will be able to destroy an entire land in an instant. The world will know true pain, and the fear of that pain will put an end to war. It will lead the world to stability and peace."
"That's not real peace. It's nothing but a lie!"
"People are stupid. If I don't do this, there will be no peace. Eventually, time will pass and the pain will heal. Eventually, checkmate's power will weaken and people will begin fighting again. This time, they will use the weapon themselves and once more know true pain. And for a short time, peace will come again. It will give birth to a short period of peace within the endless chain of hatred. That's my wish."
A blue haired woman appeared when the redhead rinnegan user began to cough up blood.
"Nagato, don't overdo it. You've used up so much chakra."
"Konan, I can see peace."
"You are a curious fellow. You remind me of how I once was. I wasn't able to believe in Jiraiya. Nor...could I believe in myself. However...I have a feeling that, unlike me, you will walk towards a different future. I think I shall believe in you...Naruto Uzumaki."
"Nagato, it'll kill you!"
"Konan, forgive me. Rinne Tensei!"
"Kakashi-nii, what does being a shinobi mean to you?"
The two of you were at the memorial stone. You had just finished cleaning it and where now tracing the names carved into it. More specifically you were tracing Nohara Rin, knowing how much meaning that name had to Kakashi.
"Well, it means I protect and serve my village. My faith lies unwaveringly with the Hokage and Konoha's best interest."
Well that means close to nothing for me.
"I see.."
"It also means I can protect the ones I love, like you chibi-chan! Why, are you considering becoming a shinobi?"
Were you? You didn't know. You wanted all of the cool perks a shinobi received but also the freedom to act when you deemed it necessary. If you became a shinobi then you were surrendering your right to choose, you would be working under someone with their own agenda. It was the Sokovia accords all over again.
"..no I don't think I want to be a shinobi, Kakashi-nii."
"Then what do you wish to be when you grow older chibi-chan?"
You wanted to go back. You wanted to see your friends, you wanted to go back to saving the world from aliens and rouge super soldiers. You didn't want to deal with your father or the rising hate directed towards you from the citizens of your village, you didn't want to feel trapped in the world of politics. You wanted to be free. You wanted to do good without the need for a leash.
"I want to be a hero."
Your response must have either shocked him or bored him because he never responded.
"Aniki, why doesn't father love me anymore?"
"What? Why do you think he doesn't love you?"
You and Shikamaru were at home playing a slow game of shogi. Both of you had already completed your duties for the day and were simply relaxing before going to bed. You had been thinking about your now nonexistent relationship with your father.
"He doesn't talk to me unless he's reprimanding me and even then it's for small things that don't matter. He never taught me how to play shogi even though I know he taught you when you were my age. Asuma-nii had to teach me. He smiles for everyone else but when he sees me his mood just plummets. Ever since that incident in the Nara forest, he's changed with me. Mom keeps telling me that it's because he's stressed but why is he only stressed when he sees me?"
"Things are complicated Ayumi-ch-"
"Then explain it to me! Explain to me why father would rather ignore my existence than smile at me!"
"Imouto, some things are better left unsaid alright?"
"..he regrets having me, doesn't he. I'm more trouble than I'm worth."
"No Ayumi, that's not it. Look I'm sure he's just-"
"I'm going to bed."
And without letting your brother see your tears cascading down your face, you got up and walked straight into your room. Locking the door, you allowed yourself to cry like the child you were. Eventually crying yourself into a fitful sleep.
When you opened your eyes late at night, you knew something was not right. You didn't know exactly what was going on but something about yourself felt off. You felt like you had to go outside, like you were being called by someone or something. So you got up and went.
Walking into your chilly front yard revealed two people, both wore masks and cloaks but you couldn't help but recognize them.
"Fū, Torune, is it time?"
Both shinobi relaxed when you said their names. Fū was the one to answer you.
"Yes Ayumi-chan. Danzo-sama has finally deemed it time for you to start your training with him."
"Alright, let's not keep the big man waiting."
And with that, the three of you were off.
"You're correct, I do intend to make you into a soldier. Except you're going to be stronger than your father."
"Any training you give me, I will cherish forever, Danzo-sama. You are Konoha's greatest assets."
"You flatter me little one, I simply have many years of experience to pass on. However if you accept this help then it'll have to stay secret. You can keep a secret can't you Ayumi-chan?"
"Anything for you Danzo-sama."
"Perfect. Ayumi-chan, I promise that in two years you will be stronger than your fool of a father. You will never feel weak and rejected again."
"Danzo-sama, how will you keep this from my family. My father is still tense about the situation from almost two years ago. If I join you, he will not rest until he uncovers us."
"Yes Ayumi-chan you are right. Normally I would pull you from your home but for you I will make an exception. We will only meet during the nights and when your family is working. They will never know about you being my successor."
At that a genuine smile made itself evident on his face.
"Please, now that I am going to teach you call me Danzo sensei. These two men are going to help you get familiar with our training ground, they'll also give you a special uniform to wear so everyone here knows you are my special pupil."
At a simple hand gesture the two masked men stepped forward. Dazo placed his large hand on your head and gave you one last smile before he turned and began to leave.
"Fū, Torune, make sure my child is cared for. Make her feel welcome and answer any questions she may have. She is my special pupil after all."
"Hai Danzo-sama."
"Hai Danzo-sama."
With that he left. There was a mountain of questions you had, Danzo's behavior was confusing. He seemed grandfatherly with you, nothing like the brutal warhawk you had assumed. You coughed and shivered, remembering that you were wet and cold. One of the two men, Torune, moved closer and removed his cloak, draping it over your small form.
Turning curious eyes towards his masked face you couldn't help but feel your heart break.
Odds are he was taken at my age or older, he's probably been through horrible things. I'm sorry I wasn't there to help, but I'm here now. I will give you back your freedom.
"Ayumi-chan, let's get you into warm clothes. Are you hungry? We can get you something to eat. Come. We must introduce you to the rest of the...of our family."
Torune fumbled when saying that word and Fū stiffened but neither showed any hostility towards you.
"Is everyone nice?"
Play the game, I'm just a little kid who doesn't know shit.
"Of course, you are Danzo-sama's special pupil after all."
At his words he held out his hand to you. You gave him a small smile before grabbing it. He helped you down from your chair and led you closer to Fū. You were led by both men down the dark hallway into a courtyard lit by the moonlight.
At least one hundred masked, cloaked figures were kneeling in front of a small pedestal. As you drew closer you noticed all of the figures lifted their heads. You were placed on the podium as Fū spoke.
"This is Nara Ayumi. Danzo-sama has chosen her to be his pupil. He asks that we treat her with the respect and kindness she deserves. Should any of you have a problem with that please inform Danzo-sama. Ayumi-chan, would you like to say anything?"
Instinct took over as you bowed and softly mumbled.
"It's a pleasure to meet all of you please take care of me."
After meeting all one hundred and thirty ROOT members you were led into another room with a dentist chair. A chill ran down your spine and it didn't go unnoticed by Torune and Fū. Fū bent down to your height and placed a comforting hand atop your head.
"I know it looks scary but both of us will be here the whole time. Everyone in ROOT gets a cool tattoo on their tongue. Those who are really strong get more tattoos on their body. It'll hurt a bit but only for a second. Once it's done we can go get your own custom uniform."
You nodded but held onto their hands tighter, the chair shared an uncanny resemblance to the one you had been forced into back in the red room. You waited for a while, maybe twenty minutes before Danzo appeared again.
"Danzo sensei! You're the one who gives us tattoos?"
Danzo's face lit up with subtle joy at the change in my way of addressing him. He really did seem like a grandfather.
"That's right little one, have Torune and Fū already told you what to expect?"
"They said it would hurt but only for a little."
"That's right little one, I promise to make it as painless as possible. Now law down for me and be as still as possible."
You made your way towards the chair and sat down. Immediately you felt like you were back in the red room, the Madame was only seconds away from entering. Your nervousness was clear so Torune spoke.
"Ayumi-chan, would you feel better if we held your hands?"
"..yes please."
And so you sat there with Torune holding your left hand while Fū stood close by. You forced your body to calm down, whatever they had in store for you here couldn't be worse than the red room. Snapping on some latex gloves Danzo moved to stand over you.
"Alright Ayumi-chan, now just open your mouth and stick your tongue out as far as possible. This tattoo is being placed on your tongue."
Deciding to keep up the charade you compiled without hesitating. Knowing you needed to keep up appearances you squeezed Tortune's hand as a sign of fear. Danzo ran through at least fifty hand seals in a quick fashion and then touched two of his fingers to the back of your tongue. Instantly burning pain spread through your mouth. Tears gathered in your eyes but you made no noise, whatever interest Danzo had in you had to stay, it was the only way you could set your plan in motion.
True to their word the pain began to subside after only a few moments. Fū gently wiped the tears before they ran into your hairline as Torune squeezed your small hand. Danzo removed his gloves and helped you to sit up, putting his hand atop your head once more.
"You're very brave Ayumi-chan, I knew you would be the perfect pupil for me. Now Fū and Torune will take you to get your own custom uniform and mask. Anything you want you can get. You two, make sure she eats something before returning her back to her room. We'll see eachother soon little one. Take care."
With that Danzo once again left you to your two guards. Gently you tugged Torune's sleeve to grab his attention.
"C-can I get water please?"
A gentle chuckle and a pat on the head later you were walking through the hallways again with a warm water bottle clutched in your hands. You entered a giant room filled to the brim with Anbu issued uniforms, black and white cloaks, and blank masks. You openly gawked at the sheer amount of supplies only snapping back to reality when Fū lightly tapped your back.
"Let's find you a couple sets of uniform shall we? Do you have a preferred color?"
"Black and dark blue is fine Fū."
"Good choice Ayumi-chan."
Five sets of fitted uniforms later you were given a white cloak with the kanji for 'Valued' sewed into the center back. When it came time to pick your mask you already knew what you wanted.
"Is it possible to get the codename 'Widow'? "
"Of course Ayumi-chan, would you like to guide us in the design?"
And so a plain white mask became your next veil. Thick black strokes flowed from the center of your mask to the edges, the center resembled that of a spider with a bright red hourglass near your forehead. In the very center of the red hourglass the kanji for kill was painted in a dark burgundy color.
Everything was as Danzo had stated, whenever you asked for something you were given it, all of your uniforms were custom to your small size and had the kanji for 'Valued' sewn into them. When you had asked why it was necessary Torune stated that since you were now Danzo-sama's pupil you were to be given the same respect as him.
It was all very unnerving but by the end of the visit you were treated to a BBQ buffett with a vast majority of the members of ROOT, all of whom were very polite and welcoming to you.
When the Fū and Torune informed you that it was a quarter to four in the morning you asked to be brought back home. Your father usually woke up a quarter past four so it would be best if you made it home before then. Bidding the rest of the members goodmorning you allowed Fū to scoop you up in his arms and head back home.
Body flickering back into your room Fū gently placed you back into your toddler bed and covered you with your blankets. When the time came both he and Torune would come to bring you to your first training session with Danzo-sama, until then you were to go about your life as usual.
Sleepily nodding to the instructions you failed to notice Fū's chakra invading your body, you didn't notice it until they were long gone and your door burst open, revealing your father and brother, kunai in hand and shadows ready. Frightened, you let out a loud shriek and turned tired eyes towards your door. Your brother made a beeline for you and scooped you up into his arms, you weakly turned your head to follow your father's movements throughout your room.
His dark eyes were calculated and cold, his chakra vibrating with unspoken vexation. Your brother was much the same, except he kept his chakra more concealed as to not overwhelm you. You were insanely tired and your head was pounding so you couldn't help but let out a pained whine. Your brother quickly took you out of your room and into his, plopping you onto his bed and leaving quickly.
You could barely keep your eyes open by the time he returned, a cup of warm milk and your blanket in his arms Placing the cup on his nightstand, he collected you in his arms, effectively wrapping the blanket around you before speaking.
"Sorry for waking you imouto, there was a strange and unfamiliar chakra signature in your room and given what happened two years ago in the hospital we couldn't take any chances. You must be pretty tired huh? We did ruin your beauty sleep so for that I apologize. Drink the milk, it'll help relax you."
Too tired to fight you allowed him to tip the cup until the warm liquid was filling your mouth. You really must have been tired because a few droplets escaped the corners of your mouth. This caused Shikamaru to gently laugh as he placed the cup onto his beside counter. Shikamaru gathered you up in his arms and crawled under his sheets, laying on his back and placing you onto his chest. He lightly rubbed your back until all you knew was nothing.
Weeks later you were still a bit confused by what had transpired between you and Danzo. Rationally, you understood that he was a bad man. He had essentially killed off the Uchiha clan as a precaution and blamed it on a thirteen year old boy. And yet you couldn't help but feel extremely grateful to him.
He treated you like a grandfather would his granddaughter, he gave you the attention you so desperately wanted from your father. He praised you when you succeeded in anything and gave you advice when you were having troubles. He made you feel safe and loved and really that's all you ever wanted.
A few weeks before your fourth birthday you finally caved. You had another dream of what was to come and you could no longer stand to keep it all to yourself so you waited until the sun had risen and casually made your way downstairs. You hadn't been having breakfast with your family for months now, in fact you stopped eating breakfast all together, opting to eat a large lunch instead.
Today was no different, you dressed in your usual attire, grabbed your backpack and made your way towards the door, pointedly ignoring the stares your family was sending you. Slipping on your sandals you muttered a 'bye' before leaving the house. You waited until you were on the outskirts of the compound before body flickering outside of your shishou's office. Knocking twice and waiting to be granted permission to enter you went over exactly what you wanted to say to her.
"Ayumi-chan, you're early today."
"Hai shishou, I was hoping I could speak to you privately and that includes anbu."
"Alright give me a second. Anbu, your dismissed until I call for you again. Now then, what do you wish to speak about?"
You inhaled deeply and suddenly a rush of emotions hit you. You never cried in public, especially not in front of people like your shishou and yet here you were. Deciding to rip the bandaid off once and for all you inhaled again and then blurted out.
"I can see the past, present, and future."
After a long and emotional confession on your end, Tsunade had swept you up into her arms and comforted you until you were only sniffling. She hadn't believed you at first but when you quickly revealed details from the second shinobi world war that hadn't been officially documented, she gave in. You confessed everything, every event you had dreamed of and every event that was bound to happen, you told her about it all in as much detail as you could muster up.
"Gaki, I cannot even begin to imagine how you must have felt with such a big burden on your shoulders. Rest assured that I will help you in any way that I can, nobody but myself and Jiraiya will know about your gift. Fuck this explains so much gaki, this is the reason you've been training so hard huh? To protect your friends and family?"
You nodded and felt her hold you tighter, unconsciously relaxing into her hold. How long had it been since someone comforted you? Before you knew it, you were sound asleep in your shishou's arms.
As much as it pained you to admit, Danzo was an insanely good sensei. One year in ROOT beat ten years in the red room in terms of accumulated power. You could already perform multiple high ranking jutsus with two nature releases: lightning and water. Sensei had been immensely proud at the fact that his pupil held such a strong combination of chakra natures. Danzo-sensei also had plenty of insight to help you when you finally "awaken" your Kagemane no jutsu. Both of you worked together to form jutsus that you coined as "shadow chains" and "shadow ball", though you were fairly certain at least one of those was a former pokemon move.
In theory, once you had mastered Kagemane no jutsu then you should be able to produce shadows from any part of your body, not just your own shadow. If you could do so then you could form chains that sprout from your back which paralyze and consume on contact. These chains would be modelled after the famous Uzumaki Chains, only instead of pure chakra they would be made of the users shadows. This would be used as a defensive sealing method.
The shadow ball idea was really just a rasengan made of shadows. The user would accumulate as much yin chakra into their hands and bring them together, forming a rasengan in both hands. This shadow rasengan could then be thrown or driven into it's target. This would be a major damage dealer using Kagemane.
The only problem with these theoretical power moves were that they were just that, theories. The biggest obstacle in being able to actually try and create these jutsus is that the Kagemane no Jutsu was not an actual physical jutsu. It uses the users own shadow, a 2D object, to merge with the shadow of another immobilizing them. To make these jutsus viable then the user had to be able to make their shadows into a 3D extension of themselves. If you and Danzo-sensei could just figure out that one key ingredient to making your shadows go from 2D to 3D then it opened up a whole new realm of possibilities.
Your taijutsu had also improved greatly, given his old age one may think Danzo would be slow but no! The geezer was almost on par with Rock Lee and his punches left you bloody and bruised. He made sure to emphasize how powerful learning to control the eight inner gates was. When the two of you would spar, he would constantly push you to reach those limiters and break through them. Which is why you can now open gate one through three.
Genjutsu had not been something you were gifted in but Danzo-sensei had dismissed that saying it was the weakest form of combat. And even then you were above the average chunin in this skill.
Danzo-sensei also taught you the intricacies of diplomacy and politics. With the rate at which you were improving he knew you would achieve high positions both inside and outside of ROOT so you had to be well versed in local and international politics.
"By this time next year you'll have surpassed your father and the jounin in this village little one. I knew you were the perfect pupil for me."
Your pride had soared at his words, you were the product of his teachings, the fruit of his wisdom and you were proud of that. You and him had grown close so much so that it was difficult to not feel real love and affection towards him. He was the grandfather you had never had.
Aside from your conflicting feelings regarding your sensei you had also made almost unbelievable progress in your medical ninjutsu. Your chakra control had always been superb but now you were leading surgeries with Shizune and working part time at the hospital as a nurse practitioner. Tsunade was extremely proud of your rapid growth though murmurs of you being a prodigy on par with Uchiha Itachi were beginning to rise and you honestly had no idea how you felt about that.
Tsunade knew you were training in other fields than iryo ninjutsu but she believed you were teaching yourself. You couldn't tell her you were in ROOT, much less that you were Danzo's pupil, she would kill you, then Danzo and then you again.
It was crazy to know that a year had already gone by, your fifth birthday would be happening in about a month and Sensei said that he had a very good present for you. With that promise in mind you went back to your routine of living a lie.
All of that had lead to today, you were observing a simple surgery with Shizune-senpai when Izumo and Kotetsu barged in shouting nonsense. You were able to make out very few words in their entire speech: Naruto...Lord Jiraiya...Tsunade-sama...Ayumi-chan.
Catching their drift you said a quick goodbye to Shizune and blushed when she hugged you and kissed your forehead. Both chunin cooed at the sight as you ran towards the hokage building.
Not bothering to knock you ran into the room and threw yourself at your second mother, it was a game you both played. If she didn't catch you she owed you an afternoon out, if she did catch you, you would help her get out of doing paperwork for a day. It was a great game to play because it benefited you both. Before she could catch you, a big hand grabbed the back of your shirt, effectively stopping the game.
Confused and slightly upset you turned your head as much as you can to see who had ruined your afternoon out. A large man with white unruly hair was quirking an eyebrow at your small form. His eyes held mischief and amusement. Before you could sign some vulgar phrases at him a new voice broke the silence.
"Yah Ero-sennein, don't tell me your perving on little kids now!?"
Your blood ran cold at that voice, like hell you were gonna let yourself be pimped out. You produced a chakra thread and let it attach to one of the many kunai the man carried with him. With a quick twitch of your forefinger the kunai swiftly sliced at the arm holding you, causing you to fall towards the ground.
"Hey! You brat don't try to hurt Ero-sennin!"
The voice came from a blonde teen, the jinchuriki of the kyuubi. When your eyes locked your entire world shifted.
When your eyes opened again you no longer were in the Hokage's office but in a sewer. Instead of being completely dark the sewer had a yellow hue, the murky water completely submerging your laying body.
Before you could move to stand, you felt it. Chakra. It made the air in the sewer thick and paralyzed your entire body. This chakra was like no other you had felt before, it wasn't cool and fresh, it wasn't warm and fuzzy, it wasn't even neutral like other small children's. This chakra felt overbearing, like every breath was a mix of smoke and chlorine. It oozed anger and pain, the being it belonged to clearly in some sort of dire situation.
You managed to lift yourself up from the water and began to walk in the direction of the current. As you walked further into the sewer the chakra became more irritated, like whoever it belonged to knew you were approaching and was warning you to turn back. Ignoring it you continue down the sewer moving faster with every step.
You were sprinting as fast as your short legs would allow before you knew it, water was splashing loudly around you. You ran until the chakra was right in front of you, so thick and pungent you could almost taste it.
A giant gate stood before you, behind it glowing red eyes locked with yours. Quickly bringing your hands up you signed.
"Who are you?"
"Get the fuck out of here you pest. Don't think this gate will stop me from killing you."
"Why are you here?"
"Why the fuck does that matter to you?"
"Where are you hurt?"
"Excuse me? Who the fuck do you think you are to ask me such a stupid question?"
"When was the last time you were free from your prison?"
"..what?"
"Tell me, what is your name?"
"You vile humans call me Kyubbi."
"But that isn't your name. What is your name?"
"Why does my name matter to you? All you human's care for is your countries well being even at the cost of your humanity."
Hearing his response you quietly walked past the bars separating the two of you. Immediately the fox was pinning you to the floor with his massive paw, rage and confusion clearly evident on his face. Before he could speak again you signed to him.
"I know humans have not been kind to you or your siblings, I know all you've ever wanted was to find kindness and acceptance like the sage gave you. I can't promise you that one day you'll be free but I can promise you that I'll do everything in my power to keep you and your siblings safe!"
"What could a weak insect like you do to defend me? You would die a senseless death."
"Weakness isn't an excuse, it's a choice. I can choose to take your words and give up but in doing so I would risk the lives of people I hold very dear."
The paw pinning you slowly lifted, allowing you to stand again. A fire burned inside of you, even if it cost you your life, you would protect your family.
"Loneliness can be painful, but all it takes is one person to love you to change that. Harboring hatred and seeking revenge will never satisfy you, instead use that hatred to motivate you to be better than before."
You slowly stretched out your hand to softly lay on the fox's fur. He bristled and opened his mouth to yell but you beat him to it.
"The sage of six paths gave you a name, us humans took it away from you. I'm trying to give it back, Kurama."
At the mention of his name the fox stilled, eyes blown wide in an almost comical fashion. Before you could ask him what was wrong the world shifted once more.
"Ayumi-chan! How are you feeling? Are you lightheaded or dizzy at all?"
Standing above you was Tsunade-sama, a green glowing hand pressed against your forehead. You blinked many times, eyes adjusting to the well lit room slowly. You were still in the hokage's office, Jiraiya, Naruto, Sakura and Tsunade were all still there. Shaking your head you sat up.
"I'm fine, sorry to worry you. These are Jiraiya-sama and Naurto-san?"
Tsunade carefully picked you up and settled you on her hip, turning the both of you towards the other three shinobi in the office. Naruto was openly gaping at you in Tsunade's arms, Jiraiya was smirking and Sakura look just about done with everything. Before the three could make any remarks on your position Tsunade spoke.
"Yes, the blonde is Uzumaki Naruto and the stupid looking, white haired man next to him is Jiraiya. Naruto, Jiraiya this my youngest daughter, Ayumi-chan."
You were surprised at your introduction as the daughter of the hokage. Looking passed your shock you joyfully smiled at both men and Sakura.
"Hello, my name is Nara Ayumi. It's a pleasure to meet you both. Hi Sakura-san! It's been some time since I last saw you!"
Naruto was now making confused sounds and gesturing between both you, Tsunade and Sakura.
"Close your mouth brat! Now, before my adorable little lady fainted we were talking about Naruto and Sakura's progress. In order to determine the level at which you both are fighting you both will engage in battle with one of the best shinobi this village has to offer."
As if on cue the door to the hokage's office opened and in walked someone you held in the highest regard, one of the most splendid shinobi this village had to offer indeed.
"Yah! Shikamaru became one of the best ninjas in the village while I was gone? How?! He would rather watch clouds than train!"
At the blonde's outburst you couldn't help but smile and nudge for Tsunade to place you on your feet. Once standing you ran towards your brother, vaguely aware that there was someone else behind him.
Once close enough you launched yourself at Shikamaru, squealing when he caught you and held you close. Now that his entire genin team had become chunin, he had been tasked with leading many missions and was rarely at home. As you snuggled in the crook of his neck you were able to get a clear view of who was behind him.
The kunoichi was from the sand, she had blonde hair tied up into four pigtails and wore a black dress. A battle fan maybe twice your size was strapped onto her back and she held a gleeful glint in her eye. Sabaku no Temari, your brother's future wife, was gorgeous.
"Imouto what are you doing here? Dad said you were spending the day with Shizune-san, Hokage-sama I'm sorry if Ayumi-chan was a disturbance today. I'll be making sure she's disciplined accordingly."
At your brother's words your face morphed from that of love to scandalized. You pushed yourself back so you could be face to face with your brother.
"Disturbance? I'm a pleasure to be around but I guess you wouldn't know that since you're never home you jackass! Put me down!"
Wiggling and pushing away from your brother, he had no real choice but to let you down. Once standing you turned away from him and willed your hurt feelings to not show. Booming laughter helped move the attention away from you.
"Bwahahaha, oh she has some sass to her! This'll sure make things interesting."
Jiraiya was wiping away tears of laughter at your response to your brother's words. You sent him a scowl and he quickly quieted down.
"Ah well, Hokage-sama the delegation from Suna is leaving tomorrow morning and she just wanted to thank you in person."
The suna kunoichi walked out from behind Shikamaru and bowed deeply. After sharing a few more words you hadn't bothered to listen to, your brother left but not before trying to make you smile. You ignored him completely, still deeply hurt by his comment.
"Well, now my plan has changed. Kakashi get in here now!"
Instantly Hatake Kakashi body flickered into the office, his favorite book held open in his hand.
"Hey, hey Kakashi-sensei I got you something. It's the first issue in years, I read some of it but it was really boring but I know you really like this crap."
Naruto held a book out to Kakashi but before the copy nin could grab it Tsunade did. She gave it a look of distaste and turned to Jiraiya.
"Really idiot? Even after all these years you still write this tasteless smut? Well at least this makes my job easier."
Book in hand Tsunade made her way towards you, gently ushering you near the window. Crouching down she put up a silencing seal so no one else in the room would hear what she said to you.
"Alright squirt here's the deal. Jiraiya is mainly going to be training you in evasion and escape, however to do this he needs to know your current skill level. So, your job is going to be to deliver this book to your father. He's currently out with friends at the Akimichi restaurant your family frequents. I'm going to order that team 7 capture you at all costs. They can use ninjutsu, genjutsu and taijutsu so long as they don't hurt you too badly. They can also ask other shinobi to help in capturing you. If you complete this task then I will take you on as an apprentice and teach you everything I know about the art of healing."
Baffled at the nonsense spewing from this woman's lips you allowed the book to be pushed into your grasp. Tsunade must have been pretty drunk if she thought you stood a chance at completing your task.
Sensing your lack of confidence Tsunade lightly flicked your forehead and gave you a gentle smile.
"You're stronger than you let on Ayumi-chan, that is something I'm sure of. Use this experience to learn. If you feel an asthma attack starting, guide your chakra to your lungs to sooth it, if your heart starts hurting more than average then guide your chakra there. If it becomes too much then stop the mission and have Sakura treat you, okay? I'll be at the restaurant informing your father of this little mission and Jiraiya will be following you from a distance to gage your skill."
Standing up Tsunade lifted the silencing seal and turned towards the four shinobi in room. Without looking at you she crossed her arms and told you to go.
Not wasting a second you ran as fast as you could out the door and into the hall.
So Shikaku is still being kinda an asshole, sorry if you don't like that.
A lot of Ayumi's mannerisms are reflective of her memories as Natasha Romanoff, a soviet trained assassin but please keep in mind that she's still a child. Natasha's body and mind were trained to withstand and ignore emotion in general, she was trained to complete her missions no matter the cost. Ayumi may still remember that mindset but her body and mind are no longer accustomed to it. She has all of the intelligence and acquired knowledge from her first life but she doesn't have the proper priming to put it to good use.
I just wanted to clear this up because I know some of you will question why Ayumi is so affected by Shikaku's attitude towards her. Hopefully this clears it up a bit.
Leave a comment of what you liked or didn't, what you would like to see within this story or just whatever in general! Next update within 5-6 days!